Other Translations: Deutsch
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Sutta Nipāta 3.11 Sutta Nipāta 3.11Anthology of Discourses 3.11
Nālakasutta NālakaAbout Nālaka
Ānandajāte tidasagaṇe patīte, The Group of Thirty, born of delight, joyful,The seer Asita in his daily meditation Asita means “dark one”. He is an example of the “dark hermit” archetype.
Sakkañca indaṁ sucivasane ca deve; Sakka1 the king, and devas dressed in pure white;Reading Sakkañca with the Thai edition.saw the bright-clad gods of the host of Thirty Bodhi and Norman follow the PTS reading sakkacca here, but it seems uncharacteristic to me. Why mention they have just honored Indra? On the other hand, it’s common to express “a group with its leader”.
Dussaṁ gahetvā atiriva thomayante, holding up banners, cheering wildly;and their lord Sakka joyfully celebrating,
Asito isi addasa divāvihāre. Asita the seer saw, in his mid-day meditation.waving streamers in exuberant exaltation.
Disvāna deve muditamane udagge, & on seeing the devas so joyful & happy,Seeing the gods rejoicing, elated,
Cittiṁ karitvāna idamavoca tattha; having paid his respects, he said:he paid respects and said this there:
“Kiṁ devasaṅgho atiriva kalyarūpo, “Why is the deva community so wildly elated?“Why is the community of gods in such excellent spirits?
Dussaṁ gahetvā ramayatha kiṁ paṭicca. Why are they holding up banners & waving them around?Why take up streamers and whirl them about?
Yadāpi āsī asurehi saṅgamo, Even after the war with the AsurasEven in the war with the titans,
Jayo surānaṁ asurā parājitā; —when victory was the devas’, the Asuras defeated—when gods were victorious and titans defeated,
Tadāpi netādiso lomahaṁsano, even then there was nothing hair-raising like this.there was no such excitement.
Kimabbhutaṁ daṭṭhu marū pamoditā. Seeing what marvel are the devas so joyful?What marvel have the celestials seen that they so rejoice?
Seḷenti gāyanti ca vādayanti ca, They whistle, they sing, play music,Shouting and singing and playing music,
Bhujāni phoṭenti ca naccayanti ca; clap their hands, dance.they clap their hands and dance.
Pucchāmi vohaṁ merumuddhavāsine, So I ask you, who live on Mount Meru’s summit.I ask you, dwellers on Mount Meru’s peak,
Dhunātha me saṁsayaṁ khippa mārisā”. Please dispel my doubt quickly, dear sirs.”quickly dispel my doubt, good fellows!”
“So bodhisatto ratanavaro atulyo, “The Bodhisatta, the foremost jewel, unequaled,“The being intent on awakening, a peerless gem,
Manussaloke hitasukhatthāya jāto; has been born for welfare & happiness in the human world,has been born in the human realm for the sake of welfare and happiness,
Sakyāna gāme janapade lumbineyye, in a town in the Sakyan countryside, Lumbini.in Lumbinī, a village in the Sakyan land.
Tenamha tuṭṭhā atiriva kalyarūpā. That’s why we’re contented, so wildly elated.That’s why we’re so happy, in such excellent spirits.
So sabbasattuttamo aggapuggalo, He, the highest of all beings, the ultimate person,He is supreme among all beings, the peak individual,
Narāsabho sabbapajānamuttamo; a bull among men, highest of all people,captain of men, supreme among all creatures. Narāsabha is literally “a bull of a man”, but the predominant sense is “chief”, “lord” rather than “bull”. Vṛṣabha was widely used in this sense as far back as the Rig Veda, unlike English, where “bull” conveys quite a different set of connotations. The same is true of its synonyms janavasabha and purisnisabha, but not purisūsabho at Bu Pj 1:10.21.4.
Vattessati cakkamisivhaye vane, will set turning the Wheel [of Dhamma] in the forest named after the seers,He will roll forth the wheel in the grove of the seers,
Nadaṁva sīho balavā migābhibhū”. like a strong, roaring lion, the conqueror of beasts.”roaring like a mighty lion, lord of beasts.”
