The Numerical Discourses
Chapter 17: Breathing
| （五） 無可貴 | 5. Nothing Respectable |
|---|---|
| 聞如是： 一時，佛在舍衛國、祇樹、給孤獨園。 | 1. Thus I have heard:1 One time, the Buddha was staying at Anāthapiṇḍada’s Park in Jeta’s Grove of Śrāvastī. |
| 爾時，世尊告諸比丘： 「邪見眾生所念、所趣及餘諸行，一切無可貴者， 世間人民所不貪樂。 所以然者？ 以其邪見不善故也。 | 2. It was then that the Bhagavān addressed the monks, “There’s nothing respectable about any of the thoughts, destinations, and other actions of sentient beings with wrong views. They don’t delight the world’s people. Why is that? It’s because their wrong views aren’t good. |
| 「猶如有『諸苦菓之子』，所謂苦菓、苦蔘子、葶藶子、畢地槃持子，及諸餘苦子。 便於良地種此諸子，然後生苗猶復故苦。 所以然者？ 以其子本苦故。 | 3. “It’s just as ‘seeds of bitter fruit’ refer to the bitter fruit, bitter sprouts, Witlowgrass seed, *pitavandi seed, and other bitter seeds. When these seeds are planted in good soil, they sprout afterward and are just as bitter as before. Why is that? It’s because those seeds are the source of the bitterness.2 |
| 「此邪見眾生亦復如是。 所作身行、口行、意行，所趣、所念及諸惡行，一切無可貴者。 世間人民所不貪樂。 所以然者？ 以其邪見惡、不善故。 | 4. “These sentient beings with wrong views are likewise. There’s nothing respectable about the physical, verbal, and mental actions that they do, their destinations, their thoughts, or their evil actions. They don’t delight the world’s people. Why is that? It’s because their wrong views are bad and not good. |
| 「是故，諸比丘，當除邪見，習行正見。 如是，諸比丘，當作是學。」 | 5. “Therefore, monks, you should eliminate wrong views and cultivate right views. Thus, monks, you should train yourselves.” |
| 爾時，諸比丘聞佛所說歡喜，奉行。 | 6. When the monks heard what the Buddha taught, they rejoiced and approved. |
Notes
For the source text, cf. T125.2.583a19-b2. It’s parallels are AN 1.314 and SF 206.
[back]Witlowgrass seed. C. 葶藶子. This is a C. name for a type of grass commonly called yellow or draba Witlowgrass. What the original Indian text was referencing is not clear to me.
*pitavandi. C. 畢地槃持 (EMC. piĕt-dii-buan-ḍɪei = Pr. pidipande?). There is no information that I can find for this translit., and it doesn’t resemble the examples that occur in the P. and S. parallels. It presumably is something edible that tastes bad, but exactly what it was has fallen into obscurity. The closest Indic word I can find is G. pidavaṃnidaga (S. pītavarṇitaka), which would simply mean “something yellow-colored.” I have reproduced the translit. as best as possible for the time being.
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Translator: Charles Patton
Last Revised: 25 February 2025
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