Dhammapada verse 280
Chapter 20, The Path (Maggavagga) · verses 273–289
“They don’t get going when it’s time to start; they’re young and strong, but given to sloth. Their mind depressed in sunken thought, lazy and slothful, they can’t discern the path.”
Uṭṭhānakālamhi anuṭṭhahāno, Yuvā balī ālasiyaṁ upeto; Saṁsannasaṅkappamano kusīto, Paññāya maggaṁ alaso na vindati.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 280 mean?
Verse 280 belongs to chapter 20, The Path (Maggavagga), which gathers verses 273–289 on the path. It is filed under mind & intention, the path, giving & merit. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 279 and verse 281 are part of the same passage.
Seventeen verses on the path, and the most explicitly doctrinal chapter in the book. It presents the eightfold path as the only way and lays out its factors, then insists that the path is something walked rather than admired. It includes the verses on the four noble truths and on the body as a wound that should be seen clearly.
More verses on this