Dīghajāṇu Sutta

In this discourse (Pali: sutta),[4] the townsman Dighajanu says to the Buddha the following:

'We are lay people enjoying sensuality; living crowded with spouses & children; using Kasi fabrics & sandalwood; wearing garlands, scents, & creams; handling gold & silver.[5] May the Blessed One teach the Dhamma for those like us, for our happiness & well-being in this life ... [and] in lives to come.'[6]

In response, the Buddha first identifies four traits conducive to happiness (Pali: sukha) in this life:

• hard-working (uṭṭhāna-sampadā), being skilled and diligent in ones livelihood;
• vigilance (ārakkha-sampadā), protecting ones wealth from theft and disaster;
• virtuous friendship (kalyāṇa-mittatā), associating with and emulating those embodying faith, virtue, generosity and wisdom; and,
• balanced living (sama-jīvikatā),[7] abstaining from womanizing, drunkenness, gambling and evil friendships.

In this discourse,[8] the Buddha describes wealth worthy of the householder's protection as being:

'wealth acquired by energetic striving,

amassed by the strength of his arms,

earned by the sweat of his brow,

righteous wealth righteously gained.'[9]

Regarding four traits conducive to happiness in future lives, the Buddha identifies accomplishments (sampadā) in:

• faith (saddhā), in the fully enlightened Buddha;[10]
• virtue (sīla), as exemplified by the Five Precepts;
• generosity (cāga), giving charity and alms; and,
• wisdom (paññā), having insight into the arising and passing of things.

This discourse ends with the following refrain:

Thus to the layman full of faith,

By him, so truly named 'Enlightened,'

These eight conditions have been told

Which now and after lead to bliss.[11]

Bhikkhu Bodhi describes this discourse as one of "a number of texts dealing with different aspects of household life united by an emphasis on right livelihood" (Pali: sammājiva). Bodhi identifies a common thread among such texts as being an emphasis on right conduct, as exemplified by adherence to the Five Precepts.[13]

In addition to the precepts, as in the Sigalovada Sutta, this discourse also warns against the dangers of libertinism and commends the keeping of good-hearted friends.

In suttas such as this one, Bodhi identifies a second common thread to what might be referred to as the pursuit of a kammic consciousness.[14] Discussing the broader context of Buddhist ethics, Ven. Narada Mahathera states:

The question of incurring the pleasure or displeasure of a God does not enter the mind of a Buddhist. Neither hope of reward nor fear of punishment acts as an incentive to him to do good or to refrain from evil. A Buddhist is aware of future consequences, but he refrains from evil because it retards, does good because it aids progress to Enlightenment....[15]

In this sutta in particular such an awareness is underlined by Dighajanu's concern for happiness in ones future life. Bodhi notes:

For Early Buddhism, the ideal householder is not merely a devout supporter of the monastic order but a noble person who has attained at least the first of the four stages of realization, the fruition of stream-entry (sotāpatti).[16]

Such a realization on the Buddhist path requires more than ethical business conduct. Narada comments:

Conduct, though essential, is itself insufficient to gain one's emancipation. It should be coupled with wisdom or knowledge (pañña). The base of Buddhism is morality, and wisdom is its apex.[17]

Likewise, in his discourse to Dighajanu, the Buddha identifies wisdom as the ultimate trait for a householder to nurture and embody.