Four hundred stanzas on the middle way with commentary (10)

Chapter I Abandoning Belief in Permanence The main obstacle to generating effort to gain the paths of the Ex- alted19is the erroneous idea that what must die will not die Therefore, by repeatedly thinking about death and impermanence, one should strive to attain these paths, for through familiarity with this it will be easy to understand suffering and so forth as well Those who are not free from the bonds of the three realms because they cling to things as truly existent and who are in the power of the demon Death, have as sovereign the Lord of Death himself He is the willing ruler of the Desire, Form and Formless Realms, and of the three worlds beneath, upon and above the earth He has no master who commands him nor does he command others but carries out the punishment himself He is therefore referred to as the "Lord of Death himself." If those under such a lord, who like a butcher brandishing his sharp knife is engaged in killing, and on whom their life or lack of it depends, not make effort to gain the paths of the Exalted with as much urgent care as though they were already marked by death or their heads were on fire, but instead sleep soundly like Buddhas and Foe Destroyers-the true vanquishers of the demon Death-and if they make no effort to find a means to avert Death, what could be more improper, reckless and foolish? Therefore, contemplating impermanence repeatedly, make meaningful use of your leisure and fortune.20 It is like the following analogy: A certain minister had failed to please some of the king's torchbearers Wanting to have him put to death, the torchbearers misled the king, but the minister, suspecting the king might kill him, remained attentive Like him, we must take care and pay attention to the means of avoiding Death's harm It is also like a man who lost his way and, thinking himself safe in a very frightening hamlet in a desolate place, was overpowered and killed Similarly, if one is careless in the hamlet of the three realms where the Lord of Death's punishment is near, Death will certainly overpower one Therefore make effort to practise the excellent teaching Assertion: The Lord of Death who rules the three worlds does exist, but meanwhile one has life, which wards off death; so while one is alive, there is no need to fear death Answer: Life does not ward off death because it is doing death's work, since aging and dying are simply preconditioned by birth All children are in the first place born to die and, like animals led to slaughter by the butcher, it is then their nature to be driven towards death without a moment's respite by aging, sickness and decline Since they appear to be in the act of dying, like victims in the throes of decapitation, and not in the act of living, such life is not in the least trustworthy In the life stories [of Buddha ~akyamuni] it says: It is like a messenger who, threatened by a fierce and merciless king that he will be killed unless he arrives at a certain time, keeps on the move and never stops Similarly, whatever one is doing, whether walking purposefully, strolling, sitting or lying, there is not even the briefest moment when one's life span is not decreasing Therefore, not trust life A Parivarajaka2' wanted to enter her home and was stepping over a camel lying at her door, when it jumped up in fright and bolted Just as she was in its power, understand that we who have been born are in death's power It is also like an assassin hired to kill someone but, unable to so, he kills his employer instead Understand that what has been born is performing the function of dying and not of staying alive Assertion: These days people live to be a hundred years old When sixteen years have passed, there are still eighty-four during which one can first enjoy oneself and then try to ward off death Since life is long, it is reasonable to place hope in it Answer: It is most unreasonable If you see the past as brief and see your future life span differentlynot as brief but long-and act recklessly because of such an idea, it is quite unreasonable The Precious Garland says: Since the time of one's death is uncertain, thinking of your past and future as equal in length, or unequal in that the past is short and the future longer, clearly indicates that you are frightened of death It is like a man on a dangerous road who is afraid of robbers but pretends not to be afraid, crying out boldly and singing It is also like a band of childish people who spent the night in one room in a town They got up early in the morning and left after defecating in different parts of the room Only several Brahmins remained behind The caretaker scolded them, saying, "Remove this excrement, you louts, before I give you a thrashing!" It is said they each agreed to remove their own excrement but not the others' To regard one's future life span as longer when the time of one's death is uncertain is as irrational as considering one's own excrement cleaner and thinking of it as "mine," when it is all equally filthy Assertion: Though one cannot be certain that the future will be longer, since death is common to all sentient beings, there is no need for one alone to fear it Answer: That is most unreasonable If