As narrated by Khenpo Nima Shar
Translated by Rinchen Phuntsho
Part III
Meanwhile, Phagkaypo and his evil
friend Rinchoey, had been very consistent with their plans of taking revenge on
the people of Sercha for their disrespect and insult. In vicious anger, they
planned to eradicate the whole race of people in Sercha. One day, they led a
large army and advanced towards Sercha. The Buddha learnt about it through his
clairvoyance and realised how grave a sin they were going to commit. Moreover,
the people of Sercha were also robust people and skilled in the art of warfare.
Hence, the unprovoked aggression on the people of Sercha by Phagkaypo only
meant equal threat to himself and his people. In anyways, many precious lives
were at stake and many people were on the threshold of committing heinous sins.
Therefore, in order to avert the tragedy, but unknown to Phagkaypo’s force, the
Buddha went ahead towards Sercha and choosing an old dried tree, sat beneath
it. Though there were many green and shady trees, the Buddha deliberately chose
the dying tree which neither had any leaves nor gave any shade.
Eventually, Phagkaypo and his
force passed by the site and seeing the Buddha seated beneath an old dying tree
with no leaves and shade, amongst a forest of green shady trees, prostrated
before the Buddha and asked, “When there are many green and big trees which
could give you a better shade, why do you choose to sit beneath this old dying
tree which has neither leaves nor shade?” The Buddha replied, “The people of
Sercha are my kith and kin. All of them are people of the same race as I. Since
I have love for my family and relatives, leave aside other things, I prefer an
old dying tree of Sercha to all the lush green shady trees of other places.”
Hearing this, Phagkaypo was overcome with a sense of inhibition. He realised
that the people on whom he was going to wage a war were related to the Buddha,
who had deep love for his people. Knowing that killing these people in the
presence of the Buddha himself would bring sorrow to the Buddha, Phagkaypo
returned to his kingdom without making any aggression on the people of Sercha. Thus,
a catastrophe was averted.
However, the people of Sercha
were predestined to meet their ends in the hands of Phagkaypo due to a past
karmic relationship. The Buddha understood that the principle of cause and
effect is irrevocable and immutable, and the people of Sercha must bear the
consequences of their negative actions in previous lives. The Buddha realised
that the only thing he could do to help these people was to convert them into
Buddhist practitioners and help them achieve various levels of enlightenment. Hence,
the Buddha returned to Sercha and bestowed upon its inhabitant numerous teachings.
He told the people that they were predestined to meet their ends in the hands
of Phagkaypo as a result of their negative actions in previous lives. All the
people believed the words of the Buddha and practised meditation with enhanced
concentration. As a result, many of them achieved various levels of
enlightenment. Few made no significant progress. Nonetheless, they also
developed deep faith for the Buddha’s teachings and Buddhist values.
Back in Gaya, Rinchoey continued
to poison the mind of Phagkaypo. He coaxed Phagkaypo into renewing their plans
of taking revenge on the people of Sercha. He instigated Phagkaypo saying that
Phagkaypo was the King of the land and whatsoever happens, the people of Sercha
should have showed some respect to him. Gullible as he was, King Phagkaypo was
soon filled with revivified rage against the people of Sercha. Once again, he
led his troops against Sercha.
The omniscient Buddha became aware
of it again. This time, he implored one of his chief disciples, a master of magic
and miracle, Maugyalbu (Mau Gyal gi bu) to use his magical powers and avert a
crisis between Phagkaypo and the people of Sercha, or else, the entire race of
people in Sercha would be eradicated and thousands of precious lives on both
sides would be lost over a trivial issue. Obediently, Maugyalbu went to Sercha
and using his magical powers, he covered the land of Sercha with a shield of protective
mantras and sutras. The forces of Phagkaypo tried in vain to penetrate the
shield of mantras. However, they remained on the outskirt of Sercha waiting for
any opportunity.
