Ancient History notes · Chapter 6 of 12

Buddhism

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At a glance

Age of Buddha

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What social and religious conditions produced the new religious movements of the 6th century BC?

• The 2nd Urbanisation created new wealth and classes
• Vedic religion had become complex and ritualistic
• A Kshatriya reaction against Brahmanical supremacy
• Vaishyas wanted social status matching their economic power
Both Buddhism and Jainism rejected the Vedas and stressed ahimsa.

Buddha's Birth

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Buddha — year of birth, place, clan and day?

Born 563 BC at Lumbini (Nepal), into the Shakya Kshatriya clan, on Vaishakha Purnima.

Name Buddha's father, mother, stepmother, wife and son.

• Father: Suddhodhana, chief of Kapilavastu
• Mother: Mahamaya, a Koliya princess
• Stepmother: Mahaprajapati Gautami (raised him after his mother's death)
• Wife: Yashodhara; Son: Rahul

Renunciation

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What were the four sights, and what did they lead to?

An old man, a sick man, a dead man, and an ascetic.
They led to the Mahabhinishkramana — the Great Renunciation — at the age of 29.

Who were Buddha's two teachers, and what did they teach?

Alara Kalama (taught Sankhya philosophy) and Udraka Ramputra.
He left both, finding their methods insufficient.

Enlightenment

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Buddha's enlightenment — age, tree, place and river?

At the age of 35, under a pipal tree at Bodh Gaya, on the river Niranjana (Falgu).
He is said to have resisted Mara, calling the earth to witness — hence the Bhumisparsha mudra.

First Sermon

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Where and to whom did Buddha deliver his first sermon, and what is it called? PYQ UPSC 1991

At Sarnath (Deer Park), to 5 ascetics.
Called the Dharmachakra Pravartana — the 'Turning of the Wheel' — in which he taught the Eightfold Path.

Death

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Buddha's death — age, year and place?

Mahaparinirvana at the age of 80, in 483 BC, at Kushinagar (UP).

Names + Epithets

Trap
Nayaputta is Mahavira, not the Buddha.

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Which names are epithets of the Buddha, and which one belongs to Mahavira? PYQ UPSC 2024

Epithets of the Buddha: Shakyamuni and Tathagata.
⚠️ Nayaputta = Mahavira, NOT Buddha.
Also: Siddhartha (childhood name), Gautama (gotra), Buddha ('the Enlightened One').

Symbols

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Match the five life events of the Buddha with their symbols.

• Birth = Lotus + Bull
• Renunciation = Horse
• Enlightenment = Bodhi Tree
• First Sermon = Wheel (Dharmachakra)
• Death = Stupa

Geography

Trap
Only Kosala and Magadha are directly tied to the Buddha's life; Avanti and Gandhara are not.

Check yourself

Which two Mahajanapadas are directly associated with the Buddha's life?

Only Kosala and Magadha.
⚠️ Avanti and Gandhara are NOT directly connected with his life.

8 Holy Places

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Name the four principal Buddhist holy places and their associated events.

• Lumbini → birth
• Bodh Gaya → enlightenment
• Sarnath → first sermon (Dharmachakrapravartana)
• Kushinagar → Mahaparinirvana (death)

Name the four remaining Ashtasthanas and their associated miracles.

• Shravasti → miracles
• Rajagriha → taming of the Nalagiri elephant
• Vaishali → the monkey's offering of honey
• Sankasya → descent from heaven

Four Noble Truths

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State the Four Noble Truths.

1. Dukkha — life is suffering
2. Samudaya — desire is the cause of suffering
3. Nirodha — suffering can be ended
4. Marga — the Eightfold Path is the way

Eightfold Path

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Which sutta contains the Eightfold Path, and what are its three categories? PYQ UPSC 1998

The Dharmachakra Pravartana Sutta (the first sermon).
Three categories: Prajna (wisdom), Sila (morality), Samadhi (meditation).

Which limbs of the Eightfold Path fall under Prajna, Sila and Samadhi?

• Prajna (Wisdom): Right View + Right Intention
• Sila (Morality): Right Speech + Right Action + Right Livelihood
• Samadhi (Meditation): Right Effort + Right Mindfulness + Right Concentration

Key Concepts

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What exactly is Nirvana in Buddhism? PYQ UPSC 2013

The extinction of the flame of desire — the blowing out of craving.
⚠️ It is NOT annihilation of the self, a common misreading.

