Past Lives of The Buddha

A Small Portion of Gruel

A Small Portion of Gruel

A Tale of Generosity.
In this lifetime, the bodhisattva was the king of Koshala. Beloved by all his
subjects, the king possessed many good virtues but one quality surpassed all
others: his talent for gaining prosperity.
While in a deep sleep one night, the king came to recall one of his previous
lives and was deeply moved. He then began to mysteriously repeat to his
subjects that all the prosperity of their kingdom was produced by "a small
portion of gruel." Although intrigued, nobody in the kingdom understood what
he meant and none had the courage to ask. He continued to repeat this and
the curiosity of his people continued to grow until one day while in front of a
grand assembly, the queen beseeches him to explain himself.
He stated that he had recalled a past life in which he had been a poor servant.
He remembered working hard, barely being able to support his family, and
becoming entangled in feelings of contempt and sorrow. Yet when he came
upon a traveling group of monks he invited them into his home and offered
them all he had, which was just a small portion of gruel. It was because of this
one small act that he was reborn a great king. He proclaimed that no act of
kindness is small if given from the heart. Having witnessed the wonderful
results of generosity, the people of Koshala also developed a high regard for
meritorious action. The prosperity of the kingdom continued to flourish even
greater than before.