Professor Lin Chong'an: A Brief Exploration of the Dhammapada and the Evolution of Its Parables

Selected Essays on Buddhist Studies

A Brief Exploration of the Dhammapada and the Evolution of Its Parables

Lin Chong'an (2004)

I. Preface

II. The Formation of the Dhammapada

III. Compilations After the Buddha's Parinirvāṇa

IV. The Evolution of the Dhammapada in the Southern Transmission

V. The Evolution of the Dhammapada in the Northern Transmission

VI. The Evolution of the Parables/Conditional Stories

VII. Conclusion

I. Preface

The Dhammapada is a collection of the Buddha's verses that circulated throughout India during Śākyamuni's lifetime and played a major role in teaching the Indian public. Zhi Qian (ca. 225 CE) put it this way: "For those in India who are just beginning their training, not studying the Dhammapada is called 'skipping the sequence.' This is indeed the great gateway for beginners and the profound treasury for those who go deeper. It can open the eyes of the ignorant, resolve doubts, and lead people to stand on their own. Though the effort of studying it is small, what it encompasses is vast." In Sri Lanka (Ceylon) today, the ordained sangha are still required to be able to recite the Dhammapada before receiving full bhikkhu ordination. To help people understand the Dharma correctly, the Dhammapada serves as an important entry point. The Buddha's teachings during his lifetime are classified into twelve divisions of scripture: (1) sūtra (sutta), (2) geya (verse repetition), (3) vyākaraṇa (explanation), (4) gāthā (verse), (5) udāna (inspired utterance), (6) nidāna (causal narrative), (7) avadāna (parable), (8) itivṛttaka (former events), (9) jātaka (birth stories), (10) vaipulya (expounded teachings), (11) adbhutadharma (wondrous phenomena), and (12) upadeśa (discourses). The Dhammapada belongs to the category of "udāna" within this classification. Over six hundred years after the Buddha's parinirvāṇa, in order to clarify the background and circumstances of the Dhammapada verses, related materials such as nidāna, avadāna, jātaka, and itivṛttaka were gathered together, giving rise to the northern Dharmapadāvadāna, the Sūtra of Brought Forth Light (Chuyao jing 出曜經), and the southern Dhammapada Commentary. Drawing on the relevant sūtras and treatises, this essay traces the formation of the Dhammapada during the Buddha's time as well as the evolution of its parables and conditional stories after his parinirvāṇa.

II. The Formation of the Dhammapada

After attaining Buddhahood, the Blessed One first preached the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta to the five bhikkhus, and then converted the sixty ascetics of the Bhadravargīya and others. These disciples, having attained the state of arhatship, went forth to propagate the Dharma throughout India. To make transmission easier, they began compiling the Buddha's teachings and passing them on. The first type of scriptures transmitted were verse-form udānas and gāthās. Another type consisted of prose sūtras, sometimes with geyas appended at the end. The Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya Kṣudraka-vastu records that when the merchant leader Pūrṇa of Śūrpāraka city entered the great ocean together with other merchants, the merchants constantly recited the Buddha's verses and sūtras:

Those merchants, day and night, constantly recited the Udāna Verses, the Verses of the Senior Monks, the Śrāvakī Verses, the Muni Verses, the Collection of Meanings, and the Sūtras, reciting them in melodious and clear voices. Pūrṇa, hearing this, asked: "You recite beautifully." The merchants replied: "Merchant leader, this is not a song." Pūrṇa asked: "What words are these?" The merchants answered: "These are the words spoken by the Buddha." (T24, p11b)

Here, the Udāna Verses (嗢拖南颂 = udāna) that the merchants recited day and night are verse-form "inspired utterances." The Verses of the Senior Monks, the Śrāvakī Verses, the Muni Verses, and the Collection of Meanings belong to the verse-form "gāthā" category. The Saṃyuktāgama (Separate Translation) also records:

