This is the story of Utpala the nun who made a false oath and saw her negative Karma ripening.
Thus I have heard at one time.
The Enlightened One was residing in Jetavana Grove in Sravasti. After King Prasenajit passed away, his son Prince Vaidurya became king. During this time, there was chaos and countless beings were killed. Many women who belong to the noble families became disillusioned with this situation, and chose to become nuns.
They were no ordinary women. They were beautiful women beyond compare. Five hundred of them joined the Buddha’s monastic order.
These nuns told one another, “We have received ordination but we have not learned and practiced the Dharma. We have not given up attachment, hatred and ignorance. Let us go to the nun Prajapati. We should request the Dharma from her.”
When they came to the nun Prajapati, she scolded them, saying, “You are all from higher castes. Although you have joined the monastic order, you still cannot separate yourselves from the pleasures of the defilements. You have not entered the Dharma. You may just enjoy your families and husbands and go back home in this life.”
The nuns wept. They went to Utpala, another nun, wishing to receive the teachings from her.
Meeting the Senior Nun, Utpala
The nuns from the noble families went to Utpala and requested the teachings from her. Utpala then taught them –
“Attachment is like fire. Even rivers and mountains are consumed by it. Through the power of attachment, one harms another and accumulates all sorts of non-virtue, to be reborn in the hells. If a woman is separated from her husband, there is sorrow.
“Birth, sickness, old-age and death are all sorrows. For a married person, there is little happiness and much sorrow.” (READ: Basic Samsara)
Utpala Recounts Her Misfortunes
Utpala continued, “I was married to an intelligent man. I gave birth to two sons. When I wished to visit my parents’ home, my husband, my two children and I set out. That night, my husband was bitten by a poisonous snake. In the morning, I found him dead. My elder son screamed. It was sorrowful.
“Then, when I set out without a husband, I carried the younger son in my arms while the elder son walked beside me. I left the elder son near the riverbank. I left the younger son, as I looked for the other son near the riverbank. As I looked for him, he (the elder son) fell into the river and drowned. When I returned to my baby, a wolf had already eaten him and blood spilled on the ground. I was lamenting my fate.
“When I was heading to my parents’ village, I met a poor relative. After some talking, he told me that the house of my parents burned down. I fainted upon hearing this.
“The poor relative cared for me, and later on, we got married. I lived happily for a while, and I was pregnant soon after. My husband went to a festival, and he was very drunk. When he came back home, he became angry that I was giving birth. He killed the newborn baby, and forced fed the baby’s flesh to me. I left him in much sorrow.
“When I was in Benares, a young man who had just lost his wife was crying during the funeral. He asked me why I was there. He liked me and we soon got married. Not long after, he died. As their practice, I, the wife, was buried alive with him. Three days later, a wolf dug me up and I escaped from the grave.”
Utpala Meets the Lord Buddha
Then, I thought, “What former deeds caused me to experience such sorrows and losses?” I heard that the Buddha was nearby, so I went to Jetavana park. The Lord knew through his unimpeded knowledge that I was ready to be taught. He told Ananda, ‘Ananda, clothe this woman in your robes.’
Ananda then put his robes on my shoulders.”
“Prajapati the nun then ordained me. When she taught me the Law of the Four Noble Truths, I applied myself to the teachings and attained the fruit of an Arhat. I now know all things past, present and future.”
The Past Karmic Causes of Utpala’s Misfortunes
The nuns listening to her then asked, “What are the causes for you to experience such hardships? And what are the causes as to why you attained such fruit?”
Utpala then said, “Listen well and I shall tell you.”
“In former times, there was a wealthy merchant. His first wife could not bear him a son. So he found a second wife. His second wife then bore him a son.
“The first wife got jealous of the second wife. She decided to kill the second wife’s son. Taking a needle, she pierced the softspot on the baby’s crown. This method killed the baby, and left no scar on the baby.
“The second wife grieved the baby’s death and blamed the first wife. Denying her gruesome act, the first wife swore to the second wife, “If I have killed your baby, may all my husbands, in all future lives, be bitten by a snake. If I give birth to a son, may he be eaten by a wolf. May my father and mother be burned alive in their house. May I eat my own son’s flesh.”
“That first wife was I in a previous life. Because I swore such oath, the sins from that oath came to pass in this life.”
The Past Karmic Cause of Utpala’s Fortune
“As for me meeting the Buddha and achieving Arhathood in this life, long time ago, in Benares, a Pratyekabuddha had gone to the city for alms. The wife of a householder saw the Pratyekabuddha, rejoiced and offered him food.
When the Pratyekabuddha showed some supernatural wonders to the wife, the wife then made this vow in front of him, “Holy one, in future lives, may I become like you!”
I was that wife. It was also I who made that vow. Through the power of that vow, I was able to meet the Buddha in this life and my mind was liberated.”
When the five hundred nuns heard this, they understood that desirous attachments and pleasures are like pits of fire. Their thoughts of attachment ceased. They eventually became Arhats.