Canon Commentary: Samaññaphala Sutta (DN 2)

Citation: Samaññaphala Sutta: The Fruits of the Contemplative Life, translated from the Pali by Thanissaro Bhikkhu — http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.02.0.than.html

This is part of a series where I try to provide some sort of commentary on what I learn from the Pali Canon. As I read through, I will try to discern some wisdom from each of the suttas, and try to understand it as fully as I can. I may get some things wrong, and that’s okay because it’s all part of learning; as I learn more, I’ll update this commentary to reflect that.

The Samaññaphala Sutta, to me, is the perfect example to be used to determine the outline purpose of the Digha Nikaya. That is, to convert adherents of many other philosophies or schools of thought, over to Buddhist thought. In broad scale, this Sutta is split into two very distinct sections. The first section aims to discredit other popular schools of thought for the time in which the Sutta was written, and the second section aims to give you a clear reason why The Buddha’s tradition is far more worthy.

The Samaññaphala Sutta is written as a dialogue from the perspective of King Ajatasattu. The King himself is a historical figure, and we can understand certain aspects of his life from outside of the framing of this Sutta, and even outside the framing of Buddhism itself.

This King came to power by slaying his father King Bimbisara, a cruel and selfish act — in turn, this King is then slain by his own son for the same reason. In a nutshell, King Ajatasattu represents a real-life example of kamma.

Samaññaphala Sutta

The prelude to the Samaññaphala Sutta suggests that the King is disquieted by something, as he exclaims:

“What Brahmin or contemplative should we visit tonight who might enlighten and bring peace to our mind?”

In response each of his ministers suggests a venerable Brahmin or ascetic contemplative to visit, with the idea that each of them has the ability to give peace to the King. The King, in turn, rejects the suggestions of each of the ministers, and instead asks Jivaka Komarabhacca, the royal physician, and the King’s personal confident, for a suggestion. In the first sentence of the Sutta, Jivaka is said to be playing host to The Buddha and his community of adherents, so he suggests that The King visits The Buddha instead of the other teachers, The King agrees, and they set off.

I’m going to digress from analysis of the text slightly here, for a special mention of King Ajatasattu’s behaviour. When they travel to see The Buddha, they travel atop 500 adorned female riding elephants. It’s important for us to understand the impact this display would have. Not only that, but the Sutta partially mentions by name the locations in which these events occur — King Ajatasattu’s palace, and subsequently a mango grove in Rajagaha. I did some digging and it turns out the capital of Magadha (and likely location for the historical palace), was indeed also likely to be in the city of Rajagaha. So the King took 500 adorned riding elephants, essentially on a short journey to another part of the city. So, what’s this all about? To me, it’s all a statement. He’s conveying to the people of Rajagaha, and indeed to The Buddha at Jivaka’s mango grove, that he is a powerful person and one not to be underestimated. I’m certain that the King had other ways to travel internally within his own city that were less flashy, but he wanted others to know of this journey.

Upon nearing the mango grove, the King became tense. Revealing his distrustful nature, the King is gripped by the fear that his friend Jivaka is betraying him.

“Friend Jivaka, you aren’t deceiving me, are you? You aren’t betraying me, are you? You aren’t turning me over to my enemies, are you? How can there be such a large community of monks — 1,250 in all — with no sound of sneezing, no sound of coughing, no voices at all?”

Whilst his concern over the silence of the monks is valid, the speed at which his mind jumps to betrayal is of note. Jivaka eases his concerns and they proceed to The Buddha’s pavilion.

Upon approaching The Buddha, in the pavilion, surrounded by 1,250 monks, all sat in quiet contemplation, King Ajatasattu exclaims, “May my son, Prince Udayibhadda, enjoy the same peace that this community of monks now enjoys!” This is fairly interesting, the King seems to alert us to the chaos in the mind of his son Prince Udayibhadda. Now we know, though history that Prince Udayibhadda goes on to murder King Ajatasattu and take the throne for himself. A cruel karmic fate of his own misdeeds.

The King’s Question

King Ajatasattu asks The Buddha a simple question:

“Lord, there are these common craftsmen: elephant-trainers, horse-trainers, charioteers, archers, standard bearers, camp marshals, supply corps officers, high royal officers, commandos, military heroes, armor-clad warriors, leather-clad warriors, domestic slaves, confectioners, barbers, bath attendants, cooks, garland-makers, laundrymen, weavers, basket-makers, potters, calculators, accountants, and any other common craftsmen of a similar sort. They live off the fruits of their crafts, visible in the here and now. They give pleasure and refreshment to themselves, to their parents, wives, and children, to their friends and colleagues. They put in place an excellent presentation of offerings to brahmans and contemplatives, leading to heaven, resulting in happiness, conducive to a heavenly rebirth. Is it possible, lord, to point out a similar fruit of the contemplative life, visible in the here and now?”

