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110
Gommafeśvara Commemoration Volume
Magadha he ruled for 32 years, (467-435 B. C.), and was succeeded by his son Mahānanda.
It is to be stated sadly that historians, particularly Indians, have not taken sufficient interest to formulate ancient history of India. There is ample material, particularly with reference to Nandas, which, when worked out with interest, will surely yield good result. Very often these kings of ancient times are mentioned by different names in different sources resulting in great confusion. However, this confusion can be got rid off by a careful study of all the available material. This is particularly true with reference to the history of the rule of Nanda and Mahananda as well.
According to the Jaina tradition, Nanda became the king of Magadha when 60 years elapsed from the day of Mahävira's Nirvāņa. Taking into consideration the chronological succession of the kings of Magadha and Avanti kingdoms and of the traditional account related in connection with Mahavira's Nirvāņa, it is ascertained that Mahāvira attained Nirvana in the year 528 B. C. (i. e., 527 years and 2 months before Christ), and that Nanda's coronation, as the king of Magadha, took place in the year 467 B. C. Further again according to a statement in Buddhist chronicles, Gautama Buddha's Nirvāņa took place in the 8th year of the rule of Ajātaśatru and this coincides with the year 525 B. C. Mahānanda's rule commenced in the year 435 B. C.) exactly 90 years after the Nirvāņa of Gautama Buddha, and this same event is mentioned in Buddhist Chronicles with only one variation, i. e., here the king's name is given as Kālāśoka instead of Mahānanda. It appears that Mahānanda had a nick name Kakavarpi and in addition a dignitary name Virasena 10.
The Buddhist tradition maintains that after Kālāšoka, his ten sons ruled successively for 22 years. But according to Burmese Buddhist tradition Bhadrasena and his eight brothers ruled for a period of 33 years. These and other materials aid us to come to the conclusion that after 46 years (B. C. 435-489) of the rule of Mahānanda alias Kalāšoka, bis nine sons Bhadrasena and others ruled successively for 17 years (B. C. 389-372). All these nine brothers were fraudulently put to death by Padmananda alias Ugrasena, son of Kālāśoka, born to a concubine.
The Divyā yadāna, a narrative of the Northern Buddhist tradition, gives a story, according to which Kuņāla, son of Asoka, was deceitfully blinded and out of remorse his son Samprati (Candragupta) was placed by Asoka on the throne of Magadha. Here in this story it is said that after a duration of 100 years from the time of Nirvāņa of Gautama Buddha Asoka shall become a king at the city Pataliputra". This statement cannot definitely be with reference to Asoka the grandson of Candragupta Maurya as he could have become the king not before 250 years from the time of Gautama Buddha's Nirvāņa. On the other hand there is a southern Buddhist tradition according to which it was Kalasoka who
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