Discípulos más destacados de Gautama Buda – El crecimiento de la saṅgha

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Aparte de los brahmanes védicos, la vida del Buda coincidió con el florecimiento de influyentes escuelas de pensamiento śramaṇa como Ājīvika, Cārvāka, el Jainismo y Ajñana.

Śāriputra y Moggallāna, dos de los principales discípulos del Buda, fueron anteriormente los más destacados seguidores de Sañjaya Belaṭṭhaputta, el escéptico; y el canon pāli frecuentemente retrata al Buda participando en debates con los adherentes de escuelas rivales de pensamiento.

Etapa temprana y crecimiento de la saṅgha

Cuando la comunidad del Buda había crecido hasta alrededor de sesenta monjes iluminados, él les instruyó para que vagaran por su cuenta, enseñaran y ordenaran a personas en la comunidad, para el «bienestar y beneficio» del mundo.

Posteriormente, se dice que el Buda viajó durante los 40 años restantes de su vida, en la llanura gangética, en lo que hoy es Uttar Pradesh, Bihar y el sur de Nepal, enseñando a una diversa gama de personas: desde nobles hasta sirvientes, ascetas y laicos, asesinos como Angulimala, y caníbales como Alavaka.

La saṅgha recorrió el subcontinente, exponiendo el Dharma.

Los textos antiguos narran la historia de cómo los principales discípulos del Buda, Śāriputta y Mahāmoggallāna, quienes fueron estudiantes del escéptico śramaṇa Sañjaya Belaṭṭhiputta, fueron convertidos por Assaji.

También cuentan cómo el hijo del Buda, Rahula, se unió a su padre como bhikkhu cuando el Buda visitó su antiguo hogar, Kapilavastu.

Con el tiempo, otros Shakyas se unieron a la orden como bhikkhus, como el primo del Buda, Ananda, Anuruddha, Upali el barbero, el medio hermano del Buda, Nanda, y Devadatta.

Mientras tanto, el padre del Buda, Suddhodana, escuchó las enseñanzas de su hijo, se convirtió al budismo y se convirtió en un «entrante en el flujo».

Los textos antiguos también mencionan a un importante discípulo laico, el comerciante Anāthapiṇḍika, quien se convirtió en un fuerte apoyo laico del Buda desde el principio.

Sariputta y Moggallana fallecieron poco antes de la muerte del Buda.

Discípulos mencionados en el canon pāli

Esta es una lista de algunos de los principales discípulos de Gautama Buda mencionados en el canon pāli.

Maudgalyayana

Maudgalyāyana, también conocido como Mahāmaudgalyāyana, fue uno de los discípulos más cercanos del Buda. Descrito como contemporáneo de discípulos como Subhuti, Śāriputra y Mahākasyapa, se le considera el segundo de los dos principales discípulos masculinos del Buda, junto con Śāriputra. Los relatos tradicionales cuentan que Maudgalyāyana y Śāriputra se convierten en vagabundos espirituales en su juventud. Después de haber buscado la verdad espiritual durante un tiempo, entran en contacto con las enseñanzas budistas a través de versos que se han vuelto ampliamente conocidos en el mundo budista. Eventualmente se encuentran con el propio Buda y son ordenados como monjes bajo su tutela. Maudgalyāyana alcanza la iluminación poco después de eso.

Rāhula

Rāhula fue el único hijo de Siddhārtha Gautama y de su esposa y princesa Yaśodharā. Se menciona en numerosos textos budistas, desde el período temprano en adelante. Los relatos sobre Rāhula indican un impacto mutuo entre la vida del Príncipe Siddhārtha y las vidas de sus familiares. Según la tradición Pāli, Rāhula nace el día de la renuncia del Príncipe Siddhārtha, y por lo tanto se le llama Rāhula, que significa un grillete en el camino hacia la iluminación. Sin embargo, según la tradición Mūlasarvāstivāda y numerosas otras fuentes posteriores, Rāhula solo es concebido el día de la renuncia del Príncipe Siddhārtha y nace seis años después, cuando el Príncipe Siddhārtha alcanza la iluminación como el Buda. Este largo período de gestación se explica por el mal karma de vidas anteriores tanto de Yaśodharā como de Rāhula mismo, aunque también se dan razones más naturalistas. Como resultado del nacimiento tardío, Yaśodharā necesita demostrar que Rāhula es realmente el hijo del Príncipe Siddhārtha, lo cual finalmente logra exitosamente mediante un acto de verdad. El historiador Wolfgang Schumann ha argumentado que el Príncipe Siddhārtha concibió a Rāhula y esperó su nacimiento para poder dejar el palacio con el permiso del rey y la reina, pero el orientalista Noël Péri consideró más probable que Rāhula naciera después de que el Príncipe Siddhārtha abandonara su palacio.

