84000.Org & Mahidol University (2016) an Illustrated Life of the Buddha

AN ILLUSTRATED LIFE OF

THE BUDDHA

(Text: h;ps://www.mahidol.ac.th/budsir/MenuEng.htm Pictures: h;p://84000.org/ pitaka/picture/f00.html)

Table of Contents

Table of Contents Chapter 1. Devas invita on to the Bodhisa;a for becoming enlightened as the Buddha. (p. 1) Chapter 2. T h e Bodhisa;a’s acceptance; being born among a royal family in Kapilava;hu. (p. 3) Chapter 3. The Bodhisa;a takes seven step on his birth in the Lumbini forest. (p. 7) Chapter 4. Asce c Asita’s visit, paying reverence to the Bodhisa;a. (p. 11) Chapter 5. The Brahmins perform a ceremony for the Infant Prince “Siddha;ha”. (p. 15) Chapter 6. T h e Bodhisa;a’s Grst a;ainment under a jambolan tree. (p. 19) Chapter 7. The Prince strings and Gres a heavy arrow at the arms’ contest. (p. 23) C h a p t e r 8 . P r i n c e S i d d h a ;h a a n d P r i n c e s s Bimbayasodhara’s marriage held by the king. (p. 27) Chapter 9. Prince Siddha;ha saw four divines. (p. 31) Chapter 10. While having a bath, the Prince was informed his son’s birth. (p. 35) Chapter 11. The Prince oJers a necklace to Kisa Gotami. (p. 39) i

Table of Contents

Chapter 12. The Prince feel despondent and decides to leave. (p. 43) Chapter 13. The Prince goes to see the sleeping Princess Bimba in case of leaving. (p. 47) Chapter 14. Channa prepares the steed “Kanthaka” for the Prince to lead on his going forth. (p. 51) Chapter 15. Mara lies the Prince he’ll inherit an empire. (p. 55) Chapter 16. The Bodhisa;a cuts oJ his hair for ordina on at Anoma River. (p. 59) Chapter 17. T h e Bodhisa;a walks through Rajagaha; everyone talks about him. (p. 63) Chapter 18. King Bimbisara visits the Buddha asking him to return aer his enlightenment. (p. 67) Chapter 19. The Bodhisa;a studies with the recluse Alara; Gnding unenlightened, further his journey. (p. 71) Chapter 20. The Bodhisa;a arrives at Uruvela Senanigama to undertake his prac ce. (p. 75) Chapter 21. The Bodhisa;a undertakes self torture with Gve disciples. (p. 79) Chapter 22. Sujata oJers milk rice to the Bodhisa;a. (p. 83) Chapter 23. A naga king realizes the Buddha enlighten because of his tray. (p. 87) ii

Table of Contents

Chapter 24. The Bodhisa;a receives sheaves of glass from the Brahmin So;hiya. (p. 91) Chapter 25. The Bodhisa;a sits under the “bodhi seat”; Mara and his armies drive him. (p. 95) Chapter 26. Mother Earth squeezes her hair, making a great ocean sweep away Mara’s armies. (p. 99) Chapter 27. The Buddha is enlightened at dawn; the devas dance in his honor. (p. 103) Chapter 28. Mara’s daughters try luring the Buddha in vain. (p. 107) Chapter 29. A naga king coils around the Buddha. (p. 111) Chapter 30. The Four Great Kings oJer the Buddha a bowl. (p. 115) Chapter 31. Two merchants oJer the Buddha dried rice cakes. (p. 119) Chapter 32. The Buddha is disinclined to teach, but Sahampa Brahma requests him. (p. 123) Chapter 33. ReMec ng on diJerent natural beings, the Buddha accepts the invita on. (p. 127) Chapter 34. The Buddha meets Upaka the asce c on the way to teach the Gve disciples. (p. 131) Chapter 35. The Gve disciples decline to see the Buddha, but Gnally change their minds. (p. 135) iii

Table of Contents

Chapter 36. The Buddha gives Gve disciples the Grst sermon; the Turning of the Wheel of Dhamma. (p. 139) Chapter 37. Yasa meets the Buddha and receives a teaching at the Deer Park. (p. 143) Chapter 38. The Buddha ignores Uruvela Kassapa warnings of a Gerce naga. (p. 147) Chapter 39. The Buddha subdues the naga king and presents to the asce c. (p. 151) Chapter 40. The Buddha’s dwelling miraculously escapes a heavy Mood. (p. 155) Chapter 41. Uruvela Kassapa announces himself the Buddha’s disciple. (p. 159) Chapter 42. King Bimbisara oJers the Buddha the Bamboo Grove as the Grst Buddhist Monastery. (p. 163) Chapter 43. The king performs merit to his ancestors reborn as petas. (p. 167) Chapter 44. Venerables Moggallana and Saripu;a request for ordina on. (p.171) Chapter 45. The Buddha gives the Ovadapamokkha discourse to Arahats’ assembly on Magha Puja Day (p. 175) Chapter 46. The Buddha teaches his rela ves in Kapilava;hu. (p. 179) iv

Table of Contents

Chapter 47. The Buddha shows his rela ves the supernormal powers. (p. 183) Chapter 48. The Buddha goes for alms; Bimbayasodhara told Rahula to see his father. (p. 187) Chapter 49. King Suddhodana invites the Buddha to take the meal. (p. 191) Chapter 50. Princess Bimba pines over the Buddha; he goes to see her in her palace. (p. 195) Chapter 51. Nanda accompanies the Buddha back to the monastery. (p. 199) Chapter 52. Rahula expresses love and devo on to the Buddha. (p. 203) Chapter 53. The Buddha bequeaths the treasure of Nibbana to Rahula. (p. 207) Chapter 54. The Buddha guarantees Nanda on prac sing the Dhamma before a;aining his wish. (p. 211) Chapter 55. Devada;a impresses Prince Ajatasa;u with some psychic powers. (p. 215) Chapter 56. Devada;a’s archers don’t kill the Buddha, but listen to his teaching. (p. 219) Chapter 57. Devada;a repents his wrongdoing and asks for forgiveness. (p. 223) Chapter 58. The Buddha’s foster mother oJers cloth, the Buddha gives to Venerable Ajita. (p. 227) v

Table of Contents

Chapter 59. The Buddha forbids his paternal and maternal rela ves from warring over the water supply. (p. 231) Chapter 60. King Suddhodana is ill; the Buddha stays with him un l a;ains Arahatship and passes away. (p. 235) Chapter 61. Queen Pajapa ladies to ordain as nuns.

Gotami leads the Sakyan (p. 239)

Chapter 62. The Buddha performs miracles to trounce other asce cs’ sects. (p. 243) Chapter 63. The Buddha spends the rains retreat in the Tava msa heaven. (p. 247) Chapter 64. On Pavarana day, the Buddha descends from Tava msa heaven. (p. 251) Chapter 65. The Buddha opens the worlds, hell beings and humans to see each other. (p. 255) Chapter 66. The Buddha spends a rains retreat at the palilaya forest. (p. 259) Chapter 67. Mara invites the Buddha to pass away on his 45th rains retreat. (p. 263) Chapter 68. The Buddha announces to Ananda that he’s renounced his life in three months. (p. 267) Chapter 69. The Buddha turns to view Vesali for the last me aer returning from alms. (p. 271) Chapter 70. The sixth lunar month, the Buddha takes his last meal at Cunda’s house. (p. 275) vi

Table of Contents

Chapter 71. Traveling to Kusinara, the Buddha is thirsty and has Ananda fetch water for him. (p. 279) Chapter 72. Pukkusapu;a the Mallian passes by and oJers Gne golden robes. (p. 283) Chapter 73. Ananda prepare a place for the Buddha to lie down. (p. 287) Chapter 74. Venerable Ananda stands holding the door bolt and cries over the Blessed One. (p. 291) Chapter 75. The Buddha gives the wanderer Subhadda a teaching. (p. 295) Chapter 76. The Buddha exalts the Teaching and Discipline before passing away. (p. 299) Chapter 77. The unenlightened monk disciples cry on the Buddha’s passing away. (p. 303) Chapter 78. Maha Kassapa pays his last respects before ligh ng up the funeral pyre. (p. 307) Chapter 79. Dona the brahmin divides the relics to the brahmins and lords of eight ci es. (p. 311) Chapter 80. Venerable Maha Kassapa and noble monks convene a great council.

(p. 315)

vii

An Illustrated Life of the Buddha

Picture 1. Devas invita on to the Bodhisa;a for becoming enlightened as the Buddha. 1


Chapter 1 Devas from all the celes"al realms convene to invite the Bodhisa%a to take rebirth in order to become enlightened as the Buddha When the Bodhisa;a Vessantara passed away he was reborn, just a li;le before the birth of the Buddha, in the Dusita deva realm. Devas of the many diJerent realms convened to discuss who would become the enlightened Buddha. They all agreed that the Bodhisa;a residing in the Dusita heaven would be so enlightened, and accordingly invited him to leave (cu) the deva world and take birth [in the human realm] in keeping with his vow, in accordance with which all the perfec ons he had developed throughout countless life mes were for no other purpose than the a;ainment of Buddhahood. [toc]

2


Picture 2. The Bodhisa;a’s acceptance; being born among a royal family in Kapilava;hu. 3


Chapter 2 Accep"ng the invita"on, the Bodhisa%a descends to take concep"on among a royal family in Kapilava%hu This picture depicts the Bodhisa;a, later Prince Siddha;ha and the Buddha, coming down from the Dusita heaven in order to enter the womb of his mother. The day he came down and took concep on was the Geenth day of the waxing moon of the eighth lunar month, at which me King Suddhodana, his father, and Queen Mahamaya, his mother, were newly married. On that same night, as Queen Mahamaya lay sleeping on her bed, she dreamt that she was in a forest in the Himalaya Mountains, and a white elephant descended from the mountains and approached her. In the Pathamasambodhi this event is described thus: "There was a white elephant ... who lied its trunk, in which was held a freshly blooming white lotus of waing fragrance, roared loudly and entered into the golden palace. It reverently circumambulated the sleeping Queen 4


three

mes and then seemed to enter into the Queen's

belly on the right side... " Later the palace seers predicted that it was an auspicious omen, foretelling the birth of a son. And when the Queen became pregnant, the Pathamasambodhi describes the Bodhisa;a in his mother's womb as follows: "... like a yellow thread wound around a clear jewel. When she wanted to, she could see her son siTng in medita on posture, with his face toward the surface of her belly, like a golden statue lying in a bud of lotus petals. But the Bodhisa;a did not see his mother...." The day the Bodhisa;a descended to his mother's womb, the poet who composed the story in his honor stated that the same kind of miracles arose as on the occasion of the Buddha's birth, enlightenment, and Grst teaching, diJering only in minor details. For example, a celes al drum resounded throughout the heavens, blind people regained their sight, and deaf people regained their hearing. If we were to bring the story from the tradi on of literature into the historical tradi on, we may interpret the "magical drum" of this story as being a sign of the 5


Buddha's glory, which would cover the en re world. The blind and deaf people are symbols of people with deGlements who, on hearing the Buddha's teaching, would lose their "blindness" and "deafness," obtaining wisdom of the way out of suJering. [toc]

6


Picture 3. The Bodhisa;a takes seven step on his birth in the Lumbini forest. 7


Chapter 3 T h e Bodhisa%a takes seven steps on his birth in the Lumbini forest This picture illustrates the Bodhisa;a's birth. Those who have read the Pathamasambodhi and seen the wall pain ngs in the uposatha halls will recognize the picture clearly. The baby we see in the picture is Prince Siddha;ha, the future Buddha. As soon as he emerged from his mother's womb he took seven steps, holding up his right hand and making a declara on as he did so. Lotuses sprang up beneath his feet to receive his steps. The words he u;ered on that occasion are recorded by the poet in the Pali language. Here I translate them into Thai: "I will be the greatest person in this world, with no equal. This will be my last birth, I will not be born again in future." The ladies siTng and kneeling around the infant are the a;endants of Queen Maya. She is the lady standing 8


behind the Prince with her back to the tree. Her right hand is holding one of the tree's branches. The big tree is a sal tree, which we used to translate into Thai as "rang" or "teng rang," a tree commonly found in Thai forests, but which we have now come to know is not the "rang" tree and in fact is not to be found in Thai forests. It is a tree which is found in India and used by Indians to build houses, common in the Himalaya foothills. The place where the Bodhisa;a was born is known as Lumbini, outside the town of Kapilava;hu. It is now in the country of Nepal. Here I will insert a small aside. The Buddha's rela ves came from two ci es, Kapilava;hu and Devadaha. Kapilava;hu was the city of the Buddha, while Devadaha was the city of his mother. The Buddha's father lived in Kapilava;hu, while his mother originally lived in Devadaha. The kings and rela ves of these two ci es were related as a result of the royal marriage. As the

me for Queen Mahamaya's delivery drew near,

she took leave of her husband, King Suddhodana, to give birth to their child in the city of her own family. She had 9


gone only part of the way when the labor pains began, and she gave birth then and there. The date of the Prince's birth was the full moon day of the sixth lunar month. [toc]

10


Picture 4. Asce c Asita’s visit, paying reverence to the Bodhisa;a. 11


Chapter 4 Asita the asce"c pays a visit; seeing the baby's auspicious features, he pays reverence This picture depicts the infant not long aer his birth, when his father had heard the news that Queen Maya had given birth to a son at the Lumbini garden and asked her to come back. The man with the turbaned hair and hands raised to his chest is Asita the asce c, also known as Kaladevin. This asce c was as a recluse living in the Himalaya mountains. He was revered by King Suddhodana and the royal family and was a familiar face to them. When he heard that King Suddhodana, the king of Kapilava;hu, had a new son, he le his ashram in the Himalayas and went to visit the palace to give his blessings. King Suddhodana was overjoyed when he heard that the asce c had come to visit, and immediately invited him to take a seat while he fetched his son to pay reverence to the asce c. 12


As soon as the asce c saw Prince Siddha;ha, he did three things that are unusual for a homeless one (samana): he smiled, or, according to the poe c descrip on given in the Pathamasambodhi, laughed, then he cried, and then he owed at the feet of Prince Siddha;ha. He smiled because he saw that the features of Prince Siddha;ha conformed with the legend of the "features of a Great Being" (mahapurisalakkhana). He knew that with such features, if Prince Siddha;ha stayed on in worldly life he would be a Universal Emperor of great power, but if he le the worldly life he would become the greatest religious founder in the world. He cried because he believed that Prince Siddha;ha would certainly leave the worldly life and, thinking of this, and reMec ng on his own advanced age, was saddened at his lack of fortune in not having the chance to listen to the Buddha's teaching. He bowed to the newly born Prince for the same reason. When the heads of the royal families heard the news that the asce c had bowed to the infant Prince, they all felt even more reverence for the infant, and so oJered their

13


sons as a;endants to Prince Siddha;ha, one from each family. [toc]

14


Picture 5. The Brahmins perform a ceremony for the Infant Prince “Siddha;ha”. 15


Chapter 5 The Brahmins perform a ceremony for the infant Prince, naming him Siddha%ha When the infant Prince had been born Gve days, King Suddhodana called a great mee ng. At the mee ng were the royal rela ves, both on the father's and mother's sides, the royal advisers, ministers, and Brahmins who were versed in the Vedas. The mee ng was held to perform two auspicious ceremonies for the infant Prince: a naming ceremony and a predic on ceremony. There were altogether 108 Brahmins to conduct the ceremony, but only eight of them were to ac vely perform the ceremony. The others were present as observers. The eight Brahmins were named as follows: 1. Rama 2. Lakkhana 3. Yanna 4. Dhuja 5. Bhoja

16


6. Suda;a 7. Suyama 8. Kondanna The mee ng passed a resolu on that the child was to be named "Siddha;ha", an auspicious name having two meanings. One meaning is "He who a;ains everything he wishes." Another interpreta on is, as the Grst-born son, "fulGlling the wishes" of his father. In simple terms, King Suddhodana had obtained his Grst son in fulGllment of his wishes. In India during that me people were not usually referred to by their give names but by their clan names (go;a), which correspond with the surnames of our mes. Thus the Prince was usually referred to as Prince Gotama, or simply Gotama. Also at the ceremony, the eight Brahmins made predic ons based on the features of the infant Prince. Their predic ons fell into two groups. Seven of the Brahmins, from the Grst to the seventh named above, were in agreement in their provisional predic ons that if the Prince stayed to oversee his royal estate he would become a Universal Emperor of great power, but if he le 17


the worldly life and became a homeless religious mendicant he would become enlightened as a Perfectly Self-enlightened Buddha (sammasambuddha) , t h e foremost teacher of the world. Only one of the Brahmins, the younger one, gave the deGnite predic on that the Prince would leave the home life and become a Buddha. This Brahmin later became the leader of the "Gve asce cs" (pancavaggiya) who became religious mendicants in the Buddha's footsteps, and this Brahmin became the Buddha's Grst enlightened disciple, familiar to students as "Anna Kondanna." The remaining seven Brahmins did not become mendicants because they were all of advanced age and did not live to see the Buddha leave the palace. [toc]

18


Picture 6. The Bodhisa;a’s Grst a;ainment under a jambolan tree. 19


Chapter 6 Si0ng under a jambolan tree at the royal plowing ceremony, the Bodhisa%a a%ains 3rst jhana This picture depicts Prince Siddha;ha at seven years of age. The King had ordered the digging of three pokkarani ponds within the palace grounds for the pleasure of his son. A pokkarani pond is a pond planted with decora ve lotuses. The king also had arranged sandal for spreading on the head cloth, shirt, and trousers, all of which were of the Gnest cloth from Kasi. This picture depicts the occasion on which the Prince sat in medita on under a tree referred to in the Pathamasambodhi as Jambupikkha, which we know as the jambolan tree. The Prince came to be siTng at this par cular tree because his father had, in accordance with royal tradi on, declared that a royal plowing ceremony was to be held in a Geld outside of Kapilava;hu. The King, who was to perform the ceremony himself, had his son the Prince accompany him.

