A speculative reconstruction of the first Buddhist teaching

The Watercooler
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So evaṁ pabbajito adinnādānā paṭivirato.
Thus, having gone forth, he abstains from taking what is not given.

So santuṭṭho kucchiparihārikena piṇḍapātena.
He is content with the given food necessary to sustain his body.

So cakkhunā rūpaṁ disvā saṁvarāya paṭipajjati.
Seeing a form with the eye, he practices restraint.

So sotena saddaṁ sutvā saṁvarāya paṭipajjati.
Hearing a sound with the ear, he practices restraint.

So ghānena gandhaṁ ghāyitvā saṁvarāya paṭipajjati.
Smelling an odor with the nose, he practices restraint.

So jivhāya rasaṁ sāyitvā saṁvarāya paṭipajjati.
Tasting a flavor with the tongue, he practices restraint.

So kāyena phoṭṭhabbaṁ phusitvā saṁvarāya paṭipajjati.
Touching a tangible with the body, he practices restraint.

So manasā dhammaṁ viññāya saṁvarāya paṭipajjati.
Knowing a thought with the mind, he practices restraint.

So vivittaṁ senāsanaṁ bhajati araññaṁ pabbataṁ.
He resorts to a secluded dwelling in the forest or on a mountain.

So pacchābhattaṁ nisīdati pallaṅkaṁ.
After the meal, he sits cross-legged.

So abhijjhaṁ loke pahāya abhijjhāya cittaṁ parisodheti.
He purifies his mind from desire, abandoning desire toward the world.

So byāpādaṁ loke pahāya byāpāda cittaṁ parisodheti.
He purifies his mind from disgust, abandoning disgust toward the world.

So sampajāno sukhañca kāyena paṭisaṁvedeti.
Mindful, he experiences bodily pleasure.

So dukkhassa atthaṅgamā upekkhā sati pārisuddhiṁ.
With the cessation of suffering, he attains equanimity and purity of mindfulness.

So evaṁ samāhite citte parisuddhe pariyodāte.
With the mind thus concentrated, purified, and bright,

So ime āsavāti yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti.
He understands things as they truly are.

So evaṁ passato kāmāsavāpi cittaṁ vimuccati pajānāti.
Thus, seeing, he understands that the mind is freed from the influx of sensuality.

So evaṁ passato vimuttasmiṁ vimuttamiti pajānāti.
Seeing thus, he knows: “Freed, it is freed.”

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Yes! This is what I am talking about. Clean, simple, direct. Something you can take to the bank (or root of a tree or abandoned dwelling ).

I have recently been thinking of an analogy for how I think the Buddha actually taught vs how the teachings are often presented now days in terms of learning how to grow tomatoes:

Current Method:
Various schools like ‘square foot gardening’, ‘French Biointensive’, ‘Permaculture’, etc. Each insists it is the one true teaching on how to grow tomatoes. First task is to thoroughly understand the do’s and don’ts of your particular school.

Original Method:
Here are some tomato seeds. Plant them in an open area and figure out how to grow them such that they produce big red fruit. Enjoy the fruit.

In other words, set aside views - all views - conjure up some curiosity and interest such that you can figure it out for yourself.

I think there are some great tips and tricks to be found and it would be nice to have a place to share them but whatever. In the end I need to find what works for me.

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Ok, here is my second draft, I would welcome feedback on grammer, vocabulary, prosody, the english rendering, really anything. My goal is to write something very terse but capturing a lot of what is in the patipada at DN2, being inspired by the shortened version in the Puggalapaññatti to see if I could write one with everything extraneous taken out:

āsavanirodhapaṭipadā:
The path to the cessation of influences:

=

So adinnādānā paṭivirato.
They abstain from taking what is not given.
So evaṁ santuṭṭho piṇḍapātena.
They are thus content with given food.

So cakkhunā rūpaṁ disvā
The eye having seen a form,
saṁvarāya paṭipajja.
they proceed restrained.

So sotena saddaṁ sutvā
The ear having heard a sound,
saṁvarāya paṭipajja.
they proceed restrained.

So ghānena gandhaṁ ghāyitvā
The nose having smelled a scent,
saṁvarāya paṭipajja.
they proceed restrained.

So jivhāya rasaṁ sāyitvā
The tongue having tasted a flavor,
saṁvarāya paṭipajja.
they proceed restrained.

So kāyena phoṭṭhabbaṁ phusitvā
The body having felt a touch,
saṁvarāya paṭipajja.
they proceed restrained.

So manasā dhammaṁ viññāya
The mind having known a thought,
saṁvarāya paṭipajja.
they proceed restrained.

So vivittaṁ senāsanaṁ
They in secluded dwellings,
bhajati araññaṁ pabbataṁ.
frequent forests and mountains.

So pacchābhattaṁ nisīdati pallaṅkaṁ
After the meal they sit cross-legged,
ābhujitvā ujuṁ kāyaṁ paṇidhāya
holding their body upright.

So abhijjhaṁ loke pahāya
Abandoning lust in the world,
abhijjhāya cittaṁ parisodheti.
They purify their mind of lust.

