Pupphavagga
Translated by Bhikkhu Sujato · Pāli: Mahāsaṅgīti Tipiṭaka · Public domain (CC0) via SuttaCentral
1Ko imaṁ pathaviṁ vicessati,Who bestirs this earth,12Yamalokañca imaṁ sadevakaṁ;and the Yama realm with its gods?3Ko dhammapadaṁ sudesitaṁ,Who sets out the well-taught word of truth,24Kusalo pupphamiva pacessati.as an expert a flower?
1Sekho pathaviṁ vicessati,A trainee bestirs this earth,2Yamalokañca imaṁ sadevakaṁ;and the Yama realm with its gods.3Sekho dhammapadaṁ sudesitaṁ,A trainee sets out the well-taught word of truth,4Kusalo pupphamiva pacessati.as an expert a flower.
1Pheṇūpamaṁ kāyamimaṁ viditvā,Knowing this body’s like foam,2Marīcidhammaṁ abhisambudhāno;realizing it’s all just a mirage,3Chetvāna mārassa papupphakāni,and cutting off Māra’s blossoming,4Adassanaṁ maccurājassa gacche.vanish from the King of Death.
1Pupphāni heva pacinantaṁ,As a mighty flood sweeps off a sleeping village,2byāsattamanasaṁ naraṁ;death steals away a man3Suttaṁ gāmaṁ mahoghova,even as he gathers flowers,4maccu ādāya gacchati.his mind caught up in them.
1Pupphāni heva pacinantaṁ,The terminator gains control of the man2byāsattamanasaṁ naraṁ;who has not had his fill of pleasures,3Atittaññeva kāmesu,even as he gathers flowers,4antako kurute vasaṁ.his mind caught up in them.
1Yathāpi bhamaro pupphaṁ,A bee takes the nectar2vaṇṇagandhamaheṭhayaṁ;and moves on, doing no damage3Paleti rasamādāya,to the flower’s beauty and fragrance;4evaṁ gāme munī care.and that’s how a sage should walk in the village.
1Na paresaṁ vilomāni,Don’t find fault with others,2na paresaṁ katākataṁ;with what they’ve done or left undone.3Attanova avekkheyya,You should only watch yourself,4katāni akatāni ca.what you’ve done or left undone.
1Yathāpi ruciraṁ pupphaṁ,Just like a glorious flower2vaṇṇavantaṁ agandhakaṁ;that’s colorful but lacks fragrance;3Evaṁ subhāsitā vācā,eloquent speech is fruitless4aphalā hoti akubbato.for one who does not act on it.
1Yathāpi ruciraṁ pupphaṁ,Just like a glorious flower2Vaṇṇavantaṁ sagandhakaṁ;that’s both colorful and fragrant,3Evaṁ subhāsitā vācā,eloquent speech is fruitful4Saphalā hoti kubbato.for one who acts on it.
1Yathāpi puppharāsimhā,Just as one would create many garlands2kayirā mālāguṇe bahū;from a heap of flowers,3Evaṁ jātena maccena,when a person has come to be born,4kattabbaṁ kusalaṁ bahuṁ.they should do many skillful things.
1Na pupphagandho paṭivātameti,The fragrance of flowers doesn’t spread upwind,2Na candanaṁ tagaramallikā vā;nor sandalwood, pinwheel, or jasmine;3Satañca gandho paṭivātameti,but the fragrance of the good spreads upwind;4Sabbā disā sappuriso pavāyati.a true person’s virtue spreads in every direction.
1Candanaṁ tagaraṁ vāpi,Among all the fragrances—2uppalaṁ atha vassikī;sandalwood or pinwheel3Etesaṁ gandhajātānaṁ,or lotus or jasmine—4sīlagandho anuttaro.the fragrance of virtue is supreme.
1Appamatto ayaṁ gandho,Faint is the fragrance2yāyaṁ tagaracandanī;of sandal or pinwheel;3Yo ca sīlavataṁ gandho,but the fragrance of the virtuous4vāti devesu uttamo.floats to the highest gods.
1Tesaṁ sampannasīlānaṁ,For those accomplished in ethics,2appamādavihārinaṁ;meditating diligently,3Sammadaññāvimuttānaṁ,freed through the highest knowledge,4māro maggaṁ na vindati.Māra cannot find their path.
1Yathā saṅkāradhānasmiṁ,From a heap of trash2ujjhitasmiṁ mahāpathe;discarded on the highway,3Padumaṁ tattha jāyetha,a lotus might blossom,4sucigandhaṁ manoramaṁ.fragrant and delightful.
1Evaṁ saṅkārabhūtesu,So too, among those thought of as trash,2andhabhūte puthujjane;a disciple of the perfect Buddha3Atirocati paññāya,outshines with their wisdom4sammāsambuddhasāvako.the blind ordinary folk.
5Pupphavaggo catuttho.
The verbs vicessati and pacessati in this verse appear to be unique. I take them to be from the Sanskrit ceṣṭ (“move, explore”) rather than ci (“gather”). They can then be read as present tense, which makes better sense of the verse. Sanskrit and Gandhari parallels have a variety of forms, all of which maintain the distinction between the vi and pa prefixes.
I take vicessati in the sense “stir, agitate”, with reference to such passages as AN 7.69:15.1, where the noble one inspires the gods. The commentary, rather, suggests the sense “explore, investigate”. A variant reading vijessati yields the sense “shall conquer”.
The verb pacessati is exceedingly rare, but the late tantric text Sarvatathāgatādhiṣṭhāna Vyūhasūtra has praceṣṭavyaḥ, evidently in the sense of “setting out” scents, flowers, etc. on a shrine. Compare the sense of “having prepared” (the offering for the fire, ceṣṭitvā) at Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 6.4.19.
