A Licchavi general of Vesāli. He was a follower of the Nigaṇṭhā. When the Buddha visited Vesāli, Sīha, having heard reports of his greatness, wished to see him, but Nigaṇṭha Nāṭaputta dissuaded him, saying that Gotama denied the result of actions and was not worth a visit. However, in the end Sīha, accompanied by five hundred chariots, went to the Buddha. Having discovered in conversation with the Buddha that he was falsely accused of teaching wrong doctrines, Sīha declared himself the Buddha’s follower. The Buddha accepted his adherence on condition that he would continue to give alms to any Nigaṇṭhā who sought them at his house. This generosity made Sīha honour the Buddha even more highly, and he invited him and the monks to a meal on the next day. Meat formed one of the dishes, and the Nigaṇṭhā went about Vesāli crying that Sīha had killed a large ox to provide meat for the Buddha and his monks and that the food had been accepted. This was the occasion for the formulation of the rule that no monk should eat flesh where he has reason to believe that the animal had been specially killed for him (Vin.i.233 f; A.iv.179 f; see also the Bālovāda Jātaka).

Sīha was, at one time, one of the most famous patrons of the Nigaṇṭhā, the others being Upāli-gahapati of Nāḷandā, and Vappa, the Sakyan of Kapilavatthu (AA.ii.751).

The Aṅguttaranikāya (A.iii.38 f; iv.79 f ) contains two discussions, in more or less identical terms, in which Sīha asks the Buddha if it is possible to show the visible results of giving. The Buddha, by means of a counter question, elicits from Sīha that the giver has his reward in this world itself, and in the end Sīha acknowledges that he has experienced the benefits which the Buddha set forth.

Sīha had a niece, Sīhā (q.v.)