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Smith said,* is thoroughly Indian, a synonym for Visnu, and itis a proof of the rapidity with which the foreign invaders had succumbed to the influence of their environment, though the kings of Kushana d: na dynasty we were anti-Bhagavata at first. It seems then that this faith spread- all over N orthern India at the time. At the time of f_ Nagarjuna and Aryadeva this religion was one of those many schools which they strongly condemned__and 1 rejected, Therefore, we find the Vaisnavism mentioned in Aryadeva’s work ® _under_ TRA. 8, 1915, p, 840. * I am very glad to find that Dr. Hemchandra Raychandhari also holds the same opinion regarding this point in his learned work referred to above. * Sir B. G. Bhandarkar’s Vaignavism, Saivism, ete., pp. 3-4. _* Dr. Hemchandra Raychaudhuri’s Early History of Vaigsnava Sect, p. 57. : Early Histery of India, 3rd edition, p, 272. . ° “Sfitra by Aryadeva _on the explanation of the Nirvaga by Heretical and Hinay&na schools mentioned in the Lankavatara-sitra” ( see Nanjio’s Catalogue No. 1960) in the Su Bundle, Vol. 5, pp. 58b-59b of Chinese Tripitaka, INTRODUCTORY NOTE 29 the name of the ‘doctrine of _Mathara’ .which is the tweflth of the twenty heretical schools. . It will be very interesting to state here that the above-mentioned Mathara was one of the ministers of kiug Kaniska’ II (about 140 A. D.), and at the same fime from other “source we know that he was one of the great Sarnkhya philosophers. From the reference in “‘Kryadeva’s book we can very well conclude that his doctrines on the Sathkhya had Vaisnavistic tendencies and tinges. In the Gupta period this Vaisnava religion was flourishing in the Panjab, Rajputana, Central India and _Magadha. SRS Wg tee he ~The Gupta sovereigns of Magadha describe themselves as ‘ Paramabhagavata’' and were unquestionably great champions of the religion of Vasudeva, though some of them were Buddhist in faith. Thus we see at the time’ of Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Maitreyanatha, Asanga and Vasubandhu, this popular Br&ihmanized religion called Vaisnavism was in a very flourishing condition almost throughout the whole of Northern India. | (6) Saivism.—This is one of the principal popular religions of the Hindus, and this faith was in a very flourishing condition at the time of Nagarjuna. Let us, now, first see whether this religion originally belonged to Brahmanic or non-Brahmanic fold, so that we may understand how this religioas movement came into being and became so powerful. In my opinion, this religion originally belonged to the un-Vedic or Outlandic Indo- Aryan faith. There are so many deities in the Rg-Veda: Agni, Vayu, Varuna, Indra, Sirya, Savita, Rudra and the Maruts (often called Rudras) and others but Siva is nowhere mentioned.? Of course, a word ‘Siva’ occurs ‘ The Early History of Vaignava Sect, by Dr. Hemchandra Raychaudhury, p, 101 * Macdonell’s Vedio Mythology, Pp. 75. 30 ORIGIN OF MAHAYANA BUDDHISM in the Rg-Veda (10. 92), but it was only as an auspicious name of Rudra and not of any independent deity. According to the prevailing notion Vedic Rudra is identified with: Siva. But if we compare the physical features of Rudra in the Re-Veda with those of Siva which were described in thé later Hindu Mythology, we will come to know that they are totally different deities. In the Rg-Veda, Rudra is thus described: “He has a hand, arms, and firm limbs. He has beautiful lips and wears braided hair. His colour is brown. His shape is dazzling, and he is” multiform. He shines like the brilliant sun, like gold. He is arrayed with golden ornaments and wears a glorious multiform necklace. He sits on a car-seat.”* On the other hand, Siva is described in the Bhagavata Purana, which follows the Epic tradition, as “ an impure and proud demolisher of rites, as roaming about in cemeteries attended by hosts of ghosts and spirits, as like a madman, naked, with dishevelled hair, as laughing and weeping, as smeared with ashes from funeral pyres, as wearing a garland of dead men’s skulls, pretending to be Siva ‘auspicious’ but being in reality Asiva ‘inauspicious ’ as insane and lord of bhiitas.”* Regarding this point M. M. H. P. Sastri said in his Annual Address in the Asiatic Society of Bengal: ‘‘Is Rudra really our Siva? The two may be identical in some of the aspects, but in the majority of aspects they differ. The Rudra worship in the Samaveda Sandhya describes him as :— wad vel at ae Ged awfoyayq | wafay fasurd fared aalaa: 0 ‘“* He is the reality. He is the truth. He is Supreme Brahman. He is Purusa. He is black and brown. He _} Macdonell’s Vedic Mythology, p. 74. 