[32] When this was said, the Venerable Moliyaphagguna said to the Blessed One: "Venerable sir, who, then, consumes the nutriment (āhāra) that is consciousness?"
"The question is not properly put," the Blessed One said. "I do not say 'one consumes.' If I were to say 'one consumes,' then in that case the question would be properly put: 'Venerable sir, who, then, consumes?' But I do not speak thus. Since I do not speak thus, if one were to ask me: 'Venerable sir, for what, then, is the nutriment that is consciousness [a condition]?' — that would be a properly put question. There the proper answer would be: 'The nutriment that is consciousness is [a condition] [1] for the production of renewed existence in the future. When that has come to be, there are the six sense bases (āyatana); with the six sense bases as condition, contact.'"
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.