The Blessings of Pindapatta

8/13/2019 The Blessings of Pindapatta

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The Blessings of Piapta

by

Bhikkhu Khantiplo

Buddhist Publication SocietyKandy Sri Lanka

The Wheel Publication o! "#

Copyright Kandy, Buddhist Publication Society, (1964)BPS nline !dition ("##$)

%igital &ranscription Source' BPS &ranscription Proect

or *ree distribution+ &his or- .ay be republished, re*or.atted, reprinted and redistributed inany .ediu.+ /oe0er, any such republication and redistribution is to be .ade a0ailable to thepublic on a *ree and unrestricted basis, and translations and other deri0ati0e or-s are to beclearly .ar-ed as such+


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The Bodhisattas Piapta

&hen our 2ord,

3*ter the .anner o* a ishi, hailed&he rising orb, and ent5ablutions .ade5%on by the inding path unto the ton3nd in the *ashion o* a ishi passedro. street to street, ith begging7bol in hand,8athering the little pittance o* his needs+Soon as it *illed, *or all the tons.en cried,&a-e o* our store, great sir: and ;&a-e o* ours:s he. to their bros, or run&o *ill his ar, and *etch hi. .il- and ca-es+

But he

Passed onard ith the bol and yello robe,By .ild speech paying all those gi*ts o* hearts,=ending his ay bac- to the solitudes&o sit upon his hill ith holy .en,3nd hear and as- o* isdo. and its roads+

Lord Buddhas Piapta

ne slo approaching ith his head close shorn,3 yello cloth o0er his shoulder cast,8irt as the her.its are, and in his hand3n earthen bol, shaped .elonise, the hich


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The Blessings of Piapta

&o those ho li0e in lands here the teachings o* the 2ord Buddha ha0e been long established,the sight o* a bhikkhu(Buddhist .on-) collecting *ood in the early .orning, is a co..on one+But here the teachings are nely arri0ed, or here bhi--hus are *e, the practice o* gi0ing*ood to andering .on-s is -non only by pictures or *ro. ritten accounts+

either o* these con0ey the real at.osphere o* this gi0ing and recei0ing to those interested inthe Buddhist =ay and yet li0e in countries here the &eaching is not the traditional *or. o*religion+ !0en .any Buddhists li0ing in orthern Buddhist lands .ay -no little o*piapta1

*or the practice o* al.s7gathering by bhi--hus there has, *or 0arious reasons hich e need nothere in0estigate, been largely discontinued and the traditional practice no sur0i0es only inSoutheast 3sian countries practicing the &hera0da Buddhist tradition+

&hough this too is also a ritten account o* al.s7gi0ing and collecting, it is ritten *ro.eDperience and ill try to be as e0ocati0e o* the at.osphere o* the piEFapta as possible, and as.any *actors basic to the Buddhist ay o* li*e are in0ol0ed in this si.ple act, it is hoped thatthis .ay pro0e use*ul to all those Buddhists ho are *ar separated *ro. these Buddhist lands+

3part *ro. his three robes, a bhi--hu>s .ost pri?ed possession (and he only possesses eightarticles") is his bol (patta)+ /e ta-es great care o* it so that it .ay last long' a*ter eating he ipesit care*ully each day to pre0ent it rusting alays places it on a stand so that it .ay not *all andbrea-, and o*ten carries it in a sling *or it is hea0y hen *ull o* *ood and .ay be dropped bytired hands+ @n doing so he carries out the 2ord Buddha>s inunction to practice .ind*ulnessith regard to his bol, hich has been gi0en hi. by others and ithout hich he .ay notcollect *ood+

Practice 0aries in di**erent countries and vihras (.onasteries)+ @n those 0ihras here.editation is practiced, the bhi--hus ill ha0e arisen early, sitting long in the cool dar-ness o*the .editation hall+ @n the country, the only sounds at this ti.e are the night insects, a *rog orto, perhaps a *orard coc-erel long anticipating the dan and a cool ind in the trees hich.ay blo aay the e0er7present .osGuitoes+ &he Guietness is at last ended as the asse.bled.on-s prostrate the.sel0es be*ore the Buddha7i.age and clear rings out the ho.age to the!nlightened ne'

Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samm sambuddhassa

&o hours or so ill ha0e passed in this ay be*ore it is light enough to gather *ood+ ot only

