The Buddhist Way of Life : On man, mind and impurities

5.On man, mind and impurities

• Man is what his mind makes him.
• The training of the mind to seek the good, is the first step in the path of Righteousness. 
• This is the main teaching in the Buddhist Way of Life. 
• In everything the primal element is mind. Mind is pre-eminent. 
• If a man speaks or does evil suffering follows him, close as the wheel of the hoof of the beast that draws the cart. 
• If a man speaks or acts from uprightness of mind, happiness follows him, close like his never-departing shadow. 
• This fickle, unsteady mind, difficult to guard, difficult to guide—the wise man makes it straight as the fletcher makes straight the arrow. 
• As quivers and throbs the water-dwelling fish, when thrown up out of the water on to the land, so quivers and throbs the mind forsaking 
• Hard to control, unstable is this mind, ever in quest of delight. Good is it to subdue the mind. A mind subdued brings happiness.
• Make thyself an island, work hard, when thy impurities are blown away, and thou art free from guilt, thou wilt enter into the heavenly world of the elect.
• Let a wise man blow off the impurities of himself, as a smith blows off the impurities of silver, one by one, little by little, and from time to time. 
• As the impurity which springs from the iron, when it springs from it, destroys it ; thus to a transgressor's own works, lead him to the evil path. 
• But there is a taint worse than all taints. Ignorance is the greatest taint. O ! mendicants, throw off that taint, and become taintless. 
• Life is easy to live for a man who is without shame, a crow here, a mischief maker, an insulting, bold and wretched fellow. 
• But life is hard to live for a modest man, who always looks for what is pure, who is disinterested, quiet, spotless and intelligent. 
• He who destroys life, who speaks untruth, who in the world takes what is not given him, who goes to another man's wife. 
• And the man who gives himself to drinking intoxicating liquors, he even in this world, digs up his own grave.
• 0 man, know this, that the unrestrained are in a bad state; take care that greediness and vice do not bring thee to grief for a long time. 
• The world gives according to its faith or according to its pleasure; if a man frets about the food and the drink given to others, he will find no rest either by day or by night. 
• He in whom that feeling is destroyed, and taken out with the very root, finds rest by day and by night. 
• There is no fire like passion, there is no torrent like greed. 
• The fault of others is easily perceived, but that of oneself is difficult to perceive; a man winnows his neighbour's faults like chaff but his own faults he hides, as a cheat hides the bad dice from the player.
• If a man looks after the faults of others, and is always inclined to be offended, his own passions will grow, and he is far from the destruction of passions. 
• Refrain from all evil; cultivate the good ; cleanse your own thoughts; this is the teaching of the Buddha.