The Simile of the Boil

Gaṇḍasutta

The Simile of the Boil

Gaṇḍasutta

EN
“Mendicants, suppose there was a boil that was many years old. And that boil had nine orifices that were continually open wounds. Whatever oozed out of them would be filthy, stinking, and disgusting.
PL
“Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, gaṇḍo anekavassagaṇiko. Tassassu gaṇḍassa nava vaṇamukhāni nava abhedanamukhāni. Tato yaṁ kiñci pagghareyya— asuciyeva pagghareyya, duggandhaṁyeva pagghareyya, jegucchiyaṁyeva pagghareyya;
EN
Whatever exuded from them would be filthy, stinking, and disgusting. ‘Boil’ is a term for this body made up of the four principal states, produced by mother and father, built up from rice and porridge, liable to impermanence, to wearing away and erosion, to breaking up and destruction. And that boil has nine orifices that are continually open wounds.
PL
yaṁ kiñci pasaveyya— asuciyeva pasaveyya, duggandhaṁyeva pasaveyya, jegucchiyaṁyeva pasaveyya. Gaṇḍoti kho, bhikkhave, imassetaṁ cātumahābhūtikassa kāyassa adhivacanaṁ mātāpettikasambhavassa odanakummāsūpacayassa aniccucchādanaparimaddanabhedanaviddhaṁsanadhammassa. Tassassu gaṇḍassa nava vaṇamukhāni nava abhedanamukhāni.
EN
Whatever oozes out of them is filthy, stinking, and disgusting. Whatever exudes from them is filthy, stinking, and disgusting.
PL
Tato yaṁ kiñci paggharati— asuciyeva paggharati, duggandhaṁyeva paggharati, jegucchiyaṁyeva paggharati; yaṁ kiñci pasavati— asuciyeva pasavati, duggandhaṁyeva pasavati, jegucchiyaṁyeva pasavati.
EN
So, mendicants, have no illusion about this body.”
PL
Tasmātiha, bhikkhave, imasmiṁ kāye nibbindathā”ti. Pañcamaṁ.

Pāli root text and English translation by Bhikkhu Sujato from SuttaCentral (https://suttacentral.net), CC0.

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