an.8.80 Aṅguttara Nikāya (Numbered Discourses)

The Grounds for Laziness & the Arousal of Energy

“Monks, there are these eight grounds for laziness. Which eight?

“There is the case where a monk has some work to do. The thought occurs to him: ‘I will have to do this work. But when I have done this work, my body will be tired. Why don’t I lie down?’ So he lies down. He doesn’t make an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the first grounds for laziness.

“Then there is the case where a monk has done some work. The thought occurs to him: ‘I have done some work. Now that I have done work, my body is tired. Why don’t I lie down?’ So he lies down. He doesn’t make an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the second grounds for laziness.

“Then there is the case where a monk has to go on a journey. The thought occurs to him: ‘I will have to go on this journey. But when I have gone on the journey, my body will be tired. Why don’t I lie down?’ So he lies down. He doesn’t make an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the third grounds for laziness.

“Then there is the case where a monk has gone on a journey. The thought occurs to him: ‘I have gone on a journey. Now that I have gone on a journey, my body is tired. Why don’t I lie down?’ So he lies down. He doesn’t make an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the fourth grounds for laziness.

“Then there is the case where a monk, having gone for alms in a village or town, does not get as much coarse or refined food as he needs to fill himself up. The thought occurs to him: ‘I, having gone for alms in a village or town, have not gotten as much coarse or refined food as I need to fill myself up. This body of mine is tired & unsuitable for work. Why don’t I lie down?’ So he lies down. He doesn’t make an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the fifth grounds for laziness.

“Then there is the case where a monk, having gone for alms in a village or town, does get as much coarse or refined food as he needs to fill himself up. The thought occurs to him: ‘I, having gone for alms in a village or town, have gotten as much coarse or refined food as I need to fill myself up. This body of mine is heavy & unsuitable for work, as if I were many months pregnant. Why don’t I lie down?’ So he lies down. He doesn’t make an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the sixth grounds for laziness.

“Then there is the case where a monk comes down with a slight illness. The thought occurs to him: ‘I have come down with a slight illness. There’s a need to lie down.’ So he lies down. He doesn’t make an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the seventh grounds for laziness.

“Then there is the case where a monk has recovered from his illness, not long after his recovery. The thought occurs to him: ‘I have recovered from my illness. It’s not long after my recovery. This body of mine is weak & unsuitable for work. Why don’t I lie down?’ So he lies down. He doesn’t make an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the eighth grounds for laziness.

“These are the eight grounds for laziness.

“There are these eight grounds for the arousal of energy. Which eight?

“There is the case where a monk has some work to do. The thought occurs to him: ‘I will have to do this work. But when I am doing this work, it will not be easy to attend to the Buddha’s message. Why don’t I make an effort beforehand for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized?’ So he makes an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the first grounds for the arousal of energy.

“Then there is the case where a monk has done some work. The thought occurs to him: ‘I have done some work. While I was doing work, I couldn’t attend to the Buddha’s message. Why don’t I make an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized?’ So he makes an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the second grounds for the arousal of energy.

“Then there is the case where a monk has to go on a journey. The thought occurs to him: ‘I will have to go on this journey. But when I am going on the journey, it will not be easy to attend to the Buddha’s message. Why don’t I make an effort beforehand for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized?’ So he makes an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the third grounds for the arousal of energy.

“Then there is the case where a monk has gone on a journey. The thought occurs to him: ‘I have gone on a journey. While I was going on the journey, I couldn’t attend to the Buddha’s message. Why don’t I make an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized?’ So he makes an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the fourth grounds for the arousal of energy.

“Then there is the case where a monk, having gone for alms in a village or town, does not get as much coarse or refined food as he needs to fill himself up. The thought occurs to him: ‘I, having gone for alms in a village or town, have not gotten as much coarse or refined food as I need to fill myself up. This body of mine is light & suitable for work. Why don’t I make an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized?’ So he makes an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the fifth grounds for the arousal of energy.

“Then there is the case where a monk, having gone for alms in a village or town, does get as much coarse or refined food as he needs to fill himself up. The thought occurs to him: ‘I, having gone for alms in a village or town, have gotten as much coarse or refined food as I need to fill myself up. This body of mine is light & suitable for work. Why don’t I make an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized?’ So he makes an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the sixth grounds for the arousal of energy.

“Then there is the case where a monk comes down with a slight illness. The thought occurs to him: ‘I have come down with a slight illness. Now, there’s the possibility that it could get worse. Why don’t I make an effort beforehand for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized?’ So he makes an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the seventh grounds for the arousal of energy.

“Then there is the case where a monk has recovered from his illness, not long after his recovery. The thought occurs to him: ‘I have recovered from my illness. It’s not long after my recovery. Now, there’s the possibility that the illness could come back. Why don’t I make an effort beforehand for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized?’ So he makes an effort for the attaining of the as-yet-unattained, the reaching of the as-yet-unreached, the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. This is the eighth grounds for the arousal of energy.

“These are the eight grounds for the arousal of energy.”

