Prcsenteh to

of

tlje

P^tttUcrstty of ^oroitta

Hume Blake,

Esq..

Digitized by the Internet Archive

in

2008

with funding from

IVIicrosoft

Corporation

http://www.archive.org/details/buddhahisreligioOObartuoft

SIR JOHN LUBBOCK'S

HUNDRED BOOKS

THE BUDDHA
AND
HIS RELIGION

?)4
Sir Jobii Xubbocft's tunJ>re5 JBoofts

THE BUDDHA
AND HIS RELIGION
^

BV

J^'^BARTHfiLEMY SAINT-HILAIRE
MEMBBR OF THE INSTITUT (ACAUBMY OF MORAL AND POLITICAL
SCIENCEfiJ

TRANSLATED BY

l\

LAURA ENSOR

GEORGE ROUTLEDGE AND SONS

CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION.
THE AUTHENTICITY OF BUDDHISM.
PAGE

the knowledge of Buddhism enables us to judge some of our contemporary systems. General view of the Buddhist doctrine the absence of God and belief in annihilation. The works of Hodgson, Csoma of Authenticity of Buddhism. Original Sanskrit and Kbros, Tumour, Burnouf, and Remusat. Tibetan, Mongolian, Chinese, Burmese, and Siamese Pali writings. Piyadasi's inscriptions. Evidence of the Greek histranslations. Division of the work torians of Alexander's expedition, &c.
Pi.T-pose of this

work

II

PART

I.

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM.

CHAPTER
; ;

I.

Birth of the Buddha; his education ; his marriage; he chooses his wife Gopa. The Buddha's meditations his vocation encouraged by the gods the four visions ; the young prince's determination ;
lesi^tance of his father and family he flies from Kapilavastu. His studies at Vaisali and Rajagriha; his five companions ; he renounces
;

ecstasies

His retreat of six years at Uruvela ; his austerities and the attainment of Buddhahood ; Bodhimanda and Bodhidruma ; Vajrasanam. The Buddha leaves his retreat ; he goes to Benares to turn the Wheel of the Law his teachings ; his sojourn in Magadha and in Kosala Bimbisara, Ajatasatru, Prasenajit, Anatha Pindika. The Buddha's interview with his father his dissensions with the Brahmans ; his triumph ; popular enthusiasm.
the world.
;
' ' ; ; ;

Peatli of

tlje

Bviddha ^t eighty years pf age, at Kusi-nagara

.31

CONTENTS

CHAPTER
The Legend

II.

PAGE

of tbe Buddha. Analysis of the Lalita-vistdra. Prologue in the Tushita heaven. The four investigations the Buddha's address his departure and incarnation in Maya-Devi's womb. The gods pay homage. Birth of the Buddha his seven steps. The Brahman Asita's pro|)heoy. The Buddha victoriously resists the attacks and temptations of Mira, gi>i of love, sin, and death. Analysis of the Lotus of the Good La//. The Buddha's sermons. Parables the children in the burning house the blind man recovering sight. Vision of the Prabhutaratna Stupa. The Buddha's prophecies. Effects of the supernatural powers of the Talhagata. Lxjilanation of the Buddha's different names , .
;
;

69

CHAPTER

III.

General character of Buddhist ethics derived from the canonical The Three Basketfuls, and the Three writings of the Councils. the Twelve Pearls the Four Noble Truths the Ten Precepts Observances specially applicable to monks, on clothing, food, and residence; the six transcendent Virtues, and the secondary Virtues C()nfessi()n, family duties, preaching. Influence of Buddhist ethics
; ;
;

The Buddha's ideal. Purna, on i idivid als and governments. Kunala, Vasavadatia, and Upagiipla. The kings Bimbisara, Ajatasatru, and A^oka. Piyadasi's Edicts, spread all over India. Journeys of Chinese pilgrims in the fifth and seventh century of the Christian era; Fa-lliau and II iouen-Tlisang

95

CHAPTER

IV.
;

Metaphysics of Buddhism, or Abhidharma. Transmigration its unlimited compass from man to inert matter. Obscurity of the Expljyiation of Buddhist doctrine on the oriL,in of transmigration. human destiny by the Connecting Chain of the twelve reciprocal Theory of Nirvana, or Eternal Salvation by annihilation. Causes

The Dh}ana

129

CHAPTER
:

V.

practical tendency, conCritical study of Buddhism. Its merits tempt of wealth, charity, sentiment of equality, meekness, austerity,
Its faults resignation, horror of falsehood, respect for family ties. social impotence, egotism, no idea of duty, ignorance of justice and liberty, seep icism, incurable despair, error as regards life and human personality, atheism. General condemnation of Buddhism, . , l^^ ppinions of Bayle and YoHaire 011 the atheism of China

CONTENTS

PART

II.

BUDDHISM IN INDIA IN THE SEVENTH CENTURY

OF THE CHRISTIAN ERA.

CHAPTER

I.

PAGB

The importance of his travels in India ; Life of IHoucn-Thsang. his monaslic education in China; his vocation as a missionary; The king of the Oigurs; the Turkish his departure; first trials. Khan. Hiouen-Thsang's arrival in India; his superstitious piety ;
.exploration

on the banks of the Ganges five years sojourn in the convent of Nalanda; travels throughout the peninsula return to Nalanda Slladitya contest of the Master of His retreat ; translation of the Law against the Little Vehicle. the saorcd Ijuddhist books ; death of Hiouen-Thsang his character i8o
;

Magadha and
;

CHAPTER
is

II.

Memoirs of Hiouen-Thsang. Sources from which the Si-yu-ki Descriptive method of History in India and China. derived. Hiouen-Thsang. His general views on India; his itinerary in Magadha; a page fiom his Memoirs on the convent of Nalanda. Testimony of Hiouen-Thsang as to the Buddha, the Nirvana, the Hiouen-Thsang at the Court Councils, and the kings of his day. of Slladitya, Kmg of Kan\akubja and part of Central India. The great Assembly ot the Deliverance in the Field of Happiness. DisSurprising tolerance of the Hindus , tiibulion of royal alms. aji

tHAPTER
;

III.

Buddhist worship in India in the seventh century of the Christian era; its simplicity; woiship of statues the important part they play in Ikiddhism. Moving and flying statues; miraculous cures; relics of the Tathagata and other saintly personages. Imprints of the Buddha's footsteps. The Maitreya Bodhisalwa. Absence of organization among the Indian Buddhist monks. Relation of Buddhism with Brahmanism in the seventh century. Buddhism divided into two sects the Little and the Great Vehicle. Relation of the two principal sects ; subordination of the Little Vehicle ; its secondary sects. Course of Buddhist studies at the time of HiouenThsang. His intercourse with the illustrious learned men. Sumjpary of Jndian Buddhjsflfj , , , , , , \(il
: .

10

CONTENTS

PART

III.

BUDDHISM AT THE PRESENT TIME IN CEYLON.

CHAPTER
in 1848.

I.

PAGB

Lord Torrington, Governor of Ceylon, and the Buddhist

Sources of the history of Ceylon.
the ancient

priests

Burnouf's notes on

The Kamdyana. Greek and Fa-Hian's journey to Ceylon; traditions collected by Hiouen-Thsang. Sinhalese annals Turnour's Mahdvansa. Sir Alexander Johnston's undertaking in 1826. Deception practised by the Sinhalese priests. Upham's publication. The sacred and historical Pali books of Ceylon. ConverAnalysis of the Mahdvansa. Supsion of Ceylon to Buddhism. posed journey of the Buddha to Ceylon. The Three Councils. Relations of Dharmasoka, King of India, with Devanam-PiyaTissa, King of Ceylon interchange of ambassadors. Mahinda, Buddhist apostle, and his sister go to Ceylon. Branch of the Bodhi-tree. Some important events in the history of Ceylon. The Buddha's tooth. Divers translations of the Canonical books and their commentaries by Buddhaghosa in the fifth century of
names
in that island.

Roman

accounts of Taprobane.

the Chiistian era

287

CHAPTER

IL

Actual condition of the Buddhist clergy in Ceylon, as described by the Rev. Spence Hardy, Wesleyan missionary. The novitiate the ordination ; letter from the Burmese high priest. Wealth of the Sinhalese clergy. Individual poverty of the priests; their austerity. The Canonical sacred writings in Ceylon. Public reading of the Bana (the Word). Festival at Pantura in 1839. The Updsakas ; the Pirit, or ceremony of e.xorcism. The Bhavana or Meditation ; supernatural powers conferred by it. Meritorious acts {Sachakiriyas) and their miraculous influence. Nirvana according to Sinhalese priests ; their ardent faith their spirit of tolerance care bestowed on the education of children. Medical knowledge of the clergy. Subordination of the clergy to the ruling powers. Division of the Sinhalese clergy into sects. Relations of Sinhalese Buddhism with Christianity. Progress of Catholicism and education under the English rule. Statistics of Ceylon . . . .324
;

APPENDIX.
^

Festival of the Buddha's tooth in 1858 The Three Councils according to the Mahdvansa

371
. >

dt7$

INTRODUCTION
AUTHENTICITY OF BUDDHISM.
Purpose of this work : the knowledge of Buddhism enables us to Judge some of our contemporary systeyns. General view of the Buddhist Authendoclj-ine : the absence of God and belief in annihilation. ticity of Btiddhism. The zvorks of B. H. Hodgson, Csoma of JCdros, Tumour, E. Burnouf and A. Rhnusat. Original Sanskrit and Pali 7vritings; Tibetan, Mongolian, Chinese, Burmese, and Siamese translations. Fiyadasi 's inscriptions. Evidence of the Greek hisDivision of the work. torians of Alexander s expedition.

In publishing this

work on Buddhism,

I have

but one

purpose

in

view

that of bringing out in striking contrast the

spiritualistic beliefs.

beneficial truths

and the greatness of our

Nurtured in an admirable philosophy and religion, we do

not seek to
great debt

them,

know their value, and we remain ignorant of the we owe to them. We are satisfied to possess while, at the same time, we are often indifferent and
them.

even ungrateful towards

incessant in
its

Although

civilization

is

progress, and

think of inquiring

we reap its benefits, we never whence come the welfare, the security, and
which
civilization brings with

the comparative enlightenment

it;

while

we

see around us a multitude of other races, which,

from the beginning of time have remained in a semi-barbarous

condition, incapable of forming
tions or

any tolerable

social condi-

governments.

I believe that the study of

Buddhism

12
in
its

INTRODUCTION
more general
It

outlines, will give us the secret of this

enigma.

will

show how a

religion

which has

at

the

present day

more adherents than any

little

other

on

the surface

of the globe, has contributed so

to the happiness of

mankind

and we
it

shall find in the strange

and deplorable
its

doctrines which

professes, the explanation of

powerless-

ness for good.

By ^n

easy retrospect

we

shall

be able more

thoroughly to appreciate the moral .inheritance which has

been transmitted

to us since the time of Socrates

all

and

Plato,

and

to

guard

it

with

the

more care and

gratitude.
it
;

Buddhism, greatly modified and

at

altered,

is

true, dates

from the seventh century before our own era

the

and

prevails

present

day

in

Kashmir, Nepaul, Tibet, Tartary,

Mongolia, Japan, a great part of China, the kingdom of

Anam, Burmah, and

was born
in the year

the Island of Ceylon.

The Buddha
543
at eighty

622

B.C.,

and died

in

years of age, after having taught his doctrine in

Magadha

(actually Behar), a region of Central India, in the neighbour-

hood of Benares, on the right bank of the Ganges. Buddhism was an attempt to reform the religion of Brahma, in the midst of which it arose, and by which it was finally expelled from India after centuries of somewhat contemptuous tolerance. But the doctrines which had but momentarily triumphed in the countries that had seen their birth, spread
over the neighbouring countries, with a success that
tinues
still

con-

and seems

likely to last.
its

To
ing

reduce Buddhism to

essential elements, the followits

is

a short summary of

aims,

philosophical

and

religious.

earth,

Taking but a one-sided view of man's condition upon looking chiefly at his miseries and suff'erings, the Buddha does not try to revert to his origin, and to derive it
from a higher source.
Jiis beliefs carry

him wo

further than to suppose that the

AVTHENTlClTV
present
life

OP'

BVDDHISM
He

13

is

a conlinualion of past existences, of which

the fatal penalty.
believes in transhis first error.
It

man
is

is

now bearing
:

migration

herein

lies his first

dogma and

necessary then that

man

should at any cost be delivered

from the cycle of perpetual births to which he is condemned and the Buddha takes upon himself to point out the path
which leads to deliverance and frees him from
bondage.
Filled with
that
this terrible

mankind
then
is

mercy and compassion, he gives to he came to redeem, a moral code, and he

promises eternal salvation to those

eternal salvation, according

who

follow

it.

What
faith
?

to the Buddhist

and how can man be delivered from the law of transmigration

?

Only

in

one way

by

attaining Nirvana, that

is

annihilation.

When man,
virtues that the

thanks to the practice of the austerities and

Buddha

taught, has once reached annihilation,

he

is

well assured that

he

will never,

under any form, be

;

reborn into the odious cycle of successive existences

and

when
and

all

the elements of

which he

is

composed, both material

spiritual,

are completely destroyed, he need

no longer
all

fear transmigration;

and the blind

fatality

which rules

things in the universe has

power over him no more.

;

This seems indeed a hideous system

consistent one.

but

it is

a perfectly

In the whole of Buddhism, from beginning

to end, there is not a trace of the idea of pletely isolated, is

God.

Man, comCast into

thrown upon his own resources.

staggering under the

a world he does not understand, without Providence and

without support,
infirmity,

weight of

human
his
1

he has but one hope

that of escaping

from

earthly suffering.

Wandering

in utter darkness,

he yet does

not seek for light by aspirations towards something higher.

His horizon limited to what his senses bear witness, and his

knowledge of

self as limited

and inaccurate as

the

phenomena

amid which he drags out

his existence, his intelligence is not

14
sufficiently

INTRODUCTION
developed to attain the source from which he

himself, as well as the world, has emanated.

Begun from
clusion

nothing,

it

is

natural that he should

end

in

nothingness, and Buddhism must inevitably lead to this con-

a conclusion so

terrible for us,

but so consoling for

the Buddhist.

Born without God,

living without
after

God, what
?

wonder
is

that he should not find

God

death

that he

returns willingly to the nothingness

the only refuge that he

whence he came, which

this is the

knows ?
Buddhism, and
system

Such, in a few words,

of faith which
it

is

presents, with the usual

accompaniments of
irrational

legend and superstition.

The

religion of the

Buddha, however
results.

it

may be
moreit

in principle, is not without a certain grandeur, and,

over, has not

been without

In India, from whence

it

sprang,

it

took no root.

