Part One

The Dog

1.2[F.2.a] When the Blessed One was in Śrāvastī there lived a certain householder, prosperous and wealthy, a person of vast and magnificent means, endowed with the wealth of Vaiśravaṇa‍—with wealth to rival Vaiśravaṇa’s‍—who was fond of philosophical extremists.

1.3When the time came for him to marry he took a wife, and they enjoyed themselves and coupled. As they enjoyed themselves and coupled, one day his wife conceived. After nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful, with glowing, golden skin, a well-rounded head, long arms, a broad brow, a fine and prominent nose, and eyebrows that met. At the elaborate feast celebrating his birth they named him according to their clan.

1.4They reared him on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and he flourished like a lotus in a lake. Once he was able to walk, his father brought home a little puppy for him to play with. Any time the puppy saw philosophical extremists, she would run and bite at them, sometimes tearing their robes. But when she saw Buddhist monastics she would trot up, lick their feet, and circumambulate them clockwise while wagging her tail.

1.5The buddhas, the blessed ones, teachers of the one path to be traversed, with mastery over wisdom and the two types of knowable objects, in command of the three kinds of sterling equanimity, fearless by means of the fourfold fearlessness, [F.2.b] freed from migration through the five destinies, keen in the six sense bases, practiced in the seven limbs of enlightenment, focused on the eight liberations, absorbed in the nine successive meditative absorptions, possessing all ten of the ten powers, whose proclamations are the great roaring of a perfect lion, by nature regard the world with their buddha eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night.

1.6These are their thoughts as they look out in wisdom: “Who is in decline? Who will flourish? Who is destitute? Who is in a dreadful state? Who is being harmed? Who is destitute, in a dreadful state, and being harmed? Who is veering toward the lower realms? Who is descending through the lower realms? Who has descended to the lower realms? Whom shall I pull up from the lower realms, and establish in the resultant state of heaven and liberation? Whom, mired in misdeeds, shall I lift up by the hand? Whom, lacking the seven jewels of the noble ones, shall I lead to command of the seven jewels of the noble ones? Whom, not having produced roots of virtue, shall I lead to produce them? Whom, having already produced roots of virtue, shall I lead to ripen their roots of virtue? Whom, having already ripened their roots of virtue, shall I slice open with the blade of wisdom? For whom shall I cause this world, adorned with a buddha’s presence, to be fruitful?”

1.8Just as the buddhas, the blessed ones, regard the world with their buddha eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night‍—so too the great disciples of the buddhas regard the world with disciples’ eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night. When Venerable Śāriputra regarded the world with his disciple’s eyes, he knew that the time had come to tame the householder and his retinue. In the morning he donned his lower garment and Dharma robes, and, carrying his alms bowl, he went for alms in Śrāvastī. [F.3.a]

1.9As he went for alms, Śāriputra eventually came to the home of that householder. As soon as the dog saw him from a distance, she jumped up and ran right up to Śāriputra, just as she had with the other monks. She very respectfully licked his feet and circumambulated him three times while wagging her tail.

1.10The householder saw all this and thought, “My! This one has fallen so low as to possess the body of a dog. If even she thinks to pay him such esteem, then surely this monk is a great being. I should invite this monk and offer him food.” Reflecting in this way he approached Venerable Śāriputra, bowed down at Śāriputra’s feet, and said, “Lord Śāriputra, whatever food you need, please take it here.” Venerable Śāriputra assented by his silence.

1.11Understanding that by his silence Venerable Śāriputra had given his assent, the householder then prepared a seat for Venerable Śāriputra and said, “Venerable Śāriputra, please sit upon the seat that I have prepared,” whereupon Venerable Śāriputra sat on the seat prepared for him.

1.12Once the householder knew that Venerable Śāriputra was comfortably seated, by his own hand he contented him with many good, wholesome foods, proffering all that he wished. After he had contented him with many different kinds of good, wholesome foods by his own hand, and had proffered all that he wished, once he knew that Venerable Śāriputra had finished eating and that his bowl had been taken away and his hands washed, he sat before him to listen to the Dharma.

1.13Venerable Śāriputra directly apprehended the thoughts, habitual tendencies, temperament, and nature of the householder and his retinue, and taught them the Dharma accordingly.

1.14When they heard it, the householder and his retinue destroyed with the thunderbolt of wisdom the twenty high peaks of the mountain of views concerning the transitory collection, [F.3.b] and manifested the resultant state of stream entry. Having seen the truths, they went for refuge and took the fundamental precepts. After Venerable Śāriputra had instructed, encouraged, inspired, and delighted the householder with a discourse on the Dharma, he rose from his seat and departed.

1.15Having seen the truths, the householder began to give gifts and make merit such that his home became like an open well for those in need. The householder invited Śāriputra to take food at his home again and again. Venerable Śāriputra and the householder would give food to the dog, and the householder would sit before Venerable Śāriputra to listen to the Dharma. The dog too would sit down before Venerable Śāriputra and listen to the Dharma. The householder reflected, “Such good things I have realized, and all on account of this dog!” Realizing this, he took very good care of her.

1.16One day the dog fell ill, and Śāriputra said to her, “And so it is, child: All conditioned things are impermanent. All conditioned things are suffering. All phenomena are selfless. Nirvāṇa is peace. Let your mind be filled with joy at the thought of me, and you may even be released from rebirth in the animal realm.” With that, Venerable Śāriputra departed.

1.17Not long after he had gone, the dog died, filled with joy at the thought of Venerable Śāriputra. After she died, she took rebirth in the same house, in the womb of the householder’s foremost wife.

When the dog died, Venerable Śāriputra returned to the house, where the householder informed him, “Lord Śāriputra, our dog has passed away.”

1.18“Keep the dog’s body in a secluded place,” Venerable Śāriputra instructed, “for those bones will be of benefit to her later on.” [F.4.a]

“As you wish, Lord Śāriputra,” said the householder, and the householder put the dog’s dead body in a place where no one would see it.

1.19After nine or ten months had passed, the householder’s wife gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful, with glowing, golden skin and a well-rounded head, long arms, a broad brow, a fine and prominent nose, and eyebrows that met. At the elaborate feast celebrating her birth they named her according to their clan. They reared her on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and she flourished like a lotus in a lake.

1.20When she had grown, Venerable Śāriputra told her, “Child, sit and listen to the Dharma,” but she had become arrogant on account of her well-proportioned shape and youthfulness, and was so distracted that she was unable to listen to the Dharma. One day Venerable Śāriputra recognized how to uncover her potential. He set the bones of the dog in front of her, and blessed the young woman in such a way that she remembered her former lives.

1.21Recalling her former lives, the young woman was overcome with grief and thought, “Look at the difficult task Noble Śāriputra has done for me! Thanks to him I have been freed from the realms of animal birth.” At this thought she was filled with happiness, and sat before Venerable Śāriputra to listen to the Dharma.

1.22Then Venerable Śāriputra, directly apprehending her thoughts, habitual tendencies, temperament, and nature, taught her the Dharma accordingly. Hearing it, the young woman destroyed with the thunderbolt of wisdom the twenty high peaks of the mountain of views concerning the transitory collection, and manifested the resultant state of stream entry right where she sat.

1.23Having seen the truths, she rose from her seat, drew down the right shoulder of her upper garment, bowed to Venerable Śāriputra with her palms together, [F.4.b] and implored him, “Lord Śāriputra, if permitted, I wish to go forth in the Dharma and Vinaya so well spoken, complete my novitiate, and achieve full ordination. I too wish to practice the holy life in the presence of the Blessed One.”

1.24Venerable Śāriputra told her parents of her faith and then presented her to Mahā­prajāpatī, who led her to go forth as a novice, ordained her, and gave her instruction. Casting away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, she manifested arhatship. As an arhat, free of the attachments of the three realms, her mind regarded gold no differently than filth, and the palms of her hands as like space itself. She became cool like wet sandalwood. Her insight crushed ignorance like an eggshell. She achieved the insights, superknowledges, and discriminations. She had no regard for worldly profit, passion, or acclaim. She became an object of offering, veneration, and respectful address by Indra, Upendra, and the other gods.

1.25Now an arhat, she remembered Venerable Śāriputra’s previous kindness and approached him again and again, prostrating herself at his feet and saying, “Thanks to Noble Śāriputra, I was freed from the realms of animal birth and achieved great virtues. It is all due to the difficult task the noble one has done for me.”

1.26Many monks overheard her saying this over and over again, and immediately asked Venerable Śāriputra, “Venerable Śāriputra, what is this nun thinking, saying this over and over again?”

“Did you see the puppy at the householder’s home?” Venerable Śāriputra asked.

“Yes, Lord Śāriputra, we did,” they replied.

1.27“The very same one died filled with joy at the thought of me and was reborn in the home of that householder. [F.5.a] Now that she remembers her former lives, she speaks these words to me to acknowledge that previous kindness.”

1.28The monks inquired of the Blessed One, “Lord, what was the action this nun performed that ripened into her birth as a dog? What did she do after she died and took rebirth as a human being that she pleased and did not displease the Blessed One, went forth in the Blessed One’s doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship?”

1.29The Blessed One replied, “Monks, it was partly her past actions, and it is partly her present actions as well.”

“Lord, what action did she take in the past?”

1.30“Monks, in times past, in this fortunate eon, when people lived as long as twenty thousand years and the tathāgata, the arhat, the totally and completely awakened buddha possessed of insight and perfect conduct, the sugata, the knower of the world, the tamer of persons, the charioteer, the unsurpassed one, the teacher of humans and gods, the blessed buddha known as Kāśyapa was in the world, there lived a certain householder in the city of Vārāṇasī.

1.31“One day a child was born to him who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. As she grew up she gained faith in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa and asked her parents if she could go forth. Once she had gone forth, she studied the Tripiṭaka and became a proponent of the Dharma with all the eloquence of her wisdom and freedom.

1.32“Having acquired provisions of clothing, food, bedding, a seat, and medicines for the sick, she thought, ‘How wonderful! With all the profit and acclaim I’ve gained, I can see to the welfare of fellow practitioners of the holy life.’ And she served the twofold saṅgha in accordance with the Dharma.

1.33“One day when she was busy, she [F.5.b] asked for help from a group of nuns who were on the paths of learning and no more to learn. They replied, ‘We cannot abandon our virtuous works to accomplish your task.’

1.34“When she heard this she bristled with fury. Seething, the nun shouted at them, ‘You’re like dogs! All I do is look after you and fill your stomachs‍—can you not help me for even a moment?’

1.35“Thereupon the nuns thought, ‘It’s not right for this emotionally afflicted person, so abased, to circle in saṃsāra and meet with great suffering.’ Reflecting in this way, they thought, ‘We have to help her,’ and asked, ‘Do you know who we are? And do you know who you yourself are?’

“ ‘I know,’ she replied, ‘that you have gone forth, as have I.’

1.36“The nuns responded, ‘Though as your elder sisters we have gone forth as you have, you are an ordinary person, bound by every fetter, whereas we have accomplished our task. So acknowledge your mistake as such. Otherwise you are certain to roam in saṃsāra and meet with great suffering.’

“Hearing their words, the nun was flooded with regret, and with renewed vigor she offered her respectful service to the twofold saṅgha and practiced pure conduct all her life.

1.37“At the time of her death, she prayed, ‘Oh, but by the root of virtue of my having gone forth in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa, my lifetime of practicing pure conduct, and the service I rendered in accord with the Dharma, wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth. May I be well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. May I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. [F.6.a] Going forth in his doctrine alone, may I cast away all afflictive emotions and manifest arhatship. May I not meet with the results of the act of speaking harshly to those fellow practitioners of the holy life.’

1.38“O monks, what do you think? The one who was that nun then is now this nun. The ripening of the act of speaking harshly to those fellow practitioners of the holy life caused her to be reborn as a dog for five hundred lifetimes. At the time of her death she prayed, ‘Wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth. May I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. Going forth in his doctrine alone, may I cast away all afflictive emotions and manifest arhatship.’ And that action ripened such that she was born into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth.

1.39“So it is, monks, now that I myself have become the very equal of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa‍—equal in strength, equal in deeds, and equal in skillful means‍—that she has pleased me, not displeased me, go forth in my very doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship. These were her past actions.

1.40“You may ask, ‘What are her present actions?’ Born as a dog, she was filled with joy at the thought of Śāriputra. Because of this she took birth among humans. These are her present actions.”

The Story of Little Eyes

1.41When the Blessed One was in Śrāvastī there lived a certain householder, prosperous and wealthy, a person of vast and magnificent means, [F.6.b] endowed with the wealth of Vaiśravaṇa‍—with wealth to rival Vaiśravaṇa’s. When the time came for him to marry he took a wife, and as they enjoyed themselves and coupled, one day his wife conceived. After nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. At the elaborate feast celebrating his birth they named him according to their clan.

1.42They reared him on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and once he was able to walk, his father brought home a puppy and gave it to the child to play with. The child taught the puppy how to eat, and when the puppy had grown, he went out to the road and many others fed him as well.

1.43The buddhas, the blessed ones, teachers of the one path to be traversed, with mastery over wisdom and the two types of knowable objects, in command of the three kinds of sterling equanimity, fearless by means of the fourfold fearlessness, freed from migration through the five destinies, keen in the six sense bases, practiced in the seven limbs of enlightenment, focused on the eight liberations, absorbed in the nine successive meditative absorptions, possessing all ten of the ten powers, whose proclamations are the great roaring of a perfect lion, by nature regard the world with their buddha eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night.

1.44These are their thoughts as they look out in wisdom: “Who is in decline? Who will flourish? Who is destitute? Who is in a dreadful state? Who is being harmed? Who is destitute, in a dreadful state, and being harmed? Who is veering toward the lower realms? Who is descending through the lower realms? Who has descended to the lower realms? Whom shall I pull up from the lower realms, and establish in the resultant state of heaven and liberation? Whom, mired in misdeeds, shall I lift up by the hand? Whom, lacking the seven jewels of the noble ones, [F.7.a] shall I lead to command of the seven jewels of the noble ones? Whom, not having produced roots of virtue, shall I lead to produce them? Whom, having already produced roots of virtue, shall I lead to ripen their roots of virtue? Whom, having already ripened their roots of virtue, shall I slice open with the blade of wisdom? For whom shall I cause this world, adorned with a buddha’s presence, to be fruitful?”

1.46Just as the blessed buddhas regard the world with their buddha eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night‍—so too the great listeners regard the world with their listener’s eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night. When Venerable Śāriputra regarded the world with his listener’s eyes, he knew that the time had come to tame the householder and his retinue.

1.47In the morning he donned his lower garment and Dharma robes, and, carrying his alms bowl, he went for alms in Śrāvastī. As he went for alms, Venerable Śāriputra eventually came to the home of that householder. The dog caught sight of Venerable Śāriputra, ran with all his might, bit him, and tore his Dharma robes. The householder saw this and immediately stopped the dog. When he had washed Venerable Śāriputra’s wounds and wrapped them with cloth, he bowed down at his feet and implored him, “Lord Śāriputra, please take your food here.” Venerable Śāriputra assented to the householder by his silence.

1.48Understanding that by his silence Venerable Śāriputra had given his assent, the householder then prepared a seat for him and said, “Venerable Śāriputra, please sit upon the seat that I have prepared,” and Venerable Śāriputra [F.7.b] sat on the seat prepared for him. Once the householder knew that Venerable Śāriputra was comfortably seated, by his own hand he contented him with many good, wholesome foods, proffering all that he wished.

1.49After the householder had contented him with many different kinds of good, wholesome foods by his own hand, and had proffered all that he wished, Venerable Śāriputra partook of the day’s meal and gave his remaining food to the dog. When he had finished eating it, the dog looked up at Venerable Śāriputra’s face. Once the householder knew that Venerable Śāriputra had finished eating and that his bowl had been taken away and his hands washed, he sat before him to listen to the Dharma.

1.50Venerable Śāriputra directly apprehended the thoughts, habitual tendencies, temperament, and nature of the householder and his retinue, and taught them the Dharma accordingly. After hearing it, the householder and his retinue destroyed with the thunderbolt of wisdom the twenty high peaks of the mountain of views concerning the transitory collection, and manifested the resultant state of stream entry right where they sat. Having seen the truths, they went for refuge and took the fundamental precepts.

1.51“Lord Śāriputra,” said the householder, “for as long as I live, please accept from me your provisions of clothing, food, bedding, seat, and medicines to cure the sick.”

Śāriputra replied, “There are other householders I must help as well. Please allow me to go.” At this, he rose from his seat and departed.

1.52After the householder had seen the truths, gone for refuge, and taken the fundamental precepts, he began to give gifts and make merit. From time to time he would also extend an invitation to Venerable Śāriputra and make food for him. After eating, Venerable Śāriputra would give the remaining food to the dog.

1.53The dog was very happy with Venerable Śāriputra. He was so happy that whenever Venerable [F.8.a] Śāriputra came to the house, he greeted him, licked his feet, and circumambulated him three times while wagging his tail. Whenever Venerable Śāriputra came to give a Dharma talk and the time came for him to leave, the dog escorted him a little distance, then circumambulated him three times before he went away.

