Jarāvaggo : Chapter 11. Old age
“Jarā” means “old age, decrepitude“.
DhP.11-146
Ko nu hāso kimānando, Who ? laughter what-joy niccaṃ pajjalite sati; always in-flames exist Andhakārena onaddhā, darkness-by covred padīpaṃ na gavesatha. light not to-seek
What is so funny?
What is so enjoyable?
Why not seek the light
when always in the fire and
covered by darkness?
explanation
The Buddha told people who were drunk and intoxicated and enjoyed singing, dancing and laughing, “Drinking alcohol brings suffering and unhappiness, clouds the mind and makes it susceptible to evil passions.
“Passion” may have a good image, but it is a violent impulse, as in “driven by passion“, and is a great energy of the fire element. In the Buddha’s teachings, it is one of the three defilements of the mind (desire/rāga, hatred/dosa and ignorance/moha) that lead to craving.
DhP.11-147
Passa cittakataṃ bimbaṃ, Look mind-made image arukāyaṃ samussitaṃ; wound-body raised Āturaṃ bahusaṅkappaṃ, sick much-intention yassa natthi dhuvaṃ ṭhiti. what not permanent continuation
Look at the beautiful figure
you thought you had,
swollen and sore body.
The one that so troubled your mind.
Nothing lasts forever.
episode
There lived a beautiful woman called Sirima in Rajagaha. Every day she would give alms to the monks. She was well known for her generosity and beauty, and for the delicious food she made. A young monk heard about this and fell in love without even seeing Sirima.
The next day, when he went with the monks to Sirima’s house, Sirima was sick in bed. However, she cooked a meal for the monks and gave alms. Seeing her, the young monks wanted her more and more. But that night, Sirima died.
To warn the young monk, the Buddha requested the king to leave her body for a few days. On the fourth day, her body was placed on the ground in the cemetery, swollen, smelling strange and infested with insects.
The Buddha asked the young monk if he wanted to see Sirima. The monk, who did not know that Sirima had died, was very happy and went to see her. But when he arrived at the cemetery and saw Sirima’s body, he was greatly shocked.
Furthermore, the Buddha requested the king to announce that anyone who pays a large sum of money can spend a night with Sirima. But nobody wanted that. Gradually the price was lowered and it became free, but still no one wanted to spend the night with her body.
The Buddha told the monks, “Understand that until a few days ago many men wanted to spend a night with her, even paying a lot of money, but now nobody wants her even for free. The human body deteriorates and decays”. The young monk understood the nature of the body, and his passion for Silima began to fade away.
DhP.11-148
Parijiṇṇamidaṃ rūpaṃ, dilapidated this colour-and-shape roganīḷaṃ pabhaṅguraṃ; illness-nest fragile Bhijjati pūtisandeho, be-broken rotten-body maraṇantañhi jīvitaṃ. end-in-death certainly life
This object becomes old,
decays and forms a nest of disease.
Life ends with death, and
the decaying body is destroyed.
explanation
Rūpa: “colour and shape“. It means “visual object (form, figure, image)”. As the body grows old, it is subject to disease, decay and its life span ends with death. “Life, age, sickness and death” is a natural truth, but people try to live in defiance of it.
DhP.11-149
Yānimāni apatthāni, what-this thrown-away alābūneva sārade; gourd autumnal Kāpotakāni aṭṭhīni, greyish-white born tāni disvāna kā rati. it seems which-woman love
Do you look at grey-white bones,
as if they were gourds thrown away
in the autumn, and think ‘I love her’?
explanation
One day, a group of monks went to the forest to meditate and reached a deep spiritual state “jhāna“. They mistook this attainment for becoming arahants and tried to tell Buddha about their achievement. Buddha knew that they had mistaken jhāna for awakening. He then asked Ananda to send them to the cemetery first.
The monks went to the cemetery and saw a variety of corpses. When they saw old rotting corpses and bones, they could take them in with equanimity. When they saw ugly, maggot-infested bodies, they turned away and hobbled past. But when they saw the corpse of a naked woman who had not long been dead, they stopped their feet and their eyes, glued to the naked body. Realising that they still had lust, the monks clearly understood that they had achieved nothing.
explanation
This is a traditional meditation method called “paṭikūlamanasikāra (realising the impurity of the body)”, which is a practice of understanding through experience that everybody always grows old, dies and decays. The Buddha instructed practitioners, especially those who were young and immature in controlling their sexual desires. The issue of death is often forbidden, but it is necessary to know the facts as they are. By looking at death correctly, we can really understand the preciousness of life.
DhP.11-150
Aṭṭhīnaṃ nagaraṃ kataṃ, born citadel make maṃsalohitalepanaṃ; flesh-blood-coating Yattha jarā ca maccu ca, wherein old-age and death and māno makkho ca ohito. pride hypocrisy and put-in
Castles are made of bones,
coated with flesh and blood.
Age and death,
pride and hypocrisy
are put in it.
episode
Rupananda was Buddha’s sister and a very beautiful woman. “My brother, who could have been a monarch, left the world and became Buddha, and his son Rahula and my husband Nanda both became monks. My mother also became a nun and I am all alone here”, and so she became a nun. Out of loneliness, she imitated.
