1. Compare Mahāmangala Jātaka (No. 453). This sutta appears in the Sutta Nipāta and Khuddaka Nikāya.
2. Lit., "He who gives alms to the helpless" or "feeder of the forlorn." His former name was Sudatta. After his conversion to Buddhism, he bought the pleasant grove, belonging to Prince Jeta, and erected a monastery which was subsequently named Jetavanārāma. It was in this monastery that the Buddha spent the greater part of his life. For a detailed account of the conversion of Sudatta see Kindred Sayings, I, p. 27, and Vinaya, III, p. 179.
3. Identified with modern Sahet-Mahet.
4. The commentary states that one day an interesting discussion arose in the "Public Hall" as to what constituted a blessing (maṅgala). People naturally held diverse views. One declared that auspicious sights in the early morning (such as a woman with child, little boys, white bulls, etc.) should be considered a maṅgala; another, auspicious sounds, such as "Full", "Luck", etc; and yet another, favourable experiences, such as the odour of fragrant flowers, the touching of the earth, etc.
Men were so divided in their opinions that it resulted in the formation of the three groups; and this partisanship ultimately extended, so the story goes, even as far as the Deva world. The Devas who would not rest satisfied until the controversial point was finally settled appealed to the superior wisdom of their acknowledged leader, Sakka, who, discreet as he was, ordered a certain Deva to approach the Buddha and obtain his trustworthy opinion. It was this particular Deva that drew near the presence of the Exalted One and addressed him in verse.
5. According to the commentary maṅgala means that which is conducive to happiness and prosperity. Native etymologists derive the term from three syllables man (woeful state), ga (going) and la (cut), and it is explained as that which obstructs the way to states of misery.
6. Any place where Bhikkhus, Bhikkhunis, Upāsakas and Upāsikās continually reside, where pious people are bent on the performance of the ten meritorious deeds, and where the Dhamma exists as a living principle. (Comy.)
7. Setting one's immorality in morality; faithlessness in faith, and selfishness in generosity. (Comy.)
8. Bahussutta, literally means "much-hearing". This term conveys the same idea as connoted by the word "erudition" in English. In the ancient days one's education was judged by what one has memorised from oral teaching. Here "much-hearing" refers to the knowledge of the Dhamma.
9. The commentary mentions that handicrafts are of two kinds, namely—the harmless crafts of householders, such as those of jewellers, goldsmiths, etc. and the crafts of homeless ones, such as stitching of robes etc.
10. Vinaya, i.e., discipline in thought, word and deed. The commentary speaks of two kinds of discipline—the discipline of the householder, which is abstinence from the ten immoral actions, and that of the homeless one, which is either the non-transgression of the seven kinds of offences, enumerated in the Pāṭimokkha, or the observance of the four divisions of sīla (morality).
11. Total abstinence, and not merely temperance.
12. To Buddha, disciples, teachers, parents, elders, etc. (Comy. )
13. For instance, when one is obsessed with evil thoughts. (Comy. )
14. Those who have calmed down their passions.
15. The eight lokadhammas comprise gain and loss, honour and dishonour, praise and blame, pain and happiness.
16. Asokaṃ, virajaṃ and khemarṃ. Each of these three expressions refers to the mind of the Arahant. Asoka is freedom from sorrow. Viraja is freedom from the stains of lust, hatred, and ignorance. Khema is security from the bonds of sense-desires (kāma), becoming (bhava), false views (diṭṭho), and ignorance (avijjā).
17. I.e., the above-mentioned thirty-eight blessings. (Comy).
18. Compare T.W. Rhys Davids, Buddhism, p. 125, and F.L. Woodward, Some Sayings of the Buddha, p. 56.
19. After hearing the Mangala Sutta, which deals with things that tend to one's happiness and prosperity, the Devas were desirous of hearing from the Buddha himself things that tend to one's downfall. Accordingly the Devas came to the Buddha and asked these questions.
20. The contrast in the Brahmin's abusive terms here and respectful address when he next speaks merits a word of explanation. The commentary states that the Buddha, that morning, looking over the world with divine power, saw that this Brahmin was ripe for taking Refuges and Precepts. So the Teacher set out specially to encounter him. The Brahmin who had just made his Brahma-Pūja, turned to look for a sign of fortune. His eyes fell on a "shaveling" and a "Samana," both unlucky signs according to Brahmin superstition. His dismay and anger found vent in words of abuse. But on hearing the Buddha's quiet words in a kindly voice, and seeing the unruffled compassion in the Master's expression, the Brahmin was ashamed, and his subsequent words reflect his repentance." (Kassapa Thera).
