The Svetambaras, clad in white, are the followers of Parsvanatha, and wear clothes. The Digambaras, i.e. sky-clad, disrobed, are followers of Mah4vira, resident chiefly in Southern India. At present they, too, wear clothing, but not when eating. See Sdstram Aiyar, p. xxi.
The ga/a, or the hair platted and gathered up in a knot, was a sign of a Saiva ascetic. The sitting motionless is one of the postures assumed by ascetics. Clough explains ukku/ka as ‘the act of sitting on the heels ;’ Wilson gives for utka/uk4sana, ‘sitting on the hams.’ See Fausbdll, note on verse 140.
142. As to damdanidhana, see Mahabh. XII, 6559, and Suttanipata, v. 34.
143, 144. Iam very doubtful as to the real meaning of these verses. If their object is to show how reproof or punishmentp. 40 the whip, be ye active and lively, and by faith, by virtue, by energy, by meditation, by discernment of the law you will overcome this great pain (of reproof), perfect in knowledge and in behaviour, and never forgetful.
145. Well-makers lead the water (wherever they like); fletchers bend the arrow; carpenters bend a log of wood; good people fashion themselves.
should be borne, my translation would be right, though alpabodhati in the sense of parvi facere is strange.
145. The same as verse 80. According to Fausbdll and Subhfiti we ought to render the verses by,‘ What man is there found on earth so restrained by shame that he never provokes reproof, as a good horse the whip?’ See Childers, s. v. appabodhati.
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CHAPTER XI. OLD AGE.
146. How is there laughter, how is there joy, as this world is always burning? Why do you not seek a light, ye who are surrounded by darkness ?
147. Look at this dressed-up lump, covered with wounds, joined together, sickly, full of many thoughts, which has no strength, no hold!
148. This body is wasted, full of sickness, and frail; this heap of corruption breaks to pieces, life indeed ends in death.
147. Look at this dressed-up lump, covered with wounds, joined together, sickly, full of many thoughts, which has no strength, no hold!
148. This body is wasted, full of sickness, and frail; this heap of corruption breaks to pieces, life indeed ends in death.
148. Dr. Fausbéll informs me that Childers proposed the emendation maranantam hi givitam. The following extract from a letter, addressed by Childers to Dr. Fausbdll, will be read with interest :— ‘As regards Dhp. v. 148, I have no doubt whatever. I quite agree with you that the idea (mors est vita ejus) is a profound and noble one, but the question is, Is the idea there? I think not. Maranam tamhi givitam is not Pali, I mean not a P4li construction, and years ago even it grated on my ear asa harsh phrase. The reading of your MSS. of the texts is nothing; your MSS. of Dhammapada are very bad ones, and it is merely the vicious Sinhalese spelling of bad MSS., like kammamtam for kammantam. But the comment sets the question at rest at once, for it explains marazantam by maramapariyos4nam, which is exactly the same. I see there is one serious difficulty left, that all your MSS. seem to have tamhi, and not tam hi; but are you sure it is so? There was a Dhammapada in the India Office Library, and I had a great hunt for it a few days ago, but to my deep disappointment it is missing. I do not agree with you that the sentence “All Life is bounded by Death,” is trivial: it is a truism, but half the noblest passages in poetry are truisms, and unless I greatly mistake, this very passage will be found in many other literatures.’
Dr. Fausbéll adds :—
‘I have still the same doubt as before, because of all my
[10] g
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149. Those white bones, like gourds thrown away in the autumn, what pleasure is there in looking at them ?
150. After a stronghold has been made of the bones, it is covered with flesh and blood, and there dwell in it old age and death, pride and deceit.
151. The brilliant chariots of kings are destroyed, the body also approaches destruction, but the virtue of good people never approaches destruction,—thus do the good say to the good.
152. A man who has learnt little, grows old like an ox; his flesh grows, but his knowledge does not grow.
153, 154. Looking for the maker of this tabernacle, I shall have to run through a course of many births, so long as I do not find (him) ; and painful is birth again and again. -But now, maker of the tabernacle, thou hast been seen; theu shalt not make up
MSS. reading marazam tamhi. I do not know the readings of the London MSS. The explanation of the commentary does not settle the question, as it may as well be considered an explanation of my reading as of the reading which Childers proposed.—V. Fauspo it.’
149. In the Rudrayaw4vadana of the Divydvadana this verse appears as,
The explanation of the commentary does not settle the question, as it may as well be considered an explanation of my reading as of the reading which Childers proposed.—V. Fauspo it.’
149. In the Rudrayaw4vadana of the Divydvadana this verse appears as,
Yanimany apariddhani vikshiptani diso disad, Kapctavarzany asthini tani drzsh/vaiha ka ratih. See Schiefner, Mél. Asiat. VIII, p. 589; GaAtaka, vol. i. p. 322.
150. The expression mamsalohitalepanam is curiously like the expression used in Manu VI, 76, mamsasonitalepanam, and in several passages of the Mahabhfrata, XII, 12462, 12053, as pointed out by Dr. Fausbdll.
153, 154. These two verses are famous among Buddhists, for they are the words which the founder of Buddhism is supposed to have uttered at the moment he attained to Buddhahood. (See Spence Hardy, Manual, p. 180.) According to the Lalita-vistara, however, the words uttered on that solemn occasion were thosep. 43 this tabernacle again. All thy rafters are broken, thy ridge-pole is sundered ; the mind, approaching the Eternal (visankh4ra, nirvava), has attained to the extinction of all desires.
quoted in the note to verse 39. In the commentary on the Brahmagala this verse is called the first speech of Buddha, his last speech being the words in the Mah4parinibb4na-sutta, ‘Life is subject to age; strive in earnest.’ The words used in the Mahaparinibbana-sutta, Chap. IV, 2, Xatunnam dhamm4nam ananubodha appasivedha evam idam digham addhanam sandh4vitam samsdritam mamaz # eva tumhakaf ka, answer to the anticipation expressed in our verse.
IV, 2, Xatunnam dhamm4nam ananubodha appasivedha evam idam digham addhanam sandh4vitam samsdritam mamaz # eva tumhakaf ka, answer to the anticipation expressed in our verse.
