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Chapter 45

SÈmÈvatÊ and Her Ladies-in-waiting were burnt to Death

MÈgaÓÉÊ was at her wit’s end in her attempts to estrange King Udena and SÈmÈvatÊ. She

became desperate and made a desperate attempt. She persuaded the King to go on a picnic

in the park. She detailed her uncle to commit arson at the palace during the absence of the

King. Queen SÈmÈvatÊ and her ladies-in-waiting were to be ordered to remain indoors,

using the King’s authority. Then their mansion was to be burnt. Queen MÈgaÓÉÊ’s uncle,

the foolish brahmin, executed the plot successfully.

As their past evil deed had now fructified, SÈmÈvatÊ and her five hundred ladies-in-

waiting could not dwell in the attainment of their Fruition of Stream-Entry on that fateful

day and lost their lives in the flames, like lumps of bran in a storehouse. The guards, at

Queen SÈmÈvatÊ’s mansion reported the calamity to the King.

The King made discreet inquiries into the prime mover in this horrible case of arson, and

knew that it was none other than MÈgaÓÉÊ. However, he did not reveal his true intention.

Instead, he sent for Queen MÈgaÓÉÊ and said to her: ‚Dear MÈgaÓÉÊ, you have done for me

what I ought to have done by myself. You have done away with SÈmÈvatÊ who had made

various attempts on my life. I adore you for this act. I am going to reward you amply.

Now, call your kinsmen.‛

Queen MÈgaÓÉÊ was delighted to hear the King’s words. She gathered all her relatives

and also her friends, whom were as if they were her relatives. When all of MÈgaÓÉÊ’s

associates were gathered, the King had deep pits dug in the palace ground, where all the

culprits were put with only their heads showing above the ground. Their heads were then

severed and then iron plough shares were driven across their broken skulls. As for Queen

MÈgaÓÉÊ, her body was cut into pieces and cooked in oil.

The Past Evil Deeds of SÈmÈvatÊ and Her Ladies-in-waiting

The death of SÈmÈvatÊ and her ladies-in-waiting by being burnt alive had its root in their

past evil deeds. In one of their existences before the advent of Buddha Gotama, the five

hundred maidens were standing on the river bank at the Ga~gÈ after having a long

frolicking bath. As they were shivering with cold, they saw a small thatched hut nearby,

which was the dwelling of a Paccekabuddha. They rashly burnt it for warming themselves

without first seeing whether there was any occupant inside or not.

At that time, the Paccekabuddha was dwelling in the attainment of Cessation. Only when

the little hut was reduced to ashes that they found, to their horror, the sitting

Paccekabuddha in a motionless state. Although in setting fire to the hut, they had no

intention to kill the Paccekabuddha, the thought of killing him now entered their frightened

mind because they recognized him as the Paccekabuddha who went to the King’s palace for

daily alms-food. To avoid the King’s wrath, they must burnt the revered one and leave no

trace of him. So, by way of cremation, they gathered more fuel and set fire to the sitting

Paccekabuddha. This act being done with intention to kill, constituted a grave misdeed,

carrying grave consequence.

(When the fuel which the maidens put to the fire had exhausted, the

Paccekabuddha rose from dwelling in the attainment of Cessation, cleaned His

robes of ashes and rising into the air, went away, even as they (maidens) were

watching in great wonder. They suffered in

niraya

for that evil deed, and as a

remaining resultant thereof, they were burnt alive.)

After the utter destruction of Queen SÈmÈvatÊ and her five hundred ladies-in-waiting,

there arose words of praise among the four types of assembly, viz. (1) the assembly of

bhikkhus

, (2) that of

bhikkhunÊs

, (3) that of male lay disciples and (4) that of female lay

disciples, such that:

‚KhujjutarÈ was learned and although a woman, she could expound the Doctrine

that resulted in five hundred ladies of the court attaining Stream-Entry.‛