Dwelling in Rājagṛha

Sutra:

Dwelling in the city of Rājagṛha.

Treatise:

Now this will be explained.

Question: Why does the text not directly teach the Dharma of the Perfection of Wisdom, but instead say, “The Buddha dwelt in the city of Rājagṛha”?

Answer: It states the place, time, and person in order to cause people’s minds to give rise to faith.

What is meant by “dwelling”? There are four bodily postures: sitting, lying down, walking, and standing. This is called dwelling.

Also, in order to frighten the armies of Māra and to cause his disciples to joyfully enter many kinds of meditative concentration, the Buddha dwells there.

Furthermore, there are three kinds of dwelling: deva dwelling, Brahmā dwelling, and noble dwelling. The dharmas by which the six classes of desire-realm devas dwell are called deva dwelling. The dharmas by which Brahmā devas and others up to the devas of neither perception nor nonperception dwell are called Brahmā dwelling. The dharmas by which buddhas, pratyekabuddhas, and arhats dwell are called noble dwelling. Among these three kinds of dwelling, the Buddha dwells in the dharma of noble dwelling. Because he has compassion for beings, he dwells in the city of Rājagṛha.

Furthermore, generosity, moral discipline, and a wholesome mind are the three matters called deva dwelling. Kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity, the four immeasurable minds, are called Brahmā dwelling. Emptiness, signlessness, and wishlessness, these three samādhis, are called noble dwelling. The Buddha dwells in the dharma of noble dwelling.

Furthermore, there are four kinds of dwelling: deva dwelling, Brahmā dwelling, noble dwelling, and Buddha dwelling. The first three kinds of dwelling are as explained above. Buddha dwelling means the immeasurable samādhis of the buddhas, such as the Śūraṅgama Samādhi; the ten powers; the four fearlessnesses; the eighteen unshared dharmas; all-wisdom and many other kinds of wisdom; and the eighty-four thousand Dharma treasuries, the gateways for liberating people. Many kinds of buddha virtues such as these are the places where the Buddha dwells, and the Buddha dwells within them.

This completes the brief explanation of “dwelling.”

Now, “the city of Rājagṛha.”

Question: Great cities such as Śrāvastī, Kapilavastu, and Bārāṇasī all have royal residences. Why is this city alone called Rājagṛha, the King’s Residence?

Answer: Some say that a king of Magadha had a son with one head, two faces, and four arms. People at the time considered him inauspicious, so the king tore apart his body and head and abandoned him in the wilderness. A female rākṣasa named Līlā joined his body back together and nursed him. Later, when he grew to adulthood, his strength was able to annex other countries, and he ruled the whole realm. He took eighteen thousand kings from other countries and placed them among these five mountains. Because he governed Jambudvīpa with great power and force, the people of Jambudvīpa called this mountain area Rājagṛha, the City of the King’s Residence.

Furthermore, some say that in the city where the king of Magadha first lived, fires broke out. Each time the city burned, it was rebuilt, and this happened seven times. The people of the country were exhausted by the labor, and the king was greatly worried and afraid. He gathered wise people and asked the meaning of this. Some said, “It would be best to move to another place.” The king then searched for another place to live. Seeing that these five mountains surrounded the area like a city wall, he built palaces there and dwelt there. For this reason, it was called Rājagṛha, the City of the King’s Residence.

Furthermore, in ancient times, this country had a king named Vasu. His mind became weary of worldly dharmas, so he left home and became a seer.

At that time, household brahmins and renunciant seers debated with one another.

The household brahmins said, “The scriptures say, ‘In sacrifices to the devas, one should kill living beings and eat meat.’”

The renunciant seers said, “In sacrifices to the devas, one should not kill living beings and eat meat.” In this way, they argued back and forth.

The renunciant brahmins said, “There is a great king here who has left home and become a seer. Do you trust him?”

The household brahmins said, “We trust him.”

The renunciant seers said, “We will take him as our witness and ask him another day.”

