The Legend of The Lion-Roarer.A Study of The Buddhist Arhat Pindola Bharadvaja - John S. Strong PDF

The Legend of the Lion-Roarer: A Study of the Buddhist Arhat Piṇḍola Bhāradvāja
Author(s): John S. Strong

Source: Numen, Vol. 26, Fasc. 1 (Jun., 1979), pp. 50-88
Published by: BRILL
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3269625 .
Accessed: 26/05/2013 05:28
Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at .
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp
.
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of
content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms
of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.
BRILL is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Numen.
http://www.jstor.org
This content downloaded from 14.139.45.244 on Sun, 26 May 2013 05:28:16 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
Numen,Vol. XXVI, Fasc. I
THE LEGEND OF THE LION-ROARER:

A Study of theBuddhistArhat Bharadvaja
JOHNS. STRONGPin.dola
It was not long after the Buddha passed away into Parinirvana
in the fifthcenturyB.C. that mythsand legends began to multiply
about him. Sites associated with the smallestincidentsof his career
soon became centersof pilgrimage,and centersof pilgrimageperhaps
not previously connected to him soon became so, spawning new
storiesabout his life. But Gautama Buddha was not the only one to
receivethe attentionof the myth-makers of the tradition.In the cen-
turies that followed,Buddhist preachersand specialistmonks called
avadenikas recountedand ornamentedthe lives and past lives of his
disciplesand successorsas well. They createda vast literatureof their
legendarydeeds (avadanas) and previousbirths (jftakas), and their
storieswere incorporatedinto canonical texts and commentariesand
compiledinto special collections.1
Before long, many of the Buddha's disciplescame to be given set
features,stereotypesthat quickly become traditionand were then
played out in limitedvariationsbut in countlesslegends and stories.
One of the classic listingsof these stereotypesoccurs in the Thera-
v~da AnguttaraNikaya, wherethe various prominentdisciplesof the
Buddha are each describedas being "foremost"in a particularquality
or activity.Thus, Sariputtais "foremostof those of great wisdom";
Mahi Moggallina is "foremostof those with supernormalpowers,"
and Mahi Kassapa of those "who maintainthe meticulousobservance
of forms."2 The eighthplace on this listingis occupied by a figure
who formsthe subject of this paper: Pindola Bh5radvija, a disciple
whomthe Buddha declaredto be "foremostof lion-roarers."3
1 For a generalsurveyof thisliterature,see Maurice Winternitz, A History

of Indian Literature,trans.Mrs. S. Ketkar (Calcutta: Universityof Calcutta),
vol. 2, pp. 277-94.
2 The Anguttara Nikaya [hereafter abbreviated as A], ed. Richard Morris
(London: Pall Text Society, I885), vol I. p. 23. Cf. The Book of Gradual
Sayings (Anguttara-Nikaya) or More-Numbered Suttas, trans. Frank L. Wood-
ward, 5 vols., Pali Text Society Translation Series, vols. 22, 24-27 (London:
Oxford University Press, 1932-36), I :16-17.
3 Ibid.

The Legend of theLion-roarer 51
In what followsit is my intentionto examinethe full scope of the

traditionsand storieswhichsurroundthis personage.I want to focus
especiallyon his legend as it developedin India (since this has not
been studiedbefore to any great extent) and considerit in relation
to his cultas it is foundin China.4 In so doingI hope thattwo things
will be accomplished.The firstof these is thata contribution will be
made to the study of Indian Buddhist hagiography.This field has
been much neglectedby Westernscholars,perhapsbecause biography
is not particularlyfeaturedin Indian Buddhist sources, a situation
which,it mightbe pointedout, is the exact reverseof that found in
China whereour knowledgeof the historyand practiceof Buddhism
is virtuallydominatedby biographicalinformationand the lives of
eminentmonks.
Secondly,it is hoped that some contributionwill be made to the
study of popular cultic activitiesin Buddhism,especiallythose in-
volving meritoriousacts of offeringto membersof the Buddhist
community.We still know far too little about the popular practice
of Buddhistsin India, bothlay and monastic,and about the ideologies
and mythologieswhich accompany that practice. Doctrinal texts,
manuals of meditation,the philosophiesof various schools are all, of
course, crucial sources for our study of Indian Buddhism,but to
understandthe everydaypopular practicessuch as meritmakingand
culticacts, thereis a cryingneed to keep turningto the sourceswhich
can most help us in this regard: the Sanskritavadanas and the Pili
commentaries.In the case of Pindola, it is only by comparingthese
materialswith what we know of the developmentof his legend and
cult in Chinese sources thatit becomespossibleto gain a betterfocus
on the figurehimselfand on his overall significancein the popular
mythologyof Buddhism.
popularityin East Asia is well knownand a numberof
Pin.dola's
studies have been devotedspecificallyto him.5 As the most important
4 For the Chinesesourceson PinidolaI will be heavilyindebtedto Sylvain

Levi and Edouard Chavannes,"Les seize arhat protecteursde la loi," Journal
asiatique 8 (1916): 205-75.
5 In additionto Levi and Chavannes,see MarinusWillem De Visser, "The
Arhats in China and Japan," Ost-asiatischeZeitschriftIo (1922/23): 71-80;
Minakata Kumagusu,"The WanderingJew," Notes and Queries,9th. series,
4 (1899): 121-24; Mochizuki Shink5, Bukkyo daijiten (Tokyo, 1954), s.v. "Bin-
zuru Harada."

52 JohnS. Strong
of the sixteen (or eighteen)greatarhats (Ch. bo-han,Tib. gNas brtan,

Jap. rakan), his image appears in countlessBuddhist sanctuariesin
China,Tibet and Japan.6
The cult of the sixteenarhatshas its textualroots in Nandimitra's
Record of the Abiding of the Dharma translatedby Hsiian-tsangin
654. 7 Accordingto thistext,theelder Nandimitra,when he was about
to die, "eighthundredyears afterthe Buddha's Parinirvana,"assem-
bled all the monksof Lanka to his death bed and consoledthemwith
a sermon.The Buddha, he claimed,just beforeenteringParinirvana,
entrustedthe good Dharma to sixteen great arhats and instructed
themto protectit untilthe end of the presentworld period.
In order to carryout this mandate,these arhats all extendedtheir
life-spansby means of theirsupernaturalpowers,and even now are
acting as ready fields of merit,and constantlymaintainingthe good
teaching.It is not until the end of the final period of the Law that
theywill enter Parinirvina themselves,afterassemblingall the relics
of the Buddha's body in a greatstfipamade of seven gems whichwill
thensinkand disappearintothe earth.At thatmomentthe Dharma of
kyamuni will have been extinguishedforever,and the way cleared
for the eventualarrivalof Maitreya.s
6 For descriptionsand picturesof Pindola and the 16/18arhats,see Thomas

Watters,"The EighteenLohan of ChineseBuddhistTemples,"Journalof the
Royal Asiatic Society I898, pp. 329-47; George N. Roerich,"Le Bouddha et
seize grandsarhats,suitede septbannidresde la provincede Khams au Tibet,"
Revue des arts asiatiques 6 (1929/30): 94-10oo; Giuseppe Tucci, Tibetan Painted
Scrolls (Rome: Libreria dello Stato, I949), pp. 550-70 + plate 166; Eugen
Pander,Das Pantheondes Tschangtscha Hutuktu.Ein Beitragzur Iconographie
des Lamnaismus (Berlin: W. Spemann,189o), pp. 83ff.; AlbrechtGriinwedel,
Mythologiedes Buddhismus in Tibetunderder Mongolei(Leipzig: F. A. Brock-
haus, I9oo), pp. 7, 35 ff.; and especiallyLoden Sherap Dagyab, TibetanReli-
gious Art (Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1977), pp. See also Joseph
lo2-1o5.
Edkins, ChineseBuddhism(London: Kegan Paul, Trench,Triibner,and Co.
1893), p. 242; Basil Hall Chamberlain,
A Handbook for Travellersin Japan
(London: John Murray, 1907), pp. 44, 132; Mochizuki, p. 4334. For Pinlola in
Vietnam,see Louis Bezacier,"Le pantheondes pagodesbouddhiques
du Tonkin,"
Samadhi 8 (1974): 32.
7 The Chinese titleis Ta A-lo-han Nan-t'i-mi-to-lo
so shuo fa chu chi
(Taish5 Tripitaka No. 2030, vol. 49, p. I3a). The Sanskrit original is lost.
Completetranslationsmay be foundin Frenchin Levi and Chavannes,pp. 6-24,
and in English in Shan Shih BuddhistInstitute,comp.,The Sixteen and the
EighteenArhats (Peking: BuddhistAssociationof China,1961). Excerptsmay
also be foundin English in De Visser,pp. 60-64.
s Levi and Chavannes,p. 13; De Visser,p. 64.

Nandimitra,however,is more immediately interestedin the figures

of the sixteen arhats themselves.Of these, Pindola Bhiradvija is
named first; he resides with one thousandfollowers,all of themen-
lightenedarhats,in Apara-Godaniin the West. 9 Along withthe other
fifteenlo-han (who are all named and assigned their places in the
cosmologicalscheme) he maintainsthe teachingof the Buddha in this
manner:
All thosewho show theirdevoutnessby great liberalitytowardsthe Bud-
dhistclergy,in arranginglarge meetingsfor distributionof drinkand food
(to themonks),in presenting and in giving
temples,images,and sutra-flags,
chairsand beds,clothesand medicine,food and drinkto the monksof the
monasteries, theyshall all obtainthe greatestrewardsby the intermedium
of the SixteenGreatArhats,"whowithall theirfollowersaccordingto their
tasks go (to thoseplaces wherethosevirtuousactionsare performed)and
appear in all kindsof shapes,hidingtheirholy attitudeand being like the
commoncrowd, and secretlyreceivingthe offerings,thus causing the
donatorsto obtainthe rewardof the victoriousfruit."1o
Some doubts have arisen as to whetherthis text of Nandimitra's

sermon was actually translatedby Hsiian-tsang,or indeed whether
there was ever any Sanskrit original of it at all. Neither Hsfian-
tsang's Memoirs nor his biographymake any mentionof the text or,
forthatmatter,of the sixteenarhats,nor is thesame groupever found
listedas such in extantSanskritand Pili materials.Sylvain Levi and
Edouard Chavannes,however,have effectively dismissedthese doubts
by examiningvarious early Chinesecatalogsof the Tripitakain which
the work is consistentlylisted; theyconcludethatthe translationwas
most assuredly an authenticone. 11 The discoveryof a Khotanese
versionof Nandimitra'swork only confirmstheiropinion,as does a
fragmentof a differentKhotanese sfitrawhich contains the same
listingof sixteenarhats.12 Moreover,the fascinatingformulaic"con-
fessionsof sins" in the Uighur languagewhichwere uncoveredat the
turnof the centuryin Turfan but of whichLevi and Chavanneswere
9 L~vi and Chavannes, p. Io; De Visser, p. 62.

10 De Visser, pp. 62-63; cf. Levi and Chavannes, pp. 11-12.
11 Levi and Chavannes, pp. 24-25.
12 See Ernst Leumann, "Buddhistische Literatur Nordarisch und Deutsch,"
Abhandlungen fiir die Kunde des Morgenlandes i5 (I920): I-I79, esp. p. 167;
and Sten Konow, "Fragmentsof a BuddhistWork in the Ancient Aryan
Language of ChineseTurkistan,"Memoirsof the Asiatic Society of Bengal 5
(I914) : I3-4I.

