Lifespan (2nd)

SN 4.10 · Dutiyaāyusutta

A broad lotus leaf shedding small beads of water.

So I have heard. At one time the Buddha was staying near Rājagaha in the Bamboo Grove, the squirrels’ feeding ground. There the Buddha … said:

“Mendicants, the lifespan of humans is short. We are headed for lives to come. We must do what is skillful, we must practice the spiritual life. No one born is immortal. A long life is a hundred years or a little more.”

Then Māra the Wicked went up to the Buddha and addressed him in verse:

“The days and nights don’t rush by, and life isn’t cut short. The life of mortals keeps rolling on, like a chariot’s rim around the hub.”
“The days and nights rush by, and then life is cut short. The life of mortals wastes away, like the water in tiny streams.”

Then Māra the Wicked, thinking, “The Buddha knows me! The Holy One knows me!” miserable and sad, vanished right there.

Connections

Collection & context

Saṃyutta NikāyaThe collection containing this text
The Pāli canonCanonical collection in which this edition is preserved
Theravāda traditionsTransmission and study context
The early Buddhist communityHistorical and traditional setting

Books

The Connected Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Saṃyutta NikāyaBhikkhu Bodhi; Bhikkhu Bodhi (translator) · Complete collection edition

About this edition

Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato · SuttaCentral · CC0

This translation is an expression of an ancient spiritual text that has been passed down by the Buddhist tradition for the benefit of all sentient beings. It is dedicated to the public domain via Creative Commons Zero (CC0). You are encouraged to copy, reproduce, adapt, alter, or otherwise make use of this translation. The translator respectfully requests that any use be in accordance with the values and principles of the Buddhist community. In particular, please do not use this work in AI training datasets, for the development of any AI model or algorithm, or in any AI-derived technologies.

Published source. Translation wording and order are preserved; source headings and notes are retained, with navigation and formatting adapted for this reader.

The opening image is AI-generated nature artwork for Buddhist Atlas, an evocative companion rather than a historical depiction.