82 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. [February, 1910. 



gave the honey was born as king Asoka, the maid-servant as 

 the queen Asandhimitta, he who had called the Paccekabuddha 

 a Candala as Xigrodha, and he who blamed him as Tissa." 



The eldest who had abused him as a Candala was born as 

 the son of prince Sumana, the eldest son of king Bindusara. 

 His story runs thus: — 



At the time that king Bindusara became powerless, 

 prince Asoka, having left the kingdom of Ujjain, which had 

 been taken by him, came and took possession of the whole 

 city and captured prince Sumana. On that very day the wife 

 of prince Sumana, who was about to be delivered, disguised 

 herself, and, when she had left the city no great distance be- 

 hind and was going in the direction of a village of Candalas, 

 she heard the voice of a deity who had occupied the banyan 

 tree close to the house of the head Candala, saying : ' Come 

 along this way.' She went close to the deity. The deity sud- 

 denly built a house by its power and awarded it to her, saying, 

 ' Dwell in this house,' On the very day of her going, she was de- 

 livered of a male child. She called him bv the name of Nigro- 

 dha, as he was favoured by the deity residing in the Nigro- 

 dha (or banyan) tree. The head Candala, from the day he saw 

 her, looked upon her as the daughter of his master, and con- 

 tinually took every possible care of her. The princess lived 

 there seven years, and the prince Xigrodha grew up to the age 

 of seven. 



In the meantime an Arahat called Mahavarunatthera, who 

 had perceived that the child was destined to become an Arahat, 

 sojourning (there) thought : ' The boy is now seven years old, 

 now has the proper time arrived to ordain him a monk, 5 Ac- 

 cordingly he caused the princess to be apprised of the fact, and 

 admitted prince Nigrodha into the monastic life. The prince 

 attained to Arahatship in the Hall of Tonsure. It is said in 

 the Mahavaipsa : — ■ Having seen that the little prince was des- 

 tined to become an Arahat, the elder Mahavaruna ordained 

 him ; the prince attained to Arahatship in the Hall of Tonsure. ' 

 Now one day he, after taking care of his body and having per- 

 formed the duties of a monk, took his bowl and robe, and 

 started, resolving that he would go to the door of his mother, 

 the lay devotee. To reach his mother's dwelling-place, he had 

 to enter the city by the south gate, go by the king's palace, and 

 emerge by the east gate, and at that time Asoka. the pious king, 

 was pacing up and down at a window and looking towards the 

 eastern direction. At that very moment Xigrodha, who had 

 attained to tranquillity of mind and senses, looking only nine 

 spans before him and endowed with the decency of deportment, 

 reached the compound of the palace. As soon as the king per- 

 ceived him, he began to think, " All these people are persons of 

 scattered thoughts, and always have an inclination for food 

 and game. But this boy seems to be undisturbed. His looks 



