Buddhism > Buddhist Stories > The Sixteen Dreams of King Pasenadi Kosol
In Buddhist literature, the 16 Dreams of King Pasenadi is famous. Some 2,500 years ago, the Enlightened One the Gautama Buddha, clearly explained the 16 Dreams seen by King Pasenadi of Kosala, the titular head of Kingdom in Eastern India.
King Pasenadi, was the son of King Maha Kosala. He was a just ruler respected by his subjects and was a supporter of Lord Buddha. Being of the same age, they knew each other when both were quite young. The King was most respectful to the Buddha and used to seek His counsel on various issues both personal as well as on affairs of state. One night, the King had a series of 16 dreams and woke up in great fright as to what these dreams might portend. Amazingly, the King could remember the details of the 16 dreams after awakening.
Fearing a great tragedy that the dream may have fore- told, the King summoned his advisors and asked for their advice. The crafty Brahmins realizing that here is an opportunity for them to make a ‘killing’, predicted – after listening to the King’s dreams – that one of three calamities is about to happen: harm to the kingdom, danger to his life or his wealth.
“Is there a remedy?” Asked the King.
“It is a very difficult task my Lord, but we shall try,” they all said collectively, hoping to create further fear in the mind of the King.
“My life is in your hands, make haste” pleaded the King.
The crafty and avaricious Brahmins informed the King that a large sum of money is necessary and a host of animals and birds would have to be sacrificed to overcome the imminent dangers. The King readily agreed.
Fortunately, his chief queen, Queen Mallika, a beautiful and a noble lady, enquired from the King what these preparations were in aid of. When the King explained his quandary, the wise queen suggested that they should first consult the Buddha before taking any further steps. Finally the King and his queen presented the problem to the Samma Sambuddha. Then the Buddha requested the King to relate his dreams.
The 16 Dreams
THE FIRST DREAM
The King said: “In my dream, I saw four black bulls coming to the Royal courtyard from the four cardinal points with the avowed intention of fighting and a great multitude of people flocked to watch. But the bulls only made a show of fighting, they roared and bellowed but finally went off without fighting.”
The Buddha gave the King the following interpretation:
“Sire, that dream has no bearing to the present time. However, in future times when kings are unrighteous, in days when people are unrighteous, when the world is perverted, when good is waning and evil is waxing, there shall fall no rain from the heavens. Crops shall wither and famine will affect the land. Clouds will gather as if for rains, thunder shall bellow, lightning will flash but even as the bulls in your dream that fought not, so shall the clouds flee without raining. But no harm shall come to you. What the Brahmins told you was merely to get themselves a livelihood.”
THE SECOND DREAM
“Sir” said the King, “ in my second dream I saw many tiny trees and shrubs bursting through the soil and when they had grown scarce a span or two high, they flowered and bore fruits!
“Sire” the Buddha replied, this dream too would have its fulfillment in days when the world has fallen into decay and when men are short-lived. In time to come, passions shall be strong. Quite young girls will go and live with men and bear children. The flowers typify their issues, the fruits their offspring.
“But this will not happen until the distant future when the world is declining. What was your third dream, oh king?”
THE THIRD DREAM
The King said:
“My Lord, I saw cows suckling the milk of calves which they had borne that selfsame day.”
“What will come of it?”
The Buddha replied:
“Here again you have nothing to worry because it will not happen during your reign. This dream would have its fulfillment when respect shall cease to be paid to elders. During that era, there will be no reverence shown to parents or parents-in-law. The young will administer the family estate themselves and deprive the elders of their ownership and only give them food and clothing. Then the old folks shall become destitute and dependent and would have to exist on the favour of their children, like big cows suckling calves a day old.”
“But clearly it is not like that today, oh king, so you have nothing to fear. Now tell me your fourth dream.”
THE FOURTH DREAM
The King said:
“I saw men unyoking a team of draught-oxen, sturdy and strong, and instead setting young steers to draw the load: and the steers proving unequal to the task laid on them, refused and stood stock still, so that the wagons did not move.
