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Khujjuttara, the Servant who Taught Her Queen What is Right

Khujjuttara and Somavati (detail), Wat Pho, Bangkok by Ven. Anandajoti Bhikkhu

Preface and Story

Khujjuttara was among the foremost female disciples of the Buddha who were lay followers. On one occasion, the Buddha told a group of mothers that they should encourage their daughters to become like Khujjuttara, explaining that she was “the standard and criterion” for his female lay disciples (Samyutta Nikaya 17.24; Bhikkhu Bodhi, translator, Connected Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Samyutta Nikaya (2003: 689).

The story here tells how Khujjuttara came to be “best” among the Buddha’s female lay followers who “are very learned,” and how she came to hear and remember the whole Pali canon. Indeed, a text included in the Pali canon, the Itivuttaka, was first heard by Khujjuttara and she then recited it to others, including to Ananda, the Buddha’s personal attendant. In this respect, Khujjuttara is Ananda, who recited the Buddha’s teachings at the “First Council”so they would be preserved after the Buddha’s death. It is in Ananda’s voice that sermons (sutta) begin, “Thus have I heard” (evaṃ me sutaṃ), and the Itivuttaka opens in Khujjuttara’s voice in a very similar way, “So have I heard” (iti me sutaṃ).

The story here also tells how Khujjuttara became a teacher. This part of the story can make one think of ordained persons teaching in Buddhist communities. As a mark of her new social status, Khujjuttara receives new clothes, much as someone ordained receives monastic robes, and a ceremonial seat is prepared for her. Before she begins to teach, one of her shoulders is carefully covered and she holds a ceremonial fan, similar to what Buddhist monks often do before they begin to preach.

King Udena gave Queen Samavati eight pieces of money every day for her to get flowers and it became a daily routine that a female servant of the queen named Khujjuttara would go to the garden of Sumana and buy the flowers. One day when she came, the gardener said to her, “I have invited the Buddha to be my guest and I am going to honor him by offering flowers. Wait a bit, and offer food to the Buddha with me. Stay to listen to the Dharma and then you can go, taking whatever flowers are left.” Khujjuttara agreed, saying that it sounded good. Sumana made his offerings to the Buddha and the community of monks that came with him. He took the Buddha’s bowl so that the Buddha could pronounce words of thanksgiving and blessing. The Teacher began to speak about thanksgiving and blessing. As Khujjuttara was listening to the Buddha, she entered the stream that flows to freedom.

Khujjuttara usually kept four pieces of money for herself and bought flowers with the other four; but on that day she bought flowers with all of the money and brought them back. Queen Samavati said to her, “Dear, did the king give us twice as much money today to buy flowers?” “No, Madam.” “Then why so many flowers?” “On the other days I kept four pieces of money for myself and bought the flowers only with the other four.” “Why didn’t you keep the money today?” “Because now, after hearing the Buddha teach, I know what is right.”

Queen Samavati didn’t berate Khujjuttara.she didn’t say anything like, “Unfaithful servant, give back all of the money you’ve taken all this time.” Instead, she said, “Dear, help me to experience what you have experienced, help me drink what you have drank, help me taste that which is without death.”

When Khujjuttara replied, “Have a bath prepared for me,” the queen had her bathed with sixteen bowls of scented water. The Queen had her presented with two fine new cloths. She had Khujjuttara dressed in one cloth and had the other wrapped over one of Khujjuttara’s shoulders. The queen had a seat prepared for Khujjuttara and a fan brought for her to use.

Khujjuttara sat down in the seat prepared for her, took the beautiful fan in her hand, and addressed five hundred women who had gathered. She taught the Dharma to them just as she had heard it taught by the Buddha. As the women were listening to Khujjuttara, they all entered the stream that flows to freedom.

Then they honored Khujjuttara and said, “Mother, from now on, don’t do anything unsuitable, but be a mother and a teacher to us. Go back to the Buddha and whenever he teaches, listen to everything and come back and tell us what he said”

Khujjuttara did so and eventually she knew the whole canon by heart. The Buddha even said that Khujjuttara was the best among all his female disciples who are very learned and who are able to give Dharma talks themselves.