The exact rendering of this verse has been much discussed, chiefly by Mr. D’Alwis in the Attanugaluvansa, p. cxxviii, and again in his Buddhist Nirvaua, p. 78; also by Childers, Notes on Dhammapada, p. 4, and in his Dictionary. Gogerly translated : ‘Through various transmigrations I must travel, if I do not discover the builder whom Iseek.’ Spence Hardy: ‘Through many different births I have run (to me not having found), seeking the architect of the desire-resembling house.’ Fausbdll: ‘ Multiplices generationis revolutiones percurreram, non inveniens, domus (corporis) fabricatorem quaerens.’ And again (p. 322): ‘Multarum generationum revolutio mihi subeunda esset, nisi invenissem domus fabricatorem.’ Childers: ‘I have run through the revolution of countless births, seeking the architect of this dwelling and finding him not.’ D’Alwis: ‘ Through transmigrations of numerous births have I run, not discovering, (though) seeking the house-builder.’ All depends on how we take sandhavissam, which Fausbéll takes as a conditional, Childers, following Trenckner, as an aorist, because the sense imperatively requires an aorist. In either case, the dropping of the augment and the doubling of the s are, however, irregular. Sandhavissam is the regular form of the future, and as such I translate it, qualifying, however, the future, by the participle present anibbisan, i.e. not finding, and taking it in the sense of, if or so long as I do not find the true cause of existence. I had formerly translated anibbisan, as not resting (anirvisan), but the commentator seems to authorise the meaning of not finding (avindanto, alabhanto), and in that case all the material difficulties of the verse seem to me to disappear.
“The maker of the tabernacle’ is explained as a poetical expression for the cause of new births, at least according to the views of g2 Kx
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155. Men who have not observed proper discipline, and have not gained treasure in their youth, perish like old herons in a lake without fish.
156. Men who have not observed proper discipline, and have not gained treasure in their youth, lie, like broken bows, sighing after the past.
Buddha’s followers, whatever his own views may have been. Buddha had conquered Mara, the representative of worldly temptations, the father of worldly desires, and as desires (tamh4) are, by means of upadana and bhava, the cause of gti, or ‘birth,’ the destruction of desires and the conquest of Mara are nearly the same thing, though expressed differently in the philosophical and legendary language of the Buddhists. Tasha, ‘thirst’ or ‘desire,’ is mentioned as serving in the army of Méra. (Lotus, p. 443.)
Tasha, ‘thirst’ or ‘desire,’ is mentioned as serving in the army of Méra. (Lotus, p. 443.)
155. On ghayanti, i.e. kshayanti, see Dr. Bollensen’s learned remarks, Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenl. Gesellschaft, XVIII, 834, and Boehtlingk-Roth, s.v, ksha.
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CHAPTER XII. SELF.
157. .1f a man hold himself dear, let him watch himself carefully; during one at least out of the three watches a wise man should be watchful.
158. Let each man direct himself first to what is proper, then let him teach others; thus a wise man will not suffer.
159. If a man make himself as he teaches others to be, then, being himself well subdued, he may subdue (others) ; one’s own self is indeed difficult to subdue.
160. Self is the lord of self, who else could be the lord? With self well subdued, a man finds a lord such as few can find.
161. The evil done by oneself, self-begotten, selfbred, crushes the foolish, as a diamond breaks a precious stone.
162. He whose wickedness is very great brings himself down to that state where his:enemy wishes him to be, as a creeper does with the tree which it surrounds.
163. Bad deeds, and deeds hurtful to ourselves, are easy to do; what is beneficial and good, that is very difficult to do.
- 154. The three watches of the night are meant for the three stages of life. Cf. St. Mark xiii. 37, ‘And what I say unto you, I say unto all, Watch.’
158. Cf. Gataka, vol. ii. p. 441.
161. The Chinese translation renders vagiram by ‘steel drill.’
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164. The foolish man who scorns the rule of the venerable (Arahat), of the elect (Ariya), of the virtuous, and follows false doctrine, he bears fruit to his own destruction, like the fruits of the Kaé¢thaka reed.
165. By oneself the evil is done, by oneself one suffers; by oneself evil is left undone, by oneself one is purified. Purity and impurity belong to oneself, no one can purify another.
166. Let no one forget his own duty for the sake of another’s, however great; let a man, after he has ' discerned his own duty, be always attentive to his duty.
164. The reed either dies after it has borne fruit, or is cut down for the sake of its fruit.
Disfhi, literally ‘view,’ is used even by itself, like the Greek ‘hairesis,’ in the sense of heresy (see Burnouf, Lotus, p. 444). In other places a distinction is made between mizkhAditthi (vv. 167, 316) and samméadi//Ai (v. 319). If arahatam ariyanam are used in their technical sense, we should translate ‘the reverend Arhats,— Arhat being the highest degree of the four orders of Ariyas, viz. Srotafpanna, Sakad4g4min, Anfgdmin, and Arhat. See note to verse 178. _
167, 316) and samméadi//Ai (v. 319). If arahatam ariyanam are used in their technical sense, we should translate ‘the reverend Arhats,— Arhat being the highest degree of the four orders of Ariyas, viz. Srotafpanna, Sakad4g4min, Anfgdmin, and Arhat. See note to verse 178. _
166. Attha, lit. ‘object, must here be taken in a moral sense, as ‘duty’ rather than as ‘advantage.’ Childers rendered it by ‘spiritual good.’ The story which Buddhaghosa tells of the Thera Attadattha gives a clue to the origin of some of his parables, which seem to have been invented to suit the text of the Dhammapada rather than vice vers. A similar case occurs in the commentary to verse 227.
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CHAPTER XIII. THE WORLD.
167. Do not follow the evil law! Do not live on in thoughtlessness! Do not follow false doctrine! Be not a friend of the world.
168. Rouse thyself! do not be idle! Follow the law of virtue! The virtuous rests in bliss in this world and in the next.
169. Follow the law of virtue; do not follow that of sin. The virtuous rests in bliss in this world and in the next.
170. Look upon the world as a bubble, look upon ° it as a mirage: the king of death does not see him who thus looks down upon the world.
171. Come, look at this glittering world, like unto a royal chariot ; the foolish are immersed in it, but the wise do not touch it.
172. He who formerly was reckless and afterwards became sober, brightens up this world, like the moon when freed from clouds.
173. He whose evil deeds are covered by good deeds, brightens up this world, like the moon when freed from clouds.
174. This world is dark, few onlycan see here; a few only go to heaven, like birds escaped from the net.
175. The swans go on the path of the sun, they go through the ether by means of their miraculous
168, 169. See Rhys Davids, Buddhism, p. 65.
170. See Suttanipata, v. 1118.
175. Hamsa may be meant for the bird, whether flamingo, or swan, or ibis (see Hardy, Manual, p. 17), but it may also, I believe,p. 48 power; the wise are led out of this world, when they have conquered Mara and his train.
176. If a man has transgressed one law, and speaks lies, and scoffs at another world, there is no evil he will not do.
177. The uncharitable do not go to the world of the gods; fools only do not praise liberality ; a wise man rejoices in liberality, and through it becomes blessed in the other world.
