Lakkhana Panha Chapter 1

Tipitaka >> Sutta Pitaka >> Khuddaka Nikaya >> Milindapanha >>

Translated by T. W. Rhys Davids

1. Now Milinda the king went up to where the venerable Nâgasena was, and addressed him with the greetings and compliments of friendship and courtesy, and took his seat respectfully apart. And Nâgasena reciprocated his courtesy, so that the heart of the king was propitiated.

And Milinda began by asking, 'How is your Reverence known, and what, Sir, is your name?'

'I am known as Nâgasena, O king, and it is by that name that my brethren in the faith address me. But although parents, O king, give such a name as Nâgasena, or Sûrasena, or Vîrasena, or Sîhasena, yet this, Sire,--Nâgasena and so on--is only a generally understood term, a designation in common use. For there is no permanent individuality (no soul) involved in the matter .'

Then Milinda called upon the Yonakas and the brethren to witness: 'This Nâgasena says there is no permanent individuality (no soul) implied in his name. Is it now even possible to approve him in that?' And turning to Nâgasena, he said: 'If, most reverend Nâgasena, there be no permanent individuality (no soul) involved in the matter, who is it, pray, who gives to you members of the Order your robes and food and lodging and necessaries for the sick? Who is it who enjoys such things when given? Who is it who lives a life of righteousness? Who is it who devotes himself to meditation? Who is it who attains to the goal of the Excellent Way, to the Nirvâna of Arahatship? And who is it who destroys living creatures? who is it who takes what is not his own? who is it who lives an evil life of worldly lusts, who speaks lies, who drinks strong drink, who (in a word) commits any one of the five sins which work out their bitter fruit even in this life ? If that be so there is neither merit nor demerit; there is neither doer nor causer of good or evil deeds ; there is neither fruit nor result of good or evil Karma. --If, most reverend Nâgasena, we are to think that were a man

to kill you there would be no murder, then it follows that there are no real masters or teachers in your Order, and that your ordinations are void.--You tell me that your brethren in the Order are in the habit of addressing you as Nâgasena. Now what is that Nâgasena? Do you mean to say that the hair is Nâgasena?'

'I don't say that, great king.'

'Or the hairs on the body, perhaps?'

'Certainly not.'

'Or is it the nails, the teeth, the skin, the flesh, the nerves, the bones, the marrow, the kidneys, the heart, the liver, the abdomen, the spleen, the lungs, the larger intestines, the lower intestines, the stomach, the fæces, the bile, the phlegm, the pus, the blood, the sweat, the fat, the tears, the serum, the saliva, the mucus, the oil that lubricates the joints, the urine, or the brain, or any or all of these, that is Nâgasena ?'

And to each of these he answered no.

'Is it the outward form then (Rûpa) that is Nâgasena, or the sensations (Vedanâ), or the ideas (Saññâ), or the confections (the constituent elements of character, Samkhârâ), or the consciousness (Vigññâna), that is Nâgasena ?'

And to each of these also he answered no.

'Then is it all these Skandhas combined that are Nâgasena?'

'No! great king.'

'But is there anything outside the five Skandhas that is Nâgasena?'

And still he answered no.

'Then thus, ask as I may, I can discover no Nâgasena. Nâgasena is a mere empty sound. Who then is the Nâgasena that we see before us? It is a falsehood that your reverence has spoken, an untruth!'

And the venerable Nâgasena said to Milinda the king: 'You, Sire, have been brought up in great luxury, as beseems your noble birth. If you were to walk this dry weather on the hot and sandy ground, trampling under foot the gritty, gravelly grains of the hard sand, your feet would hurt you. And as your body would be in pain, your mind would be disturbed, and you would experience a sense of bodily suffering. How then did you come, on foot, or in a chariot?'

'I did not come, Sir, on foot. I came in a carriage.'

'Then if you came, Sire, in a carriage, explain to me what that is. Is it the pole that is the chariot?'