What shall come of it?”
The Buddha replied:
“ Here again this will not have any bearing on you. During the days of unrighteous rulers, wise men and aged councillors skilled in the precedent, fertile in expedience and able to get through business, learned in the laws of the country, will not be honoured nor appointed to courts of law. Those appointed officials, ignorant alike of statecraft and of practical knowledge shall not be able to bear the burden of their honours or to govern, and because of their incompetence would not be able to discharge their duties. Whereupon the aged and wise lords shall keep in mind having been passed over earlier and shall decline to assist saying: “It is of no business of ours, we are outsiders. You were appointed, now you carry on.” Hence they shall stand aside and ruination will result just as the yoke that was laid on the young steers that were not strong enough to carry the wagons.
“Again you have nothing to fear, oh king, from those far-off times when all the nations will be poorly run by the young and foolish.
What was your fifth dream?”
THE FIFTH DREAM
The King said
“Sir, I saw a horse with a mouth on either side, to which fodder was given on both sides and it ate with both mouths. It was eating voraciously.
This was my fifth dream. What shall come of it?”
The Buddha replied:
“This dream too shall have its fulfilment only in the future, in the days of unrighteous and foolish rulers who shall appoint unrighteous and covetous men to be judges. These base ones, fools, despising the good, would take bribes from both sides as they sit in the seat of judgement and shall be filled with this two-fold corruption even as the horse that ate fodder with both mouths at once.”
“Now tell me your sixth dream.”
THE SIXTH DREAM
The King then related his sixth dream:
“Sir, I saw people holding out a golden bowl worth a hundred thousand pieces of kahavanu and begging an old jackal to urinate therein. And I saw the beast doing so. What shall come of it?”
The Buddha replied:
“This dream too shall come true in the future, in times of unrighteous rulers. Such rulers though being descendants of a race of nobility yet mistrusting the scions of their ancestors shall not honour them, instead appoint and exalt the lowborn and thus the lowborn shall be raised to lordship. As a result, the nobility by their need to live by dependence on such upstarts, shall offer them their daughters in marriage. And the union of the noble maidens with the low-born shall be like unto the urinating of the old jackal into the golden bowl.”
THE SEVENTH DREAM
The King related:
“Sir, a man was weaving rope and as he wove he threw it down at his feet. Under his bench lay a hungry she-jackal that kept eating the rope as he wove, but without the man knowing it. What shall come of it?”
The Buddha said:
“This dream has no bearing during your reign but will prevail when the rulers of a country are unrighteous. In those days, women shall lust for men, strong drink, finery and gadding about. In their wickedness and abandonment to vices these women would indulge in strong drink with their paramours, flaunt in garlands and perfumes, and be heedless of their household duties. They shall keep watching for their paramours and even pound the very seed corn that should be sown on the morrow so as to provide good cheer. In all these ways shall they plunder the store filled by the hard work of their husbands, just as the hungry jackal under the bench ate up the rope made by the rope-maker as he wove it.”
“But this will not happen in your time, oh king. What was yourseventh dream?”
THE EIGHTH DREAM
“I saw at a palace gate” said The King, “a big pitcher full to the brim standing alongside a number of empty ones. From all directions there kept coming a constant stream of people carrying water and pouring it into the pitcher that was full and ignoring the empty ones. Naturally, the water from the full pitcher kept overflowing and ran away but still none bothered to even look at the empty ones.”
The Buddha said:
“Here again Sire, this dream would not affect you but will take effect when the rulers of a country are unrighteous. During such times, rulers would be poor and have less money in their treasury, they (the rulers) will get the people to work for them to fill the coffers in their treasury. The ordinary folk will toil for the ruler neglecting their own sustenance. And as they work for the welfare of the rulers, the king’s treasury would be filled to overflowing
– just as the pitcher in your dream – but their own barns would be empty, just as the pitchers that were neglected and empty.
