Need help in finding English translations of certain Peta Stories

Hello everyone :wave:t2:

I’m currently looking for English translations of PvA 2.11: Sutta-petavatthu-vaṇṇanā (Exegesis of the Peta Thread Story) and PvA 2.12: Kaṇṇamuṇḍa-petavatthu-vaṇṇanā (Exegesis of the Kaṇṇamuṇḍa Peta Story)

Does anybody have them? Though I do not know how many English translations by different translators are out there of this two Peta stories, I would like to find as many of the presently-available ones as possible and compare their interpretations/translations (for personal use/research) :pray::pray::pray:

Much Metta to you all! :heart:

You can find the canonical works here:

I don’t think its commentary has been translated into English yet?

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Here is my translation of Pv23 for good measure:

Suttapetavatthu (The afterlife of one that offered a sūtra i.e. a thread)

A dead (preta) woman speaks to her dead (preta) man in their afterlife home (pretavāstu):

“Ahaṁ pure pabbajitassa bhikkhuno, (I formerly, to a bhikkhu who had gone forth)
Suttaṁ adāsiṁ upasaṅkamma yācitā; (Gave a single thread, to him who approached me and asked for it)
Tassa vipāko vipulaphalūpalabbhati, (The effect of that good deed brought me benefits manifold)
Bahukā ca me uppajjare vatthakoṭiyo. (Many millions of clothes became mine)

Pupphābhikiṇṇaṁ ramitaṁ vimānaṁ, (now a pleasing heavenly mansion decorated with flowers)
Anekacittaṁ naranārisevitaṁ; (with all that I desire being promptly done by hosts of men and women who serve me)
Sāhaṁ bhuñjāmi ca pārupāmi ca, (I enjoy it all and adorn myself with those clothes)
Pahūtavittā na ca tāva khīyati. (with bounteous wealth that never seems to end)

Tasseva kammassa vipākamanvayā, (that virtuous deed produced this effect)
Sukhañca sātañca idhūpalabbhati; (I obtained joy and satiation here)
Sāhaṁ gantvā punadeva mānusaṁ, (and I having gone again to a human birth)
Kāhāmi puññāni nayayyaputta man”ti. (shall do a lot of puṇya i.e. virtuous deeds, my husband, so take me there, back to the human world)

The dead husband answers his dead wife:

“Satta tuvaṁ vassasatā idhāgatā, (Hey person, it’s been 700 years since you died and arrived here)
Jiṇṇā ca vuḍḍhā ca tahiṁ bhavissasi; (in that human world, if you go there, you would be old and emaciated)
Sabbeva te kālakatā ca ñātakā, (and all your people have already passed on)
Kiṁ tattha gantvāna ito karissasī”ti. (so what are you going to be able to do, having gone there from here)

The wife responds:

“Satteva vassāni idhāgatāya me, (Having died and arrived here, I’ve spent 7 [note 1] years only)
Dibbañca sukhañca samappitāya; (and have attained divine joy)
Sāhaṁ gantvāna punadeva mānusaṁ, (After going back to a human birth)
Kāhāmi puññāni nayayyaputta man”ti. (I shall do a lot of puṇya i.e. virtuous deeds, my husband, so take me there, back to the human world)

Then this happens:

So taṁ gahetvāna pasayha bāhāyaṁ, (He held her forcefully by her arms)
Paccānayitvāna theriṁ sudubbalaṁ; (and brought the Theri, old and weak, back to the human world)

The husband then says to her:

“Vajjesi aññampi janaṁ idhāgataṁ, (by having come here, you have abandoned one more person i.e. “me”)
‘Karotha puññāni sukhūpalabbhati’. (now go on and do your puṇya/virtuous activities and thereby obtain sukha)

The wife responds:

Diṭṭhā mayā akatena sādhunā, (I’ve seen that by not doing sādhu/good deeds)
Petā vihaññanti tatheva manussā; (the pretas/dead ones suffer, and the same is true for the living men)
Kammañca katvā sukhavedanīyaṁ, (for having done acts that result in sukha)
Devā manussā ca sukhe ṭhitā pajā”ti. (the gods and mankind enjoy their life of sukha)

[Note 1] : Apparently one preta year = 100 human years.

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They are actually “canonical plus”. They will often include just enough of the commentary for them to make sense. The commentary is always in italics, but not all the italics is commentarial. This is why I have been hoping for someone to do a more exact translation and publish it on SuttaCentral.

It has!

Twice!

I don’t have a copy of Horner’s, but I seem to remember it also has the commentary.

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@Khemarato.bhikkhu thank you Venerable for the link to Sutta Friends, I hadn’t known it has existed til now! (as well as Petavatthu’s canonical English translation that’s available online!):pray::pray::pray:

@srkris there are several details that caught me by surprise, too, the 1 preta year = 100 human years being one of them. Also, thank you kindly for taking the time translating the texts, and I envy your Pali translation skill :open_mouth::saluting_face::pray:

@Snowbird found a copy of U Ba Kyaw’s in the library. Going to look for Horner’s translation. Thank you, Venerable :pray::bowing_man:

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PTS-Peta-Vatthu-Commentary-Hardy-1894

Petavatthu- Stories of the Hungry Ghosts
https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/pv/index.html