54 JohnS. Strong
apparentlyunaware furtherdemonstratesthe popularityof Pindola

and the sixteenarhatsin CentralAsia. 13
Neverthelessit is clear fromthe date thatNandimitra'stextassigns
itself(at least eighthundredyearsafterthe Parinirvina), 14 and from
the factthatHsiian-tsangwas the first(and only) one to translateit
into Chinese (in 654) thatthe traditionand cult of the sixteenarhats
was a late bloomerin China, and probablyin India as well. 15
As a distinct,separate figure,however,Pindola was well knownin
both countrieslong before the group of the sixteen arhats of which
he was later a member.We have already seen that he appears on the
list of the Buddha's leading disciplesin the AnguttaraNikaya. He is
also given a whole sutta in the Sarmyutta Nikaya, 16s while in the
Vinayas of at least five differentschools,a famous storyabout his
gratuitousperformanceof a supernaturalfeat is recounted.17 In the
13 See the confessionsof sins of the two upasikas ttrit and Qutlug in
W. K. Muiller,UiguricaII (= Abhandlungen der Koniglichpreussischen Aka-
demie der Wissenschaften,Philosophisch-Historische Klasse, 191o, part 3),
pp. 76-89,esp. pp. 79 and 88, lines 67-68. The latterpassage runs as follows:
"In agreementwiththe teachingof the Buddhasof all threetimeswho are as
numerousas the sandsof the riverGanges,and in thepresenceof theVenerable
Pindola Bhiradvija (Pintolabardvaidai) and the sixteen great disciples,in the
presenceof MaitreyaBodhisattvawho lives in the Tusita Palace ... in the
presenceof all beingsin the five realmsof existence,humblingmyself,I pray
to becomepure and free and respectfully imploreforgiveness."
14 It is nextto impossible
to determine whatdate thismightactuallycorrespond
to. Levi and Chavannes(p. 26) mentiona chronology used by Hsiian-tsangin
which King KaniSka (whose own dating is very problematical)is placed at
400 years afterthe Parinirvina.This mightput Nandimitrac. 520; but this is
highlyspeculative.
15 There is a referenceto Pindola and "the sixteenvenerabledisciples"in
the Mahayanavatara-idstra [Ju Ta-shinglun] whichwas translatedintoChinese
by Tao-t'ai (357-439),but few details are given, and apart fromRahula, the
otherarhatsare not even named.See Livi and Chavannes,pp. 202-203,and De
Visser,p. 64.
16 [hereafterabbreviatedas S], ed. Lion Feer (London):
Pali Sam.yutta-Nikaya
Text Society,1894), part 4, pp. 11o-I3. Cf. The Book of the Kindred
Sayings Niklya) or GroupedSuttas, trans.F. L. Woodward,Pall
Text Society TranslationSeries, vol. 14 (London: Pall Text Society,1927),
(Sam.yutta
part4, PP. 68-70.
17 All five have been translated in L~vi and Chavannes, pp. 233-47. The
same tale is also foundin the Sutta-NipataCommentary, Paramatthajotika II
[hereafterSnA], ed. Helmer Smith (London: Pall Text Society,1917), vol. 2,
p. 570; The Jdtaka [hereafterJ], ed. V. Fausbell, 5 vols., (London, 1877-87),
4:263 (cf. The Jdtakaor Stories of the Buddha's FormerBirths,ed. E. B.
Cowell,6 vols., [vol. 4 trans.W. H. D. Rouse] [orig. pub., 1895,reprinted.,

Adokavadana he is said to come to King Adoka's great festivalof

merit.18 Verses are attributedto him in several canonical Pili
texts,19 and accountsof his previouslives occur in the Pili commen-
taries,20 as well as in the Sanskrit Mi7lasarvastivada Vinaya.21
Moreover his name appears on the various lists of the Buddha's
disciplesfoundin the great Mahiyana sfitras.22
London: Luzac and Co., 1969],vol. 4, p. 166); and,in a greatlyexpandedform
in The Commentary on theDhammapada[hereafterDhpA], ed. H. C. Norman
(London: Pall Text Society, 1912), vol. 3, pp. 199-203 (cf. Buddhist Legends,
trans.Eugene Watson Burlingame,Harvard OrientalSeries,vol. 30 [orig. ed.,
I92I; reprinted., London: Luzac and Co., I969], part 3, pp. 35-38.
18 The A okdvaddna,ed. SujitkumarMukhopadhyaya (New Delhi: Sahitya
Akademi,1963), pp. 96 ff. Cf. Eugene Burnouf,Introductioni l'histoiredu
Buddhismeindien,2nd. ed. (Paris: Maisonneuve,1876), pp. 353ff.
19 The Apadana [hereafterAp], ed. Mary E. Lilley (London: Pall Text
Society, I925), vol. I, pp. 50-51; Paramattha-Dipani Theragathd-Atthakathl
[hereafterThagA], ed. Frank L. Woodward,3 vols., (London: Pali Text So-
ciety, 1940-59) 2 :5 (cf. The Elders' Verses, I. Theragatha, trans. K. R. Norman,
Pall Text SocietyTranslationSeries, vol. 38 [London: Luzac and Co., I969],
p. 17, verses 123-24); The Milindapafiho [hereafter Mln] ed. V. Trenckner
(London: Williamsand Norgate,i88o), pp. 393,404 (cf. The Questionsof King
Milinda,trans.T. W. RhysDavids, Sacred Books of the East, vol. 36 [orig.ed.,
1894; reprinted., New York: Dover, 1963], part 2, pp. 335, 346.
2o The Manorathapfrani[Commentary on the AnguttaraNikaya, hereafter
AA], ed. Max Walleserand EdmundHardy (London: Pall Text Society,1924),
vol. I, pp. 196-99; ThagA, vol. 2, pp. 4-6; Visuddhajanavilasini nama Apaddna-
Atthakatha[Commentary on theApaddna,hereafterApA], ed. C. E. Godakum-
bura (London: Pall Text Society, I954), pp. 300-302.
21 The text editedby NalinakshaDutt (Gilgit Manuscripts,KashmirSeries
of Texts and Studies,no. 71 (E) [Srinagar,I947], vol. 3, part I, pp. 183-84)
should be supplemented by Heinz Bechert,Bruchstiickebuddhistischer Ver-
sammlungen:die Anavataptagatha und die Sthaviragathd,Sanskrittexte aus den
Turfanfunden Nr. 6 (Berlin: Akademie Verlag, I961I), pp. 130-33. Cf. also
Marcel Hofinger,Le congrksdu Lac Anavatapta(vies de saints bouddhiques)
Extraitdu Vinayades Malasarvastivadin Bhaisajyavastu, Bibliothiquedu Musion,
vol. 34 (Louvain: Institut Orientaliste, 1954), pp. 212-15.
22 Saddharmapundtarikasitram, ed. P. L. Vaidya, BuddhistSanskritTexts,
no. 6 (Darbhanga: MithilaInstitute,I960), p. I (cf. Saddharma-Pundarika or
The Lotus of the True Law, trans.HendrikKern, Sacred Books of the East,
vol. 21 [orig. ed., 1884; reprinted., New York: Dover, 1963], p. 2). In addition
to the Lotus, he is said to be in the Buddha'sentouragein variousPure Land
sfitras.See, for example,Sukhavatf-vyfha, ed. F. Max Miller and Bunyiu
Nanjio, AnecdotaOxoniensa,Aryan Series,vol. I, part 2 (Oxford: Clarendon
Press, 1883), p. 92 (cf. F. Max Miuller,tr., The Smaller Sukhdvatf-vyfha in
E. B. Cowell,ed. BuddhistMahdyanaTexts, Sacred Books of the East, vol. 49
[orig. pub., 1894; reprinted., New York: Dover, 1969], part 2, p. go); and
Yamada Isshi, ed Karunapudarika,2 vols. (London: School of Orientaland
AfricanStudies,1968) 2: 2. In the Karmavibhanga, Pinilola appears in a list

56 JohnS. Strong
In China and Japan, he enjoyed a separate cult primarilyas the

guardian saint of monasteries'refectories. 23 This tradition,which
can be tracedat least as far back as the timeof Tao-an (314-85), 24
was fixed in detail in the middle of the fifthcenturywhen Hui-
chien translatedthe ritual specificationscontainedin the Method of
InvitingPindola [Ch'ing Pin-t'ou-lufa]. 25 It receivedimperialsup-
port in 490 when Emperor Wu of the soon to be created Liang
Dynastywas reportedlycured of a serious illnessas a resultof great
offeringsmade to Pindola,26 and it was the subjectof a long descrip-
tive articleby Tao-shih in the middleof the seventhcentury.27 The
cult of Pindola was thus widespreadin China and continuedon up to
the modern period, despite some oppositionby the Tantric master
Amoghavajra who, in 769, petitionedthe throne requesting that
Pindola's image be replacedin all the refectoriesof the empireby that
of the bodhisattvaMafijuiri.28
of arhatswho convertdifferentcountries;see Mahakarmavibhanga (la grande
classificationdes actes) et Karmavibhangopadela (discussionsur le Mahdkarma-
vibhanga),ed. and trans.SylvainLevi (Paris: ErnestLeroux,I932), p. 62 (text),
p. 131 (tr.). In the Mailfuirimilakalpahe appearsin a list of eightgreat grii-
vakas whichparallelslists of eightbodhisattvas and eightpratyekabuddhas; see
Aryanmaiijuirimilakalpa, ed. T. Sistri, 3 vols., TrivandrumSanskrit
Ganapati
Series, vols. 70, 76, 84 (Trivandrum, I1920-25), I : III.
23 Mochizuki,p. 4334; KennethK.S. Ch'en, Buddhismin China (Princeton,
N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1964), p. IoI.
24 ArthurLink, "The Biographyof Shih Tao-an," T'oung pao 46 (1958): 35.
See also E. Ziircher,The BuddhistConquestof China (Leiden: E. J. Brill,
I972) pp. 94, 391, n. 73. Henri Maspero (Milanges posthumes sur les religions
et l'histoirede la Chine,2. Le Taoisme [Paris: Civilisationsdu Sud, 195o],
p. IgI) claims that even beforethat the Taoist Yellow Turbanshad confused
imagesdepictingPintola withthe figureof Lao-tzu. This is unlikely,however,
since the firstimageof Pintola is elsewhereexplicitlysaid to have been made
only in 470 (see Levi and Chavannes, p. 220).
25 Taish5 Tripitaka No. 1689, vol. 32, p. 784b-c, translatedin Levi and
Chavannes, pp. 216ff.
26 Livi and Chavannes, p. 220.
27 The articlewas incorporated
in his Fa yuan chu lin (comp. 668) and is
translated in Levi and Chavannes, pp. 205-13.
28 The text of the petitionmay be foundin Taish5 TripitakaNo. 2120,vol.
52, p. 837a-b.The incidentis also recountedin Vajrabodhi'sbiographywhere,
however,Pintola is confusedwiththearhatKaunxtinya. The petitionwas granted
but does not seem to have been implemented fullythroughoutthe country(see
Chou Yi-liang, "Tantrismin China," Harvard Journalof Asiatic Studies 8
[1944/451]:297, n. 63). In certainlarge centers,however,it may have been
carriedout. For example,the JapanesepilgrimEnnin has this to say about
his visitto a templeon Mt. Wu-t'ai: "At noon we went to the dininghall for

In Japan, where Pindola (Jap. Binzuru) was also worshippedas

patronof themonasticrefectories, he tookon the additionaldimension
of being a popular healingsaint. Sick and diseased laypersonswould
flockto imagesof Binzuruand rub on the image the spot correspond-
ing to theplace of pain on theirown body,whileprayingfora cure.29
Especially famous in this regard seems to have been the image of
Binzuru at the Sensoji in Tokyo.30 In recenttimesthese images of
Binzuruin Japanhave been prohibitedby thegovernment because they
were thoughtto spreaddisease.31
If I have extendedmyselfin mentioningall of these sources here
(many of whichwe shall be consideringbelow), it is because, though
all of themconcernPindola directly, none of themso muchas mention
the list of the sixteenarhats.It is rathersurprisingthenthatwithbut
one exceptionall of the previousscholarswho have discussedPindola
have done so in the contextof those sixteen arhats and their cult.
This in itselfis notnecessarilywrong,but it is to approachthequestion
backwards,for it is evidentthat many of the traditionssurrounding
the group as a whole shouldbe seen as developmentsfromthose con-
cerningPindola ratherthan vice-versa.
The one exceptionwho has not approachedPindola in this way is
Jean Przyluski.In "L'Ecole de et la l1gende de Pindola,"
Kaucrmbi
which formsthe fourthchapterof his Ligende de l'empereurAgoka,
he pays littleattentionto the traditionof the sixteenarhatsand claims
instead that Pindola was a famouselder of the Buddhistcommunity
at Kaudimbi. In fact,he goes so far as to claim thatthe whole story
of Pindola in theA~okdvadanarepresentsan interpolation of the local
interestsof the Buddhistsof Kaudimbi wishingto promotetheirown
favoriteson. 32
Przyluski'soverall argumentin this work is that it is possible to
our forenoonmeal. We saw an imageof Monju placed in the seat of the head
monkbut did not see Binzuru[Piintola]in any seat. Surprisedat thiswe asked
the monks,and theysaid the variouspaintings[sic] in the mountainwere like
this." See Edwin O Reischauer,Ennin's Diary, The Record of a Pilgrimage
to China in Search of the Law (New York: Ronald Press, I955), pp. 226-27.
I would like to thankCharles Orzech for thesereferences.
29 Mochizuki, p. 4334; Minakata, p. 123.
30 Chamberlain,p. I32.
31 Nihon kokugodaijiten (Tokyo: Sh6gakkan,I975), s.v. "Binzuru."
32 Jean Przyluski,La ligende de l'empereurACoka (A/oka-avadana)dans
les textesindienset chinois(Paris: Paul Geuthner,1923), p. 75.

