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The Dhammapada · 3 of 3 · tr. F. Max Müller

Chapter XI, Section 1c

I had formerly translated anibbisan, as not resting (anirvi s an), but the commentator seems to authorise the meaning of not finding (avindanto, alabhanto), and in that case all the material difficulties of the verse seem to me to disappear. 'The maker of the tabernacle' is explained as a poetical expression for the cause of new births, at least according to the views of Buddha's followers, whatever his own views may have been. Buddha had conquered Mâra, the representative of worldly temptations, the father of worldly desires, and as desires (ta m hâ) are, by means of upâdâna and bhava, the cause of g âti, or 'birth,' the destruction of desires and the conquest of Mâra are nearly the same thing, though expressed differently in the philosophical and legendary language of the Buddhists. Ta m hâ, 'thirst' or 'desire,' is mentioned as serving in the army of Mâra. (Lotus, p. 443.)] p. 43 this tabernacle again. All thy rafters are broken, thy ridge-pole is sundered; the mind, approaching the Eternal (visa n khâra, nirvâ n a), has attained to the extinction of all desires. p. 44 155. Men who have not observed proper discipline, and have not gained treasure in their youth, perish like old herons in a lake without fish. 156. Men who have not observed proper discipline, and have not gained treasure in their youth, lie, like broken bows, sighing after the past. [155. On gh âyanti, i.e. kshâyanti, see Dr. Bollensen's learned remarks, Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenl. Gesellschaft, XVIII, 834, and Boehtlingk-Roth, s.v. kshâ.]
Themes
◆Body As Obstacleanthropology

The material body viewed as a prison, tomb, or source of error that hinders spiritual knowledge and return.

The text describes the 'mind' approaching the Eternal while the physical structure ('rafters', 'ridge-pole') is broken and sundered.

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◆Detachment Gelassenheitpraxis

Eckhart's Abgeschiedenheit/Gelassenheit — radical letting-go of will, image, and grasping that opens the soul to God; distinct from inner_silence (quietness) and from material renunciation, and adjacent to Sufi tark and Buddhist non-grasping as a practice rather than a metaphysical claim.

The passage emphasizes the 'extinction of all desires' and the destruction of upâdâna as a key to liberation.

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◆Good Thought Word Deedethics

The Zoroastrian triad of right thought, right speech, and right action as the foundation of ethical life; truth-in-living.

The passage outlines the necessity of observing proper discipline and gaining treasure in youth as a foundation for avoiding perdition.

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◆Kingdom Withinanthropology

The claim that the divine realm is present inside the individual, accessible without external mediation.

The attainment of Nirvana is described as occurring within the mind's approach to the Eternal.

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◆Meditationpraxis

Disciplined inward attention — sitting, focused, or open-awareness practice — as a stand-alone term that umbrellas active_contemplation, inner_silence, and dhyana-style sitting.

The text references 'proper discipline' and the mind approaching the Eternal as a disciplined inward practice.

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◆Mystical Unionsoteriology

The merging of the individual soul or self with the divine, transcending personal identity.

The mind is said to have attained Nirvana by approaching the Eternal, implying a union with the divine.

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◆Return To Sourcesoteriology

The soul's journey back to its divine origin, reversing the fall into matter through stages of purification or illumination.

The mind approaching the Eternal signifies a journey back to its divine origin.

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◆Self Knowledgesoteriology

The recognition of one's own true divine nature as the primary path to liberation; 'know thyself' as soteriology.

The destruction of desires is presented as a key to liberation, implying an internal transformation.

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◆Spiritual Ascentpraxis

A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source.

The text describes the mind approaching the Eternal and attaining Nirvana through disciplined practice.

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◆Sunyata Emptinesssoteriology

The Buddhist doctrine that all phenomena lack independent self-nature; emptiness as the positive recognition that things arise only in dependence on conditions — distinct from kenoma's mere deficiency.

The destruction of desires aligns with the Buddhist concept of emptiness as a path to liberation.

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