Rich Men with Inexhaustible Resources – 2270 

 

realization of the Dhamma which the Paccekabuddha had realized.” Thus, while 
the younger brother aspired to glorious existence in the Deva realm and the 
human world, and then the realization of Nibbāna; the elder brother aspired to 
becoming an Arahat straight away. These were the past aspirations of the two 
brothers. 

Another Round of Existence as Householder Brothers 

The two brothers lived to the full lifespan of the times. After passing away from 
that existence they were reborn in the Deva realm during the interim period of 
innumerable years, an infinite period between the time of Buddha Phussa and 
that of Buddha Vipassī. While they were still living in the Deva realm, Buddha 
Vipassī appeared in the world. They passed away from that Deva existence and 
were reborn as two brothers in the family of a householder in Bandumatī. The 
elder brother was reborn as the elder one and the younger as the younger again. 
The elder brother was named Sena, the younger, Aparājita, by their parents. 

When they came of age, they succeeded to their family estate. As they were 
managing the family affairs, there arose a clamour of noises throughout the city 
of Bandumatī, such as: “Virtuous persons, the Buddha, the Dhamma and the 
Saṅgha have appeared in the world, like the sun and the moon! Give in 
generosity! Perform deeds of merit! Today is the eighth day of the month, an 
Observance Day (

Uposatha

). Today is the fourteenth day of the month, an 

Observance Day. Today is the fifteen day of the month, an Observance Day. 
Keep the Observance Day precepts. Listen to the expositions of the Dhamma.” 

These exhortations were ringing through the city on the appropriate days. They 
were made by devout disciples of the Buddha. And the people would piously 
respond. In the morning, they would make alms giving and in the afternoon they 
would go to the Buddha’s monastery to listen to his sermons. Sena joined the 
devotees in going to the Buddha’s monastery to listen to his discourse. He sat at 
the end of the audience. 

Buddha Vipassī knew the devout tendency of Sena the householder and taught a 
discourse in the usual graduated levels beginning from the merit in giving, the 
merit in morality, and so on. At the end of that discourse, Sena was so 
enthusiastic about taking up the religious life that he requested the Buddha to 
admit him into the Saṅgha, the Buddha said to him: “Lay supporter, are there 
relatives whose permission you need to obtain?”