.ust the bhi--hus allo the layo.en (upsik) ti.e to coo- *ood, they also ha0e to considerthe dangers o* going out hile it is yet dar-+ @n counties here sna-es, centipedes and scorpionsabound, it is ise to be able to see the ground under one>s *eet and apart *ro. this Guitei.portant *act there are the *ears and suspicions o* others to consider, as one rather a.usingincident in the s al.s7*ood gathering, .eans literally;the *ood7.orsel>s *all (into the al.s7bol)+"&hey are' upper robe, under7gar.ent, double robe, girdle, al.s7bol, ra?or, needle, ater strainer+

H


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ha0e his body co0ered *ro. the nec- don to belo the -nees+ /e .ay go ith a seniorbhi--hu, in hich case the latter al-s in *ront and he *ollos, or a no0ice (smaera) .ayacco.pany hi.+ So.eti.es the s.aEera or a young boy *olloing hi. .ay collect the liGuidcurries, soups, etc+, in a ti**in7carrier+

So he sets out, obser0ing good conduct in .any ays+ Perhaps he re.e.bers at this ti.e theearnest inunction o* the %ha..apada'

Better it ere to sallo an iron7ball,ed7hot as the bla?e o* a *ire,&han to eat the al.s o* the people3s an i..oral and uncontrolled .an+H

%hp H#$

So.eti.es one sees bhi--hus *olloing gently and Guietly a*ter an elder .on- (thera), perhapscarrying his bol *or hi. until the *irst house is reached upon the al.s7round+ &he .on- doesnot spea- unless spo-en to, silence being considered a part o* the training during one>s round+

or does he loo- here and there but -eeps his eyes directed to the ground in *ront o* hi. by sodoing he practices restraint o* the eye (ca--husaI0ara)+ 2astly, hether his round ta-es ten.inutes or to hours, he does not rush along as though anDious to get o0er it and be done ithit+ &he ell7trained bhi--hu al-s ith .ind*ulness, steadily and digni*ied+ =e re.e.ber thatit as the noble bearing and restraint o* the Jenerable 3ssai, one o* 2ord Buddha>s *irst *i0edisciples, that deeply i.pressed patissa, ho shortly a*ter beco.e -non as JenerableSriputta, the *ore.ost a.ong 2ord Buddha>s disciples+

@* a bhi--hu practices .editation, he ill stri0e to -eep his subect o* .editation in .indhile both going and co.ing+ @t is related that the Jenerable Sriputta de0eloped accessconcentration in the practice o* lo0ing7-indness (mett-bhvan) hile al-ing *or *ood7

collection+ 3s so.e bhi--hus are engaged in the practice o* the study (gantha dhura), rather than.editation, they *reGuently ta-e ith the. a passage o* the Pli scriptures ritten upon a s.allpiece o* paper and .entally recite this hile al-ing+

$

o that e ha0e gathered so .any *acts, hat is the picture o* piEFaptali-eA

@.agine the ti.e about siD in the .orning+ @t is still cool but there is light and bhi--hus arerobing the.sel0es in the sl(a hall, o*ten ithout alls)+ @* they practice the Jinaya strictlythey ill go out earing all three o* their robes5none should be le*t behind in the .onastery

lest they be stolen, so precious are the robes+ 3t this sa.e ti.e .onastery boys are scuttlingabout on last7.inute preparations hich ought to ha0e been .ade on the pre0ious day+ &henhen e0eryone is ready, they set out, in groups or singly+ @* the vihra is in the country the littlegroups o* .on-s can be seen li-e an orange ripple spreading out into the green country7side+Soon they are lost to sight as the roads or paths they al- upon, ind beteen trees, o0ercanals, through *ields, around hills or a.ong 0illages+

n the .orning hich e describe, the sun shines brightly, at *irst a great red ball gloingupon the hori?on and all is easy going under *oot+ ther days .ay be di**erent, ith bhi--husslithering o0er .uddy trac-s, sin-ing deeply into blac- oo?e, and huddling beneath u.brellashich so.eti.es -eep o** so.e o* the torrential .onsoon rains+

H3ll Guotations *ro. the %ha..apada in this essay are *ro. the translation by Buddhara--hita &hera(


