"Grasped wrongly," said the Buddha on a certain occasion, "the Scriptures conduce to hurt and harm.

"It is precisely as if a man, wanting a water-snake, hunting a water-snake, searching for a water-snake, were to see a big water-snake and were to grasp it by the body or by the tail, and that water-snake were to turn on him and were to bite him on the hand or on the arm or on some other major or minor member of the body, and as a result of this he were to incur death or mortal pain. And why? Because he wrongly grasped the water-snake.

"Precisely so," said the Buddha, "the Scriptures, wrongly grasped, conduce to hurt and harm."

"On the other hand," said the Buddha, "the Scriptures, rightly grasped, conduce to weal and welfare.

"It is precisely as if a man, wanting a water-snake, hunting a water-snake, searching for a water-snake, were to see a big water-snake, and with a goat's foot, with a stick, were to hold it down, were to hold it down firmly; and with the goat's foot, with the stick, holding it down, holding it down firmly, were to grasp it by the neck, were to grasp it firmly;--no matter how much that water-snake were to wrap its coils about that man's hand or arm or other major or minor member of his body, nevertheless, as a result of that man's firm grasp, he would incur neither death nor mortal pain. And why? Because he rightly grasped the water-snake.

"Precisely so," said the Buddha, "the Scriptures, rightly grasped, conduce to weal and welfare."