The 37 aids to awakening (Pāli: bodhipakkhiyā dhammā), also called the thirty-seven factors pertaining to awakening, are seven groups of practice that the Buddha often taught together: the four foundations of mindfulness (four), the four right efforts (four), the four bases of spiritual power (four), the five faculties (five), the five powers (five), the seven factors of awakening (seven) and the Noble Eightfold Path (eight), adding up to thirty-seven. “Aids to the path” means qualities that support the path toward awakening. In the Great Discourse on the Buddha’s Extinguishment (DN 16), knowing that he would pass away in three months, the Blessed One had the monks around Vesālī gathered and named exactly these seven groups as the teachings he had realized, to be learned well, practised and spread. The Longer Discourse with Sakuludāyī (MN 77) lists the seven groups in the same order. They are not thirty-seven separate items to memorize: mindfulness, effort, concentration and wisdom recur in several groups.
From the discourse: the seven groups the Buddha entrusted to the monks (DN 16)
Quoted verbatim from the Vietnamese translation by Ven. Thích Minh Châu in the Inti Dharma library (DN 16). In it, “Bốn Thần túc” are the four bases of spiritual power and “Bảy Bồ-đề phần” the seven factors of awakening.
Này các Tỷ-kheo, thế nào là các pháp do Ta chứng ngộ và giảng dạy, các Ngươi phải khéo học hỏi, thực chứng, tu tập và truyền rộng để cho phạm hạnh được trường tồn, vĩnh cửu, vì hạnh phúc cho chúng sanh, vì an lạc cho chúng sanh, vì lòng thương tưởng cho đời, vì lợi ích, vì hạnh phúc, vì an lạc cho loài Trời và loài Người? Chính là Bốn Niệm xứ, Bốn Chánh cần, Bốn Thần túc, Năm Căn, Năm Lực, Bảy Bồ-đề phần, Tám Thánh đạo phần.
The four foundations of mindfulness and the four right efforts: seeing clearly, then making effort
The four foundations of mindfulness (satipaṭṭhāna) are four places to establish mindfulness: body, feelings, mind and phenomena; MN 77 describes the practitioner contemplating these four fields ardently, with clear comprehension and mindfulness, so as not to be ruled by longing and dejection about the world. The four right efforts (sammappadhāna) are four directions of effort: preventing unwholesome states that have not arisen, abandoning those that have, arousing wholesome states not yet present and helping wholesome states that are present to grow. The two groups complete each other: only by seeing clearly do we know whether to prevent, let go, arouse or keep; and only with rightly directed effort does awareness go beyond mere watching.
The four bases of spiritual power: four foundations of concentration
The four bases of spiritual power (iddhipāda), called “Bốn Thần túc” in the translations of DN 16 and MN 77, are four foundations that help the mind become concentrated and practice succeed: concentration through desire (chanda), through energy, through mind and through investigation, each accompanied by “active striving”. SN 51.13 explains that this striving is precisely the four right efforts, so the third group is built directly on the second. The name easily suggests supernormal powers, and the Connected Discourses on the Bases of Spiritual Power do speak of them; but for a beginner the more practical lesson is about motivation: a wholesome undertaking lasts only with genuine desire, staying power, attentiveness and the ability to examine.
The five faculties and the five powers: the same five qualities
The five faculties (indriya) and the five powers (bala) share the same content: faith, energy, mindfulness, concentration and wisdom. The discourse At Sāketa (SN 48.43) says that what is the faculty of faith is the power of faith, and so on up to wisdom; like a river with an island in midstream, counted one way it is one stream, counted another way it is two. In the familiar explanation of the commentaries, a quality is called a “faculty” when seen in its governing role, and a “power” when it is firm enough that its opposite cannot shake it. Learners are also often reminded to keep the five in balance: faith with wisdom, energy with concentration, while mindfulness is always needed.
The seven factors of awakening and the Noble Eightfold Path
The seven factors of awakening (bojjhaṅga) are mindfulness, investigation of phenomena, energy, joy, tranquillity, concentration and equanimity; the translation of DN 16 calls them “Bảy Bồ-đề phần”. The Noble Eightfold Path consists of right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness and right concentration; DN 16 calls it “Tám Thánh đạo phần”. It is the only group with an ethical part — speech, action, livelihood — and it is also the truth of the path among the Four Noble Truths, so it can be seen as the overall frame, while the other groups look closely at particular qualities of mind.
Why they are taught together: qualities that keep returning
The seven groups are not seven separate paths. Count them and you find effort nine times (the four right efforts, plus energy as a base of power, faculty, power, awakening factor and right effort), mindfulness eight times (the four foundations, plus the faculty, the power, the awakening factor and right mindfulness), wisdom five times, concentration four times and faith twice. That is why the Theravāda Abhidhamma tradition reduces the thirty-seven to fourteen elements. The Discourse on Mindfulness of Breathing (MN 118) shows how the groups connect: mindfulness of breathing, when developed, fulfils the four foundations of mindfulness, and the four foundations fulfil the seven factors of awakening. Studying one group well also nourishes the others.
In what order should a beginner study them?
This is a practical suggestion, not a rule laid down in the discourses. Begin with the Noble Eightfold Path to have the overall map and a foundation of ethics. Next, the four foundations of mindfulness, because mindfulness can be practised right away with the breath and bodily sensations. Then the four right efforts, to know where to put your effort during the day. After that, the five faculties and five powers, as a mirror showing which quality is weak and which is overbearing. The seven factors of awakening and the four bases of spiritual power can come later, once you have some experience of sitting still. This is a study route, not a promise of results or a scale for ranking yourself; if sitting still makes distress grow, stop and look for suitable support.
Free reading preview
No account needed to try one practice step
Open a short excerpt from this article, practice right here, then create an account if you want to save progress and unlock realms.
Tap to open a short passage and try one practice step before signing up.
Practice today
1.Read the DN 16 passage above slowly, then write out the seven groups and the number of items in each until they add up to thirty-seven.
2.Choose one group for this week, such as the four foundations of mindfulness, and spend a few minutes each day noticing the breath, feelings or the state of mind.
3.At the end of the day, ask yourself: where were mindfulness, effort, concentration and wisdom present today, and where were they missing?
Frequently asked questions
What do the 37 aids to awakening include?
Seven groups: the four foundations of mindfulness, four right efforts, four bases of spiritual power, five faculties, five powers, seven factors of awakening and the eight factors of the Noble Eightfold Path: 4 + 4 + 4 + 5 + 5 + 7 + 8 = 37.
In which discourses are the 37 aids to awakening found?
In the Pāli discourses the seven groups are listed together in many texts, notably DN 16, MN 77 and MN 118; the Connected Discourses also give each group a chapter of its own, from chapter 45 to chapter 51. The collective name “thirty-seven aids to the path” is also familiar in the Chinese canon, for example in the Vimalakīrti Sūtra.
Does “Bồ-đề phần” mean seven factors or thirty-seven?
Both uses occur: the translation of DN 16 calls the seven factors of awakening “Bảy Bồ-đề phần”, while “thirty-seven bodhi factors” is another name for all 37 aids to awakening. The number that comes with it tells you which group is meant.
Are the 37 aids to awakening studied to gain supernormal powers or quick attainment?
It is better not to study them with that expectation. The discourses present them as supports for the path; their practical value for a learner is understanding one’s own mind more clearly and living in a way that causes less suffering, not scoring oneself or assigning levels of attainment to oneself or others.
