Great Disciples of the Buddha: Their Lives, Their Works, Their Legacy

by Nyanaponika Thera, Hellmuth Hecker, Bodhi (Editor)

Overview

A perennial favorite, Great Disciples of the Buddha is now relaunched in our best-selling Teachings of the Buddha series.

Twenty-four of the Buddha's most distinguished disciples are brought to life in ten chapters of rich narration. Drawn from a wide range of authentic Pali sources, the material in these stories has never before been assembled in a single volume. Through these engaging tales, we meet all manner of human beings - rich, poor, male, female, young, old - whose unique stories are told with an eye to the details of ordinary human concerns. When read with careful attention, these stories can sharpen our understanding of the Buddhist path by allowing us to contemplate the living portraits of the people who fulfilled the early Buddhist ideals of human perfection. The characters detailed include:

• Sariputta
• Nanda
• Mahamoggallana
• Mahakassapa
• Ananda
• Isidasi
• Anuruddha
• Mahakaccana
• Angulimala
• Visakha
• and many more.

Conveniently annotated with the same system of sutta references used in each of the other series volumes, Great Disciples of the Buddha allows the reader to easily place each student in the larger picture of Buddha's life. It is a volume that no serious student of Buddhism should miss.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780861713813
Publisher:	Wisdom Publications MA
Publication date:	06/15/2003
Series:	The Teachings of the Buddha
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	448
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Nyanaponika Thera, a German-born Buddhist monk, was a scholar, translator, and founder of The Buddhist Publication Society in Sri Lanka. Thera died in 1994 at the age of 93.

Hellmuth Hecker is a leading German writer on Buddhism and a translator from the Pali Canon. His books include a german translation of the Samyutta Nikaya (parts 4 and 5) a two-volume chronicle on Buddhism in Germany, and a biography of Ven. Nyanatiloka Mahathera, the first German Buddhist monk.

Table of Contents

	Preface	ix
	Credits	xi
	Abbreviations	xiii
	Editor's Introduction	xv
1.	Sariputta: The Marshal of the Dhamma	1
	Prologue	3
	The Quest for the Dhamma	4
	Early Life	4
	The Original Aspiration	11
	Sariputta in the Jatakas	13
	Sariputta the Man	16
	The Chief Disciple	16
	The Helper	21
	The Unresentful	25
	Friendships and Relatives	29
	The Mediator	34
	The Turner of the Wheel	39
	The Suttas	39
	Expository Works	44
	The Abhidhamma	45
	The Further Shore	47
	The Last Debt Paid	47
	Cunda Sutta	55
	Ukkacela Sutta	57
	Discourses of Sariputta	59
	Majjhima Nikaya	59
	Digha Nikaya	61
	Anguttara Nikaya	61
	Samyutta Nikaya	64
2.	Mahamoggallana: Master of Psychic Powers	67
	Youth	69
	Wandering and Spiritual Search	71
	Finding the Dhamma	75
	The Struggle for Realization of the Teaching	78
	The Most Excellent Pair of Disciples	83
	Moggallana's Psychic Powers	88
	Penetration of Others' Minds (Thought Reading)	92
	The Divine Ear (Clairaudience)	93
	The Divine Eye (Clairvoyance)	93
	Travel by Mind-Made Body (Astral Travel)	94
	Telekinesis (Supernormal Locomotion)	95
	The Power of Transformation	96
	Moggallana's Previous Lives	97
	Moggallana's Verses	98
	The Last Days of Moggallana	100
	Moggallana's Death	101
3.	Mahakassapa: Father of the Sangha	107
	Kassapa's Early Years	109
	Bhadda Kapilani	112
	The Samsaric Background	114
	How Kassapa Came to the Buddha	117
	Kassapa's Relationship to the Buddha	119
	Encounters with Deities	123
	Relations with Fellow Monks	125
	After the Buddha's Parinibbana	130
	The Verses of Mahakassapa	133
4.	Ananda: Guardian of the Dhamma	137
	Ananda's Personal Path	139
	Ananda's Renown	141
	The Buddha's Attendant	147
	The Guardian of the Dhamma	150
	Ananda's Attitude Toward Women	154
	Ananda and His Fellow Monks	158
	Conversations with the Buddha	161
	Ananda's Former Lives	163
	Jataka 498	164
	Jataka 421	164
	Jataka 282	165
	The Last Days of the Buddha	166
	After the Buddha's Parinibbana	179
5.	Anuruddha: Master of the Divine Eye	183
	Early Life and Ordination	185
	The Struggle for Arahantship	188
	Anuruddha's Spiritual Path	191
	Life in the Sangha	194
	Anuruddha and Women	199
	Anuruddha's Earlier Lives	204
	The Buddha's Parinibbana and Afterward	208
6.	Mahakaccana: Master of Doctrinal Exposition	211
	Introduction	213
	The Samsaric Background	214
	Kaccana's Conversion to the Dhamma	216
	Various Incidents	219
	The Elaborator of Brief Statements	222
	Majjhima Nikaya	224
	Samyutta Nikaya	229
	Anguttara Nikaya	232
	Other Teachings of Mahakaccana	234
	The Theragatha Verses	240
	The Exegetical Treatises	242
7.	Great Women Disciples of the Buddha	245
	Visakha: The Buddha's Chief Patroness	247
	Mallika: The Flower-girl Queen	255
	Khema of Great Wisdom	263
	Bhadda Kundalakesa: The Debating Ascetic	269
	Kisagotami: The Mother with the Dead Child	273
	Sona with Many Children	279
	Nanda: The Buddha's Half-sister	282
	Queen Samavati: Embodiment of Loving-kindness	285
	Patacara: Preserver of the Vinaya	293
	Ambapali: The Generous Courtesan	300
	Sirima and Uttara	304
	Isidasi: A Journey through Samsara	310
8.	Angulimala: A Murderer's Road to Sainthood	317
	The Making of a Serial Killer	319
	Angulimala Becomes a Monk	322
	"Born with the Noble Birth"	327
	Angulimala's Verses	330
9.	Anathapindika: The Buddha's Chief Patron	335
	Anathapindika Becomes a Disciple	337
	The Wealthy Patron	341
	Anathapindika's Family	345
	Anathapindika and His Friends	348
	Discourses by the Blessed One	351
	The Death of Anathapindika	360
10.	Shorter Lives of the Disciples	363
	The Householder Citta	365
	The Bhikkhu Citta	372
	Father and Mother Nakula	375
	Notes	379
	Bibliography	393
	Contributors	395
	Index	397

