The Gospel of Buddha Part 27

The Blessed One waited a moment and then replied: "Is all teaching in vain? Dost thou not understand that those others are thou thyself? Thou thyself wilt reap what thou sowest, not others. 61

"Think of a man who is ill-bred and dest.i.tute, suffering from the wretchedness of his condition. As a boy he was slothful and indolent, and when he grew up he had not learned a craft to earn a living. Wouldst thou say his misery is not the product of his own action, because the adult is no longer the same person as was the boy? 62

"Verily, I say unto thee: Not in the heavens, not in the midst of the sea, not if thou hidest thyself away in the clefts of the mountains, wilt thou find a place where thou canst escape the fruit of thine evil actions. 63

"At the same time thou art sure to receive the blessings of thy good actions. 64

"The man who has long been traveling and who returns home in safety, the welcome of kinsfolk, friends, and acquaintances awaits. So, the fruits of his good works bid him welcome who has walked in the path of righteousness, when he pa.s.ses over from the present life into the hereafter." 65

Kutadanta said: "I have faith in the glory and excellency of thy doctrines. My eye cannot as yet endure the light; but I now understand that there is no self, and the truth dawns upon me.

Sacrifices cannot save, and invocations are idle talk. But how shall I find the path to life everlasting? I know all the Vedas by heart and have not found the truth." 66

Said the Buddha: "Learning is a good thing; but it availeth not.

True wisdom can be acquired by practice only. Practise the truth that thy brother is the same as thou. Walk in the n.o.ble path of righteousness and thou wilt understand that while there is death in self, there is immortality in truth." 67

Said Kutadanta: "Let me take my refuge in the Blessed One, in the Dharma, and in the brotherhood. Accept me as thy disciple and let me partake of the bliss of immortality." 68

LIV.

THE BUDDHA OMNIPRESENT.

And the Blessed One thus addressed the brethren: 1

"Those only who do not believe, call me Gotama, but you call me the Buddha, the Blessed One, the Teacher. And this is right, for I have in this life entered Nirvana, while the life of Gotama has been extinguished. 2

"Self has disappeared and the truth has taken its abode in me.

This body of mine is Gotama's body and it will be dissolved in due time, and after its dissolution no one, neither G.o.d nor man, will see Gotama again. But the truth remains. The Buddha will not die; the Buddha will continue to live in the holy body of the law. 3

"The extinction of the Blessed One will be by that pa.s.sing away in which nothing remains that could tend to the formation of another self. Nor will it be possible to point out the Blessed One as being here or there. But it will be like a flame in a great body of blazing fire. That flame has ceased; it has vanished and it cannot be said that it is here or there. In the body of the Dharma, however, the Blessed One can be pointed out; for the Dharma has been preached by the Blessed One. 4

"Ye are my children, I am your father; through me have ye been released from your sufferings. 5

"I myself having reached the other sh.o.r.e, help others to cross the stream; I myself having attained salvation, am a saviour of others; being comforted, I comfort others and lead them to the place of refuge. 6

"I shall fill with joy all the beings whose limbs languish; I shall give happiness to those who are dying from distress; I shall extend to them succor and deliverance. 7

"I was born into the world as the king of truth for the salvation of the world. 8

"The subject on which I meditate is truth. The practice to which I devote myself is truth. The topic of my conversation is truth.

My thoughts are always in the truth. For lo! my self has become the truth. 9

"Whosoever comprehendeth the truth will see the Blessed One, for the truth has been preached by the Blessed One." 10

LV.

ONE ESSENCE, ONE LAW, ONE AIM.

And the Tathagata addressed the venerable Ka.s.sapa, to dispel the uncertainty and doubt of his mind, and he said: 1

"All things are made of one essence, yet things are different according to the forms which they a.s.sume under different impressions. As they form themselves so they act, and as they act so they are. 2

"It is, Ka.s.sapa, as if a potter made different vessels out of the same clay. Some of these pots are to contain sugar, others rice, others curds and milk; others still are vessels of impurity.

There is no diversity in the clay used; the diversity of the pots is only due to the moulding hands of the potter who shapes them for the various uses that circ.u.mstances may require. 3

"And as all things originate from one essence, so they are developing according to one law and they are destined to one aim which is Nirvana. 4

"Nirvana comes to thee, Ka.s.sapa, when thou understandest thoroughly, and when thou livest according to thy understanding, that all things are of one essence and that there is but one law.

Hence, there is but one Nirvana as there is but one truth, not two or three. 5

"And the Tathagata is the same unto all beings, differing in his att.i.tude only in so far as all beings are different. 6

"The Tathagata recreates the whole world like a cloud shedding its waters without distinction. He has the same sentiments for the high as for the low, for the wise as for the ignorant, for the n.o.ble-minded as for the immoral. 7

"The great cloud full of rain comes up in this wide universe covering all countries and oceans to pour down its rain everywhere, over all gra.s.ses, shrubs, herbs, trees of various species, families of plants of different names growing on the earth, on the hills, on the mountains, or in the valleys. 8

"Then, Ka.s.sapa, the gra.s.ses, shrubs, herbs, and wild trees suck the water emitted from that great cloud which is all of one essence and has been abundantly poured down; and they will, according to their nature, acquire a proportionate development, shooting up and producing blossoms and their fruits in season. 9

"Rooted in one and the same soil, all those families of plants and germs are quickened by water of the same essence. 10

"The Tathagata, however, O Ka.s.sapa, knows the law whose essence is salvation, and whose end is the peace of Nirvana. He is the same to all, and yet knowing the requirements of every single being, he does not reveal himself to all alike. He does not impart to them at once the fulness of omniscience, but pays attention to the disposition of various beings." 11

LVI.

THE LESSON GIVEN TO RAHULA.

Before Rahula, the son of Gotama Siddhattha and Yasodhara, attained to the enlightenment of true wisdom, his conduct was not always marked by a love of truth, and the Blessed One sent him to a distant vihara to govern his mind and to guard his tongue. 1

After some time the Blessed One repaired to the place, and Rahula was filled with joy. 2

And the Blessed One ordered the boy to bring him; basin of water and to wash his feet, and Rahula obeyed. 3

When Rahula had washed the Tathagata's feet, the Blessed One asked: "Is the water now fit for drinking?" 4

"No, my Lord," replied the boy, "the water is denied." 5

Then the Blessed One said: "Now consider thine own case. Although thou art my son, and the grandchild of a king, although thou art a samana who has voluntarily given up everything, thou art unable to guard thy tongue from untruth, and thus defilest thou thy mind." 6