the king. Hearing it, he became alarmed and left his attachment to the
false lore. And having obtained faith in the world hereafter, he bowed
to that illustrious _Ri_shi and spoke:
46. 'After being apprised of the tortures in the different hells, my
mind almost dissolves from fear, on the other hand I feel a burning
sense of anxiety, considering how I may take shelter from that terrible
pain.
47. 'For, short-sighted as I was, I walked on the wrong road, my mind
being perverted by a wicked doctrine. Now then, let Thy Reverence be my
guide here. Thou knowest the right way. Thou art my authority and my
refuge, O Muni.
48. 'As the rising sun dispels darkness, so thou hast dispelled the
darkness of my false opinions. In the very same manner, O _Ri_shi, thou
must teach me the road, going on which I may not attain misery after
death.'
Then the Bodhisattva, perceiving his emotion and understanding that he
had changed his opinion for the better and had now become a vessel fit
for accepting the Law, instructed him--for he pitied him, like a father
his son or a teacher his pupil--in this way.
49. 'The glorious way leading to Heaven, is that by which the old kings
went, who displayed their love of virtues, behaving like good pupils
towards _S_rama_n_as and Brâhmans, and manifested their compassion for
their subjects by their own behaviour[211].
[211] The following stanzas are of a very ingenious composition. In
stanzas 50-54 each pâda ends in two homonymous syllables put twice
in different functions, and from 55 the simile of the chariot is
elaborated with great skill.
50. 'Therefore, subdue injustice which is very difficult to subdue, and
overcome vile covetousness which is very difficult to overcome! So thou
mayst mount a luminous being to the city of the Lord of Heaven, that
city with golden gates resplendent with the most excellent jewels.
51. 'May thy approval of the lore cherished by the virtuous, and which
thou acceptedst in a mind accustomed to a wicked lore, be steadfast.
Renounce the latter, which is a system of injustice proclaimed by people
intent on gratifying the fools.
52. 'For thou hast taken the (right) road, O king, now, in that very
moment, when desiring to walk on it with the pious behaviour prescribed
by the True Lore, thou destroyedst within thy heart the harsh feeling
against virtues.
53. 'Let, therefore, thy wealth be an instrument for obtaining virtues,
and to thy people exercise mercy, which is an auspicious thing and will
increase thine own happiness. Be also constant in keeping the excellent
restraint of senses and good conduct. In this way thou mayst incur no
calamity in the next world.
54. 'Let thy rule, O king, derive its entire brilliancy from the lustre
of thy meritorious actions; let it be relied upon by those who practise
good actions, and be lovely by its purity. So ruling thou wilt strive
for thy true happiness together with thy material interest, and
exterminate the anguish of the creatures, increasing thereby thy glory
in a lovely manner.
55. 'Thou art here (on earth) standing on thy royal war-chariot. Let
worship of the pious be thy charioteer. Let thy own body, engendering
virtues, be thy chariot. Let friendliness be its axle, self-restraint
and charity its wheels, and the earnest desire for gathering merit its
axletree.
56. 'Control thy horses, the organs of sense, with that splendid bridle
named attentiveness. Make prudence thy goad and take thy weapons from
the store of sacred learning. Let shame be the furniture of thy chariot,
humility its lovely pole, forbearance its yoke. (Standing on that
chariot,) thou wilt drive it skilfully, if thou art firm in courageous
self-command.
57. 'By keeping down bad words thou wilt make it go without rattling of
the wheels; if thou usest lovely language, the sound of them will be
grave and deep. Never breaking thy self-restraint will preserve thy
chariot from looseness of its constituent parts. Thou wilt keep the
right direction, if thou avoidest going astray on the winding paths of
wicked actions.
58. 'Using this vehicle (yâna), brilliant with the lustre of wisdom,
adorned by the flag of good renown and the high-floating banner of
tranquillity, and followed by mercy as its attendance, thou wilt move in
the direction of the Highest Âtman (paramâtmâ) and never shalt thou
descend to the infernal regions, O king.'
Having thus dispelled by the brilliant beams of his words that darkness
of false lore that lay upon the mind of the king, and shown him clearly
the road to happiness, the High-minded One disappeared on the spot. But
the king, having got a thorough knowledge concerning the matters of the
next world, embraced the True Lore with his whole heart, and himself as
well as his officials, his townsmen, and landsmen became intent on
exercising charity, self-command, and self-restraint.
