Vol. 11 · pages 446–450

427 THE BHIKKHU-THE BUDDHA’S CONCEPTION OF HIM cannot fall away (from his perfect state)—he is close upon Nibbana.” 24. The disciples of Gotama (Buddha) are always well awake, and their thoughts day and night are always set on Buddha. 25. The disciples of Gotama are always well awake and their thoughts day and night are always set on the church. 26. The disciples of Gotama are always well awake, and their thoughts day and night are always set on the Dhamma. 27. The disciples of Gotama are always well awake and their thoughts day and night are always set on their body. 28. The disciples of Gotama are always well awake, and their minds day and night always delight in compassion. 29. The disciples of Gotama are always well awake, and their minds day and night always delight in meditation. 30. It is hard to leave the world (to become a friar), it is hard to enjoy the world; hard is the monastery, painful are the houses; painful it is to dwell with equals (to share everything in common), and the itinerant mendicant is beset with pain. 31. A man full of faith, if endowed with virtue and glory, is respected, whatever place he may choose. § 2. The Bhikkhu and the Ascetic 1. Is the Bhikkhu an ascetic? The answer is in the negative. 2. This negative answer has been given by the Blessed Lord himself in a discussion with Nigrodha the wanderer. 3. The Exalted One was once staying near Rajagraha, on the Vulture’s Peak. Now at that time there was sojourning in Queen Udumbarika’s Park assigned to the wanderers, the wanderer Nigrodha, together with a great company of wanderers. 4. Now the Exalted One descending from the V

428 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES Vulture’s Peak came to the Peacock’s Feeding-Ground on the bank of the Sumagadba and there walked to and fro in the open air. Then Nigrodha saw him thus walking, and on seeing him he called his company to order, saying: “Be still, sirs, and make no noise. The Samana Gotama is by the bank of the Sumagadha.” When he had said this the wanderers kept silence. 5. Then the Exalted One went up to Nigrodha the wanderer, and Nigrodha spake thus to him: “Let the Lord, the Exalted One, approach. Welcome is the Lord, the Exalted One! Long has the Lord, the Exalted One, taken ere deciding on this step of coming hither. May it please the Lord, the Exalted One, to take a seat. Here is one ready.” 6. The Exalted One sat down on the seat made ready, and Nigrodha, taking a low seat, sat beside him. 7. Thereupon Nigrodha said to the Exalted One: “As the Samana Gotama has come to our assembly, we would like to ask him this question: ‘What, Lord, is this religion of the Exalted One, wherein he trains his disciples, and which those disciples, so trained by the Exalted One as to win comfort, acknowledge to be their utmost support and the fundamental principles of righteousness ?’ ” 8. “Difficult is it, Nigrodha, for one of another view, of another persuasion, of another confession, without practice and without teaching, to understand that wherein I train my disciples, and which they, so trained as to win comfort, acknowledge to be their utmost support and the fundamental principle of righteousness. 9. “But ask me, Nigrodha, a question about your own doctrine, about austere scrupulousness of life: in what does the fulfilment, in what does the non-fulfilment of these self-mortifications consist?” 10. Then Nigrodha spake thus to the Exalted One: “We, Lord, profess self-mortifying austerities; we hold them to be essential; we cleave to them. In what does the fulfilment, in what does the non-fulfilment of them consist ?” 11. “Suppose, Nigrodha, that an ascetic goes V

429 THE BHIKKHU-THE BUDDHA’S CONCEPTION OF HIM naked, is of certain loose habits, licks his hands, respects no approach, sir, nor stop, sir; accepts nothing expressly brought, nor expressly prepared, nor any invitations. He accepts nothing taken from mouth of cooking-pot, nor placed within the threshold, nor within a mortar, nor among sticks, nor within a quern; nor anything from two eating together, nor from a pregnant woman: nor from a nursing mother; nor from a woman in intercourse with a man; nor food collected in drought; nor from where a dog is; nor from where flies are swarming; nor will he accept fish or meat; nor drink strong drink, “nor intoxicants, nor gruel. He is either a one-houser, a one-mouthful man; or a two houser, a two-mouthful man; or a sevenhouser, a seven-mouthful man. He maintains himself on one alms, on two, or on seven. He takes food once a day, or once every two days, or once every seven days. Thus does he dwell addicted to the practice of taking food according to rule, at regular intervals, upto even half a month. He feeds either on pot-herbs, or wild rice, or nivara seeds, or leather parings, or on hata, or on the powder in rice rusks, on rice-scum, on flour or oil-seeds, on grasses, on cowdung, or fruits and roots from the wood or on windfalls. He wears coarse hempen cloth, coarse mixture cloth, discarded corps-cloths, discarded rags, or tirita-bark cloth; or again he wears antelopehide, or strips of the same netted, or kusa fibre, or bark garments, or shale cloth, or a human-hair blanket, or a horse-hair blanket, or an owl’s-feather garment. He is a hair-and-beard plucker, addicted to the practice of plucking out both ; a stander-up; a croucher on heels, addicted to exerting himself (to move forward) when thus squatting; a bed-of-thorns man, putting iron spikes or thorns on his couch; he uses a plank-bed; sleeps on the ground; sleeps only on one side; is a dust-and-dirt wearer and an open-air man; a where-you-will sitter; a filth-eater, addicted to the practice of eating such; a non-drinker, addicted to the practice of drinking (cold water); and even-for-third-time-man. 12. “After having done this, Nigrodha,” the V

