Reading guide
The teaching in one sentence
The Buddha refuses three times to recite the monastic code while an unethical, corrupt individual sits undetected within the assembly; once Mahāmoggallāna physically ejects that person, the Buddha declares he will never personally recite the code again, since it's impossible for a Realized One to recite it in an impure assembly — itself an instance of the ocean's refusal to accommodate a corpse, the very quality named at AN 8.19.
Three requests, three silences
In each of the night's three watches, Ānanda formally requests the recitation, describing the lateness of the hour with escalating detail. Each time the Buddha simply stays silent, building tension until, on the third request, he finally names the problem: the assembly itself is not pure.
Mahāmoggallāna scans, confronts, and ejects
Rather than the Buddha naming the offender directly, Mahāmoggallāna uses his own power to encompass the minds of everyone present, locates the unethical individual sitting in the Saṅgha's very midst, and asks him to leave three times. When the man stays silent all three times, Mahāmoggallāna takes him by the arm and physically ejects him, bolting the door behind him.
The ocean simile recalled by explicit citation
Having declared he will never again personally recite the code, the Buddha explains why by returning to the same eight wonders of the ocean and the teaching met at AN 8.19 — but this time the source text itself abbreviates by instructing the reciter to “tell in full as in the previous discourse,” a direct, named citation rather than a generic ellipsis, giving only the first and eighth items in full here.
Key terms
The text
Three requests, three silences
§1At one time the Buddha was staying near Sāvatthī in the stilt longhouse of Migāra’s mother in the Eastern Monastery. Now, at that time it was the sabbath, and the Buddha was sitting surrounded by the Saṅgha of monks. And then, as the night was getting late, in the first watch of the night, Venerable Ānanda got up from his seat, arranged his robe over one shoulder, raised his cupped palms toward the Buddha and said, “Sir, the night is getting late. It is the first watch of the night, and the Saṅgha of monks has been sitting long. Please, sir, may the Buddha recite the monastic code to the monks.” But when he said this, the Buddha kept silent. For a second time, as the night was getting late, in the middle watch of the night, Ānanda got up from his seat, arranged his robe over one shoulder, raised his cupped palms toward the Buddha and said, “Sir, the night is getting late. It is the middle watch of the night, and the Saṅgha of monks has been sitting long. Please, sir, may the Buddha recite the monastic code to the monks.” But for a second time the Buddha kept silent. For a third time, as the night was getting late, in the last watch of the night, as dawn stirred, bringing joy to the night, Ānanda got up from his seat, arranged his robe over one shoulder, raised his cupped palms toward the Buddha and said, “Sir, the night is getting late. It is the last watch of the night and dawn stirs, bringing joy to the night. And the Saṅgha has been sitting long. Please, sir, may the Buddha recite the monastic code to the monks.” “Ānanda, the assembly is not pure.”
Mahāmoggallāna finds and ejects the offender
§2Then Venerable Mahāmoggallāna thought, “Who is the Buddha talking about?” Then he focused on encompassing the minds of everyone in the Saṅgha. He saw that unethical individual, of bad qualities, filthy, with suspicious behavior, underhand, no true ascetic or spiritual practitioner—though claiming to be one—rotten inside, festering, and depraved, sitting in the middle of the Saṅgha. When he saw him he got up from his seat, went up to him and said, “Get up, reverend. The Buddha has seen you. You can’t live in communion with the monks.” But when he said this, that individual kept silent. For a second time and a third time, he asked that monk to leave. But for a third time that individual kept silent. Then Venerable Mahāmoggallāna took that individual by the arm, ejected him out the gate, and bolted the door. Then he went up to the Buddha, and said to him, “I have ejected that individual. The assembly is pure. Please, sir, may the Buddha recite the monastic code to the monks.” “It’s incredible, Moggallāna, it’s amazing, how that futile man waited to be taken by the arm!”
The Buddha's declaration, and the ocean simile recalled
§3Then the Buddha said to the monks: “Now, monks, you should perform the sabbath and recite the monastic code. From this day forth, I will not perform the sabbath or recite the monastic code. It’s impossible, monks, it can’t happen that a Realized One could recite the monastic code in an impure assembly. Seeing these eight incredible and amazing things the titans love the ocean. What eight? The ocean gradually slants, slopes, and inclines, with no abrupt precipice. This is the first thing the titans love about the ocean. (Tell in full as in the previous discourse.) Furthermore, many great beings live in the ocean, such as leviathans, leviathan-gulpers, leviathan-gulper-gulpers, titans, dragons, and centaurs. In the ocean there are life-forms a hundred leagues long, or even two hundred, three hundred, four hundred, or five hundred leagues long. This is the eighth thing the titans love about the ocean. Seeing these eight incredible and amazing things the titans love the ocean. In the same way, seeing eight incredible and amazing things, mendicants, the mendicants love this teaching and training. What eight? The ocean gradually slants, slopes, and inclines, with no abrupt precipice. In the same way in this teaching and training the penetration to enlightenment comes from gradual training, progress, and practice, not abruptly. This is the first thing the mendicants love about this teaching and training. … Many great beings live in the ocean, such as leviathans, leviathan-gulpers, leviathan-gulper-gulpers, titans, dragons, and centaurs. In the ocean there are life-forms a hundred leagues long, or even two hundred, three hundred, four hundred, or five hundred leagues long. In the same way, great beings live in this teaching and training, and these are those beings. The stream-enterer and the one practicing to realize the fruit of stream-entry. The once-returner and the one practicing to realize the fruit of once-return. The non-returner and the one practicing to realize the fruit of non-return. The perfected one, and the one practicing for perfection. This is the eighth thing the mendicants love about this teaching and training. Seeing these eight incredible and amazing things, the mendicants love this teaching and training.”
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