II: The Rare Appearance of a Buddha – 22
been widespread prior to the Buddha’s appearance, both Anāthapiṇḍika and Sela
must have heard before of the false claim of the six teachers to be Buddhas.
They were Pūraṇa Kassapa, Makkhali Gosāla, Ajita Kesakambala,
Pukudha Kaccāyana, Nigaṇṭha Nāṭaputta and Sañjaya Belaṭṭhaputta.
Cha-
satthara
in Pāḷi simply means “six teachers.” They were all ascetics
(
samaṇa
) and non-brahmanical teachers and contemporaries of the
Buddha but older in age.
But just as the sound of the word ‘diamond’, only when spoken of a genuine one,
would please one who can differentiate between a genuine diamond and a fake
one; so also, to such men of highly developed intelligence as Anāthapiṇḍika and
Sela, the utterance Buddha could have been delightful only when spoken of the
true Buddha.
Just as taking a fake diamond to be genuine by unworthy persons of poor
intelligence is a wrong notion, even so taking their masters, the six heretical
teachers, to be genuine Buddhas by those who followed them was a wrong and
harmful conclusion
[10]
(
micchādhimokkha)
.
In order to appreciate more profoundly the rare phenomenon of a Buddha’s
appearance in the world, it is important to know briefly at the beginning the
following matters concerning a Bodhisatta and a Buddha:
1. A being destined to attain Awakening (
Bodhisatta
).
2. The daily duties of a Bodhisatta (
Bodhisatta-kicca
).
3. A Supreme Being who has fulfilled the duties of a Bodhisatta and has
consequently attained Awakening (
Buddha
).
4. The daily duties of a Buddha (
Buddha-kicca
).
1. Bodhisatta
The fourfold insight knowledge of the path (
magga-ñāṇa
) with or without
accompaniment of omniscience (
sabbaññutā-ñāṇa
) is called Awakening (
Bodhi
).
The four noble truths are: 1) the truth of suffering (
dukkha
), 2) the origin
of suffering (
dukkha-samudaya
), 3) the cessation of suffering (
dukkha-
nirodha
) and 4) the path leading to the cessation of suffering (
dukkha-
nirodha-gāminī paṭipadā
).