20


Again, we see in this picture that the Prince is siTng alone. His a;endants and pages are nowhere to be seen, because they had all gone oJ to watch the ceremony. The Prince, siTng by himself under the jambolan tree, which the poet says "was endowed with lush branches and leaves like a mountain indanil, with broad spread, a shady place..." The prince's pure heart, endowed with the poten al for the future a;ainment of Buddhahood, was moved to calm and naturally went into the level of concentra on (samadhi) known as Grst absorp on (jhana). In the aernoon, when the plowing ceremony was over and the royal a;endants rushed to Gnd the Prince, they found that the shadow of the tree under which he sat had remained where it was at midday, not following the movements of the sun. Amazed, they reported the ma;er to King Suddhodana, and when the royal father came to see for himself, he too was amazed, and exclaimed, "When he was born, and I brought him to pay reverence to the asce c Kaladevin, he performed the miracle of standing on the asce c's headdress. I bowed to him for the Grst

21


me on that occasion. Now I bow to him for the second me." King Suddhodana made reverence to the Buddha on three important occasions. The Grst was just aer his birth when the asce c came to visit and, seeing the asce c make reverence to his son, he followed suit. The second was when he saw the miracle under the jambolan tree. The third was aer the Prince had le home, become enlightened as the Buddha, and returned for the Grst me to teach his father. [toc]

22


Picture 7. The Prince strings and Gres a heavy arrow at the arms’ contest. 23


Chapter 7 The Prince strings and 3res a heavy arrow at the contest of arms, the sound resounding around the city When Prince Siddha;ha had become a young man, his father sent him to study the arts [of warfare] at the wellknown center of learning, "Visvami;a." The Prince readily learned how to use and a bow and arrow and the art of administra on, so that he quickly learned all that the teacher had to teach him. In this picture, Prince Siddha;ha is 16 years old and has Gnished his studies. His father had ordered the building of three palaces, one for each of the three seasons, for his son to live in at his pleasure. The Grst palace was ideal for the cold season, the second was ideal for the hot season, (what methods were used to control the temperature in these palaces is unknown), while the third was ideal for the rainy season. The King then had the rela ves on both sides of the royal family send their eligible daughters for selec on of the 24


prince's future wife. This was because the King wanted to have his son look aer the royal estate rather than leave home and become a religious teacher. But the rela ves felt that the Prince should be allowed to demonstrate his prowess at his newly learned arts for the beneGt of his kinsmen, so the King invited all the kin of the royal family to a gathering in front of a newly built pavilion in the center of the city to watch the prince's demonstra on of his archery skills. The prince's bow was called "Sahasthama", meaning "the bow that is so heavy it takes a thousand men to li." But the Prince could li it, according to the Pathamasambodhi, "as a woman might li a bobbin." When the rela ves gathered there saw this they were full of praise. Then when the Prince drew the bow, the sound of the stretched bow resounded throughout Kapilava;hu, so that people who had not come to the display and did not know that the Prince was Gring an arrow, asked each other what the sound was. The target that the Prince was aiming for was the fur of a yak's tail placed some distance away. The Prince Gred the 25


arrow right into he center of the target, as it is said, "with an eye that was clear and aided by the Gve senses puriGed of stains." All the rela ves gladly oJered their daughters, from among whom the Prince would choose his wife. Among them was Bimbayasodhara. [toc]

26


P i c t u r e 8 . P r i n c e S i d d h a ;h a a n d P r i n c e s s Bimbayasodhara’s marriage held by the king. 27


Chapter 8 The king holds the wedding of Prince Siddha%ha and Princess Bimbayasodhara As already stated, the Buddha's rela ves were of two sides, the mother's and the father's side, and each of those sides was from a diJerent city. The Rohini River Mowed between their two lands. The mother's side of the family was known as the Koliya clan [vamsa] and ruled the city of Devadaha, while the father's side was known as the Sakya clan and ruled the city of Kapilava;hu. The two ci es were closely linked and were like brothers and sisters of the same family. They had intermarried oen. In the Buddha's

me, the ruler of Devadaha was

King Suppabuddha, while the ruler of Kapilava;hu was King Suddhodana. The wife of King Suppabuddha was Queen Amita, and she was the younger sister of King Suddhodana. On the other hand, the wife of King Suddhodana, the Buddha's mother, was Queen Mahamaya, and she was the younger sister of 28


King Suppabuddha. The two kings had each married each other's younger sisters. King Suppabuddha had one son and one daughter to Queen Amita. The son was Prince Devada;a, the daughter was Princess Bimbayasodhara. T h e Pathamasambodhi s t a t e s t h a t P r i n c e s s Bimbayasodhara was one of seven people who are known as "sahajata" of the Buddha. Sahajata means "that which is born on the same day." The seven sahajata are: 1. Princess Bimbayasodhara. 2. Venerable Ananda. 3. The Advisor Kaludayi. 4. Channa, the royal page. 5. The horse, Kanthaka. 6. The bodhi tree. 7. The four golden treasures (the shell treasure, the cardamom treasure, the blue lotus treasure, and the white lotus treasure). The rela ves of both sides were agreed that Princess Bimbayasodhara was replete with the all the necessary

29


quali es and was the right choice as wife for Prince Siddha;ha. The royal marriage ceremony thus took place when bride and groom were both sixteen years old. [toc]

30


Picture 9. Prince Siddha;ha saw four divines.

31


Chapter 9 The trip to the pleasure grove and the four "divine" messengers: the old man, the sick man, the dead man and the religious mendicant King Suddhodana, the prince's father, and all of the royal rela ves, wished to see Prince Siddha;ha stay on and rule the royal estate, not leave the home life and become a religious mendicant as some of the Brahmins had predicted, so they sought ways to

e the Prince to all

kinds of sensual pleasures. But Prince Siddha;ha was of a philosophical nature, beGTng a man who was born to become a great religious teacher, and found pleasure in these distrac ons for only a short me. When he reached the age of 29 he began to feel wearied of them. An important reason for the arising of this feeling in the Prince was his sigh ng of what are known as the four "divine messengers" while touring the royal gardens outside the city on his royal chariot. Of the four divine

32


messengers - an old man, a sick man, a dead man, and a religious mendicant- the Prince saw the old man Grst. T h e Pathamasambodhi describes the old man thus: "His hair was gray, his sides crooked, his body bent forward. In his hand he held a s ck and while walking along the way he shook and swayed pi fully..." The Prince was saddened at the site, just as he was when he saw the sick man and the dead man on his second and third trips to the royal garden. He reMected that he would one day have to be like them. Then he thought how in this world there are always pairs of opposites, such as darkness and light, and heat and cold, and so since there was suJering, there must be a way out of suJering. On his fourth visit to the royal garden, the Prince saw a religious mendicant, "wearing the ochre robe and with restrained bearing..." At the sight of the religious mendicant, the Prince became inspired to leave home. He thought or exclaimed to himself, "Sadhu pabbaja!" which means in simple terms, "To become a monk, that would be good!" And he made up his mind on that very day to leave the home life. 33


[toc]

34


Picture 10. While having a bath, the Prince was informed his son’s birth. 35


Chapter 10 While the Prince is bathing in the royal pond, a royal a%endant informs him that Princess Bimba has had a son Aer Prince Siddha;ha had seen the fourth divine messenger, the religious mendicant, and had made up his mind to go forth from the home life and become a religious mendicant himself, he proceeded in his royal chariot, which the Pathamasambodhi states was "teemed with four noble steeds the color of red lotuses," to the royal pleasure garden. Arriving there, the Prince, surrounded by groups of Sakyan damsels, went down to bathe in the lotus pond which was Glled with the Gve kinds of lotuses. He stayed at the royal pleasure grove almost the whole day, then, when it was almost evening, an oWcial came from the palace and King Suddhodana with news for Prince Siddha;ha, informing the Prince that Princess Bimbayasodhara had given birth to a son.

36


Buddhaghosa, the author of the commentaries to the Dhammapada, says of this episode that when Prince Siddha;ha heard the news that his consort had given birth to a son, a new kind of feeling arose within him that he had never felt before, and that was the love of a child. That love that had arisen within him weighed on his heart and bound it more than anything else in the world. He exclaimed, "Bandhanam jatam rahulam jatam." This translates as "A bond has arisen." The word translated here as "bond" in Prince Siddha;ha's exclama on is rahulam or rahula, and this word later became the name given to Prince Siddha;ha's son. Prince Siddha;ha's exclama on, "A bond has arisen," refers to the decision he was in the process of making to leave the home life and become a religious mendicant. Just when he had cut oJ other a;achments to the lay life, a new a;achment had arisen. [toc]

37


38


Picture 11. The Prince oJers a necklace to Kisa Gotami.

39


Chapter 11 The Prince o7ers a necklace to Kisa Gotami This picture follows on from the previous one, aer the Prince had toured the royal pleasure gardens, but here he is shown coming back to the palace together with his entourage. The lady we see standing at the palace window is, according to the Pathamasambodhi, "a Sakyan damsel of the town of Kapilava;hu by the name of Kisa Gotami. It does not say in what way she was related to Prince Siddha;ha. However in the Commentary to the Dhammapada, Buddhaghosa, its Indian author, states that she was the daughter of one of the Buddha's aunts, who were Pamita and Amita, both of whom were younger sisters of King Suddhodana. However, he does not state which lady was Kisa Gotami's mother. Kisa Gotami saw Prince Siddha;ha coming back, radiant and resplendent, from his bathing in the lotus pond and, Glled with delight at the sight, u;ered a spontaneous 40


verse in praise of Prince Siddha;ha. In the original Pali the verse was as follows: Nibbuta nuna sa mata nibbuto nuna so pita nibbuta nuna sa nari yassayam idiso pa It means: "Quenched and full of joy are they who are the royal mother and royal father of Prince Siddha;ha; quenched and full of joy is she who is his wife." Prince Siddha;ha was pleased at her verse, and the word he liked most was the word "quenched," which he interpreted to mean "nibbuta" or Nibbana. He took oJ his pearled necklace, valued at a hundred thousand "kahapana," and handed it to one of his a;endants to give to Kisa Gotami. She interpreted this as meaning that the Prince was a;racted to her, a thought that Glled her with joy. [toc]

41


42


Picture 12. The Prince feel despondent and decides to leave. 43


Chapter 12 The Prince awakens late at night and sees the ladies of the harem lying in disarray; he becomes despondent and decides to leave the home life From the moment Prince Siddha;ha had seen the four divine messengers and deGnitely resolved to leave the home life, his resolu on was unwavering, in spite of the bond on his heart that had just arisen, in the form of his new-born beloved son. That night, aer coming back from his trip to the royal pleasure grove, the Pathamasambodhi states that "... the Prince the Bodhisa;a was par cularly moved to the homeless life. This, together with his excellent wisdom devoid of a;rac on to sensual pleasures, caused him to take no delight in the dancing of the dancers that were so a;rac ve, and in spite of them he dried oJ to sleep for a moment ..." The prince's palace was lit up within by lanterns which, "fed by aroma c oils, illuminated the palace jewels and 44


gold." The maidens doing the singing and dancing, seeing the Prince fall asleep, themselves lay down their instruments and also went to sleep then and there. Not long aer, the Prince awoke from his slumber and saw the ungainly postures of the sleeping maidens. The Pathamasambodhi says, "He saw the group of maidens sprawling, saliva drooling, some of them snoring loudly with sounds like crows, some of them gnashing their teeth, some of them murmuring in their sleep, some of them with mouths open weirdly, some of them with clothes shed, revealing their narrow places..." The Prince alighted from his bed, got up and looked around the palace. Although it was brightly lit by the lanterns and beau fully decorated, it seemed to him to be dark, like a charnel ground. The living beings who were s ll breathing and sleeping in unguarded postures, the singers and dancers, seemed to the Prince to be like so many corpses in a charnel ground. He u;ered, "I will leave the palace and take to the homeless life this very night," and, going to the palace door, cried out to the pages guarding the door, "Who is there?" 45


[toc]

46


Picture 13. The Prince goes to see the sleeping Princess Bimba in case of leaving. 47


Chapter 13 The Prince goes to see the sleeping princess Bimba as a way of taking leave As soon as Prince Siddha;ha had cried out, a voice came in answer. The owner of the voice was Channa, a close servant of Prince Siddha;ha and also one of the sahajata, born on the same day as the Prince. If we were to compare the Buddha's life story to a play, Channa would be one of the main characters. His importance is in the role he played in the Buddha's leaving of the home life. He is also well known in the me aer the Bodhisa;a le the home life and became the Buddha, when he became a monk. Channa was a very stubborn monk who would listen only to the Buddha, because he held that he was the Buddha's former servant. He referred to the Buddha, even aer he had ordained as a monk, as "Young Prince." At this point in the story, Channa was sleeping outside the prince's room, his head res ng on the doorstep. When 48


Prince Siddha;ha ordered him to go and prepare his horse, Channa immediately complied by going to the stables. As for the Prince, who had Grmly made up his mind to leave home, he went to the sleeping quarters of Princess Bimba, his wife. Arriving there, he parted the curtain to her bed. The scene of his wife sleeping soundly, her arm res ng around the head of Rahula, his newly born son, Glled the Prince with love and longing for his wife and the son he was only now seeing for the very Grst me. At Grst he thought to himself, "I will li up her arm and hold my son," but then he was afraid that by so doing he would wake her, thereby obstruc ng his plans to leave the palace. So he suppressed his desire, thinking, "No, only aer I have become a Buddha will I come back and gaze on my son's face." Then he le the room and went down from the palace to Channa, who had prepared the horse already. [toc]

49


50


Picture 14. Channa prepares the steed “Kanthaka” for the Prince to lead on his going forth. 51


Chapter 14 The Prince awakens Channa to prepare Kanthaka, the steed that would lead him on his going forth The horse that Prince Siddha;ha was to ride on his great going forth was named Kanthaka. It was another of the sahajata, born on the same day as the Prince. The Pathamasambodhi says of the size of this horse that it was "about eighteen elbow lengths [sork] from neck to tail," but it does not say how tall the horse was, sta ng only that "its height was in propor on to its length." It also describes it as being "of purest white, like a freshly polished conch shell, its head black, the color of a crow. The hair on its face was white like the pith of Johnson grass. It was possessed of great strength and stood on a jeweled pedestal." According to this descrip on, the poet makes the horse bigger than ordinary horses and very special. In ordinary terms we might say that Kanthaka was a very tall, white horse, like the steed of a great Emperor or movie star.

52


Approaching the horse, Prince Siddha;ha lied his right hand and stroked Kanthaka's back. It is said that this pleased Kanthaka so much that the horse neighed loudly, the sound traveling all over Kapilava;hu for a distance of one yojana (about 16 kilometers). If this was so, then why did not the people of the city wake up? The author of the story states "the devas suppressed the sound and made it disappear"-he used the devas as a muYer for the horse's cries. If we were to translate this from poe c to more realis c terms, we might say that Prince Siddha;ha was very skilled with horses and was able to calm the horse so that it did not cry out. The Prince then mounted the horse and headed toward the city gate, known as Phrayabaladvara, with Channa as page walking behind him. The day of his going forth, according to the Pathamasambodhi, was the full moon of the eighth month. The author states, "The moon waxed bright in a sky that was clear of clouds. The whole of the heavens were bathed in the white light of the full moon."

53


[toc]

54


Picture 15. Mara lies the Prince he’ll inherit an empire.

55


Chapter 15 Mara tries to prevent the going forth, telling the Prince that in seven days he will inherit an empire; the Prince does not listen When Prince Siddha;ha had ridden the horse through the city gate into the moonlit night, a voice like music arose from close to the city gate. That voice forbade the Prince from going forth. The Prince asked, "Who are you?" The sound answered, "My name is Vassavadi Mara." Mara [the Buddhist personiGca on of evil or obstruc on to goodness] informed the Prince that in seven days from that day, the Wheel treasure would arise, and the owner of that Wheel Treasure would be the Prince. The "Wheel Treasure" referred to by Mara was a term meaning that he would become Emperor. The Prince: "I know this already." Mara: "In that case, for what purpose do you go forth?"

56


The Prince: "For complete knowledge (sabbanutanana)." T h e sabbanutanana referred to by the Prince was a;ainment of Buddhahood. All the above is given according to the descrip on of the Pathamasambodhi and Buddhaghosa's Commentary to the Dhammapada. The story is rendered in the form of an allegory (puggaladhihana). An "allegory" is the rendering of something not visible to the eye or cognizable by the senses, an "abstract" [namadhamma], into a scene or an ac on by a person, just as a writer of stories expresses feelings through the characters in his story. If no such example were give people would not understand and the story would fall Mat. The allegory given above, if rendered into realis c terms [dhammadhihana], would be: "Having passed through the city gates, the Prince, who was s ll an unenlightened being, although Grmly bent on his resolve to become a Buddha, was also, in another part of his mind, s ll worried about the city." The poet gave his worry the concrete form of Mara trying to prevent the Prince's departure, but the Prince defeated 57


him. That is to say, he defeated Mara, or defeated the worries which were his inner enemies. [toc]

58


Picture 16. The Bodhisa;a cuts oJ his hair for ordina on at Anoma River. 59


Chapter 16 The Bodhisa%a cuts o7 his hair and goes forth on the banks of the Anoma River; Gha"kara the Brahma o7ers the recluse's requisites Prince Siddha;ha, followed by Channa, rode his royal steed all through the night, gree ng the dawn at the river, which bordered the three ci es of Kapilava;hu, Sava;hi, and Vesali. He asked Channa what the river was called, and Channa answered, "Young Prince, this river is called the River Anoma, sire." The Prince led the horse and his page across the river, then dismounted and sat on the sand of the river bank, which was the color of silver. In his right hand he held his sword, in his le he held his top knot, which he cut with the sword, leaving only a circle of hair turning to the right, two inches long. Having done that, he took oJ his royal garments and put on the yellow robe which Gha kara Brahma had oJered him together with other requisites of one gone forth. Then 60


he made a resolu on, commiTng himself to the life of a homeless one on the banks of the Anoma River. He gave his garments and horse to Channa to take back to the palace and inform the King of the news. Channa loved his master. He cried and lay at his feet, not wan ng to leave him, but he could not disobey his master's wishes. The Prince, or as he is referred to in the biography from that moment on, the "Great Being," stroked the back of the horse which was going now to leave his master and go back to the city. Tears ran down the horse's face, and it licked its master's feet. The horse and Channa, tears streaming down their faces, crossed the river and made their way back to the city, but once they had escaped the Great Being's sight, Kanthaka's heart broke into seven pieces- it had a heart a;ack- and it died. Channa took oJ the horse's rigging, placed some wild Mowers on the body of the dead steed, and then proceeded to walk, carrying both his master's clothing and the horse's saddle, alone back to the city. [toc]

61


62


Picture 17. The Bodhisa;a walks through Rajagaha; everyone talks about him. 63


Chapter 17 The Bodhisa%a walks through Rajagaha; the people talk wildly about him all over the city While Channa the loyal page was going back to inform Kapilava;hu of the news, the Great Being, who had once been Prince Siddha;ha, journeyed from the sandy bank of the Anoma to a district in which there were many mango forests, known as Anupiya Ambhavana. This district was in the district of Malla. He stayed there for one week and on the eighth day journeyed into the state of Magadha, eventually making his way to Rajagaha, which at the me was the capital of this kingdom. Magadha was a big and prosperous state, with many people and power equal to another great state of that me, Kosala, the capital of which was Sava;hi. The King of Rajagaha in Magadha at that

me was King

Bimbisara. Being the same age as the Great Being, he was at that me s ll a young king.

64


In the morning the Great Being entered the city. The people of the city were moved to a state referred to be the Pathamasambodhi as "great excitement" which spread over the city at the sight of the noble-featured recluse. No one could tell whether a deva, a naga [serpent-deity], a garuda [bird-deity], or some other kind of divine being had entered the city for alms. The talk buzzed all over the city. Prince Siddha;ha, the Great Being who would later become the Buddha, had been born into the KhaTya clan, of noble birth on both sides of the family. His complexion was referred to in the Pali texts as kancanavanno", meaning of golden complexion. His features were handsome. Even though he had shaved oJ his hair and beard and was wearing the yellow robe of a homeless one who has given up the beauty of the worldling, his bearing as he walked, more stately than that of a normal person, clearly belied his noble birth. Thus, when the people of Rajagaha saw him they were Glled with excitement, and the news eventually reached the ears of King Bimbisara, the King of Rajagaha.

65


[toc]

66


Picture 18. King Bimbisara visits the Buddha asking him to return aer his enlightenment.

67


Chapter 18 King Bimbisara pays a visit, and asks the Buddha to come back to teach him if he becomes enlightened King Bimbisara heard that the people were all saying that a young, noble recluse, unlike other recluses, had entered the city, and so he ordered some of his a;endants to look into the ma;er. The Pathamasambodhi gives the words of King Bimbisara at this point as: "Go and follow him and see: if he is a deva he will My into the air; if a naga he will go down into the earth; if he is a human being he will sit and eat his alms food in modera on. Go and see just what happens." The Great Being, having received suWcient alms food from the people of Rajagaha, le the city and went up to a cliJ just outside the city, where he sat and mindfully set about ea ng his alms food. The food he had obtained was that known as "masikabaa"-all mixed together, the good and the bad, the dry and the wet, the salty and the sweet.

