The famous god Sakka and the god Vessavana have beautiful daughters named Lata, Sajja, Pavara, Acchimukhi, and Suta. They shine due to their good qualities.

One day, these five daughters went to a magnificent river near the Himalayan Mountains to bathe. The water of the river was very cool and full of blue lotuses. These goddesses bathed in that river and sang and danced.

Goddess Suta:

Dear Lata, your skin is the color of gold, you are wearing lotus garlands decorated with golden flowers, and you have beautiful copper colored eyes. You are as beautiful as the clear sky. You will also live here for a very long time.

Please tell us, dear Lata, what kind of meritorious actions did you do in your past life to get all these wonderful things?

Fortunate sister, how were you so pleasing to your husband? Your beauty is magnificent. You are a very talented dancer and singer. Many gods and goddesses are eager to know your past meritorious deeds.

Goddess Lata:

In my previous life, I lived in the human world. I was a daughter-in-law in a very rich family. I was very obedient to my husband and never got angry at him. I was dedicated in observing the Eight Precepts. I was an honest and virtuous wife from a young age. I always made my husband happy and I tried my best to help my parents-in-law, my brother-in-law, and the servants. That is how I collected merit.

Due to those wholesome actions, I have received great divine long life, beauty, happiness, and strength. I live very happily enjoying divine entertainment.

Goddess Suta:

Sisters, haven’t you heard about these meritorious deeds that Lata described? She explained it to us very well. Being virtuous wives we certainly know the value of husbands. We treated our husbands like gods. Since we respected our husbands, we were able to be loyal wives to them as Lata did. Those were the meritorious lives we lived which led us to this heaven.

A brave lion that lives in a mountain forest hunts weak animals and eats their flesh. So too, if a wife leads a virtuous life as a devoted disciple of the Buddha, is loyal to her husband, and controls her anger and greed, then such a wife enjoys a heavenly rebirth.