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JAIN JOURNAL
It has been already stated that there is a very striking similarity between these two stories, one Buddhist, the other Jaina. In both of them :
(a) Srenika-Bimbisara was very much impressed by the elegance
and equanimity of the young monk ;
(b) offers him the facility of enjoying the royal pleasures ;
(c) obtains refusal thereof.
But the sequence of the stories forces one to doubt whether the story has been adopted by one sect from the other. Except this single reference we do not find any mention of the sage Anathi anywhere either in the Jaina or the Buddhist literature. We also do not know whether he was a disciple of Mahavira or a follower of Parsva. Nor is there any mention of his ever having seen Mahavira. Dr. Radhakumud Mukherjee is of the opinion that the sage Anathi is none other than Lord Mahavira himself. He arrives to this conclusion on the basis of the word 'anagar-siho' (Lion of the Monks).6 But it is very doubtful because the mention of Kausambi, the name of his father as merchant Prabhuta-Dhana-Sancaya, and the pain in his eyes, all these point to an entirely different personality.
The significant difference in the sequence of the stories may here be noted. In the Buddhist version Bimbisara simply invites the Buddha to visit Rajagrha after his enlightenment while according to Jaina version he accepted the Nirgrantha religion with his family. Anathi's description of another kind of unprotectedness is lashing out at pseudo-monks to divert the king's faith from them. It is difficult to say which sect was his target nor is it easy to pronounce whether Srenika was a follower of that sect. Who were the easy-going Nirgranthas? If they were the followers of Parsva, then, the time of this episode must be fixed between Mahavira's enlightenment and his coming to Rajagrha.
In the Tripitakas There are several references of king Bimbisara's acceptance of the Buddhist faith. In Vinaya Pitaka? it is stated that the Buddha visited Rajagrha after proselytizing thousands of Jatilass, such as, Uruvela,
6 Hindu Civilisation, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bombay, 1964, p. 185. 7 Vinaya Pitaka, Mahavaggo, Mahakhandhaka, pp. 35-38 (Nalanda Edition). 8 Jatilas were ascetics with long matted and twisted hair.
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