Dhammapada verse 223
Chapter 17, Anger (Kodhavagga) · verses 221–234
“Defeat anger with kindness, villainy with virtue, stinginess with giving, and lies with truth.”
Akkodhena jine kodhaṁ, asādhuṁ sādhunā jine; Jine kadariyaṁ dānena, saccenālikavādinaṁ.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 223 mean?
Verse 223 belongs to chapter 17, Anger (Kodhavagga), which gathers verses 221–234 on anger. It is filed under anger & peace, giving & merit. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 222 and verse 224 are part of the same passage.
Fourteen verses on anger. The chapter gives the practical instruction to overcome anger with kindness and to give up what feeds it, and it describes the angry person as one who loses their own good. It also holds the verse about giving rather than taking as the way anger is dissolved.
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