Dhammapada Verse 415
Sundarasamuddatthera Vatthu
Yo'dha kime pahantvana
anagaro paribbaje
kamabhavaparikkhinam
tamaham brumi brahmanam.
Verse 415: Him I call a brahmana, who, in this
world, has given up sensual pleasures, and leaving the home-life has become a
bhikkhu; who has eradicated sensual desires and has come to the end of
existence.
The Story of Thera Sundarasamudda
While residing at the Jetavana
monastery, the Buddha uttered Verse (415) of this book, with reference to Thera
Sundarasamudda.
Sundarasamudda was the son of a
rich man from Savatthi. After he had entered the Order, he left for Rajagaha,
which was forty-five yojanas away from Savatthi, to practise meditation. One
day, while some festivities were going on in Savatthi, the parents of
Sundarasamudda missed him very much; they also felt sorry for their son who was
missing all the enjoyment and they wept. As they were weeping, a courtesan came
to them and asked what the matter was. On hearing about their son, the courtesan
said, "If I could make your son leave the Order and return to the life of a
lay man how would you reward me?" The parents answered that they would make
her rich. The courtesan then asked for a large sum of money and left for
Rajagaha with a number of followers.
At Rajagaha, she rented a house
with seven-tiered pinnacles on the route where Thera Sundarasamudda would come
on his alms-round. She prepared good food and waited for him. On the first few
days, she offered alms-food to the thera at the door of her house. Later, she
invited him to come inside. Meanwhile, she paid money to some children to come
and play just outside the house about the time the thera usually came on his
alms-round. This gave her the excuse that it was very dusty and noisy on the
ground floor; with this excuse she invited the thera to the top floor to have
his alms-food. The thera consented and went up and as soon as he had entered the
room, the courtesan closed the door. Then she started seducing the thera. She
said to the thera, "Venerable Sir! Please be my youthful and energetic
husband, and I will be your dearly beloved wife. After our long and happy wedded
life we can both leave it to enter the Order and strive our very best to attain
Nibbana." When he heard these words the thera suddenly realized his mistake
and got alarmed. Then he said to himself, "Indeed, by being negligent and
unmindful I have made a great mistake."
At that instant, the Buddha saw
from his Perfumed Chamber what was happening to Thera Sundarasamudda at Rajagaha.
He called the Venerable Ananda and said to him, "Ananda! On an upper
storey of a pinnacled building in Rajagaha, there now goes on a struggle between
Sundarasamudda and a courtesan; but in the end the thera will be the
winner." After saying this to Ananda, the Buddha sent forth his
radiance to the thera, made him feel his presence, and said, "My son! Be
resolute and get rid of love of wealth and sensual pleasures."
Then the Buddha spoke in verse as
follows:
Verse 415: Him I call
a brahmana, who, in this world, has given up sensual pleasures, and
leaving the home-life has become a bhikkhu; who has eradicated sensual
desires and has come to the end of existence. |
At the end of the discourse the
thera attained arahatship, and by supernormal power passed through the roof into
the sky and went to the Buddha.