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Mara

The Buddhavamsa Commentary and Nidanakatha of the Jataka commentary, particularly in the
Singhalese versions,

unfold a very lively and detailed account of the Mara’s visit to the Buddha just before his Enlghtenment,
when he was sitting under the Bodhi tree.

Seeing Gotama seated with a firm resolve to become a Buddha, he summoned all his forces to attack
Sakyamuni.

The forces extended twelve leagues in front and back; and nine leagues on right and left.

Mara himself with thousand arms riding on his elephant Girimekhala, attacked Gotama.

His followers armed with deadly weapons and assuming various frightening forms joined him in his
attack.

The Bodhisatta then called the ten paramis, which he had perfected in various births, for his defense.
Each of the ten divisions of Mara’s army was then defeated and routed by one parami.

Eventually, Mara’s army had to flee. Vanquished Mara then hurled his last weapon – the chakkavudha
(disc), which stood over the Bodhisatta’s head like a canopy of flowers.

Still Mara tried to dissuade Gotama from the path of the Buddhahood by falsely claiming the Gotama’s
seat as his own; and by asking him to prove his right to the seat on which he was sitting. All the Mara’s
followers then testified Mara’s claim by shouting that the seat actually belonged to Mara. As the
Bodhisatta had no other witness to bear testimony on his behalf he asked the Earth to speak for him by
touching the ground with his middle finger. The Earth then roared in response and bore the testimony
for the Bodhisatta by thundering, “I stand his witness”. Thus, the Mara’s defeat was final; and he and his
followers had to flee. The Devas and other celestial beings then besieged him and celebrated his victory.

The elephant Nālāgiri

https://buddhas-brain.com/2011/02/08/nalagiri/
Taming the Drunken Elephant Edit The Buddha's jealous cousin Devadatta sets loose the drunken
elephant, Nalagiri, to trample the Buddha. In one account of the story, when Nalagiri charged at the
Buddha, the Buddha created an image of two lions and a sea of fire in front of the elephant to frighten it
into staying still.[56][57] In another account, the Buddha created a roar resembling that of an elephant
queen, which caused Nalagiri to stop and bow to the Buddha.[58] In one version of the story, the monk
Ananda tries to protect the Buddha by jumping in front of him. The Buddha orders Ananda to move but
he refuses. The Buddha then employs psychic powers to move Ananda to safety.[59] Afterwards, the
Buddha gently tames the elephant with loving-kindness.[60][56][58][57]

Appendix 4 - Buddha’s subjugation of the elephant Nālāgiri (or Dhanapāla)

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Note: This appendix was extracted from Chapter XLII part 8.4 (the traces of passion are destroyed in the
Buddha):

“A-chö-che (Ajātaśatru) unleashed drunken elephants intending to kill the Buddha, but the latter was
not afraid and tamed the mad elephants. When the inhabitants of Rājagṛha, redoubling their respect
(gurukāra), came out with perfumed flowers and ornaments (ābharaṇa) to offer to the Buddha, the
latter experienced no joy”.

A brief allusion to the miracle of the subjugation of the elephant Nālāgiri or Dhanapāla. The stories of
this miracle can be arranged into three groups: 1) the sources that present it as a miracle of loving-
kindness; 2) those that make it into a miracle of magic; 3) the late versions, somewhat aberrant, where
the meaning of the miracle does not appear clearly.

I. The subjugation as a miracle of loving-kindness

The earliest sources have it that the Buddha converted the animal by means of the radiation of his
loving-kindness (maitrī). There is an old belief that fierce animals, especially snakes, are sensitive to the
good feelings expressed towards them.

1. Pāli Vinaya, II, p. 194–196:

In Rājagṛhā at that time there was the elephant Nālāgiri, fierce (caṇḍa) and a killer of men
(manussaghātaka). Devadatta went to find its mahouts and, taking advantage of his influence
over king Ajātaśatru, ordered them to loose the animal against the Buddha when the latter
entered Rājagṛha. This was done. The next day, surrounded by many monks, the Buddha came to
the city to beg his food. The elephant was unleashed and, with its trunk erect
(saṇḍaṃ ussāpetvā), ears and tail rigid (pahaṭṭhakaṇṇavāla), rushed against the Teacher. The
monks begged the Buddha to go back, but the latter reassured them that no aggression coming
from the exterior could deprive him of his life.

Frightened, the population of Rājagṛha took refuge on the roof-tops and made wagers as to who
would win, the man-elephant (the Buddha) or the animal-elephant (Nālāgiri).

