CHAPTER 43
EIGHT WORLDLY CONDITIONS
Vicissitudes of
Life
(Atthalokadhamma)
This
ill-balanced world is not absolutely rosy. Nor is it totally thorny. The
rose is soft, beautiful and fragrant. But the stem on which it grows is
full of thorns. What is rosy is rosy; what is thorny is thorny. Because of
the rose one will not meddle with the thorns nor will one disparage the
rose on account of the thorns.
To an optimist this world is absolutely
rosy; to a pessimist this world is absolutely thorny. But to a realist
this world is neither absolutely rosy nor absolutely thorny. It abounds
with beautiful roses and prickly thorns as well, from a realistic
standpoint.
An understanding person will not be
infatuated by the beauty of the rose but will view it as it is. Knowing
well the nature of the thorns, he will view them as they are and will take
the precaution not to be wounded.
Like the pendulum that perpetually turns to
the right and left, four desirable and undesirable conditions prevail in
this world which everyone, without exception, must perforce face in
the course of one's lifetime.
They are gain (lābha) and loss (alābha),
fame (yasa) and defame (ayasa), praise (pasamsā)
and blame (nindā), happiness (sukha) and pain (dukkha).
GAIN and LOSS
Business men, as a rule, are subject to both
gain (lābha) and loss (alābha). It is quite natural to be
complacent in obtaining a gain or a profit. In itself there is nothing
wrong. Such righteous or unrighteous profits produce some pleasure which
average men seek. Without pleasurable moments, though temporary, life
would not be worth living. In this competitive and chaotic world rarely do
people enjoy some kind of happiness which gladdens their hearts. Such
happiness, though material, does conduce to health and longevity.
The problem arises in case of loss. Profits
one can bear smilingly but not so the losses. More often than not they
lead to mental derangement and sometimes to suicide when the losses are
unbearable. It is under such adverse circumstances that one should exhibit
moral courage and maintain a balanced mind. All have ups and downs while
battling with life. One should always be prepared for the losses in
particular. Then there will be less disappointment.
When something is stolen naturally one feels
sad. But by becoming sad one would not be able to retrieve the loss. One
should think that someone had benefited thereby though unrighteously. May
he be well and happy!
Or one can console oneself thinking:-- "It's
only a minor loss." One may even adopt a highly philosophical attitude
"there is nothing to be called Me or Mine."
In the time of the Buddha once a noble lady
was offering food to the Venerable Sāriputta and some monks. While serving
them she received a note stating that her husband and all her sons who had
gone to settle a dispute were waylaid and killed. Without getting upset,
calmly she kept the note in her waist-pouch and served the monks as if
nothing had happened. A maid, who was carrying a pot of ghee to offer to
the monks, inadvertently slipped and broke the pot of ghee. Thinking that
the lady would naturally feel sorry over the loss, Venerable Sāriputta
consoled her, saying that all breakable things are bound to break. The
wise lady unperturbly remarked -- "Bhante, what is this trivial loss? I
have just received a note stating that my husband and sons were killed by
some assassins. I placed it in my pouch without losing my balance. I am
serving you all despite the loss."
Such valour on the part of courageous women
is highly commendable.
Once the Buddha went seeking alms in a
village. Owing to the intervention of Māra the Evil One, the Buddha did
not obtain any food. When Māra questioned the Buddha rather sarcastically
whether He was hungry or not, the Buddha solemnly explained the mental
attitude of those who are free from Impediments, and replied:-- "Ah,
happily do we live, we who have no Impediments. Feeders of joy shall we be
even as the gods of the Radiant Realm."
On another occasion the Buddha and His
disciples observed vassa (rainy period) in a village at the
invitation of a brahmin, who, however, completely forgot his duty to
attend to the needs of the Buddha and the Sangha. Throughout a period of
three months, although Venerable Moggallāna volunteered to obtain food by
his psychic powers, the Buddha, making no complaint, was contented with
the fodder of horses offered by a horse-dealer.