Taṁ saddaṁ sutvā turitamavasarī so, Hearing these words,Hearing this, he swiftly descended
Suddhodanassa tada bhavanaṁ upāvisi; Asita quickly descended [from heaven] and went to Suddhodana’s dwelling.and right away approached Suddhodana’s home. Notice the use of the humble bhavana rather than the royal pasāda. There is an almost complete lack of royal language in this text, the sole exception being the antepura (“royal compound”) in Snp 3.11:17.2.
Nisajja tattha idamavocāsi sakye, There, taking a seat, he said to the Sakyans:Seated there he said this to the Sakyans,
“Kuhiṁ kumāro ahamapi daṭṭhukāmo”. “Where is the prince? I, too, want to see him.”“Where is the boy? I too wish to see him!” In DN 14:1.31.3, the bodhisatta Vipassī is examined by a number of brahmins.
Tato kumāraṁ jalitamiva suvaṇṇaṁ, Then the prince, like gold aglow,Then the Sakyans showed their son to the one named Asita—
Ukkāmukheva sukusalasampahaṭṭhaṁ; burnished by a most skillful smith in the mouth of the furnace,the boy shone like burning gold
Daddallamānaṁ siriyā anomavaṇṇaṁ, blazing with glory, flawless in color,well-wrought in the forge;
Dassesu puttaṁ asitavhayassa sakyā. the Sakyans showed their son to the seer named Asita.dazzling with glory, of peerless beauty.
Disvā kumāraṁ sikhimiva pajjalantaṁ, On seeing the prince blazing like flame,The boy beamed like crested flame,
Tārāsabhaṁva nabhasigamaṁ visuddhaṁ; pure like the bull of the stars going across the skypure as the moon, lord of stars traversing the sky,
Suriyaṁ tapantaṁ saradarivabbhamuttaṁ, —the burning sun, released from the clouds of autumn—blazing like the sun free of stormclouds after the rains; Here, as so often, “autumn” (per Bodhi and Norman) conveys quite the wrong impression. Autumn is the time of gathering clouds, sarada is the time after the rains.
Ānandajāto vipulamalattha pītiṁ. he was exultant, filled with abundant rapture.seeing him, he was joyful, brimming with happiness.
Anekasākhañca sahassamaṇḍalaṁ, A many-spoked sunshade of a thousand circles,The celestials held up a parasol in the sky,
Chattaṁ marū dhārayumantalikkhe; the devas held in the sky.many-ribbed and thousand-circled;
Suvaṇṇadaṇḍā vītipatanti cāmarā, Gold-handled whisks waved up & down,and golden-handled chowries waved—
Na dissare cāmarachattagāhakā. but those holding the whisks & the sunshade couldn’t be seen.but none could see who held the chowries or the parasols.
Disvā jaṭī kaṇhasirivhayo isi, The coiled-haired seer named Dark Splendor, seeingWhen the matted hair seer named “Dark Splendor” Jaṭī is an abbreviated form of jaṭila, a matted hair ascetic, usually Brahmanical.
Suvaṇṇanikkhaṁ viya paṇḍukambale; the boy, like an ornament of gold on the red woolen blanket,had seen the boy like a gold ingot on a cream rug The commentary glosses paṇḍu as ratta (“red”), followed by both Norman (“pale red”) and Bodhi. But paṇḍu means “pale, white, cream, yellowish” and I can’t see anywhere in Pali or Sanskrit to suggest a meaning “red”.
Setañca chattaṁ dhariyanta muddhani, a white sunshade held over his head,with a white parasol held over his head,
Udaggacitto sumano paṭiggahe. received him, joyful in mind & pleased.he received him, elated and happy.