'I did not say that.'

'Is it the axle that is the chariot?'

'Certainly not.'

'Is it the wheels, or the framework, or the ropes, or the yoke, or the spokes of the wheels, or the goad, that are the chariot?'

And to all these he still answered no.

'Then is it all these parts of it that are the chariot?'

'No, Sir.'

'But is there anything outside them that is the chariot?'

And still he answered no.

'Then thus, ask as I may, I can discover no chariot. Chariot is a mere empty sound. What then is the chariot you say you came in? It is a falsehood that your Majesty has spoken, an untruth! There is no such thing as a chariot! You are king over all India, a mighty monarch. Of whom then are you afraid that you speak untruth? And he called upon the Yonakas and the brethren to witness, saying: 'Milinda the king here has said that he came by carriage. But when asked in that case to explain what the carriage was, he is unable to establish what he averred. Is it, forsooth, possible to approve him in that?'

When he had thus spoken the five hundred Yonakas shouted their applause, and said to the king: Now let your Majesty get out of that if you can?'

And Milinda the king replied to Nâgasena, and said: 'I have spoken no untruth, reverend Sir. It is on account of its having all these things--the pole, and the axle, the wheels, and the framework, the ropes, the yoke, the spokes, and the goad--that it comes under the generally understood term, the designation in common use, of "chariot."'

'Very good! Your Majesty has rightly grasped the meaning of "chariot." And just even so it is on account of all those things you questioned me about-- the thirty-two kinds of organic matter in a human body, and the five constituent elements of being--that I come under the generally understood term, the designation in common use, of "Nâgasena."

[paragraph continues] For it was said, Sire, by our Sister Vagirâ in the presence of the Blessed One:

'"Just as it is by the condition precedent of the co-existence of its various parts that the word 'chariot' is used, just so is it that when the Skandhas are there we talk of a 'being .'"'

'Most wonderful, Nâgasena, and most strange. Well has the puzzle put to you, most difficult though it was, been solved. Were the Buddha himself here he would approve your answer. Well done, well done, Nâgasena!'

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2. 'How many years seniority have you, Nâgasena?'

'Seven, your Majesty.'

'But how can you say it is your "seven?" Is it you who are "seven," or the number that is "seven?"'

Now that moment the figure of the king, decked in all the finery of his royal ornaments, cast its shadow on the ground, and was reflected in a vessel of water. And Nâgasena asked him: 'Your figure, O king, is now shadowed upon the ground, and reflected in the water, how now, are you the king, or is the reflection the king?'

'I am the king, Nâgasena, but the shadow comes into existence because of me.'

'Just even so, O king, the number of the years is seven, I am not seven. But it is because of me, O king, that the number seven has come into existence; and it is mine in the same sense as the shadow is yours .'

'Most wonderful again, and strange, Nâgasena. Well has the question put to you, most difficult though it was, been solved!'

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3. The king said: 'Reverend Sir, will you discuss with me again?'

'If your Majesty will discuss as a scholar (pandit), well; but if you will discuss as a king, no.'

'How is it then that scholars discuss?'

'When scholars talk a matter over one with another then is there a winding up, an unravelling; one or other is convicted of error , and he then acknowledges his mistake; distinctions are drawn, and contra-distinctions ; and yet thereby they are not angered. Thus do scholars, O king, discuss.'

'And how do kings discuss?'

'When a king, your Majesty, discusses a matter, and he advances a point, if any one differ from him on that point, he is apt to fine him, saying: "Inflict such and such a punishment upon that fellow!" Thus, your Majesty, do kings discuss .'

'Very well. It is as a scholar, not as a king, that I will discuss. Let your reverence talk unrestrainedly, as you would with a brother, or a novice, or a lay disciple, or even with a servant. Be not afraid!'

'Very good, your Majesty,' said Nâgasena, with thankfulness.

'Nâgasena, I have a question to ask you;' said the king.

