The Weaverās Daughter
One
morning he perceived in his divine eye the daughter of a poor weaver
whose wife had just died. Realising that the young girl needed to hear
his teaching, the Buddha went on foot to the village where she was
staying. Seeing the Buddha arrive, the villagers invited him for the
meal, and the Buddha gave a discourse after the meal to all the
villagers, including the young girl. The essence of his teaching was as
follows: āDeath is certain, life is uncertain. Contemplate death
constantly to overcome the fear of death. As one who enters the jungle
armed with a stick is not afraid on seeing a snake, one who contemplates
death constantly is not afraid if death comes suddenly.ā The villagers
all appreciated the Buddhaās discourse, and for several days meditated
seriously on death. However, after a week or so every one of them had
forgotten the Buddhaās advice, and was carrying on just as heedlessly as
before ā except, that is, for the young girl. Because her mother had
recently died, she could not forget the Buddhaās words. She meditated
constantly on death, for months and years afterwards.
Three
years later the Buddha reconsidered the situation of the weaverās
daughter and, seeing that she now had mature insight, he went to her
village to teach her again. She was now sixteen, and had to work hard to
help her father, who had no other children. On the day that the Buddha
arrived, the weaver had been working all night to finish an urgent job,
and his daughter was busy spinning more thread for her father. Hearing
that the Buddha had arrived she considered what she should do. She
decided to go to see the Buddha as soon as she had finished her
spinning, then she would take the newly spun thread to her father.
The
villagers offered the meal to the Buddha, but as the girl was not
present, the Buddha sat in silence after the meal waiting for her to
arrive. The villagers were obliged to wait in silence too, out of
respect for the Buddha. Finally, the young girl arrived, and the Buddha
asked her the following four questions:
āYoung girl, where have you come from?ā āI do not know, Lordā she replied.
āYoung girl, where are you going to?ā āI do not know, Lordā she replied.
āDo you not know?ā āI know, Lordā she replied.
āDo you know?ā āI do not know, Lordā she replied.
The
villagers were baffled by her answers. Some thought she was being
cheeky, and started scolding her, āWhy donāt you tell the Buddha that
you came from the spinning-shed, and are going to your fatherās house?ā
The Buddha silenced them and asked the girl to explain her answers. The girl replied:
āWhen
you asked, āWhere have you come from?ā you didnāt want to know that I
came from the spinning-shed; you meant to ask from which existence I
came to this one. So I replied that I do not know.ā
āWhen
you asked, āWhere are you going to?ā you meant to ask to which
existence I am going after this one, so I again replied that I do not
know.ā
āWhen you asked, āDo you not know?ā you meant to ask, āDo you not know that you will die?ā so I replied that I know I will die.ā
āWhen
you asked, āDo you know?ā you meant to ask, āDo you know when you will
die?ā so I replied that I do not know when I will die.ā
The
Buddha praised the girl for her intelligent answers, and the villagers
were amazed. The Buddha then spoke the following verse:
āBlind is this world, only a few can see clearly. Like birds that escape from a net, only a few go to a blissful state.ā
The girl realised nibbÄna and became a Stream-winner on hearing this verse.
The
young girl then went to her fatherās house and put the newly spun skein
of thread down by the loom. After working the whole night, her father
had fallen asleep at the loom. When his daughter came in, he woke up
with a start, and accidentally swung a heavy beam on the loom. The beam
struck the girl hard, and she died on the spot. The father was totally
distraught, and hurried to the Buddha to seek consolation. The Buddha
explained the truth of suffering to him, and the weaver asked for
ordination, later attaining Arahantship.
The
Buddhaās love and compassion was unlimited. For the benefit of one poor
girl and her father, he twice went on a long journey to teach the
Dhamma, and he did not forget about the girl after the first visit, but
returned as soon as he knew that she needed his help. Though he had many
thousands of disciples including kings and ministers, and also taught
celestial beings, the Buddha always had time for anyone who would
benefit from his teaching, even including beggars and slaves.
