Sayings of The Dhamma Sujato 2023 03 07

Sayings of the Dhamma
Bhikkhu Sujato
S AY I N G S O F
THE DHAMMA
A meaningful translation of the Dhammapada
translated and introduced by

Bhikkhu Sujato
Dhp
0 SuttaCentral
Sayings of the Dhamma is a translation of the Dhammapada by Bhikkhu Sujato.
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To the extent possible under law, Bhikkhu Sujato has waived all copyright and
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Web publication date 2021

This edition 2023-03-07 09:07:51
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Number of volumes 1
Publication ISBN 978-1-76132-071-2
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Much though they may recite scripture,
if a negligent person does not apply them,
then, like a cowherd who counts the cattle of others,
they miss out on the blessings of the ascetic life.
Dhammapada 19
Contents
The SuttaCentral Editions Series ix
Preface x
Sayings of the Dhamma: a path of love and wisdom xii
Acknowledgements xxxiii

Dhp 1–20 1. Pairs (Yamakavagga) 2
Dhp 21–32 2. Diligence (Appamādavagga) 6
Dhp 33–43 3. The Mind (Cittavagga) 8
Dhp 44–59 4. Flowers (Pupphavagga) 10
Dhp 60–75 5. The Fool (Bālavagga) 13
Dhp 76–89 6. The Astute (Paṇḍitavagga) 16
Dhp 90–99 7. The Perfected Ones (Arahantavagga) 19
Dhp 100–115 8. The Thousands (Sahassavagga) 21
Dhp 116–128 9. Wickedness (Pāpavagga) 24
Dhp 129–145 10. The Rod (Daṇḍavagga) 27
Dhp 146–156 11. Old Age (Jarāvagga) 30
Dhp 157–166 12. The Self (Attavagga) 32
Dhp 167–178 13. The World (Lokavagga) 34
Dhp 179–196 14. The Buddhas (Buddhavagga) 36
Dhp 197–208 15. Happiness (Sukhavagga) 39
Dhp 209–220 16. The Beloved (Piyavagga) 41
Dhp 221–234 17. Anger (Kodhavagga) 43
Dhp 235–255 18. Stains (Malavagga) 46
Dhp 256–272 19. The Just (Dhammaṭṭhavagga) 50
Dhp 273–289 20. The Path (Maggavagga) 53
Dhp 290–305 21. Miscellaneous (Pakiṇṇakavagga) 56
Dhp 306–319 22. Hell (Nirayavagga) 59
Dhp 320–333 23. Elephants (Nāgavagga) 62
Dhp 334–359 24. Craving (Taṇhāvagga) 65
Dhp 360–382 25. Mendicants (Bhikkhuvagga) 69
Dhp 383–423 26. Brahmins (Brāhmaṇavagga) 73
Colophon 80
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Preface
In 2009 Brian Ashen, the then-president of the Federation of Aus-
tralia Buddhist Councils, toured the Federal Parliament of Australia
in Canberra. The tour was shown the Despatch Box, which con-
tained sacred scriptures when required for oath-taking. This box,
which sits in a place of honor before the Prime Minister, contained
a Bible and a Quran.
Brian raised this with the FABC and we agreed to propose a
Buddhist scripture to be placed alongside the scriptures of Chris-
tianity and Islam. Unfortunately, the Tipiṭaka is large, even more
so if we consider the canons of all schools. So we needed to suggest
a single text that would well represent all the Buddhist traditions.
I proposed the Dhammapada. Here is an edited excerpt from
my proposal.
The Dhammapada is one of the ancient texts, spoken, as far

as we can tell, largely by the historical Buddha, and organized and
edited by the Sangha of old. We cannot know, of course, that all of
the verses were spoken as we have them by the Buddha himself,
and indeed several of them share things in common with Jain or
Brahmanical verses. Nevertheless, as a historical scholar, I feel that
the teachings found there are very likely to represent the actual
teachings of Siddhattha.
The Dhammapada is not a sectarian document. It is true
that the best-known version, which I have proposed for inclusion,
stems from the Theravada school, but this is just an accident of his-
tory. This particular version happened to have been passed down
preface
through the Sri Lankan lineage. But many other versions have
come down to us.
There are no significant doctrinal differences between these
versions. They merely choose slightly different readings, some
different verses, and change the order. It would be a nice gesture to
non-sectarianism to include one of these texts as well as or instead
of the Pali, but I am not aware of any suitable translations.
The teachings found in the Dhammapada are those common to
all schools. They are particularly relevant for lay instruction and are
frequently used in that way in Buddhist communities. But perhaps
even more significant, the Dhammapadas are often associated by
scholars with “Ashokan Buddhism”. That is to say, the emphasis
on a practical application of Dhamma to a good life as found in
the Dhammapada, and especially the emphasis on non-violence,
relates very closely to the teachings found in the Ashokan edicts.
This means that they are particularly suitable for a leader who seeks
moral and spiritual guidance in the practicalities of life.
Can we imagine, what would a politician do if she happened,
on a difficult night in Parliament, to seek some solace from the
religious texts found there? She opens the box, is delighted to
see a Buddhist text, and, having heard that Buddhism is a rational
religion of ethics and meditation, opens a random page. What
does she find?
Hatred is never appeased by hatred, hatred is only ever appeased
by love: this is an ancient law.
Happily, my proposal was accepted. We approached the Pali

Text Society, who kindly donated a hardcover edition of K.R. Nor-
man’s excellent analytical translation. And on the 15th of Septem-
ber 2009, I was proud to be part of the Buddhist delegation that
met with the Speaker of the House, who accepted our copy of the
Dhammapada and placed it in the Despatch Box, where it remains
to this day.
xi
Sayings of the Dhamma: a
path of love and wisdom
Bhikkhu Sujato, 2022
The Dhammapada is, in terms of sequence, the second collection

in the Pali Khuddhaka Nikāya; but in terms of fame and popularity,
it is, without any competitor, the first. It consists of 423 verses ar-
ranged in thematic chapters. Its powerful, engaging, and evocative
verses have ensured its popularity from ancient times until now.
The Dhammapada is closely allied to the Udāna, and I refer
you to my essay there for the relation between these texts. Many
of the verses of the Dhammapada can be found elsewhere in the
Pali Canon and are also widely shared across traditions. They are
not restricted to Buddhist texts either, for they may also be found
occasionally in the law books of Manu, in the Mahābhārata, in Jaina
sutras, and in the Sanskrit collection of fables, the Pañcatantra.
The special quality of the Dhammapada lies not in any doctrinal
innovations, but in the appealing and meaningful selection and
arrangement of verses by topic.
There are at least twelve versions of the Dhammapada, far more
than any comparable ancient Buddhist text. They exist in Pali,
Sanskrit, Prākrit, Gandhārī, Tibetan, and no less than four Chinese
translations. The study of this large and linguistically-diverse mass
of texts reveals much of how Buddhist texts were compiled and
later translated. All differences aside, however, the texts share not
sayings of the dhamma: a path of love and wisdom
just a name, but an overall structure and style, and many individual
verses and lines of verse.
While the Dhammapada deservedly has a reputation for its prac-
tical and accessible nature, it is by no means a watered-down ver-
sion of the Dhamma. It contains some of the most enigmatic and
profound teachings of the Pali canon, and like all early Buddhist
teachings, challenges our desires and assumptions to the core. It
grants the reader, the practitioner, and the audience, the foremost
place in realizing its truths, acknowledging that its words alone
are not enough. And as such, it reveals the deep love and compas-
sion that lie at the heart of the Buddha’s teaching, his profound
conviction that freedom is possible, and that we have what it takes.
What Others Have Said

Many words have been written in eulogy of the Dhammapada’s
qualities, and I can do no better than quote them. In the Preface to
his translation, Ven. Buddharakkhita says:
The contents of the verses, however, transcend the limited

and particular circumstances of their origin, reaching out through
the ages to various types of people in all the diverse situations
of life. For the simple and unsophisticated the Dhammapada is
a sympathetic counselor; for the intellectually overburdened its
clear and direct teachings inspire humility and reflection; for the
earnest seeker it is a perennial source of inspiration and practical
instruction.
And Bhikkhu Bodhi, in his introduction to the same translation,

says:
It is an ever-fecund source of themes for sermons and dis-

cussions, a guidebook for resolving the countless problems of
everyday life, and a primer for the instruction of novices in the
monasteries. Even the experienced contemplative, withdrawn to a
forest hermitage or mountainside cave for a life of meditation, can
xiii
be expected to count a copy of the book among his few material

possessions. Yet the admiration the Dhammapada has elicited has
not been confined to avowed followers of Buddhism. Wherever
it has become known its moral earnestness, realistic understand-
ing of human life, aphoristic wisdom, and stirring message of a
way to freedom from suffering have won for it the devotion and
veneration of those responsive to the good and the true.
He proposes a four-fold scheme for understanding the aims of

the diverse teachings found in the Dhammapada.
1. Happiness in this life.

2. Happiness in the next life.
3. The path to freedom from suffering.
4. Celebrations of freedom.
These are not incompatible purposes, but rather build on each

other. He goes on to give a detailed analysis of the doctrinal content
of the verses seen through this framework.
While some commentators have tended to tame and blandify
the teachings of the Dhammapada, not so Albert Edmunds, whose
1902 translation Hymns of the Faith was one of the earliest into En-
glish, and whose introduction remains perhaps the most dramatic:
If ever an immortal classic was produced upon the continent of

Asia, it was this. … No trite ephemeral songs are here, but red-hot
lava from the abysses of the human soul … These old refrains from
a life beyond time and sense, as it was wrought out by generations
of earnest thinkers, have been fire in many a muse. They burned
in the brains of the Chinese pilgrims, who braved the blasts of the
Mongolian desert, climbed the cliffs of the Himalayas, swung by
rope-bridges across the Indus where it rages through its gloomiest
gorge, and faced the bandit and beast, to peregrinate the Holy Land
of their religion and tread in the footsteps of their Master.
His description of the travails endured by the ancient Chinese

pilgrims in search of the Dhamma is in no way exaggerated, and it
xiv
serves as a timely reminder to us, in our age of lazy access to the

world’s information, that some forms of wisdom are truly rare and
priceless, and worth putting in effort.
The renowned meditation teacher Daw Mya Tin, known as
Mother Sayamagyi, when introducing her 1984 translation on be-
half of the Burma Pitaka Association under the title The Dhamma-
pada: Verses and Stories notes the prevalence of the Dhammapada
in Burmese Buddhism:
Through these verses, the Buddha exhorts one to achieve that
greatest of all conquests, the conquest of self; to escape from the
evils of passion, hatred, and ignorance; and to strive hard to attain
freedom from craving and freedom from the round of rebirths.
Each verse contains a truth (dhamma), an exhortation, a piece of
advice. … In Burma, translations have been made into Burmese,
mostly in prose, some with paraphrases, explanations, and abridg-
ments of stories relating to the verses. In recent years, some books
on Dhammapada with both Burmese and English translations,
together with Pali verses, have also been published.
Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu applies the aesthetic theories of later Indian

philosophy to analyze the literary qualities of the Dhammapada,
arguing that it aims “to instruct in the highest ends of life while
simultaneously giving delight.”
Ānandajoti Bhikkhu has studied the Dhammapada literature
extensively, in both Pali and other Indic languages. In the introduc-
tion to his translation, he says:
The timeless ethical teachings contained in these verses are
still considered relevant to people’s lives, and they are a good guide
to living well, and show how to reap the rewards of good living.
… The verses and stories are well known in traditional Theravāda
Buddhist cultures, and most born and brought up in those societies
will be able to recite many of the verses, and relate the stories that
go with them, even from a young age.
As a jewel of Indian literature, the Dhammapada has been widely

translated and commented on by Indian pundits. The celebrated
xv
Hindu scholar and second president of India, Sarvepalli Radhakr-

ishnan, in the Preface to his revised edition of 1950, approaches
the Dhammapada from a deeply humanistic perspective:
The effort to build one world requires a closer understanding

among the peoples of the world and their cultures. This translation
of the Dhammapada, the most popular and influential book of
Buddhist canonical literature, is offered as a small contribution to
world understanding. The central thesis of the book—that human
conduct, righteous behavior, reflection, and meditation are more
important than vain speculations about the transcendent—has an
appeal to the modern mind. Its teaching—to repress the instincts
entirely is to generate neuroses; to give them full rein is also to end
up in neuroses—is supported by modern psychology. Books so
rich in significance as the Dhammapada require to be understood
by each generation in relation to its own problems.
Eknath Easwaran, a Hindu yogi and scholar, is less circumspect

