The Brahmin (from THE DHAMMAPADA)
Cross the river bravely,
Conquer all your passions,
Go beyond the world of fragments,
And know the deathless ground of life.

Cross the river bravely,
Conquer all your passions,
Go beyond your likes and dislikes
And all fetters fall away.

Who is a true brahmin?
Him I call a brahmin
Who has neither likes nor dislikes,
And is free from the chain of fear.

Who is a true brahmin?
Him I call a brahmin
Who has trained his mind to be still
And reached the supreme goal of life.

The sun shines in the day
In the night, the moon;
The warrior shines in battle;
In meditation, the brahmin,
But day and night the Buddha shines
In radiance of love for all.

Him I call a brahmin
Who has shed all evil
He is called sammana, "the serene,"
And pabhajita,"a pure one."

Him I call a brahmin
Who is never angry,
Never causes harm to others
Even when he is harmed by them.

Him I call a brahmin
Who clings not to pleasure
Do not cause sorrow to others
No more sorrow will come to you.

Him I call a brahmin
Who does not hurt others with unkind acts, words, or thoughts.
His body and mind obey him.

Him I call a brahmin
Who walks in the footsteps
Of the Buddha. Light your torch too.
From the fire of his sacrifice.

Not matted hair?
Of what a use a skin of deer
On which to sit in meditation,
If your mind is seething with lust?

Saffron robe, outward show,
Does not make a brahmin,
But training of the mind and senses
Through practice of meditation.

Not riches nor high caste
Makes a man a brahmin
Free yourself from selfish desires and you will become a brahmin
And you will become a brahmin.

He has thrown off his chains;
He trembles not in fear.
No selfish bonds can ensnare him,
No impure thought pollute his mind.

Him I call a brahmin
Who has found his heaven,
Free from every selfish desire,
Free from every impurity.

For him no more sorrow will come
On him no more burden will fall.

Him I call a brahmin
Who has risen above
The duality of this world,
Free from sorrow and free from sin.
He shines like the full moon
With no clouds in the sky.

Him I call a brahmin
Who has crossed the river,
Difficult, dangerous to cross, and safely reached the other
shore.

Wanting nothing at all,
Doubting nothing at all,
Master of his body and mind,
He has gone beyond time and death.

Him I call a brahmin
Who turns his back on himself.
Homeless, he is ever at home;
Egoloess, he is ever full.

Him I call a brahmin
Who is free from bondage
To human beings and nature,
The hero who has conquered the world.

Self-will has left his mind;
It will never return.
Sorrow has left his life;
It will never return.

Him I call a brahmin,
Free from I, me, and mine,
Who knows the rise and fall of life.
He will not fall asleep again.

Him I call a brahmin
Whose way no one can know,
He lives free from past and future;
He lives free from decay and death.

Possessing nothing, desiring nothing
For his own pleasure, his own profit,
He has become a force for good,
Working for the freedom of all.

He has reached the end of the way;
He has crossed the river of life.
All that he had to do I done;
He has become one with all life.