འདལ་བ་གཞ 1
The Chapter on Going Forth; The Chapter on the Restoration Rite; The Chapter on Lifting Restrictions; The Chapter on the Rains; The Chapter on Medicines 1
- Language
- English
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The Chapters on Monastic Discipline
Prologue to The Chapters on Monastic Discipline
Homage to the Three Jewels.
Homage to him who severed the bonds,
Destroyed the whole host of tīrthikas,
Vanquished the armies of Māra,
And thus discovered this awakening.
To begin with, it is hard to renounce a householder’s concerns and go forth.
Having gone forth, it is hard to find happiness in wandering.
It is hard to do well what one pledged to with delight.
It is hard for a skilled wearer of the ochre robes to fail.
The Chapters on Monastic Discipline includes chapters on:
, restoration,
Lifting restrictions, the rains, leather,
, robes, turning cloth into robes,
The monks of Kauśāmbī, formal acts of saṅgha,
A group of troublesome monks, types of persons,
Probations, suspension of the restoration,
Housing,
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disputes, and schisms in the saṅgha.⁵³
Prologue to The Chapter on Going Forth
The whole of The Chapter on Going Forth
Is told in sections on:
, ,
The , ,
, and .
Śāriputra
The Śāriputra section is told over five chapters:
, , , , and .
Śāriputra
While the Bodhisattva was dwelling in the Abode of Tuṣita, the King of Aṅga ruled over the lands of Aṅga. Under his rule, the kingdom prospered and thrived, crops were bountiful and the land teemed with animals and people. Meanwhile, King Mahāpadma ruled over the lands of Magadha. Under his rule, the kingdom prospered and thrived, crops were bountiful and the land teemed with animals and people. At times, the King of Aṅga and his armies were dominant. At other times, King Mahāpadma and his armies were dominant.
At a time when the King of Aṅga and his armies were dominant, he called up the four branches of his armed forces—the elephant corps, the cavalry, the charioteer corps, and the infantry—and laid waste to all of Magadha, save Rājagṛha, before returning.
At a time when King Mahāpadma and his armies were dominant, he too called up the four branches of his armed forces—the elephant corps, the cavalry, the charioteer corps, and the infantry—and
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laid waste to all of Aṅga, save Campā, before returning.
At yet another time when the King of Aṅga and his armies were dominant, he again called up the four branches of his armed forces—the elephant corps, the cavalry, the charioteer corps, and the infantry—and began again to lay waste to the land of Magadha, prompting the people of Magadha to send a message to King Mahāpadma, saying, “Your Majesty, the King of Aṅga has called up the four branches of his armed forces—the elephant corps, the cavalry, the charioteer corps, and the infantry—and is laying waste to the lands of Magadha.”
When King Mahāpadma heard this, he too called up the four branches of his armed forces—the elephant corps, the cavalry, the charioteer corps, and the infantry—and rode out to meet the King of Aṅga in battle.
The King of Aṅga captured King Mahāpadma’s entire elephant corps and proceeded to capture the whole of his cavalry, charioteer corps, and infantry. Defeated and frightened, destroyed and conquered, King Mahāpadma retreated. Entering Rājagṛha, he closed the gates and shut himself up within the walls of his fortress.
The King of Aṅga sent an envoy to King Mahāpadma with the message, “It would be good were you to come out. If you do not surrender, and instead take flight into the sky above, I will fell you with a volley of arrows. Tunnel beneath the earth and I will yank you up as if with a hook. Flee to the mountaintops, and even there you shall find no escape.”
King Mahāpadma was unsettled by the message he heard.⁵⁴ Head in hands, he sat and sat, absorbed in thought.⁵⁵ Then he said to his ministers, “Gentlemen, this King of Aṅga
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is belligerent, ruthless, and his military might is great. If he gives an order, how can we not obey?”
They spoke in verse:
“When land and life are threatened,
Seek always to protect life.
When the wise look at both, they see
Land, but not life, can be found again.”
They then implored him, “Your Majesty, any way you look at it, you must go out!”
King Mahāpadma hung his sword from his neck in surrender and went out, where the King of Aṅga imposed an annual tribute and tax upon him.
While the blessed Bodhisattva was dwelling in the Abode of Tuṣita, he saw five sights⁵⁶ and thrice gave notice to the six classes of gods who revel in the desire realm. Assuming an elephant’s appearance, he entered his mother’s womb as the earth shook and this world and all others too were bathed in a vast light more luminous than the glow of the gods of the Thirty-Three. So great was this miraculous manifestation, it was as if the sun and moon shone in the gulf between worlds.⁵⁷ So great was its strength that darkness everywhere, even the pitch-black darkness of dark places dark from never knowing the light of the sun and moon, was filled with a vast light. Beings born in those places had never even seen so far as their outstretched hands, yet by this light these beings saw one another and exclaimed, “You there! There are others who have been born here! There are others who have been born here!”
At the same time as the blessed Bodhisattva was born, sons were also born to four great kings in four great city-states. In Rājagṛha the son of King Mahāpadma was born. In Śrāvastī the son of King Arāḍa Brahmadatta was born. In Ujjayinī
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the son of King Anantanemi was born. In Kauśāmbī the son of King Śatānīka was born.
When the blessed Bodhisattva was born, the entire universe was bathed in a vast light more luminous than the glow of the gods of the Thirty-Three. So great was this miraculous manifestation, it was as if the sun and moon shone in the gulf between worlds. So great was its strength that darkness everywhere, even the pitch-black darkness of dark places dark from never knowing the light of the sun and moon, was filled with a vast light. Beings born in those places had never even seen so far as their outstretched hands, yet by this light these beings saw one another and exclaimed, “You there! There are others who have been born here! There are others who have been born here!”
