2: The Bodhisatta’s Youth

King Suddhodana Salutes for the Second Time

The day arrived for King Suddhodana to perform the ploughing ceremony which was an annual seasonal festival. On that day, the whole royal city of Kapilavatthu was decorated like the abode of the Devas. All the people of the city including workers dressed in their best attires, having perfumed and adorned themselves with flowers, assembled in the palace square. In the fields where the ploughing ceremony was to be held, 1,000 ploughs were kept in readiness, 800 of them were meant for the king and his ministers. 799 ploughs to be manned by the ministers were decorated with silver ornaments and equipped with ploughshares together with yokes, oxen and driving rods. The plough to be ridden and driven by the king was fully ornamented with red gold.

When King Suddhodana left the royal city with a great retinue of ministers, courtiers, bodyguards and other followers, he brought his son, the Bodhisatta, to the ceremonial sites and kept him under the delightfully cool shade of a big Rose-apple (Syzgium jambos) tree in full foliage. The ground underneath the tree was well-carpeted with the best velvet cloth, on which the royal child was placed. And above him was fixed a crimson-red velvet canopy embroidered with gold and silver stars. The whole place was screened off with heavy curtains, and guards were posted for security. The king then dressed himself in the regal accoutrement which was customarily put on for the ploughing ceremony. Accompanied by ministers and courtiers, he proceeded to the auspicious field where the ploughing ceremony would be held.

On arrival at the auspicious field, King Suddhodana mounted the golden plough which was specially prepared for him. The 799 courtiers taking part in the ceremony also rode and drove their respective silver ploughs. The remaining 200 ploughs were handled by 200 royal farm workers who proceeded to plough the field thoroughly, going back and forth many times across the field. King Suddhodana ploughed the field only once to bring auspicious blessing to the ceremony by driving across the field from one side to the other. The ceremony was magnificently performed.

The nursing attendants and security guards, who were assigned to look after the prince, left their posts and went out of the royal enclosure, saying: “Let us watch the grand spectacle of our lord performing the ploughing ceremony.”

The Prince’s Attainment of the First Absorption

In the meanwhile, the prince, on looking around and seeing no one, quickly rose and sat cross-legged quietly and calmly. He then practised breathing (ānāpāna) meditation, concentrating on the inhaling and exhaling breath, and thereby attained the first absorption of the form world (rūpāvacara-jhāna).

The attendants, who left their charge, loitered around the food stalls enjoying themselves for quite a while. All the trees, with the exception of the rose-apple tree under which the Bodhisatta was sitting, cast their shade in a natural manner, in line with the movement of the sun. When past noon the shades of the trees fell on the east, however, the shade of the rose-apple tree, under which the prince was resting, did not move with the sun, even after noon-time, strangely remaining in a round shape as before.

The nursing attendants, eventually remembering: “Oh, the son of our lord has been left behind alone,” hurried back and on getting inside, after parting the curtains of the [251] enclosure, saw with their own eyes and to their amazement the prince sitting cross-legged in the place of glory; and saw also the miracle (pāṭihāriya) of the shade of the rose-apple tree remaining fixed in the same position and in the same round shape. They went speedily to the king and reported: “Your majesty, your royal son is sitting quietly and calmly in a certain posture. And though the shadow of other trees moved with the changing position of the sun, the shade of the rose-apple tree, under which the prince reposes, remains unchanged even after noon-time, retaining its circular shape.”

King Suddhodana quietly went and observed. On seeing with his own eyes the two strange miracles, he uttered: “Noble son, this is the second time that I, your father, salute you,” and made obeisance to his son lovingly and adoringly.

Vissakamma Creates an Auspicious Royal Lake

In this manner, when the prince reached the age of seven, having grown up happily amidst a luxury like that of the Devas, King Suddhodana one day asked his ministers: “Men, what kind of sport pleases the children of tender age?” When the ministers informed him: “Your majesty, young children like to play in the water,” King Suddhodana sent for artisans and ordered them to select a suitable site to dig a magnificent royal lake.

