Fetching
One moment.
Fetching
One moment.
Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
11 Or, it is not as it ought to be, nor wrong. 2 Virtually he has existed from the very beginning, from an infinite period; infinity multiplied by two remains infinity. XV. DURATION OF LIFE OF THE TATHAGATA. 303 I announce final extinction, young men of good family, though myself I do not become finally extinct’. For in this way, young men of good family, I bring (all) creatures to maturity, lest creatures in whom goodness is not firmly rooted, who are unholy, miserable, eager of sensual pleasures, blind and obscured by the film of wrong views, should, by too often seeing me, take to thinking: ‘The Tathagata is staying’, and fancy that all is a child’s play*; (lest they) by thinking ‘we are near that Tathagata’ should fail to exert themselves in order to escape the triple world and not conceive how precious‘ the Tathagata is. Hence, young men of good family, the Tath4gata skilfully utters these words: The apparition of the Tath4gatas, monks, is precious (and rare). For in the course of many hundred thousand myriads of kofis of “Eons creatures may happen to see a Tathagata or not to see him’. Therefore and upon that ground, young men of good family, 1 say: The apparition of the Tath4gatas, monks, is precious (and rare). 1 All this is perfectly true in the mouth of a personification of the sun, of time, of eternity, or of Adyos, but quite unintelligible in the mouth of some individual of the human race. Moments of time expire, time never ceases. The termination of every day, month, year, &c. must remind us of our being mortal, and is a call from the Buddha to us, an inducement to lead a virtuous and holy life. 3 I. e. time stands still; we shall never die. 5 In the margin added, not realise the idea of his (i.e. time’s) preciousness. * Durlabha. ® Nobody is certain whether the present day is his last or not; in other words, whether he has seen the Tath4gata for the last time, or shall see him again to-morrow, &c. Therefore the Tathagata is so precious. 304 SADDHARMA-PUNDARIKA. xv. By being more and more convinced of the apparition of the Tathagatas being precious (or rare) they will feel surprised and sorry, and whilst not seeing the Tath4gata they will get a longing to see him. The good roots developing from their earnest thought relating to the Tath4gata! will lastingly tend to their weal, benefit, and happiness; in consideration of which the Tathagata announces final extinction, though he himself does not become finally extinct, on behalf of the creatures who have to be educated. Such, young men of good family, is the Tath4gata’s manner of teaching?; when the Tathagata speaks in this way, there is from his part no falsehood.
2Such, young men of good family, is the Tath4gata’s manner of teaching?; when the Tathagata speaks in this way, there is from his part no falsehood. Let us suppose an analogous case, young men of good family. There is some physician, learned, intelligent, prudent, clever in allaying all sorts of diseases. That man has many sons, ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty, or a hundred*, The physician once being abroad, all his children incur a disease from poison or venom. Overcome with the grievous pains‘ caused by that poison or venom which burns them they lie rolling on the ground. Their father, the physician, comes home from his journey at the time when his sons are suffering from that poison or venom. Some of them have perverted notions, others have right notions, but all suffer the same pain. On seeing their father they cheerfully greet 1 Le. the good designs germinating in man when he is thinking of the shortness of life, the transitoriness of time. * Desandpany4ya. > A marginal reading improves upon the more ancient text by adding, or a thousand. * Du&khaébhir vedan4bhid£. XV. DURATION OF LIFE OF THE TATHAGATA. 305 him and say: Hail, dear father, that thou art come back in safety and welfare! Now deliver us from our evil, be it poison or venom; let us live, dear father. And the physician, seeing his sons befallen with disease, overcome with pain and rolling on the ground, prepares a great remedy, having the required colour, smell, and taste, pounds it on a stone and gives it as a potion to his sons, with these words: Take this great remedy, my sons, which has the required colour, smell, and taste. For by taking this great remedy, my sons, you shall soon be rid of this poison or venom; you shall recover and be healthy. Those amongst the children of the physician that have right notions, after seeing the colour of the remedy, after smelling the smell and tasting the flavour, quickly take it, and in consequence of it are soon totally delivered from their disease. But the sons who have perverted notions cheerfully greet their father and say: Hail, dear father, that thou art come back in safety and welfare; do heal us. So they speak, but they do not take the remedy offered, and that because, owing to the perverseness of their notions, that remedy does not please them, in colour, smell, nor taste. Then the physician reflects thus: These sons of mine must have become perverted in their notions owing to this poison or venom, as they do not take the remedy nor hail me'. Therefore will I by some able device induce these sons to take this remedy. Prompted by this desire he speaks to those sons as follows: 1 am old, young men of good family, decrepit, advanced in years, and my term of life is near at hand; but be not sorry, young men ? One would rather have expected, joyfully accept my injunction. (21] x 306 SADDHARMA-PUNDARIKA. xv,
