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Early Monastic Buddhism v2.c42.s2: II. Post-Aśokan Period

Early Monastic Buddhism v2.c42.s2

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II. Post-Aśokan Period

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The few deviations from the earliest principles of Buddhism dealt with above were hardly enough to make the religion popular. The persons who took to *saddhā* and *brahmavihāra* path for emancipation were few and far between; the emphasis was still on the monastic life. The cult of *cetiya*- and *stūpa*-worship made very little progress and the householders with their *Trisaraṇa* and other rituals still remained outside the Buddhist fold as mere suppliers of material needs of the monks and nuns and as faithful listeners to the moral discourses delivered to them by the monks on certain occasions. The Aśokan edicts reveal no change in this austere attitude of the early Buddhists—the only relieving feature being that Aśoka favoured the view that the people should not care very much for recluse-life and should perform good deeds (*kuśalakarmapathas*) to ensure them an after-life in the heavens. Hence we may say that the real move to make the religion popular among the common-folk was taken after Aśoka. This movement consisted mainly in the following five directions:—

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(i) Deification of Buddha.
(ii) Compilation of Jātaka-literature.
(iii) Sanction of Image-worship.

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(iv) Introduction of Pāramitā-cult. And
(v) Promulgation of Bodhisattva Doctrine.

Deification of Buddha

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In the pre-Aśokan days, Buddha had already come to be looked upon as the highest god superior to Brahmā, Viṣṇu or Śiva. This deification should be attributed first to the Mahāsaṅghikas and the Andhakas, and then to the Sarvāstivādins. It has been shown¹ while discussing the doctrines of the Mahāsaṅghikas and their off-shoots that Buddha had been given all the attributes of the highest god, whose apparitional body occasionally appeared in this world. This body took birth as Siddhārtha Gautama, went through all the ways of a householder and ultimately renounced the world to become a saint just in order to follow the ways of the world (*lokānuvartana*).² Buddha was supramundane (*lokottara*) and was made of pure *dharmas*. Everything of the great *ṛṣi* was transcendental including his advent into the world. In the *Mahāvastu*, he is described thus:—

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¹ Sec ante, pp. 63, 75 f.

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² *Mahāvastu*, I, p. 167-8.

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लोकोत्तरं भगवतो चर्या लोकोत्तरं कुशलमूलम् ।
गमनं स्थितं निषणं शयितं लोकोत्तरं मुनिनो ॥
यत् तत् सुगतशरीरं भवते भवस्य बन्धनक्षयकरणम् ।
लोकोत्तरं तदपि भो इत्यत न संशयः कार्यो ॥
चीवरधरणं मुनिनो लोकोत्तरं अत्र संशयो नास्ति ।
आहारहरणमयो लोकोत्तरमेव सुगतस्य ॥
देशना नरनागानां सर्वलोकोत्तरा मता ।
यथातथं प्रवक्ष्यामि माहात्म्यं वरबुद्धिनाम् ।
देशकालवशं प्राप्य परिपाकं च कर्मणाः ।
सत्यं वा अभिनिर्वृत्तं धर्मं देशन्ति नायकाः ॥

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लोकानुवर्तनां बुद्धा अनुवर्तन्ति लोकिकीम् । प्रज्ञप्तिमनुवर्तन्ति यथा लोकात्तरामपि ॥ etc.

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The above and other passages in the *Mahāvastu* leave no room for doubt that about the time of its composition (i.e., 2nd century B.C.),¹ Buddha had already become the highest god, at least, to a large section of the Buddhists.

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¹ Winternitz, *History of Indian Literature*, II, p. 247. ² Cf. also *Mahāvastu*, I, p. 214. ³ R. L. Mitra, *Lalitavistara*, pp. 136, 142.

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The account of Buddha's life in the *Lalitavistara*, the accredited text of the Sarvāstivādins, does not extol Buddha so much as has been done in the *Mahāvastu*. It is more realistic though it attributes divine and super-divine qualities to the Teacher. It says that Buddha while staying in the womb of his mother was enclosed in a casket and from there he delivered discourses to the gods who paid him visits.² After his birth, he appeared to dwell at the same moment in all the houses built for him by the faithful. He paid the customary visit to the temples but the gods therein bowed down to him. In his boyhood, he was so learned that the teacher staggered in his presence. In his youth, he possessed already all the kingly powers and skill and surpassed everybody in strength. In this text,³ he is eulogized thus:—

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जातस्य मह्य इय कम्पितः तिसहस्रः ।
शकश्च ब्रह्मा सुराश्च महोरगाश्च ॥
चन्द्रश्च सूर्य तथ वैश्रवणः कुमारो ।
मूर्द्धाकमेषु निपतित्य नमस्यन्ते ॥
कतमोऽन्य देव मम उत्तरियो विशिष्टो ।
यस्मिन् मम प्रणयसे त्वमिहाय अम्ब ॥

