The Gospel of BuddhaBuddhismScripture SelectionEnglish (compiled from Pali and Sanskrit sources)ShareThe Gospel of Buddha 96Paul Carus (1894) - EnglishMoreVersion - 1 availablePaul Carus (1894)LanguageEnglishEspañol‹The Gospel of Buddha 1The Gospel of Buddha 2The Gospel of Buddha 3The Gospel of Buddha 4The Gospel of Buddha 5The Gospel of Buddha 6The Gospel of Buddha 7The Gospel of Buddha 8The Gospel of Buddha 9The Gospel of Buddha 10The Gospel of Buddha 11The Gospel of Buddha 12The Gospel of Buddha 13The Gospel of Buddha 14The Gospel of Buddha 15The Gospel of Buddha 16The Gospel of Buddha 17The Gospel of Buddha 18The Gospel of Buddha 19The Gospel of Buddha 20The Gospel of Buddha 21The Gospel of Buddha 22The Gospel of Buddha 23The Gospel of Buddha 24The Gospel of Buddha 25The Gospel of Buddha 26The Gospel of Buddha 27The Gospel of Buddha 28The Gospel of Buddha 29The Gospel of Buddha 30The Gospel of Buddha 31The Gospel of Buddha 32The Gospel of Buddha 33The Gospel of Buddha 34The Gospel of Buddha 35The Gospel of Buddha 36The Gospel of Buddha 37The Gospel of Buddha 38The Gospel of Buddha 39The Gospel of Buddha 40The Gospel of Buddha 41The Gospel of Buddha 42The Gospel of Buddha 43The Gospel of Buddha 44The Gospel of Buddha 45The Gospel of Buddha 46The Gospel of Buddha 47The Gospel of Buddha 48The Gospel of Buddha 49The Gospel of Buddha 50The Gospel of Buddha 51The Gospel of Buddha 52The Gospel of Buddha 53The Gospel of Buddha 54The Gospel of Buddha 55The Gospel of Buddha 56The Gospel of Buddha 57The Gospel of Buddha 58The Gospel of Buddha 59The Gospel of Buddha 60The Gospel of Buddha 61The Gospel of Buddha 62The Gospel of Buddha 63The Gospel of Buddha 64The Gospel of Buddha 65The Gospel of Buddha 66The Gospel of Buddha 67The Gospel of Buddha 68The Gospel of Buddha 69The Gospel of Buddha 70The Gospel of Buddha 71The Gospel of Buddha 72The Gospel of Buddha 73The Gospel of Buddha 74The Gospel of Buddha 75The Gospel of Buddha 76The Gospel of Buddha 77The Gospel of Buddha 78The Gospel of Buddha 79The Gospel of Buddha 80The Gospel of Buddha 81The Gospel of Buddha 82The Gospel of Buddha 83The Gospel of Buddha 84The Gospel of Buddha 85The Gospel of Buddha 86The Gospel of Buddha 87The Gospel of Buddha 88The Gospel of Buddha 89The Gospel of Buddha 90The Gospel of Buddha 91The Gospel of Buddha 92The Gospel of Buddha 93The Gospel of Buddha 94The Gospel of Buddha 95The Gospel of Buddha 96The Gospel of Buddha 97The Gospel of Buddha 98The Gospel of Buddha 99The Gospel of Buddha 100›Chapter XCVI: MetteyyaThe Gospel of Buddha 96ListenPlay this chapter in spoken English.Save chapterListen to chapter1The Blessed One proceeded with a great company of the brethren to the sāla grove of the Mallas, the Upavattana of Kusinārā on the further side of the river Hiraññavatī, and when he had arrived he addressed the venerable Ānanda, and said: "Make ready for me, I pray you, Ānanda, the couch with its head to the north, between the twin sāla trees. I am weary, Ānanda, and wish to be down." 2"Be it so, Lord!" said the venerable Ānanda, and he spread a couch with its head to the north, between the twin sāla trees. And the Blessed One laid himself down, and he was mindful and self-possessed. 3Now, at that time the twin sāla trees were full of bloom with flowers out of season; and heavenly songs came wafted from the skies, out of reverence for the successor of the Buddhas of old. And Ānanda was filled with wonder that the Blessed One was thus honored. But the Blessed One said: "Not by such events, Ānanda, is the Tathāgata rightly honored, held sacred, or revered. But the brother or the sister, the devout man or the devout woman, who continually fulfils all the greater and the lesser duties, walking according to the precepts, it is they who rightly honor, hold sacred, and revere the Tathāgata with the worthiest homage. Therefore, O Ānanda, be ye "constant in the fulfilment of the greater and of the lesser duties, and walk according to the precepts; thus, Ānanda, will ye honor the Master." 4Then the venerable Ānanda went into the vihāra, and stood leaning against the doorpost, weeping at the thought: "Alas! I remain still but a learner, one who has yet to work out his own perfection. And the Master is about to pass away from me--he who is so kind!" 5Now, the Blessed One called the brethren, and said: "Where, O brethren, is Ānanda?" 6And one of the brethren went and called Ānanda. And Ānanda came and said to the Blessed One: "Deep darkness reigned for want of wisdom; the world of sentient creatures was groping for want of light; then the Tathāgata lit up the lamp of wisdom, and now it will be extinguished again, ere he has brought it out." And the Blessed One said to the venerable Ānanda, as he sat there by his side: 7 8"Enough, Ānanda! Let not thy self be troubled; do not weep! Have I not already, on former occasions, told you that it is in the very nature of all things most near and dear unto us that we must separate from them and leave them? 9"The foolish man conceives the idea of 'self,' the wise man sees there is no ground on which to build the idea of 'self,' thus he has a right conception of the world and well concludes that all compounds amassed by sorrow will be dissolved again, but the truth will remain. 10"Why should I preserve this body of flesh, when the body of the excellent law will endure? I am resolved; having accomplished my purpose and attended to the work set me, I look for rest! 11"For a long time, Ānanda, thou hast been very near to me by thoughts and acts of such love as never varies and is beyond all measure. Thou hast done well, Ānanda! Be earnest in effort and thou too shalt soon be free from the great evils, from sensuality, from selfishness, from delusion, and from ignorance!" 12And Ānanda, suppressing his tears, said to the Blessed One: "Who shall teach us when thou art gone?" 13And the Blessed One replied: "I am not the first Buddha who came upon earth, nor shall I be the last. In due time another Buddha will arise in the world, a Holy One, a supremely enlightened One, endowed with wisdom in conduct, auspicious, knowing the universe, an incomparable leader of men, a master of angels and mortals. He will reveal to you the same eternal truths which I have taught you. He will preach his religion, glorious in its origin, glorious at the climax, and glorious at the goal, in the spirit and in the letter. He will proclaim a religious life, wholly perfect and pure; such as I now proclaim." 15The Blessed One said: "He will be known as Metteyya, which means 'he whose name is kindness.'" ‹Previous chapterThe Gospel of Buddha 95Next chapterThe Gospel of Buddha 97›Similar passagesBy tradition and source labelFind similarCompare selectedCompare with similarAsk Deep ThoughtSelect passages to search for parallels.Tap any verse to select it, then compare selected passages or ask Deep Thought. Public domain