This can be summarised, as follows. These professionals are are able to reap the rewards of their craft, provide for their families and give offerings to Brahmins and other contemplatives. Can you point to a similar fruit of only living the homeless, contemplative life?

This is the King’s unique way of asking for The Buddha’s sales-pitch. He wants to know why someone would become a contemplative in his company. If we look at how mistrustful the King is, the comment in the introduction about wanting to bring peace to his mind, and the relevance of this question, you can make the assumption that the King is seeking spiritual counsel, but it intensely cautious about who he chooses to counsel with.

Before the Buddha answers, he asks The King if he has asked this same question, to other Brahmin. To which the King replies that he has.

The Buddha asks that he share their responses.

The Responses of the Brahmin

The following section of the Samaññaphala Sutta is rather formulaic. There is an introduction passage where the King states who he asked, a second passage where he describes what the Brahmin said, a third to summarise and state that the King was displeased with the Brahmin’s answer. Furthermore, there are six Brahmin — the same Brahmin that his ministers suggested in the Sutta’s opening. Thereby revealing a possible reason why he rejected his minister’s council earlier at the palace.

Let’s look at each of the responses from the individual Brahmin:

Purana Kassapa was asked the same question by The King, but he misdirected, and instead decided to explain to the King that evil and merit are not part of the human condition.

This philosophy is called Amoralism, and suggests that if morality is intrinsic to humans, then amoral people cannot then be regarded as human.

Makkahali Gosala was asked the same question by The King, but he misdirected, and instead decided to explain to the King that all life across infinite possible rebirths is predetermined.

This philosophy is called Fatalism, that we can do nothing to avoid suffering, or indeed pleasure. Everything is predetermined and so resistance is illogical.

Ajita Kesakambali was asked the same question by The King, but he misdirected, and instead decided to explain to the King that we are all a product of a material that is belonging to earth. All that exists is natural, and upon annihilation will return to it’s natural form.

This philosophy is called Materialism. Materialism is often regarded as one of the cornerstones of the scientific method in modern times. Materialism alone is incompatible with some of the more metaphysical elements of Buddhism.

Pakudha Kaccãyana was asked the same question by The King, but he misdirected, and instead decided to explain to the King a philosophy that suggests that all physical and metaphysical phenomenon are eternal.

This philosophy is called Eternalism. It’s a philosophy that bears some similarities in practice to Materialism, however, it is very much the opposite, since it allows for the metaphysical phenomenon that Materialism denies, such as a soul or persistent self.

Nigantha Nattaputta was asked the same question by The King, but he misdirected, and instead decided to explain to the King that one can only become self-perfected, self-controlled and self-established, by enacting restraint upon your entire experience.

The Brahmin here is explaining the fourfold restraint, a common Jainism philosophy. However, it’s not quite in the spirit of Jainism here. The suggestion is that freedom is only attainable by becoming bound by restraint — this is paradoxical, as being bound by restraint is, in itself, not freedom. In this sense, we can assume that the Sutta itself is effectively parodying the Jainist viewpoint.

Sañjaya Belatthaputta was asked the same question by The King, but he misdirected, and instead decided to evade by providing the King with a series of nonsensical and cryptic teachings.

Here the Sutta can be seen to be adding a splash of humour to the Brahmin’s teachings, to downplay the impact of his philosophy. There’s one particular question that the Sutta details “I don’t not say it is not”, which is ridiculously cryptic.

Summary of The King’s Question

What I think the Samaññaphala Sutta is trying to achieve here is to take six of the most common philosophies, and their primary teachers, and essentially discredit them.

Firstly, there is something to be said that none of them are able to answer the King’s question, and thus just speak of their primary philosophy to him — if we read deep enough into this, it can suggest that these Brahmin are unable to think outside of their own philosophical viewpoints, and so cannot answer the King directly.

Secondly, the philosophical monologue they each give was meticulously designed to make light of the viewpoint, in some circumstances outright ridiculing it, then in others, it’s simply written in a way that highlights it’s inherent flaws.

Thirdly, it clearly displays the disappointment and displeasure of the King in this conversation. This sends a clear message to the listeners of this Sutta. Even the King rejected these philosophies.

