The Samannaphala Sutta ("Fruits of the Ascetic Life") is one of the most hallowed discourses attributed to the Buddha in the Pali Canon. It is also a historical document of great significance which provides important details about daily life of the general population and the Buddhist monk in ancient India. This commentary takes a detailed look at two strands in the discourse-the historical and the doctrinal-and finds a number of fractures in the narrative...