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3s, hoe0er, this day is bright, let us *ollo one o* these bhi--hus and obser0e hathappens upon his round+ /e al-s as e ha0e described, holding his bol in its sling dranunder one he. o* his upper robe, and he al-s until it is apparent to hi. that in so.e househich he is approaching a lay7supporter ishes to o**er so.e *ood+ /o does he -no thisAutside that house there .ay be a little table on hich *ood (and perhaps little bunches o*

*loers, incense stic-s, and candles as additional o**erings), is placed or lay7supporters .ayha0e in0ited hi. to ta-e *ood *ro. their house e0ery day+ r perhaps he ust percei0es a lay7person co.ing out o* the house ith a tray o* o**erings+ @* he passes such a house, he .ay hear(in &hailand) the ord ;nimon called out to in0ite hi. to stop there (Pli' nimantana Lin0itation)+

3ny o* these things e .ay obser0e+ =e shall also see that he stops to ta-e *ood *ro.everyoneho ishes to gi0e+ 3 0ery poor person .ay in0ite hi. and

re0erently spoon out so.e coarse rice into his bol at a ealthy house the donor .ay ser0eperhaps *i*ty or .ore .on-s e0ery .orning and they .ay recei0e the *inest rice, curries in littleplastic bags, and seets rapped in banana lea0es5it is all the sa.e to hi. and, ithout

discri.inating, it all goes into the sa.e bol+4

2ord Buddha out o* his great co.passion once accepted *ro. a poor child, ho had nothingelse to o**er, a hand*ul o* dust *ro. this one learns that it is not hatis gi0en that is i.portantbut rather hat is at the heart of the giving+

But be*ore e proceed, e shall notice a 0ery curious thing+ /ere is .an, ithout any other.eans o* getting *ood (*or a good bhi--hu has no .oney), and yet he .a-es no e**ort to attractthe attention o* anyone+ Muite the contrary, he underta-es to train hi.sel* in a rule o* conducthich *orbids hi. to .a-e any sound hile he goes ;a.ong the houses+ @* he co.es to a househere a regular supporter o* his li0es or here he -nos that *ood is to be o**ered, he uststands in silence,N neither does he cough, nor sta.p his *eet, and unli-e .any other ascetic

orders originating in @ndia, he .ay not carry any .usical instru.ent or sing as they do, toattract attention+ &his is a ti.e *or culti0ating patience (khanti), a 0irtue hich in the Buddhisttraining *inds its highest eDpression in the per*ection o* patience (khanti-pramit)+ /e .ay ait*or .any .inutes be*ore anyone sees hi., or he .ay decide that no one is gi0ing hi. anythingthat day and go his ay+ @t happens so.eti.es that a bhi--hu, ho patiently aits, getsnothing at all+ @t e0en happened at least once, to 2ord Buddha and a little story *ro. .odernti.es ill e.phasi?e this+

&here as a young bhi--hu nely co.e to Bang-o- so.e years ago+ /e -ne no one, he hadno supporters on the *irst .orning+ /e ent out *ro. the .onastery here he as staying andal-ed through the streets to gather *ood5ith hundreds o* other bhi--hus *ro. the

.onasteries around+ /e recei0ed nothing+ /e ent bac- to his kuti(delling) and practiced

.editation+ &he second .orning he ent out again recei0ed nothing and again spent the day in

.editation perhaps consoling hi.sel* ith the ords o* the Buddha'

4&his is a continuation o* 2ord BuddhaOs practice *or he accepted out o* co.passion *or the donors any*ood that they ished to gi0e 7 apart *ro. the *lesh o* *orbidden ani.als (including .an, dog, tiger, andbear) and apart *ro. .eat or *ish hich is seen, heard, or suspected to ha0e been -illed specially *or.on-s+ &here is considerable disagree.ent beteen the di**erent Buddhist traditions as to hether theBuddha as or as not a 0egetarian and hether bhi--hus ere to be so or not, but hat is e0ident isthat they ere alloed to accept any sorts o* *ood apart *ro. those .entioned abo0e+2ord Buddha hi.sel* ignored the arti*icial barriers o* caste distinction hen he al-ed *or piEFapta+ /e

too- 7 and his .on-s still ta-e 7 *ood *ro. all, regardless o* their social status+ 3ll .en ha0e the right topractice gi0ing (dna) i* they ish to do so and to reap the .erits deri0ing there*ro.+N@n Ceylon, so.eti.es, the ords sukhi hotu7


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/unger is the orst disease,Co.pounded eDistence is the orst distress,Knoing this as it really is&he ise reali?e ibbna, the highest bliss+

