[1220] An ill deed indeed, sirs, has been done by the king, a man of faith leading the household life!
How indeed could he, banished in the forest, give away his little children?
Attend to this, sirs, as many as are here assembled:
How could King Vessantara, dwelling in the forest, have given away his children?
He might give a male slave and a female slave, a horse and a chariot drawn by she-mules;
he might give an elephant, a tusker — but how could he give away the children?
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.