Biography (10) Bhaddākāpilānī Therī

(The story of Bhaddākāpilānī Therī is connected with that of the Venerable Mahā Kassapa whose elaborate account has been given in Chapter 43: Mahā Kassapa Mahāthera. The Commentary gives only brief account of this Therī. For a more complete account, the reader is advised to refer back to Chapter 43.)

(a) Her Past Aspiration

The future Bhaddākāpilānī Therī was born as the wife of Vedeha, the rich man of Haṃsāvatī, during the time of Padumuttra Buddha. When she was listening to a discourse by the Buddha, she saw a bhikkhunī being named as the foremost bhikkhunī in supernormal power of remembering past existences. She aspired to be such a bhikkhunī and, after making an extra-ordinary offering, mentioned that aspiration before the Buddha.

Her Existence as the Wife of A Householder

After passing away from her existence as a rich man’s wife, she was reborn in the devaworld and subsequently either in the human world or the deva-world, for a hundred thousand world-cycles. Finally, she was reborn as the wife of a householder in Bārāṇasī. At one time, while she was having a quarrel with the sister of her husband, a Paccekabuddha arrived for alms-food. The householder’s sister offered alms-food to the Paccekabuddha and said her wish which chafed his wife (the future Bhaddākāpilānī Therī), who became furious and took the alms-bowl from the Paccekabuddha, and threw away the alms-food in it. Further, she put mud in it, and offered it to the Paccekabuddha. Only when the astonished onlookers reminded her of her fault did she recover her proper sense. She threw out the mud from the Paccekabuddha’s alms-bowl, cleansed it thoroughly, applied scented powder to it and then put in the four-food nutriment, catu madhu. In addition, she added ghee that had been made pure white, like the inside of the pollen chamber of the lotus, with the result that the food she offered glistened in the alms bowl. In returning the alms-bowl to the Paccekabuddha, she wished aloud that just as the food she offered glistened, so would she possesses a glistening complexion. (All these happenings may be gleaned from the Chapter 43: Mahā Kassapa Mahāthera.)

(b) Becoming A Bhikkhunī in Her Last Existence

It is noteworthy that both husband and wife renounced the world together. The husband, the Venerable Mahā Kassapa-to-be, at a forked road took the right turn while his wife, Bhaddhākāpilānī, the left turn. The former, met the Buddha sitting under the great banyan (pipal) tree, known as Bahuputtaka. At that time, women were not yet admitted into the Order, so Bhaddākāpilānī had to spend five years as a wandering ascetic. (This fact was recounted by herself in her life story: “Pañca vassānī nivasiṃ paribbājavate ahaṃ.”)

(c) Bhaddākāpilānī Therī as The Foremost Bhikkhunī

Thanks to her past aspiration, Bhaddākāpilānī Therī, after attaining arahatship, was exceptionally competent in remembering past existences.

Therefore, on one occasion when the Buddha was residing at the Jetavana monastery and naming distinguished bhikkhunīs, He declared:

“Bhikkhus, among My bhikkhunī-disciples who can recall past existences, Bhaddā, who is now called Kāpilānī, is the foremost (etadagga).”

(Kāpilānī was the family name of Bhaddā’s husband Pippali.)