Procession of Prasenajit of Kosala leaving Sravasti to meet the Buddha

Pasenadi ( pi, पसेनदि ; sa, प्रसेनजित् ; c. 6th century BCE) was an ruler of Kosala. Sāvatthī was his capital. He succeeded after . He was a prominent (lay follower) of

Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...

, and built many Buddhist monasteries for the Buddha.

Life

Pasenadi studied in Taxila in his early life. He was the king of Kosala (modern Oudh or

Awadh Awadh (), known in British historical texts as Avadh or Oudh, is a region in the modern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, which was before independence known as the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. It is synonymous with the Kośāla region of ...

). His first queen was a Magadhan princess, a sister of king

Bimbisara Bimbisāra (in Buddhist tradition) or Shrenika () and Seniya () in the Jain histories (c. 558 – c. 491 BCE or during the late 5th century BCE) was a King of Magadha (V. K. Agnihotri (ed.), ''Indian History''. Allied Publishers, New Delhi ...

. His second and chief queen was Vāsavakhattiyā, a girl, daughter of the chief of garland-makers for Mahānāma. From this marriage, he had a son,

Viḍūḍabha Viḍūḍabha ( pi, विडूडभ ; sa, विरूढक ) was a king of Kosala during the lifetime of the Buddha. Life Early life He was the son of Prasenajit and , the daughter of a Shakyan chief named by a slave girl .K ...

and a daughter,

Princess Vajira Vajira (also called Vajirakumari) was Empress of the Magadha Empire as the principal consort of Emperor Ajatashatru. She was the mother of her husband's successor, Emperor Udayibhadra. Vajira was born a princess of the Kingdom of Kosala and ...

, who was later married to

Ajatashatru Ajatasattu (Pāli ) or Ajatashatru (Sanskrit ) in Buddhist tradition, or Kunika () and Kuniya () in the Jain histories, (c. 492 to 460 BCE or early 5th century BCE) was one of the most important kings of the Haryanka dynasty of Magadha in East ...

( pi, link=no , Ajātasattu). He married his sister

Kosala Devi Kosala Devī was Empress consort of the Magadha Empire as the first wife of Emperor Bimbisara (558–491 BC). She was born a princess of Kashi and was the sister of King Prasenajit. Her first name is Bhadra-śrī. Life Kosala Devī was born ...

Reign

By the time of Pasenadi, Kosala had become the suzerain of the

Kālāma Kālāma (Pāli: ) was an ancient Indo-Aryan tribe of north-eastern South Asia whose existence is attested during the Iron Age. The Kālāmas were organised into a (an aristocratic oligarchic republic), presently referred to as the Kālāma ...

tribal republic, and Pasenadi's realm maintained friendly relations with the powerful Licchavi tribe which lived to the east of his kingdom. During Pasenadi's reign, a Mallaka named Bandhula who had received education in Takṣaśilā, had offered his services as a general to the Kauśalya king so as to maintain the good relations between the Mallakas and Kosala. Later, Bandhula, along with his wife Mallikā, violated the sacred tank of the Licchavikas, which resulted in armed hostilities between the Kauśalya and the Licchavikas. Bandhula was later treacherously murdered along with his sons by Pasenadi. In retaliation, some Mallakas helped Pasenadi's son

usurp the throne of Kosala to avenge the death of Bandhula, after which Pasenadi fled from Kosala and died in front of the gates of the Māgadhī capital of Rājagaha. The Puranas instead of mention the name of Kṣudraka as his successor.Misra, V. S. (2007). ''Ancient Indian Dynasties'', Mumbai: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, , pp.287-8

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* * * * {{Authority control Bodhisattvas Disciples of Gautama Buddha People from Kosala People from Shravasti district Solar dynasty 6th-century BC Indian monarchs Indian Buddhist monarchs