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The principal associate of the redxLse was Ajita, who, when he saw Budha^ resolved to test his knowledge by asking him the age of his teacher, his family, his peculiaritiee, his knowledge, and the number of his disciples. Budha at once said to him, (before his thoughts were uttered) " Your teacher is 120 years old ; he is of the family of Prawara, but is commonly called Bawari ; his peculiarities are the three maha-purusha-lakshana ; * he teaches the three Yedas ; and has 500 disciples." Upon receiving this answer, before the question was put, Ajita and those who accompanied him, were led to believe in the three gems. Budha afterwards gave him permission to make enquiry f about any subject whatever, respecting which he wanted information ; and he subsequently became a rahat. After this the brahman Mogharaja asked a question of Budha, but as the sage saw that he had not at that time (though he subsequently received it) sufficient merit to enable him to enter the paths, he gave him no reply. In the presence of the same assembly questions were subsequently asked by Tissametteyya, Punna, Mett^bhtitaka, Drftaka, Upasi- wa, Nanda, Hemaka, Tddeyya, Kappa, Jatukanui, Bhadra- wudha, IJdhaya, and Pos^la, all of which were answered, and many thousands of those present entered the paths. When the associates of Bawari returned to the pansal, he saw them at a distance, as he was looking out for their return, and knew by their appearance that they had become priests, and that a • The three peculiarities were these: — 1. He could coTer his forehead with his tongue. 2. There was a look of hair upon his forehead. 8. The organ of generation was concealed. t The questions proposed by Ajita, and by the other individuals mentioned in this section, appear in the Parajana-sutra. 3-48 A MANUAL OF BUDHI8M. supreme Badha existed in the world. Joyfullj he received the intelligence they conveyed ; and by the favour of Bndha he was enabled to enter the path an^gdmi, and his 500 disciples entered sow^. {Amdwatura.) 48. Budha visits the Brahma-loha. When Bndha resided at the city of TJkkathd, he perceived that the brahma Baka was a sceptic. It was his idea that the Brahma-ldka had been always existent ; that there is no decay or death ; there is no passing from one world to another ; that as things are, they will always continue ; and that there are no paths, no fruition of the paths, there is no nirwana. Badha visited the brahma-16ka that he might convince him of his error, and enquired of him if these were the opinions that he entertained. The d6wa Wasawartti-mara had perceived his intention; and resolving to prevent its being fulfilled, he also went to the same 16ka. When Budha began to converse with the brahma, Mdra replied that Baka was superior in wisdom and power to the other brahmas ; that it was he who had made the earth, Maha M6ru, and the other worlds ; it was he that appointed who should belong to the different castes ; it was be who ordained the ecistence of the different animals; and the dewa said, " Were there not sramanas before you who taught the impermanency of the world ? and yet after teaching that all things are impermanent, they went to hell. There were brah* mans who denied this, who declared that all things are per- manent, and yet they were born in this brahma-16ka. It is, therefore, better to teach as the brahmans did. I give you this advice, that you listen to the same doctrines, and you will receive the same reward ; but if you reject tJiem you will come to destruction." But Budha replied, " I know you, who you are ; the sinful Mara ; think not that you can thus deceive me.'* Baka said that there were other Budhas before G6tama, but they had become extinct; no one could tell whither they had gone ; and that therefore it would be better if Gt5tama would embrace his doctrines, and receive the same glory ; but Budha showed that his knowledge was superior to that of Baka, by relating the circumstauces of six former births of the brahma, with which he himself was entirely unacquainted. In one vn. LEGENDS OF g<5tama budha. 349 birth he was a hermit, and resided near a river. At that time 500 merchants came with their wagons to the same place, but were benighted. The first bullock turned back, and was followed by all the rest. The next morning the merchants had neither fuel nor water; they therefore lay down, with the expectation that they must die ; but the hermit saw their danger and brought them water, by which their lives were saved. At another time, some thieves stole all the goods in a certain village ; but as they were making oS. with their booty, he caused the five-toned music to be heard, so that the thieyes threw down the goods and ran away, as they supposed that the king was coming. At another time, the people of two villages, who resided near the river, agreed to go together in boats to trade. Their progress was observed by a nayi, who thought to destroy them ; but the hermit assumed the appearance of an immense garunda, and so frightened the nay&, that it fled away without doing any harm to the traders, f^or these acts of kindness the hermit was bom in a brahma-16ka. When Baka heard this, he confessed that it was true, acknowledged the superiority of Budha, and took refuge in the three gems. (Arrni' toatwra.) 49. MugcUan attains Nirwdna. In a former agd, Mugalan was called Sumana, at which time his parents were blind ; but he was very attentive to them, and devoted to them all his time. When they recommended to him to procure a wife, as they thought it a pity he should longer remain single, he resisted their importunities a considerable period; but as they pressed him continually, he at last con- sented, and was married. After he brought his wife home, she assisted his parents properly for one single day ; but this was all. She soon became discontented ; to deceive Sumana she put filth upon the hair of his parents, and said they had done it themselves after they were combed. As she insisted upon being allowed to return to her village, her husband was overcome, and he resolved upon putting his parents out of the way. To efEect this, he took them to a certain forest, under the pretence of letting them visit some of their friends ; and when they had arrived at a lonely place, he gave the reins of the animals by which they were drawn into the hands of his parents, and said 350 A MANUAL OF BUDHISM. that he must go forward a little to see if there were any robbers near the road, as it was a dangerous spot. He then imitated the onset of a robber, and his parents, thinking that some one else was attacking them, called out to him not to think about them, bnt to make his own escape. Still personating the thief, he took his parents into the thick forest, threw them down, and left them there, after which he returned to his wife. For this crime he was bom continually in hell, during hundreds of thousands of- years; but on his release therefrom, on account of his previous merit, and because he was free from any other crime, in the time of Gotama he became one of the two prin- cipal disciples of Budha. One day when the tirttakas were met together, in the course of their conversation one of them enquired of the others, *^' Do you know from whom it is that GtStama receives the most efficient help P" They replied that they did not. Then said he, "I do: it is from Mugalan; and for this reason. At a certain time he went to heaven, and asked the dewas what they had done to secure so much happiness ; he then went to hell, and extinguishing its fire for a moment, asked the dwellers therein what they had done to bring upon themselves the endn* ranee of so much misery. When he had ascertained the caose of these things, he returned to the world, and proclaimed it to mankind. Therefore, when men hear the declarations he puts forth, as they know that he has actually seen what he describes, they give the more heed ; and thus a great interest is excited in favour of Gdtama ; but if we can accomplish his destruction, the followers of Budha will leave him and come to us ; it will be like the cutting ofE of the upper current from the streaui." To this they were all agreed, and taking a thousand pieces of gold, they went to some robbers and said, " Go to the Black Bock, and murder Mugalan, who resides there," at the same time putting the gold into their hands.