Exploring the Path - Pāli Course

Imesu kira sajjanti,¹
Eke samaṇabrāhmaṇā;
Viggayha² naṃ vivadanti
Janā ekaṅgadassino.³

Deeply attached to their own views,
Some recluses and Brahmins, indeed,
Engage in quarrels and disputes.
These are people who only see one side of things.

In the Kosambiyasutta the Buddha refers to an incident,⁴ while he was dwelling at the Ghositārāme at Kosambi, where he found Bhikkhus engaged in disputes, disagreements, and arguments. To ascertain their mental state during the squabble, he inquired if they were upholding the principles of goodwill and empathy in their verbal, physical, and mental interactions with their comrades in the holy life:

…api nu tumhākaṃ tasmiṃ samaye mettaṃ kāyakammaṃ paccupaṭṭhitaṃ hoti …mettaṃ vacīkammaṃ …mettaṃ manokammaṃ paccupaṭṭhitaṃ hoti?

After he brought these Bhikkhus to their senses, he taught them the six valuable qualities to be remembered, developed and multiplied in order to dwell in mutual kindness, harmony and amity. They should thus endeavour to maintain mettā by body, speech and mind towards one’s companions; share all possessions with them in common; uphold unbroken, unblemished and untorn sīla and develop the noble right view that is leading the one of decent practice towards the end of suffering!

…chayime, bhikkhave, dhammā sāraṇīyā piyakaraṇā garukaraṇā saṅgahāya avivādāya sāmaggiyā ekībhāvāya saṃvattanti: … mettaṃ kāyakammaṃ paccupaṭṭhitaṃ …, mettaṃ vacīkammaṃ paccupaṭṭhitaṃ …, mettaṃ manokammaṃ paccupaṭṭhitaṃ hoti …, ye te lābhā dhammikā dhammaladdhā antamaso pattapariyāpannamattampi⁵ … yāni tāni sīlāni akhaṇḍāni acchiddāni asabalāni … yāyaṃ diṭṭhi ariyā niyyānikā niyyāti takkarassa sammā dukkhakkhayāya …!⁶

In the text quoted, the Buddha emphasises that with the disposition to argue, one will never come to understand another (na aññamaññaṃ saññāpetha) and be unable to convince the other (na saññattiṃ upetha). It is one’s intention that needs to be altered!

Thus the commentarial explanation of musāvāda emphasizes a respective volition to deceive, hurt or uselessly while away the time of others.⁷ The commentarial expositions⁸ of pisuṇā vācā as well as pharusā vācā likewise illuminate the underlying intention to divide, offend or insult and highlight the effect that this can have on the offender:

Pisuṇā vācātiādīsu yāya vācāya yassa taṃ vācaṃ bhāsati, tassa hadaye attano piyabhāvaṃ parassa ca suññabhāvaṃ⁹ karoti, sā pisuṇā vācā. Tesaṃ mūlabhūtā cetanāpi pisuṇāvācādināmameva¹⁰ labhati, sā eva ca idha adhippetāti.

Speech based on maliciousness and suchlike: Malicious speech is speech that if spoken generates in the heart affection for oneself, and in the other, lack of regard for another. Of these, the root is volition and therefore it receives the designation: ‘malicious speech and suchlike’.

Tattha saṃkiliṭṭhacittassa paresaṃ vā bhedāya attano piyakamyatāya¹¹ vā kāyavacīpayogasamuṭṭhāpikā¹² cetanā pisuṇā vācā.

Therein, based on the volition of one with a defiled mind, that prompts effort by body or by speech to cause either division among others or to generate esteem for oneself that defines malicious speech.

According to the qualities of the people who are becoming divided, the intention gets qualified as less or more blameworthy. So that kammic effects take place, the following four constituents have to be fulfilled:

Tassā cattāro sambhārā bhinditabbo¹³ paro, ‘‘iti ime nānā bhavissanti vinā bhavissantī’’ti bhedapurekkhāratā¹⁴ vā, ‘‘ahaṃ piyo bhavissāmi vissāsiko’’ti¹⁵ piyakamyatā vā, tajjo¹⁶ vāyāmo, tassa tadatthavijānananti.¹⁷

Its constituents are four: others to be divided; the intention to separate: “thus these will be alienated and estranged”; or the desire to endear oneself: “thus I will be liked and become trustworthy”; the respective effort and that meaning being recognized by the other person.

Likewise all categories of speech which makes oneself and others callous is defined as pharusa vācā. It is speech which in itself is harsh and neither pleasant to the ear nor to the heart:

Yāya pana attānampi parampi pharusampi karoti, sā vācā sayampi pharusā neva kaṇṇasukhā na hadayasukhā vā, ayaṃ pharusā vācā. Parassa mammacchedakakāyavacīpayogasamuṭṭhāpikā¹⁸ ekantapharusā cetanā pharusā vācā.

Harsh speech is the entirely callous volitional intention prompting effort by body or by speech to hurt another's vital feelings.

Again, a differentiation is made in the effect and culpability, whether such kind of speech is addressed to people with less or more qualities or of close or not so close relationship.¹⁹ The commentary corroborates once more that the kammic effect depends on the respective intention, i.e., apparently angry words of a mother to make her children comply, but uttered with gentleness in her mind, do not qualify her words as pharusā vācā:

Yathā ca cittasaṇhatāya²⁰ pharusā vācā na hoti, evaṃ vacanasaṇhatāya apharusā vācā na hoti. Na hi mārāpetukāmassa – ‘‘imaṃ sukhaṃ sayāpethā’’ti vacanaṃ apharusā vācā hoti, cittapharusatāya panesā pharusā vācāva.

Just as gentleness of mind doesn’t turn speech harsh, likewise don’t gentle words form speech un-harsh. As in the case of the wish: “Let him sleep happily!” spoken by one with the desire to kill is not un-harsh speech. Harsh speech gains its quality (of being rude) on account of harshness of mind only. Its constituents are three: another to be abused, an angry mind, the act of abusing:

Tassā tayo sambhārā – akkositabbo²¹ paro, kupitacittaṃ, akkosanāti.

Cetanā – volition, intention, purpose focuses its associated mental factors in acting upon the respective object—thus expressing its state of willing. Volition determines the moral and ethical quality of the intended action and herewith generates kamma:²²

Cetanāhaṃ, bhikkhave, kammaṃ vadāmi. Cetayitvā kammaṃ karoti – kāyena vācāya manasā.

It is volition, Bhikkhus, that I call kamma—for being governed by will, one performs an action by body, speech or mind!