Dhammapada verse 258
Chapter 19, The Just (Dhammaṭṭhavagga) · verses 256–272
“You’re not an astute scholar just because you speak a lot. One who is secure, free of enmity and fear, is said to be astute.”
Na tena paṇḍito hoti, yāvatā bahu bhāsati; Khemī averī abhayo, “paṇḍito”ti pavuccati.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 258 mean?
Verse 258 belongs to chapter 19, The Just (Dhammaṭṭhavagga), which gathers verses 256–272 on what makes a person just. It is filed under speech. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 257 and verse 259 are part of the same passage.
Seventeen verses on the just person. Most of the chapter is a series of distinctions: you do not become just by passing hasty judgment, by seniority, by eloquence, or by complexion. The chapter defines the just person by what they weigh, not by what they claim.
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