%hp "#H

&he third day, *eeling a little ea-, he passed silently through the streets and at one house heas gi0en a banana+ 3nd that as all+ /e ca.e bac- to his .onastery and sa there a star0ingdog+ pening his bol he ga0e hal* the banana to the dog+ But bananas are not *are *or dogs5e0en star0ing ones5and ha0ing sni**ed it, it li.ped disdain*ully aay+ &he young bhi--hureached out his hand to ta-e that reected hal* bac- into his bol, &hen he paused re.e.beringthat hen a bhi--hu has gi0en so.ething to so.eone, it .ust be returned into his hands by alay.an5and there as no lay.an in sight+ &he bhi--hu closed his bol and ent into his -utihere he ate his hal* o* the banana ashing it don ith a good draught o* ater+ &he neDt dayhis patience and co.passion ere rearded and therea*ter so.eone o**ered hi. *ood e0eryday+

=hen hearts against gi0ing *ood to hi., 2ord Buddha spo-e the*olloing *a.ous 0erse *ro. the %ha..apada shoing his poer to obtain spiritual *ood *ro..editation'

/appy, indeed, e li0e,=e ho possess nothing,eeders on oy shall e be,!0en as gods o* the radiant real.+

%hp "##

&he bhi--hu o* ho. e ha0e spo-en also practiced .editation, and later beco.e a *a.ous

teacher and a *ounder o* a ne school o* .editation in Bang-o-+ /e has but recently passedaay+

&o co.e bac-, a*ter this little digression, to our bhi--hu on piEFapta+ =e shall noticeperhaps ith surprise that he is treated ith great respect by the lay7people+ Perhaps onlyyesterday he as a lay.an hi.sel*, yet today, shorn, bare*oot, in orange robes, and bol inhand, he is re0erenced by those ho ser0e hi.+ People passing hi. .ay stop, crouch don,and raise their hands to their *oreheads in re0erence, others .ay al- past hi. the handsre0erentially raised, hile lay.en and layo.en ho ish to gi0e hi. *ood sGuat don, raisetheir hands in orship be*ore o**ering to hi. hate0er they ha0e prepared+

Seeing this, one .ight as- hy they did it and hy do they regard hi. so highlyA &he

s-eptical .an o* this .aterialistic age .ight indeed as- hat all this *uss is about+ /e .ightsay, ;/ere is this beggar, ho does no or-, contributes no .aterial gain to society and yetpeople treat hi. as though he as a god al-ing in their .idst+ @n saying this, he ould beright, *or Buddhist .on-s in these countries are beggars in the sense that they depend *or theirsustenance on others .oreo0er, the ord by hich they are -non (bhikkhu) is deri0ed *ro.the root ;bhik hence ;bhikkhati L to beg *or *ood+ &hey ould also be correct in their limitedassess.ent o* his orth to society as he does not indeed increase the society>s .aterial ealth+

3gainst such a .aterialistic approach born o* conceit, an ancient 0erse .ight be Guoted andthen to rele0ant considerations regarding this charge'

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or one e0er eager to honor and respect elder,&hese *our blessings accrue'2ong li*e, beauty, happiness, and poer+

%hp 1#9

(;!lders here .eans not only elder relations but re*ers to theras5i+e+, senior Buddhist .on-s)+&he *irst consideration .ust be to stress again that a bhi--hu does not beg as do ordinary

beggars but passes on silently !olle!ting offered food and secondly, it is a narro syste. o*thought indeed that assesses a .an>s orth by .aterial gain alone+ &he Bhi--hu is treated ithre0erence si.ply because he o**ers to others an eDa.ple by his on pure conduct+ /e shos theay to deli0erance, and i* all cannot *ollo his eDa.ple co.pletely and lay o** the cares o* theorld, then there can be .any ho .ay pro*it *ro. seeing his li*e and listening to his ad0ice+/e is thus highly regarded as one ho is stri0ing *or deli0erance *ro. su**ering, *or thatsupre.e bliss hich is ibbna (nibbna" parama" sukha")+ &o attain this, it is e.phasi?ed allthrough the Buddhist tradition that renunciation (nekkhamma) is essential+ &hus he isorshipped as an eDa.ple o* renunciation' one ho has gi0en up orldly pleasures andco.*orts, gi0en up *a.ily attach.ents, and one ho tries to .a-e the greatest renunciation5that o* the cra0ing7and7ignorance co.pleD+ @ndeed 2ord Buddha>s ords in the %ha..apadaha0e a deep truth in the.'

