Khuddaka Nikaya - Buddhavamsa - The Story of the Rich Man Anathapindika

Khuddaka Nikaya - Buddhavamsa - The Story of the Rich Man Anathapindika

The Great Chronicle of The Buddhas
by Mingun Sayadaw

Edited and Translated by
U Ko Lay and U Tin Lwin
Yangon, Myanmar

(a) The past aspiration of the rich man.

The Future-Anathapindika. was born into a wealthy family in the city of Hamsavati during the time of Padumuttara Buddha. When he was attending to a sermon by the Buddha he saw a lay disciple being designated as the foremost lay disciple among those who delight in charity. He had a strong desire to become such a distinguished disciple and after making an extra-ordinary offering to the Buddha he expressed his aspiration before the Buddha.

(b) His last existence as a Rich Man.

That worthy man fared in fortunate destinations for the whole hundred thousand world-cycles and during the time of Gotama Buddha he was born as the son of Sumana, the Rich Man of Savatthi. His name given by his parents was Sudattha.

How he came to be known as 'Anathapindika'

Sudattha in time became the head of a family. He earned the reputation of 'one who gives food to the destitute' which in Pali means. (Anatha, (destitutes) + pindika (rice-giver), hence Anathapindika.) For more details about this remarkable man, consult The Great Chronicle, Volume Three. Here only a brief sketch will be given as described in the Commentary on the Anguttara Nikaya.)

One day Anathapindika got to Rajagaha on a trading trip where he visited his friend the Rich Man of Rajagaha. There he learned the great news that the Buddha had arisen in the world. He could not wait till the city gates of Rajagaha were open in the next morning, such was his zeal to meet the Buddha. So he left the city at dawn with the devas helping him to have the gate open for his passage. He saw the Buddha, got the benefit of a discourse by the Buddha, and was established in the Fruition of Stream Entry-Knowledge. On the next day he made a great offering to the Buddha and the Samgha and got the Buddha's consent to come to Savatthi. He returned to Savatthi. On the way he made arrangements with his friends providing them with one lakh of money at each place to have a monastery built for the temporary residence of the Buddha and his company of bhikkhus, at intervals of one yojana. The distance between Rhjagaha and Savatthi being forty-five Yojanas, he spent forty five lakhs on the forty-five temporary transit monasteries. At Savatthi he acquired a wide park, the pleasure garden of Prince Jeta for a sum of money measured in the number of gold coins spread over the entire piece of property with their rims touching one another. It amounted to eighteen crores. On that piece of land he built a (golden) monastery costing another eighteen crores. At the formal dedication ceremony of the Jetavana monastery (meaning monastery built on Jeta's garden') which lasted for three months (some say five months, some even nine months), a lavish feast was thrown where guests were provided with every need both in the mornings and in the daytime It cost him a further eighteen crores

(c) Anathapindika the foremost giver.

The Jetavana monastery alone accounted for fifty-four crores. The regular donations to the Buddha and the Samgha consisted of the following offerings:

five hundred bhikkhus were offered with alms-food every day by the ticket system. (Salaka bhatta — drawing lots)
five hundred bhikkhus were offered with alms-food once during the waxing period, of the month and once during the waning period.
five hundred bhikkhus were offered with rice gruel every day by the ticket system.
five hundred bhikkhus were offered with rice gruel once during the waxing period of the month and once during the waning period.
daily offerings of alms-food were made to,

a) five hundred bhikkhus who had arrived in Savatthi recently and who had not acquainted themselves with the daily route for collecting alms-food,

b) five hundred bhikkhus who were about to go on a journey;

c) five hundred bhikkhus who were sick;

d) five hundred bhikkhus who tended the sick bhikkhus;

there was always seating place for five hundred bhikkhus at any time at Anathapindika's house.

Hence, on another occasion when the Buddha, while residing at the Jetavana monastery was conferring titles to lay disciples according to their merit, he declared. "Bhikkhus, among my lay disciples who delight in giving, Sudattha, the householder, known as Anathapindika is the foremost"

The Anathapindikovada sutta, the favourite discourse of Anathapindika.

