V47S

K3C29
<9I7
yC-NRLF

T37 ^aa

THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA

GIFT OF

Lt. Col. George White

Si'.;

KARMA
A STORY OF

BUDDHIST ETHICS
BY

PAUL CARUS

ILLUSTRATED BY KWASON SUZUKI

COMMIT NO EVIL BUT DO GOOD AND LET THY HEART BE PURE. THAT IS THE GIST OF BUDDHAHOOD, THE LORE THAT WILL ENDURE. THE DHAMMAPADA,
;

I83

CHICAGO

LONDON

OPEN COURT PUBLISHING COMPANY

1917

and BOOK SHOP

KARMA
A STORY OF

BUDDHIST ETHICS
BY

PAUL CARUS

ILLUSTRATED BY KWASON SUZUKI

COMMIT NO EVIL BUT DO GOOD AND LET THY HEART BE PURE. THAT IS THE GIST OF BUDDHAHOOD, THE LORE THAT WILL ENDURE. THE DHAMMAPADA,
;

183

SIXTH EDITION

CHICAGO

LONDON

OPEN COURT PUBLISHING COMPANY

1917

Copyright,

1894

OPEN COURT PUBLISHING COMPANY

CHICAGO

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

14d to Lib*

H3C29
/->

/7

PUBLISHERS' ADVERTISEMENT.
"All are needed by each one; Nothing is lair or good alone."

EincrsoK.

SOON
granted.

after the first

appearance of Karma in the

columns

of

The Open Court, several applications

to translate the story

were received, and the requests

Some of these translations have appeared, may still be expected. A few translations were made without the author's knowledge. A German edition was published by the Open Court Publishing
others

Co.

Altogether one Japanese, one Urdu, three Gerat

man, and two French renderings are

the author's possession.
It is

present in

possible that the story

also exists in Icelandic,^ Tamil, Singhalese,

and Siam-

ese versions.

Hungarian edition

is in

preparation.

Russian translation was made by Count Lee

Tolstoy,

who recommends

the story to his countrymen

and sums up
" This
its

his opinion as follows

has greatly pleased

tale

me

both by

\ts

artlessness and

profundity.

The

truth,

much

slurred in these days, that evil

lAn Icelandic translation has been made by the Rev. Matthias Jochumson of Akureyri, Iceland, and must have appeared in the Icelandic periodical of which he is editor, but we do not know whether it has appeared in bookform.

981

iv

publishers' advertisement.
effort only

can be avoided and good achieved by personal

there exists no other

and that
been

means

of attaining this end, has here

shown
in that

forth with striking clearness.

it

The

explanation
is

is

felicitous

proves that individual happiness

never genuine save

when

it is

bound up with the happiness

of all our fellows.

From
back

the very

moment when

the brigand on escaping from Hell thought

fell

only of his

own

happiness, his happiness ceased and he

again into his former doom.

"This Buddhistic

tale

seems

to

shed light on a new side of

:

the two fundamental truths revealed by Christianity

exists only in the renunciation of one's personality

that life

'

he that loseth

his life shall find

it'

(Matt.

x. 39),

and, that the good of

men

is

only in their union with God, and through

God

with one another

'As thou art

us
'

in

me and

in thee, that they also

may be one

in

(John

xvii. 21).

"I have read

this tale to children

its

and they liked

it.

And
is

amongst grown-up people

tion about the gravest

reading always gave rise to conversalife.

problems of

And,

to

my

mind, this

the very best recommendation."

From

the Russian the story

Karma was

translated,

together with several other sketches, by E. Halp^rine-

Kaminsky, under the

title

Imitations,

and the work

at Paris

was published under Tolstoy's name

Sociiti d' MitioTis
lit tir aires ct

by the

artistiqucs.^

Either from Tolstoy's Russian version or from the

French
tion

translation, an abbreviated

German

transla-

was made by an author who signs himself "7,"

this

and

appeared

in the Berlifier Evangelisches Sonn18, pp.

tagsblatt,

May

2,

1897 (No.

140-141).

Here,

too, the story goes under Tolstoy's

ILibrairie Paul Ollendorff,
50,

name.
1900.

Chaussee d'Antin,

publishers' advertisement.

While the evangelical Sunday paper reproduces

Karjtia as a story that inculcates Christian principles,

the late Professor

Ludwig

Biichner, famous as the

author of the leading materialistic work, Force afid

Matter (^Kraft und

Staff), translated A'ar;

from the

English under the impression that he had before him

some mysterious ancient Buddhist document, calls it "an Indian tale from the English of

for

he

the/'.

C"
title

Apparently he mistook the signature F. C, over

first

which the story

of

appeared, for an abbreviated

Pali

some forgotten
at

Codex or /'undit
It

Collec-

tion,

and

any rate a /'agan Curiosity.

appeared

in Et/nscJie Kultitr, the

organ of the German Ethical

i

Societies, Berlin,

June

and

8,

1895 (Vol.

III.,

Nos.

22 and 23).

Having appeared under Tolstoy's name

and
in

in

French

German, the story continued

in its further mi-

grations to sail under the famous Russian author's

name.

An

enterprising American periodical entitled

The International Magazine

translation in Chicago, and
of this journal

published

an

English

it is

curious that the office

that

of

was in the very same block with The Open Court Publishing Company. So
its

the

story had completed

rounds through Russia, Gerto its

many, and France, and had returned

the far West.

home

in

Since the story had gained currency under Tolstoy's

name, the author (having previously had

corre-

spondence with him) wrote to Posnia, and Tolstoy

vi

publishers' advertisement.

replied expressing his regret at the misunderstanding

saying of
"
It

Karma
my

was only through your

name, and
I

letter that I learned

it

had been

circulated under

deeply regret, not only that such

a falsehood was allowed to pass unchallenged, but also the fact

that
it

really

was a falsehood,
It is

for I should be very

happy were

the author of this tale.

one of the best products of national

to all

wisdom and ought

sey, the

to

be bequeathed

mankind,

like the

Odys-

History of Joseph, and Shakyamuni."

