[Buddha-l] Dharmapala

[L.S. Cousins]

  On 18/07/2010 22:02, Artur Karp wrote:

> You are right, of course. There are several other verbs that could
> perhaps better express the meaning I had in mind. Would 'expiate' be
> better?
>
> Although - Geiger uses the term 'atonement' in precisely the same context.
His translation is now almost 100 years old. So the English is rather 
old-fashioned and of course we know much more about Pali than we did 
then. I am sure the PED is simply following Geiger.

Confession is very much part of Buddhism, especially monastic Buddhism. 
A wrong act should be publicly acknowledged as wrong — either to the 
person wronged or to a monk or to the Buddha. The response of the person 
receiving the confession is patient acceptance (khanti/khamati) or 
acknowledgement. This almost inevitably gets rendered as forgiveness by 
those from a Christian background. If the confession has not been 
accepted, then a penalty or act of restitution may be appropriate. Or, 
such an act may be performed anyway as an indication of sincerity.

Daṇḍakamma is here a Vinaya term.
> In Mhv. XXXIII:
>
> "During three years did Lajja Tissa use the brotherhood slightingly
> and neglect them, with the thought: 'They did not decide according to
> age.' When, afterwards, he was reconciled with the brotherhood, the
> king built, in atonement, spending three hundred thousand (pieces of
> money), three stone terraces for offerings of flowers to the Great
> Cetiya [...]".
>
> XXXIII, 21
>
> Pacchā saṅghaṃ khamāpetvā daṇḍakammattham issaro
> Tīṇi satasahassāni datvāna urucetiye.
>
> In the Pali-English Dictionary 'daṇḍakamma' is translated as
> 'punishment by beating, penalty, penance, atonement'. 'Khamāpeti' as
> 'to pacify, to ask one's pardon, to apologize'. Geiger says: "When
> [...] he was reconciled with the brotherhood". But - what I see here
> is that the Sangha is angry (bowls upside down?), it has to be
> pacified and so the king (sort of) punishes/penalizes himself by
> offering three hundred thousand.
>
> I'd be grateful for your translation.
>
"Afterwards the king, having obtained acceptance <of his confession> 
from the Sangha, in order to make restitution gave 300 thousand coins 
and had three stone flower terraces (?) constructed at the Urucetiya."

Lance