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CHAPTER 9 Right Speech (Samma-vaca)
 
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CHAPTER 9
 
RIGHT SPEECH
(Samma-vaca)
 
 
ALL religions and philosophies advocate morals or ethics of some kind or other for man's own well-being and for the good of the society in which he lives. These ethical codes are not of the same level or category, but they vary. What is moral to some, may not be so to others; what one condemns as immoral may be recognized as moral by another. Principles of right and wrong behaviour depend, at times, on the background of the different people of the world--their geograpical, economic and social conditions, and so on. Thus the criteria of the principles of morality differ.
 
It looks as if with the passage of time people seem to think that some of the morals laid down by religious teachers are outdated, and in their enthusiasm for a gay life they do not hesitate to put aside principles of behaviour if they consider them a hindrance. They then adopt new modes of conduct which, later, become con­ventions, and once that has occurred, no one cares to speak ill of them. Nevertheless there are many moral principles which all people, irrespective of colour, race or religion, are expected to follow.
 
The moral code taught in Buddhism is very vast and varied and yet the function of Buddhist morality or sila is one and not many. It is the control of man's verbal and physical actions, his behaviour; in other words, purity of speech and action. All morals set forth in Buddhism lead to this end--virtuous behaviour, yet sila is not an end in itself, but a means, for it aids samadhi or concentration. Samadhi, on the other hand, is a means to the acquisition of panna, true wisdom, which in turn brings about deliverance of mind, the final goal of the teaching of the Buddha. Virtue, Concentration and Wisdom therefore is a blending of man's emotions and intellect. It is to this end that the Master directs his disciples.
 
The Buddha's attitude towards life is not merely rational, but a practical realization of all that is good--ethical perfection as well as mental deliverance. This implies that the Master wants us to culti­vate good emotions and abandon the bad. The emotional aspect should be developed though that alone does not lead us to final emancipation. Good emotions should always be blended with right understanding. So it is clear that Virtue, Concentration and Wis­dom are the three strands of the rope by the aid of which the pru­dent man reaches the highest goal and proclaims his achievements by saying: `Done is what is to be done' (katam karaniyam). Thus the Dhamma guides the follower through pure living and right under­standing to the attainment of freedom from all ill.
 
In this chapter we shall discuss right speech. In the next two chapters right action and right livelihood will be dealt with respec­tively. As these three are in the sila group, the entire Buddhist code of morality spoken of in the context of the Eightfold Path, a few words may not be out of place to explain briefly the silas as ex­pounded in Buddhist writings.
 
The final emancipation, the highest goal, in Buddhism, is not attained at once. It is a gradual process, a gradual training. As the discourses often point out mental purity is gained after a thorough training in virtuous behaviour. Mental purity and attainments are not possible without moral purity.    The Buddha exhorts his disciples first to establish themselves in virtue or moral habits before entering on the path of meditation and wisdom. 1  Hence the need to start from the very beginning. The starting point in the Dispensation of the Buddha is sila, virtuous behaviour. Standing on the firm ground of sila one should endeavour to master the fickle mind.
 
The Buddha points out to his disciples the ways of overcoming verbal and physical ill behaviour. Having tamed his tongue, having controlled his bodily actions and made himself pure in the way he earns his living, the disciple establishes himself well in moral habits (silava). Thus he trains himself in the essential precepts of restraint observing them scrupulously and seeing danger in the slightest fault. 2 While thus restraining himself in word and deed he tries to guard the doors of the senses, 3 for if he lacks control over his senses un­healthy thoughts are bound to fill his mind. Seeing a form, hearing a sound and so on, he is neither attracted nor repelled by such sense objects, but maintains balance, putting away all likes and dis­likes. This control of the senses he practises with zest.
 
He eats moderately 4 and mindfully: not for self-indulgence, not to beautify the body, but to keep it unharmed for living the holy life (brahma cariya). He is devoted to wakefulness 5 and cleanses his mind of taints. 6 This behaviour or mode of living applies to a monk and not to the layman.
 
Now if the disciple is earnest and mindful he will advance without faltering and start the more difficult task of meditation, gaining con­centrative calm (samatha) by taking a subject that suits his tempera­ment 7 and continuing with it without stopping. Gradually, little by little, from moment to moments 8 he purifies his mind by overcoming the hindrances 9 which obstruct meditation. Thus he who strives heedfully gains control over his fickle mind. With his speech, actions and sense organs under subjugation and his mind under control, he has now gained self-mastery. Thus training himself in Virtue and Concentration (sila-sikkha and samadhi-sikkha), he now tries to gain true Wisdom or Insight by seeing all things as they really are (yathabhutam). Viewing things as they are implies, as we discussed above, 10 seeing the transient, unsatisfactory and no-self-nature of all conditioned and component things. To such a meditative disciple of the Buddha the `world' is not the external or the empirical world, but the human body with its consciousness. It is the world of the five aggregates of clinging. It is this that he tries to understand as impermanent, unsatisfactory and without Self or Soul. It is to this world of body and mind that the Buddha referred when he said to Mogharaja: `Ever mindful, Mogharaja, see the world as void (sunna)--having given up the notion of a Self (underlying it) ; 11 -- so may one overcome Mara (death).'
 
Now when a disciple thus trains himself in wisdom (pannasikkha) he rightly understands, `whatever is transient is not worth rejoicing at, is not worthy of one's regard, not worth clinging to' . 12
 
He does not consider the five aggregates of clinging, the five sense organs and their corresponding sense objects as `mine', as 'I' or 'my Self' and understands the Master's admonition:
 
'What is not yours, monks, put it away; putting it away will be for your good and welfare.       What, monks, is not yours? Body, O monks, is not yours, put it away; putting it away will be for your good and welfare. Feeling is not yours ... perception is not yours ... volitional formations are not yours ... consciousness is not yours, put it away; putting it away will be for your good and welfare. 13
 
Thus comprehending things as they really are, thus realizing the true nature of the five aggregate  of clinging, he `lives independent, clinging to nothing in the world' 14 -- the world of the aggregates and of senses--and lives experiencing the bliss of Nirvana, the Supreme Happiness. This, in short, is the way by which the aryan (noble) disciple by gradual training attains his goal.
 
The reader will note that in this self-purification and self-mastery for final Deliverance, by gradual training, there is no coercion and compulsion by any external agency, there are no rewards and punishments for deeds done or left undone: no ablution by holy water, 15 neither offerings to any deity, nor worship of gods, the sun or fire.   And why? Because purity and impurity depend on oneself. Things external whether animate or inanimate cannot and do not grant us purification and deliverance.
 
'Neither nakedness nor matted hair, nor filth, nor fasting, nor lying on the ground, nor dust and soot nor squatting can purify a being who is still perplexed.’ 16
 
Let us now go into details with regard to sila, the Buddhist code of morality. In the first discourse of the Digha Nikaya, another original collection in Pali, we find a very long and comprehensive account of the silas which we shall not discuss here.
 
Among the items of right behaviour the lowest are the pancasila, the five precepts for training, the A B C of Buddhist ethics. These are the basic principles for the lay follower.
 
They are:
 
1. I undertake the training precept to abstain from killing any­thing that breathes. 17
2. I undertake the training precept to abstain from taking what is not given.
3. I undertake the training precept to abstain from sexual mis­conduct.
4. I undertake the training precept to abstain from speaking falsehood.
5. I undertake the training precept to abstain from liquor that causes intoxication and heedlessness.
 
Sir Edwin Arnold in The Light of Asia states the five precepts in these words:
 
`Kill not--for pity's sake--lest ye slay
The meanest thing upon its upward way.
 
Give freely and receive, but take from none
By greed, or force, or fraud, what is his own.
 
Bear not false witness, slander not nor lie;
Truth is the speech of inward purity.
 
Shun drugs and drinks, which work the wit abuse;
Clear minds, clean bodies, need no Soma juice. 18 
 
Touch not thy neighbour's wife, neither commit
Sins of the flesh unlawful and unfit.'
 
These silas are to be kept and acted on in one's daily life, they are not for mere recitation, for lip-service or for applying to others.
 
