The Milindapa¤ha is a Buddhist book which purports to be a dialogue between the Indian monk Nàgasena and the Indo-Greek king Milinda. Although such a dialogue between the two men may well have actually taken place, the Milindapa¤ha is a literary work. It was probably originally composed for the use of new converts to explain apparent contradictions in Buddhist doctrine and clarify obscure points. In the Milindapa¤ha the king asks a series of difficult questions to which Nàgasena replies with lively and often ingenious answers. The earliest part of the Milindapa¤ha was written in about the 1st century CE, perhaps in northern Pakistan, it was later translated into Pàëi and finally taken to Sri Lanka where parts were subsequently added. Buddhists consider the Milindapa¤ha to be an authoritative work, although it is not part of the Tipiñaka.