68


Seeing the food, the Great Being felt, according to the Pathamasambodhi, "as if his gut were to come out of his mouth," since he had only ever eaten Gne foods, like celes al foods, but, controlling his mind with the virtue becoming of a recluse, he ate the food as normal. King Bimbisara and the Great Being were "adihasahaya," friends who had only previously heard of each other by name, but never met. Hearing of the Great Being's whereabouts from his a;endant, King Bimbisara went to see him. When he heard that he was the Prince from the Sakya clan, he invited him to stay on in the city and help him rule it, but the Great Being declined his oJer, i nfor m i ng hi m of hi s Gr m resolve to a chi eve enlightenment. King Bimbisara then asked to, if he did a;ain enlightenment, come and teach him. The Great Being accepted his request. [toc]

69


70


Picture 19. The Bodhisa;a studies with the recluse Alara; Gnding unenlightened, further his journey. 71


Chapter 19 T h e Bodhisa%a goes to study with the recluse Alara; 3nding it not to be the way to enlightenment, he journeys on At this

me, the country of Magadha had many famous

recluses who had established themselves as teachers with ashrams. Each of these ashrams had many followers and adherents. Rajagaha was one place through which these sect-leaders passed to spread their teachings. During the me of Prince Siddha;ha's going forth, there were two teachers more well known than the others in that country: the group belonging to Alara Kalama, and that of Udaka Ramapu;a. Both of these ashrams were established in the forest outside the city. The Great Being went here to study and see whether their paths led to enlightenment. He Grst went to the ashram of Alara Kalama. He stayed there and learned all that the teacher had to teach, and then, Gnding that it s ll did not lead to enlightenment, went to study at the ashram of the second teacher. He obtained a li;le more knowledge 72


there, but only up to the level of the eighth level of concentra on [samapat]. Samapat is "absorp on" [jhana], a method of making the mind concentrated. It ranges from coarser levels up to the most reGned. Altogether there are eight levels. The Great Being saw that the mind even in these states was s ll on the mundane level. An unenlightened being was capable of experiencing them, but they could decline. They were not the level of lokuara, transcendence. The teachers of both of these centers invited the Great Being to stay on and help them teach their followers. Both of them praised him as having a knowledge equal to their own. However, the Great Being declined their invita ons. Having tried out the teachings of both of these teachers, who were regarded by the people to be possessed of the highest knowledge, and found them through his own wisdom to be not the way to enlightenment, the Great Being thought of trying out a mode of prac ce resorted to by many recluses of that

me to see whether it led to

enlightenment. That was the prac ce of asce cism, the

73


strict and rigorous prac ce beyond what an ordinary person could do referred to as "self-torture." [toc]

74


Picture 20. The Bodhisa;a arrives at Uruvela Senanigama to undertake his prac ce. 75


Chapter 20 The Bodhisa%a arrives at Uruvela Senanigama, deciding to undertake his prac"ce at the peaceful forest there The Great Being took leave of the two teachers and journeyed in search of a place to try out the asce c prac ces so favored by the recluses of that

me. He

traveled to a certain district, also in the country of Magadha, by name of Uruvela Senanigama. Uruvela means "sand hill," while senanigama means "district" or "village." The area of this district was Mat and blessed with a green and delighZul forest. The clear waters of the River Neranjara ran through it and there was a place to bathe and villages in the vicinity, not too far and not too near, suitable as a resource for alms food for a recluse intent on prac ce. Uruvela Senanigama might in modern "Sandhill Town."

76

mes be called


The commentarial text, Samantapasadika, volume 3, wri;en aer the Buddha's passing away (parinibbana) by the Indian commentator Buddhaghosa, relates the history of the sandhill at this village as follows: In the past the area had been a forest in which lived many recluses undertaking asce c prac ces. The asce cs, observing that wrongs expressed through body and speech were easily seen, but not the wrongs of the mind, which were le unpunished, made a regula on that any of them who commi;ed a mental wrong, such as a thought of lust, should punish himself by taking his bowl and scooping out some sand and pouring it out onto the bank, one bowl-full for each person, each me. It was a kind of self-inMicted penance. Thus came into being the hill of sand, "uruvela", a monument to the mountain of deGlements of the asce cs of old. In the me of the Buddha the area of this district was s ll known as Uruvela Senanigama, but in later mes it came to be known as Bodhgaya, where at present the Bodhgaya Thai Temple is established.

77


The Great Being chose this district as the place to undertake the asce c prac ces that would comprise his next experiment on the search for the path to enlightenment. [toc]

78


Picture 21. The Bodhisa;a undertakes self torture with Gve disciples. 79


Chapter 21 The Bodhisa%a undertakes self torture with the Group of Five; Indra plays the lute as an analogy This picture depicts the Great Being undertaking his prac ces of self-torture. The men siTng in front of him are the Group of Five, consis ng of Kondanna, Vappa, Bhaddiya, Mahanama and Assaji. They had all followed the Great Being to serve him. The being siTng in the clouds holding the lute is Indra, King of the Gods. The leader of the group was Kondanna. He was one of the eight Brahmins who had given predic ons based on Prince Siddha;ha's a;ributes. At that me he was young, but by this me he was very old. The other four were sons of the other seven Brahmins. Self-torture was one kind of prac ce undertaken by recluses at that

me. It ranged from mild through to

moderate to extreme, death-defying austeri es beyond the ability of ordinary men. "Death defying" means that

80


they required clenching of the teeth, holding of the breath and fas ng. The Great Being experimented with all of these, un l, at some

mes, such as when he had gradually reduced his

food intake un l he stopped ea ng altogether, he almost died. His body was haggard, his hair fell out. All that remained was skin and bones, and when he walked he swayed from side to side with weakness. Aer experimen ng with these prac ces he realized something. The truth he realized was that described by the poet in the allegory of Indra playing a three-stringed lute to the Bodhisa;a. The Grst string was too ght and as a result snapped. The second string was too loose and didn't make any sound. The third string was neither too loose nor too ght, and when plucked it made a pleasant, resonant sound. Indra's plucking of the third string (the Middle Way) also told the Bodhisa;a that there is no way that wet wood lying in water can be used to rub and start a Gre. Even wood that is not lying in water, but is wet, cannot be used to start a Gre. Only dry wood on dry land can be used to 81


start a Gre. The Grst kind of wood is like people with deGlements living the household life; the second is like people who have gone forth from the household life but whose minds are s ll "wet" with deGlements. The third is like people who have gone forth from the household life and whose minds are "dry" of deGlements. Hearing this, the Great Being gave up his prac ce of selftorture, which was a physical kind of eJort, and began to eat more food in order to begin a more mental kind of eJort. When the Group of Five found out they became disillusioned with the Great Being, feeling that he had renounced the prac ce and reverted to a life of indulgence, so they gave up serving him and le him to go elsewhere. [toc]

82


Picture 22. Sujata oJers milk rice to the Bodhisa;a.

83


Chapter 22 The morning of the enlightenment: Sujata o7ers milk rice, believing the Bodhisa%a is a deva From the day the Great Being had gone forth from the household life un l the day depicted in this picture, six years had elapsed. Here he has resumed ea ng normal food and his body has returned to a normal state. This day was the Geenth of the waxing moon of the sixth lunar month, 45 years before the Buddha's passing away [parinibbana]. The lady oJering things to the Great Being in the picture is Sujata. She was the daughter of a householder in a village in Uruvela Senanigama. She is oJering a dish of milk rice [madhupayasa], rice cooked with pure cow's milk. It was a vegetarian food, containing no meat or Gsh, used especially as an oJering to dei es. T h e Pathamasambodhi states that Sujata had made a prayer to the deity of a certain banyan tree for a husband of equal status and for a son by him. When she had obtained what she wished for, she cooked the milk rice as

84


an oJering in thanks. Before the day she was to cook the rice, Sujata had some of her servants lead the herd of 1,000 cows to a forest of licorice grass so that the cows could eat their Gll. Then she divided them into two herds of 500 head each, and milked the 500 cows of one herd and fed that milk to the 500 cows of the other herd. She then con nued to divide that herd and feed half on the milk of the other half un l there were only eight cows le. She then took the milk from those eight cows to make her milk rice. When the rice was cooked, Sujata sent a slave girl to clean up the area around the banyan tree. The slave girl came back to Sujata with a report that the deity [deva] who was to receive the oJerings had materialized, and was already siTng at the foot of the banyan tree. Excited, Sujata lied the tray of milk rice to her head and carried it to the banyan tree, together with her slave girl. Seeing that it was as her slave had told her, she came forward and proJered the tray of milk rice. The Great Being received it and looked at Sujata. She understood from his look that he had no bowl or any other dish with which to eat the

85


food, and so she made an oJering of both the rice and the dish. Having oJered the rice, she walked back to her house, full of happiness, believing that she had made oJerings to a deva. [toc]

86


Picture 23. A naga king realizes the Buddha enlighten because of his tray.

87


Chapter 23 The Bodhisa%a ?oats the tray, and it falls into the river at the very same place as three previous trays; a naga king realizes that a Buddha is to be enlightened When Sujata had returned home, the Great Being rose from his seat with the golden tray of milk rice and went to the bank of the Neranjara River. He bathed, then climbed up and sat on the river bank. He made the milk rice into 49 mouthfuls, which he then ate. The Pathamasambodhi states that "it was a meal that would nourish him for seven days." Having Gnished his meal, he Moated the tray on the river and made a vow that, if he was to a;ain Buddhahood, the tray should Moat upstream. When he released it, the tray did indeed Moat upstream for a distance of 80 sork [forearm-lengths] where, having reached a deep area, it sank down into the realm of Kala, the naga king, falling on top of the trays of three previous Buddhas with a "clunk."

88


The three past Buddhas who had Moated those trays were Kakusandha, Konagamana, and Kassapa. The Great Being would be the fourth who had been enlightened at this place. Kala the naga king had been sleeping since the me of the previous Buddhas. He would wake every

me he heard

the sound of a tray falling. Each me he heard that sound, he would know that another Buddha had arisen in the world. On this occasion it was the same: hearing the sound of the Great Being's tray falling on top of the others, he drowsily mumbled to himself, "Yesterday a Great Victor [the Buddha Kassapa] arose in the world. Now another one is arising!" And with that he arose, made obeisance to the new Buddha, and went back to sleep. The episode of the Great Being Moa ng the tray, the tray Moa ng upstream, and Kala the naga king, in his subterranean realm, is an allegory which can be explained thus: the tray is the Buddha's teaching (sasana); the river is the world or worldly beings: the teachings of the Buddha will lead people against the stream of the world to the stream of Nibbana. That is, to the transcendence of 89


suJering in which there is no birth, no aging, no sickness and no death, unlike the stream of the world which Mows to birth, aging, sickness and death. The naga king sleeping in his subterranean world is a symbol for worldly beings who are s ll thick with deGlements-when a Buddha arises in the world they know it is a Buddha, but s ll they go back to "sleep" due to the power of their deGlements. [toc]

90


Picture 24. The Bodhisa;a receives sheaves of glass from the Brahmin So;hiya. 91


Chapter 24 T h e Bodhisa%a receives sheaves of grass from the Brahmin So%hiya By the me he had Moated the golden tray it was geTng later in the morning and the sun was geTng hot. The Great Being moved from the bank of the Neranjara River into the shade of a sal tree not far from the river. There he stayed for the whole of the day un l the late aernoon, when he went to the Great Bodhi tree. The Great Bodhi tree was a bodhi tree just like the bodhi trees seen in Thailand. They can be found in forests but most are in monasteries. Before the Buddha's enlightenment no one referred to the tree as the Great Bodhi tree. Instead it was referred to in the local dialect by two names: one was the name used by the villagers-"pipal tree," and the other was a more formal name, "assaha" tree. Aer the Buddha's enlightenment it was referred to as a bodhi tree, meaning the tree under which the Buddha was 92


enlightened. It was later given the name "great" (maha) and some mes holy (sri). It was also one of the sahajata of the Buddha, being "born" on the same day as Prince Siddha;ha. While he was walking to the Great Bodhi tree, the Great Being passed by a man of the brahmin caste by name of So;hiya. So;hiya was holding in his hands eight handfuls o f kusa grass, which he oJered to the Great Being. The Great Being received the grass and placed it on the ground, forming a "siTng cushion" under the bodhi tree. There the Great Being sat, in medita on posture: his right foot over his let and his right hand over his le, facing the east with his back to the trunk of the Great Bodhi tree. He made a Grm vow to himself: "Un l I have a;ained Perfect Self Enlightenment, I will not rise from this seat, even if my Mesh and blood should dry up and only skin, sinews and bones remain." [toc]

93


94


Picture 25. The Bodhisa;a sits under the “bodhi seat”; Mara and his armies drive him. 95


Chapter 25 The Bodhisa%a takes his seat upon the "bodhi seat" of grass; at night Mara brings his army to drive him from his quest The event depicted in this picture is called "Mara's challenge." It occurred on the day of the full moon of the sixth lunar month, not many hours before the Buddha's enlightenment. The sun was just seTng behind the trees. The four-legged creature making as if to gore the Great Being is known as Naragirimekhala, the elephant of King Vassadi Mara, the commander of the army. The woman who is squeezing her hair is "Mother Earth," Sundharivanida. Mara had already confronted the Great Being once before, when he was just leaving the city gates on his great going forth, but this me the confronta on was the greatest of all Mara's a;empts to overthrow the Buddha. The army assembled by Mara on this occasion was of such size that the en re earth and sky were darkened by it. It came in from the sky, from across the earth and from beneath the 96


earth, and was so fearsome that the devas that were guarding the Great Being all Med in terror to their palaces. The Pathamasambodhi described the scene of Mara's army thus: "... some of the beings had red faces and green bodies, some had green faces and red bodies; some of them manifested as white bodies with yellow faces ... some of them had striped bodies and black faces ... some of them had serpent lower bodies and human upper bodies..." As for Mara, he appeared with a thousand arms on each side, each arm brandishing a diJerent weapon-swords, spears, bows and arrows, javelins, wheel blades, hooks, maces, rocks, spikes, hatchets, axes, tridents, and more. The reason that Mara confronted the Great Being on many occasions was that he hated to see anyone excelling him. Thus, since the Great Being was making eJorts to be the "best" person in the world, he opposed him. But he always lost. On this occasion, he was defeated in the Grst round, so he tried some trickery, accusing the Great Being of usurping his seat, the "bodhi" seat, which he claimed to be his. Mara named as witnesses members of his own 97


entourage. On his part, the Great Being could Gnd no witnesses to support him, the devas having all Med, so he stretched out his right hand from under his robe and pointed his Gnger to the earth, upon which Mother Earth rose up to be his witness. All of the above is an allegorical account. Its meaning will be given in the next chapter. [toc]

98


Picture 26. Mother Earth squeezes her hair, making a great ocean sweep away Mara’s armies. 99


Chapter 26 Mother Earth squeezes her hair, making a great ocean which sweeps away Mara's armies The place at which the Great Being sat in order to carry out his training of the mind and seek enlightenment, the f o o t o f t h e bodhi tree, is called the "Throne of Enlightenment." Mara tried to claim that it was his own, but the Great Being countered that it had arisen as a result of the accumulated perfec ons of his previous lives, for which he called Mother Earth to witness. T h e Pathamasambodhi states: "The great earth was incapable of remaining inac ve ... It sprang up from the earth in the form of a young maiden..." and served as witness for the Bodhisa;a. Thereupon, [the maiden] squeezed water from her hair. That water is referred to as daksinodaka, which is all the water that the Great Being had used to consecrate the vows made in his previous lives, which Mother Earth had kept in her hair. When she squeezed her hair, all that water Mowed out.

100


T h e Pathamasambodhi states: "It was a great Mow that Mooded all the land, like a great ocean.... The armies of Mara were powerless to stop it and were swept away and en rely carried oJ by the current. As for Girimekhala, Vassavadi Mara's elephant, it was swept oJ its feet and, unable to maintain its balance, was carried oJ to the ocean. ...Thus Mara was eventually defeated." Now I will explain the meaning of this allegory. Mara is the deGlements within people; they are what opposes the mindfulness and understanding that lead to knowledge of good, evil, beneGt and harm. DeGlements take delight in misdeeds, so that when a person is going to do something good the deGlements try to interfere. Before the Great Being was enlightened as the Buddha, he s ll had deGlements, but they were in the process of falling from his mind. His deGlements were the fondness and a;achment for his royal treasures and the country he had le behind, but he was able to defeat them due to the great perfec ons [paramita] he had accumulated. A perfec on is goodness. The Great Being reMected that the lives, hearts and eyes he had sacriGced to others as 101


wholesome deeds of charity, if gathered together, would be greater than the fruits in the forest and greater than the number of stars in the sky. Good deeds do not disappear: even if no one sees them, the sky and the earth, Mother Earth, see them. [toc]

102


Picture 27. The Buddha is enlightened at dawn; the devas dance in his honor. 103


Chapter 27 The Buddha is enlightened at dawn; the devas dance in his honor By the me the Bodhisa;a had conquered Mara, the sun was seTng and night was falling. The Great Being sat mo onless on his bodhi seat underneath the bodhi tree. He began to make his mind concentrated through the method known as jhana, absorp on concentra on, and a;ained nana. Jhana is a method of concentra ng the mind, making it one-pointed, not thinking restlessly of this and that as people ordinarily do. Nana is gnosis, clear realiza on. It may be simply illustrated thus: the s ll light of a candle in a windless room is like jhana, while the illumina on from the candle is gnosis (nana). The Great Being a;ained the Grst realiza on (nana) in the Grst watch of the night (about nine PM). The Grst nana is called "pubbenivasanusanana," meaning clear realiza on of the past lives of both oneself and others. During the 104


middle watch of the night (about midnight) he a;ained the second nana, known as cutupapatanana, meaning, clear realiza on of the passing away and arising of beings in the world, and their diJerences due to kamma. In the last watch of the night (aer midnight), he a;ained the third n a n a , k n o w n a s asavakkhayanana, meaning clear realiza on of the ex nc on of deGlements and the Four Noble Truths: suJering, the cause of suJering, the cessa on of suJering and the way leading to the cessa on of suJering. The Great Being's a;ainment of these three nana is known as his enlightenment as the Buddha, which occurred on the full moon night of the sixth lunar month. From this point on, the names "Siddha;ha" and "Bodhisa;a," and the term "Great Being" newly coined before his enlightenment, all become things of the past, b e c a u s e f ro m t h i s p o i n t o n h e i s k n o w n a s arahantasammasambuddha, one who has on his own become enlightened and transcended all deGlements. This event is thus a great miracle. The poet has allegorized the episode in the Buddha's honor by sta ng that at that 105


me all animals, people, and devas throughout ten thousand world systems were relieved of their suJering, sorrow, despair and danger, and all beings were imbued with goodwill to each other, free of enmity and hatred. All the devas played music, danced and sang the Buddha's praises as an act of reverence and honor to the Buddha's virtues. [toc]

106


Picture 28. Mara’s daughters try luring the Buddha in vain.

107


Chapter 28 The Buddha goes to a banyan tree; the daughters of Mara try in vain to lure him Aer the enlightenment, the Buddha sat under the Great Bodhi tree, imbibing the bliss of deliverance, for seven days. The term "imbibing the bliss of deliverance" is used to refer to those who are enlightened. In ordinary terms, we may say that the Buddha was res ng aer his heavy labors. Aer the seven days he went to the ajapalanigrodha tree, which was situated to the east of the Great Bodhi tree. A nigrodha is a banyan tree. The le;ers "ajapala" mean "place for herding goats." According to the legend, this banyan tree had long been a resort of goatherds, and goatherds in the local area had long used the shade of this banyan tree to graze their goats. The compilers of this story, who lived in the me of the Commentaries, many hundred years aer the Buddha's passing away, have wri;en an episode in honor of the 108


Buddha, sta ng that while he was staying here, the daughters of Mara, who had launched his armies against the Buddha just before the enlightenment and been defeated, volunteered to try to seduce the Buddha into Mara's power. Mara had three daughters: Tanha, Raga, and Aradi. The three of them approached the Buddha and did everything in the way of sensual en cement to try to a;ract him, such as taking oJ their clothes, transforming themselves into young maidens on the verge of maidenhood, fully grown ladies, and women of various ages, but the Buddha's mind was already u;erly puriGed and he exhibited no reac on, not even opening his eyes to see. The episode of the a;empted seduc on by the daughters of Mara is an allegory. The three daughters of Mara are allegories for deGlements. The Grst is delight, the second is aversion or hatred. Delight is further analyzed into tanha, craving, endless desire; another is raga, lust; aversion or hatred here is expressed in aradi, which here means jealousy. 109


That the Buddha showed no reac on, even opening his eyes, refers to the fact that the Buddha was u;erly removed from all those deGlements. [toc]

110


Picture 29. A naga king coils around the Buddha.

