A BUDDHIST LEGEND REWRITTEN : DEVADTTA AND HIS CHARACTER

Author(s): G. S. P. Misra
Source: Proceedings of the Indian History Congress , 1967, Vol. 29, PART I (1967), pp.
99-107
Published by: Indian History Congress

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/44155479

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 ANCIENT INDIA 99

A BUDDHIST LEGEND REWRITTEN : DEVADTTA AND HIS

CHARACTER

G. S. P. Misra ( Jaipur )

Devadatta is generally known as the notorious antagonist

Buddha. As opposed to Buddha who stands for perfection and enlig
enment, Devadatta represents the evil forces and is, for this d
doomed to hell for a long duration (for a kalpa, an aeon as the texts
According to the Pali Vinaya Pitaka the three reasons for his damn
are, 1. evil desire ( pãpicchatã ) 2. evil friendship ( papami tta
and 3. the coming to a halt midway in the career because of his sp
attainment having value ( oramattakena visesãdhigamena antara vos
I ì pei di ).1 With the passage of time the words used for him became
and more contemptuous, e. g., the Jataka stories beat the earlier t
in the demonstration of their detestation and contempt for him. T
Buddhist texts make us believe him to be a bad character and the

authenticity of the account has never been doubted. The purpose of

present paper is to try this legendary account on the touchstone of
available historical facts and thereby to assess his actions in th
background of the contemporary customs and practices.
Before we move further, it is desirable to know the story of th
person as given in the texts. The Pāli Vinaya Pitaka devotes a full chap
to it entitled 'Chapter on Schism' - a charge of which he is particula
accused. In short the story runs as follows:2 Devadatta sought initiat
in the Order of Buddha along with five other young nobles of the Sak
clan and their barber. He took ardently the discipline of the ascetic
and in a short time became master of super-normal powers through w
he was successful in converting A jãatáatru, the Crown-Prince ofMaga
to his side as his great admirer. Later on the instigation of Devadatt
Ajata^atru made an attempt to kill his father. A desire to become
head of the Sańgha came to prevail on Devadatta and he approach
Buddha and put before him his proposal in a respectful tone tha
the Lord was now quite old it would be better if he passed the remain
time of his worldly existence in enjoying the pleasures of libera
and passed on the headship of the Sangha to him. Buddha refus
Devadatta became angry and went away. Immediately after this incid
Buddha summoned the assembly of monks at Ràjagrha to conduct
'PrakaáanTya karma' of Devadatta i. e. it was resolved in the assem
that since the mind of Devadatta had undergone change, the San
disowned any responsibility of his deeds. Devadatta now made a num
of attempts to end the life of Buddha. He persuaded Ajataśatru to se

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100 INDIAN HISTORY CONGRESS

some murderers to kill Buddha but they

Once while Buddha was taking a stroll in
hill, Devadatta himself rolled a big sto
intention to kill him. Buddha, howeve
was only slightly injured in the leg.
attempts, he caused the elephant keep
trample him but the friendly poise of t
the elephant surrender itself at his f
defeat Buddha in his own quarters. H
monks proposing to create a schism
difference of opinion on five Vinayic po
Buddha for his consent but had all the l
These five points were : as long as lif
forest dwellers, 2. beggars for alms, 3
live at the foot of a tree and 5. let them
happened in the expected manner. De
many monks to his hide and in an uposat
to the effect that they agreed with him
Then he retired to Gayãáírsa and star
teacher, Devadatta could not enjoy the fruits of his schism
for long for the deviated monks were approached and won back to
the Order by Śari putta and Maudgalyãyana the two famous disciples
of Buddha. The account concludes that this defeat caused much pain and
agony to Devadatta and he vomitted blood.
This is in short the account of Devadatta's life as given in the
most ancient text of the Buddhist canon viz. the Pali Vinaya Pitaka.
The presentation of the story tends to draw in the mind of the readers
a figure of a very bad character who, propelled by the desire for the
headship of the Sarigha, commits a number of sinful acts. Our purpose in
this paper is to see if this conclusion conforms well to other available
facts and to assess the possibility of character-assassination of a person
who had gone against the propounder of the Dharma to the extent of
disintegrating the original Order.
In 1923, A. M. Hocart published an article in Indian Antiquary 3
in which he tried to show that 'the rivalry of Buddha and Devadatta is,
an echo of the friendly and ceremonial antagonism of the cross-cousins,
which with the disappearance of the custom might have been misinter-
peted as a bitter enmity. According to Hocart, Buddha and Devadatta
were cousins and at this time existed in Northern India a custom of
observing a ceremonial rivalry between two cross-cousins which lat
supplied a basis for this myth. Otherwise he fails to see any reason in th