21. The Brahmin was inflamed at the seemingly inauspicious sight of the Buddha and spoke discourteously to him. The Buddha, who would never retaliate, replied courteously and calmly without either disparaging the Brahmin or exalting himself, that one who gives vent to anger, harbours ill will, etc. is in the strictest sense of the term, an outcast (vasala) although one may be born on the head of Brahma. By his reply the Brahmin was compelled to infer that the Buddha was really a Brāhmaṇa while he—a so-called Brahmin—was an outcast.
22. Makkha —usually rendered "hypocritical", "hypocrisy", lit., erasing the good of others.
23. Ekajaṃ, dvijaṃ—"Once-born"—All beings excepting those of egg-birth, like birds. "Twice-born"—beings who first appear as eggs. The second birth is when the eggs hatch over. The Master's humour is evident here, for Brahmins styled themselves the "twice-born".
24. A perfect saint who has destroyed all passions.
25. Sabrahmake loke:, lit. "in the world together with Brahma," i.e., the whole universe. (Comy.)
26. In these twenty verses the Buddha has enumerated thirty-four kinds of conditions that make an outcast.
The first verse deals with six, such as anger etc., the second, with harmfulness; the third, with oppression; the fourth, with theft; the fifth, with defrauding creditors; the sixth, with pillage; the seventh, with false evidence; the eighth with perfidious conduct; the ninth, with ingratitude towards parents; the tenth, with striking and annoyance; the eleventh with self-deception; the twelfth, with doing evil and concealing it; the thirteenth, with ungratefulness; the fourteenth, with deception; the fifteenth, with annoying religious persons; the sixteenth, with fraud; the seventeenth, with self-exaltation and condemnation of others; the eighteenth, with seven conditions such as annoying, etc.; the nineteenth, with reproaching the Buddha and his disciples; the twentieth, with false claim to Saintship. Judging not by birth but by deeds, these thirty-four kinds of persons are called outcasts by the Ariyas.
27. This verse was uttered by the Buddha to eradicate the erroneous view to which the Brahmin was clinging.
28. According to the commentary Vasala is one who rains (vassanto) impure deeds, and a Brāhmaṇa is one who wards off (bahento) impurity by pure deeds.
In this translation the term "Brahmaṇa" is applied to an Arahant, while "Brahmin" is used to denote a person of that particular caste.
29. Comp. "Birth makes Brahmin, nor non-Brahmin makes; 'Tis life and doing that mould the Brāhmaṇa true. Their lives mould farmers, tradesmen, merchants, serfs; Their lives mould robbers, soldiers, chaplains, kings." (Vāseha Sutta
30. The Buddha was alluding to a past birth of his, when as an outcast, he led an exceptionally virtuous life, commanding the respect of all, and was born in the Brahma realm. See Mātanga Jātaka, No. 497.
31. Caṇḍāla, outcast, signifies his low cast; Sopāka, which means one who cooks corpses of dogs for self-consumption, indicates his degrading livelihood; and Mātanga was the name by which he was known. (Comy.)
32. That is the Noble Eightfold Path which is capable of conveying one to the Brahmā-realm.
33. Being the path followed by great personages such as the Buddha etc.
34. After the dissolution of the body.
35. Those who are engaged in the learning of the Veda.
36. The commentary mentions that people draw pictures of Devatas (deities) or, carve their figures on wood, and hanging them on trees and shrines, make offerings in their name.
37. Ratana means a precious jewel. Here the term ratana is applied to the Buddha, Dhamma, and the Sangha. According to etymologists ratna is composed of the three syllables—ra , ta , and na . Ra means to attract, ta , to cross and na , to lead. Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha are collectively called ratana because they possess virtues that attract the minds of the wise, because they act as a means to cross the ocean of Saṃsāra, and because they lead to heavens and Nibbāna those who seek refuge in them.
