Pathos

The Buddha once spent a night in a potter's shed. In the same shed there was a young recluse who had arrived there earlier. They did not know each other. The Buddha observed the recluse and thought to himself: `Pleasant are the ways of this young man. It would be good if I should ask about him.' So the Buddha asked him: `O recluse, in whose name have you left home? Or who is your master? Or whose doctrine do you like?'
`O friend,' answered the young man, `there is Gotama, who left his family to become a recluse. There is high repute abroad of him that he is a Fully Enlightened One. In the name of that Blessed One I have become a recluse. He is my Master and I like his doctrine.'
The Buddha realized that it was in his name that this unknown young man had left home and become a recluse. But without divulging his identity, the Buddha delivered a most remarkable discourse explaining Truth.
It was only at the end of the discourse that this young recluse, whose name was Pukkusati, realized that the person who spoke to him was the Buddha himself. So he got up, went before the Buddha, bowed down at the feet of the Master, and apologized to him for calling him 'friend' un- knowingly. He then begged the Buddha to ordain him and admit him into the Order of the Sangha. The Buddha asked him whether he had the alms-bowl and the robes ready. (A bhikkhu must have three robes and the alms-bowl for begging food.) When Pukkusati replied in the negative, the Buddha said that the Tathagatas would not ordain a person unless the alms-bowl and the robes were ready. So Pukkusati went out in seach of an alms-bowl and robes, but was unfortunately savaged by a cow and died.

Drawn from Walpola Rahula's account in `What The Buddha Taught'. (1959) ps7-8.

Bone Idle