The Curse of Mittavinda
[Chapter 1. Jealousy]
41
Once upon a time, there was a monk who lived in a tiny
monastery in a little village. He was very fortunate as a rich man in the
village supported him in the monastery. He never had to worry about the cares
of the world. His alms food was always provided automatically by the rich man.
The monk was always calm and peaceful, as he had no desire
for greater comforts and pleasures of the world, nor did he have to worry about
losing his comfort and daily meals. He was free to spend his time practising
the correct conduct of a monk - doing wholesome deeds and eliminating his
faults, but he didn’t realise how lucky he was! One day, a more senior monk
came to the village. He had followed the path of Truth and had cultivated
spiritually until he was now perfect and faultless.
When the rich man saw this new monk, he was very pleased by
his gentle manner and calm attitude. He invited him home, and gave him food to
eat. He felt very fortunate to receive a short teaching from him. After that,
he invited him to stay at the village monastery. “I will visit you at the
monastery later in the evening, to make sure all is well,” he said.
When the older monk reached the monastery, he met the village
monk. They greeted each other cordially. “Have you taken your lunch today?”
asked the village monk. “Yes, the supporter of this monastery had offered me
lunch. He also invited me to stay here,” replied the other. The village monk
took him to a room and left him there. The perfect monk passed his time in
meditation. Later that evening, the rich man came. He brought fruit drinks,
flowers and oil lamps, in honour of the visiting holy man. “Where is our
guest?” he asked the village monk. He showed him the room, and the man went in.
He bowed respectfully, and greeted the perfect monk. Again, he was thankful to
the rare, faultless one for giving him another teaching on the Truth. As
evening approached, the rich man lit the lamps and offered flowers at the
monastery’s lovely temple shrine. He also invited both monks to lunch at his
house the next day. Then he left and returned home.
In the evening, a terrible thing happened. The village monk,
who had always been contented, had allowed the poison of jealousy to creep into
his mind. “The rich man provides me with shelter and fills my belly once a day.
But I’m afraid this will change because he respects this new monk so much. If
he remains in this monastery, my supporter may stop caring for me altogether.
Therefore, I must make sure the new monk does not stay.” With these thoughts,
he lost his former tranquility. Because of his jealousy and fear of losing his
food and shelter, his mind became disturbed, and he resented the perfect monk. He
started to plot and scheme to get rid of him. Late that night, as was the
custom of that time, the monks met to end the day. The wise monk spoke in his
usual friendly way, but the village monk would not speak to him at all. The
wise monk understood that he was jealous and resentful. “This monk does not understand
my freedom from attachment to families, people and creature comforts. I am free
of any desire to stay here, but I am also free of any desire to leave here. For
it makes no difference. It is sad this monk cannot understand non-attachment. I
sympathise with him for the price he must pay for his ignorance.”
He returned to his room, closed the door, and meditated in a
high mental state throughout the night. The next day, when it was time to
collect alms food from the supporter of the monastery, the village monk rang the
temple gong. But he rang it by tapping it lightly with his fingernail. Even the
birds in the temple courtyard could not hear the tiny sound. Then, he went to
the older monk’s room and knocked on the door. Again, he only tapped the door
lightly with his fingernail. Even the little mice inside the walls could not
hear the silent tapping.
Having performed his required duty in such a tricky way, he
set off for the rich man’s house. The man bowed respectfully to the village
monk, took his alms bowl and asked, “Where is our visitor?” “I have not seen
him. I rang the gong. I knocked at his door, but he did not appear. Perhaps he
was not used to the rich food you gave him yesterday. Perhaps he is still
asleep, busily digesting the food, dreaming of his next feast!” replied the
village monk.
Meanwhile, back at the monastery, the wise monk woke up. He
cleaned himself and put on his robe. Then he calmly left the monastery to
collect alms food. The rich man offered the village monk the richest food. Made
from rice, milk, butter, sugar and honey, it was delicious and sweet. When the
monk had eaten his fill, the man took his bowl, scrubbed it clean, and
sweetened it with perfumed water. He then filled it up with the same wonderful
food, and gave it back to the monk, saying: “Honourable monk, our holy visitor
must be worn out from travelling. Please take my humble alms food to him.” Saying
nothing, the village monk accepted the generous gift meant for the perfect
monk. By now, the village monk’s mind was trapped by his own jealous scheming.
“If that other monk eats this fantastic meal, even if I grabbed him by the
throat and kicked him out, he still wouldn’t leave! I must get rid of this alms
food secretly. But I can’t give it to a stranger, lest it be discovered and talked
about. I can’t throw it into a pond as the butter will float on the surface and
be detected. And if I throw it away on the ground, crows will come from miles
around to feast the food. People will notice that too. So how can I get rid of
it?” he thought deeply.
