Ananda
For Paulina Rubio's album see Ananda (album).Note: the word Ananda means bliss in Sanskrit language and is quite often part of a Hindu monastic name.Ananda (Ch:阿難,
A Nan) was one of many principal disciples of the
Buddha, a devout attendant and was renowned as the
Guardian of the Dharma.Ananda was the first
cousin of the
Buddha, and was devotedly attached to him. In the twentieth year of the Buddha's ministry, he became his personal attendant, accompanying him on most of his wanderings and being the
interlocutor in many of the recorded
dialogues. He is the subject of a special
panegyric delivered by the Buddha just before his death (
Mahaparinibbana Sutta,
Digha Nikaya 16); it is the panegyric of an unselfish man, kindly, thoughtful for others and popular.
In view of the abundance of praise, recognition and privileges, mutterings of
envy and
resentment could have been expected. But this was not the case at all. He was a man who had no enemies. Ananda was so much taken up by subordinating his entire life to the
Dhamma, that
fame could not touch him and make him proud. He knew that all that was good in him was due to the influence of the Teaching. When seen in this way, there can be no pride. One who cannot be proud, has no enemies, and such a one does not meet with envy. If someone turns inward completely and keeps away from any social contact, as Ananda's brother Anuruddha did, then it is easy to be without enemies. But if someone like Ananda, who had daily contact with a large number of people with regard to diverse matters, lives without enemies, without rivals, without conflict and tensions, it borders on a miracle. This quality is truly a measure of Ananda's uniqueness.
In the long list of the disciples given in the
Anguttara (i. xiv.) where each of them is declared to be the chief in some gift, Ananda is mentioned five times (which is more often than any other), as chief in
conduct and in
service to others and in power of
memory. Also the Buddha sometimes asked him to substitute for him as a teacher and then later confirmed that he, himself, would not have presented the teachings in any other way.
Ananda is often called the disciple of the Buddha who "heard much"; because he attended personally upon the Buddha and often traveled with him, Ananda overheard and memorized many of the discourses delivered by the Buddha to various audiences. At the
First Council, convened shortly after the death of the Buddha, Ananda was called upon to recite many of the discourses that later became the
Sutta Pitaka of the
Pāli Canon.
Despite his long association and close proximity to the Buddha, Ananda was only a stream-winner prior to the Buddha's death. In the period during which he was the Buddha's attendant, though he was still a "learner," "one in the higher training," no thoughts of lust or hate arose in him; the implication being that his close connection with the Buddha and his devotion to him gave no room for these.
Prior to the First Council, it was proposed that Ananda not be permitted to attend on the grounds that he was not yet an
arahant. According to legend, this prompted Ananda to focus his efforts on the attainment of
nibbana, and he was able to reach the specified level of attainment before the calling of the conclave.
In contrast to most of the figures depicted in the
Pāli Canon, Ananda is depicted as an imperfect, if sympathetic, figure. He mourns the deaths of both
Sariputta, with whom he enjoyed a close friendship, and the
Buddha. A verse of the
Theragatha [
1] reveals his loneliness and isolation following the
parinirvana of the Buddha.
In the
Zen tradition, Ananda is considered to be the second Indian patriarch. He is often depicted with the Buddha alongside
Mahakashyapa, the first Indian patriarch.
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Ananda with the Buddha and Subhuti*
Digital Dictionary of Buddhism (log in with userID "guest")
*
Ananda: Guardian of the Dhamma by Hellmuth Hecker*
Ananda Mahidol – King Rama VIII of
Thailand*
Ananda Temple – An ancient temple in
Bagan.
*
Ananda: Guardian of the Dhamma by Hellmuth Hecker
