Udāyittheragāthā

Theragāthā 15.2

Verses of the Senior Monks 15.2

Soḷasakanipāta

The Book of the Sixteens

Paṭhamavagga

Chapter One

Udāyittheragāthā

Udāyī

“Manussabhūtaṁ sambuddhaṁ,

Awakened as a human being,

Attadantaṁ samāhitaṁ;

self-tamed and immersed in samādhi,

Iriyamānaṁ brahmapathe,

following the spiritual path,

Cittassūpasame rataṁ.

he loves peace of mind.

Yaṁ manussā namassanti,

Revered by people,

sabbadhammāna pāraguṁ;

gone beyond all things,

Devāpi taṁ namassanti,

even the gods revere him;

iti me arahato sutaṁ.

so I’ve heard from the perfected one.

Sabbasaṁyojanātītaṁ,

He has transcended all fetters,

vanā nibbanamāgataṁ;

and escaped from entanglements.

Kāmehi nekkhammarataṁ,

Delighting to renounce sensual pleasures,

muttaṁ selāva kañcanaṁ.

he’s freed like lustrous gold from stone.

Sa ve accaruci nāgo,

That giant outshines all,

himavāvaññe siluccaye;

like the Himalaya beside other mountains.

Sabbesaṁ nāganāmānaṁ,

Of all those named “giant”,

saccanāmo anuttaro.

he is truly named, supreme.

Nāgaṁ vo kittayissāmi,

I shall extol the giant for you,

na hi āguṁ karoti so;

for he does nothing monstrous.

Soraccaṁ avihiṁsā ca,

gentleness and harmlessness

pādā nāgassa te duve.

are two feet of the giant.

Sati ca sampajaññañca,

Mindfulness and awareness

caraṇā nāgassa tepare;

are his two other feet.

Saddhāhattho mahānāgo,

Faith is the giant’s trunk,

upekkhāsetadantavā.

and equanimity his white tusks.

Sati gīvā siro paññā,

Mindfulness is his neck, his head is wisdom—

vīmaṁsā dhammacintanā;

investigation and thinking about principles.

Dhammakucchisamāvāso,

His belly is the sacred hearth of the Dhamma,

viveko tassa vāladhi.

and his tail is seclusion.

So jhāyī assāsarato,

Practicing absorption, enjoying the breath,

ajjhattaṁ susamāhito;

he is serene within.

Gacchaṁ samāhito nāgo,

The giant is serene when walking,

ṭhito nāgo samāhito.

the giant is serene when standing,

Sayaṁ samāhito nāgo,

the giant is serene when lying down,

nisinnopi samāhito;

and when sitting, the giant is serene.

Sabbattha saṁvuto nāgo,

The giant is restrained everywhere:

esā nāgassa sampadā.

this is the accomplishment of the giant.

Bhuñjati anavajjāni,

He eats blameless things,

sāvajjāni na bhuñjati;

he doesn’t eat blameworthy things.

Ghāsamacchādanaṁ laddhā,

When he gets food and clothes,

sannidhiṁ parivajjayaṁ.

he avoids storing them up.

Saṁyojanaṁ aṇuṁ thūlaṁ,

Having severed all bonds,

sabbaṁ chetvāna bandhanaṁ;

fetters large and small,

Yena yeneva gacchati,

wherever he goes,

anapekkhova gacchati.

he goes without concern.

Yathāpi udake jātaṁ,

A white lotus,

puṇḍarīkaṁ pavaḍḍhati;

fragrant and delightful,

Nopalippati toyena,

sprouts in water and grows there,

sucigandhaṁ manoramaṁ.

but the water doesn’t cling to it.

Tatheva ca loke jāto,

Just so the Buddha is born in the world,

buddho loke viharati;

and lives in the world,

Nopalippati lokena,

but the world doesn’t stick to him,

toyena padumaṁ yathā.

as water does not stick to the lotus.

Mahāgini pajjalito,

A great blazing fire

anāhāropasammati;

dies down when the fuel runs out.

Aṅgāresu ca santesu,

And when the coals have gone out

nibbutoti pavuccati.

it’s said to be “quenched”.

Atthassāyaṁ viññāpanī,

This simile is taught by the discerning

upamā viññūhi desitā;

to express the meaning clearly.

Viññissanti mahānāgā,

Great giants will understand

nāgaṁ nāgena desitaṁ.

what the giant taught the giant.

Vītarāgo vītadoso,

Free of greed, free of hate,

Vītamoho anāsavo;

free of delusion, undefiled;

Sarīraṁ vijahaṁ nāgo,

the giant, giving up his body,

Parinibbissatyanāsavo”ti.

undefiled, will be fully quenched.

… Udāyī thero …

Soḷasakanipāto niṭṭhito.

Tatruddānaṁ

Koṇḍañño ca udāyī ca,

therā dve te mahiddhikā;

Soḷasamhi nipātamhi,

gāthāyo dve ca tiṁsa cāti.