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Aśvaghoṣa: Saundarananda

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ā ī ū ṛ ṝ ḷ
ḹ ’ ṃ ḥ ṅ ñ
ṭ ḍ ṇ ṣ ś ź
š č ǰ γ    
Note on the transliteration:
The transliteration system of the BP/TLB is based on the Unicode/UTF-8 system. However, there may be difficulties with some of the letters – particularly on PC/Windows-based systems, but not so much on the Mac. We have chosen the most accepted older and traditional systems of transliteration against, e.g, Wylie for Tibetan, since with Unicode it is possible, in Sanskrit and Tibetan, etc., to represent one sound with one letter in almost all the cases (excepting Sanskrit and Tibetan aspirated letters, and Tibetan tsa, tsha, dza). We thus do not use the Wylie system which widely employs two letters for one sound (ng, ny, sh, zh etc.).
 
Important:
We ask you in particular to note the use of the ’ apostrophe and not the ' representing the avagrāha in Sanskrit, and most important the ’a-chuṅ in Tibetan. On the Mac the ’ is Alt-M.
 
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Aśvaghoṣa: Saundarananda
    Click to Expand/Collapse Option Complete text
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO I: Kapilavāstuvarṇana
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO II: Rājavarṇana
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO III: Tathāgatavarṇana
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO IV: Bhāryāyācitaka
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO V: Nandapravrājana
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO VI: Bhāryāvilāpa
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO VII: Nandivilāpa
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO VIII: Strīvighāta
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO IX: Madāpavāda
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO X: Svarganidarśana
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO XI: Svargāpavāda
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO XII: Paryavamarśa
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO XIII: Śīlendriyajaya
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO XIV: Ādiprasthāno
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO XV: Vitarkaprahāṇa
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO XVI: Āryasatyavyākhyāna
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO XVII: Amṛtādhigama
Click to Expand/Collapse OptionCANTO XVIII: Ājñāvyākaraṇa
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apsarobhṛtako dharmaṃ carasīty atha coditaḥ |
ānandena tadā nandaḥ paraṃ vrīḍam upāgamat || 
12.1 “You are practising dharma to earn the apsarases as wages!” To be upbraided thus,
As Nanda then was by Ānanda, made him deeply ashamed. 
tasya vriḍena mahatā pramodo hṛdi nābhavat |
aprāmodyena vimukhaṃ nāvatasthe vrate manaḥ || 
12.2 Because of the great shame the exuberance in his heart was no more.
His mind was downcast, due to disenchantment, and did not stick with practice. 
kāmarāgapradhāno ’pi parihāsasamo ’pi san |
paripākagate hetau na sa tan mamṛṣe vacaḥ || 
12.3 Though he was fixated on sensual love, and at the same time indifferent to ridicule, / Nanda’s motivation had matured to a point where neither could he disregard [Ānanda’s] words. 
aparīkṣabkabhāvāc ca pūrvaṃ matvā divaṃ dhruvam |
tasmāt kṣeṣṇuṃ pariśrutya bhṛśaṃ saṃvegam eyivān || 
12.4 Being of an unquestioning nature, he had presumed heaven to be a constant;
So on learning that it was perishable he was fiercely shocked.  
tasya svargān nivavṛte saṃkalpāśvo manorathaḥ |
mahāratha ivonmārgād apramattasya sāratheḥ || 
12.5 Turning back from heaven, the chariot of his mind, whose horse was willpower,
Was like a great chariot turned back from a wrong road by an attentive charioteer 
svargatarṣān nivṛttaś ca sadyaḥ svastha ivābhavat |
mṛṣṭād apathyād virato jijīvṣur ivāturaḥ || 
12.6 After turning back from his thirst for heaven, he seemed suddenly to become well.
He had given up something sweet that was bad for him, like a sick man finding the will to live. 
