ལྷའ་མད་ཉང་ང intro.2

intro.2

The Shorter Devatā Sūtra (Skt. Alpadevatāsūtra, Tib. lha’i mdo nyung ngu) is a brief sūtra in which the Buddha, while staying in Śrāvasti, is approached by an unnamed divine being (Skt. devatā, Tib. lha), who inquires about what behavior merits rebirth in the higher realms. The Buddha replies with a series of simple and powerful verses in which he states that those who relinquish the ten nonvirtues of body, speech, and mind—killing, taking what is not given, sexual misconduct, telling lies, slander, harsh words, idle talk, covetousness, ill will, and wrong views—and embrace their opposites, the ten virtues, here called “the tenfold path of the good Dharma”, will be reborn in the higher realms.