84. Sujata entertains the Bodhisativa
Then the gods, in Uruvilva, the village where a captain of soldiers was posted, made known toSujata, the daughter of the village chief Nandika, at midnight: "He for whose sake thou makest a great sacrifice, is about to make end of his penance and partake of good and abundant food. In former time thou hast prayed: May the Bodhisattva after accepting food from me, attain the highest and most perfect Wisdom. Do then what thou hast to do". On hearing these words from the gods, Sujata, daughter of the villagechief Nandika, hastened to take the milk of a thousand cows, and after taking off the cream seven times obtained cream of the best and strongest. Then she set that milk with fresh rice in a new pot on a new stove and cooked it.
And when the pap was ready, Sujata placed it on the ground, strewed it with flowers, sprinkled it with perfume and placing and preparing a seat, she said to a slave named Uttara: "Go, Uttara, fetch hither the brahman, I will care for this sweet pap".
Then came the Bodhisattva to the house of Sujata, daughter of the village chief, and set himself down on the seat prepared for him. Then Suj ata offered him a golden bowl full of the sweet pap. And this thought came into the mind of the Bodhisattva:
,,When such food has been offered to me by Sujata, I shall surely this day after partaking thereof attain the highest and most perfect Wisdom". And after partaking of this food the Bodhisattva then spake to Sujata, daughter of the village chief: "Sister, what is to become of this golden bowl?" And she answered: "It is shine". Then said the Bodhisattva: "I can make no use of such a bowl". Sujata spake: "Do with it what thou wilt; I give no one food without the dish". (267: 13; 268: 6, 18).
When we compare this relief with No. 81, we might suppose that the sculptor has made a mistake. At that point in the text, a meal is spoken of prepared by ten maidens collectively, while on the relief only one dish appears offered by one maiden. Here on the contrary the text mentions specially one bowl, offered by Sujata, while the relief gives us several dishes in the hands of several women, and still more food is being prepared. It is not easy to find out if this is merely the sculptor's carelessness, or if there is more in this than meets the eye; anyway it is noticeable that our text too shews signs of disorder: the communication that the gods make to Sujata, in the beginning of our quotation, that the Bodhisattva will break his long fast, is here rather misplaced, for the Bodhisattva has already taken food a few pages earlier and besides, Sujata was one of the young ladies who provided the meal on which he breakfasted. I can offer no elucidation but merely call attention to this coincidence of irregularity in the text known to us, with what, according to that text, is an inaccuracy on the monument.
We find the Bodhisattva, quite in agreement with the text, on a throne, one that consists of a pedestal with a triangular roof resting on columns, on the left of the relief. Next to that is a roomy pdndapa, and adjoining that again on the right of the scene a building on which is a heavy roof with an upper-storey, but where the ground-floor is left open to show the persons sitting in it. Inside the pendapa in the foreground, next to the Bodhisattva, is a large covered dish placed on a slab on the ground, with steam rising out of the flower-bedecked lid.
Next to that stands Sujata, offering a round dish to the Bodhisattva; it too has a lid but is not decorated with garlands. He reaches out his right hand to take it. This is surely the golden bowl of the story and the vessel on the ground is probably the new cooking-pot. Behind Sujata kneel some women, of whom the front one holds a fan and probably used to have an incense-burner now knocked off as well; two others are holding dishes. The background of the pendapa is adorned with flags. In the building, on the right, we see first, some more women with a fifth dish and finally in the corner a larger pot on a wood-fire with two women busy over it, one with a large spoon in her hand, the other with a short stick, probably, in agreement with other cooking scenes, a blow pipe to rouse the fire, possibly only something to stir with. Perhaps this is the new pot on the new stove, but what are we to think then about the large dish next to the Bodhisattva ? Also at Ajanta the Sujata episode 1) will be found as well as at Pagan 2).