Hi all,
Thanks for the illuminating discussion on Indian lions still in
existence, stories and origins of nagas in different cultures.
As far as "lion's roar" in the context of the Buddha or arahant
delivering a discourse, I'm still wondering for which reason that expression
was chosen:
1) lion's roar being the most impressive and dominant sound emanating from
the jungle, just as an arahant proclaiming dhamma in the world has a
similarly impressive effect.
2) lion being the king of the jungle, i.e. in a one on one battle with any
jungle creature, the lion would emerge victorious. Similarly, in a one on
one battle, the dhamma would conquer and completely obliterate any other
doctrine.
3) both 1) and 2)
My inclination would be to go with option (3), but I wonder whether the lion
actually is the king of the jungle if it came down to physical
confrontations. Can an animal expert comment on who would win these battles?
1) lion vs. tiger
2) lion vs. elephant
3) lion vs. rhino
4) rhino vs. elephant
As far as who actually has the loudest most impressive voice, again I don't
know the answer to this. Perhaps an elephant actually has the loudest voice,
but the reaction of the other jungle creatures is more like, "Ok, it's just
a plant eating herbivore. We better mosey on out of their way so they don't
trample us, but otherwise no problem." Whereas when they hear a lion,
they're like, Ack!! there's a pissed off and hungry carnivore in close
proximity. Run! Run like the wind!"