178. Better than sovereignty over the earth, better than going to heaven, better than lordship over all worlds, is the reward of the first step in holiness.
be taken in the sense of saint. As to iddhi, ‘magical power, i.e. riddhi, see Burnouf, Lotus, p. 310; Spence Hardy, Manual, pp. 498, 504; Legends, pp. 55,177; and note to verse 254.
178. SotApatti, the technical term for the first step in the path’ that leads to Nirvama. There are four such steps, or stages, and on entering each, a man receives a new title :-—
riddhi, see Burnouf, Lotus, p. 310; Spence Hardy, Manual, pp. 498, 504; Legends, pp. 55,177; and note to verse 254.
178. SotApatti, the technical term for the first step in the path’ that leads to Nirvama. There are four such steps, or stages, and on entering each, a man receives a new title :-—
(1) The Srotadpanna, lit. he who has got into the stream. A man may have seven more births before he reaches the other shore, i.e. Nirvana,
(2) Sakrid4g4min, lit. he who comes back once, so called because, after having entered this stage, a man is born only once more among men or gods. Childers shows that this involves really two more births, one in the deva world, the other in the world of men. Burnouf says the same, Introduction, p. 293.
(3) Andgamin, lit. he who does not come back, so called because, after this stage, a man cannot be born again in a lower world, but can only be born into a Brahman world, before he reaches Nirvaza.
(4) Arhat, the venerable, the perfect, who has reached the highest stage that can be reached, and from which Nirvana is perceived (sukkhavipassan4, Lotus, p.849). See Hardy, Eastern Monachism, p. 280; Burnouf, Introduction, p. 209; Képpen, p. 398; D’Alwis, Attanugaluvansa, p. cxxiv; Feer, Sutra en 42 articles, p. 6.
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CHAPTER XIV\~ CUnsiry.
wile | THE BUDDHA (THE AWAKENBS)S. on wih ve
179. He whose conquest is not conquered again, into whose conquest no one in this world enters, by . what track can you lead him, the: Awakened, the Omniscient, the trackless ?” >
180. He whom no desire with its snares and poisons can lead astray, by what track can you lead him, the Awakened, the Omniscient, the trackless ? .
181. Even the gods envy those who are awakened and not forgetful, who are given to meditation, who are wise, and who delight in the repose of retirement (from the world).
182. Difficult (to obtain) is the conception of men, difficult is the life of mortals, difficult is the hearing of the True Law, difficult is the birth of the Awakened (the attainment of Buddhahood).
179, 180. Buddha, the Awakened, is to be taken as an appellative rather than as the proper name of the Buddha (see v. 183). It means, anybody who has arrived at complete knowledge. Anantagofaram I take in the sense of, possessed of unlimited knowledge. Apadam, which Dr. Fausbéll takes as an epithet of Buddha and translates by ‘non investigabilis,’ is translated ‘trackless,’ in order to_show the play on the word pada ;’ see Childers, s.v. The commentator says: ‘The man who is possessed of even a single one of such conditions as raga, &c., him ye may lead forward; but the Buddha has not even one condition or basis of renewed existence, and therefore by what track will you lead this unconditioned Buddha?’ Cf. Dhp. wv. 92, 420; and Gataka, vol. i. pp. 79, 313-
182. Mr. Beal (Dhammapada, p. 110) states that this verse occurs in the Sftra of the Forty-two Sections.
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Dhp. wv. 92, 420; and Gataka, vol. i. pp. 79, 313-
182. Mr. Beal (Dhammapada, p. 110) states that this verse occurs in the Sftra of the Forty-two Sections.
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183. Not to commit any sin, to do good, and to purify one’s mind, that is the teaching of (all) the Awakened.
184. The Awakened call patience the highest penance, long-suffering the highest Nirvaza; for he is not an anchorite (pravragita) who strikes others, he is not an ascetic (sramaza) who insults others.
185. Not to blame, not to strike, to live restrained under the law, to be moderate in eating, to sleep and sit alone, and to dwell on the highest thoughts,— this is the teaching of the Awakened.
183. This verse is again one of the most solemn verses among the Buddhists. According to Csoma Kérdsi, it ought to follow the famous Ary4 stanza,‘ Ye dhamma’ (Lotus, p. 522), and serve as its complement. But though this may be the case in Tibet, it was not so originally. The same verse (ascribed to Kanakamuni) occurs at the end of the Chinese translation of the Pratimoksha (Beal, J. R. A. S. XIX, p. 473; Catena, p. 159); in the Tibetan translation of the GAthasangraha, v. 14 (Schiefner, Mél. Asiat. VIII, pp. 568, 586; and Csoma Kérési, As. Res. XX, p. 79). Burnouf has fully discussed the metre and meaning of our verse on PP. 527, 528 of his ‘ Lotus.’ He prefers sadittaparidamanam, which Csoma translated by ‘the mind must be brought under entire subjection’ (svagittaparidamanam), and the late Dr. Mill by ‘ proprii intellectus subjugatio.’ But his own MS. of the Mahapadh4na-sutta gave likewise saittapariyodapanam, and this is no doubt the correct reading. (See D’Alwis, Attanugaluvansa, p. cxxix.) We found pariyodappeya in verse 88, in the sense of purging oneself from the troubles of thought. From the same verb, (pari) ava + dai, we may derive the name Avad4na, a legend, originally a pure and virtuous act, an dpicrea, afterwards a sacred story, and possibly-a story the hearing of which purifies the mind. See Boehtlingk- Roth, s. v. avadana.
184. Childers, following the commentator, translates, ‘ Patience, which is long-suffering, is the best devotion, the Buddhas declare that Nirvaza is the best (of things).’ .
185. Cf. Suttanipata, v. 337. Patimokkhe, ‘under the law,’ i.e. according to the law, the law which leads to Moksha, or ‘ freedom.’ Pratimoksha is the title of the oldest collection of the moral laws
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186. There is no satisfying lusts, even by a shower of gold pieces; he who knows that lusts have a short taste and cause pain, he is wise;
187. Even in heavenly pleasures he finds no satisfaction, the. disciple who is fully awakened delights only in the destruction of all desires.
188. Men, driven by fear, go to many a refuge, to mountains and forests, to groves and sacred trees.
189. But that is not a safe refuge, that is not the best refuge ; a man is not delivered from all pains after having gone to that refuge.
188. Men, driven by fear, go to many a refuge, to mountains and forests, to groves and sacred trees.
189. But that is not a safe refuge, that is not the best refuge ; a man is not delivered from all pains after having gone to that refuge.
