The Buddha's general
advice to lay followers
Extracts from the
Sutta Pitaka
---o0o---
Lay Follower
"Venerable Sir, to what extent is one a lay
follower?"
"Jivaka, when one has gone to the Buddha for
refuge, has gone to the Dhamma for refuge, and has gone to the Sangha for
refuge, then to that extent is one a lay follower."
"And to what extent, venerable sir, is one a
virtuous lay follower?"
"Jivaka, when one abstains from taking life,
from stealing, from sexual misconduct, from lying, and from fermented and
distilled drinks that lead to heedlessness, then to that extent is one a
virtuous lay follower."
"And to what extent, venerable sir, is one a
lay follower who practices both for his own benefit and the benefit of
others?"
"Jivaka, when a lay follower himself is
consummate in conviction and encourages others in the consummation of
conviction; … in virtue and encourages others …; … in generosity and
encourages others ….; … desires to see the monks and encourages…; … wants
to hear the true Dhamma and encourages others…; …habitually remembers the
Dhamma he has heard and encourages…; …explores the meaning of the Dhamma
he has heard and encourages…; …knowing both the Dhamma and its meaning,
practises the Dhamma in line with the Dhamma and encourages others…: then
to that extent he is a lay follower who practices both for his own benefit
and the benefit of others."
Anguttara Nikaya VIII.26 (Jivaka Sutta)
Removing Annoyance
"Bhikkhus, there are these five ways of
removing annoyance, by which annoyance can be entirely removed by a
bhikkhu when it arises in him. What are the five?
"Loving-kindness can be maintained in being
towards a person with whom you are annoyed: this is how annoyance with him
can be removed. Compassion can be maintained in being … Onlooking
equanimity can be maintained in being …. The forgetting and ignoring of a
person … can be practiced …. Ownership of deeds in a person … can be
concentrated upon thus: 'This good person is owner of his deeds, heir to
his deeds, his deeds are the womb from which he is born, his deeds are his
kin for whom he is responsible, his deeds are his refuge, he is heir to
his deeds, be they good or bad.' This too is how annoyance with him can be
removed.
Anguttara Nikaya V.161 ( Aghatapativinaya
Sutta)
Five Daily Reflections
"There are these five facts that one should
reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained. Which
five? ‘I am subject to aging, have not gone beyond aging.’ This is the
first fact that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a
man, lay or ordained. ‘I am subject to illness, have not gone beyond
illness.’ … ‘I am subject to death, have not gone beyond death.’ ... ‘I
will grow different, separate from all that is dear and appealing to me.’
... ‘I am the owner of my actions (kamma), heir to my actions, born of my
actions, related through my actions, and have my actions as my arbitrator.
Whatever I do, for good or for evil, to that will I fall heir.’ This is
the fifth fact that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or
a man, lay or ordained."
Anguttara Nikaya V-57 (Upajjhatthana
Sutta)
Handling Anger
"Monks, there are these three types of
individuals to be found existing in the world. Which three? An individual
like an inscription in rock, like an inscription in soil, and like an
inscription in water.
"And how is an individual like an
inscription in rock? There is the case where a certain individual is often
angered, and his anger stays with him a long time. Just as an inscription
in rock is not quickly effaced by wind or water and lasts a long time, in
the same way a certain individual is often angered … .
"And how is an individual like an
inscription in soil? There is the case where a certain individual is often
angered, but his anger doesn't stay with him a long time. Just as an
inscription in soil is quickly effaced by wind or water and doesn't last a
long time, in the same way a certain individual is often angered ….
"And how is an individual like an
inscription in water? There is the case where a certain individual - when
spoken to roughly, spoken to harshly, spoken to in an unpleasing way - is
nevertheless congenial, companionable, & courteous. Just as an inscription
in water immediately disappears and doesn't last a long time, in the same
way a certain individual - when spoken to roughly, ….
"These are the three types of individuals to
be found existing in the world."
Anguttara Nikaya III.133 (Lekha Sutta)
Simile of the Dhamma Chariot (Dhammayana)
Its qualities of faith and wisdom
Are always yoked evenly together.
Shame is its pole, mind its yoke-tie
Mindfulness the watchful charioteer.