ot there*ore is he a bhi--hu


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per*or.ed, *or in the Buddhist teaching re0erence is a s-ill*ul act (kusala kamma) and pro*its hi.ho per*or.s it+

urther, as e are ithin earshot, e .ay be surprised by another *act' the bhi--hu utters nothan-s *or his *ood+ /e goes as silently as he arri0es and *ro. hat e see it appears indeed asthough the lay7supporters *eel .ore disposed to than- hi. *or ha0ing ta-en the *ood *ro. theirhands+

3s e *ollo our bhi--hu, this .atter .ay gi0e us *urther *ood *or thought5until he reachesanother house here e can again obser0e hat ta-es place+ =hy then does the bhi--hu o**erno than-s *or hat he has recei0edA &he anser to this lies in an understanding o* the Buddhistteaching regarding .erit (pu##a)+


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undesirability o* being bitten by this species, the bhi--hus .ust go bare*oot *or piapta&theiray o* training instructs the. to practice har.lessness (ahi"s)+ &hat is, ne0er to ta-e li*eintentionally and to be as care*ul (L .ind*ulness, sati) as possible so as not to -ill, e0en ithoutintention+ @n the %ha..apada e read one o* 2ord Buddha>s beauti*ul 0erses'

Rust as a bee gathers honey *ro. a *loer=ithout inuring its color or *ragrance,!0en so let the sage .o0e in the orld(&o collect al.s)+

%hp 49

3n old, old o.an, bent ith age and hard or- totters out *ro. her little cabin to in0ite hi.to recei0e+ @t is true that she need not eDert hersel* in this ay *or she has a younger o.anli0ing ith her, but she desires, as her li*e gros shorter and death co.es nearer, to gi0e to abhi--hu e0ery day and so pile up as .uch .erit as she .ay in the short ti.e le*t to her+ Sheli0es by the side o* a little canal and .a-es a perilous li0ing by rotting don *ish in ater andsalt and so producing the ubiGuitous ;*ish7ater, hich is used as sauce and source o* salt, by.any &hais+ 2eaning on a stic- she brings her thin, toil7orn hands sha-ily upards hile her*ace, bron?ed by the sun and rin-led in a thousand places, re*lects a serene de0otion+ Shecarries an old and rusty tin out o* hich she ladles so.e o* her *ish7ater+ 3s silently as heopened his bol to recei0e her o**ering so silently, he closes it, as she turns, no happy,toards her door+ 2ord Buddha has said'

@* a bhi--hu does not despise=hat he has recei0ed,!0en though it be little,/i. ho is pure in li0elihood3nd unre.itting in e**ort,

!0en the gods praise+

%hp H66

=e *ollo again as he goes on his ay to the right o* the road+ &here is at this point, a lo areao* .arshy sa.p in hich gro tall sedges+ @t is rather surprising there*ore to see the bhi--huapparently step into this sa.p and yet go *orard *reely+ &he .ystery is soon resol0ed as esee a single7plan- gang7ay in *ront o* us hich ill carry the ary al-er so.e to hundredyards across to *urther side+ &he bhi--hu has already gone *ar along the plan-s, care*ullypic-ing his ay, and so there is nothing else to do but to *ollo hi.+ 8ingerly e set out, thesiD7inch ide plan- saying and bending ith our eight it see.s 0ery li-ely that at any.o.ent e .ay be precipitated into the oo?e beneath+ /ere is indeed, a ti.e *or .ind*ulness:

=e .anage the ha?ard ell7enough5it is perhaps .ore a .atter o* good luc- than udg.ent5and hen at last e raise our eyes *ro. the gang7ay, the bhi--hu is al.ost out o* sight+/oe0er, e .anage to catch up ith hi. ust in ti.e to see that he entered the courtyard gateo* a big house+ !0idently he is in0ited to ta-e *ood here each day indeed, he has already beenin0ited to sit don *or a *e .inutes+ =e atch the .on- and his supporters through the opengate+