3Prompted by this desire he speaks to those sons as follows: 1 am old, young men of good family, decrepit, advanced in years, and my term of life is near at hand; but be not sorry, young men ? One would rather have expected, joyfully accept my injunction. (21] x 306 SADDHARMA-PUNDARIKA. xv, of good family, do not feel dejected; here have | prepared a great remedy for you; if you want it. you may take it. Having thus admonished them, he skilfully betakes himself to another part of the country and lets his sick sons know that he has departed life. They are extremely sorry and bewail. him extremely: So then he is dead, our father and protector; he who begat us; he, so full of bounty! now are we left without a protector. Fully aware of their being orphans and of having no refuge, they are continually plunged in sorrow, by which their perverted notions make room for right notions. They acknowledge that remedy possessed of the required colour, smell, and taste to have the required colour, smell, and taste, so that they instantly take it, and by taking it are delivered from their evil. Then, on knowing that these sons are delivered from evil, the physician shows himself again. Now, young men of good family, what is your opinion ? Would any one charge 1 that physician with h falsehood on account of his using that device? No, certainly not, Lord; certainly not, Sugata. He proceeded: In the same manner, young men of good family, I have arrived at supreme, perfect enlightenment since an immense, incalculable number of hundred thousands of myriads of kof¢is of Eons, but from time to time I display such able devices to the creatures, with the view of educating them, without there being in that respect any falsehood on my part. In order to set forth this subject more extensively the Lord on that occasion uttered the fok lowing stanzas : 1 Kodayet; a would-be correction by a later hand has samvadet. XV. DURATION OF LIFE OF THE TATHAGATA. 307 1. An inconceivable number of thousands of kofis of AZons, never to be measured, is it since I reached superior (or first) enlightenment and never ceased to teach the law. 2. I roused many Bodhisattvas and established them in Buddha-knowledge. I brought myriads of kofis of beings, endless, to full ripeness in many kotis of Eons. 3. I show the place of extinction, I reveal to (all) beings a device’ to educate them, albeit I do not become extinct at the time, and in this very place continue preaching the law. 4. There I rule myself as well as all beings, I*. But men of perverted minds, in their delusion, do not see me standing there®. 5. In the opinion that my body is completely extinct, they pay worship, in many ways, to the relics, but me they see not. They feel (however) a certain aspiration by which their mind becomes right‘. 6. When such upright (or pious), mild, and gentle creatures leave off their bodies, then I assemble the crowd of disciples and show myself here® on the Gvedhrakii/a.
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
11 Or, it is not as it ought to be, nor wrong. 2 Virtually he has existed from the very beginning, from an infinite period; infinity multiplied by two remains infinity. XV. DURATION OF LIFE OF THE TATHAGATA. 303 I announce final extinction, young men of good family, though myself I do not become finally extinct’. For in this way, young men of good family, I bring (all) creatures to maturity, lest creatures in whom goodness is not firmly rooted, who are unholy, miserable, eager of sensual pleasures, blind and obscured by the film of wrong views, should, by too often seeing me, take to thinking: ‘The Tathagata is staying’, and fancy that all is a child’s play*; (lest they) by thinking ‘we are near that Tathagata’ should fail to exert themselves in order to escape the triple world and not conceive how precious‘ the Tathagata is. Hence, young men of good family, the Tath4gata skilfully utters these words: The apparition of the Tath4gatas, monks, is precious (and rare). For in the course of many hundred thousand myriads of kofis of “Eons creatures may happen to see a Tathagata or not to see him’. Therefore and upon that ground, young men of good family, 1 say: The apparition of the Tath4gatas, monks, is precious (and rare). 1 All this is perfectly true in the mouth of a personification of the sun, of time, of eternity, or of Adyos, but quite unintelligible in the mouth of some individual of the human race. Moments of time expire, time never ceases. The termination of every day, month, year, &c. must remind us of our being mortal, and is a call from the Buddha to us, an inducement to lead a virtuous and holy life. 3 I. e. time stands still; we shall never die. 5 In the margin added, not realise the idea of his (i.e. time’s) preciousness. * Durlabha. ® Nobody is certain whether the present day is his last or not; in other words, whether he has seen the Tath4gata for the last time, or shall see him again to-morrow, &c. Therefore the Tathagata is so precious. 304 SADDHARMA-PUNDARIKA. xv. By being more and more convinced of the apparition of the Tathagatas being precious (or rare) they will feel surprised and sorry, and whilst not seeing the Tath4gata they will get a longing to see him. The good roots developing from their earnest thought relating to the Tath4gata! will lastingly tend to their weal, benefit, and happiness; in consideration of which the Tathagata announces final extinction, though he himself does not become finally extinct, on behalf of the creatures who have to be educated. Such, young men of good family, is the Tath4gata’s manner of teaching?; when the Tathagata speaks in this way, there is from his part no falsehood.