The chariot’s ornament is virtue,
Its axles meditation, energy its wheels;
Equanimity keeps the burden balanced,
Desirelessness its uphosttery.
Good will, non-harming, and seclusion:
These are the chariot’s weaponry,
Forbearance its armour and shield,
As it rolls towards security from bondage.
This divine vehicle unsurpassed
Originates from within oneself.
The wise depart from the world in it,
Inevitably winning the victory.
Samyutta Nikaya IV.4 (The Supreme
Vehicle)
Abandoning Bad Kamma
A disciple has faith in that teacher and
reflects: ‘The Blessed One in a variety of ways criticizes and censures
the taking of life, and says, "Abstain from taking life." There are living
beings that I have killed, to a greater or lesser extent. That was not
right. That was not good. But if I become remorseful for that reason, that
evil deed of mine will not be undone.’ So, reflecting thus, he abandons
right then the taking of life, and in the future refrains from taking
life. This is how there comes to be the transcending of that evil deed.
Samyutta Nikaya XLII.8 (Sankha Sutta –
The Conch Trumpet)
Simile of the Ocean
"Just as the great ocean, bhikkhus,
gradually shelves, slopes and inclines, and there is no sudden precipice,
so also in this Dhamma and Discipline there is a gradual training, a
gradual course, a gradual progression, and there is no sudden penetration
to final knowledge.
"Just as the great ocean has one taste, the
taste of salt, so also this Dhamma and Discipline has one taste, the taste
of liberation."
Udana V.5 (Sona Sutta - The Observance
Day)
Simile of The Sea-Turtle and The Yoke in
The Ocean
"Suppose a man threw into the sea a yoke
with one hole in it, and the east wind carried it to the west, and the
west wind carried it to the east, and the north wind carried it to the
south, and the south wind carried it to the north. Suppose there were a
blind turtle that came up once at the end of each century. What do you
think, bhikkhus? Would that blind turtle put his neck into that yoke with
one hole in it?
"He might, venerable sir, sometime or other
at the end of a long period.
"Bhikkhus, the blind turtle would take less
time to put his neck into that yoke with a single hole in it than a fool,
once gone to perdition, would take to regain the human state, I say. Why
is that? Because there is no practising of the Dhamma there, no practising
of what is righteous, no doing of what is wholesome, no performance of
merit. There mutual devouring prevails, and the slaughter of the weak.
Majjhima Nikaya 129.24 ( Balapandita
Sutta)
Arising of A Fully Enlightened One
It is impossible, monks, it cannot come to
pass, that in one world-system, at one and the same time, there should
arise two arahants who are Fully Enlightened Ones.
Anguttara Nikaya - Book of The Ones
Chapter XV 1-28
Then certain gods exclaimed: "Oh, if only
four fully enlightened Buddhas were to arise in the world and teach the
Dhamma just like the Blessed Lord! That would be for the benefit and
happiness of the many, out of compassion to the world, for the benefit and
happiness of devas and humans!" And some said: "Never mind four fully
enlightened Buddhas – three would suffice!" and others said: "Never mind
three – two would suffice!"
At this Sakka said: "It is impossible,
gentlemen, it cannot happen that two fully enlightened Buddhas should
arise simultaneously in a single world-system. That cannot be. May this
Blessed Lord continue to live long, for many years to come, free from
sickness and disease! That would be for the benefit and happiness of the
many, out of compassion to the world, for the benefit and happiness of
devas and humans!"
Digha Nikaya 19:13-14 (Mahagovinda Sutta)
Four Kinds of Bliss
"There are these four kinds of bliss that
can be attained in the proper season, on the proper occasions, by a
householder enjoying the pleasures of the senses. Which four? The bliss of
having, the bliss of [making use of] wealth, the bliss of debtlessness,
the bliss of blamelessness."
Anguttara Nikaya IV.62 (Anana Sutta)
The Nature of Dhamma
"Whether or not there is the arising of
Tathagatas, this property stands, this steadfastness of the Dhamma, this
orderliness of the Dhamma: All fabrications are inconstant…."
