Deep Commentary

This verse is based on the story of Tambadathika, the king's executioner, who spent his life executing thousands of criminals under orders. In his old age, he offered food to Venerable Sariputta but was tormented by guilt over his past. Sariputta asked him, "Did you kill out of your own free will, or because you were ordered to?" When he answered that it was under the king's orders, Sariputta gently suggested that he lacked the volition that makes karma truly heavy. This single, profound realization alleviated the executioner's immense guilt, calming his mind enough to listen to the Dhamma and be reborn in a heavenly realm. The Buddha highlights that a single meaningful sentence spoken with wisdom, which brings peace to a troubled mind, is far more valuable than thousands of empty, useless words. It also emphasizes that intention (volition) is the core of karma.