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देवातदेव अहू उत्तम सर्वदेवैः । देवो न मेऽस्ति सदृशः कुत उत्तरो वा ॥ लोकानुवर्तन प्रतीत इति अम्ब यास्ये । दृष्ट्वा विकुर्वित ममा जनता उदग्रा ॥ अधिमात्र गौरव करिष्यति विचिलकारो । ज्ञास्यन्ति देवमनुजा खयमेव देवः ॥

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शास्त्राणि यानि प्रचरन्ति च देवलोके संख्या लिपिष्च गणनाऽपि च धातुतन्त्रम् । ये शिल्पयोग पृथुलौकिक अप्रमेया- स्तेष्वेबु शिक्षितु पुरा बहुकल्पकोव्यः ॥ किन्तु जनस्य अनुवर्तनतां करोति लिपिशालामगतुं सुशिक्षित-शिक्षणार्थम् । परिपाचनार्थं बहुदारक अग्रयाने अन्यांश्च सत्त्वनियुतानमृते विनेतुम् ॥

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Though this text maintains a more sober outlook than the *Mahāvastu*, there is no doubt that Buddha was regarded by the Sarvāstivādins as a divine being though not the highest god. Though he was proficient in everything, he followed the ways of the world to educate the people. The time of composition of this work, according to Winternitz, spread over a long period commencing from the early Christian eras.¹ It may therefore be safely stated that in the 2nd and 1st centuries B.C., a certain section of the Buddhists regarded Buddha as the highest god while another section as a great divine being, endowed with all possible virtues and knowledge.

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¹ See Winternitz, *op. cit.*, p. 255-6: "It is therefore only correct to say that the *Lalitavistara* offers us very old traditions concerning the Buddha legend, as well as some which are centuries later".... ..."It is, however, most informative as regards the development of the Buddha legend from its earliest beginnings when only the chief events in the life of the great founder of the religion are adorned with miracles, down to that boundless deification of the Master, in which, from the beginning to the end of his career he appears mainly as a god above all gods."

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We need not discuss the conception of the Sthaviravādins, who tried to maintain even at this day that Buddha was after all a human saint but with attributes surpassing those of the gods and that in purity and knowledge he was the highest of all constituted beings.¹ This school of thought maintained the realistic conception throughout its long history but it did not gain the same amount of popularity as the Mahāsanghikas and the Sarvāstivādins did in the southern and northern parts of India respectively. However realistic the Theravādins might have been, they had to yield to the popular demand of Buddha-worship, and in course of time they allowed the placing of images of Buddha in their temples, and in one of their late texts the Mahāvaṃsa, there is also an elaborate description as to how the first image of Buddha was made and how grand were the ceremonies and festivals for putting up the image.

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¹ Majjhima, i, p. 171:—

Image-Worship

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In the Mahāvastu and the Lalitavistara Buddha is deified but there are no directions for making images of Buddha. The earliest literary evidence relating to image-making is yielded by the Divyāvadāna, in which Aśoka is found to be consulting Piṇḍola Bharadvāja regarding the features (mahāpuruṣa-

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Sabbābhibhu sabbavidu'ham asmi
sabbesu dhammesu anupalitta
sabbamjaho taṇhakkhaye vimutto
sayam abhiññāya kam uddiseyyam. Cf. Mahāvastu, iii, p. 326.

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lakṣaṇa) of the image.¹ In the Mahāvaṃsa² too is recorded a similar attempt of Aśoka who consulted the Nāga king for an account of the image. One need not be so credulous as to take these traditions as authentic, but the fact is that the practice of image-worship was taken up by the Buddhists sometime before the 4th century A.D. about which time the Divyāvadāna and the Mahāvaṃsa were composed. We may now pass on to the monumental evidences. In the Sanchi and Barhut sculptures there are no images of Buddha. The most significant fact is that the seats of Buddha are shown as vacant. The earlier methods of indicating Buddha's place in a scene were by depicting his Vajrāsana, Bodhi tree or pādukā (wooden slippers) or stūpa. If the date of Sanchi and Barhut sculptures be placed in the 2nd and 1st century B.C. we have to admit that image-worship did not prevail at that period. The practice of image-worship therefore came into vogue about the 1st or 2nd century A.D. at the earliest. The Amarāvatī sculptures, belonging to the Mahāsanghikas and their offshoots, are studded with numerous Buddha-images but the dates of these sculptures are placed by the archaeologists in the 2nd century A.D.³

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¹ Divyāvadāna, p. 400.

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² Mahāvaṃsa, p. 37

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³ Buddhist Remains in Andhra, etc. by K. R Subramanian, 1932, p. 15.

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Though the image of Buddha is wanting in the earlier sculptures there are ample evidences to show the wide prevalence of symbol worship. The artists probably did not make an image of the omniscient refulgent Buddha with all the signs of great men (mahāpuruṣa), but the feeling of adoration to Buddha was there, and this they expressed by concourse of men and gods and even animals, bowing down reverentially to the stūpas, Bodhi-tree or the Vajrāsana, or offering flowers and garlands. In the post-Christian eras, however, the Buddha images not only came into vogue, but practically the Buddhist centres were flooded with such images, some of the most exquisite Gandharan art while others of indigenous local developments. Merit accrued to both the artist and the donor of an image, and so it was quite natural there should be such an exuberance of Buddha-images in the post-Christian eras. Both the Hīnayānists and the Mahāyānists started making images and temples and decorated the stūpas with countless images.

