The Just

You don’t become just by passing hasty judgment. An astute person evaluates both what is pertinent and what is irrelevant.

Na tena hoti dhammaṭṭho, yenatthaṁ sāhasā naye;*sāhasā → sahasā (bj, sya-all, pts1ed, pts2ed) Yo ca atthaṁ anatthañca, ubho niccheyya paṇḍito.

You don’t become just Na tena hoti dhammaṭṭho, by passing hasty judgment. yenatthaṁ sāhasā naye;*sāhasā → sahasā (bj, sya-all, pts1ed, pts2ed)An astute person evaluates both Yo ca atthaṁ anatthañca, what is pertinent and what is irrelevant. ubho niccheyya paṇḍito.

A wise one judges others without haste, justly and impartially; that guardian of the law is said to be just.

Asāhasena dhammena, samena nayatī pare; Dhammassa gutto medhāvī, “dhammaṭṭho”ti pavuccati.

A wise one judges others without haste, Asāhasena dhammena, justly and impartially; samena nayatī pare; that guardian of the law Dhammassa gutto medhāvī, is said to be just. “dhammaṭṭho”ti pavuccati.

You’re not an astute scholar just because you speak a lot. One who is secure, free of enmity and fear, is said to be astute.

Na tena paṇḍito hoti, yāvatā bahu bhāsati; Khemī averī abhayo, “paṇḍito”ti pavuccati.

You’re not an astute scholar Na tena paṇḍito hoti, just because you speak a lot. yāvatā bahu bhāsati; One who is secure, free of enmity and fear, Khemī averī abhayo, is said to be astute. “paṇḍito”ti pavuccati.

You’re not one who has memorized the teaching just because you recite a lot. Someone who directly sees the teaching after hearing only a little is truly one who has memorized the teaching, for they can never forget it.

Na tāvatā dhammadharo, yāvatā bahu bhāsati; Yo ca appampi sutvāna, dhammaṁ kāyena passati; Sa ve dhammadharo hoti, yo dhammaṁ nappamajjati.

You’re not one who has memorized the teaching Na tāvatā dhammadharo, just because you recite a lot. yāvatā bahu bhāsati; Someone who directly sees the teaching Yo ca appampi sutvāna, after hearing only a little dhammaṁ kāyena passati; is truly one who has memorized the teaching, Sa ve dhammadharo hoti, for they can never forget it. yo dhammaṁ nappamajjati.

You don’t become a senior by getting some grey hairs; for one ripe only in age, is said to have aged in vain.

Na tena thero so hoti,*thero so hoti → thero hoti (bj, sya-all, pts1ed, pts2ed) yenassa palitaṁ siro; Paripakko vayo tassa, “moghajiṇṇo”ti vuccati.

You don’t become a senior Na tena thero so hoti,*thero so hoti → thero hoti (bj, sya-all, pts1ed, pts2ed)by getting some grey hairs; yenassa palitaṁ siro; for one ripe only in age, Paripakko vayo tassa, is said to have aged in vain. “moghajiṇṇo”ti vuccati.

One who is truthful and principled, harmless, restrained, and self-controlled, attentive, purged of stains, is said to be a senior.

Yamhi saccañca dhammo ca, ahiṁsā saṁyamo damo; Sa ve vantamalo dhīro, “thero” iti pavuccati.*thero” iti → so theroti (sya-all, mr); thero ti (pts1ed, pts2ed)

One who is truthful and principled, Yamhi saccañca dhammo ca, harmless, restrained, and self-controlled, ahiṁsā saṁyamo damo; attentive, purged of stains, Sa ve vantamalo dhīro, is said to be a senior. “thero” iti pavuccati.*thero” iti → so theroti (sya-all, mr); thero ti (pts1ed, pts2ed)

Not by mere enunciation, or a beautiful complexion does a person become holy, if they’re jealous, stingy, and devious.

Na vākkaraṇamattena, vaṇṇapokkharatāya vā; Sādhurūpo naro hoti, issukī maccharī saṭho.

Not by mere enunciation, Na vākkaraṇamattena, or a beautiful complexion vaṇṇapokkharatāya vā; does a person become holy, Sādhurūpo naro hoti, if they’re jealous, stingy, and devious. issukī maccharī saṭho.

But if they’ve cut that out, dug it up at the root, eradicated it, that wise one, purged of vice, is said to be holy.

Yassa cetaṁ samucchinnaṁ, mūlaghaccaṁ samūhataṁ; Sa vantadoso medhāvī, “sādhurūpo”ti vuccati.

