This is one of the famous Buddha’s true story. The previous life of the Buddha Shakyamuni, he was a Prince in a country. One day, Prince Sattva discovered the tigers are starving in the forest with his brothers. Prince was a Bodhisattva cultivator and he practiced Great Compassion, he fed his body to these tigers. His behavior is not the level of human cultivation practices, Prince Sattva was a Bodhisattva Path practitioner who practiced great compassion, Bodhicitta, and Emptiness.
The teaching is not to encourage people to end their lives. This story is explaining to us how compassionate Buddha is. Prince was at the pre-stage of attaining his Buddhahood. This story shared by Venerable Abbess Master Miao Jing
Originated from the Buddhist Sutra “Xian Yu Sutra” Volume 1: “Maha Prince Sattva Feeding His Body to Tigers”
One day, Shakyamuni Buddha led his disciples to a forest, then spoke to one of his disciples, Ananda. “Ananda! We are here to rest for a while.” So Ananda laid a seat for the Buddha.
The Buddha sat down and asked the rest of the disciples, “Do you want to know how I practiced the Bodhisattva Path in the past?”
The disciples all replied, “Yes, Lord Buddha! We are very eager to know.”
Buddha continued, “I deeply appreciated my past life’s Bodhisattva cultivation efforts. These bone relics were from my previous life, Prince Sattva feeding his body to tigers. With the effort of practicing the Bodhisattva Path in the past lives, I am able to attain Buddhahood.”
In Buddhism, the Bodhisattva Path is the stage before attaining Buddhahood. In this story of Buddha feeding his body to tigers, Prince Sattva is a symbol of great compassion, selflessness, and fearlessness for benefiting all beings.
Prince Sattva was a Bodhisattva Path practitioner who practiced great compassion, Bodhicitta, and Emptiness. This is an entirely different motivation from ordinary people committing suicide to escape sufferings in this world. Buddhism teaches us not to harm any sentient beings or commit suicide. When you learn this Buddha’s story is understanding the great compassion of Prince Sattva. Wish you enjoy this story.
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