Section outline
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Lesson 3.4.2 Vibhaṅgasuttaṃ, Part Four – What Is Right Speech (Sammāvācā)?
Speech turns right, correct, polite and wholesome (sammā) once all the characteristics of false, offending, rude and unwholesome (micchā) speech are rejected, left behind and abandoned. This means that right speech is defined by the absence of wrong speech. A person's daily interactions regularly pose a challenge to one’s intentions and mental composure. Agitation and anger is usually noticeable when one is confronted with unpleasantness or time-consuming gossip, in the same way as joyfulness and quietude arise when one encounters polite and friendly communication. This principle, an essential guideline from the Buddha's exposition of sammāvācā, fosters communication that cultivates harmony, while actively preventing discord.