Tribes in Ancient India c50.95

c50.95

The Mahāvaṃsa⁴ assigns a reign of 32 years to Ajātaśatru, while the Vinaya Commentary, Samantapāsādikā, puts his reign at 24 years, and the Puranic tradition indicates that he reigned for 25 years.⁵ Ajātaśatru suffered the same miserable fate as his father, being put to death by his son Udāyi Bhadda.⁶ According to the genealogical lists given in the Purāṇas, Ajātaśatru was succeeded by Darśaka.⁷ Bhāsa’s Svapnavāsavadattā mentions a Magadhan king named Darśaka, but makes no mention of any fact that might lead us to believe that Darśaka was the successor of Ajātaśatru.