1.54One day Venerable Śāriputra came to the house again, took his food, and gave a Dharma talk to the householder. As he was departing, the dog followed him outside onto the main road, licked his feet, and circumambulated him three times while wagging his tail. As the dog was returning to the house, some other dogs tore him apart, killing him. He died filled with joy at the thought of the elder monk Śāriputra, transmigrated, and took rebirth in the same house, in the womb of the householder’s wife.

1.55Venerable Śāriputra knew just how the dog had been killed by the other dogs after they had parted. He contemplated where the dog would take rebirth, and saw that it would be in the same house, in the womb of the householder’s wife. Upon seeing this, out of love for the dog he went to the householder’s home alone, without attendants.

1.56The householder saw that Venerable Śāriputra was alone, without companions or attendants, and he inquired, “Noble one, why have you come here alone, without companions or attendants? Noble one, is there no one at all who could attend you?”

“Where shall we find attendants, if one such as yourself does not grant them to us?” replied Venerable Śāriputra.

1.57The householder said to him, “Lord Śāriputra, my wife has conceived, so if we have a son, noble one, I shall offer him to you as an attendant.”

“The virtuous [F.8.b] keep their promises,” said Venerable Śāriputra. Having spoken thus, Venerable Śāriputra departed.

1.58After nine or ten months had passed, the householder’s wife gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful, though his eyes were small. At the elaborate feast celebrating his birth they asked, “What name should we give this child?” And they named him, saying, “Since the child’s eyes are small, his name will be Little Eyes.”

1.59They reared young Little Eyes on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and he flourished like a lotus in a lake. As he grew up he studied letters, tallying, and arithmetic; the study of seals, lending, deposits, and commerce; and the examination of cloth, jewels, gems, incense, medicine, elephants, horses, and arms and armor. He became skilled in writing, skilled at reading, learned, decisive, industrious, a master of the eight types of examination.

1.60One day Venerable Śāriputra saw that the time had come for Little Eyes to go forth. In the morning he donned his lower garment and Dharma robes, and, carrying his alms bowl, he went for alms in Śrāvastī. As he went for alms, he eventually came to the householder’s home, and there sat on the seat prepared for him.

1.61After he had taken his seat, Venerable Śāriputra reminded the householder, “Householder, before this child was born you granted him to me as an attendant. The virtuous keep their promises, do they not? Didn’t you yourself make such a promise?”

1.62“Yes, noble one, I did make just such a promise,” the householder replied, and he took the child by his two hands, offered him to Venerable Śāriputra, and told him, “Child, before you were born, I offered you to the noble one. [F.9.a] Therefore go, and be an attendant of the noble one.”

The child said, “This will be of benefit to me,” and with those words he followed Venerable Śāriputra away.

1.63Venerable Śāriputra brought the child to the monastery, where he led him to go forth as a novice and instructed him. Still in his novitiate, the child cast away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, and manifested arhatship. As an arhat, free from the attachments of the three realms, his mind regarded gold no differently than filth, and the palms of his hands as like space itself. He became cool like wet sandalwood. His insight crushed ignorance like an eggshell. He achieved the insights, superknowledges, and discriminations. He had no regard for worldly profit, passion, or acclaim. He became an object of offering, veneration, and respectful address by Indra, Upendra, and the other gods.

1.64One time after he had attained arhatship, he saw scars on Venerable Śāriputra’s feet as he was anointing them and asked, “Preceptor, how did you get these scars?”

“Child,” Venerable Śāriputra told him, “think on how I got these scars.”

1.65“I see it was I who bit him in a previous life as a dog,” thought the novice. “And I see the life from which I died, transmigrated, and took rebirth as a dog.” He saw that he had died and taken rebirth as that dog, and he also saw that for five hundred lifetimes he had died as a dog, transmigrated, and taken rebirth only as a dog.

1.66He thought, “Had my preceptor not thought of me, where would I have taken rebirth in the future when I died there and transmigrated?” Reflecting in this way, he saw himself taking birth again as that very dog. In the same way he saw himself for five hundred future lives [F.9.b] dying, transmigrating, and taking birth over and over only as a dog.

1.67“It was he who saved me from falling so low!” he thought further. “By establishing me in the unsurpassed, supreme welfare of nirvāṇa, my preceptor undertook a difficult task for me, over and over again. What method is there to repay the kindness of one’s preceptor, other than service and respect? When I take full ordination I won’t be able to offer such service‍—but oh! By remaining a novice for as long as I live I can continue to serve him respectfully.”

1.68With this in mind, he said to Venerable Śāriputra, “Preceptor, for as long as I live I shall serve my preceptor with respect,” and Śāriputra replied, “Do as you wish, my child.”

One day the monks asked him, “Little Eyes, why don’t you take full ordination?”

1.69“I must repay the kindness of my preceptor,” he told them. “By remaining a novice for as long as I live, I shall be able to serve him respectfully.”

“What particular kindness did your preceptor do for you?” they asked.

1.70He told the monks the story in detail, whereupon the monks inquired of the Blessed Buddha, “Lord, what action did Little Eyes take that ripened into his birth as a dog, such that, if Venerable Śāriputra had not thought of him, he would have taken rebirth only as a dog for five hundred lifetimes, and what action did he take that once he had died as a dog he transmigrated and took birth once again as a human into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth? What action did he take that he pleased the Blessed One, did not displease him, went forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship? What action did he take that ripened into his having small eyes?”

1.71“Monks,” explained [F.10.a] the Blessed One, “Little Eyes committed and accumulated the actions himself at a previous time. Monks, the actions that he committed and accumulated did not ripen into the external element of earth. They did not ripen into the element of water, nor the element of fire, nor the element of wind. The actions he committed and accumulated, both virtuous and nonvirtuous, ripened into nothing but his own aggregates, sense bases, and constituent elements.

1.73“Monks, in times past, in this fortunate eon, when people lived as long as twenty thousand years and the tathāgata, the arhat, the totally and completely awakened buddha possessed of insight and perfect conduct, the sugata, the knower of the world, the tamer of persons, the charioteer, the unsurpassed one, the teacher of humans and gods, the blessed buddha known as Kāśyapa was in the world, there lived in the city of Vārāṇasī a certain householder, prosperous and wealthy, a person of vast and magnificent means, endowed with the wealth of Vaiśravaṇa‍—with wealth to rival Vaiśravaṇa’s.

1.74“One day his wife conceived, and after nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. When he grew up he found faith in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa, and after asking for his parents’ permission, went forth.

1.75“Once he had gone forth, he studied the Tripiṭaka and became a proponent of the Dharma with all the eloquence of his wisdom and freedom. Having acquired provisions of clothing, food, bedding, a seat, and medicines for the sick, he thought to himself, ‘How wonderful! With all the profit and acclaim I’ve gained, I can see to the welfare of fellow practitioners of the holy life.’ [F.10.b] And he served the twofold saṅgha in accordance with the Dharma.

1.76“One evening, one of his duties, that of serving the evening drink, fell instead to an arhat monk. After distributing the evening drink to the saṅgha, the arhat was weary, so he went to his quarters, crossed his legs, and sat down.

“The evening drink still needed to be served to the benefactors, who began to ask the other monks, ‘Whose turn is it today to serve the evening drink?’

1.77“They replied that today it was the monk so-and-so’s turn. The one who was normally appointed to serve them, seething, closed his eyes as if asleep and said, ‘It’s the one whose eyes are like this‍—I’ll find him!’

1.78“Having said this, he went to the arhat and said, ‘Lord, for your sake I’ve pleased all our benefactors and patrons, and respectfully served your every need. Now that you’ve enjoyed all I’ve given you in faith, do you come home to sit and sleep like a dog?’

1.79“Thereupon the arhat thought, ‘It’s not right for this emotionally afflicted person, who has become so abased, to circle in saṃsāra and meet with great suffering.’ Reflecting in this way, he thought, ‘I have to help him.’

1.80“With this thought he said to the monk, ‘Lord, do you know who I am? And do you know who you yourself are?’

“ ‘I know that you have gone forth,’ he replied, ‘as have I.’

1.81“ ‘Though we two are like brothers in having gone forth,’ the arhat said, ‘you are an ordinary person, bound by every fetter, whereas I am an arhat, liberated from every fetter. You’ve spoken harshly to me. You must acknowledge your mistake. Otherwise you are certain to roam in saṃsāra and meet with great suffering.’

1.82“Hearing his words, the monk was flooded with great regret. [F.11.a] He bowed down at the monk’s feet, asked his forgiveness, and with renewed vigor offered his respectful service to the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha. All his life, he practiced pure conduct and served the saṅgha in accord with the Dharma.

1.83“At the time of his death, he prayed, ‘Oh, but by the root of virtue of my having gone forth in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa, my practice of pure conduct all my life, and the service I rendered in accord with the Dharma, wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth! May I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. Going forth in his doctrine alone, may I cast away all afflictive emotions and manifest arhatship. May I not meet with the results of the wrongful act of speaking harshly to fellow practitioners of the holy life.’

1.84“O monks, what do you think? The one who was of service then is now the novice Little Eyes. The act of speaking harshly to the arhat ripened such that for five hundred lifetimes he took rebirth as a dog, and had the monk Śāriputra not thought of him, he would have taken rebirth only as a dog for five hundred more lifetimes.

1.85“The act of becoming angry, closing his eyes in imitation of the arhat, and saying, ‘It’s the one whose eyes are like this‍—I’ll find him!’ ripened into his birth as a human being whose eyes were just like that. The act of praying at that time, ‘By this root of virtue, wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth. May I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa [F.11.b] to be the next blessed buddha. Going forth in his doctrine alone, may I cast away all afflictive emotions and manifest arhatship,’ ripened such that he was born into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth.

1.86“So it is, monks, now that I myself have become the very equal of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa‍—equal in strength, equal in deeds, and equal in skillful means‍—that he has pleased me, not displeased me, go forth in my very doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship.”

The Story of Pūraṇa

1.87When the Blessed One was in Śrāvastī, there lived a certain householder, prosperous and wealthy, a person of vast and magnificent means, endowed with the wealth of Vaiśravaṇa‍—with wealth to rival Vaiśravaṇa’s. When the time came for him to marry he took a wife, and they enjoyed themselves and coupled. But even though they enjoyed themselves and coupled, they had no children.

1.88They desired a son, so the householder supplicated the gods. He prayed to Paśupati, Varuṇa, Kubera, Śakra, Brahmā, and the rest, and to the deities of the pleasure groves, the forest deities, the deities of the crossroads, the deities of forks in the road, the deities who receive strewn oblations, the deities of his inherited tradition, and the deities who are in constant attendance of righteous persons.

1.89While it is often said that praying to deities can cause a boy or a girl to be born, this is not true. If children could be made just by praying, every family would have them a thousand times over, like a universal monarch. [F.12.a] In fact, there are three circumstances that allow for the birth of a child: a child is born when (1) lust arises in the parents and they have intercourse, (2) the mother still has her menstrual cycle and is approached by a gandharva, and (3) the gandharva’s mind is either attached or angry.

1.90Still, the householder remained intent on his prayers, and a great being took birth in his wife’s womb who was well renowned and had gained his final birth, had the good fortune to soon be liberated due to gathering the accumulations, had his sights set on nirvāṇa and had turned away from saṃsāra, had no desire for the states of rebirth in cyclic existence, and who had now assumed his final body.

1.91A woman wise in nature possesses five extraordinary abilities. She knows (1) whether a man is attracted to her, (2) the time of her menstrual cycle, (3) that she has conceived, (4) from whom she has conceived, and (5) whether the child is a boy or a girl, for if it is a baby boy it will stay on the right side of the womb, and if it is a girl it will stay on the left side of the womb.

1.92When the householder’s wife conceived a child, she was overjoyed and told her husband, “My lord, I have conceived a boy. He is staying on the right side of my womb, so rejoice, for it is sure to be a boy!”

1.93At this the householder too was very happy. He puffed out his chest, put his right hand in the air, and expressed his joy, saying, “I shall see the face of the son for whom I have prayed for so long! May everything be right with my son, may nothing go wrong with him, and may he carry on my work! As I care for him, may he care for me in return! May he enjoy my inheritance! May my lineage endure for a long time! [F.12.b] And after our passing, when we die, may he give gifts, be they great or small, and make merit! When he does, may he dedicate the merit thus: ‘Wherever these two are born, may this go to them!’ ”

1.94Now that he knew his wife was pregnant, he ensconced her on the upper levels of their house in order to care for the baby. He provided her with what she needed for winter in the winter, what she needed for summer in the summer, with food that was not too bitter, too sour, too salty, too sweet, too spicy, or too astringent as instructed by the healer, and he served her food that was not bitter, sour, salty, spicy, sweet, or astringent. He draped her body with garlands and strings of precious stones, and he moved her from divan to divan and seat to seat like a goddess through a joyous garden, never letting her descend to the ground, and never letting her hear an unpleasant word even for a moment.

1.95The blessed buddhas, teachers of the one path to be traversed, with mastery over wisdom and the two types of knowable objects, in command of the three kinds of sterling equanimity, fearless by means of the fourfold fearlessness, freed from migration through the five destinies, keen in the six sense bases, practiced in the seven limbs of enlightenment, focused on the eight liberations, absorbed in the nine successive meditative absorptions, possessing all ten of the ten powers, whose proclamations are the great roaring of a perfect lion, by nature regard the world with their buddha eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night.

1.96These are their thoughts as they look out in wisdom: “Who is in decline? Who will flourish? Who is destitute? Who is in a dreadful state? Who is being harmed? Who is destitute, in a dreadful state, and being harmed? Who is veering toward the lower realms? Who is descending through the lower realms? Who has descended to the lower realms? [F.13.a] Whom shall I pull up from the lower realms, and establish in the resultant state of heaven and liberation? Whom, mired in misdeeds, shall I lift up by the hand? Whom, lacking the seven jewels of the noble ones, shall I lead to command of the seven jewels of the noble ones? Whom, not having produced roots of virtue, shall I lead to produce them? Whom, having already produced roots of virtue, shall I lead to ripen their roots of virtue? Whom, having already ripened their roots of virtue, shall I slice open with the blade of wisdom? For whom shall I cause this world, adorned with a buddha’s presence, to be fruitful?”

1.98Just as the blessed buddhas regard the world with their buddha eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night‍—so too the great listeners regard the world with their listener’s eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night.

1.99When Venerable Aniruddha regarded the world with his listener’s eyes, he saw a being who was in his final birth taking birth in the home of that householder, and he thought, “Who will tame this being? Will he be tamed by the Buddha, or will he be tamed instead by the listeners?” Then he saw that it was he himself who would tame him and went to the house.

1.100He gave Dharma teachings to the householder from time to time, and that led the householder to remain steadfast in perfect faith, to take refuge, and to maintain the fundamental precepts. He inspired him to give gifts and to share what they had, and in no time at all his home became [F.13.b] like an open well for those in need.

1.101To strengthen the parents’ resolve, one day Venerable Aniruddha went to the house alone, without companions or attendants. The householder saw that Venerable Aniruddha was alone, without companions or attendants, and asked, “Noble one, why have you come here alone, without companions or attendants? Noble one, is there no one at all who could attend you?”

1.102“Where shall we find attendants, if one such as yourself does not grant them to us?” replied Venerable Aniruddha.

The householder said to him, “Lord Aniruddha, my wife has conceived, so if we have a son, noble one, I shall offer him to you as an attendant.”

“The virtuous keep their promises,” said Venerable Aniruddha. Having spoken thus, Venerable Aniruddha departed.

1.103After nine or ten months had passed, the householder’s wife gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful, with glowing, golden skin and a well-rounded head, long arms, a broad brow, a fine and prominent nose, and eyebrows that met. At the elaborate feast celebrating his birth they asked, “What name should we give this child?” And the householder named him, saying, “For so long I wondered when I would have a child, and for so long I prayed and prayed. Since this child has fulfilled my wish, his name will be Pūraṇa .”

1.104Baby Pūraṇa had eight nurses‍—two nurses to hold him in their laps, two wet nurses, two nurses to bathe him, and two nurses to play with him. [F.14.a] They raised him with a protection cord, and the eye of a peacock feather from the hand of Nārāyaṇa. They reared him on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and he flourished like a lotus in a lake.

1.105As he grew up he studied letters, tallying, and arithmetic; the study of seals, lending, deposits, and commerce; and the examination of cloth, jewels, gems, incense, medicine, elephants, horses, and arms and armor. He became skilled in writing, skilled at reading, learned, decisive, industrious, a master of the eight types of examination.

1.106One day Venerable Aniruddha saw that the time had come for the child to go forth. In the morning he donned his lower garment and Dharma robes, and, carrying his alms bowl, he went for alms in Śrāvastī. As he went for alms, eventually he came to the householder’s home, and there sat on the seat prepared for him.

1.107After he had taken his seat, Venerable Aniruddha reminded the householder, “Householder, before this child was born you granted him to me as an attendant. The virtuous keep their promises, do they not? Didn’t you yourself make such a promise?”

