English
Homage to the Blessed One, the Worthy One, the Fully Enlightened One. Worldly Wisdom 1. The Chapter on the Wise 1. I shall declare worldly wisdom, Extracted from various scriptures; In brief, like Magadha's speech, Having venerated the Three Jewels. 2. In the world of wisdom, a person's essence, Is mother, father, teacher, and friend; Therefore, a person should understand wisdom, Wise, great, and of much learning he becomes. 3. For the lazy, where is skill? For the unskilled, where is wealth? For the poor, where are friends? For the friendless, where is happiness? For the unhappy, where is merit? For the unmeritorious, where is excellence? 4. There is no wealth equal to skill, Thieves cannot steal skill; In this world, skill is a friend, In the next world, it brings happiness. 5. One should not despise a little, One should store what is heard in the mind; Like drops of water on an anthill, It gradually fills up over time. 6. One should not despise, thinking it small, Knowledge or even a skill; Even one thing, perfectly clear, Is a cause for a lifetime. 7. Not on every rock is there a jewel, Not on every elephant is there a pearl; Not in every forest is there sandalwood, Not in every place is there a wise man. 8. "A wise man, rich in learning, Exists in such a place," if it is heard; With great effort, to that place, One seeking learning should go. 9. Slowly skill, slowly wealth, Slowly climb a mountain; Slowly desire, slowly anger, These five, slowly, slowly. 10. Learning, agreement, calculation, Logic, ethics, special qualities; Music, courtesans, Archery, the Vedas, and ancient lore. 11. Medicine, history, Astrology, illusion, and prosody; Omens, spells, and sounds, These are the eighteen skills. 12. An unasked wise man is a drum, A asked one is like a thundering cloud; A fool, asked or unasked, Always speaks much. 13. Skill in books, Wealth in the hands of others; When a need arises, That is neither skill nor wealth. 14. The water's measure is the lotus stalk, The family's measure is discipline, The measure of speech is eloquence, The earth's measure is withered grass. 15. The little-learned hears little, Men think "I am," Not seeing the ocean, Like a frog in a well. 16. First, skill is defeated, Second, wealth is defeated, Third, virtue is defeated, What will he do fourth? 17. A clever son, why lazy? A dullard, a burden-bearer; The clever one is honored in the world, The clever son, day by day. 18. Mother a foe, father an enemy, By whom was the child not taught? They shine not in the assembly, Like a crane among swans. 19. Who sharpens the thorn of the mountain? Who makes collyrium from the eyes of deer? Who makes fragrance from a wrong path in a puddle? Who makes a noble son prosper? Self-becoming. 20. No flavor without betel, For the poor, even Lanka; No taste to curry without salt, Grammar to the unskilled. 21. Through listening, one is rich in learning, Through learning, wisdom grows; Through wisdom, one knows the meaning, The known meaning brings happiness. 22. Food, sex, sleep, Are found even in cattle and men; Knowledge is the distinction of man, Lacking that, he is like cattle. 23. There is no friend like knowledge, Nor foe like disease; Nor love like self-love, Nor strength like karma. 24. A swan shines not among crows, A lion shines not among cows; A horse among donkeys, A wise man among fools. 25. Even if a fool lives his whole life, Associating with a wise man; He does not understand the Dhamma, Like a ladle, the taste of soup. 26. Even for a moment, if a wise man, Associates with a wise man; Quickly he understands the Dhamma, Like the tongue, the taste of soup. 27. Without a weapon, one should not go, A hero to the battlefield; A wise guide, a merchant, Likewise, to a foreign land. 28. Loss of wealth, mental anguish, Bad conduct in the house; Deceit and disrespect, A wise man does not reveal. 29. Speech according to the occasion, Pleasantness according to the assembly; Anger according to oneself, He who knows this is wise. 30. The poor man eats delicacies, The weak man is seized by force; The speech of the unwise, Is like a madman's. These are mere names. 31. Spending time uninvited, Speaking much without being asked; Proclaiming one's own virtues, These three are marks of the inferior. 32. Little beauty, much talk, Little wisdom proclaimed; A pot little filled overflows, A cow with little milk kicks. 33. Even a frog croaks like a lion, A crow caws "piye piye" when grabbing; Even a fool, becoming wise, Asks the wise, again and again. 34. Even a frog croaks like a lion, Even a pig grunts on an island; A cat is like a tiger, All fools are equal in skill. 35. A king is not satisfied with wealth, Nor a wise man with good speech; The eye is not satisfied with pleasant sights, The ocean is not satisfied with water. 