PUBLICATIONS DE L’INSTITUT ORIENTALISTE DE LOUVAIN 36 Ertenne LAMOTTE HISTORY OF INDIAN BUDDHISM FROM THE ORIGINS TO THE SAKA ERA translated from the French by Sara Wees-BoIn under the supervision of Jean DANTINNE UNIVERSITE CATHOLIQUE DE LOUVAIN INSTITUT ORIENTALISTE ‘LOUVAIN-LA-NEUVE 1988 (NMUMENTABLE OF CONTENTS FOREWORD TABLE OF CONTENTS. LIST OF PLATES, DRAWINGS AND MAPS . PREFACE CHAPTER ONE INDIA AT THE TIME OF THE BUDDHA I. — HISTORICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL DATA Vedic Antecedents, The Scen Great Counties ofthe Sixth Century, 7.— ‘The Routes, 9. — The Republican States, 10. — The Four Kingdoms, 10. I, — THE DATE AND LIFE OF THE BUDDHA SAKYAMUNI ‘The Date of the Buddha, 13. — The Life of Sakyamuni, 15. Ii], — THE EARLY BUDDHIST DOCTRINE : .. ‘The Dharma and the Buddha, 23. — The Discourse at Varéyasi, 26. — The Truth of Suffering, 27.— The Truth of the Origin of Suffering, 33. — The Truth of Nirvana, 40.— The Teuth of the Path, 42. — Buddhist Mora lism, 47. — The Middle Way and the Intentional Teaching, 49. IV. — THE BUDDHIST COMMUNITY . 1,—The Monastic Order... i ay The Fourfold Community, $3. — The Dues of a Monk, 34. ~ Disiplinary ‘Acts, 55. — Leaving the World and Ordination, 55. — Equipment and Life of the Monks, 58. — The Ideal of the Monk, 60. — The Absence of an ‘Authority, 62. 2. — The Lay Fellowship . : ‘The Importance of the Laity, 65. — Institution oft the: Fellowship, 66. — The Ideal and Virtues of the Laity, 67. — The Instruction of the Laity, 74. — Respective Rights of the Religious and the Laity, 79. CHAPTER TWO THE MAGADHAN PERIOD. General Features of the Petiod, 85, 1. — HISTORICAL FACTS XIX 13 23 53 53 65 87xi ‘TABLE OF CONTENTS 1, — Magadha, from 546 to 324 B.C. oc Magadhan Dynasties, 87.—— The Haryaikas, 91.— The Sifundgas, 94. ~The nine Nandas, 96. 2. — Uttarapatha Pukkusti, Kin of Gandhara, 100, North: West India under the Achaemenid, 101. — The Indian States under Darius III Codoman, 105. — Alexander the Great in India, 109. — India under the Diadochi, 113. — Ceylon from 486 to 250 B.C... . : aad Chronicles, 118. — Ancient Populations, 120. —The fs five Kings of Ceylon, 123. The Buddha’s Visits to Ceylon, 123. II. — BUDDHIST LEGENDS AND TRADITIONS 1. — The Councils of Rajagrha and Vai Dates, 124. — Narration of Events, 125. — An Assessment of the Conciiar Tradition, 128, — Conclusions, 140. 2. — The Formation of the Canon of Writings... - Ist — The Seven Classifications of the Writings nae ‘The Testimony of Buddhaghosa, 141. — The Single Flavour, 142. — Dharma and Vinaya, 142. — Initial Words, etc, 143. — The Five Collections, 143. — The Nine Constituent Parts, 143. — The Twelve Constituent Parts, 145. — The Relationship between the Afigas and the Tripitaka, 147. — The 84,000 Dharmasksndhas, 148. 2nd — The Tripitaka . : a. Generalities: The relative Antguty of the Tiptaka, 149. — Contents and Arrangement of the Tripitaka, 150, 'b. The Strapitaka: The first Four Pali Nikiyas, 152. — The Four Agamas, 153 — The Classification of the Agamas, 154. — Comparison between the Nikayas and Agamas, 155. — The Pali Khuddakanikaya, 156. — Sanskrit Ksudraka, 159. — The Chanted Verses, 161. — The Canonicity of the Sutras, 163. ©. The Vinayapitaka : The Bases of the Vinaya, 165. — The Structure of the Vinaya, 166. — An Analysis of the six Vinayas, 167. — Ancient Traditions concerning the Vinayas, 171, — Hypotheses on the Formation of the yas, 176. 4. The Abhidharmapitaks : Traditions concerning the Compilation of the Abhi- harmapitaka, 180. — Schools without an Abhidharma, 181. — An ‘Analysis of the preserved Abhidharmas, 181. — Conclusions, 191 3, — The Disappearance of the Good Law Ist — Dates of the Disappearance : : ‘Year 500, 192. — Year 1,000, 194. — Year 1,500, 195. — Year 2,000, 198. — Year 2,500, 195.