“Monks, don’t think a bad, unwholesome ideas. For example: whether the world is eternal or not eternal, finite or infinite; or whether the soul and the body are the same thing, or whether they are different things; whether after death, a liberated one exists or doesn’t exist, or both exists and doesn’t exist, or neither exists nor doesn’t exist. Why? Because those thoughts aren’t beneficial or relevant to the basics of the spiritual life. They don’t lead to letting go, dispassion, cessation, peace, insight, enlightenment, and Nibbāna.
“When you think something, you should think: ‘This is suffering’ … ‘This is the origin of suffering’ … ‘This is the end of suffering’ … ‘This is the path that leads to the end of suffering’. Why? Because those thoughts are beneficial and relevant to the basics of the spiritual life. They lead to letting go, dispassion, cessation, peace, insight, enlightenment, and Nibbāna.
“Therefore, monks, you should make an effort to understand: ‘This is suffering.’ You should make an effort to understand: ‘This is the origin of suffering.’ You should make an effort to understand: ‘This is the end of suffering.’ You should make an effort to understand: ‘This is the path that leads to the end of suffering.’”
