Apalala, Apalāla: 9 definitions
Introduction:
Apalala means something in Buddhism, Pali, Hinduism, Sanskrit. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.
In Buddhism
Theravada (major branch of Buddhism)
Source: Pali Kanon: Pali Proper NamesA naga king, converted by the Buddha.. He is mentioned together with Aravala, Dhanapala and Parileyyaka. The name appears in passages where the Buddhas powers are discussed (E.g., BuA.29). Was not the Buddha honoured even by beasts such as Aravala, etc.?
The story of the conversion of Apalala does not, as far as I can discover, occur in the canonical books. In the Samantapasadika (iv.742) the story of the conversion of Apalala (Apalaladamana) is given among the stories not included in the Three Councils (sangiti), but that it was known quite early in Ceylon is evidenced by the fact that, among the scenes from the Buddhas life represented in the relic chamber of the Maha Thupa, the conversion of Apalala is mentioned (Mhv.xxx.84). The Divyavadana (pp.348, 385) makes reference to the story, and states that the naga was converted shortly before the Buddhas death. Hiouen Thsang gives the story in detail (Beal: Records of the Western World i.122; also Legge: Fa Hiens Travels, p.29n.). During Kassapa Buddhas time, Apalala had been a powerful man called Gangi. By means of his charms he subdued the dragons that attacked the country, and the people, in gratitude, agreed to give him tribute. Later some of them forgot their promise and he, in wrath, became a dragon after his death.
The Buddha Gotama visited him and preached to him. He was converted, but, for his sustenance, he was allowed to have one gathering of the crops every twelve years. It is for this reason that the White River (Subhavastu) overflows every twelfth year. The story is found in the Sutralankara and other Mahayana books. See Nariman: Sanskrit Buddhism, pp.194, 274.
According to the Vinaya of the Mulla Sarvastivadins, the Buddha converted Apalala during a visit to Kashmir in the company of the Yaksa Vajrapani (JA.1914, vol. iv.510).
Theravāda is a major branch of Buddhism having the the Pali canon (tipitaka) as their canonical literature, which includes the vinaya-pitaka (monastic rules), the sutta-pitaka (Buddhist sermons) and the abhidhamma-pitaka (philosophy and psychology).
Mahayana (major branch of Buddhism)
Source: Wisdom Library: Maha Prajnaparamita SastraApalāla (अपलाल) is mentioned as the king of Nāgas according to the 2nd century Mahāprajñāpāramitāśāstra chapter V.—“A po lo lo (Apalāla), king of the Nāgas, was converted because of a good thought (kuśalacitta) and became a disciple of the Buddha. To prevent famines (durbhikṣa), he caused an unceasing beneficial rain to fall”.
Note: Evidently this (Apalāla) is the serpent Alāla, protector of Magadha. According to a commentary on the Ekottarāgama: The brahmin Fan che, who had taken birth in the form of the dragon Apalāla and ravaged the crops in Magadha, was transported to the north-west of India: the Mahāprajñāpāramitāśāstra tells us that the Buddha went to north-western India to the land of Yue tche and there subjugated the king of the dragons, Apalāla.
According to appendix 3 of the 2nd century Mahāprajñāpāramitāśāstra chapter XV.—In the kingdom of the Yue tche, in Uḍḍiyāna, near the sources of the Swat, the Buddha subdued the Nāga Apalāla. We have already studied the legends relating to this nāga and we have seen that except for the P’ou sa pen hing king, which locates him in the pool of Yeou lien, near Rajāgṛha, the other sources locate him in the north-west. The Mūlasarvāstivādin Vinaya gives a detailed account of the struggle between the Buddha and the nāga.
The taming of Apalāla is represented on the Gandhāran bas-reliefs and the Chinese pilgrims Fa hien, Song yun and Hiuan tsang add further details: they note the place where the Buddha dried his kāṣāya wetted by the nāga, the rock where he left his foot-print, the spring where he chewed a willow twig which he planted and which immediately became a big tree.
Note: To tame him, the Buddha called upon the yakṣa Vajrapāṇi. For details, see my [Lamotte’s] article Varapāṇi en Inde, in Mélanges de Sinoligie offerts à Paul Demiéville, I, 1966, p. 130–132.
