Purana Kassapa

Who is Purana Kassapa?

Pūraṇa Kassapa was an Indian ascetic teacher who lived around the 5th or 4th century BCE, contemporaneous with Mahavira and the Buddha.

Purana taught a theory of "non-action" whereby the body acts independent of the soul, merit or demerit. In the Pali Canon, Purana is identified as an ahetuvadin, "denier of a cause".

As an example of Purana's beliefs, in the Samannaphala Sutta it is reported that Purana said:

The Anguttara Nikaya also reports that Purana claimed to be omniscient. The Dhammapada commentary claims that Purana committed suicide by drowning.