The Gospel of Buddha Part 41

When he had thus spoken the venerable Ananda said to the mendicant Subhadda: "Enough! friend Subhadda. Trouble not the Tathagata. The Blessed One is weary." 8

Now the Blessed One overheard this conversation of the venerable Ananda with the mendicant Subhadda. And the Blessed One called the venerable Ananda, and said: "Ananda! Do not keep out Subhadda. Subhadda may be allowed to see the Tathagata. Whatever Subhadda will ask of me, he will ask from a desire for knowledge, and not to annoy me, and whatever I may say in answer to his questions, that he will quickly understand." 9

Then the venerable Ananda said to Subhadda the mendicant: "Step in, friend Subhadda; for the Blessed One gives thee leave." 10

When the Blessed One had instructed Subhadda, and aroused and gladdened him with words of wisdom and comfort, Subhadda said to the Blessed One: 11

"Glorious Lord, glorious Lord! Most excellent are the words of thy mouth, most excellent! They set up that which has been overturned, they reveal that which has been hidden. They point out the right road to the wanderer who has gone astray. They bring a lamp into the darkness so that those who have eyes to see can see. Thus, Lord, the truth has been made known to me by the Blessed One and I take my refuge in the Blessed One, in the Truth, and in the Order. May the Blessed One accept me as a disciple and true believer, from this day forth as long as life endures." 12

And Subhadda, the mendicant, said to the venerable Ananda: "Great is thy gain, friend Ananda, great is thy good fortune, that for so many years thou hast been sprinkled with the sprinkling of disciples.h.i.+p in this brotherhood at the hands of the Master himself!" 13

Now the Blessed One addressed the venerable Ananda, and said: "It may be, Ananda, that in some of you the thought may arise, 'The word of the Master is ended, we have no teacher more!' But it is not thus, Ananda, that you should regard it. It is true that no more shall I receive a body, for all future sorrow has now forever pa.s.sed away. But though this body will be dissolved, the Tathagata remains. The truth and the rules of the order which I have set forth and laid down for you all, let them, after I am gone, be a teacher unto you. When I am gone, Ananda, let the order, if it should so wish, abolish all the lesser and minor precepts." 14

Then the Blessed One addressed the brethren, and said: "There may be some doubt or misgiving in the mind of a brother as to the Buddha, or the truth, or the path. Do not have to reproach yourselves afterwards with the thought, 'We did not inquire of the Blessed One when we were face to face with him.' Therefore inquire now, O brethren, inquire freely." 15

And the brethren remained silent. 16

Then the venerable Ananda said to the Blessed One: "Verily, I believe that in this whole a.s.sembly of the brethren there is not one brother who has any doubt or misgiving as to the Buddha, or the truth, or the path!" 17

Said the Blessed One: "It is out of the fullness of faith that thou hast spoken, Ananda! But, Ananda, the Tathagata knows for certain that in this whole a.s.sembly of the brethren there is not one brother who has any doubt or misgiving as to the Buddha, or the truth, or the path! For even the most backward, Ananda, of all these brethren has become converted, and is a.s.sured of final salvation." 18

Then the Blessed One addressed the brethren and said: "If ye now know the Dharma, the cause of all suffering, and the path of salvation, O disciples, will ye then say: 'We respect the Master, and out of reverence for the Master do we thus speak?'" 19

The brethren replied: "That we shall not, O Lord." 20

And the Holy One continued: 21

"Of those beings who live in ignorance, shut up and confined, as it were, in an egg, I have first broken the eggsh.e.l.l of ignorance and alone in the universe obtained the most exalted, universal Buddhahood. Thus, O disciples, I am the eldest, the n.o.blest of beings. 22

"But what ye speak, O disciples, is it not even that which ye have yourselves known, yourselves seen, yourselves realised?" 23

Ananda and the brethren said: "It is, O Lord." 24

Once more the Blessed One began to speak: "Behold now, brethren," said he, "I exhort you, saying, 'Decay is inherent in all component things, but the truth will remain forever!' Work out your salvation with diligence!" This was the last word of the Tathagata. Then the Tathagata fell into a deep meditation, and having pa.s.sed through the four jhanas, entered Nirvana. 25

When the Blessed One entered Nirvana there arose, at his pa.s.sing out of existence, a mighty earthquake, terrible and awe-inspiring: and the thunders of heaven burst forth, and of those of the brethren who were not yet free from pa.s.sions some stretched out their arms and wept, and some fell headlong on the ground, in anguish at the thought: "Too soon has the Blessed One died! Too soon has the Happy One pa.s.sed away from existence! Too soon has the Light of the world gone out!" 16

