English
The elder had the axe dropped down, split the fallen palmyra fruit, and when the novice had descended, said, "Novice, you are weak; eat this first." "I will not eat, venerable sir, without you having eaten," taking the axe, he split the palmyra fruits, took out a bowl, put palmyra kernels in it, gave it to the elder, and ate himself. As long as there were palmyra fruits, they lived there; when the fruits were exhausted, they gradually entered an abandoned monastery in a place where leaf-eating people lived. The novice attended to the elder's dwelling place. The elder gave the novice instruction and entered the monastery. The novice, thinking, "There is no limit to the destruction of beings in an unsuitable place; I will attend to the Buddhas," went to the courtyard of the shrine and swept it a little; for about a week, trembling from lack of food, he lay fallen and continued to pull up the grass. Some people, wandering in the forest, having obtained honey, firewood, and edible leaves, thinking, from the sound of the grass moving, "Is this a deer?" went to the novice and said, "What are you doing, novice?" "I am gathering a clump of grass, lay followers." "Is there anyone else, venerable sir?" "Yes, lay followers, my preceptor is inside the hut." 'Give it to the Elder, and then eat, venerable sir,' giving honey to the novice, they indicated their dwelling place, saying, 'We will go breaking branches. By this sign, bring the Elder, venerable sir,' and they departed. The novice, taking the honey, went to the Elder's presence, standing outside, he said, 'I pay homage, venerable sir.' The Elder thought, 'The novice, tormented by hunger, must have come,' and remained silent. He again said, 'I pay homage, venerable sir.' 'Why, novice, did you not show the weak monks how to lie down comfortably?' 'Is it proper to open the door, venerable sir?' The Elder, rising, opened the door, and said, 'What have you obtained, novice?' 'Honey was given by people, is it proper to eat, venerable sir?' 'Novice, we will tire ourselves eating it just like that, we will make a drink and drink it.' The novice made a drink and gave it. Then the Elder said to him, 'Did you ask the people's dwelling place, novice?' 'They themselves indicated it, venerable sir.' 'Novice, we will tire ourselves going early tomorrow; we will go today,' and having him take the bowl and robe, he departed. Going, they lay down not far from the people's dwelling place. In the night, the novice thought, 'Since I ordained, I have never raised the dawn at a village boundary.' Taking the bowl, to raise the dawn, he went to the forest. The Great Elder, not seeing the novice in the place where he lay, thought, 'He must have been seized by man-eaters.' The novice, raising the dawn in the forest, taking water and a toothpick in the bowl, returned. 'Novice, where did you go? You caused worry for the old monk; bring a punishment.' 'I will bring it, venerable sir.' The Elder washed his face and put on his robe. Both went to the people's dwelling place. The people also gave their provisions, roots, tubers, fruits, and leaves. The Elder also partook. Having eaten, he went to the monastery. The novice, having brought water, said, "Venerable sir, I will wash your feet." "Novice, where did you go at night? You caused us to have doubts." "Venerable sir, dawn has never been roused for me at the edge of the village; I went to the forest to rouse the dawn." "Novice, punishment is not fitting for you, but for us," said the elder, and he remained in that very place; and he gave a sign to the novice, "We are old; it is not possible to know 'this will happen.' You should protect yourself." It is said that the elder was a non-returner. Later, cannibals ate him. The novice, having protected himself, when the danger had subsided, having had a preceptor ordained in such a place, having become ordained, having learned the Buddha's word, having become a master of the three baskets, became known as Venerable Vatabbaka Nigrodha. The paternal grandfather became king. Monks who came from across the sea, having asked, "Where is Venerable Vatabbaka Nigrodha, where is Venerable Vatabbaka Nigrodha?" went to his presence. A great community of monks surrounded the elder. Surrounded by the great community of monks, gradually reaching the Great Monastery, having venerated the Great Bodhi Tree, the Great Cetiya, and the Thūpārāma, he proceeded to the city. Even as he was going to the southern gate, the three robes appeared in nine places; from the time he entered the inner city, great honor arose. Thus, in a time of adversity, even palm fruit, root vegetables, and leaves became scarce. In a time of prosperity, such great gain arose. Thus, he understands that, being obstructed by a time of adversity, unable to give their result, they ripen when they come to a time of prosperity. Moreover, others have many meritorious deeds. These would not ripen for one established in a failure of effort. But