Dhammapada verse 290
Chapter 21, Miscellaneous (Pakiṇṇakavagga) · verses 290–305
“If by giving up material happiness one sees abundant happiness, the attentive would give up material happiness, seeing the abundant happiness.”
Mattāsukhapariccāgā, passe ce vipulaṁ sukhaṁ; Caje mattāsukhaṁ dhīro, sampassaṁ vipulaṁ sukhaṁ.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 290 mean?
Verse 290 belongs to chapter 21, Miscellaneous (Pakiṇṇakavagga), which gathers verses 290–305 on miscellaneous reflections. It is filed under happiness, giving & merit. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 289 and verse 291 are part of the same passage.
Sixteen verses of miscellany, which is what the title means. The chapter collects short reflections that did not sit under one of the other headings — on speech and silence, on the mind, on what a person should hold to — and its lack of a single subject is itself part of the book’s shape.
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