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Nimittābhimukhapaṭipādanaṃ[The Five Similes]
Tatrāyamatthadīpanā –Here is the explanation of the meaning.
yathā hi acheko madhukaro asukasmiṃ rukkhe pupphaṃ pupphitanti ñatvāWhen a too clever bee learns that a flower on a tree is blooming,
tikkhena vegena pakkhandoit sets out hurriedly,
taṃ atikkamitvā paṭinivattentoovershoots the mark, turns back,
khīṇe reṇumhi sampāpuṇāti.and arrives when the pollen is finished;
Aparo acheko mandena javena pakkhando khīṇeyeva sampāpuṇāti.and another, not clever enough bee, who sets out with too slow a speed, arrives when the pollen is finished too;
Cheko pana samena javena pakkhandobut a clever bee sets out with balanced speed,
sukhena puppharāsiṃ sampatvāarrives with ease at the cluster of flowers,
yāvadicchakaṃ reṇuṃ ādāyatakes as much pollen as it pleases
madhuṃ sampādetvā madhurasamanubhavati.and enjoys the honey-dew.
Yathā ca sallakattaantevāsikesu udakathālagate uppalapatte satthakammaṃ sikkhantesuAgain, when a surgeon’s pupils are being trained in the use of the scalpel on a lotus leaf in a dish of water,
eko acheko vegena satthaṃ pātentoone who is too clever applies the scalpel hurriedly
uppalapattaṃ dvidhā vā chindati,and either cuts the lotus leaf in two
udake vā paveseti.or pushes it under the water,
Aparo achekoand another who is not clever enough
chijjanapavesanabhayā satthakena phusitumpi na visahati.does not even dare to touch it with the scalpel for fear of cutting it in two or pushing it under;
Cheko pana samena payogena tattha satthapahāraṃ dassetvābut one who is clever shows the scalpel stroke on it by means of a balanced effort,
pariyodātasippo hutvāand being good at his craft
tathārūpesu ṭhānesu kammaṃ katvā lābhaṃ labhati.he is rewarded on such occasions.
Yathā ca yo catubyāmappamāṇaṃ makkaṭasuttamāharati, so cattāri sahassāni labhatīti raññā vutteAgain when the king announces, “Anyone who can draw out a spider’s thread four fathoms long shall receive four thousand,”
eko achekapuriso vegena makkaṭasuttamākaḍḍhanto tahiṃ tahiṃ chindatiyeva.one man who is too clever breaks the spider’s thread here and there by pulling it hurriedly,
Aparo acheko chedanabhayā hatthena phusitumpi na visahati.and another who is not clever enough does not dare to touch it with his hand for fear of breaking it,
Cheko pana koṭito paṭṭhāya samena payogena daṇḍake vedhetvā āharitvā lābhaṃ labhati.but a clever man pulls it out starting from the end with a balanced effort, winds it on a stick, and so wins the prize.
Yathā ca acheko niyāmako balavavāte laṅkāraṃ pūrento nāvaṃ videsaṃ pakkhandāpeti.Again, a too clever [137] skipper hoists full sails in a high wind and sends his ship adrift,
Aparo acheko mandavāte laṅkāraṃ oropento nāvaṃ tattheva ṭhapeti.and another, not clever enough skipper, lowers his sails in a light wind and remains where he is,
Cheko pana mandavāte laṅkāraṃ pūretvābut a clever skipper hoists full sails in a light wind,
balavavāte aḍḍhalaṅkāraṃ katvātakes in half his sails in a high wind,
sotthinā icchitaṭṭhānaṃ pāpuṇāti.and so arrives safely at his desired destination.
Yathā ca yo telena achaḍḍento nāḷiṃ pūreti, so lābhaṃ labhatīti ācariyena antevāsikānaṃ vutteAgain, when a teacher says, “Anyone who fills the oil-tube without spilling any oil will win a prize,”
eko acheko lābhaluddho vegena pūrento telaṃ chaḍḍeti.one who is too clever fills it hurriedly out of greed for the prize, and he spills the oil,
Aparo acheko telachaḍḍanabhayā āsiñcitumpi na visahati.and another who is not clever enough does not dare to pour the oil at all for fear of spilling it,
Cheko pana samena payogena pūretvā lābhaṃ labhati.but one who is clever fills it with a balanced effort and wins the prize.
Evameva eko bhikkhu uppanne nimitteJust as in these five similes, so too when the sign arises,
sīghameva appanaṃ pāpuṇissāmīti gāḷhaṃ vīriyaṃ karoti,one bhikkhu forces his energy, thinking “I shall soon reach absorption.”
tassa cittaṃ accāraddhavīriyattā uddhacce patati, so na sakkoti appanaṃ pāpuṇituṃ.Then his mind lapses into agitation because of his mind’s over-exerted energy and he is prevented from reaching absorption.
Eko accāraddhavīriyatāya dosaṃ disvā kiṃ dānime appanāyāti vīriyaṃ hāpeti,Another who sees the defect in over-exertion slacks off his energy, thinking, “What is absorption to me now?”
tassa cittaṃ atilīnavīriyattā kosajje patati, sopi na sakkoti appanaṃ pāpuṇituṃ.Then his mind lapses into idleness because of his mind’s too lax energy and he too is prevented from reaching absorption.
Yo pana īsakampi līnaṃ līnabhāvatoYet another who frees his mind from idleness even when it is only slightly idle
uddhataṃ uddhaccato mocetvāand from agitation when only slightly agitated,
samena payogena nimittābhimukhaṃ pavatteti,confronting the sign with balanced effort,
so appanaṃ pāpuṇāti,reaches absorption.
tādisena bhavitabbaṃ.One should be like the last-named.
Imamatthaṃ sandhāya etaṃ vuttaṃ –It was with reference to this meaning that it was said above:
Reṇumhi uppaladale, sutte nāvāya nāḷiyā; Yathā madhukarādīnaṃ, pavatti sammavaṇṇitā.“Well-controlled bees get the pollen; Well-balanced efforts meet to treat Leaves, thread, and ships, and oil-tubes too, Gain thus, not otherwise, the prize.
Līnauddhatabhāvehi, mocayitvāna sabbaso; Evaṃ nimittābhimukhaṃ, mānasaṃ paṭipādayeLet him set aside then this lax Also this agitated state, Steering here his mind at the sign As the bee and the rest suggest”.