1. Here is another translation with the Pali: “Oghataraṇa Sutta (SN 1.1).”
- This short sutta has deep meanings regarding how a puthujjana is kept away from Nibbana. In many suttas, attaining Nibbana is compared to crossing an ocean/river/flood and going from this shore (this world) to the further shore (Nibbana.)
- A puthujjana attaches to a sensory input in two stages, explained as upaya/upadana or, equivalently, “purana kamma“/”nava kamma” stages. For example, a puthujjana in the human realm first “lands (patiṭṭha) on kama bhava” and then “grasps that arammana (āyūhaṁ) at the upadana stage.”
- One who lands in the stream (flood) sinks to the bottom; if he grasps a floating object, he will be swept away by the stream (flood).
- The Deva asked, “How did you cross the flood”? and the Buddha answered, “By neither landing nor grasping to something (that was floating), I crossed the flood.”
- The two stages are discussed in the posts “Upaya and Upādāna – Two Stages of Attachment” and “Purāna and Nava Kamma – Sequence of Kamma Generation“
2. I don’t understand the second question.
Your statement, “..Mundane Sila becoming Ariyakanta Sila, when one understands Four Noble Truths/Tilakkhana/Paticca Samuppada is an example of such qualitative transformation/change/shift” explains everything.
- Mundane Sila becomes Ariyakanta Sila when one understands the Buddha’s worldview (i.e., gets rid of sakkaya ditthi and the other two associated samyojana) and becomes a Sotapanna.
- But one has not yet put it into practice.
- When one gets rid of kama raga (comprehending “distorted sanna” can help a lot here), one can become Sakadagami/Anagami.
- The last five samyojana are removed at the Arahant stage.
- They all involve understanding the Four Noble Truths/Tilakkhana/Paticca Samuppada at increasingly deeper levels.