The seventeen sections (vastu) on monastic procedure 5: ཀོ་ལྤགས་ཀྱི་གཞི (Carmavastu)

In the summary verse of the Carmavastu:
“Upasaṃpad by five,
Large beds, calf-skin,
Vahana, bathing, cow-hide boots,
Wooden shoes, not adorned.”
The Buddha, the Blessed One, was dwelling in the park of Anāthapiṇḍada in the grove of Prince Jeta. At that time, in a village named Settlement on the Border, in the country of Aśmāparāntaka, there lived a householder named Balasena, who was rich, of great wealth, of immense property, possessing extensive and vast acquisitions, possessing riches like those of Vaiśravaṇa, and rivaling Vaiśravaṇa in wealth. Having taken a wife from an equal clan, he made merry, rejoiced, and engaged in pleasure with her. Even though he made merry, rejoiced, and engaged in pleasure, they had neither a son nor a daughter. Resting his cheek on his hand, he was downcast and thought: “I have neither a son nor a daughter. Even though I have accumulated all these riches and goods in the house, when I die, because I have no son, the king will take possession of all my property!” Downcast, he sat there. His friends, relatives, and kinsmen asked him: “Why are you downcast?

Pray to the deities, and you will have a son!” He thought: “They speak well! Let me pray to the deities for a son.” Yearning for a son, he, being childless, prayed to the deities such as Śiva, Varuṇa, Kubera, Śakra, and Brahmā; he even prayed to the deities of groves, deities of forests, deities of crossroads, deities of three-way forks, deities that receive offerings, and the deities born together with him, of the same lineage, and constantly following him. There is a saying spread in the world that sons and daughters are born by cause of praying, but that is not so. If it were so, every single person would have a thousand sons, just like a universal monarch. Rather, sons and daughters are born from the confluence of three factors. What are the three factors? The father and mother being in love and union; the mother being fit and having her menstrual period; and a gandharva being present. From the confluence of these three factors, sons and daughters are born. While he was thus devoted to praying, a being in his final existence—one who had cultivated conduct, grasped the essence of liberation, turned toward nirvāṇa, turned away from saṃsāra, had no desire to die and be reborn throughout all realms of cyclic existence, and was holding his final physical body—died from a god realm and entered the womb of his wife. Certain wise women possess five distinct signs. What are the five? Knowing when a man is lustful and when he is free of lust; knowing the time and knowing the menstrual period; knowing when conception has taken place; knowing from whom conception occurred;

and knowing whether it is a boy or a girl. If it will be a boy, it rests on the right flank; if it will be a girl, it rests on the left flank. Joyful and delighted, she said to her husband: “Noble master, be pleased! A living being has entered me. Because it rests on my right flank, it will undoubtedly be a boy.” Joyful and delighted, he uttered this solemn utterance: “Since after such a long time I shall see the face of a desired son, may he be born resembling me and not dissimilar, do my work, sustain me in return as I have sustained him, enjoy his inheritance, maintain the lineage of my clan for a long time, and when we have died and passed away, may he give gifts, whether few or many, perform meritorious deeds, and dedicate the roots of virtue by invoking the names of both of us, saying: ‘Wherever those two may be born, may this reach them and follow after them!’” Knowing that a living being had entered her womb, in order to nurture the embryo, in the upper chamber of the mansion, she was provided with cooling accessories when it was cold and warming accessories when it was warm; food prescribed by physicians that was not too bitter, not too sour, not too salty, not too sweet, not too pungent, not too astringent, food free of bitter, sour, sweet, pungent, and astringent extremes; her body was adorned with short necklaces and long necklaces; and like a daughter of the gods roaming in a pleasure garden, she moved from couch to couch and from stool to stool without stepping down to the lower floor, and made sure that not even the slightest unpleasant noise was heard. When eight or nine months had passed, she gave birth to a boy who was handsome, good to look upon, beautiful, with skin

