BUDDHIST WRITINGS

I. THE BUDDHA

THE STORY OF SUMEDHA1

Translated from the Introduction to the Jātaka (i.31).

A

HUNDRED thousand cycles vast
And four immensities ago,

There was a town named Amara,
A place of beauty and delights.
It had the noises ten complete
And food and drink abundantly.

The noise of elephant and horse,
Of conch-shell, drum, and chariot,
And invitations to partake-
"Eat ye, and drink!"-resounded loud.

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A town complete in all its parts,
Where every industry was found,
And eke the seven precious gems,
And foreigners from many lands.
A prosperous city of the gods,
Full of good works and holy men.

Within this town of Amara
Sumedha lived, of Brahman caste,
Who many tens of millions had,

And grain and treasure in full store.

1 This entire story is related by The Buddha to his disciples, and describes how, in his long-ago existence as the Brahman Sumedha, he first In stanzas 4-5 he speaks of himresolved to strive for the Buddhaship. self, that is, of Sumedha, in the third person, but elsewhere in the first. 2 Only six of the ten noises indicative of a flourishing town are here mentioned. For the complete list, see The Death of The Buddha.

Probably gold, silver, pearls, gems (such as sapphire and ruby), cat'seye, diamond, and coral.

"Even as, although there may be heat,
Yet grateful cold is also found;
So, though the threefold fire exists,
Likewise Nirvana should be sought,

"Even as, although there evil is,
That which is good is also found;
So, though 't is true that birth exists,
That which is not birth should be sought.

Lust, hatred and infatuation.

"Even as a man befouled with dung,
Seeing a brimming lake at hand,
And nathless bathing not therein,
Were senseless should he chide the lake;

"So, when Nirvana's lake exists
To wash away corruption's stain,
Should I not seek to bathe therein,
I might not then Nirvana chide.

"Even as a man hemmed in by foes,
Seeing a certain safe escape,
And nathless seeking not to flee,

Might not the blameless pathway chide;

"So, when my passions hem me in,
And yet a way to bliss exists,
Should I not seek to follow it,
That way of bliss I might not chide.

"Even as a man who, sore diseased,
When a physician may be had,
Should fail to send to have him come,
Might the physician then not chide;

"So, when diseased with passion, sore
Oppressed, I seek the master not
Whose ghostly counsel me might cure,
The blame should not on him be laid.

"Even as a man might rid him of
A horrid corpse bound to his neck,
And then upon his way proceed,
Joyous, and free, and unconstrained;

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So must I likewise rid me of

This body foul, this charnel-house,
And go my way without a care,
Or least regret for things behind.

HC-Vol. 45 (4)

"As men and women rid them of Their dung upon the refuse heap, And go their ways without a care, Or least regret for what they leave;

"So will I likewise rid me of
This body foul, this charnel-house,
And go my way as if I had
Cast out my filth into the draught.

"Even as the owners leave and quit A worn-out, shattered, leaky ship, And go their ways without a care, Or least regret for what they leave;

"So will I likewise rid me of
This nine-holed' ever-trickling frame,
And go my way, as owners do,
Who ship disrupted leave behind.

"Even as a man who treasure bears,
And finds him in a robber-gang,
Will quickly flee and rid him of
The robbers, lest they steal his gold;

"So, to a mighty robber might
Be likened well this body's frame.
I'll cast it off and go my way,
Lest of my welfare I be robbed."

Thus thinking, I on rich and poor
All that I had in alms bestowed;
Hundreds of millions spent I then,
And made to Himavant my way.

Not far away from Himavant,
There was a hill named Dhammaka,
And here I made and patterned well
A hermitage and hut of leaves.

The two eyes, ears, and so forth.
The Himalaya mountains.

A walking-place I then laid out,
Exempted from the five defects,"
And having all the virtues eight;"

And there I gained the Six High Powers.

Then ceased I cloaks of cloth to wear,

For cloaks possess the nine defects,"
And girded on a barken dress,
Which is with virtues twelve endued.10

My hut of leaves I then forsook,

So crowded with the eight defects,"

Native gloss: Jātaka, vol. i., p. 7, 1. 14: Exempted from the five defects: The following are the five defects in a walking-place: hardness and unevenness; trees in the midst; dense underbrush; excessive narrowness; excessive width.

Ibidem, 1. 30. And having all the virtues eight: Having the eight advantages for a monk. The following are the eight advantages for a monk: it admits of no storing-up of treasure or grain; it favors only a blameless alms-seeking; there one can eat his alms in peace and quiet; there no annoyance is experienced from the reigning families when they oppress the kingdom with their levies of the precious metals or of leaden money; no passionate desire arises for furniture and implements; there is no fear of being plundered by robbers; no intimacies are formed with kings and courtiers; and one is not shut in in any of the four directions.

Native gloss: Játaka, vol. i., p. 8, 1. 27: For cloaks possess the nine defects: For one who retires from the world and takes up the life of an anchorite, there are nine defects inherent in garments of cloth. The great cost is one defect; the fact that it is got by dependence on others is another; the fact that it is easily soiled by use is another, for when it has been soiled it must be washed and dyed; the fact that when it is much worn it must needs be patched and mended is another; the difficulty of obtaining a new one when needed is another; its unsuitableness for an anchorite who has retired from the world is another; its acceptable ness to one's enemies is another, for it must needs be guarded lest the enemy take it; the danger that it may be worn for ornament is another; the temptation it affords to load one's self down with it in travelling is another. 10 The bast, or inner bark of certain trees, was much used in India as cloth, to which indeed it bears a striking resemblance.-Native gloss: Jataka, vol. i., p. 9, 1. 2: Which is with virtues twelve endued: Possessing twelve advantages. For there are twelve advantages in a dress of bark. It is cheap, good, and suitable; this is one advantage. You can make it yourself; this is a second. It gets dirty but slowly by use, and hence time is not wasted in washing it; this is a third. It never needs sewing, even when much used and worn; this is a fourth. But when a new one is needed, it can be made with ease; this is a fifth. Its suitableness for an anchorite who has retired from the world is a sixth. That it is of no use to one's enemies is a seventh. That it cannot be worn for ornament is an eighth. Its lightness is a ninth. Its conducing to moderation in dress is a tenth. The irreproachableness and blamelessness of searching for bark is an eleventh. And the unimportance of its loss is a twelfth. 11 Native gloss: Jātaka, vol. i., p. 9, l. 11: My hut of leaves I then for. sook, So crowded with the eight defects: . . (L. 36) For there are eight evils connected with the use of a leaf-hut. The great labor involved in searching for materials and in the putting of them together is one evil. The constant care necessary to replace the grass, leaves, and bits of clay that fall down is a second. Houses may do for old men, but no concentration of mind is possible when one's meditation is liable to be inter