Dialogues of the Buddha (Digha Nikaya)

1 ' Who are they,' asks the Cy., ' who refrain ? All ariya-puggala — noble-minded persons, learned persons : — those who know the Three Pi/akas (by heart), or two, or one, or even only one of the Nikayas, and can discourse thereon, and are of alert insight. These take die kasi«as for what they are, and, for them, the constituents of mind (the four khandhas) are such and no more.' P. ii.66. THE GREAT DISCOURSE ON CAUSATION. 63 26. ' And in each case, Ananda, he who refrains from making; the declaration, does not make it with regard either to the present life, or to the next life, nor is it his idea : — " My soul not being like that, I will refashion it into that likeness." [66] That being so, Ananda, we have said enough about the case of those who are not given to theories respecting the form and dimensions of the soul. ' In so many ways, Ananda, is there a refraining from declarations concerning the soul.' 27. ' And under how many aspects, Ananda, is the soul regarded ? The soul is regarded x either as feeling, in the words : — " My soul is feeling " — or the opposite, in the words : — " Nay, my soul is not feeling, my soul is not sentient " ; or again : — " Nay, my soul is not feeling, nor is it non-sentient ; my soul has feelings, it has the property of sentience." Under such aspects as these is the soul regarded.

28. ' Herein, Ananda, to him who affirms : — " My soul is feeling" — answer should thus be made : — " My friend, feeling is of three kinds. There is happy feeling, painful feeling, neutral feeling. Of these three feelings, look you, which do you consider your soul is ? " * When you feel a happy feeling, Ananda, you do not feel a painful feeling, or a neutral feeling ; you feel just a happy feeling. And when you feel a painful feeling, you do not feel a happy feeling, or a neutral feeling, but just a painful feeling. And when you feel a neutral feeling, you do not then feel a happy feeling or a painful feeling ; you feel just a neutral feeling. 1 These three forms of the ' individuality-heresy ' amount to an interesting and metaphysically more discriminating statement of the oft-quoted theories identifying the soul or mannikin with one or other of the five Khandhas. (See Vin. I, 13 (' Vin. Texts,' 1, 100) ; M. 1, 138, 300; S. Ill, 66; IV, 34, &c.) According to the Cy., the second assertion is the identification with the body (rupakkhandhavatthuka), which is usually placed first; the third assertion includes identification of the soul with the other three Khandhas — with, let us say, thinking and volition.

64 XV. MAIIA-NIDANA-SUTTANTA. P. ii. 66. 29. 'Moreover, Ananda, happy feeling is impermanent, a product *, the result of a cause or causes, liable to perish [67], to pass away, to become extinct, to cease. So too is painful feeling. So too is neutral feeling. If when experiencing a happy feeling one thinks : — " This is my soul," — when that same happy feeling ceases, one will also think : — " My soul has departed." So too when the feeling is painful, or neutral. Thus he who says : — " My soul is feeling," — regards, as his soul, something which, in this present life, is impermanent, is blended of happiness and pain, and is liable to begin and to end. Wherefore, Ananda, it follows that this aspect : — " My soul is feeling " — does not commend itself. 30. ' Herein again, Ananda, to him who affirms : — " Nay, my soul is not feeling, my soul is not sentient," — answer should thus be made : — " My friend, where there is no feeling of anything, can you there say: — ' I am r ' You cannot, lord V

' Wherefore, Ananda, it follows that this aspect : — " Nay, my soul is not feeling, my soul is not sentient," — does not commend itself. 31. ' Herein again, Ananda, to him who affirms : — " Nay, my soul is not feeling, nor is it non sentient ; my soul has feelings, it has the property of sentience," — answer should thus be made : — " My friend, were feeling of every sort or kind to cease absolutely, then there being, owing to the cessation thereof, no feeling whatever, could one then say : — ' I myself am ' ? " ' No, lord, one could not.' 1 Sankhata, con-fected, composite, the resultant of conditions. The soul, according to the then current animism, was considered to be unique, not a product, not causally modifiable through temporal or spatial conditions. The commentary explains sankhata as 'that which, having through such and such causes (lit. doings) come together, is made.' ■ All the MSS. agree in putting this answer in the mouth of Ananda, instead of in that of the soul-theorist. And it would be quite like him to rush in, in this way, with his opinion. And so also below.

D. ii. 68. THE GREAT DISCOURSE ON CAUSATION. 65 ' Wherefore, Ananda, it follows that this aspect : — " Nay, my soul is not feeling, nor is it non-sentient ; my soul has feelings, it has the property of sentience," — does not commend itself. 32. [68] ' Now when a brother, Ananda, does not regard soul under these aspects, — either as feeling, or as non-sentient, or as having feeling, — then he, thus refraining from such views, grasps at nothing whatever in the world ; and not grasping he trembles not ; and trembling not, he by himself attains to perfect peace.1 And he knows that birth is at an end, that the higher life has been fulfilled, that what had to be done had been accomplished, and that after this present world there is no beyond ! ' And of such a brother, Ananda, whose heart is thus set free, if any one should say : — " His creed is that an Arahant 2 croes on after death " — that were absurd. Or : " His creed is that an Arahant does not go on . . . does, and yet does not, go on . . . neither ooes on nor cr0es not on after death " — all that were absurd. Why is that ? Because, Ananda, whatever verbal expression there is and whatever system of verbal expression, whatever explanation there may be, and whatever system of explanation, whatever communication is possible and whatever system of communication, whatever knowledge there is and whatever sphere of knowledge, whatever round of life and how far the round is traversed, — by mastery over all this that brother is set free. But to say, of a brother who has been so set free

1 Parinibbayati. Usually rendered 'he attains complete Nirvana' or 'attains Parinirvana,' or even 'enters Nirvana.' The term is applied to the death of an Arahant, but it is also used to express perfected tranquillity, as in the case of a horse (M. I, 446), or of a man (M. I, 251 ; S. Ill, 54). Tradition, as represented by the Cy., did not associate the hour of death with the term, for it says, ' Having thus completely parinibbana-ed (by extinguishing all evil) he goes on to reflect, " Birth is at an end," ' &c. 2 Tathagata; perhaps it merely means 'mortal.' See M. I, 542. 66 XV. MAHA-NIDANA-SUTTANTA. D. ii. 68. by insight : — " He knows not, he sees not " — that were absurd ! l ' 33. ' There are seven resting-places for Cognition 2, Ananda, and two Spheres 3. Which are the seven ? [69] ' There are beings differing in body and differing in intelligence 4, for instance, human beings and certain of the gods and some of those in purgatory. This is the first resting-place for Cognition. ' There are beings differing in body but of uniform intelligence, for instance, the gods of the Brahmaheaven who are there reborn by means of the First [Jhana]5. This is the second resting-place for Cognition.

' There are beings uniform in body and differing in intelligence, for instance, the Luminous Gods 6. This is the third resting-place for Cognition. 1 The argument in this paragraph seems to have appealed in a special degree to the early Buddhists, for it has been made the basis of a whole Suttanta, the Jaliya (which is itself repeated, occurring first as part of the Mahali, and then again separately). The main point there emphasized is that the converted man will have gone so far beyond them that all such questions will have ceased to interest him. The two other Suttantas have been translated in full in Vol. I; but see especially pp. 200-5. 2 The Sangiti Suttanta (' Dialogues,' III) and A. IV, 39, 40 also name seven. S. Ill, 54 gives only four. 3 The Pali thus rendered is /hiti and ayatanaw respectively. The Cy. paraphrases the first by ' this is an equivalent for a setting-up (pati/Mana) of vinnawa.' Pati//Mnaw* is the affording of a standingplace, resting-place, locus standi, or foothold for. Thii'i again is the term for the central, static moment in any process, contrasting with two others in the same category, viz. inception and dying-out. ' Rest ' is not satisfactory, but no English term suggests itself which exactly meets the requirement. For ' sphere ' the paraphrase is simply : — ' nivasana//Mnaw,' dwelling-place,. . . 'These are included to exhaust [the contents] of the Cycle (sawsara), for the Cycle goes not on merely by way of vihnawa-resting places.'

4 No two human beings, says the Cy., are ever exactly alike ; even in twins that are undistinguishable in likeness of appearance and complexion, there will be some difference in look, speech, gait or carriage. 5 Cf. Dh. S., §§ 160 ff., 266 ff. ; transl., pp. lxxxvii-ix, 43 ff., 72 ff. 6 Ranking sixth in the heavens of Rupabrahmaloka. D. ii. 69. THE GREAT DISCOURSE ON CAUSATION. 67 ' There are beings uniform in body and of uniform intelligence, for instance, the All- Lustrous Gods \ This is the fourth resting-place for Cognition. 1 There are beings who, by having passed wholly beyond all consciousness of form, by the dying out of the consciousness of sense-reaction, by having turned the attention away from any consciousness of the manifold, and become conscious only of " space as infinite," are dwellers in the realm of infinite space 2. This is the fifth resting-place for Cognition. ' There are beings who, by having passed wholly beyond the realm of infinite space, and become conscious only of " cognition as infinite," are dwellers in the realm of infinite cognition. This is the sixth ' There are beings who, by having passed wholly beyond the realm of infinite cognition, and become conscious only that " there is nothing whatever," are dwellers in the realm of nothingness. This is the seventh resting-place for Cognition.

' The Sphere of beings without consciousness :!. ' Next to that, the Sphere of beings who neither have consciousness nor yet have it not 4. 34. ' Now there, Ananda — in that first restingplace for Cognition, of differing bodies and differing intelligences, — to wit, human beings and certain of the gods and certain of those in purgatory — think you that he who both knows what that state is, and how it comes to be, and how it passes away, — knows too the pleasures of it, and the miseries 5 of it, and the way of 1 Ranking ninth in the same. 2 The Cy. refers the inquirer to the Vis. Mag. for further comment. Cf. next Suttanta, and Dh. S., §§ 265-8 ; trans., pp. 71-5. 3 Sanna, perhaps awareness would be a better rendering. 4 The Cy. here includes cognition with awareness, the extreme tenuity or refinement (sukhumatta??/) of both being in this sphere such that it is as a zero point between presence and absence of either. See passage last cited in previous note. 5 Or the peril of it (adinavo), i.e. the thought of its impermanence, changeableness, &c. Cy. 68 XV. MAHA-NIDANA-STJTTANTA. D. ii. 69.

escape from it, — think you that it were fitting for such an one to take delight in it ? * ' [70] ' Nay, lord.' ' And in those other six resting-places for Cognition, and in those two Spheres, — think you that he who both knows them for what they are, how they come to be, and how they pass away, knows too the pleasures of them, and the miseries of them, and the way of escape from them, — think you that it were fitting for such an one to take delight in them ? ' ' But, Ananda, when once a brother has understood as they really are the coming to be and the passing away, the pleasures and the miseries of, and the way of escape from, these seven resting-places for Cognition, and these two Spheres, that brother, by being purged of grasping, becomes free. And then, Ananda, he is called Freed-by- Reason2 .' 35. 'Now these, Ananda, are the eight stages of Deliverance :;. Which are they ? 1 This standpoint of insight into the limitations of all sentient experience when estimated according to its emotional or hedonistic values is claimed by the Buddha as a monopoly of his own doctrine, distinguishing it from other ethical systems. See his graphic exposition in the Great Suttanta on the Body of 111 ; and the passages quoted under Yathabhutazw in the Sa/z/yutta Index (vol. vi).

2 Panna. vimutto, i.e. says the Cy. 'emancipated without the aid of the following eight grades of deliverance ' — by native insight. So PP. 14, 73. Here, as throughout, when panna. is rendered by 'reason/ it is but a pis-aller. Panna is really intellect as conversant with, engaged upon, general truths, and thus comes out as approximately Kant's Vernunfi, and Reason as distinct from Understanding, a distinction very general in English and European philosophy. See Dh. S., transl., p. 17, n. 2. By 'emancipated ' the Cy. understands ' having effected the non-perpetuity (in rebirths) of name and form.' 3 Vimokha. See the following Suttanta, p. 1 1 1 of the text; A. IV, 306, 349 ; Dh. S., §§ 248-50 ; transl., pp. 63-5. Buddhaghosa's comments on the last citation are approximately the same as those on the first three stages here given. Here, too, he explains Release as deliverance from adverse conditions, so that the attention is sustained with all the detachment and confidence felt by the little child borne on his father's hip, his limbs dangling, and no need felt to clutch. In the D. ii. 71. THE GREAT DISCOURSE ON CAUSATION. 69 4 Having one's self external form, one sees [these] forms. This is the first stage.

