After several months, ChatGPT has made significant progress in Pali. I recently tried reading DN27 with the support of ChatGPT.
Below is an example: when I pasted a passage from the commentary into ChatGPT, the response was quite insightful in my opinion.
ChatGPT - Certainly, let’s break down the commentary for passage 118:
118. niviṭṭhāti abhiniviṭṭhā acalaṭṭhitā.
- niviṭṭhāti: Firmly established or rooted.
- abhiniviṭṭhā: Strongly grounded, deeply rooted.
- acalaṭṭhitā: Unwavering and unshakeable.
This part emphasizes the qualities of faith and conviction. Those with unwavering faith are firmly established and deeply rooted in their beliefs.
kassa pana evarūpā saddhā hotīti? sotāpannassa.
- kassa pana: To whom does.
- evarūpā: Of what kind.
- saddhā: Faith.
- hotīti: Is.
This part asks about the nature of such faith. The answer is that this kind of unwavering faith is characteristic of a Sotāpanna, the first stage of enlightenment in Buddhism.
so hi niviṭṭhasaddho asinā sīse chejjamānepi buddho abuddhoti vā, dhammo adhammoti vā, saṅgho asaṅghoti vā na vadati.
- so hi: Such a person.
- niviṭṭhasaddho: One with unwavering faith.
- asinā: Even if.
- sīse chejjamānepi: His head were to be split open.
- buddho abuddhoti vā: He would not say “the Buddha is not.”
- dhammo adhammoti vā: He would not say “the Dhamma is not.”
- saṅgho asaṅghoti vā: He would not say “the Saṅgha is not.”
- na vadati: He does not speak in such a way.
This part illustrates the unwavering nature of faith in a Sotāpanna. Even if their head were split open, they would not deny the Buddha, Dhamma, or Saṅgha. This reflects the depth of their conviction.
patiṭṭhitasaddho hoti sūrambaṭṭho viya.
- patiṭṭhitasaddho: One with firmly established faith.
- hoti: Is.
- sūrambaṭṭho viya: Similar to Sūrambaṭṭha.
This part highlights that someone with firmly established faith is like Sūrambaṭṭha, emphasizing their unwavering commitment and resoluteness.
so kira satthu dhammadesanaṃ sutvā sotāpanno hutvā gehaṃ agamāsi.
- so kira: It is said that this person.
- satthu: The teacher (the Buddha).
- dhammadesanaṃ: The teaching of the Dhamma.
- sutvā: Having heard.
- sotāpanno: Attained the stage of a Sotāpanna.
- hutvā: Having become.
- gehaṃ: Home.
- agamāsi: Returned.
This part tells the story of someone who became a Sotāpanna after listening to the Buddha’s teaching and then returned to their home.
atha māro dvattiṃsavaralakkhaṇappaṭimaṇḍitaṃ buddharūpaṃ māpetvā tassa gharadvāre ṭhatvā “satthā āgato”ti sāsanaṃ pahiṇi.
- atha: Then.
- māro: Māra, the tempter or the personification of evil in Buddhism.
- dvattiṃsavaralakkhaṇappaṭimaṇḍitaṃ: Adorned with the thirty-two marks of a great man.
- buddharūpaṃ: In the form of the Buddha.
- māpetvā: Having created.
- tassa: Of that person.
- gharadvāre: At the door of their house.
- ṭhatvā: Having stood.
- satthā āgato: “The teacher has come.”
- sāsanaṃ pahiṇi: Sent a message about the dispensation (the Buddha’s teaching).
This part describes how Māra, the evil one, assumed the appearance of the Buddha and stood at the door of the person’s house to mislead them.
sūrambaṭṭho cintesi “ahaṃ idāneva satthu santike dhammaṃ sutvā āgato, kiṃ nu kho bhavissatī”ti upasaṅkamitvā satthusaññāya vanditvā aṭṭhāsi.
- sūrambaṭṭho: Sūrambaṭṭha, the person with unwavering faith.
- cintesi: Considered or thought.
- “ahaṃ idāneva satthu santike dhammaṃ sutvā āgato, kiṃ nu kho bhavissatī”ti: “I have just come after listening to the Dhamma in the presence of the teacher. What will happen now?”
- upasaṅkamitvā: Having approached.
- satthusaññāya: Recognizing the teacher.
- vanditvā: Having paid homage.
- aṭṭhāsi: Stood.
Here, Sūrambaṭṭha reflects on his encounter with the false Buddha, wondering about the consequences of listening to the Dhamma in the Buddha’s presence. He then approaches the actual Buddha, recognizes him, pays homage, and stands before him.
māro āha — “ambaṭṭha, yaṃ te mayā ‘rūpaṃ aniccaṃ … pe … viññāṇaṃ aniccanti kathitaṃ, taṃ dukkathitaṃ. anupadhāretvāva hi mayā evaṃ vuttaṃ. tasmā tvaṃ ‘rūpaṃ niccaṃ … pe … viññāṇaṃ niccan’ti gaṇhāhī”ti.
- māro: Māra.