But, strange as

may

seem, this

doctrine,

which seems calculated to shock the most natural

instincts of
it

and the strongest

humanity, led to real progress

;

in the races that accepted

and, in submitting to

it,

they

became

less ignorant

and

less

degraded.

This

is

hardly,

perhaps, a sufficient apology for

pelled to render
it

Buddhism ; but we
it

are

comis

justice,

and

contains so

much

that

erroneous, that
merit, I

it

may

well be credited with this secondary

it.

which legitimately belongs to

must unhesitatingly add,

that with the sole exception of

the Christ, there does not exist

religions a purer

among
fife

all

the founders of

and more touching

figure than that of the

Buddha.

In his pure and spotless

he acts up to his
is

convictions;

and

if

the theory he propounds

is

false,

the
is

personal example which he gives

the perfect type of
all

irreproachable.
;

He

the virtues he extols

his self-abnega-

tion, his charity, his unalterable

the.

mildness are unfailing; at

age of twenty-nine he leaves his father's court to become

a religious mendicant;

he prepares himself to preach

his

AUTHENTICITY OF BUDDHISM
doctrine

15

during six years of retreat and meditation;

it

he

propagates
for

by

the sole po^ve^ of his

;

more than half a century

it

word and persuasion and when he dies in the arms

of his disciples
practised

is

with the serenity of a sage

life

who

has

good

all

his

and who

is

certain that he has

found

truth.

The

nations

who have

received his faiih have

him as a God, for the idea of a God was as But they have made foreign to them as it was to him. of the Buddha an ideal they have striven to imitate; and Buddhism has formed, as we shall show, some great spirits
not worshipped
well worthy to figure

among
it

those

who

are the

most revered

and admired by mankind.

Sad as
not regret
myself.

it

may

be,

is

a study worth making, and I shall

my

task

if I

can attain the purpose

have

set

The

nobler sides of

Buddhism may delude

us, if

we remain

satisfied with

imperfect information; those I shall

set forth will, I believe,

be

sufficient to

prevent any serious-

minded reader from

This work
I

falling into

such errors.

may
it

possibly possess another advantage, for

is

to a certain degree jDpportune. For some time past the doctrines which form the basis of Buddhism have found favour amongst us, a favour of which they are most unworthy. We see systems arise in which metempsychosis and transmigration are lauded, and, after the manner of the Buddha, the world and mankind arfe explained

regret to say

without any reference to Providence or

God; systems
life,

in

which

man

is

denied

all

hope of an immortal
is

in

which

ihe immortality of the soul

i,ood works,
it

replaced by the immortality of

and God

is

dethroned by

man the
the

only being,

is

averred, through
itself.

whom

the Infinite develops consciousit

ness of

Sometimes

is

in

name of

science,

sometimes in that of history or philology, or even metaphysics, that these theories are

propounded

theories

which
to

are neither novel

nor

original,

and which are calculated

be

t6

WTRODUCTION
This
i9

extremely hurtful to any weak or vacillating mind.

not the place to examine these theories, and their authors

are at once too sincere

and too learned

But

for
it

them

to

be

summarily discussed and condemned.

is

as well that

they should be warned by the example of Buddhism, of

which hitherto so

little

has been known, what

self;

is

the fate of

man when
led astray

he

relies

only on

and when
is

his meditations,

by a pride of which he
I

often unconscious, lead

lost himself.

him
exist

to the abyss in

which the Buddha has

well

Moreover,
:

am

aware of the great differences that

their

do not indiscriminately confound

I

systems with

Buddhism, although
recognize
that
their

condemn them also. I am ready to merits have some value; but philo;

sophical systems must always be judged by their conclusions,

whatever road

may

have been pursued to attain them

and
It is

these conclusions, although they

different paths,

may have been reached by

better.

do not thereby become any the

five
:

now two thousand

taught his doctrine

hundred years since the Buddha he proclaimed and practised it with an

he
never be

energy that has never been equalled nor surpassed;

displayed

an ingenuous dauntlessness that

;

will

exceeded
over the

and

it

is

improbable that any of the systems of

might, however, be

the present day will ever exercise such a powerful influence

human mind.
and
destiny of

It

somewhat

useful for the authors of these systems to cast a glance

on

the theory

Buddhism.

It is
;

not philosophy
is
it

in the sense

we

give to that great

word

neither

religion

as

understood

by ancient Paganism, or
;

Christianity,
all

or
to

Mohammedanism
universe,

but

it

is

something of

this,

added

a perfectly independent doctrine which sees only

man

in the

and stubbornly and

refuses to see anything but

man,
the

who

is

confounded with the whole of Nature.

errors of
if

Hence

aberrations

Buddhism, which might act as

to understand
it.

a warning to us

only

we had wisdom

AUTHENTICITY OF BUDDHISM
Unfortunately
still

17

more
it

rarely

Now
serious,

as

we seldom learn by our own mistakes, and do we profit by those of others. the accusations I make against Buddhism are
as well to set forth in order

may be

how

the

sources of the Buddhist religion have been discovered, and

on what authcnlic
founded.
It is

basis

our knowledge of the subject

is

hardly thirty years' since

it

has been properly studied,

at

but circumstances

have so favoured research, that

the
is

present day our knowledge of the origins of

Buddhism

more thorough than

own.
to the

that of

most

religions, including
life

our

We
most

are acquainted with the

trifling details,

of the
all

Buddha down
the canonical

and we possess

writings which contain his doctrine, as collected

by the three successive councils.

and settled These books, primarily

the races

written in Sanskrit, or in a dialect of Sanskrit, have been

translated into the ordinary language of
all

amongst

whom
Tartar,

the Buddhist faith has spread:

Singalese, Tibetan,

Mongolian, Chinese, Japanese, Burman, &c.

We

possess these translations, and they are a perfectly reliable

check on the original authorities, several of which have

already been reproduced in different languages.

And
still

besides these proofs there

:

is

other evidence no less

unimpeachable
lie

monuments of
all

all

kinds, the ruins of which

scattered

over India, numerous and conclusive

of pious
the

inscriptions,
dififerent

journeyings
visited

pilgrims

who have
sacred
is

at

periods

places

made

by the

memory

of the Buddha.

In one word, nothing

our opinion;

lacking at

the present

day

to confirm

fresh discoveries

may be made,
revelations.

but

they
to

will

not change those which

we

already possess, and

which we owe so many curious

In order that no doubt

'

may

exist

on

this

most important

This work was published in i860.

i8

INTRODUCTION
unprecedented success

point, I will give a rapid sketch of the

of these investigations, and recall once

those whose labours have done so

more

the

names of
us,

much
to

to enlighten

and who

in the course of a

few years have taught us

much

more about Buddhism than was known

Colebrooke.

William Jones or

The earliest and most important witness is B. H. Hodgson, who in 1 82 1 was appointed by the East India Company
Political

Resident in Nepaul.

Hodgson soon heard

in

that

number of books, supposed

to contain the canonical laws

of the

Buddha, w^re piously preserved

the

Buddhist
written in

monasteries of that country.

Sanskrit.

The books were

in obtaining a

Hodgson succeeded

list

of them he was

through an old Buddhist priest of Pathan with

whom

acquainted, and by degrees he collected the books themselves.

He

found

it

easier to obtain

them

translated into

the Tibetan language; for

as in our

books are as
to

plentiful in

Tibet

own

country, multiplied as they are by printing

on wood, a process brought

which
is

Tibet by the Chinese, and

now

in general use there.

The

Sanskrit volumes,

copies of which were handed over to Hodgson, had been,

such was the tradition, imported into Nepaul in the second

century of the Christian era, and were only understood by
the priests.

They had been brought from Magadha,

of the
;

the

opposite
later,

Ganges had passed from Nepaul

side
at

and

five

or six centuries

into Tibet,

where they were

faith.

translated

the time

Tibet adopted the Buddhist

B. H.

Hodgson was

able to

announce

this great

discovery to

the learned societies in 1824

and 1825.

But he did more

than this: he offered the Royal Asiatic Society of Bengal

;

sixty
fifty

Buddhist volumes in Sanskrit and two hundred and

in Tibetan.

few years

later,

he displayed the same

liberality

towards the Royal Asiatic Society of

Society

London and

the Asiatic

of Paris.

He

either

^ave them the

AUTHENTICITY OF BUDDHISM
manuscript's

19
or had

and printed matter he had

collected,

transcriptions

made

for

them of

the writings they desired.

Thanks
it

to

him

the Asiatic

Society of Paris became the

possessor of eighty-eight Buddhist works in Sanskrit, which

would have been unable

to

procure had

it

not been for

the generosity
at

and kindly energy of the English Resident

Kalhmandu *.

These labours and discoveries deserve the

highest praise, and ihe

to be
It

name

of B.

H. Hodgson ought always

remembered with is to him v/e owe

and
is

gratitude.

the original Sanskrit writings, which

have since been consulted and translated by illustrious philologists,

it

he

who
same
to

first

discovered the existence of the

Tibetan translations.

Almost
that
ful

at

the

time,

Csoma, a young Hungarian

fruit-

doctor from Koros in Transylvania, had started on labours

were destined

prove hardly less interesting and

than those of B. H. Hodgson.

Csoma, animated by an heroic enthusiasm which

that of

recalls

Anquetil-Duperron,

left

Hungary,

his native land, and,

armed only with an indomitable courage, penetrated into and sufferings that would have daunted any other man, he learned the language
Tibet, where, after enduring privations
of the country, which

no European before him had mastered,

to read the

and thus he was able

literature,

two great works of Tibetan

the

called

the

Kahgyur and
first

Bstangyur.

Nosv

these two vast encyclopedias, the

and the

composed of a hundred, second of two hundred and twenty-five volumes,

printed in

1731 at the monastery of Snarthong in Tibet, were nothing else than a lengthy translation of books brought

fiom India, referring, for the most

literature.

part, to

the Buddhist
the

Csoma, under
Indian

the auspices of

H. H. Wilson,

distinguished

Hnguist,

and the Asiatic Society of

* In i860 B. H. Hodgson again made a valuable present of Buddhist documents to the French Institute.

B 2

20
Calcutta, gave a

INTRODUCTION
full

analysis

of these two encyclopedias;

and they were found

most of
in

to contain

an exact reproduction of

the Sanskrit

books B. H. Hodgson had discovered

died young, at the very outset of his

Nepaul.

Csoma

labours, for the sake of which he

had exhausted
*

his strength

but he died consoled, doubtless, by the publications which,

thanks to him, have enriched the

Asiatic Researches,'

and

which

will

remain to perpetuate his memory.

About the lime that B. H. Hodgson and Csoma were making iheir discoveries, L. J. Schmidt, of the Academy of
St.

Petersburg (1829), ascertained that the greater part of

translated

the Buddhist works

from Sanskrit into Tibetan

this

had

also

been translated from Tibetan into Mongol, and

under similar conditions.

brought, with
the

The Buddhisc
that contained
it

failh

had been

books

its

records, from

Tibet into Mongolia, just as

Tibet, and from
the Indian
all

had

travelled

from Nepaul to
Nepaul.
it

Magadha

into

This

happily confirmed
the only or the

Hodgson's information, but

to
it.

was not
in

most important testimony

While original Sanskrit works were being found

north of India, George

the

Tumour, whose name ought

to

be

placed side by side with that of Hodgson, found in the soulh

of the Peninsula, in Ceylon, an almost identical transcript of
the canonical books.
trated to
It is

known
civil

that

Buddhism had peneera.

Ceylon three centuries before the Christian

his leisure

George Turnour, who was a

research.

servant in Ceylon, had

been able to devote some of

time to lilerary

Pie discovered that the Sinhalese priests possessed

in Pali,

an exact and complete collection of Buddhist works

a Sanskrit dialect, and that
this collection

had been taken

over to Ceylon during the reign of an Indian king,

fessed the Buddhist faith, in the year

316

B.C.

who proThe sevenalstf

teen Sinhalese Pali books reproduced almost identically the

more important works of Magadha and Nepaul; they

AumENTiatY Of
contained the whole doctrine and
the

nuDDIIISM
of the

at
;

life

Buddha

and

in

same manner

that in the north the Sans,krit version in

Magadha

served as text for the Tibetan translations, so in

the south the Pali version in

Ceylon served as
the
island

text for the

Burmese and Siamese

Siam and Burmah.

translations;

of Ceylon

always having been in close religious communication with

But there was again another source of information in

Ceylon.

Besides the sacred books, the priests had drawn up

chronicles, in

which they had noted down from age to age,

last century, all the principal facts of

up

to the

end of the and

their

religion

their

history.

Tumour

obtained these

Sinhalese annals, and published the greater part of a valuable

work, the Mahavansa, as well as an analysis of several others.

These

historical

books carry

their narration

back to the con-

version of Ceylon to
details the

Buddhism, and retrace with the minuest

of the Buddha, just as tradition and

whole

life

religious

writings

had preserved them.

The

part

of the

Mahdvansa given by Tumour was composed in the fifth century of our era, by the aid of much more ancient writings which the author corrected and made use of. The Pali sacred books of Ceylon and the historical compilations

must therefore rank among the most authentic of

Buddhist documents.

But we ought to rank China as high and even higher than

Nepaul, Tibet, Mongolia, Ceylon, Burmah, and Siam.

The

Chinese annals, which are kept with an exactitude which no

nation in the world has equalled, testify that

Buddhism was
the
it

introduced

into

China

217

b.c.

by some Indian monks.

From

the year 61 b.c.

state

Buddhism became, under

of that

Emperor
to

Ming-Ti, the
satisfy all
little

relgion of the Empire, where

seemed

the

religious requirements
It

strange and

known

people.

was

also

towards the end of the of the Sanskrit

first

century a.d. that the

official translation

22

INTRODUCTION
One
;

Buddhist books into Chinese was made.

has been translated four times into Chinese
translations dating

of the most

noted, the Lalifa-visidra, a kind of biography of the Buddha,

the
first

of these
last

from the year 76

a. d.,

and the

as

much

as eight centuries later.

large

number

of Buddhist

works were thus reproduced from Sanskrit into Chinese

a learned man,

M.

Stanislas Julien, has given us the

titles

of

about 1000 books, taken from the catalogues drawn up by

order of the Government of the Celestial Empire.

As Buddhism
tions

still

flourishes in that country, the transla-

of the canonical books, and of the most celebrated

works

vocabularies

biographies of venerated have been

down
to the present day.

monks,

dictionaries,

and

diligently continued without inter-

ruption
ture
fills

In China Buddhist

litera-

the libraries with an almost incalculable

number of

volumes.

Another special source of information are the journeys of

the Chinese pilgrims,

who

at

different periods travelled to

India to collect the sacred writings and bring them back to

China, or to

visit

the places sanctified in former days by the

presence of the Buddha.