Translated from Pali for this website by Charles Hallisey.

The story was read by Wendy Garling.

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Resources for
Reflection

There are many ways to read a text, just as there are many ways to spend time with a good friend. Included here are a variety of resources for reading and reflection. They are like conversation-starters meant to facilitate an encounter between a reader or readers and a text.

Each of the activities can be used to read any one of the stories. Additionally, the same activity can be used to read the same story on separate occasions. If you are reading alone, treat the prompts as opportunities for individual reflection, journaling, or meditation. If you are reading in community, use the prompts as jumping-off points for group discussion.

Feel free to modify any activity based on your own interests and accessibility needs, or to create your own! 

Read through the text, either silently or aloud. Then, turn your mind to the experience you just had. What is memorable for you? What was especially moving or touching? Was there anything that you found yourself resisting or something that was particularly challenging? Do you have any lingering questions? If you have a religious or spiritual practice, do you have a sense of how the text might be of benefit to that practice?

In his introduction to Stirring and Stilling: A Liturgy of Cambodian Dharma Songs, Trent Walker quotes the female Cambodian lay priest Koet Ran as saying, “Dharma songs stir us and still us if we have affinity for the Dharma” (2011, 6).

In Buddhist teaching, “stirring” (Pāli: saṃvega) refers to an unsettling experience caused by the shock of impermanence. “Stilling” (Pāli: pasāda) is a settling of the mind or heart, a feeling of resolution, joy or equanimity.

Read through the text. Then, reflect: What stirs you? What stills you?

Further reading: Walker, Trent. 2011. Stirring and Stilling: A Liturgy of Cambodian Dharma Songs, http://www.stirringandstilling.org. 

Read through the text, either silently or aloud. Then, imagine yourself into the world of the text and tell the story, or a particular moment in the story, from a different point of view. You might focus on the viewpoint of a certain character, explore something that is not explained in the text itself, or re-tell the story in your own way. This activity can be done in written form (prose, poetry, script, interview, etc.), as an embodied practice (a play, a dance), or through any other medium. Be creative!

If you are working in a group, make space for each person to share what they have created, if they wish.

Afterwards, reflect on the activity as a whole. Was it difficult or easy? Was it similar or different from ways that you usually read? Did you gain any insights? Do you have any lingering questions? 

Read through the text, either silently or aloud. Then, formulate a question about something that takes place within the world of the text. You might focus on a moment that surprised you or on something that the text does not explain fully. For this activity, the best questions are ones that do not have clear answers but have a variety of possible answers.

Brainstorm possible answers to your question, taking time to contemplate how any given answer might shift your understanding of the story. If you are working in a group, take turns sharing your questions and offering possible answers or interpretations. 

Buddhist texts come to us from times long ago, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be put in conversation with our world today. In this activity, read one of the Buddhist stories alongside a contemporary work that addresses the topic of gender.

After exploring the contemporary work, summarize or discuss key insights or impressions. Then, read the Buddhist text with attention to the ideas that you just explored. Does anything jump out to you now as you read, perhaps that you hadn’t noticed before? Do you have lingering questions about how gender appears in the text, or about how the contemporary work relates to the Buddhist text?

Some suggestions for contemporary sources on gender:

For this activity, it can be helpful to listen to the text rather than to read it. You might listen to the recording or, if you are working in a group, invite one person to read the text aloud.

As you listen to the text, close your eyes (if you feel comfortable doing so) and imagine yourself into its world. Perhaps you imagine yourself as a particular person in the story, named or unnamed, or simply as an observer.

As the story unfolds, pay attention to your sensory experiences. What do you hear? What do you smell? What do you see? What can you touch, or taste? What information about this world can you gather through your senses?

Afterwards, share your experience with your group, or use your experience as a prompt for individual reflection. Then, consider the activity as a whole. Was it difficult or easy? Was it similar or different from ways that you usually read? Did you gain any insights? Do you have any lingering questions? 