King Mahāpadma thought, “When my son was born, the world was lit as if by the gold of the rising sun. And as he is the son of Queen Bimbī (Goldie), I shall name this prince Bimbisāra (Essence of Gold).” And so the boy was named Bimbisāra.
King Arāḍa Brahmadatta thought, “When my son was born, the world was lit as if by the light of lights, so I shall name this prince Prasenajit (Supreme Light).” And so the boy was named Prasenajit.
King Śatānīka thought, “When my son was born, the world was lit as if by the rising sun, so I shall name this prince Udayana (Rising).” And so the boy was named Udayana.
King Anantanemi thought, “When my son was born, the world was lit by a brilliant light, so I shall name this prince Pradyota (Brilliant Light).” And so the boy was named Pradyota.
And so each king attributed the light to the birth of his own son.
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Though each attributed it to his own son, it was not so. For all that occurred, occurred because of the Bodhisattva.
On the very same day that Prince Bimbisāra was born, five hundred sons of five hundred ministers were also born and were given names appropriate to their patrilineage.
Prince Bimbisāra was entrusted to eight nursemaids:⁵⁸ two to cuddle him, two to breastfeed him, two to change his diapers, and two to play with him.⁵⁹ Fortified with milk, curd, butter, ghee, cream, and other nourishing foods, he grew quickly, shooting up like a lotus in a pond. When he was old enough, he was introduced to letters, number names, calculation, counting by hand, expenditures, revenues, and deposits.⁶⁰ After he finished letters, he became skilled in exegesis, recitation, knowledge, proper conduct,⁶¹ and the way to assess gems, sites, fabrics, woods, elephants, horses, women, and men.
He trained in and mastered the different fields of arts and skills of anointed kṣatriya kings, or a ruler of the realm endowed with the might and vigor to conquer the wide face of the earth, such as riding on the neck of an elephant, riding horseback, charioteering, swordsmanship, archery, advancing, yielding, wielding a hook, throwing a lasso, casting a spear, and how to hold a weapon, march, tie a topknot,⁶²
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slash, quarter, pierce, and strike in five ways—striking from a distance, striking a target using acoustic location, striking a fatal blow, striking without hesitation, and striking forcefully.
These arts and skills were also mastered by the five hundred sons of the five hundred ministers.
Bimbisāra’s father enrolled him in the eighteen guilds, due to which he was named and became known as Bimbisāra of the Guilds.⁶³
Later Prince Bimbisāra set out astride an elephant where he saw the King of Aṅga’s officers collecting tributes and taxes, prompting him to inquire of his men, “Gentlemen, for whom are these tributes and taxes being collected?”
“Your Majesty! For the King of Aṅga.”
“What? Will we be offered tribute?”
“No, Your Majesty, we are the ones to offer the tribute.”
“Gentlemen, summon those officers.”
When the officers were summoned, he said, “Gentlemen, the King of Aṅga is crowned and an anointed kṣatriya king. If I too am crowned and an anointed a kṣatriya king, why is it you are collecting tributes and taxes here? I forbid you to collect tributes and taxes from this day forth.”
“The prince fails to appreciate the situation,” they thought. “Let us go submit the matter to King Mahāpadma.”
They went to King Mahāpadma and said, “Your Majesty, when we officers of the King of Aṅga were collecting tributes and taxes, Prince Bimbisāra stopped us from doing so. Shall we collect them or not?”
“Gentlemen, the prince doesn’t understand the situation. Continue to collect tributes and taxes as you have done before.”
They
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had begun their collection again when Prince Bimbisāra spotted them on their way back and said, “Gentlemen, have I not already prohibited you from collecting tributes and taxes? Why are you collecting them again? You are to desist. Fail to desist and I shall close the borders.”
Frightened, they thought, “The prince is dangerous and ruthless. In time he may pose a serious risk to us. We must go warn the King of Aṅga.”
They went before the King of Aṅga and said, “Your Majesty, as officers of the court, we were collecting tributes and taxes on your behalf when King Mahāpadma’s son, Prince Bimbisāra, stopped us. If Your Majesty ignores the prince’s actions, he may, in time, pose a serious risk to us.”
Then they spoke in verse:
“When a tree is small,
Fingernails may fell it.
Yet when the tree is large,
Even a hundred axes may fail.”
The King of Aṅga sent a letter to King Mahāpadma: “Send Prince Bimbisāra with his sword hung from his neck—or prepare your pyre and shroud, for I myself will come!”
King Mahāpadma heard this letter read and was troubled. Head in hands, he sat and sat, absorbed in thought. Then he summoned Prince Bimbisāra and said, “Son, why did you stop the King of Aṅga’s officers from collecting tributes and taxes? They have sent me a letter expressing their anger.”
“Your Majesty, why do we pay tribute and taxes to him?”
“Son, we are tributaries.”
“If the King of Aṅga is an anointed a kṣatriya king and we too
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are anointed kṣatriya kings, why do we offer tribute and taxes to him? Give me an army of just four divisions, Your Majesty, and I will meet the King of Aṅga in battle.”
King Mahāpadma then sent a message to the King of Aṅga, saying, “You had best hope all the power, forces, will, and authority you possess do not fail you!”
The King of Aṅga found this message intolerable and commanded his ministers, “Gentlemen, lay waste to those lands! Call up the four branches of the armed forces.”
Having called up the four branches of the armed forces—the elephant corps, the cavalry, the charioteer corps, and the infantry—they began to lay waste to the land of Magadha. The people of Magadha sent a message to King Mahāpadma, saying, “Your Majesty, the King of Aṅga has called up the four branches of his armed forces—the elephant corps, the cavalry, the charioteer corps, and the infantry—and is laying waste to the lands of Magadha.”
King Mahāpadma was troubled by this news and, head in hands, sat and sat, absorbed in thought. He summoned Prince Bimbisāra and gave him charge over the four branches of the armed forces. Prince Bimbisāra gathered the five hundred ministers’ sons and said, “Gentlemen, what if I were to meet the King of Aṅga in battle? What would you do?”