(Here we shall give a condensed account of the Anathapindikovada sutta which Anathapindika liked very much. A full account of this discourse is contained in Uparipannasa.)

During the Buddha's residence at the Jetavana monastery in Savatthi, Anathapindika, the Householder, was sick in pain, and gravely ill. Then Anathapindika the householder, called an attendant and said to him, "O man, go to the Bhagava and approach him prostrating yourself at his feet carrying my words. Say to the Bhagava, 'Venerable Sir, Anathapindika, the householder, is sick in pain, and gravely ill. He pays homage with his head at the feet of the Bhagava' (Further,) go to the Venerable Sariputta, and approach him, prostrating yourself at his feet, carrying my words. Say to the Venerable Sariputta, 'Venerable Sir, Anathapindika the householder, is sick in pain, and gravely ill. He pays homage with his feet at the feet of the Venerable Sariputta ' And also say thus. 'Venerable Sir, may the Venerable Sariputta, out of compassion, come to the house of Anathapindika.

(When Anathapindika was in good health, he usually paid a visit to the Buddha at least once a day, and twice or three if he could manage it. But now that he was on his death bed he was sending an attendant as messenger.)

"Very well, Sir, "replied the attendant to Anathapindika, and went to the Bhagava. He paid homage to the Bhagava prostrating himself at his feet, and said to the Bhagava as instructed by his master. Then it was nearly sundown. He next went to the Venerable Sariputta, approached him prostrating himself at his feet, and said to the Venerable one as instructed by his master, requesting the Venerable one to come to Anathapindika's house. The Venerable Sariputta signified his acceptance by remaining silent.

Then, the Venerable Sariputta, re-robing himself carrying his alms-bowl and great robe, went to the house of Anathapindika the householder, accompanied by the Venerable Ananda as his attendant (in place of another bhikkhu which was the custom); and there, after taking the seat prepared for him, asked Anathapindika, the householder "Householder, are you feeling well? Are you feeling better? Is your pain decreasing and not increasing? Does it appear to be decreasing and not increasing?"

Anathapindika, the householder, replied to the Venerable Sariputta how he was feeling unwell, how he was not feeling any better, how his pain was increasing and not decreasing, and how it appeared to be increasing and not decreasing, giving four examples.

The Venerable Sariputta knew that the illness of the Householder was not controllable but that it would end only with this death. So he considered it important not to talk about anything but to give a discourse that would be of benefit to him. He gave the following discourse in a comprehensive manner. Since there is no possibility of checking an ailment which will end only with the death of the sufferer who, being under the influence of craving, conceit and wrong view, is attached to the six sense-doors, the six sense-objects, the six kinds of consciousness, the six kinds of contact, the six kinds of sensation, etc.) He said, "Householder, you should practise thus;

'I will have no attachment, by way of either Craving or Conceit or Wrong view, for the eye, which is corporeality with sensitivity of seeing, then the consciousness which is dependent on the eye (through a subtle fondness nikanti tanha for the eye) will not arise in me! Householder, you should practise the Threefold Training in this way.

(Herein. "You should practise thus 'I will have no attachment to the eye' is said to exhort the Householder to view the eye as impermanent, woeful (dukkha) and unsubstantial. This is so because if one views the eye as impermanent, Conceit cannot have any foothold, i.e., it cannot arise, if one views the eye as woeful (dukkha) . Craving attachment to the eye as 'my eye' cannot arise; if one views that eye as unsubstantial, the Wrong View of a personal identity or the ego as 'my Self cannot arise. Hence to be free of the misconceptions through Conceit, Craving and Wrong View, one should repeatedly view the eye as impermanent, woeful (dukkha) and unsubstantial.

The three misconceptions of Conceit, Craving and Wrong View are crude mental States. Even when those misconceptions may disappear there is a subtle fondness (nikanti) for the eye that tends to persist in one. The Venerable Sariputta exhorts the Householder to have his consciousness to be free of this subtle fondness

The same applies to the five other sense bases such as ear, nose, etc. and also to sense-objects, etc.)

