The East: Confucianism Taoism Buddhism
The West: Stoicism Epicureanism Christianity
The East: Confucianism
Taoism Buddhism
The West: Stoicism
Epicureanism Christianity
BOOKS 1-9 BOOKS 10-18 BOOKS 19-26
X: PUNISHMENT
129. All fear the rod, all quake at death. Judge then by thyself, and forbear from slaughter, or from causing to slay.
130. To all is life dear. Judge then by thyself, and forbear to slay or to cause slaughter.
131. Whoso himself desires joy, yet hurts them who love joy, shall not obtain it hereafter.
132. Whoso himself desires joy and hurts not them who love it, shall hereafter attain to joy.
133. Speak not harshly to any one: else will men turn upon you. Sad are the words of strife: retribution will follow them.
134. Be silent as a broken gong: so wilt thou reach peace; for strife is not found in thee.
135. As the herdsman drives out his cows to the pasture, so Old Age and Death drive out the life of men.
136. Verily the fool sins and knows it not: by his own deeds is the fool tormented as by fire.
137. He who strikes those who strike not and are innocent will come speedily to one of these ten states:
138. To cruel torment, loss, accident, severe illness, and madness he will come:
139. To visitation from the King, grievous slander, loss of kith and kin, and perishing of his wealth he will come:
140. Ravaging fire will destroy his houses, and after death the poor wretch will go to hell.
141. Not nakedness, nor matted hair, not dirt, nor fastings, not sleeping in sanctuaries, nor ashes, nor ascetic posture—none of these things purifies a man who is not free from doubt.
142. If even a fop fosters the serene mind, calm and controlled, pious and pure, and does no hurt to any living thing, he is the Brahmin he is the Samana, he is the Bhikkhu.
143. Is there in all the world a man so modest that he provokes no blame, as a noble steed never deserves the whip? As a noble steed stung by the whip, be ye spirited and swift.
144. By faith, by righteousness, by manliness, by meditation, by just judgment, by theory and practice, by mindfulness, leave aside sorrow—no slight burden.
145. Engineers control the water, fletchers fashion their shafts, carpenters shape the wood: it is themselves that the pious fashion and control.
XI: OLD AGE
146. Where is the joy, what the pleasure, whilst all is in flames? Benighted, would ye not seek a torch?
147. Look at this painted image, wounded and swollen, sickly and full of lust, in which there is no permanence;
148. This wasted form is a nest of disease and very frail: it is full of putrid matter and perishes. Death is the end of life.
149. What delight is there for him who sees these grey bones scattered like gourds in autumn?
150. Here is a citadel of bones plastered with flesh and blood, and manned by old age and death, self-will and enmity.
151. As even the king's bright chariot grows old, so the body of man also comes to old age. But the law of the holy never ages: the holy teach it to the holy.
152. The simpleton ages like the ox: his weight increases, but not his wisdom.
153. Many births have I traversed seeking the builder; in vain! Weary is the round of births.
154. Now art thou seen, O Builder. Nevermore shalt thou build the house! All thy beams are broken; cast down is thy cornerstone. My mind is set upon Nirvāna; it has attained the extinction of desire.
155. They who have not lived purely nor stored up riches in their youth, these ruefully ponder, as old herons by a lake without fish.
156. They who have not lived purely nor stored up riches in their youth, are as arrows that are shot in vain: they mourn for the past.
XII: SELF
157. If a man love himself, let him diligently watch himself: the wise will keep vigil for one of the three watches of the night.
158. Keep first thyself aright: then mayest thou advise others. So is the wise man unblameable.
159. If one so shapes his own life as he directs others, himself controlled, he will duly control others: self, they say, is hard to tame.
160. A man is his own helper; who else is there to help? By self-control man is a rare help to himself.
161. The ill that is begun and has its growth and its being in self, bruises the foolish one, as the diamond pierces its own matrix.
162. As the creeper overpowers the tree, so he whose sin is great, works for himself the havoc his enemy would wish for him.
163. Ill is easy to do; it is easy to do harm: hard indeed it is to do helpful and good deeds.
164. Whoso fondly repudiates the teaching of the noble and virtuous Arahats, following false doctrine, is like the bamboo which bears fruit to its own destruction.
165. Thou art brought low by the evil thou hast done thyself; by the evil thou hast left undone art thou purified. Purity and impurity are things of man's inmost self; no man can purify another.
166. Even for great benefit to another let no man imperil his own benefit. When he has realised what is for his own good, let him pursue that earnestly.
XIII: THE WORLD
167. Let no man foster evil habits; let no man live in sloth: let none follow false doctrines, none prolong his sojourn in this world.
168. Up! Idle not, but follow after good. The good man lives happy in this world and the next.
169. Follow after virtue, not after vice. The virtuous live happy in this world and the next.
170. The king of Death sees not him who regards the world as a bubble, a mirage.
171. Come then, think of the world as a painted chariot of the king—a morass where fools are sinking, where the wise take no pleasure.