At that time, the Venerable Aniruddha, traveling with the Buddha, arrived at Hariti's Hall in the land of Magadha. Aniruddha rose in the middle of the night, sat upright, and recited the Verses of the Dhammapada, the Pāṭhavāra Verses, and the Verses of the Great Sages, and further recited their meanings aloud along with the Sūtras. (T2, p480c)

This passage tells us that Aniruddha, one of the Buddha's ten chief disciples, rose early in the morning to recite the Verses of the Dhammapada and the like. The Verses of the Dhammapada belong to the verse-form "udāna," while the Pāṭhavāra and the Verses of the Great Sages (= Verses of the Senior Monks) that he recited belong to the verse-form "gāthā." From this we can see that the Buddha's disciples of the time—both householders (the merchants) and the ordained sangha—made it their morning practice to recite the Udāna (= 嗢拖南 = udāna) and the like, with the Verses of the Dhammapada taking precedence. The so-called "udāna" (inspired utterance) refers to verses the Blessed One spontaneously uttered when moved by something in daily life; the Verses of the Dhammapada are verses the Blessed One improvised while teaching, and they likewise belong to the "udāna" category. The Abhidharmamahāvibhāṣā explains:

What is udāna? It refers to those passages in which the World-Honored One spontaneously utters verses on account of joyful or sorrowful events. An example occasioned by joy: once when the Buddha saw a wild elephant king, he spontaneously uttered: "The elephant king dwells in the open wilderness, letting his mind roam free of anxiety; the wise one abides in a tranquil grove, his aspirations carefree and still." An example occasioned by sorrow: once when the Buddha saw an elderly couple, he spontaneously uttered: "In youth one fails to cultivate the holy life and loses the saintly treasure; now, like two old cranes, they share a single withered pond." (T27, p660a)

These udānas were transmitted quite early on. The Saṃyuktāgama records the Blessed One speaking the Udāna Verses:

At one time, the Buddha was dwelling at the Āmra Garden near the dwelling of the physician Jīvaka in Vaiśālī. After the World-Honored One had spoken all the Udāna Verses, he told the Venerable Ānanda: "The eye is impermanent, suffering, and subject to change and alteration." (T2, p52b)

What did the Verses of the Dhammapada compiled during the Buddha's time contain at the moment of his parinirvāṇa? From the original common portions preserved in today's southern and northern transmissions, we can infer that its contents extended from the Yamakavagga (Twin Verses) to the Brāhmaṇavagga (Brāhmaṇa Chapter), comprising twenty-six chapters in all. By the Buddha's later years, this collection was already being recited throughout India—much like the broad appeal of the Three Hundred Tang Poems later enjoyed in China. Some well-known verses from the Dhammapada include the "Mind as the Source of Dharma" verse in the Yamakavagga:

Mind is the source of dharma, mind is supreme, mind commands the mind. If the mind turns to evil, one speaks and acts accordingly; Suffering follows oneself, as the cartwheel grinds the rut. Mind is the source of dharma, mind is supreme, mind commands the mind. If the mind turns to good, one speaks and acts accordingly; Happiness follows oneself, as a shadow follows the form. (T4, p562a)

And the "Refrain from All Evil" verse in the Buddhavagga:

Refrain from all evil, cultivate all good, purify one's own mind—this is the teaching of all Buddhas. (T4, p567b)

Summary: The 26-chapter version of the Verses of the Dhammapada—the early collection 【A】—began to be compiled during the Buddha's lifetime and had taken initial shape by the time of his parinirvāṇa.

III. Compilations After the Buddha's Parinirvāṇa

At the First Council, held in the year of the Buddha's parinirvāṇa, the Sūtra Piṭaka was compiled first, followed by the Vinaya Piṭaka. When compiling the Sūtra Piṭaka, the five hundred arhats at the assembly devoted themselves to compiling the four Āgamas. Shorter works such as the Verses of the Dhammapada and the Verses of the Senior Monks were not included in this council's compilation, since these verses were already widely recited and well known throughout India. At this time, the 26-chapter Verses of the Dhammapada recited in various parts of India contained roughly four hundred verses or more.