Paṭiggahetvā pana sakyapuṅgavaṁ, And on receiving the bull of the Sakyans,Having received the Sakyan bull,
Jigīsako lakkhaṇamantapāragū; longingly, the master of mantras & signsthe seeker, master of marks and hymns,
Pasannacitto giramabbhudīrayi, exclaimed with a confident mind:lifted up his voice with confident heart:
“Anuttarāyaṁ dvipadānamuttamo”. “This one is unsurpassed, the highest of the biped race.”“He is supreme, the best of men!”
Athattano gamanamanussaranto, Then, foreseeing his own imminent departure,But then, remembering he would depart this world,
Akalyarūpo gaḷayati assukāni; he, dejected, shed tears.his spirits fell and his tears flowed.
Disvāna sakyā isimavocuṁ rudantaṁ, On seeing him weeping, the Sakyans asked:Seeing the weeping seer, the Sakyans said,
“No ce kumāre bhavissati antarāyo”. “But surely there will be no danger for the prince?”“Surely there will be no threat to the boy?”
Disvāna sakye isimavoca akalye, On seeing the Sakyans’ concern he replied,Seeing the crestfallen Sakyans, the seer said,
“Nāhaṁ kumāre ahitamanussarāmi; “I foresee for the prince no harm.“I do not forsee harm befall the boy,
Na cāpimassa bhavissati antarāyo, Nor will there be any danger for him.and there will be no threat to him,
Na orakāyaṁ adhimānasā bhavātha. This one’s not insignificant: Be assured.not in the least; set your minds at ease.
Sambodhiyaggaṁ phusissatāyaṁ kumāro, This prince will touch the ultimate self-awakening.This boy shall reach the highest awakening.
So dhammacakkaṁ paramavisuddhadassī; He, seeing the utmost purity, will set rolling the Wheel of DhammaAs one of perfectly purified vision, compassionate for the welfare of the many,
Vattessatāyaṁ bahujanahitānukampī, through sympathy for the welfare of many.he shall roll forth the wheel of the teaching;
Vitthārikassa bhavissati brahmacariyaṁ. His holy life will spread far & wide.his spiritual path will become widespread.
Mamañca āyu na ciramidhāvaseso, But as for me, my life here has no long remainder.But I have not long left in this life,
Athantarā me bhavissati kālakiriyā; My death will take place before then.I shall die before then.
Sohaṁ na sossaṁ asamadhurassa dhammaṁ, I won’t get to hear the Dhamma of this one with the peerless role.I will never hear the teaching of the one who bore the unequaled burden. Neither Bodhi’s “fortitude” nor Norman’s “peerless one” quite capture the force of asamadhura. The implication is that, as the forger of the path, the Buddha carries a burden greater than any other.
Tenamhi aṭṭo byasanaṅgato aghāvī”. That’s why I’m stricken, afflicted, & pained.”That’s why I’m so upset and distraught—it’s a disaster for me!”
So sākiyānaṁ vipulaṁ janetvā pītiṁ, He, having brought the Sakyans abundant rapture,Having brought abundant happiness to the Sakyans,
Antepuramhā niggamā brahmacārī; the follower of the holy life left the inner chamber and,the spiritual seeker left the royal compound.
So bhāgineyyaṁ sayaṁ anukampamāno, out of sympathy for his nephew,He had a nephew; and out of sympathy
Samādapesi asamadhurassa dhamme. urged him on toward the Dhamma of the one with the peerless role:he encouraged him in the teaching of the one who bore the unequaled burden.
“Buddhoti ghosaṁ yada parato suṇāsi, “When you hear from another the word, ‘Awakened One,’“When you hear the voice of another saying ‘Buddha’—Note the idiom parato ghosaṁ here.
Sambodhipatto vivarati dhammamaggaṁ; or ‘Attaining self-awakening, he lays open the path of the Dhamma,’one who has attained awakening and who reveals the foremost teaching—This is a succinct definition of buddha, not an alternate thing that you might hear people say, per Bodhi and Norman.