“But as you can see, oh king, these times are not upon us. Tell me about your eighth dream.”
THE NINTH DREAM
The King then related his ninth dream: “Sir, I saw a deep pool with shelving banks all round and overgrown with five kinds of lotuses. From every side two-footed and four-footed creatures flocked to drink of its waters. The water in the middle was muddy, but the water was clear and sparkling at the margin where the various creatures went down into the pool.”
The Buddha explained this dream as follows:
“This dream too shall bear fruit in the future whenever the rulers are found wanting and rule their countries according to their whims and fancies without any regard to fair play and justice. These rulers shall hunger after riches and wax fat on bribes and shall not show any mercy, love or compassion to the people. Due to insufferable taxes and the oppressive conditions in the country, people shall flee from the villages and towns and take refuge upon the borders of their realm. The heart of the land will then become a wilderness while the borders will teem with people even as the water was muddy in the middle of the pool and clear on the edges.”
“But obviously there is nothing in this for you to fear, oh good and wholesome king. What was your tenth dream?”
THE TENTH DREAM
The King then related his next dream.
“I saw rice boiling in a pot without getting done. I mean it looked as though it was sharply marked off and kept apart, so that the cooking seemed to go on in three distinct stages. One part was sodden, another hard and raw but the last part cooked to a nicety. What shall come off it, sir?”
The Buddha again said that this dream would have its fulfilment in the future when rulers are unrighteous.
“Around such rulers” the Buddha commented “the people surrounding the kings too would be of the same ilk, as also Brahmins, householders, townsmen and country-folk. Next, their very guardian deities, the spirits to whom they offer sacrifices, the tree-spirits and spirits of the air shall become likewise. Rains will not fall in due season. When they fall, it falls not on the whole area that has been tilled but only on some. On some areas there will be heavy rains and spoil the crop and in other areas there will be no rain at all and the crop would be ruined due to drought and wither. In other words, crops sown within the same kingdom like the rice in the one pot shall have no uniform character.”
THE ELEVENTH DREAM
The King then related his next dream.
“Sir, I saw sour buttermilk bartered for precious sandalwood worth 100,000 pieces of money. What shall come of it?”
The Buddha replied:
“Here too Sire, this dream will not affect your reign. In the future the Dharma will wane. This is because shameless brethren (monks) shall arise who for their bellies’ sake shall preach the very words I preached against. Their preaching will not lead to Nubbin. Nay, their only thought as they preach by fine words and sweet voices shall be to induce men to give them costly raiment and gifts. Others, seated in the highways, at street corners, at the doors of kings’ palaces, shall stoop to preach for money as they barter away for food, raiment or gifts, the doctrine the worth whereof is Nibbana. They shall be as those who barter away precious sandalwood worth 100,000 pieces of money for sour buttermilk.”
“Now tell me your 11th dream, oh king.”
THE TWELFTH DREAM
The King said:
“My Lord, I saw empty pumpkins sinking in the water. What will come of it”?
The Buddha replied:
“Sire this dream too would not affect your reign. In the days when the world is perverted with unrighteous rulers, the kings will not show favour to the scions of nobility but to the lowborn and the latter will become great lords whilst the nobles sink to obscurity and poverty. Everywhere, it is the word of the lowborn that shall be established just as the empty pumpkins had sunk till they rested on the bottom. So too among the Sangha, in the greater and lesser conclaves and in enquiries regarding bowls, robes, lodgings and the like, the counsel of the wicked and the vile shall be considered, not that of the noble monks. Thus everywhere it shall be the same as when the pumpkins sank.”
“Now let me hear your 12th dream.”
THE THIRTEENTH DREAM
The King said:
“Sir, I saw huge blocks of solid rock, as big as houses, floating like ships upon the waters. What shall come of it?”