At the Second Council, held one hundred years after the Buddha's parinirvāṇa, the Vinaya Piṭaka was compiled first, followed by the Sūtra Piṭaka. When compiling the Sūtra Piṭaka, the four Āgamas were slightly adjusted on the one hand, while on the other hand short verses and sūtras of the udāna, gāthā, and itivṛttaka categories that had not been included in the First Council were gathered into the Saṃyutta Piṭaka (Miscellaneous Collection), also called the Khuddaka Nikāya (Minor Collection), making a total of five piṭakas or five Āgamas. The contents of this Khuddaka Nikāya compiled at this time included:

(1) From the gāthā category, the Sīlappadāna, the Muni Verses, the Atthakavagga, and the Pārāyaṇa were gathered into the Suttanipāta of the Khuddaka Nikāya. The Theragāthā from the gāthā category was placed in the Theragāthā of the Khuddaka Nikāya; the Therīgāthā was placed in the Therīgāthā of the Khuddaka Nikāya.

(2) From the udāna category, the Udāna was placed in the Udāna of the Khuddaka Nikāya. The Verses of the Dhammapada from the udāna category was placed in the Dhammapada of the Khuddaka Nikāya.

(3) From the itivṛttaka category, the Ekottara-nidāna-sūtra (Itivuttaka) was placed in the Itivuttaka of the Khuddaka Nikāya.

Therefore, it was only at the Second Council that the Verses of the Dhammapada were formally included in the council's compilation. After the Second Council, those who had participated passed the teachings down, giving rise to the Sthavira (Elders) lineage. Those who did not participate in the Second Council (the Sarvāstivāda, Mahāsāṃghika, and Vātsīputrīya lineages) largely maintained the status quo. By the time of Aśoka's Third Council (about 234 years after the Buddha's parinirvāṇa), the Sthavira lineage had expanded the Khuddaka Nikāya into fourteen divisions: (1) Dhammapada, (2) Apadāna, (3) Udāna, (4) Itivuttaka, (5) Suttanipāta (containing the Sīlappadāna, Muni Verses, Atthakavagga, Pārāyaṇa, etc.), (6) Vimānavatthu, (7) Petavatthu, (8) Theragāthā, (9) Therīgāthā, (10) Jātaka, (11) Niddesa, (12) Paṭisambhidāmagga, (13) Buddhavaṃsa, (14) Cariyāpiṭaka. The southern Khuddaka Nikāya as we have it today adds a Khuddakapāṭha before the Dhammapada, making fifteen divisions in all. The Dhammapada here is the 26-chapter version—early collection 【A】. These twenty-six chapters are:

A1 Yamakavagga (Twin Verses), A2 Appamādavagga (Heedfulness), A3 Cittavagga (Mind), A4 Pupphavagga (Flowers), A5 Bālavagga (Fools), A6 Paṇḍitavagga (The Wise), A7 Arahantavagga (Arahants), A8 Sahassavagga (Thousands), A9 Pāpavagga (Evil), A10 Daṇḍavagga (Violence), A11 Jarāvagga (Old Age), A12 Attavagga (Self), A13 Lokavagga (The World), A14 Buddhavagga (The Buddha), A15 Sukhavagga (Happiness), A16 Piyavagga (Affection), A17 Kodhavagga (Anger), A18 Malavagga (Impurities), A19 Dhammaṭṭhavagga (The Just), A20 Maggavagga (The Path), A21 Pakinnakavagga (Miscellaneous), A22 Nirayavagga (Hell), A23 Nāgavagga (Elephants), A24 Taṇhāvagga (Craving), A25 Bhikkhuvagga (Bhikkhus), A26 Brāhmaṇavagga (Brāhmaṇas).

Summary: By the time of the Third Council (ca. 251 BCE), the Verses of the Dhammapada in India had not changed in content; from the Yamakavagga to the Brāhmaṇavagga, it remained the 26-chapter version—early collection 【A】.