in his approach. While quoting widely from Brahmanical scriptures
in his introduction, he does not hesitate to claim that, “if everything
else were lost, we would need nothing more than the Dhammapada
to follow the way of the Buddha.” It’s a debatable claim; but what is
not debatable is that, were we to lose all other Dhamma, that would
include all the many places the Buddha criticized Brahmanism, its
rituals, texts, beliefs, and practices.
This is the downside of the “context collapse” in the Dhamma-
pada: it is one thing to enjoy the Dhamma in the form of delightful
bon mots; it is quite another to reduce it to nothing more than
that. The Dhammapada serves well as an introduction to the Bud-
dha’s teaching and as an inspiring reminder for experienced practi-
tioners, but it is no replacement for the detailed and careful pre-
sentations of the Buddha’s path found in the prose suttas.
As if to illustrate this point, Easwaran goes on to say that the
Dhammapada is a guide to “nothing less than the highest goal life
can offer: Self-realization.” He does not notice that “self-realization”
is nowhere mentioned in the Dhammapada, nor is it a goal of Bud-
xvi
dhism. The goal of the Dhammapada is freedom from suffering, as

it is for all Buddhism. A careful study of the prose Suttas might have
helped him to draw the Buddha’s message from the text, instead of
reading his own ideas into it.
Despite his evident preconceptions, Easwaran is sincere in his
approach. But not all those who comment on the Dhammapada do
so from a place of learning or wisdom. A notorious cult leader like
Osho cannot help but reveal his nature in the way he introduces
his commentary.
My beloved Bodhisattvas … You are bodhisattvas because of
your longing to be conscious … And THE DHAMMAPADA, the
teaching of Gautama the Buddha, can only be taught to the bod-
hisattvas. It cannot be taught to the ordinary, mediocre humanity,
because it cannot be understood by them.
The Buddha never spoke in this way, aiming to divide and sep-
arate, creating an egoistic in-group with special access to the truth.
These are the ways of a con artist, and they show how readily and
how swiftly the Dhamma may be turned into an instrument of
manipulation, a tool in the hands of a grifter.
This little survey is remiss in that so far it has mentioned only
men, while women have also made major contributions to the
study of the Dhammapada. Caroline A.F. Rhys Davids, then presi-
dent of the Pali Text Society, translated the Dhammapada as Verses
on Dhamma in volume 1 of The Minor Anthologies of the Pali Canon
in 1931. In 1997, Anne Bancroft together with Thomas Byrom
published a translation through Element Books. And in Spanish,
the erudite Argentinian philosopher Carmen Dragonetti published
La enseñanza de Buda in 2002, which went on to become one of
the most popular renderings.
For a popular edition that is reliable and accessible, Valerie J
Roebuck, an accomplished scholar of Sanskrit and Pali, as well as
an experienced meditator, published a verse translation through
Penguin in 2010 under the title The Dhammapada. A review by
Elizabeth Harris described it as “a gem … energetic and direct …
xvii
I do not know a version of this text that is so comprehensive and

informative, both for the general reader and the scholar” (Religions
of South Asia 6.1, 2012).
The Dhammapada has also stimulated a wide variety of creative
responses. These began with the commentary itself, which paints
a vivid if sometimes unlikely picture of the circumstances of the
verses. Illustrated editions sometimes render these stories or else
pair the verses with more evocative images. There are at least two
musical settings of the Dhammapada, and many individual verses
have been set to song.
A forthcoming novel, The Lyrebird’s Cry by Samantha Sirimanne
Hyde, begins each chapter with a quotation from the Dhamma-
pada, in a manner that deliberately evokes the traditional manner
of sermon-giving. The story tells of a “sensitive” young Sri Lankan
man living in Sydney who is forced into an arranged marriage with
a “good girl” from Colombo—despite the inconvenient fact that
he is gay. It highlights the heartlessness that can so often underlie
a pious adherence to the maxims of a sacred text.
On Translations of the Dhammapada

There are countless modern translations of the Dhammapada, and
more than any other Pali text it is available and widely read: in mas-
sive illustrated coffee-table books, in cute inspirational booklets, in
audio or on the web, or quoted on throw-pillows or coffee-mugs.
There seems little need for another translation; indeed, for many
decades now it has been a convention when introducing a new
translation of the Dhammapada to apologize for its existence.
Yet if the proliferation of Dhammapada translations gives you
the idea that it is a simple text that anyone can translate, consider
the following. In the introduction to his translation of the Dhamma-
pada for the Pali Text Society (PTS), Professor K.R. Norman—
the greatest modern linguist of ancient Indic languages—said this
in reference to the editor of the Gandhārī Dhammapada:
xviii
John Brough is reported as saying, when asked if he would

produce a new translation of the Dhammapada for the PTS, that
he could not because it was “too difficult”. I regret to say that I
must agree with him. My notes reveal how often I was quite unsure
about the meaning of a verse.
Now, notwithstanding the fact that academics have a stricter

standard for confidence than most people, the fact remains that
the Dhammapada is by no means an easy or beginner’s text. Given
that the greatest linguists of the field quail before the challenge of
translating the Dhammapada, one might wonder at the degree of
expertise brought to the task by the countless “translators” who
have expressed no such qualms.
I am being coy here, so let me be plain. The vast majority of
so-called “translations” of the Dhammapada are made by people
unqualified to do so. They merely rehash old versions, leaving out
what they find disagreeable, and rephrasing things to sound “po-
etic”—by which they mean inoffensive and unchallenging. Where
the Buddha spoke with specificity, they gesture vaguely to univer-
sality. In the process, the translations become a more reliable guide
to the ideological priors of the “translators” than they are to any-
thing that the Buddha taught. Such, sad to say, are most of the
popular Dhammapadas that you might purchase through major
publishing houses, or learn from various gurus or teachers.
Any new translation must be, in part, a dialogue with older ver-
sions, which exist both as texts on a page and as echoes in memory.
And when writing, it is not just the translation that matters, but its
reception: translators are in dialogue with both other translators
and with readers. Sometimes we draw from what they have done,
sometimes, we look at things from a fresh angle, and sometimes
we try to correct old errors.
In my translation, I try to remain as close as possible to the mean-
ing of the text, while believing that readability does not compro-
mise accuracy. On the contrary, it is through natural and idiomatic
diction that the meaning is most reliably conveyed. I aim for trans-
xix
parency in translation; it is the Buddha’s words, not mine, that

matter. And I am someone who finds beauty in things that are raw
and natural, so I don’t sand down rough edges.
All these qualities you might find in other translations, but in
one thing my translation is unique: consistency with the rest of
the Suttas. Since I undertook the Dhammapada as part of my
overall translation project, I have tried as best I can to ensure that
renderings make sense in different contexts. That doesn’t mean
they must be identical everywhere, but it does mean that where
context is lacking in the Dhammapada itself, renderings can often
be informed by their occurrence elsewhere. The very first lines of
the Dhammapada are a good example of this, for they echo a short
prose passage in the Aṅguttara Nikāya (see below).
The Commentary
According to the traditions, each of the verses of the Dhammapada
was spoken by the Buddha in response to a specific circumstance.
In the Pali tradition, these background stories are preserved in the
commentary edited and compiled by Buddhaghosa perhaps 800
years after the Buddha, based on much older texts. The stories are
of mixed provenance. Many of them are late in origin. But the
tradition of framing verses in a narrative context dates from the
earliest times, and there is no reason to doubt that at least some of
the stories preserve genuine historical details.
I’ll just make two observations regarding the commentary from
my experience as a teacher. First, many Theravadins, hearing these
stories many times since childhood, assume that they are “Suttas”,
with no concept of the fact that they stem from centuries after the
Buddha’s life. At the very least, we should be able to distinguish
between Sutta and commentary. And second, when I taught a class,
firstly just the verses, and then the verses with stories, the students
universally said they preferred the verses without the stories. So the
xx
idea that the stories make the verses more meaningful or accessible
doesn’t necessarily hold up in practice.
None of this, of course, is to question the inestimable value
that the commentary holds for any translator. Like all Pali verse,
the Dhammapada abounds in tricky idioms and difficult syntax,
and the commentary stands by like a good friend ready to help
the lonely and beleaguered scholar in time of need. No serious
scholar would discount the value of the commentaries in making
our modern understanding of the Pali texts possible.
The Title
Both elements of the word dhammapada can convey different
meanings, and as a result, translators have come up with a bewilder-
ing variety of renderings. Dhamma means “teachings, principles,
the good, virtue, phenomena, justice” etc., and pada means “foot,
footprint, track, step, word, passage, line of verse, state”. In such
cases, the sense of words cannot be simply derived from combining
the elements; rather, let us look at how it is used in the Pali canon
itself.
The title Dhammapada does not feature among the nine sections
of the early teachings (navaṅgadhamma). The word dhammapada
however does appear in the early texts, with two primary meanings.
In AN 4.30 the Buddha speaks to a group of wanderers, nam-
ing three leaders as Annabhāra, Varadhara, and Sakuludāyī. He
describes them as “very well known”, although they are, as it turns
out, only referred to a couple of times elsewhere in the canon (MN
77, AN 4.185). Here he declares that there are four dhammapadas
that are ancient and uncontested. He names them contentment,
goodwill, right mindfulness, and right immersion in samādhi. He
argues that a spiritual practitioner must respect these four, and that
one who does not can be legitimately criticized.
In this context, then, I have translated dhammapada as “basic
principle”. Clearly, it has no direct connection with the book named
xxi
Dhammapada, although one might detect a distant kinship, given

that the Dhammapada also consists of teachings that are, by and
large, “basic principles” that speak to people across boundaries
of religion and sect. In DN 33:1.11.138 we find the same four
dhammapadas listed in summary, and they recur in later texts such
as Pe 1.1:411.1, Ne 37:390.3 and Pe 2:144.1.
A quite different sense is found at SN 9.10, where a mendicant is
admonished by a deity for no longer reciting the Dhamma as they
did in the past. In the verses, the deity uses the term dhammapada
which here must mean something like “passages of the teaching”.
The same sense applies at SN 10.6. A similar sense is found at MN
12:62.10, where it is said that the Buddha would never run out of
ways of explaining the Dhamma, here said to be dhammapadabya-
ñjanaṁ, “words and phrases of the teachings”. At Snp 1.5:6.1 we
find dhammapade sudesite which seems to have a similar mean-
ing. The same phrase occurs in the Dhammapada itself (Dhp 44,
Dhp 45). At SN 1.33:19.2 the dhammapada is said to excel even
generosity; here it seems to mean the “way of the teaching”.
Turning now to later texts, the same meaning is found in Ja 424,
where the gift of dhammapada excels the highest of worldly gifts. In
Ja 532, on the other hand, dhammapada occurs during a discussion
of the debt owed to parents and appears to mean “the path of duty”.
Finally the Dhammapada itself is referred to by name twice in the
Milindapañha (Mil 7.3.8:1.5, Mil 7.7.3:1.6). The verses quoted do
appear in the Pali Dhammapada (Dhp 327, Dhp 32; the latter also
appears at AN 4.37:8.1). So we know that the Pali Dhammapada in
its current form must have existed no later than the creation of the
Milindapañha. We don’t know the exact date of that, but it must
have been after the time of King Menander (2nd century BCE).
Thus in the early texts we find the senses “basic principles” and
“statements of the teaching”. The first is rather restricted and seems
to apply only in the case of the four stated principles, which them-
selves are a statement of common ground between religions, rather
than a presentation of the Buddha’s path. It seems, then, that the
xxii
second meaning applies in this case. “Sayings of the Dhamma” is

an apt title for a work that gathers pithy verses from various places.
Commentators ancient and modern have drawn attention to a
variety of more meaningful implications than the rather staid “Say-
ings of the Dhamma”. Since a pada is a footprint and the dhamma
is the truth, it might mean “tracks of truth”—the traces that the
Buddha’s insight into reality have left in the world. Or, since a series
of footprints is a path, and the dhamma is the “good”, it could be
the “path to virtue”. As a translator, I need to focus on the primary
literary sense that is justified by the text, but as a teacher and prac-
titioner, I also appreciate the way that wordplay can enrich the
nuances and implications of a simple title.
Formation of the Dhammapada

In his introduction, K.R. Norman suggests that, while the
Dhammapada borrows from elsewhere in the canon, it may
also be true that the canonical texts generally borrowed from a
store of relatively free-floating verses that predate the canon as we
know it. Some such verses may even predate the Buddha.
The Buddha himself is recorded as quoting from pre-Buddhist
verses on occasion, and it is true that, while the verses of the
Dhammapada are in harmony with Buddhist teachings, many of
them do not mention specifically Buddhist ideas and would be
equally at home in any of the ancient Indian religions. The same
may be said, it is worth noting, of the prose Suttas. Countless Suttas
teach ethics or meditation or even philosophy in ways that do not
assume a basis in basic Buddhist doctrines. This reflects the fact
that the Buddha spoke to a diverse audience that often included
non-Buddhists. We’ve already seen that the four dhammapadas
were taught specially to emphasize the common ground between
religions, and it may be that this idea influenced the selection of
verses for the Dhammapada.
xxiii
It seems likely to me that the genre of Dhammapada literature

is associated with the popularization and spread of Buddhism in
India, and especially with its adoption as the mainstream religion
of the great emperor Ashoka. The flavor of the Dhammapada res-
onates closely with the tenor of Ashoka’s edicts, with its emphasis
on practical teachings that are universally applicable, and a special
interest in harmony and non-violence. I suspect that the Dhamma-
pada collections were created, or at least popularized and expanded,
in the Ashokan era, drawing on existing verses, and forming a handy
and accessible way to bring the Dhamma to a much broader audi-
ence. In other words, its modern usage as an attractive access point
to the Dhamma for Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike is precisely
the reason why it was created in the first place.
The Teachings of the Dhammapada

Rather than a general overview of the teachings of the Dhamma-
pada, which has been well undertaken by many previously, I will
introduce the meaning of the text through the close study of a few
verses in the opening chapters. In this way, I’d like to suggest that,
while the text may be read as an inspiring source of spiritual quo-
tations, or as a verse summary of the Buddha’s doctrines, it may
also be read as a carefully composed work of spiritual literature,
one that repays careful attention to details, and which contains the
keys to its own interpretation.
The Dhammapada announces its primary theme in its opening
verses. As so often, lines that appear clear and simple in Pali turn
out to be surprisingly difficult to catch exactly in English. A classic
rendering, endlessly requoted, is:
Mind is the forerunner of all things.
It’s curiously difficult to locate the originator of this phrasing.

