The Sutta Pitaka - Lecture notes 2 PDF

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The Sutta Pitaka...

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TheSut t aPi t aka I n t he Sut t a Pi t aka, we can find a pl e t hor a of hi st or i cal i nf or mat i on.I ti s di vi ded i nt o fiv e Ni kayas:Di gha,Maj j hi ma, Samyut t a,Angut t ar a,andKhuddaka.Di ghai st hefir s toft hese. TheDi gha Ni kaya cont ai nsa numberofSut t ast hatdat ebac k t housandsofyear s.TheSamannaphal aSut t apr ovi desuswi t ha weal t h ofi nf or mat i on about t he cr af t s and occupat i ons t hat exi s t ed at t he t i me of t he Buddha.A number ofi mpor t ant occ upat i onalgr oups hav e been ment i oned,i ncl udi ng weav er s , pot t er s, and bas ke t maker s . Anot her si gni ficant hi s t or i cal al l usi on i nt hi sSut t ai st oBi mbi sar a' smur deratt hehandsof hi sson Aj at asat t u,whi c h occur si nt hepr ecedi ngc hapt er .The Ambat t haSut t ai saBuddhi stt e xtt hatr ef er st oki ngPasenadiof Kosal a,whol i v ed att hesamet i meast heBuddha.Thi sSut t a al so sheds l i ght on t he soci alst andi ng of t he f our Vanna, khat t i ya,br ahmana,v essa,and sudda,who ar e descr i bed as f ol l ows:Amongt hepl ac esme nt i onedi nt heSonadandaSut t aar e Campa,wher et heBuddha t r av e l l ed wi t h 500 monks and me t wi t h ki ng Bi mbi sar a ofMagadha and ki ngPasenadiofKosal a. Addi t i onal l y ,t heAngaki ngdom,wi t hi t scapi t alci t yofCampa,i s descr i bed i n t hi s Sut t a as havi ng been absor bed i nt ot he Magadhan empi r e .TheMahal iSut t a make sapassi ngr e f er ence t ot he Buddha' sr e si dence atVesal i ,whi c hi s notsi gni ficant . Accor di ng t ot he Lohi cca Sut t a,ki ng Pasenadiused t o col l ect t axesf r om t hei nhabi t ant sofKasi Kosal a,ac cor di ngt ot hes t or ey . Heshar ed i nt hebenefit soft hei ncomewi t h hi ssubor di nat es r at hert han by hi mse l f .The Mahapar i ni r bbana Sut t a makes a

passi ngr ef er encet ot heBuddha' sr esi denceatVesal i ,whi c hi s notamaj orpoi ntofcont ent i on.Accor di ngt ot heLohi ccaSut t a, ki ngPasenadiusedt ocol l ec tt axesf r om t hei nhabi t ant sofKasi Kosal a,ac cor di ngt ot hes t or ey .Heshar edi nt hebenefit soft he i ncome wi t h hi s subor di nat e sr at her t han by hi mse l f .When Aj at asat t u, t he Magadhan Monar c h, pl ot t ed t oe l i mi nat e hi s Vaj j i an opponent s, he wr ot e down t he de t ai l s i n t he Mahapar i ni bbana Sut t a.I nr es ponse t ot hi s pl ot ,t he Buddha sai dt hatas l ong as t he Vaj j i ans r emai n uni t ed and f ul filt he sev en condi t i ons oft hei r we l f ar e,t he y woul d be saf e .Thi si s ac cor di ng t ot he t r adi t i on.Howev er ,wi t ht heassi s t anceofhi s t womi ni st er s ,Aj at asat t u wasabl et ocompl e t e l ye l i mi nat et hem. Suni dhaand Vassakar aar et wosi s t er s.I ti scl ai me dt hatt hese mi ni s t er si nst i gat e d di vi si onsamongt hem,whi c h ul t i mat e l yl ed t ot hei rdownf al landt heannexat i onoft hei rcapi t alci t yVesal it o t heki ngdom ofMagadha.Thi sSut t aal some nt i onst hatBuddha, on hi s way t o Vesal i ,st opped at Pat al i gama,wher et he t wo mi ni s t er si n ques t i on bui l taf or ti n or dert oc r ush t heVaj j i ans , ac cor di ngt ot het ext .TheMal l aofKusi nar ai sment i onedi nt he same Sut t a as t he Mal l a ofKusi nar a.I tgoes on t o ment i on Savat t hi ,Campa,Raj agaha,Sake t a,Kosambi ,and Var anasias ot her i mpor t ant ci t i e s i n t he r egi on. The r i ght eous ki ng Bi mbi sar aofMagadhai sdescr i bedi nt heJanavasabhaSut t aas suc h.Ki ngdomsment i oned i nt hi s Sut t ai nc l udeKasi ,Kosal a, Vaj j i ,Cedi ,Vamsa( Vat sa) ,Kur u,Pancal a,Macc ha( Mat sya) ,and t heSur asenaki ngdom,amongot her s .Pavai swher eMahavi r a, t heJai nf ounder ,wassai dt ohav edi ed,accor di ngt ot heSangi t i Sut t a.I tal somakesment i on oft heMal l asofPava,whower ea