Karma appeared first in book form in Japan, where The Open Court Publishing Company brought out at
Hasegawa's three successive editions on crepe paper,
illustrated in colors

by Kwason Suzuki.

In the pres-

ent edition the Japanese illustrations, which were re-

touched by Eduard Biedermann, are reproduced in

black and white, and
will

we hope

that the artistic garb

do much to make the

little tale attractive.

The Open Court Publishing

Co.

DEVALA'S RICE-CART.

LONG,
-^

long ago in the days of early Bud-

dhism, India was in a most prosperous

condition.

The Aryan

inhabitants of the coun-

try were highly civilised, and the great cities

were centres
ing.
It

of industry,

commerce, and learn-

was in those olden times that Pandu,

of the

wealthy jeweller

Brahman

caste, travis

elled in a carriage to Baranasi,

which

now
at-

called Benares.
tive

He

was bent on some lucra-

banking business, and a slave who

jeweller

tended to the horses accompanied him.

The

was apparently

in a

hurry

to

reach his destination, and as the day was ex-

ceedingly pleasant,

since a heavy

thunder-

storm had cooled the atmosphere, the horses

sped along rapidly.

While proceeding on
ellers

their journey the trav-

overtook a samana, as the Buddhist

KARMA.
called,

monks were
thought
to

and

tlie

jeweller observing

the venerable appearance of the holy man,

himself:

"This samana looks

noble and saintly.

Companionship with good

should he also be going to

men

brings luck

Baranasi, I will invite

him

to ride with

me

in

my

carriage."
saluted the

Having

samana the

jeweller ex-

plained whither he was driving and at what

inn he intended to stay in Baranasi. ing that the samana, whose

also
to

Learn-

was travelling
accept a seat

to

in

name was Narada, Baranasi, he asked him "I am his carriage.

I

obliged to you for your kindness," said the

samana

to

the

Brahman, "for
I

am
I

quite

worn out by the long journey.

possessions in this world,
in

As

have no

cannot repay you

that I can re-

money

but

it

may happen

ward you with some

while
following

spiritual treasure out of

the wealth of the information I have received

Shaky amuni,

the

Blessed
of

One, the Great Buddha, the Teacher

and men."

gods

They
Pandu

travelled together in the carriage and

listened with pleasure to the instruc-

devala's rice-cart.
tive

discourse of Narada.

After

about an

hour's journey, they arrived at a place where

the road had been rendered almost impassable

by a washout caused by the recent

farmer's cart

rain,

and a

heavily laden with rice pre-

vented further progress.

The

loss of a linch-

4
pill

KARMA.
had caused one
of the

wheels to come

off,

and Devala, the owner

of the cart,

was busily

engaged in repairing the damage.

He,

too,

was on his way

and was anxious

to

Baranasi to

sell his rice,

to reach the city before the

If

dawn
a

of the

next morning.
rice

he was delayed
the stock they

day or two longer, the

left

merchants might

have

town or bought

all

needed.

When

the jeweller saw that he could not

proceed on his

way

unless the farmer's cart

to

was removed, he began

grow angry and

or-

dered Mahaduta, his slave, to push the cart

aside, so that his carriage could pass by.

The

farmer remonstrated because, being so near

the slope of the road,
it

would jeopardise his

cargo

but the Brahman would not listen to

the farmer and bade his servant overturn the

rice-cart

and push

it

aside.

Mahaduta, an unto take de-

usually strong man,

who seemed

light in the injury of others,

obeyed before

the

saniana could interfere.

The

rice

was

thrown
plight

on

the wayside,

and the farmer's

but when

was worse than

before.
to scold,

The poor farmer began

"

devala's rice-cart.
the big, burl^' Maliaduta raised
eningl}^,

liis list tlireat-

he ceased

his

remonstrances

and

only growled his curses in a low undertone.

When Pandu

was about

to

continue his
of the carriage

journey the saniana jumped out

and said: "Excuse me,

here.
I

sir,

for leaving

you

am under obligations for your kindness in giving me an hour's ride in your carriage. I was tired when you picked me up on
the road, but now, thanks to your courtesy,
I

am

rested,

and recognising in this farmer an

incarnation of one of yoxir ancestors, I cannot

repay your kindness better than by assisting

him

in his troubles."

The Brahman jeweller looked at the samana in amazement: "That farmer, you say, is an
incarnation of one of

my

ancestors?

That

is

impossible

"I know,"
lations

replied the samana, "that

you
re-

are not aware of the

numerous important
fate

which
;

tie

your

to

that

of

the
are

farmer

but sometimes the smartest

men

spiritually blind.

So

I regret that

you harm

your own

interests,

and

I shall try to protect

KARMA.
are about

you against the wounds which you

to inflict

upon yourself."
not accustomed

The wealthy merchant was

to

being reprimanded, and feeling that the

of the

words
great

samana, although uttered with

contained
a

kindness,

stinging

re-

proach,

bade his servant drive on without

further delay.

THE JEWELLER'S

PURSE.

THE samana and began

and load up the thrown
holy
out.

saluted Devala, the farmer,

to lielp

him

repair his cart

rice, part of

which had been

quickly and

The work proceeded

' : '

Devala thought

This samana must be a

devas'

man

invisible

seem

to
ill

assist
treat-

him.

I will at the

ask him

how

deserved

ment

hands

of the

proud Brahman."

And he said: "Venerable sir, can you tell me why I suffer an injustice from a man to whom I have never done any harm? " And the samana said: "My dear friend,
you do not
suffer

an injustice, but only

re-

ceive in your present state of existence the

same treatment which you

jeweller in a former
life.

visited

upon the

You

reap what you

have sown, and your

fate is the product of

your deeds.

Your very

existence, such as

KARMA.
is

it

now,

is

but

the

Karma

of

your past

lives."

"What

is

my Karma?"

asked the farmer.

"A
' '

man's Karma," replied the samana,

consists of all the deeds both good and evil

that he has done in his present and in

any
of

prior existence.

Your

life

is

system

many

activities

which have originated in the

natural process of evolution, and have been

THE jeweller's purse.

transferred from

generation

to

generation.