Rupananda was conscious of her good looks. And she was always concerned about what Buddha would think of her when he looked at her. She was constantly thinking about whether she would look serious and practice, and whether she would be praised.
The Buddha then created a vision of a girl and fanned her beside himself while he was preaching. The girl was young and very beautiful, so Rupananda looked at her and thought she was like a monkey compared to this girl.
While Rupananda watched, the girl began to grow. She became a young woman, then an adult woman, then middle-aged, then old and finally an old woman. Rupananda realised that physical change is an ongoing process and noticed that the girl, who was young and beautiful, turned into a wizened old woman. Then the old woman died and her body began to decay.
Rupananda realised that her beauty was also impermanent and subject to illness, old age and death. The Buddha further admonished her with this verse.
explanation
Castle = my precious body. It teaches that the body is made of bones, flesh and blood that age and decay, while the mind is made of pride and the hypocrisy of wanting to be thought well by others.
DhP.11-151
Jīranti ve rājarathā sucittā, age even imperial-carriage well-painted atho sarīrampi jaraṃ upeti; also body old approach Satañca dhammo na jaraṃ upeti, mindful-and truth not old approach santo have sabbhi pavedayanti. mindful-certainly with-wise make-known
Even the luxurious king’s chariot gets old
and the body grows old,
but Dhamma and goodness do not get old.
A wise man will always pass it on to wiser people.
explanation
All existences grow old, decay and cease to exist. But the Dhamma=Buddhas’ teaching=truth and goodness never get old and never disappear.
DhP.11-152
Appassutāyaṃ puriso, ignorant man balibaddhova jīrati; ox-like old Maṃsāni tassa vaḍḍhanti, flesh his increase paññā tassa na vaḍḍhati. wisdom his not increase
A man who learns little is like an old ox.
His flesh increases,
but his wisdom does not.
explanation
If we don’t learn, we become ignorant adults who know nothing and can do nothing, but gain weight.
DhP.11-153
Anekajātisaṃsāraṃ, many-rebirths-transmigration sandhāvissaṃ anibbisaṃ; transmigrated not-finding Gahakāraṃ gavesanto, house-maker seeking dukkhā jāti punappunaṃ. suffering born again-and-again
Without being able to find it,
I have been reincarnated
over and over again in samsara.
I have been born and suffered repeatedly,
searching for the creator of my house (body).
explanation
This and the following verses are the first words uttered by the Buddha when he was 35 years old, having attained nirvana under the Bodhi tree.
DhP.11-154
Gahakāraka diṭṭhosi, house-maker found puna gehaṃ na kāhasi; again house not make Sabbā te phāsukā bhaggā, all its rib broken gahakūṭaṃ visaṅkhataṃ; house-of-top divestment-form Visaṅkhāragataṃ cittaṃ, divestment-actions-gone mind taṇhānaṃ khayamajjhagā. craving destruction-obtained
I found the creator of my house (body)!
The house is no longer built.
All pillars are broken,
the roof is not formed.
Having destroyed all craving,
my mind has reached nirvana.
explanation
The Buddha finally discovered the cause of rebirth. “Taṇhā (craving)” is the creator of the house = the creator of life. The house (body) is supported by the pillars (kilesa: defilements of the mind) and covered by the roof (avijjā: unknowing ), but if the pillars are broken and the roof cannot maintain its form, the house will not be built.
The Buddha understood that the driving force behind repeated reincarnation is the energy of craving, the cause of suffering. This truth was then summarised as the Four Noble Truths. This is the prototype of today’s Buddhism.
DhP.11-155
Acaritvā brahmacariyaṃ, not-life ascetic-life aladdhā yobbane dhanaṃ; not-obtain when-young property Jiṇṇakoñcāva jhāyanti, old-heron-as contemplating khīṇamaccheva pallale. destroyed-fish-as pond
Those who do not acquire wealth or
train their minds in youth
will suffer in old age,
like herons, in a fishless pond.
explanation
Whether it is a material or spiritual goal, diligently learn the necessary skills when you are young. Otherwise, when you are older, you will have neither wisdom nor money, and you will be in trouble.
DhP.11-156
Acaritvā brahmacariyaṃ, not-life ascetic-life aladdhā yobbane dhanaṃ; not-obtain when-young property Senti cāpātikhīṇāva, lie-down bow-shot-from-as purāṇāni anutthunaṃ. ancient crying
Those who do not acquire wealth or
train their minds in youth,
time flies like an arrow
and they lie down grieving for the past.
explanation
We spend each day of our short lives satisfying our bodies and senses instead of using it to take new steps towards our goals.
Time flies like an arrow, and time gone by never comes back. Do not waste time, work hard. If not, when you grow old, you will have neither wisdom nor money, and will die sorrowing that you have done nothing.
Jarāvaggo ekādasamo niṭṭhito. old-age-chapter 11th finish
11. The old age chapter is ended.