The Path :: Verses 273, 274, 275 and 276

Dhammapada Verses 273, 274, 275 and 276

The Story of Five Hundred Bhikkhus

Five hundred bhikkhus, after accompanying the Buddha to a village, returned to the Jetavana monastery. In the evening they talked about the trip, especially the nature of the land, whether it was level or hilly, clayey or stony, etc. The Buddha came to them in the midst of their conversation and said to them, "Bhikkhus, the path you are talking about is external to you; a bhikkhu should only be concerned with the path of the Noble Ones (ariyas) and strive to do what should be done for the attainment of the Ariya Path (Magga) that leads to the realization of the Perfect Peace (Nibbana)."

Then the Buddha spoke in verse as follows:

Magganatthangiko¹ settho
saccanam caturo pada²
virago settho dhammanam³
dvipadananca cakkhuma.

Verse 273: Of paths, the Path of Eight Constituents is the noblest; of truths, the Four Noble Truths are the noblest; of the dhammas, the absence of craving (i.e., Nibbana) is the noblest; of the two-legged beings, the All-Seeing Buddha is the noblest.

Eseva maggo natthanno
dassanassa visuddhiya
etanhi tumhe patipajjatha
marassetam pamohanam.

Verse 274: This is the only Path, and there is none other for the purity of vision. Follow this Path; it will bewilder Mara.

Etanhi tumhe patipanna
dukkhassantam karissatha
akkhato vo rnaya maggo
annaya sallakantanam.

Verse 275: Following this Path, you will make an end of dukkha. Having myself known the Path which can lead to the removal of the thorns of moral defilements, I have shown you the Path.

Tumhehi kiccamatappam
akkhataro tathagata
patipanna pamokkhanti
jhayino marabandhana.

Verse 276: You yourselves should make the effort; the Tathagatas (Buddhas) only can show the way. Those who practise the Tranquillity and Insight Meditation are freed from the bond of Mara.

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1. atthangiko: Ariya Atthangika Magga, or the Noble Path of Eight Constituents. This is the Path pointed out by the Buddha for liberation from the round of existences. The Eight Constituents are: right view, right thinking, right speech, right action, right living, right effort, right mindfulness and right concentration.
2. caturo pada: Cattari Ariyasaccani, or the Four Noble Truths. These are the four Truths upon which the whole doctrine of the Buddha is based. They are: (a) the Noble Truth of Dukkha; (b) the Noble Truth of the Cause of Dukkha, i.e., craving; (c) the Noble Truth of the Cessation of Dukkha; and (d) the Noble Truth of the Path leading to the Cessation of Dukkha. (N.B. Dukkha, in this context, means the five aggregates of attachment or Pancupadanakkhandha).
3. dhamma: both conditioned and unconditioned things.