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Sutta Nipāta 4.6

Jarāsutta

Old Age · Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato, SuttaCentral

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shortAppaṁ alasvata lifejīvitaṁ thisidaṁ,
beforeOraṁ even a hundred yearsvassasatāpi diesmiyyati;
whoYo even ifcepi having surpassedaticca livesjīvati,
thenAtha indeedkho heso even from old agejarasāpi diesmiyyati.

Short, alas, is this life; you die before a hundred years. Even if you live a little longer, you still die of old age.

they grieveSocanti peoplejanā over belongingsmamāyite,
indeed notNa indeedhi there aresanti permanentniccā possessionspariggahā;
separation is a fact of lifeVinābhāvasantamevidaṁ,
thusIti having seendisvā one would not stay living at homenāgāramāvase.

People grieve over belongings, yet there is no such thing as permanent possessions. Separation is a fact of life; when you see this, you wouldn’t stay living at home.

even by deathMaraṇenapi thattaṁ is given uppahīyati,
whateverYaṁ a personpuriso minemamidanti thinksmaññati;
knowing this tooEtampi having knownviditvā an astute onepaṇḍito,
notNa towards ownershipmamattāya would be bentnametha a follower of minemāmako.

Whatever a person thinks of as belonging to them, that too is given up when they die. Knowing this, an astute follower of mine would not be bent on ownership.

in a dreamSupinena just asyathāpi encounteredsaṅgataṁ,
awakenedPaṭibuddho a personpuriso notna seespassati;
so tooEvampi lovedpiyāyitaṁ personjanaṁ,
gonePetaṁ deadkālaṅkataṁ notna seepassati.

Just as, upon awakening, a person does not see what they encountered in a dream; so too you do not see your loved ones when they are dead and gone.

seen alsoDiṭṭhāpi heard alsosutāpi thosete peoplejanā,
of whomYesaṁ this namenāmamidaṁ is spokenpavuccati;
only the name will remainNāmaṁyevāvasissati,
to be toldAkkheyyaṁ of the departedpetassa personjantuno.

You used to see and hear those folk, and call them by their name. Yet the name is all that’s left to tell of a personage when they’re gone.

sorrow, lamentation, and stinginessSokapparidevamaccharaṁ,
notNa they give upjahanti greedygiddhā for belongingsmamāyite;
thereforeTasmā sagesmunayo possessionspariggahaṁ,
having left behindHitvā they wanderedacariṁsu seers of sanctuarykhemadassino.

Those who are greedy for belongings don’t give up sorrow, lamentation, and stinginess. That’s why the sages, seers of sanctuary, left possessions behind and wandered.

for one who lives withdrawnPatilīnacarassa for a mendicantbhikkhuno,
for one frequentingBhajamānassa a secluded seatvivittamāsanaṁ;
they say it is fittingSāmaggiyamāhu for himtassa thattaṁ,
whoYo himselfattānaṁ in a homebhavane notna would showdassaye.

For a mendicant who lives withdrawn, frequenting a secluded seat, they say it’s fitting to not show themselves in a home.

everywhereSabbattha sagemunī independentanissito,
notNa likespiyaṁ makeskubbati nornopi dislikesappiyaṁ;
in themTasmiṁ lamentation and stinginessparidevamaccharaṁ,
leafPaṇṇe watervāri asyathā notna adhereslimpati.

The sage is independent everywhere, they don’t form likes or dislikes. Lamentation and stinginess slip off them like water from a leaf.

a water-dropUdabindu just asyathāpi on a lotus-leafpokkhare,
on a lotus flowerPadume watervāri asyathā notna clingslimpati;
soEvaṁ the sagemuni does not clingnopalimpati,
that whichYadidaṁ seen or hearddiṭṭhasutaṁ in things thoughtmutesu orvā.

Like a droplet slips from a lotus-leaf, like water from a lotus flower; the sage doesn’t cling to that which is seen or heard or thought.

cleansed oneDhono notna indeedhi by thattena conceivesmaññati,
that is to sayYadidaṁ seen and hearddiṭṭhasutaṁ in things thoughtmutesu orvā;
by anotherNāññena wishes for purityvisuddhimicchati,
notNa indeedhi heso is passionaterajjati norno growing dispassionedvirajjatīti.
Old Age SuttaJarāsuttaṁ sixthchaṭṭhaṁ.

For the one who is cleansed does not conceive in terms of things seen, heard, or thought. They do not wish to be purified by another; they are neither passionate nor growing dispassioned.

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