1.108“Yes, noble one, I did make just such a promise,” the householder replied. Having said this, he took the child by his two hands, offered him to Venerable Aniruddha, and told him, “Child, before you were born I offered you to the noble one. Therefore go, and be the noble one’s attendant.”

The child said, “This will be of benefit to me.” With those words the child followed Venerable Aniruddha away.

1.109Venerable Aniruddha brought the child to the monastery, where he led him to go forth as a novice, fully ordained him, [F.14.b] and instructed him. But despite his commitment to practice earnestly, foregoing sleep from dusk to dawn, the child did not achieve anything of significance. Then he fell ill.

1.110His parents heard that their child had taken ill, and as soon as they heard this they brought a healer to visit him, and went to the monastery carrying everything he needed. They provided for all his needs, but they could not cure him. They thought, “If we remain here at the monastery we will fall behind on all our work at home. We should bring the child home and care for him there.”

1.111They bowed down at Venerable Aniruddha’s feet and said, “Noble one, please know that if we stay here, we will fall behind on all our duties at home. We request your permission to bring our child back home, so we can tend to him there.”

1.112Venerable Aniruddha thought, “His parents and the people of their house will soon be established in the truths, for this monk will manifest arhatship there in the house.” With this in mind, Venerable Aniruddha said, “Do as you wish.”

1.113As soon as they heard this, the householders brought the monk back to their house and provided for all his needs according to the healer’s instructions. Right there in the house, disillusioned by his illness, the monk cast away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, and manifested arhatship.

1.114As an arhat he directly apprehended the thoughts, habitual tendencies, temperament, and nature of his two parents and the people of their house, and taught them the Dharma accordingly. Hearing it, the householders and their retinue [F.15.a] destroyed with the thunderbolt of wisdom the twenty high peaks of the mountain of views concerning the transitory collection, and manifested the resultant state of stream entry right where they sat.

1.115After establishing his parents in the truth, he thought, “I have recollection of my former states‍—whence I died and transmigrated, and where I have taken rebirth. I see that from life to life I have died as a human being and taken rebirth as a human being, but I am always very ill, and my lifespan very short.

1.116“I have been an ordinary person,” he thought. “That’s why I’m undergoing such agonies. But now that I have done what was before me, what need do I have for such suffering? Let me enter the sphere of peace!”

1.117After reflecting in this way, he made a miraculous display of fire and light, rain and lightning, and passed beyond all sorrow into the realm of nirvāṇa without any remainder of the aggregates.

1.118After he passed into parinirvāṇa, his parents laid his body on a palanquin festooned with blue, yellow, red, and white cloth, but they were unable to lift it. They went and told this to Venerable Aniruddha, who reflected on this, and, knowing that the monk had prayed it would be so, went and informed the Blessed One.

1.119The Blessed One said, “Monks, don your Dharma robes, for we shall go and venerate that monk,” and set out for the householder’s home surrounded and escorted by an assembly of monks.

1.120Mahā­prajāpatī Gautamī also heard that such-and-such a householder’s child had go forth and passed into parinirvāṇa, [F.15.b] and that even the Blessed One had gone to venerate and pay homage to him. Knowing this, and remembering the child’s previous states, she also went to the householder’s home with five hundred attendants.

1.121The householder Anāthapiṇḍada and the queen’s attendants, the sages Datta and Purāṇa, also heard this. The lay vow holder Vaiśākhā and the lay vow holder Sujātā also heard that the child of such-and-such a one had go forth and passed into parinirvāṇa, and that even the Blessed One had gone to venerate and pay homage to him. Hearing this, they too went there with their attendants, bowed down at the feet of the Blessed One, and said, “We shall build the monk’s funeral pyre. The Blessed One need not trouble himself.” The Blessed One assented by his silence.

1.122Then householder Anāthapiṇḍada and the other lay vow holders, carrying the monk upon the palanquin, walked to the charnel grounds. The Blessed One and the other monks followed them, along with the many lay vow holders performing ritual veneration and eulogy. They bore the palanquin into the charnel ground, heaped together various types of incense, and lit the fire. They later extinguished the fire with milk, gathered up his bones, placed them in vessels, and built a reliquary stūpa there in the same place. They performed a great offering ritual at the stūpa and then sat before the Buddha to listen to the Dharma. The Blessed One gave a discourse on impermanence to all four retinues, then returned to the monastery.

1.123Then the monks inquired of the Blessed One, “What action did the monk Pūraṇa take that ripened into his birth into a family of great means, [F.16.a] prosperity, and wealth, and such that he became very ill?”

1.124“Monks,” explained the Blessed One, “ Pūraṇa committed and accumulated the actions himself at a previous time. Monks, the actions that Pūraṇa committed and accumulated did not ripen into the external element of earth, the element of water, the element of fire, or the element of wind. The actions he committed and accumulated, both virtuous and nonvirtuous, ripened into nothing but his own aggregates, sense bases, and constituent elements.

1.126“Monks, in times past, in this fortunate eon, when people lived as long as forty thousand years, in the royal palace Śobhāvatī there was a brahmin named Agnidatta who was King Śobha’s minister. Agnidatta had two sons, one of whom, upon witnessing old age, sickness, and death, had gone to live in the forest. There, contemplating the thirty-seven wings of enlightenment, he attained unexcelled, total, and complete enlightenment, and as the totally and completely awakened Buddha Krakucchanda, he acted for the benefit of beings by thrice turning the wheel of the Dharma in its twelve aspects. The other son indulged his desires. He became heedless, committed adultery with the wives of others, and killed beings. He would go hunting and kill many thousands of beings.

1.127“One day the totally and completely awakened Buddha Krakucchanda traveled to Śobhāvatī, and father and son were reunited. During his stay in Śobhāvatī he acted for the benefit of beings. He turned his younger brother [F.16.b] away from sin and established him in refuge and the fundamental precepts.

1.128“The brother went on to build a monastery that was complete in every respect. He offered it to Buddha Krakucchanda and the rest of the saṅgha of monks, provided for all their needs, and at the time of his death prayed, ‘By this root of virtue, wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth. May I please and not displease a great teacher such as this one. Going forth in his doctrine alone, may I cast away all afflictive emotions and manifest arhatship.’

1.129“O monks, what do you think? The one who was that young brahmin then is this very Pūraṇa . The act of massacring thousands of beings ripened such that wherever he was born, he was very ill and his life was very short. The act of building a monastery that was complete in every respect, offering it to Buddha Krakucchanda and the rest of the saṅgha of monks, providing for all their needs, and praying at the time of his death, ‘Wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth. May I please and not displease a teacher such as this one. May I achieve such great virtues as his!’ ripened such that wherever he was born, it was into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth, and such that he was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful.

1.130“So it is, monks, now that I myself have become the very equal of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Krakucchanda‍—equal in strength, equal in deeds, and equal in skillful means‍—that he has pleased me, [F.17.a] not displeased me, gone forth in my very doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship.”

1.131“What action ripened into his passing into nirvāṇa, and caused him to be venerated by the four retinues?”

“It came about by the power of his prayers,” replied the Blessed One.

1.132“When did he make these prayers?”

“Monks, in times past, in this fortunate eon, when people lived as long as twenty thousand years and the tathāgata, the arhat, the totally and completely awakened buddha possessed of insight and perfect conduct, the sugata, the knower of the world, the tamer of persons, the charioteer, the unsurpassed one, the teacher of humans and gods, the blessed buddha known as Kāśyapa was in the world, there lived a certain householder in Vārāṇasī.

1.133“One day his wife conceived, and after nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. When he grew up he found faith in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa, and, having made the request to his parents, went forth in the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa’s doctrine. He cast away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, and manifested arhatship.

1.134“After he attained arhatship, he thought, ‘I have done what was before me with this saṃsāric body. Let me enter the sphere of peace!’ Reflecting in this way, he made a miraculous display of fire and light, rain and lightning, and passed beyond all sorrow into the realm of nirvāṇa without any remainder of the aggregates.

1.135“His preceptor informed his parents, and his [F.17.b] parents and the preceptor performed an elaborate ritual veneration of his remains. His preceptor prayed, ‘By this root of virtue, wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth. May I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. May I achieve such great virtues. When I pass into nirvāṇa, may the Blessed One and all the four retinues venerate me.’

1.136“O monks, what do you think? The one who was that monk then is none other than this very Pūraṇa . The act of performing an elaborate ritual veneration of that arhat and praying ripened such that wherever he was born, it was into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth.

1.137“So it is, monks, now that I myself have become the very equal of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa‍—equal in strength, equal in deeds, and equal in skillful means‍—that he has pleased me, not displeased me, go forth in my very doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship, and when he passed into nirvāṇa, all the four retinues venerated him.” [B2]

The Person with a Curving Spine: Two Stories

The First Story about “The Person with a Curving Spine”

1.138When the Blessed One was in in Śrāvastī there lived a certain householder, prosperous and wealthy, a person of vast and magnificent means, endowed with the wealth of Vaiśravaṇa‍—with wealth to rival Vaiśravaṇa’s.

1.139When the time came for him to marry he took a wife, and they enjoyed themselves and coupled. [F.18.a] As they enjoyed themselves and coupled, one day his wife conceived, and after nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. At the elaborate feast celebrating his birth they named him according to their clan.

1.140They reared him on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and as he grew up he studied letters, tallying, and arithmetic; the study of seals, lending, deposits, and commerce; and the examination of cloth, jewels, gems, incense, medicine, elephants, horses, and arms and armor. He became skilled in writing, skilled at reading, learned, decisive, and industrious, a master of the eight types of examination.

1.141One day the child fell ill and his spine was made to curve by a disorder of his vital energies. As soon as they saw this condition his parents became very upset and though they brought healers and provided for all his needs, he could not be healed.

1.142The thought came to the householder, “No healer has been able to heal this child. But the objects of my veneration are so miraculous and powerful that if I pray to them now, they might be able to make my child’s back straight like before.” With this in mind he invited six teachers‍— Pūraṇa Kāśyapa and the rest‍—and by his own hand he contented them with many different kinds of good, wholesome food. Then he bowed down at their feet and beseeched them, “What could there be, past, present, or future, that does not come under your purview? My child’s spine has been made to curve by a disorder of his vital energies. I ask you, please heal my child.” But though they gave him mantras and medicines, they were not able to heal him. [F.18.b]

1.143The householder had a close friend, a Buddhist lay vow holder, who advised him, “My friend, why do you seek refuge in those who are not a refuge? Take refuge in the Blessed Buddha, and he will do all manner of good things for you.”

“What does he know?” the householder asked.

“He is omniscient. He knows everything,” replied the lay vow holder.

1.144When he heard this, the householder felt immense joy and approached the Blessed Buddha. When he arrived, he touched his head to the Blessed One’s feet and sat before him to listen to the Dharma. The Blessed One taught him the Dharma particularly suited to him, then sat in silence.

1.145Once the Blessed One had completed his teaching, the householder rose from his seat, drew down the right shoulder of his upper garment, and implored the Blessed One, “Please permit me to request that the Blessed One and the saṅgha of monks take your meal at my house tomorrow.” The Blessed One assented to the householder by his silence.

1.146Understanding that by his silence the Blessed One had given his assent, the householder then praised this assurance from the Blessed One, rejoiced, bowed down at his feet, and departed.

1.147After preparing many good, wholesome foods that night, in the morning the householder rose, prepared seats, filled the water pots, and set them out. Then he reminded the Blessed One that it was time for the midday meal by sending a message that said, “My lord, the midday meal is upon us. Know that the time has come, Blessed One, and your presence is requested.”

1.148That morning the Blessed One donned his lower garment and Dharma robes, [F.19.a] and, carrying his alms bowl, he set out surrounded and escorted by an assembly of monks.

1.149As they arrived at the householder’s reception room, the householder’s son saw the Blessed Buddha from a distance. The body of the Blessed Buddha, graced and resplendent with the thirty-two signs of a great person, looked like it was on fire, like a tongue of fire stoked with ghee, like a lamp set in a golden vessel, and like a pillar adorned with all manner of jewels. He was immaculate, clear-minded, and pure of heart.

1.150Upon seeing the Blessed Buddha, the householder’s son was filled with supreme joy, for beings who have gathered the roots of virtue to see a buddha for the first time experience such rapture as is not to be had even by those who practice calm abiding meditation for twelve years. Filled with such supreme joy at the sight of him, the child respectfully and deliberately stood up from his seat.

1.151No sooner had he risen from his seat than his curving spine became straight as before, and he was filled with even more joy toward the Blessed One. Full of joy, he approached him, touched his head to the Blessed One’s feet, kissed them, and said, “Blessed One, what a difficult task you have done for me! Sugata, what a difficult task you have done for me!”

1.152Then the Blessed One took his place on the seat prepared for him amid the saṅgha of monks. Once the householder knew that the Buddha and the rest of the saṅgha of monks were comfortably seated, by his own hand he contented them with many good, wholesome foods, [F.19.b] proffering all that they wished. Having by his own hand contented them with many different kinds of good, wholesome food, proffering all that they wished, once he knew that the Blessed One had finished eating and that his bowl had been taken away and his hands washed, he sat before the Blessed One to listen to the Dharma.

1.153The Blessed One directly apprehended the thoughts, habitual tendencies, temperament, and nature of the householder and his retinue, and taught them the Dharma accordingly. Hearing it, the householder, his retinue, and the child destroyed with the thunderbolt of wisdom the twenty high peaks of the mountain of views concerning the transitory collection, and manifested the resultant state of stream entry. After the Blessed One had established them in the truths and instructed, encouraged, inspired, and delighted the householder with a discourse on the Dharma, he rose from his seat and departed.

1.154One day the young man thought, “The Blessed One has dispelled so many kinds of suffering and anguish, brought me so much happiness and bliss, cleared away so many of my sins and nonvirtues, and secured for me such virtues. Let me give up living at home and, in the presence of the Blessed One, go forth to practice the holy life.”

1.155Reflecting in this way, he asked for his parents’ permission and approached the Blessed One. He touched his head to the Blessed One’s feet, drew down the right shoulder of his upper garment, bowed toward the Blessed One with palms pressed together, and made this request of him:

1.156“Lord, if appropriate, I wish to go forth in the Dharma and Vinaya so well spoken and achieve full ordination as a monk. In the presence of the Blessed One, I too wish to practice the holy life.” [F.20.a]

1.157“Come, join me, monk!” replied the Blessed One. “Practice the holy life.” As soon as the Blessed One had finished speaking there they stood, alms bowl and water pitcher in hand, with but a week’s worth of hair and beard, and with the deportment of a monk who had been ordained for one hundred years. As it is said:

1.159Thereupon the Blessed One instructed him, and, casting away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, he manifested arhatship. As an arhat, free from the attachments of the three realms, his mind regarded gold no differently than filth, and the palms of his hands as like space itself. He became cool like wet sandalwood. His insight crushed ignorance like an eggshell. He achieved the insights, superknowledges, and discriminations. He had no regard for worldly profit, passion, or acclaim. He became an object of offering, veneration, and respectful address by Indra, Upendra, and the other gods.

1.160The monks inquired of the Blessed One, “Lord, what action did he take that ripened into his birth into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth? What action did he take that ripened into his spine becoming curved, that after he entrusted himself to the Blessed One his spine became straight like before, and that he pleased the Blessed One, did not displease him, went forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship?” [F.20.b]

1.161“Monks,” the Blessed One recounted, “such are the actions that this monk committed and accumulated:

1.162“Monks, in times past, in this fortunate eon, when people lived as long as twenty thousand years and the totally and completely awakened buddha endowed with perfect knowledge and perfect conduct, the sugata, the knower of the world, the tamer of persons, the charioteer, the unsurpassed one, the teacher of humans and gods, the blessed buddha known as Kāśyapa was in the world, there lived a certain householder in the city of Vārāṇasī.

1.163“When the time came for him to marry he took a wife, and they enjoyed themselves and coupled. One day his wife conceived, and after nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to twins. At the elaborate feast celebrating their birth they named them according to their clan. They reared them on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and when the twins grew up, having found faith in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa, they asked for their parents’ permission and went forth as novices in the Buddha Kāśyapa’s doctrine.

1.164“When he conferred full ordination on them, their preceptor asked, ‘Children, the doctrine of the Blessed One is carried upon two wheels. These two wheels are the wheel of meditation and the wheel of recitation. Which will the two of you undertake?’

1.165“ ‘For the time being we will put our efforts into recitation. Later we will meditate,’ they replied.

“Their preceptor responded, ‘Do as you please,’ and, for the time being, he had them recite.

1.166“The younger of the two was very wild inside, whereas the other was stable. One day after their recitation, as the stable, older one was sleeping, the wild one [F.21.a] dropped heavy objects on him over and over again, until he said, ‘Venerable one, please stop hurting me again and again!’ But the wild one did not heed his words. Instead he got angry. To hurt his brother he hefted a nearby brick and let it fall. Then the wild one, who had already attacked and bashed his brother with heavy objects, threw a brick at his back and broke the base of his spine, causing him tremendous pain.