A boy was born with a complexion like gold, a head like an umbrella, long arms, a broad forehead, connected eyebrows, a prominent nose, and ears adorned with jewel-studded earrings. The householder Balasena summoned all the gem appraisers residing in the village called Sthānika to examine the gems, and said, 'Learned sirs, appraise the value of these gems!' They said, 'The value of these gems cannot be appraised. Since by rule a gem whose value cannot be appraised is worth ten million, they said, 'Householder, these gems are worth ten million.' His kinsmen gathered and assembled, and having held a grand birth feast for three times seven—twenty-one days—they gave him a name: 'Learned sirs, what name shall be given to the boy?' The relatives said, 'Since this boy has earrings adorned with gems worth ten million hanging from his ears and was born under the constellation Śravaṇā, let the boy's name be Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa.' Thus his name was given as Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa. On the day Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa was born, two boys were also born to the servants of the householder Balasena; to one he gave the name Dāsa, and to the other he gave the name Pālaka. Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa was entrusted to eight nursemaids: two nursemaids to hold him on their laps, two wet-nurses to suckle him, two nursemaids to clean his filth, and two playmate nursemaids. The eight nursemaids raised and nurtured him with milk, curd, fresh butter, clarified butter, essence of ghee, and other superior sorts of provisions, and he grew rapidly like a lotus in a pond. When he grew up, he engaged in writing, arithmetic, calculation, finger-calculation,

extraction, insertion, depositing, taking, examination of ground, examination of cloth, examination of gems, examination of elephants, examination of horses, examination of women, examination of men, and examination of trees; thus he became skilled in the eight examinations, and became adept in analysis and reading. His father built three mansions for him: for winter, for spring, and for summer. He laid out three pleasure gardens: for winter, for spring, and for summer. He provided him with three wives: a principal wife, a middle wife, and a junior wife; and without any men present on the floor of the upper terrace, he amused, delighted, and enjoyed himself with music. The householder Balasena, on the other hand, constantly exerted himself in agricultural labor. Seeing his father constantly exerting himself in agricultural labor, he said to him, 'Father, why do you constantly exert yourself in agricultural labor?' He said, 'Son, if I were to amuse, delight, and enjoy myself with music as you do on the floor of the upper terrace without any men present, before long our wealth would diminish, be entirely consumed, and exhausted.' He said, 'Father, if that is so, I shall take merchandise and travel to the borderlands.' 'Son, for the time being, I have such kinds of gems that even if you were to consume gems like sesame, rice, jujube, and beans, those gems would not be entirely exhausted.' But he said repeatedly, 'Father, I will take merchandise and travel to the borderlands.' Knowing that he was determined to insist, he granted permission.

The householder Balasena had a bell rung in the village of Sthānika, proclaiming: 'Listen, worthy merchants dwelling in the village of Sthānika! Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa is setting out for the great ocean. Whichever of you worthy ones wish to set out for the great ocean together with Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa, free of customs duties, free of escort fees, and without having to pay ferry tolls, prepare your merchandise for going to the great ocean!' Five hundred merchants prepared merchandise for setting out to the great ocean. The householder Balasena invited the five hundred merchants to his home, gave them food, and said: 'Listen, worthy merchants! Just as Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa is my son, so he is yours; therefore, you should ward off harm from him and provide him with benefit!' The merchants obeyed the householder Balasena, saying, 'Lord, it shall be done as you command.' Then the householder Balasena said this to Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa: 'Son, just as you think to listen to my words and carry them out, so too think to listen to these five hundred merchants and carry them out!' The householder Balasena considered: 'What sort of mount should I send Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa on?' He thought: 'If he travels on an elephant mount, it is very difficult to guide and difficult to satisfy. A horse is also difficult to guide and difficult to satisfy. A donkey is easy to feed and is attentive; so I will send him on a donkey mount.' Thinking thus, he said to him: 'Son, do not travel at the head or at the tail of the company! If robbers are powerful, they strike at the head of the travelers. If they are weak, they strike at the tail; therefore, you must travel in the middle of the merchants,