2Such, young men of good family, is the Tath4gata’s manner of teaching?; when the Tathagata speaks in this way, there is from his part no falsehood. Let us suppose an analogous case, young men of good family. There is some physician, learned, intelligent, prudent, clever in allaying all sorts of diseases. That man has many sons, ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty, or a hundred*, The physician once being abroad, all his children incur a disease from poison or venom. Overcome with the grievous pains‘ caused by that poison or venom which burns them they lie rolling on the ground. Their father, the physician, comes home from his journey at the time when his sons are suffering from that poison or venom. Some of them have perverted notions, others have right notions, but all suffer the same pain. On seeing their father they cheerfully greet 1 Le. the good designs germinating in man when he is thinking of the shortness of life, the transitoriness of time. * Desandpany4ya. > A marginal reading improves upon the more ancient text by adding, or a thousand. * Du&khaébhir vedan4bhid£. XV. DURATION OF LIFE OF THE TATHAGATA. 305 him and say: Hail, dear father, that thou art come back in safety and welfare! Now deliver us from our evil, be it poison or venom; let us live, dear father. And the physician, seeing his sons befallen with disease, overcome with pain and rolling on the ground, prepares a great remedy, having the required colour, smell, and taste, pounds it on a stone and gives it as a potion to his sons, with these words: Take this great remedy, my sons, which has the required colour, smell, and taste. For by taking this great remedy, my sons, you shall soon be rid of this poison or venom; you shall recover and be healthy. Those amongst the children of the physician that have right notions, after seeing the colour of the remedy, after smelling the smell and tasting the flavour, quickly take it, and in consequence of it are soon totally delivered from their disease. But the sons who have perverted notions cheerfully greet their father and say: Hail, dear father, that thou art come back in safety and welfare; do heal us. So they speak, but they do not take the remedy offered, and that because, owing to the perverseness of their notions, that remedy does not please them, in colour, smell, nor taste. Then the physician reflects thus: These sons of mine must have become perverted in their notions owing to this poison or venom, as they do not take the remedy nor hail me'. Therefore will I by some able device induce these sons to take this remedy. Prompted by this desire he speaks to those sons as follows: 1 am old, young men of good family, decrepit, advanced in years, and my term of life is near at hand; but be not sorry, young men ? One would rather have expected, joyfully accept my injunction. (21] x 306 SADDHARMA-PUNDARIKA. xv,
3Prompted by this desire he speaks to those sons as follows: 1 am old, young men of good family, decrepit, advanced in years, and my term of life is near at hand; but be not sorry, young men ? One would rather have expected, joyfully accept my injunction. (21] x 306 SADDHARMA-PUNDARIKA. xv, of good family, do not feel dejected; here have | prepared a great remedy for you; if you want it. you may take it. Having thus admonished them, he skilfully betakes himself to another part of the country and lets his sick sons know that he has departed life. They are extremely sorry and bewail. him extremely: So then he is dead, our father and protector; he who begat us; he, so full of bounty! now are we left without a protector. Fully aware of their being orphans and of having no refuge, they are continually plunged in sorrow, by which their perverted notions make room for right notions. They acknowledge that remedy possessed of the required colour, smell, and taste to have the required colour, smell, and taste, so that they instantly take it, and by taking it are delivered from their evil. Then, on knowing that these sons are delivered from evil, the physician shows himself again. Now, young men of good family, what is your opinion ? Would any one charge 1 that physician with h falsehood on account of his using that device? No, certainly not, Lord; certainly not, Sugata. He proceeded: In the same manner, young men of good family, I have arrived at supreme, perfect enlightenment since an immense, incalculable number of hundred thousands of myriads of kof¢is of Eons, but from time to time I display such able devices to the creatures, with the view of educating them, without there being in that respect any falsehood on my part. In order to set forth this subject more extensively the Lord on that occasion uttered the fok lowing stanzas : 1 Kodayet; a would-be correction by a later hand has samvadet. XV. DURATION OF LIFE OF THE TATHAGATA. 307 1. An inconceivable number of thousands of kofis of AZons, never to be measured, is it since I reached superior (or first) enlightenment and never ceased to teach the law. 2. I roused many Bodhisattvas and established them in Buddha-knowledge. I brought myriads of kofis of beings, endless, to full ripeness in many kotis of Eons. 3. I show the place of extinction, I reveal to (all) beings a device’ to educate them, albeit I do not become extinct at the time, and in this very place continue preaching the law. 4. There I rule myself as well as all beings, I*. But men of perverted minds, in their delusion, do not see me standing there®. 5. In the opinion that my body is completely extinct, they pay worship, in many ways, to the relics, but me they see not. They feel (however) a certain aspiration by which their mind becomes right‘. 6. When such upright (or pious), mild, and gentle creatures leave off their bodies, then I assemble the crowd of disciples and show myself here® on the Gvedhrakii/a.
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
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