THE BUDDHA ANNOUNCES HIS DEATH

  SAID the Tathagata to Ananda: "In former years, Ananda, Mara, the

Evil One, approached the holy Buddha three times to tempt him. And

now, Ananda, Mara, the Evil One, came again today to the place where I

was, and, standing beside me, addressed me in the same words as he did

when I was resting under the shepherd's Nigrodha tree on the bank of

the Neranjara River: 'Be greeted, thou Holy One. Thou hast attained

the highest bliss and it is time for thee to enter into the final

Nirvana.'-And when Mara had thus spoken, Ananda, I answered him and

said: 'Make thyself happy, O wicked one; the final extinction of the

Tathagata shall take place before long."

  The venerable Ananda addressed the Blessed One and said: "Vouchsafe,

Lord, to remain with us, O Blessed One I for the good and the

happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, for

the good and the gain of mankind!" Said the Blessed One: "Enough

now, Ananda, beseech not the Tathagata!"

  And again, a second time, the venerable Ananda besought the

Blessed One in the same words. He received from the Blessed One the

same reply. And again, the third time, the venerable Ananda besought

the Blessed One to live longer; and the Blessed One said: "Hast thou

faith, Ananda?" Said Ananda: "I have, my Lord!"

  The Blessed One, seeing the quivering eyelids of Ananda, read the

deep grief in the heart of his beloved disciple, and he asked again:

"Hast thou, indeed, faith, Ananda?" And Ananda said: "I have faith, my

Lord."

  Then the Blessed One continued: "If thou hast faith, Ananda in the

wisdom of the Tathagata, why, then, Ananda, dost thou trouble the

Tathagata even until the third time? Have I not formerly declared to

you that it is in the very nature of all compound things that they

must be dissolved again? We must separate ourselves from all things

near and dear to us, and must leave them. How then, Ananda, can it

be possible for me to remain, since everything that is born, or

brought into being, and organized, contains within itself the inherent

necessity of dissolution? How, then, can it be possible that this body

of mine should not be dissolved? No such condition can exist! And this

mortal existence, O Ananda, has been relinquished, cast away,

renounced, rejected, and abandoned by the Tathagata."

  And the Blessed One said to Ananda: "Go now, Ananda, and assemble in

the Service Hall such of the brethren as reside in the neighborhood of

Vesali."

  Then the Blessed One proceeded to the Service Hall, and sat down

there on the mat spread out for him. And when he was seated, the

Blessed One addressed the brethren, and said: "O brethren, ye to

whom the truth has been made known, having thoroughly made

yourselves masters of it, practice it, meditate upon it, and spread it

abroad, in order that pure religion may last long and be

perpetuated, in order that it may continue for the good and

happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, and to

the good and gain of all living beings! Star-gazing and astrology,

forecasting lucky or unfortunate events by signs, prognosticating good

or evil, all these are things forbidden. He who lets his heart go

loose without restraint shall not attain Nirvana; therefore, must we

hold the heart in check, and retire from worldly excitements and

seek tranquility of mind. Eat your food to satisfy your hunger, and

drink to satisfy your thirst. Satisfy the necessities of life like the

butterfly that sips the flower, without destroying its fragrance or

its texture. It is through not understanding and grasping the four

truths, O brethren, that we have gone astray so long and wandered in

this weary path of transmigrations, both you and I, until we have

found the truth. Practice the earnest meditations I have taught you.

Continue in the great struggle against sin. Walk steadily in the roads

of saintship. Be strong in moral powers. Let the organs of your

spiritual sense be quick. When the seven kinds of wisdom enlighten

your mind, you will find the noble, eightfold path that leads to

Nirvana.

  "Behold, O brethren, the final extinction of the Tathagata will take

place before long. I now exhort you, saying: All component things must

grow old and be dissolved again. Seek ye for that which is

permanent, and work out your salvation with diligence."