Hellmuth Hecker (German translation by Sister Khema)
Queen Samavati
In the days when India was the home of the Buddha, a husband and wife lived within its borders with an only daughter, who was exceedingly beautiful. Their family life was a happy and harmonious one. Then one day pestilence broke out in their hometown. Among those fleeing from the disaster area was also this family with their grown daughter.They went to Kosambi, the capital of the kingdom of Vamsa in the valley of the Ganges. The municipality had erected a public eating hall for the refugees. There the daughter, Samavati, went to obtain food. The first day she took three portions, the second day two portions, and on the third day only one portion.
Mitta, the man who was distributing the food, could not resist from asking her somewhat ironically, whether she had finally realized the capacity of her stomach. Samavati replied quite calmly: On the first day her father had died, so she only needed food for two people; on the second day her mother had succumbed to the dreaded disease, so she only needed food for herself. The official felt ashamed about his sarcastic remark and wholeheartedly begged her forgiveness. A long conversation ensued. When he found out that she was all alone in the world, he proposed to adopt her as his foster-child. She was happy to accept and was now relieved of all worries about her livelihood.
Samavati immediately began helping her foster father with the distribution of the food and the care of the refugees.
Thanks to her efficiency and circumspection, the former chaos became channeled into orderly activity. Nobody tried to get ahead of others any more, no one quarreled, and everyone was content.
Soon the king's Finance Minister, Ghosaka, became aware that the public food distribution was taking place without noise and tumult. When he expressed his praise and appreciation to the food-distributor, the official replied modestly that his foster-daughter was mainly responsible for this. In this way Ghosaka met Samavati and was so impressed with her noble bearing, that he decided to adopt her as his own daughter. His manager consented, even if somewhat woefully, because he did not want to be in the way of Samavati's fortune. So Ghosaka took her into his house and thereby she became heiress of a vast fortune and became part of the most exalted circles of the land.
The king, who was living in Kosambi at that time, was Udena. He had two chief consorts. One was Vasuladatta, whom he had married both for political reasons and because she was very beautiful, but these were her only assets. The second one, Magandiya, was not only very beautiful, but also very clever though without heart. So the King was not emotionally contented with his two wives.
One day King Udena met the charming, adopted daughter of his finance minister and fell in love with her at first sight. He felt magically attracted by her loving and generous nature. Samavati had exactly what was missing in both of his other wives. King Udena sent a messenger to Ghosaka and asked him to give Samavati to him in marriage. Ghosaka was thrown into an emotional upheaval. He loved Samavati above all else, and she had become indispensable to him. She was the delight of his life. On the other hand, he knew his king's temperament and was afraid to deny him his request. But in the end his attachment to Samavati won. He thought, "Better to die than to live without her!"
As usual, King Udena lost his temper. In his fury he dismissed Ghosaka from his post as finance minister and banished him from the kingdom but did not allow Samavati to accompany him. He took over his minister's property and locked up his magnificent mansion. Samavati was desolate that Ghosaka had to suffer so much on her account. He had lost not only her but also his home and belongings. Out of compassion for her adopted father, to whom she was devoted out of great gratitude, she decided to put an end to this dispute by voluntarily becoming the king's wife. She went to the palace and informed the king of her decision. The king was immediately appeased and restored Ghosaka to his former position, as well as rescinding all other measures against him.
Because Samavati had a great love for everyone, this decision was not a difficult one for her. It was not important to her where she lived: whether in the house of the finance minister as his favorite daughter, or in the palace as the favorite wife of the king, or in obscurity in the house of her parents, or even as a poor refugee. She always found peace in her heart and was happy regardless of outer circumstances.
Samavati's life at the court of one of the great kings (maha rajas) of that time settled into a harmonious pattern. Among her servants, there was one named Khujjuttara (the "hunch-backed"). Outwardly she was ill-formed but otherwise very capable. Everyday the queen gave her eight gold coins to buy flowers for the women's quarters of the palace. But Khujjuttara always bought only four coin's worth and used the rest for herself.
One day when she was buying flowers again for her mistress from the gardener, a monk was taking his meal there. He was of majestic appearance. When he gave a discourse to the gardener after the meal, Khujjuttara listened. This monk was in fact the Buddha. He directed his discourse in such a way that he spoke directly to Khujjuttara. And his Teaching penetrated into her heart. Just from hearing this one discourse, so well expounded, she attained stream-entry.
Without quite knowing what had happened to her, she was a totally changed person. The whole world, which had seemed so obvious and real to her until now, appeared as a dream, separate from reality. The first thing she did that day was to buy flowers with all of the eight coins, deeply regretting her former dishonesty.
