IMPERMANENCE · DHAMMAPADA 156

What Outlasts Possession

Men who have not observed proper discipline, and have not gained treasure in their youth, lie, like broken bows, sighing after the past.

Dhammapada 156 · Chapter 11, Old Age · trans. F. Max Müller · Read the full text at Project Gutenberg

Reflection

The verse begins, “Men who have not observed proper discipline, and have not gained treasure in their youth, lie,….” In its chapter, this image points toward the body, time, and the inevitability of change. Its value is practical when it changes how you meet one choice, relationship, or difficult feeling today. Because this is a historic English translation, test the teaching in experience rather than treating its wording as a demand for belief.

Practice prompt

How would you meet today if you remembered it cannot be repeated?