Nagarjuna possessed only a single begging bowl, which he used throughout his simple ascetic life.
The queen of the region where he lived felt a deep affection and admiration for him. Moved by these feelings, she invited him to her palace. When Nagarjuna arrived, she asked for his begging bowl and offered him a gift in return, insisting that he first promise to accept whatever she chose to give him.
Nagarjuna replied:
„Tell me what the gift is first.“
But the queen insisted:
„It does not matter what I give you. Promise me that you will accept it. Promise!“
Nagarjuna smiled and, seeing no reason to refuse, agreed.
The queen took his old begging bowl and presented him with a magnificent golden bowl adorned with diamonds.
Those present were astonished. Some even laughed, finding the situation absurd.
„There is no way Nagarjuna will accept something so expensive and material,“ they whispered. „He is such an ascetic and spiritual man.“
To everyone’s surprise, he simply thanked the queen and accepted the gift. For Nagarjuna, there was no distinction between „material and spiritual,“ „higher and lower.“ He had gone beyond such opposites.
The Encounter with the Thief
Nagarjuna then began the journey back to his humble hut. It had no windows, and much of its roof was missing.
As he walked, he sensed that someone was following him.
The man trailing him was the most skilled thief in the kingdom, who had witnessed the entire exchange at the palace.
The thief thought to himself:
„This man owns nothing, lives in ruins, and walks barefoot. He is certain to lose that bowl, which is worth more than an entire village. Someone will steal it sooner or later. Why shouldn’t that someone be me?“
He decided to wait until nightfall and take the bowl while Nagarjuna slept.
When Nagarjuna arrived at his hut, however, he picked up the bowl and tossed it through the opening where a window should have been-directly beside the place where the thief was hiding.
The thief froze in disbelief.
„What is this man doing?“ he wondered. „Is he insane? Does he realize how valuable that bowl is?“
Confused and amazed, he picked up the bowl and stepped inside.
„Why did you throw it away?“ he asked. „Do you know what it is worth?“
Nagarjuna answered calmly:
„I knew you intended to wait until dark and steal it. I decided not to waste your time. Besides, I did not want you to turn into a thief because of me. This way, you simply found it without stealing.“
The Lesson of Awareness
The words struck the thief deeply.
For the first time in his life, he felt a powerful desire to possess the inner state that Nagarjuna seemed to embody.
„How can I acquire what you have?“ he asked.
Then he quickly added:
„Just know this-I have visited many saints before. Every one of them told me I must first give up stealing. I will not do that.“
Nagarjuna replied:
„There is no need to give up stealing. Simply be completely aware whenever you steal.“
The thief looked puzzled.
„That’s all?“
„That is all,“ Nagarjuna said.
The Transformation
A week later, the thief returned.
He was furious.
„You deceived me!“ he shouted.
„What happened?“ Nagarjuna asked.
The thief replied:
„I followed your advice… and now I can no longer steal! It is not that I have lost the skill. Quite the opposite. I often find opportunities to take even greater treasures than before. But the moment I am about to take them, I become aware – and I simply cannot do it.“
He continued:
„I begin to see my own foolishness. I ask myself, ‘What is this greed? Why am I doing this? In the end, I will take none of it with me when I die.'“
Nagarjuna smiled.
„You asked how to obtain what I have, and I gave you the method. Now the choice is yours. Either abandon awareness and continue stealing, or abandon stealing and keep your awareness.“
Then he added:
„You cannot have both. They are like light and shadow. Where one exists, the other cannot remain.“
The thief bowed his head and said:
„It is impossible for me to abandon awareness now that I have tasted it-even if it costs me my life.“
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Author: Vasil Stoyanov
