Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-10-09
The Story of Civilization
SOCIETY,"

subject to birth. were to seek out
the nature of birth and.
having seen the wretchedness OF
the nature of birth. were to seek
out the unborn. the supreme peace
of Nirvana?'
Death is the origin of all religions,
and perhaps if there had been no
death there would have been no gods.
To Buddha tines? sights were the be-
ginning of "enlishtenment." He re-
solved to leave his wife and his new.
born son and become an asCetic in
the desert. In the dark Of the morn
ing he rode out of the CITY on his
horse Kanthaka, with his charioteer
Channa hanging to the tail. Then
Mara, prince of evil, came and
tempted him, offering him great EN-
pires, but he refused and went on
crossing a great river with one leap.
x X x 81
We do not know where he went,
but we are told that for six years he
lived the life of lonely ascetic, trying
the Yogi's way.
Then | thought, what if now set
my teeth, press my tongue to my
palate. and restrain, crush and
burn out my mind with my mind.
Il did 500 And sweat flowed from
my armpits. Just as if a strong
man We're to seize n weaker man
by the head or shoulder so
did | set my teeth. Then l
thought what If / now practice
trance without breathing. SO l re-
strained breathing in and out from
mouth and nose. And as l did so
there was violent sound Of winds
,t,,rr
Just as if a strong man were to
crush ones head with the point of
sword, even so did violent winds
disturb my head. Then |
thought what if l were to take
food only in small amounts, as
much as my followed palm would
hold, juices of beans. vetches,
chick-peas or pulse. Ole did 500 .
NV body became extremely lean.
The mark of my seat was
like a camel's footprint through the
little food
Mara came many times now and
tempted him. but Buddha would not
Weld. Mara sent his beautiful daugh.
ters to cast their witchery over him
but Buddha took refuge from their
charms in his knowledge of anatomy:
Having seen craving, aversion and
lust,
No desire had I for the pleasures
of love;
That body filled with wine and
dung
Even with my foot 1 did not wish
to touch.
And so Buddha grew in somber
saintliness, and disciples gathered
about him and followed his austeri'
ties.
But one day the thought came to
Buddha that Standardization was not
the way. Perhaps he was unusually
hungry on that day, or some memory
of lovelines had stirred within him.
by this severity / do not attain
superhuman truly noble knowledge
and insight" What was the source
of human sorrow. suffering, sickness.
old ace and death? A vision came to
him of the infinite succession of births
and deaths in the stream of life: he
saw every death compensated with a
birth, and every mortal peace bal
anccd with new desire. new grief and
new pain. THUS with mind concen-
trated. purified cleansed | d.
rected my mind to the passing away
and rebirth of beings. With divine.
purified, suDerhuman vision l saw be.
irgs passing away and being reborn.
low and high, of good and bad color,
in happy or miserable eXistences, &C.
cording to their karnla."
It was the vision Of this ridiculous
succession of deaths and births that
made Buddha scorn life. Birth. he
said to himself, is the origin of all
4. ,,.tt,
lessly. aimlessly. forever replenishing
could be stopped. Here 1t was
that the legend of Buddha helped to
mold the philosophy of Schopenhauer)
But the law of karma brings new
births. apparently, forever; every in
justice done must be atoned for in
some new life. If a man could live a
life of perfect justice. of unvarying pa.
thence and kindness to all; If he could
tie his thoughts to eternal things. not
binding his heart to those that begin
and pass away. then, perhaps. he
would be spared rebirth, and the foun-
tain of evil would run dry. If one
could still all desire for ones self, and
seek only to do good, individuality,
that last delusion of mankind, might
he overcome. and the soul be merged
at last with unconscious infinity.
What peace there would be in the
heart that had cleansed itself of every
personal desire! Happiness is neither
here, as paganism thinks. nor here.
after, as most religions think: only
peace is possible, only the cool
quietude Of craving ended. only Mir
vana.
SO Buddha thought, and, leaving his
solitary nSonffa 1ifn ha arfI, <z
preach his doctrine to the world.
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