Now at that time many well-known Licchavis, meeting and sitting together in the assembly hall, spoke with many lines of reasoning in praise of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Saṅgha.

And at that time, General Sīha [Lion], a disciple of the Nigaṇṭhas, was sitting in the assembly.

The thought occurred to him, “Undoubtedly the Blessed One is Worthy and Rightly Self-Awakened. That’s why these many well-known Licchavis, meeting and sitting together in the rest-house, speak with many lines of reasoning in praise of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Saṅgha.

“What if I were to go to see the Blessed One, Worthy and Rightly Self-awakened?”

So General Sīha went to Nigaṇṭha Nāṭaputta and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side.

As he was sitting there, he said to Nigaṇṭha Nāṭaputta, “Venerable sir (Lord?), I want to go to see the contemplative Gotama.”

“But why, Sīha, do you, an espouser of a doctrine of action, want to go to see the contemplative Gotama, an espouser of a doctrine of inaction[1]?

“The contemplative Gotama, an espouser of a doctrine of inaction, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of inaction, and instructs his disciples with that.”

So General Sīha’s plans to go to see the Blessed One were abandoned.

A second time, …

A third time, many well-known Licchavis, meeting and sitting together in the rest-house, spoke with many lines of reasoning in praise of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Saṅgha.

A third time, the thought occurred to General Sīha, “Undoubtedly the Blessed One is Worthy and Rightly Self-Awakened. That’s why these many well-known Licchavis, meeting and sitting together in the rest-house, speak with many lines of reasoning in praise of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Saṅgha.

“What will the Nigaṇṭhas do to me, whether I ask leave or don’t? Why don’t I, without asking leave of the Nigaṇṭhas, go to see the Blessed One, Worthy and Rightly Self-awakened?”

So General Sīha, with five hundred carriages, set out from Vesālī in the middle of the day to see the Blessed One.

Going going in his vehicle as far as there was ground for vehicles, he got down from his vehicle and approached the Blessed One foot. On arrival, having bowed down to him, he sat to one side.

As he was sitting there, he said to the Blessed One, “I have heard that the contemplative Gotama is an espouser of a doctrine of inaction, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of inaction, and instructs his disciples with that.”

“Those who say that the contemplative Gotama is an espouser of a doctrine of inaction, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of inaction, and instructs his disciples with a doctrine of inaction:

“Are they speaking in line with what the Blessed One has said? Are they not slandering the Blessed One with what is unfactual? Are they answering in line with the Dhamma, so that no one whose thinking is in line with the Dhamma would have grounds for criticizing them? Lord, we do not want to slander the Blessed One.”

“Sīha, there is a line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is an espouser of a doctrine of inaction [or, ‘non-doing’], teaches the Dhamma for the sake of inaction, and trains his disciples with that.’

“Sīha, there is a line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is an espouser of a doctrine of action [or, ‘doing’], teaches the Dhamma for the sake of action, and trains his disciples with that.’

“Sīha, there is a line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is an espouser of a doctrine of annihilation, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of annihilation, and trains his disciples with that.’

“Sīha, there is a line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is disgusted, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of becoming disgusted, and trains his disciples with that.’

“Sīha, there is a line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is a restrainer, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of restraint, and trains his disciples with that.’

“Sīha, there is a line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is an ascetic [lit: one who burns], teaches the Dhamma for the sake of asceticism, and trains his disciples with that.’

“Sīha, there is a line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is incapable of attaining a womb, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of escaping the womb, and trains his disciples with that.’

“Sīha, there is a line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is assured, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of assurance, and trains his disciples with that.’

“And which is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is an espouser of a doctrine of inaction [or, ‘non-doing’], teaches the Dhamma for the sake of inaction, and trains his disciples with that?’

“Sīha, I declare[2] the non-doing of bodily misconduct, verbal misconduct, and mental misconduct. I declare the non-doing of many kinds of evil, unskillful things.

“This is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is an espouser of a doctrine of inaction, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of inaction, and trains his disciples with that.’

“And which is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is an espouser of a doctrine of action [or, ‘doing’], teaches the Dhamma for the sake of action, and trains his disciples with that?’

“Sīha, I declare the doing of good bodily conduct, good verbal conduct, and good mental conduct. I declare the doing of many kinds of skillful things.

