5.8. Nanda’s Questions (SNP5.8)

Nanda
People say that in the world
there are sages—how is this?
Do they say “sage” for knowledge won,
or for a certain way of life?

Buddha
The intelligent ones say not “a sage”,
for view, tradition, knowledge won;
those foeless, desireless and free from distress
who so fare along are sages, I say.

Nanda
Some of these monks and brahmins they say
that purity comes from the seen and the heard,
from rites and from vows and from other things too,
have they, O Lord, while practising thus
crossed over birth and crossed decay, sir?
I ask the Lord thus, please tell me of this.

Buddha
Some of these monks and brahmins they say
that purity comes from the seen and the heard,
from rites and from vows and from other things too
and even though they have practised thus,
I say they’ve not crossed over birth and decay.

Nanda
Some of these monks and brahmins they say
that purity comes from the seen and the heard,
from rites and from vows and from other things too,
if you say, O Sage, they’ve not crossed the flood,
who fares through the world of devas, mankind,
crossed over birth and crossed decay, sir?
I ask the Lord thus, please tell me of this.

Buddha
Of these monks and these brahmins I do not say
that all are shrouded by birth and decay:
those who’ve let go of the seen, heard, and known,
of rites and of vows and others—all,
completely craving Known and from the inflows free—
those persons I say have crossed over the flood.

Nanda
By the Great Seeker’s words I’m truly delighted
well-explained, O Gotama, is “to assets unattached”,
those who’ve let go of the seen, heard and known,
of rites and of vows and of other things—all,
completely craving Known and from the inflows free—
also I say they’ve crossed over the flood.

Translated by Laurence Khantipalo Mills.

This translation was edited by Bhikkhu Sujato as part of the full translation of the Sutta Nipāta with commentary prepared from a draft handwritten and typed manuscript of Laurence Khantipalo Mills in 2015. The project was managed by Laurence’s students Michael Wells and Gary Dellora, and initial digitizing of the text was by Sean Read. Full text is available at https://suttacentral.net/downloads

In addition to the suttas noted, Bhikkhu Sujato also translated verses 46, 78, 232, 465, 500, 589–597, 865, 885–890, 894–5, 897–901, 902–916, and 919–921.

This text is released dedicated to the Public Domain by way of Creative Commons Zero. No rights reserved.