Thig 8 Sīsūpacālā
In SN 5:7, verses similar to these are attributed to the nun Upacālā.
Sīsūpacālā:
A nun, consummate in virtue,
her faculties well-restrained,
will reach the state of peace,
a nourishment
that never cloys.1
Māra:
The Devas of the Thirty-three,
the Hours, the Contented,
devas who delight in creation,
& devas in control:
Direct your mind there
where you lived before.2
Sīsūpacālā:
The Devas of the Thirty-three,
the Hours, the Contented,
devas who delight in creation,
& devas in control:
Time & again,
from becoming to becoming,
surrounded by self-identity,
not having gone beyond self-identity,
they flow to birth & death.3
The whole world is burning.
The whole world is aflame.
The whole world is blazing.
The whole world is shaken.4
The unshaken, incomparable
—the Dhamma the Buddha taught to me,
of which people run-of-the-mill
don’t partake—
that’s where my heart
truly delights.
Having heard his words,
I dwell, delighting
in his bidding.
The three knowledges
are attained;
the Buddha’s bidding,
done.
Everywhere enjoyment
is defeated;
the mass of darkness,
burst.
So know, Evil One,
that you have been,
End-maker,
struck down.
Notes
1. This stanza does not occur in SN 5:7.
2. The parallel stanza in SN 5:7 reads:
The Devas of the Thirty-three,
the Hours, the Contented,
devas who delight in creation,
& devas in control:
Direct your mind there
and it will enjoy
delight.
3. The parallel stanza in SN 5:7 reads:
The Devas of the Thirty-three,
the Hours, the Contented,
devas who delight in creation,
& devas in control:
They are bound
with the bonds of sensuality;
they come again
under Māra’s sway.
4. This is the last line that this poem has in common with SN 5:7. The remainder of SN 5:7 reads:
The unshaken, untrembling
—of which people run-of-the-mill
don’t partake,
where Māra’s
never been—
that’s where my heart
truly delights.
