BUDDHACHARITA - AB

THE BUDDHACHARITA

Ashvaghosa, a great Buddhist and Indian philosopher-poet, is said to be born in Saketa in northern India to a Brahman family. He is credited to be the first Sanskrit dramatist and is considered the greatest Indian poet prior to Kalidasa. In fact Kalidasas works seem to be heavily borrowed from Ashvaghosas Buddhacharita and Saundarananda. The tradition associates the work of

Ashvaghosa with the reign of Kaniska-I, the Kusana ruler (the last quarter of the first century and the first decade of the early second century). As a poet, Ashvaghosa is revealed to us through his two kavyas, the Buddhacharita and the Saundarananda. A careful study of the two kavyas of Ashvaghosa shows that the poet was a well-read man and was accurate in his knowledge. The Buddhacharita records the acts of the Buddha from his birth to his demise. The Buddhacharita has 14 chapters. Chapter 13 discusses the victory over Mara when he comes to disturb and prevent the Buddha over his search for the truth. Maras Depiction: The large collection of Buddhist literature depicts the evil called Mara. The word Mara is derived from the Sanskrit root mra which means to die. It may also be taken for misery, misfortune or evil. Mara is called Namuchi in Pali which means non releaser, because as the personification of death, Namuchi (Mara) allows none to escape from his clutches. In the Buddhist literature, especially in Buddhacharita, Mara makes 2 appearances in the Buddhas life one just before the Buddha attained enlightenment and the second time shortly before the Buddhas

Mahaparinirvana.

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On the first appearance in the Buddhas life, Mara accompanied by his 3 sons vibhra (confusion), harsha (gaiety) and darpa (pride) and 3 daughters aptly named as trishna (craving), arati (discontent), rati (lust), comes to Siddhartha (since he was yet to attain enlightenment) and persuades him to leave the ascetic life and once again enjoy the life of the King. Mara sends his daughters to entice Siddhartha. Mara who literally means death symbolizes all that is connected with the realm of birth and rebirth and opposed to nirvana. Mara represents all that is detrimental to progress towards enlightenment. He is depicted as the god of lust (kamadeva) and almost associated with klesa (sin, evil). All the klesas could be summarized into the 3 main vices of raga, dvesha and moha who quite aptly are allegorically represented by Maras daughters. The well known army of Mara stands allegorically for different vices, evils and errors of human psyche like lust, aversion, craving, pride, anger, hatred, fear, doubt, hypocrisy, vain, glory, self praise, craving for fame and name, envy and malice. They are extremely active when any person tries to fight them on his way to attain enlightenment. In Buddhacharita, Ashvaghosa has beautifully described the army of Mara. These are forms of enduring evil. These are those monsters present in human beings which perpetuate evil in the society. The metaphorical interpretations shown in the poem is actually a battle not with the mythological creatures of outside, but with the emotions and passions one finds within oneself.

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The Buddha as Siddhartha was destined to be, fights the enemy of Mara with lot of determination and in the end succeeds in defeating the Mara. The text ends with Mara returning back dejected and paying homage to the Buddha to be. The language is full of allegoric representations and Ashvaghosa succeeds in depicting the Mara and the determination of Siddhartha. The prose flows in the classic Ashvaghosa style and brings forth the entire picture of the war between Mara and the Buddha. This chapter explains that one can win over the vices and not succumb to any sins and temptations if one is determined to become a Bodhisattva or attain enlightenment.

Atul Bhosekar M.A -II(Buddhist Studies)