Book Reviews

The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha: A New Translation of the Majjhima Nikaya, translated by Bhikkhu Nanamoli and Bhikkhu Bodhi.

Hardcover: 1,420 pages. Publisher: Wisdom Publications (Boston) in association with the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies. ISBN: 0-86171-072-X (2nd ed. 2001).

Reviewed by Mark Stevenson

Reviewing this collection was something of a strange task. First, I have not read all of it - it is not that type of book. It is long, with over a thousand pages of suttas, and in addition, around 250 pages of supporting material. Yet length, of course, is not the main question. A collection of suttas is not something that is supposed to be polished- off in a couple of days or a couple of weeks.

Then there is the issue of proper respect for the word of the Buddha (who is here most often referred to as the 'Blessed One') and respect for the textual history of the suttas. Does it make sense to take a discourse of the Buddha given on a particular occasion, and say, 'Hey Buddha, I think you were wrong on this point here, let's have an argument about it,' or 'You could have made this point better'?

Does it make sense to take a set of texts that have served a religious community for over two millennia and ask that they be arranged in a different way, or that some sections be thrown out altogether? These are texts that in one way or another have stood the test of time, and stand outside the usual critical parameters.
Does that mean that we have to agree with everything they say? Are they Scriptures that we should follow lock, stock and barrel? Are they texts that stand as authoritative statements to support our own decisions or arguments? Are they accessible to busy post-industrial minds? And are they - as has been asked so often of the Christian Scriptures - relevant to the 21st century?

Part of the answer to these questions lies in the character of the suttas themselves, and in our own immediate experiences of Buddhism in Australia. On most occasions where Buddhism has been delivered in discourses to individuals or groups, there has been a two-way discussion of at least a minimal kind, and often much more. I think this is one of the great attractions of Buddhist practice and one that makes it more rewarding than many other forms of religious or spiritual life. After the Buddha speaks, the discussion is opened up for questions. The sermon is in many voices; it is not just a single authority.

So the term 'Discourses of the Buddha' in the title of this translation of the Majjhima Nikaya includes much more than a single voice. In some cases, the whole sutta is a series of questions and answers. In some, the Buddha takes a back seat, although he is always regarded as the final authority.

For example, The Shorter Series of Questions and Answers (44) is a sutta where a wealthy, lay follower of the Buddha, questions the bhikkhuni Dhammadinna on some of the finer points of identity (sakaya), the path and meditation practice. One of the Buddha's chief disciples - who attained arahantship shortly after her ordination - is a nun whose answers are brief, authoritative and beautiful. The wealthy, lay follower who has come to her for advice is her former husband. They address each other as 'friend' and 'lady.' As their discussion closes, the layman begins to approach the question of Nibbana (enlightenment). Saying only that such a state is the ground, culmination and end-point of the practice, and that his line of questioning passes beyond proper limits, Dhammadinna advises him to go to the Blessed One, himself. The Buddha's answer, however, is simply, 'I would have explained it to you in the same way.' He mentions nothing further about Nibbana as the sutta closes.

Famously, the Buddha taught in a manner that accorded with the needs and level of his audience. Reading the suttas we are made aware that he was not attempting to build an impressive, philosophical edifice, but is instead teaching what he has realised, in a manner that is aimed at the benefit and eventual true comfort of those that come to hear him. Questions that are asked outside the context of the concerns of practice are not usually answered. The layman is caught adding question to question, without reference to understanding or practice.

This returns us to the question of how to approach a collection of suttas. In some ways, the question is only answered individually, in the context of one's own practice. But an interest in becoming better acquainted with what the Buddha taught must also be healthy, within the above-mentioned limits.
Personally, I have found this collection remarkably varied and inspiring of faith. One cannot help but be surprised by the topics the Buddha was asked to speak on, whether it is a more or less private discussion with a disciple - lay or ordained - or whether it is an address to a larger gathering.

