English
4. The Discourse on Mahāsudassana 241. Thus have I heard: At one time the Blessed One was dwelling in Kusinārā, in the Upavattana Sāla Grove of the Mallas, between the twin sāla trees, at the time of his final passing away. Then the venerable Ānanda approached the Blessed One; having approached and paid homage to the Blessed One, he sat down to one side. Sitting to one side, the venerable Ānanda said to the Blessed One: “Let not the Blessed One, Bhante, pass away in this small town, this jungle town, this branch town. There are, Bhante, other great cities, such as Campā, Rājagaha, Sāvatthī, Sāketa, Kosambī, Bārāṇasī. Let the Blessed One pass away there. There are many great noblemen, great brahmins, great householders, who have faith in the Tathāgata; they will pay homage to the Tathāgata’s body.” 242. “Do not speak thus, Ānanda; do not speak thus, Ānanda, ‘a small town, a jungle town, a branch town’.” The Royal Capital of Kusāvatī “In the past, Ānanda, there was a king named Mahāsudassana, a khattiya, anointed, a universal monarch, a righteous king, a king of the Dhamma, a conqueror of the four quarters, who had established stability in the country. To King Mahāsudassana, Ānanda, this Kusinārā was named Kusāvatī, the royal capital. From east to west, it was twelve yojanas in length; from north to south, it was seven yojanas in width. Kusāvatī, Ānanda, the royal capital, was prosperous and flourishing, populous and crowded with people, and abundant in food. Just as, Ānanda, the royal capital of the devas, named Āḷakamandā, is prosperous and flourishing, populous and crowded with yakkhas, and abundant in food; even so, Ānanda, the royal capital of Kusāvatī was prosperous and flourishing, populous and crowded with people, and abundant in food. Kusāvatī, Ānanda, the royal capital, It was not devoid of ten sounds day and night, namely – the sound of elephants, the sound of horses, the sound of chariots, the sound of drums, the sound of tabors, the sound of lutes, the sound of singing, the sound of conch shells, the sound of cymbals, the sound of hand-clapping, and the tenth sound: ‘Eat, drink, consume!’ Kusavati, Ananda, the royal capital was surrounded by seven walls. One wall was of gold, one of silver, one of beryl, one of crystal, one of ruby, one of cat's eye, one of all gems. In Kusavati, Ananda, the royal capital, there were gates of four colors. One gate was of gold, one of silver, one of beryl, one of crystal. At each and every gate seven stakes were driven in, three men's height in circumference, three men's height driven in, twelve men's height in elevation. One stake was of gold, one of silver, one of beryl, one of crystal, one of ruby, one of cat's eye, one of all gems. Kusavati, Ananda, the royal capital was surrounded by seven rows of palm trees. One row of palm trees was of gold, one of silver, one of beryl, one of crystal, one of ruby, one of cat's eye, one of all gems. Of the golden palm tree, the trunk was of gold, its leaves and fruits were of silver. Of the silver palm tree, the trunk was of silver, its leaves and fruits were of gold. Of the beryl palm tree, the trunk was of beryl, its leaves and fruits were of crystal. Of the crystal palm tree, the trunk was of crystal, its leaves and fruits were of beryl. Of the ruby palm tree, the trunk was of ruby, its leaves and fruits were of cat's eye. Of the cat's eye palm tree, the trunk was of cat's eye, its leaves and fruits were of ruby. of all jewels, and its leaves and fruits were of all jewels. The trunk of the palm tree of all jewels was of all jewels, and its leaves and fruits were of all jewels. And Ananda, the sound of those rows of palm trees, stirred by the wind, was charming and delightful, pleasing and intoxicating. Just as, Ananda, the sound of a five-membered orchestra, well-trained, well-struck, and played by skilled musicians, is charming and delightful, pleasing and intoxicating, even so, Ananda, the sound of those rows of palm trees, stirred by the wind, was charming and delightful, pleasing and intoxicating. And Ananda, those rogues, drunkards, and thirsty ones who were in Kusavati at that time, they enjoyed themselves with the sound of those rows of palm trees stirred by the wind. The Wheel-Jewel 243. "King Mahasudassana, Ananda, was endowed with seven jewels and four powers. With which seven? Here, Ananda, on the Uposatha day, the fifteenth day, when King Mahasudassana had bathed his head, was observing the Uposatha, and was on the top of his excellent palace, a divine wheel-jewel appeared to him, with a thousand spokes, with a rim, with a nave, complete in all its aspects. Seeing it, this thought occurred to King Mahasudassana: 'It has been heard: "For whatever khattiya king, anointed, on the Uposatha day, the fifteenth day, when he has bathed his head, is observing the Uposatha, and is on the top of his excellent palace, a divine wheel-jewel appears, with a thousand spokes, with a rim, with a nave, complete in all its aspects, he is a Wheel-turning Monarch." Could I be a Wheel-turning Monarch?' 