he, established in right effort by one meritorious deed, fulfills three good conducts, keeps the five precepts, the ten precepts. For one born in a time of prosperity, kings with all their adornments... Royal maidens, adorned and arrayed, are sent, saying, "This is fitting for him." Various gifts of vehicles, jewels, gold, silver, and the like are sent, saying, "This is fitting for him." Even one who has gone forth is of great fame and great power. In this connection, there is this story: King Kūṭakaṇṇa, it seems, had affection for Cūḷasudhammatthera, who lived in Girigāmakaṇṇa. He, residing at Uppalavāpi, summoned the Thera. The Thera came and stayed at the Mālārāma Monastery. The king asked the Thera's mother, "What does the Thera like?" "Yams, Your Majesty," she said. The king had yams obtained and, going to the monastery, as he gave them to the Thera, he could not bear to look at his face. So he went out and in the outer enclosure asked the queen, "What is the Thera like?" "You, being a man, could not bear to look at him; how could I? I do not know what he is like." The king exclaimed, "In my kingdom, I cannot bear to look at the son of a tax-collector. Truly, the Buddha's teaching is great!" He also had affection for Tipiṭaka Cūḷanāgatthera. A boil arose on his finger. The king, thinking, "I will see the Thera," went to the monastery and, with great affection, took the finger in his mouth. Even within his mouth, the boil burst, and pus and blood, without being spat out, were absorbed by the Thera with affection, as if it were nectar. That same Thera later lay down on his deathbed. The king went and, placing a soiled rag on his head, wandered about lamenting, "The axle of the Dhamma-cart is breaking, the axle is breaking!" Whose path is it to wander about with a soiled rag lifted on the head for the world to see? It is the path of right effort. Thus, he knows that deeds of merit, hindered by failure of effort, being unable to give their result, come to fruition when they meet with success of effort. Thus, meritorious deeds, hindered by four failures, not giving their result, give it when they meet with the four successes. In this connection, having made a real event, there is this simile: A certain great king, it seems, was angry with a certain minister for a slight offense. Having struck him, he had him imprisoned in jail. His relatives, knowing the king's anger, said nothing, and when the fierce anger had subsided, they informed the king of his innocence. The king, having released him, restored him to his former position. Then, the amount of gifts coming to him from here and there was immeasurable. People were unable to receive them. Here, the time when the king, angered by a trifle, had him imprisoned in jail is like the time when an ordinary person is born in hell. Then, the time when his relatives appeased the king and restored him to his former position is like the time when he is born in heaven. The time when he was unable to receive the gifts, with the four attainments coming, leading good actions from the world of gods to the world of humans, and from the world of humans to the world of gods, thus only from a happy place to a happy place, giving happy results for hundreds of thousands of aeons, should be understood as leading to the attainment of Nibbana. Thus, having shown the second power by way of the Pāli text, it should be shown again by way of the method of discrimination, "There was action, there was result of action." Here, 'there was action' means the action accumulated in the past existed in the past. But with reference to that which gave results in the past, it is said 'there was result of action.' However, of the many actions accumulated among those that are immediately effective, one immediately effective action gives results, the rest are without results. One action effective in the next birth attracts rebirth, the rest are without results. By one heinous deed, one is reborn in hell, the rest are without results. By one of the eight attainments, one is reborn in the Brahma world, the rest are without results. With reference to this, it is said 'there was no result of action.' But for one who, having done much good and bad action, attains Arahatship by relying on a good friend, for him, the result of action 'did not exist.' That which, accumulated in the past, now gives results is called 'there was action, there is result of action.' That which, in the former method, is without results. That which is done, falls into the past, is called, ‘Deed was, result of deed is not.’ That which was accumulated in the past, will give result in the future, is called, ‘Deed was, result of deed will be.’ That which, in the former way, falls into being without result, is called, ‘Deed was, result of deed will not be.’ That which is accumulated now, gives result right now, is called, ‘Deed is, result of deed is.’ That which, in the former way, falls into being without result, is called,