Subhūti
Subhūti (Pali: Subhūti; Chinese: 须菩提; pinyin: Xūpútí) was one of the ten principal disciples of the Buddha. It is said that due to his mastery of loving-kindness (mettā) meditation, any gift offered to him bore the greatest merit for the donor. Because of this, the Buddha declared him the disciple that was foremost in being worthy of gifts (dakkhiṇeyyānaṃ). In Prakrit and Pāli, his name literally means "Good Existence" (su: "good", bhūti: "existence"). He is also sometimes referred to as "Elder Subhūti" (Subhūti Thera). He was a contemporary of such famous arahants as Śāriputra, Mahākāśyapa, Maudgalyayana, Mahākātyāyana and Ānanda.
In Theravada Buddhism
Previous life
According to the Pali Canon, in the time of Padumuttara Buddha, Subhūti was born a man named Nanda. Nanda was born into a wealthy family and decided to leave his life behind to become a hermit. The hermitage Nanda was staying at was then visited by Padumuttara Buddha, who had his monk who was skilled in the practice of metta and was foremost in being "worthy of gifts" give a thanks-giving (Pali: anumodanā). While all of the other hermits at the hermitage attained arahantship following the teaching, Nanda did not and instead made a resolution to become the disciple foremost in being worthy of gifts of a future Buddha. This wish was fulfilled in this lifetime when he was reborn as Subhūti.[1]
Biography
According to the Pali tradition, Subhūti was born into a wealthy merchant family. His father was the wealthy merchant Sumana, and his older brother was Anāthapiṇḍika, who would later become the Buddha's chief male lay disciple. Texts relate that Subhūti was present at the dedication of Jetavana Monastery, which his older brother Anāthapiṇḍika had purchased and built for the Buddha. Upon hearing the Buddha teach at the dedication, Subhūti became inspired and ordained as a monk under him.[2] After mastering the monastic rules, he went to live in the forest where he attained arahantship while meditating on the "absorption of loving-kindness" (Pali: mettā-jhāna). Subhūti became known for teaching the Dhamma "without distinction or limitation", meaning regardless of the listener's potential, and was declared the disciple foremost in "living remote and in peace" (Pali: araṇavihārīnaṃ aggo).[1][3][4] During alms rounds, where monks go house to house looking for food from laypeople, Subhūti had a habit of developing mettā-jhāna at every household, making it so people who gave him alms received the highest possible merit from the offerings. Because of this, the Buddha also declared him the disciple who was foremost in being worthy of gifts (Pali: dakkhiṇeyyānaṃ).[1][2]
In one story, Subhūti visited Rājagaha where King Bimbisara promised to build him a hut. However, the king forgot, thus forcing Subhūti to meditate in the open air. It is said that due to the power of his virtue rain would not fall, and when King Bimbisara found out about the cause of the lack of rain he had a leaf hut constructed for him. According to the text, when Subhūti sat down in the hut, rain began to fall.[1][2]
In Mahāyāna Buddhism
Among the Mahāyāna traditions, Subhūti is perhaps best known as the disciple with whom the Buddha speaks when imparting the Diamond Sūtra (Sanskrit: Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra, Chinese: 金剛經 or 金剛般若經), an important teaching within the Prajñāpāramitā genre. This, along with the Heart Sūtra (Sanskrit: Prajñāpāramitā Hṛdaya, Chinese: 心經 or 般若心經), is one of the most well-known sūtras among both practitioners and non-practitioners of Buddhism. Subhūti is also responsible for much of the exposition in earlier Prajñāpāramitā sūtras.[5]
In the Lotus Sutra (Sanskrit: Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra, Chinese: 法華(花)經 or 妙法蓮華(花)經), Chapter 6 (Bestowal of Prophecy), the Buddha bestows prophecies of enlightenment on Subhūti, along with other śrāvakas such as Mahākāśyapa, Mahākātyāyana, and Mahāmaudgalyāyana.
In Zen writings
In Zen Buddhism, Subhūti appears in several koans, such as this one:[6]
One day, in a mood of sublime emptiness, Subhuti was resting underneath a tree when flowers began to fall about him. "We are praising you for your discourse on emptiness," the gods whispered to Subhuti. "But I have not spoken of emptiness," replied Subhuti. "You have not spoken of emptiness, we have not heard emptiness," responded the gods. "This is the true emptiness." The blossoms showered upon Subhuti as rain.
