Awakening 1000 Bhikkhus at Gaya
The Buddha travels to the area where he attained Awakening in Uruvela. On the way there, he met thirty rich young companions. They were chasing a courtesan that took off with their belongings . When asked if he had seen the woman, the Buddha answered:
"Which is better, that you go in search of this woman, or that you go in search of yourselves?"
After the conversation ended, they became Stream Enterer and decided to enter the sangha as bhikkhus.
At that time, there were three well known holy men with long matted hair in Uruvela. They were known as the three Kasappa. These Jatilas had a thousand disciples. The Buddha visited them and spent a night where the sacred fire was kept , although they warned him about the dreadfully venomous Naga king ( serpent) with magical power that lived there. The Naga saw that the Blessed One had entered and became annoyed. It sent forth a cloud of smoke. Then the Blessed One thought: ' What if I were to leave intact the skin, and hide, and flesh, and ligaments, and bones, and marrow of this Naga; but were to conquer the fire, which he will send forth , by my fire.' And the Buddha effected the appropriate exercise of miraculous power and sent forth a cloud of smoke. Then the Naga could not contain his rage, sent forth flames. And the Blessed One, converting his body into fire, sent forth flames. When they both shone forth with their flames, the fire room looked as if it were burning and blazing, as if it were all in flames. The Jatilas looked at the fire room saying, ' Truly the countenance of the great Samana is beautiful, but the Naga will do harm to him.' The Buddha overcame the Naga when the night had elapsed. The Jatila Uruvela Kassapa said to the Blessed One: ' Stay with me, great Samana, I will daily provide you with food.' And the Buddha resided in a certain grove near their hermitage. On a beautiful night the Four Divine Kings filled the whole grove with light, went to the place where the Blessed One was to hear the dhamma; having approached him they respectfully saluted the Blessed One. The Jatilas provided food for the Buddha while he was staying in there. On another night, Sakka, king of the devas also came to hear the dhamma from the Blessed One. Brahma Sahampati came to hear the dhamma on a different night.
At that time a great sacrifice which the Jatila used to celebrate was approaching, and all the people of Anga and Magadha wished to go to that sacrifice bringing different kinds of food with them. Now the Jatila thought: ' If the great Samana should perform a wonder before that great assembly, gain and honor would increase to the great Samana, and my gain and honor would diminish..... '
Then the Blessed One, understanding the thought which had arisen in the mind of the Jatila, went to Uttarakuru for alms. Having obtained food there, he went to Anotatta lake to bathe and spent the afternoon on its banks.
Note: Uttarakuru is a mythical region that can be reached by people with great iddhi-power. For example, Buddhas, Pacceka Buddhas, arahants, devas, and various samanas. The inhabitants of Uttarakuru have no greed and own no private property. There are no houses in Uttarakuku. They do not have to work for their living. The corn ripens by itself and sweet-scented rice is found boiling on hot oven-stoves. The same goes with curries or other types of food, therefore food never ran short in Uttarakuru. Their cities are built in the air. The trees there bear perpetual fruit and foilage. The clothes worn by the inhabitants resembled divine robes. The people there are naturally virtuous.
Anotatta lake has many separate bathing places for Buddhas, Pacceka Buddhas, arahants, Four Regent gods, other inhabitants of the deva-worlds, and goddesses. These bathing places have crystal clear waters that are free from fish and tortoises. To be bathed in the waters of this lake is to be thoroughly cleansed. On the day of conception, the Buddha's mother dreamt that she had been taken to the lake to bathed there. The Buddha also bathe here during the three months he spent in Tavatimsa heaven.
'Here I am, Kassapa,' replied the Blessed One, he rose in the air and stationed himself in the boat. After witnessing numerous miracles, Kassapa still kept thinking :
" The great Samana is of great magic power, but he is not an arahant like me."