38. This includes all the realms from the lowest to the highest Brahma realm (Akanittha. [Comy.])
39. So called because all passions are completely rooted out. (Comy.)
40. The path (magga ) is termed ānantarika samādhi because the phala (fruit) follows immediately without any intervening stage.
41. Namely: i. he who has attained the Sotāpatti path and ii. fruit, iii. he who has attained the Sakadāgāmi path and iv. fruit, (v) he who has attained the Anāgāmi path and vi. fruit, vii. he who has attained the Arahant path and viii. fruit. Thus these eight individuals constitute four pairs.
42. I.e., the fruit of Arahantship.
43. Indakhīla —Inda means Sakka, the king of the Devas or chief. Indarkhīla means either a post as firm and high as that of Sakkha's or the chief post.
Commentaries mention that these Indakhīlas are firm posts that are erected either inside the city as an embellishment or outside the city as a means of protection. Usually they are made of bricks or durable wood in octangular shapes. Half of the post is embedded in the earth—hence the metaphor, as firm and steady as an Indakhīla.
"Indra's post; the post, stake or column of Indra, at or before the city gate; also a large slab of stone let into the ground at the entrance of a house." P.T.S. Diet.
44. One who has attained the first stage of sainthood (sotāpatti) is born at the most only seven times.
45. That is the first glimpse of Nibbāna.
46. The first three of the ten fetters (samyojanas ).
47. Sakkāyadiṭṭho , the belief that arises when a body exists, i.e., the conception of a permanent soul or self. This is one of the three Maññanās or notions that arise with respect to the body. The other two are craving (taṇhā ) and pride (māna). (Comy.) Buddhist Psychology, p. 257.
48. Doubt with regard to i. Buddha, ii. Dhamma, iii. Sangha, iv. discipline, v. a past, vi. a future, vii. a past and future, and viii. the law of dependent origination (paticcasamuppāda). See Buddhist Psychology , p. 260.
49. The woeful states (niraya ), the animal kingdom, the Peta realm, and the Asura realm.
50. Abhihānāni: i. matricide, ii. parricide, iii. the murder of Arahants iv. the shedding of the Buddha's blood, v. causing schism in the Sangha, and (vi) permanent pernicious false beliefs.
51. Vanappagumbe; commentary explains this compound as vane pagumbo , thicket or bush in the forest. Here the locative is used in the sense of the nominative.
52. Here too the locative is used in the sense of the nominative.
53. The forests and groves look glorious with blossomed tree-tops in the first month of the summer season. Likewise the Dhamma expounded appears glorious with its manifold teachings.
54. An Arahant is not born again on account of his past actions. The acts he performs during his lifetime are termed ineffective (kiriya) since they are freed from all taints of craving.
55. Pointing to a lamp which was kept burning in honour of the tutelary deities of the city, and which, at that very moment, got extinguished.
56. When the Buddha concluded his sermon conferring peace and happiness upon the inhabitants of Vesāli, Sakka, the king of Devas, recited the last three verses and took leave of the Buddha, with his retinue.
The commentary states that the Buddha expounded this sutta successively for seven days in Vesāli.
59. Uju and sūjū. The first term refers to uprightness in word and deed, the second to uprightness in mind. (Comy.)
61. Here error means self-illusion (sakkāyadiṭṭhi).
62. The first glimpse of Nibbāna.
63. When one attains the stage of Anāgāmi one is born in the pure abodes (suddhāvāsa), and is not born in the human realm.
64. Sati = mindfulness; paṭṭhāna = establishment, foundations, bases, objects, applications;
Sati = mindfulness; upahāna = arousing, application. Chief objects for the application of mindfulness.
65. Ekāyana = sole way, only way, one way, etc.
66. The text states, "grief, lamentation, pain, and displeasure." Suffering embraces all four.
67. Any person, whether a member of the Sangha or a layfollower, who wishes to get rid of suffering can practise these meditations.
68. Kāye kāyanupassanā = Lit., 'body-contemplation in the body'—i.e., to restrict this contemplation only to the body and not to feelings, consciousness, and the dhammas. The other contemplations should be similarly understood.
69. Giving up temporarily at the time of the practise. Strictly speaking, they are temporarily inhibited by gaining the jhānas and totally eradicated by attaining Arahantship.
70. All the five hindrances are understood by mentioning the two chief ones.
71. "In the world" = loke, indicating the five agregates.
