Phralak PhraLam


	And Buddha, after having finished it, concluded in these terms: "As the incarnations repeat themselves indefinitely, every man must bear in this life the consequences of the sins that he has committed in his anterior existences. The history that I have just narrated, is an eloquent illustration thereof. Formerly, Hapkhanasouane (strong through his supernatural powers) had caused Phra Lam much grief, but finally, he was vanquished by the latter and had to pay for his sins in Hell. Today, Thevathad (Devadatta)

[For the readers not well-versed in the knowledge of Buddhism, I deem it useful to develop this information in Buddha...VTT]

"Devadatta (Thevathad) was one of the great disciples of Buddha. For a long time he had honorable behaviour, but old age bred jealousy in his heart and he sought to replace the Master at the head of the Sanga (Buddhist Community). Devadatta first tried to persuade Buddha to leave him the direction of the Community. His efforts having been in vain, he resolved to get rid of Him. Ajatasatru agreed to help Devadatta to achieve this heinous crime and posted archers along the passage of Bhagavant with the mission of piercing Buddha with their arrows. When the moment came, the stately bearing of their intended victim disarmed them.

Disappointed, Devadatta decided to do the deed by himself and one day when the Master was walking along the slope of the Vulture Peak, he rolled a big rock toward Him. The rock was stopped miraculously in its course by two asperities which rose from the

earth for that purpose. Only a splinter of this rock wounded Buddha in the foot.

On another occasion, he unleashed on his cousin (the Buddha) a ferocious elephant which had previously been intoxicated, but the Master opposed it with the power of his benevolence; and the monster suddenly became calm and knelt down before Him...

Devadatta recruited partisans from among the monks and tried to foment a schism by asking Buddha to impose on all members of the Sanga some extremely rigorous rules of life. Upon the Master refusing his request, Devadatta took leave with his accolytes, proclaiming loudly that his cousin preached of a life of luxury and of abundance unworthy of the true monks. That caused grave troubles within the Community."¹

At this time, Buddha revealed which characters of the Phra Lak-Phra Lam epic were reincarnated among his disciples: The hermit, father of Nang Phengsi, was reincarnated in Maha Silabout (Maha Sariputa); the

marvellous horse Manikap, in Maha Mokhala (Maha Maudgaluana); Chao Laksi, foster-father of Nang Sida, in Maha Kasapa (Maha Kasyapa); Thao Sang Khip, in Ang Khouliman (Anggulimana); Thao Phalichanh, in Maha Chourathath (Maha Cudarananthata); Phra Lak, in Maha Anoun (Maha Ananda); Thao Phra Bout, in Thao La Houn (Rahula, son of Buddha)...

1. André Barreau, Les Disciples, in France-Asie, Saigon 1959, p. 358.

And, in conclusion, Buddha commanded again that all must memorize the famous history of Phra Lam, Champion of the Just Cause, in order to be able to obtain merits in the present life as well in future existences.