Two

of these narratives, that of

Fa-Hian and
into

that of

Hiouen-Th-ang, have been translated

Julien,

French by Abel Remusat and Stanislas

I will

who

deserve the highest praise for their studies in Buddhism.

But
itself,

now

pass to the evidence

we

gather in India
is

which reaches us in a more direct way, and

last twenty-five

more

ancient than that of the other countries I have mentioned.

Within the
has been

years a most important discovery

made

in

Central
pillars,

India

of several inscriptions
It

engraved on rocks,
first

or stones.

was

virtually the

time that India had ever furnished to European curiosity

this kind,

any monuments of
supposed to be

of which

it

had generally been

destitute.

Mr. James Prinsep,.one of the

secretaries of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, deciphered these

AUTHENTICITY OF BUDDHISM
inscriptions with a sagacity

23

and erudition

that have

made
had

him famous, although he

accomplished his career.

likewise died young, before he

These
its

inscriptions were in the dialect of the province of

to all traditions,

Magadha, where, according

origin.

Buddhism had
and
toler-

They recorded the

all

edicts of a king called Piyadasi,

which enjoined on
ance of the new
exp)lanalions,

his subjects morality, justice,

belief.

Shortly after Mr.

James Prinsep's

Turnour, already well versed

in Ceylon,

in the study of the

Pall

showed that the King Piyadasi was identical with Asoka, the King of Magadha, who played a great part in the earlier centuries of Buddhist history, and whose conversion is related in the Mahdvansa. Another Sin-

monuments

halese

work

the

Dlpavansa

quoted by Turnour, places the

accession of Asoka 218 years after the death of Sakya-muni,

that
is

about the year 325 b.c, in the days of Alexander the

Great.

Later on similar discoveries confirmed these dates, and in

three places
:

at

Girnar in Guzerat,

at

Dhauli in Orissa, and

at

Kapur

da Giri (not to mention Delhi, Allahabad, Radhia,

reproductions have been found of the

]\Iathiah, &c.), identical

religious edicts of Piyadasi,

whose dominion extended over

dialects
differ

the whole

of India.

The

according to the

provinces, but they are the

same

edicts,

and the differences

in expression are insignificant.

Moreover, we know that one

of ihe three formal councils which settled the rules of the

Order and the doctrines of ihe Buddhist

faith

was held

in the

reign of Asoka, under his all-powerful protection.

In 1840

Captain Burt discovered on a mountain near Babra, between

Delhi

and Jayapura, an inscription of

this

same King
This inscripto

Piyadasi, which seems absolutely conclusive.

tion, written in the

same language,

is,

according

Burnouf,

a kind of epistle

addressed by the King Piyadasi to the

together
in

Buddhist

monks assembled

Magadha.

The

34

INTRODUCTION
spirit

king points out to the Council the principal questions on

which they must deliberate, the

them, and the results they must

which should guide

strive to attain.

And

a detail
is

that gives particular value to the inscription at

fact that the

Babra

the

name

of the blessed Buddha, whose faith Asoka

it

upheld,

is

repeated several times, whereas

does not exist

in the other inscriptions.

The
with

grave importance of this inscription, with regard to

itself,

the history of Buddhism and of India

all
its

has been accepted

consequences by Messrs. Prinsep, Tumour,

Lassen, Burnouf, Weber, and

idle to contest the authority

Max

Miiller,

and
if

it

would be
It

of such competent judges.

appears therefore impossible to doubt that

Piyadasi was

not the Asoka of Magadha, as Mr. H. H. Wilson contends,

he was certainly a Buddhist king, who imposed Sakya-muni's

doctrine
tury B.C.

on

his subjects

towards the end of the fourth cen-

the Indian authorities

I

do not require any further evidence, and I would leave and turn to the Greek authorities, if did not wish to prove by a final example how the constant

We

discoveries
indicated.

made

in India confirm the great results I have

On

the walls of the fine grottoes hollowed out in

a granite rock, near Buddha-Gaya, in Magadha, inscriptions

have been found

at

in the

same

dialect as the larger inscriptions

in-

Girnar and Dhauli, relating that these grottoes were

tended for a habitation and retreat for the Buddhist mendicants,

to

by order of the King Dasaratha, second

in succession

Asoka, and by Piyadasi himself,

who

is

mentioned

in

several of the inscriptions, of

which each contains but three

or four lines.

These

inscriptions cannot be of later date

than the year 226 b.c, and although they are far less important than the greater edicts of which I have just spoken,
will
it

be seen that they

recall

and confirm them

in a striking

manner.

AUTHENTICITY OP BUDDHISM
1 shall

35

quote only one of the facts stated by the companions

of Alexander or their successors, which will

show

that the

Greeks knew of the existence of the Buddhists, as they had

known of that of the Brahmans. Nearchus and Aristobulus, who followed and survived Alexander, only mention the
latter,

and nothing demonstrates

Megasthenes, however,

that they

had heard of the

thirty years after

former.

who about

penetrated as far as Pataliputra, the Palibothra of the Greeks,

to the court of

Chandragupta, certainly meant to designate

the Buddhists under the

name

of

Sarmans or Garmans

he

mentions them as a sect of philosophers opposed to the

Brahmans, abstaining from wine, and

celibacy.

living in the strictest

By
but

his description
little

and the

spelling of the word,

which

is

altered,

we

recognize the Buddhists,

who

called themselves

more

especially

by the name of Sramans

mentioned by Megasthenes
*

or ascetics.
is

Another

characteristic

that

'

the Sarmans,'

he says,

have widi them women,

believers in the

same

philosophy, and
*

who

lead the

same

life

of celibacy.'
frugally

He

further adds that

these philosophers live

description applies

on food which none refuse to give them.' This most clearly to the way of life of the Buddhists, which was never practised by the Brahmans. Mendicancy and celibacy were the two conditions rigidly
imposed by the Buddha on
his disciples
;

and

if

Megasthenes
distinctly

is

the only

Greek historian of
it

that period

who

alludes to the Buddhists,

the only

is

most probably because he was

In
that part of the

one who had seen any.

Panjab

where the Macedonian expedition penetrated. Buddhism had

not yet spread, whereas
Pataliputra
held.
it

flourished in the country of which

was the

capital,

and where the

third Council

was
find

Onesicritus, Nearchus,

and Aristobulus did not

any Buddhists on the banks of the Indus and the Hyphasis

but Megasthenes must have
the

met with many on

the banks of

Ganges.

We

must also recognize as Buddhists the

26
Pramnes
and

INTRODUCTION
(a corruption of the

word Sarmans), mentioned by

Strabo as adversaries of the Brahmans,

treated as charlatans.

whom

they derided

I will

add one

last
is

proof derived from the Greeks.

The

name
St.

of the

Buddha

quoted
is,

for the first time

by

St.
;

Clement

of Alexandria \ that

in the

third century a. d.
all

and as

Clement drew from Megasthenes

it is

he says about Indian

philosophers,
the

probable that he borrowed also from him

name

of the reformer, for the ambassador of Seleucusit

Nicator would have often heard

his journey,

mentioned

in the course of

and

in a ciiy

which from an early period has

been the centre of reform.

It will

thus be seen that the most authentic documents,

in testifying in the

Greek, Indian, Chinese, and others, agree

most unimpeachable manner

that

Buddhism

existed in India

before Alexander's expedition.

We

can therefore accept the

the Sin-

date of the Buddha's death that

halese
feel
;

we borrow from

and when we
that
its

treat of the

Buddhist doctrine we

may

certain

teaching was really addressed to the

it

Indian populations six centuries B.C.; that

vert

strove to con-

them

to higher beliefs,

and

to

overthrow the ancient

teaching of
to lead

the Vedas,
in ihe right

henceforth considered insufficient

salvation.

man

way of

Two

of the sacred books containing this teaching have

already been translated into French.

One

is

the Lohis of the

Good Law {Saddharma-pundarikd), by Eugene Burnouf, who, being the first Frenchman who perused the manuscripts sent to Paris by ]\Ir. B. H. Hodgson, drew from it his admirable
Introduction a Thistoire du Bouddhisme Indien.

The
I

other

Buddhist Sutra
alluded,

is

the Lalita-vistd7'a, to

which

have just

a translation into French from a translation of

Tibetan, collated with the original Sanskrit.
'

and of which M. Ph. Ed. Foucaux has published this work into

Stromates,

i.

p. 305, Sylburge's edition.

AUTHENTICITY OF BUDDHISM
Lastly the Rev. Spence Hardy, a Wesleyan missionary,
resided

27

who
his

twenty

years
y

in

Ceylon,

published in

1869

Manual 0/ Buddhism based on various Ceylonese books. It will be seen that we possess a great wealth of documents on the life and teaching of the Buddha. From all these
sources the following w^ork has been drawn, and every fact
will

be proved from competent aulhorilies.

take

I shall

Buddhism

at the three different periods of

its first

its

existence.

Beginning with

appearance,

I shall relate

the

life

and legend of the Buddha, as they are

told in the
I shall
its

canonical works adopted by the three Councils, and

examine the doctrine taught, and judge merits and its defects.

it

according to

Then
is set

I shall take

up Buddhism as

it

existed in

India
it

twelve hundred years after the death of the Buddha, and as

forth in the Travels

and Memoirs of Hiouen-Thsang,

a. d.,

a poor Chinese monk, whose journeyings through the peninsula lasted sixteen years,

from the year 629 to 645

and

who

carried back to China, after this wonderful pilgrimage,

657 volumes of Buddhist writings.

Lastly I shall study

Buddhism

in Ceylon, as

it

still

exists

under Enfrlish o

rule.

There

will

therefore be about an

equal

lapse

of time
It is

between these three epochs of the Buddhist

religion.

not a history of Buddh"sm that I presume to write.

I

As

have shown, a general history of Buddhism would include

much wider

range.
it

From

India and Ceylon

we should
be possible

have to follow

all

over Asia, and that for a period of

twenty-five centuries.
to carry out such a

Later on, no doubt,

it

will

stupendous undertaking, when learned

and

skilful

labours have furnished a quantity of material

still

which we

lack.

At

the present day, however,

we
I

can,

without running the risk of premature enterprise, pass in

review the most salient points of this vast subject.

have

28

iNTnoDUCTlON
the works I
refer to,

already noted them in giving to the Journal des Savanis

summary of most of
in
this

and

shall

republish
I

volume the greater part of the

It

articles

inserted in that important publication.

seems to
readers

me

that

by putting them together and giving them a

they

less severe

form,

might

become
study

interesting

to

whom

a greater display of learning might alarm.

But

repeat, this

of

Buddhism

is

principally

a philosophical one.

The Buddhist
is
is

system, like

many

of

the systems of the present day,

deficient in the

knowledge
easy to

of mankind.

On

all

sides,

it

an incomplete psychology
error.
It is

that has always

been the cause of so much

in India, several centuries

understand that
era, this
all

before the Christian

method was but a natural continuation of which had been made by former philosophers. In Greece, at about the same period, Socrates inaugurated the true knowledge of the human soul, whereas Indian philosophers took a mistaken view without hope of
faulty

the fruitless efforts

ever attaining truth, which was unfitted for their times and
for their country.

On

the course that Indian philosophers

pursued, two ways only were open, each as unfortunate as

the other
:

either to stand sdll for ever in the immobility of

Brahmanism, or

to pursue with

Buddhism

the desperate course

of self-ignoring atheism and of utter nihilism.

stopped at nothing, and his blind courage
striking qualities
is

The Buddha

one of the most seems

of his great

spirit.

In the present day,

it

however, and after the teaching of Descartes,

cult to

diffi-

understand and impossible to excuse such errors and

such weaknesses.
precept.
'

Philosophy has not changed

thyself
is its

its

ancient

Know
is
it.

immortal motto.
;

Its strength
its

and
is to

its

glory

to put this

motto into practice

to

weakness

forget

Whoever does not choose

be beguiled by

gerous, must

empty words and hypotheses, as sterile as they are danacknowledge that philosophy has one solid

AUTHENTICITY OF BUDDHISM
foundation, the observation of the workings of the
soul.
If

29

human

psychology does not form

its

basis,

it

runs a serious
that will

risk of

becoming but a

tissue of dreams,

dreams

be bright or gloomy according to the imagination that gives

them

birth.

The
is

only method worthy of science and of our

present lime

to begin the study of

conscience and to rise upwards through

ledge of the universe and of God.
to take this warrant,
it

man by the light of man to the knowto the confidence

Every system that neglects

title

and

to acquire this

claims,

is

ill

prepared for seeking after truth, and must not

into depths of error.

be surprised

if it falls

Here two excesses are equally to be feared: either exalting man beyond all measure as a God upon earth, or degrading him into a mere brute, a worshipper and victim of nihilism for if the systems of the present day were likely to become a religion such as Buddhism, their disastrous consequences
would soon show that they are equally unfitted to benefit
social progress.

In the teaching of the Buddha, and in the

it

wretched governments

has contributed to form, there

is

no place

for liberty or for

all
;

God.

The

true idea ot
it,

humanity

being al)sent,

liberty

has perished with

in practice as

well as in theory
is

and the human image being defaced, and noble hearts may yet
is free,

man
exist
is

unable to reassert himself or obtain the respect due to

him.

Many

virtuous souls

amongst the Buddhists, but no man

at the cost of annihilation.
It

and despotism

the infallible result of a doctrine that undertakes to save

man

has only forged

new

fetters

for

him here below.

I greatly fear that the present

systems
to the
is

will serve

the cause of liberty

no

better

by going

opposite extreme.

Man, such
he
is

as they conceive him,

not

more
would

real than as

conceived by Buddhism.

Though he

fain claim divinity,

he

is

not therefore more divine, and

for

his rights are

none the more secure

being assimilated to

those of a god.

Liberty cannot exist in

human

societies

30unless
it is it

INTRODUCTION
be
first

received and enshrined in the soul of

man

of spiritual birth.

This

is

a consideration that should

be particularly noted by innovators.

dispense with
philosophers
liberty,

Asia can, as
is
life

it

appears,

but to us liberty

itself,

and

must beware of furnishing arguments, even unintentionally, to those \\\\o contend against liberty, and

would be glad

to destroy

it

by invoking in defence of their

to be the teachings of science.
reflections,

arguments what they believe

ciently indicated the object I
real subject

But leaving these preliminary

and having
I will

suffi-

have in view,
life

turn to the

of the book and to the

of the Buddha.

PART

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM.

