Hi,
Does anyone know the sutta where the Buddha employed the simile of a general and a wise minister to describe the role of samatha and vipassana? The young prince refused to heed the wise minister, so the king ordered his fierce minister to subdue the prince. Only then, would the young prince listen to the minister.
Or something similar to that.
Thank you in advance.
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Ven. @Dhammanando, do you know where this is? It sounds like a Vsm thing.
From Ajahn Brahm’s Mindfulness Bliss and Beyond
To emphasize that jhāna is essential for deep insight, the Buddha taught the simile
of the two messengers. The main elements of the simile are found in the Kiṃsuka
Sutta (SN 35.245) and told in detail in the commentary. Here, I will paraphrase
the simile.
An emperor was preparing his son in the skills of governing. To give the young
prince direct experience, he appointed him viceroy over a small state just within
the borders of the empire. He granted his son all the powers of a king and sent
him off to learn how to rule.
Some months later, a delegation of leading citizens from that state came to
complain to the emperor that the prince was failing to fulfill his duties. The prince
was partying every day, which was understandable, perhaps, since it was the
young man’s first time away from home.
The emperor summoned his wisest minister and asked him to go to that state
and instruct his son on the responsibilities of a ruler. But the wise minister foresaw
that the arrogant young prince would not listen to him if he went alone. So he
asked that the most powerful of the generals in the imperial army accompany him
on the mission. The emperor concurred, and thus the two messengers—the wise
minister and the powerful general—went together to instruct the young prince.
When they eventually arrived at the prince’s palace, they could hear the
merriment of a party in full swing inside the living quarters, but they were
prevented from entering by the prince’s five friends. When the wise minister
announced who they were and who had sent them, the prince’s five companions
simply laughed in ridicule and told them to go back from where they had
come.“This is our prince’s territory,” they asserted, “and he will do as he likes
here!”
The wise minister was unable to talk any sense into the prince’s five friends, so
the powerful general took out his sword and approached the five friends. In a
moment, the prince’s five companions completely disappeared from sight.
Then the pair entered unhindered into the palace, stopped the party, and
stood before the prince. Once again, the wise minister announced who they
were and
where they were from. The prince, like his five friends, told the pair to get lost,
since this was his principality and he would do as he liked. He stubbornly refused
to listen to his father’s wisest counselor. So the powerful general took out his
sword once again, grabbed the prince by his hair, and held the sharp edge of the
sword against the throat of the prince.
“Listen, prince, to your father’s minister!” ordered the general.
“I’m listening! I’m listening!” squeaked the prince, feeling the blade against
his skin.
Thus it was, with the powerful general holding the prince absolutely still, with
the prince giving his fullest attention, and with the emperor’s wise minister
instructing the young man, that the prince understood all about the duties and
rewards of a ruler. From that time on, he was a changed man. He ruled his state
wisely, and in due course the whole empire, to the happiness of all.
In this simile, the emperor was the Buddha and the prince one of his disciples.
The wise minister stands for insight and the powerful general stands for jhāna. It is
jhāna, not insight that dispels the five hindrances, represented by the prince’s five
friends. And it is the upacāra samādhi following jhāna that holds the mind still
long enough for insight to occur and instruct the mind in Dhamma.
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Ah, great.
Here is Bhante Bodhi’s note (page 1428, Connected Discourses). Naturally a bit less embellished.
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Thank you, @sammasamadhi and @Snowbird for the answer and the note.
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