'He who knoweth the precepts by heart, but faileth to practise them,
Is like unto one who lighteth a lamp and then shutteth his eyes. 19
 
Buddhism does not demand of the lay follower all that a member of the Order is expected to observe. But whether monk or layman, moral habits are essential to the upward path. One who becomes a Buddhist by taking the three refuges 20 is expected, at least, to observe the five basic precepts which is the very starting point on the path.   They are not restricted to a particular day or place, but are to be practised throughout life everywhere, always. There is also the possibility of their being violated by all save those who have attained at least the first stage of sanctity (sotapatti). Nevertheless when a transgression occurs it is useless to repent for one's weak­nesses and shortcomings, for repentence will not do any good to or help oneself or others. It will only disturb one's mind. Again it may be observed that according to Buddhism wrongdoing is not regarded as a 'sin', for that word is foreign to the teaching of the Buddha.    There is no such thing as `breaking the Buddha's laws', for he was not a lawgiver or an arbitrator who punished the bad and rewarded the good deeds of beings, hence there is no repentance, sorrow or regret for 'sin'. The doer of the deed is responsible for his actions; he suffers or enjoys the consequences, and it is his concern, either to do good, or to be a transgressor. It must also be stated that all actions, good or ill, do not necessarily mature. One's good karma may suppress the evil karma and vice versa.
 
As the formula clearly shows, there are no laws or command­ments. Voluntarily you promise to observe the training precepts and there is no compulsion or coercion; you yourself are responsible for your actions. If you violate what you have undertaken to keep, it is very necessary then to make a firm determination not to repeat but to correct your weakness and try hard not to lapse again. A careful thinker ought to realize that the sole purpose of keeping these precepts is to train oneself, to control one's impulses, evil inclinations and wrong acts, and thus pave the path to purification and happiness, give security to society and promote cordiality. On close analysis we know that the observance of these precepts is the only way to lessen our lust (greed), hate and delusion, the root causes of all evil in society. For instance, the first precept cannot be trans­gressed without entertaining thoughts of hate and cruelty, in the case of the third it is specifically lust, the second and the fourth may be due to both greed and hate, and the fifth to greed, while delusion is behind all the five precepts.
 
It is important to note that to take intoxicating liquor causes delusion. It prevents clear thinking, lessens one's power of reasoning and brings about negligence, infatuation and a host of other evils. A drunkard is not responsible for, his actions and may commit any crime. Hence, the violation of this one precept may lead a man to break all the others.  Says the Buddha:
 
'Give up this base of all evil
Which lead to madness,
To abuse of mind.’ 21
 
Now one may argue that to drink in moderation is harmless, but there is a saying:
 
`First a man takes a drink,
Then the drink takes a drink,
Then the drink takes the man.'
 
And so it is always better to bear in mind the Buddha's warning: 'Be mindful, self-controlled and serene.' Let us shun drugs and drinks which blind one to both the truths of life and the path to deliverance.
 
Remember that the third and fifth precepts have an affinity, they support each other and both bring 'enjoyment' (rasassada). Sometimes in the Pali canon the fifth precept is omitted thus including it in the third as in the case of the moral code mentioned in the Eightfold Path. Then there are the ten 'precepts, or items for  training' which are meant for the novices (samaneras). 22 They are formed by adding five to those already mentioned. 23 They are:
 
6. I undertake the training precept to abstain from untimely eating.
7. I undertake the training precept to abstain from dancing, singing, music and unseemly shows.
8. I undertake the training precept to abstain from the use of garlands, perfumes, beauty creams and embellishment.
9. I undertake the training precept to abstain from the use of high and luxurious couches.
10. I undertake the training precept to abstain from accepting gold and silver.
 
There are also the eight training precepts observed by lay followers on special days, that is on full moon or the new moon days, etc. They are formed by combining the seventh and eighth, and omitting the tenth precept.
 
A person who keeps the precepts is, in the Buddha's phrase, a good or worthy man (sappurisa), and if in addition he encourages another to observe them, he is still more worthy. 24
 
In the Noble Eightfold Path, under the factor of right speech, four abstentions are mentioned: Abstention from falsehood, slander, harsh speech and idle chatter.
 
Though these training precepts are worded negatively, it should not be thought that the Buddhist code of conduct is mere negative prohibition. It is necessary first to remove the weeds and prepare the field before sowing. Similarly it is very necessary for man first to strive to purify his speech and bodily actions and then to do good. We must admit that our mind is often tainted with unwholesome thoughts. It burns with the three fires of greed, hate and delusion and is in an unhealthy state. Naturally the manifestations of such unhealthy thoughts in the form of verbal and physical acts, cannot be healthy, hence the need first to check the evil, to abstain from loose behaviour. Abstention urges a man to do good, to be pure in speech and deed. Often people who are fond of doing much good to others, find it difficult to abstain from doing certain unbecoming things.     This needs great strength of mind, effort and determination On the other hand, it is because of one's pity and sympathy, which are not negative virtues, that one abstains from harming others and from lying because of one's love for truth, and so on.
 