So byāpādaṁ loke pahāya
Abandoning hate in the world,
byāpāda cittaṁ parisodheti.
They purify their mind of hate.

So sampajāno sukhañca
They know comfort
kāyena paṭisaṁvedeti.
experienced with the body

So dukkhassa atthaṅgamā
With the cessation of suffering,
upekkhā pārisuddhiṁ.
balanced they attain purity.

So evaṁ samāhite
They thus concentrated,
citte parisuddhe pariyodāte.
with the mind purified and bright.

So ime āsavāti
They these influences,
yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti.
as they truly are understand.

So evaṁ passato kāmāsavāpi
They seeing in this way sensual influences,
cittaṁ vimuccati pajānāti.
understand the mind from them freed.

So evaṁ passato vimuttasmiṁ
They seeing liberation,
vimuttamiti pajānāti.
understand they are liberated.

Metta

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I like this translation a lot more than your original. :slight_smile:

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Another effort:

So evaṁ
They thus

Adinnādānaṁ pahāya adinnādānā paṭivirato
Taking having-abandoned from-taking refrains

So santuṭṭho hoti piṇḍapātena
They content is (with the) food-they-are-given

So iminā samannāgato ajjhattaṁ ANAVAJJASUKHAṀ paṭisaṁvedeti
They with-this endowed inwardly blameless-comfort experiences

So cakkhunā rūpaṁ disvā na nimittaggāhī hoti na anubyañjanaggāhī
They with-eye form having-seen not feature-grasper is not detail-grasper

tassa saṁvarāya paṭipajjati rakkhati cakkhundriyaṁ cakkhundriye saṁvaraṁ āpajjati for-that for-restraint undertakes protects eye-faculty in-eye-faculty restraint acquires

So abhikkante paṭikkante sampajānakārī hoti
They going returning fully-aware is

So VIVITTAṀ senāsanaṁ bhajati araññaṁ rukkhamūlaṁ pabbataṁ
They secluded dwelling resorts forest tree-root mountain

So nisīdati pallaṅkaṁ
They sit cross-legged

So abhijjhaṁ loke pahāya vigatābhijjhena cetasā viharati
They desires in-world having-abandoned free-from-desires with-mind dwells

ABHIJJHĀYA CITTAṀ PARISODHETI
(of) desires (the) mind purifies

ADUKKHAMASUKHAṀ UPEKKHĀSATIPĀRISUDDHIṀ upasampajja viharati
neither-pain-nor-pleasure equanimity-mindfulness-purity attaining dwells

So evaṁ samāhite citte parisuddhe pariyodāte
They thus concentrated mind purified completely-pure

āneñjappatte āsavānaṁ khayañāṇāya cittaṁ abhininnāmeti
unshakable-attainment of-influences for-destruction-knowledge mind inclines

“ime āsavā”ti YATHĀBHŪTAṀ PAJĀNĀTI
“these are-influences” as-they-really-are knows

“ayaṁ ĀSAVANIRODHAGĀMINĪ PAṬIPADĀ”ti yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti
“this is-path-leading-to cessation-of-influences” as-it-really-is knows

Tassa evaṁ jānato evaṁ passato kāmāsavāpi cittaṁ VIMUCCATI
For-them, thus knowing, thus seeing, from-sensual-influences mind is-liberated

So to summarise, the essential “moral action” is the act of leaving the life of fighting for your supper to leading a life of accepting charity.

This is universal amongst ALL the Ajivika, Jain and Buddhist renunciants. This is what they have in common. this is fundamental. A person who has renounced has renounced the acts that bring about sustenance of the body. they are reliant on the offerings of devout and faithful persons to live.

Receiving these gifts (of portions of food) they are GRATEFUL, they would starve to death otherwise.

When you recieve a gift you feel nice. you feel grateful. you feel happy.

When you don’t eat you starve.

So the gift of food is literally saving your life.

When someone saves your life, you feel grateful, you feel happy. you feel joy. you feel good.

That is the point. that is the fundamental act of the renunciant.

pretty much all the rest has always seemed to me to be a never ending series of additional information required by people who want to somehow squirm out of the central idea.

Like, “OK, I can only eat what is freely given but can I talk women into having sex with me?”

“Here we go again, OK community, add another line to the list, no having sex with people.”

The fundamental idea, explored quite thoroughly in MN94 and MN101 is that Buddhism, in contract to the Jains, uses PLEASURE or COMFORT or EASE as the basis from which to achieve liberation from the influences of the sensual realm.

An enormous amount of the fundementals of the teaching is obscured rather than clarified by the process, evident in the development of the corpus on close examination, of the dialectical philosophy of A notA Both Neither.

the earliest strata of the texts do not bother with it. they are happy with “relying on nothing” because there is not yet the sophisticated dialectic that occurs as the literature develops.

Similar neither-pleasure-nor-pain as an “advance” on “pleasure” is really just a dialectical evolution. It is unnecessary. the fundamental is simply living a pure life, purifying the mind, and realizing freedom from sensual influence.

one free from sensual influence is perfected.

all the rest is just elaboration.