communi t y of publ i cans. The Mahani dana Sut t a and t he Mahasat i pat t hana Sut t aar et wosut t ast hatr e f ert ot heKur us' home l and, wher et he Buddha r e si ded f or a per i od of t i me . Campa, Raj gaha, Sake t a, Savat t hi , Kosambi , Var anasi , and Kusi nar a ( al so known as Kusavat i ) ar e among t he ci t i es me nt i oned i n t he Mahasudassana Sut t a as bei ng r i c h and pr os per ous.TheMahagovi ndaSut t ai sar e f er encet oanumber ofgr eatci t i es t hatGovi nda const r uc t ed.They ar e known as Dant apur a of t he Kal i ngas and Pot ana of t he Assakas, r es pect i v e l y .Mahi ssat ioft heAvant i s,Ror ukaoft heSovi r a,and Mi t hi l aoft heVi dehasar et hr e eoft hemos tpower f ulwomen i n t hewor l d.Campai st hehomeoft heAngas,andVar anasii st he homeoft heKasi s.Thi scol l ec t i on ofdi al oguesand di scour se s, known ast heDi ghaNi kaya,i sal soan i mpor t antr ecor d oft he Buddha' sexpl anat i onofhi sdoct r i ne. Thehi s t or i cali nf or mat i on cont ai ned i nt heMaj j hi ma Ni kaya i s pr i mar i l yconcer nedwi t ht hel i f eandt r av e l soft heBuddha,and i sdi vi dedi nt ot hr eesec t i ons.Amongt hemos ti mpor t antsut t as i nt hi sr e gar di st he Ar i yapar i yesana Sut t a.I ti s di vi ded i nt o sec t i onst hatdealwi t h di ffer ents t agesofhi sl i f eand ac t i vi t i es. I nt hecour seofhi swander i ngs ,hei ssai dt o haves t opped at pl ac es such as Raj agaha,Campa,Nal anda,Mi t hi l a,Kusi nar a, Kosambi , Vesal i , Savat t hi , and ot her l ocat i ons . Thi s Ni kaya cont ai ns hi s t or i cal r e f er ences t ot he Vaj j i s and Mal l as, t he SakyasofKapi l avat t hu,t heKasi sofVar anasi ,t heAngasandt he Magadhas,and manyot herhi st or i calfigur e s.I ti nf or msust hat t heVaj j i sand t heMal l ashav ej oi ned t oge t hert of or m Samghas andganas,whi c har ec l ansgov er nedbyf or mal i sedcor por at i ons.

I naddi t i on,wehav ebeeni nf or me dt hatt hepol i t i calr e l at i onshi p be t ween t heLi cc havi sofVesal iand t heki ngPasenadiofKosal a wascor di al .

