Fetching
One moment.
Fetching
One moment.
Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1But when he returned again to his natural state, and recovered his presence of mind, then did he again renounce the world, and having regained the five powers of insight, became assured of rebirth in the Brahma world/ ' Very good, Nagasena ! That is so, and I accept it as you say/ [Here ends the dilemma about Lomasa Kassapa1.] 1 It is very instructive to notice the way in which our author looks upon the historical Buddha and the various heroes of the Gataka Stories as so absolutely identical that he feels obliged to defend the conduct of all the ' types ' as earnestly as he would that of the Buddha himself. There is no such conception in the Pi/akas, and the whole tone of our author's argument reveals the lateness of his date as compared with the Pi/akas. C 2 20 THE QUESTIONS AND PUZZLES IV, 5, 19. [DILEMMA THE FORTY-SIXTH. THE MOCKING OF THE BUDDHA.] 19. 'Venerable Nagasena, it was said by the Blessed One of Six-tusks, the elephant king, " When he sought to slay him, and had reached him with his trunk, He perceived the yellow robe, the badge of a recluse, Then, though smarting with the pain, the thought possessed his heart, — * He who wears the outward garb the Arahats wear Must be scatheless held, and sacred, by the good1/ " ( But on the other hand it is said : " When he was Cotipala, the young Brahman, he reviled and abused Kassapa the Blessed One, the Arahat, the Buddha supreme, with vile and bitter words, calling him a shaveling and a good-for- nothing monk2/' * Now if, Nagasena, the Bodisat, even when he was an animal, respected the yellow robe, [222] then the statement that as Gbtipala, a Brahman, he reviled and abused the Blessed One of that time, must be false. But if as a Brahman, he reviled and abused the Blessed One, the statement that when he was Six-tusks, the elephant king, he respected the yellow robe, must be false. If when the Bodisat was an animal, though he was suffering severe and cruel and bitter pain, he respected the yellow robe 1 From the ^Oaddanta Gataka, No. 514 (Fausboll, vol. v, p. 49); with which compare the Kasava Gataka, No. 221 (vol. ii, p. 196). 2 This has not been found in these words, but Mr. Trenckner refers to Ma^gvfcima Nikaya, No. 81. Compare also Gataka I, 43. IV, 5, 21. OF MILINDA THE KING. 21 which the hunter had put on, how was it that when he was a man, a man arrived at discretion, with all his knowledge mature, he did not pay reverence, on seeing him, to Kassapa the Blessed One, the Arahat, the Buddha supreme, one endowed with the ten powers, the leader of the world, the highest of the high, round whom effulgence spread a fathom on every side, and who was clad in most excellent and precious and delicate Benares cloth made into yellow robes ? This too is a double-edged problem, now put to you, which you have to solve/
2This too is a double-edged problem, now put to you, which you have to solve/ 20. ' The verse you have quoted, O king, was spoken by the Blessed One. And Kassapa the Blessed One, the Arahat, the Buddha supreme, was abused and reviled by (zotipala the young Brahman with vile and bitter words, with the epithets of shaveling and good-for-nothing monk. But that was owing to his birth and family surroundings. For 6x>tipala, O king, was descended from a family of unbelievers, men void of faith. His mother and father, his sisters and brothers, the bondswomen and bondsmen, the hired servants and dependents in the house, were worshippers of Brahma, reverers of Brahma; and harbouring the idea that Brahmans were the highest and most honourable among men, they reviled and loathed those others who had renounced the world. It was through hearing what they said that £otip&la, when invited by Gha/tkara the potter to visit the teacher, replied : " What's the good to you of visiting that shaveling, that good-for-nothing monk ? " [223] 2i. 