​MN 18 Madhupindika Sutta: The Honeyball

Thus have i heard. 

On one occasion the Blessed One was living in the Sakyan country at Kapilavatthu in Nigrodha's Park. In the morning, the Blessed One dressed went into Kapilavatthu for alms. After his meal he went to the Great Wood for the day's abiding and sat down at the root of a bilva sapling for the day's abiding. Dandapani the Sakyan, while walking and wandering for exercise, also went to the Great Wood, and he went to the bilva sapling where the Blessed One was and exchanged greetings with him. When this courteous and amiable talk was finished, he stood at one side leaning on his stick and asked the Blessed One: "What does the recluse assert, what does he proclaim?"

​Buddha:  "Friend, I assert and proclaim such a teaching that one does not quarrel with anyone in the world with its gods, its Maras, and its Brahmas, with its recluses and brahmins, its princes and its people; such a teaching that perceptions no more underlie that brahmin who abides detached from sensual pleasures, without perplexity, free of worry, free from craving for any kind of being." When this was said, Dandapani the Sakyan shook his head, wagged his tongue,  raised his eyebrows  and departed.

In the evening, the Blessed One rose from meditation and went to Nigrodha's Park, where he sat down on a seat  and told the bhikkhus what had taken place. Then a certain bhikkhu asked the Blessed One: "But, venerable sir, what is the teaching that the Blessed One asserts whereby one does not quarrel with anyone in the world ? And venerable sir, how is it that perceptions no more underlie that brahmin who abides detached from sensual pleasures, without perplexity, free of worry, free from craving for any kind of being?"

Buddha: "Bhikkhus, as to the source through which perceptions and notions tinged by mental proliferation beset a man: if nothing is found there to delight in, welcome and hold to, this is the end of the underlying tendency to lust, to aversion, to views, to doubt, to conceit, to desire for being, to ignorance; to rods and weapons, of quarrels, brawls, disputes, recrimination, malice, and false speech; here these evil unwholesome states cease without remainder."

After saying that. the blessed One rose from his seat and went into his dwelling. Soon after the Blessed One had gone, the bhikkhus considered: "Now, friends, the Blessed One gave a summary in brief without expounding the detailed meaning. Now who will expound this in detail?" Then they considered: "The venerable Maha Kaccana is praised by the Teacher and esteemed by his wise companions in the holy life. He is capable of expounding the detailed meaning. Suppose we went to him and asked him the meaning of this."

Then the bhikkhus went to the venerable Maha Kaccana and exchanged greetings with him. They sat down to one side and told him what had taken place: "Let the venerable Maha Kaccana expound it to us." Venerable Maha Kaccana replied: "Friends, it is as though a man needing heartwood, seeking heartwood, wandering in search of heartwood, thought that heartwood should be sought for among the branches and leaves of a great tree standing possessed of heartwood, after he had passed over the root ​and the trunk. Similarly you think that I should be asked about the meaning of this instead of the Blessed One when you were face to face with the Teacher earlier. That Blessed One knows what should be known, sees what should be seen, is the one with eyes,the one with wisdom, has become the Teaching (Dhamma), has become like brahmā, practises what he preaches, has come to the essence and gives the deathless, is master of the Teaching, the lord of the Dhamma, the Tathagata. This is the time to ask its meaning from the Blessed One so that we could keep it in our minds. As he told you, so you should have remembered it."

The bhikkhus: "Surely, friend Kaccana, knowing, the Blessed One knows; seeing, he sees; he is vision.. .the Tathagata. That was the time when we should have asked the Blessed One the meaning. Yet the venerable Maha Kaccana is praised by the Teacher and esteemed by his wise companions in the holy life. The venerable Maha Kaccana is capable of expounding the detailed meaning of this summary given in brief by the Blessed One. Let the venerable Maha Kaccana expound it without finding it troublesome."

Venerable Maha Kaccana: "Then listen, friends, and attend closely to what I shall say. The Blessed One mentioned this: 'Bhikkhus, as to the source through which perceptions and notions tinged by mental proliferation beset a man: if nothing is found there to delight in, welcome, and hold to, this is the end of the underlying tendency to lust...this is the end of resorting to rods and weapons...here these evil unwholesome states cease without remainder.'
I understand the detailed meaning of it to be as follows: "Dependent on the eye and forms, eye-consciousness arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition there is feeling. What one feels, that one perceives. and thinks about it. What one thinks about, that one mentally proliferates. With what one has mentally proliferated as the source, perceptions and notions tinged by mental proliferation beset a man with respect to past, future, and present forms cognizable through the eye. "

​"Similarly, dependent on the ear and sounds...Dependent on the nose and odors.. .Dependent on the tongue and flavors.. .Dependent on the body and tangibles...Dependent on the mind and mind-objects, mind-consciousness arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition there is feeling. What one feels, that one perceives. What one feels, that one perceives. and thinks about it. What one thinks about, that one mentally proliferates. With what one has mentally proliferated as the source, perceptions and notions tinged by mental proliferation beset a man with respect to past, future,  ​and present mind-objects cognizable through the mind ".

