- .

\
. - . .
. , 4
HAT:.\ HA:J)URUK,\iDE, l'ERADEilYA (CEYI.O:)
THE A V ADANASARASAMUCCA YA
Among the unpublished Sanskrit manuscripts are a large number of
Avadana texts. The Avadanasarasamuccaya, Ms. Add. 1598 in the Cambridge
University Libraryl contains a collection of such avadana stories. A preliminary
survey of this manuscript has been made by the present writer with a view
to editing it. The results of this initial and incomplete survey set out here
would, it is hoped, be a suitable 'janmadinopahara' to Acarya Raghuvlra,
,
himself an editor of many rare texts and the founder of the Satapitaka series-a
series that has stimulated and enabled many an editor to lay open the treasures
of the past hidden in libraries. It is also anticipated that a preliminary notice
of this kind would invite the attention of scholars and prompt them to inform
the writer of any related versions of the stories occurring in the ms., the bare
outlines of which are given hl're. Parallel or possibly parallel versions in
published or unpublished collections known to the writer are also listed. The
word 'possibly' has to be emphasised as the writer has had no opportunity so
far to compare these versions. It may be noted here that the ms. is torn in
places and that some folios are missing. A full reconstruction of the stories
based on this ms. alone is, therefore, not possible.2 The stories are listed below
in the order in which they appear in thems.
I. SartlzavallOjalaka: Born as a brahmin youth the bodhisattva resorted
to a penance grove. A female .. . . ,3 a dove, a snake and a deer who lived there
had a discussion at which each one spoke of the sorrows of hunger, passion,
anger and the fear of death respectively. They approached the bodhisattva
J Fcr descriptions of this and other Cambridge mss. rpferred to in this article see The
Catalogue of the Buddhist Sanskrit Manuscripts in the Cambridge Uni(Jersit Library by C. Bendall,
Cambridge 1883.
2 No. 48 in a list of Bauddha Scriptures made by Hodgson is an Avadanasarasamucca
ya
containing Sumagadhavadana, Sahakopadesavadana, Kapisavadana, Kahinavadana and
PinQapatravadana (see p. 36 in Essays on the Languages, Literature and Religion of Nepal and Tibet
by B. H. Hodgson, London 1(74). Of the avadanas listed there by Hodgson, Sumagadha
vadana is the only avadana occurring in our collection.
3 Tile s2ctio: of th? ms. which int oduces this charactl"r \s torn.
rn
and asked him which of these was sorrowful and who had spoken well on
the
matter. The bodhisattva approved all their speeches and expressed at length
his own views on the sorrows of birth, old age, disease and death. He advised
them to strive for enlightenment and related the following past story. Once,
a
number of merchants were dejected through fear of death, on seeing a fearful
ocean they had to cross. They asked their leader, the bodhisattva, for help.
He asked them to use his body as a raft to cross the ocean. The merchants
marvelled at this offer but were reluctant to do so. The bodhisattva asked
. them not to hinder him in this great deed, made a ferwnt wish that the merit
gained by the deed would enable him to help others to cross the ocean of
saJsara, and gave up his life so that his body could be used as a raft.
Versions noted for comparison are the sartbavaha legends in the Ratna
malavadana4 (mss. in Tokyo. MatsuDa p. 215), the Kalpadrum'avadanamala
ch. 3, MatsuO p. 231), the Mahaj-jatakamala or the Ruddhavadanamala (ch. 40,
MatsuO p. 234), the SaJbhadravadanamala (chs. 3, 4, rvlatsuO p. 236) and the
VicitrakarIikavadanamala (ch. 22, MatsuU p. 242). The Sart:1av'aha-story In
the Avadanasataka6 and the tale of the sarthavaha Dharmalabdha 1
Mahavastu7 are diferent from this story.
2. SarvaT1dadajataka: The bodhisattva was bor a king, justly called
SarvaJdada a he gave all he had to the needy When a hostile king attacked
his kingdom, he regarded the enemy as a guest, gave up his kingdom and retired
to a penance grove. One day a poor brahmin came to him. On leJrning that
the king had no wealth to give him, the brahmin fainted. The king revived
him and ofered him his body so that he could take it to the enemy king and
get some wealth. The brahmin did so. But the enemy king disapproved the
brahmin's action and persuaded the captured king to accept the throne. He
did so and gave the brahmin more wealth than he desired
.
To be compared with the text are episodes in the Hattbavanagalla
viharavaJsa
8, the SarvaJdada-raja-jataka in Jatakamala-'vadana-sutra (ch. 37,
4 Ratnamlllvadlna, ed. K. Takahata, Tokyo 1954.
: )ratsu' is the abbreviation used in this article for a Catalogue of the Sanskrit lalluscripts z'1l
the Tokyo Universit Librar compiled by Seiren Matsunami, Suzuki Resarch Foundation, Tokyo
1965.
6 Avadlnasataka, ed J. S. Speyer, Vol. I, St. Petersbourg 1906; Vol. II, Sl. Pdcrsb
ouro'
Q
1909, No.4.
7 Mahlvastu, ed. E. Senart, 3 vols. Paris 1882, 1890, 1897, p: 286 f.
8 HatthavanagalLavihlravamsa, ed. C. E. Godakumbure, Pali To: t Society. 1956.
MatsuO p. 229), the Ambaracakravarti sarvardadavadana and Sarvardada
bhidhana-maharajavadana in Mahajjatakamala or Buddhavadanamala (MatsuO
p. 234). The Sarvarpdadavadana of the Avadanakalpalata9 is a diferent
legend.
3. Matsaranandavadana. A merchan t called Nanda lived in SravastI.
He was rich but very miserly. Just before his death Nanda asked his son
Candana not to give away any of his wealth. After death Nanda was born as
the son of a blind, sick woman. He too was deformed and blind. Hearing
what her son was like from another Can<ala woman, the mother cast him away.
Enduring immense hardship, he grew old enough to walk about. The mother
asked him to go where he liked. Through habit as it were, he went to his own
house which now belonged to Candana. Ordered by. Candana, the gatekeeper
beat him and drove him away. The mother came there and lamented pitifully.
A crowd gathered. The Buddha came there, admonished Candana and pointed
out that Nanda was sufering the efects of his miserliness. He spoke at length
on the evil efects of greed and avarice and the beneficial efects of generosity.
Candana became generous thereafter.
Noted for comparison is the story of Nanda in Ratnamalavadana (Talc