Thereupon, Sakka, the Lord of the Devas, becoming aware through reflection that steps were underway to select a site for the lake, thought to himself: “It is not proper at all for the Bodhisatta to use a lake built by human beings; only a lake created by Devas will be appropriate for him.”

He summoned Vissakamma and assigned him the task of digging a lake, saying: “Go now, to the human abode, O Deva, and create a suitable lake for the Bodhisatta to play in.” To the question: “What kind of lake would you like me to create?” Sakka replied thus: “The lake that you create should be free of mud and slime; its bed should be strewn with rubies, pearls and corals; it should be surrounded by walls made of the seven kinds of precious stones. The descending steps leading into the lake should be made with planks of gold, silver, and rubies; the hand-rails should be of rubies and the main balusters supporting the rails should have their tops encrusted with coral. Inside that celestial lake, for the Bodhisatta to play water-throwing, you should create a golden boat equipped with a silver throne, a silver boat with a golden throne, a ruby boat with a coral throne and a coral boat with a ruby throne. They should also be furnished with golden, silver, ruby and coral bowls for water-throwing. The lake should be beautifully covered and graced with the five kinds of lotus.”

Vissakamma, after giving assent, descended to the human abode that very night and created a lake, complete in all details in accordance with Sakka’s instruction, on the site chosen by King Suddhodana.

The pollen from the lotus flowers spread over the surface of the lake moving with the gentle breeze and rippling waves. Five species of bees in five different colours buzzed and droned merrily as they bustled from flower to flower. In this manner, Vissakamma created the royal lake as instructed by Sakka and returned to the celestial abode.

When the new day dawned, thousands of citizens seeing the awe-inspiring and magnificent lake, exclaimed joyously: “Surely, this lake must have been created by Sakka and the Devas for the prince!” And so, with joy and delight, they went and reported the matter to King Suddhodana. The king, accompanied by a vast retinue, went to see the lake. When he saw the magnificence and splendour of the lake, he exclaimed with delight: “This lake is verily the creation of divine beings because of the power and glory of my son!” Thereafter, the prince went to play in the water of the lake which was a requisite for celestial pleasures. [252]

The Bodhisatta, Prince Siddhattha, grew up in great comfort and luxury, enjoying such delights as playing in the water of the celestial lakes covered and graced with the five kinds of lotus as said above, wearing very soft and smooth garments which were newly made and produced in Kāsi country, being at all times given cover and protection against heat, cold, dust, mist and snow, with the white umbrellas of Devas and humans.

The Construction of Three Palaces for the Prince

When he had grown to the age of sixteen years, King Suddhodana thought: “It is time to build mansions for my son,” and he had the most celebrated and skilled architects, carpenters, masons, sculptors and painters summoned to the palace for discussion. After making the necessary preliminary preparations, such as the ground breaking at the chosen site, and at the time indicated as propitious by the stars, he gave orders for the construction of three palaces named Ramma, Suramma, and Subha which were specially designed to suit the weather conditions of the three seasons. These three palaces were of equal length, breath and height. They differed only in the number of tiers in the spires.

The Ramma palace had a nine tiered-spire. The structure and room formations were designed to keep the floors somewhat low so as to retain warmth. Meticulous care was taken in the arrangement of the lion-propped windows and ventilators to prevent elements of cold from outside, such as snow, mist, and breeze, from entering inside. Painters also drew pictures of blazing fires and flames on the walls, central planks, roofs, etc., of the said palatial mansion to dispel coldness on seeing them. Festoons of perfumes, flowers and pearls were hung, dangling here and there at appropriate places. The ceilings were canopied with fabrics of pure wool and silk which were very soft and smooth and warmth-giving and which were adorned with stars of gold, silver and rubies giving out bright and flaming colours. Besides, there were woollen partitions and gauze curtains adorned with velvet and woollen shawls which were very soft and smooth to the touch. Velvet garments and woollen apparel appropriate for the cold season were also kept in readiness for wear. In the winter season, nourishing seasonal food, such as hot, spicy delicacies, were prepared in readiness. To keep the room warm windows were kept open in the day and closed at night.