'Pray ask it, Sire.'

'I have asked it, your Reverence.'

'That is answered already.'

'What have you answered?'

'To what, then, does your Majesty refer?'

But Milinda the king thought: 'This Bhikkhu is a great scholar. He is quite capable of discussing things with me. And I shall have a number of points on which to question him, and before I can ask them all, the sun will set. It would be better to carry on the discussion at home to-morrow.' And he said to Devamantiya: 'You may let his reverence know that the discussion with the king shall be resumed to-morrow at the palace.' And so saying, he took leave of Nâgasena, and mounted his horse, and went away, muttering as he went, 'Nâgasena, Nâgasena!'

And Devamantiya delivered his message to Nâgasena, who accepted the proposal with gladness. And early the next morning Devamantiya and Anantakâya and Mankura and Sabbadinna. went to the king, and said: 'Is his reverence, Nâgasena, to come, Sire, to-day?'

'Yes, he is to come.'

'With how many of the brethren is he to come?'

'With as many as he likes.'

And Sabbadinna said: 'Let him come with ten.' But the king repeated what he had said.. And on Sabbadinna reiterating his suggestion, the 'king rejoined: 'All this preparation has been made, and I say:

"Let him come with as many as he likes," yet Sabbadinna says: "Let him come with ten." Does he suppose we are not capable of feeding so many?'

Then Sabbadinna was ashamed.

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4. And Devamantiya and Anantakâya and Mankura went to Nâgasena and told him what the king had said. And the venerable Nâgasena robed himself in the forenoon, and taking his bowl in his hand, went to Sâgala with the whole company of the brethren. And Anantakâya, as he walked beside Nâgasena, said:

'When, your reverence, I say, "Nâgasena," what is that Nâgasena?'

The Elder replied: 'What do you think Nâgasena is?'

'The soul, the inner breath which comes and goes, that I suppose to be Nâgasena.'

'But if that breath having gone forth should not return, or having returned should not go forth, would the man be alive?'

'Certainly not, Sir.'

'But those trumpeters, when they blow their trumpets, does their breath return again to them?'

'No, Sir, it does not.'

'Or those pipers, when they blow their pipes or horns, does their breath return again to them?'

'No, Sir.'

'Then why don't they die?'

'I am not capable of arguing with such a reasoner. Pray tell me, Sir, how the matter stands.'

'There is no soul in the breath. These inhalations and exhalations are merely constituent powers

of the bodily frame,' said the Elder. And he talked to him from the Abhidhamma to such effect that  Anantakâya confessed himself as a supporter of the Order.

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5. And the venerable Nâgasena went to the king, and sat down on the seat prepared for him. And the king provided Nâgasena and his following with food, both hard and soft, as much as they required: and presented each brother with a suit of garments, and Nâgasena himself with a set of three robes. And then he said to him: 'Be pleased to keep your seat here, and with you ten of the brethren. Let the rest depart.'

And when he saw that Nâgasena had finished his meal, he took a lower seat, and sat beside him, and said: 'What shall we discuss?'

'We want to arrive at truth. Let our discussion be about the truth.'

And the king said: 'What is the object, Sir, of your renunciation, and what the summum bonum at which you aim?'

'Why do you ask? Our renunciation is to the end that this sorrow may perish away, and that no further sorrow may arise; the complete passing away, without cleaving to the world, is our highest aim.'

'How now, Sir! Is it for such high reasons that all members of it have joined the Order?,'

'Certainly not, Sire. Some for those reasons,

but some have left the world in terror at the tyranny of kings. Some have joined us to be safe from being robbed, some harassed by debt, and some perhaps to gain a livelihood.'

'But for what object, Sir, did you yourself join.'

'I was received into the Order when I was a mere boy, I knew not then the ultimate aim. But I thought: "They are wise scholars, these Buddhist Samanas, they will be able to teach me." And by them I have been taught; and now do I both know and understand what is at once the reason for, and the advantage of renunciation.'

