Training to be compassionate
Early one morning when Sariputra was on his round of alms, he met an old lady weeping by the roadside. The kind Sariputra went over and asked: "What is the matter, old lady?"
The old woman said in tears: " Elder! My family possessions have all been stolen!"
When Sariputra returned to the Vihara, he told the Buddha about this.
With reference to this incident, the Buddha said: " A family which has more women than men is more prone to be visited by thieves. This is just like the Bikshus who do not practise compassion and therefore will easily lose their resolve to cultivate due to easy invasion by the evil spirits and demons.
Thieves will not dare visit a household with more men than women. This is similar to Bikshus who are always mindful of the practise of compassion, and therefore deriving boundless merits to ward off the oppression of heretics and evil spirits."
From this, Sariputra realised how valuable it was to be able to renounce, and all the more treasured his own career in cultivation.
The Buddha continued: " In training to be compassionate, one needs
a strong determination which cannot easily be shakened by desire for profits.
In so doing, purity of mind can be constantly kept."
