chap_9 chapter8.html chapter9.html chapter10.html TIRUKKURAL An Abridgement of Śāstras R. Nagaswamy 9. The Dhammapada Brāhmaṇavaggo — The Brāhmin S. Radhakrishnan
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1. chinda sotaṁ parakkamma kāme panuda brāhmaṇa saṅkhārānaṁ ñatvā akataññū si brāhmaṇa O Brāhmin, cut off the stream, be energetic, drive away desires. Knowing the destruction of all that is made (or the elements of existence) you know the uncreated, O Brāhmin! The term ‘Brāhmaṇa’ of the Vedas is accepted by Buddhists as a term for a saint, one who has attained final sanctification. The Brāhmin is one who casts his belief in the durable existence of the individual which is the basis of all pride and desire. Not by ritual and sacrifices, not by isolation and trance but by self-forgetfulness and active social service does one transcend the ego and become Brāhmin who knows the uncreated. The Buddha here distinguishes between the created, perishable, and the uncreated imperishable. 2. yada dvayeṣu dhammeṣu pāragū hoti brāhmaṇo ath' assa sabbe samyogā atthaṁ gacchanti jānato When the Brāhmin has reached the other shore in both laws, to him who knows all bonds vanish. The two laws refer to self-restraint and spiritual insight attained through meditation. 3. yassa pāram apāram vā pārāpāraṁ na vijjati vītadaraṁ visaññuttaṁ tam ahaṁ bṛūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call Brāhmin for whom there is neither this shore nor that shore, nor both, who is free from fear and free from shackles. 4. jhāyiṁ virajam āsinam, katakiccam anāsavam uttamattham anuppattaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call Brāhmin who is meditative, free from passion, settled, whose work is done, free from taints, and who has attained the highest end (of sainthood). 5. divā tapati ādicco, rattim ābhāti candimā sannddho khattiyo tapati, jhāyī tapati brāhmaṇo atha sabbam ahorattim buddho tapati tejasā The sun shines by the day, the moon lights up the night, the warrior shines in his armour, the Brāhmin shines in his meditation, but awakened shines all day and night by his radiance (of spirit). 6. bāhitapāpo ti brāhmaṇo samacariyā samaṇo ti vuccati pabbājayam attano malaṁ tasmā pabbajito ti vuccati Because he has put aside evil he is called Brāhmin; because he lives in serenity he is called samaṇa; because he puts away his impurities he is called pabbajita. These are fanciful derivations. Brāhmin is derived from bah, to put aside, drive away, samaṇa from sam, to be equal, pabbajita from pabbaj, to cast out. 7. na brāhmaṇassa pahareyya nāssa muñcetha brāhmaṇo dhī brāhmaṇassa hantāram tato dhī yassa muñcati One should not attack a Brāhmin; let not the Brāhmin free (his anger) on him (the evil-doer); woe to him who slays a Brāhmin and more woe to him who sets free (his anger) on him (the evil-doer). A Brāhmin should not return evil for evil. Even when struck he should not lose his temper. The Brāhmin should not take the life of any creature that breathes. The only blood that he can shed is his own if the giving up of his life would save or rescue a fellow creature. 8. na brāhmaṇass' etada kiñci seyyo yadā nisedho manaso piyehi yato yato hiṁsamano nivattati tato tato sammati-m-eva dukkham It is no slight benefit to a Brāhmin when he holds his mind back from the pleasures of life. Wherever the wish to injure desists, even if there is cessation of suffering. 9. yassa kāyena vācāya manasā n'atthi dukkatam saṁvutam tīhi ṭhānehi tam aham brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who is not hurt by body, speech, or mind, who is controlled in these three things. 10. yamhā dhammaṁ vijāneyya sammāsamhbuddhadesitam sakkaccaṁ tam namasseyya aggihuttaṁ va brāhmano Him who has understood the law as taught by the well-awakened (fully enlightened) one, him should man worship reverentially, even as the Brāhmin worships the sacrificial fire. We must honour him who teaches us the law of the Buddha. 11. na jaṭāhi na gottena na jaccā hoti brāhmano yamhi saccaṁ ca dhammo ca, so sukhi, so ca brāhmano Not by matted hair, not by lineage, not by caste does one become a Brāhmin. He is a Brāhmin in whom there are truth and righteousness. He is blessed. Vasala Sutta: 'Not by birth does one become an outcast; not by birth does one become a Brāhmin; by deeds, one becomes an outcast, by deeds one becomes a Brahmin'. Sundarikabhāradvāja Sutta: 'Do not ask about the descent, but ask about conduct; from wood, it is true, fire is born; (likewise) a firm sage, although belonging to a low family, may become noble when restrained (from sinning) by humility'. 