【Reposts Week: Day 5】 THE BUDDHA ON BATHING, ON NOT WEARING ORNAMENTS, ON NOT EATING MANGOES, ON NOT SETTING FIRE TO A FOREST, AND ON NOT CLIMBING TREES AND JUMPING FROM TREE TO TREE This should at least bring a smile to every teacher past and present. No matter how great, how clever, how enlightened a teacher might be, s/he never gets a group of students who are uniformly diligent, thoughtful, and well-behaved. Some of them are bound to be more rebellious, more unruly, and more moronic than others. The Pali Vinaya Piṭaka tells us that this really is nothing new. The Vinaya is a set of rules heavily supplemented by cases, so one would certainly be forgiven for expecting it to be a rather boring law book on the whole; but portions of it, buried variously among passages of binding instructions, are examples of minor cases the Buddha had to deal with on a day-to-day basis, just as a teacher has to deal with class discipline regularly. These nuggets should also interest the textual critic, because they are very likely to be authentic historical records detailing the day-to-day work of the historical Buddha, for if they are not, then we have every reason to believe that the telling of these rather silly incidents would have been redacted. (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criterion_of_embarrassment) The scholarly consensus (for what little it is worth) on the historicity of the Buddha maintains that it is impossible for us to know that the Buddha (as recorded in the Pali canon) existed, let alone being the one who created and taught the profound teachings in the Tipiṭaka. But recent scholarship has discovered that some of the most difficult passages in the Canon are parodies of key Vedic texts, texts of the Brahminical establishment in ancient India against which the various renunciatory religious movements of circa 5th Century BCE (including Buddhism and Jainism, among others) arose. These clever parodies subtly turn things upside down (saying e.g. that karma, a key concept in Indian thought, is NOT based on action, but is based on intention; or that fair colour is NOT superior to dark colour; etc.), and manage to convert people using their own discourse. The Buddha was born a prince, and being a Prince he had access to the Vedic corpus, an access denied to almost all of his followers because of their social origins. One consequence of this is that even the earliest commentators and annotators of the Canon (those who lived barely a couple of centuries after the Buddha died) had failed to notice the textual origins of these parodies, giving rise to several twisted attempts to interpret passages that really make no sense in isolation. This brings us to the observation that these clever (and quite humorous) parodies are unlikely to be the product of committees (what the scholarly consensus tends to believe), for a committee typically refrains from being so edgy and daring, and most often selects safe and uninspiring options. These parodies are much more likely to be the product of a single genius, i.e. the Buddha himself, lending even more weight to the suggestion, against the currents, that a much larger portion of the Pali canon could reasonably be attributed to the historical Buddha. ======================================== THE BOOK OF THE DISCIPLINE (Vinaya Piṭaka) The Lesser Division (Cullavagga) V Translated from Pali by I.B. Horner At one time the Awaken One, the Lord was staying at Rajagaha in the Bamboo Grove at the squirrels feeding place. Now at that time the group of six monks, while they were bathing, rubbed their bodies against a tree and their thighs and their arms and their chests and their backs. People looked down upon, criticised, spread it all about saying: How can these recluses, sons of the Sakyans, while they are bathing, rub their bodies against a tree and their thighs and their arms and their chests and their backs, like boxers and wrestlers and young villagers? Monks heard these people who were .... spreading it about. Then these monks told this matter to the Lord. Then the Lord on this occasion, in this connection, having had the Order of monks convened, questioned the monks, saying: Is it true, as is said, monks, that the group of six monks, while they were bathing, rubbed their bodies against a tree and their thighs and their arms and their chests and their backs? It is true, Lord. The Awakened One, the Lord rebuked them, saying: Monks, it is not suitable in these foolish men, it is not becoming, it is not fitting, it is not worthy of a recluse, it is not allowable, it is not to be done. How, monks, can these foolish men, while they were bathing, rubbed their bodies against a tree and their thighs and their arms and their chests and their backs? It is not, monks, for pleasing those who are not [yet] pleased.... and having rebuked them, having given reasoned talk, he addressed the monks, saying: Monks, while a monk is bathing he should not rub his body against a tree [and their thighs and their arms and their chests and their backs]. Whoever should [so] rub it, there is an offence of wrong-doing. ||1|| Now at that time the group of six monks, while they were bathing, rubbed their bodies against a post .... (as in ||1||. For tree read post) ... ... offence of wrong-doing. Now at that time the group of six monks, while they were bathing, rubbed their bodies against a wall .... .... offence of