The world of Tzu Chi January 2021 (Vol.130)

TZU CHI 130 45 * This article is extracted from Master Tells Stories. women in a long time, so they asked Buddha to explain. Buddha said, “When people meet the Buddha, it is because of causes that were created in their previous lives.” Then he began to tell them about the past. At the time of Kyasa Buddha, there was a very rich man. He was probably the richest man in the world. He had many servants and his wife had five hundred ladies to serve her. His wife clearly knew right from wrong. She knew that people should do good deeds. If anyone did not follow the rules, had an evil mind or behaved improperly, she would treat that person like an enemy. Therefore, she and her five hundred ladies lived within their own world and hardly ever came in contact with the outside. One day, the king invited his ministers and the elders in the city to his palace. When this rich man received the invitation, he said to his wife, “This is the king’s invitation, so I have to go.” He asked his wife to go with him, so she and the five hundred women followed the rich man to the palace. The king revered Kyasa Buddha, so he also invited the buddha and his disciples to the palace to preach to all the people he had invited. The rich man’s wife was delighted to hear the buddha speak. After the buddha had finished his sermon, he looked at her. “This woman is so elegant. Her mind is righteous and she knows right from wrong. If she practises her moral cultivation, one day she will be a buddha too!” She was overjoyed to hear this and bowed to the buddha. “Buddha, do you mean that I can do moral cultivation?” she asked. “Who can teach me?” Kyasa Buddha had a wise, compassionate disciple who diligently upheld the precepts and who had already saved many people. The buddha pointed to that disciple. “Look at him! In another reincarnation, he will be Sakyamuni Buddha. If you cultivate yourself diligently and continuously, then you will meet him in that time and he will teach and enlighten you and all those with you.” That disciple heard what the buddha said, and he was also extremely joyful. Sakyamuni Buddha finished his story. “That was the cause that was created in our past lives,” he said to his disciples. “I saw these five hundred women in Kyasa Buddha’s time. From that time until now, it has been an immeasurable period of time. That’s why I said, ‘I haven’t seen you in a long time!’” When the disciples heard this, they finally realized that everyone always meets each other for a reason.