A careful reader of the Buddha's discourses will find that the Master has also stated the precepts in positive terms thus:
 
`Giving up killing, he abstains from taking the life of any living being; laying aside stick and sword, modest and merciful, he lives kind and compassionate to all living beings. Abstaining from taking what is not given, taking (only) what is given ... he dwells purified from thievish tendencies. Giving up slander ... he lives reconciling those at variance, and strengthening those who are friendly, delighting and rejoicing in concord he speaks words conducive to reconciliation. Giving up harsh speech, he says what is gentle, pleasing to the ear, affectionate .... Giving up idle chatter, he speaks at the right time in accordance with facts, to the purpose, in agreement with the doctrine (Dhamma) and discipline, words worthy of treasuring (in the heart), seasonable, appropriate, dis­criminating and to the point.' 25
 
Thus we see how the Master has also stressed the positive aspect in unmistakable language. The striving one, earnestly bent on the path of purification, however, wastes no time in profitless specula­tion, but 'admonishing and inciting himself he follows the sign­posted path'. 26
 
There is nothing vague in the teaching of the Buddha. Knowing evil as evil and good as good, why should one hesitate to avoid the wrong and tread the right path? For the Buddhist to give up evil and do good is ineluctable if he has understood his Master' steaching:
 
'The giving up of all evil,
The cultivation of the good
The cleansing of one's mind
This is the Buddha's teaching.' 27
 
As this very important verse indicates, before doing good, it is essential to cease from evil. When a man has done both, and has thus strengthened himself in moral behaviour, he can then, if he likes, try the more difficult task of disciplining his mind through meditation. The attempt, however, so to train the mind without a background of morality, without regulated behaviour, is a mere hope and imagination that can never be realized.
 
The Noble Eightfold Path, in Buddhism, is the one and only way for purification.      Says the Buddha:
 
'Action, 28  knowledge, 29  Dhamma 30 and noble moral life, by these are beings purified, not by lineage nor by wealth.’ 31 
 
'Whatsoever there is of evil, connected with evil, belonging to evil--all issue from the mind (literally, mind precedes them all: manopubbangama). Whatsoever there is of good, connected with good, belonging to good--all issue from the mind.' 32 
 
'When the mind or thought is guarded, bodily action also is guarded; verbal action is also guarded.'
 
'When the mind is unguarded bodily action is also unguarded, verbal action also is unguarded. 33
 
The origin of all these actions is either greed, ill-will and delusion or non-greed, non-ill-will and non-delusion. Actions done under the influence of the first trio are not profitable, they are blameworthy, they result in pain and they lead to further actions, not to the cessation of action. Actions done under the influence of the second trio are profitable and praiseworthy, they bring happiness and lead to the ending of further action, not to the arising thereof. 34
 
Thus there are three ways of doing good and evil conditioned by three different mental factors, and they bring about results or reactions in accordance with the deed done. In this case the mind may be compared to a reservoir which needs attention to keep the water intact and pure.     If the reservoir is neglected and the water becomes contaminated, the man who drinks it from the tap is in trouble. If, knowing that the water is bad, he keeps the tap turned off, he will not suffer even though the reservoir is polluted. As he cannot keep the tap closed for ever, it is his duty to see that the reservoir is cared for so that he can turn on the tap and drink the water. Man's mind, which is like a reservoir, has two outlets, speech and physical action. What is in the mind escapes through these outlets. If the thoughts are pure, their possessor experiences good results; if they are impure he experiences unwholesome results. If he refrains from allowing evil thoughts to escape through the two channels, his speech and bodily actions will not be polluted, for those two channels are securely closed, nevertheless the mind, the reservoir, is unprotected. He must make a genuine effort to watch his mind so that its contents are not polluted, and for this he needs meditation or concentration. Though his mind is thus concentrated, collected and guarded, still it is not in a state of security, so he needs wisdom, insight knowledge, to keep it free from pollution. Once this has been achieved his mind is rendered immune from all taints, defilements and pollution.
 
