Happiness is Mind-made
Mind is the forerunner of (all good) states.
Mind is chief, and they are mind-made.
If one speaks or acts with a pure mind,
from that, happiness follows,
as one’s own shadow that never leaves.
The Story of Matthakundalī
The only son of a stingy millionaire was on the verge of death because his father was too mean to call a doctor, and tried to treat his son himself. The Buddha saw the dying boy with his Divine Eye, and stood for alms in front of his house. Seeing the Buddha, Matthakundalī was delighted. Dying with a mind full of faith in the Buddha he was reborn in the celestial realm. After his son’s death, the millionaire was grief-stricken. Every day he went to the cemetery crying for his son.
The deity appeared before his father in a form like his son, and stood weeping. The millionaire saw the youth and asked him why he was crying. The deity replied that he wanted two wheels for his chariot, but could not get them. The millionaire offered to buy him whatever chariot wheels he wanted. The deity said that he wanted the sun and the moon for his chariot wheels. The millionaire told the youth that his wish was folly as it was impossible to obtain the sun and the moon. The deity admonished the millionaire, “You are even more foolish than me in crying for your dead son. At least I can see the sun and the moon, but you cannot even see your dead son.” The millionaire realised that the youth was his own son, and gained some faith in Dhamma. The next day, he offered alms to the Sangha and the deity appeared, telling the assembly how he had gained such bliss just by revering the Buddha in his mind.