' Unaware of one's own external form, one sees forms external to one's self. This is the second stage. [71] ' " Lovely ! " — with this thought one becomes intent. This is the third stage. ' Passing wholly beyond 1 perceptions of form, all perceptions of sense-reaction dying away, heedless of all perceptions of the manifold, conscious of space as infinite, one enters into and abides in the sphere of space regarded as infinite. This is the fourth stage. ' Passing wholly beyond the sphere of space regarded as infinite, conscious of reason as infinite, one enters into and abides in the sphere of cognition regarded as infinite. This is the fifth stare. ' Passing wholly beyond the sphere of reason regarded as infinite, conscious of there being nothing whatever, one enters into and abides in the sphere of nothingness. This is the sixth stage. ' Passing wholly beyond the sphere of nothingness, one enters into and abides in the sphere of " neitherconsciousness-nor-unconsciousness." This is the seventh stage. 1 Passing wholly beyond the sphere of " neitheridcation-nor-non-ideation," one enters into and abides first stage, Jhana is induced by intense concentration on the colour of some bodily feature. In the second, the kasiwa is an object external to one's body. In the third, consciousness of an uprising glamour (around or superseding the kasiwa) of perfectly pure colour or lustre is meant. The aesthetic suffusion was held to quicken the sense of emancipation from morally adverse conditions analogously to that perception of ethical rapture induced by the Four Divine or Sublime Moods, described in the Maha Sudassana Suttanta. The Pa/isambhidamagga is again referred to by the Cy., viz. II, p. 39, in this connexion. The curious thing is that in reply to the question, ' How is there release thus : — " How lovely it is — with this thought he becomes intent ? " ' — the reply is simply and solely the Formula of the Four Sublime Moods. A

1 The 4th— 7th stages were afterwards known as the Four Aruppa Jhanas, or the four Jhanas to be cultivated for attaining to the Formless Heavens (see Dh. S., §§ 265 ff.). JO XV. MAHA-NIDANA-SUTTANTA. D. ii. 71* in a state of suspended perception and feeling. This is the eighth stage. 4 These, Ananda, are the eight stages of Deliverance. 36. ' Now when once a brother, Ananda, has mastered these eight stages of Deliverance in order, and has also mastered them in reverse order, and again, in both orders consecutively, so that he is able to lose himself in, as well as to emerge from, any one of them, whenever he chooses, wherever he chooses, and for as long as he chooses — when too, by rooting out the Taints, he enters into and abides in that emancipation of heart, that emancipation of the intellect which he by himself, here in this present world, has come to know and realize — then such a brother, Ananda, is called " Free-in-both-ways V And, Ananda, any other Freedom-in-both-ways higher and loftier than this Freedom-in-both-ways there is not ! ' Thus spake the Exalted One. Glad at heart the Venerable Ananda delighted in his words.

Here endeth the Maiia-Nidana-Suttanta. 1 Ubhato-bhaga-vimutto, i.e. freed both by Reason and also by the intellectual discipline of the Eight Stages. According to a scholastic elaboration of the term, emanating from the Giri-vihara of the great Loha-pasada (or Brazen Palace), ' both ways ' meant the Four Jhanas and the Aruppa-jhanas. How this can be reconciled with this paragraph — confirmed by PP. 14 and 73 and by M. I, 477-8 — is not stated. ' Taints ' are the Four Asavas, rendered ' Intoxicants ' above, p. 28, ;/. 2. THE general conclusions we have to draw as to the gradual growth of the various books in the Buddhist canon have been stated in Chapter X of ' Buddhist India.' To work out the details of it will be greatly facilitated by tabular statements of the differences and resemblances found in the various books, whether in matters of form or of ideas. The following table gives a list of all such passages in this book as have, so far, been traced elsewhere. Others will, no doubt, be discovered ; but those here given will throw some light on the method of construction followed in the book. Only parallel passages are given, passages in which some other book has at least a paragraph or more couched in identical, or almost identical, words.

A glance at column three, giving the pages of the text, shows a remarkable result. There are ninety-six pages of Pali text, beginning on p. 72. With a few gaps — pp. 92, 3; 1 13-15; 1 17-21; 13C-3; 137-40; 148-50; 153; 15s~6°l 164-7 (nine in number) — the whole text is found, in nearly identical words, elsewhere. The gaps, filled with matter found only in the Book of the Great Decease, amount altogether to about 32 or ^ pages, that is to about one-third of the whole. That proportion would be reduced if we were to include passages of similar tendency, or passages of shorter length. Secondly ; the parallel passages are found, without exception, in those books which belong to the oldest portion of the canon. In ' Buddhist India,' p. 188, there is a table showing, in groups, the probable relative order in time of the Buddhist literature down to the time of Asoka. All these passages belong to the two earliest groups ; all are found in books included in groups 4-6 ; not one occurs in any of the books included in the later groups — groups 7, 8, 9, and 10. So far as it goes, therefore, the present table is in harmony with the order suggested in the table referred to. Thirdly ; the slight differences, the more important of which

26 7-10 155-158 s.i, 157-1593 27 9 156 A. IV, 410 ff. 28 10 157 Th. I, 905, 1046; A. I, 236 30 19-20 162,163 Vin. II, 284, 5 4 31 27 167 (end of text) 1 Diners as to locus in quo. ' Differs as to application. 3 Differs as to order of sentences. 4 Differs as to order of sentences. are noted in the table, arc very suggestive. No. 26 is the episode of the stanzas uttered at the moment of the Buddha's death. The Sawyutta gives it in the Brahma-Sa7//yutta because the first verse is attributed to Brahma. The last two verses are there put into the mouths of Ananda and Anuruddha respectively, perhaps because Anuruddha's verse forms a more fitting conclusion. In the Digha Ananda's comes last, either in deprecation of Ananda (which is scarcely probable), or for the reason given in the note to the translation. In No. 14 we have four lines of verse, and the prose introductory to them, ascribed in the Digha to the Buddha, ascribed in the Anguttara to a former teacher whose story is there told by the Buddha. That previous teacher, though not a Buddha, is highly praised in the story ; the epithet applied to him in the verses (sattha) is quite in the right place in that connexion ; and the verses when spoken by the Buddha of another teacher, are quite appropriate. On the other hand, when put as the Digha puts them, into the mouth of the Buddha as spoken of himself, they are not in the best of taste, and sound forced. There can, I think, be no doubt but that the application of these verses to Sunetta the Teacher was the original one, and that the little poem was only later applied to the Buddha himself. But it does not follow in the least that the Anguttara is older than the Digha. For, as is shown by the references in the table, the Anguttara itself contains, in an earlier part of the work, the later application of these verses. There it gives the episode, word for word, as it occurs in the Digha. The two passages cannot be of the same age. It is not possible that the same story was told originally of two different people. But the two collections (Nikayas) may very well have been put together, from older materials oi varying age, at the same time.

No. 30 is the episode of the explosion of ill-will on the part of Subhadda. There is a slight but very suggestive difference here between the two texts, one found in our Suttanta the other in the Pahcasatika Khandaka of the Vinaya. For convenience of comparison the two versions of this episode are here reprinted side by side. Now at that time the venerable Now the venerable Maha Kas- Maha Kassapa was journeying sapa addressed the Bhikkhus and along the high road from Pava. to said : ' Once I was journeying Kusinaia with a great company along the high road from Pava to of the brethren, with about five Kusinara with a great company hundred of the brethren. And of the brethren, with about five the venerable Maha Kassapa left the high road, and sat himself down at the foot of a certain tree. Just at that time a certain ascetic who had picked up a Mandarava flower in Kusinara was coming along the high road to Pava. Now the venerable Maha Kassapa saw the ascetic coming in the distance, and on seeing him he said to that ascetic : ' O friend ! surely thou knowest our Master ? '

' Yea, friend ! I know him. This day the Sama;/a Gotama has been dead a week. That is how I obtained this Mandarava flower.' On that of those of the brethren who not yet free from the passions, some stretched out their arms and wept, and some fell headlong on the ground, and some reeled to and fro in anguish at the thought : ' Too soon has the Exalted One died ! Too soon has the Happy One passed away ! Too soon has the Light gone out in the world ! ' But those of the brethren who were free from the passions (the Arahants) bore their grief self-possessed and composed at the thought : ' Impermanent are all component things ! How is it possible that (they should not be dissolved?).' Now at that time a brother named Subhadda, who had been received into the Order in his old age, was seated in that company. And Subhadda, the recruit in his old age, said to those brethren : ' Enough, Sirs ! Weep not, neither lament ! We are well rid of the great Sama//a. We used to be annoyed by being told : " This beseems you, this beseems you not." But now we shall be able

hundred of the brethren. And I left the high road and sat myself down at the foot of a certain tree. Just at that time a certain ascetic who had picked up a Mandarava flower in Kusinara was coming along the high road to Pava. Now I saw that ascetic coming in the distance, and on seeing him I said to that ascetic : ' O friend ! surely thou knowest our Master?' 'Yea, friend! I know him. This day the Samara Gotama has been dead a week. That is how I obtained this Mandarava flower.' On that, Sirs, of those of the brethren who were not yet free from the passions, some stretched out their arms and wept, and some fell headlong on the ground, and some reeled to and fro in anguish at the thought : ' Too soon has the Exalted One died ! Too soon has the Happy One passed away ! Too soon has the Light gone out in the world ! ' But those of the brethren who were free from. the passions (the Arahants) bore their grief selfpossessed and composed at the thought : ' Impermanent are all component things ! How is it possible that (they should not be dissolved ?).'

Then I, Sirs, spoke thus to the Bhikkhus : ' Enough, my brethren, weep not, neither lament ! Has not the Exalted One, Sirs, formerly declared this> that it is in the very nature of all things near and dear to us that we must divide ourselves from them, leave them, sever ourselves from them. How, then, can this be possible — whereas anything whatever born, brought into being, to do whatever we like ; and what we do not like, that we shall not do!' But the venerable Maha Kassapa exhorted the brethren : ' Enough, my brethren ! Weep not, neither lament ! Has not the Exalted One formerly declared this, that it is in the very nature of all things near and dear unto us that we must divide ourselves from them, leave them, sever ourselves from them? How then, brethren, can this be possible — whereas anything whatever born, brought into being, and organized contains within itself the inherent necessity of dissolution — how then can this be possible that such a being should not be dissolved? No such condition can exist ! ' and organized contains within itself the inherent necessity of dissolution — how then can this be possible that such a beingshould not be dissolved ? No such condition can exist ! '

Now at that time, Sirs, a brother named Subhadda, who had been received into the Order in his old age, was seated in that company. And Subhadda, Sirs, the recruit in his old age, said to those brethren : ' Enough, Sirs ! Weep not, neither lament ! We are well rid of the great Samara. We used to be annoyed by being told : " This beseems you, this beseems you not." But now we shall be able to do whatever we like ; and what we do not like that we shall not do.' A glance at the above columns shows that the two texts arcidentical except in two particulars. The Digha gives the episode in narrative form, whereas the Vinaya puts it into the mouth of Kassapa himself. And secondly, whereas the Digha puts Kassapa's speech after the outburst of Subhadda, the Vinaya puts it before — that is, the last two paragraphs in the Digha are transposed in the Vinaya. Professor Oldenberg, who was the first to point out (more than thirty years ago) l the parallelism between the two texts, acutely suggests that the change is due to the position occupied by this episode in the Vinaya. It is there used as introduction to the account of the Council at Rajagaha held, according to the tradition, to counteract such sentiments as were expressed in Subhadda's outburst. It was considered more appropriate, therefore, that in that connexion, Subhadda's words should come last, to lead up to what follows. The whole of the story is accordingly taken from our Suttanta. But the last paragraphs are transposed, and the whole is put into the mouth of Kassapa, on whose advice the Council is stated to have been convened.

This seems a very probable explanation of the transposition, and of the existence of two slightly different accounts of the 1 Introduction to the Vinaya, xxvi— xxviii. episode. If we accept it — and I think we should1 — we have to face the further question : Why was the episode inserted in the Digha? It is given there in the middle of the account of the cremation of the Buddha at Kusinara. It has very little to do either with what precedes, or with what follows it ; and is said to have taken place away from Kusinara. The outburst itself was of little importance in the long story of the Buddha's last days ; and (in the older order as preserved in the Digha) is immediately overwhelmed by Maha Kassapa's apt quotation from the Master's words. Have we not here a very similar motive, acting on either the same or very similar minds ? Is it not precisely the part played by this anecdote in the traditional account of the First Council that led the compilers of the Digha to find a place for it in the Book of the Great Decease? They might so easily have left it out. As it stands it only breaks in upon the narrative. And, apart from the tradition about the First Council, it had no importance.

There has been much discussion both for and against the authenticity of this First Council. Is this really necessary ? Oldenberg's analysis of the comparative date of the different parts of the Vinaya has shown conclusively that the record, as we have it, is later than the Council of Vesali, that is at least a hundred years later than the meeting whose proceedings it purports to record. What can be the value of so late a record ? It may be objected to this that though the extant record is late the tradition may be older. No one can prove that it was not. But this would not help matters at all. We must then point out that the details as given are, as one might expect, quite inaccurate2. Space will only allow of one example being taken. It is well known that all the ancient sacred literatures of the world have grown up gradually, and are a mosaic of earlier 1 It does not quite follow that the Vinaya is borrowing direct from the Digha. That may be so. But the Subhadda story may have been in existence before either Digha or Vinaya was put into its present shape. If so, it was doubtless current in the form now preserved by the Digha ; and was changed by the compilers of the Vinaya. Both Oldenberg {Joe. cit.) and Franke (J. P. T. S., 1908, 8-12) suppose the Vinaya to be borrowing from the Digha. It is quite possible that the two books — Digha and Vinaya — may have been put together, as we now have them, at the same time.

2 It is admitted there were no reporters present. There were at the time of the Buddha's death no mechanical means available for writing anything beyond the most meagre notes. and later material. The Buddhist Pi/akas form no exception. As regards the Nikayas I have shown this elsewhere in considerable detail l. Now the record, as we have it, presupposes the existence, already at the time of the Buddha's death, of the Five Nikayas in their present arrangement ! It follows that both on general principles of comparative criticism, and on consideration of a particular instance in this special case, the details given us in the Vinaya about the First Council cannot be trusted. But it does not follow, as a matter of certainty, that there was no Council at all. It is quite possible, and even probable, that the Order held a ' General Chapter,' as we should call it, soon after the Buddha's death. They kept no proper minutes of the meeting. We may conjecture what happened at it, but it would be only conjecture. And we must continue patiently, from the incidental references in the books themselves, to formulate a probable theory as to the method in which the literature gradually sprang up. The record handed down to us in the Vinaya is authentic enough ; but only in the only ivay in zvliicJi any stick record can be considered authentic, that is, as evidence of beliefs held at the date at which it was composed.

