Tribes in Ancient India c53.98

c53.98

When Viḍūḍabha, the son of Pasenadi and Vāsabhakhattiyā, came of age, he found out that the Śākyas had deceived his father, and he resolved to take revenge upon them. In order to do this, he decided to get possession of the throne for himself, and with the aid of his commander-in-chief, Dīrgha Cārāyana or Dīgha Kārāyana, he deposed his father who fled from Śrāvastī, the Kośala capital, and set out for Rājagṛha, the capital of Magadha. But ‘it was late when he came to the city, and the gates were shut and lying down in a shed, exhausted by exposure to wind and sun, he died there’.¹ After ascending the throne, Viḍūḍabha invaded the Śākya country, took their (capital) city and slew many of them without any distinction of age or sex. He then took 500 Śākya girls for his harem, to celebrate his victory. Full of rage and hatred, the girls declared that they would never submit to the king. On hearing this, the king was enraged, and gave orders that they should be killed. According to the king’s orders, the officers cut off their hands and feet and threw them into a ditch. The girls invoked the Buddha who saw their plight through his divine insight, and ordered a bhikkhu to go to them and preach his doctrine. Having heard the instruction, they attained ‘purity of the eyes of law’, died, and were all reborn in heaven.² Viḍūḍabha himself is said to have perished by a sudden flood, along with numerous Kośalan followers.