What do Buddhism and Jainism share, and what is uniquely Buddhist? PYQ UPSC 1996

Shared: ahimsa, rejection of rituals and of the Vedas.
Uniquely Buddhist: the Middle Path — Jainism prescribed extreme austerity instead.

What is Pratitya Samutpada?

Dependent Origination — a chain of 12 links running from ignorance to suffering, showing that everything arises in dependence on conditions.

What is the Triratna of Buddhism?

Buddha (the enlightened one) + Dhamma (the doctrine) + Sangha (the monastic order).
The Dhamma is likened to a raft — a means to cross over, to be left behind once the far shore is reached.

Define Parivrajaka, Shramana and Upasaka/Upasika. PYQ UPSC 2020

• Parivrajaka → wanderer
• Shramana → ascetic
• Upasaka / Upasika → lay followers (male / female)

What is Pavarana? PYQ UPSC 2002

The confession ceremony held at the end of the rainy-season retreat (vassa), in which monks invite criticism from one another.
⚠️ It is NOT an election or an initiation.

What is the Therigatha, and name some of its authors.

Poems of the elder nuns — the earliest known collection of women's literature in India.
Authors include Ubbiri, Patachara and Mitta.

Tripitaka

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Vinaya Pitaka — content and who compiled it?

Contains the monastic rules.
Compiled by Upali at the 1st Council.

Sutta Pitaka — content, compiler and structure?

Contains the teachings of the Buddha, organised into 5 Nikayas.
Compiled by Ananda.

Abhidhamma Pitaka — content and when was it compiled?

Contains philosophy and metaphysics.
Compiled at the 3rd Council, under Ashoka.

Buddhist Texts

Trap
The Milindapanha's monk is Nagasena, not Nagarjuna.

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Milinda Panha — who are the two speakers? PYQ UPSC 2023 · 1997

Milinda (Menander I), the Indo-Greek king, and the monk Nagasena.
⚠️ It is Nagasena, NOT Nagarjuna.

Match: Buddhacharita, Madhyamika Karika, Jataka.

• Buddhacharita → Ashvaghosha (biography of the Buddha)
• Madhyamika Karika → Nagarjuna
• Jataka → 549 birth tales of the Buddha

Buddhist Councils

Trap
Fa-Hien did not attend the Fourth Council: he came some 300 years later.

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1st Buddhist Council — year, place, chair and patron?

483 BC at Rajagriha.
Chair: Mahakassapa; Patron: Ajatashatru.
Result: compiled the Vinaya and Sutta Pitakas.

2nd Buddhist Council — year, place, chair, patron and result?

383 BC at Vaishali.
Chair: Sabbakami; Patron: Kalashoka.
Result: the first schism — Sthaviravadins vs Mahasanghikas ('the Great Assembly', the more lax monks).

3rd Buddhist Council — year, place, chair, patron and result?

250 BC at Pataliputra.
Chair: Mogaliputta Tissa; Patron: Ashoka.
Result: compiled the Abhidhamma and sent out missionaries.

4th Buddhist Council — year, place, chair, patron and result? PYQ UPSC 2001 · 1993 · 2004

72 AD in Kashmir.
Chair: Vasumitra; Vice-chair: Ashvaghosha; Patron: Kanishka.
Result: the Mahavibhasha Shastra and the Hinayana–Mahayana split.
⚠️ Trap: Fa-Hien did NOT attend (he came 300 years later).

Hinayana

Trap
The Sthaviravadins are Hinayana, not Mahayana (UPSC 2020). Sautrantika and Sammitiya are Buddhist sects, not Jain (UPSC 2017).

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Hinayana (Theravada) — view of Buddha, worship, salvation and language?

• Buddha = a human teacher (UPSC 1992)
• No idol worship
• Individual salvation — attain nirvana and become an Arhat, disappearing from the cycle of samsara
• Language: Pali
• Spread south — Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand

Are the Sthaviravadins Hinayana or Mahayana? And are Sautrantika and Sammitiya Buddhist or Jain?

Sthaviravadins = Hinayana (NOT Mahayana). (UPSC 2020)
Sautrantika and Sammitiya = sects of Buddhism (NOT Jainism). (UPSC 2017)

What were the Lokottaravadins and why do they matter? PYQ UPSC 2020

An offshoot of the Mahasanghika school.
Their deification of the Buddha (treating him as supramundane, lokottara) fostered the rise of Mahayana.