16 in Cambridge Ms. Add. 1592; ch. 25 in Tokyo ms. vide MatsuO p.216 and
the Paris Ms. noted by Bendall), Tale No. 20 called the Nandavadana in a
Divyavadana Ms. in Tokyo (MatsuO p. 223; Cowell's edition of the Divyavadana10
does not contain this story), and the Matsaryacari travadana in the Kalpadru
mavadanamaia (MatsuO p. 231).
4. Bhavalubdhakavadana: Two monks reached the frst stage of religious
development, srotapatti. One of them destroyed all fetters and became an
arhat. He advised the other monk also to do so. But the other monk was
intent on enjoying worldly pleasures and could not be persuaded to attain
arhatship. He died in course of time and was born as the illegitimate son of
a woman in Bharukaccha. The mother had him cast on the highway. The
boy understood that he was reaping the results of his attachment to existence,
regrEtted his net having listened to his friend and spoke in praise of the con
tmplative devotees who reach Nirvana. As he lay at the city-gate, a herd
cf cows passed by. The bull that led the herd stood over him and protected
K&mendra's ,cadanakalpalata with its Tibetan version. edited by S. C. Das and Pat1il
Hari Mohan Vidyabhushana. Calcutta 1888. Pal1ava 55.
JOThe Dil)acadana. cd. E. B. Cowell and R. A. Neil, Cambridge 1886.
82
him from being trampled. Escaping death In this manner, he began to
worship the Buddha. Some lay disciples of the Buddha cam' there. The boy
attrac ted their attention and introduced himself as one who had reached that
plight through love for existence. The lay disciplps wanted to hear his story in
full. After they had made him comfortable, the boy sat in the paryanka
posture in the sky, narrated the relevant incidint of his past life and spoke at
length on the evils of birth and existence.
A possible parallel is the Bhavalubdhakavadana in thp Asokavadanamala
(ch. 12, MatsuO p. 213; Cambridge Add. 1482, Folios 207-215; Folios 205-213m
Ms. No. 25 in the Asiatic Society ofBengal).11
5. Badaradvipajataka: The bodhisattva was born in Varal).aSl as a mer
chant called Supriya. After giving away all his wealth, he went to Ratnadvlpa,
brought wealth from there and gave it away as well. Even then there were
mendicants at his door. One night he wondered as to how he could gain
inexhaustible wealth to please them. That night, a devata spoke to him in a
dream and gave him directions in detail to reach Badaradvlpa, where he could
get the cintamali jewel from the kinnara king who lived there. The devata
warned him of the dangers he will encounter on the way but taught him the
manner of overcoming them. Supriya followed these instructions, brought
the 'cintamani' from Badaradvlpa and fulflled the needs of the people.
The same story with diferences in details occurs in the Divyavadana12
and AvadanakalpalataY Other possible parallels are the Badaradvlpa jataka
(jatakamala-'vadana-sUtra ch.44, MatsuO p. 230), the Supriyavadana in
Kalpadrumavadanamala (ch. 17, MatsuO p. 231), the Supriya-sarthavaha
jatakaparivarta in the Bhadrakalpavadara (ch. 32, MatsuO p. 220; folios 303-325
in Cambridge Add. 1411), and the Bhagavat-Supriya-sarthavaha-janrnavadana
panvarta in the Sarbhadravadanamala (ch. 40 MatsuO p. 237). Also noted
for comparison are other sarthavaha stories in the Kalpadrumavadana (ch. 3,
Sarthavahavadana, MatsuO p. 231); the Sambhadravadanamala (chs. 3 and 4:
Sarthavahajanmavadanaparivarta, MatsuO p. 236) and the Mahajjatakamala or
Buddhavadanamala (ch. 40, Susiddharthamatisarthavahavadana, MatsuO
p. 234). Chapter 17 of the Vicitrakarlikavadana is said to contain a story of
11
A
Descriptive Catalo
g
ue oj Sanskrit Manuscripts in the Gout. Collection under the care of the
Asiatic Society of Bengal by Hara Prasad Shastri. Vol. 1. Buddhist Manuscripts, Calcutta
1917, p. 24.
12
Op. cit. No.8, Supriyavadana.
13 Op. cit. Tale 6, Badaradvlpayatravadana.
H3
the merchant Supriya.'4 However, ch. 17 of a Vicitrakan)ikavadana-mala
ms. in Tokyo has as its title Suprabhavadana katha (MatsuO p. 242).
6. S asajataka: The bodhisattva was born as a hare in a forest. He had
a hermit as his friend. During a drought, the hermit decided to give up his
ascetic life and leave thp forest. The haE dissuaded him and asked him to
stay at least another day. The hermit agreed to do so. The hare decided to
ofer his own fesh on this day. He went to a heap of coals, and before jumping
into it, wished that he should gain the Ten Powers through his act of merit. In
a momen t the fre became a pool of lotuses. Surprised at seeing the hare on a
full-blown lotus, the hermit praised him. Sakra too marvelled at the
behaviour of the bodhisattva and caused the rain to fall. The hermit asked
the hare what he desired to gain through his great sacrifce. The hare said
that he wished to become a Buddha. The hermit then expressed a wish to
become his pupil when the hare became a Buddha.
The hare legend in the Avadanasatakal5 and the Sasakavadana of the
Avadanakaipalata1G are diferent versions of the same story. Jatakamala No. 617
and tbe Jataka'8 No. 316 have a diferent Sasa legend. The Sasapan9itacariyal11
of the Cariyapitaka19 is also diferent.
Noted for comparison are the Sasajataka forming ch. 45 of the Jata
k
amala-'vadana-sUtra (MatsuO p. 230), the Sasakavadana in a Divyavadana
ms. in Tokyo (MatsuO p. 224; Cowell's edition of DivY'avadana does not contain
this story), and the Sasajatakavadana in Cambridge (Add. 1473).
7. Candraprabhajataka: A generous king called Candraprabha ruled over
the kingdom of Bhadrasila. Once, his minister Mahacandra dreamt that a
demon carried away the crest-jewel of the king. Interpreting the dream as an
indication of the impending arrival of a mendicant, who would ask for the king's
head, the minister had severa) heads of precious stones made to be given to the
mendicants. A demon in the guise of a brahmin, called Raudraka, came
from Gandhamadana to ask lor the king's head. He could not be put of with
14Avadanasataka op. cit. p. XCVII.
lOO
p.
cit. No. 3
7
.
160
p
. cit. No. 104.
17T/e ]alakamala by AryaUira, cd. H. Kern, 1914.
18T/:e la/aka togcthEr with its commEntary, cd. V. fausb61l, Vols. I-VI, London 1877-
Il%.
1!'Cori),aji(aka, ed. Richard Morris, London 1882, Bk I, No. X.
84
thl'
minitn' o'r
of a lwad