430 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES Blessed Lord said, “What think you, Nigrodha? If these things be so, is the austerity of self-mortification carried out, or is it not ?” “ Truly, Lord, if these things be so, the austerity of self-mortification is carried out.” 13. “Now I, Nigrodha, affirm that austerity by self-mortification thus carried out, involves blemish in several ways.” 14. “In what way, Lord, do you affirm that, blemish is involved ? ” 15. “In case, Nigrodha, when an ascetic undertakes a course of austerity, he through that course, becomes self-complacent, his aim is satisfied. Now this, Nigrodha, becomes a blemish in the ascetic. 16. “And then again, Nigrodha, when an ascetic undertakes a course of austerity, he, through that undertaking exalts himself and despises others. This, too, becomes a blemish in the ascetic. 17. “And again, Nigrodha, when an ascetic undertakes a course of austerity, he, through that undertaking becomes inebriated and infatuated, and grows careless. This, too, becomes a blemish in the ascetic. 18. “And again, Nigrodha, when an ascetic undertakes a course of austerity, it procures for him gifts, attention and fame. Thereby he becomes complacent and his aim is satisfied. This, too, becomes a blemish in the ascetic. 19. “And again, Nigrodha, by the winning of gifts, attention and fame, the ascetic exalts himself and despises others. This, too, becomes a blemish in the ascetic. 20. “And again, Nigrodha, by the winning of gifts, attention and fame, he becomes inebriated and infatuated, and grows careless. This, too, becomes a blemish in the ascetic. 21. “And again, Nigrodha, when an ascetic undertakes a course of austerity, he comes to make a distinction in foods, saying: ‘This suits me; this doesn’t suit me. The latter kind he deliberately rejects. Over the former he waxes greedy and infatuated, and cleaves to them, seeing not the danger in them, discernV

431 THE BHIKKHU-THE BUDDHA’S CONCEPTION OF HIM ing them not as unsafe, and so enjoys them. This, too, becomes a blemish in the ascetic. 22. “And again, Nigrodha, because of his longing for gifts, attentions and fame, he thinks: ‘Rajas will pay me attentions, and so will their officials; so too, will nobles, Brahmins, house-holders and founders of schools.’ This, too, becomes a blemish in the ascetic. 23. “And again, Nigrodha, an asectic gets grumbling at some recluse or Brahmin, saying: ‘ That man lives on all sorts of things: things grown from tubers, or shoots, or berries, or joints, or fifthly, from seeds, munching them all up together with that wheelless thunderbolt of a jawbone—and they call him a holy man !’ This, too becomes a blemish in the ascetic. 24. “And again, Nigrodha, an ascetic sees a certain recluse or Brahmin receiving attentions, being revered, honoured and presented with offerings by the citizens. And seeing this he thinks: ‘The citizens pay attention to this fellow who lives in luxury; they revere and honour him, and present him with offerings, while to me who, as ascetic, lives a really austere life, they pay no attentions, nor reverence, nor honour, nor offerings.’ And so he cherishes envy and grudging at the citizens. This, too, becomes a blemish in the ascetic. 25. “And again, Nigrodha, the ascetic affects the mysterious. When asked: ‘Do you approve of this ?’ He, not approving, says: ‘I do,’ or approving, says, ‘I do not.’. Thus he consciously tells untruths. This, too, becomes a blemish in the ascetic. 26. “And again, Nigrodha, the ascetic is liable to lose his temper and bear enmity. This, too, becomes a blemish in the ascetic. 27. “And again, Nigrodha, the ascetic is liable to be hypocritical and deceitful, as well as envious and grudging; he becomes cunning and crafty, hard-hearted and vain, he entertains evil wishes and becomes captive to them; he entertains false opinions, becomes possessed of metempirical dogma; misinterprets his experience; is avaricious and adverse from renunciation. This, too, becomes a blemish in the ascetic. V