The Sigalovada Sutta
Rev. Thich Hang Dat

• Social Condition in India Prior to Buddhism:
• -Non-Aryan: Non-Vedic Tradition
• -Aryan-Vedic tradition
• Social Concerns of Buddhism:
• -Buddhist Morality
• -Sigalovada Sutta
• Conclusion

Social Condition in India Prior to Buddhism
Non-Aryan: Non-Vedic Tradition

Non-Aryan = Sramanic:
 World-negating, atheistic, realistic, pluralistic, & individualistic attitude:
•
Believers of Karma + Rebirth: Classless + casteless.
• Self effort, rigorous discipline, not external agent to bring salvation.
Jaina Munis: Non-killing: Showed respect for life.
• 6 teachers: Kassapa, Makkhali Gosala, Ajita
Kesakambali, Pakudha Kaccayana, Sanjaya Belatthaputta, and
Nigantha Nataputta.
 Purana Kassapa’s view: Doctrine of non-action/passivity.
-Denied moral causation: Moral righteness/wrongness of action does not affect the soul.

+Makkhali Gosala: Non-causationist, determinist, fatalist, naturalist, transformationalist, biologist, moralist, & theist:
Doctrine of self-transformation:
•
No effort can change the unalterable process of samsara led by principle of destiny:
-Denied any of human or divine effort, freewill, moral causation.
• Human effort fails to achieve a desired result.
• Lack of human effort brings desired result.
+Ajita-kesakambali: Believed in 4 elements (earth, fire, water, & air) + soul-body identity.
+ Annihilationist: Denied moral causation + existence after death.

+Pakudha Kaccayana: Eternalist, maintains the eternality of the soul and the world.
•
Separation of eternal soul + perishable body, doctrine of immobility, realism and pluralism, and eternal principles of change.
+Sanjaya Belatthaputta: A sceptic, has moral concern, did not believe in the instrumentality of knowledge for liberation, using penance for attaining the ultimate goal.
+Nigantha Nataputta (Mahavira of Jaina): Moral causation.
•
Tried to liberate individual from external determining forces like tradition, god, fate, chance, time, and cosmic soul.
• Even unintentional or mistaken action: Has moral retribution.
• Suggest: Exhaustion of past actions + Refraining from the present ones in order to liberate the soul.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
Aryan- Vedic tradition:
•
See man as part of organic whole (cosmos).
•
The harmony + function through force created by gods who require corresponding back up by earthly men: Through ritual sacrifices-Right Action: Good for Men + Gods.
•
Early Vedic gods: Not creator gods:
• Represented cosmos aspect of forces: Fire, wind, sun, and dawn.
•
Main function: Harmonize men, earth, cosmos, and gods.
-Bring material and spiritual well being for men.
• Men sing in praise: Awesome feeling toward these natural gods + Realization of his finiteness.
• Involve deeply and wholly in world of action: Fulfill material and spiritual aspiration.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
Man: Anxious about worldly fetters, fears, vulnerability, temporality, eschatological uncertainty.
Munis/ sramana: Renouncing the problematic world + aspire for salvation: Heaven + Immortality.
Vedic Ritual sacrifices: Sacred, secret, & magical in power based on the corresponding of the cosmos:
-Maintain the continued harmonious existence of men, gods, and the world.
- Worldly aspirations of property, food, rich harvest, water, air, wife, children, etc.
Please + force the gods to bestow on the man his desired goal.
-Priest: Possess these formulae, mediator between man + gods.
-Make Vedic priests to be indispensable, proud, & superior to others. God-like place among men.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
-Later, sacrificial formulae acquired independent status and abandoned gods: Priests still have unique status.
Varuna: Pre Vedic origin:
-Rule over gods + divine overseer of human conduct and administrator of justice for reward + punishment + selfconfession + forgiver a sinner, humane god + bestow bounty and happiness, increase life span, savior of man, governor of everything in the universe.
Vedic man: Doing ritual sacrifice + establishing a cordial relation with natural forces.
-Worldly well-being + achieve to the status of or to become god.
-Oppose to the Munis + Sramnas because it threatened the very existence of the harmonious cosmos.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
 Later Vedic period:
•
Shift from plurality of nature gods within universe to Supreme
Transcendent Deity (Primordial Man).
• Shift from realistic and pluralistic perspective to metaphysically monistic perspective.
• Shift from realistic and pluralistic perspective to metaphysically monistic perspective.
• Journey from polytheism to henotheism to monotheism.
 Rgveda: Primordial man dismembered himself to create the universe of plurality + principle of harmony:
-For harmonious functioning of organic whole.
Universe: Made self-sustaining.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
-Primordial Man created humanity, its hierarchical order to maintain social harmony.
 Rgvedic society: Tribal + rural society.
• Its ethics: Social and cosmic harmony + prosperity.
• Any disruptive of social and environmental harmony, peace, and happiness: Wrong.
 Brahamanas period: Scriptural texts of Vedas, Brahmanas,
Aranyakas, + Upanisads: Revelation.
• Merely understand of these meanings:
-Acquiring knowledge of ultimate reality.
 Brahmanas: Obsessed with ritual sacrifices:
-Obtaining power, sustenance, well-being.
•
Brahmin priest acquired: Undisputed highest status in society.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
• They claimed to possess correct knowledge to perform sacrifice to ensure desired result.
• They established themselves as a spiritual and moral leader of human society + indispensable mediator for the seekers of wellbeing and salvation.
• They preferred hierarchically organize of society for harmony.
-They applied the hierarchical scheme to gods, human beings, ethics, & social functions.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
Upanisads: Played down the use of Vedic knowledge and rituals.
• Changing the emphasis from outward performance to inwardness, from material sacrifice to ego sacrifice, from religious ritual to religious knowledge and realization:

More ethical and spiritual and centered on sacrifice of ego-self and enlargement of individual self to cosmic self: Cosmic consciousness: Cosmic self + God merged.
 Journey from world action to its transcendence, from temporal reward of heaven to eternal bliss of liberation: Made possible for contemplative meditation.
-Accept the law of karma, eternal salvation, immortality.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
.Transforming the agent’s self according to the nature of previous action:
-Individual self: Become good by good action, and bad by bad action.
-The role of gods: Supervise this self-operating law, not to intervene by divine power.
-This personal self: Responsible for moral development or degeneration according to its moral conduct.

• Early Upanisads: Assigned god’s subordinate position to karmic law.
– Adopt Non-Vedic theory of karma: Went against the religious sacrifice and monopoly of Brahmin priests.
– More speculative and rational.
– Based on empirical experience to metaphysical truth.
• Middle and late Upanisads:
– Ultimate truth can be known only through yogic practice:
– Insight into nature of universal reality, not mere traditional
Vedic learning and ritual acts.
– Questions the uncritical attitude towards traditional ideas + theories.
– Bring god back to its glory as immortal and imperishable ruler of individual self + perishable matter.
– Through having knowledge and meditation on god, one attains liberation and fulfill his desire.

•
– Revives Vedic god as Supreme Lord: Dictator of karma.
– Introduced the idea of two levels of reality:
– Higher: transcendent; Lower: Empirical.
– Moved from polytheism to monism: Free man from depending on ritual sacrifices and god.
– Changing the meaning of sacrifice: From external performance to internal/ego sacrifice:
– Focus on the moral and spiritual development of individual.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
• Individual is responsible for his karma, retribution, rebirth.
• Karma: Cosmic justice system’s function operating within the moral agent of action in past, present, & future.
• Birth + rebirth: Determined by moral quality of previous karmas: Belong to divine varna-scheme.
• Ex: Violator of social and cosmic harmony (of varna system) will be born in a socially degraded rank.
• If an agent follows strictly the varna system (4 castes): Will be rewarded with higher rank in society, happy in life and after.
 Varna system: Self-operating justice system:
-One’s duties are fixed.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
 Varna scheme: Criterion for right and wrong:
• One’s adherence or non-adherence of one’s varnadharma.
• Metaphysical discriminate humanity: Brahmanas, Ksatriyas,
Vaissyas, and Sudra.
• Descending hierarchy: Purity, genealogy, moral development, social status, & right which base on previous life’s karma.
• Ex: -Brahmins are endowed with all the general principles of morality and ideas.
• Sudra is deprived of them. Hence they have to be suffered.
• No possibility of internal mobility regardless how much he tries to live a moral life.
• Caste system shapes + direct people’s moral behavior in society.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
Bhagavadgita:
 Reality of 4 castes by relating them to 3 natural qualities:
•
Bright/bouyant (sattva): Brahmana
• Mobile/active (rajas): Ksatriya.
• Dark/heavy (tamas): Vaisya + Sudra.
 Assigned duties of these castes.
 These castes had to perform their duties regardless the consequences.
 The Law of Manu spells out the caste system in details.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
 Brāhma ṇ
as:
• Was born from mouth of Purusa god.
• Study and teach Veda, not other 3 castes.
• Takes a śūdra as wife to his bed, will after death sink into hell; if he begets a child by her, he will lose the rank of a brāhma ṇ a.
• May confidently seize the goods of his śūdra slave.
• No greater crime is known on earth than slaying a brāhma ṇ a; a king, therefore, must not even conceive in his mind the thought of killing a brāhma ṇ
a.
• Be he ignorant or learnt is a great divinity.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
• Of him who gives natural birth and him who gives the knowledge of the Veda, the giver of the Veda is the more venerable father; for the birth for the sake of the Veda ensures eternal rewards both in this life and after death.
 Kshatriyas:
• Was born from arms of Purusa god.
• Should remember of their low status than that of brāhma ṇ a.
• The king should order a Vaisya to trade, to lend money, to cultivate the land, or to tend cattle, and a śūdra to serve the twice-born castes.
 Vaiśya:
• Was born from thighs of Purusa god.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
• Must never conceive this wish ‘I will not keep cattle;’ and if a Vaisya is willing to keep them, they must never be kept by men of other castes.
• Trading.
• To lend money, to cultivate the land, or to tend cattle.
 Śūdra:
• Was born from the feet of Purusa god.
• “The foolish man who, after having eaten a dinner, gives the leavings to a śūdra, falls headlong into the Kalasutra hell.”
• Through emancipated by his master, is not released from servitude; since that is innate in him.
• Whether bought or unbought, he may compel to do servile work; for he was created by the Self-existent to be slave of a brāhma ṇ a.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
*A brāhma ṇ
a may confidently seize the goods of his śūdra slave; for as that slave can have no property, his master may take his possessions.
•
To serve the twice-born castes.
• A low-caste man who tries to place himself on the same seat with a man of a high caste, shall be branded on his hip and be banished, or the king shall cause his buttock to be gashed.
• But the king shall inflict on a base-born śūdra, who corporal punishment which cause terror.
.Even a śūdra ought not to take a nuptial fee when he gives away his daughter; for he who takes a fee sells his daughter, covering the transaction by another name.

