Republics in Ancient India, c. 1500 B.C.–500 B.C. c9.s5.44

c9.s5.44

Their relations with Magadha were normally hostile,² though it seems probable that in the earlier part of Bimbisāra's reign they were not on bad terms. The Magadhan king is reported by the *Cīvaravastu*,³ by the Jaina,⁴ and Tibetan sources⁵ to have had a Vesālian wife. According to the *Cīvaravastu* this marriage involved skirmishes between the two opposing sides.⁶ The tension at Kusinārā over the Buddha's relics also points to the tense relations between these peoples.⁷ Among ancient and tribal peoples of the world there were fights and feuds over shrines, river water, boundaries or cattle, and the Licchavis and their neighbouring republics were no different. However nothing very serious is mentioned about these disagreements. It was mainly with the rising empire of Magadha that the Licchavis, together with other members of the Vajjian Confederacy, had long pitched battles. Otherwise, with states which held common principles of government and a similar political philosophy, there was less room for grave troubles. The minor disputes over tank and river water could just as well have taken place between families or clans within the same republic.