Jātakas and Avadānas

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In the Mahāvastu and the Abhiniṣkramaṇasūtra we have not only a biography of Buddha but also a number of stories dealing with Buddha's supposed previous existences as also other traditions. The underlying object of the stories of Buddha's previous births is to show that each event in this life was the result of a past deed of his. These stories served not only to establish the law of karma which Buddhism had borrowed from the pre-Buddhistic thoughts but also to convince the common folk that any act of theirs would similarly be fruitful, and it may be that some of them might sow the seeds of merit like Siddhārtha Gautama and ultimately attain Buddhahood. In the latter case, they would be Bodhisattvas as was Siddhārtha Gautama in his previous lives. The Lalitavistara refers to the meritorious deeds performed by him in his previous existences¹ but does not give the stories in detail which were to be found partly in the Vinaya piṭaka of the Sarvāstivādins, and partly in the Avadāna collections. The biographies, and particularly the Jātakas, made a strong appeal to the mass, kindled their devotion and gave them an opportunity to express the same by depicting the stories indelibly on stone. These made them feel within their innermost heart that Buddhahood for them was not an impossibility as had so long been preached by the early Buddhists. The task, of course, was arduous and the path long covering several existences and entailing extreme self-sacrifices. This literature therefore gave a new and forceful impetus to the mass, and paved the way for the glorious days which Buddhism had for a long time in the early Christian eras. Observing the effect of the Jātaka stories on the mass, the Sarvāstivādins began to multiply them and produced large collections of these, calling them Avadānas. They incorporated in it stories dealing with the previous birth not only of Buddha but also of his noted disciples. The puritanic Theravādins could not help following them and started making a collection of stories without intermingling them with the biography of Buddha. They however supplied the events of the present life by way of introduction (paccuppannavatthu) and ended the stories by identifying the characters with Buddha and other persons. The object of all these collections was identical, viz., the edification of the mass and popularisation of the religion.

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¹ Lalitavistara (R. L. Mitra), p. 192:— पुरि तुम सुपुरुष ऋषिवरु यदभूर्ज तव उपगतु भव मम शरणम् । भषि ऋषि द्विजवर नररिपु उपने त्यजि स्वय खकि तनु न च द्विज त्यजसे ॥ खुर ऋषि उपगतु पुरि दुभनिलये रुचि भषि तरुरुह कति इम गष्ये । सुविदित सुगधित यथ तहि किमला तथ तव भवितथ समगिर रचित ॥

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Strangely enough all these Jātakas and Avadānas are non-Buddhist in character. This have nothing to do with the fundamental teachings of Buddhism—there is not a word about soul, component elements of a being, law of causation, ātman, skandhas, paṭiccasamuppada or nirvāṇa. These stories deal in a general way with moral virtue but not with the śilas, as detailed in the Piṭakas. These speak highly of a retired life but do not discountenance the life of a householder. On the contrary, the stories are concerned mainly with the social life of the householders and not with the unsocial life of a recluse. These do not breathe a word about monks or their life in monasteries. If not for the use of the term ‘Bodhisattva’ in every story, the collections could not have been recognised as forming a part of the Buddhist literature. It is really a universal literature dealing with universal moral principles, and a large number of the stories belongs to the common heritage of the Indians of the pre-Aśokan period. These stories teach more altruistic moral principles than negative ethical ideals (veramaṇis) as was the practice with the Buddhists. The stories well-known to the common folk of the then age were found to be a convenient medium for propagating the Bodhisattva conception and along with it the greatness of the Teacher.

Pāramitā-cult

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The Jātaka-stories, according to the late Buddhist traditions, had in view Bodhisattva’s attainment of perfection¹ in six or ten virtues, viz., (i) liberality (dāna) (ii) righteousness (śīla) (iii) forbearance or endurance (kṣānti) (iv) mental strength (vīrya) (v) mental concentration (dhyāna) and (vi) realisation of the truth (prajñā). The number was latterly raised to ten by the addition of (i) skilfulness in expedients (upāyakauśalya) (ii) vow or resolution (praṇidhāna) (iii) attainment of certain powers (bala) and (iv) knowledge (jñāna).² The above list is to be found in Buddhist-Sanskrit works while the list in the Pāli texts is slightly different. It agrees with five of the above, viz., dāna, sīla, khanti, viriya and paññā. The remaining five are (i) renunciation (nekkhamma), (ii) truthfulness (sacca), (iii) resolution (adhiṭṭhāna), (iv) love (mettā) and (v) equanimity (upekkhā). Of these five, adhiṭṭhāna may be taken as a synonym of praṇidhāna of the supplementary list. The agreement of the two lists in five of the ten pāramitās indicates their comparative antiquity. It seems that the list was not a pre-meditated one. The stories were originally written just to illustrate that the episodes of Buddha's life were not untoward events but the outcome of the deeds of his previous existences. In course of time these stories were multiplied without any definite plan.

