The Pali Text Society's Pali-English Dictionary

most marked application in the sphere of the sexual: k!mesu micch!c!rin, transgressing in lusts, sinning in
the lusts of the flesh, or violating the third rule of conduct equivalent to abrahmacariy!, inchastity (see s"la)
Pug 38, 39; It 63, etc. itthi -- k!mehi paric!reti "he enjoys himself with the charms of woman" S iv.343.
K!mesu brahmacariyav! practising chastity Sn 1041. K!matth! for sexual amusement A iii.229.
Redemption from k!ma is to be effected by selfcontrol (sa'yama) and meditation (jh!na), by knowledge,
right effort and renunciation. "To give up passion" as a practice of him who wishes to enter on the Path is
expressed by: k!m!na' pah!na', k!masaññ!na' pariññ!, k!ma -- pip!s!na' -- pa&ivinayo, k!mavitakk!na'
samuggh!to k!ma -- pari)!h!na' v(pasamo Vin iii.111; -- k!mesu (ca) appa&ibaddhacitto "uddha'soto" ti
vuccati: he whose mind is not in the bonds of desire is called "one who is above the stream" Dh 218; cp. Th
2, 12; -- tasm! jantu sad! sato k!m!ni parivajjaye Sn 771; -- yo k!me parivajjeti Sn 768=Nett 69. --
nikkhamma ghar! panujja k!me Sn 359; -- ye ca k!me pariññ!ya caranti akutobhay! te ve p!ragat! loke ye
patt! !savakkhaya' A iii.69. -- K!m!na' pariñña' paññ!peti Gotamo M i.84; cp. A v.64; k!me pajahati: S
i.12=31; Sn 704; k!m!na' vippah!na S i.47; -- ye k!me hitv! agih! caranti Sn 464; -- k!m! nirujjhanti
(through jh!na) A iv.410; k!me panudati Dh 383=S i.15 (context broken), cp. k!masukha' anala'karitv!
Sn 59; -- k!mesu anapekkhin Sn 166=- i.16 (abbrev.); S ii.281; Sn 857; -- cp. r!ga' vinayetha . . . Sn 361.
vivicc' eva k!mehi, aloof from sensuous joys is the prescription for all Jh!na -- exercise. Applications of
these expressions: -- k!mesu pal!)ita A iii.5; k!mesu mucchita S i.74; k!m!laye asatta S i.33; k!mesu
katha' nameyya S i.117; k!mesu anik")it!vin S i.9 (cp. kela); kittassa munino carato k!mesu anapekhino
oghati**assa pihayanti k!mesu gathit! paj! Sn 823 (gadhit! Nd1); -- k!mesu asaññata Sn 243; -- yo na
lippati k!mesu tam aha' br(mi br!hma*a' Dh 401; -- Muni santiv!do agiddho k!me ca loke ca anûpalitto
Sn 845; k!mesu giddha D iii.107; Sn 774; k!mesu gedha' !pajjati S i.73; -- na so rajjati k!mesu Sn 161; --
k!m!na' vasam up!gamum Sn 315 (=k!m!na' !sattata' p!puni'su SnA 325); k!me parivajjeti Sn 768,
k!me anugijjhati Sn 769. Character of K!m!. The pleasures of the senses are evanescent, transient (sabbe
k!m! anicc!, etc. A ii.177), and of no real taste (app!s!d!); they do not give permanent satisfaction; the
happiness which they yield is only a deception, or a dream, from which the dreamer awakens with sorrow
and regret. Therefore the Buddha says "Even though the pleasure is great, the regret is greater: !d"navo
ettha bh"yyo" (see k -- sukha). Thus k!m! as k!lik! (needing time) S i.9, 117; anicc! (transitory) S i.22;
k!m! citr! madhur! "pleasures are manifold and sweet" (i. e. tasty) Sn 50; but also appass!d! bahudukkh!
bahup!y!s!: quot. M i.91; see Nd2 71. Another passage with var. descriptions and comparisons of k!ma,
beginning with app' ass!d! dukkh! k!m! is found at J iv.118. -- atitta' yeva k!mesu antako kurute vasa'
Dh 48; -- na kah!pa*avassena titti k!mesu vijjati appas!d! dukkh! k!m! iti viññ!ya pa*.ito "not for
showers of coins is satisfaction to be found in pleasures -- of no taste and full of misery are pleasures: thus
say the wise and they understand" Dh 186; cp. M i.130; Vin ii.25 (cp. Divy 224). -- K!mato j!yat" soko
k!mato j!yat" bhaya' k!mato vippamuttassa n'atthi soko kuto bhayan ti "of pleasure is born sorrow, of
pleasure is born fear" Dh 215. K!m!nam adhivacan!ni, attributes of k!ma are: bhaya, dukkha, roga,
ga*.a, salla, sanga, panka, gabbha A iv.289; Nd2 p. 62 on Sn 51; same, except salla & gabbha: A iii.310.
The misery of such pleasures is painted in vivid colours in the Buddha's discourse on pains of pleasures M
i.85 and parallel passages (see e. g. Nd2 199), how k!ma is the cause of egoism, avarice, quarrels between
kings, nations, families, how it leads to warfare, murder, lasciviousness, torture and madness. K!m!na'
!d"navo (the danger of passions) M i.85 sq. =Nd2 199, quot. SnA 114 (on Sn 61); as one of the five
anupubbikath!s: K˚ !d"nava' ok!ra' sa'kilesa' A iv.186, 209, 439; -- they are the leaders in the army of
M!ra: k!m! te pa&ham! sen! Sn 436; -- yo evamv!d" . . . n'atthi k!mesu doso ti so k!mesu p!tavyata'
!pajjati A i.266=M i.305 sq. Similes. -- In the foll. passage (following on appass!d! bahudukkh!, etc.) the
pleasures of the senses are likened to: (1) a&&hi -- kankhala, a chain of bones; (2) ma'sapesi, a piece of
(decaying) flesh; -- (3) ti*'ukk!, a torch of grass; (4) ang!ra -- k!su, a pit of glowing cinders; -- (5) supina, a
dream; (6) y!cita, beggings; -- (7) rukkha -- phala, the fruit of a tree; -- (8) asis(na, a slaughter -- house; --
(9) satti -- s(la, a sharp stake; -- (10) sappa -- sira, a snake's head, i. e. the bite of a snake at Vin ii.25; M
i.130; A iii.97 (where a&&hisankhala); Nd2 71 (leaving out No. 10). Out of this list are taken single
quotations of No. 4 at D iii.283; A iv.224=v.175; No. 5 at DhA iii.240; No. 8 at M i.144; No. 9 at S
i.128=Th 2, 58 & 141 (with khandh!na' for khandh!sa'); No. 10 as !s"visa (poisonous fangs of a snake)
yesu mucchit! b!l! Th 2, 451, and several at many other places of the Canon. Cases used adverbially: --
k!ma' acc. as adv. (a) yath! k!ma' according to inclination, at will, as much as one chooses S i.227; J
i.203; PvA 63, 113, 176; yena k!ma' wherever he likes, just as he pleases A iv.194; Vv i.11 (=
icch!nur(pa' VvA 11) -- (b) willingly, gladly, let it be that, usually with imper. S i.222; J i.233; iii.147;
iv.273; VvA 95; k!ma' taco nah!ru ca a&&hi ca avasissatu (avasussatu in J) sar"re upasussatu ma'sa --
lohita' "willingly shall skin, sinews and bone remain, whilst flesh and blood shall wither in the body" M