There were five tiers in the spire of the palace named Suramma. The structure and room formations were so designed as to provide ventilation; the tiers were built high, windows and shutters kept spacious and wide to procure as much breeze and coolness as required from outside, the main doors and windows were kept not too secure; some doors had perforations and others had nettings made of iron, gold and silver.

The walls, central posts, roofs, etc., were decorated with paintings of blue, red and white lotus to give soothing impressions to the observers. Newly made pots filled with water to the brim were installed near the windows and placed therein were aquatic flowering plants such as blue, red, white lotuses, and lotuses with 100 petals. Mechanical devices, such as fountains and [253] showers, were installed to cool and freshen appropriate places simulating the rainy season when greenness pervaded the scenery.

Inside the mansion, flower pots and barrels filled with scented mud and slime were placed at suitable corners and in them were planted the five varieties of lotus. The ceilings were canopied with pure cotton fabric, which were soft and smooth and capable of generating a cooling effect. Besides, there were golden partitions and soft, thin curtains which were beautifully and marvellously decorated. Floor carpets of very white cloth, which were capable of making the atmosphere cool. Sets of very thin white garments suitable for summer wear were also kept ready to wear. Cold and savoury food that are cooling (sīta-viriya) were also prepared.

On the roof of the Suramma palace was hung a network of small tinkling golden bells producing sounds which were sweet, soft and pleasant and excelling the sounds of the five kinds of celestial music. Ceilings made of fine gold sheets with very tiny holes were fixed under the roof. When the water from the four ponds on the four sides of the mansion was pumped up by mechanical devices onto the ceilings it fell on the ceilings and trickled down through the tiny holes like rain drops as if it were raining.

Above the ceilings of golden sheets were spread out dried sheets of buffalo hide; then pebbles were lifted aloft by machines to the rooftop and from there released to fall on the stretched buffalo hides. The sound produced by these falling pebbles resembled the rumbling of thunder during the rainy season.

108 huge pots made of gold and silver were filled with perfumed water and placed around the royal bed which was in an enclosure of embroidered netting with blue lotus designs. To have the effect of a cool and pleasant atmosphere, blue, red and white lotuses were planted in large bronze barrels filled to the brim with scented mud and placed everywhere. The lotus bloomed when touched by the radiance of the sun. All species of honey bees came inside the mansion and hovered around these lotus flowers sucking their sweet nectar. Thus, Suramma palace, the summer resort of the prince, was always pervaded with the sweet fragrance of flowers. The main door and the windows of that summer residence were kept closed by day and open by night to give a cool breeze.

When the prince took up his residence in this palace, and when it was time for playing in the water, pebbles were thrown onto the sheets of buffalo hides, mentioned above, to produce roaring sounds similar to that of thunder; water pumped up to the ceilings trickled down in drops through the fine holes therein as if it were raining. At that time, the prince, wearing blue garments and robes and adorning himself in blue, revelled in water, enjoying its coolness for the day in the company of 40,000 attendants and followers who were also dressed and adorned in blue with their bodies perfumed.

On the four sides of the Suramma summer palace were four ponds in which the water was emerald green, cool and clean and covered all over with the five kinds of lotuses. Aquatic birds, such as swans, ducks, herons, etc., of various hues, rising from the ponds on the east, flew across the palace making melodious sounds continuously, and went down and gambolled in the pond on the west. In this manner, these water birds from the west pond flew to the east, those from the north lake to the south and those from the south pond to the north and so on. The summer palace, even during the summer months, was pleasant as in the rainy season.