36. Endowed with beauty and youth, Born of noble lineage; Lacking knowledge, they do not shine, Like kimśuka flowers without fragrance. 37. A son inferior, a royal minister, A foolish son, a wise man; A poor man with much wealth, Do not despise these men. 38. He who, through love of skill, Takes up much skill; Is like a mute seeing a dream, Unable even to tell it. 39. The potter strikes the pot, To beautify the pot; Lest he throw them into misfortune, For the sake of the students' growth. 40. He who wraps tagara with palāsa leaves, The leaves also emit fragrance; Thus is the association with the wise. The chapter on the wise is finished. The chapter on good people 41. Associate only with the good, Make friendship with the good; Knowing the good's true Dhamma, It is better, not worse. 42. Abandon association with the wicked, Cultivate the company of the virtuous; Do good day and night, Remember constantly impermanence. 43. Like udumbara fruits, Red only on the outside; Full of worms within, So are the hearts of the wicked. 44. Like ripe jackfruits, Thorny only on the outside; Full of nectar within, So are the hearts of the good. 45. Even a dry sandalwood tree does not lose its fragrance, A noble elephant, gone to a human mouth, does not lose its grace; Sugarcane, though crushed, does not lose its sweetness, Even in suffering, a wise man does not abandon the Dhamma. 46. A lion, though hungry, Does not eat leaves and such; A lion, though emaciated, Does not eat dog's flesh. 47. A son born of good family, A son who protects the family lineage; Even when afflicted by suffering, He does not commit base deeds. 48. Sandalwood is cool in the world, Cooler than that is the moon; Cooler than the moon and sandalwood, Is a good word, well spoken. 49. The sun may rise in the west, King Meru may bow down; The fires of hell may be cool, And a lotus may grow on a mountaintop. Such reversals will not happen, A good word will never be untrue. 50. Pleasant is the shade of a tree, More so are relatives, mother, and father; More so is the teacher, the king, And in many ways, the Buddha. 51. Bees desire flowers, Good people desire virtues; Flies desire filth, Bad people desire faults. 52. Harsh speech comes from one lacking a mother, Bad deeds from one lacking a father; Both mother and father lacking, Harsh speech and bad deeds result. 53. Good speech comes from one with a good mother, Good deeds from one with a good father; Both mother and father being good, Good speech and good deeds result. 54. In battle, they want a hero, In councils, one without excitement; In food and drink, a dear friend, And in times of trouble, a wise person. 55. A dog, seeing another dog, Shows its teeth to harm it; A bad person, seeing a good person, Gets angry and desires to harm them. 56. Do not hastily do deeds, Or cause them to be done; A deed done in haste, The fool later regrets. 57. Having given rise to anger, never grieve, The sages have denounced conceit; Endure harsh words from all, The wise call this the highest patience. 58. Painful is dwelling in a crowded, Impure, and dangerous place; More so is dwelling with an enemy, an unloved one, And even more so with an ungrateful person. 59. One should advise and instruct, And restrain from what is bad; Such a person is dear to the good, But disliked by the bad. 60. Conquer the best with humility, Conquer the brave with division; Conquer the base with small gifts, Conquer an equal with effort. 61. Poison is not called poison, Wealth of the Sangha is called so; Poison Even one strikes, All belongs to the Saṅgha. 62. They know a good horse by its gait, An ox by its burden; A cow by its milk, A wise man by his speech. 63. Even a little wealth of the virtuous, Is a reliable refuge like water in a well; Even much wealth of the unvirtuous, Is not like water in the ocean. 64. Rivers do not drink their own water, Trees do not eat their own fruit; Clouds sometimes do not rain, The wealth of the good is for the benefit of others. 65. Do not desire what is harmful, Do not think what should not be thought; Think well only of the Dhamma, Do not let time pass in vain. 66. Even the unthought of happens, And the thought of perishes; For enjoyments are not born of thought, Neither for a woman nor for a man. 67. He is dear to the bad, But does not make the good dear; He approves of the Dhamma of the bad, That is the face of ruin. The Section on the Virtuous is finished. 4. Section on Fools and the Wicked 68. One should not make someone too dear, Who is wicked and full of curiosity; Even if carried on the head, Like a pot half-full. 69. A snake is wicked, a rogue is wicked, But a rogue is more wicked than a snake; That snake is calmed by mantras and herbs, But by what is a rogue calmed? 70. He who, being a fool, recognizes his folly, Is thereby wise at least to that extent;