SN 55.17 — Friends and Colleagues (2nd)

Reading guide

The four elements, invoked as a measure of stability

Confirmed by direct reading, this simile uses the four classical physical elements (earth, water, fire, air) — themselves proverbially fundamental and stable — as a deliberately impossible standard: even if these were to change, a stream-enterer's own confidence would not, since “change” here specifically means being reborn in hell, the animal realm, or the ghost realm, which this discourse calls “quite impossible.”

Applied to two of the four factors specifically

Confirmed by direct reading, this discourse's own simile is stated explicitly only for confidence in the Buddha and for ethical conduct, with confidence in the teaching and the Saṅgha elided via “…” — this project reports this pattern honestly rather than assuming the simile was necessarily repeated for all four in the original oral performance.

Key terms

cattāri mahābhūtāni — “the four principal states—the elements of earth, water, fire, and air” — this discourse's own new simile, invoking proverbially stable physical elements

aññathattaṁ — “change” — specifically glossed in this discourse as being reborn in hell, the animal realm, or the ghost realm

aṭṭhānametaṁ anavakāso — “this is quite impossible” — the discourse's own direct denial that such a change could ever occur for a stream-enterer

aveccappasāda — “experiential confidence” — the factor this new simile is explicitly applied to first, regarding the Buddha

ariyakantehi sīlehi samannāgato — “has the ethical conduct loved by the noble ones” — the second factor this discourse's own simile is explicitly applied to

The text

Every genuinely translated fragment given in the consulted English source. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).

§1“Mendicants, those who you have sympathy for, and those worth listening to—friends and colleagues, relatives and family—should be encouraged, supported, and established by you in the four factors of stream-entry. What four? Experiential confidence in the Buddha …

The four elements simileThere might be change in the four principal states—the elements of earth, water, fire, and air—but a noble disciple with experiential confidence in the Buddha would never change. In this context, ‘change’ means that such a noble disciple will be reborn in hell, the animal realm, or the ghost realm: this is quite impossible. Experiential confidence in the teaching … Experiential confidence in the Saṅgha … The ethical conduct loved by the noble ones … leading to immersion. There might be change in the four principal states—the elements of earth, water, fire, and air—but a noble disciple with the ethical conduct loved by the noble ones would never change. In this context, ‘change’ means that such a noble disciple will be reborn in hell, the animal realm, or the ghost realm: this is quite impossible. Those who you have sympathy for, and those worth listening to—friends and colleagues, relatives and family—should be encouraged, supported, and established by you in these four factors of stream-entry.”

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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 new simile does this discourse add, absent from SN 55.16?

Correct: A. Confirmed by direct reading — a genuinely new simile using the four classical physical elements.

Question 2 of 3

What does "change" specifically mean in this discourse's own simile?

Correct: A. Confirmed by direct reading — the discourse's own specific gloss on the term.

Question 3 of 3

For how many of the four factors does this discourse explicitly state the new simile?

Correct: A. Confirmed by direct reading, reported honestly rather than assuming uniform repetition.

Answered 0 of 3 · Correct 0

Friends and Colleagues (2nd)

Why this discourse