Dhammapada verse 251
Chapter 18, Stains (Malavagga) · verses 235–255
“There is no fire like greed, no crime like hate, no net like delusion, no river like craving.”
Natthi rāgasamo aggi, natthi dosasamo gaho; Natthi mohasamaṁ jālaṁ, natthi taṇhāsamā nadī.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 251 mean?
Verse 251 belongs to chapter 18, Stains (Malavagga), which gathers verses 235–255 on stains and their removal. It is filed under anger & peace, craving & attachment. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 250 and verse 252 are part of the same passage.
Twenty-one verses on stains — the defilements as dirt on a surface that can be cleaned. The chapter lists the specific stains it means, including hardness, carelessness, deceit and jealousy, and it treats purity not as innocence but as the result of scrubbing.
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