The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha - Bhikkhu Nanamoli [30]
43. Mahāvedalla Sutta: The Greater Series of Questions and Answers.
44. Cụ̄avedalla Sutta: The Shorter Series of Questions and Answers. These two discourses take the form of discussions on various subtle points of Dhamma, the former between the venerable Mahā Koṭṭhita and the venerable Sāriputta, the latter between the bhikkhunī Dhammadinnā and the lay follower Visākha.
45. Cụ̄adhammasamādāna Sutta: The Shorter Discourse on Ways of Undertaking Things.
46. Mahādhammasamādāna Sutta: The Greater Discourse on Ways of Undertaking Things. The Buddha explains, differently in each of the two suttas, four ways of undertaking things, distinguished according to whether they are painful or pleasant now and whether they ripen in pain or pleasure in the future.
47. Vīmaṁsaka Sutta: The Inquirer. The Buddha invites the bhikkhus to make a thorough investigation of himself in order to find out whether or not he can be accepted as fully enlightened.
48. Kosambiya Sutta: The Kosambians. During the period when the bhikkhus at Kosambi are divided by a dispute, the Buddha teaches them the six qualities that create love and respect and conduce to unity. He then explains seven extraordinary knowledges possessed by a noble disciple who has realised the fruit of stream-entry.
49. Brahmanimantanika Sutta: The Invitation of a Brahmā. Baka the Brahmā, a high divinity, adopts the pernicious view that the heavenly world over which he presides is eternal and that there is no higher state beyond. The Buddha visits him to dissuade him from that wrong view and engages him in a contest of Olympian dimensions.
50. Māratajjanīya Sutta: The Rebuke to Māra. Māra attempts to harass the venerable Mahā Moggallāna, but the latter relates a story of the distant past to warn Māra of the dangers in creating trouble for a disciple of the Buddha.
PART TWO: THE MIDDLE FIFTY DISCOURSES
51 Kandaraka Sutta: To Kandaraka. The Buddha discusses four kinds of persons found in the world—the one who torments himself, the one who torments others, the one who torments both himself and others, and the one who torments neither but lives a truly holy life.
52 Aṭṭhakanāgara Sutta: The Man from Aṭṭhakanagara. The venerable Ānanda teaches eleven “doors to the Deathless” by which a bhikkhu can attain the supreme security from bondage.
53 Sekha Sutta: The Disciple in Higher Training. At the Buddha’s request the venerable Ānanda gives a discourse on the practices undertaken by a disciple in higher training.
54 Potaliya Sutta: To Potaliya. The Buddha teaches a presumptuous interlocutor the meaning of “the cutting off of affairs” in his discipline. The sutta offers a striking series of similes on the dangers in sensual pleasures.
55 Jīvaka Sutta: To Jīvaka. The Buddha explains the regulations he has laid down concerning meat-eating and defends his disciples against unjust accusations.
56 Upāli Sutta: To Upāli. The wealthy and influential householder Upāli, a prominent supporter of the Jains, proposes to go to the Buddha and refute his doctrine. Instead, he finds himself converted by the Buddha’s “converting magic.”
57 Kukkuravatika Sutta: The Dog-Duty Ascetic. The Buddha meets two ascetics, one who imitates the behaviour of a dog, the other who imitates the behaviour of an ox. He reveals to them the futility of their practices and gives them a discourse on kamma and its fruit.
58 Abhayarājakumāra Sutta: To Prince Abhaya. The Jain leader, Nigaṇṭha Nātaputta, teaches Prince Abhaya a “twohorned question” with which he can refute the Buddha’s doctrine. The Buddha escapes the dilemma and explains what kind of speech he would and would not utter.
59 Bahuvedanīya Sutta: The Many Kinds of Feeling. After resolving a disagreement about the classification of feelings, the Buddha enumerates the different kinds of pleasure