f
.
jewels. Seeing tlH'
,
mendica
nt
thr
ouh
his
divine l'Yl', Ihl klg asked the minIster not to stand In
the
way
of
his
acrifice, and onered his head. At t request of the
.
(It'mon,
Chandr
a
p
weill to the park Ramagarbha, cut IllS head and gave II to
him,
wishin
g
that
he would atlain enlightenment through the merit thereof
Diferent
versions of this story occur in the Divyava-lan:!l
a .. d the
Avadt_
nakalpalata,lL
Also to be compared are the ChandraprabhuvCL
Jataka
of
the
Jmkamila'vadanasmra (eh. 45, latsuO p. 230) and the
Candra
prabha
_.
rnjavadana of the 1Iahajjatakamala or the nuddhavadanamal (l
a
t
s
uO
p. 234).
8. RuP1ilalfjulnk(l: The bodhisattva was born as a woman called
Rupy'vatl in the kingdom of Upalavatl. Th(re was a famine at the time and
food became ve'1' scarce. One day, seeing a woman in hunger wishing to cat
her own child, Rupyavati decided to give some of her own fesh. She asked
the woman for a weapon, cut off her breasts and g.lV th:m to til wom 1.
Then she went home, related the incident to her husband and asked him to
prepare some more food for the woman. On the hmband asking hCr the re:son
for her great sacrifce, Rupyavatl said that attaining Cnlightenment was her
sale aIm. He then wished that her breasts reappear through the power of her
truthful statement
.
Rupyavan's breasts reappeared.
Sakra came in the guise of a brahmin and asked Rupyvatl what she
desired to achieve through her act of meril. Stating that her aim was Buddha
hood, she wished that she would become a male immediately. Her wih
materialized and she became known as Rupyavata. In the meantime the king
of Upalavat1 died without leaving an heir. Rupyavata was made king. Seated
on his throne he preached the doctrine and praised generosity. He ruled
righteously for sixty years and died.
The Rupavatl Avadana of the DivyavadTna2 and the RukmavalY
Avadana of the Avadanakalpalata3 contain diferent versions of the same story.
Also to be compared i the Rupy-vauj'taka of the ]Itakamla.'vadnna-s[tra
(eh. 47; !latsuO p. 230).
9. MrgajJlaka I: The bodhisattva and Devadatta were
bom
as
the
l Gp
.
cil. No. /
II
G
p
. cil. No.5.
o
G
p. cil. :0. \/
U Gp
.
OI. q, J
85
lv
! of \wo herds
efd . . '
d

