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The Dhammapada: Gems of Wisdom (1 of 3)

Great, thank you, Rob. It's nice to see some familiar faces and a few that I don't know. So welcome to everyone. I'm delighted that you want to explore this wonderful text together. I hope it'll be fun.

In this class, as you read in the description, we'll be exploring Gil Fronsdal's translation of the Dhammapada. It looks like this is the hardback version; there's also a paperback version. There are literally dozens of translations of the Dhammapada, and I have a bunch of them myself. We won't be focusing in this class on comparing different translations, which is a very valuable thing to do. But if our aim is to get through the entire Dhammapada in three sessions, we're not really going to have time. So I hope that you'll be content with Gil Fronsdal's translation; feel free to read other ones on your own and see how they compare.

I sent a handout with some readings and a broad idea of the theme that we'll be covering in each of the three sessions. The way that we're dividing up the text is going to illuminate some of its main themes. Obviously, with the time we have, we're not going to read every single verse together. But organizing it by themes gives you some additional information about it than you would have gotten perhaps just reading it on your own. Today, we're looking at the introduction, and also chapters 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 12, 15, 25, and 26. We'll also learn a little bit about the Dhammapada as a Buddhist text.

The Dhammapada in the Pali Canon

Where is the Dhammapada in the Pali canon? It's part of the Khuddaka Nikāya^[1], which is the fifth of the Nikāyas. The name Khuddaka Nikāya literally means the minor discourses, but the texts in there are not minor at all in terms of importance or profundity. The term Dhammapada itself is a little bit hard to translate. As Gil mentions in his preface, we could translate it as "sayings of the dharma," "verses of the dharma," or "teachings of the dharma." He even likes "path of dharma" because the word pada, which means foot, could also mean path by extension. So maybe we'll just leave it untranslated as the Dhammapada.

There are several extant versions of this text, including three in Pali, as well as some in other Buddhist traditions. They are slightly different, but that doesn't cast doubt on its veracity or utility. It's quite normal that we have multiple versions of a given Buddhist text. Thanissaro Bhikkhu^[2], who has researched many of the different versions of the Dhammapada that we have, says most of the differences are pretty mild.

The Dhammapada is often seen as an introduction to Buddhist ideas because it has a lot of the basic concepts spread throughout it. But it's definitely not totally for beginners. It includes pretty deep teachings and assumes some understanding of the structure of Buddhist teachings. Because it's a verse text, it doesn't have prose that explains things. There is an assumption that you'll know what it means when it says "aggregates" or "arahant"^[3], or some of the other terminology. It also includes some clever wordplay and fairly nuanced language. All of that adds up to it going a little bit beyond the straightforwardness that you'd expect from a true beginner's text. I think the Dhammapada is really for everyone.

The text consists of 423 verses in 26 chapters centered on various themes. Within each chapter, the verses are a little bit mixed. A verse about early practice might sit right next to a verse about advanced practice. They don't necessarily proceed linearly, but that kind of systematic exposition of a topic is not something we would expect from verse texts like this one.

Finally, I want to highlight that the Dhammapada is one of the most beloved texts of the Pali canon. People who haven't even delved into the Majjhima Nikāya or the Samyutta Nikāya may have read the Dhammapada. It's well known, it's loved, it's often studied by Buddhists worldwide, and it has inspired countless practitioners on their path.

Contrasts in the Dhammapada

I want to spend a little bit of time talking through some of the main themes that Gil highlights in his introduction. The first theme is that contrasts are important in the Dhammapada. For example, the contrast of what is useful and what is not—the fool and the sage. Then there is merit (puñña) and evil (pāpa)^[4]. Why are these contrasts being set up? Partly as a guide on our practice path, so that we know which way to go: is it toward or away from suffering? It highlights the role of wisdom as discernment. Wisdom is the quality in our mind that discerns what is skillful and what is not, what is going towards suffering and what is going away from suffering.

Let's look at verses 3 and 4 in chapter one: "He abused me, attacked me, defeated me, robbed me. For those carrying on like this, hatred does not end. She abused me, attacked me, defeated me, robbed me. For those not carrying on like this, hatred ends." We have a direct teaching on the results of mental action. Notice the subtlety of the teaching. It's not exonerating anyone of what they did. Maybe they did attack us; if that's the case, it's in the past and that's not going to change. The choice in the present is whether or not we carry on about it. If we choose to carry on, hatred will not end; if we choose not to carry on, hatred will end. We can look at the result and decide if that is a result we want.

