Buddhist picture book: The young monk who saved the ants

The story goes that there was a young monk who was supposed to have only seven days left to live so his master allowed him to come home for his passing.

Unexpectedly, he was alive and happily returned to the pagoda after eight days. How could he manage to escape death that time?

Read the story below to find out.

Once upon a time, at one pagoda lived a senior monk who had attained enlightenment and a young novice monk.

The other day, the senior monk learned that the novice would pass away seven days later. Therefore, he told the young monk: “I will let you visit your home for one week.”

The senior monk wanted the novice to be with his parents when he died.

The young novice happily headed home. Along the way, he had to wade across a stream. Just then, it started to rain so heavily that he could not continue.

Standing by the bank and looking down at the rushing water, he saw a swarm of ants crawling in panic on a log amid the raging water.

He determined to wade into the stream and pull the log to the bank to save the ant swarm.

Afterward, when it stopped raining and the water calmed down, he crossed the stream to go home.

He enjoyed a very happy week at home with his parents.

When the week was over, he came back to the pagoda.

The senior monk was very astonished to see him return. Not only was he still alive and healthy but his appearance also improved.

The senior monk asked:

- Did you do any good deed when you came home?

The novice answered:

- Dear Master, I did not do any good deed.

The senior kept asking:

- Think again carefully and tell me what happened.

The young monk remembered:

- Dear Master! On the way home, I got caught in a heavy rain by a stream and rescued a big swarm of ants.

The senior monk said:

- Back then, I knew that you only had one week left to live, so I let you come home. It was thanks to your good deed of saving thousands of ants that prolonged your longevity. Congratulations! Cultivate yourself more diligently, will you?

Following the master's teachings, the novice diligently cultivated himself and lived a very long life.

This story teaches us that diligently practicing the Buddha Dharma and doing good deeds will earn us merits that protect us from death and extend our longevity. So, let us do good deeds and accumulate merits to have good things in life.

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