The Great Discourse on the Turning of the Wheel of Dhamma - Part V

(The New Moon of Thadingyut, 1324 B.E)

 

       Last week on the 8th waning day of Thadingyut when we gave the discourse on the fourth part of the Sutta, we had dealt with the exposition on the Truth of Suffering. Today, we will go on with the exposition of the Truth of the Origin of Suffering. First, we shall go over again the headings of the Four Truths:

  1. Dukkha sacca: the Truth of Suffering
  2. Samudaya sacca: the Truth of the Origin of Suffering
  3. Nirodha sacca: the Truth of the Cessation of Suffering
  4. Magga sacca : the Truth of the Path leading to the Cessation of Suffering

       As explained in the fourth part of the discourse, after defining the Truth of Suffering which he had personally discovered by penetrative insight, the Blessed One went on giving the definition of the Truth of the Origin of Suffering.

SAMUDAYA SACCA

Idam kho pana, Bhikkhave, dukkha-samudayo ariya saccam: Yayam tanha ponobhavika nandiragasahagata tatra tatrabhinandini . . . seyathidam, kamatanha, bhavatanha, vibhavatanha.

       "Bhikkhus, what I will presently teach is the Noble Truth concerning the origin of suffering or the Truth which Nobles Ones should know. There is this hunger, this craving which gives rise to fresh rebirth and is bound up with pleasure and attachment (or has the nature of pleasure and attachment); seeks delight, finds gratification now here, now there, everywhere. What is this tanha (craving)? It is the three kinds, namely, kamatanha (sensual craving, desire for enjoyment of sensuous pleasures), bhavatanha (craving for eternal existence, holding the eternity belief), vibhavatanha (craving for non-existence (self-annihilation)), believing that there is nothing after death. These three kinds of craving are the Truth of the Origin of Suffering."

       The Truth of the Origin of Suffering, i.e. craving, is the causal agency responsible for all kinds of suffering, already explained, starting from the suffering of fresh becoming to suffering of the five aggregates of grasping. To eliminate suffering, it is essential to know the cause of suffering. It is like making a diagnosis to know the cause of an ailment so that it may be cured. The Blessed One had personally penetrated to this truth of the cause of suffering and had consequently entirely eradicated suffering by removing its cause. The samudaya sacca is nothing but tanha, craving for hunger. It is like feeling thirsty or hungry. Tanha is thirst or hunger for sense objects.

       The craving for sense objects gives rise to fresh becoming (ponobhavika). So long as one remains in the grip of this tanha, continuous rebirths will take place. We shall discuss how fresh rebirths take place later in the discourse. This tanha finds pleasure in sense objects and clings to them. It is delighted with seemingly pleasant sense objects and even as oil or dye solution remains absorbed on any surface it happens to come into contact, tanha holds onto them tenaciously. This tanha finds gratification here, there, everywhere. There is never any boredom or monotony in the pursuit of pleasure. Any seemingly pleasurable sense object, wherever it presents itself gives delight.

        In the human world, life in the lower strata of society may be anything but attractive or pleasant to people of higher station. Unfortunately, there are people (who are born into poor circumstances) still enjoying their lives wherever they may be. Likewise, to the human mind, animal life is unpleasurable, repulsive, horrible. To assume the physical body of a snake or an insect is an abominable thought for a human being. Yet, if rebirth takes place in an animal world, a being is quite pleased with his physical body and finds delight in its life. It is because of the nature of tanha which finds gratification in every existence, in every sense object, wherever it may be. The Blessed One had, therefore, described tanha as finding pleasure here, there, in every existence, in every sense object. This is well-illustrated by the stories of Sampeya Naga king and Queen Upari.

THE STORY OF SAMPEYA NAGA KING

        In one existence, the Bodhisatta was born into a poor family in the vicinity of the river Sampa. Envious of the life of pleasure enjoyed by the Sampeya Naga king, the Bodhisatta engaged himself in the good deeds of giving alms and observing the precepts. As a result, when he passed away he was reborn spontaneously in the realm of the Nagas and found himself seated on the throne of the Sampeya Naga king in the full shape and form of a Naga being. The Naga is a species of snake. To be reborn as a snake from the human existence is really frightful and abominable. The Bodhisatta, looking at his repulsive, horrible new form, reflected thus: 'As a result of my good deeds of charity and observance of morality, I could have been reborn in any of the six realms of the devas, but because I had wished for the pleasures of the Naga king, I am reborn into this world of reptiles. Oh! To die would be better than to live the life of a snake'. He even played with the idea of committing suicide.

       Meanwhile, a young Naga female by the name of Sumana gave signal to other young Naga females to commence entertaining their new king. The young Naga females, assuming the appearance of beautiful devis and goddesses, started singing and dancing and playing various musical instruments. Seeing the beautiful goddesses entertaining him with song, dance and music, the Sampeya Naga king imagined his Naga abode to be the palace of the kind of the gods and felt very pleased. He also took on the appearance of a god himself and joined the female Nagas in their revelry with much delight.

       However, being a Bodhisatta, he easily regained the sense of reality and resolved to be born again as a human being so that he could further promote his paramis, the virtuous qualities of alms-giving, keeping precepts, etc. In pursuance of this resolution, the Sampeya king later came to the human world and sought solitude in a forest, and kept observance of the moral precepts.

       The point we wish to make in this story of the Sampeya Naga king is that from the human point of view, the body of a reptile is horrible, repulsive. At the initial stage of the Naga life, the Bodhisatta also viewed his new life with horror and revulsion, but the sight of the attractive female Nagas brought about a change in his outlook, which kept him revelling and delighting in the Naga existence as if it were the home of gods. It is tanha which seeks delight here, there, everywhere rebirth takes place that made the Bodhisatta enjoy his Naga life after the initial revulsion. There was also the wish he had made, while he was a poor man in the human world, for the pleasurable life of a Naga king. This wish or craving was also tanha which landed him in the realm of the Nagas, in accordance with the words of the Blessed One: 'Ponobhavika . . . gives rise to new birth'.