1.167“Suddenly the younger one saw his brother’s body in tremendous pain, and it caused him great distress. He thought, ‘It was a mistake for me to do such a senseless thing.’ Feeling remorse, he brought healers, provided for all his needs, and tended to his elder brother’s condition. Before long his back had healed.

1.168“By the time the elder brother had healed, he had become disillusioned with saṃsāra. He thought, ‘What is the use of this body‍—it’s rotten to the core!’ Casting away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, he manifested arhatship.

1.169“The younger brother realized what his brother had accomplished, felt tremendous joy for him, and served him with respect. He likewise served the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha, practiced pure conduct all his life, and at the time of his death prayed, ‘While I may not have attained any great virtues, because I have offered such service to the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha, and practiced pure conduct all my life, by this root of virtue, wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth. May I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. [F.21.b] Going forth in his doctrine alone, may I cast away all afflictive emotions and manifest arhatship. And may the act of harming such a pure being not return to me. Should the results of that action ripen for me, may the Blessed One cure my injured body and mind.’

1.170“O monks, what do you think? The one who went forth in the teaching of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa then is none other than this monk. The act of breaking the base of his elder brother’s spine in anger ripened such that wherever he was born, his spine was broken. After that he prayed, ‘Should the results of that action ripen to me, may the Blessed One cure my injured body and mind.’ And so it is that I have now protected him from both of these injuries. The act of praying, ‘Wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth. May I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. Going forth in his doctrine alone, may I cast away all afflictive emotions and manifest arhatship,’ ripened such that wherever he was born, it was into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth.

1.171“So it is, monks, now that I myself have become the very equal of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa‍—equal in strength, equal in deeds, and equal in skillful means‍—that he has pleased me, not displeased me, [F.22.a] gone forth in my very doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship.”

The Second Story About “The Person with a Curving Spine”

1.172When the Blessed One was in Śrāvastī there was a nun named Sthūlanandā who lived at a nunnery called The Royal Garden.

1.173One day she thought, “All of the elder sisters who are śrāvakās that have achieved miraculous powers use their powers to travel east to Videha, north to Kurava, west to Godānīya, and to the celestial realm of the Heaven of the Thirty-Three. They travel to valleys that are prosperous, flourishing, happy, and well populated, where the harvest is good, and they return with many good, wholesome foods to eat.

1.174“If I attain such magical powers, I too will go from here east to Videha, north to Kurava, west to Godānīya, and to the celestial realm of the Heaven of the Thirty-Three. And I will also travel to valleys that are prosperous, flourishing, happy, and well populated, where the harvest is good, and will return with many good, wholesome foods to eat. Let me too develop magical powers!”

1.175She continued, thinking, “Who is there that can show me how to perform miracles? I could pay a visit to the nuns, but they are very jealous, so they will not show me the path of miracles. It is difficult for our requests to reach the ears of the monks. If I can’t so much as speak to those staying at the monastery, how can I ask them to show me the path of miracles?

1.176“Ah! But if I go see the Band of Six‍—they are my relatives, and they always wish me well and pray that my aims will be fulfilled‍—they [F.22.b] can show me the path of miracles. What should I do? First I shall treat them well, and ply them with material things. After that I can make my request to them.”

1.177With this in mind, she extended an invitation to them, and by her own hand contented them with many good, wholesome foods, proffering all that they wished. Then she bowed down at their feet and said, “Noble ones, I wish to perform miracles, and you are accomplished in showing others the path of miracles. I request your instruction in the path of miracles. Through your power I shall begin to perform miracles.”

1.178The Band of Six asked her, “Sthūlanandā, have you not heard this verse?

1.179“Nevertheless, if you wish to learn the practice of miracles from us, first you must host us for three months. Then to each of us you must give six different kinds of goods.”

She bowed down at their feet and said, “Please, instruct me in the path of miracles, and I will do this.”

1.180“Elder sister,” said the Band of Six, “first take care to make your body light. Then, with practice, one day you will have no difficulty with miracles.”

“What should I do to make my body light?” she asked.

1.181“For a while you have to eat very little,” they told her. “After that, on the first day, climb onto a small chair and jump down from it. The next day, stack two chairs and climb up on them and jump down. In the same way, from the third day on up to the seventh day, stack one chair upon another, then climb up and jump down. Then, in the same way, [F.23.a] leap from the second story of a building. At that time, due to your practice, your body will have become light, and after that, due to your practice, you will accomplish miracles.”

1.182As soon as she heard this, Sthūlanandā began to follow their instructions just as they had said. But on the seventh day, she climbed up on the stack of seven chairs, jumped down, and broke her hip.

1.183She said to the Band of Six, “Noble ones, look what happened to me. Now what should I do?”

“We showed you what we know,” replied the Band of Six. Once this method has made your body light, one day you will perform miracles without difficulty. The rest is up to you.”

1.184When she heard this she was consumed with fury, and she lashed out at all those who came to the nunnery. Brimming with malice, she drove them away from the nunnery with her insults.

1.185Those to whom she told her story scolded and blamed her. The monks heard it, and they inquired of the Blessed One, “Lord, tell us why Bhikṣuṇī Sthūlanandā abased herself for the sake of miraculous powers, acting as host for the three months of winter, even portioning out much of her alms and Dharma robes, but did not attain miraculous powers.”

1.186“Not only now,” the Blessed One explained, “but in times past as well, and in the same way, the Band of Six deceived the nun Sthūlanandā and she did not attain her goal. Listen well!

1.187“Monks, in times gone by, during King Brahmadatta’s reign in the city of Vārāṇasī, there were certain carpenters at work building for the king a palatial home on the grounds of the royal palace. They would [F.23.b] mark the crooked beams with a carpenter’s cord, then plane them down until they were straight.

1.188“One of the king’s treasurers was a woman with a crooked spine. As she was watching the carpenters mark and straighten all the crooked beams she thought, ‘These carpenters are highly skilled. If they can straighten such rough, crooked beams, they will surely be able to straighten my smooth body as well! How could they not?’

1.189“She went to them and asked, ‘Can you straighten my curving spine?’

“ ‘We can,’ they replied, ‘but you have to pay us in advance. Be host to us for three months. Then give us gifts of clothing and jewelry. After that we will straighten your curving spine.’

“ ‘As you wish,’ she said.

1.190“For three months she served them good, wholesome meals. On the last day, she gave them clothing and jewelry and said, ‘There, I have given you gifts. Now you must straighten my curving spine.’

1.191“ ‘Elder sister,’ they replied, ‘after we mark our crooked beams with a cord, we plane them down to straighten them. We can mark your back with a cord and pare it straight with an axe, if you can bear the pain.’

1.192“ ‘That technique will kill me. I won’t survive!’ she cried.

“ ‘That’s all we know,’ the carpenters replied. ‘The rest is up to you.’ She fell silent in embarrassment and dismay. To speak to anyone was more than she could bear.

1.193“O monks, what do you think? The one who was the old woman then is none other than Sthūlanandā. Those who [F.24.a] were the carpenters then are none other than the Band of Six. They deceived her then, and she did not accomplish her aims. Now they have deceived her once again, and she has not performed any miracles.”

The Story of Udayin

1.194When the Blessed One was in Rājagṛha, Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja, who had cast away all afflictions and manifested arhatship, thought, “The Blessed One has dispelled so many kinds of suffering and anguish, brought me many kinds of happiness and bliss, cleared away so many of my sins and nonvirtues, and secured for me such virtues. How could I repay the Blessed One’s kindness?”

1.195Then it occurred to him, “Anytime a buddha arises in the world, it is only to benefit beings. There’s no doubt that I too should act for the benefit of beings!” With this in mind, he wondered, “Whom might I tame?”

1.196He saw that he could tame many in Kauśāmbī, so after staying in Rājagṛha for as long as he liked, he donned his lower garment and Dharma robes, and, carrying his alms bowl, went to Kauśāmbī for alms. He eventually arrived at Kauśāmbī, where he stayed in the garden of the householder Ghoṣila.

1.197Now this monk was also a person of great merit, and was widely known for having gone from being a son of the royal family priest to being a monk. Many people in Kauśāmbī had heard that Noble Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja was traveling through the countryside and had now come to the city of Kauśāmbī, where he was staying in the garden of the householder Ghoṣila. Upon hearing this they gathered‍—group after group and elder after elder‍—and convened in Kauśāmbī.

1.198They approached Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja, and upon their arrival [F.24.b] they gathered together, bowed down at Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja’s feet, and sat before him to listen to the Dharma. Then Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja, directly apprehending their thoughts, habitual tendencies, temperaments, and natures, taught them the Dharma accordingly.

1.199As soon as they heard it, some of the inhabitants of Kauśāmbī who had gathered there generated heat. Some generated the peak, or generated the patience in accord with the truths, or generated the highest worldly dharma, or generated the attainment of seeing, right where they sat.

1.200Some manifested the resultant state of stream entry. Some manifested the resultant state of once-return. Some manifested the resultant state of non-return. Some went forth and manifested arhatship. Some sowed the seeds to become universal monarchs, some to become great universal monarchs, some to become Indra, some to become Brahmā, some for the enlightenment of the listeners, some for the enlightenment of the solitary buddhas, and some for unexcelled, total, and complete enlightenment. Among the assembled, most found themselves drawn to the Buddha, intent on the Dharma, and favoring the Saṅgha.

1.201Having seen the truths, they rose from their seats, drew down the right shoulder of their upper garments, bowed toward Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja with palms pressed together, and beseeched him, “After we entrusted ourselves to you, noble one, you lifted us up from among the hell beings, animals, and anguished spirits. Leading us to live among the gods and humans, you dried up the ocean of blood and tears and led us over the mountain pass of bones to cast away all the afflictive emotions to which we have been accustomed since beginningless time. [F.25.a] Noble one, for as long as we live, please accept from us your provisions of clothing, food, bedding, a seat, and medicines for the sick.”

1.202“Friends,” replied Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja, “there are other householders I must help as well. Please allow me to go.” The inhabitants of Kauśāmbī who had gathered there rejoiced at what Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja had said to them, touched their heads to Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja’s feet, and departed.

1.203From time to time those who had seen the truths would visit Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja and listen to the Dharma. One day, as those living in Kauśāmbī were gathering together‍—group after group and elder after elder‍—King Udayin of Vatsa arrayed the four divisions of his army and set out to hunt deer.

1.204When King Udayin of Vatsa saw the assembly of those living in Kauśāmbī going to the garden of the householder Ghoṣila, he immediately asked his ministers, “Where are these country folk going?”

1.205“Deva,” the ministers replied, “the child of your family priest, the one called Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja, has cast aside the royal concerns of home and crown and gone forth. He has now made his way through the countryside to Kauśāmbī, where he is staying in the garden of the householder Ghoṣila. It is him they are traveling to see.”

1.206As soon as he heard this, the king declared, “For a long time he has pleased me and been dear to my heart, and it is my duty to pay tribute to a preceptor. I will also go to see him and pay him respect.”

1.207They went to the householder Ghoṣila’s garden, but the elder monk did not receive the king, nor did he so much as stand. When the king saw this, [F.25.b] he was instantly consumed with fury. Seething with anger, he paid respect to the elder monk and then departed.

1.208He said to his ministers, “Behold the renunciant Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja, the child of the country’s royal family priest! He saw me, but he would not receive me‍—he wouldn’t so much as stand!”

1.209To this his hateful ministers replied, “Deva, even though he saw you, he did not receive you, nor did he so much as stand! Such behavior is inappropriate.”

1.210The king was heartbroken about this, and it made him extremely unhappy. After hunting deer with his army, he returned to the area of the monastery in anger, thinking, “Now I am going to go see that monk again. When he sees me, if he does not receive me properly‍—if he does not so much as stand‍—I shall lop off his head and throw it away!” With this in mind, he entered the householder Ghoṣila’s garden.

1.211Now Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja heard that King Udayin of Vatsa was on the way to see him, and as soon as he did, he thought, “Why is King Udayin coming to see me again?” And he saw that the king was thinking, “If that monk fails to receive me properly upon sight‍—if he refuses even to stand‍—I shall lop off his head and toss it to the ground!”

1.212Knowing the king’s thoughts, he rose from meditation and took six steps to receive him. As soon as he did so, the king’s air of splendor disappeared and a fissure appeared in the earth. The king saw this and was immediately afraid.

1.213“This monk is a person of great miracles and great power,” he thought. “As I was approaching him with spiteful thoughts, through his power my splendor disappeared and the earth split open.”

1.214Sure of this, he approached Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja, bowed down at his feet, [F.26.a] and said, “Noble one, please forgive my childish, deluded, uncouth blunder.”

1.215“Great King, I forgive you, but you must ask forgiveness of your own mind,” the elder monk replied.

“Lord, won’t my kingdom fall now? Won’t I lose my life?” asked the king.

1.216“Never fear, Great King, never fear!” replied the elder monk. “Your kingdom will not fall, nor will you lose your life. However, Great King, my taking six steps to receive you will cause you to lose your kingdom for six months. Then, after six months have passed, you will regain your kingdom. Furthermore, Great King, you must feel joy toward me. For as soon as you feel joy toward me, you will prevent your fall into the earth, and your air of splendor will return.”

1.217As soon as he heard this, the king felt joy toward the elder monk, and as soon as he felt this joy, his air of splendor returned and the fissure in the earth closed up. At that moment the king again felt a surge of joy toward the elder monk. Filled with such joy, he touched his head to the elder monk’s feet and departed.

1.218One day King Udayin of Vatsa again arrayed the four divisions of his army and set out to hunt deer. They saw a deer and approached it, with the army on one side and the king on the other. But on his way through the wilderness the king was separated from his army and became disoriented.

1.219He wandered into a cattle pen and, not recognizing anyone or being recognized by anyone, he went mad, and remained there in the cattle pen for six months. His children, ministers, and attendants all went looking for him, but were unable to find him. They returned to the royal palace wondering, “What shall we do now if we don’t find him? Where will we go?” [F.26.b] And they sat in silence.

1.220Six months later someone recognized the king and asked, “Deva, what are you doing here?”

1.221Coming to his senses, the king related to the cowherds all that had taken place. “Take heart, Deva,” the cowherds told him. “We shall bring you to the royal palace.” The cowherds set out for Kauśāmbī with the king traveling separately behind them.

1.222After six months had passed, a minister named The Son of Enveloped in the Darkness of Logic remembered which direction the king had gone, and thought, “We must search for him. If we find him alive, he will carry on his reign. If not‍—if something went wrong‍—then we shall put his child on the throne.”

1.223With this in mind, they organized the four divisions of the army. As they searched the villages, towns, cities, kingdom, and royal palaces, The Son of Enveloped in the Darkness of Logic saw King Udayin of Vatsa from a distance. Delighted to see him, he approached the king, inquired after his health, and asked him, “Deva, where did you go?” whereupon King Udayin of Vatsa related the story in detail.

1.224“Deva,” said The Son of Enveloped in the Darkness of Logic, “it is all just as Noble Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja prophesied.”

1.225Hearing this, the king felt a surge of joy toward the elder monk and thought, “For now let me put off returning to the city. I will go and pay respect to Noble Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja.”

1.226With this in mind he bypassed Kauśāmbī and went to the householder Ghoṣila’s garden. He traveled as far as he could by vehicle, then descended from his vehicle and continued to the garden on foot. There he approached Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja, [F.27.a] bowed down at his feet, and sat before him to listen to the Dharma. The elder monk taught him a Dharma particularly suited to him.

1.227When Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja had completed his discourse, King Udayin of Vatsa rose from his seat, drew down the right shoulder of his upper garment, bowed toward Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja with his palms together, and implored him, “Noble one, please permit me to request you and the saṅgha of monks to take your food at my house for seven days.”

1.228Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja assented by his silence. Understanding that by his silence Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja had given his assent, King Udayin of Vatsa rose from his seat, bowed down at Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja’s feet, and departed.

1.229Once he had contented Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja and his retinue with many good, wholesome foods for seven days, at the end of the last day he offered each of them a set of robes fashioned from cotton and then sat before them to listen to the Dharma. Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja instructed, encouraged, inspired, and delighted them with a discourse on the Dharma particularly suited to them. After he had instructed, encouraged, inspired, and delighted them, he rose from his seat and departed.

1.230One day the Blessed One, having stayed in Rājagṛha for as long as he liked, donned his Dharma robes, and, carrying his alms bowl, set out for Kauśāmbī, surrounded and escorted by an assembly of monks. He made his way through the countryside until he arrived in Kauśāmbī, where he stayed in the householder Ghoṣila’s garden. [F.27.b]

1.231King Udayin of Vatsa heard that the Blessed One was traveling through the country of Vatsa and had arrived in Kauśāmbī, where he was staying in the householder Ghoṣila’s garden. Hearing this, he approached the Blessed One, touched his head to the Blessed One’s feet, and took a seat at one side.

1.232Once King Udayin of Vatsa had taken a seat at one side, the Blessed One instructed, encouraged, inspired, and delighted him with a discourse on the Dharma. After he had instructed, encouraged, inspired, and delighted him with a discourse on the Dharma, he sat without speaking.

