[197] On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Sāvatthī, in Jeta's Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika's monastery. Then Queen Mallikā approached the Blessed One; having approached and paid homage to the Blessed One, she sat down to one side. Sitting to one side, Queen Mallikā said this to the Blessed One: "Venerable sir, what is the cause, what is the condition, why some woman (mātugāma) here is ugly, ill-formed, very unpleasant to behold, and is poor, possessing little, of little wealth, and of little influence? And what, venerable sir, is the cause, what is the condition, why some woman here is ugly, ill-formed, very unpleasant to behold, yet is rich, of great wealth, of great possessions, and of great influence? What, venerable sir, is the cause, what is the condition, why some woman here is beautiful, good to look upon, pleasing, endowed with supreme loveliness of complexion, yet is poor, possessing little, of little wealth, and of little influence? And what, venerable sir, is the cause, what is the condition, why some woman here is beautiful, good to look upon, pleasing, endowed with supreme loveliness of complexion, and is rich, of great wealth, of great possessions, and of great influence?"
"Here, Mallikā, some woman is angry, much given to exasperation (upāyāsabahula); even when little is said to her she takes offense, becomes angry, hostile, and obstinate, and displays anger, hatred, and displeasure. She is not a giver, to an ascetic or a brahmin, of food, drink, cloth, a vehicle, garlands, scents, and unguents, bed, lodging, and lamps. And she is envious-minded: regarding the gains, honor, respect, esteem, reverence, and veneration shown to others, she is envious, resentful, and harbors envy. If, passing away from that state, she comes back to this state of being (itthatta), then wherever she is reborn she is ugly, ill-formed, very unpleasant to behold, and is poor, possessing little, of little wealth, and of little influence.
"But here, Mallikā, some woman is angry, much given to exasperation; even when little is said to her she takes offense, becomes angry, hostile, and obstinate, and displays anger, hatred, and displeasure. Yet she is a giver, to an ascetic or a brahmin, of food, drink, cloth, a vehicle, garlands, scents, and unguents, bed, lodging, and lamps. And she is not envious-minded: regarding the gains, honor, respect, esteem, reverence, and veneration shown to others, she is not envious, not resentful, and does not harbor envy. If, passing away from that state, she comes back to this state of being, then wherever she is reborn she is ugly, ill-formed, very unpleasant to behold, yet is rich, of great wealth, of great possessions, and of great influence.
"But here, Mallikā, some woman is not angry, not much given to exasperation; even when much is said to her she does not take offense, does not become angry, hostile, or obstinate, and does not display anger, hatred, and displeasure. Yet she is not a giver, to an ascetic or a brahmin, of food, drink, cloth, a vehicle, garlands, scents, and unguents, bed, lodging, and lamps. And she is envious-minded: regarding the gains, honor, respect, esteem, reverence, and veneration shown to others, she is envious, resentful, and harbors envy. If, passing away from that state, she comes back to this state of being, then wherever she is reborn she is beautiful, good to look upon, pleasing, endowed with supreme loveliness of complexion, yet is poor, possessing little, of little wealth, and of little influence.
"But here, Mallikā, some woman is not angry, not much given to exasperation; even when much is said to her she does not take offense, does not become angry, hostile, or obstinate, and does not display anger, hatred, and displeasure. And she is a giver, to an ascetic or a brahmin, of food, drink, cloth, a vehicle, garlands, scents, and unguents, bed, lodging, and lamps. And she is not envious-minded: regarding the gains, honor, respect, esteem, reverence, and veneration shown to others, she is not envious, not resentful, and does not harbor envy. If, passing away from that state, she comes back to this state of being, then wherever she is reborn she is beautiful, good to look upon, pleasing, endowed with supreme loveliness of complexion, and is rich, of great wealth, of great possessions, and of great influence.
"This, Mallikā, is the cause, this is the condition, why some woman here is ugly, ill-formed, very unpleasant to behold, and is poor, possessing little, of little wealth, and of little influence. And this, Mallikā, is the cause, this is the condition, why some woman here is ugly, ill-formed, very unpleasant to behold, yet is rich, of great wealth, of great possessions, and of great influence. This, Mallikā, is the cause, this is the condition, why some woman here is beautiful, good to look upon, pleasing, endowed with supreme loveliness of complexion, yet is poor, possessing little, of little wealth, and of little influence. And this, Mallikā, is the cause, this is the condition, why some woman here is beautiful, good to look upon, pleasing, endowed with supreme loveliness of complexion, and is rich, of great wealth, of great possessions, and of great influence."
When this was said, Queen Mallikā said this to the Blessed One: "Surely, venerable sir, in another birth I was angry, much given to exasperation; even when little was said to me I took offense, became angry, hostile, and obstinate, and displayed anger, hatred, and displeasure — therefore, venerable sir, I am now ugly, ill-formed, very unpleasant to behold. Surely, venerable sir, in another birth I gave, to an ascetic or a brahmin, food, drink, cloth, a vehicle, garlands, scents, and unguents, bed, lodging, and lamps — therefore, venerable sir, I am now rich, of great wealth, and of great possessions. Surely, venerable sir, in another birth I was not envious-minded: regarding the gains, honor, respect, esteem, reverence, and veneration shown to others, I was not envious, not resentful, and did not harbor envy — therefore, venerable sir, I am now of great influence. There are, venerable sir, in this royal court maidens of the khattiya class, brahmin maidens, and householder maidens, and over them I exercise lordship and supreme authority. From this day forth, venerable sir, I shall not be angry, not much given to exasperation; even when much is said to me I shall not take offense, shall not become angry, hostile, or obstinate, and shall not display anger, hatred, and displeasure. I shall give, to ascetics and brahmins, food, drink, cloth, a vehicle, garlands, scents, and unguents, bed, lodging, and lamps. I shall not be envious-minded: regarding the gains, honor, respect, esteem, reverence, and veneration shown to others, I shall not be envious, shall not be resentful, and shall not harbor envy. Excellent, venerable sir! … May the Blessed One remember me as a female lay follower (upāsikā) who from this day forth has gone for refuge for as long as life lasts."
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.