'Just, O king, as even nectar when mixed with poison will turn sour, just as the coolest water in contact with fire will become warm, so was 22 THE QUESTIONS AND PUZZLES IV, 5, 2T. it that £otipala, the young Brahman, having been born and brought up in a family of unbelievers, men void of faith, thus reviled and abused the Tathagata after the manner of his kind. And just, O king, as a flaming and burning mighty fire, if, even when at the height of its glory, it should come into contact with water, would cool down, with its splendour and glory spoilt, and turn to cinders, black as rotten blighted 1 fruits — just so, O king, £otipala, full as he was of merit and faith, mighty as was the glory of his knowledge, yet when reborn into a family of unbelievers, of men void of faith, he became, as it were, blind, and reviled and abused the Tathagata. But when he had gone to him, and had come to know the virtues of the Buddhas which he had, then did he become as his hired servant ; and having re- nounced the world and entered the Order under the system of the Conqueror, he gained the fivefold power of insight, and the eightfold power of ecstatic meditation, and became assured of rebirth into the Brahma heaven/ ' Very good, Nagasena ! That is so, and I accept it as you say/ [Here ends the dilemma about ^otipala.] 1 Nig gun di, which Hina/i-kumbure merely repeats. See Gataka III, 348 ; IV, 456 ; Dhammapada Commentary, p. 209 ; Ahguttara IV, 199 ; and Dr. Morris's restoration of Dipavawsa XII, 32, in the Introduction to vol. ii of his Ahguttara. IV, 5, 23. OF MILINDA THE KING. 23 [dilemma THE FORTY-SEVENTH. THE HELPLESSNESS OF A BUDDHA.] 22. ' Venerable Nagasena, this too has been said by the Blessed One : " Gha/ikara the potters dwelling-place remained, the whole of it, for three months open to the sky, and no rain fell upon it1." ' But on the other hand it is said : " Rain fell on the hut of Kassapa the Tatha- gata V
3' Venerable Nagasena, this too has been said by the Blessed One : " Gha/ikara the potters dwelling-place remained, the whole of it, for three months open to the sky, and no rain fell upon it1." ' But on the other hand it is said : " Rain fell on the hut of Kassapa the Tatha- gata V ' How was it, venerable Nagasena, that the hut of a Tathagata, the roots of whose merits were so widely spread2, got wet? One would think that a Tathagata should have the power to prevent that. If, Nagasena, Gha^ikara the potter's dwelling was kept dry when it was open to the sky, it cannot be true that a Tathagata's hut got wet. But if it did, then it must be false that the potter's dwelling was kept dry. This too is a double-edged problem, now put to you, which you have to solve.' 23. ' Both the quotations you have made, O king, are correct. [224] Gha/ikara the potter was a good man, beautiful in character, deeply rooted in merit, who supported his old and blind mother and father. And when he was absent, the people, with- out so much as asking his leave, took away the thatch from his dwelling to roof in with it the hut of the Tathagata. Then, unmoved and unshaken at his thatch being thus removed, but filled rather 1 Both these quotations are from the Ma^g^ima Nikaya, No. 31 (the Gha/ikara Suttanta). 2 Ussanna-kusala-mula. See Gataka I, 145. 24 THE QUESTIONS AND PUZZLES IV, 5, 24. with a well-grounded and great joy the like of which cannot be found, an immeasurable bliss sprang up in his heart at the thought : " May the Blessed One, the chief of the world, have full confidence in me." And thereby did he obtain merit which brought forth its good result even in this present life. 24. ' And the Tathagata, O king, was not dis- turbed by that temporary inconvenience (of the falling rain). Just, O king, as Sineru, the king of the mountains, moves not, neither is shaken, by the onslaught of innumerable gales1 — just as the mighty ocean, the home of the great waters, is not filled up, neither is disturbed at all, by the inflow of innumer- able great rivers — just so, O king, is a Tathagata unmoved at temporary inconvenience. 'And that the rain fell upon the Tathagata's hut happened out of consideration for the great masses of the people. For there are two circumstances, O king, which prevent the Tathagatas from them- selves supplying (by creative power) any requisite of which they may be in need 2. And what are the two ? Men and gods, by supplying the requisites of a Buddha on the ground that he is a teacher worthy of gifts, will thereby be set free from rebirth in states of woe. And lest others should find fault, saying: " They seek their livelihood by the working of miracles." If, O king, Sakka had kept that hut dry, or even Brahma himself, even then that action would have been faulty, wrong, and worthy of censure. For people might then say : " These Buddhas by
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
Romanised transliteration as printed by the translator, not the original script. This is what we hold.
