Document (7)

By
Yada Dhachalupat no.3

Luang Por Anan: Welcome to everyone. Today I would like to talk about how men
and women have an equal chance to see the Dhamma, to see the truth of reality.
Seeing the Dhamma depends on past cultivation of mental qualities, not on one’s
gender.
In the time of the Buddha, many people saw the Dhamma, both male and female.
The daughter of Anathapindika realized stream-entry, and another realized the
next highest level of enlightenment, once-returner. So the daughter was an even
higher level of enlightenment than her father, Anathapindika, who was a stream-
enterer.
Video:
Welcome to everyone from all your centers. This Friday, we meet again to
discuss on the Dhamma. I am sure you are familiar with many of the stories of
the great disciples of the Buddha. There is Venerable Sariputta – the chief right
hand disciple of the Buddha who was foremost in wisdom of all the disciples –
having the recognition the Dhamma General of the Buddha – who could teach in
place of the Buddha and was extremely skilled in the Dhamma.
The Buddha praised Venerable Sariputta and compared him to one who looks
after a young child, teaching them until that child grows up well and has a good
foundation in mindfulness and wisdom. When the monks would take leave of the
Buddha to go off wandering, the Buddha would ask them to take leave of
Venerable Sariputta first, so that Venerable Sariputta could teach them the things
that would have benefit and give them Dhamma advice. We should know well
that Venerable Sariputta built a great amount of spiritual perfections in many
past lives.
Before, in the past, Venerable Sariputta could have become an arahant of the
highest level with psychic abilities, because all his 84,000 followers attained to
becoming arahant of this highest level. At that time they listened to the Dhamma
of the chief right hand disciple of the Buddha foremost in wisdom of that era, and
Venerable Sariputta, who was there, made the aspiration to be the chief right
hand disciple of the Buddha in the future, and his aspiration came to fruition with
our Buddha in this era.

If we look to the Buddha’s female ordained followers – there is one bhikkhuni,
Venerable Dhammadinna Theri, who was imbued with great mindfulness and
wisdom. Dhammadinna, as a laywoman, grew up and lived in Rajagaha City and
was married to a man called Visakha Setthi. Visaka Setthi had the chance to meet
the Buddha and attained to sotapanna on that occasion. And, later on, Visakha
Setthi listened to the Dhamma of the Buddha again and attained to becoming an
anagami, the third highest level of enlightenment. He didn’t want to have a wife
anymore because at this attainment he had cut off sensual lust already.
On that day, his wife, Dhammadinna didn’t know yet that her husband had
attained to anagami, and when the husband came back she awaited her husband
at the top of the steps, waiting for her husband to take her hand. He didn’t take
her hand and didn’t say anything about it. The wife was doubtful about her
husband and thought her husband was angry at her. When they had finished
eating together, she was still unhappy. She thought she must have done
something wrong to make her husband angry at her. So she asked her husband.
Visakha Setthi then explained to her the reason why he didn’t take her hand,
which was because he had listened to the Dhamma of the Buddha and attained to
anagami. Visakha Setthi told his wife that how much ever wealth she wanted of
his, she could take it and that she should go back to live with her old family. The
wife said that if this was his wish then her desire was to ordain as a Bhikkhuni.
The husband rejoiced in her wish and gave his permission for her to ordain.
When Dhammadinna ordained, she took leave of her preceptor to go into the
forest far from the city to practice. In no long time, she attained to the highest
type of arahant with all the psychic abilities.
There are 4 types of arahants, or perfected enlightened individuals. The first has
wisdom and can be completely victorious against the kilesas. They have
knowledge of previous lives, super-knowledge of passing away and rebirth of
beings, and the super-knowledge of destruction of the defilements. The third
level has achieved the sixfold knowledges: they have power of transformation,
power of divine hearing, power of knowing the mind of others, divine vision,
power of knowing previous existences, and destruction of the fetters of the
mental defilements. And the highest type of arahant is extremely skilled in the
Dhamma. They could explain the Dhamma in brief so that it was completely

