Ru-Yi Meditation Center
Saṃyutta Nikāya · Discourse 55.18

A Visit to the Gods (1st)

Paṭhamadevacārikasutta — Rājakārāmavagga

Setting
Jeta's Grove, then the heaven of the thirty-three
Speakers
Venerable Mahāmoggallāna and deities of the company of the thirty-three
Form
A psychic-power narrative: instant travel, a teaching given, and a deity's own confirming reply
Length
1–2 minutes to read
Northern parallel
No individual parallel confirmed by this project's own check
Significance
★★★★ — the first discourse in this saṃyutta to leave the human realm entirely, teaching the four factors directly to deities

Why this discourse

Confirmed by direct reading, Venerable Mahāmoggallāna vanishes from Jeta's Grove “as easily as a strong person would extend or contract their arm” and reappears among the gods of the thirty-three, teaching them the four factors directly. A deity responds not merely by receiving the teaching but by restating it back to him nearly word for word, confirming this same content circulates across both human and divine audiences.

Reading guide

A stock formula for instantaneous travel

Confirmed by direct reading, this discourse uses the identical simile for psychic travel this project has confirmed cross-referenced to SN 51's own iddhi material: “as easily as a strong person would extend or contract their arm” — the same instantaneous quality already fully translated in this project's own earlier work.

A deity, already informed, confirms the teaching back

Confirmed by direct reading, after Moggallāna teaches the four factors, an unnamed deity replies with “my good fellow Moggallāna” and restates the identical content — not asking a further question, but confirming independent, prior familiarity with the same teaching.

Key terms

seyyathāpi nāma balavā puriso samiñjitaṁ vā bāhaṁ pasāreyya — “as easily as a strong person would extend or contract their arm” — the stock simile for instantaneous psychic travel, already met in this project's own earlier work on SN 51
tāvatiṁsakāyikā devā — “the gods of the thirty-three” — the specific heavenly realm Moggallāna visits
sādhu kho, mārisa, buddhe aveccappasādena samannāgamanaṁ — “it's good to have experiential confidence in the Buddha” — Moggallāna's own opening words to the assembled deities
mārisa moggallāna — “my good fellow Moggallāna” — the deity's own address, confirming the teaching independently rather than merely receiving it
sugatiṁ saggaṁ lokaṁ upapajjanti — “are reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm” — the specific benefit named for these four factors in this discourse

The text

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

§1At Sāvatthī. And then Venerable Mahāmoggallāna, as easily as a strong person would extend or contract their arm, vanished from Jeta’s Grove and reappeared among the gods of the thirty-three. Then several deities of the company of the thirty-three went up to Venerable Mahāmoggallāna, bowed, and stood to one side. Moggallāna said to them:

§2“Reverends, it’s good to have experiential confidence in the Buddha. … It’s the reason why some sentient beings, when their body breaks up, after death, are reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm. It’s good to have experiential confidence in the teaching. … the Saṅgha … and to have the ethical conduct that’s loved by the noble ones … leading to immersion. It’s the reason why some sentient beings, when their body breaks up, after death, are reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm.”

§3“My good fellow Moggallāna, it’s good to have experiential confidence in the Buddha … It’s the reason why some sentient beings, when their body breaks up, after death, are reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm. It’s good to have experiential confidence in the teaching. … the Saṅgha … and to have the ethical conduct that’s loved by the noble ones … leading to immersion. It’s the reason why some sentient beings, when their body breaks up, after death, are reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm.”

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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 stock simile does this discourse use for Moggallāna's own psychic travel?
Correct: A. Confirmed by direct reading — the same stock formula already fully translated in this project's own earlier work.
Question 2 of 3
How does the deity respond to Moggallāna's own teaching?
Correct: A. Confirmed by direct reading — a confirming reply, not a request for clarification.
Question 3 of 3
What benefit does this discourse attribute to the four factors?
Correct: A. Confirmed by direct reading — this discourse's own specifically named benefit.
Answered 0 of 3 · Correct 0

Further reading

← PreviousSN 55.17 · Friends and Colleagues (2nd)