All of a sudden, he saw a field that had just been razed by
farmers to enrich the soil. It was covered with hot burning coals. He threw the
rich man’s generous gift on the coals, and the alms food burned up without a
trace! But with this act went his peace of mind too!
When he returned to the monastery, he found the visitor gone.
“He must be a perfectly wise monk, who realised I was jealous and resentful of
him, and afraid of losing my own advantageous position. He must have known I
tried to trick him into leaving. I even wasted alms food meant for him, and all
for the sake of keeping my own belly full! I’m afraid something terrible will
happen to me! What have I done?”
For the rest of his life the rich man continued to support
him. But his mind was filled with torment and suffering. He felt doomed like a
walking starving zombie, or a living hungry ghost. When he died, his torment
continued. He was reborn in a hell world, where he suffered for hundreds of
thousands of years. But the effects of his past unwholesome actions were only
partly completed. When his life as a hell being ended, he was reborn as a demon
for 500 times! In those 500 lives, there was only one day when he had enough to
eat, and that was a meal of afterbirth dropped by a deer in the forest! After
those 500 lives as a demon, he was reborn as a starving stray dog for the next
500! Likewise, these 500 lives were also filled with hunger, worrying and
searching for food. He only had enough to eat once, and that was a meal of
vomit he found in a gutter!
Finally, when most of the effects of his actions were
finished was he fortunate enough to be reborn as a human being. But even then,
he was born into the poorest of the poor beggar families in the city of Kasi,
in northern India, and was given the name, Mittavinda. From the moment he was
born, this poor family became even more worse-off and miserable. The pain of
hunger became so great that a few years later, his parents chased him away. “You
are nothing but a curse! Be gone forever!” They shouted at Mittavinda. Poor
Mittavinda! Because he did not realise how fortunate he was, he had allowed
fear and jealousy to poison his mind when he was a village monk. This, in turn,
led to the unwholesome acts of resentment against a perfect monk, and trickery
committed in denying the faultless one a wholesome gift of alms food. For that
unwholesome act, he suffered unending hunger and loss of comfort for a thousand
and one lives. His own actions of ensuring food and shelter for himself when he
was a village monk had instead brought him great suffering and the very state
he was most afraid of!
[Chapter 2. Greed]
Chased away from home, Mittavinda wandered about and
eventually ended up in Benares. There, he met the Bodhisattva who was a world
famous teacher at that time with 500 students. The people of Benares gave food
to these poor students as an act of charity, and even paid the teacher’s fees
for teaching them. Luckily, Mittavinda was permitted to join them. He began
studying under the great teacher, and at last, had regular meals. But he paid
no attention to the teachings of the wise master. He was disobedient and
violent. Life as a hungry dog for 500 lifetimes had caused him to be
quarrelsome. It had become such a strong habit for him that he constantly got
into fist fights with the other students. It became so bad that many of the
students quit studying. Because of that, the income of the world famous teacher
dwindled down to almost nothing. Finally, Mittavinda was forced to run away
from Benares due to his fighting. He found his way to a small remote village
where he worked as a labourer. He married a very poor woman, and had two
children.
Later, the villagers found out that he had once studied under
the world famous teacher of Benares. They went to him for advice whenever
questions arose. They also provided him with a place to stay near the entrance
of the village. But things did not go well after they started listening to his
advice. The village was fined seven times by the king. Then their houses were
razed to the ground seven times. And seven times the town pond dried up.
They realised that all their troubles began when they started
taking Mittavinda’s advice. So they chased him and his family out of the
village. “Be gone forever! You are nothing but a curse!” they shouted at him. While
they were on the run, they went through a haunted forest. Demons that lurked
around in the shadows came out, and killed and ate his wife and children.
Mittavinda was the only one who escaped. He wandered to a seaport city alone,
penniless and feeling miserable. It happened that a kind and generous rich
merchant stayed in that city. When he heard of Mittavinda’s misfortunes, he and
his wife adopted him as they had no children of their own. They treated him
just like how they would treat their own son.
Mittavinda’s foster mother and father were very religious
people. They constantly performed wholesome acts. But Mittavinda had not
learned his lesson. He did not accept any religion, and so was often committing
unwholesome deeds. One day, some time after his father’s death, his mother
decided to try and help him be a more religious person. “There is this life and
there is a future life. If you do bad things, you will suffer painful results
in both lives,” she said. But foolish Mittavinda replied: “I will do whatever I
enjoy and make myself happy. There is no point considering whether what I do is
wholesome or unwholesome. I don’t care about such things!” On the next full
moon day, Mittavinda’s mother advised him to go to the temple at night to listen
to the teachings of the monks till the next morning. “I wouldn’t waste my
time!” he said. “When you return I will give you 1,000 gold coins,” answered
the mother. Mittavinda thought that with enough money he could enjoy himself
all the time and be happy, so he went to the temple. He sat in a corner, paid
no attention, and fell asleep for the night. Early the next morning, he went
home to collect his reward.