That very night, the household brahmins went first to the seer Vasu. After asking him many things, they said to him, “In tomorrow’s debate, you should help us.”

The next morning, during the debate, the renunciant seers asked the seer Vasu, “In sacrifices to the devas, should one kill living beings and eat meat?”

The seer Vasu said, “According to brahmin law, in sacrifices to the devas one should kill living beings and eat meat.”

The renunciant seers said, “What is in your true mind? Should one kill living beings and eat meat?”

The seer Vasu said, “For the sake of sacrifice to the devas, one should kill living beings and eat meat. Because this being dies within a sacrifice to the devas, it will be reborn in heaven.”

The renunciant seers said, “You are greatly wrong. You have spoken a great falsehood.” They spat at him and said, “Sinful person, disappear.” At that time, the seer Vasu immediately sank into the earth up to his ankles, because he had first opened the gate to a great offense.

The renunciant seers said, “You should speak truthfully. If you deliberately speak falsely, your body will sink into the earth.”

The seer Vasu said, “I know that killing sheep and eating meat for the sake of the devas is without fault.” He then sank into the earth up to his knees. In this way, little by little, he sank to his waist, and then to his neck.

The renunciant seers said, “Now your false speech has received its result in this present life. If you now speak truthfully, even though you have entered the ground, we can bring you out and enable you to avoid this offense.”

At that time, the seer Vasu reflected to himself, “I am a person of high standing and should not speak in two different ways. Moreover, in the brahmin teaching of the four Vedas, there are many reasons praising sacrifice to the devas. If I alone die, what does that matter?” With single-minded resolve, he said, “In sacrifices to the devas, killing living beings and eating meat are without fault.”

The renunciant seers said, “You person of grave offense, go quickly. We do not want to see you.” Thereupon his whole body sank into the earth. From that time down to the present day, people have constantly followed the royal law of the seer Vasu: when killing sheep in sacrifice to the devas, at the moment the knife is lowered, they say, “Vasu kills you.”

Vasu’s son was named Broad Chariot. He succeeded to the throne and became king. Later, he too became weary of worldly dharmas, yet he could not leave home. He reflected, “My father, the former king, left home and sank alive into the earth. If I govern the world, I too will commit great offenses. How should I now conduct myself?” As he was reflecting in this way, he heard a voice in the sky say, “If as you travel you see a rare and hard-to-find place, you should build a residence and dwell there.” After saying this, the voice was not heard again. Not long afterward, the king went hunting in the fields and saw a deer running as swiftly as the wind. The king chased it, but could not catch it, and continued pursuing it without stopping. None of his officials and attendants could keep up. Going farther ahead, he saw five mountains encircling a place, steep and solid like walls. The ground was level and proper, with fine soft grasses growing there, beautiful flowers spread everywhere, many kinds of trees, flowers, and fruits flourishing, and warm springs and cool ponds all pure and clear. The place was adorned, with heavenly flowers and heavenly fragrances scattered everywhere, and the music of heavenly performers could be heard.

At that time, the gandharva musicians happened to see the king coming and each returned to his own place. The king thought, “This place is rare, something I have never seen before. Now I should build a residence and dwell here.” After he had reflected in this way, his ministers, officials, and attendants followed his tracks and arrived.

The king told the ministers, “Earlier I heard a voice in the sky say, ‘If as you travel you see a rare and hard-to-find place, you should build a residence and dwell there.’ Now I have seen this rare place. I should build a residence and dwell here.” He then abandoned his original city and dwelt among these mountains. This king was the first to dwell there, and after him others dwelt there in succession. Because this king originally established and built palaces and residences there, it was called Rājagṛha, the City of the King’s Residence.

This completes the brief explanation of the origin of Rājagṛha.

Sutra:

On Gṛdhrakūṭa Mountain, Vulture Peak.

Treatise:

“Gṛdhra” means vulture, and “kūṭa” means peak.

Question: Why is it called Vulture Peak Mountain?