There were seven tiers in the spire of the palace named Subha. The structure and room formations were so designed as to be of medium size, neither too low nor too high and neither too wide nor too narrow, in order to generate both heat and cold. The main door and windows were designed to suit both the cold and hot seasons, some fitted with closely knit planks and some with holes and wire meshes. There were paintings of blazing fires and flames and also pictures of lakes and ponds. Garments, robes and carpets, which would suit both the cold and heat, forming an assortment of apparels used in the two previously mentioned palaces, were kept ready to be used. Some of the doors and windows were open by day and closed by night; and others were kept closed by day and open by night. The beauty and perfection of this palatial mansion for the rainy season was identical with that of the summer and winter residences. [254]

The Archery Display

After King Suddhodana, the royal father, had the three palatial mansions constructed for his son in such grandeur and magnificence which no succession of kings had ever enjoyed before, he thought to himself: “My son has reached the age of sixteen. After crowning him king with the white umbrella raised, I shall watch him enjoying the luxury and glory of kingship.” He then ordered messages to be sent to his 80,000 Sakyan relatives thus: “Dear Sakyan princes, my son has come of age and is sixteen years old now. I will crown him king. All Sakyan princes should bring their daughters, who have come of age, to my palace.”

When the Sakyan princes received the royal message from King Suddhodana, they refused to comply with his request, replying in derogatory terms: “Prince Siddhattha lacks education, although possessing a pleasant personal appearance. Not having acquired any skill of a livelihood he will not be able to discharge his obligation to support a family. So we cannot accede to the demands of King Suddhodana and give our daughters.”

On receiving the replies from the Sakyan princes, the fathers of the princesses, King Suddhodana went to the prince and related the matter. The prince asked: “My dear father, I do not have to learn anything. What skill do you want me to display?” King Suddhodana replied: “Dear son, you should demonstrate to the royal relatives the art of archery with a bow which requires 1,000 units of weight (pala) to draw.” Prince Siddhattha then said: “In that case, royal father, have it proclaimed by the beat of drums in the royal city that on the seventh day from today, I will give a display of archery.” King Suddhodana accordingly had it proclaimed widely all over the kingdom of Kapilavatthu by the beat of drums.

After the proclamation had been made by means of beating the drum, arrangements were made to prepare a site for the prince’s demonstration of his archery skills and to construct a decorated viewing panel for the ministers, palace ladies, retinue, service personnel, soldiers, and distinguished royal relatives. On the seventh day, when all the arrangements were completed, the king with his ministers, military commanders and guests were all seated in their respective places. The prince, after taking his seat on the gem-studded throne in the centre of the open ground, took hold of the big bow handed to him by the royal attendants.

Sitting cross-legged on the throne, the prince held the bow in his left hand, twisted the [255] bow string round one big toe with which was pulled to make it taut, then he struck the bow string with his right hand to adjust it. The vibrating sound emitted from the string was so loud that it echoed throughout the city of Kapilavatthu which appeared as if it was on the verge of flying up into the sky.

Thereupon, some people asked: “What is that sound?” and some people replied: “This is the roaring sound of thunder.” Others, however, said: “Oh, you do not know! This is not the sound of thunder, it is the sound produced when the Sakyan Prince Siddhattha, so graceful in form and resplendent in complexion, drew the bow which requires 1,000 men Or 2,000 units of weight. to stretch, struck the bow string.” All the 80,000 Sakyan princes and royal relatives witnessing the spectacular display by the prince of striking and adjusting the bow strings were exceedingly delighted.

The Twelve Minor Types of Archery

The prince sent for the most famous master archers of Kapilavatthu by the name of Akkhaṇavedhī, Vālavedhī, Saravedhī, and Saddavedhī and assembled them in the palace ground. As for himself, much like in a previous existence, when the Bodhisatta was born as the young Jotipāla, as mentioned in the Birth Story about the Teacher Sarabhaṅga (Sarabhaṅga-jātaka, Ja 522), he stood in the midst of the four kinds of audience with a majestic bearing like a serpent prince emerging from the earth or Sakka, the Lord of the Devas, at a military parade. He was clad in martial attire studded with rubies, wearing on his head a diadem adorned with the nine kinds of multi-faceted precious gems and girdled around his waist was a sash massively finished with the seven kinds of gems. He was holding a crescent-shaped bow, made of an animal horn, with coral-coloured strings and slung over his shoulder was a quiver of emerald colour.

