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Vinicchayamahāmattavatthu

Na tena hoti dhammaṭṭho,
You don’t become just

yenatthaṁ sāhasā naye;
by passing hasty judgment.

Yo ca atthaṁ anatthañca,
An astute person evaluates both

ubho niccheyya paṇḍito.
what is pertinent and what is irrelevant.

Asāhasena dhammena,
A wise one judges others without haste,

samena nayatī pare;
justly and impartially;

Dhammassa gutto medhāvī,
that guardian of the law

“dhammaṭṭho”ti pavuccati.
is said to be just.

Chabbaggiyavatthu

Na tena paṇḍito hoti,
You’re not an astute scholar

yāvatā bahu bhāsati;
just because you speak a lot.

Khemī averī abhayo,
One who is secure, free of enmity and fear,

“paṇḍito”ti pavuccati.
is said to be astute.

Ekudānakhīṇāsavavatthu

Na tāvatā dhammadharo,
You’re not one who has memorized the teaching

yāvatā bahu bhāsati;
just because you recite a lot.

Yo ca appampi sutvāna,
Someone who directly sees the teaching

dhammaṁ kāyena passati;
after hearing only a little

Sa ve dhammadharo hoti,
is truly one who has memorized the teaching,

yo dhammaṁ nappamajjati.
for they can never forget it.

Lakuṇḍakabhaddiyattheravatthu

Na tena thero so hoti,
You don’t become a senior

yenassa palitaṁ siro;
by getting some grey hairs;

Paripakko vayo tassa,
for one ripe only in age,

“moghajiṇṇo”ti vuccati.
is said to have aged in vain.

Yamhi saccañca dhammo ca,
One who is truthful and principled,

ahiṁsā saṁyamo damo;
harmless, restrained, and self-controlled,

Sa ve vantamalo dhīro,
attentive, purged of stains,

“thero” iti pavuccati.
is said to be a senior.

Sambahulabhikkhuvatthu

Na vākkaraṇamattena,
Not by mere eloquence,

vaṇṇapokkharatāya vā;
or a beautiful complexion

Sādhurūpo naro hoti,
does a person become holy,

issukī maccharī saṭho.
if they’re jealous, stingy, and devious.

Yassa cetaṁ samucchinnaṁ,
But if they’ve cut that out,

mūlaghaccaṁ samūhataṁ;
dug it up at the root, eradicated it,

Sa vantadoso medhāvī,
that wise one, purged of vice,

“sādhurūpo”ti vuccati.
is said to be holy.

Hatthakavatthu

Na muṇḍakena samaṇo,
A liar and breaker of vows is no ascetic

abbato alikaṁ bhaṇaṁ;
just because they shave their head.

Icchālobhasamāpanno,
How on earth can one be an ascetic

samaṇo kiṁ bhavissati.
who’s full of desire and greed?

Yo ca sameti pāpāni,
One who stops all wicked deeds,

aṇuṁthūlāni sabbaso;
great and small,

Samitattā hi pāpānaṁ,
because of stopping wicked deeds

“samaṇo”ti pavuccati.
is said to be an ascetic.

Aññatarabrāhmaṇavatthu

Na tena bhikkhu so hoti,
You don’t become a mendicant

yāvatā bhikkhate pare;
just by begging from others.

Vissaṁ dhammaṁ samādāya,
One who has undertaken domestic duties

bhikkhu hoti na tāvatā.
has not yet become a mendicant.

Yodha puññañca pāpañca,
But one living a spiritual life,

bāhetvā brahmacariyavā;
who has banished both merit and evil,

Saṅkhāya loke carati,
who wanders having appraised the world,

sa ve “bhikkhū”ti vuccati.
is said to be a mendicant.

Titthiyavatthu

Na monena munī hoti,
You don’t become a sage by silence,

mūḷharūpo aviddasu;
while still confused and ignorant.

Yo ca tulaṁva paggayha,
The astute one holds up the scales,

varamādāya paṇḍito.
taking only the best,

Pāpāni parivajjeti,
and rejecting the bad;

sa munī tena so muni;
a sage becomes a sage by measuring.

Yo munāti ubho loke,
One who measures good and bad in the world,

“muni” tena pavuccati.
is thereby said to be a sage.

Bālisikavatthu

Na tena ariyo hoti,
You don’t become a noble one

yena pāṇāni hiṁsati;
by harming living beings.

Ahiṁsā sabbapāṇānaṁ,
One harmless towards all living beings

“ariyo”ti pavuccati.
is said to be a noble one.

Sambahulasīlādisampannabhikkhuvatthu

Na sīlabbatamattena,
Not by precepts and observances,

bāhusaccena vā pana;
nor by much learning,

Atha vā samādhilābhena,
nor by meditative immersion,

vivittasayanena vā.
nor by living in seclusion,

Phusāmi nekkhammasukhaṁ,
do I experience the bliss of renunciation

aputhujjanasevitaṁ;
not frequented by ordinary people.

Bhikkhu vissāsamāpādi,
A mendicant cannot rest confident

appatto āsavakkhayaṁ.
without attaining the end of defilements.

Dhammaṭṭhavaggo ekūnavīsatimo.