&he co.pound lying inside this gate see.s to be a 0ery large one and at least three goodsi?ed houses are 0isible interspersed by lans, trees, courtyards and such decorati0e *eatures asso.e hundreds o* orchids groing hung up in little pots, or great gla?ed blue7and7hiteChinese ater7ars and in the. ater lilies *loering+ &he bhi--hu sits in a little su..er7house

and be*ore hi. is placed a table upon hich are three trays ith little bols o* rice and 0arious*ruits, ith un-non *oods done up in banana7lea0es+

9


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s birthday,the lady holds the tray o* o**erings hile the little girl places the rice and 0arious *oods into hisbol+ &hus the s.all girl has earned great .erit upon this day+ @ndeed, it is co..on inBuddhist lands to gi0e on the day o* one>s birth and hate0er the gi0ing .ay be, the birthdayis thought an eDcellent occasion *or .erit7.a-ing+ &hose ho cannot a**ord, or so.eho ust donot gi0e on other days, usually .a-e a point o* o**ering to a .on- or .on-s piEFapta on the

day o* their on or their children>s birth+&he elder lady ha0ing *inished her gi0ing at the gate, no co.es and salutes the bhi--hu+

She pro0ides hi. ith *ood *ro. another tray+ &he young .an, her gardener, o**ers yet another,hile ust as the bhi--hu is preparing to depart, a cry o* ;nimon halts hi. as another .e.bero* this .any7branched *a.ily co.es up ith his o**ering+

=ith a bol no beco.e hea0y but e hope a little re*reshed by the co**ee, the bhi--hu goeson his ay, the elder lady o* the house in0iting hi. to co.e again on the .orro+

&he last house on his round ob0iously also belongs to an a**luent *a.ily+ /e aits, as theyha0e pro.ised *ood+ 2oc-ed gate and ide lans separate the *a.ily *ro. the roadside andthey do not see hi. as easily as his other patrons+ 3t last so.eone spots hi. and sings out, ;the

.on- has co.e+ &he householders here do not co.e to the door but send ho are possiblytheir son and daughter ith *ood+ &hey are both near to gron7up and perhaps ith lessunderstanding o* their teaching than they ought to ha0e+ 3t any rate, they are rather careless'the boy hile opening their big gates drops a banana or to on the ground, hich they ipebe*ore o**ering, hile the girl, tipping rice into the bol in a lac-adaisical *ashion .anages toe.pty hal* o* it on the ground+ &hey chatter hile doing this and then prance o**+ @t see.s thatthey do this as though it as all rather a drudge+

&he bhi--hu care*ully re.o0es the rice grains *ro. his robes and *ro. his bol7sling, so thatthey do not beco.e soiled, and starts bac- on his long al- to the .onastery+ /e passes donthe hole road o* rich .en>s houses but there is nothing+ /e does not care, *or he has .ore than

enough to -eep hi. going, enough ;.edicine to allay the disease o* hunger *or another day+Still e note that those ho gi0e .ost (and i* e ent ith hi. e0ery day, e should note

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those that gi0e .ost o*ten) are, i* not poor people, at least those in the .iddle ranges o* inco.e+iches, alas, do not usually lead to great generosity: @t is the poor and those .oderately ell7o**ho gi0e generously+ &oo .any o* the rich are too .uch sun- into the supposed co.*orts o*this orld to thin- o0er.uch o* gi0ing+ 2ord Buddha has taught the. ith the *olloing ordo* arning'

iches ruin the *ool,But not i* one is in the Guest o* the beyondBy cra0ing *or riches&he itless .an ruins hi.sel* and ruins others+

%hp HNN

But those ho -no the sting o* po0erty, -no also a ay to rid the.sel0es o* this sting+ Bygivinghoe0er little it is, they .ay attain to greater ealth in *uture than they possess no5and greater happiness, too+ ne o* the *actors hich go0erns the lac- or possession o* ealth ishat one had done ith .oney, hen one had it+ @* one .isuses it *or others> pain, sGuanders itall upon *leeting pleasures, or only a.asses a great collection o* status sy.bols about onesel*5then in a *uture li*e one is 0ery liable to .eet ith po0erty and .isery hich this entails+ &heresults (vipka) o* action (kamma) are, so Buddhis. teaches, 0ery ust indeed+

