DHAMMAPADA LEADING TO NIRVANA – LEAD CAKKHUPĀLA – VIETNAMESE TRANSFER PROFESSIONAL.VIETNAMESE TRANSLATE ENGLISH BY=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=THE WOMEN OF THE SAKYA CLAN CHAN TANH. The Elder Cakkhupāla This is a story that happened in the present Buddha, when he was staying at the Jetavana temple, near the city of Sāvatthi. In this city of Sāvatthi, there was a rich man named Mahāsuvaṇṇa who, when he died, left behind two sons, the eldest being Mahāpāla and the youngest named Cūḷapāla. Although Mahāpāla and Cūḷapāla are brothers and sisters, their way of seeing and knowing the world is completely different. While Mahāpāla saw knowing upstream; Cūḷapāla saw that he knew downstream. Upstream that is worldly output; To go downstream is to let go of the world. While upstream is the work of the noble, ordinary people indulge in downstream. And while Mahāpāla finds flavor in suffering and sacrifice; Cūḷapāla again finds a taste in enjoyment. However, the two brothers loved and cherished each other very much. One day, Mahāpāla went to Jetavana temple to listen to the Buddha preach. The sermon preached that day was a sermon given according to Mahāpāla's deep wish. In this sermon, the theory of giving is also there; the theory of keeping the precepts also; the theory of heaven also exists; the theory of the danger, pollution of the world also; and there is also the theory of worldly good benefits. Mahāpāla was not a poor man, but a rich man who inherited his net worth from his parents. Although he inherited such wealth, he did not indulge in it. Worldly possessions are those obtained by borrowing. The more wealth and property, the more debt binds. These debts are called fruit debt (vipāka), karmic debt (kamma), and defilement debt (kilesā). These things were understood by the Mahāpāla, by listening to the Dharma at Jetavana temple. Thanks to wisdom, Mahāpāla understood that "life is only a life of repayment". Debt is also payable. Life also has to escape. Mahāpāla decided so. Mahāpāla, after returning home from Jetavana temple, summoned his younger brother Cūḷapāla to hand over all of his possessions, and also voiced his decision to leave life. Deep in his mind, Mahāpāla understood that, in order to get rid of the debt of life in the end, there is only ordination in the teaching of Gotama Buddha. Cūḷapāla, after hearing the decision of his eldest brother, Mahāpāla, was very frightened and trembled. “Although I will inherit my brother's estate, this inheritance is not fun for me, it is the beginning of a painful separation that will follow. When my mother passed away, I was as attached to my eldest brother as my mother. And when my father passed away, too, I relied on my eldest brother like a father. In fact, the eldest brother is both a brother, a mother, and a father at the same time.” Because of thinking like that, Cūḷapāla used all his understanding, analysis of cause and effect, and benefits to advise, by all means, to prevent his eldest brother Mahāpāla from leaving home. Dear all! There are many possessions in the house. With that amount of wealth, staying at home can also create merit. It is also possible to give alms, to do charity, to support the Sangha, and to keep the precepts. Therefore, there is no need to become ordained in the Buddha's teachings. And if you feel that it is impossible not to leave home, you should leave the home life when you are old. Mahāpāla both loved Cūḷapāla as a brother and was attached as a son. Therefore, I would like to advise, and if possible, that both brothers ordained together in Buddhism, to try together to practice the dharma of liberation from birth and death. However, the youngest brother Cūḷapāla does not think so, does not see life as boring, but only sees life with many pleasures, .... Finally, Mahāpāla gave all his possessions to his youngest brother Cūḷapāla to inherit, then went to the Jetavana temple where the Buddha was staying, and asked to be ordained. Let Cūḷapāla stay and weep bitterly. Mahāpāla, after leaving home, lived with a priest who taught all things big and small every day, after 5 years, he came to the Buddha to ask about the duties of a monastic. When answered by the Buddha, there were only two functions: studying, teaching the Tripitaka and practicing vipassanā (meditation meditation). Mahāpāla, because of his old age, had just left home, so it was difficult for him to shoulder the responsibility of studying and teaching the Tripitaka, and could only shoulder the responsibility of practicing vipassanā practice, so he respectfully asked the Buddha to lecture on the subject of vipassanā