Sex, Marriage and Family in World Religions (67 page)

[“In the same way, with a companion there would be objectionable talk or abuse for me.” Seeing this danger for the future], one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

For sensual pleasures, variegated, sweet (and) delightful, disturb the mind with their manifold form. Seeing peril in [the strands of sensual pleasure], one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

“This for me is a calamity, and a tumor, and a misfortune, and a disease, and a barb, and a danger.” Seeing this danger in [the strands of sensual pleasure], one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Cold and heat, hunger (and) thirst, wind and the heat (of the sun), gadflies and snakes, having endured all these, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

As an elephant with massive shoulders, [spotted], noble, may leave the herds and live as it pleases in the forest, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

It is an impossibility for one who delights in company to obtain (even) temporary release. Having heard the voice of the sun’s kinsman, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Gone beyond the contortions of wrong view, arrived at [the fixed Course (to salvation)], having gained the way, (thinking) “I have knowledge arisen (in me); I am not to be led by others,” one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

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Having become without covetousness, without deceit, without thirst, without hypocrisy, with delusion and faults blown away, without any inclination (to evil) in the whole world, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

One should avoid an evil companion, [who does not see the goal, (who has) entered upon bad conduct. One should not oneself associate with one who is intent (upon wrong views, and is) negligent.] One should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

One should cultivate one of great learning, expert in the doctrine, a noble friend possessed of intelligence. [Knowing one’s goals, having dispelled doubt], one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Not finding satisfaction in sport and enjoyment, nor in the happiness (which comes) from sensual pleasures in the world, (and) paying no attention (to them), abstaining from adornment, speaking the truth, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Leaving behind son and wife, and father and mother, and wealth and grain, and relatives, and sensual pleasures to the full extent, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

“This is an attachment; here there is little happiness, (and) little satisfaction; here there is very much misery; this is a hook.” Knowing this, a thoughtful man should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Having torn one’s fetters asunder, like a fish breaking a net in the water, not returning, like a fire (not going back) to what is (already) burned, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

With downcast eye and not foot-loose, with sense-faculties guarded, with mind protected, [not overflowing (with defilement)], not burning, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Having discarded the marks of a householder, like a coral tree whose leaves have fallen, having gone out (from the house) wearing the saffron robe, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

[Showing no greed for flavours, not wanton, not supporting others, going on an uninterrupted begging round, not shackled in mind to this family or that], one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Having left behind the five hindrances of the mind, having thrust away all defilements, not dependent, having cut off [affection and hate], one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Having put happiness and misery behind oneself, [and joy and dejection already, having gained equanimity (which is) purified calmness], one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Resolute for the attainment of the supreme goal, with intrepid mind, [not indolent, of firm exertion, furnished with strength and power], one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Not giving up seclusion (and) meditation, constantly [living in accordance with the doctrine in the world of phenomena], understanding the peril (which is) in existences, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

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Desiring the destruction of craving, not negligent, not foolish, learned, possessing mindfulness, [having considered the doctrine, restrained], energetic, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Not trembling, as a lion (does not tremble) at sounds, not caught up (with others), as the wind (is not caught up) in a net, not defiled (by passion), as a lotus (is not defiled) by water, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Wandering victorious, having overcome like a strong-toothed lion, the king of beasts, one should resort to secluded lodgings, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Cultivating at the right time loving-kindness, equanimity, [pity,] release, and (sympathetic) joy, [unimpeded by the whole world], one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

Leaving behind passion, hatred, and delusion, having torn the fetters apart, not trembling at (the time of) the complete destruction of life, one should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

(People) associate with and resort to (others) for some motive; nowadays friends without a motive are hard to find. Wise as to their own advantage, men are impure. One should wander solitary as a rhinoceros horn.

