At one time, the Blessed One was dwelling in the town of Bhoga, in the |Ānanda Shrine::name of a pagoda [ānandacetiya]|.
There, the Blessed One addressed the bhikkhus: “Bhikkhus.”
“Yes, venerable sir,” those bhikkhus replied to the Blessed One.
The Blessed One said this: “Bhikkhus, I will teach you these four great references. Listen to this and pay close attention, I will speak.”
“Yes, venerable sir,” those bhikkhus replied to the Blessed One. The Blessed One said this:
“What, bhikkhus, are the four great references?
1 Here, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu might say: ‘Friends, I have heard this directly from the Blessed One, learned this in his presence — this is the |Dhamma::teachings of the Buddha that point to the nature of reality, the ultimate truth [dhamma]|, this is the |Vinaya::code of monastic discipline rules, training [vinaya]|, this is the teacher’s instruction.‘ Bhikkhus, that bhikkhu’s statement should neither be approved nor rejected. Without approving or rejecting, those words and phrases should be carefully learned, examined in the |Suttas::the teachings attributed to the Buddha [suttas]|, and compared with the Vinaya. If, when examined in the Suttas and compared with the Vinaya, they do not align with the Suttas or appear in the Vinaya, then a conclusion should be reached: ‘Certainly, this is not the word of the Blessed One, |the Arahant::a worthy one, a fully awakened being, epithet of the Buddha [arahant]|, the Fully Awakened One; rather, this bhikkhu has misunderstood.’ Thus, bhikkhus, it should be discarded.
But, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu might say: ‘Friends, I have heard this directly from the Blessed One, learned this in his presence — this is the Dhamma, this is the Vinaya, this is the teacher’s instruction.‘ Bhikkhus, that bhikkhu’s statement should neither be approved nor rejected. Without approving or rejecting, those words and phrases should be carefully learned, examined in the Suttas, and compared with the Vinaya. If, when examined in the Suttas and compared with the Vinaya, they align with the Suttas and appear in the Vinaya, then a conclusion should be reached: ‘Certainly, this is the word of the Blessed One, the Arahant, the perfectly Awakened One; this bhikkhu has understood it correctly.’ Bhikkhus, this is the first great reference that you should |keep in mind::remember [dhāreti]|.
2 Here again, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu might say: ‘In a such and such residence, there dwells a |Saṅgha::the community of followers of the Buddha, whether lay or monastic, who have attained to one of the four stages of awakening [saṅgha]| with an |elder bhikkhu::senior bhikkhu [sathero]| and respected leaders. I have heard this directly from that community, learned it in the presence of that community — this is the Dhamma, this is the Vinaya, this is the teacher’s instruction.‘ Bhikkhus, that bhikkhu’s statement should neither be approved nor rejected. Without approving or rejecting, those words and phrases should be carefully learned, examined in the Suttas, and compared with the Vinaya. If, when examined in the Suttas and compared with the Vinaya, they do not align with the Suttas or appear in the Vinaya, then a conclusion should be reached: ‘Certainly, this is not the word of the Blessed One, the Arahant, the perfectly Awakened One; rather, that community has misunderstood.’ Thus, bhikkhus, it should be discarded.
But, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu might say: ‘In a such and such residence, there dwells a community with an elder bhikkhu and respected leaders. I have heard this directly from that community, learned it in the presence of that community — this is the Dhamma, this is the Vinaya, this is the teacher’s instruction.‘ Bhikkhus, that bhikkhu’s statement should neither be approved nor rejected. Without approving or rejecting, those words and phrases should be carefully learned, examined in the Suttas, and compared with the Vinaya. If, when examined in the Suttas and compared with the Vinaya, they align with the Suttas and appear in the Vinaya, then a conclusion should be reached: ‘Certainly, this is the word of the Blessed One, the Arahant, the perfectly Awakened One; that community has understood it correctly.’ Bhikkhus, this is the second great reference that you should keep in mind.
3 Here again, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu might say: ‘In a such and such residence, there dwell many elder bhikkhus who are |very learned::well educated, knowledgeable [bahussutā]|, heirs to the scriptures, keepers of the Dhamma, keepers of the Vinaya and |keepers of the summaries::who know the summaries of the Dhamma and Vinaya [mātikādharā]|. I have heard this directly from those elders, learned it in their presence — this is the Dhamma, this is the Vinaya, this is the teacher’s instruction.‘ Bhikkhus, that bhikkhu’s statement should neither be approved nor rejected. Without approving or rejecting, those words and phrases should be carefully learned, examined in the Suttas, and compared with the Vinaya. If, when examined in the Suttas and compared with the Vinaya, they do not align with the Suttas or appear in the Vinaya, then a conclusion should be reached: ‘Certainly, this is not the word of the Blessed One, the Arahant, the perfectly Awakened One; rather, those elders have misunderstood.’ Thus, bhikkhus, it should be discarded.
But, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu might say: ‘In a such and such residence, there dwell many elder bhikkhus who are very learned, heirs to the scriptures, keepers of the Dhamma, keepers of the Vinaya, and keepers of the summaries. I have heard this directly from those elders, learned it in their presence — this is the Dhamma, this is the Vinaya, this is the teacher’s instruction.‘ Bhikkhus, that bhikkhu’s statement should neither be approved nor rejected. Without approving or rejecting, those words and phrases should be carefully learned, examined in the Suttas, and compared with the Vinaya. If, when examined in the Suttas and compared with the Vinaya, they align with the Suttas and appear in the Vinaya, then a conclusion should be reached: ‘Certainly, this is the word of the Blessed One, the Arahant, the perfectly Awakened One; those elders have understood it correctly.’ Bhikkhus, this is the third great reference that you should keep in mind.
4 Here again, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu might say: ‘In a such and such residence, there dwells a single elder bhikkhu who is very learned, an heir to the scriptures, a keeper of the Dhamma, a keeper of the Vinaya, and a keeper of the summaries. I have heard this directly from that elder, learned it in his presence — this is the Dhamma, this is the Vinaya, this is the teacher’s instruction.‘ Bhikkhus, that bhikkhu’s statement should neither be approved nor rejected. Without approving or rejecting, those words and phrases should be carefully learned, examined in the Suttas, and compared with the Vinaya. If, when examined in the Suttas and compared with the Vinaya, they do not align with the Suttas or appear in the Vinaya, then a conclusion should be reached: ‘Certainly, this is not the word of the Blessed One, the Arahant, the perfectly Awakened One; rather, that elder has misunderstood.’ Thus, bhikkhus, it should be discarded.
But, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu might say: ‘In a such and such residence, there dwells a single elder bhikkhu who is very learned, an heir to the scriptures, a keeper of the Dhamma, a keeper of the Vinaya, and a keeper of the summaries. I have heard this directly from that elder, learned it in his presence — this is the Dhamma, this is the Vinaya, this is the teacher’s instruction.‘ Bhikkhus, that bhikkhu’s statement should neither be approved nor rejected. Without approving or rejecting, those words and phrases should be carefully learned, examined in the Suttas, and compared with the Vinaya. If, when examined in the Suttas and compared with the Vinaya, they align with the Suttas and appear in the Vinaya, then a conclusion should be reached: ‘Certainly, this is the word of the Blessed One, the Arahant, the perfectly Awakened One; that elder has understood it correctly.’ Bhikkhus, this is the fourth great reference that you should keep in mind.
These, bhikkhus, are the four great references that you should keep in mind.”