The Buddha explained:
“Here too this dream will not affect your reign. In the days when unrighteous kings rule, they show honour only to the lowborn, and who shall be treated as great lords whilst the nobles sink into poverty and oblivion. Not to the nobles but to the upstarts shall respect be paid? In the royal presence or in the courts of justice the words of the nobles and the learned in the law (it is them the solid rocks signify) shall drift idly by and not sink deep into the hearts of men: when they speak the upstarts merely laugh. So too it is in the assemblies of the Sangha. The words of such worthies shall not sink deep but drift idly by even as the rocks floated upon the waters.
‘What was your 13th dream?”
THE FOURTEENTH DREAM
“My Lord” said the King, “I saw tiny frogs, no bigger than tiny flowerets, swiftly pursuing huge black snakes, chopping them up like so many lotus-stalks and gobbling them up.”
The Buddha interpreted this dream as follows:
“This dream too will not have any effect during your lifetime. When the world is decaying, men’s passions will be so strong and their lusts so hot that they will be in the very grip of the very youngest wife. At the beck and call of these young wives shall be slaves and hired servants, oxen, buffaloes, gold, silver and all valuables of the house. Should the unsuspecting husband ask for anything, the wife will order him to be silent? In short, the wife will dominate over the husband and the household staff. Thus like the tiny frogs who gobble up large snakes, wives will hold sway over their husbands when the world begins to decay and when men’s passion and lust predominates.
“Now tell me your 15th dream.”
THE FIFTEENTH DREAM
“My Lord”, said the King, I saw a village crow, in which dwelt the ten vices* or immoral conduct, being escorted by a retinue of those birds, because of their golden sheen, are called Royal Golden Mallards. What does it signify”?
1. Killing or injuring living beings.
2. Taking or destroying what is not yours.
3. Indulging in sexual misconduct.
4. Telling lies.
5. Backbiting and spreading rumour.
6. Using abusive language
7. Taking part in frivolous language.
8. Covetousness
9. Malevolence
10. Wrong views.
The Buddha replied:
“Here too the dream would not have any effect during your reign. In future time’s weak kings will arise who are not adept in the skills of any art or skill that is necessary for a ruler and as a result are cowards. Fearing to be deposed and cast from the royal estate, these weak kings shall raise to power not their peers but their footmen, bath attendants, barbers and such-like. Thus shut out from royal favour and unable to support themselves, the nobles shall be reduced to dancing attendance on the upstarts as when the lowly crow had Royal Golden Mallards for a retinue.”
“At last we have reached your 16th dream, oh king. Describe it to me.?’
THE SIXTEENTH DREAM
The King now related his final dream.
“So far it used to be panthers who killed goats but I saw goats chasing panthers and devouring them. The bare sight of goats afar made wolves flee in terror and hid themselves in the thickets. Such was my dream.”
The Buddha interpreted this dream as follows:
This dream too shall not have any effect now. In the days when the lowborn shall be made royal favourites and be raised to lordship the nobles would sink into obscurity and distress. Gaining influence in the courts of law because of their favour with the king, these upstarts shall claim the ancestral homes, the raiment and all the property of the old nobility. Pleading before courts of law by the nobles, will not help and the minions will threaten the old nobles with physical injury. Hereupon the terrified nobles shall affirm that the property really belongs to the overbearing upstarts. Likewise in the Sangha when the noble monks would be forced to flee to the jungle. And this oppression of the nobles and of the good monks by the low-born and evil monks respectively shall be like the scaring of panthers by goats.”
Finally, The Buddha advised the King as follows: “It was not the truth, it was not love for you that prompted the Brahmins to prophesy as they did. No, it was the greed for Gain and cunning bred of covetousness that shaped all their self-seeking utterances. You, sire, are not the first to have these dreams, they were dreamt by kings of bygone days also and then as now the Brahmins found in them a pre- text for sacrifices whereupon at the advice of the wise and good, the Buddha was consulted and the dreams were explained in just the same manner as they have been now.”