Phenomena are
preceded by the mind,
ruled by the mind,
made of the mind.
If you speak or act
with a corrupted mind,
then suffering follows you –
as the wheel of the cart,
the track of the ox
that pulls it.

Phenomena are
preceded by the mind,
ruled by the mind,
made of the mind.
If you speak or act
with a calm, bright mind,
then happiness follows you,
like a shadow
that never leaves.


‘He insulted me,
hit me,
beat me,
robbed me’
–for those who brood on this,
hostility isn’t stilled.

‘He insulted me,
hit me,
beat me,
robbed me’–
for those who don’t brood on this,
hostility is stilled.

Hostilities aren’t stilled
through hostility,
regardless.
Hostilities are stilled
through non-hostility:
this, an unending truth.

Unlike those who don’t realize
that we’re here on the verge
of perishing,
those who do:
their quarrels are stilled.