A Collection of Buddhist Wisdom Verses - Ancient Buddhist Texts

19: Speech
Jā 537 Mahāsutasomajātakaṁ
Truth is the Sweetest Thing
The Bodhisatta gives and keeps his word to
return to a man-eating King, who is threatening
to eat him. In part of the dialogue which follows
the Bodhisatta preaches on the virtue of keeping
to one's word.
368. Ye kecime atthi rasā Pathavyā,
Saccaṁ tesaṁ sādhutaraṁ rasānaṁ,
Sacce ṭhitā samaṇabrāhmaṇā ca,
Taranti jātimaraṇassa pāraṁ.
Of whatever kinds of tastes there are on the Earth
Truth is the sweetest and the best of all.
Know that monks and priests steady in the truth,
Cross to the further side of birth and death.
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