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¹ Pāramitā, as suggested by Har Dayal should be derived from ‘parama’ (highest, excellent, extreme). A Bodhisattva makes most extreme exertion or sacrifice for acquiring the virtues of gift, etc.

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² Dr. Har Dayal rightly describes these four as supplementary

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The earliest mention of the six pāramitās is found in the Mahāvastu (iii, p. 226), Lalitavistara (p. 340), and Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā (p. 194) while that of ten in the Mahāyāna Sūtrālaṅkāra, Daśabhūmikasūtra, Bodhisattvabhūmi, and Samādhirājasūtra.¹ In the Mahāvastu again, mention of the six pāramitās is few and far between² while the word pāramitā has been used in the ordinary sense (viz. perfection) in compounds like garbhāvakrāntipāramitā³ (the last entrance of the Bodhisattva into the womb), sarvakuśaladharmavaśibhāvapāramitā⁴ (perfect attainment of domain over all good actions) and prajñāpāramitā, (i.e. perfection in Śrāvaka's knowledge).⁵ This shows that

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¹ See Har Dayal, op. cit., p. 167.

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² Mahāvastu, i, p. 214; ii, 296; iii, p. 226.

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³ Mahāvastu, ii, p. 17.

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⁴ Ibid., ii, p. 261.

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⁵ Ibid., iii, p. 67

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pāramitās. See his Bodhisattva Doctrine etc. pp. 167, 168. See also his remarks re. five pāramitās.

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the word ‘pāramitā’ did not carry the meaning attributed to it in the later texts. Like pāramim gato in Pāli, there are several uses of the phrase ‘pāramiprāpta’¹ and ‘paramim gato,’² in the Mahāvastu. In speaking of Bodhisattva’s several attainments, perfection in the six pāramitās³ as a condition precedent to a Bodhisattva’s progress from a lower to a higher bhūmi, is not insisted upon,⁴ as has been done in the Daśabhūmikasūtra.⁵ At the time of composition (2nd century B.C.) of the Mahāvastu,⁶ the doctrine of pāramitā, it seems, was not well developed. Unlike the Mahāvastu, we have in the Lalitavistara, not only frequent references to the six pāramitās, but also eulogistic accounts of the deeds of Bodhisattva for attaining perfection in the six pāramitās.⁷ These gāthās imply wide currency of the Jātaka-stories as also a great popularity of the pāramitā-doctrine.⁸ In the Aṣṭasāhasrikā-prajñāpāramitā, the six pāramitās are systematically mentioned in the enumeration of Bodhisattva’s attainments, with the rider that these perfections are not to be taken as reals⁹ (paramārtha). Thus, we may say that the doctrine of pāramitā was fully developed before the time of composition of the Lalitavistara and the Aṣṭasāhasrikā, i.e. about 1st century A.D. and after the date of the Mahāvastu, i.e., 2nd century B.C.

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¹ Mahāvastu, i, p. 152.

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² Ibid, i, p. 74, etc.

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³ Ibid., i, p. 133-4.

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⁴ Ibid., i, pp. 89 ff.

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⁵ Cf. Aspects of Mahāyāna Buddhism etc. (henceforth abbreviated as AMB), pp. 267, 270 f.

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⁶ Winternitz, History of Indian Literature (Cal. Uni.), II, p. 247.

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⁷ Cf. e.g. Lalitavistara (R. L. Mitra's ed.) pp. 38, 60, 185, 188, 199, 212, etc.

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⁸ Cf. e.g. Ibid., p. 60.

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⁹ See e.g. Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā, p. 194.

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The practice of *pāramitās* occupies an important place in the Mahāyānic code of discipline. In the *Saddharmapuṇḍarīka*,¹ one of the early Mahāyāna texts, it is repeatedly stated that the teaching for the Śrāvakas consisted of the four truths, law of causation, which put an an end to suffering and led to Nirvāṇa, while the teaching for the Bodhisattvas consisted of the practice of *pāramitās*, leading to the highest knowledge or omniscience. In the *Daśabhūmika-Sūtra*, the practice of a particular *pāramitā* is enjoined for the attainment of a particular *bhūmi*.² Thus we see that the *pāramitās* formed one of the fundamentals of the Mahāyānic code of discipline and spiritual progress.

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¹ *Saddharmapuṇḍarīka*, pp. 17 f. 334 f.

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² See AMB., ch. iv: *dāna* in 1st *bhūmi* (p. 259), *śīla* in the 2nd (p. 262), *kṣānti* in the 3rd (p. 267), *vīrya* in the 4th (p. 270), *dhyāna* in the 5th (p. 27) and *prajñā* in the 6th (p. 275).