THE STORY OF QUEEN UPARI

               Queen Upari was the chief queen of King Assaka who once ruled over the country of Kasi at its capital Patali. She was said to be of great beauty. Ancient kings used to select the most attractive maidens of their kingdom to become their queens. Consequently, all their queens were noted for their charm and loveliness. Queen Upari was outstanding amongst them because of her raving beauty and enchantment. Bewitched by her alluring comeliness, King Assaka had lost his heart to her.

       Much adored by the monarch and while still in the prime of her beauty and charm, Queen Upari went to the gods' abode. Now, 'to go to the abode of the celestial beings' is a Burmese cultural usage to denote the death of a royal personage. Likewise, 'flying back' means the passing away of a Buddhist monk, a mere cultural usage. A dead person finds rebirth in an existence as conditioned by kamma, the previous volitional activities. As it happened, Queen Upari, in spite of the saying according to the cultural usage that 'she had gone to the gods' abode', actually made her rebirth in the abode of the lowly beetles.

       With the passing away of his adored queen, King Assaka was consumed by fiercely burning fires of sorrow and lamentation. He caused the corpse of the queen embalmed in oil, to be placed in a glass coffin and kept underneath his bedstead. Overwhelmed by grief, the king lay on the bed without food or sleep, wailing, moaning over the loss of his beloved queen. The royal relatives and his wise ministers tried to console him and give his solace by reminding him of the nature of impermanence and conditionality of existence, all to no avail. The corpse in the coffin, being embalmed in oil, would remain well-preserved just like being treated with chemical preservatives of modern times. The queen would therefore appear to the king as if she was lying, sleeping in the coffin. The sight of the corpse acted like fuel to his burning sorrows and lamentations which continued to consume him for seven days.

       At that time, the Bodhisatta was a hermit, endowed with abhinna (supernormal jhanic powers) living in the forest of the Himalayas. He happened to scan the whole world using his abhinna and saw King Assaka in the throes of intense sorrow. He knew also that no one but himself could save the king from his misery. He then made his way to the royal garden of King Assaka by means of his jhanic powers.

       There a young Brahmin came to meet the hermit who asked him about King Assaka. The young man told him how the king was being overwhelmed by grief and requested him to save the king. "We do not know the king, but if he came and asked us, we could tell him about his wife's presence existence", replied the hermit. Thereupon, the young man went to the king and said, "Great Sir, a hermit endowed with celestial eye and celestial ear has arrived in the royal garden. He claims he could show the present existence of the departed queen. It would be worthwhile to go and see him."

       Upon hearing this, the king immediately took off for the royal garden in a carriage. On arrival, the king paid respectful homage to the hermit and addressed him, "Reverend Sir, is it true that you claim to know the present existence of the queen Upari?" When the hermit admitted his claim, the king wanted to know where she was reborn now.

       "Oh, great King, Queen Upari took delight in her beauteous appearance and was very vain about it. She had spent her time engaged only in beautifying herself to make herself more alluringly attractive, forgetting all the while to perform meritorious deeds, to give alms and observe moral precepts. As a result, she has passed over to a lowly existence. She is presently reborn as a female cow dung beetle in this very garden," the hermit told the whole story very frankly.

       Persons favoured by fortune enjoying privileges of wealth, family, education, rank, physical beauty, etc., are prone to exhibit haughtiness in their dealings with others. Shrouded in their own vanity and self-esteem, they become neglectful in their performance of meritorious deeds. Humility plays no part in their make-up. The Blessed One had taught in the Culakammavibhanga Sutta that such vain, glorious, haughty persons are liable to land up in lowly inferior rebirths. On the other hand, unpretentious persons who show humility and pay reverential respects to those deserving of homage will be reborn in noble families.

       Queen Upari of our story was extremely beautiful and, being the chief queen of the ruling monarch, was of very high status in life. She had her head turned by these pre-eminent qualities and looked down with contempt on those she should have shown her respects. For such unwholesome attitudes and actions, it may be presumed she was reborn a lowly, female cow dung beetle. On hearing this account of the rebirth of his beloved queen, King Assaka promptly rejected it, saying "I don't believe it."

       The hermit replied, "I can show you the female beetle and make her talk, too." The king replied, "All right. Please do and make her talk, too." The hermit, using his supernatural powers of abhinna made a vow for both the male and female beetles to make their appearance before the king.

       When the male and female beetles emerged from the heap of cow dung into the presence of the king, the hermit said, "Oh King, the female beetle which is following from behind was your chief queen Upari devi. Having abandoned you, she is now trailing the male cow dung beetle wherever it goes. Oh King, have a good look at the female beetle who was lately your chief queen Upari."

       The king refused to believe the hermit. "I can't believe that such an intelligent being as my queen Upari was reborn as this female beetle," said the king.

       True, for those who do not quite believe in the laws of kamma and its resultant effect, who do not understand the principles of conditionality or causal relationship as explained in Paticca Samuppada, it would be difficult to accept that a being of the human world should have gone down so low as to become a mere beetle. Even in these days of sasana when the Buddha's teachings are widely prevalent, there are some people holding the view that 'when man dies, he cannot descend into an existence inferior to that of a human being'. So it is not surprising that during the dark ages when the Buddha's dispensation was yet unheard of, such stories of reincarnation were received with scepticism.

       Nevertheless, according to the teachings of the Buddha, for so long as one has not yet attained the status of an ariya, one can descend from the human world or the celestial realm into the four lower states of existence. Conditioned by bad kamma and the mental reflex just before death, rebirth may take place in the lower order of beings. On the other hand, conditioned by good kamma and wholesome mental attitude on the threshold of death, ascent may be made from an inferior sphere of existence into the higher realm of human and celestial beings.

