In Vaisali,
there was a beautiful waterfall. Since the place was full of fruit trees, the
inhabitants were mainly monkeys. Hence the place came to be known as Markada.
Once Lord Buddha
reached this blessed spot. Fresh water, fragrant breeze, delicious fruits !
What else is needed for a peaceful sojourn ?
In the
neighbouring village there lived a virtous man named Dhanika. Magnanimity is a
rare virtue among the rich. But Dhanika was an exception. He was rich, but very
generous. His wife was Seelavathy; his son, Vadanyan and his daughter
Sathyavathy. Their virtuous deeds matched their names.
The news of the
Lord’s meditation in Markada spread everywhere. The Brahmins of Vaishaali wish
to give him a grand reception. Since many people wished to meet the Lord, the
Brahmins declared that if anybody gave a personal reception, he would be
isolated from society.
Disregarding
the decision of the Brahmins, Dhanika invited the Lord to his house and the
Lord accepted the invitation.
Dhanika had built a beautiful ‘ pandal’,
made a throne of gold for the Lord, constructed separate halls for ‘pooja’ and
meals.
When the
Brahmins heard about this, they requested the Lord to accept their hospitality
first. But the Lord expressed his helplessness. As Dhanika had invited Him
first, he would first visit his house.
Accompanied by
the bhikshus, the Lord reached Dhanika’s house. On the first day, they enjoyed
the sumptuous feast arranged by Dhanika. The next day they accepted the
delicious feast given by Seelavathy. On the third day Vadanyan hosted a grand
feast and on the fourth day Sathyavathy gave them a warm reception.
The Brahmins, who
were waiting for their turn, became furious. They decided to expel Dhanika from
their society. The Lord refused ‘Darshan’ to haughty Brahmins.
The bhikshus wanted to know why the Lord
showed special favour to Dhanika and his family. The Lord narrated the story of
Dhanika’s former birth:-
“ In Sreekasi there lived a florist
named Kamalan. Since he earned his bread by selling flowers, he had to starve
in off-seasons. Once, due to bad luck, there was a shortage of flowers. People
had no money to buy flowers at a high price.
Kamalan’s family had
to starve. However they offered flowers to the temple daily. Their clothes were
ragged. Most of the time they remained indoors, wearing torn clothes. The only
one set of dress that could be worn out of doors was used for going temple.
One day as Kamalan was
returning from temple, he saw the Buddha sitting in a garden by the road-side.
He wished to give offerings to the Lord. But he had nothing. His pious heart
was filled with grief.
It was a cold
night. Kamalan led his wife, son and daughter-in-law to the open garden by the
road-side. They saw the Lord shivering with cold. They wrapped His body with
the single dress they had. The next day, as they had no clothes to wear, they
decided not to go to temple.
Danam should be done
with purity of heart, with care and devotion. Then only it becomes fruitful. A
gem, donated half-heartedly, has as little value as grass. On the other hand, a
grass given with devotion, is as precious as gem. What matter is the will, not
the value. Kamalan was re-born as Dhanika.
The haughty Brahmins realized the greatness of
Dhanika. They became humble and gave a warm reception to the Lord.
O
Prof.
C. Chandramathy
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