This was said by the Lord, said by the Arahant, so I heard:
“Bhikkhus, I say that for an individual who transgresses in one thing, there is no evil deed whatsoever he would not do. What is that one thing? It is this, bhikkhus: deliberately telling a lie.”
This is the meaning of what the Lord said. So in regard to this it was said:
There is no evil that cannot be done
By a person who deliberately lies,
Who transgresses in one thing,
Taking no account of the next world.
This too is the meaning of what was said by the Lord, so I heard.
Read this translation of Itivuttaka 25 Musāvādasutta: Lying by John D. Ireland on SuttaCentral.net. Or read a different translation on SuttaCentral.net, SuttaFriends.org or DhammaTalks.org. Or listen on SC-Voice.net. Or explore the Pali on DigitalPaliReader.online.