[33] (3) And in the third case, owing to what, with reference to what, are those honourable ascetics and brahmins partial-eternalists and partial-non-eternalists, declaring the self (attā) and the world to be partly eternal and partly not eternal?
Bhikkhus, there are gods named Manopadosikā ("corrupted by mind"). They gaze at one another to excess. Gazing at one another to excess, they corrupt their minds (citta) against one another. With minds corrupted against one another, they become weary in body and weary in mind. Those gods fall away from that company.
Now this situation exists, bhikkhus, that a certain being, having fallen away from that company, comes to this state of existence. Having come to this state, he goes forth from the household life into homelessness. Having gone forth from the household life into homelessness, by means of ardour (ātappa), by means of striving, by means of application, by means of diligence, and by means of right attention, he attains such concentration of mind (cetosamādhi) that, with the mind concentrated (samādhi), he recollects that former abode, but recollects nothing beyond that.
He says thus: "Those honourable gods who are not corrupted by mind do not gaze at one another to excess. Not gazing at one another to excess, they do not corrupt their minds against one another. With minds uncorrupted against one another, they are unwearied in body and unwearied in mind. Those gods do not fall away from that company; they are permanent, stable, eternal, of a nature not to change, and will remain just so, the same for all eternity. But we who were corrupted by mind gazed at one another to excess. Gazing at one another to excess, we corrupted our minds against one another. With minds corrupted against one another, we became weary in body and weary in mind. Thus we, having fallen away from that company, being impermanent, unstable, short-lived, of a nature to fall away, have come to this state of existence."
This, bhikkhus, is the third ground, owing to which, with reference to which, some ascetics and brahmins are partial-eternalists and partial-non-eternalists, declaring the self and the world to be partly eternal and partly not eternal.
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.