From Buddhism: Agantuka

Agantuka, a banker of Savatthi who gained great wealth as a result of an offering of alms he made to a paccekabuddha in a previous birth. However, he made no use of his wealth whatsoever, as he had repented of his offering afterwards.

It is said that Agantuka, in spite of his riches, neither spent on himself nor on others, lived very frugally and went about in a broken-down old chariot, refusing any form of luxury. After death he was born in Roruva Niraya. He died without an heir and the king’s men took seven days and seven nights to remove his wealth to the palace.

On being questioned by king Pasenadi as to the cause of the miser’s wealth and his inability to enjoy it, the Buddha narrated his previous birth. Agantuka had then been born a merchant in Baranasi. On his way to the king’s court he saw the paccekabuddha Tagarasikhi begging for alms and he ordered his own meal to be offered to him. But, on his way back, seeing the choice food that was his meal in the paccekabuddha’s alms bowl, he regretted that he had not distributed it among his servants who would have done some hard work in return. The Buddha explained that as a result of his offering to the paccekabuddha, Agantuka gained much wealth, but, because he could not make his after thought pure, he was unable to enjoy it. The Buddha added that for a perfect gift, the three thoughts – before giving, while giving and after giving – should be pure.

Added for the reason why Agantuka had no son, the Buddha traced the cause to another previous birth. Agantuka had been born as younger brother to the buddhisatta in a merchant’s family. The boddhisatta led a charitable life and, seeing the futility of worldly pleasures, went to the Himalayas to lead the life of an ascetic, leaving everything including his wife and young son, to his younger brother. The latter, overcome with greed for his brother’s wealth, drowned the son in the river one day, so that he could become the sole heir. By reason of this misdeed, Agantuka had no son or daughter in way of the subsequent birth up to that time.