After the Buddha's parinirvāṇa, the Dhammapada continued to be recited in India. Around 50 CE, the Venerable Dharmatrāta of the Sarvāstivāda lineage compiled a new Dhammapada in northern India, extending from the Anicca-vagga (Impermanence) to the Brāhmaṇa-vagga (Brāhmaṇas), comprising thirty-three chapters in all. The Abhidharmamahāvibhāṣā records:

After the Buddha's parinirvāṇa, the Great Worthy Dharmatrāta, drawing on what he had heard in turn, compiled in sequence and established chapter titles: he gathered the impermanence verses to form the Anicca-vagga, and so on up to the Brāhmaṇa verses, which formed the Brāhmaṇa-vagga. (T27, p1b)

The version compiled by Dharmatrāta is the 33-chapter version of the Verses of the Dhammapada—the middle-period collection 【B】. Yet the verses Dharmatrāta compiled had by now expanded into the "gāthā" category and were no longer limited to the spontaneous "udāna" of the earlier period. The thirty-three chapters of the middle-period collection 【B】 are:

B1 Saṅkhāra-vagga (Conditioned Things), B2 Kāma-vagga (Sensual Pleasure), B3 Lobha-vagga (Greed) (A24 Taṇhāvagga), B4 Pamāda-vagga (Heedlessness) (A2 Appamādavagga), B5 Priya-vagga (Joy) (A16 Piyavagga), B6 Sīla-vagga (Morality), B7 Sucarita-vagga (Good Conduct), B8 Vācā-vagga (Speech), B9 Karma-vagga (Action), B10 Śraddhā-vagga (Faith), B11 Śramaṇa-vagga (Ascetics) (A22 Nirayavagga), B12 Mārga-vagga (The Path) (A20 Maggavagga), B13 Lābha-vagga (Gain), B14 Droha-vagga (Enmity), B15 Smṛti-vagga (Mindfulness), B16 Śuddhi-vagga (Purity), B17 Toya-vagga (Water Simile), B18 Puṣpa-vagga (Flower Simile) (A4 Pupphavagga), B19 Aśva-vagga (Horse Simile) (A23 Nāgavagga), B20 Kroḍha-vagga (Anger) (A17 Kodhavagga), B21 Tathāgata-vagga (Tathāgata), B22 Bahuśruta-vagga (Learned), B23 Ātma-vagga (Self) (A12 Attavagga), B24 Prabhāva-vagga (Extensive Discourse) (A8 Sahassavagga), B25 Mitta-vagga (Good Friend), B26 Pari-nirvāṇa-vagga (Complete Quiescence), B27 Pratyavekṣaṇā-vagga (Observance) (A14 Buddhavagga), B28 Pāpa-vagga (Obstructions) (A9 Pāpavagga, A10 Daṇḍavagga), B29 Saṃvṛti-vagga (Correspondence) (A1 Yamakavagga, A7 Arahantavagga), B30 Śānti-vagga (Peace) (A15 Sukhavagga), B31 Cakra-vagga (Guarding the Mind) (A3 Cittavagga), B32 Bhikṣu-vagga (Bhikkhus) (A19 Dhammaṭṭhavagga, A25 Bhikkhuvagga), B33 Brāhmaṇa-vagga (Brāhmaṇas) (A26 Brāhmaṇavagga).

Comparing the verse contents of the early-period collection 【A】 and the middle-period collection 【B】, many chapters within this 33-chapter version correspond to chapters in the earlier 26-chapter version—for example, B3 Lobha-vagga (A24 Taṇhāvagga), showing that B3 Lobha-vagga corresponds to A24 Taṇhāvagga. Clear correspondences can be seen in A1–4, A7–10, A12, A14–17, A19–20, and A22–26, while the earlier A5 Bālavagga, A6 Paṇḍitavagga, A11 Jarāvagga, A13 Lokavagga, A18 Malavagga, and A21 Pakinnakavagga were dispersed into other chapters. Within this 33-chapter version, the chapters newly compiled by Dharmatrāta are B1, B6, B8, B10, B15, B26, and so on; the new verses in B8 were mainly excerpted from the Suttanipāta.

