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Early Monastic Buddhism v1.c14.s1: Kāśī

Early Monastic Buddhism v1.c14.s1

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Kāśī

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KĀSĪ is counted as one of the sixteen mahājanapadas. It was an independent kingdom in the pre-Buddha days but later on it was annexed to Magadha by Ajātasattu. Benares was its chief city and flourished not only as an emporium of trade and commerce but also as a centre of brāhmaṇic culture. The frequent mention of the place in the Jātakas is indicative of its great importance in those days. The Isipatana or Ṛṣipattana has been immortalized in the Buddhist literature as a resort of a large number of ṛṣis in ancient times, and so the selection of the locality by Buddha for his first discourse was quite in a line with its sacred tradition.

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Buddha’s ministration commenced with the conversion of two foreign traders Trapusa and Bhallika who were travelling with a caravan along the trade-route from Dakkhiṇāpatha to Ukkala a town in the kingdom of Gandhāra. Their conversion at Uruvela was later on commemorated by the erection of stūpas in their native villages in Gandhāra.¹ Buddha after enlightenment turned his thoughts first to his comrades in asceticism then residing at Isipatana near Benares. He started from Uruvela and passed through Gayā, Aparagayā and reached Vaśālā where he was invited to a meal by a *huhuṅka* brāhmaṇa to whom he pointed out as to what made a true brāhmaṇa and tried to convert him to Buddhism. Thence he passed through Cundadvīlam and Sārathipura, crossed the Ganges and reached Benares.¹ Here at Isipatana he visited his five comrades who would not accept Buddha’s arguments regarding the futility of extreme self-mortifications in taking them to their spiritual goal. Their conviction had to be slowly overcome by Buddha through teachings from day to day impressing upon their minds the impermanence of all worldly things. They were enjoined to live as recluses, practising *jhānas* and self-control.² It was for them that he delivered his famous discourse, the *Dhammacakka-pavattana* which is believed to have embodied truths found by Buddha under the Bodhi tree. It explains the *majjhimā paṭipadā* or in other words, perfection in the *śīlas*, practice of control over *citta* which included *dhyāna*, and attainment of *paññā* or true knowledge. The other discourse delivered to them was *Anattasutta* showing the essencelessness of the five *khandhas*. The result of the discourses, of course, was the conversion of the five brāhmaṇas, and their admission into the Saṅgha.

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¹ Mahāvastu (Senart), vol. III, pp. 303, 310, 313: Uttarāpatha Ukkalam nāmādhiṣṭhānam......... Tehi dāni yathā Keśasthālī nāma adhiṣṭhāno tahim keśa-stūpam kārāpitam. Bālukkho nāma nagaram tahim nakhastūpam kārāpitam. ....Trapusabhallikānām Śilukṣa nāma nigama āvāsitānām .....adyāpi Gandhāra-rājye adhiṣṭhānam Śilānāmena jñāyati There has been a great difference of opinion with regard to the identification of Ukkala and the birth-place of Trapusa and

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¹ *Mahāvastu*, III, pp. 324-329; *Lalitavistara*, p. 406.

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² *Majjh. Nik.*, I, pp. 173-175; *Saṃ. Nik.*, III, p. 66.

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Bhallika. Though the phonetic similarity between Utkala (Orissa) and Ukkala is very great and the identification of Ukkala with Orissa is alluring, yet in view of the evidence supplied by the *Mahāvastu* and supported by Yuan Chwang, Ukkala should be identified with a place in Gandhāra. Yuan Chwang noticed the remains of two of the stūpas mentioned above in the course of his journey from Balkh to Bamian (Watters’ *Yuan Chwang*, I, pp. 111-113).

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Buddha accompanied by the five new bhikkhus passed from Isipatana to Benares and met there Yasa; a rich seṭṭhi’s son, who was getting sick of the luxuries of worldly life and hankered after a life of peace and rest. It was in this state of mind that he came across Buddha under a Nigrodha tree on the bank of the river Varaṇā, and listened to a discourse on the merits of giving alms, observing precepts and enjoying thereby a heavenly life as also on the evils suffered by one haunted with desires. He then listened to the higher discourses dealing with the four truths¹ and was soon convinced of their excellence. He embraced Buddhism and became a bhikkhu while his parents became upāsakas.

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¹ The word in which he expressed dissatisfaction are upaddutaṃ vo upasaṭṭhaṃ. Vinaya, I, p. 15-16.

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Yasa then introduced to Buddha his four friends Vimala, Subāhu, Puṇṇaji and Gavampati who were also sons of rich seṭṭhis, and fifty other friends. All were admitted into the Saṅgha by Buddha by the simple formulae of “ehi bhikkhu.”² We are not aware of any other converts made by Buddha at the time though it is evident that several others of Benares joined the order subsequently.

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² See Infra.

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Benares, rather Isipatana, was a favourite resort of many distinguished disciples like Anuruddha, Mahākoṭṭhita, Moggal-lāna, Mahākaccāyana, and Sāriputta. According to the traditional chronology of Buddha’s vassāvāsa, it is said that he passed the first vassā at Isipatana and passed through it the second time after the twelfth vassā on his way from Verañja to Vesāli.³

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³ Samantapāsādikā, I, p 201; Kern's Manual of Indian Buddhism, p. 36; IRAS, 1891.

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The delivery of Buddha's first discourse on *Dhammacakka*¹ brought the place into prominence, and clothed it with a sacred memory, ranking it as one of the sacred places of pilgrimage for a Buddhist.² Several discourses in the *Saṃyutta* and *Aṅguttara Nikāyas* are associated with this place. These deal, among other topics, with *avijjā*, *saddhā*, *kāyakamma*, *vacīkamma*, *manokamma*, *ariyasacca* and *aṭṭhaṅgikamagga*.³

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¹ *Vinaya*, I, p. 10-11.

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² *Digha*, II, p. 141.

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³ See *Saṃyutta*, I, p. 105-6; V, pp. 407, 429; *Aṅguttara*, I, pp. 110 ff., 279; III, pp. 320, 392, 399.

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Besides I s i p a t a n a, there were two other resorts of Buddhist monks at K i ṭ ā g i r i⁴ and K h e m i y a m b a v a n a.⁵ Buddha visited Kiṭāgiri and remonstrated there with Assaji and Punabbasu for taking food at night (*vikālabhojana*). The discourse at Khemiyambavana was delivered by bhikkhu Udena sometime after the *parinirvāṇa* of Buddha. This discourse, it is said, impressed Ghoṭamukha brāhmaṇa so much that he not only became a *upāsaka* but promised to the Saṅgha a share of the daily allowance of 500 *kahāpaṇas* received by him from the king of Aṅga. As the bhikkhus were not permitted to accept gold and silver, it was arranged that the money would be utilised in building a monastery at Pāṭaliputta.

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⁴ *Majjhima*, I, p. 473.

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⁵ *Ibid*, II, p. 157.

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The subsequent history of Benares as a seat of the different sects of Buddhism⁶ is highly interesting and will be dealt with later on in another volume.

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⁶ See Sahani, *Report on the Excavations at Sarnath*.

Cites (18)