Vol. 11 · pages 596–600

577 HIS HUMANITY VIII 15. “Lord, that brother has dysentery.” 16. “But, brethren, is there anyone taking care of him ?” 17. “No, Lord.” 18. “Why not ? Why do not the brethren take care of him ?” 19. “The brother is useless to the brethren, Lord. That is why the brethren do not take care of him.” 20. “Brethren, ye have no mother and father to take care of you. If ye will not take care of each other, who else, I ask, will do so ? Brethren, he who would wait on me, let him wait on the sick. 21. “If he have a teacher, let his teacher take care of him so long as he is alive, and wait for his recovery. If he have a tutor or a lodger, a disciple or a fellow lodger or a fellow disciple, such should take care of him and await his recovery. If no one takes care of him, it shall be reckoned an offence.” (ii) 1. Once the Exalted One was staying near Rajagraha in the great grove, at the squirrels feeding ground. 2. On that occasion the venerable Vakkali was staying in the potter’s shed, being sick, afflicted, stricken with a sore disease. 3. Now the venerable Vakkali called to his attendants, saying : “Come hither, friends ! Go ye to the Exalted One and, in my name worshipping at the feet of the Exalted One, say unto Him : ‘Lord, the brother Vakkali is sick, afflicted, stricken with a sore disease. He worships at the feet of the Exalted One.’ And thus do you say : ‘Well, were it, Lord, if the Exalted One would visit brother Vakkali, out of compassion for him.’ ” 4. The Exalted One consented by His silence. Thereupon the Exalted One robed himself, and, taking bowl and robe, went to visit the venerable Vakkali. 5. Now the venerable Vakkali saw the Exalted

578 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES VIII One coming while he was yet far off, and on seeing him he stirred upon his bed. 6. Then said the Exalted One to the venerable Vakkali: “Enough, Vakkali ! Stir not on your bed ! There are these seats made ready. I will sit there.” And he sat down on a seat made ready. So the Exalted One sat down and said to the venerable Vakkali : 7. “Well, Vakkali, I hope you are bearing up. I hope you are enduring. Do your pains abate and not increase ? Are there signs of their abating and not increasing?” 8. “No, Lord, I am not bearing up. I am not enduring. Strong pains come upon me. They do not abate. There is no sign of their abating but of their increasing.” 9. “Have you any doubt, Vakkali ? Have you any remorse.” 10. “Indeed, Lord, I have no doubt. I have no remorse.” 11. “Have you not anything, Vakkali, wherein you reproach yourself as to morals ?” 12. “Nay, Lord, there is nothing wherein I reproach myself as to morals.” 13. “Then, Vakkali, if that is so, you must have some worry, you must have something you regret.” 14. “For a long time, Lord, I have been longing to set eyes on the Exalted One, but I had not strength enough in this body to come to see the Exalted One.” 15. “Hush, Vakkali; what is there in seeing this vile body of mine ? He who seeth the Norm, he seeth me: he who seeth, Vakkali, seeth the Norm. Verily, seeing the Norm, Vakkali, one seeth me : seeing me, one seeth the Norm.” (iii) 1. Thus have I heard: The Exalted One was once staying among the Bhaggi, at crocodile haunt in Bhesakala grove in the deer-park. Then the housefather, Nakulapita, came to the Exalted One, saluted Him, and sat down at one side.