[Translated in
The Rhinoceros Horn and Other Early Buddhist Poems,
trans. K. R. Norman (London: Pali Text Society, 1985), pp. 7–11]

MARRIED LIFE VERSUS THE LIFE

OF THE ASCETIC

This short narrative, also likely from the earliest strata of Buddhist discourse, is interesting because it explicitly develops a dialogue between the Buddha and a successful herder, both of whom are anticipating a mighty rain. As a discourse ploy, the story works up a set of parallels that work to identify the Buddha’s life as a remarkable makeover of the life of the herder Dhaniya. Of course, more than a comparison, this is a steady celebration of the superior value of the Buddha’s life of renunciation. What is curious is that the comparison comes to closure by having the herder and his wife convert to Buddhism—actually to celibacy
(brahmacariya)
—and thus the story seems to finish by suggesting that the productive life of the family can be brought to a happy end in a newfound commitment to renunciation. Of course, it is not happenstance that the story stops at the point of their conversion, for certainly it would have been hard to explain how the herdsman family would hold together once it had adopted Buddhist goals of renunciation.

There is, too, another interesting element to point out in this story. The Buddha is metaphorized as a bull and an elephant, a trope found in many Buddhist stories, and thus there is implicitly a claim that power, and perhaps even a kind of fertility, are not strangers to the Buddha’s identity. This connection is made all the clearer when the mighty rain arrives just as the Buddha
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is finishing his discourse, likely implying the Buddha’s power over such forces of nature, a possibility supported by the accompanying claim by the herder that “the gains indeed are not small for us who have seen the Blessed One.”

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t h e d h a n i y a d i s c o u r s e i n t h e s u t t a - n i p a ¯ t a

“I have boiled my rice and done my milking, said [Dhaniya the herdsman.] “I dwell with my family near the bank of the Mahı¯. My hut is thatched, my fire is heaped up (with fuel). [So rain, sky(-deva), if you wish.”]

“I am free from anger, my (mental) barrenness has gone,” said the Blessed One. “I am staying for one night near the bank of the Mahı¯. My hut is uncovered, my fire is quenched. [So rain, sky(deva-), if you wish.”]

“No gadflies or mosquitoes are found (here),” said Dhaniya the herdsman.

“The cows pasture in the water-meadow where the grass grows lush. They could tolerate even the rain if it came. [So rain, sky(-deva), if you wish.”]

“A well-made float is indeed tied together,” said the Blessed One. “(I have) crossed over, gone to the far shore, having overcome the flood. There is no need of a float. [So rain, sky(-deva), if you wish.”]

“My wife is attentive, not wanton,” said Dhaniya the herdsman. “She has lived with me for a long time (and) is pleasant. I hear no evil of her at all. [So rain, sky(-deva) if you wish.”]

[“My mind is attentive, completely released,” said the Blessed One. “(It has been) developed for a long time (and) is well controlled. Moreover no evil is found in me. [So rain, sky(-deva), if you wish.”]

“I am supported by my own earnings,” said Dhaniya the herdsman, “and my sons are living with me in good health. I hear no evil of them at all. [So rain, sky(-deva), if you wish.”]

“I am no one’s hireling,” said the Blessed One. “I wander throughout the whole world by means of my earnings. There is no need of wages. [So rain, sky(-deva) if you wish.”]

“There are cows, bullocks, cows in calf, and breeding cows too,” said Dhaniya the herdsman. “There is a bull too here, the leader of the cows. [So rain, sky(-deva), if you wish.”]

“There are no cows, no bullocks, nor are there cows in calf or breeding cows either,” said the Blessed One. “There is not even a bull here, the leader of the cows. [So rain, sky(-deva), if you wish.”]

“The stakes are dug-in, unshakable,” said Dhaniya the herdsman. “(There are) new halters made of munja grass, of good quality. Even the bullocks will not be able to break them. [So rain, sky(-deva), if you wish.”]

“Having broken my bonds like a bull,” said the Blessed One, “like an elephant [tearing a pu¯ti-creeper asunder], I shall not come to lie again in a womb.

[So rain, sky (-deva), if you wish.”]

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Straightway the great cloud rained forth, filling the low land and the high.