The Buddha’s Answer

So, after honouring The Buddha’s first request to recount the answers of the Brahmins, the King again puts the question to The Buddha.

The Buddha is able to directly answer the question, something the Brahmins could not. The Buddha is not only able to answer the question, but he is able to provide the King with an exhaustive set of answers. Each provides its own flavour to the discussion.

There are sixteen total ‘fruits of a contemplative life’ that The Buddha gives the King. These are the sixteen reasons why one would become a contemplative in The Buddha’s company.

Freedom from Servitude and Honour of Kings

The Buddha asks The King if a slave in his service were to don the robes and become a contemplative, would you demand him return to service. The King replies that no, he would be treated as a holy man, and offered protection, lodging and his needs would be met.

There, the Buddha says, is the first fruit of a contemplative life. The Buddha then offers a second; structured alarmingly like the first but with a key difference. The first refers to a slave, someone who works in servitude to the king, and thus by leaving service would affect the King’s comfort. The second refers to a householder, or farmer, someone who works within the King’s kingdom, and thus by leaving would affect the King’s wealth (taxes, and material provisions). To this also, the King replies that he would be treated as a holy man, and offered protection, lodging and his needs would be met.

There, the Buddha says, is the second fruit of a contemplative life.

Virtuous Living

The Buddha offers another fruit of a contemplative life. He says that a contemplative or monastic that follows a virtuous path and guards his sense doors, “is possessed of mindfulness and alertness, and is content.”

Contentment by following a virtuous path is a fruit of a contemplative life. However, The Buddha doesn’t stop there. He goes on to define exactly what it is to follow a virtuous path as a monk:

• Abandoning the taking of life, compassion for the welfare of all living beings (plants and animals).
• Abandoning the taking of what is not given, living only by honesty and purity.
• Becoming celibate.
• Abandoning false speech, is firm and reliable.
• Abandoning divisive speech, seeking concord with words
• Abandoning abusive speech, speaking only what is soothing and affectionate, and with heart.
• Abstaining from idle chatter/lowly speech, speaking words that are worth treasuring.
• Only eating once per day
• Abstaining from idle entertainment (music, dancing, singing, shows, games)
• Abstaining from self beautifying
• Abstaining from luxurious comforts
• Abstaining from accepting gold, or money
• Abstaining from accepting livestock, slaves, raw/uncooked food or land/property
• Abstaining from running messages, trading (both honourable and deceptive)
• Abstaining from illegal acts
• Abstaining from mystical arts (palmistry, astrology etc.)
• Abstaining from the arts of forecasting (predictions for political, religious or monetary gain)

The Buddha splits these virtues up into three sections; Lesser, Intermediate and Great. Here I’ve made an effort to combine them, and integrate them together as best I can. I don’t believe the separation is important, but seems to specifically denote the length of each ‘rule’.

The essentials of this section of the Samaññaphala Sutta is to indicate the methodology behind what The Buddha regards as virtuous living. After all, he says to the King that one of the fruits of the contemplative life was that this type of virtuous living provides contentment.

The Buddha says three specific things at the beginning of his section about Virtues. Guarding the Sense Doors, Mindfulness and Alertness, and Contentedness. The Buddha explains exactly what he means by each.

Guarding the Sense Doors

This is actually a very important Buddhist teaching.

“On seeing a form with the eye, he does not grasp at any theme or details by which — if he were to dwell without restraint over the faculty of the eye — evil, unskillful qualities such as greed or distress might assail him.”

This same passage is applied almost verbatim to each of the five senses, and also then to intellect.

My interpretation of this, is that sometimes we’re tempted to associate a stimulus of our sense with a thought, which then becomes a deeper thought, and then a deeper thought, then eventually will lead to unskillful or evil thoughts. This of course doesn’t apply to everything, but allow me to provide an example:

Imagine you see some chocolate. If you take it it’s shape, texture or smell, and have the restraint not to go any further, then you are ‘guarding the sense doors’. However, most of us will begin to think about how delicious it is, and how we should probably think about eating it, and wondering how it tastes, and then attempting to convince ourselves that we should eat it, then trying to convince ourselves not to eat it. This path eventually leads to distress, or suffering. This is essentially what The Buddha means by ‘guarding the sense doors’ — having the restraint to stop this process before it leads you to unskilfulness.

