Divine Stories
Page 26
At that time the mendicant Mākandika had gone out to get flowers and firewood. From far away the mendicant Mākandika saw the Blessed One sitting at the base of a tree, his legs crossed so that he was curled up like the winding coil of a sleeping snake king.
He was attractive,
he was handsome,
his mind and senses were calmed,
he possessed the highest mental tranquility,
and he shined with splendor like a sacrificial pillar made of gold.
Seeing him, Mākandika was pleased and delighted, and he reflected, “This ascetic is attractive and handsome, and he would captivate anyone. A suitable husband is difficult to find for any woman, but how much more so in the case of Anupamā. I have found a son-in-law!”
Mākandika approached his home and, having approached, said to his wife, “Let me tell you this, my dear. I have found a husband for our daughter! Adorn her! I will give Anupamā to him in marriage.”
“To whom will you give her?” she asked.
“To the ascetic Gautama,” he said.
“Let’s go and see him,” she said.
So Mākandika went with her. Sākali saw him from a distance, and as she approached, a memory occurred to her. She uttered this verse:
Wise one, I saw this great seer
wandering for alms in Kalmāṣadamya.
As he passes, the earth lights up for him
with the splendor of jewels783 and remains flat.784
A husband like this won’t accept a maiden.785
Turn back! Let’s go home.
Then he uttered a verse: [517]
Inauspicious Sākalikā! At this auspicious time,
you speak inauspicious words.786
If he is quickly made to stray,787
he’ll again indulge in sense pleasures.
Sākalikā adorned Anupamā in fine clothes and jewelry and then set out.
Meanwhile the Blessed One had moved from that part of the forest to another. The mendicant Mākandika saw the Blessed One laying out grass for a bed, and seeing this, he addressed his wife: “Let me tell you this, my dear. This bed of grass is for your daughter!”
She uttered this verse:
An impassioned man’s bed is in disarray.
A hateful man’s bed is forcibly beaten down.
A deluded man’s bed is arranged backward.788
But this bed has been used by one free from attachment.
A husband like this won’t accept a maiden.
Turn back! Let’s go home.
[To which Mākandika replied:]
Inauspicious Sākalikā! At this auspicious time,
you speak inauspicious words.
If he is quickly made to stray,
he’ll again indulge in sense pleasures.
The mendicant Mākandika saw the footprints of the Blessed One, and seeing them, he said to his wife, “These are the footprints, my dear, of your future son-in-law!”
She uttered this verse:
An impassioned man’s footprint is lightly cast.
A hateful man’s footprint is deeply pressed.
A deluded man’s footprint is splayed out.
But a footprint like this belongs to one free from attachment.
A husband like this won’t accept a maiden.
Turn back! Let’s go home.
[To which Mākandika replied:]
Inauspicious Sākalikā! [At this auspicious time,
you speak inauspicious words.
If he is quickly made to stray,
he’ll again indulge in sense pleasures].789
Then the Blessed One spoke aloud. The mendicant Mākandika listened and heard790 that it was the Blessed One speaking aloud. Hearing this, he addressed his wife: “This, my dear, is your future son-in-law speaking aloud!”
Then she uttered this verse: [518]
An impassioned man has a faltering voice.
A hateful man has a harsh voice.
A deluded man has an agitated voice.
But this man is a buddha, with a thundering Brahmā-like voice.791
A husband like this won’t accept a maiden.
Turn back! Let’s go home.
[To which he replied:]
Inauspicious Sākalikā! [At this auspicious time,
you speak inauspicious words.
If he is quickly made to stray,
he’ll again indulge in sense pleasures].792
The Blessed One observed the mendicant Mākandika from a distance. The mendicant Mākandika saw the Blessed One observing him, and seeing this, he addressed his wife: “This, my dear, is your future son-in-law looking at me!”
She uttered this verse:
An impassioned man has a fickle gaze.
A hateful man sees as does a snake with deadly venom.
A deluded man looks out as though into dense darkness.
But the man who is free from attachment, brahman,
looks ahead with eyes downcast.793
A husband like this won’t accept a maiden.
Turn back! Let’s go home.
[To which Mākandika replied:]
Inauspicious Sākalikā! [At this auspicious time,
you speak inauspicious words.
If he is quickly made to stray,
he’ll again indulge in sense pleasures].794
The Blessed One began doing walking meditation. The mendicant Mākandika saw the Blessed One doing walking meditation, and upon seeing him, he addressed his wife: “This is your future son-in-law doing walking meditation!”
She uttered this verse:
Both his eyes and his gaze,
when he walks and when he stands,795
are still like a lotus in calm water,
each eye resplendent on his distinguished face.
A husband like this won’t accept a maiden.
Turn back! Let’s go home.
[To which Mākandika replied:]
Inauspicious Sākalikā! At this auspicious time,
you speak inauspicious words. [519]
If he is quickly made to stray,
he’ll again indulge in sense pleasures.
Vaśiṣṭha, Uśīra, and Maunalāyana796
were deluded by a desire for offspring.
