z:\ ambedkar\vol 011\vol11 03.indd MK SJ+YS 5 10 2013/YS 18 11 2013 144
144 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
§ 4. Conversion of King Bimbisara
- Rajagraha was the capital of Seniya Bimbisara; King of Magadha.
II
Having heard of the conversions of this large number of Jatilas, everyone in the city had begun to talk about the Blessed One.
Thus King Bimbisara came to know of his arrival in the city.
“To have converted the most orthodox and the most obstinate Jatilas was no mean task.” “Truly so,” said King Bimbisara to himself, “he must be the Blessed, holy, absolute Buddha, proficient in knowledge and conduct, the way-farer, who understands the world, the highest one, who guides men, the teacher of gods and men. He must be teaching the truth, which he understood himself.
“He must be preaching that Dhamma which is lovely in the beginning, lovely in the middle, lovely at the end, in the spirit and in the letter ; he must be proclaiming the consummate perfect, pure and holy life. It is good to obtain the sight of a man like him.”
So King Bimbisara, surrounded by twelve myriads of Magadha Brahmins and householders, went to the place where the Blessed One was. Having approached him and respectfully saluted the Blessed One, he sat down near him. And of those twelve myriads of Magadha Brahmins and householders, some also respectfully saluted the Blessed One and sat down near him ; some exchanged greetings with the Blessed One, and having done so they sat down near him with complaisant words ; some bent their clasped hands towards the Blessed One and sat down near him ; some made known their name and family name before the Blessed One and sat down near him ; some sat down near him silently.
Now those twelve myriads of Magadha Brahmins and householders saw Uruvella Kassyapa among the monks who came with the Blessed Lord. They thought : “How now is this ? Does the great