The Inference Chapter32. A Question Solved by Inference Milinda the king went up to the place where Nāgasena was and, having paid respect to him, sat down at one side. Longing to know, to hear and to bear in mind, and wishing to dispel his ignorance, he roused up his courage and energy, established self-possession and mindfulness and spoke thus to Nāgasena:
“Have you, venerable Nāgasena, ever seen the Buddha?”1
“No, great king.” “Then have your teachers ever seen the Buddha?”
“No, great king.”
“So, Nāgasena, the Buddha did not exist; there is no clear evidence of the Buddha’s existence.” “Did those warriors exist who were the founders of the line of kings from which you are descended?”
“Certainly, venerable sir, there can be no doubt about that.” “Have you ever seen them?”
“No, venerable sir.” “Have your teachers and ministers of state who lay down the law ever seen them?”
“No, venerable sir.” “Then there is no clear evidence of the existence of those warriors of old.”
“Nevertheless, Nāgasena, the royal insignia used by them are still to be seen and by these we can infer and know that the warriors of old really existed.” “Just so, O king, we can know that the Blessed One lived and believe in him. The royal insignia used by him are still to be seen. There are the four foundations of mindfulness, the four right efforts, the four
bases of success, the five moral powers, the five controlling faculties, the seven factors of enlightenment and the eight factors of the path; and by these we can infer and know that the Blessed One really existed.” “Give me an illustration.”
“As people seeing a fine, well-planned city would know it was laid out by a skilled architect; so the city
of righteousness laid out by the Blessed One can be seen. It has constant mindfulness for its main street, and in that main street market-stalls are open selling flowers, perfume, fruits, antidotes, medicines, nectar, precious jewels and all kinds of merchandise. Thus, O king, the Blessed One’s city of righteousness is well-planned, strongly built, well protected and thus impregnable to enemies; and by this method of inference you may know that the Blessed One existed.” “What are the flowers in the city of righteousness?”“There are meditation objects made known by the Blessed One: the perception of impermanence, of unsatisfactoriness, soullessness, repulsiveness, danger, abandoning, dispassion, disenchantment with all
worlds, the impermanence of all mental formations; the meditation on mindfulness of breathing, the perception of the nine kinds of corpses in progressive stages of decay, the meditations on loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic-joy and equanimity; mindfulness of death and mindfulness of the thirty-two parts of the body. Whoever, longing to be free from old age and death, takes one of these
as the subject for meditation can become free from desire, hatred and delusion, pride and wrong views, he can cross the ocean of samsāra, stem the torrent of craving and destroy all suffering. He can then enter the city of nibbāna where there is security, calm and bliss.” “What are the perfumes in the city of righteousness?”They are the undertaking of the restraints of the three refuges, the five precepts, the eight precepts, the ten precepts, and the Pātimokkha restraint for monks. For this was said by the Blessed One: “No flower’s scent can waft against the wind,
Nor sandalwood’s, nor musk’s, nor jasmine flower’s.
But the fragrance of the good goes against the wind
In all directions the good man’s name pervades.”2
“What are the fruits in the city of righteousness?”
“They are the fruit of the Stream-winner, the fruit of Once-returner, the fruit of Non-returner, the fruit of Arahantship, the attainment of emptiness, the attainment of signlessness and the attainment of desirelessness.”3 “What is the antidote in the city of righteousness?”“The Four Noble Truths are the antidote to counteract the poison of the defilements. Whoever longs for
the highest insight and hears this teaching is set free from birth, old age, death, sorrow, pain, grief, lamentation and despair.” “What is the medicine in the city of righteousness?”“Certain medicines, O king, have been made known by the Blessed One by which he cures gods and
men. They are these: the four foundations of mindfulness, the four right efforts, the four bases of success, the five controlling faculties, the five moral powers, the seven factors of enlightenment, and the eightfold noble path. With these medicines the Blessed One cures men of wrong views, wrong thought, wrong speech, wrong actions, wrong livelihood, wrong effort, wrong mindfulness and wrong
concentration. He rids them of desire, hatred and delusion, pride, personality-belief, doubt, restlessness, sloth and torpor, shamelessness and recklessness and all other defilements. “What is the nectar in the city of righteousness?”“Mindfulness of the body is like nectar, for all beings who are infused with this nectar of mindfulness of
the body are relieved of all suffering. For this was said by the Blessed One: “They enjoy the nectar of the deathless
who practise mindfulness of the body.”4 “What are the precious jewels in the city of righteousness?”“Virtue, concentration, wisdom, freedom, knowledge and vision of freedom, knowledge of discrimination and the factors of enlightenment are the precious jewels of the Blessed One. “What is the precious jewel of virtue? It is the virtue of restraint by the Pātimokkha rules, the virtue of restraint of the sense faculties, the virtue of right livelihood, the virtue of reflection on the proper use of the four requisites of almsfood, medicine, robes and lodgings, the virtue of restraint according to the major, medium, and minor codes of discipline5 and the habitual virtue of the noble ones. “What is the precious jewel of concentration? It is the first jhāna with initial application and
sustained application, the second jhāna without initial application but with sustained application, the third jhāna with neither initial nor sustained application but with pure joy, bliss and one-pointedness; and it is the concentration on emptiness, on signlessness and desirelessness. When a monk wears this jewel of concentration, evil, unprofitable thoughts are shed from his mind like water from a lotus leaf. “What is the precious jewel of wisdom? It is the knowledge of what is wholesome and what unwholesome, what blameless and what blameworthy, and knowledge of the Four Noble Truths. “What is the precious jewel of freedom? Arahantship is the gem of gems, the precious jewel of
freedom adorned with which a monk outshines all others. “What is the precious jewel of knowledge and vision of freedom? It is the knowledge by which the noble disciple reviews the paths, the fruits and nibbāna, and reflects on the defilements that have been got rid of and the defilements that still remain. “What is the precious jewel of knowledge of discrimination? It is the analytical insight of meaning, law, language and intelligence. Whoever is adorned with this jewel is unafraid when approaching any kind of assembly, confident in the knowledge that he can answer any kind of question that might be put to him.
