The Dhammapada: Verses and Stories

Dhammapada Verse 47
Vitatubha Vatthu

Pupphani heva pacinantam
byasattamanasam naram
suttam gamam mahoghova
maccu adaya gacchati.

Verse 47: Like one who picks and chooses flowers, a man who has his mind attached to sensual pleasures is carried away by Death, just as a great flood sweeps away a sleeping village.


The Story of Vitatubha

While residing at the Jetavana monastery, the Buddha uttered Verse (47) of this book, with reference to Vitatubha, son of King Pasenadi of Kosala.

King Pasenadi of Kosala, wishing to marry into the clan of the Sakyans, sent some emissaries to Kapilavatthu with a request for the hand of one of the Sakyan princesses. Not wishing to offend King Pasenadi, the Sakyan princes replied that they would comply with his request, but instead of a Sakyan princess they sent a very beautiful girl born of King Mahanama and a slave woman. King Pasenadi made that girl one of his chief queens and subsequently she gave birth to a son. This son was named Vitatubha. When the prince was sixteen years old, he was sent on a visit to King Mahanama and the Sakyan princes. There he was received with some hospitality but all the Sakyan princes who were younger than Vitatubha had been sent away to a village, so that they would not have to pay respect to Vitatubha. After staying a few days in Kapilavatthu, Vitatubha and his company left for home. Soon after they left, a slave girl was washing with milk the place where Vitatubha had sat; she was also cursing him, shouting, "This is the place where that son of a slave woman had sat". At that moment, a member of Vitatubha's entourage returned to fetch something which he had left at the place and heard what the slave girl said. The slave girl also told him that Vitatubha's mother, Vasabhakhattiya, was the daughter of a slave girl belonging to Mahanama.

When Vitatubha was told about the above incident, he became wild with rage and declared that one day he would wipe out the whole clan of the Sakyans. True to his word, when Vitatubha became king, he marched on the Sakyan clan and massacred them all, with the exception of a few who were with Mahanama and some others. On their way home, Vitatubha and his army encamped on the sandbank in the river Aciravati. As heavy rain fell in the upper parts of the country on that very night, the river swelled and rushed down with great force carrying away Vitatubha and his army into the ocean.

On hearing about these two tragic incidents, the Buddha explained to the bhikkhus that his relatives, the Sakyan princes, had in one of their previous existences, put poison into the river killing the fishes. It was as a result of that particular action that the Sakyan princes had to die en masse. Then, referring to the incident about Vitatubha and his army, the Buddha said, "As a great flood sweeps away all the villagers in a sleeping village, so also, Death carries away all the creatures hankering after sensual pleasures."

Then the Buddha spoke in verse as follows:

Verse 47: Like one who picks and chooses flowers, a man who has his mind attached to sensual pleasures is carried away by Death, just as a great flood sweeps away a sleeping village.

Dhammapada

Preface

I.Yamakavagga
Verse 001
Verse 002
Verse 003
Verse 005
Verse 006
Verse 007
Verse 009
Verse 011
Verse 013
Verse 015
Verse 016
Verse 017
Verse 018
Verse 019

II.Appamadavagga
Verse 021
Verse 024
Verse 025
Verse 026
Verse 028
Verse 029
Verse 030
Verse 031
Verse 032

III.Cittavagga
Verse 033
Verse 035
Verse 036
Verse 037
Verse 038
Verse 040
Verse 041
Verse 042
Verse 043

IV.Pupphavagga
Verse 044
Verse 046
Verse 047
Verse 048
Verse 049
Verse 050
Verse 051
Verse 053
Verse 054
Verse 056
Verse 057
Verse 058

V.Balavagga
Verse 060
Verse 061
Verse 062
Verse 063
Verse 064
Verse 065
Verse 066
Verse 067
Verse 068
Verse 069
Verse 070
Verse 071
Verse 072
Verse 073
Verse 075

VI.Panditavagga
Verse 076
Verse 077
Verse 078
Verse 079
Verse 080
Verse 081
Verse 082
Verse 083
Verse 084
Verse 085
Verse 087

