Ajatasatru of Magadha makes a Midnight Call, BC 495 (litho)

Ajatasatru of Magadha makes a Midnight Call, BC 495. The cause of the quarrel between Ajatasatru of Magadha and Prasenajit of Kosala was that Ajatasatru had slowly poisoned his father Bimbisara, one of whose wives was the sister of Prasenajit. Ajatasatru had the best of the fighting that ensued, and compelled Prasenajit to give him a daughter to wife. His crime, however, weighed on his mind, and he could not sleep, so he visited Buddha at midnight with a great procession of elephants, accompanied by only one male attendant and a great retinue of women, in order to obtain relief of conscience. Illustration for Hutchinson's History of the Nations (Hutchinson, c.1920). Note: Image has been digitally enhanced to facilitate repro.