579 HIS HUMANITY VIII 2. As he sat there, the housefather, Nakulapita, addressed the Exalted One, saying: “Master, I am a broken-down old man, aged, far gone in years, I have reached life’s end, I am sick and always ailing. Moreover, Master, I am one to whom rarely comes the sight of the Exalted One and the worshipful brethren. Let the Exalted One cheer and comfort me, so that it be a profit and a blessing unto me for many a long day.” 3. “True it is, true it is, housefather, that your body is weak and cumbered ! For one carrying this body about, housefather, to claim but a moment’s health would be sheer foolishness. Wherefore, housefather, thus should you train yourself : ‘Though my body is sick, my mind shall not be sick.’ Thus, housefather, must you train yourself.” 4. Then Nakulapita, the housefather, welcomed and gladly heard the words of the Exalted One, and rising from his seat he saluted the Exalted One by the right, and departed. (iv) 1. Once the Exalted One was staying among the Sakyans at Kapilavastu, in the fig-tree park. 2. Then on that occasion a number of brethren were busy with making robes for the Exalted One, “For,” said they, “when the three months are over, the Exalted One, his robes being complete, will go forth on his rounds.” 3. Now Mahanama, the Sakyan, heard it said, “A number of brethren are busy with making robes, and so forth”. . . and he went to the Exalted One, saluted him, and sat down at one side. So seated, Mahanama, the Sakyan, said : 4. “I hear it said, Lord, that a number of the brethren are busy with making robes for the Exalted One, saying, ‘when the robes are complete, at the end of the three months, the Exalted One will go forth on his rounds.’ Now, Lord, we have never heard from the Exalted One’s own lips how a discreet layman who is sick, in pain, grievously afflicted, should be cheered by another discreet lay-brother.”

580 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES VIII 5. “A discreet lay-brother, Mahanama, who is sick . . . should be cheered by another discreet lay-brother with the Four Comfortable Assurances, thus: ‘Take comfort, good sir, in the Norm, and in the Order of Brethren: likewise in the virtues dear to the Norm kept unbroken and unsoiled which tend to balance of mind.’ 6. “Then, Mahanama, when a discreet lay-brother who is sick has thus been cheered with the Four Comfortable Assurances by another lay-brother, such should be the words of that other: 7. “Suppose the sick man should have a longing for his parents. Then if the sick man says, ‘I have a longing for my parents,’ the other should reply, ‘My dear good man, you are subject to death. Whether you have longing for your parents or not you will die. ‘Twere just as well for you to abandon all longing for your parents.’ 8. “And suppose the sick man says, ‘that longing for my parents is now abandoned,’ then the other should say, ‘Yet my good sir, you still have a longing for your children. As you must die in any case, ‘twere just as well for you to abandon longing for your children.’ 9. “And so also should he speak in respect of the five pleasures of the senses. Suppose the sick man says, ‘I have a longing for the five pleasures of sense,’ the other should say, ‘My friend, heavenly delights are more excellent than the five pleasures of sense, and more choice. Twere well for you to remove your mind from human joys and fix it on the joys of the Four Great Deva Kings.’ 10. “Again, if the sick man say, ‘My mind is so fixed,’ let the other say, ‘Better to fix your mind on the Brahma world,’ And then if the sick man’s mind is so fixed, let the other say : 11. “ ‘My good sir, even the Brahma world is impermanent, not lasting, subject to personality. Well for you, dear sir, if you raise your mind above the Brahma world and concentrate on cessation from the personal.’

581 HIS HUMANITY VIII 12. “And if the sick man says he has done so, then I declare Mahanama, that there is no difference between the lay-brother who can thus aver and the disciple whose mind is freed from the asavas : that is to say, so far as emancipation goes.” § 4. His Tolerance of the Intolerant 1. Once the Blessed Lord was dwelling in the realm of the Yakkha Alavaka in the town of Alavi. Then the Yakkha Alavaka approached the Blessed Lord, and having approached him, said thus: “Get out, O Monk ! ” 2. The Blessed Lord departed, saying: “Very well, friend.” 3. The Yakkha then ordered “Enter, O Monk.” 4. The Blessed Lord entered, saying: “Very well, friend.” 5. For the second time also the Yakkha Alavaka told the Blessed Lord, “Get out, O Monk !” 6. The Lord departed, saying : “Very well, friend.” 7. “Enter, O Monk !” said the Yakkha, the second time. 8. The Lord entered, saying: “Very well, friend.” 9. For the third time also the Yakkha Alavaka told the Lord, “Get out, O Monk !” 10. The Lord departed, saying: “Very well, friend.” 11. “Enter, O Monk !” said the Yakkha again. 12. The Lord entered, saying: “Very well, friend.” 13. For the fourth time did the Yakkha tell the Lord, “Get out, O Monk !” 14. This time the Lord replied : “I shall not get out, friend, you may do what you like.” 15. “I shall put a question to you; monk; if you do not answer my question, I will drive you out of your wits or I will tear your heart, or I will take you by the feet and throw you to the other side of the river,” said the angry Yakkha.