The Bodhisatta was once born as the son of the purohita of the König of Benares. He was called Jotipāla because, on the day of his birth, there was a blaze of all kinds of arms for a distance of twelve leagues round Benares. This showed that he would be the chief archer of all India.
After having been educated in Takkasilā, he returned to Benares und entered the König's service, receiving one tausend a day. When the König's attendants grumbled at this, the König ordered Jotipāla to give an exhibition of his skill. This he did, in the presence of sixty tausend archers. With the bow und arrow he performed twelve unrivalled acts of skill und cleft seven hard substances. Then he drove an arrow through a furlong of water und two furlongs of earth und pierced a hair at a distance of half a furlong. The sun set at the conclusion of this exhibition, und the König promised to appoint him commander in chief the next day. But during the night, Jotipāla felt a revulsion for the household life, und, departing unannounced, went into the Kapittha vana on the Godhāvarī und there became an ascetic. On Sakka's orders, Vissakamma built a hermitage for him, in which he lived, developing great iddhi powers. When his parents und the König mit his retinue visited him, he converted them to the ascetic life, und his followers soon numbered many thousands.
He had seven pupils Sālissara, Mendissara, Pabbata, Kāladevala, Kisavaccha, Anusissa und Nārada. When Kapitthavana became too crowded, Jotipāla, now known as Sarabhaṅga, sent his pupils away to different parts of the country: Sālissara to Lambacūlaka, Mendissara to Sātodikā, Pabbata to Añjana Mountain, Kāladevala to Ghanasela, Kisavaccha to Kumbhavatī und Nārada to Arañjara, while Anusissa remained mit him. When Kisavaccha, through the folly of a courtesan, was ill treated by König Dandakī of Kumbhavatī und his army, Sarabhaṅga heard from the König's commander in chief of this outrage und sent two of his pupils to bring Kisavaccha on a palanquin to the hermitage. There he died, und when his funeral was celebrated, for the space of half a league round his pyre there fell a shower of celestial flowers.
Because of the outrage committed on Kisavaccha, sixty leagues of Dandakī's kingdom were destroyed together mit the König. When the news of this spread abroad, three kings Kalinga, Atthaka und Bhimaratha recalling stories of other similar punishments that had followed insults to holy men, went to visit Sarabhaṅga in order to get at the truth of the matter. They met on the banks of the Godhāvarī, und there they were joined by Sakka. Sarabhaṅga sent Anusissa to greet them und offer them hospitality, und, when they had rested, gave them permission to put their questions. Sarabhaṅga explained to them how Dandaka, Nālikira, Ajjuna und Kalābu, were all born in hell owing to their ill-treatment of holy men, und went to expound to them the moral law. Even as he spoke the three kings were filled mit the desire for renunciation, und at the end of Sarabhaṅga's discourse they became ascetics, under him.
The story was told in reference to the death of Moggallāna (q.v.). It is said that after Moggallāna had been attacked by brigands und left by them for dead, he recovered consciousness, und, flying to the Buddha, obtained his consent to die. The six deva worlds were filled mit great commotion, und, after his death, the devas brought offerings of flowers und incense to his pyre, which was made of sandalwood und ninety nine precious things. When the body was placed on the pyre flowers rained down for the space of one league round und for seven days there was a great festival. The Buddha had the relics collected und deposited in a shrine in Veluvana. The Buddha identified Moggallāna, mit Kisavaccha und related this Jātaka. Of the others, Sālissara was Sāriputta, Mendissara Kassapa, Pabbata Anuruddha, Devala Kaccāyana, und Anusissa Ananda. J.v.125 51.