'Well put, Nâgasena!'

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6. The king said: 'Nâgasena, is there any one who after death is not reindividualised?'

'Some are so, and some not.'

'Who are they?'

'A sinful being is reindividualised, a sinless one is not.'

'Will you be reindividualised?'

'If when I die, I die with craving for existence in my heart, yes; but if not, no .'

'Very good, Nâgasena!'

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7. The king said: 'Nâgasena, he who escapes reindividualisation is it by reasoning that he escapes it?'

'Both by reasoning, your Majesty, and by wisdom , and by other good qualities.'

'But are not reasoning and wisdom surely much the same?'

'Certainly not. Reasoning is one thing, wisdom

another. Sheep and goats, oxen and buffaloes, camels and asses have reasoning, but wisdom they have not.'

'Well put, Nâgasena!'

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8. The king said: 'What is the characteristic mark of reasoning, and what of wisdom?'

'Reasoning has always comprehension as its mark; but wisdom has cutting off .'

'But how is comprehension the characteristic of reasoning, and cutting off of wisdom? Give me an illustration.'

'You remember the barley reapers?'

'Yes, certainly.'

'How do they reap the barley?'

'With the left hand they grasp the barley into a bunch, and taking the sickle into the right hand, they cut it off with that.'

'Just even, so, O king, does the recluse by his thinking grasp his mind, and by his wisdom cut off his failings. In this way is it that comprehension is the characteristic of reasoning, but cutting off of wisdom.'

'Well put, Nâgasena!'

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9. The king said: 'When you said just now, "And by other good qualities," to which did you refer?'

'Good conduct, great king, and faith, and perseverance, and mindfulness, and meditation.

'And what is the characteristic mark of good conduct?'

'It has as its characteristic that it is the basis of all good qualities. The five moral powers --faith, perseverance, mindfulness, meditation, and wisdom-; the seven conditions of Arahatship --self-possession, investigation of the Dhamma, perseverance, joy, calm, meditation, and equanimity--; the Path; readiness of memory (unbroken self-possession) ; the four kinds of right exertion ; the four constituent bases of extraordinary powers ;the four stages of ecstasy ; the eight forms of spiritual emancipation ; the four modes of self-concentration ; and the eight states of intense contemplation have each and all of them good conduct (the observance of outward morality) as their basis. And to him who builds upon that foundation, O king, all these good conditions will not decrease .'

'Give me an illustration.'

'Just, O king, as all those forms of animal and vegetable life which grow, develope, and mature, do so with the earth as their basis; just so does the recluse, who is devoted in effort, develope in himself the five moral powers, and so on, by means of virtue, on the basis of virtue.'

'Give me a further illustration.'

'Just, O king, as all the occupations which involve bodily exertion are carried on in ultimate dependence upon the earth, just so does the recluse develope in himself the five moral powers, and so on, by means of virtue, on the basis of virtue.'

'Give me a still better illustration.'

'Just, O king, as the architect of a city, when he wants to build one, first clears the site of the town, and then proceeds to get rid of all the stumps and thorny brakes, and thus makes it level, and only then does he lay out the streets and squares, and crossroads and market places, and so build the city; just so does the recluse develope in himself the five moral powers, and so on, by means of virtue, on the basis of virtue.'

'Can you give me one more simile?'

'Just, O king, as an acrobat, when he wants to exhibit his skill, first digs over the ground, and proceeds to get rid of all the stones and fragments of broken pottery, and thus to make it smooth, and only then, on soft earth, shows his tricks; just even so does the recluse develope in himself the five moral powers, and so on, by means of virtue, on the basis of virtue. For it has been said, Sire, by the Blessed One:

"Virtue's the base on which the man who's wise Can train his heart, and make his wisdom grow. Thus shall the strenuous Bhikkhu, undeceived, Unravel all the tangled skein of life.

