Rulership Rajja Sutta (SN 4:20)

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# Right single quote

('â', Exercise rulership, Blessed One! Exercise rulership, O One Well-Gone!—without killing or causing others to kill, without dispossessing or causing others to dispossess, without sorrowing or causing others sorrow—righteously!â?" "Lord, the Blessed One has developed the four bases of power,1 pursued them, given them a means of transport, given them a grounding, steadied them, consolidated them, and undertaken them well. If he wanted to, he could resolve on the Himalayas, king of mountains, as gold, and it would become a mountain of gold."2 The Buddha: "The entirety of a mountain of gold, of solid bullion: Even twice that wouldnât suffice for one person. Knowing this, live evenly, in tune with the contemplative life. When you see stress, and from where it comes, how can you incline to sensuality? Knowing acquisition to be a bond in the world, train for its subduing." Then Mṅra the Evil One—sad & dejected at realizing, "The Blessed One knows me; the One Well-Gone knows me"—vanished right there. Notes 1. The foundations for psychic abilities. See SN 51:20. 2. The implication here is that, with so much gold, the Buddha could cure the worldâs miseries and buy off his enemies. See also: MN 82; SN 35:199; AN 3:70; Dhp 186–187 - --> - - - -