snga ma gang byas da lta'i lus la ltos/ /

phyi ma gar 'gro da lta'i las la ltos/ /

To know what you did in the past, look at your present body,

To know where you will go in future, look at your present actions.

thub rnams sdig pa chu yis mi 'khrus zhing/ /

'gro ba'i sdug bsngal phyag gis mi sel la/ /

nyid kyi rtogs pa gzhan la spo min te/ /

chos nyid bden pa bstan pas grol bar mdzad/ /

The Sages do not wash away our crimes with water,

They do not dispel beings’ sufferings with their hands,

Their realization can not simply be transferred;

They liberate by revealing the true nature of things.[i]

rma bya'i mdong bkrag gcig la yang/ /

rgyu yi dbye ba tha dad pa/ /

de mkhyen pa ni kun mkhyen te/ /

kun mkhyen ye shes min pas min/ /

To know all the various causes that produce

Just one of the bright colours in a peacock’s tail

Requires omniscience; such things are not known

By anything other than all-knowing wisdom.

thos rtags zhi zhing dul ba/ /

bsgom rtags nyon mongs chung ba/ /

The sign of true learning is a peaceful temperament,

And the sign of having meditated is fewer afflictions.

go ba lhan pa 'dra ste khog nas 'gro/ /

nyams na bun 'dra ste yal nas 'gro/ /

rtogs pa nam mkha' 'dra ste 'gyur ba med/ /

Theoretical understanding wears out like patches,

Experiences fade away like mist,

But realization is as unchanging as space.

mkhas pa'i sdig pa che na'ang yangs/ /

blun pa'i sdig pa chung na'ang chen/ /

Even major misdeeds will prove inconsequential for the wise.

Even minor misdeeds will prove severe for the fool.

nyi shar chu bo thur du 'bab pa dang/ /

sran zlum tsher ma gzengs ring rno ba dang/ /

rma bya'i mdongs bkra lta na sdug pa rnams/ /

sus kyang ma byas ngo bo nyid las byung/ /

The rising of the sun, the downward flow of water,

The roundness of peas, the bristling length and sharpness of thorns,

The beauty of the iridescent eye of the peacock’s tail:

No-one created them, they all just naturally came into being.[ii]