Chapter 18 Section Four Venerable Ananda

(1) Hear more first Ananda, translated into Chinese as Celebration, was born on the day of Buddha's enlightenment, hence the name.The second son of Prince Baifan, the younger brother of Devadatta.After the Buddha became enlightened, Shariputra and Moggallana once served the Buddha.As the Buddha was getting old and needed a constant attendant, he gathered his disciples and asked everyone to push someone to come.Sariputra and Moggallana thought that Ananda was young and had a strong memory, and he was the most suitable for this position, so they recommended Ananda.Ananda put forward three conditions: 1. I don't want to wear the Buddha's clothes, whether new or old.2. If believers ask the Buddha to make offerings, I will not serve them.3. When I should not see the Buddha, I will not see him.Sariputra and Moggallana told the Buddha about Ananda's conditions.The Buddha sighed with great joy: Ananda is a man of excellent character. The conditions he put forward were to avoid ridicule, lest others would criticize that he only served the Buddha in order to wear clothes and eat food.In 513 BC, when the Buddha was fifty-three years old, the nineteen-year-old Ananda was officially selected as the Buddha's servant in the Zhulin Jingshe. He served the Buddha for twenty-seven years and followed the Buddha to various places.Ananda is deeply respected by people in the Sangha, and he treats people with humility and sincerity.When getting along with others, never exalt one's own strengths and show others' weaknesses.Always try to help others and provide convenience for others.Sometimes when discussing Buddhism with heretics, it is just to show the righteousness and not to destroy the evil.For example, in Zhai Shiluo Garden, he influenced Chantuo heretics and practiced Buddhism.He didn't conquer the other side with eloquence, but slowly melted the ice with warm spring.During the twenty-seven years of his life as a servant, when Ananda's monks, nuns and lay believers came to visit the Buddha, he always arranged an appropriate time to satisfy everyone's wishes.Especially for the monks who came from afar, before seeing the Buddha, Ananda always gave him kind comfort and comfort.The nuns were very willing to listen to Ananda's teachings.He often said to bhikkhunis: You must observe the holy precepts!Lay believers also like to listen to Ananda's teachings.He taught lay believers to respect the Three Jewels, abide by the Five Precepts, the Ten Virtues, serve their parents, and make offerings to the Sangha.

(2) Ananda Enlightenment Venerable Ananda, after hearing at the Shurangama Meeting that Manjushri Bodhisattva chose all the saints to practice the Perfect Dharma door, his mind became more enlightened than ever before.This is a record of the verses of the Dharma Gate of Perfection. Jue Hai's nature is clear, round and clear Jue Yuanmiao Yuan Ming shines on the life of the establishment and dies Delusion has emptiness Standing in the world according to emptiness Desire to become a country Consciousness is sentient beings Emptiness is born in the Great Enlightenment, like the sea, a stump of hair has leaks, and the dusty kingdoms are all born in the sky

There are many ways to eliminate emptiness, to restore all three existences, to return to one's original nature, The holy nature is all smooth, smooth and inverse, and it is convenient for the first heart to enter the samadhi, and the slow speed is different. (omitted in the middle) I now explain that the World-Honored Buddha came out of the Saha Realm, this is the true teaching body Purity lies in the sound and hearing, and the desire to obtain samadhi is liberated from suffering by hearing it. Liangzai Avalokitesvara enters the dusty Buddha land in the constant sand kalpa and obtains the great power of freedom

Donate fearlessly to all living beings, Avalokitesvara, Sanskrit sound, sea tide sound, salvation of the world, peace of mind I was born into the world and lived forever. I am now enlightened by the Tathagata. As Guanyin said, it is like a person living in peace. Drums beating in ten directions and ten locations Mouth and nose are also restored to the body so that we can know the mind and thoughts without threads and listen to the sound behind the wall It can be heard far and wide. If the five senses are not in order, then the true sound can be heard. What is heard is whether there is no voice or not

Sound and existence are not birth and death, two dimensional separation is always real, even in dreams If you don't think about it without realizing it, you can't contemplate your body and mind, and you can't reach this Saha country The theory of sound proclaims that the fans of all living beings follow the sound, so it circulates. Ananda remembers I can't help falling into evil thoughts, don't I just follow the whirlpool of the situation, and I will listen to you, Ananda, who is innocent I inherit the power of the Buddha and proclaim that the King Kong King is like an illusion

