SN 1.4  Accenti sutta - Flies By

Sāvatthinidānaṁ.

At Sāvatthi.

Ekamantaṁ ṭhitā kho sā devatā bhagavato santike imaṁ gāthaṁ abhāsi:

Standing to one side, that deity recited this verse in the presence of the Blessed One:

“Accenti kālā tarayanti rattiyo,
Vayoguṇā anupubbaṁ jahanti;
Etaṁ bhayaṁ maraṇe pekkhamāno,
Puññāni kayirātha sukhāvahānī”ti.

“Time flies by, the nights swiftly pass,
the stages of life gradually abandon |[us]::::us|;
clearly seeing this danger in death,
one should do meritorious deeds that bring happiness.”

“Accenti kālā tarayanti rattiyo,
Vayoguṇā anupubbaṁ jahanti;
Etaṁ bhayaṁ maraṇe pekkhamāno,
Lokāmisaṁ pajahe santipekkho”ti.

[The Blessed One]: “Time flies by, the nights swiftly pass,
the stages of life gradually abandon |[us]::::us|;
clearly seeing this danger in death,
one should drop the |world’s bait::material delight, worldliness [lokāmisa]|, looking for peace.”