Meanwhile, inside Sercha,
facilitated by Maugyalbu, all the citizen of Sercha met together to deliberate
on the issue. They said among themselves that if they want, they could defeat
Phagkaypo’s force, but having to die in the hands of Phagkaypo was a result of
their sins in previous lives. Moreover, retaliating would mean taking the lives
of thousands of people. War only means anger, ego, bloodshed and suffering and
would only mean accumulating more sins which would result in more sufferings in
next lives. They agreed that the Buddha had prophesied their deaths in the
hands of Phagkaypo and there is no questioning the words of the Buddha. They
unanimously decided that they will follow the teachings of the Buddha and come
what may, none of the people of Sercha will ever retaliate the aggression of
Phagkaypo’s force, not even if it meant having to face death. Thus, a law was
enacted among the people of Sercha.
However, one powerful citizen of Sercha
who was away for some work at a distant land and could not attend the meeting
was Shakya Shambaka. Shakya Shambaka was a war-like robust man capable of
killing thousands of men singlehandedly on the battlefield. Owing to his
absence, he was unaware of Phagkaypo’s aggression on his homeland and
especially about the new self-pronounced law of his land that none of them will
retaliate against Phagkaypo’s force and claim even a single life. Upon his
return, he heard the news of Phagkaypo’s unprovoked aggression on his homeland
which immediately enraged him. He took along a small force and went to
challenge the intruders. In the ensuing battle, Shakya Shambaka singlehandedly
killed thousands of Phagkaypo’s soldiers. The frightened and defeated forces of
Phagkaypo retreated to their kingdom.
A satisfied Shakya Shambaka
returned home from battle after defeating Phagkaypo’s troops. However, he was
denied entry into his own homeland by his own people. They argued that they had
unanimously sworn not to retaliate the aggression of Phagkaypo and that they
would not bring death to even a single soul of their enemy, which Shakya
Shambaka had violated. They announced that Shakya Shambaka will be expelled
from their community and suggested that he leave Sercha and find settlement
elsewhere. Realising his mistake, Shakya Shambaka was filled with remorse and
repentance. He sought refuge under the Buddha, who advised him to escape to a
secure place in order to avoid the persecution by Phagkaypo. He heeded the
Buddha’s advice and taking few clipped fingernail and few strands of Buddha’s
hair (which the Buddha gave him) as relics, Shakya Shambaka escaped and settled
at an unknown place called Bahudra. There, he built Buddhist stupas with the
Buddha’s fingernails and hair strands as relics and spurred a new settlement.
Back in Gaya, Rinchoey was bitter
than ever. He further instigated Phagkaypo, who summoned troops from every nook
and corner of his country. What emerged as a result was the formation of a huge
army, the largest any man could imagine then. This huge troop marched upon
Sercha. However, as they vowed, none of the people of Sercha retaliated the
hostilities of Phagkaypo’s troops. Taking advantage, Phagkaypo’s troops killed
77,000 powerful people of Sercha and took 1000 maidens as prisoners. Boys were
either whipped or stomped under the feet of the elephants, while some were
burnt alive. The whole country of Sercha was brought to the ground. That is why
we can see only the ruins of Sercha (Kapilvastu, Nepal) today.
This brought infinite sorrow to
the Buddha. He was filled with compassion and pity for the cruel fate the
people of Sercha met in the hands of Phagkaypo, who was a devotee and patron of
the Buddha himself. The sufferings of these sentient beings, who were also his
own kith and kin, deeply saddened the Buddha. He even refused to speak and eat
for few days. Seeing this, the monks asked the Buddha, “Oh enlightened one, if
you dissuaded Phagkaypo, he would not have refused you. Even Maugyalbu could
have saved them using his magical prowess. The people of Sercha were powerful
and they could have saved themselves too. What negative actions of their past
lives brought the people of Sercha such terrible end? Please tell us.”
The Buddha replied …
…to be continued
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