“The Gift of Truth Excels all Other Gifts”
THE DHAMMAPADA
TEXT AND TRANSLATION BY
NARADA MAHA THERA
VAJIRARAMA
COLOMBO
PUBLISHED BY
MAHA BODHI SOCIETY OF INDIA
4A, BANKIM CHATTERJEE STREET,
CALCUTTA
2520 (1976
PREFACE
THE! Dhammapada is a collection of Gems which should be the handbookof every Buddhist. Its contents ought to be read and re-read, studied and mastered, and, above all, put into daily practice.
The golden sayings embodied in this sacred book aptly illustrate the moral and philosophical teachings of the Buddha.
Readers will observe the simplicity of the similes employed by the Buddha in the Dhammapada, which are I intelligible even to a child. Take, for instance, the similes of the cart’s wheel, man’s shadow, the ill-thatched house, the sleeping village, deep pool, etc.
The greatness of the Buddha lies in His exposition of profound truths in plain terms.
