Biography (3): Jaṭila, the Rich Man

His Past Aspiration

The future Jail was a goldsmith during the time of Buddha Kassapa. After the passing away of the Buddha, when a shrine to store the relics of the Buddha was being built, an arahat, who went to supervise the construction asked the workers: “O men, why is the northern entrance not completed?” And the men replied: “Venerable sir, there is a lack of gold to complete it.”

“I will go to the town to find donors of gold. Meantime, you will do your work sincerely.” The arahat then went about the town and called for donors of gold, making them realize that their contributions were needed to complete the northern entrance to the big shrine they were building.

When he visited the house of the goldsmith, it so happened that the man was having a quarrel with his wife. The arahat said to the goldsmith: “Lay supporter, the big shrine that you have undertaken to build cannot be completed at its northern entrance due to a shortage of gold. So it would be well if you could contribute some gold.” The goldsmith who was angry with his wife said to the arahat: “Go and throw away your Buddha (image) into the water!” Thereupon his wife scolded him: “You have done a great wrong. If you are angry, you should have abused me, or beaten me as you please. Why do you vilify the Buddhas of the past, the future and the present?”

The goldsmith suddenly saw his mistake and emotional awakening having arisen in him, he apologised to the arahat: “Venerable Sir, pardon me my fault.” The arahat said: “You have not wronged me in any way. You have wronged the Buddha. So you ought to make restitution in front of the Buddha.”

“How should I do it, Venerable Sir?”

“Make three flower vessels of gold, enshrine them in the relic chamber of the great shrine, wet your clothes and your hair, and atone for your mistake.”

“Very well, Venerable Sir,” the goldsmith said and he started to make the gold flowers. He called his eldest son and said to him: “Come, son, I have vilified the Buddha, for which I am going to make restitution by making three bunches of gold flowers which are to be enshrined in the relic chamber of the great shrine. I would ask you to be a partner in this good work.” The eldest son replied: “I did not ask you to vilify the Buddha. You did it on your own accord. So you go alone.” The goldsmith then called his middle son and asked for his co-operation, who gave the same reply as the eldest brother. The goldsmith called his youngest son and sought his help. The youngest son said: “Whatever business is there to be discharged by you, it is my duty to help.” And so he helped his father in making the gold flowers.

The goldsmith made three gold flower vessels, about half a cubit high, put gold flowers in them, and enshrined them in the relic chamber of the great shrine. Then (as advised by the arahat,) he wetted his clothes and hair, and atoned for his grave blunder. (This is how the future Jail performed a meritorious deed.)

His Last Existence as Jail, The Rich Man

For his improper remarks concerning the Buddha, the goldsmith was sent adrift in the river for seven existences. As his last existence, during the time of Buddha Gotama, he was reborn to the daughter of a rich man in Bārāṇasī under strange circumstances. The rich man’s daughter was extremely beautiful when she was about fifteen or sixteen years old. Her parents put her on the seventh floor of their house with a governess. They lived there alone in the private chamber. One day, as the girl was looking out through the window, a person with super-normal power (vijjādhara), travelling in the air happened to see her. He was deeply enamoured of her and came in through the window. The two fell in love with each other.

She became pregnant by the man. Her governess asked her how she became pregnant. She confided in her about her secret affair but forbade her to tell it to anyone. The governess dared not disclose the secret to anyone. On the tenth month of pregnancy, the child, a boy, was born. The young mother had the baby put inside an earthen pot, had its lid covered, and placing garlands and bunches of flowers over it, she detailed the governess to carry it on her head and sent it adrift in the river Gaṅgā. If anybody were to inquire about her action, the governess was to say that she was making a sacrificial offering for her mistress. This scheme was carried out successfully.

At that time, two ladies, who were bathing downstream, noticed the earthen pot floating down. One of them said: “That pot belongs to me!” The other said: “The contents of that pot belong to me!” So, they took the pot from the water, placed it on dry ground and opened it. On finding a baby in it, the first lady, who said the pot belonged to her, claimed the child as hers. The second lady, who said the contents of the pot belonged to her, also claimed the child as hers. They brought the dispute to the court of justice which was at a loss to give a judgment. They referred it to the King who decided that the child belonged to the second lady.

The lady who won the claim over the child was a female lay supporter who was a close attendant of the Venerable Mahākaccāyana. She brought up the child with the intention of sending him to the Venerable, to be admitted as a novice. Since the child at birth was not bathed, his hair was tangled with dried dirty matter from his mother’s womb and on that account, he was given the name Jaṭila (knotted hair).

When Jaṭila was a toddler, Venerable Mahākaccāyana went to the lady’s house for almsfood. She offered alms-food to the Venerable, who saw the boy and asked her: “Female lay supporter, does this boy belong to you?” And she replied: “Yes, Venerable Sir. I intend to send him to your reverence to be admitted into the order. May your reverence admit him as a novice.”