190. He who takes refuge with Buddha, the Law, of the Buddhists (Burnouf, Introduction, p. 300; Bigandet, The Life of Gaudama, p. 439; Rhys Davids, Buddhism, p. 162), and as it was common both to the Southern and the Northern Buddhists, patimokkhe in our passage may possibly be meant, as Professor Weber suggests, as the title of that very collection. The commentator explains it by geéthakastla and pAtimokkhasfla. Sayanasam might stand for sayandésanam, see Mahabh. XII, 6684; but in Buddhist literature it is intended for sayandsanam; see also Mahabh. XII, 9978, sayyasane. Fausbdéll now reads p4nta instead of patthan.
187. There is a curious similarity between this verse and verse 6503 (9919) of the Santiparva :
Yak ka kamasukham loke, yak 4a divyam mahat sukham,
Trishnakshayasukhasyaite narhatak shodastm kalém. ‘And whatever delight of love there is on earth, and whatever is the great delight in heaven, they are not worth the sixteenth part of the pleasure which springs from the destruction of all desires.’ The two verses 186, 187 are ascribed to king Mandhatrs, shortly before his death (Mél. Asiat. VIII, p. 471; see also Gataka, vol. ii. p.113).
188-192. These verses occur in Sanskrit in the Pratiharyasftra, translated by Burnouf, Introduction, pp. 162-189; see p. 186. Burnouf translates rukkhafetyani by ‘arbres consacrés ;’ properly, sacred shrines under or near a tree. See also Gataka, vol. i. p. 97.
190. Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha are called the Trisarana (cf. Burnouf, Introd. p. 630). The four holy truths are the four statements that there is pain in this world, that the source ofp. 52 and the Church; he who, with clear understanding, sees the four holy truths :—
191. Viz. pain, the origin of pain, the destruction of pain, and the eightfold holy way that leads to the quieting of pain ;—
192. That is the safe refuge, that is the best refuge; having gone to that refuge, a man is delivered from all pain.
193. A supernatural person (a Buddha) is not easily found, he is not born everywhere. Wherever such a sage is born, that race prospers.
194. Happy is the arising of the awakened, happy is the teaching of the True Law, happy is peace in the church, happy is the devotion of those who are at peace.
195, 196. He who pays homage to those who deserve homage, whether the awakened (Buddha) or their disciples, those who have overcome the host (of evils), and crossed the flood of sorrow, he who pays homage to such as have found deliverance and know no fear, his merit can never be measured by anybody.
He who pays homage to those who deserve homage, whether the awakened (Buddha) or their disciples, those who have overcome the host (of evils), and crossed the flood of sorrow, he who pays homage to such as have found deliverance and know no fear, his merit can never be measured by anybody.
pain is desire, that desire can be annihilated, that there is a way (shown by Buddha) by which the annihilation of all desires can be achieved, and freedom be obtained. That way consists of eight parts. (See Burnouf, Introduction, p. 630.) The eightfold way forms the subject of Chapter XVIII. (See also Feer, Journal As. 1870, p. 418, and Chips from a German Workshop, 2nd ed. vol. i. p. 251 seq.)
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CHAPTER XV. HAPPINESS.
197. Let us live happily then, not hating those who hate us! among men who hate us let us dwell free from hatred! pues Fart Heras —tedertemteyse-
198. Let us live happily then, free from ailments among the ailing! among men who are ailing let us dwell free from ailments !
199. Let us live happily then, free from greed ‘among the greedy! among men who are greedy let us dwell free from greed !
200. Let us live happily then, though we call nothing our own! We shall be like the bright gods, feeding on happiness !
201. Victory breeds hatred, for the conquered is unhappy. He who has given up both victory and defeat, he, the contented, is happy.
198. The ailment here meant is moral rather than physical. Cf. Mahabh. XII, 9924, samprasdnto niramayak; 9925, yo ’sau prazantiko rogas tam trishn4m tyagatah sukham.
200. The words placed in the mouth of the king of Videha, while his residence Mithila was in flames, are curiously like our verse ; cf. Mahabh, XII, 9917,
Susukham vata givami yasya me nésti kifidana, Mithila4yam pradtpt4yam na me dahyati ki#dana. ‘I live happily, indeed, for I have nothing; while Mithila is in flames, nothing of mine is burning.’ Cf. Muir, Religious Sentiments, p. 106.
The Abhassara, i.e. AbhAsvara, ‘the bright gods,’ are frequently mentioned. Cf. Burnouf, Introd. p. 611.
201. This verse is ascribed to Buddha, when he heard of the defeat of AgAtasatru by Prasenagit. It exists in the Northern or
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202. There is no fire like passion; there is no losing throw like hatred; there is no pain like this body ; \there is no happiness higher than rest. v
203. Hunger is the worst of diseases, the body the greatest of pains; if one knows this truly, that is Nirvaza, the highest happiness.
Sanskrit and in the Southern or P4li texts, i.e. in the Avadanasataka, in the Samyutta-nikaya. See Feer, Comptes Rendus, 1871, p. 44, and Journal As. 1880, p. 509. In the Avadana-sataka, the Sanskrit version is— Gayo vairam prasavati, duskham sete pardgitah UpasAntak sukham sete hitva gayaparagayam.
in the Avadanasataka, in the Samyutta-nikaya. See Feer, Comptes Rendus, 1871, p. 44, and Journal As. 1880, p. 509. In the Avadana-sataka, the Sanskrit version is— Gayo vairam prasavati, duskham sete pardgitah UpasAntak sukham sete hitva gayaparagayam.
202. I take kali in the sense of an unlucky die which makes a player lose his game. A real simile seems wanted here, as in verse 251, where, for the same reason, I translate graha by ‘shark,’ not by ‘captivitas,’ as Dr. Fausbéll proposes. The same scholar translates kali in our verse by ‘ peccatum.’ If there is any objection to translating kali in Pali by ‘unlucky die,’ I should still prefer to take it in the sense of the age of depravity, or the demon of depravity. To judge from Abhidhanappadipik4, 1106, kali was used for paragaya, i.e. loss at game, a losing throw, and occurs in that sense again in verse 252. The Chinese translation has, ‘ there is no distress (poison) worse than hate.’ A similar verse occurs Mahabh. Santip. 175, v. 35.
‘Body’ for khandha is a free translation, but it is difficult to find any other rendering. The Chinese translation also has ‘body.’ According to the Buddhists each sentient being consists of five khandhas (skandha), or aggregates, the organized body (rfpakhandha) with its four internal capacities of sensation (vedan4), perception (safig%4), conception (samskara), knowledge (vig4na). See Burnouf, Introd. pp. 589, 634; Lotus, p. 335.
203. Samskdra is the fourth of the five khandhas, but the commentator takes it here, as well as in verse 255, for the five khandhas together, in which case we can only translate it by ‘body.’ See. also verse 278. Childers proposes ‘organic life’ (Notes on Dhammapada, p.1). There is, however, another samsk4ra, that which follows immediately upon avidy4, ‘ignorance,’ as the second of the nidanas, or ‘ causes of existence,’ and this too might be called the greatest pain, considering that it is the cause of birth, which is the cause of all pain. Samskdra seems sometimes to have a different
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204. Health is the greatest of gifts, Freation lal ness the best riches; trust is the best of relationships, Nirvaza the highest happiness.
