The Consequences of Gluttony

In the earliest period of the Earth's formation, there were as yet no sentient beings and no humans. The devas of the Ābhāsvara heaven in the second dhyāna heaven flew to the surface of the Earth. After landing, they saw the thick, rich crust covering the Earth's surface and found it delicious. Out of curiosity, each of these devas tasted it. As a result of those one or two tasty bites, the devas' bodies became heavy; some could no longer fly, and some could no longer fly high or far. The more they ate, the heavier their bodies became and the less they could fly. So this group of devas stayed on Earth, unable to return to heaven. Being few in number and afraid of loneliness, they called over their other deva companions. Once those companions arrived on Earth and tasted the rich crust, they too could no longer fly back. Thus, more and more humans gathered on the Earth, and these people became the earliest humans on Earth.

Whom can you afford to owe? What can you afford to crave? Once a karmic affinity is formed, you become bound together, and the bond of affinity cannot be severed. Some people's outlook on life is: eat whatever can be eaten, eat whatever you want to eat—no point in passing up a free meal. Do you know the consequence of such greed?