This
story is very interesting for the Buddhist because it shows that
although we do believe in rebirth we do not need to remember our
previous lives to gain nibbÄna, the goal of Buddhism. The weaverās
daughter could not tell the Buddha from which existence she had come to
be reborn as a weaverās daughter, but the Buddha was pleased with her
answers. She had understood about the uncertainty of life and the
certainty of death after three years of meditation. That understanding
enabled her to attain nibbÄna while listening to the verse.
One
who has attained nibbÄna no longer has any doubts such as āAm I?ā āAm I
not?ā āWhat am I?ā āHow am I?ā since the egocentric way of thinking has
been removed by insight. It is not unlike the case of someone who has
grown up and lost interest in football. He is no longer disappointed
when his football team loses, or elated when they win. Even if he hears
that his former football team has been relegated to the second division,
it no longer matters since he doesnāt follow the team avidly any more.
Self-view
is hard to remove entirely. We identify with our family, our school,
our neighbourhood, our local football team, our country, or our racial
group. If we hear any good or bad news about anything that we regard as
ours then we feel elated or depressed. If we hear someone say something
critical about us personally, then we may feel terrible. However, we
should not take it too much to heart. There is a saying in the
Dhammapada:
āThey blame those who speak too much, They blame those who speak too little, They blame those who remain silent. No one escapes blame in this world.ā
Similarly,
if someone praises us we should not become conceited because of that.
If we work hard we will get a good result, that is only natural, but
there is always someone who can do better than us, at least in other
ways. It is hard to remove pride and conceit, but we must do it if we
want to gain the highest happiness. The Buddha described how his pride
and intoxication vanished, when he was still an unenlightened
bodhisatta. āOn seeing an old man, all pride and intoxication in youth
vanished. On seeing a sick man, all pride and intoxication in health
vanished. On seeing a dead man, all pride and intoxication in life
vanished.ā
How
can we remove self-view, pride, and conceit? We must develop
mindfulness or awareness. Whatever thoughts or feelings arise within us
should be observed as they occur from moment to moment. We should not
allow ourselves to be heedless even for an instant. Heedlessness allows
defilements like self-view, pride, and conceit to enter the mind and
dominate it. Perhaps you have enjoyed watching a cartoon like Tom and
Jerry. How did the ideas āTomā and āJerryā arise? When one watches a
cartoon, one become absorbed in the story and soon begins to believe and
feel what one imagines Tom and Jerry are feeling. Actually, Tom and
Jerry exist only in our imaginations. A cartoon is only drawings that
are displayed on the screen in rapid succession. However, the mind
arises and passes away much more rapidly than the cartoon pictures, so
it can put together the dialogue, sound effects, and pictures to create
the illusion that Tom really is bashing Jerry over the head with a
frying-pan, so we are emotionally affected by what we see.
Real
life is like this too. We see and hear things so rapidly that our mind
constructs a mental picture, which we regard as real. If someone abuses
us, we may feel like they are bashing us over the head, they are making
bad kamma, but we suffer. Why is this? It is due to the mental
formations that we create. We cannot easily stop this natural process
because it is the result of previous kamma. Having abused others in the
past, we have to suffer abuse in the present. However, we can sharpen
our awareness of the process to the point where we can separate the
mental impressions from the experience of hearing. Eventually, we will
realise that all these impressions do not happen to anyone, they just
happen. Then we will realise that the idea of a self, a person, a āmeā,
or a āyouā, is just an illusion.
