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attached to the lust for existence; "They do not cross over birth and old age," I say. 16. "If those sacrificers do not cross over, [Thus spoke the venerable Puṇṇaka] by sacrifices, birth and old age, dear sir; Then who, pray, in the world of gods and humans, has crossed over birth and old age, dear sir? I ask you, Blessed One, tell me this." "If those sacrificers do not cross over" means: those sacrificers, those who offer sacrifices, attached to the lust for existence, have not crossed over, have not gone beyond, have not passed over, have not overcome, have not transcended birth, old age, and death. They are not free, not released, not gone beyond, not overcome, not transcended birth, old age, and death. They revolve within birth, old age, and death; they revolve within the path of transmigration. Pursued by birth, followed by old age, overwhelmed by sickness, struck down by death, without protection, without refuge, without shelter, without a haven—"if those sacrificers do not cross over." "Thus spoke the venerable Puṇṇaka" means: "Thus" is a word-junction... and so on... "the venerable Puṇṇaka." "by sacrifices, birth and old age, dear sir" means: "by sacrifices" means by many sacrifices, by various sacrifices, by diverse sacrifices. "Dear sir" is an affectionate address, a respectful address, a term of respect and reverence, "dear sir"—"by sacrifices, birth and old age, dear sir." "Then who, pray, in the world of gods and humans, has crossed over birth and old age, dear sir" means: then who is this in the world with its gods, with its Māras, with its Brahmās, with its ascetics and brahmins, with its gods and humans, who has crossed over, gone beyond, passed over, overcome, transcended birth, old age, and death? "Dear sir" is an affectionate address, a respectful address, a term of respect and reverence, "dear sir"—"then who, pray, in the world of gods and humans, has crossed over birth and old age, dear sir." "I ask you, Blessed One, tell me this" means: "I ask you" means I ask you, I request you, I entreat you, I please you, "tell me this"—"I ask you." "Blessed One" is a respectful address... and so on... a true designation—namely, "Blessed One." "Tell me this" means tell, explain, teach, declare, establish, reveal, v Unfold, make clear, reveal! I ask you, Blessed One, tell me this. Then that brahmin said: If those fit for sacrifice did not cross, By sacrifices, birth and aging, venerable sir; Then who, indeed, in the world of gods and humans, Has crossed birth and aging, venerable sir? I ask you, Blessed One, tell me this. Having understood the high and low in the world, For whom there is no wavering anywhere in the world; Peaceful, smokeless, without anguish, without longing, He has crossed birth and aging, I say. "Having understood the high and low in the world": Understanding is called knowledge, wisdom, discernment... non-delusion, investigation of phenomena, right view. "High and low": the near is called one's own existence, the far is called another's existence; the near is called one's own form, feeling, perception, mental formations, consciousness, the far is called another's form, feeling, perception, mental formations, consciousness; the near is called the six internal sense bases, the far is called the six external sense bases. The near is called the human world, the far is called the divine world; the near is called the sense-sphere, the far is called the form-sphere, the formless-sphere; the near is called the sense-sphere, the form-sphere, the far is called the formless-sphere. "Having understood the high and low in the world" means having understood the high and low as impermanent, as suffering, as a disease, as a boil... as an escape, having known, weighed, crossed, made clear, made manifest – thus "having understood the high and low in the world." "Punṇaka, said the Blessed One." "Punṇaka," the Blessed One addresses that brahmin by name. "Blessed One" is an address of respect... this is the meaning of "Blessed One" – "Punṇaka, said the Blessed One." "For whom there is no wavering anywhere in the world." "For whom" means for the Arahant, the one whose defilements are destroyed. "Wavering" means wavering of craving, wavering of views, wavering of conceit, wavering of defilements, wavering of sensual desires. For whom these waverings do not exist, are not present, are not found, are not perceived; they are abandoned, uprooted, calmed, tranquilized, incapable of arising again, burnt by the fire of knowledge. "Anywhere" means anywhere... anywhere, internally or externally, or both internally and externally. He sees in the realms of woe... ...he sees in the sense-sphere world – whose wavering is nowhere in the world. Peaceful, smokeless, without trouble, without longing, he has crossed birth and aging, we say. "Peaceful" means peaceful due to the calming of lust, of hatred... ...of delusion... ...of anger... ...of enmity... ...of