practice. The Buddha preached the subject of vipassanā meditation, which Mahāpāla could attain to Arhatā, the fruition, according to the conditions and virtues of Mahāpāla. Mahāpāla and 60 holy initiates went to a village near the border, 120 do-weeks away from the city of Sāvatthi (120 yojana: about 2,000 km) to practice the monastic practice together. When practicing the practice of the monastic, in 4 positions, he gave up the lying position, using only 3 positions of walking, standing, and sitting to practice. Mahāpāla never lay down to sleep, never laid his back on the plane. Because he never slept, at the end of June, at the beginning of the seventh lunar month, the Elder Mahāpāla had an eye disease. Like water flowing from a pot with a hole in it, tears always flowed from the Elder's eyes. Thera Mahāpāla diligently practiced the practice of the monastic for three hours. It was not until dawn that the Elder entered the cup (vent) to rest (not lie down). Fellow initiates, upon learning that Elder Mahāpāla had an eye disease, wished the Elder to be treated. And they also know that there is a doctor who specializes in treating eye diseases, who has requested in accordance with the precepts to them, to treat anyone who is sick. They said to the Elder, if allowed, they would invite a physician to examine the Elder's illness, and the Elder agreed. When informed by the Elder Mahāpāla's fellow initiates, the physician prepared the medicine and gave detailed instructions on how to use it, and then sent eye drops to the Elder. The physician did not come directly to the treatment. According to the doctor's instructions, when instilling the medicine, you must lie on your back and put the medicine in your eyes. However, since practicing the practice of the monastic, the Elder Mahāpāla has vowed never to lie down, whether on his side or on his back…. Therefore, the Elder Mahāpāla must have a choice, between instructions on how to instill medicine and vows to practice. Thera Mahāpāla did not give up his vows of practice, so when the medicine was applied, he was still sitting and instilled in his eyes. In matters of worldly proposal, the vow to practice is always more important than the doctor's way of instilling medicine. Because, if you don't follow the doctor's instructions, you can only have eye pain that won't go away. As for the practice vows that cannot be kept, the worldly results will become more distant. While the main, important purpose of the Elder Mahāpāla was the matter of worldliness. When the Elder Mahāpāla entered the village for alms, the physician met the Elder and asked: Dear Elder! I have sent eye drops to treat eye pain to the Elder, did the Elder use the drops? Hey doctor! There is a small amount of medicine. So, is the disease in remission, Elder? Hey doctor, no relief at all. So when the medicine is instilled, does the Elder sit down or lie down and then be small, Elder? When the physician asked this question, the Elder Mahāpāla did not answer. But the physician still did not ignore, asked over and over again. Elder Mahāpāla also did not give up, patiently did not respond to a word. In the end, the physician knew he couldn't ask, so he asked the Elder to continue begging for alms, and went to the temple himself to check. When he reached the monastery (cup) of the Elder Mahāpāla, he did not see a place to lie down, only a seat and a place to walk. In fact, if you follow the instructions of this doctor who specializes in treating eye pain, just one drop can make your eye pain completely go away. However, the Elder Mahāpāla did not follow the instructions properly. The elder cannot break his oath. Even the question of sitting or lying down did not answer. This question is also consistent with the precepts of the monastic. But as a bhikkhu, it is not good to say anything related to your practice. The physician highly respected the Elder Mahāpāla, also wished to cure the Elder's eye pain, and also wished the Elder to practice well the practice of the monastic. Therefore, he asked the Elder many times, to lie down and apply eye drops, and even earnestly begged the Elder. However, the Elder still did not listen. The noble ones of wisdom never give up their pāramī (noble deeds). To achieve a job, it is necessary to have 4 basic and essential factors. Those four factors are called iddhipāda: achievement. There must be a strong desire to achieve the goal; must have ceaseless efforts; must have the mind, the spirit is firm and unshakable; and must have sufficient intellectual capacity. If with these 4 basic factors as the foundation and then perform the task, whether