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4. Pupphavaggo4. The Chapter about Flowers
1. Pathavikathāpasutapañcasatabhikkhuvatthu4.1 The Story about 500 Bhikkhus Engaged in Talking about the Soil
Ko imaṃ pathaviṃ vicessatīti imaṃ dhammadesanaṃ satthā sāvatthiyaṃ viharanto pathavikathāpasute pañcasate bhikkhū ārabbha kathesi.“Who will know this earth?” this Dhamma teaching was given by the Teacher while he was in residence at Sāvatthī with reference to five hundred bhikkhus who spent their time talking about the soil.The Pāli introduction quotes only “Who will know this earth?” The original translation also included the lower realm from the full verse. [29.29] marks page 29 of volume 29 of the Harvard Oriental Series English translation. {1.333} marks page 333 of volume 1 of the Pāli Text Society Pāli text.
Te kira bhagavatā saddhiṃ janapadacārikaṃ caritvā jetavanaṃ āgantvā sāyanhasamaye upaṭṭhānasālāyaṃ sannisinnā attanā gatagataṭṭhānesu “asukagāmato asukagāmagamanaṭṭhāne samaṃ visamaṃ kaddamabahulaṃ sakkharabahulaṃ kāḷamattikaṃ tambamattika”nti pathavikathaṃ kathesuṃ.One evening, it appears, these bhikkhus returned to Jetavana after a journey through the country with the Teacher, and assembling in the attendance hall, began to talk about the various kinds of soil they had seen in going from one village to another, such as even and uneven, abounding in mud, abounding in gravel, black clay, red clay.
Satthā āgantvā, “kāya nuttha, bhikkhave, etarahi kathāya sannisinnā”ti pucchitvā, “bhante, amhehi vicaritaṭṭhāne pathavikathāyā”ti vutte,The Teacher approached and asked them: “Bhikkhus, what is it that you are sitting here now talking about?” – “Venerable Sir,” they replied, “we were talking about the different kinds of soil we saw in the places we visited.”
“bhikkhave, esā bāhirapathavī nāma, tumhehi ajjhuttikapathaviyaṃ parikammaṃ kātuṃ vaṭṭatī”ti vatvā imā dve gāthā abhāsi –– “Bhikkhus,” said the Teacher, “this is the outer soil. It is necessary for you rather to cultivate the inner soil.” So saying, he pronounced the two following verses:The Pāli asks the bhikkhus to work on the inner earth. The original translation described this as cleansing “the inner soil of the heart”; the verse explanation identifies the earth with the body.
44. “Ko imaṃ pathaviṃ vicessati, Yamalokañca imaṃ sadevakaṃ; Ko dhammapadaṃ sudesitaṃ, Kusalo pupphamiva pacessati.Who will know this earth, the lower realm, and this world together with the gods? Who will select the well-taught Dhamma teaching as a skilled flower gatherer selects a flower?The commentary explains “the lower realm” as the four states of deprivation, then names this human world together with the realm of the gods. The original translation did not distinguish the human world. The commentary explains the well-taught dhammapada as the thirty-seven qualities that aid awakening. The original translation called it a “verse of Dhamma.” The commentary compares the trainee to a skilled flower gatherer selecting good flowers. The original translation spoke of a good man reflecting on a flower. {1.334} marks page 334 of volume 1 of the Pāli Text Society Pāli text.
45. “Sekho pathaviṃ vicessati, Yamalokañca imaṃ sadevakaṃ; Sekho dhammapadaṃ sudesitaṃ, Kusalo pupphamiva pacessatī”ti.The trainee will know this earth, the lower realm, and this world together with the gods. The trainee will select the well-taught Dhamma teaching as a skilled flower gatherer selects a flower.The Pāli uses the future tense: the trainee will discern this earth. The original translation used “knows.”
Tattha ko imanti ko imaṃ attabhāvasaṅkhātaṃ pathaviṃ. Vicessatīti attano ñāṇena vicinissati vijānissati, paṭivijjhissati, sacchikarissatīti attho. Yamalokañcāti catubbidhaṃ apāyalokañca.
Imaṃ sadevakanti imaṃ manussalokañca devalokena saddhiṃ ko vicessati vicinissati vijānissati paṭivijjhissati sacchikarissatīti pucchi.
Ko dhammapadaṃ sudesitanti yathāsabhāvato kathitattā sudesitaṃ sattatiṃsabodhipakkhiyadhammasaṅkhātaṃ dhammapadaṃ kusalo mālākāro pupphaṃ vicinanto viya ko pacessati vicinissati vijānissati upaparikkhissati paṭivijjhissati,
sacchikarissatīti attho. Sekhoti adhisīlasikkhā, adhicittasikkhā,
adhipaññāsikkhāti imā tisso sikkhā sikkhanato sotāpattimaggaṭṭhaṃ ādiṃ katvā yāva arahattamaggaṭṭhā sattavidho sekho imaṃ attabhāvasaṅkhātaṃ pathaviṃ arahattamaggena tato chandarāgaṃ apakaḍḍhanto vicessati vicinissati vijānissati paṭivijjhissati sacchikarissati.
Yamalokañcāti taṃ yathāvuttapakāraṃ yamalokañca imaṃ manussalokañca saha devehi sadevakaṃ sveva vicessati vicinissati vijānissati paṭivijjhissati sacchikarissati.
Sekhoti sveva sattavidho sekho,
yathā nāma kusalo mālākāro pupphārāmaṃ pavisitvā taruṇamakuḷāni ca pāṇakaviddhāni ca milātāni ca gaṇṭhikajātāni ca pupphāni vajjetvā sobhanāni sujātasujātāneva pupphāni vicināti,
evameva imaṃ sukathitaṃ suniddiṭṭhaṃ bodhipakkhiyadhammapadampi paññāya pacessati vicinissati upaparikkhissati paṭivijjhissati sacchikarissatīti satthā sayameva pañhaṃ vissajjesi.
Desanāvasāne pañcasatāpi bhikkhū saha paṭisambhidāhi arahattaṃ pāpuṇiṃsu. Sampattaparisāyapi sātthikā dhammadesanā ahosīti.At the end of the teaching the 500 bhikkhus reached Arahatship, together with the analytic knowledges, and there was benefit to the assembly from the Dhamma teaching.
Pathavikathāpasutapañcasatabhikkhuvatthu paṭhamaṃ.