205. He who has tasted the sweetness of solitude and tranquillity, is free from fear and free from sin, while he tastes the sweetness of drinking in the law.
206. The sight of the elect (Arya) is good, to live with them is always happiness ; (if a man does not see fools, he will be truly happy. )
207. He who walks in the company of fools suffers a long way; company with fools, as with an enemy, is always painful; company with the wise is pleasure, like meeting with kinsfolk. ? 2 d
208. Therefore, one ought to follow the wise, the intelligent, the learned, the much enduring, the dutiful, the elect; one ought to follow a good and wise man, as the moon follows the path of the stars.
? 2 d
208. Therefore, one ought to follow the wise, the intelligent, the learned, the much enduring, the dutiful, the elect; one ought to follow a good and wise man, as the moon follows the path of the stars.
and less technical meaning, being used in the sense of conceptions, plans, desires, as, for instance, in verse 368, where sankharinam khayam is used much like tamhakhaya. Again, in his comment on verse 75, Buddhaghosa says, upadhiviveko sankharasangazikam vinodeti; and again, upadhiviveko 4a nirupadhindm puggalanam visankharagatanam.
For a similar sentiment, see Stanislas Julien, Les Avad4nas, vol. i. p. 40, ‘Le corps est la plus grande source de souffrance,’ &c. I should say that the khandhas in verse 202 and the sankhdaras in verse 203 are nearly, if not quite, synonymous. I should prefer to read gigakkh4-parama as a compound. GigaksA, or as it is written in one MS., diga#s&hA (Sk. gighats4), means not only ‘ hunger,’ but ‘appetite, desire.’
204. Childers translates, ‘the best kinsman is a man you can trust.’
205. Cf. Suttanipata, v. 256.
208. I should like to read sukho fa dhirasamvaso.
‘
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CHAPTER XVI. PLEASURE.
209. He who gives himself to vanity, and does not give himself to meditation, forgetting the real aim (of life) and grasping at pleasure, will in time envy him who has exerted himself in meditation.
210. Let no man ever look for what is pleasant, or what is unpleasant. Not to see what is pleasant is pain, and it is pain to see what is unpleasant.
211. Let, therefore, no man love anything; loss of the beloved is evil. Those who love nothing, and hate nothing, have no fetters.
212. From pleasure comes grief, from pleasure comes fear; he who is free from pleasure’ knows neither grief nor fear.
213. From affection comes grief, from affection comes fear; he who is free from affection knows neither grief nor fear.
214. From lust comes grief, from lust comes fear; he who is free from lust knows neither grief nor fear.
215. From love comes grief, from love comes fear; he who is free from love knows neither grief nor fear.
216. From greed comes grief, from greed comes fear ; he who is free from greed knows neither grief nor fear.
217. He who possesses virtue and intelligence,
214. See Beal, Catena, p. 200.
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who is just, speaks the truth, and does what is his own business, him the world will hold dear.
218. He in whom a desire for the Ineffable (Nirvaza) has sprung up, who is satisfied in his mind, and whose thoughts are not bewildered by love, he is called drdhvamsrotas (carried upwards by the stream).
219. Kinsmen, friends, and lovers salute a man who has been long away, and returns safe from afar.
220. In like manner his good works receive him who has done good; and has gone from this world to the other ;—as kinsmen receive a friend on his return.
219. Kinsmen, friends, and lovers salute a man who has been long away, and returns safe from afar.
220. In like manner his good works receive him who has done good; and has gone from this world to the other ;—as kinsmen receive a friend on his return.
218. Urdhvamsrotas or uddhamsoto is the technical name for one who has reached the world of the Avrzhas (Aviha), and is proceeding to that of the Akanishas (Akani//Aa). This is the last stage before he reaches the formless world, the Arfipadhatu. (See Buddhaghosha’s Parables, p. 123; Burnouf, Introduction, p. 599.) Originally firdhvamsrotas may have been used in a less technical sense, meaning one who swims against the stream, and is -not carried away by the vulgar passions of the world.
{10] h
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CHAPTER XVII.
ANGER.
221, Let a man leave anger, let him forsake pride, let him overcome all bondage! No sufferings befall the man who is not attached to name and form, and who calls nothing his own.
222. He who holds back rising anger like a rolling ' chariot, him I call a real driver; other people are | but holding the reins.
223. Let a man overcome anger by love, let him overcome evil by good ; let him overcome the greedy by liberality, the liar by truth !
224. Speak the truth, do not yield to anger ; give, if thou art asked for little; by these three steps thou wilt go near the gods.
225. The sages who injure nobody, and who always control their body, they will go to the unchangeable place (Nirv4za), where, if they have gone, they will suffer no more.
226. Those who are ever watchful, who study day and night, and who strive after Nirvawa, their passions will come to an end.
227. This is an old saying, O Atula, this is not only of to-day: ‘They blame him who sits silent,
21. ‘Name and form’ or ‘mind and body’ is the translation of nama-rfipa, the ninth of the Buddhist Nidanas. Cf. Burnouf, Introduction, p. 501; see also Gogerly, Lecture on Buddhism, and Bigandet, The Life of Gaudama, p. 454.
223. Mahabh. XII, 3550, asddhum sadhuna gayet. Cf. Ten Gatakas, ed. Fausbdll, p. 5.
227. It appears from the commentary that porazam and aggataham are neuters, referring to what happened formerly and whatp. 59 they blame him who speaks much, they also blame him who says little ; there is no one on earth who is not blamed.
228. There never was, there never will be, nor is there now, a man who is always blamed, or a man who is always praised.
229, 230. But he whom those who discriminate praise continually day after day, as without blemish, wise, rich in knowledge and virtue, who would dare to blame him, like a coin made of gold from the Gamba river? Even the gods praise him, he is praised even by Brahman.
231. Beware of bodily anger, and control thy body! Leave the sins of the body, and with thy body practise virtue!
232. Beware of the anger of the tongue, and control thy tongue! Leave the sins of the tongue, and practise virtue with thy tongue!
231. Beware of bodily anger, and control thy body! Leave the sins of the body, and with thy body practise virtue!
232. Beware of the anger of the tongue, and control thy tongue! Leave the sins of the tongue, and practise virtue with thy tongue!
233. Beware of the anger of the mind, and control thy mind! Leave the sins of the mind, and practise virtue with thy mind!