for if the caravan leader is destroyed, it is said that the merchants are destroyed.' He said to Dāsa and Pālaka: 'The two of you must not leave Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa on any account!' Then at another time, Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa, having performed auspicious rites, blessings, and ceremonies for good fortune, went before his mother and said, 'Mother, I am departing; I pay homage to you.' She began to weep, and he asked, 'Mother, why do you weep?' 'Son, I wonder when I shall see you alive again.' He thought, 'When I have made auspicious preparations and am setting out, she speaks such inauspicious words!' Becoming impatient, he said, 'Why do you not look at the lower realms?' She said, 'Son, harsh vocal karma has arisen from you; confess your fault as a fault, and thereby that karma will become attenuated, entirely consumed, and exhausted.' He asked for forgiveness for his fault as a fault. Then Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa, having performed auspicious rites, blessings, and ceremonies for good fortune, loaded much merchandise onto wagons, packs, litters, baskets, camels, oxen, and donkeys, and departed for the great ocean. Passing gradually through villages, cities, suburbs, and market towns, they reached the shore of the great ocean. They procured an excellent ocean-going ship, and to acquire wealth, they entered the great ocean. Driven by favorable winds, they reached the jewel island. There he examined them thoroughly and filled the ship with jewels just like sesame, rice, jujube, or beans; driven by favorable winds, the ship safely reached Jambudvīpa, and those merchants at the ocean's

he pitched camp right there on the bank. Taking Dāsa and Pālaka, he went to one side and began calculating the income and expenses. Later, he said to Dāsa, 'Dāsa, go see what the merchants are doing.' When he went there, seeing that the merchants were asleep after a while, he also slept right there. After Dāsa had been gone a long time, he said to Pālaka, 'Pālaka, go see what the merchants are doing.' When he went there, seeing the merchants loading their packs after a while, he also began loading packs. Dāsa thought, 'Pālaka has surely alerted the caravan leader.' Pālaka thought, 'Dāsa has surely alerted the caravan leader.' Those merchants loaded their packs and departed. Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa, overcome with sleep, remained asleep. After the merchants had traveled for a while and dawn broke, they asked, 'Sirs, where is the caravan leader?' 'The caravan leader went ahead.' When they went to the front and asked, 'Where is the caravan leader?' [they were told,] 'He is coming from the rear.' When they went to the rear and asked, 'Where is the caravan leader?' [they were told,] 'He went in the middle.' When they went to the middle and asked, but he was nowhere to be seen, Dāsa said, 'It occurred to me that Pālaka had surely alerted the caravan leader.' Pālaka said, 'It occurred to me that Dāsa had surely alerted the caravan leader.' 'Sirs, it was not good that we departed leaving the caravan leader behind; come, let us go back!' They said, 'Sirs, if we turn back, everyone will suffer inappropriately; so come, let us make an agreement among ourselves for now: until our goods are stored away, no one shall tell anything to Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa's parents.'

Having made such an agreement among themselves, they departed. When Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa's parents heard that Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa had arrived, they went out to meet him. 'Where is the caravan leader?' 'He went ahead.' Going ahead, they asked, 'Where is the caravan leader?' and [were told,] 'He is coming from the rear.' Going to the rear, they asked, 'Where is the caravan leader?' and [were told,] 'He went in the middle.' Thus they kept them confused until their goods were stored away, after which they said, 'Father and Mother, we forgot the caravan leader.' Someone came up to them and said, 'Father and Mother, Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa has arrived,' and when they gave him a reward and went out to meet him, they did not see him. Then another came and said, 'Father and Mother, Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa has arrived,' and when they gave him a reward and went out to meet him, they saw nothing at all; in this way, they came to trust no one. Offering parasols, bells, and chowries in pleasure groves, temples, and assembly halls, they inscribed in writing: 'If Śroṇa Koṭīkarṇa is alive, may he return soon, may he return swiftly! If he has passed away and died, may he be reborn in a distinguished state of existence!' The two became blind through grief and weeping. Meanwhile, struck by the rays of the rising sun, he woke up the next morning and saw no merchants at all, except for two donkeys that were there. Yoking them together, he drove them along; but as the wind arose and the road was covered with sand, the mindful donkeys sniffed the road with their snouts and moved slowly. When he struck and drove them with a spiked whip, their wits were confused, and they entered a grove of śāla trees. Seeing that the two had lost their vitality through thirst, sticking out their tongues and staggering about,