111


Chapter 29 The Buddha repairs to the mucalinda tree; a rain storm; a

naga king coils himself around the Buddha to ward o7 the rain Just aer his enlightenment, having not yet decided who to Grst teach the Dhamma to and so begin his mission, the Buddha moved from place to place, seven days in each place. In this picture we see him in the third week, at the third place he stayed, which his the mucalinda tree, which stood to the southeast of the bodhi tree. The mucalinda is a tree that grows commonly in India, and Ggures in much Indian literature, such as the Jatakas and elsewhere. In the Vessantara Jataka the mucalinda is the tree to which the Bodhisa;a resorted when he was banished to the forest. In Thailand we call the mucalinda the "jik" tree. This seems to be right, as the places in which the two trees tend to take root are similar: both tend to arise in damp places, such as on river banks, near ponds, along canals and lakes. 112


Its wood is resilient, its Mowers hang down, and are white and red in color. The leaves are about the same size as roseapple leaves. The tender leaves are astringent and are tasty used as a vegetable and dipped in chili sauce. The Mavor is similar to the leaves of the roseapple tree. Usually the tree has rich foliage and oJers good shade. When the Buddha arrived at the tree, a heavy rain and cold wind arose and con nued for seven days con nuously. The writer of the Pathamasambodhi says of this event that a naga king, by name of mucalinda, came up out of the nearby pond, wound himself around the Buddha seven

mes, then spread his hood over the

Buddha to prevent the wind and the rain from blowing at him and soaking him. When the storm subsided and the sky cleared, the naga king unwound himself and transformed himself into a young man standing to the north of the Buddha. The statue depic ng the Buddha protected by the naga is a depic on of this event in the Buddha's life. The image is believed to have special powers in terms of mea, loving kindness, because it indirectly teaches the beneGts of 113


developing loving kindness: even a great naga king living at the bo;om of a pond went to the Buddha and provided protec on for him as a result of the powers of the Buddha's great compassion. [toc]

114


Picture 30. The Four Great Kings oJer the Buddha a bowl.

115


Chapter 30 The Buddha stays at the ket tree; the Four Great Kings o7er him a bowl; a devata tells two merchants to go and see the Buddha Aer the Buddha had stayed under the jik or mucalinda tree for seven days, he journeyed on to a tree known in Pali as the rajayatana. It was situated down to the le of the Great Bodhi tree. Rajayatana is usually translated as "Mai Ket" It is a tree of the pikul family. The writer has seen one in the area surrounding the Pathoma Ceya in Nakhon Pathom, planted by the government during the reign of Rama V. The trees are now big. They look like pradoo trees. While the Buddha was staying here he was visited by two traveling merchants, who also made oJerings to him. One of these merchants was named Tapussa, the other Bhallika. They were traveling in a caravan of many hundreds of carts (500 according to the Pathamasambodhi) and had come from the Ukkala country. Seeing the

116


Buddha siTng under the ket tree, the two merchants were inspired and oJered to him some of the dried rice cakes they had brought along as provisions for their journey. The Buddha received the food from the two caravan merchants in a stone bowl which had been oJered to him by the Four Great Kings. When he had Gnished his meal, the two caravan merchants declared themselves to be followers of the Buddha, taking the Buddha and the Dhamma, his teaching, as refuge. In brief, the two merchants declared themselves to be Buddhists. Thus the two merchants were the Grst Buddhists, or followers of the Buddha, in the world. That the merchants declared themselves to have taken refuge in these two refuges [the Buddha and his Teaching, rather than the now tradi onal three refuges of Buddha, Teaching, and Order of Buddhist followers] is because at that me the third refuge, the Sangha, or monas c order, had not yet come into existence, as the Buddha had not yet begun to teach.

117


The Pathamasambodhi relates how aer the two caravan merchants had declared themselves to be Buddhists, they asked the Buddha for a memento of some form before taking leave. The Buddha lied his right hand and stroked his hair. The text con nues, "Then eight strands of hair of the color of the wings of a carpenter bee ... fell down onto the palm of his hand." The Buddha then oJered those eight strands of hair to the caravan merchants to use as objects of worship. Delighted, the two merchants bowed and took their leave. [toc]

118


Picture 31. Two merchants oJer the Buddha dried rice cakes. 119


Chapter 30 Two merchants o7er dried rice cakes to the Buddha and become the 3rst lay people to declare themselves Buddhists The picture shown here depicts the events that occurred at the

me the Buddha was staying under the ket tree,

related in the cap on to Picture 30. The place is the rajayatana or ket tree, and the

me is during the fourth

week aer the Buddha's enlightenment. During the Grst week the Buddha stayed under the Great Bodhi tree; on the second week he stayed under the goatherds' banyan tree; in the third week he stayed under the mucalinda tree, and in the fourth week he stayed here. In the picture we see one of the two traveling merchants oJering dried rice cakes to the Buddha. The Buddha is receiving them in the stone bowl oJered to him by the Four Great Kings, as already related. The Four Great Kings are powerful devas who have the duty of protec ng the world. They live in the four 120


direc ons. King Dhataratha is the Lord of the gandhabbas [gandharva, heavenly musicians]. He lives in the east. King Virulhaka is the Lord of the [earth] devas. He lives in the south. King Virupaka is the Lord of the nagas and lives in the west, and King Kuvera is the Lord of the yakkhas and lives in the north. These four deva kings had each brought a bowl to oJer to the Buddha. The Buddha received the four bowls and through a vow made them all into one. Then he received the food from the two caravan merchants. The Pathamasambodhi relates that the Buddha's Grst bowl, which had been oJered to him together with robes by Gha ka Brahma when he Grst went forth from the home life and which he had used up un l arriving at the banks of the Anoma river, disappeared when he received the meal of milk rice from Sujata, just before his enlightenment. When the two traveling merchant brothers brought the provisions to oJer to the Buddha, there was no bowl for the Buddha to receive them in, so the Four Great Kings oJered the four bowls already described. It is a tradi on 121


among Buddhas not to receive food oJerings in their hands, but only to receive them in a bowl. [toc]

122


Picture 32. The Buddha is disinclined to teach, but Sahampa Brahma requests him. 123


Chapter 31 Returning to the banyan tree, the Buddha is disinclined to teach; Sahampa" Brahma makes a request Having stayed at the rajayatana or ket tree for seven days, in the Gh week the Buddha moved back to the ajapala nigrodha, or goatherds' banyan tree. While he was staying there, the Buddha reMected on the truth (dhamma) that he had been enlightened to. Realizing how subtle and profound it was, he felt disinclined to teach, wondering whether there would be anyone who could understand his teaching. Thus, part of him was inclined to contentment [merely with his own enlightenment], to not bothering to teach others. The compiler of the texts dealing with the Buddha's story have devised an allegory at this point, rela ng how the thoughts of the Buddha became known to Lord Sahampa Brahma in the Brahma world. Lord Sahampa was gravely concerned about those thoughts, and declared out loud three mes, "Now the world is lost." 124


T h e Pathamasambodhi writes: "That sound resounded throughout the ten thousand world systems. Lord Sahampa , together with a re nue of devas, approached the Buddha and formally made a request to him to teach the Dhamma." For the me when Lord Sahampa came down to formally invite the Buddha to give a teaching to the world, the poet has composed a verse in Pali: Brahma ca lokadhipa sahampa Katanjali andhivaram ayacatha sandha saapparajakajjaka desetu dhammam anukampimam pajam It translates as "Lord Sahampa Brahma, hands together, bowed and invited the Buddha, he who is endowed with excellent quali es, saying, 'There are beings in this world who are free enough of deGlements to understand the Dhamma. May the Lord please teach the Dhamma to help the beings of this world.'"

125


This Pali verse has become the ceremonial passage for asking for a Dhamma teaching in Thailand up to the present day. [toc]

126


Picture 33. ReMec ng on diJerent natural beings, the Buddha accepts the invita on. 127


Chapter 31 Re?ec"ng on the di7erent natures of beings, compared to the four kinds of lotuses, the Buddha accepts the invita"on The story of Lord Sahampa Brahma coming to invite the Buddha to spread his teaching to the world, as explained in Picture 32, is an allegorical teaching. Translated into a factual statement, we might interpret Sahampa

Brahma

as being the Buddha's own compassion. Even though the Buddha was inclined not to teach the Dhamma, another part of him, which was stronger, decided to teach. Having made up his mind, the Buddha reMected on the diJerent natures of beings in the world and saw that they could be divided into four levels or groups: First group: Extremely clever-merely listening to the name of a teaching they immediately understand it. Second group: very clever: aer listening to an explana on of the teaching, they understand it. 128


Third group: moderately clever: the "veneyya" beings. They must devote a lot of

me to training their minds before

they can understand. Fourth group: the "padaparama," the fools, the idiots, who are unteachable. In other words they are the people the Buddha had nothing to do with. The Grst group are like lotuses that have grown and risen above the water level. As soon as they contact sunlight, they open out. The second group are like lotuses that are just under the surface of the water, ready to rise above it. The third group are like lotuses that are deeper down in the water, which will at a later

me grow up and rise

above the water level. The fourth group are like lotuses that are very deep down in the water, so deep that there is no way they will rise above the surface because they fall food to Gshes and turtles. The Buddha saw the diJerent levels of wisdom among people like this. Then the Buddha began to reMect on who would be the best person to Grst impart his teaching to. He saw in his mind the images of the two asce cs who he had previously studied with, but both of them had already 129


passed away. Then he came to know that the Group of Five (pancavaggiya) were s ll alive, and so he made up his mind to Grst give his teaching to them. [toc]

130


Picture 34. The Buddha meets Upaka the asce c on the way to teach the Gve disciples.

131


Chapter 34 The Buddha goes to 3nd the Group of Five; he meets Upaka the asce"c along the way From the sixth to the eighth weeks aer the enlightenment the Buddha spent his me going back and forth between the Great Bodhi tree and the goatherds' banyan tree. On the fourteenth day of the waxing moon of the eighth lunar month, in the eighth week aer the enlightenment, the Buddha took leave of the area of the enlightenment to make his way to the Deer Park, nowadays known as Sarnath, in the vicinity of Varanasi. At that

me the Group of Five who had once followed the

Buddha in his renuncia on and lived with and tended him had come to live at this place. On the way, speciGcally when he reached the Gaya River on the border of the district in which he had been enlightened, the Buddha met a ma;ed-hair asce c (ajivaka) by name of Upaka coming the opposite way. An

132


ajivaka is one of the kinds of asce cs who were common in the Buddha's me. From afar, this asce c Grst no ced the rays of light radia ng from the Buddha's body. These rays are called the "Sixfold rays." They are 1. Nila: green like the Mower of the bu;erMy pea 2. Pita: yellow like golden realgar 3. Lohita: red, the color of the sun low in the sky 4. Odata: white, like silver 5. Manjetha: red like a cockscomb Mower 6. Pabhassara: shiny like a pearl In later

mes, when Buddha images with the sixfold ray

were built, the rays were known as "pabhamandala," meaning rays that shoot up above the Buddha's head in a conical shape. As the Buddha drew nearer, the asce c saw the source of the rays, and was inspired by the sight, so he approached the Buddha and asked him who his teacher was. When the Buddha answered that he had no teacher, that he was

133


a ayambhu, fully self-enlightened, the asce c responded to his statement in two ways-shaking his head and lolling his tongue-then walked oJ. [toc]

134


Picture 35. The Gve disciples decline to see the Buddha, but Gnally change their minds.

135


Chapter 35 The Buddha arrives at the Deer Park; the Group of Five see him approaching from a distance and decide not to receive him, but change their minds The Buddha traveled to the Deer Park on the evening of that same day, according to the me and date recorded in the Pathamasambodhi. At that

me the Group of Five, led by Kondanna, were

talking among themselves. The subject of their conversa on directly concerned the Buddha: they were conjecturing on where the Buddha might have been staying in the long me since they had forsaken him, and whether he thought of them at all. At that moment, the Group of Five, Kondanna, Vappa, Bhadiya, Assaji and Mahanama, no ced the brilliant light of the sixfold rays, and, following back along the rays, found the Buddha approaching them from afar. The Gve agreed among themselves that they would not formally receive the Buddha or show the customary signs 136


of respect: that is, they would not get up and receive his bowl and robe, that they would only lay down a mat for him to sit on, and not pay reverence to him, but sit s ll and pretend not to no ce or be interested that the Buddha had arrived. However, when the Buddha actually arrived at their place, the Group of Five all forgot their agreement, geTng up to receive him, paying respects, receiving his bowl and robe respecZully just as they used to do. The only diJerence was that when they addressed the Buddha, they did not use the words they used to use. The Group of Five used familiar terms, calling the Buddha "friend," or simply "Gotama." The second word, Gotama, was the Buddha's clan name. "Friend" [avuso] is the same word that Thai people use nowadays, except that its meaning is the opposite to Thai usage. In Thai, avuso is used to refer to a senior and learned person, whereas in Pali it is used to refer to a person young in both age and learning. It is the word a senior person would use to refer to a junior person. Avuso is the Pali equivalent to the Thai word "khun." 137


The Buddha admonished the Group of Five, asking them whether they had ever used such words with him before. The Group of Five heeded his admonishment, so the Buddha told them about himself, that he had a;ained Buddhahood, and that he had come to teach them the Dhamma. [toc]

138


Picture 36. The Buddha gives Gve disciples the Grst sermon; the Turning of the Wheel of Dhamma.

139


Chapter 36 The Buddha gives the 3rst Sermon, the Turning of the Wheel of Dhamma, to the Group of Five, opening the eye of Dhamma in them The day on which the Buddha gave his First Sermon (pathamadesana) was the Geenth day of the waxing moon of the eighth lunar month. It was the day following the day he had arrived and met the Group of Five. It is now known as Asalhapuja Day. There were Gve people listening to the teaching, the "Group of Five." The subject of the Buddha's teaching was a denuncia on of that which the religious prac cers of that me were prone to, the extreme of asce c prac ce, and also the extreme of sensual indulgence. The Buddha rejected these two extremes. He had experienced and experimented with them already and found that they were not the way to enlightenment. He then recommended the Middle Way (majjhima papada), the proper prac ce in

140


accordance with the Noble EighZold Path, which in essence consists of morality, concentra on and wisdom. When the Buddha had passed away, the disciples who convened the Great Council for Gnalizing the Buddha's t e a c h i n g s c a l l e d t h i s Gr s t s e r m o n t h e Dhammacakkappavaana Sua, o r j u s t Dhammacakka Sua, comparing the Buddha's teaching on this occasion to a Universal Emperor wielding his wheel weapon or chariot and spreading his great power. The diJerence here was that the wheel or chariot used by the Buddha was the Dhamma, the "Wheel of Dhamma." When the teaching came to an end, Kondanna, the leader of the Group of Five, a;ained the Eye of Dhamma, that is, he a;ained Stream Entry. Seeing Kondanna a;aining this fruit as a result of listening to the teaching, even though it was only a lower level of enlightenment, the Buddha joyously u;ered, "Annasi vatabho kondanno, annasi vatabho kondanno," meaning "Oh, Kondanna has realized, Kondanna has a;ained the truth!" From that

me on,

Venerable Kondanna became known as Anna Kondanna, "Kondanna who Knows." 141


Having listened to the teaching, Kondanna asked the Buddha for permission to go forth under him, and so the Buddha gave his permission for Kondanna to become a monk, u;ering the invita on, "Come, bhikkhu." The remaining four also in

me a;ained enlightenment and

became monks like Kondanna. [toc]

142


Picture 37. Yasa meets the Buddha and receives a teaching at the Deer Park. 143


Chapter 37 Yasa wearies of his wealth and wanders into the Deer Park; mee"ng the Buddha, he receives a teaching The Buddha, together with the Gve noble disciples, spent the rains retreat at the Deer Park at Isipatana, the place of his Grst teaching. That was the Grst rains retreat. At this stage the Buddha did not yet travel around to teach others because it was the rainy season, but a young man named Yasa did come to see him. Yasa was the son of a rich man in Varanasi. His parents had built three mansions for him, one for each of the seasons [hot, rainy and cool], and in each of the mansions there were a great number of dancing girls to entertain him. One day, at midnight, Yasa awoke and saw the dancing girls sleeping in various ungainly postures (here the story is just the same as for the Bodhisa;a on the day he le home for the homeless life) and became wearied of his life.

144


Yasa ran away from his home in the dead of night, and made for the Deer Park, mu;ering to himself as he went, "Upaddutam vata upasaggam vata": "Here it is confusing, here it is oppressive!" He was referring to the confusion and oppression he felt inside. At that me a sound came in response from the edge of the forest: "No upaddutam no upasaggam": ("Here it is not confusing, here there is no obstruc on!"). It was the Buddha. At the me of this exchange it was very late, almost dawn in fact. The Buddha had been pacing up and down in cankamma. Cankamma is pacing up and down, a kind of mild physical exercise for stretching the muscles and overcoming sleepiness. The Buddha said to Yasa, "Come, come here and sit down. I will teach you." Yasa approached the Buddha and bowed to his feet, then sat down to one side. The Buddha gave him a teaching, at the comple on of which Yasa a;ained Arahatship, full enlightenment. He asked for admission to the Buddha's order as a monk. 145


Not long aer Yasa had become a monk, a great number of his friends, 54 of them, having heard of his going forth, went to see the Buddha, listened to the teaching and were all, like Yasa, fully enlightened. Thus within the Grst vassa, or rains retreat, there were altogether 61 Arahats in the world. [toc]

146


Picture 38. The Buddha ignores Uruvela Kassapa warnings of a Gerce naga. 147


Chapter 38 The Buddha goes to see the asce"c Uruvela Kassapa; ignoring the asce"cs' warnings of a 3erce naga, he stays at the 3re house Aer the rains retreat, on the 15th waxing day of the twelh lunar month, the Buddha convened a mee ng of his 60 disciples (savaka) at the Deer Park in Isipatana. All of those disciples were Arahats. The Buddha's inten on in calling the mee ng was to send these disciples out to spread the teaching to other places. At the mee ng, the Buddha addressed the monks (bhikkhus) as follows: "Monks! Released am I from all bonds. Released are you from all bonds. Go ye forth to declare the teaching in other lands for the beneGt and happiness of the many. Go each of you alone. Give the teaching that is beau ful in the beginning, in the middle and in the highest levels, which is pure, and which I have declared to you. Monks! There are in this world people with only few deGlements 148


and with suWcient intelligence to understand the Dhamma. But because they have had no chance to hear t h e Dhamma they do not obtain the beneGt that they rightly should obtain. Go forth. I myself will go to declare the teaching at Uruvela Senanigama." Thus on the morning of the Grst waning moon of the twelh lunar month, the 60 disciples split up, each going alone to spread the teaching according to the Buddha's instruc ons. The Buddha himself journeyed to Uruvela Senanigama, which was where he had gained his own enlightenment. Reaching there, the Buddha proceeded to the ashram of a group of famous asce cs there by name of "the three brother asce cs." The oldest brother's name was Uruvela Kassapa. He had 500 disciples and had an ashram for performing religious prac ce, worshipping Gre on the banks of the northern Neranjara River. The middle brother's name was Nadi Kassapa. He had a following of 300, while the youngest brother's name was Gaya Kassapa, with a following of 200. They had established separate ashrams on sand banks just south of the oldest brother. 149


The Buddha went Grst to the ashram of the oldest brother. Approaching the leader, he asked for a place to stay. The asce c leader told the Buddha that the only place le was the Gre house, but that a ferocious and dangerous naga was living there. [toc]

150


Picture 39. The Buddha subdues the naga king and presents to the asce c. 151


Chapter 39 The Buddha subdues the ferocious naga king and presents the naga to the asce"c coiled up in his bowl, but the asce"c is s"ll not convinced The three asce c brothers, especially Uruvela Kassapa, the eldest, were all leaders of sects that the people of Rajagaha held in high esteem. Uruvela Kassapa had announced that he was an Arahat, fully enlightened. He dwelt as a Gre worshipper. When the Buddha arrived at his ashram and asked to stay at the Gre house, which the asce cs held to be a very holy place and dangerous to live because of the naga king of great venom and power, the asce c thought to himself that the Buddha was being very foolhardy in not heeding the danger. According to the story in the Pathamasambodhi, when the Buddha entered the Gre house, the naga king was furious, and spat venom at the Buddha. The Buddha entered the concentra on on the Gre kasina (a certain kind of jhana or 152


absorp on concentra on wherein he could emit Gre from his body). The venom from the naga king and the Gre coming from the Buddha's Gre medita on produced such a great light that it seemed as if the Gre house were consumed in Mames and would be burnt to the ground. The asce cs, seeing the light from the Gre, thought that the newcomer (the Buddha) had surely been burnt to a crisp by the naga king's fury. T h e Pathamasambodhi states: "At the end of the night, with the arrival of the dawn, the All-Knowing One stripped the power from the naga king and caused the naga king to coil himself up into his bowl. He then showed the naga to Uruvela Kassapa, saying, 'This naga has been stripped of his powers by the Tathagata.'"… [toc]