Then we have the contrast of foolish and wise. Verses 64 and 65 in chapter five: "A fool associating with a sage, even for a lifetime, will no more perceive the dharma than a spoon will perceive the taste of soup. A discerning person who associates with a sage, even if for a brief moment, will quickly perceive the dharma, as the tongue perceives the taste of soup." We get this lovely image of soup on a spoon or soup on a tongue; you can feel the difference just in those words. Gil points out that we shouldn't see these insulting lines about fools as denigrating particular people. It's rather that our mind is foolish when we aren't mindful, which we all are part of each day. Any of us could be a fool at a certain time.

Then there's the contrast of merit and evil. Verses 15 and 16: "One who does evil grieves in this life, grieves in the next, grieves in both worlds. Seeing one's own defiled acts brings grief and affliction. One who makes merit rejoices in this life, rejoices in the next, rejoices in both worlds. Seeing one's own pure acts brings joy and delight." Here we see a reference to rebirth. If we behave unskillfully, there's suffering not only immediately but also in the next life. Whereas if we have done good acts, we can rejoice here and in the life to come.

Sometimes these verses can sound a little simplistic, absolute, or moralistic. But Buddhist teachings are clear about what is wholesome and what is unwholesome. The Dhammapada nicely balances being simplistic and being overly vague. We have to know the clear distinctions in order to walk the path, but in the end, the mind will move beyond just distinguishing this from that.

Two Goals: Rebirth and Liberation

This points us toward two different goals expressed in the Dhammapada. One goal is happiness and a better rebirth. That's seen as a valid goal in Buddhism, and a lot of Buddhists worldwide today are practicing for a better rebirth. The Buddha taught that because he wanted people to do good, to make merit, to learn ethics deeply, and to enact that in their lives.

But there is another goal: the goal of liberation. Not just getting a better rebirth, but escaping the cycle of rebirth completely—"exiting the premises." We see this in chapter seven, verse 97: "The person who has gone beyond faith, knows the unmade, has severed the link, destroyed the potential for rebirth, and eliminated clinging, is the ultimate person." This verse is clearly extolling the wish to become an arahant, a fully awakened being who will not be reborn. This means that everybody reading the Dhammapada can find a path that is inspiring for them and find a way to practice.

Issues for Modern Readers

There are two issues for modern readers to consider. One is that the Dhammapada has a clear emphasis on renunciation, solitude, and monasticism. There is no doubt that this is held up as an ideal way of living. We might consider, "Do we just ignore every verse that seems to be about that because we're laypeople?"

Going hand in hand with that is an apparent denial of the world. There are verses that point toward the pointlessness of pursuing any form of pleasure. Verses 87 and 88 say: "Giving up dark ways, sages cultivate the bright. They go from home to homelessness, to the solitude so hard to enjoy. There, they should seek delight, abandoning sensual pleasures, having nothing. Sages should cleanse themselves of what defiles the mind."

You might read that and not feel turned on by that image. But instead of denying the world, what we are letting go of is attachment to the world. We don't want to be attached because that will lead to dukkha^[5]. We might consider taking the flavor of these verses as an inspiration for lay life. Most people who have practiced for a while are aware that just pursuing sense pleasures and comfort isn't deeply satisfying. If we live with a lot of other people in our family, can we find a way to be—as Gil sometimes says—"alone with others"? Can we have mindfulness, clarity, and independence while we're with other people? Ironically, a mindful mind is able to be more connected to other people than one falling into attachment.

Contrasting Flavors: Energy and Peace

The last area I want to talk about is the contrasting flavors, an idea mentioned in the introduction. In Indian aesthetics, there is a concept called rasa^[6] (savor). There's an idea that an artistic piece is meant to evoke a given set of emotional tones to show the complexity of being human. The contrasting flavors we see in the Dhammapada are energy (viriya)^[7], the heroic flavor, and peace (santi).

