Sometime people may ask - do i only post mahayana topics ? no
i do post on other basic Buddhism discussion
When I started Buddhist studies in sec 3
the first book i recite at home in the living room in front of Guanyin is Dhammapada (fa ju jing) for a period of 2 months (sorry i cant remember how long)
so here i present the wikipedia explanation of Dhammapada
The Dhammapada (Pâli, sometimes translated as Path of the Dharma. Also Prakrit Dhamapada, Sanskrit Dharmapada) is a Buddhist scripture, containing 423 verses in 26 categories. According to tradition, these are verses spoken by the Buddha on various occasions, most of which deal with ethics. A fourth or fifth century commentary attributed to Buddhaghosa includes 305 stories which give context to the verses. [1]
The Dhammapada is a popular section of the Pâli Tipitaka and is considered one of the most important pieces of Theravada literature.
Although the Pâli edition is the most well known, a Gandhari edition written in Kharosthi and a seemingly related text in Sanskrit known as the Udanavarga have also been discovered.
Despite being a primarily Theravada text, the Dhammapada is read by many Mahayana Buddhists and remains a very popular text across all schools of Buddhism.
Contents [hide]
1 Excerpt from the Dhammapada
2 Translations of the Dhammapada
3 External links
4 References
[edit] Excerpt from the Dhammapada
Contrary Ways
What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow: our life is the creation of our mind. If a man speaks or acts with an impure mind, suffering follows him as the wheel of the cart follows the beast that draws the cart.
He insulted me, he hurt me, he defeated me, he robbed me. Those who think such thoughts will not be free from hate.
For hate is not conquered by hate: hate is conquered by love. This is a law eternal..
(Translation by Juan Mascaro)
Check your mind,
Be on your guard,
Pull yourself out,
As an elephant from mud.
— xxiii.8
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dhammapada