understandable by others. They are completely skilled in this special language –
because they know the language of the heart. They need to build their parami a
lot more to gain this highest level.
Venerable Dhammadinna Theri – attained to the highest level, the 4thlevel of
arahantship. After attaining to becoming an arahant, she went back to her old
home in order to teach her old husband and relatives. Her old husband met her
and invited her to have the meal at their house.
Visakha setthi, her old husband thought that she wished to disrobe, so he asked
her some Dhamma questions. She was able to answer them all correctly and
clearly. He then knew that she wasn’t ordinary at all, and that she had definitely
attained to arahantship. So he had great joy and rejoiced with Venerable
Dhammadinna Theri Arhanti, that was his old wife. And the important thing was
that she had all the special knowledges and insights. The Buddha praised
Dhammadinna Theri as the foremost of the expounding of Dhamma amongst the
female disciples. She had great knowledge and ability in teaching the Dhamma.
She had faith and confidence in the Buddha’s dispensation.
Can you see that the husband attained to anagami and was willing to give how
ever much wealth to his wife, but she didn’t wish for that at all. But the parami
and virtues of the wife were great. Now that she wished to go forth and ordain
and practice the Dhamma, her mind was fully determined and attained to
becoming an arahant, higher than the spiritual attainment of the husband.
This parami—you can’t measure it. Sometimes the husband has a higher level of
parami than the wife, or we think that the wife has more parami than the
husband—but it is not certain. If the woman decides to determine to fully
practice the Dhamma and has more mindfulness and wisdom than the husband
then she can attain to arahantship before the husband. Or in the world, she may
be more successful than the husband. This is the subject of their accumulated
spiritual merits and virtues that they have built in the past.
Every person is different and has different levels of spiritual merits and
development. In this story of Dhammadinna Theri she had gratitude as well. She
attained to arahantship but she thought back to her old husband whom she had
built parami with in the past and he had given her the opportunity to ordain as a

Bhkikkuni. So she went back to her home to discuss and teach the Dhamma to
him.
The Buddha praised her that she was the foremost of teaching the Dhamma. It is
good for us to learn about the history of Venerable Dhammadina Theri, and to
remember her. So if you are an upasika, a lay female follower, don’t feel belittled
that you are a woman, but in reality, it depends on the parami of the individual
and is uncertain. By practicing and developing oneself then one can grow
spiritually and can even attain to becoming an arahant, anagami, sakadagami, or
sotapanna, one can attain depending on previous spiritual merits.
So, may you recollect the virtues of Venerable Dhamadinana Arahanti Theri –
who attained to the highest, the highest level of arahant, and had all the psychic
abilities, who the Buddha praised as foremost in teaching the Dhamma. May you
all recollect these virtues of the Sangha, of Venerable Dhammadinna Theri and
you will all prosper in the Buddha’s teachings and practice.
uang Por Anan: Welcome to everyone. Today I would like to talk about how men
and women have an equal chance to see the Dhamma, to see the truth of reality.
Seeing the Dhamma depends on past cultivation of mental qualities, not on one’s
gender.
In the time of the Buddha, many people saw the Dhamma, both male and female.
The daughter of Anathapindika realized stream-entry, and another realized the
next highest level of enlightenment, once-returner. So the daughter was an even
higher level of enlightenment than her father, Anathapindika, who was a stream-
enterer.
Video:
Welcome to everyone from all your centers. This Friday, we meet again to
discuss on the Dhamma. I am sure you are familiar with many of the stories of
the great disciples of the Buddha. There is Venerable Sariputta – the chief right
hand disciple of the Buddha who was foremost in wisdom of all the disciples –
having the recognition the Dhamma General of the Buddha – who could teach in
place of the Buddha and was extremely skilled in the Dhamma.
The Buddha praised Venerable Sariputta and compared him to one who looks
after a young child, teaching them until that child grows up well and has a good
foundation in mindfulness and wisdom. When the monks would take leave of the

Buddha to go off wandering, the Buddha would ask them to take leave of
Venerable Sariputta first, so that Venerable Sariputta could teach them the things
that would have benefit and give them Dhamma advice. We should know well
that Venerable Sariputta built a great amount of spiritual perfections in many
past lives.
Before, in the past, Venerable Sariputta could have become an arahant of the
highest level with psychic abilities, because all his 84,000 followers attained to
becoming arahant of this highest level. At that time they listened to the Dhamma
of the chief right hand disciple of the Buddha foremost in wisdom of that era, and
Venerable Sariputta, who was there, made the aspiration to be the chief right
hand disciple of the Buddha in the future, and his aspiration came to fruition with
our Buddha in this era.
If we look to the Buddha’s female ordained followers – there is one bhikkhuni,
Venerable Dhammadinna Theri, who was imbued with great mindfulness and
wisdom. Dhammadinna, as a laywoman, grew up and lived in Rajagaha City and
was married to a man called Visakha Setthi. Visaka Setthi had the chance to meet
the Buddha and attained to sotapanna on that occasion. And, later on, Visakha
Setthi listened to the Dhamma of the Buddha again and attained to becoming an
anagami, the third highest level of enlightenment. He didn’t want to have a wife
anymore because at this attainment he had cut off sensual lust already.
On that day, his wife, Dhammadinna didn’t know yet that her husband had
attained to anagami, and when the husband came back she awaited her husband
at the top of the steps, waiting for her husband to take her hand. He didn’t take
her hand and didn’t say anything about it. The wife was doubtful about her
husband and thought her husband was angry at her. When they had finished
eating together, she was still unhappy. She thought she must have done
something wrong to make her husband angry at her. So she asked her husband.
Visakha Setthi then explained to her the reason why he didn’t take her hand,
which was because he had listened to the Dhamma of the Buddha and attained to
anagami. Visakha Setthi told his wife that how much ever wealth she wanted of
his, she could take it and that she should go back to live with her old family. The
wife said that if this was his wish then her desire was to ordain as a Bhikkhuni.
The husband rejoiced in her wish and gave his permission for her to ordain.

