Saṁyutta Nikāya 7: Brāhmaṇasaṁyutta

Connected Discourses with Brahmins

I. THE ARAHANTS

1. Dhanañjanī

1Thus have I heard. On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Rājagaha in the Bamboo Grove, the Squirrel Sanctuary. Now on that occasion the wife of a certain brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan, a brahmin lady named Dhanañjānī, had full confidence in the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Saṅgha.428 The story related here is also at Dhp-a IV,161-63; see BL 3:288-89. The opening is similar to that of MN No. 100 (II 209,21 foll.), which concerns a brahmin lady of the same name, there spelt Dhānañjānı̄. Spk: The Dhanañjāni clan was reputed to be the highest clan of brahmins. They believed that while other brahmins had been born from Brahmā’s mouth, they themselves had issued from the top of his head. This woman was a noble disciple, a stream-enterer, but her husband was staunchly opposed to the Buddha’s dispensation and would block his ears whenever she spoke in praise of the Triple Gem.
Once, while the brahmin lady Dhanañjānī was bringing the brahmin his meal, she stumbled, whereupon she uttered three times this inspired utterance: “Homage to the Blessed One, the Arahant, the Perfectly Enlightened One! Homage to the Blessed One, the Arahant, the Perfectly Enlightened One! Homage to the Blessed One, the Arahant, the Perfectly Enlightened One!”429 Spk: The brahmin had invited five hundred fellow brahmins to a banquet. The previous day he had pleaded with his wife not to disgrace him by praising the Buddha before his peers. When she stumbled over a stack of fire-wood while serving food to the brahmins, she knelt down and paid homage to the Buddha. Scandalized by this, the brahmins reviled her husband and walked out without even finishing their meal.

2When this was said, the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan said to her: “For the slightest thing this wretched woman spouts out praise of that shaveling ascetic! Now, wretched woman, I am going to refute the doctrine of that teacher of yours.ʺ430 Vasalī, here rendered “wretched woman,” is a term of severe contempt, used by the brahmins to address outcasts.

3“I do not see anyone, brahmin, in this world with its devas, Māra, and Brahmā, in this generation with its ascetics and brahmins, its devas and humans, who could refute the doctrine of the Blessed One, the Arahant, the Perfectly Enlightened One. But go, brahmin. When you have gone, you will understand.”

4Then the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan, angry and displeased, approached the Blessed One and exchanged greetings with him. When they had concluded their greetings and cordial talk, he sat down to one side [161] and addressed the Blessed One in verse:

5, 613 “Having slain what does one sleep soundly?
Having slain what does one not sorrow?
What is the one thing, O Gotama,
Whose killing you approve?”

[The Blessed One:]

6, 614 “Having slain anger, one sleeps soundly;
Having slain anger, one does not sorrow;
The killing of anger, O brahmin,
With its poisoned root and honeyed tip:
This is the killing the noble ones praise,
For having slain that, one does not sorrow.”

7When this was said, the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama! The Dhamma has been made clear in many ways by Master Gotama, as though he were turning upright what had been turned upside down, revealing what was hidden, showing the way to one who was lost, or holding up a lamp in the dark for those with eyesight to see forms. I go for refuge to Master Gotama, and to the Dhamma, and to the Bhikkhu Saṅgha. May I receive the going forth under Master Gotama, may I receive the higher ordination?”

8Then the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan received the going forth under the Blessed One, he received the higher ordination. And soon, not long after his higher ordination, dwelling alone, withdrawn, diligent, ardent, and resolute, the Venerable Bhāradvāja, by realizing it for himself with direct knowledge, in this very life entered and dwelt in that unsurpassed goal of the holy life for the sake of which clansmen rightly go forth from the household life into homelessness. He directly knew: “Destroyed is birth, the holy life has been lived, what had to be done has been done, there is no more for this state of being.”432 See n. 376. And the Venerable Bhāradvāja became one of the arahants.

2. Abuse

1On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Rājagaha in the Bamboo Grove, the Squirrel Sanctuary. The brahmin Akkosaka Bhāradvāja, Bhāradvāja the Abusive, heard:433 I give the sobriquet both in Pāli and in English. Spk, which identifies him as the younger brother of the first Bhāradvāja brahmin, says that the epithet was added by the redactors of the canon because he came abusing (akkosanto) the Tathagata with five hundred verses. “It is said that the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan has gone forth from the household life into homelessness under the ascetic Gotama.” Angry and displeased, he approached the Blessed One and [162] abused and reviled him with rude, harsh words.

2When he had finished speaking, the Blessed One said to him: “What do you think, brahmin? Do your friends and colleagues, kinsmen and relatives, as well as guests come to visit you?”

3“Sometimes they come to visit, Master Gotama.”

4“Do you then offer them some food or a meal or a snack?”

5“Sometimes I do, Master Gotama.”

6“But if they do not accept it from you, then to whom does the food belong?”

7“If they do not accept it from me, then the food still belongs to us.”

8“So too, brahmin, we—who do not abuse anyone, who do not scold anyone, who do not rail against anyone—refuse to accept from you the abuse and scolding and tirade you let loose at us. It still belongs to you, brahmin! It still belongs to you, brahmin!

9“Brahmin, one who abuses his own abuser, who scolds the one who scolds him, who rails against the one who rails at him—he is said to partake of the meal, to enter upon an exchange. But we do not partake of your meal; we do not enter upon an exchange. It still belongs to you, brahmin! It still belongs to you, brahmin!”

10“The king and his retinue understand the ascetic Gotama to be an arahant, yet Master Gotama still gets angry.”434 Spk: He had heard that seers (isi) inflict a curse when they become angry, so when the Buddha said, “It still belongs to you, brahmin!” he was frightened, thinking, “The ascetic Gotama, it seems, is putting a curse on me.” Therefore he spoke thus.

[The Blessed One:]

11, 615 “How can anger arise in one who is angerless,
In the tamed one of righteous living,
In one liberated by perfect knowledge,
In the Stable One who abides in peace?435 I have translated tādī as “the Stable One” in accordance with the commentarial gloss, tādilakkhaṇaṁ pattassa, which alludes to the explanation of tādī at Nidd I 114-16: “The arahant is tādī because he is ‘stable’ (tādī) in the face of gain and loss, etc.; he is tādī because he has given up all defilements, etc.; he is tādī because he has crossed the four floods, etc.; he is tādī because his mind is free from all defilements; and he is tādī as a description of him in terms of his qualities” (condensed). A similar but slightly different definition of tādī in relation to the Buddha occurs at Nidd I 459-61.

12, 616 “One who repays an angry man with anger
Thereby makes things worse for himself.
Not repaying an angry man with anger,
One wins a battle hard to win.

13, 617 “He practises for the welfare of both—
His own and the other’s—
When, knowing that his foe is angry,
He mindfully maintains his peace.

14, 618 “When he achieves the cure of both—
His own and the other’s—
The people who consider him a fool
Are unskilled in the Dhamma.”436 Be and Ee1 & 2 read pāda a: ubhinnaṁ tikicchantānaṁ, which Spk (Be) includes in the lemma and glosses ubhinnaṁ tikicchantaṁ, adding: “Or the latter is itself the reading.” In Se and Spk (Se) the readings are exactly the reverse. As the sense requires an accusative singular, the reading ubhinnaṁ tikicchantaṁ taṁ, found at Th 444a, offends against neither grammar nor metre. Ee2 has adopted this reading for the exact parallel v. 882 below, but strangely reverts to ubhinnaṁ tikicchantānaṁ in the third parallel, v. 891. [163]

15When this was said, the brahmin Akkosaka Bhāradvāja said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama!… I go for refuge to Master Gotama, and to the Dhamma, and to the Bhikkhu Saṅgha. May I receive the going forth under Master Gotama, may I receive the higher ordination?”