The

entire being of every one of us is an acof inherited functions wliicli are

cumulation
modified by

new experiences and deeds. Thus we are what we have done. Our 'Karma' We are our own creconstitutes our nature.
ators."

"That maybe
vala,

as 3'ou say," rejoined DeI to

"but what have " bearing Brahman?

do with that over-

The samana

replied

' :
'

You

are in char-

acter quite similar to the

Brahman, and the

not mistaken in

Karma
but

that has shaped your destiny differs

little

from

his.

If I

am

reading your thoughts, I should say that you

would, even to-day, have done the same unto
the jeweller
if

if

he had been in your place, and

at

you had such a strong slave

as

your comat his

mand

he has, able to deal with you

confessed, that

pleasure."

The farmer

if

he had had

the power, he would have

tion in treating another

felt little

compunc-

man, who had hapof the

pened to impede his way, as he had been

treated

by the Brahman, but thinking

10

KARMA.
upon unkind deeds, lie the future more considerate
and together they pur-

retribution attendant

resolved to be in

with his fellow-beings.

The

rice Avas loaded

sued their journey to Baranasi, when sud-

denly the horse jumped aside. '' A snake, a snake! " shouted the farmer; but the samana
looked closely
at the object at

which the horse

and the idea

shuddered, jumped out of the cart, and saw

that
it

was a purse

full of gold,

THE jeweller's PURSE.

struck

11
to

him

"This money can belong

no

one but tbe wealthy jeweller."

Narada took the purse and found that

contained a goodly

it

sum
' :

of gold pieces.
'

Then

he said to the farmer

Now

is

the time for

you
it

to teach the

proud jeweller a lesson, and

will

redound

to

your well-being both in

this

and in future
than
will.^

lives.

No

revenge

is

sweeter

the. requital of hatred I will give

with deeds of good

you

this purse,

and when

you come
which

to

Baranasi drive up to the inn

I shall point out to

you

ask for Pandu,

the Brahman, and deliver to

him

his gold.

He

will excuse himself for the rudeness with

tell

which he treated you, but

his undertakings.

him that you have forgiven him and wish him success in
all

For,
is,

let

me

tell

you,
will

the

more successful he
;

the better

you

prosper

your

fate

depends in

many
to

respects

upon

his fate.

Should the jeweller demand

any explanation, send

where he
will find

him

the vihara^

advice in case

me ready to he may feel the

assist

him with

need

of it."

BUSINESS IN BENARES.

TO

corner the market of

is

tlie

necessities of

life

not a modern invention.

of

The

Old Testament contains the story

the poor
of state,

Joseph,

Hebrew youth who became minister

and succeeded with unscrupulous but

clever business tricks in cornering the wheat

market, so as to force the starved people to

sell
all

their property, their privileges,

lives, to

and

even their

Pharaoh.

And we
name

read in

the Jataka Tales^ that one of the royal treasurers of Kasi, which
nasi,
is

the old

of

Bara-

made

his first great success in

life

by

cornering the grass market of the metropolis

on the day
with
five

of the. arrival

of

a horse dealer

hundred horses.
the jeweller arrived at Bara-

When Pandu
nasi
it

so

happened that a bold speculator had

rice,

brought about a corner in

and Mallika,

a rich banker and a business friend of Pandu,

BUSINESS IN BENARES.

13

was in great
ler

distress.

On

meeting the jewel-

he said

"I am

a ruined

man and
I I

can do

no business with you unless

of the best rice for the

can buy a cart

king's table.

have a
I

rival

banker in Baranasi who, learning that

had made a contract with the royal treasurer

to deliver the rice

to-morrow morning, and

being desirous to bring about

has bought up
royal treasurer
for
all

my

destruction,

the rice in Baranasi.

The
bribe,

must have received a

I shall

he

will not release

and to-morrow

me from my contract, be a ruined man unless

Krishna^ will send an angel from heaven to

help

me." While Mallika was

still

lamenting the povreduce him,

erty to which his rival would

Pandu missed

his purse.

Searching his carit,

riage without being able to find

he sus-

pected his slave Mahaduta

police,

and calling the

to extort a con-

accused him of theft, and had him

bound and cruelly tortured

fession.

The
pain;

slave in his agonies cried

"I am

in-

nocent, let
I

me

go, for I cannot stand this

am

quite innocent, at least of this

14
crime, and suffer

KARMA,

now

for other sins.

Oli,

that I could beg the farmer's pardon

for the sake of

whom,
pun-

my

master,

wronged without

any cause!
ishment
for

This torture,

I believe, is a

my

rudeness."

While the officer was still applying the lash to the back of the slave, the farmer arrived at
the inn and, to the great astonishment of concerned, delivered the purse.
all

The

slave

BUSINESS IN BENARES.

15
of his

was

at

once released from

tlie

hands

torturer.
ter,

But being
left

dissatisfied with his

mas-

he secretly

and joined a band

of rob-

bers in the mountains,

chief

who made him

their

on account

of

his great strength and

courage.

When

Mallika heard that the farmer had

sell,
fit

the best rice to

ro3'al table,

for delivery to the

he

at

once bought the whole cart-

load for treble the price that the farmer had

ever received.
to

Pandu, however, glad

at heart

have his money restored, rewarded the from

honest finder, and hastened at once to the

vihara to receive further explanation

Narada, the samana.

Narada

said:

"I might
that

give you an expla-

nation, but

knowing
Yet

you are unable

to

understand a spiritual truth, I prefer to re-

main
vice
:

silent.

I shall

give you some ad3'ou

Treat every
self
;

man whom
him
;

meet

as

your own

serve

as 3'ou

would de-

mand
ney
is

to

be served yourself
it

for our

Karma
evil,

travels;

walks apace though, and the jour-

often long.

But be

it

good or

16
finally
is

KARMA.
it

will

come home

to us.

Therefore

it

said
'Slowly but surely deeds

Home
And

to the

doer creep.

Of kindness sow thy seeds,

bliss as harvest reap.'"

