King Milindu (Menander I) & Arahanth Nagasena (Part 10)
From TheBuddhism.Net
King Milindu continued with his 5th question…
Venerable Sir, It is said that the great king ‘Sivi’ donated his eyes to a blind beggar and the king obtained divine eyes in return. How so?
Dear King, the great king Sivi donated his eyes to God Shakra, who came in disguise as a blind beggar and requested for them, with generosity wishing for Buddha Hood. The king dwelled in happiness thinking about his great sacrifice for days.
Seeing the struggle King Sivi was undergoing due to blindness, God Shakra appeared before him with compassion and said, “ Reverend Bodhisathwa, I came from Heaven seeing your inconvenience due to blindness. But I cannot give you eyes. You can gain your sight back by the power of your alms giving”.
The great king Sivi hearing this made a declaration on oath, “I found great happiness by donating my eyes. By this truth, may I get divine eyes!” The king got sight by which he could see far away.
Dear King, when there is no flesh in the eyes, one can never gain sight. What the great king Sivi got was a meditative divine eye. A second sight through improved meditation.
King Milindu’s 6th question was…
Venerable Sir, our Gautama Buddha had said to Reverend Ananda that the Buddhist Order would survive in this world for five thousand years. If so, why did he say that the world would not be empty of Arahanths if the bhikkus of his order would follow the practice of Buddhism properly, to the wandering ascetic Subadra during the last period of his life?
Dear King, our great Buddha said to Reverend Ananda that his teachings would have survived in this world for ten thousand years if the women were not ordained and now it would survive only for five thousand years. Our Gautama Buddha then preached about the extinction of the Buddhist order and the remaining period of it in the world, to the gods and the humans; akin to a person who has lost his wealth due to a disaster and says that he lost this much of wealth and has only this much remaining.
In the same way, our Gautama Buddha said to the wandering ascetic Subadra that his Buddhist Order would survive and this world would not be barren with Arahanths as long as his bhikkus abide by the practice of Buddhism properly. Similar to, a lake full of cool water which is filled regularly with rain and never dries up; or a blazing fire which flares more and more with the constant addition of dried grass and dried cow dung and never goes out; the Order of Buddhism exists and shines on Buddhist practice.
For sometime after our Gautama Buddha’s ‘Parinirvana’ (death), there would beArahanths in this world. Later on, there only would be ‘Non-Returners’ (Anagami); much later, only ‘Once-Returners’ (Sakadagami) and near the end of the Buddhist order in the world, there only would be ‘Stream-Enterers’(Sotapanna). After the death of the last ‘Stream-Enterer’, the comprehensibility of the Dhamma (attainment) disappears.
The Bhikkus would not be able to realize the ‘path & fruition’ from meditation and stick to living only a life of self control. Later on, they would adhere to observing the precepts only. After sometime, the minor rules would be broken and no one would try to correct them. Then, the time would be for the Bhikkus who do not meditate or cleanse their virtue. The pupils of such Bhikkus would be the same; but nonetheless would be ordained. Those corrupt bhikkus would not listen to Dhamma or understand Dhamma. They would only gain the knowledge of the unwarranted and would not care to learn or abide by Dhamma. They would only think of the ways to increase their possessions by slackening the rules of the Buddhist Order. With the last monk in this category, practice of Buddhism (observing Dhamma) would disappear from the world.
In the future, the rulers, ministers, citizens would be unjust and wicked. Rains would not come on time. Farming would be ruined. People would not be able to offer the four essentials (sivu pasa) to monks. The monks would not be able to teach our great Buddha’s preachings due to starvation. They would not be able to remember the entire Buddhist Pali Canon, but only remember the basics. Later on they wouldn’t be able to remember even the basics of Buddhism. The teachings and the discipline of Buddhism would deteriorate.
The day, when a righteous ruler send an elephant thrice around the city with great wealth tied to its back asking for four sentences of Buddha’s teachings in return, and cries with great sorrow when he cannot find one who could impart that knowledge is the day that learning Dhamma vanishes from the face of this Earth.
Much later, the monks would tie a small yellow band around their head, neck or hand and call themselves ordained. They would live with their wives and children from agriculture and trade. People would give alms to those corrupt monks on behalf of virtuous monks of the Gautama Buddha period to gain merit. Those alms giving too are meritorious. Later, these corrupt monks would tear off those yellow bands saying that they are useless and go about their daily lives. That is the day; the guise of Buddhist priesthood vanishes from this world.
Our Great Buddha’s relics would survive for five thousand years. When the relics are neglected; they would leave for a place where they would be revered as our Great Buddha wished at his deathbed. Later, there wouldn’t be a place where they would be revered. It would be the time when all the relics of Buddha which has been distributed all over the world for the benefit of the world, appear at the great ‘Bodhi tree’ and give rise to a Buddha’s image. Seeing it, the deities, gods and brahmas would become grief-stricken knowing that it would be the day of the passing away of all the relics of Buddha from the face of this Earth. Amidst their rituals and veneration, the relics would be destroyed by the fire produced by the power of our Gautama Buddha’s wish at his death bed. That is the day that the Buddhist Order would disappear from the world.
To be continued…
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That is what is ahead of us for Buddhism, lets practice well and get some results before the dharma completely disappears from our planet.