visasmāra priyāṃ bhāryāṃ aspsarodarśanād yathā |
tathānityatayodvignas tatyājāpsaraso ’pi saḥ || 
12.7 Just as he forgot about his beloved wife on seeing the apsarases,
So also, when startled by their impermanence, did he put the apsarases behind him. 
mahatām api bhūtānām āvṛtti iti cintayan |
saṃvegāc ca sarāgo ’pi vītarāga ivābhavat || 
12.8 “Even the greatest beings are subject to return!” So he reflected,
And from his shock, though given to redness, he seemed to blanch. 
babhūva sa hi saṃvegaḥ śreyasas tasya vṛddhaye |
dhātur edhir ivākhyāte paṭhito ’kṣaracintakaiḥ || 
12.9 It was for growth in him of a better way that the shock happened –
Just as the verb “to grow” is listed [after “to happen”] in the lexicon recited by students of grammar. 
na tu kāmānmanas tasya kena cij jagṛhe dhṛtiḥ |
triṣu kāleṣu sarveṣu nipāto ’stir iva smṛtaḥ || 
12.10 Because of his sensuality, however, his mind was by no means gripped by the kind of constancy
Which is shown, in all three times, by the received usage of the irregularity which is “being.” 
khelagāmī mahābāhur gajendra iva nirmadaḥ |
so ’bhyagacchad guruṃ kale vivakṣur bhāvam ātmanaḥ || 
12.11 Trembling went he of mighty arm, like a top bull elephant, through with rut:
At a suitable moment, he approached the Guru, wishing to communicate his intention. 
praṇamya ca gurau mūrdhnā bāṣpavyākulalocanaḥ |
kṛtvānjalim uvācedaṃ hriyā kiṃ cid avāñmukhaḥ || 
12.12 After bowing his head to the Guru, with eyes filled with tears,
He joined the palms of his hands and spoke as follows, his face somewhat lowered, because of shame: 
apsaraḥprāptaye yan me bhagavan pratibhūr asi |
nāpsarobhir mamārtho ’sti pratibhūtvaṃ tyajāmy aham || 
12.13 “For my gaining of the celestial nymphs, Glorious One, you stand as guarantor.
But for the nymphs I have no need; I relinquish your guarantee. 
śrutvā hy āvartakaṃ svargaṃ saṃsārasya ca citratām |
na martyeṣu na deveṣu pravṛttir mama rocate || 
12.14 For since I have heard of heaven’s fleeting whirl and of the varieties of aimless wandering,
Neither among mortal beings nor among heavenly beings does doing appeal to me. 
yadi prāpya divaṃ yatnān niyamena damena ca |
avitṛptāḥ patanaty ante svargāya tyāgine namaḥ || 
12.15 If, after struggling to get to heaven, through self-restriction and restraint,
[Men] fall at last, unsatisfied, then homage to the heaven-bound who give up on the way. 
ataś ca nikhilaṃ lokaṃ vidibā sacarācaram |
sarvaduḥkhakṣayakare tvaddharme parame rame || 
12.16 Now that I have seen through the whole world of man, with its changeability and its fixity,
It is the eradicator of all suffering, your most excellent dharma, that I rejoice in. 
tasmād vyāsamāsābhyāṃ tan me vyākhyātum arhasi |
yac chrutvā śṛṇvatāṃ śreṣṭha paramaṃ prāpnuyāṃ padam || 
12.17 Therefore, in detail and in summary, could you please communicate it to me,
O Best of Listeners, so that through listening I might come to the ultimate step.”  
tatas tasyāśayaṃ jñātvā vipakṣāṇindriyāṇi ca |
śreyaś caivāmukhībhūtaṃ nijagāda tathāgataḥ || 
12.18 Then, knowing from where he was coming, and that, though his senses were set against it,
A better way was now emerging, the Realised One spoke: 
aho pratyavamarśo ’yaṃ śreyasas te purojavaḥ |
araṇyāṃ mathyamānāyām agner dhūma ivotthitaḥ || 
12.19 “Aha! This gaining of a foothold is the harbinger of a higher good in you,
As, when a firestick is rubbed, rising smoke is the harbinger of fire.  