m
a c
.
aHa W(nt thtre to I
Crtal
ll for
es
I
0
Un\
them
1
.
ne
da
h
then spoke te the k'

IIC
deer
fed
h
y,
w
en
King
B
h
mg,
ofere
d
t
reugb

a
not to kill them all at once
T
IO
send
him
a

eer
each
d
`
ar

b
le
d1isa|u
dingly. One day it
was lD
he
king
agree
d
and
tb
a
d
y,
and
re
quested
hiu
b
.
I I
Ie
turn
r
e
eer
we
lrt l Ie following d a
SI
\
a
pregn
ant
sl
-d
1
sent
acccr-
I
.
y.
Ie
went
1
eer
who
.
() \O send another de .
h
to
ber
leader
D
d
was te gne
er
J
er
l
'
eva
au:
d
te the loohsuttva
TI b
P ace.
As Dc
uda|tQ
r
d
" an requested
, .
Ie odhis

rc Se
ted e
I
fervently that he welo
.
alt\ a
e!:rco
to
go in
b
l
so,s e went

.
1_ _
attain
Buddha
h
I
cr p ace and wished

to \ araIJaSl and explained to the

on acceunt
ef tbis sacrifice. He
kmg applauded him and d

' I d
klllg
the reason for his arrival
b dl
.

