This is a beautiful story from Dhammapada about the Buddha spoke this verss, with reference to Khànu Kondanna.
This Venerable, it appears, obtained a meditation topic from the Buddha, and while residing in the forest attained
arahatship. Desiring to inform the Buddha of his attainment, he set out to return from the forest. Growing tired by the way, he left the road, seated himself on a flat stone, and entered into a state of trance. Now at that time a band of five hundred thieves plundered a village, packed up their spoils in sacks of sizes proportioned to the strength of their several members, placed the sacks on their heads, and carried them for a long distance. Becoming weary, they said to themselves, “We have come a long distance; let us rest on the top of this flat rock.”
So saying, they left the road, went to the rock, and mistook the Venerable for the stump of a tree. One of the thieves placed his sack on the Venerable’s head, and another placed his sack near his body. One after another, the five hundred thieves set their sacks in a circle about him and then lay down and went to sleep.
At dawn they woke up and took their sacks. Seeing the Venerable, and thinking he was an evil spirit, they started to
run away. The Venerable said to them, “Lay disciples, have no fear; I am a monk.” Thereupon they prostrated themselves before his feet and begged his pardon, saying, “Pardon us, Venerable; we mistook you for the stump of a tree.” The ring- leader of the thieves said, I intend to become a monk under the Venerable.” The rest said, “We also will become monks.”
And with one accord all the thieves requested the Venerable to make them monks. The Venerable made monks of them all, just as did the novice Saükicca. From that time forward he went by the name of Stump Kondanna, Khànu-Kondanna.
Accompanied by those monks, he went to the Buddha.
When the Buddha asked him, “Kondanna, you have obtained pupils?” he told him what had happened. The Buddha asked, “Monks, is this true?” “Yes, Venerable; we never saw such an exhibition of magical power before and therefore we have become monks.” The Buddha replied, “Monks, it were better for you to live but a single day in the exercise of the wisdom you have just acquired than to live for a hundred years committing such acts of foolishness.”
