BURLINGAME. — BUDDHAGHOSA's DHAMMAPADA COMMENTARY. .533 



him water to drink, washed his feet, brought him the set of robes he 

 had procured for him, formally presented them to him, and then, taking 

 the palm-leaf fan into his hands, resumed fanning him. Said the older 

 monk, " Nephew, I have a complete set of robes ; use these yourself." 

 The younger monk pleaded with his uncle to reconsider his answer, but 

 the older monk remained obdurate. The younger monk was so bitterly 

 disappointed that he then and there decided to give up the monastic 

 life and return to the life of a householder. So as he stood there beside 

 the older monk, swinging the palm-leaf fan to and fro, he pondered in 

 his mind ways and means of earning a living. Finally the following 

 thought occurred to him : (300-302) 



" I will sell this set of robes, and buy me a ewe ; ewes are very pro- 

 lific ; every lambkin the ewe drops I will sell ; in this way I shall be 

 able to accumulate a lot of money. When I have done that, I will 

 procure me a wife. She will bear me a son, whom I will name after 

 my uncle. I will put my son in a go-cart, and taking son and wife 

 along, go and pay my respects to my uncle. As I journey by the way 

 I will say to my wife, 'Just hand me my son; I wish to carry him.' 

 She will reply, ' What 's the need of your carrying the boy 1 go ahead 

 and push this go-cart ; ' then she will take the boy into her arms and 

 say, 'I'll carry him myself;' whereupon, finding the child too heavy 

 for her, she will let him fall. Then I will say to her, ' You would n't 

 let me carry the child, in spite of the fact that you could n't carry him 

 yourself;' and having thus said, I will bring down my stick on her 

 back "... At that moment the younger monk swung his fan with 

 great force, and brought it down on the head of his uncle. 33 

 (302-303) 



The older monk considered within himself, " Why did my nephew 

 strike me on the head 1 " and immediately became aware of what was 

 passing through his nephew's mind. So he said, " Nephew, you did n't 

 succeed in hitting the woman ; but why should an aged Elder suffer 

 for it 1 " The younger monk was so ashamed of himself that he 

 immediately threw his fan away and started to run off. But the 

 novices and young monks ran after him, caught him, and brought him 

 before the Teacher, who said to him, " Be not disturbed ; only guard 

 your thoughts hereafter," and pronounced Stanza 37, establishing the 

 young monk in the Fruit of Conversion, and many others in the Three 

 Fruits. (303-305) 



33 Compare the story of the Brahman and his Jar, in the Pancatantra, 

 Hertel's ed., v. 7. 



