Dictionary of Pali Proper Names v1.c6.534

v1.c6.534

Ajapāla-nigrodha.—A banyan tree which is famous in Buddhist literature. It was in Uruvelā, on the banks of the Nerañjarā, near the Bodhi tree, and a week after the Enlightenment the Buddha went there and spent a week cross-legged at the foot of the tree. There he met the Huhuṅkajātika brahmin.¹ Two weeks later he went there again from the Rājāyatana² (*q.v.*). It was then that the Brahmā Sahampati appeared to him and persuaded him to preach the doctrine, in spite of the difficulty of the task.³ This was immediately after the meal offered by Tapassu and Bhalluka, so says the Majjhima Aṭṭhakathā.⁴ When the Buddha wishes to have someone as his teacher, Sahampati appears again and suggests to him that the Dhamma be considered his teacher.⁵