       There is the story of a Bhikkhu named Reverend Tissa who developed attachment to his saffron robes when he was about to die. As a consequence, he was reborn a body louse making his home on those very robes. There is another story of a frog who met its death while listening to a discourse by the Buddha. He became a celestial being in Tavatimsa celestial abode. These are examples which serve as evidence of various transformations at the time of rebirths.

       But, King Assaka, not having heard of such discourses, could not accept that his queen had become a female beetle. Accordingly, he refused to believe it. The hermit, therefore, proposed that he would make the female beetle talk. The king accepted the proposal. Thereupon, the hermit made the vow using his supernatural powers to have the conversation between him and the female beetle, comprehensible to the king and his audience.

       "Who were you in your past life?" the hermit asked.

       "I was the chief queen Upari of King Assaka," replied the female beetle.

       "What now, female beetle, do you still love King Assaka or do you love only this cow dung - beetle?"

       To which the female beetle gave the reply: "True, King Assaka was my husband in my past life. At that time, I used to roam about in this garden in the company of King Assaka, enjoying the five sense-pleasures of sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. But, now that I am in the new existence, I have nothing to do with King Assaka."

       The commentarial version of the female beetle's reply is as follows: 'In my present existence, I could relish killing King Assaka and with the blood from his throat, wash the feet of the cow dung beetle who is my present beloved husband." This commentarial exposition makes the beetle's reply sound very harsh and unfeeling, but as she was talking in the presence of her dear husband, the male beetle, it is natural that she wanted to please him. We can easily see in everyday life many conspicuous examples of estrangement between ex-husbands and wives, who get separated not through death but in this very life on grounds of incompatibility, and examples of loving tenderness heaped on their new partners in life. The remarks in the commentary appears, therefore, to be quite in order.

       The Jataka Pali texts describe the female beetle's reply thus: 'Reverend Sir, I who had loved King Assaka had roamed about in this garden many a time together with King Assaka who had loved me and who was my beloved husband then, enjoying each other's company. But now, the joys and troubles of the present new life have obscured, covered up the joys and troubles of the old life. The new joys and troubles have transcended the old joys and troubles. I love my present husband, the male cow dung beetle, more than I did King Assaka."

       The commentary exposition of the words 'love more than' makes interesting reading. It says 'love more than' means 'love hundred times more, love one thousand times more', indicating the intensity of love in favour of the new husband.

       King Assaka was greatly distressed to hear the harsh, unfeeling words of estrangement from the lips of the female beetle. He thought to himself: 'I had loved and adored her so much. I could not betake myself to throw away her dead body. Yet she had become so antipathetic and nasty to me.'

       He felt so disgusted with his old queen Upari that he ordered, even while sitting there, "Go and have that woman's body removed." Then, having bathed and washed himself, the king went back to the palace. He made another court lady his chief queen and carried on ruling over his country wisely. The hermit, Bodhisatta, after giving good advice to the king, went back to the Himalayan sanctuary.

       The moral from this story is that queen Upari, while in the human world, had taken delight in being a human person, and a queen at that. She would never have even dreamt of being reborn a female beetle. But in accordance with her past kamma, when she was reborn a female beetle, she at once took to the life and delight in the physical body of a beetle. She esteemed and adored the physical body of the male beetle hundred times, thousand times more than that of King Assaka.

       That she felt quite at home in her lowly existence as a cow dung beetle is due to tanha (craving) which finds delight everywhere. That is why the Buddha had said, "Tatra tatra-bhinandini" - Tanha has the tendency to delight wherever it finds rebirth.

       Reborn as a dog, it takes delight in a dog's existence; reborn as a pig, as a fowl, there is always delight in each existence. Even having been born as children of affluent parents of upper social class, there are cases of them sinking down to poverty-stricken existences and yet enjoying their lives therein. Some of them even resisted the efforts of their parents to take them back into the fold of the family since they are finding their new life quite enjoyable. It is tanha again which is giving them pleasure wherever they are, delighting in whatever sense object presents itself.

HOW FRESH REBIRTH TAKES PLACE

        We shall now deal with ponobhavika (tendency to give rise to new births) which we had earlier postponed.

        Since tanha has the nature of delighting and clinging, a being finds delight in whatever existence it is born into and enjoys any sense-object that presents itself. Because it finds its existence so delightful and pleasurable, there comes the wish for this existence to remain everlasting, stable and pleasurable objects to be endurable and lasting. In endeavouring to maintain them as one wishes, volitional activities come into play. These kammas or volitional activities, which may be wholesome or unwholesome are the cause of rebirths in new existences.

       Thus, when a person is about to die, one or the other of these meritorious or demeritorious kammas may present itself before his mind's eyes. Or, it may be a kamma-nimitta, a symbol of the kamma (which is any sight, sound, smell, taste, touch or idea which had obtained at the time of the commission of that kamma). Or, gati-nimitta, a sign of destiny, that is a sign of the next existence where he is destined to open his new life in consequence of the said kamma. The kamma, kamma-nimitta or gati-nimitta which presents itself to the dying person is tenaciously grasped at because of tanha and cannot be dispelled from his mind. Just like the shadows of a mountain thrown by the evening sun falls on the surface of the land and covering it, so also these sense-objects of kamma, kamma-nimitta or gati-nimitta which present themselves at the sense-doors completely occupy his mind. These sense-objects are tenaciously held by the maranasanna-javana, otherwise called abhisankhara vinnana.