ciram unmārgavihṛto lolair indiyavājibhiḥ |
avatirṇo ’si panthānaṃ diṣṭyā dṛśtyāvimūḍhayā || 
12.20 Long carried off course by the restless horses of the senses,
You have now set foot on a path, with a clarity of vision that, happily, will not dim.  
adya te saphalaṃ janma lābho ’dya sumahāṃs tava |
yasya kāmarasjñasya naiṣkramyāyotsukaṃ manaḥ || 
12.21 Today your birth bears fruit; your gain today is great;
For though you know the taste of love, your mind is yearning for indifference.  
loke ’sminn ālayārāme nivṛttau durlabhā ratiḥ |
vyathante hy apunarbhāvāt prapātād iva bāliśāḥ || 
12.22 In this world which likes what is close to home, a fondness for non-doing is rare;
For men shrink from the end of becoming like the puerile from the edge of a cliff. 
duḥkhaṃ na syāt sukhaṃ me syād iti prayatate janaḥ |
atyantaduḥkhoparamaṃ sukhaṃ tac ca na budhyate || 
12.23 People think ‘there might be no suffering, just happiness for me!’ And as they labour under this [illusion],
Any respite from incessant suffering they sense not as such, but as happiness.  
airbhūteṣv anityeṣu satataṃ duḥkhahetuśu |
kāmādiṣu jagat saktaṃ na vetti sukham avyayam || 
12.24 Upon [whims] which are transient and akin to enemies, forever causing suffering,
Upon things like love, the world is fixed. It does not know the happiness that is immune to change.  
sarvaduḥkhāpahaṃ tat tu hastatham amṛtaṃ tava |
viṣaṃ pītvā yad agadaṃ samaye pātum icchasi || 
12.25 But that deathless nectar which prevents all suffering you have in your hands:
It is an antidote which, having drunk poison, you are going in good time to drink.  
anarhasaṃsārabhayaṃ mānārhaṃ te cikīrṣitam |
rāgāgnis tādṛṣo yasya dharmonmukha parāṇmukhaḥ || 
12.26 In its fear of worthless wandering your intention is worthy of respect,
For a fire of passion such as yours, O you whose face is turned to dharma, is being turned around. // 12.26 // 
rāgoddāmena manasā sarvathā duṣkarā dhṛtiḥ |
sadoṣam salilaṃ dṛṣṭvā pathineva pipāsunā || 
12.27 With a mind unbridled by lust it is exceedingly difficult to be steadfast –
As when a thirsty traveller sees dirty water. 
īdṛśī nāma buddhis te niruddhā rajasābhavat |
rajasā caṇḍavātena vivasvata iva prabhā || 
12.28 Obviously, the dust of passion was blocking the consciousness that is now awakening in you,
Like the dust of a sand-storm blocking the light of the sun.  
sā jighāṃsus tamo hārdaṃ yā saṃprati vijṛmbhate |
tamo naiśaṃ prabhā saurī vinirgīrṇeva meruṇā || 
12.29 But now [consciousness] is blossoming forth, seeking to dispell darkness of the heart,
Like that sunlight spewed forth from mount Meru which dispells the darkness of night.  
yuktarūpam idaṃ caiva śuddhasattvasya cetasaḥ |
yat te syān naiṣṭhike sūkṣme śreyasi śraddadhānatā || 
12.30 And this indeed befits a soul whose essence is simplicity:
That you should have confidence in a better way which is ultimate and subtle. 
dharmacchandam imaṃ tasmād vivardhayitum arhasi |
sarvadharmā hi dharmajña niyamāc chandahetavaḥ || 
12.31 This wish for dharma, therefore, you should nurture;
For all dharmas, O knower of dharma, invariably have wishing as their cause. 