"This is the base--like the great earth to men-- And this the root of all increase in goodness, The starting-point of all the Buddhas' teaching, Virtue, to wit, on which true bliss depends ."

'Well said, Nâgasena!'

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10 . The king said, 'Venerable Nâgasena, what is the characteristic mark of faith?'

'Tranquillisation, O king, and aspiration .'

'And how is tranquillisation the mark of faith?'

As faith, O king, springs up in the heart it breaks through the five hindrances--lust, malice, mental sloth, spiritual pride, and doubt--and the heart, free from these hindrances, becomes clear, serene, untroubled.'

'Give me an illustration.'

'Just, O king, as a suzerain king, when on the march with his fourfold army, might cross over a small stream, and the water, disturbed by the elephants and cavalry, the chariots and the bowmen, might become fouled, turbid, and muddy. And

when he was on the other side the monarch might give command to his attendants, saying: "Bring some water, my good men. I would fain drink." Now suppose the monarch had a water-clearing gem, and those men, in obedience to the order, were to throw the jewel into the water; then at once all the mud would precipitate itself, and the sandy atoms of shell and bits of water-plants would disappear, and the water would become clear, transparent, and serene, and they would then bring some of it to the monarch to drink. The water is the heart; the royal servants are the recluse; the mud, the sandy atoms, and the bits of water-plants are evil dispositions; and the water-cleansing gem is faith.'

'And how is aspiration the mark of faith?'

'In as much as the recluse, on perceiving how the hearts of others have been set free, aspires to enter as it were by a leap upon the fruit of the first stage, or of the second, or of the third in the Excellent Way, or to gain Arahatship itself, and thus applies himself to the attainment of what he has not reached, to the experience of what he has not yet felt, to the realisation of what he has not yet realised,--therefore is it that aspiration is the mark of faith.'

'Give me an illustration.'

'Just, O king, as if a mighty storm were to break upon a mountain top and pour out rain, the water would flow down according to the levels, and after filling up the crevices and chasms and gullies

of the hill, would empty itself into the brook below, so that the stream would rush along, overflowing both its banks. Now suppose a crowd of people, one after the other, were to come up, and being ignorant of the real breadth or depth of the water, were to stand fearful and hesitating on the brink. And suppose a certain man should arrive, who knowing exactly his own strength and power should gird himself firmly and, with a spring, land himself on the other side. Then the rest of the people, seeing him safe on the other side, would likewise cross. That is the kind of way in which the recluse, by faith, aspires to leap, as it were by a bound, into higher things. For this has been said, O king, by the Blessed One in the Samyutta Nikâya:

"By faith he crosses over the stream, By earnestness the sea of life; By steadfastness all grief he stills, By wisdom is he purified ."

'Well put, Nâgasena!'

11 . The king said: 'What, Nâgasena, is the characteristic mark of perseverance?'

'The rendering of support, O king, is the mark of perseverance. All those good qualities which it supports do not fall away.'

'Give me an illustration.'

'Just as a man, if a house were falling, would make a prop for it of another post, and the house so supported would not fall; just so, O king, is the rendering of support the mark of perseverance, and all those good qualities which it supports do not fall away.'

'Give me a further illustration.'

'Just as when a large army has broken up a small one, then the king of the latter would call to mind every possible ally and reinforce his small army, and by that means the small army might in its turn break up the large one; just so, O king, is the rendering of support the mark of perseverance, and all those good qualities which it supports do not fall away. For it has been said by the Blessed One: "The persevering hearer of the noble truth, O Bhikkhus, puts away evil and cultivates goodness, puts away that which is wrong and developes in himself that which is right, and thus does he keep himself pure."'

'Well put, Nâgasena!'

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12. The king said: 'What, Nâgasena, is the characteristic mark of mindfulness ?'

'Repetition, O king, and keeping up .'

'And how is repetition the mark of mindfulness?'