Summary: Around 50 CE, the Dhammapada in India existed in two forms: the 26-chapter version—early collection 【A】—and the 33-chapter version of the Verses of the Dhammapada—middle-period collection 【B】—compiled by Dharmatrāta.

Around 200 CE, a hybrid Dhammapada appeared in India, extending from the Anicca-vagga to the Brāhmaṇa-vagga, comprising thirty-nine chapters in all. It was still credited to Dharmatrāta as compiler. This 39-chapter version of the Verses of the Dhammapada—the later-period collection 【C】—was formed mainly by supplementing the 26 chapters of the early collection 【A】 with thirteen additional chapters, and its verses had likewise expanded into the "gāthā" category. The thirty-nine chapters of the later-period collection 【C】 are:

C1 Impermanence Chapter (B1), C2 Teaching Chapter, C3 Erudition Chapter, C4 Faith Chapter (B10), C5 Vigilance Chapter (B6), C6 Mindfulness Chapter (B15), C7 Loving-Kindness Chapter, C8 Speech Chapter (B8), C9 Pairs Chapter (A1), C10 Heedlessness Chapter (A2), C11 Mind Chapter (A3), C12 Flowers Chapter (A4), C13 Fools Chapter (A5), C14 The Wise Chapter (A6), C15 Arhats Chapter (A7), C16 Thousands Chapter (A8), C17 Evil Deeds Chapter (A9), C18 Punishment Chapter (A10), C19 Old Age Chapter (A11), C20 Self Chapter (A12), C21 The World Chapter (A13), C22 The Buddha Chapter (A14), C23 Happiness Chapter (A15), C24 Affection Chapter (A16), C25 Anger Chapter (A17), C26 Impurities Chapter (A18), C27 The Just Chapter (A19), C28 The Path Chapter (A20), C29 Impediments Chapter (A21), C30 Hell Chapter (A22), C31 The Elephant Chapter (A23), C32 Craving Chapter (A24), C33 Gains Chapter (B13), C34 The Ascetic Chapter (A25), C35 The Brahmin Chapter (A26), C36 Nirvāṇa Chapter (B26), C37 Rebirth Chapter, C38 Path Benefits Chapter, and C39 Auspicious Chapter.

Here, "C1 Impermanence Chapter (B1)" means that the C1 Impermanence Chapter corresponds to B1 (Conditioned Things Chapter) of the middle-period recension, and so on for the rest. Of these thirty-nine chapters, twenty-six are directly related to the early recension 【A】: C9–32 and C34–35. Seven relate to the middle recension 【B】: C1, C4–6, C8, C33, and C36. The remaining six — C2, C3, C7, and C37–39 — were added later and fall under the category of standalone verse (gāthā). Among these, the new verses in C39 are drawn mainly from the Sutta Nipāta. In short, the late thirty-nine-chapter version 【C】 is a composite assembled from three sources.

Summary: Around 200 CE in northern India, the Dharmapada circulated in a twenty-six-chapter version = early recension 【A】, alongside the thirty-three-chapter Dharmapada Verses compiled by Dharmatrāta = middle recension 【B】, and a thirty-nine-chapter Dharmapada Verses also attributed to Dharmatrāta = late recension 【C】.

IV. The Southern Transmission of the Dharmapada

After Aśoka's Third Council, around 250 BCE, Mahinda and others carried the five collections (or five Āgamas) south to Sri Lanka and neighboring lands, and with them the Dharmapada Verses from the Khuddaka Nikāya. Around 80 BCE, the scriptures were committed to writing in Sri Lanka. The surviving southern Dharmapada — the Pāli text of the Tāmraśāṭīya (Theravāda) tradition — runs from the Yamaka Vagga to the Brāhmaṇa Vagga, totaling twenty-six chapters and 423 verses. It is placed as the second text within the Khuddaka Nikāya of the southern canon.

