— Philosophy —
The Dhammapada
Traditional (attributed to the Buddha)
— 300 BCE —
“
All that we are is the result of what we have thought.
Decide its fate
⚖The case for it
Four hundred and twenty-three verses, short enough to memorise and carry, which readers call the “essential, core, minimal set of teachings.” Easwaran’s seventy-page introduction is praised as worth the price by itself, handing you the vocabulary and the biography before a verse arrives, and readers say “the notes were super helpful to my understanding.” Fronsdal shows his working, explaining why a Pali term went one way rather than another. Buddharakkhita with the Pali facing is what collectors keep. It “reads like poetry written by someone who assumes you’re paying attention.”
— the honest librarian
✕The case against
The same claim comes back chapter after chapter, bad conduct brings suffering and good conduct brings peace, until readers skim what they call “mostly just an assortment of platitudes,” one answering the page directly with “thanks, I couldn’t figure that out for myself.” Readers who want the verses bare object that “it doesn’t need all the commentary,” while readers without commentary cannot place anything. The text assumes a strong and healthy practitioner, and “few men of eighty can practise it.” Anyone arriving from Taoism or Nagarjuna finds it unchallenging.
— the honest librarian
5h
honest hours
7
sittings
beyond the verdict
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