Abbreviations

References to DN, Iti, and MN are to discourse (sutta). References to Dhp are to verse. The reference to Mv is to chapter, section, and sub-section. References to other texts are to section (saṁyutta, nipāta, or vagga) and discourse.

All translations are the author’s own, and are based on the Royal Thai Edition of the Pāli Canon (Bangkok: Mahamakut Rajavidyalaya, 1982).

In the translated passages, parentheses ( ) enclose alternative renderings and words needed to make sense of the passage. Square brackets [ ] enclose explanatory information, cross-references, material summarized from longer passages in the text, and other material not found in the original text. Braces { } enclose material interpolated from other passages in the Canon; the source of this material is indicated in braces as part of the citation at the end of the passage.

Because Pāli has many ways of expressing the word “and,” I have—to avoid monotony—used the ampersand (&) to join lists of words and short phrases, and the word “and” to join long phrases and clauses.

In passages where no speaker is identified, the words are the Buddha’s.