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The doctrine of *pāramitā* is not mentioned in the early Pāli texts, and was very likely unknown to the early Buddhists.³ The words ‘*pāramiṃ gato* or *pāramippatto*’ (attained perfection) occur in the *Nikāyas*⁴ but nowhere in the Pāli Tripiṭaka, barring the *Khuddakanikāya*, the *pāramitās* are mentioned. The number of *pāramis*, listed in the later Pāli texts, is ten and not six. Dhammapāla, in his commentary on the *Cariyāpiṭaka*, contributes on the ten *pāramis* a long dissertation,⁵ in which he tells us that there were various ways of classifying the *pāramis*. There was also the system of enumerating the *pāramis* as six viz., *dāna-sīla-khanti-viriya-jhāna-paññā*, which is exactly the list as given in the Buddhist-Sanskrit texts. He writes that according to this enumeration, ‘sīla’ includes nekkhama (renunciation) as also sacca (truthfulness), the latter being only an aspect (ekadeso) of sīla; paññā includes ñāṇa while jhāna and paññā together include upekkhā; adhiṭṭhāna he says, is associated with all the six pāramis. Though Dhammapāla was aware of this sixfold classification of pāramis, the Pāli texts usually mention ten and it seems that this list was made out by the Theravādins some time after the currency of the six pāramitās among the sects other than Theravāda. The supplementary four pāramitās of the later Buddhist Sanskrit texts and the Pāli list of ten pāramitās were very likely the products of the same period.

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³ See AMB., p. 12.

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⁴ *Suttanipāta*, vv. 1018, 1020; *Majjhima*, iii, p. 28.

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⁵ *Paramatthadīpanī*, p. 321.

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This doctrine of pāramitā is evidently a later accretion to the fundamental principles of Buddhism, and this took place about the 1st century B.C. Of the several sects that appeared after the Second Council, the Mahāsanghikas and their offshoots, the Andhakas, were the first to deify Buddha and introduce the conception of Bodhisattvas. The object of this group of sects was not only the deification of Buddha but also to find a place for the laity within the religion, to create an interest among the householders in Buddhism. This doctrine of pāramitā was meant primarily for householders; three of the pāramitās were already included in the duties prescribed for the laity, viz., sīla, cāga (= dāna) and paññā.¹ The remaining three pāramitās are kṣānti, vīrya and dhyāna. These, it will be observed, are included in the subsidiary practices prescribed for the laity. The distinction between the pāramitā-practices which made a Bodhisattva and the practices prescribed for the laity is that the former practices had to be carried to the extreme that one can conceive of, while the latter was meant only as a general moral training. The doctrine of *pāramitā* illustrated by the Jātaka stories made a strong appeal to the common-folk, and became instrumental in propagating the religion among the mass. The success of the Mahāsanghikas and their offshoots in increasing their followers led other schools like the Sarvāstivādins and Dharmaguptas, and later the most orthodox of the schools the Theravādins to incorporate this new doctrine into their code, though it was not consistent with their teachings and ideals. The Sarvāstivādins, however, changed their outlook in the altered circumstances of the day, and produced an extensive literature in the shape of *Avadānas* to popularise this new cult.

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¹ The other two are saddhā and suta See above, p. 222-3.

Bodhisattva-doctrine

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As has already been mentioned, the Mahāsanghikas were the first to usher in the conception of Bodhisattva, viz., that a being in any form of existence can have or develop the determination to attain *bodhi* (*bodhicittotpāda*) at sometime or other, however long and arduous the process may be, no matter even if it entails self-immolation, not once but several times in different existences. This conception is not quite clearly expressed in the *Mahāvastu*, where we find the first attempt to detail the career of a Bodhisattva, which is as follows:—

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(i) *Prakṛti-caryā* (duties while a common man)

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(ii) *Praṇidhāna-caryā*¹ (duties when taking the vow for attaining Buddhahood)

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¹ After *bodhicittotpāda* and *praṇidhāna*, there must be also *vyākaraṇa* (prophesy) by a Buddha that such and such a being will become the Buddha.

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(iii) *Anulomacaryā* (duties for spiritual progress to Buddhahood)

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(iv) *Anivartana-caryā* (duties for remaining firm in a particular stage of spiritual progress).

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These four *caryās*¹ are explained in detail thus:—

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¹ In the *Bodhisattvabhūmi*, the four *caryās* are given differently thus, *Bodhipakṣya caryā*, *Abhijñācaryā*, *Pāramitā-caryā*, *Sattvaparipāka-caryā*. Dr. Har Dayal has followed this scheme of *Caryās* in his *Bodhisattva Doctrine*, p. 76. See also Thomas, *History of Buddhist Thought*, p. 201; *AMB.*, pp. 286-289.

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(i) *Prakṛti-caryā*² has no corresponding practice in the full-fledged Mahāyānism. A Bodhisattva is a common man (*puthujjana*) while he is in *prakṛti-caryā*. This *caryā* requires a Bodhisattva to be a good, if not an ideal, householder, fulfilling the duties towards his parents, recluses and Brāhmaṇas, respecting the elders of the family, observing the ten moral rules,³ admonishing others to be charitable and virtuous, worshipping Buddha and Śrāvakas, but not developing the mental state to attain *bodhi*.⁴ Gautama Buddha was in his *prakṛticaryā* during the time of Aparājitadhvaja Buddha.⁵

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² *Mahāvastu*, i, pp. 46-47, 81 cf. *Cariyāpiṭaka* Cy., p. 162.

