Verified
Grammatical Analysis
Dhammapadaṭṭhakathā: [f.] The Commentary on the Dhammapada. Formed by dhammapada (Verses of Truth) + aṭṭhakathā (commentary).
Orthodox Definition
The Dhammapadaṭṭhakathā is arguably the most culturally influential book in Theravāda Buddhism after the Jātakas. Attributed to Venerable Buddhaghosa (or his school), it provides the specific historical backstory for every single one of the 423 verses in the Dhammapada.
Without this commentary, the verses of the Dhammapada are beautiful but isolated poems. This text explains why the Buddha spoke the verse. It contains nearly 300 stories involving jealous queens, miserly merchants, warring kings, and simple monks struggling in the forest. These narratives have formed the bedrock of sermons given by monks to laypeople for over 1,500 years, masterfully demonstrating the inescapable, immediate workings of karma.
Quote
Paramavisuddhasaddhābuddhivīriyapaṭimaṇḍitena sīlācārajjavamaddavādiguṇasamudayasamuditena sakasamayasamayantaragahanajjhogāhaṇasamatthena paññāveyyattiyasamannāgatena tipiṭakapariyattippabhede sāṭṭhakathe satthusāsane appaṭihatañāṇappabhāvena mahāveyyākaraṇena karaṇasampattijanitasukhaviniggatamadhurodāravacanalāvaṇṇayuttena yuttamuttavādinā vādīvarena mahākavinā pabhinnapaṭisambhidāparivāre chaḷabhiññāpaṭisambhidādippabhedaguṇapaṭimaṇḍite uttarimanussadhamme suppatiṭṭhitabuddhīnaṃ theravaṃsappadīpānaṃ therānaṃ mahāvihāravāsīnaṃ vaṃsālaṅkārabhūtena vipulavisuddhabuddhinā buddhaghosoti garūhi gahitanāmadheyyena therena katāyaṃ dhammapadaṭṭhakathā –
This Dhammapadaṭṭhakathā was composed by the Elder Buddhaghosa, whose name was given by his teachers, adorned with supreme pure faith, wisdom, and energy; endowed with a collection of virtues such as rectitude and gentleness in conduct and morality; capable of penetrating the depths of his own doctrine and other doctrines; possessed of sharp wisdom; having the radiance of unhindered knowledge in the Buddha’s dispensation, which is the Tipiṭaka Pariyatti with its commentaries; a great grammarian; endowed with the grace of sweet and pure speech, born of the joy generated by perfect conditions; a supreme debater who speaks what is appropriate and free from error; a great poet; an ornament to the lineage of the Elders dwelling in the Mahāvihāra, who were lamps of the Theravāda lineage, whose minds were well-established in the supreme human Dhamma, adorned with virtues such as the six abhiññās and the analytical knowledges (paṭisambhidā), and possessed of vast and pure wisdom—— Dhammapadaṭṭhakathā (du)
Textual References
- Subject Matter: Commentary on the Dhammapada.
- Key Features: The massive, sweeping biographies of Visākhā (the chief laywoman) and King Udena.