58 JohnS. Strong
detect various layers in the developmentof the Aboka legend by

distinguishingthe passages which featuredifferentBuddhist elders
such as Yafas, Upagupta, and Pindola, each of whom,accordingto
his scheme,was theleader of and representsthe interestsof a particu-
lar Buddhist community.Thus Yafas is associated with the Kukku-
in P.taliputra,Upagupta withthe community at Mathuri and
t.rima
Pindola with that of Kau~mbi. The legend of each of these figures
reflects,according to Przyluski,the local traditionsof their own
communities:"Pour projetersur les originesde l'Eglise de Kaugimbi
l'6clat d'une renommee ... il fallait un saint patron qui fit pour cette
communaut6ce qu'&taitUpagupta pour la confrdriede Mathurs. Ce
personnagefutPindola Bhiradv.ja... Commeon le volt,les &crivains
de Kauambi en ont us&avec Pindola de la m~me manidreque ceux
de Mathura ? l'6gard d'Upagupta." 33
The attemptto detectlocal traditionsoperativewithinthe overall
text is, I think,a commendableone. UnfortunatelyPrzyluski'sargu-
ment here that these elders were primarilythoughtof as associated
with particularcommunitiesis not convincing.As I have sought to
show elsewhere,when the totaltraditionabout Upagupta is taken into
consideration, it can hardlybe said thathe is primarilyassociatedwith
the cityof Mathur5,34 and the same is truehere of Pindola's connec-
tion with KauSimbi. Przyluski'sclaim that "la 1Igende est constante
qui rattachePindola au pays de Kau?imbi," 35 is simplyincorrect.The
most famousstoryof Pindola-his displayof magicalpowers in front
of the laity-is consistentlyportrayedas takingplace at Rijagrha. 36
In the ASokavadena itself,Pindola is said to be dwellingon Mount
Gandhamidana,and he comes to Adoka's assemblywhichis in Patali-
putra.37 In the Udana, which representsone of the oldest strata of
the Pali canon, Pindola is picturedas dwellingat the Jetavananear
Savatthi (Skt. Sravasti). 38
Ibid., pp. 75-76.
,3
34JohnStrong,"Making Merit in the Alokivadina: A Study of Buddhist
Acts of Offeringin the Post-Parinirvna Age," PhD dissertation,
University
of Chicago, 1977, pp. 17-18.
35 Przyluski, p. 75.
36 This is the case in all of the sourcescitedin n. 17 above,withthe excep-
tionof the Mahr$asakaVinayain whichthe eventis said to take place in Vai-
Sili. See Ldvi and Chavannes,p. 238.
37 p. Ioo. Cf. Burnouf, p. 356.
88A.dokdvaddna,
Udffnam[hereafterUd], ed. Paul Steinthal(London: Pall Text Society,

TheLegendof theLion-roarer 59
In fact,it appears that,in the case of Pindola, Przyluski'swhole

constructis based on onlytwo stories.The firstof theseappears in the
Theragatha Commentarywhere Piindolais said to have been reborn
as the son of the chaplain of King Udena of Kosambi (Skt. Kau-
ambi). An examinationof the full text of this story,39 however,
reveals thatit is not particularlyinterestedin the relationof Pindola,
Udena and Kosambi. It is ratherconcernedwithmakingthe pointthat
Pindola was a learned Brahminwith a bad reputationbeforehe was
convertedto Buddhism.40 The identicalpointis made in theAnguttara
Nikaya Commentary'sversion of the story where, however, no
mentionis made of King Udena, and the whole tale is picturedas
taking place in Rlijagaha (Skt. RItjagrha).41
The second storywhichPrzyluskiadduces in supportof his theory
is the account of a dialogue between Pindola and this same King
Udena whichtakesplace in the royalpark near Kosambi.42 The com-
mentaryon this passage 43, however, portraysit as an incidental
meetingthattook place when Pindola was actuallydwellingin Savat-
thi,and just happenedto flyto Udena's park near Kosambi in order
1885), pp. 42-43. Cf. Uddna: Verses of Uplift,trans.F. L. Woodward,Minor

Anthologiesof the Pall Canon,Part 2, Sacred Books of the Buddhists,vol. 8
(London: Oxford University Press, 1948), PP. 50-51.
39 To do Przyluskijustice,it mustbe statedthathis knowledge of the com-
mentarywas based on Mrs. Rhys Davids's remarksin her translationof the
Theragdthaverses (see Psalms of the Brethren,trans.C. A. F. Rhys Davids,
Pall Text Society TranslationSeries, vol. 4 [London: H. Frowde, 19131,
pp. IIO-III). Since that time,however,the full text of the TheragathaCom-
mentaryhas been published.
40 ThagA, p. 4.
41 AA, I: 198. Two otheraccountsare less specificand tell us thathe was
a Brahminbut fail to mentionwhere.See A, p. 50, and the Paramattha-Dipani
Udanatthakathd [Commentary on the Udana,hereafterUdA], ed. F. L. Wood-
ward (London: Pall Text Society,I954), P. 252. In onlyone otherversionof the
storyis any mentionmade of Kosambi (see ApA, p. 300).
42 S, 4: I10o-13 (cf. KindredSayings,4: 68-70). Their conversation touches
on the subjectof Buddhistmonks'discipline.The king wants to know how it
is thatyoungmonksin the full vigor of youthcan stay on the Buddhistpath
and resistdalliancewiththe passions.Aftera numberof answerswhichdo not
satisfyUdena, Pin*dolafinallytellshimthatit is by meditationon thesensesand
sense objects.This pleases the kingwho then takes refugein the Triple Gem.
48Sgrattha-ppakisini. Buddhaghosa'sCommentaryon the Samyutta-Nikaya
[hereafter SA], ed. F. L. Woodward (London: Pall Text Society, 1932), 2: 393.

60 JohnS. Strong
"to spend the noon-day heat in a cool spot on the bank of the
Ganges." 44
These points against Przyluski's interpretationof Pindola are
importantbecause, on the one hand, there has been a widespread
tendencysimplyto accept his view that Pindola was the "apostle of
KauBambi," 45 and, on the otherhand,thiskindof localizationdetracts
from a proper understandingof Pindola's legend and cult in the
overall Buddhisttradition.
The texts which associate Pindola and King Udena should not be
ignored,of course,nor shouldhis connectionwiththe sixteenarhats;
but these,as we shall see, are only parts of a muchlargerpicture.In
what follows,therefore,I would firstlike to presentthe many and
sometimes contradictorystories about Pindola. I have sought to
organize them under a number of differentheadings. First come
several themeswhich are all related to stories of Pindola when he
was the discipleof the Buddha: (a) his reputationfor gluttonywhich
44 Kosambi is actuallyon the bank of the Yamunka ways west of whereit

flows into the Ganges-a furtherindication,perhaps,that those who made up
this storywere littleconcernedwith that city. In two otherversionsof this
tale, Pitndolais explicitlysaid to returnto Rijagaha after this meeting.(See
SnA, p. 515 and J, 4 :375). The gist of the storyof their encounteris as
follows: While Piindolais spendinghis noontimemeditationin the shade of
a tree,King Udena (who has been drinkingheavily) comes to the park with
his harem.He lies downon a seat spreadfor him and quicklyfalls asleep with
his head in a maid servant'slap. The otherdancinggirls take the opportunity
to wanderoff throughthe park, pickingflowersand eatingfruit.Eventually
theycome across Pindola and salutinghim theysit down.He comesout of his
tranceand beginsto preacha dharmicsermonsuitableto the occasion.In the
meantime, King Udena wakes up and, furiousat not seeinghis harem,asks the
maid servantwheretheyhave gone. She answersthattheyare witha gramania.
In a fit of jealous rage, Udena jumps up and vows he will have Pindola de-
vouredby red ants.There thenfollowsa slapstickscene in whichUdena climbs
a tree to get an ants' nest,but missesa branchon the way down and falls to
the groundwith the ants' nest breakingopen on his head. This alerts Pindola
who decides-toflyoff by meansof his supernatural powers.The womenof the
haremare not at all sympathetic withUdena. Pretendingto wipe the ants off
of his body,theyactuallyput themback on, blaminghim all the while for
suspectingand wantingto hurtan enlightened wanderingmonk.Udena finally
realizes his mistakeand instructshis park keeper to tell him when and if
PiCndolashouldever return.A few days later he does; Udena approcheshim
respectfullyand therefollowsthe dialog that is recordedin the Ni-
kdya sutta. Sam.yutta
45 See, for example,EtienneLamotte,Histoiredu bouddhisme indien,Biblio-
thique du Musion, vol. 43 (Louvain: InstitutOrientaliste,I958), p. 768.

is relatedto the meaningof his name, (b) his lion's roar, and (c)
his performanceof a supernaturalfeat. Then, secondly,I shall con-
sider some storieswhich take Pindola (and us) beyond the time of
the Buddha: (a) his not being allowed to enter Parinirvana,(b) his
cult,and (c) his meetingwith King Aboka. All of these storieswill
provide insightsthat will then allow some general conclusionabout
the significanceof this interestingfigure.
name and his reputationfor gluttony

Pindola's
Pindola's rathercuriousnamehas been thetopicof some discussion,
and it is useful to look into the matterhere. His second name, Bha-
radvaja (also spellt Bharadvaja) is simplythat of the Brahmanical
gotra to which he belongedand poses no particularproblem.46 His
personalname,however,has caughtthe interestof classical commen-
tatorsand modernscholarsalike. The firstpart of it clearlyconsists
of the word pinda meaning"lump (of food)" and, in the Buddhist
context,referringspecificallyto alms food such as that which is
offeredto a monk.
Buddhaghosa offers a folk etymologyfor the name as a whole,
derivingit frompinda + ulati ("to go"), thus giving the image of
a man who goes for alms. This, of course,would be a characteristic
of all Buddhistmonks,but the implicationhere is that Pindola goes
for alms with a particular persistence and zest: "Desiring alms
(pinda) he goes (ulati)." 47 The English translation"alms go-getter,"
then, would perhaps best describe this understandingof his name.
These not very flatteringovertoneswould seem substantiatedin at
least two Pali texts in which the word pindola apparentlydesignated
a termof abuse used by laypeople: "This is a curse here below: you
alms go-getter You wanderwithbowl in hand!" 48
We will have(pid.ola)!
more to say on Pindola's name later on, but in the
46 Levi and Chavannes, p. 232. There were a number of different monks

by that name in the early Buddhist community.See Buddha's Teachings [Sutta-
nipita], ed. and trans. Robert Chalmers, Harvard Oriental Series, vol. 37 (Cam-
bridge: Harvard University Press, 1932), index, s.v. "Bharadvija."
47 SA, 2: 393. The same etymology is foundin UdA, p. 252.
48 S, 3 :93 (cf. KindredSayings,3: 78); Itivuttaka,ed. E. Windisch(Lon-
don: Pall Text Society,1889), p. 89 (cf. Itivuttaka:As It was Said, trans.
F. L. Woodward,Minor Anthologiesof the Pali Canon,part 2, Sacred Books
of the Buddhists,vol. 8 [London: Oxford UniversityPress, 1948], p. 18o.

62 JohnS. Strong
contextpresentedthus far it is easy to see how a numberof Pili

storiesshouldhave developedthe themeof Pindola being a gluttonous
monk whose chief preoccupationwas the consumptionof food.
In the TheragathaCommentary,for example,we are told the fol-
lowing story:
In the timeof the Buddha Gotama,Pindola was rebornas the son of a
Brahmin.When he came of age, he learnedthe threevedas and taughtthe
mantrasto fivehundredyouths.But beinggluttonous by naturehe did not
behave suitably; [his disciples] thereforeforsookhim and he went to
IRjagaha. There he saw the gain and honorof the Bhikku-sangha, and so
becameordainedintotheBuddhistreligion.Immoderate in foodhe wandered
for alms, but the Master,by good means,establishedhim in temperance.
And having quickly achieved vipassana, he was endowed with the six
supernaturalpowers [and became an arhat].49
The same tale occurs in the AnguttaraNikaya Commentarywhere

a few colorfuldetailshave been added. While he was stilla Brahmin,
we are told, Pindola used to ask to receivepersonallythe alms sup-
posedlydestinedforhis fivehundreddisciplesand would go repeatedly
to houses where he had alreadybeen served and wait thereinquiring
"Where is the food? Where is the rice-milk ?" 50 However,in thistext
as well,once he entersthe Sangha,the Buddha soon cureshimof these
gluttonoushabits.
This pointis of some significance.In the Pili commentaries,Pindola
is consistentlyportrayedas becominga Buddhist monk because he
realizes that membersof the communityreceivea lot of food. Once
in the sangha, however,he is convertedto the ways of temperance.
The "good means" by which the Buddha cures him of his gluttony
is the subject of anotherstory:
Indeed [Pindola] was a Brahmincome on hard times.Perceivingthe gain
and honorof the Bhikkhu-sangha, he retiredfromthe world for the sake
of alms and was ordained.He then took a large51 beggingbowl and
wanderedfor alms; he drank rice-milkby the bowlful,consumededibles
by the bowlful,ate solid food by the bowlful.Now his greedynaturewas
reportedto the Master; the Masterdid not allow hima bag forhis bowl.52
40 ThagA, p. 4.
o50AA, p. 198. The text adds that for this reason he was called Pindola Bhi-
radvija. See the same story in ApA, p. 300.
51 A variant reading is "very old."
52 A patta-tthavika-astrapor sling in whichto carrythe bowl but also to
protectif fromwear.

