Читать книгу Garland of the Buddha’s Past Lives (Volume 1) - Aryashura - Страница 25

There are also different motivations behind the Bodhi·sattva’s gifts. Some stories (3 and 4) depict an alms offering,²² whereby a layperson offers food to a monk out of devotion and respect. In the majority of stories, however, the Bodhi·sattva gives either out of compassion or out of pure renunciation, as suits his role as a renunciant protector who is famed for his non-attachment and compassionate deeds. When the Bodhi·sattva gives out of pure renunciation, the dynamics of the gift differ radically from the devotional gift of an alms offering. In the latter case, the moral standing of the recipient is crucial; in the former case, the nature of the recipient is often irrelevant, the emphasis being on giving for giving’s sake. “Gifts should be given: that alone is why I give,” states the Bodhi·sattva in “The Birth-Story of Vishvan·tara” (9.61 [26]).

A striking example of a compassionate gift is provided by “The Birth-Story on the Tigress,” in which the Bodhi·sattva offers his body to a hungry tigress with the following motivation:

It is neither ambition, nor desire for fame,

nor the attainment of heaven, nor kingship,

nor my own perpetual happiness that motivates me.

My sole concern is to benefit others.(1.44 [30])

Likewise, in “The Birth-Story of Maitri·bala,” the Bodhi ·sattva joyfully gives his body to a group of demons, stating:

When I look at the helpless creatures

incessantly suffering bitter toils and woes,

my mind cannot be satisfied

merely by dispelling my own sorrows.(8.106 [54])