Skip to reading
← Milindapañha

7.1. The Similes

Mil 7.1

Stones and seaweed visible in a clear tidal pool.

PTS vp En 275 PTS vp Pali 363 ‘Venerable Nāgasena, with how many qualities must a member of the Order (a Bhikshu) be endowed to realise Arahatship?’

‘The brother, O king, who wishes to attain Arahatship must take:

  1. PTS cs 1 One quality of the ass
  2. PTS cs 2 And five of the cock
  3. PTS cs 3 And one of the squirrel
  4. PTS cs 4 And one of the female panther
  5. PTS cs 5 And two of the male panther
  6. PTS cs 6 And five of the tortoise
  7. PTS cs 7 And one of the bamboo
  8. PTS cs 8 And one of the bow
  9. PTS cs 9 And two of the crow
  10. PTS cs 10 And two of the monkey
  11. And one of the gourd
  12. PTS cs 12 And three of the lotus
  13. PTS cs 13 And two of seed
  14. PTS cs 14 And one of the Sal-tree
  15. And three of a ship
  16. PTS cs 16 And two of the anchor
  17. PTS cs 117 And one of the mast
  18. PTS cs 18 And three of the pilot
  19. PTS cs 19 And one of the sailor
  20. PTS cs 20 And five of the ocean
  21. PTS cs 21 And five of the earthPTS vp En 276
  22. PTS cs 22 And five of water
  23. PTS cs 23 And five of fire
  24. PTS cs 24 And five of wind
  25. PTS cs 25 And five of rock
  26. PTS cs 26 And five of space
  27. PTS cs 27 And five of the moon
  28. PTS cs 28 And seven of the sun
  29. PTS cs 29 And three of Sakka
  30. PTS cs 30 And four of a sovran overlord
  31. PTS cs 31 And one of the white ant
  32. PTS cs 32 And two of the cat
  33. PTS cs 33 And one of the rat
  34. PTS cs 34 And one of the scorpion
  35. PTS cs 35 And one of the mungoose
  36. PTS cs 36 PTS vp Pali 364 And two of the old jackal
  37. PTS cs 37 And three of the deer
  38. PTS cs 38 And four of the bull
  39. PTS cs 39 And two of the boar
  40. PTS cs 40 And five of the elephant
  41. PTS cs 41 And seven of the lion
  42. PTS cs 42 And three of the cakravāka bird
  43. PTS cs 43 And two of the Peṇāhikā bird
  44. PTS cs 44 And one of the house-pigeon
  45. PTS cs 45 And two of the owl
  46. PTS cs 46 And one of the crane
  47. PTS cs 47 And two of the bat
  48. PTS cs 48 And one of the leech
  49. PTS cs 49 And three of the serpent
  50. PTS cs 50 And one of the rock-snake
  51. PTS cs 51 And one of the road spider
  52. PTS cs 52 And one of the child at the breast
  53. PTS cs 53 And one of the land tortoise
  54. PTS cs 54 And five of the mountain height
  55. PTS cs 55 And three of the treePTS vp En 277
  56. PTS cs 56 And five of the rain-cloud
  57. PTS cs 57 And three of the jewel
  58. PTS cs 58 And four of the hunter
  59. PTS cs 59 And two of the fisherman
  60. PTS cs 60 And two of the carpenter
  61. PTS cs 61 And one of the waterpot
  62. PTS cs 62 And two of iron
  63. PTS cs 63 And three of a sunshade
  64. PTS cs 64 And three of a rice field
  65. PTS cs 65 And two of medicine
  66. PTS cs 66 And three of food
  67. PTS cs 67 And four of the archer.
  68. And four of the king.
  69. And two of the doorkeeper.
  70. And one of a grindstone.
  71. And two of a lamp.
  72. And two of the peacock.
  73. And two of the steed.
  74. And two of the publican.
  75. And two of a threshold.
  76. And one of a balance.
  77. And two of a sword.
  78. And two of a fish.
  79. And one of a borrower.PTS vp Pali 365
  80. And two of a sick man.
  81. And two of a corpse.
  82. And two of. a river.
  83. And one of a buffalo.
  84. And two of a road.
  85. And one of a tax-gatherer.
  86. And three of a thief. PTS vp En 278
  87. And one of the hawk.
  88. And one of the dog.
  89. And three of the physician.
  90. And two of a woman with child.
  91. And one of the yak cow.
  92. And two of the hen.
  93. And three of the dove.
  94. And two of the one-eyed man.
  95. And three of the husbandman.
  96. And one of the female jackal.
  97. And two of the dyers’ straining-cloth.
  98. And one of a spoon.
  99. And one of the negociator of a loan.
  100. And one of a collector.
  101. And two of a charioteer.
  102. And two of a village headman.
  103. And one of a tailor.
  104. And one of a helmsman.
  105. And two of a bee.’

Here ends the Table of Contents.

Connections

Collection & context

About this edition

Translation by T.W. Rhys Davids · SuttaCentral · Public domain

The source expressly identifies this translation as public domain.

The Questions of King Milinda, translated from the Pali by T.W. Rhys Davids.

Part 1 (to section 5.4.10) was originally published as Volume xxxv of “The Sacred Books of the East”, Oxford, The Clarendon Press, 1890.

Part 2 (from section 5.5.1) was originally published as Volume xxxvi of “The Sacred Books of the East”, Oxford, The Clarendon Press, 1894.

This SuttaCentral edition was prepared by Bhikkhu Sujato based on the digital text of the Internet Sacred Text Archive. The work of the Sacred Text Archive to make this text publically available is gratefully acknowledged.

In preparing this edition minor editorial changes have been made. The structure has been adapted to agree with the Mahāsaṅgīti Pali text as found on SuttaCentral. In addition, the corrections proposed by the translator in the “Addenda et Corrigenda” of the original editions have for the most part been adopted.

This text is in the public domain. You are free to do whatever you wish with it.

Prepared for SuttaCentral by Bhikkhu Sujato.

Published source. Translation wording and order are preserved; source headings and notes are retained, with navigation and formatting adapted for this reader.

The opening image is AI-generated nature artwork for Buddhist Atlas, an evocative companion rather than a historical depiction.