excommunication.39 Raja Suddhodana died shortly CHAPTER III. afterwards, but the circumstance. is very obscurely related, and seems to have exercised no effect upon the career of the great teacher.

Sákya Muni was not exposed to much religious persecution during his lifetime. Bráhmans and Yogis were mostly indifferent to his preaching. The Tirthakaras alone exhibited any active hostility, and that was excited more by his success than his

38 The conversions of Nanda and Rahula are described at some length in the legend of the life of Gótama, but they are of such an apocryphal character that it may suffice to indicate the main points in a note. Nanda, the half-brother of Gótama, or Sákya Muni, had been appointed heir-apparent in his room. The day of installation arrived when the five ceremonies were to be performed. Water was to be poured upon his head; the royal ornament was to be placed upon his brow; the heralds were to proclaim him "Little Raja; " a separate palace was assigned him for a residence; and a fair young princess was given to him in marriage. Nanda had already taken his seat upon the throne when Sakya Muni entered the hall, and cried out:-"To know the Law of the Wheel, and to enter the four paths, these are the greatest festival: Come down from your throne and follow me!" Nanda reluctantly obeyed this imperious demand, and followed Sakya Muni to the Vihara in the neighbouring garden, and was at once shaved and compelled to take the vows. The poor young bride saw him go, and called out to him to return; but he could not resist the strong will of his mentor, who seems to have been imbued with the spirit of a St Dunstan. Nanda subsequently pined for his bride, but is said to have been cured of his affection by one of those materialistic lessons, which emanate from the dark side of Buddhism. Bigandet, pp. 169, 177.

The conversion of Rahula, the son of Sakya Muni, seems to have referred to some political intrigue. When Sákya Muni first left his palace and became a religious mendicant, he is said to have carried away with him four golden cups or vases. After the conversion of Nanda, Rahula became heir-apparent. Accordingly Yasodhará, the mother of Rahula, sent the boy to Sákya Muni, and asked him to restore the four golden cups, as being a part of his inheritance, i. e. state insignia, and not personal property. Sakya Muni was evidently enraged at the demand, and replied that he would give him a better inheritance, and forthwith inducted him into the priesthood. Bigandet, p. 171.

This allusion to golden cups seems to betray the Scythic origin of the Sakya Rajas. Herodotus tells us (iv. 8-10) that every Scythian carried a golden cup in his belt; and it is a curious fact that to this day every Burman of any pretensions carries a golden cup with him as an emblem of dignity. The four golden cups mentioned in the Burmese version of the legend are described as golden mines in the Singhalese version. (See Hardy's Manual of Buddhism, p. 206.) Possibly they may have been the four golden gifts which Herodotus tells us were ever carefully guarded by the Scythian kings, and approached every year with great sacrifices. See Herod. iv. 5, 7.

CHAPTER III. doctrine. Indeed, in the legend of his life there are Antagonism of but few traces of religious controversy. On one

the Tertha

karas.

Dissensions in the assembly.

ever,

occasion Sákya Muni remarked that the Bráhmans, who taught the worship of deified spirits or existences, were ignorant of the way by which the soul might escape from existence. On another occasion the Tirthakaras remarked that they taught the way to Nirvána as well as Sákya Muni. But no discussion followed in either case. When, howthe Tirthakaras saw that the stream of charity and almsgiving was being diverted from themselves, and that wealthy supporters were deserting them and running after the new religion, they became naturally exasperated. They sought to detract from the reputation of Sákya Muni by suborning women to bring false charges against him; and although every accusation is said to have been refuted, the apostle of morality must have been exposed to considerable annoyance.

Sákya Muni appears to have suffered more severely from dissensions within his own assembly. During one rainy season a large number of his monks proved refractory on some question of discipline; and he was driven to such extremity that at last he departed out of the assembly, and lived by himself in the jungle. Ultimately the disaffected monks were starved into submission. The wealthy lay converts refused to support them any longer; and the rebels were thus compelled to sue for pardon, and make their peace with their old master. Later on a violent schism broke out which for a while seemed to divide his assembly into two hostile camps. But this incident belongs to the history of his declining years.

Another source of annoyance arose from the CHAPTER III. female portion of the community. Women are generally warmer in their affections than the sterner sex, and consequently are more ready to take an active part in religious movements. Accordingly they showed themselves devoted followers of Sákya Muni; but this involved a strange anomaly. The religion of Sákya Muni was only intended for men ; and was directly antagonistic to women. A cry was raised in the city of Rajagriha, that the new religion had deprived hundreds of women of their husbands. The mourning of the bereaved wives was compared to the lowing of cows; and it was declared in oriental imagery that the city of Rajagriha, which was surrounded by five hills, had been converted into a cow pen. A similar mourning was said to have broken out in the cities of Kapila and Koli, where Raja Suddhodana had recently died, and a large number of princes and nobles had taken monastic VOWS. 39 Sákya Muni was sorely perplexed as to the best means of meeting the difficulty. The obvious course was to permit women to become nuns.