1 ' Dialogues,' I, x-xx ; ' Buddhist India/ 161-208. The Book of the Great Decease. CHAPTER I.] i. [72] Thus have I heard. The Exalted One was once dwelling in Rajagaha, on the hill called the Vulture's Peak. Now at that time Ajatasattu, the son of the queen-consort of the Videha clan \ the king of Magadha, had made up his mind to attack the Vajjians ; and he said to himself, ' I will strike at these Vajjians, mighty and powerful- though they be, I will root out these Vajjians, I will destroy these Vajjians, I will bring these Vajjians to utter ruin ! ' 2. So he spake to the brahmin Vassakara (the Rainmaker), prime-minister of Magadha, and said : — 1 Ajatasattu Vcdehiputto. The first word is not a personal name but an official epithet, ' he against whom there has arisen no (worthy or equal) foe' (so already in the Rig Veda but Sum. 131 different). The second gives us the maiden family, or tribal (not personal) name of his mother. Her name, according to a Tibetan authority quoted by Rockhill, ' Life of the Buddha,' p. 63, was Vasavi. Persons of distinction are scarcely ever mentioned by name in Indian Buddhist books, a rule applying more especially to kings, but extended not unfiequently to private persons. Thus Upatissa, the disciple whom the Buddha himself declared to be ' the second founder of the kingdom of righteousness,' is referred to either as Dhammasenapati or as Sariputta ; epithets of corresponding origin to those in the text. See above, Vol. 1, pp. 193-5.

By the Jains Ajatasattu is called Ku/rika or Komka, which again is probably not the name given to him at the rice-eating (the ceremony corresponding to infant baptism), but a nickname acquired in after-life. 2 Evammahiddihike evammahanubhave. There is nothing magical or supernatural about the iddhi here referred to. Etena tesaw samagga-bhavaw kathesi says the commentator simply: thus referring the former adjective to the power of union, as he does the second to the power derived from practice in military tactics (hatthisippadihi). See above, Vol. I, p. 273. D. ii. 73- TIIE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 79 4 Come now, brahmin, do you go to the Exalted One, and bow down in adoration at his feet on my behalf, and inquire in my name whether he is free from illness and suffering, and in the enjoyment of ease and comfort and vigorous health. Then tell him that Ajatasattu, son of the Vedehi, the king of Magadha, in his eagerness to attack the Vajjians, has resolved, " I will strike at these Vajjians, mighty and powerful though they be, I will root out these Vajjians, I will destroy these Vajjians, I will bring these Vajjians to utter ruin ! " And bear carefully in mind whatever the Exalted One may predict, and repeat it to me. For the Buddhas speak nothing untrue ! '

3. [73] Then the brahmin Vassakara, the Rainmaker, hearkened to the words of the king, saying, ' Be it as you say.' And ordering a number of state carriages to be made ready, he mounted one of them, left Rajagaha with his train, and went to the Vulture's Peak, riding as far as the ground was passable for carriages and then alighting and proceeding on foot to the place where the Exalted One was. On arriving there he exchanged with the Exalted One the oreetinsfs and compliments of politeness and courtesy, sat down respectfully by his side (and then delivered to him the message even as the king had commanded1). 4. Now at that time the venerable Ananda was standing behind the Exalted One, and fanning him. And the Blessed One said to him : — ' Have you heard, Ananda, that the Vajjians foregather often and frequent the public meetings of their clan ? ' ' Lord, so I have heard,' replied he. ' So long, Ananda,' rejoined the Blessed One, ' as the Vajjians foregather thus often, and frequent the public meetings of their clan ; so long may they be expected not to decline, but to prosper.'

(And in like manner questioning Ananda, and receiving a similar reply, the Exalted One declared The wording of § 2 is here repeated. 8o XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 73. as follows the other conditions which would ensure the welfare of the Vajjian confederacy1.) [74] ' So long, Ananda, as the Vajjians meet together in concord, and rise in concord, and carry out their undertakings in concord — so long as they enact nothing not already established, abrogate nothing that has been already enacted, and act in accordance with the ancient institutions of the Vajjians, as established in former days — so long as they honour and esteem and revere and support the Vajjian elders, and hold it a point of duty to hearken to their words — so long as no women or girls belonging to their clans are detained among them by force or abduction — [75] so long as they honour and esteem and revere and support the Vajjian shrines 2 in town or country, and allow not the proper offerings and rites, as formerly given and performed, to fall into desuetude — so long as the rightful protection, defence, and support shall be fully provided for the Arahants among them, so that Arahants from a distance may enter the realm, and the Arahants therein may live at ease — so long may the Vajjians be expected not to decline, but to prosper.'

5. Then the Exalted One addressed Vassakara the brahmin and said : — ' When I was once staying, O brahmin, at Vesali at the Sarandada Shrine3, I taught the Vajjians these conditions of welfare ; and so long as these conditions shall continue to exist among the Vajjians, so long as the Vajjians shall be well instructed in those conditions, so long may we expect them not to decline, but to prosper.' ' We may expect then,' answered the brahmin, ' the welfare and not the decline of the Vajjians when they are possessed of any one of these conditions of welfare, how much more so when they are possessed of all 1 In the text there is a question, answer, and reply with each clause. 2 Cetiyani, which Sum. Vil. explains as Yakkha-cetiyani. 3 The commentator adds that this was a vihara erected on the site of a former shrine of the Yakkha Sarandada. The teaching referred to is set out in full at A. IV, 16, but the persons taught are there called Licchavis. D. ii. 76. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 8 1 the seven. [76] So, Gotama, the Vajjians cannot be overcome by the king- of Magadha ; that is not in battle, without diplomacy or breaking up their alliance1. And now, Gotama, we must go ; we are busy and have much to do.'

' Whatever you think most fitting, O brahmin,' was the reply. And the brahmin Vassakara, the Rainmaker, delighted and pleased with the words of the Exalted One, rose from his seat, and went his way. 6. Now soon after heA had gone the Exalted One addressed the venerable Ananda, and said : — ' Go now, Ananda, and assemble in the Service Hall such of the brethren2 as live in the neighbourhood of Rajagaha.' And he did so ; and returned to the Exalted One, and informed him, saying : — ■ The company of the brethren, lord, is assembled, let the Exalted One do as seemeth to him fit.' And the Exalted One arose, and went to the Service 1 'Overcome' is literally 'done' (karawiya), but the word evidently has a similar sense to that which ' done ' occasionally has in colloquial English. Upalapana, which I have only met with here, must mean 'humbug, cajolery, diplomacy;' see the use of the verb upa-lapeti, at S. I, 102 ; Vin. II, 119; IV, 139; Jat. II, 266, 267; IV, 56. Sum. Vil. explains it, at some length, as making an alliance, by gifts, with hostile intent, which comes to much the same thing. The root, I think, is If.

2 The word translated ' brethren ' throughout is in the original bhikkhu, a word most difficult to render adequately by any word which would not, to Christians and in Europe, connote something different from the Buddhist idea. A bhikkhu, literally 'beggar,' was a disciple who had joined Gotama's order ; but the word refers to their renunciation of worldly things, rather than to their consequent mendicancy ; and they did not really beg in our modern sense of the word. Hardy has 'priests;' I have elsewhere used 'monks' and sometimes ' beggars ' and ' members of the order.' This last is, I think, the best rendering ; but it is too long for constant repetition, as in this passage, and too complex to be a really good version of bhikkhu. The members of the order were not priests, for they had no priestly powers. They were not monks, for they took no vow of obedience, and could leave the order (and constantly did so and do so still) whenever they chose. They were not beggars, for they had none of the mental and moral qualities associated with that word. ' Brethren ' connotes very much the position in which they stood to one another ; but I wish there were a better word to use in rendering bhikkhu.

82 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 76. Hall ; and when he was seated, he addressed the brethren, and said : — ' I will teach you, O mendicants, seven conditions of the welfare of a community. Listen well and attend, and I will speak.' ' Even so, lord,' said the brethren, in assent, to the Exalted One ; and he spake as follows : — ' So long, O mendicants, as the brethren foregather oft, and frequent the formal meetings of their Order — so long as they meet together in concord, and rise in concord, and carry out in concord the duties of the Order — [77] so long as the brethren shall establish nothing that has not been already prescribed, and abrogate nothing that has been already established, and act in accordance with the rules of the Order as now laid down — so long as the brethren honour and esteem and revere and support the elders of experience and long standing, the fathers and leaders of the Order, and hold it a point of duty to hearken to their words — so long as the brethren fall not under the influence of that craving which, springing up within them, would give rise to renewed existence — so long as the brethren delight in a life of solitude — so long as the brethren so train their minds in self-possession that good men among their fellow-disciples shall come to them, and those who have come shall dwell at ease — so long may the brethren be expected, not to decline, but to prosper. So long as these seven conditions shall continue to exist among the brethren, so long as they are wellinstructed in these conditions, so long may the brethren be expected not to decline, but to prosper.

7. ' Other seven conditions of welfare will I teach you, O brethren. Listen well, and attend, and I will speak.' And on their expressing their assent, he spake as follows : — [78] ' So long as the brethren shall not engage in, or be fond of, or be connected with business — so long as the brethren shall not be in the habit of, or be fond of, or be partakers in idle talk — so long as the brethren D. ii. 79. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 83 shall not be addicted to, or be fond of, or indulge in slothfulness — so long as the brethren shall not frequent, or be fond of, or indulge in society — so long as the brethren shall neither have, nor fall under the influence of, wrong desires * — so long as the brethren shall not become the friends, companions, or intimates of evildoers— so long as the brethren shall not come to a stop on their way (to Nirvana in Arahantship 2) because they have attained to any lesser thing — so long may the brethren be expected not to decline, but to prosper. 1 So long as these conditions shall continue to exist among the brethren — so long as they are instructed in these conditions — so long may the brethren be expected not to decline, but to prosper.

8. ' Other seven conditions of welfare will I teach you, O brethren. Listen well, and attend, and I will speak.' And on their expressing their assent, he spake as follows : — 4 So long as the brethren shall be full of faith, modest in heart, afraid of wrong- doing 3, full of learning-, [79] strong in energy, active in mind, and full of wisdom — so long may the brethren be expected not to decline, but to prosper. ' So long as these conditions shall continue to exist among the brethren — so long as they are instructed in 1 The blundering misstatement that Buddhism teaches the suppression of desire (not of wrong desire) is still occasionally met with. The question is fully discussed in Mrs. Rhys Davids's article on ' The Will in Buddhism' (J.R.A.S., 1898). 2 This is an interesting analogue to Philippians iii. 13 : — ' I count not myself to have apprehended : but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark,' &c. See also below, Chap. V, §68. s The exact distinction between hiri and ottappa is here explained by Buddhaghosa as loathing sin as contrasted with fear of sin. But this is rather a gloss than an exact and exclusive definition. Ahirika is shamelessness, anotappa;/* frowardness. At Jat. I, 207 we find hiri described as subjective, and ottappa as objective, modesty of heart as contrasted with decency in outward behaviour. See further Mrs. Rhys Davids in 'Buddhist Psychology,' p. 20.

84 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 79. these conditions — so long may the brethren be expected not to decline, but to prosper. 9. ' Other seven conditions of welfare will I teach you, O brethren. Listen well, and attend, and I will speak.' And on their expressing their assent, he spake as follows : — ' So long as the brethren shall exercise themselves in the sevenfold higher wisdom, that is to say, in mental activity, search after truth, energy, joy, peace, earnest contemplation, and equanimity of mind — so long may the brethren be expected not to decline, but to prosper. ' So lonsf as these conditions shall continue to exist among the brethren — so long as they are instructed in these conditions — so long may the brethren be expected not to decline, but to prosper. 10. ' Other seven conditions of welfare will I teach you, O brethren. Listen well, and attend, and I will speak.' And on their expressing their assent, he spake as follows : — ' So long as the brethren shall exercise themselves in the realization of the ideas of the impermanency of all phenomena, bodily or mental, the absence [in them of any abiding principle] of any " soul," of corruption, of the danger of wrong thoughts, of the necessity of getting rid of them, of purity of heart, of Nirvana — so long may the brethren be expected not to decline, but to prosper.

[so] ' So long as these conditions shall continue to exist among the brethren — so long as they are instructed in these conditions — so long may the brethren be expected not to decline but to prosper. 11. 'Six conditions of welfare will I teach you, O brethren. Listen well, and attend, and I will speak.' And on their expressing their assent, he spake as follows : — 1 So long as the brethren shall persevere in kindness D. ii. 8i. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 85 of action, speech, and thought towards their fellowdisciples, both in public and in private — so long as they shall divide without partiality, and share in common with their upright companions, all such things as they receive in accordance with the just provisions of the Order, down even to the mere contents of a begging-bowl — so long as the brethren shall live among the saints in the practice, both in public and in private, of those virtues which [unbroken, intact, unspotted, unblemished] are productive of freedom \ and praised by the wise ; which are untarnished [by the desire of future life, or by the belief in the efficacy of outward acts] - ; and which are conducive to concentration of heart — so long as the brethren shall live among the saints, cherishing, both in public and in private, that noble and saving insight which leads to the complete destruction of the sorrow of him who acts according to it — so long may the brethren be expected not to decline, but to prosper.

[8l] ' So long as these six conditions shall continue to exist among the brethren — so long as they are instructed in these six conditions — so long may the brethren be expected not to decline, but to prosper.' 12. Now it was while the Exalted One was staying there at Rajagaha on the Vulture's Peak that he held that comprehensive religious talk with the brethren, saying : — ' Such and such is upright conduct ; such and such is earnest contemplation ; such and such is intelli- 1 Buddhaghosa takes this in a spiritual sense. He says : — ' These virtues are bhujissani because they bring one to the state of a free man by delivering him from the slavery of craving/ 2 The commentator explains: — 'These virtues are called aparama//Mni because they are untarnished by craving or delusion, and because no one can say of him who practises them, "you have been already guilty of such and such a fault." Craving is here the hope of a future life in heaven, and delusion the belief in the efficacy of rites and ceremonies (the two nissayas), which are condemned as unworthy inducements to virtue. At A. Ill, 132 these five qualities are called phasu-vihara, states of bliss.