Then the Blessed One penetrated Nālāgiri with a mind of loving-kindness (Nālāgiriṃ mettena
cittena phari) and, lowering its trunk (soṇḍaṃ  oropetvā), the animal stopped in front of the
Buddha who caressed its forehead with his right hand (dakkhiṇena hatthena
hatthissa kumbhaṃ parāmasanto), saying:

O elephant, do not attack the Elephant; this attack would be shameful.

There can be no good destiny in the beyond for the one who kills the Elephant.
Flee from drunkenness (mada) and laziness (pamāda); the lazy miss the good destinies.
Act in such a way as to attain a good destiny.

At these words, Nālāgiri gathered the sand-grains covering the feet of the Blessed One in his
trunk and spread them on top of its head; then, still kneeling, it backed away, always keeping the
Buddha in sight.

It was on this occasion that the people chanted the following stanza (see also Majjhima, II, p.
105; Theragāthā, v. 878):

Some tame them with blows of the stick, with pitchforks or with whips;
With neither stick nor weapon was the elephant tamed by the Great Sage.

2. Jātaka, V, p. 333–337:
The Cullahaṃsajātaka (no. 533) reproduces the preceding source, not without adding numerous
details. When the Buddha made his entry into Rājagṛhā, he was accompanied by many monks
coming from the eighteen monasteries situated in the neighborhood of the city. Seeing the rush
of the elephant, the eighteen great abbots, Śāriputra, etc., suggested that they would tame the
animal, but the Buddha refused thir offer and asked them to remain in their place. The
good Ānanda insisted on staying beside the Blessed One in order to be killed before him, and the
Blessed One had to use his magical powers to put him back beside his colleagues.

The sources that follow have it that, at the approach of the elephant, all the arhat monks except
for Ānanda fled shamefully, and they will contrast their cowardice with the complete devotion of
the preferred disciple, It is possible that this not very edifying incident was part of the original
story but that the Pāli texts passed over it in silence so as not to cause any trouble in the Saṃgha.
However, the Ceylonese Theravādins were aware of it by way of an indiscretion (?) of
the Milindapañha, the Pāli version of an original Prakrit seemingly coming from the north-west
of India. In this version (p. 207–208), king Milinda (Menander) asked Nāgasena how it was
possible that arhats supposed to be free of all fear took flight before the elephant.

Cinca Manavika
A paribbajika of some ascetic Order. When the heretics of this Order found that their gains were grown
less owing to the popularity of the Buddha, they enlisted the support of Cinca in their attempts to
discredit him. She was very beautiful and full of cunning, and they persuaded her to pretend to pay visits
to the Buddha at Jetavana. She let herself be seen going towards the vihara in the evening, spent the
night in the heretics quarters near by, and in the morning men saw her returning from the direction of
the vihara. When questioned, she said that she had passed the night with the Buddha. After some
months she simulated pregnancy by tying a disc of wood round her body and appearing thus before the
Buddha, as he preached to a vast congregation, she charged him with irresponsibility and callousness in
that he made no provision for her confinement. The Buddha remained silent, but Sakkas throne was
heated and he caused a mouse to sever the cords of the wooden disc, which fell to the ground, cutting
Cincas toes. She was chased out of the vihara by those present, and as she stepped outside the gate the
fires of the lowest hell swallowed her up (DhA.iii.178f; J.iv.187f; ItA.69).

40. Cinca-Manavika, a female ascetic, making a false accusation against the Buddha

There dwelt in Savatthi city, a female ascetic called Cinca-manavika, who was as pretty as a goddess. The
heretical teachers, who did not get enough alms and were envious of the Buddha attempted to destroy
His reputation by setting her to make a false accusation against Him. She wrapped a scarlet shawl round
her and pretended to pay visits to the Buddha at Jetavana Monastery at nightfall, though, as a matter of
fact, she slept at the monastery of the heretical teachers, and at day break she entered the city as if she
was coming back from the Buddha at Jetavana Monastery. In this way she caused doubts to arise in the
minds of devotees returning in the evening from the monastery after hearing a sermon from the
Buddha, and those who were going there early in the morning to pay their respects to the Buddha. After
a period of about nine months she placed a wooden knob against her stomach and tied it with an apron
round her body to make it appear that she was big with child. Then she approached the Buddha who
was preaching and made a false and wicked accusation thus: “Why have you not prepared my
confinement room?” The gods appeared as mice and bit loose the apron round her body, when the
knob of wood fell before the audience, and she was given a so