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## Chapter 248, Seventh Dasha, Dasha Shruta Skandha Sutra
**If one goes in the beginning, one should not go in the middle or the end. If one goes in the middle, one should not go in the beginning or the end. If one goes in the end, one should not go in the beginning or the middle.**
**Meaning:** This sutra explains the three parts of the day - beginning, middle, and end - for the time of going out for alms (gochari) for a monk who has taken the vow of non-attachment (anagari) and has a monthly vow (masiki). If one goes out for alms in the beginning part of the day, one should not go out in the middle or the end part. If one goes out in the middle part, one should not go out in the beginning or the end part. If one goes out in the end part, one should not go out in the beginning or the middle part.
**Commentary:** This sutra discusses the time of going out for alms for a monk who has taken the vow of non-attachment and has a monthly vow. There are three parts of the day for a monk's gochari: the first part, the second part, and the third part, which are the beginning, middle, and end parts of the day. If a monk goes out for alms in the first part of the day, he should not go out in the middle or the end part. Similarly, if he goes out in the end part, he should not go out in the beginning or the middle part. In other words, if a monk goes out in any one part of the day, he should not go out in the other two parts. Before going out for alms, each monk should know what time other monks are going out. He should not go out at the same time as them. However, this is ultimately up to his own discretion.
The question arises: what is "gochari"? The answer is that gochari is the act of receiving alms, similar to a cow grazing. Just as a cow grazes on grass, both high and low, without uprooting it, a monk should receive alms from all houses, both high and low, with equanimity and according to his rules. This ensures that the householder does not feel any distress. Therefore, the time for receiving alms is called gochari. When a monk goes to a householder's house for alms, his mind should be like that of a calf who takes food or water from the hand of a beautiful woman adorned with ornaments, but whose mind is focused only on the food and not on the woman's beauty or ornaments. Similarly, the monk's mind should be focused only on the alms and not on the householder's possessions.