TheSamyut t aNi kayai sar e f er encet oki ngPasenadiofKosal a, whose capi t alci t y was Savat t hiatt he t i me oft he Buddha' s bi r t h.TheKosal aSamyut t ai s ent i r e l y dev ot ed t o hi m and hi s wor k.I ni t ,you wi l lfind hi s t or i calacc ount soft heconfli c tt hat er upt edbe t weenAj at asat t u,t heki ngofMagadha,andPasenadi . Each one pr ocl ai me dt hatt hey had t aken possessi on oft he t ownshi p of Kasi .Af t er i ni t i al l yt r i umphi ng, t he f or mer was def eat edandcapt ur edbyt hel at t er .Pasenadi ,ont heot herhand, mar r i ed Aj at asat t u' s daught er , Vaj i r a, and gr ant ed hi m owner shi poft het ownshi pofKasi .

When i tcomest ol ar get e r r i t or i als t at es,t heAngut t ar a Ni kaya cont ai nsal i s tofsi xt eenmahaj anapadas( anci entki ngdoms)t hat exi s t ed dur i ng t he t i me oft he Buddha.Anga,Magadha,Kasi , Kosal a, Vaj j i , Mal l a, Ce t i , Vams a, Kur u, Pancal a, Macc ha, Sur asena,Assaka,Avant i ,Gandhar a,and Kamboj awer eamong t he t r i bes r epr e sent ed. The name s of t he i ndi vi dual s ar e i nc l uded,aswe l last hename soft hes t at e s.

The Khuddaka Ni kaya i s of i nest i mabl e val ue f r om t he per s pec t i ve oft he s t udy ofI ndi an ci vi l i z at i on i nt he pr e-and post Buddhi s tper i ods,and i ti s par t i cul ar l y val uabl ei nt hi s r egar d.Many val uabl e hi st or i caldat a aboutt he pol i t i caland

soci oeconomi c hi s t or y ofanci ent I ndi a can be f ound i nt he Jat aka r ec or ds ( whi c h dat e bac kt ot he second cent ur y BC) . Ther ei snodoubtt hatAnga wasoncea power f ulki ngdom,as s t at ed expl i ci t l yi nt he t ext .Once upon a t i me ,Magadha was under t he cont r olofAngar aj a.I ti s sai dt hatki ng Manoj a of Br ahmavar dhana ( anot her name f or Var anasi )c onquer ed t he ki ngdomsofAngaandMagadhadur i ngt her ei gn oft heBuddha. Accor di ng t ot he same hi st or i calr e cor ds,Kasiwas t he mos t power f ulki ngdom i n al lofnor t her nI ndi apr i ort ot heBuddha' s ar r i val .Accor di ng t ol egend,Ki ng Mahakosal a ofKosal a,t he f at herofKi ngPasenadiofKosal a,gav ehi sdaught eri n mar r i age t oki ngBi mbi sar aofMagadha.Thepi nmoneywast hevi l l ageof Kasi ,whi ch gener at ed a hundr ed t housand dol l ar si nr ev enue f r om t hesal eofbat sandper f ume .Wear eal sot ol dt hatmanya fier c e bat t l et ook pl ace be t ween t he sons ofMahakosal a and Bi mbi sar a,Pasenadi ,and Aj at asat t u,amongs tot hert hi ngs .I n oneoft heJat akas,i ti sst at edt hatVi dudabhadeposedhi sf at her and ascended t ot het hr onei n or dert o cr ush t heSakyaswho haddecei v edhi sf at herPasenadibygi vi nghi mt hedaught erofa sl av e gi r lt o mar r y .Vi dudabha di dt hi si n or dert o cr ush t he Sakyaswhohad decei ved hi sf at herPasenadibygi vi nghi mt he daught erofasl av egi r lt omar r y .Hemar c hedoutwi t hamass i v e ar my and was succ ess f uli n compl e t e l y dest r oyi ng t he Sakyas. He,on t heot herhand,hashi tar myme twi t h des t r uct i on.When t heSakyasandKol i yas,t wor epubl i can communi t i es,f oughtf or i ndependencef r om t heBr i t i sh,t hei rt er r i t or i eswer edi vi ded by t heRohi nir i v er .A squabbl eer upt ed be t ween t het woov erwho hadt her i ghtt ouset her i v erasahunt i nggr ound.TheBuddha,

