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History and Doctrines of the Ajivikas: A Vanished Indian Religion c12.s1: Gosāla is Exposed by Mahāvīra

History and Doctrines of the Ājīvikas: A Vanished Indian Religion c12.s1

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Gosāla is Exposed by Mahāvīra

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At that time Mahāvīra was in the neighbourhood of Sāvatthi, and the visit of the six disācaras to Gosāla was reported to him by his chief disciple Indabhūī Goyama.⁵ Mahāvīra then told his followers the story of the birth of Gosāla and of the early association of the two ascetics, which we have paraphrased above. The news of Mahāvīra’s exposure of Gosāla rapidly spread through the city, and seems to have resulted in a popular demonstration against the latter. Gosāla, who at the time was at the penance-ground (*āyāvaṇa-bhūmi*), returned to Hālāhalā’s workshop with his followers, his eyes blazing with rage.¹

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⁵ Bh. Sū. xv, sū. 540, fols. 659–660.

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¹ Ibid., sū. 546, fols. 666-7.

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Shortly afterwards Ānanda, a simple-minded ascetic disciple of Mahāvīra, was passing the pottery. On seeing him Gosāla called to him, and told him a cautionary story of a company of merchants, who, while passing with their caravan through a desert, found that their water supply was exhausted. In their search for water they found a large anthill, which had four heaps (*vappu*) rising from its base. On breaking the first they found an abundant supply of clear water, while the second yielded gold, and the third jewels. Delighted at their discovery they decided to break down the fourth and last. A worthy and thoughtful member of the company tried to restrain them, saying that the breaking of the last heap would cause their destruction. But his warning was not heeded, and the merchants proceeded to demolish it. From it there emerged a fiery serpent, which burnt the whole company to ashes, sparing only the cautious merchant, who had tried to prevent the demolition of the last heap of the anthill. Gosāla threatened that if Mahāvīra continued to slander him he would reduce him to ashes in the same manner as the serpent had destroyed the merchants.²

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² Bh. Sū. xv, sū. 547, fols. 668-670.

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The story of the merchants is important in that it indicates that Gosāla, like the Buddha, was in the habit of employing folk-tales in his preaching. This story is repeated with but slight variation in the *Jātaka*,³ where, perhaps significantly, the merchants are said to have come from Sāvatthi.

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³ Jāt. iv, p. 350.

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The terrified Ānanda returned and repeated the story to Mahāvīra, who calmed his fears and forbade for the future all association of his followers with Gosāla.⁴

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⁴ Bh. Sū. xv, sū. 549, fol. 671.

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The facts that Ānanda was ready to listen to Gosāla’s story, and that Mahāvīra was compelled to forbid all communications between his disciples and the Ājīvika leader, tend to strengthen the suspicion that the rift between the two sects was not at first so profound as the *Bhagavatī* account suggests.⁵

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⁵ V. supra, p. 53.

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