Mahayana

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Mahayana — view of Buddha, worship, salvation and language?

• Buddha = God (UPSC 2019)
• Idol worship + rituals
• Salvation for all, via Bodhisattvas
• Language: Sanskrit
• Spread north — China, Korea, Japan

Mahayana Sub-schools

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Madhyamika / Shunyavada — founder, century and core doctrine? PYQ UPSC 2010

Founder: Nagarjuna, 2nd century CE.
Doctrine of Shunyata (emptiness) — appearances are misleading; permanent selves and substances do not exist.
Later scholars: Aryadeva, Chandrakirti, Shantideva.

Yogachara / Vijnanavada — founders and core doctrine?

Founders: Maitreyanath and Asanga.
Doctrine: consciousness only — reality is mind-constructed; emphasis on meditation.
Later scholars: Vasubandhu, Dharmakirti.

Vajrayana

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Vajrayana — when did it emerge, what is its symbol and its practices?

Emerged 7th–8th cen. AD — tantric Buddhism.
Symbol: the vajra (thunderbolt).
Practices: mantras, mandalas, mudras, secret rituals; female deities (Taras) are prominent.

Which were the Vajrayana centres, and where did it spread?

Centres: Vikramashila and Odantapuri, under Pala patronage.
Spread to Tibet (via Padmasambhava), Nepal and Southeast Asia.

Sarvastivada

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Sarvastivada — core claim, region and text?

'Everything exists' — past, present and future dharmas are all real.
Dominant in Gandhara and Kashmir.
Compiled the Mahavibhasha Shastra at the 4th Council.

Bodhisattva Path

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What defines a Bodhisattva? PYQ UPSC 2016

One who delays his own Nirvana in order to help all beings attain salvation — driven by maha karuna (great compassion) together with great wisdom.

Name the six Paramitas (perfections). PYQ UPSC 2020

Dana (giving), Sila (virtue), Kshanti (patience), Virya (effort), Dhyana (meditation), Prajna (wisdom).

Bodhisattvas

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Avalokiteshvara — other name, quality and attribute? PYQ UPSC 1997 · 2017

Also called Padmapani — 'lotus-bearer'.
Embodies compassion; holds a lotus.
Subject of the famous Ajanta painting.

Who is Maitreya? PYQ UPSC 2018

The future Buddha — the one yet to come.

Manjushri and Vajrapani — qualities and attributes?

• Manjushri — wisdom; holds a sword and a book (the Prajnaparamita)
• Vajrapani — power / energy; holds the vajra (thunderbolt)

Tara, Amitabha, Samantabhadra and Akshobhya — identify each.

• Tara — female Bodhisattva; compassion + protection; green and white forms
• Amitabha — Buddha of infinite light
• Samantabhadra — universal virtue; rides an elephant
• Akshobhya — 'the immovable'; mirror-like wisdom; rules the eastern paradise

Mudras

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Dharmachakra and Bhumisparsha mudras — what do they signify?

• Dharmachakra — the first sermon (UPSC 1994)
• Bhumisparsha — calling the earth to witness against Mara (UPSC 2012)

Dhyana, Abhaya and Varada mudras — what do they signify?

• Dhyana — meditation
• Abhaya — fearlessness / protection
• Varada — boon-granting

Royal Patrons

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Bimbisara and Ajatashatru — their contributions to Buddhism?

• Bimbisara — contemporary of the Buddha and the earliest royal patron; gifted the Veluvana (Bamboo Grove) monastery at Rajagriha
• Ajatashatru — patron of the 1st Buddhist Council at Rajagriha; built stupas over the Buddha's relics

Why is Ashoka called the greatest patron of Buddhism?

• Patron of the 3rd Council at Pataliputra
• Sent missionaries to Sri Lanka — his son Mahendra and daughter Sanghamitra
• Built stupas and pillars across the empire to spread Dhamma

Kanishka's contributions to Buddhism?

• Enshrined the Buddha's relics in a stupa at Purushapura (Peshawar)
• Patron of the 4th Council in Kashmir (UPSC 2001)
• Patronised Buddhist scholars; sent missions to China, Korea and Japan

Harsha and the Pala rulers — their role in Buddhism?