But if they’ve cut that out, Yassa cetaṁ samucchinnaṁ, dug it up at the root, eradicated it, mūlaghaccaṁ samūhataṁ; that wise one, purged of vice, Sa vantadoso medhāvī, is said to be holy. “sādhurūpo”ti vuccati.

A liar and breaker of vows is no ascetic just because they shave their head. How on earth can one be an ascetic who’s full of desire and greed?

Na muṇḍakena samaṇo, abbato alikaṁ bhaṇaṁ; Icchālobhasamāpanno, samaṇo kiṁ bhavissati.

A liar and breaker of vows is no ascetic Na muṇḍakena samaṇo, just because they shave their head. abbato alikaṁ bhaṇaṁ; How on earth can one be an ascetic Icchālobhasamāpanno, who’s full of desire and greed? samaṇo kiṁ bhavissati.

One who stops all wicked deeds, great and small, because of stopping wicked deeds is said to be an ascetic.

Yo ca sameti pāpāni, aṇuṁthūlāni sabbaso; Samitattā hi pāpānaṁ, “samaṇo”ti pavuccati.

One who stops all wicked deeds, Yo ca sameti pāpāni, great and small, aṇuṁthūlāni sabbaso; because of stopping wicked deeds Samitattā hi pāpānaṁ, is said to be an ascetic. “samaṇo”ti pavuccati.

You don’t become a mendicant just by begging from others. One who has undertaken domestic duties has not yet become a mendicant.

Na tena bhikkhubhikkhuUn hombre que ha renunciado a la vida de hogar para vivir una vida de virtud elevada (ver sīla) de acuerdo con el Vinaya en general, y las reglas del Pātimokkha en particular. La raíz de la palabra significa «mendicante», es decir, uno que vive de limosnas. Como el masculino se usa como género por defecto en pali, el término bhikkhu a menudo incluye también a las monjas, por lo que «mendicante» puede usarse como traducción de género neutro. Ver saṅgha, parisā, upasampadā.Ver en el glosario so hoti, yāvatā bhikkhate pare; Vissaṁ dhammaṁ samādāya, bhikkhu hoti na tāvatā.

You don’t become a mendicant Na tena bhikkhubhikkhuUn hombre que ha renunciado a la vida de hogar para vivir una vida de virtud elevada (ver sīla) de acuerdo con el Vinaya en general, y las reglas del Pātimokkha en particular. La raíz de la palabra significa «mendicante», es decir, uno que vive de limosnas. Como el masculino se usa como género por defecto en pali, el término bhikkhu a menudo incluye también a las monjas, por lo que «mendicante» puede usarse como traducción de género neutro. Ver saṅgha, parisā, upasampadā.Ver en el glosario so hoti, just by begging from others. yāvatā bhikkhate pare; One who has undertaken domestic duties Vissaṁ dhammaṁ samādāya, has not yet become a mendicant. bhikkhu hoti na tāvatā.

But one living a spiritual life, who has banished both merit and evil, who wanders having appraised the world, is said to be a mendicant.

Yodha puññañca pāpañca, bāhetvā brahmacariyavā;*brahmacariyavā → brahmacariyaṁ (mr) Saṅkhāya loke carati, sa ve “bhikkhū”ti vuccati.

But one living a spiritual life, Yodha puññañca pāpañca, who has banished both merit and evil, bāhetvā brahmacariyavā;*brahmacariyavā → brahmacariyaṁ (mr)who wanders having appraised the world, Saṅkhāya loke carati, is said to be a mendicant. sa ve “bhikkhū”ti vuccati.

You don’t become a sage by being sagelike,*Mona (“sagacity”, Sanskrit mauna) is the abstract noun from muni (“sage”). Over time it acquired the sense “silence”, as a thoughtful man is silent, and it is explained as such here by the commentary as well as the Chinese translation (T 210:27.13 at T iv 586c19). However I have not found any early instances to support this. In Pali, silence is tuṇhī; a “vow of silence”—forbidden to monastics—is mūgabbata (Kd 4:1.12.6). Nothing in the context here suggests a vow of silence. In the Rig Veda (7.56.8, 10.136) the muni appears as an ecstatic, raving as if drunk, apparently from drugs (soma, viṣa), suggesting a sense of “mind-altered” or “mind-expanded”. Chāndogya Upaniṣad 8.5.2 refers to mauna as the life of a student, characterized by manute (“thinking”, “reflection”), so we can well translate “thoughtfulness”. Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 3.5.1 enjoins the student to become like a child, then reject both scholarship and childishness, thus becoming a “sage” (muni). Then, rejecting sagacity and lack of sagacity they become a brahmin. This could easily have the Vedic sense of “mind-expanded (through drugs or meditation)”. A similar sense probably applies here. The verse enjoins “weighed” or rational thought as opposed to confused, perhaps “ecstatic” or “mind-altered” thought. while still confused and ignorant. The astute one who holds the scales, taking only the best,

Na monena munī hoti, mūḷharūpo aviddasu; Yo ca tulaṁva paggayha, varamādāya paṇḍito.

