The Great Discourse on the Wheel of Dhamma

each at six other places, forty nine days in all, enjoying the bliss of the fourth state of Fruition (Fruits of Arahatship) and pondering long upon his newly found system of Law (Dhamma).

EXTREME AUSTERITY IS A FORM OF SELF-MORTIFICATION

The fifth week was spent under the goat-herd (Ajjapala) Banyan tree and while there he reflected on his abandonment of the austerity practices:- "Delivered am I fromh the austerity practices which cause physical pain and suffering. It is well that I'm delivered of that unprofitable practice of austerity. How delightful it is to be liberated and have gained Enlightenment."

Mara who was closely following every thought and action of the Buddha ever alert to accuse him of any lapses, immediately addressed the Buddha.- "Apart from the austerity practices, there is no way to purify beings; Gotama has deviated from the path of purity. While still defiled, he wrongly believes he has achieved purity."

The Buddha replied:- “All the extreme practices of austerity employed with a view to achieve the Deathless (the Immortal State) are useless, unprofitable much as the cars, peddles and pushing poles are useless on land, on the sand banks. Fully convinced that they are unprofitable, I have abandoned all forms of self-mortification.”

The Commentary also mentions that extreme practices such as scanty diet, scanty clothing consitute self-torture That extreme austerity is a form of self-mortification should be carefully noted here for better comprehension of the Dhammacakka Sutta when we deal with it.

CONSIDERING THE QUESTION OF GIVING THE FIRST SERMON :

Having spent seven days each at seven different places, he went back to the goat-herd's banyan tree on the 50th day. Seated under the tree, he considered "To whom had I best teach the doctrine first? Who would quickly comprehand the Dhamma?" Then it occurred to him:-" There is Alara Kalama who is leamed, skilled and intelligent. He has long been a person having but little dust of

defilement in the eye of the wisdom. What if I teach the doctrine to Alara Kalama first? He would quickly comprehend this Dhamma.

It is singificant that the Buddha had tried to seek out first someone who would understand his teaching quickly. It is of utmost importance to inaugurate new meditation centres with devotees who are endowed with faith, zeal, industry, mindfulness and intelligence. Only such devotees as are in possession of these virtues can achieve penetrative Insight quickly and become shining examples for others to follwo. Devotees lacking in faith, zeal, industry, mindfulness and intelligence or enfeebled in mind and body through old age can hardly be source of inspiration to others.

When we first launched on teaching the Satipatthana Vipassana Meditation, we were fortunate in being able to start off with three person, (my relatives actually), endowed with unusual faculties. They acquired the knowledge of awareness of arising and passing away (Udayabbaya Nana) within three days of practice and were overjoyed with seeing lights and visions accompanied by feelings of rapture and bliss. Such speedy attainments of results have been responsible for the world-wide acceptance and dissemination of the Mah4si Vipassana Meditation technique.

Thus it was that the Buddha thought of teaching his first sermon to someone who would quickly grasp it and when he considered Alara Kalama, adeity addressed him,"Lord, Alara Kalama had passed away seven days ago." Then knowledge and vision arose to the Buddha that Alara had indeed passed away seven days ago and had by virtue of his Jhanic achievements attained the Sphere of Nothingness, (Akincannayatana Brahma Plane ..... the State of Immateriality).

MISSING THE PATH AND FRUITION BY SEVEN DAYS

"Great is the loss to Alara of Kalama family" bemoaned the Buddha. Alara was developed enough to readily understand, had he heard the teaching of the Buddha. He could have gained the Path _and attained Arahatship instantly. But his early death had deprived

him of this oppottunity. In the Sphere of Nothingness, where only mental states exist without any forms, he could not have benefited even if the Buddha had gone there and taught him the Dhamma. The life span in the Sphere of Nothingness is also very long being sixty thousand world cycles. After expiry there, he would appear again in the human world but would miss the teachings of the Buddhas. Thus as a common worldling, he would do the rounds of existence, sometimes sinking to the nether world to face great sufferings. Thus the Buddha bemoaned that the loss to Alara was very great.

It is possible in the present times that there are people deserving of higher attainments, passing away without opportunity of hearing the Satipatthana Meditation practice as expounded by us; or having heard the Dhamma thus taught, not yet made the effort to put it mto practice. The good people assembled here now hearing what we are teaching should see carefully that such rare opportunities for their upliftment be not thrown away.

