English
"A Paccekabuddha has come!" He went and reported, “He has gone.” Hearing this, he said, “Go, quickly bring the bowl!” Having had it brought, he gave all the food he had prepared and sent him away. The other brought it, placed it in the Paccekabuddha’s hand, and made a wish: “Venerable sir, by this service to your body that I have rendered, wherever I am reborn, may I be endowed with vehicles.” This very one is now King Pajjota, and by that wish, he has this abundance of vehicles. “Having given ghee to drink” means having given ghee to drink; and having instructed the attendants in the method of serving food. “Having removed the medicine with a nail” means having applied the medicine with a nail; the meaning is, having put it in. “He purged” means he caused to evacuate. The Story of the Pair of Siveyyaka Garments 335. Siveyyaka is an inauspicious cloth from Sivathika in Uttarakuru. There, it is said, people wrap the dead with that cloth and leave them. The elephant-trunked birds, mistaking it for a piece of flesh, lift it up, place it on a Himalayan peak, remove the cloth, and eat the body. Then the forest dwellers, seeing the cloth, bring it to the king. Thus, this was obtained by Pajjota. Some say that skilled women in the Sivi country spin thread with three strands, and the cloth woven with that thread is this. The Story of the Thirty Purges 336. “You should oil” – is the Buddha’s body dry, or not dry? Indeed, deities always put divine essence into the Buddha’s food, but drinking oil moistens all humors and softens the veins, so he said this. “Three handfuls of water lilies” – one for removing gross humors, one for removing medium humors, and one for removing subtle humors. “He was well again in a short time” – when the body was thus well again, the townspeople prepared alms. Jīvaka came and said to the Buddha, “Venerable sir, today the townspeople wish to give you alms; do not enter the village for alms.” The Elder Mahāmoggallāna thought, “From where, I wonder, will the Buddha’s first alms-food come today?” it is fitting to receive it.” Then he thought, “The householder’s son Soṇa eats rice of fragrant rice, grown by watering with milk and water, which is not common to others, from the time of field preparation. Therefore, I will bring alms-food for the Blessed One.” He went by psychic power and showed himself at the base of Soṇa’s palace. Soṇa took the Elder’s bowl and gave him excellent alms-food. Seeing the Elder’s manner of going, he said, “Please eat, venerable sir.” The Elder informed him of the matter. “Please eat, venerable sir, I will give other food to the Blessed One.” Having fed the Elder, he perfumed the bowl with fragrances, filled it with alms-food, and gave it to him. The Elder brought it and gave it to the Blessed One. King Bimbisāra also, thinking, “What will the Blessed One eat today?” came to the monastery. As soon as he entered, he smelled the fragrance of the alms-food and wished to eat it. In only two alms-offerings placed in the bowl for the Blessed One did the deities infuse essence: that which Sujātā gave, and that which Cunda the smith’s son gave at the time of the Parinibbāna. In other mouthfuls, they infused essence into each mouthful. Therefore, the Blessed One, knowing the king’s wish, had a little alms-food, into which no essence had been infused, given to the king. Having eaten it, he asked, “Venerable sir, is this food brought from Uttarakuru?” “No, great king, not from Uttarakuru; but it is the food of a householder’s son, a resident of your own kingdom,” and saying this, he recounted Soṇa’s prosperity. Hearing that, the king wished to see Soṇa and, as stated in the Cammakkhandhaka, arranged for Soṇa to come with eighty thousand noble sons. They heard the Blessed One’s discourse and became stream-enterers. Soṇa, however, having gone forth, was established in arahatship. The Blessed One also had the alms-food given to the king for this very purpose. The Story of the Request for a Boon 337. When the Blessed One had thus finished his meal, then Jīvaka Komārabhacca, taking that pair of Siveyyaka cloths… and so on… said this. Here, the decision regarding “past boons” should be understood in the same way as stated in the Mahākhandhaka. The Blessed One, venerable sir, and the monastic Sangha are rag-robe wearers. Indeed, from the time the Blessed One attained Buddhahood until this garment, in this interval of twenty years, no one accepted a householder's robe; all were only rag-robe wearers. Therefore, this was said. "Householder's robe" means a robe given by householders. "By a righteous talk" means by a talk connected with the benefits of giving cloth. "By any kind" means by cheap or expensive; by whatever kind, is the meaning. "Pāvāra" means a hairy blanket, a type made of cotton, etc. "I allow, monks, a kojavā" - here, an ordinary kojavā is permissible, a large-backed kojavā is not permissible. "Large-backed kojavā" means a kojavā made of wool, similar to a blanket. Story of the permission of blankets, etc. 338. "King of Kasi" means the king of the Kasis; he was Pasenadi's brother by the same father. "Half-Kasi" - here, "Kasi" means a thousand, a Kasi worth that much. But this one is worth five hundred, therefore it is called "half-Kasi." Therefore it is said: "worth half of the Kasis." 