Ru-Yi Meditation Center
Saṃyutta Nikāya · Discourse 46.31

Skillful (1st)

Paṭhamakusalasutta — Nīvaraṇavagga

Setting
Not specified — an abbreviated narrative frame
Speakers
The Buddha, addressing the mendicants directly
Form
A brief categorical claim, opening a new vagga
Length
<1 minute to read
Northern parallel
No individual parallel confirmed by this project's own check
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — short, opening this vagga's own paired sequence

Why this discourse

Every skillful quality, this discourse states, is “rooted in diligence and meets at diligence” — the identical claim already met at SN 45.139 (The Realized One) applied there to the eightfold path, here extended to the seven awakening factors, confirming this root claim's own reach across both of Book V's own major saṃyuttas.

Reading guide

A familiar root claim, extended to a new object

“Sabbe te appamādamūlakā appamādasamosaraṇā” (“all of them are rooted in diligence and meet at diligence”) is the identical phrase already met throughout SN 45's own Appamādapeyyālavagga — confirming diligence's own status as a foundational root claim spanning the eightfold path and the seven awakening factors alike.

Key terms

appamādamūlakā appamādasamosaraṇā — “rooted in diligence and meeting at diligence” — the identical phrase already met throughout SN 45's own Appamādapeyyālavagga, now applied to the seven awakening factors
appamādo — “diligence” — named here as “the best” among all skillful qualities
appamatto bhikkhu pāṭikaṅkho — “a diligent mendicant can expect” — the discourse's own claim of reliable expectation
sati... upekkhā — the seven awakening factors, named in brief succession as this discourse's own object
vivekanissitaṁ virāganissitaṁ nirodhanissitaṁ vossaggapariṇāmiṁ — the base formula, applied here to each awakening factor in turn

The text

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

§1“Mendicants, whatever qualities are skillful, part of the skillful, on the side of the skillful, all of them are rooted in diligence and meet at diligence, and diligence is said to be the best of them. A mendicant who is diligent can expect to develop and cultivate the seven awakening factors. And how does a diligent mendicant develop and cultivate the seven awakening factors? It’s when a mendicant develops the awakening factors of mindfulness, investigation of principles, energy, rapture, tranquility, immersion, and equanimity, which rely on seclusion, fading away, and cessation, and ripen as letting go. That’s how a diligent mendicant develops and cultivates the seven awakening factors.”

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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 earlier part of Book V uses the identical "rooted in diligence" phrase found in this discourse?
Correct: A. Confirming diligence's own status as a root claim spanning both major saṃyuttas of Book V.
Question 2 of 3
What is named as "the best" among all skillful qualities in this discourse?
Correct: A. The single quality all others are said to be rooted in and to meet at.
Question 3 of 3
What does this discourse claim a diligent mendicant can reliably expect?
Correct: A. A claim of dependable expectation, not mere possibility.
Answered 0 of 3 · Correct 0

Further reading

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