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THE SYSTEMS OF INDIAN PHILOSOPHY
followed him to Vaishali and begged to be admitted. Ananda pleaded her case but Gautama still replied : “ Enough, Ananda. Let it not please thee that women should be allowed to do so." But Ananda persisted and asked, “Are women, Lord, capable when they have gone forth from the household life and entered the homeless state under the doctrine and discipline proclaimed by the Blessed one-are they capable of realizing the fruit of conversion, or of the second path or of 37€-ship?" There could be only one reply to this. Honour to women has ever been a part of religion in India and salvation and heaven are not barred to the female sex by the Hindu religion. “They are capable," reluctantly replied Gautama. And Prajapati and other ladies were admitted to the order as fitnegaits under some rules making them strictly subordinate to fHRES. After this Gautama retired to Kaushambi near Prayaga (Allahabad).
In the sixth year after spending the rains at Kaushambi Gautama returned to Rajagriha, and Kshema the queen of Bimbisara was admitted to the order. In the same year Gautama is said to have performed miracles at Shravasti and went to heaven to teach to his mother who had died 7 days after his birth.
In the eleventh year Gautama converted the Brahmin Bharadvaja. In the next year he undertook the longest journey he had ever made and went to Mantala and returned by (to?) Benaras and then preached the famous HERTE uti to his son Rahula, then 18 years old. Two years later Rahula was admitted in the order. In the fifteenth year he visited Kapilavastu again and addressed a discourse to his cousin Mahanama
2. What are meant here are three increasingly advanced
stages of spiritual development.
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