Introduction
The Mahasihanada Sutta, the Great Discourse on the Lion's Roar, is a text of
awesome scope and power, one of those rare suttas in which the Buddha discloses
the greatness and loftiness of his own spiritual endowments. Towards the end
of the sutta, the Buddha says that he has reached his eightieth year, which
allows us to place the discourse in the final year of his life. Thus the sutta
serves as a convenient summation of the exalted qualities that enabled the Buddha
to function so effectively as teacher and spiritual guide through the forty-five
years of his mission. It is not typical of the Buddha to extol himself, for
he did not intend his Dispensation to evolve into a personality cult centred
around himself as a charismatic and powerful leader. Throughout his ministry
he constantly emphasized the primacy of his role as guide, as the discoverer
and proclaimer of the path. His task is not to command reverence, but to steer
his disciples onto and along the path, for it is only the practice of the path,
the cultivation of the training, that can effect the deep interior purification
by which one can reach the extinction of the defilements and liberation from
suffering. However, while the Buddha functions primarily as the revealer of
the path, confidence in him as the Supreme Teacher remains an essential element
of the training. It is this confidence, freshly arisen, that induces the curious
inquirer to cross the great divide that separates the admirer of the Dhamma
from the practitioner, and it is this same confidence that drives the aspirant
forward until the task of self-cultivation has been completed. Frequent reflection
on the greatness of the Master inspires joy and courage, sustaining one's commitment
during those dark periods when prospects for progress appear bleak, and desire
and doubt -- those twin conspirators -- combine forces to attempt to persuade
one of the futility of one's efforts. Hence, in order to provide a spur to awaken
and nurture the confidence necessary to tread the path through its downward
turns as well as its ascents, the Buddha on occasion offers us revelations of
his "Buddha-//gunas//," the excellent qualities of a Fully Enlightened
One that entitle him to serve as the first of the Three Gems and Three Refuges.
One of the most impressive of these rare disclosures is the Great Discourse
on the Lion's Roar. Spoken as a rebuttal to the charges of a renegade disciple
who, in the midst of the populous city of Vesali, had been denouncing the Buddha
and attempting to dissuade others from following his teaching, the sutta recapitulates
the various distinguished qualities of the Blessed One, with special emphasis
upon his "ten Tathagata powers" (//tathagatabala//) and "four
intrepidities" (//vesarajja//); the sutta also affords us a glimpse of
the demanding ordeal he underwent over many past aeons seeking the path to deliverance.
When it was first spoken, the sutta had such a powerful impact on one monk in
the assembly that his bodily hairs stood on end, and thus, during an early period,
the sutta was known by the alternative title "The Hair-raising Discourse."
Even today, centuries later, the Great Discourse on the Lion's Roar can continue
to serve as a fecund source of inspiration.
MAJJHIMA NIKAYA NO. 12 The Great Discourse
on the Lion's Roar (//Mahasihanada Sutta//)
1. Thus have I heard. On one occasion the Blessed One was living at Vesali in
the grove outside the city to the west.
2. Now on that occasion Sunakkhatta, son of the Licchavis, had recently left
this Dhamma and Discipline. [1] He was making this statement before the Vesali
assembly: "The recluse Gotama does not have any superhuman states, any
distinction in knowledge and vision worthy of the noble ones. [2] The recluse
Gotama teaches a Dhamma (merely) hammered out by reasoning, following his own
line of inquiry as it occurs to him, and when he teaches the Dhamma to anyone,
it leads him when he practises it to the complete destruction of suffering."
[3]
3. Then, when it was morning, the Venerable Sariputta dressed, and taking his
bowl and outer robe, went into Vesali for alms. Then he heard Sunakkhatta, son
of the Licchavis, making this statement before the Vesali assembly. When he
had wandered for alms in Vesali and had returned from his almsround, after his
meal he went to the Blessed One, and after paying homage to him, he sat down
at one side and told the Blessed One what Sunakkhatta was saying.
4. (The Blessed One said:) "Sariputta, the misguided man Sunakkhatta is
angry, and his words are spoken out of anger. Thinking to discredit the Tathagata,
he actually praises him; [*p.69] for it is a praise of the Tathagata to say
of him: 'When he teaches the Dhamma to anyone, it leads him when he practises
it to the complete destruction of suffering.'
