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The Prince, Ajatasattu, became his ardent devotee,
“Your father, our King, is unable to see,
He aids Gautam despite Gautam’s old age.
A Prince?! Huh! Where is your warrior’s rage?
A canary in this golden cage!”
“You desire to rule, do you not?”,
Little by little, Devadatta began to plot.
“I shall win, if the Prince takes the throne,
Gautam must die.”, he was maligned by that thought alone.
He wished to be the leader, the supreme one,
He lost his ‘iddhi’ as soon as this thought he spun.
But Buddha had himself refused to let him have his way,
Devdatta meandered along hate, he had lead himself astray.
Not only did he coax a son to torture his father,
But he weaved a plan that would lead to slaughter.
He would kill Buddha with some help from the King.
He spoke wildly, “Ajatasattu, great news I bring.
Soon, Gautam shall pass through your kingdom,
Position your archers as I say and He shall be overcome.”
The King nodded and did as he was told,
Not one but sixteen archers patrolled.
Each was given a different road to man,
One to kill the other, such was Devadatta’s plan.
About the post: This an excerpt from "Arcane Rhapsodies". It narrates the tale of two cousins, Gautam Buddha and Devadatta, who were so different from each other, in thought and action. Devadatta aspired to be greater than Gautam Buddha and form his own order of Buddhism, there are several stories that depict his envy and hatred towards his cousin, so much so that he tried to kill Gautam Buddha. Ajatasattu was his devotee, the prince of Magadha, who imprisoned & tortured his father and King at the behest of Devadatta.
You can find more about the book here:
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