Puppha Vagga — The Chapter on Flowers

Verse 44

This verse was spoken to five hundred monks. It is a question the Buddha raised to inspire in them a love for the Dhamma.

He asked: who indeed will comprehend this earth, together with the realm of Yama and the world of humans and its gods? And who will select out the path of Dhamma that he has taught so well, just as a skilled garland-maker knows how to choose beautiful flowers to string into garlands? This question likens the practitioner to the flower-stringer, who must possess the wisdom to examine and select the states of reality with complete mindful awareness.

The reflection is that studying the Dhamma is not merely a matter of memorizing, but of selecting with wisdom — knowing how to take up what is worthy and truly put it into practice, like the craftsman who knows which flower to gather and which to set aside.

Verse 45

Spoken to five hundred monks, continuing from the previous verse, this is the answer to the question the Buddha had raised.

The answer is that it is the trainee (sekha) himself who will comprehend the earth — which is this very body — the realm of Yama — which is the four woeful realms — and all worlds together with the world of the gods; and he will select out the path of Dhamma just as a skilled garland-maker does. The term trainee refers to the seven kinds of noble persons, beginning with the stream-enterer, who must still train further according to the threefold training — namely virtue, concentration, and wisdom. The path of Dhamma here means the thirty-seven factors of enlightenment (bodhipakkhiya-dhamma), which lead to awakening.

The reflection is that one who has not yet reached the goal but who trains earnestly in the threefold training is a person with hope of realizing the truth. Diligence in training is therefore the wellspring of wisdom.

Verse 46

Spoken to a monk cultivating meditation with the mirage as its object, to point out the impermanence of the body.

The monk who understands that this body is like foam — which persists but a moment before breaking apart — and that it has the nature of a mirage, which from afar seems tangible but on approach proves empty: one who sees this truth is able to cut off the flower-tipped arrows of Māra, that is, to sever the round of existence in the three realms — the sensual realm, the form realm, and the formless realm — by means of the noble path. He then goes to where the King of Death cannot find him, which means the deathless Nibbāna.

The reflection is that when one sees the body as it truly is — impermanent, a mere fleeting illusion — the mind lets go of clinging and can at last step beyond the power of death.

Verse 47

Spoken with reference to Prince Viḍūḍabha, warning the monks of the danger of heedlessness in sensual pleasures.

The Buddha declared that death — the end of life — seizes and carries away the person whose mind is attached to various objects, one who is busy gathering flowers, meaning the five strands of sensual pleasure, just as a great flood sweeps away a whole village of sleeping people before they even realize it. One who is sunk in delight in sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and touches is like a sleeper who does not know the water is coming.

The reflection is that a life intoxicated with sensual pleasure, producing no benefit in the Dhamma, is snatched away by death all at once. One should therefore be awake and alert, not letting time slip by in vain.

Verse 48

Spoken with reference to Patipūjikā, a companion verse to the previous one, reaffirming the danger of never being satisfied with sensual pleasures.

The Buddha declared that death brings under its power the person whose mind is attached to various objects, one busy gathering the flowers of sensual pleasure and who remains unsated in sensual pleasures. The one unsated in sensuality is the one who never knows enough, whether in defilement-sensuality (kilesa-kāma) or object-sensuality (vatthu-kāma), intent only on seeking, on acquiring, on enjoying, and on accumulating without end. Such a person, the more he hoards, the more he thirsts, until death arrives before satisfaction ever does.

The reflection is that craving that knows no satisfaction is a snare binding the mind to suffering. Knowing contentment, being glad with what one has, is therefore the way out from the power of death.

Verse 49

Spoken with reference to the miserly millionaire Kosiya, to point out the beautiful way of livelihood of one who has gone forth.

The Buddha likened the matter thus: the bee, when it enters a flower, takes only the nectar and departs, harming neither the color, the scent, nor the petals of the flower at all. The sage — the one who knows — should go about in the village in just this way: walking for alms from house to house in order, receiving only enough food to sustain life, without harming the faith or the wealth of the villagers. This verse speaks of the qualities of the arahant (khīṇāsava), who goes about in the world without oppressing anyone.

The reflection is that living together with others should be like the bee gathering nectar — receiving a fitting benefit without causing the giver distress. It is a way of living that is light and graceful.

Verse 50

Spoken to a laywoman who served the naked ascetic named Pāṭika, to teach her to turn and look at herself rather than fault others.

The Buddha declared that a person should not heed the harsh words of others, nor look intently at what others have done or left undone, but should examine only one's own affairs — what one has done and what one has yet to do. A mind busy finding fault with others is filled with resentment and blind to its own shortcomings.

The reflection is that progress in the Dhamma comes from self-examination, not from fault-finding with others. When one turns the mirror upon oneself, one sees what should be corrected and what should be added to — this is the true path of growth.

Verse 51

Spoken to the Elder Ānanda, with reference to the layman Chattapāṇi, comparing speech to a flower.

The Buddha declared that well-spoken words — fine and good speech — bear no fruit for one who does not act on them, just as a flower may be beautiful in color yet lack any fragrance. Well-spoken words here mean the words of the Buddha, that is, the Tipiṭaka; and the one who does not act on them is the one who does not earnestly conduct himself according to the teaching with reverence — who does not listen attentively, does not retain, and does not put it into practice. For him, no fruit arises.

