Chapter 37
(c) Morality of An UpÈsaka
His morality is the observance of the Five Moral Precepts. (Relevant examples contained
in the SaÑyutta NikÈya.)
(d) Livelihood of An UpÈsaka
His livelihood excludes the five kinds of wrong trades: (1) trade in arms, (2) trade in
human beings, (3) trade in meat and fish, (4) trade in alcohol, and (5) trade in poison.
Avoiding these five wrong trades, he earns his living righteously by tending cattle, buying
and selling goods and farming.
(e) Failure of An UpÈsaka
His failure lies in the destruction of his observance of the Five Precepts and right
livelihood. (If his observance of the precept is impaired or if he earns his living by taking
up one of the five wrong trades, his life as an
upÈsaka
is ruined.) Moreover, there are five
things that make his life rough, nasty and disgusting: (1) lack of faith, (2) lack of morality,
(3) performance of and indulgence in worldly rites and rituals with regard to what has been
seen, heard or experienced as conceived by the foolish and the ignorant, (4) disbelief in the
Law of Kamma and belief in rituals, and (5) performance of good deeds in the Order of the
Buddha only after seeking recipients in the sects of the heretics. (These five deeds lead an
upÈsaka
to his failure.) (Examples in the A~guttara NikÈya.)
(f) Success of An UpÈsaka
His success consists in the fulfilment of his morality and right livelihood. (He is an
upÈsaka
as long as his morality and right livelihood remain intact.) Besides, if he maintains
the following five practices, he is said to be successful as an
upÈsaka
. The five practices
are: (1) faith that makes one an
upÈsaka
comparable to a jewel, an
upÈsaka
comparable to a
paduma lotus, and an
upÈsaka
comparable to a
puÓÉarika
lotus; (2) unimpaired morality;
(3) non-indulgence in earthly rituals; (4) belief in one's own deeds good and bad; (5)
performance of good deeds in the Order of the Buddha before seeking recipients in the
systems of the heretics. These five lead to an
upÈsaka
to his success. (Examples in the
A~guttara NikÈya.)
King AjÈtasattu's Loss and Gain
Not long after the King's AjÈtasattu's departure the Buddha addressed the monks:
‚Monks, the King has destroyed his own position. Monks, if King AjÈtasattu had not killed
his father, King BimbisÈra, the righteous monarch, who ruled his kingdom lawfully, the
SotÈpatti Path-Wisdom would have occurred to him on the spot. (He would have become a
sotÈpanna-ariya
.)‛
The Buddha added: ‚Monks, if he had not put his father to death, he would have attained
the SotÈpatti
Path while seated here as he heard this SÈmaÒÒa-phala Sutta. But now, on
account of his association with his wicked friend, his potentiality to attain that Path has
been injured. Nevertheless, since he has taken refuge in the Triple Gem and since his
refuge which is my threefold Teaching is supreme, he may be compared to a man who,
after having been sentenced to death for murder, escapes the death penalty by getting good
support and by giving just a handful of flowers (as a small fine). Although he ought to
suffer in the AvÊci hell for his heinous crime of parricide, he will suffer only in the
LohakumbhÊ hell after his death, for he has the good support in My Teaching. He will land
in that hell and remain there for thirty thousand years and come up and stay on the surface
for thirty thousand years. Then (after sixty thousand years) he will be released from
LohakumbhÊ.
(Herein AjÈtasattu's gain will be mentioned according to the Commentary. One
may asked: ‚Had he benefited from his hearing of the SÈmaÒÒa-phala Sutta?‛)
The answer is: Yes, he had, and his benefit is enormous. Since the moment of his
parricide he had known no sleep, by day or by night, for there appeared to him