&hose ho gi0e, hoe0er, are assured o* recei0ing, so that all that .ust be decided is hoand hat should one gi0e+ Besides occasional gi0ing (such as the construction o* a rest7house,bridge, school or i* one is rich, a ne ing to the hospital and so *orth), there are gi*ts .ade tothe Sangha (order o* Buddhist .on-s)+ 3ccording to a ell7-non passage in the Pliscriptures, the bhi--hus (especially i* they are e.ancipated sages5ariya) are ;anuttara"pu##kkhetta" lokass'ti5;&he supre.e *ield (in hich to so the seed) o* .erit in the orld+3ll this is su..ed up as *ollos'

@n this orld it is good to ser0e .other,8ood is it to ser0er *ather,8ood is to ser0e the .on-s,3nd good is it to ser0e the ariyan sages+

%hp HH"

o again o!!asionallybhi--hus reGuire robes, dellings or .edicines, but every daythey al-out *or *ood7collecting+ &here*ore, this is a great opportunity to gain .erit hich should not be.issed *or all, hether poor or rich, can do ith .ore .erit: &here is indeed nothing li-e.erits .ade in this ay *or ensuring a happy li*e, a peace*ul death, and a bliss*ul li*e herea*ter+2ord Buddha has said'

=hen a .an a*ter a long absence,eturns ho.e sa*e *ro. a*ar,/is relati0es, *riends and ell7ishers,=elco.e hi. on his arri0al+2i-eise his on good deeds=ill elco.e the doer o* the good,=ho had gone *ro. this orld to the neDt,3s -ins.en elco.e a dear one>s arri0al+

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&his is ob0iously one reason hy people gi0e to the bhi--hu ho passes their doors5and it is a

0ery i.portant reason+ &he s-eptic .ight butt in, obecting that the .oti0e *or that gi0ing is0ery sel*ish5to .a-e onesel* happy in *uture+ But then he .ust be told that it is possible in

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Buddhis. (here kamma-vipka is not a rigid personal cause7and7e**ect), by .eans o* goodill(mett) and co.passion (karu), to .a-e o0er one>s .erits *or the good o* others+ &hus a.other .ight .a-e .erit by gi0ing *ood, etc+, *or her children>s happiness, or reco0ery *ro.sic-ness+ r a -ing .ay .a-e .erit, turning this o0er to the el*are o* his people+ 3ndeDpressions o* utterly sel*less5indeed uni0ersal5bene0olence are by no .eans rare a.ong the

.erit7dedications o* Guite ordinary *ol-, hile the unli.ited co.passion o* the isdo. beings(bodhi-satta5those ho or- toards beco.ing a Buddha) is eDpressed in .any subli.eengra0ings and ritings+ =ith the .erit hich such a one piles up, he 0os to lighten beingsinnu.erable and to deli0er all *ro. the oes o* continued eDistence+

/oe0er, *e aspire so high their reasons *or gi0ing are correspondingly less eDalted,though ne0ertheless they .ay be deeply religious+ or instance, .any laypeople gi0e out o*great de0otion (saddh) to their religion+ So.eti.es, too, a particularly estee.ed bhi--hu .aybe the obect o* this great de0otion+ &hen there are gi*ts to relati0es ho are no bhi--hus, *orin the country, a bhi--hu .ay li0e in his on 0illage te.ple and pass his *or.er house andrelati0es o*ten+ aturally, they gi0e to hi.+ &hen there are those ho gi0e out o* habit or *ro.

con0ention+ ne so.eti.es co.es across cases o* this such gi0ing being no longeracco.panied by the ar.th o* de0otion tends to beco.e .echanical+ @t is Guite easy tounderstand that in this case the .erit *ro. gi0ing is decidedly less+ 2astly co.es a category o*gi0ing hich hardly applies to our present subect' grudged gi0ing+ ro. this and *ro. gi0ing*or co..ercial ad0antage5purely sel*ish, this5co.e the least a.ount o* .erit+

&he attitude o* ;=hy should @ gi0e so.ethingA5hich really .eans ;=hat do @ get out o*itA5is hardly *ound in Buddhist lands+ =here the Buddhist &eaching has distinctly taught thatdeliberate actions are liable to gi0e rise to results, e0en those ho ha0e little -noledge o* theheights o* Buddhist philosophy, ill readily understand that the results o* gi0ing is happiness+

