Ru-Yi Meditation Center
Saṃyutta Nikāya · Discourse 45.177

Hindrances

Nīvaraṇasutta — Oghavagga

Setting
Continuing directly from SN 45.176
Speakers
The Buddha, addressing the mendicants directly
Form
One sentence, matching this vagga's own established compressed presentation
Length
<1 minute to read
Northern parallel
No individual parallel confirmed by this project's own check
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — short, naming one of the canon's own most familiar lists

Why this discourse

The five hindrances — sensual desire, ill will, dullness and drowsiness, restlessness and remorse, and doubt — are among the most practically central lists in the entire canon, obstacles to meditative concentration named and discussed at far greater length elsewhere.

Reading guide

A practical list, briefly held here

Unlike this vagga's own more abstract or doctrinally specialized lists (grasping, ties, tendencies), the five hindrances are a directly practical classification familiar to any meditator — named here with this vagga's own single compressed line, in sharp contrast to the extended treatment they typically receive elsewhere in the canon.

Key terms

pañca nīvaraṇā — “five hindrances” — obstacles to meditative concentration, among the most frequently discussed lists in the entire canon
kāmacchandanīvaraṇaṁ byāpādanīvaraṇaṁ thinamiddhanīvaraṇaṁ uddhaccakukkuccanīvaraṇaṁ vicikicchānīvaraṇaṁ — the hindrances of sensual desire, ill will, dullness and drowsiness, restlessness and remorse, and doubt — the five named here
abhiññāya pariññāya parikkhayāya pahānāya — the four verbs established at SN 45.161-162, carried forward unchanged
ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo bhāvetabbo — “the noble eightfold path should be developed” — this discourse's own base-formula conclusion
sattamaṁ — “the seventh” — the Pāli root's own closing numeral for this discourse

The text

The complete discourse. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).

§1“Mendicants, there are these five hindrances. What five? The hindrances of sensual desire, ill will, dullness and drowsiness, restlessness and remorse, and doubt. These are the five hindrances. The noble eightfold path should be developed for the direct knowledge, complete understanding, finishing, and giving up of these five hindrances.”

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Self-check quiz

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

Question 1 of 3
What five hindrances does this discourse name?
Correct: A. One of the most familiar and practically central lists in the entire canon.
Question 2 of 3
How does this discourse's own treatment of the hindrances compare to their treatment elsewhere in the canon?
Correct: A. A practically central topic treated briefly here, consistent with this vagga's own compressed format.
Question 3 of 3
What role do the five hindrances typically play in meditation practice?
Correct: A. A foundational teaching for meditators throughout the Buddhist tradition, though only briefly named here.
Answered 0 of 3 · Correct 0

Further reading

← PreviousSN 45.176 · Kinds of Sensual Stimulation