Dhammapada verse 270
Chapter 19, The Just (Dhammaṭṭhavagga) · verses 256–272
“You don’t become a noble one by harming living beings. One harmless toward all living beings is said to be a noble one.”
Na tena ariyo hoti, yena pāṇāni hiṁsati; Ahiṁsā sabbapāṇānaṁ, “ariyo”ti pavuccati.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 270 mean?
Verse 270 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 269 and verse 271 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.