1.233Knowing that the Blessed One had completed his discourse, King Udayin of Vatsa then rose from his seat, drew down the right shoulder of his upper garment, bowed toward the Blessed One with palms pressed together, and said, “Please permit me to provide the Blessed One and the rest of the saṅgha of monks with provisions of clothing, food, bedding, seats, and medicines for the sick for the three months of winter.” The Blessed One assented by his silence.

1.234Understanding that by his silence the Blessed One had given his assent, King Udayin of Vatsa then provided for all their needs there in the householder Ghoṣila’s garden. After respectfully providing for all the needs of the Buddha and the rest of the saṅgha of monks for three months, he offered the Blessed One very costly food on the last day. Then he offered each of the other monks a set of cotton robes, and they departed.

1.235From time to time he approached the Blessed One to listen to the Dharma. [F.28.a] After hearing the Dharma from the Blessed One, he always made a point of going to offer his respectful service to Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja. When the monks saw him, they became suspicious.

1.236“Why should this king make a point of going to offer such respectful service to Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja?” they wondered.

1.237Then they heard the story in detail. After they heard it, they asked the Blessed One, “Lord, tell us why King Udayin of Vatsa approached Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja with spiteful thoughts, which caused his air of splendor to disappear, and just as he was about to fall into a narrow fissure, his mind again became filled with joy and his splendor returned, and the narrow fissure closed up as well.”

1.238“Not only now, monks,” the Blessed One explained, “but this happened in times past as well, and in the same way, during King Meru’s reign in the city called Flourishing Rice. The kingdom was prosperous, flourishing, happy, and well populated. The harvest was good. Quarreling and arguments had ceased, there was no fighting or infighting, and there were no robbers, thieves, illness, or famine. Rice, sugarcane, cattle, and buffalo were plentiful. His was a reign in accord with the Dharma, and he treated the kingdom like a beloved only child.

1.239“When the time came for the king’s family priest to marry, he took a wife, and they enjoyed themselves and coupled. As they enjoyed themselves and coupled, one day his wife conceived, and after nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. At the elaborate feast celebrating his birth they named him according to their clan.

1.240“They reared him on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and as he grew up he studied letters, brahminical customs and conduct, the syllables oṁ and bho, [F.28.b] ritual purity, ritual actions, the collection of ashes, the holding of the ritual vase, the Ṛg Veda , the Yajur Veda , the Sāma Veda , the Atharva Veda , how to perform sacrificial rites, how to lead others in performing sacrificial rites, how to give and receive offerings, recitation, and recitation instruction. Trained in these procedures, he became a master of the six types of brahminical activities, and in time he mastered the eighteen sciences.

1.241“He came to see that his father administrated the affairs of the kingdom both righteously and unrighteously. Recognizing this he thought, ‘After my father dies, I shall rule the kingdom without a crown. Let me then give up living at home and go to live in the forest.’ Reflecting in this way, he asked for his parents’ permission and went to live in the forest. There he generated the four meditative states and the five superknowledges.

1.242“One day he went to the royal palace in the city of Flourishing Rice. Upon his arrival in the park his father fashioned him a hut of branches and leaves, and began to provide for all his needs. Many people would come from time to time to see him and to listen to the Dharma.

1.243“Then one day King Meru arrayed the four divisions of the army and set out to hunt deer. The king saw many people entering the park, and he asked, ‘Where are all these people going?’

1.244“ ‘Deva,’ his ministers replied, ‘the child of the royal family priest not only has gone forth, but is a person of great miracles and great power as well. They are all going to see him.’

1.245“Thereupon the king thought, ‘He pleases me and is dear to my heart, and it is my duty to pay tribute to a preceptor. I will also go and see him.’ The king went to see the sage. But upon seeing the king, the sage did not receive him, nor did he so much as stand.

1.246“When the king saw this, [F.29.a] he was suddenly consumed with fury. ‘This is the child of my family priest! When I arrive, he does not receive me‍—he does not so much as stand! I shall have his head!’ he thought, and no sooner had he thought this than the air of splendor surrounding the king’s body disappeared, and a fissure appeared in the earth and he began to sink into it.

1.247“Seeing this, the king was suddenly afraid. ‘This sage is a person of great miracles and great power,’ he thought. Reflecting on this, he was filled with great joy, and he bowed down at the sage’s feet and asked his forgiveness.

1.248“ ‘Great King,’ replied the sage, ‘though I forgive you, you must ask forgiveness of your own mind.’

“In fear the king asked the sage, ‘But, sage, won’t my kingdom fall now? Won’t I lose my life?’

1.249“ ‘Never fear, Great King, never fear!’ said the sage. ‘Your kingdom will not fall, and you will not lose your life. However, Great King, it is because of your spiteful thoughts toward me that your air of splendor disappeared and the earth cracked open. Great King, as soon as you again feel joy toward me, your air of splendor will return.’ As soon as he heard this, the king felt joy toward the sage, and as soon as he felt this joy, his air of splendor returned and the crack in the earth closed up.

1.250“O monks, what do you think? The one who was the sage then is none other than Venerable Piṇḍola­bhāradvāja. The one who was King Meru then is none other than King Udayin of Vatsa. At that time, as soon as he had spiteful thoughts toward the elder monk, his air of splendor disappeared and the earth cracked open, and as soon as he felt joy toward him, his aura of splendor returned and the fissure in the earth closed up. And again, recently he had spiteful thoughts toward him, his splendor disappeared, [F.29.b] and the earth cracked open. But no sooner did he feel joy toward him then his aura of splendor returned, and the crack in the earth closed up.”

Victory Banner

1.251When the Blessed One was in Śrāvastī there was a king named Brahmadatta who reigned in the city of Vārāṇasī. His kingdom was prosperous, flourishing, happy, and well populated. The harvest was good. Quarreling and arguments had ceased, there was no fighting or infighting, and there were no robbers, thieves, illness, or famine. Rice, sugarcane, cattle, and buffalo were plentiful. His was a reign in accord with the Dharma, and he treated the kingdom like a beloved only child.

1.252One day the queen conceived, and after nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. At the elaborate feast celebrating her birth they asked, “What name should we give this child?” And they named her, saying, “Since she is both the child of the king of Kāśi and very beautiful, her name will be Kāśisundarī (Beauty of Kāśi).”

1.253Kāśisundarī had eight nurses‍—two nurses to hold her in their laps, two wet nurses, two nurses to bathe her, and two nurses to play with her. These eight nurses reared her on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and she flourished like a lotus in a lake. As she grew up she became versed in the arts. She found faith in the doctrine of the Blessed One, and having asked for her parents’ permission, she offered her service to the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha.

1.254When she had grown people said, “This daughter of the king of Kāśi is well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful‍—in all the world there’s none like her,” and her fame spread far and wide.

1.255Now there were six neighboring kings who were shot with arrows of lust upon hearing this, [F.30.a] and they all sent envoys to Brahmadatta , the king of Kāśi, bearing the message, “Please give your daughter to me.”

1.256When he heard this, King Brahmadatta immediately sat and reflected. “If I give my daughter to one of them,” he thought, “the others will become my enemies. To whom then should I give her?” In light of this he did not want to give her to anyone.

1.257One day the six neighboring kings thought, “He will not give his daughter to any of us of his own free will. Therefore we must go and take her away by force.” With this in mind, on the same day they all armored the four divisions of their armies and went to Vārāṇasī, where they surrounded the entire perimeter of the city.

1.258Then King Brahmadatta , realizing that the enemy armies were a threat to him, climbed to the roof of the palace. There he sat and brooded with his cheek resting on his palm, wondering, “What shall I do now?” Kāśisundarī came to the roof of the palace, where she found her father sitting with his cheek resting on his palm, and asked him, “Father, why have you come to the roof of the palace to brood with your cheek resting on your palm?”

“It is because of you, my child,” said the king.

1.259“Is my appearance so poor, father?” the young woman asked. “Why should my father sit and brood because of me?”

“My child,” replied the king, “it is because your every limb is endowed with beauty that I sit and brood, and it is because of you that the six quarreling neighboring kings have arrayed the four divisions of their armies and advanced on Vārāṇasī, surrounding the city in siege.”

1.260“Can a daughter not choose a spouse for herself, father?” Kāśisundarī wondered.

“A daughter may choose,” said the king.

1.261“Father,” the young woman said, [F.30.b] “please permit me to choose my own spouse.”

“Oh child,” he replied, “please wait for me to inform the neighboring kings.”

1.262King Brahmadatta told the neighboring kings, “Kāśisundarī shall make her own choice regarding a spouse. Therefore I ask that you accept her decision.”

At this they all thought, “Kāśisundarī will not forsake one such as me to choose another,” and replied, “She will not err‍—let her choose her husband!”

1.263The envoys went and relayed this to King Brahmadatta , and he was very pleased to hear it. After he had replied to each in turn, they cut their thumbs and swore an oath. Then on a wide and suitable place, they all built multistory structures in a long row, in which each of them sat, surrounded by their retinues, on highly ornamented lion thrones.

1.264Kāśisundarī‍—astride a fine mount, attended by a band of young women, and hoisting a victory banner of colored cloth‍—emerged from Vārāṇasī into their midst. Then she faced Ṛṣivadana, cast her bridal bouquet in the direction of the Blessed One, and crying out, “I take refuge in the Blessed Buddha!” she oriented her chariot toward Ṛṣivadana.

1.265The kings and everyone in the great crowd realized to their astonishment that they had never seen so desirable a form as the fine one before them, and they trailed behind her, saying, “Let’s see what she does!”

1.266Kāśisundarī rode as far toward Ṛṣivadana as she could by vehicle, then descended from her vehicle and continued to the garden on foot. There she approached the Blessed One, touched her head to the feet of the Blessed One, [F.31.a] drew down the right shoulder of her upper garment, bowed toward the Blessed One with palms pressed together, and requested, “Lord, if permitted I wish to go forth in the Dharma and Vinaya so well spoken, complete my novitiate, and achieve full ordination. In the presence of the Blessed One, I too wish to practice the holy life.” The Blessed One called Mahā­prajāpatī Gautamī, and Mahā­prajāpatī Gautamī led her to go forth as a novice, conferred on her full ordination, and instructed her.

1.267Casting away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, she manifested arhatship. As an arhat, free from the attachments of the three realms, her mind regarded gold no differently than filth, and the palms of her hands as like space itself. She became cool like wet sandalwood. Her insight crushed ignorance like an eggshell. She achieved the insights, superknowledges, and discriminations. She had no regard for worldly profit, passion, or acclaim. She became an object of offering, veneration, and respectful address by Indra, Upendra, and the other gods.

1.268The entire crowd of people was astonished, and all of them approached the Blessed One, touched their heads to the Blessed One’s feet, and sat before him to listen to the Dharma. The Blessed One taught them the Dharma particularly suited to them, and after they heard the Dharma from the Blessed One, each of them returned home.

1.269“Blessed One,” the monks asked, “what action did Kāśisundarī take that ripened into her birth into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth; that she was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful‍—an unmatched figure; [F.31.b] and that she pleased and did not displease the Blessed One, went forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship?”

“It came about by the power of her prayers,” the Blessed One replied.

1.270“Lord, where did she make these prayers?”

“Monks,” explained the Blessed One, “in times past, in this fortunate eon, when people lived as long as twenty thousand years and the tathāgata, the arhat, the totally and completely awakened buddha possessed of insight and perfect conduct, the sugata, the knower of the world, the tamer of persons, the charioteer, the unsurpassed one, the teacher of humans and gods, the blessed buddha Kāśyapa was in the world, there lived in the city of Vārāṇasī a certain householder, prosperous and wealthy, a person of vast and magnificent means, endowed with the wealth of Vaiśravaṇa‍—with wealth to rival Vaiśravaṇa’s.

1.271“When the time came for him to marry he took a wife, and they enjoyed themselves and coupled. As they enjoyed themselves and coupled, one day his wife conceived, and after nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. At the elaborate feast celebrating her birth they named her according to their clan. They reared her on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and she flourished like a lotus in a lake.

1.272“When she grew up, she found faith in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa. She asked for her parents’ permission, built a monastery that was complete in every respect, offered it to Buddha Kāśyapa and the rest of the saṅgha of monks, and provided for all their needs. Then she made another request of her parents and went forth as a novice in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa. Once she had gone forth, she studied the Tripiṭaka [F.32.a] and became a proponent of the Dharma with all the eloquence of her wisdom and freedom.

1.273“Thereupon she thought, ‘I have completed my studies. Now I will put my effort into meditation.’ She received instructions for contemplation, and through her earnest practice, foregoing sleep from dusk to dawn, she developed meditative stabilization on love and there practiced pure conduct all her life.

1.274“At the time of her death she prayed, ‘I have given gifts, made merit, gone forth in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa, and practiced pure conduct all my life. By this root of virtue, wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth. May I be well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful‍—an unmatched figure. May I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. Going forth in his doctrine alone may I cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifest arhatship.’

1.275“O monks, what do you think? The one who went forth as a nun in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa then is now Kāśisundarī. At that time she gave gifts, made merit, went forth in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa, and practiced pure conduct all her life.

1.276“At the time of her death she prayed, ‘Wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth. May I be well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful‍—an unmatched figure. May I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. Going forth in his doctrine alone may I cast away all afflictive emotions and [F.32.b] manifest arhatship.’ Those acts ripened such that she was born into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth and was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful‍—an unmatched figure.

1.277“So it is, monks, now that I myself have become the very equal of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa‍—equal in strength, equal in deeds, and equal in skillful means‍—that she has pleased me, not displeased me, gone forth in my very doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship. And her development of meditative stabilization on love ripened such that wherever she was born, her beauty was unmatched.” [B3]

The Story of Kṣemā

1.278When the Blessed One was in Śrāvastī, King Prasenajit reigned in the city of Śrāvastī and King Brahmadatta reigned in Vārāṇasī. The two did not agree with one another, and from time to time a great many people were killed. One day King Brahmadatta arrayed the four divisions of his army and advanced on the kingdom of Kośala, where they made camp and stayed on the banks of the Ajiravatī River.

1.279King Prasenajit heard that King Brahmadatta had arrayed the four divisions of his army and come to the city gates to wage war, so he arrayed the four divisions of his army too and set out to wage war against Brahmadatta , King of Kāśi. They too made camp and hunkered down on the banks of the Ajiravatī River. Many on each side were slaughtered while the two armies were stationed there. Both sides were formidable and resistant to assault, and so it continued, with neither side able to defeat the other.

1.280One day as they were hunkered down there, [F.33.a] a daughter was born to King Prasenajit who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. A son who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful had also been born to King Brahmadatta of Kāśi, so celebratory music resounded from both of their camps.

1.281Hearing the music coming from both sides, the kings asked, “What is all this celebratory music?”

King Brahmadatta ’s ministers replied, “It is for the birth of King Prasenajit’s daughter, and for you, Deva, upon the arrival of your son,” and King Prasenajit’s ministers replied, “It is for you, Deva, upon the arrival of your daughter, and for the birth of King Brahmadatta ’s son.”

1.282When they heard this, both were in good spirits, and thought, “We should not treat each other as enemies now that we have the means to become kin!”

King Brahmadatta sent an envoy to King Prasenajit with the message, “Please give your newborn daughter to my son in marriage.”

1.283King Prasenajit thought, “This will be a way to make friends with King Brahmadatta for the rest of my life,” and sent an envoy to King Brahmadatta with the response, “I shall comply with your wish.” The two asked forgiveness of one another and made friends. One sent a great wealth of clothing and finery for the girl, and the other sent much clothing and finery for the boy. As friends, the two now departed the region with their arms around each other’s shoulders.

1.284King Prasenajit thought, “Since the birth of my daughter, I am happy with King Brahmadatta ,” so he named her Kṣemā (She Who Brings Happiness) at the elaborate feast celebrating her birth. They reared her on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and she flourished like a lotus in a lake. When she grew up she found faith in the doctrine of the Blessed Buddha, went for refuge and took the fundamental precepts, [F.33.b] made merit, and went continually to the nunnery to listen to the Dharma.

1.285So it was that one day she manifested the resultant state of non-return and attained miraculous powers. Endowed with great power and magical abilities, she achieved concentration on the eight liberations. She demonstrated the miracle of her magical abilities for her parents, and said, “Mother, Father, now that I have achieved these things, I cannot engage in sexual relations, so I am asking for your kind permission to go forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One.”

1.286“My child, we cannot allow this,” her parents said, “for we betrothed you as soon as you were born. We have already sent our word and set aside our dispute, but still‍—when the wedding party comes for you, you can make your request to the groom and go forth, should he agree.”

1.287Then King Prasenajit sent an envoy to King Brahmadatta with the message, “Our daughter Kṣemā wishes to go forth. We cannot stop her. Do not delay in making her a bride.”

King Brahmadatta likewise sent an envoy with the response, “I shall come on such-and-such a date. Start making preparations for her to be sent away as a bride.”

1.288When King Prasenajit heard this, he began making preparations to send her away as a bride. King Brahmadatta then sent his son with great riches and a great show of force, whereupon King Prasenajit respectfully led the delegation into Śrāvastī.

