________________ 70 Vaisali and the Ideal of Universal Brotherhood many and various; adorned with storeyed mapsions, towered palaces, noble gardens, groves and lotus ponds. Before the dawn of Indian history in the seventh century before Christ, Vaisali was already a centre of power. It even invaded Magadba when its ruler Bimbisara, was laying the foundation of an empire. Friendship, however, was established, and Chellana, daughter of the Licchavi chief, Cetaka of Vaisali, the maternal uncle of Mahavira, became the queen of Magadha. Bimbisara was murdered by his son Ajatasatru, who also embarked upon a career of conquest. Eastern India was then dominated by a confederate power of eighteen republics, of which the Vrijjian (Vajjian) confederacy was the most prominent; and even among Vrijjians, Licchavis were the most powerful. The Vrijjians were at the zenith of their power, headed by the powerful Cetaka of the Licchavis; they were allied to the kingdom of Kagi and Kosala; and Vaisali, then like Athens in Greece, was the republican metropolis of Eastern India. The old rivalry between Vaisali and Magadba flared up; and Ajatasatru decided to destroy Vaisali. A long war followed. Even Buddha, who stood detached and superior to the world, came to Vaisali to advise its leaders. Buddha's famous advice contains a warning to all republics. He warned Vaigali of the dangers which lurk in all republican states disunion, disrespect for tradition and elders, love for swift sweeping changes. Vaigali fell, for it heeded not the advice of Buddha. The realistic Kautily', who knew more than any political thinker in any age, the secret of strength, tells us of all the devices by which a republic can be destroyed. Even the Santi Parva of the Mahabharata, which favours democratic states, indicates that if a republic has to survive, the elders should be respected; secrecy of council should be maintained; internal danger should be chiefly guarded against. A republic can be torn asunder by creating internal dissensions or corruption. And how many democratic states in modern times have fallen or have been undermined by the same vice ! <<Unity is the chief refuge of the ganas". No saner advice could be given to modern democracies, and more particularly to India in these days of her infant life. But Ajatasatru knew bis strength and the weakness of Vaisali. He declared: "I will root out and destroy the mighty Vrijjians. I shall bring them to utter ruin". For years he sowed the seeds of disunion among the people of Vaisali. Across the Ganga he built an impregnable fort as a