Aryan-Vedic tradition
 Women:
• Women must particularly be guarded against evil inclinations, however trifling they may appear; for if they are not guarded, they will bring sorrow on two families.
• The husband receives his wife from the gods; he does not wed her according to his own will; doing what is agreeable to the gods.
• The gift of a daughter, who has been decked with ornaments to a priest who duly officiates a sacrifice, during the course of its performance, is a Daiva rite.
• Twice-born men who, in their folly, wed wives of the low caste,
śūdras, soon degrade their families and their children to the state of śūdras.

Buddhist Morality:
-Develop human’s moral behavior and spiritual life to the wholeness through self-effort and selfrealization.
-Morality and intellectual development determine people’s position in society.
-Take entire human being as one species, impartially.
Clear, coherent, & comprehensive.
-Impartial.
-Rational and accepted by rational people.
-Universalization.
-Extend beyond mere moral rules or command.
-Non-god/divine element enforcing morality.

Buddhist Morality
-Empirical grounded.
-Integrate moral thought and action.
-Truly universal public system.
-Achieve to highest human good = Ultimate freedom, happiness, peace, love, & compassion.
 Virtuous person: Free from remorse, enjoy a great fortune, having good fortune, welcome in assembly, having a peaceful death, and taking rebirth in heaven.
 Non-virtuous person: Living in penury, bad reputation spread far, entering an assembly of men shyly and confused, meet a painful death, & suffering in hell after death.
 Guide human’s behavior + morality + wisdom.
 Building good relationship + interaction with other.

Avoid evil ways:
• The four defilements of conduct.
• The four causes of evil action.
• The six ways of squandering wealth.
Choose true friends.
Protect close relationships:
-Parents-Children (East),
-Teachers-students (South),
-Wife-husband (West),
-Friends and colleagues (North),
-Religious teacher-student: Ascetics and Brahmins (Up),
-Employer- Employee (Down).

THE FOUR CARDINALS OF CONDUCT
•
•
•
•

 He does no evil deed led by the bias of desire;
 He does no evil deed led by the bias of hate;
 He does no evil deed led by the bias of delusion;
 He does no evil deed led by the bias of fear.
Prevent creating the causes of sufferings in the 2 nd Noble Truth.

 The addiction to strong drinks, distilled drinks, fermented drinks and that which causes heedlessness, young householder, is a way of squandering wealth.
 Roaming (and loitering) the streets at unseemly hours is a way of squandering wealth.
 Frequenting fairs [or shows] is a way of squandering wealth.
 Addiction to gambling, a basis for heedlessness, is a way of squandering wealth.
 Associating with evil friends is a way of squandering wealth.
 The habit of idleness is a way of squandering wealth.

