On one occasion the Venerable Musīla, the Venerable Saviṭṭha, the Venerable Narada, and the Venerable Ānanda were living at Kosambī in Ghosita’s Park.
Then the Venerable Saviṭṭha said to the Venerable Musīla: “Friend Musīla, apart from faith, apart from personal preference, apart from oral tradition, apart from reasoned reflection, apart from acceptance of a view after pondering it, does the Venerable Musīla have personal knowledge thus: ‘With birth as condition, aging-and-death comes to be’?”
“Friend Saviṭṭha, apart from faith, apart from personal preference, apart from oral tradition, apart from reasoned reflection, apart from acceptance of a view after pondering it, I know this, I see this: ‘With birth as condition, aging-and-death comes to be.’”
“Friend Musīla, apart from faith … apart from acceptance of a view after pondering it, does the Venerable Musīla have personal knowledge thus: ‘With existence as condition, birth’?… ‘With ignorance as condition, volitional formations’?”
“Friend Saviṭṭha, apart from faith … apart from acceptance of a view after pondering it, I know this, I see this: ‘With ignorance as condition, volitional formations.’”
“Friend Musīla, apart from faith … apart from acceptance of a view after pondering it, does the Venerable Musīla have personal knowledge: ‘With the cessation of birth comes cessation of aging-and-death’? … … ‘With the cessation of ignorance comes cessation of volitional formations’?”
“Friend Saviṭṭha, apart from faith …. apart from acceptance of a view after pondering it, I know this, I see this: ‘With the cessation of birth comes cessation of aging-and-death.’… ‘With the cessation of ignorance comes cessation of volitional formations.’”
“Friend Musīla, apart from faith, apart from personal preference, apart from oral tradition, apart from reasoned reflection, apart from acceptance of a view after pondering it, does the Venerable Musīla have personal knowledge thus: ‘Nibbāna is the cessation of existence’?”
“Friend Saviṭṭha, apart from faith, apart from personal preference, apart from oral tradition, apart from reasoned reflection, apart from acceptance of a view after pondering it, I know this, I see this: ‘Nibbāna is the cessation of existence.’”
“Then the Venerable Musīla is an arahant, one whose taints are destroyed.”
When this was said, the Venerable Musīla kept silent.
Then the Venerable Narada said to the Venerable Saviṭṭha: “Friend Saviṭṭha, it would be good if I were asked that series of questions. Ask me that series of questions and I will answer you.”
“Then let the Venerable Narada get to answer that series of questions. I will ask the Venerable Narada that series of questions, and let him answer me.”
Here the Venerable Saviṭṭha asks the Venerable Narada the same series of questions as were addressed to the Venerable Musīla, and he answers in exactly the same way.
“Then the Venerable Narada is an arahant, one whose taints are destroyed.”
“Friend, though I have clearly seen as it really is with correct wisdom, ‘Nibbāna is the cessation of existence,’ I am not an arahant, one whose taints are destroyed. Suppose, friend, there was a well along a desert road, but it had neither a rope nor a bucket. Then a man would come along, oppressed and afflicted by the heat, tired, parched, and thirsty. He would look down into the well and the knowledge would occur to him, ‘There is water,’ but he would not be able to make bodily contact with it. So too, friend, though I have clearly seen as it really is with correct wisdom, ‘Nibbāna is the cessation of existence,’ I am not an arahant, one whose taints are destroyed.”
When this was said, the Venerable Ānanda asked the Venerable Saviṭṭha: “When he speaks in such a way, friend Saviṭṭha, what would you say about the Venerable Narada?”
“When he speaks in such a way, friend Ānanda, I would not say anything about the Venerable Narada except what is good and favourable.”