The Soul in Buddhism_09

“What, Nagasena, is the characteristic mark of virtue (sila)?”
“Supporting, O king, for it is the basis of all good qualities: the five controlling faculties and the five moral powers, the seven factors of enlightenment, the eight factors of the noble path, the four foundations of mindfulness, the four right efforts, the four bases of success, the four absorptions, the eight freedoms, the four modes of concentration and the eight great attainments.
Each of these has virtue as its support and in him who builds on it as the foundation all these good conditions will not decrease.”
“Give me an illustration.”
“Just, O king, as all forms of animal and plant life flourish with the earth as their support, so does the recluse, with virtue as the support, develop the five controlling faculties and so on. And this was said by the Blessed One:
“When a wise man, established well in virtue, Develops concentration and understanding, Then as a bhikkhu, ardent and sagacious, He succeeds in disentangling this tangle.”


### The five controlling faculties (also the five moral powers)
(1) Confidence
(2) energy
(3) mindfulness
(4) concentration and
(5) wisdom

### The seven factors of enlightenment
(1) Mindfulness
(2) investigation
(3) energy
(4) joy
(5) tranquility
(6) concentration and
(7) equanimity

### The eight factors of the noble path
(1) right view
(2) right thought
(3) right speech
(4) right action
(5) right livelihood
(6) right effort
(7) right mindfulness and
(8) right concentration

### The four foundations of mindfulness
(1) mindfulness of the body
(2) mindfulness of feelings
(3) mindfulness of thoughts and
(4) mindfulness of mind-objects

### The four right efforts
(1) Effort to prevent unwholesome states
(2) Effort to remove unwholesome states
(3) Effort to develop wholesome states and
(4) Effort to maintain wholesome states

### The four bases of success
(1) eagerness
(2) energy
(3) tenacity and
(4) wisdom

### The four modes of concentration
(1) meditations on love
(2) compassion
(3) sympathetic-joy and
(4) equanimity

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The Soul in Buddhism_06 - 08

The king said,
“Is there anyone who is not reborn after death?”
“Yes there is. The one who has no defilement is not reborn after death; the one who has defilement is reborn.”
“Will you be reborn?”
“If I die with attachment in my mind, yes; but if not, no.”

“Does one who escapes from rebirth do so by the power of wise attention?”
“He escapes both by wise attention and by wisdom, confidence, virtue, mindfulness, energy, and concentration.”
“Is wise attention the same as wisdom?”
“No. Animals have wise attention but they do not have wisdom.”

“What, Nāgasena, is the characteristic mark of wise attention (yoniso manasikaro); and what that of wisdom (panna)?”
“Taking hold is the mark of wise attention, cutting off is the mark of wisdom.”
“Give me an illustration.”
“How do barley reapers reap the barley?”
“They grasp the barley into a bunch with the left hand and, with a sickle in the right hand, they cut the barley.”
“Just so, O king, the recluse takes hold of his mind with wise attention and cuts of the defilement with wisdom.”

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The Soul in Buddhism_05

Then, after the monks had arrived at the palace and finished their meal, the king sat down on a low seat and asked,
“What shall we discuss?”
“Let our discussion be about the Dhamma.”
Then the king said,
“What is the purpose, your reverence, of your going forth and what is the final goal at which you aim?”
“Our going forth is for the purpose that this suffering may be extinguished and that no further suffering may arise; the complete extinction of grasping without remainder is our final goal.”
“Is it, venerable sir, for such noble reasons that everyone joins the Order?”
“No. Some enter to escape the tyranny of kings, some to be safe from robbers,
some to escape from debt and some perhaps to gain a livelihood. However, those
who enter rightly do so for the complete extinction of grasping.”

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The Soul in Buddhism_04

So, Devamantiya, Anantakaya and Mankura went to Nagasena’s hermitage to accompany the monks to the palace. As they were walking along together Anantakaya said to Nagasena, “When, your reverence, I say, ‘Nagasena’ what is that Nagasena?”
“What do you think that Nagasena is?”
“The soul, the inner breath, which comes and goes.”
“But if that breath, having gone out, should not return would that man still be alive?”
“Certainly not.”
“And when those trumpeters and the like have blown their trumpets does their breath return to them?”
“No venerable sir, it doesn’t.”
“Then why don’t they die?”
“I am not capable of arguing with you sir, pray tell me how it is.”
“There is no soul in the breath. These inhalations and exhalations are merely constituent powers of the bodily frame.”
Then the elder talked to him on the Abhidhamma and Anantakaya was satisfied with his explanation.
[Note: Thera (elder) is nowadays normally used only for bhikkhus of ten or more years standing but Nāgasena was only seven rains.]

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The Soul in Buddhism_03

Then the king said, “Venerable sir, will you discuss with me again?”
“If your majesty will discuss as a scholar, yes; but if you will discuss as a king, no.”
“How is it then that scholars discuss?”
“When scholars discuss there is a summing up and an unraveling; one or other is shown to be in error. He admits his mistake, yet he does not become angry.”
“Then how is it that kings discuss?”
“When a king discusses a matter and advances a point of view, if anyone differs from him on that point he is apt to punish him.”
“Very well then, it is as a scholar that I will discuss. Let your reverence talk without fear.”
“It is well your majesty.”
“Nagasena, I will ask a question,” said the king.
“Ask it sir.”
“I have asked it, your reverence.”
“Then I have answered.”
“What have you answered?”
“What have you asked?”
Thinking, “This monk is a great scholar, he is quite able to discuss things with me,” the king instructed his minister, Devamantiya, to invite him to the palace with a large company of monks and went away muttering, “Nagasena, Nagasena.”

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