Print out the text onto a piece of paper. Then, use scissors to cut out the individual lines so that each sentence or phrase is on its own slip of paper (in the case of longer texts, choose a shorter section for this activity). Place the slips of paper on a surface with the words facing down so that you cannot see what is written on them.

If you are working alone, choose three slips of paper and place them one below the other in the order you pulled them. If you are working in a group, invite each person to choose a slip, and then place them one below the other in the order they were pulled. If your group is large, you may want to split up into groups of three to five people for this activity.

Read your new text aloud three times or invite each person in the group to read it aloud in turn. Then, reflect on the meaning of your “found poem.” What jumps out at you when you focus on these particular lines? Does the order in which they appear suggest any new meanings? Does the poem invoke new questions, surprises, or delights?

If you are working in a large group, come back together and share your “found poems” with each other. 

Read through the text, either silently or aloud. Then, take some time to reflect on what you have learned from a character in the text, named or unnamed, and to draft an expression of appreciation or gratitude for that person. You might write a letter, a poem, or choose any other medium. Feel free to be creative!

If some guidance is helpful, the following three-part blessing is a place to start:

  1. An expression of thanks (i.e., “Mahaprajapati, thank you for…”)

  2. An acknowledgement (i.e., “You have taught me…”)

  3. A wish for the future (i.e., “May the world know your teachings.”)

If you are working in a group, allow time for each person to share their expression of gratitude, if they wish. 

This activity is best done in a group.

Invite someone in your group to read the text aloud. Then, as a group, choose a particular person in the story whose perspective you will focus on for the duration of the activity. If the story is long, you may also want to choose a particular moment to explore from this person’s point of view.

As a group, brainstorm a list of emotions that you think capture something about the experience of this person (emotions are words like: joyful, awed, grieved, tired, calm, etc.). If you have a whiteboard or large piece of paper, it is helpful to write the list down or to ensure in some other way that everyone in the group has access to the list.

Break up into small groups of three or four people. In your small group, choose one word from the list and create a “body sculpture” that illustrates that emotion in some way. The sculpture should not act out the story itself; it should be a creative or associative interpretation of the word. For example, if your group chose “joyful,” you might depict a scene where a person is picking up a loved one from an airport. Make sure that everyone who wants to participate is included in the sculpture. Each body can represent a person, an object (i.e., a suitcase), an energetic force (i.e., wind), or anything else that occurs to you. Be creative! Be silly! Have fun!

Come back to the larger group and invite a small group to share their “body sculpture.” Treat this sculpture as its own sacred text. Reflect together: What do you notice? What sensations or emotions arise in you when you observe the sculpture? What insights, opportunities, surprises, or questions does it inspire? How might you incorporate these insights into your understanding of the written text?

Allow space for each group to share their “body sculpture,” if they so wish, and to reflect together on their insights and opportunities for interpretation.

Finally, reflect on the activity as a whole. Was it difficult or easy? Was it similar or different from ways that you usually read? Did you gain any insights? Do you have any lingering questions?

Further reading:

Boal, Augusto. 1992. Games for Actors and Non-Actors. Rranslated by Adrian Jackson. London: Routledge.

Rue, Victoria. 2005. Acting Religious: Theatre as Pedagogy in Religious Studies. Cleveland: The Pilgrim Press. 

This activity brings two texts in conversation with each other. You might choose texts that you have read on other occasions so that you already have some familiarity with the stories, or you could use completely new stories.

Read through each of the two texts, either silently or aloud. Then, investigate: How do these texts relate to one another? Do they offer different insights into a particular person? Does one pick up the story where the other leaves off? Does one text make you interpret the other differently? Are the moments where the texts use similar language? What insights, questions or delights arise from their juxtaposition? 

Background
Resources

  1. Udena, the king of Kosambi. Kosambi was already a Buddhist center during the lifetime of the Buddha with four monastic communities in it. The Buddha visited Kosambi a number of times and texts recording what he taught there while visiting are included in the Pali canon. Kosambi was an important city at the time of the Buddha and Ananda, the Buddha’s personal attendant, even mentions it as a place where it would be suitable for the Buddha to die.