From this simile it is possible to understand that though sila or virtuous behaviour which guards verbal and physical actions is the starting point of the Path, it is nonetheless so essential to man's development and purification.
 
With this brief general introduction to the Buddhist moral code, let us now consider Right Speech. What a wonderful thing is speech, for just a word can change a man's whole outlook towards good and evil. Are we not really fortunate in this gift which is denied to animals? Yet how few of us care to use it for our own and others' welfare. Much trouble and misunderstanding could be avoided if only people would be more thoughtful and gentle in what they say and more accurate and sincere in what they write.
 
Speech is a gift of great value since through it we can express thoughts and ideas which can be shared with others. But if the tongue, which is boneless and pliable, is allowed to become unruly,
it can play havoc. Is it not responsible for much strife and trouble from squabbles between families to wars between nations? If man could but tame his tongue, would not the world be a far better place to live in?
 
Speech should not be dominated by unwholesome thoughts--by greed, anger, jealousy, pride, selfishness and so on. Much talk certainly prevents calmness and right thinking, and a glib tongue leads to all four types of wrong talk. Says the Buddha: `Monks, there are these five disadvantages and dangers in garrulous speech: the glib talker utters falsehoods, slanders, speaks harsh and  idle words, and after death is reborn in an evil state of existence. 35
 
1. In the context of right speech the first virtue is to abstain from falsehood and speak the truth. Such a person, as the Metta sutta says, is straight, nay transparently straight (uju, suju). 36 He is sincere, upright and dependable. He does not stray from the truth to win fame, or to please another. He may seem strict, but `truth is one, for there is no second’ 37. `The Buddha did not say one thing one day and the contrary the next.’ 38 Because he speaks as he acts and acts as he speaks, he is called Tathagata.' 39 The Master is also  known as Saccanama, `he whose name is Truth'.
 
The Buddha was so emphatic with regard to this evil of lying, that his first lesson to little Rahula, the seven-year-old novice, 40 seems to have been on the worthlessness of falsehood (we know that children of tender age, wittingly or not, often speak falsely).
 
Once the Blessed One visited little Rahula. The latter got a seat ready and water for washing the feet. The Master washed his feet and sat down. Little Rahula paid obeisance to the Blessed One and sat at one side. Then the Master, having poured a little water into a vessel, said:  
 
- Do you, see, Rahula, this little quantity of water left in the vessel?
- Yes, venerable sir.
- Even so, Rahula, insignificant is the recluseship of those who are not ashamed to lie.
 
Then the Master having thrown away the water addressed the novice:
 
- Do you note, Rahula, that little quantity of water thrown away?
- Yes, venerable sir.
- Even so, Rahula, discarded, indeed, is the recluseship of those who are not ashamed to lie.
 
Then the Master overturned the water vessel and addressed the novice:
 
- Do you, Rahula, see this vessel that has been overturned?
- Yes, venerable sir.
- Even so, Rahula, overturned, indeed, is the recluseship of those who are not ashamed to lie.
 
Then the Master having uprighted the vessel addressed the novice:
 
- Do you, Rahula, see this water-vessel that is void, empty?
- Yes, venerable sir.
- Even so, Rahula, void and empty is the recluseship of those who are not ashamed to lie ... Even so, Rahula (citing the simile of a king's elephant) of anyone who is not ashamed to lie, I say that there is no evil that he cannot do. Wherefore, Rahula, thus, indeed, should you train yourself: `Not even for fun will I tell a lie.’ 41
 
2. Slander or tale-bearing (pisunavaca) is the next evil that the tongue can commit. The Pali word means literally `breaking up of fellowship'. To slander another is most wicked for it entails making a false statement intended to damage someone's reputation. The slanderer often commits two crimes simultaneously, he says what is false because his report is untrue and then he back-bites.
 
In Sanskrit poetry the back-biter is compared to a mosquito which though small is noxious. It coma singing, settles on you, draws blood and may, if a female, give you malaria.       Again the tale­bearer's words may be sweet as honey, but his mind is full of poison.
 