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 ANCIENT INDIA 101

attribution of miraculous pow

Devadatta, the wicked one. He spe
to the event when Devadatta a
requesting him for the headship
latter in an abusive language (
be vomitted like spittle). He ar
with the character of the Buddh
In the very next issue of the Jou
by Kalipada Mitra. He agreed w
cousin system was prevalent in N
his views on the rivalry betwee
use of an abusive language by B
datta is not an exclusive one. We
itself that Buddha uses the sam
vāja when the latter performs
sandalwood-bowl and gives a show
sects.5 It seems more appropria
signifying nothing else but a rebu
evil act that the latter might hav
tion of magical power to Devad
all the other heretical ascetics
Kassapa, Ajita Kesakambala, Pak
putta, Nigaņflia-Nātaputta by n
dowed with magical powers. ' Act
among the people that by prac
attain super-normal powers and pe

In an aticle B. G. Gokhale has t

deeds of Devadatta. On the evid
(1.1. 112-117) and the tradition re
p. 83) he comes to believe that
faith propounded by his cousin m
rent desire', and that 'he was made to enter the Order much against
his will'. He further says, "If this fact be well remembered, .many of
his later actions become easier to comprehend". He, however, notices a
number of contradictions in the account and feels ethat a real Devadatta
tradition is lost to us, 'but his first contention in this context goes to
suggest that he very much believes in the truthfulness of the account
that Devadatta had a genuine and deep-rooted sense of rivalry toward
Buddha and all his actions were propelled by it.
Let us now examine the account side by side with others facts we
have at our disposal.

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102 INDIAN HISTORY CONGRESS

It has been seen above how the belief was

practice of ascetic discipline led one to the att
All the contemporary ascetic teachers of
undergoing the ascetic discipline in all sincer
( i. e. Enlightened) possessing supernormal po
led in the ascetic community and the poss
probably also considered a measuring yard in
a seeker of the truth had advanced toward th
The very fact that the author of this legend
cal powers to Devadatta is a sufficient proof
had followed the rules of asceticism as an ard
by earned a great repute. At one place
the passage obviously composed before his at
of Devadatta is included in the list of eleven teachers who have been
called budhha i. e. awakened. Whether he sought initiation of his own
accord or was forced by other factors to do so much against his will (as
B. G. Gokhale has tried to establish) - has actually nothing to do with
this conclusion. He had practised asceticism sincerely notwithstanding
his allegedly possible entrance in the Order against his will, and this
is what we are concerned with. His latter belief may be taken to have
overshadowed his prevoius disinterest if, at all, there was any. He was
popular among the populace and commanded great respect from the
Crown Prince of a powerful state like Magadha.
Now comes the question of the propriety or the impropriety of
Devadatta's request to Buddha for the leadership of the Sarigha. He
approaches Buddha and places his proposal before him in a very respec-
ful tone : 'Lord, the Lord is now old, worn, stricken in years he has
lived his span and is at the close of his life; Lord, let the Lord be now
content to live devoted to abiding in ease here and now, let him
hand over the Order of monks to me. I will lead the Order of monks !"8
In this connection the fact should not be forgotten that it was the com-
mon practice of the age that one who intended to lead a homeless life
and seek the truth took refuge with some religious teacher who instruct-
ed him in the way. There were a number of such teachers who gathered
round them a large number of disciples, acted over them as their sup-
reme heads and controlled and regulated their life. Every religious group
was headed by some one or the other called safighi, gani or gaņacariva.
The three famous contemporary Jařila teachers, Uruvela-Kassapa, Nadi-
Kassapa and Gayä-Kassapa, were the leaders ( nãyaka) or large bands of
disciples numbering five hundred, three hundred and two hundred res-
pectively. Saííjaya-Belatřhaputta was another such teacher who has

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 ANCIENT INDIA 103

been mentioned as heading a gro

The Vinaya records that when
Maudgalyãyana) went to Saïïjay
over to the Buddha's Order, the
leadershipof his Saîîgha. 1 1 It
the authority to call or nomina
probable that successors were n
own life-time (as it is even tod
approach to Buddha for leaders
spirit and custom of the age.
prevalent system and it is a di
did not want his Order to be
Dharma itself. By this time th
the custom, the question of suc
minds of his disciples. Even t
Immediately after the death
Magadhan minister, Varsakāra,
after. 12 It was a novel inventi
part of Buddha when he vested
tion and an abstract entity ( Dh
the action of Devadatta was v
custom and one should not se
passible that until this time
this topic.
One can easily waive aside the accounts of Devadatta's murderous
feats as fabrications of the imaginations of the author of this legend
with a motive behind it. But, could one see the cleanness of intention
in his proposal for the introduction of the five stringent ascetic rules in
the Buddhist order ? The account says that he know that Buddha would
not accept it. This part of the story that he deliberately framed such
rules as could not be acceptable to Buddha, seems to be a deliberate
fabrication; it is altogether a different matter that he asked for the in-
troduction of these rules and Buddha declined to accept the proposal.
We should view the whole thing in the light of the general modus vivendi
followed by the ascetics. Mostly, the ascetics believed that the way-farer
should practice a severe discipline amounting to a considerable torture
to one's physical body and that self-mortification and severe austeries
were the only source of emancipation. As the common life of worldy
indulgence, which involved sensual pleasures and comforts, was regarded
as the cause of bondage of Samsara , it was thought logically following
from it that the opposite of it would bring about the removal of this

