Dārukkhandhasutta — Devatāvagga — the fourth chapter of the Sixes
Setting
Descending Vulture's Peak, near Rājagaha
Speakers
Sāriputta, addressing mendicants traveling with him
Form
A single observed object, and six parallel hypothetical determinations, each with its own stated reason
Length
~1 minute to read
Northern parallel
Element-determination through mastery of mind recurs in related meditative literature across the Chinese Āgamas; this reading guide does not assert a specific matching sutra number
Difficulty
★★☆☆☆ — brief, but resting on a distinctive and easily missed doctrinal point about what psychic power actually does
Why this discourse
Descending from Vulture's Peak with a group of mendicants, Sāriputta stops at an ordinary large tree trunk and uses it to make a precise point: a mendicant with “psychic powers who has mastered their mind” could determine this same object to be nothing but earth, water, fire, air, beautiful, or ugly — not because the tree trunk actually transforms, but because each of these elements or qualities genuinely exists within it already, available to be brought forward by a sufficiently mastered mind.
Reading guide
The teaching in one sentence
A mendicant with psychic power who has mastered their mind could determine a large tree trunk to be nothing but earth, water, fire, air, beautiful, or ugly, because each of these elements genuinely exists within the tree trunk already.
Six determinations, four elements and two qualities
The list is not uniform in kind: the first four items — earth, water, fire, air — are the canon's standard four elements (mahābhūta), while the final two — beautiful and ugly — are aesthetic qualities, not physical elements at all. Sāriputta's list moves from a familiar physical framework to a less expected extension of the same logic into perceived qualities.
The stated reason, repeated for each item
For every one of the six determinations, Sāriputta gives an identical form of reason: “because the [X] element exists in the tree trunk.” This is the discourse's real point and easily missed if read quickly: the mendicant is not described as creating or imagining these qualities, only as bringing forward, through mastery, an element already genuinely present. Water exists latently in the tree trunk as much as earth does; the psychic determination reveals rather than invents.
What 'mastery of mind' is doing here
The discourse names a specific precondition — cetovasippatta, having attained mastery over the mind — as what makes this kind of determination possible. The tree trunk itself does not change; what changes is the meditator's capacity to selectively bring one genuinely present element to the foreground of perception, a capacity dependent on the meditator's training rather than any special property of the object chosen.
Ugliness as an element, not merely a judgment
The final item is the discourse's most striking claim: that ugliness (asubha) is itself an “element” present in the tree trunk, alongside earth, water, fire, and air, rather than simply a subjective response a viewer might have. This treats an aesthetic quality with the same ontological standing as a physical element — genuinely there to be perceived, not merely projected by the perceiver.
Key terms
cetovasippatta — “having attained mastery of mind” — the discourse's stated precondition for making any of the six determinations.
iddhimā — “possessing psychic power” — paired with mastery of mind as the capacity this discourse's mendicant has.
mahābhūta — “great element” — the standard canonical term for earth, water, fire, and air, the first four of this discourse's six determinations.
pathavīdhātu — “earth element” — the first determination named, and the discourse's template for how each of the six is explained.
subhaṁ...asubhaṁ — “beautiful...ugly” — the fifth and sixth determinations, extending the element-framework from physical matter to aesthetic quality.
The text
The discourse in full: the tree trunk, and the six things a mind-mastering mendicant could determine it to be. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
A large tree trunk, on the way down from Vulture's Peak
§1So I have heard. At one time Venerable Sāriputta was staying near Rājagaha, on the Vulture’s Peak Mountain. Then Venerable Sāriputta robed up in the morning and, taking his bowl and robe, descended the Vulture’s Peak together with several mendicants. At a certain spot he saw a large tree trunk, and he addressed the mendicants, “Reverends, do you see this large tree trunk?” “Yes, reverend.”
Six things it could be determined to be
§2“If they wanted to, a mendicant with psychic powers who has mastered their mind could determine this tree trunk to be nothing but earth. Why is that? Because the earth element exists in the tree trunk. Relying on that a mendicant with psychic powers could determine it to be nothing but earth. If they wanted to, a mendicant with psychic powers who has mastered their mind could determine this tree trunk to be nothing but water. … Or they could determine it to be nothing but fire … Or they could determine it to be nothing but air … Or they could determine it to be nothing but beautiful … Or they could determine it to be nothing but ugly. Why is that? Because the element of ugliness exists in the tree trunk. Relying on that a mendicant with psychic powers could determine it to be nothing but ugly.”
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Self-check quiz
Ten questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.
Question 1 of 10
What object prompts this discourse?
Correct: B. An ordinary object used to make a precise doctrinal point.
Question 2 of 10
What six things does Sāriputta say a mind-mastering mendicant could determine the tree trunk to be?
Correct: B. Four standard elements plus two aesthetic qualities.
Question 3 of 10
What reason does Sāriputta give, in an identical form, for each of the six determinations?
Correct: B. 'Because the [X] element exists in the tree trunk' — the discourse's central, easily missed point.
Question 4 of 10
What precondition does the discourse name as necessary for making these determinations?
Correct: B. A capacity dependent on training, not a special property of the object chosen.
Question 5 of 10
How does the guide describe the shift from the first four items to the final two?
Correct: B. A notable extension of the element-framework beyond physical matter.
Question 6 of 10
What claim does the guide highlight as the discourse's most striking?
Correct: B. Treating an aesthetic quality with the same ontological standing as a physical element.
Question 7 of 10
Where is AN 6.41 set?
Correct: B. A specific location tied to Sāriputta's own dwelling place in this discourse.
Question 8 of 10
Who speaks AN 6.41?
Correct: B. One of the chapter's discourses spoken by a senior disciple rather than the Buddha.
Question 9 of 10
What does mahābhūta mean?
Correct: B. The canonical category the first four of this discourse's six items belong to.
Question 10 of 10
Does the tree trunk itself change, according to the discourse's logic?
Correct: B. The object stays the same; the mastered mind determines which genuinely present element to foreground.