1.289Once the wedding delegation had been led in, an altar was erected and decorated with ornaments, and many people gathered there. They clad the young woman in every type of adornment and led her to her place at the decorated altar. Then the young man too was led to the decorated altar, and he turned and beckoned to young Kṣemā. Suddenly she rose up into the sky [F.34.a] and gave a miraculous display of fire and light, rain and lightning.

1.290When the young man and the many others saw this they experienced a surge of tremendous joy toward Kṣemā, and the young man thought, “How could she engage in sexual relations with me, now that she has attained such great virtues?”

1.291He called out to her, “Fine woman, come down! I’ll let you decide as you please!”

Kṣemā told him, “Lord, I cannot engage in sexual relations with you‍—please give your consent to my going forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One.”

1.292“Given,” the young man replied. Young Kṣemā immediately descended and gave a Dharma teaching to the people. Then she asked for her parents’ permission, went to the garden of Prince Jeta, approached the Blessed One, touched her head to the Blessed One’s feet, and requested, “Lord, if permitted I wish to go forth in the Dharma and Vinaya so well spoken, complete my novitiate, and achieve full ordination. In the presence of the Blessed One, I too wish to practice the holy life.” Thereupon the Blessed One presented her to Mahā­prajāpatī.

1.293Mahā­prajāpatī led her to go forth as a novice, conferred on her full ordination, and instructed her. Casting away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, she manifested arhatship. As an arhat, free from the attachments of the three realms, her mind regarded gold no differently than filth, and the palms of her hands as like space itself. She became cool like wet sandalwood. Her insight crushed ignorance like an eggshell. She achieved the insights, superknowledges, and discriminations. She had no regard for worldly profit, passion, or acclaim. Her state was such that Indra, [F.34.b] Upendra, and the other gods worshiped and venerated her and addressed her with respect, and the Blessed One commended her as foremost among the wise.

1.294After Kṣemā had gone forth in this way, the king’s son thought, “If even a woman can have such realizations of the Dharma, surely I can go forth in the Blessed One’s doctrine as well.” With this thought, he likewise asked for his parents’ permission, and, casting away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, he manifested arhatship.

1.295The monks asked the Blessed One, “Lord, what actions did young Kṣemā and the king’s son take that ripened into their births into families of great means, prosperity, and wealth; that they pleased and did not displease the Blessed One; and that they went forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship?”

“This happened due to the power of their prayers,” the Blessed One replied.

1.296“Lord, where did they make these prayers?”

“Monks,” explained the Blessed One, “in times past, in this fortunate eon, when people lived as long as twenty thousand years and the tathāgata, the arhat, the totally and completely awakened buddha possessed of insight and perfect conduct, the sugata, the knower of the world, the tamer of persons, the charioteer, the unsurpassed one, the teacher of humans and gods, the blessed buddha known as Kāśyapa was in the world, there lived in the city of Vārāṇasī a certain householder, prosperous and wealthy, a person of vast and magnificent means, endowed with the wealth of Vaiśravaṇa‍—with wealth to rival Vaiśravaṇa’s.

1.297“When the time came for him to marry he took a wife, and they enjoyed themselves and coupled. Then one day they both found faith in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa and [F.35.a] said to one another, ‘Good spouse, seeing as we have neither sons nor daughters, after we die all that we have will become property of the king. So while we yet live, let us carry only that which we can take with us into the next life.’

1.298“The two spouses built a monastery that was complete in every respect, offered it to the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa and the rest of the saṅgha of monks, provided for all their needs, and served them with respect.

1.299“One day they had an idea and said, ‘Let us give up living at home to go forth in the teaching of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa.’ Casting away household affairs, they gave gifts and made merit, went forth as novices in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa, and received full ordination.

1.300“They practiced pure conduct all their lives, and while they may not have attained any great virtues, at the time of their deaths they prayed, ‘While we may not have attained any great virtues, still we have gone forth in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa, given gifts, made merit, and practiced pure conduct all our lives. By this root of virtue, wherever we are born, may it be into families of great means, prosperity, and wealth, and may we be well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. May we please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. May we go forth in his doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifest arhatship.’

1.301“O monks, what do you think? The two who were married then [F.35.b] are none other than Kṣemā and the king’s son. The acts of giving gifts, making merit, practicing pure conduct all their lives, and praying at the time of their deaths ripened such that wherever they were born, it was into families of great means, prosperity, and wealth, and they were well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful.

1.302“So it is, monks, now that I myself have become the very equal of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa‍—equal in strength, equal in deeds, and equal in skillful means‍—that they have pleased me, not displeased me, gone forth in my very doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship.”

The Story of Maṇiprabha

1.303When the Blessed One was in Śrāvastī there was a young god named Maṇiprabha, who had hoops in his ears and necklaces around his neck, and whose body was graced with strings of precious stones. He had a luminous celestial mansion of exquisite, divine jewels. This exalted being of light filled the front of his long shirt with divine flowers‍—lotus, blue lotus, white water lily, and white lotus flowers‍—and when night had fallen he went to the garden of Prince Jeta in Śrāvastī to see the Blessed One. Upon his arrival, he scattered the divine blue lotus, lotus, white water lily, white lotus, and mandārava flowers over the Blessed One, touched his head to the Blessed One’s feet, and sat before him to listen to the Dharma.

1.304The Blessed One directly apprehended his thoughts, habitual tendencies, temperament, and nature, and taught him the Dharma accordingly. Hearing it, the young god destroyed the twenty high peaks of the mountain of views concerning the transitory collection with the thunderbolt of wisdom, and manifested the resultant state of stream entry right where he sat. Having seen the truths, [F.36.a] he touched his head to the Blessed One’s feet, circumambulated him three times, and disappeared on the spot.

1.305When that happened, the monks, who were making continued, earnest, and sleepless efforts at dusk and dawn, noticed that the garden of Prince Jeta was suffused with a great light and wondered, “What was this? Last night, did Sahāṃpati Brahmā, or Śakra, King of the Gods‍—or perhaps the four great kings‍—come to offer respect to the Blessed One?”

1.306Thinking this, they asked the Blessed One, “Lord, last night, did Sahāṃpati Brahmā, or Śakra, King of the Gods‍—or perhaps the four great kings‍—come to see the Blessed One?”

1.307“Monks,” the Blessed One replied, “last night it was neither Sahāṃpati Brahmā, nor Śakra, King of the Gods, nor the four great kings who came to see me, but rather a young god named Maṇiprabha, a very exalted being of light with a luminous celestial mansion of exquisite, divine jewels, who came to see me and to offer his respect. I taught him the Dharma, and after he heard the Dharma from me he manifested the resultant state of stream entry. Having seen the truths, he went back to where he belongs.”

1.308“Lord, what action did Maṇiprabha take that ripened into his birth as a god, that he attained a luminous celestial mansion of exquisite, divine jewels, and that he pleased the Blessed One, and did not displease him?”

1.309“Monks,” explained the Blessed One, “Maṇiprabha committed and accumulated the actions himself at a previous time. The actions he committed and accumulated did not ripen into the external element of earth. They did not ripen into the element of water, nor the element of fire, nor the element of wind. The actions he committed and accumulated, both virtuous and nonvirtuous, [F.36.b] ripened into nothing but his own aggregates, sense bases, and constituent elements.

1.311“Monks, in times past, in this fortunate age when people lived as long as twenty thousand years and the tathāgata, the arhat, the totally and completely awakened buddha possessed of insight and perfect conduct, the sugata, the knower of the world, the tamer of persons, the charioteer, the unsurpassed one, the teacher of humans and gods, the blessed buddha known as Kāśyapa was in the world, there lived in Vārāṇasī a certain householder, prosperous and wealthy, a person of vast and magnificent means, endowed with the wealth of Vaiśravaṇa‍—with wealth to rival Vaiśravaṇa’s.

1.312“That householder constructed a stūpa enshrining the hair and nail relics of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa, and a monastery that was complete in every respect, and he provided for all the monastery’s needs. Even the rain gutters of the stūpa dangled with jewels, such that the monastery associated with it shone night and day. He offered the monastery to the Blessed Buddha Kāśyapa and the rest of the saṅgha of monks. He also offered his respectful service to the monks, and provided for all their needs. After going for refuge and maintaining the fundamental precepts all his life, he took birth among the gods, where he obtained a celestial mansion of exquisite jewels.

1.313“O monks, what do you think? The householder who at that time built the reliquary stūpa enshrining the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa and his teachings, and the monastery associated with it, and who hung jewels on the stūpa, is none other than the young god Maṇiprabha. The acts of building the reliquary stūpa and the associated monastery, complete in every respect, [F.37.a] offering them to the Blessed Buddha Kāśyapa and the rest of the saṅgha of monks, and hanging jewels on the stūpa ripened into his taking birth among the gods.

1.314“So it is, monks, now that I myself have become the very equal of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa‍—equal in strength, equal in deeds, and equal in skillful means‍—that he has pleased me and not displeased me.”

The Story of Jasmine

1.315When the Blessed One was in Śrāvastī there lived a certain householder, prosperous and wealthy, a person of vast and magnificent means, endowed with the wealth of Vaiśravaṇa‍—with wealth to rival Vaiśravaṇa’s. When the time came for him to marry he took a wife, and they enjoyed themselves and coupled.

1.316The householder had no heir and desired a son, so he supplicated the gods. He prayed to Paśupati, Varuṇa, Kubera, Śakra, Brahmā, and the rest, and to the deities of the pleasure groves, the forest deities, the deities of the crossroads, the deities of forks in the road, the deities who receive strewn oblations, the deities of his inherited tradition, and the deities who are in constant attendance of righteous persons.

1.317While it is often said that praying to deities can cause a boy or girl to be born, this is not true. If children could be made just by praying, every family would have them a thousand times over, like a universal monarch. In fact, there are three circumstances that allow for the birth of a child: a child is born when (1) lust arises in the parents and they have intercourse, (2) the mother still has her menstrual cycle and is approached by a gandharva, and (3) the gandharva’s mind is either attached or angry.

1.318Nevertheless, he remained intent on his prayers, and a great being [F.37.b] took birth in his wife’s womb who was well renowned and had gained his final birth, had the good fortune to soon be liberated due to gathering the accumulations, had his sights set on nirvāṇa and had turned away from saṃsāra, had no desire for the states of rebirth in cyclic existence, and who had now assumed his final body.

1.319A woman wise in nature possesses five extraordinary qualities. She knows (1) whether a man is attracted to her, (2) the time of her menstrual cycle, (3) that she has conceived, (4) from whom she has conceived, and (5) whether the child is a boy or a girl, for if it is a baby boy it will stay on the right side of the womb, and if it is a girl it will stay on the left side of the womb.

1.320When the householder’s wife conceived a child, she was overjoyed and told her husband, “My Lord, I have conceived a boy. He is staying on the right side of my womb, so rejoice, for it is sure to be a boy!”

1.321At this the householder too was very happy. He puffed out his chest, put his right hand in the air, and expressed his joy, saying, “I shall see the face of the son for whom I have prayed for so long! May everything be right with my son, may nothing go wrong with him, and may he carry on my work! As I care for him, may he care for me in return! May he enjoy my inheritance! May my lineage endure for a long time! And after our passing, when we die, may he give gifts, be they great or small, and make merit! When he does, may he dedicate the merit thus: ‘Wherever these two are born, may this go to them!’

1.322Now that he knew his wife was pregnant, he ensconced her on the upper levels of their house in order to care for the baby. He provided her with what she needed for winter in the winter, what she needed for summer in the summer, with food that was [F.38.a] not too bitter, too sour, too salty, too sweet, too spicy, or too astringent as instructed by the healer, and he served her food that was not bitter, sour, salty, sweet, spicy, or astringent. He draped her body with garlands and strings of precious stones, and he moved her from divan to divan and seat to seat like a goddess through a joyous garden, never letting her descend to the ground, never letting her hear an unpleasant word even for a moment.

1.323The blessed buddhas, teachers of the one path to be traversed, with mastery over wisdom and the two types of knowable objects, in command of the three kinds of sterling equanimity, fearless by means of the fourfold fearlessness, freed from migration through the five destinies, keen in the six sense bases, practiced in the seven limbs of enlightenment, focused on the eight liberations, absorbed in the nine successive meditative absorptions, possessing all ten of the ten powers, whose proclamations are the great roaring of a perfect lion, by nature regard the world with their buddha eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night.

1.324These are their thoughts as they look out in wisdom: “Who is in decline? Who will flourish? Who is destitute? Who is in a dreadful state? Who is being harmed? Who is destitute, in a dreadful state, and being harmed? Who is veering toward the lower realms? Who is descending through the lower realms? Who has descended to the lower realms? Whom shall I pull up from the lower realms, and establish in the resultant state of heaven and liberation? Whom, mired in misdeeds, shall I lift up by the hand? Whom, lacking the seven jewels of the noble ones, shall I lead to command of the seven jewels of the noble ones? Whom, not having produced roots of virtue, shall I lead to produce them? Whom, having already produced roots of virtue, shall I lead to ripen their roots of virtue? [F.38.b] Whom, having already ripened their roots of virtue, shall I slice open with the blade of wisdom? For whom shall I cause this world, adorned with a buddha’s presence, to be fruitful?”

1.326Just as the blessed buddhas regard the world with their buddha eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night‍—so too the great listeners regard the world with their listener’s eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night.

1.327When Venerable Aniruddha regarded the world with his listener’s eyes, he saw a being who was in his final birth taking birth in the home of that householder, and thought, “Who will tame this being? Will he be tamed by the Buddha, or will he be tamed instead by the listeners?” Then he saw that it was he himself who would tame him, and since he was already a spiritual friend of the house, to strengthen the householder’s resolve, he went to the householder’s home alone, without companions or attendants.

1.328The householder saw that Venerable Aniruddha was alone, without companions or attendants, and he asked, “Noble one, why have you come here alone, without companions or attendants? Noble one, is there no one at all who could attend you?”

1.329“Where shall we find attendants, if one such as yourself does not grant them to us?” replied Venerable Aniruddha.

“Noble one,” said the householder, “my wife has conceived, so if we have a son, [F.39.a] I shall offer him to you as an attendant.” Venerable Aniruddha said, “The virtuous keep their promises,” and having spoken thus, he departed.

1.330After nine or ten months had passed, the householder’s wife gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful, and from all over whose body the fragrance of jasmine flowers arose, suffusing the entire house with the scent of jasmine. A rain of jasmine flowers fell all about the house as the child entered his mother’s womb and again at the time of his birth.

1.331At the elaborate feast celebrating his birth, when they were asked, “What name should we give this child?” they named him, saying, “Since a rain of jasmine flowers fell all about the house as the child entered his mother’s womb and again at the time of his birth, his name will be Jasmine .” They reared young Jasmine on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and he flourished like a lotus in a lake.

1.332As he grew up he studied letters, tallying, and arithmetic; the study of seals, lending, deposits, and commerce; and the examination of cloth, jewels, gems, incense, medicine, elephants, horses, and arms and armor. He became skilled in writing, skilled at reading, learned, decisive, and industrious, a master of the eight types of examination.

1.333One day Venerable Aniruddha saw that the time had come for the child to go forth. He went to the householder’s home and reminded him by saying, “Householder, before this child was born you granted him to me as an attendant. The virtuous keep their promises, do they not? Didn’t you yourself make such a promise?”

1.334“Yes, noble one,” the householder replied, “I did make just such a promise.” After he said this, he took the child by his hands, [F.39.b] offered him to Venerable Aniruddha, and told him, “My child, before you were born, I offered you to the noble one. Therefore go, and be an attendant of the noble one.”

1.335The child said, “This will be of benefit to me,” and with those words he followed Venerable Aniruddha away. After Venerable Aniruddha had instructed, encouraged, inspired, and delighted the householder with a discourse on the Dharma, he rose from his seat and departed.

1.336Having brought the child to the monastery, Venerable Aniruddha led him to go forth as a novice, conferred on him full ordination, and instructed him. Casting away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, he manifested arhatship. As an arhat, free from the attachments of the three realms, his mind regarded gold no differently than filth, and the palms of his hands as like space itself. He became cool like wet sandalwood. His insight crushed ignorance like an eggshell. He achieved the insights, superknowledges, and discriminations. He had no regard for worldly profit, passion, or acclaim. He became an object of offering, veneration, and respectful address by Indra, Upendra, and the other gods.

1.337He also achieved miraculous abilities and great power, such that he reached the concentrations, liberations, meditative stabilizations, and attainments. He could enter and emerge from equipoise quickly, passing from one meditation to the next in the time it takes to thread a needle, and re-emerging just as quickly.

1.338One day Venerable Jasmine thought, “The Blessed One has dispelled so many kinds of suffering and anguish, brought me many kinds of happiness and bliss, cleared away so many of my sins and nonvirtues, and secured for me such virtues. [F.40.a] How could I repay the Blessed One’s kindness? Anytime a buddha arises in the world, it is only to benefit beings, so surely I too should act for the benefit of beings!”

