These 16 dreams came to King Pasenadi on night during his sleep. But these dreams were strange dreams and it has troubled him because he does not know whether if those were sign of bad omen that would bring misfortune to him and his kingdom. However, when he approached the Buddha for an explanation, the Exalted Ones revealed one by one what those dream were meant to be. It would be good for us to know how those dreams, which happened about 2,600 years ago can relates to events that are happening around us today.

1. THE 16 DREAMS
Of KING PASENADI

2. World Disasters of Today
• If you read the newspaper you are sure to see
reports of situations around the world
confirming events foretold by the Buddha
through the dreams of Kind Pasenadi 2600
years ago

3. King Pasenadi
• Son of King Maha Kosala
• Smart and deligent
• Same age as the Buddha
• Were good friends since small
• Visited the Buddha regularly
• Seek advise on spirituality and
personal affair
• One night King has 16 dreams
• Surprisingly he could remember
• This is remarkable

4. Queen Mallika
• Daughter of a garland maker
• Beautiful & good, loved by the King
• Has great wisdom
• King trusted her for her judgment
• Common sense, generosity
• Genuine desire to help the poor
• Enormous faith for the Buddha
• exerted influence on the King
• Successfully brought about sensible
changes for the people

5. King Pasenadi of Kosala once had 16 frightening dreams. His court
chaplains, brahmin advisers, offered to interpret them.
As the king recounted the dreams, the brahmins looked worried. Wringing
their hands they said, “These dreams portend one of three calamities: harm
to your kingdom, your wealth, or your life.

6. The Brahminical "solution" they offered
was a ritual animal sacrifice
Queen Mallika advised him to seek out
best of all brahmins in the human and
deva worlds, the Buddha, rather than
the advice of his court brahmins.
Thanks to Queen Mallika, the king has
his fears allayed by the Buddha.

7. The 1st Dream
The King:-
Lord, I saw four black bulls came together from the four
directions with every intention to fight. A great crowd
gathered to see them fight, but they were bluffing and
dispersed. What will come of it?

8. The Blessed Ones:-
“This was a dream of the distant future when rulers are stingy, citizens corrupt, the
world upside down, and good is declining while bad is increasing.
At that time, no rain will fall from the heavens, monsoons will forget their
season, crops will wither, and famine will spread across the land. Immense clouds
will gather, farmers will rush to bring in the rice they had spread to dry in the
sun, workers will take their tools and hurry to repair the reservoir walls. Thunder
will roar, and lightning will flash from the clouds.
However, just as the bulls in your dream did not fight, these clouds will retreat
without giving rain. This is what shall come of this dream. But this dream applies to
the remote future.
What was the second dream, sire?”

9. The 2nd Dream
The King:-
Lord, my second dream was
about tiny trees and shrubs
that burst through the soil.
When they were only a few
inches high, they flowered
and fruited.

10. The Blessed Ones:-
“Sire, this dream will be realized in future
when the world has fallen into decay and
the average human lifespan is short.
Passions then will be so strong that even
very young girls will live with men, get
pregnant, and have children symbolized by
the flowers and fruit.”

11. The 3rd Dream
The King:-
I saw cows suckling from
their own newborn
calves.

12. The Blessed Ones:-
“This dream will come when age is no longer
respected. In the future young people will have
no regard for parents. They will handle the
family estate themselves. If they please they
will give food and clothing to the old folks. The
aged and dependent, will survive only by the
favor and whim of their own children, like big
cows suckled by newborn calves.”

13. The 4th Dream
The King:-
Men unyoked a team of strong, sturdy oxen, and
replaced them with young steers, too weak to draw the
load. Those young steers refused to pull. The wagons did
not move at all?

14. The Blessed Ones:-
“In the future, in the days of corrupt rulers, unjust and stingy leaders will not honor
wise leaders skilled in diplomacy. They will not appoint experienced, learned judges
to the courts. On the contrary, they will honor the very young and foolish and appoint
inexperienced and unprincipled judges to the courts.
Naturally, these appointees, due to ignorance of statecraft and the law, will not be
able to bear the burden of their responsibilities. Because of incompetence they will
have to throw off the yoke of public office. When that happens, the aged and wise
will remember being passed over. And even though they are able to cope with the
difficulties, they will refuse to help, saying: ‘It is no business of ours since we have
become outsiders.’ They will remain aloof, and the government will fall to ruins. It will
be just as when young steers yoked instead of a team of sturdy oxen.”

15. 5th Dream
The King:-
I saw an incredible horse
with a mouth on each
side of its head being fed
fodder on both sides.
That dreadful horse ate
voraciously with both its
mouths.

16. The Blessed Ones:-
“In the days of corrupt and irresponsible
leaders, covetous people will be appointed
judges. These despicable magistrates, blind to
virtue and honesty, will take bribes from both
sides. That is, they will be doubly
corrupt, eating with two mouths at once.”

