A rough counterpart may exist in the Chinese Saṃyukta-āgama (T99), though this reading guide does not assert a specific matching sutra number
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — understood only alongside SN 34.1
Why this discourse
The eighth quality paired against immersion: sakkaccakārī ("practicing carefully"), naming a manner of practice — attentive, unhurried diligence — rather than any specific technical capacity, opening a final trio of qualities concerned with the quality of effort itself.
Reading guide
Carefulness, a shift toward manner of practice
Sakkaccakārī names how one practices — with careful, attentive diligence — rather than any specific technical skill like entering, emerging, or projecting; a genuinely different axis from the seven qualities named so far.
The kārī suffix, shared with two qualities still to come
Sakkaccakārī shares its own -kārī ("doing," or "practicing") suffix with sātaccakārī ("practicing persistently," SN 34.9) and sappāyakārī ("doing what's conducive," SN 34.10) — the final three qualities in this list form their own small grammatical cluster around manner-of-practice.
The same compressed shape, a sixth consecutive time
This discourse's own question and answer are elided in the identical pattern as SN 34.3–7, this saṃyutta's own standing convention holding firm.
Eighth of ten qualities, two more still to come
SN 34.9–10 will complete this saṃyutta's own ten-quality list before the combinatorial phase begins at SN 34.11.
Key terms
sakkaccakārī — practicing carefully — the eighth of ten qualities, the first of a three-part -kārī cluster
samādhi — immersion — the base capacity this quality is paired against
abhinīhāra — projecting — the previous discourse's own quality, replaced here by sakkaccakārī
sātaccakārī — practicing persistently — the next quality, sharing this same -kārī suffix
peyyāla — an elision mark — here compressing both the fourfold structure and the closing simile to a single surviving line
The text
The discourse as the source itself preserves it, compressed to its opening line. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1At Sāvatthī. “Mendicants, there are these four meditators. What four? One meditator is skilled in immersion but not in practicing carefully for it. …”
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Self-check quiz
5 questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.
Question 1 of 5
Which quality does this discourse pair against immersion?
Correct: A. The eighth of ten qualities this saṃyutta pairs against immersion.
Question 2 of 5
What does sakkaccakārī name, unlike the seven earlier qualities?
Correct: A. A genuinely different axis from entering, emerging, projecting, and so on.
Question 3 of 5
What suffix does sakkaccakārī share with two later qualities in this list?
Correct: A. Forming a small grammatical cluster with sātaccakārī and sappāyakārī.
Question 4 of 5
How many further qualities remain to be paired against immersion after this discourse?
Correct: A. SN 34.9–10 will complete this saṃyutta's own ten-quality list.
Question 5 of 5
Where is this discourse set?
Correct: A. Consistent with this saṃyutta's other discourses.
