Delighted by the intervention of the Buddha, the two tribes each gave him two hundred and fifty youths to enter his Order and, with these, he went on his alms rounds alternately to Kapilavatthu and to the capital of the Koliyans (J.v.412ff; the Sammodamāna Jātaka also seems to have been preached in reference to this quarrel, J.i.208). On this occasion he seems to have resided, not at the Nigrodhārāma, but in the Mahāvana.
The second visit of note was that paid by the Buddha when Vidūdabha, chagrined by the insult of the Sākyans, invaded Kapilavatthu in order to take his revenge. Three times Vidūdabha came with his forces, and three times he found the Buddha seated on the outskirts of Kapilavatthu, under a tree which gave him scarcely any shade; near by was a shady banyan-tree, in Vidūdabha's realm; on being invited by Vidūdabha to partake of its shade, the Buddha replied, "Let be, O king; the shade of my kindred keeps me cool." Thus three times Vidūdabha had to retire, his purpose unaccomplished; but the fourth time the Buddha, seeing the fate of the Sākyans, did not interfere (J.iv.152).
During one visit the Buddha was entrusted with the consecration of a new mote-hall, built by the Sākyans; he preached far into the night in the new building, and, when weary, asked Moggallāna to carry on while he slept. We are told that the Sākyans decorated the town with lights for a yojana round, and stopped all noise while the Buddha was in the mote-hall (MA.ii.575). On this occasion was preached the Sekha Sutta (M.i.353ff).
The books record a visit paid by the Brahmā Sahampati to the Buddha in the Mahāvana at Kapilavatthu. (This appears, from the context, to have been quite close to the Nigrodhārāma.)
The Buddha, worried by the noisy behavior of some monks who had recently been admitted into the Order, was wondering how he could impress on them the nature of their calling. Sahampati visited him and, being thus encouraged, the Buddha returned to Nigrodhārāma and there performed a miracle before the monks; seeing them impressed, he talked to them on the holy life (S.iii.91f; Ud.25).
A curious incident is related in connection with a visit paid by the Buddha to Kapilavatthu, when he went there after his rounds among the Kosalans. Mahānāma was asked to find a place of lodging for the night; he searched all through the town without success, and at length the Buddha was compelled to spend the night in the hermitage of Bharandu, the Kālāman (A.i.276f). On another occasion we hear of the Buddha convalescing at Kapilavatthu after an illness (A.i.219).
Not all the Sākyans of Kapilavatthu believed in their kinsman's great powers, even after the Buddha's performance of various miracles. We find, for instance,Dandapānī meeting the Buddha in the Mahāvana and, leaning on his staff, questioning him as to his tenets and his gospel. We are told that in answer to the Buddha's explanations, Dandapānī shook his head, waggled his tongue, and went away, still leaning on his staff, his brow puckered into three wrinkles (M.i.108f.; this was the occasion for the preaching of the Madhupindika Sutta). Others were more convinced and patronized the Order - e.g., Kāla-Khemaka and Ghatāya, who built cells for monks in the Nigrodhārāma (M.iii.109. As a result of noticing these cells, the Buddha preached the Mahasuññāta Sutta).
It is said that the Buddha ordained ten thousand householders of Kapilavatthu with the "ehi-bhikkhu-pabbajā." (Sp.i.241)
Mahānāma was the Buddha's most frequent visitor; to him was preached the Cūladukkhakkhandha Sutta (M.i.91f).
The Dakkhinā-vibhanga Sutta was preached as the result of a visit to the Buddha by Mahā-Pajāpatī-Gotamī. Apart from those already mentioned, another Sākyan lady lived in Kapilavatthu, Kāligodhā by name, and she was the only kinsman, with the exception of the Buddha's father and wife, to be specially visited by the Buddha (S.v.396).
The inhabitants of Kapilavatthu are called Kapilavatthavā (E.g., S.iv.182).
From the Mahāvana, outside Kapilavatthu, the forest extended up to the Himalaya , and on the other side of the city it reached as far as the sea (MA.i.449, UdA.184; Sp.ii.393).
It is significant that, in spite of the accounts given of the greatness of Kapilavatthu, it was not mentioned by Ananda among the great cities, in one of which, in his opinion, the Buddha could more fittingly have died than in Kusinārā (D.ii.146). After the Buddha's death, a portion of the relics was claimed by the Sākyans of Kapilavatthu, and a shrine to hold them was erected in the city (D.ii.167; Bu.xxviii.2). Here was deposited the rug (paccattharana) used by the Buddha (Bu.xxviii.8).
In the northern books the city was called Kapilavastu, Kapilapura, and Kapilāvhayapura (E.g. Lal. p.243, 28; The Buddha-carita, I.v.2 calls it Kapilasyavastu). According to the Dulva (Rockhill, p.11), the city was on the banks of the Bhagīrathī.
The identification of Kapilavatthu is not yet beyond the realm of conjecture. Hiouen Thsang (Beal ii.,p.13f) visited the city and found it like a wilderness. The Asoka inscriptions of the Lumbinī pillar and the Niglīva pillar are helpful in determining the site. Some identify the modern village of Piprāwā - famous for the vases found there - with Kapilavatthu (E.g., Fleet, J.R.A.S.1906, p.180; CAGI.711f). Others, including Rhys Davids, say there were two cities, one ancient and the other modern, founded after Vidūdabha's conquest, and the ancient one they call Tilaura Kot. But the theory of two Kapilavatthu is rejected by some scholars. J.R.A.S.1906, pp.453, 563. See also the article by Mukherji on Kapilavastu in ERE.
Also Please See: KAPILAVASTU. ITS DESOLATION. LEGENDS OF BUDDHA’S BIRTH, AND OTHER INCIDENTS IN CONNEXION WITH IT.
Also Please See: KAPILAVASTU. ITS DESOLATION. LEGENDS OF BUDDHA’S BIRTH, AND OTHER INCIDENTS IN CONNEXION WITH IT.