Majjhima Nikaya
Topic: Buddhism, Jainism and Heterodox Traditions · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 3 "Kinship, Caste and Class - Early Societies"
Meaning
The Majjhima Nikāya ("middle-length sayings") is a Pali Buddhist text and part of the Sutta Pitaka, the basket of the Buddha's teachings. Historians use it to see how early Buddhists challenged the Brahmanical claim that birth decides a person's rank. One passage argues that wealth and conduct, not varna, decide a person's position.
Example
In a dialogue between king Avantiputta of Avanti and the Buddha's disciple Kachchana, Kachchana argues that a rich Shudra could have even a Brahmana work as his servant. Wicked or good deeds also bring the same results to people of every varna. So the four varnas are really the same.
Don't confuse with
- Therigāthā: the Therigāthā is another part of the Sutta Pitaka. It is made up of verses by nuns, not prose dialogues on varna.