Ven. Buddhadatta in 1922 had “Mind is the forerunner of all mental
states”, Ven. Nārada (1946) has “Mind is the forerunner of (all evil)
xxiv
states”, while Caroline A.F. Rhys Davids has “Things are forerun by
mind” (1931). The indefatigable Bodhipaksa—whose site “Fake
Buddha Quotes” is essential—has traced this phrasing to an essay
by Ven. Vajirañāṇa called The Importance of Thought in Buddhism
(Maha-bodhi vol. 49, May/June 1941). Like so many after him, he
presents this translation without naming his source, so we do not
know whether the rendering was his or if it was already common
parlance. Ven. Vajirañāṇa was famed not only for his erudition
but for his skill in presenting Dhamma in an accessible and rele-
vant way for a modern audience. He was, in fact, the inventor of
the modern Dhamma talk, and pioneered the practice of giving a
focused and thorough exposition of a specific verse or topic in a
limited time. Such talks would frequently begin by quoting a verse
from the Dhammapada. So, while I have not been able to identify a
Dhammapada translation by Ven. Vajirañāṇa, it is entirely possible
that he developed his own renderings while giving teachings, that
he referred to these in his writings, and that they made their way
into the Buddhist zeitgeist through his many students who became
teachers in their own right.
But let us leave aside questions of authorship and focus on the
text. The “all” here does not appear in the text, but is justified by
the closely related passage at AN 1.56:1.1, where “all” unskilful
qualities are said to have mind as the forerunner. The tricky terms
here, however, are mano (“mind”) and dhamma. As we have seen
with the title of the collection, the openness of the text has invited
a range of renderings. But it is possible to narrow down the sense
from a careful reading of the text in light of the full range of early
teachings.
The verses are about cause and effect. By acting badly, suffering
will come, while by acting well, happiness will follow. That much
is clear.
The pair of terms mano and dhamma are found together in the
standard exposition of the sixth kind of consciousness, mind con-
sciousness. There, mano is the basis of mano-consciousness in the
xxv
same way that the “eye” (etc.) is the basis of “eye-consciousness”

(etc.). Here mano is usually rendered as “mind”. In this context,
dhamma means the phenomena of which the mind is aware, and
is typically rendered as “phenomena”, “thought”, or “mind object”
(though I dislike that rendering).
It’s not clear, however, that this sense pertains here, for we are
not speaking of the process of consciousness, but the creation of
kamma. Of the many words for “mind” in Pali, mano often conveys
the specific sense of “intentionality”. Mano is the active dimension
of mind, the exercise of choice in performing morally potent deeds.
And surely that must be the sense required here.
Dhamma must then refer to the experiences of pleasure and pain
that are formed by the deed. The passage at AN 1.56:1.1 makes it
clear that mano is not apart from the dhammas, but is one of them
(tesaṁ dhammānaṁ). So a rendering like “at the forefront” would
be better than “precedes”.
Even though the context makes it clear that ethical intention is
the subject, the opening line invites an “idealist” interpretation so
long as mano is rendered with “mind”. The Buddha, however, is em-
phasizing the creative power of the mind in the world, rather than
postulating that the entire world is nothing more than a projection
of the mind. So I opted to emphasize the aspect of intention while
clarifying that dhamma refers to a person’s experiences rather than
to all “things” in general.
Intention shapes experiences.
That’s a lot of work to establish just one line, and you will be
delighted to know that I won’t be discussing every line in so much
detail. But what is interesting is how this line functions as a meta-
comment on the text itself. How you experience the Dhamma-
pada depends on what you bring to it. It is not an objective real-
ity to which one must become subject, but a living provocation.
This is why the Dhamma cannot be forced on anyone, and why
someone encountering Dhamma with a “fault-finding mind” (up-
arambhacitta) will never understand it.
xxvi
And while it’s true that mano conveys the primary sense of “in-
tentionality”, it’s also true that the sense is broader than merely
“volition”: it implies a whole-hearted commitment to understand-
ing, a unity of intellect and emotion and sensibility. Wisdom arises
from a peaceful and clear mind, and from critical inquiry when it is
supported by faith. But it will come, though slower perhaps than
we would like, and only if we are patient and humble enough to let
it reveal itself to us.
The text immediately proceeds, as if impelled by the opening
lines, to illustrate the point in a dazzling series of verses, each pair
of which draw out a particular example of just how the mind creates
suffering or happiness.
The second series of verses, which is really two pairs on the same
theme, is almost as famous as the opening, and justly so.
For never is hatred

settled by hate,
it’s only settled by love
The last verse in this series (Dhp 6) invites two quite differ-
ent renderings, depending on whether yamāmase is read with the
root yam as “restrained” or, per the commentary, as a reference to
Yama the god of the dead. The latter leads to such renderings as
Buddharakkhita’s:
There are those who do not realize

that one day we all must die.
Although enjoying the support of the commentary, it is a double-

stretch: yama is not used in this way elsewhere, and to introduce
death here is a dramatic shift.
While the verb yamāmase seems to be only found in this con-
text and this unusual form (3rd plural middle imperative), it’s a
common Pali idiom to say that one should be “restrained” (saṁ-
yama) regarding harming living creatures. We even find this in the
very same verb form: pāṇesu ca saṁyamāmase (SN 10.6:3.1). This
xxvii
option doesn’t lack commentarial support, either, for an alternate

explanation speaks of not amplifying conflicts that have arisen in
the Sangha.
This reading has been adopted by linguistically-minded trans-
lators such as K.R. Norman and Ven. Ānandajoti, and I follow
suit.
Others don’t understand

that here we need to be restrained.
This is a useful detail to bear in mind when comparing different

translations. Older translations, especially those that cleave more
closely to the traditional explanation, tend to use the sense of “death”
here, while modern translations prefer “restraint”.
The final pair of verses undercut the authority of Buddhist
texts themselves, arguing that one who does not practice is like “a
cowherd who counts the cattle of others”, while even one of little
learning may realize the truth. Here the Dhammapada is making
a meta-comment on how to read the Dhammapada, drawing out
the implication in the first verses.
That the unified character of the first chapter is no accident is
borne out by a consideration of the second chapter, on heedfulness
or diligence (appamāda). Here we open with an echo of the pairs
of the first chapter, contrasting the heedless with the heedful.
The opening lines are, once again, not as easy to translate as they
might appear, and they offer us another litmus test to understand
the perspective of different translators.
Commonly we find something like:
Heedfulness is the path to the deathless.
Now, that the “deathless” (amata) refers to Nibbāna is not in

dispute. Nibbāna is “deathless” because it is free from the cycle of
transmigration through birth, old age, and death.
The tricky part is pada. The commentary glosses it with upāyo
maggo “the way, the path” and this is followed by many translators.
xxviii
While pada doesn’t literally mean “path”, it is used in the sense of

“footprint”, hence “tracks”, hence a path to follow. The elephant’s
footprint is sometimes used as an example of following such tracks.
The problem is that in canonical Pali, while this exact phrase
doesn’t appear elsewhere, the “deathless” pada, like the pada of
Nibbāna, is not “followed” but “reached” (Tha-ap 415:11.4, Tha-ap
395:24.4, Tha-ap 340:17.4) or “understood” (Bv 1:68.4). It must,
then, refer to the “state” of the deathless, not the path to it.
This is doctrinally challenging, since heedfulness is a practice,
and normally the texts are quite scrupulous to distinguish the prac-
tice from the fruit. The “path” is said to be the best of conditioned
things (AN 5.32:4.1) because it leads to Nibbāna, not because it is
Nibbāna, which is the only “unconditioned” reality.
Despite this, however, the second half of the same verse makes
it quite clear that this unlikely sense is exactly what is meant:
The heedful do not die
That this, and by extension the whole verse, are spoken with a
metaphorical force is clarified by the inclusion of yathā in the last
line:
while the heedless are like the dead.
This gives us an idea of the subtle shifts in the text as explained

by the commentary and back-read into the texts by translators.
It’s a normalizing reading, smoothing the craggy text so that it is
more easily reconciled with the systematic doctrines of the prose.
The original is, to my mind, more powerful and dramatic precisely
because it says something unexpected. What exactly can it mean
to say that heedfulness is the state of deathlessness?
The commentary, of course, is no stranger to metaphor and is
quite happy to draw out metaphors where needed. Yet anyone
familiar with traditional religious communities will recognize the
way that playful and metaphorical scriptures are flattened and re-
duced by the dead hand of literalism, stripped of wit and nuance,
xxix
driven by the fear that someone might not understand things cor-
rectly.
Once again, I see a meta-purpose in the arrangement of the
text. The verse that invokes heedfulness is itself easily misread
by the heedless. Heedfulness is more than just the path to the
Deathless, it is itself a state of life, of active and vital response
to the moment, of a continual reassessment and questioning of
assumptions. The chapter deliberately opens with a verse that
wakes the reader, even, and perhaps especially, one who is already
versed in Buddhist doctrine.
As with the first chapter, a series of striking verses draw out the
theme from various angles, but the force of the opening verses is
revisited in the closing. One who loves diligence cannot fall back
from the path but is in the very presence of Nibbāna. Here again,
the line between metaphor and reality is deliberately blurred by
the text as if exceeding the limits of words.
I’ll leave my reading of the text there. Hopefully, this is enough to
show that the poetic strength of the text is not diminished by a close
reading, but rather, that it allows hidden nuances and unexpected
implications to reveal themselves. There is more to poetry than
a wording that sounds nice, and more to teaching Dhamma than
restating standard doctrines.
A Brief Textual History

The first 255 verses of the Dhammapada were translated by
Daniel John Gogerly and published in the journal “The Friend”
in Colombo in 1840. It was among the first translations of Pali into
English. This is how he rendered the first verse:
Mind precedes action. The motive is chief: actions precede
from mind. If anyone speak or act from a corrupt mind, suffering
will follow the action, as the wheel follows the lifted foot of the ox.
The 1855 edition edited by Viggo Fausbøll and published as

