"The eternal principle of righteousness".
I now have enough information from the sources. Let me compile the attested occurrences with full verses and their sources.
---
Here are the primary sources in which the phrase **एष धर्मः सनातनः** (*eṣa dharmaḥ sanātanaḥ* — "this is the eternal law/dharma") appears, with the full verses:
---
## 1. धम्मपद (Dhammapada) — Pāli Canon, 1.5 (Yamaka-vagga)
This is the oldest attested version, in Pāli rather than Sanskrit:
> **न हि वेरेण वेराणि । सम्मन्तीध कुदाचनम् ।**
> **अवेरेण च सम्मन्ति । एस धम्मो सनन्तनो ॥**
*na hi vereṇa verāni · sammantīdha kudācanaṃ |*
*avereṇa ca sammanti · esa dhammo sanantano ||*
**Translation:** "Hatred is never ended by hatred in this world — it is ended by non-hatred. This is the eternal law."
---
## 2. उदानवर्ग (Udānavarga) 14.11 — द्रोहवर्ग
The Sanskrit Buddhist parallel to the Dhammapada, preserved in the Udānavarga at 14.11 (Droha-varga) [Blogger](https://swaadhyaaya.blogspot.com/2016/05/blog-post_22.html) :
> **न हि वैरेण वैराणि । शाम्यतीह कदा चन ।**
> **क्षान्त्या वैराणि शाम्यन्ति । एष धर्मः सनातनः ॥**
*na hi vaireṇa vairāṇi · śāmyatīha kadā cana |*
*kṣāntyā vairāṇi śāmyanti · eṣa dharmaḥ sanātanaḥ ||*
**Translation:** "Hatred is never quenched by hatred anywhere in this world — it is quenched by forbearance/patience. This is the eternal dharma."
---
## 3. मूलसर्वास्तिवादिविनय (Mūlasarvāstivādavinaya) — Gilgit Manuscripts III.ii.184
A second Sanskrit Buddhist witness, from the Gilgit manuscript tradition:
> **न हि वैरेण वैराणि । शाम्यन्तीह कदाचन ।**
> **क्षान्त्या वैराणि शाम्यन्ति । एष धर्मः सनातनः ॥**
*na hi vaireṇa vairāṇi · śāmyantīha kadācana |*
*kṣāntyā vairāṇi śāmyanti · eṣa dharmaḥ sanātanaḥ ||*
This is nearly identical to the Udānavarga version, differing only minimally in verbal form (*śāmyanti* vs. *śāmyati*). This verse also appears in the Paṭna Dhammapada (14.5, Khānti section): *na hi vereṇa verāṇi śāmantīha kadācanam | avereṇa tu śāmaṃti esa dhaṃmo sanātano ||* [blogspot](https://swaadhyaaya.blogspot.com/2016/05/blog-post_22.html)
---
## 4. मनुस्मृति (Manusmṛti) 4.138
The Hindu legal text uses the phrase in a completely different ethical context — on truthful and kind speech:
> **सत्यं ब्रूयात् प्रियं ब्रूयान्न ब्रूयात् सत्यमप्रियम् ।**
> **प्रियं च नानृतं ब्रूयादेष धर्मः सनातनः ॥ १३८ ॥**
*satyaṃ brūyāt priyaṃ brūyān na brūyāt satyam apriyam |*
*priyaṃ ca nānṛtaṃ brūyād eṣa dharmaḥ sanātanaḥ || 138 ||*
**Translation:** "One should speak the truth; one should speak what is pleasing. One should not speak a truth that is unpleasant; one should not speak a pleasing untruth. This is the eternal dharma." [Wikiquote](https://hi.wikiquote.org/wiki/%E0%A4%A7%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AE)
---
## 5. सूक्तिसाहित्य / सुभाषित tradition — कृते च प्रतिकर्तव्यम्
A widely-cited subhāṣita, attributed in some collections to the Mahābhārata:
> **कृते च प्रतिकर्तव्यम् । एष धर्मः सनातनः ।**
*kṛte ca pratikartavyam · eṣa dharmaḥ sanātanaḥ |*
**Translation:** "A good deed done to you must be repaid in kind — this is the eternal dharma." (The full prior pāda varies by recension.)
---
## Summary
| Source | Context | Theme |
|---|---|---|
| Dhammapada 1.5 (Pāli) | Buddhist | Non-hatred ends hatred |
| Udānavarga 14.11 (Sanskrit Buddhist) | Buddhist | Patience ends enmity |
| Mūlasarvāstivādavinaya (Gilgit MS) | Buddhist Vinaya | Same |
| Manusmṛti 4.138 (Hindu Dharmaśāstra) | Legal-ethical | Truthful & kind speech |
| Subhāṣita / Mahābhārata tradition | Epic/Didactic | Reciprocity of good deeds |
The most striking philological observation here is that **एष धर्मः सनातनः** appears both in ancient Buddhist Sanskrit texts and in the Hindu Brahmanical tradition — demonstrating that the expression *predates* the sectarian divide and functioned as a shared ethical formula across these traditions.
