The Roots of Good and Evil: Buddhist Texts Translated from Pāli with an Introduction and Comments

The book begins by defining the three unwholesome roots and their wholesome opposites, then explains their range through canonical and commentarial analysis. The first chapter clarifies the meaning of kusala and akusala, showing that wholesome and unwholesome states extend beyond conventional morality into the deeper structure of kamma and rebirth. The second chapter presents general texts on how greed, hatred, and delusion bind beings to birth, death, Māra’s power, and the “three fires” that burn the mind. The third chapter connects the roots with kamma, showing that actions arise from mental motivation and lead either toward suffering or toward fortunate states. The fourth chapter examines their social significance through texts such as the Kālāma Sutta and discussions on violence and oppression, demonstrating that ethical transformation has both personal and communal consequences. The fifth chapter focuses on the removal of the unwholesome roots through faith in the Triple Gem, moral effort, wise attention, and methods for abandoning unwholesome thoughts. The sixth chapter develops removal through mindfulness and insight, especially through Satipaṭṭhāna practice and contemplation of feelings. The final chapter presents the goal: the extinction of greed, hatred, and delusion, described as the visible Nibbāna and the happiness of liberation.