"Give me,

samana, the explanation,"

said the jeweller,

"and

shall

thereby be

better able to follow your advice."

The samana
not understand

said:

"Listen then,
If

will

give you the key to the mj^stery.

it,

you do
I say.
is

have

faith in

what

Self is an illusion,

and he whose mind

bent

upon following

self,

follows a will-o'-the-wisp
of
sin.

which leads him into the quagmire

The

illusion of self is like dust in

your eye

that blinds your sight and prevents

you from

recognising the close relations that obtain be-

tween yourself and your fellows, which are

even closer than the relations that
obtain

among

the various organs of your body.

to trace the identity of

You
self
is

must learn

your

in the souls of other beings.

Ignorance

the

source of sin.
truth.

There are few who know the

Let this motto be your talisman

BUSINESS IN BENARES.

17

'Who

injureth others

Himself hurteth sore

Who
Let

others assisteth

Himself helpeth more.

th' illusion of self

From your mind disappear, And you'll find the way sure;
The path
will be clear.'

'*To

Mm

whose vision

is

dimmed by
life

the

dust of the world, the spiritual

appears to

be cut up into innumerable selves.

will

Thus he
the

be puzzled in

many ways concerning

nature of rebirth, and will be incapable of un-

derstanding the import of an all-comprehensive

loving-kindness

toward

all

living be-

ings."

The
erable

jeweller replied
sir,

''Your words,

O venI shall

have a deep significance and

I

bear them in mind.

ness which caused
to a
lo
!

extended a small kind-

me no

expense whatever,
to Baranasi,
!

poor samana on

my way

and
I I

how

propitious has been the result

am

deeply in your debt, for without you

should not only have lost

my

purse, but would

have been prevented from doing business in

18

KARMA.

Baranasi whicli greatly increases

while
if it

my

wealth,

had been

left

undone

it

might have

reduced

me

to a state of

wretched poverty. In

addition, your thoughtfulness

of the farmer's rice-cart

and the arrival

preserved the prosIf

perity of
all

my

friend Mallika, the banker.

men saw the truth of your maxims, how much better the world would be Evils would
!

be lessened, and public welfare enhanced."

The samana
gions there
is

replied:

"Among

all

the reli-

none

like that of the

Buddha.

It is glorious in

the beginning, glorious in the

It is glorispirit.^ It

middle, and glorious in the end.

ous in the letter and glorious in the

is

the religion of loving-kindness that

of the

rids

man

narrowness

of

egotism and elevates

him above
eousness."

his petty self to the bliss of enitself

lightenment which manifests

in right-

Pandu nodded assent and

anxious to
let

said

the truth of the

As I am Buddha be un'
:

'

derstood, I shall found avihara at

place,

my

native

Kaushambi, and

invite

you

to visit

me,

so that I

may dedicate

the place to the brother-

hood

of

Buddha's disciples."

AMONG THE ROBBERS.

YEARS
nowned

passed on and Pandu's viliara

at

KausHambi became

a place in which
it

wise samanas used to stay and

was

re-

as a centre of enlightenment for the

people of the town.

At

that time

the king of a neighboring

country had heard of the beauty of Pandu's

jewelry, and he sent his treasurer to order a

royal diadem to be wrought in pure gold and

set with the

most precious stones

of

India.

Pandu gladly accepted the order and executed

a crown of the most exquisite design.

When
for the

he had finished the work, he started

residence of the king, and as he expected to

transact other profitable business, took with

him a great store of gold pieces. The caravan carrying his goods was protected by a strong escort of armed men, but when they reached the mountains they were

20

KARMA.

attacked by a band of robbers led by Maliaduta,

wbo

beat them and took away

all

the

jewelry and the gold, and Pandu escaped with

great difficulty.

This calamity was a blow

to

Pandu 's prosperity, and as he had suffered some other severe losses his wealth was
greatly reduced.

Pandu was much

himself:

distressed, but he bore his

misfortunes without complaint, thinking to

"I have deserved

these losses for

past existence.

the sins committed during

my

AMONG THE ROBBERS.

In

21

my my

younger years
;

was very hard on

reap the harvest
for

other people
of
evil

because
I

now

deeds

have no reason

com-

plaint."

As he had grown

in kindness toward all be-

ings, his misfortunes only served to purify

his heart; and his chief regret,

when

think-

ing

of his

reduced means, M-as that he had be-

come unable

to

do good and to help his friends

in the vihara to spread the truths of religion.

Again years passed on and

it

happened that

22

KARMA.
of

Panthaka, a j-oung samana and disciple

Narada, was travelling tlirough the mountains

of

Kaushambi, and

lie fell

among

the robbers

in the mountains.

possession, the

As he had nothing in his robber-chief beat him severely

and

let

him

go.

On

the next morning Panthaka, while pur-

suing his way through the woods, heard a

noise as of

men
them

quarelling and fighting, and

of rob-

going to the place he saw a number

bers, all of

in a great rage, and in their

;

midst stood Mahaduta, their chief

and Maha-

duta was desperately defending himself against

them, like a lion surrounded by hounds, and

he slew several

of his

aggressors with formid-

able blows, but there were too

at last

many

for

him

he succumbed and
as the robbers

fell to

the ground

as

if

dead, covered with wounds.

As soon
the

had

left

the place,

young samana approached

of

to see
to the

whether

he could be

any assistance
all

wounded
in the

men.
chief.

He

found that

the robbers were

dead, and there was but

little life left

At once Panthaka went down

to the little

'

'

22>

AMONG THE ROBBERS.

brooklet

which

was

murmuring near by,

it

fetched fresh water in his bowl and brought

to the

dying man.

Mahaduta opened

his eyes

and gnashing his teeth, said:

those ungrateful dogs
tory and success?

"Where

are

whom

have led

to vic-

Without me
.

as their chief

they will soon perish like jackals hunted down

by

skilful hunters

'

"Do
panions

not think of 3'our comrades, the comof 3^our sinful life,"

said Panthaka,

"but think
the last
is

of 3^our

own
is'

fate,

and accept in

moment

the chance of salvation that

offered 3^ou.

