sutta » sn » sn5 » Saṁyutta Nikāya 5.9

Selāsutta

With Selā Selā

Sāvatthinidānaṁ.
At Sāvatthī.
At Sāvatthī.

Atha kho selā bhikkhunī pubbaṇhasamayaṁ nivāsetvā …pe…
Then the nun Selā robed up in the morning …
Then, in the morning, the bhikkhunī Selā dressed …

aññatarasmiṁ rukkhamūle divāvihāraṁ nisīdi.
and sat at the root of a tree for the day’s meditation.
she sat down at the foot of a tree for the day’s abiding.

Atha kho māro pāpimā selāya bhikkhuniyā bhayaṁ chambhitattaṁ lomahaṁsaṁ uppādetukāmo …pe…
Then Māra the Wicked, wanting to make the nun Selā feel fear, terror, and goosebumps …
Then Māra the Evil One, desiring to arouse fear, trepidation, and terror in the bhikkhunī Selā, desiring to make her fall away from concentration, approached her and addressed her in verse:

selaṁ bhikkhuniṁ gāthāya ajjhabhāsi:
addressed her in verse:

“Kenidaṁ pakataṁ bimbaṁ,
“Who created this puppet?
By whom has this puppet been created?

kvanu bimbassa kārako;
Where is its maker?
Where is the maker of the puppet?

Kvanu bimbaṁ samuppannaṁ,
Where has the puppet arisen?
Where has the puppet arisen?

kvanu bimbaṁ nirujjhatī”ti.
And where does it cease?”
Where does the puppet cease?”

Atha kho selāya bhikkhuniyā etadahosi:
Then the nun Selā thought,
Then it occurred to the bhikkhunī Selā:

“ko nu khvāyaṁ manusso vā amanusso vā gāthaṁ bhāsatī”ti?
“Who’s speaking this verse, a human or a non-human?”
“Now who is this… ?

Atha kho selāya bhikkhuniyā etadahosi:
Then she thought,

“māro kho ayaṁ pāpimā mama bhayaṁ chambhitattaṁ lomahaṁsaṁ uppādetukāmo samādhimhā cāvetukāmo gāthaṁ bhāsatī”ti.
“This is Māra the Wicked, wanting to make me feel fear, terror, and goosebumps, wanting to make me fall away from immersion!”
This is Māra the Evil One … desiring to make me fall away from concentration. ”

Atha kho selā bhikkhunī “māro ayaṁ pāpimā” iti viditvā māraṁ pāpimantaṁ gāthāhi paccabhāsi:
Then Selā, knowing that this was Māra the Wicked, replied to him in verse:
Then the bhikkhunī Selā, having understood, “This is Māra the Evil One, ” replied to him in verses:

“Nayidaṁ attakataṁ bimbaṁ,
“This puppet isn’t self-made,
“This puppet is not made by itself,

nayidaṁ parakataṁ aghaṁ;
nor is this misery made by another.
Nor is this misery made by another.

Hetuṁ paṭicca sambhūtaṁ,
It comes to be because of a cause,
It has come to be dependent on a cause;

hetubhaṅgā nirujjhati.
and ceases when the cause breaks up.
With the cause’s breakup it will cease.

Yathā aññataraṁ bījaṁ,
It’s like a seed that’s sown
“As when a seed is sown in a field

khette vuttaṁ virūhati;
in a field; it grows
It grows depending on a pair of factors:

Pathavīrasañcāgamma,
relying on both the soil’s nutrients
It requires both the soil’s nutrients

sinehañca tadūbhayaṁ.
as well as moisture.
And a steady supply of moisture:

Evaṁ khandhā ca dhātuyo,
In the same way the aggregates and elements
“Just so the aggregates and elements,

cha ca āyatanā ime;
and these six sense fields
And these six bases of sensory contact,

Hetuṁ paṭicca sambhūtā,
come to be because of a cause,
Have come to be dependent on a cause;

hetubhaṅgā nirujjhare”ti.
and cease when the cause breaks up.”
With the cause’s breakup they will cease. ”

Atha kho māro pāpimā “jānāti maṁ selā bhikkhunī”ti dukkhī dummano tatthevantaradhāyīti.
Then Māra the Wicked, thinking, “The nun Selā knows me!” miserable and sad, vanished right there.
Then Māra the Evil One, realizing, “The bhikkhunī Selā knows me, ” sad and disappointed, disappeared right there.