Cātumasutta

mn67:16.1 And what, mendicants, is the danger of waves?

mn67:16.2 It’s when a gentleman has gone forth out of faith from the lay life to homelessness, thinking:

mn67:16.3 ‘I’m swamped by rebirth, old age, and death; by sorrow, lamentation, pain, sadness, and distress. I’m swamped by suffering, mired in suffering.

mn67:16.4 Hopefully I can make an end to this entire mass of suffering.’

mn67:16.5 When they’ve gone forth, their spiritual companions advise and instruct them:

mn67:16.6 ‘You should go out like this, and come back like that. You should look to the front like this, and to the side like that. You should contract your limbs like this, and extend them like that. This is how you should bear your outer robe, bowl, and robes.’

mn67:16.7 They think:

mn67:16.8 ‘Formerly, as laypeople, we advised and instructed others.

mn67:16.9 And now these mendicants—who you’d think were our children or grandchildren—imagine they can advise and instruct us!’

mn67:16.10 They resign the training and return to a lesser life.

mn67:16.11 This is called a mendicant who resigns the training and returns to a lesser life for fear of the danger of waves.

mn67:16.12 ‘Danger of waves’ is a term for anger and distress.