Gantvāna tattha samayaṁ paripucchamāno, go there and, asking him yourself,go there and ask about his breakthrough; Both Norman and Bodhi have “doctrine” here, while commentary is silent. I’m not aware of samaya in the sense of “doctrine” in the early texts, nor is it listed in the senses of samaya in the commentarial analysis in the Dhammasaṅgaṇī commentary, Kāmāvacarakusala. Given that the concern in previous lines is the notion of an awakened one, surely we have here an abbreviated abhisamaya i.e. “breakthrough, enlightenment experience”.
Carassu tasmiṁ bhagavati brahmacariyaṁ”. follow the holy life under that Blessed One.”lead the spiritual life under that Blessed One.”
Tenānusiṭṭho hitamanena tādinā, Instructed by the one whose mind was set on his benefit, Such,Now, that Nālaka had a store of accumulated merit;
Anāgate paramavisuddhadassinā; seeing in the future the utmost purity,so when instructed by one of such kindly intent, I find it curious that this epithet is used of both the Buddha and Asita.
So nālako upacitapuññasañcayo, Nālaka, who had laid up a store of merit,with perfectly purified vision of the future,
Jinaṁ patikkhaṁ parivasi rakkhitindriyo. awaited the Victor expectantly, guarding his senses.he waited anticipating the Victor, guarding his senses.
Sutvāna ghosaṁ jinavaracakkavattane, On hearing word of the Victor’s turning of the foremost wheel,When he heard of the Victor rolling forth the excellent wheel he went to him,
Gantvāna disvā isinisabhaṁ pasanno; he went, he saw the bull among seers. Confident,and seeing the boss seer, he became confident.
Moneyyaseṭṭhaṁ munipavaraṁ apucchi, he asked the foremost sage about the utmost sagacity,The time of Asita’s instruction had arrived;
Samāgate asitāvhayassa sāsaneti. now that Asita’s forecast had come to pass.so he asked the excellent sage about the highest sagacity.
Vatthugāthā niṭṭhitā. The story-verses are finished.The introductory verses are finished.
“Aññātametaṁ vacanaṁ, “Now that I know“I now know that Asita’s words
Asitassa yathātathaṁ; Asita’s words to be true,have turned out to be true.
Taṁ taṁ gotama pucchāmi, I ask you, Gotama,I ask you this, Gotama,
Sabbadhammāna pāraguṁ. you who have gone to the beyond of all dhammas.who has gone beyond all things:
Anagāriyupetassa, I’m intent on the homeless life;For one who has entered the homeless life,
Bhikkhācariyaṁ jigīsato; I long for the almsround.seeking food on alms round,
Muni pabrūhi me puṭṭho, Tell me sage, when asked,when questioned, O sage, please tell me
Moneyyaṁ uttamaṁ padaṁ”. the highest state of sagacity.”of sagacity, the ultimate state.” Bodhi accepts the commentarial gloss of pada as paṭipadā here, but I find his reasoning unconvincing. Yes, the text speaks of practice, but this correlates to the first part of the answer. Here, at the end of the question, it relates to the end of the text, which speaks of the state of sagacity.
“Moneyyaṁ te upaññissaṁ, “I’ll teach you a sagacity hard to do,“I shall school you in sagacity,”
(iti bhagavā) (said the Blessed One)said the Buddha,
Dukkaraṁ durabhisambhavaṁ; hard to master.“so difficult and challenging.
Handa te naṁ pavakkhāmi, Come now, I’ll tell you.Come, I shall tell you all about it.
Santhambhassu daḷho bhava. Be steadfast. Be firm.Brace yourself; stay strong!
Samānabhāgaṁ kubbetha, Practice even-mindedness,In the village, keep the same attitude
Gāme akkuṭṭhavanditaṁ; for in a village there’s praise & abuse.no matter if reviled or praised.
Manopadosaṁ rakkheyya, Ward off any flaw in the heart.Guard against ill-tempered thoughts;
Santo anuṇṇato care. Go about calmed & not haughty.wander peaceful and humble.
Uccāvacā niccharanti, High & low things will come upMany different things come up, Note that, despite the etymology, uccāvaca seems to be used more in the sense of “diversity” rather than “high and low”; eg. the colors of a rainbow. Here all things are like tongues of flame, i.e. there are many different ones, but they are not treated as better or worse.
