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He is Tsina, he is Mahadeva,” * And again he said :— “But the most Striking and convincing clue to the identification is given in the fifth paragraph of the same 1 Vaignavism, Saivism and etc., p. 105. * J, A, SB, Vol. XVII, 1921, p. xxii 34 ORIGIN OF MAHAYANA BUDDHISM chapter. ‘The eastern quarter from the Antaradega gave him Bhava as his servitor, the southern quarter from the same Antaradesa gave him Sarva, the western quarter gave him, Pasupati, the northern quarter gave him Ugra, the Dhruva gave him Rudra, upper regions gave him Mahadeva and the whole of the Antaradesa gave him Isana. Here we get the seven of the eight Murtis of Siva.” ?! - And he said in conclusion that Siva was the god of nomad Vratya or spirit of Vratya. This new investigation of his itself. gives some light on the subject. But his explanations as well as his view, seem to me to be partially right. Practically the seven Mirtis of Siva in the Vratya book of Atharva-Veda as has been said by MM. H. P. Sastri open a new debate before us. But already before the Atharva-Veda we find in the Vajasaneya Sarnhita itself five of the seven Mirtis of Siva as I have stated before. But we should admit that there is a close connection between Siva and the spirit of Vratyas. In my opinion, originally Siva was the name of a peculiar god of the Nisadas or forest-tribes. But afterwards, he was brought into close connection with Rudra of the Aryans and identified with the latter by the Vedie Aryans in the time of the Yajur-Veda. This is the reason why we find many names of Siva as a characteristic of forest god in the Vajasaneya Samhita, and why again’ “Rudra of the Rg-Veda began to appear on the scene as Siva in the Vajasaneya Samhita. And simultaneously with this, in the end of the Yajur-Veda as a whole and in the time of the Atharva-Veda, the Vratyas or the Outlandic Indo-Aryans, took the Mirtis of Siva and engrafted them on- their own god, in order to heighten his glory. Here a question may arlse why * J. A. 8. B., Vol, XVII, 1921, p. xxiii, INTRODUCTORY NOTE 385 Vratyas manifested their god under the name or Mirtis of the forest god of Nisada without taking any from the Vedic Aryan Pantheon? The reason of it probably, is that the Vratyas being Aryans outside ‘Vedic Circle always fought against the Vedic Aryans. Therefore, their sympathy naturally tended towards other tribes besides the Vedic Aryans. We know that it is always an admitted human trait to adopt and import ideas from the quarter of our sympathisers. Fortunately for them they found the auspicious name Siva and his Murtis among the Nisidas engrafted on their own god and glory of their spirit. Thus the god Siva originally belonging to the forest tribes or Nisadas was then connected with the spirit of the Vratyas, the outlandic Indo-Aryans. Therefore, the so-called Saivism was a combination, a dual element of worship. And this religious movement was afterwards Brihmanised by the Vedie Aryan priests in order to encounter the rather strong Buddhist movement at the time of King Asoka. This ultimately Brahmanized god ‘Siva was* widely worshipped in India at-the—boginning of the Christian era. Vasudeva I (about 10 A. D.) and Wema-kadphises (about 75 A. D.), both powerful princes of the Kusana dynasty, who ruled over a large part of Northern and North-Western India, styled themselves on the reverse of their coins as devotees of Mahesvara, or Siva. The author of Amarakosa ‘gives ‘forty-eight names of Siva, showing thereby how widely the worship of the god prevailed in India in the early centuries of the Christian era. This Saivism is also referred to in Aryadeva’s work. There we get Saivism under thé name of Isana and Mahesvara as the 5th and the 15th among the twenty heretical sets of doctrines. This clearly shows that the Saivism was a powerful religious movement at the time of Nagarjuna and Aryadeva. 36 ORIGIN OF MAHAYANA BUDDHISM Therefore, obviously it was one of the butts of attack for the Buddhist at that time. : (ce) Saktism.—Like Visnu and Siva, the worship of Sakti or the: active female principle as manifested in the form of the consort of Siva is occupying a very prominent position among the Hindus as one of the popular religions. Sakti or Devi is known by different names: Ambiké, Durgé, Uma, Katyayani, Bhadrakali, ete. Among these, Ambika, Durga, Uma are very famous epithets of the Devi. But the name Durga is the most predominant one. In the Mahabharata (Bhismaparva, chap. -23), there is a hymn addressed to Durga by Arjuna under the advice of Krsna in which she is prayed for grauting victory in the forthcoming battle. ‘this hymn itself shows that at the time when it was composed and inserted in the poem, Durga had already acquired such importance that she was adored by men as a powerful goddess, able to fulfil their desires. Of the names by which she is addressed we get the following: Kumari (maiden), Kali (black or female time as destroyer), Kapali (wearer of skulls), Mahakali (the great destroyer), Candi (angry), Katyayani (of the Katya family), Karala (frightful), Vijaya (victory), Kausiki (of the Kusika family), Uma, Kantaravasini (dwelling in the forest).! These names are, methinks, nothing but’ personifications of different attributes of Devi or Durga. Let us examine the history of some of these names like Durga, Uma, and Ambika. Umai.