The Venerable Mahākaccāyana said: “Very well,” and took the boy with him. He reviewed the fortunes of the boy and saw by his supernormal knowledge that the boy had great past merit and was destined to enjoy a high status in life. And considering his tender age, he thought that the boy was too young for admission into the order and his faculties were not mature enough. So he took the boy to the house of a lay supporter in Taxila.

The lay supporter of Taxila, after making obeisance to the Venerable Mahākaccāyana, asked him: “Venerable Sir, does this boy belong to you?” And the Venerable answered: “Yes, lay supporter. He will become a bhikkhu. But he is still too young. Let him stay under your care.” The lay supporter said: “Very well, Venerable Sir,” and he adopted the boy as his son.

The lay supporter of Taxila was a merchant. It so happened that he had a considerable quantity of merchandise, which he found no buyers for twelve years. One day, as he was going on a journey, he entrusted these unsold merchandise to the boy, to be sold at certain prices.

Jaṭila sold The Unsold Twelve Years Old Merchandise in A Single Day

On the day when Jaṭila was in charge of the shop, the guardian spirits of the town exercised their power over the townsfolk, directing them to Jaṭila’s shop for whatever needs they had, even as trifling as condiments. He was able to sell the unsalable twelve years old merchandise in a single day. When the merchant returned home and saw none of his unsalable goods, he asked the boy: “Son, have you destroyed all those goods?” Jaṭila replied: “No, I did not destroy them. I have sold them at the prices you stated. Here are the accounts, and here is the money.” His adoptive father was highly pleased. “This boy has the making of a successful man. He is an invaluable asset of a man,” thus reflected the merchant. Accordingly, he married his grown up daughter to Jaṭila. Then, he had a big house built for the couple. When the construction of the house was completed, he presented it to the couple for their residence.

Jaṭila, Lord of the Golden Hill

When Jaṭila took occupancy of his house, as soon as he put his foot at the threshold of the house, a golden hill eighty cubits high suddenly appeared through the earth at the back of the house. On learning the news of Jaṭila’s immense fortune, the King conferred him the Royal Treasurer, sending him the white umbrella and the paraphernalia of Treasurer’s office. From then onwards, Jaṭila was known as Jaṭila, the Treasurer.

Jaṭila made Inquiries about The Existence of His Peers in The Southern Island Continent

Jaṭila had three sons. When they had grown up to adulthood, he had a desire to become a bhikkhu. But he also had the duty to the King as Treasurer. If there were to exist in the Southern Island Continent another Rich Man who was equal in wealth to him, he might be released by the King so that he could join the order. Otherwise, he had no chance to become a bhikkhu. So, he had a gold brick, a gold goad and a pair of gold slippers made, which he entrusted to his men, saying: “My men, go around the Southern Island Continent taking these articles with you and enquire about the existence or otherwise of a rich man whose wealth is equal to mine.”

Jaṭila’s men went around the country and reached the town of Bhaddiya where they met Meṇḍaka the rich man who asked them: “O men, what is your business in touring this place?”

“We are touring the country to find something,” said Jaṭila’s men. Meṇḍaka, seeing the gold brick, the gold goad and the pair of gold slippers which the visitors were carrying with them, rightly surmised that the men were making enquires about the wealth of the country. So he said to them: “O men, go and see at the back of my house.”

Jaṭila’s men saw at the back of Meṇḍaka’s house an area of about fourteen acres (8 karisas) packed with golden goat statues of the sizes of a bull or a horse or an elephant. Having inspected all those gold statues, they came out of Meṇḍaka’s compound. “Have you found the things you were looking for?” asked Meṇḍaka, and they said to him: “Yes, Rich Man, we have.” “Then you may go,” said Meṇḍaka.

Jaṭila’s men returned to their home town and reported to their master about the immense wealth of Meṇḍaka of Bhaddiya. “Rich Man, what is your wealth when compared to Medaka’s?” they said to Jatila and they gave the details of what they had seen at the backyard of Meṇḍaka’s house. Jaṭila was happy about the discovery. “We have found one type of rich man. Perhaps another type also exists,” he thought to himself This time he entrusted his men with a piece of velvet, which was worth a hundred thousand ticals, and sent them around in search of another type of rich man.

