Four Kinds Of Bliss

Once, The Blessed One and his Bhikkhus resided in Koli. Then Anathapindika, the householder came and bowed his head in reverence before Buddha, The Blessed One said to Anathapindika:

“Anathapindika, there were four kinds of bliss, that a layperson may win in the proper season and on the proper opportunity. What are four kinds? They are: Pleasure of possession, pleasure of wealth, pleasure of debtlessness, and pleasure of blamelessness.”

 

Then, he explained: So, what is pleasure of possession? That isthe property acquired  through hard work, accumulated by the sweat,  in the lawful way. And thinking about it, he is pleased.

 

What is pleasure of debtlessness? That householder owes no small or great debt  and he is delighted at the thought.

   

What is pleasure of blamelessness? It is a case where   the noble one’s disciple whose actions,  speech do not harm others and when he . thinks about it, he is delighted.

 

 â€œAnathapindika, in sum, there are four kinds of joys  that a layperson may  attain in the proper season and on the proper opportunity in which, the pleasure of  possession, wealth and debtlessness are worth  only one- sixteenth of the pleasure of blamelessness.”

Vietnamese Tripitaka, Anguttara Nikaya 1 - chapter 4 – Merit karma Section, Debtlessness part, pulished by the Vietnamese Buddhist Research Institute -1982, p.682

DISCUSSIONS

There is variety of pleasures in life. Those are sense pleasures containing potential hazard of extroverted people and;  pure and sustainable pleasures of introverted people.Therefore, the happiness is just a relative concept,  depending on each person's perception; but there is only one real happiness, true peace and joy -  that is the purity of body and mind.

 

According to The Blessed One's wisdom, thanks to doing genuine business some become rich. The fruits of their labours  are a joy and pride  becausethere are many rich people but hardly any of them are peaceful in  mind. They got rich by intrigues, seizure  and deception.Certainly, we have the right to enjoy and share the property acquired by our labour. And we have the feeling of real serenity and happiness in the enjoyment of the fruits of good kamma that we have generated without  fear, torment and repent. In addition, due to the fact that our business has thrived, we are out of debt, we are not worried, feel stressed and distressed; and we always keep our head up in life.

 

However, the greatest happiness is blamelessness. The real happiness is all our thought, words and deeds which are clear, honest and beneficial to us and others.Three karmas of the pure body, speech and mind or the purified body and mind are the basis to establish a profound inner and steadiest peace.And this is also the peace and joy that buddhists should always aim at.

 

Mr. Quang Tanh.

Translated into English by Ms. Giac Ngoc.