Dhammapada verse 241
Chapter 18, Stains (Malavagga) · verses 235–255
“Not rehearsing is the stain of hymns. The stain of houses is neglect. Laziness is the stain of beauty. A guard’s stain is negligence.”
Asajjhāyamalā mantā, anuṭṭhānamalā gharā; Malaṁ vaṇṇassa kosajjaṁ, pamādo rakkhato malaṁ.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 241 mean?
Verse 241 belongs to chapter 18, Stains (Malavagga), which gathers verses 235–255 on stains and their removal. It is filed under good & evil, purity & stains. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 240 and verse 242 are part of the same passage.
Twenty-one verses on stains — the defilements as dirt on a surface that can be cleaned. The chapter lists the specific stains it means, including hardness, carelessness, deceit and jealousy, and it treats purity not as innocence but as the result of scrubbing.
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