Reference Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0).
Sāvatthinidānaṁ.
At Sāvatthī.
Atha kho selā bhikkhunī pubbaṇhasamayaṁ nivāsetvā …pe…
Then the nun Selā robed up in the morning …
aññatarasmiṁ rukkhamūle divāvihāraṁ nisīdi.
and sat at the root of a tree for the day’s meditation.
Atha kho māro pāpimā selāya bhikkhuniyā bhayaṁ chambhitattaṁ lomahaṁsaṁ uppādetukāmo …pe…
Then Māra the Wicked, wanting to make the nun Selā feel fear, terror, and goosebumps …
selaṁ bhikkhuniṁ gāthāya ajjhabhāsi:
addressed her in verse:
“Kenidaṁ pakataṁ bimbaṁ,
“Who created this puppet?
kvanu bimbassa kārako;
Where is its maker?
Kvanu bimbaṁ samuppannaṁ,
Where has the puppet arisen?
kvanu bimbaṁ nirujjhatī”ti.
And where does it cease?”
Atha kho selāya bhikkhuniyā etadahosi:
Then the nun Selā thought,
“ko nu khvāyaṁ manusso vā amanusso vā gāthaṁ bhāsatī”ti?
“Who’s speaking this verse, a human or a non-human?”
Atha kho selāya bhikkhuniyā etadahosi:
Then she thought,
“māro kho ayaṁ pāpimā mama bhayaṁ chambhitattaṁ lomahaṁsaṁ uppādetukāmo samādhimhā cāvetukāmo gāthaṁ bhāsatī”ti.
“This is Māra the Wicked, wanting to make me feel fear, terror, and goosebumps, wanting to make me fall away from immersion!”
Atha kho selā bhikkhunī “māro ayaṁ pāpimā” iti viditvā māraṁ pāpimantaṁ gāthāhi paccabhāsi:
Then Selā, knowing that this was Māra the Wicked, replied to him in verse:
“Nayidaṁ attakataṁ bimbaṁ,
“This puppet isn’t self-made,
nayidaṁ parakataṁ aghaṁ;
nor is this gloom made by another.
Hetuṁ paṭicca sambhūtaṁ,
It comes to be because of a cause,
hetubhaṅgā nirujjhati.
and ceases when the cause breaks up.
Yathā aññataraṁ bījaṁ,
It’s like a seed that’s sown
khette vuttaṁ virūhati;
in a field; it grows
Pathavīrasañcāgamma,
relying on both the soil’s nutrients
sinehañca tadūbhayaṁ.
as well as moisture.
Evaṁ khandhā ca dhātuyo,
In the same way the aggregates and elements
cha ca āyatanā ime;
and these six sense fields
Hetuṁ paṭicca sambhūtā,
come to be because of a cause,
hetubhaṅgā nirujjhare”ti.
and cease when the cause breaks up.”
Atha kho māro pāpimā “jānāti maṁ selā bhikkhunī”ti dukkhī dummano tatthevantaradhāyīti.
Then Māra the Wicked, thinking, “The nun Selā knows me!” miserable and sad, vanished right there.
Reference Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0).
At Sāvatthī.
Then the nun Selā robed up in the morning …
and sat at the root of a tree for the day’s meditation.
Then Māra the Wicked, wanting to make the nun Selā feel fear, terror, and goosebumps …
addressed her in verse:
“Who created this puppet?
Where is its maker?
Where has the puppet arisen?
And where does it cease?”
Then the nun Selā thought,
“Who’s speaking this verse, a human or a non-human?”
Then she thought,
“This is Māra the Wicked, wanting to make me feel fear, terror, and goosebumps, wanting to make me fall away from immersion!”
Then Selā, knowing that this was Māra the Wicked, replied to him in verse:
“This puppet isn’t self-made,
nor is this gloom made by another.
It comes to be because of a cause,
and ceases when the cause breaks up.
It’s like a seed that’s sown
in a field; it grows
relying on both the soil’s nutrients
as well as moisture.
In the same way the aggregates and elements
and these six sense fields
come to be because of a cause,
and cease when the cause breaks up.”
Then Māra the Wicked, thinking, “The nun Selā knows me!” miserable and sad, vanished right there.
Sāvatthinidānaṁ.
Atha kho selā bhikkhunī pubbaṇhasamayaṁ nivāsetvā …pe…
aññatarasmiṁ rukkhamūle divāvihāraṁ nisīdi.
Atha kho māro pāpimā selāya bhikkhuniyā bhayaṁ chambhitattaṁ lomahaṁsaṁ uppādetukāmo …pe…
selaṁ bhikkhuniṁ gāthāya ajjhabhāsi:
“Kenidaṁ pakataṁ bimbaṁ,
kvanu bimbassa kārako;
Kvanu bimbaṁ samuppannaṁ,
kvanu bimbaṁ nirujjhatī”ti.
Atha kho selāya bhikkhuniyā etadahosi:
“ko nu khvāyaṁ manusso vā amanusso vā gāthaṁ bhāsatī”ti?
Atha kho selāya bhikkhuniyā etadahosi:
“māro kho ayaṁ pāpimā mama bhayaṁ chambhitattaṁ lomahaṁsaṁ uppādetukāmo samādhimhā cāvetukāmo gāthaṁ bhāsatī”ti.
Atha kho selā bhikkhunī “māro ayaṁ pāpimā” iti viditvā māraṁ pāpimantaṁ gāthāhi paccabhāsi:
“Nayidaṁ attakataṁ bimbaṁ,
nayidaṁ parakataṁ aghaṁ;
Hetuṁ paṭicca sambhūtaṁ,
hetubhaṅgā nirujjhati.
Yathā aññataraṁ bījaṁ,
khette vuttaṁ virūhati;
Pathavīrasañcāgamma,
sinehañca tadūbhayaṁ.
Evaṁ khandhā ca dhātuyo,
cha ca āyatanā ime;
Hetuṁ paṭicca sambhūtā,
hetubhaṅgā nirujjhare”ti.
Atha kho māro pāpimā “jānāti maṁ selā bhikkhunī”ti dukkhī dummano tatthevantaradhāyīti.