Six dangers from the addiction to strong drinks, distilled drinks, fermented drinks and that which causes heedlessness
 The immediate (and visible) loss of wealth.
 An increase of quarrels.
 The likelihood of illness.
 It is a source of disgrace.
 The indecent exposure of oneself.
 It weakens one’s intelligence.

 He is himself without guard or protection.
 His wife and children [family] are without guard or protection.
 His wealth is without guard or protection.
 He is liable to be suspected of evil deeds [and crimes].
 He falls prey to false rumors.
 He is flooded by numerous troubles.

 ‘Where is there dancing?’
 ‘Where is there singing?’ His wealth is without guard or protection.
 ‘Where is there music playing?’
 ‘Where is there a talk show [or story-telling]?’
 ‘Where is there hand-clapping [hand music]?’
 ‘Where is there drum-beating?’

 When one wins, one begets hatred.
 When one loses, one regrets one’s loss.
 There is immediate [and visible] loss of wealth.
 One’s word carries no weight in an assembly.
 One is looked down by friends and colleagues.
 One is not sought after for marriage, for how could a person addicted to gambling support a wife?

 The gamblers.
 The unrestrained persons.
 The drunkards.
 The cheaters.
 The swindlers.
 The violent person.

 He avoids work, saying, ‘It’s too cold.’
 He avoids work, saying, ‘It’s too hot.’
Relate to weather.
 He avoids work, saying, ‘It’s too late.’
 He avoids work, saying, ‘It’s too early.’
Relate to time.
 He avoids work, saying, ‘I’m too hungry.’
 He avoids work, saying, ‘I’m too full.’
Relate to physical body.

A. False friends
Four who should be known as enemies in the guise of friends:
1. The downright taker,
2. The mere talker,
B. True friends
Four who should be known as true-hearted friends:
1. The helper
2. The one constant in joy and in sorrow
3. The sweet-talker, 3. The good counselor
4. The destructive companion. 4. The caring.

A. False friends
1-The downright taker:
 He merely takes without ever giving.
 With little, he desires much.
 He does what needs doing only out of fear.
 He serves only his own ends.
B. True friends
1-The helper:
 He guards you when you are unmindful.
 He guards your property when you are unmindful.
 He is a refuge to you when you are in fear [or danger].
 When you have tasks to complete, he provides you with double the supply you need.

A. False friends
2-The mere talker:
B. True friends
2-The one constant in joy and in sorrow:
 He tells you his secrets.
 He claims to having been hospitable in the past.
 He promises hospitality in the future.
 He worms his way with empty favors.
 When you need help, he feigns his own misfortune.
 He keeps your secrets.
 He does not abandon you in your troubles.
 He would even give his life for you.

A. False friends
3The sweet-talker:
 He approves of your doing wrong.
 He approves of your doing right [or disapproves of it, depending on what profits him].
 He sings your praises to your face.
 He runs you down behind your back.
B. True friends
3The good counselor:
 He restrains you from evil.
 He exhorts you to do good.
 He lets you hear what you have not heard before.
 He shows you the way to heaven.

A. False friends
4-The destructive companion:
 Taking strong drinks, distilled drinks, fermented drinks and that which causes heedlessness.
 Roaming [and loitering in] the streets at unseemly hours.
 Frequenting fairs [or shows].
 Indulging in gambling, a basis for carelessness.
B. True friends
4-The caring:
 He does not delight in your misfortunes.
 He delights in your good fortunes.
 He prevents others from speaking ill of you.
 He commends others who speak well of you.

 Parents should be regarded as the front direction [the east].
 Teachers should be regarded as the direction to the right
[the south].
 Wife and husband should be regarded as the direction at the back [the west].
 Friends and companions should be regarded as the superior direction [the north].
 Slaves, laborers and workers [employees and charges] should be regarded as the direction below [nadir].
 Ascetics and brahmins [religious practitioners] should be regarded as the direction above [zenith].

Children’s responsibility:
 Must attend caringly to their parents so as to provide them with all the requisites in life.
 Must carry out the family affairs, such as the business matters of their parents.
 Must maintain their parents' properties, clan name, religious duties, good name, and lineage to try and straighten their parents' religious view if they have a wrong view.
 Must obey their parents and make themselves worthy of the parents' heritage.
 On their parents' death they should do good deeds in dedication to them and share the merits with them.
Parents’ responsibility:
 They restrain him from evil.
 They exhort him to do good.
 They have him trained in a profession.
 They arrange for his marriage to a suitable wife [suitable husband].
 They hand over his inheritance in due time.