Anguttara Nikaya III.137 (Dhamma-niyama
Sutta)
Unconjecturable
"There are these four unconjecturables that
are not to be conjectured about, that would bring madness & vexation to
anyone who conjectured about them. Which four?
The Buddha-range of the Buddhas … The jhana-range
of a person in jhana…. The (precise working out of the) results of kamma….
Conjecture about (the origin, etc., of) the world…"
Anguttara Nikaya IV.77 (Acintita Sutta)
Four Ways to Answer Questions
"There are these four ways of answering
questions. Which four? There are questions that should be answered
categorically [straightforwardly yes, no, this, that]. There are questions
that should be answered with an analytical [qualified] answer [defining or
redefining the terms]. There are questions that should be answered with a
counter-question. There are questions that should be put aside. These are
the four ways of answering questions."
Anguttara Nikaya IV.42 (Panha Sutta)
Samsara
And the Lord addressed the monks: "It is,
monks, through not understanding, not penetrating four things that I as
well as you have for a long time fared on round the cycle of rebirths.
What are the four? Through not understanding the Ariyan morality, through
not understanding the Ariyan concentration, through not understanding the
Ariyan wisdom, through not understanding the Ariyan liberation, I
as well as you have for a long time fared on round the cycle of rebirths.
And it is by understanding and penetrating the Ariyan morality, the Ariyan
concentration, the Ariyan wisdom, and the Ariyan liberation, that
the craving for becoming has been cut off, the tendency towards becoming
has been exhausted, and there will be no more rebirth."
Digha Nikaya 16:4.2 (Mahaparinibbana
Sutta)
Pilgrimage Sites
"Lord, formerly monks who had spent the
Rains in various places used to come to see the Tathagata, and we used to
welcome them so that such well-trained monks might see you and pay their
respects. But with the Lord’s passing, we shall no longer have a chance to
do this."
"Ananda, there are four places the sight of
which should arouse emotion in the faithful. Which are they? "Here the
Tathagata was born" is the first. "Here the Tathagata attained supreme
enlightenment" is the second. "Here the Tathagata set in motion the Wheel
of Dhamma" is the third. "Here the Tathagata attained the Nibbana-element
without remainder" is the fourth. And, Ananda, the faithful, monks and
nuns, male and female lay-followers will visit those places. And any who
die while making the pilgrimage to these shrines with a devout heart will,
at the breaking up of the body after death, be reborn in a heavenly
world."
Digha Nikaya 16:5.7-5.8 (Mahaparinibbana
Sutta)
Arahants Incapable of Transgressing Nine
Principles
…"And any monk who is an Arahant, whose
corruptions are destroyed, who has lived the life, done what has to be
done, laid down the burden, gained the true goal, who has completely
destroyed the fetter of becoming, and is liberated by supreme insight, is
incapable of doing nine things: he is incapable of (1) deliberately taking
the life of a living being; (2) taking what is not given so as to
constitute theft; (3) sexual intercourse; (4) telling a deliberate lie;
(5) storing up goods for sensual indulgence as he did formerly in the
household life; (6) acting wrongly through attachment; (7) acting wrongly
through hatred; (8) acting wrongly through folly; (9) acting wrongly
through fear. These are the nine things which an Arahant, whose
corruptions are destroyed, cannot do …"
Digha Nikaya 29.26 (Pasadika Sutta)
"It is impossible for a monk whose mental
fermentations are ended to intentionally deprive a living being of life.
….to take, in the manner of stealing, what is not given. ….to engage in
sexual intercourse. …to tell a conscious lie. …to consume stored-up
sensual things as he did before, when he was a householder ….. to follow a
bias based on desire …. to follow a bias based on aversion…. to follow a
bias based on fear… to follow a bias based on delusion.
"Both before and now I say to you that an
arahant monk whose mental fermentations are ended, who has reached
fulfillment, done the task, laid down the burden, attained the true goal,
totally destroyed the fetter of becoming, and who is released through
right gnosis, cannot possibly transgress these nine principles."