You have heard all the secrets of Mote-dust Buddha, and if you don’t get rid of them first, it will be a mistake. Why don't you hear and hold the Buddha? Why don't you hear the name of the unnatural sound? Who can be liberated from hearing and sound, who can be liberated from desire? Seeing and hearing are like illusions, the three worlds are like empty flowers, hearing the roots of re-shadows, removing dust, pinching, and awakening are perfect and pure Jing Aurora can penetrate the stillness and illuminate the void, but coming to see the world is like a dream Matanga is in a dream, who can keep you in shape like the world, a clever illusionist, and make all men and women

Although all the roots are moving, you must use a machine to draw breath and return to tranquility. All illusions become non-existent The six roots are also like this, one is divided into six harmony and one is rest and recovery according to one shrewdness The six functions should not become dust and dirt, and should be recited to become round, bright, pure and wonderful, and the remaining dust is still taught Mingji is the great assembly of Tathagatas and Ananda, turning you back to the hearing mechanism and listening to the self-nature Nature becomes the unsurpassed way, perfection and penetration are really like this, this is the door of nirvana on the way to the dusty Buddha

In the past, such as Lai Simen have achieved success, and now all Bodhisattvas have entered the perfect enlightenment Future practitioners should follow the Dharma, and I can also prove from it that it is not only Avalokitesvara Just as the Buddha, the World Honored One, consulted me with various means to save the people in the end of the kalpa. Avalokitesvara is the most self-reliant to achieve Nirvana. That is to say, to give up dust and toil, to study shallowly and deeply, to pay homage to the Tathagata Treasure There is no leakage, no inconceivable wish to be added to this door in the future, there is no confusion, it is convenient and easy to achieve

Can be used to teach Ananda and those who perish in the last kalpa, but use this root to cultivate perfection true heart (3) Presiding over Buddhism When the Buddha entered Nirvana between the two Anluo trees in Kushina, Ananda wept bitterly.The Buddha looked at Ananda with compassionate eyes, and said to everyone: Ananda has served me very hard for twenty-seven years. He is gentle and generous, and he never forgets the Dharma. He will shine brightly in the world in the future.Three days after the Buddha passed away, he got up and went to Rajagha City to participate in the first assembly of holy scriptures.After walking on the road for more than two months, they arrived at Rajagha on April 14th.On the second day, they began to live in peace and gathered Buddhist scriptures.At this time, Da Kassapa was promoted as the chief, and he selected 499 great arhats.Because Ānanda had not yet attained fruition, he was excluded.This greatly stimulated Ananda. He worked hard to practice that night, and in the middle of the night, he became an arhat and participated in the gathering.At the meeting, Ananda recited the "Long Agama Sutra", "Middle Agama Sutra", "Miscellaneous Agama Sutra", "Zengyi Agama Sutra", "Similar Sutra", and "Dharma Sentence Sutra". The scriptures have been handed down to the world, thanks to the work of Ananda.Kasyapain was the host of the gathering in Rajagha, and was regarded by the elders as the natural leader.Twenty years later, Kassapa passed on the Dharma to Ananda, and went to Jizu Mountain to die. Ananda was pushed to be the leader of the Sangha. He was already sixty-six years old at this time.After the death of Kasyapa, under the leadership of Ananda, Buddhism can still be harmonious.No major problems arose.When Ananda was one hundred and twenty years old, one day on the road, he heard a bhikkhu say:

"It is better for a person to live a hundred years and not see the water and cranes than to be able to see them." Ananda corrected him earnestly: "If a person lives a hundred years and does not understand the law of birth and death, it is better to live one day and understand it."After the young monk saw Ananda, he went back and reported to his master.Master said: Don't listen to Ananda's nonsense, he is old and has lost his memory and wisdom.The youth then told Ananda what the master had said.After hearing this, Ananda thought to himself that I recited the Buddha's Dharma for all living beings, but people's self-seeking and self-attachment are so deep that if they don't follow the Dharma, what's the point of living in this world?I also thought that when the Buddha was alive, all the great disciples had passed away, and he was the only one left, like a forest that had been cut down, leaving only one big tree that could not keep out the wind and rain.So he went to the sky above the Ganges River at the junction of Magadha and Vaishali, and entered Nirvana.His holy body was divided into two parts, one was kept in the lecture hall of Dalin Chongge in the north of Vaisali, and the other was left next to the Bamboo Forest Abode in Wangshe City, and a pagoda was built to support it. The country of Vaisali has been repaired and there will be no more wars, so that the lives and properties of millions of people will not be lost. It can be seen that Ananda has the spirit of Mahayana Bodhisattva to save people and help the world.