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Saṃyutta Nikāya · Discourse 31.2

Good Conduct

Sucaritasutta — Gandhabbavagga

Setting
Sāvatthī
Speakers
A mendicant questions the Buddha, who answers by describing an unnamed aspirant's own reasoning
Form
A question-and-answer dialogue tracing hearsay to aspiration to rebirth, with no specific dwelling-place named
Length
~2 minutes to read
Northern parallel
A rough counterpart may exist in the Chinese Saṃyukta-āgama (T99), though this reading guide does not assert a specific matching sutra number
Difficulty
★★☆☆☆ — a plain causal chain, easy to follow

Why this discourse

This discourse opens Gandhabbakāyasaṃyutta's second motivational register, and its own title already signals a genuine formula change from SN 29 and SN 30: where dragons and phoenixes were both reborn through dvayakārī ("doing both kinds of deeds," ordinary mixed conduct), this discourse's aspirant does sucaritaṁ — good conduct alone — by body, speech, and mind. The discourse also targets the gandhabba realm generally, with no specific dwelling-place named, leaving that specificity to SN 31.3–12's own set.

Reading guide

A genuine formula change: good conduct, not mixed conduct

"It's when someone does good things (sucaritaṁ) by way of body, speech, and mind" — a real departure from SN 29.7's and SN 30.3's own dvayakārī ("both kinds of deeds") formula, suggesting rebirth among gandhabbā is associated with a purer moral profile than rebirth among dragons or phoenixes.

The same hearsay-and-wish structure otherwise

Apart from this one substitution, the discourse follows the identical hearsay-and-wish structure already seen at SN 29.7 and SN 30.3: hearing the destination's reputation, forming the wish, and being reborn there.

No specific dwelling-place named

Unlike SN 31.3, which will specify root-dwelling gods by name, this discourse aims only at "the gods of the centaur realm" as a general category — a deliberately unspecific companion to the ten dwelling-specific discourses that follow.

Opening this saṃyutta's own multi-stage giving theme

This discourse's hearsay-and-wish frame, without any act of giving attached, sets up SN 31.3 to add the first of two entirely different giving registers this saṃyutta will explore — matching-substance gifts (SN 31.3–12) and the standard ten-item formula (SN 31.13–112).

Key terms

sucaritaṁ — good conduct — this discourse's own title-word, replacing SN 29's and SN 30's own dvayakārī ("both kinds of deeds")
gandhabbakāyikā devā — "the gods of the centaur realm" — the general, unspecific rebirth destination this discourse targets
sutaṁ — "heard" — the specific trigger for the aspirant's wish, matching SN 29.7's and SN 30.3's own formula
dīghāyukā vaṇṇavanto sukhabahulā — "long-lived, beautiful, and very happy" — the specific reputation the aspirant has heard
aho vata — "if only" — the aspirant's own wishful exclamation, quoted directly

The text

The complete discourse: the mendicant's question and the aspirant's own reported hearsay-driven reasoning in full. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).

§1At Sāvatthī. Seated to one side, that mendicant said to the Buddha: “Sir, what is the cause, what is the reason why someone, when their body breaks up, after death, is reborn in the company of the gods of the centaur realm?” “Mendicant, it’s when someone does good things by way of body, speech, and mind. And they’ve heard: ‘The gods of the centaur realm are long-lived, beautiful, and very happy.’ They think: ‘If only, when my body breaks up, after death, I would be reborn in the company of the gods of the centaur realm!’ When their body breaks up, after death, they’re reborn in the company of the gods of the centaur realm. This is the cause, this is the reason why someone, when their body breaks up, after death, is reborn in the company of the gods of the centaur realm.”

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Self-check quiz

6 questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.

Question 1 of 6
What kind of conduct does this discourse attribute to the aspirant?
Correct: A. Suggesting rebirth among gandhabbā is associated with a purer moral profile.
Question 2 of 6
What term did SN 29.7 and SN 30.3 use for the aspirant's conduct, which this discourse replaces?
Correct: A. This discourse's own title marks the substitution directly.
Question 3 of 6
What specific dwelling-place does this discourse's aspirant aim to be reborn among?
Correct: A. A deliberately unspecific companion to the ten dwelling-specific discourses that follow at SN 31.3–12.
Question 4 of 6
Apart from the conduct term, how does this discourse's structure compare to SN 29.7's and SN 30.3's own?
Correct: A. Hearing the destination's reputation, forming the wish, and being reborn there.
Question 5 of 6
What does this discourse set up for SN 31.3 to add?
Correct: A. Matching-substance gifts at SN 31.3–12, and the standard ten-item formula at SN 31.13–112.
Question 6 of 6
Where is this discourse set?
Correct: A. Consistent with this saṃyutta's other discourses.
Answered 0 of 6 · Correct 0

Further reading

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