— Year 3,000, 196.— Year §,000 and 10,000,196. — Year 11,500 or 12,000, 197 87 100 118 124 124 140 141 149 191 192‘TABLE OF CONTENTS: 2nd — Circumstances of the Disappearance... . 4. The Succession of Masters... cies ‘The Vinaya Chiefs, 203.— The Abidhamma Masters, 208. — The Masters of the Law, 206 CHAPTER THREE THE MAURYAN PERIOD General Features of the Period, 213. 1. — HISTORICAL FACTS 1.—The Mauryan Empire 2. 2. eae Ist — The Succession of Kings 2nd —Candragupta. . . . Origin, 218. — Youth, 218. — Seizure ofthe Throne, 219. — Conquest of India, 220. ~ The War with Seleucus 1, 220, — Foreign Embassies, 20. — Death of Candragupta, 221 Sed = Binduasin ceseseenr cent esta. 4th—Agoka 2 1... : a. The Edits: Publication ofthe Edits, 224. —The Extent ofthe Empire, 25, - Noteworthy Dates of the Reign, 226. — The Dharma of Atoka, 227. — ‘Agoka’s Buddhist Inscriptions, 234. ». The Asokavadina, 238. — The Gift of Earth and Birth of Asoka, 239. — The Avadina of King ASoka, 243. — Avadina of Adoka’s younger Brother, 244 — Avadina of Kupala, 246. — Avadina of the half Amalaka, 248, — ‘Avadina of the Reward given by ASoka, 248. ©. The Sinhalese Chronicle on Agoka, 249. 4. A Comparison between the Edicts and the Buddhist Sources, 253 e. Aéoka and Kasmir, 255. f. Aéoka and Nepal, 256. B. Aéoka and Khotan, 257. Sth —The last Mauryas. . 2 2... : 2, — The Greek Kingdom of Bactria Bactria from 325 to 250 B.C., 260, — Diodotus 4, King ¢ of Bact, 202 ead Diodotus If, 263. 3. — Ceylon from 250 to 200 B.C. . Devandmpiyatissa, 266. —- Ustiya, 271. Ul, — BUDDHIST LEGENDS AND TRADITIONS XII 198 202 216 216 216 218 22 223 259 260 266 2mxIV ‘TABLE OF CONTENTS 1, — The Third Buddhist Council in Pataliputra Description ofthe Tradition, 72. — An Assessment of the Tradition, 273. 2. — The Heresy of Mahadeva . Ist — The Terms of the five Theses... eae 2nd — Mahadeva, the Author of the five Theses « 1, The Explanations by Vasumitra, 275. — 2. The Account in the Vibhasa, 277. — 3. The Mahiynist Authors inspired by the Vibhasi, 278. — 4. The ‘Sammatiya Tradition, 281. — 5. Information supplied to Bhavya by his ‘Teachers, 282. 3rd — Persistence of the Heresy under Mahadeva IT 4th — The Mahadevas of the Pali Sources. . . Sth — The Uncertainties of the Tradition . . . . 3. — The Mahasimghika Schism. Bae eee ‘Schism im the Year 4 after the Nirvina, 286. — Schism in the Year 100 after the Nirvana, 287. — Schism in the Year 137 after the Nirvana, 288. — Schism in the Year 100 or 116 after the Nirvana, 288. — Schism in the Year 160 after the Nirvina, 288. — Schism in the Year 236 after the Nirvana, 288. Sie Neen AMORA suerte eteeu HH etee e II]. — THE GROWTH OF BUDDHISM IN INDIA . 1, — The Sinhalese Chronicle... . ade ‘The Data in the Chronicle, 22. — An Ascessment of the Tradition: |. The Initiative of Mogealiputtatissa, 295. ~~ 2. The Lands covered by the Mission, 299, — 3. The Missionaries, 302. — 4. The Themes of the Missionary Teaching, 305. — 5. The Number of Recruits and Conversions, 308, — 6, Mahinda in Avanti, 309. — 7. Conclusions, 310. 2 er Archacology cecice eee ects ae tesaeensetannae ‘The Stiipa, Caitya and Vihira, 310. — Archaeological Exploration : 1. The Lands of the Middle Ganges, 315. — 2. Kausimbi, 322, — 3. Avanti and the West Coast, 324, — 4, Mathura, 330. — 5, North-West India, 332. —6. Central India or the Brahmanic Madhyadeéa, 337. — 7. The Eastern Coast and Andhradesa, 340. CHAPTER FOUR THE PERIOD OF THE SUNGAS AND YAVANAS General Features of the Period, 351 I, — HISTORICAL FACTS 272 214 274 215 282 284 285 286 290 292 292 310 353TABLE OF CONTENTS 1, —The Sungas and Kanvas . . oe ‘The Suosetion of Prince 353, — Pugyamitra, 354, — The Sucoators of usyamitra, 357. — Feudatores of the Suigas, 357. — The Kapvas, 359. — Ceylon from 200 to 20 B.C... oe fe Succession of Kings, 360. — The Peo ofthe Five King, 360. —The Cola Elia, 361. — Dutthagimani Abhaya, 361. — The Period of the Ten Kings, including Vattagimani, 364. 