Anguttara Nikaya IX.7 (Sutava Sutta)
No Lack for Arahants in the Noble
Eightfold Path
"In whatever Dhamma and Discipline the Noble
Eightfold Path is not found, no ascetic is found of the first, the second,
the third, or the fourth grade. But such ascetics can be found, of the
first, second, third or fourth grade in a Dhamma and Discipline where the
Noble Eightfold Path is found. Now, Subhadda, in this Dhamma and
Discipline the Noble Eightfold Path is found, and in it are to be
found ascetics of the first, second, third or fourth grade. Those other
schools are devoid of [true] ascetics; but if in this one the monks were
to live the life to perfection, the world would not lack for Arahants
Twenty-nine years of age I was
When I went forth to seek the Good.
Now over fifty years have passed
Since the day that I went forth
To roam the realm of wisdom’s law
Outside of which no ascetic is
[First, second, third or fourth degree].
Other schools of such are bare,
But if here monks live perfectly,
The world won’t lack for Arahants.
Digha Nikaya 16:5.23-5.27 (Mahaparinibbana
Sutta)
Criteria for The Buddha’s True Teaching
"Suppose a monk were to say: ‘Friends, I
heard and received this from the Lord’s own lips: this is the Dhamma, this
is the discipline, this is the Master’s teaching’, then, monks, … his
words and expressions should be carefully noted and compared with the
Suttas and reviewed in the light of the discipline. If they, on such
comparison and review, are found not to conform to the Suttas or the
discipline, the conclusion must be: ‘Assuredly this is not the word of the
Buddha, it has been wrongly understood by the monk’, and the matter is to
be rejected. But where on such comparison and review, they are found to
conform to the Suttas or the discipline, the conclusion must be:
‘Assuredly this is the word of the Buddha, it has been rightly understood
by the monk.’
Digha Nikaya 16:4.8 (Mahaparinibbana
Sutta)
Rebirth in the Brahma World
"Here a bhikkhu abides pervading one quarter
with a mind imbued with loving-kindness, likewise the second, likewise the
third, likewise the fourth; so above, below, around, and everywhere, and
to all as to himself, he abides pervading the all-encompassing world with
a mind imbued with loving-kindness, abundant, exalted, immeasurable,
without hostility and without ill will. …. This is the path to the company
of Brahma.
"Again, a bhikkhu abides pervading one
quarter with a mind imbued with compassion… with a mind imbued with
appreciative joy … with a mind imbued with equanimity, likewise the
second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth; so above, below, around,
and everywhere, and to all as to himself, he abides pervading the
all-encompassing world with a mind imbued with equanimity, abundant,
exalted, immeasurable, without hostility and without ill will. …. This too
is the path to the company of Brahma.
Majjhima Nikaya - Subha Sutta (99:24-27)
Mirror of Dhamma: Criteria for Stream
Entry
"…Therefore, Ananda, I will teach you a way
of knowing Dhamma, called the Mirror of Dhamma, whereby the Ariyan
disciple, if he so wishes, can discern of himself: "I have destroyed hell,
animal-rebirth, the realm of ghosts, all downfall, evil fates and sorry
states. I am a Stream-Winner, incapable of falling into states of woe,
certain of attaining Nibbana."
"And what is this Mirror of Dhamma by which
he can know this? Here, Ananda, this Ariyan disciple is possessed of
unwavering confidence in the Buddha,… possessed of unwavering faith in the
Dhamma, … possessed of unwavering confidence in the Sangha, … And he is
possessed of morality dear to the Noble Ones, unbroken, without defect,
unspotted, without inconsistency, liberating, uncorrupted, and conducive
to concentration. This, Ananda, is the Mirror of Dhamma, whereby the
Ariyan disciple … can discern of himself: "I have destroyed hell … I am a
Stream-Winner … certain of attaining Nibbana."
Digha Nikaya 16:2.8-2.9 (Mahaparinibbana
Sutta)
Nibbana
At that time the Lord was instructing,
rousing, inspiring, and gladdening the bhikkhus with a Dhamma talk
connected with Nibbana, and those bhikkhus, being receptive and attentive
and concentrating the whole mind, …the Lord uttered on that occasion this
inspired utterance:
-- There is, bhikkhus, a not-born, a
not-brought-to-being, a not-made, a not-formed. If, bhikkhus, there were
no not-born, not-brought-to-being, not-made, not-formed, no escape would
be discerned from what is born, brought-to-being, made, formed. But
because there is a not-born, a not-brought-to-being, a not-made, a
not-formed, therefore an escape is discerned from what is born,
brought-to-being, made, formed.
