Theragatha
Chapter VI — The Sixes
218
Jenta, the Royal Chaplain's Son
Translated from the Pali by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.
For free distribution only.
I was
drunk with the intoxication
of my birth, wealth, and sovereignty.
Drunk with the intoxication
of my body's build, coloring, and form,
I wandered about,
regarding no one
as my equal or better,
foolish, arrogant, haughty,
my banner held high.
I -- disrespectful, arrogant, proud --
bowed down to no one,
not even mother,
father,
or those commonly held
in respect.
Then -- seeing the ultimate leader,
supreme, foremost of charioteers,
like a blazing sun,
arrayed with a squadron of monks --
casting away pride and intoxication
through an awareness serene and clear,
I bowed down
my
head
to him, supreme
among all living beings.
Haughtiness and contempt
have been abandoned
-- rooted out --
the conceit "I am" is extracted,
all forms of pride, destroyed.
