Indian Antiquary Vol 43

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarkar
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 130

126
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
(JULY, 1914.
The following 293 years are filled up by dynasties of Magadha of undisputed historical character, and this shows clearly, that it was originally the kings of Magadha who were to be recorded here. And that is just what we should expect, as Mahavira passed nearly his whole life in that country and in close connexion with the two kings Bimbisâra and Ajátaśatru. As for the last 117 years before Vikrama, they are filled up by various kings or princes of partly different nationality, of whom we know with absolute certainty nothing more than that they never had anything at all to do with Magadha.
Thus, we find that the statement of the Jains, according to which their last Prophet died 470 years before Vikrama, or 527 B.C., rests upon a wholly hypothetical basis, and can nowise be trusted. I shall now enter upon the second part of my enquiry and show that it is wholly inconsistent with the adjusted Buddhistic Chronology too, and ought, consequently to be absolutely abandoned.
II. Buddhist relations concerning Mahavira and the Jains-The date of Buddha's death.
The investigations of Jacobi and Bühler have made it quite clear, that the Buddhist and Jain canonical writings speak of persons who are to a large extent identical, although sometimes different names are used to designate them. From this it was rightly concluded by these two eminent scholars, that Buddha and Mahavira must have been contemporaries, must have visited mainly the same localities, and have come into contact with the same kings and other prominent persons of their age. Moreover, Jacobi has shown with absolute conclusiveness that Nigantha Nat(h)a-putta, often mentioned 27 in the Buddhist canon amongst the six heretical teachers, who flourished about the same time as Gotama Buddha, must be identical with Mahavira. And no one will nowadays doubt that these two teachers were absolutely different from and independent of each other, although living at the same time and, perhaps, often enough having to face each other at their wanderings through Magadha.28
Passages in Buddhist canonical writings dealing with Nát(h)aputta and his followers have been admirably discussed by Professor Jacobi in S. B. E. Vol. XLV., p. XV sq. But as his main purpose was there to collect and explain the Buddhist notices of the early Jain creed and doctrine, and less attention was paid to the historical facts possibly to be extracted from these narratives, I shall here dwell upon some of these passages again. As the Pali Canon was, of course, brought into its present shape at a time far posterior to the events related in it, it cannot always be absolutely trusted. But there seems to be rather strong evidence for thinking the main facts related in it to have really occurred, as they are represented there.
The well-known introduction to the Samaññaphalasutla (D.N.I. p. 47, sq.), telling us. how king Ajâta atru of Magadha paid visits to one after another of the six heretical teachers Půra a Kassapa, Makkhali Gosâla, Ajita Kesakambala, Pakudha Kaccâyana, Sanjaya Belathiputta and Nigantha Nâtaputta to hear their doctrines, and at last discontented with all he had learnt took refuge with Buddha may be a little exaggerated, as it is not very credible that Ajatasatru saw seven great teachers after each other in one single night29. But the
27 Passages where Nat(h)aputta is merely mentioned without anything being told about him are for instance CV.V, 8,1; D N. II., p. 150 ; M. N. I., pp. 198, 250 : II., p. 218.; he is called in Buddhist Sanskrit Nirgrantho Jñatiputrah, e.g. Divyavad p. 143 ; Mahávastu I. pp. 253, 257; III, p. 383.
28 The late L. Feer J. A. Sér. VIII, t. XII, 209 sq. held the opinion, taken from the Papaficas idani (v. J. A. 1887, p. 324 n.) that Mahavira never met Buddha, but this is apparently a mistake not to be upheld.
29 The Mavh. Nik. II., p. 2 sq. tells us how the six heretical teachers once spent the rainy season in RAiagrha at the same time as Buddha. Mahåvira spent fourteen of his war as there according to Kalpas. $ 122. But the visit of Ajáta atru is said in D.N. to have taken place in the full moon of Karttika (about Nov. 1) after the end of the rainy season. However, it seems quite possible that it may refer to the same event.