1But when he returned again to his natural state, and recovered his presence of mind, then did he again renounce the world, and having regained the five powers of insight, became assured of rebirth in the Brahma world/ ' Very good, Nagasena ! That is so, and I accept it as you say/ [Here ends the dilemma about Lomasa Kassapa1.] 1 It is very instructive to notice the way in which our author looks upon the historical Buddha and the various heroes of the Gataka Stories as so absolutely identical that he feels obliged to defend the conduct of all the ' types ' as earnestly as he would that of the Buddha himself. There is no such conception in the Pi/akas, and the whole tone of our author's argument reveals the lateness of his date as compared with the Pi/akas. C 2 20 THE QUESTIONS AND PUZZLES IV, 5, 19. [DILEMMA THE FORTY-SIXTH. THE MOCKING OF THE BUDDHA.] 19. 'Venerable Nagasena, it was said by the Blessed One of Six-tusks, the elephant king, " When he sought to slay him, and had reached him with his trunk, He perceived the yellow robe, the badge of a recluse, Then, though smarting with the pain, the thought possessed his heart, — * He who wears the outward garb the Arahats wear Must be scatheless held, and sacred, by the good1/ " ( But on the other hand it is said : " When he was Cotipala, the young Brahman, he reviled and abused Kassapa the Blessed One, the Arahat, the Buddha supreme, with vile and bitter words, calling him a shaveling and a good-for- nothing monk2/' * Now if, Nagasena, the Bodisat, even when he was an animal, respected the yellow robe, [222] then the statement that as Gbtipala, a Brahman, he reviled and abused the Blessed One of that time, must be false. But if as a Brahman, he reviled and abused the Blessed One, the statement that when he was Six-tusks, the elephant king, he respected the yellow robe, must be false. If when the Bodisat was an animal, though he was suffering severe and cruel and bitter pain, he respected the yellow robe 1 From the ^Oaddanta Gataka, No. 514 (Fausboll, vol. v, p. 49); with which compare the Kasava Gataka, No. 221 (vol. ii, p. 196). 2 This has not been found in these words, but Mr. Trenckner refers to Ma^gvfcima Nikaya, No. 81. Compare also Gataka I, 43. IV, 5, 21. OF MILINDA THE KING. 21 which the hunter had put on, how was it that when he was a man, a man arrived at discretion, with all his knowledge mature, he did not pay reverence, on seeing him, to Kassapa the Blessed One, the Arahat, the Buddha supreme, one endowed with the ten powers, the leader of the world, the highest of the high, round whom effulgence spread a fathom on every side, and who was clad in most excellent and precious and delicate Benares cloth made into yellow robes ? This too is a double-edged problem, now put to you, which you have to solve/
2This too is a double-edged problem, now put to you, which you have to solve/ 20. ' The verse you have quoted, O king, was spoken by the Blessed One. And Kassapa the Blessed One, the Arahat, the Buddha supreme, was abused and reviled by (zotipala the young Brahman with vile and bitter words, with the epithets of shaveling and good-for-nothing monk. But that was owing to his birth and family surroundings. For 6x>tipala, O king, was descended from a family of unbelievers, men void of faith. His mother and father, his sisters and brothers, the bondswomen and bondsmen, the hired servants and dependents in the house, were worshippers of Brahma, reverers of Brahma; and harbouring the idea that Brahmans were the highest and most honourable among men, they reviled and loathed those others who had renounced the world. It was through hearing what they said that £otip&la, when invited by Gha/tkara the potter to visit the teacher, replied : " What's the good to you of visiting that shaveling, that good-for-nothing monk ? " [223] 2i. 