  2. Samavati, one of King Udena’s three queens. Samavati, like Khujjuttara, is counted among the most eminent female disciples of the Buddha who were lay followers. The Buddha said that Somavati was foremost among those who lived in loving kindness (mettā). This praise of the Buddha might be recalled when reflecting on the manner in which Samavati reacted to Khujjuttara confessing that she had been stealing from her.

  1. “Dharma,” what the Buddha taught about how humans can best live in accord with the way things are.

  2. “she entered the stream that flows to freedom,” she became a “stream-enterer” (sotāpanna in Pali, śrotāpanna in Sanskrit). The term refers to someone who has attained the first of four levels of awakening. Someone who is a “stream-enterer” is one who has irreversibly entered the process of personal transformation which ultimately will end in Nirvana.

  3. “freedom,” Nirvana.

  4. “that which is without death,” i.e. Nirvana. Nirvana is free of death and anything temporal. There is a double meaning in the Pali word here, amataṃ: it means both “that which is without death” and also “nectar” or “ambrosia.”

The story about how Khujjuttara, a servant, came to be the teacher of Somavati, a queen, and her royal attendants is found in a Pali commentary on the Dhammapāda, the Dhammapada aṭṭhakathā. The Dhammapada is a collection of sayings of the Buddha in verse and it is included in the Pali canon. It is one of the best known of Buddhist scriptures. The Pali commentary on the Dhammapada was composed in Sri Lanka in about the fifth century by Buddhaghosa, one of the greatest thinkers of the Theravada Buddhist world of Sri Lanka, South India, and Southeast Asia. Buddhaghosa’s commentary provides an exegesis of each of the verses in the Dhammapada as well as stories which provide context for when each verse was said by the Buddha and interpretive background for better understanding the verse. The stories in the commentary on the Dhammapada are very important in their own right in the Theravadin world. They are included in other Pali commentaries on canonical texts and they have been much translated into some of the vernacular languages used by Theravada Buddhists, such as Sinhala in Sri Lanka. Their importance continues to the present: a novel about Samavati by Gunananda was published in Burmese in 1991.

The story of Khujjuttara and Samavati is just one part of a very long cycle of stories about King Udena, his treasurer, and his three queens; parallels to this cycle of stories in the Dhammapada commentary are found in Buddhist and Hindu stories in Sanskrit and in Tibetan Buddhist literature. This cycle of stories is the longest in the Dhammapada commentary and it has only a tenuous connection to the verses with it is connected in the commentary. Eugene Watson Burlingame provides a valuable overview of the literary parallels to the Udena cycle in the Dhammapada commentary in his Introduction to his translation of the commentary’s stories (Buddhist Legends, Vol. I, pp. 62-63). Burlingame says that parallels to some parts of the narrative cycle occur “in fact in almost all of the literatures of the worlds” (Burlingame Vol I, p. 62). 

Eugene Watson Burlingame translated all the stories in the Dhammapada commentary as Buddhist Legends Translated from the Original Pali Text of the Dhammapada Commentary (Cambridge: Harvard University Pres, 1921). Burlingame’s translation is available online, and the whole King Udena cycle in the Dhammapada commentary is available online at:
https://ancient-buddhist-texts.net/English-Texts/Buddhist-Legends/02-01.htm

An important fourteenth century Sinhala translation of the stories in the Dhammapada commentary, the Jewels of the Doctrine (Saddharmaratnāvaliya) has been partially translated into English by Ranjini Obeyesekere: Portraits of Buddhist Women: Stories from the Saddharmaratnavaliya (Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 2001). A translation of the King Udena cycle can be found on pages 21-78.

A valuable scholarly exploration of Khujjuttara as a transmitter of the words of the Buddha can be found in Maria Heim’s “She Who Heard Much: Notes on Receiving,
Interpreting, and Transmitting Buddhavacana,” International Journal of Hindu Studies 19 (2015): 139–156. It is available online at:

https://www.academia.edu/31845210/She_Who_Heard_Much_Notes_on_
Receiving_Interpreting_and_Transmitting_Buddhavacana 

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