Each of these five moral precepts has its own special benefits. By
maintaining the first one, we can expect to enjoy good health and
longevity. By the second, our wealth and property will be safe from
criminal attack or other misfortune. By the third, family mem-
bers will keep faith with each other, and live contentedly with-
out unwanted interference. With the fourth, we will be trusted
because of our integrity. When our speech is charming and pleas-
ant, humans and devas alike will respect and cherish us. Honest
people pose no threat to themselves or anyone else. And by main-
taining the fifth precept, we will be clever, intelligent people who
are not easily misguided nor readily thrown into confusion.
People who maintain moral virtue tend to reassure living
beings everywhere by promoting a sense of satisfaction and mutual
trust. Immoral people, on the other hand, cause untold suffer-
ing by harming people and animals all over the world. Those
who value their own existence should understand that all people
value themselves similarly, and should, therefore, refrain from
harming others in any manner. Due to the supportive, protective
power of moral virtue, honest, virtuous people can expect to be
reborn into an elevated, heavenly existence. Thus it is vital to
maintain high moral standards – the result will surely be a heav-
enly destination in the next life. Remember this Dhamma teach-
ing, practice it diligently, and your future prosperity is assured.
By the time Ãcariya Mun finished advising the small novice
and his sister, both were delighted by his teaching and requested
the five moral precepts from him, which he gave them. Having
received the moral precepts, they respectfully took leave of Ãcariya
Mun, and immediately vanished. The power of their accumulated
merit and the goodness they cultivated from attending to his dis-
jacob rumans
(Jacob Rumans)
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