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The Buddha's Way of Virtue, by W.D.C Wagiswara and K.J. Saunders, [1920], at sacred-texts.com


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§ IV

FLOWERS

44. Who shall conquer this world, and the realm of Death with its attendant gods? Who shall sort the verses of the well-preached Law, as a clever weaver of garlands sorts flowers?

45. My disciple shall conquer this world and Death with its attendant gods: it is he who shall sort the verses of the well-preached Law as a clever garland-maker sorts flowers.

46. Let him escape the eye of Mara, regarding his body as froth, knowing it as a mirage, plucking out the flowery shafts of Mara.

47. He who is busy culling pleasures, as one plucks flowers, Death seizes and hurries off, as a great flood bears away a sleeping village.

48. The Destroyer treads him underfoot as he is culling worldly pleasures, still unsated with lusts of the flesh.

49. As a bee taking honey from flowers, without hurt to bloom or scent, so let the sage seek his food from house to house.

60. Be not concerned with other men's evil

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words or deeds or neglect of good: look rather to thine own sins and negligence (lit. "sins of commission and omission": things done and undone).

51. As some bright flower—fair to look at, but lacking fragrance—so are fair words which bear no fruit in action.

52. As some bright flower, fragrant as it is fair, so are fair words whose fruit is seen in action.

53. As if from a pile of flowers one were to weave many a garland, so let mortals string together much merit.

54. No scent of flower is borne against the wind, though it were sandal, or incense or jasmine: but the fragrance of the holy is borne against the wind: the righteous pervade all space (with their fragrance).

55. More excellent than the scent of sandal and incense, of lily and jasmine, is the fragrance of good deeds.

56. A slight thing is this scent of incense and of sandal-wood, but the scent of the holy pervades the highest heaven.

57. Death finds not the path of the righteous and strenuous, who are set free by their perfect wisdom.

58, 59. As on some roadside dung-heap, a flower blooms fragrant and delightful, so amongst the refuse of blinded mortals shines forth in wisdom the follower of the true Buddha.


Next: § V: The Fool