Gāthā | Sentence Translation | Sentence Structure |
Vocabulary&Grammar | Commentary | Pronunciation |
Very happily indeed we live, who have nothing whatsoever.
We will be feeding on joy, just like the Radiant Gods.
susukhaṃ vata
jīvāma
yesaṃ
no na
atthi kiñcanaṃ
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Adv. part.
V.act.in. Rel.Pron.m. Pron.m. neg. V.act.in.
Pron.n.
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Gen.Pl. Gen.Pl. |
3.Sg.pres. Nom.Sg.
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List of Abbreviations
pīti+bhakkhā
bhavissāma devā
ābhassarā
yathā
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N.f. Adj.m.
V.act. N.m. Adj.m.
Rel.Adv.
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1.Pl.fut. Nom.Pl. Nom.Pl. |
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susukhaṃ, Adv.: very happily. It is derived from the word sukha-, Adj.: happy, with the prefix su- (well, good).
vata, part.: indeed, certainly.
jīvāma, V.: (we) live. The verb root is jīv-. 1.Pl.act.in.pres. = jīvāma.
yesaṃ: yat-, Rel.Pron.: that, which. Gen.Pl.m. = yesaṃ.
no: aham, Pron.: I. Gen.Pl. = no.
na, neg.: not.
atthi, V.: is. The verb root is as- (to
be). 3.Sg.act.in.pres. = atthi.
Euphonic combination: na + atthi = natthi.
List of Abbreviations
kiñcanaṃ: kiñcana-, Pron.n.: something, anything. Nom.Sg. = kiñcanaṃ.
pītibhakkhā:
pītibhakkha-, Adj.: feeding on joy.
It is a compound of:
pīti-,
N.f.: joy, delight.
bhakkha-, Adj.: eating, feeding.
It is derived from the verb root bhakkh- (to eat).
Nom.Pl.m. = pītibhakkhā.
bhavissāma, V.: (we) will be. The verb root is bhū-. 1.Pl.act.fut. = bhavissāma.
devā: deva-, N.m.: god, celestial being. Nom.Pl. = devā.
ābhassarā:
ābhassara-, Adj.: radiant. Radiant
Gods, a special class of gods that feed on joy.
Nom.Pl.m. = ābhassarā.
yathā, Rel.Adv.: as, just like.
List of Abbreviations
This verse consists of two syntactically
separate sentences. They are:
1) susukhaṃ
vata jīvāma yesaṃ
no natthi kiñcanaṃ
(very happily indeed we live, who have nothing whatsoever). This can be
further analysed into two segments:
a) susukhaṃ
vata jīvāma
(very happily indeed we live). The subject is omitted; the verb implies
the first person plural pronoun. The verb is jīvāma
(we live, 1st person, plural, active, indicative, present tense).
It has an attribute, the adverb susukhaṃ
(very happily). The particle vata (indeed) serves mainly for metrical
purposes.
b) yesaṃ
no natthi kiñcanaṃ
(who have nothing whatsoever). The subject is the pronoun kiñcanaṃ
(anything, nominative singular). The verb is atthi (is, 3rd
person, singular, active, indicative, present tense). It is negated by
the negative particle na (not). The verb has two attributes, the
pronoun no (ours, genitive plural) and the relative pronoun yesaṃ
(whose, genitive plural).
2) pītibhakkhā
bhavissāma devā
ābhassarā yathā
(we will be feeding on joy, just like the Radiant Gods). This can be further
analysed into the main sentence a) and the clause b):
a) pītibhakkhā
bhavissāma (we will be feeding on joy).
The subject is the adjective compound pītibhakkhā
(feeding on joy, nominative plural). The verb is bhavissāma
([we] will be, 1st person, plural, active, future).
b) devā
ābhassarā yathā
(just like the Radiant Gods). The subject is the noun devā
(gods, nominative plural) with its attribute, the adjective ābhassarā
(radiant, nominative plural). The relative adverb yathā
(just as, like) connects the clause to the main sentence.
The Buddha once saw that a group of
young girls from Pañcasāla
village was very close to attaining the first stage of Awakenment. One
day, when the girls were returning from the bath at the river, the Buddha
entered the village for almsfood. However, the villagers were influenced
by Māra and gave him nothing.
When the Buddha left the village,
he met Māra who asked him if he has received
enough almsfood. The Buddha, knowing that Māra
influenced the villagers, admonished him for doing such a wrong deed. Māra
wanted to make further fun of the Buddha and so told him to go back to
the village to ask for almsfood again.
When the Buddha returned to the village,
the girls came back from their bath and paid their homage to him. Māra
appeared again and asked the Buddha if he was not quite hungry, not having
eaten anything that day. The Buddha replied with this verse, saying that
even if he did not get any food at all, he would sustain himself on joy
and satisfaction, like the Radiant Gods, who live in constant joy and happiness.
Word pronunciation:
susukhaṃ
vata
jīvāma
yesaṃ
no
na
atthi
kiñcanaṃ
pītibhakkhā
pīti
bhakkhā
bhavissāma
devā
ābhassarā
yathā