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THE PURANAS ON THE DYNASTIES OF THE MORYAS AND THE KOOTHOOMI

[The Theosophist, Vol. V, No. 3(51), December, 1883, p. 99]

It is stated in Matsya Purana, Chapter 272, that ten Moryas would reign over India, and would be succeeded by Shoongas, and that Shata Dhanva will be the first of these ten Maureyas (or Moryas).
In Vishnu Purâna (Book IV, Chapter 4) it is stated that there was in the Soorya Dynasty a king called “Maru, who, through the power of devotion (Yoga), is still living in the village called Kalapa,” in the Himalayas (Vide p. 197, Vol. III, by Wilson), and who “in a future age, will be the restorer of the Kshatriya race in the solar dynasty,” that is, many thousands of years hence. In another part of the same Purâna, Book IV, Chapter 24, it is stated that “upon the cessation of the race of Nanda, the Mauryas* will possess the earth, for Kautilya will place Chandragupta on the throne.” Col. Tod considers Morya, or Maurya, a corruption of Mori, the name of a Rajput tribe. The Tika on the Mahavansa thinks that the princes of the town Mori were thence called Mauryas. Vachaspati, a Sanskrit Encyclopaedist, places the village of Kalapa on the northern side of the Himalayas—hence in Tibet. The same is stated in Chapter 12 (Skanda) of Bhagavat. “The Vâyu Purâna seems to declare that he [Maru] will re-establish the Kshatriyas in the nineteenth coming yuga.” (Vol. III, p. 325.) In Chapter VI, Book III of Vishnu Purâna, a Rishi called Koothumi is mentioned. Will any of our brothers tell us how our Mahatmas stand to these revered personages?
Yours obediently,
R. RAGOONATH ROW,
(Dewan Bahadoor) Prest. Madras Theosophical Society.
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* “Of the dynasty of Moriyan Sovereigns,” as said in the Mahâvanśa—the particulars of this legend are recorded in the Atthakathâ of the Uttaravihâra priests.—Ed.
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EDITOR’S NOTE—In the Buddhist Mahavanśa, Chandagutta or Chandragupta, Asoka’s grandfather, is called a prince of the Moriyan dynasty as he certainly was—or rather—as they were, for there were several Chandraguptas. This dynasty, as said in the same book, began with certain Kshatriyas (warriors) of the S âkya line closely related to Gautama Buddha who crossing the Himavantah (Himalayas) “discovered a delightful location, well watered, and situated in the midst of a forest of lofty bo and other trees. There they founded a town, which was called by its S âkya lords—Moriya-Nagara.” Prof. Max Müller would see in this legend a made-up story for two reasons: (1) A desire on the part of the Buddhists to connect their king Asoka, “the beloved of gods” with Buddha, and thus nullify the slanders set up by the Brahmanical opponents to Buddhism to the effect that Asoka and Chandragupta were Sudras; and (2) because this document does not dovetail with his own theories and chronology based on the cock-and-bull stories of the Greek Megasthenes and others. It is not the princes of Moriya-Nagara who owe their name to the Rajput tribe of Mori, but the latter that became so well known as being composed of the descendants of the first sovereign of Moriya, Nagari-Môrya. The subsequent destiny of that dynasty is more than hinted at, on pages 39 and 40 (footnote) in the November number of The Theosophist.* Page 43 of the same magazine gives full details. The name of Rishi Koothumi is mentioned in more than one Purana, and his Code is among the 18 Codes written by the various Rishis and preserved at Calcutta in the library of the Asiatic Society. But we have not been told whether there is any connection between our Mahatma of that name, and the Rishi, and we do not feel justified in speculating upon the subject. All we know is, that both are Northern Brahmans, while the Môryas are Kshatriyas. If any of our Brothers know more or can discover anything relating to the subject in
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* [Vol. V, 1883. This refers to the same text as is found on pp. 246-47, and 256-58, in Vol. V, of present Series.—Comp.]
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the Sacred books, we will hear of it with pleasure. The words: “the Moryas will possess the earth for Kautilya will place Chandragupta on the throne,” have in our occult philosophy and interpretations a dual meaning. In one sense they relate to the days of early Buddhism, when a Chandragupta (Morya) was the King “of all the earth,” i. e., of Brahmans who believed themselves the highest and only representatives of humanity for whom Earth was evolved. The second meaning is purely esoteric. Every adept or genuine Mahatma is said to “possess the earth,” by the power of his occult knowledge. Hence—a series of 10 Moryas, all initiated adepts, would be regarded by the occultists, and referred to, as “possessing all the earth” or all its knowledge. The names of “Chandragupta” and “Kautilya” have also an esoteric significance. Let our Brother ponder over their Sanskrit meaning, and he will perhaps see what bearing the phrase—“for Kautilya will place Chandragupta upon the throne”—has upon the Moryas possessing the earth. We would also remind our Brother that the word Itihâsa, ordinarily translated as “history,” is defined by Sanskrit authorities to be the narrative of the lives of some august personages, conveying at the same time meanings of the highest moral and occult importance.

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