In recent years the Milindapanha (The Questions of King Milinda) has been very popular in Europe and Asia. The warm reception it received from the academic circles is remarkable. This could be judged by its translations in English, French, German，Russian，Chinese，Japanese，Hindi, Sinhalese，Sanskrit，Prakrit and so forth. This essay is an attempt to assess the highlights in the text. It may be noted in passing，that the present author is privileged to be the translator of its Chinese version published in Beijing in 1997. For a fair assessment，we have listed four major topics in regard to the historical，doctrinal, philosophical and devotional aspects of Buddhism. They are (1) King Milinda in Indian history (2) Who is the real Nagasena? (3) Milinda and the six teachers and (4) The trend and transformational of Buddhist doctrines. As the original Pali version has been in circulation for over a thousand years, it appears inevitable that interpolations were made from time to time by various individuals. From the historical perspective，the story of King Milinda's renouncement of the world to become a mendicant，and the episode of his visit to the six teachers are really incredible and astonishing. As Milinda passed away in a military camp，and as he and the six teachers lived in different centuries, these stories were fabricated for a specific purpose, namely，for enhancing the prestige of Nagasena, and the glory of Buddhism. The section concerning the process of rebirth is of interest to those who wish to trace the development of Buddhism. Earlier，the theory on transmigration was based on "Mind，matter，and deed" (nama, rupa and kamma)，but later，a new element known as "gandhabba" was in vogue. It is an entity somewhat similar to an "atman" (soul). As Buddhism does not believe in such a speculative hypothesis, it should be considered an infiltration from a foreign source. In a similar way，other areas within the scope of this article are also critically examined and evaluated.
近幾年來《彌蘭陀王問經》(Milindapanha)在歐洲及亞洲都廣泛流行，學術界對它的熱中程度值得注意. 這可從它被翻譯成英文，法文，德文，俄文，中文，日文，印度文，錫蘭文，梵文及古印度文(Prakrit)等看出. 本文嘗試評析此經若干重點. 過去筆者一直被認定為是此經中文譯本的譯者，該譯本於1997年在北京出版. 為公平審慎地做出評析，筆者列出包括歷史，教義，哲學及信仰等佛教四大主題，分別是：(1)印度歷史中的彌蘭陀王，(2)誰是真的那先比丘(Nagasena)? (3)彌蘭陀王與六位老師，(4)佛教學說的趨勢與轉化.由於此經的巴利文版本已流傳逾千年，因此無可避免地常遭增刪竄改. 從歷史的觀點來看，彌蘭陀王棄世托缽為生的故事，及他參訪六位老師的插曲，著實令人驚訝並無法置信. 從他在軍營過世，及他和六位老師生活在不同世紀來看，這些故事都是虛構的，目的只是為增加那先比丘的威望及佛教的光芒. 此經中有關轉世(rebirth)過程的段落，對有意探索佛教發展的學者來說是饒富趣味的. 早先有關轉生transmigration)的理論是建構在「名法，色法及業」(nama, rupa and kamma) 上，但稍後所謂「乾闥婆」(gandhabba, 食香者)的新說開始流行，它是類似「靈魂」(atman，我)的獨存實體. 由於佛教並不崇信這類空洞的理論，因此它應是受外來文化的滲入影響. 如上所述，本文及其他領域的討論，都是批判性的檢驗與評估.
目次
Summary I. King Milinda in Indian History II. Who is the Real Nagasena? III. King Milinda and the Six Teachers IV. The Trend and Transformation of Buddhist Doctrines Conclusion Table of Abbreviations