Answer: The summit of this mountain resembles a vulture. When the people of Rājagṛha saw that it resembled a vulture, they passed down the name Vulture Peak Mountain, and for this reason it was called Vulture Peak Mountain.

Furthermore, in the Śītavana charnel ground south of Rājagṛha, there were many dead bodies. Vultures often came to eat them and then returned to the mountain peak. People of that time therefore named it Vulture Peak Mountain.

Among the five mountains, this mountain is the highest and greatest. It has many fine groves and waters and is a dwelling place of noble ones.

Question: The meaning of Gṛdhrakūṭa Mountain is now understood. Why did the Buddha dwell in Rājagṛha?

The Dharma of the buddhas extends universal compassion to all, like the sun shining on the ten thousand things, so that none fail to receive its light.

Great cities such as Ujjayinī, Pūrṇavardhana, Ahicchatra, and Puṣkarāvatī had many people and abundant happiness, yet the Buddha did not dwell there. Why did he often dwell in the great cities of Rājagṛha and Śrāvastī?

Although he did stay at times in Bārāṇasī, Kapilavastu, Campā, Sāketa, Kauśāmbī, Kuru City, and other places, he mostly stayed in Rājagṛha and Śrāvastī. How do we know that he often stayed in these two places? We see that in the Buddha’s sutras, most teachings were spoken in these two cities, and only a few in other cities.

Answer: Although the Buddha’s great compassion reaches all equally, he did not dwell in great cities such as Ujjayinī because they were border regions.

Also, among the Mlecchas there were many rough and harmful people, and their wholesome roots had not yet matured. As a verse says:

“Sunlight shines equally on all, yet flowers open only when they are ripe. If a flower is not yet ready to blossom, it is not forced open. The Buddha is also like this: with an equal mind he teaches the Dharma. When wholesome roots have matured, they open; when they have not matured, they do not open. For this reason, the World-Honored One dwells among three kinds of people: those of keen wisdom, those whose wholesome roots have matured, and those whose fetters and afflictions are thin.”

Furthermore, because the Buddha knew gratitude, he often dwelt in Rājagṛha and Śrāvastī.

Question: How do we know that it was because he knew gratitude that he often dwelt in these two cities?

Answer: The country of Kosala was the place where the Buddha was born. As the Buddha said in a verse when answering King Bimbisāra:

“There is a fine and wondrous country beside the Snow Mountains, rich, happy, and filled with many rare treasures. It is called Kosala. Among the Śākyas of the solar lineage, I was born there. My mind grew weary of aging, sickness, and death, so I left home to seek the Buddha path.”

Moreover, King Prasenajit, the ruler of Kosala, lived in the great city of Śrāvastī. Since the Buddha was the Dharma King, he also lived in that city, because the two rulers should dwell in one place.

Furthermore, the country of Kosala was the land of the Buddha’s birth body. Because he knew gratitude, he often dwelt in Śrāvastī.

Question: If he often dwelt in Śrāvastī because he knew gratitude, Kapilavastu was close to the Buddha’s birthplace. Why did he not dwell there often?

Answer: The Buddha had ended all fetters and had no remaining habits. Even when he was near his relatives, he had no different thought. Yet many Śākya disciples had not yet left desire behind. If they were near their relatives, thoughts of attachment would arise.

Question: Why did he not protect the disciples of Śrāvastī, and instead often dwell in Śrāvastī?

Answer: There were many disciples from Kapilavastu. When the Buddha first returned to his homeland, the thousand bhikṣus who were the Kāśyapa brothers and their followers had originally practiced brahmin dharmas and austerities in the mountains, so their appearance was gaunt and withered. When the Buddha’s father, the king, saw them, he thought that these bhikṣus were not enough to adorn the World-Honored One with honor. He then selected noble young Śākya men, strong and in the prime of youth, and sent one person from each household, compelling them to leave home. Among them, some had wholesome minds and delighted in the path, while others did not delight in it. These Śākya bhikṣus should not be made to return to the place of their birth. The disciples of Śrāvastī were not like this. For this reason, the Buddha often dwelt in Śrāvastī and did not often dwell in Kapilavastu.

