Academic Sutta Name Notes PSA Plae Vagga Nikaya PTS Keywords
DhA.

XXVI:11 It is not easy to mislead the wise

Once, a deceitful brahmin climbed up a tree near the city-gate of Vesali and kept himself hanging up side down like a bat from one of the branches of the tree. From this very awkward position, he kept on muttering, 'O People! Give me a hundred head of cattle. Give me money. Give me a woman slave. If you don't bring these to me and if I were to fall down from this tree and die, the city of yours will surely come to ruin.' The ignorant people of the city, fearing that their city might be destroyed if the brahmin were to fall down and die, brought all the things he demanded and pleaded with him to come down.

The bhikkhus related the incident to the Buddha who said that the deceitful one could only cheat the ignorant people but not the wise ones.

55/170 Dhammapada & Commentary Khuddhaka J.i.106ff. despair


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Last modified on: Sunday, 13 August 2000.