[451] The Venerable Raṭṭhapāla said this. Having said this, he then further said:
"I see people in the world who possess wealth:
having gained riches, from delusion they do not give;
out of greed they make a hoard of their wealth,
and long ever more for sensual pleasures.
A king who has conquered the earth by force,
dwelling over the land bounded by the ocean,
unsatisfied with the near shore of the sea,
would long for the sea's far shore as well.
The king, and many other people too,
reach death with craving (taṇhā) unabated;
still unfulfilled indeed they leave the body behind,
for there is no satiety with sensual pleasures in the world.
His relatives, dishevelling their hair, weep for him,
crying, 'Ah, alas! They are not immortal!'
They carry him out wrapped in a cloth,
and having built up the pyre, they then burn him there.
He is burned, being prodded with stakes,
in a single cloth, having left his possessions behind.
For one who is dying there is no protection—
neither relatives, nor friends, nor companions.
The heirs carry off his wealth,
but the being goes according to his deeds (kamma);
no wealth whatever follows the one who dies—
nor children, nor wife, nor wealth, nor kingdom.
Long life is not gained by wealth,
nor is aging driven off by riches;
short indeed is this life, say the wise,
non-eternal, subject to change.
Rich and poor alike feel the touch (phassa);
fool and wise are touched just the same;
but the fool lies as if struck down by his own folly,
while the wise one, touched by the touch, does not tremble.
Therefore indeed wisdom is better than wealth,
by which one reaches consummation here;
for through failure to reach consummation, in existence after existence
people do evil deeds out of delusion.
He enters the womb and the world beyond,
undergoing the round of rebirth (saṃsāra) in succession;
and one of little wisdom, placing faith in him,
enters the womb and the world beyond.
Just as a robber caught at the breach
is punished by his own deed, being of evil character,
so people, having passed away, in the world beyond
are punished by their own deeds, being of evil character.
For sensual pleasures—varied, sweet, delightful to the mind—
churn up the mind with forms of many kinds;
having seen the danger in the cords of sensual pleasure (kāmaguṇa),
therefore, O King, I have gone forth.
Just as the fruits of a tree fall, so do people fall,
both young and old, at the breaking up of the body;
having known this, O King, I have gone forth:
the ascetic life that is unfailing is indeed better."
The Raṭṭhapāla Sutta, the second, is finished.
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The Maghadeva Sutta
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.