dhp.100-115 Dhammapada

Better than a thousand vacuous statements
Is one meaningful word,
Which, having been heard, brings peace.

Better than a thousand vacuous verses
Is one line of verse,
Which, having been heard, brings peace.

Better than a recitation of one hundred meaningless
verses
is one Dhamma word,
Which, having been heard, brings peace.

Greater in battle than one who conquers thousands
upon thousands
Is the one who conquers himself.

It is better to conquer oneself than others.
For the self-tamed one, ever-vigilant in self-control,

Neither a god nor a divine musician,
Nor Māra and Brahmā together,
Could turn such a victory into defeat.

Better than offering a thousand sacrifices,
Month after month for a hundred years,
Is one moment’s homage
To one who has developed himself.

Better than one hundred years dwelling in the forest
And tending the sacred fire,
Is one moment’s homage
To one who has developed himself.

Whatever offering or sacrifice in the world
A merit-seeker might offer for a year,
All this is not one-fourth the merit gained
From showing respect to the upright.

For one who is respectful,
Who constantly reveres the elders,
Four things grow: life, beauty, happiness, and
strength.

Better than living one hundred years,
Immoral and ungrounded,
Is living one day,
Virtuous and absorbed in meditation.

Better than living one hundred years,
Foolish and ungrounded,
Is living one day,
Wise and absorbed in meditation.

Better than living one hundred years,
Indolent and slothful,
Is living one day
With steadfast vigor.

Better than living one hundred years
Without seeing arising and dissipation,
Is living one day,
Seeing arising and dissipation.

Better than living one hundred years
Without seeing the deathless way,
Is living one day,
Seeing the deathless way.

Better than living one hundred years
Without seeing the supreme Dhamma,
Is living one day,
Seeing the supreme Dhamma.

Though there are a thousand sayings consisting of useless words,
better is one useful word hearing which one is brought to peace.

Though there are a thousand verses consisting of useless words,
better is one word of a verse hearing which one is brought to peace.

One may speak a thousand verses consisting of useless words,
better is one verse of Dhamma, hearing which one is brought to peace.

One may conquer a thousand men a thousand times in a battle,
but having conquered one’s own self, one would surely be supreme in battle.

Conquest over self is better than that over other people,
for the person who conquers himself, who lives constantly well-restrained,
neither gods, nor gandhabbas, nor Māra together with Brahmās,
can turn conquest into defeat for a person who is like this.

One might give alms impartially with a thousand coins of money month by month for a hundred years;
and one might worship someone with developed self for a second –
that worship is surely better than the hundred-year sacrifice.

One person might care for the fire in the woods for a hundred years;
and one might worship someone with developed self for a second –
that worship is surely better than the hundred-year sacrifice.

Whatever the alms or the sacrifice in the world
the one seeking merit may give for a year,
all that comes not to a quarter of the merit –
better is the worship of the upright.

For the one who is constantly worshipping honourable elders,
four things increase: the length of life, beauty, happiness, and strength.

One might live for a hundred years, unvirtuous and uncomposed,
but a life of one day is better, for one with virtue and meditation.

One might live for a hundred years, lacking in wisdom, uncomposed,
but a life of one day is better, for one endowed with wisdom and meditation.

One might live for a hundred years, indolent, with less energy,
but a life of one day is better, for one with energy set up and firm.

One might live for a hundred years without seeing rise and fall,
but a life of one day is better for the one seeing rise and fall.

One might live for a hundred years without seeing the deathless state,
but a life of one day is better for one seeing the deathless state.

One might live for a hundred years without seeing the supreme state,
but a life of one day is better for one seeing the supreme state.

Better than a thousand useless words is one useful word, hearing which one attains peace.

Better than a thousand useless verses is one useful verse, hearing which one attains peace.

Better than reciting a hundred meaningless verses is the reciting of one verse of Dhamma, hearing which one attains peace.

Though one may conquer a thousand times a thousand men in battle, yet he indeed is the noblest victor who conquers himself.

Self-conquest is far better than the conquest of others. Not even a god, an angel, Mara or Brahma can turn into defeat the victory of a person who is self-subdued and ever restrained in conduct.

Though month after month for a hundred years one should offer sacrifices by the thousands, yet if only for a moment one should worship those of perfected minds that honor is indeed better than a century of sacrifice.

Though for a hundred years one should tend the sacrificial fire in the forest, yet if only for a moment one should worship those of perfected minds, that worship is indeed better than a century of sacrifice.

Whatever gifts and oblations one seeking merit might offer in this world for a whole year, all that is not worth one fourth of the merit gained by revering the Upright Ones, which is truly excellent.

To one ever eager to revere and serve the elders, these four blessing accrue: long life and beauty, happiness and power.

Better it is to live one day virtuous and meditative than to live a hundred years immoral and uncontrolled.

Better it is to live one day wise and meditative than to live a hundred years foolish and uncontrolled.

Better it is to live one day strenuous and resolute than to live a hundred years sluggish and dissipated.

Better it is to live one day seeing the rise and fall of things than to live a hundred years without ever seeing the rise and fall of things.

Better it is to live one day seeing the Deathless than to live a hundred years without ever seeing the Deathless.

Better it is to live one day seeing the Supreme Truth than to live a hundred years without ever seeing the Supreme Truth.