Dipavamsa (study)
by Sibani Barman | 2017 | 55,946 words
This page relates ‘Twelve Kings� of the study on the Dipavamsa conducted by S. Barman in 2017. The Dipavamsa is the base material of the Vamsa literatures of Ceylon (Srilanka or Sri-Lanka) writtin the Pali language.
Chapter 4j - The Twelve Kings
After the death of Ѳ첹岵 his son پ첹پ (141-165 A.D.) ruled for 24 years. He built a wall around the Ѳ屹, erected two , viz: the Ҳپ- and پ첹پ- and built the tanks: Ѳ峾ṇi辱 and 鲹Իṇḍ첹辱, and also built an ܱDzٳ岵 in the ճū峾. He provided lavish gifts to both Bhikkhu ṅg and ܲī ṅg.
After the death of پ첹پ, his younger brother Ծṭṭپka (165-193 A.D), ruled for years. Being pleased with Ѳ岵 Thera of Bhutārāma, he built the 鲹ٲԲ岹 at Abhayagiri. He also built at Abhayagiri a wall, and a maha-parivena. In the Maṇisoma-, he built a -parivena and a cetiya. He also built a cetiya at Ambatthala, restored a temple at 岵ī貹. In Ѳ屹 he built 12 great four sided 岹 and demolishing the boundary of the Ѳ屹, he made a row of 貹ṇa named ܰṭa and a road leading to ٲṇa. He added a plastering to the ٲṇa- and a refectory, removing the boundary of the Ѳ峾Բ. Among his other works were the Bhutārāma-, the Rāmagoṇaka-vihara, the Ի岹پ峾, the Anulatissa-pabbata-, the پ峾, the Pilapiṭṭhi-, and the Rāja-. He built Uposathāgāra in 3 following places: the ṇi-, the Maṇḍalagiri- and the Dubbalavāpitissa–�.
After the death of Ծṭṭپ, his eldest son and succesor Ჹ岵 (193-195 A.D.) reigned two years. He was slain and replaced by his own brother ñ岵.
ñ岵 reigned one year (195-196 A.D.). During his reign a famine known as the 첹첹 famine is reported to have occured, but the king is said to have maintained an alms giving for 500 bhikkhus uninterruptedly. No literary works provides any information why the famine is called 첹첹 famine. Probably, the name is due to the fact that, was an ancient measure used to signify a small quantity, and people had to depend on that reduced amount of food for their sustenance. He was deposed by 岵.
ñԲ’s queen’s brother, 岵 l, was his commander-in-chief. He rebelled against the king and defeated him. He then reigned in Գܰܰ (196-215 A.D.) for nineteen years. He ercted a parasole over the Ѳٳū貹, rebuilt the dz岹, keeping it within five stories, and restored the steps leading to the Bodhi-Tree.
岵 remitted the Kulambana tribute of families throughout the Island. His son was Tissa later known as մdz첹-Tissa.
After the death of 岵, his son Tissa reigned twenty-two years (215-237 A.D.). He was called �մdz첹� because of his knowledge of Law and tradition. He was the first in this country who made a Law that set aside bodily injury as penalty. He patronized Deva Thera of ܲ峾 and Ѳپ of Գܰ峾. He built the ٳٲ貹ԲԲ첹岹 in the eastern temple of the Mahabodi Tree and erecteed parasols of eight ճū貹 and walls round six . On days when the ⲹṃs was being read, he held alms giving throughout Ceylon, and freed the bhikkhus who were in debt giving 3 lakh pieces of money. He suppressed the Vetulya heresy with the help of his minister Kapila.
He was killed by his brother ⲹ岵.
ⲹ岵 conspired against the King մdz첹-Tissa with the assistence of his uncle Subhadeva. Getting the assistance of the ٲḷa, he overthrew and killed Voharika-Tissa. ⲹ岵 reigned for eight years (237-245 A.D.). He set up a pāsānavedikā round the Ѳ-ǻ, distributed cloths to the Bhikkhus of the Island.
After the death of ⲹ岵, 岵 ll, the son of his brother մdz첹-Tissa reigned for two years (245-247 A.D.). He restored the wall round the Bodhi Tree and built the Ჹṭṭ of the Bodhi-Tree temple.
