Dictionary of Pali Proper Names v1.c7.118

v1.c7.118

It has been suggested¹⁷ that Makkhali Gosāla’s doctrine of the eight developmental stages of man (aṭṭha purisabhūmi) was a physical antecedent of the Buddha’s doctrine of the eight higher spiritual ranks (aṭṭha purisapuggalā). Buddhaghosa¹⁸ gives the eight stages as follows: manda, khiḍḍā, vimamsana, ujugata, sekha, samaṇa, jina and panna.