Mindfulness and Alertness

Pretty straight forward this one. We are taught early on in Buddhist studies the importance of attentional awareness and acting with mindfulness. The Buddha, in this passage describes how mindfulness applies to everyday things; eating, drinking, urinating, defecating, walking, standing, sleeping etc. Any action we take, we need to do so with alertness and mindfulness.

Contentedness

The Buddha talks about contentedness as a result of living with virtue and being free of burdens — travelling simply with robes and surviving on simply almsfood — ‘the barest necessities’ then contentedness can be achieved.

Abandoning the Five Hindrances

The Buddha goes on to explain that when you are endowed with fruits allowed to you by your virtue, you are able to put them to good use in an act of contemplative concentration. Within this state of concentration, you are able to become free of the five hindrances. The five hindrances are:

• Covetousness (or sensory desire)
• Ill will & Anger
• Sloth & Drowsiness
• Restlessness & Anxiety
• Uncertainty

“… when these five hindrances are not abandoned in himself, the monk regards it as a debt, a sickness, a prison, slavery, a road through desolate country”.

Essentially, with these five hindrances, there represents a road to be travelled, or an obstacle to be overcome. The act of virtuous concentration represents a path to overcome these obstacles, so that you may become free of their influence. All this is a pathway into even deeper concentration.

“… seeing that they have been abandoned within him, he becomes glad. Glad, he becomes enraptured. Enraptured, his body grows tranquil. His body tranquil, he is sensitive to pleasure. Feeling pleasure, his mind becomes concentrated.”

The ‘fruit’ in this case, is the feeling of being enraptured, which leads to being tranquil, to being sensitive to pleasure, and allowing deep concentration.

This is where The Buddha begins to chain the fruits. Abandoning the Five Hindrances is allowed directly by Virtuous Living. Consequently, Abandoning the Five Hindrances in turn allows the next fruit, Access to the Jhanas.

Access to the Jhanas

In this part The Buddha discusses the four jhana states and how, by abandoning the five hindrances, you are able to access them. Each of them provides a new ‘fruit of the contemplative life’ to provide another answer to the King’s question.

The four states are all slightly different to one another, with slight differences:

• First Jhana — applied and sustained thought, rapture, bliss and one-pointedness
• Second Jhana — rapture, bliss and one-pointedness
• Third Jhana — bliss and one-pointedness
• Fourth Jhana — one-pointedness and equanimity.

So what do each of these characteristics mean?

Applied thought (vitakka) is the ability to ‘mount’ your mind, effectively the ability to begin deep thought about a singular object of thought.

Sustained thought (vicāra) is the ability to keep your mind on said singular object of thought.

Rapture (pīti) is a very specific type of happiness or pleasure that arises as a consequence of applied thought on an object.

Bliss (sukha) is an authentic state of long-lasting happiness.

One-pointedness (ekaggatā) is the state you reach where you are unable to be distracted by wandering or transient thoughts, it’s a complete unification of your mind onto the object of thought.

Equanimity (upekkhā) is an unshakable stability of mind, a mind that cannot be unhinged by gain and loss, pleasure and pain, honour and dishonour.

Entire books have been written about the Jhana states, so for now, I’ll keep my explanation brief and and won’t go too deep with it. Suffice it to say that achieving each of these four states, which combinations of each of the above characteristics is represented to the King as individual new fruits of the contemplative life.

Insight into the True Nature of Reality

The Buddha goes on from the Jhana states to show that upon attainment, you are then able to discern the true nature of reality. This is called vipassanā and is a deep understanding that reality is comprised of impermanence (anicca), suffering (dukkha) and non-self (anattā).

Specifically The Buddha addresses impermanence, suffering and non-self with this paragraph:

“… this body of mine is endowed with form, composed of the four primary elements, born from mother and father, nourished with rice and porridge, subject to inconstancy, rubbing, pressing, dissolution, and dispersion […] this consciousness of mine is supported here and bound up here.”

This is another core Buddhist teaching that is touched upon in this dialogue between King Ajatasattu and The Buddha. Vipassana has become one of the key meditation techniques that can involve reaching the jhana states and achieving this insight.

This, The Buddha says, is another fruit of the contemplative life.

Out of Body Experience

The out-of-body experience is something that The Buddha talks about as a possible result of achieving insight whilst in deep meditative concentration.

“From this body he creates another body, endowed with form, made of the mind, complete in all its parts, not inferior in its faculties.”

This is traditionally known as the ‘astral body’ or manomayiddhi in Pali. Astral projection is something that has only fairly recently been debunked as a hallucination of sorts. It’s brought on by psychedelic drugs, electrical stimulation, brain injury, or in this case, deep-focused meditation.

