Overcoming Attachments: The Kuddala Jataka Tale

In a past life, the Bodhisatta was once a farmer who made a modest living growing vegetables and herbs. He was known as the Spade Sage because his spade was his only significant possession. One day, he resolved to become an ascetic and took up a religious life in the Himalayas. However, he couldn’t stop thinking about his spade and soon returned to his old life.This cycle of leaving to become an ascetic and then returning due to his attachment to the spade repeated five more times. Determined not to backslide again on his seventh attempt, the Bodhisatta closed his eyes and threw his spade into a river, ensuring he could not retrieve it. When the spade hit the water, he shouted out with joy, “I have conquered!”The king, who had just returned from putting down a rebellion on the border, was bathing in the river and heard the Bodhisatta’s declaration of triumph. Curious, he summoned the Bodhisatta to explain his conquest. The Bodhisatta replied that victories such as the king’s were unimportant; only victories over lust and greed truly mattered. As he explained the dangers of cravings, he reached full insight and floated into the air to conclude his sermon.Impressed by these words, the king lost his lust for the throne and asked the Bodhisatta if he could join him. Upon hearing the news, everyone in the city also chose to become ascetics, and a procession twelve leagues long headed toward the Himalayas.The throne of Indra, king of the gods, became warm as he observed this mass migration. He ordered a monastery built to accommodate the masses and drove away all noisy creatures from the area. When the group arrived, the Bodhisatta made a formal declaration renouncing the world, and all the others followed suit. They took up their abodes and became obedient disciples of the Bodhisatta, eventually reaching insight.

In the Lifetime of the Buddha

This tale has a significant connection to the Buddha’s later life. One of the Buddha’s disciples had first visited a monastery on a whim and converted because he was so happy with the food. He studied hard but left after six weeks due to his desire for the outside world. This cycle of joining and quitting repeated five more times.Finally, on his seventh try, all desire left his heart, and he not only remained but became an arahant. The Buddha heard his disciples discussing this and told them this story to remind them that overcoming attachment to the world is difficult for most people, and he too had once struggled mightily with it in the past.The king in the story was an earlier birth of Ananda, one of the Buddha’s top disciples, and the residents of the city were earlier births of the Buddha’s current followers.

Moral

The Kuddala Jataka teaches us about the importance of perseverance and the struggle to overcome worldly attachments. The story emphasizes that true victory lies in conquering one’s own lust and greed rather than external conquests. The Bodhisatta’s determination and ultimate success serve as a model for how to overcome attachment and achieve spiritual insight. This tale underscores the Buddhist principle of renouncing worldly desires and the importance of consistent effort in achieving spiritual goals.