CHAPTER XV.

HAPPINESS.

197. Let us live happily then, not hating those who hate us! among men who hate us let us dwell free from hatred!

198. Let us live happily then, free from ailments among the ailing! among men who are ailing let us dwell free from ailments!

199. Let us live happily then, free from greed among the greedy! among men who are greedy let us dwell free from greed!

200. Let us live happily then, though we call nothing our own! We shall be like the bright gods, feeding on happiness!

201. Victory breeds hatred, for the conquered is unhappy. He who has given up both victory and defeat, he, the contented, is happy.

[198. The ailment here meant is moral rather than physical. Cf. Mahabh. XII, 9924, samprasanto niramayah; 9925, yo 'sau pranantiko rogas tam trishnam tyagatah sukham.

200. The words placed in the mouth of the king of Videha, while his residence Mithila was in flames, are curiously like our verse; cf. Mahabh. XII, 9917,
Susukham vata givami yasya me nasti kinkana,
Mithilayam pradiptayam na me dahyati kinkana.
'I live happily, indeed, for I have nothing; while Mithila is in flames, nothing of mine is burning.' Cf. Muir, Religious sentiments, p. 106.

The abhassara, i.e. abhasvara, 'the bright gods,' are frequently mentioned. Cf. Burnouf, Introd. p. 611.

201. This verse is ascribed to Buddha, when he heard of the defeat of Agatasatru by Prasenagit. It exists in the Northern or Sanskrit and in the Southern or Pali texts, i.e. in the Avadana-sataka, in the Samyutta-nikaya. See Feer, Comptes Rendus, 1871, p. 44. and Journal As. 1880, p. 509. In the Avadana-sataka, the Sanskrit version is--
Gayo vairam prasavati, duhkham sete paragitah
Upasantah sukham sete hitva gayaparagayam.]

p. 54

202. There is no fire like passion; there is no losing throw like hatred; there is no pain like this body; there is no happiness higher than rest.

203. Hunger is the worst of diseases, the body the greatest of pains; if one knows this truly, that is Nirvana, the highest happiness.

[202. I take kali in the sense of an unlucky die which makes a player lose his game. A real simile seems wanted here, as in , where, for the same reason, I translate graha by 'shark,' not by 'captivitas,' as Dr. Fausboll proposes. The same scholar translates kali in our verse by 'peccatum.' If there is any objection to translating kali in Pali by 'unlucky die,' I should still prefer to take it in the sense of the age of depravity, or the demon of depravity. To judge from Abhidhanappadipika, 1106, kali was used for paragaya, i.e. loss at game, a losing throw, and occurs in that sense again in . The Chinese translation has, 'there is no distress (poison) worse than hate.' A similar verse occurs Mahabh. Santip. 175, v. 35.