       In accordance with the Teaching, kammam khettan, vinnanam bijan, tanha sincho' of Angutara Pali Canon, Tika Nipata, for the appearance of patisandhi vinnana (birth-consciousness) of new becoming, meritorious or demeritorious kamma serves as a field in which it may grow. Abhisankhara vinnana serves as the seed for the growth of the patisandhi vinnana, and tanha, which delights in every sense-object in every existence, may be likened to the moisture or water element (which promotes its growth). Here, abhisaïkhara vinnana (that conditions new becoming) is, according to the commentary, consciousness accompanying the volitional kamma, cetana. In the same way it arises together with the first volitional kamma, so also it accompanies the later kamma activities and as such, consciousness which appears later should also be designated abhisankhara vinnana. Particularly, maranasanna javana consciousness which takes as its object kamma, kamma-nimitta and gati-nimitta should be called the abhisankhara vinnana because it is from this maranasanna javana consciousness that patisandhi vinnana arises. In addition, in the same way a seed germinates only when it comes into contact with water element, moisture, the seed of consciousness receiving support and encouragement by tanha which accompanies or precedes it in close proximity, tenaciously holds onto kamma, kamma-nimitta or gati nimitta as its object and gives rise to patisandhi vinnana.

       Then, immediately after the dissolution of the death-moment, aggregates of rupa, nama, patisandhi citta, the birth consciousness, holding onto the kamma, kamma-nimitta or gati-nimitta as its object, arises at a new site in a new existence complete with its physical base upon which it depends. With each consciousness arise also its mental concomitants, cetasikas. The patisandhi vinnana, the re-linking consciousness is followed by bhavanga consciousness, the life-continuum, which goes on continuously throughout life as prescribed by one's own kammic energy. The arising of new existence is brought about by two factors: one's own kamma and tanha. Without tanha, however, kamma by itself cannot bring about new becoming.

        For an Arahat, his past meritorious deeds will come to good fruition before his death, parinibbana. Multifarious gifts gained by Venerable Sivali, perfect health enjoyed by Venerable Bakula, are examples of good fruition. His demeritorious deeds will, however, bear bad fruits as, for instance, lack of alms-food for Venerable Losakatissa, or the fate met by the Venerable Moggalana who was cudgelled to death by felons. These kammas, however, do not have anymore potentialities for causing fresh rebirths as they are devoid of tanha. Lacking the support and encouragement of tanha at the time of maranasanna, the abhisaïkhara vinnana cannot arise and, hence, no rebirth. For this reason, only tanha is attributed to be the cause of fresh existence . . . ponobhavika.

       Therefore, tanha forms the root cause of fresh becoming. For this reason, the Blessed One had pin-pointed tanha to be the cause of new existence . . . ponobhavika. These are the words which the Blessed One had used in the very first discourse to teach the existence of after-life. In spite of this clear teaching, there is a group of people who maintain that 'the Blessed One taught only about the present existence. He did not touch on future life.' We could not be sure whether these people were attempting to associate the Buddha's teaching with uccheda vada, the theory of annihilation, a very misguided effort we must say! In reality, however, so long as tanha endures, through failure to develop the Eightfold Path, or even if developing, not being fully advanced in accomplishment, so long this tanha will continue to serve as the cause for fresh existence.

       When the Eightfold Path has been fully accomplished and arahatta path and fruition attained, tanha will be completed eradicated and there will be no more rebirth. Thus, when exercising retrospection on attainment of enlightenment as a Buddha or an Arahat, the thought always occurs to the Noble Ones: 'Ayam antima jati, natthi dani ponabhavoti ... This is the last existence. There is no more rebirth.' This reflection is also included in the later section of the Dhammacakka Sutta. Such reflections make it obvious that unless tanha is completely rooted out, continuous fresh existences, new becomings are inevitable.

       How this tanha brings on repeated rebirths will now be illustrated by a few stories. There are thousands of stories illustrating this fact, but it will suffice by taking three stories from the Pali commentaries and four or five from the modern period.

IN BRAHMA LAND HE SHINES BRIGHT; IN PIG'S PEN, TOO, HE FINDS DELIGHT

        At one time, the Blessed One went into Rajagiri for almsround. On seeing a young female pig, the Blessed One smiled. Noticing the white radiation which shone forth from the teeth of the Buddha, the Venerable Ananda knew that the Buddha was smiling. Accordingly, he asked: "What has caused, Sire, to smile?"

       The Blessed One pointed out the young female pig to Ananda and said, "See that young female pig? She was a young woman in human existence during the dispensation of Kakusanda Buddha. When she died, she was reborn a hen in the neighbourhood of a monastic feeding hall. The small hen fell victim to an eagle. But earlier she happened to have heard the recitation by a yogi Buddhist monk of a meditation subject which aroused in her wholesome thoughts. By virtue of these merits, the small hen was reborn as a princess named Ubbari in a royal family. The princess Ubbari later left the household life and became a wandering mendicant. Residing in the mendicants' residence she happened one day to gaze at the maggots in the latrine. The worms served as an object for meditation (contemplation of ugliness of worm-infested corpse or contemplation of a white object) by which she attained the first jhana. When she passed away, she was reborn a Brahma in the first jhanic Brahma world. On expiry from the Brahma world, she became the daughter of a rich man in the human world which she left again only to be born a pig now. I saw all these events which made me smile."

       On hearing this story of repeated births in various existences, Venerable Ananda and other monks became greatly alarmed and agitated with religious emotion. The Blessed One stopped going on alms-round and while still standing on the roadway, started teaching the dhamma in six verses, the first one of which stated:

Yathapi mule anupaddove dalhe,
chinnopi rukho punareva ruhati
evampi tanhanusaye anuhate
nibbattati dukkhamidam punappunam

       'If the main roots of a tree remain undamaged and in good condition, even when the upper branches are cut off that tree will grow again developing new buds and shoots. Likewise, if there remains defilements (lying dormant) which are not yet eradicated by ariya magga, this suffering of rebirth will arise time and again successively.'