12. kiṁ te jaṭāhi dummedha kiṁ te ajinasāiṭiyā? abbhantaraṁ te gahanam bāhiram parimajjasi What is the use of matted hair, O fool, what of the raiment of goat-skins? Thine inward nature is full of wickedness; the outside thou makest clean. 13. paṁsukūladharaṁ jantum kisaṁ, dhamanisanthatam ekaṁ vanasmiṁ jhāyantaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who wears cast-off garments, lean, spread over with veins, solitary, and who practices meditation in the forest. 14. na cāhami brāhmaṇaṁ brūmi yomijaṁ mattisaṁbhavam bhovādi nāma so hoti, sa ce hoti sakiṁcano akiṁcanam anādānaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam I do not call him a Brāhmin because of his origin or of his mother. If he be with goods he is called bhovāidi. Him I call a Brāhmin who is free from goods and free from attachment. bhovādi: One who says bho, the familiar form of address to inferiors or equals. Brāhmins generally address the Buddha as bho, while the Buddhists use bhante, 'lord'. The Brāhmins are called bhovādins or arrogant men who address even the Buddha with familiarity. The Buddhists use bhovādi as a term of reproach for the Brāhmins. 15. sabbasaṁyojanaṁ chetvā yo ve na paritassati sangātigaṁ visaṁyuttaṁ tam aham brūmi brāhmaṃam Him I call a Brāhmin who has cut all the fetters, who never trembles (in fear), who has passed beyond attachments, who is separated (from what is impure). 16. chetvā nandim varattaṁ ca sandānaṁ sahanukkamam ukkhittapaḷighaṁ buddhaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who has cut the strap and the thong and the chain with its appurtenances, who has burst the bar and is awakened. Hatred is the strap, desire is the thong, the sixty-three heretical doctrines are the chain, the appurtenances are doubt, ignorance, etc., and the bar is the bar of ignorance. 17. akkosaṁ vadhabandham ca aduṭṭhayo titikkhati khantībalaṁ balānīkaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who, though he has committed no offence, bears patiently reproach, ill-treatment, imprisonment; who has endurance for fis force and strength for his army. 18. akkodhanam vatavantaṁ sīlavantaṁ anussutam dantam antinasarīraṁ tam ahami brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who is free from anger, who is careful of religious duties, observes the moral rules, pure, controlled, and wears his last body. 19. vāri pokkharapatte va āragge-r-iva sāsapo yo na lippati kāmesu tam ahami brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who, like water on the leaf of a lotus or a mustard seed on the point of an awl, does not cling to pleasures. As water does not cling to the lotus leaf or a mustard seed to an awl point, the Brāhmin does not cling to pleasures. 20. yo dukkhassa pajāṇāti idh eva khayam attano pannabhāraṁ visaṁyuttaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam (20) Him I call a Brāhmin who, even here, knows the end of his suffering, who has laid aside his burden, who is detached. 21. gambhīrapaññaṁ medhāviṁ maggāmaggasa kovidam uttamattham anuppattaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin whose wisdom is deep, who possesses knowledge, who discerns the right way and the wrong, and who has attained the highest end. 22. asaṁsaṭṭhaṁ gahaṭṭhehi anāgārehi c'ūbhayam anokasārim appicchaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who keeps away from both householders (laymen) and the houseless (mendicants), who does not frequent houses and has but few wants. 23. midhāya daṇḍam bhūtesu tasesu thāvaresu ca yo na hanti na ghāteti tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who lays aside the rod with regard to creatures, moving or unmoving, and neither kills nor causes (their) death. 24. aviruddham viruddhesu attadaṇḍesu nibbutam sādānesu anādānaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who is without hostility among those who are hostile, who is peaceful among those with uplifted staves, who is unattached among those who are attached. 