234. The wise who control their body, who control their tongue, the wise who control their mind, are indeed well controlled.
happens to-day, and that they are not to be taken as adjectives referring to 4sinam, &c. The commentator must have read atula instead of atulam, and he explains it as the name of a pupil whom Gautama addressed by that name. This may be so (see note to verse 166); but atula may also be taken in the sense of incomparable (Mahabh. XIII, 1937), and in that case we ought to supply, with Professor Weber, some such word as ‘saw’ or ‘ saying.’
230. The Brahman worlds are higher that the Deva worlds as the Brahman is higher than a Deva; see Hardy, Manual, p. 25; Burnouf, Introduction, pp. 134, 184.
h2
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CHAPTER XVIII. IMPURITY.
235. Thou art now like a sear leaf, the messengers of death (Yama) have come near to thee; thou standest at the door of thy departure, and thou hast no provision for thy journey.
236. Make thyself an island, work hard, be wise! When thy impurities are blown away, and thou art free from guilt, thou wilt enter into the heavenly world of the elect (Ariya). .
237. Thy life has come to an end, thou art come near to death (Yama), there is no resting-place for thee on the road, and thou hast no provision for thy journey.
238. Make thyself an island, work hard, be wise! ‘When thy impurities are blown away, and thou art free from guilt, thou wilt not enter again into birth and decay.
239. Let a wise man blow off the impurities of his self, as a smith blows off the impurities of silver, one by one, little by little, and from time to time.
240. As the impurity which springs from the iron,
235. Uyyoga seems to mean departure. See Buddhaghosa’s commentary on verse 152, p. 319, 1. 1; Fausbdll, Five Gatakas, P+ 35-
236. ‘An island,’ for a drowning man to save himself; (see verse 25.) Dipankara is the name of one of the former Buddhas, and it is also used as an appellative of the Buddha, but is always derived from dipo, ‘a lamp.’
239. This verse is the foundation of the thirty-fourth section of the Sfitra of the forty-two sections; see Beal, Catena, p. 201; Suttanipata, v. 962.
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when it springs from it, destroys it ; thus do a transgressor’s own works lead him to the evil path.
241. The taint of prayers is non-repetition; the taint of houses, non-repair ; the taint of the body is sloth ; the taint of a watchman, thoughtlessness.
242. Bad conduct is the taint of woman, greediness the taint of a benefactor; tainted are all evil ways, in this world and in the next.
241. The taint of prayers is non-repetition; the taint of houses, non-repair ; the taint of the body is sloth ; the taint of a watchman, thoughtlessness.
242. Bad conduct is the taint of woman, greediness the taint of a benefactor; tainted are all evil ways, in this world and in the next.
243. But there is a taint worse than all taints,— ignorance is the greatest taint. O mendicants! throw off that taint, and become taintless !
244. Life is easy to live for a man who is without shame, a crow hero, a mischief-maker, an insulting, bold, and wretched fellow.
245. But life is hard to live for a modest man, who always looks for what is pure, who is disinterested, quiet, spotless, and intelligent.
246. He who destroys life, who speaks untruth, who in this world takes what is not given him, who goes to another man’s wife ;
247. And the man who ep himself to drinking intoxicating liquors, a of os world, digs up his own root. het ad
248. O man, know ont hot “ unrestrained are in a bad state; take care that greediness and vice do not bring thee to grief for a long time!
244. Pakkhandin is identified by Dr. Fausbdll with praskandin, one who jumps forward, insults, or, as Buddhaghosa explains it, one who meddles with other people’s business, an interloper. At all events, it is a term of reproach, and, as it would seem, of theological reproach.
246. On the five principal commandments which are recapitulated in verses 246 and 247, see Buddhaghosha’s Parables, p. 153.
248. Cf. Mahabharata XII, 4055, yeshdm vrittis ka samyata. See also verse 307.
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249. The world gives according to their faith or ‘according to their pleasure: if a man frets about the food and the drink given to others, he will find no rest either by day or by night.
250. He in whom that feeling is destroyed, and taken out with the very root, finds rest by day and by night.
251. There is no fire like passion, there is no shark like hatred, there is no snare like folly, there is no torrent like greed.
252. The fault of others is easily perceived, but that of oneself is difficult to perceive ; a man winnows his neighbour's faults like chaff, but his own fault he hides, as a cheat hides the bad die from the gambler.
253. If a man looks after the faults of others, and is always inclined to be offended, his own passions will grow, and he is far from the destruction of passions.
254. There is no path through the air, a man is not a Samaza by outward acts. The world
249. This verse has evidently regard to the feelings of the Bhikshus or mendicants who receive either much or little, and who are exhorted not to be envious if others receive more than they themselves. Several of the Parables illustrate this feeling.
The world
249. This verse has evidently regard to the feelings of the Bhikshus or mendicants who receive either much or little, and who are exhorted not to be envious if others receive more than they themselves. Several of the Parables illustrate this feeling.
251. Dr. Fausbdll translates gaho by ‘ captivitas, Dr. Weber by ‘fetter.’ I take it in the same sense as graha in Manu VI, 78; and Buddhaghosa does the same, though he assigns to graha a more general meaning, viz. anything that seizes, whether an evil spirit (yakkha), a serpent (agagara), or a crocodile (kumbhila).
Greed or thirst is represented as a river in Lalita-vistara, ed. Calc. p. 482, trishz4-nadf tivega prasoshita me gfidnasfryena, ‘ the wild river of thirst is dried up by the sun of my knowledge.’
252. See Childers, Notes, p. 7; St. Matthew vii. 3.
253. As to 4sava, ‘appetite, passion,’ see note to verse 39.
254. I have translated this verse very freely, and not in accordp. 63delights in vanity, the Tatha4gatas (the Buddhas) are free from vanity.
255. There is no path through the air, a man is not a Samaza by outward acts. ~No creatures are eternal; but the awakened (Buddha) are never shaken.
ance with Buddhaghosa’s commentary. Dr. Fausbéll proposed to translate, ‘No one who is outside the Buddhist community can walk through the air, but only a Samaza;’ and the same view is taken by Professor Weber, though he arrives at it by a different construction. Now it is perfectly true that the idea of magical powers (riddhi) which enable saints to walk through the air, &c., occurs in the Dhammapada, see v. 175, note. But the Dhammapada may contain earlier and later verses, and in that case our verse might be an early protest on the part of Buddha against the belief in such miraculous powers. We know how Buddha himself protested against his disciples being called upon to perform vulgar miracles. ‘I command my disciples not to work miracles,’ he said, ‘ but to hide their good deeds, and to show their sins’ (Burnouf, Introd. p. 170). It would be in harmony with this sentiment if we translated our verse as I have done. As to bahira, I should take it in the sense of ‘external,’ as opposed to adhyatmika, or ‘internal ;’ and the meaning would be, ‘a Samana is not a Samawa by outward acts, but by his heart.’ D’Alwis translates (p. 85): ‘There is no footprint in the air; there is not a Samaza out of the pale of the Buddhist community.’
