SA-2 261（二六一）

Thus have I heard:

Once, the Buddha was at Anāthapiṇḍada's Park in the Jeta Grove near Śrāvastī. At that time, there was a brāhman named Jñātiputra who went to where the Buddha was, exchanged greetings, and sat to one side. He then said to the Buddha, "I have heard people say that the World-Honored One said, 'Only give to me, not to others; only give to my disciples, not to the disciples of others. If you give to me and my disciples, you will receive great rewards; if you give to others and the disciples of others, you will not receive rewards.' Is this true? Are these not slanderous words of the world?"

The Buddha said, "This is false and slanderous. I never said such words. If one speaks like this, it creates two kinds of difficulties: one is the difficulty of obstruction, and the other is the difficulty of the recipient receiving less. If one speaks like this, it greatly diminishes. When the body perishes and life ends, one will fall into the three evil paths. You should now know that even the water used to wash the alms bowl, I say that giving it to insects and ants brings great merit. How much more so for giving to me? I truly said, 'Giving to those who uphold the precepts brings great merit, while giving to those who break the precepts brings little merit.'"

At that time, the World-Honored One spoke a verse, saying:

I always praise all acts of giving, but giving to the unvirtuous
brings little merit, while giving to the virtuous brings great fruit. Black
white, red, and blue oxen, when they give birth to calves, each
is different. When used to pull a cart, one takes their strength
not caring about their birth. People are also like this. Whether they
are kshatriyas, brahmins, vaishyas, shudras, candalas, or rich, if they can uphold
pure precepts, giving to them brings great fruit. It is like carrying
a bundle of hemp and discarding it to take precious jewels. The
foolish and ignorant, who have never heard the Dharma, are unable to
cultivate the holy life. Giving to them brings little fruit. If one
associates with the wise and holy, the fully enlightened ones and their
shravakas, and is able to believe in the Tathāgata, with the roots
of faith firmly established, one will be born in noble circumstances and
ultimately attain nirvana.

At that time, Sheng Tingwen joyfully accepted and practiced what the Buddha taught.