25. yassa rāgo ca doso ca māno makkho ca pātito sāsaporiva āraggā tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin whose passion and hatred, pride, and hypocrisy have fallen like a mustard seed from the point of an awl. 26. akakkasaṁ viññāpāṇiṁ giraṁ saccam udīraye yāya nābhisaje kaṁci tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who utters true speech, free from harshness, clearly understood, by which no one is offended. 27. yo 'dha dīghaṁ va rassaṁ vā aṇum thūlaṁ subhāsubham loke adinnaṁ nādiyati tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam (27) Him I call a Brāhmin who does not take, here in the world, what is not given him, be it long or short, small or large, good or bad. 28. āsā yassa na vijjanti asmiṁ loke paramhi ca nirāsayaṁ visaṁyuttaṁ tam ahami brūmi brāhmaṇam (28) Him I call a Brāhmin who has no desires for this world or for the next, who is free from desires and who is separated (from impurities). 29. yassālayā ma vijjanti aññāya akathaṁnkathī amatogadham anuppattaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who has no desires, who is free from doubt by knowledge (of the truth), who has reached the depth of the eternal. 30. yo 'dha puññaṁ ca pāpam ca ubho saṅgam upaccagā asokaṁ virajaṁ suddhaṁ tam ahami brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who here has passed beyond the attachments of good and evil, who is free from grief, free from passion, free from impurity. 31. candaṁ va vimalaṁ suddham vippasannam anāvilam nandībhavaparikkhīṇaṇ tam ahami brūmi brāhmaṇam (31) Him I call a Brāhmin who like the moon is stainless, pure, serene, undisturbed, in whom joyance is extinguished.(413) 32. yo imam paḷipathaṁ duggaṁ saṁsāraṁ moham accagā tiṇṇo pāragato jhāyī anejo akathaṁkathī anupādāya nibbuto tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who has gone beyond this miry road of rebirth and delusion, difficult (to cross), who has crossed over, who has reached the other shore, who is meditative, unagitated, not doubting, not grasping, and calm. 33. yo 'dha kāme pahatvāna anāgāro paribbaje kāmabhavaparikkhīṇaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who, in this world, giving up all sensual pleasures, wanders about without a home, in whom all desire for existence is extinguished. 34. yo 'dha taṇham pahatvāna anāgāro paribbaje taṇhābhavaparikkhīnaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who, in this world, giving up all craving, wanders about without a home, in whom all craving for existence is extinguished. 35. hitvā māmusakaṁ yogam dibbam yogam upaccagā sabbayogavisaṁyuttaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who, casting off attachment to human things, rises above attachment to heavenly things, is separated from all attachments. 36. hitvā ratim ca aratiṁ ca sītībhūtami nirūpadhim sabbalokābhibhuṁ vīraṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who gives up what is pleasurable and what is unpleasurable, who is cooled and is free from any seeds (of renewed existence), the hero who has conquered all the worlds. 37. cutiṁ yo vedi sattānam upapattiṁ ca sabbaso asattaṁ sugataṁ buddham tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who knows everywhere the perishing of living things and their uprising, who is free from attachment, living aright, and who is awakened. 38. yassa gatiṁ na jānanti devāgandhabbamānusā khīṇāsavam arahantaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin whose path the gods do not know, nor spirits nor men, whose taints are extinct and who has attained sainthood. 39. yassa pure ca pacchā ca majjhe ca n'atthi kiṁcanam akiṁcanam anādānaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin for whom there is nothing before, behind, or between, who has nothing and is without attachment. 40. usabham pavaram vīraṁ mahesiṁ vjitāvinam anejaṁ mahātakaṁ buddhaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who is fearless (like a bull), noble, heroic, the all-wise, who has overcome (death), the sinless who has accomplished his study, the awakened. 41 pubbe-nivāsaṁ yo vedī saggāpāyam ca passati atho jātikkhayaṁ patto abhiññāvosito muni sabbavositavosānaṁ tam ahaṁ brūmi brāhmaṇam Him I call a Brāhmin who knows his former abodes (lives), who perceives heaven and hell, has reached the end of births, is a sage whose knowledge is perfect and has accomplished all that has to be accomplished.
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