The four aforesaid master archers were made to take up their positions at the four corners, as those of a rectangular tank, with their personal attendants carrying a supply of 30,000 arrows each. He himself, however, held an arrow with a diamond (vajira) tip and called upon the four master archers to shoot at him simultaneously.

The master archers pleaded: “Son of our lord, we are the most accomplished archers, who can shoot and hit the target many times in a flash of lightning (akkhaṇa-vedhī); who can split into two halves of a target as small as the tail hair or feather of an animal as if it were a target such as a brinjal (vāla-vedhī); who can shoot an arrow to hit another arrow which was shot ahead of it (sara-vedhī); and who can shoot to hit the target without seeing with the eyes but by listening to the sound (sadda-vedhī). Your highness is young and tender in age; we do not have the heart to shoot at you.”

Replying: “Fear not! If you can shoot to hit, shoot at me,” he stood erect, fearless like a golden lion in the centre of the open court. Thereupon, the master archers started shooting simultaneously thousands of arrows in a flash of lightning with all their might. The prince stopped all the incoming arrows, repulsing them by striking them only with a single arrow tipped with a diamond and manipulating them not to fall in disarray but making the arrow heads, tails, leaves and stems group together in a regular pattern to form a large chamber of arrows (sara-gabbha). In this manner, the four master archers had exhausted the 30,000 arrows allotted to each of them. When the prince knew that all the arrows had been used up, he jumped out of the chamber of arrows without disturbing it.

At this demonstration of archery skill of stopping and warding off the incoming arrows (sara-paṭibāhana), the spectators consisting of princes and princelings, Brahmins and rich people, etc., who filled the whole of the surrounding expanse, made joyous exclamations of praise and wonder, by the beating of breasts; and their tumultuous applause reverberated in the sky almost causing the earth to tremble.

Thereupon, King Suddhodana asked his son: “Dear son, what do you call the archery skill that you have just demonstrated?” – “Respected father, what I have demonstrated is the art of defending from the incoming arrows of the enemy with one’s own arrow (sara-paṭibāhana).”

King Suddhodana asked again: “Dear son, is there anyone other than you who had mastered this skill?” In reply, the prince said: “Respected father, there is no one who has skill in this art in the whole of Jambudīpa besides myself.”

King Suddhodana then said: “Dear son, proceed to demonstrate to us other kinds of archery skill.” Thereupon the prince said: “These four master archers standing at the four corners were unable to shoot and hit me. Now I shall shoot with a single arrow and hit all the four master archers.” Hearing these words of the prince, the four master archers could not control themselves, shuddering with great fright.

Then the prince had four banana plants planted in the four corners where the four master archers were previously positioned; tying a piece of red silk thread to the tail of the arrow tipped with a diamond, he aimed at one banana trunk and released the arrow. The arrow bore through the first banana trunk but without stopping proceeded to the second banana trunk which it pierced; again continuing to pierce through the third and the fourth banana trunks, it finally hit and bore again the banana trunk he had first aimed at and came to rest in the hand of the Bodhisatta Prince. The four banana trunks each pierced through with red silk thread stood interconnected. The spectators exclaimed resoundingly and shouted in approbation.

King Suddhodana again asked his son: “Dear son, what is the name of the archery skill that you have just demonstrated?” – “Respected father, what I have just demonstrated is the archery skill of hitting all the intended targets in the form of a circle with a single arrow which returns to the archer’s hand (cakka-vedhī).” Then King Suddhodana said: “Dear son, proceed with the demonstration of other kinds of archery skill.”

The prince proceeded to display the following varieties of archery skill one after another:

These are the twelve minor skills in the art of archery. [257]

The Four Major Archery Skills

In addition, Prince Siddhattha demonstrated the following four major archery skills to his royal father, King Suddhodana, and the assembled royal guests:

Piercing the Seven Kinds of Massive Bodies

Besides, the prince also demonstrated to the assemblage of people, presided over by King Suddhodana, the skill of shooting to pierce through the seven kinds of massive bodies (satta-mahā-kāya-padālana).

