[Buddha-l] Re: Of Buddha, Miracles, and Ferry Rides

[Mitchell Ginsberg]

From: "bclough" <bclough at aucegypt.edu>
Subject: Of Buddha, Miracles, and Ferry Rides
Searching for the source:
Somewhere (Conze's *Buddhist Scriptures* perhaps) I
read of an episode, presumably from a Pali source, of
an episode where the Buddha encounters a tapasvin on a
river bank. The tapasvin boasts that he can cross to
the other side by walking on water (or flying 
over, I can't recall which). The Buddha replies that
that's wonderful, but for a few rupees (or some such
denomination), I can pay the ferry-man and also get
across easily. (I'm paraphrasing). Does anyone
recognize this story, and know where it appears?
Many Thanks, Brad, bclough at aucegypt.edu

======
I definitely recall the story. I read that book back
in the early 1970s, so the page location (if that's
the source) does not come back to me immediately. I
will try to track the story down. There's something
pleasantly simple about the Buddha's response. I like
that even more than the one about "The miracle of my
teacher is that when hungry he eats, and when tired,
he naps." 
Btw, I see your new book as the word 'soteriology' in
it. That is presumably not problematic for you
(despite Richard's comments about the word in Land of
No Buddha). <just wondering about these things; I see
different perspectives are clearly possible...> And
how is Cairo? (a tad different from the Hudson River
Valley of Cropsey, I suppose)....
Mitchell G.

====================
http://www.geocities.com/jinavamsa/mentalhealth.html with links to 
my home page, info on The Inner Palace (3rd ed.) and The Far Shore 
(3rd ed.), further links to  psychotherapy, to my current teaching, 
to the Insight Practice (Vipassana),  Chishtiyya (Sufi), Creative 
Solutions for Peace, and Nasrudin discussion groups, and to the 
Collective Dharma Insight project.


		
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