Encyclopaedia of Buddhism: A World Faith, Volume 1: The Dhammapada Stories, Verses & Commentary

The introductory section defines Dhammapada as the “path of Dhamma” and discusses the meanings of dhamma and pada before placing the text within the Khuddaka Nikāya of the Sutta Piṭaka. It notes that the Pāli Dhammapadaconsists of 423 verses arranged in 26 chapters, while also acknowledging related recensions and textual traditions outside the Theravāda canon. The introduction surveys the transmission of Buddhist scriptures through oral tradition and written forms and discusses Sanskrit, Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit, Gāndhārī, Tibetan, Chinese, and other textual traditions.

A large portion of the introduction is devoted to thematic interpretation of the twenty-six chapters. Chitkara reads the Dhammapada not merely as an ancient verse collection but as a guide to mind-training, moral conduct, social responsibility, compassion, self-realization, and liberation. The Preface emphasizes that the central thesis of the Dhammapada concerns human conduct, righteous behaviour, reflection, meditation, and the purification of mind, while the stories associated with the verses are used to clarify their practical meaning.

Table of Contents

• Acknowledgement

• Foreword

• Preface

• Appreciation

• Introduction

1. The Twin Verses

2. The Vigilance

3. The Mind

4. The Flowers

5. The Immature

6. The Wise

7. The Saint

8. The Thousands

9. The Evil

10. The Punishment

11. The Old Age

12. The Self

13. The World

14. The Enlightened

15. The Happiness

16. The Affection

17. The Anger

18. The Impurity

19. The Righteous

20. The Path

21. The Miscellaneous

22. The Woeful State

23. The Elephant

24. The Craving

25. The Bhikshu

26. The Brahmin

• Appraisal and Sum Up

• Appendices

  • Dhammapada in Pāli

  • Dhammapada in Hindi

  • Dhammapada in Sanskrit

  • Dhammapada in Tibetan

  • Dhammapada in English

  • Bibliography

  • Index