His limbs knotted
like a kala plant,
his body lean
& lined with veins,
knowing moderation
in food & drink:
the man of undaunted heart.Touched by gnats
& horseflies
in the wilds,
the great wood,
like an elephant
in the van of a battle:
he, mindful,
should endure
right there.One alone is like Brahma,
two, like devas,
three, like a village,
more than that:
a hullabaloo.
Listen, kinsmen, all of you,
as many as are assembled here.
I will teach you the Dhamma:
Painful is birth,
again & again.Rouse yourselves.
Go forth.
Apply yourselves
to the Awakened One's bidding.
Scatter the army of Death
as an elephant would
a shed made of reeds.He who,
in this doctrine & discipline,
remains heedful,
abandoning birth,
the wandering-on,
will put an end
to suffering & stress.