Tuesday, October 18, 2011


Dhammapada verse #48

採集諸花已,其人心愛著,貪欲無厭足,實為死魔伏。

For one of desires insatiate
who gathers only pleasure-flowers,
for one who has a clinging mind
Death the sovereign overpowers.

☆☆☆

【第48偈的故事】

葩倜扑姬喀枯瑪莉是舍衛城的女信徒,十六歲時就結婚了,並且育有四個兒子。她很有德行,喜歡以食物和其它必需品布施修行的人。她經常到僧伽精舍去清洗房舍,裝滿所有瓶罐的水並且做其它的雜事。她知道自己的前世是忉利天王的妻子之一,同時 ,她還清楚記得她是在所有的人都到花園摘花嬉戲時往生到人間的。所以,每次供養比丘或做其它的功德時,她都渴望將來能往生忉利天,再做忉利天王的妻子,一如前世般。

有一天,她生病去逝了,並且正如她熱烈期望地往生忉利天,成為忉利天王的妻子。由於忉利天的一天等於人間的一百年,所以她再往生忉利天時,忉利天王等人還在花園裡玩,幾乎忘了她的存在,所以當她再度加入時,忉利天王問她一早上都到那裡去了,她告訴他,自己已經到人間走一回了。

這時候,比丘們向佛陀報告葩替扑姬喀枯瑪莉去世的事。佛陀說:
生命是短暫的,人還未能滿足感官慾望時,死亡已經奪走人的生命。

While residing at the Jētavana Monastery, the Buddha spoke this verse, with reference to Patipåjikà Kumàri.

Patipåjikà Kumàri was a lady from Sàvatthi. She married at the age of sixteen and had four sons. She was a virtuous as well as a generous lady, who loved to make offerings of food and other requisites to the monks. She would often go to the monastery and clean up the premises, fill the pots and jars with water and perform other services. Patipåjikà also possessed Jàtissara Knowledge (remembrance of past births) through which she remembered that in her previous existence she was one of the numerous wives of Màlàbhàrã, in the dēva world of Tàvatiüsa. She also remembered that she had passed away from there when all of them were out in the garden enjoying themselves, picking flowers. So, every time she made offerings to the monks or performed any other meritorious act, she would pray that she might be reborn in the Tàvatiüsa realm as a wife of Màlàbhàrã, her previous husband.

One day, Patipåjikà fell ill and passed away that same evening. As she had so ardently wished, she was reborn in Tàvatimsa dēva world as a wife of Màlàbhàrã. As one hundred years in the human world is equivalent to just one day in Tàvatiüsa world, Màlàbhàrã and his other wives were still in the garden enjoying themselves and Patipåjikà was barely missed by them. So, when she rejoined them, Màlàbhàrã asked her where she had been the whole morning. She then told him about her passing away from Tàvatiüsa, her rebirth in the human world, her marriage to a man and also about how she had given birth to four sons, her passing away from there and finally her return to Tàvatiüsa.

When the monks learned about the death of Patipåjikà, they were stricken with grief. They went to the Buddha and reported that Patipåjikà, who was offering alms-food to them early in the morning, had passed away in the evening. To them the Buddha replied that the life of beings was very brief; and that before they have satisfied their desires for sensual pleasures, they were overpowered by death.

☆☆☆

English source: "Treasury of Truth: Illustrated Dhammapada" by Ven. Weragoda Sarada Maha Thero
中文法句出處:《南傳法句經》 了參法師譯
中文故事出處:《法句經故事集》 達摩難陀長老著 周金言譯