Dāye aggisikhūpamā; like fire-flames in a forest.like tongues of fire in a forest.
Nāriyo muniṁ palobhenti, Women seduce a sage.Women try to seduce a sage—
Tā su taṁ mā palobhayuṁ. May they not seduce you.2For an instance of a woman who tried to seduce a monk, see the origin story to Pācittiya 5 in The Buddhist Monastic Code, volume 1; for an instance of a man who tried to seduce a nun, see Thig 14.let them not seduce you!
Virato methunā dhammā, Abstaining from sexual intercourse,Refraining from sex,
Hitvā kāme paropare; abandoning various sensual pleasures,having left behind sensual pleasures high and low,
Aviruddho asāratto, be unopposed, unattached,don’t be hostile or attached
Pāṇesu tasathāvare. to beings moving & still.to living creatures firm or frail.
Yathā ahaṁ tathā ete, ‘As I am, so are these.‘As am I, so are they;
Yathā ete tathā ahaṁ; As are these, so am I.’as are they, so am I’—
Attānaṁ upamaṁ katvā, Drawing the parallel to yourself,Treating others like oneself,
Na haneyya na ghātaye. neither kill nor get others to kill.neither kill nor incite to kill.
Hitvā icchañca lobhañca, Abandoning the wants & greedLeaving behind desire and greed
Yattha satto puthujjano; where people run-of-the-mill are stuck,for what ordinary people are attached to, As other instances of this line make clear, the referent of yattha is kāmā, i.e. the pleasures of the senses, not the desire and greed (of the previous line). Bodhi gets this nuance right, Norman does not.
Cakkhumā paṭipajjeyya, practice with vision,one whose eye is clear would set out to practice,
Tareyya narakaṁ imaṁ. cross over this hell.they’d cross over this abyss. For naraka here, Bodhi has “inferno”, Norman “hell”; but the metaphor of “crossing over” better fits the normal sense of “cliff” or “abyss” (MN 49:5.9, MN 86:6.15, Thag 16.8:4.2). Notably, naraka is not strongly attested in the sense of “hell” for pre-Buddhist Sanskrit either, although we do find nāraka, apparently in the sense of “hell being”, at Atharva Veda 12.4.36c and Śukla Yajur Veda 30.5.
Ūnūdaro mitāhāro, Stomach not full, moderate in food,With empty stomach, taking limited food,
Appicchassa alolupo; modest, not being greedy,few in wishes, not greedy;
Sadā icchāya nicchāto, always not hungering for wants:truly hungerless regarding all desires, Read sa ve.
Aniccho hoti nibbuto. One without hunger is one who’s unbound.desireless, one is quenched.
Sa piṇḍacāraṁ caritvā, Having gone on his almsround, the sageHaving wandered for alms,
Vanantamabhihāraye; should then go to the forest,they’d take themselves into the forest;
Upaṭṭhito rukkhamūlasmiṁ, approaching the root of a tree,and nearing the foot of a tree,
Āsanūpagato muni. taking a seat.the sage would take their seat.
Sa jhānapasuto dhīro, The enlightened one, intent on jhāna,That attentive one intent on absorption,
Vanante ramito siyā; should find delight in the forest,would delight within the forest.
Jhāyetha rukkhamūlasmiṁ, should practice jhāna at the foot of a tree,They’d practice absorption at the foot of a tree,
Attānamabhitosayaṁ. attaining his own satisfaction.filling themselves with bliss.
Tato ratyā vivasāne, Then, at the end of the night,Then, at the end of the night,
Gāmantamabhihāraye; he should go to the village,they’d take themselves into a village.
Avhānaṁ nābhinandeyya, not delighting in an invitationThey’d not welcome being called, This line and the next echo the practices of Jain ascetics: naehibhaddantiko, natiṭṭhabhaddantiko, nābhihaṭaṁ. The sense of the first two terms is similar to avhāna, while the last of these terms is the same as abhihāra in the next line.
