It is open to much doubt whether, in the numerous passages where such stock phrases and repetitions occur, the best mode of translation is to follow word for word the expressions found in the original (but only inserted there to perform a service no longer necessary), or to make use of contractions, the fact of their being so being duly pointed out, either in notes, or by some typographical expedient. Where, for instance, a long paragraph is devoted to what an elder of the Buddhist Order of Mendicants should do, or be, under certain given circumstances, and the whole paragraph is then repeated word for word, of an ordinary member, and of a nun, and of a lay-disciple (up&saka), or of a religious woman (upasikd) 1 , it would be possible to convey the whole sense intended, by translating that an elder of the Order, and an ordinary member, and a nun, and a lay-disciple of either sex, should do, or be, such and such things.
But every case of repetition is not so simple as this ; such curtailing destroys at least the form and the em- phasis of the originals ; and it seemed more in accordance with the rules laid down in the prospectus to the Series of Translations from the Sacred Books of the East, of which this volume forms a part, to adhere in all cases strictly to the text. With the exception of the earlier chapters in the Book of the Great Decease, in which a few such contractions will be found mentioned in the notes, I have therefore reproduced almost all the repeti- tions. The result will not, I trust, be embarrassing to the reader who keeps constantly in mind the aim and origin of these stock phrases and repetitions, and does not allow the wearisome form in which they are presented to shut out from his view the logical sequence of the sometimes very striking ideas which these Suttas contain. I venture to go further and to maintain that it is not necessary or
1 See below, Book of the Great Decease, Chap. Ill, §§ 7, 8.
even correct to read through the whole of passages which
were never intended to be read. We shall do wisely when
coming to a phrase which we already know, to make use
of a little judicious skipping, and, noting the course of
the argument, to pass on, with even mind, to the next
paragraph.
I send forth the following translations with very great diffidence. It is not too much to say that the discovery of early Buddhism has placed all previous knowledge of the subject in an entirely new light; and has turned the flank, so to speak, of most of the existing literature on Buddhism. I use the term ' discovery ' advisedly, for though the PSli texts have existed for many years in our public libraries, they are only now beginning to be under- stood ; and the Buddhism of the P&li Pi/akas is not only a quite different thing from Buddhism as hitherto com- monly received, but is antagonistic to it. I cannot hope that the renderings of the many technical terms, now for the first time submitted to the judgment of students of early Buddhism, will all stand the test of time. So per- fectly dovetailed is the old Buddhist system, so utterly different from European Christianity are the ideas involved, so pregnant are the expressions used with deep and earnest religious feelings resting on a foundation completely apart from our own, that the translation of each term becomes a problem of great difficulty and delicacy. Where Gogerly or Burnouf has dealt with any word, the process has been easier: but there are many words they have not touched, and while Gogerly had no sympathy with these ancient beliefs, Burnouf has confined himself chiefly to later phases of Buddhism. There are several paragraphs — such as the one at Chapter I, § 12 of the Book of the Great Decease — which have cost me more time and trouble than the reader of the few words they contain will easily believe ; and it would be impossible to add a note to every word justifying the rendering which was finally adopted to convey the Buddhist idea, without in- volving at the same time some misleading implication.
In order to call attention to the fact, when a word in the original Pali is one of these technical terms of the Buddhist system of self-training, and when therefore the English expression must be taken in that technical sense, I have throughout written the technical terms with capital letters ; and I would invite the special notice of the reader to the words thus distinguished l .
Apart, too, from the necessity of great care in the rendering of single words, I have felt bound to make some attempt, however inadequate, to reproduce the style and tone of the Buddhist author, or authors. A mere word-for-word translation, though much easier to make, and perhaps more useful to those engaged in the study of the language would not only fail to do justice to the original, but would even convey a wrong impression to those who are interested in these wofks from the point of view of the comparative history of religious belief. There is a very real, though peculiar, eloquence in a considerable number of the prose passages, and more especially in the closing sections of each chapter; not the mere rhetorical eloquence of a clever word-painter, but the unconscious eloquence which springs from deep religious emotion. So also in the verses scattered through the Book of the Great Decease, while there is occasional doggrel, there are also one or two passages (such as I, 34 ; IV, 56 ; VI, 15-18, and 63) where the rhythm of the Pali verses is exceedingly beautiful, and the thoughts expressed not devoid of fancy. The translation of such passages has been beset with difficulty; and I am only too con- scious how small has been the success attained. But I must ask the reader constantly to bear in mind that words, dull and bare to us, are full of meaning to the Buddhist. * The Blessed Master came to the Mango-grove ' is a very plain statement of supposed fact: but to the earnest Buddhist the mention of ' the Master ' calls up to his mind
1 I regret to say that the printer has very frequently omitted to reproduce these capitals ; but they still remain in some places, and the paragraph which explains them is therefore retained.