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³ See *Mahāvastu*, i, p. 107, ii, pp. 14-16. The *daśa kuśala-karmapathas* are:—Refraining from (i) *prāṇātipāta* (killing), (ii) *adattādāna* (stealing), (iii) *kāmamithyācāra* (misconduct), (iv) *anṛtavacana* (speaking falsehood), (v) *piśuṇavacana* (malignant speech), (vi) *paruṣavacana* (harsh speech), (vii) *sambhinnapralāpa* (frivolous talk), (viii) *abhidhyā* (avariciousness), (ix) *vyāpannacitta* (malevolence) and (x) *mithyādṛṣṭi* (wrong view).

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⁴ *Mahāvastu*, pp. 47, 81:

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⁵ *Mahāvastu*, i, p. 1; but see p. 60 where it is said that he

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नैव ताव जनयन्ति मानसं भयपुद्गलगतं नरोत्तमा ।
नैव ताव जनयन्ति मानसं सर्वधमंविदुताय पण्डिताः ।
नैव ताव जनयन्ति मानसं ज्ञानसागरताय नायकाः ।

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(ii) *Praṇidhāna-caryā* corresponds to *bodhicittotpāda* of the developed Mahāyānism. While in this *caryā*, a Bodhisattva takes the vow that by the merits that have so far accrued to him, he may become omniscient, that his zeal in keeping his vow may not flag, that he may end his past evil acts by suffering pains, and that he may wander over this world like the Buddha untouched by the worldly objects as the incomparable teacher, revered by men and gods, and ultimately he may roll the wheel of law,¹ preach the truth, and train up beings like the Buddha the lamp of this world.²

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¹ *Mahāvastu*, i, p. 50:—

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² *Ibid.*, p. 54:—

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Gautama Buddha first took this vow during the time of a past Śākyamuni Buddha after offering him a drink of gruel. He took the vow for the second time during the time of Samitāvi Buddha, and later as the monk Abhiya during the time of Sarvābhibhu Buddha. In this way he took this vow five times.

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(iii) *Anuloma-caryā* corresponds to *Bodhi-prasthāna-citta* of the *Bodhicaryāvatāra* (p. 23). A Bodhisattva immediately after taking the vow, mentioned above, commences performing the duties prescribed for his spiritual progress. The duties to be performed and the virtues to be acquired by a Bodhisattva are

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offered valuable robes to Aparājitadhvaja Buddha and prayed for attainment of *sambodhi*.

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एवमहं लोकमिमं चरेयं यथा अयं चरति असंगमानसो ।
चक्रं प्रवर्तयं अनन्यसाह्यो भवेयमहं देवमनुष्यपूजितो ॥

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अथे चरेयं लोके देवमनुष्यानां देशिय धर्मं ।
एवं विनेय सत्त्वां यथा अयं लोकप्रयतो ॥

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endless. In some texts¹ an attempt has been made to arrange the duties and virtues in a gradual order in ten stages (bhūmis). The keynote of the Bodhisattva practices is self-sacrifice for the good of others with a firm resolution for the attainment of bodhi. The practices mentioned in the Mahāvastu are not only much less elaborate than those found in the later texts, but also are not in a progressive order. Briefly, these are as follows:—

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¹ Daśabhumikasūtra; Bodhisattvabhūmi; Sūtrālaṅkāra of Asaṅga.

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In the 1st bhūmi (Dūrārohā)² the Bodhisattva cultivates charity (tyāga), compassion (karuṇā), unweariness, (aparikheda), conceit-lessness (amāna), love for study (sarvaśāstrādhyāyitā), valour (vikrama), knowledge of the worldly ways (lokānujñā) and patience (dhṛti).

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² See Mahāvastu, i, pp. 85-89.

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In the 2nd bhūmi (Baddhamānā) the Bodhisattva develops twenty kinds of strong inclinations (adhyāśaya) viz., excellent (kalyāṇa), quiet (snigdha), sweet (madhura), etc. Each of these inclinations is explained in verse.³

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³ A bodhisattva while in the first bhūmi remains a prthagjana (common man), but deserving gifts See Mahāvastu, i, p. 78.

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In the 3rd bhūmi (Puṣpamaṇḍitā) the Bodhisattva exerts for making all beings happy without seeking happiness for his own-self, and sacrifices everything even his life for listening to wise sayings.

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In the 4th bhūmi (Rucirā) the Bodhisattva refrains from commission of any of the extreme offences, viz., patricide, matricide and arhanticide, and dissension in the Saṅgha, and stūpa-desecration; he avoids heretic views, performs the ten good deeds⁴ (kuśalakarmapatha); does not use any magical spell for injuring others, does not get depressed in danger nor becomes elated in success, remains pure in physical, mental and vocal acts, as also in his inclinations (*adhyāśaya*).

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⁴ See above, p. 306 n. 3.

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In the 5th *bhūmi* (*Citravistara*) the Bodhisattva realises the fact that worldly existences are ablaze with attachment (*rāga*), hatred (*dosa*), and delusion (*moha*).

