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

tumhehi kiccam ātappaṃ akkhātāro tathāgatā

paṭipannā pamokkhanti jhāyino mārabandhanā

(DhP 276)




Sentence Translation:

You must make an effort. The Buddhas are only teachers.
Those, who meditating entered upon this path, will be released from the bond of Mara.




Sentence Structure:
List of Abbreviations

tumhehi  kiccam   ātappaṃ akkhātāro tathāgatā
|                  |              |             |              |
Pron.      Adj.n.       N.n.       N.m.       N.m.
Ins.Pl.   Nom.Sg.  Nom.Sg. Nom.Pl.  Nom.Pl.
|__________|              |             |________|
         |_____________|

List of Abbreviations

paṭipannā pamokkhanti jhāyino māra+bandhanā
|                        |              |          |            |
Adj.m.          V.pas.     Adj.m.  N.m.      N.n.
Nom.Pl.       3.Pl.fut.  Nom.Pl.     |       Abl.Sg.
|                        |              |           |______|
|_____________|________|                 |
            |           |__________________|
            |________________|




Vocabulary and Grammar:
List of Abbreviations

tumhehi: tvam-, Pron.: you. Ins.Pl. = tumhehi (by you).

kiccam: kicca-, Adj.: must be done, ought to be done. It is a grd. of the verb kar- (to do).
Nom.Sg.n. = kiccam.

ātappaṃ: ātappa-, N.n.: exertion, effort. Nom.Sg. = ātappaṃ.

akkhātāro: akkhātar-, N.m.: speaker, one who proclaims. It is derived from the verb root kkhā- (to say, to tell) with the prefix ā- (towards). Nom.Pl. = akkhātāro.

tathāgatā: tathāgata-, N.m.: an epithet of the Buddha. Lit. "thus gone", one who has reached Awakenment in this way (that is according to the Dharma). It is a compound of:
    tathā, Adv. thus, in such way.
    gata-, Adj.: gone. It is a p.p. of the verb gam- (to go).
Nom.Pl. = tathāgatā.

List of Abbreviations

paṭipannā: paṭipanna-, Adj.: entered upon, following, gone along. It is a p.p. of the verb root pad- (to go) with the prefix paṭi- (along, on). Nom.Pl.m. = paṭipannā.

pamokkhanti, V.: will be released. The verb root is muc- (to be freed), with the strengthening prefix pa-. 3.Pl.pas.fut. = pamokkhanti.

jhāyino: jhāyin-, Adj.m.: meditating. Derived from the verb jhe- (to meditate). Nom.Pl. = jhāyino.

mārabandhanā: mārabandhana-, N.n: the bond of Mara. A compound of:
    māra-, N.m.: Mara, the Evil One, Death.
    bandhana-, N.n,: bond, fetter. Derived from the verb bandh- (to bind, to fasten).
Abl.Sg. = mārabandhanā.

List of Abbreviations

    This verse consists of three syntactically separate sentences. They are:
    1) tumhehi kiccam ātappaṃ (you must make an effort). The subject is the noun ātappaṃ (effort, nominative singular). The verb is in the gerundive (kiccam, is to be done, nominative singular). It has an attribute, the pronoun tumhehi (by you, instrumental plural).
    2) akkhātāro tathāgatā (the Buddhas are only teachers). The subject is the noun tathāgatā (the Buddhas, nominative plural). The verb is omitted, implying the verb "to be". The object is the noun akkhātāro (teachers, nominative plural).
    3) paṭipannā pamokkhanti jhāyino mārabandhanā (those, who meditating entered upon this path, will be released from the bond of Mara). The subject is the adjective jhāyino (those who are meditating, nominative plural). It has an attribute, the past participle paṭipannā (having entered [upon the path], nominative plural). The verb is pamokkhanti (will be freed, 3rd person, plural, passive, future). It has an attribute, the compound mārabandhanā (from the bond of Mara, ablative singular).




Commentary:

    The story for this verse is identical with the one for the previous verses (DhP 273, DhP 274 and DhP 275).
    The Buddha found the way to make an end to suffering. He taught it to us. But we have to make the effort. Nobody will do it for us. We cannot wait for a teacher to pull us from the swamp by some miracle. Only by diligent meditation and daily practice can we be released from the bond of Mara, from the world of suffering.




Sentence pronunciation:

Sentence pronunciation

Word pronunciation:

tumhehi
kiccam
ātappaṃ
akkhātāro
tathāgatā
tathā
gatā
paṭipannā
pamokkhanti
jhāyino
mārabandhanā
māra
bandhanā