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MN 26 another example where 'Dhamma' word needs to be untranslated






In both cases in this passage, Dhamma is the Buddha's holy Dharma, and by translating it into an english word in the first highlight, and not in the second, this will cause the English reader to not pick up on the special word "Dharma".  Bhikkhus Thanissaro, Bodhi, Sujato, already leave the word 'Dhamma' untranslated in some cases. They need to go all the way and leave it untranslated everywhere so English readers can pick up on the mulitplex aspect of that word. Buddha, Nirvana, Karma, Dharma, Jesus, Koran, are specialized religious terms already in the common English dictionary. Translating 'Dharma' into other english terms to tease out fine nuances is wrong in many cases because it often straddles several meanings simultaneously, and even when it isn't wrong, like in this passage, the reader loses on getting the full meaning of the word 'Dhamma'.

People are not that dumb. For example, the word 'google' is a new English word. And people know from context when 'google' is a noun that refers to a tech company, and when 'google is a verb that means "searching on the internet."

If translators do the right thing and leave Dhamma untranslated, then people will figure out quickly how to distinguish the different meanings.

from b.sujato MN 26


Tassa mayhaṃ, bhikkhave, etadahosi:
 Then it occurred to me:
‘adhigato kho myāyaṃ dhammo gambhīro duddaso duranubodho santo paṇīto atakkāvacaro nipuṇo paṇḍitavedanīyo.
 ‘This principle I have discovered is deep, hard to see, hard to understand, peaceful, sublime, beyond the scope of reason, subtle, comprehensible to the astute.
Ālayarāmā kho panāyaṃ pajā ālayaratā ālayasammuditā.
 But people like attachment, they love it and enjoy it.
Ālayarāmāya kho pana pajāya ālayaratāya ālayasammuditāya duddasaṃ idaṃ ṭhānaṃ yadidaṃ—idappaccayatā paṭiccasamuppādo.
 It’s hard for them to see this thing; that is, specific conditionality, dependent origination.
Idampi kho ṭhānaṃ duddasaṃ yadidaṃ—sabbasaṅkhārasamatho sabbūpadhipaṭinissaggo taṇhākkhayo virāgo nirodho nibbānaṃ.
 It’s also hard for them to see this thing; that is, the stilling of all activities, the letting go of all attachments, the ending of craving, fading away, cessation, nirvana.
Ahañceva kho pana dhammaṃ deseyyaṃ, pare ca me na ājāneyyuṃ, so mamassa kilamatho, sā mamassa vihesā’ti.
 And if I were to teach the Dhamma, others might not understand me, which would be wearying and troublesome for me.’    

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