We're now in the midst of the Nine Emperor Gods' Festival which is celebrated annually for nine days. The Gods are considered patrons of wealth and good health and during this time, many in our village worship them and go on a vegetarian diet.
Ah Hoe this year decided to sell rice and dishes (known locally as "economy rice") instead of veggie burgers and with Head Nun's help, drew up a menu of five dishes popular with the public using a variety of vegetables, tofu and glass noodles. It involved a lot of work but Ah Hoe could manage, being an experienced cook. Ning unfortunately had been overcome by a restless streak and had gone off somewhere with his friends, so with Head Nun's permission, I helped Ah Hoe at his stall.
Business was good on the first day of the Festival and continued to be good on subsequent days. Ah Hoe had opted to sell in the evenings so that he had time to prepare all the food in the morning.
One evening at about 6 o'clock, we were surprised to see a group of monks in saffron robes approaching our stall. They were five altogether and the leader was a young monk with a serene appearance and soft spoken speech. He didn't look like he was from a local monastery and I was struck by his gentleness and calm demeanour. He told us that they had been walking from another village for the whole day and needed food and water. Ah Hoe immediately set up a table and served them whatever food he had. The monks were very grateful indeed for his kindness.
It was getting dark and rain clouds could be seen gathering in the sky. Concerned for the monks, Ah Hoe offered them the shelter of his hut though I wondered how they could fit into the small space. The leader accepted his offer and told us that his name was "Ananda". Suddenly, I had this idea of asking him to share some of the Buddha's teachings with us while they were still in our village.
"Good idea, Da," said Ah Hoe and upon Ananda's agreement, informed the villagers to come to his hut later that evening to hear his discourse.
The monks settled down under the tree outside Ah Hoe's hut and said they would begin around 8 p.m. It had been a long time since we had Buddhist talks because of the Covid19 lockdown and we wondered how many villagers would turn up. At first two or three people showed up, then another four or five and by 8 p.m. we had only about twenty. The nuns from our temple are not allowed out after six (temple rules), so they missed this wonderful opportunity.
Ananda said it didn't matter how many came, he would proceed as promised. As I sat there listening to him talk about the Four Noble Truths, I felt like I had been transported into a different era, the time when the Lord Buddha walked the earth and attained enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree. It was uncanny. Ananda's face was glowing with a radiance seldom seen in humans and I could have sworn I saw a halo round his head. When I first saw him, I already had the feeling that he was no ordinary monk. I began to wonder whether he was some divine being sent by the Buddha to teach us! Oh, how I wished Head Nun and the other nuns could have been here! I had never felt so much bliss as I sat there listening.
Ananda talked on until after ten and by this time more people had joined in. I also noticed a few cats had come to listen but they left after a short while. But there was one beautiful white cat who stayed on until the end of Ananda's talk. I had never seen her before in our area and of course I was bursting with curiosity.
Since the rain clouds had dispersed and it was a fine starry night, the monks said they would sleep under the tree. The villagers on hearing this brought some mats for them to sleep on. Ah Hoe and I also decided to accompany them, so did the white cat. Now I was really curious. I approached her and clearing my throat, said: "Namo Buddhaya. I'm Da from the nearby temple and you're......?"
She smiled but didn't answer me. She then turned away and curled up beside Ananda. It was obvious she wasn't interested in talking to me, so I left it at that.
The next morning when we woke up, we found to our astonishment that all the monks had gone, so had the white cat.
"Why were they in such a hurry?" grumbled Ah Hoe. "I was going to make breakfast for them."
"Well, I guess they have a schedule to keep," I replied, though they had not indicated their next destination. At the same time, I wondered whether the white cat had gone with them.
After breakfast, I went back to the temple to update Head Nun of our evening with the monks. She listened with great interest especially when I told her how radiant Ananda looked.
"Did you say the monk's name is Ananda? Well, did you know Ananda of those days was the Buddha's first cousin who later became his primary attendant? He was very devoted to the Buddha and was known as the "Treasurer of the Dhamma" because he had an excellent recollection of all the teachings of the Buddha."
"Head Nun," I cried excitedly, eyes round with wonder. "Do you think it could be this Ananda himself who came down from Nirvana to teach us?"
"Well, I wish I knew. You should consider yourselves very fortunate to hear him speak," replied Head Nun.
We discussed some of the things Ananda had said and I mentioned the white cat.
"I've never seen a cat so interested in the Dhamma, Head Nun. She sat there listening till the end while the other cats very quickly got bored and left after a while."
Head Nun smiled, then said, "Your white cat could have been a disciple of the Buddha in a previous life, that's why she's so at home with the monks."
Strangely we didn't hear news of the monks passing through other villages on their journey. It was like they had disappeared into thin air after visiting our village. As for the white cat, I was intrigued by what Head Nun had said. She could be right.
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