3. — Bactrians and Indo-Greeks - oe eee 1. The Greek Kingdom of Bacti, 371: End ofthe Reign of Buthydemus, 372.— Demetrius, 372. 2. The Eastern Greek Kingdom, 377 : |. Apollodotus I, 377. —2. Menander, 377. —3. Strato I and his Successors, 379. 3. The Western Greek Kingdom, 381 : 1. Eucratides, 381.—2. Helioctes, 383. — 3. Lysias, 384, — 4. Antialcidas, 384. — 5. Archebius, 386. Il. — BUDDHISM UNDER THE SUNGAS 1, — The Persecution by Pusyamitra.. . 2. — The Visnuite Danger. 3, — The Grea Vit itas of the Sunga period... 4, — The Ancient Central Indian School of Sculpture. . Principal Centres, 401.— The Ancient Sculptures, 404. —The Inscriptions, 411. — The Donors at Bharhut and Sitic, 413. II — HELLENISM AND BUDDHISM IN THE SUNGA PERIOD 1. — The Influence of Buddhism on the Greeks ‘The Grocks' Faithfulness to their Ancestral Gods, 415. — The Conversion of Menander, 419, 2.— The Greek Influence on Buddhism. . 2. . 2. ‘The Material rather than Religious Ynftwence, 426. — The ancient Prayer, 430. — ‘The Image of the Buddha, 435, — The Communication of the Legends, 441 CHAPTER FIVE THE PERIOD OF THE SAKA-PAHLAVAS General Features of the Period, 443. 1. — HISTORICAL FACTS 1, — The Saka-Pablavas . . ae ‘The Seythian World, 446, —The Yeh chih and the Saas in Central Asi xv 353 360 371 386 386 392 398 401 4s 415 426XVI ‘TABLE OF CONTENTS. — The Invasion of Parthia by the kas, 451. — The Conquest of India by the Sakas and Pahlavas, 453. — Maues, 453. — Successors of Maus, 456, — Vonones, 457. — Spalirics, 458. — Azes 1, 458.— Aailises and Azes I, 460. — Gondophares, 61. — Gondophares and Saint Thomas, 468.— The King of Taxila and Apollonius of Tyana, 469. — Pacores, 472 2. —The First Satavahanas . . plete Sitavihana Andhrajtva, 474. — The frst thee Sitavahana, 477. — Tem porary Eclipse of Sitavihana Power, 479. Sis he Codis of Kaliige ee 4. —Ceylon from 20B.C.to75AD. . 2... ‘The Succession of Kings, 483. — Mahicili Mahatissa, 484. — Coranaga Mahandga, 484, — Anuli, 484. — Kutakannatissa, 485. — Bhati- ‘kabhaya, 485.— Mahadathika Mahinda, 46. I — THE SAKA-PAHLAVAS AND BUDDHISM. ee Characteristics of the Sakas, 486. — Atrocities of the Sakas, 488. — The Hellenization of the Sakas, 489. — The Sakas and Buddhism, 490. — The Pahlavas, 492. — New Forms of Disseminating the Word, 494. II. — THE BEGINNING OF ROCK-CUT ARCHITECTURE The Ajivika Caves of Bihar, $00. — The Jaina Caves of Orissa, 500. — Rock-cut Buddhist Establishments, 501. — Bhaja, 504. — Kondine, 506. — Pi- talkhord, 506. — The first Caves at Ajanti, 506. —Junnar, $07. — Bed- si, 508. — Nasik, 509. — Karli, 912. — Kanheri $14. CHAPTER SIX THE BUDDHIST SECTS 1. ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION OF THE SECTS Origin and Nature of the Sects, $17. — Geographical Distribution of the Sects, $23. — The Filation ofthe Sees, 528 1. — Lists with two Subdivisions, 29:1, List by the Sthavira, $25 2. List by Vasumitra, 529; 3. List in the Saripatrapariprccha, $325 4, Pai List, 532; 5. List in the Maijjuéripariprecha, 534; 6. List 1 of Bhavya, 534; 7. The Sammatiya List, 535. 2. — Lists with three Subdivisions, 535 : |. Mahdsmghika List, 536; 2. List of Bhavya, 536 3. — Lists with five Subdivisions, $36: 1. The five Schools, $36; 2. List by Séng yu, 537. 4. — Lists with four Subdivisions, $38 1. Disappearance ofthe Dharma- suptakas, 38; 2. The fourfold Census by Hsian sang, 539; 3. The fourfold Census by T ching, S44; 4, The Sarvéstividin List by Vinitadeva, $45; 5. The List inthe two Prochas, 46 5. — Apocryphal Traditions, $46 6 —Conelusions, 547 474 481 483 486 499. S17‘TABLE OF CONTENTS. II — THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE SECTS 1. The Formation of the Buddhist Languages. - a Traditions concersing the Use of Languages, 549 : The Language of the Buddha, $49.