SUTTA 41

[^425]: This is a morally nihilistic materialist view that denies an afterlife and kammic retribution. "There is nothing given" means that there is no fruit of giving; "no this world, no other world" that there is no rebirth into either this world or a world beyond; "no mother, no father" that there is no fruit of good conduct and bad conduct towards mother and father. The statement about recluses and brahmins denies the existence of Buddhas and arahants.

[^426]: MA explains that "the gods of Radiance" is not a separate class of gods but a collective name for the three classes that follow; the same applies to "the gods of Glory." This celestial hierarchy is explained in the Introduction, pp. 46-48.

[^427]: It should be noted that while "conduct in accordance with the Dhamma" as described in the sutta is a necessary condition for rebirth in the higher heavenly worlds and for the destruction of the taints; it is by no means a sufficient condition. Rebirth into the realms beginning with the gods of Brahmā's retinue requires the attainment of jhāna, rebirth into the Pure Abodes (the five beginning with the Aviha gods) the attainment of the stage of non-returner, rebirth into the immaterial planes the corresponding immaterial attainments, and the destruction of the taints requires the full practice of the Noble Eightfold Path up to the path of arahantship.