Buddha
As I strove to subdue myself
beside the broad Nerañjarā,
absorbed unflinchingly to gain
the surcease of bondage here,
Namucī came and spoke to me
with words all garbed in pity thus:Māra
O you are thin and you are pale,
and you are in death’s presence too:a thousand parts are pledged to death
but life still holds one part of you.
Live, sir! Life’s the better way;
you may gain merit if you live,come live the life of purity, pour
libations on the holy fires
and thus a world of merit gain.
What can you do by struggling now?The path of struggling too is rough,
and difficult and hard to bear.Narrator
Now Māra, as he spoke these lines
drew near until he stood close by.The Blessed One replied to him
as he stood thus:Buddha
O Evil One,
O Cousin of the Negligent,
you have come here for your own ends.Now, merit I need not at all.
Let Māra talk of merit then,
to those that stand in need of it.For I have faith and energy,
and I have understanding, too.
So while I thus subdue myself,
why do you speak to me of life?There is this wind that blows, can dry
even the rivers’ running streams;
so while I thus subdue myself,
why should it not dry up my blood?And, as the blood dries up, then bile
and phlegm run dry, the wasting flesh
becalms the mind: I shall have more
of mindfulness and wisdom too,
I shall have greater concentration.For living thus I come to know
the limits to which feeling goes.
My mind looks not to sense-desires:
Now see a being’s purity.Your squadron’s first is Sense-desires
your second’s Sexual Discontent,
Hunger and Thirst compose the third,
and Craving is the fourth in rank,the fifth is Sloth and Accidy,
while Fear is called the sixth in line,
Sceptical doubt is seventh, the eighth
is Sliminess, Hardheartedness;Gain with Honour, Praise besides,
and ill-won Notoriety,
Self-praise and Denigrating others—These are your squadrons, Namucī,
the Black One’s fighting troops.
None but the brave will conquer them
to gain bliss by the victory.As though I’m weaving muñja-grass,
proclaiming no retreat: shame upon life
defeated here—better to die in battle now
than choose to live on in defeat.Ascetics and brahmins there are found
that have surrendered here, and they
are seen no more: they do not know
the paths the pilgrim travels by.So, seeing Māra’s squadrons now
arrayed all round, with elephants,
I sally forth to fight, that I
may not be driven from my post.Your serried squadrons, which the world
with all its gods cannot defeat,
Now I’ll break with wisdom sharp,
as with a stone a raw clay pot.With all mind’s thoughts within the range,
with well-established mindfulness,
I’ll travel on from state to state
many disciples leading out.They, both diligent and resolute
carry on my Sāsana,
and though you like it not, they’ll go
to where they do not grieve.Māra
Though step by step for seven years
I’ve followed on the Blessed One,
the Fully Enlightened One, possessed
of mindfulness, he gave to me no chance.A crow there was who walked around
a stone that seemed a lump of fat;
“Shall I find something soft in this?
And is there something tasty here?”He finding nothing tasty there,
made off: and we from Gotama
depart in disappointment, too,
like to the crow that tried the stone.Narrator
Then full of sorrow he let slip
the lute from underneath his arm,
then that dejected demon
disappeared just there.
snp.3.2 Suttanipata
The Striving of Gotama
- Translator: Bhikkhu Ñāṇamoli
Striving
guiding many disciples.Diligent and resolute,
“During my time of resolute striving
on the bank of the Nerañjara River,
I was meditating very hard
for the sake of finding sanctuary.
Namucī approached,
speaking words of kindness:
‘You’re thin, discolored,
on the verge of death.
Death has a thousand parts of you,
one fraction is left to life.
Live sir! Life is better!
Living, you can make merits.
While leading the spiritual life
and serving the sacred flame,
you can pile up abundant merit—
so what will striving do for you?
Hard to walk is the path of striving,
hard to do, a hard challenge to win.’”
These are the verses Māra spoke
as he stood beside the Buddha.
When Māra had spoken in this way,
the Buddha said this:
“O Wicked One, kinsman of the negligent,
you’re here for your own purpose.
I have no need for
the slightest bit of merit.
Those with need for merit
are fit for Māra to address.
I have faith and energy too,
and wisdom is found in me.
When I am so resolute,
why do you beg me to live?
The rivers and streams
might be dried by the wind,
so why, when I am resolute,
should it not dry up my blood?
And while the blood is drying up,
the bile and phlegm dry too.
And as my muscles waste away,
my mind grows more serene.
And all the stronger grow mindfulness
and wisdom and immersion.
As I meditate like this,
having attained the supreme feeling,
my mind has no interest in sensual pleasures:
behold a being’s purity!
Sensual pleasures are your first army,
the second is called discontent,
hunger and thirst are the third,
and the fourth is said to be craving.
Your fifth is dullness and drowsiness,
the sixth is said to be cowardice,
your seventh is doubt,
contempt and obstinacy are your eighth.
Profit, praise, and honor,
and misbegotten fame;
the extolling of oneself
while scorning others.
This is your army, Namucī,
the strike force of the Dark One.
Only a hero can defeat it,
but in victory there lies bliss.
Let me gird myself—
so what if I die!
I’d rather die in battle
than live on in defeat.
Here some ascetics and brahmins
are swallowed up, not to be seen again.
They do not know the path
traveled by those true to their vows.
Seeing Māra ready on his mount,
surrounded by his bannered forces,
I shall meet them in battle—
they’ll never make me retreat!
That army of yours has never been beaten
by the world with all its gods.
Yet I shall smash it with wisdom,
like an unfired pot with a stone.
Having brought my thoughts under control,
and established mindfulness well,
I shall wander from country to country,
following my instructions,
they will proceed despite your will,
to where there is no sorrow.”
“For seven years I followed
step by step behind the Blessed One.
I found no vulnerability
in the mindful Awakened One.
A crow once circled a stone
that looked like a lump of fat.
‘Perhaps I’ll find something tender,’ it thought,
‘perhaps there’s something tasty.’
But finding nothing tasty,
the crow left that place.
Like the crow that pecked the stone,
I leave Gotama disappointed.”
So stricken with sorrow
that his harp dropped from his armpit,
that spirit, downcast,
vanished right there.