Kimatthiya Sutta
“What’s the Goal?”
At Sāvatthī, Venerable Ānanda asks the Buddha what the goal and benefit of skillful ethics is. The Buddha answers with a chain. Ethics leads to having no regrets; no regrets leads to joy; joy to rapture; rapture to tranquility; tranquility to bliss; bliss to immersion; immersion to truly knowing and seeing; that to disillusionment; disillusionment to dispassion; and dispassion to knowledge and vision of freedom. He then restates the whole sequence and concludes that skillful ethics progressively lead up to the highest. The discourse is short and consists almost entirely of this question-and-answer chain.
A note on this text. Terms such as ‘immersion’, ‘disillusionment’, and ‘dispassion’ appear as bare links in the chain without being explained.
The full text
Numbered Discourses 11.1 · 1. Dependence · What’s the Goal? · translated by Bhikkhu Sujato · public domain (CC0) · about 1 min · on SuttaCentral
So I have heard. At one time the Buddha was staying near Sāvatthī in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s monastery. Then Venerable Ānanda went up to the Buddha, bowed, sat down to one side, and said to him: “Sir, what is the goal and benefit of skillful ethics?” “Ānanda, having no regrets is the goal and benefit of skillful ethics.”
Explained: No regrets, then joy
“But what is the goal and benefit of having no regrets?” “Joy is the goal and benefit of having no regrets.”
“But what is the goal and benefit of joy?” “Rapture …”
“But what is the goal and benefit of rapture?” “Tranquility …”
“But what is the goal and benefit of tranquility?” “Bliss …”
“But what is the goal and benefit of bliss?” “Immersion …”
“But what is the goal and benefit of immersion?” “Truly knowing and seeing …”
“But what is the goal and benefit of truly knowing and seeing?” “Disillusionment …”
“But what is the goal and benefit of disillusionment?” “Dispassion …”
“But what is the goal and benefit of dispassion?” “Knowledge and vision of freedom is the goal and benefit of dispassion.
So, Ānanda, the goal and benefit of skillful ethics is not having regrets. Joy is the goal and benefit of not having regrets. Rapture is the goal and benefit of joy. Tranquility is the goal and benefit of rapture. Bliss is the goal and benefit of tranquility. Immersion is the goal and benefit of bliss. Truly knowing and seeing is the goal and benefit of immersion. Disillusionment is the goal and benefit of truly knowing and seeing. Dispassion is the goal and benefit of disillusionment. And knowledge and vision of freedom is the goal and benefit of dispassion. So, Ānanda, skillful ethics progressively lead up to the highest.”