       What is conveyed by this verse is this: 'During her existence as princess Ubbari, she renounced the world to become a wanderer. By practising meditation, she attained the first jhana which could dispel or put away by vikkhambhana pahana (elimination by discarding) only the defilements of pariyutthana class, i.e. craving for sensual pleasure which appears as sensuous thoughts at the mind's door. By means of vikkhambhana pahana, jhana can put away the defilements only to a certain distance for a certain period of time. Thus, she was able to dispel the craving for sensual pleasure when she attained the first jhana and later in the Brahma world. But when she was born again in the human world as the daughter of a wealthy man, the craving for sensual pleasure reappeared because it had not been rooted out by the ariya magga. The bhava tanha (craving for existence), of course, persisted even when she had attained the jhana.Thus because the latent defilements had not been completely uprooted, she had to descend from the Brahma world, through the human world, into a pig's existence. So long as the craving persists, repeated rebirths will take place in this way in various existences.'

       In reference to this story of descent from the Brahma world to a pig's existence, ancient Sayadaws had left an aphorism, 'In Brahma land, she shines bright; in pig's pen, too, she finds delight'. But it is not possible to be reborn as a pig straight from the Brahma world, nor as any other animal nor in the realms of petas (starving ghosts) nor in the states of misery. By virtue of the upacara bhavana, the access meditation, proximate to the jhana previously attained, rebirth can take place only as a human being or in the celestial abode. The young female pig of the above story also passed through human life where she was born as the daughter of a wealthy man. It is quite possible that she landed in a pig's existence after being the daughter of a wealthy man because of the bad kamma she had committed then, in being haughty and insolent to those she should have shown respect.

       When the young female pig died, she was reborn in a royal family of Suvannabhumi, which is generally taken to be the country of Thaton. Some scholars, however, take Suvannabhumi to be the Sumatra island, relying on the bronze inscriptions made by the King Devapala about 1500 Buddhist era.

       From being a princess of Suvannabhumi, she passed over to Varanasi, India, as a woman. She then became a woman in Varanasi, in south-east of Bombay. From there, she was reborn the daughter of a horse-merchant in the seaport town of Supparaka, north-west of Bombay. Next, she became the daughter of a shipowner at the port of Kavira in the south-easternmost part of the Indian peninsular. This is the coastal district inhabited by the Tamil people, formerly called Damila. After that life, she was reborn in the family of a government official at Anuradha or present day Sri Lanka. Her next life was as a daughter of a rich man, named Sumana from Bhokkanta, a village south of Anuradha. She took the same name as her father, Sumana. Later her father left that village and settled down in the Mahamuni village of the Dighavapi District. One day, a minister of the king Dutthagamini, named Lakundala Atimbara, happened to visit the Mahamuni village on a certain business. Upon seeing the young lady Sumana, he fell madly in love with her. He married her with great pomp and ceremony and carried her off to his village, Mahapunna.

       The Venerable Maha Anuruddha, who resided at the monastery of Taungsun, happened to visit her village for alms-round. While waiting for offer of almsfood at the gate of Sumana's house, he saw Sumana and said to his monk followers: "Bhikkhus, how wonderful, what a marvel! The young female pig of the Blessed One's time is now the wife of the minister Lakundaka Atimbara."

       On hearing this exclamation, Sumana, the wife of the minister, developed jatissara nana (knowledge of previous existences). With the help of this faculty, she recalled to her mind the previous existences she had passed through. In consequence, she became agitated with fear at the prospect of repeated births in the cycle of existences. Asking permission from her minister husband, she went to a Bhikkhuni monastery and got herself ordained. After ordination, she listened to the discourse on Satipatthana Sutta at Tissa Maha Vihara monastery. Practising mindfulness meditation in accordance with the sutta, she became a sotapanna, well-established as a stream-winner in the first stage of the Path and Fruition. Then, when king Dutthagamini came on the throne, she went back to her native village, Bhokkanta, where at the Kalla Maha Vihara monastery she heard the discourse on Asivisopama Sutta which enabled her to attain the fourth stage of the Fruition and became an Arahat, completely free from influxes, passions.

       Going over the thirteen existences of Sumana thoughtfully and mindfully, one could get aroused with religious emotion. When, as the young woman at the time of the Kakusanda Buddha died, she left behind her family, possessions and her own physical body. The bereft family and friends would have grieved over her death. She became a hen. What a frightful thought, a human being to be reborn a hen! That hen would have a family and friends, too. She met with a terrible death, from decapitation, when an eagle seized her and struck her fiercely with its beak. There is consolation, however, that she was reborn a princess for the merit accrued from having heard a discourse on meditation. The hen would not, of course, know anything of the dhamma, but as she had given devout attention to the discourse, certain merit would have accrued to her for which she was reborn a princess. Listening to a dhamma discourse is thus very beneficial and fruitful.

       It is a matter for gratification that she became a Brahma after being a princess by virtue of her jhanic attainments. It is gratifying too that from the Brahma world she was reborn in the human world into a wealthy family. But it is very distressing to know that she left behind her family, friends and possessions reluctantly to be reborn a female pig. It is really frightful to think of descending to human plane from the Brahma world and to sink further still into animal kingdom as a pig. This should be enough to excite alarm and religious emotion because so long as the noble ariya magga has not been established, anyone is liable to find himself landed in lowly states of existence. It was with the intention of arousing religious emotions and exhorting the Bhikkhus to take to dhamma in all earnestness that the Blessed One had told them the account of the female hen's succession of existences.

       How the young female pig met her death was not mentioned in the texts, but it could be presumed that she was slaughtered by her breeder as in modern times. The young female pig must have had a family and friends which she left behind, causing grief to them. It was comforting that she was reborn afterwards as a human being in six places from Suvannabhumi to Anuradha. But in each of these existences, every time she departed from one life there must have been considerable suffering from sorrow, lamentation and grief for her and her dear ones. That she finally became Bhikkhuni Sumana Theri is the most heartening part of the story.