16Then the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan received the going forth under the Blessed One, he received the higher ordination. And soon, not long after his higher ordination, dwelling alone … … the Venerable Bhāradvāja became one of the arahants.

3. Asurindaka

1On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Rājagaha in the Bamboo Grove, the Squirrel Sanctuary. The brahmin Asurindaka Bhāradvāja heard:437 He was the youngest of the Bhāradvāja brothers. “It is said that the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan has gone forth from the household life into homelessness under the ascetic Gotama.” Angry and displeased, he approached the Blessed One and abused and reviled him with rude, harsh words.

2When he had finished speaking, the Blessed One remained silent. Then the brahmin Asurindaka Bhāradvāja said to the Blessed One: “You’re beaten, ascetic! You’re beaten, ascetic!”

[The Blessed One:]

3, 619 “The fool thinks victory is won
When, by speech, he bellows harshly;
But for one who understands,
Patient endurance is the true victory.438 Spk: “For one who understands the excellence of endurance, this victory—patient endurance—is his alone (yā titikkhā vijānato adhivāsanāya guṇaṁ vijānantassa titikkhā adhivāsanā, ayaṁ tassa vijānato va jayo).” Note that neuter jayaṁ is here nominative.

4, 620-22 “One who repays an angry man with anger
… (verses = 616-18) …
Are unskilled in the Dhamma.” [164]

5When this was said, the brahmin Asurindaka Bhāradvāja said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama!…” And the Venerable Bhāradvāja became one of the arahants.

4. Bilaṅgika

1On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Rājagaha in the Bamboo Grove, the Squirrel Sanctuary. The brahmin Bilaṅgika Bhāradvāja heard:439 Spk: He was another of the Bhāradvāja brothers. The name Bilaṅgika was assigned to him by the redactors because he became rich by selling delicious conjee (kañjika, a synonym for bilaṅga). “It is said that the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan has gone forth from the household life into homelessness under the ascetic Gotama.” Angry and displeased, he approached the Blessed One and silently stood to one side.440 Spk: He was so angry his three brothers had been ordained as monks that he could not speak.

2Then the Blessed One, having known with his own mind the reflection in the brahmin Bilaṅgika Bhāradvāja’s mind, addressed him in verse:

3, 623 “If one wrongs an innocent man,
A pure person without blemish,
The evil falls back on the fool himself
Like fine dust thrown against the wind.”

4When this was said, the brahmin Bilaṅgika Bhāradvāja said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama!…” And the Venerable Bhāradvāja became one of the arahants.

5. Ahiṁsaka

1At Sāvatthī. Then the brahmin Ahiṁsaka Bhāradvāja, Bhāradvāja the Harmless, approached the Blessed One and exchanged greetings with him.441 Spk says that the name Ahiṁsaka may have been assigned to him by the redactors because he “asked a question” (i.e., made an assertion) about harmlessness; or, alternatively, Ahiṁsaka may have been his given name. From his opening statement and the Buddha’s reply the second alternative seems more likely. When they had concluded their greetings and cordial talk, he sat down to one side [165] and said to the Blessed One: “I am Ahiṁsaka the Harmless, Master Gotama. I am Ahiṁsaka the Harmless, Master Gotama.”

[The Blessed One:]

2, 624 “If one were as one’s name implies
You would be a harmless one.
But it is one who does no harm at all
By body, speech, or mind,
Who really is a harmless one
As he does not harm others.”

3When this was said, the brahmin Ahiṁsaka Bhāradvāja said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama!…” And the Venerable Ahiṁsaka Bhāradvāja became one of the arahants.

6. Tangle

1At Sāvatthī. Then the brahmin Jaṭā Bhāradvāja, Bhāradvāja of the Tangle, approached the Blessed One and exchanged greetings with him. When they had concluded their greetings and cordial talk, he sat down to one side and addressed the Blessed One in verse:

2, 625 “A tangle inside, a tangle outside,
This generation is entangled in a tangle.
I ask you this, O Gotama,
Who can disentangle this tangle?”

[The Blessed One:]

3, 626 “A man established on virtue, wise,
Developing the mind and wisdom,
A bhikkhu ardent and discreet:
He can disentangle this tangle.

4, 627 “Those for whom lust and hatred
Along with ignorance have been expunged,
The arahants with taints destroyed:
For them the tangle is disentangled.

5, 628 “Where name-and-form ceases,
Stops without remainder,
And also impingement and perception of form:
It is here this tangle is cut.”

6When this was said, the brahmin Jaṭā Bhāradvāja said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama!…” And the Venerable Bhāradvāja became one of the arahants.

7. Suddhika

1At Sāvatthī. Then the brahmin Suddhika Bhāradvāja approached the Blessed One and exchanged greetings with him. When they had concluded their greetings and cordial talk, he sat down to one side [166] and recited this verse in the presence of the Blessed One:

2, 629 “In the world no brahmin is ever purified
Though he be virtuous and austere in practice;
One accomplished in knowledge and conduct is purified,
Not the others, the common folk.”442 Spk-pṭ explains the sīla referred to in pāda bas pañcavidhaniyama , an obvious allusion to the second limb of Patañjali’s Yoga system. Spk: By knowledge (vijjā) he means the Three Vedas, by conduct (caraṇa) the conduct of one’s clan (gottacaraṇa; Spk-pṭ: the clan itself, called conduct).
As vijjācaraṇasampanna is one of the nine chief epithets of the Buddha and is also used to describe the arahant (see v. 596), the second couplet, if read apart from the commentarial explanation, expresses the Buddhistic rather than the brahmanical point of view. See too the Buddha’s argument with the brahmin youth Ambaṭṭha at DN I 99,19-100,16.

[The Blessed One:]

3, 630 “Even though one mutters many chants,
One does not become a brahmin by birth
If one is rotten within and defiled,
Supporting oneself by fraudulent means.

4, 631 “Whether khattiya, brahmin, vessa, sudda,
Caṇḍāla or scavenger,
If one is energetic and resolute,
Always firm in exertion,
One attains the supreme purity:
Know, O brahmin, that this is so.”

5When this was said, the brahmin Suddhika Bhāradvāja said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama!”… And the Venerable Bhāradvāja became one of the arahants.

8. Aggika

1On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Rājagaha in the Bamboo Grove, the Squirrel Sanctuary. Now on that occasion milk-rice with ghee had been set out for the brahmin Aggika Bhāradvāja, who had thought: “I will offer a fire sacrifice, I will perform the fire oblation.”443 A brahmin of this name is encountered in the Vasala Sutta (Sn I, 7; p. 21), but he seems to be a different person. According to Spk, this brahmin was given the soubriquet “Aggika” because he tended the sacred fire.

2Then, in the morning, the Blessed One dressed and, taking bowl and robe, entered Rājagaha for alms. Walking for alms on uninterrupted alms round in Rājagaha, the Blessed One approached the residence of the brahmin Aggika Bhāradvāja and stood to one side. The brahmin Aggika Bhāradvāja saw the Blessed One standing for alms and addressed him in verse:

3, 632 “One endowed with the triple knowledge,
Of proper birth, of ample learning,
Accomplished in knowledge and conduct,
Might partake of this milk-rice meal.”444 Spk: He speaks of one endowed “with the triple knowledge” (tīhi vijjāhi) with reference to the Three Vedas. By “proper birth” (jātimā) he means one of pure birth through seven generations.

