Question

Why was Kisa Gotami in so much grief? What did she learn in the end?

Hint:

When answering from Buddha’s story, always stress the moral lesson: acceptance of death as a universal truth and freedom from attachment.

Answer 1

Step 1: Reason for grief.
Kisa Gotami, a young mother, was devastated after the sudden death of her only son. Her grief was unbearable, and she wandered from house to house carrying the dead child, pleading for medicine to bring him back to life. People thought she had lost her senses because of her sorrow.
Step 2: Meeting Buddha.
Finally, someone advised her to go to Lord Buddha, who might help her. Buddha, instead of giving her medicine, asked her to bring a handful of mustard seeds from a house where no one had ever died. Kisa Gotami eagerly began her search but soon realized that there was not a single house untouched by death. Every family had lost a loved one.
Step 3: The lesson she learned.
Through this experience, Kisa Gotami understood that death is universal and inevitable. She realized that no one can escape the cycle of life and death. Her personal grief transformed into wisdom, and she learned to accept the truth of mortality with courage.
Step 4: Conclusion.
Thus, Kisa Gotami’s unbearable grief turned into an understanding of the universal law of nature—that death comes to all, and attachment only brings sorrow. Buddha’s teaching helped her overcome her pain.
% Final Answer Final Answer:
Kisa Gotami was in grief because of the death of her only son. In the end, she learned from Buddha that death is a natural truth and no one can escape it.