At Kusināra
Kusināra Sutta (AN 3:124)
On one occasion the Blessed One was staying near Kusināra in the Baliharaṇa [Oblation-taking] forest grove. There he addressed the monks, “Monks!”
“Yes, lord,” the monks responded to him.
The Blessed One said, “There is the case where a monk lives in dependence on a certain town or village. A householder or householder’s son, approaching him, invites him for the next day’s meal. If he wants to, he acquiesces. When the night has passed, early in the morning, he adjusts his under robe and—carrying his bowl & robes—goes to the residence of that householder or householder’s son. On arrival, he sits down on a seat laid out. The householder or householder’s son, with his own hand, serves & satisfies the monk with exquisite staple & non-staple food. The thought occurs to the monk, ‘How good it is that this householder or householder’s son serves & satisfies me with exquisite staple & non-staple food!’ And the thought also occurs to him, ‘O, may this householder or householder’s son in the future serve & satisfy me with this sort of exquisite staple & non-staple food!’ He consumes that almsfood attached to it, infatuated, guilty, not seeing the drawbacks (of attachment to it), and not discerning the escape from them. With regard to it, he thinks thoughts of sensuality, thoughts of ill will, thoughts of harmfulness. What is given to a monk of this sort, I tell you, is not of great fruit. Why is that? Because the monk remains heedless.
“But there is the case where a monk lives in dependence on a certain town or village. A householder or householder’s son, approaching him, invites him for the next day’s meal. If he wants to, he acquiesces. When the night has passed, early in the morning, he adjusts his under robe and—carrying his bowl & robes—goes to the residence of that householder or householder’s son. On arrival, he sits down on a seat laid out. The householder or householder’s son, with his own hand, serves & satisfies the monk with exquisite staple & non-staple food. The thought doesn’t occur to the monk, ‘How good it is that this householder or householder’s son serves & satisfies me with exquisite staple & non-staple food!’ And the thought also doesn’t occur to him, ‘O, may this householder or householder’s son in the future serve & satisfy me with this sort of exquisite staple & non-staple food!’ He consumes that almsfood unattached to it, uninfatuated, guiltless, seeing the drawbacks (of attachment to it), and discerning the escape from them. With regard to it, he thinks thoughts of renunciation, thoughts of non-ill will, thoughts of harmlessness. What is given to a monk of this sort, I tell you, is of great fruit. Why is that? Because the monk remains heedful.”