72. Any quiet place, even at home.
73. This is the ideal posture for this practise. One may adopt a convenient posture, if the sitting posture is inconvenient. One may even sit upon a chair.
74. Sabbakāyapaṭisamvedī = Here kāya means the whole 'body' of breathing process. He inhales and exhales, making known, making clear to himself the beginning, middle and end of the whole 'body' of respiration.
75. As a rule one does this concentration internally.
76. Breathing occurs on account of the body, nostrils and consciousness.
77. Breathing perishes with the perishing of these three.
78. That is, no being, no individual, no man, no woman, no soul, no 'I' or no 'me'.
79. Anissito = not being supported by craving (tanhā) and false view (diṭṭhi).
80. As he thus concentrates on inhalation and exhalation a stage might come when he temporarily inhibits the five hindrances and gains the first jhāna, replete with the jhāna factors—initial application (vitakka), sustained application (vicāra), joy (pīti), happiness (sukha), and one-pointedness (ekaggatā). Jhāna literally means either the close meditation on the object or the burning up of adverse hindrances. There is no appropriate English equivalent for this term. It is not a state of trance but a moral state, a religious experience. Emerging from jhāna, he meditates on the three characteristics—impermanence (anicca), suffering (dukkha), and soullessness (anattā)—and attains sainthood. Thereafter he lives 'emancipated' (anissito), being delivered from craving and false views, clinging to naught in this world. After attaining arahantship he clings not to anything in this world as he does not erroneously think in terms of me and mine.
The final object of ānāpāsati is first to gain the jhānas and then to develop the four supramundane paths and fruits.
This is the reason why at the outset it was stated—for the purification of beings, for the destruction of suffering, for the attainment of the Noble Eightfold Path and for the realization of Nibbāna.
81. Even an animal is aware of bodily movements. The object herein implied is not mere awareness. While walking, he should rightly understand that there is merely a walking but strictly no agent or person to walk. In other words, there is just an action, no actor, just a deed but no doer. By such awareness no misconception about an eternal soul arises.
82. This meditation on the impurities of the body is invariably practised by most bhikkhus. This was the favourite subject of meditation of Venerable Ānanda. This subject is suitable to those of a lustful temperament as it leads to non-attachment to the so-called beautiful body. Some may prefer to meditate on the dormant possibilities of man.
83. The four elements are paṭhavi, āpo, tejo, and vāyo. One must not understand that these elements are earth, water, fire and air.
Paṭhavi is the element of extension, the substratum of matter. Without it objects cannot occupy space. The qualities of hardness and softness, which are purely relative, are two conditions of this particular element.
Āpo is the element of cohesion. Unlike paṭhavi it is intangible. It is this element that makes scattered particles of matter cohere and gives rise to the idea of 'body'. When some bodies are melted this element becomes more prominent in the resulting fluid. The element of extension and cohesion are so closely interrelated that when cohesion ceases extension disappears.
Tejo is the element of heat. Cold is also a form of tejo. Both heat and cold are included in tejo because they possess the power of maturing bodies. Tejo, in other words, is the vitalizing energy. Preservation and decay are also due to this element. Unlike the other three essentials of matter, this element has the power to regenerate matter by itself.
Inseparably connected with heat is vāyo. the element of motion. Movements are caused by this element. Motion is regarded as the force or the generator of heat. 'Motion and heat in the material realm correspond respectively to consciousness and kamma in the mental.'
These four elements co-exist and are inseparable, but one may preponderate over another as, for instance pathavi, in earth, āpo in water, tejo in fire, and vāyo in air.
84. Both types of consciousness pertaining to the sense-sphere (kāmāvacara) and form-sphere (rūpāvacara) are surpassable, while types of consciousness pertaining to the formless-sphere are unsurpassable (anuttara), as here supramundane consciousness is not taken into account. (See Diagram 6. Planes of Existence)
85. Dhammānupassanā—Here dhamma does not mean the doctrine. It is a general term applied to both mundane and supramundane things. It resembles the broad meaning of the English term 'thing.' Dhamma in this connection is applied to nivaraṇa (hindrances), bojjhaṅga (factors of enlightenment) five aggregates of grasping (upādānakkhandha), āyatana (sense-spheres) and the Four Noble Truths (ariyasacca).
It is advisable to retain the Pali term here.