Prapafika, which I have here translated by ‘vanity,’ seems to include the whole host of human weaknesses; cf. v. 196, where it is explained by tamh4diéshim4napapafia; in our verse by tamhAdisu papawkesu: cf. Lalita-vistara, p. 564, andlayam nishprapafizam anutpadam asambhavam (dharmagakram). As to Tathagata, a name of Buddha, cf. Burnouf, Introd. p. 75.
255. Sankhara for samskara; cf. note to verse 203. Creature does not, as Mr. D’Alwis (p. 69) supposes, involve the Christian conception of creation.
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As to Tathagata, a name of Buddha, cf. Burnouf, Introd. p. 75.
255. Sankhara for samskara; cf. note to verse 203. Creature does not, as Mr. D’Alwis (p. 69) supposes, involve the Christian conception of creation.
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CHAPTER XIX. THE JUST.
256, 257. A man is not just if he carries a matter by violence; no, he who distinguishes both right and wrong, who is learned and leads others, not by violence, but by law and equity, and who is guarded by the law and intelligent, he is called just.
258. A man is not learned because he talks much; he who is patient, free from hatred and fear, he is called learned.
259. A man is not a supporter of the law because he talks much; even if a man has learnt little, but sees the law bodily, he is a supporter of the law, a man who never neglects the law.
260. A man is not an elder because his head is grey; his age may be ripe, but he is called ‘ Oldin-vain.’
261. He in whom there is truth, virtue, love, restraint, moderation, he who is free from impurity and is wise, he is called an elder.
262. An envious, greedy, dishonest man does not become respectable by means of much talking only, or by the beauty of his complexion.
263. He in whom all this is destroyed, and taken out with the very root, he, when freed from hatred and wise, is called respectable.
259. Buddhaghosa here takes law (dhamma) in the sense of the four great truths, see note to verse 190. Could dhammam kayena passati mean, ‘he observes the law in his acts?’ Hardly, if we compare expressions like dhammam vipassato, v. 373.
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264. Not by tonsure does an undisciplined man who speaks falsehood become a Samama; can a man be a Samaza who is still held captive by desire and greediness ?
265. He who always quiets the evil, whether small or large, he is called a Samaza (a quiet man), because he has quieted all evil.
266. A man is not a mendicant (Bhikshu) simply because he asks others for alms; he who adopts the whole law is a Bhikshu, not he who only begs.
267. He who is above good and evil, who is chaste, who with knowledge passes through the world, he indeed is called a Bhikshu.
268, 269. A man is not a Muni because he observes silence (mona, i.e. mauna), if he is foolish
267. He who is above good and evil, who is chaste, who with knowledge passes through the world, he indeed is called a Bhikshu.
268, 269. A man is not a Muni because he observes silence (mona, i.e. mauna), if he is foolish
265. This is a curious etymology, because it shows that at the time when this verse was written, the original meaning of sramana had been forgotten. Srama#a meant originally, in the language of the Brahmans, a man who performed hard penances, from sram, _ to work hard,’ &c. When it became the name of the Buddhist ascetics, the language had changed, and sramaza was pronounced samaza. Now there is another Sanskrit root, sam, ‘to quiet,’ which in Pali becomes likewise sam, and from this root sam, ‘to quiet,’ and not from sram, ‘to tire,’ did the popular etymology of the day and the writer of our verse derive the title of the Buddhist priests. The original form sramaza became known to the Greeks as 2appava, that of samana as Zapavaiue ; the former through Megasthenes, the latter through Bardesanes, 80-60 B.c. (See Lassen, Indische Alterthumskunde, II, 700.) The Chinese Shamen and the Tungusian Shamen come from the same source, though the latter has sometimes been doubted. See Schott, Uber die doppelte Bedeutung des Wortes Schamane, in the Philosophical Transactions of the Berlin Academy, 1842, p. 463 seq.
266-270. The etymologies here given of the ordinary titles of the followers of Buddha are entirely fanciful, and are curious only as showing how the people who spoke Pali had lost the etymological consciousness of their language. A Bhikshu is a beggar,p. 66 and ignorant; but the wise who, taking the balance, chooses the good and avoids evil, he is a Muni, and is a Muni thereby; he who in this world weighs both sides is called a Muni. ;
270. A man is not an elect (Ariya) becfase he injures living creatures; because he has pity on all living creatures, therefore is a man called Ariya.
271, 272. Not only by discipline and vows, not only by much learning, not by entering into a trance, not by sleeping alone, do I earn the happiness of release which no worldling can know. Bhikshu, be not confident as long as thou hast not attained the extinction of desires.
i.e. a Buddhist friar who has left his family and lives entirely on alms. Muni is a sage, hence Sakya-muni, a name of Gautama. Muni comes from man, ‘to think,’ and from muni comes mauna, ‘silence.’ Ariya, again, is the general name of those who embrace a religious life. It meant originally ‘respectable, noble.’ In verse 2470 it seems as if the writer wished to guard against deriving ariya from ari,‘enemy.’ See note to verse 22. 272. See Childers, Notes, p. 7.
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CHAPTER XX.
THE WAY.
273. The best of ways is the eightfold ; the best of truths the four words; the best of virtues passionlessness ; the best of men he who has eyes to see. oO,
272. See Childers, Notes, p. 7.
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CHAPTER XX.
THE WAY.
273. The best of ways is the eightfold ; the best of truths the four words; the best of virtues passionlessness ; the best of men he who has eyes to see. oO,
274. This is the way, there is no other that leads to the purifying of intelligence. Go on tliis way! Everything else is the deceit of M4ra (the tempter).
275. If you go on this way, you will make an end of pain! The way was preached by ‘me, when I had understood the removal of the thorns (in the flesh).
276. You yourself must make an effort. The Tathagatas (Buddhas) are only preachers. The thoughtful who enter the way are freed from the bondage of Mara.
277. ‘All created things perish,’ he who knows and sees this becomes passive in pain; this is the . way to purity.
273. The eightfold or eight-membered way is the technical term for the way by which Nirvaza is attained. (See Burnouf, Lotus, P- 519.) This very way constitutes the fourth of the Four Truths, or the four words of truth, viz. Dukha, ‘ pain ;’ Samudaya, ‘ origin ;’ Nirodha, ‘ destruction ;’ Marga, ‘road.’ (Lotus, p. 517.) See note to verse 178. For another explanation of the M4rga, or ‘ way,’ see Hardy, Eastern Monachism, p. 280.
