[1750] "Bhikkhus, suppose that at the place where these great rivers meet and converge — that is to say, the Gaṅgā, the Yamunā, the Aciravatī, the Sarabhū, and the Mahī — that water were to come to destruction and exhaustion, except for two or three drops of water. What do you think, bhikkhus: which is the greater — the water at the confluence that has been destroyed and exhausted, or the two or three drops of water that remain?"
"Venerable sir, this is the greater: the water at the confluence that has been destroyed and exhausted. The two or three drops of water that remain are trifling; compared with the water at the confluence that has been destroyed and exhausted, the two or three drops of water that remain do not come to reckoning, do not come to comparison, do not amount even to a fraction."
"Just so, bhikkhus, for a noble disciple (ariyasāvaka) … exertion should be made."
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.