Apalāla (अपलाल) is the name of a Nāgarāja appointed as one of the Divine protector deities of Puruṣapura, according to chapter 17 of the Candragarbha: the 55th section of the Mahāsaṃnipāta-sūtra, a large compilation of Sūtras (texts) in Mahāyāna Buddhism partly available in Sanskrit, Tibetan and Chinese.—In the Candragarbhasūtra, the Bhagavat invites all classes of Gods and Deities to protect the Law [dharma?] and the faithful in their respective kingdoms of Jambudvīpa [e.g., the Nāgarāja Apalāla in Puruṣapura], resembling the time of the past Buddhas.
Mahayana (महायान, mahāyāna) is a major branch of Buddhism focusing on the path of a Bodhisattva (spiritual aspirants/ enlightened beings). Extant literature is vast and primarely composed in the Sanskrit language. There are many sūtras of which some of the earliest are the various Prajñāpāramitā sūtras.
Tibetan Buddhism (Vajrayana or tantric Buddhism)
Source: Wisdom Library: Tibetan BuddhismApalāla (अपलाल) is the name of a Nāga mentioned as attending the teachings in the 6th century Mañjuśrīmūlakalpa: one of the largest Kriyā Tantras devoted to Mañjuśrī (the Bodhisattva of wisdom) representing an encyclopedia of knowledge primarily concerned with ritualistic elements in Buddhism. The teachings in this text originate from Mañjuśrī and were taught to and by Buddha Śākyamuni in the presence of a large audience (including Apalāla).
Tibetan Buddhism includes schools such as Nyingma, Kadampa, Kagyu and Gelug. Their primary canon of literature is divided in two broad categories: The Kangyur, which consists of Buddha’s words, and the Tengyur, which includes commentaries from various sources. Esotericism and tantra techniques (vajrayāna) are collected indepently.
Languages of India and abroad
Sanskrit dictionary
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Edgerton Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit DictionaryApalāla (अपलाल).—(= Pali id. or °ḷāla), name of a nāga king: Mahāvyutpatti 3273; Divyāvadāna 348.20; 385.3; (Ārya-)Mañjuśrīmūlakalpa 18.12; Āṭānāṭiya Sūtra, Hoernle [Manuscript Remains of Buddhist literature found in Eastern Turkestan] 27.3; Samādhirājasūtra p. 42 line 27; Mahā-Māyūrī 221.24; 247.3, Mūla-Sarvāstivāda-Vinaya i.2.6.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English DictionaryApalāla (अपलाल):—[=a-palāla] m. Name of a Rakṣas.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Goldstücker Sanskrit-English DictionaryApalāla (अपलाल):—[tatpurusha compound] m.
(-laḥ) The name of a Nāga or dragon converted by Sākya Muni to his doctrine. E. probably a neg. and pala-āla, lit. ‘not addicted to flesh’.
[Sanskrit to German]
Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Starts with: Apalaladamana.
Full-text: Apalaladamana, Kumbhakari, Dhumasikha, Durbhiksha, Purushapura, Palala.
Relevant text
Search found 8 books and stories containing Apalala, Apalāla, A-palala, A-palāla; (plurals include: Apalalas, Apalālas, palalas, palālas). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Maha Prajnaparamita Sastra (by Gelongma Karma Migme Chödrön)
Appendix 8 - Apalāla (king of the nāgas) and Alāla (protector of Magadha) < [Chapter V - Rājagṛha]
Appendix 3 - The journey of the Buddha to the north-west of India < [Chapter XV - The Arrival of the Bodhisattvas of the Ten Directions]
Part 9 - Why is the Buddha called Puruṣadamyasārathi (puruṣa-damya-sārathi) < [Chapter IV - Explanation of the Word Bhagavat]
The Great Chronicle of Buddhas (by Ven. Mingun Sayadaw)
Buddha attributes (6): Anuttaropurisa damma sārathi < [Chapter 42 - The Dhamma Ratanā]
The Fo-Sho-Hing-Tsan-King (A Life of Buddha) (by Samuel Beal)
Buddhist records of the Western world (Xuanzang) (by Samuel Beal)
Chapter 1 - Country of U-chang-na (Udyana) < [Book III - Eight Countries]
Buddhacarita (by Charles Willemen)
Chapter XXI - Subduing the Maddened Elephant Dhanapālaka < [Fascicle Four]
Mahavamsa (by Wilhelm Geiger)