[The Blessed One:]

4, 633 “Even though one mutters many chants,
One does not become a brahmin by birth
If one is rotten within and defiled,
With followers gained by fraudulent means. [167]

5, 634 “One who has known his past abodes,
Who sees heaven and the plane of woe,
Who has reached the destruction of birth,
A sage consummate in direct knowledge:445 The Buddha’s reply refers to the tevijjā of his own system of training: pāda a, to knowledge of the recollection of past abodes; pāda b, to the divine eye, i.e., the knowledge of the passing away and rebirth of beings; and pāda c, to the knowledge of the destruction of the taints.

6, 635 “By means of these three kinds of knowledge
One is a triple-knowledge brahmin.
This one accomplished in knowledge and conduct
Might partake of this milk-rice meal.”

7[The brahmin Aggika Bhāradvāja:] “Let Master Gotama eat. The worthy is a brahmin.”

[The Blessed One:]

8, 636 “Food over which verses have been sung
Is not fit to be eaten by me.
This, brahmin, is not the principle
Observed by those who see.
The Enlightened Ones reject such food
Over which verses have been sung.
As such a principle exists, O brahmin,
This is their rule of conduct.

9, 637 “Serve with other food and drink
The consummate one, the great seer
With taints destroyed and remorse stilled,
For he is the field for one seeking merit.”446 Spk paraphrases the idea behind vv. 636-37 thus: “Though I stood for such a long time waiting for alms, you would not give me even a spoonful; but now, after I have revealed all the Buddha-qualities to you as though spreading out sesamum seeds on a mat, (you wish to give). This food has been gained, as it were, by chanting a song; therefore, because it has been ‘chanted over with verses’ (gāthābhigīta) it is not fit to be eaten by me. As such a principle exists (dhamme sati), out of regard for the Dhamma, established on the Dhamma, the Buddhas sustain their life. This is their rule of conduct; this is their way of livelihood (esā vutti ayaṁ ājīvo). Such food is to be discarded and only what is righteously gained is to be eaten.” The Buddha’s practice is discussed at Mil 228-32. CPD (s.v. abhigīta) suggests that the reason the Buddha rejects such food is because it has been “spoken over with mantras”—by the brahmin while chanting the sacrificial hymns—but to me it is doubtful the Buddha would reject food for such a reason. Further, according to MW, gāthā is not used with reference to the verses of the Vedas, and thus here the word more likely refers to the Buddha’s own verses.
Spk does not comment on kevalinaṁ, “the consummate one,” in pāda a, but Pj II 153,9-10 (to Sn 82) says: Kevalinan ti sabbaguṇaparipuṇṇaṁ sabbayogavisaṁyuttaṁ vā; “a consummate one is one complete in all excellent qualities or one detached from all bonds.” Spk II 276, 32-277, 1 (to SN III 59,34) explains: Kevalino ti sakalino katasabbakiccā; “the consummate ones are entire, they have completed all their tasks.” For a further selection of relevant passages, see GD, p. 161, n. to 82. For reflections on the implications of the term, see Ñāṇananda, SN-Anth 2:100-1.
Spk explains kukkuccavūpasantaṁ thus: hatthakukkuccādīnaṁ vasena vūpasantakukkuccaṁ; “one in whom remorse has been stilled by the stilling of fidgety behaviour with the hands, etc.” Here kukkucca is understood in the literal sense of “bad activity” or “fidgety behaviour” rather than in the extended sense of remorse or worry, one of the five hindrances.

10When this was said, the brahmin Aggika Bhāradvāja said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama!”… And the Venerable Aggika Bhāradvāja became one of the arahants.

9. Sundarika

1On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling among the Kosalans on the bank of the river Sundarika. Now on that occasion the brahmin Sundarika Bhāradvāja was offering a fire sacrifice and performing the fire oblation on the bank of the river Sundarika. Then the brahmin Sundarika Bhāradvāja, having offered the fire sacrifice and performed the fire oblation, rose from his seat and surveyed the four quarters all around, wondering: “Who now might eat this sacrificial cake?”447 Spk: This was his thought: “The portion of milk-rice placed in the fire has been eaten by Mahābrahmā. If this remainder is given to a brahmin, one born from the mouth of Brahmā, my father and son would be pleased and I will clear the path to the brahmā world.” See Deussen, Sixty Upaniṣads of the Veda, 1:148: “The residue (ucchiṣṭaṁ) of the offering, i.e., what remains in the ladle, in the saucepan, or vessel, is to be eaten only by a brāhmaṇa, not in his own house; no kṣatriya or vaiśya is to eat it.” This explains why the brahmin, just below, is so concerned about the Buddha’s caste.

2The brahmin Sundarika Bhāradvāja saw the Blessed One sitting at the foot of a tree with his head covered. Having seen him, he took the sacrificial cake in his left hand and the waterpot in his right hand and approached the Blessed One. When the Blessed One heard the sound of the brahmin’s footsteps, he uncovered his head. Then the brahmin Sundarika Bhāradvāja, thinking, “This worthy is shaven-headed, [168] this worthy is a shaveling,” wanted to turn back; but it occurred to him: “Some brahmins here are also shaven-headed. Let me approach him and inquire about his birth.”

3Then the brahmin Sundarika Bhāradvāja approached the Blessed One and said to him: “What is the worthy one’s birth?”

[The Blessed One:]

4, 638 “Ask not of birth but ask of conduct:
Fire is indeed produced from any wood.
A resolute sage, though from low family,
Is a thoroughbred restrained by a sense of shame.448 Fire is indeed produced from any wood (kaṭṭhā have jāyati jātavedo). Spk: This is the purport: “It is not the case that only fire produced from a pure type of wood, such as sal-tree logs, can perform the work of fire, but not fire produced from the wood of a dog’s trough, etc. Rather, by reason of its flame, etc., fire produced from any kind of wood can do the work of fire. So you should not think that only one born in a brahmin family is worthy of offerings, but not one born in a caṇḍāla family, etc. Whether from a low family or a high family, an arahant sage is a thoroughbred—resolute, restrained by a sense of shame.” See in this connection the arguments at MN II 129-30, 151-53.

5, 639 “The sacrificer should invoke this one:
One tamed by truth, perfect by taming,
Who has reached the end of knowledge,
A fulfiller of the holy life.
Then he makes a timely oblation
To one worthy of offerings.”449 Spk explains one who has reached the end of knowledge (vedāntagū) in pāda b thus: “one gone to the end of the four path knowledges, or one gone to the end of defilements by the four path knowledges” (catunnaṁ maggavedānaṁ antaṁ, catūhi vā maggavedehi kilesānaṁ antaṁ gato). Evidently, the Buddha is here deliberately using brahmanical terminology in order to adjust the Dhamma to the mental disposition of the brahmin.

[The brahmin Sundarika Bhāradvāja:]

6, 640 “Surely my sacrifice is well performed
As I have seen such a knowledge-master.
Because I had not seen those like yourself
Other people ate the sacrificial cake.

7“Let Master Gotama eat. The worthy is a brahmin.”

[The Blessed One:]

8, 641-42 “Food over which verses have been sung
… (verses = 636-37) …
For he is the field for one seeking merit.”

9“Then, Master Gotama, should I give this sacrificial cake to someone else?”