17. The 6th Dream
The King:-
I saw people holding out a
brightly polished golden
bowl, which must have
been worth a fortune. They
were actually begging an
old jackal to pee in it. Then
I saw the repulsive beast
do just that.

18. The Blessed Ones:- “In the remote future, when immoral rulers
from royal lines mistrust the established
administrators, preferring instead the low of
the country.
Because of the rulers’ blindness, nobles will
decline and the low will be raised to the status
of leaders.
Naturally, the great families will give their
daughters to them in marriage. The union of
the noble with the ignoble will be like the
urinating of the old jackal into the golden
bowl.”

19. The 7th Dream
The King:-
I saw a man braiding rope.
As he worked, he dropped
the finished rope at his feet.
Under his bench, unknown
to him, lay a hungry pregnant
jackal kept eating the rope
just as fast as he braided it.

20. The Blessed Ones:-
“In far off days women will crave men, strong drink, extravagant
clothes, jewellery, and base entertainments. In their profligacy these women
will get drunk with their lovers and carry on shamelessly. In so doing they will
neglect their homes and families. They will pawn household valuables, selling
everything for drink and amusements, even the means of future earnings.
Just as the hungry jackal under the bench ate the rope of the rope-maker, so
these women will squander the savings earned by their families.”

21. The 8th Dream
The King:-
At a palace gate there stood a big pitcher full to the
brim. Around it stood many empty pitchers. From all
directions there came a steady stream of people
carrying pots of water they poured into the already
full pitcher. The water from the full pitcher kept
overflowing wastefully soaking into the sand. Still the
people came and poured more and more water. Not
a single person even glanced at the empty pitchers
more in need of filling.

22. The Blessed Ones:-
“In the future when the world is in decline, the country will grow weak, and its
leaders will be poorer and more demanding. These rulers in their poverty and
selfishness will make the whole country work exclusively for them. They will force
citizens to neglect their own work and to labor for them.
For the rulers’ sake they will plant sugar cane, make sugar-mills, and boil down
molasses. For the rulers’ sake they will plant flower gardens and orchards and gather
fruits.
They will harvest the crops and fill the storerooms and warehouses to
overflowing, but they will be unable even to glance at their own empty stores at
home. It will be like filling and overfilling the full pitcher, heedless of the
needy, empty ones.”

23. The 9th Dream
The King:-
I saw a deep pool with sloping banks
overgrown with lotuses. From all directions, a
wide variety of animals came to drink water
from that pool. Strangely, the deep water in
the middle was terribly muddy. But the water
at the edges, where all those thirsty
creatures had descended into the pool, was
unaccountably clear and sparkling.

24. The Blessed Ones:-
“When rulers grow increasingly corrupt, ruling according to their own whim and
pleasure, they will not make judgments according to what is right. Being greedy, they
will grow fat on lucrative deals and bribes. Showing no mercy or compassion to their
people, they will be fierce and cruel.
These rulers will amass wealth by crushing their subjects like stalks of sugar cane in a
mill and by taxing them to the last cent. Unable to pay these oppressive taxes, citizens
will abandon villages, towns, and cities and flee like refugees to the borders.
The heart of the country will be a wilderness, while the remote areas along the
borders is filled with people. The country will be just like the pool, muddy in the
middle and clear at the edges.”

25. The 10th Dream
The King:-
I saw rice cooking in a pot but never getting done. By
‘never getting done’ I mean that it looked as if the
cooking were going on in three distinct stages sharply
delineated and separate from each other: One part of
the rice was sodden, another part was hard and
raw, and the third part looked like it was perfectly
cooked.

26. The Blessed Ones:-
“In days to come leaders will become corrupt. The administrators [noble caste] will
follow the leader’s example and so will the elite educated class [brahmin caste]. The
townspeople, the merchants, and at last even the laborers will become corrupt.
Eventually, everyone in the country, the sages and even the devas of the land, will
become immoral. Even the winds that blow over the realm of such a corrupt leader
will grow cruel and lawless. Because even the skies and the spirits of the skies over
that land will be disturbed, they will cause a drought. Rain will never fall on the whole
territory at once. It may rain in the upper districts, but in the lower it will not. In one
place a heavy downpour will damage the crops, while in another area the crops will
wither from drought.
The crops sown within a single country -- like the rice in the pot -- shall have no
uniform character.”

27. The 11th Dream
The King:
Lord, I saw rancid buttermilk
being bartered for precious
sandalwood worth a fortune in
gold.

28. The Blessed Ones:-
“In the distant future, when my teaching is waning [note the Buddha's teaching was
predicted to remain uncorrupted for 1,000 years], there will be many greedy, shameless
monastics, who for the sake of their bellies dare to preach the very words in which I
have warned against greed!
Because they desert the liberating-Dhamma to gratify their stomachs, and because they
sided with holders of various views, their preaching will not lead to nibanna. Their only
thought as they preach will be to use fine words and sweet voices to induce lay believers
to give them costly robes, delicate food, and every comfort. Others will seat themselves
beside the highways, at busy street corners, or at the doors of rulers’ palaces where they
will stoop to preach for money, even for a pittance!
Thus these monastics will barter away my teaching that leads to liberation from suffering
for food, robes, or coins! They will be like those who exchanged precious sandalwood
worth a fortune in pure gold for rancid buttermilk.”