it is worldly or extra-worldly work, it will certainly one day achieve the final goal. In a certain day here, in the sense of 'in a certain day' the other four factors of attainment (idhhipāda) are not interrupted. Because if the four achievement factors are interrupted, then it has to start from "one" again. And then, "in a certain day" remains always in the never-ending state of the so-called "someday". For the Elder Mahāpāla, whose duty to practice the dharma of liberation with the aim of escaping the world, the Elder did not want to start from the beginning (one), just wanted to always move forward. Therefore, the Elder did not give up his practice vows to lie down and apply the medicine, just sit down to instill the medicine. Therefore, eye pain does not improve, but gets worse. The doctor who specialized in treating eye pain was also afraid of losing his credibility, and in the end could not convince the Elder, so he explained that: Dear Elder! If the elder cannot follow your child's instructions for taking medicine, the illness cannot be cured. From this day on, I will no longer make eye drops to treat the Elder's illness. And also ask the Elder to stop seeing me as the physician who treated the Elder's eyes. After explaining, the physician also stopped treating the Elder since then. Thera Mahāpāla was not only undaunted, but also more diligent in his duty of diligently practicing vipassanā. Therefore, even in the last watch of the night (near morning) of that day, the Elder's eyes were blinded, and at the same time, all the latent afflictions also dissipated, neither before nor after. At that time, it was also the time when the Elder Mahāpāla attained attainment of becoming an Arhat Saint, freed from the world, no longer bound in life. And from then on, the Elder Mahāpāla was called by his new name, the Elder Cakkhupāla. Elder Cakkhupāla, when he was blind in his eyes, could no longer enter the village for alms as before. Other virtuous fellow initiates, including 60, took turns doing the big and small tasks that needed to be done to the Elder. They also go for alms and bring it back to the Elder to use. The faithful, when they learned that the noble Elder had lost his eyes, also took turns bringing food to the temple to offer to the Elder. These 60 companions, having been close to and listening to the teachings of the Elder Cakkhupāla, should approach the day of Mahāpavāraṇā (the full moon day of the 9th lunar month), all of them have attained the status of Ará Saints. - noble Han. After the summer, (after the full moon of the 9th lunar month) 60 Arhats, reported to the Elder Cakkhupāla, returned to Jetavana temple, near the city of Sāvatthi, to pay respects to the Buddha. The Elder Cakkhupala said: Dear friends and companions of the holy life! If I go with you, it is not convenient for you, nor is it convenient for me. There you go, go ahead. First, please send my homage to the Blessed One and the eighty-eighty Arhats of the Great Sravakas. After that, please inform my brother Cūḷapāla that I am blind, in order to return to Jetavana temple near the city of Sāvatthi, I hope that my brother will send someone to pick me up. Sixty Arhats and fellow holy ones returned to Jetavana temple, paid homage to the Blessed One, and 80 great sravakas, and presented the words of the Elder Cakkhupāla. The next morning, on their way to begging for food, passing by their brother Cūḷapāla's house, they repeated the message of the Elder Cakkhupāla and further instructed them on how to pick them up. Wealthy Cūḷapāla y according to the teachings of 60 Arhats, in order to avoid dangers on the way to pick them up, he ordered his nephew Pālita to leave home as a novice, to set out to bring his uncle back. The novice, when he came to see the Elder Cakkhupāla, explained everything clearly, then took a stick to lead the Elder away. The two of them set off together to return to the Jetavana temple near the city of Sāvatthi, on that 120-do-week journey. On the way back, they passed the village of Kaṭṭhanagara. When leaving the village, crossing a forest, listening to the singing of the girl gathering firewood, the novice had aroused sexual desire, so he asked the Elder to rest for a while, while I went to the girl to pick it up. firewood. The novice and the girl did the wrong thing. The elder thought: "I heard the singing a while ago, now I don't hear it anymore, and Mr. Sa-di also left for a long time, surely Mr. Sa-di and the girl did something wrong. The novice probably broke the precepts.” The novice, after finishing his work, returned and respectfully asked the Elder to continue his