Editorial Reviews

"Fascinating and valuable, inspirational and encouraging, these are stories to read again and again..."

Booknews

"The living tradition of Buddhism is the linkage of spiritual friendships that bring us all the way back to the Buddha. Here are the stories of his early disciples, the men and women who studied with him directly, and who can inspire us all to the power and depth of spiritual friendship."

Sharon Salzberg

"When three highly accomplished dharma practitioners collaborate to bring their encyclopedic knowledge to bear on a particular topic, the result will be a landmark work like Great Disciples of the Buddha. It is edited by Bhikkhu Bodhi with his own contributions together with an extremely useful introduction. The authors reveal their ability to see the great spiritual truths behind these stories. They skillfully show how each of the Buddha's great disciples is an individual in his own right with characteristics that distinguish them from the rest: Ananda's gentleness and loyalty, Mahakassapa's seriousness and love of solitude, Sariputta's concern for the well-being of the Sangha, for example. Great Disciples of the Buddha is not just a collection of biographies. While it can be read by the casual reader, the serious seeker will receive a great deal of Dharma instruction because the writers aspects of the Teachings in a manner appropriate for a modern audience. Monumental."

Eastern Horizon

"This is one of the most inspiring books a serious Buddhist practitioner can read. It provides many examples of the humanity of the Buddha and his followers and relieves our fears that enlightenment erases individuality. It shows us how our individual human talents and aspirations can be purified by deep and continuous practice to produce extraordinary benefit for ourselves and others."

Jan Chozen Bays

"I am grateful for the publication of this book. With great admiration for and trust in the authors, I recommend The Great Disciples of the Buddha to friends and students alike."

Thich Nhat Hanh

"This book is a wonderful addition to our understanding of the culture of awakening. In a way that is both scholarly and inspiring, it brings to life the struggles, practice, and realization of the great disciples of the Buddha. Through the book's many stories and teachings, we begin to connect their spiritual journeys with our own."

Joseph Goldstein

"A truly unique and excellent addition to the literature from the Pali texts. Great Disciples is a rich sourcebook, offering lucid stories and translations and brilliant scholarship, all visibly crafted with a love of the Dhamma."

Jack Kornfield

"A fascinating glimpse of life in ancient India at the time of the Buddha. The disciples came from diverse backgrounds, with different talents for us to emulate as well as weaknesses to overcome. I found reassurance from learning that their struggles were not that different from my own."

Larry Rosenberg

"Delivers an inspiring confirmation of the human potential for awakening and spiritual transformation."

Wisconsin Bookwatch

"An enlightening look at the Buddha's sangha as archetypal model..."

Inquiring Mind