the vejjavatapada is derived from four passages from the pāḷi canon dating from between circa 5th and the 3rd centuries bce, each of them attributed to the buddha. the preamble contains two quotes from the pali canon, the first line of verse 204 of the dhammapada, and from the vinaya, where the buddha, after having attended to a sick monk neglected by his fellows, instructed his monks to care for each other when they are sick.