Self-view
is deeply rooted and cannot be removed by the unmindful person. The
average, unmindful person dwells with self-view dominating his or her
mind for the entire life. The mindful meditator can disrupt it
temporarily while engaged in meditation, but after stopping meditation
it will gradually reassert itself unless the meditator has gained deep
insight. If a meditator gains deep insight and attains the first path of
a Stream-winner, self-view is completely destroyed, and will never
arise again. Such a person may be heedless to some extent, but can never
be careless enough to break any of the five precepts. He or she is
absolutely free from rebirth in the four lower realms of hell, hungry
ghosts, demons, and animals, and will attain final nibbÄna (Arahantship)
within seven lives at the most. Having seen nibbÄna personally, he or
she has unshakeable confidence in the Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha, and is
truly worthy of offerings and homage. The weaverās daughter was a
Stream-winner.
After
attaining nibbÄna, the Dhamma becomes central to the life of a
Stream-winner. They are not yet free from sensual desire and anger, so
they can lead a fairly normal family life. Whenever they wish to enjoy
the peace of nibbÄna they can meditate again, developing concentration,
and attaining the fruition of the first path. If their concentration is
strong, they may remain in the attainment of fruition for quite long
periods, say, an hour or two. If they wish to attain the higher path,
they should go into retreat for meditation and resolve not to attain the
fruition of the first path during that period, and strive to attain the
higher path. If they are successful and attain the second path of a
Once-returner, they will be reborn on this earth only once more at the
most before attaining the final liberation of Arahantship.
The
second path destroys strong forms of lust and anger, but some of these
deep-rooted defilements remain, so they still have some sensual
attachment and ill-will. If the Once-returner strives again in
meditation and attains the third path of a Non-returner, all traces of
lust and anger are uprooted. Since they have no sensual attachment at
all they will not be born in the womb again, and will take rebirth only
in the SuddhÄvÄsa BrahmÄ realms. These realms are the TheravÄda āPure
Landā because only Non-returners are reborn there. The bodhisattas are
not reborn there either, because they are still worldlings who have not
yet gained even the first path of a Stream-winner.
Non-returners
seem to be extremely rare these days. Saya Thetgyi, a Burmese lay
meditation teacher, who taught U Ba Khin (Goenkajiās teacher), was
reputed to be a Non-returner. The Venerable Ledi SayÄdaw praised him and
asked him to teach meditation to his own monk disciples. A Non-returner
will be naturally inclined to lead a monastic life, having no sexual
desire at all, but may be obliged to remain as a lay person to support
relatives. The potter honoured by Buddha Kassapa in the GhatÄ«kÄra Sutta
(MajjhimanikÄya, Sutta 81) was a Non-returner. Though he was a humble
potter, he was the chief supporter of Buddha Kassapa, and looked after
his own blind and aged parents. He did not use money, but let people
take his pots, leaving whatever goods they wished to in exchange.
Knowing that he was a good supporter of the Buddha, they donated
generously so he didnāt need any other source of income. Refusing to dig
the earth himself, he gathered clay from river banks or that had been
dug up by animals. Thus, though a layman, he lived on ten precepts like
one gone forth.
The
Non-returner has to strive again in meditation to attain the final goal
of Arahantship. Only then is all rebirth and suffering finally
destroyed. Not even the subtlest defilements remain, so the Arahant is
worthy of the highest honour. The word āArahamā means āworthyā. There
have been a few monks in Burma and Thailand in recent years who are
reputed to have attained the final path. Venerable Ledi SayÄdaw was
thought to be one, but it is hard to be sure, since Arahants are
extremely modest about their attainments.
A
certain monk was living in dependence on an elder who was an Arahant.
Living in dependence meant in those days that the pupil shared a cell
with his teacher, looked after his robes, studied at his feet, and
accompanied him on the daily almsround. Teacher and pupil lived liked a
good father and devoted son. One day, while walking for alms, the pupil
asked his teacher, āVenerable Sir, how can one know an Arahant?ā The
elder, who was an Arahant, replied, āIt is not easy friend, to know an
Arahant. Even if one were to live in dependence on an Arahant, doing all
the duties for him, and accompany him on his daily almsround, one might
not know that he was an Arahant.ā Yet even when given such a broad hint
by his teacher, the pupil did not realise that the elder was an
Arahant.