Visākhā, the Buddha's chief female lay
disciple, used to frequent the monastery to attend to the needs of the
Buddha and the Sangha decked with a very valuable outer garment. On
entering the monastery, she used to remove it and give it to the maid for
safe custody. Once the maid inadvertently left it in the temple and
returned home. Venerable Ānanda, noticing it, kept it in a safe place to
be given to Visākhā when she visited the monastery. Visākhā discovering
the loss advised the maid to look for it but not to take it back in case
any Bhikkhu had touched it. On inquiry the maid understood that Venerable
Ānanda had kept it in safe custody. Returning home, she reported the
matter.
Visākhā visited the monastery and inquired
of the Buddha what meritorious act should she perform with the money
obtained by selling the costly garment. The Buddha advised her to build a
monastery for the benefit of the Sangha. As there was nobody to buy
the garment because of its high cost, she herself bought it and built a
monastery and offered it to the Sangha. After the offering, she expressed
her gratitude to the maid, saying:-- "If you had not inadvertently left my
garment, I would not have got an opportunity to perform this meritorious
act. Please share the merit."
Instead of grieving over the temporary loss
and reprimanding the maid for her carelessness she thanked her for
granting an opportunity for service.
The exemplary attitude of cultured Visākhā
is a memorable lesson to all those who are quickly irritated over the
misdoings of helpless servants.
Losses one must try to bear cheerfully with
manly vigour. Unexpectedly one confronts them, very often in groups and
not singly. One must face them with equanimity (upekkhā) and think
it is an opportunity to practise that sublime virtue.
FAME and DEFAME
Fame (yasa) and defame (ayasa)
are another pair of inevitable worldly conditions that confront us in the
course of our daily lives.
Fame we welcome, defame we dislike. Fame
gladdens our mind, defame disheartens us. We desire to become famous. We
long to see our names and pictures appear in the papers. We are greatly
pleased when our activities, however insignificant, are given publicity.
Sometimes we seek undue publicity too.
To see their picture in a magazine some are
ready to pay any amount. To obtain an honour some are prepared to offer
any bribe or give a fat donation to the party in power. For the sake of
publicity some exhibit their generosity by giving alms to one hundred
monks and even more, but they may be totally indifferent to the sufferings
of the poor and the needy in the neighbourhood. One may charge and punish
a starving person who, to appease his hunger, were to steal a coconut in
his garden, but would not hesitate to present thousand coconuts to get a
good name.
These are human frailties.
Most people do even a good action with an
ulterior motive. Selfless persons who act disinterestedly are rare in this
world. Even if the motive is not very praiseworthy, those who do any good
are to be congratulated on having done a beneficial act. Most worldlings
have something up their sleeves. Well, who is hundred percent good? How
many are perfectly pure in their motives? How many are absolutely
altruistic?
We need not hunt after fame. If we are
worthy of fame, it will come to us unsought. The bee will be attracted to
the flower, laden with honey. The flower however, does not invite the bee.
True indeed, we feel naturally happy, nay
extremely happy, when our fame is spread far and wide. But we must realize
that fame, honour and glory only lead to the grave. They vanish in thin
air. Empty words are they, though pleasing to the ear.
What about defame? It is not palatable
either to the ear or mind. We are undoubtedly perturbed when unkind
defamatory words pierce our ears. The pain of mind is still greater when
the so-called report is unjust and absolutely false.
Normally it takes years to erect a
magnificent building. In a minute or two, with modern devastating weapons,
it could easily be demolished. Sometimes it takes years or a lifetime to
build up a good reputation. In no long time the hard-earned good name can
be ruined. Nobody is exempt from the devasting remark beginning with the
infamous "but". Yes, he is very good, he does this and that, but... His
whole good record is blackened by the so-called "but". You may live the
life of a Buddha, but you will not be exempt from criticism, attacks and
insults.
The Buddha was the most famous and the most
maligned religious teacher in His time.
