The Self-Pampered Monk
ONCE THERE WAS A MAN who lived a life free from any financial worries.
After his wife passed away, he decided to leave home and become a monk. Before
he received his ordination, however, he built for himself a shelter that
included a room to store beans, cooking oil, butter and other provisions and a
kitchen where his servants could prep are his favorite dishes. He even brought
his own furniture so he could sit and sleep in comfort.
Seeing him
live such a luxurious life, the other monks went and reported him to the
Buddha. The Buddha then sent for the rich monk and asked him why he had brought
so many things to the monastery with him. “Haven’t I been teaching you to live
the simple life? the Buddha asked. The rich monk got angry. He took off his
upper robe and threw it to the ground, standing half naked in front of the
Buddha. is this how you advise me to live?” he smirked, daring to challenge the
Buddha.
The Buddha
admonished the self-pampered monk and told him that even while he was an evil
spirit in a previous lifetime, he still had some sense of shame. Now, as a
monk, however, he did not seem to have any at all. In addition, the Buddha told
him that discarding his robe did not make him an austere bhikkhu. It was his
ignorance he had to discard, for it was not by one’s external appearance that
one became holy. The bhikkhu realized his mistake and asked the Buddha
for forgiveness. He then corrected his ways and lived according to the Buddha's
admonitions.
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