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One should give up anger,
renounce pride,
and overcome all fetters.
Suffering never befalls him
who clings not to mind and body
and is detached.
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He who checks rising anger
as a charioteer checks a rolling chariot,
him I call a true charioteer.
Others only hold the reins.
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Overcome the angry by non-anger;
overcome the wicked by goodness;
overcome the miser by generosity;
overcome the liar by truth.
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Speak the truth;
yield not to anger;
when asked, give even if you only have a little.
By these three means
can one reach the presence of the gods.
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Those sages who are inoffensive
and ever restrained in body,
go to the Deathless State,
where, having gone, they grieve no more.
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Those who are ever vigilant,
who discipline themselves day and night,
and are ever intent upon Nibbana —
their defilements fade away.
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O Atula! Indeed, this is an ancient practice,
not one only of today:
they blame those who remain silent,
they blame those who speak much,
they blame those who speak in moderation.
There is none in the world who is not blamed.
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There never was, there never will be, nor is there now,
a person who is wholly blamed or wholly praised.
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But the man whom the wise praise,
after observing him day after day,
is one of flawless character, wise,
and endowed with knowledge and virtue.
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Who can blame such a one,
as worthy as a coin of refined gold?
Even the gods praise him;
by Brahma, too, is he praised.
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Let a man guard himself
against irritability in bodily action;
let him be controlled in deed.
Abandoning bodily misconduct,
let him practice good conduct in deed.
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Let a man guard himself
against irritability in speech;
let him be controlled in speech.
Abandoning verbal misconduct,
let him practice good conduct in speech.
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Let a man guard himself
against irritability in thought;
let him be controlled in mind.
Abandoning mental misconduct,
let him practice good conduct in thought.
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The wise are controlled in bodily action,
controlled in speech and controlled in thought.
They are truly well-controlled.