Is it still possible to attain arahantship in 7 days?
Anguttara Nikaya Commentary
Dutiyapaṇṇāsakaṃ
- The Second Fifty
(6) 1. Gotamīvaggo
(6) 1. The Gotami Chapter
Translation by Bodhi of the Commentary
note 1747
“Mp (Ce): “By this he shows the following: ‘When a causeway is not built around a large reservoir, whatever water would have remained there if the causeway had first been built does not remain because there is no causeway. So too, these principles of respect have been prescribed in advance, before an incident has arisen, for the purpose of preventing transgression. If they had not been prescribed, then, because women have gone forth, the good Dhamma would have lasted five hundred years. But because they have been laid down in advance, it will continue another five hundred years and thus last for the thousand years originally stated.’ And this expression ‘a thousand years’ is said with reference to arahants who have attained the analytic knowledges (paṭisambhidāpabhedappattakhīṇāsavānaṃ vasen’eva vuttaṃ). Following this, for another thousand years, there appear dry-insight arahants; for another thousand years, non-returners; for another thousand years, once-returners; and for another thousand years, stream-enterers. Thus the good Dhamma of penetration (paṭivedhasaddhammo) will last five thousand years. The Dhamma of learning (pariyattidhammo) will also last this long. For without learning, there is no penetration, and as long as there is learning, there is penetration.” From the above, we can see that according to the commentary, the allowance for women to go forth will not shorten the life span of the Dhamma; this is because the Buddha laid down the eight principles of respect, which serve as the dyke or causeway.
Thus the Commentary says the Sasana will last 5000 years. The times of the great paṭisambhidā arhats has long passed. Even arahats who are only dry insight workers has passed.
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I feel like that concerns the general strength of the Sāsana, not the absolute impossibility of attainment. I don’t think it means “After 1,000 years, Paṭisambhidā Arahants or Dry Insight Arahants cannot arise.” To me, it sounds more like “After that period, they are no longer the characteristic norm of the age.”
I see it more as “After that era, arahants with Paṭisambhidā are no longer the usual form of realization seen in the world, though they may still arise in exceptional cases.”
I think even Dry Insight Arahants can still arise in exceptional cases. It doesn’t mean one should just strive for the state of non-return and not for Arahantship.
We should also remember these words from the Mahaparinibbana sutta.
“Were these mendicants to practice well, the world would not be empty of perfected ones.”
Ime ca, subhadda, bhikkhū sammā vihareyyuṁ, asuñño loko arahantehi assāti
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Thanks!
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You can strive for anything you want. but since its a process, you will only achieve what is doable for your particular case. even in the Buddhas time, with the Supreme Master alive and well, many disciples could not make it farther than stream entry, sakagama or anagami because thier parami/merit accumulation could only take them that far.
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It is impossible to not be an arahant once stream entry is achieved.
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