Introduction
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato sammāsambuddhassa
Introduction to 3.2.1 Yamakavaggo - Sārañca sārato ñatvā - Perceiving the Essential
A foolish person who knows that he is foolish is ‘a wise one’ to that extent,
But a fool who proudly feels he is wise, certainly can be called a ‘foolish person’.
This lesson presents verses from the first chapter of the Dhammapada, the Yamakavaggo, ‘verses of pairs’ or ‘twin-verses’.3 They highlight the importance of a correct attitude and forthright perspective in one’s life. They were uttered by the Buddha in reference to Sañjaya.4
Sañjaya was the previous teacher of the Buddha’s chief disciples, the Venerable Sāriputta and the Venerable Mahā Moggallāna. They had promised each other in their search of truth, that whoever encountered a spiritual teacher of high standing would immediately inform the other wherever they were.5 Sāriputta had attained the state of sotāpanna through listening and realizing the essence of the renowned reply that Venerable Assaji uttered. Sāriputta had followed Assaji and requested to inform him about the doctrine of his teacher, as he felt that Assaji had attained something higher than he had so far encountered.6 This famous reply to Sāriputta’s request was:
Of those states that have arisen from a cause,
their cause is explained by the Tathāgata,
as well as the cessation of those, this is what the great saint teaches.
After Sāriputta found Moggallāna and repeated those words, he desired to go with Sāriputta to Veluvana to immediately see the Buddha. But first, Sāriputta expressed his wish to inform their previous teacher, Sañjaya, about his successful quest in order to suggest to Sañjaya to join them in following the Buddha. But Sañjaya refused to accept another teacher and explained to them that it was for him to attract many disciples rather than just a few. Being a famous spiritual teacher, it would be an absurdity for him to become a pupil once more.
Ahaṃ mahājanassa ācariyo hutvā9 vicariṃ,10 vicarantassa me antevāsikavāso11 cāṭiyā12 udañcanabhāvappatti13 viya hoti,14 na sakkhissāmahaṃ15 antevāsikavāsaṃ vasitun’ti.
When Sāriputta and Moggallāna expressed their conviction that from the time a Buddha has appeared, people would apply the teaching of this Enlightened One rather than other teachings. Sañjaya still insisted to remain a teacher of many. He felt that the multitude of people were foolish and preferred to follow the foolish rather than the few who were wise. Those few wise would get attracted to the wise, and with this background he questioned his previous disciples.
They had to admit that the majority was unwise compared to the prudent minority.
*Dandhā, ācariya, bahū, paṇḍitā ca nāma katipayā18 eva hontī’ti!
Sañjaya decided in spite of their advice to let the ‘wise’ search the vicinity of the saint Gotama and to await the ‘foolish’ to come to him.
*Tena hi, tātā, paṇḍitā paṇḍitassa samaṇassa gotamassa santikaṃ19 gamissanti, dandhā dandhassa mama santikaṃ āgamissanti.
He then dismissed both with the words: “You may go — I will not go!”
*Gacchatha tumhe, nāhaṃ gamissāmī’ti!
After being informed about this incident the Buddha uttered the verses, quoted in this lesson, after he had told Sāriputta and Moggallāna.
*Bhikkhave, sañcayo attano micchādiṭṭhitāya asāraṃ sāroti, sārañca asāroti gaṇhi.20 Tumhe pana attano paṇḍitatāya21 sārañca sārato, asārañca asārato ñatvā asāraṃ pahāya sārameva gaṇhitthā’ti!22
Bhikkhus, because of his wrong view, Sañjaya mistook untruth for truth and truth for falsehood. But you, by reason of your wisdom, understood truth for truth and falsehood for falsehood and wisely rejected what is false and accepted what is true.
The commentary referring to these verses emphasizes that those maintaining erroneous thoughts based on wrong views will not be able to enter upon any of the three trainings nor ever taste the essence of sīla, samādhi, paññā nor achieve liberation.
Te sāranti te pana taṃ micchādiṭṭhiggahaṇaṃ23 gahetvā ṭhitā kāmavitakkādīnaṃ24 vasena micchāsaṅkappagocarā hutvā sīlasāraṃ, samādhisāraṃ, paññāsāraṃ, vimuttisāraṃ, vimuttiñāṇadassanasāraṃ,25 paramatthasāraṃ, nibbānañca nādhigaccha’ti.