* * * * *
In this manner, then, those who are possessed by the vice of clinging to
a false belief are especially worth commiserating by the virtuous; for
the tenets of unbelief are blameable. [This story may also be adduced
with this conclusion: 'In this manner listening to the preaching of the
Excellent Law (saddharma), fills up with overflowing faith.' Or with
this: 'In this manner hearing the Law preached by another, rouses faith
productive of right belief.' And when adducing it in a discourse on
praise of the virtuous, likewise on the subject of forbearance, this is
to be said: 'In this manner the virtuous will parry even a hostile
attack by counselling their enemy for his good, and they will do so
without harshness in consequence of their being accustomed to
forbearance.' Also when treating of sa_m_vega[212], it is to be said:
'In this manner emotion of the mind makes a man inclined to care for
his salvation.']
[212] Sa_m_vega is the emotional state which prepares the mind to
accept spiritual instruction or to take the vow of a religious
life.
Of this _G_âtaka no Pâli recension has been edited as yet, nor am I
aware of its occurring in other texts of the Northern Buddhists.
Yet, at least stanza 16, which contains the pointe of the tale,
must be founded on some old traditional verse, one of those sacred
sayings, of which the _G_âtaka-class of the Holy Writ is made up.
XXX. THE STORY OF THE ELEPHANT.
If they may cause by it the happiness of others, even pain is highly
esteemed by the righteous, as if it were gain. This will be taught by
the following.
Once the Bodhisattva, it is said, was a huge elephant. He had his
residence in some forest suitable for elephants, which had for its
ornament, so to speak, the young offshoots of its excellent trees, whose
tops were conspicuous by their twigs, flowers, and fruits. Its bottom
was hidden under manifold kinds of shrubs and trees and grasses. It was
beset with mountain-ridges and plateaus that made the effect, as if they
were detained there by the charming beauty of the forest and would not
long for another place. That wood was the abode of forest-animals, and
contained a lake of abundant and deep water. It was far remote from the
habitations of men, being surrounded on all sides by a large desert,
where there was no tree, no shrub, no water. There he lived a solitary
elephant.
1. Like an ascetic he stayed there, pleased with leaves of the trees,
lotus-stalks and water, and with the virtues of contentment and
tranquillity.
Now one time, when the Great Being was wandering near the border of that
forest, it happened that he heard a noise of people from the side of the
wilderness. Then this thought entered his mind: 'What may this be? First
of all, there is in this direction no road leading to any country; nor
is it likely, a hunting-party should have crossed a wilderness so large
as this. Still less can there be question of an attempt to catch my
fellow-elephants, on account of the heavy toil with which it would be
attended.
2, 3. 'Surely, this people are either astray, their guides having lost
their way, or have been banished in consequence of a king's anger or of
their own misconduct. Such is the nature of the noise I hear, which is
not made up of the strong tones of joy, cheerfulness, and merriment, but
rather low-spirited sounds, as of people weeping under the overwhelming
power of a great grief.
'At all events, I will know what it really is.' Thus reflecting, the
Great Being impelled by his compassion, hastened forward in the
direction from whence the noise of that multitude came. When he heard
more distinctly those sad and piteous accents of lamentation, unpleasant
to the ears, the High-minded One, understanding that they were cries for
help uttered by people in distress, ran with still greater swiftness,
his mind being filled with the yearning of compassion. After leaving the
thicket, owing to the naked desert destitute of vegetation, he saw
already from afar that body of persons who cried for assistance, keeping
their eyes in the direction of the forest. They numbered seven hundred
men, and were exhausted with hunger, thirst, and fatigue. And those men,
on the other hand, saw the Great Being coming up to them, resembling a
moving peak of a snow-covered mountain, or a condensed mass of white
fog, or an autumn-cloud driven towards them by a strong wind; and as
they were overcome with sorrow and utterly dejected, this sight
frightened them much. In their fear they thought: 'Alas! now we are
certainly lost!' but they could make no effort to run away; hunger,
thirst, and fatigue had destroyed their energy.
4. Powerless by hunger, thirst, and fatigue, and being in low spirits,
they made no preparations for flight, though the peril seemed imminent.
