[750] Then, Bhāradvāja, it occurred to me: 'Suppose I were to practice entirely cutting off food.' Then, Bhāradvāja, those deities approached me and said: 'Good sir, do not practice entirely cutting off food. If, good sir, you practice entirely cutting off food, we shall infuse heavenly nutritive essence into you through your pores, and by that you will sustain yourself.' Then, Bhāradvāja, it occurred to me: 'If I were to claim to be fasting entirely, while these deities infused heavenly nutritive essence into me through my pores and I sustained myself by that, that would be a falsehood on my part.' So, Bhāradvāja, I refused those deities, saying: 'There is no need.'
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.