49(7)Khema
On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Savatthi in Jeta's Grove,Anathapindika's Park.
Now on that occasion the Venerable Khema and the Venerable Sumana were dwelling at Savatthi[359]in the Blind Men's Grove.
Then they approached the Blessed One,
paid homage to him,and sat down to one side.
The Venerable Khema then said to the Blessed One:
"Bhante,when a bhikkhu is an arahant,one whose taints are destroyed,who has lived the spiritual life,done what had to be done,laid down the burden,reached his own goal,utterly destroyed the fetters of existence,one completely liberated through final knowledge,it does not occur to him:
(1)'There is someone better than me,'or(2)'There is someone equal to me,'
or (3)'There is someone inferior to me.'"
This is what the Venerable Khema said.
The Teacher agreed.
Then the Venerable Khema,thinking,'The Teacher agrees with
me,'got up from his seat,paid homage to the Blessed One,circumambulated him keeping the right side toward him,and left.
Then,right after the Venerable Khema had left,the Venerable Sumana said to the Blessed One:
"Bhante,when a bhikkhu is an arahant,one whose taints are destroyed,who has lived the spiritual life,done what had to be done,laid down the burden,reached his own goal,utterly destroyed the fetters of existence,one completely liberated through final knowledge,it does not occur to him:
(4)'There is no one better than me,'or (5)'There is no one equal to me,'or (6)'There is no one inferior to me.'"
This is what the Venerable Sumana said.
The Teacher agreed.
Then the Venerable Sumana,thinking,'The Teacher agrees with
me,'got up from his seat,paid homage to the Blessed One,circumambulated him keeping the right side toward him,and left.
Both monks declare, in opposite ways, the arahant's eradication of the three modes of conceit: the superiority conceit, the inferior ity conceit, and the equality conceit.Then,soon after both monks had left,the Blessed One addressed the bhikkhus:
"Bhikkhus,it is in such a way that clansmen declare final knowledge.
They state the meaning but don't bring themselves into the picture.
Attho ca vutto atta ca anupanito. As at 3:72, IV 2.18,31, there seems to be a word play between attho and atta, "goal" and "self."But there are some foolish men here who,it seems,declare final knowledge as a joke.
They will meet with distress later."
They [do not rank themselves]as superior or inferior,nor do they rank themselves as equal.
Mp glosses ussesu as superior persons, omesu as inferior ones, and samatte as similar ones, explaining: "Arahants do not rank them selves, by way of conceit, as superior, inferior, and equal."Destroyed is birth,the spiritual life has been lived;they continue on,freed from fetters.[360]