The Bodhisattva perceiving their anxiety, exclaimed: 'Be not afraid! Be
not afraid! You have nothing to fear from my part,' and so comforting
them, drew nigh, uplifting his trunk and showing its tip broad, soft,
and dark-red as copper. Moved by compassion he asked them: 'Who are you,
sirs, and how are you come to this state?
5. 'Your pale faces betray the effect of dust and sun, meagre you are
and suffering from sorrow and dejection of mind. Who are you and by what
cause have you come here?'
On hearing him utter in a human voice these words not only indicative of
a peaceful disposition, but of the desire to succour, the men recovered
their confidence, and the whole assembly bowed to him. Then they spoke:
6. 'An outburst of the king's anger blew us away to this region from the
very eyes of our kinsmen, who sorrowful must behold that banishment, O
lord of elephants.
7. 'Yet, forsooth, there must be still some remnant of our good fortune
and some favour of Fortune towards us that we have drawn the attention
of Thee, who art better than friends and kinsmen.
8. 'By the auspicious sight of Thee we know we have crossed our
calamity. Who, in truth, having seen even in his dreams such a being as
Thee, would not be saved from distress?'
Then that eminent elephant spoke: 'Well, how many are you, sirs?' The
men said:
9, 10. 'We numbered one thousand men, O fair-figured being, when the
king left us here, but many of us, being unacquainted with adversity,
have perished overcome by hunger, thirst, and sorrow. And now, O lord of
elephants, we estimate the number of those still alive to be seven
hundred, who being about to sink down in the mouth of Death, look up to
Thee as the embodied Comfort come to us to help.'
By these words the Great Being, as he was in the habit of compassion,
was moved to tears, and commiserating them said, to be sure, something
like this: 'Alas! alas!
11. 'Oh! How averse to tenderness, how devoid of shame, how little
anxious about the next world the mind of that king is! Oh! How his
senses, caught by his royal splendour, something as fickle as lightning,
are blind to his good!
12. 'Oh! He does not understand that Death is near, I suppose, nor has
he been taught the unhappy end of wickedness! Alas! Oh! Those poor and
helpless kings who, owing to the weakness of their judgment, are
impatient of listening to words (of counsel).
13. 'And, verily, this cruelty towards living beings is performed on
account of one single body, a perishable substratum of illnesses[213]!
Alas! Fie upon ignorance!'
[213] I surmise that pâda 2 of this line is to be read rogibhûtasya
nâ_s_ina_h_.
Now, while letting his eyes full of pity and tenderness go over that
people, this thought appeared to the chief of elephants: 'Being so
tortured by hunger, thirst and fatigue, and their bodies having become
so weak, how may they overcome that wilderness of an extent of many
yo_g_anas, where they find neither water nor shade, unless they have
wholesome food? Nor does the forest of elephants contain proper food for
them, not even for one day, without much trouble. Nevertheless, if they
were to take their provisions from the flesh of my limbs and to use my
bowels instead of bags, putting water in them, they would be able to
cross this desert; not otherwise.
14. 'Let me, therefore, in their behalf employ my body, the abode of
many hundreds of illnesses, that it may be for this multitude of men
overwhelmed by suffering, like a raft to get across their misery.
15. 'Being born a man is the proper state for reaching happiness, either
heavenly bliss or final extinction, and it is difficult to attain that
state. May then this advantage not be dissolved to them!
16. 'Further, since they are come within the compass of my dominion, I
rightly may call them my guests. And they are in distress and destitute
of relations; hence I have to show the more pity to them.
17. 'And this vessel of many infirmities, this substratum of manifold
toil caused by everlasting illness, this assemblage of evils, whose name
is "body," will now, after a long time, have at last its proper
employment, serving to relieve others.'
Then some of them, who suffered intensely from the pain of hunger,
thirst, fatigue, and heat, after bowing to him with folded hands and
eyes wet with tears, in the manner of supplicants, asked him for water
by means of signs with their hands. Others spoke to him piteous words:
18. 'To us who are destitute of kindred, Thou art a kinsman, Thou art
our recourse and refuge. Deign to shelter us in such a way as Thou
deemest best, Illustrious One!'
Others again who had more energy of mind, asked him to show them some
place where to find water and the way to get out of that dreadful
desert.
