Dhammapada verse 368
Chapter 25, Mendicants (Bhikkhuvagga) · verses 360–382
“A mendicant who meditates on love, devoted to the Buddha’s teaching, would realize the peaceful state, the blissful stilling of conditions.”
Mettāvihārī yo bhikkhu, pasanno buddhasāsane; Adhigacche padaṁ santaṁ, saṅkhārūpasamaṁ sukhaṁ.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 368 mean?
Verse 368 belongs to chapter 25, Mendicants (Bhikkhuvagga), which gathers verses 360–382 on the mendicant’s day. It is filed under happiness, the path, the buddha & teachers. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 367 and verse 369 are part of the same passage.
Twenty-three verses on the mendicant, meaning the monastic practitioner, and much of it is practical: restraint in the body, in speech and at the bowl, and contentment with what is giving. The chapter has less doctrine than chapter 24 and more description of how a day of practice is arranged.
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