Here

water to drink, and

;

let

me

dress your

wounds

perhaps

may

save your life."

"Alas! alas!" replied Mahaduta, " are you

not the

man whom
3^ou
!

beat but 3^esterday?

And now
suage

come

to

my

assistance, to asto
It

my pain You bring me fresh water quench my thirst, and try to save my life!
is

am a doomed man. The churls have wounded me unto death, The3^ have dealt me the ungrateful cowards
useless, honorable sir, I
!

the blow which I taught

them

'

"You reap what

3^ou

have sown," continued

24
the
acts

KARMA.
samana
of
'

'

had you taught your comrades

kindness
but having

kindness, you would have received

acts
of
;

from

them

taught them the lesson

of slaughter, it is

but

your own deed that you

hands."

are slain

by

their

"True, very true,"

' '

said the robber chief,

;

my fate is well deserved but how sad is my lot, that I must reap the full harvest of Advise all my evil deeds in future existences me, O holy sir, what I can do to lighten the sins of my life which oppress me like a great rock placed upon my breast, taking away the breath from my lungs."
!

Said Panthaka: " Root out your sinful desires; destroy all evil passions,

and

fill

your

heart with kindness toward

all

your fellow-

beings."

THE SPIDER-WHB.

WHILE
I

the charitable

samana washed
:

the wounds, the robber chief said

"I
can

have done much

evil

and no good.
from the net

How
of

extricate myself
I

sorrow

which

have woven out

heart?
I shall

of the evil desires of

my own
Hell and

My Karma

will lead

me

to

never be able to walk in the

path of salvation."
Said the samana
'
: '

Indeed your

Karma
is

will in its future incarnations reap the seeds

of evil that

you have sown.

no cause
with

There

no

es-

cape from the consequences of our actions.

But there

is

for despair.

The man
illu-

who

is

converted and has rooted out the

self,

sion of

all its lusts

and sinful de-

sires, will

be a source

of blessing to himself

and others.

"As an

illustration, I will tell

you the story

of the great robber

Kandata, who died with-

26

KARMA.

out repentance and was reborn as a

demon

in

Hell, where

lie

suffered for his evil deeds the

most

terrible agonies

and pains.

He had

been

; :

THE SPIDER-WEB.
in Hell several kalpas^

21
to rise

and was unable

and

out of his wretched condition,

when Buddha
the

appeared

upon

earth

attained to

blessed state of enlightenment.

orable

At
fell

that

meminto

moment

a ray of light
all

down
life

Hell quickening

the demons with

and

hope, and the robber Kandata cried aloud

'

blessed Buddha, have mercy upon

me

suffer greatly,
I

and although

have done

evil,

am

anxious to walk in the noble path

of

righteousness.

But

cannot extricate myself

from the net

of sorrow.

Help me,

Lord

have mercy on

me

'
!

''Now,

it

is

the law of

Karma

that evil
is

deeds lead to destruction, for absolute evil

so

bad that

it

cannot exist.

Absolute

evil in-

volves impossibility of existence.

But good
a final end
is

deeds lead to
to every

life.

Thus
is

there

is

deed that

done, but there

no end
least

to the
act
of

development

of

good deeds.
fruit

The

goodness bears

containing

new

seeds of goodness, and they continue to grow,

they nourish the poor suffering creatures in

their repeated

wanderings in the eternal round

28
of

KARMA.
Samsara^ until they reach the
ail evil

final deliver-

ance from

in Nirvana.

"When
of the

Buddha, the Lord, heard the prayer

suffering in Hell, he said
' :

demon
It

Kan-

data, did

ness?

you ever perform an act of kindwill now return to you and help you

to rise again.

But you cannot be rescued unless the intense sufferings which you endure as consequences of your evil deeds have dispelled all conceit of selfhood and have purified

your soul

of vanity, lust,

and envy.'

"Kandata remained silent, for he had been a cruel man, but the Tathagata in his omniscience saw all the deeds done by the poor,
wretch, and he perceived that once in his
life

when walking through the

he thought
to himself,
is
'

M^oods

he had

seen a spider crawling on the ground, and

I will

not step upon

the spider, for he

a harmless creature and

hurts nobody.'

"Buddha looked with compassion upon the tortures of Kandata, and sent down a spider Take hold on a cobweb and the spider said
' :

of the
'
'

web and climb up.' Having attached the web

at the

bottom

of

THE SPIDER-WEB.
Hell, the spider withdrew.

29
ea,s:erl3'

Kandata

^^

mv'M ri'^

seized the thin thread and

to climb up.

made

great efforts

And

he succeeded.

The web

30

KARMA.
it

was so strong that

higher and higher.
'
'

held,

and he ascended

Suddenly he

felt

the thread trembling and

shaking, for behind

sufferers

him some
to

of his fellow-

were beginning

climb up.

Kanelastic,

data became frightened.

of the

He

saw the thinness

it

web, and observed that

was
it

for

under the increased weight

;

stretched
to carry

out

yet

it still

seemed strong enough

him. Kandata had heretofore only looked up

he now looked down, and saw following close

upon
Hell.

his heels, also climbing

up on the cob-

web, a numberless

mob

of

the denizens of

'How
of

can this thin thread bear the

weight

all?'

he thought

to himself,
'
:

and

seized with fear he shouted loudly

Let go

the cobweb.

It is

mine!

'

"At once
fell

the cobweb broke, and Kandata

back into Hell.

"The illusion of self was still upon Kandata. He did not know the miraculous power
of a sincere

longing to

rise

upwards and enter

It
is

the noble path of righteousness.

like a cobweb, but
it

thin

will carry millions of

people, and the

more there

are that climb

it.

THE SPIDER-WEB.

31

the easier will be the efforts of ever3^ one of

them.

But as soon as the idea

'
:

arises

i;i

man's heart

This

is

mine

let

the bliss of
let

righteousness be mine alone, and

else partake of
it,'

no one

the thread breaks and he

of
self-

will fall

back into his old condition

is

hood.
is

For selfhood

damnation, and truth

It is

bliss.

