The Buddha shares in brief the four illuminations - 1) the moon, 2) the sun, 3) fire, and 4) wisdom.

AN 4.143  Āloka sutta - Illumination

“Cattārome, bhikkhave, ālokā. Katame cattāro? Candāloko, sūriyāloko, aggāloko, paññāloko Ime kho, bhikkhave, cattāro ālokā. Etadaggaṁ, bhikkhave, imesaṁ catunnaṁ ālokānaṁ yadidaṁ paññāloko”ti.

“These four, bhikkhus, are the illuminations. What four? The illumination of the moon, the illumination of the sun, the illumination of fire, and the illumination of wisdom — these, bhikkhus, are the four illuminations. Among these four illuminations, bhikkhus, the illumination of wisdom is the foremost.”

Last updated on October 9, 2025

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