Those who take up wrong views and endorse wrong thoughts by upholding thoughts of sense desires, and so on, will not realize the essence of sīla, nor the essence of samādhi and paññā, nor the essence of liberation nor of the understanding of annihilation and they will not come into the possession of the essence of the highest goal, which is Nibbāna.
May these verses, along with the lessons that follow, inspire one to dive into a deeper understanding of the first necessary link of the Ariyo Aṭṭhaṅgiko Maggo — being a mandatory pre-requisite to realize the remaining ones — in order to come into the possession of the essence of the highest goal, which is Nibbāna!
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paṇḍitamānī: paṇḍita + mānī – wise + proud: proud of his (imagined) intelligence.1
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Bālavaggo, Dhammapadapāḷi, Khuddakanikāye.2
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The famous, often quoted first ‘twin-verses’ of the Yamakavaggo opened the Introduction to Chapter Three: 3.1.1 Kiṃ ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo – What Is the Noble Eightfold Path? - Etaṃ Buddhāna sāsanaṃ.3
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Sañjaya was one of the great teachers of the Buddha’s time, a sceptic, who evaded definite statements and therefore was called amarāvikkhepika: name of a fish (difficult to catch) + confusion, perplexity: one who equivocates, an eel-wriggler. See also on the prevailing ‘views’ during the days of the Buddha in 3.2.11 Kathavatthu (select.) - Refuting Wrong Doctrines.4
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Their friendship and relationship is related under 1.3.8 Caṅkamasuttaṃ - Bound Together by Inclinations.5
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Sāriputta had requested the Venerable Assaji: Appaṃ vā bahuṃ vā bhāsassu, atthaṃyeva me brūhi; attheneva me attho, kiṃ kāhasi byañjanaṃ bahun’ti. (“Whether it is little or much that you can tell, the meaning only, please tell me, my only quest is the meaning, what are those many words to me?”), and here he received those stanzas in reply. See 1.3.8 Caṅkamasuttaṃ.6
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hetuppabhavā: hetu + p + pabhavā – cause + origination, birth, springing up.7
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Sāriputtattheravatthu, Dhammapada-aṭṭhakathā, Khuddakanikāye. Also the quotes in this Introduction marked with an asterisk (*).8
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hutvā: (gerund of) bhavati – having made.9
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vicariṃ: vicarati (aor.) – walked, went about.10
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antevāsikavāso: one who is living with a teacher, a pupil.11
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cāṭiyā: cāṭī (instr.) – jar, waterpot.12
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udañcanabhāvappatti: uda(ka) + ṃ + ca + n + abhāva + p + patti – water + disappearance + obtaining, getting.13
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cāṭiyā udañcanabhāvappatti viya hoti: Sañjaya here compares his situation with a bizarre one of a jar to be used at the well for drawing water.14
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sakkhissāmahaṃ: sakkhissāmi + ahaṃ – will be able + I.15
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dandhā: slothful, slow, heavy, foolish.16
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udāhu: or.17
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katipayā: few, some, several.18
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santika: near.19
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gaṇhi: (aor.) gaṇhati – take; acquire, comprehend, adopt, perceive.20
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paṇḍitatā: skill, wisdom.21
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gaṇhitthā: gaṇhati (aorist-2nd person pl.).22
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micchādiṭṭhiggahaṇaṃ: micchādiṭṭhi + g + gahaṇa – wrong view + holding, grasping, seizing.23
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kāmavitakkādīnaṃ: kāma + vitakko + adīnaṃ – sense desires + thought + beginning with. This refers to the three unwholesome kinds of thought momentum of rolling in sense desires, aversion and violence: pāpake akusale vitakke vitakkeyyātha, seyyathidaṃ – kāmavitakkaṃ, byāpādavitakkaṃ, vihiṃsāvitakkaṃ.
See 3.3.3 Vitakkasuttaṃ - Thoughts to Avoid and to Engage In.24
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vimuttiñāṇadassanasāraṃ: vimutti +ñāṇa + dassana + sāraṃ – liberation + knowledge + seeing + essence.25