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104 INDIAN HISTORY CQKGRESS

bondage and a permanent check to the r

deaths. Many of these ascetics indulge<d t
practices; but, the philosophy which wo
same, i. e. to torture the body for the
Ãjivakas and the Jai nas who are very mu
too, pleaded for a hard ascetic life whic
ascetic ideal jf the severance of ties with a
people. The Ājīvakas lived naked and co
bowl; they received their alms in their ha
designation. 'hatthāpal ekhaņas'.13 In confo
rous ascetic life, Mahavira, the Jaina teach
for himself but permitted his followers
noteworthy in this connection that prior
himself had practised severe austerities
futility of such practices and forsook the
here is to point out the general Sramani
life. It is interesting to quote in this cont
varglya monks' 14 when Budda after his E
and claimed to have got the truth; 'But, y
come to a state of furthermen to the emi
of Knowledge, by this conuct, by this cou
erities. So how can you now come to a stat
nence of the truly ariyan vision of Knowl
dance, are wavering in striving and hav
ance ?'15

In comparison to other ascetic groups the Buddhist discipline was

very simple and much less rigorous. The Buddhist doctrine of the
'Middle Way' tended to minimize very much the hardships involved in
the ascetic life. The Jainas, viewing from their own standpoint, a ccused
the Buddhists of a luxurious living.16 That the life in the Buddhist
Sańgha so appeared in the eyes of the people is attested by a story
recorded in the Buddhist work Vinaya itself. 17 The parents of a
boy named Upãli, discuss between them as to what vocational course
should they choose for their son, which would conduce to his future
happiness. They think that if he learns writing ( lekha ), his fingers would
be pained, if calculation (ganaría) his breasts and in case of money-
exchanging ( rupa ) his eyes ; finally they decide to send him to the
Buddhist Order where, it is their impression, the monks live happily and
comfortably.
Taking into account all these facts it seems very likely that
Devadatta's demand to introduce the five hard ascetic rules for his fellow

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 ANCIENT INDIA 105

monks might have been mot

occasioned by the general atm
the Buddhist monastic rules ap
also cite here the argument he
was that Buddha himself had
content, practised austerity
bhante anekapariyã appiccha
pãsãdikassa apaccayassa viriyã
the Order did not conform at all to this S rama nic ideal of hard life. This
remark sounds like a protest raised against a leader by a bold follower
who feels that the leader made some promises which he has failed to
fulfil. It was his genuine feeling and he had the courage to express it.
It is very probable that Devadatta's approach to Buddha for the
leadership of the Sarìgha and his proposal for the introduction in the
Order of the five stringent rules were two different events in the life of
Buddha having no connection with each other and each pursued by
Devadatta not necessarily with any bad motive behind it. Later, the
two events were closely knit together into close relationship by the
Buddhist monks who tried to establish that all the later actions of
Devadatta were propelled by his desire for leadership of the Sarigha
They further tried to season the account by introducing some stories of
murderous feats on the part of Devadatta. From their point of view
Devadatta was a sinner who betrayed the original teacher of the Order
in whom they had absolute faith.
Let us also see as to how effective was the action of Devadatta. The
Vinaya account tries to make us believe that it had a very temporary
effect and the two famous lieutenants of Buddha, Śariputra and Maud-
galyãyana, were able to win over the schismatic monks back to the
original Order which pained Devadatta so much that he had bloodvomits.
This seems to be an exaggerated account and there are reasons to
believe that the event had a lasting effect. Prof. T. W. Rhys Davids
thought that the sect of the 'Gotamakas', which finds mention in the
list of the ten classes of ascetics referred to in Buddhist texts, probably
refers to the sect of Devadatta the Gotama here being probably the clan
name of Devadatta. 19 Fa-hsien, the Chinese traveller who payed a visit
to India in the beginning of the fifth century A. D., notices in Sràvasti
the existence of the followers of Devadatta who made offerings to other
past Buddhas but not to Sakyamuni.20 Thus, for at least one thousand
years after Buddha's death there is evidence of the survival of his impact.
It is also noticeable that in some other sects the memory of Devadatta
Jļas been stored with great respect than among the Sthaviravãdins; the

