Pre-Buddhist India: A Political, Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey of Ancient India Based Mainly on the Jataka Stories c4.t2.161

c4.t2.161

⁴ We have an instance in the Ulūka Jātaka, II, pp. 352-3, where we find that the original election of Mr. Owl was set aside mainly on the ground of his defective appearance. Similarly in another place, J., pp. 407 ff., inspite of protests, a king gives away his eyes to a Brāhmaṇa and then he thinks: "What has a blind man to do with ruling? I will hand over my kingdom to the courtiers and go into my park and become an ascetic and live as a holy man." Elsewhere, a prince struck with leprosy departs into the forest: J., V, p. 88: it seems from all this that physical defects were considered to be a serious bar to succession to the throne, morally if not legally. See Jayaswal, op. cit., II, pp. 115-6; but see Hopkins, J. A. O. S., 13, p. 144 "no such bar was felt to be infringible in the early period." Cf. Dikshitar, Hindu Administrative Institutions, p. 69.