When the queen asked her why there were suddenly so many flowers, Khujjuttara fell at the queen's feet and confessed her theft. When Samavati magnanimously forgave her, Khujjuttara told her what was closest to her heart, namely, that she had heard a discourse by the Buddha that had changed her life. She could not be specific about the contents of the Teaching; however, Samavati could see for herself what a wholesome and healing influence the Teaching had had on her servant. She elevated Khujjuttara to personal attendant and told her to visit the monastery every day to listen to the Dharma and then report it back to her.
Khujjuttara had an outstanding memory, and what she heard once she could repeat verbatim. Later on she was to made a collection of discourses she had heard from the Buddha and/or his enlightened disciples during these days at Kosambi. And from it developed the book now called the Itivuttaka ("It-was-said-thus"), composed of 112 short discourses.
When King Udena once again told his beloved Samavati that she could wish for anything and he would fulfill it, she wished that the Buddha would come to the palace daily for alms and to propound his Teaching. The king's courier took the message of this perpetual invitation to the Buddha, who declined and instead sent his personal attendant Ananda.
From then on Ananda went to the palace daily for his meal and afterward gave a Dharma discourse. The queen was already well prepared by Khujjuttara's reports, and within a short time she understood the meaning and also attained stream-entry, just as her hunchbacked maid had done.
Through their common understanding of the Dharma, both queen and maid became equals. Within a short time, the Teaching spread through the whole of the women's quarters. And there was hardly anyone who did not become a disciple of the Awakened One. Even Samavati's step-father, Finance Minister Ghosaka, was deeply touched by the Teaching. Like Anathapindika, he donated a large monastery in Kosambi to the Sangha, so that the monks would have a secure and satisfying shelter. Every time the Buddha visited Kosambi he stayed in this monastery, which came to be called Ghositarama. Other monks and wandering mendicants also would find shelter there.
Through the influence of the Dharma, Samavati became determined to develop her abilities more intensively. Her most important asset was the way she could feel sympathy for all beings and could penetrate everyone with loving-kindness and compassion. She was able to develop this faculty so strongly that the Buddha called her the woman lay-disciple most skilled in metta ("loving-kindness") (A I.19).
This all-pervading love was soon to be tested severely. It happened like this. The second main consort of the king, Magandiya, was imbued with virulent hatred against everything "Buddhist." Once her father had heard the Buddha preach about unconditional love to all beings, and it had seemed to him that the Buddha was the most worthy one to marry his daughter. In his naive ignorance of the monastic rules (Vinaya), he offered his daughter in marriage to the Buddha. Magandiya was very beautiful and had been sought after by many suitors already.
The Buddha declined the offer but by speaking a single verse about the unattractiveness of the body caused her father and mother to attain the fruit of non-returning. This was that verse, as recorded in the Sutta Nipata (v.835):
There was not in me any wish for sex;
How then for this, dung-and-urine filled, which
I would not want to touch even with my foot?
*[The three beautiful daughters of Mara, the "tempter").]
First, she told the king that Samavati was trying to take his life. But the king was well aware of Samavati's great love for all beings, so he took no mind of the accusation, barely listened to it, and forgot it almost immediately.
Second, Magandiya ordered one of her maid-servants to spread rumors about the Buddha and his monks in Kosambi so that Samavati would also be maligned. With this she was more successful. A wave of aversion struck the whole Monastic Order to such an extent that Ananda suggested to the Buddha that they leave town. The Buddha smiled and said that the purity of the Sangha would silence all rumors within a week. Hardly had King Udena heard the gossip leveled against the Order, than it had already subsided. Thus, Magandiya's second attempt against Samavati had failed.
Later Magandiya had eight specially selected chickens sent to the king and suggested that Samavati kill and prepare a meal out of them. Samavati refused, as she would not kill any living being. Since the king knew of her all-embracing love, he accepted her decision without losing his temper.
Magandiya tried for a fourth time to harm Samavati. Just prior to the week which King Udena was to spend with Samavati, Magandiya hid a poisonous snake in Samavati's chambers. The poison sacs had been removed. But when King Udena discovered the snake, all evidence pointed towards Samavati. And his passionate fury made him lose all control. He reached for his bow and arrow, aimed it, and shot Samavati. The arrow, however, rebounded from her without harming her at all. His hatred could not influence her loving concern for him, which continued to emanate from her. (This was due to the power of meditative absorption on metta).
When King Udena regained his equilibrium and saw the miracle — that his arrow was unable to harm Samavati, he was deeply moved. He asked her forgiveness and was even more convinced of her nobility, love, and loyalty. He even became interested in the Teaching that had given such strength to his gentle wife.