"When there is the eye, a form, and eye-consciousness, it is possible to point out the manifestation of contact. When there is the manifestation of contact, it is possible to point out the manifestation of feeling. When there is the manifestation of feeling, it is possible to point out the manifestation of perception. When there is the manifestation of perception, it is possible to point out the manifestation of thinking. When there is the manifestation of thinking, it is possible to point out the manifestation of being beset by perceptions and notions tinged by mental proliferation.

"Similarly, when there is the ear, a sound, and ear-consciousness...When there is the nose, an odor, and nose-consciousness.. .When there is the tongue, a flavor, and tongue-consciousness...When there is the body, a tangible, and body-consciousness...When there is the mind, a mind-object, and mind-consciousness...it is possible to point out the manifestation of being beset by perceptions and notions tinged by mental proliferation."

"But when there is no eye, no form, and no eye-consciousness, it is impossible to point out the manifestation of contact. When there is no manifestation of contact, it is impossible to point out the manifestation of feeling. When there is no manifestation of feeling, it is impossible to point out the manifestation of perception. When there is no manifestation of perception, it is impossible to point out the manifestation of thinking. When there is no manifestation of thinking, it is impossible to point out the manifestation of being beset by perceptions and notions tinged by mental proliferation. Similarly when there is no ear, no sound, and no ear-consciousness... When there is no nose, no odor, and no nose-consciousness... When there is no tongue, no flavour, and no tongue consciousness...When there is no body, no tangible, and no body-consciousness...When there is no mind, no mind-object, and no mind-consciousness...it is impossible to point out the manifestation of being beset by perceptions and notions tinged by mental proliferation."

"Friends, when the Blessed One rose from his seat and went into his dwelling after giving a summary in brief without expounding the detailed meaning, that is: 'Bhikkhus, as to the source through which perceptions and notions tinged by mental proliferation beset a man: if nothing is found there to delight in, welcome, and hold to, this is the end of the underlying tendency to lust, to aversion, to views, to doubt, to conceit, to desire for being, to ignorance; this is the end of resorting to rods and weapons, of quarrels, brawls, disputes, recrimination, malice, and false speech; here these evil unwholesome states cease without remainder.' I understand the detailed meaning of this summary to be thus. Now friends, if you wish, go to the Blessed One and ask him about the meaning of this. As the Blessed One explains it to you, so you should remember it."

​Then the bhikkhus, having delighted and rejoiced in the venerable Maha Kaccana's words, rose from their seats and went to the Blessed One. After paying homage to him, they told the Blessed One all that had taken place: "We went to the Venerable Maha Kaccana and asked him about the meaning. He expounded the meaning to us with these terms, statements, and phrases."

Buddha:"Maha Kaccana is wise, bhikkhus, Maha Kaccana has great wisdom. If you had asked me the meaning of this, I would have explained it to you in the same way that Maha Kaccana has explained it. Such is the meaning of this, and so you should remember it."

When this was said, Venerable Ananda said to the Blessed One: "Venerable sir, just as if a man exhausted by hunger and weakness came upon a honey ball, in the course of ​eating it he would find a sweet delectable flavor; similarly any able-minded bhikkhu, in the course of scrutinizing with wisdom the meaning of this discourse on the Dhamma, he would find satisfaction and confidence of mind. Venerable sir, what is the name of this discourse on the Dhamma?"

Buddha: "As to that, Ananda, you may remember this discourse on the Dhamma as 'The Honey ball Discourse.'" 
Venerable Ananda was satisfied and delighted in the Blessed One's words. 

Summary: Dandapāni,a sakyan,  met the Buddha and questioned him: "What does the recluse assert, what does he proclaim?". The Buddha explained that his teachings are such that they avoid all strife and make a man dwell above all pleasures of sense, etc. Dandapāni shook his head and walked on, without comment.

Later in the evening the Buddha told the monks briefly how to get rid of all obsessions, so that all evil and wrong states of mind are quelled and pass away entirely. After the Buddha’s departure the monks seek Mahā Kaccāna and ask him to expound in detail what the Buddha has told them.

Venerable Kaccāna explained that where there is eye and visible form, visual consciousness arises, this begets contact, contact conditions feeling, what a man feels he perceives, what he perceives he reasons about, and this leads to obsession. It is the same with the other senses like hearing, smell taste, touch and thoughts. The monks report this explanation to the Buddha, who approves of it and praises Kaccāna's insight.

Venerable Ananda praises the discourse, comparing it to the delicious savor like a honeyball and thus Buddha suggested that the sutta should be remembered by that name The honey ball (Madhupindika).