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Vaishali - The Bygone Glory




Two religions were born in India in the post Christian era and have gone out into the world: Buddhism and Jainism.


A touch of history, the spark of spirituality and a streak of glamour. Vaishali is credited with being the world’s first republic to have a duly elected assembly of representatives. It is the birth place of Lord Mahavira and equally cherished by Lord Buddha as his favourite monsoon resort. It was here that Buddha preached his last sermon and announced his approaching Nirvana. Anothre clued to this historical city is the raving beauty of Ambapali.


Vaishali, in north Bihar, ranks among the few rare place in history that has left behind a trail of events that reflect the pride of ancient India. Long before the advent of Buddha, Vaishali was a flourishing republic (in fact the earliest examples in India of oligarchical republics like those of Greece). The city of Vaishlai was not only the capital of the Lichchhavi clan, but also the metropolis of the entire confederacy which spread across the Himalayan Gangetic region that extended as far as the Nepal hills.


Little is known about the early history of Vaishali. However the process of breaking down of the barriers of race and class or caste, by intermarriages and interchange of vocations had commenced much before the advent of Jainism and Buddhism. The earliest recorded king of Vaishali, Nabhaga, is believed to have abdicated over a question of human rights and proclaimed, “I am now a free tiller of the soil, king over my acre.” Nobhaga was the first among the list of 34 kings mentioned in the Vishnu Purana. The last among them was Sumati, a contemporary of Raja Dasratha.


Six centuries later, Vaishali emerges into a republic under the care of the Lichchhavis. In al probability it was not the outcome of any revolution leading to the overthrow of monarchy. It appears to be the results of a gradual growth effected by transformation that was brought about by the younger sons of the kings sharing authority with the elder ones and this practice may have continued, leading to the gradual increase in the number of ruling princes, until the number 7707 was reached. Another presumption is the accumulation of wealth in the hands of the royal family members. This may have led to a desire for active participation in the affairs of the government that eventually brought about the change.


Historians differ about their origin. Lord Buddha compared them to the gods in Indra’s heaven. In Chinese accounts they are referred to as a free, wild and handsome lot who dressed well in bright colors, drove fast carriages but were wanton, insolent and utterly irreligious. “For sure, these dashing young fellows with their brilliant equipages and saucy manners must have presented in Vaishali a marked contrast to Buddha and his somber clothed disciples” remarks Yuan Chwang in his travel accounts of India.


Some historians believe the Lichchavis (skin thin) to be of Tibetan descent as evident from traits appearing in the statues and moreover the presence of various identical cultural aspects and administrative elements. Like the Tibetans, the Lichchhavis too exposed the dead bodies and their criminal justice was equally similar. The unique feature of this judicial administration was that a criminal could only be punished if he had been found guilty by the seven successive tribunals unanimously though he could be acquitted by any one of them. Thus, the liberty of an individual was safeguarded in a way that was unique in the world’s history.


The Vishnu Purana gives a genealogical list of 34 kings and Sumati, the last mentioned king, is represented as the tenth in descent from Visala and if the evidence of Ramayana is taken into consideration, he was a contemporary of Raja Dasrath, the king of Ayodhya. Much later, Lord Rama is believed to have enjoyed the hospitality of Vaishali on his way back from Mithila.


The 7707 kings in whom Lichchhavi rule was vested according to the Jataka, called themselves Rajunam (kings) and they were so called because they all descended from an ancient royal family. The Jataka mentions the tank in Vaishali where the families of the kings got water for the ceremonial sprinkling. Vaishali’s elected representatives were anointed here before their swearing in. The water of this tank was scrupulously guarded to avoid pollution by persons into belonging to the ruling families and we are told how the Commander-in-Chief of Kosala was hotly pursued by Lichchhavi kings for having bathed his wife in it.


Lord Buddha greatly admired the Lichchhavi constitution and it is evident that he borrowed a good deal from it to run his own religious order. For instance, the rules on moving resolutions, voting by ballot, decision by majority of votes, the reference of complicated questions to committees, rules about quorum, votes of absentees and so on. Buddha was firm in his belief that so long as the Lichchhavis remained united and true to their democratic constitution, their enemies would not be able to overcome them.


Aggressive imperialism of neighboring Magadhan power under Ajatasatru instigated a war on the Lichchhavis. The pretext, according to Jain sources, was extradition of two Magadhan princes who had fled to Vaishali together with a prized elephant decked with a huge necklace with 18 strings of jewels. The elephant and the jewels had been gifted to them by their father, Bimbisara but when Ajatasatru usurped his father’s throne he demanded the return of gifts from his brothers who fled to Vaishali as their mother was a Lichchhavi princess. The confrontation culminated in a war that was successfully planned by undermining the unity of Lichchhavi kings.