VII.Arahantavagga
Verse 090
Verse 091
Verse 092
Verse 093
Verse 094
Verse 095
Verse 096
Verse 097
Verse 098
Verse 099

VIII.Sahassavagga
Verse 100
Verse 101
Verse 102
Verse 104
Verse 106
Verse 107
Verse 108
Verse 109
Verse 110
Verse 111
Verse 112
Verse 113
Verse 114
Verse 115

IX.Papavagga
Verse 116
Verse 117
Verse 118
Verse 119
Verse 121
Verse 122
Verse 123
Verse 124
Verse 125
Verse 126
Verse 127
Verse 128

X.Dandavagga
Verse 129
Verse 130
Verse 131
Verse 133
Verse 135
Verse 136
Verse 137
Verse 141
Verse 142
Verse 143
Verse 145

XI.Jaravagga
Verse 146
Verse 147
Verse 148
Verse 149
Verse 150
Verse 151
Verse 152
Verse 153
Verse 155

XII.Attavagga
Verse 157
Verse 158
Verse 159
Verse 160
Verse 161
Verse 162
Verse 163
Verse 164
Verse 165
Verse 166

XIII.Lokavagga
Verse 167
Verse 168
Verse 170
Verse 171
Verse 172
Verse 173
Verse 174
Verse 175
Verse 176
Verse 177
Verse 178

XIV.Buddhavagga
Verse 179
Verse 181
Verse 182
Verse 183
Verse 186
Verse 188
Verse 193
Verse 194
Verse 195

XV.Sukhavagga
Verse 197
Verse 200
Verse 201
Verse 202
Verse 203
Verse 204
Verse 205
Verse 206

XVI.Piyavagga
Verse 209
Verse 212
Verse 213
Verse 214
Verse 215
Verse 216
Verse 217
Verse 218
Verse 219

XVII.Kodhavagga
Verse 221
Verse 222
Verse 223
Verse 224
Verse 225
Verse 226
Verse 227
Verse 231

XVIII.Malavagga
Verse 235
Verse 239
Verse 240
Verse 241
Verse 242
Verse 244
Verse 246
Verse 249
Verse 251
Verse 252
Verse 253
Verse 254

XIX.Dhammatthavagga
Verse 256
Verse 258
Verse 259
Verse 260
Verse 262
Verse 264
Verse 266
Verse 268
Verse 270
Verse 271

XX.Maggavagga
Verse 273
Verse 277
Verse 280
Verse 281
Verse 282
Verse 283
Verse 285
Verse 286
Verse 287
Verse 288

XXI.Pakinnakavagga
Verse 290
Verse 291
Verse 292
Verse 294
Verse 296
Verse 302
Verse 303
Verse 304
Verse 305

XXII.Nirayavagga
Verse 306
Verse 307
Verse 308
Verse 309
Verse 311
Verse 314
Verse 315
Verse 316
Verse 318

XXIII.Nagavagga
Verse 320
Verse 323
Verse 324
Verse 325
Verse 326
Verse 327
Verse 328
Verse 331

XXIV.Tanhavagga
Verse 334
Verse 338
Verse 344
Verse 345
Verse 347
Verse 348
Verse 349
Verse 351
Verse 353
Verse 354
Verse 355
Verse 356

XXV.Bhikkhuvagga
Verse 360
Verse 362
Verse 363
Verse 364
Verse 365
Verse 367
Verse 368
Verse 377
Verse 378
Verse 379
Verse 381
Verse 382

XXVI.Brahmanavagga
Verse 383
Verse 384
Verse 385
Verse 386
Verse 387
Verse 388
Verse 389
Verse 391
Verse 392
Verse 393
Verse 394
Verse 395
Verse 396
Verse 397
Verse 398
Verse 399
Verse 400
Verse 401
Verse 402
Verse 403
Verse 404
Verse 405
Verse 406
Verse 407
Verse 408
Verse 409
Verse 410
Verse 411
Verse 412
Verse 413
Verse 414
Verse 415
*Verse 416
*Verse 416
Verse 417
Verse 418
Verse 419
Verse 421
Verse 422
Verse 423

*These two stories have the same verse.