The Renunciation of the Bodhisatva : หน้า 154/263

"Oh! When will I be able to leave this prosperous Mithila with its castles and towers, abundance of the four requisites?" The bodhisatva thought in this way for four months before he was able to fulfill his renunciation. Such thinking can be referred to as 'the intention to remove oneself from sensual desire'. When the bodhisatva had renounced the world to live in the forest, he meditated upon a kasiṇa until being able to develop mental powers [abhiññā] together with the intention to remove himself both from vengefulness and aggression. At that time, the bodhisatva would have developed Right Intention at the mundane level. In addition, any mood which leads us to think in a way which is unwholesome — to intend to have unwholesome deeds, words or thoughts — can also be considered to be a sign of False Intention. On the contrary, any intention to have wholesome deeds, words or thoughts can be considered as Right Intention. A good illustrative example is that of King Dhammāsoka of Pātaliputta. The king was very powerful and his reputation spread far and wide. According to the Dhammāsoka Jātaka, the angelic host even recognized his power bringing him gifts from the Himavanta Forest¹. Some of the angels would collect seven containers of water for him daily from the Anodāta Pool². Minor birds would bring him the daily equivalent of 9,000 cartloads of rice from the Chaddanta Pool. The king used to practise generosity with his wealth ¹. The Himavanta Forest on a huge mountain range to the north of India — known as the Himalayas in the present day. ². The Anodāta Pool is one of the seven pools found in the Himavanta Forest.