“Prince, your struggle shall be our struggle!” they responded.
Then they said in verse:
“In whose house dwells glory,
It is he we should protect.
If he falls, then all fall,
As spokes at a hub’s collapse.”
Prince Bimbisāra said, “Now
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you must do all you can to protect me.”
“Whatever Your Majesty’s plight may be, that too shall be ours. Wherever Your Majesty’s foot may fall, there shall we bow our heads.”
The four branches of the armed forces were then called up and they set out from Rājagṛha. When King Mahāpadma, who sat shut up in his upper citadel surrounded by his council, saw them depart, he asked his ministers, “Gentlemen, whose army is this?”
“Your Majesty, it is Prince Bimbisāra’s.”
“Gentlemen! It is awesome to behold!”
Hence, the prince was named and became known as Bimbisāra of the Army. Some knew him as Bimbisāra of the Guilds while some knew him as Bimbisāra of the Army.
Prince Bimbisāra said to the five hundred sons of the ministers, “Gentlemen, this King of Aṅga is belligerent, ruthless, and his military might is great so we cannot meet him in battle. Therefore, we will sneak in, overrun his exposed camp, and kill him while their guard is down and their armor off.”
They overran the King of Aṅga’s exposed camp while their guard was down and their armor off, sneaking up and killing him. The four branches of the King of Aṅga’s armed forces scattered to the four directions. Prince Bimbisāra sent mounted emissaries in the four directions with the message, “Gentlemen, you are anointed kṣatriya kings, and I too am an anointed kṣatriya king, so return! Gentlemen, I will support you!”
He whom the King of Aṅga left to defend the city of Campā
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heard how the King of Aṅga had been killed, prompting him to close the gates and take cover within the walls of the fortress. When at last Prince Bimbisāra reached Campā, the prince fixed the King of Aṅga’s head onto a long pole and displayed it, saying, “It is I who has brought your lord to this state. Come out immediately and I shall look favorably upon you. Fail to appear and you too will soon find yourself in this state.”
It distressed the steward of Campā to hear this, and he thought of this verse:
“When land and life are threatened,
Seek always to protect life.
When the wise look at both, they see
Land, but not life, can be found again.”
With that thought he hung his sword from his neck in surrender and came out.
With the King of Aṅga slain, Campā fell into Prince Bimbisāra’s hands, at which point he sent a message to King Mahāpadma, saying, “Your Majesty, I have slain the King of Aṅga and Campā is now in my hands. Your Majesty, tell me what else needs to be done and I shall see to it.”
Pleased, King Mahāpadma sent Prince Bimbisāra a parasol, a turban, and a coronet with the message, “Son, you must take the reins of power there. I, for my part, will assume the reins of power here.”
And so Prince Bimbisāra assumed the reins of power. Under him, the kingdom prospered and thrived, crops were bountiful and the land teemed with animals and people.
Once King Mahāpadma’s time had come, the ministers of Rājagṛha sent a message to King Bimbisāra, saying, “Your Majesty, your father’s time has come.” In a great coronation ceremony, the ministers of Rājagṛha and Magadha granted him sovereignty over the lands of Aṅga and Magadha.
Under King Bimbisāra’s rule, the kingdoms of Aṅga and Magadha prospered and thrived, crops were bountiful and the land teemed with animals and people. He completely pacified conflict,
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aggressors, and enemies from without as well as disturbances from within. He rid the land of brigands, thieves, famine, and illness, and brought a wealth of rice, sugar cane, cattle, and buffalo; thus the just Dharma king established a just kingdom.
There was a young brahmin who, desiring and in search of esoteric instruction, left the Middle Country and went to the South, where there was a brahmin to whom the Vedas and the limbs of the Vedas had been entrusted, who had been a teacher to brahmins living in a country to the south.⁶⁴
The young brahmin went to see this teacher of brahmins. Serene, the young brahmin bowed his head calmly and sat off to one side. The brahmin teacher warmly greeted him with words of welcome, and asked, “Young brahmin, where have you come from and what do you desire?”
“I hail from the Middle Country and I seek to serve at the feet of a preceptor.”
“Why?”
“So that I may study the Vedas.”
“Excellent, my son. You should do just that, for that is a brahmin’s duty.”
And so, the young brahmin began to study the Vedas with the teacher of brahmins.
The brahmins’ students were in the habit, when not occupied with their studies, of going to the riverbank to bathe, visiting the city, or collecting wood for use in fire pūjas.
Once, when not occupied with their studies, they went to collect wood for fire pūjas. On the way they had the following conversation. “Sons of Kutsa, sons of Vātsa, sons of Śāṇḍili, sons of Bhāradvāja, sons of the Five, sons of the Further Five.⁶⁵ To begin with, let us share where we come from, from which land we hail.”
“I am from the East,” one young brahmin responded.
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“I am from the South,” said another.
“I am from the West.”
“I am from the North.”
The young brahmin then said, “I am from the Middle Country.”
To him they said, “Sir! We have seen and heard of all those other countries, but have neither seen nor heard of the Middle Country.”
And then they added this verse:
“In the East they are wise,
In the South they are cunning,
In the West they stir division,
In the North they speak roughly.”
“Young brahmin,” they asked, “what is the Middle Country like?”
“Gentlemen, the Middle Country is the best of all lands, abounding in rice, sugar cane, cattle, and buffalo, thronging with hundreds of honest women and filled with upstanding men, devoid of foreign savages, and guided by learned men. The river Gaṅgā, bountiful, meritorious, auspicious, and clean, flows through this famed land, irrigating both shores. At one point, where sages are known to gather, the river flows through eighteen bends. There, sages seek to bodily rise to the heavens through their practice of austerities.”⁶⁶
“Young brahmin, having met you, we have another question. Do you have men counted as learned in the Middle Country?”
