User:Terabar/SunitaSandbox

Sunita was a highly accomplished disciple of the Buddha, an Arahant which is the highest saint category. He was born in a poor low caste untouchable family who could hardly feed his stomach and whose work was to do manual scavenging. He was harassed and beaten if his shadow would unknowingly fell on upper caste men.

Early Life
Sunita was a resident of Rajagraha. He worked as a road sweeper sweeping away the dust thrown on roadside by the people of Rajagraha. He earned his living as a scavenger. His occupation was hereditary and low.

In Sunita's own words as recorded in Theragatha 12.2 he expresses:


 * In a lowly family I was born,
 * poor, with next to no food.
 * My work was degrading:
 * I gathered the spoiled,
 * the withered flowers from shrines
 * and threw them away.

Conversion to Buddhism
One day, as the Buddha and bhikkhus were begging in a village near the banks of the Ganga, the Buddha spotted a man carrying night soil. The man was an untouchable named Sunita.

Sunita had heard about the Buddha and bhikkhus, but this was the first time he had ever seen them. He was alarmed, knowing how dirty his clothes were and how foul he smelled from carrying nightsoil. He quickly moved off the path and made his way down to the river. But the Buddha was determined to share the Way with Sunita. When Sunita veered from the path, the Buddha did the same. Understanding the Buddha’s intent, Sariputta and Meghiya, the Buddha’s attendant at the time, followed him. The rows of other bhikkhus came to a halt and they quietly watched.

Sunita was panic-stricken. He hastily put the buckets of nightsoil down and looked for a place to hide. Above him stood the bhikkhus in their saffron robes, while before him approached the Buddha and two other bhikkhus. Not knowing what else to do, Sunita waded up to his knees in water and stood with his palms joined. Curious villagers came out of their homes and lined the shore to watch what was happening. Sunita had veered off the path because he was afraid he would pollute the bhikkhus. He could not have guessed the Buddha would follow him. Sunita knew that the sangha included many men from noble castes. He was sure that polluting a bhikkhu was an unforgivable act. He hoped the Buddha and bhikkhus would leave him and return to the road. But the Buddha did not leave. He walked right up to the water’s edge and said, “M y friend, please come closer so we may talk.” Sunita, his palms still joined, protested, “Lord, I don’t dare!” “Why not?” asked the Buddha. “I am an untouchable. I don’t want to pollute you and your monks.”

The Buddha replied, “On our path, we no longer distinguish between castes. You are a human being like the rest of us. We are not afraid we will be polluted. Only greed, hatred, and delusion can pollute us. A person as pleasant as yourself brings us nothing but happiness.


 * What is your name?”
 * “Lord, my name is Sunita.”
 * Sunita protested, “Lord, I do not dare come closer. I am
 * an untouchable.”
 * “Sunita, would you like to become a bhikkhu like the
 * rest of us?”
 * “I couldn’t!”
 * “Why not?”
 * “I’m an untouchable!”
 * “Sunita, I have already explained that on our path there is no caste. In the Way of Awakening, caste no longer exists. It is like the Ganga, Yamuno, Aciravati, Sarabhu, Mahi, and Rohini rivers. Once they empty

into the sea, they no longer retain their separate identities. A person who leaves home to follow the Way leaves caste behind whether he was born a brahman, ksatriya, vaisya, sudra, or untouchable. Sunita, if you like, you can become a bhikkhu like the rest of us.” Sunita could hardly believe his ears. He placed his joined palms before his forehead and said, “No one has ever spoken so kindly to me before. This is the happiest day of my life. If you accept me as your disciple, I vow to devote all my being to practicing your teaching.”

The Buddha handed his bowl to Meghiya and reached his hand out to Sunita. He said, “Sariputta! Help me bathe Sunita. We will ordain him a bhikkhu right here on the bank of the river.” Venerable Sariputta smiled. He placed his own bowl on the ground and came forward to assist the Buddha.

Sunita felt awkward and uncomfortable as Sariputta and the Buddha scrubbed him clean, but he didn’t dare protest. The Buddha asked Meghiya to go up and ask Ananda for an extra robe. After Sunita was ordained, the Buddha assigned him to Sariputta’s care. Sariputta led him back to Jetavana while the Buddha and the rest of the bhikkhus calmly continued their begging. The local people had witnessed all this take place. News quickly spread that the Buddha had accepted an untouchable into his sangha. This caused a furor among higher castes in the capital. Never in the history of Kosala had an untouchable been accepted into a spiritual community. M any condemned the Buddha for violating sacred tradition. Others went so far as to suggest that the Buddha was plotting to overthrow the existing order and wreak havoc in the country. The echoes of all these accusations reached the monastery through lay disciples as well as from bhikkhus who heard people saying such things in the city. Senior disciples Sariputta, Mahakassapa, Mahamoggallana, and Anuruddha met to discuss the people’s reactions with the Buddha.

The Buddha said, ''“Accepting untouchables into the sangha was simply a question of time. Our way is a way of equality. We do not recognize caste. Though we may encounter difficulties over Sunita’s ordination now, we will have opened a door for the first time in history that future generations will thank us for. We must have courage.”''

In Sunita's own words as recorded in Theragatha, he expressed his conversion.


 * People found me disgusting,
 * despised me, disparaged me.
 * Lowering my heart,
 * I showed reverence to many.
 * The compassionate Teacher,
 * sympathetic to all the world, said:
 * "Come monk."
 * That was my formal Acceptance.

Sunita practiced night and day Buddha's instructions and became a full Arahant which is the highest saint category, and he was acknowledged in this status by Brahma and Indra themselves who bowed down to this saint:


 * Then, as night was ending
 * & the sun returning,
 * Indra & Brahma came to pay homage to me,
 * hands palm-to-palm at their hearts:
 * "Homage to you, O thoroughbred of men,
 * Homage to you, O man supreme,
 * whose fermentations are ended.
 * You, dear sir, are worthy of offerings."