2. Kāmavarga
The Chapter about Desire There is no Kāmavagga in the Dhammapada, and only nine out of the twenty verses find parallels in the Dhammapada.
(20 Verses)
[2.1]
[decl.]
Kāma jānāmi te mūlaṁ, saṁkalpāt kāma jāyase,
na tvāṁ saṁkalpayiṣyāmi, tato me na bhaviṣyasi.
Desire, I know your root, from thought, desire, you arise, I will not think of you, therefore you will not be for me.
[2.2]
[rh.q.]
Kāmebhyo jāyate śokaḥ, kāmebhyo jāyate bhayam,
kāmebhyo vipramuktānāṁ, nāsti śokaḥ, kuto bhayam?
From desire there arises grief, from desire there arises fear, for those who are fully freed from desire, there is no grief, how is there fear?
[2.3]
[rh.q.]
Ratibhyo jāyate śoko, ratibhyo jāyate bhayam,
ratibhyo vipramuktānāṁ, nāsti śokaḥ, kuto bhayam?
From delight there arises grief, from delight there arises fear, for those who are fully freed from delight, there is no grief, how is there fear?
[2.4]
[stm. + sim.]
Madhurāgrā vipāke tu kaṭukā hy abhinanditāḥ.
Kāmā dahanti vai bālān, ulkevāmuñcataḥ karam.
Sweet at the beginning, but for those who rejoice the result is bitter. Fools greatly burn with desires, like a torch burns a hand of one holding it. The apparent gender disagreement between fem. madhurāgrā/kaṭukā and masc. kāmāḥ suggests the verse is better read as two separate sentences. The first is a general statement: For those who rejoice (in worldly pleasures), it is sweet at the beginning but bitter in the result. The second line provides the specific consequence: Desires burn fools... This reading resolves the grammatical anomaly and creates a more logical rhetorical structure.
[2.5]
[stm. + ana.]
Na tad dṛḍhaṁ bandhanam, āhur āryā,
yad āyasaṁ dāravaṁ balbajaṁ vā,
saṁraktacittasya hi mandabuddheḥ,
putreṣu dāreṣu ca yā avekṣā.
Not so strong are those bonds, say the noble ones, which are made of iron or wood or reeds, as for the one, impassioned in mind and having the understanding of a fool, who has concern for children and wives.
[2.6]
[stm.]
Etad dṛḍhaṁ bandhanam, āhur āryāḥ,
samantataḥ susthiraṁ duṣpramokṣam,
etad api cchitvā tu parivrajanti
hy anapekṣiṇaḥ, kāmasukhaṁ prahāya.
This is a strong bond, We have to presume that this is back-referencing to the previous verse, and therefore this means this concern for children and wives. The two verses which occur in sequence in both Udānavarga and Dhammapada must have been passed on as a pair. say the noble ones, very firm on all sides and hard to escape from, having cut this down, the unconcerned wander forth, abandoning the enjoyment of sense desires.
[2.7]
[stm.]
Na te kāmā yāni citrāṇi loke,
saṁkalparāgaḥ puruṣasya kāmaḥ,
tiṣṭhanti citrāṇi tathaiva loke,
athātra dhīrā vinayanti cchandam.
Whatever beautiful things there are in the world, those are not desires, a person’s desire is their passionate intention, beautiful things remain just as they are in the world, but the steadfast dispel the impulse here.
[2.8]
[stm.]
Na santi nityā manujeṣu kāmāḥ,
santi tv anityāḥ kāmino, yatra baddhāḥ,
tāṁs tu prahāya hy apunarbhavāya,
hy anāgataṁ mṛtyudheyaṁ vadāmi.
Desires are not permanent among humans, those who desire are impermanent, wherein there is bondage, but, for the sake of no more existence, having abandoned these, I say one does not return to the realm of death.
[2.9]
[stm.]
Chandajāto hy avasrāvī, manasānāvilo bhavet,
kāmeṣu tv apratibaddhacitta ūrdvasroto nirucyate.
The one with arisen desire would be distracted, but one can be unagitated by the mind, having a mind unbound by desires Strictly speaking, the translation should read: having a mind unbound in regard to desires; but in many places where the locative kāmeṣu is used, in English it is more natural to read: by desires, or, for desires. See verse 60 below. one is called one gone upstream.
[2.10]
[adm. + sim.]