153


154


Picture 40. The Buddha’s dwelling miraculously escapes a heavy Mood. 155


Chapter 40 The Buddha's dwelling miraculously escapes a heavy ?ood; the asce"cs are amazed and ask to go forth The reason the Buddha made a journey to teach the three asce c brothers, as already explained, was because these three brothers were famous teachers widely respected in those mes. Bringing famous asce cs into the fold of his own ministry was an important strategy in spreading his own teaching, which was new. If he could convince these powerful asce cs, his spreading the teaching would be much easier and more eJec ve. Thus the Buddha had gone to the ashram of the three asce c brothers, who believed themselves to be Arahats, and he tamed them by showing or proving to them that they were not in fact Arahats as they believed. The Buddha gradually showed them that the quali es they believed to be so special were not in fact so. They believed that the naga king was of mighty power, but the Buddha had made him coil up in his bowl. When a 156


great Mood arose, the asce cs thought that the Buddha must have surely drowned, and took boats to go and Gnd him, only to Gnd that he was walking medita on under the surface of the water. The Pathamasambodhi states: "The Buddha spent two full months conver ng the asce cs, aer which the asce c who led the largest group, Uruvela Kassapa, becoming disillusioned, realized that he was not an Arahat as he had at Grst mistakenly believed. His realiza on was a result of the power of the Buddha's silent teaching. Thus the leader of the asce c group Moated his Greworshipping gear on the Neranjara River, bowed at the Buddha's feet and asked for acceptance as a disciple. The two younger brothers who lived downstream, seeing their older brother's gear Moa ng down the river, thought that some accident must have befallen him and went to see what had happened. When the two brothers found out what had happened they also became followers of the Buddha. The Buddha gave a teaching to the assembled asce cs and all of them

157


became Arahats. And so the Buddha received a further 1,000 monks to his Order. [toc]

158


Picture 41. Uruvela Kassapa announces himself the Buddha’s disciple. 159


Chapter 41 Uruvela Kassapa announces himself a disciple of the Buddha before King Bimbisara at the palmyra grove When the Buddha had "tamed" the asce cs of the schools of the three brothers, i.e., had cured them of their mistaken no ons about themselves being Arahats, such that they readily became his disciples, he proceeded with the next stage of his plan in spreading the teaching, which was to enter the city of Rajagaha. At that

me Rajagaha was the capital city of both the

state of Magadha and the state of Anga. It was a heavily populated city ruled by King Bimbisara. This king had already met the Buddha before his enlightenment, as already related. The Buddha together with his 1,000 disciples, the former Gre-worshipping asce cs, who had previously worn animal skins but were now wearing the yellow robe of the Buddhist monk [bhikkhu], came to a park known as

160


La;hivana, the palmyra grove, just outside the city and stopped to stay there. The townsfolk were excited to hear that a great gathering of asce cs with the asce c Gotama, the Buddha, had arrived at the outskirts of the city, and so they poured out to see them. Even King Bimbisara himself went to see. The townsfolk approached the Buddha and greeted him in diJerent ways, some holding their hands together in gree ng, some siTng down, some announcing themselves and their clans. Many of them were not sure who, between the Buddha and Uruvela Kassapa, the famous leader of the Gre-worshipping asce cs, was the teacher and who the student. In order to relieve them of their doubts, the Buddha asked Uruvela Kassapa why he had renounced his previous doctrine. He answered loudly, in front of the crowd, that his previous teaching was worthless, not the path to libera on from suJering. Having said that, he rose and bowed at the Buddha's feet, clearly showing the ci zens of Rajagaha who was the teacher and who the student. Seeing this, the townsfolk were Glled with wonder. 161


Aer the townsfolk had se;led down, the Buddha gave a Dhamma teaching, at the end of which a great number of the people declared themselves followers of the Buddha, while another large number, including King Bimbisara himself, became Stream Enterers. [toc]

162


Picture 42. King Bimbisara oJers the Buddha the Bamboo Grove as the Grst Buddhist Monastery. 163


Chapter 42 King Bimbisara, inspired by the Buddha, oCcially o7ers the Bamboo Grove as the 3rst Buddhist Monastery When King Bimbisara, the King of Magadha, had listened to the Buddha's teaching and a;ained Stream Entry, he rose, bowed down at the Buddha's feet, and invited the Buddha, together with the 1,000 monks, to take the meal on the next morning at the royal palace. The Buddha consented to the invita on by remaining silent. That was a tradi on upheld by the Buddha and the monks in those days. If they were silent, that meant that they could accept the invita on. If they could not accept the invita on, for instance if someone were to ask the Buddha to receive the meal at his house every day for a whole rains retreat, the Buddha would answer, "Many are the people in this world who wish to make merit with us. It is not proper to invite us for the whole that he could not receive the invita on.

164

me." This means


The next morning, the Buddha departed from the palmyra grove and entered the palace of King Bimbisara. The oWcials had arranged the alms food already. The King oJered the food to the Buddha and his Order of monks [sangha]. When the Buddha and all the monks had eaten enough, King Bimbisara approached the Buddha and sat respecZully to one side. He pointed out to the Buddha that the palmyra grove was very far from the city. Moreover it was in a remote area, not convenient for entrance and egress. Then the King went on to say that his own Bamboo Grove, the Veluvana, was situated neither too near nor too far from the city, easy to get to, not crowded during the day and peaceful at night. In short, it was a GTng place for the Buddha and the Order to stay. When the Buddha expressed his approval by remaining silent, King Bimbisara formally consecrated his oJering of the Bamboo Grove as the Grst Buddhist monastery in the world by pouring water onto the Buddha's hand.

165


The Pathamasambodhi states: "At the very moment that the Omniscient One accepted the Bamboo Grove, the great earth resounded as if to announce, 'Buddhism has now been established in this world.'" [toc]

166


Picture 43. The king performs merit to his ancestors reborn as petas. 167


Chapter 43 The king performs merit in the name of his ancestors reborn as petas (hungry ghosts); the peta rejoice in the act and receive a share of the merit In Picture 43 we see King Bimbisara pouring consecra ng water from a jar onto the Buddha's hand. The pouring of water by King Bimbisara in this picture is called in Thai the "kruat nam" ceremony, or in Pali "uddisodaka, meaning "pouring water and oJering." It is a custom prac ced when oJering something that is big and cannot be physically lied and placed into the hands of the recipient, such as land or a monastery. King Bimbisara's pouring of water depicted here is called "daksinodaka," meaning "pouring water and oJering in the name of the dead." It is also used when oJering something to someone else, but the diJerence here is that the thing being oJered is invisible, being merit or skillfulness, and the receivers of the oJering are also invisible, being

168


departed beings. This ceremony is s ll popularly used when making merit in Thailand. The subject of the picture is the second great act of merit on behalf of King Bimbisara. When the King made his Grst oJering he failed to dedicate the merits to his departed ancestors. The Pathamasambodhi states that, as a result, on that night the petas who had been rela ves or ancestors of the king wailed in protest throughout the palace, and some of them even appeared to the King. According to the Dhammapada stories, these petas, when they were human beings, had been corrupt. They had used belongings oJered to the Sangha for themselves. Aer their deaths they had been reborn as petas and had been wai ng on the merit that King Bimbisara would oJer them. Being disappointed on that account, they made their protest. King Bimbisara went to see the Buddha the next morning and asked him the reason for the sounds and visita ons he had heard and seen. Hearing the Buddha's explana on, he made a royal act of merit, oJering food and robes for the Buddha and the Order of monks on the next day. Aer 169


making the oJering, he performed the ceremony of pouring water, intoning, "idam no nanam hotu," meaning "May the wholesomeness and results of the good ac on I am performing today go to my rela ves." Thus all of those petas received the wholesomeness and merit of his ac on and were relieved of the suJering they were at that me experiencing. The words idam no nanam hotu have become the oWcial words for dedica ng an oJering to the departed in Thailand up to this very day. [toc]

170


Picture 44. Venerables Moggallana and Saripu;a request for ordina on.

171


Chapter 44 Venerables Moggallana and Saripu%a, the future "right and leG hand disciples," ask to become bhikkhus In this picture, Moggallana and Saripu;a are receiving ordina on from the Buddha at the Bamboo Grove in Rajagaha. Before being ordained as Buddhist monks, they had both been wanderers (paribbajaka), followers of the teacher Sanjaya. Sanjaya was one of the famous sect founders in the area of Magadha. He had many disciples and was widely revered. Saripu;a had gone to live with him in order to seek the way out of suJering, but having studied his teaching he found that it did not lead to the way out of suJering, so he took leave of his teacher and went in search of a new teaching. It was then that he met Venerable Assaji at Rajagaha. Venerable Assaji was one of the Group of Five. The Buddha had sent them out to spread the Buddha's teaching. Assaji found out that the Buddha was staying at 172


Rajagaha, and so he journeyed there in order to pay a visit to the Buddha. On the way he met Saripu;a, who at that me was known as Upa ssa the Wanderer. Saripu;a no ced Venerable Assaji's inspiring bearing and was moved to approach him and ask him about his prac ce and his teacher. He was pleased at the answers he received from Assaji, and proceeded from there to his good friend , Moggallana, who was then known as Kolita the Wanderer, and together they and a following of 250 wanderers went to see the Buddha. When the Buddha acknowledged the ordina on of the two friends into the Order with the customary "Come, be a bhikkhu," bowls and robes, according to the compilers of the ancient Buddhist legends, appeared from out of thin air and wrapped themselves around the two wanderers, making them fully clothed bhikkhus instantly. If this last episode were to be wri;en in modern parlance, we would say that those who had already been ordained as asce cs, on taking and receiving ordina on with the Buddha, did not have to spend a lot of

me preparing

their equisites, because they already had bowls and robes. 173


Not long aer their ordina on, these two bhikkhus a;ained Arahatship and became the staunchest helpers of the Buddha in the spreading of his teaching. The Buddha established them in the posi on of leading disciples, Venerable Saripu;a being the right-hand-Leading Disciple, and Venerable Moggallana the le-hand-Leading Disciple. In other words they were like the Buddha's "right and le hands." Both of them passed away (parinibbana) not many months before the Buddha did, Saripu;a from a chronic ailment he had, and Moggallana at the hand of killers hired by members of other sects. [toc]

174


Picture 45. The Buddha gives the Ovadapamokkha discourse to Arahats’ assembly on Magha Puja Day. 175


Chapter 45 The Buddha gives the Ovadapa"mokkha discourse to the assembly of Arahats on Magha Puja day Not long aer Moggallana and Saripu;a had been admi;ed as monks the Buddha held a mee ng of the Order on the full moon day of the third lunar month at the Bamboo Grove Monastery in Rajagaha. This mee ng of the Order was recognized by later Buddhists as a great event, and the day has become an important Buddhist holiday known as Magha Puja Day. The mee ng of the Buddha's disciples on this day was unlike any other mee ng convened during the Buddha's me in that each of the 1,250 monks in a;endance had been ordained personally by the Buddha himself; they had all the same preceptor. All were Arahats. Each had come spontaneously to the mee ng without prior appointment. And on that day the Buddha gave the Ovadapamokkha discourse. Thus the mee ng of the Order held on that day

176


is also called the caturangasannipata-the mee ng with the four special features. At that

me Rajagaha was a center of the state of

Magadha. When the Buddha went to stay there the monks who had separated in order to spread the teaching, hearing where the Buddha was, all went there to meet him. Since more than a thousand monks had gathered there, the Buddha called the mee ng and gave the Ovadapamokkha address. The Ovadapamokkha is a brief synopsis of the principles of the Buddha's teaching, containing both injunc ons and principles for administra on of the Order. There are thirteen points in all. They include: Buddhism teaches the giving up of evil, the cul va on of the good, and the puriGca on of the mind; the highest of all teachings is Nibbana, the cessa on of deGlements and transcendence of suJering; a monk must be restrained, moderate in ea ng, pa ent, not disparaging others, not harming others. At this

me, the Buddha had not yet formulated the

monas c discipline for administering the Order because 177


no damage had yet arisen in that regard. Thus he only laid down the principles for administering the Order in brief. In illustra on, not so many years ago Thailand had no state cons tu on (rath thammanoon), but instead a manifesto (thammanoon) of principles for government. This thammanoon may be compared to the Ovadapamokkha. The cons tu on (rath-thammanoon) for governing the kingdom may be compared to the Vinaya, the rules of discipline, determined by the Buddha in the later me of his administra on. [toc]

178


Picture 46. The Buddha teaches his rela ves in Kapilava;hu. 179


Chapter 46 The Buddha goes to teach his rela"ves in Kapilava%hu; the senior rela"ves do not pay obeisance For more than six years, from the me the Bodhisa;a had gone forth, been enlightened and begun to spread the teaching in Magadha un l he had many disciples and followers, the Buddha had not gone back to visit Kapilava;hu, the town of his birth, even once. This picture depicts the Buddha's Grst return to Kapilava;hu in order to teach his rela ves, in response to a request from King Suddhodana, his father. When King Suddhodana found out that the Buddha was staying and teaching in Magadha, he wished to see him, and sent a party of emissaries to invite him to Kapilava;hu. Each of the par es of emissaries sent by King Suddhodana to invite the Buddha consisted of a leader and followers to the number of 1,000, according to the Pathamasambodhi. There were altogether 10 of these 180


par es. The Grst to the ninth of them, on paying respects to the Buddha, sat and listened to a teaching, as a result of which they all a;ained Arahatship and so did not report back to King Suddhodana. Then the king sent a tenth party consis ng of court ministers. Of this tenth group Kaludayi was the leader. He was a friend of the Buddha and one of the sahajata, born on the same day as the Buddha. Before seTng out on his journey to formally invite the Buddha to Kapilava;hu, Kaludayi took leave of the King to go forth as a monk, promising to invite the Buddha back to Kapilava;hu aer receiving acceptance as a monk. The King gave his consent. Later, when Kaludayi reached the Buddha's monastery, he listened to a teaching from the Buddha, became an Arahat and asked for acceptance as a monk, together with all his re nue. Then he formally invited the Buddha to journey to Kapilava;hu. At that

me it was the dry season,

approaching the rainy season. The Buddha, accep ng the invita on, set oJ on his journey with a company of monks which, according to the Pathamasambodhi, numbered 20,000, and in two months 181


reached Kapilava;hu. Arriving there, he stayed at the park of a Sakyan by the name of Nigrodha, a place that the Sakyan rulers had oJered to the Buddha for his stay. This park (arama) was not a monastery, but a park, a pleasure garden situated outside of the town. The royal rela ves, including King Suddhodana himself, were there to receive the Buddha. [toc]

182


Picture 47. The Buddha shows his rela ves the supernormal powers. 183


Chapter 47 The Buddha gives a show of supernormal powers, ?ying in the air; the rela"ves give up their pride and together bow to him This picture depicts an event that happened immediately following that depicted in the previous picture. It is the episode known as "the Buddha displays a miracle to dampen the pride of his rela ves." The Sakyan lords, the senior rela ves of the Buddha, considered that they were older and therefore of higher standing than the Buddha, who was then only 36 years old. When they received him and went to visit him at the Nigrodha Park, they did not make any gestures of obeisance to the Buddha, but had the younger Sakyan princes and princesses sit in the front row and pay respects to the Buddha in their place, while they stood s Yy at the back. T h e Pathamasambodhi relates that this was why the Buddha performed the miracle of Mying into the air and 184


sprinkling the dust from his feet onto the heads of the Sakyan lords. Somdej

Phra

Mahasamanachao

Kromphrayavachiranyanavarorosa, the Supreme Patriarch of Thailand who compiled a biography of the Buddha, states in volume two of that biography, in rela on to this episode: "If we interpret this to mean that in fact the Buddha made a display of the anusasani pahariya, the miracle of teaching, that is, giving a teaching to the Sakyans that enlightened them, inspired them, encouraged them, gladdened them and caused them to give up their pride, and to regard the Buddha as their superior, as if he had Mown into the air, this would be more acceptable." King Suddhodana, who had gone to receive the Buddha and visit him, seeing this miraculous event, put his palms together in a gesture of homage, and all of the rela ves gathered there gave up their pride and paid homage to the Buddha. T h e Pathamasambodhi states: "At that moment, a great cloud gathered above them and released a downpour. The 185


rain that fell then was what is known as bokkharavassa, being of red color and of such a nature that whoever wanted to become wet by it became wet, while whoever did not want to become wet stayed dry, and the rain drops simply bounced oJ their bodies like water oJ a lotus leaf." Interpre ng this, we could say that the Buddha and his rela ves had been away from each other for so long that when they saw each other they were overjoyed and refreshed, as if their hearts had been drenched with a refreshing shower. [toc]

186


Picture 48. The Buddha goes for alms; Bimbayasodhara told Rahula to see his father. 187


Chapter 48 The Buddha goes for alms round in the town; Bimbayasodhara sees him and points him out to Rahula, saying, "There, that is your father!" Aer the torren al rain had fallen, the monks who accompanied the Buddha were amazed and began to converse among themselves about the rain, saying it was like none they had ever seen. The Buddha said to the monks, "This bokkharavassa rain falling during the Buddha's

me is not so amazing, but the bokkharavassa

rain that fell in his previous life, when he was Prince Vessantara, was truly amazing." At that the monks were intrigued to hear about the Buddha's previous life as Prince Vessantara, and so asked the Lord to relate it to them. The Buddha thus related the Vessantara Jataka to them, from the beginning up un l the episode of the prince's return to the city and the event of the bokkharavassa rain, just like the rain that had fallen that day. The story of the Vessantara Jataka, which Thai

188


Buddhists revere and nowadays like to invite monks to relate to them in the ceremony of the Great Life Desana (desana maha ja) originated from the story the Buddha related on this very day, when he went to give teachings to his rela ves. As for the rela ves, including King Suddhodana, they paid homage to the Buddha and variously took their leave, but none of them invited the Buddha for the next day's meal. The next morning, the Buddha together with his re nue of monks entered the town of Kapilava;hu for alms round. The townsfolk were all in a Mu;er, never having imagined that the Buddha, who was a king by birth, would walk in the town for alms, or, in more common terms, "begging." T h e Pathamasambodhi relates this event as follows: "At that

me the leading ci zens of the town reported that

Prince Siddha;ha was going for alms in the city, so the people of the town all opened the windows of their houses, which were two and three stories high, to see, but all of the people were intent on looking at the Omniscient One as he went on his alms round [i.e., none of them put food in his bowl]." 189


Bimbayasodhara, who had been Prince Siddha;ha's wife, and who had s ll not go;en over her sorrow at the Prince's departure, heard the noise of the ci zens as they talked excitedly about the Buddha walking through the streets of their town. She took Rahula, her son, who at that me was seven years old, to the window and, when they saw the Buddha walking at the head of the Order, pointed him out to Rahula, saying, "There, that's your father." [toc]

190


Picture 49. King Suddhodana invites the Buddha to take the meal.

