Not narrated in this discourse's source text; no discourse in this vagga carries a narrative frame at all
Speakers
Not named explicitly; a four-part riddle answered point by point
Form
A four-line question, answered by a matching four-line reply, identical to SN 1.51's
Length
~30 seconds to read
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — direct in form
A near-total overlap
Unlike this collection's usual single-word substitutions, this discourse rephrases all four questions while keeping the answer completely unchanged
Why this discourse
This discourse's question covers the same ground as SN 1.51, immediately before it, but rephrases every line: instead of asking what's still good in old age, it asks what's good because it never gets old at all; instead of what's good when grounded, what's good when committed; the third question is identical; instead of what thieves find hard to take, what thieves can never take at all. The answer, despite the rephrased question, is exactly the same: ethics, faith, wisdom, and merit.
Reading guide
Four lines rephrased, one line unchanged
Three of the question's four lines shift in wording between this discourse and SN 1.51 — from enduring old age to never aging at all, from being grounded to being committed, from being merely hard for thieves to being altogether impossible for them. Only the question about people's treasure stays exactly the same in both discourses.
An identical answer to a rephrased question
Where several pairs of discourses earlier in this collection share an identical answer to an identical or near-identical question, this pair does something slightly different: the question itself is substantially reworded across three of its four lines, yet the same four qualities — ethics, faith, wisdom, merit — answer it exactly as before.
Intensifying, not merely repeating
Each rephrased line pushes toward a stronger claim than SN 1.51's version: not merely enduring age but never aging at all, not merely grounded but fully committed, not merely hard to steal but altogether unstealable. The second discourse in this pair asks for more, and receives the same answer regardless.
Key terms
ajarasā — “because it never gets old” — this discourse's title and its intensified rephrasing of SN 1.51's opening question.
adhimuttassa — “when committed” — the rephrased second criterion, stronger than SN 1.51's ‘grounded.’
na haranti corā — “thieves can never take” — the rephrased fourth criterion, an absolute claim rather than SN 1.51's ‘hard for.’
sīlaṁ — “ethics” — the first of the four answers, unchanged from SN 1.51 despite the rephrased question.
puññaṁ — “merit” — the fourth answer, again unchanged, now matched to an absolute rather than a comparative claim.
The text
The discourse in full: a rephrased, intensified question, met by the same fourfold answer as the discourse before it. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1“What’s good because it never gets old? What’s good when committed? What is people’s treasure? What can thieves never take?”
§2“Ethics are good because they never grow old. Faith is good when committed. Wisdom is people’s treasure. Merit’s what thieves can never take.”
· · ·
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
How many of this discourse's four question-lines are rephrased from SN 1.51?
Correct: A. A substantial rewording across most of the question.
Question 2 of 10
What does this discourse's opening question ask, rephrased from SN 1.51?
Correct: A. A shift from enduring age to never aging at all.
Question 3 of 10
Does the answer change along with the rephrased question?
Correct: A. The identical fourfold answer, despite the reworded question.
Question 4 of 10
How does this discourse's fourth question compare to SN 1.51's?
Correct: A. Na haranti corā — stronger than SN 1.51's 'dukarahara.'
Question 5 of 10
What pattern does this pair of discourses illustrate, distinct from other repeated pairs in this collection?
Correct: A. A different variety of repetition than this collection's usual single-word substitutions.
Question 6 of 10
What does 'adhimuttassa' mean?
Correct: A. The rephrased, intensified version of SN 1.51's 'grounded.'
Question 7 of 10
Which single question is identical between SN 1.51 and this discourse?
Correct: A. The only line shared word for word between the two discourses.
Question 8 of 10
What is the setting of this discourse?
Correct: A. Like every discourse in this vagga, no setting is given directly.
Question 9 of 10
Does the rephrased question in this discourse ask for something weaker or stronger than SN 1.51?
Correct: A. Never aging, fully committed, and altogether unstealable, rather than merely enduring, grounded, and hard to take.
Question 10 of 10
What four qualities does the answer name?
Correct: A. Exactly the same four qualities as SN 1.51.