Dhammapadam was perhaps the first of all canonical Pali texts
xxx
published in book form and in Roman characters. (It had been

preceded by editions of the Mahāvaṁsa—the great chronicle of
Sri Lanka—by Eugène Burnouf in 1826 and George Turnour in
1837.) He also supplied excerpts from the commentary, with tex-
tual apparatus and literal translation both in Latin. For his text,
Fausbøll relied primarily on three manuscripts in Sinhalese charac-
ters held at the Great Royal Library of Copenhagen. He introduced
verse numbers, which were adopted by later editions and are still in
use today. At such an early date, the means of Romanizing Pali had
not yet been standardized, but the text remains clear and readable.
This was updated in 1900 and republished via Luzac & Co. under
the title, The Dhammapada, Being a Collection of Moral Verses in Pali.
Fausbøll notes several editions since his 1855 edition, in Sinhalese,
Thai, and Burmese characters, as well as several new translations
in various languages.
As an aside, Fausbøll remarks that the Thai characters are dif-
ficult to read, and argues that the Roman characters will become
universal, advancing the curious opinion that English likewise will
be the universal language “for it is a well-known fact that in the
beginning the Lord took all languages, boiled them in a pot, and
forthwith extracted the English language as the essence of them
all.” I felt I had to mention this because it is rare in studies of Pali
manuscripts to find evidence of a sense of humor!
As regards the Thai characters, it is noteworthy that, while
printed Thai has become a perfectly readable script, it is nonethe-
less the case that the Mahāsaṅgīti edition, which is used by Sut-
taCentral, was published by a Thai consortium purely in Roman
characters. This was because they had become frustrated with the
mispronunciation of Pali in Thailand, caused by the fact that the
same letter sometimes has a different value in Thai and Pali. The
same is true of Pali written in other local scripts, and while Pali
scholars are well aware of the issues, it is still the case that not only
are Pali words often mispronounced, there are entire movements
of Buddhism based on a misspelling of words due to ignorance of
xxxi
such basic details. Having said which, the use of Roman characters
is by no means a sure way of guarding against mispronunciation or
misunderstanding. Pali may be perfectly well represented by many
scripts, and the only real guard against misunderstanding is, as the
Dhammapada itself teaches us, heedfulness.
The first complete and rigorous translation into English was that
by Max Müller through Clarendon Press in 1870, revised in 1881
and 1898. Müller was one of the founding fathers of Indology,
although by his own admission Pali and Buddhism were not his
primary focus. His work greatly influenced later translators, and in
addition, contained an extensive discussion of historical matters.
It was not until 1914 that the Pali Text Society published its
edition, which was edited by Sūriyagoda Sumaṅgala Thera based
on printed editions in Burmese, Thai, and Sinhalese characters, as
well as “two reliable manuscripts” in his possession. The edition
carefully notes variant readings and cross-references and became
the standard edition for international Pali studies until replaced by
the 1994 PTS edition by O. von Hinüber and K. R. Norman.
Finally I should mention the excellent edition of the Dhamma-
pada by Ānandajoti Bhikkhu, originally in 2002 and last updated
in 2016. This is primarily a revision and correction of the Bud-
dha Jayanthi text but takes into consideration the PTS and other
editions, as well as an extensive comparative study with the Patna
Dharmapada.
Thus far a cursory and incomplete survey of Pali editions has
taken us, and I have barely scratched the surface of the translations,
which number over 70 in English alone. I will simply note here
that when looking for assistance in unraveling the knotty problems
of the text I turned first of all to the work of K.R. Norman and Ven.
Ānandajoti. I also referred from time to time to the translations
of Ven. Buddharakkhita and Ven. Ṭhānissaro, the latter of whom
sometimes catches aesthetic nuances that a linguist might miss.
xxxii
Acknowledgements
I remember with gratitude all those from whom I have learned the
Dhamma, especially Ajahn Brahm and Bhikkhu Bodhi, the two
monks who more than anyone else showed me the depth, meaning,
and practical value of the Suttas.
Special thanks to Dustin and Keiko Cheah and family, who
sponsored my stay in Qi Mei while I made this translation.
Thanks also for Blake Walshe, who provided essential software
support for my translation work.
Throughout the process of translation, I have frequently sought
feedback and suggestions from the community on the SuttaCentral
community on our forum, “Discuss and Discover”. I want to thank
all those who have made suggestions and contributed to my under-
standing, as well as to the moderators who have made the forum
possible. These translations were significantly improved due to
the careful work of my proofreaders: Ayyā Pāsādā, John and Lynn
Kelly, and Derek Sola. Special thanks are due to Sabbamittā, a true
friend of all, who has tirelessly and precisely checked my work.
Finally my everlasting thanks to all those people, far too many to
mention, who have supported SuttaCentral, and those who have
supported my life as a monastic. None of this would be possible
without you.
Dhp 1–20
1. Pairs
Yamakavagga
1 Intention shapes experiences;1

intention is first, they’re made by intention.
If with corrupt intent
you speak or act,
suffering follows you,
like a wheel, the ox’s foot.
2 Intention shapes experiences;

intention is first, they’re made by intention.
If with pure intent
you speak or act,
happiness follows you
like a shadow that never leaves.
3 “They abused me, they hit me!

They beat me, they robbed me!”
For those who bear such a grudge,
hatred never ends.
4 “They abused me, they hit me!

They beat me, they robbed me!”
1. Mano here has its usual role as the active aspect of mind, effectively meaning
kamma. Translating as “mind” obscures the ethical reading in favor of an
idealistic one, which given the remainder of the verse is surely not justified.
1. pairs
For those who bear no such grudge,

hatred has an end.
For never is hatred 5

settled by hate,
it’s only settled by love:
this is an eternal truth.
Others don’t understand 6

that here we need to be restrained.
But those who do understand this,
being clever, settle their conflicts.
Those who contemplate the beautiful, 7

their faculties unrestrained,
immoderate in eating,
lazy, lacking energy:
Māra strikes them down
like the wind, a feeble tree.
Those who contemplate the ugly, 8

their faculties well-restrained,
eating in moderation,
faithful and energetic:
Māra cannot strike them down,
like the wind, a rocky mountain.
One who, not free of stains themselves, 9

would wear the robe stained in ocher,
bereft of self-control and of truth:
they are not worthy of the ocher robe.
One who’s purged all their stains, 10

steady in ethics,
possessed of self-control and of truth,
they are truly worthy of the ocher robe.
3 Dhp 1–20
yamakavagga
11 Thinking the inessential is essential,

seeing the essential as inessential;
they don’t realize the essential,
for wrong thoughts are their pasture.
12 Having known the essential as essential,
and the inessential as inessential;
they realize the essential,
for right thoughts are their pasture.
13 Just as rain seeps into
a poorly roofed house,
lust seeps into
an undeveloped mind.
14 Just as rain doesn’t seep into
a well roofed house,
lust doesn’t seep into
a well developed mind.
15 Here they grieve, hereafter they grieve,
an evildoer grieves in both places.
They grieve and fret,
seeing their own corrupt deeds.
16 Here they rejoice, hereafter they rejoice,
one who does good rejoices in both places.
They rejoice and celebrate,
seeing their own pure deeds.
17 Here they’re tormented,
hereafter they’re tormented,
an evildoer is tormented in both places.
They’re tormented
thinking of bad things they’ve done;
when gone to a bad place,
they’re tormented all the more.
Dhp 1–20 4
1. pairs
Here they delight, hereafter they delight, 18

one who does good delights in both places.
They delight thinking of good things they’ve done;
when gone to a good place, they delight all the more.
Much though they may recite scripture, 19

if a negligent person does not apply them,
then, like a cowherd who counts the cattle of others,
they miss out on the blessings of the ascetic life.
Little though they may recite scripture, 20

if they live in line with the teachings,
having given up greed, hate, and delusion,
with deep understanding and heart well-freed,
not grasping to this world or the next,
they share in the blessings of the ascetic life.
5 Dhp 1–20
Dhp 21–32
2. Diligence
Appamādavagga
21 Heedfulness is the deathless state;

heedlessness is the state of death.
The heedful do not die,
while the heedless are like the dead.
22 Understanding this distinction

when it comes to heedfulness,
the astute rejoice in heedfulness,
happy in the noble ones’ domain.
23 They who regularly meditate,

always staunchly vigorous;
those wise ones realize quenching,
the supreme sanctuary.
24 For the hard-working and mindful,

pure of deed and attentive,
restrained, living righteously, and diligent,
their reputation only grows.
25 By hard work and diligence,

by restraint and by self-control,
a smart person would build an island
that the floods cannot overflow.
2. diligence
Fools and half-wits 26

devote themselves to negligence.
But the wise protect diligence
as their best treasure.
Don’t devote yourself to negligence, 27

or delight in sexual intimacy.
For if you’re diligent and meditate,
you’ll attain abundant happiness.
When the astute dispel negligence 28

by means of diligence,
ascending the palace of wisdom,
sorrowless, they behold this generation of sorrow,
as a wise man on a mountain-top
beholds the fools below.
Heedful among the heedless, 29

wide awake while others sleep—
a true sage leaves them behind,
like a swift horse passing a feeble.
Maghavā became chief of the gods 30

by means of diligence.
People praise diligence,
while negligence is always deplored.
A mendicant who loves to be diligent, 31

seeing fear in negligence—
advances like fire,
burning up fetters big and small.
A mendicant who loves to be diligent, 32

seeing fear in negligence—
such a one can’t decline,
and has drawn near to extinguishment.
7 Dhp 21–32
Dhp 33–43
3. The Mind
Cittavagga
33 The mind quivers and shakes,

hard to guard, hard to curb.
The discerning straighten it out,
like a fletcher straightens an arrow.
34 Like a fish pulled from the sea

and cast upon the shore,
this mind flounders about,
trying to throw off Māra’s sway.
35 Hard to hold back, flighty,

alighting where it will;
it’s good to tame the mind;
a tamed mind leads to bliss.
36 So hard to see, so subtle,

alighting where it will;
the discerning protect the mind,
a guarded mind leads to bliss.
37 The mind travels far, wandering alone;

incorporeal, it hides in a cave.
Those who will restrain the mind
are freed from Māra’s bonds.
3. the mind
Those of unsteady mind, 38

who don’t understand the true teaching,
and whose confidence wavers,
do not perfect their wisdom.
One whose mind is uncorrupted, 39

whose heart is undamaged,
who’s given up right and wrong,
alert, has nothing to fear.
Knowing this body breaks like a pot, 40

and fortifying the mind like a citadel,
attack Māra with the sword of wisdom,
guard your conquest, and never settle.
All too soon this body 41

will lie upon the earth,
bereft of consciousness,
tossed aside like a useless log.
A wrongly directed mind 42

would do you more harm
than a hater to the hated,
or an enemy to their foe.
A rightly directed mind 43

would do you more good
than your mother or father
or any other relative.
9 Dhp 33–43
Dhp 44–59
4. Flowers
Pupphavagga
44 Who shall explore this land,

and the Yama realm with its gods?
Who shall examine the well-taught word of truth,
as an expert examines a flower?
45 A trainee shall explore this land,

and the Yama realm with its gods.
A trainee shall examine the well-taught word of truth,
as an expert examines a flower.
46 Knowing this body’s like foam,

realizing it’s all just a mirage,
and cutting off Māra’s blossoming,
vanish from the King of Death.
47 As a mighty flood sweeps off a sleeping village,

death steals away a man
even as he gathers flowers,
his mind caught up in them.
48 The terminator gains control of the man

who has not had his fill of pleasures,
even as he gathers flowers,
4. flowers
A bee takes the nectar 49

and moves on, doing no damage
to the flower’s beauty and fragrance;
and that’s how a sage should walk in the village.
Don’t find fault with others, 50

with what they’ve done or left undone.
You should only watch yourself,
what you’ve done or left undone.
Just like a glorious flower 51

that’s colorful but lacks fragrance;
eloquent speech is fruitless
for one who does not act on it.
Just like a glorious flower 52

that’s both colorful and fragrant,
eloquent speech is fruitful
for one who acts on it.
Just as one would create many garlands 53

from a heap of flowers,
when a person has come to be born,
they should do many skillful things.
The fragrance of flowers doesn’t spread upwind, 54

nor sandalwood, pinwheel, or jasmine;
but the fragrance of the good spreads upwind;
a good person’s virtue spreads in every direction.
Among all the fragrances— 55

sandalwood or pinwheel
or lotus or jasmine—
the fragrance of virtue is supreme.
11 Dhp 44–59
pupphavagga
56 Faint is the fragrance

of sandal or pinwheel;
but the fragrance of the virtuous
floats to the highest gods.
57 For those accomplished in ethics,

meditating diligently,
freed through the highest knowledge,
Māra cannot find their path.
58 From a forsaken heap

discarded on the highway,
a lotus might blossom,
fragrant and delightful.
59 So too, among the forsaken,

a disciple of the perfect Buddha
outshines with their wisdom
the blind ordinary folk.
Dhp 44–59 12
Dhp 60–75
5. The Fool
Bālavagga
Long is the night for the wakeful; 60

long is the league for the weary;
long transmigrate the fools
who don’t understand the true teaching.
If while wandering you find no partner 61

equal or better than yourself,
then firmly resolve to wander alone—
there’s no fellowship with fools.
“Sons are mine, wealth is mine”— 62

thus the fool frets.
But you can’t even call your self your own,
let alone your sons or wealth.
The fool who thinks they’re a fool 63

is wise at least to that extent.
But the true fool is said to be one
who imagines that they are wise.
Though a fool attends to the wise 64

even for the rest of their life,
they still don’t experience the teaching,
like a spoon the taste of the soup.
bālavagga
65 If a clever person attends to the wise

even just for an hour or so,
they swiftly experience the teaching,
like a tongue the taste of the soup.
66 Witless fools behave

like their own worst enemies,
doing wicked deeds
that ripen as bitter fruit.
67 It’s not good to do a deed

that plagues you later on,
for which you weep and wail,
as its effect stays with you.
68 It is good to do a deed
that doesn’t plague you later on,
that gladdens and cheers,
as its effect stays with you.
69 The fool imagines that evil is sweet,