86 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 8l. gence. Great becomes the fruit, great the advantage of earnest contemplation, when it is set round with upright conduct. Great becomes the fruit, great the advantage of intellect when it is set round with earnest contemplation. The mind set round with intelligence is set quite free from the Intoxications, that is to say, from the Intoxication of Sensuality, from the Intoxication of Becoming, from the Intoxication of Delusion, from the Intoxication of Ignorance1.' 13. Now when the Exalted One had sojourned at Rajagaha as long as he thought fit, heA addressed the venerable Ananda, and said : — ' Come, Ananda, let us o;o to Ambala////ika.' 1 So be it, lord ! said Ananda in assent, and the Exalted One, with a large company of the brethren, proceeded to Ambalti/Mika. 14. There the Exalted One stayed in the king's house and held that comprehensive religious talk with the brethren, saying : — ' Such and such is upright conduct ; such and such is earnest contemplation ; such and such is intelligence. Great becomes the fruit, great the advantage of earnest contemplation, when it is set round with upright conduct. Great 1 This paragraph is spoken of as if it were a well-known summary, and it is constantly repeated below. The word I have here rendered 'earnest contemplation' is samadhi, which occupies in the Five Nikayas very much the same position as faith does in the New Testament ; and this section shows that the relative importance of samadhi, panna, and sila played a part in early Buddhism just as the distinction between faith, reason, and works did afterwards in Western theology. It would be difficult to find a passage in which the Buddhist view of the relation of these conflicting ideas is stated with greater beauty of thought, or equal succinctness of form. See further Rhys Davids's ' The Yogavacara's Manual of Indian Mysticism,' pp. xxv foil, and above, Vol. I, p. 156. Also E. W. West, ' Pahlavi Texts,' III, 37 ; Anguttara I, 233 ; Itivuttaka, No. 59.

The expression 'set round with' is in Pali paribhavita. In a constantly recurring simile (M. I, 104; S. Ill, 153) eggs are said to be paribhavitani by a brooding hen. In medicine the word means ' charged with, impregnated with.5 See Jat. I, 380 ; IV, 407 ; and compare Mil. 361, 382, 394. Comp. Bhag. Gita III, 38 for this simile. D. ii. 82. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 87 becomes the fruit, great the advantage of intellect when it is set round with earnest contemplation. The mind set round with intelligence is set quite free from the Intoxications, that is to say, from the Intoxication of Sensuality, from the Intoxication of Becoming, from the Intoxication of Delusion, from the Intoxication of Ignorance.' 15. Now when the Exalted One had sojourned at Ambala/^ika asA long as he thought fit, he addressed the venerable Ananda, and said : — ' Come, Ananda, let us go on to Nalanda1.' ' So be it, lord ! ' said Ananda, in assent, to the Exalted One. Then the Exalted One proceeded, with a great company of the brethren, to Nalanda ; and there, at Nalanda, the Exalted One stayed in the Pavarika mango grove.

16. 2 Now the venerable Sariputta came to the place where the Exalted One was, and having saluted him, took his seat respectfully at his side, [82] and said : — ' Lord ! such faith have I in the Exalted One, that methinks there never has been, nor will there be, nor is there now any other, whether wanderer or brahmin, who is greater and wiser than the Exalted One, that is to say, as regards the higher wisdom/ 'Grand and bold are the words of thy mouth, Sariputta : verily, thou hast burst forth into a song of ecstasy ! of course then thou hast known all the Exalted Ones who in the long ages of the past have been Able, Awakened Ones3, comprehending their 1 Afterwards the seat of the famous Buddhist University for so many centuries the centre of learning in India. 2 The following conversation is also given at length in the Sampasadaniya Suttanta of the Digha Nikaya, and a third time in the Satipa/Mana Sawyutta of the Sazrcyutta Nikaya (S. V, 159). It was evidently a very popular passage, and is quite possibly the one referred to in Asoka's Bhabra Edict as the ' Question of Upatissa,' that is, of Sariputta.

3 Arahant Buddhas. The meaning of these words must have been very present to the minds of those who used them at the time of the rise of what we call Buddhism ; and there was little or no difference 88 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 82. minds with yours, and aware what their conduct was, what their wisdom, what their mode of life, and what the emancipation they attained to ? ' ' Not so, O lord ! ' ' Of course then thou hast perceived all the Exalted Ones who in the long ages of the future shall be Able Awakened Ones comprehending [in the same manner their whole minds with yours] ? ' ' Not so, O lord ! ' ' But at least then, O Sariputta, thou knowest me as the Able Awakened One now alive, and hast penetrated my mind [in the manner I have mentioned] ? ' ' Not even that, O lord ! ' ' You see then, Sariputta, that you know not the hearts of the Able Awakened Ones of the past and of the future. [83] Why therefore are your words so grand and bold ? Why do you burst forth into such a song of ecstasy ? '

17. ' O lord ! I have not the knowledge of the hearts of the Able Awakened Ones that have been, and are to come, and now are. I only know the lineage of the faith. 'Just, lord, as a king might have a border city, strong in its foundations, strong in its ramparts and towers, and with only one gate ; and the king might have a watchman there, clever, expert, and wise, to stop all strangers and admit only men well known. And he, on patrolling in his sentry walks over the approaches all round the city, might not so observe all the joints and crevices in the ramparts of that city as to know where even a cat could get out. He might well be satisfied to know that all living things of larger size that entered or left the city, would have to do so between the connotation of the two terms. As time went on the two were more and more differentiated, and hardened into technical terms. See Sav/yutta III, 65 on the difference between the two : and see Sawyutta I, 233; III, 160; IV, 175 for very old explanations of Araha, and Pa/isambhida I, 172 for an ancient commentary on the meaning of Buddha.

D. ii. 84. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 89 by that gate. Thus only is it, lord, that I know the lineage of the faith. 1 1 know that the Able Awakened Ones of the past, putting away all hankering after the world, ill-will, sloth, worry and perplexity — those five Hindrances, mental faults which make the understanding weak ; — training their minds in the four kinds of mental activity ; thoroughly exercising themselves in the sevenfold higher wisdom, received the full fruition of Enlightenment. And I know that the Able Awakened Ones of the times to come will [do the same]. And I know that the Exalted One, the Able Awakened One of to-day, has [done so] now1.' 18. [84] There too at Nalanda in the Pavarika mango grove the Exalted One held that comprehensive religious talk with the brethren, saying : — ' Such and such is upright conduct ; such and such is earnest contemplation ; such and such is intelligence. Great becomes the fruit, great the advantage of earnest contemplation, when it is set round with upright conduct. Great becomes the fruit, great the advantage of intellect when it is set round with earnest contemplation. The mind set round with intelligence is set quite free from the Intoxications, that is to say, from the Intoxication of Sensuality, from the Intoxication of Becom-

1 The tertium quid of the comparison is the completeness of the knowledge. Sariputta acknowledges that he was wrong in jumping to the wide conclusion that his own lord and master was the wisest of all the teachers of the different religious systems that were known to him. So far — after the cross-examination by the Buddha — he admits that his knowledge does not reach. But he maintains that he does know that which is, to him, after all the main thing, namely, that all the Buddhas must have passed through the process here laid down as leading up to the Enlightenment of Arahantship. All the details he gives are details, not of Buddhahood, but of Arahantship. He makes no distinction between the two states of attainment. This is most important for the history of that Buddhology, which, in after centuries, was the main factor in the downfall of Buddhism. 90 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 84. ing, from the Intoxication of Delusion, from the Intoxication of Ignorance.' 19. Now when the Exalted One had sojourned as lono- as he thought fit at Nalanda, he addressed the O A O 'a venerable Ananda, and said : — ' Come, Ananda, let us cro on to Pa/aliorama.'

' So be it, lord ! ' said Ananda, in assent, to the Exalted One. Then the Exalted One proceeded, with a great company of the brethren, to Paialigama. 20. Now the disciples at Pa/aligama heard of his arrival there, and they went on to the place where he was, took their seats respectfully beside him, and invited him to their village rest-house. And the Exalted One signified, by silence, his consent. 21. Then the Paialigama disciples seeing that he had accepted the invitation, rose from their seats, and went away to the rest-house, bowing to the Exalted One and keeping him on their right as they passed him. On arriving there they strewed all the rest-house with fresh sand, placed seats in it, set up a water-pot, and fixed an oil lamp. Then they returned to the Exalted One, and saluting him they stood beside him, and told him what they had done and said : — ' It is time for you to do what you deem most fit.' 22. [85] And the Exalted One robed himself, took his bowl and other things, went with the brethren to the rest-house, washed his feet, entered the hall, and took his seat against the centre pillar, with his face towards the east. And the brethren also, after washing their feet, entered the hall, and took their seats round the Exalted One, against the western wall, and facing the east. And the Pa/aligama disciples too, after washing their feet, entered the hall, and took their seats opposite the Exalted One, against the eastern wall, and facing towards the west.

23. Then the Exalted One addressed the Pa/aligama disciples, and said : — ' Fivefold, O householders, is the loss of the wrong-doer through his want of rectitude. In the first place the wrong-doer, devoid of rectitude, D. ii. 86. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 9 1 falls into great poverty through sloth ; in the next place his evil repute gets noised abroad ; thirdly, whatever society he enters — whether of nobles, brahmins, heads of houses, or men of a religious order — he enters shyly and confused ; fourthly, he is full of anxiety when he dies ; and lastly, on the dissolution of the body, after death, he is reborn into some unhappy state of suffering or woe l. This, O householders, is the fivefold loss of the evil-doer ! 24. [86] ' Fivefold, O householders, is the gain of the well-doer through his practice of rectitude. In the first place the well-doer, strong in rectitude, acquires great wealth through his industry ; in the next place, good reports of him are spread abroad ; thirdly, whatever society he enters — whether of nobles, brahmins, heads of houses, or members of a religious order — he enters confident and self-possessed ; fourthly, he dies without anxiety ; and lastly, on the dissolution of the body, after death, he is reborn into some happy state in heaven. This, O householders, is the fivefold gain of the well-doer.'

25. When the Exalted One had thus taught the lay disciples at Pa/aligama, and incited them, and roused them, and gladdened them, far into the night with religious discourse, he dismissed them, saying : — ' The night is far spent, O householders. It is time for you to do what you deem most fit.' ' Even so, lord ! ' answered the disciples of Pa/aligama, and they rose from their seats, and bowing to the Exalted One, and keeping him on their right hand as they passed him, they departed thence. And the Exalted One, not long after the disciples 1 Four such states are mentioned, apaya, duggati, vinipato, and nirayo, all of which are temporary states. The first three seem to be synonyms. The last is one of the four divisions into which the first is usually divided, and is often translated hell; but not being an eternal state, and not being dependent or consequent upon any judgement, it cannot be accurately so rendered. See p. 51. 92 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 86. of Pa^aligama had departed thence, entered into his private chamber \ 26. At that time Sunidha and Vassakara, the chief ministers of Magadha, were building a fortress at Pa/aligama to repel the Vajjians, [87] and there were a number of fairies who haunted in thousands the plots of ground there. Now, wherever ground is so occupied by powerful fairies, they bend the hearts of the most powerful kings and ministers to build dwelling-places there, [and fairies of middling and inferior power bend in a similar way the hearts of middling or inferior kings and ministers2.]

27. And the Blessed One, with great and clear vision, surpassing that of ordinary men, saw thousands of those fairies haunting Pa/aligama. And he rose up very early in the morning, and said to Ananda: — .' Who is it then, Ananda, who is building a fortress at Pa/aligama ?' ' Sunidha and Vassakara, lord, the chief ministers of Magadha, are building a fortress there to keep back the Vajjians.' 28. ' They act, Ananda, as if they had consulted with the Tavatiwsa angels.' [And telling him of what he had seen, and of the influence such fairies had, he added]: — ' And as far, Ananda, as Aryan people resort, as far as merchants travel, this will become the chief city, Pa/ali-putta, a centre for the interchange of all kinds of wares. [88] But three clangers will hang over Pa/ali-putta, that of fire, that of water, and that of dissension among friends V 1 Compare Vinaya III, 93. 2 The curious popular belief as to good and bad fairies haunting the sites of houses gave rise to a quack science, akin to astrology, called vatthu-vijja, which Buddhaghosa explains here at some length, and which is frequently condemned elsewhere in the Five Nikayas. See, for instance, I of the Maha-silam, translated above, Vol. I, p. 18. The belief is turned to ridicule in the edifying legend, No. 40, in my 'Buddhist Birth Stories/ pp. 326-34.

3 This paragraph is of importance to the orthodox Buddhist as proving the Buddha's power of prophecy and the authority of the D. ii. 88. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 93 29. Now Sunidha and Vassakara, the chief ministers of Magadha, proceeded to the place where the Exalted One was. And when they had come there they exchanged with the Exalted One the greetings and compliments of politeness and courtesy, and stood there respectfully on one side. And, so standing, Sunidha and Vassakara, the chief ministers of Magadha, spake thus to the Exalted One :— ' May the venerable Gotama do us the honour of taking his meal, together with the company of the brethren, at our house to-day.' And the Exalted One signified, by silence, his consent. 30. Then when Sunidha and Vassakara, the chief ministers of Magadha, perceived that he had given his consent, they returned to the place where they dwelt. And on arriving there, they prepared sweet dishes of boiled rice, and cakes ; and informed the Exalted One, saying : — ' The hour of food has come, O Gotama, and all is ready.' And the Exalted One robed himself early, took his bowl with him, and repaired, with the brethren, to the dwelling-place of Sunidha and Vassakara, and sat down on the seat prepared for him. And with their own hands they set the sweet rice and the cakes before the brethren with the Buddha at their head, and waited on them till they had had enough. And when the Exalted One had finished eating his meal, the ministers brought a low seat, and sat down respectfully at his side.