His son was վᲹⲹܳ. He reigned for one year (247-248 A.D.) after his father’s death. He was killed in his palace by the three 첹ṇṇ of ѲⲹṅgԲ: ṅgtissa, ṅgbodhi, and Goṭhābhaya. It is said that, once these three friends were walking down a street of Գܰܰ city in search of work to the king. Hearing the sound of their footsteps a blind fortune teller near վ辱 said that he could hear footsteps of three future leaders of the country. Being asked by Goṭhābhaya, the fortune teller said that, the person who was coming last would be endured. Keeping in mind the blind man’s premonition Goṭhābhaya went on with the other two and he was the person who was coming last.
After slaying վᲹⲹܳ, ṅgtissa reigned for four years (248-252 A.D). He set up a parasole on the Ѳٳū貹 and did other works of merit. Having heard from the Thera Ѳ𱹲 of 峾첹 of the merits of giving rice-gruel, he arranged for a regular distribution of it. He used to visit 峦Բ徱貹첹 in order to eat Jambu fruits there, and the people, annoyed by his visits, poisoned him.
He was succeeded by ṅgbodhi generally known as ṅgǻ who reigned for two years (252-254 A.D). He was a rightous hero. The king observed five precepts. He set up a house in the Ѳ屹. When he heard that the people of the Island are suffering due to a severe drought, his heart shaken with pity and he lay down on the ground of the Ѳٳū貹 or the ܱԱⲹ and resolved not to rise there from until sufficient rain fall occur to lift him from the earth. Rainfall occured but the king refused to rise because he was not floating on the water. The king’s officers closed up the pipes which enabled him to float and the king rose up.
He released criminals condemned to death and burnt the bodies of dead in place of the criminals to impress his people that law and justice are present in the country.
He is said to have removed an epidemic caused by the Yakkha 鲹ٳٲī. The symptoms of the disease were red eyes and high fever. He offered the demon his own flesh to eat but it refused. The yakkha left the king’s territory promising him an offering in every village.
When his friend and treasurer, Ҵṻⲹ, rebelled he did not want to cause the loss of human lives. He left the throne to anyone who desired it and himself adopted the life of an ascetic. Gothakābhaya, being afraid of the fact that people might have recall Siri ṅgbodhi, set a price on the head of the disappeared king. Later, Sanghabodhi gave his head in gratitude to a poor man who gave him a meal, so that the man could win from the king the price which he had been set on his head.
The legend of the king surrendering his head is famous in Ceylon. No millitary glory was associated with his name or any statesmanship which can brought prestige to the country nor did he do any public work for the welfare of his people yet he achieved a parmanent place in the heart of the Sihala people and forms the theme of a chronicle, the Hatthavanagalla ṃs.
Thus Ҵṻⲹ, also known as ѱṇṇⲹ ruled for thirteen years (254-267 A.D.). He was the last of the three 첹ṇṇ who siezed the throne from the King վᲹⲹܳ. He built a new palace, a splendid pavilion of stone in the Ѳ屹, renewed the pillars of the dz岹, set up a ī of stone around the Ѳǻ.
He built the ѱṇṇⲹ- and renovated all ruined buildings in the Island. He restored the ճū峾, the Ambatthala-, the Maṇisomarāma, the Ѳṭṭ-, and the ٲṇa-.
He banished from Abhayagiri- sixty monks who had accepted the Vetulla heresy. A ḷa monk, ṅgmitta, who knew the practice of exorcism of spirit and so forth, was the pupil of a banished monk came and attends an assembly in the ճū峾. He defeated in discussion the Thera Goṭhābhaya, who was the king’s uncle, living in the ṅgpāla 貹ṇa, and became the king’s favourite. King Goṭhābhaya was the father of one of the greatest kings of Sri-Lankā, King ѲԲ, his younger son. The king had two sons Jeṭṭhatissa and ѲԲ. The king made the monk ṅgmitta as the mentor of the two young boys. But ṅgmitta was against the Ѳ屹 monks who were Theravādins. The king did many things on the advice of the Monk ṅgmitta against the Ѳ屹 monks. Two sons of the king Gothakabhaya grew under the monk Sanghamitta. But the younger son ѲԲ was his favourite. Due to this reason prince Jeṭṭhatissa bore ill-will to him.
After the death of Goṭhābhaya, his elder son Jeṭṭhatissa became king (267-277 A.D.). He was a cruel man. He killed all the ministers who were disloyal to his father and earned the title of “The cruel�. ṅgmitta monk left the country knowing that King Jeṭṭhatissa did not like him. He rebuilt the dz岹, which had been left unfinished by his father, to a height of seven stories and renamed it the Manipāsāda, from the costly jewels he offered in it. He also built the Pācinatissapabbata- and the Alambagama tank. He reigned for ten years. After King Jeṭṭhatissa’s death, his brother ѲԲ ascended the throne.