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In the 6th *bhūmi* (*Rūpavatī*) the Bodhisattva comprehends that existence in the world is unhappy and painful.

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In the 7th *bhūmi* (*Durjayā*) the Bodhisattva attains complete self-control and wishes for the good of all beings.

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In the 8th *bhūmi* (*Janmanirdeśa*) the Bodhisattva sacrifices everything including the dearest things which are very difficult to part with. From this *bhūmi* onwards the Bodhisattva should be looked upon as the *Samyaksambuddha* as he has mastered the higher meditational practices, acquired full knowledge and delivered wise discourses.

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In the 9th and 10th *bhūmis* (*Yauvarājya* and *Abhiṣeka*)¹ therefore the Bodhisattva has nothing more to attain. Now he can take rebirth in whatever form he likes; he can also become a universal monarch. These two *bhūmis*, evidently, were reached by Gautama Buddha in his last two existences in the Tuṣita heaven and in the mortal world.² He decided to take rebirth as a human being for imparting instructions to men and gods, leading them to *arhat*hood or other attainments. In the later Mahāyānic texts, the Bodhisattva in the eighth *bhūmi* becomes a Buddha *in esse*, a member of the Buddha family with Buddha *gotra*, and guarded henceforward by the gods and Vajrapāṇi.³ In the 9th *bhūmi*, according to these texts, the Bodhisattva becomes a *dharma* preacher, a guide to other beings. In the 10th *bhūmi* he obtains the resplendent body and omniscience while in meditation;¹ he is now consecrated as the *Samyaksambuddha* and so this *bhūmi* is called *Abhiṣeka*.

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¹ *Mahāvastu*, i, pp. 105-6.

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² Thomas, *History of Buddhist Thought*, p. 203.

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³ *AMB.*, p. 282.

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¹ *AMB.*, p. 283.

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(iv) *Anivartana-caryā* of the *Mahāvastu* is equated by Dr. E. J. Thomas² to the *Avaivartya-caryā* of the later Mahāyānic texts. In the *Mahāvastu*, however, it carries a different sense. In this text some lapses are pointed out as causes for retrogression of a Bodhisattva from a higher to a lower *bhūmi*, and so a Bodhisattva is warned about these lapses in connection with every *bhūmi* that may be reached by him. The word *avaivartya* is used as an adjective of the Bodhisattva³ in every *bhūmi*, implying that the resolution of the Bodhisattva for attaining *bodhi* remains unflinching all along. Incidentally the text⁴ mentions that the Bodhisattva while in one of the first seven *bhūmis* may, for any serious lapse, be reborn in one of the lower forms of existence. In the later Mahāyānic texts, the 8th *bhūmi* is called *Avaivartya* or *Acalā*, from which the Bodhisattva can never have any retrogression; he is destined to attain *bodhi* and become a *samyaksambuddha*, and so it is quite different from the *anivartana-caryā* of the *Mahāvastu*.

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² *History of Buddhist Thought*, p. 201.

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³ *Mahāvastu*, i, p. 82: यं पुनर्भों जिनपुत्र अविवर्तियो बोधिसत्त्वो प्रथमं चित्तमुत्पादयति etc.; p. 83: ये इमे भो जिनपुत्र अविवर्तिका बोधिसत्त्वा केवलाकानि तं प्रथमाया भूमी स्थिताः दुष्करानि कृतानोति etc.

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⁴ *Mahāvastu*, i, pp. 102-4.

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The Bodhisattva conception apparently was not fully developed in the *Mahāvastu*. The conception presented in the text is half-way between Hinayāna and Mahāyāna. The Bodhisattva, it has in view, is the previous existences of Gautama Buddha.¹ It makes no reference to the acquisition of pāramitās i.e., the inconceivable and immeasurable virtues acquired by Bodhisattvas in the several bhūmis, as detailed in the Daśabhūmikasūtra² or the Bodhisattvabhūmi.³ There can be no doubt therefore that in the Mahāvastu, we have not only the earliest speculations about the life and career of a Bodhisattva, but also the earliest Jātaka stories. It is in the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka⁴ that we find a fairly developed conception of the Bodhisattva. The Śrāvakas in this work are not disparaged as is done in the later Mahāyāna texts, and a hope is held out to them, that by taking recourse to certain Bodhisattva practices they could still achieve Buddhahood. The new ideals preached in this text electrified the mass, made Buddhism an all-India religion, and we may say that the popular form of Buddhism reached its climax about the time of composition of this work, i.e., about the 2nd century A.D.

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¹ Cf. Thomas, History of Buddhist Thought, p. 201: "The conception of the career in the Mahāvastu also shows more primitive features. It is described not as a career for any bodhisattva, but as having been the career of Śākyamuni and previous Buddhas."

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² See AMB., ch. IV.

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³ Bodhisattvabhūmi (ed. Wogihara), Tokyo.

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⁴ Saddharmapuṇḍarīka, p. 221.