Xxv11
his highest ideal of what is wise and great and kind ; and the Mango-grove is surrounded to him with all the poetry, and is associated with all the tender memories which to the devout and earnest Christian are wrapped up in such names as Bethany or the Mount of Olives. While impressed therefore with the knowledge of having come far short of my ideal, I feel there is for these reasons some justification in asking a kindly consideration for this first volume of English translations from the prose portions of the Path" Pi/akas.
T. W. RHYS DAVIDS.
Brick Court, Temple, August, 1880.
MAHA-PARINIBBANA- SUTTANTA.
BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE.
In translating this Sutta I have followed the text pub- lished by my friend the late Mr. Childers, first in the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, and afterwards sepa- rately. In the former the text appeared in two instalments, the first two sheets, with many various readings in the foot- notes, in the volume for 1874; and the remainder, with much fewer various readings, in the volume for 1876. The reprinted text omits most of the various readings in the first two sheets, and differs therefore slightly in the paging. The letters D, S, Y, and Z, mentioned in the notes, refer to MSS. sent to Mr. Childers from Ceylon by myself, Subhtiti Unndnse, Y&tramulle Unn&nse, and Mud liar de Zoysa re- spectively. The MS. mentioned as P (in the first two sheets quoted only in the separate edition) is, no doubt, the Dtgha Nik&ya MS. of the Phayre collection in the India Office Library. The other four are now I believe in the British Museum.
The Hon. George Tumour of the Ceylon Civil Service published an analysis of this work in the Journal of the Bengal Asiatic Society for 1 839 ; but as he unfortunately skips, or only summarises, most of the difficult passages, his work, though a most valuable contribution for the time, now more than half a century ago, has not been of much service for the present purpose. Of much greater value was Buddhaghosa's commentary contained in the Su- mangala Vil&sini 1 ; but the great fifth-century commen-
1 I have used the copy made for Tumour, and now in the India Office Collection.
XXxii THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE.
tator wrote of course for Buddhists, and not for foreign scholars ; and his edifying notes and long exegetical ex- pansions of the text (quite in the style of Matthew Henry) often fail to throw light on the very points which are most interesting, and most doubtful, to European readers.
The Mdl&lank&ra-vatthu, a late P&li work by a Bur- mese author of the eighteenth century \ is based, in that part of it relating to the last days of the Buddha, almost exclusively on the Book of the Great Decease, and on Buddhaghosa's commentary upon it. Bishop Bigandet's translation into English of a Burmese translation of this work, well known under the title of 1 The Life or Legend of Gaudama the Budha of the Burmese,' affords evidence therefore of the traditional explanations of the text. In the course either of the original author's recasting, or of the double translation, so many changes have taken place, that its evidence is frequently ambiguous and not always quite trustworthy : but with due caution, it may be used as a second commentary.
The exact meaning which was originally intended by the title of the book is open to doubt. ' Great-Decease-Book ' may as well mean * the Great Book of the Decease,' as ' the Book of the Great Decease.' This book is in fact longer than any other in the collection, and the epithet ' Great ' is often opposed in titles to a ' Short ' Sutta of (otherwise) the same name 2 . But the epithet is also frequently intended, without doubt, to qualify the immediately succeeding word in the title 3 ; and, though the phrase 1 Great Decease,' as applied to the death of the Buddha, has not been found elsewhere, it is, I think, meant to do so here 4 .
1 See * The Life or Legend,' &c, third edition, vol. ii. p. 149. The date there given (11 34 of the Burmese era = 1773 a.d.) is evidently the date of the original work, and not of the translation. Nothing is said in the book itself or in Bishop Bigandet's notes of the name of the author, or of the name or date of the Burmese translator.
2 There are several such pairs in the Ma^Aima Nik&ya; and the Mah&- Satippa/M&na-Sutta in the Digha is the same as the Satipa/M&na- Sutta in the Ma^Aima.
8 E. g. in the Maha-padhana-Sutta and Maha-sudassana-Sutta. .
* Childers seems to have been of the same opinion, vide Diet. I, 268.
The division of the Book into chapters, or rather Portions for Recitation, is found in the MSS. ; the division of these chapters into sections has been made by myself. It will be noticed that a very large number of the sections have already been traced, chiefly by Dr. Morris and myself, in various other parts of the Pclli Pi/akas : whole paragraphs or episodes, quite independent of the repetitions and stock phrases above referred to, recurring in two or more places. The question then arises whether (i) the Book of the Great Decease is the borrower, whether (2) it is the original source, or whether (3) these passages were taken over, both into it, and into the other places where they recur, from earlier sources. It will readily be understood that, in the present state of our knowledge, or rather ignorance, of the P&li Pi/akas, this question cannot as yet be answered with any certainty. But a few observations may even now be made.
Generally speaking the third of the above possible ex- planations is not only more probable in itself, but is confirmed by parallel instances in literatures developed under similar conditions, both in the valley of the Ganges and in the basin of the Mediterranean.
It is quite possible that while some books — such as
the Mahd-vagga, the iTulla-vagga, and the Dlgha
Nikiya — usually owe their resemblances to older sources
now lost or absorbed ; others — such as the Sawyutta and
the Anguttara — are always in such cases simply borrowers
from sources still existing.