you not fear death because it is common to other sentient beings too, and suffer when you see the Lord of Death harm one person and not others, but not suffer when all are harmed, your suffering in the first case is through jealousy Yet does death cause suffering through jealousy? No, it causes suffering by its very nature Therefore its commonness does not prevent suffering and so it is proper to fear the fearful A householder suffered when the king initially collected a tax only from him, but when it was collected from everyone, he did not suffer The suffering first was because of jealousy The suffering of death is not like that, but like this: even if many of one's friends are in hell, it will not lessen the suffering Assertion: Death does not occur without sickness and aging As these can be remedied by medical treatment and taking essential nutrients," death need not be feared Answer: It is unreasonable not to fear death just because sickness and aging can be remedied a little Though the fact that medical treatment can cure sickness and taking essential nutrients can somewhat retard old age may allow you not to fear them for the moment, there is no cure by any method for the horror of death, the last ordeal, and thus obviously you should fear it It is like the following analogies: A king's rebellious minister bribed some envoys who had been sent, but when the king himself went to war there was no remedy When a washerman spoiled some Brahmins' clothes, he was able with skill to reach a compromise, but when he ruined the king's robes, there was nothing he could to please In Candrakirti's commentary, an analogy of contrast is used: the stanza he cites says when a king's robes are ruined, a plea wellcouched in poetic words of flattery may be effective Death, however, cannot be affected by pleas.24 This shows the need to be ex tremely apprehensive of death, for though even that which is difficult to remedy can be remedied, one cannot plead with death Assertion: Though death will come and common beings cannot avert it, one does not fear it because at present one has no certain knowledge of it Answer: It is not difficult to know death Death is common to all cattle intended for slaughter, and one sees another die; just so, death also is common to all of us ordinary beings Moreover, you have seen many die, see many who are dying at present, and will see many die; how can you have no reason to fear the Lord of Death on the grounds that you have not seen death? Consider the fearfulness of death, and instead of acting like cattle for slaughter who, seeing the butcher kill one, wait to be killed themselves, be conscientious in the practice of virtue It is unreasonable to doubt the need for such great concern to avert death on the grounds that, though obvious, the time of one's death is uncertain It is extremely foolish to think you are eternal because the time of your death is uncertain On account of death's unpredictability, you should be on guard from today Though you may not have died today, one day the Lord of Death will you an injury Therefore, giving up all hope to stay alive, and thinking of death, be conscientious about practising the path to liberation Just as all the people of a certain place went one by one in turn to be devoured by the ogre Bagasu, all who are born will die Assertion: Though death is certain here, fear of death arouses aversion only in the cowardly, while the brave, to gain reward and honor, are undaunted even when sharp weapons rain down on their bodies in battle Thus, they not fear death Answer: That is most improper If you avidly consider future goals such as rewards and honor, but not consider the waning life of the body which is the basis for such acquisitions, you are acquiring rewards and honor by selling your life Who would call you intelligent? No one; you will only be called stupid Therefore examine whether you risk losing your life and not be attached to rewards and honor The use of "having love" is not in accordance with the meaning of Candrakirti's commentary.u It is like the following analogies: A merchant's son who had many love affairs considered only his attachments to others, not their reciprocation, and was soon ruined by the merrymaking and quarrelling of his affairs A Brahmin had three sons During a time of famine he told his wife they should sell one son A king's son heard about it and asked for the boy Since their father held on to the oldest and their mother to the youngest, the middle one said to the king's son, "Since I am being sold, take me," which is like selling oneself Assertion: If it is reprehensible to sacrifice one's life for wealth, it must be ... wife they should sell one son A king's son heard about it and asked for the boy Since their father held on to the oldest and their mother to the youngest, the middle one said to the king's son,... said they each agreed to remove their own excrement but not the others' To regard one's future life span as longer when the time of one's death is uncertain is as irrational as considering one's... son who had many love affairs considered only his attachments to others, not their reciprocation, and was soon ruined by the merrymaking and quarrelling of his affairs A Brahmin had three sons