The Life or Legend of Gaudama, the Buddha of the Burmese (Volume I)Bigandet, Paul Ambroise
Religion
The Life or Legend of Gaudama, the Buddha of the Burmese (Volume I)
Bigandet, Paul Ambroise
Buddhism -- Burma; Burma -- Religion; Gautama Buddha
It was at that time that Kema, the first queen of King Pimpathara, proud
of her rank, youth, and beauty, was at last converted. Up to that time
she had obstinately refused to see Buddha and hear his doctrine. On a
certain day, the queen went to visit a garden which was in the
neighbourhood of the Weloowon grove. By a contrivance of the king, her
husband, she was brought, almost against her will, into the presence of
Buddha, who worked out the spiritual cure of her foolish vanity by a
process similar to the one above mentioned. He caused a beautiful female
of his creation to pass successively, in the queen's presence, through
the various stages of old age, disease, and death. Her mind having been
thus well prepared to hear his instructions, Buddha gave her a
lengthened explanation of the miseries attending the body. It had the
desirable effect to convert her in so perfect a manner that she entered
into the current of perfection, and became Thautapan. After having
obtained the consent of her lord, she was, upon her pressing
solicitations, admitted into the religious order. She became a Rahanda,
and among the female members of the assembly she ranked as the disciple
of the right. Such a glorious charge was owing to her former merits.
On a certain day, a rich man of the country of Radzagio went to enjoy
himself on the banks of the river Ganges. That man was not a disciple of
Buddha, nor did he hold the doctrines of the opposite party. He steered
a middle course between both doctrines, with a mind disposed, however,
to embrace such opinions as should appear to him based on the best and
strongest evidence. Chance offered him a favourable opportunity to
acknowledge the superiority of Buddha over his opponents. He saw a log
of sandal-wood floating on the stream, took it up, and had a beautiful
patta made of it. When finished, he wrote upon it these words, "He who
can fly in the air let him take it." The patta was raised on the top of
a succession of hampers, tied together, and sixty cubits high. Some
heretics living in the neighbourhood asked on successive occasions the
rich man to get down the patta for them; he answered them that he would
give it only to him who by flight could reach it. The head man of those
heretics feigned to prepare himself to fly; but when he was extending
his arms, and raising one of his feet, his disciples, according to a
preconcerted plan, seized him, saying, "It is not becoming that you
should exert yourself for such a trifle." But the wily rich man could
not be thus deceived; he persisted in his former resolution, and for six
days resisted all their entreaties. On the seventh day Maukalan happened
to go to that place in search of his food. He was informed of all that
had just happened. He was, moreover, told that the rich man and all his
family would become disciples under him who could by flight possess
himself of the sandal-wood patta. Maukalan was ready, for the glory of
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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