Q. What is the difference between an arahant and a bodhisatta?
Luang Ta: An arahant [or someone on the arahant path] is primarily concerned with himself [i.e. his enlightenment] first. A bodhisatta on the other hand must be more far-sighted, everything he does is about creating merit, cultivating virtue and perfecting parami.
It is like being a long-term businessman.
The bodhisatta thinks, how can I convince everyone to come and cultivate with me? [What sales tactics should I use?] But instead of money, they think abut merit. They wake up in the morning, and they start thinking about how to merit-maximise [vs profit-maximise].
To those with the divine eye, the bodhisatta has a kind of a distant, twinkling glimmer from far away. The arahant on the other hand, has a strong, clear and radiant brightness, but just like the morning star (Venus), it does not glitter or sparkle. In contrast, a bodhisatta's aura possesses a multifaceted hue of vibrant colors (แสงหลายสี).
When the bodhisatta wakes up in the morning, a thought occurs to him. Where shall I make merit and who shall I benefit today? But when a person practising towards arahantship wakes up, he is not primarily concerned about merit. Because he is unattached to such things, and is focused on his own cultivation and meditation first.
Some bodhisattas might never appear to be meditating or cultivating, but their actions show that they are always working for the welfare of other beings, always concerned about the troubles of others, caring and thinking of them.
Luang Ta Ma Wiriyatharo
Wat Tham Muang Na
Chiang Mai Province
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