Mahapajapati Gotami

Mahāpajāpatī Gotamī was the foster-mother, step-mother and maternal aunt of the Buddha. In Buddhist tradition, she was the first woman to seek ordination for women, which she did from Gautama Buddha directly, and she became the first bhikkhuni.

Sundari Nanda (half-sister of Buddha)

Princess Sundarī Nandā of Shakya, also known simply a Sundarī, was the daughter of King Suddhodana and Mahaprajapati.She was the half-sister of Siddhartha Gautama, who later became a Buddha. She became a nun after the enlightenment of her half-brother and became an arhat. She was the foremost among bhikkhunis in the practice of jhana. She lived during the 6th century BCE in what is now Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in India.

Subhūti

Subhūti fue uno de los Diez Grandes Śrāvakas del Buda Gautama y el primero en dar regalos. En prakrit y pāli, su nombre significa literalmente «Buena Existencia». A veces también se le conoce como «Elder Subhūti». Fue contemporáneo de famosos arahants como Śāriputra, Mahākāśyapa, Maudgalyayana, Mahākātyāyana y Ānanda.

Khema

Khema was a Buddhist bhikkhuni, or nun, who was one of the top female disciples of the Buddha. She is considered the first of the Buddha’s two chief female disciples, along with Uppalavanna. Khema was born into the royal family of the ancient Kingdom of Madra, and was the wife of King Bimbisara of the ancient Indian kingdom of Magadha. Khema was convinced to visit the Buddha by her husband, who hired poets to sing about the beauty of the monastery he was staying at to her. She attained enlightenment as a laywoman while listening to one of the Buddha’s sermons, considered a rare feat in Buddhist texts. Following her attainment, Khema entered the monastic life under the Buddha as a bhikkhuni. According to Buddhist tradition, the Buddha declared her his female disciple foremost in wisdom. Her male counterpart was Sariputta.

Uppalavanna

Uppalavanna was a Buddhist bhikkhuni, or nun, who was considered one of the top female disciples of the Buddha. She is considered the second of the Buddha’s two chief female disciples, along with Khema. She was given the name Uppalavanna, meaning «color of a blue water lily», at birth due to the bluish color of her skin.

Nanda (half-brother of Buddha)

Prince Nanda Shakya, also known as Sundarananda Shakya, was the younger half-brother of Gautama Buddha. He shared the same father as Buddha, King Śuddhodana, and his mother, Mahapajapati Gotami, was the Buddha’s mother’s younger sister. Nanda also had a own sister named Sundari Nanda.

Anathapindika

Anathapindika fue un rico comerciante y banquero, considerado el comerciante más rico de Savatthi en la época de Gautama Buda. Nacido como Sudatta, recibió el apodo de Anathapindika, que significa literalmente «el que da limosnas (pinda) a los desamparados (a-natha)», debido a su reputación de amar ayudar a los necesitados. Fundó el Monasterio Jetavana en Savatthi, considerado uno de los dos templos más importantes en la época del Buda histórico, junto con el templo Migāramātupāsāda. Anathapindika fue el principal discípulo laico masculino y el mayor patrocinador de Gautama Buda, junto con su contraparte femenina, Visakha. Es conocido como el discípulo laico masculino del Buda que se destacó por su generosidad. Anathapindika es frecuentemente referido como Anathapindika-setthi, y a veces se le llama Mahā Anāthapindika para distinguirlo de Cūla Anāthapindika, otro discípulo del Buda.

Ānanda

Ānanda was the primary attendant of the Buddha and one of his ten principal disciples. Among the Buddha’s many disciples, Ānanda stood out for having the best memory. Most of the texts of the early Buddhist Sutta-Piṭaka are attributed to his recollection of the Buddha’s teachings during the First Buddhist Council. For that reason, he is known as the Treasurer of the Dhamma, with Dhamma referring to the Buddha’s teaching. In Early Buddhist Texts, Ānanda was the first cousin of the Buddha. Although the early texts do not agree on many parts of Ānanda’s early life, they do agree that Ānanda was ordained as a monk and that Puṇṇa Mantāniputta became his teacher. Twenty years in the Buddha’s ministry, Ānanda became the attendant of the Buddha, when the Buddha selected him for this task. Ānanda performed his duties with great devotion and care, and acted as an intermediary between the Buddha and the laypeople, as well as the saṅgha. He accompanied the Buddha for the rest of his life, acting not only as an assistant, but also a secretary and a mouthpiece.

Yaśodharā

Yaśodharā was the wife of Prince Siddhartha — until he left his home to become a śramaṇa— the mother of Rāhula, and the sister of Devadatta.

She later became a Buddhist Nun and is considered an arahatā. (or Lady Arhat).

