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Among the ten great disciples of the
Buddha, Katyayana was the greatest at debate. There was a time when he left the
Buddha to go south to teach the Dharma in Rajagrha. One day, he sent one of his
very young disciples back to Jetavana Monastery to see the Buddha. When the
Buddha saw his young visitor who had traveled so far to see him, he immediately
said to Ananda, “Ananda, Prepare an extra bed in my room, for this little
disciple of Katyayana to stay with me.”
When the news of this kind gesture of the
Buddha reached Katyayana, he was deeply impressed, and thereafter made
additional effort to spread the Dharma. Witnessing how the Buddha cared for the
young novice monk, his own disciples learned how to treat the novice monks in
the sangha, such as Kuni and Rahula, with more care and dared not neglect them.
In the sutras, we often find the Buddha’s
sincere advice on how to respect those younger than us and not regard them as
unimportant. Usually, the Buddha did not force rules onto his disciples. More often,
he acted in accordance with what he taught and exemplified the Dharma through
his own actions. This earned him great respect and wholehearted obedience from
his followers, who came from all directions to learn from him.
-- Footprints in the Ganges: The Buddha's
Stories on Cultivation and Compassion
(By Venerable Master Hsing Yun)