The Parable of the Strict Father

The Buddha said to Kasyapa: "An illustration, oh good man! The king, the minister and the prime minister may wish to promote their sons who are perfect in countenance and sharped in intellect. One of those fathers takes one, two, three, four sons and forwards them to a strict teacher and tells him: 'Please, teach my sons deportment, good behavior, arts, writing and reckoning. These my four sons will study under your guidance. Even if three of my sons die under the rigor of the teaching, teach the last through whatever means that you may think fit. I may lose the three, but I shall not be ashamed’. Oh Kasyapa! Are the father and the teacher responsible for the deaths?"

"No, oh World Honored One! Why not? Because a love feeling was at the bottom [of their actions]. What exist is accomplishment desire, but not an evil thought. Such teachings will be well administered, and its extension will be limitless."

"Oh good man! The same is the case with the Tathagata. He looks at those who transgress the Dharma as he looks at his only son. Now, the Tathagata entrusts the unsurpassed Wonderful Dharma to the hands of kings, ministers, prime ministers, bhiksus, bhiksunis, upasakas and upasikas. All of these kings, ministers, and the four classes of Buddhist Sangha will encourage those who practice the Buddhist teachings and enable them gradually to comply the moral precepts, practice meditation and wisdom. If there are someone who fails in these three phases of Dharma and if there are those who are indolent and who break the moral precepts; the kings, ministers, and the four classes of the Buddhist Sangha will work hard and recover such people. Oh good man! Could all these kings, ministers, and the four classes of the Buddhist Sangha be blamed or not? "

"No, indeed, oh World Honored One!"

"Oh good man! These kings, ministers and the four classes of the Buddhist Sangha cannot be blamed. How could the Tathagata be guilty? Oh good man! The Tathagata well observes everything with such impartiality, looking upon all people as were his only son. Is called practitioner of the Way, one who practises the all-equal mind of a Bodhisattva and one who possesses a mind that loves an only son. Oh good man! The Bodhisattva, practicing thus, will get a long life and will be able to see what took place in the past."

Read More on the Nirvana Sutra - Chapter 4 – On Long Life.