MISSING THE GREAT CHANCE BY ONE NIGHT

Then the Buddha thought of teaching the first sermon to Udaka, son(pupil) of the great sage Rama. Again a deity addressed the Buddha "Lord, Udaka Ramaputta had passed away last night." The knowledge and vision arose to the Buddha that the hermit Udaka had indeed died last night in the first watch and by virtue of his Jhanic achievements had attained the state of Neither-Perception nor Non-perception, (Nevasannanasannayatana Brahma Plane). This sphere is also a state of immateriality, a formless state and its life span extends to eighty four thousand world cycles. This is the noblest, the loftiest of the thirty-one planes of existence, but the Dhamma cannot be heard there. On appearing again in the human world, Ramaputta was already so highly developed that, he could instantly attain Arahatship if he could but listen to the Dhamma. But he would get no such opportunity again having missed it by dying one night too early. The Buddha was thus moved again to utter in

pity, "Great is the loss to the hermit Udaka, the son (pupil) of the great sage Rama."

Then the Buddha thought again to whom he should give his f first sermon. The group of five Bhikkhus appeared in his divine vision and he saw them living then in the deer Sanctuary in the township of Benares.

JOURNEY TO GIVE THE FIRST SERMON

There the Blessed One set out to go. Some previous Enlightened Ones had made the same journey by means of miracles Our Lord, Gotama Buddha, however, proceeded on foot for the purpose of meeting, on the way, with the naked ascetic Upaka to whom he had something to impart.

The Buddhavamsa Commentary and the Jataka commentary state that the Blessed One started on the joumey on the full-moon of Waso. But as the deer Sanctuary, Benares, was 18 yujanas (142 miles) away from the Bo Tree and as the Blessed One was making the joumey on foot, the distance could not have been covered in one day unless done miraculously. It would be appropriate, therefore, if we fixed the starting date on the sixth waxing of Waso.

MEETING WITH UPAKA, THE NAKED ASCETIC

The blessed One had not gone far from the Bodhi Tree on the way to Gaya (6 miles) when he came upon the naked ascetic Upaka, a disciple of the great leader Nataputta of the Naked Sect. who on seeing the Blessed One addressed him, "Your countenance. friend, is clear and serene, your complexion is pure and bright; In whose name have you gone forth? Who is your teacher? Of whose teaching do you profess?" The Blessed One replied:-

Sabbabhibhu sabbaviduhamasami

Sabbesu Dhammesu anupalitto

Sabbinjaho tanhakkhaye vimutto

Sayam Abinnaya kamuddiseyyam.

lings are affected by what is seen or heard, ending up in suffering, the Blessed One transcends all and remains serene, countenance clear).

Who knows all,

I am detached from all things;

Having abandoned every thing, obtained emancipation,

By the destruction of desire.

Having by myself gained knowledge.

Whom should I call my master?

The Blessed One made known his status more emphatically as follows:na me acariyo atthi I have no teacher, sadiso me na vijjati One like me is not, sadevakasmim lokasamin In the world of men and gods, natthi me patipuggalo None is my counterpart.

Upon this Upaka wondered whether the Blessed One had gamed the Arahatship.

The Buddha replied:Aham hi arahda loke Il, indeed, am the Arahat in the world. Aham satthd anuttaro The teacher with no peer, Ekomhi Sammdsambuddho The sole Buddha, supreme, enlightened, Sitibhutosami Nibbuto All passions extinguished, I have gamed

Peace Nibbana.

Upaka then asked the Blessed One where he was bound for and on what purpose. "To start in motion the Wheel of Law, I go to the K4sis" town.

In the world of blind beings, I shall beat the drum of the Deathless," replied the Blessed One. Upon this Upaka querried: - "By the manner in which you profess yourself, are you worthy to be an infinite Conqueror?". And the Buddha said:-

Madis@ ve jin& honti, Ye pattaé Asavakkhayam

jita me papaka Dhamma, tasamahamupaka jino

"Those are the Conquerors who like me have reached the extinction of cankers. I have vanquished all thoughts, ideas, notions of evil (sinfulness). For that reason, Upaka, I am a Jina, a Conqueror, a victorious One."

Upaka belonged to the sect of naked ascetics under the leadership of Nataputta who was addressed by his disciples as Jina. the Conqueror. The Blessed One in his reply was explaining that only those who have really extinguished the cankers, eradicated the defilements, like him, are entitled to be called a Jina.

TRUTH IS NOT SEEN WHEN BLINDED BY MISCONCEPTION

After this declaration by the Blessed One that he was truly an infinite Conqueror, the naked ascetic Upaka muttered, "It may be so, friend", shook his head and giving way to the Blessed One went on his joumey.