Energy is exemplified in chapter two. It opens with verse 21: "Vigilance is the path to the deathless; negligence, the path to death. The vigilant do not die; the negligent are as if already dead." Here's one more contrast: vigilance and negligence. We can see the relative deadness of being unmindful. When your mind is distracted and not connected to the present moment, there's a kind of deadness compared to moments when you're feeling mindful, aware, and present. Verse 25 says: "Through effort, vigilance, restraint and self-control, the wise person can become an island no flood will overwhelm." We don't emphasize striving too much as dharma teachers in the West because some of us are predisposed toward over-striving. But the Buddha encouraged clear effort to be present and to investigate experience.

We also see encouragement toward effort in chapter 12, "Oneself," where we are asked to take responsibility for our actions and our happiness. Verse 157: "If one knew oneself to be precious, one would guard oneself with care. The sage will watch over herself in any part of the night." This means guarding the sense doors with care. Because we care about our own heart and state of mind, we make the effort to keep the mind wholesome. And verse 160: "One, indeed, is one's own protector. What other protector could there be? With self-control one gains a protector hard to obtain."

Then we get to the second savor, the savor of peace (santi). This is a contrast to effort and striving. I have to make the point right from the start that in Buddhist teachings, peace and happiness are strongly linked. Almost every chapter that talks about peace also talks about happiness and joy. In chapter 15, verse 198: "Ah! So happily we live, without misery among those in misery; among people in misery, we live without misery." There's a sense of happiness that just comes from within—this ability to be at peace in a world that is not at peace.

Verse 201 says: "Victory gives birth to hate, the defeated sleep in anguish. Giving up both, victory and defeat, those who have attained peace, sleep happily." It's not a simplistic contrast; it says giving up both victory and defeat. This is the nuance we have in the Dhammapada. The state of peace is about stopping playing those games.

Finally, in chapter 25, we have verse 373: "For a bhikkhu^[8] with a peaceful mind, who enters an empty dwelling and clearly sees the true dharma, there is superhuman joy." And verse 381: "A bhikkhu, filled with delight and pleased with the Buddha's teachings, attains happiness, the stilling of formations, the state of peace." The stilling of formations and the state of peace are descriptions of nibbāna^[9]—the freedom of complete awakening.

Q&A

Participant (Steve): When I read the chapter on "self", it occurred to me that Gil did not discuss that in the introduction. Since there's so much in the teachings of not-self, here's a chapter on self. So I wonder if you might address that.

Kim Allen: Great question. Yes, there's a whole teaching on the skillful self. A lot of the teachings in chapter 12 are about how we can guard ourselves and how the way we're acting is either harming or benefiting us. These are teachings in the realm of skillful action—how to use our sense of ourself as a being who matters in the world as a means of walking the path. Ultimately, there isn't any given thing that we could name as our self (attā)^[10]. The Buddha was clear about that, but he didn't shy away from the idea that we are a being responsible for our development on the path.

Participant: What's the difference between peace and happiness?

Kim Allen: Happiness has a wide range. There's the happiness of a birthday party, and the kind of joy and excitement that goes with that. And then there's the happiness that we can feel when meditation becomes deep on the cushion—the body is filled with this very tranquil sense of ease. I think the Buddha, in linking happiness and peace, is pointing us down the track to refine our happiness: How could my happiness be more peaceful than it is?

Participant: Is the Dhammapada considered the centerpiece and key learning of Buddhism similar to the Tao Te Ching and Taoism?

Kim Allen: I wouldn't say so. It's part of the broad spectrum of the teachings in the Nikāyas. It's an overview text that's short and approachable, so a lot of people have read it. But I wouldn't say it defines the teachings in the way the Tao Te Ching does. The only sutta I could name within this Western insight tradition that acts as a centerpiece is the Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta^[11], which contains the instructions on how to establish mindfulness.

Participant: Doesn't the pursuit of happiness sort of seem like a formation and sort of inconsistent with this idea of trying to eliminate those types of pursuits?

Kim Allen: You're pointing toward some subtlety. It's true that part of the path is to eliminate quests. But the Buddha was a very skilled teacher, and he knew that deep in the human heart, we all want to be happy. The problem is delusion around what happiness really is and how to get it. These teachings use a little carrot: there's a better happiness. Eventually, yes, we do have to let go of wanting to be happy, but we pursue it through the methods of the path. We don't start at the end. In the end, the happiness of letting go is greater than any happiness we can attain.