When Ven. Pindola Bharadvaja, a famous monk of the time, stayed at the Ghosita Monastery, the king visited him and discussed the Teaching with him. He learned that the young monks, according to the Buddha's advice, rather than having contact with women instead tried to arouse such feelings as they would towards a mother, sister, or daughter. They thereby overcame their dependence on the opposite sex and could live joyously as celibates in spite of their youth. At the end of the discourse, the king was so impressed that he took guidance (sarana) in the Buddha and became a lay disciple (S 35,127).
Meanwhile, Samavati had been thinking about the wonders of the Dharma and the intricacies of karmic influences. One thing had led to another:
- She had come to Kosambi as a poor refugee.
- Then the food-distributor had given her shelter.
- The finance minister had taken her on as his daughter.
- Then she became the king's wife.
- Her maid-servant had brought the Teaching to her.
- And she became a disciple and stream-winner.
- She subsequently spread the Teaching to all the women in the palace, then to Ghosaka, and now lastly also to the king.
How convincing Truth was! She often thought in this way and then permeated all beings with loving-kindness, wishing them safety and happiness.
The king now tried with more determination to control his passionate temper and to subdue his greed and anger. His talks with Samavati were very helpful to him in this respect. Slowly this development culminated in his losing all lustful craving when he was in Samavati's company as he was trying to arouse the same feelings towards women as he would towards mother, sister, and daughter. While he was not free of sexual desire towards his other wives, he was willing to let Samavati continue on her path to enlightenment and emancipation unhindered. Soon she attained to the higher state of once-returner and drew nearer and nearer to non-returner, an attainment which many more men and women were able to attain in lay-life in the past.
Magandiya had suspended her attacks for some time but continued to ponder how to harm the Buddha through Samavati. After much brooding, she initiated a new plan. She brought some of her relatives over to her point of view and slandered Samavati. She then proposed to kill her. So that it would not attract attention but instead appear to be an accident, the entire women's palace was to be set on fire. The details of the plan were worked out. Magandiya left town beforehand so that no suspicion would fall on her.
The arson resulted in terrible flames that completely destroyed the wooden palace. The 500* women residing in it were all killed, including Samavati. News of the disaster spread around town very quickly. No other topic of conversation could be heard. Several monks who had not been monks for very long were so affected by the agitation that after their almsround they went to the Buddha and inquired about the future destinations of the female lay disciples with Samavati as their leader.
*[500 is a Pali colloquialism, which simply means "a great many."]
The Awakened One calmed their excited hearts and diverted their curiosity about this most interesting question of rebirth destinations by answering very briefly: "Among these women, O monks, there are some disciples who are stream-enterers, some who are once-returners, and some who are non-returners. None of these lay disciples failed to receive the fruits of their past deeds" (Udana VII, 10).
The Buddha mentions here the first three fruits of the Dharma, the successive stages leading to full enlightenment: stream-entry, once-returning, and non-returning. All of these disciples were now exempt from the possibility of any rebirth below the human plane, the lowest type of rebirth still considered a "fortunate destination." Each one was securely moving towards the final goal of total liberation. This was the most important aspect of their lives and deaths, and the Buddha did not elucidate any further. [The Buddha had once mentioned to Ananda that it was a vexation for the Enlightened One to be asked to explain the future births of each and every disciple who died (DN 16.11).]
The Buddha later explained to some monks who were discussing how "unjust" it was that these excellent disciples should die such a terrible death that the women experienced this because of a collective deed they had committed many lifetimes ago:
Once long ago Samavati had been Queen of Benares. She had gone with her ladies-in-waiting to bathe and, feeling cold, asked that a bush be burned for warmth. She saw only too late that a recluse — a Pacceka Buddha in fact — was sitting immobile within the bush. Unbeknownst to them, he was not harmed since buddhas cannot be killed and because he was deep in meditative absorption (jhana). But because the women did not know this, they feared that they would be blamed for having made a fire without due caution.
Thereupon, Samavati had the deluded idea to pour oil over this peaceful recluse who was sitting immobile in total absorption (fourth jhana) so that cremating him would obliterate their mistake. This plan could not succeed. However, the harmful intention and the attempt entailed heavy karmic results. In her present life as Queen Samavati the ripening of the result had taken place.
The Buddha declared that one of the favorable results of the practice of metta (loving-kindness) meditation is the fact that neither fire, poison, nor weapons can harm the practitioner [while in absorption with loving-kindness as the basis]. It has to be understood that this is to the level of absorption (jhana) with the emanation of loving-kindness. The one manifesting this radiance cannot be hurt, as Samavati proved when the king's arrow failed to harm her.
