Dhammapada verse 346
Chapter 24, Craving (Taṇhāvagga) · verses 334–359
“this, say the attentive, is a strong shackle dragging the indulgent down, hard to escape. Having cut this one too they go forth, unconcerned, having given up sensual pleasures.”
Etaṁ daḷhaṁ bandhanamāhu dhīrā, Ohārinaṁ sithilaṁ duppamuñcaṁ; Etampi chetvāna paribbajanti, Anapekkhino kāmasukhaṁ pahāya.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 346 mean?
Verse 346 belongs to chapter 24, Craving (Taṇhāvagga), which gathers verses 334–359 on craving. It is filed under giving & merit. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 345 and verse 347 are part of the same passage.
Twenty-six verses on craving, and the longest sustained passage in the book. The image is thirst, then a creeper that spreads by night, then the house-builder who builds again and again until the rafters are broken. The chapter is the one most directly concerned with the mechanism by which the self renews its own difficulty.
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