When one perceives with wisdom that all conditioned things are unsatisfactory,
then one turns away from suffering. This is the path of purification.

sabbe saṅkhārā   dukkhā      ti     yadā    paññāya  passati
|                  |            |           |         |             |            |
Adj.m.     N.m.     Adj.m.  part. Rel.Adv.   N.f.    V.act.in.
Nom.Pl. Nom.Pl. Nom.Pl.    |         |        Ins.Sg. 3.Sg.pres.
|__________|            |           |         |             |_______|
         |____________|           |         |                    |
                   |_____________|         |                    |
                                |___________|___________|
                                           |_____|
                                                |______________________________________

List of Abbreviations

atha  nibbindati dukkhe     esa      maggo    visuddhiyā
|              |             |            |             |              |
Adv.  V.act.in.   N.m.    Pron.m.    N.m.       N.f.
|       3.Sg.pres. Loc.Sg. Nom.Sg. Nom.Sg. Gen.Sg.
|              |_______|             |            |________|
|___________|                    |___________|
_____|

sabbe: sabba-, Adj.: all, every. Nom.Pl.m. = sabbe.

saṅkhārā: saṅkhāra-, N.m.: conditioned thing, world of phenomena. The meaning of this word is very wide, here we will use "conditioned thing". It comprises the entire world around us, including ourselves. Nom.Pl. = saṅkhārā.

dukkhā: dukkha-, Adj.: unsatisfactory, painful. Nom.Pl.m. = dukkhā.

ti, part.: a particle, symbolizing the end of direct speech. In English this is expressed by quotation marks. Sometimes it is written as iti.

yadā, Rel.Adv.: when.

paññāya: paññā-, N.f.: wisdom. Ins.Sg. = paññāya.

List of Abbreviations

passati: sees. The verb root is dis- (to see). 3.Sg.act.in.pres. = passati.

atha, Adv.: then.

nibbindati, V.: turns away from, has enough of. The verb root is vid- (to know, to find) with the prefix ni- (out, away). 3.Sg.act.in.pres. = nibbindati.

dukkhe: dukkha-, N.m.: suffering. Loc.Sg. = dukkhe.

esa: Pron. etad-, this. Nom.Sg.m: esa.

maggo: magga-, N.m.: road, path. Nom.Sg. = maggo.

visuddhiyā: visuddhi-, N.f.: brightness, purification, purity. Gen.Sg. = visuddhiyā.

List of Abbreviations

    This verse consists of two syntactically separate sentences. They are:
    1) sabbe saṅkhārā dukkhā ti yadā paññāya passati atha nibbindati dukkhe (when one perceives with wisdom that all conditioned things are unsatisfactory, then one turns away from suffering). This can be further analysed into two sentences a) and b):
    a) sabbe saṅkhārā dukkhā ti yadā paññāya passati (when one perceives with wisdom that all conditioned things are unsatisfactory). This sentence consists of the main sentence II) and the direct speech I):
    I) sabbe saṅkhārā dukkhā ti (that all conditioned things are unsatisfactory). The subject is the noun saṅkhārā (conditioned things, nominative plural). It has an attribute, the adjective sabbe (all, nominative plural). The verb is omitted, implying the verb "to be". The object is the adjective dukkhā (unsatisfactory, nominative plural). The particle ti (end of the direct speech) connects this clause to the main sentence.
    II) yadā paññāya passati (when one perceives with wisdom). The subject is omitted; the verb implies the third person singular pronoun. The verb is passati (sees, 3^rd person, singular, active, indicative, present tense). It has an attribute, the noun paññāya (with wisdom, instrumental singular). The relative adverb yadā (when) connects this sentence to the following one.
    b) atha nibbindati dukkhe (then one turns away from suffering). The subject is omitted; the verb implies the third person singular pronoun. The verb is nibbindati (turns away from, 3^rd person, singular, active, indicative, present tense). The object is the noun dukkhe (from suffering, locative singular). The adverb atha (then) connects this sentence to the previous one.
    2) esa maggo visuddhiyā (this is the path of purification). The subject is the pronoun esa (this, nominative singular). The verb is omitted, implying the verb "to be". The object is the noun maggo (path, nominative singular). It has an attribute, the noun visuddhiyā (of purification, genitive singular).

    Once a group of monks obtained a subject of meditation from the Buddha. They went to the forest and practiced meditation. However, they made a little progress. Therefore they returned to the Buddha and asked him for another subject of meditation. The Buddha reflected that due to their past lives they were ready to perceive the unsatisfactoriness of conditioned things. He told them this verse and advised them to meditate on its meaning.

Sentence pronunciation

Word pronunciation:

sabbe
saṅkhārā
dukkhā
ti
yadā
paññāya
passati
atha
nibbindati
dukkhe
esa
maggo
visuddhiyā