wrong-doing. ||2|| Now at that time the group of six monks used to bathe on a rubbing-board. People spread it about, saying: Like householders who enjoy pleasures of the senses. Monks heard these people who .... spread it about [....] Having rebuked them, having given reasoned talk, [the Lord] addressed the monks, saying: Monks, you should not bathe on a rubbing-board. Whoever should (so) bathe, there is an offence of wrong-doing. Now at that time the group of six monks used to bathe using a gandhabba-hand [instrument] .... .... Monks, you should not bathe using a gandhabba-hand [instrument]. Whoever should [so] bathe, there is an offence of wrong-doing. Now at that time the group of six monks used to bathe using a string of vermilion-covered beads. .... .... Monks, you should not bathe using a string of vermilion-covered beads. Whoever should [so] bathe, there is an offence of wrong-doing. ||3|| Now at that time the group of six monks, having plunged into [water], causing a rubbing to be made. .... Monks, you should not, having plunged into [water], cause a rubbing to be made. Whoever should [so] cause it, there is an offence of wrong-doing. Now at that time the group of six monks used to bathe using a scrubber. ... Monks, you should not bathe using a scrubber. Whoever should [so] bathe, there is an offence of wrong-doing. Now at that time a certain monk came to be afflicted by a scab disease, and there came to be no comfort for him without a scrubber. They told this matter to the Lord. He said: I allow, monks, one who is ill [to use] an unshaped scrubber. ||4|| Now at that time a certain monk, weak through age, was not able while bathing to rub his own body. They told this matter to the Lord. He said: I allow, monks, a strip of cloth. Now at that time the monks were doubtful how to give a rubbing to their backs. They told this matter to the Lord. He said: I allow you, monks, the ordinary mode with the hand. ||5|| 1 || Now at that time the group of six monks wore ear ornaments, they wore chains, they wore ornamental strings of beads for the throat, they wore ornaments at the waist, they wore bangles, they wore armlets, they wore bracelets, they wore finger rings. People .... spread it about, saying [....] [The Lord] addressed the monks, saying: Monks, ear ornaments should not be worn, chains .... ornamental strings of beads for the throat .... ornaments at the waist .... bangles .... armlets .... bracelets .... finger rings should not be worn. Whoever should wear [any of these things], there is an offence of wrong-doing. ||1|| 2 || [....] Now at that time the mango trees in the park of King Seniya Bimbisara of Magadha were bearing fruit and it was made known by King Seniya Bimbisara: Let the masters make as much use of the mangoes as they please. The group of six monks, having made even young mangoes fall, made use of them. And King Seniya Bimbisara of Magadha wanted a mango. Then King Seniya Bimbisara of Magadha enjoined people, saying: Go, good sirs, having gone to the park, bring back a mango. Very well, your majesty, and these people having answered King Seniya Bimbisara of Magadha in assent, having gone to the park, spoke thus to the park keeper: Good sir, his majesty wants a mango, give [us] a mango. There is not a mango, masters; the monks having made even young mangoes fall, have made use of them. Then these people told this matter to King Seniya Bimbisara of Magadha. He said: Good sirs, mangoes are much enjoyed by the masters, yet it is moderation that the Lord extols. People .... spread it about, saying: How can these recluses, sons of the Sakyans, not knowing moderation, make use of the Kings mangoes? Monks heard these people who .... spread it about. Then these monks told this matter to the Lord. He said: Monks, mangoes should not be made use of. Whoever should make use of them, there is an offence of wrong-doing. ||1|| 5 || [....] Now at that time the group of six monks set fire to a forest. People .... spread it about, saying: Like forest firers. They told this matter to the Lord. He said: Monks, a forest should not be set on fire. Whoever should set one on fire, there is an offence of wrong-doing. Now at that time dwelling-places were tangled over with grass. As the forest fires were burning [forests and so on] they burned the dwelling-places. Monks were doubtful whether to make a counter-fire to give protection. They told this matter to the Lord. He said: I allow you, monks, if a forest fire is burning, to make a counter-fire to give protection. ||1|| Now at that time the group of six monks climbed a tree and jumped from tree to tree. People .... spread it about, saying: Like monkeys. They told this matter to the Lord. He said: Monks, a tree should not be climbed. Whoever should climb one, there is an offence of wrong-doing. Now at that time an elephant infested the way of a certain monk who was going to Savatthi through the Kosalan districts. Then that monk rushed up to the foot of a certain tree [but] being scrupulous did not climb the tree; the elephant went off by another [track]. Then that monk, having reached Savatthi, told this matter to the Lord. He said: I allow you, monks, if there is a reason, to climb a tree to the height of a man, and as high as you like in cases of distress. || 2 || 32 || ========================================
Posted on: Sat, 28 Jun 2014 22:31:56 +0000
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