Lord Occultis Posted August 30, 2008 Report Share Posted August 30, 2008 Dhammapada 26. The True MasterWanting nothingWith all your heart Stop the stream.When the world dissolvesEverything becomes clear.Go beyondThis way or that way,To the farther shoreWhere the world dissolvesAnd everything becomes clear.Beyond this shoreAnd the father shore,Beyond the beyond,Where there is no beginning,No end.Without fear, go.Meditate.Live purely.Be quiet.Do your work, with mastery.By day the sun shines,And the warrior in his armour shines.By night the moon shines,And the master shines in meditation.But this day and night The man who is awakeShines in the radiance of the spirit.A master gives up mischief. He is serene.He leaves everything behind himHe does not take offenceAnd he does not give it.He never returns evil for evil.Alas for the man Who raises his hand against another,And even more for him Who returns the blow.Resist the pleasures of lifeAnd the desire to hurt - Till sorrows vanish.Never offendBy what you think or say or do.Honour the man who is awakeAnd shows you the way.Honour the fire of his sacrifice.Matted hair or family or casteDo not make a masterBut the truth and goodnessWith which he is blessed. Your hair is tangled And you sit on a deerskin.What folly!When inside you are ragged with lust.The master's clothes are in tatters.His veins stand out,He is wasting away.Alone in the forestHe sits and meditates.A man is not born to mastery.A master is never proud.He does not talk down to others.Owning nothing, he misses nothing.He is not afraid.He does not tremble.Nothing binds him.He is infinitely free.So cut through The strap and the thong and the rope.Loosen the fastenings.Unbolt the doors of sleepAnd awake.The master endures Insults and ill treatmentWithout reacting. For his spirit is an army.He is never angry.He keeps his promises.He never strays, he is determined.This body is my last, he says!Like water on the leaf of a lotus flowerOr a mustard seed on the point of a needle,He does not cling.For he has reached the end of sorrowAnd has laid down his burden.He looks deeply into thingsAnd sees their nature.He discriminatesAnd reaches the end of the way.He does not lingerWith those who have a homeNor with those who stray.Wanting nothing,He travels on alone.He hurts nothing.He never kills.He moves with love among the unloving,With peace and detachmentAmong the hungry and querulous.Like a mustard seed from the point of a needleHatred has fallen from him,And lust, hypocrisy and pride.He offends no one.Yet he speaks the truth.His words are clearBut never harsh.Whatever is not hisHe refuses,Good or bad, great or small.He wants nothing from this worldAnd nothing from the next.He is free.Desiring nothing, doubting nothing, Beyond judgement and sorrowAnd the pleasures of the senses,He had moved beyond time.He is pure and free.How clear he is.He is the moon.He is serene.He shines.For he has travelled Life after lifeThe muddy and treacherous road of illusion.He does not trembleOr grasp or hesitate.He has found peace.Calmly He lets go of life,Or home and pleasure and desire.Nothing of men can hold him.Nothing of the gods can hold him.Nothing in all creation can hold him.Desire has left him,Never to return.Sorrow has left him,Never to return.He is calm.In him the seed of renewing lifeHad been consumed.He has conquered all the inner worlds.With dispassionate eyeHe sees everywhereThe falling and the uprising.And with great gladnessHe knows that he has finished.He has woken from his sleep.And the way he has takenIs hidden from men, Even from spirits and gods, By virtue of his purity.In him there in no yesterday,No tomorrow,No today.Possessing nothing,Wanting nothing.He is full of power.Fearless, wise, exalted.He has vanquished all things.He sees by virtue of his purity.He has come to the end of the way,Over the river of his many lives,His many deaths.Beyond the sorrow of hell,Beyond the great joy of heaven,By virtue of his purity.He has come to the end of the way.All that he had to do, he has done.And now he is one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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