&he riter as once as-ed i* people ho gi0e .uch and o*ten, but ne0ertheless ca.e across

disasters and grie* in their li0es, ould lose *aith and therea*ter cease to gi0e+ But the Buddhistreaction is not thus+ %isasters and grie* do not arise causelessly, nor yet *ro. one cause (the;rath o* god *or instance), but they are o*ten attributed .ore soundly, it ould see., to.isdeeds co..itted in the past5i* not in this li*e then in the indi0idual>s past eDistences+/ence a Buddhist thin-s that such .isdeeds can only co.e to *ruition i* conditions are suitable,hich is .ore li-ely to be hen one has but little a storehouse o* .erit+ &here*ore, to cure thisla.entable circu.stance, the anser is to gi0e .ore and gi0e .ore o*ten, rather than neglectingto gi0e+ &his connection beteen -noledge and generosity is illu.ined by a 0erse in the%ha..apada'

Jerily .isers *are not to hea0enly real.s,or, indeed, do *ools e0er praise liberalityBut the ise .an reoices in gi0ing,3nd by that alone does he beco.e happy herea*ter+

%hp 1QQ

3nd again on this subect, e *ind'

Should a person do good,2et hi. do it again and again2et hi. *ind pleasure therein,or, bliss*ul is the accu.ulation o* good+

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3nd so e ha0e no *olloed the bhi--hu bac- to his .onastery+ /e is, perhaps, a little *oot7sore and, i* his bol is *ull (and it easily *ills up, *or generally people are .ar0elously generous),his shoulder .ay ache and his hands and ar.s also i* he uses no sling *or the bol+

bol5as though to i.ply that they ere greedy: &his is *ar *ro. the truth+ irstly abhi--hu>s bol has to be reasonably large to acco..odate all the *ood that people ish to gi0ehi.+ =e should not *orget that lay7supporters ish to .a-e their .erit each day and that a 0erys.all bol ould .ean that he ould ha0e to re*use their o**erings+ Secondly, a bol .ay bereally large i* the bhi--hu to ho. it belongs goes andering on *oot staying in ca0es,.ountain *astness or *orest+ /is bol is then his suitcase and in it .ust be pac-ed the 0ery *eite.s hich he can easily ta-e along ith hi.+

Bac- to the .onastery, the *ood that all ha0e collected is shared by all, and the bhi--hu

hi.sel* .a-es a little .erit by o**ering so.ething choice *ro. his bol to his teacher, usuallyan elder .on- (thera), and also by seeing that those ho ha0e collected little *ood that day5and such is the *ate o* .any s.aEeras (no0ices)5ha0e su**icient *are+ /e practices thus one.ethod o* pro.oting lo0ing7-indness (mett) a.ong his *ello7.on-s5that is, ;the sharing o*the contents o* e0en an al.s bol+

@n the .onasteries here .editation is practiced it is co..on (in &hailand), to underta-ealso the ascetic practices (dhuta(gas)+ @n such .onasteries, there*ore, the .on-s ta-e only one.eal, at about eight in the .orning, i..ediately a*ter returning *ro.piapta+ &heir al.s7*oodis shared ith the .onastery7boys and anyone else ho cares to eat+ o one need star0e, or beithout a .eal in a Buddhist country5one has only to go to a .onastery (be*ore .idday), andso.e sort o* *ood ill be a0ailable+

3s *or the .on-s5bhi--hus or s.aEera5i* they ha0e underta-en the dhuta(gas they .iDall their *ood together, deter.ining ust ho .uch ill be suitable *or the., and then apply the.editation on the loathso.eness o* *ood, hich pre0ents the arising o* greed+ (See )he *ath of*urifi!ation, Chapter T@, p+ HQ"+)

@t is eaten in silence so as to .aintain this concentration+ 3nd hen *ingers ha0e scoopedenough o* this .edicine into the .outh, .onastery7boys ill be happy ith re.ainingdelicacies, hile the .iDture still unconsu.ed ill *eed the ani.als hich ha0e ta-en re*uge inthe 0ihra grounds aay *ro. the harshness o* orldlings+ &hus none o* this precious *ood isasted+ @n all ays there are bene*its to be seen *or all5*or the donors ho gi0e there is .erit,*or the bhi--hus ho ta-e there is support, and *or .any other beings there is good *ood+

&his little description o* piaptaand its 0irtues .ay be *ittingly brought to an end ithanother 0erse eDpressing herein lies the taste o* truth'

/a0ing tasted the seetness,* solitude and peace (ibbna),=oeless and stainless he beco.es,@.bibing the *la0or o* dha..a>s bliss+

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The Blessings of Pindapatta