But at other times when not absorbed (in jhana through metta) fire can, of course, harm one. Samavati had become a non-returner and was therefore free of all sensual desire and hate and no longer identified with her body. Her radiant, soft heart was amplified by the Four Divine Abidings* and was unassailable and untouched by the fire. That which was burned was only the body.
It is a rare occurrence that one of the Noble Ones is murdered (e.g., Maha Moggallana, Kaludayi) or that one of the buddhas is threatened with murder (e.g., Devadatta's attempt on the Buddha Gautama's life). Equally rare is that one perfected in metta and attained to the height of non-returner should die a violent death of any kind. This is why the Buddha felt it necessary to explain how heavy her negative karma was to result in this seemingly unjust way. All three types of persons, however, have in common that their hearts can no longer be swayed by violence.
*[Four Brahma Viharas: loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity.]
Samavati's last words were, "It would not be an easy matter, even with the knowledge of a buddha, to determine exactly the number of times our bodies have thus been burned by fire as we have passed from birth to birth in the ceaseless round of existences (Samsara) which has no conceivable beginning. Therefore, be heedful!" Those ladies meditated on painful feeling and so gained the Noble Paths and Fruits (arya magga and phala).
It is interesting to note that in 1582, two thousand years after the final passing (parinibbana) of the Buddha, soldiers burned a Buddhist monastery in Japan, and all the monks inside were burned alive. The last thing the soldiers heard before everything burned down were the words of the abbot:
Who has liberated heart and mind,
For him fire is only a cool wind.
Referring to the tragedy of the fire at Kosambi, the Buddha spoke the following verse:
The world is in delusion's grip,
Its form is seen as real;
The fool is in the assets'* grip,
Wrapped about with gloom.
Both seem to last forever,
But nothing is there for one who sees.
*[Assets (upadhi): the basis for life and continued birth and death.]
Back at the palace, King Udena was overwhelmed with grief at Samavati's death and kept brooding about who could have been the perpetrator of so ghastly a deed. He came to the conclusion that it must have been Magandiya. He did not want to question her directly since she would only deny it. So he thought of a ruse and loudly said to his ministers: "Until now I have always been apprehensive because Samavati was forever seeking an occasion to slay me! But now I shall be able to sleep in peace."
The ministers asked the king who it could have been that had done this deed. "Only someone who really loves me!" the king replied. Magandiya had been standing nearby. And when she heard this, she came forward and proudly claimed that she alone was responsible for the fire and the death of Samavati and the other women. The king said that he would grant her and all her relatives a boon for this.
When all the relatives assembled, the king had them burned publicly. Then he had the earth plowed under so that all traces of the ashes were destroyed. He had Magandiya executed as a mass-murderess, which was his duty and responsibility. But because his fury knew no bounds, he still looked for revenge. He had her killed with utmost cruelty. She died an excruciating death, which was only a sampling of the torment awaiting her in the netherworld (naraka), after which she would have to roam in Samsara* for a long, long time to come.
*[Samsara: the round of existence; literally, "the continued wandering on" from birth to death to rebirth.]
Soon King Udena regretted his vengeful and cruel deed. Again and again he saw Samavati's face in front of him, full of love for all beings, even for her ardent enemies. He felt that because of his violent fury his deeds had removed him even further from her than had her death. He began to take hold of his temper more and more and to steadfastly follow the Buddha's teachings.
Two women who had been friends of Samavati were so moved by this tragedy that, seeing the impermanence and instability of earthly things so clearly, they entered the Order of Nuns. One of them soon became an arahant, fully enlightened, and the other after twenty-five years of practice (Therigatha 37 and 39).
Samavati, however, was reborn in the Pure Abodes, where she would be able to reach nirvana without returning to the human plane. The different results of love and hate can be seen with striking clarity in the lives and deaths of these two queens. When one day the monks were discussing who was alive and who dead, the Buddha said that Magandiya — while living — was dead already, whereas Samavati though dead was truly alive (having touched the deathless by her attainments). Then the Buddha uttered these verses:
Heedfulness — the path to the deathless [nirvana],
Heedlessness — the path to death [samsara],
the heedful ones do not die;
the heedless are as if already dead.
The wise, then, recognizing this
as the distinction of heedfulness,
in heedfulness rejoice, delighting
in the realm of noble ones.
They meditate persistently,
constantly; they firmly strive
steadfast to reach nirvana,
the unexcelled security from all bonds.
— Dhammapada 21-23
The Buddha then declared Samavati to be foremost among those female lay disciples who dwell in loving-kindness (metta).
Sources: Dhammapada commentary to vv. 21-23; commentary to Anguttara Nikaya Vol. I (on those foremost); Path of Purification, p. 417.
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