Bhusuku (Shantideva)
(From the text "Caturasiti-siddha-pravrtti" {Grub thob brgyad cu rtsa bzhi'i lo rgyus}by Abhayadatta, translated by Keith Dowman)
The younger son of a royal family came to the famed monastic academy of Sri Nalanda to be ordained in the mahasanghika order. But he had been much pampered as a child, and he found it not only difficult but unreasonable to give up his former ways. While his fellow monks studied, he lazed in bed. While his fellow monks spent hours in meditation, he strolled about the gardens of the monastery for the sake of his digestion. His other greatest pleasure was mealtime, where he savored every grain of his five measures of rice.
His lazy ways irritated his peers beyond belief, and they took to calling him Bhusuku, "The Shiftless One". They gossiped about him remorselessly behind his back, said equally rude things to his face, and dearly hoped he would soon meet his comeuppance.
It was the custom at Nalanda that scriptures were read around the clock, morning, noon, and night, in every one season and out the other. To maintain this tradition, each monk took his turn sitting upon the temple throne under the monks' canopy reciting his memorized portion of the sutras. Every one took his turn, without exception, except of course Bhusuku. As he had managed to memorize nothing, he often missed his turn. The accumulated annoyance and enmity that arose from this was surprising in so holy as institution.
Finally, Bhusuku's scandalous behavior earned him a severe warning from the abbot. He was told that unless he mended his ways and took his turn on the rota like everyone else, he would be expelled from the monastery. Quite a number of monks smirked behind their hands at this, evidently hoping for the worst possible outcome.
"But I've broken no vow," Bhusuku argued in his own defense. "I'm simply a bad scholar. Is that any reason for expelling me?"
The abbot was adamant. Tomorrow morning bright and early his turn came up. If he missed his recitation this time, he was out on his ear. The monks were delighted, and a good deal of petty gossip flew about concerning the imminent downfall of a certain good-for-nothing lazybones.
Despite his warning, however, the abbot was a very kindly man, and he had a soft spot for the miscreant. That night, after everyone had gone to bed to dream of the glorious comedy to come on the morrow, the abbot came to Bhusuku's cell to give him some advice.
"Well, my son," said the abbot, "you've gotten yourself into a pretty pickle. You've spent so much time pandering to your stomach and being a slugbed, you've not managed to learn so much as half as a dozen lines of any one sutra. You will certainly fail tomorrow unless you follow my counsel."
Bhusuku prostrated himself at the abbot's feet and begged for his help. "Anything, sir. Just name it. I'll do it."
"Very well," said the abbot, adding sternly, "but it means you'll get no sleep tonight."
"Even that, sir," said the chastened monk.
"The only hope for you," said the abbot, "is to spend the night reciting the mantra of Manjusri, the Bodhisattva for Intellect. You must recite the arapacana mantra until cockcrow, and hope for the best." He then gave Bhusuku the secret precepts of Manjusri's sadhana, and the blessing of the mantra, and left the repentant one to his task.
Knowing his own weaknesses well, Bhusuku took the precaution of tying the collar of his robe to the ceiling by a stout cord lest he nod off during the night. And all night long he recited the mantra the abbot had taught him - over and over again until he was in a stupor of fatigue.
Just before the dawn, his cell was suddenly flooded with light. Bhusuku jerked awake and decided it must be sunup, and here he was, not one whit wiser than he'd been the night before. Just then, a great voice boomed from the ceiling, "What do you think you're doing?"
Looking up, the exhausted monk saw an enormous figure floating in the air above his head. "I am invoking the aid of Lord Manjusri to help me recite a sutra this very day, and I have learned none. But, who are you, and what do you want of me?"