Meanwhile, his mother thought he would appreciate the wise
teachings, and would invite the oldest monk home with him. So she prepared
delicious food for the expected guest. When she saw that he was alone, she
asked: “Oh my son, why didn’t you ask the senior monk to come home with you for
breakfast?” “I did not go to the temple to listen to a monk or to bring him
home with me. I went only to get your 1,000 gold coins!” His disappointed
mother replied: “Never mind the money. Since I have prepared so much food -
have a feast before you rest.” “Until you give me the money, I refuse to eat!”
he answered. She gave him the gold coins. Only then did he gobble up the food
until he was so full he fell fast asleep. But Mittavinda did not think 1,000
gold coins were enough for him to constantly enjoy himself. He used the money
to start a business, and before long he became very rich. One day, he came home
and said to his foster mother: “I now have 120,000 gold coins. But I am still
not satisfied. Therefore, I will board the next ship, go overseas and make even
more money!”
“Oh my son, why do you want to go abroad? The ocean is
dangerous and it is very risky doing business in a strange land. I have 80,000
gold coins right here in the house. That is enough for you. Please don’t go, my
only son!” she pleaded and held onto him to keep him from leaving.
But Mittavinda was crazy with greed. He pushed his mother’s
hand away and slapped her face. She fell to the floor. Hurt and shocked, she
yelled: “Be gone forever! You are nothing but a curse!” Without looking back,
Mittavinda rushed to the harbour and set sail on the first departing ship.
[Chapter 3. Pleasure]
After seven days on the Indian Ocean, all winds and currents
suddenly stopped dead. All on board were terrified they would die after they
were stranded for seven days in the sea. They drew lots to find out who was the
cause of their bad luck and frightening misfortune. And seven times the
shortest lot was drawn by Mittavinda!
They forced him onto a tiny bamboo raft, and set him adrift
on the open sea. “Be gone forever! You are nothing but a curse!” they shouted.
When that was done, a strong wind sent the ship on its way. Fortunately,
Mittavinda’s life was spared. This was the result of his wholesome actions as a
monk, so many lifetimes ago. No matter how long it takes, wholesome actions
always bring positive results. Sometimes, an action causes a mixed result, with
some parts pleasant and some unpleasant. It is said there are Asuras who live
through such mixed results in an unusual way. Asuras are ugly-looking gods.
Some of them are lucky enough to change their form into beautiful, young
dancing female goddesses. These are called Apsaras.
They enjoy the greatest pleasures for seven days, afterwhich
they then descend into a hell world and suffer torments as hungry ghosts for
seven days. When the seven days are up, they become Apsara goddesses again.
This takes place back and forth, back and forth – until both kinds of results
are finished. In our story, while floating on the tiny bamboo raft, Mittavinda
came to a lovely Glass Palace and met four very pretty Apsaras. He indulged
with them in heavenly pleasures for seven days.
When it was time for the goddesses to become hungry ghosts,
they said to Mittavinda: “Wait for us just seven short days, and we will return
and continue our pleasure.” The Glass Palace and the four Apsaras disappeared.
But Mittavinda had not regained the peace of mind he originally had as a
village monk, so very long ago. Seven days of pleasure had not satisfied him.
He could not wait for the lovely goddesses to return. He craved for more. So he
left and continued on, in the little bamboo raft. Lo and behold, he came to a
shining Silver Palace. Eight beautiful Apsara goddesses lived in that palace.
Again, he enjoyed seven days of the greatest pleasures. These Apsaras also asked
him to wait for them, and disappeared into a hell world.
But greedy Mittavinda couldn’t wait! He left, and amazing as
it may seem, came upon a sparkling Jewel Palace with 16 gorgeous Apsaras. He
spent the next seven days in the greatest of bliss. But when they too had to
leave, he went on to spend the following seven days in a glowing Golden Palace
with 32 of the most alluring Apsaras of all. But still he was not satisfied!
When all 32 asked him to wait, he again departed on his raft. Soon, he came to
the entrance of a hell world filled with tortured beings in great suffering. They
were living out the negative karma they had created for themselves. But his
desire for pleasure was so strong that Mittavinda thought he saw a beautiful
city surrounded by a wall with four fabulous gates. “I will go inside and make
myself king!” he thought. After he entered, he saw one of the victims of this
hell world. He had a collar around his neck that spun like a wheel, with five
sharp blades cutting into his face, head, chest and back.
