Gateway to Insight
Chapter 22: The Parinibbāna of the Buddha’s Father Chapter
(1) Tato rājagahaṃ upanissāya. Then the Blessed One departed from the Nigrodhārāma and went to the city of Rājagaha. He stayed in the Veḷuvana Vihāra with the Sangha of monks, observing the fourth rains retreat there. When the fifth rains retreat came, the Lord went to stay in the Kūṭāgārasālā in the Mahāvana forest in the city of Vesālī to benefit the beings there.
At that time, King Suddhodana fell gravely ill. The Sakyan kings, including Princess Pajāpatī Gotamī, tried to treat the illness, but they could not cure it. The Buddha’s father lay tossing and turning on his royal bed, thinking of the Teacher, and he had a thought: “If only the Teacher would come and touch my head, the Venerable Ānanda would touch my body on both sides of my ribs, and the Venerable Rāhula would touch my back, then the painful illness afflicting me would be subdued.”
In the pre-dawn hours of that day, the Teacher surveyed the world for beings to be saved and became aware that his father was ill. He thought, “It is now time for the Tathāgata to go and attend to his father, who is thinking of the Tathāgata.” He then called the Venerable Ānanda, explained the situation in full, and instructed Ānanda to inform all the monks. The Venerable Ānanda accepted the Lord’s words.
When the Sangha of monks had assembled, the Lord explained the matter and then led five hundred monks through the air to the city of Kapilavatthu. Upon arrival, he entered the royal palace, saw his noble father’s weakened state, and inquired about his illness. The Buddha’s father, hearing the Buddha’s words, shed tears and said, “The pain I feel is so intense, it is near the end of my life.” The Teacher, hearing this, raised his right hand and made an act of truth, saying, “The Tathāgata has striven to fulfill his aspirations and perfect the ten pāramīs for one incalculable aeon and one hundred thousand great aeons for the benefit of all beings.” Then the Lord touched his noble father’s head with his right hand. The pain in his head vanished completely.
Then, the Venerable Ānanda paid homage to the Sammāsambuddha, made an act of truth, raised his right hand, and touched the king’s right arm. The pain there vanished. Then, the Venerable Ānanda made another act of truth and touched the king’s left arm. That illness also vanished. The Venerable Rāhula made an act of truth and touched his royal grandfather’s back with his right hand. That pain also vanished.
(2) Tadā rājā vigatarogo. At that time, the Buddha’s father, his illness having disappeared, rose from his royal bed. Filled with joyful rapture, he raised his joined hands in homage to the Teacher. The Blessed One contemplated the life-span of his father and knew that he would pass away in just seven more days. The king then invited him to teach the Dhamma. The Teacher taught on the themes of impermanence, suffering, and non-self—the three characteristics of existence. When the teaching was finished, the Buddha’s father attained the fruit of Arahantship.
On the seventh day, the Buddha’s father addressed the Teacher, saying, “My life-span is now very short. I ask to take leave of the Teacher to enter Nibbāna. Please grant me permission.” The members of the Khattiya clan heard this and began to weep and lament. The Buddha’s father asked for forgiveness from the Teacher, and then he entered Parinibbāna at that time. The Lord of the World, the protector of mankind, taught the Dhamma to dispel the sorrow of the Sakyan kings and then instructed the Venerable Mahākassapa to oversee the cremation site. The Venerable Mahākassapa accepted the Buddha’s command. At that time, a multitude of deities from ten thousand world systems gathered together.
When the Venerable Mahākassapa had ordered the funeral pyre to be prepared, he went to inform the supreme Teacher. The Teacher took the head of his father, the Buddha, in his hands, anointed it with scented water, and then lifted the supreme body and placed it in a jeweled coffin. Then the Teacher himself lifted the coffin and carried it to the cremation site. He prevented Sakka, king of the devas, from lighting the fire first, and lit it himself.
The relatives of the Teacher from the six kingdoms—Kapilavatthu, Devadaha, Koliya, Sakkara, Suppavāsā, and Veranagara—were all filled with sorrow and lamentation at the time of the Buddha’s father’s passing into Nibbāna. They gathered in the city of Kapilavatthu to offer food to the Teacher and the Sangha of monks. The Omniscient One accepted their offerings and, after the meal, he gave a discourse of appreciation, teaching the Dhamma to his relatives. He then went to stay in the Nigrodhārāma. At that time, Princess Pajāpatī Gotamī went to ask for ordination. The Lord did not grant her request. He then went to stay in the Kūṭāgārasālā. Then, Princess Pajāpatī Gotamī followed him to ask for ordination again and had the Venerable Ānanda plead on her behalf. The Lord still did not give his permission.
At that time, the Teacher went to stay in the city of Sāvatthī. Princess Pajāpatī Gotamī, leading five hundred Khattiya maidens as her retinue, followed him to ask for ordination. The Buddha, out of compassion, granted them the going forth and full ordination under the Eight Heavy Rules.
(End of Chapter 22: The Parinibbāna of the Buddha’s Father Chapter)