31. And when they were thus seated the Exalted One gave thanks in these verses : — ' Wheresoe'er the prudent man shall take up his abode Buddhist scriptures. To those who conclude that such a passage must have been written after the event that is prophesied (if any), it may be valuable evidence of the age both of the Vinaya and of this Maha Parinibbana Suttanta. See the note at ' Vinaya Texts,' II, 102. 94 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 88. Let him support the brethren there, good men of self-control, And give the merit of his gifts to the deities who haunt the spot l. Revered, they will revere him : honoured, they honour him again ; Are gracious to him as a mother to her own, her only son. And the man who has the grace of the gods, good 32. [89] And when he had thanked the ministers in these verses he rose from his seat and departed thence. And they followed him as he went, saying, ' The gate the Samana Gotama goes out by to-day shall be called Gotama's gate, and the ferry at which he crosses the river shall be called Gotama's ferry.' And the gate he went out at was called Gotama's gate.

33. But the Exalted One went on to the river. And at that time the river Ganges was brimful and overflowing ; and wishing to cross to the opposite bank, some began to seek for boats, some for rafts of wood, whilst some made rafts of basket-work. Then the Exalted One as instantaneously as a strong man would stretch forth his arm, or draw it back again when he had stretched it forth, vanished from this side of the river, and stood on the further bank with the company of the brethren. 34. And the Exalted One beheld the people who wished to cross to the opposite bank looking some of them for boats and some of them for rafts of wood, and some of them for rafts of basket-work ; and as he beheld them he brake forth at that time into this song : — 1 Tasa-w dakkhi;/aw iidise. See Theri Gatha 307, 311; Mil. 294. D. ii. 89. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 95 ' They who have crossed the ocean drear Making a solid path across the pools — Whilst the vain world ties its basket rafts — These are the wise, these are the saved indeed!1 '

End of the First Portion for Recitation. 1 That is, those who cross the ' ocean drear ' of t a;/ ha, or craving ; avoiding by means of the ' dyke ' or causeway of the Aryan Path, the ' pools ' or shallows of lust, and ignorance, and delusion (comp. Dhp. 91), whilst the vain world looks for salvation from rites, and ceremonies, and gods, — ' these are the wise, these are the saved indeed ! ' i. [90] Now the Exalted One addressed the venerable Ananda, and said : — ' Come, Ananda, let us go on to Ko/io-ama.' ' So be it, lord ! ' said Ananda, in assent, to the Exalted One. The Exalted One proceeded with a great company of the brethren to Ko/igama ; and there he stayed in the village itself1. 2. And at that place the Exalted One addressed the brethren, and said : — ' It is through not understanding and grasping four Aryan Truths, O brethren, that we have had to run so long, to wander so long in this weary path of transmigration, both you and I ! ' And what are these four ? ' ' The Aryan truth about sorrow ; the Aryan truth about the cause of sorrow ; the Aryan truth about the cessation of sorrow ; and the Aryan truth about the path that leads to that cessation. But when these Aryan truths are grasped and known the craving for future life is rooted out, that which leads to renewed becoming is destroyed, and then there is no more birth!2'

3. Thus spake the Exalted One ; and when the Happy One had thus spoken, then again the Teacher said : — [91] ' By not seeing the Aryan Truths as they really are, Long is the path that is traversed through many a birth ; 1 As will be observed from the similar passages that follow, there is a regular sequence of clauses in the set descriptions of the Buddha's movements. The last clause should specify the particular grove or house where the Exalted One stayed ; but it is also (in this and one or two other cases) inserted with due regularity even when it adds nothing positive to the sense. 2 Compare below, Chapter IV, §§ 2. 3; p. 131. r > - ii.gr. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. When these are grasped, the cause of rebirth is removed, The root of sorrow uprooted, and then there is no 4. There too, while staying at Ko/igama, the Exalted One held that comprehensive religious talk with the brethren, saying : — ' Such and such is upright conduct ; such and such is earnest contemplation ; such and such is intelligence. Great becomes the fruit, great the advantage of earnest contemplation, when it is set round with upright conduct. Great becomes the fruit, great the advantage of intellect when it is set round with earnest contemplation. The mind set round with intelligence is set quite free from the Intoxications, that is to say, from the Intoxication of Sensuality, from the Intoxication of Becoming, from the Intoxication of Delusion, from the Intoxication of Ignorance.'

5. Now when the Exalted One had remained as lone as he thought fit at Ko/ieama, he addressed the venerable Ananda, and said : — ' Come, Ananda, let us go on to the Nadikas.' ' So be it, lord ! ' said Ananda, in assent, to the Exalted One. And the Exalted One proceeded to the Nadikas with a great company of the brethren ; and there, at Nadika, the Exalted One stayed in the Brick Hall l. 1 At first Nadika is (twice) spoken of in the plural number (a clanname); but then, thirdly, in the last clause, in the singular (a local name derived from the clan-name). Buddhaghosa explains this by saying that there were two villages of the same name on the shore oi the same piece of water. The ' Brick Hall ' was the public restingplace for travellers, and the name is noteworthy as almost all buildings were then of wood. The expression used here is an idiomatic phrase descriptive of the arrival of travellers at a place : — ' and there, at X. so and so stayed in Y.' where X. is the name of the town or village, and Y. is the lodgingplace the traveller occupies. (See just above in § 1 for a good instance.) The first name, the name X., is always the name of the

C)8 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii.91. 6. And the venerable Ananda went to the Exalted One and paid him reverence and took his seat beside him. And when he was seated, he addressed the Exalted One, and said:- — ' The brother named Sa/ha has died at Nadika, lord. Where has he been reborn, and what is his destiny ? The sister named Nanda has died, lord, at Nadika. Where is she reborn, and what is her destiny ? ' [92] [And in the same terms he inquired concerning the lay disciple Sudatta, and the devout lady Sugata, the lay disciples Kakudha, and Kalinga, and Nika/a, and Ka/issabha, and Tu/Z/^a, and Santu/Ma, and Bhadda, and SubhaddaA.] 7. ' The brother named Sa/ha, Ananda, by the destruction of the Intoxications has by himself, and in this world, known and realized and attained to Arahantship, to emancipation of heart and to emancipation of mind. The sister named Nanda, Ananda, has, by the complete destruction of the five bonds that bind people to these lower worlds of lust, become an inheritor of the highest heavens, there to pass entirely away, thence never to return. The devout Sudatta, Ananda, by the complete destruction of the three bonds, and by the reduction to a minimum of lust, ill-will, and stupidity, has become a Sakadagamin, who on his first return to this world will make an end of sorrow. The devout

Sugata, Ananda, by the complete destruction of the three bonds, has become converted, is no longer liable to be reborn in a state of suffering, and is assured of hereafter attaining to the enlightenment [of Arahantship]1. The devout Kakudha, Ananda, by the complete destruction of the five bonds that bind people to these lower worlds of lust, has become an inheritor of the highest heavens, there to pass entirely away, thence never to return. [The same of Kalinga, Nika/a, town, and never an adjective in agreement with the second name. It seems simple enough ; but even the best Sanskritists appear sometimes to be unfamiliar with the force of this Pali idiom. 1 See Rhys Davids's 'Buddhism,' pp. 108-10; above, Vol. I, pp. 190-2; below, at VI. 6, and in the translation of D. II, 201 ; also Divyavadana, pp. 533-4- P.ii.93- THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 99 Ka^issabha, Tutt/ta., Santu///£a, Bhadda, and Subhadda, [93] and with more than fifty devout men in Nadika.] More tiian ninety devout men in Nadika, who have died, Ananda, have by the complete destruction of the three bonds, and by the reduction of lust, ill-will and stupidity, become Sakadagamins, who on their first return to this world will make an end of sorrow. More than five hundred devout men of Nadika who

have died, Ananda, have by the complete destruction of the three bonds become converted, are no longer liable to be reborn in a state of suffering, and are assured of hereafter attaining the enlightenment [of Arahantship]. 8. ' Now there is nothing strange in this, Ananda, that a human being should die ; but that as each one does so you should come to me, and inquire about them in this manner, that is wearisome to me. I will, therefore, teach you a way of truth, called the Mirror of Truth, which if a disciple of the noble ones possess he may, if he should so desire, himself predict of himself:— "Purgatory is destroyed for me, and rebirth as an animal, or a ghost, or in any place of woe. I am converted, I am no longer liable to be reborn in a state of suffering, and am assured of hereafter attaining to the enlightenment [of Arahantship]." 9. ' What then, Ananda, is this Mirror of Truth ? [It is the consciousness that] the disciple of the Arahants is in this world possessed of faith in the Buddha — believing the Exalted One to be the Arahant, the Fully-enlightened One, Wise, Upright, Happy, Worldknowing, Supreme, the Bridler of men's wayward hearts, the Teacher of gods and men, the Exalted and Awakened One. And that he [the disciple] is possessed of faith in the Truth — believing the Truth to have been proclaimed by the Exalted One, of advantage in this world, passing not away, welcoming all, leading to salvation, and to be attained to by the wise, each one for himself. And that he [the disciple] is possessed of faith in the Order — believing the multitude of the disciples of the Exalted One who are walking in the

IOO XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 93. four stages of the noble eightfold path, the righteous, the upright, the just, the law-abiding — [94] believing this church of the Exalted One to be worthy of honour, of hospitality, of gifts, and of reverence ; to be the supreme sowing ground of merit for the world ; to be possessed of the virtues beloved by the good, virtues unbroken, intact, unspotted, unblemished, virtues which make men truly free, virtues which are praised by the wise, are untarnished by the desire of future life or by the belief in the efficacy of outward acts, and are conducive to concentration of heart 1. ' This, Ananda, is the way, the Mirror of Truth, which if a disciple of the noble ones possess he may, if he should so desire, himself predict of himself : — " Purgatory is destroyed for me ; and rebirth as an animal, or a ghost, or in any place of woe. I am converted ; I am no longer liable to be reborn in a state of suffering, and am assured of finally attaining to the enlightenment [of Arahantship]." 10. There, too, at the Brick Hall at Nadika the Exalted One held that comprehensive religious talk with the brethren, saying : — ' Such and such is upright conduct ; such and such is earnest contemplation ; such and such is intelligence. Great becomes the fruit, great the advantage of earnest contemplation, when it is set round with upright conduct. Great becomes the fruit, crreat the advantage of intellect when it is set round with earnest contemplation. The mind set round with intelligence is set quite free from the Intoxications, that is to say, from the Intoxication of Sensuality, from the Intoxication of Becoming, from -the Intoxication of Delusion, from the Intoxication of Ignorance.'

ii. Now when the Exalted One^had remained as long as he wished at Nadika, he addressed Ananda, and said : — ' Come, Ananda, let us q-o on to Vesali.' See above, I, n. D.ii. 95* THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. ' So be it, lord ! ' said Ananda, in assent, to the Exalted One. Then the Exalted One proceeded, with a great company of the brethren, to Vesali ; and there at Vesali the Exalted One stayed at Ambapali's grove. 12. Now there the Exalted One addressed the brethren, and said : — ' Let a brother, O mendicants, be mindful and self-possessed ; this is our instruction to you1. ' And how does a brother become mindful ? ' Herein, O mendicants, a brother continues as to the body, so to look upon the body that he remains strenuous, [95] self-possessed, and mindful, having overcome both the hankering and the dejection common in the world. [And in the same way as to feelings, moods, or ideas, he continues so to look upon each] that he remains strenuous, self-possessed, and mindful, having overcome both the hankering and the dejection common in the world. 13. 'And how does a brother become self-possessed? ' He acts, O mendicants, in full presence of mind

whatever he may do, in going out or coming in, in looking forward or in looking round, in bending in his arm or in stretching it forth, in wearing his robes or in carrying his bowl, in eating or drinking, in masticating or swallowing, in obeying the calls of nature, in walking or standing or sitting, in sleeping or waking, in talking and in being silent. Thus let a brother, O mendicants, be mindful and self-possessed; this is our instruction to you V 1 Quoted Mil. 378. 2 This doctrine of being ' mindful and self-possessed ' is one of the lessons most frequently inculcated in the Pali Pi/akas, and is one of the " Seven Jewels of the Law.' It is fully treated of in each of the Nikayas, forming the subject of the Maha Satippa/Mana Suttanta in the Digha Nikaya, and the Satippa//Mna Suttanta of the Majjhima Nikaya, and the Satippa/Z^ana Sa/«yutta of the Sawyutta Nikaya, as well as of various oassages in the Anguttara Nikaya, and of the Vibhahga. See abo\^, Vol. I, pp. 80, 81 ; and the translation, below, of pp. 290 foil, of the text. The point is there discussed in detail. Buddhaghosa has no comment here on the subject itself, reserving

102 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 95. 14. x Now the courtezan Ambapali heard that the Exalted One had arrived at Vesali, and was staying there at her mango grove. And ordering a number of state vehicles to be made ready, she mounted one of them, and went forth with her train from Vesali towards her garden. She went in the carriage as far as the ground was passable for carriages ; there she alighted ; and she proceeded on foot to the place where the Exalted One was, and took her seat respectfully on one side. And when she was thus seated the Exalted One instructed, aroused, incited, and gladdened her with religious discourse. Then she — instructed, aroused, incited, and gladdened with his words — addressed the Exalted One, and said : — ' May the Exalted One do me the honour of taking his meal, together with the brethren, at my house tomorrow?' And the Exalted One gave, by silence, his consent. Then when Ambapali the courtezan saw that the Exalted One had consented, she rose from her seat and bowed down before him, and keeping him on her right hand as she passed him, she departed thence.

what he has to say for the comment on the Suttantas devoted entirely to it ; but he observes in passing that the reason why the Exalted One laid stress, at this particular time and place, on the necessity of being ' mindful and thoughtful,' was because of the imminent approach of the beautiful courtezan in whose grove they were staying. The use of the phrase sati upa////apetabba below, Chap. V, 9 (text, p. 141). in reference to the way in which women should be treated, is quite in accordance with this explanation. But see the next note. 1 From this point down to the words ' he rose from his seat,' in II, 24 is, with a few unimportant variations, word for word the same as Vinaya, Vol. I, pp. 231-3. But the passage there follows immediately after the verses translated above, I, 34, so that the events here (in §§ 14-18) localized at Vesali, are there localized at Ko/igama. Our section II, 5 is then inserted between our sections II, 18 and II, 19 ; and our section II, 1 1 does not occur at all, the Exalted One only reaching Ambapali's grove when he goes there (as in our section II, 19) to partake of the meal to which he had been invited. Kuddhaghosa passes over this apparent discrepancy in silence.