P te g;v
I

e
_ lIsattva. Further t k'
e up lUntlOg en the ad

r
, e 109 placed him
tce L
the
preach the doctrine The b dl'
on the throne and asked h'
f
.
\ 1ISatlva did se L
IU
arest whele 1 was welcomed b, 1 I
. ater be vent lack te tbe
I I
.
) tle(eer among wbem ' I l
awn was p a\mg abOllt 1 tb
'\3> lIe s Ie-detrwbese
.
'

e grove.
Dlffcrent versiens efthis s:ery ecLlr in I
-
OJ
Tc story of the Ruru dee
.

llcJataka and the MUhavustu.
r rmg J tbeJ\ukaU
-
l ' d
.
is diferent Noted f
.
u a an theCa::vap|taka
taka formi

lg
.
chapte: n:;soll
a
:' t!c a`d
t
::a-sa:
a
)
p. 230) and :hcMrgasya kathn orllll' 1C1lIuKuI1KuUl CD
?( 'I

p. 242).

t < t

uI>u
.
10. Ha:/ilaka: Te bodh

att"a was orn as a 'scent-('!cphant'

(galdla
has/w), tIecluel of a herd In the \ v:^bya regIOn. He had twe
llev:d sb
-
elephants, Bhaclra and Subhadra. Once tbeelephantking round a large letus
that had LdIen etthe hand of < vidyadhari. He d erid ed te give i. te
whichever she-elephant he met frst. Subhadra 'uue nrst and Ie gave |t te
her. Sh( sncttand wore 1l on her head. Seeing this, BhadrT feIi very
jealous. She left tbe king and the herd and \\'andered about
tfWDC1P One
day, seeing a pratyeka-buddha seated under u tree, she om'red him ewers,
wished that she be reborn as a queen ncar the abode ef the
elephant-king, and
jumped down Q preLip1Le killing herselr.
She was reborn as the daughtN of a
king, llessed v:tb tbe pewer o
recalling her previous birth.
When !lhe came of age, she wasgiven in uarr|age
'Ol'. rI. |G. 7.
a 0. cil. `nI. | j OI

