Sutta with two men traveling along a road?

Hi all. I’m trying to find a sutta that I believe goes something like this:

Two men are traveling along a road and come upon some hay (or grass or something marginally valuable). As they continue, they increasingly find heaps of material of greater worth but one man holds onto his first set of hay, refusing to let it go, while the other sets his old pile down and picks up the newer, more valuable material. Eventually, at the end of the story the one man ends up with gold (or some kind of riches, as a result of setting down and improving his pile), whereas the other ends up with the same pile of marginal worth as he began with.

Overall I think it’s an analogy about renouncing lesser pleasures for greater ones along the path. Sound familiar to anyone?

2 Likes

I think you are referring to the Pāyāsi Sutta (DN 23), section 2.14, The Simile of the Man Who Carried Hemp.

4 Likes

Yes, that’s the one! Thank you :pray:t5:

1 Like