Dhammapada verse 266
Chapter 19, The Just (Dhammaṭṭhavagga) · verses 256–272
“You don’t become a mendicant just by begging from others. One who has undertaken domestic duties has not yet become a mendicant.”
Na tena bhikkhu so hoti, yāvatā bhikkhate pare; Vissaṁ dhammaṁ samādāya, bhikkhu hoti na tāvatā.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 266 mean?
Verse 266 belongs to chapter 19, The Just (Dhammaṭṭhavagga), which gathers verses 256–272 on what makes a person just. It is filed under no theme. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 265 and verse 267 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.