10“I do not see anyone, brahmin, in this world with its devas, Māra, and Brahmā, in this generation with its ascetics and brahmins, its devas and humans, who could eat and properly digest this sacrificial cake [169] except the Tathāgata or a disciple of the Tathāgata.450 Spk: Why does he say this? It is said that when the brahmin presented the food to the Buddha, the devas from the four world-regions, etc., suffused the food with nutritive essence (ojā) produced by their celestial power. Thus it became extremely subtle. It was too subtle for the coarse digestive systems of ordinary human beings to digest properly; yet, because the food had a base of coarse material food, it was too coarse for the devas to digest. Even dry-insight arahants could not digest it. Only arahants who obtain the eight meditative attainments could digest it by the power of their attainment, while the Blessed One could digest it by his own natural digestive power. Therefore, brahmin, throw away the sacrificial cake in a place where there is sparse vegetation or dispose of it in water where there are no living beings.”

11Then the brahmin Sundarika Bhāradvāja disposed of that sacrificial cake in water where there were no living beings. When it was disposed of in the water, that sacrificial cake sizzled and hissed and gave off steam and smoke.451 Spk: This did not occur through the power of the food itself but through the Buddha’s power. The Buddha had made such a determination so that the brahmin would be favourably disposed to hear the Dhamma. Just as a ploughshare, heated all day, sizzles and hisses and gives off steam and smoke if placed in water, so too that sacrificial cake, when disposed of in the water, sizzled and hissed and gave off steam and smoke.

12Then the brahmin Sundarika Bhāradvāja, shocked and terrified, approached the Blessed One and stood to one side. The Blessed One then addressed him with verses:

13, 643 “When kindling wood, brahmin, do not imagine
This external deed brings purity;
For experts say no purity is gained
By one who seeks it outwardly.

14, 644 “Having given up the fire made from wood,
I kindle, O brahmin, the inner light alone.
Always ablaze, my mind always concentrated,
I am an arahant living the holy life.

15, 645 “Conceit, O brahmin, is your shoulder-load,
Anger the smoke, false speech the ashes;
The tongue is the ladle, the heart the altar,
A well-tamed self is the light of a man.452 Khāribhāra, “shoulder-load,” is a carrying device commonly used in South Asia, consisting of two trays at each end of a pole borne across the shoulder. Spk: “Conceit, O brahmin, is your shoulder-load: When a shoulder-load is being carried, with each step the weight of the load brings the trays into contact with the ground; similarly, though conceit props one up on account of birth, clan, family, etc., it causes envy to arise and thereby pulls one down to the four realms of misery. Anger the smoke: because the fire of knowledge does not shine when defiled by the smoke of anger. False speech the ashes : because the fire of knowledge does not burn when covered by false speech. The tongue is the ladle: my [the Buddha’s] tongue is a ladle offering the Dhamma sacrifice. The heart the altar: the hearts of beings are the altar, the fireplace, for my offering of the Dhamma sacrifice. The self (attā) is the mind.”

16, 646 “The Dhamma is a lake with fords of virtue—
Limpid, praised by the good to the good—
Where the knowledge-masters go to bathe,
And, dry-limbed, cross to the far shore.453 Spk: “Just as, after you have worshipped the fire, you enter the Sundarikā River and wash the ashes, soot, and sweat from your body, so for me the Dhamma of the eightfold path is the lake where I bathe thousands of living beings. The lake is limpid (anāvila) because, unlike your river which becomes muddy when four or five bathe in it at the same time, the lake of the Dhamma remains limpid and clear even when hundreds of thousands enter it to bathe.” On “the bath without water,” see v. 198ef and n. 119.

17, 647 “Truth, Dhamma, restraint, the holy life,
Attainment of Brahmā based on the middle: [170]
Pay homage, O brahmin, to the upright ones;
I call that person one impelled by Dhamma.”454 Spk suggests several alternative schemes by which the three terms in pāda a—sacca, dhamma, and saṁyama—can be correlated with the eightfold path: e.g., sacca = right speech; saṁyama = right action and right livelihood; dhamma = the other five factors. Spk explains brahmacariya as if it were equivalent to the entire eightfold path (magga-brahmacariya ), but it seems more likely that here the term was originally intended in the specific sense of celibacy, to be understood as a fourth item alongside the preceding three and not as an umbrella term comprising them. In pāda b, the attainment of Brahmā (brahmapatti): the attainment of the best (seṭṭhapatti). Based on the middle (majjhesitā): avoiding the extremes of eternalism and annihilationism. [Spk-pṭ: That is, based on the development of the middle way by avoiding all extremes such as sluggishness and restlessness, of which the pair eternalism and annihilationism is merely one instance.]
In pāda c, the upright ones (ujjubhūtesu): the arahants. Spk explains that the sat here represents tvaṁ, the -t- being a mere conjunct consonant (padasandhi). Though not as common as its use to convey a first person meaning, the third person demonstrative pronoun is occasionally used with a second person sense.

18When this was said, the brahmin Sundarika Bhāradvāja said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama!”… And the Venerable Sundarika Bhāradvāja became one of the arahants.

10. Many Daughters

1On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling among the Kosalans in a certain woodland thicket. Now on that occasion fourteen oxen belonging to a certain brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan had gotten lost. Then the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan, while searching for those oxen, went to the woodland thicket where the Blessed One was staying. There he saw the Blessed One sitting with his legs folded crosswise, holding his body erect, having set up mindfulness in front of him. Having seen him, he approached the Blessed One and recited these verses in the presence of the Blessed One:

2, 648 “Surely this ascetic does not have
Fourteen oxen [that have gotten lost],
Not seen now for the past six days:
Hence this ascetic is happy.455 In pāda c, ajjasaṭṭhiṁ na dissanti is glossed by Spk, “they are not seen for six days from today,” indicating that saṭṭhi here is an alternative form of chaṭṭha, sixth. Spk-pṭ: Ajjasaṭṭhiṁ is an accusative used to indicate a continuing passage of time (accantasaṁyoge c’etaṁ upayogavacanaṁ).

3, 649 “Surely this ascetic does not have
A field of blighted sesamum plants,
Some with one leaf, some with two:
Hence this ascetic is happy.

4, 650 “Surely this ascetic does not have
Rats inside an empty barn
Dancing around merrily:
Hence this ascetic is happy.

5, 651 “Surely this ascetic does not have
A blanket that for seven months
Has been covered with swarms of vermin:
Hence this ascetic is happy.

6, 652 “Surely this ascetic does not have
Seven daughters left for widows,
Some with one son, some with two:
Hence this ascetic is happy.456 Spk: As long as the brahmin was affluent, even though his daughters were widows, their parents-in-law allowed them to stay in their husbands’ homes. But when he became poor their parents-in- law sent them to their father’s home. Then, when he would take his meals, their children would put their hands in his plate and he would not find sufficient room for his own hand.

7, 653 “Surely this ascetic does not have
A tawny wife with pockmarked face
Who wakes him up with a kick:
Hence this ascetic is happy.

8, 654 “Surely this ascetic does not have
Creditors who call at dawn,
Chiding him, ‘Pay up! Pay up!’:
Hence this ascetic is happy.”

[The Blessed One:]

9, 655 “Surely, brahmin, I do not have
Fourteen oxen [that have gotten lost],
Not seen now for the past six days:
Hence, O brahmin, I am happy. [171]

10, 656 “Surely, brahmin, I do not have
A field of blighted sesamum plants,
Some with one leaf, some with two:
Hence, O brahmin, I am happy.

11, 657 “Surely, brahmin, I do not have
Rats inside an empty barn
Dancing around merrily:
Hence, O brahmin, I am happy.

12, 658 “Surely, brahmin, I do not have
A blanket that for seven months
Has been covered with swarms of vermin:
Hence, O brahmin, I am happy.