The reflection is that knowledge not put into practice is like a lovely flower without scent — beautiful yet useless. Listening to the Dhamma bears fruit only when one acts upon it, and not by merely committing it to memory.

Verse 52

Spoken to the Elder Ānanda, a companion verse to the previous one, showing the bright side of practice.

The Buddha declared that well-spoken words bear fruit for one who acts on them well, just as a lovely flower has both beautiful color and fragrance. One who, having heard the good teaching — the words of the Buddha — listens attentively, retains it, and takes it up in practice with reverence, receives the fruit of that Dhamma in full measure, unlike one who merely takes it in but does not act.

The reflection is that a good teaching becomes complete only when there is practice as its accompanying fragrance. Fair speech joined with action alone gives rise to true value and yields benefit to the practitioner.

Verse 53

Spoken with reference to Visākhā, who performed the great merit of donating a monastery, in praise of accumulating good.

The Buddha likened it thus: a mortal being, once born, should perform much wholesome good, just as a garland-maker with a heap of flowers before him can string many, many garlands. The heap of flowers is like the opportunities and wealth one possesses, while the garlands are like the merit one should accumulate from those opportunities.

The reflection is that a life born as a human is like a precious heap of flowers; one should use this chance to do good as abundantly as possible while there is still time. For when death arrives, the only thing that follows one on is the merit one has made.

Verse 54

Spoken to the Elder Ānanda, who asked about fragrance, to point out a fragrance more excellent than all others.

The Buddha declared that however sweet the scent of flowers may be, it cannot travel against the wind; and the same is true of the scent of sandalwood, of agarwood, or of jasmine — they can waft only with the wind. But the fragrance of the virtuous — the fragrance of honor born of virtue and goodness — travels both with the wind and against it, spreading abroad to every direction.

The reflection is that renown born of wealth or beauty has its limits, but the honor born of goodness spreads without end. To cultivate goodness is thus to create the most enduring fragrance of one's life.

Verse 55

Spoken to the Elder Ānanda, continuing from the previous verse, exalting the fragrance of virtue above worldly scents.

The Buddha declared that among all the fragrances in the world — whether sandalwood, agarwood, the lotus, or jasmine — all can be fragrant only for a while and only with the wind. But the fragrance of virtue (sīla), arising from the purity of keeping body and speech well-ordered, is a fragrance more excellent than all those sweet scents together.

The reflection is that one who possesses virtue is beautiful with an inner fragrance to which no perfume can compare. Keeping virtue is therefore a noble adornment of the heart, making one beloved and revered by all.

Verse 56

Spoken with reference to the Elder Mahā Kassapa, to show that the fragrance of virtue reaches even the world of the gods.

The Buddha declared that the fragrance of agarwood or sandalwood said to be so sweet is in truth but slight and confined within narrow bounds. But the fragrance of the virtuous is the greatest of all, and it wafts throughout the worlds of gods and humans, for it is the fragrance of a virtue not limited by the direction of the wind or by any distance.

The reflection is that pure goodness exerts an influence far wider than the eye can see. One perfect in virtue is praised among both humans and gods. Virtue is therefore a possession more precious than any perfume in the world.

Verse 57

Spoken with reference to the Elder Godhika, who attained the Dhamma, to point out that one who is liberated is beyond the reach of Māra.

The Buddha declared that Māra cannot find the path of those who are perfect in virtue, who abide constantly in heedfulness, and who are liberated through right understanding. Such good persons have the fragrance of honor — their virtue — spreading abroad to every direction; and when the mind is liberated through right wisdom, Māra can find no trace of where they might be reborn, for there is no more wandering on.

The reflection is that one who is established in virtue, who lives with heedfulness, and who cultivates wisdom until liberation, escapes entirely the power of the Māra of defilements. This is the highest security that the Dhamma bestows.

Verse 58

Spoken to Garahadinna and Sirigutta, a paired verse in which the Buddha draws the simile of the lotus in a heap of refuse.

The Buddha likened it thus: in a heap of refuse cast aside by the highway — a filthy, repulsive place — there can yet arise a lotus sweet in scent and delighting the heart. The lotus, though born in a foul place, is not stained by it; rather it is all the more beautiful and fragrant. This simile is set up to be compared with the truth in the following verse.

The reflection is that lowly surroundings or a benighted crowd are no obstacle to one of wisdom. Like the lotus that rises clear of the mud, one intent upon the Dhamma can flourish even in conditions that are unfavorable.

Verse 59

Spoken to Garahadinna and Sirigutta, the verse that answers to the simile of the lotus in the heap of refuse.

The Buddha declared that among the benighted worldlings, who are like a worthless heap of refuse, there yet stands a disciple of the Fully Enlightened One flourishing with wisdom, like the lotus rising resplendent above the heap of refuse. Worldlings still benighted by ignorance cannot see the truth, but the disciple who has heard and practiced the teaching shines forth clear and bright with wisdom in the midst of that crowd.

The reflection is that even amid people who do not yet know the Dhamma, one of wisdom can flourish and shine through study and practice. True splendor lies not in outward standing but in the inner wisdom that makes one's life radiant.