The seven kinds of massive bodies are enumerated as follows: 1) A great mass of hide (camma-kāya); 2) a great mass of wood (dāru-kāya); 3) a great mass of bronze (loha-kāya); 4) a great mass of iron (ayo-kāya); 5) a great mass of sand (vālikā-kāya); 6) a great mass of water (udaka-kāya); 7) a great mass of planks (phalaka-kāya).

Of the seven kinds of massive bodies: 1) At their best, other archers could shoot through only one sheet of buffalo hide. But the prince shot through the mass of 100 sheets of buffalo hide. 2-7) Whereas other archers could shoot to penetrate through one plank of the cluster fig (udumbara) of the thickness of eight finger-breaths, or one plank of jack (panasa) of a thickness of four finger-breaths, the prince could shoot to pierce through 100 such planks.

Similarly, whereas other archers could pierce through only one copper sheet of two finger-breath thickness, or an iron sheet of one finger-breath thickness, the prince could penetrate many layers of such copper and iron sheets. Although other archers could shoot an arrow from the front through a cart loaded with sand or planks or hay and make it come out from the rear, or from its rear to make it come out from the front, the prince could shoot to penetrate through many such carts either from the front or from the back. Whereas other archers could shoot to cover a distance of just two and a half kilometres (catu-usabha) Usabha: a measure of length equal to 640 metres. in water and just five kilometres on land, the prince demonstrated shooting which could cover many kilometres, or even leagues, if desired, in water or on land. This is according to the commentary on the the Birth Story about Prince Asadisa (Asadisa-jātaka, Ja 181).

The Archery Skill of the Bodhisatta

The Bodhisatta demonstrated his skill in archery not only in his last human existence as Prince Siddhattha, but also while he was still in the early stages of the fulfilment of the perfections, in his existence as Prince Asadisa.

Here follows a brief account of this episode: While still fulfilling the perfections, he was reborn in one of the existences as Prince Asadisa, the eldest son of King Brahmadatta of the city of Bārāṇasī. When he attained the age of sixteen, he proceeded to the university town of Takkasilā where under the world-famous teacher, Disāpāmokkha, he learned the three Vedas together with the eighteen branches of learning to the highest stage of perfection. In particular, he had mastered, without any equals, the archery skills. When he returned to Bārāṇasī after completion of his study, he refused the kingship offered to him as the elder son, in accordance with the [258] dying wishes of his father, King Brahmadatta. The ministers then elected his younger brother, Prince Brahmadatta, to be king. The elder Prince Asadisa continued to live the princely life in a peaceful manner. But the sycophants and opportunists serving the king, in order to sow the seeds of discord, maligned Prince Asadisa, saying to the king: “Prince Asadisa is planning to seize your throne.” Believing these slanderous words, the king ordered the arrest of his elder brother, Prince Asadisa.

On being informed of the said matter by a well-wishing palace attendant, Prince Asadisa felt deeply hurt and left the kingdom of Bārāṇasī for another country. From there, he had word sent to the king that a master archer had arrived at the palace gate, seeking permission to be in the king’s service. Summoning the master archer to his presence, the king questioned him as to the remuneration he sought for his services. Agreeing to be employed on a salary of 100,000 pieces of silver per annum, Prince Asadisa remained henceforth in the service of the king as an archer. The incumbent archers were jealous of the newcomer being thus paid a salary of 100,000 a year, and spoke in disparagement of him.

One day, while in the royal garden near the auspicious stone slab, the king saw a bunch of mangoes on the top of a big mango tree. Considering: “It is impossible to climb up and pluck the mangoes,” the king summoned the old archers and asked them: “Can you shoot down that bunch of mangoes with an arrow?” They submitted unanimously: “Your majesty, there is no trouble for us to shoot it down; but your majesty has seen our performance many a time. Let the new archer, who is earning much more than us, bring it down.”

