Bringing the Dharma Home

This chapter explores the Buddha’s relationship with his family after his awakening, as related in the monastic law code of the Mulasarvastivadins, the Mulasarvastivada-vinaya. It concentrates on the account of the Buddha’s return to his family seat, Kapilavastu, contained in the Vinayavibhanga, the part of the Mulasarvastivada-vinaya that analyses individual monastic offences. We encounter a very human Buddha who devotes great care to the conversion of his father, King Suddhodana, and to the spiritual progress of his kinsfolk, the Sakyas. At the same time, this Buddha is a glorious superhuman being who makes judicious use of his miraculous powers, always in the service of his kith and kin. In this episode, the compilers of the Mulasarvastivada-vinaya combine their task of legislating for the sangha with a didactic agenda which puts forward the Buddha as the exemplar of the good son and the good monk living a simple life. They craft a sophisticated narrative that is both memorable and entertaining.