13, 659 “Surely, brahmin, I do not have
Seven daughters left for widows,
Some with one son, some with two:
Hence, O brahmin, I am happy.

14, 660 “Surely, brahmin, I do not have
A tawny wife with pockmarked face
Who wakes me up with a kick:
Hence, O brahmin, I am happy.

15, 661 “Surely, brahmin, I do not have
Creditors who call at dawn,
Chiding me, ‘Pay up! Pay up!’:
Hence, O brahmin, I am happy.”

16When this was said, the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama!”… And the Venerable Bhāradvāja became one of the arahants.457 Spk appends a story which relates how the Buddha took the brahmin (after his novice ordination) to King Pasenadi. The king repaid his debts, provided for the welfare of his daughters, and placed his wife in the position of his own grandmother, thereby removing the obstacles to his higher ordination as a bhikkhu. [172]

II. THE LAY FOLLOWERS

11. Kasi Bhāradvāja

1Thus have I heard.458 This sutta is also found at Sn I, 4 (pp. 12-16), but the prose portion adds the wonder of the sizzling cake described in 7 : 9 . It also has the brahmin request ordination as a bhikkhu and attain arahantship. It must have been a common subject for sermons, as the commentary to it is long and elaborate. It is also included in the Maha Pirit Pota, “The Great Book of Protection,” the standard collection of protective suttas used in Sri Lanka. On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling among the Magadhans at Dakkhiṇāgiri near the brahmin village of Ekanāḷa. Now on that occasion the brahmin Kasi Bhāradvāja, Bhāradvāja the Ploughman, had five hundred ploughs fastened to their yokes at the time of sowing.459 Spk: He was called thus because he earned his living by ploughing. This occasion was not an ordinary work day but a special festival which marked the inception of the light-soil sowing (paṁsuvappa). Spk gives a detailed account of the preparations and the festival activities. Then, in the morning, the Blessed One dressed and, taking bowl and robe, went to the place where the brahmin Kasi Bhāradvāja was at work.

2Now on that occasion the brahmin Kasi Bhāradvāja’s food distribution was taking place.460 Spk: At the food distribution (parivesanā) five hundred ploughmen had taken silver vessels, etc., and were sitting while the food was being distributed to them. Then the Buddha arrived and stood in a high place within range of the brahmin, close enough so that they could easily converse. Then the Blessed One approached the place of the food distribution and stood to one side. The brahmin Kasi Bhāradvāja saw the Blessed One standing for alms and said to him:

3“Recluse, I plough and sow, and when I have ploughed and sown I eat. You too, ascetic, ought to plough and sow; then, when you have ploughed and sown, you will eat.”

4“I too, brahmin, plough and sow, and when I have ploughed and sown I eat.”

5“But we do not see Master Gotama’s yoke or plough or ploughshare or goad or oxen; yet Master Gotama says, ‘I too, brahmin, plough and sow, and when I have ploughed and sown I eat.’”

6Then the brahmin Kasi Bhāradvāja addressed the Blessed One in verse:

7, 662 “You claim to be a man who works the plough,
But I do not see your ploughing.
If you’re a ploughman, answer me:
How should we understand your ploughing?”

[The Blessed One:]

8, 663 “Faith is the seed, austerity the rain,
Wisdom my yoke and plough;
Shame is the pole, mind the yoke-tie,
Mindfulness my ploughshare and goad.461 Spk: Why did the Blessed One begin with faith? Because this brahmin was reputed to be intelligent (paññavā) but was deficient in faith. Thus a talk on faith would be helpful to him. Why is faith called the seed (saddhā bījaṁ)? Because it is the foundation of all wholesome qualities. When a seed is planted in the ground, it becomes established by its root and sends up a sprout. Through the root it absorbs the soil’s nutrients and water, and it grows through the stalk in order to yield the grain. Coming to growth and maturity, it finally produces a head bearing many rice grains. So faith becomes established with the root of virtue and sends up the sprout of serenity and insight. Absorbing the nutrients of serenity and insight through the root of virtue, it grows through the stalk of the noble path to yield the crop of the noble fruits. Finally, after coming to growth through six stages of purification, and producing the sap of purification by knowledge and vision, it culminates in the fruit of arahantship bearing many discriminating knowledges and direct knowledges (anekapaṭisambhidābhiññā). Therefore it is said, “Faith is the seed.” On austerity (tapa), see n. 119. Spk: Here sense restraint is intended. Wisdom (paññā) is insight together with path-wisdom. Just as the brahmin has a yoke and plough, so the Blessed One has the twofold insight and (path-)wisdom. Spk devotes several pages to the analogy between path factors and ploughing implements. I adopt the renderings of ploughing terms from GD, p. 9.

9, 664 “Guarded in body, guarded in speech,
Controlled in my appetite for food,
I use truth as my weeding-hook,
And gentleness as my unyoking.462 Spk: In some places gentleness (soracca) denotes bodily and verbal nontransgression, but this is not intended here. Here the fruit of arahantship is intended, for that is called soracca (the abstract noun of su + rata) because it finds delight in the good Nibbāna (sundare nibbāne ratattā). What he is saying is this: “By attaining arahantship at the foot of the Bodhi Tree, I am released, and never again must I come under the yoke.” [173]

10, 665 “Energy is my beast of burden,
Carrying me to security from bondage.
It goes ahead without stopping
To where, having gone, one does not sorrow .463 Spk explains yogakkhema as Nibbāna “because it is secure from the bonds” (yogehi khemattā). The four bonds are identical with the four floods, on which see n. 1. For a discussion of the literary history of yogakkhema, see EV I, n. to 32. To where, having gone, one does not sorrow (yattha gantvā na socati). Spk: It goes to the unconditioned state known as Nibbāna, which is the extraction of all the darts of sorrow.

11, 666 “In such a way this ploughing is done
Which has the Deathless as its fruit.
Having finished this work of ploughing,
One is released from all suffering.”

12“Let Master Gotama eat! The worthy is a ploughman, since Master Gotama does ploughing that has even the Deathless as its fruit.”

13, 667-68 “Food over which verses have been sung
… (verses = 636-37) …
For he is the field for one seeking merit.”

14When this was said, the brahmin Kasi Bhāradvāja said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama! The Dhamma has been made clear in many ways by Master Gotama, as though he were turning upright what had been turned upside down, revealing what was hidden, showing the way to one who was lost, or holding up a lamp in the dark for those with eyesight to see forms. I go for refuge to Master Gotama, and to the Dhamma, and to the Bhikkhu Saṅgha. Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who from today has gone for refuge for life.”

12. Udaya

1At Sāvatthī. Then, in the morning, the Blessed One dressed and, taking bowl and robe, approached the residence of the brahmin Udaya. Then the brahmin Udaya filled the Blessed One’s bowl with rice. A second time in the morning the Blessed One dressed and, taking bowl and robe, approached the residence of the brahmin Udaya…. A third time in the morning the Blessed One dressed and, taking bowl and robe, approached the residence of the brahmin Udaya.464 Spk explains that the phrases “a second time” and “a third time” mean the next day and the day after that. Although the text itself conveys the impression that the Buddha went to the same house for alms three times on the same morning, this would be contrary to proper monastic etiquette, so Spk must be reliable on this point. Then a third time the brahmin Udaya filled the Blessed One’s bowl with rice, [174] after which he said to the Blessed One: “This pesky ascetic Gotama keeps coming again and again.”465 Pakaṭṭhaka < Skt prakarṣaka, “harasser, disquieter,” from prakṛṣ, to trouble, to disturb (SED). Spk glosses with rasagiddha, “greedy for tastes.” Spk-pṭ explains: “He is dragged forward by craving for tastes” (rasataṇhāya pakaṭṭho).

