dhp.235-255 Dhammapada

You are now like a withered leaf,
Yama’s men stand waiting for you,
you stand at decay’s door,
with no provisions for the journey found.

One should make an island for oneself,
soon the wise one should endeavour,
removing the stain, blemishless,
you will go to the divine and noble realm.

You are now advanced in age,
you have come to Yama’s presence,
there is nowhere to dwell in between,
with no provisions for the journey found.

One should make an island for oneself,
soon the wise one should endeavour,
removing the stain, blemishless,
you will not come to birth and old age again.

The sage gradually, little by little, moment by moment,
should remove the stain from himself, like a smith removes the stain from silver.

As a rust stain arises from iron,
and arisen from that, it eats it away,
so with one who is overindulgent –
his deeds lead him to a bad destiny.

Lack of repetition is the ruin of chants, a lack of maintenance is the ruin of homes,
indolence is the ruin of one’s appearance, heedlessness is the ruin of the one on guard.

Bad conduct is a woman’s stain, stinginess is a giver’s stain,
wicked actions are indeed stains both in this world and in the next.
A stain that is worse than that stain, ignorance is the supreme stain,
after abandoning that stain, be without stains, O monastics!

Life is light for one without shame, with the bold courage of a crow,
living a life with backbiting, recklessness, and defilements.

Life is hard when endowed with shame, for the one constantly seeking purity,
for one sincere, and not reckless, looking for purity of life.

Whoever kills a living being, and speaks a word that is not true,
takes what is not given here, and goes to another’s wife,
that person who is devoted to a drink of liquor and wine,
digs up his own root right here in the world.

Know it thus, dear sir, a lack of restraint is a bad thing,
let not greed and corruption oppress you with suffering for a long time.

The people give according to faith, according to their confidence,
herein the one who becomes dejected because of food and drink given to others
he does not, either by day or nigh attain to good concentration.

For the one in whom this dejection is cut off, destroyed at the root, dug up,
does, by day and night, attain to good concentration.

There is no fire that is like passion, there is nothing that takes a hold like hatred,
there is no snare like delusion, there is no flood like craving.

Easy to see are others’ fault, but one’s own is hard to see,
for one sifts other peoples’ faults like they were chaff,
but conceals one’s own faults, like a crafty cheat conceals his defeat.

The one who constantly looks for another’s fault, who is an abject complainer,
for him the pollutants increase, he is far from their destruction.

There is no footprint in the sky, there is no ascetic on the outside,
folk greatly delight in impediments, the Realised Ones are free of impediments.

There is no footprint in the sky, there is no ascetic on the outside,
there are no constant conditions, there is no disturbance for the Buddhas.

You are now like a yellowed leaf.
Even Yama’s men have come for you.
You stand at the mouth of death,
With no provisions for the journey.

Make an island for yourself.
Strive quickly. Be wise.
Clear, with impurities removed,
You will enter the divine realm of the noble ones.

And now, with life almost finished,
You have entered into Yama’s presence.
There is no place to rest in between;
There are no provisions for the journey.

Make an island for yourself.
Strive quickly. Be wise.
Clear, with impurities removed,
You will not come to birth and old age again.

Like a metal-smith who,
Little-by-little, moment-by-moment,
Cleanses dross from silver,
So too the wise one cleanses his impurities
gradually.

Just as rust eats the iron from which it has arisen,
So the monk who lives excessively
Is led by his own deeds into a woeful rebirth.

Sacred texts are profaned by non-recitation;
Houses are broken down by neglect;
Beauty is compromised by sloth;
And vigilance is undermined by negligence.

Bad conduct is the impurity of a woman.
Stinginess, the impurity of a giver.
Impurities are evil things,
In this world and in the next.

More impure than these is ignorance,
This is the supreme impurity.
Having renounced this impurity,
O monks, be pure.

Easy to live is the life of the shameless,
The unconscientious, offensive, pushy, reckless, and
corrupt.

Hard to live is the life of one with conscience,
Who always strives to be pure,
Who is open, careful, perceptive, and clean-living.

Whoever kills a living being,
Speaks falsely,
Takes whatever in the world is not given,
Goes to another’s wife,

And gives himself to drinking liquor,
Uproots himself in this very world.

Know this friend: evil things are reckless.
Let not greed and injustice subject you to long
suffering.

People give according to their faith, according to
their trust.
The one who is disconcerted by others’ food and
drink,
Will never attain samādhi, neither by day nor by
night.

But one who has cut off, destroyed at the root,
And removed this consternation,
Will attain samādhi, day or night.

There is no fire like passion;
There is no fetter like ill will;
There is no snare like delusion;
There is no river like craving.

It is easy to see the faults of others,
But truly difficult to see one’s own.
One sifts out the faults of others like chaff,
But conceals one’s own,
As a deceitful gambler conceals a corrupt dice
throw.

The one who finds faults with others,
Always watching and critical:
His toxins only grow ever-farther from their
dissolution.

There are no tracks in the sky;
The renunciant is not outside;
People delight in impediments;
The Tathāgatas are without impediments.

There are no tracks in the sky;
The renunciant is not outside;
No conditioned things are eternal;
Unshaken are the Buddhas.

Like a withered leaf are you now; death’s messengers await you. You stand on the eve of your departure, yet you have made no provision for your journey!

Make an island for yourself! Strive hard and become wise! Rid of impurities and cleansed of stain, you shall enter the celestial abode of the Noble Ones.

Your life has come to an end now; You are setting forth into the presence of Yama, the king of death. No resting place is there for you on the way, yet you have made no provision for the journey!

Make an island unto yourself! Strive hard and become wise! Rid of impurities and cleansed of stain, you shall not come again to birth and decay.

One by one, little by little, moment by moment, a wise man should remove his own impurities, as a smith removes his dross from silver.

Just as rust arising from iron eats away the base from which it arises, even so, their own deeds lead transgressors to states of woe.

Non-repetition is the bane of scriptures; neglect is the bane of a home; slovenliness is the bane of personal appearance, and heedlessness is the bane of a guard.

Unchastity is the taint in a woman; niggardliness is the taint in a giver. Taints, indeed, are all evil things, both in this world and the next.

A worse taint than these is ignorance, the worst of all taints. Destroy this one taint and become taintless, O monks!

Easy is life for the shameless one who is impudent as a crow, is backbiting and forward, arrogant and corrupt.

Difficult is life for the modest one who always seeks purity, is detached and unassuming, clean in life, and discerning.

One who destroys life, utters lies, takes what is not given, goes to another man’s wife, and is addicted to intoxicating drinks—such a man digs up his own root even in this world.

Know this, O good man: evil things are difficult to control. Let not greed and wickedness drag you to protracted misery.

People give according to their faith or regard. If one becomes discontented with the food and drink given by others, one does not attain meditative absorption, either by day or by night.

But he in who this (discontent) is fully destroyed, uprooted and extinct, he attains absorption, both by day and by night.

There is no fire like lust; there is no grip like hatred; there is no net like delusion; there is no river like craving.

Easily seen is the fault of others, but one’s own fault is difficult to see. Like chaff one winnows another’s faults, but hides one’s own, even as a crafty fowler hides behind sham branches.

He who seeks another’s faults, who is ever censorious—his cankers grow. He is far from destruction of the cankers.

There is no track in the sky, and no recluse outside (the Buddha’s dispensation). Mankind delights in worldliness, but the Buddhas are free from worldliness.

There is no track in the sky, and no recluse outside (the Buddha’s dispensation). There are no conditioned things that are eternal, and no instability in the Buddhas.