Due
to excessive devotion, pious people are inclined to elevate their
revered teacher to the status of an Arahant, though he may still be a
worldling or Stream-winner at best. To eradicate all lust, anger,
conceit, and attachment to life is no easy task. First one should aim to
attain the stage of Stream-winning in this very life. If one succeeds
in doing that, one may perhaps then be able to distinguish between a
worldly person and a saint, since one will be free from doubt and
superstition.
It
is my belief that most intelligent people could attain Stream-winning
in this very life if they really tried hard. However, very few really
strive hard in meditation. Since confidence and effort are lacking, the
goal cannot be attained. Though she was only thirteen years old, the
weaverās daughter practised meditation relentlessly for three years to
attain the path. These days, people think that a ten-day intensive
vipassanÄ course is really a bit over the top, but striving in
meditation throughout the whole day and late into the night is not
self-mortification. It is the minimum amount of effort required to
attain deep insight or nibbÄna. If we want to sleep at least six or
seven hours, the goal is still far away.
To
motivate oneself, one should meditate seriously on death. There is no
guarantee that one will not die today. Perhaps one can avoid paying
taxes if one lives like a monk, but no one can avoid death. Each breath
brings death nearer. Please think seriously about this ā do not imagine
for one minute that it will never happen to you. If you postpone
meditation until you are old ā assuming that you live to old age ā your
attachment will have grown stronger, and your health and vitality will
have grown weaker. It is best to meditate in the prime of youth, before
the clutter of household life traps you in its vice-like grip. In
Burmese, the expression for getting married means, literally, āto fall
into house prison.ā The Burmese have the right attitude. Married life is
a comfortable prison from which it is hard to escape. Even if one
partner freely permits the other to go to meditate for a few weeks, or
to ordain permanently, most will not want to go.
When
the bodhisatta heard that his son had been born he murmured āA fetter
has arisenā so his father Suddhodana named his new grandson āRÄhulaā
meaning fetter, hoping that the baby would prove an impediment to the
bodhisattaās renunciation of household life. Fortunately for us, the
bodhisattaās mind was already made up, and the news of Rahulaās birth
was the final spur to make him decide, āIt must be done at once, before I
get attached.ā So he left the palace on the same night without even
setting eyes on his newborn son.
Attachment
is very sticky stuff. Many monks who fall back to household life do so
because of sexual desire. To get free from sensual attachment, one must
meditate either on death or on the repulsive aspects of the body. One
should consider what all human bodies contain. If we opened one up and
took a look inside, it would be hard to become lustful. It is just a
foul smelling carcase of meat, blood, and bones that we have to carry
around the whole day and night. If there was no skin or clothes to cover
it up, what a horrible sight it would be. One would need to carry a
stick to drive off the dogs and crows that would come sniffing around
looking for something to eat. Yet people think very highly of their own
bodies, and those of others. What folly it is to lust after another
personās body, but delusion fools us completely when we are heedless.
At
one time a certain nun fell in love with the Venerable Änanda and,
pretending to be ill, she arranged for him to visit her in her quarters.
Venerable Änanda was then still only a Stream-winner, so he was not yet
free from lust, but he was wise enough not to allow desire to arise. He
did not get angry with her either, but admonished her, āSister, sexual
intercourse is the cause of birth. From birth, old age, disease, and
death arise.ā Realising that Venerable Änanda knew about her ulterior
motives, she confessed her offence to him, and regained her sense of
shame.
To
gain liberation from suffering, there has to be renunciation at some
point. Desire and attachment will not just disappear of their own
accord. We have to pluck them out as we remove a splinter or thorn stuck
under the skin. It is painful, but when it is done we can dwell at ease
again. The most effective way to remove desire is to practise
mindfulness meditation relentlessly throughout the whole day without a
break until insight knowledge arises. On seeing things as they really
are, desire and attachment will vanish.
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