Dear Wynn

How are you?

The following Pali comes from Section 66, Paraajikakandha Atthakathaa
on the Chatthasangayana CD-ROM. There are slight diferences in
wording from the Pali you gave.

"Yakkhaa kira bheravaani vaa aarammanºaani dassetvaa mukhena
hattham pavesetvaa hadayaruupam vaa maddantaa satte
vikkhittacitte vipallatthasaññe karonti."

We can translate the above Pali as follows:

"The legend had it that Yakkaas made in the people scatterd minds and
disordered memory by showing them frightful scenes (objects) or
putting the hand through the mouth and squeezing the heart."

I delibrately translated the Pali passgae as literally as possible so
that your friend can observe the Pali syntax and word formations
closely.

I am sorry to say that the syntax of your friend's translation in your
original message is not coherent, and therefore, does not make sense.


Hope this translation helps!


Suan Lu Zaw

http://www.bodhiology.org

--- In Pali@..., wynn <wewynal@...> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> An e-mail from a friend.
>
> -------
>
> I'm attempting, with only rudimentary knowledge of Pali, to
translate a passage from the Vinaya commentary by Buddhaghosha (yet
to be translated into English). For some reason I am having
difficulty. :-) I'm posting what I have so far, and if anyone would
like to help, or make comments I would be very grateful.
>
> yakkhaa kira bheravaaramman.aani dassetvaa
> Yakkhas it is said frightful sense-objects having appeared
>
> mukhena hattam. pavesetvaa
> through the mouth the hand having made to enter
>
> hadayarupam. vaa maddantaa
> the heart-form or(?) who thus crushes
>
> satte vikkhitacitte vipallattas~n~ne karonti
> the beings confused minds deranged consciousness's are doing
>
> (the "vaa" seems out of place to me, it would make more sense if it
> was "ca")
>
> This is what I think it says...
>
> "The yakkhas, said to be frightful, having appeared they reach into
the mouth with their hands and they crush the heart, causing beings
to become confused and deranged".
>
> There is an English translation of a Chinese version of the above.
It
> suggests that beings can be driven mad either by seeing a yakkha
*or* by a yakkha "upsetting the five viscera" - so maybe the "vaa" is
right, but the placement seems wrong. I would have expected it after
the word dassetvaa. BTW someone thus afflicted is said to
be "yakhummattako", or yakkha-mad :-)
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]