Katyayana (Buddhist)

Kātyāyana or Mahākātyāyana was a disciple of Gautama Buddha. He is listed as one of the ten principal disciples and was foremost in expanding on and explaining brief statements of the Buddha.

Anuruddha

Anuruddha was one of the ten principal disciples and a cousin of Gautama Buddha.

Anuruddha is depicted in the Pali Canon as an affectionate and loyal bhikkhu, and stood near the Buddha in assembly.

At one point, when the Buddha was disappointed with the arguments of the monks at Kosambi, he retreated to Pacinavamsadaya to stay with Anuruddha.

In many texts, even when many distinguished monks were present, Anuruddha is often the recipient of the Buddha’s questions, and answers on behalf of the sangha.

Upāli

Upāli was a monk, one of the ten chief disciples of the Buddha and, according to early Buddhist texts, the person in charge of the reciting and reviewing of monastic discipline on the First Buddhist Council. Upāli was born a low-caste barber. He met the Buddha when still a child, and later, when the Sakya princes received ordination, he did so as well. He was ordained before the princes, putting humility before caste. Having been ordained, Upāli learnt both Buddhist doctrine and vinaya. His preceptor was Kappitaka. Upāli became known for his mastery and strictness of vinaya and was consulted often about vinaya matters. A notable case he decided was that of the monk Ajjuka, who was accused of partisanship in a conflict about real estate. During the First Council, Upāli received the important role of reciting the vinaya, for which he is mostly known.

Bhadda Kapilani

Bhadda Kapilani was a Buddhist bhikkhuni and a leading disciple of Gautama Buddha. She came of a Brahman family of the Kosiya clan at Sagala, modern day Sialkot in Punjab, Pakistan. Among the bhikkhunis she was regarded as the foremost in analysing the previous reincarnations of beings and their previous karma, as described in the Jataka of the Pali Canon. Before they both entered the sangha, she was the wife of Mahakassapa, the arahant who led the sangha after the paranibbana of the Buddha and his two chief disciples Sariputta and Mahamoggallana.

Bhadda Kundalakesa

Bhadda Kundalakesa was a former Jain ascetic who was converted to Buddhism by Sariputra, one of the two chief disciples of Gautama Buddha.

She attained arahantship faster than any other nun and lived in the 6th century BCE in what is now Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in India.

Sīvali

Sīvali is an arhat widely venerated among Theravada Buddhists. He is the patron saint of travel and is believed to ward off misfortunes at home such as fire or theft. His veneration predates the introduction of Theravada Buddhism into Burma.

Śāriputra

Śāriputra was one of the top disciples of the Buddha. He is considered the first of the Buddha’s two chief male disciples, together with Maudgalyāyana. Śāriputra had a key leadership role in the ministry of the Buddha and is considered in many Buddhist schools to have been important in the development of the Buddhist Abhidharma. He frequently appears in Mahayana sutras, and in some sutras, is used as a counterpoint to represent the Hinayana school of Buddhism.

Kaundinya

Kaundinya, also known as Ājñātakauṇḍinya, Pali: Añña Koṇḍañña),who was one of the first five Buddhist monks (Pancavaggiya), follower of Gautama Buddha and the first to become an arhat. He lived during the 6th century BCE in what are now Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, India. According to traditional accounts, at the time of Gautama Buddha’s birth, he predicted his future destination as an enlightened teacher.

Puṇṇa Mantānīputta

Pūrṇa Maitrāyanīputra, also simply known as Pūrṇa, was an arhat and one of the ten principal disciples of Gautama Buddha, foremost in preaching the dharma.

Patacara

Paṭacārā or Patachara was a notable female figure in Buddhism, described in the Pali Canon. Among the female disciples of Gautama Buddha, she was the foremost exponent of the Vinaya, the rules of monastic discipline. She lived during the 6th century BCE in what is now Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in India. The story of childbirth and loss below has been attributed to Patacara in some Buddhist texts and in others has been attributed to another woman, Kisa Gotami

Dabba Mallaputta

Dabba Mallaputta was a disciple of Gautama Buddha, distinguished by his youth and his service to the Sangha. At the age of seven he became an arahant and was accepted into the early Buddhist community as a monk. He died at an early age after demonstrating a variety of supernatural abilities.

Jīvaka

Jīvaka was the personal physician of the Buddha and the Indian King Bimbisāra.

He lived in Rājagṛha, present-day Rajgir, in the 6th–5th century BCE.

Sometimes described as the «Medicine King», he figures prominently in legendary accounts in Asia as a model healer, and is honoured as such by traditional healers in several Asian countries.