In the Samaññaphala Sutta, this is referred to as a mind-made body first, and then supranormal powers secondly, then as clairaudience. The first ‘fruit’ is the ability to attain an out of body experience, and the second ‘fruit’ is the directing of this out of body experience to move at-will, and the third ‘fruit’ is using this form to access the ‘divine ear’ or the ability to hear things that are beyond the scope of normal hearing ability.

Parapsychologist and Zen practitioner Dr Susan Blackmore has spoken at length about her own experiences with out of body experiences, and her account bears similarities with the description given by The Buddha in these two sections of the Sutta. Additionally there have been many accounts over the years of out of body experiences that have been able to hear things outside of the range of their physical body, but close to their mind-made, projected body. This too has a modern, scientific explanation, nothing more than an elaborate hallucination.

Experientially, these phenomenon can be quite important for people who reach these stages, and out of body experiences have been shown to have a tremendous impact on the life of the person who experienced it.

Knowledge of the Mind of Others

The Buddha offers another possible fruit of contemplative life, the ability to discern the mind of others. When you become so deeply acquainted with your own mind, you’re then able to recognise the same behaviour in others. This is traditionally interpreted to the practice of mind-reading, but the reality is far simpler than that.

“Just as if a young woman — or man — fond of ornaments, examining the reflection of her own face in a bright mirror or a bowl of clear water would know ‘blemished’ if it were blemished, or ‘unblemished’ if it were not.”

The key phrase here is “reflection of her own face”. To me, this refers to the ability to recognise in others what you see in your own mind, from this more deeply aware and concentrated state.

Awareness and Discernment of Past Lives

The next two fruits offered by The Buddha are in line with the Buddhist belief of rebirth. The first is simply memory of past lives, and the second is being able to discern the passing and re-appearance of others.

The Buddha suggests that with such a deep and clearly concentrated mind, you are first able to recollect details of previous rebirths, and secondly you are able to then discern when others pass away and are reborn into other lives.

“He recollects his manifold past lives, i.e., one birth, two births, three births, four, five, ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty, one hundred, one thousand, one hundred thousand, many aeons of cosmic contraction, many aeons of cosmic expansion, many aeons of cosmic contraction and expansion.”

The secular believe of a moment-by-moment rebirth (as opposition to a full life-to-life rebirth) does not quite fit with any interpretation of the words The Buddha offers in the passage about the memory of past lives, but rather is quite specifically in line with the commonly held Buddhist interpretation of rebirth.

As much as I would like to view this passage through a secular lens, I cannot, since its meaning appears to be quite explicit. The evidence about this is based solely on the account of those involved and so cannot be treated as proof, however, there is also no scientific basis for disproving them.

There is a little room for a more secular interpretation in the section about the discernment of the passing and reappearance of the lives of others though. One could argue that when ones kamma bears fruit, you are entering a new modality of mind, and as such could be interpreted as reborn. This passage holds direct reference to this view, as in the following sentence:

“… he sees beings passing away and re-appearing, and he discerns how they are inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate in accordance with their kamma.”

However, I must concede that The Buddhas words also make this interpretation difficult with direct reference to the break-up of the body after death.

It is on this point, I shall leave the topic of rebirth, as I believe in order to more deeply explore it, with unbiased research on both sides of the fence, it should be granted its own article.

Interpretation and science aside, The Buddha offers the King the knowledge that these are indeed fruits of a contemplative life.

Freedom from All Mental Agitation

“He discerns, as it has come to be, that ‘This is stress… This is the origination of stress… This is the cessation of stress… This is the way leading to the cessation of stress… These are mental fermentations… This is the origination of fermentations… This is the cessation of fermentations… This is the way leading to the cessation of fermentations.’ His heart, thus knowing, thus seeing, is released from the fermentation of sensuality, the fermentation of becoming, the fermentation of ignorance.”

The Buddha posits that within this mode of deep and clear concentration you are able to more deeply understand the origination and thus cessation of agitations such as stress. As such you are ‘released’ from the agitation in the domains of sensuality, becoming and ignorance.

Sensuality refers to emotion driven attachment/clinging. Becoming refers to the creation and development of new kammic tendencies or habits. Ignorance refers to the tendency to not apply awareness, or the “falling away from the modality of pristine awareness.”

The Buddha posits that at this point, there is nothing further to achieve in life. You have reached the pinnacle of existence, and as such will be released from samsara, or the cycle of rebirth. “He discerns that ‘Birth is ended, the holy life fulfilled, the task done. There is nothing further for this world.’”

