Attakari ( Attakārī) sutta: AN 6.38 PTS: A iii 337

Textual Scholarship
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This sutta occasionally pops up in discussions (on anatta) where it is used by the proponents of self view. So it is worth having a thread where it can be studied.

https://suttacentral.net/an6.38/en/sujato?lang=en&layout=linebyline&reference=none&notes=sidenotes&highlight=false&script=latin

Aṅguttara Nikāya 6.38
4. Deities
4. Devatāvagga
One’s Own Volition
Attakārīsutta
Then a certain brahmin went up to the Buddha, and exchanged greetings with him.
Atha kho aññataro brāhmaṇo yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavatā saddhiṁ sammodi.
When the greetings and polite conversation were over, he sat down to one side and said to the Buddha:
Sammodanīyaṁ kathaṁ sāraṇīyaṁ vītisāretvā ekamantaṁ nisīdi. Ekamantaṁ nisinno kho so brāhmaṇo bhagavantaṁ etadavoca:

“Mister Gotama, this is my doctrine and view:
“ahañhi, bho gotama, evaṁvādī evaṁdiṭṭhi:
One does not act of one’s own volition, nor does one act of another’s volition.”
‘natthi attakāro, natthi parakāro’”ti.

“Brahmin, may I never see or hear of anyone holding such a doctrine or view!
“Māhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, evaṁvādiṁ evaṁdiṭṭhiṁ addasaṁ vā assosiṁ vā.
How on earth can someone who comes and goes on his own say that
Kathañhi nāma sayaṁ abhikkamanto, sayaṁ paṭikkamanto evaṁ vakkhati:
one does not act of one’s own volition, nor does one act of another’s volition?
‘natthi attakāro, natthi parakāro’ti.

What do you think, brahmin, is there an element of initiative?”
Taṁ kiṁ maññasi, brāhmaṇa, atthi ārabbhadhātū”ti?

“Yes, sir.”
“Evaṁ, bho”.

“Since this is so, do we find sentient beings who initiate activity?”
“Ārabbhadhātuyā sati ārabbhavanto sattā paññāyantī”ti?

“Yes, sir.”
“Evaṁ, bho”.

“Since there is an element of initiative, and sentient beings who initiate activity are found, sentient beings act of their own volition or that of another.
“Yaṁ kho, brāhmaṇa, ārabbhadhātuyā sati ārabbhavanto sattā paññāyanti, ayaṁ sattānaṁ attakāro ayaṁ parakāro.

What do you think, brahmin, is there an element of persistence …
Taṁ kiṁ maññasi, brāhmaṇa, atthi nikkamadhātu …pe…
exertion …
atthi parakkamadhātu …
strength …
atthi thāmadhātu …
endurance …
atthi ṭhitidhātu …
energy?”
atthi upakkamadhātū”ti?

“Yes, sir.”
“Evaṁ, bho”.

“Since this is so, do we find sentient beings who have energy?”
“Upakkamadhātuyā sati upakkamavanto sattā paññāyantī”ti?

“Yes, sir.”
“Evaṁ, bho”.

“Since there is an element of energy, and sentient beings who have energy are found, sentient beings act of their own volition or that of another.
“Yaṁ kho, brāhmaṇa, upakkamadhātuyā sati upakkamavanto sattā paññāyanti, ayaṁ sattānaṁ attakāro ayaṁ parakāro.

Brahmin, may I never see or hear of anyone holding such a doctrine or view!
Māhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, evaṁvādiṁ evaṁdiṭṭhiṁ addasaṁ vā assosiṁ vā.
Variant: Māhaṁ, brāhmaṇa → taṁ kiṁ maññasi brāhmaṇa māhaṁ (mr)
How on earth can someone who comes and goes on his own say that
Kathañhi nāma sayaṁ abhikkamanto sayaṁ paṭikkamanto evaṁ vakkhati:
one does not act of one’s own volition, nor does one act of another’s volition?”
‘natthi attakāro natthi parakāro’”ti.