so long as it has not yet ripened.
But as soon as that evil ripens,
they fall into suffering.
70 Month after month a fool may eat

food from a grass-blade’s tip;
but they’ll never be worth a sixteenth part
of one who has fathomed the teaching.
71 For a wicked deed that has been done

does not spoil quickly like milk.
Smoldering, it follows the fool,
like a fire smothered over with ash.
Dhp 60–75 14
5. the fool
Whatever fame a fool may get, 72

it only gives rise to harm.
Whatever good features they have it ruins,
and blows their head into bits.
They’d seek the esteem that they lack, 73

and status among the mendicants;
authority over monasteries,
and honor among other families.
“Let both layfolk and renunciants think 74

the work was done by me alone.
In anything at all that’s to be done,
let them fall under my sway alone.”
So thinks the fool,
their greed and pride only growing.
For the means to profit and the path to quenching 75

are two quite different things.
A mendicant disciple of the Buddha,
understanding what this really means,
would never delight in honors,
but rather would foster seclusion.
15 Dhp 60–75
Dhp 76–89
6. The Astute
Paṇḍitavagga
76 Regard one who sees your faults

as a guide to a hidden treasure.
Stay close to one so wise and astute
who corrects you when you need it.
Sticking close to such an impartial person,
things get better, not worse.
77 Advise and instruct;
curb wickedness:
for you shall be loved by the good,
and disliked by the bad.
78 Don’t mix with bad friends,
nor with the worst of men.
Mix with spiritual friends,
and with the best of men.
79 Through joy in the teaching you sleep at ease,
with clear and confident heart.
An astute person always delights in the teaching
proclaimed by the Noble One.
80 While irrigators guide water,
fletchers straighten arrows,
and carpenters carve timber,
the astute tame themselves.
6. the astute
As the wind cannot stir 81

a solid mass of rock,
so too blame and praise
do not affect the wise.
Like a deep lake, 82

clear and unclouded,
so clear are the astute
when they hear the teachings.
Good people give up everything, 83

they don’t cajole for the things they desire.
Though touched by sadness or happiness,
the astute appear neither depressed nor elated.
Never wish for success by unjust means, 84

for your own sake or that of another,
desiring children, wealth, or nation;
rather, be virtuous, wise, and just.
Few are those among humans 85

who cross to the far shore.
The rest just run around
on the near shore.
When the teaching is well explained, 86

those who practice accordingly
will cross over
Death’s domain so hard to pass.
Rid of dark qualities, 87

an astute person should develop the bright.
Leaving home behind
for the seclusion so hard to enjoy,
17 Dhp 76–89
paṇḍitavagga
88 find delight there,

having left behind sensual pleasures.
With no possessions, an astute person
would cleanse themselves of mental corruptions.
89 Those whose minds are rightly developed

in the awakening factors;
who, letting go of attachments,
delight in not grasping:
with defilements ended, brilliant,
they in this world are quenched.
Dhp 76–89 18
Dhp 90–99
7. The Perfected Ones
Arahantavagga
At journey’s end, rid of sorrow; 90

everywhere free,
all ties given up,
no fever is found in them.
The mindful apply themselves; 91

they delight in no abode.
Like a swan from the marsh that’s gone,
they leave behind home after home.
Those with nothing stored up, 92

who have understood their food,
whose domain is the liberation
of the signless and the empty:
their path is hard to trace,
like birds in the sky.
One whose defilements have ended; 93

who’s not attached to food;
whose domain is the liberation
of the signless and the empty:
their track is hard to trace,
like birds in the sky.
Whose faculties have become serene, 94

arahantavagga
like horses tamed by a charioteer,

who has abandoned conceit and defilements;
the poised one is envied by even the gods.
95 Undisturbed like the earth,

true to their vows, steady as a post,
like a lake clear of mud;
such a one does not transmigrate.
96 Their mind is peaceful,

peaceful are their speech and deeds.
Such a one is at peace,
rightly freed through enlightenment.
97 Lacking faith, a house-breaker,

one who acknowledges nothing,
purged of hope, they’ve wasted their chance:
that is indeed the supreme person!
98 Whether in village or wilderness,

in a valley or the uplands,
wherever the perfected ones live
is a delightful place.
99 Delightful are the wildernesses

where no people delight.
Those free of greed will delight there,
not those who seek sensual pleasures.
Dhp 90–99 20
Dhp 100–115
8. The Thousands
Sahassavagga
Better than a thousand 100

meaningless sayings
is a single meaningful saying,
hearing which brings you peace.
Better than a thousand 101

meaningless verses
is a single meaningful verse,
Better than reciting 102

a hundred meaningless verses
is a single saying of Dhamma,
The supreme conqueror is 103

not he who conquers a million men in battle,
but he who conquers a single man:
himself.
It is surely better to conquer oneself 104

than all those other folk.
When a person has tamed themselves,
always living restrained,
sahassavagga
105 no god nor fairy,

nor Māra nor Brahmā,
can undo the victory
of such a one.
106 Rather than a thousand-fold sacrifice,
every month for a hundred years,
it’s better to honor for a single moment
one who has developed themselves.
That offering is better
than the hundred year sacrifice.
107 Rather than serve the sacred flame
in the forest for a hundred years,
it’s better to honor for a single moment
one who has developed themselves.
That offering is better
than the hundred year sacrifice.
108 Whatever sacrifice or offering in the world
a seeker of merit may make for a year,
none of it is worth a quarter
of bowing to the upright.
109 For one in the habit of bowing,
always honoring the elders,
four blessings grow:
lifespan, beauty, happiness, and strength.
110 Better to live a single day
ethical and absorbed in meditation
than to live a hundred years
unethical and lacking immersion.
111 Better to live a single day
wise and absorbed in meditation
witless and lacking immersion.
Dhp 100–115 22
8. the thousands
Better to live a single day 112

energetic and strong,
lazy and lacking energy.

seeing rise and fall
blind to rise and fall.

seeing the deathless state
blind to the deathless state.

seeing the supreme teaching
blind to the supreme teaching.
23 Dhp 100–115
Dhp 116–128
9. Wickedness
Pāpavagga
116 Rush to do good,

shield your mind from evil;
for when you’re slow to do good,
your thoughts delight in wickedness.
117 If you do something bad,

don’t do it again and again,
don’t set your heart on it,
for piling up evil is suffering.
118 If you do something good,

do it again and again,
set your heart on it,
for piling up goodness is joyful.
119 Even the wicked see good things,

so long as their wickedness has not ripened.
But as soon as that wickedness ripens,
then the wicked see wicked things.
120 Even the good see wicked things,

so long as their goodness has not ripened.
But as soon as that goodness ripens,
then the good see good things.
9. wickedness
Think not lightly of evil, 121

that it won’t come back to you.
The pot is filled with water
falling drop by drop;
the fool is filled with wickedness
piled up bit by bit.
Think not lightly of goodness, 122
that it won’t come back to you.
The pot is filled with water
falling drop by drop;
the sage is filled with goodness
piled up bit by bit.
Avoid wickedness, 123
as a merchant with rich cargo and small escort
would avoid a dangerous road,
or one who loves life would avoid drinking poison.
You can carry poison in your hand 124
if it has no wound,
for poison does not infect without a wound;
nothing bad happens unless you do bad.
Whoever wrongs a man who has done no wrong, 125
a pure man who has not a blemish,
the evil backfires on the fool,
like fine dust thrown upwind.
Some are born in a womb; 126
evil-doers go to hell;
the virtuous go to heaven;
the undefiled become fully extinguished.
Not in the sky, nor mid-ocean, 127
nor hiding in a mountain cleft;
you’ll find no place in the world
to escape your wicked deeds.
25 Dhp 116–128
pāpavagga
128 Not in the sky, nor mid-ocean,

nor hiding in a mountain cleft;
you’ll find no place in the world
where you won’t be vanquished by death.
Dhp 116–128 26
Dhp 129–145
10. The Rod
Daṇḍavagga
All tremble at the rod, 129

all fear death.
Treating others like oneself,
neither kill nor incite to kill.
All tremble at the rod, 130

all love life.
Treating others like oneself,
neither kill nor incite to kill.
Creatures love happiness, 131

so if you harm them with a stick2
in search of your own happiness,
after death you won’t find happiness.
Creatures love happiness, 132

so if you don’t hurt them with a stick
in search of your own happiness,
after death you will find happiness.
Don’t speak harshly, 133

they may speak harshly back.
For aggressive speech is painful,
and the rod may spring back on you.
2. This verse parallels Ud 2.3 where it is clear an actual stick is meant.
daṇḍavagga
134 If you still yourself

like a broken gong,
you’re quenched
and conflict-free.
135 As a cowherd drives the cows

to pasture with the rod,
so too old age and death
drive life from living beings.
136 The fool does not understand

the evil that they do.
But because of those deeds, that dullard
is tormented as if burnt by fire.
137 One who violently attacks

the peaceful and the innocent
swiftly falls
to one of ten bad states:
138 harsh pain; loss;

the breakup of the body;
serious illness;
mental distress;
139 hazards from rulers;

vicious slander;
loss of kin;
destruction of wealth;
140 or else their home

is consumed by fire.
When their body breaks up, that witless person
is reborn in hell.
Dhp 129–145 28
10. the rod
Not nakedness, nor matted hair, nor mud, 141

nor fasting, nor lying on bare ground,
nor wearing dust and dirt, or squatting on the heels,
will cleanse a mortal not free of doubt.
Dressed-up they may be, but if they live well— 142

peaceful, tamed, committed to the spiritual path,
having laid aside violence towards all creatures—
they are a brahmin, an ascetic, a mendicant.
Can a person constrained by conscience 143

be found in the world?
Who shies away from blame,
like a fine horse from the whip?
Like a fine horse under the whip, 144

be keen and full of urgency.
With faith, ethics, and energy,
immersion, and investigation of principles,
accomplished in knowledge and conduct, mindful,
give up this vast suffering.
While irrigators guide water, 145

fletchers shape arrows,
and carpenters carve timber—
those true to their vows tame themselves.
29 Dhp 129–145
Dhp 146–156
11. Old Age
Jarāvagga
146 What is joy, what is laughter,

when the flames are ever burning?
Shrouded by darkness,
would you not seek a light?
147 See this fancy puppet,

a body built of sores,
diseased, obsessed over,
in which nothing lasts at all.
148 This body is decrepit and frail,

a nest of disease.
This foul carcass falls apart,
for life ends only in death.
149 These dove-grey bones

are tossed away like
dried gourds in the autumn—
what joy is there in such a sight?
150 In this city built of bones,

plastered with flesh and blood,
old age and death are stashed away,
along with conceit and contempt.
11. old age
Fancy chariots of kings wear out, 151

and even this body gets old.
But the teaching of the good never gets old;
so the true and the good proclaim.
A person of little learning 152

ages like an ox—
their flesh grows,
but not their wisdom.
Transmigrating through countless rebirths, 153

I’ve journeyed without reward,
searching for the house-builder;
painful is birth again and again.
I’ve seen you, house-builder! 154

