GEC ELEC II: GREAT

BOOKS
Vanessa S. Benet, LPT.
From The Dhammapada
The Dhammapada
 The Dhammapada is a
Buddhist text that is
believed to record the
actual words of the
founder of
Buddhism, Siddhartha
Gautama. Gautama,
better known as the
Buddha, lived between
563 and 483 bce. 
The Dhammapada
 His words were passed
along orally until they
were written down in
about the first century bce.
The word dhamma means
"the teachings of
Buddhism." The title of
the Dhammapada is often
translated as "Words of the
Doctrine."
The Dhammapada
 Pali Laguange: “Words of Doctrine” or
“Way of Truth”

 It is an anthology of basic Buddhist

teachings (primarily ethical teachings) in a
simple aphoristic style.

 Best-known book in the Pali Buddhist

canon ( Pali Tipitaka) (The earliest
systematic and most complete collection of
early Buddhist sacred literature is the
Pali Tipitaka )
The Dhammapada
 More than half the verses are excerpted from
other canonical texts and include many of the most
famous Buddhist sayings.

 The Dhammapada is a collection of sayings of the

Buddha in verse form and one of the most widely read
and best known Buddhist scriptures

 the Dhammapada contains 423 stanzas arranged in 26

chapters.
The Dhammapada
Acharya Buddharakkhita
 (1922- 2013) was
a Buddhist monk and
prolific writer.

He translated The
Dhammapada in 1998
and its published in
Buddhist Publication
Society.
 HAPPINESS
 
Chapter 15
From The Dhammapada
 HAPPINESS
197: We live happily indeed, not
hating those who hate us! Among
men who hate us we dwell free
from hatred!

Explanation: Among those who hate,

we live without hating, When they
hate we live without hating, We
live happily among those who hate.
Without Sickness Among The Sick

198: We live happily indeed, free

from ailments among the ailing!
Among men who are ailing let us
dwell free from ailments!

Explanation: Among those sick,

troubled by defilements, we, who
are not so afflicted, live happily.
Among the sick, we live,
unafflicted, in extreme happiness.
Not Anxious Among The Anxious
199:We live happily indeed, free
from greed among the greedy!
Among men who are greedy let
us dwell free from greed!

Explanation: Among the anxious

men and women, who ceaselessly
exert themselves in pursuit of
worldly things. We, who do not
make such a feverish effort to
pursue the worldly, live happily.
Happily They Live - Undefiled
 200: We live happily indeed,
though we call nothing our own!
We shall be like the bright gods,
feeding on happiness!

Explanation: Happily we live,
who have no property to worry
about. Feeding on joy we live like
deities of the Heaven of radiance.
 Happy About Both Victory And Defeat

201:Victory breeds hatred, for the

conquered is unhappy. He who
has given up both victory and
defeat, he, the contented is
happy.

Explanation: Victory brings hatred

into being. The defeated person
lives in misery. But the person,
whose mind is calm and tranquil,
lives happily as he has risen above
both victory and defeat.
 Happiness Tranquilizes
202:There is no fire like passion;
there is no losing throw like
hatred; there is no pain like this
body; there is no happiness
higher than rest.

Explanation: There is no fire like

passion. There is no crime like
anger. There is no pain like the
personalized aggregate of
phenomena. There is no higher
happiness than the supreme peace.
Nirvanna
Nirvana, the state to which all Buddhists aspire, is the ending of desire and
hence the end of suffering. 

It suggests that one can attain nirvana by following the Eightfold Path. The
Eightfold Path includes eight objectives:
right understanding,
right intention,
right speech,
right action,
right work,
right effort,
right meditation and
right contemplation.
 Worst Disease And Greatest Happiness

203:Hunger is the worst diseases,

the elements of the body the
greatest evil; if one knows this
truly, that is Nirvana, the
highest happiness.

Explanation: The most severe

disease is hunger. The worst of
pain is in component things. If
this is realistically appreciated,
Nibbana is the highest bliss.
 Four Supreme Acquisitions
204:Health is the greatest of gifts,
contentedness the best riches;
trust is the best of relationships,
Nirvana the highest happiness.

Explanation: Of acquisitions,
good health is the foremost. Of
wealth, the greatest is peace of
mind. Of kinsmen, the
trustworthy are the best. The
highest bliss is Nirvana.
 The Free Are The Purest
205:He who has tasted the sweetness
of solitude and tranquillity, is free
from fear and free from sin, while
he tastes the sweetness of drinking
in the law.

Explanation: He has savoured the

taste of solitude. He has also
experienced the flavour of tranquillity
arising from the absence of
blemishes. Enjoying the sweetness of
the realistic awareness he is
unaffected by blemishes and is bereft
of evil.
 Pleasant Meetings
206:The sight of the elect is good,
to live with them is always
happiness; if a man does not
see fools, he will be truly happy.

Explanation: Seeing nobles ones

is good. Living with them is
always conducive to happiness.
Associating with the ignorant is
like keeping company with
enemies.
 Happy Company
 207: he who walks in the company
of fools suffer a long way; company
with fools, as with an enemy, is always
painful; company with the wise is
pleasure, like meeting with kinsfolk.

Explanation: A person who keeps

company with the ignorant will grieve
over a long period of time. Association
with the ignorant is like keeping
company with enemies - it always leads
to grief. Keeping company with the wise
is like a reunion with one’s kinfolk - it
always leads to happiness.
 The Good And The Wise
208:Therefore, one ought to follow the wise,
the intelligent, the learned, the much
enduring, the dutiful, the elect; one ought
to follow such a good and wise man, as
the moon follows the path of the stars.

Explanation: The moon keeps to the path of

the stars. In exactly the same way, one must
seek out the company of such noble persons
who are non-fluctuating, endowed with
deep wisdom, greatly learned, capable of
sustained effort, dutiful, noble, and are
exalted human beings.
Performance Task
Directions: Compose a poem by choosing one of the
verses in Happiness chapter of The Dhammapada.
The content of the poem explain the verse you picked
and cite an event or experience that can justify the
verse.

Be guided of the following technicalities in writing a

poem:
 Number of Stanzas: 2 Stanzas (4 lines in each stanza)

 Rhyme Scheme: ABAB

Criteria for Writing a Poem
 
Form 4 points
Meaning and Originality 4 points
Sensory Images 4 points
Language Convention 4 points
Adherence to the Theme 4 points
Total 20 points
Performance Task
Directions: Compose a one (1) paragraph with ten
(10) sentences essay about happiness. Consider the
focus questions given below.

Focus Question:
How can we say that a person is really happy?
Why do you think other people are being fooled of
happiness?
Criteria for Essay Writing
 
Content 4 points
Development 4 points
Organization of Ideas 4 points
Style 4 points
Grammar and Mechanics 4 points
Total 20 points