−⏑−⏑¦⏑−−−¦¦−−−⏑¦⏑−⏑−
sarvathā
dhtimac-caiva prājñaṁ caiva manas-tava |
−−−−¦⏑−−−¦¦⏑−⏑⏑¦⏑−⏑−
yas-tvaṁ
prāptaḥ śriyaṁ tyaktvā latāṁ viṣa-phalām-iva || 12.6
12.6
Altogether steadfast,
And wise, is your mind;
In that you have come here abandoning
royal power
As if it were a creeper bearing poison
fruit.
COMMENT:
These are the words of a teacher
Aśvaghoṣa has praised as muni-sattamaḥ, the truest of sages, the
best of sages. Since the principle generally holds good that it takes
one to know one, it seems to me that in the present series of verses
Arāḍa is demonstrating that he, like the bodhisattva, is a sincere
seeker of the exit route out of saṁsāra.
As such, the first virtue Arāḍa
praised in the bodhisattva, in yesterday's verse, was the will to
pursue freedom from the bonds of emotional attachment.
Insofar as
that will is an inclination towards what is wild, or unfettered,
today's verse is somewhat antithetical to yesterday's verse. In
today's verse Arāḍa praises the bodhisattva's qualities of
steadfastness and wisdom – virtues which tend to adorn one whose
energies are harnessed in a particular direction.
To put it another way, breaking out or
breaking free suggests a moment of liberation. Being steadfast and
wise in every way suggests the necessity for such moments to continue
in a long series of moments.
The analogy of poison fruit may be
fitting in the sense that the primary enemies of steadfastness and
wisdom are known as the three poisons – namely, greed, anger, and
delusion.
And yet, in the back of our minds we
know that this is not a meeting between two fully awakened
sambuddhas, because the bodhisattva is still a buddha-to-be, and
Arāḍa's teaching is not sufficient for him to have fully realized
his own aim.
There might be a hint of irony,
therefore, in Arāḍa's sarvathā (in every way, entirely, altogether).
A connection might be drawn between Aśvaghoṣa's sarvathā and Nāgārjuna's kevalaḥ:
tasya tasya nirodhena tat-tan nābhipravartate |
duḥkha-skandhaḥ kevalo 'yam evaṁ samyaṅ nirudhyate ||MMK26.12
By the destruction of each,
Each is discontinued.
This whole edifice of suffering
Is thus brought tumbling down.
VOCABULARY
sarvathā:
ind. in every way , in every respect; altogether , entirely , in the
highest degree , exceedingly
dhṛtimat
(nom. sg. n.): mfn. steadfast , calm , resolute
ca:
and
eva:
(emphatic)
prājñam
(nom. sg. n.): mfn. intelligent , wise , clever
ca:
and
eva:
(emphatic)
manaḥ
(nom. sg.): n. mind
tava
(gen. sg.): your
yaḥ
(nom. sg. m.): who, which
tvam
(nom. sg. m.): you
prāptaḥ
(nom. sg. m.): mfn. arrived
śriyam
(acc. sg.): f. prosperity , welfare , good fortune , success ,
auspiciousness , wealth , treasure , riches (śriyā , "
according to fortune or wealth ") , high rank , power , might ,
majesty , royal dignity; symbol or insignia of royalty
tyaktvā
= abs. tyaj: to leave, abandon
latām
(acc. sg.): f. a creeper
viṣa-phalām
(acc. sg. f.): mfn. bearing a poisonous fruit
iva:
like
深智覺慧明 能免斯毒果
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