CHAPTER
Birth of the Buddha

I.

his cdiicalion ; his maniage ; he chooses his 'wife ; The Buddha s meditations ; his vocation cncouras^cd by the Go/d. gods ; the four visions ; t/ie younj^ prince's determination ; resistHis ance of his father and family ; he flies from Kapilavaslu. studies at Vaisdli and Kdjagriha; his five companions; he renounces the world. His retreat of six years at Uruvela ; his austerities and ecstasies ; the attainment of Buddha hood ; BodhiThe Buddha leaves his vianda and Bodhidrunia ; Vajrasanam. retreat; he goes to Benares to ^ turn the wheel of the Lazv' ; his teaching; his sojourn in Magadha and in Kosala ;- Bimbisdia, Ajdtasatru, Prasetinjit, Andtha Pindika. The Buddha s interview with his father ; his dissensions with the Brahmans ; his triumph ; popular enthusiasm. Death of tlie Buddha at eighty years of age at Kusi nagara.

Towards

the

end of the seventh century

B.C., in the city

of

Kapilavastu, the capital of a small

kingdom of
the

the

same name

siiuated in Central India at the foot of the

mountains of Nepaul,

north of the present

kingdom of Oudh\
tribe

Buddha was born.

His father Suddhodana, of the

of the Sakyas, a descendant

of the great solar race of the Gautamides, ruled over the

* Towards the end of the fourth century of our era, Fa-Hian, a Chinese pilgiini, found Kapilavaslu in ruins; see Remusat, Foe Koue Ki, p. 198. Two centuries later, about the year 632 of the Christian era, Hiouen-Thsang also visited these ruins. He describes them as very considerable, the walls of the king's palace and garden, which were still apparent, being three miles in circumference see Life of Hiouen-Thsang and Memoirs of Hiouen-Thsang by Julien. Among the ruins Hiouen-Thsang was shown tiaces of the bedroom of the Jiuddha's mother, and of the young prince's study.
;

32
country.

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

[pt.

His mother, Maya Devi, was the daughter of the

King Suprabuddha, and her beauty was so transcendent that the name of Maya, or the Vision, had been given to her, her form seeming to be as is related in the Lalita-vistara the creation of some enchanting dream. Maya Devi's virtues

and

talents surpassed

even her excessive beauty,

for she

was

endowed with the h'ghest and choicest gifts of intelligence and piety. Suddhodana was worthy of his consort, and King of the Law, he ruled according to the Law. No other prince among the Sakyas was more honoured and respected by all classes of his subjects, from his councillors and coui tiers,
'

down

to the householders

and merchants.'

Such was the noble family from which the Liberator was
to arise.

He

thus belonged to the Kshatriya or warrior caste,

religious
life,

and when he eventually embraced a

called, in
IS

he was

honour of

his illustrious origin,

Sakya-nmni, that
the
of

to

say the

Sakya-sage, or the

Gautamide

ascetic.

His father gave

Sramana Gautama, him the name

this

Siddhartha or Sarvarthasiddha, and he retained

name

as

long as he lived as a Royal Prince (Kumaraiaja).

Later en

he exchanged

it

for

more

glorious names.
retired about the time of her

His mother, the queen, had

expected
delivery to

a pleasure

garden, called

after

her

grandmother, the garden of Lumbini*, and there overtaken

by the pangs of
of Uiarasadha,
or,

childbirth,

under the shade of ^

satin-tree

she gave birth to Siddhartha on the third day of the

month

according to another reckoning, the fifteenth

day of the month of Vesakha.

the pious austerities she

But weakened, no doubt, by

had practised during her pregnancy,

perhaps also
the
^

filled

with anxiety on account of ihe predictions

uttered about the son

Brahmans had
The

who was

to

be born

lavastu.
p. 323.

Lunibini park was about twenty-four miles north-enst of KapiHiouen-Thsang reverently visited it. See his Memoij's, vol. i.

cii. i]

LIFE OF THE
Maya Devi
'

BUDDHA
'

33
that she

of her,

died seven days after his birth

'

might not

says the legend

have her heart broken, by seeing

in to

her son leave her to

beggary and in want/

become a holy man, and to wander The orphan child was confided
at

the care of his mother's sister, PrajapatI

his father's wives,

GotamT, another of

who

a later period, in the days of the

his

Buddha's teaching, became one of

most

fervent adherents.

The
Asita,

child

was as
it

beautiful as his mother,

and the Brahman

whose duty

was

in

conformity with the ancient custom

to present

him

in the

temple of the gods, averred that he

found on him the thirty-two principal signs, and the eighty secondary marks by ^^hich, according to popular belief in
India, a great

man may

be recognized.
prognostics

Whatever may have

Siddhartha quickly

been

the

truth

of these

justified the

high repute in which he was held.

*

When

he was

sent to the

writing school

'

he displayed more talent even

than his masters, and one of them, Visvamitra, under whose

care he was

more

especially placed, eoon declared that he

had

nothing more to teach him.

his

In the midst of companions of

own

age, the child took

in

no part

in

their
;

games; he
often did he

seemed even then absorbed

his

higher thoughts

remain aloof to meditate, and one day when he had gone with

comrades
in

to visit

the agricultural village,' he

wandered
for

away alone

a great wood, where he remained

hours while no one knew what had become of him.

many The

king, his father, at length filled with anxiety, went in person to

seek him in the forest, and found

him

there,

under the shade

of a djambu tree, plunged in deep meditation.

Now

the time

be married.

The

drew near, when the young prince should chief elders of the Sakyas remembered the
for they

Brahman's predictions,

had

foretold that Siddhartha

would very probably renounce the crown in order to become an ascetic. They therefore implored the king to marry his
59n as SQon as possible, so as to assure the future of his rac^,

34

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

to

[pt.

They hoped
marriage.

bind the young

man

to the throne

by an

early

The

king, however,

who

doubtless was aware of

the prince's intentions, did not dare to speak to

he desired the elders to confer with him, and to

the proposal they

make

him himself; to him

deemed

so important.

Siddharlha,

who

dreaded
fire

'

the evils of desire,

more

to

be feared than poison,

or sword/ desired to have seven days given him for

Afier having well considered, feeling certain that

redeciion,

marriage, having been already accepted by

neither deprive

many

sages,

would

him of

the calm necessary for reflection, nor

of the leisure for meditation, he yielded to the request

to him, laying

made
wife

down, however, one condition

to

'

That the

chosen for him was not

be a low-minded or immodest
little

woman;

otherwise

it

mattered

to

him what might be

her caste, he would take her from

Sudras, as willingly as
the Kshatriyas,
qualities
if

among the Vesyas and the from among the Brahman women and
that

so be

she was endowed

with

the

which he required

in his consort/
their

He

then gave
list

the elders, to guide them in

choice,

a complete

which he had prepared of the

to possess.

qualities

he desired his bride

The
and
her

purohita or domestic priest of king Suddhodana was

therefore instructed to
after

go through

all

the houses at Kapilavas'.u,

viewing the young maidens of every house, to choose

best fulfilled the requirements of the prince,
*

who

whose

heart,

undazzled by rank or birth took pleasure only in true

virtue

successively presented to a mullilude of

demanded was young maidens of all ranks and classes, none however seemed to fulfil the At last one of them told the priest that siie requirements. possessed all the qualities demanded by the prince, and that
and
morality.'
list

The

of the virtues

if

he would accept her, she would be his

wife.

Summoned
girls

to

appear before the prince with several other beautiful

of her ow^n age, she was singled out by him, and the king

CH.

i]

LIFE OF THE

BUDDHA

35

gave his consent to the marriage.

But the maiden's father

DandapanT, of the Sakya

as the

was not so easily satisfied, and young prince was supposed to be given up to indolence
tribe,

and effeminacy, he demanded

his daughter, the beautiful

that before bestowing

on him

Gopa, he should give proofs of the

'

talents of all kinds,

which he possessed.
'

The

noble youth/

said

DandapanT
it is

sternly,

has lived in idleness wiihin the palace,

and

a law of our race only to give our daughters to

men

skilled in the arts,

never to those unacquainted with them.

This youth has never practised fencing, nor boxing, nor

bending a bow, neither does he

know

the rules of fighting

how can

bestow
?

my

daughter on one

who

is

not

skilful in

these exercises

The
cealed.

noble Siddhartha was therefore obliged, prince though

he was, to display the talents his modesty had hitherto conFive

hundred

of the

most distinguished
easily

young
himself

Sakyas were assembled, and the beautiful

to

Gopa was promised

proved
at first directed

the

victor.

The Royal

prince

superior to his rivals.

to different arts

But the contest was

from those proposed by DandapanT.

Sid-

dhartha showed himself more skilful than his competitors

or even his judges, in the art of writing, in arithmetic, in

grammar,

in syllogism, in the

knowledge of the Vedas, of

the philosophic systems, of ethics, &c.

Then passing from

all his

mental to bodily exercises, he vanquished

in

companions,

leaping,

swimming, running, bending the bow, and a

in

number of other games,

strength
as
skill.

which he displayed as much

his

Among
who

adversaries

were

his his

two

cousins; Ananda,
faithful disciples,

afterwards

became one of

most

defeat,

and Dewadatta, who, deeply irritated by his became from that day his implacable enemy. The beautiful Gopa was the reward of Siddhariha's victory, and

the

young

girl

who had considered

c 3

herself worthy of a king,

>vas declared the first of his wives.

From

that

moment

she

36
insisted,

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

notwithstanding the opposition

[pt.

of her family, on

never veiling her face in their presence, nor in that of the

palace
*

attendants.
sitting,

Those

who

are

virtuous,'

she

said,

whether

standing or walking, are always

fair to

look

upon.

precious, sparkling

diamond

glitters

more
their

brilliantly

from the top of a banner.

Women who control

thoughts

and subdue

their

senses, are satisfied with their husbands,

and never thinking of any other man, can show themselves

unveiled, like the sun

and moon.
all

The supreme and magr

knows

nanimous
thoughts,

Rishi, as well as

the other gods,

my

my

behaviour,

Why
such

therefore should I

my discretion, and my veil my face ?

to

modesty.

Notwithstanding the happiness of a union contracted under

auspices,
it

had no power
formed.

change the designs

his

Siddhartha had

already

In

splendid

palace

and surrounded by every luxury,

festivities

in the midst

even of the

and concerts that were perpetually going on, the young prince never relinquished the idea of his holy enterprise; and in the heroism and bitterness of his heart, he The three woij^ls, that of God, of the would often say, Asekhas, and of men, are consumed by the sufferings of disease and old age, they are devoured by the fire of death, and deprived of all guidance. The life of a human being

'

is

like a flash of lightning in the

sky

as the torrent rushes

down a mountain, so life flows on with an irresistible rapidity. By the fact of existence, by desire, and by ignorance, the creatures in the abode of men and gods are on the road to three evils. The ignorant but turn round and round, even as the potter's wheel turns on its axis. The nature
of desire, ever attended by fear and misery,
sorrow.
It is
is

the root of

more

to

be dreaded than the sharp edge of

tree.

a sword or the leaf of a poisonous

Like a reflected

image, an echo, a shimmer, or the dizziness of a dance,

like a

dream, an empty and

idle speech, like

magic or mira.q^

OH.
it

i]

LIFE OF THE

BUDDHA

3)

is

full

of deceit, and as empty as foam, or as a bubble

on the water. Disease robs the human body of its beauty, weakens the senses, the faculties, and the strength, and puts an end to riches and welfare. It brings on the day of death,
and of
I

r.in- migration.

Every creature, the

our eyes.

fairest, the

most

beloved, d.sappears for ever; like a leaf or fruit fallen into

the stream
it

is lost

for ever to

Then man,

solitary
fruit

and unaided, wanders

of his eardily labours.'

forth with but

one possession, the

Then, he adds,
reflections
*

after these

melancholy but compassionate

Decay
will

is
is

inherent in
unstable
;

all

component

things

all

that

is

composite

like a vessel of clay

which the

slightest

blow
a
city

shatter, like

wealth borrowed from

another,

or

of sand which does not hold together, or the sandy

river.

bank of a
and cause.

All

component things

are in turn effect

One

contains the other as the seed contains

the germ, although the

germ

is

not the seed.

But substance,

though not durable, has no interruption;

that does not

no being

exists

emanate from another; and therein

lies

the
is

apparent durability of substance.

The

wise man, however,

instance, the
is

not deceived by these appearances.

that is rubbed, the

For
it

wood
but
it,

wood with which

;

rubbed, and the

fire
;

action of the hands, are three things which cause

the
fire

soon dies out

it

and the sage, searching

came, and whither
the
it

in vain for

bonders: Whence

has gone?

The

sound of words
striking

is

made by
is

on the
speech
It is
:

lips

or the roof of the

movement of mouth

the tongue

or back of

the palate,

and language
is

formed with the help of the mind

but
in

all

but an echo, and language does not exist

its

If

the sound of a lute, of a flute,

sage wonders

Whence
all

Thence are
yogi, or sage,

and again the comes and whither it has gone ? forms born of causes and eff'ects, and the
it

on

reflection

perceives that forms

are but

3S

THE OklGlN Ot BUDDHISM

alone
is

[pt.

nothingness, which

immutable.

The

objects re-

vealed to us by our senses do not exist in themselves, none

of them possess

fixity,

which

is

the true characteristic of the

Law.
'

But
I

this

Law which
it

is

to save the world, I

understand

it,

and

must make

a time have I

known to both gods and men. Many thought, when I shall have attained supreme

wisdom (Bodhi) I will assemble together all living beings, and I will show them how they may enter the gates of immortality. Withdrawing them from the wide ocean of Creation, I will establish them in the land of patience.
Freed from the disturbing suggestions of the senses,
establish
I will

them

in peace.

In showing the light of the

Law
;

to creatures
I will give
will

duped by the darkness of profound ignorance,

them eyes

to see things clearly as they are

I
;

endow them with

the beautiful radiance of pure

corruption.'

wisdom

the eye of the

Law, without blemish or

These grave thoughts haunted young Siddhartha even in dreams; and one 'night, one of the gods, Hrideva, the god of modesty, descending from Tushita the abode of gladness, appeared to him, and by the following gentle words, encouraged him to set forth on the mission, for which he had been preparing himself for so many years.
his

'The time and the hour have come,' said the god, him who is resolved, to reveal himself to the world.

'for

He

who
he

is

not liberated himself, cannot liberate others

;

the blind

cannot show the way

but he

who

is

freed,

can free others

who

has eyes can show the path to those

those,

who know

it

not.

To

whoever they

may

be,

consumed by

earthly

desires, clinging to their houses, their wealth, their children,

their wives,

impart due instruction, and inspire in them a

desire to renounce the world,

and

to

adopt the holy

life

of

wandering monks.'

Meanwhile the king Suddhodana suspected the projects

CH.

i]

LIFE OF THE
He

BUDDHA
;

39
and
;

that agitated the heart of his son

care increased tenfold.

built

and him

his tenderness

three

new

palaces
;

one

for spring,

one

for

summer, and another

for winter

and
his

fearful lest the

young prince should take advantage of

all

excursions to escape from his family, he secretly gave the

strictest

orders that
all

his

movements should be watched.