1.339Reflecting in this way, he wondered, “Whom might I tame?” He looked out, and right away he saw his two parents. Upon seeing them he thought, “But by what method can I tame them?” and he realized he could tame them with a display of miracles. So he disappeared from the garden of Prince Jeta and reappeared at his parents’ house, floating in midair before them. He made a miraculous display of fire and light, rain and lightning, then descended and took a seat.

1.340He taught his parents the Dharma particularly suited to them. Hearing it, the householders and their retinue destroyed with the thunderbolt of wisdom the twenty high peaks of the mountain of views concerning the transitory collection, and manifested the resultant state of stream entry right where they sat. He led them to go for refuge and maintain the fundamental precepts. Having seen the truths, they gave gifts and made merit.

1.341The monks inquired of the Blessed One, “Lord, what action did Venerable Jasmine take that ripened into his birth into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth; that he was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful; that at his birth, the scent of jasmine flowers arose from all over his body; that as he entered the womb, a rain of jasmine flowers fell all about the house; and that he pleased the Blessed One, did not displease him, went forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship? [F.40.b] And his parents‍—what action did they take that, entrusting themselves to him completely, they pleased the Blessed One, and did not displease him?”

“It came about by the power of their prayers,” replied the Blessed One.

1.342“Lord, where did they make these prayers?”

“Monks,” the Blessed One explained, “in times past, in this fortunate eon, when people lived as long as twenty thousand years and the tathāgata, the arhat, the totally and completely awakened buddha possessed of insight and perfect conduct, the sugata, the knower of the world, the tamer of persons, the charioteer, the unsurpassed one, the teacher of humans and gods, the blessed buddha known as Kāśyapa was in the world, there lived in Vārāṇasī a certain householder, prosperous and wealthy, a person of vast and magnificent means, endowed with the wealth of Vaiśravaṇa‍—with wealth to rival Vaiśravaṇa’s.

1.343“When the time came for him to marry he took a wife, and as they enjoyed themselves and coupled, one day his wife conceived. After nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful.

1.344“As he grew up he found faith in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa. He asked for his parents’ permission and went forth. After going forth, he studied the Tripiṭaka and became a proponent of the Dharma with all the eloquence of his wisdom and freedom. He led his parents to live a life of perfect faith, and to go for refuge and maintain the fundamental precepts, and he inspired them to give gifts and to share what they had.

1.345“One day he thought, ‘I have completed whatever educational duties were before me. Now let me serve the saṅgha!’ With this thought he called upon his parents, the brahmins, and others of faith, and they offered the saṅgha cooked rice, soup, drink, porridge, [F.41.a] and provisions such as clothing, food, bedding, seats, and medicines for the sick, and they offered them residences as well.

1.346“He anointed all the stūpas containing hair and nail relics with an unguent of sesame oil and fragrant ointments; offered rows of butter lamps, garlands of jasmine flowers, and parasols; and scattered loose jasmine petals over them.

1.347“Then he prayed, ‘By this root of virtue, wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth. May I be well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. From all over my body may the fragrance of jasmine flowers arise. As I enter my mother’s womb, may a rain of jasmine flowers also fall all about the house. May I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. Going forth in his doctrine alone may I cast away all afflictive emotions and manifest arhatship.

1.348“ ‘May I have a sharp intellect. May I attain the concentrations, liberations, meditative stabilization , and attainments. May I enter and emerge from equipoise quickly, passing from one meditation to the next in the time it takes to thread a needle, and re-emerging just as quickly.’

1.349As they saw him sitting there praying his parents asked, ‘Child, what prayers are you making?’

“ ‘I prayed like this…’ he told them, and related it all in detail.

1.350His parents said, ‘May you alone again become our son. May the two of us again become your parents. Entrusting ourselves to you completely, may we please and not displease the Blessed Buddha.’

1.351“O monks, what do you think? The one [F.41.b] who was that monk then is none other than Jasmine now. At that time he went forth in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa and rendered service in accord with the Dharma. He served the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha with respect, and the act of praying ripened such that wherever he was born it was into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth; he was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful; from all over his body the fragrance of jasmine flowers arose; and a rain of flowers fell all about the house as he entered his mother’s womb, and again at the time of his birth.

1.352“So it is, monks, now that I myself have become the very equal of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa‍—equal in strength, equal in deeds, and equal in skillful means‍—that he has pleased me, not displeased me, gone forth in my very doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship; that his intellect became sharp; that that he reached the concentrations, liberations, meditative stabilizations, and attainments; and that he can enter and emerge from equipoise quickly, passing from one meditation to the next in the time it takes to thread a needle, and re-emerging just as quickly.

1.353“The ones who were his parents then are none other than his parents now. At that time they prayed, ‘Entrusting ourselves to you completely, may we please and not displease the king of the Śākyas,’ and now, entrusting themselves to him completely, they have pleased me, and not displeased me.”

Give It to Me!

1.354One morning when the Blessed One was in Śrāvastī he donned his lower garment and Dharma robes, and, carrying his alms bowl, went for alms. [F.42.a] A little brahmin child stood not far from the Blessed One and watched as a householder offered a laḍḍū treat of a hundred flavors, big enough to fill his stomach.

1.355When the brahmin child saw the laḍḍū treat, great craving arose in him for it, and he approached the Blessed One and said, “Hey Gautama, gimme that laḍḍū!”

The Blessed One answered the brahmin child, “Child, if you say, ‘I don’t need that laḍḍū treat,’ I’ll hand it over.”

1.356So he said to Gautama, “Hey Gautama, I don’t need that laḍḍū treat,” and the Blessed One handed the laḍḍū treat to him.

1.357At that time, not far from the Blessed One was sitting the householder Anāthapiṇḍada, who thought, “It won’t be possible for the Blessed One to take alms again today. There’s nowhere else, no other opportunity.”

1.358Realizing that there was no other place and no other opportunity for the Blessed One to take alms, he pulled the brahmin child aside and said, “Little brahmin, give that laḍḍū treat back to the Blessed One and I’ll give you five hundred gold coins.”

1.359“As you wish, householder,” the brahmin child said, and he put the laḍḍū treat back into the Blessed One’s alms bowl. The Blessed One finished his alms round and returned to the monastery. Meanwhile, the householder Anāthapiṇḍada brought the brahmin child home, gave him something to eat, and handed him the five hundred gold coins.

1.360The monks inquired of the Blessed One, “Lord, tell us why the Blessed One would not give the brahmin child the laḍḍū treat when he begged the Blessed One for it, but the Blessed One gave the laḍḍū treat to him after the child said, ‘Hey Gautama, I don’t need that laḍḍū treat,’ [F.42.b] .”

1.361“Monks,” explained the Blessed One, “for many thousands of lifetimes, that brahmin child frequently indulged, became addicted, and ended up wanting more. Thus I’ve lured him with a laḍḍū treat to turn him away from his preoccupation with acquiring things; that will be the sole cause of his going forth and giving up his aggregates.”

1.362“Lord, when will this brahmin child give up his aggregates?”

“Monks, in the future a totally and completely awakened Buddha named Mountain , who will far surpass the listeners and solitary buddhas, will emerge in the world. It is in his doctrine alone that, having obtained a human birth, he will go forth, cast away the afflictive emotions, and manifest arhatship.” [B4]

The Story of She Who Gathers

1.363When the Blessed One was in Rājagṛha, there was a king named Padmagarbha who reigned in Takṣaśīla. His kingdom was prosperous, flourishing, happy, and well populated. The harvest was good. Quarreling and arguments had ceased, there was no fighting or infighting, and there were no robbers, thieves, illness, or famine. Rice, sugarcane, cattle, and buffalo were plentiful. His was a reign in accord with the Dharma, and he treated the kingdom like a beloved only child.

1.364As he and the queen enjoyed themselves and coupled, the queen conceived, and her mind became filled with thoughts like, “If only I could debate the scriptural exegetes!” and other fervent wishes of that sort. When the king heard of this, he took her to the soothsayers.

1.365“Deva,” the soothsayers said, “she has such fervent wishes in her mind because the being in her womb [F.43.a] will understand all the treatises and defeat all scriptural exegetes.”

“Wise ones, what will happen if we can’t get this wish out of her mind?” asked the king.

“The heir born to you will have missing limbs,” the soothsayers replied.

1.366The king thought, “I can’t bear for my child to be born with missing limbs!” So he sat the queen behind a curtain, assembled all the scriptural exegetes, and, after appointing impartial observers, had them debate the scriptures with her.

1.367Once she had defeated all of the scriptural exegetes, her fervent desire subsided. After nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. At the elaborate feast celebrating her birth they asked, “What name should we give this child?” And they named her, saying, “Since her mother defeated all the other scriptural exegetes before a great gathering of people, the child’s name will be She Who Gathers.”

1.368Young She Who Gathers was raised by eight nurses‍—two nurses to hold her in their laps, two wet nurses, two nurses to bathe her, and two nurses to play with her. They raised her with a protection cord, and the eye of a peacock feather from the hand of Nārāyaṇa. They reared her on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and she flourished like a lotus in a lake.

1.369As she grew up, she sat behind a curtain in the royal palace and studied letters on her own. She perfected her reading skills, studied all the treatises on her own, and defeated all the scriptural exegetes in Takṣaśīla from behind the curtain.

1.370One day the king asked the young woman, “To whom should I give you in marriage?”

“Award me to any with the skill to defeat me in scriptural debate,” the young woman replied. [F.43.b]

1.371When the king heard this he thought, “She has such an ability to speak. I must not give her to one who is merely good looking, or of high caste, or great influence, but to one who can defeat her in debate, and none other.” After that, word spread quickly. As soon as they heard, all the scriptural exegetes from neighboring lands began to arrive, and the young woman defeated them all.

1.372In the south there lived a scriptural exegete named Riu who feared no text. He was well educated and knowledgeable, well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, beautiful, and had an excellent complexion. He heard that in Takṣaśīla, King Padmagarbha’s daughter had defeated all the scriptural exegetes, and he heard as well about the promise her father had made to them.

1.373Astounded to hear all this, he thought, “Let me go there and see for myself.” So with a retinue of five hundred he made his way through the villages, towns, forest settlements, and cities small and large, defeating all the other scriptural exegetes as he went, until eventually he arrived in Takṣaśīla.

1.374There he approached King Padmagarbha and said, “I heard that you, Deva, have a daughter who has defeated all the scriptural exegetes. As I have studied treatises under great masters myself, I too would like to converse with her.”

“As you wish,” the king replied.

1.375The king called together the scriptural exegetes, placed each of their philosophical texts before them, and the young woman took her place behind the curtain. But as soon as the young woman saw the scriptural exegete Riu‍—who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, beautiful, and excellently complected‍—an arrow of lust shot through her, and she thought, “I won’t find a spouse like this anywhere. He alone should be my [F.44.a] spouse. I want no one else,” and she allowed him to defeat her.

1.376Thereupon the king thought, “I promised that I would give my daughter to a capable debater‍—not to one who is merely good looking, of high caste, or of great influence, but to one who can defeat her in debate, and none other. This man is not only capable in debate, but he is also well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. I shall not find one better than him, nor will I find a more excellent scriptural exegete. I will not give her to anyone but him!” With this thought, he undertook all that custom required of him. The king gave the young woman to the man and appointed him to a great lordship.

1.377She Who Gathers and Riu enjoyed themselves and coupled. One day the young woman conceived, and after nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. At the elaborate feast celebrating his birth they asked, “What name should we give this child?” And they named him, saying, “Since the name of his clan is Kātyāyana, and he is the child of She Who Gathers, his name will be Kātyāyana Who Gathers.”

1.378They reared young Kātyāyana on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and he flourished like a lotus in a lake. As he grew up he studied letters, brahminical customs and conduct, the syllables oṃ and bho, ritual purity, ritual actions, the collection of ashes, holding the ritual vase, the Ṛg Veda , the Yajur Veda , the Sāma Veda , the Atharva Veda , how to perform sacrificial rites, how to lead others in performing sacrificial rites, how to give and receive offerings, recitation, and recitation instruction.

1.379Trained in these procedures, he became a master of the six types of brahminical activities, [F.44.b] and in time he mastered the eighteen sciences. At age sixteen he understood all the treatises and defeated all the scriptural exegetes. He started to feel arrogant and thought that in all Jambudvīpa not even one person was his equal, much less his superior, and this made him despise everyone.

1.380One day a lay vow holder said to him, “Child, don’t be haughty, arrogantly thinking that not even one person is your equal, much less your superior. Child, there was a young Śākya born in Magadha, about whom the brahmin soothsayers and augurs made this prediction:

1.381“ ‘If he remains here at home, he will become a universal monarch, but if he shaves his head and face and dons the colorful religious robes, and if he goes forth from home to live as a mendicant with nothing short of perfect faith, he will be renowned throughout the world as a tathāgata, an arhat, a totally and completely awakened buddha.’

1.382“Compared to the one who, as prophesied, shaved his head and face, donned the colorful religious robes, and with nothing short of perfect faith went forth from home to live as a mendicant‍—the Buddha, who has fully and completely awakened unto unexcelled, total, and complete enlightenment‍—your form and wisdom are not even a thousandth, not even a hundred thousandth, not even a millionth or a billionth, not even an incalculably small fraction of his.”

1.383When the young man heard the name Buddha, a sound unlike any he had heard before, it gave him goosebumps, and he was eager to see him. So he asked for his parents’ permission, saying, “Mother, Father, I ask for your kind permission to travel to Magadha and practice the holy life in the presence of the Blessed One.”

1.384His parents thought, “We will not be able to stop him,” and knowing this to be the case, they said, “Join us. We both want to give up our householder duties and go with you to practice the holy life in the presence of the Blessed One.” [F.45.a] Having said this, they gave up their householder duties, gave gifts, made merit, and set out for Magadha.

1.385When they finally arrived in Rājagṛha and went to see the Blessed One, the young man and his parents saw him from a distance. His body, graced and resplendent with the thirty-two signs of a great person, looked like it was on fire, like flames stoked with ghee, like a lamp set in a golden vessel, and like a pillar adorned with all manner of jewels. He was immaculate, clear-minded, and pure of heart.

1.386The sight of the Blessed One filled them with supreme joy, for beings who have gathered the roots of virtue to see a buddha for the first time experience such rapture as is not to be had even by those who practice calm abiding meditation for twelve years. Seeing the Blessed Buddha in this way, they were filled with supreme joy, and they approached the Blessed One, touched their heads to his feet, and sat before him to listen to the Dharma.

1.387The Blessed One directly apprehended their thoughts, habitual tendencies, temperaments, and natures, and taught them the Dharma accordingly. Hearing it, they destroyed with the thunderbolt of wisdom the twenty high peaks of the mountain of views concerning the transitory collection, and manifested the resultant state of stream entry right where they sat.

1.388Having seen the truths, they rose from their seats, drew down the right shoulder of their upper garments, bowed toward the Blessed One with palms pressed together, and made this request: “Lord, if permitted we wish to go forth in the Dharma and Vinaya so well spoken, complete our novitiates, and achieve full ordination. In the presence of the Blessed One, [F.45.b] we too wish to practice the holy life.”

1.389The Blessed One led the father and son to go forth by saying “Come, monks!” and, conferring on them full ordination, instructed them. Casting away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, they manifested arhatship. As arhats, free from the attachments of the three realms, their minds regarded gold no differently than filth, and the palms of their hands as like space itself. They became cool like wet sandalwood. Their insight crushed ignorance like an eggshell. They achieved the insights, superknowledges, and discriminations. They had no regard for worldly profit, passion, or acclaim. They became objects of offering, veneration, and respectful address by Indra, Upendra, and the other gods.

1.390After that the Blessed One called Mahā­prajāpatī Gautamī. She led She Who Gathers to go forth as a novice, conferred on her full ordination and instructed her. Casting away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, she manifested arhatship.

1.391The monks asked the Blessed One, “Lord, what action did Kātyāyana Who Gathers take that ripened into his birth into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth; that he was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful; that he understood all the treatises, and defeated all the other scriptural exegetes; that he pleased the Blessed One and did not displease him; that he went forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One, cast away the afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship; that his parents also became superior scriptural exegetes; and that, entrusting themselves to him, they pleased the Blessed One and did not displease him, went forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One, cast away all afflictive emotions, and [F.46.a] manifested arhatship?”

“It came about by the power of their prayers,” replied the Blessed One.

1.392“Lord, where did they make these prayers?”

“Monks, in times past, in this fortunate eon, when people lived as long as twenty thousand years and the tathāgata, the arhat, the totally and completely awakened buddha possessed of insight and perfect conduct, the sugata, the knower of the world, the tamer of persons, the charioteer, the unsurpassed one, the teacher of humans and gods, the blessed buddha known as Kāśyapa was in the world, there lived a certain brahmin in the city of Vārāṇasī.

1.393“When the time came for him to marry he took a wife. One day his wife conceived, and after nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful. They reared him on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and he flourished like a lotus in a lake.

1.394“When he grew up he found faith in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa and asked for his parents’ permission, saying ‘Mother, Father, I ask for your kind permission to go forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One.’