“Gentlemen, from the first did I not say, ‘Gentlemen, the Middle Country is filled with upstanding men, devoid of foreign savages, and guided by learned men’?”
“Young brahmin, you did say that. Young brahmin, are there any in the Middle Country like our preceptor, a bull among teachers?”
“Gentlemen, in the Middle Country, the teachers are such that our teacher could not even look them in the face, so eloquently do they speak, so wise are they.”
On hearing the young brahmin speak so highly of the Middle Country,
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they were moved by the desire to visit it. The young brahmins then went off to collect wood for use in fire pūjas. Bearing their loads of wood, they came to the house in which the teacher of brahmins lived. On arriving, they set their loads of wood off to one side, went to him, and said, “Preceptor, please listen. The young brahmin from the Middle Country speaks so highly of it that we are moved by the desire to visit.”
The brahmin said, “Boys, would you visit every place of which you hear? Since you seem to derive so much pleasure from hearing of other countries, I would suggest you not visit those places you hear about.”
“Preceptor, according to this young brahmin, in the Middle Country the teachers are such that you, our teacher, could not even look them in the face, so eloquently do they speak, so wise are they.”
“My sons, do I say I am the one and only teacher on this earth, that there are no other teachers? After all, since the earth contains many gems, its surface is covered with one beauty after another.”
“We will see that country yet, Preceptor, if only for a short while. We will bathe on the banks of the river, we will serve the bull among teachers, we will defeat opponents, we will make a name for ourselves and find our fortune, too. We will go to the Middle Country.”
As the brahmin was attached to his students and his circle of students was small, he said to the young brahmins, “In that case, my sons, let us gather our hides, bast robes, staffs, water jugs, ladles, and bowls and go to the Middle Country.”⁶⁷
Having collected their things, the brahmin set off with the young brahmins for the Middle Country.
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Along the way, he defeated an opponent in debate, and then bound him to his chariot. He poured ashes from a pot on another’s head. Another steered clear of him like a crow does an archery range. Another received him with parasols, victory banners, and standards. Another made a pledge to become his student. As he went, he vanquished one opponent after another in villages, cities, towns, marketplaces, and hamlets until he reached Rājagṛha.
The brahmin thought, “Why bother pulling off the branches, petals, and leaves while leaving the root? Since all worthy opponents and anyone counted as learned will be close to the king, it is the king I shall see.”
With that, the brahmin went to see King Bimbisāra. On arriving, he wished King Bimbisāra success and long life, took a place off to one side, and addressed him: “Your Majesty, from my guru I have received a few teachings. And so I seek to settle a matter in debate with an opponent in Your Majesty’s presence.”
The king asked his ministers, “Gentlemen, are there any opponents in my kingdom capable of settling a matter in debate with this brahmin?”
“Your Majesty, in the village of Nālada there is a brahmin known as Māṭhara who has been entrusted with the Vedas and the limbs of the Vedas. With blazing intelligence, this capable man illuminates his own assertions and smashes those of others. He has put together a work known as Māṭhara’s Treatise.”
“Summon Master Māṭhara.”
“As you wish, Your Majesty.”
Māṭhara received the summons and went to see King Bimbisāra. On arrival, he wished King Bimbisāra success and
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long life then took a place off to one side.
The ministers said, “This is the preceptor, Your Majesty.”
The king greeted him with words of welcome and asked, “Preceptor, can you settle a matter in debate in my presence with this brahmin?”
“I, as a capable man, shall do as the king pleases,” replied Māṭhara.
The king ordered the ministers, “Gentlemen, prepare the debate arena and assign the disputants their roles.”
The ministers prepared the debate arena and assigned the disputants their roles. The ministers then prostrated at the king’s feet and asked, “Your Majesty, who would you have defend a position first?”
“This brahmin is a visitor so have him defend a position first.”
Having been assigned to defend a position first, the brahmin proceeded to recite five hundred lines. Māṭhara repeated them and then said, “This position of yours is devoid of logic. It is inconsistent and incoherent.” The brahmin remained silent as Māṭhara pointed out the position’s flaws.
That the brahmin had no confidence to respond was damning and among the reasons he was vanquished. The king asked the ministers, “Gentlemen, who won?”
“Māṭhara, Your Majesty.”
This pleased the king, who straightened up, extended his right arm, and declared, “It is a fine discovery for me to find this bull among teachers in my kingdom!”
He saluted Māṭhara and asked, “Preceptor, where do you live?”
“Your Majesty, in Nālada.”
“Go, and let that village be your victor’s prize.”⁶⁸
Māṭhara was thrilled, delighted, and overjoyed. Surrounded by learned men, he returned to his village. And since the world desires success
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and distrusts failure, several brahmins pressed their daughters on him in marriage. Māṭhara then took a wife of equal caste and together they played with, took pleasure in, and amused one another. The wife with whom he had played, taken pleasure, and amused himself gave birth to a son with an extraordinarily long torso. Three weeks or twenty-one days after the birth, relatives came and gathered to celebrate his birth in grand style, during which time they chose a name for the boy. The relatives said, “Since this boy has an extraordinarily long torso, he should be named Koṣṭhila (Long Torso).”
The young brahmin was entrusted to eight nursemaids: two to cuddle him, two to breastfeed him, two to change his diapers, and two to play with him.⁶⁹ Fortified with milk, curd, butter, ghee, cream, and other nourishing foods, he grew quickly, shooting up like a lotus in a pond. When he was old enough, he was introduced to letters, number names, calculation, counting by hand, how to exclude, to add, and to leave,⁷⁰ and to parse until he had mastered reciting. Then, he was instructed in the ways of brahmins: their conduct, ritual purity, and observances; the handling of ashes, the handling of ritual vases, and the handling of sites; hand gestures, turbans, offering praise, and salutations; the Ṛgveda, the Yajurveda, the Sāmaveda, and the Atharvaveda; and a brahmin’s six duties—making fire sacrifices, officiating over fire sacrifices, studying, teaching, giving, and receiving. The Vedas the limbs of the Vedas were entrusted to him, and with his blazing intelligence he could illuminate his own assertions
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and vanquish those of others.