Everydaywhenhe finished he [Pindola]turned

eating, hisbowloverand
putit underhis bed.Each timehe putit thereit wouldget scraped,
and
eachtimehe tookit out it wouldget scraped.So as timewentby,as a
resultof this constantscraping,the bowl was worn down untilit came to
be a container
the size of onlyone ndlimeasureof rice.Then thiswas
reportedto the Master; this time,the Master allowed him a bag for his
bowl.
Pindola,havingthusbeen forcedintomoderation, cultivatedmeditation

and was soon establishedin the highestfruitof arhatship.53
It is clear in all of thesePgli stories54 thatPindola had a bad repu-
tation for gluttony;and yet it is equally certainthat he conquered
it. Althoughthe accounts,aimed as theyare at a popular audience,
play a bit with the themeof monkishgluttony,theiroverall thrustis
to clear Pinidola(and Buddhistmonksin general) of that reputation.
In this regard,it is noteworthythat in the Pili canonical sources,
Pindola is consistentlypresented,not as a glutton,but as a paragon
of the disciplinedmonk,especiallyof one withcertainascetic tenden-
cies. In the Udana, for instance,the Buddha himselfpointsto Pindola
who is sitting"cross legged ... holding his body upright,a forest
dweller ... needing little,contented,a recluse,shunningsociety,up-
holdingthe scrupulouslife," and enjoins othermonks to follow his
example: "Revile not,harmnot,live by rule restrained;of food take
little; sleep and sit alone; keep thy mind bent upon the higher
thought." 55
53 SA, p. 393. See also UdA, p. 252.

54 It shouldbe pointedout here that the Sanskrittraditiondoes not know
thesestories.The closestthingwe findto it is account
autobiographical
at the Congresson Lake Anavataptaof his evil deedsin a past life.These focus
Pin.dola's
on food and his relationshipwith his mother,but emphasizehis maliciousness
ratherthanhis greed: "I was the son of a merchant, and lord in my paternal
home. Because I was supportingmy father,I conductedmyselfwith false
arrogance.I satiatedwith food and drinkmy father,my sisterand brother,
as well as the servantsdoingtheirjobs; but mymother,I did reprimand. Over-
come by maliciousenvy,I did not give her anythingto eat and spoke harshly
thesecruel words: 'Eat rocks for food!'" Pindola then goes on to tell how,
as a resultof this deed,he was cast manytimesinto hell; then,being reborn
in the humanstate,he could only eat pebblesand died repeatedlyfromhunger
and thirst.Finally,in this his presentbirth,he encounteredthe Buddha,was
convertedand attainedarhatship.See Bechert,Anavataptagatha,pp. I30-33
(cf. Hofinger, Congres du Lac Anavaptata, pp. 212-15).
55 Verses of Uplift,p. 51. For the text,see Ud, p. 43-

64 JohnS. Strong
The two verses attributedto Pindola in the Questions of King

Milinda and in the Theragathaitselfmerelyreinforcethis image of
him. 56
The strangediscrepancybetweenthis canonicalimageof Pind1olaas
a disciplinedenlightenedmonk and the generallygluttonousimage
of himpresentedin the Pali commentaries has been notedby a number
of scholars.Heinz Bechert,aftercitingsome of the sources on Pin-
dola's bad reputation,pointout: "Jedenfallsfindetman die Geschichte
von Pindolabh~radvSjasgrosserEssgier in der Piliiiberlieferungerst
in nachkanonischen Texten," 57 but he offersno real explanationfor
this. Jean Przyluski,however,does. Accordingto him, Pindola, the
elderof Kosambi,was actuallya glutton,buttheKauimbians, wishing
to enhancethe image of theircommunityand its saint, reworkedthe
canonicalpassages and changedthe ancienttraditionsin order to give
theirfavoriteson a more positiveprofile.58 Such speculations,how-
ever, simplycannotbe proven,especiallywhen theyinvolvearguing
for the precedenceof the commentariesover particularpassages in
the canonicaltexts.They explain away ratherthanseek to understand.
A much readierinterpretation of this discrepancy,it seems to me,
emergesfroma numberof storieswhichgo fartherthan the ones we
have examinedso far,and seek to show thatPindola's gluttonyexists
only in the mindsof stingylaymenwho do not know his true inten-
tions. His desire for alms should be interpretedthen as a reflection
of his ardent compassion for others: he wants to have them make
meritby giving him offerings.Two texts especiallyare significant
in this regard.The firstis the sequel to the storyin the Theragatha
Commentaryreferredto above:
One day, after he had attainedarhatship,Pinrdolaout of compassionfor
a greedybrahminof wrongviews who had been a friendof his when he
was a laymanand had now come to see him,preacheda sermonon dina.
The brahminfrowned[thinking]"this man wants to destroymy wealth,"
and he said: "Let me give just one meal to you." Give thatto the Sangha,
not to me," [answered]Pindola thus diverting[the offering]for the use
of the community. Again the brahminthought:"This man wants to make
me give a lot!"
56 Mln, pp. 393, 404 (cf. Questionsof Milinda,2: 335, 346); ThagA, 2:5
(cf. Elders' Verses, p. 17).
57Bechert,Anavataptagathz, p. I31i.
58 Przyluski,Ligende, p. 80.

The story continues in this vein until Pindola realizes that "this
brahminthinksI incitedhim to dana out of greed for food," and
immediatelysets about correctingthat wrong notionby preachingto
him the Buddha's explanationof "the great fruitthat comes from
donationto the Sangha." 59
The second story,which is containedin the Mahi~ssaka Vinaya,
properlybelongs to the cycle of texts dealing with Pindola's use of
supernaturalpowers but is neverthelessrelevanthere: Intendingto
converta stingyhousewifeof Rijagrha, Pindola deliberatelygoes to
her house to beg for food and arrivestherejust as she is makingsome
cakes. She pretendsnot to notice him, but he refuses to go away.
When she tellshim she will not give him anything,Pindola, using his
magicalpowers,causes some smoketo issue forthfromhis body. The
housewifereplies "even with smoke comingout of your whole body,
I won't give you anything."Pinclola then causes flames to leap up
fromhis body,but the housewifestands firm:"Even withyourwhole
body on fire,I won't give you anything."Pindola then flies up into
the air; she is not impressed.He turnsupside down and stays head
downwards in mid-air,but still she will not relinquishher cakes.
Finally, Pindola resortsto grabbinga huge boulderand holdingit in
mid-air over her house. This time, threatenedand frightenedshe
agrees to give him a cake. But with the boulder back in place, she
decides to make it a small one. There followsa fine example of the
kind of slapsticksuch storiesdelightin: everytimethe woman wants
to offer Pindola a littlecake, he, by means of his magical powers,
makes it bigger.When she finallyconsentsto cook just one of these
enlargedcakes for him,he causes severalof themto flyinto the pan.
At long last,she gives in: "If you want cakes so much,I will give you
all of them; I will give you the fryingpan as well." 60
Pindola's responseto this is significantand clearlyargues against
his own gluttony:"I do not need any cakes," he says, "nor do I need
the fryingpan," and he then explains to her that all of this was
simplyfor the sake of her conversion.He takes her to the Sangha
and has her offer the cakes to the Buddha and the monks,and she,
upon hearingthe Dharma, becomesenlightened. 61
59 ThagA, 2 :5.
so Lbvi and Chavannes, pp. 241-42.
61 Ibid., p. 242.

66 JohnS. Strong
In these two stories,we have graphicillustrationsof the fact that

Pindola, far frombeing gluttonousfor himself,is really,in a sense,
gluttonousfor others. He can be so preciselybecause he has no
attachmentor desire forthe food he receives,but seeks it only forthe
sake of lettingothersmake merit.
At this point,it may be useful to look once again at the etymology
of Pindola's name.We have alreadyseen how in the commentaries
Ptli
it is readily explained as meaning "he who goes (ulati) for food
(pinda)", and is connectedwiththe image of the gluttonousPindola.
This, however,is not the only possible interpretation, nor is it, for
thatmatter,a genuineetymology. As T. W. Rhys Davids and William
Stede pointout, the word ulati is merelyan inventionof the commen-
tatorsto serveas a synonymfor the verb gacchati,"to go." 62
Perhaps forthisreason,then,Livi and Chavannesmakeno mention
of this Pfli explicationof Pindola's name and focus instead on the
Sanskritside. Pointingout thatPiininiand Hemacandrabothrecognize
an -ola suffix,they suggestthat it may be a colloquial abbreviation
for the word alaya, meaning"abode, receptacle,storehouse."63 They
base this claim on a parallel Buddhistcase whichposits gandhola for
gandhalaya,the "abode of scent,"betterknownas the gandhakuti.64
Pindola, then,would be a pinda-alaya--a storehouse,a receptacleof
alms-food.
It is, of course,perfectlypossible to use this interpretation of the
name to reinforcethe theoryof Pindola's gluttony,and indeed Levi
and Chavannes have done so. Pindola would be called a "storehouse
of food" preciselybecause eatingwas his overridingconcern.But the
same etymologycan imply somethingelse as well.65 It is not just
62 T. W. Rhys Davids and William Stede, The Pall Text Society'sPall =

English Dictionary(orig. pub., I921I-25; reprinted., London: Routledgeand
Kegan Paul, 1972), s.v. "ulati."
63 Levi and Chavannes, p. 231.
64 Ibid. On the see John Strong, "Gandhakuti: the Perfumed
gandhaku0t.,
Chamber of the Buddha," History of Religions 16 (1977): 390-406.
65 The conceptof an alaya-a storehouseor receptaclein whichmeritorious
actionsare placed and by whichtheyare made ultimatelyeffectiveis one which
has played an importantrole in Buddhism.It is, perhaps,simplya different
metaphorfor the more agriculturalidea of a "field" of merit.In the idealist
contextof the Vijfi~navidaschool,the notionof a storehousefor the "seeds of
deeds" was developedin the sophisticated
theoryof the alayavijiAdna,
the store-
house consciousness.In the gandhola (gandhdlaya),we have an exampleof a

"food" that Pindola stores,but food-offerings. He is, so to speak,

greedy for the acts of merit of the laity. In this sense, Pindola can
perhaps best be conceived of as a personificationof the Buddhist
monk'sbeggingbowl: he is eminentlyqualifiedto receivefood offer-
ings but does not enjoy them.
In this regard,it is interestingto note thaticonographically in East
Asia, Pindola's main trait is his (sometimes very large) begging
bowl. Sittingon a chair with his bowl in one hand, he is often seen
surroundedby figuresof laymenmakingofferingsto him. That he
is at the same timelittleaffected,at least physically,by the food he
receivesis graphicallyexpressedby the factthathe is neverportrayed
as a glutton,i.e., as a fat jolly monk,but ratheras a thin,bony asce-
tic.66 The same thingis consistently indicatedby theTibetan tradition
which, far from claimingthat Pindola's bowl reflectshis gluttony,
interpretsit as representing"his miraculouspower of grantingthe
wishes of thosewho pray to him."67
There is no denyingthat a traditionabout Piindola'sgluttonydid
exist,but it is importantto tryto interpretthe story'sfunctionin the
popularlyorientedtexts in which it figures.The story'svalue to the
Buddhist preacher,it seems to me, lies preciselyin the fact that it
recognizesa problemthatprobablywas nevertoo farback in theminds
of mostlaypersons,and whichhas been chronicthroughout thehistory
of the Buddhist community;namely,that some individuals in the
Sangha could hardlybe said to be paragons of monasticdiscipline
and restraint.This can only have engendereddoubtsin the mindsof
some laypersons(and certainlyin the minds of non-Buddhisthouse-
holders), and a certainreticenceon theirpart in giving food to the
apparentgood-for-nothings at theirdoor.
The strengthof the storyof Piindola'sreputedgluttonyis that it
does not seek to deny the possibilitythat such doubtsmay exist, but,
havingnotedthem,it seeks to quell them.It recognizes,oftenhumor-
ously,thatsome monksmay have, in fact,joined the Sangha because
special ritualchamberparticularlyconnectedwiththe figureof the Buddhaand

involvedwith flowerand other offeringsof scents (gandha). In "Pinplola",
then,as we shall see, we have a figurewho is prominently concernedwiththe
reception of offerings
made to the Sangha,especiallythoseof food a).
66 See, for examples,Pander,p. 86; Griinwedel,p. 7; Tucci, p. 569;
(pin.Roerich,
p. 98.
67 Tucci, p. 560.