274. The last line may mean, ‘this way is the confusion of Mara,’ i.e, the discomfiture of M4ra.
275. The salyas, ‘ arrows or thorns,’ are the sokasalya, ‘ the arrows of grief.” Buddha himself is called mahasalya-harta, ‘the great remover of thorns.’ (Lalita-vistara, p. 550 ; Mahabh. XII, 5616.)
277. See v. 255.
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278. ‘All created things are grief and pain,’ he who knows and sees this becomes passive in pain ; this is the way that leads to purity.
279. ‘All forms are unreal,’ he who knows and sees this becomes passive in pain; this is the way that leads to purity.
280. He who does not rouse himself when it is time to rise, who, though young and strong, is full of sloth, whose will and thought are weak, that lazy and idle man will never find the way to knowledge.
281. Watching his speech, well restrained in mind, let a man never commit any wrong with his body! Let a man but keep these three roads of action clear, and he will achieve the way which is taught by the wise. .
282. Through zeal knowledge is gotten, through lack of zeal knowledge is lost ; let a man who knows this double path of gain and loss thus place himself that knowledge may grow.
283. Cut down the whole forest (of lust), not a tree only! Danger comes out of the forest (of lust). When you have cut down both the forest (of lust) and its undergrowth, then, Bhikshus, you will be rid of the forest and free!
278. See v. 203.
279. Dhamma is here explained, like sankhdra, as the five khandha, i.e. as what constitutes a living body.
281. Cf. Beal, Catena, p. 159.
When you have cut down both the forest (of lust) and its undergrowth, then, Bhikshus, you will be rid of the forest and free!
278. See v. 203.
279. Dhamma is here explained, like sankhdra, as the five khandha, i.e. as what constitutes a living body.
281. Cf. Beal, Catena, p. 159.
282. Bhfri was rightly translated ‘intelligentia’ by Dr. Fausbdll. Dr. Weber renders it by ‘Gedeihen,’ but the commentator distinctly explains it as ‘vast knowledge,’ and in the technical sense the word occurs after vidya and before medhé, in the Lalita-vistara, p. 541.
283. A pun, vana meaning both ‘lust’ and ‘forest.’ See some mistaken remarks on this verse in D’Alwis, Nirvaza, p. 86, and some good remarks in Childers, Notes, p. 7.
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284. So long as the love of man towards women, even the smallest, is not destroyed, so long is his mind in bondage, as the calf that drinks milk is to its mother.
285. Cut out the love of self, like an autumn lotus, with thy hand! Cherish the road of peace. Nirvana has been shown by Sugata (Buddha).
286. ‘Here I shall dwell in the rain, here in winter and summer, thus the fool meditates, and does not think of his death.
287. Death comes and carries off that man, praised for his children and flocks, his mind distracted, as a flood carries off a sleeping village.
288. Sons are no help, nor a father, nor relations ; there is no help from kinsfolk for one whom death has seized.
289. A wise and good man who knows the meaning of this, should quickly clear the way that leads to Nirvaza.
- 285. Cf. Gataka, vol. i. p. 183.
286. Antaraya, according to the commentator, givitantardya, i.e. interitus, death. In Sanskrit, antarita is used in the sense of ‘ vanished’ or ‘ perished.’
287. See notes to verse 47, Thiessen, Kisagotami, p. 11, and Mahdbh. XII, 9944, 6540.
7O DHAMMAPADA. CHAP. XXI.°
CHAPTER XXI.
MISCELLANEOUS.
290. If by leaving a small pleasure one sees a great pleasure, let a wise man leave the small pleasure, and look to the great.
291. He who, by causing pain to others, wishes to obtain pleasure for himself, he, entangled in the bonds of hatred, will never be free from hatred.
292. What ought to be done is neglected, what ought not to be done is done; the desires of unruly, thoughtless people are always increasing.
293. But they whose whole watchfulness is always directed to their body, who do not follow what ought not to be done, and who steadfastly do what ought to be done, the desires of such watchful and wise people will come to an end.
294. A true Bréhmaza goes scatheless, though he have killed father and mother, and two valiant kings, though he has destroyed a kingdom with all its subjects.
295. A true Brahmaza goes scatheless, though he have killed father and mother, and two holy kings, and an eminent man besides.
292. Cf. Beal, Catena, p. 264.
295. A true Brahmaza goes scatheless, though he have killed father and mother, and two holy kings, and an eminent man besides.
292. Cf. Beal, Catena, p. 264.
294, 295. These two verses are either meant to show that a truly holy man who, by accident, commits all these crimes is guiltless, or they refer to some particular event in Buddha’s history. The commentator is so startled that he explains them allegorically. Mr. D’Alwis is very indignant that I should have supposed Buddha capable of pardoning patricide. ‘Can it be believed,’ he writes, ‘that a Teacher, who held life, even the life of the minutest insect,
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296. The disciples of Gotama (Buddha) are always well awake, and their thoughts day and night are always set on Buddha.
297. The disciples of Gotama are always well awake, and their thoughts day and night are always set on the law. | Y
298. The disciples of Gotama are always well awake, and their thoughts day and night are always set on the church.
299. The disciples of Gotama are always well awake, and their thoughts day and night are always set on their body.
nay, even a living tree, in such high estimation as to prevent its wanton destruction, has declared that the murder of a Brahmaaa, to whom he accorded reverence, along with his own Sangha, was blameless?’ D’Alwis, Nirvana, p. 88. Though something might be said in reply, considering the antecedents of king Ag@tasatru, the patron of Buddha, and stories such as that quoted by the commentator on the Dhammapada (Beal, l.c. p.150), or in Der Weise und der Thor, p. 306, still these two verses are startling, and I am not aware that Buddha has himself drawn the conclusion, which has been drawn by others, viz. that those who have reached the highest Sambodhi, and are in fact no longer themselves, are outside the domain of good and bad, and beyond the reach of guilt. Verses like 39 and 412 admit of a different explanation. Still our verses being miscellaneous extracts, might possibly have been taken from a work in which such an opinion was advanced, and I find that Mr. Childers, no mean admirer of Buddha, was not shocked by my explanation. ‘In my judgment,’ he says,‘ this verse is intended to express in a forcible manner the Buddhist doctrine that the Arhat cannot commit a serious sin.’ However, we have met before with far-fetched puns in these verses, and it is not impossible that the native commentators were right after all in seeing some puns or riddles in this verse. D’Alwis, following the commentary, explains mother as lust, father as pride, the two valiant kings as heretical systems, and the realm as sensual pleasure, while veyyaggha is taken by him for a place infested with the tigers of obstruction against final beatitude. Some confirmation of this interpretation is sup-
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300. The disciples of Gotama are always well awake, and their mind day and night always delights in compassion.