The False Alarm: A Lesson in Fear and Wisdom

In a past life, the Bodhisatta was a mighty lion who lived in a forest. One day, a hare in the forest became anxious and thought to himself, “What if the earth were to break apart? Where would I go?” At that exact moment, a bael fruit fell from a tree and landed on a palm leaf, making a loud noise. Startled by the sound, the hare panicked and imagined the earth was collapsing. Without a moment’s thought, he began to run as fast as he could.

A second hare saw the first hare running in terror and asked what was happening. The first hare, without pausing to check the situation, explained that the earth was breaking up. Alarmed, the second hare joined the stampede, running without questioning the cause. Before long, a hundred thousand animals, all hearing about the catastrophe, were swept up in the panic, joining the mad rush.

The Bodhisatta, who had seen the stampede from a distance, realized that the earth was not actually breaking apart. If the animals continued to run, they would eventually run into the ocean and perish. Understanding that only his strength could stop the madness, he raced ahead and let out a mighty roar to halt the fleeing creatures.

The Bodhisatta then asked the animals who had actually seen the earth break, but none had. Instead, each animal claimed to have heard it from another. The elephants said they had heard it from the lions, the lions from the tigers, the tigers from the rhinoceroses, and so on, all the way down the chain to the first hare, who had only heard the noise but had seen no disaster.

The Bodhisatta approached the first hare and asked him what he had seen. The hare admitted that he had seen nothing but had clearly heard the sound. Realizing the source of the panic, the Bodhisatta decided to investigate. He told the animals to stay where they were while he and the hare would go to the spot where the sound had originated.

The hare led the Bodhisatta to the place where the noise had come from. Upon arriving, the Bodhisatta saw that the earth was intact, and the only thing that had fallen was a ripe bael fruit lying on the ground. The Bodhisatta hurried back to the animals and informed them that the earth was not breaking apart, and there was no cause for alarm.

In the Lifetime of the Buddha
Years later, some of the Buddha’s disciples saw false ascetics lying on beds of thorns or subjecting themselves to other harsh practices, believing that these painful acts would bring them spiritual merit. Curious about the value of such suffering, the disciples asked the Buddha whether there was any benefit to these extreme practices.

The Buddha replied that such practices, like the noise the hare had heard, were based on illusion and fear, and did not lead to true benefit. To explain, the Buddha told them this story, showing that just as the hare had panicked over a false alarm, these ascetics were subjecting themselves to hardship for no real spiritual gain.

Moral of the Story
The Daddabha Jataka teaches us about the dangers of fear and superstition, and the importance of wisdom in discerning the truth. Just as the hare misinterpreted a harmless sound and spread unnecessary panic, people often create fear and confusion over things they do not fully understand. The Bodhisatta’s calmness and wisdom in investigating the cause of the panic saved the animals from disaster.

The story also serves as a lesson against extreme or misguided practices, such as the false asceticism seen in the Buddha’s time. Just as the animals had no real reason to fear the earth’s collapse, the ascetics’ suffering had no true spiritual benefit. True wisdom and understanding lead to peace, while fear and ignorance only cause harm.