Whenever an Indian king or dynasty actively patronised Buddhism, there appeared an usurper or invader, the king .was somehow despatched and a new dynasty favourable to Brahmanism came into power. Invariably the new rulers also began to ap7 preciate the noble religion of the Buddha more than Brahmanism and wanted to throw off the Brahman yoke which helped them to power. Then another usurper or invader came on the scene and repeated the same process of establishing a new-Brahmanical dynasty. It was. this unedifying story that was enacted century after century in all the principal king doms during this period of national awakening. We have already seen that the Brahmans claimed ‘authority even to kill the king if he happened to go. against their laws. In the present chapter we shall
– see some instances of the exercise of this power.
Brahmans frequently made use of Indian usurpers and even foreign invaders as their instruments for the enforcement of Brahmanism upon the country. These unpatriotic and sometimes treacherous methods also were sought to be justified by the philosophy of the Puranas. It is said in the Mahabharata (Santi Parva 67-68) “if a powerful person willing to conquer a state which has either no ‘king or a weak king approaches, it is wise for the people to welcome him, for nothing is more heinous than the sins of anarchy. A cow that gives milk with difficulty is tormented more and more but one that is easily milked nobody troubles.”* We cannot deny
* Page 195. Epic India, by C. V. Vydia. .
that sometimes these dangerous doctrines did serve to remove a really bad king and to help a useful rival to the throne. But in the hands of an unscrupulous priesthood, who had their own axes to grind in opposition to the interests of the country, occasions of justifiable use were -very few, and most often the powers were exercised to overcome opposition to the free promulgation of Brahmanism.
Chandragupta Maurya of Magadha was the first historical emperor of India. He was able to come into power with the help of a clever Brahman, Kautilya., From very ancient days, Magadha was a famous centre of Indian power and influence as ‘distinct from the Aryan civilisation of the V4las. The Brahmans were always inimical to that country. In the Panchavimsa Brahmana we’ are told that the people of Magadha were distinct in culture from the Aryas. Its association with the Buddha made that country almost the very heart of all India. It was there that the Enlightened received his first royal recognition; and ever afterwards Magadha continued to patronise the Sangha. The progress of Buddhism must have given added importance to that State, and its support of the rising creed must have considerably strengthened the latter. It was quite a natural association of two national forces, the religious and the political, and as history subsequently showed, that association was destined to have pro- found influence on the evolution of oriental life and civilisation. “But this great land of which we are speaking in strains of unbounded enthusiasm and praisewas regarded with deadly aversion by the Vedic Aryans.” “Apparently the country was not in good repute with the Vedic people, and a Brahman living then in the Magadha country was called Brahmabandhu a. degraded Brahman.” And you will be surprised to hear that the land of Magadha, even now, is under ban, for the Brahmans of Mithila wilt avoid bathing on this side of the Ganges on auspicious occasions.”* It was this hated kingdom of the non-Aryan, and the non-Aryan religion of the Buddha which were threatening to over the Brahman domination in Aryavarta.
In the North West of India, the Punjab was a stronghold of the Brahmans who were watching from there for an opportunity to check the growing importance of Magadha. Chandragupta who was in the service of the king of Magadha was prompted to rebel against the king. The rebellion did not succeed, and Chandragupta took refuge with the Brahmans in the Punjab and from there began to mature further plots with the help of Chanakyaw When Alexander invaded India, handragupta and his Brahman supporters invited him to attack a..gadha, but a mutiny in the ranks of the Greek army averted that calamity and the Greek warrior returned to his country. ,Afterwards Chandragupta and Chanakya managed to kill the then king of Magadha and establish the Mauryan dynasty. Very soon the small kingdom expanded into an empire and the grandson of Chandragupta, Asoka the Great, be-‘came the greatest apostle of Buddhism.. We have seen something of the glories of the Empire of Righteousness which Asoka established in India and outside. Brahmans were evidently disappointed in their hope that the Mauryan dynasty which they had set up would give full scope for Brahmanism to prosper. So that famous royal house which made India the greatest nation of the ancient world was soon usurped by one Pushyamitra who treacherously assassinated the last Maurya emperor. Thus Brahmans again asserted their prerogative. Pushyamitra was their man, and he even started to persecute the Buddhists.
*Pages 6, 7 and 8— Glories of Magadha, by J. N. Smnaddar.