Lineage of the Panchen Lamas
In the lineage of the Panchen Lamas of Tibet there were considered to be four "Indian" and three Tibetan incarnations of Amitabha Buddha before Khedrup Gelek Pelzang, who is recognised as the first Panchen Lama. The lineage starts with Subhuti.[7][8]
In Chinese literature
A character based on Subhūti appears in the Chinese classical novel Journey to the West, as the teacher of the Monkey King Sun Wukong.[9] The story of Sun Wukong first meeting Subhūti was a play on the Zen story of Huineng meeting Hongren, as told in the Platform Sūtra of Zen Buddhism. Because of the role that Subhūti plays in the story, his name has remained familiar in Chinese culture.[10]
Citations
- Malalasekera 1938, p. 1235.
- Davids 1913, p. 4-5.
- "Subhuti". obo.genaud.net. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
- Sangharakshita 2006, p. 121.
-
- Lopez, Donald S., Jr. The Heart Sutra Explained: Indian and Tibetan Commentaries (1988) State University of New York Press. ISBN 0-88706-589-9 p. 7
- Reps, Paul and Nyogen Senzaki. Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings. Rutland, Vermont: Tuttle, 2008.
- Stein, R. A. Tibetan Civilization, (1972) p. 84. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California. ISBN 0-8047-0806-1 (cloth); ISBN 0-80-470901-7.
- Das, Sarat Chandra. Contributions on the Religion and History of Tibet (1970), pp. 81-103. Manjushri Publishing House, New Delhi. First published in the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, Vol. LI (1882).
- Ping Shao, "Huineng, Subhūti, and Monkey's Religion in 'Xiyou ji'", The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 65, No. 4 (Nov., 2006), pp. 713-740
- Nan Huaijin. Diamond Sutra Explained. Florham Park: Primordia, 2004. Page 25.
References
- Buswell, Robert E. (2004). Encyclopedia of Buddhism (PDF). Buswell, Robert E., Jr., 1953-. New York: Macmillan Reference, USA. p. 233. ISBN 0-02-865718-7. OCLC 52216132.
- Black, Dr Brian; Patton, Dean Laurie (2015-07-28), Dialogue in Early South Asian Religions: Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain Traditions, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., ISBN 978-1-4094-4012-3
- Buswell, Robert E. (2014), The Princeton dictionary of Buddhism (PDF), Lopez, Donald S., Jr., Princeton, NJ, pp. 2105–2106, ISBN 978-1-4008-4805-8, OCLC 859536678
- Conze, Edward (1973), The Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines & Its Verse Summary (PDF), Four Seasons Foundation, ISBN 978-0-87704-048-4
- Davids, rhys (1913), Psalms Of The Early Buddhists Part-ii
- Das, Sarat Chandra (1970), Contributions on the Religion and History of Tibet, Manjuśrī Publishing House
- Ikeda, Daisaku (2008), The Living Buddha: An Interpretive Biography, Middleway Press, ISBN 978-0-9779245-2-3
- Irons, Edward A. (2008), Encyclopedia of Buddhism, New York: Facts on File, p. 163, ISBN 978-0-8160-5459-6, OCLC 81861645
- Johnston, William M. (2013-12-04), Encyclopedia of Monasticism, Routledge, ISBN 978-1-136-78716-4
- Lopez Jr., Donald S., Heart Sutra Explained, The: Indian and Tibetan Commentaries, SUNY Press, ISBN 978-1-4384-1123-1
- Malalasekera, G. P. (1938), Dictionary of Pali Proper Names, Asian Educational Services, ISBN 978-81-206-1823-7
- Morgan, Joyce; Walters, Conrad (2012-08-22), Journeys on the Silk Road: A Desert Explorer, Buddha's Secret Library, and the Unearthing of the World's Oldest Printed Book, Rowman & Littlefield, p. 132, ISBN 978-0-7627-8733-3
- Nan, Huaijin (2004), Diamond Sutra Explained, Prim, Primodia, ISBN 978-0-9716561-2-3
- Sangharakshita, S. (2006), Wisdom Beyond Words: The Buddhist Vision of Ultimate Reality, Motilal Banarsidass Publishe, ISBN 978-81-208-2948-0
- Shao, Ping (2006), "Huineng, Subhūti, and Monkey's Religion in "Xiyou ji"", The Journal of Asian Studies, 65 (4): 713–740, doi:10.1017/S0021911806001574, ISSN 0021-9118, JSTOR 25076127
- Stein, Rolf Alfred (1972), Tibetan Civilization, Stanford University Press, ISBN 978-0-8047-0901-9
- Warder, A. K. (2000), Indian Buddhism, Motilal Banarsidass Publ., ISBN 978-81-208-1741-8
- Xingyun; Yun, Hsing (2010), Footprints in the Ganges: The Buddha's Stories on Cultivation and Compassion, Buddha's Light Publishing, ISBN 978-1-932293-35-7
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