collection of paritta discourses, in Sinhala, 'The
Pirit Potha' is the most widely known Pali book in Sri
Lanka. It is called 'The Buddhist Bible'; it is given an important
place in the Buddhist home, and is even treated with veneration.
In most houses where there is a small shrine, this book is
kept there so that the inmates may refer to it during their
devotional hour. Some have committed to memory the three well
known discourses - Mangala, Ratana and Karaniya
- metta suttas. (1) Even children
are familiar with these discourses; for they learn them from
their parents and elders or from the 'Dhamma school'.
of listening to the recital of paritta suttas among the
Westerners is growing slowly but steadily. The present writer,
while on his missions in the European and American countries,
has, at request of several residents there, tape-recorded the
recital of paritta suttas for their benefit, and has
air-mailed cassettes containing the sutta recitals to
those who sent him such cassettes.
does this book contain? It is a collection of twenty four Suttas
or discourses almost all delivered by the Buddha, and found
scattered in the five original collections (Nikayas)
in Pali, which form the Sutta Pitaka, the 'Canonical
Discourses'. These discourses are preceded by an enunciation
of the Three Refuges; the Ten Precepts and the questions asked
of a novice.
of discourses, popularly known as 'Pirit Potha' or The
Book of Protection, has a less known title, 'Catubhanavara'
(in Sinhala Satara Banavara). A 13th century Commentary
to this, written in Pali, by a pupil of the Venerable Rajaguru
Vanaratana of Sri Lanka, is available under the title Catubhanavara
Atthakatha or Sarattha Samuccaya.
a Bhanavara? It is a collection of sermons or discourses.
Four such collections are called 'Catubhanavara'. As
the teachers of old have said, a three-word line (Pada)
is made up of eight syllables (attha akkhara), four such
padas make a stanza or a gatha. Thus stanzas consist
of thirty-two syllables. 250 such stanzas are called a Bhanavara
which consists of 8,000 syllables. The Catunabhanavara
was compiled by the Maha Theras, the teachers of old (paranakacariya),
of Sri Lanka, and today it is known among the Buddhists of Sri
Lanka as the 'Pirit Potha' The Book of Protection.
It is customary
for Buddhist monks, when they are invited to the homes of the
laity on occasions of domestic importance, such as Birthdays,
house-warming, illness and similar events, to recite the three
popular discourses mentioned above. In the domestic and social
life of the people of Sri Lanka Pirit ceremony is of
great significance. No festival or function, religious or social,
is complete without the recital of the Paritta. On special
occasions monks are invited to recite the Paritta Suttas
not for short periods but right through the night or for three
or seven days, and at times, for weeks. On such occasions a
pavilion (Pirit Mandapaya) is constructed for the purpose
of accommodating the monks at the recital. Before the commencement
of the recital the laity present at the ceremony makes a formal
invitation to the monks by reciting in Pali three stanzas which
explain the purpose of the recital.(2) Then
the monks, generally about twelve or fourteen, who have been
invited, will recite the three popular Suttas. Thereafter
a pair of monks will commence reciting the remaining Suttas
for two hours. They will then retire and will be followed by
another pair for another two hours. Two monks must be constantly
officiating. In this manner the recital will last till dawn.
recital continues there will be found a pot of water placed
on a table before the monks. On this table there is also a sacred
thread (Pirit Nula). For an all night Pirit ceremony
the casket containing a relic of the Buddha, and the 'Pirit
Potha' or The Book of Protection written on ola leaves,
are also brought into the pavilion. The relic represents the
Buddha, the 'Pirit Potha' represents the Dhamma
or the teachings of the Buddha and the reciting Bhikkhu-Sangha
represent the Ariya-Sangha, the Arahant disciples of the Buddha.
is drawn round the interior of the pavilion, and its end twisted
round the casket, the neck of the pot of water, and tied to
the cord of the ola-leaf book. While the special discourses
are being recited the monks hold the thread. The purpose is
to maintain an unbroken communication from the water to the
relic, to the 'Pirit Potha' and to the officiating monks,
(Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha, the Ti-ratana, the three jewels.)
A ball of thread connected to 'The Three Jewels' and the water,
is unloosened and passed on to the listeners (seated on the
ground on mats), who hold the thread while the recital goes
recital in Pali of the entire book is over at dawn, the thread
sanctified by the recital is divided into pieces and distributed
among the devotees to be tied round their wrists or necks. At
the same time the sanctified water is sprinkled on all, who
even drink a little of it and sprinkle it on their heads. These
are to be regarded as symbols of the protective power of the
Paritta that was recited. It is a service of inducing
blessings. It has its psychological effects.
Grad of McGill University in Montreal painstakingly proved that
if a psychic healer held water in a flask and this water was
later poured on barley seeds, the plants significantly outgrew
untreated seeds. But - and this is the intriguing part - if
depressed psychiatric patients held the flasks of water, the
growth of seeds was retarded.
suggests that there appeared to be some "x factor"
or energy that flows from the human body to affect growth of
plants and animals. A person's mood affected this energy. This
previously unacknowledged 'energy' has the widest implications
for medical science, from healing to lab tests, Grad says'.
discovered by Dr. Grad mind can influence matter. If that be
so, not much thinking is necessary to draw the logical inference
that mind can influence mind. Further if the human mind can
influence lower animals, then by a parity of reasoning the human
mind can influence the minds of beings higher than animals.
1. See below
nos. 2, 3, 4.
2. See Invitation (Aradhana)
3. Psychic Dicoveries Behind the Iron Curtain, Sheila
Ostrander & Lynn Schroeder, Bantam Books, U.S.A., p. 224;
also read chapter on 'Healing with Thought', p. 293.