Let us then avoid tale-bearing and slander which destroy friend­ships. Instead of causing trouble let us speak words that make for peace and reconciliation. 42 Instead of sowing the seed of dissension, let us bring peace and friendship to those living in discord and enmity.  'Be united; wrangle not,' said the Buddha. `Concord alone is commendable' ( `samavayo eva sadhu') 43 inscribed by Asoka on  stone. Since we depend on one another, we must learn to live together in peace, friendship and harmony.
 
3. The next virtue is to abstain from harsh words and be pleasant and courteous. What we say can bring gain or loss, praise or blame, good repute or ill, misery or happiness.   A gentle word can melt the hardest heart, while a harsh word can cause untold agony.
 
We should think twice before we speak ill of anyone, for it is an attempt to damage his character, his good name. But it does not matter if, when praising another, we slightly overpaint the picture,
for this does not lead to unpleasantness and heart-burning.    As the Buddha says:
 
'In man's mouth a hatchet grows
With which fools will cut themselves
When they utter evil words.' 44
 
In the Buddha's day a festival called `Simpletons' Holiday (Balanakkhatta) was sometimes held in which only the simple minded took part. For a week they smeared their bodies with ashes and cowdung and wandered about abusing and shouting coarsely at people. Even friends, relatives, ascetics and monks were not spared. People would fling them a few coppers to be rid of them. The devout followers of the Buddha besought the Master not to enter the city until the festival was over. Then the Buddha said: `Foolish and uninstructed dolts are offensive like that, but the wise cultivate mindfulness and attain the Deathless Nibbana.’ 45
 
Man's speech often indicates his character.      A harsh word, an unpleasant gesture, a crooked smile, may turn a good-natured man into a criminal, a friend into a foe.
 
'Speak not harshly to anyone,
For those accosted will retort;
Painful is vindictive talk,
You may receive blows in exchange.' 46
One of the past stories of the Bodhisatta tells how he weaned his otherwise good mother from harsh speech. It is said that she was rude and ill-tongued, but that her son, aware of the weakness, did not want to hurt her by speaking too plainly. One day the Bod­hisatta, who was then king of Benares, went to a park with his mother and retainers. On the way a blue jay screeched so discordantly that all covered their ears and cried: 'What a harsh call, what a screech! Don't let us hear that again.' Now it happened later that when the Bodhisatta was strolling in the pleasance with his mother and retainers, an Indian cuckoo called so sweetly that the people were happy and hoped that it would sing again.
 
This was the moment for which the Bodhisatta had been waiting. He said: 'Mother dear, the jay's cry was dreadful and we covered our ears rather than listen to it. No one delights in a coarse language. Though dark and without beauty the cuckoo won the love and attention of all with its pleasing call. One's speech, therefore, should be friendly and restrained, calm and full of meaning....' Thus exhorted by her son, the mother became refined in speech and elegant in manners. 47
 
Pleasant and courteous speech attracts and is an asset to society, yet how often is beauty marred by rude talk. 'The language of the heart, the language which comes from the heart, is always simple, graceful and full of power.' 48
4. The fourth and last virtue concerned with right speech is to abstain from frivolous talk or gossip which brings no profit to any­one, anywhere.       People are too fond of idle talk, of maliciously dis­paraging others. The papers in their gossip columns are just as bad. Men and women with time on their hands indulge in endless chatter, amusing themselves at the expense of others. As J. L. Hollard says: 'Gossip is always a personal confession either of malice or imbecility. It is a low, frivolous and too often a dirty business in which neighbours are made enemies for life.' The Buddha's golden advice is: 'When, monks, you have gathered together there are two things to be done, either talk about the Dhamma (the Doctrine) or keep nobly silent.' 49
 
The Buddha was very critical of idle chatter, scandal and rumour for they disturb serenity and concentration. 'Better than a thousand sentences--a mere jumble of meaningless words--is one sensible phrase on hearing which one is pacified.' 50
        
A sage is sometimes called by the Pali word muni which means one who keeps silent. Yes, 'silence is golden' so do not speak unless you are sure you can improve on silence.
 