Abhihārañca gāmato. or gift from the village.nor offerings brought from the village.
Na munī gāmamāgamma, Having gone to the village, the sage should not goA sage who has come to a village
Kulesu sahasā care; forcing his way among families.would not walk hastily among the families. Bodhi’s “should not behave rashly” and Norman’s “should not pursue his search for food inconsiderately” confuse a plain meaning. When on alms round a mendicant should not walk too fast, else the families have no time to ready the food.
Ghāsesanaṁ chinnakatho, Cutting off chatter,They’d not discuss their search for food,
Na vācaṁ payutaṁ bhaṇe. he shouldn’t utter a scheming word.nor would they speak suggestively.
Alatthaṁ yadidaṁ sādhu, ‘I got something. That’s fine.‘I got something, that’s good.
Nālatthaṁ kusalaṁ iti; I got nothing. That, too, is good.’I got nothing, that’s fine.’
Ubhayeneva so tādī, Being such with regard to both,Unaffected in both cases,
Rukkhaṁvupanivattati. he returns to the very same tree.they return right to the tree.
Sa pattapāṇi vicaranto, Wandering with his bowl in handWandering with bowl in hand,
Amūgo mūgasammato; —not dumb, but seemingly dumb—not dumb, but thought to be dumb,
Appaṁ dānaṁ na hīḷeyya, he shouldn’t despise a piddling giftthey wouldn’t scorn a tiny gift,
Dātāraṁ nāvajāniyā. nor disparage the giver.nor look down upon the giver.
Uccāvacā hi paṭipadā, High & low are the practicesFor the practice has many aspects, As above, uccāvaca probably means “diverse” practices rather than “high and low” per commentary followed by Bodhi and Norman. The only usage of uccāvaca in the context of practice is the “diverse duties” performed by mendicants for their fellows (eg. DN 33:3.3.17).
Samaṇena pakāsitā; proclaimed by the contemplative.as revealed by the Ascetic. Norman’s proposal that this is not the Buddha is implausible.
Na pāraṁ diguṇaṁ yanti, They don’t go twice to the further shore.They do not go to the far shore twice, This verse is quoted by the Kathāvatthu (Kv 1.2:113.1) to refute the thesis that an arahant might fall away from their attainment. This is overlooked by both Bodhi and Norman, although it evidently underlies the commentary.
Nayidaṁ ekaguṇaṁ mutaṁ. This [unbinding] isn’t sensed only once.3According to SnA, the high and low practices the Buddha teaches are, respectively, the mode of pleasant practice with quick intuition, and the mode of painful practice with slow intuition (see AN 4:162). These modes “don’t go twice to the further shore” in the sense that each of the four paths—to stream-entry, once-returning, non-returning, and arahantship—abandons whatever defilements it can abandon once and for all, with no need to repeat that particular path. Unbinding “isn’t sensed only once” in the sense that it’s touched anew as the result of each of the four paths.nor having gone once do they fall away. Both Bodhi and Norman discuss this line, without any compelling conclusion. The problematic mutaṁ cannot mean “experienced” per Bodhi and Norman following the commentary. Since the Kathāvatthu is by far the earliest source on this verse, I suggest we adopt its reading that the verse is about “falling away”, and amend mutaṁ to cutaṁ.
Yassa ca visatā natthi, In one who has no attachment—When a mendicant has no creeping,
Chinnasotassa bhikkhuno; the monk who has cut the stream,4SnA glosses this as the stream of defilements, though it could also be the stream of becoming mentioned at Sn 3:12.and has cut the stream of craving,
Kiccākiccappahīnassa, abandoning what is & isn’t a duty—and given up all the various duties,
Pariḷāho na vijjati. no fever is found.no fever is found in them.
Moneyyaṁ te upaññissaṁ, I’ll teach you sagacity:I shall school you in sagacity. The PTS edition, as does the BJT, has a reciter’s remark here identifying the speaker as the Buddha, and this is translated without comment by Norman and Bodhi. It is unusual, if not unique, to find such a mark in the middle of a series of verses by one speaker. The Mahāsaṅgīti edition, following the VRI, lacks this remark and I have translated accordingly.