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Gṛhī Bodhisattvas: In the early Mahāyāna texts, there is no express mention of householder-bodhisattvas.⁵ In the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka (p. 20), a Bodhisattva is said to have 800 disciples (antevāsins), but it is not known whether they were householders or recluses. In the Daśabhūmikasūtra, it is stated that in the fourth bhūmi, the Bodhisattva takes ordination, which implies that he could remain a householder up to the fourth bhūmi, or the practice of vīrya-pāramitā. The dhyāna and prajñā pāramitās are to be accomplished after a bodhisattva becomes a monk. In the later Mahāyāna texts like Ugradattaparipṛcchā and Śikṣāsamuccaya, a special code has been framed for the conduct of the householder-bodhisattvas.¹ The pāramitās, it seems, were meant more for the householders than for the recluses. In actual practice, as is found in the Jātaka stories, the pāramitās were being accomplished by laymen, gods and animals, and rarely by ascetics. In the Mahāvastu and other early Mahāyāna texts, the duties of Gṛhi-bodhisattvas are not distinctly prescribed, but in course of time this desideratum of a code was removed and the career of a householder-bodhisattva was clearly chalked out.²

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⁵ Cf. Bodhisattvabhūmi (ed. Wogihara), p. 138:—तत्र कतमद् बोधिसत्त्वस्य सर्वशीलम्। समासतौ बोधिसत्त्वस्य गृहस्थगतं प्रव्रजितपद्यगतं च शीलम् सर्वशीलमित्युच्यते।

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¹ AMB., pp. 295-301.

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² For further details, see AMB., pp. 295 f.; and Bodhisattva Prātimokṣa Sūtra.

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Conclusion: In the pre-Aśokan days Buddhism hardly became a popular movement. It was confined to recluses, the number of which increased to a certain extent owing to the slight deviations made from the austere principles of the earliest form of Buddhism. In his edicts Aśoka did not fully approve of the emphasis laid by early Buddhism on retirement from household life. This attitude of Aśoka might have some effect on the religion. During Aśoka's reign, the caitya and stūpa worship of Buddha's images got currency. About two centuries had elapsed since Buddha's demise, and during this long period, Buddha came to be deified inspite of all the textual injunctions to the contrary. The laymen expressed their devotion by erecting stūpas and decorated them with images of Buddha. The laity, however, still remained outside the Buddhist fold, and earned merits only by making gifts to the monks and offering worship to the Buddhist *stūpas*. They were held out the hope of rebirth in one of the heavens, but not emancipation. At this stage, about the 2nd century B.C. appeared the *Jātakas* and *Avadānas* depicting the previous lives of Buddha and his disciples. These stories caught the imagination of the generality of the people who now hoped that they could become Bodhisattvas and earn necessary merits to become a Buddha in the long run. Their hopes were further strengthened by the doctrine of *pāramitās*, and special texts were composed to show that the perfection in the *pāramitās* assured one Buddhahood and that the practice of *pāramitās* was open to all, recluses or householders. The laymen now felt that they could become actual followers of the religion and derive the benefits. The self-sacrifice preached in the *pāramitā* doctrine had a wide appeal and made Buddhism an all-India religion. It was through the propagation of this *pāramitā* cult that the religion reached the pinnacle of its glory.

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the *prætorian* guards, whose licentious fury was the first symptom and cause of the decline of the Roman empire, derive their institution from Augustus. That crafty tyrant, sensible that laws might colour, but that arms alone could maintain, his usurped dominion, had separated the veterans from the rest of the army, and reserved them for his own service. He established nine cohorts, each of a thousand men, and commanded by a tribune, which were stationed in the neighbourhood of Rome. Augustus, for obvious reasons, never ventured to employ more than three cohorts in the city; but Tiberius, at the persuasion of Sejanus, assembled the whole body in a permanent camp, which was constructed at the walls of the city, and gave the prætorians a decided superiority over the civil magistrates, and even over the senate. Their numbers were afterwards increased by Vitellius to sixteen thousand, and by the Severi to a much greater amount.

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The prætorians were the flower of the army, and were recruited exclusively from Italy, or from the more Romanized provinces of Spain, Noricum, and Macedonia. Their pay was double that of the legionaries, and their term of service was limited to sixteen years, whereas the others were obliged to serve twenty. They were the immediate guardians of the emperor's person, and the arbiters of the empire. Their insolence grew with their power, and they soon learned to despise the authority of the senate, and to treat the emperors themselves as their creatures.

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The history of the prætorians is a history of the decline and fall of the Roman empire. They were the instruments of every revolution, and the authors of every calamity. They sold the empire to the highest bidder, and they murdered the emperors who refused to comply with their demands. The reign of Pertinax, who attempted to reform their discipline, was short and bloody; and the sale of the empire to Didius Julianus, by the prætorians, is one of the most disgraceful events in the annals of history.

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The prætorians were finally suppressed by Constantine the Great, who, after his victory over Maxentius, demolished their camp, and dispersed the cohorts into the distant frontiers of the empire. This was a wise and necessary measure, which restored the authority of the civil government, and delivered the capital from the tyranny of a licentious soldiery.

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