[The Blessed One:]

2, 669 “Again and again, they sow the seed;
Again and again, the sky-god sends down rain;
Again and again, ploughmen plough the field;
Again and again, grain comes to the realm.

3, 670 “Again and again, the mendicants beg;
Again and again, the donors give;
When donors have given again and again,
Again and again they go to heaven.

4, 671 “Again and again, the dairy folk draw milk;
Again and again, the calf goes to its mother;
Again and again, one wearies and trembles;
Again and again, the dolt enters the womb;
Again and again, one is born and dies;
Again and again, they take one to the cemetery.

5, 672 “But when one has obtained the path
That leads to no more renewed existence,
Having become broad in wisdom,
One is not born again and again!”

6When this was said, the brahmin Udaya said to the Blessed One : “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama!… Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower Gotama!... Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who from today has gone for refuge for life.”

13. Devahita

1At Sāvatthī. Now on that occasion the Blessed One was afflicted by winds and the Venerable Upavāṇa was his attendant.466 That is, he was afflicted by an illness arisen from the wind humour, one of the three bodily humours according to the ancient Indian system of ayurvedic medicine; on wind as one of the eight causes of illness, see 36:21. Spk: The Buddha was prone to occasional gastric ailments as a consequence of his six years of ascetic practices before his enlightenment.
Then the Blessed One addressed the Venerable Upavāṇa thus: “Come now, Upavāṇa, find some hot water for me.”

2“Yes, venerable sir,” the Venerable Upavāṇa replied. Then he dressed and, taking bowl and robe, went to the residence of the brahmin Devahita, where he stood silently to one side. The brahmin Devahita saw the Venerable Upavāṇa standing silently to one side and addressed him in verse: [175]

3, 673 “Silent, the worthy one stands,
Shaven-headed, clad in a stitched robe.
What do you want, what do you seek,
What have you come here to beg?”

[The Venerable Upavāṇa:]

4, 674 “The Arahant, the Fortunate One in the world,
The Sage, is afflicted with winds.
If there is any hot water, brahmin,
Please give it for the Sage.

5, 675 “He is worshipped by those worthy of worship,
Honoured by those worthy of honour,
Respected by those worthy of respect:
It is to him that I wish to take it.”

6Then the brahmin Devahita ordered a man to bring a carrying pole with hot water and presented a bag of molasses to the Venerable Upavāṇa. Then the Venerable Upavāṇa approached the Blessed One. He had the Blessed One bathed with the hot water, and he mixed the molasses with hot water and offered it to him. Then the Blessed One’s ailment subsided.

7Then the brahmin Devahita approached the Blessed One and exchanged greetings with him, after which he sat down to one side and addressed the Blessed One in verse:

8, 676 “Where should one give a proper gift?
Where does a gift bear great fruit?
How, for one bestowing alms,
Does an offering bring success—just how?”467 For a full analysis of the two questions, see 3:24 and nn. 253, 254. I take kathaṁ in pāda d here, and evaṁ in v. 678d, to be mere metrical fillers.. I take kathaṁ in pāda d here, and evaṁ in v. 678d, to be mere metrical fillers.

[The Blessed One:]

9, 677 “One who has known his past abodes,
Who sees heaven and the plane of woe,
Who has reached the destruction of birth,
A sage consummate in direct knowledge:

10, 678 Here one should give a proper gift,
Here a gift bears great fruit.
That’s how, for one bestowing alms,
An offering brings success—just so!”

11When this was said, the brahmin Devahita said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent , Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama!… Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who from today has gone for refuge for life.”

14. The Affluent One

1At Sāvatthī.468 A much more elaborate version of the same encounter is found at Dhp-a IV 7-15, where it forms the background story to Dhp 324; see BL 3:201-5. The story is incorporated into Spk. Then a certain affluent brahmin, shabby, clad in a shabby cloak, [176] approached the Blessed One and exchanged greetings with him. When they had concluded their greetings and cordial talk, he sat down to one side, and the Blessed One then said to him: “Why now, brahmin, are you so shabby, clad in a shabby cloak?”

2“Here, Master Gotama, my four sons, instigated by their wives, have expelled me from the house.”

3“Well then, brahmin, learn these verses and recite them when the multitude has assembled in the meeting hall with your sons sitting together there:

4, 679 “Those at whose birth I took delight
And whose success I much desired,
Being instigated by their wives,
Chase me out as dogs chase swine.

5, 680 “These evil fellows are indeed mean,
Although they call me, ‘Dad, dear Dad.’
They’re demons in the guise of sons
To abandon me when I’ve grown old.

6, 681 “As an old horse of no more use
Is led away from its fodder,
So the old father of those boys
Begs for alms at others’ homes.

7, 682 “Better for me is the staff I use
Than those disobedient sons;
For the staff drives off the wild bull
And drives away the wild dog.

8, 683 “In the dark it goes before me,
In the deep it gives me support.
By the gracious power of the staff,
If I stumble I still stand firm.”

9Then that affluent brahmin, having learned these verses in the presence of the Blessed One, recited them when the multitude had assembled in the meeting hall with his sons sitting together there:

10, 684-88 “Those at whose birth I took delight …
If I stumble I still stand firm.” [177]

11Then the sons led that affluent brahmin to their house, bathed him, and each gave him a pair of clothes. Then that affluent brahmin, having taken one pair of clothes, approached the Blessed One and exchanged greetings with him. Then he sat down to one side and said to the Blessed One: “Master Gotama, we brahmins seek a teacher’s fee for our teacher. Let Master Gotama accept a teacher’s fee from me.” The Blessed One accepted out of compassion.

12Then that affluent brahmin said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama!… Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who from today has gone for refuge for life.”

15. Mānatthaddha

1At Sāvatthī. Now on that occasion a brahmin named Mānatthaddha, Stiff with Conceit, was residing at Sāvatthī.469 Th-a II 179-80 relates exactly the same story about the elder Jenta (Th 423-28), the son of the king of Kosala’s chaplain. In his youth he was stiff with conceit (mānatthaddha, used as a description, not a name), but was humbled by the Buddha with exactly the same exchange of verses as is related here. He became a stream-enterer on hearing the Buddha’s verses, went forth as a bhikkhu, and attained arahantship. He did not pay homage to his mother or father, nor to his teacher or eldest brother. Now on that occasion the Blessed One was teaching the Dhamma surrounded by a large assembly. Then it occurred to the brahmin Mānatthaddha: “This ascetic Gotama is teaching the Dhamma surrounded by a large assembly. Let me approach him. If the ascetic Gotama addresses me, then I will address him in turn. But if he does not address me, neither will I address him.”

2Then the brahmin Mānatthaddha approached the Blessed One and stood silently to one side, but the Blessed One did not address him. Then the brahmin Mānatthaddha, thinking, “This ascetic Gotama doesn’t know anything,”470 Spk: He thought, “When a brahmin of high birth like myself has arrived, this ascetic does not show me any special courtesy; therefore he does not know anything.” wanted to turn back, [178] but the Blessed One, having known with his own mind the reflection in the brahmin’s mind, addressed the brahmin Mānatthaddha in verse:

3, 689 “The fostering of conceit is never good
For one keen on his welfare, brahmin.
You should instead foster that purpose
Because of which you’ve come here.”471 In pāda a, it seems better to read mānabrūhaṇā, with Se and Ee2, as against mānaṁ brāhmaṇa in Be and Ee1. The version at Th-a reads brāhmaṇa in all three eds. available to me.