But

39 According to the legend of the life of Gótama, a war was on the point of breaking out between the princes of Kapila and those of Koli. There had been originally a dispute about the water of the river Rohini, but the breach had been widened by insult. The men of Kapila abused those of Koli as being sons of lepers; whilst the men of Koli retorted that those of Kapila were the sons of pigs, who had married their sisters. (See legend of the origin of Kapila and Koli, ante, p. 102.) War was just about to commence, when Sákya Muni hastened to the spot, and brought the princes to their senses by asking if the blood of Rajas was to be spent on account of a little water. Sákya Muni is then said to have preached to both parties, and to have converted all the princes to his faith, and admitted them to the priesthood.

This incident appears somewhat apocryphal. It would seem, however, that these little principalities of Kapila and Koli were at this period pressed from the south by the large kingdom of Kosala, which in its turn was being pressed by the rising power of Magadha; and this fact, and other political disturbances following the death of Raja Suddhodana, may possibly have led to a large number of conversions.

mission of nuns.

CHAPTER III. Sákya Muni had strong objections to a measure Reluctant ad- which might interfere with the discipline of his Viláras, or cause scandal to the order. At length he was compelled to yield. The ladies of Kapila and Koli were reluctantly permitted to become nuns; and Prajapatí, the widow of the deceased Raja Suddhodana, was appointed to be their lady superior.40

Political disturbances in Hindustan :

royal house of Magadha.

During the declining years of the life of Sákya breach in the Muni, a great storm appears to have been gathering over central Hindustan. The two ruling powers at this period were Kosala and Magadha; known to modern geography as Oude and Behar. These kingdoms had been formerly engaged in intermittent wars for the possession of a border territory lying between the two, which was known as Srávastí, and was situated in the immediate neighbourhood of the famous city of Benares." During the earlier part of the career of Sákya Muni the dispute was settled by intermarriage; Vimbasara, Raja of Magadha, married the sister of Prasa-najit, Raja of Kosala, and obtained Srávastí as dowry. Rut Raja Vimbasara was now growing old, and the court at Rajagriha was agitated by a fearful breach between the old Raja and his son Ajata-satru. The aged Raja was naturally jealous of his son and heir; whilst the young prince was eager to obtain possession of the

40 A few solitary nuns are occasionally to be seen in Burma, and are to be known by their white gowns. But they are generally either misshapen or extremely ugly; and it seems incredible that in the present day at any rate they could ever cause the slightest scandal.

41 General Cunningham identifies Srávastí with a locality far away on the north-east frontier of Oude (Ancient Geog. of India, vol. i. page 407 et seq). But Buddhist traditions distinctly refer to it as a border-territory between Kosala and Magadha situated in the neighbourhood of Benares. See Hardy's Manual,

page 285; Bigandet, page 252.

kingdom. The quarrel between the father and the CHAPTER III. son was also widened by religious antagonism. Vimbasara had renounced the religion of the Bráhmans, and become an early convert to that of Sakya Muni. Accordingly Ajata-satru identified himself with the cause of the Bráhmans, who were naturally hostile to Raja Vimbasara.

Buddhist as

At this juncture a somewhat similar breach was Breach in the created in the assembly of Sákya Muni. Deva-sembly. datta, a brother of Sákya Muni's wife, had long been a monk; but he leaned to the practices of the Bráhmans, and formed the design of founding an independent assembly of his own. Accordingly, as Vimbasara had been the leading patron of Sákya Muni, Devadatta ingratiated himself with Ajatasatru; and by the aid of this prince he set up a Vihára of his own, where he was soon joined by numerous disciples.

satru the parricide, and the

Devadatta.

An unholy compact was now formed between Legend of AjataDevadatta, the schismatic monk, and Ajata-satru, apostate priest the rebellious prince, which is only dimly indicated in the legend. The prince is said to have been advised by the monk to compass the death of his father; and this horrible parricide was accomplished under circumstances of extreme ferocity. The old Raja was thrown into confinement, and starved to death. Ajata-satru then ascended the throne of Magadha, but found himself exposed to enemies on every side. The popular feeling was strongly aroused against him, not only on account of his parricide, but also because he had espoused the cause of the recréant monk, Devadatta. In the first instance he had been induced by Devadatta to attempt the life of Sákya Muni; and had actually sent