You won’t build a house again!
Your rafters are all broken,
your roof-peak is demolished.
My mind, set on demolition,
has reached the end of craving.
When young they spurned the spiritual path 155

and failed to earn any wealth.
Now they languish like old cranes
in a pond bereft of fish.
When young they spurned the spiritual path 156

and failed to earn any wealth.
Now they lie like spent arrows,
bemoaning over things past.
31 Dhp 146–156
Dhp 157–166
12. The Self
Attavagga
157 If you’d only love yourself,

you’d look after yourself right well.
In one of the night’s three watches,
an astute person would remain alert.
158 The astute would avoid being corrupted

by grounding themselves first of all
in what is suitable,
and only then instructing others.
159 If one so acts

as one instructs,
the well-tamed would tame others,
for the self is hard to tame, they say.
160 Self is indeed the lord of self,

for who else would be one’s lord?
When one’s self is well-tamed,
one gains a lord that’s rare indeed.
161 For the evil that one does,

born and produced in oneself,
grinds down a fool,
as diamond grinds a lesser gem.
12. the self
One choked by immorality, 162

as a sal tree by a creeper,
does to themselves
what a foe only wishes.
It’s easy to do bad things 163

harmful to oneself,
but good things that are helpful
are the hardest things to do.
On account of wicked views— 164

scorning the guidance
of the perfected ones,
the noble ones living righteously—
the idiot begets their own demise,
like the bamboo bearing fruit.
For it is by oneself that evil’s done, 165

one is corrupted by oneself.
It’s by oneself that evil’s not done,
one is purified by oneself.
Purity and impurity are personal matters,
no one can purify another.
Never neglect your own good 166

for the sake of another, however great.
Knowing well what’s good for you,
be intent upon your true goal.
33 Dhp 157–166
Dhp 167–178
13. The World
Lokavagga
167 Don’t resort to lowly things,

don’t abide in negligence,
don’t resort to wrong views,
don’t perpetuate the world.
168 Get up, don’t be heedless,

live by principle, with good conduct.
For one of good conduct sleeps at ease,
in this world and the next.
169 Live by principle, with good conduct,

don’t conduct yourself badly.
For one of good conduct sleeps at ease,
170 Look upon the world

as a bubble
or a mirage,
then the King of Death won’t see you.
171 Come, see this world decked out

like a fancy royal chariot.
Here fools flounder,
but the discerning are not chained.
13. the world
He who once was heedless, 172

but turned to heedfulness,
lights up the world
like the moon freed from clouds.
Someone whose bad deed 173

is supplanted by the good,
lights up the world,
like the moon freed from clouds.
Blind is the world, 174

few are those who clearly see.
Only a handful go to heaven,
like a bird freed from a net.
Swans fly by the sun’s path, 175

psychic sages fly through space.
The wise leave the world,
having vanquished Māra and his mount.
When a person, spurning the hereafter, 176

transgresses in just one thing—
lying—
there is no evil they would not do.
The miserly don’t ascend to heaven, 177

it takes a fool to not praise giving.
The wise celebrate giving,
and so find happiness in the hereafter.
The fruit of stream-entry is better 178

than being the one king of the earth,
than going to heaven,
than lordship over all the world.
35 Dhp 167–178
Dhp 179–196
14. The Buddhas
Buddhavagga
179 He whose victory may not be undone,

a victory unrivaled in all the world;
by what track would you trace that Buddha,
who leaves no track in his infinite range?
180 Of craving, the weaver, the clinger, he has none:

so where can he be traced?
By what track would you trace that Buddha,
who leaves no track in his infinite range?
181 The wise intent on absorption,

who love the peace of renunciation,
the Buddhas, ever mindful,
are envied by even the gods.
182 It’s hard to gain a human birth;

the life of mortals is hard;
it’s hard to hear the true teaching;
the arising of Buddhas is hard.
183 Not to do any evil;

to embrace the good;
to purify one’s mind:
this is the instruction of the Buddhas.
14. the buddhas
Patient acceptance is the ultimate fervor. 184

Extinguishment is the ultimate, say the Buddhas.
No true renunciate injures another,
nor does an ascetic hurt another.
Not speaking ill nor doing harm; 185

restraint in the monastic code;
moderation in eating;
staying in remote lodgings;
commitment to the higher mind—
this is the instruction of the Buddhas.
Even if it were raining money, 186

you’d not be sated in sensual pleasures.
An astute person understands that sensual pleasures
offer little gratification and much suffering.
Thus they find no delight 187

even in celestial pleasures.
A disciple of the fully awakened Buddha
delights in the ending of craving.
So many go for refuge 188

to mountains and forest groves,
to tree-shrines in tended parks;
those people are driven by fear.
But such refuge is no sanctuary, 189

it is no supreme refuge.
By going to that refuge,
you’re not released from suffering.
One gone for refuge to the Buddha, 190

to his teaching and to the Saṅgha,
sees the four noble truths
with right understanding:
37 Dhp 179–196
buddhavagga
191 suffering, suffering’s origin,

suffering’s transcendence,
and the noble eightfold path
that leads to the stilling of suffering.
192 Such refuge is a sanctuary,

it is the supreme refuge.
By going to that refuge,
you’re released from all suffering.
193 It’s hard to find a thoroughbred man

they’re not born just anywhere.
A family where that sage is born
prospers in happiness.
194 Happy, the arising of Buddhas!

Happy, the teaching of Dhamma!
Happy is the harmony of the Saṅgha,
and the striving of the harmonious is happy.
195 When a person venerates the worthy—

the Buddha or his disciple,
who have transcended proliferation,
and have left behind grief and lamentation,
196 quenched, fearing nothing from any quarter—

the merit of one venerating such as these,
cannot be calculated by anyone,
saying it is just this much.
Dhp 179–196 38
Dhp 197–208
15. Happiness
Sukhavagga
Let us live so very happily, 197

loving among the hostile.
Among hostile people,
let us live with love.

healthy among the ailing.
Among ailing people
let us live healthily.

content among the greedy.
Among greedy people,
let us live content.

we who have nothing.
We shall feed on rapture,
like the gods of streaming radiance.
Victory breeds enmity; 201

the defeated sleep badly.
The peaceful sleep at ease,
having left victory and defeat behind.
sukhavagga
202 There is no fire like greed,

no crime like hate,
no suffering like the aggregates,
no bliss beyond peace.
203 Hunger is the worst illness,
conditions are the worst suffering,
For one who truly knows this,
extinguishment is the ultimate happiness.
204 Health is the ultimate blessing;
contentment, the ultimate wealth;
trust is the ultimate family;
extinguishment, the ultimate happiness.
205 Having drunk the nectar of seclusion
and the nectar of peace,
free of stress, free of evil,
one drinks the joyous nectar of Dhamma.
206 It’s good to see the noble ones,
staying with them is always good.
Were you not to see fools,
you’d always be happy.
207 For one who consorts with fools
grieves long.
Painful is dwelling with fools,
like being stuck with your enemy.
Happy is dwelling with a sage,
like meeting with your kin.
208 Therefore:
A sage, wise and learned,
a mammoth of virtue, true to their vows, noble:
follow a good and intelligent person such as this,
as the moon tracks the path of the stars.
Dhp 197–208 40
Dhp 209–220
16. The Beloved
Piyavagga
Applying yourself where you ought not, 209

neglecting what you should be doing,
forgetting your goal, you cling to what you hold dear,
jealous of those devoted to their own goal.
Don’t ever get too close 210

to those you like or dislike.
For not seeing the liked is suffering,
and so is seeing the disliked.
Therefore don’t hold anything dear, 211

for it’s bad to lose those you love.
No ties are found in they who
hold nothing loved or loathed.
Sorrow springs from what we hold dear, 212

fear springs from what we hold dear;
one free from holding anything dear
has no sorrow, let alone fear.
Sorrow springs from attachment, 213

fear springs from attachment;
one free from attachment
piyavagga
214 Sorrow springs from relishing,

fear springs from relishing;
one free from relishing
215 Sorrow springs from desire,

fear springs from desire;
one free from desire
216 Sorrow springs from craving,

fear springs from craving;
one free from craving
217 One accomplished in virtue and vision,

firm in principle, and truthful,
doing oneself what ought be done:
that’s who the people love.
218 One eager to realize the ineffable

would be filled with awareness.
Their mind not bound to pleasures of sense,
they’re said to be heading upstream.
219 When a man returns safely

after a long time spent abroad,
family, friends, and loved ones
celebrate his return.
220 Just so, when one who has done good

goes from this world to the next,
their good deeds receive them there,
as family welcomes home one they love.
Dhp 209–220 42
Dhp 221–234
17. Anger
Kodhavagga
Give up anger, get rid of conceit, 221

and escape every fetter.
Sufferings don’t befall one who has nothing,
not clinging to name and form.
When anger surges like a lurching chariot, 222

keep it in check.
That’s what I call a charioteer;
others just hold the reins.
Defeat anger with kindness, 223

villainy with virtue,
stinginess with giving,
and lies with truth.
Speak the truth, do not be angry, 224

and give when asked, if only a little.
By these three means,
you may enter the presence of the gods.
Those harmless sages, 225

always restrained in body,
go to the imperishable state,
where there is no sorrow.
kodhavagga
226 Always wakeful,

practicing night and day,
focused only on quenching,
their defilements come to an end.
227 It’s always been like this,

it’s not just today.
They blame you when you’re silent,
they blame you when you speak a lot,
and even when you speak just right:
no-one in the world escapes blame.
228 There never was, nor will be,

nor is there today,
someone who is wholly praised
or wholly blamed.
229 If, after watching them day in day out,

discerning people praise
that sage of impeccable conduct,
endowed with ethics and wisdom;
230 like a pendant of river gold,

who is worthy to criticize them?
Even the gods praise them,
and by Brahmā, too, they’re praised.
231 Guard against ill-tempered deeds,

be restrained in body.
Giving up bad bodily conduct,
conduct yourself well in body.
232 Guard against ill-tempered words,

be restrained in speech.
Giving up bad verbal conduct,
conduct yourself well in speech.
Dhp 221–234 44
17. anger
Guard against ill-tempered thoughts, 233

be restrained in mind.
Giving up bad mental conduct,
conduct yourself well in mind.
A sage is restrained in body 234

restrained also in speech,
in thought, too, they are restrained:
they are restrained in every way.
45 Dhp 221–234
Dhp 235–255
18. Stains
Malavagga
235 Today you’re like a withered leaf,

Yama’s men await you.
You stand at the departure gates,
yet you have no supplies for the road.
236 Make an island of yourself!

Swiftly strive, learn to be wise!
Purged of stains, flawless,
you’ll go to the divine realm of the noble ones.
237 You’ve journeyed the stages of life,

and now you set out to meet Yama.
Along the way there’s nowhere to stay,
yet you have no supplies for the road.
238 Make an island of yourself!

Swiftly strive, learn to be wise!
Purged of stains, flawless,
you’ll not come again to rebirth and old age.
239 A smart person would purge

their own stains gradually,
bit by bit, moment by moment,
like a smith smelting silver.
18. stains
It is the rust born on the iron 240

that eats away the place it arose.
And so it is their own deeds
that lead the overly-ascetic to a bad place.
Not reciting is the stain of hymns. 241

The stain of houses is neglect.
Laziness is the stain of beauty.
A guard’s stain is negligence.
Misconduct is a woman’s stain. 242

A giver’s stain is stinginess.
Bad qualities are a stain
But a worse stain than these 243

is ignorance, the worst stain of all.
Having given up that stain,
be without stains, mendicants!
Life is easy for the shameless. 244

With all the rude courage of a crow,
they live pushy,
rude, and corrupt.
Life is hard for the conscientious, 245

always seeking purity,
neither clinging nor rude,
pure of livelihood and discerning.
Take anyone in this world 246

who kills living creatures,
speaks falsely, steals,
commits adultery,
47 Dhp 235–255
malavagga
247 and indulges in drinking

alcohol and liquor.
Right here they dig up
the root of their own self.
248 Know this, good sir:
they are unrestrained and wicked.
Don’t let greed and hate
subject you to pain for long.
249 The people give according to their faith,
according to their confidence.
If you get upset over that,
over other’s food and drink,
you’ll not, by day or by night,
become immersed in samādhi.
250 Those who have cut that out,
dug it up at the root, eradicated it,
they will, by day or by night,
become immersed in samādhi.
251 There is no fire like greed,
no crime like hate,
no net like delusion,
no river like craving.
252 It’s easy to see the faults of others,
hard to see one’s own.
For the faults of others
are tossed high like chaff,
while one’s own are hidden,
as a cheat hides a bad hand.
253 When you look for the flaws of others,
always finding fault,
your defilements only grow,
you’re far from ending defilements.
Dhp 235–255 48
18. stains
In the sky there is no track, 254

there’s no true ascetic outside here.
People enjoy proliferation,
the Realized Ones are free of proliferation.
In the sky there is no track, 255

there’s no true ascetic outside here.
No conditions last forever,
the Awakened Ones are not shaken.
49 Dhp 235–255
Dhp 256–272
19. The Just
Dhammaṭṭhavagga
256 You don’t become just

by passing hasty judgment.
An astute person evaluates both
what is pertinent and what is irrelevant.
257 A wise one judges others without haste,
justly and impartially;
that guardian of the law
is said to be just.
258 You’re not an astute scholar
just because you speak a lot.
One who is secure, free of enmity and fear,
is said to be astute.
259 You’re not one who has memorized the teaching
just because you recite a lot.
Someone who directly sees the teaching
after hearing only a little
is truly one who has memorized the teaching,
for they can never forget it.
260 You don’t become a senior
by getting some grey hairs;
for one ripe only in age,
is said to have aged in vain.
19. the just
One who has truth and principle, 261

harmlessness, restraint, and self-control,
that wise one, purged of stains,
is said to be a senior.
Not by mere eloquence, 262

or a beautiful complexion
does a person appear holy,
if they’re jealous, stingy, and devious.
But if they’ve cut that out, 263

dug it up at the root, eradicated it,
that wise one, purged of vice,
is said to be holy.
A liar and breaker of vows is no ascetic 264

just because they shave their head.
How on earth can one be an ascetic
who’s full of desire and greed?
One who stops all wicked deeds, 265

great and small,
because of stopping wicked deeds
is said to be an ascetic.
You don’t become a mendicant 266

just by begging from others.
One who has undertaken domestic duties
has not yet become a mendicant.
But one living a spiritual life, 267

who has banished both merit and evil,
who wanders having assessed the world,
is said to be a mendicant.
51 Dhp 256–272
dhammaṭṭhavagga
268 You don’t become a sage by silence,

while still confused and ignorant.
The astute one holds up the scales,
taking only the best,
269 and rejecting the bad;

a sage becomes a sage by measuring.
One who measures good and bad in the world,
is thereby said to be a sage.
270 You don’t become a noble one

by harming living beings.
One harmless towards all living beings
is said to be a noble one.
271 Not by precepts and observances,

nor by much learning,
nor by meditative immersion,
nor by living in seclusion,
272 do I experience the bliss of renunciation

not frequented by ordinary people.
A mendicant cannot rest confident
without attaining the end of defilements.
Dhp 256–272 52
Dhp 273–289
20. The Path
Maggavagga
Of paths, the eightfold is the best; 273

of truths, the four statements;
dispassion is the best of things,
and the Seer is the best of humans.
This is the path, there is no other 274

for the purification of vision.
You all must practice this,
it is the way to baffle Māra.
When you all are practicing this, 275

you will make an end of suffering.
I have explained the path to you
for extracting the thorn with wisdom.
You yourselves must do the work, 276

the Realized Ones just show the way.
Meditators practicing absorption
are released from Māra’s bonds.
All conditions are impermanent— 277

when this is seen with wisdom,
one grows disillusioned with suffering:
this is the path to purity.
maggavagga
278 All conditions are suffering—