       The cause of the succession of her existences departing from one life to be reborn in another is tanha or samudaya sacca, the Truth of the Origin of Suffering. Other people who are not yet rid of tanha will likewise go through the cycle of rebirths, dying from one life to be reborn in another. It is extremely important, therefore, to get established in the practice of the Noble Ariyan Path in order to eradicate tanha, otherwise called the Truth of the Origin of Suffering. Sumana Theri first heard the discourse on Satipatthana Sutta. Then she practised mindfulness in accordance with the Satipatthana method which helped her attain the status of sotapanna (the stream-winner). Then, hearing the Asivisopama Sutta, she devoted herself more ardently to the practice and attained Arahatta Fruition to become a female Arahat. Tanha, otherwise samudaya, was completely eradicated from her. Therefore, there would be no more rebirth for her and she would be enjoying peace after her parinibbana.

       Sumana Theri, therefore, declared to her colleagues that she would fully pass away (parinibbhuto) after the ayusankhara, the vital principle for her present existence had become exhausted. Thereupon, her colleagues, Bhikkhus and Bhikkhunis requested of her the story of her existences. "I was a human woman at the time of the Kakusanda Buddha. When I died from there, I became a hen. I was killed by an eagle which broke off my head and devoured me. Then I became a princess in the human world . . ." she continued to recount her past existences till the time of her final existence at Bhokkanta village. She concluded, "Thus have I passed through thirteen existences encountering the ups and downs, vicissitudes of life in each existence. In this last existence, being wearied of the cycle of rebirths, I have become an ordained Bhikkhuni and finally attained Arahatship. I urge all of you, my righteous Bhikkhus and Bhikkhunis, to put forth your endeavour mindfully to become fully accomplished in sila, samadhi and panna." Then she passed away, causing religious agitation in the minds of her audience, consisting of men, women, Bhikkhus and Bhikkhunis. This story of the young female pig is fully described in the commentary to the Dhammapada.

THE STORY OF SAMANA DEVA

       Even if one were engaged in meditation practice to dispel tanha, samudaya sacca until one became fully developed in the knowledge of the path, tanha could still give rise to rebirth. This fact is borne out by the story of a deva named Samana.

       During the lifetime of the Buddha, a certain young man, having established faith in the dispensation of the Buddha, got himself ordained and stayed with his preceptor for five vassa periods. He performed all the major and minor incumbent duties for his upajjhaya and learnt thoroughly the two codes, dve matika of Patimokkha discipline for the Bhikkhus. He also mastered the procedure for purifying himself from serious as well as trifling offences. Then, taking a meditation object of his choice, he departed to a solitary abode in the forest and devoted himself incessantly to the practice of meditation.

       His efforts at meditation were very strenuous. Even at midnight, which the Blessed One had allowed as the time for rest and sleep, he continued with the practice. Thus striving day and night and getting enervated by lack of sufficient nourishing food, he was suddenly seized with a cutting pain, a paralytic stroke which ruptured the spinal nerve causing him instant death. He was meditating while walking and thus said to have passed away in the course of performing the duties of a Bhikkhu.

       According to the commentary, if any Bhikkhu passes away while engaged in walking up and down the cloister walk or standing leaning against the leaning post, or sitting or lying down at the head of the cloister walk with the double robe on his head, he is said to 'die in harness'. A Bhikkhu is also said to 'die in harness' if he passes away in the course of preaching a sermon, particularly on liberation from the chain of existences.

       As the Bhikkhu of our story was engaged in meditating while walking up and down the cloister walk, we could take it that he passed away while he was contemplating the nama, rupa of the body postures in accordance with the teaching in the Satipatthana Sutta. Although he had put in a great deal of effort in the practice of meditation, he passed away without attaining the arahatta magga because he was not yet fully endowed with supporting acts of perfections (paramis) necessary for such attainments.

       Complete eradication of tanha is not possible unless arahatta magga has been attained. That this Bhikkhu had not yet developed even up to the stage of the stream-winner will become clear later. Therefore, because of tanha which can cause rebirth (ponobhavika) he was reborn in the celestial abode of Tavatimsa. A magnificent celestial palace awaited him in consequence of the merit he had acquired in the practice of meditation. By spontaneous rebirth, he appeared, as if just awakened from sleep, at the entrance of the palace, a celestial being resplendent in full celestial attire.

       At that moment, about one thousand celestial princesses who had been awaiting the arrival of the master of the palace said, "Our Lord has arrived. Let us entertain him." They gathered around him, holding musical instruments in their hands to welcome him joyously. The deva lord of the palace, however, did not even realize that he had taken a new existence in a new world. He was under the impression that he was still a Bhikkhu of the human world. On the sight of the celestial damsels, he took them to be female visitors to his monastery. He covered up his bare left shoulder with the upper garment and remained seated, his eyes lowered, assuming a very dignified and reserved pose.

       Realizing at once that the new being must have been a Bhikkhu in his previous existence, the celestial ladies addressed him, "My lord, this is the abode of the celestial beings. It is not the time to be observing the code of Bhikkhu discipline. It is the occasion for enjoyment of celestial pleasures." But he continued maintaining solemn reserve and dignity. "This deva has not realized that he has become a celestial being in the realm of the devas. Let us drive home this fact to him by our welcoming revelries." So saying, the celestial damsels started playing the musical instruments accompanied by songs. The deva all the more tightened his retiring disposition, maintaining his dignified solemnity, thinking that the female visitors had come to his forest abode to abandon themselves to frivolous merriment.

       Whereupon the celestial ladies brought out a body-length mirror and placed it in front of the deva. On seeing his reflection in the mirror, he finally realized that he had left the Bhikkhu's existence and taken rebirth in the celestial land. The Samana deva was greatly perturbed then. He reflected: 'I did not take up meditation to be reborn in this celestial land. My object was to attain the most profitable goal of Arahatta fruition, but I am now like a boxer who entered the boxing competition aiming at the championship gold medal but was awarded only a bundle of turnips.' Extremely agitated in mind, he thought: 'The celestial pleasures are easily attainable. The lifetime of an Enlightened One is a rare occasion. To hear the teaching of the Buddha and to attain the ariya magga is of utmost importance. By wallowing in the celestial pleasures, there is the danger of losing the opportunity of meeting the Buddha.' So without taking the trouble of entering the palatial building, he repaired hastily to the presence of the Buddha while the restraining sila he had observed as a Bhikkhu still remained intact. His celestial damsels also accompanied him as they were anxious not to lose sight of him. On reaching the presence of the Buddha, he addressed him:

       "Most Venerable Blessed One. In what manner will it be possible to avoid and proceed along past the Nandavana garden otherwise known as the Mohana garden, the grove of stupidity because it serves to encourage foolish behaviour in the celestial beings who visit it, where thousands of female celestial beings indulge in singing and yodelling, where numerous demons, goblins and spirits haunt."