Udana VIII.3 (Patali Village) 8.3
The Buddha only shows the Way
"Master Gotama, since Nibbana exists and the
path leading to Nibbana exists and Master Gotama is present as the guide,
what is the cause and reason why, when Master Gotama's disciples are thus
advised and instructed by him, some of them attain Nibbana, the ultimate
goal, and some do not attain it?"
"As to that, brahmin, I will ask you a
question in return. …. Suppose a man came who wanted to go to Rajagaha,
and he approached you and said: 'Venerable sir, I want to go to Rajagaha.
Show me the road to Rajagaha.' Then you told him: 'Now, good man, this
road goes to Rajagaha. Follow it for awhile and you will see a certain
village, go a little further and you will see a certain town, go a little
further and you will see Rajagaha with its lovely parks, groves, meadows,
and ponds.' Then having been thus advised and instructed by you, he would
take a wrong road and would go to the west. Then a second man came who ….
Then having been thus advised and instructed by you, he would arrive
safely in Rajagaha. Now, brahmin, since Rajagaha exists and the path
leading to Rajagaha exists and you are present as the guide, what is the
cause and reason why, when those men have been thus advised and instructed
by you, one man takes a wrong road and would go to the west and one
arrives safely in Rajagaha?"
"What can I do about that, Master Gotama? I
am one who shows the way."
"So too, brahmin, Nibbana exists and the
path leading to Nibbana exists and I am present as the guide. Yet when my
disciples have been thus advised and instructed by me, some of them attain
Nibbana, the ultimate goal, and some do not attain it. What can I do about
that, brahmin? The Tathagata is one who only shows the way."
Majjhima Nikaya 107:12-14 (Ganakamoggallana
Sutta)
What is a Buddha?
"…Those asavas whereby, if they are not
abandoned, I should be a deva, …. a gandharva, … a yakka, …a human being,
those asavas in me are abandoned…not to rise again in future time. Just
as, brahmin, a lotus, blue, red or white, though born in the water, grown
up in the water, when it reaches the surface stands there unsoiled by the
water, just so, brahmin, though born in the world, grown up in the world,
having overcome the world, I abide unsoiled by the world. Take it that I
am a Buddha, brahmin."
Anguttara Nikaya IV-36
The Dhamma as Refuge
"Therefore, Ananda, you should live as
islands unto yourselves, being your own refuge, with no one else as your
refuge, with the Dhamma as an island, with the Dhamma as your refuge, with
no other refuge.
Digha Nikaya 16:2.26 (Mahaparinibbana
Sutta)
Gradual Path
"Bhikkhus, I do not say that final knowledge
is achieved all at once. On the contrary, final knowledge is achieved by
gradual training, by gradual practice, by gradual progress.
Majjhima Nikaya - Kitagiri Sutta
(70:22-23)
"Just as the great ocean, bhikkhus,
gradually shelves, slopes and inclines, and there is no sudden precipice,
so also in this Dhamma and Discipline there is a gradual training, a
gradual course, a gradual progression, and there is no sudden penetration
to final knowledge.
Udana V.5 (The Observance Day)
Difficult for Followers of Other Teachers
to Understand Dhamma
"It is enough to cause you bewilderment,
Vaccha, enough to cause you confusion. For this Dhamma, Vaccha, is
profound, hard to see and hard to understand, peaceful and sublime,
unattainable by mere reasoning, subtle, to be experienced by the wise. It
is hard for you to understand it when you hold another view, accept
another teaching, approve of another teaching, pursue a different
training, and follow a different teacher..."