“This is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is an espouser of a doctrine of action, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of action, and trains his disciples with that.’

“And which is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is an espouser of a doctrine of annihilation, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of annihilation, and trains his disciples with that?’

“Sīha, I declare the annihilation of passion, aversion, and delusion. I declare the annihilation of many kinds of evil, unskillful qualities.

“This is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is an espouser of a doctrine of annihilation, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of annihilation, and trains his disciples with that.’

“And which is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is disgusted, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of becoming disgusted, and trains his disciples with that?’

“Sīha, I am disgusted with bodily misconduct, verbal misconduct, and mental misconduct. I teach the Dhamma for the sake of becoming disgusted with engaging in many kinds of evil, unskillful qualities.

“This is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is disgusted, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of becoming disgusted, and trains his disciples with that.’

“And which is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is a restrainer, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of restraint, and trains his disciples with that?’

“Sīha, I teach the Dhamma for restraint of passion, aversion, and delusion. I teach the Dhamma for the restraint of many kinds of evil, unskillful qualities.

“This is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is a restrainer, teaches the Dhamma the sake of restraint, and trains his disciples with that.’

“And which is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is an ascetic, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of asceticism, and trains his disciples with that?’

“Sīha, I declare that evil, unskillful qualities should be burned: bodily misconduct, verbal misconduct, and mental misconduct. One for whom evil, unskillful qualities — which should be burned — have been abandoned, their root destroyed, like an uprooted palm tree, deprived of the conditions of existence, not destined for future arising — I call him an ascetic.

“For the Tathāgata, evil, unskillful qualities — which should be burned — have been abandoned, their root destroyed, like an uprooted palm tree, deprived of the conditions of existence, not destined for future arising.

“This is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is an ascetic, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of asceticism, and trains his disciples with that.’

“And which is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is incapable of attaining a womb, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of being incapable of attaining a womb, and trains his disciples with that?’

“Sīha, one for whom any future lying in the womb and production of renewed becoming have been abandoned, their root destroyed, like an uprooted palm tree, deprived of the conditions of existence, not destined for future arising — I call him one who is incapable of attaining a womb.

“For the Tathāgata, any future lying in the womb and production of renewed becoming have been abandoned, their root destroyed, like an uprooted palm tree, deprived of the conditions of existence, not destined for future arising.

“This is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is incapable of attaining a womb, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of modesty, and trains his disciples with that.’

“And which is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is assured, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of assurance, and trains his disciples with that?’

“Sīha, I am assured by the foremost assurance, I teach the Dhamma for the sake of assurance, and train my disciples with that. [AN 3.66]

“This is the line of reasoning by which one, speaking rightly, would say of me, ‘The contemplative Gotama is assured, teaches the Dhamma for the sake of assurance, and trains his disciples with that.’”

When that was said, General Sīha said to the Blessed One, “Magnificent, lord! Magnificent! 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 in the darkness 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. I go to the Blessed One for refuge, to the Dhamma, and to the Saṅgha of monks. May the Blessed One remember me as a lay follower who has gone to him for refuge, from this day forward, for life.”

“Make a careful consideration, Sīha. For well-known people such as yourself, careful consideration is good.”

“Lord, because of that statement of the Blessed One, I am satisfied and delighted in even greater measure: that the Blessed One says, ‘Make a careful consideration, Sīha. For well-known people such as yourself, careful consideration is good.’

“The wanderers of other sects, having gotten me as their disciple, would carry a banner all over Vesālī, (saying,) ‘General Sīha has become our disciple!’

“But then the Blessed One says to me, ‘Make a careful consideration, Sīha. For well-known people such as yourself, careful consideration is good.’

“A second time, I go to the Blessed One for refuge, to the Dhamma, and to the Saṅgha of monks. May the Blessed One remember me as a lay follower who has gone to him for refuge, from this day forward, for life.”

“Sīha, for a long time your family-residence has been like a watering hole for the Nigaṇṭhas, so you should (still) think that they should be given alms when they approach there.”

“Because of those words of the Blessed One, I am satisfied and delighted in even greater measure: that the Blessed One says, ‘Sīha, for a long time your family-residence has been like a watering hole for the Nigaṇṭhas, so you should (still) think that they should be given alms when they approach there.’