King ѲԲ was an important king in the history of Ceylon. He ruled twenty-seven years as king (277-304 A.D.). After his consecration, his teacher, ṅgmitta, came back from India with the intention of introducing ѲԲ Buddhism in Ceylon firmly. He convinced the king ѲԲ that the Maha monks are unlawful and the Vinaya had been wrongly interpreted by them. The Maha monks were unable to survive in the capital city, by a decree of the king that�- ‘no one should give alms to the Ѳ屹 monks�. They left Ѳ屹 and went to dzṇa. The Ѳ屹 left deserted for about nine years.The king being greatly influenced by his mentor destroyed the Ѳ屹 and the dz岹 and enriched Abhayagiri- by the assistance of a ruthless minister ṇa who was also an adherent of the monk ṅgmitta. Ѳ屹 which was built by the King ٱ峾辱ⲹ-վ for the use of the great Thera Mahinda was despoiled almost 600 years later during the time of King ѲԲ. By the assistance of ṅgmitta Thera and the minister ṇa, the King committed many wrong deeds. These destructive activities made the Sihala Buddhist people go against the King ѲԲ. But later his friend and minister, ѱṇṇⲹ, convinced him of his error. The king apologized for his wrong deeds and promised to reconstruct the Ѳ屹 and started patronizing the religion.
One of the king’s wives, who was the daughter of a scribe, killed with the help of a labourer, the thera ṅgmitta and the cruel minister ṇa when they came with men to destroy the ճū峾.
ѱṇṇⲹ, the friend and minister of the king, built several 貹ṇas in the Ѳ屹. Bhikkhus who left Ѳ屹 came back to dwell there.
Soon after, however, the king fell under the influence of a monk, named Tissa, and built Jetevana, in a garden named Jothiya, which formed the boundary of the Ѳ屹. The Mahavihara monks protested. More ever, the king tried to alter the boundary of the Ѳ屹. Some monks, who did not want this change, left the city, in protest. Ѳ屹 was deserted once again. A few monks were hiding in and around the border to watch the interesr of the monk Tissa. After long nine months, the Ѳ屹-Bhikkhus returned. But, a complaint to the effect touching an offence of the gravest kind was raised against the thera Tissa by the Ѳ屹-monks. The king appointed a minister to inquire over the matter. Tissa was proved guilty and was expelled from the ṅg against the wish of the king. The king remained quite and impartial recollecting the bad memories of the past. But this event brought about a division among the monks of the three main temples, and three sects, namely the Ѳ屹 sect, the Abhayagiri sect and the Jetavana sect came out. The king built ѲԾ, Ҵǰ첹ṇṇ, 屹, Ի岹峾, Migagāma, Gaṅgāsenakapabbata, Dhātusenepabbata, ǰ첹ٲ, ճū峾 and ḷa辱ٳٳ and two nunneries�Uttara and Abhaya.
He built a ٳū貹 at the place of the �devale� built by the King ṇḍܰⲹ to honour the Yakkha Kaḷavela, and restored many ruined buildings.
He also built sixteen tanks and a great canal called Pabbatanta.
The sixteen reservoirs built by the King ѲԲ are: Ѳṇiī, Ѳ岵峾, ū, Գ, Ѳ峾ṇi, Kokovāta, Dhammaramma, ܳ첹, Բ, 鲹ٳٲ첹ṇḍ첹, վḍḍԲ첹, Velañgaviṭṭhi, Ѳ岵첹, ī, Mahādāragallaka, and Kālapāsāṇa.
In the process of develpoment, it has been seen in many cases that, in a village a temple had been established at first then a tank. King was strongly adviced by the Buddhist monks and the survival of the king greatly depends on how far he followed those advices. King ѲԲ’s period was a golden era in the Island of Lanka but not for Buddhism. King ѲԲ was the first to destroy the Maha yet after his death people made him a god and call him ѲԲ Deviyo or Minneri Deviyo.
Sirimeghavaṇṇa was the son and successor of ѲԲ.
According to both Dīpaṃs and Mahāṃs, King ѲԲ gathered much merit as well as much sin in his life and finished their records upto his reign.