The End of the Fruits

Since there are a considerable amount of these fruits of a contemplative life, I’ll summarise briefly, here.

The Buddha lists, for the King, sixteen total fruits of a contemplative life:

1. Freedom from servitude and the honour of kings — just by choosing to live as an ascetic, instead of a slave, with no further contemplation, you are afforded freedom, and protection from the King.
2. Freedom from obligation and the honour of kings — just by choosing to live as an ascetic, instead of a slave, with no further contemplation, you are afforded freedom, and protection from the King.
3. Mindful alertness and contentedness — this is a result of living with virtue. The Buddha explains quite clearly, what living with virtue means.
4. Freedom from the five hindrances — this is dependent on contentedness, and mindful alertness. Freedom from covetousness, ill-will and anger, sloth and drowsiness, restlessness and anxiety, and uncertainty.
5. The First Jhana — as a result of freedom from the five hindrances, you are able to access the first jhana, a state of applied and sustained thought, rapture, bliss and one-pointedness
6. The Second Jhana — as a result of reaching the first jhana, you are able to access the second jhana, a state of rapture, bliss and one-pointedness.
7. The Third Jhana — as a result of reaching the second jhana, you are able to access the third jhana, a state of bliss and one-pointedness.
8. The Fourth Jhana — as a result of reaching the third jhana, you are able to access the fourth jhana, a state of one-pointedness and equanimity.
9. Insight into the True Nature of Reality — as a result of reaching the fourth jhana, you are able to discern a deep understanding that reality is comprised of impermanence, suffering and non-self.
10. Creation of a mind-made body — as a result of this insight, you are able to have an out-of-body hallucination experience, where you can create a new body, separate from the first.
11. Out of body travel — after you have begun an out of body experience, this mind-made body is able to travel at will, passing through walls, floors and obstacles.
12. Projected hearing — as part of this out of body experience, you are able to feel as though you can hear at great distance.
13. Knowledge of the Mind of Others — with this new found state of deep concentration, that also, in turn caused the out of body experience, you are able to recognise in others the mental formations you experience.
14. Memory of prior rebirths — once you can understand the mind of others, you can access memories of your previous lives.
15. Awareness of the rebirths of others — once you connect with the memories of your own rebirth, you can also have a deep understanding of the rebirths of those around you, and the machinations of kamma.
16. Freedom from all mental agitation — armed with the awareness of the rebirths around you, and a deep understanding of the machinations of kamma, you can finally be free of all mental agitations.

At this stage, you have experienced all the fruits of a contemplative life, and as a result, you are become free from Samsara.

The King’s Response

“Just as if he were to place upright what was overturned, to reveal what was hidden, to show the way to one who was lost, or to carry a lamp into the dark so that those with eyes could see forms, in the same way has the Blessed One — through many lines of reasoning — made the Dhamma clear.”

He offers himself as a lay follower of The Buddha, and submits himself to the three gems, The Buddha, The Dhamma, and the Sangha.

Then, he bares all. He admits that he killed his father for the throne. He offers this confession to The Buddha so that he is able to be restrained in future. The Buddha responds asking the King to make amends in accordance with the Dhamma. The King then takes leave.

The Buddha ends by saying that if it weren’t for the King’s transgression, he would have opened the Dhamma eye. This is an important step on the road to enlightenment; which the King has now missed.

Summary

The Samaññaphala Sutta is a critical one to understanding the reason for living as a contemplative, though the advice is still just as useful for lay follower.

It sets out a map, or pathway from becoming a contemplative, to achieving release from samsara. Each step on the path is framed as a separate advantage of living as a contemplative, though it’s very possible to see the line being drawn as each step connects with the previous one.

As I mentioned in the beginning, it is designed to ‘sell’ the philosophy of The Buddha to those who are perhaps aligned with another view.

In the opening, the King tells The Buddha the responses of the most prominent philosophers of the era, essentially asking, “why would I follow you?” The responses are unsatisfactory. This is a building block for Buddhism; the subtext of which is that even the King, one of the most important and powerful rulers of Maghada finds these philosophies unsatisfactory.

The sheer exhaustiveness of The Buddha’s answer serves two purposes, firstly it provides a critical contrast with the answers of the Brahmin, sending the clear message of The Buddha is able to answer the question that the other Brahmin were not. The second purpose is to provide a path for new adherents to help them understand why adherents to The Buddha’s philosophy do as they do.