MINDFULNESS · DHAMMAPADA 283

Awake in This Moment

Cut down the whole forest (of lust), not a tree only! Danger comes out of the forest (of lust). When you have cut down both the forest (of lust) and its undergrowth, then, Bhikshus, you will be rid of the forest and free!

Dhammapada 283 · Chapter 20, The Way · trans. F. Max Müller · Read the full text at Project Gutenberg

Reflection

The verse begins, “Cut down the whole forest (of lust), not a tree only.” In its chapter, this image points toward a practical path of attention, ethics, and understanding. The practical question is whether replaying injury protects you or keeps the injury active. 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 pulls you away from the present most often?