What does it mean in Bhikkhu Bodhi's *Life of the Buddha* when he describes Maha Maya as being possessed of the five kāmaguṇa
Upvote:1
Without any scholarly investigation of the text, my impression is the text says:
When the bodhisatta entered her womb, her mind was without any thoughts of the sight, smell, sound, taste or touch of a man.
Upon knowing she was pregnant, she was gratified with thoughts of sights, sounds, smells, tastes and touches associated with pregnancy.
In other words, a man may foolishly think a woman loves him but, in reality, a woman is primarily interested in getting pregnant & her offspring.
Upvote:4
When the Bodhisatta had descended into his mother's womb, no thought of man associated with the five strands of sensual desires came to her at all, and she was inaccessible to any man with lustful mind.
It means after she was pregnant, while B. was in her womb, she did not have lustful thoughts, therefore she would not have had any sexual activity during that time of her pregnancy.
When the Bodhisatta had descended into his mother's womb, she at the same time possessed the five strands of sensual desires; and being endowed and furnished with them, she was gratified in them.
Here is every reference to 5kg kama guna in the suttas: https://lucid24.org/sted/5kg/index.html
You can see how it's used in both a negative sense, and positive sense. The negative sense is that one attached to 5kg, such as food, music, sex, will continue to rebirth in samasara infinitely. The positive sense, such as a king enjoying 5kg, or the devas enjoying 5kg, means that they're enjoying food, sex, music, etc., obtained in an ethical way that doesn't harm others.
Another aspect of this that confuses me is what is meant by "she was gratified in them"?
So it means the Buddha's mother, while pregnant, enjoyed food, music, etc., and probably didn't experience the typical pains of pregnancy.
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