Continuing from previously.

You might wonder: if the Buddha was aware of the pretas and their expectations, why didn’t he simply tell Bimbisara to share his merits? That would have spared the king his dreadful experience that night.

It is generally difficult to guess the thought process of an enlightened being. After perceiving the Ultimate Truth, their logic and rationale operate differently from our own. Yet, if we study the Buddha’s life, we can conclude that he understood the nature of every person he encountered. He therefore possessed the capability to foresee the likely outcomes of their futures—Devadatta’s harmful conduct or Angulimala’s violent death, for instance.

We ourselves might even predict such outcomes based on logical deduction. So why didn’t Buddha?

I am not sure because I am unenlightened.

However, the Buddha seemed to allow nature to run its course. He was not biased against Devadatta, even though the latter had displayed arrogance, contempt, and cruelty since youth.

I see this as a sign of not being bound by past experiences. Most of us are bound in this way; we tend to pre-judge others before they have even acted. But in Buddhism, in accordance with the Dharma, nothing is predestined. We all possess the free will to choose to abstain from evil and to do good. Our future is shaped by every decision and action we take in each moment. Therefore, Buddhism doesn’t believe in predestined fate or outcome. The chance for doing better is always there.

In this story, the pretas themselves could have remained silent, approached the Buddha, or done many other things besides wailing down the palace in the middle of the night.

Let us leave this discussion here, as it is difficult for us to imagine the Buddha’s thoughts. But by referencing his life story, we can perhaps learn not to be too judgmental of our own Dharma teachers too.

Sometimes, we might wonder and complain, “Why didn’t Bhante, Rinpoche, or Shifu warn us earlier?” or “Why didn’t he or she stop that horrible person from coming to the temple or joining the group? Now everyone is unhappy!” or “Why accept such a difficult person as a disciple in the first place?”

Remember this: even if the Buddha himself were leading your Dharma center or organization, he would still allow difficult people to join. We must give everyone an open chance to become a better version of themselves. Our task is not to exclude, but to practice loving-kindness, compassion, and acceptance. And if it becomes too much for us to handle, we can always walk away to protect our well-being. (That’s practicing to let go, isn’t it?) So it is all about practice.

Now, let us continue with King Bimbisara’s story. Why were his past relatives lurking around him, waiting for merits to be shared?

The story begins 92 aeons ago. An aeon refers to a vast period of time encompassing the arising and destruction of a universe. For simplicity, we can imagine it as equivalent to billions of years. At that time, the Buddha who appeared in the world was named Phussa. His father was a possessive king called Jayasena, who held the belief that his son, the Buddha, belonged to him alone. He therefore cordoned off the entire monastery, ensuring that Phussa Buddha and his disciples could only visit the palace for alms. No one else had the privilege of serving the Buddha or meeting him.

The princes, ministers, and people were displeased with this arrangement. They devised a scheme to trick King Jayasena into granting the princes a royal favour. When he agreed, the princes sought open access to Phussa Buddha. Unfortunately, the king denied their request, and they were forced to bargain with him. Finally, they reached an agreement: Phussa Buddha would be allowed to meet with the people for three months.

You may find this unbelievable, but similar things still happen today. Well-meaning disciples of famous monks and teachers sometimes take on the role of custodian for their teachers. They screen visitors, reject invitations, and in some atrocious cases, these teachers end up seemingly under house arrest, with no opportunity to meet anyone outside a small circle of privileged “disciples.” Sometimes, our love for someone leads us to guard that person as if they belong to us, and we end up committing unwholesome deeds in the name of love and care. So, we must beware.

Many affluent members of the royal family were elated to be granted access to Phussa Buddha for three months. They decided to organize an elaborate daily offering of alms to Phussa Buddha and his thousands of disciples, a venture which naturally required immense resources and manpower. Consequently, they tasked the Chief Minister with supervising the entire event. The minister hired 11,000 people, including his own relatives, for various jobs ranging from food preparation to venue decoration.

Unfortunately, some of these relatives saw the event not as an act of devotion, but as an opportunity for profit. They began taking bribes, stealing offerings, and misappropriating funds and resources.

That Chief Minister was to become King Bimbisara in a future life, and those dishonest relatives were the very pretas who later haunted him, waiting for merits to be shared. To be continued….

Stealing from Buddhist events creates profoundly bad karma. Those dishonest relatives were reborn from one miserable existence to another for 92 aeons. On the other hand, those who worked honestly and joyfully for the event enjoyed good rebirths in heavenly realms and other fortunate states, all the way until the time of Shakyamuni Buddha.

This story shows why it is so important to stay vigilant in our conduct and choices when volunteering or working for any Buddhist organization or events. We must never, ever steal or misappropriate anything.

Here is a personal experience. In my tropical location, switching on the air conditioner while working is very enjoyable, but I feel it’s wasteful if I am the only one using it. Moreover, electricity costs money to the organization. Therefore, I consciously choose not to turn it on when I am working alone. If I do use the aircon, I try to compensate by donating to the temple’s expenses.

Separately, I observed some volunteers intentionally cooking a large amount of food with the motive of taking the leftovers home later. I believe all such actions are unskillful and create bad karma. Even acts of carelessness and wastefulness can create negative consequences.

On the other hand, if we conscientiously strive to do our best to help without any selfish motives, then we can be assured of good karma and rebirth in the future.

May all be well and happy.