SN3.19 — The Discourse on the Son of a Prostitute
At Sāvatthī.
Then King Pasenadi of Kosala went to the Blessed One in the middle of the day, and after paying homage to him, he sat down to one side. Sitting to one side, King Pasenadi of Kosala said to the Blessed One:
Where have you come from, great king, in the middle of the day? Here, venerable sir, in Sāvatthī, a householder named Anāthapiṇḍika has passed away.
I have come after taking over the royal capital from the son of a prostitute. He had eighty thousand in gold alone, not to mention silver. And his food was like this: he ate broken rice with ghee. His clothing was like this: he wore coarse hempen cloth. His vehicle was like this: he went in a chariot with a canopy of leaves. This is how it was, great king, this is how it was.
A bad person, great king, having acquired vast wealth, does not provide for his own happiness and well-being, nor that of his mother and father, nor his children and wife, nor his servants, employees, and workers, nor his friends and colleagues, nor does he establish an uplifting offering for ascetics and brahmins, leading to happiness, prosperity, and heaven.
As he consumes these resources properly, kings or thieves seize them, or fire burns them, or water sweeps them away, or unloved heirs take them. Thus, great king, these resources, when not consumed properly, lead to their depletion, not to their enjoyment.
Just as a lotus pond in a deserted place is clear, cool, refreshing, and delightful, yet no one would take from it, drink from it, bathe in it, or use it in any way. For if they did, the water would be used up, not enjoyed.
In the same way, great king, a bad person, having acquired vast wealth, does not provide for his own happiness and well-being, nor that of his mother and father, nor his children and wife, nor his servants, employees, and workers, nor his friends and colleagues, nor does he establish an uplifting offering for ascetics and brahmins, leading to happiness, prosperity, and heaven.
As he consumes these resources properly, kings or thieves seize them.
Thieves steal, fire burns, water flows, unloved heirs take. Thus, great king, possessions are being consumed properly, not the consumer. A virtuous person, having obtained great wealth, makes themselves happy and pleased, makes their parents happy and pleased, makes their spouse and children happy and pleased, makes their servants and workers happy and pleased, makes their friends and companions happy and pleased, establishes an uplifting offering among ascetics and brahmins, leading to heavenly results and the attainment of heaven. With these possessions being consumed properly in this way, neither kings nor thieves take, neither fire burns, nor water flows, nor unloved heirs take.
Thus, great king, possessions being consumed properly lead to consumption, not depletion. Just as, great king, a lotus pond is not far from a village or town, with clear, cool, pleasant, and beautiful water. People might steal, drink, or bathe in that water as they wish. In the same way, great king, if that water is consumed properly, it leads to consumption, not depletion. In the same way, a virtuous person, having obtained great wealth, makes themselves happy and pleased, makes their parents happy and pleased, makes their spouse and children happy and pleased, makes their servants and workers happy and pleased, makes their friends and companions happy and pleased, establishes an uplifting offering among ascetics and brahmins, leading to heavenly results and the attainment of heaven. With these possessions being consumed properly in this way, neither kings nor thieves take, neither fire burns, nor water flows, nor unloved heirs take.
Thus, great king, possessions being consumed properly lead to consumption, not depletion. Just as water in a non-human place, though cold, is consumed and used up, so too, when a person acquires wealth, they neither use it nor give it away. The wise and discerning, having attained wealth, consume it and are industrious. They support their relatives and dependents, blameless, they reach a heavenly abode.