THE ORIGINAL SRAVASTI IN INDIA
| The events that occurred in Sravasti during the Buddha's time are a wonderful role model for what the present Sravasti Abbey can become. As we see from the following accounts, many peoplefemale and male, monastics and lay practitionersdid sincere practice and through their effort, gained deep insight into the path to enlightenment. Not everyone at Sravasti was initially an angel, as the story about Angulimala illustrates. |
From Middle Land, Middle Way: A Pilgrim's Guide to the Buddha's India
by Ven. S. Dhammika
The fair capital of the Kosalans
Excite the mind, charms the eye,
Gives the ear the ten sounds
And provides food enough for all.
 (Paramatthajotika 10)
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Savatthi (Skt. Sravasti), the capital of Kosala, was said to have derived its name from the fact that everything was available there (sabbam atthi). It was indeed one of the wealthiest and most vibrant cities in the Middle Land. The Buddha visited Savatthi several times before finally making it his headquarters in the twentieth year of his enlightenment. From then on, he spent every rains retreat except his last in the environs of the city. The Buddha had probably decided to limit his wanderings at this time due to advancing age (he was fifty-six) and he no doubt chose Savatthi as his base because of the generous support given to him by the cities wealthiest merchants…
Pathway in the Jetavana Park
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In the coming years, several other equally large monasteries were built around Savatthi, the Pubbarama (the Eastern Monastery, now represented by the village of Khanbari) and the Rajakarama being the two most famous, and it was these monasteries and other locations around Savatthi that the Buddha delivered most of his discourses.
Of all the events in the Buddhas life that took place in Savatthi, the most celebrated was the conversion of Angulimala. The robber and murderer had killed so many people that villagers in outlying districts packed their belongings and moved into the city. From each of his victims, he cut a finger and hung it on a necklace around his neck, hence his name, Angulimala, Finger Necklace. When the Buddha heard about this, he set out for the area where Angulimala was known to operate, with the specific purpose of meeting him. On a lonely stretch of road, Angulimala saw the Buddha and began to chase him. But although he ran his fastest he was unable to catch up with the Buddha, who continued to walk at a leisurely pace. In frustration and bewilderment, Angulimala called out to the Buddha: “Stop monk!” To which the Buddha replied: “I have stopped, Angulimala. You should stop.” Angulimala asked the Buddha what he meant, and the Buddha replied that he had stopped killing and harming beings and that Angulimala should do the same. The murderer threw down his sword, and bowing at the Buddha's feet, asked to be ordained as a monk. Later Angulimala became enlightened, but not until he had endured violence and insults at the hands of those who remembered his terrible past.
From The Eight Places of Buddhist Pilgrimage
by Jeremy Russell
One of the first statues of Shakyamuni originated at Jetavana. Ordered by King Prasenajit, it was made of hardwood. King Prasenajit placed it at his seat in the vihara. Fa Hien (a Chinese monk who visited India in the late fourth century C.E.) tells that when Shakyamuni next visited Jetavana, the statue came out to meet him. He told it to return to its place, saying that it would serve as a model for others after his passing away. The Jetavana vihara which housed this image was once an elaborate seven-storied building. It eventually burned down but the image survived and a two-storied structure was built in its place.
Another pathway in the Jetavana Park
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Ananda once asked Buddha to allow a tree to be planted at Jetavana because when the Buddha was not present at Jetavana his followers had no where to place their offerings of flowers and so forth. Maudgalyayana brought a seed of the bodhi tree and when the tree grew the Buddha is said to have blessed it by spending one night meditating under it. This is now known as the Ananda bodhi tree.
The Chinese pilgrims mention a number of stupas in the park commemorating various events. One marked the occasion when the Buddha found a sick monk unattended and languishing in his own filth. Shakyamuni bathed and nursed the monk himself and exhorted the other monks to care for each other similarly in the future…
The Jetavana Grove was a short distance south of the prosperous city of Shravasti, the capital of Koshala, which stood on the banks of the Achiravati River. Here Prasenajit had his palace, and close to it built a monastery. Nearby was the vihara of Mahaprajapati, who was Shakyamuni's stepmother and the first woman admitted to the Order. A short distance away is a large, ruined stupa marking the place where Angulimala the murderer attained arhantship and where his body was later cremated. Outside the city was a forest where once lived a community of 500 blind men, all of whom regained their sight when the Buddha came and preached to them.
Apart from these associations, Shravasti is best remembered as the place where Shakyamuni defeated the holders of other doctrines. Some accounts say this was accomplished by debate, others by miracles; perhaps there were both. The leaders of India's six main philosophical schools had challenged the Buddha to a contest of miraculous powers many times as he wandered through the surrounding kingdoms. Finally, in his fifty-seventh year he accepted at Shravasti. King Prasenajit built a hall especially for the event; in it seven thrones were erected. On the first day of spring, the six other teachers took their seats and Shakyamuni came to his, flying through the air. He sent forth fire and water from his body and the hall was destroyed, then reformed as a transparent palace. Planting his toothpick in the ground, he caused a great tree to spring up, fragrant and fully laden with flowers and ripe fruit. He multiplied his body infinitely, filling all space with buddhas expounding the Dharma. These and many other miracles he performed and in eight days utterly defeated his opponents, whose followers adopted the Buddhist doctrines. For a further seven days he continued to show miracles and give teachings to the great assembly.
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