1 At one time the Auspicious One was dwelling in Savatthi at Jeta's Grove, Anathapindika's Park. At that place, the Auspicious One addressed the bhikkhus: “Bhikkhus.” “Bhante,” those bhikkhus replied to the Auspicious One. The Auspicious One said this:

2 This samsara is without a discoverable beginning. A first point is not discerned of beings roaming and wandering on, hindered by ignorance and fettered by thirsting. Suppose, O bhikkhus, that a man having chopped the grass, trunks, branches and leaves on this earth, would collect them into one heap. Having collected them into one heap, having divided each by four inches, he might lay them aside [saying for each one]: “This is my mother, this is my mother's mother.”. [The sequence] of that man's mother and grandmother, O bhikkhus, would not finish, [while] the grass, trunks, branches and leaves on this earth would go to exhaustion, used up. What is the reason for that? [Because] this samsara is without a discoverable beginning. A first point is not discerned of beings roaming and wandering on, hindered by ignorance and fettered by thirsting.

3 Just like this, O bhikkhus, for a long time, you have experienced suffering, experienced, anguish, experienced misfortune, swelled the cemeteries. This much, O bhikkhus, is just enough to be enstranged in all sankharas, enough to fade away in them, enough to be liberated in them.

1 evaṃ me sutaṃ ekaṃ samayaṃ bhagavā sāvatthiyaṃ viharati jetavane anāthapiṇḍikassa ārāme. tatra kho bhagavā bhikkhū āmantesi 'bhikkhavo'ti. 'bhadante' ti te bhikkhū bhagavato paccassosuṃ. bhagavā etadavoca: pts page 178

2 anamataggoyaṃ bhikkhave, saṃsāro, pubbā koṭi na paññāyati avijjānīvaraṇānaṃ sattānaṃ taṇhāsaṃyojanānaṃ sandhāvataṃ saṃsarataṃ. seyyathāpi bhikkhave, puriso yaṃ imasmiṃ jambudīpe tiṇakaṭṭhasākhāpalāsaṃ, taṃ chetvā ekajjhaṃ saṃhareyya, ekajjhaṃ saṃharitvā caturaṅgulaṃ caturaṅgulaṃ ghaṭikaṃ karitvā nikkhipeyya, ayaṃ me mātā, tassā me mātu ayaṃ mātāti. apariyādinnāva bhikkhave, tassa purisassa mātu mātaro, assu. atha imasmiṃ jambudīpe tiṇakaṭṭhasākhāpalāsaṃ parikkhayaṃ pariyādānaṃ gaccheyya. taṃ kissa hetu? anamataggoyaṃ bhikkhave, saṃsāro, pubbā koṭi na paññāyati avijjānīvaraṇānaṃ sattānāṃ taṇhāsaṃyojanānaṃ sandhāvataṃ saṃsarataṃ.

3 evaṃ dīgharattaṃ vo bhikkhave, dukkhaṃ paccanubhūtaṃ, tibbaṃ paccanubhūtaṃ, vyasanaṃ paccanubhūtaṃ, vyasanaṃ paccanubhūtaṃ, kaṭasi vaḍḍhitā. yāvañcidaṃ bhikkhave, alameva sabbasaṅkhāresu nibbindituṃ, alaṃ virajjituṃ, alaṃ vimuccitunti.