Majjhima Nikaya 72.18 (Aggivacchagotta
Sutta)
Progressive Instructions in Dhamma
Then the Blessed One gave the householder
Upali progressive instruction, that is, talk on giving, talk on virtue,
talk on the heavens; he explained the danger, degradation, and defilement
in sensual pleasures and the blessing of renunciation. When he knew that
the householder Upali's mind was ready, receptive, free from hindrances,
elated, and confident, he expounded to him the teaching special to the
Buddhas: suffering, its origin, its cessation, and the path. Just as a
clean cloth with all marks removed would take dye evenly, so too, while
the householder Upali sat there, the spotless immaculate vision of the
Dhamma arose in him: "All that is subject to arising is subject to
cessation." Then the householder Upali saw the Dhamma, attained the Dhamma,
understood the Dhamma, fathomed the Dhamma; he crossed beyond doubt, did
away with perplexity, gained intrepidity, and became independent of others
in the Teacher's Dispensation.
Majjhima Nikaya 56.18 (Upali Sutta)
Five Factors of Striving
"So too, prince, there are these five
factors of striving. What five? Here a bhikkhu has faith, he places faith
in the Tathagata's enlightenment … he is free from illness and affliction
… he is honest and sincere …. he is energetic in abandoning unwholesome
states and in undertaking wholesome states …. he is wise … These are the
five factors of striving."
Majjhima Nikaya 85:58 (Bodhirajakumara
Sutta)
Meditation Praised by The Buddha
"And what kind of meditation did the Blessed
One praise? Here, brahmin, quite secluded from sensual pleasures, secluded
from unwholesome states, a bhikkhu enters upon and abides in the first
jhana … With the stilling of applied and sustained thought, he bhikkhu
enters upon and abides in the second jhana … With the fading away as well
of rapture … he bhikkhu enters upon and abides in the third jhana … With
the abandoning of pleasure and pain … he bhikkhu enters upon and abides in
the fourth jhana … The Blessed One praised that kind of meditation."
Majjhima Nikaya 108.27 (Gopakamoggallana
Sutta )
Undeclared by the Buddha
"And what have I left undeclared? 'The world
is eternal', 'The world is not eternal', 'The world is finite', 'The world
is infinite', 'The soul is the same as the body', 'The soul is one thing
and the body another’, 'After death a Tathagata exists', 'After death a
Tathagata does not exist’, 'After death a Tathagata both exists and does
not exist', 'After death a Tathagata neither exists nor does not exist' -
I have left undeclared."
"Why have I left that undeclared? Because it
is unbeneficial, it does not belong to the fundamentals of the holy life,
it does not lead to disenchantment, to dispassion, to cessation, to peace,
to direct knowledge, to enlightenment, to Nibbana. That is why I have left
it undeclared."
Majjhima Nikaya 63: Culamalunkya Sutta
(63:7-10)
Dhamma Taught by the Buddha
"But what things have I pointed out as
certain? "This is suffering, this is the origin of suffering, this is the
cessation of suffering, this is the path leading to the cessation of
suffering." Why? Because they are conducive to the purpose, conducive to
Dhamma, the way to embark on the holy life, they lead to disenchantment,
to dispassion, to cessation, to calm, to higher knowledge, to
enlightenment, to Nibbana. That is why I have declared them as certain.
Digha Nikaya 9.33 (Potthapada Sutta)
Loving-Kindness (Metta)
... Let none deceive another,
Nor despise anyone anywhere
Nor, with thoughts of ill-will and hate,
Wish for another to suffer.
But as a mother would protect her only child,
Even at the risk of her own life,
Even so, towards all beings,
One should cultivate a limitless heart;
With loving-kindness towards the whole world,
One should cultivate a limitless heart,
Above, below and all around,
Unbounded, without ill-will, without hate.
Karaniyametta Sutta
The Supreme Blessings
... Not to associate with fools,
To associate with the wise;
And honour those worthy of honour:
This is the supreme blessing.
The support of father and mother,
The cherishing of wife and children,
Ways of work without conflict:
This is the supreme blessing.
Mangala Sutta
Five Daily Reflections
I am subject to aging, have not gone beyond
aging.
I am subject to illness, have not gone
beyond illness.&I am subject to death, have not gone beyond death.
I will grow different, separate from all
that is dear and appealing to me.
I am the owner of my actions (kamma), heir
to my actions, born of my actions, related through my actions, and abide
supported by my actions. Whatever I do, for good or for evil, to that will
I fall heir.
