Part 1 - Asurendra Camara

2. In that period, at that time, there was a city named Mokā. Description. Outside the city of Mokā, in the northeastern direction, there was a caitya named Nandana. Description. In that period, at that time, the Lord (Śramaṇa Bhagavān Mahāvīra) arrived there. People moved out (to listen). The assembly dispersed.

In that period, at that time, monk Agnibhūti, second (in seniority) disciple of Śramaṇa Bhagavān Mahāvīra, who belonged to the Gautama line, who was seven cubits in height,...till worshipped and made the following submission:

Q. 3. Bhante! How great is the fortune of Camara, the Asurendra, the king of the Asuras? How great is his grace? His strength? His fame? His happiness? His influence? How much is his power to transform?

A. 3. Gautama! Asurendra Camara, the king of the Asuras, has a great fortune...till a great influence. Of 34,00,000 bhavana-abodes, 64,000 Sāmānika gods and 33 Trāyas-triṃśaka gṇḍs... till he is the overlord¹. He is the master of such a great fortune,...till a great influence. And such is his power to transform that, by a stroke of vaikriya samudghāta, he becomes alert, and by being alert, he brings out a rod which is a limited number of yojanas in length; and with that rod, he throws out the coarse matter of gems,.,.till riṣṭa gems², and picks up their fine matter; and having picked up their fine matter, he undergoes himself a second stroke of vaikriya samudghāta; and having done so, Asurendra Camara, the king of the Asuras, can fill up the whole isle named Jambu-dvīpa with many Asurakumāra gods and goddesses, can specially fill it up, like a lass held by the hand by a young man or like the spokes of a wheel held by its axle³, cover it with them, extend them all over it, have it touched by them all over and make it swarm with them; and thereafter, the said Asurendra Camara, the king of the Asuras, can fill up the entire space of an unlimited number of seas and an unlimited number of isles in the central part of the sphere with many Asurakumāra gods and goddesses, can specially fill it up, cover it with them, extend them all over it, have it touched by them all over and make it swarm with them. Gautama! Such is the great power of Asurendra Camara, the king of the Asuras, a quality, a mere quality (to state); but this power to transform he has never given effect to, nor he gives effect to, nor will he ever give effect to (in future).

Notes (based on commentary of Abhayadeva Sūri):

1. The details of Camarendra’s suzerainty have been given as follows: Four Lokapālas (Overlords of directions), five principal Consorts with their progenies, three assembly chambers, sevenfold army, seven Commanders-in-chief, 2,56,000 Bodyguard gods and many other gods and their families, all residents of the metropolis Camaracañcā. Over all these, Camarendra held suzereignty, overlordship, mastery, husbandship and supreme command. He exercised his overlordship oa them, made them obey his wishes, lived in the midst of a din of diverse musical instruments always at play which emitted a deep sound like the roar of clouds, and enjoyed many divine joys.

Two species of gods have been named in the text, Sāmānika and Trāyastrṃśa, but in all there are 10 species as follows:

1. Indra who is the master and overlord of the gods.
2. Sāmānikas who are almost equal (samāna) to Indra enjoying a very high status.
3. Trāyastriṃśas who are fit to be ministers, high priests, etc.
4. Pāriṣadyas who are members of one or other of the assemblies of the Indra, his friends and counsellors.
5. Ātmarakṣakas [Ātma-rakṣaka] who are body-guards.
6. Lokapālas who are masters of directions under the Indra.
7. Anīkas who are soldiers and Anīkādhipatis who are the commanders.
8. Prakīrṇakas who are commoners.
9. Ābhiyogikas who serve the Indra as servants or attendants.
10. Kilviṣikas who are low-class gods.

2. The various types of gems have been stated to be as follows: vajra, vaidūrya, lohitākṣa, masāragalla, haṃsagarbha, pulaka, saugandhika, jyotirasa, aṅka, añjana, ratna, jātarūpa, añjanapulāka and sphaṭika (crystal).

3. Two similes have been used, viz., (1) that of a lass held by the hand by a lad, and (2) that of the spokes of a wheel which are held by its axle.

The point at issue is that the lass is held so tight by the lad that there is no gap between the two. Similarly, the spokes of the wheel are so fixed at its axle that there is no gap between one and the other. Likewise, Camarendra has very wide powers to fill up innumerable isles and seas in such a manner that there may be no gap.