on t heot herhand,wass ucce ssf uli nr e st or i ngpeac eamonghi s ki nsf ol k.The ki ngdom ofKosal a was at t ac ked by a ki ng of Var anasi ,who capt ur e dt he ki ng and i mpr i soned hi m.Dur i ng t he t i me t hathi sf at her was bei ng he l d capt i ve ,t he Ki ng of Kosal ahad ason name d Chat t awhofled wi t h hi sf ami l y .Af t er t hat ,Chat t awasabl et or ec l ai m hi ski ngdom.Vanka,aki ngof Savat t hi ,conquer ed t he ki ngdom ofKasiand sei z ed cont r olof t hecount r y .Howev er ,i twasqui ckl yr e t ur nedt ot heki ngofKasi . I ti ssai dt hatCampa,t hecapi t aloft heki ngdom ofAnga,was60 yoj anaawayf r om Mi t hi l a,maki ngi tt hemostdi st antci t yi nt he wor l d.TheAssakaJat akat e l l st hes t or eyoft heAssakat er r i t or y , whosecapi t alc i t ywasPot al i ,and how i tcamet obe.Accor di ng t ot heBhi masenaJat aka,Takkasi l awasan i mpor t antcent r eof l ear ni ng.Acc or di ng t ot he Si viJat aka, Ar i t t hapur a was t he capi t alofCe t i ' s ki ngdom,and Takkasi l a was t he si t e oft hi s cent r eofl ear ni ng.I ti sal soment i onedi nt heGandhar r aJat aka t hat t he Kasmi r Gandhar a ki ngdom as we l l as t he Vi de ha ki ngdom onceexi st ed.Addi t i onal l y ,t heki ngdom ofKasi ,wi t hi t s capi t alci t yofVar anasi ,i sme nt i onedi nt heJat akas.Theci t yi s descr i bedashavi ngaci r cumf er enceof12yoj ana.Ther ear eal so al l usi ons t ot he Kosal a ki ngdom i n t he t e xt . The Kamboj a ki ngdom i s al so ment i oned i n t he Jat akas , and t her e ar e numer ous r e f er ences t ot he Mag adha ki ngdom t hr oughoutt he Jat akas .Vi de ha' s capi t al ,Mi t hi l a,was l ocat ed sev en l eagues away f r om t he sea,and t he ki ngdom ofVi de ha st r e t ched 300 l eagues acr oss t he sea f r om i t .Kampi l l ai s ment i oned as t he capi t alofUt t ar aPancal ai nt heKumbhakar aJat aka,whi c hi sa Sanskr i t wor k.Thi s boundar y was f or med by a r i ver cal l ed

Campa.Ther ear esomeJat akast hatshedl i ghton t hedi ffer ent cat egor i esofBr ahmana,t hei rposi t i oni nsoci e t yandt hevar i ous pr of essi onsand occupat i onst hatt heyc hose,t heposi t i on oft he Khat t i yas who wer e war r i or s par exce l l ence,agr i cul t ur e and i ndus t r y ,as we l las t r ade and commer c e bot h domes t i cal l y as we l lasi nt er nat i onal l y .