Having exhorted Anathapindika to train himself to be free of attachment to the eye through Conceit, Craving and Wrong View, and also to have no lingering fondness for the eye, the Venerable Sariputta further exhorted him as follows,

"That beings so, Householder, you should practise thus 'I will have no attachment for the ear .. . p.. the nose . . . p. ., the tongue .. . p . for the mind, the mind-base; (not even a subtle fondness for the mind)' (1)

"That being so, Householder, you should practise thus; 'I will have no attachment for visual objects .. . p... sounds . . . p .. odours . . . p... tangible objects ... p... mind-objects (not even a subtle fondness for mind-objects).' (2)

"That being so, Householder, you should practise thus: 'I will have no attachment for eye-consciousness ... p ... ear-consciousness ... p... nose consciousness ... p . body-consciousness ... p ... mind consciousness (not even a subtle fondness for mind-consciousness.) (3)

"That being so, Householder, you should practise thus" 'I will have no attachment for eye-contact ... p ... ear-contact ... p... nose-contact ... tongue-contact ... p ... body-contact ... p ... mind-contact (not even a subtle fondness mind-contact) ' (4)

"That being so, Householder, you should practise thus: 'I will have no attachment for sensation arising out of eye-contact ... p... sensation arising out of ear-contact sensation arising out of nose-contact ... p ...sensation arising out of tongue-contact ... p ... sensation arising out of body-contact ... p ... sensation arising out of mind-contact (not even a subtle fondness for sensation arising out of mind-contact).' (5)

"That being so, Householder, you should practise thus: 'I will have no attachment for the Element of solidity ... p ... the Element of cohesion ... p ... the Element of heat ... p ... the Element of motion ... p .. the Element of Space ... p ... the Element of consciousness (not even a subtle fondness for the element of consciousness.)' (6)

"That being so, Householder, you should practise thus: 'I will have no attachment for corporeality ... p ... sensation ... p... perception ... p ... volitional activities consciousness (not even subtle fondness for consciousness).' (7)

"That being so, Householder, you should practise thus: 'I will have no attachment for the Jhana of infinity of Space ... the Jhana of infinity of consciousness ... p ... the Jhana of Nothingness ... p ... the Jhana of Neither-consciousness-nor-non consciousness (not even a subtle fondness for the Jhana of Neither-consciousness-nor-non-consciousness).' (8)

"That being so, Householder, you should practise thus. 'I will have no attachment for the present world; then the consciousness which is dependent on the present world (through a subtle fondness for the present world) will not arise in me.' Householder, you should practise the Threefold Training in this way.

"That being so, Householder, you should practise thus: 'I will have no attachment for the hereafter; then the consciousness which is dependent on the hereafter (through a subtle fondness for the hereafter will not arise in me. Householder, you should practise the Threefold Training in this way.

(From the first to eight rounds of exposition the sentient world is being referred to. In the last (ninth) round, 'the present world' refers to volitional activities related to dwelling, food and raiment and other possessions; 'the hereafter' means all forms of existence beyond the human existence. The Venerable Sariputta, by mentioning the hereafter, hints that the Householder should not crave for grand mansions, gorgeous food and raiment, etc., in any of the celestial world.)

Thus the Venerable Sariputta give a comprehensive discourse in nine turns (on the same theme). It may be noted that the three roots, Craving, Conceit and Wrong View, are completely eliminated out on attainment of Arahatta phala. Of the three, Wrong View is eradicated when Stream-Entry Knowledge in gained. The Venerable Sariputta repeatedly exhorted Anathapindika to practise so that no attachment to anything arises in the mind through any of these misconceptions. This connotes that Arahattaphala should be the goal. This theme he impressed on the Householder by nine different factors, viz. Sense-doors, Sense-objects, Consciousness, Contact, Sensation, Dhatu Elements, Khandha aggregates, Jhana of the Non-material Sphere, and all things knowable, sabba dhamma. The voidness, the emptiness, the unreality of these phenomena is comprehended when one attains Arahattaphala.)

