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age; why, then, did you have to put me to the needless expense of buying a new spatula: Perhaps your intention was good; you wished to help someone who had been your host, but if a man accepts gold that he has not earned with the sweat of his brow, then does not his good sense, sound as gold, turn to dross?"
With a brief pause, he continued more softly, “Would my heart continue to feel the joy of serving a guest who seeks hospitality at my humble home, once I began to accept rewards for doing what I consider to be my religious duty? A man who accepts gifts, gets into the habit of expecting them for whatever he does to serve his fellow-men; he thinks of what he would be given rather than what he should give. No, Sir, I cannot accept your gift, however well-intentioned it may be."
The holy pilgrim was filled with respect for this simple man. "I have been to many shrines and I have bathed in many sacred rivers,” he said, “but it is from you that I have learnt the path of true salvation. I only pray I may attain the perfect contentment that your heart knows."
