The Chapter about Flowers (DHP44-59)

Who will know this earth
and the lower realm, together with the gods?
Who will reflect on the well-taught verse of Dhamma
as a good man reflects on a flower?

The trainee will know this earth
and the lower realm, together with the gods.
The trainee will reflect on the well-taught verse of Dhamma
as a good man reflects on a flower.

Knowing that this body is just like froth,
understanding it has the nature of a mirage,
cutting off Māra’s flower-tipped arrows,
one should go beyond the King of Death’s sight.

Death takes up and carries away the one whose mind is attached to collecting flowers,
like a great flood carries off a sleeping village.

The End-Maker takes control of the one whose mind is attached to collecting flowers,
even though he is unsated with sense pleasures.

Just as a bee, without hurting the flower, its colour or scent,
gathers its nectar and escapes, so should the seer roam in the village.

Not the wrongs of others, or what others have done or have not done
one should consider, but what has been done and not done by oneself.

Just like a beautiful flower, which has colour, but lacks fragrance,
so are well-spoken words fruitless for the one who acts not on them.

Just like a beautiful flower, which has colour, and has fragrance,
so are well-spoken words fruitful for the one who does act on them.

Just as from a heap of flowers one might make a lot of garlands,
so should many good deeds be done by one who is born a mortal.

The fragrance of flowers goes not against the wind,
nor does sandalwood or pinwheel or white jasmine,
but the fragrance of the good goes against the wind,
the true person’s fragrance permeates all directions.

Sandalwood, pinwheel, then water lily and striped jasmine,
amongst these kinds of fragrance virtue’s fragrance is unsurpassed.

Pinwheel and sandalwood fragrance are insignificant,
but the fragrance of one who has virtue flutters supreme amongst the gods.

Māra cannot find the path of those endowed with virtue, who live heedfully,
and who are freed through complete and deep knowledge.

Just as in a forsaken and discarded heap along the highway
a lotus might arise in that place, with a pure fragrance, delighting the mind,
so amongst the forsaken, the Perfect Sambuddha’s disciple
outshines the blind and ordinary folk through his wisdom.

Translated by Ānandajoti Bhikkhu.

The text and translation, together with detailed notes and discussions, may be found in multiple formats on the translator’s website, Ancient Buddhist Texts.

Used by kind permission of Bhikkhu Ānandajoti.

The original translation was released under the following licence: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Prepared for SuttaCentral by Aminah Borg-Luck.