68 JohnS. Strong
theysaw thatits memberswere readilygiven food offerings-a point

which,at the same time,shows the Buddhist communityas a whole
to be morehighlyregardedthanother"heretical"groups.But it insists
that once in the Sangha these monks overcometheirbad habits and
are actuallyideals of disciplinedrenunciation.The thrustof the story
as a whole,then,is to enjoin the makingof offeringsto monkswho,
whatevertheirreputationor appearance,are actuallyworthyrecipients
of dana.
Pindola's lion roar
We will touch again on Pindola's role in reassuringdoubtfullay-
persons in theirmakingof offerings,when we considerthe develop-
mentof his cult. For the presentI want to turnto a set of different
stories that commentupon and develop Pindola's AnguttaraNikaya
epithetof "foremostof lion-roarers."68
There are a numberof interpretations of just what is meant by a
"lion's roar" in the Buddhistcontext.Levi and Chavannesassume it
refersto an abilityto triumphover hereticsin debate.69 Rhys Davids
and Stede, however,state thatit refersmore to "a song of ecstacy,a
shoutof exultation,"70 and in the case of Pindola, theywould appear
to be closerto the truth.In mosttexts,as we shall see, Pindola's roar
is presentedas a declarationof enlightenment in whichhe vauntshis
abilityto overcomethe doubtsof any monkswho mighthave them.In
thissense it may be seen as a counterpart,in moredoctrinally oriented
monasticcircles,to the characteristicof overcomingthe doubtsof the
faithfullaitywhichwe have just dealt with.
There are, in the Pili texts,a numberof storiesthatseek to explain
how Pindola came by his epithet.The Apadana would have us believe
thatit can be tracedto thestoryof his previousbirthas a lion:
A Jina named Padumuttara,self-bornbest of men,
dwelltat that timein Cittakfita
in frontof Him~ilayas.
was thena fearlessquadruped,thekingof beasts;
I[Pin34ola]
and many people,hearingmy voice, became rigid with fear.
Taking a beautifullyblossominglotus,I approachedthe bull amongmen;
I payed reverenceto the Buddha who was sunk in samidhi.
I bowedto the fourquartersand to the best Buddha,foremostof men;
and makingtranquilmy own mind,I gave fortha lion's roar.71
68 See above, n. 2.
69 Ldvi and Chavannes, p. 250.
70 Pall-EnglishDictionary,s.v. "sihanida."
71 Ap, p. 50.

The commentaryon this passage provides the full settingof the

story,and makes it clear thatthis roar was intendedto protectPadu-
muttarawhilehe was sittingin meditationin the lion's cave. This act,
togetherwithhis offeringof flowersis to resultin the lion's eventual
enlightenment:
AfterservingpreviousBuddhashere and thereduringhis lifetimes,[Pin-
cJola]accumulated meritsfor the basis of arhatship,
and havingtakenbirth
in the wombof a lion at the timeof the Blessed Padumuttara,he dwellt
in a cave at the foot of a mountain.The Blessed One, out of compassion
for him, enteredhis den when he had gone out hunting,and sat down
therein thetranceof cessation.72 The lion,aftercatchinghis food,returned.
Standingat the cave's door, he saw the Buddha; thrilledand pleased at
the sight,he payedpiija withall kindsof flowers, 73 calmedhis mindand,
so as to protectthe Blessed One and chase away the otherbeasts of prey,
roaredthreetimesa lion's roar ... At the end of seven days,the Blessed
One awoke fromthe tranceof cessationand declaredthat fromthis act
would stem the basis of the lion's arhatship.74
It may be possibleto relatethis protectiverole of Pindola as a lion
to his later position as one of the sixteen arhats protectorsof the
Dharma. However, the other Pili commentarieswhich tell this story
are not finallyinterestedin this his animallion's roar and concentrate
insteadon thehumanPindola's lion-roar-the"song of enlightenment"
he gives in thislife upon actuallyattainingarhatship.
The AnguttaraNikaya Commentary, for example,explains thatthe
whole story of Pindola's previous birth as a lion is a developed
"graduatedsermon" (anupubbikatha)that is to be narratedonly in
the eventof a question; it is thusjust an extra tale,a precursorto the
more significantstoryof Pindola's humanlion roar,the gist of which
is as follows:
Indeed,on the day on whichhe reachedarhatship, he [Pirnola] took a key,
and goingfrom to throughall the privatecells of the monks,
he roamedabout vihtra vihtra,
roaringhis lion's roar: "Whoeverhas any doubtsabout
the pathor the fruit,let themask me!" And whenhe stoodin frontof the
Buddha,he roaredagain: "In this S~sana, O Bhadanta,I have done what
is to be done, I have reachedthe summit!"Thereforehe got the name
"foremostof lion roarers."75
72 In the AnguttaraNikaya Commentary versionof the story,he entersthe
tranceand remainssuspendedin mid air. See AA. I: I97.
73 In the AA version(p. I97), the lion piles the flowersfromthe groundup
to where the Buddha is suspendedin mid air so as to make a seat for him
to reston.
74 ApA, p. 300.
75 AA, I: I96. See also ThagA, p. 4 and ApA, p. 300.

70 JohnS. Strong
The concretenessand exuberancewhichmarkthis accountresemble

perhaps nothingso much as an Indian precursorto the later shouts
of enlightenment of Chineseand JapaneseZen masters.But especially
noteworthyfor our purposes is Pindlola'sdeclarationto the whole of
the Bhikkhu-sangha of his willingnessto answerany of theirquestions
on doctrinaland meditationalpointsabout the Buddhistpath (magga)
or the fruit(phala) of the path. He sets himselfup then as one who
can overcome what might be called the "dharmalogicaldoubts" of
monks on the path, a role which as we have seen complementshis
functionof reassuringthe doubtingmerit-makers in theirkarmicacts
of offering.
This dual role may well have received expression in Pindola's
iconographyin China and Tibet. For in additionto the bowl which
he holds in his left hand, the otherconstantcharacteristicfeatureof
Pindola's image is the book which he has in his righthand.76 In
addition to being a masterat receivingmaterialofferings,it would
seem,he is also a learnedmasterof Dharma who is able to cut through
doctrinaldoubts.
This lattercapacityof his has not receivedthe attentionit deserves,
eventhough, as we have just seen, it lies at the basis of his best known
epithet.Moreover,it is featuredin a numberof other storieswhich
are relatedto Pindola's later cult but whichare worthcitinghere.
In the Chinesebiographyof Tao-an (314-85), we are told thatAn,
who frequentlyannotatedthe siitras,was plagued by doubtsthat his
interpretationsmightbe wrong.He prayed for an auspicious sign to
reassurehim thathe was on the righttrack.
He thendreamedhe saw an Indian man of Tao who had whitehair and
long eyebrowsand spoketo An saying"The annotations made to the siitras
by you, Sir, are quite in harmonywiththe principles[of the sacredtexts].
As for me, I have not obtainedNirvanaand I live in the WesternRegions.
77
I will aid you in diffusing[the doctrine]."
As we shall see in the A.okavadana, long whitehair and eyebrows

are one of Pindola's characteristicfeatures.Here then we are led to
believe that Pindola made an appearance in China, to reassure the
doubtingVenerableTao-an, even beforehe was officiallyknownthere.
Indeed the same text immediately goes on to say: "Afterwards,when
76 Pander,p. 86; Tucci, p. 569; Griinwedel,

p. 7; Roerich,p. 98.
77 Link, p. 35.

the Sarvdstivada-vinayaarrived,the Reverend Hui-yiian then recog-

nized thathe about whomthe Upidhyiya (i.e., Tao-an) had dreamed
was the [Arhat] Pindola." 78
Pindola is said to have made the same sort of appearance to the
VenerableAsanga, masterof the Vijfianavidaschool.In Paramartha's
(499-569) Life of Vasubandhu,we are told that Asanga was firsta
priestof the Sarvistivida school. He
practiced meditationand became free from desire, [but] though he
thedoctrine
investigated of nothingness,
he couldnotunderstand
it. He was
aboutto commitsuicide.Bin-du-la[Pinwjola]
an Arhatwho was thenin
PfirvaVideha,havingperceivedthis,cameto himfromthatregionand
expoundedthe doctrineof nothingness
peculiarto the Hinayina.
79
The text goes on to say thatthis ultimatelydid not satisfyAsanga
who finallyhad to go to the Tusita heaven and learn the Mahtydna
doctrineof nothingnessfromMaitreyahimself,so But this does not
detractfromthe image of Pindola as one who comes to answer the
needs of monks in doctrinaldifficulties.We shall examine later on
severalexamplesin whichPindola "appears" in a similarlymysterious
fashion to those who worship him. For the present,suffice it to
reiteratethe two ways in whichPindola functionsas an allayerof the
doubtsof the believers:he is a fitreceiverof alms, and he is a dhar-
malogicallion-roarer.
and SupernaturalPowers
Pin.dola
There is one other featureof Pindola's legend which is not un-
relatedto thisand whichmustbe touchedupon here; it is in addition
perhaps the most famous storyabout his career as a disciple of the
Buddha. I referto his performanceof a magical feat in frontof the
laity. The storyis well known as it is found in the vinayas of five
differentschools and is recountedin a numberof Pili commentaries
as well. It need only be summarizedhere.
Jyotiska,a richman of Rijagrha, had a beggingbowl made froma
block of sandalwood,and, wishingto see a display of supernatural
powers, he suspended it from the top of a high bamboo pole and
organizeda contest:whoevercould bringthebowl down usingmagical
78 Ibid.
79 JunjiroTakakusu,"The Life of Vasu-bandhuby Paramirtha (A.D. 499-
569)," T'oung-pao 5 (1904): 273.
so Ibid.

72 JohnS. Strong
powers could keep it. Differenthereticmasters (tirthikas)all tryto

obtain it, each one pretendingin various devious fashions to be
endowed with supernaturalfaculties.But the rich householderis not
to be fooled; he wants graphicproof of theirpowers. Then Pindola
happens by togetherwith Mahi Maudgalyayana.He urges the latter
(who is well knownas a masterof supernaturalfaculties)to take the
bowl, but Maudgaly.iyanadeclines and suggests that Pindola do it
instead. Pindola, therefore,flies up into the air in full view of the
assembled crowds, tours the city several times,grabs the bowl and
bringsit to the rich man who fills it and honors him. He then goes
back to the vihira. The whole incident,however,is reportedto the
Buddha who questions Pincldola, reprimandshim severelyfor having
exhibitedhis supernaturalpowers,and then makes a Vinaya rule to
the effectthat the performanceof magical feats in the presence of
laymenwill henceforthbe a duskrtaoffence.s81
There are a numberof variationson this themeof Pindola's use
of magical powers. One storyin particularappears repeatedly.This
is the accountof his flyingthroughthe air on a huge boulder.In the
DharmaguptaVinaya,for example,this storyhas been combinedwith
thatof his takingthe sandalwoodbowl: it is fromhis flyingboulder
that Pindola grabs it. s2 Also, the Mah.Sasaka Vinaya, as we have
already seen, develops the theme of the boulder furtherand has
Pindola convertthe stingywoman of Rijagrha (who had refusedto
give him her cakes) by flyingwith a huge rock over her house. The
same text goes on to recordthe Buddha's reprimandof Pindola for
this action and his establishment of the Vinaya rule prohibitingsuch
performances. 83
In all of the Vinaya texts,then,whetherthey featurethe storyof
the bowl or that of the boulder, Pindola's offence is basically the
same-the improperdisplay of supernaturalpowers in frontof the
laity,and it is this whichis the occasion for a formalinterdiction of
public magical performancesby bhiksus.
The reasons the Buddha gives for reprimanding Pindola are, how-
s81See the various Vinaya accounts in L~vi and Chavannes, pp. 233-47, and
the expandedversionof the storyin DhpA, 3: 199-20o3(cf. BuddhistLegends,
3: 35-38).
82 Livi and Chavannes, p.
237.
83 Ibid., pp. 242-43.