compassion arose in him, and he thought, 'If I do not leave them, I will suffer inappropriately along with them.' So leaving the two behind, he proceeded on foot. After some time, he saw a tall, vast iron city, at whose gate stood a man—black, huge, with red eyes, fleshy calves, holding a staff in his hand. He approached him and asked, 'Good sir, is there water here?' That man remained completely silent. Again he asked, 'Good sir, is there water here?' But he still remained completely silent. Entering inside, he called out the word 'Water! Water!' and many hundreds of thousands of pretas—their bodies like burnt tree stumps, like erect heaps of bones, covered with their own hair and body hair, their bellies like mountain gorges, their mouths the size of a needle's eye—surrounded him completely and said: 'Compassionate Śroṇa, give water to drink to us who are thirsty!' He replied, 'Noble ones, I too am begging for water; where would I have water to give to you?' They said, 'Śroṇa, where would there be water in this city of pretas? It has been twelve years since we last heard the word 'water' until today!' 'Noble ones, who are you? By what karma were you born here?' 'Śroṇa, the people of Jambudvīpa are hard to convince, so they will not believe it.' 'Noble ones, if I see it directly, how could I not believe it?' They spoke in verse: / 'Harsh in speech, prone to anger, / Stingy and miserly were we; / Having given not even the slightest gift, / We have arrived in this world of pretas.' / 'Śroṇa, you possess great power of merit, so go! Have you ever seen anyone who entered the city of pretas leave alive?' When he departed, after some time,

seeing that man, he said to him, 'O good-faced one, if you had told me, "This is the city of pretas," I would not have entered there.' The man said, 'Śroṇa, you possess great power of merit, so go! Have you ever seen anyone who entered the city of pretas leave alive?' As he walked on, after some time, at the gate of another tall and vast iron city, he saw a man—black, huge, with red eyes, fleshy calves, holding a staff in his hand. Approaching him, he asked, 'Good sir, is there water here?' That man remained completely silent. He asked him again, 'Good sir, is there water here?' But he still remained completely silent. Entering inside, he called out the word 'Water! Water!' and many hundreds of thousands of pretas—like burnt tree stumps, like erect heaps of bones, covered with their own hair and body hair, their bellies like mountain gorges, their mouths the size of a needle's eye—surrounded him completely and said: 'Compassionate Śroṇa, give water to drink to us who are thirsty!' He replied, 'Noble ones, I myself am begging for water; where would I have water to give to you?' They said, 'Śroṇa, where would there be water in this city of pretas? Twelve years having passed, today we heard the sound 'Water! Water!' from you.' 'Noble ones, who are you? By what karma were you born here?' They said, 'Śroṇa, the people of Jambudvīpa are hard to convince, so they will not believe it.' 'Noble ones, if I see it directly, how could I not believe it?' They spoke in verse: / 'Drunk with the arrogance of health, / Intoxicated with the pride of youth and wealth, / Because we gave no gifts at all, / We [are born as] pretas'

arrived from the world. Śroṇa, since you possess great power of merit, depart! Have you seen anyone who, having entered the city of pretas, went away alive?' As he went, eventually seeing that person, he said to him, 'Ah, fair sir, since you told me, "This is the city of pretas," I did not enter there.' The person said, 'Śroṇa, since you possess great power of merit, depart! Have you seen anyone who, having entered the city of pretas, went away alive?' As he went, eventually, at the time of sunset, he saw a celestial palace. In it, there were four goddesses of good form, beautiful, and lovely to behold, and one man of good form, beautiful, lovely to behold, adorned with armlets, earrings, rings, unguents, and diverse garlands, sporting, rejoicing, and enjoying pleasure together with them. Seeing him from afar, they began to address him each in turn: 'Welcome, Śroṇa! Are you not thirsty? Are you not hungry?' He thought, 'Doubtless they are devas, nāgas, or yakṣas,' and said, 'I am thirsty. I am hungry.' They bathed him and gave him food, and he stayed in that very celestial palace until the sun had not yet risen. Then they said to him, 'Śroṇa, perils will occur here, so leave!' When he left, he went aside and remained there. Thereafter, later, at the time of sunrise, that celestial palace vanished, and the devakanyās vanished as well. Four tawny dogs appeared, threw the man on his face,