19, 20. 'If there is here some pond or river with cold water, or perhaps
some waterfall, if a shady tree may be found here on a grass-plot, tell
it us, O chief of elephants. And since thou thinkest it possible to get
out of this desert, show us mercy and point out the direction to us.
'It is a good many days that we have been staying in this wilderness.
For this reason, pray make us, O lord, get across it.'
Then the High-minded One who felt his heart growing still more wet with
pity by their piteous requests, uplifting his trunk as big as the coils
of a mighty serpent, showed them the mountain, beyond which they could
make their escape from the wilderness, and spoke: 'Underneath this
mountain there is a large lake adorned with lotuses, white and red, and
containing pure water. Go, therefore, by this way. With the water of
that lake ye may quench your thirst, and dispel your fatigue and (the
vexation of) heat. Then, continuing your way, not far from that place
ye will meet with the corpse of an elephant, fallen down the
mountain-plateau. The flesh of its limbs ye must take to serve for
provisions on the journey, and provide yourselves with water, putting it
in its bowels instead of bags; after which ye have to go farther in the
very same direction. So ye will overcome this wilderness without much
hardship.' With such comforting language the High-minded One induced
them to set out, but himself, running quickly by another way, ascended
to the top of that mountain. Standing there, about to give up his own
body for the purpose of rescuing that body of people, he strengthened
his determination[214], truly, by representing to his mind something
like this.
[214] This 'strong determination' is the pra_n_idhi, also called
pra_n_idhâna. By it he who performs some extraordinary meritorious
action with the object of attaining some definite result in a
future existence proclaims his design before carrying out his
performance. Its counterpart in the ritual of Hinduism is the
so-called sa_m_kalpa preceding the ceremony and contributory to its
success. For other instances of it, though the name of pra_n_idhi
is not used there, see Story I, stanzas 30-32; VIII, stanzas 53-55.
21. 'This performance does not tend to the attainment of a high state
for myself, neither the magnificence of a king of men, the possessor of
the royal umbrella, nor Heaven with the singular flavour of its
surpassing enjoyments, nor the bliss of Brahma's world, nor even the
happiness of release[215];
[215] Viz. 'final extinction' or nirvâ_n_a.
22. 'But if there be any merit of mine in thus striving to help those
men lost in the wilderness, may I become by it the Saviour of the World,
of those creatures erring in the wilderness of _S_a_m_sâra!'
Having thus resolved, and not minding because of his gladness, the
painful death he would suffer by being crushed down that deep descent,
the High-minded One gave up his body according to his design by
precipitating himself down that steep mountain.
23. While falling, he shone like an autumn-cloud or like the moon
sinking with reversed disc behind the mountain of setting, or like the
snow-cover of the peak of that mountain, cast down by the violent
swiftness of the wind moved by the wings of Garu_d_a.
24. With the heavy noise of a whirlwind he precipitated himself, shaking
not only the earth and the mountains, but the mind of Mâra possessed by
the infatuation of sovereignty[216]. And in his fall, he bent both the
forest-creepers and the forest-deities.
[216] In the original _k_a put twice in the second pâda of this
stanza is hardly right. In the latter place, I suppose that it
should be changed to sa.
25. No doubt, on that occasion the Celestials, residing about that
forest, were affected with the utmost astonishment. From the ecstasy of
their gladness the hairs on their body bristled, and they swung their
arms in the sky, their fine fingers turned upwards.
26. Some overspread him with a thick shower of flowers sweet-scented and
tinged with sandal-powder. Others covered him with their upper garments,
wrought of (celestial) unwoven stuff and resplendent with golden
decorations; others with their ornaments.
27. Others again worshipped him with hymns they had devoutly composed,
and with the reverence of the a_ñg_ali, their folded hands resembling
opening lotus-buds. Or they honoured him with bent heads, lowering their
beautiful head-diadems, and with prayers of veneration.
28. Some fanned him with an agreeable wind, such as arranges garlands
(of foam) on the waves and is perfumed with the scents borrowed from the
dust of flowers. Others held a canopy of dense clouds in the sky over
his head.
29. Some were prompted by devotion to make Heaven echo his praise with
the sounds of the celestial drums. And more, others enamelled the trees
with an untimely outburst of new twigs, flowers, and fruits.