The wife with whom Māṭhara had played, taken pleasure, and amused himself again gave birth, this time to a girl with eyes like a śārī bird. Three weeks or twenty-one days after the birth, relatives came and gathered to celebrate her birth in grand style, during which time they chose a name for the girl. The relatives said, “Since this girl has eyes like a śārī, this girl should be given the name Śārikā.” The girl Śārikā was nurtured and grew. Her father taught her how to combine letters into words so she became proficient in reciting.
Later, when the young brahmin Koṣṭhila was debating Śārikā, Śārikā vanquished him and their father said to Koṣṭhila, “Son, if you are a male, how has a female vanquished you? Once I’m gone, the spoils I’ve won in debate will be taken away.”
At that the young brahmin Koṣṭhila, desiring and in search of esoteric instruction, set off from the Middle Country for the South.
There, in a country not his own, lived a brahmin named Tiṣya who was learned in Lokāyata philosophy,⁷¹ a teacher of brahmins to whom the Vedas and the limbs of the Vedas were entrusted.
Koṣṭhila went to see the brahmin Tiṣya. Serene, the young brahmin Koṣṭhila bowed at Tiṣya’s feet and sat off to one side.
Tiṣya warmly greeted Koṣṭhila with words of welcome, asking, “Young brahmin, where have you come from and what do you desire?”
“I hail from the Middle Country and I seek to serve at the feet of the preceptor.”
“Why?”
“So that I may uphold the Lokāyata philosophy.”
“Excellent, my son. You should do just that, for that is a brahmin’s duty.”
And so, the young brahmin Koṣṭhila began to study Lokāyata philosophy in the presence of the brahmin Tiṣya.
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The brahmins’ students were in the habit, when not occupied with their studies, of going to the riverbank to bathe, visiting the city, or collecting wood for use in fire pūjas.⁷²
Once, when not occupied with their studies, they went to collect wood for fire pūjas. On the way they had the following conversation. “Sons of Kutsa, sons of Vātsa, sons of Śāṇḍili, sons of Bhāradvāja, sons of the Five, sons of the Further Five.⁷³ To begin with, let us share where we come from, from which land we hail.”
“I am from the East,” one young brahmin responded.
“I am from the South,” said another.
“I am from the West.”
“I am from the North.”
The young brahmin then said, “I am from the Middle Country.”
To him they said, “Sir! We have seen and heard of all those other countries, but have neither seen nor heard of the Middle Country.”
And then they added this verse:
“In the East they are wise,
In the South they are cunning,
In the West they stir division,
In the North they speak roughly.”
“Young brahmin,” they asked, “what is the Middle Country like?”
“Gentlemen, the Middle Country is the best of all lands, abounding in rice, sugar cane, cattle, and buffalo, thronging with hundreds of honest women and filled with upstanding men, devoid of foreign savages, and guided by learned men. The river Gaṅgā, bountiful, meritorious, auspicious, and clean, flows through this famed land, irrigating both shores. At one point, where sages are known to gather, the river flows through eighteen bends. There, sages seek to bodily rise to the heavens through their practice of austerities.”⁷⁴
“Young brahmin,
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having met you, we have another question. Do you have men counted as learned in the Middle Country?”
“Gentlemen, from the first did I not say, ‘Gentlemen, the Middle Country is filled with upstanding men, devoid of foreign savages, and guided by learned men’?”
“Young brahmin, you did say that. Young brahmin, are there any in the Middle Country like our preceptor, a bull among teachers?”
“Gentlemen, in the Middle Country, the teachers are such that our teacher could not even look them in the face, so eloquently do they speak, so wise are they.”
On hearing the young brahmin speak so highly of the Middle Country, they were moved by the desire to visit it. The young brahmins then went off to collect wood for use in fire pūjas. Bearing their loads of wood, they came to the house in which the teacher of brahmins lived. On arriving, they set their loads of wood off to one side, went to him, and said, “Preceptor, please listen. The young brahmin from the Middle Country speaks so highly of it that we are moved by the desire to visit.”
The brahmin Tiṣya said, “Boys, would you visit every place of which you hear? Since you seem to derive so much pleasure from hearing of other countries, I would suggest you not visit those places you hear about.”
“Preceptor, according to this young brahmin, in the Middle Country the teachers are such that you, our teacher, could not even look them in the face, so eloquently do they speak, so wise are they.”
“My sons, do I say I am the one and only teacher on this earth, that there are no other teachers? After all, since the earth contains many gems, its surface is covered with one beauty after another.”
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“We will see that country yet, Preceptor, if only for a short while. We will bathe on the banks of the river, we will serve the bull among teachers, we will defeat opponents, and we will make a name for ourselves and find our fortune, too. We will go to the Middle Country.”
As the brahmin was attached to his students and his circle of students was small, he said to the young brahmins, “In that case, my sons, let us gather our hides, bast robes, staffs, water jugs, ladles, and bowls and go to the Middle Country.”⁷⁵
Having collected their things, the brahmin set off with the young brahmins for the Middle Country. Along the way, he defeated an opponent in debate, and then bound him to his chariot. He poured ashes from a pot on another’s head. Another steered clear of him like a crow does an archery range. Another received him with parasols, victory banners, and standards. Another made a pledge to become his student. As he went, he vanquished one opponent after another in villages, cities, towns, marketplaces, and hamlets until he reached Rājagṛha.
The brahmin Tiṣya thought, “Why bother pulling off the branches, petals, and leaves while leaving the root? Since all worthy opponents and anyone counted as learned will be close to the king, it is the king I shall see.”