172. He who in former days was slothful, and has put off sloth, lights up the world as the moon freed of the clouds.
173. He who covers his idle deeds with goodness lights up the world as the moon freed of clouds.
174. Blinded are the men of this world; few there are who have eyes to see: few are the birds which escape the fowler's net; few are they who go to heaven.
175. Through the sky fly the swans: Rishis too pass through the air. The wise leave the world altogether, deserting Mara and his hosts.
176. There is no wrong he would not do who breaks one precept, speaking lies and mocking at the life to come.
177. Misers go not to the realm of gods: therefore he is a fool who does not delight in liberality. The wise delighting in liberality come thereby with gladness to the other world.
178. Good is kingship of the earth; good is birth in heaven; good is universal empire; better still is the fruit of conversion.
XIV: THE BUDDHA
179. Into his victory which is never reversed there enters no element of weakness; through what fault can you lead captive the faultless one, the Buddha whose sphere is Nirvāna?
180. By what fault will you lead captive the faultless Buddha, whose sphere is Nirvāna? In him are no clinging meshes of desire to lead him captive.
181. The gods themselves emulate the truly wise and mindful, who are busy in meditation and prudent, delighting in the peace of Nirvāna.
182. Arduous is human birth; arduous is mortal life: arduous is hearing of the Law: arduous the uprising of Buddhas.
183. "Eschew all evil: cherish good: cleanse your inmost thoughts"—this is the teaching of Buddhas.
184. "Patience and fortitude is the supreme asceticism: Nirvāna is above all," say the Buddhas. He is no recluse who harms others: nor is he who causes grief an ascetic (samana).
185. Hurt none by word or deed, be consistent in well-doing: be moderate in food, dwell in solitude, and give yourselves to meditation—this is the advice of Buddhas.
186. Not by a shower of gold is satisfaction of the senses found: "little pleasure, lasting pain," so thinks the sage.
187. The follower of the true Buddha finds no delight even in divine pleasures: but his joy is in the destruction of desire (tānhā).
188. Often do men in terror seek sanctuary in mountains or jungles, by sacred groves or trees;
189. In them is no safe sanctuary; in them is not the supreme sanctuary; in them is not that sanctuary whither a man may go and cast aside his cares.
190. But he who goes for sanctuary to the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha looks in his wisdom for the four noble truths:
191. "Sorrow, the arising of sorrow, the cessation of sorrow, and the noble eightfold path which leads to their cessation."
192. Here truly is the sure sanctuary: here is the supreme sanctuary: here is the sanctuary where a man may go and cast aside his care.
193. Hard to find is the Exalted One: he is not born in every place: happy dwells the household into which he, the wise one, is born:
194. A blessing is the arising of Buddhas, a blessing is the true preaching. Blessed is the unity of the Sangha, blessed is the devotion of those who dwell in unity.
195, 196. Immeasurable is the merit of him who does reverence to those to whom reverence is due, Buddha and his disciples, men who have left behind them the trammels of evil, and crossed beyond the stream of sorrow and wailing, calmed and free of all fear.
XV: BLISS
197. O Joy! We live in bliss; amongst men of hate, hating none. Let us indeed dwell among them without hatred.
198. O Joy! In bliss we dwell; healthy amidst the ailing. Let us indeed dwell amongst them in perfect health.
199. Yea in very bliss we dwell: free from care amidst the careworn. Let us indeed dwell amongst them without care.
200. In bliss we dwell possessing nothing: let us dwell feeding upon joy like the shining ones in their splendour.
201. The victor breeds enmity; the conquered sleeps in sorrow. Regardless of either victory or defeat the calm man dwells in peace.
202. There is no fire like lust; no luck so bad as hate. There is no sorrow like existence: no bliss greater than Nirvāna (rest).
203. Hunger is the greatest ill: existence is the greatest sorrow. Sure knowledge of this is Nirvāna, highest bliss.
204. Health is the greatest boon; content is the greatest wealth; a loyal friend is the truest kinsman; Nirvāna is the Supreme Bliss.
205. Having tasted the joy of solitude and of serenity, a man is freed from sorrow and from sin, and tastes the nectar of piety.
206. Good is the vision of the Noble; good is their company. He may be always happy who escapes the sight of fools.
207. He who consorts with fools knows lasting grief. Grievous is the company of fools, as that of enemies; glad is the company of the wise, as that of kinsfolk.
208. Therefore do thou consort with the wise, the sage, the learned, the noble ones who shun not the yoke of duty: follow in the wake of such a one, the wise and prudent, as the moon follows the path of the stars.
XVI: AFFECTION
209. He who gives himself to vanity and not to the truly profitable, shunning the true pursuit, and grasping at pleasure, will come to envy him who has sought the true profit.
210. Let no man cleave to what is pleasant or unpleasant: parting with the pleasant is pain, and painful is the presence of the unpleasant.