The king then sent for Prince Asadisa, and asked him: “My son, can you shoot down that bunch of mangoes with an arrow?” The prince replied: “Your majesty, if I have permission to use the place where you are reclining, the job can be done.” He made this request as the stalk of the mango bunch was directly above the place where the king had been reclining. The king moved out from his reclining position and permitted the Prince to shoot from there.

Unlike other archers, Prince Asadisa did not go about carrying his bow in his hand ostentatiously. He moved about with his bow folded and wrapped up in cloth. He had an enclosure formed of screens and curtains. Then entering the enclosure to take off the white outer garment, he changed into red attire. He also then girded up his loins and had a red sash wrapped tightly round his chest, after which, he took out the sword from inside the bag and hung it on the left shoulder. He then put on a cloak of the colour of gold and with the quiver slung on his back, held the large bow made of a ram’s horn, each sector of which was fastened properly at the joints and set the bow strings of coral red colour.

Then, with a frontlet of precious gems adorning his head, and rotating the sharp arrow with his fingernails, he parted the curtain and came out like a Nāga youth emerging from the earth. Then going straight to the place for shooting, he asked the king: “Your majesty, shall I shoot down the bunch of mangoes with the ascending arrow or with a descending one?” The king replied: “My son, I have seen many archers bring down fruit with the ascending arrow, but I have not seen archers shoot them down with the descending one. I want you to shoot and cut the stem with the descending arrow.” The prince replied: “Your majesty, this first arrow I am shooting will go up as far as the Cātumahārājika abode, I beseech you to be patient and wait for the arrow’s descent from the said Deva abode.” – “So be it,” said the king.

He further explained thus: “Your majesty, this first arrow I am shooting, on its way up will cleave in half the stalk of the mango bunch and when it descends from the sky, it will cut the remaining half precisely without missing it, even by a hair’s breath, and bring down the bunch. Behold now, your majesty.” Uttering these bold words, the prince shot the arrow which went skywards at an accelerating speed.

The said arrow went up after cleaving half the mango stalk as the prince had said. The prince, judging: “The arrow may have reached the Cātumahārājika abode by now,” shot a second arrow with greater force and speed than the first one. The second arrow went up and struck the tail-feather of the first arrow to make it turn and fall downwards; and [259] itself went up and up till it reached the Tāvatiṁsa abode where it was caught by the Tāvatiṁsa Devas.

The sound, produced by the descending arrow cutting through strong winds in the atmosphere, roared loudly like that of thunder as if to make the earth tremble. When people asked: “What is that sound?” the prince replied: “It is the sound of the first arrow descending.” He calmed the fears of the people who were feeling anxious lest the arrow might fall onto them, saying: “Do not be afraid; the arrow will not be allowed to fall on the ground, I will catch it without causing harm to anyone.”

The said arrow, on coming down, cut the remaining half of the stalk of the mangoes without veering even a hair’s breath from it, in full view of the spectators, and fell downwards carrying the bunch of mangoes with it. Prince Asadisa clutched in midair the falling arrow with one hand and the mangoes with the other, not allowing them to fall to the ground.

The king and thousands of spectators marvelled at the astonishing and magnificent display and exclaimed: “We had never before witnessed such a wonderful demonstration.” They applauded and praised the prince by clapping their arms with open hands, snapping their fingers and throwing up into the air their turbans and headgear. The king’s audience, being pleased and delighted, lavished him with presents and rewards worth ten millions of money. The king showered on the archer prince much bounty and a large retinue which may be likened to a heavy downpour of rain.

In this manner, the Bodhisatta demonstrated his extraordinary and wonderful skill in archery also at the time when he was born as Prince Asadisa. In this last existence as Prince Siddhattha, he also demonstrated to the assembly not only the aforesaid skill in archery, namely, the twelve minor skills, the four major skills, the seven kinds of piercing through massive bodies, but all skills, dexterity and accomplishments which a prince should learn and master. Only then the doubts and suspicions of the 80,000 royal relatives, wondering: “Does he even have any manly accomplishments?” were cleared away.

