46 CHAPTER TWOlife. Ananda figures prominently in the account of the Buddha's last weeks and
was present at his death. He alone among the great disciples had not become
an arhant, so there were plans to exclude him from the First Council, but fi-
nally he was admitted after gaining Awakening the night before the council
was to convene. His exceptional memory reportedly enabled him to recite ac-
curately the dialogues of the Buddha that then composed the collection of
Siitras. Earlier, Ananda had interceded with the Buddha, on the behalf of the
latter's aunt and foster mother, Mahaprajapati, to institute an Order of Nuns
(see Section 3.4.3). Mahaprajapati and her attendants became its first members
(Strong EB, sec. 2.1.4).
The early lay converts included, in addition to members of the common
classes, a good array of kings, queens, princes, and wealthy merchants. Of the
latter, Anathapil;<;lika donated the land for the famous Jetavana Monastery at
Sravasti. Two wealthy lay women also donated land to the Sangha, the courte-
san Amrapali giving her orchard at Vaisali, and the matron Visakha giving land
for a monastery near Sravasti. Thus, even during the Buddha's lifetime, his
Sangha became a wealthy landowner. Arrangements were made, however, for
the original donors of the land to watch over it. This left the monks free to
come and go, enjoying the advantages of having established places to stay, yet
unburdened with administrative responsibilities aside from helping to keep
their simple dwellings in repair. With the passing centuries, though, as more
and more elaborate buildings were constructed on Sangha land, converting
them from parks to monasteries, the custodial and administrative responsibili-
ties associated with the monasteries fell increasingly to the monks, making
them in effect some of the most extensive landowners in a society where land
was the primary measure of political power.
Even while the Buddha was still alive, the growth of the Sangha as an in-
stitution had its social and political repercussions. The Ganges Valley at the
time was divided into small city-states. For the rulers of these states, the growth
of a religious institution transcending caste and political barriers in their midst
was obviously a matter of concern. This concern was especially marked among
the states in which absolute monarchies were beginning to replace the tradi-
tional aristocratic republics, and whose new kings jealously guarded their
power. Thus one of the Buddha's tasks as a religious founder was to work out
a modus vivendi whereby the Sangha would not be perceived as a political
threat and yet would not have to sacrifice its independence to the powers that
be. To defuse the possible sense of threat, he managed to win as disciples the
kings of two of the most powerful states in the Ganges Valley: Bimbisara of
Magadha and Prasenajit ofKosala. (For the story of a king not fully converted,
see Strong EH, sec. 2.6.2.) The Buddha also advocated that his lay and monas-
tic disciples lead their lives in line with strict moral principles, a teaching that
appealed to kings not only in his time, but also for many centuries after, in
that it lightened their job of maintaining law and order. At the same time, the
Buddha empowered the Sangha to banish any of its monks or nuns who de-
livered messages or ran other errands for lay people, thus ensuring that the
Sangha would not get involved in political activity.