— The Adoption of local Dialects by the Buddhists, $52, — ‘Theravadin Conceptions regarding the Language of the Tipitaka, 556, ». The Buddhist Languages, $58 : Traces of Buddhist Texts in Magadhi, $58, — Pili, 62. — North-Western Prikrt, 568. — The Buddhist Languages at the End of the Pre-Christian Era, 572. — Mixed Sanskrit, 574. — Buddhist Sanskrit, 583 : 1. The Early Mahaydnasitras, 586; 2. The Sanskrit Canon, 387; 3, Extra-canonical Literature in Sanskrit, 80. 2. — Progress in the Abhidharma . : Classification of Dharmas, 594. — The Nature of the Dharma, 600. — ‘The Nature of Causality, 604, — Antman and the Series, 605. — The Asamskrta and Nirvina, 609. — Marga, 611 : The Path of the Accummula- tion of Merits, 613. — The Path of Practice, 613; The Path of Vision, 614; The Path of Meditation, 616; The Path of the Aéaiksa, 617. 3. — Concessions to the Aspirations of the Laity... “The Influence of the Lay Sphere, 620, — Sarvistividin and Mahisimghika Buddhology, 622. — The Nature and Career of the Bodhisattva, 625. — “The sth Destiny, 629, — Value cof the Gift and Legitimacy ofthe Worship, 630 CHAPTER SEVEN THE BUDDHIST RELIGION I, — THE STAGES TRAVERSED BY THE GOOD LAW . 7 ‘The Action of Sikyamuni, 639. — The Magadhan Period, 640. — Atoka, 641.— ‘The Conversion of Ceylon, 641. — ‘The Conversion of the Subcontinent, 642. Il. — THE DEIFIED BUDDHA “The God, Superior tothe Gos, 644, — The Sucesve Stages ofthe Legend of ‘the Buddha, 648 : 1, Biographical Fragments incorporsted in the Sitras, 648; 2 Biographical Fragments incorporated in the Vinayas, 652; 3. Autonomous but incomplete “Lives”, 653; 4. Complete Lives of the Buddha, 655; 5. The Sinhalese Compilations, 660. Causes of the Development of the Legend, 662 : I. The Justification of Detail, (662; 2, The Influence of the Holy Sites, 665; 3. The Incidence of Religious Imagery, 665; 4. Borrowings from outside Sources, 667; 5. The distant Journeys of the Buddha, 679; 6, The Lineage of the Sakyas, 681. — The Bodhisattva of the Former Lives, 682. IIL, — SECONDARY FORMS OF THE RELIGION : The Gods of the Triple Word, 685, — The Gods in Popular Devotion, 687. — ‘The Buddhist Holy Ones, 690 xvn 549 349 593 620 639 644 85xviii ‘TABLE OF CONTENTS ‘Maitreya the Buddhist Messiah, 699 : 1. Ajita and Maitreya, Disciples of Bavari, 699; 2. Maitreya receives the Prediction, 701; 3. Ajit, the Future Cakravar- tin and Maitreya, the Future Buddha, 7025 4. Maitreya called Ajita, 705. ADDENDA . : Bose eee ecetee| [New Edicts of Aéoka and the Bilingual Inscription of Kandahar, 711 ABBREVIATIONS : BIBLIOGRAPHICAL SUPPLEMENT . INDEX. seca eeaeey INDEX OF TECHNICAL TERMS . SOURCES OF THE PLATES AND FIGURES MAPS AND PLATES m1 19 745 195 871 873«1-29 CHAPTER ONE INDIA AT THE TIME OF THE BUDDHA I. — HISTORICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL DATA 1 VEDIC ANTECEDENTS. — When, in the sixth century before the Chris- tian era, the man who was one day to become the Buddha Sakyamuni was born, India had a long past behind her. In the second half of the third millenium, the Indus basin had seen the seat of an important urban civilization which was eneolithic in nature. Its two principal centres, Harappa (in the Punjab) and Mohen jo-Daro (in the Sindh), have brought to light, among other monuments, some inscribed seals covered with pictographic writing, the interpretation of which still remains uncertain but which enables us to establish synochro- nisms between the Indus civilization and the Sumero-Akkadian Ancient World of Mesopotamia. Despite some religious features which are Indian in appearance, this civilization seems to have been