Furthermore, according to the Dharma of leaving home, one should not stay near relatives. The mind’s attachment to relatives is like fire and like a snake. Even a brahmin son living at home, for the sake of study, should not remain in the place of his birth; how much less a śramaṇa who has left home.

Furthermore, Śrāvastī was a great city, while Kapilavastu was not like that. Śrāvastī had nine hundred million households. If the Buddha stayed there only briefly, he would not be able to liberate many people. For this reason he often stayed there.

Furthermore, Kapilavastu was the city where the Buddha was born. The people there had long cultivated practice; their wholesome roots were mature and their wisdom was sharp. There the Buddha stayed only briefly to teach the Dharma. He did not need to remain long; after liberating them, he went away.

The people of Śrāvastī included some who were just beginning practice and some who had practiced for a long time; some whose wholesome roots had matured and some whose wholesome roots had not yet matured; some with sharp faculties and some without sharp faculties. Because they studied many kinds of scriptures and texts, their minds had been sharpened, but they had also entered into many nets of wrong views, served many kinds of teachers, and belonged to many kinds of devas. There were many people with mixed practices. For this reason, the Buddha stayed there for a long time.

It is like a doctor treating an abscess. If he knows that the abscess is already ripe, he cuts it open, drains the pus, applies medicine, and leaves. If the abscess is not yet ripe, he stays for a long time, applying ointments and soothing it. The Buddha is also like this. If a disciple’s wholesome roots have matured, then after teaching and transforming that person, he goes on to another place. If a disciple who can be liberated has wholesome roots that are not yet mature, then the Buddha must stay for a long time.

The Buddha appears in the world precisely in order to liberate beings and establish them in the secure and happy place of the realm of nirvāṇa. For this reason, he often dwelt in Śrāvastī and did not often dwell in Kapilavastu.

In the country of Magadha, beside the Nairañjanā River, in the village of Uruvilvā, the Buddha attained unsurpassed complete awakening and accomplished the Dharma body. For this reason, he often dwelt in Rājagṛha.

Question: The causes and conditions for his often dwelling in Rājagṛha and Śrāvastī are now understood. Between these two cities, why did he dwell more often in Rājagṛha?

Answer: In order to repay the kindness of the place of his birth, he often dwelt in Śrāvastī. All beings remember the place of their birth. As a verse says:

“All debaters cherish the dharmas they know, just as people remember their birthplace; even after leaving home, they still argue.”

In order to repay the kindness of the place of the Dharma body, he often dwelt in Rājagṛha, because all buddhas cherish the Dharma body. As a verse says:

“The buddhas of the past, future, and present make offerings to the Dharma body, honoring and respecting it as teacher.”

Because the Dharma body is superior to the birth body, between the two cities he dwelt more often in Rājagṛha.

Furthermore, because there were many monasteries for seated meditation there, and other places did not have this. Examples are the Bamboo Grove, Vaibhāra-vastu, Saptaparṇa-guhā, Indraśaila-guhā, and Sarpiṣkuṇḍikā-prāgbhāra. Rājagṛha had five monasteries, and the Bamboo Grove was on level ground. Other countries did not have so many monasteries.

In Śrāvastī there was one place, Jetavana Monastery. There was also another place, the Hall of Migāra’s Mother, but there was no third place.

In the country of Bārāṇasī there was one place, the monastery in the Deer Park, called Ṛṣipatana.

In Vaiśālī there were two places: one called Mahāvana, the Great Wood, and the other the monastery on the bank of the Monkey Pond.

In Kauśāmbī there was one place, called Ghoṣila’s Park.

In countries such as these, some had one monastery, and some had only empty groves of trees.

Because Rājagṛha had many monasteries, it was well suited for people who practiced seated meditation. The place was peaceful and secure. For this reason, the Buddha often stayed there.

