Here is an example of another lay arahant Paññāvimutta. Uggasena became an arahant while he was still on top of a pole!
Give up the past, future and the present to attain liberation
The background story of the 348th verse, which is the fifteenth verse of the Tanhā vagga is about a skilful acrobat named Uggasena who became an Arahant after listening to a short discourse from the Buddha.
At one time the Buddha was staying at the Jetavana monastery in Sāvatti which was donated to the Buddha by the chief benefactor Anāthapindika.
At that time, a touring theatre group of five hundred dancers and a few acrobats visited the city of Rajagaha and presented a performance on the grounds of the royal palace of King Bimbisara. They performed continuously for seven days. One of the dancers who was the daughter of an acrobat sang and danced on top of a long bamboo pole. In the audience was a young man named Uggasena who was the son of a wealthy man in Rajagaha. When he saw the daughter of the acrobat singing and dancing, he became infatuated and fell in love with her. When he went home, he told his parents that he wanted to marry the daughter of the acrobat. They tried to dissuade him by offering to find a suitable young lady for him from a wealthy family of similar status to them. But Uggasena insisted that he would live only if he could marry the Acrobat’s daughter. Unable to get his son to change his mind, the father contacted the acrobat and offered money to allow his daughter to be married to Uggasena. The acrobat insisted that he would let Uggasena marry his daughter only if Uggasena was prepared to travel around with the group of dancers and acrobats. Uggasena agreed and having married the acrobat’s daughter travelled with the group from place to place. As he could not dance or perform any acrobatics, he did some menial work for the group such as driving their carts and carrying their luggage.
In due course, Uggasena’s wife gave birth to a baby son. His wife used to cuddle the baby by singing a song to humiliate her husband. The song contained certain mocking phrases such as:
“Please go to sleep, the son of the man who can only watch over the carts.”
“Please go to sleep, the son of the man who can only carry the luggage.”
“Please go to sleep, the son of the ignorant man who can do nothing.”
When Uggasena heard this song which was repeatedly sung by his wife, he became upset and depressed. It made him decide to learn acrobatics and requested his father-in-law, the acrobat, to teach him acrobatics. He studied the art of acrobatics earnestly and within one year became an expert acrobat. He then went around villages and towns performing his acrobatics and during his tour arrived back in his native city of Rajagaha. He made a public announcement that in seven days he will stage a show in which he will perform his acrobatics including somersaults.
On the appointed day, a large number of people assembled to watch his acrobatics and gathered around the stage that was set up for his performance. A long bamboo pole was put up for him to climb and do his acrobatics. He climbed the long bamboo pole and stood on it to begin his acrobatics and the people were eagerly waiting to see his somersaults.
Early in the morning on that day, the Buddha, through great compassion for the world, was surveying the world to see who could be helped that day to benefit from the Buddhist spiritual path of liberation from suffering. Uggasena appeared in the Buddha’s super normal vision and the Buddha knew that Uggasena had the potential to eradicate all his mental defilements and attain enlightenment on that day itself. While Uggasena was just about to perform his acrobatics, the Buddha accompanied by monks entered the city for the regular alms round. Uggasena began his acrobatic show and made seven somersaults in the air and stood back on top of the pole attracting great admiration from the audience. As the Buddha arrived where Uggasena was doing his acrobatic performance, the Buddha determined supernormal power that the audience would pay exclusive attention to the Buddha instead of applauding Uggasena. When Uggasena noticed that the audience was neglecting him and was paying all their attention to the Buddha, he felt downhearted and depressed.
At that moment, the Buddha addressed Uggasena and said to him:
“Uggasena, a wise man should give up all attachment to the five aggregates of clinging and strive to gain liberation from the cycle of birth and death.”
Then the Buddha recited the following verse which is recorded as the 348th verse of the Dhammapada.
“Muñca pure muñca pacchato,
majjhe muñca bhavassa pāragū,
sabbattha vimuttamānaso,
na punaṁ jāti jaraṁ upehisi.”
“Give up the past, give up the future,
give up the present, after crossing all existence,
by freeing yourself from all attachments,
you will not return to birth and decay.”
At the end of the discourse, Uggasena, still on top of the pole, attained Arahatship. He came down and was soon admitted to the Order by the Buddha.