Morning chanting
Praise of the Saṅgha
SaṅghābhithutiThe morning chant in praise of the Saṅgha — the community of disciples who have practised well and seen the tr…
Morning chanting
Verses of homage to the Triple Gem
Ratanattayappaṇāmagāthā
Four verses bowing to the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Saṅgha in images, then dedicating the merit of that homage.
When it is chanted
Chanted in the morning service after the three praises, running straight on into the passage on urgency that follows.
The metre is pleasant, so many temples chant it slowly in a melodic style. At home a plain recitation is perfectly fine.
Background
The first three verses bow to each of the Three Gems using an image instead of a long explanation: the Buddha's compassion is like a great ocean, the Dhamma is like a lamp, and the Saṅgha is a field better than any other field. Images like these are easier to hold in mind while chanting than definitions are.
The fourth verse changes direction. It speaks of the merit produced by that act of homage and then wishes that obstacles may not befall the chanter. That is an aspiration, not a guarantee. What the chanting actually does is leave the mind softer and steadier at the start of the day.
These verses are not in the Tipiṭaka. They are an old composition belonging to the Thai morning liturgy, putting the praises of the Triple Gem found in the suttas into metrical form.
Pali
- Buddho susuddho karuṇāmahaṇṇavo The Buddha, utterly pure, whose compassion is a great ocean,
- Yoccantasuddhabbarañāṇalocano whose eye is knowledge, excellent and completely clear,
- Lokassa pāpūpakilesaghātako destroyer of the evil and the defilements of the world:
- Vandāmi buddhaṃ ahamādarena taṃ with respect I bow to that Buddha.
- Dhammo padīpo viya tassa satthuno The Dhamma of that Teacher is like a lamp,
- Yo maggapākāmatabhedabhinnako dividing into path, fruit and the deathless,
- Lokuttaro yo ca tadatthadīpano beyond the world, and pointing the way to it:
- Vandāmi dhammaṃ ahamādarena taṃ with respect I bow to that Dhamma.
- Saṅgho sukhettābhyatikhettasaññito The Saṅgha is called a good field, better than any field,
- Yo diṭṭhasanto sugatānubodhako having seen peace, awakening after the Well-gone One,
- Lolappahīno ariyo sumedhaso free of restlessness, noble, of fine wisdom:
- Vandāmi saṅghaṃ ahamādarena taṃ with respect I bow to that Saṅgha.
- Iccevamekantabhipūjaneyyakaṃ These three things, wholly worthy of worship,
- Vatthuttayaṃ vandayatābhisaṅkhataṃ have been honoured, and merit has been made by my bowing.
- Puññaṃ mayā yaṃ mama sabbupaddavā By the power of that merit, may all obstacles
- Mā hontu ve tassa pabhāvasiddhiyā not come upon me.
Where it comes from in the Tipiṭaka
Click to read the actual page it refers to
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