Once, the Blessed One was living among the Koliyans in a town named Kakkarapatta. Then Dīghajāṇu, a young Koliyan man, approached the Blessed One. Having approached and paid respects to the Blessed One, he sat down to one side. Sitting down to one side, Dīghajāṇu, the young Koliyan man, said to the Blessed One:
“Venerable Sir, we are householders who enjoy sensual pleasures live with children around us. We use sandalwood from Kāsi, wear garlands, perfumes, and ointments, and enjoy gold and money. Therefore, Venerable Sir, may the Blessed One teach us the Dhamma in such a way that it will lead to our benefit and happiness in this life and in the future life.”
Four qualities that lead to benefit in this life
"Byagghapajja (an epithet of the Koliyans), there are these four qualities that lead to the benefit and happiness of a son of good family in this life. What are these four?
Accomplishment in initiative, accomplishment in protection, good friendship, and balanced livelihood.
1. What is accomplishment in initiative? Here, Byagghapajja, a son of a good family supports his livelihood through various occupations - whether by farming, trading, cow herding, archery, government service, serving the king, or other crafts. He is skillful and not lazy, endowed with investigation and examination, capable of completing and organizing. This, Byagghapajja, is called accomplishment in initiative.
2. And what is accomplishment in protection? Here, Byagghapajja, the wealth of a son of good family is acquired through initiative and persistence, accumulated through the strength of arms, earned by sweat, righteous and lawfully obtained. He maintains this wealth with protection and guarding, thinking: ‘How can my wealth not be seized by authorities, not stolen by thieves, not burned by fire, not carried away by water, and not seized by unfriendly heirs?’ This, Byagghapajja, is called accomplishment in protection.
3. What is good friendship? Here, Byagghapajja, a son of a good family, wherever he lives, whether in a village or a town, there, he should associate with householders or their sons, whether young or old with moral virtue, whether endowed with faith, virtue, generosity, and wisdom. He should stand with them, converse with them, and engage in discussions with them. He should emulate the faith of those endowed with faith, the virtue of those endowed with virtue, the generosity of those endowed with generosity, and the wisdom of those endowed with wisdom. This, Byagghapajja, is called good friendship.
4. And what is balanced livelihood? Here, Byagghapajja, a son of a good family, knowing both his income and his expenses, sustains a balanced livelihood, neither overly extravagant nor too frugal: ‘Thus my income will cover my expenses, and my expenses will not exceed my income.’ Just as, Byagghapajja, a scale holder or a scale holder’s apprentice, having taken up the scale, knows: 'It is lowered by this much, or it is raised by this much, in the same way, Byagghapajja, a son of a good family, knowing both his income and his expenses, sustains a balanced livelihood, neither overly extravagant nor too frugal: ‘Thus my income will cover my expenses, and my expenses will not exceed my income.’ If, Byagghapajja, this son of a good family, having a small income, lives extravagantly, people will say: ‘This son of a good family devours his wealth like a fig tree parasite.’ If, Byagghapajja, this son of a good family, having a large income, lives miserably, people will say: ‘This son of a good family will die without enjoying his wealth, like one who dies of hunger despite having plenty.’ But when, Byagghapajja, this son of a good family, knowing both his income and his expenses, sustains a balanced livelihood, neither overly extravagant nor too frugal: ‘Thus my income will cover my expenses, and my expenses will not exceed my income.’ This, Byagghapajja, is called balanced livelihood.
Four drains and four inlets
Thus, Byagghapajja, for wealth that has been obtained, there are four drains: being promiscuous, a drunkard, a gambler, and associating with bad friends, bad companions, and being influenced by bad people. Just as, Byagghapajja, a large pond has four inlets and four drains, if a person would block the inlets and open the drains; and if the rain does not fall properly, then, Byagghapajja, for that large pond, only decline can be expected, not growth; in the same way, Byagghapajja, for wealth that has been obtained, there are four drains: being a womanizer, a drunkard, a gambler, and associating with bad friends, bad companions, and being influenced by bad people.
Thus, Byagghapajja, for wealth that has been obtained, there are four inlets: not being a womanizer, not being a drunkard, not being a gambler, and having good friends, good companions, and being influenced by good people. Just as, Byagghapajja, a large pond has four inlets and four drains, if a person were to open the inlets and block the drains, and if the rain falls properly, then, Byagghapajja, for that large pond, growth can be expected, not decline; in the same way, Byagghapajja, for wealth that has been obtained, there are four inlets: not being a womanizer, not being a drunkard, not being a gambler, and having good friends, good companions, and being influenced by good people.
Indeed, Byagghapajja, these four qualities lead to the benefit and happiness of a son of a good family in this life.
Four qualities that lead to benefit in the future life
Byagghapajja, there are these four qualities that lead to the benefit and happiness of a son of a good family in the future life. Which four? Accomplishment in faith, accomplishment in ethical conduct, accomplishment in generosity, accomplishment in wisdom.
1. What is accomplishment in faith? Here, Byagghapajja, a son of a good family is endowed with faith, and has faith in the enlightenment of the Tathāgata: ‘Indeed, the Blessed One is an Arahant and perfectly awakened, accomplished in wisdom and conduct, well-gone, knower of the world, an unsurpassed guide for trainable individuals, a teacher of gods and humans, awakened, blessed.’ This, Byagghapajja, is called accomplishment in faith.
2. What is accomplishment in ethical conduct? Here, Byagghapajja, a son of a good family refrains from killing living beings, refrains from taking what is not given, refrains from sexual misconduct, refrains from false speech, and refrains from intoxicants leading to heedlessness. This, Byagghapajja, is called accomplishment in ethical conduct.
3. What is accomplishment in generosity? Here, Byagghapajja, a son of a good family lives at home with a mind free from the stain of stinginess, generous, open handed, delighting in letting go, responsive to requests, and delighting in sharing gifts. This, Byagghapajja, is called accomplishment in generosity.
4. What is accomplishment in wisdom? Here, Byagghapajja, a son of a good family is wise, endowed with wisdom which discerns the arising and passing away, which is noble, penetrating, and leading to the complete ending of discontentment. This, Byagghapajja, is called accomplishment in wisdom.
Indeed, Byagghapajja, these four qualities lead to the benefit and happiness of a son of a good family in the future life.
Industrious in one’s duties, diligent and skillful; One sustains a balanced livelihood. and protects what is acquired.
Faithful, endowed with virtue, generous and free from stinginess; Always purifying the path, ensuring safety in the future life.
Thus these eight qualities, for the faithful householder; Are explained by the one who is truly named, to bring happiness in both respects.
For the benefit in this life, and for happiness in the future life; This is how for a householder, merit grows by generosity.
Here, the Buddha shares a teaching to a householder on securing happiness in this life and in the future life by means of a moral and ethical living in society.
Related Teachings:
The Happiness Visible in This Present Life: From “In the Buddha’s Words” by Bhikkhu Bodhi ↗️ - Read this collection of teachings the Buddha shared to householders, guiding lay people in worldly life.
A Bucket of Rice (SN 3.13) - In what is probably the world’s first recorded weight loss diet, when king Pasenadi shows up overweight and out of breath, the Buddha advises him to cut down his eating. The king asks an attendant to memorize the advise and recite it to him whenever he is eating.