Participant (Sharon): My questions are about chapter 26, "The Brahman". I was really blown away by the extensive phrases devoted to the brahman. I never considered that role significant before. I put the brahman in the role of the hereditary priestly class. Specifically, verse 420 refers to an arahant and a brahman. So I was a little confused.

Kim Allen: You've picked out exactly the verse where he finally makes it clear. The Buddha is using the term "brahman" differently than the hereditary religious class. In all of chapter 26, the brahman refers to the arahant. I'm going to say a little bit more about chapter 26 later.

Participant: I'm wondering if you can offer some insight regarding chapter five, verse 62: "A fool suffers thinking, I have children, I have wealth. One's self is not even one's own. How then are children? How then is wealth?"

Kim Allen: This is a not-self teaching. He's pointing quite directly toward non-possession—not grasping even the things that we find most dear to our heart. Those things are a valid form of happiness, but we have to admit that if we're strongly attached to our children or our wealth, there is dukkha. A life that is just wrapped up in getting wealth leads to a lot of suffering. This verse is basically a compact version of the Dhaniya Sutta (Sutta Nipāta 1.2), where a wealthy cowherd debates with the Buddha about what true wealth and security are.

Participant: My question has to do with the idea from the Dhammapada of the mind becoming an island that no flood can overcome. It made me think back to something Gil lectured on about having a mind like an open house. I think they don't really conflict... you can have an open house but be guarded in the sense of keeping an eye out for the three poisons.

Kim Allen: Right. We want a mind that can't be overwhelmed. When something very beautiful or terrible comes into our visual field, we don't get overwhelmed and reactive. The image of a flood is a specific image in Buddhism—the floods of sensuality, becoming, and ignorance. We want a mind strong enough, through vigilance and mindfulness, that it can't be knocked over easily by greed, hatred, and delusion.

Participant: Regarding verse 201, "giving up both victory and defeat." With the elections coming up, am I giving up the expectation of an outcome? Am I giving up being invested in the outcome? What do I need to let go so I can sleep peacefully on Tuesday night?

Kim Allen: This verse has a couple of different levels. One level is true equanimity. I don't mean equanimity like "I don't care." True equanimity allows us to care about things but accept that conditions are not in our control. We do our best and then accept how things actually are without dukkha. People who are very equanimous can act in the world but not get stuck on whether or not they succeeded or failed. The ultimate level is that the concepts of victory and defeat are not relevant to an arahant, because there's no person who could win or lose. For Tuesday, we have multiple conditions, we're not in control. We've done our best, and the conditions will unfold naturally.

Small Group Discussion

(Group discussion happens)

Participant: In our group, the difference between calm and peace was kind of ambiguous. Can you speak to that?

Kim Allen: There's a distinction in the teachings between feelings like tranquility (samatha or samādhi^[12]), which are characterized by calm, and nibbāna, which is pointed to as peace. However, in the terms of the Dhammapada, we could say that calm and peace are very much similar.

Participant: One of the participants brought up attaining peace through the seven factors of enlightenment: mindfulness, energy leading to tranquility and joy, and eventually concentration and equanimity.

Kim Allen: Yes, there's the calm of tranquility and concentration, and then there's nibbāna—a different dimension of awakening.

Participant: In our group, an interesting point came up as to whether the Buddha was being judgmental in talking about fools. We were talking about whether it was pointing to character or pointing to behavior and the consequences of behavior.

Kim Allen: It points to actions and behavior—skillful and unskillful. In modern psychology, we worry a lot about judgmentalism. But when you look at the results of action, it's clear that some things lead to suffering and some things lead away from suffering. That's an important distinction to be able to make if you're going to walk the path. There's judiciousness and there's judgmentalism, and it's good to know the difference.

Participant: Our group had a nice discussion about whether peacefulness and energy could coexist. We talked about how being peaceful can lead to having more positive energy, or that being peaceful is the reduction of agitation.

Kim Allen: I love that. They are meant to complement each other and purify each other.

Guided Meditation

Let's actually sit for a few minutes. I'm going to do a short guided meditation and drop in some verses so that we can experience these teachings in a somewhat different mode.

Please take a posture where you can sit for a few minutes. Be comfortable, no need to change too much. If it's okay for you, you could close your eyes. Just allowing your attention to come inward, pulling it back from the screen, finding the body. Perhaps bringing the attention to the place where you're sitting, your seat against the chair, maybe your feet against the floor. Feel what is supporting you. If you've been leaning forward, you might need to straighten up a bit.