• Harsha — initially Shaiva, later a Buddhist patron; held grand assemblies at Kanauj and Prayag; Hiuen Tsang visited during his reign
• Palas — the last great patrons; founded Odantapuri, Vikramashila and Somapuri

Decline

Trap
The Guptas were not strongly anti-Buddhist: Kumaragupta I founded Nalanda.

Check yourself

What were the main causes of Buddhism's decline in India?

• The Buddha was absorbed as the 9th avatar of Vishnu → merged into Vaishnavism (UPSC 2010)
• Internal divisions diluted the message; Vajrayana tantra became indistinguishable from Hindu tantra
• Turkish invasions destroyed Nalanda and Vikramashila

Were the Guptas anti-Buddhist? PYQ UPSC 2010

No — the Guptas were not strongly anti-Buddhist. Kumaragupta I founded Nalanda.

Buddhist Art

Check yourself

Distinguish stupa, chaitya and vihara.

• Stupa — a relics repository; the form predates Buddhism (burial mounds existed before the Buddha) (UPSC 2023)
• Chaitya — prayer hall for worship (UPSC 2013)
• Vihara — monastery / residence

Major Sites

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Ajanta — river, district, number of caves and famous works? PYQ UPSC 2017 · 2013

On the Waghora river, near Aurangabad.
29 caves; famous for the Padmapani painting, the Mahaparinirvana sculpture and its murals.

What makes Ellora unique? PYQ UPSC 1994

It contains caves of all three religions — Hindu, Buddhist and Jain.

Sanchi Stupa — location, who built it, who added the toranas, and what does it lack? PYQ UPSC 2013

In Madhya Pradesh; built by Ashoka; the toranas (gateways) were added by the Sungas.
⚠️ It has NO mural paintings.

Amaravati Stupa — which river, and which school patronised it? PYQ UPSC 2023

On the Krishna river — ⚠️ NOT the Godavari.
Ancient Dhanyakataka, under the Mahasanghikas.

Bhaja and Bagh — what is each known for?

• Bhaja — Hinayana caves, 2nd cen. BC (UPSC 2023)
• Bagh — Gupta-period paintings (UPSC 2010)

Universities

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Who founded Nalanda, and where is it? PYQ UPSC 1991

Kumaragupta I (Gupta), in Bihar.

Who founded Vikramashila, Somapuri, Odantapuri and Vallabhi?

• Vikramashila and Somapuri → Dharmapala (Pala)
• Odantapuri → Gopala (Pala)
• Vallabhi → in Gujarat

Chinese Pilgrims

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Fa-Hien — dates, reign and purpose of visit? PYQ UPSC 2004

399–414 AD, during Chandragupta II.
He came specifically in search of the Vinaya Pitaka.

Hiuen Tsang — dates, reign, what he studied and what he wrote? PYQ UPSC 2004

629–645 AD, during Harsha.
Studied Yogachara at Nalanda for 5 years; wrote Si-Yu-Ki.

I-Tsing — dates, stay and route?

671–695 AD; stayed at Nalanda for 10 years.
Travelled by sea, via Sumatra.

Key Scholars

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Nagarjuna, Aryadeva and Dignaga — identify each.

• Nagarjuna — Buddhist Madhyamaka / Shunyavada (⚠️ NOT a Bhakti proponent) (UPSC 2010)
• Aryadeva — disciple of Nagarjuna (⚠️ NOT a Jain) (UPSC 2022)
• Dignaga — Buddhist logician (UPSC 2022)

Ashvaghosha — what did he write and what post did he hold?

Wrote the Buddhacharita (biography of the Buddha).
Served as vice-chairman of the 4th Council under Kanishka.

Vasubandhu, Buddhaghosha and Sanghabhuti — identify each.

• Vasubandhu — Yogachara school
• Buddhaghosha — Theravada commentator (Visuddhimagga)
• Sanghabhuti — wrote a commentary on the Sarvastivada Vinaya (UPSC 2024)

All 12 chapters of Ancient History notes
  1. Sources of Ancient Indian History23 sections
  2. Pre-Historic India12 sections
  3. Indus Valley Civilization27 sections
  4. Vedic Period33 sections
  5. Mahajanapadas & Rise of Magadha15 sections
  6. Buddhism31 sections
  7. Jainism25 sections
  8. Mauryan Empire41 sections
  9. Post-Mauryan Period34 sections
  10. Gupta Empire31 sections
  11. Post-Gupta & Harsha's Era32 sections
  12. Early Medieval India38 sections