Tribes in Ancient India c53.127

c53.127

According to Kauṭilya, the Mallas were a saṅgha or corporation of which the members called themselves rājās, just as the Licchavis did. Buddhaghosa also calls them rājās.⁷ A passage in the Majjhima Nikāya mentions the Licchavis and Mallas as examples of saṅghas and gaṇas. The Mallas of Pāvā and Kuśinārā, then, had their respective Santhāgāras or Council-Halls, where all matters, both political and religious, were discussed. The Saṅgīti Suttanta of the Dīgha Nikāya⁸ tells us that when the Buddha came to the Mallas, a new Council-Hall named Ubbhaṭaka had just been built at Pāvā.