Departure of Mahendra and Sanghmitra

Departure of Mahendra and Sanghmitra

“You’re my eldest son and an heir to this throne, Mahendra,” the emperor said. “Whom would people of Magadh look upon with a hope now? They see their emperor in you. They need you.”

“They need you more than they need me, father,” Mahendra said. “You know that, don’t you? I know that you had a chance to leave your responsibilities and walk out of all in search of peace. Toward Nirvana. But you didn’t. Because if you had walked away, then this empire which you’ve made the greatest empire in the entire world, would’ve perished again. All that you’ve endured, all that you’ve dreamt of, would’ve been gone in vain. You chose the tough path. But I can’t. I know that I’m your eldest son and an heir to this throne. And I’m doing my duty as both. An ideal son should follow his father’s path and achieve what his father couldn’t. An ideal heir-apparent should do what his empire needs the most. And it needs Dharma. It needs righteousness. It needs you. There are very few people who could establish and re-establish righteousness in this world. But there are even fewer who can maintain the balance of that righteousness. Apparently, you’re the only one who has both power and knowledge to accomplish this. I didn’t deserve this throne anyway. No one deserves this throne. You… Your glory has made it so pure that no man could think of staining it with impurity of his heart. Not even me. Besides, I’m passing my crown of heir-apparent to Kunal. So allow us, father, so that I and Sanghmitra could spread yours and Lord Buddha’s messages around the world.”

The emperor sighed and glanced at Sanghmitra.

“Sanghmitra! You’re married. You’ve a family. Then why do you want to go?” the emperor asked.

“Firstly, I’m your daughter. And it is my duty to accomplish my father’s dream, just like Brother Mahendra has,” Sanghmitra replied confidently.

“I named you Mahendra – the conqueror of the worlds. I hope you conquer the world with your Dharma,” the emperor said and glanced at Sanghmitra. “If your mother were here, she would have been proud on both of you.”

“She is always with us,” Mahendra muttered. “However the history will remember only one man as the conqueror of the worlds, who has conquered three worlds with his purity and righteousness. You, O father! We have never seen Buddha. But we’ve seen you. We have seen the worst and the best of you. We’ve seen what divinity looks like.”

“Very well. Start your journey from the southern boundary. Beyond the ocean, there are kingdoms who awaits for righteousness to knock on their doors. Take a branch of Mahabodhi Tree and plant it there. It’ll grow into a great tree of righteousness. May you both succeed in your journey!” the emperor blessed.

Both Mahendra and Sanghmitra bowed before their father, their emperor for the last time before departing to a new world.

P.S.: The Scene has been created based on the true events.

~Bhargav Patel 

Maya's Dream

Maya's Dream

Queen Maya fell asleep as soon as she lied on her bed. It was a full-moon night and the moon was shining brightly upon her through the balcony. It seemed as if the moon were bestowing blessings upon her. Suddenly she saw a bright white light emerging from nowhere. It overshadowed her vision and it felt like she was looking at the ocean of milk. ‘A beautiful dream!’

As the white light began fading away, she saw four beautiful faces staring at her. Four men were standing there smiling. She sat up. They had worn rich and shiny clothes and their bodies were almost covered with gold. The messengers of God or perhaps the demigods, she thought. At the next moment, she felt herself floating up and a flow of milk fell slowly upon her body. The milk smelt like a sandalwood. She was being bathed in the milk of sandalwood. Those four demigods moved their hands in air and golden glittering particles appeared and collided into her clothes. After a blissful chime, her clothes were transformed into heavenly white clothes. For a moment, she kept looking at her own beauty. Her new clothes were scented with a mesmerising fragrance which she had never smelt before. It seemed as if it were made in heaven.

Then she stood up and looked around. She could see the beautiful night and the complete moon gazing back at her. But the city of Kapilvastu seemed too far and down, as if she were floating in one of the clouds. She turned at one of the demigods and asked in surprise, “Where am I?”

“In your sweetest dream, your majesty,” the demigod smiled.