- āha: Said.
- ambaṭṭha: A name used here.
- yaṃ te mayā ‘rūpaṃ aniccaṃ … pe … viññāṇaṃ aniccanti kathitaṃ, taṃ dukkathitaṃ: What I have said to you, “Form is impermanent, … consciousness is impermanent; that which is impermanent is suffering,” has been wrongly reported by me.
- anupadhāretvāva hi mayā evaṃ vuttaṃ: For I did not maintain it correctly.
- tasmā tvaṃ ‘rūpaṃ niccaṃ … pe … viññāṇaṃ niccan’ti gaṇhāhī”ti: Therefore, you should take it as, “Form is permanent, … consciousness is permanent.”
Māra attempts to deceive Sūrambaṭṭha by claiming that he, Māra, had misreported the impermanence of form, feelings, perceptions, mental formations, and consciousness. Māra suggests that Sūrambaṭṭha should now consider them as permanent, contrary to the Buddha’s teachings.
so cintesi — “aṭṭhānametaṃ yaṃ buddhā anupadhāretvā apaccakkhaṃ katvā kiñci katheyyuṃ, addhā ayaṃ mayhaṃ vicchindajananatthaṃ māro āgato”ti.
- so cintesi: He thought.
- “aṭṭhānametaṃ: This is a place.
- yaṃ buddhā anupadhāretvā apaccakkhaṃ katvā kiñci katheyyuṃ: Where the Buddha, after not maintaining it and denying anything, would speak anything.
- addhā ayaṃ mayhaṃ vicchindajananatthaṃ: This evil one, Māra, has come to confuse me.
- māro āgato”ti: Māra has come.
Sūrambaṭṭha realizes that this is the location where the Buddha would speak without maintaining his silence. He suspects that Māra has come to deceive him.
tato naṃ “tvaṃ mārosī”ti āha.
- tato: Therefore.
- naṃ: Him (Sūrambaṭṭha).
- “tvaṃ mārosī”ti āha: He said to him, “You are Māra.”
Recognizing Māra’s deception, Sūrambaṭṭha accuses him of being Māra.
so musāvādaṃ kātuṃ nāsakkhi. “āma mārosmī”ti paṭijānāti.
- so: He (Sūrambaṭṭha).
- musāvādaṃ kātuṃ nāsakkhi: Could not make false accusations.
- “āma mārosmī”ti paṭijānāti: Confirmed, “Yes, I am Māra.”
Sūrambaṭṭha did not accuse Māra falsely but acknowledged Māra’s identity.
“kasmā āgatosī”ti? tava saddhācālanatthanti āha. “kaṇha pāpima, tvaṃ tāva eko tiṭṭha, tādisānaṃ mārānaṃ satampi sahassampi satasahassampi mama saddhaṃ cāletuṃ asamatthaṃ, maggena āgatasaddhā nāma thirā silāpathaviyaṃ patiṭṭhitasineru viya acalā hoti, kiṃ tvaṃ etthā”ti accharaṃ pahari. so ṭhātuṃ asakkonto tattheva antaradhāyi.
- “kasmā āgatosī”ti: “Why have you come?”
- tava: Your.
- saddhācālanatthanti: For the sake of testing your faith.
- āha: He said.
- “kaṇha pāpima: “Wicked Black One,”
- tvaṃ tāva eko tiṭṭha: “You stand alone here.”
- tādisānaṃ mārānaṃ satampi sahassampi satasahassampi mama saddhaṃ cāletuṃ asamatthaṃ: “It’s not possible for the thousands and millions of Maras to shake my faith even as a solid, immovable mountain would remain unshaken by the wind on the path.”
- maggena āgatasaddhā nāma thirā silāpathaviyaṃ patiṭṭhitasineru viya acalā hoti: “Just as the firm earth remains unshaken by the travelers’ footsteps on the path with unwavering faith that has come.”
- kiṃ tvaṃ etthā”ti: “What are you doing here?”
- accharaṃ pahari: He struck a wonder.
- so ṭhātuṃ asakkonto tattheva antaradhāyi: Unable to stay, he disappeared right there.
Sūrambaṭṭha questions Māra about his intentions for coming. Māra responds, explaining that he has come to test Sūrambaṭṭha’s faith. Sūrambaṭṭha, demonstrating his unwavering faith, describes that his faith is as unshakable as a mountain and as firm as the earth, and he questions why Māra is present. Māra responds with a wonder and disappears, unable to shake Sūrambaṭṭha’s faith.
evarūpaṃ saddhaṃ sandhāyetaṃ vuttaṃ “niviṭṭhā”ti.
- evarūpaṃ saddhaṃ: Such faith.
- sandhāyetaṃ: Should be understood.
- vuttaṃ: It is said.
- “niviṭṭhā”ti: As “firmly established.”
…
I believe that, moving forward, we have ChatGPT as a very capable assistant for reading Tipitaka texts.
. A historical question on the first use of “ethics” to translate sila gets some vague discussion and no real answer. A request for a reference on clinging gets a lot of opinions and no sutta references.
