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178
THE QUESTIONS AND PUZZLES
IV, 8, 54.
even of Arahatship-how much more) is he worthy to penetrate at a glance into the four truths !
•The following is the reason, O king, for my saying [311] that an infant, even though he regulate his life aright, cannot attain to insight. If, O king, one under seven years of age could feel passion about things exciting to passion, could go wrong in things leading to iniquity, could be befooled in matters that mislead, could be maddened as to things that infatuate, could understand a heresy, could distinguish between content and discontent, could think out virtue and vice, then might insight be possible to him. But the mind of one under seven years of age, Oking, is powerless and weak, mean, small, slight, obscure, and dull, whereas the essential principle of Nirvana is transcendental, important, weighty, wide - reaching, and extensive. Therefore is it, О king, that the infant, with so imperfect a mind, is unable to grasp an idea so great. It is like the case of Sineru, o king, the king of the mountains, heavy and ponderous, wide-reaching and mighty as it is,-could now a man, by his ordinary strength and power and energy, root that mountain up??'
Certainly not, Sir.' ‘But why not?'
'Because of the weakness of the man, and because of the mightiness of Sineru, the mountain king.'
1 The words in brackets are added from the Simhalese.
Similar metaphors have already been used in the 71st Dilemma (p. 283 of the Pali) and in the 74th Dilemma (p. 295 of the Pâli).
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| SR No. | 007682 |
| Book Title | Questions of King Milinda Part 02 |
| Original Sutra Author | N/A |
| Author | T W Rhys Davids |
| Publisher | Oxford |
| Publication Year | 1894 |
| Total Pages | 2240 |
| Language | English |
| Classification | Book_English |
| File Size | 38 MB |