Near Sāvatthī, in Jeta’s Grove — the recurring frame, resumed after the previous vagga's uniformly bare riddles
Speakers
An unnamed deity and the Buddha, in a single exchange of verses
Form
A four-line question, answered by a six-line reply
Length
~45 seconds to read
Difficulty
★★☆☆☆ — direct in form, with a memorable closing image
Opening the final vagga of SN 1
The first of eleven discourses closing out the Devatāsaṃyutta, this collection's entire first saṃyutta
Why this discourse
The question is framed around killing, but not in any literal sense: when what is slain do you sleep at ease, when what is slain is there no sorrow, what one thing, Gotama, do you approve the killing of? The answer names anger (kodha), describing it with a striking image — poisonous at its root but sweet at its tip — before naming its killing as something the noble ones themselves praise.
Reading guide
Killing reframed entirely
The question's violent vocabulary — slaying, killing, approving of killing — is immediately redirected away from any literal act toward an inner quality. What deserves killing, in this discourse's sense, is anger itself, not any living being.
A poisonous root, a sweet tip
The verse's central image captures something true to how anger actually feels: its expression can carry a real, if brief, satisfaction — the ‘sweet tip’ — even while its underlying cause and consequence are genuinely harmful, the ‘poisonous root.’ The image doesn't deny anger's appeal; it locates that appeal specifically at the surface, while naming the deeper danger beneath it.
Praise from the noble ones, not merely personal preference
The verse doesn't rest on the Buddha's own approval alone; it specifically notes that ‘the noble ones praise its killing,’ framing the elimination of anger as a shared conviction among those who have already progressed on the path, not an idiosyncratic recommendation.
Opening the last stretch of SN 1
This discourse begins the Chetvāvagga, the eighth and final vagga of the Devatāsaṃyutta — SN 1's own closing sequence of eleven discourses, one more than this collection's usual ten, bringing the entire first saṃyutta to its close at SN 1.81.
Key terms
chetvā — “having slain, having cut” — this discourse's title, and its vagga's own name.
kodha — “anger” — the single thing named as worth killing, identified only in the Buddha's answer, not in the deity's question.
visamūlo madhuraggo — “poisonous root, sweet tip” — the verse's central image, naming anger's brief appeal and its deeper harm together.
ariyā pasaṁsanti — “the noble ones praise” — framing anger's elimination as a shared conviction, not merely the Buddha's own view.
asokaṁ — “no sorrow” — the specific benefit both the question and answer name as following from anger's death.
The text
The discourse in full: a question about killing, redirected entirely toward anger. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1At Sāvatthī. Standing to one side, that deity addressed the Buddha in verse:
§2“When what is slain do you sleep at ease? When what is slain is there no sorrow? What’s the one thing, Gotama, whose killing you approve?”
§3“When anger’s slain you sleep at ease. When anger’s slain there is no sorrow. O deity, anger has a poisonous root and a sweet tip. The noble ones praise its killing, for when it’s slain there is no sorrow.”
· · ·
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, using violent vocabulary?
Correct: A. Vocabulary of killing, immediately redirected toward an inner quality.
Question 2 of 10
What does the reply name as the one thing worth killing?
Correct: A. Named only in the answer, not stated in the deity's question.
Question 3 of 10
What image does the verse use to describe anger?
Correct: A. Capturing anger's brief appeal alongside its deeper harm.
Question 4 of 10
Who does the verse say approves of anger's killing, beyond the Buddha himself?
Correct: A. A shared conviction, not an idiosyncratic personal view.
Question 5 of 10
What vagga does this discourse open, and what is its significance?
Correct: A. The last eleven discourses closing out SN 1's entire 81-discourse saṃyutta.
Question 6 of 10
How many discourses does this final vagga contain, compared to this collection's usual ten?
Correct: A. Bringing SN 1's total to exactly 81 discourses.
Question 7 of 10
Does the verse deny that anger has any appeal at all?
Correct: A. A nuanced image acknowledging anger's brief satisfaction alongside its harm.
Question 8 of 10
What does 'asokaṁ' mean?
Correct: A. The specific benefit named as following from anger's death.
Question 9 of 10
What is the setting of this discourse?
Correct: A. A return to this collection's most familiar setting after the Addhavagga's uniform bareness.
Question 10 of 10
What does 'chetvā' mean?
Correct: A. This discourse's title, and this final vagga's own name.
