‘Venerable Nāgasena, this too was said by the Blessed One:

“A Brahman am I, O brethren, devoted to self-sacrifice.”

‘But on the other hand he declared:

“A king am I, Sela.”

‘If, Nāgasena, the Blessed One were a Brahman, then he must have spoken falsely when he said he was a king. But if he were a king, then he must have spoken falsely when he said he was a Brahman. He must have been either a Khattiya or a Brahman. For he could not have belonged, in the same birth, to two castes. This too is a double-edged problem, now put to you, which you have to solve.’

‘Both the quotations you have made, O king, are correct. But there is good reason why the Tathāgata, should have been both Brahman and also king.’

‘Pray what, Nāgasena, can be that reason?’

‘Because all evil qualities, not productive of merit, are in the Tathāgata suppressed, abandoned, put away, dispelled, rooted out, destroyed, come to an end, gone out, and ceased, therefore is it that the Tathāgata is called a Brahman. A Brahman, O king, means one who has passed beyond hesitation, perplexity, and doubt. And it is because the Tathāgata has done all this, that therefore also is he called a Brahman. A Brahman, O king, means one who has escaped from every sort and class of becoming, who is entirely set free from evil and from stain, who is dependent on himself, and it is because the Tathāgata is all of these things, that therefore also is he called a Brahman. A Brahman, O king, means one who cultivates within himself the highest and best of the excellent and supreme conditions of heart. And it is because the Tathāgata does this that therefore also is he called a Brahman. A Brahman, O king, means one who carries on the line of the tradition of the ancient instructions concerning the learning and the teaching of sacred writ, concerning the acceptance of gifts, concerning subjugation of the senses, self-control in conduct, and performance of duty. And it is because the Tathāgata carries on the line of the tradition of the ancient rules enjoined by the Conquerors regarding all these things, that therefore also is he called a Brahman. A Brahman, O king, means one who enjoys the supreme bliss of the ecstatic meditation. And it is because the Tathāgata does this, that therefore also is he called a Brahman. A Brahman, O king, means one who knows the course and revolution of births in all forms of existence. And it is because the Tathāgata knows this, that therefore also is he called a Brahman. The appellation “Brahman,” O king, was not given to the Blessed One by his mother, nor his father, not by his brother, nor his sister, not by his friends, nor his relations, not by spiritual teachers of any sort, no, not by the gods. It is by reason of their emancipation that this is the name of the Buddhas, the Blessed Ones. From the moment when, under the Tree of Wisdom, they had overthrown the armies of the Evil One, had suppressed in themselves all evil qualities not productive of merit, and had attained to the knowledge of the Omniscient Ones, it was from the acquisition of this insight, the appearance in them of this enlightenment, that this true designation became applied to them—the name of “Brahman.” And that is the reason why the Tathāgata is called a Brahman.’

‘Then what is the reason why the Tathāgata is called a king?’

‘A king means, O king, one who rules and guides the world, and the Blessed One rules in righteousness over the ten thousand world systems, he guides the whole world with its men and gods, its evil spirits and its good ones, and its teachers, whether Samaṇas or Brahmans. That is the reason why the Tathāgata is called a king. A king means, O king, one who, exalted above all ordinary men, making those related to him rejoice, and those opposed to him mourn; raises aloft the Sunshade of Sovranty, of pure and stainless white, with its handle of firm hard wood, and its many hundred ribs—the symbol of his mighty fame and glory. And the Blessed One, O king, making the army of the Evil One, those given over to false doctrine, mourn; filling the hearts of those, among gods or men, devoted to sound doctrine, with joy; raises aloft over the ten thousand world systems the Sunshade of his Sovranty, pure and stainless in the whiteness of emancipation, with its hundreds of ribs fashioned out of the highest wisdom, with its handle firm and strong through long suffering—the symbol of his mighty fame and glory. That too is the reason why the Tathāgata is called a king. A king is one who is held worthy of homage by the multitudes who approach him, who come into his presence. And the Blessed One, O king, is held worthy of homage by multitudes of beings, whether gods or men, who approach him, who come into his presence. That too is the reason why the Tathāgata is called a king. A king is one who, when pleased with a strenuous servant, gladdens his heart by bestowing upon him, at his own good pleasure, any costly gift the officer may choose. And the Blessed One, O king, when pleased with any one who has been strenuous in word or deed or thought, gladdens his heart by bestowing upon him, as a selected gift, the supreme deliverance from all sorrow—far beyond all material gifts. That too is the reason why the Tathāgata is called a king. A king is one who censures, fines, or executes the man who transgresses The royal commands. And so, O king, the man who, in shamelessness or discontent, transgresses the command of the Blessed One, as laid down in the rules of his Order, that man, despised, disgraced and censured, is expelled from the religion of the Conqueror. That too is the reason why the Tathāgata is called a king. A king is one who in his turn proclaiming laws and regulations according to the instructions laid down in succession by the righteous kings of ancient times, and thus carrying on his rule in righteousness, becomes beloved and dear to the people, desired in the world, and by the force of his righteousness establishes his dynasty long in the land. And the Blessed One, O king, proclaiming in his turn laws and regulations according to the instructions laid down in succession by the Buddhas of ancient times, and thus in righteousness being teacher of the world—he too is beloved and dear to both gods and men, desired by them, and by the force of his righteousness he makes his religion last long in the land. That too is the reason why the Tathāgata is called a king.

‘Thus, O king, so many are the reasons why the Tathāgata should be both Brahman and also king, that the ablest of the brethren could scarcely in an aeon enumerate them all. Why then should I dilate any further? Accept what I have said only in brief.’

‘Very good, Nāgasena! That is so, and I accept it as you say.’

Here ends the dilemma as to the Buddha belonging to two castes.