Dhammapada 18.2.p3

18.2.p3

Athekadivasaṃ purebhattaṃ caṇḍo ātapo ahosi, tadāpi bhikkhūnaṃ cīvaraṃ pārupantānaṃ gattato sede muccante disvā ‘‘idha mayā maṇḍapaṃ kāretuṃ vaṭṭatī’’ti cintetvā maṇḍapaṃ kāresi. Punadivase pātova vassaṃ vassi, vaddalikaṃ ahosi. Tadāpi brāhmaṇo bhikkhū olokentova ṭhito tintacīvarake bhikkhū disvā ‘‘ettha mayā sālaṃ kāretuṃ vaṭṭatī’’ti sālaṃ kāretvā ‘‘idāni sālamahaṃ karissāmī’’ti cintetvā buddhappamukhaṃ bhikkhusaṅghaṃ nimantetvā anto ca bahi ca bhikkhū nisīdāpetvā bhattakiccāvasāne anumodanatthāya satthu pattaṃ gahetvā, ‘‘bhante, ahaṃ bhikkhūnaṃ cīvarapārupanakāle imasmiṃ ṭhāne olokento ṭhito idañcidañca disvā idañcidañca kāresi’’nti ādito paṭṭhāya sabbaṃ taṃ pavattiṃ ārocesi. Satthā tassa vacanaṃ sutvā, ‘‘brāhmaṇa, paṇḍitā nāma khaṇe khaṇe thokaṃ kusalaṃ karontā anupubbena attano akusalamalaṃ nīharantiyevā’’ti vatvā imaṃ gāthamāha –

Now one day before breakfast the heat was intense. On this occasion he noticed that as the monks put on their robes, sweat poured from their bodies. Thought the Brahman, "Here I ought to cause a pavilion to be erected." Accordingly he caused a pavilion to be erected. Again one day, early in the morning, it rained. On this occasion also, as the Brahman watched the monks, he noticed that their robes were wetted by the drops of rain. Thought the Brahman, "Here I ought to cause a hall to be erected." So there he caused a hall to be erected. When the hall was finished, he thought to himself, "Now I will hold a festival in honor of the completion of the hall." Accordingly he invited the Congregation of Monks presided over by the Buddha, seated the monks within and without the hall, and gave alms.

At the conclusion of the meal he took the Teacher's bowl to permit him to pronounce the words of thanksgiving. "Reverend Sir," said he, "as I stood in this place when the monks were putting on their robes and watched them, I saw this and that, and I did this and that." And beginning at the beginning, he told the Teacher the whole story. The Teacher listened to his words and then said, "Brahman, a wise man by doing good works, time after time, little by little,

gradually removes the stains of his own evil deeds." So saying, he pronounced the following Stanza,