One sutta that may help us in the question of balance and approach is The Shorter Discourse on Ways of Undertaking Things (45). Here the Blessed One initiates the discussion with a group of ordained disciples, when he asks, 'What is the place of pleasure in Buddhist practice?' and 'What relationship does pleasure have to a meaningful life?' In this sutta, the Buddha speaks of four ways of 'undertaking things.' Those that are pleasant now, and ripen as pain; those that are painful now, and ripen as pain; those that are painful now, and ripen as pleasure; and those that are pleasurable now, and also ripen as pleasure. Clearly we are encouraged to give attention to the latter two courses. The example of pleasure that turns to pain is that of recluses and Brahmins who recklessly divert themselves with, 'women wanderers who wear their hair bound in a topknot' and who reassure each other that nothing so pleasurable could be dangerous. Gulping down sensual pleasures (kama), however, will not ripen as meaningful pleasure (sukha).

The translation of a sutta collection must have to overcome all kinds of cultural and linguistic gulfs and crevices. One example appears in this sutta on 'The way of undertaking things.' Inevitably temptation and sensuality are cast as female, which is not a problem of translation, but when I read, 'Pleasant is the touch of this woman wanderer's tender soft downy arm,' I wondered why there was a reference to 'arm.' What was the original Pali word? Could it also mean 'breast' or 'embrace?' Had monastic modesty caused a moderation in the translation, creating what seems in English a clumsy and less sensuous image?

Turning over the page I found the answer. The Buddha creates a wonderful simile where a sala tree is embraced by the 'tender soft downy tendril' of a creeper, pleasing at first, but as the tree is overrun, it suffers 'painful, racking, piercing feelings.' I do not know if the original Pali word for 'arm' has those other, more sensual, connotations, but the translators had to come up with something that matched the image in the simile: arm and tendril work well as parallel images. It may be that in Pali the word fits all of the connotations simultaneously, while the translators do not always have an equivalent that will get all the meanings across.

Just as suttas themselves reveal multiple voices and participants, the present translation of the Majjhima Nikaya has passed through a number of hands. First discovered in fairly rough form among the personal effects of the late English scholar-monk Bhikkhu Nanamoli (1905-1960), some ninety of the 152 suttas were reworked by Bhikkhu Khantipalo (Laurence Mills) and published in Thailand as A Treasury of the Buddha's Words. The book, now beautifully translated by Bhikkhu Bodhi, includes all the suttas of the collection, and in the preface we are given the rather complex story of the way the translation reached its current form (a project he continues to check and improve).

There is also a wealth of accompanying material. The introduction informs the reader of the characteristics and arrangement of the Majjhima Nikaya as a collection. Many readers will also find its presentation of the fundamentals of the Buddha's teaching, as well as key terms found in the discourses, very helpful in finding an orientation to the suttas themselves. Apparently, having made a number of well-received and successful translations of other key texts from the Pali canon, Bhikkhu Nanamoli had begun to introduce new translations for some of the key terms. The more important of these, now replaced with terminology used in his earlier translation of The Path of Purification, are listed at the end of the introduction.

The introduction is followed by a fifteen-page summary of the suttas, which are numbered for convenient reference and location. This is very helpful in allowing readers to browse quickly in order to find discourses on subjects and topics of interest (as is the Index of Subjects at the rear of the book). As mentioned above, the variety of topics is remarkable, extending from the preservation of the teachings to dealing with evil wishes, from the rejection of all doctrines of self to recognising true nourishment, from suicide to visits to the ruler of Gods.

In the text proper, the page numbers of the source manuscript are inserted parenthetically, and there are detailed (but unobtrusive) annotations, treating technical terms and factual background (e.g. persons and places). There are also a Pali-English Glossary, Index of Proper Names, and an Index of Similes.

There are still some minor mishaps, inevitable in a work of this size, like hyphens disappearing in some compound words (p. 403); but this is a meticulously produced translation; measured in tone, rich in meaning. Every effort has been made to preserve the textual authenticity, yet at the same time the translators and the publishers have made sure that it will be accessible to English speaking Buddhists of the 21st century. It is certain to bring much meaningful pleasure to many.