However,
vain.

the

precautions taken by his father were in

The most
combined

unforeseen and most extraordinary circumto give increasing strength to the prince's

stances

resolution.

One

day, as he drove with a

city,

numerous

escort through the

eastern gate of the

on

his

way

to visit the

garden of

Lumbini, dear to him from the recollections of his childhood,

he met a decrepit old man, seamed with wrinkles, and bald-,

headed,

whose veins and muscles

hardly

stood out

like

cords,

while his chattel ing teeth

of a few harsh

permitted

the

utterance

and

inarticulate sounds.

His skinny hands

clutched a rugged staff to support his tottering steps, and

his bent

body and limbs shook with

is

palsy.

'Who
'He
is

this

man?'

cried the prince to his charioteer.

small of stature and devoid of strength, his flesh and

is

blood are dried up, his muscles cleave to his skin, his hair
white, his teeth chatter, his
staff,

body

is

emaciated

bent over his

at every

he drags himself painfully along, stumbling

Is this a condition peculiar to his family
all
.?

step.

or

is

this

the law that governs

'

mankind

Prince,' replied the charioteer,

;

'

this

man

is

overcome by
his

age

all

his senses are

is

weakened, suffering has destroyed

strength, he
protec'cor
;

cast aside

by

his relations;
is

and he has no
abandoned
like

incompetent in business, he
in a forest.

dead wood
his family.

But

his

is

not a condition peculiar to

is

In

all

living beings,
all

youth

conquered by age
allies will

your father and mother,

thus
;

your relations and

end

it is

the natural

and

fatal issue/

46
'

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

Since this
is

[pr.

so,'

replied the prince,

an ignorant and
youth

weak man, lacking

in discernment, takes pride in the

that intoxicates him,

and does not see old age awaiting him.

As

for

me,

will
I,

go no
too,

further.

Turn

back

quickly,
;

charioteer.

For
I

am

the future

abode of old age

what have
Lumbini.

to

do with

pleasure
into the

and joy?'

And

the
to

young prince drove back

town without going

Another day, he was going with a large retinue through

the southern gate to the pleasure garden,

when he saw
friends

in the

road a
a thin

man who was

stiicken

by
all

disease, shaking with fever,

and mud-stained form, without

at

or

shelter,

gasping for breath, and with

terror

the appearance of intense

the approach of

death.

After

interrogating
:

his

charioteer
*

and receiving the expected answer

*

Health,' said the prince,

evil is

is

then like a deceptive dream,

1

and the dread of

is

then an unbearable torture

Where

the wise

man who,

after

having seen what

it is,

can hence-

forth enjoy happiness or pleasure?'

And

the prince turned his chariot, and went back to the

town, widiout going any further.

Again another time, he was going by the western gale

the pleasure garden,

to

when he

stretched

on a

bier,

on the road a dead man covered over with a cloth. A band

spied
it,

of wailing relations sunounded

filling

the air with their

lamentations, tearing their hair, covering their heads with

dust,

and

striking their breasts as they uttered loud cries.

The
ah
life
!

prince, calling again his charioteer to witness, ex*

claimed,

Ah

woe un:o youth

that

old age

must destroy
;

woe

for the health so destroyed

by sickness
!

ah

woe

to

that gives

man

so short a time
!

If there
!

were neither

old age, nor sickness, nor death

Oh

if

only old age, sick-

ness and death were for ever destroyed

Then,

for the

first

time betraying his secret thought, the

CM.

^//^i^
'

OF THE BVDDIIA
Return home again,
I

41

young prince added

must think over

hesita-

the accomplishment of this deliverance/

A
tion

last
'.

meeting decided him, and put an end to

all

He was

leaving the city by the northern gate to go

to the pleasure garden,

when he saw

a Bhikshu or mendicant,

who by

his calm, chastened,

and reserved demeanour, seemed

;

dedicated to the calling of a Brahma-chari^

he stood with

lowered eyes, fixing his

gaze no further than the length

of a yoke, in a befitting manner, wearing with dignity the

garment of a
*

Who

is this

Lord,'

monk and carrying an alms-bowl. man ? inquired the [irince. replied the charioteer, this man is one
' *

of those

called Bhikshus; he has

renounced
he

all

lustful

desires,

and

leads a most austere

life;

stiivcs to

subdue himself, and

has

become a mendicant.
That
be
is

Without passion or envy, he

Siddhartha,

wanders about subsisting on alms.'

'

right

and well
life

said,*

replied

'

the
;

choice of a religious
will

has ever been lauded by sages

;

it

my resource,

and the resource of others

life,

it

will

become

to us

an efflorescence of

happiness, and immortality.'

Then the young prince turned his chariot, and having come to a determination, went home without going to
Lumbini.

His decision could not long be kept

secret.

The king

was soon informed of

Guards were stationed
servants

it,

and exercised

still

grea er vigilance.

at all the

palace gates, and the king's

night.

anxiously

watched day and

at
first

The young

prince would not

make

use of any stratagems as

* These different meetings are famous in I-uddhistic legends. The king Asoka built stupas and vihaias at all the spots where the Buddha made them. Hiouen-Thsang, in the seventh century of our era, saw these monuments and their ruins. * Brahma- chari. or he who walks in the way of the Brahmans this is the name given to the young Brahman all the time he is studying the The principal V<;das, that is till he is about thiity-five years old.
;

condition of his noviciate

is

absolute chastity.

42

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

them
in
for cases of necessity.

[pt.

a means of escape, for ihey were repugnant to him, and he

reserved
the
first

Gopa,

his wife,

was

whom

he confided, and one night, when,

startled

by a dream, she asked him what such

visions meant, he

informed her of his scheme and was able to console her, for
the time being, for the loss that threatened her.
all

respect and submission, he went the very

Then, same night

in

to

his father,
*

and spoke
is

as follows

Lord, the time

come when
Grant

must reveal myself

to ihe

world, do not I pray you oppose

my

wish,

and be not too

with

much

grieved by

it.

your family and people, grant

me leave, O king, together me leave to depart.'

: '

The
can

king, his eyes

suffused with tears, replied

thee change ihy purpose
I will

I do,

my

son, to

make

What Thou
it.

hast but to
^lyself,
thine.'
*

name

the

boon ihcu covetest and

grant

my

servants,

my

palace,

my

kingdom, take

all, all is

Lord,' replied Siddhartha, in a gentle voice,

'

desire but

four things, which I beg

you

will

grant me.

If

you can give

them
in

to

me

I will stay

near you, and you will see

never leave.

me

alway

your abode, which

I shall

Grant, Lord, that

old age shall never overtake

lasting youth

me

that I shall retain everthat sickness shall

life

and freshness; grant

;

have

no power over me
nor end.'

and

that

my

shall neither

decay

On
grief.

hearing
'

these
child,'
1

words, the

king was overcome with

'

O my

he exclaimed,
helpless.

what thou askest

is

impossible, and
the midst of

am

The

Rishis themselves, in

Kalpa where ihey

and
sickness,

dwell,

have never escaped the

fear of old age

*

and death, and decay.'

If I

can neither escape the fear of old age, nor sickness,

nor death, nor decay,' replied the young

cannot grant
least,

man

'

if

you. Lord,

me

these four chief things, bestow

is

on me
:

at

king, one thing that

not less important

grant

en.
that

1]

LIFE OF THE

BUDDHA

43

on disappearing from
that

this earth I shall

be for ever freed

from the vicissitudes of transmigration.'

The king saw

resolute a purpose,

it

was no use

trying to oppose so

dawn he summoned the Sakyas to They resolved to oppose acquaint them with the sad news. They took pon themselves the the prince's flight by force.
and
at
i

guard of the palace gates, and while the younger

sentry, the
in
all

men were on

most venerable of the

all

elders spread the alarm

quarters of the city so that

the inhabitants should be

himself, surrounded

on
five

the alert.

The king Suddhodana

young

by

hundred young Sakyas, kept watch

at the palace gate

while his three brothers, the

prince's uncles, stood at

his

each of the

city gates,

and one of the chief Pakyas took

all

post in the centre of the city to see that

orders should be

punctually executed.
aunt,

In the interior of the palace, Siddhartha's

Gotaml, meanwhile directed the women's watch, and stimulated their vigilance, by saying If after leaving the kingdom and the country the prince wanders far away as a monk, all the palace will be filled with
Prajapati
:

Maha

'

sadness,
to

and the kingly

race,

which

is

so ancient, will

come

an end.'
All these efforts proved vain
;

nights,

on one of the follov.ing worn out by long watching, were slumbering, the young prince ordered his charioteer Chandaka

when

the sentries,

to saddle

his horse

Kanthaka, and succeeded

Before obeying his

in escapin.:;

unseen

from

the

city.

request,

the

faithful follower

had

for the last time tried to dissuade

him

from

bis purpose,

and had implored him, wiih streaming

eyes, not to sacrifice his splendid youth

by going

to lead the

miserable

life

of a mendicant, and not to quit the magnificent

all

palace, the

abode of

happiness and pleasure.

The

prince,

however, had not yielded to the supplications of the devoted

servant,
*

and had

replied

Earthly passions, I

know

too well,

Chandaka, are the

44

TH^ ORIGIN
all

01^

BUDDHISM
them

[pf.

destruction of

virtue
;

have known them and can no

like a serpent's

longer enjoy happiness

the sages avoid

head, and quit them for ever like an impure vessel.

Rather

would

be struck by a thunderbolt, or that showers of arrows

darts^ like flashes of fire
fall

and red-hot

from the flaming heights

head, than that
I

of a mountain, should

on

my

should

be born again to the cares and desires of a household/

It

was midnight when the prince

Pushya, that had presided at his

left

Kapilavastu, and the

s'ar

rising in the horizon.

At
last

loved, the heart of the

was at that moment moment of quilting all that he had young man for an instant sank within
birth,

the

him, and casting a

forsaking
'

look at the palace and city he was

I shall
'

not return to the city of Kapila,' he said in a low

I

voice,
I shall

till

have obtained the cessation of birth and death

till

not return

have attained the supreme abode

stand upright, no

exempt from age and death, and have found pure wisdom.

When

I return,

the

town of Kajnla
slumber.'

will

longer weighed

down by

And,
twelve
religion.

in fact,

he did not see

his father or

Kapilavastu
to

till

years

later,

when he converted them

through the

the

new
after

Meanwhile Siddharlha rode

night

leaving the country of the Sakyas, and that of the Kandyas,

he passed through the country of the Mallas and the

city of

Meneya.
horse,
his

By daybreak he had
reins to

travelled a distance of six

yodjanas, about thirty-six miles.

Then he

leapt from his

also

and handing the

Chandaka he gave him

it,

cap with the cla^p of pearls which adorned

an orna-

mei.t he

deemed no longer

necessary, and dismissed him.

details are
left

The
taken,

Lalita-vistara,

from which most of these

spot where

adds, that at the

Chandaka
and
'

him, a

chaitya, or sacred edifice,

was raised

to this day,' says

the writer,

'this

monument

bears the

name of Chandaka-

cii.

i]

LIFE OF THE
is
''

BUDDHA
of Chandaka."
says, built
*

45
Hiouen-

Nivartana, that

the

return

Thsang saw this stupa, which was, he Asoka on the edge of a great forest
nagara, where he died fifty-one years

by the king

that Siddhartha

must

have passed through, and which was on the road to Kusilater.

When

the prince

was alone he divested himself of

and rank.
First,
it

the last

vestiges of his
hair with his

caste

he cut off his long

sword blade, and cast

to the

winds

monk

could not wear the flowing locks of a warrior.

Then he

exchanged
skin.

his

princely robes of Benares silk (from Kasi)

wiih a hunter, whose clothing was of worn-out yellow deer-

The
it

hunter,
at

though embarrassed by the exchange,

for

accepted

once,

he saw that he had to deal with

a person of high distinction.

No sooner
him.

was Siddhartha's

flight

discovered than the king

sent in pursuit of him, but the messengers failed to overtake

In their rapid chase they soon, however, met the hunter

attire,

dressed in the prince's

treated
to

and would probably have

ill-

him but

for the

presence of Chandaka,

who was

able

calm them.

He

related Siddhartha's escape,

and when

the messengers, in obedience to the king's orders, tried to

continue the pursuit

till

they should reach the prince, the

charioteer dissuaded them.

'the
said
I

'You would not succeed in bringing him back,' he said young man is firm in his courage and resolve. He
;

'I will not return to the great city of Kapilavastu until

have attained perfect, complete, and supreme wisdom;

not return except as the Buddha."
;

I will

He

will

not belie
will

his

words

as he has said, so

it

will be, the

young man

not change.*
solation
;

Chandaka could

he gave back to

no other conMaha PrajapatT GotamI the jewels

ofi'er

the king

Siddhartha had confided to his care, but the queen could not look at the ornaments that recalled such sad memories, and

tiuew them into a pool, ihcnceforili called

The

pool of the

46

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

knew

[pt.

Jewels' (Abharanapushkari).
wife,

But Gopa, Siddhartha's young

too well the steadfastness of his purpose, to enterhis

tain

any hope of

speedy return

and although she was

glorious

to

a certain extent prepared for the cruel separation, she re-

mained inconsolable, notwithstanding the

predicted by the faithful Chandaka.

future

in succession, the

Brahmans young prince reached at last the large city of Vaisali. He had now to prepare himself for the long conflict he had to undertake with the Brahmanical doctrines.
After having accepted the hospitality of several

He was

too modest to believe himself sufficiently prepared for

and wished to put himself to the test, and at il.e same time acquire a thorough knowledge of their doctrines. He sought out the Brahman Alara Kalama, who was rethe contest,

nowned
less

as the

most learned of

professors,

and who had no

than 300 disciples, besides a throng of listeners.

The

beauty cf the young man,

time in
this

when he appeared
all

for the first

assembly,

filled

present with admiration, and

above

all

Kalama

himself; but before long he admired the

still

learning of Siddhartha

besought him to share with him

the
*

more than his beauty, and he his work of teacher. But

not truly a deliverance.

young sage thought

it

within himself:
is

This doctrine of Alara

will

The
this

practice of

not completely free humanity from misery.'

in
his heart
:

Then he added
doctrine,
senses, I shall

'

In rendering perfect

which consists in poverty and the subduing of the

attain true

freedom, but I must

still

make

further researches.'

He
that

remained therefore some time at Vaisali

capital Rajagriha.
;

on leaving
beauty and

city

he advanced into the country of Magadha, and

reached

its

His reputation

for

wisdom had preceded him

surprise at the sight

and the people, struck with of such self-abnegation in so handsome

to

and youthful a man, flocked

meet him.