Hearing the sky(-deva) raining, Dhaniya said this: “The gains indeed are not small for us who have seen the Blessed One. We come to you as a refuge, one with vision. Be our teacher, great sage.

My wife and I are attentive. Let us practice the holy life in the presence of the Well-farer. Gone to the far shore of birth and death, let us put an end to misery.”

“One with sons rejoices because of (his) sons,” said Ma¯ra the evil one. “Similarly the cattle-owner rejoices because of (his) cows. For acquisitions are joy for a man. Whoever is without acquisitions does not rejoice.”

“One with sons grieves because of (his) sons,” said the Blessed One. “Similarly the cattle-owner grieves because of (his) cows. For acquisitions are grief for a man. Whoever is without acquisitions does not grieve.

[Translated in
The Rhinoceros Horn,
pp. 4–6, with minor cosmetic changes in presentation of the text]

SONGS BY BUDDHIST WOMEN

For as androcentric as Buddhism seems to have been, there is nonetheless a fascinating collection of hymns (Therı¯ga¯tha¯) that purport to have been composed by early Buddhist women shortly before the common era. Though it is clear that the hymns are highly stylized and reflect, in part, the form, content, and even wording of a parallel collection of hymns by Buddhist men, the Therı¯ga¯tha¯ still is our best source for imagining the lives and motivations of early Buddhist women. In the following selection Sumedha¯, as a princess betrothed and on the verge of marriage, makes a long plea to her parents to cancel the marriage. In the course of this involved speech she beseeches her parents to allow her to renounce normal life and become a wandering ascetic. This hymn is interesting for addressing, in a rather uncompromising fashion, the conflict between the ongoing reproduction of normal social life—as symbolized by the royal marriage—and Sumedha¯’s religious goals, which are dedicated to avoiding sensuality, desire, and the normalcy of life in the palace of her fiance´. The hymn is also notable for its relentless attack on the body, with ample discussion of the perilous fate that awaits those who would pursue pleasure.

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¯ ’ s s o n g s f r o m s o n g s b y b u d d h i s t w o m e n ( t h e r i g a t h a )

In the city of Manta¯vatı¯ there was Sumedha¯, a daughter of King Konca’s chief queen; (she was) converted by those who comply with the teaching. Virtuous,
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a brilliant speaker, having great learning, trained in the Buddha’s teaching, going up to her mother and father she said, “Listen, both of you. I delight in quenching; existence is non-eternal, even if it is as a deva; how much more (non-eternal) are empty sensual pleasures, giving little enjoyment (and) much distress. Sensual pleasures, in which fools are bemused, (are) bitter, like a snake’s poison. Consigned to hell for a long time, they (fools) are beaten, pained. Because of evil action they grieve in a downward transition, being evil-minded, without faith; fools (are) unrestrained in body, speech, and mind.

Those fools, unwise, senseless, hindered by the uprising of pain, not knowing, do not understand the noble truths, when someone is teaching them. They, the majority, not knowing the truths taught by the excellent Buddha, rejoice in existence[, mother]; they long for rebirth among the devas. Even rebirth among the devas is non-eternal; (it is) in the impermanent existence; but fools are not afraid of being reborn again and again. Four downward transitions and two (upward) transitions are obtained somehow or other; but for those who have gone to a downward transition there is no going-forth in the hells.

Permit me, both of you, to go forth in the teaching of the ten-powered ones; having little greed I shall strive for the elimination of birth and death. What (have I to do) with existence, with delight, with this unsubstantial worst of bodies? For the sake of the cessation of craving for existence, permit me, I shall go forth.

There is a rising of Buddhas; the inopportune moment has been avoided; the opportune moment has been seized. As long as life lasts I would not infringe the rules of virtuous conduct and (the living of) the holy life.”

So Sumedha¯ speaks to her mother and father; “Meanwhile I shall not take food as a householder; (if I do not go forth) I shall indeed have gone into the influence of death.”