4Then the brahmin Mānatthaddha, thinking, “The ascetic Gotama knows my mind,” prostrated himself right there with his head at the Blessed One’s feet. He kissed the Blessed One’s feet, stroked them with his hands, and announced his name thus: “I am Mānatthaddha, Master Gotama! I am Mānatthaddha, Master Gotama!”

5Then that assembly was struck with amazement and the people said: “It is wonderful indeed, sir! It is amazing indeed, sir! This brahmin Mānatthaddha does not pay homage to his mother and father, nor to his teacher or eldest brother, yet he shows such supreme honour towards the ascetic Gotama.”472 Evarūpaṁ paramanipaccākāraṁ karoti. The expression occurs at MN II 120,6, referring to the same kind of action (shown by King Pasenadi towards the Buddha); see too 48:58, which discusses the reason an arahant shows “supreme honour” towards the Buddha and his teaching.

6Then the Blessed One said to the brahmin Mānatthaddha: “Enough, brahmin! Get up and sit in your own seat, as your mind has confidence in me.”

7Then the brahmin Mānatthaddha sat down in his own seat and addressed the Blessed One in verse:

8, 690 “Towards whom should one avoid conceit?
Towards whom should one show reverence?
To whom should one be ever respectful?
Whom is it proper to venerate deeply?”

[The Blessed One:]

9, 691 “First one’s own mother and father,
Then one’s eldest family brother,
Then one’s teacher as the fourth:
Towards these one should avoid conceit;
Towards these one should be reverential;
These should be well respected;
These it is good to venerate deeply.

10, 692 “Having struck down conceit, humble,
One should pay homage to the arahants,
Those cool of heart, their tasks done,
The taintless ones, unsurpassed.”

11When this was said, the brahmin Mānatthaddha said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama!… Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who from today has gone for refuge for life.” [179]

16. Paccanīka

1At Sāvatthī. Now on that occasion a brahmin named Paccanīkasāta, Relisher of Contradiction, was residing at Sāvatthī. Then it occurred to the brahmin Paccanīkasāta: “Let me approach the ascetic Gotama and contradict whatever he says.”

2Now on that occasion the Blessed One was walking back and forth in the open. Then the brahmin Paccanīkasāta approached the Blessed One and said to him while he was walking back and forth: “Speak Dhamma, ascetic!”

[The Blessed One:]

3, 693 “Well-spoken counsel is hard to understand
By one who relishes contradiction,
By one with a corrupt mind
Who is engrossed in aggression.

4, 694 “But if one has removed aggression
And the distrust of one’s heart,
If one has cast away aversion,
One can understand well-spoken counsel.”

5When this was said, the brahmin Paccanīkasāta said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama!… Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who from today has gone for refuge for life.”

17. Navakammika

1On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling among the Kosalans in a certain woodland thicket. Now on that occasion the brahmin Navakammika Bhāradvāja was getting some work done in that woodland thicket.473 Spk : He was called Navakammika (“New Works”) because he earned his living by felling timber in the forest, seasoning the wood for construction work, and selling it in the city. The brahmin Navakammika Bhāradvāja saw the Blessed One sitting at the foot of a certain sal tree with his legs folded crosswise, holding his body erect, having set up mindfulness in front of him. Having seen him, he thought: “I take delight in getting work done in this woodland thicket. What does this ascetic Gotama take delight in getting done?”

2Then the brahmin Navakammika Bhāradvāja approached the Blessed One [180] and addressed him in verse:

3, 695 “With what kind of work are you engaged
Here in this sal woods, bhikkhu,
By reason of which you find delight
Alone in the forest, Gotama?”

[The Blessed One:]

4, 696 “There is nothing in the woods I need to do;
Cut down at the root, my woods is dried up.
Woodless and dartless, discontent cast off,
I find delight alone in the woods.”474 In pāda b, ucchinnamūlaṁ appears often in a stock formula describing the arahant’s liberation from defilements (e.g., 12:35 (II 62,20-63,11); 22:3 (III 10,27, 33); 35:104 (IV 85,9, 14); 54:12 (V 327,26-328,6)); thus the allusion, already obvious, is made explicit by Spk: “The woods of defilements is cut down at its root.” In pāda b, I follow the SS reading visukkhaṁ, “dried up,” also adopted by Ee2, over Be and Se visūkaṁ and Ee1 visukaṁ. Spk glosses nibbanatho in pāda c with nikkilesavano. This involves a pun difficult to reproduce in translation. Literally, vanatha means a woods, but the word is often used to signify, metaphorically, “the woods of defilements,” particularly craving. Here I have translated nibbanatha as “woodless” to preserve the pun. At v. 712, however, where the literal meaning has little bearing on the verse as a whole, I have rendered nibbanatha by way of its metaphorical meaning. Analogous puns on vana and vanatha are at 14:16 (see too II, n. 245), and also at Dhp 283-84 and 344 (which, incidentally, answer Norman’s puzzling observation at EV I, n. to 338, that the canon seems not to include any example of a pun on the double meaning of vanatha to match the puns upon vana). The Buddha is “dartless” (visallo) because he has extracted the dart of craving (see v. 214c).

5When this was said, the brahmin Navakammika Bhāradvāja said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama!… Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who from today has gone for refuge for life.”

18. The Wood Gatherers

1On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling among the Kosalans in a certain woodland thicket. Now on that occasion a number of brahmin boys, students of a certain brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan, approached that woodland thicket while collecting firewood. Having approached, they saw the Blessed One sitting in that woodland thicket with his legs folded crosswise, holding his body erect, having set up mindfulness in front of him. Having seen him, they approached the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan and said to him: “See now, master, you should know that in such and such a woodland thicket an ascetic is sitting with his legs folded crosswise, holding his body erect, having set up mindfulness in front of him.”

2Then the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan, together with those brahmin boys, went to that woodland thicket. He saw the Blessed One sitting there … … having set up mindfulness in front of him. He then approached the Blessed One and addressed him in verse:

3, 697 “Having entered the empty, desolate forest,
Deep in the woods where many terrors lurk, [181]
With a motionless body, steady, lovely,
How you meditate, bhikkhu, so beautifully!475 In the third line I supply “body” in deference to Spk, which explains the instrumentals as qualifying the body (kāyavisesanāni). Spk glosses sucārurūpaṁ with atisundaraṁ.

4, 698 “In the forest where no song or music sounds,
A solitary sage has resorted to the woods!
This strikes me as a wonder—that you dwell
With joyful mind alone in the woods.

5, 699 “I suppose you desire the supreme triple heaven,
The company of the world’s divine lord.
Therefore you resort to the desolate forest:
You practise penance here for attaining Brahmā.ʺ476 Spk: The world’s divine lord (lokādhipati) is Mahābrahmā, the supreme triple heaven (tidivam anuttaraṁ ) is said with reference to the brahmā world. I translate pādas cd as an assertion based on the v.l. tasmā found in some SS and adopted by Ee2 rather than as a question signalled by kasmā, the reading in Be, Se, and Ee1.

[The Blessed One:]

6, 700 “Whatever be the many desires and delights
That are always attached to the manifold elements,
The longings sprung from the root of unknowing:
All I have demolished along with their root.477 Spk explains desires (kaṅkhā), delights (abhinandanā), and longings (pajappitā) as modes of craving (taṇhā). The root of unknowing (aññāṇamūla) is ignorance (avijjā). A parallel to this verse is at Nett 24 and Peṭ 17, but with pāda a reading āsā pihā ca abhinandanā ca.