Finally the Buddha had to declared the truth to him that he was not an arahant, nor does his way of practice leads to arahantship. Thereupon Kassapa asked for ordination under the Buddha along with his disciples. They shaved off their matted hair and threw away their fire sacrificial utensils into the river. Nadi-Kassapa and Gaya-Kassapa came to find out what happened when they saw the hair and utensils floating down the stream. All of them also decided to join the Buddha. ( Vinaya Mahavagga, First Khandhaka, Part 5 )
At Gaya the Buddha gave them the Fire Sermon, and they all became Arahants:
"Bhikkhus, everything in the world is aflame. The eye is aflame; all that it sees is aflame; all that we behold in the world is aflame. Why? Because they are burning with the fire of lust, hatred, and delusion. You are blinded by the flames of this fire, and you suffer the torment of birth and of old age, of death and of misery. Bhikkhus, everything in the world is aflame! Understand me, and for you the fire will be extinguished; your eyes will no longer be blinded by the flames. With the fading of passion, one is liberated. Birth is exhausted, the holy life has been lived, what can be done has been done, there is no more beyond." ( Adittapariyaya Sutta ) .END=NAM MO SAKYA MUNI BUDDHA.( 3 TIMES ).WORLD VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST ORDER=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=GOLDEN LOTUS MONASTERY=AUSTRALIA,SYDNEY.2/5/2014.THICH CHAN TANH.THE MIND OF ENLIGHTMENT.
"Which is better, that you go in search of this woman, or that you go in search of yourselves?"
After the conversation ended, they became Stream Enterer and decided to enter the sangha as bhikkhus.
At that time, there were three well known holy men with long matted hair in Uruvela. They were known as the three Kasappa. These Jatilas had a thousand disciples. The Buddha visited them and spent a night where the sacred fire was kept , although they warned him about the dreadfully venomous Naga king ( serpent) with magical power that lived there. The Naga saw that the Blessed One had entered and became annoyed. It sent forth a cloud of smoke. Then the Blessed One thought: ' What if I were to leave intact the skin, and hide, and flesh, and ligaments, and bones, and marrow of this Naga; but were to conquer the fire, which he will send forth , by my fire.' And the Buddha effected the appropriate exercise of miraculous power and sent forth a cloud of smoke. Then the Naga could not contain his rage, sent forth flames. And the Blessed One, converting his body into fire, sent forth flames. When they both shone forth with their flames, the fire room looked as if it were burning and blazing, as if it were all in flames. The Jatilas looked at the fire room saying, ' Truly the countenance of the great Samana is beautiful, but the Naga will do harm to him.' The Buddha overcame the Naga when the night had elapsed. The Jatila Uruvela Kassapa said to the Blessed One: ' Stay with me, great Samana, I will daily provide you with food.' And the Buddha resided in a certain grove near their hermitage. On a beautiful night the Four Divine Kings filled the whole grove with light, went to the place where the Blessed One was to hear the dhamma; having approached him they respectfully saluted the Blessed One. The Jatilas provided food for the Buddha while he was staying in there. On another night, Sakka, king of the devas also came to hear the dhamma from the Blessed One. Brahma Sahampati came to hear the dhamma on a different night.
At that time a great sacrifice which the Jatila used to celebrate was approaching, and all the people of Anga and Magadha wished to go to that sacrifice bringing different kinds of food with them. Now the Jatila thought: ' If the great Samana should perform a wonder before that great assembly, gain and honor would increase to the great Samana, and my gain and honor would diminish..... '
Then the Blessed One, understanding the thought which had arisen in the mind of the Jatila, went to Uttarakuru for alms. Having obtained food there, he went to Anotatta lake to bathe and spent the afternoon on its banks.
Note: Uttarakuru is a mythical region that can be reached by people with great iddhi-power. For example, Buddhas, Pacceka Buddhas, arahants, devas, and various samanas. The inhabitants of Uttarakuru have no greed and own no private property. There are no houses in Uttarakuku. They do not have to work for their living. The corn ripens by itself and sweet-scented rice is found boiling on hot oven-stoves. The same goes with curries or other types of food, therefore food never ran short in Uttarakuru. Their cities are built in the air. The trees there bear perpetual fruit and foilage. The clothes worn by the inhabitants resembled divine robes. The people there are naturally virtuous.