ever,neitherveryclear nor convincing.In two of thevinayas,he com-

pares Pindola's act to thatof a womandisplayingher privateparts for
money: he should not have revealed what is usually hidden for the
sake of a mere bowl.s4 It is, however,not at all clear that Pindola
did it forthe sake of the bowl alone. The setting,it shouldbe remem-
bered,is consistently thatof a tournamentof magicalpowerswiththe
heretics.In fact,in one text,when none of the non-Buddhistsare able
to fly up and take the bowl, the householderwho organized the
contestbecomesconvincedthatthereare no longerany Arhats in the
world.s5 Pindola's action,then,is intendedto overcomethis doubt-
to show that among the Buddhists (i.e., only among the Buddhists)
thereare indeed enlightenedindividuals.It is, in fact,for this reason
that he firsturges Mahi Maudgalyiyana to performthe feat in his
stead.
It is, of course, possible to argue that such proofs of arhatship
distractratherthanattractthe faithof themasses. And the Theravada
Vinaya does add thatsuchmagicaldisplaysdo not developfaithamong
unbelievers.86 But this view flies in the face of countlessBuddhist
stories in which magical displays are commonfeaturesand not only
greatlystimulatethe faith of the masses, but often occasion their
arhatshipas well.
One can only concludethatin the formalVinaya ordinanceagainst
the performanceof magical feats,we have an attemptto cover up the
factthatwe have reachedthe timewhen ordinarymonkssimplycan-
not performthese featsanymore.In this the Buddhistswere cleverer,
perhaps,butultimately notverydifferentfromthehereticmasterwho,
while pretendingto have magical powers, instructedhis disciples to
forciblyhold him down just as he was makingas if to leap up into
the air, and to say to him "Teacher, what are you doing? Do not
reveal hiddenpowers of Arhatshipto the multitudefor the sake of a
wooden bowl!" s7
That the Buddhistthemselveswere aware of the lamenessof their
84 Ibid.,pp. 235, 237.

85 DhpA, 3: 202 (cf. BuddhistLegends
3: 37).
86 L~vi and Chavannes,p. 235. See also The Book of theDiscipline(Vinaya-
pitaka), trans.I. B. Horner (London: Luzac and Co., I952), Sacred Books of
the Buddhists,vol. 20, part 5, p. 151.
87 DhpA, 3: 201 (cf. BuddhistLegends, 3: 36).

74 JohnS. Strong
position is reflectedin a number of stories in which they try to

reinforcethe rationalefor the interdictionof supernaturaldisplays.In
one of the Chinesetranslationsof the Sumagadhavaddna,for example,
a variationon the tale of Pindola's magical feat is developedin such
a way that a cogent ethical reason is presentedfor the interdiction:
supernaturaldisplaysare shownto lead possiblyto theloss of life. The
storyis a bit differentthan that containedin the vinayas: 88ss
Pindola is late for an assemblywhichis being held by SumagadhM,
the daughterof Anathapindadain the faraway cityof Punidavardhana.
He is sittingon a mountaintop mendinghis robe.When he finishes,he
plants the needle into the groundwith the threadstill attachedto his
hem. Then, in his haste to get to the reunion,he forgetsabout this
and flies away, breakingoff the whole mountaintop and draggingit
along behind him throughthe air, still attached to the thread and
the needle. Only after 8,ooo000ii does he realize what has happened,
and he tosses the mountainback into its place. Unfortunately, in the
meantime,a woman who happenedto be in the area and happenedto
be pregnant saw the huge mountain-boulderflying overhead and
became so frightenedthat she miscarried.The Buddha then forbids
the performanceof such acts in frontof the laity,pointingout that
theycaused the death of a livingbeing.89
Secondly,in the Dhammapada Commentary, wherethe vinaya story
of Pindola and the bowl is recountedin great detail, there is an
interesting sequel whichclearlyshowsthatPindola's act was notwrong
per se. The heretics,hearingof the Buddha's interdiction on magical
acts, decidethatthisis the righttimeto challengehimto a tournament
of supernaturaldisplays,thinkinghe will not be able to exhibitany
at all. King Bimbisira hears about this,goes to the Buddha and asks
him what he intendsto do. "If theyperformmiracles,"answers the
Buddha, "I will do the same." "Have you not laid down a precept
forbiddingthe performanceof miracles?" asks Bimbissra. "Great
king,"repliesthe Buddha, ,,I have not laid down a preceptformyself;
the precept was intended to apply only to my disciples."90soThe
For a studyand translationof the four Chineseversionsof this early

88ss
avadina text,see TsurumatsuTokiwai,Studienzum Sumrgadhavadana(Darm-
stadt: G. Ottos,1898).
89 Ibid., p. 49.
9o Buddhist Legends, 3: 39 (text: DhpA, 3: 204).

Buddha's answer is so strikingthatBimbisira inquiresagain to make

sure that that was what he meant. That it was, however,is clearly
indicatedby the rest of the story in which the Buddha goes on to
performthe greatestand most famousmagical displayof his career:
the twin miracleof Srivasti. 91
There is, then,a real ambivalencein the Buddhistattitudetowards
the use of magical powers. On the one hand, their importanceis
denigrated;men on thepathshouldnotbe preoccupiedby such triviali-
ties. On the otherhand,the possessionof such powers is seen to be a
visible sign of enlightenment and a connectionto the figureof the
Buddha who continuesto exhibitthem.They are thus real tools in
defeatinghereticsas well as in overcomingthe doubtsof the crowd.
The figureof Pindola is closelycaughtup in this ambivalence.He
is, in a sense,thelast man of thegoldenage of miracles.His act marks
a transitionpoint-at least in retrospect-inthe mythology of popular
Buddhismin India. It is the beginningof our presentprofaneage in
which ordinarypersons no longer exhibit or witness extraordinary
powers,at least not blatantly.To this extent takes on the role
Pin.dola
of a scapegoat; he is blamed for the presentprofane situation.And
yet it is clear thathe, like the Buddha, was an arhat; he had and has
the capacity to perform such supernaturalfeats, eventhoughthe
Vinaya does not permithim to exhibitthem.In a sense, then,he, like
all enlightenedbeings,is above the Vinaya-a factwhich,it mightbe
pointedout, also puts his apparentgluttonyin a differentperspective.
In the end, both the Vinaya rule and the storyof Pindola and the
bowl, whichoccasionedit, operatein muchthe same way as the tradi-
tions about his gluttony;theirintentis to combatthe doubtsof those
who, in this profaneage, would questionthe qualities of the bhiksu.
For the interdiction on the monks' displayof supernaturalpowers in
no way denies theirabilityto performthem,but in fact hintsat it;
and the finalclaim is thatdespiteappearances,Pindola (and Buddhist
monksafterhim) are possiblyalreadypowerfulenlightenedindividuals
and hence fitfoci fordevotion.
01 Exactly the same sequenceof events,to whichis thenadded the Buddha's

spendingthe rains retreatpreachingto his motherin the Trlyastrimraheaven
and his descentfromthatheaven,can be foundin SnA, pp. 570ff.,and J, 4:
263ff. cf. (The Jdtaka,4: 166ff.).

76 JohnS. Strong
Pindola's banishment
Of course,Pindola's act could not have markedthistransitionpoint
of the "esoterization"of Buddhist magical powers withouthaving,
at the same time, repercussionson his own status as well.
In the Sarvastivada Vinaya, at the end of the account of Pindola
and the sandalwood bowl, we find an interestingdetail added which
does not appear in the othervinaya texts.The Buddha, having repri-
mandedPindola and set up the rule againstthe publicperformanceof
magical acts by bhiksus,then punishesPindola furtherby forbidding
him to remainin our world of Jambudvipa.92 Pindola, recognizing
his faultand acceptinghis banishment, bows to the Buddha,goes back
to his cell and, enteringthe tranceof samidhi, departsfromJambud-
vipa foreverto take up residencein Apara-Godani.There, he becomes
a model arhat, convertingnumerouspersons, foundingmonasteries,
and maintainingthe Dharma.93
Apara-Godani,it will be remembered, is preciselythe place where,
accordingto Nandimitra'ssermonon the sixteen arhats, Pindola is
said to reside togetherwith a thousand followers,after agreeingnot
to enter Parinirvanaand to maintainthe Buddha's teachinguntil the
final period of the Law. 94 In the Sarvastivada Vinaya, no mention
is made of Pindola's not enteringParinirvina; but that this and the
themeof ostracismfromJambudvipaare closely relatedis indicated
in a numberof othersources.
For example,in Hui-chien's translationof the Method of Inviting
Pindola (c. 460) it is statedexplicitly:"Because [Pindola] manifested
supernaturalfacultiesin frontof the lay notableJyotiska,the Buddha
banishedhim and did not authorizehim to enterNirvana. He ordered
himto becomea fieldof meritforthe fourtypesof faithfulin the final
period of the Law." 95
In the Adokavadana,the same thingoccurs as a resultof his flying
throughthe air withthe mountaintop: "When," Pindola tells A~oka,
"the Blessed One was invitedby Sumigadha, the daughterof Anitha-
pindada to go to Pundavardhana,I, at thattime,using magicalmeans,
92 Livi and Chavannes, p. 245.

93 Ibid., p. 246.
94 See above, p. 4.
95 Levi and Chavannes, p. 216. The four types of faithful are monks, nuns
laymen and laywomen.

grabbeda mountaintop and flewwithit to On account

of that,the Blessed One orderedme not toPundavardhana.
enterParinirvina."96 The
Sumdgadhavaddnawhich,as we have seen,knowsthe same story,adds
thathe is condemnedto remainin thisworlduntilthe arrivalof Mai-
treya,and thenonlywill he be able to enterParinirvana.97
In Nandimitra'sRecord of theAbiding of the Dharma, the sixteen
arhats' refrainingfromNirvia and theirremainingbehindto main-
tain the Dharma is presentedas an honorwhichtheyare accordedby
the Buddha on his deathbed.Noting this,many scholarshave sought
to compare the "ideology of the sixteen arhats" with Mahayana
notionsof the bodhisattvaideal. 98 In the texts just cited, however,
Pindola's not enteringNirvana is presentedas a banishment, a punish-
ment for his misdeed. Unlike the bodhisattva,it is not out of com-
passion for sufferingsentient beings that Pindola refrains from
enteringParinirvaina;it is ratheras a resultof his own violationof
the Vinaya. Most interestingly, he is condemnedto become what a
bodhisattvais-a maintainerof the Dharma and a field of meritfor
othersuntilthe end of the age.
Mahayana attitudestowardsthe notionof arhatshipare, of course,
well known.What we have here,however,may be the obverse-a rare
expressionof Hinayana sentimentstowardsthe notionof the bodhi-
sattva ideal; or perhaps more specifically-a monasticcounterto the
laicizationimplicitin the bodhisattvaideal. For unlike many bodhi-
sattvas,Pindola remainsabove all a monk,a memberof the Sangha.
In the Pali tradition,there is a constantemphasis on the eminently
monastictraitsof his character;he is above all a Buddhist beggar,
the man with the bowl, i.e., a bhiksu. As we have noted, in some
canonicaltexts,he is presentedas the ideal of the ascetic disciplined
monk; and as we shall see, in his cult,great emphasisis put on the
monastic featuresof his character.Moreover,because he does not
enterNirvana, Pindola remains,in a sense, a "monk for all times"-
the embodimentand guaranteeof the bhiksuideal.
96 Alokdvadana,p. 99 (cf. Burnouf,p. 355). Exactly the same accountis

foundin two Chineseversionsof the text,the A-yii-wangchingand the Tsa
a-han ching,but not in the A-yii-wangchuan.See Przyluski,p. 266 and L~vi
and Chavannes,p. 261.
9o Tokiwai, p. 50.
98 See, for example,Levi and Chavannes,p. 27I.