'Much talking is a source of danger,
Through silence, misfortune is avoided.
The talkative parrot in a cage is shut,
While birds that cannot talk fly freely.' 51
 
'One does not become a wise man just by talking a lot; 52 neither is he versed in the doctrine (Dhammadhara) because he speaks much.’ 53 And lest one should misunderstand the silence of the muni, the Buddha also says: 'To keep silent does not turn a foolish ignoramus into a sage (muni).'54
 
In conclusion let us listen to the discourse on 'Good Speech' : 55
 
'The good say: 1. Noble speech is apt;
2. Speak the Dhamma 56 not a-dhamma; 
3. Say what is pleasant, not unpleasant;
4. Speak what is true, not lies.
Speak only words that do not bring remorse
Nor hurt another. That is good speech, indeed.
Truth is immortal speech, it is an ancient law.
In truth, weal and Dhamma the sages are established.
The Buddha's words of peace to Nibbana lead,
To suffering's end. Such words are good indeed.'
 
 
1. See chapter 6.
 
2. Patimokkhasamvara, M. 107.
 
3. Indriyaguttadvara.
 
4. Bhojane mattannuta.     
 
5. Jagariyamanuyutto.
 
6. See A. ii. 38.
 
7. For temperaments and subjects of meditations see chapter 14.
 
8. Dhp. 239.      
 
9. See chapter 14.
 
10. Chapter 7.
 
11. Attanuditthimuhacca , lit. pulling out, removing   notion of an atta, Self or Soul. Sn.
 
12. M. 106.
 
13. S. iii. 32; S. iv. 81.
 
14. Satipatthana sulfa, see chapter 13.
 
15. See chapter 2.
 
16. Dhp. 141. Even today in India one meets people who follow this kind of useless practice for purification.
 
17. Including oneself.
 
18. Soma, `name of the plant avestan haoma, the juice of which was the most important ingredient in Vedic sacrificial offerings and formed the beverage of the gods'.
 
19. Quoted in Tibetan Yoga and Secret Doctrine edited by W. Y. Evans-Wentz (London, 1935), p. 65.
 
20. For the formula see chapter 1.
 
21. Sn. 399.
 
22. A samanera is one who has entered the Order, but is not yet a bhikkhu, a fullfledged monk, who observes the essential (patimokkha) precepts which are 220 (227) in number. See Vin. suttavibhanga, or Book of the Discipline, I. B. Horner, Parts 1, 2, 3, P.T.S. A novice also does not observe the vassa, the rains of three months, July-October, which a bikkhu is expected to observe. A novice is given bikkhu or higher ordination when he has reached the age of twenty. But sometimes age alone would not do. If he lacks in intelligence, has not studied the Dhamma and Vinaya sufficiently to lead a bhikkhu's life etc, he is not a fit candidate. See also chapter 8.
 
23. The third precept, however, is changed into: 'I undertake the training precept to abstain from unchastity (abrahmacariya).'
 
24. A. ii. 217.     
 
25. M. 27, 38, 51, D. 1. and passim.
 
26. Thg. 637.     
 
27. See chapter 6, n.2.
 
28. Action or kamma here means volition or the will for the Path (maggacetana), Com.
 
29. Vijja, that is wisdom for the Path, Com.
 
30. Dhamma here indicates concentration (samadhi), Com. This stanza in brief speaks of the threefold division of the Path: Virtue, Concentration and Wisdom through which mankind gains true purification.
 
31. S. i. 34; M. 143.    
 
32. A. i. 11.        
 
33. A. i. 261 sutta 105.
 
34. A. i. 263, sutta 107, 108.
 
35. A. iii. 254.    
 
36. See chapter 8.      
 
37. Sn. 884.
 
38. 'Advejjhavacana Buddha, Bv. p. 12 verse 110: cf. A. iii, 403 'How, when I have definitely declared it, can there be an alternative (dvejjham)?'
 
39. D. iii. 135, sutta 29.
 
40. He joined the Order at the age of seven.
 
41. M. 61.
 
42. M. 27, 38 and passim     
 
43. Inscription, no. 12.    
 
44. S. i. 149.
 
45. Dhp. Com. I. 256.
 
46. Dhp. 133.    
 
47. Jat. no. 269.
 
48. C. N. Bovee, Wisdom of the Ages, p. 374.    
 
49. M. 26; Ud. p. 31.
 
50. Dhp. 100.              
 
51. See Tibetan Yoga and Secret Doctrine, p. 61.
 
52. Dhp. 258.    
 
53. Dhp. 259.    
 
54. Dhp. 268.    
 
55. Subhasita-sutta, Sn.
 
56. Dhamma here implies speech full of meaning and free from gossip; a-dhamma is its opposite.
 

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