old-path-white-clouds-thich-nhat-hanh

Chapter Seventy-Nine
Sandalwood Tree Mushrooms
Venerable Ananda sat down next to the Buddha and spoke in a soft voice, “I never saw you so sick in all the years we have been together.
I felt paralyzed. I couldn’t think clearly or carry out my duties. The others did not think you would pull through, but I said to myself, the
Lord Buddha has not yet given us his last testament. Surely he cannot enter nirvana yet. That thought kept me from the brink of despair.”
The Buddha said, “Ananda, what else can you and the sangha expect from me? I have taught the Dharma fully and deeply. Do you think
I have concealed anything from the bhikkhus? Ananda, the teaching is the true refuge. Every person must make the teaching his own refuge.
Live according to the teaching. Every person should be a lamp unto himself. Ananda, the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha are present in
everyone. The capacity for enlightenment is the Buddha, the teaching is the Dharma, the community of support is the Sangha. No one can
take away the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha within you. Though heaven and earth may crumble, the Three Gems will remain intact within
every person. They are the true refuge. When a bhikkhu dwells in mindfulness and contemplates his body, feelings, mind, and objects of
mind, he is like an island unto himself. He possesses the truest refuge of all. No person, not even a great Master, can ever be a more stable
refuge than your own island of mindfulness, the Three Gems within you.”
By the end of the retreat, the Buddha’s health was greatly restored.
One morning, novice Cunda who was Venerable Sariputta’s attendant, came seeking Ananda. He informed Ananda that Sariputta had
just died in Nala. He handed Ananda Venerable Sariputta’s robe, begging bowl, and urn of ashes. He then covered his face and burst into
tears. Venerable Ananda wept too. Cunda explained that after Sariputta returned to Nala, he cared for his mother until her death. After her
cremation ceremony, he assembled his relatives and all the villagers, and gave them a teaching concerning the Dharma. He gave them the
three refuges and showed them how to follow the practice. He then sat in a lotus position and passed into nirvana. Shortly before this, he
told Cunda that he wanted his robe, bowl, and ashes carried back to the Buddha. He also wanted Cunda to ask the Buddha to allow
Cunda to remain by the Buddha’s side. Venerable Sariputta told Cunda that he wished to pass away before the Buddha did.
Venerable Ananda wiped away his tears and went with Cunda to find the Buddha. The Buddha gazed quietly at the robe, bowl, and
ashes of his greatest disciple. He did not say anything. Then he looked up and gently patted Cunda’s head.
Venerable Ananda said, “Lord Buddha, when I heard that our brother Sariputta was dead, I felt paralyzed. My eyes and mind grew
hazy. I am deeply grieved.”
The Buddha looked at Ananda and said, “Ananda, did your brother take away your precepts, concentration, understanding, and
liberation when he died?”
Ananda quietly answered, “That is not the reason for my sadness, Lord. When brother Sariputta was alive, he lived the teaching with his
whole being. He taught, guided, and encouraged the rest of us. With brothers Sariputta and Moggallana gone, the sangha feels empty. How
could we not feel sad?”
The Buddha said, “Ananda, so many times I have reminded you that with birth there is death. That which comes together must separate.
All dharmas are impermanent. We should not become attached to them. You must transcend the world of birth and death, arising and
dissolving. Ananda, Sariputta was a great branch that fulfilled his duty in helping nourish the tree. That branch is still present in the tree. The
tree is the community of bhikkhus practicing the teaching of enlightenment. If you but open your eyes and look, you will see Sariputta in
yourself, in the Tathagata, in the community of bhikkhus, in all the people Sariputta taught, in novice Cunda, and along every path Sariputta
traveled to spread the teaching. Open your eyes, Ananda, and you will see Sariputta everywhere. Don’t think Sariputta is no longer with us.
He is here and will always be.
“Ananda, Sariputta was a bodhisattva, an enlightened person who used his Understanding and Love to guide other beings to the shore of
enlightenment. Among the bhikkhus, Sariputta earned praise for his great wisdom. He will be remembered by future generations as a
bodhisattva of great understanding. Ananda, among the bhikkhus, there are many bodhisattvas who, like Sariputta, have taken the Great
Vow. Bhikkhu Punna, Bhikkhuni Yasodhara, lay disciple Sudatta are bodhisattvas of great compassion who lived the vow to help all
beings, never afraid of suffering or hardship. Bhikkhuni Yasodhara and disciple Sudatta have passed away, but Venerable Punna continues
to work courageously and energetically to serve all beings. The Tathagata thinks of Venerable Moggallana and knows he was a bodhisattva
of great courage and energy. Few can compare with him. Venerable Mahakassapa with his simple, humble life, is a bodhisattva of simple
living. Venerable Anuruddha is a bodhisattva of great effort and diligence.
“Ananda, if future generations continue to study and practice the path of liberation, bodhisattvas will continue to appear in this world.
Ananda, faith in the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha is faith in the future of the community. In the future there will be other bodhisattvas as