I>. ii.96. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 103 15. [96] Now the Licchavis of Vesali heard that the Exalted One had arrived at Vesali, and was staying at Ambapali's grove. And ordering a number of state carriages to be made ready, they each mounted one of them and went forth with their train from Vesali. Some of them were dark, dark in colour, and wearing dark clothes and ornaments : some of them were fair, fair in colour, and wearing light clothes and ornaments : some of them were red, ruddy in colour, and wearing red clothes and ornaments : some of them were white, pale in colour, and wearing white clothes and ornaments. 16. And Ambapali drove up against the young Licchavis, axle to axle, wheel to wheel, and yoke to yoke, and the Licchavis said to Ambapali the courtezan : — ' How is it, Ambapali, that thou drivest up against us thus ? ' ' My lords, I have just invited the Exalted One and his brethren for their morrow's meal,' said she. 1 Ambapali ! give up this meal to us for a hundred thousand,' said they. ' My lords, were you to offer all Vesali with its subject territory, I would not give up so honourable a feast ! '

Then the Licchavis cast up their hands, exclaiming : — ' We are outdone by this mango girl ! we are outreached by this mango girl 1 ! ' and they went on to Ambapali's grove. 17. When the Exalted One saw the Licchavis approaching in the distance, he addressed the brethren, and said : — ' O brethren, let those of the brethren who have never seen the Tavati;;/sa gods, gaze upon this company of the Licchavis, behold this company of the Licchavis, compare this company of the Licchavis — for they are even as a company of Tavatiwsa gods V 1 Literally ' by this woman.' But I have tried to reproduce the evident word-play. Ambapali means mango grower, one who looks after mangoes. 2 The Tavatimsa-deva are the gods in the heaven of the Great 104 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 97. 18. [07] And when they had ridden as far as the ground was passable for carriages, the Licchavis alighted there, and then went on foot to the place where the Exalted One was, and took their seats respectfully by his side. And when they were thus seated the Exalted One instructed and roused and incited and gladdened them with religious discourse l.

Then they — instructed and roused and incited and gladdened with his words — addressed the Exalted One, and said : — ' May the Exalted One do us the honour of taking his meal, together with the brethren, at our house to-morrow ? ' ' O Licchavis, I have promised to dine to-morrow with Ambapali the courtezan,' was the reply. Then the Licchavis cast up their hands, exclaiming : — ' We are outdone by this mango girl ! we are outreached by this mango girl ' ! And expressing their thanks and approval of the words of the Exalted One, they rose from their seats and bowed down before the Exalted One, and keeping him on their right hand as they passed him, they departed thence. 19. And at the end of the night Ambapali the courtezan made ready in her mansion sweet rice and cakes, and announced the time to the Exalted One, saying: — ' The hour, lord, has come, and the meal is ready ! ' And the Exalted One who had dressed himself early in the morning, took his bowl, and his robe, and went with the brethren to the place where Ambapali's mansion was : and when he had come there he seated himself on the seat prepared for him. And Ambapali

Thirty-Three, the principal deities of the Vedic Pantheon. See A. Ill, 239; Sum. I, 310; Mahavastu I, 262. 1 The Malalahkara-vatthu gives the substance of the discourse on this occasion. ' The princes had come in their finest and richest dress; in their appearance they vied in beauty with the nats (or angels). But foreseeing the ruin and misery that was soon to come upon them all, the Buddha exhorted his disciples to enteriain a thorough contempt for things that are dazzling to the eyes, but essentially perishable and unreal in their nature/ — Bigandet, 2nd ed., p. 260. I). ii..iS. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 105 the courtezan set the sweet rice and cakes before the Order, with the Buddha at their head, and waited upon them till they refused any more. And when the Blessed One had quite finished his meal, and had cleansed the bowl and his hands, the courtezan had a low stool brought, and [98] sat down at his side, and addressed the Exalted One, and said : — ' Lord, I present this pleasaunce to the order of mendicants, of which the Buddha is the chief.' And the Exalted One accepted the gift ; and after instructing, and rousing, and inciting, and gladdening her with religious discourse, he rose from his seat and departed thence.1

20. While at Ambapali's mango grove the Exalted One held that comprehensive religious talk with the brethren, saying : — ' Such and such is upright conduct ; such and such is earnest contemplation ; such and such is intelligence. Great becomes the fruit, great the advantage of earnest contemplation, when it is set round with upright conduct. Great becomes the fruit, great the advantage of intellect when it is set round with earnest contemplation. The mind set round with intelligence is set quite free from the Intoxications, that is to say, from the Intoxication of Sensuality, from the Intoxication of Becoming, from the Intoxication of Delusion, from the Intoxication of Ignorance.' 21. Now when the Exalted One had remained so long as he wished at Ambapali's grove, he addressed Ananda, and said : — ' Come, Ananda, let us go on to Beluva V 1 Bishop Bigandet says : — ' In recording the conversion of a courtezan named Apapalika, her liberality and gifts to Budha and his disciples, and the preference designedly given to her over princes and nobles, who, humanly speaking, seemed in every respect better entitled to attentions — one is almost reminded of the conversion of ' a woman that was a sinner,' mentioned in the Gospels (' Legend of the Burmese Budha,' 2nd ed., p. 258).

2 The Vinaya (I, 233) says they went to the Great Wood near 106 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 98. ' So be it, lord,' said Ananda, in assent, to the Exalted One. Then the Exalted One proceeded, with a great company of the brethren, to Beluva, and there the Exalted One stayed in the village itself. 22. Now the Exalted One there addressed the brethren, and said : — ' O mendicants, do you take up your abode round about Vesali, each according to the place where his friends, acquaintances, and intimates may live, for the retreat in the rainy season [for vassa]. I shall enter upon the rainy season here at Beluva.' ' So be it, lord ! ' said those brethren, in assent, to the Exalted One. And they entered upon the rainy season round about Vesali, each according to the place where his friends, acquaintances, and intimates lived : [99] whilst the Exalted One stayed even there at Beluva. 23. Now when the Exalted One had thus entered upon the rainy season, there fell upon him a dire sickness, and sharp pains came upon him, even unto death. But the Exalted One, mindful and self-possessed, bore them without complaint.

Then this thought occurred to the Exalted One : — 'It would not be right for me to pass away without addressing the disciples, without taking leave of the Order. Let me now, by a strong effort of the will, bend this sickness down again, and keep my hold on life till the allotted time be come V And the Exalted One, by a strong effort of the will, bent that sickness down again, and kept his hold on life till the time he fixed upon should come. And the sickness abated upon him. 24. Now very soon after the Blessed One began to recover. And when he had quite got rid of the sickness, he came out from his lodging, and sat down in the shadow thereof on a seat spread out there. And Vesali, that is, it skips the context here as far as III, 64. Our sections 27-35 are in [he Sa?«yutta V, 152-4. 1 Compare Divyavadana 203. D.ii. IOO. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 107 the venerable Ananda went to the place where the Exalted One was, and saluted him, and took a seat respectfully on one side, and addressed the Exalted One, and said : — ' I have beheld, lord, how the Exalted One was in health, and I have beheld how the Exalted One had to suffer. And though at the sight of the sickness of the Exalted One my body became weak as a creeper, and the horizon became dim to me, and my faculties were no longer clear \ yet notwithstanding I took some little comfort from the thought that the Exalted One would not pass away until at least he had left instructions as touching the Order.'

25. [100] 'What, then, Ananda? Does the Order expect that of me ? I have preached the truth without making any distinction between exoteric and esoteric doctrine ; for in respect of the truths, Ananda, the Tathagata has no such thing as the closed fist of a teacher, who keeps some things back2. Surely, Ananda, should there be any one who harbours the thought, " It is I who will lead the brotherhood," or, ' The Order is dependent upon me," it is he who should lay down instructions in any matter concerning the Order. Now the Tathagata, Ananda, thinks not that it is he who should lead the brotherhood, or that the Order is dependent upon him. Why then should he leave instructions in any matter concerning the Order ? I too, O Ananda, am now grown old, and full of years, my journey is drawing to its close, I have reached my sum of days, I am turning eighty years of age ; and just as a worn-out cart, Ananda, can be kept goingonly with the help of thongs, so, methinks, the body of the Tathagata can only be kept going by bandaging it up :;. It is only, Ananda, when the Tathagata, by

1 Compare A. J II, 69. 2 Compare Jataka II, 221, 250; Mil. 144. Vegha-missakena, the meaning of which is not clear. The Maldlahkara-vatthu, as rendered by Bigandet, has 'repairs.' The Sumangala Vilasini agrees, but in such a way as to throw no light on the derivation of the word. In the Sawyutta Nikaya (V, 153) the I08 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. IOO. ceasing to attend to any outward thing, becomes plunged by the cessation of any separate sensation in that concentration of heart which is concerned with no material object — it is only then that the body of the TathaQfata is at ease x. 26. 2 ' Therefore, O Ananda, be ye lamps unto yourselves. Be ye a refuge to yourselves. Betake yourselves to no external refuge. Hold fast to the Truth as a lamp. Hold fast as a refuge to the Truth. Look not for refuge to any one besides yourselves. And how, Ananda, is a brother to be a lamp unto himself, a refuge to himself, betaking himself to no external refuge, holding fast to the Truth as a lamp, holding fast as a refuge to the Truth, looking not for refuge to any one besides himself?

' Herein, O mendicants, a brother continues, as to the body, so to look upon the body that he remains strenuous, self-possessed, and mindful, having overcome both the hankering and the dejection common in the world. [And in the same way] as to feelings . . . moods . . . ideas, he continues so to look upon each that he remains strenuous, self-possessed, and mindful, having overcome both the hankering and the dejection common in the world. [101] ' And whosoever, Ananda, either now or after I am dead, shall be a lamp unto themselves, and a refuge unto themselves, shall betake themselves to no external refuge, but holding fast to the Truth as Burmese Phayre MS. reads vekhamissakena and another Burmese MS. vedha — but SS. all read vegha. The Siamese edition has ve/u. My Digha Nikaya confirms Childers's reading, which no doubt correctly represents the uniform tradition of the Ceylon MSS. On the use of the word missaka at the end of a compound see Jataka II, 8,420,433; and compare M.I, 82; Thera-gatha 143; Mil. 1 59 ; and the discussion in ' J.P.T. S.,' 1884, pp. 97-101. 1 This is very interesting as giving what is, no doubt, the original meaning of animitta as applied to ceto-samadhi. See my ' Yogavacara's Manual of Indian Mysticism,' p. xxvii.

2 This section recurs at S. V, 163, compare III, 42, and the example ?iven at V, 221. 1). ii. 101 . THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. IO9 their lamp, and holding fast as their refuge to the Truth, shall look not for refuge to any one besides themselves — it is they, Ananda, among my bhikkhus, who shall reach the very topmost Height! — but they must be anxious to learn V End of the Second Portion for Recitation. 1 Buddhaghosa says : — 'Tamatagge is for tamagge. The "t" in the middle is used for euphony. This word means, " These are the most pre-eminent, the very chief." Having, as above stated, broken every bond of darkness (tama), those bhikkhus of mine, Ananda, will be at the very top, in the highest condition. They will be at the very top of whom ? Those bhikkhus who are willing to learn, and those who exercise themselves in the four ways of being mindful and thoughtful, they shall be at the top of all (the rest). Thus does he make Arahantship the three-peaked height of his discourse ' (compare on this last phrase Nibbanena desana>£utam gawhati, Jataka I, 275, 393, 401 ; and see also I, 114). Uttama, the highest (scil. bhava, condition), is used absolutely of Arahantship or Nirvana at Jataka I, 96 ; Aggaphala occurs in the same sense at Jataka I, 114; and even Phalagga at Mahavarasa XV, 209. The last words, ' but they must be anxious to learn,' seem to me to be an afterthought. It is only those who are thoroughly determined to work out their own salvation, without looking for safety to any one else, even to the Buddha himself, who will, whilst in the world, enter into and experience Nirvana. But, of course, let there be no mistake, merely to reject the vain baubles of the current superstitious beliefs is not enough. There is plenty to learn and to acquire, of which enough discourse is elsewhere.

i.1 [102] Now the Exalted One robed himself early in the morning, and taking his bowl in the robe, went into Vesali for alms. When, after he had returned from the round for alms, he had^ finished eating the rice, he addressed the venerable Ananda, and said : — ' Take up the mat, Ananda ; I will go and spend the day at the Chapala Shrine.' ' So be it, lord ! ' said the venerable Ananda, in assent, to the Exalted One. And taking up the mat he followed step for step behind the Exalted One. 2. So the Exalted One proceeded to the Chapala Shrine, and when he had come there he sat down on the mat spread out for him, and the venerable Ananda took his seat respectfully beside him. Then the Exalted One addressed the venerable Ananda, and said : — ' How delightful a spot, Ananda, is Vesali, and how charming the Udena Shrine, and the Gotamaka Shrine, and the Shrine of the Seven Mangoes, and the Shrine of Many Sons, and the Sarandada Shrine, and the Chapala Shrine 2 ! 3. [103] ' Ananda, whosoever has developed, practised, dwelt on, expanded and ascended to the very heights of the four paths to Iddhi 3, and so mastered them as to be able to use them as a vehicle, and as a

1 1-20 recur in A. IV, 308 foil. ; 1-10 in Udana VI, 1. and S. V, 259 foil. Compare Divy., pp. 200-8. • 2 Shrines of pre-Buddhistic worship. They were probably trees and barrows ; but as no excavations have yet been made at Vesali the point is uncertain. The Anglo-Indian use of the word Chetiya. as equivalent to our Temple, is quite wrong. 3 Iddhi. The four paths are : — (1) will, (2) effort, (3) thought, and (4) investigation, each united to earnest thought and the struggle against evil. On the Iddhi to be reached by them see above, Vol. I, pp. 272, 273; and the translator's 'Buddhism,' pp. 174-7. The whole set of participles is used elsewhere of other conditions of mind. So, for instance, of universal love (metta) at A. V, 342, quoted Jataka II, 61, Mil. 198. An ancient commentary on them is preserved at Pa/is. I, 172. 1). ii. 104. THE HOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. I I I basis, he, should he desire it, could remain in the same birth for an aeon or for that portion of the aeon which had yet to run. Now the Tathagata has thoroughly practised and developed them [in all respects as just more fully described], and he could, therefore, should he desire it, live on yet for an aeon, or for that portion of the aeon which has yet to run.'