journey. The Master then asked: Hey, Sa-di, you broke the precepts, when you did wrong with that girl, didn't you? The novice did not answer. The Master asked over and over again. The novice remained silent. Elder Cakkhupāla chased the novice monk away, not allowing him to hold his stick anymore. The novice novice, because he loved and worried about the monk who was blind, was in the middle of the forest, so he cried and apologized urgently. If I am a novice, I will not be able to hold a stick, I will return to the world, become a lay person to be able to take the stick to lead the Master, the novice continued to plead. The elder still refused to accept. At that time, the novice monk deeply regretted, knelt down and weptly bowed to the beloved Master and left for the forest. If, thinking only of one's own benefit and development, tolerant of bad people, or associating with people who go against the path of one's practice, that is not the work of the good ones. noble mind. That is what the Elder Cakkhupāla wants to set an example for in the future. Elder Cakkhupāla was blind in both eyes. In this arduous route, life can be dangerous. As the nephew explained, and the Elder himself knows it. However, the Elder Cakkhupāla did not value life, only the spread of the Dharma in the world. For example, people do not accept a bit of feces on the upper plate of rice. Oh! That is also the way of life of the Wise Ones! Thera Cakkhupāla had no companion on the perilous and arduous journey. The eyes do not see the way. However, in this world, the guardians of the true dharma are the same, present at all times, everywhere, to protect each other. The mighty power of the Dharma, who can stop it! In the end, the heavenly King Sakka transformed into a passenger, and brought the Elder to Jetavana temple near the city of Sāvatthi. After taking the Elder to the net room (cup) that the rich Cūḷapāla built ready to make offerings to the Elder. The king of heaven informed the Elder's younger brother, the wealthy Cūḷapāla, that the Elder had arrived at the temple. It is true that the wise are always protected by gods, due to the majesty of the practice (practice). Therefore, it is enough just to become a wise person in life. The younger brother, the wealthy Cūḷapāla, when he heard the news, went to visit his brother, the Elder Cakkhupāla. When he saw his brother's life like that, he collapsed at the Elder's feet and wept bitterly. Crying and lamenting that, in the past, he had prevented him from leaving home, but he did not listen! Now, because of renunciation, life suffers like that! etc…. In fact, because Cūḷapāla can only understand the peace brought by the feeling (feeling) 'vedayitasukha', but cannot understand the peace brought by the silence (peace) 'santisukha', that's why he lamented. such blame. Only the peace that comes from being quiet and peaceful is the real peace; But the peace that comes from feeling, is just another form, a variation of suffering. The younger brother, the wealthy Cūḷapāla, wholeheartedly took care of his brother, the Elder Cakkhupāla. Having exempted two people from being a servant, allowing them to leave home as novices with the Elder, then stay by the Elder's side to take care of them every day, doing big and small duties to the Elder. Indeed, the rich man Cūḷapāla has fulfilled his responsibilities and duties as a brother to him. When the Buddha was still present, there was a tradition that, although the bhikkhus went to live in summer (June 16 of the lunar calendar) everywhere, but when they left the summer (after the full moon of the 9th lunar month), the They all returned to the place where the Buddha was to pay respects. According to that tradition, when the Buddha was staying at the Jetavana temple, the bhikkhus returned to see him in large numbers. Those bhikkhus often visited and paid respects to the Buddha and the 80 Great Sravakas. Then tour around the Jetavana temple and see the small retreats (cups) of other monks living there. When the monks were walking around the temple, they came to the monastery of the Elder Cakkhupāla, because it was raining heavily, so they stopped there. The tour around the temple that day had to stop, could not continue. The rain lasted until midnight before it stopped completely and the sky was clear again. Thera Cakkhupāla, in the last watch of the night (2am to 6am), walked around the monastery. Due to wet rain, small insects such as moths, termites, etc., stick to the road surface. Therefore, when the Elder went on a pilgrimage, he accidentally trampled them to death. Along the way the Elder went to meditate, there were dead