[193] "Bhikkhus, I shall teach you an exposition of the Dhamma on creeping (saṃsappati-pariyāya). Listen to it and attend closely; I shall speak." "Yes, venerable sir," those bhikkhus replied to the Blessed One. The Blessed One said this:
"And what, bhikkhus, is the exposition of the Dhamma on creeping? Bhikkhus, beings are the owners of their kamma, the heirs of their kamma; they have kamma as their origin, kamma as their kinsman, kamma as their refuge; whatever kamma they do, good or evil, of that they become the heirs.
"Here, bhikkhus, someone is a destroyer of life (pāṇātipāta): cruel, bloody-handed, given to blows and violence, without mercy toward all living beings. He creeps by body, creeps by speech, creeps by mind. His bodily action (kāyakamma) is crooked, his verbal action (vacīkamma) is crooked, his mental action (manokamma) is crooked; his destination (gati) is crooked, his rebirth (upapatti) is crooked. And for one whose destination is crooked, whose rebirth is crooked, bhikkhus, I declare one of two destinations: either the hells (niraya), which are exclusively painful, or the animal realm (tiracchānayoni) of creeping kind. And what, bhikkhus, is the animal realm of creeping kind? Snakes, scorpions, centipedes, mongooses, cats, mice, owls, or whatever other beings there may be who, having come to the animal realm, creep away when they see human beings. Thus, bhikkhus, the rebirth of a being comes from what has come to be: one is reborn through what one does, and when one has been reborn, contacts (phassa) touch one. Thus, bhikkhus, I say that beings are the heirs of their kamma.
"Here again, bhikkhus, someone takes what is not given (adinnādāna) ... engages in sexual misconduct ... speaks falsely (musāvāda) ... speaks maliciously ... speaks harshly ... engages in frivolous talk ... is covetous (abhijjhā) ... has a mind of ill will ... holds wrong view (micchādiṭṭhi), a distorted way of seeing: 'There is nothing given, nothing offered, nothing sacrificed; there is no fruit or result of good and bad actions; there is no this world, no other world; there is no mother, no father; there are no beings spontaneously reborn (opapātika); there are no ascetics and brahmins in the world faring rightly and practicing rightly who, having realized this world and the other world for themselves by direct knowledge, make them known.' He creeps by body, creeps by speech, creeps by mind. His bodily action is crooked, his verbal action is crooked, his mental action is crooked; his destination is crooked, his rebirth is crooked. And for one whose destination is crooked, whose rebirth is crooked, bhikkhus, I declare one of two destinations: either the hells, which are exclusively painful, or the animal realm of creeping kind. And what, bhikkhus, is the animal realm of creeping kind? Snakes, scorpions, centipedes, mongooses, cats, mice, owls, or whatever other beings there may be who, having come to the animal realm, creep away when they see human beings. Thus, bhikkhus, the rebirth of a being comes from what has come to be: one is reborn through what one does, and when one has been reborn, contacts touch one. Thus, bhikkhus, I say that beings are the heirs of their kamma.
"Bhikkhus, beings are the owners of their kamma, the heirs of their kamma; they have kamma as their origin, kamma as their kinsman, kamma as their refuge; whatever kamma they do, good or evil, of that they become the heirs.
"Here, bhikkhus, someone, having abandoned the destruction of life, abstains from the destruction of life: with rod laid down, with weapon laid down, conscientious, merciful, he dwells compassionate for the welfare of all living beings. He does not creep by body, does not creep by speech, does not creep by mind. His bodily action is straight, his verbal action is straight, his mental action is straight; his destination is straight, his rebirth is straight. And for one whose destination is straight, whose rebirth is straight, bhikkhus, I declare one of two destinations: either beings of exclusively pleasant experience, or else those high families — families of affluent khattiyas, families of affluent brahmins, or families of affluent householders — rich, of great wealth, of great possessions, with abundant gold and silver, abundant treasures and means of enjoyment, abundant wealth and grain. Thus, bhikkhus, the rebirth of a being comes from what has come to be: one is reborn through what one does, and when one has been reborn, contacts touch one. Thus, bhikkhus, I say that beings are the heirs of their kamma.
"Here again, bhikkhus, someone, having abandoned the taking of what is not given, abstains from taking what is not given ... having abandoned sexual misconduct, abstains from sexual misconduct ... having abandoned false speech, abstains from false speech ... having abandoned malicious speech, abstains from malicious speech ... having abandoned harsh speech, abstains from harsh speech ... having abandoned frivolous talk, abstains from frivolous talk ... is without covetousness ... has a mind without ill will ... holds right view (sammādiṭṭhi), an undistorted way of seeing: 'There is what is given, what is offered, what is sacrificed; there is fruit and result of good and bad actions; there is this world, there is the other world; there is mother, there is father; there are beings spontaneously reborn; there are ascetics and brahmins faring rightly and practicing rightly who, having realized this world and the other world for themselves by direct knowledge, make them known.' He does not creep by body, does not creep by speech, does not creep by mind. His bodily action is straight, his verbal action is straight, his mental action is straight; his destination is straight, his rebirth is straight. And for one whose destination is straight, whose rebirth is straight, bhikkhus, I declare one of two destinations: either beings of exclusively pleasant experience, or else those high families — families of affluent khattiyas, families of affluent brahmins, or families of affluent householders — rich, of great wealth, of great possessions, with abundant gold and silver, abundant treasures and means of enjoyment, abundant wealth and grain. Thus, bhikkhus, the rebirth of a being comes from what has come to be: one is reborn through what one does, and when one has been reborn, contacts touch one. Thus, bhikkhus, I say that beings are the heirs of their kamma.
"Bhikkhus, beings are the owners of their kamma, the heirs of their kamma; they have kamma as their origin, kamma as their kinsman, kamma as their refuge; whatever kamma they do, good or evil, of that they become the heirs. This, bhikkhus, is the exposition of the Dhamma on creeping."
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.