This law of the sages is truly eternal,
and this eternal law produces offspring.797
Then the mendicant Mākandika approached the Blessed One and, having approached, said this to him:
May the Blessed One behold my virtuous daughter,
a shapely and well-adorned young woman.
I offer this amorous girl to you.
With her behave like a man of virtue,
like the moon in the sky with his consort Rohiṇī.798
The Blessed One reflected, “If I address Anupamā with kind words, given the situation, she’ll end up dying in a sweat of passion. Instead, I’ll speak to her with harsh words.” With this in mind, he uttered this verse:
Brahman, even when I saw Māra’s daughters,
I felt neither craving nor passion799—
I have no desire at all for sensual pleasures.
Therefore I can’t bring myself to touch this girl,
filled as she is with piss and shit,
not even with my foot.800
Then Mākandika uttered this verse:
Is it that you see this daughter of mine
as defective, or without beauty and virtue,
that you have no desire for this beautiful girl,
like a sensualist for the solitary?801
And then the Blessed One uttered these verses:
A deluded man who desires sense objects,
would long for your daughter, brahman,
Such a deluded man, not free from passion,
would long for a lovely girl
likewise attached802 to sense objects. [520]
But I am a buddha, best of sages, fully active,803
who has obtained awakening, auspicious and unsurpassed.
Just as a lotus is not defiled by drops of water,
so I live in the world, completely undefiled.
And just as a blue waterlilly in muddy water
is in no way defiled by mud,804
in just this way, brahman, I live in the world,
totally separate805 from sense pleasures.
In response, Anupamā, whom the Blessed One had described using the words piss and shit, became joyless and depressed. The passion that possessed her was gone, and [self-]loathing came to possess her instead. She felt heaviness in her bones, and her eyes glazed over.806
At that time a certain old monk807 was standing behind the Blessed One, and the old monk said this to him:
You who see all, accept this girl then offer her to me.
Then she will be in my charge,808 Blessed One.
Since I am lustful, wise one, let me enjoy
this ornamented beauty as I please.
Thus addressed, the Blessed One said this to the old monk: “Go away, foolish man! Don’t remain before me!”
Enraged, [the old monk] uttered this verse:
This bowl of yours, this robe and staff
and water pot—may they desert you!809
And you can care for the discipline yourself,
like a nursemaid for a child on her lap.
Having spoken thus,810 the old monk rejected the discipline, and thinking “This man is certainly not noble,” he approached the mendicant Mākandika. Having approached, he said this to him: “Offer Anupamā to me.”
Incensed, Mākandika said, “Old man [521], I wouldn’t give her to you even to look at, much less to touch.”
After the mendicant Mākandika spoke these words,811 the old man became so angry at him that he coughed up hot blood. Then he died and was reborn in the realms of hell.
Some monks in doubt questioned the Lord Buddha, the remover of all doubts: “Look, Bhadanta. Anupamā was offered in marriage,812 and yet the Blessed One did not accept her.”
“Yes, monks,” the Blessed One said, “not only now, but also in the past. She was offered in marriage, and yet I did not accept her. Listen to this.”
The Blacksmith and the Expert Craftsman
Long ago, monks, in a certain market town there lived a blacksmith. He brought home a girl from an appropriate family as his wife, [and with her he fooled around, enjoyed himself, and made love. After some time, from fooling around, enjoying himself, and making love, his wife became pregnant. After eight or nine months, she gave birth]813 to a daughter who was beautiful, good-looking, and attractive. Raised and nourished, in time she grew up. The blacksmith reflected, “I won’t give my daughter in marriage to anyone because of his high standing nor because of his beauty or wealth. I’ll only give her in marriage to the man who is my equal or my better as a craftsman.”
Meanwhile a young man begging for alms entered the blacksmith’s home. The girl brought alms out to him. When the young man saw her, he said, “Young woman, have you been given in marriage to anyone or not?”
“At the time when I was born,” she said, “my father made a resolution814 that makes it difficult for him to give me in marriage to anyone.”
“What did your father say?”
“That he would only give me in marriage to the man who was his equal or better as a craftsman.”
“What craft does your father know?”
“He makes needles that float on water.”
The young man reflected, “Even though I don’t desire the girl, her father’s pride should be destroyed.”
Now the young man was an expert in many kinds of arts and crafts. So he borrowed some blacksmith’s tools,815 and elsewhere in a workshop he fashioned very fine needles that floated on water. He then fashioned one large needle into which seven needles could fit and float with it. After making all these needles, he returned to the blacksmith’s home and called out, “Needles! Needles!” The blacksmith’s daughter saw him and uttered this verse [522]:
You must be mad, reckless, or with no sense.
You come to sell needles at a blacksmith’s house!
Then the young man uttered these verses:
I’m not mad, reckless, or with no sense,
but to topple your father’s pride I exhibit my craft.
If your father were to know the extent of my skill,
he’d give you to me, and great816 wealth besides.
“What craft do you know?” she asked.
“I can make a needle that floats on water.”
She informed her mother, “Mom, a craftsman has come.”
“Send him in,” she said. The girl sent him in.
“What craft do you know?” the blacksmith’s wife asked. He explained. She informed her husband, “Dear husband, this boy is a craftsman. He knows such-and-such a craft.”