What

is

Hell?
is

nothing but
of righteous-

egotism, and Nirvana

life

ness."
" Let

me

take hold of the spider-web," said

the dying robber chief,

finished his story, "

when

the

samana had
myself up

and

I will pull

out of the depths of Hell."

THE CONVERSION OF THE ROBBER

CHIEF.

MAHADUTA
collect

lay quiet for a while to

Ms

thoughts, and then he adeffort

dressed the

samana not without

of

"Listen, honorable
fession
ler of
:

sir, I will

make

a con-

was the servant

Pandu, the jewel-

Kaushambi, but when he unjustly had

away and became a chief of robbers. Some time ago when I heard from my spies that Pandu was passing through the mountains, I succeeded in robbing him of a
tortured I ran

me

great part of his wealth.

Will you now go to

him and

tell

him

that I have forgiven from

the bottom of

my

heart the injury which he

unjustly inflicted upon me, and ask him, too,

to
I

pardon

me
I

for

having robbed him.

his heart

While

stayed with

him
I

was

as hard as

flint,

and

learned to imitate the selfishness

of his character.

have heard that he has be-

CONVERSION OF THE ROBBER CHIEF.

33

come benevolent and

example
of

is

now

pointed out as an

goodness and
of M'liicli

justice.

He

has laid

up treasures

no robber can ever de-

prive him,.^ while I fear that

ni3^

Karma

will

continue to linger in the course of evil deeds

but

do not wish to remain in his debt so

34

KARMA.
it is still

long as

in

my power to pay him. My

heart has undergone a complete change.

evil passions

My
mo-

are subdued, and the few

ments

of life left

me

shall

be spent in the en-

deavor to continue after death in the good

Karma

of

righteous aspirations.

Therefore,

inform Pandu that I have kept the gold crown

which he wrought
near by.

for the king,

and

all

his

treasures, and have hidden

them
of

in a cave

There
dead.

wei"e only

two

of the robbers
it,

under
are

my command who knew

and both
of

now

Let Pandu take a number

to the place

armed men and come

back the property
him.
of
its

and take

of

which

have deprived

One
sins
;

act of justice Mali atone for

it

some

my

will help to cleanse

my

soul of

impurities and give

me

a start in the right

direction

on

my
fell

search for salvation."

described the location of

Then Mahaduta
the cave and

back exhausted.

For a while he lay with closed eyes as though sleeping. The pain of his wounds
had ceased, and he began
but his
life

to breathe quietly

was slowly ebbing away, and now

he seemed to awake as from a pleasant dream.

CONVERSION OF THE ROBBER CHIEF.

"Venerable
for

35

me

that

"what a blessing the Buddha came upon earth and

sir," said he,

taught you and caused our paths to meet and

made you comfort me.

While
**1't>";

I lay

dozing
.m'

"^J^r'-'l'

beheld as in a vision the scene of the Tathagata's final entering into Nirvana.

In former

years I saw a picture of

it

which made a deep

dying hour."

impression on

my

mind, and the recollection

of it is a solace to

me

in

my

36
*'

KARMA.
Indeed,
it is

a blessing," replied the sa;

niana, " that the

he dispelled

Buddha appeared upon earth the darkness begotten by ill will

and

error,

and attained supreme enlightenlived

ment.

He

among us
ills

as one of us, be-

ing subject to the

of life, pain, disease,

and death, not unlike any mortal.

extinguished in himself
lust, all
all all

Yet he
all

selfishness,

greed for wealth and love of pleasure,

all

ambition for fame or power,

hankering

after things of the

world and clinging to anyillusive.

thing transitory and

He

was bent

only on the one aim, to reach the immortal

and to actualise in his being that which cannot die.

Through

the good

Karma

of

former
at last

existences and his

own

life

he reached

the blessed state of Nirvana, and

when

the

end came he passed away in that

guishes
that

final

passing
extin-

away which leaves nothing behind but

all

that is transitory and mortal.

Oh,

all

men

could give up clinging and

of passion,

thereby rid themselves

envy, and

hatred!"

Mahaduta imbibed the words

of the

with the eagerness of a thirsty

samana man who i^

CONVERSION OF THE ROBBER CHIEF.

refreshed

37

by a drink

of

water

tliat is

pure and

cool and sweet.

He

wanted

to speak, but

be

could scarcely rally strength enough to open

his

mouth and move

his lips.

He

beckoned

assent and showed his anxiety to embrace the

doctrine of the Tathagata.

Panthaka wetted the dying man's

soothed his pain, and

lips

and

when

the robber chief,

unable to speak, silently folded his hands, he

spoke for him and gave utterance to such

vows

as the latter

was ready

to

make.

The

samana's words were like music

to the ears of

Mahaduta. Filled with the joy that originates

with good resolutions and entranced by the
prospect of an advance in the search for a

higher and better

life,

his eyes

began

to stare

and

all

pain ceased.
in the

So the robber chief died converted arms of the samana.

THE CONVERTED ROBBER'S TOMB.

AS
ler.

soon as Panthaka, the young samana,

had reached Kaushambi, he went

to

the vihara and inquired for

Pandu the

jewel-

Being directed

to his residence

he gave

him

a full account of his recent adventure

in the forest. cort of

And Pandu set out with an esarmed men and secured the treasures
of the

which the robber chief had concealed in the

cave.

Near by they found the remains

robber chief and his slain comrades, and they

gathered the bodies in a heap and burned them with

all

honors.

The
with

ashes were collected in an urn and bur-

ied in a

tumulus on which a stone was placed

inscription

an

written

by Panthaka,
Mahaduta's

which contained a
conversion.

brief report of

Before Pandu 's party returned home, Pan-

thaka held a memorial service

at the

tumulus

THE CONVERTED ROBBER'S TOMB.

in

39
of

which he explained

the

significance
of

Karma, discoursing on the words

Buddha

'By ourselves

is evil

done,

we pain endure. we cease from wrong, By ourselves become we pure.

ourselves
B}' ourselves

By

40

KARMA.
No one No one
saves us, but ourselves,

can and no one ma}'

We

ourselves must walk the path',

the wa)'."'^^

Buddhas merely teach

"Our Karma,"
the

the

samana

said,

"is not

work of Ishvara, or Brahma, or Indra, or Our Karma is the of any one of the gods. product of our own actions. My action is the

womb

that bears

me

it
;

is

the inheritance
the curse of

which devolves upon

me
is

it is

my

misdeeds and the blessing of m3^ righte-

ousness.

