15. The Arahat (T210.15)

He who has completed the Path and is sorrowless,
Who is freed in every way,
Who is released from all bonds,
Is cooled without heat [of passion].

Those whose mind is pure and are mindful,
Delighting in nowhere;
Have crossed the sea of delusion,
Like swans who have abandoned their lake.

Those who eat according to the stomach’s capacity,
Who accumulate nothing,
Whose mind is empty and markless;
Have passed the various stages of progress
Like the birds in the sky
Which can go far unhindered.

Those who have exhausted the world’s conditioning,
Who are no more hung up with food;
Whose mind is empty and sorrow-free,
Have reached the state of freedom.
They are [unattached] like flying birds
Which land temporarily only to fly away.

He whose senses are controlled, according with calm
Like horses well tamed,
Who has abandoned conceit and the conditioning;
Is respected by the gods.
Without resentment, like the earth;
Immovable, like a mountain;
The true men are taintless,
And have ended the worldly cycle of rebirths.

His mind is already at rest,
His words and deed too are tranquil.
By right understanding he is freed;
Calmly, he goes into appeasement.

He who has given up craving and is detached
Who has broken the hindrances of the three spheres,
And whose desires are annihilated
—Is indeed a superior man.

Be it in village or in forest,
Or on the plains or high lands.
—Wherever the arahats pass by
It cannot but become blessed.

He finds delight in the wilderness
Which the worldlings do not;
Happy indeed are the unattached
Who seek no sensual pleasure.

Translated from the Chinese by Bhikkhu Kuala Lumpur Dhammajoti

From his book The Chinese Version of Dharmapada, Translated with introduction and annotations.

Published here with the kind permission of the author.

Prepared for SuttaCentral by Ayya Vimala.