Khuradhārūpamo bhave; Be like a razor’s edge.Practice as if you were licking a razor’s edge.
Jivhāya tālumāhacca, Pressing tongue against palate,With tongue pressed against the roof of your mouth,
Udare saññato siyā. restrain your stomach.be restrained regarding your stomach.
Alīnacitto ca siyā, Neither be lazy in mind,Don’t be sluggish in mind,
Na cāpi bahu cintaye; nor have many thoughts.nor think overly much.
Nirāmagandho asito, Be free of raw stench,5 independent,See Sn 2:2.Be free of putrefaction and unattached,
Brahmacariyaparāyaṇo. having the holy life as your aim.committed to the spiritual life.
Ekāsanassa sikkhetha, Train in solitudeTrain in a lonely seat,
Samaṇūpāsanassa ca; & the contemplative’s task,attending closely to ascetics;
Ekattaṁ monamakkhātaṁ, Solitude is called sagacity.solitude is sagacity, they say.
Eko ce abhiramissasi; Alone, you truly delightIf you welcome solitude,
Atha bhāhisi dasadisā. & shine in the ten directions.you’ll light up the ten directions.
Sutvā dhīrānaṁ nighosaṁ, On hearing the fame of the enlightenedHaving heard the words of the attentive, By forcing the commentary’s sense of kitti into nigghosa, Bodhi and Norman confuse a simple meaning. Nighosa (more commonly spelled nigghosa) just means “word, teaching, statement”, eg. tava sutvāna nigghosaṁ “having heard your teaching”.
Jhāyīnaṁ kāmacāginaṁ; —those who practice jhāna, relinquishing sensuality—the meditators who’ve given up sensual desires,
Tato hiriñca saddhañca, then, shame & conviction,a follower of mine would develop
Bhiyyo kubbetha māmako. my disciple should foster all the more.conscience and faith all the more.
Taṁ nadīhi vijānātha, Know from the riversUnderstand this by the way streams move
Sobbhesu padaresu ca; in clefts & in crevices:in clefts and crevices:
Saṇantā yanti kusobbhā, Those in small channels flow noisily,the little creeks flow on resounding,
Tuṇhī yanti mahodadhī. the great flow silent.while silent flow the great rivers.
Yadūnakaṁ taṁ saṇati, Whatever’s deficient makes noise.What is lacking, resounds; Quoted at Mil 7.8.1:2.1.
Yaṁ pūraṁ santameva taṁ; Whatever is full is quiet.what is full is at peace.
Aḍḍhakumbhūpamo bālo, The fool is like a half-empty pot;The fool is like a half-full pot;
Rahado pūrova paṇḍito. one who is wise, a full lake.6This verse is quoted in the Milinda Pañhā.the wise like a brimfull lake.
Yaṁ samaṇo bahuṁ bhāsati, A contemplative who speaks a great dealWhen the Ascetic speaks much
Upetaṁ atthasañhitaṁ; endowed with meaning:it is relevant and meaningful:
Jānaṁ so dhammaṁ deseti, Knowing, he teaches the Dhamma;knowing, he teaches the Dhamma;
Jānaṁ so bahu bhāsati. knowing, he speaks a great deal.knowing, he speaks much.
Yo ca jānaṁ saṁyatatto, But he who, knowing, is restrained,But one who, knowing, is self-controlled,
Jānaṁ na bahu bhāsati; knowing, doesn’t speak a great deal:knowing, does not speak much;
Sa munī monamarahati, He is a sage worthy of sagehood.that sage is worthy of sagacity,
Sa munī monamajjhagā”ti. He is a sage, his sagehood attained.”that sage has achieved sagacity.”
Nālakasuttaṁ ekādasamaṁ. The Nālaka Sutta, the eleventh.vv. 679–723. See also: AN 3:123; Dhp 268–269; Iti 66–67; Sn 1:12.