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Early Monastic Buddhism v1.c14.s14: The Kurus

Early Monastic Buddhism v1.c14.s14

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The Kurus

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The farthest place in the north visited by Buddha in the course of his missionary tour was that of the Kurus—the ancient home of the highest brāhmanic culture. Buddha delivered two important discourses in the brāhmanic villages called K a m-m a s a d h a m m a and T h u l l a k o ṭ ṭ h i t a. The association of the country with these two discourses has made it memorable in the annals on the spread of Buddhism. These discourses are the Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta and the Mahānidāna Suttanta.⁴ The first deals with the principles of the Buddhist system of meditation and teaches how a person can reach a very high stage of sanctification by the simple process of constant satipaṭṭhāna (smṛti-upasthāna) without having recourse to the more arduous methods prescribed in the *yoga-śāstras*. The second discourse explains the ten-fold¹ chain of causation (*paṭiccasamuppāda*) leading to misery or salvation. A few other discourses relating to the means of cessation of *dukkha*, worthlessness of sensual pleasures, the eight *vimokkhas*, etc. were also delivered at the place.²

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¹ In the chain the usual first two links are omitted, and *viññāṇa* and *nāmarūpa* are made co-existent instead of the latter being caused by the former. Cf. *Saṃyutta*, II, pp. 92-93; Mrs. Rhys Davids, *Buddhism*, p. 94.

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² *Saṃyutta*, II, p. 107; *Aṅguttara*, V, pp. 29 ff.

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It appears from the *Raṭṭhapāla* and *Māgandiya suttas* that some of the *brāhmaṇas* of the Kuru country held Buddha in great esteem and resorted to him to listen to his teachings. So great was Bharadvājagotta *brāhmaṇa*’s respect for Buddha that he used to offer a seat to him in his sacrificial hall in the face of protest by *Māgandiya paribbājaka*.³ *Raṭṭhapāla*, a member of the most respectable *brāhmaṇa* family of Thullakoṭṭhita, approached Buddha along with a large number of *brāhmaṇa gahapatis* to listen to his discourses. *Raṭṭhapāla* was so much impressed that he at once made up his mind to become a *bhikkhu*. He had some difficulty in having the consent of his parents to his ordination but ultimately he succeeded and became a *bhikkhu*. After the attainment of *arhathood*, he paid a visit to the land of his birth and made a great impression upon the mind of the Kuru king by giving an exposition of some of the principles of Buddhism.⁴ The *Nikāyas* do not mention any other convert of the Kuru country except *Māgandiya paribbājaka* who was at first so very averse to Buddhism.⁵

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³ *Majjhima*, I, p. 502.

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⁴ *Ibid.*, II, pp. 65-72.

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⁵ *Ibid.*, I, p. 512. See also, *ante*, p. 190.

Cites (6)