'Just, O king, as even nectar when mixed with poison will turn sour, just as the coolest water in contact with fire will become warm, so was 22 THE QUESTIONS AND PUZZLES IV, 5, 2T. it that £otipala, the young Brahman, having been born and brought up in a family of unbelievers, men void of faith, thus reviled and abused the Tathagata after the manner of his kind. And just, O king, as a flaming and burning mighty fire, if, even when at the height of its glory, it should come into contact with water, would cool down, with its splendour and glory spoilt, and turn to cinders, black as rotten blighted 1 fruits — just so, O king, £otipala, full as he was of merit and faith, mighty as was the glory of his knowledge, yet when reborn into a family of unbelievers, of men void of faith, he became, as it were, blind, and reviled and abused the Tathagata. But when he had gone to him, and had come to know the virtues of the Buddhas which he had, then did he become as his hired servant ; and having re- nounced the world and entered the Order under the system of the Conqueror, he gained the fivefold power of insight, and the eightfold power of ecstatic meditation, and became assured of rebirth into the Brahma heaven/ ' Very good, Nagasena ! That is so, and I accept it as you say/ [Here ends the dilemma about ^otipala.] 1 Nig gun di, which Hina/i-kumbure merely repeats. See Gataka III, 348 ; IV, 456 ; Dhammapada Commentary, p. 209 ; Ahguttara IV, 199 ; and Dr. Morris's restoration of Dipavawsa XII, 32, in the Introduction to vol. ii of his Ahguttara. IV, 5, 23. OF MILINDA THE KING. 23 [dilemma THE FORTY-SEVENTH. THE HELPLESSNESS OF A BUDDHA.] 22. ' Venerable Nagasena, this too has been said by the Blessed One : " Gha/ikara the potters dwelling-place remained, the whole of it, for three months open to the sky, and no rain fell upon it1." ' But on the other hand it is said : " Rain fell on the hut of Kassapa the Tatha- gata V
3' Venerable Nagasena, this too has been said by the Blessed One : " Gha/ikara the potters dwelling-place remained, the whole of it, for three months open to the sky, and no rain fell upon it1." ' But on the other hand it is said : " Rain fell on the hut of Kassapa the Tatha- gata V ' How was it, venerable Nagasena, that the hut of a Tathagata, the roots of whose merits were so widely spread2, got wet? One would think that a Tathagata should have the power to prevent that. If, Nagasena, Gha^ikara the potter's dwelling was kept dry when it was open to the sky, it cannot be true that a Tathagata's hut got wet. But if it did, then it must be false that the potter's dwelling was kept dry. This too is a double-edged problem, now put to you, which you have to solve.' 23. ' Both the quotations you have made, O king, are correct. [224] Gha/ikara the potter was a good man, beautiful in character, deeply rooted in merit, who supported his old and blind mother and father. And when he was absent, the people, with- out so much as asking his leave, took away the thatch from his dwelling to roof in with it the hut of the Tathagata. Then, unmoved and unshaken at his thatch being thus removed, but filled rather 1 Both these quotations are from the Ma^g^ima Nikaya, No. 31 (the Gha/ikara Suttanta). 2 Ussanna-kusala-mula. See Gataka I, 145. 24 THE QUESTIONS AND PUZZLES IV, 5, 24. with a well-grounded and great joy the like of which cannot be found, an immeasurable bliss sprang up in his heart at the thought : " May the Blessed One, the chief of the world, have full confidence in me." And thereby did he obtain merit which brought forth its good result even in this present life. 24. ' And the Tathagata, O king, was not dis- turbed by that temporary inconvenience (of the falling rain). Just, O king, as Sineru, the king of the mountains, moves not, neither is shaken, by the onslaught of innumerable gales1 — just as the mighty ocean, the home of the great waters, is not filled up, neither is disturbed at all, by the inflow of innumer- able great rivers — just so, O king, is a Tathagata unmoved at temporary inconvenience. 'And that the rain fell upon the Tathagata's hut happened out of consideration for the great masses of the people. For there are two circumstances, O king, which prevent the Tathagatas from them- selves supplying (by creative power) any requisite of which they may be in need 2. And what are the two ? Men and gods, by supplying the requisites of a Buddha on the ground that he is a teacher worthy of gifts, will thereby be set free from rebirth in states of woe. And lest others should find fault, saying: " They seek their livelihood by the working of miracles." If, O king, Sakka had kept that hut dry, or even Brahma himself, even then that action would have been faulty, wrong, and worthy of censure. For people might then say : " These Buddhas by
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
No commentary for this page.