Anotatta lake has many separate bathing places for Buddhas, Pacceka Buddhas, arahants, Four Regent gods, other inhabitants of the deva-worlds, and goddesses. These bathing places have crystal clear waters that are free from fish and tortoises. To be bathed in the waters of this lake is to be thoroughly cleansed. On the day of conception, the Buddha's mother dreamt that she had been taken to the lake to bathed there. The Buddha also bathe here during the three months he spent in Tavatimsa heaven.
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At that time the Blessed One had taken rags from a dust heap to make himself a robe. Now the Blessed One thought: 'Where shall I wash these rags?' Then Sakka the king of devas dug a tank with his own hand, and said to the Blessed One: 'Lord, might the Blessed One wash the rags here.' And the Blessed One thought: ' What shall I rub the rags upon?' Then Sakka the king of the devas put a great stone there for the Lord . Afterward, the Buddha thought: ' What shall I take hold of when going up ?' Then a deity that resided in a Kakudha tree bent down a branch for the Blessed One to take hold of when going up. Sakka also put a great stone there for the Buddha to dry the rags. In the morning, Uruvela Kassapa came to informed the Buddha that the meal is ready. He saw all these objects . Uruvela Kassapa inquired about it and was told what happened. Another day, Uruvela Kassapa went to the Blessed One and announced that the meal is ready. The Buddha told him to go first and he will soon come. He went to pluck a fruit from a mango tree growing near the Jambu tree, and a fruit from an emblic myrobalan tree growing nearby. He also went to Tavatimsa heaven to pluck a parikkhattaka flower; then arriving before Kassapa he sat down in the room where the fire was kept.
One day the Jatilas, who wished to attend on their sacred fires, could not succeed in splitting fire-wood, lighting up the fires, and extinguishing the fires. At the Buddha's command, the 500 pieces of fire-woods were split. The 500 fires that could not be lit up were lit up, and the 500 fires that could not be extinguished were extinguished. In the cold winter nights when snow falls, the Jatilas plunged into the river Neranjara and emerged, and repeatedly plunged into the water and emerged. The Blessed One created 500 vessels with burning fire. The Jatilas warmed themselves by those vessels with burning fire.
A great rain fell out of season, and the place where the Blessed One lived was covered with water. The Buddha caused the water to recede round about, and he walked up and down in the midst of the water on a dust-covered spot. The Jatila Uruvela Kassapa was afraid that the water might have carried away the great Samana, went with a boat together with many Jatilas to the place where the Blessed One lived. Seeing him, he said to the Blessed One: 'Are you there, great Samana?''Here I am, Kassapa,' replied the Blessed One, he rose in the air and stationed himself in the boat. After witnessing numerous miracles, Kassapa still kept thinking :
" The great Samana is of great magic power, but he is not an arahant like me."
Finally the Buddha had to declared the truth to him that he was not an arahant, nor does his way of practice leads to arahantship. Thereupon Kassapa asked for ordination under the Buddha along with his disciples. They shaved off their matted hair and threw away their fire sacrificial utensils into the river. Nadi-Kassapa and Gaya-Kassapa came to find out what happened when they saw the hair and utensils floating down the stream. All of them also decided to join the Buddha. ( Vinaya Mahavagga, First Khandhaka, Part 5 )
At Gaya the Buddha gave them the Fire Sermon, and they all became Arahants:
"Bhikkhus, everything in the world is aflame. The eye is aflame; all that it sees is aflame; all that we behold in the world is aflame. Why? Because they are burning with the fire of lust, hatred, and delusion. You are blinded by the flames of this fire, and you suffer the torment of birth and of old age, of death and of misery. Bhikkhus, everything in the world is aflame! Understand me, and for you the fire will be extinguished; your eyes will no longer be blinded by the flames. With the fading of passion, one is liberated. Birth is exhausted, the holy life has been lived, what can be done has been done, there is no more beyond." ( Adittapariyaya Sutta ) .END=NAM MO SAKYA MUNI BUDDHA.( 3 TIMES ).WORLD VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST ORDER=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=GOLDEN LOTUS MONASTERY=AUSTRALIA,SYDNEY.2/5/2014.THICH CHAN TANH.THE MIND OF ENLIGHTMENT.
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