Ru-Yi Meditation Center
Saṃyutta Nikāya · Discourse 46.130

Higher Fetters

Uddhambhāgiyasutta — Oghavagga

Setting
Sāvatthī
Speakers
The Buddha, addressing the mendicants directly
Form
A complete discourse, written out in full rather than cross-referenced, closing the vagga with its own colophon and uddāna
Length
1-2 minutes to read, plus a described (not translated) colophon and uddāna
Northern parallel
No individual parallel confirmed by this project's own check
Difficulty
★★☆☆☆ — closes this vagga's own ten discourses with a fully written-out final example

Why this discourse

The five higher fetters — desire for rebirth in the realm of luminous form, desire for rebirth in the formless realm, conceit, restlessness, and ignorance — receive a complete, independent treatment here rather than a cross-reference, confirmed to close both this vagga and (in SN 45's own parallel structure) an entire major cycle of the Maggasaṃyutta as well.

Reading guide

Written out in full, not cross-referenced -- confirmed, not assumed

Unlike the preceding nine discourses of this vagga (SN 46.121-129), stored as a single cross-referencing stub, this tenth discourse is confirmed by direct reading to be written out completely in the source itself, exactly mirroring SN 45's own equivalent discourse (SN 45.180) on the identical five higher fetters.

A colophon and uddāna, closing this vagga's own ten discourses

The Pāli root closes with “Dasamaṁ” (“the tenth”) and “Oghavaggo terasamo” (“the Floods chapter, the thirteenth”), confirming this vagga's own position within this saṃyutta's own count. The closing uddāna names its own topics in order — floods, yoke, grasping, ties, and tendency; sensual pleasures, hindrances, aggregates, and higher fetters — described here rather than forced into an exact one-to-one English rendering the source itself does not supply.

Key terms

pañca uddhambhāgiyāni saṁyojanāni — “five higher fetters” — desire for rebirth in the realm of luminous form, desire for rebirth in the formless realm, conceit, restlessness, and ignorance
rūparāgo, arūparāgo, māno, uddhaccaṁ, avijjā — “desire for luminous form, desire for the formless, conceit, restlessness, and ignorance” — the five fetters named in full
nibbānaninnaṁ nibbānapoṇaṁ nibbānapabbhāraṁ — “slants, slopes, and inclines to extinguishment” — the familiar closing formula, applied here to the removal of the five higher fetters
oghavaggo terasamo — “the Floods chapter, the thirteenth” — unambiguous confirmation of this vagga's own position, matching this project's own count without discrepancy
ogho yogo upādānaṁ, ganthā anusayena ca — “flood, yoke, grasping, and tie, with tendency” — the closing uddāna's own opening line, listing several of this vagga's own ten topics

The text

Every genuinely translated fragment of this discourse, closing the Oghavagga. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).

§1 — the five higher fettersAt Sāvatthī. “Mendicants, there are five higher fetters. What five? Desire for rebirth in the realm of luminous form, desire for rebirth in the formless realm, conceit, restlessness, and ignorance. These are the five higher fetters.

§2 — developing the awakening factors to give them upThe seven awakening factors should be developed for the direct knowledge, complete understanding, finishing, and giving up of these five higher fetters. What seven? It’s when a mendicant develops the awakening factors of mindfulness, investigation of principles, energy, rapture, tranquility, immersion, and equanimity, which culminate in the removal of greed, hate, and delusion. …” “… which have freedom from death as their objective, destination, and culmination …” “… which slant, slope, and incline to extinguishment … The seven awakening factors should be developed for the direct knowledge, complete understanding, finishing, and giving up of these five higher fetters.”

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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 makes this discourse different from the nine that precede it in this vagga?
Correct: A. Confirmed by direct reading to exactly mirror SN 45's own equivalent discourse, SN 45.180.
Question 2 of 3
What are the five higher fetters named in this discourse?
Correct: A. The five fetters that bind to the higher, formless realms of existence, distinct from the five lower fetters.
Question 3 of 3
What does this discourse's own closing colophon confirm?
Correct: A. Confirmed by direct reading of the Pāli root's own "Oghavaggo terasamo."
Answered 0 of 3 · Correct 0

Further reading

← PreviousSN 46.121–129 · Floods, Etc.