78 JohnS. Strong
We will have occasion to returnto this importantcharacterization;

at thispoint,however,a differentproblemarises. If Pindola's banish-
mentfromJambudvipais takenliterally,how can he be said to remain
an ideal figurein this world or act, as he is supposed to, as a ready
field of meritfor the four kinds of faithfulhere below?
That thisproblemdid actuallyplague certainBuddhistsis evidenced
in Tao-shih's article on Pindola which was writtenin the mid 7th
century.There, the storyof Pindola and the bowl is recountedas is
his banishmentfromJambudvipa.Then, however,an interesting sequel
has been added. A numberof disciplesexpress a desire to be able to
see the Venerable Pindola again; the Buddha thereforeauthorizes
Pindola to return"occasionallyand to take his seat when invited."99
It is apparent,then,that Pindola's ostracismwas not absolute. The
referenceto Pindola's seat, as we shall see, touchesupon one of the
featuresof his cult,and it is clear thatwe have here an escape clause
whichallows for culticpresencein the world.
Pindola's
Neverthelessthe storyof Pindola's banishmentdoes serve to give
him the characterof an "outsider."This marks a definitechange in
his status; thoughhe is stilla monk,a memberof the Sangha, he does
not belong to any particularSangha in this world. He is rathercon-
demnedto being an occasional visitor,a wanderer,and the exclusion
fromParinirvanamakes him so perpetually.
The cult of Pindola
This characteristicof Pindiola'sbeing condemnedto wander for all
time,a mysteriousoutsiderwho occasionallyappears here and there
in this world, long ago motivatedthe encyclopedicJapanese scholar
MinakataKumagusuto comparePindola to the figureof the"Wander-
ing Jew" whomJesus condemnedon the way to Calvaryto remainin
this world until his Second Coming, and who thereafterwandered
for centuriesthroughoutWestern Europe, a living witness to the
events of the ChristianHoly Week. 100oo
99 Ibid., p. 208.
100 Minakata,p. 123. The comparison was pickedup by AlbertJ. Edmunds,
Buddhistand ChristianGospels,2 vols., 4th ed., (Philadelphia: Innes & Sons,
1902), 2: 264-67. The legend of the Wandering Jew sprung up in Medieval
times and reached the height of its popularityin 17th and I8th century
WesternEurope. For a recentstudywhichmentionsin passing the "Piintola
parallel,"see George K. Anderson,The Legend of the WanderingJew (Pro-
vidence: Brown UniversityPress, 1965).

The Chinese sources on the cult of Pindola assembledby Minakata

and presentedin much greaterdetail by Levi and Chavannes testify
to his being such an undyingholy man who mysteriouslycomes to
assembliesof the faithful.
In them,however,the cult of Pindola is essentiallyconceivedof
as a riteof hospitality.It consistsof invitingPindola to the monastic
assemblyand offeringhim two things: food and/or a bath.101 Pin-
dola, it should be specified,may or may not accept this invitation;it
depends on the purityof heart with which it is extended.But if he
does accept,he comes eitherin disguiseas an old man,as a wandering
stranger,or in even more mysteriousways than that. His presence,
therefore,thoughit is a sign thatthe riteis being carriedon properly,
is not always easy to detect.
Two examples,both taken from the Method of InvitingPindola
illustratethiswell.
A wealthyhouseholderheld a feast for monkson several occasions
and prayed each time to Pindola, invitinghim with a heart full of
faith. Pindola, however,did not come, or at least did not appear to
come. Finally thehouseholderinvitedover a hundredeldersand asked
themto tellhimwhathe was doingwrong.One of the elderswhomhe
had not seen previouslyreplied:
You invitedme to your threeassembliesand each time I acceptedyour
invitation.
But you had posteda servantat the door and he preventedme
fromentering.Since I am old and my clothesare torn,he thoughtI was
a good-for-nothinggramanawho had been expelled from the community
and refusedto let me enter.102
The eldergoes on to describehow the servantbeat him witha stick,

and blamesit all on the householder'sniggardliness.He thensuddenly
disappears. The householderrealizes that the elder was none other
than Pindola himselfand thetextdraws theobviouslesson: laypersons
should make sure theynever turn away any monks-no matterhow
raggedor disreputable-fromtheirmaigre feasts.103
101 Apart fromthe Ch'ingPin-t'ou-lufa [The methodof inviting

Pindola],
thereis recordof a Ch'ing sheng-sengyii wen [The prayerfor invitingthe
saintlymonk(i.e., Pindola) to bathe]. The latterwas translatedby Sanghavar-
man in 434, but is unfortunately no longerextant.See L6vi and Chavannes,
p. 215.
102 Levi and Chavannes, p. 218.
103osIbid., p. 219.

80 JohnS. Strong
The second example occurs elsewherein the same text. There it is

specifiedthatwhenevermonksare goingto takea bath,one shouldfirst
invite Pindola and say: "We hope you will accept our invitationto
bathein such and sucha place." Then, afterpreparingall the requisites
for the bath-pure water, perfumed infusions, unguents, willow
branches,etc.-one should open the door of the bathhouseand bid
Pindola enter.Thereuponone closes thedoor.Aftera while,themonks
can go in and bathe.104
This elaboratecharade is foundalso in othertexts wherethe visits
of Pindola are described in even more magical mysteriousterms.
Tao-shih (7th century)listsa numberof ways in whichPindola comes
but remainsinvisible.Only his footprintsappear in the dining hall,
for example, in betweenthe pillars; or perhaps it is the mark of a
pilgrim'sstaff strikingthe well swept ground of the courtyard.o105
In the bathroom,when one reopens the door, one can see signs that
the waterhas been used and splashedaround.106
By the timehis cult was fullydeveloped,manyelaboratetestswere
arrangedto determinewhetheror not Pindola had actuallycome to
an assembly.These tendedto centeraroundthe "emptyseat" prepared
forhimin themonastery'srefectory. 107Tao-shih specifiesthatwhen-
ever Pindola is invitedto a meal, one should prepare for him a place
of honorand on his seat put soft cushionsand otherdelicate fabrics.
Then afterthe meal is over his seat is checked.If thereis an imprint
on the cushions,as thoughsomeonehad been sittingthere,then one
knows that Pindola actuallycame. If thereare no imprintsleft,then
some neglecthas occurredin the ceremony.108s
Whetheror not Pindola comesto take his seat when invitedis, then,
a positivesign of the meritmaker's own degree of ritualcorrectness
104 Ibid., p. 217.

105 Ibid., p. 206.
106 Ibid., p. 219.
107 AlthoughLevi and Chavannesfail to emphasizethis point,it is as the
patronsaint of the refectorythat Pindola became most firmlyestablishedin
China as well as in Japan.See Mochizuki,p. 4334 and Ch'en,p. IoI. See also
n. 28 above.
108sLevi and Chavannes,p. 2Io. Actuallythe distinctions
are even finerthan
this; accordingto the marks left one is supposedto know whetherPin~dola
came in his "body of bliss" (samnbhogakaya) or his "transformation body"
(nirmcnakaya).This attribution of differentbodies to Pindola as if he were
a Buddha is not foundelsewhere.

The Legend of theLion-roarer 8I
and faith.109 In thiswe clearlyhave a continuation of the functionof

Pindola as an overcomerof the doubtsof the faithful;he is a visible,
or at least half-visible,proof of the effectivenessof the offering.
But at the same time,we also have a link-upwith the themeof
Pinidolabeing primarilyone who comes to receive alms-food,of his
being a For it is to his emptyseat, which it should be
pind.a-alaya.
remembered is located in the refectory,
that food offeringsare to be
made both in the morningand at the major noonday meal. Signifi-
cantly,these offeringsto him are to be placed in a beggingbowl.110
Moreover,althoughspoons, chopsticks,cups, and napkinsmay also
be set out,111 in no case are objects whichare not fitformonksto be
preparedforhim.As Tao-shih specifies:
Althoughhe [Pindola] is an arhat,he is neverthelesson the same footing
as an ordinarymonk; he too is subjectto the 250 rulesof the pratimoka.
That is whyhe cannotreceiveobjectssuch as variegatedsilks,gold, silver,
etc. In the case of a Buddha,a bodhisattva,
or a personof the Mahiyina,
as theyare not subjectto the conditionsthatcharacterizea monkwho has
taken orders,then offeringsof all kinds may be given.112
We have alreadyreferredto theeminently monastictraitsof Piindola's

characterin the Pali texts. Clearly these were maintainedas well in
his cult in China.
On all counts,then,we find in the cult of Pindola as it developed
in China a continuation of the severalthemeswe detectedin his legend
as it appears inthe Plli texts. In both places he is picturedas one
involvedin confirming the faithof believersby his capacityto receive
food-offerings as an ideal monk.
The settingup of the emptyseat for Pindola in China can be traced
at least as far back as the timeof Tao-an (314-85). As we have seen,
in thelatter'sbiography,Pindola is said to visithim in a dreamand to
quell his doubts about annotatingthe scriptures.On this occasion,
109 For this reason,the seat had to remainopen at all times,ready for his
coming.Accordingto one text,not even an imageof Pinxdolashouldbe placed
on it, for if were to come,how wouldhe movethe imageaside? (Ibid.,
Pindola
p. 211).
110The continuation of thispracticein Japanis attestedto in the9th century
Taketorimonogatariin whichPi.?dola'sbowl, set up in a Buddhisttemple,be-
comesthe focusof a tale of romance.See Donald Keene,tr.,"The Tale of the
Bamboo Cutter,"MonumentaNipponica Ii (1956): 334.
111 Levi and Chavannes, p. 2II.
112 Ibid., p. 2Io.

82 JohnS. Strong
however,Pindola also adds: "From timeto timeyou may make me an

offeringof food." And thenceforth, we are told, "they establisheda
seat to make food offeringsto him and everywherethis became the
rule." 118The same tradition,however,goes back furtherthanTao-an.
In fact,it had its rootsin India, for,as we shall see, in the Adokava-
dcna it is alreadythe emptyseat that is left in the midstof AMoka's
great assemblythat is said to belong to Pindola.
Pindola and Aioka
Thus far, we have basically dealt with two kinds of traditions:
those thatconsideredPindola to be a disciplelivingat the timeof the
Buddha, and those thatviewed him as an undyingarhat in the post-
parinirvSnaage. In the firstcategorywould fall the stories of his
reputationfor gluttony,his lion's roar, his display of supernatural
powers.In the second,we findthe traditionsof his banishment, of his
not enteringParinirvana (by which he is also connectedto the six-
teen arhats) and of his cult in Buddhistrefectories.I have endeavored
to point out various continuitiesrunningthroughthese two sets of
traditions,centeringaround the themes of food offeringsand the
overcomingof the doubts of those making them. But the question
remainsin what way preciselyare these doubts overcome?
If I have saved the storyof Pindola's encounterwith King AMoka
forlast,it is because I believethatit betterthanany othertextenables
us fullyto bridgetogetherthesepre- and post-parinirvinapicturesof
Pindola, as well as to undlerstandand answer this question.
113Link, p. 35. A bit furtheron in the same text (pp. 36-37) the subjectof
the bath comesup. On a day whichcorresponds to February22, 385, "suddenly
therewas a strangemonkwhose appearancewas very commonand unprepos-
sessingwho came to the monasteryto ask for temporarylodging.Since the
monasteryquarterswere confinedtheyput him in the hall of exposition.At
the timethe Karmaddnawas on watch in the hall, and at nighthe saw this
monkgo out and comein throughthe space betweenthewindowslit.He hastily
informed An. An, amazed,arose,paid salutation,
and inquiredthe purposeof his
arrival.The strangemonkreplied,"I have come for your sake"! "I myself,"
An said "regardmy sins as grievous.How can I be broughtover to liberation"?
He replied,"But you can verywell be broughtover! Yet, for the nonce,bathe
the Holy Monk [Pindola] and yourexpresseddesirewill inevitably bear fruit"!
And he showedhim in detail the methodof bathing.... When afterwardsAn
preparedthe utensilsof the bath he saw thattherewas a band of severaltens
of unusual littleboys who came into the monasteryand played about. After
a littlewhiletheycame to the bath.Actuallythis was a holy response."

