Dhammapada Verses 85 and 86
Dhammassavana Vatthu
Appaka te manussesu
ye jana paragamino
athayam itara paja
tiramevanudhavati1
Ye ca kho sammadakkhate
dhamme dhammanuvattino
te jana paramessanti2
maccudheyyam3 suduttaram.
Verse 85: Few among men reach the other shore (Nibbana); all the others only
run up and down on this shore.
Verse 86: But those who practise according to the well-expounded Dhamma will
reach the other shore (Nibbana), having passed the realm of Death (i.e.,
samsara), very difficult as it is to cross.
1. tiramevanudhavati: tiram + eva + anudhavati: shore + only this +
run up and down: according to the Commentary 'only this shore' in this context
means sakkayaditthi (ego belief).
2. paramessanti: param + essanti: the other shore + will reach. The
other or opposite shore is metaphorically used for Nibbana.
3. maccudheyyam: the realm of Death (or samsara, round of
rebirths).
The Story of Dhamma Listeners
While residing at the Jetavana monastery, the Buddha uttered Verses (85) and
(86) of this book, with reference to a congregation of people who had come to
listen to a religious discourse in Savatthi.
On one occasion, a group of people from Savatthi made special offerings to
the bhikkhus collectively and they arranged for some bhikkhus to deliver
discourses throughout the night, in their locality. Many in the audience could
not sit up the whole night and they returned to their homes early; some sat
through the night, but most of the time they were drowsy and half-asleep. There
were only a few who listened attentively to the discourses.
At dawn, when the bhikkhus told the Buddha about what happened the previous
night, he replied, "Most people are attached to this world; only a very
few reach the other shore (Nibbana)."
Then the Buddha spoke in verse as follows:
Verse 85: Few among men reach the other shore
(Nibbana); all the others only run up and down on this shore.
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Verse 86: But those who practise according to the
well-expounded Dhamma will reach the other shore (Nibbana), having
passed the realm of Death (i.e., samsara), very difficult as it is to
cross.
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