2 E.R, BE. Vol. 1, p. 91, INTRODUCTORY NOTE 31 belongs to the Upper region. He has abnormal eyes and pervades the Universe.” But the later conception, wWaifad att cwafaltfint areaeraday, TATU SAAN VIA faEd weAz | UNA PAA ATA TATA farare faaaist fafiaruaet czas fata “Siva is like a silver-mountain, moon-crested, with limbs brilliant with the radiance of a variety of precious: stones, with four hands holding axe, mrga, boon-pose, no-fear pose, with a smiling benevolent look, seated on a ‘lotus, throne, propitiated with hymns by deities on all sides, with five heads. and three eyes, clothed in a tiger-skin, and the beginning and the seed of the Universe.” The conceptions materially differ. * Thus the physical features as well as the conception of Rudra and Siva differ from each other. Who is then Siva? Who possessed forty-eight different names and eight different Mirtis? In the Yajur-Veda (T. 8S. IV. 5, 1: VS. chapter 16) Rudra has ‘been given different . epithets from that of the Rg-Veda. He is called Girisa, Giritra, Pasupati, Kapardin, Ugra,* Bhima, Bhisaja, Sarva, Bhava, Sambhu, .Sarfikara, Siva, Sitikantha, Nilagriva, etc.” And in another place in the same book Rudras are called Ganas, Ganapatis, and Nisidas.?® Here we find different names of Siva in accordance with his representation. Out of forty-eight names of Siva some occur here. And at the same time we also find ‘here five or six of his 2 J. A. 8. B., Vol. XVII, 192%. No. 2, pp. xx-xxi. ® Bengali Visvakosa, Vol. XX, p. 822, and Sir R.G. Bhandarkar’s Vaignavism, Saivism, ete., p. 103. * Ibid, p. 104. 32 ORIGIN OF MAHAYANA BUDDHISM Murtis out of eight.’ Therefore, Di. Macdonell said in his Sanskrit Literature :— “The Rudra of the Rg-Veda has begun to appear on the scene as Siva, being several times mentioned by that name as well as other epiihet later peculiar to Siva, such as Sankara and Mahadeva.” However, our question “Who is Siva?” is still remaining obscure. Of the above-mentioned names ‘Giriga and Giritra’ lying on a mountain, ‘ Pasupati’ lord of cattle, ‘Ganas’ tribes, ‘Ganapatis’ leaders of tribes, workmen, potters, cart-makers, carpenters, and ‘ Nisadas’ the forest tribes, seem to suggest that at. the time of the Yajur-Veda certain peculiar “gods of forest-tribes came to be connected with Rudra. In this connection R. G. Bhandarkar says :— “Thus these’ followers of handicraft and also the forest-tribe of Nisadas are brought into close connection with Rudra. Probably they were his .worshippers, or their own peculiar gods were identified with the Aryan- Rudra.” ® ' Therefore, it is reasonable to think that the god Siva was originally a name of a particular deity of forest-tribes as mentioned above with many peculiar epithets and the said five Mirtis. I think this is the reason why he has been known as the lord of Parvati whom we know under the name of Kali or Darga. She too originally belonged to savage tribes which we are going to discuss under the next section. ‘In the intervening period between the “time of the Yajur-Veda and the Atharva- Veda, the eight Miirtis of Siva came into being in a complete form. But still itis a very curious fact, that in the Vratya book of the - Atharva- Veda (XV. 5, 1-7), we find eight Mirtis of Siva i Hight- Martie are Bhava, Sarva, Paéupati, Rudra, Ugra Mahadeva, Iéina, Bhima. 2 P. 181, and Vedic Mythology, p. 4, and Hopkin’s Religions of India, p. 178. 3% Vaignavism, Saivism, eto.. pv. 104, INTRODUCTORY NOTE 33 except ‘Bhima.’ Sir R. G. Bhandarkar wrote on this point ia the following way without any special note :— “The gods made Bhava the archer, the protector of the Vratyas, or outcasts, in the intermediate space of the eastern region, Sarva of the southern region, Pasupati of the western region, Ugra of the northern region, Rudra of the lower region, Mahadeva of the upper region, and Tséna of all the intermediate regions,”! But MM. H. P. Sastri expressed his opinion on this point recently in his Annual address in the Asiatic Society of Bengal :— “The general notion was that it was meant to bea glorification of the Vratyas. But it is not known whether they were still then in nomad life or settled. But reading the chapter over and over again I found that the Vratyas induced the creator to look within himself, and he saw Suvarna, brilliance. That brilliance increased and grew up, and it became Isana, it became Mahadeva, it became Ekavratya or the totality of the Vratya: community, in other words, the spirit of the Vratya community, the god of the Vratya community...... So the chapter is not exactly the glorification of the Vratyas, but of their spirit, of their god whom they had lost, as stated in the Brahmana of the Séma-Veda, The Maruts instructed them in the Samans, the recital of which - re-united them with their god and purified them for entrance into the Vedic community. This ides struck me and I read the chapter again and again with increasing interest, eagerness and enthusiasm. And Wonder of wonders! I found my Siva there.