When the discourse had ended, Anathapindika the Householder wept bitterly. Then the Venerable Ananda said to Anathapindika, the Householder: "Householder, are you attached to your possessions? Householder, are you wavering about the meritorious deeds?"

"Venerable Sir," replied Anathapindika, "I am not attached to my possessions. Nor am I wavering. I have indeed for a long time attended upon the Bhagava. I have also attended upon the bhikkhus who are worthy of respect. But, I have never heard such words of the Dhamma before.

"Householder, the laity who wear white cloths cannot understand clearly this word of the Dhamma. (For lay persons it is not easy to follow the exhortation to break away from the dear ones such as wife and children, and various other possessions such as valued attendants, fertile fields, etc..) Householder, this word of the Dhamma can be understood only by bhikkhus (Only bhikkhu can appreciate such admonition )"

"Venerable Sariputta, I beg of you. Let this word of the Dhamma be made clear to the laity who wear white cloths. Venerable Sir, there are many worthy men whose understanding is not clouded by the dust of defilements. For them it is a great loss in not being able to see the Supramundane for not having heard the Dhamma. There are likely to be people who will be able to fully understand the Dhamma and win Arahatship only if you expound the Dhamma to them."

("I have never heard such words of the Dhamma before." These words spoken by Anathapindika needs to be explained. It is not that the Householder was never before admonished by the Buddha using words of the same profound meaning. But the Doctrine leading to Arahattaphala expounded by means of such a comprehensive arrangement involving nine different turns (or rounds) as the six sense-doors, the six sense-objects, the six kinds of Consciousness, the six Elements, the Aggregates, the four jhanas of the Non-material Sphere, the present world and the hereafter, through all manner of knowing them, i.e., seeing, hearing, attaining, cognizing, has never been discoursed to him before.

Explained in another way: Charity and the delight in giving away is the hallmark of Anathapindika's character. Never would he pay a visit to the Buddha or to bhikkhus worthy of respect empty-handed: in the mornings he would take gruel and eatables to them, in the afternoons, ghee, honey or molasses, etc.. Even on some rare occasions when he had no offering to make to them he would take his attendants along, carrying fine sand with them which he let them spread about the monastic compound. At the monastery he would make his offering, observe the precepts, and then go home. His noble behaviour was reputed to be one worthy of a Buddha-to-be. The Buddha, during the twenty-four years of association with Anathapindika, mostly praised him for his charity. "I had practised charity over four incalculable period and a hundred thousand world-cycles. You are following my footsteps." The great disciples like the Venerable Sariputta usually discoursed to Anathapindika on the benefits of giving in charity. That is why the Venerable Ananda said to him. "Householder, the laity who wear white clothes cannot understand clearly this word of the Dhamma" with reference to the present discourse by the Venerable Sariputta.

This should not be taken to mean that the Buddha never discoursed to Anathapindika on the cultivating of Insight leading to Path-Knowledge and its Fruition. In fact the Householder had heard the need for Insight-development. Only that he had never listened to such an elaborate discussion running to nine turns (round) as in the present discourse. As the Sub-Commentary on Anathathapindikovada sutta has pointed out: "As a matter of fact, the Bhagava had discoursed to him (Anathapindika) on the subject of Insight development as the straight course to the attainment of the Ariya Path.")

Anathapindika passes away and is reborn in the Tusita Deva Realm.

After admonishing Anathapindika the Householder, the Venerable Sariputta and Ananda departed. Not long after they had left, Anathapindika passed away and was reborn in the Tusita deva realm.

Then, around the middle watch of the night the deva Anathapindika approached the Buddha, made obeisance to the Bagava in verse thus:

(Herein, before mentioning the verses the reason for the deva Anathapindika's visit to the Buddha should be noted. Being reborn in the Tusita deva realm, Anathapindika found out, was a great thing full of sense pleasure. His body, three gavutas long, was shining like a mass of gold. His mansion, pleasure gardens, the Wish Tree where he could get anything by mere wishing, etc. were indeed alluring. The deva reviews his past existence and saw that his devotion to the Triple Gem had been the causes of this resplendent fresh existence. He considered his new deva life. It was full of ease and comfort which could easily make him drowned in sense pleasures, forgetting the Good Doctrine. "I must now go to the human world and sing in praise of the Jetavana monastery (my past deed of merit), the Samgha, the Buddha, the Ariya Path, the Venerable Sariputta; only on returning from the human world will I start enjoying this freshly acquired life". Thus be decided.)