191


Chapter 49 The Buddha's father hears the news of the Buddha's arrival and goes out to protest, invi"ng the Buddha to take the meal at the palace That King Suddhodana went to receive the Buddha and had an audience with him at the Nigrodha Park but did not invite him to take the meal at the palace was because he simply assumed that the Buddha would eat nowhere else but the King's palace. But when he heard the report from Princess Bimba that the Buddha together with a great number of monk disciples went not to the palace but walked instead through the streets of the town on alms round, he was greatly distressed. The Pathamasambodhi states: "With his sash in hand, the King went down from the palace and has ly walked up to the Buddha, stopping in front of him, and said: 'Why, son, do you shame me by walking for alms? It is against the

192


customs of our kshatriya clan. Why do you not go for the meal at the palace?'" The Buddha told his father that while this custom of going for alms round was not a custom of the kshatriya clan, it was a custom of the Buddha clan. The Buddha explained that it was a custom for Buddhas and monks who had given up home for the homeless life to walk for alms round as a means of livelihood, and that alms round is the pure form of livelihood for the Buddha clan. The Buddha told King Suddhodana that he was no longer one of the kshatriya clan, and had ceased to be so not from the day he le the home life for homelessness, nor on the day he prac ced medita on under the bodhi tree, but only when he succeeded in his endeavor, becoming an enlightened Buddha. From that moment on he became a member of the Buddha clan. The Buddha stood and addressed the King as above, and at the end of his words King Suddhodana, standing there, a;ained Stream Entry. Then the King received the Buddha's bowl and invited the Buddha together with his

193


re nue of noble disciples to enter the palace to take their meal. [toc]

194


Picture 50. Princess Bimba pines over the Buddha; he goes to see her in her palace. 195


Chapter 50 Princess Bimba pines over the Buddha; he goes to see her in her palace The picture we see here is of the Buddha going to see Princess Bimbayasodhara, his former wife. The day the Buddha went to see Princess Bimba was the same day that he went to receive the meal in his father's palace, as already described. The place of their mee ng was the princess's palace. Accompanying the Buddha on this visit were Venerables Saripu;a and Moggallana, the right and le hand disciples, and King Suddhodana. Princess Bimba had been grief stricken ever since the Buddha le for the life of homelessness, feeling that the Buddha had rejected her. When she heard that the Buddha had entered Kapilava;hu, her sorrow became even greater. Even when King Suddhodana sent for her to come and pay respects to the Buddha she could not bring herself to go, and when the Buddha himself went to see her at her own palace, she could not walk to him unaided, 196


but had to be helped in to see him by some of her maidservants. When she reached where the Buddha was siTng, she collapsed in a heap in front of him and rolled her head over his feet, wailing and almost losing her senses. King Suddhodana extolled the virtues of Princess Bimba to the Buddha, telling him how loyal she was to him and that she had never let her heart change all the me he had been away. The Buddha answered the King that the Princess had not only been loyal to him in this life but also in many previous lives, when she had been his partner through many a diWculty. Then the Buddha recounted many a jataka, past life story, for the beneGt of King Suddhodana and Princess Bimba. Hearing the stories, Princess Bimba's sorrow lied from her heart and she was Glled with joy at the Buddha's teaching. When the Buddha had Gnished giving his teaching, she a;ained Stream Entry. [toc]

197


198


Picture 51. Nanda accompanies the Buddha back to the monastery. 199


Chapter 51 Nanda receives the Buddha's bowl to accompany him back to the monastery; his 3ancee calls out to hurry back; reaching the monastery, the Buddha invites him to go forth as a monk On the Gh day of the Buddha's Grst visit to Kapilava;hu there was a marriage ceremony between one of the Sakyan princes named Nanda and a princess named Janapadakalyani. Nanda was the Buddha's half-brother. Aer the Buddha's mother, Mahamaya, passed away only a few days aer the Buddha's birth, King Suddhodana took Pajapa

Gotami,

Mahamaya's younger sister, as his wife. Nanda was the son of King Suddhodana and Queen Pajapa Gotami. When the Buddha went forth into the life of homelessness, the posi on of successor to the throne thus fell to Nanda. The King had planned that Nanda, aer marrying, would ascend the throne and con nue on from him. 200


On the day of the marriage, the Buddha had gone at the invita on of the King his father. Aer the meal, when the Buddha was preparing to return, he handed his bowl to Nanda, his younger brother, to carry for him on the way back. Nanda thought to himself that when they reached the gates of the palace the Buddha would turn around and take the bowl from him, but when they reached the gates , he did not do that. Nanda didn't dare thrust the bowl onto the Buddha, since he was the older brother, so he followed him all the way to the park where he was staying. Reaching there, the Buddha turned to Nanda and said, "Become a monk?" Nanda held his brother in too high respect to refuse him, so he said, "Yes, Revered Sir." Nanda did not ordain wholeheartedly, because he had been in the process of geTng married. What's more, while he was leaving the palace with the Buddha's bowl in hand, Janapadakalyani, his betrothed, had called out to him, "Hurry back, my prince!" But he answered that he would ordain out of respect for the Buddha.

201


[toc]

202


Picture 52. Rahula expresses love and devo on to the Buddha. 203


Chapter 52 Rahula expresses such great love and devo"on to the Buddha his father that he forgets to claim his inheritance On the seventh day of the Buddha's visit to Kapilava;hu, which was aer Prince Nanda had become a monk, the Buddha and the Order of monks entered King Suddhodana's palace for their meal once again. Nanda was the second heir to the throne, aer the Buddha, who was originally to assume rule aer King Suddhodana, but when Nanda became a monk, or more correctly, was forced to ordain by his older brother, the succession to the throne then fell to Rahula, Prince Siddha;ha's son. Princess Bimbayasodhara, seeing her chance, knowing that the Buddha had entered the palace to take the meal, dressed Rahula beau fully with the full regalia of a Kshatriya prince, and said to him, "That noble samana, with the golden radiance and a sound like a god, surrounded by 20,000 monks, is your father." 204


Bimba told her son to go and ask for his inheritance and all his father's wealth, which he had not yet passed on. The Princess told her son that it was usual for a son to take over the wealth of the father. At this

me, the Pathamasambodhi states, Rahula was

seven years old, and from the day of his birth had never seen his father. He saw him for the Grst

me when the

Buddha entered the town of Kapilava;hu. Seeing him and geTng close to him, Rahula was Glled with love for the Buddha, as a son would feel for his father. Rahula said one sentence to the Buddha, which in essence was "I am so happy to be close to my father." Then he asked for his inheritance and the rights to his father's wealth, as his mother had told him. The Buddha did not answer. Ea ng his meal and giving a blessing, he went back to the Nigrodha Park with the Order, with Rahula following on to ask for his inheritance. [toc]

205


206


Picture 53. The Buddha bequeaths the treasure of Nibbana to Rahula. 207


Chapter 53 The Buddha bequeaths the treasure of Nibbana to Rahula, ordaining him as the 3rst novice. When Rahula followed the Buddha to the Nigrodha park to ask for his inheritance and the rights to the Buddha's wealth, the Buddha considered: "What Rahula is asking me for is merely worldly wealth, which is impermanent and diWcult to look aer, unlike noble wealth, the truth that I have become enlightened to. I will make Rahula an heir to the transcendent [lokuara]." So the Buddha sent for Saripu;a and instructed him to be the preceptor for Rahula, ordaining him as a novice (samanera). Thus Rahula became the Grst Buddhist novice. Later, when he came of age (i.e., 20 years old), he became a monk and a;ained Arahatship. When Nanda had his marriage ceremony cut oJ by the Buddha taking him to be ordained as a monk, King Suddhodana was very distressed, but not overly so as he realized he s ll had Prince Rahula as an heir to the throne. 208


But when he heard that Rahula, too, had gone forth and become a novice, King Suddhodana was more grief stricken than when Nanda and even the Buddha himself had gone forth. King Suddhodana was beside himself with grief, so he went to see the Buddha at the Nigrodha Park and made a request to him to the eJect that if any monk should give ordina on to any child or grandchild of a householder, he should Grst get permission from the parents, otherwise the ordina on will cause untold suJering for them, just as he had suJered at Rahula's going forth. The Buddha agreed to King Suddhodana's request, and so laid down the Vinaya rule which has been upheld to this very day that anyone who is to ordain, regardless of whether it is as a novice or as a monk, should Grst obtain permission from his parents or guardian. The tradi on upheld to this day of presen ng trays of ritual oJerings to one's parents and elders, and bowing and asking their permission to go forth, springs from the incident described above.

209


[toc]

210


Picture 54. The Buddha guarantees Nanda on prac sing the Dhamma before a;aining his wish. 211


Chapter 54 The Buddha takes Nanda to admire the celes"al nymphs; Nanda wants to take one for a wife, and the Buddha guarantees that if he prac"ces the Dhamma he will a%ain his wish Aer the Buddha had stayed at Kapilava;hu teaching his father and rela ves for about one week, he journeyed back to Rajagaha in Magadha. Traveling with the Order of monks who followed the Buddha at that

me were

Bhikkhu Nanda, the Buddha's younger brother whom he had coerced into becoming a monk, and Rahula the novice. Later, the Buddha together with a great company of monks journeyed to the town of Sava;hi in the state of Kosala, which were of comparable size with the town of Rajagaha and the state of Magadha respec vely. Nanda accompanied him there too. However, ever since he had gone forth as a monk Nanda had never done the du es of a monk. His mind was Glled 212


only with thoughts of leaving the monk's life because he was constantly thinking of Princess Janapatakalyani, the Gancee he had le behind on their marriage day. This ma;er became known to the Buddha. The Commentaries relate this with a puggaladhihana (personiGed teaching), sta ng that as a result of this the Buddha took Nanda for a tour of the Tava msa heaven. On the way he pointed out a deformed female monkey siTng on a tree stump in a Geld at the edge of a certain forest. When they reached the Tava msa heaven, the Buddha showed Nanda the celes al nymphs, with their feet as red as doves feet and many mes more beau ful than earthly women. "Nanda! Between Princess Janapatakalyani, your Gancee, and the girls in heaven, who is more beau ful?" asked the Buddha. Nanda answered, "Now Princess Janapatakalyani seems no more beau ful to me than that deformed monkey." Interpre ng this, we might say that the Buddha gave Nanda a teaching showing him clearly that love and beauty know no end, and that our ideas of what is 213


adorable and beau ful are only because we have not yet seen anything even more adorable and beau ful. Nanda, listening to the Buddha, became disillusioned and wearied of love and delight in beauty, and applied himself to prac cing the Dhamma. In no long me he became an enlightened Arahat. [toc]

214


Picture 55. Devada;a impresses Prince Ajatasa;u with some psychic powers. 215


Chapter 55 Devada%a impresses Prince Ajatasa%u with some psychic powers to win him over The Buddha's Grst visit to Kapilava;hu inspired many of the Sakyan princes to leave the home life. Among them, those that are well known even now are Prince Ananda, or Venerable Ananda, Upali the barber, and Prince Devada;a. Deva d a;a wa s t h e o l d e r b rot h e r of Pr i n ce s s Bimbayasodhara. In other words, he was the brother-inlaw of Prince Siddha;ha, the future Buddha. All of those who went forth with Devada;a a;ained enlightenment [the Path and Fruit], but Devada;a a;ained only mundane jhana [absorp on concentra on], but even so the level of jhana that he a;ained enabled him to exercise psychic powers, such as Mying through the air. One day the Buddha with a large company of monks, Devada;a included, went to the city of Kosambi. The townsfolk came out to receive him and brought many 216


oJerings, giving some of them to the Buddha and some to the Order of monks. The townsfolk were making oJerings to individual monks, walking along the line asking, "Where is our Saripu;a?" "Where is our Moggallana?" When they found the monk they were looking for they would present the oJerings to him. However, none of them was asking "Where is our Devada;a?" That was the beginning of Devada;a's dissa sfac on and the cause of his later commiTng many an evil deed [kamma]. Devada;a entered the mundane jhana concentra on state and appeared as a young prince with bracelets of seven snakes coiled about him-one coiled around his head like a turban, four more around his wrists and ankles, another around his neck and another draped over his shoulders-Moa ng in the air in the palace. He sat down on the knee of Prince Ajatasa;u, Crown Prince and son of King Bimbisara, the King of Magadha. Devada;a planted the idea in Prince Ajatasa;u's mind to kill his father the king and usurp the throne, while he would kill the Buddha and take over as a new Buddha, declaring a new religion. 217


When he went to see Prince Ajatasa;u Devada;a Mew in the air, but on his way back he could no longer manage to My, and had to walk, as the unwholesome thoughts in his mind had damaged the jhana state he once had, and it disappeared from him from that day on. [toc]

218


Picture 56. Devada;a’s archers don’t kill the Buddha, but listen to his teaching.

219


Chapter 56 The archers sent by Devada%a to kill the Buddha lay down their bows, listen to a teaching, and a%ain enlightenment The man siTng in the picture with his palms together, bow laid beside him on the ground in front of the Buddha, i s a khamandhanu. Khamam translates as "hunter," so "khamamdhanu is a "hunter skilled with a bow." The bow was the deadliest weapon in use in the Buddha's me. Aer encouraging Ajatasa;u, the crown Prince, to kill King Bimbisara, Devada;a went to see the Buddha. At that

me the Buddha had gone back to Rajagaha.

Devada;a said to the Buddha that he was old, and should pass on the posi on of head of the Order to him. As a result, Devada;a was given the "spi;le speech" (khelasikavada). Khelasikavada means "one who swallows a ball of spi;le or mucous that has already been spat out." The meaning is that one gone forth from the home life, having ordained, is said to have renounced all worldly

220


things, such as children, wife, wealth, rank and status. Why was Devada;a, as one who had renounced those things when he went forth as a monk, going back to them? The Buddha compared it to someone ea ng his own spi;le. Devada;a was peeved at the Buddha's words and developed even greater hatred for him than before, so he devised many violent plans to deprive the Buddha of life. On the poli cal side, Devada;a had succeeded in persuading Ajatasa;u to kill his father and eventually take over the throne from him. But what he had not yet succeeded in was killing the Buddha. At Grst Devada;a hired many archers, all of them highly skilled in their cra, to lay in wait and shoot the Buddha at the Bamboo Grove in Rajagaha, all with King Ajatasa;u's knowledge and consent. But when all the hunters arrived at the Buddha's monastery and saw the Buddha, their arms went weak and they could not bring themselves to shoot. This was due to the Buddha's presence, which calmed their minds, so that they all laid down their bows and bowed at the Buddha's feet. 221


The Buddha gave teachings to the hunters, aer which they all a;ained Stream Entry. [toc]

222


Picture 57. Devada;a repents his wrongdoing and asks for forgiveness. 223


Chapter 57 Devada%a repents his wrongdoing; while going to ask forgiveness, the earth swallows him up When Devada;a's Grst plan to kill the Buddha failed, Devada;a tried to do the job himself. He went to the top of Gijjhakuta Mountain, knowing that at that moment the Buddha was staying on its lower slopes. Then he rolled a large rock down the hill, hoping to crush the Buddha. But on its way down the rock smashed into smaller pieces, one of which Mew passed the Buddha and grazed him, causing a small wound. The second plan had failed. Aer that, Devada;a persuaded King Ajatasa;u to have his elephant trainers release a pack of Gerce war elephants onto the streets while the Buddha was going for alms round, but this plan also failed as the elephants did not dare hurt the Buddha. It was at this

me that Devada;a's deeds and evil

reputa on began to become widely known. All the townsfolk were gossiping about how the hiring of the 224


hunters, the rolling of the rock and wounding the Buddha, the releasing of the herd of elephants, and even the death of King Bimbisara, were all masterminded by Devada;a, and they decided that their King had done evil deeds because of his associa on with this evil monk. King Ajatasa;u heard of the talk of the townsfolk and was struck with shame. He gave up going to see Devada;a, and gave orders to stop taking the tray of palace food to oJer to him as had been done in the past. In the town, no one would oJer food to Devada;a. But Devada;a had s ll not given up his pride. He went to see the Buddha, asking him to change his religion with a number of reforms, such as making the monks compulsory vegetarians, but the Buddha refused. As a result Devada;a established a new sect of monks, puTng himself at the head as a second Buddha. But later the monks who had mistakenly followed Devada;a all le him and went back to the Buddha, leaving only a handful staying with Devada;a. Devada;a was Glled with sorrow and vomited blood. Knowing that he was going to die, his conscience struck him, and he 225


asked the few remaining monks with him to carry him to the Buddha so that he could ask forgiveness before dying. However Devada;a did not get a chance to see the Buddha, for when they reached the perimeter of the monastery, he developed a desire to bathe. As soon as he put his feet on the ground, the earth opened up and swallowed him down. [toc]

226


Picture 58. The Buddha’s foster mother oJers cloth, the Buddha gives to Venerable Ajita. 227


Chapter 58 The Buddha's foster mother o7ers a cloth, which the Buddha gives to Venerable Ajita, the future Buddha According to the sources in the Buddhist texts, especially the Commentaries, which were compiled by later writers aer the Buddha's passing away, it seems that the Buddha went to visit Kapilava;hu many mes. This picture depicts one of those visits. The Pathamasambodhi states that it was his second visit. The woman siTng in front of the Buddha is Pajapa Gotami, the Buddha's aunt, being the younger sister of the Buddha's mother. When Mahamaya died, King Suddhodana took her as his wife. According to the story, Pajapa

Gotami, realizing that

when the Buddha went to Kapilava;hu on his Grst visit she had not oJered anything to him, on the second visit brought two pieces of co;on cloth, each 14 sork (forearm lengths) in length and 7 sork in width, to oJer to the Buddha. The Pathamasambodhi states that the co;on of 228


the cloth was yellow, like gold. The Queen had planted the co;on herself, and it grew a dark yellow color. She spun and wove the co;on herself and, puTng it onto a golden tray, oJered it to the Buddha. The Queen was disappointed when the Buddha would not receive the cloth, and went to see Venerable Ananda to tell him what had happened. Ananda went to see the Buddha and asked him to receive it. Once again, the Buddha would not receive it, telling the Queen to oJer it to one of the monks in the Order, but not one of them would receive it. There was only one monk, siTng at the end of the line of monks, newly ordained, who would receive it. His name was Ajita. He was s ll unenlightened, but, according to the Pathamasambodhi, in the future he would be Me;eya, the next Buddha to save the world. The reason the Buddha would not receive Pajapa Gotami's cloth was because he wanted to show the great worth of the Order, in that even a newly ordained monk who keeps the precepts is worthy of oJerings from Buddhists. If he had not done this people would think that one should give oJerings only to the Buddha, a view 229


which would mean that the monks would live with diWculty aer the Buddha had passed away. [toc]

230


Picture 59. The Buddha forbids his paternal and maternal rela ves from warring over the water supply. 231


Chapter 59 The Buddha forbids his paternal and maternal rela"ves from warring over the water supply This picture depicts an event that happened on one occasion when the Buddha went back to his home town, but this me by himself. He made this journey to prevent a war between the rela ves of both sides of the family. On one side were his paternal rela ves, the lords of Kapilava;hu. On the other side were the maternal rela ves, the lords of Koliya, otherwise known as Devadaha. These two ci es were on opposite sides of the Rohini River, and conten on had arisen over the use of the river's water for irriga on. When the town that was upriver channeled oJ the water for their own Gelds, those who lived down river lost water. Both sides had held mee ngs but could reach no agreement. The situa on had grown in intensity so that they were digging up each other's ancestry to insult each other.

232


"You wild dogs who just mate with each other!" One side was insulted like this on account of their tradi on of allowing marriage between brother and sister. "Mangy dogs!" The other side was insulted like this on account of their ancestor who caught leprosy and was banished to live in the forest. Both sides had prepared armies of soldiers and weapons to go into ba;le. When the Buddha heard of this he went to see them to put a stop to the ba;le, convening a mee ng of the lords of both sides of the dispute and asking them about the cause of the dispute. The Buddha: What is the conten on about? The rela ves: About water, Revered Sir. The Buddha: Which is more valuable, water or human lives? The rela ves: Human lives are more valuable, Revered Sir. The Buddha: So is what you are doing correct? The rela ves were all silent.

233


The Buddha: If the Tathagata (i.e. the Buddha) had not come today, a river of blood would have Mowed. Thus the rela ves on both sides stopped preparing for war. The Buddha played an important role in this event, and it is for this reason that in later mes a Buddha image was made in the posture known as "forbidding the rela ves." [toc]

234


Picture 60. King Suddhodana is ill; the Buddha stays with him un l a;ains Arahatship and passes away. 235


Chapter 60 The Buddha's father takes ill; the Buddha goes to visit and stays with him un"l he a%ains Arahatship and passes away On the Gh year aer the enlightenment, according to the Pathamasambodhi, the Buddha was staying in the Great Forest near the city of Vesali, when he heard news that his father King Suddhodana was gravely ill and aged and wished to see the Buddha and the monks who had been Sakyan princes and rela ves, such as Venerable Ananda, Venerable Nanda, and Rahula the novice. The Buddha instructed Ananda to inform the Order that he would be going to Kapilava;hu once more. It is a tradi on that before the Buddha went anywhere he would leave word with the monks who were nearby to inform the Order where and when he was to be traveling so that any monk who wanted to accompany him could prepare himself in me.