Great men are often not known; even if they
are known, they are misknown.
Some antagonists of the Buddha spread a
rumour that a woman used to spend the night in the monastery. Foiled in
this base attempt, they spread a false rumour amongst the populace that
the Buddha and His disciples murdered that very woman and hid her corpse
in the rubbish-heap of withered flowers within the monastery. When His
historic mission met with success and when many sought ordination under
Him, His adversaries maligned Him, saying that He was robbing the mothers
of their sons, depriving wives of their husbands, and that He was
obstructing the progress of the nation. Failing in all these attempts to
ruin His noble character, His own cousin and a jealous disciple of His,
attempted to kill him by hurling a rock from above.
Being a Buddha, He could not be killed.
If such be the sad fate of faultless, pure
Buddhas, what can be the state of ordinary mortals?
The higher you climb a hill, the more
conspicuous you become and much smaller in the eyes of others. Your back
is revealed but your front is hidden. The fault-finding world exhibits
your shortcomings and misdoings but hides your salient virtues. The
winnowing fan ejects the husks but retains the grains: the strainer, on
the contrary, retains the gross remnants but drains out the sweet juice.
The cultured take the subtle and remove the gross; the uncultured retain
the gross and reject the subtle.
When you are misrepresented, deliberately or
undeliberately unjustly reported, as Epictetus advises, it is wise to
think or say -- "O, by his slight acquaintanceship and little knowledge of
myself I am slightly criticised. But if I am known better, more serious
and much greater would be the accusations against me."
It is needless to waste time in correcting
the false reports unless circumstances compel you to necessitate a
clarification. The enemy is gratified when he sees that you are hurt. That
is what he actually expects. If you are indifferent, such
misrepresentations will fall on deaf cars.
In seeing the faults of others, we should
behave like a blind person.
In hearing unjust criticism of others, we
should behave like a deaf person.
In speaking ill of others, we should behave
like a dumb person.
It is not possible to put a stop to false
accusations, reports and rumours.
The world is full of thorns and pebbles. It
is impossible to remove them. But if we have to walk in spite of such
obstacles, instead of trying to remove them, which is impossible, it is
advisable to wear a pair of slippers and walk harmlessly.
The Dhamma teaches:
Be like a lion that trembles not at
sounds.
Be like the wind that does not cling to the meshes of a net.
Be like a lotus that is not contaminated by the mud from which it springs
up.
Wander alone like a rhinoceros.
Being the king of the forest, lions are
fearless. By nature they are not frightened by the roaring of other
animals. In this world we may hear adverse reports, false accusations,
degrading remarks of uncurbed tongues. Like a lion, we should not even
listen to them. Like the boomerang they will end where they began.
Dogs bark, caravans peacefully move on.
We are living in a muddy world. Numerous are
the lotuses that spring therefrom. Without being contaminated by the mud,
they adorn the world. Like lotuses we should try to lead blameless noble
lives unmindful of the mud that may be thrown at us.
We should expect mud to be thrown at us
instead of roses. Then there will be no disappointment.
Though difficult we should try to cultivate
non-attachment.
Alone we come, alone we go.
Non-attachment is happiness in this world.
Unmindful of the poisonous darts of uncurbed
tongues alone we should wander serving others to the best of our ability.
It is rather strange that great men have
been slandered, vilified, poisoned, crucified, or shot.
Great Socrates was poisoned. Noble Jesus
Christ was ruthlessly crucified. Harmless Mahatma Gandhi was shot.
Well, is it dangerous to be too good?
Yes, during their lifetime they are
criticised, attacked and killed. After death they are deified and
honoured.
Great men are indifferent to fame or defame.
They are not upset when they are criticised or maligned for they work not
for fame or name. They are indifferent whether others recognise their
services or not. "To work they have the right but not to the fruit
thereof."
PRAISE and BLAME
Praise (pasamsā) and blame (nindā)
are two more worldly conditions that affect mankind. It is natural to
be elated when praised and to be depressed when blamed.
