By: Omkar Lamsal
Recently we celebrated 2557th
Buddha Jayanti. It is important for all of us to ponder about the five codes of
conducts that lord Buddha has taught us, which are basically known as the
‘panchashila’ . It reminds us to be abstain from all sorts of violence,
stealing, lying, co-habitation, and alcohol. If we could follow these
principles in our daily life, our society would be like a paradise. Unfortunately,
such virtuous qualities have been a far
cry, in this land
of Buddha
I would like to share a story, of this reality, in which a famous
Russian writer, Anton Chekhov has described about a solitary monastery, which
was across a desert.
One night, all of a sudden, a hunter knocked on their
gate, as he was lost while hunting around.
He was tired and a bit drunk, as he had consumed his last part of
foodstuff and alcohol.
He said that he was lost in the forest, which
means symbolically, almost all human beings have lost or forgotten their
destinations. He, then asked the monks,
why they had abandoned their society instead of serving there. He also reminded
them that in the city, people have been suffering a lot. Some die of starvation,
while others not knowing what to do with their gold. There is neither faith nor
truth among men. Whose duty is to save them? So, if they could save the souls of
corrupted people that would be a great service to humanity. ‘But you don’t do anything,
you monks’ he complained,’ All you care about is your victuals and drinks. Is
that the way to save your souls’?
Listening to him, the chief of the monks,
decided to visit the city and remind people, of the God. But, due to an evil chance,
the first house he entered, was an abode of sin .A number of people were
dancing, having drinks ,and speaking roughly, as if they were not afraid of
anyone. On the table, among them, was a
lady in her scanty dress. The shameless woman also drank wine, sang songs
and surrendered herself to the feasters.
The helpless monk returned to the
monastery and explained his disciples, what he had seen in the city, and being
embarrassed he locked himself inside his cell.
Next morning, when he woke up and came
out of his room, to his surprise, there were no other monks in the monastery .All
of them had left for the city.
Now, I leave it for you to think ,
whether they went to the city to save
the souls of those corrupted people or for other reasons. However, we all need
to think once, for the perpetual happiness by following Buddha’s Panchashilas.
