14 Eajendralala Mitra — On the Barly Life of AhJca. [Jaw. 



by it. Next morning he sent for the musician, and recognised in him, 

 his only son. Explanations followed, and the king, in a fit of anger, took 

 up his sword to behead the wicked queen ; but the youth interceded in 

 the name of Buddha, and pacified him. This act of mercy for an enemy 

 brought on a miraculous restoration of his sight. 



Subsequently, seeing the earnest devotion of the king for the di:ffusion 

 of Buddhism in his kingdom, certain Tirthikas urged on Vitasoka, the 

 king's brother, to refuse to accept the new religion. The king had 

 tried his utmost to induce his brother, but failed. The king's minister 

 then set about the task, and by offering him the kingdom made him a con- 

 vert, and installed him king. Asoka was greatly annoyed at this, and ordered 

 the usurper to be immediately beheaded ; but, through the intercession of 

 the minister, a respite was granted for seven days, after which the prince 

 flew to the shelter of Upa Gupta, and afterwards accepted from Gunakara, a 

 disciple of that teacher, consecration as a houseless hermit. This renun- 

 ciation of the world did not, however, en^ible him to escape with his life. 

 It so happened that at this time a professor of the Nirgrantha school, who 

 reviled the religion of Buddha, had got a picture painted, representing him- 

 self with the likeness of Buddha lying at his feet, and this he had circula- 

 ted widely in the province of Pundravardhana, and Asoka, hearing of it, 

 had proclaimed a price (some dinars) on his head. A cowherd (Abhira) 

 had heard of this, and one night taking Vitasoka, with his long beard, mat- 

 ted hair, and unkempt nails, to be the Nirgrantha, cut off his head, and 

 presented it to the king with a view to obtain the promised reward. The 

 sight of the head deeply grieved the king ; and he sought from Upa Gupta, 

 his spiritual guide, religious consolation for his many acts of cruelty. It 

 is scarcely necessary to observe that this story contains the germ of a fra- 

 tricidal war in which Vitasoka had been set up by the conservatists of 

 the time to oppose the Buddhist reforms of Asoka, and which, after a few 

 days, terminated in the overthrow of the malcontents. 



The history of Asoka is concluded here, and the rest of the work is 

 made up of moral tales related by Upa Gupta for the edification of the king. 

 Nothing positive is anywhere said in it as to what was the religion of Asoka 

 before he accepted Buddhism. The belief, however, had until lately been 

 general that he was a Hindu, and it was supported by the Pali annals of 

 Ceylon, which describe him to have followed the doctrine of the Brahmans. 

 An essay, however, has appeared in which Mr. Thomas demurs to this con- 

 clusion, and marshals, in dense array, a large mass of evidence to show that 

 he was a Jain. As the work of a profound scholar, facile princeps in the 

 department of Indian numismatology, and thoroughly conversant with the 

 antiquity and history of India, the essay deserves the highest consideration ; 

 and the ability and tact with which the evidence has been set forth leave no 



