Dighanikaya 25.69

25.69

Addhā kho, bhanteti bhante evaṃ sante ekaṃseneva vīriyena pāpajigucchanavādo parisuddho hotīti anujānāti. Ito parañca aggabhāvaṃ vā sārabhāvaṃ vā ajānanto aggappattā sārappattā cāti āha. Athassa bhagavā sārappattabhāvaṃ paṭisedhento na kho nigrodhātiādimāha. Papaṭikappattā hotīti sāravato rukkhassa sāraṃ phegguṃ tacañca atikkamma bahipapaṭikasadisā hotīti dasseti.

"Surely, Bhante": 'Bhante, this being so, by effort alone the doctrine of loathing evil is certainly purified,' thus he concurs. And from here on, not knowing whether it has reached the peak or the core, he says: "It has reached the peak and reached the core." Then the Blessed One, rejecting its state of having reached the core, said, "Not so, Nigrodha," and so on. "It has reached the outer bark": he shows that it has surpassed the core, the softwood, and the inner bark of a tree possessing a core, and is similar to the external outer bark.