imported. It collapsed under the blow of cataclysms, traces of which have been uncovered by excavations*, and its disappearance preceded the occupa- ‘ion of India by the Aryans, possibly by several centuries. According to traditional opinion’, it was about the thirteenth century B.C, that the Indo-Europeans, or more precisely the Aryans representing the eastern’ branch of the Indo-Iranians, invaded North-West India in successive waves. They spoke Vedic Sanskrit, a language which was closely connected to that of the Medes and Persians who remained on the Iranian plateau. ‘The Aryan language first served as a literary expression for the Vedas, sacred texts compiled roughly from the fifteenth to sixth centuries B.C. and which constitute the sruti “Revelation”, in contrast to the smrti human “Tradition”. 2 _ In the strict meaning of the word, the Veda includes four classes of literary compositions: 1, The Mantra “Sacred formula”, distributed into four samhitd “col- lections”: Rk, Sama, Yajuh and Atharva Samhita. The first three, which + Other conceptions can be found in R. ScHAFER, Ethnography of Ancient India, Wiesbaden, 1954.2 INDIA AT THE TIME OF THE BUDDHA. «23) constitute the trayi vidya “‘Threefold knowledge”, were from the very beginning considered as canonical texts. The Rk is a collection of verses ‘composed in honour of the gods of the Vedic pantheon, Indra, Varuna, Siirya the Sun, Usas the Dawn, Agni the Fire, Rudra the storm, etc., for the most part, atmospheric deities of a somewhat hazy nature. The ‘Saman is a book of melodies taken from the Rk. The Yajuh contains versified formulas also taken from the Rk, and formulas in prose which should be recited by the sacrificer. The Atharvayeda is a collection of texts on magic which was not considered as canonical until much later. Nevertheless, part of its material is ancient. It includes, alongside songs and incantations for use by magicians, some hymns of great mental elevation. 2. The Brahmana “Interpretations of the Brahman” are treatises concerned with prayers and sacrifical ceremonies. Their main purpose is to interpret the cult practices, but they also contain cosmological myths, old legends and verses celebrating the exploits of kings who were famous in the priestly tradition, Sand 4. The Aranyaka “Forest books” and the Upanisad “Connec- tions or Correlations” appear to be a prolongation of the Brahmana of which they often call themselves the appendices. The latter mark, if not the beginning, at least the intensification of philosophical speculation in which participate not only the priests but also and especially the laity of the royal and warrior classes. The Vedic Sruti as constituted by the texts listed up to here is completed by the smrti or human tradition which is responsible for the compilation of the Veddriga “Auxiliary treatise of the Veda”. They are six in number: phonetics, ritual, grammar, etymology, metrics and astronomy. These complementary sciences led, in the course of time, to the compiling of manuals, the most notable of which from the linguistic point of view is the grammar in eight books (Astddhyayi) by Panini, which fixes the form of the Sanskrit language at the end of the Vedig age (fourth century B.C.). Because they are documents of a purely religious nature, the Vedas supply us with very imperfect information on the early Vedic age, and it would be equally futile to attempt to reconstruct the political and religious history of the Aryans on the basis of the Indian epics of the ‘Mahabharata and the Ramayana. However, one fact can be deduced: the slow progression of the Aryans from the Indus basin to the borders of Bengal during the ten centuries of the Vedic age (fifteenth to sixth cent. BC). The Samhita have preserved the memory of the settlement of the