Gift for the Recluse!

The Buddha retreated from the quarreling Sangha deep into the forest. There he lived secluded and well-attended by a noble elephant at the foot of a Sāl-tree. From the treetops a monkey watched as this powerful bull elephant served and protected the recluse; even fetching fresh water and collecting ripe fruit for him!

‘This won’t do!’ thought the monkey, ‘the elephant brings him everything except a reason to smile!’

There are simply some places an elephant is too shy and restrained to stick their nose. To develop the skill to knock loose some honeycomb with a stick, without harming any eggs, larvae, pupae or bees; without earning the retaliation of the hive - it takes the daring-ness of a monkey-king to conquer every impossibility!

Inspired to make a serious offering, the monkey presented his prized honeycomb to the Buddha and the gift was accepted with a smile! The monkey was so excited that when they jumped around in the trees celebrating, they fell to their death! As a result of the monkey’s generosity they were reborn into a heaven realm; and it was the auspiciousness of that rebirth that brought the Buddha back to teaching.