1.11 The Story about the Lay Disciple Dhammika
Dhammika-Upāsakassa Vatthu

“Here he rejoices, after death he rejoices,” {1.129} this Dhamma teaching was given by the Teacher while he was in residence at Jetavana with reference to the lay disciple Dhammika.

At Sāvatthī, we are told, lived five hundred lay people called Dhammika, each with a retinue of five hundred lay friends. The senior lay disciple had seven sons and seven daughters. Each of these sons regularly gave ticket-porridge, ticket-food, food of the waning moon, food of the new moon, invitation-food, the Observance Day food, visitors’ food, and food during the season of the rains. All of them took after their father, so that the lay disciple and his wife and fourteen children maintained sixteen forms of alms. And the lay disciple, virtuous, upright, together with son and wife, took delight in the distribution of alms.

After a time the lay disciple was attacked by a disease, and his vital forces began to decay. {1.130} Desiring to hear the Dhamma, he sent word to the Teacher: “Send me eight or sixteen bhikkhus.” The Teacher sent them, and they straightaway went and gathered around his bed and sat down on seats prepared for them. “Venerable Sirs,” said the lay disciple, “it will be difficult for me to see you, for I am weak; tell me but a single Discourse.” – “Which Discourse would you like to hear, lay brother?” – “The Mindfulness Discourse, BG: Dīgha, 22; MN 10. common to all the Buddhas.” Accordingly they began to rehearse the Discourse, beginning with the words: “This is a one-way path, bhikkhus, for the purification of beings.”

At that moment, from the six worlds of the Devas, approached six chariots a 150 leagues long, drawn by a thousand Sindh horses, adorned with all the adornments. In each chariot stood a Devatā, and each Devatā spoke and said: “Permit us to convey you to our celestial world.” And they spoke again and said: “Even as one shatters a clay vessel and replaces it with a vessel of gold, even so are [28.229] living beings reborn to take their pleasure in our celestial world.” The lay disciple, unwilling to be interrupted in listening to the Dhamma, said: “Wait! Wait!” The bhikkhus, thinking that he was speaking to them, ceased their recitation of the Dhamma. His sons and daughters cried out: “Formerly our father could never hear enough of the Dhamma. But now, after summoning the bhikkhus and directing them to rehearse the Dhamma, he stops them himself. After all, there is no man who does not fear death.” The bhikkhus said to each other: “This is no time for us to remain.” And forthwith they arose and departed.

After a time the lay disciple recovered his attention and asked his sons: “Why do you weep?” – “Dear father,” said they, “you sent for the bhikkhus, and even as you listened to the Dhamma, you yourself stopped them from rehearsing the Dhamma. We weep to think: ‘After all, there is no man who does not fear death.’” {1.131} – “But where are the noble ones?” – “They said to each other: ‘This is no time for us to remain.’ And forthwith they arose from their seats and departed.” – “Dear sons, I was not speaking to the noble ones.” – “With whom, then, were you talking, dear father?” – “From the six worlds of the Devas Devatās approached in six magnificently adorned chariots, and standing in their chariots poised in the air, they said to me: ‘Take your pleasure in our celestial world; take your pleasure in our celestial world.’ I was talking with them.” – “Dear father, where are the chariots? We do not see them.” – “Have I any wreaths of flowers?” – “Yes, dear father.” – “Which celestial world is the most delightful?” – “Dear father, the most delightful is the world of the Tusita gods, the abode of the mothers and fathers of the Buddhas and of all the Bodhisattas.” – “Well then, throw a wreath of flowers and say: ‘Let this wreath of flowers cling to the chariot which came from the world of the Tusita gods.’”

Accordingly the children of the lay disciple threw the wreath of flowers, and it clung to the pole of the chariot and hung suspended in the air. The populace saw the wreath of flowers suspended in the air, but did not see the chariot. The lay disciple said: “Do you see this wreath of flowers?” – “Yes, we see it.” – “This wreath hangs suspended from the chariot which came from the world of the Tusita gods. I am going to the world of the Tusita gods; be not disturbed. If you desire to be reborn with me, do works of merit even as I have done.” And when he had thus spoken, he died and set foot in the chariot. Immediately he was reborn as a Deva three-quarters of a league in stature, adorned with sixty cartloads of ornaments. A retinue of a thousand [28.230] Accharās attended him, and a golden mansion twenty-five leagues in extent became visible.

When those bhikkhus reached the monastery, the Teacher asked them: “Bhikkhus, did the lay disciple hearken to the recitation of the Dhamma?” – “Yes, venerable Sir. But in the midst of the recitation he cried out: ‘Wait! Wait!’ and stopped us. Then his sons and daughters began to weep, {1.132} whereupon we said to each other: ‘This is no time for us to remain,’ and arose from our seats and departed.” – “Bhikkhus, he was not talking to you. From the six worlds of the Devas Devatās approached in six magnificently adorned chariots, and they summoned that lay disciple to go with them; but the lay disciple, unwilling that the recitation of the Dhamma should be interrupted, spoke to them.” – “Is that true, venerable Sir?” – “That is true, bhikkhus.” – “Venerable Sir, where was he reborn just now?” – “In the world of the Tusita gods, bhikkhus.”

“Venerable Sir, but recently he lived here among his kinsfolk rejoicing, and just now he went again to a place of rejoicing and was there reborn.” – “Yes, bhikkhus. They that are heedful, be they laymen or those gone forth, rejoice in both places equally.” So saying, he pronounced the following verse:

16. Idha modati, pecca modati,
katapuñño ubhayattha modati,
so modati, so pamodati,
disvā kammavisuddhim-attano.

Here he rejoices, after death he rejoices,
the righteous one rejoices in both places,
he rejoices, he greatly rejoices,
seeing the purity of his own deeds.

At the conclusion of the verse many became Stream-enterers and so on, and benefit arose to many people from the Dhamma teaching.

last updated: August 2024