Asi de f r om t he Jat akas, t he Khuddaka Ni kaya c ont ai ns a number of ot her books t hat hav e pl ayed a si gni ficant r ol e t hr oughouthi s t or y .I tment i onski ngBi mbi sar aofMagadhaand ki ngPasenadiofKosal a,whoar ebot h me nt i onedi nt heUdana. The Sut t a Ni pat ai s concer ned wi t ht he soci aland economi c condi t i onsoft hepeopl el i vi ngatt het i meofwr i t i ng.Thesoci al posi t i on oft hebr ahmanas,aswe l last hev ar i ouspur sui t st hey engaged i n as a means of ear ni ng a l i vi ng, ar e adequat e l y hi ghl i ght e di nt hebook.I tal so r e f er st ot hesyst em ofi nt e r nal t r ade. I t cont ai ns hi st or i cal r e f er ences t o Raj agaha and Kapi l avat t hu,whi c h wer evi si t ed byt heBuddha Pat i t t hana,as we l lasMahi ssat i ,Uj j eni ,Vedi sa,Kosambi ,Kusi nar a,Magadha, and ot her i mpor t ant figur es of t he t i me . The Mahani ddesa s peaks ofI ndi a' st r ade wi t ht he Yona and Par amayona,whi c h t ook pl ac e by sea.I nt he di r ec t i on oft he eas t ,i t ment i ons Kal amukha, Suvannabhumi , Vesunga, Ver apat ha, Takkol a, Tamal i ,Tambapanni ,and Java as count r i es vi si t ed by I ndi an seagoi ng mer chant s,as we l las t he me t hod by whi c ht hey navi gat ed t hedi fficul tl and r out eaf t erar r i vi ng att hehar bour . Cul l ani ddesa me nt i onsa t r ader out et hatr unsf r om Pat i t t hana t o Magadha, accor di ng t o t he t ext . Mul aka, Pat i t t hana,

Mahi ssat i , Uj j eni , Vedi sa, Kosambi , Sake t a, Savat t hi , Kapi l avat t hu,Kusi nar aPav a,Bhoganagar a,Vesal i ,andMagadha ar eal lment i oned,aswe l lasUj j eni ,Vedi sa,and Kosambi .The Buddhavams ai s a col l ec t i on ofv er ses t hatt e l l st he s t or ey of Gaut amaBuddha' sl i f e.I tal sor e f er st ot heci t i esofAmar avat i , Kusi nar a, Vesal i , Kapi l avat t hu, Al l akappa, Ramagama, Pat al i put t a,Avant i pur a,and Mi t hi l a,aswe l last hedi st r i c t sof Amar avat i , Kusi nar a, and Vesal i .I ti s ment i oned i n t he Car i yapi t aka ( a post Asokan wor k)t hatt he ci t y ofI ndapat t a, whi c hwasr ul edbyDhananj aya,wasvi si t edbysomebr ahmanas f r om v ar i ous pl ac es such as Kal i nga,Kusavat i ,Pancal a,and Kappi l a,wher et her ewasaki ngnamed Jayadi ssai nt heci t yof Kappi l a,e t c .I tc ont ai ns a l i stofoccupat i onalgr oups suc h as baske t maker s( nal akar a) , weav er s( pesakar a) ,l eat her wor ker s ( cammakar a) ,car pent er s( t acc haka) ,me t al wor ker s( kammar a) , bl ac ksmi t hs, gol dsmi t hs , t i nsmi t hs, j ewe l l er s ( mani kar a) , pot t er s ( kumbhakar a) , cl ot h me r c hant s ( dussi ka) , dyer s ( dussi ka) ,and c l ot h mer c hant s( duss( r oj akar a) .Theher edi t ar y cr af t smen and t hose who pr ac t i sed var i ous occupat i ons and pr of essi ons banded t oge t hert of or m v ar i ous gui l ds ( known as seni s and pugas)and agr eed t o be gover ned by t he l aws and cust oms oft hei rr es pec t i v e gui l ds.Thi s wor k al so di scusse s I ndi a' si nt e r nat i onalt r ader e l at i onswi t ht her es toft hewor l d.A number of t r ader s and me r c hant sf r om var i ous count r i es , i nc l udi ng Mal aya ( Mal ay Peni nsul a) ,Suvannabhumi( Bangkok) , and Ci na ( Chi na) ,pai d vi si t st oI ndi a,asevi denced byt hef ac t t hatt heywer et her e....