A threefold definition — object, process, and person
Length
Short — three compact definitions in sequence
Northern parallel
The pariññā ("complete understanding") framework recurs widely across the Canon's technical vocabulary
Difficulty
Approachable — the three-part structure is easy to follow, though the anonymized final phrase rewards a closer look
Why this discourse
A threefold definition unlike the trio just completed: not what must be overcome and how, but three angles on knowledge itself — what needs completely understanding, what that understanding consists of, and who, specifically, counts as someone who has achieved it — closing on a strikingly anonymous formula for the arahant.
Reading guide
What should be completely understood
"Form, feeling, perception, choices, and consciousness" — given here without the "grasping aggregates" qualifier used in the surrounding discourses, simply the five aggregates themselves as the object of the understanding this discourse describes.
What complete understanding is
"The ending of greed, hate, and delusion" — pariññā is defined not as an accumulation of facts about the aggregates, but as the practical outcome of understanding them: the three root defilements coming to an end.
This reframes "complete understanding" as inseparable from liberation itself, rather than as a preliminary intellectual stage that liberation might follow.
Who has completely understood
"A perfected one, the venerable of such and such name and clan" — arahant, described not by any individual's actual name, but by a placeholder formula that could be filled in with any arahant's name and family lineage.
This is a deliberately generic answer: the discourse is not naming a specific person, but describing the category itself — whoever the name turns out to be, the description "perfected one" is what identifies them as someone who has completely understood.
Three questions, one coherent answer
Object, process, and person together form a single self-consistent picture: the five aggregates are what is to be understood, the ending of the three roots is what understanding them actually accomplishes, and an arahant — any arahant, unnamed — is simply what such a person is called once the process is complete.
Key terms
pariññeyya — should be completely understood — the object named in the discourse's opening question
pariññā — complete understanding — defined here as the ending of greed, hate, and delusion
pariññātāvī — one who has completely understood — the person named in the third question
arahant — a perfected one — the technical term this discourse uses for the pariññātāvī
itthannāmo itthagotto — "of such and such name and clan" — the deliberately generic placeholder formula naming any arahant without specifying one
The text
The full discourse: three questions on what should be understood, what understanding is, and who has understood, each answered in turn. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1At Sāvatthī. “Mendicants, I will teach you the things that should be completely understood, complete understanding, and the individual who has completely understood. Listen …
§2And what things should be completely understood? Form, feeling, perception, choices, and consciousness. These are called the things that should be completely understood.
§3And what is complete understanding? The ending of greed, hate, and delusion. This is called complete understanding.
§4And who is the individual who has completely understood? It should be said: a perfected one, the venerable of such and such name and clan. This is called the individual who has completely understood.”
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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 three things does this discourse address in turn?
Correct: A. Object, process, and person — a threefold structure distinct from the four-truths trio just completed.
Question 2 of 10
What should be completely understood, according to this discourse?
Correct: A. The five aggregates, given here without the "grasping" qualifier.
Question 3 of 10
What is complete understanding defined as?
Correct: A. Defined as a practical outcome rather than an accumulation of facts.
Question 4 of 10
How does this discourse identify the person who has completely understood?
Correct: A. A placeholder description of the category, not a named individual.
Question 5 of 10
Why might the discourse use a generic placeholder rather than a specific name?
Correct: A. Whoever the name turns out to be, "perfected one" is what identifies them.
Question 6 of 10
How does this discourse's definition of pariññā relate to liberation?
Correct: A. Understanding is defined by its outcome: the ending of the three root defilements.
Question 7 of 10
What term does this discourse use for the person who has understood?
Correct: A. The highest of the four stages of awakening named in this book.
Question 8 of 10
What three root defilements does complete understanding end?
Correct: A. The standard three unwholesome roots (lobha, dosa, moha) named throughout the Canon.
Question 9 of 10
Where is this discourse set?
Correct: A. Continuing Antavagga's own setting.
Question 10 of 10
What comes next in Antavagga after this discourse?
Correct: A. Moving into the vagga's next pair of discourses.