—In the Kena Upanishada (III. 25) Uma is said to be the daughter of Himavat. Prof. Jacobi writes about Uma, thus :— Apparently she was originally an independent goddess, or at least a kind of divine being, 1 Sir R. G. Bhandarkar’s Vaignavism, Saivism, ete., pp. 142-143. INTRODUCTORY NOTE 37 perhaps a female mountain ghost haunting the Himalaya and was later identified with Rudra’s (Siva) wife?! Mr. Ramaprasida . Chanda writes thus:—‘ the epithet ‘Haimavati’ or daughter of ‘Himavat’ indicates that the goddess Uma was oneinany worshipped by the dwellers in the Himalaya region.” Durga.—Though she is mentioned in the Taittiriya Aranyaka (XI) as the daughter of the ‘sun or fire, however, in the Mahabharata - (Harivarhsa, V. 3274) she has been mentioned as a Vindhya-Vasini. Prof. Jacobi writes: “ A similar mountain-goddess had her home in the Vindhyas. She was of acruel character, as might be expected from a goddess of the savage tribes living in those hills. Her name is Vindhya-Vasini, and she too is identified with Siva’s wife.’* Ina hymn to the goddess given in the Harivarhsa (59, 3234) it is said of her, “You are worshipped by the Savaras, barbarous (savages), and Pulindas.” This clearly shows that Durga was originally worshipped by those savage tribes of the Vindhya region.* Ambika.—In the post-Vedic period, that i is to say in the Taittiriya Aranyaka (X. 18), Ambika is mentioned as Siva’s wife, but in the Vajasaneya Sanhita (3,5), she is said to be mentioned as Rudra’s sister.’ From what has been said, at any rate, it can scarcely be doubted that those mountain goddesses or savage goddesses from different parts of West, North and East India, and those which were worshipped by different classes of un-Vedic people from the time of Taittirtya Aranyaka (which ' EB. RB. E., Vol. 2, p, 8132. ? Indo-Aryan Races, p. 123. * E.R. E, Vol. 2, p. 8132. * Sir R. G. Bhandarkar’s Vaisnavism, Saivism, etc., p. 148. * Vedio Mytholugy of Macdonell, p. 74. 38 ORIGIN OF MAHAYANA BUDDHISM probably dated from the third century B. C. according to Keith) ! and onward, in course of time, were combined and unified with the Vedic female goddess Ambika, the sister of Rudra and these two together became the wives of Siva, when Siva, the god of the Nisada or the spirit of the Vratyas, was identified with Vedic Rudra in the time of Yajur-Veda and Atharva-Veda (in the 15th chapter). Here a question naturally suggests itself how such goddesses worshipped by different classes of people were identified with Ambika and all together crystallized into the Devi or Sakti of Siva? In answer to this question, I may quote Mr. Ramaprasada Chanda’s explanation :— “The Sakti conception of the Devi or Adya Sakti ‘The primordial energy’ and Jagadamba, ‘The mother of the Universe’. also very’ probably arose in a society where matriarchate or mother-kin was prevalent. The most important question in connection with Saktism is, among what division of the Indian people did. it originate? A Sanskrit stanza in anustup metre recited by the Sakta panditas of. Bengal affords the traditional answer to this question. In this stanza we are told:—‘ The cult (Vidya) was revealed in Gauda (Bengal), popularised (prabalikrta, dit. ‘strengthened ’) by the Maithilas, it here and there prevails in Maharastra, and has disappeared in Gujrat.’* Bengal is still the stronghold of Saktism, and there are Saktas in Mithila (North Bihar), the Maratha country and Gujrat. Here, with the questionable exception of Mithila, all other countries belong to the outer Indq-Aryan belt. Did Saktism then originate among the Indo-Aryans of the’ outer countries P If evidences were forthcoming to prove 1 S.R, A. S., 1915, p. 840. * 2 “AS vara fear Afas: gaat afea afaq wens ett wed wen hl INTRODUCTORY NOTE 39 that mother-kin at one time prevailed among them, the traditional view regarding the origin of Saktism, could be accepted as a working hypothesis....... From these (Mahabharata and -Dasarathajataka as well as Mahavaméa) evidences we may infer that mother-kin was -at one time universal among the Indo-Aryans of outer belt and led to the growth of Saktism among them.” !” Aryadeva mentioned a Sakti doctrine as the 9th among the twenty heretical sets of doctrines in his work which I have mentioned already.