tore the flesh and skin off his back mouthful by mouthful, and ate it until the sun set. Thereafter, the celestial palace appeared again, and the devakanyās also appeared, and they sported, rejoiced, and enjoyed pleasure together with that man of good form, beautiful, lovely to behold, adorned with armlets, earrings, rings, unguents, and diverse garlands. Having approached them, he asked, 'Venerables, who are you? Through what karma were you born here?' 'Śroṇa, people of Jambudvīpa are difficult to convince; they will not believe it.' 'Venerables, since I have seen it directly, how could I not believe it?' 'Śroṇa, when I was a butcher in the town of Niṣṭhānaka, I lived by slaughtering sheep and selling the slaughtered meat. The noble Mahākātyāyana came to me out of compassion and said: "Fair sir, the fruitional ripening of this karma is disagreeable, so abandon this evil unrighteous practice." When he spoke thus, I did not abandon it. In order to make me abandon it, he repeatedly said, "Fair sir, the fruitional ripening of this karma is disagreeable, so abandon this evil unrighteous practice," but still I did not abandon it. Then he said to me, "Fair sir, do you slaughter sheep by day or by night?" I answered, "Noble one, by day." He said, "Why do you not correctly undertake and keep the precepts by night?" Then I correctly undertook and kept the precepts from him by night, and through the fruitional result of that karma, I experience such bliss by night. But since by day

I slaughtered sheep, through the karmic fruition of that, I experience such suffering by day.' Speaking further in verse: / 'By day taking the lives of others, / By night possessing the virtue of morality: / This good result and the sin of that karma / Are experienced thus.' / 'Śroṇa, are you going to the town of Niṣṭhānaka? There my son works as a butcher; say to him, "I have seen your father, and he says: 'The fruitional ripening of this karma is disagreeable, so abandon this evil unrighteous practice.'"' 'Noble sir, you said to me that people of Jambudvīpa are difficult to convince, so he will not believe it.' 'Śroṇa, if he does not believe it, tell him, "Your father says: 'Under the place where animals are slaughtered with a sword, I placed a jar filled with gold dust; dig it up, satisfy yourself with long-lasting bliss, and from time to time offer almsfood to the noble Mahākātyāyana, dedicate the merit by speaking my name, and then that karma will be attenuated, utterly exhausted, and ended.'"' As he went, eventually, at the time of sunrise, he saw another celestial palace. In it, there was one goddess of good form, beautiful, lovely to behold, and one man of good form, beautiful, lovely to behold, adorned with armlets, earrings, rings, unguents, and diverse garlands, sporting, rejoicing, and enjoying pleasure together with her. Seeing him from afar, they began to address him each in turn: 'Welcome, Śroṇa! Are you not thirsty? Are you not hungry?' He

thought, 'Doubtless they are devas, nāgas, or yakṣas,' and said, 'I am thirsty. I am hungry.' They bathed him and gave him food, and he stayed in the celestial palace until the sun set. Then they said to him, 'Śroṇa, perils will occur here, so leave!' Having seen the perils [before], he left and stayed aside. Thereafter, at the time of sunset, the celestial palace vanished, and the goddess also vanished. A huge srin gyi med came forth, wrapped around that man's body seven times with its body, rose above him, and ate his brain until the sun rose. [Vinayavastu, Bampo 21] Thereafter, the celestial palace appeared again, and the goddess also appeared again, and they sported, rejoiced, and enjoyed pleasure together with that man of good form, beautiful, lovely to behold, adorned with armlets, earrings, rings, unguents, and diverse garlands. Having approached them, he asked, 'Venerables, who are you? Through what karma were you born here?' 'Śroṇa, people of Jambudvīpa are difficult to convince; they will not believe it.' 'Since I have seen it directly, how could I not believe it?' He said, 'I was a brahmin in the town of Niṣṭhānaka, and committed adultery. The noble Mahākātyāyana came to me out of compassion and said: "Fair sir, the fruitional ripening of this karma is disagreeable, so abandon this evil unrighteous practice." When he spoke thus, I did not abandon it. In order to make me abandon it, he repeatedly said, "Fair sir, the fruitional ripening of this karma is disagreeable, so abandon this evil unrighteous practice," but still I did not abandon it. He then said to me, "Fair sir, do you go to commit adultery by day or by night?" I answered him, "Noble one, by night." He said, "Fair sir, why do you not correctly undertake and keep the precepts by day? Thereby that karma will be attenuated, utterly exhausted, and ended." Then I correctly undertook and kept the precepts from him by day. Through the karmic fruition of having correctly undertaken and kept the precepts by day, I experience such bliss by day. But through the karmic fruition of going to commit adultery at night, I experience such suffering at night.' Speaking further in verse: / 'At night attached to committing adultery, / By day possessing the virtue of morality: / This good result and the sin of that karma / Are experienced thus.' / 'Śroṇa, are you going to the town of Niṣṭhānaka? There my son, a brahmin, commits adultery; say to him, "I have seen your father, and he says: 'The fruition of this karma is disagreeable, so abandon this evil unrighteous practice.'"' He said, 'Noble sir, you said that people of Jambudvīpa are difficult to convince, so he will not believe it.' 'Śroṇa, if he does not believe it, tell him, "Your father says: 'Under the fireplace, I placed a jar filled with gold dust; dig it up, satisfy yourself with long-lasting bliss, and from time to time offer almsfood to the noble Mahākātyāyana, dedicate the merit by speaking my name,'"

