![]() Great Being was moved to tears with compassion that arose from the depths of his heart. Tormented by hunger, she lay on the ground unable even to lift her head. When he looked into the cave again, Great Being noticed that the tigress was not able to move, for she had just given birth and she also feared that if she left to hunt for food, another animal might harm her cubs. Great Sound and Great Deity laid arrows on their bows, making ready to kill the tigress, but Great Being stopped his brothers, saying that killing was completely wrong. They crept up to it and saw inside a tigress sleeping beside her cubs. As they walked along, they noticed a den in the dense woods. Then the three princes, in the full flush of their youth, picked up their bows and arrows and headed for the forest. The king, queen, and ministers watched the entertainment while enjoying an eighteen course meal accompanied by wine and sake. Then the young people began to sing, dance, and play, transforming the encampment into a celestial realm. The servants bustled about, preparing a variety of foods and offering tea and liquor to everyone. ![]() Soon the ground was covered with tents as clouds billowed in the sky above. The servants immediately unpacked everything, set up tents, and laid out a hearth of stones for cooking. ![]() The king was pleased with the scenery and ordered a large encampment to be prepared for everyone’s enjoyment. After half a day’s ride, they arrived at a place of thickly wooded forests resonant with birdsong while nearby blossomed a tapestry of flowers in rich variety. The king and queen rode upon an elephant while the sons, ministers, and retinue were mounted on beautiful horses. One day when the weather was fine, the king along with his queen, sons, and ministers left the town for a relaxing time in the country. He gave freely and generously to others as if to his only child. From his earliest years, the youngest son, Great Being, was very bright and endowed with spontaneous kindness and compassion. Powerful in the martial arts and radiating confidence, the two elder sons always helped the king in governing the kingdom. The king had three sons: the oldest was named Great Sound (Dra Chenpo), the middle Great Deity (Lha Chenpo), and the youngest Great Being (Semchen Chenpo). Due to the king’s accumulation of merit, all his subjects enjoyed happiness and well being rains came at the right time while crops and livestock flourished. In the distant past, there lived in this world a king named Great Charioteer (Shingta Chenpo) who ruled over a small kingdom of some five thousand subjects. Below is the story of how he was overcome with compassion when he saw a tigress tormented by starvation and offered his body to her without a moment’s hesitation. A long time in the past, many immeasurable eons ago, our teacher the perfect Buddha was practicing on the path of learning.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |