COMPASSION · DHAMMAPADA 135

Meeting Pain With Care

As a cowherd with his staff drives his cows into the stable, so do Age and Death drive the life of men.

Dhammapada 135 · Chapter 10, Punishment · trans. F. Max Müller · Read the full text at Project Gutenberg

Reflection

The verse begins, “As a cowherd with his staff drives his cows into the stable, so do Age and….” In its chapter, this image points toward recognizing that other beings fear pain as we do. Rather than using change to create fear, the passage can sharpen tenderness for a life that cannot be held still. Because this is a historic English translation, test the teaching in experience rather than treating its wording as a demand for belief.

Practice prompt

What pain is asking to be met rather than fixed?