Absinthe Las Vegas - Spiegelworld; Ven. Sujato (trans.), Saṁyutta Nikāya, 42.2, 1. Chiefs/Gāmaṇivagga; edited by Dhr. Seven, Amber Larson, Wisdom Quarterly
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"With Tāḷapuṭa" (Tālapuṭa Sutra)
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| The Buddha in various scenes. |
Then Tāḷapuṭa the dancing master approached the Buddha, bowed, sat down respectfully to one side, and said:
“Sir, I have heard that the dancers of the past who were teachers of teachers said:
“Suppose dancers entertain and amuse people on a stage or at a festival with truth and lies. When their bodies break up, after death, they’re reborn in the company of laughing devas (gods). What does the Buddha have to say about this?”
“Chief, enough, let that be. Do not ask.”
But a second and third time Talaputta asked again…
“Chief, clearly I am unable to get through to you when I say: ‘Chief, enough, let that be. Do not ask.’ Therefore, I will answer. When sentient beings are still not free of greed, but still bound by greed, a dancer on a stage or at a festival presents them with even more arousing things.
“When sentient beings are still not free of hate, still bound by hate, a dancer on a stage or at a festival presents them with even more hateful things.
“When sentient beings are still not free of delusion, still bound by delusion, a dancer on a stage or at a festival presents them with even more delusory things.
“So, being heedless and negligent themselves, they have encouraged others to be heedless and negligent. When their bodies break up, after death, they are reborn in the hell called ‘Laughter’ [or the Hell of Laughter].
"And if you hold such a view as, ‘Suppose dancers entertain and amuse people on a stage or at a festival with truth and lies, when their bodies break up, after death, they are reborn in the company of laughing devas (gods)’ -- this is your wrong view.
“An individual with wrong view is reborn in one of two places, I say -- hell or the animal realm.”
When this was said, Tāḷapuṭa burst out in tears and wept.
“This is what I could not get through to you when I said, ‘Chief, enough, let that be. Do not ask.’”
“Sir, I am not crying because of what the Buddha said. But rather, sir, I am crying because for a long time I have been cheated, tricked, and deceived by the dancers of the past who were teachers of teachers, who said this.
“Excellent, sir, excellent! It is as if one were setting right what was overturned, or revealing what was hidden, or pointing out the path to the lost, or lighting a lamp in the dark so those with working eyes could see what was there. The Buddha has made the Dharma (Teaching) clear in many ways.
“I go for guidance to the Buddha, to the Dharma, and to the [Noble] Saṅgha. Sir, may I receive the going forth, the monastic ordination in the Buddha’s presence?”
And the dancing master Tāḷapuṭa received the going forth, monastic ordination in the Buddha’s presence. Not long after his ordination, Venerable Tāḷapuṭa…became one of the perfected [fully enlightened]. Source
