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Translators: sujato and suddhaso

Minor Collection Collection of Minor Texts

Dhammapada
Sayings of the Dhamma 44–59
Verses of Dhamma

Pupphavagga
4. Flowers
Chapter on Flowers

Pathavikathāpasutapañcasatabhikkhuvatthu

Ko imaṁ pathaviṁ vicessati,
Who shall explore this land,
Who will investigate this earth,

Yamalokañca imaṁ sadevakaṁ;
and the Yama realm with its gods?
this world of death and angels?

Ko dhammapadaṁ sudesitaṁ,
Who shall examine the well-taught word of truth,
Who will collect the well-taught verses of truth,

Kusalo pupphamiva pacessati.
as an expert examines a flower?
as a skilled florist collects flowers?

Sekho pathaviṁ vicessati,
A trainee shall explore this land,
A trainee will investigate this earth,

Yamalokañca imaṁ sadevakaṁ;
and the Yama realm with its gods.
this world of death and angels.

Sekho dhammapadaṁ sudesitaṁ,
A trainee shall examine the well-taught word of truth,
A trainee will collect the well-taught verses of truth,

Kusalo pupphamiva pacessati.
as an expert examines a flower.
as a skilled florist collects flowers.

Marīcikammaṭṭhānikabhikkhuvatthu

Pheṇūpamaṁ kāyamimaṁ viditvā,
Knowing this body’s like foam,
Having understood that this body is like foam,

Marīcidhammaṁ abhisambudhāno;
realizing it’s all just a mirage,
one who is aware that it is like a mirage,

Chetvāna mārassa papupphakāni,
and cutting off Māra’s blossoming,
having cut Māra’s flower strands,

Adassanaṁ maccurājassa gacche.
vanish from the King of Death.
goes where the Lord of Death does not see.

Viṭaṭūbhavatthu

Pupphāni heva pacinantaṁ,
As a mighty flood sweeps off a sleeping village,
As if they were collecting flowers,

byāsattamanasaṁ naraṁ;
death steals away a man
a person collects mental attachments;

Suttaṁ gāmaṁ mahoghova,
even as he gathers flowers,
like a sleeping village taken away by a great flood,

maccu ādāya gacchati.
his mind caught up in them.
they are taken away by death.

Patipūjikakumārivatthu

Pupphāni heva pacinantaṁ,
The terminator gains control of the man
As if they were collecting flowers,

byāsattamanasaṁ naraṁ;
who has not had his fill of pleasures,
a person collects mental attachments;

Atittaññeva kāmesu,
even as he gathers flowers,
never satiated when it comes to sensuality,

antako kurute vasaṁ.
his mind caught up in them.
they are dominated by the Ender.

Macchariyakosiyaseṭṭhivatthu

Yathāpi bhamaro pupphaṁ,
A bee takes the nectar
Just as a bee

vaṇṇagandhamaheṭhayaṁ;
and moves on, doing no damage
takes nectar from a flower

Paleti rasamādāya,
to the flower’s beauty and fragrance;
without harming its beauty or fragrance—

evaṁ gāme munī care.
and that’s how a sage should walk in the village.
a sage behaves the same way when in a village.

Pāveyyaājīvakavatthu

Na paresaṁ vilomāni,
Don’t find fault with others,
Do not look at the faults of others—

na paresaṁ katākataṁ;
with what they’ve done or left undone.
what they have or have not done;

Attanova avekkheyya,
You should only watch yourself,
Look only at yourself—

katāni akatāni ca.
what you’ve done or left undone.
what you have or have not done.

Chattapāṇiupāsakavatthu

Yathāpi ruciraṁ pupphaṁ,
Just like a glorious flower
Just like a lovely flower

vaṇṇavantaṁ agandhakaṁ;
that’s colorful but lacks fragrance;
that has beauty but no fragrance,

Evaṁ subhāsitā vācā,
eloquent speech is fruitless
well-spoken words

aphalā hoti akubbato.
for one who does not act on it.
are fruitless when not acted out.

Yathāpi ruciraṁ pupphaṁ,
Just like a glorious flower
Just like a lovely flower

Vaṇṇavantaṁ sagandhakaṁ;
that’s both colorful and fragrant,
that has both beauty and fragrance,

Evaṁ subhāsitā vācā,
eloquent speech is fruitful
well-spoken words

Saphalā hoti kubbato.
for one who acts on it.
are fruitful when acted out.

Visākhāvatthu

Yathāpi puppharāsimhā,
Just as one would create many garlands
Just as one might make many garlands

kayirā mālāguṇe bahū;
from a heap of flowers,
from a heap of flowers,

Evaṁ jātena maccena,
when a person has come to be born,
in the same way, between birth and death

kattabbaṁ kusalaṁ bahuṁ.
they should do many skillful things.
one can do much that is wholesome.

Ānandattherapañhavatthu

Na pupphagandho paṭivātameti,
The fragrance of flowers doesn’t spread upwind,
The fragrance of a flower does not go against the wind;

Na candanaṁ tagaramallikā vā;
nor sandalwood, pinwheel, or jasmine;
nor does the fragrance of sandalwood, milkwood, or jasmine.

Satañca gandho paṭivātameti,
but the fragrance of the good spreads upwind;
However, the fragrance of goodness does go against the wind;

Sabbā disā sappuriso pavāyati.
a true person’s virtue spreads in every direction.
a good person diffuses it in all directions.

Candanaṁ tagaraṁ vāpi,
Among all the fragrances—
Sandalwood or milkwood,

uppalaṁ atha vassikī;
sandalwood or pinwheel
lotus or jasmine,

Etesaṁ gandhajātānaṁ,
or lotus or jasmine—
compared to these kinds of fragrances,

sīlagandho anuttaro.
the fragrance of virtue is supreme.
the fragrance of virtue is unsurpassed.

Mahākassapattherapiṇḍapātadinnavatthu

Appamatto ayaṁ gandho,
Faint is the fragrance
The fragrance of milkwood and sandalwood

yāyaṁ tagaracandanī;
of sandal or pinwheel;
is insignificant;

Yo ca sīlavataṁ gandho,
but the fragrance of the virtuous
the fragrance of virtue is the highest—

vāti devesu uttamo.
floats to the highest gods.
it drifts amidst the angels.

Godhikattheraparinibbānavatthu

Tesaṁ sampannasīlānaṁ,
For those accomplished in ethics,
The path of those who have perfect virtue,

appamādavihārinaṁ;
meditating diligently,
live without negligence,

Sammadaññāvimuttānaṁ,
freed through the highest knowledge,
and are liberated through right knowledge

māro maggaṁ na vindati.
Māra cannot find their path.
cannot be found by Māra.

Garahadinnavatthu

Yathā saṅkāradhānasmiṁ,
From a forsaken heap
Just as in a trash-heap

ujjhitasmiṁ mahāpathe;
discarded on the highway,
discarded by the side of the road,

Padumaṁ tattha jāyetha,
a lotus might blossom,
a lotus might bloom—

sucigandhaṁ manoramaṁ.
fragrant and delightful.
of pure fragrance and delightful to the mind—

Evaṁ saṅkārabhūtesu,
So too, among the forsaken,
in the same way, amidst the trash-heap of beings—

andhabhūte puthujjane;
a disciple of the perfect Buddha
the blind commoners—

Atirocati paññāya,
outshines with their wisdom
a disciple of the Completely Awakened One

sammāsambuddhasāvako.
the blind ordinary folk.
outshines them with wisdom.

Pupphavaggo catuttho.