“I have heard that the contemplative Gotama says, ‘Gifts should only be given to me. Gifts shouldn’t be given to others.

“‘Gifts should only be given to my disciples. Gifts shouldn’t be given to the disciples of others.

“‘Only what is given to me is of great fruit. What is given to others isn’t of great fruit.

“‘Only what is given to my disciples is of great fruit. What is given to the disciples of others isn’t of great fruit.’

“But then the Blessed One encourages me in generosity toward the Nigaṇṭhas as well.

“However, lord, in this case we will know the right time for that.

“A third time, I go to the Blessed One for refuge, to the Dhamma, and to the Saṅgha of monks. May the Blessed One remember me as a lay follower who has gone to him for refuge, from this day forward, for life.”

Then the Blessed One gave General Sīha a graduated talk: talk on generosity, talk on virtue, talk on heaven, talk on the drawbacks, lowliness, and defilement of sensuality, and talk on the rewards of renunciation.

When the Blessed One knew that General Sīha’s mind was ready — malleable, free from hindrances, uplifted, and bright — he proclaimed the characteristic Dhamma talk of Buddhas: stress, origination, cessation, and path.

Just as a clean piece of cloth, free from grime, would properly take dye, in the same way the dustless, stainless eye of Dhamma arose for General Sīha as he was sitting right there — “Whatever is subject to origination is all subject to cessation.”

Then General Sīha, having seen the Dhamma, having attained the Dhamma, having known the Dhamma, having fathomed the Dhamma, having crossed over and beyond uncertainty, having no more perplexity, having gained fearlessness, having becoming independent of others with regard to the Teacher’s message, said to the Blessed One, “May the Blessed One acquiesce to my meal tomorrow, along with the Saṅgha of monks.”

The Blessed One acquiesced with silence.

Then General Sīha, understanding the Blessed One’s acquiescence, got up from his seat, bowed down to him, circumambulated him, keeping him to his right, and left.

Then General Sīha commanded a certain man, “I say, go find some butchered meat.” [ cf.Mv.VI.23.2]

Then General Sīha, at the end of the night — after having exquisite staple and non-staple food prepared — announced the time to the Blessed One: “It’s time, lord. The meal is ready.”

Then the Blessed One, early in the morning, adjusted his under robe and — carrying his bowl & outer robe — went to General Sīha’s residence. On arrival, he sat down on a seat laid out, along with the Saṅgha of monks.

Now at that time in Vesālī many Nigaṇṭhas were weeping and uplifting their arms, (going) from street to street, crossroads to crossroads, (saying,) “Having slaughtered a massive beast of burden, he has made a meal for the contemplative Gotama. The contemplative Gotama is knowingly consuming the meat which was made [killed] for his sake, at his instigation.”

Then a certain man want to General Sīha and, on arrival, whispered in his ear,

“Sir, you should know that in Vesālī, many of those Nigaṇṭhas are weeping and uplifting their arms, (going) from street to street, crossroads to crossroads, (saying,) ‘Having slaughtered a massive beast of burden, he has made a meal for the contemplative Gotama. The contemplative Gotama is knowingly consuming the meat which was made [killed] for his sake, at his instigation.”

“Enough, mister[1]. For a long time these venerable ones have wanted to discredit the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Saṅgha.

“But they haven’t been able to do anything to the Blessed One, slandering him with their lies, those dishonest, empty, liars!

“And we would not deprive a living being of life, even for the sake of survival.

Then General Sīha, with his own hands, served and satisfied the Saṅgha of monks, with the Buddha at its head, with exquisite staple and non-staple food. Then, when the Blessed One had finished his meal and withdrawn his hand from the bowl, General Sīha, taking a low seat, sat to one side.

The Blessed One, having instructed, urged, roused, & encouraged General Sīha, as he was sitting there, with Dhamma talk, got up from his seat and left.

Then the Blessed One, having given a Dhamma talk with regard to this cause, to this incident, addressed the monks:

“One should not knowingly consume meat made [killed] for the sake of a monk. Whoever should consume it: an offense of wrong doing. [BMC]

“I allow fish and meat that is pure in three respects: One has not seen, heard, or suspected (that it was killed on purpose for a monk).”