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28. The place of the Niganthas in the six subcastes
The Buddha told Ananda at Rajagrha that according to Purana Kasyapa's classification, there were six subcastes as follows:
Black - Thieves, butchers, etc., who indulged in slaughter of others. Blue - Beggars. kar mavadi, kriyavadi, etc. Red - Nigantha with a single piece of cloth. Yellow - Nigantha followers clad in white or nude. White - Ajivaka and their followers.
Pure white - Nanda, Vatsa, Krişa-sāṁkritya and Makhali. Gosala.
Source: Anguttara Nikaya,
6-6-57.
Comment
Contrary to the authorship of these six subcastes to Pūraņa Kāsyapa the text under reference, in others like Digha Nikāya, Sāmaññjaphala Sutta, Sämyukta Nikaya, Khandhavagga, and Majjhima Nikāya, Khandaka Sutta, the the authorship is attributed to Gos'alaka. This is apparently a mistake. The Buddhist texts contain many other instances of fals e attribution like this. For instance, Samyukta Nikāya attributes the Ahetuvādā of Gośālaka to Pūrāņa Kāsyapa2. In Jātaka Afthakathā, the views of Pūrana Kasyapa have been superimposed on Mahaviral. In Saṁyukta Nikāya, the entire viewpoint of Gosāla ka has been placed under Prakrudha Katyayana 2. In that text, the six subcastes have been attributed to the latter. The Tibetan edition of the Tripitakas attribute these to Ajit. Kesakambala Buddhaghosa, the commentator of the Tripitakas, has, at many places, linked up the six sub1. Samyukta Nikāya, Khandaka Samyutta, Majjhima Panna
sakā, Upavagga, Mahālisutta 21-2-1-8, (Hindi), p. 352. 2. Book of Kibdred Sayings, Vol. III, p. 61n. 1. Part III, p. 227 2. 23-1-8 3. A. L. Basham, History and Doctrine of Ajivikas, p. 22.