29. The 12th Dream
The King:-
Lord, I saw dried gourds sinking in the water.

30. The Blessed Ones:-
“In the days of unjust rulers, when the world is upside down, when leaders favor the
low rather than the noble, the low will become great leaders, while the nobles will
sink into poverty. In the leader’s court and in the courts of justice, the words of the
low alone will be recognized.
Like the dried gourds, they will be firmly established. In the assemblies of monastics
it will be the same. Whenever there are inquiries about proper behavior, rules of
conduct, or rules of discipline, only the counsel of wicked, corrupt monastics will be
considered. The advice of modest monastics will be ignored. It will be as when the
empty pumpkins sank.”

31. The 13th Dream
The King:-
Lord, I saw huge
blocks of solid
stone as big as
houses floating
like dried gourds
on water.»

32. The Blessed Ones:-
“At a time of corrupt rulers who honor the low, who become great leaders, while the
nobles fade into obscurity. The nobles will receive no respect, while ignorant upstarts
are granted honors.
In the ruler’s court and in law courts, the words of nobles, learned in the law, will
drift idly by like those solid stones. They will not penetrate deep into the hearts of
people.
When the wise speak, the ignorant will merely laugh at them with scorn, saying
‘What is it these individuals are saying?’ In the monastic assemblies as well, people
will not respect the excellent elders. Their words will not sink deep but will drift idly
by, just like those rocks floating on water.”

33. The 14th Dream
The King:-
Lord, I saw tiny frogs, no
bigger than miniature flowers,
swiftly pursuing huge black
snakes and devouring them.

34. The Blessed Ones:-
“In future days when the world is declining, at that time human passions will be so
strong that husbands will be thoroughly infatuated with childish brides. Men will lose
all judgment and self-respect.
And being completely smitten, they will place their infantile wives in charge of
everything -- servants, livestock, granaries, gold and silver, everything in the house.
Should the over-fond husband presume to ask for some money or a favorite robe, he
will be told to mind his own business and not to be so inquisitive about property in
her house.
These abusive young wives will exercise power over their husbands as if their men
were hired servants or slaves. It will be like the tiny frogs that gobbled up the big
black snakes.”

35. The 15th Dream
The King:-
Lord, I saw a village crow, a vile
creature with all the ten
vices, attended by an
entourage of Mallard
ducks, beautiful birds with
feathers of golden sheen.

36. The Blessed Ones:-
“In the reign of weakling rulers there will be some who know nothing about
governing. They will be fools and cowards who understand neither battle nor the art
of leadership. Fearing that they may be deposed in a revolt or revolution, they will
elevate even their servants, bath-attendants, barbers, and the like [that is, loyal but
shockingly unqualified people] to positions of power.
These rulers will ignore the real administrators. Cut off from favor and unable to
support themselves, the real administrators will be reduced to kissing up like
sycophants to the upstart rulers, as when the cow had regal Mallard ducks for a
retinue. And, sire, your sixteenth dream?”

37. The 16th Dream
The King:-
Lord, I saw goats chasing
leopards and eating them. At
the sight of goats in the
distance, the leopards were
stricken with terror and fled to
hide in thickets quaking with
fear. Such was my dream. What
will come of it?

38. The Blessed Ones:-
“This dream too will not have its fulfillment until the time of immoral rulers. The low
will be raised to important posts and will become the favorites of the administration.
Real administrators will sink into obscurity and distress.
Gaining power in courts of law because of such favor, the low will claim the ancestral
estates of the impoverished traditional leaders, demanding their titles and property.
When the real owners plead for their rights in court, the ruler’s minions will have
them beaten and tortured, then taken by the throat and thrown out with words of
scorn: ‘That ought to teach you to know your place, fools!’ they will shout. ‘How dare
you dispute it? The ruler shall hear of your insolence, then we will have your hands
and feet chopped off!”

39. The Blessed Ones:-
“At this, the terrified nobles will agree that black is white and that their own estates
belong to these upstarts. They will then hurry off and cower in agony and fear.
Likewise, at that time, unprincipled monastics will harass good and worthy recluses
until the worthy ones flee from the monasteries to the forest. This oppression of real
nobles by the low and of good monastics by bad ones will be like the intimidation of
leopards by goats. However, you have nothing to fear from this. This dream like the
others only refers to the future.”

40. The Buddha added….
When the Buddha had reassured the king and
explained the dreams, he added:
“It was neither truth nor love that prompted those
brahmins to make the prophecies they did. It was
greed and selfishness that led them to prescribe such
animal sacrifices.”

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