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106 INDIAN HISTORY CONGRESS

Saddharmapnd arjka , for example, state

the way of Buddha Devadatta helped
Enlightenment and that he would be a
All that has been said above, we be
personality of Devadatta in its correct f
seems to be a deliberate fabrication on t
hist monks to denigrate a spiritual rebel

1. Cullavagga (ed. by Bhikkhu J. Kashyap),

Pāli Publication Board (Bihar Government
Discipline (Vinaya Pitaka) Part V. (Cullava
Luzac and Company Ltd., London. 1952. p.
Just before this passage is given Anothe
Devadatta responsible for his damnation
These qualifications are probably an elabo
to make them parallel in number with th
see, Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethi
Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, 1955, p
2. The Book of the Discipline , Part V, op. cit
3. A. M. Hocart, 'Buddha and Devadatta', Indian Antiquary, Vol . LII, 1923,
pp. 267-272.
4. Kalipada Mitra, 'Cross Cousin Relation between Buddha and Devadatta',
Indian Antiquary , Vol. LIII, 1924, pp. 125-128.
5. Cullavagga , Nal. ed., op. cit , p. 200; The Book of the Discipline , Part V, op.
cit., pp. 151-152.
6. Cullavagga, Nal. ed., op. cit. p . 199, aham hi...araha ceva iddhimà ca ; The Book
of the Discipline, Part V., op. cit., pp. 149-150.
7. B. G. Gokhale; Devadatta and his Life', Journal of the Bombay li ranch of the
Boyal Asiatic Society (New Series), Vol. *0, 1944, pp. 61-64.
8. The Book of the Discipline, Part V, op. cit., p. 264.
9. The Book of the Discipline (Vinaya Pitaka), Part IV (Mahãvagga), translated
by I. B. Horner, Luzac and Company Ltd. London, 1951, pp. 32-33.
10. Ibid., p. 52.
11 . Ibid., p. 55.
12. The Collection of the Middle Length Sayings ( Maj jhima- Nika ya), Vol. Ill,
translated by I. B. Horner, Published for the Pali Text Society by Liizac and
Company Ltd., London, 1959, pp. 59-60.
13. For the history, doctrines and practices of the 'Xjvakas, see, A. F . R.
Hoernle, «Xjivakas* in Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics , Vol. I (ed.
James Hastings), New Yoik, Charles Scribner's bons, 195.% pp. 259-268.
14. The five monks who had attended Buddha before his Enlightenment when the
latter was practising severe austerities for the attainment of the goal. Later,
they left him when he, believing that such practices were futile, forsook them
and accepted food.
15. The Book of the Discipline , Part IV op. cit., p. 14.
16. On a passage in the Sutrakritihça, the commentators, according to wfropi ft

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 ANCIENT INDIA 10 1

refers to the Buddhists, remark, "

pleasant seat and bed, a muni in a p
things." see, J aina Sutras , pt. II (t
the East, Vol. XLV (ed. F. Max Mulle
17. The Book of the Discipline , Part.
p. 80.
18. The Book of the Discipline , Part V.
19. See, Dialogues of the Buddha (tran
Davids) I. Oxford University Press, L
20. H. A. Giles, The Travels of Fa-hsie
Kingdoms, 2nd. impression, 1^56, pp.
21. Saddharmnpundarika, The Sacred B

THE IDENTITY OF HERAKLES AND DIONYSOS IN

MEGASTHENES

Suvira Jaiswal ( Patna )

In a recent work published in 1962 Allan Dahl qui st has examined

afresh the problem of the identity of Herakles and Dionysos in t
classical passages on Indian religion. He questions the validity
of the prevailing view that the two stand for the gods Krsņa and Siva
respectively and suggests an alternative hypothesis. According to him
Herakles is Indra and Dionysos a culture-hero-god of the Mundas not
mentioned in the Sanskrit or brāhmaņic literature but still living in the
traditions of the primitive hilly tribes of Chota Nagpur and Orissa.
He is of the view that Purāņic religion had not yet arisen in the time
of Megasthenes; the people of the plains were devotees of Indra, while
the non-Aryan inhabitants of the hills of the Hindu Kush, the Punjab
and Chota Nagpur worshipped Dionysos and followed a religion which
was essentially similar to that observed by the present day Mundas.
Dahlquist makes a searching analysis of the Greek and Sanskrit sources
as well as modern anthropological data; and as survivals of cults and
practices over thousands of years are facts of Indian History, an
anthropological approach to the problem is no doubt worthy of serious
consideration. However, following Dahlquist, we must first ascertain
the identity of Indian Herakles before proceeding to Dionysos, for one
of his main arguments rests on the ''sharp distinction" between the
cultural complex of the two Indian gods in Megasthenes.3
Although we need not deny the existence of many aboriginal
tribes which were not yet Aryanised or only partially Aryanised in the
time of Megasthenes, we must bear in mind that even the population

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