Ajatasatru

The Jain records state that he had 8 wives, the foremost among them being Padmavati, Dharini and Subhadra, while the Buddhist traditions indicate that he had 500 wives, the chief being Princess Vajira.

Both the Buddhists and Jain traditions say that he had a son, Udayabhadda or Udayabhadra.

He was assassinated by his son in 461 BC to take over the kingdom, thereby ending Ajatasatru’s 32 year reign.

Ajatasatru, also known as Kunika, was born to King Bimbisara, the ruler of Magadha kingdom, and Queen Chelna or Kosala Devi, as mentioned in Jainism and Buddhist records, though both the traditions referred the queen as Vaidehi.

He ascended the throne in 492 BC after his father’s death, who is believed to have committed suicide as per the Jain tradition while the Buddhist tradition states that Ajatasatru murdered him to take over the Magadha Empire.

Soon after he assumed power as the king of Magadha, he followed a policy of conquests to expand his empire, moving towards the north and the west, since his father had previously captured Anga in the east.

A dispute over the possession of Sechanaka elephant and precious jewels between him and his two brothers, Halla and Vihalla, led to the battle of Vaisali, where the two escaped to seek refuge from their maternal grandfather, Chetaka.

Upon denial to surrender the two brothers, he sought help from his half brothers, 10 Kalkumaras, to invade the impregnable Vaisali, while Chetaka was supported by his allies – 9 Mallas, 9 Lichhvis and 18 kings of Kasi-Kosala.

Being a devoted follower of Lord Mahavira, Chetaka vowed not to shoot more than one arrow a day in a war, due to which he killed one Kalkumara per day.

Sighting his defeat, he offered prayers to different Indras for help, who granted him ‘Mahasilakantaka’, a device that ejected large stones, and ‘Ratha-musala’, a divine chariot with swinging blades on both sides.

To end the dispute over the town of Kasi, he declared war against the Kosala king, Presenajit, and defeated him. Apart from Kasi being added to the Magadha kingdom, he also married the king’s daughter, Vajira.

He defeated his maternal grandfather, Chetaka, at the battle of Vaisali, using two special devices granted by the Indras, following which he successfully conquered Vaisali.