The five higher fetters - 1) Passion for worldly existence, 2) passion for formless existence, 3) conceit, 4) restlessness, and 5) ignorance - are described in brief. The Noble Eightfold Path is the way for direct knowledge, full understanding, complete exhaustion, and giving up of these five higher fetters.

SN 45.180  Uddhambhāgiya sutta - Higher Fetters

“Pañcimāni, bhikkhave, uddhambhāgiyāni saṁyojanāni. Katamāni pañca? Rūparāgo, arūparāgo, māno, uddhaccaṁ, avijjāimāni kho, bhikkhave, pañcuddhambhāgiyāni saṁyojanāni.

“Bhikkhus, there are these five higher fetters. What five? 1) |Passion for worldly existence::desire for material existence [rūparāga]|, 2) |passion for formless existence::desire for non-material existence [arūparāga]|, 3) |conceit::self-view expressed as comparison—seeing oneself as superior, inferior, or equal; the persistent “I am” conceit (asmimāna) that underlies identification and fuels rebirth [māna]|, 4) |restlessness::mental agitation, distraction, excitement [uddhacca]|, and 5) |ignorance::fundamental unawareness or misunderstanding of the true nature of reality, not experientially understanding the four noble truths [avijjā]|. These are the five higher fetters.

Imesaṁ kho, bhikkhave, pañcannaṁ uddhambhāgiyānaṁ saṁyojanānaṁ abhiññāya pariññāya parikkhayāya pahānāya ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo bhāvetabbo. Katamo ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo? Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu sammādiṭṭhiṁ bhāveti vivekanissitaṁ …pe… sammāsamādhiṁ bhāveti vivekanissitaṁ virāganissitaṁ nirodhanissitaṁ vossaggapariṇāmiṁ.

For the |direct knowledge::experiential understanding [abhiññāya]|, |full understanding::complete comprehension [pariññāya]|, |complete exhaustion::gradual and complete wearing away [parikkhaya]|, and for |giving up::letting go, abandoning [pahāna]| of these five higher fetters, the Noble Eightfold Path |should be cultivated::should be developed [bhāvetabbo]|. What is the Noble Eightfold Path? Here, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu develops right view |dependent on seclusion::supported by detachment, by means of disengagement [vivekanissita]|, |supported by dispassion::based on fading of desire [virāganissita]|, |based on ending::supported by cessation [nirodhanissita]|, |culminating in complete relinquishment::ripening in release, culminating in letting go [vossaggapariṇāmī]|; similarly he develops right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right collectedness, dependent on seclusion, supported by dispassion, based on ending, culminating in complete relinquishment.

Imesaṁ kho, bhikkhave, pañcannaṁ uddhambhāgiyānaṁ saṁyojanānaṁ abhiññāya pariññāya parikkhayāya pahānāya ayaṁ ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo bhāvetabboti.

For the direct knowledge, full understanding, complete exhaustion, and for giving up of these five higher fetters, the Noble Eightfold Path should be cultivated.

Pañcimāni, bhikkhave, uddhambhāgiyāni saṁyojanāni. Katamāni pañca? Rūparāgo, arūparāgo, māno, uddhaccaṁ, avijjāimāni kho, bhikkhave, pañcuddhambhāgiyāni saṁyojanāni.

Bhikkhus, there are these five higher fetters. What five? 1) Passion for worldly existence, 2) passion for formless existence, 3) conceit, 4) restlessness, and 5) ignorance. These are the five higher fetters.

Imesaṁ kho, bhikkhave, pañcannaṁ uddhambhāgiyānaṁ saṁyojanānaṁ abhiññāya pariññāya parikkhayāya pahānāya ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo bhāvetabbo. Katamo ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo? Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu sammādiṭṭhiṁ bhāveti …pe… sammāsamādhiṁ bhāveti rāgavinayapariyosānaṁ dosavinayapariyosānaṁ mohavinayapariyosānaṁ amatogadhaṁ amataparāyanaṁ amatapariyosānaṁ nibbānaninnaṁ nibbānapoṇaṁ nibbānapabbhāraṁ.

