Dictionary of Pali Proper Names v1.c6.2632

v1.c6.2632

Ambalaṭṭhika-Rāhulovāda Sutta.—Preached by the Buddha at Ambalaṭṭhikā (near Veluvana) to Rāhula. It deals with falsehood. Like a minute drop of water is the recluseship of those who shrink not from deliberate lying, it is thrown away, upset; it is empty and void. There is nothing evil they will not do, they run every risk, like an elephant who guards not his trunk. One should practise constant reflection, thereby abandoning all things conducive to woe, either to oneself or to others, and develop self-control and purity.¹ Rāhula was evidently yet very young at the time of this sermon, for we find the Buddha making use of frequent similes, and pointing them out to him.²