Student’s responsibility: Teacher’s responsibility:
 By rising (in salutation).
 They discipline him so that he is well-disciplined.
 By waiting upon them.
 They teach him so that he is well-taught and learned.
 By eagerness to listen [to learn].
 They ensure that he is learned in every art and learning without any discrimination.
 By personal service.
 They must speak well of his
 By learning the arts [and professions] with respect.
pupil's virtues and attainments to his friends.
 They provide him with safety in every quarter.

Wife’s responsibility:
 She manages her chores of the household work very well.
 She is hospitable to those around her [such as servants and husband’s relatives].
 She is not unfaithful to him.
Husband’s responsibility:
 By treating her with
 respect.
By not showing her discourtesy.
 She looks after the household stores [and property].
 She is skillful and diligent in all her duties.
 By not being unfaithful to her.
 By handing over authority over domestic matter to her.
 By providing her with adornments.

Fraternal Duty for a Good Friend:
 A man must give his friends all necessary things as much as possible.

 He must do his best for the benefit of his friends.


He must use affectionate words towards them.
He must think of them as himself.
He must be true to his words and promises.
Obligation for a Beneficiary:
 A beneficiary should protect his friend when his friend is inebriated.
 He should guard over his friend's properties when he is inebriated.
 He should be a refuge for his friend when the latter is in trouble.
 He should not desert his friend when and who is in distress.
 He should help his descendants.

Employee to Employer:
 They rise before him.
 They retire after him.
 They take only what is given.
 They do their work well.
 They must always speak of the virtues and good name of his employer.
Employer to Employee:
 By allocating work according to the strength of the worker.
 By providing them with food and wages.
 By attending to their medical and health needs.
 By sharing excellent tastes
[food, etc] with them.
 By giving them timely breaks and holidays.

Religious student:
 A devotee must minister to the religious teachers with affection in action.
 He must minister to the religious teachers with affection in speech.
 He must show them affection in thought, wishing them well at all times.
 He must always keep his house open to the religious teachers.
 He must provide them with material requisites.
Religious teacher:
 They restrain him from evil.
 They exhort him to do good.
 They, with a good mind, show him compassion.
 They let him hear what he has not heard before.
 They clarify what he has heard.

 He must be more industrious than others.
 He must be vigilant in order to lead others.
 He must be kind to his subordinates.
 He must forebear and forgive others.
 He must be considerate and reasonable in whatever he does.

Conclusion
• Social condition in India prior to Buddhism:
– World-negating, atheistic, realistic, pluralistic, & individualistic attitude:
– - Believers of Karma + Rebirth: Classless + casteless.
– -Self effort, rigorous discipline, not external agent to bring salvation.
– -Non-killing: Showed respect for life.

Conclusion
– Maintain the continued harmonious existence of men, gods, and the world.
• - Worldly aspirations of property, food, rich harvest, water, air, wife, children, etc.
• -Please + force the gods to bestow on the man his desired goal.
• -Priest: Possess these formulae, mediator between man + gods.
• -Make Vedic priests to be indispensable, proud, & superior to others. God-like place among men.

Conclusion
• Social Concerns of Buddhism Buddhist Morality:
• -
Develop human’s moral behavior and spiritual life to the wholeness through self-effort and self-realization.
• -Morality and intellectual development determine people’s position in society.
• -Take entire human being as one species, impartially.
– - Clear, coherent, & comprehensive.
– -Impartial.
– -Rational and accepted by rational people.
– -Universalization.
– -Extend beyond mere moral rules or command.
– -Non-god/divine element enforcing morality.

Conclusion
– Empirical grounded.
– -Integrate moral thought and action.
– -Truly universal public system.
• -Achieve to highest human good = Ultimate freedom, happiness, peace, love, & compassion.
• Virtuous person: Free from remorse, enjoy a great fortune, having good fortune, welcome in assembly, having a peaceful death, and taking rebirth in heaven.
• Non-virtuous person: Living in penury, bad reputation
• spread far, entering an assembly of men shyly and confused, meet a painful death, & suffering in hell after death.
• Guide human’s behavior + morality + wisdom.
• Building good relationship + interaction with other.

Conclusion
• The Sigavada Sutta
• -
Avoid evil ways:
• The four defilements of conduct.
• The four causes of evil action.
• The six ways of squandering wealth.
Choose true friends.
Protect close relationships:
-Parents-Children (East),
-Teachers-students (South),
-Wife-husband (West),
-Friends and colleagues (North),
-Religious teacher-student: Ascetics and Brahmins (Up),
-Employer- Employee (Down).