5. "Sariputta, this misguided man Sunakkhatta will never infer of me according
to Dhamma: 'That Blessed One is accomplished, fully enlightened, perfect in
true knowledge and conduct, sublime, knower of worlds, incomparable leader of
persons to be tamed, teacher of gods and humans, enlightened, blessed.' [4]
6. "And he will never infer of me according to Dhamma: 'That Blessed One
enjoys the various kinds of supernormal power: having been one, he becomes many;
having been many, he becomes one; he appears and vanishes; he goes unhindered
through a wall, through an enclosure, through a mountain, as though through
space; he dives in and out of the earth as though it were water; he walks on
water without sinking as though it were earth; seated cross-legged, he travels
in space like a bird; with his hand he touches and strokes the moon and sun
so powerful and mighty; he wields bodily mastery even as far as the Brahma-world.'
7. "And he will never infer of me according to Dhamma: 'With the divine
ear element, which is purified and surpasses the human, that Blessed One hears
both kinds of sounds, the heavenly and the human, those that are far as well
as near.'
8. "And he will never infer of me according to Dhamma: 'That Blessed One
encompasses with his own mind the minds of other beings, other persons. He understands
a mind affected by lust as affected by lust and a mind unaffected by lust as
unaffected by lust; he understands a mind affected by hate as affected by hate
and a mind unaffected by hate as unaffected by hate; he understands a mind affected
by delusion as affected by delusion and a mind unaffected by delusion as unaffected
by delusion; he understands a contracted mind as contracted and a distracted
mind as distracted; he understands an exalted mind as exalted and an unexalted
mind as unexalted; he understands a surpassed mind as surpassed and an unsurpassed
mind as unsurpassed; he understands a concentrated mind as concentrated and
an unconcentrated mind as unconcentrated; he understands a liberated mind as
liberated and an unliberated mind as unliberated.' (Ten Powers of a Tathagata)
9. "Sariputta, the Tathagata has these ten Tathagata's powers, possessing
which he claims the herd-leader's place, roars his lion's roar in the assemblies,
and sets rolling the Wheel of Brahma.[5] What are the ten?
10. (1) "Here, the Tathagata understands as it actually is the possible
as possible and the impossible as impossible.[6] And that [*p.70] is a Tathagata's
power that the Tathagata has, by virtue of which he claims the herd-leader's
place, roars his lion's roar in the assemblies, and sets rolling the Wheel of
Brahma.
11. (2) "Again, the Tathagata understands as it actually is the results
of actions undertaken, past, future and present, with possibilities and with
causes. That too is a Tathagata's power....[7]
12. (3) "Again, the Tathagata understands as it actually is the ways leading
to all destinations. That too is a Tathagata's power.... [8]
13. (4) "Again, the Tathagata understands as it actually is the world with
its many and different elements. That too is a Tathagata's power....[9]
14. "Again, the Tathagata understands as it actually is how beings have
different inclinations. That too is a Tathagata's power....[10]
15. (6) "Again, the Tathagata understands as it actually is the disposition
of the faculties of other beings, other persons. That too is a Tathagata's power....[11]
16. (7) "Again, the Tathagata understands as it actually is the defilement,
the cleansing and the emergence in regard to the jhanas, liberations, concentrations
and attainments. That too is a Tathagata's power....[12]
17. (8) "Again, the Tathagata recollects his manifold past lives, that
is, one birth, two births, three births, four births, five births, ten births,
twenty births, thirty births, forty births, fifty births, a hundred births,
a thousand births, a hundred thousand births, many aeons of world-contraction,
many aeons of world-expansion, many aeons of world-contraction and expansion:
'There I was so named, of such a clan, with such an appearance, such was my
nutriment, such my experience of pleasure and pain, such my life-term; and passing
away from there, I reappeared elsewhere; and there too I was so named, of such
a clan, with such an appearance, such was my nutriment, such my experience of
pleasure and pain, such my life-term; and passing away from there, I reappeared
here.' Thus with their aspects and particulars he recollects his manifold past
lives. That too is a Tathagata's power....