Around 430 CE, Buddhaghosa traveled to Sri Lanka and composed the Dharmapada Commentary (Dhammapada-aṭṭhakathā) in twenty-six chapters, containing 305 avadānas and nidānas — illustrative stories and origin accounts — for the Dharmapada verses.

Summary: Around 430 CE, the southern transmission had the twenty-six-chapter Dharmapada = early recension 【A】, along with its accompanying avadānas/nidānas = the Dharmapada Commentary.

V. The Northern Transmission of the Dharmapada

(1) Around 224 CE, Zhi Qian first obtained a 500-verse initial text brought by Vīra (T4, p566c), comprising twenty-six chapters and 498 verses — the early recension 【A】 of the Dharmapada. Around 225 CE, Vīra, Zhu Jiangyan, and others translated this initial version into Chinese.

(2) Later, Zhu Jiangyan brought an additional thirteen chapters, bringing the total to thirty-nine chapters and 752 verses (depending on how one counts, variously reckoned as 757, 758, or 759). This is the thirty-nine-chapter Dharmapada Verses = late recension 【C】. Around 225 CE, Vīra, Zhu Jiangyan, and others translated it — from the Impermanence Chapter through the Auspicious Chapter, thirty-nine chapters in all — producing a mixed version of the Dharmapada.

(3) Between 290 and 306 CE, Faju and Fali jointly translated the Dharmapada Avadāna Sūtra (also known as the Dharmapada Beginning-and-End Sūtra or Dharmāvadāna Sūtra), running from the Impermanence Chapter to the Auspicious Chapter — thirty-nine chapters in all. This too is a mixed version of the Dharmapada, containing seventy-five avadānas/nidānas for the verses.

(4) In 383 CE, Zhu Fonian translated Dharmatrāta's compilation, the Chuyao Jing (also called the Dharmapada Record), containing roughly 825–862 verses across thirty-three chapters, from the Impermanence Chapter through the Brahmin Chapter. This is the thirty-three-chapter Dharmapada Verses = middle recension 【B】. It includes avadānas/nidānas for the verses along with brief annotations.

(5) Between 990 and 1000 CE, Devaśāntika translated Dharmatrāta's compilation, the Collection of Essential Verses (also called Verses of Praise to All Buddhas), with roughly 928 verses across thirty-three chapters, from the Conditioned Things Chapter through the Brahmin Chapter. This is again the thirty-three-chapter Dharmapada Verses = middle recension 【B】.

Summary: By 383 CE, in the Chinese-speaking world, the following already existed:

【A】 The Dharmapada in twenty-six chapters = early recension; its avadānas/nidānas are contained within the Dharmapada Avadāna Sūtra.

【B】 The Dharmapada Verses in thirty-three chapters = the Dharmapada's middle recension, compiled by Dharmatrāta; its avadānas/nidānas = the Chuyao Jing.

【C】 The Dharmapada Verses in thirty-nine chapters = the Dharmapada's late recension, still attributed to Dharmatrāta; its avadānas/nidānas = the Dharmapada Avadāna Sūtra.

As for the northern transmission reaching Tibet: around 750 CE, the thirty-three-chapter Dharmapada Verses = middle recension 【B】, compiled by Dharmatrāta, was translated into Tibetan, along with its avadānas/nidānas = the Dharmapada Commentary (by Prajñāvarman).

VI. The Evolution of the Avadānas and Nidānas

Four to five hundred years after the Buddha's passing, the boundaries among the twelve divisions of scripture had grown indistinct. The differences between geya (responsive verses), gāthā (standalone verses), and udāna (inspired utterances) were no longer clearly drawn, and the distinctions among avadāna (illustrative tale), nidāna (origin account), itivṛttaka (past accounts), and jātaka (birth story) had similarly blurred. According to the Mahāvibhāṣā (T27, p660a): a nidāna is the cause or circumstance behind a given sūtra or the promulgation of a training rule. An avadāna is an extended parable spoken by the Blessed One, such as the Sūtra of the Former Deeds of King Long-Life. A jātaka covers the Buddha's past lives — as a bear, a deer, and so on — along with related past events involving Devadatta. An itivṛttaka concerns great kings and past Buddhas — things seen and heard in former times.