279 All things are not-self—

280 They don’t get going when it’s time to start;

they’re young and strong, but given to sloth.
Their mind depressed in sunken thought,
lazy and slothful, they can’t discern the path.
281 Guarded in speech, restrained in mind,

doing no unskillful bodily deed.
Purify these three ways of performing deeds,
and win the path known to hermits.
282 From meditation springs wisdom,

without meditation, wisdom ends.
Knowing these two paths—
of progress and decline—3
you should conduct yourself
so that wisdom grows.
283 Cut down the jungle, not just a tree;

from the jungle springs fear.
Having cut down jungle and vine,
be free of jungles, mendicants!
284 So long as the vine, no matter how small,
3. Here bhava and vibhava do not have the normal sense of “continued life”
and “annihilation”.
Dhp 273–289 54
20. the path
that ties a man to women is not cut,

his mind remains trapped,
like a calf suckling its mother.
Cut out fondness for oneself, 285

like plucking an autumn lotus.
Foster only the path to peace,
the quenching the Holy One taught.
“Here I will stay for the rains; 286

here for winter, here the summer”;
thus the fool thinks,
not realizing the danger.
As a mighty flood sweeps away a sleeping village, 287

death steals away a man
who dotes on children and cattle,
Children provide you no shelter, 288

nor does father, nor relatives.
When you’re seized by the terminator,
there’s no shelter in family.
Knowing the reason for this, 289

astute, and ethically restrained,
one would quickly clear the path
that leads to extinguishment.
55 Dhp 273–289
Dhp 290–305
21. Miscellaneous
Pakiṇṇakavagga
290 If by giving up material happiness

one sees abundant happiness,
a wise one would give up material happiness,
seeing the abundant happiness.
291 Some seek their own happiness
by imposing suffering on others.
Living intimate with enmity,
they’re not freed from enmity.
292 They disregard what should be done,
and do what should not be done.
For the insolent and the negligent,
their defilements only grow.
293 Those that have properly undertaken
constant mindfulness of the body,
don’t cultivate what should not be done,
but always do what should be done.
Mindful and aware,
their defilements come to an end.
294 Having slain mother and father,4
4. The following explanations are according to the commentary. “Mother” is

craving, “father” is conceit.
21. miscellaneous
and two aristocratic kings,5

and having wiped out
the kingdom with its tax collector,6
the brahmin walks on without worry.
Having slain mother and father, 295
and two prosperous kings,
and a tiger as the fifth,7
the brahmin walks on without worry.
The disciples of Gotama 296
always wake up refreshed,
who day and night
constantly recollect the Buddha.
who day and night
constantly recollect the teaching.
who day and night
constantly recollect the Saṅgha.
who day and night
are constantly mindful of the body.
whose minds day and night
delight in harmlessness.
5. The “two aristocratic kings” are eternalism and annihilationism.
6. The “kingdom” is the senses and their objects, while the “tax collector” is
relishing and lust.
7. The five hindrances with doubt as fifth.
57 Dhp 290–305
pakiṇṇakavagga
301 The disciples of Gotama

whose minds day and night
delight in meditation.
302 Going forth is hard, it’s hard to be happy;

life at home is hard too, and painful,
it’s painful to stay when you’ve nothing in common.
A traveler is a prey to pain,
so don’t be a traveler,
don’t be prey to pain.
303 One who is faithful, accomplished in ethics,

blessed with fame and wealth,
is honored in whatever place
they frequent.
304 The good shine from afar,

like the Himalayan peaks,
but the wicked are not seen,
like arrows scattered in the night.
305 Sitting alone, sleeping alone,

tirelessly wandering alone;
one who tames themselves alone
would delight within a forest.
Dhp 290–305 58
Dhp 306–319
22. Hell
Nirayavagga
A liar goes to hell, 306

as does one who denies what they did.
Both are equal in the hereafter,
those men of base deeds.
Many who wrap their necks in ocher robes 307
are unrestrained and wicked.
Being wicked, they are reborn in hell
due to their bad deeds.
It’d be better for the immoral and unrestrained 308
to eat an iron ball,
scorching, like a burning flame,
than to eat the nation’s alms.
Four things befall a heedless man 309
who sleeps with another’s wife:
bad karma, poor sleep,
ill-repute, and rebirth in hell.
He accrues bad karma and is reborn in a bad place, 310
all so a frightened couple
may snatch a moment’s pleasure,
for which rulers impose a heavy punishment.
That’s why a man should not
sleep with another’s wife.
nirayavagga
311 When kusa grass is wrongly grasped

it only cuts the hand.
So too, the ascetic life, when wrongly taken,
drags you to hell.
312 Any lax act,

any corrupt observance,
or suspicious spiritual life,
is not very fruitful.
313 If one is to do what should be done,

one should staunchly strive.
For the life gone forth when laxly led
just stirs up dust all the more.
314 A bad deed is better left undone,

for it will plague you later on.
A good deed is better done,
one that does not plague you.
315 As a frontier city

is guarded inside and out,
so you should ward yourselves—
don’t let the moment pass you by.
For if you miss your moment
you’ll grieve when sent to hell.
316 Unashamed of what is shameful,

ashamed of what is not shameful;
beings who uphold wrong view
go to a bad place.
317 Seeing danger where there is none,

and blind to the actual danger,
go to a bad place.
Dhp 306–319 60
22. hell
Seeing fault where there is none, 318

and blind to the actual fault,
go to a bad place.
Knowing a fault as a fault 319

and the faultless as faultless,
beings who uphold right view
go to a good place.
61 Dhp 306–319
Dhp 320–333
23. Elephants
Nāgavagga
320 Like an elephant struck

with arrows in battle,
I shall put up with abuse,
for so many folk are badly behaved.
321 The well-tamed beast is the one led to the crowd;

the tamed elephant’s the one the king mounts;
the tamed person who endures abuse
is the best of human beings.
322 Those who have tamed themselves are better

than fine tamed mules,
thoroughbreds from Sindh,
or giant tuskers.
323 For not on those mounts

would you go to the untrodden place,
whereas, with the help of one
whose self is well tamed,
you go there, tamed by the tamed.
324 The tusker named Dhanapāla

is musky in rut, hard to control.
Bound, he eats not a bite,
for he misses the elephant forest.
23. elephants
One who gets drowsy from overeating, 325

fond of sleep, rolling round the bed
like a great hog stuffed with grain:
that idiot is reborn again and again.
In the past my mind wandered 326

how it wished, where it liked, as it pleased.
Now I’ll carefully guide it,
as a trainer with a hook guides a rutting elephant.
Delight in diligence! 327

Take good care of your mind!
Pull yourself out of this pit,
like an elephant sunk in a bog.
If you find an alert companion, 328

a wise and virtuous friend,
then, overcoming all adversities,
wander with them, joyful and mindful.
If you find no alert companion, 329

no wise and virtuous friend,
then, like a king who flees his conquered realm,
wander alone like a tusker in the wilds.
It’s better to wander alone, 330

there’s no fellowship with fools.
Wander alone and do no wrong,
at ease like a tusker in the wilds.
A friend in need is a blessing; 331

it’s a blessing to be content with whatever;
good deeds are a blessing at the end of life,
and giving up all suffering is a blessing.
63 Dhp 320–333
nāgavagga
332 In this world it’s a blessing to serve

one’s mother and one’s father.
And it’s a blessing also to serve
ascetics and brahmins.
333 It’s a blessing to keep precepts until you grow old;

a blessing to be grounded in faith;
the getting of wisdom’s a blessing;
and it’s a blessing to avoid doing wrong.
Dhp 320–333 64
Dhp 334–359
24. Craving
Taṇhāvagga
When a person lives heedlessly, 334

craving grows in them like a parasitic creeper.
They jump from life to life, like a monkey
greedy for fruit in a forest grove.
Whoever is beaten by this wretched craving, 335
this attachment to the world,
their sorrow grows,
like grass in the rain.
But whoever prevails over this wretched craving, 336
so hard to get over in the world,
their sorrows fall from them,
like a drop from a lotus-leaf.
I say this to you, good people, 337
all those who have gathered here:
dig up the root of craving,
as you’d dig up grass in search of roots.
Don’t let Māra break you again and again,
like a stream breaking a reed.
A tree grows back even when cut down, 338
so long as its roots are healthy;
suffering springs up again and again,
so long as the tendency to craving is not pulled out.
taṇhāvagga
339 A person of low views

in whom the thirty-six streams
that flow to pleasure are mighty,
is swept away by lustful thoughts.
340 The streams flow everywhere;

a weed springs up and remains.
Seeing this weed that has been born,
cut the root with wisdom.
341 A persons’s joys

flow from senses and cravings.
Seekers of happiness, bent on pleasure,
continue to be reborn and grow old.
342 People governed by thirst,

crawl about like a trapped rabbit.
Bound and fettered, for a long time
they return to pain time and again.
343 People governed by thirst,

crawl about like a trapped rabbit.
That’s why one who longs for dispassion
should dispel thirst.
344 Rejecting the household jungle,

they set out for the real jungle,
then they run right back to the jungle they left behind.
Just look at this person!
Freed, they run to bondage.
345 The wise say that shackle is not strong

that’s made of iron, wood, or knots.
But obsession with jeweled earrings,
concern for your partners and children:
Dhp 334–359 66
24. craving
this, say the wise, is a strong shackle 346

dragging the indulgent down, hard to escape.
Having cut this one too they go forth,
unconcerned, having given up sensual pleasures.
Besotted by lust they fall into the stream, 347

like a spider caught in the web she wove.
The wise proceed, having cut this one too,
unconcerned, having given up all suffering.
Let go of the past, let go of the future, 348

let go of the present, having gone beyond rebirth.
With your heart freed in every respect,
you’ll not come again to rebirth and old age.
For a person crushed by thoughts, 349

very lustful, focusing on beauty,
their craving grows and grows,
tying them with a stout bond.
But one who loves to calm their thoughts, 350

developing perception of ugliness, ever mindful,
will surely eliminate that craving,
cutting off the bonds of Māra.
One who is confident, unafraid, 351

rid of craving, free of blemish,
having struck down the arrows flying to future lives,
this bag of bones is their last.
Rid of craving, free of grasping, 352

expert in the interpretation of terms,
knowing the correct
structure and sequence of syllables,
they are said to be one who bears their final body,
one of great wisdom, a great person.
67 Dhp 334–359
taṇhāvagga
353 I am the champion, the knower of all,

unsullied in the midst of all things.
I’ve given up all, freed in the ending of craving.
Since I know for myself, whose follower should I be?
354 The gift of the teaching beats all other gifts;

the taste of the teaching beats all other tastes;
the joy of the teaching beats all other joys;
one who has ended craving beats all suffering.
355 Riches ruin an idiot,

but not a seeker of the far shore.
From craving for wealth, an idiot
ruins themselves and others.
356 Weeds are the bane of crops,

but greed is these folk’s bane.
That’s why a gift to one rid of greed
is so very fruitful.

but hate is these folk’s bane.
That’s why a gift to one rid of hate

but delusion is these folk’s bane.
That’s why a gift to one rid of delusion

but desire is these folk’s bane.
That’s why a gift to one rid of desire
Dhp 334–359 68
Dhp 360–382
25. Mendicants
Bhikkhuvagga
Restraint of the eye is good; 360

good is restraint of the ear;
restraint of the nose is good;
good is restraint of the tongue.
Restraint of the body is good; 361
good is restraint of speech;
restraint of mind is good;
everywhere, restraint is good.
The mendicant restrained everywhere
is released from suffering.
One restrained in hand and foot, 362
and in speech, the supreme restraint;
happy inside, serene,
solitary, content, I call a mendicant.
When a mendicant of restrained mouth, 363
thoughtful in counsel, and stable,
explains the text and its meaning,
their words are sweet.
Delighting in the teaching, enjoying the teaching, 364
contemplating the teaching,
a mendicant who recollects the teaching
doesn’t decline in the true teaching.
bhikkhuvagga
365 A well-off mendicant ought not look down

on others, nor should they be envious.
A mendicant who envies others
does not achieve immersion.
366 If a mendicant is poor in offerings,

the well-to-do ought not look down on them.
For the gods indeed praise them,
who are tireless and pure of livelihood.
367 One who has no sense of ownership

in the whole realm of name and form,
who does not grieve for that which is not,
is said to be a mendicant.
368 A mendicant who meditates on love,

devoted to the Buddha’s teaching,
would realize the peaceful state,
the blissful stilling of conditions.
369 Bail out this boat, mendicant!

