SN 20.10

Biḷārasutta

Sāvatthiyaṁ viharati. Tena kho pana samayena aññataro bhikkhu ativelaṁ kulesu cārittaṁ āpajjati. Tamenaṁ bhikkhū evamāhaṁsu: “māyasmā ativelaṁ kulesu cārittaṁ āpajjī”ti. So bhikkhu bhikkhūhi vuccamāno na viramati. Atha kho sambahulā bhikkhū yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkamiṁsu; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṁ abhivādetvā ekamantaṁ nisīdiṁsu. Ekamantaṁ nisinnā kho te bhikkhū bhagavantaṁ etadavocuṁ: “idha, bhante, aññataro bhikkhu ativelaṁ kulesu cārittaṁ āpajjati. Tamenaṁ bhikkhū evamāhaṁsu: ‘māyasmā ativelaṁ kulesu cārittaṁ āpajjī’ti. So bhikkhu bhikkhūhi vuccamāno na viramatī”ti.

A Cat

At Sāvatthī. Now at that time a certain mendicant had relations with families too often. The mendicants said to him, “Venerable, don’t have relations with families too often.” But that mendicant, when spoken to by the mendicants, did not stop. And then several mendicants went up to the Buddha, bowed, sat down to one side, and told him what had happened. The Buddha said:

“Bhūtapubbaṁ, bhikkhave, biḷāro sandhisamalasaṅkaṭīre ṭhito ahosi mudumūsiṁ maggayamāno: ‘yadāyaṁ mudumūsi gocarāya pakkamissati, tattheva naṁ gahetvā khādissāmī’ti. Atha kho so, bhikkhave, mudumūsi gocarāya pakkāmi. Tamenaṁ biḷāro gahetvā sahasā saṅkhāditvā ajjhohari. Tassa so mudumūsi antampi khādi, antaguṇampi khādi. So tatonidānaṁ maraṇampi nigacchi maraṇamattampi dukkhaṁ.

“Once upon a time, mendicants, a cat was standing by an alley or a drain or a dustbin hunting a little mouse, thinking, ‘When that little mouse comes out to feed, I’ll catch it right there and eat it!’ And then that little mouse came out to feed. The cat caught it and hastily swallowed it without chewing. But that little mouse ate its intestines and mesentery, resulting in death and deadly pain.

Evameva kho, bhikkhave, idhekacco bhikkhu pubbaṇhasamayaṁ nivāsetvā pattacīvaramādāya gāmaṁ vā nigamaṁ vā piṇḍāya pavisati arakkhiteneva kāyena arakkhitāya vācāya arakkhitena cittena, anupaṭṭhitāya satiyā, asaṁvutehi indriyehi. So tattha passati mātugāmaṁ dunnivatthaṁ vā duppārutaṁ vā. Tassa mātugāmaṁ disvā dunnivatthaṁ vā duppārutaṁ vā rāgo cittaṁ anuddhaṁseti. So rāgānuddhaṁsena cittena maraṇaṁ vā nigacchati maraṇamattaṁ vā dukkhaṁ. Maraṇañhetaṁ, bhikkhave, ariyassa vinaye yo sikkhaṁ paccakkhāya hīnāyāvattati. Maraṇamattañhetaṁ, bhikkhave, dukkhaṁ yadidaṁ aññataraṁ saṅkiliṭṭhaṁ āpattiṁ āpajjati. Yathārūpāya āpattiyā vuṭṭhānaṁ paññāyati. Tasmātiha, bhikkhave, evaṁ sikkhitabbaṁ: ‘rakkhiteneva kāyena rakkhitāya vācāya rakkhitena cittena, upaṭṭhitāya satiyā, saṁvutehi indriyehi gāmaṁ vā nigamaṁ vā piṇḍāya pavisissāmā’ti. Evañhi vo, bhikkhave, sikkhitabban”ti.

In the same way, take a certain monk who robes up in the morning and, taking his bowl and robe, enters the village or town for alms without guarding body, speech, and mind, without establishing mindfulness, and without restraining the sense faculties. There he sees a lady scantily clad, with revealing clothes. Lust infects his mind, resulting in death or deadly pain. For it is death in the training of the Noble One to resign the training and return to a lesser life. And it is deadly pain to commit one of the corrupt offenses for which rehabilitation is possible. So you should train like this: ‘We will enter the village or town for alms guarding body, speech, and mind, establishing mindfulness, and restraining the sense faculties.’ That’s how you should train.”