Okay, here is a summary of the chapter “The Sermon at Benares” and answers to the questions based on the sources you provided, explained simply with emojis! 😊
Summary of “The Sermon at Benares” 🙏 Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha) becomes enlightened. He preaches his first sermon in the city of Benares. The sermon is about the reality of suffering and death.
The story features a woman named Kisa Gotami who is devastated when her only son dies. Overwhelmed with grief, she carries the dead child through the streets, asking people for medicine to restore him. The villagers feel sorry for her.
Eventually, someone advises her to go to the Buddha. She goes to him and begs him for medicine to cure her child. The Buddha asks her to bring him a handful of mustard-seed. He adds a condition: the mustard-seed must come from a house where no one has ever lost a child, husband, parent, or friend.
Kisa Gotami goes from house to house looking for such a place. People offer her mustard-seed, but when she asks if anyone has died in their family, they reply that the living are few and the dead are many. She finds that there is no house where some beloved one has not died.
Seeing the widespread grief and the reality of death in every household, she finally understands that death is common to all. The Buddha teaches that death is unavoidable for anyone who has been born. Just as ripe fruits are in danger of falling and earthen vessels end in being broken, mortals are always in danger of death. Both the young and old, the foolish and the wise, all fall under the power of death. The sermon aims to help people understand the nature of loss and overcome grief.
Questions and Answers 🤔❓
Here are the answers to the questions based on the sources:
When her son dies, Kisa Gotami goes from house to house. What does she ask for? Does she get it? Why not? When her son dies, Kisa Gotami asks for medicine to cure her child. She goes to everyone, crying for help. She doesn’t get it because there is no medicine or cure that can bring a dead person back to life.
Kisa Gotami again goes from house to house after she speaks with the Buddha. What does she ask for, the second time around? Does she get it? Why not? The second time around, after speaking with the Buddha, she asks for a handful of mustard-seed, but only from a house where no one has lost a child, husband, parent, or friend. She does not get the mustard-seed under this condition. This is because she finds that in every house, someone beloved has died.
What does Kisa Gotami understand the second time that she failed to understand the first time? Was this what the Buddha wanted her to understand? The first time, Kisa Gotami was consumed by her personal grief and thought her sorrow was unique. The second time, after searching for the mustard-seed, she understands that death is universal and common to all. She realises that suffering and loss are a part of life that everyone experiences. Yes, this is exactly what the Buddha wanted her to understand. His task for her was a way to guide her to this realisation.
Why do you think Kisa Gotami understood this only the second time? In what way did the Buddha change her understanding? She understood it the second time because the Buddha’s task made her see that her grief was not an isolated experience. Going from house to house and hearing about death in every family showed her the reality that death is inevitable for all mortals. The Buddha changed her understanding from a focus on her personal loss (“selfish in her grief”) to a broader awareness of the inescapable nature of death and suffering in the world. He didn’t just tell her, he gave her an experience that led to her own enlightenment about the truth of death.
How do you usually understand the idea of ‘selfishness’? Do you agree with Kisa Gotami that she was being ‘selfish in her grief ’? (This question asks for a personal opinion, which I cannot provide, but based on the text and the Buddha’s teaching) In the context of the story, Kisa Gotami’s initial grief is described as “selfish” because she is so focused on her own pain and loss that she cannot see the universal nature of death and suffering. She is so desperate to undo her loss that she is temporarily blind to the fact that death is a reality for everyone. The sources present this perspective.
Let me know if you have any more questions! 😊