Wastefulness Is Bad

Once there lived a very rich man who did not know the value of money. He lived such a wasteful life that the drainage pipe coming out of his house used to be full of rice grains. At that time, the Bodhisattva who came as a monk in that life was living next to the rich man.

He was shocked to see the grains of rice coming out of the rich man’s drain. Every day he made it a point to collect the rice from the pipe, wash and dry it nicely and store it for future use. In this way, he accumulated a large quantity of rice.

After some time, the rich man met with a mishap and lost all his wealth. He became so poor that he had to beg for food.

One day, while begging, the rich man and his wife came to the monk’s house. He gave them the same rice, which he had accumulated for years and told them where he had found it. The rich man and his wife bowed their heads in shame for their wastefulness.

The author of this story is unknown and greatly appreciated!