sn.35.242 Saṁyutta Nikāya (Linked Discourses)

The Simile of the Tree Trunk (2nd)

At one time the Buddha was staying near Kimibilā on the bank of the Ganges river.
Seeing a large tree trunk being carried along by the current,
he addressed the mendicants:
“Mendicants, do you see that large tree trunk being carried along by the current of the Ganges river?”
“Yes, sir,” they replied. …
When this was said, Venerable Kimbila said to the Buddha:
“But sir, what’s the near shore and what’s the far shore? What’s sinking in the middle? What’s getting stranded on high ground? What’s getting taken by humans or non-humans? What’s getting caught up in a whirlpool? And what’s rotting away?” …
“And what, Kimbila, is rotting away?
It’s when a mendicant has committed the kind of corrupt offense from which there is no rehabilitation.
This is called ‘rotting away’.”