[328] On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Rājagaha, on Mount Gijjhakūṭa. Then the Venerable Ānanda approached the Blessed One; having approached and paid homage to the Blessed One, he sat down to one side. Sitting to one side, the Venerable Ānanda said this to the Blessed One: "Venerable sir, Pūraṇa Kassapa has designated six classes of birth (chaḷābhijātiyo): he has designated a black class of birth, a blue class of birth, a red class of birth, a yellow class of birth, a white class of birth, and a supremely white class of birth. Herein, venerable sir, Pūraṇa Kassapa has designated as the black class of birth: butchers of sheep, butchers of pigs, fowlers, deer-hunters, hunters, killers of fish, thieves, executioners of thieves, prison wardens, and whoever else follow a cruel line of work. Herein, venerable sir, Pūraṇa Kassapa has designated as the blue class of birth: bhikkhus, those given to dark inclinations, and whoever else are proponents of kamma, proponents of the efficacy of deeds. Herein, venerable sir, Pūraṇa Kassapa has designated as the red class of birth: the Nigaṇṭhas who wear a single cloth. Herein, venerable sir, Pūraṇa Kassapa has designated as the yellow class of birth: the white-clothed householders who are disciples of the naked ascetics. Herein, venerable sir, Pūraṇa Kassapa has designated as the white class of birth: the male and female Ājīvakas. Herein, venerable sir, Pūraṇa Kassapa has designated as the supremely white class of birth: Nanda Vaccha, Kacca Saṅkicca, and Makkhali Gosāla. Venerable sir, Pūraṇa Kassapa has designated these six classes of birth."
"But, Ānanda, does the whole world concur with Pūraṇa Kassapa in designating these six classes of birth?" "Certainly not, venerable sir." "Suppose, Ānanda, there were a man who was poor, owning nothing, destitute, and against his will they were to hang a piece of meat upon him, saying: 'Good man, you must eat this meat and pay its price.' In just the same way, Ānanda, Pūraṇa Kassapa has designated these six classes of birth without the consent of those ascetics and brahmins, as would a fool, incompetent, ignorant of the proper domain, unskilled. But I, Ānanda, designate six classes of birth. Listen to this and attend well; I will speak." "Yes, venerable sir," the Venerable Ānanda replied to the Blessed One. The Blessed One said this:
"And what, Ānanda, are the six classes of birth? Here, Ānanda, someone belonging to a black class of birth generates a black state (dhamma). Here again, Ānanda, someone belonging to a black class of birth generates a white state. Here again, Ānanda, someone belonging to a black class of birth generates Nibbāna, which is neither black nor white. Here again, Ānanda, someone belonging to a white class of birth generates a black state. Here again, Ānanda, someone belonging to a white class of birth generates a white state. Here again, Ānanda, someone belonging to a white class of birth generates Nibbāna, which is neither black nor white.
"And how, Ānanda, does one belonging to a black class of birth generate a black state? Here, Ānanda, someone is reborn in a low family — in a family of caṇḍālas, or in a family of hunters, or in a family of bamboo-workers, or in a family of cart-makers, or in a family of scavengers — poor, with little rice, drink, and food, subsisting with hardship, where food and clothing are obtained with difficulty. And he is ill-favored, unsightly, dwarfish, of many ailments — blind, or crippled, or lame, or paralyzed — one who does not gain food, drink, clothing, vehicles, garlands, scents and unguents, or bed, lodging, and lamps. He conducts himself wrongly by body, conducts himself wrongly by speech, conducts himself wrongly by mind. Having conducted himself wrongly by body, having conducted himself wrongly by speech, having conducted himself wrongly by mind, with the breakup of the body, after death, he is reborn in the plane of misery, the bad destination, the downfall, hell. It is in this way, Ānanda, that one belonging to a black class of birth generates a black state.
"And how, Ānanda, does one belonging to a black class of birth generate a white state? Here, Ānanda, someone is reborn in a low family — in a family of caṇḍālas, or … bed, lodging, and lamps. He conducts himself well by body, conducts himself well by speech, conducts himself well by mind. Having conducted himself well by body, having conducted himself well by speech, having conducted himself well by mind, with the breakup of the body, after death, he is reborn in a good destination, a heavenly world. It is in this way, Ānanda, that one belonging to a black class of birth generates a white state.
"And how, Ānanda, does one belonging to a black class of birth generate Nibbāna, which is neither black nor white? Here, Ānanda, someone is reborn in a low family — in a family of caṇḍālas, or … and he is ill-favored, unsightly, dwarfish. He shaves off his hair and beard, puts on the ochre robes, and goes forth from the household life into homelessness. Having thus gone forth, having abandoned the five hindrances (nīvaraṇa) — corruptions of the mind (citta) that weaken wisdom — with his mind well established in the four establishments of mindfulness (satipaṭṭhāna), having developed the seven factors of awakening (bojjhaṅga) as they really are, he generates Nibbāna, which is neither black nor white. It is in this way, Ānanda, that one belonging to a black class of birth generates Nibbāna, which is neither black nor white.
"And how, Ānanda, does one belonging to a white class of birth generate a black state? Here, Ānanda, someone is reborn in a high family — in an affluent khattiya family, or in an affluent brahmin family, or in an affluent householder family — rich, of great wealth, of great possessions, with abundant gold and silver, abundant means and requisites, abundant wealth and grain. And he is handsome, comely, graceful, endowed with supreme beauty of complexion, one who gains food, drink, clothing, vehicles, garlands, scents and unguents, and bed, lodging, and lamps. He conducts himself wrongly by body, conducts himself wrongly by speech, conducts himself wrongly by mind. Having conducted himself wrongly by body, having conducted himself wrongly by speech, having conducted himself wrongly by mind, with the breakup of the body, after death, he is reborn in the plane of misery, the bad destination, the downfall, hell. It is in this way, Ānanda, that one belonging to a white class of birth generates a black state.
"And how, Ānanda, does one belonging to a white class of birth generate a white state? Here, Ānanda, someone is reborn in a high family — in an affluent khattiya family, or … bed, lodging, and lamps. He conducts himself well by body, conducts himself well by speech, conducts himself well by mind. Having conducted himself well by body, having conducted himself well by speech, having conducted himself well by mind, with the breakup of the body, after death, he is reborn in a good destination, a heavenly world. It is in this way, Ānanda, that one belonging to a white class of birth generates a white state.
"And how, Ānanda, does one belonging to a white class of birth generate Nibbāna, which is neither black nor white? Here, Ānanda, someone is reborn in a high family — in an affluent khattiya family, or in an affluent brahmin family, or in an affluent householder family — rich, of great wealth, of great possessions, with abundant gold and silver, abundant means and requisites, abundant wealth and grain. And he is handsome, comely, graceful, endowed with supreme beauty of complexion, one who gains food, drink, clothing, vehicles, garlands, scents and unguents, and bed, lodging, and lamps. He shaves off his hair and beard, puts on the ochre robes, and goes forth from the household life into homelessness. Having thus gone forth, having abandoned the five hindrances — corruptions of the mind that weaken wisdom — with his mind well established in the four establishments of mindfulness, having developed the seven factors of awakening as they really are, he generates Nibbāna, which is neither black nor white. It is in this way, Ānanda, that one belonging to a white class of birth generates Nibbāna, which is neither black nor white. These, Ānanda, are the six classes of birth."
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.