insects. Early in the morning when the novices had not had time to clean up, the Sangha guests passed by and saw the Elder trampled to death so many insects. Those monks brought the incident of seeing the Elder Cakkhupāla killing insects while walking and reported it to the Buddha. The Buddha taught: "The Arhat has no intention, no mind to kill sentient beings." From then on people knew that the Elder Cakkhupāla was an Arhat Saint. Knowing this, the bhikkhus immediately asked: "Dear World Honored One! With a person who has such a complete pāramī (reading: pà ra noodles), the Arahant, why should his eyes be blind?". The Buddha said: "It is due to the power of karma that we have created, so we go blind." "Children, in a past life, Cakkhupāla's predecessor was a very skilled eye doctor. One day, passing through a village, in this village, there was a young woman who had suffered from eye pain for a long time, and had treated many doctors but still could not heal. When that young woman heard that a good physician had come to the village, she immediately went to her and said: 'Dear physician! If you heal my eyes, then my daughter and I will be his servants for the rest of my life, and all my possessions will be yours." After completing the examination, the doctor knew that just one drop of medicine would be completely cured. So he made medicine for that woman. The woman after instilling the medicine, only once, the pain in her eyes really healed. Remembering her previous promise, the young woman regretted it, thinking that with just one drop, I had to lose all my possessions, and you and I had to be servants of a physician for the rest of our lives. So the next day, when the doctor came to inquire about the patient's condition, because she did not want to be a servant for the rest of her life, she lied to the physician that her eyes had become more painful and blurred after instilling the medicine. The other physician, knowing this young woman did not want to fulfill her promise, lied like that. Therefore, he became angry and thought, 'If that is the case, I will make your eyes blind forever'. Despite thinking like that, she still smiled and said: 'Young lady, yesterday's medicine only cures temporarily. Today I will make a medicine so that you will never have eye pain again." The young woman believed, so after the second injection, her eyes were permanently blind." she lied to the physician that her eyes had worsened and blurred after the drops. The other physician, knowing this young woman did not want to fulfill her promise, lied like that. Therefore, he became angry and thought, 'If that is the case, I will make your eyes blind forever'. Despite thinking like that, she still smiled and said: 'Young lady, yesterday's medicine only cures temporarily. Today I will make a medicine so that you will never have eye pain again." The young woman believed, so after the second injection, her eyes were permanently blind." she lied to the physician that her eyes had worsened and blurred after the drops. The other physician, knowing this young woman did not want to fulfill her promise, lied like that. Therefore, he became angry and thought, 'If that is the case, I will make your eyes blind forever'. Despite thinking like that, she still smiled and said: 'Young lady, yesterday's medicine only cures temporarily. Today I will make a medicine so that you will never have eye pain again." The young woman believed, so after the second injection, her eyes were permanently blind." Today I will make a medicine so that you will never have eye pain again." The young woman believed, so after the second injection, her eyes were permanently blind." Today I will make a medicine so that you will never have eye pain again." The young woman believed, so after the second injection, her eyes were permanently blind."Then, to show the importance of attention, the Buddha taught the verse that (meaning verse): Among the dharmas, the mind takes the lead. Dominant mind. Completed mind. If when speaking or doing with an unwholesome mind, then by speaking and doing with that unwholesome mind, suffering will always follow you, just like the wheel of a wheel follows the footsteps of an ox pulling a cart. Translated another way: Among the four groups of mental phenomena (nāmakkhandhā) (group of feelings, group of perception, group of formations, group of consciousness), the group of consciousness (viññāṇakkhandhā) is the main, the leading. The group consciousness (mind) is dominant. Achievement is due to group consciousness. When someone with an unwholesome mind speaks, or with an unwholesome mind then acts; then the