Then the venerable Anuruddha exhorted the brethren and said: "Enough, my brethren! Weep not, neither lament! Has not the Blessed One formerly declared this to us, that it is in the very nature of all things near and dear unto us, that we must separate from them and leave them, since everything that is born, brought into being, and organized, contains within itself the inherent necessity of dissolution? How then can it be possible that the body of the Tathagata should not be dissolved? No such condition can exist! Those who are free from pa.s.sion will bear the loss, calm and self-possessed, mindful of the truth he has taught us." 27

And the venerable Anuruddha and the venerable Ananda spent the rest of the night in religious discourse. 28

Then the venerable Anuruddha said to the venerable Ananda: "Go now, brother Ananda, and inform the Mallas of Kusinara saying, 'The Blessed One has pa.s.sed away: do, then, whatsoever seemeth to you fit!'" 29

And when the Mallas had heard this saying they were grieved, and sad, and afflicted at heart. 30

Then the Mallas of Kusinara gave orders to their attendants, saying, "Gather together perfumes and garlands, and all the music in Kusinara!" And the Mallas of Kusinara took the perfumes and garlands, and all the musical instruments, and five hundred garments, and went to the sala grove where the body of the Blessed One lay. There they pa.s.sed the day in paying honor and reverence to the remains of the Blessed One, with hymns, and music, and with garlands and perfumes, and in making canopies of their garments, and preparing decorative wreaths to hang thereon.

And they burned the remains of the Blessed One as they would do to the body of a king of kings. 31

When the funeral pyre was lit, the sun and moon withdrew their s.h.i.+ning, the peaceful streams on every side were torrent-swollen, the earth quaked, and the st.u.r.dy forests shook like aspen leaves, whilst flowers and leaves fell untimely to the ground, like scattered rain, so that all Kusinara became strewn knee-deep with mandara flowers raining down from heaven. 32

When the burning ceremonies were over, Devaputta said to the mult.i.tudes that were a.s.sembled round the pyre: 33

"Behold, O brethren, the earthly remains of the Blessed One have been dissolved, but the truth which he has taught us lives in our minds and cleanses us from all error. 34

"Let us, then, go out into the world, as compa.s.sionate and merciful as our great master, and preach to all living beings the four n.o.ble truths and the eightfold path of righteousness, so that all mankind may attain to a final salvation, taking refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha." 35

And when the Blessed One had entered into Nirvana, and the Mallas had burned the body with such ceremonies as would indicate that he was the great king of kings, amba.s.sadors came from all the empires that at the time had embraced his doctrine, to claim a share of the relics; and the relics were divided into eight parts and eight dagobas were erected for their preservation. One dagoba was erected by the Mallas and seven others by the seven kings of those countries, whose people had taken refuge in the Buddha. 36

CONCLUSION.

XCVIII.

THE THREE PERSONALITIES OF THE BUDDHA.

When the Blessed One had pa.s.sed away into Nirvana, the disciples came together and consulted what to do in order to keep the Dharma pure and uncorrupted by heresies. 1

And Upali rose, saying: 2

"Our great Master used to say to the brethren: 'O bhikkhus! after my final entrance into Nirvana you must reverence and obey the law. Regard the law as your master. The law is like unto a light that s.h.i.+nes in the darkness, pointing out the way; it is also like unto a precious jewel to gain which you must shun no trouble, and be ready to bring any sacrifice, even, should it be needed, your own fives. Obey the Dharma which I have revealed to you; follow it carefully and regard it in no way different from myself.' 3

"Such were the words of the Blessed One. 4

"The law, accordingly, which the Buddha has left us as a precious inheritance has now become the visible body of the Tathagata. Let us, therefore, revere it and keep it sacred. For what is the use of erecting dagobas for relics, if we neglect the spirit of the Master's teachings?" 5

And Anuruddha arose and said: 6

"Let us bear in mind, O brethren, that Gotama Siddhattha has revealed the truth to us. He was the Holy One and the Perfect One and the Blessed One, because the eternal truth had taken abode in him. 7

"The Tathagata taught us that the truth existed before he was born into this world, and will exist after he has entered into the bliss of Nirvana. 8

"The Tathagata said: 9

"'The truth is omnipresent and eternal, endowed with excellencies innumerable, above all human nature, and ineffable in its holiness.' 10

"Now, let us bear in mind that not this or that law which is revealed to us in the Dharma is the Buddha, but the entire truth, the truth which is eternal, omnipresent, immutable, and most excellent. 11

"Many regulations of the Sangha are temporary; they were prescribed because they suited the occasion and were needed for some transient emergency. The truth, however, is not temporary. 12

"The truth is not arbitrary nor a matter of opinion, but can be investigated, and he who earnestly searches for the truth will find it. 13

"The truth is hidden to the blind, but he who has the mental eye sees the truth. The truth is Buddha's essence, and the truth will remain the ultimate standard by which we can discern false and true doctrines. 14

"Let us, then, revere the truth; let us inquire into the truth and state it, and let us obey the truth. For the truth is Buddha our Master, our Teacher, our Lord." 15