The State in Ancient India: A Study in the Structure and Practical Working of Political Institutions in North India in Ancient Times c10.89

c10.89

There were many affairs in which the villagers themselves took the initiative. In the Losaka Jâtaka (I, 237 et seq.), Buddhist brethren are supported by village personages, and villagers pay a man to teach them the true doctrine. We are told that under the influence of a popular leader, villagers led ideal lives. "They used to get up early and sally forth, with razors and axes and clubs in their hands. With their clubs they used to roll out of the way all stones that lay on the four highways and other roads of the village; the trees that would strike against the axles of chariots, they cut down; rough places they made smooth; causeways they built, dug water tanks, and built a hall; they showed charity and kept the Commandments" (I, 199). Women sometimes took part in these activities (I, 201).