236


It appears that the Buddha's visit to Kapilava;hu to visit his dying father was his last visit there. Arriving at Kapilava;hu, the Buddha went straight to see his father, who was already in a grave condi on. The Buddha gave him a teaching about the impermanence of condi oned phenomena. The Pathamasambodhi cites one part of the Buddha's teaching on that occasion as follows; "Your Majesty, human life is very short. It does not appear for long; like a Mash of lightning, it appears and then is gone." King Suddhodana was at that

me a Non-Returner

(anagami), and aer listening to the teaching in full a;ained Arahatship in the very evening of his life. Seven days later he passed away. The Buddha stayed to perform the funerary rites for his father together with the Order and the complete circle of Sakyan rela ves. [toc]

237


238


Picture 61. Queen Pajapa ladies to ordain as nuns. 239

Gotami leads the Sakyan


Chapter 61 Queen Pajapa" Gotami leads a party of Sakyan ladies to ask for ordina"on as nuns Not long aer King Suddhodana's passing away, Queen Pajapa Gotami, the Buddha's aunt and foster mother, or King Suddhodana's wife, together with a re nue of Kshatriyan ladies, had an a;endance with the Buddha, who at that

me was staying at the Nigrodha Park at

Kapilava;hu, in order to ask permission to go forth as a nun (bhikkhuni). The Queen asked the Buddha whether women could go forth as homeless ones in the Buddhist religion as could men. The Buddha responded by discouraging her, telling her to forget about ordaining. He responded in this way three mes. Aer that, the Buddha went back to Vesali. Queen Pajapa

Gotami and her re nue followed him. This

me

all the ladies, with heads shaved and wearing the ochre robes of renunciants, approached the Buddha and asked 240


once again to be accepted. Once again the Buddha refused. So the Queen decided to rely on the inMuence of Venerable Ananda, asking him to go and seek the Buddha's permission on their behalf. Venerable Ananda had an audience with the Buddha, pleading with him to allow Pajapa

Gotami and her re nue to go forth as

bhikkhuni. The Buddha refused another three mes, but in the end agreed on the condi on that Pajapa Gotami Grst accept eight "heavy condi ons" (garudhamma). The eight heavy condi ons were preliminary condi ons for acceptance as a bhikkhuni, such as that a bhikkhuni, even ordained for as long as 100 years, should respect a bhikkhu even ordained for one day, and that before ordaining as a bhikkhuni a woman had to Grst observe six precepts for two years without blemish. Pajapa

Gotami had very strong faith, and accepted the

condi ons and was ordained as the Grst bhikkhuni, or Buddhist nun. However, the Order of nuns did not last very long, and indica ons are that it ceased to exist even 241


before the Buddha passed away. The reason for this is that the conven ons and rules the Buddha established for the bhikkhuni were like a prison for them, much stricter than for the bhikkhus, so that no one without excep onal faith would consider ordaining. [toc]

242


Picture 62. The Buddha performs miracles to trounce other asce cs’ sects. 243


Chapter 62 The Buddha performs the twin miracle to trounce the asce"cs of other sects at the Gandamapikkha mango tree In this picture we see the episode of the Buddha's display of the yamaka pahariya at Sava;hi, in the state of Kosala, on the full moon day of the eighth lunar month, one day before the beginning of the rains retreat. A pahariya is a display of something miraculous, something that ordinary people or people who have never learnt it cannot possibly do. It begins on the lowest level as magical tricks, and on the higher levels includes sinking into the earth, walking through Gre, ea ng nails, as yogis are want to do, and even Mying through the air, walking in the air, as people with psychic powers may do. An unenlightened person may perform them, and so can an enlightened being who has developed jhana and psychic powers. Yamaka means "twin" or "two." Thus the yamaka pahariya is the "twin miracle": water with Gre. When performing 244


the miracle, a great water pipe sprouted from the upper half of the Buddha's body, while a great Mame shot from the lower half of his body. The twin miracle can only be performed by one person-a Buddha. The Arahat disciples and asce cs of other sects can only perform ordinary pahariya, such as walking on water or sinking into the earth. The place where the Buddha performed the twin miracle on this occasion was the foot of a mango tree, called gandamapikkha, in the town of Sava;hi. The reason for his showing the miracle was that ordinees of other religions had challenged him to a "compe

on of psychic powers."

The members of other sects knew that the Buddha would display the twin miracle only at the foot of a mango tree, so they and their supporters cut down all the mango trees. Wherever they knew there was a mango tree they used whatever means they could manage to buy it and cut it down. They even uprooted the

ny mango seedlings

sprouted on that very day, leaving none le. But the Buddha managed to display the twin miracle at the foot of a mango tree. Someone had oJered him a ripe 245


mango for the meal. Having eaten the mango, he instructed the seed to be planted. Then he used the water for washing his hands to water it and the seedling sprouted up and grew voraciously, sending out branches and reaching up to a height of 50 sork. In the end the members of other sects lost the compe

on.

The story of the twin miracle is a part of Buddhist mythology. It has been created by Buddhist writers in order to exalt the Buddha over other sects. The reader must read it as a story, looking at the Buddha as like a god, and bearing in mind the mo ves of the writers. [toc]

246


Picture 63. The Buddha spends the rains retreat in the Tava msa heaven. 247


Chapter 63 The Buddha goes to spend the rains retreat in the Tava"msa heaven in order to teach his mother Aer performing the twin miracle and trouncing the members of other sects who had challenged him, the Buddha reMected on the tradi on upheld by Buddhas of the past: aer performing a twin miracle, where did they spend their rains retreat? He realized through insight that they spent their following rains retreats in the Tava msa heaven realm. The Pathamasambodhi collates the Buddha's rains retreats, puTng the seventh (from the me of his enlightenment) as at Tava msa heaven. According to the story, both from the Pathamasambodhi and other Buddhist writers wri ng aer the Buddha's p a s s i n g a w a y, k n o w n a s t h e C o m m e n t a t o r s (Ahakathacariya), the reason the Buddha went to spend the rains retreat in Tava msa was to teach his mother,

248


Queen Mahamaya, who aer passing away from this world had been reborn in the Dusita heaven realm. The Buddha spent the rains retreat at the foot of a parichaa tree. Under the trees in the heaven realm there i s e a r t h c ove re d w i t h re d c a r p e t , k n o w n a s pandukambalasila asana. Indra, the Lord of Heaven, hearing that the Buddha had come to spend the rains retreat here, called a mee ng of all the dei es in the heaven realms to listen to the Buddha's teaching. The Pathamasambodhi states that the announcement made by Indra on that occasion could be heard throughout the heaven realms for a distance of 10,000 yojanas (about 160,000 kilometers), and when the devatas heard it they were Glled with joy, and called out to each other for another 10,000 world systems. Mahamaya, the Buddha's mother, who was living among the devas in the Dusita heaven, also came to listen to the Buddha's teaching, and the Buddha taught her the Abhidhamma for the whole of the rains retreat. Hearing the teaching, the Buddha's mother a;ained Stream Entry,

249


while a great number of devas a;ained the Path and Fruit according to their disposi ons. [toc]

250


Picture 64. On Pavarana day, the Buddha descends from Tava msa heaven. 251


Chapter 64 On the Great Invita"on (pavarana) day, the Buddha descends from Tava"msa heaven via stairways of jewels, gold and silver This picture shows the Buddha descending from the deva realm, from Tava msa heaven, aer having spent the rains retreat there in order to teach the Dhamma to his mother. The day of his descent was the day of "leaving the rains retreat." The town that he descended to was Sankasa, and he descended right to the gates of the city. The place where the Buddha Grst stepped onto the earth later became known as the "acalaceya," or in ordinary terms a "Buddha's footprint." This is one place, according to the legend, where a Buddha's footprint was made. Before the Buddha's descent, Indra, king of the devas, conjured up three stairways for the purpose: a gold stairway, a silver stairway and a jewel stairway. The gold stairway, for the devas, was on the right. The silver stairway, on the le, was for the Brahmas. The jewel

252


stairway, in the center, was for the Buddha. The top of each of the stairways rested on the summit of Mount Sumeru, while the foot of the stairways rested at the city gates of Sankasa. The people on the Buddha's right in the picture are devas. They are the devas who descended with the Buddha. On the Buddha's le, holding the ceremonial umbrella, is a Brahma. Carrying the Buddha's bowl and walking just in front of the Buddha is Indra. Playing the lute and singing is the deva Pancasinkhara, on his right is Matuli Devapu;a, who is strewing celes al Mowers on the path as the Buddha descends. The Buddha was a visuddhi deva, a deity on account of his purity. Later genera ons of Buddhist writers gave him the honoriGc name "Devadeva," meaning "Deva among devas." The various devas worshipped by the people of India in ancient mes, such as Indra and Maha Brahma, are made into "suppor ng actors" as disciples of the Buddha. Thai Buddhists believe that the day of leaving the rains retreat is another important Buddhist day. On that day they make a special oJering in honor of the day the 253


Buddha descended from the Tava msa heaven. The alms giving performed on this day is called "tak bhat devo," from the word "devorohana," meaning alms oJering given on the day of the Buddha's coming down from the deva realm. [toc]

254


Picture 65. The Buddha opens the worlds, hell beings and humans to see each other. 255


Chapter 65 The Buddha opens all the worlds, enabling the devas, hell beings and humans to see each other On the day that the Buddha descended from Tava msa he performed another miracle. While he was standing on the jewel stairway, he looked upwards and the worlds of the devas (devaloka) and the Brahmas (Brahmaloka) were revealed. Then he looked downward, and the hell realms were revealed. At that

me the celes al realms, the hell

realms and the human realms throughout the universe were all visible to each other. The scene shown here is from the

me the Buddha

descended from Tava msa. The event is the Buddha's "opening of the worlds." The worlds that he opened at that me were the three worlds of heaven (devaloka), hell (yamaloka) and earth (manussaloka). Devaloka is all the worlds from the Brahmaloka down to all the celes al realms. Manussaloka is the world of human

256


beings. Yamaloka is the lower realms, all the levels of hell down to the lowest hell, avici. When the Buddha was descending from heaven, he looked upwards and all the worlds from the human world up to the highest heavenly realm were illuminated. As he looked around in each direc on of the universe it became clear and unobstructed. And when he looked downwards, the illumina on con nued down to the hell realms. At that instant the beings living in these three realms could all see each other. The human beings saw the devas, the devas saw the humans, the humans and the devas saw the hell beings, and the hell beings saw the devas and humans. And all could see the Buddha descending from Tava msa gloriously. T h e Dhammapada c o m m e n t a r y , c o m p o s e d b y Buddhaghosa, states that "On this day when the beings of all realms saw each other, there was not one who did not want to be the Buddha." The Pathamasambodhi goes even further, saying; "At that me, of all the devas, humans and beasts, even down to the niest red or black ant, who saw

257


the Buddha, there was not one among them who did not desire Buddhahood." Buddhahood is the state of being a Buddha. If we were to make the story of the Buddha opening up all the worlds so that the beings could all see each other more mundane, we may interpret it to mean that on that day the Buddha gave a teaching to which people came to listen in great number, and from which people could sees the results of good and bad deeds: the result of bad being suJering, which is hell, and the result of good being happiness, which is heaven, and the possession of morality is what diJeren ates people from the animals. [toc]

258


Picture 66. The Buddha spends a rains retreat at the palilaya forest. 259


Chapter 66 The Buddha spends a rains retreat at the palilaya forest, with an elephant and a monkey as a%endants This picture is of one episode in the Buddha's life, when he went to spend a rains retreat by himself, with no monks or lay people in a;endance. The forest that he stayed in that year was a very big forest, the home of a big tusker elephant known as palilayaka, and the forest was named aer that elephant. In Thailand it is called the "palelai forest." The reason that the Buddha spent the rains retreat on his own that year is that he was

red of the monks of

Kosambi who had split into two groups and were not in harmony, refusing to perform the du es of the order (sanghakamma) together. When the Buddha heard of this he went to see them to try to put a stop to their discord, but both sides refused to listen to him. That is why the Buddha went to stay on his own. Due to the Buddha's great powers and kindness, the elephant known as palilayaka a;ended on him. In the 260


morning he would bring fruits from the forest to oJer to the Buddha and in the evening boil water for him by rolling rocks heated in a Gre into a pool of water. A monkey saw the elephant serving the Buddha and brought a honeycomb to oJer. The Buddha received it but did not eat the honey, so the monkey took back the honeycomb and considered it. Seeing bee larvae inside, he took them all out and then took only pure honey to oJer. This me the Buddha accepted it and ate the honey. The monkey, watching the Buddha from atop a tree, was overjoyed. Jumping about with excitement, he fell from the tree and was run through and killed by a sharp tree stump. Aer the rains retreat the monks who had split into two groups agreed to make up their diJerences because the local lay people were not making any oJerings to them. The monks sent a representa ve to see the Buddha and invite him to go back to the city. The elephant palilayaka was heartbroken to see the Buddha go, and followed him out of the forest, and even made as if he would follow the Buddha into the city. The Buddha turned to him and said, 261


"Palilayaka. This is the limits of your territory. From here on is the territory of man, which are a great danger to animals such as you. You cannot come with me!" Palilayaka the elephant stood and roared in grief, but did not dare follow the Buddha. As soon as the Buddha was out of sight, his heart broke and he died right there. The texts state that the elephant and the monkey, aer dying at that

me, were reborn as devas in the Tava msa

heaven. [toc]

262


Picture 67. Mara invites the Buddha to pass away on his 45th rains retreat. 263


Chapter 67 On the full moon of the third month of the Buddha's 45th rains retreat, Mara approaches the Buddha and invites him to pass away; the Buddha accepts the invita"on The Buddha traveled spreading his teaching around various countries and towns for 45 years, coun ng from the day of his enlightenment. The 45th rains retreat was thus the Buddha's last rains retreat, and at that me the Buddha was 80 years old. During the last rains retreat the Buddha stayed at Velugama in the state of the town of Vesali. During that rains the Buddha was seriously ill and almost passed away. All the monks who were s ll unenlightened, even Ananda, the Buddha's personal a;endant, felt very ill at ease seeing the Buddha so ill. The Buddha told Ananda that now his body was very old, like an old worn out carriage held together with bamboo. The Buddha recovered from that illness and aer the rains retreat went with Ananda to stay under a tree at the 264


Pavala ce ya in the area of Vesali. During the day the Buddha gave an obhasa nimia to Ananda that one who had fully developed the four pathways to success (iddhipada) could extend his life for a considerable me. An obhasa nimia is in general terms "sign language". The Buddha's life was going to end that very year, so the Buddha was in ma ng to Ananda that he could invite him to extend his life for a further me, but Ananda did not invite him, even though the Buddha made his statement about the iddhipada three mes. T h e Pathamasambodhi states that since Ananda didn't catch on, the Buddha sent him oJ to sit at another tree nearby. It was then that Mara approached the Buddha and invited him to pass away (nibbana). The Buddha accepted his invita on and mentally renounced his life. To say he "renounced his life" means that he appointed the day of his death. That day was the full moon of the third lunar month. The Buddha said that three months from that day (in the middle of the sixth month) he would pass away at the town of Kusinara.

265


[toc]

266


Picture 68. The Buddha announces to Ananda that he’s renounced his life in three months. 267


Chapter 68 The Buddha announces to Ananda that he has renounced his life and in three months will pass away When the Buddha renounced his life, that is, announced the date of his passing away three months in advance, an earthquake occurred. When people heard it their hair stood on end. The Pathamasambodhi states that magical drums resounded through the heavens to announce the event. Ananda, seeing the miraculous events, came out from the foot of the tree he was staying at and approached the Buddha, asking him the reason for the miraculous earthquake. The Buddha told Ananda that there were eight reasons for an earthquake, as follows: 1. Winds [geological factors] 2. Psychic powers 3. A Bodhisa;a has come down from heaven to take birth in the human world 4. A Bodhisa;a has been born

268


5. A Buddha has been enlightened 6. A Buddha gives his Grst sermon 7. A Buddha renounces his life 8. A Buddha passes away The Buddha told Ananda that the earthquake on that day was a result of him renouncing the rest of his life. Hearing this, Ananda realized what the Buddha had been saying to him earlier in the day, how one who fully developed the four condi ons called iddhipada, which are zeal, eJort, applica on and inves ga on, if he so desired, could extend his life beyond the designated me of its expiry. Realizing this, Ananda formally invited the Buddha to use the four iddhipada to extend his life, but the Buddha refused. This happened three

mes. The Buddha

explained that he had given the obhasa

nimia

(in ma ons) to Ananda to invite him to extend his life many mes, and in many places, and if Ananda had been mindful and invited him then he would have accepted the invita on. In ordinary terms, the Buddha was telling Ananda that it was "too late," because the Buddha has

269


already declared that he had renounced the remainder of his life and would pass away. [toc]

270


Picture 69. The Buddha turns to view Vesali for the last me aer returning from alms. 271


Chapter 69 The next morning, coming back from alms round, the Buddha turns to view Vesali for the last "me Aer the Buddha had refused Venerable Ananda's invita on to extend his life span a li;le longer, and not to pass away, he, together with Ananda, journeyed on to Kutagarasala in the Great Forest in Vesali. Kutagarasala was a hall with a gabled roof, like a palace. The Great Forest was a very big virgin forest. Many of the Buddhist scriptures are in agreement in that this forest covered a huge area. To the north it extended to the Himalayas. In the Buddha's me the forest was the habitat of many asce cs, sages and monks. The Buddha and the monks had lived here before and had visited here many mes. On this occasion, when the Buddha reached the forest he called a mee ng of the Order, because by that me the news of his renouncing the remainder of his life span had already spread. The Buddha gave a teaching to the monks who had not yet become enlightened to strive

272


with diligence, not to be heedless and leave themselves open to regret when later the Buddha was no longer with them. "All people, young and old, wise and foolish, rich and poor, must die in the end. All clay pots that come from the po;er's wheel, large and small, baked or raw, regardless of size, inevitably go to destruc on. Thus are the lives of people and all kinds of beings in this world." These are the words spoken by the Buddha to the monks at the Great Forest. The next morning the Buddha and Venerable Ananda went for alms round in the town of Vesali. As they were leaving the town the Buddha did something he had never done before in any town, and that was to turn around and take a look at the town of Vesali. He said, "Ananda, this vision of Vesali is the last for me. I will be seeing it no more." Then he said, "Let us journey on to Bhandagama." Bhandagama was a small district on the way to Kusinara, which was the town the Buddha was to pass away in. 273


[toc]

274


Picture 70. The sixth lunar month, the Buddha takes his last meal at Cunda’s house. 275


Chapter 70 On the morning of the full moon of the sixth lunar month, the Buddha takes a meal of pork, his last meal, at the house of Cunda The Buddha, together with the company of monks, journeyed from the area of Vesali by stages to the town of Kusinara, the place he had designated as the place for his passing away, reaching Pava on the 14th day of the waxing moon on the sixth lunar month. It was one day before his passing away. He went to stay in a mango grove belonging to Cunda Kammarapu;a. Cunda was the son of a goldsmith. He heard that the Buddha with a company of monks had gone to stay in his mango grove, and so went there to listen to a teaching. Aer listening to the teaching Cunda invited the Buddha and the company of monks to take the next day's meal at his house.

