Dilemma the Sixty-FirstThe Obstacles
Nippapañcapañha (Mil 6.2 1)
‘Venerable Nāgasena, the Blessed One said:
“Live, O brethren, devoted to and taking delight in that which has no Papañcas (none of those states of mind which delay or obstruct a man in his spiritual growth).”
‘What is that which has no Papañcas?’
‘The fruit of Conversion has no Papañcas, O king, the fruit of that stage of the Path in which those live who will be only once, or not all reborn, the fruit of Arahatship has no Papañcas.’
‘But if that be so, Nāgasena, Then why do the brethren concern themselves with recitation of, with asking questions about the discourses, and the pieces in mixed prose and verse, and the expositions, and the poems, and the outbursts of emotion, and the passages beginning “Thus he said,” and the birth-stories, and the tales of wonder, and the extended treatises ? Why do they trouble themselves about new buildings about gifts and offerings to the order?’
‘They who do all these things, O king, are working towards attainment of freedom from the Papañcas, (that is of Arahatship). For whereas, O king, all those of the brethren who are pure by nature, those upon whose hearts an impression has been left by good deeds done in a former birth, can (get rid of the Papañcas, can) become Arahats, in a moment—those on the other hand whose minds are much darkened by evil can only become Arahats by such means as these.
‘Just, O king, as while one man who has sown a field and got the seed to grow can, by the exertion of his own power, and without any rampart or fence, reap the crop—whereas another man when he has got the seed to grow must go into the woods, and cut down sticks and branches and make a fence of them, and thus only reap the crop—in the same way those who are pure by nature, upon whose hearts an impression has been left by good deeds done in a former birth, can, in a moment, become Arahats, like the man who gathers the crop without a fence. But those, on the other hand, whose minds are darkened by the evil they have done can only become Arahats by such means as these—like the man who can only reap his crop if he builds the fence.
‘Or just, O king, as there might be a bunch of fruits on the summit of a lofty mango tree. Then whoever possesses the power of Iddhi could take those fruits, but whoever had not, he would have first to cut sticks and creepers and construct a ladder, and by its means climb up the tree and so get at the fruit. In the same way those who are by nature pure, and upon whose hearts an impression has been left by good deeds done in a former birth, may attain, in a moment, to Arahatship, like the man getting the fruit by the power of Iddhi. But those, on the other hand, whose minds are darkened by the evil they have done can only become Arahats by such means as these, like the man who only gets the fruit by means of the ladder he has made.
‘Or just, O king, as while one man who is clever in business will go alone to his lord and conclude any business he has to do, another man, rich though he may be, must by his riches bring others to his service, and by their help get the business done—and it is for the business’ sake that he has to seek after them. In the same way those who are by nature pure, upon whose hearts an impression has been left by good deeds done in a former birth, may reach, in a moment, to the attainment of the Six Transcendent Qualities, like the man who does the business alone by himself Whereas those brethren whose minds are darkened by the evil they have done can only by such means as these realise the gains of renunciation, like the man who through others’ help brings his business to the desired end.
‘For recitation is of great good, O king, and asking questions, and superintending building work, and seeing to gifts and offerings is of great good—each of them to one or other of the spiritual objects which the brethren seek to obtain. just, O king, as there might be some one of the ministers or soldiers or messengers or sentries or body-guards or attendants who was especially serviceable and useful to the king, but when he had any business given him to do they would all help him—just so are all these things of assistance when those objects have to be attained. When all men, O king, shall have become by nature pure, then will there be nothing left for a teacher to accomplish. But so long as there is still need of discipleship, so long will even such a man, O king, as the Elder Sāriputta himself (though he had attained to the summit of wisdom by reason of his having been, through countless ages, deeply rooted in merit), yet find it impossible, without discipleship, to attain to Arahatship. Therefore is it, O king, that hearing (the Scriptures) is of use, and recitation of them, and asking questions about them. And therefore is it that those also who are addicted to These things, becoming free from the obstacles thereto, attain to Arahatship.’
‘Right well have you made me understand this puzzle, Nāgasena. That is so, and I accept it as you say.