“It may have been a Brahmanical faction which put an end to Mauryan supremacy. . . . – The celebration of the great national festival (Horse-sacrifice) by Pushyamitra has been taken by Mr. Vincent .Smith and other writers to indicate the reaction towards Buddhism and the beginning of the gradual extinction of the Buddhist religion in India.”* Brahmans were not satisfied even with this and wanted to enthrone a Brahman king in Magadha. “Deva–bhumi, the last Sunga king, perished through a plot instigated by the Brahman minister Vasu Deva. who ‘became the founder” of the Kanva dynasty of Brahman kings.f A determined effort must have been -made to impose Brahman domination and abolish Buddhist influence, for we find that the MannSamhita was codified at this time and Bhasyas (Commentaries) to some of the Sutras are also believed to have. been written then. But these designs were frustrated by the advent of another rising Indian people, the Andhras, who conquered Magadha. They seem to have been patrons of Buddhism.
Though the Brahmans thus failed in Magadha for the time being, they immediately fostered a rival foreign dynasty in the North West under the Kushan –kings of Turkish origin who favoured Brahmanism. A new kingdom was carved out of the Mauryan Empire. Werra-Kadphises II of this dynasty adhered .to the Brahmanical School of which the worship of Siva was the chief cult. The next king “Kanishka according to Buddhist tradition was also under the Influence of orthodox Brahmans before he became an enthusiastic patron of the Sangha.” “Wema Kadphises, however, seems to have been a more thorough Hindu than any other foreign prince, and in his time the Brahmanical revival may be understood to have truly begun. ”
* Page 121. Arvan Rule in India, E. 13. Havell. t IN 21, Olorieg of Atnzadirt. by Samadd
Page 142, Havell’s Aryan Rule,
Page 58, Peep into History of Ancient India, by R. G. Inandalkar
But as invariably happened in such cases, these kings also soon gave up their Brahmanical leanings and took up the cause of Buddhism. King Kanishka. of this dynasty became a staunch upholder of the Dharma. He called a large assembly of monks to settle the disputes among the various sects and they reduced the teachings of the Buddha to a definite form. Kanishka too suffered martyrdom for his faith in the religion of the Enlightened. He was “smothered to death in his bed.”
Another king of Kashmir Jayapira “trusted hi; Kayastha ministers and financiers and the Brahthan historian narrates that a Brahman’s curse killed him ;” (Dutt) which means in other words that the Brahmans killed him.
A similar revolt against Magadha was organised in Saurashtra and a foreign dyilasty of Shah kings carved out an independent kingdom there. The first of these kings Nahapana was evidently a great patron of the Brahmans, because “he gave sixteen villages to gods and the Brahmans ; fed a hundred thousand Brahmatis every year; provided eight wives for Brahman’s at Prabhasu, the holy place.”* In all these cases, however, the kings refused to become puppets and patronised Buddhism along with Brahmanism.
In the Deccan the Buddhist kings were superseded by a Rajput dynasty, the Chalukyas, who were protagonists of Brahmanism. The fourth king of this line Pulakesin I destroyed the monastery at Amaravati and abolished Buddhism in those parts. He performed Asvamedha Yajna and other sacrifices ; grants of lands were made to Brahmans; temples were built; worship of Siva in the terrible
. form of Kapaleswara was made popular.
* Page 131, Buddhist Period, by R. C. Duet.
When the Magadha Empire under the Andhras was broken up, the Brahmans caught the opportunity to help their patrons to capture the throne once more. Thus commenced the famous Gupta dynasty and a long period of Brahmanical supremacy, huge horse sacrifices and the revival of Sanskrit.
During the period of the Gupta kings, .the Brahmans seem to have made a very successful effort to consolidate their influence and make a compromise with the kings and the people in the matter of religious teachings and observances. A new form of Hinduism of temple-worship and the Puranas was brought into favour to satisfy all parties and somehow oust the importance of Buddhism. Kings as well as Brahmans were interested in keeping the people weak and submissive for exploitation. The caste system served effectively to divide them into groups and prevent their rising against oppressors. It was the most deadly weapon of imperialistic domination ever invented by the human brain. The temple was another important instrument in the scheme of the priests to exploit the people for their .own profit and sometimes also for that of the kings. There was thus a common platform for the two parties to join hands.
It would seem that the Brahmans agreed to give up their Vedic religion of sacrifices which had become. discredited in the opinion of most people. They also agreed to adopt the Kshatriya philosophy of the Upanishads, and also the great national –heroes, Rama and Krishna, as part of the new -religious system. The Epics and the Puranas were adopted as the basis of the new faiths and the acceptance of the Kshatriya philosophy was symbolised by the inclusion of the Bhagavad Gita in the Mahabharata. To propitiate the followers of the Sangha Lord Buddha was recognised as an Avatar of Vishnu. All parties were thus sought to be pacified. The Kshatriya religion of the Upanishads was