You don’t become a sage by being sagelike,*Mona (“sagacity”, Sanskrit mauna) is the abstract noun from muni (“sage”). Over time it acquired the sense “silence”, as a thoughtful man is silent, and it is explained as such here by the commentary as well as the Chinese translation (T 210:27.13 at T iv 586c19). However I have not found any early instances to support this. In Pali, silence is tuṇhī; a “vow of silence”—forbidden to monastics—is mūgabbata (Kd 4:1.12.6). Nothing in the context here suggests a vow of silence. In the Rig Veda (7.56.8, 10.136) the muni appears as an ecstatic, raving as if drunk, apparently from drugs (soma, viṣa), suggesting a sense of “mind-altered” or “mind-expanded”. Chāndogya Upaniṣad 8.5.2 refers to mauna as the life of a student, characterized by manute (“thinking”, “reflection”), so we can well translate “thoughtfulness”. Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 3.5.1 enjoins the student to become like a child, then reject both scholarship and childishness, thus becoming a “sage” (muni). Then, rejecting sagacity and lack of sagacity they become a brahmin. This could easily have the Vedic sense of “mind-expanded (through drugs or meditation)”. A similar sense probably applies here. The verse enjoins “weighed” or rational thought as opposed to confused, perhaps “ecstatic” or “mind-altered” thought.Na monena munī hoti, while still confused and ignorant. mūḷharūpo aviddasu; The astute one who holds the scales, Yo ca tulaṁva paggayha, taking only the best, varamādāya paṇḍito.

and shunning the bad— that is a sage, and that is how one becomes a sage. One who sagely weighs both in the world,*These two lines recapitulate the previous lines. Munāti (“sagely weighs”, literally “thinks, examines”) is punned with mināti (“measure, weigh”) following the imagery of the scales. “Both” calls back to both good and evil. is thereby said to be a sage.

Pāpāni parivajjeti, sa munī tena so muni; Yo munāti ubho loke, “muni” tena pavuccati.

and shunning the bad—Pāpāni parivajjeti, that is a sage, and that is how one becomes a sage. sa munī tena so muni; One who sagely weighs both in the world,*These two lines recapitulate the previous lines. Munāti (“sagely weighs”, literally “thinks, examines”) is punned with mināti (“measure, weigh”) following the imagery of the scales. “Both” calls back to both good and evil.Yo munāti ubho loke, is thereby said to be a sage. “muni” tena pavuccati.

You don’t become a noble one by harming living beings. One harmless towards all living beings is said to be a noble one.

Na tena ariyo hoti, yena pāṇāni hiṁsati; Ahiṁsā sabbapāṇānaṁ, “ariyo”ti pavuccati.

You don’t become a noble one Na tena ariyo hoti, by harming living beings. yena pāṇāni hiṁsati; One harmless towards all living beings Ahiṁsā sabbapāṇānaṁ, is said to be a noble one. “ariyo”ti pavuccati.

Not by precepts and observances, nor by much learning, nor by meditative immersion, nor by living in seclusion,

Na sīlabbatamattena, bāhusaccena vā pana; Atha vā samādhilābhena, vivittasayanena vā.

Not by precepts and observances, Na sīlabbatamattena, nor by much learning, bāhusaccena vā pana; nor by meditative immersion, Atha vā samādhilābhena, nor by living in seclusion, vivittasayanena vā.

do I experience the bliss of renunciation not frequented by ordinary people. A mendicant cannot rest confident without attaining the end of defilements.

Phusāmi nekkhammasukhaṁ, aputhujjanasevitaṁ; Bhikkhu vissāsamāpādi, appatto āsavakkhayaṁ.

do I experience the bliss of renunciation Phusāmi nekkhammasukhaṁ, not frequented by ordinary people. aputhujjanasevitaṁ; A mendicant cannot rest confident Bhikkhu vissāsamāpādi, without attaining the end of defilements. appatto āsavakkhayaṁ.