The Long Āgama Sūtra 7.81-82

7.81

迦葉復言：「諸有智者，以譬喻得解，我今當更為汝引喻。乃往久遠有一國土，其土邊壃，人民荒壞。彼國有二人，一智一愚，自相謂言：『我是汝親，共汝出城，採侶求財。』即尋相隨，詣一空聚，見地有麻即語愚者：『共取持歸。』時，彼二人各取一擔，復過前村，見有麻縷，其一智者言：『麻縷成功，輕細可取。』其一人言：『我已取麻，繫縛牢固，不能捨也。』其一智者即取麻縷，重擔而去；復共前進，見有麻布，其一智者言：『麻布成功，輕細可取。』彼一人言：『我已取麻，繫縛牢固，不能復捨。』其一智者即捨麻縷取布自重；復共前行，見有劫貝，其一智者言：『劫貝價貴，輕細可取。』彼一人言：『我已取麻，繫縛牢固，齎來道遠，不能捨也。』時，一智者即捨麻布而取劫貝。

Kāśyapa again said, “Those who are wise explain things with parables. Now, I’ll explain this for you with a story. Long ago, there was a country that was bordered by barbarians. In that country, there were two people. One was wise, and one was foolish. They said to each other, ‘I’m your friend. I’ll leave the city with you to look for riches.’

“They soon went together to an empty village. Seeing the land there had hemp, the wise man said to the foolish one, ‘Let’s collect it and take it home.’

“They each took a bushel. When they passed another village ahead of them, they saw hemp thread there. The wise man said, ‘Hemp thread is a finished good that’s light and fine. It’s worth taking.’

“The other man said, ‘I’ve already got this hemp tied up and secured. I can’t discard it.’

The wise man then took the hemp thread and added it to his burden. Again, they continued and saw some hemp cloth. The wise man said, ‘Hemp cloth is a finished good that’s light and fine. It’s worth taking.’

“The other man said, ‘I’ve already got this hemp tied up and secured. I can’t discard it.’

“The wise man discarded the hemp thread and carried the hemp cloth himself. Again, they continued and saw some cotton. The wise man said, ‘Cotton is valuable, light, and fine. It’s worth taking.’

“The other man said, ‘I’ve already got this hemp tied up and secured, and I’ve carried it a long distance on the road. I can’t discard it.’

“The wise man then discarded the hemp cloth and took the cotton. Thus, they continued and saw cotton thread … After that, they saw white muslin … they saw cupronickel … they saw silver … they saw gold. The wise man said, “If there were no gold, then we should take the silver. If there were no silver, we should take the cupronickel … If there were no hemp thread, we should just take the hemp. Now, this village has a great deal of gold and many superior treasures. It would be right for you to discard your hemp. I’ll take the silver, and you take the gold. We’ll carry it home ourselves.’

7.82

「如是前行，見劫貝縷，次見白疊，次見白銅，次見白銀，次見黃金，其一智者言：『若無金者，當取白銀，若無白銀，當取白銅，乃至麻縷，若無麻縷，當取麻耳。今者此村大有黃金，眾寶之上，汝宜捨麻，我當捨銀，共取黃金，自重而歸。』彼一人言：『我取此麻，繫縛牢固，齎來道遠，不能捨也。汝欲取者，自隨汝意。』其一智者捨銀取金，重擔而歸其家，親族遙見彼人大得金寶，歡喜奉迎。時，得金者見親族迎，復大歡喜。其無智人負麻而歸居家，親族見之，不悅亦不起迎，其負麻者倍增憂愧。婆羅門！汝今宜捨惡習邪見，勿為長夜自增苦惱，如負麻人執意堅固，不取金寶，負麻而歸，空自疲勞，親族不悅，長夜貧窮，自增憂苦也。」

“That other man said, ‘I’ve already got this hemp tied up and secured, and I’ve carried it a long distance on the road. I can’t discard it. If you want to take those things, then do what you like.’

“The wise man discarded the silver and took the gold, carrying the burden back home to his family. When his relatives saw him in the distance with a treasure of gold, they rejoiced and looked up to him. When the man who brought the gold saw his relatives looking up to him, he rejoiced as well. The ignorant man carried only hemp when he returned home. His relatives weren’t happy or proud of him when they saw him. The hemp he carried had doubled his sorrow and trouble.

“Priest, it would be right for you to abandon that pernicious view now. Don’t increase your own suffering for a long time like the man who carried the hemp. Attached to his stubborn thinking, he didn’t take the treasure of gold, and the hemp he carried home was a useless burden to him. His relatives weren’t happy, and he remained poor for a long time. It increased his own sorrow and suffering.”