Dhammapada verse 262
Chapter 19, The Just (Dhammaṭṭhavagga) · verses 256–272
“Not by mere enunciation, or a beautiful complexion does a person become holy, if they’re jealous, stingy, and devious.”
Na vākkaraṇamattena, vaṇṇapokkharatāya vā; Sādhurūpo naro hoti, issukī maccharī saṭho.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 262 mean?
Verse 262 belongs to chapter 19, The Just (Dhammaṭṭhavagga), which gathers verses 256–272 on what makes a person just. It is filed under no theme. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 261 and verse 263 are part of the same passage.
Seventeen verses on the just person. Most of the chapter is a series of distinctions: you do not become just by passing hasty judgment, by seniority, by eloquence, or by complexion. The chapter defines the just person by what they weigh, not by what they claim.