But Mittavinda was so blinded by his greed for pleasure that
he could not see the pain right before his eyes. Instead, he saw the spinning
collar of cutting blades as if it were a lovely lotus blossom. He saw the
dripping blood as if it were the red powder of perfumed sandal - wood. And the
screams of pain from the poor victim sounded like the sweetest of songs! He
said to the poor man: “You’ve had that lovely lotus crown long enough! Give it
to me, for I deserve to wear it now.” The condemned man warned him: “This is a
collar of blades.”
“You only say that because you don’t want to give it up,”
answered Mittavinda.
The victim thought, “At last the negative results of my past
unwholesome deeds must be completed. Like me, this poor fool must be here for
striking his mother. I will give him the wheel of pain.” “Since you want it so
badly, take the lotus crown!” he said. With these words, the wheel of blades
spun off the former victim’s neck and began spinning around the head of
Mittavinda. Suddenly, all the illusions disappeared. Mittavinda realized this
was not a beautiful city, but a terrible hell world; he knew this was no lotus
crown, but a cutting wheel of blades; and he knew he was not king, but
prisoner. Groaning in pain he cried out desperately: “Take back your wheel!
Take back your wheel!” But the other one had disappeared. Just then, the king
of gods arrived for a visit to teach in the hell world. “Oh king of gods, what
have I done to deserve this torment?” asked Mittavinda. The god replied:
“Refusing to listen to the teachings of monks, you obtained no wisdom, only
money. Even then 1,000 gold coins, not even 120,000, could satisfy you. Blinded
by greed, you struck your mother on your way to amassing greater wealth.
“Then, the pleasure of four Apsaras in their Glass Palace did
not satisfy you. Neither eight Apsaras in a Silver Palace, nor 16 in a Jewel
Palace. Not even the pleasure of 32 exquisite goddesses in a Golden Palace was
enough for you! Blinded by greed for pleasure you wished to be king. Now at
last, you see your crown is only a wheel of torture, and your kingdom is a hell
world.” “Learn this, Mittavinda - all who follow their greed wherever it leads
are left unsatisfied. For it is in the nature of greed to be dissatisfied with
what one has, whether a little or a lot. The more obtained, the more desired -
until the circle of greed becomes the circle of pain.” Having said this, the
god returned to the heavens. At the same time the wheel crashed down on
Mittavinda. With his head spinning in pain, he found himself adrift on the tiny
bamboo raft. Soon, he came to an island inhabited by a powerful she-devil that
happened to be in the disguise of a goat. Hungry, Mittavinda thought nothing of
grabbing the goat by its hind leg. The she-devil kicked him way up into the
air. Finally, he landed in a thorn bush on the outskirts of Benares! After he
untangled himself from the thorns, he saw some goats grazing nearby. He wanted very
badly to return to the palaces and to the dancing Apsaras. Remembering that a
goat had kicked him here, he grabbed the leg of one of these goats. He hoped it
would kick him right back to the island. Instead, this goat only bleated. The
shepherds came and captured Mittavinda for trying to steal one of the king’s
goats.
As he was being taken to the king as a prisoner, they passed
by the world famous teacher of Benares. Immediately, he recognised his student.
“Where are you taking this man?” he asked the shepherds. “He is a goat thief!
We are taking him to the king for punishment!” they replied. “Please don’t do
so. He is one of my students. Release him to me, so he can be a servant in my school,”
requested the teacher. They agreed and left him there. “What happened to you
after you left me?” asked the teacher. Mittavinda recounted his story, how he
was first respected, and then cursed by the people of the remote village. He
told his teacher of his marriage and his two children, only to see them killed
and eaten by demons in the haunted forest. He told him of slapping his generous
foster mother when he was blinded by greed, or how he was cursed by his
shipmates and cast adrift on a bamboo raft. He also told his teacher of the
four palaces with their stunning goddesses, and how each time his pleasure
ended he was left craving for more.
He told him of the crown of blades - the reward for the
greedy in hell. And he told him of his hunger which only got him kicked back to
Benares without even a bite to eat! “It is clear that your past actions have
caused both positive and negative results, and both are completed. But you do
not realise that pleasures have to come to an end someday. Instead, you allow
your desire and greed for pleasures to grow, only to be left exhausted and
unsatisfied! Calm down, my friend. Understand that trying to hold water in a
tight fist,
will always leave you thirsty!” taught the wise teacher. Hearing
this, Mittavinda bowed respectfully to the great teacher. He begged for the
teacher to accept him as a student again, and the Bodhisattva welcomed him with
open arms.
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