In consideringthe storyof the meetingof Pindola and Adoka, we

should not fail to note,firstof all, the culticsettingin whichit takes
place. Adoka decides to undertakea great paiicavarsika-a quinquen-
nial entertainment of the Sangha. 114 For thatpurpose he invitesthe
community of the four quartersto come to him in Pitaliputra where
he plans to make themofferingsof food and clothes.
A greatnumberof monksare assembled.However,it is immediately
apparent that the reunionis incomplete,for at its very center,the
seat of the elder has remainedempty.Adoka, in consternation, asks
Yadas, the most venerable elder present: "How is it that the elder's
seat is not mounted?Is there here someone else who is older than
you?" "There is, O greatking,"comes the answer. "This seat is that
of Pindola Bhiradvija whomthe self-mastered best of speakers [i.e.,
the Buddha] designatedas foremostof lion-roarers."115
Immediatelythen,we have establishedhere thetheme-so important
in the Chinese cult-of Pindola's empty seat in the midst of an
assemblyabout to receivefood offerings.This is immediately followed
by thethemeof Pindola beingtheone undyingfigurewho bridgesthe
gap betweenthe timeof the Buddha and the "present"age. AMoka,a
man of the post-parinirv.naperiod is most astonishedthat Pindola
is stillalive and, perhapsbetrayingsigns of an incipientcult in which
Piindola's actual arrival at an assembly was both uncertain and
usuallymysterious, he asks: "Is it possible forus to see him?" "Great
king,"answersYadas, "you will see him now." And therefollowsthe
accountof Pindola's spectaculararrival.Flyingthroughthe air like a
rajahacmsa,surroundedby several thousandsof arhats in "half-moon
formation,"he alights in the midst of the assembly and takes his
place on the emptyseat,his whitehair flowingand his whiteeyebrows
114Preciselywhatthepaiicavdr.ikaconsistedof is a matterof somescholarly

debate.E. B. Cowelland R. A. Neil (The Divy4vadana[Cambridge:University
Press, 1886], index,s.v.) consideredit to consistof the entertainment of the
monksduringthe fivemonthsof therainyseason (varS.a).This viewwas shared
by Burnouf(p. 351, n. 2) who, however,also suggestedthatthe termreferred
to a largergatheringand entertainment of themonkseveryfiveyears.Lamotte
(p. 66) adds that it was not necessarilyheld every five years, but was the
occasionon whichkingsspentin honorof the Sangha whateverhad accumulated
in theirtreasuriesduringa fiveyear period.In any case, it is clear thatit was
an occasionof offeringon a grand scale.
115Alokdvadana,p. 96 (cf. Burnouf,p. 353).

84 JohnS. Strong
so long that they hang down and cover the pupils of his eyes.116
Pindola Bharadvija has arrivedto receivehis food offering,and his
presenceis clearlya sign thatAdoka's paiicavarsikais beingcarriedout
properly.
At this pointthereoccur some intriguingexchangesbetweenAdoka
and Pindola whichprovideclues to the interpretation of his cult and
legend as a whole.
By virtueof the fact thathe knewthe Buddha, Pindola, of course,
establishes a connectionbetween the age of the Buddha and the
present,profane, post-parinirvinatime of Adoka. This connection,
however,is more than that of a mere witness-the link of memory
across time.In an actual,more experientialsense, Pindola also makes
the Buddha himselfpresent in the here and now situation.This is
expressedin thetextin a ratherintriguing way.
Although Pindola is physicallythere on the seat in frontof him,
AMokadoes not immediately see him "face to face." As we have men-
tioned,Pindola's long whiteeyebrowshang down and coverthe pupils
of his eyes, and this,in quite literalterms,keeps them from"eye to
eye" contact.This noteworthyphysical featureof Pindola, which is
mentionedin onlyone othertext,117 is on theone hand simplyindica-
tive of Pindola's great age; he has, afterall, been alive for a number
of centuries.But the text is so curiouslyspecificabout his eyebrows
and his eyes that some furtherinterpretation is called for.
The matterbecomes clear when it is put in the context of the
Buddhistceremonyof the consecrationof Buddha images. As is well
known,the climaxof any ritualof dedicationof a paintingor a statue
of the Buddha is the momentof the "insertionof the eyes." 118 Until
they are painted or put in, the image is consideredto be lifeless,
culticallyirrelevant,just a lump of clay or stone or metal. But with
116 Ibid.
117 See n. 77 above.
118 Interestingly,one of the firstrecordsof thisceremonyattributes
its earlier
performance to Aioka. See SamantapdFsadikd: Buddhaghosa'sCommentary on
the VinayaPitaka, ed. J. Takakusuand M. Nagai (London: Pall Text Society,
I924), vol. I, p. 43. The rite spreadall over the Buddhistworld and continues
to the presentday. For severalexamplesof kaigen (the openingof the eyes)
as it is calledin Japan,see M. W. De Visser,AncientBuddhismin Japan,2 vols.
(Leiden: E. J. Brill, I935), I: 34, 39, 299, 324, and 2: 481, 582, 605, 642. For
a modernSinhalese example,see Richard Gombrich,"The Consecrationof a
BuddhistImage," Journalof Asian Studies 26 (1966): 23-36.

the eyes in, it becomesalive, consecrated,a Buddha-imageratherthan

an image of the Buddha, or, as an early Western observerof the
ceremonyput it,"a god." 119
With his white brows covering his pupils, Pindola sits before
Adoka in muchthe same way as an unfinished"blind" Buddha image.
It is, therefore,a momentof great importancein the text when, we
are told,with king Adoka bowing down beforehim,"the elder lifted
up his brows withboth hands and gazed straightat the king."120
The point is clear; in the culticsituationestablishedby AMokaand
confirmedby his offeringsand devotion,the live Pindola is con-
secrated,i.e., is sacralized in much the same way as an image of the
Buddha. And just like the Buddha image,at the precisemomentof its
consecration,Pindola "makes present",culticallyspeaking,the Buddha
who is absent in Nirvaina.AMoka'sown words to Pindola confirm
it"
"When I destroyedthe enemyhost and put the whole earth ... as
far as the oceans under a single rule, then my joy was not what it
is upon seeing you today. Seeing you now, I see the Tathagata,and
by this sightmy faithhas been doubled."121
Such a dis-coveryof the presenceof the ultimateobject of devotion
in the immediatefocusof devotion,whetherthatbe an image,a stfipa,
an icon, or, as in this case, a man-a monk,comes as no surpriseto
of all
the historianof religions;it is, to a great extent,characteristic
cultic situations.The text of the Asokavadana, however,goes on to
specifythis experiencein a verypreciseway.
Having opened his eyes by liftinghis brows, Pindola then imme-
diatelyproceedsto recall forAdoka thetimeswhen he saw the Blessed
Buddha "face to face, with his own eyes just as AMokasees him
now." 122 Three of theseoccasionsactuallyreferto incidentswe have
alreadyencounteredin our own surveyof Pindola's legend. He says,
for example,thathe saw the Buddha when he flewwiththe mountain
top to Pundavardhanaand the Blessed One orderedhim not to enter
Parinirvina. He also saw him at the great "twin miracle"in Srivasti
which,it will be recalled,was occasionedby theinterdiction on magical
119Robert Knox, An Historical Relation of Ceylon (orig. pub. 1681; re-
printedas CeylonHistoricalJournal,vol. 6, 1958), p. 130. See also Gombrich,
p. 24.
120Alokdvadana,p. 97 (cf. Burnouf,p. 354).
121 Ibid.
122 Ibid.,p. 98 (cf. Burnouf,p.
354)-

86 JohnS. Strong
displays by bhiksus. Finally, he saw him at his descent from the

a heaven (which followsin the same sequence after the
miracle).123
Triyastri.
rrivasti
One otheroccasion he mentionswe have not encounteredbeforein
Pindola's legend; he claims to have spent a rains retreatin Rijagrha
togetherwiththe Buddha and five hundredarhats.But it is the fifth
occasion on which Pindola saw the Buddha which is of the most
interestto us. For it makes the Buddha presentfor Aboka in a very
special way by revealingto him his own previouslife in whichhe in
factwas withthe Buddha:
"Finally,O greatking,"says Pin<tola,"when of yore the Blessed One had
enteredRijagrha for alms and you as a childthrewa handfulof dust into
his bowl, thinking'I will give him some grits,'I, at that time,was right
there.And the Blessed One predicted:'This boy,one hundredyears after
my Parinirvina,will be a king named Aioka in the city of Pitaliputra,
a cakravartinof one of the four regions,a dharmicdharmarajawho will
effectthedistribution dharma-
of myreliquariesand theerectionof the84,00ooo
rajikas.' 124
The significanceof the whole cultand legend of Pindola is perhaps
most clearlyrevealedin this passage. It is not just "the Buddha" or
the time and place of the Buddha in general that Pind1olamakes
presentin the culticsituation;it is rathera particulartimeand place
of the Buddha thatis specificallygeared to be relevantto the life of
the individualmerit-maker.
The "gift of dust" which Adoka made as a child in a past life to
the Buddha was bothhis simplestand his mostimportantact of merit.
If, on the one hand,because of its simplicity,it becomesa basic fun-
damentalact of meritwhich any layman,no matterhow poor, can
perform,on the otherhand, it remainsvery specificto Agoka. In a
sense, it defineshis whole being because it marks the time when he
was with the Buddha and when he planted the seeds which were to
lead to his kingshipand eventuallyto his enlightenment.It is thisvery
specificitythat guarantees the particular individual's religious ex-
perience,or perhaps re-experience,of the Buddha which quells his
doubtsand reestablisheshis faith.Pindola, by his presence,makes the
departedBuddha relevantto the specificindividualwho makes offer-
ings in the post-parinirvanaage.
123 Ibid. See above, n. 91.
124 Ibid. The reference
is to Aioka's mostfamousact in a previouslife: his
"giftof dust" to the Buddha.

Conclusion
It has been mypurposeto present,in as cogenta manneras possible,
the differentelementsof the legend and cult of Pindola Bhiradvaja.
In so doing, I have covered numerous stories and traditionsand
soughtto show certainthemesrunningthroughthem,but someattempt
mustnow be made to depicttheoverallframeworkintowhichtheyfit.
It is oftenassumed thatthe Sangha, because it has long been well
establishedin Buddhistnationsas a primaryfocus for acts of merit,
did not have any difficultiesin becomingand remainingso, i.e., that
it naturallyinheritedand kept the charismaof its founderand con-
tinued to inspire such respectand devotionthat Buddhistshad few
qualms about continuingto supportit.
This image of the Sangha, however, did not come about auto-
matically.It had to be establishedin the minds and hearts of its lay
supporters,whose doubtsoftenvied withtheirfaith,and once estab-
lished,it had to be maintained.
In the legend of Pindola, we have a fine example of a popularly
orientedjustificationof the BuddhistSangha as a fit focus for devo-
tion.This is essentiallya Hinayinistenterprisewhich,however,adopts
some Mahiyinist ideologies (althoughsuch distinctionsare not very
valuableat thepopularBuddhistlevel). Pindola is almosta bodhisattva,
but he remainsan arhat; what is perhaps more important,however,
is thathe becomes,in a sense, an ideal representative of the average
bhiksu.His legendthusspeaks for"everymonk."In thisit is success-
ful preciselybecause it is not dogmatic,but first recognizes some
doubtsthat may arise about the average memberof the Sangha, and
thenproceedsto quell thosedoubts.
If, with bowl in hand, demandingalms, a memberof the Sangha
appears to be gluttonous,the storyof Pindola asserts that he is not
reallyso but is actuallya model of discipline,a pinda-alaya,a worthy
storehousefor alms. If a venerableelder is reputedto be enlightened
but does not ever demonstrate any of his powersthatwould show him
to be so, thelegendof Pindola tellsthemeritmakerwhatis the reason
for this. If a decrepitbhiksuwho does not even belong to the local
monasteryjust happens to come when a special feast is being given,
the storyof Pindola justifiesincludingeven him in the assembly; in
spiteof appearanceshe is also a companionof the Buddha.
In all theseways,then,Pindola acts as one who overcomesthedoubts

88 JohnS. Strong
of the faithfulabout the ordinary(and even the less than ordinary)

membersof the Sangha. And the cultof Piindolaas it existedin India
and China reinforcesthisview. In it Pindola is theone who guarantees
that the average bhiksu is actuallyan extraordinaryfigurewho can
make presentthe timeand place of the Buddha himselfin a way that
is relevantto the individualmeritmaker. But, of course, the merit
makercan onlyrealizethisby makingfood offeringsto him in utmost
sincerity.
Lewiston,Maine, Bates College JOHN S. STRONG


The Legend of The Lion-Roarer.A Study of The Buddhist Arhat Pindola Bharadvaja - John S. Strong PDF

Încărcat de

Informații document

Titlu original

Drepturi de autor

Formate disponibile

Partajați acest document

Partajați sau inserați document

Opțiuni de partajare

Vi se pare util acest document?

Este necorespunzător acest conținut?

Drepturi de autor:

Formate disponibile

The Legend of The Lion-Roarer.A Study of The Buddhist Arhat Pindola Bharadvaja - John S. Strong PDF

Încărcat de

Drepturi de autor:

Formate disponibile

The Legend of the Lion-Roarer: A Study of the Buddhist Arhat Piṇḍola Bhāradvāja

Author(s): John S. Strong

This content downloaded from 14.139.45.244 on Sun, 26 May 2013 05:28:16 AM