The man of little learning ages like an ox: his flesh grows but not his wisdom.

Appassutāyaṃ puriso — the man of little learning: appa-ssuta — of little hearing. In the Buddhist oral tradition, “learning” meant listening to the teachings, memorizing them, and reflecting on them. The one of little learning has not cultivated spiritual formation.

Balibaddova jīrati — ages like an ox: balibadda is the ox, the beast of burden. The ox ages gaining weight and bulk but not intelligence. Its accumulation is purely physical.

Maṃsāni tassa vaḍḍhanti paññā tassa na vaḍḍhati — his flesh grows but not his wisdom: the image is effective and somewhat cruel. The human being who spends years without cultivating the mind accumulates bodily mass and superficial experience but not the wisdom that should be the fruit of lived time.

This metaphor of the ox is a reminder that aging does not automatically produce wisdom. Active practice, study, reflection, and meditation are needed for years to become wisdom. Without this, the passage of time produces only deterioration.