Dialogues of the Buddha (Part II)

The volume opens with preliminary title pages and a dedication to the memory of F. Max Müller, who founded the Sacred Books of the Buddhists series. The contents show that this part begins with the Mahāpadāna Suttanta, whose introduction discusses Buddhas, Bodhisattas, and Arahants, followed by the Mahā Nidāna Suttanta on natural causation and the Mahā Parinibbāna Suttanta on the final passing of the Buddha. The later discourses expand the doctrinal and narrative range of the collection: Mahā Sudassana compares parallel versions of the same story; Jana-vasabha and Mahā-Govinda include Buddhist irony and mythic narrative; Mahā-Samaya offers a view of the evolution of gods; Sakka-Pañha presents the conversion of a god; Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna discusses the foundations of mindfulness; and Pāyāsi deals with post-Buddha teaching and the doctrine of generosity.