Reading guide
Deliberately dangerous, not merely quiet, lodgings
The opening verse doesn't simply recommend seclusion; it specifically names lodgings ‘frequented by beasts of prey’ as suitable for retreat. Danger itself, not just quiet, appears to be part of what makes such a dwelling appropriate for serious practice.
Robes made from what others discard
The second verse describes gathering ‘scraps from rubbish heaps, cemeteries and streets’ to make an outer robe — paṁsukūla practice, wearing what others have thrown away, taken to a literal, unglamorous extreme.
Alms accepted without discrimination, deportment kept minimal
The third through sixth verses describe walking ‘from family to family indiscriminately’, contentment even with coarse food, avoiding greed for flavors specifically because it disrupts absorption, and presenting oneself ‘as if stupid or dumb’, not speaking overly long even within the Saṅgha itself.
Never complacent, even close to the goal
The closing verse issues a final caution: even one ‘endowed with energy and persistence, always devoted to meditation’ should not become self-assured ‘until they have attained the end of suffering’. The poem's demanding curriculum extends all the way to its final line, refusing any point of premature confidence.
The same elder already met privately reflecting on his own fortune
This site's own Ud 4.9, With Upasena, already tells of this same elder — Upasena, son of Vaṅgantā — privately reflecting on his own good fortune as a fully accomplished mendicant unafraid of death, confirmed by the Buddha's own verse in response. Read together, that quiet private confidence and this poem's demanding, outward-facing curriculum describe two faces of the same disciplined practice.
Key terms
The text
§1In order to go on retreat, a monk should stay in lodgings that are secluded and quiet, frequented by beasts of prey.
§2Having gathered scraps from rubbish heaps, cemeteries and streets, and making an outer robe from them, one should wear that coarse robe.
§3Humbling their heart, a mendicant should walk for alms from family to family indiscriminately, with sense doors guarded, well-restrained.
§4They should be content even with coarse food, not hoping for lots of flavors. The mind that’s greedy for flavors doesn’t enjoy absorption.
§5With few wishes, content, a sage should live secluded, mixing with neither householders nor the homeless.
§6They should present themselves as if stupid or dumb; an astute person would not speak overly long in the midst of the Saṅgha.
§7They would not insult anyone, and would avoid causing damage. Restrained in the monastic code, they would eat in moderation.
§8Expert in the arising of thought, they would grasp well the pattern of the mind. They would be devoted to practicing serenity and discernment at the right time.
§9Though endowed with energy and persistence, and always devoted to meditation, a wise person would not be too sure of themselves, until they have attained the end of suffering.
§10For a mendicant who meditates in this way, longing for purification, all their defilements wither away, and they realize quenching.
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