4. But even though a suggestion so evident and a hint so clear were thus given by the Exalted One, the venerable Ananda was incapable of comprehending them ; [104] and he besought not the Exalted One, saying : — ' Vouchsafe, lord, to remain during the aeon ! Live on through the aeon, O Happy One ! for the good and the happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, for the good and the gain and the weal of gods and men ! ' So far was his heart possessed by the Evil One l. 5. A second and a third time did the Exalted One [say the same thing, and a second and a third time was Ananda's heart thus hardened]. 6. Then the Exalted One addressed the vener- 1 Yatha tarn Marena pariyu///ntacitto. Here ta.m is the indeclinable particle, yatha taw introducing an explanation. My MS. of the Digha Nikaya and the Tumour MS. of the Sumangala Vilasini read parivu///zita, and either spelling is correct. The fact is that the ' y ' or ' v ' in such cases is even less than euphonic ; it is an assistance not to the speaker, but merely to the writer. Thus in the Sinhalese duwanawa, 'to run,' the spoken word is duanawa, and the ' w ' is written only to avoid the awkward use in the middle of a written word of the initial sign for the sound ' a '. That the speakers of Pali found no difficulty in pronouncing two vowels together is abundantly proved by numerous instances. The writers of Pali, in those cases in which the second vowel begins a word, use without hesitation the initial sign ; but in the middle of the word this would be so ungainly that they naturally prefer to insert a consonantal sign to carry the vowel sign. The varying readings I have pointed out are a strong confirmation of the correctness of the pronunciation of modern native scholars (in this case pari-u///nta) ; and we may the more readily adopt it as the question is not really one concerning the pronunciation of Pali, but concerning the use which modern native copyists make of their own alphabet. I would pronounce therefore pari-utthita-citto. See Windisch, ' Mara und Buddha,' p. 40; M.I, 43.3-4; Vin. II, 289; IV. 94, 229.

112 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 104, able Ananda, and said : — ' You may leave me, Ananda, awhile, and do whatsoever now seemeth to Athee fit.' ' So be it, lord ! ' said the venerable Ananda, in assent, to the Exalted One, and passing him on the right sat down at the foot of a certain tree not far off thence. 7. Now not long after the venerable Ananda had been gone, Mara, the Evil One, approached the Exalted One and stood beside him. And so standing there, he addressed the Exalted One in these words : — ' Pass away now, lord ; let the Exalted One now die. Now is the time for the Exalted One to pass away — even according to the word which the Exalted One spoke when he said l : — ■" I shall not die, O Evil One ! until the brethren and sisters of the Order, and until the lay-disciples of either sex 2 shall have become true hearers, wise and well trained, ready and learned, carrying the doctrinal books in their memory, masters of the lesser corollaries that follow from the larger doctrine, correct in life, walking according to the precepts — until the)-, having thus themselves learned the doctrine, shall be able to tell others of it, preach it, make it known, establish it, open it, minutely explain it and make it clear — until they, when others start vain doctrine easy to be refuted by the truth, shall be able in refuting it, to spread the wonder-working 3 truth abroad ! '

8. ' And now, lord, the brethren and sisters of the order and the lay-disciples of either sex have become [all this], are able to do [all this]. [105] Pass away now therefore, lord ; let the Exalted One now die ! The time has come for the Exalted One to pass away — 1 The words here quoted were spoken by the Buddha, after he had been enjoying the first bliss of Nirvana, under the goatherd's Nigrodha tree (see below, ch. Ill, § 34). 2 The whole paragraph is repeated, here and below, § 35, for each of these classes of persons. 3 Sappa/ihariya?« dhammam. (Comp. the opposite idea appa/ihfra-kataw bhasitaw, D. [, 193, 239.) The two ideas are contrasted at KV. 561. D. ii. 107. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. II3 even according to the word which he spake when he said, " I shall not die, O Evil One ! until this pure religion of mine shall have become successful, prosperous, wide-spread, and popular in all its full extent— until, in a word, it shall have been well proclaimed among men." And now, lord, this pure religion of thine has become [all this]. Pass away now therefore, lord ; let the Exalted One now die ! The time has come for the Exalted One to pass away ! '

9. [106] And when he had thus spoken, the Exalted One addressed Mara, the Evil One, and said : — ' O Evil One ! make thyself happy, the death of the Tathagata shall take place before long. At the end of three months from this time the Tathagata will pass away.' 10. Thus the Exalted One while at the Shrine of Chapala deliberately and consciously rejected the rest of his natural term of life *. And on his so rejecting it there arose a mighty earthquake, awful and terrible, and the thunders of heaven burst forth. [107] And when the Exalted One beheld this, he broke out at that time into this hymn of exultation : — ' His sum of life the sagfe renounced, The cause of life immeasurable or small ; With inward joy and calm, he broke, Like coat of mail, his life's own cause ! 2 ' ii.3 Now the following thought occurred to the 1 Ayu-sawkharaw ossaji. The difficult term Ayu-sawzkhara must here have the meaning in which it is used at Majjhima I, pp. 295, 296 ; Sawyutta II, 266 ; Jataka IV, 215. He renounced those tendencies, potentialities, which in the ordinary course of things, would otherwise have led to the putting together of, the building up of, more life (that is, of course, in this birth. Any more life in a future birth he had already renounced when, under the Wisdom Tree, he attained Nirvana).

2 This verse is obscure and possibly corrupt. See Windisch, ' Mara und Buddha/ pp. 37, 72 ; Ud. VI, 1 ; S. V, 263; Div. 203. The narrative is now interrupted by the insertion of paragraphs which at first sight seem to be quite out of place. But the connexion, or want of connexion, between them and the main story is very III. I 114 XVI« mahA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 107. venerable Ananda : — ' Wonderful indeed and marvellous is it that this mighty earthquake should arise, awful and terrible, and that the thunders of heaven should burst forth ! What may be the proximate, what the remote cause of the appearance of this earthquake ? ' 12. Then the venerable Ananda went up to the place where the Blessed One was, and did obeisance to the Exalted One, and seated himself respectfully at one side, and said :— ' Wonderful indeed and marvellous is it that this mighty earthquake should arise, awful and terrible, and that the thunders of heaven should burst forth ! What may be the proximate, what the remote cause of the appearance of this earthquake ? ' 13. 'Eight are the proximate, eight the remote causes, Ananda, for the appearance of a mighty earthquake. What are the eight ? This great earth, Ananda, is established on water, the water on wind, and the wind rests upon space. And at such a time, Ananda, as the mighty winds blow, the waters are shaken by the mighty winds as they blow, and by the moving water the earth is shaken. These are the first causes, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a mighty earthquake \

14. [108] 'Again, Ananda, a recluse or a brahmin of great [intellectual] power, and who has the feelings suggestive as to the way in which the Suttanta was put together. The whole chapter is an answer to a possible objection, either from outsiders or from weaker members of the fold, that if the Buddha were really so great why did he die at all. The suggested answer is that he could have lived on if he had so wished ; but he did not wish because he had certain kinds of power and insight and self-mastery which prevented him from doing so. For the purpose of this answer these paragraphs, already in existence among the Suttas current in the community, and dealing with these powers, are here repeated without any such connecting argument as we should find under similar circumstances, in a modern (written) book of apologetics. The argument suggested by them follows exactly the same lines as that in the Mahali Suttanta, translated in the former volume (Number VI of the ' Dialogues '). 1 Windisch, ' Mara und Buddha,' 61, adduces a number of interesting parallels, from European writers, to this curious old theory of earthquakes. P. ii. 108. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. II5

of his heart well under his control ; or a god or fairy (devata *) of great might and power, — when such a one by intense meditation on the idea of the minutest portion of earth and on the idea of the widest expanse of water [has succeeded in realizing the comparative value of things] he can make this earth move and tremble and be shaken violently 2. These are the second causes, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a mighty earthquake. 1 Devata is a fairy, god, genius, or angel. I am at a loss how to render this word without conveying an erroneous impression to those not familiar with ancient ideas, and specially with ancient Indian ideas, of the spirit world. It includes gods of all sorts; tree and river nymphs; the kindly fairies or ghosts who haunt houses (see my ' Buddhist Birth Stories,' Tale 40) ; spirits in the ground (see above, I, 26); the angels who minister at the great renunciation, the temptation, and the death of the Buddha ; the guardian angels who watch over men, and towns, and countries ; and many other similar beings. ' Celestial beings ' would be wholly inapplicable, for instance, to the creatures referred to in the curious passage above (I, 26). ' Superhuman being ' would be an inaccurate rendering ; for all these light and airy shapes come below, and after, man in the Buddhist order of precedence. ' Spirit ' being used of the soul inside the human body, and of the human soul after it has left the body, and figuratively of mental faculties — none of which are included under devata — would suggest ideas inconsistent with that of the Pali word. As there is therefore no appropriate general word I have chosen, for each passage where the expression occurs, the word used in English of the special class more particularly referred to in the passage of the text. Here all kinds of devatas being referred to, and there being no word in English for them all, I have ventured to put the word devata into my version, and to trouble the reader with this note.

2 Buddhaghosa here tells a long story how Sangharakkhita Samawera, the nephew of Naga Thera, attained Arahantship on the day of his admission to the order ; and at once proceeded to heaven, and standing on the pinnacle of the palace of the king of the gods, shook the whole place with his big toe ; to the great consternation and annoyance of the exalted dwellers therein ! There is no doubt a real truth in the idea that deep thought can shake the universe, and make the palaces of the gods to tremble, just as faith is said in Matthew xxi. 21 to be able to remove mountains, and cause them to be cast into the sea. But these figurative expressions have, in Buddhism, become a fruitful soil for the outgrowth of superstitions and misunderstandings. The train of early Buddhist speculation in this field has yet to be elucidated. Il6 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 108. 15. ' Again, Ananda, when a Bodhisatta consciously and deliberately leaves his [temporary] form in the heaven of delight and descends into his mother's womb, then is this earth made to quake and tremble and is shaken violently. These are the third causes, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a mighty earthquake l.

16. ' Again, Ananda, when a Bodhisatta deliberately and consciously quits his mother's womb, then the earth quakes and trembles and is shaken violently. This is the fourth cause, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a jnighty earthquake. 1 7. ' Again, Ananda, when a Tathagata arrives at the supreme and perfect enlightenment, then this earth quakes and trembles and is shaken violently. This is the fifth cause, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a mighty; earthquake. 18. ' Again, Ananda, when a Tathagata founds the sublime kingdom of righteousness, then this earth quakes and trembles and is shaken violently. This is the sixth cause, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a mighty^ earthquake. 19. ' Again, Ananda, when a Tathagata consciously and deliberately rejects the remainder of his life, then this earth quakes and trembles and is shaken violently. 1 The Bodhisatta's voluntary incarnation is looked upon by the Buddhists as a great act of renunciation, and curious legends have gathered about it. One is that on the night when she conceived his mother dreamt that a white elephant entered her side. The account will be found at length in my 'Buddhist Birth Stories ' (pp. 62-4), and the earthquake is there mentioned in terms identical with those in the text. As I have pointed out in 'Buddhism' (p. 184), the white elephant legend is one of those hallowed sun stories by which halfconverted Indians strove to embellish the life-story of the Teacher whose followers they had become. In the Lalita Vistara (Calc. ed., p. 63) the entrance of the elephant into Maya precedes the dream ; but though the ignorant may have therefore accepted it as a fact, it is of course only a figure of speech — and I venture to think from the Indian standpoint, a beautiful figure of speech — to express the incarnation of divine mildness and majesty in a human form. The use of such a figure is not confined to India. In one of the Apocryphal Gospels, the Gospel according to the Hebrews, the incarnation of the divine gentleness and love is expressed by saying that a dove from heaven ' entered into ' the human form.

