At one time the Buddha was staying at Rājagaha in the Bamboo Grove, the squirrel sanctuary. At that time the monks of Āḷavī were building huts by means of begging. The huts were intended for themselves, did not have a sponsoring owner, and were inappropriately large. And since they were never finished, the monks kept on begging and asking, “Please give a man, a servant, an ox, a cart, a machete, a hatchet, an ax, a spade, a chisel; give creepers, bamboo, reed, grass, clay.” People felt oppressed by all the begging and asking, so much so that when they saw a monk they became alarmed and fearful. They turned away, took a different path, ran off, and closed their doors. They even ran away when they saw cows, thinking they were monks.