339. "Various" means both beautiful and not beautiful. "Bhaṅga" is made by mixing five threads, such as linen, etc.; some also say it is made only of bark fiber. 340. "Only one robe was allowed by the Blessed One, not two" - they understood the meaning of "by any kind of robe" as "either by a householder's robe or a rag-robe." "They did not wait" means they did not stay until they came from the charnel ground; they simply departed. "Not to give a share unwillingly" means not to give unwillingly; but if they wish, it should be given. "They waited" means they stayed nearby. Therefore the Blessed One said: "I allow, monks, to give a share unwillingly to those who wait." But if people give, saying "Let those who come here take it," or go away having made a sign, saying "Let those who arrive take it," then it belongs to all who arrive. If they went away having abandoned it, whoever took it is the owner. "They went to the charnel ground together" means all went together; in one direction. or they went down, this is the meaning. Having made an agreement, they would divide and take the received rag-robe among all of them, having made an agreement outside. 342. Receiver of robes: one who receives the robes given by householders to the Sangha. Regarding "one who does not go by the way of desire," and so on, among the receivers of robes, one who, receiving first for his own relatives and so on, even if they came later, or showing affection for someone, receives, or due to a nature of greed, appropriates for himself, is said to go by the way of desire. One who, out of anger, receives later even for one who came first, or showing contempt for poor people, receives, or saying, "Is there no place to keep it in your house? Take what is yours and go!" thus causing an obstacle to the Sangha's gain, is said to go by the way of hatred. One who is unmindful and not fully aware, is said to go by the way of delusion. One who, out of fear of those who came later or of powerful people, receives first, or trembling, thinking, "This position of receiver of robes is difficult," is said to go by the way of fear. One who knows, "I have taken this and that, and I have not taken this and that," is said to know what has been taken and not taken. Therefore, one who does not go by the way of desire, and so on, who makes no distinction among relatives, non-relatives, rich, and poor, who receives in the order of arrival, who is endowed with good conduct and practice, who is mindful, intelligent, and learned, who is able to generate faith in the donors by giving an anumodanā with clear speech and perfect words and phrases, such a one should be appointed. "And thus, bhikkhus, should he be appointed." Here, he may be appointed by the aforementioned formal motion (kammavācā) or by announcement, within the monastery, in the midst of the entire Sangha, or within a fragmented boundary. And one thus appointed should not be placed in the outskirts of the monastery or in the main dwelling. But where people who come and go see comfort, in such a prominent monastery place, having placed a fan by the side, well-covered He should sit down well-covered. Having abandoned it right there, saying, "Receiving is our burden," they abandon it right where it was received and go. The robe-storer means the robe-keeper. In "He should not go by way of desire," and so on, here and everywhere else hereafter, the decision should be understood in the manner stated. And the decision regarding designations should be known according to what has been said. Story beginning with the designation of the storehouse 343. In "the monastery," and so on, that which is in the middle of the monastery, not separated from monastery workers, novices, and so on, a place where everyone gathers, whether it is a monastery or a half-yoke, that should be designated. But a dwelling on the border should not be designated. But this storehouse, it is not proper to designate it by those who have gone to a broken boundary and are sitting at a broken boundary; it should be designated right in the middle of the monastery. In "He should know what is protected and unprotected," here, that which has no fault in its roofing and so on, that is protected. But that whose roofing grass or roofing bricks have fallen somewhere, by which it leaks, or there is an entry for mice and so on, or there is a hole somewhere in the walls and so on, or termites arise, all that is called unprotected. Having noticed that, it should be repaired. In the cold season, the door and the window should be well-closed, for by the cold, robes become moldy. In the hot season,