It is important to note carefully this event of Upaka's meeting with the Buddha. Here was Upaka coming face to face with a truly Enlightened One but he did not realize it. Even when the Blessed One openly confessed that he was indeed a Buddha, Upaka remained skeptical because he was holding fast to the wrong beliefs of the naked ascetic sect. In these days too there are people who, following wrong paths, refuse to believe when they hear about the right method of practice. They show disrespect to. and talk disparagingly of, those practising and teaching the right method. Such misjudgements arismg out of false impression or opinion should be carefully avoided.

Even though he did not evince complete acceptance of what the Buddha said, Upaka appeared to have gone away with certain amount of faith in the Buddha, as he came back to the Buddha after some time. After leaving Buddha, he later got married to Capa (Chawa), a hunter's daughter and when a son was bom of the marriage, he became weary of the household life and became a recluse under the Blessed One. Practising the Buddha's teaching, he gained the stage of Once-retumer, the Anagami. On passing away

he reached the Realm of Suddavasa Aviha, (Brahma World), where he soon attained Arahatship. Foreseeing this beneficial result which would accrue out of His meeting with Upaka, the Blessed One set out on foot on his long joumey to Benares and answered all the questions asked by Upaka.

ARRIVAL AT ISIPATHANA

When the group of five Bhikkhus saw the Blessed One at a distance coming towards them, they made an agreement amongest themselves saying, "Friends, here comes the monk Gotama who had become self-indulgent, given up the struggle and gone back to a life of luxury; let us not pay homag¢ to him, nor go to greet him and relieve him of his bowl and robes. But as he is of noble birth, we will prepare a seat ready for him. He will sit down if he is so inclined."

But as the Blessed One drew near to them, because of his illustrious glory, they found themselves unable to keep to their agreement. One went to greet him and receive the bowl, the second one took the robe and the third one prepared the seat for him. And another brought water to wash his feet while the other arranged a foot stool. But they all regarded the Blessed One as their equal and addressed him as before ‘by his name Gotama and irreverently with the appellation "my fmend". The Blessed One sat on the prepared seat and spoke to them:

“Bhikkhus, do not address me by name Gotama nor as friend. I have become a Perfect One, worthy of the greatest reverence. Supremely accomplished like the Buddhas of yore, fully Enlightened, Give ear, Bhikkhus, the Deathless has been gained, the Immortal has been won by me. I shall instruct you and teach you the Doctrine. If you practise as imstructed by me, you will in no long time, and in the present life, through your own direct knowledge, realize, enter upon and abide in Arahatship, the Nibbana, the ultimate and the noblest goal of the Holy life for the sake of which clansmen of good families go forth from the household life into

homeless one." Even with this bold assurance, the group of five Bhikkhus remained incredulous and retorted thus: "Friend Gotama, even ‘with the abstemious habits and stern austerities which you practised before, you did not achieve anything beyond meritorious attainments of ordinary men (you were not able to transcend human limitations ... uttarimanussadhamma) nor attain the sublime knowledge and Insight of the Noble Ones which alone can destroy the defilements. Now that you have abandoned the austerity practices and are working for gains and benefits, how will you have attained such distinctions, such higher knowledge?" } This is something to think over. These five Bhikkhus were formerly court astrologers who were fully convinced and had foretold, soon after his birth, that the young Bodhisatta would definitely attain supreme enlightenment. But when the Bodhisatta gave up privation and stem exertions, they had wrongly thought that Buddhahood was no longer possible. It could be said that they no longer believed in their own prophecy. They remained incredulous now that the Blessed One declared uneqivocally that he had won ‘the Deathless, had become a fully Enlightened One, because they held to the wrong notion that extreme austerity was thenght way to Enlightenment. Likewise, nowadays, too, once a wrong notion has been entertained, people hold fast to it and no amount of showing the truth will sway them and make them believe. They even tum against those who attempt to bring them to the right path and speak irreverently and disparagingly of their well-wishers. One should avoid such errors and self-deception.

With great compassion and pity for the group of five Bhikkhus, the Blessed One spoke to them thus:- "Bhikkhus, the Perfect One like those of yore isnot working for worldly gains, has not given up the struggle, has not abandoned the true path which eradicates the defilements: he has not reverted to luxury", and declared again that he had become a Perfect One, worthy of great reverence, supremely accomplished and fully Enlightened. He urged them again to listen to him.