In time the brahmin Tiṣya went to see King Bimbisāra. On arriving, he wished the king success and long life, took a place off to one side, and addressed him: “Your Majesty, from my guru I have received a few teachings. And so
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I seek to settle a matter in debate with an opponent in Your Majesty’s presence.”
The king asked the ministers, “Gentlemen, where is Preceptor Māṭhara?”
“In Nālada, Your Majesty.”
“Summon Preceptor Māṭhara.”
“As you wish, Your Majesty.”
On receiving the summons, Māṭhara went to see King Bimbisāra. On arrival, he wished the king success and long life then took a place off to one side.
The ministers said, “This is the preceptor, Your Majesty.”
The king greeted him with words of welcome and asked, “Preceptor, can you settle a matter in debate in my presence with this brahmin Tiṣya?”
“I, as a capable man, shall do as the king pleases,” replied Māṭhara.
The king ordered the ministers, “Gentlemen, prepare the debate arena and assign the disputants their roles.”
The ministers prepared the debate arena and assigned the disputants their roles. The ministers then prostrated at the king’s feet and asked, “Your Majesty, who would you have defend a position first?”
“The brahmin Tiṣya is a visitor so have him defend a position first.”
“Your Majesty,” said he brahmin Tiṣya, “as the brahmin Māṭhara is the elder, I ask that you have him defend a position first.”
The brahmin Māṭhara thought, “This brahmin Tiṣya is clearly acquainted with new treatises so I cannot debate him on them. I shall focus on an old text.” And with that he recited five hundred lines.
The brahmin Tiṣya repeated them and then declared, “This position of yours is devoid of logic. It is inconsistent and incoherent.” The other brahmin remained silent as Tiṣya pointed out the text’s flaws.
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That Māṭhara had no confidence to respond⁷⁶ was damning and among the reasons he was vanquished. The king asked the ministers, “Gentlemen, who won?”
“The brahmin Tiṣya, Your Majesty.”
“Gentlemen, give the brahmin Tiṣya a victor’s prize.”
“Your Majesty,” they replied, “if you give a prize to everyone who wins a debate, before long your lands of Aṅga and Magadha will themselves be victors’ prizes. Therefore make the village of Nālada the standard victor’s prize. Take it from the brahmin Māṭhara and give it to this brahmin. And if any other should best Tiṣya, then award it to the victor.”
“Gentlemen,” said the king, “that is what I shall do.”
The village was then taken from the brahmin Māṭhara and given to the brahmin Tiṣya. The brahmin Māṭhara thought, “Though I have done much for this king, he has not taken care of me. I shall go elsewhere.”
He said to his wife, “Noble lady, though I have done much for this king, he has not taken care of me. I shall go elsewhere. So pack up our household.”
With that they began packing up their household. When their relatives heard that the master Preceptor was leaving, they went to see him and asked, “Preceptor, why are you packing up your household?”
“Gentlemen, though I have done much for this king, he has not taken care of me. Therefore, I shall go elsewhere.”
“Preceptor, do not leave for other parts. Remain for a while, at your leisure, in the home of your relatives.”
Māṭhara replied in verse:
“Better to live in another’s land
Than to be oppressed in one’s own.
There where a man lives free
Is the place he finds his home and friends.”
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When the brahmin Tiṣya heard that the preceptor Māṭhara was to leave, he went to him and said, “I have come only for a short time⁷⁷ and before long am certain to go. Let this remain your victor’s prize. Do not leave, you must stay.”
Māṭhara replied, “I intend to leave, young brahmin.”
“Preceptor, if that is how you feel, you should keep half of this village and I shall keep claim to the other half.”
Māṭhara thought, “Though I have done much for this king, he has not taken care of me. Yet out of consideration for me, this brahmin Tiṣya has offered to share our prize—a most beneficial arrangement. I will give Śārikā to him as a wife.”
Māṭhara then said to his wife, “Noble lady, though I have done much for this king, he has not taken care of me. Yet out of consideration for me, this brahmin Tiṣya has offered to share our prize—a most beneficial arrangement. I shall give Śārikā to him as a wife. Call our son, Koṣṭhila.”
His parents summoned Koṣṭhila and said, “Son, though we have done much for this king, he has not taken care of us. Yet, out of consideration for me, this brahmin Tiṣya has offered to share our prize—a most beneficial arrangement. I shall give Śārikā to him as a wife.”
Koṣṭhila replied, “Father! Mother! How could I accept this enemy into our family? Hasn’t he robbed⁷⁸ us of our livelihood? Anyone else in our position would try to take his life. If he has robbed us so, why would you give Śārikā to him in marriage?”
His parents
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said, “Fool! What do you know?” Ignoring what he said, they gave Śārikā to the brahmin Tiṣya as a wife. In a lavish ceremony, Tiṣya took Śārikā as his bride.
The young brahmin Koṣṭhila thought, “This insult is all due to my lack of learning.” He thought, “What does the brahmin Tiṣya know? He knows Lokāyata philosophy.”
He asked around, “Gentlemen, where is the Lokāyata philosophy known?”
“In the South,” he was told.
He set out into the realm, for the South,to learn Lokāyata philosophy. On arrival, he inquired, “Gentlemen, who knows the Lokāyata philosophy?”
“The wandering mendicants.”
He went to them and said, “I seek to serve you, gentlemen.”
“Why?”
“So that I may grasp the Lokāyata philosophy.”
“We do not teach Lokāyata philosophy to householders.”
“In that case, I shall go forth.”
After they allowed his going forth, he said, “So long as I uphold the Lokāyata philosophy, I will not cut my fingernails.” So he let his fingernails grow extraordinarily long and for this he became known as the wandering mendicant Dīrghanakha (He Who Has Long Fingernails).