       Here the deva referred to the celestial females as demons and goblins and to the Nandavana garden as the grove of stupidity because he was still in a repulsive mood towards sensual pleasures as a consequence of his intense efforts at Vipassana meditation. The commentary explanation of the deva's query as to 'how to proceed along' was that he was requesting the Blessed One for guidance on vipassana which provides access to the arahatta phala.

       The Buddha reflected on all the circumstances concerning the deva and taught him the Noble Eightfold Path in three verses:

1. Ujuko nama so magga abhaya nama sa disa
ratho akujano nama dhammacakkehi samyuto.

"Oh deva, who is anxious to flee away, the straight path for a quick escape is the Eightfold Path of vipassana you had already trod while a Bhikkhu."

       Here, we have given, for the benefit of the present audience, the explanatory meaning of the first line in the verse which just says 'the straight path is that path'. That bare translation would have been quite incomprehensible to this audience, but to the deva who looked as if he had come straight from the monastery, where he had devoted himself to meditation, the meaning was quite clear.

       The commentary exposition is as follows: On giving meditation training to someone not yet established in sila, etc., the Blessed One always advised him, "Purity your sila (moral conduct), develop mindfulness and concentration, straighten out your views on kamma and its resultant effects," and directed the yogi to get firmly established in these fundamental practices initially. To one already engaged in meditation, he instructed him only in vipassana, the proximate to the arahatta magga. The deva was already practising meditation exercises and his sila remained unimpaired. It was only the ariya magga that he needed to accomplish, having already developed its precursor pubba magga vipassana Path. Thus, in order to instruct him in vipassana, the Blessed One taught him the three verses.

       In this commentary exposition, the fact of his sila remaining unimpaired even after he had passed over from a Bhikkhu's existence to that of a celestial being, should be well-noted. It means that having not breached any of the precepts such as killing, stealing, sexual relationships, etc., he still continued to maintain his sila. It should be understood, therefore, that even without formal vow of keeping the precepts, sila remains unimpaired if one abstains from evil deeds which one should not commit. It should also be noted that these verses taught vipassana.

        As we had explained above, 'the best and straightest way of quick escape from the Nandavana garden of the celestial world with its celestial females is the vipassana path which he had trod along while he was a Bhikkhu'.

        Regarding the next query on the danger-free place of refuge, the Buddha said, "The danger-free place of refuge is that sanctuary, namely, Nibbana, which you had aspired to as a Bhikkhu." This means that he had to strive on till he attained Nibbana.

       As to what type of vehicle should be employed to make the passage, the Blessed One said, "For a silent escape with no one becoming aware of it, you need a silent carriage which is the Vipassana two-wheeler fitted with two wheels of physical exertion and mental exertion."

       The mental effort involved in noting every physical activity is known as cetasika viriya (mental exertion). When noting the bodily actions of going, standing, sitting, the physical effort required to maintain the body in respective postures is called kayika viriya (physical exertion). Meditation while lying down involves only mental exertion, not physical exertion. Here, as the use of a two-wheeler with wheels of mental exertion and physical exertion was advised, it must be taken to mean the vipassana meditation which requires heedful noting of walking, standing and sitting. Thus, to ride on the grand carriage of the vipassana magga fitted with two wheels of physical exertion and mental exertion, we must be engaged in mindful noting while occasionally walking up and down. That is to say, we must note 'walking', 'raising', 'stepping forward', 'dropping' as prescribed in the discourse on Satipatthana Sutta, namely, gacchanto va gacchamiti pa janati.

       While striving thus, as the concentration gets strengthened, the yogi will come to distinguish with each noting, the rupa which causes stiffness and moves, from nama, the mental act of noting it. As the concentration still gets further strengthened, the yogi will come to distinguish the cause from the effect. He knows: 'Because of the intention to go, there appears the physical process of going, because there is the object to know, there is knowing. With further progress, the arising of such phenomenon for a moment . . . the intention to go, the physical process of going, the noting mind . . . followed by its dissolution is clearly perceived as if it is grasped in one's own hand. It is realized plainly then that what arises momentarily only to vanish soon is not permanent; that what arises and vanished incessantly is fearsome suffering. The yogi will also comprehend clearly that the phenomena are occurring of their own accord, following nobody's will and, therefore, anatta, not subjected to anyone's control. Then the heedful noting should continue while standing or sitting occasionally.

       The silent carriage mentioned here is a reference to the horse-drawn vehicles of ancient days. Some carriages are by themselves noiseless, but when burdened with many passengers or heavy loads, are liable to produce creaky sound. But, the 'magga vehicle' is able to carry an unlimited number of passengers without producing any sound. Sometimes, while listening to the teachings of the Buddha, passengers numbering eighty-four thousand rode on this 'magga vehicle', piloted by 'vipassana magga' which transported them noiselessly to their final destination, Nibbana. Thus this carriage was admired as a noiseless vehicle. Intimation was in this way given by the Buddha to the deva that it would be possible to make his silent escape, without letting the celestial females know, by means of this transport.

2. Hiri tassa apalambo, satyassa parivaranam,
dhammaham sarathim byumi, sammaditthi pure javam.

Hiri, sense of shame and horror to commit evil deeds, serves as the leaning board of seats on the carriage without which passengers are liable to fall backwards when the carriage moves. The 'magga vehicle' has excellent leaning boards of hiri and ottappa.

