Devadūtasutta

Majjhima Nikāya 130

Messengers of the Gods · Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato, SuttaCentral

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‘ambho purisa, pamādavatāya na kalyāṇamakāsi kāyena vācāya manasā.
Taggha tvaṁ, ambho purisa, tathā karissanti yathā taṁ pamattaṁ.
Taṁ kho pana te etaṁ pāpakammaṁ neva mātarā kataṁ na pitarā kataṁ na bhātarā kataṁ na bhaginiyā kataṁ na mittāmaccehi kataṁ na ñātisālohitehi kataṁ na samaṇabrāhmaṇehi kataṁ na devatāhi kataṁ, tayāvetaṁ pāpakammaṁ kataṁ, tvaññevetassa vipākaṁ paṭisaṁvedissasī’ti.

‘My man, because you were negligent, you didn’t do good by way of body, speech, and mind. Well, they’ll definitely punish you to fit your negligence. That bad deed wasn’t done by your mother, father, brother, or sister. It wasn’t done by friends and colleagues, by relatives and kin, by ascetics and brahmins, or by the deities. That bad deed was done by you alone, and you alone will experience the result.’

Tamenaṁ, bhikkhave, yamo rājā dutiyaṁ devadūtaṁ samanuyuñjitvā samanugāhitvā samanubhāsitvā tatiyaṁ devadūtaṁ samanuyuñjati samanugāhati samanubhāsati:
‘ambho purisa, na tvaṁ addasa manussesu tatiyaṁ devadūtaṁ pātubhūtan’ti?
So evamāha:
‘nāddasaṁ, bhante’ti.
Tamenaṁ, bhikkhave, yamo rājā evamāha:
‘ambho purisa, na tvaṁ addasa manussesu itthiṁ vā purisaṁ vā ābādhikaṁ dukkhitaṁ bāḷhagilānaṁ sake muttakarīse palipannaṁ semānaṁ aññehi vuṭṭhāpiyamānaṁ aññehi saṁvesiyamānan’ti?
So evamāha:
‘addasaṁ, bhante’ti.
Tamenaṁ, bhikkhave, yamo rājā evamāha:
‘ambho purisa, tassa te viññussa sato mahallakassa na etadahosi—
ahampi khomhi byādhidhammo, byādhiṁ anatīto.
Handāhaṁ kalyāṇaṁ karomi kāyena vācāya manasā’ti? So evamāha:
‘nāsakkhissaṁ, bhante, pamādassaṁ, bhante’ti.
Tamenaṁ, bhikkhave, yamo rājā evamāha:

Then King Yama grills them about the third messenger of the gods: ‘My man, did you not see the third messenger of the gods that appeared among human beings?’ He says, ‘I saw nothing, sir.’ King Yama says to them, ‘My man, did you not see among human beings a woman or a man, sick, suffering, gravely ill, collapsed in their own urine and feces, being picked up by some and put down by others?’ He says, ‘I saw that, sir.’ King Yama says to them, ‘My man, did it not occur to you—being sensible and mature— “I, too, am liable to become sick. I’m not exempt from sickness. I’d better do good by way of body, speech, and mind”?’ He says, ‘I couldn’t, sir. I was negligent.’ King Yama says to them,

Tamenaṁ, bhikkhave, yamo rājā tatiyaṁ devadūtaṁ samanuyuñjitvā samanugāhitvā samanubhāsitvā catutthaṁ devadūtaṁ samanuyuñjati samanugāhati samanubhāsati:
‘ambho purisa, na tvaṁ addasa manussesu catutthaṁ devadūtaṁ pātubhūtan’ti?
So evamāha:
‘nāddasaṁ, bhante’ti.
Tamenaṁ, bhikkhave, yamo rājā evamāha:
‘ambho purisa, na tvaṁ addasa manussesu rājāno coraṁ āgucāriṁ gahetvā vividhā kammakāraṇā kārente—
kasāhipi tāḷente vettehipi tāḷente addhadaṇḍakehipi tāḷente hatthampi chindante pādampi chindante hatthapādampi chindante kaṇṇampi chindante nāsampi chindante kaṇṇanāsampi chindante bilaṅgathālikampi karonte saṅkhamuṇḍikampi karonte rāhumukhampi karonte jotimālikampi karonte hatthapajjotikampi karonte erakavattikampi karonte cīrakavāsikampi karonte eṇeyyakampi karonte baḷisamaṁsikampi karonte kahāpaṇikampi karonte khārāpatacchikampi karonte palighaparivattikampi karonte palālapīṭhakampi karonte tattenapi telena osiñcante sunakhehipi khādāpente jīvantampi sūle uttāsente asināpi sīsaṁ chindante’ti?

Then King Yama grills them about the fourth messenger of the gods: ‘My man, did you not see the fourth messenger of the gods that appeared among human beings?’ He says, ‘I saw nothing, sir.’ King Yama says to them, ‘My man, did you not see among human beings when the rulers arrested a bandit, a criminal, and subjected them to various punishments— whipping, caning, and clubbing; cutting off hands or feet, or both; cutting off ears or nose, or both; the ‘porridge pot’, the ‘shell-shave’, the ‘Rāhu’s mouth’, the ‘garland of fire’, the ‘burning hand’, the ‘bulrush twist’, the ‘bark dress’, the ‘antelope’, the ‘meat hook’, the ‘coins’, the ‘caustic pickle’, the ‘twisting bar’, the ‘straw mat’; being splashed with hot oil, being fed to the hounds, being impaled alive, and being beheaded?’

So evamāha:
‘addasaṁ, bhante’ti.
Tamenaṁ, bhikkhave, yamo rājā evamāha:
‘ambho purisa, tassa te viññussa sato mahallakassa na etadahosi—
ye kira, bho, pāpakāni kammāni karonti te diṭṭheva dhamme evarūpā vividhā kammakāraṇā karīyanti, kimaṅgaṁ pana parattha. Handāhaṁ kalyāṇaṁ karomi kāyena vācāya manasā’ti?
So evamāha:
‘nāsakkhissaṁ, bhante, pamādassaṁ, bhante’ti.
Tamenaṁ, bhikkhave, yamo rājā evamāha:
‘ambho purisa, pamādavatāya na kalyāṇamakāsi kāyena vācāya manasā.
Taggha tvaṁ, ambho purisa, tathā karissanti yathā taṁ pamattaṁ.

He says, ‘I saw that, sir.’ King Yama says to them, ‘My man, did it not occur to you—being sensible and mature— “It seems that one who does bad deeds receives such punishment in this very life. What must happen to them in the next? I’d better do good by way of body, speech, and mind”?’ He says, ‘I couldn’t, sir. I was negligent.’ King Yama says to them, ‘My man, because you were negligent, you didn’t do good by way of body, speech, and mind. Well, they’ll definitely punish you to fit your negligence.

Taṁ kho pana te etaṁ pāpakammaṁ neva mātarā kataṁ na pitarā kataṁ na bhātarā kataṁ na bhaginiyā kataṁ na mittāmaccehi kataṁ na ñātisālohitehi kataṁ na samaṇabrāhmaṇehi kataṁ na devatāhi kataṁ, tayāvetaṁ pāpakammaṁ kataṁ, tvaññevetassa vipākaṁ paṭisaṁvedissasī’ti.

That bad deed wasn’t done by your mother, father, brother, or sister. It wasn’t done by friends and colleagues, by relatives and kin, by ascetics and brahmins, or by the deities. That bad deed was done by you alone, and you alone will experience the result.’

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