Amidst praise and blame, the Buddha says,
the wise do not exhibit either elation or depression. Like a solid rock
that is not shaken by the wind they remain unmoved.
Praise, if worthy, is pleasing to the ears;
if unworthy, as in the case of flattery, though pleasing, it is deceptive.
But they are all sounds which have no effect if they do not reach our
ears.
From a worldly standpoint a word of praise
goes a long way. By praising a little a favour can easily be obtained. One
word of merited praise is sufficient to attract an audience before one
speaks. If, at the outset, a speaker praises the audience, he will have
attentive ears. If he criticises the audience at the outset, the response
will not be satisfactory.
The cultured do not resort to flattery nor
do they wish to be flattered by others. The praiseworthy they praise
without any jealousy. The blame worthy they blame not contemp-tuously but
out of compassion with the object of reforming them.
Great men are highly praised by the great
and small who know them well though they are utterly indifferent to such
praise.
Many who knew the Buddha intimately extolled
the virtues of the Buddha in their own way. One Upāli, a millionaire, a
new convert, praised the Buddha, enumerating hundred virtues ex
tempore. Nine sterling virtues of the Buddha that were current in His
time are still being recited by His followers, looking at His image. They
are a subject of meditation to the devout. Those well-merited virtues are
still a great inspiration to His followers.
What about blame?
The Buddha says:--
"They who speak much are blamed. They who
speak a little are blamed. They who are silent are also blamed. In this
world there is none who is not blamed."
Blame seems to be a universal legacy to
mankind.
The majority of the people in the world,
remarks the Buddha, are ill-disciplined. Like an elephant in the
battle-field that endures all arrows shot at him, even so, the Buddha
says, do I suffer all insults.
The deluded and the wicked are prone to seek
only the ugliness in others but not the good and beautiful.
None, except the Buddha, is hundred percent
good. Nobody is hundred percent bad either. There is evil in the best of
us. There is good in the worst of us. He who silences himself like a
cracked gong when attacked, insulted and abused, he, I say, the Buddha
exhorts, is in the presence of Nibbāna although he has not yet attained
Nibbāna.
One may work with the best of motives. But
the outside world very often misconstrues him and will impute motives
never even dreamt of.
One may serve and help others to the best of
one's ability sometimes by incurring debt or selling one's articles or
property to save a friend in trouble. But later, the deluded world
is so constituted that those very persons whom one has helped will find
fault with him, blackmail him, blemish his good character and will rejoice
in his downfall.
In the Jātaka stories it is stated that
Guttila the musician taught everything he knew to his pupil without a
closed fist, but the ungrateful man he was, he unsuccessfully tried to
compete with his teacher and ruin him.
Devadatta, a pupil and cousin of the Buddha
who had developed psychic powers, not only tried to discredit the Buddha
but also made an unsuccessful attempt to crush Him to death by hurling a
rock from above while He was pacing up and down below.
On one occasion the Buddha was
invited by a brahmin for alms to his house. As He was invited, the Buddha
visited his house. Instead of entertaining Him, he poured forth a torrent
of abuse with the filthiest of words.
The Buddha politely inquired:-
"Do visitors come to your house good brahmin?"
"Yes", he replied.
"What do you do when they come?"
"Oh, we prepare a sumptuous feast."
"If they fail to turn up, please?"
"Why, we gladly partake of it."
"Well, good brahmin, you have invited me for
alms and entertained me with abuse. I accept nothing. Please take it
back."
The Buddha did not retaliate, but politely
gave back what the brahmin gave Him. Retaliate not, the Buddha exhorts.
Vengeance will be met with vengeance. Force will be met with force. Bombs
will be met with bombs. "Hatreds do not cease through hatreds, but through
love alone they cease" is a noble utterance of the Buddha.
There was no religious teacher so highly
praised and so severely criticised, reviled and blamed like the Buddha.
Such is the fate of great men.
