5 (5) How Many Must One Cut?
At SÄvatthÄ«. Standing to one side, that devatÄ recited this verse in the presence of the blessed one:
How many must one cut, how many abandon, and how many further must one develop? When a bhikkhu has surmounted how many ties is he called a crosser of the flood?
[The Blessed One]:
One must cut off five, and must develop a further five. A bhikkhu who has surmounted five ties is called a crosser of the flood.
Spk: one must cut off the lower fetters (identity view, doubt, the distorted grasp of rules and vows, sensual desire, ill will). One must abandon the five higher fetters (lust for form, lust for the formless, conceit, restlessness, ignorance). In order to cut off and abandon these fetters one must develop a further five, namely, the five spiritual faculties (faith, energy, mindfulness, concentration, wisdom). The five ties are lust, hatred, delusion, conceit and views. A bhikkhu who has surmounted these five ties is called a crosser of the flood.
- from the Saį¹yutta NikÄya, chapter 1: DevatÄSaį¹yutta