lOOp.
rrl. a!c /
tl
Up. rl. |k 11.
1\0
.
\' L
Rb
to another king. Once she feigned an illness and informed the king that her
fever could be allayed only by anointing her body with the crushed pearls found
in the tusks of the elephant king in the Vindhya region. A hunter, tempted by
the ofer of much wealth, agreed to get the required tusks. The queen advised
the hun ter to wear yellow robes and approach the elephant, whereupon she
said he would come and bow down to him. The hunter diu so, and aimed
a poisoned arrow at the forehead of the elephant who came forward to worship
him. The herd of elephants then attacked the hunter, but the elephant-king
defended him and saved him. He then gave his tusks to the hunter, who took
them to the king. The queen, seeing them, felt regretful, related her past life
to her husband, and lamented profusely. The hunter consoled her by narrating
how the poison of the arrow was allayed and the tusks restored when the
elephant-king made a fervent wish that it should so happen through the power
of his great compassion shown to him.
The Hastyavadana of the Avadanakalpalatas and the Hasti-jataka of
jatakamala29 are diferent from this story. The Hastijataka forming
the 49th tale of the Jatakamala-'vadana-sUtra (MatsuO p. 230) is to be
compared.
11. Candrajataka: A king called Kalingaraja had as his minister a
brahmin, Kha:9adhara. As he had no sons, the king used to supplicate the
gods. The brahmin ofered to rule the kingdom while the king attended to
these rites. The king agreed. In course of time, the chief yueen gave birth
to a son, who was called Candra. Thirty other princes were born to other
queens at the same time. When they grew up, Candra was appointed viceroy
and the other princes were placed in charge of diferent provinces.
Candra and
the princes noticed various misdeeds of KhaQ9adhara, and depri ved him of
power, Angry over this, KhaQ9adhara planned to have Candra killed. Once,
when the king spoke of a dream in which the ministers had besieged the city
and ousted him, KhaQc;adhara said that the dream signifed death for the king.
The only method for preventing this, he said, was to sacrifce Candra and the
princes. The king had the princes brought immediately and sent a message
to Candra. Candra's friends and relatives told him that it was a plot of
Khal).Qadhara, whom they wanted to bring, bound as a pnsoner. Candra
prevented them from doing so, saying that anger ought to be appeased through
forbearance. Candra went to the place of the sacrifce and was being led to
2SO
p. cit. Tale 96.
290p. cit. Tale 30.
J
I
,
87
the fire, when the princes appealed to him for help. He then began to meditate
on loving kindness and the princes gamed their freedom immediately. Great
,onders took place among which was a shower of stones which however avoided
Candra. The king and the rinister fed to the palace, but they died, their
heads split into pieces. Afer performing the funeral rites of the father,
Candra refected on the worthlessness of worldly life and resorted to a penance
grove.
The Kha1)9ahala ]ataka10 and the Candakumaracariyar of the Cariya
pitaka31 are diferent versions of the same story. The story of Candra in the
Avadanabtaka32 is diferent. Other stories noted for comparison are the
Cdravadana in the Kalpadrumavadana (MatsuO p. 231) and the Candra
jataka of the ]atakamala (ch. 50, MatsuO p. 230).
12. Mrgajataka I: The bodhisattva was born as the king of a herd of
deer. One day seeing a king wto came hunting, the deer fled. Wondering
how best he could lead the herd out of the forest, the deer-king noticed that
he could do so across a stream. He stood in the middle of the stream so that
the deer could step on his back and reach the other bank. Afer all the deer
had crossed in this manner, he carried a fawn on his back and crossed the
river himself. The king, amazed, went to the deer-king and asked him what
he desired to achieve through this heroic act. The deer declared that his goal
was Buddhahood, admonished the king at length and died through the pain
of the wounds on his back, caused by the treading of the deer.
The Buddha related the above story and said that he himself was the
deer-king, while the fawn he carried across was Subhadra. The monks then
asked why Subhadra, who received his spiritual attainments afer everyone
el
se, died before the Buddha. In repl
y, the Buddh
a related a story of the past,
whEn Subhadra was a tree-deity in the time of Buddha Kasyapa.
The deity,
on hearing the laments of a monk, who wanted to see Kasyapa Buddha before
he p
assed away, took him to the presence of the
Buddha through his superna
tural power.
There, he wished to be the last disciple to acquire spiritual attain
ments and to pass away before the Buddha.
The deer legends forming chapters 48 and 51 of the jatakamala-'vadana-
so Jatakz, op. cit. No. 542.
31 Op.
c
it. Bk I, No. VII: see also the CandaraJa
c
ariam on p. 58f. in Acariya Dhammapala's
Para
matthadlpanl, being the comment
ary on the
C
ariy
a
pi

