Just like the tree will grow again if it is cut down,
but its roots are strong and uninjured,
so this suffering will come back again and again
if the dormant craving is not destroyed.

yathā        pi    mūle  anupaddave  daḷhe
|                |         |             |              |
Rel.Adv. part.   N.n.      Adj.n.      Adj.n.
|_________|    Loc.Sg.  Loc.Sg.    Loc.Sg.
         |                 |            |________|
         |                 |___________|
         |                           |_______________________________I.
         |______________________________|
                                   |________________________________II.

List of Abbreviations

chinno      pi    rukkho  punar eva     rūhati
|                |          |          |       |           |
Adj.m.    part.   N.m.    Adv. part.  V.act.in.
Nom.Sg.    |    Nom.Sg.    |____|    3.Sg.pres.
|_________|          |              |________|
         |__________|                     |
                  |_________________|
I._________________|
II.___________________________________________________

List of Abbreviations

evam  pi    taṇhā+anusaye anūhate
|           |        |          |             |
Adv.  part. N.f.     N.m.     Adj.m.
|______|        |     Loc.Sg.   Loc.Sg.
      |             |______|             |
      |                   |__________|
      |                             |________________________________
      |_________________________________|
___________________|

List of Abbreviations

nibbattatī dukkham   idaṃ punappunaṃ
|                     |            |             |
V.act.in.      N.n.     Pron.n.    Adv.
3.Sg.pres. Nom.Sg. Nom.Sg.      |
|                     |_______|             |
|_______________|___________|
             |________|

yathā, Rel.Adv.: just as.

pi, part./conj.: also, too, even, although.

mūle: mūla-, N.n.: root, ground, foundation. Loc.Sg. = mūle.

anupaddave: anupaddava-, Adj.: uninjured, free from danger, safe. It is the word upaddava-, N.m.: accident, misfortune, negated by the negative prefix an-. Loc.Sg.n. = anupaddave.

daḷhe: daḷha-, Adj.: strong, resolute, firm. Loc.Sg. = daḷhe.

chinno: chinna-, Adj.: cut off, destroyed. It is a p.p. of the verb root chid- (to cut off, to remove). Nom.Sg.m. = chinno.

pi: see above.

rukkho: rukkha-, N.m.: tree. Nom.Sg. = rukkho.

List of Abbreviations

punar, Adv.: again. It is the word puna (see below), the final r is only the result of the euphonic combination (puna + eva = punar eva).

eva, part.: just, only.

rūhati, V.: grows. The verb root is ruh-. 3.Sg.act.in.pres. = rūhati.

evam, Adv.: thus, in this way.

pi: see above.

taṇhānusaye: taṇhānusaya-, N.m.: dormant thirst, dormant craving. It is a compound of:
    taṇhā-, N.f.: thirst, craving.
    anusaya-, N.m.: dormant disposition. It is derived from the verb root si- (to lay) with the prefix anu- (along, at).
Euphonic combination: taṇhā- + anusaya- = taṇhānusaya-.
Loc.Sg. = taṇhānusaye.

List of Abbreviations

anūhate: anūhata-, Adj.: not removed, not destroyed, not rooted out. It is the word ūhata-, Adj.: cut off, destroyed [it is a p.p. of the verb root han- (to kill) with the prefix ud- (up)] negated by the negative prefix an-. Loc.Sg.m. = anūhate.

nibbattatī, V.: is reborn, exists, comes into being. The verb root is vat- (to exist) with the prefix ni- (back). 3.Sg.act.in.pres. = nibbattati. The form nibbattatī is used in poetry.

dukkham: dukkha-, N.n.: suffering. Nom.Sg. = dukkham.

idaṃ: idaṃ-, Pron.: this. Nom.Sg.n. = idaṃ.

punappunaṃ, Adv.: again and again. It is the word puna, Ind.: again, doubled in intensifying sense. The double -p- is a result of the euphonic combination.

List of Abbreviations

    This verse consists of two syntactically connected sentences. They are:
    1) yathā pi mūle anupaddave daḷhe chinno pi rukkho punar eva rūhati (just like the tree will grow again if it is cut down, but its roots are strong and uninjured). This can be further analysed into the main sentence and the absolute locative clause:
    a) yathā pi chinno pi rukkho punar eva rūhati (just like the tree will grow again if it is cut down). The subject is the noun rukkho (tree, nominative singular). It has an attribute, the past participle chinno (cut down, nominative singular). The attribute is modified by the particle pi (even). The verb is rūhati (grows, 3^rd person, singular, active, indicative, present tense). It has an attribute, the adverb punar (again) which is modified by the particle eva (just). The relative adverb yathā (like) is modified by the particle pi (also). It connects this sentence to the following one.
    b) mūle anupaddave daḷhe (but its roots are strong and uninjured). The subject is the noun mūle (in the root, locative singular). It has two attributes, the adjectives anupaddave (uninjured, locative singular) and daḷhe (strong, locative singular). This clause is in so called absolute locative. The literal translation would be "in the root strong and uninjured". The meaning is "if the root is strong and uninjured".
    2) evam pi taṇhānusaye anūhate nibbattatī dukkham idaṃ punappunaṃ (so this suffering will come back again and again if the dormant craving is not destroyed). This can be further analysed into the main sentence and the absolute locative clause:
    a) evam pi nibbattatī dukkham idaṃ punappunaṃ (so this suffering will come back again and again). The subject is the noun dukkham (suffering, nominative singular). It has an attribute, the pronoun idaṃ (this, nominative singular). The verb is nibbattatī (comes back, 3^rd person, singular, active, indicative, present tense). It has an attribute, the adverb punappunaṃ (again and again). The adverb evam (thus) is modified by the particle pi (also). It connects this sentence to the previous one.
    b) taṇhānusaye anūhate (if the dormant craving is not destroyed). The subject is the compound taṇhānusaye (in the dormant craving, locative singular). It has an attribute, the adjective anūhate (not destroyed, locative singular). This clause is also in the absolute locative.

    Once the Buddha saw a female pig and he smiled. Venerable Ānanda asked him about the reason for his smile. The Buddha told him that this pig used to be a hen during the times pf the previous Buddha. The hen lived close to a monastery and as a result listened to the discourses. Later she was reborn as a princess. Once she noticed some worms in the toilet and started to meditate on the repulsiveness of the body. Later she was reborn as a Brahma type of deity. And now again, because of some demerit, she was born as a pig. The Buddha commented in this verse (and the five following ones, DhP 339 - DhP 343) how there was simply no end of the round of existences on account of good and bad karma.

Sentence pronunciation

Word pronunciation:

yathā
pi
mūle
anupaddave
daḷhe
chinno
rukkho
punar
eva
rūhati
evam
taṇhānusaye
taṇhā
anusaye
anūhate
nibbattatī
dukkham
idaṃ
punappunaṃ
puna