320
Ahaṁ nāgova saṅgāme,
cāpato patitaṁ saraṁ;
Ativākyaṁ titikkhissaṁ,
dussīlo hi bahujjano.
Like an elephant in battle
who endures arrows shot from a bow;
so will I endure verbal abuse,
for many people are unprincipled.
321
Dantaṁ nayanti samitiṁ,
dantaṁ rājābhirūhati;
Danto seṭṭho manussesu,
yotivākyaṁ titikkhati.
The well-tamed [beast] is led to the assembly,
the tamed [elephant] is the one the king mounts;
best among humans is the tamed one,
who endures verbal abuse.
322
Varamassatarā dantā,
ājānīyā ca sindhavā;
Kuñjarā ca mahānāgā,
attadanto tato varaṁ.
Well-trained mules,
thoroughbred horses from Sindh,
majestic elephants and great tuskers—
but better than these is one who is self-controlled.
323
Na hi etehi yānehi,
gaccheyya agataṁ disaṁ;
Yathāttanā sudantena,
danto dantena gacchati.
Not by these vehicles
could one reach the unreached destination; [1]
but by one’s own well-tamed self,
the self-controlled one reaches the goal.
324
Dhanapālo nāma kuñjaro,
Kaṭukabhedano dunnivārayo;
Baddho kabaḷaṁ na bhuñjati,
Sumarati nāgavanassa kuñjaro.
Dhanapāla, the elephant,
who is in musth and difficult to restrain;
bound, he does not eat his given morsel,
but only longs for the elephant forest.
325
Middhī yadā hoti mahagghaso ca,
Niddāyitā samparivattasāyī;
Mahāvarāhova nivāpapuṭṭho,
Punappunaṁ gabbhamupeti mando.
When one is drowsy and a glutton,
a sleeper who tosses and turns in bed;
like a great pig fattened on fodder,
the dull-witted one is reborn again and again.
326
Idaṁ pure cittamacāri cārikaṁ,
Yenicchakaṁ yatthakāmaṁ yathāsukhaṁ;
Tadajjahaṁ niggahessāmi yoniso,
Hatthippabhinnaṁ viya aṅkusaggaho.
Previously, this mind wandered on its own,
wherever it wished, wherever it liked, finding pleasure;
today, I shall restrain it radically,
like a mahout controlling an elephant in rut with a hook.
327
Appamādaratā hotha,
sacittamanurakkhatha;
Duggā uddharathattānaṁ,
paṅke sannova kuñjaro.
Delight in diligence,
look after your own mind;
lift yourself out of this pit,
just like an elephant draws himself out of the mud.
328
Sace labhetha nipakaṁ sahāyaṁ,
Saddhiṁ caraṁ sādhuvihāridhīraṁ;
Abhibhuyya sabbāni parissayāni,
Careyya tenattamano satīmā.
If one finds a prudent companion,
a virtuous and discerning fellow traveler;
let one walk together, overcoming all dangers,
with a pleased mind and mindfulness.
329
No ce labhetha nipakaṁ sahāyaṁ,
Saddhiṁ caraṁ sādhuvihāridhīraṁ;
Rājāva raṭṭhaṁ vijitaṁ pahāya,
Eko care mātaṅgaraññeva nāgo.
If one does not find a prudent companion,
a virtuous and discerning fellow traveler;
then as a king leaves behind his conquered realm,
walk like a tusker in the woods alone.
330
Ekassa caritaṁ seyyo,
Natthi bāle sahāyatā;
Eko care na ca pāpāni kayirā,
Appossukko mātaṅgaraññeva nāgo.
Better is a solitary life,
there is no companionship with immature persons;
let one walk alone, not partaking in wrongdoing,
calm and unconcerned, like a tusker in the woods.
331
Atthamhi jātamhi sukhā sahāyā,
Tuṭṭhī sukhā yā itarītarena;
Puññaṁ sukhaṁ jīvitasaṅkhayamhi,
Sabbassa dukkhassa sukhaṁ pahānaṁ.
Ease is having friends when a need arises,
ease is contentment in all situations;
ease is merit at life’s end,
ease is the giving up of all suffering.
332
Sukhā matteyyatā loke,
atho petteyyatā sukhā;
Sukhā sāmaññatā loke,
atho brahmaññatā sukhā.
In this world, good is devotion to one’s mother,
and good is devotion to one’s father;
in this world, good is reverence for renunciants,
and good is reverence for the holy men.
333
Sukhaṁ yāva jarā sīlaṁ,
sukhā saddhā patiṭṭhitā;
Sukho paññāya paṭilābho,
pāpānaṁ akaraṇaṁ sukhaṁ.
Good is virtue lasting until old age,
good is faith that is well-established;
good is the acquisition of wisdom,
and good is the non-doing of injurious actions.
Unreached destination: Agataṁ disaṁ. Literally "the un-gone direction." This is a poetic synonym for Nibbāna. Worldly vehicles like horses and elephants can only take a person to places within the cycle of existence (saṁsāra). Only the vehicle of a tamed, highly developed mind can transport someone out of saṁsāra to the ultimate destination.