⏑−⏑−¦−⏑⏑¦−⏑−−¦¦−−⏑−¦−⏑⏑¦−⏑−− Upajāti
(Ārdrā)
idaṁ ca roga-vyasanaṁ prajānāṁ
paśyaṁś-ca viśrambham-upaiti lokaḥ |
−−⏑−¦−⏑⏑¦−⏑−−¦¦⏑−⏑−¦−⏑⏑¦−⏑−−
vistīrṇam-ajñānam-aho narāṇāṁ
hasanti ye roga-bhayair-amuktāḥ || 3.46
3.46
“Seeing this for living creatures as 'the evil of disease,'
Still the world rests easy.
Vast, alas, is the ignorance of men
Who laugh and joke
though not yet liberated from their
fears of disease.
COMMENT:
That the world does indeed fear dis-ease as an evil (vyasanam) – as
opposed to recognizing this disorder in me as a function of faulty
sensory appreciation – is evidenced by the translations of EBC, EHJ, and PO of eṣa
doṣaḥ (this fault here in me) as “this evil.”
Seeing disorder in myself as an evil to
be feared is a most inauspicious conception, bound up with trying to
be right, and the antidote to it is contained in the words of
Marjory Barlow that “in this work, being wrong is the best friend
we have got.” “In this work, being wrong is the best friend we have got” are the words of a woman who was suffering from
the sickness of clouded eyes, and in meeting Marjory I was fortunate
to meet such a person of clouded eyes – the kind of person
described in Shobogenzo chap. 43, Kuge.
EBC, EHJ, and PO all translate doṣa
in 3.43 and 3.44 as “evil.” In today's verse EBC and EHJ
translate vyasanam as “calamity” and PO sticks with “evil.”
But the true distinction, as I see it, is between how we ought to see
dis-ease, as a fault (doṣa) to be overcome, and how the world sees
disease, as an evil or calamity (vyasanam) to be feared.
If roga is understood not as the
sickness of clouded eyes, aka faulty sensory appreciation, but as a
manifestation of ill-health like cardiac arrest or cancer or amoebic
dysentery, then the closing words of the verse which describe men as
roga-bhayair-amuktāḥ, “not free
from the terrors of ill-health,” raise the question of whether or
not it is possible to be free from the terrors of ill-health. For
example, are buddhas invariably free from ill-health? Or are buddhas
invariably free from seeing ill-health as a terror?
The
answer to the former question is self-evidently no. The answer to the
latter question, contrary to idealistic expectations, might also be
no. Sometimes, the truth might be, that buddhas are afraid of going
down with cardiac arrest or cancer or amoebic dysentery. But there
might be examples from the past, like just before the Buddha died, of
buddhas who saw a disease as a disease and, without getting their
knickers in a twist, prepared either to get better or to die.
Somebody
should have explained the content of today's verse to George Bush
junior before he embarked on his “war on terror.” The point being
that insofar as dis-ease is a fault, it resides here in me, and it is
up to me to overcome it. And insofar as people see this and that
“evil” as a terror, the problem is not that evil objectively
exists; the problem is people's perception of evil, and our fear -- the solution to which war generally is not.
Sometimes
on Facebook I see things inviting people to sign up to engage in
“political Buddhism.” My response is: not bloody likely. I have
got enough on my plate addressing faults in myself and in others on
an individual basis, as well as doing work like this translation,
again on an individual basis. Political Buddhism is for Buddhists. Count me out.
VOCABULARY
idam (acc. sg. n.): this , this here ,
referring to something near the speaker
ca: and
roga-vyasanam (acc. sg. n.): calamity
of sickness
roga: m. " breaking up of strength
" , disease , infirmity , sickness
vyasana: n. moving to and fro , wagging
(of a tail) ; attachment or devotion or addiction to (loc. or comp.)
, passion , (esp.) evil passion , sin , crime , vice ; evil
predicament or plight , disaster , accident , evil result , calamity
, misfortune (vyasanāni pl. misfortunes) , ill-luck , distress ,
destruction , defeat , fall , ruin
prajānām (gen. pl.): f. creatures,
people
paśyan = nom. sg. m. pres. part. paś:
to see ; to be a spectator , look on ; to regard or consider as ,
take for (acc. with acc. or adv. in vat)
ca: and
viśrambham: m. slackening , loosening
, relaxation (of the organs of utterance) , cessation ; trust ,
confidence ; absence of restraint , familiarity , intimacy
upaiti = 3rd pers. sg. upa-
√i: to go near, to reach, to enter any state,
lokaḥ (nom. sg.): m. the world
vistīrṇam (nom. sg. n.): mfn. spread
out , expanded , broad , large , great , copious
ajñānam (nom. sg.): n.
non-cognizance, ignorance
aho: ind. a particle (implying joyful
or painful surprise) Ah! (of enjoyment or satisfaction) Oh! (of
fatigue , discontent , compassion , sorrow , regret) Alas!
narāṇām (gen. pl.): m. men
hasanti = 3rd pers. pl.
pres. has: to laugh , smile ; to deride , mock , ridicule (acc.)
ye (nom. pl. m.): who
roga-bhayaiḥ (inst. pl. n.): the
terrors of sickness
amuktāḥ (nom. pl. m.): mfn. not
loosed , not let go , not liberated from birth and death
處斯大苦器 云何能自安
嗚呼世間人 愚惑癡闇障
病賊至無期 而生喜樂心
嗚呼世間人 愚惑癡闇障
病賊至無期 而生喜樂心
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