อารัมภบทI shall now explain and expand upon the meaning of the Dhamma theme written above, as a guide for study and practice.

อธิบายบทตั้งTo explain: This saying shows that patience is the foundation for developing every kind of virtue, like firm soil that allows the tree of goodness to grow.

ขยายความบทตั้งPatience is a cause of morality because keeping the precepts requires patience with temptation: patience not to retaliate when harmed, patience not to take others' belongings even when there is a chance, patience not to lie even when telling the truth means losing out. Patience is a cause of concentration because training the mind to be steady requires patience with weariness, distraction and boredom. One who lacks patience will give up halfway before seeing any results.

ขยายความบทตั้งSaying that all wholesome states grow through patience means that every kind of goodness needs time and consistency to grow. Knowledge must be accumulated little by little, good habits must be practised repeatedly until they become natural, and effort must continue even on discouraging days. Patience is the strength that lets us keep doing good on days when we do not yet see results. The word "alone" in the saying emphasises the importance of patience, but patience must also work together with other virtues such as mindfulness, wisdom and effort.

ประโยคสะพาน + ที่มา ๑Patience is like a tool that cuts off the root of all evils. A patient person can dig up the root of blame and quarrels and not let evil keep on growing. This accords with the Buddha's saying found in the Royal Chanting Book (Suat Mon Chabap Luang, 5th printing):

อธิบายบทเชื่อม ๑To explain: This saying compares evil and conflict to a tree with roots, and patience to a tool that cuts and digs those roots out, so that evil can no longer grow.

อธิบายบทเชื่อม ๑Much evil is rooted in the mind's inability to bear its emotions. When angry and unable to bear it, one scolds or harms; when desiring and unable to bear it, one steals or cheats; when provoked and unable to bear it, one retaliates until the matter grows serious. Patience acts like a brake, stopping the mind before emotion turns into action. When the mind can stop, the root of evil is cut and has no chance to branch out into greater wrongdoing.

อธิบายบทเชื่อม ๑As for blame and quarrels, they usually arise because neither side is willing to be patient. One speaks harshly, the other answers more harshly still, and the conflict keeps escalating. One who has patience does not add fuel to the fire. When one does not retaliate with emotion, the quarrel cannot continue, and one does nothing that will later be blamed. Patience here is therefore not suppressing one's feelings, but restraining actions born of emotion, and then solving the problem with reason once the mind is calm.

ประโยคสะพาน + ที่มา ๒When a person can endure displeasure and not respond with anger, they are loved and trusted by those around them, and prosperity in gain, honour, and happiness comes to them. This accords with the Buddha's saying found in the Royal Chanting Book (Suat Mon Chabap Luang, 5th printing):

อธิบายบทเชื่อม ๒To explain: This saying shows several blessings of patience: virtue in the heart, prosperity in life and being loved by others.

อธิบายบทเชื่อม ๒One who has patience is counted as loving-kind because patience towards the faults of others arises from a heart that wishes them well and does not want them to suffer. Patience and loving-kindness therefore support each other. One who has patience gains and has honour because patience allows work to be accomplished, and a calm temperament earns the trust to be given important responsibilities. One who has patience is always happy because he is not burned by anger and does not have to regret what he did when he lost mindfulness.

อธิบายบทเชื่อม ๒Saying that he is dear to gods and humans shows that the virtue of patience is widely recognised. Everyone likes to be near someone who is calm, pleasant to talk with, and with whom one need not worry about being met with anger or retaliation. Being dear in this way does not come from pleasing others, but from the inner steadiness of the patient person himself.

ตัวอย่างในชีวิตIn daily life, someone determined to give up using coarse language must patiently watch himself every day until polite speech becomes a habit. Someone who practises meditation for only a few minutes a day, but patiently keeps it up for months, will find the mind calmer. A student who patiently reviews lessons every day even when tired builds a solid foundation of knowledge. These good things cannot arise in a single day; they arise from continuous patience.

สรุปTo conclude: Those who wish to develop themselves in the right direction should therefore train patience as the foundation of life, so that morality, concentration and other virtues may flourish. This accords with the Dhamma saying set forth as the theme at the beginning:

ปิดท้ายThus has the meaning been explained, as set forth above.