Emotion and Pain by Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche
Category:
Teachings
Through many years of contemplation and penance, Siddhartha remained steadfast in his determination to find the root cause of suffering and to ease his own suffering and the suffering of others. He headed to Magadha, in the heart of India, to continue his meditation.
Along the way he met a grass seller named Sotthiya, who offered him a handful of kusha grass. Siddhartha recognized this as an auspicious sign; in ancient Indian culture, kusha grass was considered a cleansing substance. Instead of continuing his journey, he decided to stop and meditate right there. He found a place to sit on the flat stones under a nearby ficus religiosa tree, using the kusha grass as a mat. Silently he vowed, This body may rot, I may disintegrate into the dust, but until I find the answer, I will not rise.
As Siddhartha sat in contemplation beneath the tree, he did not go unnoticed. Mara, the king of the demons, heard Siddhartha’s vow and sensed the strength of his resolve. Mara grew sleepless, for he knew that within Siddhartha existed the potential to throw his entire domain into chaos. Being a strategic warrior, he sent five of his most beautiful daughters to distract and seduce the prince. As the girls (we call them apsaras, or nymphs) set out, they had full confidence in their seductive talents.
But as they approached the meditating Siddhartha, their beauty began to vanish. They withered and aged, they grew warts, and a stench rose from their skin. Siddhartha did not stir. The dejected apsaras returned to their father, who was furious. How dare anyone refuse his daughters! In his rage, Mara summoned his retinue, a great army furnished with every imaginable weapon.
Mara’s army attacked in full force. But to their dismay, all the arrows, spears, stones, and catapults aimed at Siddhartha transformed into a rain of flowers as soon as they came within reach of their target. After many long hours of unsuccessful warfare, Mara and his army were exhausted and defeated. Finally Mara came to Siddhartha and, with all his diplomacy, tried to talk him into giving up his quest.
Siddhartha said he could not give up after all these lifetimes of trying. Mara asked, How can we be so sure you have been struggling for so long? Siddhartha answered, I don’t need validation, the earth is my witness, and with this he touched the ground, the earth shook, and Mara evaporated into thin air.
Thus Siddhartha found liberation and became a buddha. He had discovered the path to end suffering at its very root, not only for himself but for all people. The place of his final battle against Mara is now called Bodh Gaya, and the tree under which he sat is called “the bodhi tree.”
This is the story that Buddhist mothers have told their children for many generations.
Source:
What Makes You Not a Buddhist -
Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse -
Shambhala Publications, Inc.
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