At one time in a village monastery not far from Sāvatthī the resident monks were fed up with assigning dwellings to monks who were coming and going. They considered this and thought, “Well, let’s give all the dwellings belonging to the Sangha to one of us. We’ll then use what belongs to him.” And they did just that. When newly-arrived monks said to them, “Please assign us a dwelling,” they replied, “There aren’t any dwellings belonging to the Sangha. We’ve given them to one monk.” “So you’ve given away the dwellings belonging to the Sangha?” “Yes.” The monks of few desires complained and criticized them, “How could they give away the dwellings belonging to the Sangha?” They told the Buddha. Soon afterwards he had the Sangha gathered and questioned the monks: “Is it true, monks, that they did this?” “It’s true, sir.” The Buddha rebuked them, “How could those foolish men give away dwellings belonging to the Sangha? This will affect people’s confidence …” After rebuking them … the Buddha gave a teaching and addressed the monks:

“There are five things not to be given away, either by a sangha, a group, or an individual. Even if given away, they’re not actually given away. If you give any of them away, you commit a serious offense. What five? A monastery or the site of a monastery, A dwelling or the site of a dwelling, A bed, bench, mattress, or pillow, A metal pot, a metal jar, a metal bucket, a metal bowl, a machete, a hatchet, an ax, a spade, or a chisel,