Yasa and His Fifty-Four Friends: 19 of 32

The Buddha preached to those five friends so that they may attain everlasting happiness. Kondanna, the wisest of the five, listened to Him very attentively and understood the whole teaching of the Buddha. All of them remained there for a short period.

While the Buddha was thus staying in the Deer Park at Isipatana, Benares, there came to see Him a rich young man of the neighbourhood, called Yasa. And after the young Yasa had heard the Buddha explain His teaching and what it led to, he was so pleased with what he heard that he became a Bhikkhu (monk) in order to hear and learn more.

But towards evening, that day, an elderly man came to where the Buddha was, and told Him that his son had left home that morning saying he was going to visit the Buddha, but he had not come home again, and his mother was crying, thinking that he must have been killed by robbers on the way. Then the Buddha told the man that his son had become a Bhikkhu and He began to explain His teaching to the new Bhikku’s father. And so well did He speak that when He had ended, the father also asked to be His follower. The Buddha made him His follower.

Yasa’s father was a millionaire and he invited the Buddha and the other six monks to take lunch in his house. The Buddha accepted the invitation and went to his house. After lunch the Buddha preached to Yasa’s mother and Yasa’s former wife.

Yasa had fifty-four friends. They also were present to see the Buddha and they saw Yasa as a monk. When they heard the preaching of the Buddha they also told the Buddha that they wanted to become monks like Yasa himself. The Buddha agreed and made them monks. In this way within a short time there were sixty monks.