When Śārikā challenged her husband Tiṣya, he vanquished her. Later, as Tiṣya and Śārikā played with, took pleasure in, and amused one another, a sentient being in search of his final rebirth, who had grasped the essence of liberation, who had turned to nirvāṇa and away from saṃsāra, who had seen that all births end in death, who did not seek to be reborn, and who was to take his last body, died and passed from the lofty heights of a god and entered Śārikā’s womb.
Śārikā dreamed that a man carrying a torch
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rent and entered her belly. She climbed to a mountain peak. She moved through the sky above. An assembly of great men prostrated to her. She then told Tiṣya about her dream. Though Tiṣya was expert at interpreting dreams and omens, he consulted other brahmins who interpreted them. “What does it portend,” he asked, “if my brahmin wife has had such a dream?”
They replied, “Preceptor, that is an excellent portent. Her statement, ‘A man carrying a torch rent and entered my belly,’ indicates a son will be born. It portends that, after twice eight years, he will have studied the Aindra school of grammar⁷⁹ and will vanquish all opponents. She said, ‘I climbed to a mountain peak. I moved through the sky above. An assembly of great men prostrated to me.’ These statements indicate her son will go forth and become a great saint who perfects his vow.”
The next time Tiṣya and Śārikā engaged in debate, Śārikā vanquished him, making him wonder, “If I have vanquished her in the past, what now has allowed her to vanquish me?”
He thought, “It is because of the being who has entered her womb.”
After eight or nine months, a boy was born, well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, handsome, radiant, with a golden complexion, a head shaped well like a parasol, long arms, a broad forehead,⁸⁰ eyebrows that met, and a prominent nose.
After his birth, Śārikā said to Tiṣya, “If we present this brahmin boy to his grandfather, he will give him a name.”
They took him to his grandfather Māṭhara, who
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thought about what he should name the baby boy. “This brahmin boy is the son of the brahmin Tiṣya so I shall name this brahmin boy Upatiṣya.” And with that he named him Upatiṣya (Tiṣya’s Heir).
Tiṣya said, “His grandfather thought of a name for this brahmin boy and chose Upatiṣya.”
He thought, “His grandfather has named this brahmin boy after his father so I shall name him after his mother. Since this brahmin boy is the son of his mother Śārikā, I shall name him Śāriputra.” And with that he was named Śāriputra (Śārikā’s Son).
It was thus that the young brahmin was known to some as Śāriputra, while to others he was known as Upatiṣya.
Upatiṣya was entrusted to eight nursemaids: two to cuddle him, two to breastfeed him, two to change his diapers, and two to play with him.⁸¹ Fortified with milk, curd, butter, ghee, cream, and other nourishing foods, he grew quickly, shooting up like a lotus in a pond. When he was old enough, he was introduced to letters, number names, calculation, counting by hand, and how to exclude, to add, to leave, and to parse until he had mastered reciting. He was then instructed in the ways of brahmins: their conduct, ritual purity, and observances; the handling of ashes, the handling of ritual vases, and the handling of sites; hand gestures, turbans, offering praise, and salutations; the Ṛgveda, the Yajurveda, the Sāmaveda, and the Atharvaveda; and a brahmin’s six duties—making fire sacrifices, officiating over fire sacrifices, studying, teaching,
1.28
giving, and receiving. The Vedas and the limbs of the Vedas were entrusted to him, and with his blazing intelligence he could illuminate his own assertions and vanquish those of others.
His father made him study all fields of knowledge, and thus by the age of sixteen he had studied the Aindra school of grammar and could vanquish all opponents.
At another time when he was reciting the Vedas with his father, he asked, “Father, what is the meaning of this statement?”
“Son, even I do not know the meaning of this statement. But these sacred mantra⁸² have been recited with praise, sung, and furnished by past sages. Nowadays brahmins simply recite and repeat them.”
“Father, do you think there is no meaning to these sacred mantra, which have been recited with praise, sung, and furnished by past sages, but nowadays are simply recited and repeated by brahmins? This is what such statements mean,” and he proceeded to explain.
Tiṣya was delighted and in his delight thought, “This is what a son should do: he should carry on his father’s tradition or develop his insight even further. Were he to accomplish only this, this brahmin boy’s insight would surpass my own.”
He shared this insight with the five hundred young brahmins he was teaching to recite brahmanic mantras and they too were delighted and happily turned to Upatiṣya. When the young brahmin Upatiṣya taught the five hundred young brahmins to recite brahmanic mantras, he summarized the longer Vedas, abridging their words and phrases, and expanded on the shorter Vedas, explaining their meaning and etymologies.
In the village of Kāṣṭhavāṭa, there lived a royal priest
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named Potalaka who was wealthy with many riches and goods, with holdings both vast and extensive, with riches to rival Vaiśravaṇa. He took a wife of equal caste and with her played, took pleasure, and amused himself. After their play, lovemaking, and the indulgence of all their desires resulted in no child, male or female, the childless couple, badly wanting a child, propitiated Śiva, Varuṇa, Kubera, Śakra, Brahmā, and others. Among the different gods were gods of park shrines, gods of the forest, gods of crossroads, gods of intersections, gods who take votive offerings, birth totem gods, gods who adhere to the Dharma, and gods who always shadow you.
There is a saying, “Boys and girls are born in the world because they are prayed for.” But that is not so, for if it were, then each and every man would have a thousand sons, as do the kings of the world. Rather, boys and girls are born when three circumstances are present. What are those three? The mother and father feel desire and couple; it is the right time and the mother is ovulating; and a gandharva is near and wants to be reborn. And so it is that boys and girls are born when those three circumstances are present.⁸³
As Potalaka sat engrossed in prayer, a being in search of his final rebirth, who had grasped the essence of liberation, who had turned to nirvāṇa and away from saṃsāra, who had seen that all births end in death, who did not seek to be reborn, and who was to take his last body, died and passed from the lofty heights of a god and entered his wife’s womb.