1). ii. 109. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. II7 This is the seventh cause, proximate and remote, of the appearance of almighty earthquake. 20. ' Again, Ananda, when a Tathagata passes entirely [109] away in that utter passing away in which nothing whatever is left behind, then this earth quakes and trembles and is shaken violently. This is the eighth cause, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a mighty earthquake.' 21. ' Now of eight kinds, Ananda, are these assemblies. Which are the eight ? Assemblies of nobles, brahmins, householders and wanderers, and of the angel hosts of the Guardian Kings, of the Great Thirty-Three, of the Maras, and of the Brahmas. 22. ' Now I call to mind, Ananda, how when I used to enter into an assembly of many hundred : nobles, before I had seated myself there or talked to them or started a conversation with them, I used to become in colour like unto their colour, and in voice like unto their voice. Then with religious discourse I used to instruct and incite, and quicken them, and fill them with gladness. But they knew me not when I spoke, and would say : — " Who may this be who thus speaks ? a man or a god ? ' Then having instructed, incited, quickened, and gladdened them with religious discourse, I would vanish away. But they knew me not even when I vanished away : and would say : — " Who may this be who has thus vanished away ? a man or a god ? "

23. [And in the same words the Exalted One spake of how he had been used to enter into assemblies of each of the other of the eight kinds, and of how he had not been made known to them either in speaking or in vanishing away.] ' Now these, Ananda, are the eight assemblies.' 1 Windisch, 'Mara und Buddha,' p. 75, makes this number refer to the number of entrances, and quotes Itivuttaka, p. 15, in support. The Singhalese version (p. 758) is as above. Il8 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. no. 24. [no] l Now these, Ananda, are the eight positions of Mastery [over the delusion arising from the apparent permanence of external things 1]. What are the eight ? 25. ' When a man having subjectively the idea of form sees forms external to himself which are finite, and pleasant or unpleasant to the sight, and having mastered them, is conscious that he knows and sees — this is the first position of mastery. 26. ' When a man having subjectively the idea of form sees externally forms which are boundless, and pleasant or unpleasant to the sight, and having mastered them, is conscious that he knows and sees — this is the second position of mastery.

27. ' When a man without the subjective idea of form sees forms external to himself which are finite, and pleasant or unpleasant to the sight, and having mastered them, is conscious that he knows and sees — this is the third position of mastery. 28. ' When a man without the subjective idea of form sees externally forms external to himself which are boundless, and pleasant or unpleasant to the sight, and having mastered them, is conscious that he knows and sees — this is the fourth position of mastery. 29. ' When a man without the subjective idea of form sees externally forms external to himself that are blue, blue in colour, blue in appearance, and reflecting blue, — just, for instance, as the flax blossom is blue in colour, blue in appearance, and reflecting blue ; or, again, . 1 This and the next paragraph are based upon the Buddhist belief as to the long-vexed question between the Indian schools who represented more or less closely the European Idealists and Realists. When cleared of the many repetitions inserted for the benefit of the repeaters or reciters, the fundamental idea seems to be that the great necessity is to get rid of the delusion that what one sees and feels is real and permanent. Nothing is real and permanent but character.

The so-called eight Positions of Mastery are merely an expansion of the first two of the following eight Stages of Deliverance, and the whole argument is also expressed in another form in the passage on the nine successive 'Cessations,' of which an abstract will be found in Childers, sub voce nirodha. D. ii. 112. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. II9 as that fine muslin of Benares, of delicate finish on both sides, is blue in colour, blue in appearance, and reflecting blue, — when a man without the subjective idea of form sees externally forms which, just in that way, are blue, blue in colour, blue in appearance, and reflecting blue, and having mastered them, is conscious that he knows and sees — that is the fifth position of mastery.' 30-2. [ill] [The sixth, seventh, and eighth positions of mastery are explained in words identical with those used to explain the fifth ; save that yellow, red, and white are respectively substituted throughout for blue ; and the Kanikara flower, the Bandhu-givaka flower, and the morning star are respectively substituted for the flax blossom, as the first of the two objects given as examples.] 33. 1 [112] ' Now these stages of Deliverance, Ananda [from the hindrance to thought arising from the sensations and ideas due to external forms], are eight in number. Which are the eight ?

' A man possessed of form sees forms — this is the first stage of deliverance. 1 Unaware of his own form, he sees forms external to himself — this is the second stage of deliverance. ' With the thought " it is well," he becomes intent — this is the third stage of deliverance. ' By passing quite beyond all idea of form, by putting an end to all idea of sensory impact 2, by paying no attention to the idea of multiformity, he, thinking " it is all infinite space," reaches [mentally] and remains in the state of mind in which the idea of the infinity of space is the only idea that is present — this is the fourth stage of deliverance. ' By passing quite beyond all idea of space being the infinite basis, he, thinking " it is all infinite reason," 1 These have already occurred in the Maha Nidana (p. 70 of the text). The English version here is made somewhat fuller. 2 On these technical terms see Mrs. Rhys Davids's ' Buddhist Psychology,' pp. 72, 182, 204. 120 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 112. reaches [mentally] and remains in the state of mind to which the infinity of reason is alone present — this is the fifth stage of deliverance.

' By passing quite beyond the consciousness of the infinity of reason, he, thinking " nothing at all exists," reaches [mentally] and remains in the state of mind to which nothing at all is specially present — this is the sixth stage of deliverance. ' By passing quite beyond all idea of nothingness he reaches [mentally] and remains in the state of mind to which neither ideas nor the absence of ideas are specially present — this is the seventh stage of deliverance. ' By passing quite beyond the state of " neither ideas nor the absence of ideas " he reaches [mentally] and remains in the state of mind in which both sensations and ideas have ceased to be — this is the eighth stage of deliverance. ' Now these, Ananda, are the eight stages of Deliverance.' 34. ' On one occasion, Ananda, I was resting under the goatherd's Nigrodha tree on the bank of the river Neranjara immediately after having reached the great enlightenment. Then Mara, the Evil One, came, Ananda, to the place where I was, and standing beside me he addressed me in the words : — " Pass away now, lord, from existence ! Let the Exalted One now die ! Now is the time for the Exalted One to pass away ! "

35. [113] ' And when he had thus spoken, Ananda, I addressed Mara, the Evil One, and said : — " I shall not pass away, O Evil One ! until not only the brethren and sisters of the Order, but also the lay-disciples of either sex shall have become true hearers, wise and well trained, ready and learned, carrying the doctrinal books in their memory, masters of the lesser corollaries that follow from the larger doctrine, correct in life, walking according to the precepts — until they, having thus themselves learned the doctrine, shall be able to tell others of it, preach it, make it known, establish it, open it, minutely explain it and make it clear — until D. ii. 115- THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 121 they, when others start vain doctrine easy to be refuted by the truth, shall be able in refuting it to spread the wonder-working truth abroad ! I shall not die until this pure religion of mine shall have become successful, prosperous, wide-spread, and popular in all its full extent — until, in a word, it shall have been well proclaimed anions men ! ' 36. 'And now again to-day, Ananda, at Chapala's Shrine Mara, the Evil One, came to the place where I was, and standing beside me addressed me [in the same words]. /

$j. [114] ' And when he had thus spoken, Ananda, I answered him and said : — " Make thyself happy, the passing away of the Tathagata shall take place before long. At the end of three months from this time the Tathagata will pass away ! " ' And now again, Ananda, the Tathagata has to-day at Chapala's Shrine consciously and deliberately rejected the rest of his allotted term of life.' 38. [lis] And when he had thus spoken the venerable Ananda addressed the Exalted One, and said : — 4 Vouchsafe, lord, to remain during the aeon : live on through the kalpa, O Exalted One ! for the good and the happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, for the good and the gain and the weal of gods and men ! ' ' Enough now, Ananda, beseech not the Tathagata ! ' was the reply. 'Thetime for making such request is past. 39. And again, the second time, the venerable Ananda besought the Exalted One [in the same words. And he received from the Exalted One the same^ reply]. And again, the third time, the venerable Ananda besought the Exalted One [in the same words].

' Hast thou faith, Ananda, in the wisdom of the Tathagata ? ' ' Even so, lord ! ' 1 Now why, then, Ananda, dost thou trouble the Tathagata even until the third time ? ' 40. ' From his own mouth have I heard from the Exalted One, from his own mouth have I received 122 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 115. this saying : — " Whosoever has developed, practised, dwelt on, expanded, and ascended to the very heights of the four paths to Iddhi, and so mastered them as to be able to use them as a vehicle, and as a basis, he, should he desire it, could remain in the same birth for an aeon, or for that portion of the aeon which had yet to run." Now the Tathagata has thoroughly practised and developed them [in all respects as just now fully described], and he could, therefore, should he desire it, live on yet for an aeon, or for that portion of the aeon which has yet to run.' ' Hast thou faith, Ananda ? ' ' Even so, lord ! ' ' Then, O Ananda, thine is the fault, thine is the offence — in that when a suggestion So evident and a hint so clear were thus given thee by the Tathagata, thou wast yet incapable of comprehending them, and thou besoughtest not the Tathagata, saying : — " Vouchsafe, lord, to remain during the aeon for the good and the happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, for the good and the gain and the weal of gods and men." If thou shouldst then have so besought the Tathagata, the Tathagata might have rejected the appeal even to the second time, but the third time he would have granted it. Thine, therefore, O Ananda, is the fault, thine is the offence !

41. 'On one occasion, Ananda, I was dwelling at Rajagaha, on the hill called the Vulture's Peak. Now there, Ananda, I spoke to thee, and said : — [lie] " How pleasant a spot, Ananda, is Rajagaha ; how pleasant is this Vulture's Peak. Whosoever, Ananda, has developed, practised, dwelt on, expanded, and ascended to the very heights of the four paths to Iddhi, and so mastered them as to be able to use them as a vehicle, and as a basis, he, should he desire it, could remain in the same birth for an aeon, or for that portion of the aeon which had yet to run. Now the Tathagata has thoroughly practised and developed them [in all respects as just now fully described], and he could, therefore, should he desire it, live on yet for an aeon, or for D. ii. n6. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 1 23 that portion of the aeon which has yet to run." But even when a su^orestion So evident and a hint so clear were thus given thee by the Tathagata, thou wast yet incapable of comprehending them, and thou besoughtest not the Tathagata, saying : — " Vouchsafe, lord, to remain during the aeon. Live on, O Exalted One ! through the aeon for the good and the happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, for the good and the gain and the weal of gods and men." If thou shouldst then have so besought the Tathagata, the Tathagata might have rejected the appeal even to the second time, but the third time he would have

granted it. Thine, therefore, O Ananda, is the fault, thine is the offence ! 42. ' On one occasion, Ananda, I was dwelling at that same Rajagaha in the Banyan Grove — on one occasion at that same Rajagaha at the Robbers' Cliff — on one occasion at that same Rajagaha in the Sattapa«;zi cave on the slope of Mount Vebhara — on one occasion at that same Rajagaha at the Black Rock on the slope of Mount Isigili— on one occasion at that same Rajagaha in the Sitavana Grove in the mountain cave Sappasow^ika — on one occasion at that same Rajagaha in the Tapoda Grove — on one occasion at that same Rajagaha in the Bambu Grove in the Squirrels' Feeding Ground — on one occasion at that same Rajagaha in Jivaka's Mango Grove — on one occasion at that same Rajagaha in the Deer Forest at Maddakucchi. 43. ' Now there too, Ananda, I spoke to thee, and said : — " How pleasant, Ananda, is Rajagaha ; how pleasant the Vulture's Peak ; how pleasant the Banyan tree of Gotama ; how pleasant the Robbers' Cliff ; how pleasant the Sattapawm cave on the slope of Mount Vebhara ; how pleasant the Black Rock on the slope of Mount Isigili ; how pleasant the mountain cave of the Serpent's Pool in the Sitavana Grove ; how pleasant the Tapoda Grove ; how pleasant the Squirrels' Feeding Ground in the Bambu Grove ; how pleasant Jivaka's Mango Grove ; how pleasant the Deer Forest at Maddakucchi ! "

124 XVI. MAHA PARINIBBANA SUTTANTA. D. ii. 117. 44. [117] ' " Whosoever, Ananda, has developed, practised, dwelt on, expanded, and ascended to the very heights of the four paths to Iddhi, and so mastered them as to be able to use them as a vehicle, and as a basis, he, should he desire it, could remain in the same birth for an aeon, or for that portion of the aeon which had yet to run. Now the Tathagata has thought out and thoroughly practised them [in all respects as just now fully described], and might, should he desire it, remain alive for an aeon, or for that portion of an aeon which has yet to run." But even when a suggestion so evident and a hint so clear were thus given thee by the Tathagata, thou wast yet incapable of comprehending them, and thou besoughtest not the Tathagata, saying : — " Vouchsafe, lord, to remain during the aeon. Live on, O Exalted One ! through the aeon for the good and the happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, for the good and the gain and the weal of gods and men." If thou shouldst then have so besought the Tathagata, the Tathagata might have rejected the appeal even to the second time, but the third time he would have granted it. Thine, therefore, O Ananda, is the fault, thine is the offence !

45. ' On one occasion, Ananda, I was residing here at Vesali at the Udena Shrine. And there too, Ananda, I spoke to thee, and said : — " How pleasant, > Ananda, is Vesali: how pleasant the Udena Ketiya. Whosoever, Ananda, has thought out, developed, practised, dwelt on, expanded, and ascended to the very heights of the four paths to Iddhi, and so mastered them as to be able to use them as a vehicle, and as a basis, he, should he desire it, could remain in the same birth for an aeon, or for that portion of the aeon which had yet to run. Now the Tathagata has thought out and thoroughly practised them [in all respects as just now fully described], and might, should he desire it, remain alive for an aeon, or for that portion of an aeon which has yet to run." But when a suggestion so evident and a hint so clear were thus D.ii. Il8. THE BOOK OF THE GREAT DECEASE. 125 given thee by the Tathagata, thou wast yet incapable of comprehending them, and thou besoughtest not the Tathagata, saying : — " Vouchsafe, Lord, to remain during the aeon. Live on, O Exalted One ! through