For the direct knowledge, full understanding, complete exhaustion, and for giving up of these five higher fetters, the Noble Eightfold Path should be cultivated. What is the Noble Eightfold Path? Here, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu develops right view, culminating in the removal and ending of |passion::intense desire, strong emotion, infatuation, obsession, lust [rāga]|, culminating in the removal and ending of |aversion::hatred, hostility, mental attitude of rejection, fault-finding, resentful disapproval [dosa]|, and culminating in the removal and ending of |delusion::illusion, misperception, erroneous belief, false idea, misapprehension; a fundamental distortion of reality that sustains confusion, clouds discernment, and fuels further doubt [moha]|; similarly he develops right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right collectedness, culminating in the removal of lust, culminating in the removal of aversion, and culminating in the removal of delusion ... leading to the |deathless::deathless state, epithet of Nibbāna [amata]|, directed towards the deathless, and culminating in the deathless ... slanting towards |Nibbāna::complete cooling, letting go of everything, deathless, freedom from calamity, the non-disintegrating [nibbāna]|, sloping towards Nibbāna, and inclining towards Nibbāna.

Imesaṁ kho, bhikkhave, pañcannaṁ uddhambhāgiyānaṁ saṁyojanānaṁ abhiññāya pariññāya parikkhayāya pahānāya ayaṁ ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo bhāvetabbo”ti.

For the direct knowledge, full understanding, complete exhaustion, and for giving up of these five higher fetters, the Noble Eightfold Path should be cultivated.”

Qualities:

Complete comprehension

Complete comprehension

The thorough understanding of phenomena as they truly are—fully knowing their arising, passing, and the unsatisfactoriness inherent in them while they persist.

Also known as: full understanding, knowing full well, seeing things as they are
Pāli: pariññāya, sammadaññā, sampajañña, saṅkhāya
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Cultivation

Cultivation

The active practice of 'bringing into being' wholesome states. It is the deliberate nurturing of the bright state of mind.

Also known as: development, improvement, meditation, nurturing, growth
Pāli: bhāvanā
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Direct knowledge

Direct knowledge

A deep, firsthand realization or knowing that arises from personal experience, not from study or conceptual understanding; it is an immediate, unmediated apprehension of truth.

Also known as: experiential understanding, direct experience
Pāli: abhiñña
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Formless

Formless

A meditative domain that transcends all perception of material form, progressing through the bases of infinite space, infinite consciousness, nothingness, and neither-perception-nor-non-perception. These states represent refined levels of collectedness beyond attachment to physical phenomena.

Also known as: immaterial, surpassing forms
Pāli: arūpa
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Anxiety

Anxiety

A fluttering, unsettled state of mind, worried about past or future and unsure what is right to do. It keeps the mind circling around concerns without resolution, weakening confidence and obscuring calm discernment.

Also known as: agitation, confusion about what is right and wrong, distress, fickleness, fidgetiness, edginess, restlessness, wavering, worry
Pāli: kukkucca, uddhacca, darathaja
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Conceit

Conceit

Self-view expressed as comparison—seeing oneself as superior, inferior, or equal; the persistent “I am” conceit (asmimāna) that underlies identification and fuels rebirth

Also known as: arrogance, egotism, pride, self-importance, tendency of self-comparison
Pāli: māna, atimāna, unnaḷa
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Ignorance

Ignorance

A fundamental blindness to the true nature of reality. It is not merely a lack of information, but an active misperception that views the transient as permanent and the unsatisfactory as a source of happiness, thereby fueling the cycle of suffering.

Also known as: illusion of knowing, fundamental unawareness of the true nature of reality, misunderstanding of how things have come to be, not knowing the four noble truths
Pāli: avijjā
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Passion

Passion

Intense desire or lust that dyes the mind. It fixates on the features of objects, coloring perception with infatuation and making it difficult to see things as they truly are.

Also known as: burning fever, intense desire, strong emotion, infatuation, obsession, lust
Pāli: rāga
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Last updated on December 13, 2025