Dhammapada 225

Sages who are harmless, always restrained in body, go to the unfailing state, where, once they have…

Sages who are harmless, always restrained in body, go to the unfailing state, where, once they have gone, they do not sorrow.

Translated from the Pāli by Banya

In plain words

Harmless sages who consistently restrain bodily conduct are described as reaching an unfailing state without sorrow. Traditionally this state is read as liberation, not as an ordinary place where nothing inconvenient happens.

Key words

accutaṁ ṭhānaṁ

unfailing state — Traditionally understood as liberation; Nibbāna is not named in the verse.

The story behind the verse

A Brahman greets the Buddha as his son

In the commentary, an elderly brahmin and his wife greeted the Buddha as their son. They welcomed him and offered hospitality, and the monks wondered why the Buddha accepted their form of address. He explained that they had been his relatives in many previous lives, and the couple heard the teaching and attained liberation. After their deaths, the Buddha accompanied their bodies to the cremation ground, and he taught about harmless sages reaching the state without sorrow.

Retold by Banya from the traditional commentary, after E. W. Burlingame, Buddhist Legends (1921).

Explanation by Banya. Traditional readings vary.