The war established the hegemony of Megadha but the Lichchhavi pride never waned and even centuries later, when Chandragupta married a Lichchhavi princes, his successors issued coins with proud proclamations that they were “the sons and daughters of the Lichchhavis”.


Lord Buddha is believed to have visited Vaishali three times. Legend has it that on one of his visits, several monkeys dug up a tank for his comfortable stay and offered him a bowl of honey. This is regarded as one of the great incidents in the legends of Buddha. On his last visit to Vaishali, the Lichchhavis came a long way to bid him farewell. They were stopped by the river created by Lord Buddha. As solace for their distress, Buddha gave them his alms bowl which remained in Vaishali for a long time and later it was carried away to Gandhara. A hundred years after the demise of Buddha, a council of 700 monks met here to decide on the ten points of Vanaya (rule of conduct) which were under dispute.


The Pali texts refer to Vaishali as the land of Ambapali. She was graceful, beautiful, pleasant, well versed in singing, dancing and flute playing. Ambapali’s parents were unknown and she was found at Vaishali in the king’s gardens, at the foot of a mango tree. The gardener found her and brought her to the city. She was known as the mango guardian’s girl. And such was her beauty, grace and charm that many young princes strove with each other to possess her. Finally she was appointed as courtesan or ganika in the town of Vaishali. Her raving beauty prompted the rival Magadhan neighbor to appoint a parallel courtesan for their capital city Rajagriha.


Buddha and his followers were not averse to courtesans. He accepted Ambapali’s invitation and went to her residence with his Bhikku Sangha to take their meals. When Buddha had finished his meals she dedicated her mango grove to the Bhikku Sangha. The way in which Ambapali went to receive Buddha with her retinue and vehicles shows that her paraphernalia was almost royal. Ambapali soon accepted the Buddhist faith and remained famous as one of the most loyal and generous supporters of the Buddhist order. Around this time a nunnery was founded here where the famous Buddhist nun, Bhadra, resided.


Vaishali, 55 km from Patna, does not appear to have changed much, though the Buddhists and their monasteries are nowhere to be seen. But still the picturesque village surrounded by banana and mango grove amidst paddy fields offers enough relics to recreate the past.


The best place to begin your tour is Kolhua where a life size lion pillar beside a brick stupa is all set to greet you. It commemorates the spot where Buddha preached his last sermon. The sandstone pillar supporting an inverted lotus shaped capital with a life sized lion faces north—the direction Buddha took on his last voyage. History further unfolds here with the legend of the monkey chief offering honey to lord Buddha and digging up a tank for his comfortable stay. The stupa was originally built by Emperor Ashoka with lime plaster over it but subsequently enlarged by bricks during the Kushan period. Surrounding it are a cluster of votive stupas with a small temple amidst them. Nearby are the remains of a monastery and a large tank where Buddha resided during his sojourn.


From Kolhua, drive back to the Vaishali museum, which houses archaeological remains discovered at various sites in Vaishali. Close to the museum is a circular tin shed. One may dismiss it as a rain shelter amidst a small park but thanks to the board that speaks all about the remains of a stupa. Under the shed lie the remnants of the stupa which once housed the Buddha’s funeral ashes. These were found in a casket buried in the relic chamber along with a beautiful terracotta head of the Buddha (now preserved in the National Museum, Delhi).


History records that after the cremation of Lord Buddha, by the Mallas of Kushinagra, his ashes wre divided among the six heads of state (Ajatasatru of Magadha, Shakyas of Kapilavastu, Bulis of Alikappa, Koliyas of Ramagrama, Brahmins of Vethadipa and Lichchhavis of Vaishali) and the two mallas of Kushinagra and Pawa. The Lichchhavis received 1/8 of his ashes and they buried it here under the mud stupa which was later enlarged by the Mauryas, Sungas and Kushans.


On the other front of the museum is the Abhishekh Pushkarni or the Coronation Tank of the Lichchhavis. A little distance away is the Raja Vishala ka Garh—an excavated site (kilometer in circumference) that is believed to be the remains of the ancient parliament house where the federal assembly gathered to discuss and regulate the ancient republic. The original building can hardly be construed but it is believed to have had an eight feet high wall and a 140 ft deep moat around it.


Four kilometres away at Kundupur is a commemorative plaque, marking the birthplace of Lord Mahavira. Also at Vaishali is the famous dargah of Miranji which houses the relics of a 15th century saint, Mohammed Faizullah Qazim.