26 Apr Where Is Your “I”…?
The Nāgasena and Chariot story, found in the Milindapañha, is a Buddhist parable used to illustrate the concept of anatta (no-self), the impermanence of the self. Nāgasena, a Buddhist monk, uses the example of a chariot to demonstrate that it is not a separate entity but rather a collection of parts - just as the self is not a permanent, unchanging entity but a combination of changing elements. There is no permanent 'self' to be found within these changing elements.
The well-revered monk Nāgasena was sent for by the Emperor Milinda, to grace his court.
The messenger went to Nāgasena and said, “Monk Nāgasena, the Emperor wishes to see you. I have come to invite you.”
Nāgasena replied, “If you want me to, I will come. But, pardon me; there is no person like Nāgasena here. It’s only a name, only a temporary label.”
The courtier reported to the Emperor that Nāgasena was a very strange man: he had replied he would come, but had said that there was no such man as Nāgasena there. The Emperor was struck with wonder.
Nāgasena arrived on time, in the royal chariot, and the Emperor received him at the gate. “Monk Nāgasena, I welcome you!” He exclaimed.
Hearing this, the monk started to laugh. “I accept your hospitality as Nāgasena, but please remember there is nobody named Nāgasena.”
The Emperor said, “You are talking in riddles. If you are not you, then who is accepting my invitation? Who is replying to this welcome?”
Nāgasena looked behind him and asked, “Isn’t this the chariot I came in? Please remove the horses.” And it was done.
Pointing to the horses, the monk asked, “Is this the chariot?”
The Emperor said, “How can the horses be called a chariot?”
At a sign from the monk, the horses were led away, and the poles used to tie the horses were removed.“Are these poles your chariot?”
The monk went on, ordering the removal of the parts one by one, and to each inquiry the Emperor had to reply, “This is not the chariot.”
At last nothing remained. The monk asked, “Where is your chariot now? To each and every item taken away you have said, ‘This is not the chariot.’ Then tell me, where is your chariot now?”
The revelation startled the Emperor.
The monk continued. “Do you follow me? The chariot was an assembly; it was a collection of certain things. The chariot had no being of its own. Please look inside. Where is your ego? Where is your ‘I’?”
“You will not find that “I” anywhere. It is a manifestation of many energies; that is all. Think about each and every limb, about each and every aspect of yourself, and then eliminate everything, one by one. Ultimately, nothing will remain. Love is born of that nothingness. That nothingness is God.”
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