Exploring the Path: Pali / English side-by-side

Namo tassa bhagavato arahato sammāsambuddhassa

1.2.6 Dutiyachiggaḷayugasuttaṃ - The Second Simile of the Turtle

Dutiyachiggaḷayugasuttaṃ	The Second Simile of the Turtle
“Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, ayaṃ mahāpathavī ekodakā assa.	“Suppose, Bhikkhus, this great earth were only covered with water.
Tatra puriso ekacchiggaḷaṃ yugaṃ pakkhipeyya.	And there were a man who would throw a yoke with a single hole into it.
Tamenaṃ puratthimo vāto pacchimena saṃhareyya,	A wind from the East would make it drift to the West;
pacchimo vāto puratthimena saṃhareyya,	a wind from the West would make it drift to the East.
uttaro vāto dakkhiṇena saṃhareyya,	a wind from the North would make it drift to the South;
dakkhiṇo vāto uttarena saṃhareyya.	a wind from the South would make it drift to the North.
Tatrassa kāṇo kacchapo.	And imagine a blind turtle.
So vassasatassa vassasatassa accayena sakiṃ sakiṃ ummujjeyya.	It would emerge once every one hundred years.
Taṃ kiṃ maññathabhikkhave,	Now, what do you think?
api nu kho kāṇo, kacchapo vassasatassa vassasatassa accayena sakiṃ sakiṃ ummujjanto amusmiṃ ekacchiggaḷe yuge gīvaṃ paveseyyā”ti?	Would that blind turtle, emerging to the surface once every one hundred years, stick his neck into that yoke with a single hole?”
“Adhiccamidaṃ, bhante , yaṃ so kāṇo kacchapo vassasatassa vassasatassa accayena sakiṃ sakiṃ ummujjanto amusmiṃ ekacchiggaḷe yuge gīvaṃ paveseyyā”ti.	“It would be quite unlikely, Bhante, that this blind sea-turtle, coming to the surface once every one hundred years, would place his neck into that yoke with a single hole.”
“Evaṃ adhiccamidaṃ, bhikkhave, yaṃ manussattaṃ labhati.	“In the same way it is quite unlikely that one obtains human birth.
Evaṃ adhiccamidaṃ, bhikkhave, yaṃ tathāgato loke uppajjati arahaṃ sammāsambuddho.	It’s likewise quite unlikely that a Tathāgata, an Arahant, a Sammāsambuddha, arises in the world.
Evaṃ adhiccamidaṃ, bhikkhave, yaṃ tathāgatappavedito dhammavinayo loke dippati.	And it is quite unlikely that the Dhamma and the Vinaya as taught by the Tathāgata shines forth in this world.p>
Tassidaṃ bhikkhave, manussattaṃ laddhaṃ,	Now, this human birth has been obtained,
tathāgato loke uppanno arahaṃsammāsambuddho,	a Tathāgata, an Arahant, a Sammāsambuddha, has arisen in the world.
tathāgatappavedito ca dhammavinayo loke dippati.	the Dhamma and the Vinaya as taught by the Tathāgata shines forth in this world.
Tasmātiha, bhikkhave, ‘idaṃ dukkhan’ti yogo karaṇīyo,	Therefore, Bhikkhus, make it your obligation to practice: ‘This is suffering’;
‘ayaṃ dukkhasamudayo’ti yogo karaṇīyo,	make it your obligation to practice: ‘This is the origination of suffering’;
‘ayaṃ dukkhanirodho’ti yogo karaṇīyo,	make it your obligation to practice: ‘This is the eradication of suffering’.
‘ayaṃ dukkhanirodhagāminī paṭipadā’ti yogo karaṇīyo”ti.	And make it your obligation to practice: ‘This is the path leading to the eradication of suffering’.”