40b: The Last Days 2, In Vajji – 1478
1. Monastics, so long as the monastics are instilled with confidence or
faith grounded on conviction, they are bound to progress spiritually;
there is no reason for their decline.
2. Monastics, so long as the monastics have a conscience about wrong
doing (
hiri
) they are bound to progress spiritually; there is no reason for
their decline.
3. Monastics, so long as the monastics have concern about wrong doing
(
ottappa
), they are bound to progress spiritually; there is no reason for
their decline.
4. Monastics, so long as the monastics have vast learning, they are bound
to progress spiritually; there is no reason for their decline.
5. Monastics, so long as the monastics are diligent, they are bound to
progress spiritually; there is no reason for their decline.
6. Monastics, so long as the monastics are established in mindfulness, they
are bound to progress spiritually; there is no reason for their decline.
7. Monastics, so long as the monastics are endowed with insight wisdom
(
vipassanā-paññā
), they are bound to progress spiritually; there is no
reason for their decline.
Monastics, so long as these seven factors of non-decline remain with the
monastics, and so long as the monastics live by them, they are bound to progress
spiritually; there is no reason for their decline.”
1. Of these seven factors, the first factor of non-decline is conviction or faith
(s
addhā
). It is of 4 kinds:
1. Faith in the not yet attained (
agamanīya-saddhā
) refers to the strength
of conviction that arises in a Bodhisatta due to the noble striving after
perfection in ten ways (
pārami
), charity (
cāga
) and good conduct
(
cariyā
), without external prompting, which puts unshakable faith in
anything that deserves faith.
2. Faith based on attainment (
adhigama-saddhā
) refers to the unassailably
firm conviction of a noble one (
ariya
) in the four noble truths due to
having penetrative knowledge of the path.