Aranna Sutta

Arañña Sutta: A Face So Calm

translated from the Pali by

Andrew Olendzki

[Devata:]

Those who abide in the forest,

Peaceful, living the holy life;

Those who eat but a single meal;

why is it their face is so calm?

[The Buddha:]

They do not grieve over the past,

Nor do they yearn for the future;

They live only in the present

That is why their face is so calm.

It's from yearning for the future,

And from grieving over the past;

This is how fools become withered

Like a fresh reed that's been hacked down.

Source