Gāthā Sentence Translation Sentence Structure
Vocabulary&Grammar Commentary Pronunciation
                          List of Abbreviations

yāva hi vanatho na chijjati

aṇumatto pi narassa nārisu

paṭibaddhamano va tāva so

vaccho khīrapako va mātari

(DhP 284)




Sentence Translation:

As long as the undergrowth of passion of a man towards women,
even a minuscule one, is not cut off,
so long his mind is bound,
just like a calf drinking milk from the mother.




Sentence Structure:
List of Abbreviations

yāva        hi   vanatho na     chijjati
|                |        |         |           |
Rel.Adv. part.  N.m.   neg.  V.pas.in.
|                |   Nom.Sg.  |     3.Sg.pres.
|_________|        |         |______|
        |                 |________|_______________________________I.
        |                        |____|
        |________________|
                       |_________________________________________II.

List of Abbreviations

aṇu+matto     pi   narassa   nārisu
|           |          |         |            |
Adj. Adj.m.  part.   N.m.     N.f.
|     Nom.Sg.    |    Gen.Sg. Loc.Pl.
|______|          |         |_______|
     |_________|                |
I.______|______________|
II._____________________________________________________

List of Abbreviations

paṭibaddha+mano   va   tāva      so
|                    |         |       |          |
Adj.         Adj.m.  part. Adv. Pron.m.
|              Nom.Sg.   |       |    Nom.Sg.
|___________|         |       |           |
          |___________|       |           |___________________________
                     |_________|__________________|
                            |_____|
__________________|

List of Abbreviations

vaccho khīra+pako      va     mātari
|              |         |           |          |
N.m.     N.n. Adj.m.   part.    N.f.
Nom.Sg.  |   Nom.Sg.     |    Loc.Sg.
|              |_____|           |          |
|___________|               |          |
          |______________|______|
                       |_______|
_________________|




Vocabulary and Grammar:
List of Abbreviations

yāva, Rel.Adv.: as long as, as far as.

hi, part.: indeed.

vanatho: vanatha-, N.m.: undergrowth, thicket, under-brush. Nom.Sg. = vanatho.

na, neg.: not.

chijjati, V.: is cut off, is removed. The verb root is chid-. 3.Sg.pas.in.pres. = chijjati.

aṇumatto: aṇumatta-, Adj.: minuscule, of an atomic measure. It is a compound of:
    aṇu-, Adj.: small, atomic, subtle.
    matta-, Adj.: measured, measuring.
Nom.Sg.m. = aṇumatto.

List of Abbreviations

pi, part.: also, even.

narassa: nara-, N.m.: man, person. Gen.Sg. = narassa.

nārisu: nārī-, N.f.: woman. Loc.Pl. = nārisu.

paṭibaddhamano: paṭibaddhamano-, Adj.: having a bound mind. It is a compound of:
    paṭibaddha-, Adj.: bound, tied, dependent. It is a p.p. of the verb root badh- (to bind) with the prefix paṭi- (towards).
    mano-, N.n.: mind.
Nom.Sg.m. = paṭibaddhamano.

va: a contracted form of eva, part.: just, only.

List of Abbreviations

tāva, Adv.: so much, so long.

so: tad-, Pron.n.: it. Nom.Sg.m. = so.

vaccho: vaccha-, N.m.: calf. Nom.Sg. = vaccho.

khīrapako: khīrapaka-, Adj.: drinking milk, sucking milk. It is a compound of:
    khīra-, N.n.: milk.
    paka-, Adj.: drinking. It is derived from the verb root pā- (to drink) with the adjective suffix -ka-.
Nom.Sg.m. = khīrapako.

va, part.: as, like.

mātari: mātar-, N.f.: mother. Loc.Sg. = mātari.

List of Abbreviations

    This verse consists of two related sentences. They are:
    1) yāva hi vanatho na chijjati aṇumatto pi narassa nārisu (as long as the undergrowth of passion of a man towards women, even a minuscule one, is not cut off). The subject is the noun vanatho (undergrowth, nominative singular). It has two attributes; the first of them is the adjective compound aṇumatto (minuscule, nominative singular). This word is modified by the particle pi (even). The second attribute is the noun narassa (of a man, genitive singular). It has its own attribute, the noun nārisu (in women, locative singular). The verb is chijjati (is cut off, 3rd person, singular, passive, indicative, present tense). It is negated by the negative particle na (not). The relative adverb yāva (as long as) connects this sentence to the following one. The particle hi (indeed) serves mainly for metrical purposes.
    2) paṭibaddhamano va tāva so vaccho khīrapako va mātari (so long his mind is bound, just like a calf drinking milk from the mother). This can be further analysed into the main sentence and the clause:
    a) paṭibaddhamano va tāva so (so long his mind is bound). The subject is the pronoun so (he, nominative singular). The verb is omitted, implying the verb "to be". The object is the compound paṭibaddhamano (having a bound mind, nominative singular). It is modified by the particle va (just). The adverb tāva (so long) connects this sentence to the previous one.
    b) vaccho khīrapako va mātari (just like a calf drinking milk from the mother). The subject is the noun vaccho (calf, nominative singular). It has an attribute, the compound khīrapako (drinking milk, nominative singular). The verb is omitted, implying the verb "to be". The object is the noun mātari (by the mother, locative singular). The particle va (as, like) connects the clause to the main sentence.




Commentary:

    The story for this verse is identical with the one for the previous verse (DhP 283).
    Greed or passion is one of the three main roots of evil. Due to the underlying ignorance, we feel passion and hatred, like and dislike. Because of that we do things with the mind bound with passion or hatred. Therefore we create karma that keeps us in the circle of life and death. Only when we cut off these passions and dissolve ignorance, can we stop creating karmically good and bad deeds and be free from suffering, with a free mind.




Sentence pronunciation:

Sentence pronunciation

Word pronunciation:

yāva
hi
vanatho
na
chijjati
aṇumatto
aṇu
matto
pi
narassa
nārisu
paṭibaddhamano
paṭibaddha
mano
va
tāva
so
vaccho
khīrapako
khīra
pako
mātari