The men went to Rājagaha and stationed themselves at a place not far from Jotika’s great mansion. They collected some firewood and were making a fire when they were asked by the people what they were going to do with the fire. They answered: “We have a valuable piece of velvet cloth for sale. We find no one who can afford the price. We are returning to our hometown. This piece of velvet cloth would attract robbers on the way. So we are going to destroy it by burning it.” This was, of course, said as a pretence to probe the mettle of the people,

Jotika noticed the men and enquired what was afoot. On being told about the men’s tall story, he called them up and asked: “How much is your cloth worth?” They answered: “Rich man, it is worth a hundred thousand.” Jotika ordered his men to pay the price of a hundred thousand to the sellers and said to them: “O men, give it to my maid-servant who is scavenging at my gate,” entrusting the cloth to them.

The scavenger came to Jotika murmuring (in the presence of Jaṭila’s men): “O Rich Man, how is it? If I am at fault, you could chastise me by beating. But sending such a coarse piece of cloth to me is too much. How could I use it on my person?” Jotika said to her: “My dear girl, I did not send it for wearing. I meant it to be used as your foot rug. You could fold it up under your bed and when you go to bed you could use it for wiping your feet after washing them in scented water, couldn't you?” “That I could do,” said the maid servant.

Jatila’s men reported back their experiences in Rājagaha and told their master: “O Rich man, what is your wealth when compared to that of Jotika?” They said thus to Jaṭila, and they described the marvellous grandeur of Jotika’s mansion, his vast wealth, and his maidservants remarks about the velvet piece.

Jaṭila tested The Past Merits of His Three Sons

Jaṭila was overjoyed to learn about the presence, in the country, of two great Rich Men. “Now I shall get the King’s permission to enter the Order,” he thought and went to see the King about it.

(Herein, the Commentary does not specify the name of the King. However, in the Commentary on the Dhammapada, in the story of Visākhā, it has been said: “It is important to remember that within the domain of King Bimbisāra, there were five

Rich men of inexhaustible resources, namely, Jotika, Jaṭila, Meṇḍaka, Puṇṇaka and Kāḷavaḷiya.” Hence the King here should he understood to mean Bimbisāra.)

The King said to Jaṭila: “Very well, Rich Man, you may go forth into bhikkhuhood.” Jaṭila went home, called his three sons, and handing over a pick-axe with a gold handle and diamond bit, said to them: “Sons, go and get me a lump of gold from the golden hill behind our house.” The eldest son took the pick-axe and struck at the golden hill. He felt he was striking at granite. Jaṭila than took the pick-axe from him and gave it to the middle son to try at it; and he met with the same experience.

When the third son was given the pick-axe to do the job, he found the golden hill as if it were mound of soft clay. Gold came off it in layers and lumps at his easy strokes. Jatila said to his youngest son: “That will do, son.” Then he said the two elder sons: “Sons, this golden hill does not appear on account of your past merit. It is the result of the past merit of myself and your youngest brother. Therefore, be united with your youngest brother and enjoy the wealth peacefully together.”

(Herein, we should remember the past existence of Jaṭila as the goldsmith. At that existence, he had angrily said to an arahat: “Go and throw away your Buddha (image) into the water!” For that verbal misconduct, he was sent adrift in the river at birth for seven successive existences. At his last existence also he met the with the same fate.

When the goldsmith was making golden flowers to offer to the Buddha at the shrine, which was built in honour of the deceased Buddha Kassapa, to atone for his verbal misconduct, only his youngest son joined in the effort. As the result of their good deed, the father, Jaṭila and his youngest son alone had the benefit of the golden hill that appeared.)

After admonishing his sons, Jaṭila the Rich Man went to the Buddha and entered bhikkhuhood. With due diligence in bhikkhu practice, he attained arahatship in two or three days.

Later on, the Buddha went on the alms-round with five hundred bhikkhus and arrived at the house of Jaṭila’s three sons. The sons made food offerings to the Buddha and His Sangha for fifteen days.

At the congregation of bhikkhus in the assembly hall, bhikkhus asked Bhikkhu Jaṭila: “Friend Jaṭila, do you still have attachment today to the golden hill of eighty cubits in height and your three sons?”

Bhikkhu Jaṭila, an arahat, replied: “Friend, I have no attachment to the golden hill and my three sons.”

The bhikkhus said: “This Bhikkhu Jaṭila claims arahatship falsely.” When the Buddha heard the accusations of these bhikkhus, He said: “Bhikkhus there is no attachment whatever in the mental state of Bhikkhu Jaṭila to that golden hill and his sons.”

Further, the Buddha spoke this verse:

“He, who in the world has given up craving (that arises at the six sense-doors) and has renounced the home life to become a bhikkhu, who has exhausted craving for existence, and made an end of all forms of existence, him I call a brāhmana (one who has rid himself of all evil.)”——Dhammapada, V-4 16.

By the end of discourse many persons attained Path-Knowledge such as sotāpatti-phala.

(This account is extracted from the Commentary on the Dhammapada, Book Two.)