Female Patronage of Buddhist Rock Cut Caityas at Kārle and Bhāje
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International Journal of Social Science & Interdisciplinary Research__________________________________ ISSN 2277 3630 IJSSIR, Vol. 2 (10), OCTOBER (2013) Online available at indianresearchjournals.com FEMALE PATRONAGE OF BUDDHIST ROCK CUT CAITYAS AT KĀRLE AND BHĀJE RUPALI MOKASHI ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY, R. K. TALREJA COLLEGE, ULHASNAGAR ,MAHARASHTRA, INDIA. PERMANENTLY AFFILIATED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI. ABSTRACT: People of western Deccan were familiar with Buddhism since the pre Mauryan times. Buddhist tradition identifies a wealthy merchant converted monk Puṇṇa of Śūrpāraka. It was evidently in the Mauryan period that Buddhism emer ged as a distinct religion with great potentialities for expansion. A Yavana called Yona Dharmarakṣita was then sent to Aparāṃta where he is said to have successfully converted a large number of people including women and nobles to Buddhism. Early Buddhist missionaries must have naturally gravitated to the niches in Sahyadri Mountains to suit the needs of their ideas of asceticism and the monastic life. As a result of the expressions of faith in Dhamma, rock cut Caityas like Kārle and Bhāje nestled in the Sahyadri ranges since 2nd Century BCE. The conversion of simple caves to magnificent structures required highly skilled artisans and craftsmen as well as finances for their construction and maintenance. This paper will try to analyze the finances provided by female devotees who belonged to different stratas of the society. KEY-WORDS: Buddhism, Karle, Bhaje, Female Patronage, inscriptions The Western Ghats are a mountain range in India that run parallel along the western frame of the Deccan Plateau and separate it from a narrow coastal plain along the Arabian Sea. Located in the mountain range of Western Ghats, Sahyadrii Mountains are not just a geographical form and silent on looker for the state of Maharashtra in India but has been an active partaker in the making of its history in general & Buddhism in particular. People of Deccan were familiar with Buddhism since the pre Mauryan times. Buddhist tradition identifies a wealthy merchant converted monk Puṇṇa of Śūrpārakaii as the great evangelist who introduced Buddhism to the land of Sroṇaaparāṃtaka. Literary accounts suggest that Buddhism had been launched in Western ghats by Bāvarī and his sixteen disciplesiii. It was evidently in the Mauryan period that Buddhism emerged as a distinct religion with great potentialities for expansion. Emperor Aśoka’s generous patronage contributed to the spread of Buddhism not only within the empire but also to the distant lands within his lifetime. Third Buddhist Council was convened by Emperor Aśoka at Pāṭalīputra under the leadership of the monk Mogalīputta Tissa. Elders came to a decision to send missionaries to preach Buddhism at several places in India and far flung places abroad. A Yavana called Yona Dharmarakṣita iv was 189 International Journal of Social Science & Interdisciplinary Research__________________________________ ISSN 2277 3630 IJSSIR, Vol. 2 (10), OCTOBER (2013) Online available at indianresearchjournals.com then sent to Aparāṃta where he is said to have successfully converted a large number of people including women and nobles to Buddhism. Early Buddhist missionaries must have naturally gravitated to the niches in Sahyadri Mountains to suit the needs of their ideas of asceticism and the monastic life. The Western Ghats’ topography with its flat-topped basalt hills, deep ravines and sharp cliffs, was suited to their natural inclinations. As a result of the expressions of faith in Dhamma, rock cut Caityas like Kārle and Bhāje nestled in the Sahyadri ranges since 2nd Century BCE. The commencement of missionary movement in coastal Maharashtra coincided with several favorable factors. From 4th century BCE, climatic conditions became favorable for Indian peninsula. The second wake of urbanization experienced rise of urban centersv like Junnar, Ter, Pratiṣṭhāna etc. in Deccan. Greek sailor Hippalusvi discovered the monsoon around c. 45 A.D. and since then the business of western coast flourished with Roman Empire. During this era the Arabian coast was dotted with excellent ports between Baroach and Muziris. As a result of thriving overseas trade with the western world, the traders, skilled artisans and farmers prospered in Deccan till c. 3rd Century AD. The cushion of political stability necessary to sustain the commercial activities was offered by the Sātavāhana dynastyvii in Maharashtra. There are all around 1500 rock cut caves found in India. Out of these 1200 are carved in this era. 1000 are only in Maharashtra and 800 are carved in the Sātavāhana era. Sahyadri ranges pose as a