276


On the next morning Cunda oJered food to the Buddha and the monks at his house. One of the foods Cunda oJered to the Buddha was known as sukaramaddava. The Buddhist commentaries and teachers have not reached agreement as to just what this sukaramaddava actually was. Some say it was "piglet" (transla ng literally from sukara, "pig." and maddava, "young" or "baby"). Some believe it was a kind of mushroom, while others say it was a certain kind of Gne delicacy that Indian people used to cook specially for people for whom they had the highest respect, such as dei es. It was a food even more reGned than milk rice. The Buddha told Cunda to oJer that sukaramaddava only to him, while the other food was to be oJered to the other monks. And when the Buddha had Gnished ea ng the meal, he summoned Cunda and told him to bury the sukaramaddava remaining from the Buddha's meal in a hole, because no one other than a Buddha could digest it. Then the Buddha inspired Cunda with a teaching, causing him to rejoice in his own meritorious ac ons, and took leave of him to travel on to Kusinara. 277


[toc]

278


Picture 71. Traveling to Kusinara, the Buddha is thirsty and has Ananda fetch water for him. 279


Chapter 71 Traveling to Kusinara, the Buddha is thirsty and has Ananda fetch water for him On the way to Kusinara, aer taking the meal of sukaramaddava at Cunda's house, the Buddha came down heavily with the illness known as pakkhandhikabadha and almost passed away right there, before the designated me, but with an eJort of will he subdued the illness with his perfec on of pa ent endurance (khan paramita). Pakkhandhikabadha is a kind of illness that arises only in Buddhas, in which there is internal bleeding. It has been ventured that the illness may have been internal hemorrhoids. Because of the illness, the Buddha was put under a great amount of diWculty, but he maintained mindfulness and clear comprehension and was not perturbed by it. They journeyed to a place along the way where there was a small river with some water Mowing in it. Here the Buddha stopped and rested at the roadside, siTng under 280


a tree, and told Ananda to fold his outer robe (sanga) into four layers and spread it under the tree. There he sat and rested. He asked Ananda to fetch some water for him from the river. "I will drink a li;le to quench my thirst," the Buddha said. Venerable Ananda pointed out that the water in this river was very shallow. Moreover, a caravan of about 500 oxcarts had just crossed over it, the hooves of the ca;le having s rred up the water and made it muddy. He said to the Buddha, "Not far from here there is another river called the Kukkutanadi, with cool, clear, fresh water, and a shady place to rest. May the Blessed One please go there." The Buddha refused Ananda's invita on three

mes, so

Ananda took the Buddha's bowl down to scoop some water from the river. Seeing the water, he was amazed and exclaimed to himself: "The power of the Buddha is truly amazing! The river was so muddy, and yet now that I've come close to scoop out some water, the water has become clear." Then Ananda took the bowl of water to the Buddha.

281


[toc]

282


Picture 72. Pukkusapu;a the Mallian passes by and oJers Gne golden robes.

283


Chapter 72 Pukkusapu%a the Mallian passes by and o7ers 3ne golden robes While the Buddha was siTng under the shade of the tree by the side of the river, along the road to Kusinara, a man by the name of Pukkusa, son of a Mallian lord, was traveling from Kusinara to Pava. When he reached the spot where the Buddha was res ng he stopped to rest, too, and went up to greet the Buddha. The Buddha gave him a teaching on peace. Listening to the talk, Pukkusa was Glled with faith, and as a result oJered two lengths of singivanna cloth. Singivanna cloth is delicate cloth, Gnely woven, and of golden color, "singi" meaning "gold." He explained to the Buddha that one of these singivanna cloths was an upper robe, the other a lower robe. They were of special cloth, especially Gne, and he had worn them on occasion. He had cherished them, but now he was oJering them to the Buddha. 284


The Buddha took one of the robes, but the other he told Pukkusa to oJer to Ananda, which Pukkusa accordingly did. He then bowed to the Buddha and took his leave to con nue his journey. Aer he had le, Ananda took the robe oJered to him and oJered it to the Buddha. The Buddha wrapped one of the robes around his waist and the other over his shoulders. As soon as he had put the robes on his body seemed to shine with a glow and radiance unlike any that Ananda had ever seen before, and Ananda remarked to the Buddha that it was truly an amazing sight. The Buddha said to Ananda that there were only two mes when the Buddha's body shone with peculiar radiance, and they are when he is newly enlightened, and on the day before his passing away (parinibbana), which was today. Then he said, "Lo, Ananda, at the end of this night I will pass away. Come, let us journey on to Kusinara." Ananda received the Buddha's instruc on and informed the monks who were traveling with them to prepare to journey on. 285


[toc]

286


Picture 73. Ananda prepare a place for the Buddha to lie down.

287


Chapter 72 Arriving at the sal forest in Kusinara, the Buddha has Ananda prepare a place for him to lie down between the twin sal trees The Buddha and the company of monks journeyed to the outskirts of the town of Kusinara, arriving there in the evening. They then crossed the Hiranava

River and

entered the town's park, known as Salavanodyana. Most of the ci es in the Buddha's

me had groves, like

today's public parks, and they were used by all the people and rulers of the city. At Rajagaha there was the park known as La;hivana, the park of the palmyra trees; Kapilava;hu, where the Buddha was born, had the Lumbini park. Kusinara had the Salavanodyana. Salavanodyana was situated north of the city. It had two large trees known as sal trees, and the park was named aer those sal trees-Salavanodyana. Arriving at the park, the Buddha instructed Ananda to prepare a place for lying down, with his head poin ng to 288


the north. The bed was to be between the twin sal trees. The Buddha said, "I am aYicted and very red. I wish to lie down and subdue my aYic on." Ananda made up a bed and laid a sleeping cloth on it, and the Buddha went to it and lay down, on his right side, his head pointed to the north, his feet lying beside each other, establishing mindfulness and clear comprehension on taking his "seyyavasana" (his last sleep), also known as "anuthanaseyya," the "lying down from which there is no rising. " The Pathamasambodhi states: "At that me, it was not the season for blossoms, but the twin sal trees blossomed profusely from their roots right up to their tops, and on every branch. And those sal Mowers fell down as oJerings to the Buddha. Magical heavenly mandarava Mowers, sandal powder and perfumes fell from the sky, and celes al music was heard, a great fanfare in honor of the Buddha before his passing away." [toc]

289


290


Picture 74. Venerable Ananda stands holding the door bolt and cries over the Blessed One. 291


Chapter 74 Venerable Ananda stands holding the door bolt and cries over the Blessed One Ananda was the Buddha's personal a;endant. Many other monks had Glled this posi on before him, but none of them had performed that duty for very long before taking leave of the Buddha. The monk who a;ended on the Buddha for the longest me, up to the me of his passing away, was Ananda. In terms of their bloodlines, Ananda was related to the Buddha as a younger cousin, as his father was, in ordinary parlance, the younger brother of the Buddha's father. Throughout the me he had served the Buddha, Ananda had accompanied him everywhere, a;ending to his needs faultlessly. It was for this reason that he had no

me to

a;end to his own prac ce. All the monks who had ordained with him (except for Devada;a) had become Arahats already, but Ananda had only a;ained Stream Entry. 292


As the Buddha came closer to passing away, Ananda's du es had increased. He was

red both physically and

mentally, and he felt confused. When he heard the Buddha telling the Order about his passing away, Ananda couldn't contain his sadness and sorrow at losing the Buddha, so he stole away from the Buddha's presence, went into a nearby dwelling (vihara), and stood at the door of the building, his hand holding the door bolt, and cried, wailing that he was s ll only a low-level noble one [had a;ained only a low level of enlightenment], had not yet a;ained Arahatship, and here the Buddha, who was both his Teacher and his older cousin, was leaving him. The Buddha no ced that Ananda had disappeared from the crowd in a;endance, so he asked the monks about him. Knowing where he had gone, the Buddha sent for him and gave him a Dhamma teaching, admonishing Ananda not to grieve. At one me the Buddha said to Ananda, "You are one with merit. Do not be heedless. Not long aer I have passed away, you will a;ain enlightenment." (Venerable Ananda

293


a;ained enlightenment three months aer the Buddha's passing away.) [toc]

294


Picture 75. The Buddha gives the wanderer Subhadda a teaching. 295


Chapter 75 The Buddha gives a teaching to Subhadda the wanderer, leading him to enlightenment, making him the last of the Buddha's direct disciples When Ananda had go;en over his grief and crying he went into the city on the Buddha's orders and announced to the Mallian lords of Kusinara that the Buddha was going to pass away at the end of this very night. He announced that whoever wanted to see the Buddha should hurry, so as not to be one who regrets later on. The Mallian lords who were mee ng in the town, when they heard the news of the Buddha's passing away, proceeded in great number with oJerings to the Buddha, each of them weeping and expressing his grief in various ways. Among those who went to see the Buddha was a wanderer named Subhadda. He was a monk from another religion. [toc] 296


Subhadda the wanderer approached the Buddha aer the Mallian lords had done so, and told Ananda that he wanted to see the Buddha to ask some ques ons that had been plaguing him for a long

me. Ananda refused to

allow him in, saying that the Buddha was not to be disturbed as the

me for his passing away was

approaching. At that me the Buddha heard the conversa on between Ananda and Subhadda the wanderer, and told Ananda to allow Subhadda to approach him. GeTng the opportunity to approach the Buddha, Subhadda asked the ques ons that had been bothering him. One of the ques ons was whether there were people who a;ained the Path and Fruit (enlightenment) outside of Buddhism or not. The Buddha answered that there were not, then he gave a detailed teaching. On listening to the teaching Subhadda the wanderer was Glled with faith and asked to become a monk under the Buddha. The Buddha told him that normally for people coming from other religions there was a proba onary period to undergo for four months before they could 297


become monks. Subhadda answered that he would be willing to live under such a proba on for four years, not just four months. The Buddha then gave special permission, having the Order ordain Subhadda the wanderer on that very day. Subhadda the wanderer was thus the last direct disciple of the Buddha. [toc]

298


Picture 76. The Buddha exalts the Teaching and Disciple before passing away.

299


Chapter 76 The Buddha exalts the Teaching and Disciple as the teacher aGer him, gives his 3nal teaching, and passes away Just before passing away-i.e., aer accep ng Subhadda the wanderer-the Buddha gave a teaching to the Order. That teaching comprised his last words. It dealt with many things. One of the subjects of the teaching was the irregulari es that existed in the way monks referred to each other, using the words "avuso" and "bhante." Avuso is equal to the Thai word "khun" [a form of address to equals], while bhante is equal to the Thai word "tahn" [a form of address to superiors]. The Buddha said that those monks who were older in age in terms of the number of their years in the Order were to call those monks ordained aer them "avuso" [khun], while those who were younger in age in terms of years in the Order were to call those ordained before them "bhante" [tahn].

300


Then the Buddha gave permission for all the monks to ask about any remaining doubts they may have about the teaching so that they would not be disappointed later, saying they had no chance to ask. It seems, according to the Mahaparinibbana Sua, that not one monk had a doubt to put to the Buddha. Before passing away, the Buddha had not appointed any monk to be the leader of the Order aer him like leaders of other religions did. None of the monks had asked the Buddha about this, but the Buddha le word with the monks clearly before passing away that no monk should understand that aer the Buddha had passed away the religion would have no leader (sasada). The Buddha said to Ananda, "Listen Ananda, the Dhamma (Teaching) and Vinaya (Discipline) that I have explained and established, they are to be your leader aer the Tathagata passes away." Then the Buddha gave his Gnal words: Monks, I now warn you. All things that arise in this world are of the nature to decay and pass away. You must all apply yourselves to

301


your tasks for the beneGt to yourself and the beneGt of others and bring them to comple on with heedfulness." Aer that the Buddha spoke no further words un l his passing away at the end of the night of the 15th day of the waxing moon, on the sixth lunar month, or the month of visakha, underneath the twin sal trees in full blossom. [toc]

302


Picture 77. The unenlightened monk disciples cry on the Buddha’s passing away. 303


Chapter 77 The unenlightened monk disciples, hearing of the Buddha's passing away, break out crying The picture we see here is of a scene just aer the Buddha's passing away, when Maha Kassapa was journeying to a;end on the Buddha. Before the Buddha's passing away, the many monks who had gone out to spread the Buddha's teaching in diJerent states and ci es, hearing that the Buddha was to pass away at Kusinara, made their diJerent ways toward that city. Those who were nearby arrived in me to see the Buddha, but those who were farther away didn't get there in me. Venerable Maha Kassapa was a senior monk who the Buddha had once praised very highly as being of equal honor in some respects to himself. He was journeying together with many hundreds of monks. Arriving at Pava the sun was extremely hot, so he led the monks to rest for a

me under the shade of some trees. Just then, Maha

Kassapa saw an asce c of another sect walking towards

304


them from the direc on of Kusinara. In his hand was a mandarava Mower. Maha Kassapa asked him for news of the Buddha. The asce c informed them that the Samana Gotama had passed away seven days before, and he held up the mandarava Mower to show them, saying he had picked it up from the place where the Buddha had passed away. According to legend, the mandarava Mower is a Mower from heaven which only Mowers and blossoms at mes when portentous things are happening in the world. At that moment, two responses arose among the monks who were traveling with Maha Kassapa. Some of the monks, those who had a;ained Arahatship, were silent, reMec ng that the Buddha had passed away. The rest of the monks, who were unenlightened, could not contain themselves, some of them crying, some of them exclaiming out loud, some of them throwing up their arms and wailing, some of them throwing themselves down onto the ground and writhing about. The Mahaparinibbana Sua records that the way those monks writhed about on the ground was like one who had just had both legs cut oJ.

305


But there was one monk, by name of Subhadda (not the Subhadda who was the Buddha's last direct disciple), who had ordained late in life, who went up to those stricken monks and tried to comfort them, saying, "Sirs, sirs, why do you wail? The Buddha has passed away, that is a very good thing. When the Buddha was alive we couldn't do what we wanted to do, everything was an oJense (apat). Now we are be;er oJ. The Buddha's passing away is a blessing." Seeing this, Venerable Maha Kassapa could not help feeling heavy-hearted, knowing that the Buddha had only just passed away seven days ago, but already "thorns" had arisen in the religion. Then he led the monks onward to Kusinara in order to get there in me to pay tribute to the Buddha's body. [toc]

306


Picture 78. Maha Kassapa pays his last respects before ligh ng up the funeral pyre.

307


Chapter 78 As soon as Maha Kassapa pays his last respects, a ?ame from heaven appears, ligh"ng up the funeral pyre Once the Buddha had passed away, the Order of monks and the civilian body, the lords of Kusinara, performed a ceremony of tribute to the Buddha's body for six days. On the seventh day they led the body by procession to the north of the city, going through the city center, and placed the body on the Makutabandhana Ce ya, which was situated to the northeast of the city, for the crema on. The day appointed for the crema on was the eighth day of the waning moon in the sixth lunar month, a day remembered today in Thailand as ahami puja, "oJering on the eighth" day. The Buddha's pall bearers were called Mallapamokkha. There were eight of them, each large and powerfully built. Mallapamokkha means "chief wrestler." The Buddha's body was wrapped in layers of new cloth, said in the Pathamasambodhi to number 500. This can be 308


interpreted to mean that there were many layers of cloth. Each layer of cloth was separated from the next by co;on wool, and the funeral oWcials had it placed into a golden coWn Glled with fragrant oils and sealed oJ. This was then placed on the pyre, composed of many diJerent kinds of fragrant woods. At the appointed

me the oWcials lit Gres at all four

corners of the pyre. The legend tells us that no ma;er how much they tried to light the Gre, it would not ignite. So the oWcials asked Venerable Anuruddha (a younger cousin of the Buddha and an Arahat disciple). He informed them that the devas were not allowing the Gre to be lit because they wanted to give me to Maha Kassapa, who was at that me s ll traveling to Kusinara, to pay tribute to the body. When Maha Kassapa did in

me arrive

together with his company of monks, no sooner had he bowed to the Buddha's body than a great Gre created by the devas Mared up. Interpre ng this, we may say that the civilian oWcials and the Order heard news that Maha Kassapa was on his way

309


and was almost there, so they delayed the ligh ng of the Gre. Eventually the Gre burned all of the Buddha's body, leaving only scraps of bone (referred to as ahi), hair, teeth, and another set of robes. The Mallian lords sprinkled fragrant water over the embers on the pyre and collected the Buddha's relics (dhatu) to be kept in the Santhagara Hall, their town hall. Surrounding and guarding the town hall were lines of fully armed soldiers, and there were dancing, music, singing and Mowers of many a kind, and a fes val las ng seven days was held to honor the relics. [toc]

310


Picture 79. Dona the brahmin divides the relics to the brahmins and lords of eight ci es. 311


Chapter 79 Dona the brahmin divides the relics to the brahmins and lords of eight ci"es The news that the Buddha had passed away and that the Mallian lords and Order of monks had already performed the crema on spread to the kings of the neighboring ci es. The kings of those ci es immediately sent messengers with royal decrees to the city of Kusinara. There were altogether seven ambassadorial par es from seven ci es, both large, such as Rajagaha in Magadha, where the Buddha had Grst spread his teaching, and smaller, such as Kapilava;hu, the place of the Buddha's birth. All seven par es on arriving in Kusinara presented their royal decrees to the lords of Malla. The subject of those decrees was that the kings of those seven ci es were asking for a por on of the relics to be taken and placed into large stupas for worship in their ci es. The Mallian lords answered Grmly that they would not give

312


them because the Buddha had passed away in their own town. Thus the relics belonged to them. Since the Mallian lords refused to share the relics, the kings of those seven ci es refused to accept their refusal, and were determined to get their shares. It looked as if a war was going to erupt over the distribu on of the Buddha's relics. Fortunately a brahmin named Dona put an end to the conten on. Dona lived in Kusinara. According to his biography he was a clever speaker and was held in high esteem by the people of the city. He was well known for his honor, performing a duty something like the secretary of the United Na ons nowadays-i.e., he put a

mely stop to imminent war, by saying at the

mee ng: "The Buddha was one who praised pa ence and harmony. So why are we going to argue, Gght and go to war over his relics? Let us divide them equally. Then the Buddha's relics will be spread widely and lead to beneGt for a great number of people." The mee ng accepted his words, and Dona the brahmin performed the duty of dividing up the Buddha's relics into 313


eight equal por ons, using a tumba, a golden scale, to measure them. He gave the kings of the seven ci es seven of the por ons, while another por on went to the lords of Kusinara. Then all those kings and lords took the relics and put them into reliquaries to be taken and placed in stupas in their respec ve ci es. Dona the brahmin, who did the dividing, asked for the scale used to divide the relics as a memento, and put it into another stupa. Thus the division of the Buddha's relics was carried out successfully. [toc]

314


Picture 80. Venerable Maha Kassapa and noble monks convene a great council. 315


Chapter 80 Venerable Maha Kassapa and the noble monks convene a great council [sangayana] to preserve the religion up to the present day The

me of the crema on of the Buddha's body at

Kusinara was one when monks had come together in greater numbers than any other

me. Thus when the

crema on was complete, Venerable Maha Kassapa, who was the senior monk there, called a mee ng of the Order, the Grst, at Kusinara. The subject of the mee ng was the sangayana, the review and authoriza on of the teaching of Dhamma and Vinaya that the Buddha had given. Maha Kassapa brought to the council's a;en on the ma;er of the "thorns in the religion" that he had seen with his own eyes on his way to Kusinara, when the old monk rejoiced at the Buddha's passing away. The mee ng selected three senior monks to be the chair of the council. They were Venerable Maha Kassapa, 316


Venerable Ananda and Venerable Upali. In this, Maha Kassapa was to be the chairman with the duty of choosing the number of monks to a;end the council. Maha Kassapa chose altogether 500 monks for the council and chose the city of Rajagaha in Magadha as the venue. The me of the council was to be from the Grst day of the rains retreat onwards, or in three months me from that day. Aer that, the monks who had been chosen to par cipate in the Sangayana traveled by stages to Rajagaha. Arriving there, the Order asked for assistance from the city in the form of repairs to dwellings for the monks, and prepara on of the place for the council, which was a cave in a hill just outside the city. The Order of monks asked for assistance from the civilian authori es in forbidding disciples of other sects and monks other than those invited to the council from entering the city of Rajagaha for the en re dura on of the me of the council. Thus was in order to prevent obstacles which may arise, which might have been a cause for the council not proceeding smoothly. [toc] 317


THE END

~~~Oo~~~

Copyright © 2002 Mahidol University All rights reserved. Mahidol University Compu ng Center, Rama VI Road, Rajathewi, Bangkok 10400, THAILAND Tel. (662) 3544333

(Text: h;ps://www.mahidol.ac.th/budsir/MenuEng.htm Pictures: h;p://84000.org/ pitaka/picture/f00.html)

318

Dhamma Dana – A Gi of Dhamma Copyright © 2002 Mahidol University All rights reserved. Mahidol University Compu ng Center, Rama VI Road, Rajathewi, Bangkok 10400, THAILAND Tel. (662) 354-4333

84000.Org & Mahidol University (2016) an Illustrated Life of the Buddha

Recommend Documents