Furthermore, in that place there were the six teachers, Pūraṇa and the others, who each said, “I am an all-knowing person,” and set themselves against the Buddha. There were also great non-Buddhist masters of debate such as the brahmin Dīrghanakha, those of the Vatsa clan, and Kukkuṭa the Great. There were also the elder Śrīgupta, Devadatta, Ajātaśatru, and others, who plotted to harm the Buddha, did not believe in the Buddha Dharma, and each harbored jealousy. Because there were people like these, the Buddha often stayed there. It is like a place where poisonous grasses grow: nearby there is sure to be good medicine.

As a verse says:

“Suppose a lion, king of the hundred beasts, were to roar at tiny insects; he would be laughed at by the crowd. But if, among tigers, wolves, and fierce beasts, he gives a mighty roar, wise people approve.

“Debaters are like fierce tigers. In this assembly they have no fear. The person of great wisdom, widely learned and broadly informed, is foremost among this assembly.”

Because people of great wisdom and wide learning were all in Rājagṛha, the Buddha often dwelt in Rājagṛha.

Furthermore, King Bimbisāra went to Gayāśīrṣa to welcome the Buddha and the other one thousand matted-hair arhats. At that time, the Buddha taught the Dharma for the king, and the king attained the path of stream-entry. He then invited the Buddha, saying, “May the Buddha and the Saṅgha come to my city of Rājagṛha. For the rest of my life, please accept from me robes and bedding, food and drink, lodging, medicines, and whatever should be provided.” The Buddha accepted his invitation. For this reason, he often dwelt in Rājagṛha.

Furthermore, among the four directions of Jambudvīpa, the east comes first because the sun first rises there; after that come the south, west, and north. Within the east, the country of Magadha was supreme. Within the country of Magadha, Rājagṛha was supreme. It had twelve hundred million households.

After the Buddha’s nirvāṇa, King Ajātaśatru, because the population had gradually decreased, abandoned the great city of Rājagṛha and built a smaller city beside it, one yojana in length and breadth, called Pāṭaliputra. Even that was still the largest among all cities; how much more so the original city of Rājagṛha.

Furthermore, the people there were often intelligent, broadly learned, and widely knowledgeable. Other countries did not have this.

Furthermore, there are people who should attain the path but must wait for the right time, the right place, and the right person. The Buddha knew beforehand that Śakra, lord of devas, together with eighty thousand devas, would attain the path in a stone chamber in the country of Magadha. For this reason, the Buddha often dwelt in Rājagṛha.

Furthermore, that country was abundant and happy, and alms-food was easy to obtain. Other countries were not like it. This was also because of three causes and conditions:

First, King Bimbisāra had given orders that food for one thousand bhikṣus should always be prepared in the palace.

Second, although Jotika was born among humans, he constantly enjoyed heavenly wealth and happiness; moreover, there were many wealthy and noble upāsakas.

Third, the nāga king Apalāla, with a wholesome mind, accepted transformation and became a disciple of the Buddha. Because he removed famine from the world and constantly sent good rains, the country was abundant.

For example, after the Buddha’s nirvāṇa, the elder Mahākāśyapa wished to compile the Dharma. He reflected, “Which country is abundant and happy, where alms-food is easy to obtain, so that we can quickly compile the Dharma?” After thinking in this way, he remembered that in Rājagṛha, King Bimbisāra had given orders that food for one thousand bhikṣus should always be provided. Although King Bimbisāra had died, this practice had not ceased. Food was easy to obtain there, and the Dharma could easily be compiled there. No other place had such constant offerings. If, while going for alms, non-Buddhists came to debate with them, then if they joined the debate, the work of compiling the Dharma would be neglected; but if they did not debate, the non-Buddhists would say, “These śramaṇas are not as good as we are.” Reflecting in this way, Mahākāśyapa selected the foremost one thousand arhats and led them to Gṛdhrakūṭa Mountain to compile the sutra treasury.

Because of these three causes and conditions, we know that in the country of Magadha alms-food was easy to obtain.