barrier of communication between the ports on the Arabian coast and the plateau except a few passes. Most of these sites are located near such passes just before the caravans entered the difficult terrain.viii Monasteries became stopovers for the caravan traffic. Concurrently the laws of Dhamma willingly embraced everyone in the society, even those who were placed at the lower levels of hierarchy as per the orthodox norms of Hinduism. Thus the chaitys and Vihāras suited the commercial as well as the ecclesiastical needs of the newly emerged mercantile class who willingly financed for the construction of the same. Deccan monasteries of the early phase received less royal patronage and more donations from the wider lay community who benefitted from the flourishing overseas trade, directly or indirectly. It must be noted that the trader class who favored Buddhism was not only indigenous but also traders of Yavana descent. Fortunately the Sātavāhana rulers also unreservedly financed and supported for these monasteries though their personal religious inclinations were different. As their lay, mercantile and royal endowments grew, cave interiors changed from simple monastic dwellings and became more elaborate with interior walls decorated with paintings, reliefs and intricate carvings. Facades were added to the exteriors as the interiors became designated for specific uses as monasteries (vihāra) and worship halls (caityas). Over the centuries simple caves became magnificent structures, needing to be formally designed and requiring highly skilled artisans and craftsmen to complete and acquiring finances for construction and maintenance. In this superstructure of power and patronage, the role of women as benefactors of Buddhism is often neglected. Buddhist literature often extols women as part of Saṃgha and who were contemporaneous of Buddha.ix At a later date the narrations of women in the Therīgāthā has attracted scholarly appreciation as well as religious attention. But a large number of women who embraced Dhamma during these crucial and formative centuries of spread of Buddhism after 3rd century BCE have largely remained neglected. Women who were real and had independently chosen the path of Buddhism as lay followers as well as nuns. They have contributed their share in constructing the monastic establishments in the niches of Sahyadri 190 International Journal of Social Science & Interdisciplinary Research__________________________________ ISSN 2277 3630 IJSSIR, Vol. 2 (10), OCTOBER (2013) Online available at indianresearchjournals.com ranges. They also have shown vision to immortalize the details of their donations by engraving it in the Caityas and vihāras by selecting visually more accessible surfaces. The credit of popularizing the art of engraving inscriptions goes to Mauryan Emperor Aśoka in India in 3rd century BCE, which became extremely popular thereafter. Although the origin of Buddhism predates the period from which the inscriptions are available, inscriptions constitute a significantly important source for the history of Buddhism in India from early times that act as corroborative, supportive and supplementary evidences. A large number of Buddhists votive inscriptions help to reconstruct a much more precise framework of history. Votive inscriptions can be read by the posterity and give immortality to the donor. For those who do not bury, it is good way to be remembered. Inscriptions also mark a transition from orality to literacy. Votive Prakrit - Brahmi inscriptions in the rock cut Caityas at Kārle and Bhāje in Sahyadri Mountains have been assessed in this paper to understand the role of women as benefactors of Buddhism during the early phase. Kārle -Bhāje is a duet carved in the Sahyadri Mountains. Bhāje x is one of the important and oldest Buddhist centers of Hinayāna faith in Maharashtra.xi The group consists of twenty two excavations and located on a hill near Bhāje village, in district Pune.xii The donor inscriptions noticed here do not attribute to any particular ruling family or dynasty or sectoral affiliation. Only one female donor has recorded her donation. Bādhā, wife of a ploughman has donated a cave with two cells at Bhāje .xiii As this inscription is undated, paleography helps to place it around c. 250 BC- 175 BC.xiv During this early period, when architecture, used to wooden art had just switched over to more durable material, wife of a plough-man Bādhā had donated a hall with two cells. This lay woman shares space with a feudatory Mahārathī Viṣṇudatta xv at Bhāje . Bādhā is the sole female donor and perhaps the earliest in western India who followed the path of Dhamma. Her assertion of faith should not go unnoticed. This short inscription does not furnish us with more details like the place of residence or her sectoral beliefs. Bādhā has not recorded the name of