1.395“His parents replied, ‘Son, you are the only child we have‍—beloved, delightful, dear, and agreeable‍—so there is no way we can allow this.’ But since they had no way to stop him, his parents consented, and he went forth as a novice in the teaching of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa, and then received full ordination.

1.396“He studied the Tripiṭaka and became a proponent of the Dharma with all the eloquence of his wisdom and freedom. He acquired provisions of clothing, food, bedding, a seat, and medicines for the sick. He led his parents to live a life of perfect faith, as well as to go for refuge [F.46.b] and maintain the fundamental precepts, and he inspired them to give gifts and to share what they had.

1.397“One day he thought, ‘I have completed whatever duties were before me in terms of my education. Now I will serve the saṅgha in accord with the Dharma!’ With this thought he called together his parents and patrons and other donors, and after offering food to the Blessed Kāśyapa and the rest of the saṅgha of monks, he venerated a stūpa containing hair and nail relics, and prayed, ‘By this root of virtue, wherever I am born, may it be into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth. May I be well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful.’

1.398“Since the preceptor who had led him to go forth had himself understood all the treatises at sixteen years of age and defeated all the other scriptural exegetes, and since both his parents had likewise been supreme scriptural exegetes and defeated all the other scriptural exegetes, he also prayed, ‘Just as my preceptor understood all the treatises at sixteen years of age and defeated all the other scriptural exegetes, and just as both my parents were likewise supreme scriptural exegetes and defeated all the other scriptural exegetes, may I too understand all the treatises at sixteen years of age and defeat all the other scriptural exegetes, and may both my parents likewise become supreme scriptural exegetes.

1.399“ ‘May I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. Going forth in his doctrine alone may I cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifest arhatship.’

1.400“When his parents saw him sitting there praying, they asked, ‘Child, [F.47.a] what prayers are you making?’ and he told them what kind of prayers he was making, relating all in detail.

“His parents said, ‘May you alone be our son. May the two of us be your parents. Entrusting ourselves to you completely, may we please and not displease the Blessed Buddha. May we go forth in his doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifest arhatship.’

1.401“O monks, what do you think? The one who went forth in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa then is none other than Kātyāyana Who Gathers. Those who were his parents then are none other than his parents now. The act of giving gifts, making merit, and praying at that time ripened such that wherever he was born, it was into a family of great means, prosperity, and wealth; that he was well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, and beautiful; and that he understood all the treatises and defeated all the other scriptural exegetes.

1.402“So it is, monks, now that I myself have become the very equal of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa‍—equal in strength, equal in deeds, and equal in skillful means‍—that he has pleased me, not displeased me, gone forth in my very doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship.

1.403“At that time his parents prayed, ‘As your parents, may the two of us become supreme scriptural exegetes. Entrusting ourselves to you, may we please and not displease the Blessed Buddha,’ and so it is that those two have now become supreme scriptural exegetes, and entrusting themselves to him, they have pleased me and not [F.47.b] displeased me, gone forth in my very doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship.”

The Tailor

1.404When the Blessed One was in Śrāvastī, there lived a certain householder. One day the householder’s wife conceived, and after nine or ten months had passed, she gave birth to a child who was paraplegic and unable to walk. At the elaborate feast celebrating his birth they asked, “What name should we give this child?” And they named him, saying, “Since the child is one who moves about by crawling, his name will be Paṅgu .”

1.405They reared young Paṅgu on milk, yogurt, butter, ghee, and milk solids, and when he had grown, his father thought, “What kind of work could my child perform while seated? Let me train him as a craftsman so he can earn his livelihood.” Then he thought, “Aha! My son should train as a tailor. Then he can earn his livelihood.” With this in mind he had his child learn tailoring, and indeed the young man became a great master of the trade.

1.406Meanwhile, another householder borrowed clothing and jewelry from another house for his wife to wear to a festival. When he brought them home, his wife put them on, got herself ready for the festival, and departed. Out of carelessness, she tore the fabric at its hem. She was afraid of her husband, so she didn’t let anyone see what she had done. By the time she returned home from the festival her husband had gone to another village and while he was gone, she brought the tailor to their house, latched the door so that no one would see him, and had him mend the torn hem.

1.407While the tailor was still in the house, her husband came home and began to call out and knock on the door. His wife recognized his voice and was scared stiff‍—not only because she had brought the tailor inside their house, but also on account of the torn hem. Terrified, she explained everything to the tailor, [F.48.a] stuck him in a basket, sealed it, and left him there. She opened the door and the householder entered. She fawned over him, brought him things, and then lay down with him.

1.408As they lay there, thieves broke into the house. Upon entering the upper level of the house, the first thing they picked up was the basket, and they thought, “This basket is sealed so tightly and is so heavy‍—it must be full of precious jewels! This will last us for seven generations. This alone will suffice; we won’t need anything else.”

1.409With this thought, they took only the basket and carried it off deep into the forest. As they were traveling, the moon rose and the man sitting inside the basket started to urinate. The urine seeped through the basket and began to leak out. The thieves thought, “As the moon rises, water drips from within‍—there must be a magic water crystal inside! We’re sure of it!” They were ecstatic.

1.410Supporting the basket with the last of their strength, they arrived at their destination deep in the forest, where the leader of the bandits and others among them asked, “What have you brought here in that basket?”

1.411“Be glad, boss,” they replied, “for today we bring an end to our poverty! Be glad, for today we have come upon a basket full of jewels!” The leader and the rest of the bandits likewise grew ecstatic and said, “Open the basket‍—let’s see what kinds of jewels are in there!” Unlatching the lid of the basket, they opened it and looked inside.

1.412There sat Paṅgu in the basket, just as he had been left. At the sight of him they thought, “We walked and walked, lugging this basket‍—this paṅgu made the whole night miserable.” They were anguished. Those who had stayed behind broke into hysterics, laughing at the bandits who had traveled through the night and saying, [F.48.b] “Oh, such misery! How miserable!”

1.413At about this time the householder’s wife awoke. When she got up, she walked through the house and saw that it had been broken into and the basket stolen. But the sight also gladdened her, and she spoke in verse, saying,

1.415The thieves who had stolen the basket grumbled angrily, saying, “So what if the paraplegic made us unhappy? Since we have to make a sacrifice to the yakṣa at any rate, we’ll just have to sacrifice him!” They spread a circle of cow dung before the yakṣa and set forth pots brimming with burning incense, flowers, and ritual offerings. Then they took up long, sharp knives, and set the man before the yakṣa to begin the ritual.

1.416The tailor realized that he was about to be sacrificed to a yakṣa. Terrified at the thought, he wondered, “To whom could I go for refuge, other than the Blessed One? Who else could save my precious life?” Thinking this, he made a silent prayer to the Blessed One: “Lord, Blessed One, if there is nothing past, present, or future that you do not see, know, or directly perceive, then heed me now, Blessed One, for I am in distress, desolate, and bereft. Protect me! Please save my precious life!”

1.417The blessed buddhas, teachers of the one path to be traversed, with mastery over wisdom and the two types of knowable objects, in command of the three kinds of sterling equanimity, fearless by means of the fourfold fearlessness, freed from migration through the five destinies, keen in the six sense bases, [F.49.a] practiced in the seven limbs of enlightenment, focused on the eight liberations, absorbed in the nine successive meditative absorptions, possessing all ten of the ten powers, whose proclamations are the great roaring of a perfect lion, by nature regard the world with their buddha eyes six times throughout the day and night‍—three times by day and three times by night.

1.418These are their thoughts as they look out in wisdom: “Who is in decline? Who will flourish? Who is destitute? Who is in a dreadful state? Who is being harmed? Who is destitute, in a dreadful state, and being harmed? Who is veering toward the lower realms? Who is descending through the lower realms? Who has descended to the lower realms? Whom shall I pull up from the lower realms, and establish in the resultant state of heaven and liberation? Whom, mired in misdeeds, shall I lift up by the hand? Whom, lacking the seven jewels of the noble ones, shall I lead to command of the seven jewels of the noble ones? Whom, not having produced roots of virtue, shall I lead to produce them? Whom, having already produced roots of virtue, shall I lead to ripen their roots of virtue? Whom, having already ripened their roots of virtue, shall I slice open with the blade of wisdom? For whom shall I cause this world, adorned with a buddha’s presence, to be fruitful?”

1.420When the Blessed One looked, he directly apprehended that the time had come to tame the paraplegic and the five hundred bandits, so he appeared there in divine dress in the form of the very deity they were propitiating.

The five hundred bandits marveled, “Our god has appeared to us in bodily form!” Their hair stood on end, and with their palms pressed together they hunkered down around him, saying, “Blessed One, what advice can you grant us?”

1.421The Blessed One replied, “I do not require human sacrifice, therefore give it up. If you wish for Dharma, give up your sacrifices and supplications, gather round, and I shall teach you the Dharma.” [F.49.b]

“We will do as you wish,” they said, and they and abandoned their sacrifice, touched their heads to the Blessed One’s feet, and sat before him to listen to the Dharma.

1.422The Blessed One directly apprehended the thoughts, habitual tendencies, temperament, and nature of Paṅgu and the bandits, and taught them the Dharma accordingly. Hearing it, the five hundred bandits destroyed with the thunderbolt of wisdom the twenty high peaks of the mountain of views concerning the transitory collection, and manifested the resultant state of stream entry right where they sat. Paṅgu also manifested the resultant state of non-return.

1.423Once they had seen the truths, the Blessed One made his divine dress disappear, and sat before them in his own natural body. They beheld the Blessed One and were ecstatic. Full of joy, they rose from their seats, drew down the right shoulder of their upper garments, bowed toward the Blessed One with palms pressed together, and made this request: “Lord, if permitted we wish to go forth in the Dharma and Vinaya so well spoken, complete our novitiates, and achieve full ordination. In the presence of the Blessed One, we too wish to practice the holy life.”

1.424The Blessed One replied to the bandits, saying, “Come, join me, monks! Practice the holy life.” As soon as the Blessed One had finished speaking there they stood, alms bowl and water pitcher in hand, with a week’s worth of hair and beard, and with the deportment of a monk who had been ordained for one hundred years. As it is stated,

1.426Then the Blessed One instructed them, and casting away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, they manifested arhatship. [F.50.a] As arhats, free from the attachments of the three realms, their minds regarded gold no differently than filth, and the palms of their hands as like space itself. They became cool like wet sandalwood. Their insight crushed ignorance like an eggshell. They achieved the insights, superknowledges, and discriminations. They had no regard for worldly profit, passion, or acclaim. They became objects of offering, veneration, and respectful address by Indra, Upendra, and the other gods.

1.427Paṅgu thought, “If my body weren’t like this, I too would go forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One, in order to ford the floodwaters and escape my fetters with diligence, practice, and effort.” No sooner had he thought this than every facet of his body was completely whole and manifest, and he was especially filled with joy toward the Blessed One.

1.428Joyfully, he rose from his seat, drew down the right shoulder of his upper garment, and made this request of the Blessed One: “Lord, if permitted I wish to go forth in the Dharma and Vinaya so well spoken, complete my novitiate, and achieve full ordination. In the presence of the Blessed One, I too wish to practice the holy life.”

1.429The Blessed One led him to go forth as a novice by saying, “Come, monk! Practice the holy life,” then conferred on him full ordination and instructed him. Casting away all afflictive emotions through diligence, practice, and effort, he manifested arhatship.

1.430The monks asked the Blessed One, “Lord, what action did Paṅgu take that ripened into his becoming paraplegic? What action did he take that he pleased the Blessed One, did not displease him, went forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship?”

1.431“Monks,” the Blessed One explained, [F.50.b] “such are the actions that he committed and accumulated:

1.432“Monks, in times past, in this fortunate eon, when people lived as long as twenty thousand years, and the totally and completely awakened Buddha endowed with perfect knowledge and perfect conduct, the sugata, the knower of the world, the tamer of persons, the charioteer, the unsurpassed one, the teacher of humans and gods, the blessed buddha known as Kāśyapa was in the world, there lived a certain two householders in Vārāṇasī who were brothers.

1.433“One of them, upon hearing the Dharma from the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa, manifested the resultant state of non-return, gave up his unwholesome ways, and devoted himself single-mindedly to wholesome activities.

1.434“His younger brother worked in the fields, and thought, ‘I have to deal with cold in winter and heat all summer, while he’s snug at home, enjoying his bliss.’ Irate, he spoke harshly to the non-returner: ‘While I have to deal with cold in winter and heat all summer and handle all the work, you spend your time at home like some paraplegic! Don’t you want to do anything at all?’

1.435“Then the non-returner thought, ‘My little brother is speaking so harshly to me. Let me be of help to him so that it doesn’t ruin him for good.’ With this thought, he made a display of miracles before him and said, ‘You must confess the mistake you’ve made by speaking harshly to me. Otherwise you are certain to roam in saṃsāra and meet with great suffering.’

1.436“As soon as he heard this, the younger brother was seized with regret. He bowed down at his brother’s feet, asked his forgiveness, and said, ‘I will give up living at home to go forth in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa.’

1.437“The non-returner told him, ‘Give up household affairs, and both of us will go forth.’

“ ‘Let’s do that,’ the brother replied. They gave up their household affairs and [F.51.a] both of them went forth in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa.

1.438“After the non-returner went forth, he cast away all afflictive emotions and manifested arhatship. The other brother went forth, and after practicing pure conduct all his life, at the time of his death, he prayed, ‘May I not meet with the results of the act of speaking harshly to such a pure being. Should it happen that the results of that action ripen to me, may I then feel a sense of renunciation, may that misfortune vanish, and may I be fortunate instead. While I may not have attained any great virtues, still I have gone forth and practiced pure conduct all my life. Therefore, may I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. Going forth in his doctrine alone may I cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifest arhatship.’

1.439“O monks, what do you think? The one who went forth in the doctrine of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa and became a monk then is none other than Paṅgu . At that time he spoke harshly to his elder brother, and wherever he was born, he was paraplegic. He felt regret, went forth, and after practicing the conduct leading to liberation all his life, at the time of his death prayed, ‘May I not meet with the results of the act of speaking harshly to such a pure being. Should that action ripen to me, then as soon as I feel a sense of renunciation, may that misfortune immediately vanish and may I be fortunate instead.’

1.440“Now he has felt a sense of renunciation, and immediately all his limbs have become complete. At that time he prayed, ‘May I please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied [F.51.b] by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. Going forth in his doctrine alone may I cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifest arhatship.’

1.441“So it is, monks, now that I myself have become the very equal of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa‍—equal in strength, equal in deeds, and equal in skillful means‍—that he has pleased me, not displeased me, gone forth in my very doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship.”

1.442The monks requested the Blessed One, “Lord, tell us why, after the five hundred bandits met the paraplegic tailor, they went forth, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship.”

1.443“Not only now, monks” the Blessed One explained, “but in times past as well, and in the same way, these five hundred bandits met this selfsame paraplegic tailor, went forth, and generated the four meditative states and the five superknowledges. Listen well!

1.444“Monks, in times past there were five hundred bandits who lived deep in the forest. They ransacked the mountain villages, carrying off much of their food and wealth. There was also a man who lived and dwelled deep in that forest, and the bandits captured him to sacrifice him to their yakṣa. There in the forest they spread a circle of cow dung before the yakṣa, and set forth offering pots and the man himself. Then they took up long, sharp knives and seated themselves before the yakṣa to begin the ritual.

1.445“Thereupon the man thought, ‘After they kill me, they are going to offer me as a sacrifice to the yakṣa.’ Terrified at the thought, he wondered, ‘To whom can I go for refuge? Who can save my precious life?’

1.446“Not far from there, on the mountain in an ascetic hermitage [F.52.a] there lived a certain sage. At that very moment the man thought of the sage, and with a faithful mind began praying to him: ‘Blessed One, if there is nothing past, present, or future that you do not see, know, or directly perceive, then heed me now, Blessed One, for I am in distress, desolate, and bereft. Protect me! Please save my precious life! Please, lift this burden from me!’ A god who was fond of the sage heard those thoughts and alerted him. As soon as he heard, the sage disappeared from his hermitage and arrived before the bandits.

1.447“When they saw the sage, the bandits were overcome with joy. Full of joy they said, ‘Sage, what advice can you grant us?’

“ ‘Release the man and sit before me, and I shall teach you the Dharma,’ said the sage.

1.448“ ‘We will do as the sage wishes,’ the bandits replied, and they released the man, bowed down at the sage’s feet, and sat before him to listen to the Dharma. After the sage taught the Dharma to them, both the man and the five hundred bandits went forth in his very presence, and generated the four meditative states and the five superknowledges.

1.449“O monks, what do you think? I myself was that sage then, and lived the life of a bodhisattva. The one who was that man then is this paraplegic tailor now. Those who were those five hundred bandits then are none other than these five hundred bandits. At that time, because of that man, they went forth and generated the four meditative states and the five superknowledges, and now too, because of this paraplegic tailor they have gone forth, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship.”

1.450This concludes Part One of “The Hundred Deeds.” [B5]