In a public assembly a vile woman named
Cincā feigning pregnancy, maligned the Buddha. With a smiling face the
Buddha patiently endured the insult and the Buddha's innocence was proved.
The Buddha was accused of murdering a woman
assisted by His disciples. Non-Buddhists severely criticised the Buddha
and His Disciples to such an extent that the Venerable Ānanda appealed to
the Buddha to leave for another village.
-- "How, Ānanda, if those villagers also
abuse us?"
-- "Well then, Lord, we will proceed to
another village."
-- "Then Ānanda, the whole of India will
have no place for us. Be patient. These abuses will automatically cease."
Māgandiyā, a lady of the harem, had a grudge
against the Buddha for speaking ill of her attractive figure when her
father, through ignorance, wished to give her in marriage to the Buddha.
She hired drunkards to insult the Buddha in public. With perfect
equanimity the Buddha endured the insults. But Māgandiyā had to suffer for
her misdemeanour.
Insults are the common lot of humanity. The
more you work and the greater you become, the more are you subject to
insult and humiliation.
Jesus Christ was insulted, humiliated and
crucified.
Socrates was insulted by his own wife.
Whenever he went out to help others his intolerant wife used to scold him.
One day as she was unwell she failed to perform her unruly task. Socrates
left home on that day with a sad face. His friends inquired why he was
sad. He replied that his wife did not scold him on that day as she was
unwell.
"Well, you ought to be happy for not getting
that unwelcome scolding," remarked his friends.
"Oh no! When she scolds me I get an
opportunity to practise patience. Today I missed it. That is the reason
why I am sad," answered the philosopher.
These are memorable lessons for all.
When insulted we should think that we are
being given an opportunity to practise patience. Instead of being
offended, we should be grateful to our adversaries.
HAPPINESS and PAIN
Happiness (sukha) and pain (dukkha)
are the last pair of opposites. They are the most powerful factors
that affect mankind. What can be endured with ease is sukha
(happiness), what is difficult to bear is dukkha (pain). Ordinary
happiness is the gratification of a desire. No sooner is the desired thing
gained than we desire some other kind of happiness. So insatiate are our
selfish desires. The enjoyment of sensual pleasures is the highest and
only happiness to an average person. There is no doubt a momentary
happiness in the anticipation, gratification and recollection of such
material pleasures highly priced by the sensualist, but they are illusory
and temporary.
Can material possessions give one genuine
happiness?
If so, millionaires would not think of
committing suicide. In a certain country which has reached the zenith of
material progress about ten percent suffer from mental diseases. Why
should it be so if material possessions alone can give genuine happiness?
Can dominion over the whole world produce
true happiness?
Alexander, who triumphantly marched to
India, conquering the lands on the way, sighed for not having more pieces
of earth to conquer.
Are Emperors and Kings who wear crowns
always happy?
Very often the lives of statesmen who wield
power are at stake. The pathetic cases of Mahatma Gandhi and J. F. Kennedy
are illustrative examples.
Real happiness is found within, and is not
to be defined in terms of wealth, power, honours or conquests.
If such worldly possessions are forcibly or
unjustly obtained, or are misdirected, or even viewed with attachment,
they will be a source of pain and sorrow for the possessors. What is
happiness to one may not be happiness to another. What is meat and drink
to one may be poison to another.
The Buddha enumerates four kinds of
happiness for a layman.
They are the happiness of possession (atthi
sukha), namely, health, wealth, longevity, beauty, joy, property,
strength, children, etc.
The second source of happiness is derived by
the enjoyment of such possessions (bhoga sukha). Ordinary men and
women wish to enjoy themselves. The Buddha does not advise all to renounce
their worldly pleasures and retire to solitude.
The enjoyment of wealth lies not only in
using it for ourselves but also in giving it for the welfare of others.
What we eat is only temporary. What we preserve we leave and go. What we
give we take with us. We are remembered for ever by the good deeds we have
done with our worldly possessions.