The crowds

that

CH.
filled

i]

LIFE OF THE
day the

BUDDHA

47

that

streets of the city ceased, says the legend,

both buying and selling, and even abstained from drinking

wine and
cant
self,

all

liquors, in order to contemplate the noble

mendi-

who came begging

alms.

The king Bimbisara him-

descrying him from the windows of his palace, in front of

which he passed, borne forward by the popular enthusiasm,

had him watched

there
in

to his retreat

on the slope of by a

the

Pandava
retinue.

mountain, and the next morning, to do him honour, went

person,

accompanied
the

numerous
as

Bimbisara was

about

same age
his

Siddhartha,

and

deeply impressed by the strange condition in which he found

the

young

prince,

charmed by

discourse, at
his

once so
never

elevated
virtue,

and so simple, touched by

magnanimity and

he embraced his cause from that

moment and
move
in

ceased to protect him during the rest of his reign.

seductive offers were, however, powerless to
ascetic
;

His most
the

new

and

after

sojourning

some

time

the
to the

capital

Siddhartha retired

far

from the crowd and tumult

banks

of the river Nairanjana, the Phalgu of

If we are to believe the

modern geography.
the Sinhalese chronicle,

Mahavansa^

written in verse in the

fifth

century of our era by

Mahanama,
to use

who composed

it

from the most ancient Buddhist documents,

the king Bimbisara

was converted to Buddhism, or

sixteenth
at the

the expression of the writer, 'joined the Congregation of the

Conqueror,' in

the

year of his reign.

fifteen,

He had
less

ascended the throne

than fifiy-two years.
ties

age of

and reigned no

His father was bound by the strongest

of affection to Siddliariha's father, and this was no doubt

one of the reasons that had made Bimbisara so favourable to

him.

His son

Ajiitasatru,

who murdered

him, did not at

first

share his kindly feeling towards the Buddha, and for

some

time persecuted the innovator before accepting his doctrine,

as

we

shall see later.

Notwithstanding the enthusiastic welcome the Sramana

48

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

received, both from kings

[pt.

Gautama

and peoples, he did not

of the power

consider himself sufficiently prepared for his great mission,

lie determined to

make

last

and decisive

test

of his arguments.

than the

Brahman even more celebrated His name was Udraka, son of Kama, and he enjoyed an unrivalled reputation among the
There
lived at Rajagriha a
Vaisali.

Brahman of

common

people and even

to him,

among

the learned.
to

Siddhariha
After

went humbly

and asked

be his disciple.

some conversations Udraka raised his disciple to be his equal, and established him in a teacher's abode, saying, Thou and
'

together will teach our doctrine to this multitude.'

His

disciples numbered 700. However, as at Vaisali, the superiority of the young ascetic was soon apparent, and he was compelled to separate himself

from Udraka

'

Friend,' he said to iiim,

this

path docs not

it

lead to indifference to things of this world,

to emancipation from passion,
tion of the vicissitudes of
it

does not lead

does not lead to the prevenit

it

mankind,

does not lead to calm,

lead
in

nor perfect wisdom, neither does

to

the

state

of
all

Sramana nor
Udraka's

to

Nirvana.'

Then,

the presence cf

disciples,

he parted from him.

Five of the disciples, fascinated by the teaching of Sid-

dhariha and the lucidity of his precepts, Lft their former

master to follow the reformer.

high caste, says the legend.

They were

all

five

men

cf

Siddhartha

first

withdrew wiih

them

10 INIount

Gay a, then he returned

his

to the

banks of the

Nairanjana, to a village called Uruvela, where he deiermined

to settle with

companions before going

forth to teach

mankind.

Henceforth he was decided with regard to the

learning of the Brahmans, he

insufficiency
less
;

knew

its

capacity, or rather

its

he

felt

himself stronger than they.

Nevertheweaknesses,

he

still

had

to gain strength against his

own

^nd although he disapproved of the excessive Brahmanic

ta.

i]

LirE OF THE

BVDDHA
It

49

asceticism, he

determined to submit for several years to

life

of penance and self-mortification.

was perhaps by

way of ensuring
possessed, but

Brahmans means of subduing the senses. Siddhartha was twenty-nine years of age when he left the
as popular a consideration as the
it

was

also a

palace of Kapilavastu.

Uruvela
this

is

celebrated

in

the

annals

of

Buddhism

for

long

retreat,

which lasted

six years,

and during which

Siddhartha gave himself up, without a moment's wavering, to

the

most severe and rigorous mortifications, *at which the

filled

gods themselves were

with horror.'

He

withstood the
shall see

nio^t fearful attacks of his

later

own

passions,

and we

how

the legend transforms these moral struggles into

material conflicts with the

demon Papiyan
last

(the most vicious),

his

who, notwithstanding his cunning, his violence, and

numerous army, was

by

at

overthrown and vanquished,

without being able to tempt or terrify the

his virtue destroyed the

young ascetic, who, kingdom of Mara, the Spirit of

years of privations^ sufferings,

Evil.

However,

at the

end of

six

and excessive

fastings, Siddhartha,

persuaded that asceticism

was not the path

regular food,

that led to perfect

wisdom, determined
of the

to

cease such excessive mortifications, and began again to take

which a young

village

girl

name

of

Sujata brought to him.

the strength
terrible

In a short space of time he recovered

his

and beauty which had been destroyed by

His
five disciples,

macerations.
faithful,

who had
all

hitherto

remained

and had imitated

;

his acts of penance,

were

scandalized at his weakness they forsook him and went

called Rishi-patana,

and losing

esteem for him,

away

to Benares, to the place

where he eventually rejoined them.

Alone, and abandoned by his followers, in his hermitage at

Uruvela, Siddhartha continued his meditations, although he

diminished his austerities.

It

was no doubt D

in this solitude

50
that

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

he worked out the principles of
his system,

[pt.

and

laid

down

the rules of discipHne for his followers.

Henceforth

he wore the garb and adopted the customs he intended to

impose on them, and by the example he set he forestalled any resistance that his rigorous precepts might stir up even
in the

most ardent of

his sectarians.

The

clothes the hunter

had formerly ceded to him had

been
wandering from
to

fallen

in tatters, they

had

his only covering for the last six years

city
city,

years
to

spent in

and jungle

jungle, often

without shelter, with the bare

It

soil as his only resting-place.

became necessary to renew those garments, and this is the way in which we are told that he replaced them. Sujata,
the daughter of the chieftain of Uruvela,

who had been

so

devoted to him, and who, assisted by ten of her women,

continued to bring him food, had a slave called

Radha who
in

had

just died.

The woman had been

her

buried in a neigh-

bouring cemetery, and

body had been wrapped

a coarse linen cloth (sana).

few days

after

her burial

Siddhartha opened the grave and took the shroud.

*in order to

Then,

show what
hands.

a-

monk must

do,'

he washed in
it

a pool the earth-stained shroud, and fashioned and sewed

with his

own

The

place where he sat at that time

that
is
'

was afterwards called Pansukiila-Sivana,

of the shroud.'
for his

the sewing

Hence

the reason of the ordinance he

to

made
put

monks, that they were

be habited

in clothes

together from cast-off rags picked up in the streets, by the

roadside, or even in graveyards.

Who
resist

indeed

among them
the illustrious

would have dared

to

complain or

when

scion of a great royal family, the sole heir of the Sakyas,

had abandoned
and beauty
hand.
in

all

power and

riches
?

and robed

his

youth

such woful raiment

However, the end of these long and painful

trials

was

at

Siddhartha had but one more step to take.

his future

He
felt

knew

adversaries

and he knew himself; he

tn.

LIP-E

OF THE BUDDHA
and of
his

1
but his

sure of their weakness

own

strength,

humility

still

gave him some lingering scruples.

He

debated

with himself whether, entrusted with the salvation of mankind,

he had indeed attained a

sufficiently definitive

and immutable
have

knowledge of the truths he was

*In
all

to reveal.
I far

have done and acquired, he thought,

surpassed

human

law, but I have not yet reached the point

where

I shall clearly distinguish

supreme wisdom.
disease,

am

not

yet in the true path of knowledge, nor in that which will

lead to the irrevocable

end of old age,

his

and

death.'

Then he would
brilliant early visions

recall

childhood's

memories, the

he had in his father's gardens under

anxiously
inquired

the

djambu

tree,

and he

of

himself

whether his mind, matured by age and

indeed realize
the

reflection,

would

marvellous

promises

that

his

youthful

imagination had held out to him.

Saviour of mankind
to
?

Could he indeed be the

a meditation that appears

At

last, afier

have

lasted, without interruption, a

his frequent ecstasies,

whole week, during

one of
all

Siddhartha found he could in

afTirmativcly.

sincerity of heart

answer the question

last
;

'Yes, he had at

found the true path of greatness.

fail

The

path of sacrifice
;

the sure path which will not

;

nor
path

dishearten

the

blessed path of virlue

the spotless
;

devoid of envy, ignorance, and passion

leads to freedom

the

path which be as no

and makes the power of

evil

power

the

path

which overleaps the regions of trans-

migration and reduces

outstrips Sakra,

them

to

nought; the path which

Brahma,

IVIahesvara,

and the guardians of

the path

the world

the path which leads to the possession of universal

;

knowledge
from

the path of experience

and judgement

that sofiens old age

all

and death

the calm, serene path,

exempt

fear of evil,

which leads

to the city of Nirvana.'

at this

In one word, Siddhartha believed

that

supreme moment
true

he could indeed

call

himself the

and perfect

5-2

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

that
in his

[pt.

Buddha,

and

is, the Wise One in all his purity and greatness, power greater than gods or men.

The
Buddha

place where Siddhartha

is

became

at last the perfect

as famous in the legends as Kapilavastu, the place

;

of his birth

Uruvela, the place of his six years' retreat

or

Kusi-nagara, the place of his death.

the

The

precise spot where

that
all
is

Buddha

revealed himself

is

called

Bodhimanda,

to

say the seat of wisdom, and tradition has preserved

details of the

the

solemn
to the

act.

On

his

way

banks of the Nairanjana

at

Bodhimanda,

the Bodhisatwa* met,

on the right-hand side of the road, a seller of grass, who was cutting a soft, pliable grass such as mats are made of, and of a very fragrant odour.' The Bodhisatwa turned aside, and going up to the man, whose name was Svastika, asked him for some of the grass he was
*

mowing;

then spreading

it

as a carpet, with

the blades

turned in and the roots outwards, he seated himself crosslegged, his body upright and turned to the east, at the foot

of a tree which

is

called

the tree of wisdom, Bodhidruma.'

'

Then, as he sealed
away,

himself, he said,

May my body
raise
I

waste

my

skin, bones,
I

and

flesh

perish, if I

myself

from the grass

am

seated

on

before

have attained

supreme wisdom/

He
the

remained through the long hours of a day and night

it

without moving, and

was

at the last

hour of watching,

at

moment

of dawn,

when

sleep
at

most overcomes the

of drum,
that,

senses,

and as the Tibetans say

beat

having

assumed the rank of perfect Buddhahood, and of absolute

wisdom, he attained the threefold knowledge.
'Yes,' he then exclaimed, *yes,
it

is

thus that I will put an

striking the

end
*

to the sorrows of mankind.'

And

ground

The Bodhisatwa

is

the future Buddha, that

is,

the being

who

has

all the qualities requisite to

become Buddha, but has not

yet attained

Buddhahood.

CH.

i]

LIFE OF THE
*

BUDDHA
he added,
all
'

53

with his hand,

it is

May
all
is
it

this earth/

be

my

witness

the

abode of

beings,

it

contains
it

that is

moveable

and immoveable,
not
lie/

impartial,

will

bear witness that I do

If the

human

race was not saved, as Siddhartha

it

may

at

that moijient have persuaded himself

was, a

new

religion

was

at all events instituted.

The Buddha was

sat at

then thirty-six

years of age.

The
fig-tree,

tree

under which he

of the species called pippala

the veneration of the faithful

fervent worship,

Bodhimanda was a large {Fuus religiosa)) and soon made it an object of

In the year 632

which lasted
is

for centuries.

of our era, that

twelve hundred years after the death of the

Buddha, Hiouen-Thsang, the Chinese pilgrim, saw the Bodhidruma, or

at least the tree that
it

passed as such.

We

are

told in the Lalita-vistdra that

grew about

forty-five miles

from Rajagriha, the

Nairanjana.

capital of

Magadha, not

far

from the

The

tree

was

protected

by huge walls of

masonry, which extended to the east and west, and perceptibly

cipal

narrowed towards the north and south.

The

prin-

gateway opened eastwards, facing the

river Nairanjana.

The

southern gate was in the vicinity of a large pool, no

siiroud.

doubt the one in which Siddhartha washed the

the west rose a belt of steep mountains,
side

To

and the northern

communicated with a
and the
traveller

lafrge

monastery.
its

The
fall

trunk of
glossy

the tree was of a whitish-yellow colour,

leaves

green

was told they did not

it

either in

autumn or

in winter.

Only,

was added, on the anniversary

all

of the Buddha's Nirvana they

suddenly

fall off,

following day

grow

again, finer

and larger than before.

and the Every

year the kings, ministers, and magistrates assembled

on

that

day beneath the

scattered flowers,

tree,

watered

it

with milk, lighted lamps,

and withdrew,

bearino^

away

the leaves that

^a4

fallen?

54

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

'

[pt.

Near the * tree of wisdom Hiouen-Thsang saw a statue Buddha, before which he prostrated himself; its erection has been attributed to Maitreya; one of the Buddha's most famous disciples. All round the tree and the statue, hi a very confined space, a number of sacred monuments,
of the

each recalling some pious memories, were to be seen.

The

devout pilgrim

tells

us that he took eight or nine days

to worship them,

one

after the other; there

were stupas and

viharas, or monasteries, of every size

and shape. The Vajraparticularly pointed

sanam or Diamond Throne was more

out to the admiration of the faithful;
it

was the

hillock
to

on

which the Buddha had

superstition,

sat,

and which, according

to

popular

was deslincd
that,

disappear

when men should

become
It

less virtuous.

seems certain

aided by the very exact information

given in the Lah'ia-vtsidra, and also by Fa-Hian and Hiouen-

Thsang, Bodhimanda could

be found, nor would

it

be

surprising
officer

if

one day some

intelligent

and courageous
he had made

British

were to announce

to us that

this disit

covery,

which would be well worth any trouble

might

have

cost.
if

The

features of the country have not altered,

and

the trees have perished, the ruins of so

left

many monu-

ments must have

recognizable traces upon the soiP.

