English
Then Māra, the Evil One, approached the bhikkhunī Sīsupacālā; having approached, he said to the bhikkhunī Sīsupacālā: "Whose sect, bhikkhunī, do you approve of?" "I, friend, do not approve of anyone's sect." "For whom are you shaven, appearing like an ascetic? Yet you approve no sect, why do you wander so confused?" "Outside of this, are sects, they delight in their views; I do not approve their teaching, they are unskilled in the Dhamma. "There is one born in the Sakya clan, the Buddha, an incomparable person; Overcoming all, dispeller of Māra, unconquered in every way. "Freed everywhere, unattached, the Seer sees all; Attained to the destruction of all kamma, liberated with the ending of attachments; He is my Lord, the Teacher, I approve of his teaching." Then Māra, the Evil One, thinking, "The bhikkhunī Sīsupacālā knows me," sad and dejected, vanished right there. 9. The Discourse to Selā 170. Occasion in Sāvatthī. Then the bhikkhunī Selā, having dressed in the morning… sat down for her day's abiding at the root of a certain tree. Then Māra, the Evil One, desiring to arouse fear, terror, and goosebumps in the bhikkhunī Selā… addressed the bhikkhunī Selā with a verse: "By whom was this image made? Where is the maker of the image? Where did the image arise? Where does the image cease?" Then it occurred to the bhikkhunī Selā: "Who now is this, a human or a…" or a human speaks a verse?" Then it occurred to the nun Selā: "This is Māra, the Evil One, desiring to arouse fear, terror, and horripilation in me, desiring to dislodge me from concentration, speaking a verse." Then the nun Selā, knowing "This is Māra, the Evil One," replied to Māra, the Evil One, with verses: "This form is not self-made, nor is it made by another; Having arisen dependent on a cause, it ceases with the breaking of the cause. Just as some seed, sown in a field, sprouts; relying on the earth's essence, and moisture, both of these. So too these aggregates and elements, and the six sense bases; having arisen dependent on a cause, they cease with the breaking of the cause." Then Māra, the Evil One, "The nun Selā knows me," sad and dejected, vanished right there. 10. The Vajirā Sutta 171. At Sāvatthī. Then the nun Vajirā, having dressed in the morning, taking her bowl and robe, entered Sāvatthī for alms. Having wandered for alms in Sāvatthī, after her meal, returning from her alms round, she approached the Andhavana for her day's abiding. Having entered the Andhavana, she sat down at the foot of a certain tree for her day's abiding. Then Māra, the Evil One, desiring to arouse fear, terror, and horripilation in the nun Vajirā, desiring to dislodge her from concentration, approached the nun Vajirā; having approached, he addressed the nun Vajirā with a verse: "By whom is this being made? Where is the maker of the being? Where does the being arise? Where does the being cease?" Then it occurred to the nun Vajirā: "Who now is this, a human or a non-human, speaking a verse?" Then it occurred to the nun Vajirā: "This is Māra, the Evil One, desiring to arouse fear, terror, and horripilation in me, desiring to dislodge me from concentration, speaking a verse." Then the bhikkhunī Vajirā, knowing "This is Māra, the Evil One," addressed Māra, the Evil One, with verses: "Why do you assume 'a being,' Māra? Is that your view? This is just a heap of pure fabrications; No being is found here. Just as, with a collection of parts, The word 'chariot' arises; So, when the aggregates exist, The convention 'a being' arises. Indeed, only suffering arises, Suffering endures and passes away; Nothing but suffering arises, Nothing but suffering ceases." Then Māra, the Evil One, sad and dejected, thinking "The bhikkhunī Vajirā knows me," vanished right there. The Connected Discourses with Bhikkhunīs is finished. Its summary: Āḷavikā and Somā, Gotamī together with Vijayā; Uppalavaṇṇā and Cālā, Upacālā and Sīsupacālā; Selā with Vajirā— These are the ten.