My
the

action

the resource

by which

alone I can work out

my
is

salvation.""

Then

samana paused and added

the

maker of his own Karma, and we reap what we have sown, we are at the same time co-responsible for the evils of evil doers. Such is the interrelation
of

" While every one

Karma

that the errors of one person are

of the errors of others.

mostly mere echoes

Neither the curse
of of

our failings nor the bliss Therefore

our goodness

is

purely our own.

when we judge
inal, let

the bad, the vicious, the crim-

us not withhold from them our sym-

pathy, for

we

are partners of their guilt."

THE CONVERTED ROBBER'S TOMB.

41
vil-

Among

the people of the surrounding

lages the tumulus

became known

as in

'
'

The
later

Converted Robber's
years a
little

Tomb," and
to rest

shrine was built on the spot

where wanderers used

and invoke the

Buddha
thieves.

for

the

conversion of robbers and

THE BEQUEST OF A GOOD KARMA.

PANDU
came

carried all his treasures back to

Kaushambi, and using with discretion

the wealth thus unexpectedly regained, he bericher and

more powerful than he had

ever been before, and

when he was dying

all

at

an advanced age he had

his

sons,

and

daughters, and grandchildren gathered round

him and

said unto

them

"My
ills

dear children, do not blame others for

of success.

your lack

Seek the cause

of

your
and

in yourselves.

Unless you are blinded

by vanity you
out of

will discover j^our fault,

it

having discovered
it.

you
for
let

will

see
ills,

the

way

The remedy
Never

your

too, lies

in yourselves.

your mental eyes

be covered by the dust

of selfishness,

and

re-

member the words which have proved man in my life

a talis-

THE BEQUEST OF A GOOD KARMA.

43

44

KARMA.
'Who
injureth others,
sore.

Himself hurteth

Who
Let

others assisteth,

Himself helpeth more.

th' illusion of self
:

From your mind disappear And you'll find the way sure;
The path
"
If
will

be

clear.'

you

heed,

my

words and obey these

in-

junctions you will,

continue to live in

when you come to die, the Good Karma that you

your deeds."

have stored up^ and 3^our souls will be immortalised according to

NOTES.
I,

Page

7.

Devas are

spiritual beings, gods, or angels.

2,

Page

II.

in

This sentiment, though thoroughly Buddhistic, is found also other religions and seems to grow naturally when a certain

moral maturity is reached. Every one knows the passage in the Gospel according to Matthew " But I say unto you. Love your enemies." Lao Tze (V., 44) the sage of China said ^J^^/o ytien t tch, i. e., "Requite hatred with virtue."
: :

And
Crilo, 49
0('7e
ori.ovv

Socrates expressed himself no less plainly in Plato's

:

avTadiKtlv

(Si't,

o'vte

hukuq

rroie'iv

nlSiva av&puTTuv,

ov6'

av

Kaaxy v~' avruv. One must neither return evil, nor do any ill to any one among men, not even if one has to suffer from them. See T/ie Open Court for January, 1901, p. 9, for further quo-

tations

from the Greek.

3,

Page

II.

Buddhist monastery.
4,

Page

12.

Buddhist Birth
p. 169.

Stories.

Translated by T.

W. Rhys Davids,

5,

Page

13.

Krishna, a

ond person
that he
is

of

Brahman god, an incarnation of Vishnu, the secMallika's language implies the Brahman trinity.

not a Buddhist.

46

KARMA.
6,

Page

i8.

This passage occurs in the Mahavagga, 1,2.

7,

Page

27.

Kalpa

is

a long period of time, an aeon.

8,

Page

28.
life,

Samsara
Nirvana
is

is

the restlessness of the world and of worldly

the peace of

mind

of

him who has overcome the

illu-

sion of self.
9,

Page

33.
vi. 20, is

This expression reminding one of Matth.

the Nidhikanda Sutta (Treasure Chapter).

taken from

10,

Page

40.

Quoted from the

Dhammafada
11,

Page

40.

Quoted from the Anguttara Nikaya, Pancaka Nipata,

denberg, Buddha, p. 249.

see Ol-

Works by Dr. Paul Cams

The Age

under

of Christ. bripf rpview of the conditions whicli Christiiinitv originated. I'liper, 13c.

The Ethical Problem. Three lectures on ethics

science.

Amitabha,
Angelus

The Foundations
Frederich

Story

of

Buddnist

Theology. Hoards. 50c.

Silesius.

as a Cloth, $1.25; paper, Ooc. of Mathematics. A contribution to the philosophy of geometry. Cloth, 75c.

A
A

A
Translated in
Cloth, $1.00;

sketcli

Schiller, of his life

and an ap-

selection

from the rhymes of

a German mystic. the original meter.

The Bride
study

of
in

Christ.

Christian legend lore.

Cloth,
75c.

Illustrated.

The Buddha. A drama in three acts and four

interludes.

ProBoards, 75c. Fundamental Problems. The method of philosophy as a systematic arrangement of knowledge. Cltoh, $1..')0; paper, 60c. God. An inquiry into the nature of
poetry.

preciation of his fusely illustrated.

Buddhism and

Paper, 50c. Its Christian Critics. Cloth, $1.25; paper, 60c.

Man's Highest Ideal and a solution of the problem from the

$1.00;

Buddhist Hymns. Translated from the Dhammapada and other sources adapted

standpoint of science. paper, 50c.

of religious Cloth, 50c.

Boards,

Godward.

modern music. Cloth, 50c. Canon of Reason and Virtue (LaoTze's Tao Teh King.) Chinese-English. New and revised
to edition.

A record (Poems). Goethe.

With
Cloth,

progress.

special consideration of his philosophy. Profusely illustrated.