"The ripening of this karma's fruit is disagreeable; therefore, abandon unwholesome, sinful deeds!" Even though he said this, I did not abandon it. He then asked me: 'Fair-faced one, do you commit adultery by day or by night?' I replied to him: 'Venerable one, by night.' He said: 'Fair-faced one, why do you not properly undertake and keep the moral discipline during the day? Thereby that karma will become thinner, totally exhausted, and entirely ended.' After he said that, I properly undertook and kept the moral discipline during the day. Because of the karmic ripening of having properly undertaken and kept the moral discipline during the day, I experience such happiness during the day. And because of the karmic ripening of having gone to commit adultery at night, I have come to experience such suffering at night." He further said in verse: / "Infatuated with committing adultery at night, / Endowed with the virtue of moral discipline by day, / This good result and the evil / Of that karma are thus experienced. / Śroṇa, are you going to the town where you dwell? If so, tell my son who is a brahmin committing adultery there: 'I have seen your father, and he said: "Because the ripening of this karma's fruit is disagreeable, abandon unwholesome, sinful deeds!"'" Śroṇa said: "Noble master, since you say that the people of Jambudvīpa are difficult to convince, he will not believe me." "Śroṇa, if he does not believe you, tell him: 'Your father says: "Beneath the hearth a pot filled with gold dust has been placed; dig it up, satisfy yourself with long-lasting happiness, and from time to time offer alms to the venerable Mahākātyāyana, and dedicate the merit mentioning our names."'"

‘Do this, and thereby that karma will be attenuated, completely exhausted, and ended!’ tell her this!" After he departed, before long he saw another celestial mansion. In it sat a woman of good figure, handsome, and delightful to behold, adorned with armlets, earrings, rings, unguents, and diverse garlands, and to the four legs of her couch were tied four pretas. Seeing him from afar, she said, "Śroṇa, welcome! Welcome! Are you not thirsty? Are you not hungry?" He thought, "Without doubt she is a goddess, a nāgī, or a yakṣī." Then he said, "I am thirsty; I am hungry." She bathed him, gave him food, and said to him, "Śroṇa, if these [creatures] beg anything of you, do not give it!" Wanting to witness directly how these beings take ownership of their karma, he entered the mansion and sat there. They began to beg, "Merciful Śroṇa, give to us who are tormented by hunger!" When he gave a mouthful to one, it turned into chaff. When he gave a mouthful to another, it turned into an iron ball which he ate. When he gave a mouthful to another, she began to eat her own flesh. When he gave a mouthful to another, it turned into pus and blood. Smelling the odor, [the mistress] came out and said, "Śroṇa, did I not forbid you? Why did you give to them? Is your compassion greater than mine?" He asked, "Sister, what are these to you?" She replied, "This is my husband. This is my son. This is my daughter-in-law. This is my female slave." "Who were you all,