Gently connect to a simple object. Often people use the breath, but you can use sound in the environment. Just rest the mind on something simple, allowing mindfulness of that object to be the main focus. Let thoughts go into the background.

It's supportive for meditation to relax. Soften the shoulders, allowing them to drop naturally. Soften the face, the jaw. Soften down through the chest area and the belly. Let go of any bracing in the arms and legs.

I'm just going to read two verses, letting the words drop in the way you'd drop a stone into a well:

"Absorbed in meditation, persevering, always steadfast, the wise touch Nirvana, the ultimate rest from toil."

"Tasting the flavor of solitude and peace, one becomes free of distress drinking the flavor of dharma joy."

(For reference, the verses I just read during the meditation were verse 23 and verse 205.)

Further Reflections on Chapter 26

I'd like to say just a bit more about the readings for today. We haven't yet said much about chapter 26 officially, although we had a perfect question earlier from Sharon. This is the chapter called "The Brahman" and it brings together many of the themes throughout the Dhammapada.

The Brahmins were the hereditary religious class in ancient Indian society. The Buddha was from a different class called the Khattiyas^[13]—the aristocrats and warriors. The Brahmins considered themselves the highest spiritually, but the Buddha often redefined the terms of his time to suit his teaching. He redefined the term "brahman" to mean "arahant," the highest spiritual person in his teaching.

We see this in chapter 26, where a number of the stanzas start with "whoever does [certain things]" and end with "I call a brahman." For example, verse 391: "Whoever does no ill through body, speech and mind, and is restrained in these three areas, I call the brahman." He's saying effectively that it doesn't matter that you are of this class because your parents were; what matters instead is what you do and how you are. It's not good enough that you have pure birth for seven generations back; show me that you're ethical, show me that you're wise.

He was also contrasting his teaching with other ascetics. The Brahmins weren't the only spiritual people; there were people who opted out of society, became homeless mendicants, and meditated in the woods. The Buddha was one of those people. But some ascetics were doing extreme practices like eating only a few grains of rice per day, wearing tree bark, or acting like a dog or an ox. There were beliefs that this was a good way to burn up karma. The Buddha makes it clear that asceticism and denial of the body for pure purification does not actually purify the mind. We see this in verse 394: "Fool, what use is matted hair, what use is a deerskin robe, the tangled jungle is within you, and you groom the outside." The true challenges with attachment, greed, hatred, and delusion are within the heart and mind.

How to Approach Spiritual Texts

Finally, I want to share a bit about how to approach reading suttas and verses. Having a relationship with spiritual texts involves getting to know them, trusting them, and giving yourself to them to gain some intimacy.

One possibility is to read slowly. Often we read quickly for ideas, but we don't want to do that with spiritual texts. You can also read just before meditating; the ideas can inform the sit or infuse the heart in a certain way.

Another thing I do is reread a certain chapter several times with a gap in between. Read it one morning, read it again two days from now, and read it over the weekend to see how it strikes you differently. Different things stand out at different times. If a verse catches your eye, jot it down and carry that verse around with you for the day to see how it interacts with your mind. Or you could consider a theme for the day. For example, "Today is about vigilance." Read that chapter and see how vigilance shows up in your daily life activities.

For next week, there's another set of chapters to read. I would like you to come prepared with two verses: one verse that you found particularly inspiring, and a second verse that you found puzzling in a dharmic way.

Participant (Chris): There's a whole bunch of reciting of the Dhammapada on YouTube if people want to just listen to it. I also spent a lot of time on Wikipedia looking up "brahman."

Kim Allen: Thank you, Chris. Yes, there are a number of recordings. Gil reads this text on the Insight Meditation Center website if you want to hear this particular translation read.

Participant: For participants who aren't all that familiar, "attachment" is a loaded word in English. It refers to clinging. It's not that we shouldn't enjoy things.

Kim Allen: Yes, this is not about attachment theory in psychology. In Buddhism, attachment is generally not healthy. It's a grasping, clinging, or unhealthy gripping. We can feel how it has that contraction to it.

Thank you so much for being here today. I look forward to seeing you next week. Take care.