The
being

retreat of the

Buddha under

the sacred fig-tree at

Bodhimanda was
visited.

not, however, so secluded as to prevent his

Besides Sujata and her young companions,

the

who supported
least

Buddha by

their gifts of food,

he saw

at

two other persons,

whom

he converted to the new

faith.

These were two

'

brothers, both merchants,

who were

passing

See the reports of Sir Francis Buchanan (Hamilton) quoted by Ml )ntgoinery Martin in his History of Eastern India, and that of Major Kittoe in volume xvi. of the Journal of the Bengal Asiatic Society. Sir Francis' exploration took place in 1810, and Major Kittoe's in 1 847. See also the learned work of Vivien de Saint-Martin, volume ii. of thg Memoir? of Hiouen-Thsang, 3J'o ^nd following pageg.

CH.

i]

LIFE OF THE
Bodhimanda on
their

BUDDHA

55

close to

journey from the south, whence

caravan that followed them

they were bringing to the north, where they dwelt, a large

quantity of merchandise.

The

was numerous, as
waggons.

it

was conveying several hundreds of

Some

of the vehicles having stuck fast in the

mud, the two brothers, Trapusha and Bhallika by name, applied to the holy ascetic for help, and while they followed
his

advice, were
*

touched by his virtue and superhuman

brothers, the Lalita-vistara
in the
tells us,

wisdom.
Buddha.'

The two

as

well as all their

companions, took refuge

Law

of the

Notwithstanding this

first

promising token of success, the

Buddha
in

still

hesitated.

Henceforth he was assured of being

truth.

complete possession of the

it?

But how would men

light

be disposed to receive

He

brought to mankind

and

salvation, but

would

men

consent to open their eyes?

Would they enter the path they were bidden to pursue? The Buddha once more retired into solitude, and spending
his
'

days in contemplation, he thus meditated in his heart

The Law

that

emanates from

me
;

is

profound, luminous,

subtle, difficult of

comprehension

it

baffles analysis,

and

is

beyond the powers of reasoning;

learned

accessible

only to the
all

and the wise;

it

is

in
all

opposition to

worldly

wisdom.
all

Having abandoned

individuality, extinguished
it

ideas, interrupted existence

by absolute calm,
;

is

in-

visible,

being essentially immaterial

having destroyed desire

to

and passion, and thus having put an end

of entity,
it

any reproduction

leads to Nirvana.
this

But

if I,

the truly enlightened

Buddha, teach

and
to

will

expose

Law it will not be understood by others, me to their insults. No, I will not give way
to

my

feelings of compassion.'

Three times was the Buddha on the point of yielding

this

weakness, and perhaps he might have renounced his

great enterprise for ever,

and have kept

for himself the secret

56

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

;

[pt.

of eternal deliverance
last to

but a supreme thought decided him at

put an end to his hesitation.

'All beings, he reflected, whether high or low, whether

they are very good, very bad, or indifferent, can be divided

into three classes
:

of which one-third

is

in error

and

will

so

remain, one-third possesses the truth, and one-third lives in

unceriainty.

Thus a man from

the edge of a

pond

sees lotus-

flowers that have not

emerged from the

water, others that

are on a level with the surface, and again others that stand up out of the water. Whether I teach or whether I do not teach the Law, those who are in error will not be the wiser whether I teach or do not teach the Law, those who possess
;

the truth will

still

be wise;

but those beings

who
;

live

in

uncertainty
it

will, if I

teach the Law, learn

it.'
'

wisdom

if

teach

not, they will not learn

The Buddha was

seized

with a great pity for the multithis thought, full

tude of beings plunged in uncertainty,' and

of compassion, decided him.

gates of Immortality to those
astray

He was
who had

about to open the

so long been led

by

error,

that he at last

them the four sublime truths comprehended, and the connecting links of
to

by revealing

causes.

Having once
benefits,

fixed the basis of his doctrine,

and having
its

determined to brave everything in order to scatter abroad

Siddhartha asked himself to
it.

whom

he should

first

communicate

At
in

first, it

is

said,

he intended to address

himself to his old teachers at Rajagriha and Vaisali.

Both

had welcomed him

former days; he had found both pure,

full

good, devoid of passion and envy,

sincerity.
light that

of knowledge and

He owed

it

to

them

to share with

ihem the new

shone for himself, and which formerly they had

Before going to teach his doctrine
the holy city (Benares), he wished to instruct

sought together in vain.

at Varanasi,

Udraka, the son of Rama^ and Alara K^lapia. whoip hg

cii. i]

LIFE OF THE
When

BUDDHA

57

gratefully remembered.'

In the interval, however, they had

this, he was seized with them both, and they would

both died.

the

Buddha heard

regret; he would have saved

certainly not have scoffed at the teaching of the

Law.

His

thoughts then reverted to the

five

disciples

who had

so long

shared his solitude, and who, while he practised his mortifications

and penances, surrounded him with tender

true they had, in

care.

It

was
*

an excess of

zeal, left his side;

but

those saintly personages of high caste were nevertheless very

good,

easy to

discipline,

instruct,

and purify; they were

their

.accustomed to austere practices, evidently

set

faces were

towards the way of deliverance, and they were already

freed

from the obstacles which closed

ccist

it

to so

many

others.'

Neither would they

contempt upon the Buddha, and he

starting northwards
at a short distance,

resolved to seek them.

He

therefore

left

Bodhimanda, and
his fast

crossed over the

mount Gaya, which was

;

and where he broke

then he stopped on his

way

at

Rohitavastu, Uruvcla-Kalpa, Anala, and Sarathi, where the

owners of the principal houses gave him

thus reached the great river

hospitality.

He
that

Ganga, the Ganges.

At

reason of the year the waters were high and extremely rapid.

The Buddha was

across, but as

obliged to ask a ferryman to take him

fare,
it

he had not wherewithal to pay the

was

with

some

difficulty that

he managed to cross the

the passage free of

river.

As

soon as the king Bimbisara heard of the

difficulty

he had
to all

been placed

in,

he

made

payment

monks.
Directly he reached the great city of Benares, the

Buddha
in

went straight to his former

discipjes,

who were

then living

a wood, called the Deer Park (Mrigadawa), which was also

called Rishi-patana.

They saw Siddhartha coming from

him were
stirred

afar,

and

all

their grievances against

up

they

58
had thought

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

right to cease

[pt.

unnecessary mortification, and as

he drew nigh they said to one another

'

We can have
to

nothing in
rise

common with him

let

us neither
;

go

meet him, nor

up with respect

in his presence

let

us neither take his religious garments nor his alms-bowl;

let

us neither prepare for him a beverage, nor a carpet, nor

a place for his feet
;

if

he asks for a
carpet,

seat,

what extends beyond the

seats/

but

we will offer him we will keep our

But

their coldness

and

ill-will

could not hold out long.

felt
ill

By
on

degrees, as the IMasler approached, they

their seats,

at ease to stand

and a

secret instinct

made them wish

in his presence.

Soon indeed, unable

to bear the majesty

and glory of the Buddha, they rose up simultaneously, unable Some showed him maiks of to keep to their resolution.
respect, others

went forward to greet him, and they took

from

iTun his tunic, his religious garments, his alms-bowl

they spread out a carpet and prepared water for him to

bathe his

feet,

saying

'Ayushmat (Lord) Gautama, you are welcome; deign seat yourself down on this carpet.'
Then,
and
said
after

to

having entertained him on subjects

all

likely to

gladden him, they

placed themselves at one side of him

*The
his skin

senses of
is

Ayushmat Gautama

are perfccily purified,

is

perfectly pure, the oval of his face

perfectly pure.

Ayushmat Gautama, do you possess within you the discernment of venerable wisdom', which is far above human law ? The Buddha replied Do not give me the title of Ayushmat.
'
:

Full long have I been useless to you,

neither help nor comfort.
tality is,
1

and have procured you

see clearly what
1

Yes, I

now

immor-

and the path

all,

that leads to immortality.

sin,

am Buddha;

know
;

see

all, I

have wiped out

and am master of the

laws

come, that

may

teach you the Law, hearken to

me

CH.

i]

LIFE OF THE
attentive ear
;

BUDDHA

59

and lend an
your

I will instruct

you by advice, and

spirit delivered
self,

by

the destruction of sin

will

knowledge of
will

your new births

and the manifest come to an end, you

become Brahma-charis,you will have done what is needful, this is what will know no other existence after this you will learn from me.' Then he gently reminded them of the uncharitable manner in which they had spoken of him but
and you

a few minutes before.

His
at
his

five disciples
feet,

were abashed, and throwing themselves

fault,

confessed their
the

and acknowledging the

accepted his

Buddha

as

teacher

of the world,
respect.

new

doctrine with

all faith

and

In

this first conversation,

[and until the last watch of the night, the

to

Buddha explained
These were
he made.

them the fundamental

Varanasi, or Benares,

truths of his system.

that

the first conversions of

any importance
is

esteemed by the Buddhists even

city.

lore than

by the Brahmans as a most holy

It

was

at
is

Benares that the Buddha preached for the

said in Buddhistic mysticism,
'

first

time, or, as

for the first time

he turned the
that

Wheel of
east,
if

the Law,* symbolic

all

and sacramental language

has been adopted by

sects of

Buddhism, north, south, and

from Tibet and Nepaul to Ceylon and China\ Benares, we may judge of it by the desciiptions given by HiouenThsang in the seventh century of our era'', had not in the

days of the
a
later

Buddha
It

the

same importance
then,

that

it

acquired at

period.

must even

however, have been

^ See the curious details given by Eiot on the praying wheels of the Tibetans, who have taken in a literal sense the figurative expre.-sion of the early Sutras, and who pray to the Buddha by turning large wheels on which sacred formulas aie inscribed. Journal des Savants, June, 184-;. ^ llioucn-Thsang says that Tenarcs was six miles long by three wide; he saw among other monuments a slupa a hundred feet l.i^h, and a stone column seventy feet li'g'i that had been built by Asoka on the identical spot where the Luddh.a had for the first time turned the Wheel of the Law. See Histoire de la vie de Hioiien-Thsang, pp. 132, 133, and M^nioircs dc Hiou^n-lhsan^, vol. i. p. 303, by StanisU?

JubCQ.

6o

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

No
And
is

[pt.

a considerable town, and one of the principal centres of

Brahmanism.
went
there.

doubt

this

was

the reason

why the Buddha

as at Vaisali
respectively

and Rajagriha the Brahman

three

schools
disciples,

numbered
it

and seven hundred

probable that at Benares they were even more

could not therefore have found
field for the

numerous.

The Buddha

a wider or more formidable

doctrine.

manifestation of his

Unfortunately,

we have few

details

of his
this

sojourn

at

Benares.

The

Laliia-vistdra,

which up to

period has

been our chief authority, ends with the Buddha's discourses

to his five disciples.

The

other Sutras, which are not, like

tell

the Laliia-vistdra^ regular biographies of Sakya-muni,

little

us

about the contests he must have sustained against the

at Varanasi.

Brahmaris

At

this

moment of
and

his
it

hfe, after

having seen the slow elaboration of his ideas,

would have

been interesting

to

know
be,

his first successes

rebuffs.

We
other

must, however, dispense with this information, interesting as

it

would necessarily

till

the publication of

some

Sutras

may

biing

it

to our knowledge.

We

do not

find in

any of those hitherto published, on the sequel of the Buddha's

career, so complete
Ti'sfdra.

an account as
sermons
It is,

that contained in the Lalita-

Most of
one of

the Siitras relate only one of the acts of

;

his

life,

his

not one of them gives an

account of his

life.

however, thanks to the materials

it.

they furnish, possible to reconstruct and complete

probability of
its

The
which

truth will be as great, the order in

the facts are related will alone be less certain.

The

principal
told

events of the Buddha's

life

are

somewhat confusedly
us to
order in which
the

by

them, and
exactness,

it

will

be

difficult for

state, ^yith desirable

the

chronological

events

occurred.
It

appears probable that Sakya-muni's sojourn in Varanasi

dyr^iign^ althpugh be

was not of long

made

tjief^ s^yera}

CH.

i]

ut^S:

OP

ftik

mi)i)MA

61

oilier converts.

The

greater part of the Sutras mention hiin

as dwelling in ^Tagadha at Rajagriha, or at Sravasti in Kosala,

north of the
nearly
longer*
all

Ganges.

In those two kingdoms he spent

life,

the remainder of his

which lasted

forty years

The

kings of those two countries protected him, and

faith.

both embraced the Buddhist

Bimbisara was king of

Magadha,and we have seen what favour he showed Siddhartha, when the young prince was beginning his religious apostleship.

This benevolence never

failed

during the whole of his

pleasure in residing at

long reign, and the

Buddha took

Rajagriha, which was situated nearly in the centre of the

kingdom, and
tries.

in visiting

from thence the surrounding counin

All these places

must have been beloved by him, as

to his votaries.

later times they

became sacred

Bodhimanda

and Uruvela were not

of

far off; six

or seven miles off rose the

mountain called the Vulture's Peak(Gridhrakuta parvata); one

its

summits,

if

we

are to believe

Hiouen-Thsang,
this

recalled

from a distance the

shape

.of

that bird.

The Buddha

found pleasure in wandering about

in

mountain, so rich

grand and picturesque scenery, shaded by magnificent

trees,

and fresh with sparkling springs.

It

was there

that,

surrounded

by

his

disciples,

he

taught the Zo/us of the

Good Law, the Mahdpradjna-Pdramitd Sulra, and many

other Sutras.

At the entrance of the

vihara,

city,

on

the north side,

was a superb
it

where

the

Buddha
to

often resided;
is

was

called

Kalantaka or Kalanta vejuvana, that

Kalanta.

the

bamboo grove

of

According
after

Iliouen-Thsang's account, Kalanta

first

was a

rich merchant,

who had

given his garden to the

Brahmans, but
gift,

hearing the sublime

Law

regretted his

away from them. He caused a magnificent house to be built there, and offered it to the Buddha. It was there that the Buddha converted several of his most distinguished disciples ariputra, Moggallana and Katyayana ; it
and took
it

62
was

THE OklGW Ot BUDDHISM

also at this house that the
first

[pt.

Council was held after

his death.

little

further from

Rajagriha there was another place,

to

called Nalanda,
I)leasant

where the Buddha appears

if

have made
erected there

and prolonged sojourns,

we may judge by the

cosily

number of monuments which have been

by the piety of Buddhist kings.

Originally this place had

been a garden of mango-trees (amras), situated near a lake,

and belonged
purchased
it

to a rich

man.

Five hundred merchants had

as a gift for the

Buddha, who, during a period

of three months, had taught them the

the kings the

Law

at this spot

and

who succeeded Bimbisara also tried to adorn it by most costly edifices. They built there six monasteries
sangharamas (places of assembly), each one larger
brick wall to unite

called

than the other, and one of the kings had them enclosed by
a

new

them

in one.

