SN 46.8 — With Upavāṇa | Ru-Yi Meditation Center

Reading guide

A dialogue between two named senior disciples

Unlike SN 46.4's own first-person testimony, this discourse presents a genuine exchange: Sāriputta poses the question, and Upavāṇa — not otherwise a major figure in this saṃyutta — supplies the answer, confirmed by direct reading to closely echo the self-diagnostic language Sāriputta himself used when speaking of his own mastery.

A specific internal marker, not a vague feeling

Upavāṇa's own answer names concrete signs: eradicating dullness and drowsiness, eliminating restlessness and remorse, energy roused up, the mind sharply focused and not sluggish — a checklist a mendicant can use to verify, from the inside, that an awakening factor is genuinely present and properly functioning, rather than merely assumed.

Key terms

āyasmā upavāṇo — “Venerable Upavāṇa” — a senior disciple who appears rarely elsewhere in the canon, here supplying this discourse's own answer

ajjhattaṁ vicinanto pajāneyya — “can know that by investigating inside themselves” — Sāriputta's own precise framing of the question, emphasizing internal verification

phāsuvihārāya saṁvattantīti — “lead to living at ease” — the criterion Sāriputta's own question asks about: not merely presence, but beneficial function

suvimuttaṁ me cittanti pajānāti — “they understand: ‘my mind is well freed’” — the specific self-report Upavāṇa names for each awakening factor once properly roused

thinamiddhaṁ pahīnaṁ... uddhaccakukkuccaṁ paṭivinītaṁ — “dullness and drowsiness eradicated... restlessness and remorse eliminated” — the concrete internal markers named as evidence of a properly implemented awakening factor

The text

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

§1 — the settingAt one time the venerables Upavāṇa and Sāriputta were staying near Kosambī, in Ghosita’s Monastery. Then in the late afternoon, Venerable Sāriputta came out of retreat, went to Venerable Upavāṇa and exchanged greetings with him. When the greetings and polite conversation were over, he sat down to one side and said to Upavāṇa:

§2 — Sāriputta's own question“Reverend Upavāṇa, can a mendicant know that by investigating inside themselves, the seven awakening factors have been properly implemented so that they lead to living at ease?” “They can, Reverend Sāriputta.

§3 — Upavāṇa's own answerAs a mendicant rouses up the awakening factor of mindfulness, they understand: ‘My mind is well freed. I’ve eradicated dullness and drowsiness, and eliminated restlessness and remorse. My energy is roused up, and my mind is sharply focused, not sluggish.’ … As they rouse up the awakening factor of equanimity, they understand: ‘My mind is well freed. I’ve eradicated dullness and drowsiness, and eliminated restlessness and remorse. My energy is roused up, and my mind is sharply focused, not sluggish.’ That’s how a mendicant can know that by investigating inside themselves, the seven awakening factors are properly implemented so that they lead to living at ease.”

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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

How does this discourse's own format differ from SN 46.4's own?

Correct: A. Sāriputta poses the question here; Upavāṇa answers — a two-person exchange rather than solo testimony.

Question 2 of 3

What criterion does Sāriputta's own question ask about, beyond mere presence of an awakening factor?

Correct: A. A functional criterion — beneficial effect — not merely detecting the factor's own presence.

Question 3 of 3

What concrete markers does Upavāṇa name as evidence an awakening factor is properly roused?

Correct: A. A concrete internal checklist, not a vague or purely subjective feeling.

Answered 0 of 3 · Correct 0

With Upavāṇa

Why this discourse