In this manner, Prince Siddhattha displayed his skill in archery to dispel all distrust, disdain, slander and reproach heaped upon him by his royal relatives. His was a feat of skill which had no equal, it was so marvellous and rare to witness. Thereupon, all the royal relatives, being cleared of the doubts and misgivings which they had entertained earlier, joyously proclaimed: “Never before in the royal annals of the Sakyan dynasty had anyone witnessed such feats of mastery as we have witnessed now,” and thus showering praises on the prince. They were so fully delighted with such incomparable prowess and all-round accomplishments of the prince, that they willingly sent him their own royal daughters, who were beautifully dressed and adorned, for royal betrothal. The princesses of pure birth and matchless beauty sent to the royal court numbered 40,000.

The Beauty of Princess Yasodharā

Among the 40,000 Sakyan princesses, the crown, the crest, and the foremost was Princess Yasodharā whose maiden name was Bhaddakaccānā.

Yasodharā was one of the coeval s of the prince. She was born out of the union of the Sakyan ruler Suppabuddha, the son of the prince’s grandfather, King Añjana of Devadaha kingdom, and Princess Amittā, who was the younger sister of King Suddhodana. The princess earned the name of Yasodharā for being endowed with pristine fame and great retinue. [260]

She was of a golden colour, always eye-catching and beautiful, like an image cast of solid gold or as if the natural flesh and body was made of gold. With her matchless, proportionate body, and of dazzling radiance, she was comparable in beauty and comportment to the victory flag-post erected in the scenic and delightful celestial Kīḷāmaṇḍala amusement park of the Māra King named Manobhū.

Like that of the celestial Nymphs (Devaccharā), her bodily radiance could illuminate the whole of her private chamber which was otherwise shrouded in total darkness. She was also endowed with five feminine charms of a virtuous lady: 1) The beauty of skin (chavi-kalyāṇa); 2) the beauty of flesh (maṁsa-kalyāṇa); 3) the beauty of veins (nhāru-kalyāṇa), 4) the beauty of bone structure (aṭṭhi-kalyāṇa), or the beauty of teeth formation (danta-kalyāṇa); 5) the beauty of hair (kesa-kalyāṇa); or, in other words, the beauty of bones, skin, hair, flesh and youth.

She also was pleasurable to touch (sukha-samphassa) like the feel of cotton ginned 100 times. She was free from the six blemishes, viz., being too dark or too light; being too fat or too thin; being too short or too tall; the sweet fragrance of choice sandalwood emanating from her faultless graceful body always pervading the air; her coral-coloured mouth was always fragrant with the scent of the blue lotus. Bhaddakaccānā, Yasodharā, was the noble “treasure of the woman” worthy to be the consort of a Universal Monarch ruling over the four continents.

The above description of the Princess Yasodharā gives only a few of the distinguishing features for easy portrayal. In fact, she was unique among human beings and excelling female deities too. She was enjoying the merits which had accrued finally and simultaneously from all the perfections she had fulfilled and the deeds of merit she had performed in the previous innumerable existences. Subsequently, she became a lady of excellence and great worth, endowed with the most admirable peerless beauty amongst ladies of virtue and nobility.

The Inauguration Ceremony

The 80,000 royal relatives headed by King Suddhodana, assembled at a grand and magnificent convention and celebrated the coronation of Prince Siddhattha, which included the raising of the royal white umbrella over his head, the sprinkling of cool water (abhiseka) and the formal ascension to the golden throne.

From among the 40,000 princesses presented by the Sakyan relatives, 10,000 princesses were assigned to Yasodharā to form her personal suite. The remaining 30,000 princesses were assigned to be resident attendants in the three palaces, 10,000 in each of them.

Prince Siddhattha, surrounded by young maidens of noble Sakyan origin, was like a youthful Deva being attended upon by Deva princesses or like Sakka, the Lord of the Devas; and he was entertained with very pleasant music played by all-female troupes. He lived amidst the great and magnificent luxury of royalty, comparable to that of a Universal Monarch. He took up residence in the three magnificent and elegant palaces of Ramma, Suramma and Subha in turn, according to the three seasons, leading a life of happiness and comfort. [261]