The Illustrated Jataka : Other Stories of the Buddha by C.B. Varma
058 - The Story of The Dumb Prince / गूंगा राजकुमार

  Mugapakkha-Jataka

 

BabyTemiya in the kings lap

 

Temiya standing behind Sunanda in the cemetery, who is digging the grave.

 

Ascetic Temiya giving discourse to the people.

काशी की महारानी चंदादेवी की कोई संतान नहीं थी। चूँकि वह शीलवती थी इसलिए ने उसके दु:ख को देखते हुए तावसि लोक के एक देव को उनके पुत्र के रुप में गर्भस्थ किया। जन्मोपरान्त उसका नाम तेमिय रखा गया।

तेमिय जब एक वर्ष का था और अपने पिता की गोद में बैठा था तब उसके पिता ने कुछ डाकुओं को मृत्यु की सज़ा सुनायी। जिसे सुनकर तेमिय को अपना पूर्व-जीवन स्मरण हो आया। अतीत में वह भी कभी एक राजा था और तब उसने भी किसी अपराधी को मृत्यु-दण्ड दिया था, जिसके फलस्वरुप उसे बीस हज़ार वर्षों तक उस्सद नर्क में सज़ा काटनी पड़ी थी। अत: राजा न बनने के लिए उसने सोलह वर्षों तक गूंगा और अक्रियमाण बने रहने का स्वांग रचा।

लोगों ने जब उसे भविष्य में राजा बनने के योग्य नहीं पाया तो राजा को यह सलाह दी गई कि तेमिय को कब्रिस्तान में भेज कर मरवा दे और वही उसे दफ़न भी करवा दे।

राजा ने सुनंद नामक एक व्यक्ति को यह काम सौंपा। सुनंद उसे एक रथ पर लाद कब्रिस्तान पहुँचा। वहाँ, तेमिय को जमीन पर लिटा उसने फावड़े से एक कब्र तैयार करना आरंभ किया।

तेमिय तभी चुपचाप उठकर सुनंद के पीछे जा खड़ा हुआ। फिर उसने सुनंद से कहा कि वह न तो गूँगा है ; और न ही अपंग। वह तो मूलत: देवलोक का एक देव था जो सिर्फ संन्यास वरण करना चाहता था। तेमिय के शांत वचन को सुन सुनंद ने उसका शिष्यत्व पाना चाहा। तेमिय ने उसकी प्रार्थना स्वीकार की लेकिन उससे पहले उसे राजमहल जा कर उसके माता-पिता को बुलाने का कहा।

सुनंद के साथ राजा-रानी और अनेक प्रजागण भी तेमिय से मिलने आये। उन सभी को तेमिय ने संन्यास का सदुपदेश दिया। जिसे सुनकर राजा-रानी व अन्य सारे श्रोता भी सन्यासी बन गये।

कालांतर में तेमिय एक महान् सन्यासी के रुप में विख्यात हुआ।

C handa Devi, the wife of the king of Kashi had no son. This filled her life with misery. Sakka, the king of the devas , when saw her grief he decided to help her because she was a virtuous lady. So, he persuaded the Bodhisatta, who was then born in the realm of the Tavatimsa to prepare for his descent in her womb for the sake of her happiness.

The Bodhisatta then entered the womb of the queen. When born, there was a heavy rain-fall in the city. As he was born wet he was called Temiya.

When Temiya was one month old and was lying in his fathers lap, he overheard the fathers harsh sentence meant for some bandits. This made him remember one of his births when he was the king of Varanasi and reigned there for twenty years for which he suffered for twenty thousand years in the Ussada Niraya (a kind of hell). So, he loathed the idea of being a king for the second time. As he was conversant with the deities of the higher world he received the advice from one of them to pretend to be dumb and inactive to avoid the inheritence of the kingdom. He took the advice and accordingly pretended to be dumb and inactive for sixteen years.

Owing to his pretence he was declared unfit as a prince or a future king and was eventually handed over to the royal charioteer Sunanda to be taken to the cemetery to be clubbed to death and buried there.

 

When Sunanda was digging the grave to dispose off the dead body, Temiya stealthily sneaked behind him and confided his resolve to him. Impressed, Sunanda then wanted to be an ascetic like him. But Temiya asked him first to inform his whereabouts to the king and his mother; and then become an ascetic. The king, queen and others then soon arrived there. Temiya gave them a sermon to praise the ideals of asceticism. All the people, including the king and the queen, were highly impressed by his sermon and became ascetics. Soon, the fame of Temiya spread all over the place, which made the citizens of the three kingdoms adjacent to Varanasi his followers.  

 

(Temiyas parents are identified with Suddhodana and Mahamaya; and Sariputta as Sunanda)

 

Mugapakkha (also called Temiya Jataka) Jataka Pali No.538; cf. Temiyachariya, Chariyapitaka iii.6; Buddhavamsa Atthakatha 51.


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