Not falling into debt (ananasukha) is
another source of happiness. If we are contented with what we have and if
we are economical, we need not be in debt to any one. Debtors live in
mental agony and are under obligation to their creditors. Though poor,
when debt free, you feel relieved and are mentally happy.
Leading a blameless life (anavajjasukha)
is one of the best sources of happiness for a layman. A blameless
person is a blessing to himself and to others. He is admired by all and
feels happier, being affected by the peaceful vibrations of others. It
should be stated however that it is very, very difficult to get a good
name from all. The noble-minded persons are concerned only with a
blameless life and are indifferent to external approbation. The majority
in this world delight themselves in enjoying pleasures while some others
seek delight in renouncing them. Non-attachment or the transcending of
material pleasures is happiness to the spiritual. Nibbānic bliss, which is
a bliss of relief from suffering, is the highest form of happiness.
Ordinary happiness we welcome, but not its
opposite -- pain, which is rather difficult to endure.
Pain or suffering comes in different guises.
We suffer when we are subject to old age
which is natural. With equanimity we have to bear the sufferings of old
age.
More painful than sufferings due to old
age are sufferings caused by disease, which, if chronic, we feel that
death is preferable. Even the slightest toothache or headache is sometimes
unbearable.
When we are subject to disease, without
being worried, we should be able to bear it at any cost. Well, we
must console ourselves thinking that we have escaped from a still more
serious disease.
Very often we are separated from our near
and dear ones. Such separation causes great pain of mind. We should
understand that all association must end with separation. Here is a good
opportunity to practise equanimity.
More often than not we are compelled to be
united with the unpleasant which we detest. We should be able to bear
them. Perhaps we are reaping the effects of our own Kamma, past or
present. We should try to accommodate ourselves to the new situation or
try to overcome the obstacle by some means or other.
Even the Buddha, a perfect being, who has
destroyed all defilements, had to endure physical suffering caused by
disease and accidents.
The Buddha was constantly subject to
headache. His last illness caused Him much physical suffering. As a result
of Devadatta's hurling a rock to kill Him, His foot was wounded by a
splinter which necessitated an operation. Sometimes He was compelled to
starve. At times He had to be contented with horse-fodder. Due to the
disobedience of His own pupils, He was compelled to retire to a forest for
three months. In the forest, on a couch of leaves spread on rough ground,
facing piercing cool winds, He slept with perfect equanimity. Amidst pain
and happiness He lived with a balanced mind. Death is the greatest sorrow
we are compelled to face in the course of our wanderings in samsāra.
Sometimes, death comes not singly but in numbers which may even cause
insanity.
Patācārā lost her near and dear ones --
parents, husband, brother and two children -- and she went mad. The Buddha
consoled her.
Kisā Gotami lost her only infant, and she
went in search of a remedy for her dead son, carrying the corpse. She
approached the Buddha and asked for a remedy.
"Well, sister, can you bring some
mustard seed?"
"Certainly, Lord!"
"But, sister, it should be from a house
where no one has died."
Mustard seeds she found, but not a place
where death had not visited.
She understood the nature of life.
When a mother was questioned why she did not
weep over the tragic death of her only son, she replied; "Uninvited he
came, uninformed he went. As he came, so he went. Why should we weep? What
avails weeping?"
As fruits fall from a tree -- tender, ripe
or old -- even so we die in our infancy, in the prime of manhood or even
in old age.
The sun rises in the East only to set in the
West.
Flowers bloom in the morning to fade in the
evening.
Inevitable death, which comes to all without
exception, we have to face with perfect equanimity.
"Just as the earth whate'er is thrown
Upon her, whether sweet or foul,
Indifferent is to all alike,
No hatred shows, nor amity,
So likewise he in good or ill,
Must even-balanced ever be."
The Buddha says:
-- When touched by
worldly conditions the mind of an Arahant never wavers.
Amidst gain and loss,
fame and defame, praise and blame, happiness and pain, let us try to
maintain a balanced mind.
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