18. (9) "Again, with the divine eye, which is purified and surpasses the
human, the Tathagata sees beings passing away and reappearing, inferior and
superior, fair and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate, and he understands how beings
pass on according to their actions thus: 'These worthy beings who were ill-conducted
in body, speech and mind, revilers of noble ones, wrong in their views, giving
effect to wrong view in their actions, on the dissolution of the body, [*p.71]
after death, have reappeared in a state of deprivation, in a bad destination,
in perdition, even in hell; but these worthy beings who were well-conducted
in body, speech and mind, not revilers of noble ones, right in their views,
giving effect to right view in their actions, on the dissolution of the body,
after death, have reappeared in a good destination, even in the heavenly world.'
Thus with the divine eye, which is purified and surpasses the human, he sees
beings passing away and reappearing, inferior and superior, fair and ugly, fortunate
and unfortunate, and he understands how beings pass on according to their actions.
That too is a Tathagata's power....
19. (10) "Again, by realizing it for himself with direct knowledge, the
Tathagata here and now enters upon and abides in the deliverance of mind and
deliverance by wisdom that are taintless with the destruction of the taints.
That too is a Tathagata's power that a Tathagata has, by virtue of which he
claims the herd-leader's place, roars his lion's roar in the assemblies, and
sets rolling the Wheel of Brahma.
20. "The Tathagata has these ten Tathagata's powers, possessing which he
claims the herd-leader's place, roars his lion's roar in the assemblies, and
sets rolling the Wheel of Brahma.
21. "Sariputta, when I know and see thus, should anyone say of me: 'The
recluse Gotama does not have any superhuman states, any distinction in knowledge
and vision worthy of the noble ones. The recluse Gotama teaches a Dhamma (merely)
hammered out by reasoning, following his own line of inquiry as it occurs to
him' -- unless he abandons that assertion and that state of mind and relinquishes
that view, then as (surely as if he had been) carried off and put there he will
wind up in hell.[13] Just as a bhikkhu possessed of virtue, concentration and
wisdom would here and now enjoy final knowledge, so it will happen in this case,
I say, that unless he abandons that assertion and that state of mind and relinquishes
that view, then as (surely as if he had been) carried off and put there he will
wind up in hell. (Four Kinds of Intrepidity)
22. "Sariputta, the Tathagata has these four kinds of intrepidity, possessing
which he claims the herd-leader's place, roars his lion's roar in the assemblies,
and sets rolling the Wheel of Brahma. What are the four?
23. "Here, I see no ground on which any recluse or brahmin or god or Mara
or Brahma or anyone at all in the world could, in accordance with the Dhamma,
accuse me thus: 'While you claim full enlightenment, you are not fully enlightened
in regard to certain things.' [*p.72] And seeing no ground for that, I abide
in safety, fearlessness and intrepidity.
24. "I see no ground on which any recluse ... or anyone at all could accuse
me thus: 'While you claim to have destroyed the taints, these taints are undestroyed
by you.' And seeing no ground for that, I abide in safety, fearlessness and
intrepidity.
25. "I see no ground on which any recluse ... or anyone at all could accuse
me thus: 'Those things called obstructions by you are not able to obstruct one
who engages in them.' And seeing no ground for that, I abide in safety, fearlessness
and intrepidity.
26. "I see no ground on which any recluse ... or anyone at all could accuse
me thus: 'When you teach the Dhamma to someone, it does not lead him when he
practises it to the complete destruction of suffering.' And seeing no ground
for that, I abide in safety, fearlessness and intrepidity.
27. "A Tathagata has these four kinds of intrepidity, possessing which
he claims the herd-leader's place, roars his lion's roar in the assemblies,
and sets rolling the Wheel of Brahma.[14]
28. "Sariputta, when I know and see thus, should anyone say of me ... he
will wind up in hell. (The Eight Assemblies)
29. "Sariputta, there are these eight assemblies. What are the eight? An
assembly of nobles, an assembly of brahmins, an assembly of householders, an
assembly of recluses, an assembly of gods of the heaven of the Four Great Kings,
an assembly of gods of the heaven of the Thirty-three, an assembly of Mara's
retinue, an assembly of Brahmas. Possessing these four kinds of intrepidity,
the Tathagata approaches and enters these eight assemblies.
