Wednesday, April 1, 2020

No.227 - A Rotten Apple.


A rotten apple

Imagine being part of the Buddha’s community. Your every thoughts, act and deeds is seen through and through. Your intentions, dreams , fantasies and feelings are open to inspections. To be part of the Buddha’s team, means you wear your heart on the sleeve and to be ruthlessly honest in inquiries and to others. One man thought he can get away with it ; let’s see....

Every full moon ,the Buddha would recite the Patimokkha (rules for monks). On that particular day, he absolutely refused to recite : instead the Buddha just sitting there silently. After a few hours Ānanda reminded him again :

“Ānanda, the gathering isn't pure.”

Moggallana was also at the meeting so he use his psychic power to scan the mind of all the present monks.
“He saw that individual — unprincipled, evil, unclean and suspect in his undertakings, hidden in his actions, not a contemplative though claiming to be one, not leading the holy life though claiming to do so, inwardly rotten, oozing with desire, filthy by nature — sitting in the midst of the community of monks. “
Moggallāna approached the guy and told him to leave, three times, but he remained silent. He then picked up the guy and shoved him out and expelled him from the monastery.

From then on, the monks have to recite the Patimokkha themselves. The Buddha said :
“It is impossible, it cannot happen, that a Tathāgata would perform the observance or recite the Pāṭimokkha with an impure gathering.”

Whether we are govern by the monk’s rules or as lay practitioners, we need to know that we have caused harm to others for whatever reasons and ask for pardon. This is to elleviate   the guilt and regret feeling that disturb the mind. Try it : go through your contacts list today and sent a “sorry” messages to all of those you think you may have been a cause for their harm.




Uposatha
https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/ud/ud.5.05.than.html

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