"Mahasattva"-Tale of Namobuddha and Shakyamuni Buddha (Photo Feature)

Saroj Basnet

Kathmandu: The staging of the drama “Mahasattva” is going on at Kausi Theatre in Teku.

The cultural and mythological play “Mahasattva” is based on the founding of Namobuddha and the story of the birth of Shakyamuni Buddha.

Mahasattva was the youngest prince among the three sons of King Maharath and Queen Satyavati of the ancient Panchal state, now known as Panauti.

During the grand worship ceremony planned in the Panchal state, Prince Mahasattva, along with his two elder brothers, Mahaprahalad and Mahadev, went to the forest with soldiers in search of a white flower. There, they encountered a starving tigress who was on the verge of death, unable to hunt, and struggling to survive with her four cubs.

Prince Mahasattva sacrificed his own body to save the tigress and her cubs. Through this great act of charity, he met his death, and in later life, he was reborn as Shakyamuni Buddha. The place where he sacrificed his body became famous as Namobuddha.

Namobuddha-Mahsatva’s sacrifice and selflessness to save life of tigress and her cubs (Photo Feature)

The play, written, conceptualized, and directed by Chandraman Munikar, was adapted into a theatrical form by Ingihopo Koich Sunuwar.

According to Munikar, the story of the play is derived from “Vyaghri Jataka”, a tale under the Sutra of the Golden Light (Suvarnaprabhasottama Sutra), one of the nine key texts of Buddhism.

The play, organized by Vajra Kala Kunja, was developed after nearly six months of study, research, and consultations with Buddhist scholars.

The cast includes Sudan Man Munikar, Sangeeta Thapa Magar, Yuvahang Rai, Smriti Shrestha, Bishal Pulami, Khushi Sunuwar, Sachin Lama, Sumitra Pehim, Kiran Chapagai, Poonam Laxmi Magar, and Prem Chand Pandey.

The staging of the drama began on January 9 (Poush 25). “Mahasattva” will be performed until January 19 (Magh 5) daily at 5:15 PM. On Saturdays, an additional show at 1:00 PM has been scheduled.