30. The sky assumed the lovely splendour of autumn, the sun's rays
seemed to become longer, and the Ocean trembled and shook its
wave-surface as from impatience to go and visit him out of gladness.
Meanwhile those men, following the way pointed out to them, had reached
the lake; and after refreshing themselves and recovering from heat,
thirst, and fatigue, going on as the High-minded One had instructed
them, they saw at no great distance from that place the body of an
elephant that had died not long before. And they reflected: 'What a
strong likeness this elephant has to that chief of elephants!
31. 'Is he perhaps a brother to that mighty being, or some kinsman of
his, or one of his sons? In fact, it is the self-same beautiful figure
equalling a snow-peak that we behold in this body, even though it be
crushed.
32. 'It looks like a condensation of the lustre of many groups of
waterlilies, like the concrete form of moonshine, or rather like His
image, reflected in a mirror.'
But some among them who had a keener judgment of the matter began to
reflect thus: 'As far as we see, this animal, whose surpassing beauty
rivals the elephants of the world-quarters, is that very elephant,
indeed, who has thrown himself from this plateau, in order that He might
save us from distress who are without relations and friends.' (And
having understood so, they said:)
33. 'That noise we heard, as of a whirlwind, as of an earthquake, was
caused by His fall, to be sure.
34. 'This body, in truth, is His. It has the same yellowish-white hue of
a lotus-root, and is covered with similar hairs as white as moonbeams
and adorned with fine spots. These are the same tortoise-like feet with
white nails. And this is the same backbone gracefully curved in the
guise of a bow.
35. 'Also this is the same face long and full, embellished by the
furrows of his wind-perfuming juice. And this is the same head, tall,
auspicious, never touched by a driver's goad, standing on a strong neck.
36. 'This is the same couple of tusks of a honey-colour; they boastingly
bear the token (of his glory), being covered with the red dust of the
mountain-slope. And this is that trunk with long, finger-like tip,
wherewith He showed us this way.
'Oh! This is, in truth, a wonder of surpassing strangeness!
37. 'Ah! So great a friendship has He shown to us, without first
inquiring into our family, our conduct and faith, to us broken by
misfortunes and never heard of by Him before! How great must His
goodness be for His friends and relations!
'In every way veneration be to Him, that Illustrious One!
38. 'Assisting the likes of us, distressed people, overcome with fear
and sorrow and desponding, He, bearing the shape of an elephant, holds
up, as it were, the sinking behaviour of the pious[217].
[217] I have not adopted the ingenious conjecture of Professor
Kern, sishatsatâm, as I now think the text of the MSS. gives a good
sense, if but the complex of aksharas sîdatsatâm is divided into
two words. Accordingly I read sîdat satâm udvahatîva v_ri_ttam.
39. 'Where has He been taught this extraordinary propitiousness? At the
feet of what teacher may He have sat in the forest? The popular saying:
'no beauty of figure pleases without virtues' is exemplified in Him.
40. 'Oh! How He has manifested by the splendid loftiness of His nature
the auspiciousness to be expected of (his auspicious figure)! Verily,
even in His dead body, His self-satisfaction appears in His complexion
shining like the Snow-mountain, as though it laughed with joy!
'Who, therefore, will allow himself to feed on the body of this
exceedingly virtuous being, who, surpassing by his goodness affectionate
relations and friends, was thus inclined to help us, thus ready to
sacrifice even his own life for our benefit? No, it becomes us rather to
pay him our debt of gratitude by the cremation of his body with the
proper rites and worship.' Thus considering, they were inclined to
indulge in mourning, as if a family-disaster had befallen them; their
eyes grew dim with tears and they lamented in a faltering voice. But
some of them who had a stronger frame of mind, perceiving their attitude
and understanding the difference of the cases, spoke to them: 'Verily,
by doing so this excellent elephant would be neither worshipped nor
gratified. For aught we know, it is by the accomplishment of his design
that we ought to honour him.
41. 'For it was with the object of rescuing us, that he, a stranger to
us, yea, not even knowing us, abandoned in this manner his body dear to
him, to his guests, still dearer to him.
42. 'For this reason it is proper to fulfil his design. Otherwise, would
not the exertion of that being be made fruitless?
43. 'He has offered affectionately his whole property, indeed, to
entertain his guests. Who, then, would render his hospitality fruitless
by not accepting it?