Because these categories had grown so hazy, four to five centuries after the Buddha's parinirvāṇa there was no longer any consensus about how to read the avadānas and nidānas of the Dharmapada. Different compilers made different choices, and the result was considerable variation. Take, for example, the two verses on "mind as the source of all dharmas" from the Pairs Chapter (Yamaka Vagga) — there are four distinct accounts:

(1) The version from the northern Dharmapada Avadāna Sūtra (thirty-nine chapters, translated 290–306 CE):

Once, during the third month, the Buddha told Ānanda: "Instruct the bhikṣus that tomorrow, when the king invites us, each should manifest a miraculous transformation, so that the king and his people may rejoice." Each performed supernatural feats and traveled to that kingdom, where they took their seats in proper order. When the meal was finished and hands were washed, the Buddha taught the Dharma to the king.

The king said: "I was but a humble man, with no merits to my name. How did I come to deserve this?"

The Buddha replied: Long ago, King Prasenajit offered food to the Buddha at a crossroads, and as he did so he thought: "The Buddha is like a king, his disciples like ministers." That king planted this seed and now reaps its fruit. Another person had said: "The Buddha is like an ox, his disciples like a cart." That person planted the seed of being crushed by cart-wheels, and now in the hell of Mount Tai he is crushed by a fiery cart — reaping his own fruit. But this was not something the king's valor could bring about. Good fortune follows good deeds; disaster pursues evil ones. Each person brings this upon themselves — no dragon, god, or spirit can bestow it. Then the World-Honored One spoke these verses:

(a) Mind is the source of all dharmas, mind is supreme, mind directs all. When the mind harbors evil, one speaks and acts upon it — suffering follows close behind, like a wheel grinding its rut.

(b) Mind is the source of all dharmas, mind is supreme, mind directs all. When the mind harbors good, one speaks and acts upon it — joy and well-being follow close behind, like a shadow tracking form.

(2) The version from the northern Chuyao Jing (thirty-three chapters, translated 383 CE):

At that time the World-Honored One told the bhikṣus: From now on, first recite the meal-time verse, and only then eat. In the city of Śrāvastī, two beggars came to the sangha seeking alms. It so happened that the assembly had not yet recited the meal-time verse. One of the beggars, consumed by jealousy, formed a malicious thought: "If I ever gain power and become king, I'll use cart-wheels to crush the heads of every last one of these ascetics!" After the verse was recited, that beggar received a great bounty from his alms round. He went to the roadside, ate his fill, and fell asleep. Hundreds of carts came rumbling down the road and crushed his head. He died and fell into hell, suffering beyond measure.

The second beggar, though, thought to himself: "If I ever gain wealth and become king, I will provide for this entire assembly, so that they never want for anything." Having gotten what he needed from begging, he lay down under a tree and fell asleep, his mind calm and still, free of troubled thoughts. Now at that time, that country had lost its king and had no heir to the throne. ... Searchers spotted a man sleeping under a tree: the sun had shifted, yet the tree's shadow did not move, but stayed like a canopy over him. The envoy went to look and marveled — who could be more extraordinary than this? This was surely the one meant to inherit the throne. They woke him, lifted him into a palanquin, and carried him with great retinue to the royal palace. The people shouted "Long live the king!" and the land was at peace. Seeing the significance of these two events, the World-Honored One spoke these verses:

(a) Mind is the source of all dharmas, mind is supreme, mind directs all. When the mind harbors evil, one speaks and acts upon it — suffering follows close behind, like a wheel grinding its rut.

(b) Mind is the source of all dharmas, mind is supreme, mind directs all. When the mind harbors good, one speaks and acts upon it — blessings and good fortune follow close behind, like a shadow tracking form.