“Excellent, Mister Gotama! Excellent! …
“Abhikkantaṁ, bho gotama …pe…
From this day forth, may Mister Gotama remember me as a lay follower who has gone for refuge for life.”
ajjatagge pāṇupetaṁ saraṇaṁ gatan”ti.

From PTS

The Gradual Sayings Vol.3 Book of 6s page 237
text iii, 355, VI, IV, 38
viii (38). Self-acting.

This Master Gotama, is my avowal, this my view: There is no self-
agency; no other-agency’
natthi attakaro, natthi parakaroti "

in the PTS it notes that this was the teaching of Makkhali Gosala also mentioned in the Sammanaphala sutta.

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Makkhali Gosala said to me: 'Great king, there is no cause or
condition for the defilement of beings; beings are defiled without any
cause or condition. There is no cause or condition for the purification
of beings; beings are purified without cause or condition. There is no
self-determination, no determination by others, no personal determination.
There is no power, no energy, no personal strength, no personal
fortitude. All sentient beings, all living beings, all creatures, all
souls, are helpless, powerless, devoid of energy. Undergoing
transformation by destiny, circumstance, and nature, they experience
pleasure and pain in the six classes of men.

Though one might think: ‘by this moral discipline or observance or
austerity or holy life I will ripen unripened kamma and eliminate ripened
kamma whenever it comes up’ - that cannot be. For pleasure and pain are
measured out. Samsara’s limits are fixed, and they can neither be
shortened or extended. There is no advancing forward and no falling back.
Just as, when a ball of string is thrown, it rolls along unwinding until
it comes to its end, in the same way, the foolish and the wise roam and
wander (for the fixed length of time), after which them make an end to
suffering.

Thus this teacher denied kamma and result - a serious wrong view.

The Attakari sutta uses some conventional language like ‘self’ and ‘own’ as do many suttas but the Buddha also lists several conditioned elements (dhatus) which arise and are necessary for such actions as walking.
Thus it helps the Brahmin to understand conditions and give up his wrongview that there are no real causes and conditions. It also analyses actions into elements, dhatus, and so begins to break down the idea of a real self.

Visuddhimagga (XI, 30)

What is meant? Just as a butcher, while feeding the cow, bringing it to
the shambles, keeping it tied up after bringing it there, slaughtering
it, and seeing it slaughtered and dead, does not lose the perception
‘cow’ so long as he has not carved it up and divided it into parts; but
when he has divided it up and is sitting there, he loses the perception
‘cow’ and the perception ‘meat’ occurs; he does not think ‘I am selling
cow’ or ‘They are carrying cow away’, but rather he thinks ‘I am selling
meat’ or ‘They are carrying meat away’; so too this bhikkhu, while still
a foolish ordinary person–both formerly as a layman and as one gone
forth into homelessness–, does not lose the perception ‘living being’
or ‘man’ or ‘person’ so long as he does not, by resolution of the
compact into elements, review this body, however placed, however
disposed, as consisting of elements. But when he does review it as
consisting of elements, he loses the perception ‘living being’ and his
mind establishes itself upon elements…

3

Looks like he simply denies mentality as an separate phenomenological entity, or that everybody’s volition (or whole mentality) is rigged by some abstract force entering into from outside. It clearly has nothing to do neither with any kinds of attavada nor with any kinds of kamma deniers.

4

Now some more on the vocabulary - attakari

From p.69 Bodhi translation Fruits of Recluseship.:

There is no self-determination
CY. “Self-determination” (attakára) is the kamma beings do on
their own, by reason of which they attain the state of a god, the
state of Mára, the state of Brahmá, the enlightenment of a disciple,
the enlightenment of a paccekabuddha, or the omniscience (of a
Buddha). This he rejects.

From the Attakari sutta :

One does not act of one’s own volition, nor does one act of another’s volition.”
‘natthi attakāro, natthi parakāro’”ti