Catukkanipāta 89

Numbered Discourses 4.89

9. Confirmed

Right View

1 “Mendicants, these four individuals are found in the world. What four? The confirmed ascetic, the white lotus ascetic, the pink lotus ascetic, and the delicate ascetic of ascetics.

2 And how is an individual a confirmed ascetic? It’s when a mendicant has right view, right purpose, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right immersion. That’s how an individual is a confirmed ascetic.

3 And how is an individual a white lotus ascetic? It’s when they have right view, right purpose, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right immersion, right knowledge, and right freedom. But they don’t have direct meditative experience of the eight liberations. That’s how an individual is a white lotus ascetic.

4 And how is an individual a pink lotus ascetic? It’s when they have right view … and right freedom. And they do have direct meditative experience of the eight liberations. That’s how an individual is a pink lotus ascetic.

5 And how is an individual a delicate ascetic of ascetics? It’s when a mendicant usually uses only what they’ve been invited to accept … And if anyone should be rightly called a delicate ascetic of ascetics, it’s me.

These are the four individuals found in the world.”