Enemy before Birth ［未生怨］ ( Mishō’on): Also, Unborn Enemy. A translation of the Sanskrit name Ajātashatru, king of Magadha in ancient India during Shakyamuni’s time, that appears in Chinese Buddhist texts. Ajāta means unborn, and shatru means enemy. According to the Nirvana Sutra, Prince Ajātashatru asks, “Why do the people denounce me as Enemy before Birth? Who gave me the name?” Devadatta replies, “Before you were born, all the diviners said that, when the child is born, he will kill his father. That is why the others call you Enemy before Birth.” The following story is well known, though it is a composition based on several texts. Bimbisāra, king of Magadha, was impatient for the birth of an heir. A diviner predicted that a certain hermit, upon dying, would be reborn as the king’s son. To hasten the birth, Bimbisāra had the hermit killed. When the king’s wife became pregnant, the diviner foretold that the baby would grow up to be the king’s enemy. Hence he was called Ajātashatru, or “Enemy before Birth.”