7, 701 “I am desireless, unattached, disengaged;
My vision of all things has been purified.
Having attained the auspicious—supreme enlightenment—
Self-confident, brahmin, I meditate alone.”478 In pāda a, I read asito with Be, Se, and Ee2, as against Ee1 apiho, “without envy.” Spk takes “my purified vision of all things” to be an allusion to the knowledge of omniscience. In pāda c, it glosses sivaṁ with seṭṭhaṁ, and sambodhim anuttaraṁ with arahatta.

8When this was said, the brahmin of the Bhāradvāja clan said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama!… Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who from today has gone for refuge for life.”

19. The Mother Supporter

1 At Sāvatthī. Then a brahmin who supported his mother approached the Blessed One … and said to him: “Master Gotama, I seek almsfood righteously and thereby support my mother and father. In doing so, am I doing my duty?”

2“For sure, brahmin, in doing so you are doing your duty. One who seeks almsfood righteously [182] and thereby supports his mother and father generates much merit.

3, 702 “When a mortal righteously supports his parents,
Because of this service to them
The wise praise him here in this world,
And after death he rejoices in heaven.”

4When this was said, the brahmin who supported his mother said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama!… Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who from today has gone for refuge for life.”

20. The Mendicant

1At Sāvatthī. Then a mendicant brahmin approached the Blessed One … and said to him: “Master Gotama, I am a mendicant and you are a mendicant. What is the difference between us in this respect?”479 “Mendicant” is a rendering of bhikkhaka, which is of course related to bhikkhu, a fully ordained Buddhist monk.

[The Blessed One:]

2, 703 “It is not thus that one becomes a mendicant,
Just because one begs others for alms.
If one has taken up a domestic practice,
One still has not become a bhikkhu.480 Ee1 bhikkhavo in pāda b should be amended to bhikkhate. Spk explains vissaṁ dhammaṁ in the next pāda as duggandhaṁ akusaladhammaṁ , “a foul smelling unwholesome state,” assuming that vissa < Skt visra, raw meat. Spk-pṭ adds: “It produces a putrid smell, thus it is vissa, i.e., foul smelling” (virūpaṁ gandhaṁ pasavatī ti visso duggandho). Dhp-a III 393,2 (commenting on the verse at Dhp 266) says: “Vissa is an uneven doctrine (visamaṁ dhammaṁ); or else, a putrid-smelling state of bodily action, etc. (vissagandhaṁ vā kāyakammādikaṁ dhammaṁ), having undertaken which one is not called a bhikkhu.” As Brough points out, however, the original Pāli term is probably derived from Vedic veśman , domestic (Gāndhārī Dharmapada , pp. 191-92, n. to 67). Vesma occurs in Pāli at Ja V 84,17. Uv 32:18, the Skt parallel to the present verse, has veśmāṁ dharmaṁ. In the next verse, in pāda b, I read brahmacariyavā, with Se and SS, as against brahmacariyaṁ in the other eds. The latter does not seem to fit into the syntax, as it is neither subject nor object of the verb. Since the Buddha here defines a bhikkhu as one who has expelled both merit and evil (puññañ ca pāpañ ca bāhitvā), this means he is equating the real monk solely with the arahant.

3, 704 “But one here who leads the holy life,
Having expelled merit and evil,
Who fares in the world with comprehension:
He is truly called a bhikkhu.”

4When this was said, the mendicant brahmin said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama!… Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who from today has gone for refuge for life.”

21. Saṅgārava

1At Sāvatthī. Now on that occasion a brahmin named Saṅgārava was residing at Sāvatthī. He was a practitioner of water-purification, one who believed in purification by water, who dwelt devoted to the practice of immersing himself in water at dusk and at dawn.

2Then, in the morning, the Venerable Ānanda dressed and, taking bowl and robe, entered Sāvatthī for alms. Having walked for alms in Sāvatthī, when he had returned from his alms round, after his meal he approached the Blessed One, paid homage to him, sat down to one side, [183] and said to him:

3“Here, venerable sir, a brahmin named Saṅgārava is residing at Sāvatthī. He is a practitioner of water-purification … devoted to the practice of immersing himself in water at dusk and at dawn. It would be good, venerable sir, if the Blessed One would approach the residence of the brahmin Saṅgārava out of compassion.” The Blessed One consented by silence.

4Then, in the morning, the Blessed One dressed and, taking bowl and robe, approached the brahmin Saṅgārava’s residence, where he sat down in the appointed seat. Then the brahmin Saṅgārava approached the Blessed One and exchanged greetings with him, after which he sat down to one side. The Blessed One then said to him: “Is it true, brahmin, that you are a practitioner of water-purification, one who believes in purification by water, devoted to the practice of immersing yourself in water at dusk and at dawn?”

5“Yes, Master Gotama.”

6“Considering what benefit do you do this, brahmin?”

7“Here, Master Gotama, whatever evil deed I have done during the day I wash away by bathing at dusk. Whatever evil deed I have done at night I wash away by bathing at dawn.”

[The Blessed One:]

8, 705 “The Dhamma, brahmin, is a lake with fords of virtue—
A limpid lake the good praise to the good—
Where the knowledge-masters go to bathe,
And, dry-limbed, cross to the far shore.”481 See n. 453.

9When this was said, the brahmin Saṅgārava said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama!… Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who from today has gone for refuge for life.” [184]

22. Khomadussa

1Thus have I heard. On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling among the Sakyans where there was a town of the Sakyans named Khomadussa.482 The name Khomadussa means “linen cloth.” Spk says that the town was given this name because of the prevalence of linen there. From what follows it seems the town was a brahmin enclave in the predominantly khattiya Sakyan republic. In the irate reaction of the brahmins to the Buddha’s arrival on the scene we can detect a note of hostility rooted in caste prejudice. Then the Blessed One dressed and, taking bowl and robe, entered Khomadussa for alms.

2Now on that occasion the brahmin householders of Khomadussa had assembled in council on some business matter while it was drizzling. Then the Blessed One approached the council. The brahmin householders of Khomadussa saw the Blessed One coming in the distance and said: “Who are these shaveling ascetics? Don’t they know the rule of order?”483 My rendering is not strictly literal but is intended to convey the sense of indignation. Spk: The “rule of order” (sabhādhammaṁ, lit. “rule of the council”) was that late-comers should enter through a side entrance so as not to disturb those comfortably settled in their seats. But the Buddha entered from the front, so the brahmins spoke scornfully. The Buddha picks up on the the word dhamma, in the sense of rule, and speaks with reference to the true doctrine. There is also a pun on sabhā as council (or meeting hall) and santo as the good ones. According to Spk, the Buddha had caused the rain to fall by an act of will to give himself a reason for entering the meeting hall. A clearer example of rain created by psychic power is at 41:4.

3Then the Blessed One addressed the brahmin householders of Khomadussa in verse:

4, 706 “That is no council where the good are absent;
They are not the good who don’t speak Dhamma.
But having abandoned lust, hate, and delusion,
Those speaking on Dhamma are alone the good.”

5When this was said, the brahmin householders of Khomadussa said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama! The Dhamma has been made clear in many ways by Master Gotama, as though he were turning upright what had been turned upside down, revealing what was hidden, showing the way to one who was lost, or holding up a lamp in the dark for those with eyesight to see forms. We go for refuge to Master Gotama, and to the Dhamma, and to the Bhikkhu Saṅgha. Let Master Gotama remember us as lay followers who from today have gone for refuge for life.”

[185]