(3) The version from the northern Ekottara Āgama (translated 384–397 CE) (T2, p827b):

The Buddha told King Prasenajit: "The faculty of mind carries the most weight; the other two are lighter." Then the World-Honored One spoke these verses:

(a) Mind is the source of all dharmas, mind is supreme, mind directs all. When the mind intends evil, one acts on it at once — and there suffers the consequences, like a wheel grinding its rut.

(b) Mind is the source of all dharmas, mind is supreme, mind directs all. When the mind intends good, one acts on it at once — and receives its good reward, like a shadow tracking form.

(4) The version from the southern Dharmapada Commentary (twenty-six chapters, composed by Buddhaghosa around 430 CE):

The Blessed One addressed the case of a blind elder who had stepped on and killed insects, explaining that because it was unintentional, it did not count as a breach of precepts. He further explained that the karmic ripening of the elder's blindness traced back to a former life, when as a physician he had deliberately blinded a woman. On this occasion the Blessed One spoke the verse:

(a) All phenomena are preceded by mind, ruled by mind, made by mind. If one speaks or acts with a corrupted mind — suffering follows, as a wheel follows the ox's hoof.

A certain brahmin, on his deathbed, saw the Blessed One. Faith and devotion surged in him, and he died — reborn among the Tāvatiṃsa gods. Concerning this event the Blessed One spoke the verse:

(b) All phenomena are preceded by mind, ruled by mind, made by mind. If one speaks or acts with a pure mind — happiness follows, like a shadow that never leaves the form.

From the avadānas and nidānas accompanying these two verses on "mind as the source of all dharmas," we can see significant divergence across the four versions: (1) The Chuyao Jing and (2) the Dharmapada Avadāna Sūtra both trace the two verses to a single event with slightly different circumstances, interpreting them through the contrasting mental states and fates of two individuals. (3) The northern Ekottara Āgama presents a single event and then directly appends the verses as a concluding teaching. (4) The southern Dharmapada Commentary draws on two unrelated events, again interpreting the two verses through two people's differing circumstances, and for the first person adds an itivṛttaka — a past-life backstory. From this single example, it becomes clear that the Dharmapada's avadānas and nidānas were assembled by later generations, drawing on relevant materials from the sūtras and vinaya. Different editors made different choices, and so the results vary considerably.

VII. Conclusion

The foregoing sketches the broad arc of the Dharmapada's transmission and transformation. In chronological order, here are the versions of the Dharmapada and their associated avadānas/nidānas that traveled beyond the Indian subcontinent — a summary to close with:

(1) Southern Dharmapada, twenty-six chapters: 423 verses; transmitted to Sri Lanka around 250 BCE; exists in several Chinese translations.

(2) Northern Dharmapada, twenty-six chapters: 490 verses; the initial version translated around 225 CE by Vīra, Zhu Jiangyan, and others.

(3) Northern Dharmapada, thirty-nine chapters: 758 verses; a mixed version translated around 225 CE by Vīra, Zhu Jiangyan, and others.

(4) Northern Dharmapada Avadāna Sūtra, thirty-nine chapters: a mixed version jointly translated by Faju and Fali between 290–306 CE, containing 75 avadānas/nidānas for the verses.

(5) Northern Chuyao Jing, thirty-three chapters: verses compiled by Dharmatrāta (around 50 CE), translated into Chinese by Zhu Fonian in 383 CE; includes avadānas/nidānas for the verses as well as brief annotations.

(6) Southern Dharmapada Commentary, twenty-six chapters: annotated by Buddhaghosa around 430 CE; contains a total of 305 avadānas/nidānas for the verses.

(7) Tibetan Dharmapada, thirty-three chapters, and Dharmapada Commentary, thirty-three chapters: translated into Tibetan around 750 CE; the commentary contains avadānas/nidānas for the verses.

(8) Northern Collection of Essential Verses, thirty-three chapters: roughly 928 verses; compiled by Dharmatrāta; translated by Devaśāntika between 990–1000 CE.

(Adapted from: "A Brief Investigation into the Formation and Evolution of the Dharmapada," published in Faguang Magazine 174, 2004)