Wisdom Overcomes Power: Nandisena and Sariputta’s Triumph

Long ago, the Bodhisatta was born as an ascetic in the borderlands of India. At that time, King Kalinga, a powerful and war-hungry ruler, sought to stir conflict between his kingdom and others. He had four beautiful daughters, and hoping to spark a war, he sent them on a journey to find a king willing to fight for them. The daughters traveled from kingdom to kingdom, but no king dared let them into their cities. They feared the risk of angering King Kalinga and his mighty army.

Finally, the daughters arrived in the kingdom of King Assaka. Like the others before him, King Assaka shut the gates of his city to the travelers. But his wise advisor, Nandisena, counseled him differently. “To maintain the pride and honor of your kingdom,” Nandisena said, “we must not show weakness. We should fight, for I am sure we will be victorious.” Despite the looming threat, Nandisena’s confidence persuaded King Assaka, who took the four daughters as wives.

Upon hearing this news, King Kalinga, enraged at the affront, quickly assembled his army. The battle was set for two days later, on the frontier between their kingdoms. In the border region, the Bodhisatta was living in his hermitage. Hearing of the impending war, Nandisena visited the Bodhisatta, asking him who would win. The Bodhisatta, though wise, replied that he could not know, but assured Nandisena that the god Indra, the king of the gods, would soon come, and he would know the answer.

When Indra arrived, the Bodhisatta asked him about the battle. Indra explained that King Kalinga, who was protected by a white bull guardian deity, would be victorious over King Assaka, whose guardian was a black bull. This news worried King Assaka, but Nandisena, ever confident, believed his strategy would still lead to success.

On the day of the battle, Nandisena devised a daring plan to inspire bravery in his soldiers. He took them to a high cliff and ordered them to leap off the edge, as a test of their courage. The soldiers, without hesitation, threw themselves over the cliff, but Nandisena stopped them at the last moment, revealing that it had only been a test. With their confidence bolstered, Nandisena led them to the battlefield.

As the two armies faced each other, the gods’ guardian deities, visible only to their respective kings, stood before them. Nandisena, confident in his plan, instructed King Assaka to dismount his horse and strike the white bull with a spear. As the soldiers of Assaka’s army rushed to join the attack, the white bull guardian was slain, and King Kalinga, in a panic, fled in fear, cursing the Bodhisatta, whom he mistakenly believed had tricked him.

Nandisena sent a message to King Kalinga, telling him that if he wished to avoid further defeat, he should send the bride-price for his daughters. King Kalinga, realizing his loss, quickly agreed, and peace was restored between the two kingdoms.

In the Lifetime of the Buddha

In the Buddha’s time, there was a family that raised their five children—four daughters and one son—to be expert debaters, trained in a thousand topics. The parents instructed the daughters that if they ever lost a debate to a layman, they should marry him, and if they lost to a holy man, they should become his disciple.

The daughters traveled widely, challenging anyone to debate with them. When they reached the town near where the Buddha lived, they set up a challenge by placing a branch from a rose apple tree in a pile of dust by the city gate. They told the local boys that whoever wished to debate should crush the branch underfoot.

Sariputta, one of the Buddha’s chief disciples and a wise teacher, was passing by when he saw the challenge. He instructed the boys to crush the branch for him, and soon the daughters were summoned to face him. A large crowd gathered as the women presented their one thousand topics, each expecting to outwit him. But Sariputta answered every one, leaving the daughters speechless.

Then, with great wisdom, Sariputta stumped the daughters with a question of his own. Realizing their defeat, the four daughters, filled with respect for his wisdom, immediately decided to become his disciples. They ordained as monks that very day and soon attained arahantship, reaching the pinnacle of spiritual insight.

Later, when the Buddha heard his disciples discussing how Sariputta had converted the women, he shared the story of their previous lives. He explained that in their past births, the four daughters had been King Kalinga’s daughters, and Sariputta had also been the wise Nandisena, who had guided them to victory in that long-ago battle.

Moral: Wisdom is more powerful than strength. While King Kalinga relied on brute force to try to win his battles, Nandisena’s cleverness and Sariputta’s wisdom prevailed. In life, those who seek truth and cultivate wisdom will always triumph over those who rely solely on power.