Republics in Ancient India, c. 1500 B.C.–500 B.C. c13.s1.19

c13.s1.19

We do not know why the Kosalan king did not claim a share in the relics of the Buddha, but we do know that both Kosalan kings, Pasenadi and his successor Viḍūḍabha ⁵ were well disposed towards the Śākyamuni. It may be that the distance of Sāvatthi from Kusinārā and the presence of the hostile Ajātasattu's envoys did not particularly encourage the Kosalan king to claim a part of the relics. Probably the death of the Buddha took place after King Pasenadi had passed away at the gates of Rājagaha,⁶ and his power-loving son was not very enthusiastic about things religious and theological.¹ The fact that the Kosalans did not claim a share of the relics at Kusinārā does not exclude the possibility of their taking away, after Viḍūḍabha's invasion, the share which the Sakyas had carried to Kapilavatthu. If the Kosalan king was the overlord of the Sakyas, he might have been expected to insist on building the *stūpa* at Sāvatthi and not at Kapilavatthu, if only for the sake of prestige. Moreover, the relics would be thought of great value for their supernatural powers in bringing good fortune to the region in which they were deposited. This also supports the view that the Sakyas were not fully subordinate to Viḍūḍabha at that time.