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48 EASTERN HORIZON | TEACHINGS

HOW SHOULD BUDDHISTS

RELATE TO UNSEEN BEINGS?

In the traditional Buddhist view, the world is defined Elaborate descriptions of torment in various hells can
not only by what we can perceive with our physical be found in Devadūta Sutta (MN 130). Life-spans in
senses or think about rationally. It is equally made up various hells are mentioned in Kokālika Sutta (SN 6.10,
of what cannot be seen, yet available through intuition, AN 10.89, KN 5.36 / Sn 3.10).
dreams, visions, divination, and the like. Theravāda
scriptures mention 31 planes of existence where living As for heavenly beings, there are lots found in early
beings are found, while Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna canonical literature. In Mahāsamaya Sutta (DN 20), the
mention six realms. In all these different realms, only Buddha gives a long list of powerful heavenly beings
the animal world is known to humans on a physical with brief descriptions of some of them. In Āṭānāṭiya
level; the rest are actually unseen living beings. We Sutta (DN 32), the deva king Vessavana urges the
ask our teachers from the three Buddhist traditions – Buddha to encourage his followers, for their own
Venerable Aggacitta, Venerable Min Wei, and Venerable protection, to memorise and regularly recite verses
Geshe Dadul Namgyal - to explain about these unseen describing the glory of the Four Great Kings and their
beings and how as Buddhists should we relate to them kingdoms and their subservience to the Buddha.
in our everyday lives. Saṁyutta Nikāya includes several chapters about
5
celestial beings. The time difference between the
Was the Buddha explicit in explaining the existence human realm and those of various celestial realms and
of non-human beings such as ghosts, spirits, hell- their respective life-spans can be found in several suttas
beings, and heavenly beings in the scriptures? in Aṅguttara Nikāya; so too the life-spans of various
6
7
Brahma realms. Spread sporadically among the first
Aggacitta: Details of suffering spirits are rarely four Nikāyas are also found incidental references to
1
mentioned in the early Pāli canonical literature, except celestial realms and beings.
once when Āyasmā Mahāmoggallāna perceived 21
beings tormented in various ways as he was descending There are elaborate versified descriptions of happy
2
Vulture Peak with Āyasmā Lakkhaṇa. His observation deities in Vimānavatthu (Stories of Heavenly Mansions),
was confirmed by the Buddha. a late text of Khuddaka Nikāya. Some modern scholars
opine that it was added about 150 years after the
However, there are elaborate descriptions of suffering Buddha’s demise. 8
spirits in later canonical literature, particularly in
3
Petavatthu (Stories of Ghosts) of Khuddaka Nikāya, 2 See Lakkhaṇasaṁyutta (SN 19.1-21).
reckoned by some modern scholars to have been 3 The usage of peta to mean ghost / woeful spirit in this text betrays
4
composed around 300 BCE at the earliest, i.e. some 250 a later development because in the early suttas, particularly in the
first four Nikāyas, peta is consistently used to denote the deceased or
years after the Buddha’s demise. These descriptions are
departed one whose destiny is undetermined.
all in verses arranged as conversations between such 4 Langer, Rita (2007), Buddhist Rituals of Death and Rebirth:
beings and, purportedly, the Buddha or his disciples. Contemporary Sri Lankan Practice and Its Origins, Abingdon:
Routledge.
5 E.g. 1. Devatā-, 2. Devaputta-, 4. Māra-, 6. Brahma-, 10. Yakkha-,
1 “The Early Buddhist material in the Pali canon mainly consists of 11. Sakka-, 29. Nāga-, 30. Supaṇṇa-, 31. Gandhabba-, 32. Valāhaka-
the first four Pali Nikāyas, the Patimokkha and other Vinaya material saṁyutta.
as well as some parts of the Khuddaka Nikāya (mainly Sutta Nipata, 6 Uposatha Sutta (AN 3.71), Vitthatūposatha Sutta (AN 8.42), Visākhā
Itivuttaka, Dhammapada, Therigatha, Theragatha, and the Udana).[12] Sutta (AN 8.43), Bojjha Sutta (AN 8.45).
[13][14]” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_Buddhist_Texts 7 Paṭhamanānākaraṇa Sutta (AN 4.123), Paṭhamamettā Sutta (AN
4.125), Āneñja Sutta (AN 3.117).
8 Bimala Churn Law (1933), “Chronology of the Pali Canon” in A