[INDOLOGY] The Buddhist term sutta

[Dan Lusthaus]

Dear all,

To address Madhav’s question: Sutta is used in Pali suttas to mean the discourses of the Buddha. For instance:

Take a mendicant who says: 
Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu evaṁ vadeyya: 

‘Reverend, I have heard and learned this in the presence of the Buddha: 
‘sammukhā metaṁ, āvuso, bhagavato sutaṁ sammukhā paṭiggahitaṁ— 

this is the teaching, this is the training, this is the Teacher’s instruction.’ 
ayaṁ dhammo, ayaṁ vinayo, idaṁ satthusāsanan’ti. 

You should neither approve nor dismiss that mendicant’s statement. 
Tassa, bhikkhave, bhikkhuno bhāsitaṁ neva abhinanditabbaṁ nappaṭikkositabbaṁ. 

Instead, you should carefully memorize those words and phrases, then check if they’re included in the discourses and found in the texts on monastic training. 
Anabhinanditvā appaṭikkositvā tāni padabyañjanāni sādhukaṁ uggahetvā sutte otāretabbāni, vinaye sandassetabbāni. 

If they’re not included in the discourses and found in the texts on monastic training, you should draw the conclusion: 
Tāni ce sutte otāriyamānāni vinaye sandassiyamānāni na ceva sutte otaranti na vinaye sandissanti, niṭṭhamettha gantabbaṁ: 

‘Clearly this is not the word of the Blessed One, the perfected one, the fully awakened Buddha. 
‘addhā idaṁ na ceva tassa bhagavato vacanaṁ arahato sammāsambuddhassa; 

It has been incorrectly memorized by that mendicant.’ imassa ca bhikkhuno duggahitan’ti. 

And so you should reject it. 
Iti hetaṁ, bhikkhave, chaḍḍeyyātha. 

(and so on)

Aṅguttara Nikāya 4, 18. Sañcetaniyavagga, 180. Mahāpadesasutta (with Bhikkhu Sujato’s tr.)
https://suttacentral.net/an4.180/en/sujato

==
Sutta occurs frequently meaning “thread.”

paripakkaṁ vā kammaṁ phussa phussa byantīkarissāmīti hevaṁ natthi doṇamite sukhadukkhe pariyantakate saṁsāre, natthi hāyanavaḍḍhane, natthi ukkaṁsāvakaṁse. Seyyathāpi nāma suttaguḷe khitte nibbeṭhiyamānameva paleti; evameva bāle ca paṇḍite ca nibbeṭhiyamānā sukhadukkhaṁ palentī’”ti? 
Pleasure and pain are allotted. Transmigration lasts only for a limited period, so there’s no increase or decrease, no getting better or worse. It’s like how, when you toss a ball of string, it rolls away unraveling. In the same way, after transmigrating the foolish and the astute will make an end of suffering’?” 

from  Saṁyutta Nikāya 24, 1. Sotāpattivagga (Stream-Entry). 8. Mahādiṭṭhisutta (The Extensive View ), with Bhikkhu Sujato’s translation
https://suttacentral.net/sn24.8/en/sujato

—
Seyyathāpi nāma suttaguḷe khitte nibbeṭhiyamānameva paleti;  evameva bāle ca paṇḍite ca sandhāvitvā saṁsaritvā dukkhassantaṁ karissantī’ti.
It’s like how, when you toss a ball of string, it rolls away unraveling. In the same way, after transmigrating the foolish and the astute will make an end of suffering.’

From Majjhima Nikāya 76, Sandakasutta (with Bh. Sujato’s tr.)
https://suttacentral.net/mn76/en/sujato
—

Doṇamite sukhadukkhe pariyantakate saṁsāre, natthi hāyanavaḍḍhane, natthi ukkaṁsāvakaṁse. Seyyathāpi nāma suttaguḷe khitte nibbeṭhiyamānameva paleti;  evameva bāle ca paṇḍite ca sandhāvitvā saṁsaritvā dukkhassantaṁ karissantī’ti. 
Pleasure and pain are allotted. Transmigration lasts only for a limited period, so there’s no increase or decrease, no getting better or worse. It’s like how, when you toss a ball of string, it rolls away unraveling. In the same way, after transmigrating the foolish and the astute will make an end of suffering.’

from Dīgha Nikāya 2, Sāmaññaphalasutta (with Bh. Sujato’s tr.)
https://suttacentral.net/dn2/en/sujato 
==

On one occasion when the monks from the group of six were making robes, they asked for a large amount of thread. 
Tena kho pana samayena chabbaggiyā bhikkhū cīvarakārasamaye bahuṁ suttaṁ viññāpesuṁ. 

Yet even when their robes had been sewn, there was much thread left over. 
Katepi cīvare bahuṁ suttaṁ avasiṭṭhaṁ hoti. 

They said, 
Atha kho chabbaggiyānaṁ bhikkhūnaṁ etadahosi— 

“Well, let’s ask for more thread and have weavers weave us robe-cloth.”
“handa mayaṁ, āvuso, aññampi suttaṁ viññāpetvā tantavāyehi cīvaraṁ vāyāpemā”ti. Atha kho chabbaggiyā bhikkhū aññampi suttaṁ viññāpetvā tantavāyehi cīvaraṁ vāyāpesuṁ. 

Yet even when the robe-cloth had been woven, there was much thread left over. 
Vītepi cīvare bahuṁ suttaṁ avasiṭṭhaṁ hoti. 

A second time they asked for more thread and had weavers weave them robe-cloth. 
Dutiyampi kho chabbaggiyā bhikkhū aññampi suttaṁ viññāpetvā tantavāyehi cīvaraṁ vāyāpesuṁ. 

Once again there was much thread left over. 
Vītepi cīvare bahuṁ suttaṁ avasiṭṭhaṁ hoti. 

A third time they asked for more thread and had weavers weave them robe-cloth. 
Tatiyampi kho chabbaggiyā bhikkhū aññampi suttaṁ viññāpetvā tantavāyehi cīvaraṁ vāyāpesuṁ. 
(etc.)

Theravāda Vinaya: Suttaviññatti
Pli Tv Bu Vb NP 26 (with Bhikkhu Brahmali’s tr.)
https://suttacentral.net/pli-tv-bu-vb-np26/en/brahmali

==
Sutta by another etymology (cf. supati) means “sleep,” as in

“How many sleep while others wake? 
“Kati jāgarataṁ suttā, 

How many wake among the sleeping? 
kati suttesu jāgarā;

Saṁyutta Nikāya 1, 1. Naḷavagga, 6. Jāgarasutta (with Bh. Sujato’s tr.)
https://suttacentral.net/sn1.6/en/sujato <https://suttacentral.net/sn1.6/en/sujato>

Dan
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