It’s Not Only Words

Words have the power to heal or destroy.
What do yours do?
Every word matters.
Every lack of a right word matters.
Even a pause matters.

Thus the Buddha taught us to reflect in the fourth precept-
Are our words true, harmonious, gentle and constructive?
Or are they false, divisive, harsh, and useless?

[1] What one knows to be
unfactual, untrue, unbeneficial, unendearing & disagreeable to others,
one should not say.
[2] What one knows to be
factual, true, unbeneficial, unendearing & disagreeable to others,
one does not say.
[3] What one knows to be
factual, true, beneficial, but unendearing & disagreeable to others,
one has a sense of the proper time for saying.
[4] What one knows to be
unfactual, untrue, unbeneficial, but endearing & agreeable to others,
one does not say.
[5] What one knows to be
factual, true, unbeneficial, but endearing & agreeable to others,
one does not say.
[6] What one knows to be
factual, true, beneficial, and endearing & agreeable to others,
one has a sense of the proper time for saying.

- With paraphrased excerpts from Abhaya Sutta (The Buddha’s Discourse on Right Speech)
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/canon/majjhima/mn058.html