“If that’s the case, bring some water,” he said. “Then I’ll see.”
She filled a pot with water and placed it before him. The young man threw in a needle. It began to float. And so too did a second and a third needle. Then he threw in the large needle. It began to float as well. He then inserted one of the needles into the large needle. It continued to float, just as before. Then he inserted a second needle, a third, and so on until he had placed seven needles into the large needle. Just as before, it continued to float.
The blacksmith reflected, “He is a better craftsman than me! I’ll offer him my daughter in marriage.” With this in mind, he adorned the young girl with all kinds of ornaments, then took her with his left hand and with his right hand picked up a small golden pitcher. He then stood in front of the young brahman and said, “Young man, I offer this daughter of mine to you as a wife.”
“I don’t desire her,” the young man said. “I desire only that the pride you have should be destroyed. This is why I have displayed my craft.”
The Blessed One said, “What do you think, monks? The young man was none other than me at that time and at that juncture. The blacksmith was none other than Mākandika at that time and at that juncture.817 The blacksmith’s wife was none other than Mākandika’s wife at that time and at that juncture. [523] And the blacksmith’s daughter was none other than Anupamā at that time and at that juncture. Then too she was offered in marriage, but I did not accept her. Now again she was offered in marriage, and yet again I did not accept her.
Once again some monks in doubt questioned the Lord Buddha, the remover of all doubts: “Look, Bhadanta. That old man made improper advances toward Anupamā and then he met with his death.”818
“Yes, monks,” the Blessed One said, “not only now, but also in the past. He made improper advances toward Anupamā, and then he met with his death, as did his wives. Listen to this.”
Siṃhala and the Demon
Long ago, monks, in the city of Siṃhakalpā (Leonine) a king named Siṃhakeśarin (Lion Mane) ruled a kingdom that was thriving, prosperous, and safe, with plenty of food and throngs of people, [that was free from quarrel and strife, with no hustle and bustle, thieves, or diseases, that was rich in rice, sugarcane, cattle, and buffalo. He was a just and virtuous king, and]819 he ruled according to dharma.
At that time in Siṃhakalpā there lived a caravan leader named Siṃhaka (Little Lion) who was rich, wealthy, and prosperous, with vast and extensive holdings, [and who had amassed a wealth like the god Vaiśravaṇa. Truly, he rivaled Vaiśravaṇa in wealth.
The caravan leader Siṃhaka] brought home a girl [from an appropriate family as his wife.]820 She became pregnant, and she heard no unkind words until the fetus matured.821 After eight or nine months, she gave birth. A boy was born who was beautiful, good-looking, and attractive, radiant with a golden complexion, who had a parasol-shaped head, lengthy arms, a broad forehead, a sonorous voice,822 joined eyebrows, a prominent nose, and who was sound in all parts of his body.
[Then his relatives came together and assembled.]823 For three weeks—that is, twenty-one days—they celebrated the occasion of his birth in full, and then
they selected a name for him.824
“What should this boy’s name be?”
“This boy is the son of the caravan leader Siṃhaka,”825 his relatives said. “So let the boy’s name be Siṃhala (Related to Siṃha).” And so he was given the name Siṃhala.
The boy Siṃhala was given over to eight nurses—[two shoulder nurses, two nursemaids, two wet nurses, and two playtime nurses. Raised by these eight nurses, who nourished him with milk, yogurt, fresh butter, clarified butter, buttercream, and other special provisions that were very pure, he grew quickly like a lotus in a lake.
When he grew up, he was entrusted to teachers to learn writing and then arithmetic, accounting, matters relating to trademarks, and to debts, deposits, and trusts, the science of building-sites, the science of cloth, the science of wood, the science of jewels, the science of elephants, the science of horses, the science of young men, and the science of young women.]826 In each of the eight sciences, he became learned and well versed, capable of explaining and expounding upon them.
On Siṃhala’s behalf, his father had three residences built—one for the cold season, one for the hot season, and one for the rainy season; and he had women’s quarters established—senior, intermediate, and junior.
One day Siṃhala said to his father, “Dad, give me permission to set sail in the great ocean.”
“Son,” he said, “so vast is my wealth that even if [524] you made use of my jewels as you would sesame seeds, rice, lentils, and so on, even then my riches wouldn’t diminish, give out, or be completely exhausted. So, for as long as I live, fool around, enjoy yourself, and make love! After I die, you can acquire your own wealth.”
Again and again Siṃhala said, “Dad, give me permission to set sail in the great ocean.”
Realizing that his son was absolutely determined, he said, “Son, do as you wish, but you’ll have to withstand fear and dread.” Then he had bells rung in the capital Siṃhakalpā for the following proclamation: “Listen, respected citizens of Siṃhakalpā and merchants visiting from other countries! The caravan leader Siṃhala will set sail in the great ocean. Whoever among you is eager to set sail in the great ocean with Siṃhala as your caravan leader, all the while exempt from customs and freight fees, gather up your goods for export across the great ocean.” Five hundred merchants then gathered up their goods for export across the great ocean.