In short: in SN 35.23 the Buddha defines "the all" as the six senses and their objects: eye and sights, ear and sounds, nose and smells, tongue and tastes, body and touches, mind and ideas. Anything beyond these is just talk.
And what is the all? It's just the eye and sights, the ear and sounds, the nose and smells, the tongue and tastes, the body and touches, and the mind and ideas. This is called the all.
SN 35.23, translated by Bhikkhu Sujato.
What it means
For the Buddha, "everything" we can know arrives through six doors: five senses and the mind. Practice happens at these doors: noticing what comes in, and how we react. It is the ground of "in the seen, only the seen" and the Fire Sermon.
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The full text in Pāli and English
Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato, from SuttaCentral (SN35.23). Ellipses (…) are abbreviations in the original. Notes are ANEW's.
| Pāli | English |
|---|---|
| Sāvatthinidānaṁ. | At Sāvatthī. |
| “Sabbaṁ vo, bhikkhave, desessāmi. | “Mendicants, I will teach you the all. |
| Taṁ suṇātha. | Listen … |
| Kiñca, bhikkhave, sabbaṁ? | And what is the all? |
| Cakkhuñceva rūpā ca, sotañca saddā ca, ghānañca gandhā ca, jivhā ca rasā ca, kāyo ca phoṭṭhabbā ca, mano ca dhammā ca— | It’s just the eye and sights, the ear and sounds, the nose and smells, the tongue and tastes, the body and touches, and the mind and ideas. |
| idaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, sabbaṁ. | This is called the all. |
| Yo, bhikkhave, evaṁ vadeyya: | Mendicants, suppose someone was to say: |
| ‘ahametaṁ sabbaṁ paccakkhāya aññaṁ sabbaṁ paññāpessāmī’ti, tassa vācāvatthukamevassa; | ‘I’ll deny this all and describe another all.’ They’d have no grounds for that claim, |
| puṭṭho ca na sampāyeyya, uttariñca vighātaṁ āpajjeyya. | they’d be stumped by questions, and, in addition, they’d get frustrated. |
| Taṁ kissa hetu? | Why is that? |
| Yathā taṁ, bhikkhave, avisayasmin”ti. | Because they’re out of their element.” |
| Paṭhamaṁ. |
Try it
Begin with a 3-minute practice, or make your teaching card for today.
Questions people ask
What does 'the all' mean in Buddhism?
In SN 35.23 the Buddha defines 'the all' as the six senses and their objects: eye and sights, ear and sounds, nose and smells, tongue and tastes, body and touches, mind and ideas.