Here ends the dilemma as to the obstacles.
“Live, O brethren, devoted to and taking delight in that which has no Papañcas (none of those states of mind which delay or obstruct a man in his spiritual growth).”
‘What is that which has no Papañcas?’
‘The fruit of Conversion has no Papañcas, O king, the fruit of that stage of the Path in which those live who will be only once, or not all reborn, the fruit of Arahatship has no Papañcas.’
‘But if that be so, Nāgasena, Then why do the brethren concern themselves with recitation of, with asking questions about the discourses, and the pieces in mixed prose and verse, and the expositions, and the poems, and the outbursts of emotion, and the passages beginning “Thus he said,” and the birth-stories, and the tales of wonder, and the extended treatises ? Why do they trouble themselves about new buildings about gifts and offerings to the order?’
‘They who do all these things, O king, are working towards attainment of freedom from the Papañcas, (that is of Arahatship). For whereas, O king, all those of the brethren who are pure by nature, those upon whose hearts an impression has been left by good deeds done in a former birth, can (get rid of the Papañcas, can) become Arahats, in a moment—those on the other hand whose minds are much darkened by evil can only become Arahats by such means as these.
‘Just, O king, as while one man who has sown a field and got the seed to grow can, by the exertion of his own power, and without any rampart or fence, reap the crop—whereas another man when he has got the seed to grow must go into the woods, and cut down sticks and branches and make a fence of them, and thus only reap the crop—in the same way those who are pure by nature, upon whose hearts an impression has been left by good deeds done in a former birth, can, in a moment, become Arahats, like the man who gathers the crop without a fence. But those, on the other hand, whose minds are darkened by the evil they have done can only become Arahats by such means as these—like the man who can only reap his crop if he builds the fence.
‘Or just, O king, as there might be a bunch of fruits on the summit of a lofty mango tree. Then whoever possesses the power of Iddhi could take those fruits, but whoever had not, he would have first to cut sticks and creepers and construct a ladder, and by its means climb up the tree and so get at the fruit. In the same way those who are by nature pure, and upon whose hearts an impression has been left by good deeds done in a former birth, may attain, in a moment, to Arahatship, like the man getting the fruit by the power of Iddhi. But those, on the other hand, whose minds are darkened by the evil they have done can only become Arahats by such means as these, like the man who only gets the fruit by means of the ladder he has made.
‘Or just, O king, as while one man who is clever in business will go alone to his lord and conclude any business he has to do, another man, rich though he may be, must by his riches bring others to his service, and by their help get the business done—and it is for the business’ sake that he has to seek after them. In the same way those who are by nature pure, upon whose hearts an impression has been left by good deeds done in a former birth, may reach, in a moment, to the attainment of the Six Transcendent Qualities, like the man who does the business alone by himself Whereas those brethren whose minds are darkened by the evil they have done can only by such means as these realise the gains of renunciation, like the man who through others’ help brings his business to the desired end.
‘For recitation is of great good, O king, and asking questions, and superintending building work, and seeing to gifts and offerings is of great good—each of them to one or other of the spiritual objects which the brethren seek to obtain. just, O king, as there might be some one of the ministers or soldiers or messengers or sentries or body-guards or attendants who was especially serviceable and useful to the king, but when he had any business given him to do they would all help him—just so are all these things of assistance when those objects have to be attained. When all men, O king, shall have become by nature pure, then will there be nothing left for a teacher to accomplish. But so long as there is still need of discipleship, so long will even such a man, O king, as the Elder Sāriputta himself (though he had attained to the summit of wisdom by reason of his having been, through countless ages, deeply rooted in merit), yet find it impossible, without discipleship, to attain to Arahatship. Therefore is it, O king, that hearing (the Scriptures) is of use, and recitation of them, and asking questions about them. And therefore is it that those also who are addicted to These things, becoming free from the obstacles thereto, attain to Arahatship.’
‘Right well have you made me understand this puzzle, Nāgasena. That is so, and I accept it as you say.
Here ends the dilemma as to the obstacles.
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