244. "Then, Ananda, King Mahasudassana, rising from his seat, arranging his upper robe over one shoulder, taking a golden pitcher in his left hand, sprinkled the wheel-jewel with his right hand, saying: 'May the revered wheel-jewel roll forth! May the revered wheel-jewel conquer!' Then, Ananda, that wheel-jewel, to the east, To this direction it rolled, and following it, King Mahāsudassana with his fourfold army. And Ananda, in whatever place the wheel-gem stood still, there King Mahāsudassana took up residence with his fourfold army. And Ananda, those rival kings in the eastern direction, they approached King Mahāsudassana and said thus: 'Come, great king! Welcome to you, great king! It is yours, great king! Instruct us, great king!' King Mahāsudassana said thus: 'No living being is to be killed. What is not given is not to be taken. Misconduct in sensual pleasures is not to be practiced. False speech is not to be spoken. Intoxicants are not to be drunk. And be content with what you have.' And Ananda, those rival kings in the eastern direction, they became followers of King Mahāsudassana. Then Ananda, that wheel-gem, having plunged into the eastern ocean, and come back up, rolled to the southern direction. Then Ananda, that wheel-gem, having plunged into the southern ocean, and come back up, rolled to the western direction. Then Ananda, that wheel-gem, having plunged into the western ocean, and come back up, rolled to the northern direction. And following it, King Mahāsudassana with his fourfold army. And Ananda, in whatever place the wheel-gem stood still, there King Mahāsudassana took up residence with his fourfold army. And Ananda, those rival kings in the northern direction, they approached King Mahāsudassana and said thus: 'Come, great king! Welcome to you, great king! It is yours, great king! Instruct us, great king!' King Mahāsudassana said thus: 'No living being is to be killed. What is not given is not to be taken. Misconduct in sensual pleasures is not to be practiced. False speech is not to be spoken. Intoxicants are not to be drunk. And be content with what you have.' And Ananda, those rival kings in the northern direction, they became followers of King Mahāsudassana. 245. Then Ananda, that wheel- having conquered the earth to the ocean's edge, returned to Kusāvatī, the royal capital, and stood, I think, as if struck by an axe, at the entrance to King Mahāsudassana's inner palace, at the forefront of the court, adorning King Mahāsudassana's inner palace. To King Mahāsudassana, Ānanda, such a wheel-gem appeared. The Elephant-Gem 246. "Furthermore, Ānanda, to King Mahāsudassana an elephant-gem appeared: all white, with seven points of contact, endowed with psychic power, able to travel through the air, named Uposatha, the king of elephants. Seeing it, King Mahāsudassana's mind was pleased: 'Excellent, indeed, is this elephant-mount, if only it would submit to training!' Then, Ānanda, that elephant-gem— just as a noble elephant, well-trained for a long time— even so, it submitted to training. Once upon a time, Ānanda, King Mahāsudassana, testing that very elephant-gem, mounted it in the morning, traveled over the earth to the ocean's edge, returned to Kusāvatī, the royal capital, and took his breakfast. To King Mahāsudassana, Ānanda, such an elephant-gem appeared. The Horse-Gem 247. "Furthermore, Ānanda, to King Mahāsudassana a horse-gem appeared: all white, with a black head, with mane like muñja grass, endowed with psychic power, able to travel through the air, named Valāhaka, the king of horses. Seeing it, King Mahāsudassana's mind was pleased: 'Excellent, indeed, is this horse-mount, if only it would submit to training!' Then, Ānanda, that horse-gem— just as a noble horse, well-trained for a long time— even so, it submitted to training. Once upon a time, Ānanda, King Mahāsudassana, testing that very horse-gem, mounted it in the morning, traveled over the earth to the ocean's edge, returned to Kusāvatī, the royal capital, and took his breakfast. To King Mahāsudassana, Ānanda, such a horse-gem appeared. The Jewel-Gem 248. "Furthermore, Ānanda, Indeed, Ānanda, for King Mahāsudassana, a jewel treasure appeared. That jewel was a beryl, beautiful, of noble origin, eight-faceted, well-polished, pure, clear, unblemished, perfect in all aspects. And Ānanda, the radiance of that jewel treasure spread for a league all around. Once upon a time, Ānanda, King Mahāsudassana, testing that very jewel treasure, arrayed his four-fold army, placed the jewel on the flagpole, and set out in the deep darkness of night. And Ānanda, the villages all around, by that light, carried on their work, thinking it was day. For King Mahāsudassana, Ānanda, such a jewel treasure appeared. The Woman Treasure 249. Again, Ānanda, for King Mahāsudassana, a woman treasure appeared, beautiful, lovely to behold, charming,