Saññāsutta — Rāgapeyyāla — the eleventh and final chapter of the Sevens
Setting
None stated in the source
Speakers
The Buddha alone, addressing the mendicants
Form
A single-sentence bare list, the third and last of three discourses opening this chapter, each giving one seven-item list in full
Length
under 1 minute to read
A direct reuse, not a fresh list
Unlike AN 7.616's genuinely new perceptions, this discourse's seven perceptions are word for word identical, in the Pali, to the list already given in full at AN 7.48 and AN 7.49 earlier in this book
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — brief, most interesting for what it reuses rather than for new content
Why this discourse
AN 7.617 closes this chapter's set of three foundational lists by reusing, word for word, the exact seven perceptions already given in full at AN 7.48 and elaborated at AN 7.49 — ugliness, death, the repulsiveness of food, dissatisfaction with the whole world, impermanence, suffering in impermanence, and not-self in suffering — now redirected toward direct knowledge of greed specifically.
Reading guide
The teaching in one sentence
For direct knowledge of greed, seven perceptions should be developed: of ugliness, of death, of the repulsiveness of food, of dissatisfaction with the whole world, of impermanence, of suffering in impermanence, and of not-self in suffering.
The identical list as AN 7.48 and AN 7.49
Checked term by term against the Pali, this discourse's seven perceptions are not merely similar to AN 7.48's bare list and AN 7.49's elaborated version — they are the exact same seven items, in the exact same order, reused wholesale rather than freshly composed for this chapter.
A shift in framing, not in content
What changes here is not the list itself but its stated purpose: AN 7.48 and 7.49 presented these seven perceptions as generally fruitful and beneficial, with freedom from death as their objective; this discourse redirects the identical list specifically toward direct knowledge of greed, folding an earlier general teaching into this chapter's narrower, greed-focused frame.
Three lists, now complete
With this discourse, all three of this chapter's foundational seven-item lists are now given in full: AN 7.615's awakening factors, AN 7.616's genuinely new perception progression, and this discourse's reused perception list. What follows — AN 7.618–644 and then AN 7.645–1124 — multiplies all three of these complete lists against further verbs and further defilements without restating any of them again.
Key terms
asubhasaññā, maraṇasaññā, āhāre paṭikūlasaññā, sabbaloke anabhiratasaññā, aniccasaññā, anicce dukkhasaññā, dukkhe anattasaññā — “the perception of ugliness, death, the repulsiveness of food, dissatisfaction with the whole world, impermanence, suffering in impermanence, not-self in suffering” — word for word identical to the list already given in full at AN 7.48.
rāgassa abhiññāya — “for direct knowledge of greed” — the new framing this discourse applies to an otherwise unchanged list, shared with AN 7.615 and AN 7.616.
amatogadhā amatapariyosānā — “having freedom from death as their objective and culmination” — the framing AN 7.48 and 7.49 originally gave this same list, not restated in this discourse's own narrower text.
tatiyaṁ — “the third” — this discourse's implicit place, closing the set of three list-giving discourses opening this chapter.
Rāgapeyyāla — “abbreviated texts beginning with greed” — this chapter's own title; with this discourse, all three lists the remaining abbreviation will draw on are now complete.
The text
The discourse in full, a single bare list. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
Seven perceptions, for direct knowledge of greed
§1“Mendicants, for insight into greed, seven things should be developed. What seven? The perceptions of ugliness, death, repulsiveness of food, dissatisfaction with the whole world, impermanence, suffering in impermanence, and not-self in suffering. These seven things should be developed for insight into greed.”
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Self-check quiz
6 questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.
Question 1 of 6
What seven perceptions does this discourse name?
Correct: B. The exact same list already given in full at AN 7.48.
Question 2 of 6
According to the guide, how does this list compare to AN 7.48 and 7.49's seven perceptions?
Correct: B. A direct reuse, checked term by term against the original.
Question 3 of 6
What actually changes between AN 7.48/49's version of this list and this discourse's version, according to the guide?
Correct: B. A shift in framing and purpose, not in the underlying content.
Question 4 of 6
What does this discourse complete, according to the guide?
Correct: B. The last of three lists underlying this chapter's massive later compression.
Question 5 of 6
How many of this chapter's foundational lists are unique to this chapter, versus reused from earlier in the book?
Correct: B. A mix — two lists new to this chapter's specific framing, one a direct reuse of earlier material.
Question 6 of 6
What happens after this discourse, according to the guide?
Correct: B. The foundation for this chapter's enormous remaining expansion.
