Today we have a commentary of “The Buddha Speaks of Amitabha Sutra”, mentioning two persons.
The first is Gavampati.
Gavampati here translates to “One who moos like a cow”. In a past life, this venerable was disrespectful toward practitioners and even mocked them by imitating the sound of a cow, making lowing and snorting noises at them.
Because of this past karma, Shakyamuni Buddha gave him a string of prayer beads and instructed him to recite the Buddha’s name in order to counteract the slander he had committed in his past life.
Later generations called him “Cow-lowing Venerable.” He was known as “Foremost in Receiving Offerings from Heaven.”
What does it mean to be “Foremost in Receiving Offerings from Heaven”?
It means that many heavenly deities bring a lot of precious food for him to eat and fine clothes for him to wear.
Why could he do this but we cannot?
Because this Gavampati had learned all the heavenly mantras and frequently recited them. At that time very few people knew them and the moment this Venerable recited them, the deities in the heavens would all happily descend to give him red packets.
Just like when we listen to songs now, if we hear a good song, we will give the singer a little red packet. So Gavampati could recite the heavenly mantras, thus the heavenly deities all gave him red packets. So he is “Foremost in Receiving Offerings from Heaven”.
Pindola Bharadvaja translates to Immovable Sharp Root.
In the past, known as living long on earth, deserving of lifelong offerings. Foremost in Field of Merit.
Here, Venerable Pindola Bharadvaja, translates to “Immovable Sharp Root”. In the past people knew him as living long on earth, he lives in this world, receiving the smoke fire offerings in the human world. His title is “Foremost in Field of Merit”.
This Pindola Bharadvaja was a monk, however he displayed supernatural powers before all laypeople. Many laypeople knew that this Venerable had supernatural powers and asked him to show his supernatural powers. If someone asked, he would show them. He could sit there and immediately rise up into the air, then perform sleeping in the air, and doing somersaults. He could walk slowly in the air, like astronauts making a round then coming back. Not only did he do somersaults, he also did martial arts in the air, Chinese Kung Fu. Whether he performed this by taking off his clothes is unknown.
His easy display of supernatural powers led to him being reprimanded by Shakyamuni Buddha. Shakyamuni Buddha told this Venerable, “This is not a circus! Do not keep performing your supernatural abilities like a show.”
In the end, he was scolded until he felt very sad. So before the Buddha he made a vow that he would live forever in this world, not becoming a Buddha, so as to help sentient beings in the Age of Dharma Decline.
This Venerable Pindola Bharadvaja is known as the “Long-Eyebrowed Venerable” among the Eighteen Arhats in China, he is the one with the very long white eyebrows.