Study the 9 Dhamma that Should in the Dasuttara Sutta

Abstract

The objective of this academic article is to study the nine dhammas that should be cultivated, as expounded in the Dasuttara Sutta, which belongs to the Dīgha Nikāya, Pāṭikavagga, Volume 11 of the Pali Canon. This study focuses on the nine perceptions (navasaññā) to be developed in accordance with the Dasuttara Sutta, with the aim of understanding their role and value as contemplative tools for the cultivation of wisdom and the eradication of defilements. The nine perceptions are: the perception of unattractiveness (asubhasaññā), perception of death (maraṇasaññā), perception of repulsiveness in food (āhāre paṭikūlasaññā), perception of non-delight in the whole world (sabbaloke anabhiratasaññā), perception of impermanence (aniccasaññā), perception of suffering in impermanence (anicce dukkhasaññā), perception of non-self in suffering (dukkhe anattasaññā), perception of abandonment (pahānasaññā), and perception of dispassion (virāgasaññā). These contemplations share a common function in serving as skillful means for transforming the practitioner’s perspective on phenomena from clinging and attachment to insight into reality. The reflections on unattractiveness, death, and the repulsiveness of food purify bodily perception as a foundational training. In contrast, the cultivation of the perceptions of impermanence, non-self, and dispassion elevates the mind toward wisdom-oriented contemplation, directly related to the practice of insight meditation (vipassanā-bhāvanā). The study of the nine perceptions, therefore, is not merely a matter of memorizing doctrinal items but of comprehending a systematic path of practice. It progresses from the cultivation of faith (saddhā) and moral shame and fear (hiri-ottappa) toward the realization of wisdom and liberation. The nine perceptions function as a bridge between the development of the four foundations of mindfulness (satipaṭṭhāna) and the attainment of the noble path, as they enable practitioners to relinquish sensual desire, attachment to the five aggregates, and entanglement with worldly conditions. The central lesson derived from the nine perceptions is that liberation does not result from aimless exertion, but from the proper cultivation of perception, which profoundly reshapes the practitioner’s mode of cognition and interpretation of reality. Thus, the nine perceptions hold significant value in the practical dimension of Buddhist studies, as they illuminate the interrelationship between mental training, the cultivation of wisdom, and the ultimate aim of Buddhism—Nibbāna.