[ This is the first time I have commented on an excerpt. Here’s why – these are holy Buddhist verses. Quite powerful verses, I must say, but you should know a little history before you read them. Whenever you look up The Dhammapada or Buddha, it seems everyone is at great pains to say these verses were written several hundred years before Christ, probably because some of Jesus’ teachings can find antecedents in these verses. But several hundred years before these verses were written, the Psalms were written. Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still, and know that I am God.” Psalm 147:4 says, “He counts the number of the stars; He gives names to all of them.” And even earlier, several more hundreds of years earlier, Moses says, “Behold, to the Lord your God belong the highest heavens, the earth and all that is in it,” in Deuteronomy 10:14. These, and many other biblical passages, are antecedents to what Buddha was seeking. Not antecedents really, but the answer he sought. Buddha was on the right path, but he stopped before he reached his destination. He knew there was a source of perfect love and happiness, “harmony” he called it. He said it could be found within us. But God is external to us; He supersedes us. And He is the only source of harmony. It is one of our greatest foibles that we believe the answers are within our power to control, even to find. Only when we accept God’s gift, salvation through his perfect son, does His Spirit dwell within us. Only then do we know there is no perfect love and happiness without Him. Any other path to harmony ends in futility. ]

CONTRARY WAYS

What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow; our life is the creation of the mind.
If a man speaks or acts with an impure mind, suffering follows him as the wheel of the cart follows the beast that draws the cart.

What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow; our life is the creation of the mind.
If a man speaks or acts with a pure mind, joy follows him as his own shadow.

“He insulted me, he hurt me, he defeated me, he robbed me.” Those who think such thoughts will not be free from hate.

“He insulted me, he hurt me, he defeated me, he robbed me.” Those who think not such thoughts will be free from hate.

For hate is not conquered by hate: hate is conquered by love. This is a law eternal.

Many do not know that we are here in this world to live in harmony. Those who know this do not fight against each other.

He who lives only for pleasures, and whose soul is not in harmony, who considers not the food he eats, is idle and not the power of virtue – such a man is moved by MARA, is moved by selfish temptations, even as a weak tree is shaken by the wind.

He who lives not for pleasures, and whose soul is in self-harmony, who eats or fasts with moderation, and has faith and the power of virtue – this man in not moved by temptations, as a great rock is not shaken by the wind.

If a man puts on the pure yellow robe with a soul which is impure, without self-harmony and truth, he is not worthy of the holy robe.

But he is who is pure from sin and whose soul is strong in virtue, who has self-harmony and truth, he is worthy of the holy robe.

Those who think the unreal is, and think the Real is not, they shall never reach the Truth, lost in the path of wrong thought.

But those who who the Real is, and know the unreal is not, they shall indeed reach the Truth, safe on the the path of right thought.

Even as rain breaks through an ill-thatched house, passions will break through an ill-guarded mind.

But even as rain breaks not through a well-thatched house, passions break not through a well-guarded mind.

He suffers in this world, and he suffers in the next work: the man who does evil suffers in both worlds. He suffers, he suffers and mourns when he sees the wrong he has done.

He is happy in this world and he is happy in the next world: the man who does good is happy in both worlds. He is glad, he feels great gladness when he sees the good he has done.

He sorrows in this world, and he sorrows in the the next world: the man who does evil sorrows in both worlds. “I have done evil,” thus he laments, and more he laments on the path of sorrow.

He rejoices in this world, and he rejoices in the next world: the man who does good rejoices in both worlds. “I have done good,” thus he rejoices, and more he rejoices on the path of joy.

If a man speaks many holy words but he speaks and does not, this thoughtless man cannot enjoy the life of holiness: he is like a cowherd who counts the cows of his master.

Whereas if a man speaks but a few holy words and yet he lives the life of those words, free from passion and hate and illusion – with right vision and a mind free, craving for nothing both now and hereafter – the life of this man is a life of holiness.

THE MIND

The mind is wavering and restless, difficult to guard and restrain: let the wise man straighten his mind as a maker of arrows makes his arrows straight.

Like a fish which is thrown on dry land, taken from his home in the waters, the mind strives and struggles to get free from the power of Death.

The mind is fickle and flighty, it flies after fancies wherever it likes: it is difficult indeed to restrain. But it is a great good to control the mind; a mind self-controlled is a source of great joy.

Invisible and subtle is the mind, and it flies after fancies wherever it likes; but let the wise man guard well his mind, for a mind well guarded is a source of great joy.

Hidden in the mystery of consciousness, the mind, incorporeal, flies alone far away. Those who set their mind in harmony become free from the bonds of death.

He whose mind is unsteady, who knows not the path of Truth, whose faith and peace are ever wavering, he shall never reach fullness of wisdom.

But he whose mind in calm self-control is free from the lust of desires, who has risen above good and evil, he is awake and has no fear.

Considering that this body is frail like a jar, make your mind strong like a fortress and fight the great fight against MARA, all evil temptations. After victory guard well your conquests, and ever for ever watch.

For before long, how sad! this body will lifeless lie on the earth, cast aside like a useless log.

An enemy can hurt an enemy, and a man who hates can harm another man; but a man’s mind, if wrongly directed, can do him a far greater harm.

A father or a mother, or a relative, can indeed do good to a man; but his own right-directed mind can do to him a far greater good.

– The Dhammapada translated by Juan Mascaro