Bhaṇḍutiṇḍukajātaka

Suttapiṭaka · Khuddakanikāya · Jātaka (1) · Vol. 27 · Section 2425

[2425] "I have not spoken amiss, brahmin — I am one skilled in the meaning of words. The country folk, left unprotected, are ruined by unrighteous levies. For by night thieves devour them; by day the tax collectors (tuṇḍiyā) devour them. In the realm of a crooked king, unrighteous people abound. When life is hard to live and a wife is hard to support, whence shall a young girl find a husband?"

English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.