30. "I recall having approached many hundred assemblies of nobles ... many
hundred assemblies of brahmins ... many hundred assemblies of householders ...
many hundred assemblies of recluses ... many hundred assemblies of gods of the
heaven of the Four Great Kings ... many hundred assemblies of gods of the heaven
of the Thirty-three ... many hundred assemblies of Mara's retinue ... many hundred
assemblies of Brahmas. And formerly I had sat with them there and talked with
them and held conversations with them, yet I see no ground for thinking that
fear or timidity might come upon me there. And seeing no ground for that, I
abide in safety, fearlessness and intrepidity. [*p.73]
31. "Sariputta, when I know and see thus, should anyone say of me ... he
will wind up in hell. (Four Kinds of Generation)
32. "Sariputta, there are these four kinds of generation. What are the
four? Egg-born generation, womb-born generation, moisture-born generation and
spontaneous generation.
33. "What is egg-born generation? There are these beings born by breaking
out of the shell of an egg; this is called egg-born generation. What is womb-born
generation? There are these beings born by breaking out from the caul; this
is called womb-born generation. What is moisture-born generation? There are
these beings born in a rotten fish, in a rotten corpse, in rotten dough, in
a cesspit, or in a sewer; this is called moisture-born generation. What is spontaneous
generation? There are gods and denizens of hell and certain human beings and
some beings in the lower worlds; this is called spontaneous generation. These
are the four kinds of generation.
34. "Sariputta, when I know and see thus, should anyone say of me ... he
will wind up in hell. (The Five Destinations and Nibbana -- In Brief)
35. "Sariputta, there are these five destinations. What are the five? Hell,
the animal realm, the realm of ghosts, human beings and gods.[15]
36. (1) "I understand hell, and the path and way leading to hell. And I
also understand how one who has entered this path will, on the dissolution of
the body, after death, reappear in a state of deprivation, in an unhappy destination,
in perdition, in hell. (2) "I understand the animal realm, and the path
and way leading to the animal realm. And I also understand how one who has entered
this path will, on the dissolution of the body, after death, reappear in the
animal realm. (3) "I understand the realm of ghosts, and the path and way
leading to the realm of ghosts. And I also understand how one who has entered
this path will, on the dissolution of the body, after death, reappear in the
realm of ghosts. (4) "I understand human beings, and the path and way leading
to the human world. And I also understand how one who has entered this path
will, on the dissolution of the body, after death, reappear among human beings.
(5) "I understand the gods, and the path and way leading to the world of
the gods. And I also understand how one who has entered this path will, on the
dissolution of the body, after death, reappear in a happy destination, in the
heavenly world. (6) "I understand Nibbana, and the path and way leading
to Nibbana. [*p.74] And I also understand how one who has entered this path
will, by realizing it for himself with direct knowledge, here and now enter
upon and abide in the deliverance of mind and deliverance by wisdom that are
taintless with the destruction of the taints. (The Five Destinations and Nibbana
-- In Detail)
37. (1) "By encompassing mind with mind I understand a certain person thus:
'This person so behaves, so conducts himself, has taken such a path that on
the dissolution of the body, after death, he will reappear in a state of deprivation,
in an unhappy destination, in perdition, in hell.' And then later on, with the
divine eye, which is purified and surpasses the human, I see that on the dissolution
of the body, after death, he has reappeared in a state of deprivation, in an
unhappy destination, in perdition, in hell, and is experiencing extremely painful,
racking, piercing feelings. Suppose there were a charcoal pit deeper than a
man's height full of glowing coals without flame or smoke; and then a man scorched
and exhausted by hot weather, weary, parched and thirsty, came by a path going
in one way only and directed to that same charcoal pit. Then a man with good
sight on seeing him would say: 'This person so behaves, so conducts himself,
has taken such a path, that he will come to this same charcoal pit'; and then
later on he sees that he has fallen into that charcoal pit and is experiencing
extremely painful, racking, piercing feelings. So too, by encompassing mind
with mind ... piercing feelings.