a
k
a
, ed. by D. L. Barua, Pal
i
Text
Society, London 1939.
n Cpo cit. o. 52.
s
utra (MatsuO p. 230) and tale 24 of the Vicitrakarl)ikavadana-mala (MatsuO
p. 242) are noted for comparison.
13. MayuraJataka: The bodhisattva was born as a ki:1g of peacocks called
Suvarnavabhasa in the Himalaya region. One moring, the peacock
came near Varal)asi, and Anupama, the queen of King Brahmadatta wanted
it as a pet. The king sent a hunter to catch it and threatened to kill him if he
did not do so. The hunter laid a trap but it broke to pieces the moment
Suvarnavabhasa came near it. The hunter, frightened of being killed by the
king, asked the bird for his help. The peacock sent the hunter back to announce
. his own arrival, and followed him soon afer. He was welcomed by the king
'nd ofered all the comforts in the palace.
In course of time the king went to another cOLLntry on some business.
1n the absence of the king, Anupama fell in love with the Vita in the paJace.
They had arranged to meet near the pond where Suvarnavabhasa lived.
Suvarl).avabhasa, who sensed this, summoned them before they met and spoke
to them on the evils of passion. The sermon had the desired efect. The Vita
hailed him as his teacher and Anupama as his sister. Anupama regretfully
confessed that she had poisoned Suvarl).avabhasa's food through fear that he
might inform the king of her illicit relationship with the Vita. Suvarl)avabhasa
consoled her saying that no poison could harm him as he was protected by the
power of compassion. He assured her that he would not speak of the incident
to the king. Later, when the king returned, Suvarl)avabhasa advised the king
to rule righteously, bade farewell to him, the queen and others, and left for the
Himalayas.
The Mayurajataka of jatakamala-'vadana-sitra (ch. 52, Matsu" p. 230) is
to be compared.
14. Sumagadhavadlna: Suragadha, the daughter of Anathapil)<ada,
was given in marriage to Vrabhadatta of the city of PUl<ravardhana. Dejec
ted on seeing heretic monks being honoured at her husband's house, Sumagadha
praised the virtues of the Buddha and his disciples whom she had been llsed to
honour. Her mother-in-law then asked her whether she could invite them to
her house at PUI<ravardhana. Sumagadha agreed to do so, went to the balcony
of the house, ofered some flowers and invited the Buddha to come from
whereever he was. The fowers fell at Jetavana where the Buddha was then
residing. The :uddha asked Ananda to inform the monks that they should go
more than sixty leagues for an almsgiving. Shortly they left for PUl).<ravardhana,
fying through the sky. A number of disciples, AjniUakauD<inya, Sariputra,
Mahakasyapa, Mahamaudgalyayana and others, arrived in the city, one by one,
j
89
in their respective chariots. As each disciple Jrrived, Sumagadha's husband asked
her whether he was the Buddha. Sumagadha introduced the disciples, narrating
episodes distinctive of each of them. Finally the Buddha arrived, his arrival
being heralded by many a marvel. Sumagadha herself attended on the Buddha
at the residence. The Buddha preached a sermon to the large assembly
there.
As the monks t'xpressed surprise' at Sumagadhz's course of action, the
Buddha related a past story, when Sumagadha was born as the daughter of
king Krkin, during the time of Kasyapa Buddha. She was then known as
Kanc,namala, fer shp V cS ber with a golden garland round her head. She
W2S a devout lay-disciple of the Buddha Kasyapa. Once her father saw
ten dreams. The brahmins, who interpreted the dreams, said that the king
may lose his kingdom unless he ofered Kancanamala at a sacrifce. The king
was dejected over this. Khncanamala directed him to Buddha Kasyapa,
who interpreted the dreams diferently and assured the king that he will not
lose his kingdom. The Buddha Kasyapa preached a very benefcial sermon on
that occasion. V hen the monks questioned further as to why K ancanamala
was born with a golden garland on her head, he related another past story.
Kancanamala, born as a poor woman, he said, ofered a garland of straw to
the cetiya of a pratyekabuddha and wished that she would be reborn with a
goldm garland on her bead.
The Sumagadhavadana of the Avadanakalpalata:3 is a version of the above
story'. Noted for comparison are the Sumagadhavadana (ms. Add 1585) of
Cambridge; the Sumagadhavadana in the Vratavadanamala (MatsuO p. 243);
and the Sumagadhavadana available in Calcutta s'; the version. published by
Tokiwai Gyoyu (l 872-l95lj i 1918, the revised version of Y. Iwamoto, Tokyo
1959 and the edition of the Tibetan version, Acta ASiatica 7.1964 (vide Indo
Iranian Journal 12 :52).
The ms. of the Avadanasarasamuccaya ends with a fragment of a metrical
t(xt dealing with the consequences of the ten evils.
3
This text ens abruptly.
Ecndall states that Ms
.
Add. 1585 of Cambridge also contains part of the same
text. 36
30p. cit. No. 93 ..
34Notifed on p. 237f. in The Sanskrt Buddhit Literature of Nepal by Rajendralala Mitra,
Calculla 1882.
.
30The second line of the frst sta!za is as follows:
Natva jinam praoak-Jami dasakusalajam phalam.
36C(mpan description of Cambridge Ms. Add. 1598.
.