Historical Geography of Ancient India c8.112

c8.112

*Aśokārāma.*—It was a Buddhist establishment at Pāṭaliputra built by Aśoka (*Mahāvaṃsa*, V, v. 80). The building of the establishment was looked after by an elder (*thera*) named Indagutta (*Samantapāsādikā* I, pp. 48-49). Here the third Buddhist council was held in Aśoka’s time (*Ibid.*, p. 48). According to the *Milindapañho* (pp. 17-18), a merchant of Pāṭaliputra said to the revered Nāgasena standing at the cross-road not far from Pāṭaliputra, ‘This is the road leading to the Aśokārāma. Please accept my valuable blanket.’ Nāgasena accepted it and the merchant departed therefrom being very much pleased. Nāgasena then went to the Aśokārāma to meet the revered elder Dhammarakkhita. He learnt from him the valuable words of the Buddha occurring in the three Piṭakas and also their deep meanings. At this time many elders, who assembled at the Rakk hitatala on the Himalayan mountain, sent for Nāgasena who left the Aśokārāma and came to them.