List of Abbreviations

Gāthā

Translation

He abused me, he beat me,
He defeated me, he robbed me.
Those, who do not harbour such thoughts,
Their hatred is appeased.

Sentence structure

List of Abbreviations

akkocchi     maṃ     avadhi     maṃ
|                    |             |             |
V.aor.        Pron.      V.aor.    Pron.
3.Sg.        Acc.Sg.      3.Sg.   Acc.Sg.
|___________|             |_______|
         |_________________|________________________

List of Abbreviations

ajini         maṃ         ahāsi         me
|                  |               |              |
V.aor.      Pron.        V.aor.     Pron.
3.Sg.      Acc.Sg.       3.Sg.     Gen.Sg.
|__________|               |________|
_____|__________________|

List of Abbreviations

ye                 ca         taṃ         na         upanayhanti
|                     |             |             |                   |
rel.Pron.     conj.    Pron.m.     neg.           V.act.in.
Nom.Pl.         |        Acc.Sg.        |             3.Pl.pres.
|                     |             |             |___________|
|                     |             |_____________|
|____________|______________|
              |____|
                  |____________________________________

List of Abbreviations

veraṃ         tesaṃ     upasammati
|                     |                 |
N.n.            Pron.        V.act.in.
Nom.Sg.    Gen.Pl.     3.Sg.pres.
|____________|                |
           |_______________|
_____________|

Vocabulary and Grammar

List of Abbreviations

akkocchi: the verb ā+kus- (to abuse, to scold). Aor.3.Sg. = akkocchi.

maṃ: Pron. aham-, I. Acc.Sg. = maṃ.

avadhi: the verb vadh- (to strike, to beat). Aor.3.Sg. = avadhi.

maṃ: see above.

ajini: the verb ji- (to win, to conquer). Aor.3.Sg. = ajini.

maṃ: see above.

List of Abbreviations

ahāsi: the verb har- (to carry, to take). Aor.3.Sg. = ahāsi.

me: Pron. aham-, I. Gen.Sg. = me.

ye: rel.Pron. yad-, that which. Nom.Pl.m. = ye (those [people] who).

ca: conj.: and

taṃ: Pron. tad-, that. Acc.Sg.m. = taṃ.

na: neg.: not.

List of Abbreviations

upanayhanti: The verb nah- (to bind, to tie) with the prefix upa- (towards). To come into touch with, to tie oneself to. 3.Pl.act.in.pres. = upanayhanti.

Euphonic combination: na + upanayhanti = nupanayhanti.

veraṃ: vera-, N.n.: hatred, enmity. Nom.Sg. = veraṃ.

tesaṃ: Pron. tad-, that. Gen.Pl.m. = tesaṃ (their).

upasammati: The verb sam- (to be appeased) with the prefix upa- (towards). To grow calm, to be appeased. 3.Sg.act.in.pres.: upasammati. The form that we can see in the gāthā (tesūpasammati) is just an euphonic combination that we come across quite often in Pali poetry.

List of Abbreviations

    The first sentence is discussed in the previous verse (DhP 3), therefore we will not repeat it here.

 In the second sentence there are only two changes compared with DhP 3. In the third line the verb upanayhanti ([they] harbour) has a negative particle "na" (not) thus changing the meaning of the verb to the negative ([they] do not harbour).

 In the fourth line, the negative particle is omitted -- the verb has a positive meaning now (and the verb is changed from sammati to upasammati).

Commentary

 This verse is a "twin verse" of the previous one. If we can not conquer the hatred and suffering by crying and feeling powerless, it is exactly by the absence of such thoughts, that our hatred will disappear and dissolve. And when those people who enjoy making us suffer, see that we are not intimidated and do not give in to their way of thinking, they will eventually stop this kind of behavior.

 Indeed, it is said very easily and the majority of people will quickly agree with it, but it is extremely difficult to bring this idea to life. Therefore, we must practice this more often in our daily lives -- and our effort must bear its fruits.

Sentence pronunciation

Listen to the Sentence Pronunciation here