At one time the Buddha was staying near Sāketa, in Kāḷaka’s monastery. There the Buddha addressed the mendicants: “Mendicants!” “Venerable sir,” they replied. The Buddha said this:

“In this world—with its gods, Māras and Brahmās, this population with its ascetics and brahmins, its gods and humans—whatever is seen, heard, thought, cognized, searched, and explored by the mind: that I know.

In this world—with its gods, Māras, and Brahmās, this population with its ascetics and brahmins, its gods and humans—whatever is seen, heard, thought, cognized, searched, and explored by the mind: that I have insight into. That has been known by a Realized One, but a Realized One is not subject to it.

If I were to say that ‘I do not know … the world with its gods’, I would be lying.

If I were to say that ‘I both know and do not know … the world with its gods’, that would be just the same.

If I were to say that ‘I neither know nor do not know … the world with its gods’, that would be my fault.

So a Realized One sees what’s to be seen, but does not conceive what’s seen, does not conceive what’s unseen, does not conceive what’s to be seen, and does not conceive a seer. He hears what’s to be heard, but does not conceive what’s heard, does not conceive what’s unheard, does not conceive what’s to be heard, and does not conceive a hearer. He thinks what’s to be thought, but does not conceive what’s thought, does not conceive what’s not thought, does not conceive what’s to be thought, and does not conceive a thinker. He knows what’s to be known, but does not conceive what’s known, does not conceive what’s unknown, does not conceive what’s to be known, and does not conceive a knower. Since a Realized One is poised in the midst of things seen, heard, thought, and known, he is the poised one. And I say that there is no-one who has better or finer poise than this.

The poised one does not take anything
seen, heard, or thought to be ultimately true or false.
But others get attached, thinking it’s the truth,
limited by their preconceptions.

Since they’ve already seen this dart,
to which people are attached and cling,
they say, ‘I know, I see, that’s how it is’;
the Realized Ones have no attachments.”