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

ākāse padaṃ natthi samaṇo natthi bāhire

saṅkhārā sassatā natthi natthi buddhānam iñjitaṃ

(DhP 255)




Sentence Translation:

There are no tracks in the sky. There is not a true monk outside of this teaching.
There are no conditioned things that are eternal. There is no instability in the Buddhas.




Sentence Structure:
List of Abbreviations

ākāse     padaṃ   na     atthi       samaṇo   na     atthi     bāhire
|                  |        |          |              |          |          |           |
N.m.        N.n.   neg. V.act.in.     N.m.    neg.  V.act.in.  Adv.
Loc.Sg. Nom.Sg.  |    3.Sg.pres. Nom.Sg.   |    3.Sg.pres.    |
|                  |        |______|             |          |______|           |
|__________|________|                  |                |_________|
         |_____|                                 |______________|

List of Abbreviations

saṅkhārā sassatā  na       atthi     na      atthi buddhānam  iñjitaṃ
|                  |         |           |         |          |             |              |
N.m.        Adj.m. neg. V.act.in.  neg. V.act.in.    N.m.       N.n.
Nom.Pl.  Nom.Pl.  |    3.Sg.pres.  |    3.Sg.pres. Gen.Pl.  Nom.Sg.
|                   |        |______|         |______|             |              |
|                   |________|                    |                  |________|
|_______________|                           |_______________|




Vocabulary and Grammar:
List of Abbreviations

ākāse: ākāsa-, N.m.: air, sky, space. Loc.Sg. = ākāse.

padaṃ pada-, N.n.: track, path. Nom.Sg. = padaṃ.

na, neg.: not.

atthi, V.: is. The verb root is as- (to be). 3.Sg.act.in.pres. = atthi.
Euphonic combination: na + atthi = natthi.

samaṇo: samaṇa-, N.m.: a recluse, a wandering ascetic, a monk (not only a Buddhist monk).
Nom.Sg. = samaṇo.

natthi: see above (na + atthi).

bāhire, Adv.: outside. It is the word bāhira-, Adj.: external. Loc.Sg. = bāhire. Here as an Adv.

List of Abbreviations

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.

sassatā: sassata-, Adj.: eternal, perpetual. Nom.Pl.m. = sassatā.

natthi: see above (na + atthi). We would expect the plural form here (na santi), but in order to maintain the pattern (four times natthi), the singular form is used instead.

buddhānam: buddha-, Adj.: awakened. It is a p.p. of the verb root budh- (to awaken). As an N.m.: Awakened One, Enlightened One, a being who has attained the Nirvana. Gen.Pl. = buddhānaṃ.

iñjitaṃ: iñjita-, Adj.: shaken, moved. It is a p.p. of the verb root iñj- (to shake). As an N.n.: shaking, movement, vacillation. Nom.Sg. = iñjitaṃ.

List of Abbreviations

    This verse consists of four sentences. They are:
1) ākāse padaṃ natthi (there are no tracks in the sky). The subject is the noun padaṃ (track, 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 an attribute, the noun ākāse (in the sky, locative singular).
    2) samaṇo natthi bāhire (there is not a true monk outside [of this teaching]). The subject is the noun samaṇo (monk, 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 an attribute, the adverb bāhire (outside).
    3) saṅkhārā sassatā natthi (there are no conditioned things that are eternal). The subject is the noun saṅkhārā (conditioned things, nominative plural). The verb is atthi (is, 3rd person, singular, active, indicative, present tense). It is negated by the negative particle na (not). The object is the adjective sassatā (eternal, nominative plural).
    4) natthi buddhānam iñjitaṃ (there is no instability in the Buddhas). The subject is the adjective/noun iñjitaṃ (shaking, instability; nominative singular). It has an attribute, the noun buddhānam (of the Buddhas, genitive plural). The verb is atthi (is, 3rd person, singular, active, indicative, present tense). It is negated by the negative particle na (not).




Commentary:

    The story for this verse is identical with the one for the previous verse (DhP 254).
    The Buddhas, Awakened Ones have no "shaking". The meaning of this is that there is no instability, no wavering or unsteadiness of their minds. They have reached the highest Awakenment and their minds are truly firm and steady.




Sentence pronunciation:

Sentence pronunciation

Word pronunciation:

ākāse
padaṃ
na
atthi
samaṇo
bāhire
saṅkhārā
sassatā
buddhānam
iñjitaṃ