Not narrated in this discourse's source text; presumably the same recurring frame as the rest of this vagga
Speakers
Not named explicitly; a question answered by naming specific civic acts
Form
A four-line question, answered by a matching four-line verse that then restates the question's own opening lines as its conclusion
Length
~45 seconds to read
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — direct in form, concerned with concrete, practical acts
A civic, not only personal, kind of merit
The specific deeds named — groves, bridges, wells, lodgings — all benefit strangers who will never meet the giver
Why this discourse
The question asks something practical: whose merit keeps growing, day and night without pause, and which people, firm in principle and accomplished in conduct, are headed for heaven? The answer doesn't point to meditation or doctrine but to a specific set of civic acts: planting parks and groves, building bridges, providing a drinking place and a well, and giving shelter to travelers and mendicants — deeds whose benefit continues to accumulate precisely because they keep serving people the giver will never personally encounter.
Reading guide
Merit that grows without further effort
The question's framing — merit growing ‘by day and by night’ — describes something distinct from a single completed act of giving. What is named in reply are not one-time gifts but standing infrastructure: a planted grove keeps providing shade, a built bridge keeps being crossed, a dug well keeps being drawn from, long after the initial act is finished.
Benefit to strangers, not only to known recipients
Every example named benefits people the giver will likely never meet: travelers passing through, thirsty strangers at a well, mendicants seeking shelter. Unlike gifts given directly to a specific known person, these acts extend benefit indefinitely outward, to whoever happens to make use of them.
A verse that returns to its own question as its answer
The reply's structure is notably circular: after naming the specific acts, its closing two lines restate almost exactly the question's own opening two lines — ‘their merit always grows, by day and by night’ — confirming that the acts just listed are precisely what the question was asking about, rather than introducing any new claim.
A concrete companion to this vagga's other giving-themed discourses
Where SN 1.42 named categories of gift matched to specific benefits and SN 1.43 addressed giving more abstractly, this discourse grounds the same broad theme in specific, identifiable civic works — a practical complement to this vagga's more abstract treatments of generosity.
Key terms
vanaropa — “planting parks or groves” — this discourse's title, and the first specific act the reply names.
setukārakā — “those who build a bridge” — the second act named, extending benefit to travelers indefinitely.
papañca udapānañca — “a drinking place and well” — the third act, providing water to strangers who will never be known personally.
ārāmadā — “those who give monastic quarters” — the fourth act, already met as this collection's highest-ranked single gift at SN 1.42.
divā ca ratto ca — “by day and by night” — the phrase framing both the question and its answer, describing merit that accumulates without pause.
The text
The discourse in full: a question on continually growing merit, answered by naming specific, lasting civic acts. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1“Whose merit always grows by day and by night? What people—firm in principle, accomplished in conduct—are going to heaven?”
§2“Planters of parks or groves, those who build a bridge, a drinking place and well, and those who give monastic quarters. Their merit always grows by day and by night. Those people—firm in principle, accomplished in conduct—are going to heaven.”
· · ·
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 does the opening question ask about?
Correct: A. A question about ongoing, rather than one-time, merit.
Question 2 of 10
What four specific acts does the reply name?
Correct: A. Concrete, lasting civic works rather than personal spiritual practices.
Question 3 of 10
Why does this discourse's merit keep growing without further effort?
Correct: A. A grove, bridge, or well continues serving people long after the initial act.
Question 4 of 10
Who benefits from the acts named in this discourse?
Correct: A. Travelers, thirsty strangers, and mendicants seeking shelter.
Question 5 of 10
How does the reply's closing structure relate to the opening question?
Correct: A. A notably circular structure, closing on the same phrase that opened the question.
Question 6 of 10
What earlier discourse in this vagga already ranked giving monastic quarters highly?
Correct: A. A recurring theme within this vagga's cluster of giving-related discourses.
Question 7 of 10
What does 'divā ca ratto ca' mean?
Correct: A. The phrase framing both the question and its answer.
Question 8 of 10
How does this discourse's approach to giving compare to SN 1.43's?
Correct: A. A practical complement within this vagga's broader concern with generosity.
Question 9 of 10
What does 'setukārakā' mean?
Correct: A. The second specific act named in the reply.
Question 10 of 10
What is the setting of this discourse?
Correct: A. Like several discourses in this vagga, no setting is given directly.