When bailed out it will float lightly.
Having cut off desire and hate,
you shall reach quenching.
370 Five to cut, five to drop,

and five more to develop.
A mendicant who escapes five chains
is said to have crossed the flood.
371 Practice absorption, don’t be negligent!

Don’t let the mind delight in the senses!
Don’t heedlessly swallow a hot iron ball!
And when it burns, don’t cry, “Oh, the pain!”
Dhp 360–382 70
25. mendicants
No absorption for one without wisdom, 372

no wisdom for one without absorption.
But one with absorption and wisdom—
they have truly drawn near to extinguishment.
A mendicant who enters an empty hut 373

with mind at peace
finds a superhuman delight
as they rightly discern the Dhamma.
Whenever they are mindful 374

of the rise and fall of the aggregates,
they feel rapture and joy:
that is the deathless for one who knows.
This is the very start of the path 375

for a wise mendicant:
guarding the senses, contentment,
and restraint in the monastic code.
Mix with spiritual friends, 376

who are tireless and pure of livelihood.
Share what you have with others,
being skillful in your conduct.
And when you’re full of joy,
you’ll make an end to suffering.
As a jasmine sheds 377

its withered flowers,
O mendicants,
cast off greed and hate.
Calm in body, calm in speech, 378

peaceful and serene;
a mendicant who’s spat out the world’s bait
is said to be one at peace.
71 Dhp 360–382
bhikkhuvagga
379 Urge yourself on,

reflect on yourself.
A mendicant self-controlled and mindful
will always dwell in happiness.
380 Self is indeed the lord of self,

for who else would be one’s lord?
Self is indeed the home of self,
so restrain yourself,
as a merchant his thoroughbred steed.
381 A monk full of joy

trusting in the Buddha’s teaching,
would realize the peaceful state,
the blissful stilling of conditions.
382 A young mendicant

devoted to the Buddha’s teaching,
lights up the world,
like the moon freed from a cloud.
Dhp 360–382 72
Dhp 383–423
26. Brahmins
Brāhmaṇavagga
Strive and cut the stream! 383

Dispel sensual pleasures, brahmin.
Knowing the ending of conditions,
know the uncreated, brahmin.
When a brahmin 384
has gone beyond two things,
then they consciously
make an end of all fetters.
One for whom there is no crossing over 385
or crossing back, or crossing over and back;
stress-free, detached,
that’s who I call a brahmin.
Absorbed, rid of hopes, 386
their task completed, without defilements,
arrived at the highest goal:
The sun blazes by day, 387
the moon glows at night,
the aristocrat shines in armor,
and the brahmin shines in absorption.
But all day and all night,
the Buddha shines with glory.
brāhmaṇavagga
388 A brahmin’s so-called

since they’ve banished evil,
an ascetic’s so-called
since they live a serene life.
One who has renounced all stains
is said to be a “renunciant”.
389 One should never strike a brahmin,

nor should a brahmin retaliate.
Woe to the one who hurts a brahmin,
and woe for the one who retaliates.
390 Nothing is better for a brahmin

than to hold their mind back from attachment.
As cruelty in the mind gradually subsides,
suffering also subsides.
391 Who does nothing wrong

by body, speech or mind,
restrained in these three respects,
392 You should graciously honor

the one from whom you learn the Dhamma
taught by the awakened Buddha,
as a brahmin honors the sacred flame.
393 Not by matted hair or family,

or birth is one a brahmin.
Those who have truth and principle:
they are pure, they are brahmins.
394 Why the matted hair, you fool,

and why the skin of deer?
The tangle is inside you,
yet you polish up your outsides.
Dhp 383–423 74
26. brahmins
A person who wears robes of rags, 395

lean, their limbs showing veins,
meditating alone in the forest,
I don’t call someone a brahmin 396

after the mother or womb they came from.
If they still have attachments,
they’re just someone who says “sir”.
Having nothing, taking nothing:
Having cut off all fetters 397

they have no anxiety.
They’ve got over clinging, and are detached:
They’ve cut the strap and harness, 398

the reins and bridle too,
with cross-bar lifted, they’re awakened:
Abuse, killing, caging: 399

they endure these without anger.
Patience is their powerful army:
Not irritable or stuck up, 400

dutiful in precepts and observances,
tamed, bearing their final body:
Like water from a lotus leaf, 401

like a mustard seed off a pin-point,
sensual pleasures slip off them:
75 Dhp 383–423
brāhmaṇavagga
402 They understand for themselves

the end of suffering in this life;
with burden put down, detached:
403 Deep in wisdom, intelligent,

expert in the variety of paths;
arrived at the highest goal:
404 Socializing with neither

householders nor the homeless.
A migrant with no shelter, few in wishes:
405 They’ve laid aside violence

against creatures firm and frail;
not killing or making others kill:
406 Not fighting among those who fight,

extinguished among those who are armed,
not taking among those who take:
407 They’ve discarded greed and hate,

along with conceit and contempt,
like a mustard seed off the point of a pin:
408 The words they utter

are sweet, informative, and true,
and don’t offend anyone:
Dhp 383–423 76
26. brahmins
They don’t steal anything in the world, 409

long or short,
fine or coarse, beautiful or ugly:
They have no hope 410

in this world or the next.
with no need for hope, detached:
They have no clinging, 411

knowledge has freed them of indecision,
they’ve plunged right into the deathless:
They’ve escaped clinging 412

to both good and bad deeds;
sorrowless, stainless, pure:
Pure as the spotless moon, 413

clear and undisturbed,
they’ve ended delight and future lives:
They’ve got past this grueling swamp 414

of delusion, transmigration.
Meditating in stillness, free of indecision,
they have crossed over to the far shore.
They’re extinguished by not grasping:
They’ve given up sensual stimulations, 415

and have gone forth from lay life;
they’ve ended rebirth in the sensual realm:
77 Dhp 383–423
brāhmaṇavagga
416 They’ve given up craving,8

they’ve ended craving to be reborn:
416 They’ve given up craving,

they’ve ended craving to be reborn:
417 They’ve given up human bonds,

and gone beyond heavenly bonds;
detached from all attachments:
418 Giving up discontent and desire,

they’re cooled and free of attachments;
a hero, master of the whole world:
419 They know the passing away

and rebirth of all beings;
unattached, holy, awakened:
420 Gods, fairies, and humans

don’t know their destiny;
the perfected ones with defilements ended:
421 They have nothing before or after,

or even in between.
Having nothing, taking nothing:
8. This verse and the next are identical. The commentary says they were
spoken on two separate occasions.
Dhp 383–423 78
Leader of the herd, excellent hero, 422
great hermit and victor;
unstirred, washed, awakened:
They know their past lives, 423

seeing heaven and places of loss,
and have attained the end of rebirth;
that sage who has perfect insight,
at the summit of spiritual perfection:
THE SAYINGS OF THE DHAMMA ARE COMPLETED.
79
Colophon
The Translator
Bhikkhu Sujato was born as Anthony Aidan Best on 4/11/1966 in
Perth, Western Australia. He grew up in the pleasant suburbs of Mt
Lawley and Attadale alongside his sister Nicola, who was the good
child. His mother, Margaret Lorraine Huntsman née Pinder, said
“he’ll either be a priest or a poet”, while his father, Anthony Thomas
Best, advised him to “never do anything for money”. He attended
Aquinas College, a Catholic school, where he decided to become
an atheist. At the University of WA he studied philosophy, aiming
to learn what he wanted to do with his life. Finding that what he
wanted to do was play guitar, he dropped out. His main band was
named Martha’s Vineyard, which achieved modest success in the
indie circuit.
A seemingly random encounter with a roadside joey took him
to Thailand, where he entered his first meditation retreat at Wat
Ram Poeng, Chieng Mai in 1992. Feeling the call to the Buddha’s
path, he took full ordination in Wat Pa Nanachat in 1994, where
his teachers were Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Jayasaro. In 1997
he returned to Perth to study with Ajahn Brahm at Bodhinyana
Monastery.
He spent several years practicing in seclusion in Malaysia
and Thailand before establishing Santi Forest Monastery in Bun-
danoon, NSW, in 2003. There he was instrumental in supporting
the establishment of the Theravada bhikkhuni order in Australia
and advocating for women’s rights. He continues to teach in Aus-
tralia and globally, with a special concern for the moral implications
of climate change and other forms of environmental destruction.
He has published a series of books of original and groundbreaking
research on early Buddhism.
In 2005 he founded SuttaCentral together with Rod Bucknell
and John Kelly. In 2015, seeing the need for a complete, accurate,
plain English translation of the Pali texts, he undertook the task,
spending nearly three years in isolation on the isle of Qi Mei off
the coast of the nation of Taiwan. He completed the four main
Nikāyas in 2018, and the early books of the Khuddaka Nikāya were
complete by 2021. All this work is dedicated to the public domain
and is entirely free of copyright encumbrance.
In 2019 he returned to Sydney where he established Lokanta
Vihara (The Monastery at the End of the World).
Creation Process
Translated from the Pali. Primary source was the Mahāsaṅgīti
edition, with reference to several English translations, especially
those of K.R. Norman and Venerable Buddharakkhita.
The Translation
This translation aims to make a clear, readable, and accurate render-
ing of the Dhammapada. Unlike most Dhammapadas in English,
this is a new translation from the source Pali text. The aim was to
make the sense as transparent as possible.
About SuttaCentral
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Sayings of the Dhamma

translated and introduced by

Web publication date 2021

Sayings of the Dhamma

The Dhammapada is one of the ancient texts, spoken, as far

Happily, my proposal was accepted. We approached the Pali

The Dhammapada is, in terms of sequence, the second collection

What Others Have Said

The contents of the verses, however, transcend the limited

And Bhikkhu Bodhi, in his introduction to the same translation,

It is an ever-fecund source of themes for sermons and dis-

be expected to count a copy of the book among his few material

He proposes a four-fold scheme for understanding the aims of

1. Happiness in this life.

These are not incompatible purposes, but rather build on each

If ever an immortal classic was produced upon the continent of

His description of the travails endured by the ancient Chinese

serves as a timely reminder to us, in our age of lazy access to the

Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu applies the aesthetic theories of later Indian

As a jewel of Indian literature, the Dhammapada has been widely

Hindu scholar and second president of India, Sarvepalli Radhakr-

The effort to build one world requires a closer understanding

Eknath Easwaran, a Hindu yogi and scholar, is less circumspect

dhism. The goal of the Dhammapada is freedom from suffering, as

I do not know a version of this text that is so comprehensive and

On Translations of the Dhammapada

John Brough is reported as saying, when asked if he would

Now, notwithstanding the fact that academics have a stricter

parency in translation; it is the Buddha’s words, not mine, that

Dhammapada, although one might detect a distant kinship, given

second meaning applies in this case. “Sayings of the Dhamma” is

Formation of the Dhammapada

It seems likely to me that the genre of Dhammapada literature

The Teachings of the Dhammapada

Mind is the forerunner of all things.

It’s curiously difficult to locate the originator of this phrasing.

same way that the “eye” (etc.) is the basis of “eye-consciousness”

For never is hatred

There are those who do not realize

Although enjoying the support of the commentary, it is a double-

option doesn’t lack commentarial support, either, for an alternate

Others don’t understand

This is a useful detail to bear in mind when comparing different

Heedfulness is the path to the deathless.

Now, that the “deathless” (amata) refers to Nibbāna is not in

While pada doesn’t literally mean “path”, it is used in the sense of

The heedful do not die

while the heedless are like the dead.

This gives us an idea of the subtle shifts in the text as explained

A Brief Textual History

The 1855 edition edited by Viggo Fausbøll and published as

published in book form and in Roman characters. (It had been

1 Intention shapes experiences;1

2 Intention shapes experiences;

3 “They abused me, they hit me!

4 “They abused me, they hit me!

For those who bear no such grudge,

For never is hatred 5

Others don’t understand 6