…And how does a mendicant not know the ford? It’s when a mendicant doesn’t from time to time go up to those mendicants who are very learned—knowledgeable in the scriptures, who have memorized the teachings, the monastic law, and the outlines—and ask them questions: ‘Why, sir, does it say this? What does that mean?’ Those venerables don’t clarify what is unclear, reveal what is obscure, and dispel doubt regarding the many doubtful matters. That’s how a mendicant doesn’t know the ford.
And how does a mendicant not know satisfaction? It’s when a mendicant, when the teaching and training proclaimed by the Realized One are being taught, finds no inspiration in the meaning and the teaching, and finds no joy connected with the teaching. That’s how a mendicant doesn’t know satisfaction.…
Read the entire translation of Majjhima Nikāya 33 Mahāgopālakasutta: The Longer Discourse on the Cowherd by Bhikkhu Sujato on SuttaCentral.net. Or read a different translation on DhammaTalks.org. Or listen on PaliAudio.com or SC-Voice.net.