Comparative Dhammapada

In the Gàndhàri Dharmapada there are 26 chapters, of which a number are absent or fragmentary. Prof. Brough gives 344 extant verses, some of which are in afragmentary state, and estimates that the collection wo uld originally have stood at 540 verses or thereabouts.

In the Udànavarga there are 33 chapters, having 1050 verses in Dr. Bernhard's edition, but many of these have irreconcilable versions (here marked with a, b), or have been numbered A, B, C, D, etc., so that the number printed is actually considerably greater than that (approx. 1100).

The following table gives the chapter titles of the Pàëi Dhammapada and the parallel chapter titles in the other collections:

Pàëi	Patna	Gàndhàrã	Udànavarga
1: Yamaka	1: Jama	13: Yamaka	29: Yuga
2: Appamàda	2: Apramàda	7: Apramadu	4: Apramàda
3: Citta	19: Citta	8: Cita	31: Citta
4: Puppha	8: Puùpa	[18: Puùpa]⁰¹	18: Puùpa
5: Bàla	11: Bàla	9: Bala
6: Paõóita		[14: Paõida]
7: Arahanta		5: Araha
8: Sahassa	21: Sahasra	[19: Sahasa]
9: Pàpa		4: Pavu	28: Pàpa
10: Daõóa	12: Daõóa
11: Jarà		10: Jara
12: Atta	17: âtta		23: âtma
13: Loka
14: Buddha
15: Sukha		11: Suha	30: Sukha
16: Piya			5: Priya
17: Kodha		[17: Kodha]	20: Krodha
18: Mala	10: Mala
19: Dhammaññha
20: Magga	20: Màgga	6: Magu	12: Màrga
21: Pakiõõaka		[16: Prakiõaka (?)⁰² ]	16: Prakirõaka
22: Niraya
23: Nàga		[22: Naga, or Aèa (?)]
24: Taõhà	9: Tahna	3: Tasiõa	3: TÔùõà
25: Bhikkhu	4: Bhikùu	2: Bhikhu	32: Bhikùu
26: Bràhmaõa	3: Bràhmaõa	1: Brammaõa	33: Bràhmaõa

The Patna Dharmapada has, besides those listed, the following 9 chapter titles that find no parallel in the Pàëi: 5: Attha; 6: øoka; 7: Kalyàõã 13: Saraõa; 14: Khànti; 15: âsava; 16: Vàcà 18: Dadantã & 22: Uraga.

The Gàndhàrã Dharmapada has, besides those listed, the following 4 chapters titles: 12: Thera; [15: Bahoùuda]; [20: øila (?)]; [21: Kica (?)]; and Chapters 23 - 26 are lost along with their names.

The Udànavarga has, besides those listed, the following 19 chapters titles: 1: Anitya; 2: Kàma; 6: øãla; 7: Sucarita; 8: Vàca; 9: Karma; 10: øraddhà 11: øramaõa; 13: Satkàra; 14: Droha; 15: SmÔti; 17: Udaka; 19: Aèva; 21: Tathàgata; 22: øruta; 24: Peyàla; 25: Mitra; 26: Nirvàõa; & 27: Paèya.

We can see from this that there are parallel chapter titles to most of the Pàëi chapters, and some of the categories seem very well established, such as 1: Yamaka; 2: Appamàda; 3: Citta; 4: Puppha; 5: Bàla; 8: Sahassa; 20: Magga; 24: Taõhà 25: Bhikkhu; & 26: Bràhmaõa.

However, there are no parallels to these 4 chapters titles: 13: Loka; 14: Buddha; 19: Dhammaññha; & 22: Niraya; and 6: Paõóita & 23: Nàga may also not find parallels, as Brough's titles are only a guess, working from the extant contents of the work.

It is interesting to note that it is clearly the opening and end chapters in the Pàëi that are paralleled; and the same can be said about the Patna Dharmapada, in which the first 4 chapters and 3 of the last 4 chapters find parallels in the Pàëi. Again with the Gàndhàrã Dharmapada, chapters 1-3; 5-11; 13-14; 16-19 all find parallels in the Pàëi; in this case, however, we do not know how the collection closed because the material is lost. Udànavarga breaks from this pattern in the opening, but has the last 6 chapters paralleled.

The fact that there are parallels to most of the chapter titles, however, tells us only a little about what is collected within those chapters. We need therefore to look more closely at the contents of each chapter to gain a better overall view of the collection.

1 Brough gave titles to a number of chapters that lacked them, and put them in square brackets, in most cases the title seems certain.

2 The naming of this chapter as Prakiõakavaga is only a guess by Brough, as the remaining contents do not seem to suggest a theme.