denigration... due to the calming, appeasing, pacifying, extinguishing, cooling, vanishing, and subsiding of all unwholesome volitional formations, he is peaceful, calmed, pacified, cooled, subsided, thus peaceful. "Smokeless" means bodily misconduct is smokeless, dispelled, dried up, thoroughly dried up, annihilated, verbal misconduct... ...mental misconduct is smokeless, dispelled, dried up, thoroughly dried up, annihilated, lust... ...hatred... ...delusion are smokeless, dispelled, dried up, thoroughly dried up, annihilated, anger... ...enmity... ...denigration... ...insolence... ...envy... ...avarice... ...deceit... ...craftiness... ...stubbornness... ...presumption... ...conceit... ...arrogance... ...intoxication... ...heedlessness... all defilements, all misconducts, all agitations, all fevers, all torments, all unwholesome volitional formations are smokeless, dispelled, dried up, thoroughly dried up, annihilated. Or else, anger is called smoke – Conceit, O brahmin, is your burden, anger is smoke, falsehood is ashes; the tongue is the ladle, the heart is the place of the flame, a well-tamed self is the light for a person. Furthermore, anger arises in ten ways – anger arises thinking: 'He did me harm', anger arises thinking: 'He is doing me harm', anger arises thinking: 'He will do me harm', anger arises thinking: 'He did harm to my dear, beloved one, he is doing harm, he will do harm', anger arises thinking: 'He did good to my disliked, unloved one, he is doing good, he will do good', or else, anger arises without reason. Whatever such mental resentment, aversion, opposition, hostility, anger, intense anger, s Great anger, ill-will, malice, intense malice, corruption of mind, mental defilement, anger, being angry, the state of being angry, ill-will, being hostile, the state of being hostile, affliction, being afflicted, the state of being afflicted, opposition, strong opposition, fierceness, ill-temper, mental displeasure – this is called anger. Furthermore, the varying degrees of anger should be understood. There is a time when anger is merely a disturbance of the mind, and not yet a distortion of the face. There is a time when anger is merely a distortion of the face, and not yet a clenching of the jaw. There is a time when anger is merely a clenching of the jaw, and not yet an uttering of harsh words. There is a time when anger is merely an uttering of harsh words, and not yet a looking around in all directions. There is a time when anger is merely a looking around in all directions, and not yet a grasping of a stick or weapon. There is a time when anger is merely a grasping of a stick or weapon, and not yet a raising of a stick or weapon. There is a time when anger is merely a raising of a stick or weapon, and not yet a striking down with a stick or weapon. There is a time when anger is merely a striking down with a stick or weapon, and not yet a cutting and severing. There is a time when anger is merely a cutting and severing, and not yet a breaking and smashing. There is a time when anger is merely a breaking and smashing, and not yet a tearing limb from limb. There is a time when anger is merely a tearing limb from limb, and not yet a taking of life. There is a time when anger is merely a taking of life, and not yet settled on abandoning everything. When anger kills another person and then kills oneself, to that extent anger reaches its highest extreme. He reaches the highest amplitude. Whose anger is abandoned, uprooted, calmed, tranquilized, incapable of arising again, burnt by the fire of knowledge, he is called – smokeless. Smokeless, because anger is abandoned. Smokeless, because the basis of anger is fully understood. Smokeless, because the cause of anger is fully understood. Smokeless, because the cause of anger is cut off. Trouble-free: Lust is trouble, hatred is trouble, delusion is trouble, anger is trouble, resentment is trouble… all unwholesome volitional formations are trouble. Whose troubles are abandoned, uprooted, calmed, tranquilized, incapable of arising again, burnt by the fire of knowledge, he is called trouble-free. Without craving: Hope is called craving. That lust, attachment… covetousness, greed, the root of unwholesome states. Whose hope, craving, is abandoned, uprooted, calmed, tranquilized, incapable of arising again, burnt by the fire of knowledge, he is called without craving. Birth means: That which for various beings in various groups of beings is birth, coming to be, descent, appearance, manifestation of aggregates, acquisition of sense bases. Aging means: That which for various beings in various groups of beings is aging, decrepitude, broken teeth, gray hair, wrinkled skin, decline of life, decay of faculties. "Peaceful, smokeless, trouble-free, without craving, he has crossed birth and aging," thus I say. He who is peaceful, and smokeless, and trouble-free, and without craving, he has crossed, overcome, passed beyond, transcended, gone beyond birth, aging, and death.