satyāṃ gamanabuddhau hi gamanāya pravartate |
śayyābuddhau ca śayanaṃ sthānabuddhau tathā sthitiḥ || 
12.32 As long as the intention of moving is there, one mobilizes for the act of moving;
And with the intention of staying at rest there is an act of staying at rest; with the intention of standing, likewise, there is standing up. 
antarbhūmigataṃ hy ambhaḥ śraddadhāti naro yadā |
arthitve sati yatnena tadā khanati gām imām || 
12.33 When a man has confidence that there is water under the ground
And has need of water, then, with an effort of will, here the earth he digs. 
nārthi yady agninā vā syāc chraddadhyāt taṃ na vāraṇau |
mathnīyān nāraṇiṃ kaś cit tadbhāve sati mathyate || 
12.34 If a man had no need of fire, nor confidence that fire was in a firestick,
He would never twirl the stick. Those conditions being met, he does twirl the stick. 
sasyotpattiṃ yadi na vā śraddadhyāt kārṣakaḥ kṣitau |
arthī sasyena vā na syād bhījāni na vaped bhuvi || 
12.35 Without the confidence that corn will grow in the soil he tills,
Or without the need for corn, the farmer would not sow seeds in the earth.  
ataś ca hasta ity uktā mayā śraddhā viśeṣataḥ |
yasmād gṛhnāti saddharmaṃ dāyaṃ hasta ivākṣataḥ || 
12.36 And so I call this confidence the Hand, because it is this confidence, above all,
That grasps true dharma, as a hand naturally takes a gift. 
prādhānyād indriyam iti shtiratvād balam ity ataḥ |
guṇadāridryaśamanād dhanam ity abhivarṇitā || 
12.37 From its primacy I describe it as Sensory Power; from its constancy, as Strength;
And because it relieves poverty of virtue I describe it as Wealth. 
rakṣaṇārthena dharmasya tatheṣīkety udāhṛtā |
loke ’smin durlabhatvāc ca ratnam ity abhihāṣitā || 
12.38 For its protection of dharma, I call it the Arrow,
And from the difficulty of finding it in this world I call it the Jewel.  
punaś ca bījam ity uktā nimittaṃ śreyasotpadā |
pāvanārthena pāpasya nadīty abhihitā punaḥ || 
12.39 Again, I call it the Seed since it is the cause of betterment;
And for its cleansing action, in the washing away of wrong, again, I call it the River.  
yasmād dharmasya cottpattau śraddhā kāraṇam uttamam |
mayoktā kāryatas tasmāt tatra tatra tathā tathā || 
12.40 Since in the arising of dharma confidence is the primary cause,
Therefore I have named it after its effects in this case like this, in that case like that. 
śraddhāñkuram imaṃ tasmāt saṃvardhayitum arhasi |
tad vṛddhau vardhate dharmo mūlavṛddhau yathā drumaḥ || 
12.41 This shoot of confidence, therefore, you should nurture;
When it grows dharma grows, as a tree grows with the growth of its root. 
vyākulaṃ darśanaṃ yasya durbalo yasya niścayaḥ |
tasya pāriplavā śraddhā na hi kṛtāya vartate || 
12.42 When a person’s seeing is disordered, when a person’s sense of purpose is weak:
The confidence of that person is unsteady, for he is not veering in the direction he should. 
yāvat tattvaṃ na bhavati hi dṛṣṭaṃ śrutaṃ vā tāvac chraddhā na bhavati balasthā sthirā vā |
dṛṣṭe tattve niyamaparibhūtendriyasya śraddhāvṛkṣo bhavati saphalaś cāśrayās ca || 
12.43 So long as the real truth is not seen or heard, confidence does not become strong or firm;
But when, through restraint, the power of the senses is subjugated and the real truth is realised, the tree of confidence bears fruit and weight.” 
saundaranande mahākāvye pratyavamarśo nāma dvādaśaḥ sargaḥ || 
The 12th Canto of the epic poem Handsome Nanda, titled “Gaining a Foothold.” 
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