Queen Maya walked further directionless. She saw something bright coming toward her. It was white and big. As she cleared her vision, she realized that it was a giant white elephant walking toward her. She stepped back in fear. But somehow her fear faded away as she saw the beauty of that elephant. It was not ordinary. White elephants are never ordinary. However it had six tusks. This was the prettiest elephant she had ever seen in her life. Besides, the elephant was carrying a white lotus in its trunk.

“Is that Airavat?” she asked one of the demigods.

“It’s your fate,” one of the demigods replied in a chiming voice.

The elephant stopped and kept staring at the queen. She also kept looking at it, unable to understand how to react. But the elephant made a move and bowed to the queen. Surprised by seeing so well-trained elephant, she bowed in response too. The elephant suddenly grabbed her hands with its trunk. Queen Maya was shocked. Her eyes fell wide open. She gazed at its face and it shook its head. The elephant loosened its grasp on the lotus and it fell on the queen’s palm. As soon as the lotus touched her skin, it gleamed like a celestial object.

“I don’t understand. What is it?” she murmured in bewilderment.

“It’s the boon,” the demigod replied.

“The boon?”

“The greatest boon of the supreme lord,” the demigod said.

“But what kind of boon?”

“Just accept it, your majesty! You’ll understand soon.”  

Queen Maya accepted the lotus and bowed to the elephant again. A white light appeared before her vision again and that white elephant walked into her womb. She could see a white light gleaming in her womb.

Nine months after Queen Maya saw this dream, she gave birth to a beautiful son named ‘Siddhartha’, who later became known as Gautam Buddha. In Jainism, Mahavir Swami’s birth mother, Trishala, also saw 16 auspicious dreams during her pregnancy.  

Uttar-Priyadarshi

Uttar-Priyadarshi

Indian history mentions the story of Emperor Ashoka’s transformation after the Kalinga Conquest. However, in Buddhist Culture there is another popular story which is based on Lord Buddha’s prophecy about Ashoka. A well-known Hindi Poet and Writer ‘Agyeya (Ajneya)’ wrote a play named ‘Uttar-Priyadarshi.’ And the story of the play goes like this:

After killing his brothers, Ashoka (Priyadarshi) went to win the rebels around the entire Bharatvarsha. He fought continuous wars for four years and then he ascended the throne in the fifth year. After his coronation, he still conquered kingdoms and imprisoned the ones who didn’t surrender. Then he ordered his men to make an execution chamber where these people could be executed according to the sins. That prison was known as ‘Ashoka’s Hell’. However, it was underground. The upper floor was flourished with gardens to make it look like a paradise. Then the emperor ordered to find the cruellest man who could be the executioner. They found a man in some village who had killed his own parents, whose name was Girika (Ghor). He was a giant man with anger filled in his heart. He was summoned into the court, where the emperor commanded him to take charge of the prison and torture and execute prisoners brutally. The emperor made him the king of prison and told him that he should torture everyone who steps into that prison. Even if the emperor stepped in himself, he should capture him and torture him. Girika agreed and he started his cruelty in the prison.

One day a monk was passing by the prison. He stopped to rest in that garden where Girika’s men came and imprisoned him. He was taken inside. However, the monk insisted those men to have lunch before they would torture him. Meanwhile, other men executed another man who had stepped in by crushing his bones and flesh. When the monk saw the blood coming out of a chamber, he learnt how mortal human bodies are. Later when those men tried to torture the monk, the monk remained still and smiling. They called Girika who threw the monk in boiling oil. However, the monk rose out of it, sitting in a floating lotus. Bewildered by this sight, the guards rushed to the emperor. When the emperor refused to step in, they insisted that it was some kind of magic. Eventually, the emperor agreed and came inside the prison. He saw the monk, sitting on a floating lotus. But before he could approach Girika laughed like a devil and wielded his sword toward the emperor. However, the emperor leaned aside toward the monk. There he felt an invisible bubble with forces of purity and eternal bliss. He felt complete. He felt his heart was calming itself. He bowed to the monk who preached the emperor about Dharma and peace. Emperor Ashoka was transformed and he followed the path of Dharma since then. His teachings of Dharma made him the most glorious emperor among the entire world.