Certain women, endowed with natural intelligence, have five unique qualities. What are the five?
1.30
They know when a man feels desire and when he does not; they know when the time comes and when they are ovulating; they know when they have conceived; they know whence the conceived child came; and they know whether it is a boy or a girl. If it is a boy, he lies with his head to the right side of the womb. If it is a girl, she lies with her head to the left side of the womb.
Delighted, Potalaka’s wife joyfully told her husband, “Son of a lord! I am with child! And as it lies with its head to the right side of my womb, it is sure to be a boy, so pray be happy!”
Potalaka too was delighted. He sat straight up, raised his right hand, and exclaimed with great joy, “At last, I shall look on the face of the son I have wanted for so long! May we get along and not disagree. May he carry on my work and, having been nurtured, nurture in return. May he enjoy his inheritance and ensure that my line lasts long. When our time comes and we die, may he make the appropriate offerings, neither too few nor too many. And may he dedicate the merit he thus accrues to us by name, saying, ‘May this merit follow the two of them wherever they be born, wherever they go.’ ”
Knowing she was with child, to ensure she carried the child to term he installed his wife on the top story of their mansion where he saw that she was tended to and did not come to harm. When it was cold, she was given what she needed for the cold. When it was hot, she was given what she needed for the heat. On the doctor’s advice, her food was not to be too bitter, too sour, too salty, too sweet, too spicy, or too astringent; and so she was given food that was not bitter, sour, salty, sweet, spicy, or astringent. Her body was festooned in garlands, necklaces, and jewelry, like a goddess at play in a garden.
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She moved from bed to throne, from pedestal to pedestal, the soles of her feet never touching the floor, and she never heard anything even slightly unpleasant.
After eight or nine months had passed, a boy was born, well proportioned, pleasing to the eye, handsome, radiant, with a golden complexion, a head shaped well like a parasol, long arms, a broad forehead, eyebrows that met, and a prominent nose. Three weeks or twenty-one days after the birth, relatives came and gathered to celebrate his birth in grand style, during which time they chose a name for the boy. As this boy had come to them from the lap of the gods, they thought the young brahmin should be named Kolita (Born from the Lap), and so he was named Kolita.
Also, because he was a descendent of Mudgala, they thought the young brahmin should be named Maudgalyāyana (Son of Mudgala’s descendants), and so he was named Maudgalyāyana.
Thus it was that some knew the young brahmin as Maudgalyāyana while others knew him as Kolita.
The young brahmin Kolita was entrusted to eight nursemaids: two to cuddle him, two to breastfeed him, two to change his diapers, and two to play with him.⁸⁴ Fortified with milk, curd, butter, ghee, cream, and other nourishing foods, he grew quickly, shooting up like a lotus in a pond. When he was old enough, he was introduced to letters, number names, calculation, counting by hand, and how to exclude, to add, to leave, and to parse. Once he had finished letters, he was instructed in the ways of brahmins: their conduct, ritual purity, and observances;
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the handling of ashes, the handling of ritual vases, and the handling of sites; hand gestures, turbans, offering praise, and salutations; the Ṛgveda, the Yajurveda, the Sāmaveda, and the Atharvaveda; and a brahmin’s six duties—making fire sacrifices, officiating over fire sacrifices, studying, teaching, giving, and receiving. He mastered and became learned in the Vedas and all branches of Vedic knowledge. The Vedas and the limbs of the Vedas were entrusted to him, and with his blazing intelligence, he could illuminate his own assertions and vanquish those of others.
His father made him study all fields of knowledge. Once, when he was reciting the Vedas with his father, he asked, “Father, what does this statement mean?”
“Son, even I don’t know the meaning of this statement. Sages of the past recited with praise, sung, and furnished these sacred mantra, but nowadays brahmins simply recite and repeat them.”
“Father, do you think there is no meaning to these sacred mantra, which have been recited with praise, sung, and furnished by past sages, but nowadays are simply recited and repeated by brahmins? This is what such statements mean,” and he proceeded to explain.
Potalaka was delighted and in his delight thought, “This is what a son should do: he should carry on his father’s tradition or develop his insight even further. Were he to accomplish only that, this brahmin boy’s insight would surpass my own.”
Potalaka shared this insight with the five hundred young brahmins he was teaching to recite brahmanic mantras and they too were delighted and happily turned to Maudgalyāyana. The young brahmin Maudgalyāyana then taught the five hundred young brahmins to recite the brahmanic mantras.
The five hundred young brahmins were in the habit,
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when not occupied with their studies, of going to the riverbank to bathe, visiting the city, or collecting wood for use in fire pūjas.
Once, when not occupied with their studies, the students of the young brahmin Upatiṣya walked, reciting mantras on their way to the city. Meanwhile, trailing behind, the students of the young brahmin Maudgalyāyana walked, reciting mantras on their way to the city. When the students of the young brahmin Maudgalyāyana heard the students of the young brahmin Upatiṣya reciting the sacred mantra, they asked, “Why do you recite the sacred mantra in such a debased way?”
“How should they be recited?”
“The sacred mantra should be recited as we do.”
“From whom did you learn these sacred mantra?”
“Not to know him is not to know the sun or the moon. In the village of Nālada lives the brahmin Tiṣya. We have learned them from his son, the young brahmin Upatiṣya. And from whom did you learn these sacred mantra?”
“Not to know him is not to know the sun or the moon. In the village of Kāṣṭhavāṭa, there lives a royal priest named Potalaka. We have learned them from his son, the young brahmin Kolita.”
With that, the young brahmin students of Upatiṣya became dispirited, upset, and daunted. They went to Upatiṣya, who saw them off in the distance and asked, “What troubles you, young brahmins? Your preceptor is never wrong.”
Then he spoke in verse:
First 33 of 261 passages. Read on
Linked texts (1)
- འདུལ་བ་གཞི — Classical Tibetan