Funday Times

This article is part of a continuing series on the 'Mahavamsa', the recorded chronicle of Sri Lankan history

King Agbo 1V
1. King Dathopatissa 11, is sometimes referred to as Hatthadatha. He too respected the religion and was a pious king. He built pirivenas for both Thuparama and Abhayagiri. He built another temple named Niputul, within the limits of Maha Vihara. The monks of Maha Vihara protested against this. The king was unconcerned. He donated that temple to Abhayagiri.

2. This made the monks of Maha Vihara go against the king. They showed their disgust. These monks passed the Pantanikkujjana Kamma on King Dathopatissa. The rule was that whoever was subjected to this act of punishment could not offer alms to monks. No monk would entertain a meal from him. Even when the monks go begging for alms - from door to door - if they come to the house of such a person, they close the mouth of the bowl with their hand. After this incident, the king severed all connections with the monks of the Maha Vihara.

3. The king had close associations with the Thuparama and Abhayagiri Viharas. After ruling for eight years, this king passed away in 667 AD. It was Prince Agbo, who came to the throne next. He was crowned as King Aggabodhi 1V. He is sometimes referred to as 'Sirisangabo Agbo'. He was a very pious king. He did all that he could, to improve the living standards of the Buddhist monks.

4. He was kind to his people. He got close to them and saw to their comforts. The king used to tour the villages to get first hand knowledge. Whenever he met people who deserved recognition, he offered positions to them. He helped in the development of agriculture. He tried to stop the rivalry that existed between the Maha Vihara and the royal palace. He begged pardon for the faults of King Dathopatissa. He repaired the Maha Vihara and donated villages for the maintenance of the Maha Vihara.

5. He treated the monks of all three nikayas (sects) alike. He held various religious festivals too. During the time of this king, a monk named Dathasiva was a very virtuous monk, who was a clever orator too. When King Agbo 1V listened to this monk preaching the Dhamma, he was highly pleased. He built a hall for meditation and donated it to this monk. He gave it to the other monks. The king donated villages named ‘Kihimbila’, ‘Kanaka’ and ‘Thuladhara’, to this meditation centre.

6. King Agbo 1V had donated nearly 1000 villages to the monks of the three nikayas. He prohibited the killing of animals. A Tamil officer who served under this king, also had built a meditation hall named ‘Matambiya’. A number of villages were donated for the maintenance of this meditation hall.

7. This Tamil officer was very wealthy. He was the owner of a lot of Nindagam too. More important than that, is the fact that he was the leader of the Tamils, who had embraced Buddhism. He got temples built in other places too. He had built a number of halls for various pirivenas. During this period there was another Tamil commander who was a Buddhist. He was Potthasala, by name.

8. He built and donated a pirivena to the Jetavana temple, in the name of the king. Another rich Buddhist Tamil officer, had build a pirivena named 'Chullapantha'. The king's Yuvaraja, Sanghatissa, too had built a pirivena.

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