The Story of the Rooster That Crows at the Wrong Time
Once when the Buddha was living in Jetavana monastery, there were two monks who did not do their monastic duties at the proper times. They would go to bed late at night, and they did not wake up at the proper time. When they woke up, they made a lot of noise. Because of this, the monks who slept normal hours nearby could not get sound sleep.
This story was spread among the monks who assembled for the evening Dhamma sermon of the Buddha in the preaching hall. The Buddha went in the evening to preach and asked, “Oh monks, what was your discussion before I came here?” The monks said, “Venerable sir, such-and-such monks shout and make noise at improper times during the night. We were discussing that.” Buddha said, “Oh monks, it is not only today but also in the past that these two monks have been noisy at improper times.” Buddha was then invited to disclose the story of the past. He delivered this story to disclose the previous life:
When Brahmadatta was ruling in Benares in the past, the Enlightenment Being was born in a notable Brahmin family. He was well educated, became the chief instructor in the area, and taught 500 students.
The students had a certain rooster who crowed at the proper times. They woke up at the proper time each day, and studied every morning learning their lessons by heart.
Then the rooster died.
After that, one student went to the forest to collect firewood. There he caught a wild rooster. He put it in a cage, and fed it regularly.
That rooster did not crow at the proper times. Sometimes, he would crow at midnight. Hearing the noise of the rooster, the students would get up at midnight and read their lessons so as to learn them by heart. But as it was too early to wake up, they became very upset. Sometimes, this rooster would crow in the middle of the morning. When they got up at that time, they did not have enough time to do their studies during the morning hours. So the rooster became very unpopular among the students. They killed it and complained to the teacher.
The teacher said, “Without teachers and parents, and without proper instruction, this fowl came to such a fate. Therefore, students must follow the guidance of teachers.”
Buddha then compared these two incidents, and finished this story disclosing, “The fowl that crowed at the improper time was one of these monks who has no set time for his work. The students were you who are assembled here. The teacher was I, the Buddha, who attained Nibbāna.”
The moral: “Learn to work at proper times.”
The Story of the Rooster That Crows at the Wrong Time
#Buddhisttalesforyoungandold #Buddhiststories #storiesforkids #moralstories #Buddha #Jatakastories #PansiyaPanasJataka #JatakaTalesofSakyamuniBuddha #JatakaTales
頂禮 H.H. 第三世多杰羌佛- 眾善奉行 