（20）Reunion with Bimbisara, King of Magadha - Kings of major powers express support for the Buddha one after another! Buddhist Order of Increasing Authority

[Introduction to Buddhism, Life of Buddha (Shakyamuni) as seen through local photographs] ⒇
　Reunion with Bimbisara, King of Magadha - Kings of major powers express support for Buddha one after another! Buddhist Sects of Increasing Authority

Previous Article⒆The rapid expansion of the Buddhist Order: outstanding disciples joined BuddhaIn the previous article, I talked about the rapid expansion of the Buddha Order due to the addition of talented disciples, but in this article, we will look at the expansion of the Buddha Order in a different aspect than the "addition of disciples. The moment when the Buddha Order finally became a huge force will be discussed in this article.

So let's get started.

Reunion with King Bimbisara of Magadha

After welcoming the three Kassapa brothers as disciples in Ulverer, the Buddhist Order quickly grew to more than 1,000 members. This rapid expansion occurred because each of the three Kassapa brothers had many disciples who decided to join the Order of Buddha.

Thus, the Buddha Order was transformed to the point where it was no longer just a small cult, but was recognized as a force to be reckoned with.

The next stop for such a Buddha from Ulverer was the Magadha country.

Magadha Country is also the first place Buddha went to after he was ordained. It was here that Buddha once met King Bimbisara.

King Bimbisara, completely enthralled by the Buddha, promised, "If you have attained the Way, we will meet again. If you have attained the Way, please come back to my country again.

Yes, the time has finally come for that promise to be fulfilled.

When the king learned of Buddha's visit to Rajigir in the capital of Magadha, he asked to meet with Buddha. He was to meet Buddha as an "enlightened man" who now had a thousand disciples.

As promised, Buddha came to King Bimbisara's Magadha Kingdom. King Bimbisara was deeply impressed by Buddha's aura, which had been overwhelming even when he was an ascetic in the past, and now shone even more brightly after attaining enlightenment. He listened to Buddha's teachings with nostalgia for the past. Moved by his teachings, he invited the Buddha back to his palace.

Later that day, the king graciously welcomed Buddha and his disciples. The king then addresses Buddha as follows.

I would like to donate to you a bamboo grove garden. It is not too far from the city, not too close to the city, not too noisy and quiet, and a wonderful place to meditate. I would like you to make it the base of your cult. What do you think?

Buddha respectfully accepted the offer.

Thus was born the Chikurin Shouzya.

I also visited this tikurinsyouzya e and saw many bamboos, just as the name implies. The area around Magadha Country is mostly rocky mountains and arid lands, so it is rare to see such a lush bamboo forest. Indeed, the air in the bamboo grove was calm and cool, and I felt that it was a comfortable place to be.

Thus, the Buddha Order was endowed with a comfortable land to live on by the king.

It is said that this tikurinsyouzya was Buddha's favorite place and that he stayed here many times for long periods of time in the future.

Influence of King Bimbisara's devotion

Now, with the return of King Bimbisara comes further changes for the Buddha Order. Gen Nakamura makes the following interesting point.

The king's taking refuge was of great significance at a time when royal power was becoming increasingly powerful in India. Since King Bimbisara had ordered the chiefs of 80,000 villages to gather together to hear the teachings of Sakyamuni80,000 people,,The legend was later established that the eagle was the first to visit Eagle's Peak.

Shunju-sha, Nakamura HajimeGautama Buddha (popular edition)Middle volume P183

Although this passage is written in a simple manner, it is actually extremely important in the expansion of the Buddha Order.

We Buddhists tend to think that Buddhism spread throughout India because of the greatness of Buddha's teachings, but in fact it is not that simple.

⑾Why Buddhism spread so rapidly in India: the birth of a great power distancing itself from Brahmanism and the rise of an emerging merchant class."As I mentioned in the article "The Buddha's Teachings," it was mainly the royalty, the aristocracy, and the upstart urban merchants who resonated with the Buddha's teachings. Rural peasants and the rest of the population continued to believe in the Brahmanic gods and native deities as before.

In the midst of such a situation, King Bimbisara issued an announcement saying, "From now on, you must also listen to the teachings of the Buddha Order. Thus, the Buddhist Order quickly became a presence endorsed by the King, and became well known to the people.

This is what happens when a king of a major power publicly endorses a cult.

The spread of Buddhism in India was not only due to the excellence of Buddha's teachings and human virtues, but also because of the synergistic effect of having such powerful supporters.

Kings expressing their support one after another

Although the timeline is rather sketchy, Buddha continued to visit various countries and meet with kings as a state guest until his later years. Even though it was a time when freedom of thought was guaranteed to all thinkers, it is still rare for a person to be so influential.

In particular, the Buddha was on friendly terms with King Pasenadi of the Kosala Kingdom, which is as powerful as the Magadha Kingdom. The fact that he received the support of these two powerful nations is of great significance. The authority and credibility of the Buddha's cult increased because of these two powerful countries, and there is no doubt that it gave impetus to the missionary efforts.

It is in this vein that the famous anecdote of Gion Shouzya was born. In this article, I have talked about the expansion of the Buddha Order through the devotion of the king, and in the next article, I will talk about the expansion of the Order by big capitalists.

Next Article.

Click here to read the previous article.

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