Ja 56 The Story about the Block of Gold
(Kañcanakkhandhajātaka)
In the present a newly ordained monk is finding the many rules burdensome and is about to disrobe. The monks take him to the Buddha who asks him to follow just three rules, related to mind, voice and body. He does so and becomes an Arahat. The Buddha tells a story of a farmer who found a huge block of gold that he couldn’t carry away, until he decided to cut it into four, at which point it was easy to move (full story).
1. Yo pahaṭṭhena cittena, pahaṭṭhamanaso naro,
Bhāveti kusalaṁ dhammaṁ, yogakkhemassa pattiyā,
Pāpuṇe anupubbena sabbasaṁyojanakkhayan-ti.
That person who has a cheerful heart, who is cheerful in his mind, This verse varies by only one word from the verse 55, substituting pahaṭṭh- for alīn-. who cultivates wholesome thoughts, in order to attain safety, gradually arrives at the destruction of all of the fetters.
In this connection, cheerful means free from hindrances. Cheerful in his mind means being free from hindrances he is cheerful in his mind, like gold that is beaten, The commentator plays on the meaning of the homynym pahaṁsati, which means cheerful, gladdened when derived from pa+hassati; and strike, beat when derived from pa+ghaṁsati. having become radiant, luminous, and resplendent, this is the meaning.