Aṅguttara Nikāya — Discursos Numerados — 4.42 — Ways of Answering Questions

1“Mendicants, there are these four ways of answering questions. What four? There is a question that should be answered categorically. There is a question that should be answered analytically. There is a question that should be answered with a counter-question. There is a question that should be set aside.

2These are the four ways of answering questions.

3One is stated categorically,
another analytically,
a third with a counter-question,
while a fourth is set aside.

4That sort of mendicant, <j>who knows each of these,
in line with good principles,
is said to be skilled
in the four kinds of questions.

5They’re intimidating, hard to defeat,
deep, and hard to crush.
They’re expert in both
what the meaning is and what it isn’t.

6Shunning what is not the meaning,
an astute person grasps the meaning.
An attentive one, comprehending the meaning,
is said to be astute.”