Dhammapada verse 150
Chapter 11, Old Age (Jarāvagga) · verses 146–156
“In this city built of bones, plastered with flesh and blood, old age and death are stashed away, along with conceit and contempt.”
Aṭṭhīnaṁ nagaraṁ kataṁ, maṁsalohitalepanaṁ; Yattha jarā ca maccu ca, māno makkho ca ohito.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 150 mean?
Verse 150 belongs to chapter 11, Old Age (Jarāvagga), which gathers verses 146–156 on old age. It is filed under impermanence & death. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 149 and verse 151 are part of the same passage.
Eleven verses on old age. Its images are the body as a city built of bones and plastered with flesh, and old age and death driving life the way a cowherd drives cattle. The chapter is not only lament: it also contains the verses telling the reader to make an island of themselves and strive while there is time.
More verses on this