$3.00.

Cloth,

$1.00.

The Chief's Daughter.

legend of Niagara.

Illustrated.

Cloth, $1.00.

Chinese Life and Customs. With illustrations by Chinese artists. Boards, 75c. Chinese Thought.
exposition of the main characteristic features of the Chinese world-conception. Being a continuation of the author's essay
ted.

Goethe and Schiller's Xenions, New and revised edition, with additional notes on classical prosody in the Introduction. Cloth,
$1.00.

The Gospel
$1.00;

of Buddha. According to old records.

Cloth,

An

paper,

40c.

"Chinese Philosophy." Boards. $1.00.

Illustra-

Gospel of Buddha. Pocket edition. Photographic reproduction of the de Luxe edition Price, which is out of print. Leather at $1.50. Cloth $1.00.

The Crown The Dawn

of Thorns. A story of the time of Christ. Illustrated. Cloth, 75c.

of a

The History

of the

Devil and the

to

Idea of Evil.

From

And

New

Religious Era.
Cloth,
$1.00.

the earliest times present day. Illustrated.

$6.00.

the Cloth,

other essays.

The Pleroma.
essay on the origin of Chrfstianity. Cloth, $1.00; paper, 50c.

Kant and Spencer.

An

study of the fallacies of agnosCloth,

ticism.

50c;

paper,

25c.

Primer of Philosophy.
Cloth, $1.00; paper, 30c.

Kant's Prolegomena to any Future Metaphysics.

Cloth, 75e;paper, 60c.

Edward's Dream. Translated and edited from the German of Wilhelm Busch. Cloth,
$1.00.

K'ung Fu Tze.
dramatic poem portraying the and; teachings of Confucius. Boards, 50c. Lao-Tze's Tao Teh King. Chinese Knglish. With introduclife

Eros and Psyche.

fairy-tale of ancient Greece, re-told after Apuleius. Illustrated. Cloth, $1.50.

tion, literal translation

and notes.

Cloth,

$3.00.

W^oi'ks by

Dr. Paul Carus

The Rise
.\

The Mechanistic Principle and the

Non-Mechanical.

An

fundamentals into inquiry with extracts from representatives of eitlier side. Cloth, .$1.00.

man
7.5c.

of Man. sketcli of the origin of the hurace. Illustrated. Boards,

Sacred Tunes for the Consecration

of life.

The Nature
Clotli,

of the State.

.50c:

paper,

:20c.

Hyuius
Cloth,

(if

the Religion of Science.

The New Morn. A dramatic poem

lisli

.50c.

satirizing

Eng-

The Soul

of

Man,

diplomacy and the Triple Paper, 50c. Entente. Nietzsche, And other exponents of individualism.
Illustrated.

investigation of the facts of physiological and experimental Iisycluilogy. Illustrated. Cloth, $1.50; papr, 85c.

An

Cloth, $1.25.

Nirvana, a Story of Buddhist Psychology. Illustrated by Cloth, (30c.

The Story of Samson. And its i)lace in the religious

velopment of mankind.
Hoards, $1.00. The Surd of Metaphysics.
ted.

deIllustra-

Kwason

Suzuki.

Oracle of Yahveh.

Urim and Tlnuumim, the Ephod, Ilthe Breastplate of Judgment. Paper, 30c. lustrated.
Our Children. Hints from practical experience Cloth, for parents and teachers.
$1.00.

An incpiiry into the question there tliings-in themselves?" Cloth, 75c.

.\rp

T'ai-Shang Kan-Yan P'ien, Treatise of the Exalted One on response and retribution. Boards,
75 e.

Personality, Witli special reference to superpersonalities and the interperCloth, sonal character of ideas.
(Dc.

Truth and Other Poems. Truth; Time: Love; De

natura; Death. boards, 50c.
Cloth,

rerum
$1.00;

Truth on

Trial.

An
Illlustrated.
per,

exposition

The Philosopher's Martyrdom.

Boards, $1.00; parchment wrapper, 50c. Philosophy of Science. An Epitome of the writings of Boards, oOc; Dr. Paul Carus. paper, 25c. The Principle of Relativity. In the light of the philosophy
satire.

truth,

of t)ie nature of preceded by a critique of Cloth,

$1,00;

pragmatism.
50c.

pa-

The Venus

of Milo, archeological study of womanliood. trate;!. Cloth, $1.00.

An

of

the
Illus-

goddess

Whence and Whither. An inquiry into the nature

soul,
Clotli,
its

of science.

Cloth, $1.00.

Psychology of the Nervous System. An extract from the author's

larger

origin and its 75c: paper, 35c.

of the destiny.

work "The

.Soul of

Man."

ligions

Paper, 30c.

ment Extension.

The World's Parliament of Reand the Religious Parlia-

Yin Chih Wen, The Tract of

Religicjus

Quiet Way. With extracts from the Chinese Commentary. Boards, 25c.
the

Committee.

memorial published by the Parliament Extension Popular edition, 10c.

The Religion

of Science. Cloth, 50c; paper, 30c.

The Open Court Publishing Company

122 South Michigan Avenue
::

::

Chicago, Illinois

14 DAY USE RETURN TO DESK FROM WHICH BORROWED

14 DAY USE RETURN TO DESK FROM WHICH BORROWED

LOAN
This book
is

DEPT.
r

due on the last date stamped below, or on the date to which renewed. Renewals only: Tel. No. 642-3405 Renewals may be made 4 days ^rior to date due. Renewed books are subject to immediate recall.

Due end

of SPRING QusrteT subi a st to rocd fifior

l l

,.,

WAY

2 2

/J 5 5

APR

1 19B0

RW.CIR.MAR2

0'8a

'l\]m

T T\^>^ A on Q -1 (Q?677tr0)r7-|-i'31
'

Gcncral Library
Universuy^of^^California

]auioi'a
.PAMPHLET BINDER
Syracuse, N. Y.
Stockton, Colif.

U.C.BERKELEY LIBRARIES

^*.

CDm,7S3flfl5

^/ <

^l^^?-'-

.^-