At one time when the Buddha was staying at Kosambī in Ghosita’s Monastery, a certain monk had committed an offense. He regarded it as an offense, but there were other monks who did not. Some time later he no longer regarded it as an offense, but there were other monks who did. They said to him, “You’ve committed an offense. Do you recognize it?” “No, I haven’t committed any offense that I should recognize.” Soon afterwards the monks achieved unanimity, and they ejected that monk for not recognizing the offense.

But that monk was learned, a master of the tradition; he was an expert on the Teaching, the Monastic Law, and the Key Terms; he was knowledgeable and competent, had a sense of conscience, and was afraid of wrongdoing and fond of the training. He went to his friends and said, “This isn’t an offense, and so I haven’t committed any. And I haven’t been ejected, for the legal procedure was illegitimate, reversible, and unfit to stand. Please side with me, venerables, in accordance with the Teaching and the Monastic Law.” He was able to form a faction. He then sent the same message to his friends in the country, and again he was able to form a faction.

The monks who sided with him went to the monks who had ejected him and said, “This isn’t an offense, and so this monk hasn’t committed any. He hasn’t been ejected, for the legal procedure was illegitimate, reversible, and unfit to stand.” They replied, “This is an offense, and he’s committed it. And he’s been ejected. The legal procedure was legitimate, irreversible, and fit to stand. Venerables, don’t side with this monk.” But they still sided with him.