These are the five facts that one should
reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained.
Anguttara Nikaya V-57 (Upajjhatthana
Sutta)&
Both Concentration and Wisdom
There is no concentration in one who lacks
wisdom,
Nor is there wisdom in him who lacks concentration,
In whom are both concentration and wisdom,
He, indeed, is in the presence of Nibbana.
Dhammapada 372
Mind is The Forerunner
Mind is the forerunner of (all evil) states.
Mind is chief; mind-made are they.
If one speaks or acts with wicked mind,
Because of that, suffering follows one,
Even as the wheel follows the hoof of the draught-ox.
Mind is the forerunner of (all good) states.
Mind is chief; mind-made are they.
If one speaks or acts with pure mind,
Because of that, happiness follows one,
Even as one’s shadow that never leaves.
Dhammapada 1-2
Even as rain penetrates an ill-thatched
house,
So does lust penetrate an undeveloped mind.
Even as rain does not penetrate a well-thatched house,
So does lust not penetrate an well-developed mind.
Dhammapada 13-14
The Wise Create Their Own Haven by Own
Effort
By sustained effort and earnestness,
Discipline and self-control,
Let the wise man make for himself an island,
Which no flood overwhelms.
Dhammapada 25
One Can Be One’s Greatest Enemy
Whatever foe may do to foe,
Or haters those that they hate,
An ill-directed mind indeed
Can do one far greater harm.
Dhammapada 42
Impermanence of the Body
Before long, alas! And it will lie,
This body, here upon the earth.
Discarded, void of consciousness,
Useless as a rotten log.
Dhammapada 41
The Wise Fool
The fool who knows that he is a fool
Is, for that very reason, a wsie man;
The fool who thinks that he is wise
Is called a fool indeed.
Dhammapada 63
Self-Conquest is the Best of All
Conquests
Though thousand times a thousand
In battle one may conquer,
Yet should one conquer just oneself,
One is the greatest conqueror.
Dhammapada 103
Purity and Impurity Depend One Oneself
By oneself, indeed, is evil done;
By oneself is one defiled.
By oneself is evil left undone;
By oneself, indeed, is one purified.
Purity and impurity depend on oneself.
No one purifies another.
Dhammapada 165
The Good Are Rare
Human birth is hard to gain,
Hard for mortals is their life.
To come to Dhamma True is hard,
Rare the Buddha’s Arising.
Dhammapada 182
The Gift of Dhamma Excels All Other Gifts
The gift of Dhamma excels all gifts;
The taste of Dhamma excels all tastes;
Delight in Dhamma excels all delights;
Destruction of craving overcomes all sorrow.
Dhammapada 354
The Noble Eight-fold Path
The best of paths is the Eight-fold Path;
The best of Truths are the four statements (Noble Truths);
Non-attachment is the best of teachings;
The best of humankind is the Seer (Buddha).
Dhammapada 273
Transient Are All Conditioned Things
Transience of conditioned things,
When, with wisdom, one discerns;
Then, wearily from dukkha, one turns,
Treading the path to purity.
Dhammapada 277
The Teaching of The Buddhas
Not to do evil,
To cultivate good,
To purify one’s mind –
This is the Teaching of the Buddhas
Dhammapada 183
Not reviling, neither harming,
Restrained to limit freedom’s ways;
Knowing moderation in one’s food,
Dwelling far in solitude;
And striving in the mind sublime –
This is the Teaching of the Buddhas.
Dhammapada 185
The Wise Are Not Easily Moved
Just as a mighty boulder
Stirs not with the wind,
So the wise are never moved
Either by praise or blame
Dhammapada 81
Self-Examination
Not others’ opposition
Nor what they did or failed to do,
But in oneself should be sought
Things done, things left undone.
Dhammapada 50
Straighten Your Mind
A mind agitated, wavering,
Hard to guard and hard to check,
One of wisdom renders straight
As an arrow-maker with a shaft.
Dhammapada 33
Blessings
Blest to have friends when one is in need,
Blest contentment with whatever is,
Blest is merit when life is at an end,
Abandoning all dukkha is blessedness.
Dhammapada 331
Update : 01-05-2002
