The Past Endeavor of Kanakavarṇa

In The Past Endeavor of Kanakavarṇa the Buddha Śākyamuni illustrates the power of generosity by narrating a distant past life as a magnanimous king named Kanakavarṇa, who ruled over the entire continent of Jambudvīpa. While faced with a devastating famine, this bodhisattva king decided to offer the last bit of food left in Jambudvīpa‍—which had been kept especially for him‍—to a pratyekabuddha who had come to his palace begging for alms. As a result of King Kanakavarṇa’s selfless gift, the whole continent was miraculously showered with all possible foods and goods, and the people of Jambudvīpa were saved. In addition to this immediate fruit of the king’s meritorious deed, a further fruit of the king’s good deed is implied when the Buddha discloses King Kanakavarṇa’s identity at the end of the story. The king’s generosity would reach full karmic fruition in his perfect awakening in a future life as the Buddha Śākyamuni.