person who speaks or acts with that unwholesome mind will be followed by the retribution of suffering, just as the wheel always follows the footprints of the ox pulling the cart. What is happening to us today (this life), is due to what we have thought, seen and known of yesterday (past life). What we are thinking, seeing and knowing today (this life), will build up our life the next day (next life). Thinking (saṅkappa=thinking) and seeing (diṭṭhi=knowledge), if thinking and seeing know correctly, it is called right thinking (sammāsaṅkappa) and right view (sammādiṭṭhi), belonging to a component. in the eight righteous paths. And if thinking and knowing is wrong, it is called wrong thinking (micchāsaṅkappa) and wrong view (micchādiṭṭhi) belonging to the wrong path. Therefore, thinking and knowing are the elements that make up both the up and down paths of life. However, thinking and knowing are only two components (2 mental factors) of the mind. Therefore, they cannot arise on their own, there must be a mind that causes them to arise, led by the mind. Must have the mind to dominate. And is created by the mind. What is happening to us is called bhava: life, life. In bhava: that life, there are three components combined. That is, the vipāka part: the effect (result of karma), the kamma part: the karma (cause) (good and bad karma), and the kilesa part: the afflictions (which are the defilements led by ignorance and craving). Because there are defilements (the main factors that cause the mind to create), good karma is created, and bad karma is created. Because of creating good karma, bad karma, the results of good karma, bad karma arise. Here, defilements refer to the level of latent, latent defilements (anusaya kilesa). Hence, it is called the samsaric afflictions (kilesavaṭṭa: ceaseless compulsive compulsions). Karma also refers to the momentary level of creation (nānakkhaṇika kamma) of good and bad karma. Hence, it is called samsara (kammavaṭṭa: ceaseless creations). Indeed, it is about ripe fruits, the results of good and bad karma that have been created constantly. Hence, it is called the fruition of cyclic existence (vipākavaṭṭa: the arising results that go on without stopping). In a golden bracelet, the shape of the bracelet is the resulting part. Gold is the part of karma (created). The constituents, the four elements, in that gold are the defilements. Although the gold bracelet has 3 such fused parts, it is not possible to separate them into each separate part. In the same way, whatever happens, arises in our life (bhava) also has 3 parts, karma, afflictions, nor can they be divided into separate parts. It is this inability to separate them separately that gives the example that the wheel always follows the footsteps of the ox pulling the cart. Elder Cakkhupāla in his past life as a physician specializing in the treatment of eye pain, when treating a patient, due to wrong thinking and knowing wrong, created a path and walked on it, when intentionally causing the patient to suffer. permanently blinded. Because of that evil karma, the Elder's last life (life) suffered the retribution of being blind. The Elder who has become an Arhat, although capable of eradicating the afflictions of the latent level, uprooting the rebirth "jāti", cannot destroy the evil karma of belonging. level has created each moment (nānakkhaṇika), so the Elder must suffer the retribution of being blind. In this life's journey, we must walk on the path that our own thoughts and perceptions have made and built it. Right or wrong path, right or wrong path is not made by someone else, but it is our own thinking and seeing that creates them. In fact, the history of human life is that we travel on a journey created by our own thoughts and perceptions. So, we're just following the "journey of life's journey". The Buddha taught this verse, so that we can enjoy the journey of life through right thinking (sammāsaṅkappa), and right seeing (sammādiṭṭhi) of the Elder Cakkhupāla. So, in this world, choosing to go downstream or upstream, or choose to follow the wrong path or the right path, what worldly dharmas bring, firmly accept them, towards the chosen goal, strive non-stop, have a determined mind, have sufficient intellectual capacity, for the development of "righteousness", do not attach importance to life, decide to choose the right path but walk in life, like a statue. Such is the example of the Elder Cakkhupāla.END=NAM MO SHAKYAMUNI BUDDHA.( 3 TIMES ).BUDDHIST DHARMA WHEEL GOLDEN MONASTERY=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=THE WOMEN OF THE SAKYA CLAN CHAN TANH.AUSTRALIA,SYDNEY.4/9/2021.