When Dhammadinna ordained, she took leave of her preceptor to go into the
forest far from the city to practice. In no long time, she attained to the highest
type of arahant with all the psychic abilities.
There are 4 types of arahants, or perfected enlightened individuals. The first has
wisdom and can be completely victorious against the kilesas. They have
knowledge of previous lives, super-knowledge of passing away and rebirth of
beings, and the super-knowledge of destruction of the defilements. The third
level has achieved the sixfold knowledges: they have power of transformation,
power of divine hearing, power of knowing the mind of others, divine vision,
power of knowing previous existences, and destruction of the fetters of the
mental defilements. And the highest type of arahant is extremely skilled in the
Dhamma. They could explain the Dhamma in brief so that it was completely
understandable by others. They are completely skilled in this special language –
because they know the language of the heart. They need to build their parami a
lot more to gain this highest level.
Venerable Dhammadinna Theri – attained to the highest level, the 4thlevel of
arahantship. After attaining to becoming an arahant, she went back to her old
home in order to teach her old husband and relatives. Her old husband met her
and invited her to have the meal at their house.
Visakha setthi, her old husband thought that she wished to disrobe, so he asked
her some Dhamma questions. She was able to answer them all correctly and
clearly. He then knew that she wasn’t ordinary at all, and that she had definitely
attained to arahantship. So he had great joy and rejoiced with Venerable
Dhammadinna Theri Arhanti, that was his old wife. And the important thing was
that she had all the special knowledges and insights. The Buddha praised
Dhammadinna Theri as the foremost of the expounding of Dhamma amongst the
female disciples. She had great knowledge and ability in teaching the Dhamma.
She had faith and confidence in the Buddha’s dispensation.
Can you see that the husband attained to anagami and was willing to give how
ever much wealth to his wife, but she didn’t wish for that at all. But the parami
and virtues of the wife were great. Now that she wished to go forth and ordain
and practice the Dhamma, her mind was fully determined and attained to
becoming an arahant, higher than the spiritual attainment of the husband.

This parami—you can’t measure it. Sometimes the husband has a higher level of
parami than the wife, or we think that the wife has more parami than the
husband—but it is not certain. If the woman decides to determine to fully
practice the Dhamma and has more mindfulness and wisdom than the husband
then she can attain to arahantship before the husband. Or in the world, she may
be more successful than the husband. This is the subject of their accumulated
spiritual merits and virtues that they have built in the past.
Every person is different and has different levels of spiritual merits and
development. In this story of Dhammadinna Theri she had gratitude as well. She
attained to arahantship but she thought back to her old husband whom she had
built parami with in the past and he had given her the opportunity to ordain as a
Bhkikkuni. So she went back to her home to discuss and teach the Dhamma to
him.
The Buddha praised her that she was the foremost of teaching the Dhamma. It is
good for us to learn about the history of Venerable Dhammadina Theri, and to
remember her. So if you are an upasika, a lay female follower, don’t feel belittled
that you are a woman, but in reality, it depends on the parami of the individual
and is uncertain. By practicing and developing oneself then one can grow
spiritually and can even attain to becoming an arahant, anagami, sakadagami, or
sotapanna, one can attain depending on previous spiritual merits.
So, may you recollect the virtues of Venerable Dhamadinana Arahanti Theri –
who attained to the highest, the highest level of arahant, and had all the psychic
abilities, who the Buddha praised as foremost in teaching the Dhamma. May you
all recollect these virtues of the Sangha, of Venerable Dhammadinna Theri and
you will all prosper in the Buddha’s teachings and practice.