Four Stanzas address to the Bahagava

1. "(Venerable Sir,) this Jetavana monastery as the resort by day and by night, of the Samgha (Comprising bhikkhus who are Arahats as well as those training themselves for Arahatship.) It is the residence of the Bhagava, King of the Dhamma (That is why) it is source of delight to me.

(The Jetavana monastery was a monastic complex comprising the Buddha's Private (Scented) chamber, the square Pinnacled monastery, a number of monastic dwellings with exquisite ornate designs with fruit trees, flowering trees and shrubbery and restful seats. It was a religious premise of rare elegance, a visitor's delight. However, the real attraction of the Jetavana monastery lay in its residents, the taint-free ariyas such as the Buddha and his noble disciples. And it was that spiritual beauty of the place rather than the sensual attraction that appealed to an ariya like Anathapindika.)

2. "It is through action (i.e., volitional activities associated with magga), Knowledge (i.e., Right View and Right Thinking), Dhamma (i.e., Right Effort, Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration), and virtuous living based on morality (i.e., Right Speech, Right Action and Right Livelihood) that beings are purified; they are not purified through lineage or wealth.

(In this stanza Anathapindika extols the Ariya Path of eight constituents.)

3. "That being so, the wise person, discerning his own welfare (culminating in Nibbana), should contemplate with right perception the impermanence, the woefulness and the unsubstantiality of five aggregates (i.e., this body) which are the object of Clinging. Contemplating thus, that person is purified through realising the Four Ariya Truths.

(This body, the mind-body complex which one clings to as oneself, when brought to its ultimate analysis by means of Insight-development, is revealed as to its true nature. As Insight fully develops into Path-Knowledge, The Truth of Dukkha or woefulness of repeated existences, is seen through by the frill understanding of phenomena. The Truth of the origin of dukkha is seen through and discarded. The Truth of cessation dukkha is realized by direct experience. The Truth of the Path is penetratingly understood by developing it. Then the yogi is free from of the defilements and purity is achieved. In this stanza Anathapindika extols the development of Insight and the realization of the Path-Knowledge)

4. A certain bhikkhu reaches the other shore (that is Nibbana). In this respect he is equal to Sariputta. But Sariputta with his knowledge, morality and calm (pacification of asava) panna, sila, upasama, is the noblest among those bhikkhus who reach the other shore (that is Nibbana)"

(In this stanza Anathapindika extols the virtues of the Venerable Sariputta.)

The deva Anathapindika addressed those four stanzas to the Buddha. The Buddha listened to them without making any interruption, thus showing his approval. Then the deva Anathapindika gladly thinking, "The Teacher is pleased with these words, of mine," made obeisance to Bhagava and vanished there and then.

Then, when the night passed and morning came, the Buddha addressed the bhikkhus thus: "Bhikkhus, last night, about the middle watch of the night, a certain deva approached me, made obeisance to me, and stood in a suitable place. Then he addressed to me with these stanzas. The Buddha recited to the bhikkhus the verses spoken by the deva Anathapindika.

(Here, the Buddha did not mention the name of Anathapindika because he wanted the intuition of Ananda to be brought to the fore.)

Accordingly, as soon as the Buddha had spoken, the Venerable Ananda, without hesitating a moment, said, "Venerable Sir, that deva must have been the deva Anathapidika. Venerable Sir, Anathapindika the Householder had much devotion to the Venerable Sariputta."

"Well said, Ananda, well said. Ananda, you do have the right intuition, Ananda, that deva is indeed the deva Anathapindika." Thus said the Buddha.

(Here ends the story of Anathapindika the Householder.)