MEDITATION · DHAMMAPADA 370
Training the Wandering Mind
Cut off the five (senses), leave the five, rise above the five. A Bhikshu, who has escaped from the five fetters, he is called Oghatinna, `saved from the flood.
Dhammapada 370 · Chapter 25, The Bhikshu (Mendicant) · trans. F. Max Müller · Read the full text at Project Gutenberg
Reflection
The verse begins, “Cut off the five (senses), leave the five, rise above the five.” In its chapter, this image points toward the disciplines that support contemplative life. The water imagery emphasizes accumulation: a mind and a life are shaped by many small conditions, not one dramatic moment. Because this is a historic English translation, test the teaching in experience rather than treating its wording as a demand for belief.
Practice prompt
Sit quietly for three minutes and begin again each time attention wanders.