Mahākāśyapa

Mahā Kāśyapa or Mahākāśyapa was one of the principal disciples of Gautama Buddha. He is regarded in Buddhism as an enlightened disciple, being foremost in ascetic practice. Mahākāśyapa assumed leadership of the monastic community following the paranirvāṇa (death) of the Buddha, presiding over the First Buddhist Council. He was considered to be the first patriarch in a number of early Buddhist schools and continued to have an important role as patriarch in the Chan and Zen traditions. In Buddhist texts, he assumed many identities, that of a renunciant saint, a lawgiver, an anti-establishment figure, but also a «guarantor of future justice» in the time of Maitreya, the future Buddha—he has been described as «both the anchorite and the friend of mankind, even of the outcast».

Kisa Gotami

Kisa Gotami was the wife of a wealthy man of Savatthi. Her story is one of the most famous ones in Buddhism. After losing her only child, Kisa Gotami became desperate and asked if anyone could help her. Her sorrow was so great that many thought she had lost her mind. An old man told her to see the Buddha. The Buddha told her that he could bring the child back to life if she could find white mustard seeds from a family where no one had died. She desperately went from house to house, but to her disappointment, she could not find a house that had not suffered the death of a family member. Finally the realization struck her that there is no house free from mortality. She returned to the Buddha, who comforted her and preached to her the truth. She was awakened and entered the first stage of enlightenment. Eventually, she became an Arahat.

Citta (disciple)

Upāsaka Citta was one of the chief male lay disciples of the Buddha, along with Hatthaka of Alavi. He is considered the lay disciple of the Buddha who was foremost in teaching the Dharma. He was a wealthy merchant from Savatthi. It is said his life and character were so pure that near his death, if he had wished to be a Chakravarti, or universal monarch, it would’ve been granted. However, he turned down this wish as it was temporal. He had become an Anāgāmi or Non-Returner.

Hatthaka of Alavi

Hastaka Āṭavaka, also known as Hastaka of Āṭavī, was one of the chief lay male disciples of the Buddha, along with Citta. He was enlightened as an Anāgāmi or Non-Returner. Hastaka is considered the lay disciple of the Buddha who was foremost in gathering a following using the «four bases of sympathy» and was known for his ability to bring others to Buddhism.

Sujata (milkmaid)

Sujata, also Sujātā, was a farmer’s wife, who is said to have fed Gautama Buddha a bowl of kheera, a milk-rice pudding, ending his six years of asceticism. Such was his emaciated appearance that she wrongly believed him to be a tree-spirit that had granted her wish of having a child. The gift provided him enough strength to cultivate the Middle Path, develop jhana, and attain Bodhi, thereafter becoming known as the Buddha.

Ten principal disciples

The ten principal disciples were the main disciples of Gautama Buddha. Depending on the scripture, the disciples included in this group vary. In many Mahāyāna discourses, these ten disciples are mentioned, but in differing order. The ten disciples can be found as an iconographic group in notable places in the Mogao Caves. They are mentioned in Chinese texts from the fourth century BCE until the twelfth century CE, and are the most honored of the groups of disciples, especially so in China and Central Asia. The ten disciples are mentioned in the Mahāyāna text Vimalakīrti-nideśa, among others. In this text, they are called the «Ten Wise Ones», a term which is normally used for the disciples of Confucius.

Trapusa and Bahalika

Trapusa and Bahalika are attributed to be the first two lay disciples of the Buddha. The first account of Trapusa and Bahalika appears in the Vinaya section of the Tripiṭaka where they offer the Buddha his first meal after enlightenment, take refuge in the Dharma, and become the Buddha’s first disciples. Xuanzang says that Buddhism was brought to Central Asia by Trapusa and Bahalika two merchants who offered food to the Buddha after his enlightenment.

Khujjuttara

Khujjuttarā was one of the Buddha’s foremost female lay disciples.

According to commentaries of the Pāli Canon, Khujjuttara was a servant to one of the queens of King Udena of Kosambi named Samavati.

Since the queen was unable to go listen to the Buddha, she sent Khujjuttarā who went instead and became so adept that she was able to memorize the teachings and teach the queen and her 500 ladies in waiting.

From these discourses of the Buddha, Khujjuttarā, Queen Samavati and the queen’s 500 ladies in waiting all obtained the fruit of the first stage of Enlightenment

Visakha

Visakha, also known as Migāramāta, was a wealthy aristocratic woman who lived during the time of Gautama Buddha. She is considered to have been the chief female patron of the Buddha. Visakha founded the temple Migāramātupāsāda in Savatthi, considered one of the two most important temples in the time of the historic Buddha, the other being Jetavana Monastery.

Samavati

Samavati was one of the queens of King Udena of Kosambi. Her servant Khujjuttara became a foremost female lay disciple when she sent her to hear the Buddha’s teachings and tell her about the teachings. Samavati became so gladdened by Khujjuttara’s discourse, she invited Buddha and his monks regularly to the palace to preach the Dharma to her and her 500 ladies in waiting. She became the foremost disciple in loving kindness and compassion.