Anupūrveṇa medhāvī, stokaṁ stokaṁ kṣaṇe kṣaṇe
karmāro rajatasyaiva nirdhamen malam ātmanaḥ.
Gradually, little by little, moment by moment, the intelligent one should remove his own impurities, just as a smith would remove the silver’s impurities. Both nirdhamen and malam have to be seen as being used twice here for the simile to work. If we read it without repetition, then it simply reads: should remove one’s own impurity, just as a smith for silver.
[2.11]
[stm. + sim.]
Rathakāra iva carmaṇaḥ parikartann upānaham,
yad yaj jahāti kāmānāṁ, tat tat saṁpadyate sukham.
Like a leatherworker, cutting out a sandal from leather, whatever desires he abandons, that results in happiness. This is a rather difficult analogy, the reasoning seems to be that just as the leatherworker cuts out what is not necessary and the result is a sandal, so one should cut out desires (which are not necessary), and the result will be happiness.
[2.12]
[adm.]
Sarvaṁ cet sukham iccheta, sarvakāmāṁ parityajet,
sarvakāmaparityāgī hy atyantaṁ sukham edhate.
If one would desire complete happiness, one should abandon all desires, the one who abandons all desires attains endless happiness.
[2.13]
[stm.]
Yāvat kāmān anusaraṁ na tṛptiṁ manaso ’dhyagāt,
tato nivṛttiṁ pratipaśyamānās;
te vai tṛptāḥ, prajñayā ye sutṛptāḥ.
As long as one is pursuing desires the mind has not experienced satisfaction, therefore, seeing this, one turns away; they are indeed satisfied, those who are fully satisfied by wisdom.
[2.14]
[stm.]
Śreyasī prajñayā tṛptir, na hi kāmair vitṛpyate,
prajñayā puruṣaṁ tṛptaṁ, tṛṣṇā na kurute vaśam.
Better is satisfaction by wisdom, one is never satisfied through desires, when a person is satisfied by wisdom, This an accusative absolute, which is frequently used with past passive participles (like tṛpta-) to express a condition that is fulfilled, after which the main action occurs, and so giving the meaning: when… craving gains no influence over him.
[2.15]
[stm.]
Gṛddhā hi kāmeṣu narāḥ pramattā, hy adharme bata te ratāḥ,
antarāyaṁ na te paśyanty alpake jīvite sati.
Heedless people are greedy for desires, alas, they take delight in what is not Dharma, they do not see the danger because the existence of life is short. This is a locative absolute construction, giving a causal sense: they do not see the dangers because the existence of life is short. See Wijesekera, §184.
[2.16]
[stm.]
Durmedhasaṁ hanti bhogo, na tv ihātmagaveṣiṇam,
durmedhā bhogatṛṣnābhir hanty ātmānam atho parān.
Riches destroy the unintelligent one, but not the one who seeks his self here, This would seem to imply a true or real self, unless the implication is that one seeking his self will not find it, there being no self, and would thereby correct his searching. through craving for riches the unintelligent one destroys himself and others.
[2.17–2.18]
[stm.]
Na karṣāpaṇavarṣeṇa tṛptiḥ kāmair hi vidyate,
“Alpāsvādasukhāḥ kāmā,” iti vijñāya paṇḍitaḥ
api divyeṣu kāmeṣu sa ratiṁ nādhigacchati,
tṛṣṇākṣayarato bhavati Buddhānāṁ śrāvakaḥ sadā.
Not through desires is satisfaction found even by a shower of coins, “Desires have little satisfaction and happiness,” knowing this, the wise one does not find delight even in divine desires, but a disciple of the Buddhas always delights in the destruction of craving.
[2.19]
[adm.]
Parvato ’pi suvarṇasya samo Himavatā bhavet –
vittaṁ taṁ nālam ekasya, etaj jñātvā samaṁ caret.
Even were there a mountain of gold equal to the Himālaya – that wealth would not be enough for one person, knowing this, one should live in harmony.
[2.20]
[rh.q. + adm.]
Duḥkhaṁ hi yo veda yato nidānaṁ,
kāmeṣu jantu sa kathaṁ rameta?
Upadhiṁ hi loke śalyam iti matvā,
tasyaiva dhīro vinayāya śikṣet.
How could that person who knows suffering and from whence it originates delight in desires? Recognizing adherence is a thorn in the world, the steadfast one should train for its removal.
Kāmavargaḥ 2.
The Chapter about Desire, the Second