The life of Lord Buddha

Pranams at the lotus feet of Lord Buddha!

Chapter – 15

Buddha was in deep meditation under a tree, there arrived  Vasavathi Mara and several warriors/hosts of deceivers with various weapons on the elephant’s back. All these years Mara was keenly observing every progress of Siddhartha and took all efforts to hinder him from the path of enlightenment.   Mara felt if he did not stop Siddhartha from advancement, he will not have any hold on him.  He decided to destroy Buddha and put an end to his path of Dharma.  The power of Bodhisaththvas's spiritual qualities and goodness accumulated, and protected Siddhartha like invisible armor, he was firm and peaceful, unshaken by fear.  The warriors showered arrows and various weapons upon Siddhartha, but none of the weapon could do any harm.  Vasavathi Mara could not tolerate his failures; he was frustrated seeing the supernatural power of Siddhartha.  Mara used all the techniques to move Siddhartha from his seat, Siddhartha said “ Oh! King of deceivers, listen to me carefully, the seat occupied by me was the fruit of my hard work  and good actions of previous births.” Mara rebuked and said, “Who is the witness of the ownership of your seat?”  Soon there appeared Dharani, the Mother of Earth saying “I am the witness of the ownership of the enlightenment of Buddha.” She spoke “ Siddhartha has attained all that merits by his pious deeds in the past, even the water he has poured on the ground with dedication, that soaked up my bunch of hair and stays healthy.  I am more than enough to bear the witness of his virtues.”  Dharani exposed her long and healthy hair, it created huge commotion on the Earth and all those warriors and Vasavathi Mara disappeared in that turbulence.  It was Siddhartha’s firm mind and perseverance elevated him as an enlightened one.

The life of Lord Buddha

Pranams at the lotus feet of Lord Buddha!

Chapter – 14

Once Buddha was immersed in meditation under a tree, two beautiful sisters Raga and Arati arrived on the place and found the charming monk sitting under the tree, eyes closed.  They understood it was Buddha who attained enlightenment, soon another beautiful young maiden Tanha also joined with them.  These three young beautiful maidens were the daughter of Mara/illusion, who tried to conquer Buddha with his snare.  In return Mara was humiliated and defeated; these young maidens took a vow to take revenge on Buddha.  These beautiful young women were quite confident that no one in the world could resist them, they were the embodiment of infatuation and desire.  They have decided to utilize their sensuality to a great extent to ensnare Buddha and keep him under their hook for a long time.  

The three beautiful girls approached Buddha who was under meditation.  One of the girls took a seat on the swing, another one performed seductive dancing, and another one went close to Buddha and placed her hand on his shoulder, immediately she withdrew her hand in extreme pain.  Buddha opened his eyes “ Oh! The daughters of Mara, you please go back, there is no way you can succeed in your mission, I have discarded all kinds of sensual pleasures and attractions.”  The two of the girls were returned to their abode, one of them Tanha remained she spoke “ Monk, we are not here to deceive you, the truth is that we got so much attracted to you, none of the men in this world captivated us like you.  We three of us offer our bodies and hearts to your service.  We do not expect any reward for this service, we wish you to take pleasure and satisfaction in it, even if it is for a short period of time that would make us extremely happy.”  Buddha said “I have told you already, I have destroyed all kinds of satisfaction and infatuation, there is nothing you will find here.  Therefore, you should leave the place.”  The three of the beautiful women started to leave; effulgence from the body of Buddha spread all over the place, the women started screaming looking at each other’s face that turned ugly and dreadful.  The three of the women disappeared from the sight saying “No one will snare the most venerable enlightened one Buddha.”

The life of Lord Buddha

Pranams at the lotus feet of Lord Buddha!

Chapter – 13

Buddha visits his Kingdom Kapilavasthu after achieving enlightenment; went on begging for alms.  One day his father met him “Son, Why are you bringing shame to me go on collecting alms? You are born in the royal lineage, you are the heir of the throne of Kingdom of Kapilavasthu, and these people are your subjects.  Are you in an opinion that I cannot provide enough food for you and your disciples?” Buddha replied “ Dear Father, the moment I have achieved enlightenment, I have discarded all the relationship with the Sakhya royal lineage, I am Buddha, a monk who lives on the alms, I am following the traditions of a Monk.  Father, kindly listens to me, when people cling on to the feelings, perception, mental formations, and sense consciousness is under the snare of Maya/illusion, which brings mental and physical afflictions.  A person who is not under the influence of delusion remains free from sufferings and illnesses.”  Buddha’s father was highly impressed with the teachings of his son, invited him for alms with his disciple to Royal Palace.

Buddha accepted the invitation to Royal Palace and arrived with the monks.  He continued to stay for three days giving lectures on Dharma, his father and his mother Queen Mahaprajapathi listened to his teachings with great respect, they were drawn to the path of Dharma more and more each day.  His father said “ Buddha, your wife did not come out of her chamber all these years, you have not seen her or your son all these years.  She is in utter misery spends her whole life in that chamber,  I would like to invite you to her chamber, kindly make a visit to her and speak to her. Your teachings may help her to come out of the grief.”  Buddha replied “Yes Father, I will visit Bimba with my disciples.”

Buddha paid a visit to his wife who was in extreme grief and agony all these years, not willing to come out of her chamber.  She came out of the chamber with her son Rahula, she prostrated at the feet of Buddha, shedding tears of pain; she enquired “Why have you been so unkind to me all these years? I am your wife; you have chosen spirituality as your path and left in silence. Did I do anything wrong to leave like that way?  If I have done something wrong, what was the wrong of Rahula born on that very day? You have left him without attending your child.”  Buddha said “ Bimba, don’t be  miserable, What I did was to help my loved ones and all the human beings, let you know the way out of suffering, we have born in this world to acquire merit together, after several births.  We all are subject to aging, illnesses, and death, none of us can deny this truth.  All the things around us have fleeting nature, everything has a temporary nature.  Everyone has to go through happiness and miseries, the pain of separation, etc.. Every one of us is owners of our own Karma.  We are heir to Karma, born to Karma, abide by our Karma.  We will be the heir of our good and bad deeds,” For the first time Bimba was soaking in the nectar-like speeches of Buddha, she overcame from the grief and pain of separation instantly.