       The meditating yogi feels repulsed and horrified at the possible arising of unwholesome thoughts concerning some objects which he may have missed in his heedful noting. It is like the revulsion one feels towards coming into with filth after having a nice, clean bath. The conscientious concern (solicitude) for non-arising of unwholesome thoughts and revulsion towards them is termed hiri or otherwise sense of shame. There is also fear of unwholesome thoughts leading to evil actions which will yield unwholesome resultant effects, and hinder escape from samsara (the cycle of existences). This fear of evil deeds and its unwholesome consequences is termed ottappa.

       Because of this sense of shame (hiri) and fear of evil deeds (ottappa), the yogi devotes himself in a reverential attitude to the task of noting every physical and mental phenomenon without missing any. In this way, magga path is kept developing with each passing moment. This is like the manner in which the leaning boards of the carriage prevent the passengers from falling backwards, maintaining them in their positions. That is the reason why the Blessed One had termed hiri and ottappa as the leaning boards of the vipassana magga vehicle.

       Then the Blessed One went on to explain how the mindfulness is like the covering drapery or the awning of the magga vehicle. In the same way, the shielding awning fitted in a carriage guards against the danger of stones or sticks being thrown in. Mindfulness of every mental and physical phenomenon, as it arises, keeps oneself secure from the danger of demeritorious deeds. Therefore, the four foundations of mindfulness such as the contemplation of the body, etc., are termed the covering drapery of the magga vehicle.

       The Blessed One continued: "I call the right view pertaining to ariya magga 'ariya magga sammaditthi', preceded by vipassana sammaditthi (the right view pertaining to vipassana) the driver of the carriage."

        Of the six kinds of right views, namely, kammasakata sammaditthi, jhana sammaditthi, vipassana sammaditthi, magga sammaditthi, phala sammaditthi and paccavekkhana sammaditthi, the right view concerning the Fruition (phala sammaditthi) is the resultant effect of the magga. Similarly, paccavekkhana sammaditthi (the right view concerning recollectedness) is the reflective knowledge which appears after attainment of the Path and Fruition. Therefore, it needs no particular effort to develop them. Kammassakata sammaditthi (the right view concerning kamma and its effect) has to be established even before one starts the practice of meditation. The right view concerning jhana is related to the purification of mind which is the base for vipassana. Thus, the proximate knowledge which has to be developed for the promotion of right view concerning the ariya magga is the right view concerning vipassana. When the vipassana knowledge is fully developed, knowledge of ariya magga, otherwise called the right view concerning the magga, arises spontaneously. It is just like a royal procession coming along after the roads have been cleared by the police and military escorts. Therefore, it is said that vipassana sammadiööhi proceeds, followed by ariya sammaditthi. While engaged in Vipassana meditation, vipassana nana leads the way for the development of other maggas. At the moment of attainment of ariya magga, magga nana gives the lead to other maggas. For this reason, the Buddha had called the vipassana sammaditthi and ariya magga sammaditthi, the drivers of the carriage. The last verse runs as follows:

3.  Yassa etadisanyanam, Itthiya purisassa va,
sa ve etena, yanena nibbanasseva santike.

'Any woman or man possessing this eightfold magga vehicle can get to the presence of Nibbana by means of the vehicle.'

       In accordance with this last verse, the owner of the eightfold magga vehicle, irrespective of sex, is definitely bound to 'reach' Nibbana. So it is very clear that anyone desirous of reaching Nibbana must develop ariya magga based on the vipassana magga.

       It is common knowledge that in this mundane world, the owner of some form of transport is able to reach the required destination by using it. However, just having the knowledge of the mechanism of the transport without actually possessing it will not get anyone anywhere. Likewise, by just knowing how to enumerate the various types of rupas and namas, or the different kinds of maggas, no one can reach Nibbana. It must be definitely noted that only by coming into possession of the vipassana magga vehicle through contemplation of the actual arising and dissolution of nama and rupa and riding on the carriage of the Eightfold Path, one can reach Nibbana. The three verses explained above are summarised as follows:

  1. The straight path is magga, the destination is Nibbana, free from danger.
  2. Fitted with two wheels of energetic efforts, the magga carriage is silent.
  3. Hiri and ottappa serve as the leaning board while mindfulness forms the drapery and awnings of the carriage.
  4. Magga nana preceded by vipassana nana is the driver of the carriage.
  5. Owners of such carriage may be either man or woman.
  6. One may ride comfortably in it to reach Nibbana.

       After teaching the three verses, the Buddha also gave the discourse on the Four Noble Truths which we shall discuss again when we come to the section on the Truth of the path, magga sacca.

       The deva Sumana, while listening to the discourse, reflected on the meditation practices of his former existence. Although he had not been able to attain to higher knowledge as a Bhikkhu in spite of strenuous efforts at meditation, in the existence of a deva whose physical body was free from impurities, in no time he was able to develop successive vipassana nanas step by step until he attained the Path and Fruition of the first stage and realized Nibbana, thus becoming a sotapanna, a stream-winner.

       The main point which this story of Sumana deva has brought home is that although the Bhikkhu had been engaged ardently in vipassana meditation, as ariya magga, which could cut off the tanha had not yet been attained, this tanha, otherwise called samudaya sacca, had after death caused rebirth in the new existence of a celestial being. The story also pointed out how ariya magga could be developed and how as a deva higher knowledge could be attained with ease.

       Another point brought out in the story is that if attachment lingers on in an individual or an object, bhava tanha (craving for existence) is likely to cause rebirth in the vicinity of such a person or object. How attachment to an object will lead to renewed existence in close proximity to it is borne out by the well-known story of Bhikkhu Tissa who died with great craving for his robes and consequently was reborn in the form of a body louse on those very robes.

       Now we shall deal with the account of how attachment to one's wife had caused rebirth as a snake, a dog and a cattle.


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