- Translator: Thanissaro Bhikkhu

- Editor: Gabriel Laera

Grounds for Laziness and Arousing Energy

“Mendicants, there are eight grounds for laziness.
What eight?
Firstly, a mendicant has some work to do.
They think:
‘I have some work to do. But while doing it my body will get tired. I’d better have a lie down.’
They lie down, and don’t rouse energy for attaining the unattained, achieving the unachieved, and realizing the unrealized.
This is the first ground for laziness.
Furthermore, a mendicant has done some work.
They think:
‘I’ve done some work. But while working my body got tired. I’d better have a lie down.’
They lie down, and don’t rouse energy for attaining the unattained, achieving the unachieved, and realizing the unrealized.
This is the second ground for laziness.
Furthermore, a mendicant has to go on a journey.
They think:
‘I have to go on a journey. But while walking my body will get tired. I’d better have a lie down.’
They lie down, and don’t rouse energy for attaining the unattained, achieving the unachieved, and realizing the unrealized.
This is the third ground for laziness.
Furthermore, a mendicant has gone on a journey.
They think:
‘I’ve gone on a journey. But while walking my body got tired. I’d better have a lie down.’
They lie down, and don’t rouse energy for attaining the unattained, achieving the unachieved, and realizing the unrealized.
This is the fourth ground for laziness.
Furthermore, a mendicant has wandered for alms, but they didn’t get to fill up on as much food as they like, rough or fine.
They think:
‘I’ve wandered for alms, but I didn’t get to fill up on as much food as I like, rough or fine. My body is tired and unfit for work. I’d better have a lie down.’
They lie down, and don’t rouse energy for achieving the unachieved, attaining the unattained, and realizing the unrealized.
This is the fifth ground for laziness.
Furthermore, a mendicant has wandered for alms, and they got to fill up on as much food as they like, rough or fine.
They think:
‘I’ve wandered for alms, and I got to fill up on as much food as I like, rough or fine. My body is heavy, unfit for work, like I’ve just eaten a load of beans. I’d better have a lie down.’
They lie down, and don’t rouse energy for achieving the unachieved, attaining the unattained, and realizing the unrealized.
This is the sixth ground for laziness.
Furthermore, a mendicant feels a little sick.
They think:
‘I feel a little sick. Lying down would be good for me. I’d better have a lie down.’
They lie down, and don’t rouse energy for achieving the unachieved, attaining the unattained, and realizing the unrealized.
This is the seventh ground for laziness.
Furthermore, a mendicant has recently recovered from illness.
They think:
‘I’ve recently recovered from illness. My body is weak and unfit for work. I’d better have a lie down.’
They lie down, and don’t rouse energy for attaining the unattained, achieving the unachieved, and realizing the unrealized.
This is the eighth ground for laziness.
These are the eight grounds for laziness.
There are eight grounds for arousing energy.
What eight?
Firstly, a mendicant has some work to do.
They think:
‘I have some work to do. While working it’s not easy to focus on the instructions of the Buddhas. I’d better preemptively rouse up energy for attaining the unattained, achieving the unachieved, and realizing the unrealized.’
They rouse energy for attaining the unattained, achieving the unachieved, and realizing the unrealized.
This is the first ground for arousing energy.
Furthermore, a mendicant has done some work.
They think:
‘I’ve done some work. While I was working I wasn’t able to focus on the instructions of the Buddhas. I’d better preemptively rouse up energy for attaining the unattained, achieving the unachieved, and realizing the unrealized.’
They rouse up energy …
This is the second ground for arousing energy.
Furthermore, a mendicant has to go on a journey.
They think:
‘I have to go on a journey. While walking it’s not easy to focus on the instructions of the Buddhas. I’d better preemptively rouse up energy …’ …
This is the third ground for arousing energy.
Furthermore, a mendicant has gone on a journey.
They think:
‘I’ve gone on a journey. While I was walking I wasn’t able to focus on the instructions of the Buddhas. I’d better preemptively rouse up energy …’ …
This is the fourth ground for arousing energy.
Furthermore, a mendicant has wandered for alms, but they didn’t get to fill up on as much food as they like, rough or fine.
They think:
‘I’ve wandered for alms, but I didn’t get to fill up on as much food as I like, rough or fine. My body is light and fit for work. I’d better preemptively rouse up energy …’ …
This is the fifth ground for arousing energy.
Furthermore, a mendicant has wandered for alms, and they got to fill up on as much food as they like, rough or fine.
They think:
‘I’ve wandered for alms, and I got to fill up on as much food as I like, rough or fine. My body is strong and fit for work. I’d better preemptively rouse up energy …’ …
This is the sixth ground for arousing energy.
Furthermore, a mendicant feels a little sick.
They think:
‘I feel a little sick. It’s possible this illness will worsen. I’d better preemptively rouse up energy …’ …
This is the seventh ground for arousing energy.
Furthermore, a mendicant has recently recovered from illness.
They think:
‘I’ve recently recovered from illness. It’s possible the illness will come back. I’d better preemptively rouse up energy for attaining the unattained, achieving the unachieved, and realizing the unrealized.’
They rouse energy for attaining the unattained, achieving the unachieved, and realizing the unrealized.
This is the eighth ground for arousing energy.
These are the eight grounds for arousing energy.”