'As mindfulness, O king, springs up in his heart he repeats over the good and evil, right and wrong, slight and important, dark and light qualities, and those that resemble them, saying to himself: "These are the four modes of keeping oneself ready and mindful, these the four modes of spiritual effort, these the four bases of extraordinary powers, these the five organs of the moral sense, these the five mental powers, these the seven bases of Arahatship, these the eight divisions of the Excellent Way, this is serenity and this insight, this is wisdom and this emancipation ." Thus does the recluse follow after

those qualities that are desirable, and not after those that are not; thus does he cultivate those which ought to be practised, and not those which ought not. That is how repetition is the mark of mindfulness.'

'Give me an illustration.'

'It is like the treasurer of the imperial sovran, who reminds his royal master early and late of his glory, saying: "So many are thy war elephants, O king, and so many thy cavalry , thy war chariots and thy bowmen, so much the quantity of thy money, and gold, and wealth, may your Majesty keep yourself in mind thereof.'

'And how, Sir, is keeping up a mark of mindfulness?'

'As mindfulness springs up in his heart, O king, he searches out the categories of good qualities and their opposites, saying to himself: "Such and such qualities are good, and such bad; such and such qualities helpful, and such the reverse." Thus does the recluse make what is evil in himself to disappear, and keeps up what is good. That is how keeping up is the mark of mindfulness.'

'Give me an illustration.'

'It is like the confidential adviser of that imperial

sovran who instructs him in good and evil, saying: "These things are bad for the king and these good, these helpful and these the reverse." And thus the king makes the evil in himself die out, and keeps up the good.'

'Well put, Nâgasena!'

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13 . The king said: 'What, Nâgasena, is the characteristic mark of meditation ?

'Being the leader, O king. All good qualities have meditation as their chief, they incline to it, lead up towards it, are as so many slopes up the side of the mountain of meditation.'

'Give me an illustration.'

'As all the rafters of the roof of a house, O king, go up to the apex, slope towards it, are joined on together at it, and the apex is acknowledged to be the top of all; so is the habit of meditation in its relation to other good qualities.'

'Give me a further illustration.'

'It is like a king, your Majesty, when he goes down to battle with his army in its fourfold array. The whole army--elephants, cavalry, war chariots, and bowmen--would have him as their chief, their

lines would incline towards him, lead up to him, they would be so many mountain slopes, one above another, with him as their summit, round him they would all be ranged. And it has been said, O king, by the Blessed One: "Cultivate in yourself, O Bhikkhus, the habit of meditation. He who is established therein knows things as they really are ."'

'Well put, Nâgasena!'

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14. The king said: 'What, Nâgasena, is the characteristic mark of wisdom ?'

'I have already told you, O king, how cutting off, severance, is its mark, but enlightenment is also its mark.'

'And how is enlightenment its mark?'

'When wisdom springs up in the heart, O king, it dispels the darkness of ignorance, it causes the radiance of knowledge to arise, it makes the light of intelligence to shine forth, and it makes the Noble Truths plain. Thus does the recluse who is devoted to effort perceive with the clearest wisdom the impermanency (of all beings and things), the suffering (that is inherent in individuality), and the absence of any soul.'

'Give me an illustration.'

'It is like a lamp, O king, which a man might introduce into a house in darkness. When the lamp had been brought in it would dispel the darkness,

cause radiance to arise, and light to shine forth, and make the objects there plainly visible. Just so would wisdom in a man have such effects as were just now set forth.'

'Well put, Nâgasena!'

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15. The king said: 'These qualities which are so different, Nâgasena, do they bring about one and the same result?'

'They do. The putting an end to evil dispositions.'

'How is that? Give me an illustration.'

'They are like the various parts of an army--elephants, cavalry, war chariots, and archers--who all work to one end, to wit: the conquest in battle of the opposing army.'

'Well put, Nâgasena!'

Here ends the First Chapter.