“What is the precious jewel of the factors of enlightenment? They are the jewels of mindfulness, investigation of truth, energy, joy, tranquillity, concentration and equanimity. Adorned with these jewels the monk illumines the world with his virtuousness.” 33. The Ascetic PracticesThe king saw monks in the forest, alone and far away from men, keeping hard vows. Then he saw householders at home, enjoying the sweet fruits of the Noble Path. Considering both of these, deep doubts he felt, “If laymen also realise the truth, then surely making vows must be worthless. Come! Let me ask that best of teachers, wise in the threefold collection of the Buddha’s words, skilled to
overthrow the arguments of the opponents. He will be able to resolve my doubts!” Milinda approached Nāgasena, paid respects to him, and seated at one side asked: “Venerable Nāgasena, is there any lay person who has attained nibbāna?” “Not only one hundred or a thousand, but more than a billion6 have attained nibbāna.” “If, Nāgasena, laypeople living at home, enjoying the pleasures of the senses can attain nibbāna what
is the use of the extra vows? If one’s enemies could be subdued with fists alone what would be the use of seeking weapons? If trees could be climbed by clambering up what would be the use of ladders? If it was comfortable to lie on the bare ground what would be the use of beds? Just so, if a layperson can attain nibbāna even while living at home what is the use of the extra vows?” “There are, O king, twenty-eight virtues of these practices on account of which the Buddhas have a
high regard for them. The keeping of the vows is a pure mode of livelihood, its fruit is blissful, it is blameless, it brings no suffering to others, it gives confidence,7 it doesn’t oppress,8 it is certain to bring growth in good qualities, it prevents back-sliding, it doesn’t delude, it is a protection, it fulfils one’s desires, it tames all beings, it is good for self-discipline, it is proper for a recluse, he is independent,9 he is free,10 it destroys desire, it destroys hatred, it destroys delusion, it humbles pride, it cuts off discursive thoughts and makes the mind one-pointed, it overcomes doubts, it drives away
sloth, it banishes discontent, it makes him tolerant, it is incomparable, it is beyond measure, and it leads to the destruction of all suffering. “Whosoever carries out these vows becomes endowed with eighteen good qualities. His conduct is pure, his practice is fully accomplished, his actions and speech are well-guarded, his thoughts are pure, his
energy is stirred up, his fear is allayed, views of personality are dispelled, wrath dies away and love arises, he eats perceiving the repulsive nature of food, he is honoured by all beings, he is moderate in eating, he is full of vigilance, he is homeless and can dwell wherever it suits him, he detests evil, he delights in solitude, and he is always heedful. “These ten individuals are worthy of undertaking the vows: one full of confidence, full of shame, full of
courage, void of hypocrisy, one who is self-reliant, steadfast, desirous of training, of strong determination, very introspective, and one who is of a loving disposition. “All those lay people who realise nibbāna while living at home do so because they practised these vows in former births. There is no realisation of the goal of Arahantship in this very life without these vows.
Only by the utmost zealousness is Arahantship attained. Thus the value of keeping the vows if full of value and might. “Whosoever, O king, having evil desires in his mind, should take upon himself these vows seeking after material gain shall incur a double punishment; in this world he will be scorned and ridiculed and after death he will suffer in hell. “Whosoever, O king, whose conduct is consistent with monkhood, who is worthy of it, who desires little and is content, given to seclusion, energetic, without guile, and has gone forth not from desire for gain or fame but with confidence in the Dhamma, wishing for deliverance from old age and death, he is worthy of double honour for he is loved by gods and men and he quickly attains the four fruits, the four kinds of discrimination,11 the three-fold vision12 and the sixfold higher knowledge.13 “What are the thirteen vows? Wearing rag-robes, using only three robes, living only on alms-food,
begging from house to house without preference, eating one meal a day, eating from the bowl only, refusing later food, dwelling in the forest, dwelling at the root of a tree, dwelling in the open, dwelling in a cemetery, using any sleeping place allotted to him, and not lying down to sleep.14
“It was by the observance of these vows that Upasena was able to visit the Blessed One when he was dwelling in solitude15 and it was by these same vows that Sāriputta became of such exalted virtue that
he was declared second only to the Blessed One himself in ability to preach the Dhamma.”16 “Very good, Nāgasena, the whole teaching of the Buddha, the supramundane attainments and all the
best achievements in the world are included in these thirteen ascetic practices.” |