211. Take a liking to nothing; loss of the prize is evil. There are no bonds for him who has neither likes nor dislikes.
212. From attachment comes grief, from attachment comes fear. He who is pure from attachment knows neither grief nor fear.
213. From affection come grief and fear. He who is without affection knows neither grief nor fear.
214. From pleasure come grief and fear. He who is freed from pleasure knows neither grief nor fear.
215. From lust come grief and fear. He who is freed from lust knows neither grief nor fear.
216. From desire come grief and fear. He who is free of desire knows neither grief nor fear.
217. The man of counsel and insight, of righteousness and truth, who minds his own affairs, him the crowd holds dear.
218. If a man's heart be set upon the Ineffable (Nirvāna), his mind brought to perfection, and every thought freed from lust, he is called the strong swimmer who forges his way against the stream.
219. When, after long voyaging afar, one returns in safety home, kinsfolk and friends receive him gladly;
220. Even so his good deeds receive the good man, when he leaves this world for the next, as kinsfolk greet a dear traveller.
XVII: ANGER
221. Put away anger, eschew self-will, conquer every bond; no suffering touches him who does not cling to phenomenal existence, but calls nothing his own.
222. Whoso controls his rising anger as a running chariot, him I call the charioteer: the others only hold the reins.
223. By calmness let a man overcome wrath; let him overcome evil by good; the miser let him subdue by liberality, and the liar by truth.
224. Speak the truth, be not angry, give of thy poverty to the suppliant: by these three virtues a man attains to the company of the gods.
225. The innocent, the sages, those whose action is controlled, these go to the eternal state where they know not sorrow (Nirvāna).
226. All taints pass away from them who are ever vigilant and active day and night, with faces set towards Nirvāna.
227. This is an ancient law, O Atula, not the jaw of a day; men blame the silent and they blame the talker; even the man of few words they blame. No one in the world gets off unblamed.
228. There never was, nor will be, nor is there now to be found, one wholly blamed or wholly praised.
229, 230. But who is worthy to blame him whom the wise praise after daily scrutiny, who is himself wise and without blemish as a medal of purest gold? Even the gods seek to emulate such a one; even Brahma praises him.
231. Guard against evil deeds: control the body. Eschew evil deeds and do good.
232. Guard against evil words; control the tongue. Eschew evil words and speak good ones.
233. Guard against evil thoughts; control the mind. Eschew evil thoughts and think good ones.
234. The wise, controlled in act, in word, in thought, are well controlled indeed.
XVIII: SIN
235. Thou art withered as a sere leaf: Death's messengers await thee. Thou standest at the gate of death, and hast made no provision for the journey.
236. Make to thyself a refuge; come, strive and be prudent: when thy impurities are purged, thou shalt come into the heavenly abode of the Noble.
237. Thy life is ended; thou art come into the Presence of Death: there is no resting-place by the way, and thou hast no provision for the journey.
238. Make for thyself a refuge; come, strive and play the sage! Burn off thy taints, and thou shalt know birth and old age no more.
239. As a smith purifies silver in the fire, so bit by bit continually the sage burns away his impurities.
240. It is the iron's own rust that destroys it: it is the sinner's own acts that bring him to hell.
241. Disuse is the rust of mantras; laziness the rust of households; sloth is the rust of beauty; neglect is the watcher's ruin.
242. Impurity is the ruin of woman; and avarice the ruin of the giver: ill-deeds are the rust of this world and the next.
243. More corrosive than those is the rust of ignorance, the greatest of taints: put off this rust and be clean, O Bhikkhus.
244. Life is easy for the crafty and shameless, for the wanton, shrewd, and impure:
245. Hard it is for the modest, the lover of purity, the disinterested and simple and clean, the man of insight.
246, 247. The murderer, the liar, the thief, the adulterer, and the drunkard—these even in this world uproot themselves.
248. Know this, O man, evil is the undisciplined mind! See to it that greed and lawlessness bring not upon thee long suffering.
249. Men give according to faith or caprice. If a man fret because food and drink are given to another, he comes not day or night to serene meditation (i.e. Samādhi).
250. He in whom this (envious spirit) is destroyed and wholly uprooted, he truly day and night attains serene meditation.
251. There is no fire like lust, no ravenous beast like hatred, no snare like folly, no flood like desire.
252. To see another's fault is easy: to see one's own is hard. Men winnow the faults of others like chaff: their own they hide as a crafty gambler hides a losing throw.
253. The taints of this man are ever growing. He is far from the purification of taints (Arahatship), the censorious one who is ever blaming others.
254. There is no path through the sky: there is no "religious" apart from us. The world without delights in dalliance: the Blessed Ones are freed from this thrall.
255. There is no path through the sky; there is no "religious" apart from us. Nothing in the phenomenal world is lasting; but Buddhas endure immovable.
BOOKS 1-9 BOOKS 10-18 BOOKS 19-26
a project of John Trapp
