Art. IX.—A Historical Basis for the Questions of King ‘Menander,’ from the Tibetan, etc.

Abstract

It may interest students of Buddhism to learn that the famous Questions of King ‘Milinda’ appear to be known to the Tibetans.Last year (1895), when I was making inquiries on this subject from Lāmas at Darjiling, I found that most of the Lāmas knew of the existence in their literature of conversations purporting to have been held between Nāgasēna and a certain ancient king, who, however, was named ‘Ananta,’ and not ‘Menander’ or ‘Milinda.’ I failed to procure any Tibetan text or book bearing on this question, except the few references which will presently be cited. But from the character of the questions, as quoted from memory by the Lāmas, and the statement that this king Ananta was the greatest of Nāgasēna's converts, there could be little doubt that he is intended for the same person as the ‘Milinda’ (or Menander) of the Pāli text.