The life of the Buddha / Tutorial 3

PRINCE SIDDHARTHA'S KINDNESS

Prince Soddhartha was very kind to people, animals and other living things. As a very brave horseman he won many prizes in the country. Although he did not have to suffer any hardships and difficulties as he had everything, he always thought of the poor He felt sorry for them and wanted to make them happy too, as be always was. people and living things who were working hard to make him happy.
       

          One day he was walking in the woods with his cousin Devadatta who had his bow and arrows with him. 

Suddenly Devadatta saw a swan flying and shot at it. His arrow brought the swan down. Both the boys ran to get the swan. As Siddhartha could run faster than Devadatta, he reached the bird first and found, to his surprise, that the swan was still alive. So he gently pulled out the arrow from the wing. He then got a little juice from cool leaves, put it on the wound of the bird to stop the bleeding and with his soft hand, stroked the swan which was very frightened. When Devadatta came to claim the swan, naturally Prince Siddhartha refused to give it to him. Devadatta was very angry to see is cousin keeping the swan away from him. "Give me my bird, I shot it down," said Devadatta. 

"No. I am not going to give it to you. If you had killed Il, would have been yours. But now since it is only wounded and alive it belongs to me because I saved its life," said Siddhartha. 
Devadatta still did not agree, Then Siddhartha suggested, "Let us go to the court of wisemen and ask them who really owns the swan." 
Devadatta agreed and then both of them went to the court of wisemen to tell them about their quarrel. The wisemen said, "A life certainly must belong to him who tries to save it, a life cannot belong to one who is only trying to destroy it. The wounded swan by right belongs to Siddhartha."

PRINCE SIDDHARTHA’S WEDDING 

Prince Siddhartha finished his studies very soon. He bad the best teachers to learn from; the best friends to play with; the best house to live in; the best clothes to wear and the best food eat His father had built him three palaces one for each season. one for winter, one for summer and one for the rainy season. He had also built for him extensive parks and hunting grounds with ponds with water-lilies, swans and beautiful fish in them.

         Asita and Kondanna who came to the palace had warned the king. "when your son sees a sick man, an old man, a dead body or a monk he will want to leave your palace and become a monk himself. 

The king was worried that his son would see them and leave the palace. Therefore he gave him many young servants and did not allow any sick man or old man to go into the palace. The king did not even let anybody talk about sickness, old age, death and monks. But Prince Siddhartha was very thoughtful and was asking people many questions. He really wanted to know the meaning of life.
       One day the king asked some wise people, "What shall I do to make my son happy ? He seems to be thinking always." They said: "Now your son is sixteen years old. Shall we get a beautiful girl for him to marry ?"

        The King agreed and sent for all the beautiful girls in the country to come to the palace. When all of them came the King asked the prince to choose one to be his wife.

        Among them there was a most charming and kind girl by the name of Yasodhara. When Prince Siddhartha gave her a present more valuable than what he had given to the other maidens, the King saw that the Prince had chosen his love. The King happily accepted Yasodhara and allowed his son to marry her.