How do you construe this, Rahula: What is a mirror for? For reflection, Sir. In the same way, Rahula, bodily acts, verbal acts, and mental acts are to be done with repeated reflection. Whenever you want to perform a bodily act, you should reflect on it: ‘This bodily act I want to perform – would it lead... to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both? Is it an unskillful bodily act, with painful consequences, painful results? If, on reflection, you know that it would lead to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both; it would be an unskillful bodily act with painful consequences, painful results, then any bodily act of that sort is absolutely unfit for you to do. But if on reflection you know that it would not cause affliction … it would be a skillful bodily act with happy consequences, happy results, then any bodily act of that sort is fit for you to do.
(... Similarly with verbal acts and mental acts) Majjhima Nikaya 61:8-9 (Ambalatthikarahulavada Sutta – Advice to Rahula at Ambalatthika)
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