When Hiouen-Thsang saw

largest

them, he described them as the

and most handsome buildings of that kind he had met

with in the whole of India.

He

mentions as a

fact that ten

thousand monks or students were kept there by the king's

liberality,

provided for out of the revenues of several

cities,

designated for that purpose in turn.

hundred professors
a forbearance

taught every day in the interior of these monasteries, and the

pupils vied with their masters in zeal.
less surprising, the sectaries

With

no

of eighteen different schools of

lived there together

the Little

and Great Vehicles

on good
It

terms; and the Vedas as well as the Buddhist Sutras were

taught, besides physic

and the occult

sciences.

is

just

possible that the Chinese traveller

may have

given an exag-

gerated account, but

it

is

certainly a fact that the ancient

abode of the Buddha remained for many centuries an object of deep veneration. This pious institution was 700 years old

when Hiouen-Thsang

visited

it,

and he remained there

several years, enjoying a generous

and

cordial hospitality.

Cii. i]

LIFE OF THE
will

BUDDHA

63

We

not at present, however, indulge in any further

descriptions of
to the subject,

Nalanda

later

and we

will

on we shall be now proceed with

able to return
the history of

the

Buddha.

Bimbisara,

who had ascended

his

the throne at an early age,

reigned for no less than thirty years after his conversion to

Buddhism, but

son and successor Ajatasatru,

who had
first

put his father to death, did not show himself at

so

favourable to the new doctrine; instigated by Dewadatla,

Siddhartha's perfidious cousin, he laid

many

snares for him

last by the virtues and pious counsels of the Buddha, he became converted, and made a confession of the One whole crime by which he had acquired the throne.

but touched at

Sinhalese Sutra, the Samanna-phala Sutra^

is

devoted to the

account of
the
is

this conversion,

which seems to have been one of

most

difficult

and important of the Reformer. Ajatasatru

represented as one of the eight personages

who
the

divided

the

Buddha's

relics,

and who, according

to

Tibetan

Dulva, had a rightful claim to them.

to

However great may have been the Buddha's attachment Magadha, the scene of his severe novitiate and his glorious
he seems to have resided there
less

victory,

than in Kosala.
part, lay north-

This

latter country, of

which Benares forms a

capital

west of

was Sravasti, the residence of Prasenajit, the king of Kosala, and its site must have been near Fizabad, one of the richest cities of the kingdom of Oudh \ The Buddha had gone to Sravasti with the consent of Bimbisara, and on a formal invitation from Prasenajit. The famous garden of Anatha Pindika or Anaiha Pindadha, called Jetavana, was situated near Sravasti, and it was there that the Buddha delivered most of the discourses recorded
its
* Sravasti has been identified by General Cunningham in his Ancient Geography of India with the ruins of Sahet-Mahet in Oudh (translator's

Magadha;

note).

64

TH^ OktCW OP WDbliISM

his

[i^t. i

in the Sutras.

Hiouen-Thsang states that Anatha Pindika, to his unbounded charity to the poor and orphaned, had given this magnificent garden to the Buddha. He was a minister of King Prasenajit, and had bought this

who owed

fame

property for a heavy

the

king,

hence

the

sum of gold from Jeta, the eldest son of name of Jetavana, or Jeta's Wood.
built a vihara in the

Anatha Pindika had

midst of

it,

under

the shade of the finest trees,

and there the Buddha dwelt

when he was converted, him a lecture-hall to the east of the city, and HiouenThsang mentions having seen the ruins surmounted by a stupa. At a short distance rose a tower, the remains of the
twenty-three years. Prasenajit himself,
built

ancient vihara of PrajapatI, the Buddha's aunt.

This circum-

stance as well as several others would lead us to suppose

that Siddhartha's family, or at least

some members of

it,

had

joined him in this lovely spot, where he was so

much

beloved

and in which he took so much pleasure.

Maha-Prajapati
his

was the first woman whom, at the urgent solicitation of cousin Ananda, he permitted to adopt the religious life.
Eighteen or nineteen miles south of the
city,

the spot

where the Buddha met

his father, after twelve years' absence,

was
had
son,

still

shown

in the

days of Hiouen-Thsang.

Suddhodana
from
his

been grievously distressed at being separated

and had made

continual efforts to bring

him back.

He

all,

after the other; and by the prince's eloquence and superiority, had remained with him and had joined his community. At last he sent one of his ministers, called Charka, who was, like the but who returned to the king and anothers, converted

had despatched eight messengers one

captivated

Lounced the coming of

forestalled this journey,

his son.

It

seems
the

that his father

to

and went himself

returned
to

the Buddha.
visit,

Nevertheless

the

Buddha
went

king's
If

and

shortly afterwards
lieve the

Kapilavastu.

we

are to betheir king's

Tibetan writers, the akyas followed

CM.

i]

LIFE OF THE

BUDDHA
:

65

example, and embraced Buddhism

most of ihem indeed

adopted the reh'gious

habit,

which was also assumed by the

Buddha's three wives, Gopa, Yasodhara, and Utpalavarna,

as well as

many

oihcr

women.
it

Notwithstanding the protection of kings and the enthusiasm of the populace,

appears that the Buddha had to

contend with a most violent and stubborn opposition from

the

Brahmans.
It
is

Their rivalry proved often dangerous to

that

him.

true

the

criticisms of his adversaries.

Buddha was not sparing in Not only did he expose

his

the

ignorance and error of the very basis of their system, but he

reproached

them

with

being hypocrites, charlatans,

and

jugglers, censures

which wounded them the more that they

were not undeserved.

pense of
theirs,

His influence increased

at

the ex-

and they neglected no means

to arrest such

a dangerous movement, their vanity being concerned as well

as their authority.

legend, entitled Prdiiharya Sutra,

is

almost entirely devoted to the narration of a great defeat

the

Brahmans sustained
:

at the
it

hands of the Buddha

in the

presence of Prasenajit
the

resembled a tournament, of which

In another, and even
are said to have exacted

king and people were umpires.

the

more curious legend,

a promise from

Brahmans

the citizens of

Bhadramkara,

whom

they

ruled at their will, that they would not admit the

Buddha who

was then approaching.

the ciiy, a
in the country,

When, however, the Bhagavat entered Brahman woman of Kapilavastu, who had married
disobeyed the order, got out
at night, scaled the

walls wiih a ladder,

and threw

herself at the

Buddha's

feet to

be taught the

Law

her example was soon followed by one

city,

of the richest inhabitants of the

named Mendhaka, who

to humiliate
still

harangued the people, and

Liberator,
exile.

at

once gained them over to the

whom

the

Brahmans wished

and
and

to
if

Matters were sometimes carried

the traditions quoted

further,

we may judge by

by Fa-Hian and

66

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

and attempts made upon
the
his
life.

[pt.

Hiouen-Thsang, the Buddha must often have been personally threatened

is

This

not in

itself

astonishing,
all

and the only wonder

that

is

that the

Buddha escaped
If there
is

ambushes

were

laid for him.

a certain vagueness with regard to a part of

is

his

life,

there

no doubt whatever as

to the place of his

death.
that

All the legends, without exception, agree in saying

it took place at Kusi-nagara, in the kingdom of the same name, which no doubt in the days of Prasenajit formed part of Kosala. The Buddha, then eighty years of age, was returning from Rajagriha in Magadha, accompanied by Ananda, his cousin, and a numerous crowd of monks and

disciples.

On

reaching the southern bank of the Ganges,

river,

and before crossing the

stone,
'

he stood on a large square

gazed tenderly at his companion, and said:

is

This

the last time that I shall look from afar

on

the

city of Rajagriha

and

the

Diamond Throne

(Vajiasanam).'

After crossing the

to

Ganges he went

to the city of Vaisali,

which he bade the same touching

farewell,

and he received
the

several

monks

into his Order, the last of

whom was

men-

dicant Subhadra.

He

was

in the country of the Mallas, near

the river AchiravatI, about half a mile north-west of the city

of Kusi-nagara,

when he was

seized with a sudden faintness.

He
say,

stopped in a grove of

salas,

under a

tree of this species

(Shorea rohusid), and there died, or, as the Buddhist legends

he entered into Nirvana.

rested

sala trees, all of equal height,

Buddha

and drew

his

Hiouen-Thsang saw the four under which it was said the The Buddha died last breath.
if

in the eighth year of the reign of Ajatasatru,

we may

rely

on Sinhalese chronology.

The

Tibetan Diilva gives a detailed account of the funeral

rendered him, which were as splendid and
for the

rites that w^ere

solemn as those reserved

monarchs).

Chakrawarti kings (universal

The most

illustrious of his disciples,

Kasyapa^

en.

i]

LIFE OF THE

BUDDHA

67
Metaphysics,
in the first

author of the Abhidharma, or Collection on

and who afterwards took such an important part

Council, was at that

moment
day

at

Rajogriha,

but

instantly

hurried back to Kusi-nagara.

The
after

Buddh.i's body was not

his

buried

un'.il

the

eighth

death
in

and

after

much

quarrelling,

which almost ended

Reformer, his

blocdihcd, and

was only allayed by an appeal to the concord and meekness inculcated

by the

relics

were divided
to the

into eight portions,

one of which was given

Sakyas

of Kapilavastu.

Such

is,

in its principal outlines, the life of

Sakja-muni.
that

All his actions, great though they were,

seem so natural
for

we cannot hesitate to accept the account much concording evidence has vouched
given
it

as true, since so
it.

We

have

as

it

is

related in

the

documents already known,

it.

and new documents can but complete

the
for

The

figure of

Buddha
if

is

shown under

the

most credible conditions,

they also
influence

they reveal the originality of his genius,

explain no less clearly the

immense
in
all

he exerted
that

over others.

But we must

sincerity admit

we

have in a slight degree transformed the Buddhist legends,

while

borrowing from
furnish.

them

the

probably true

narrative

which they

We
is,

have made selections from them,

but have never altered anything; the record of events that

has just been perused

however, too simple to have satisfied

the superstitious and extravagant imagination of Indian racesr

tegends have drowned

realities

jn

a mass jof iabulous and

it

excessive details, of which v/e think

necessary to give the

general ouiline, in order that the exact value of the Buddhist

1

canonical laws

may

be understood, and to shov;

how

they

were able to create such an important revolution in the

Asiatic world.

these legends; he
folly

The reader may smile as he glances may more probably feel impatient of
E
2

over
their

and absurdity.

However, these extravagances form

68

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

human mind, and ought
not

a part of the history of the

to be

contemptuously

set aside,

even when they stray into

will

the wildest

superstitions.

Moreover, a careful study

enable

us the better to appreciate the intelligence of the

peoples to

whom

the

Buddha addressed

himself,

and

whom

he was destined to reform.

CHAPTER
The legend of the Etiddha.
in the Tushita heaven.
address.

II.
Prolo
ite

Analysis of the Lalifavis lava

The four

investij^ations.

The BiuLiha

Paraldes: the children in the bunin^ house; the blind man recovering sight ; vision of the Prabhfitaratna Stiipa. The Bud Iha prophesies. Effects of the supernatural powers of the Tathagata. Explanation of the Buddha's different names.

His departure and incarnation in Mdyd-DevC s xvomb. The gods pay homage. Birth of the Buddha; his seven steps. The Brahman Asitas prophecy. The Buddha victoriously resists the attacks and temptations of Mara god of love, sin, and death. The Buddha s teachings. Analysis of the lotus of the Good Lazv.

We will begin with

that

an analysis of the two Buddhistic Sutras

:

have been translated into French

the Lalila-vistdra by

M.
de

P.
la

Ed. Foucaux, and the Lohis of the Good

Law

(Lotus

bonne Loi) by M. E. Burnouf.

literature,

It is

a very strange

form of
strange,

but the doctrines they set foith are equdly

and the

style agrees with the matter.

is

The

following

an exact analysis of the fabulous part of

the speaker,

the Lalila-visldra.

Ananda, the Buddha's cousin,

posed to have been the author of

is

and
is

is

sup-

this Sutra,

which

classed

among

the

more developed
is

Sutras.

Ananda

relates

what he

has personally heard, as

indicated by the customary open-

ing sentence, which in the eyes of the orthodox imparts to

the

statements

contained
: *

in

the

Sutras

the

authority

of

infallible

witnesses

The

following discourse was one day

heard by me.'
Bhagavat, the Buddha, was at Jetavana, in the garden of

Anatha
were

Pind'.ka,

near

Sravasti.

He was

surrounded by
in the first rank,

twelve thousand Bhikshus,

his five disciples,

amongst whom,

and by thirty-two thousand Bodhi-

70
salwas,
*

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

all

[pt.

subject to one last birth,

all

all

having really attained

the state of Bodhisatwa,

having reached the other shore/

&c.
in a

At

the

first

watch of the night, Bhagavat was plunged

sooner was he completely absorbed than

deep meditation, called the Arrangement of the Buddha's

Ornaments.

No
^

an excrescence
formerly existed

appeared on the top of

all

his

head, which

caused him to remember exactly

;

the

Buddhas who had

and the

light of

pure knowledge being pro-

him the dwellings of the gods, and the sons of gods, in infinite number. x\ll these divinities, summoned by stanzas of invitation, which emanate from the
duced
in him,
it

revealed to

luminous sphere that envelops the Tathagata, approach the

Buddha, entreating him to teach them

which
is

that part of the

Law

called
for

Lalita-vistara.

Bhagavat,

touched wilh

compassion
kas,

the Bodhisatwas, Mahasatwas, INIabascrava-

and the gods, men, Asekhas, and the world, silently consents to hear their prayer, and lifts up his voice to teach

them himself
Such
i

the Lalita-visidra.
first

is

the

chapter,

and

it

will suffice to give

us an

jea

how much
will

patience

we

shall require to

examine these and

at the

similar extravagances of
,

which we are only

to

beginning.

We

then give the description from the Buddha's

condition previous
his
birth,

own
Lis

narrative of his

and

incarnation on earth.

the

Worshipped by those who were adored as gods, receiving homage of Sakra, Brahma, Mahesvara, the guardians of
and
all

the world

the lesser deities, the Bodhisatwa leaves

Tushita, the abode of joy, and goes to the great palace of

Dharmochaya (nucleus of the Law). It is from thence that he has to instruct the immense multitude gathered to hear him, which amounts to sixty-eight kotis, that is to say six
hundred and eighty million

souls, all seated

on sumptuous

teristic

All the Buddha's statues bear on the top of the head this characexcrescence.

CH.

ii]

LEGEND OF THE BUDDHA

Bhagavat
first

71
years

scats.

announces

that

twelve

must
;

elapse before the

Buddha

will enter his

mother^s

womb

and
four
time,

in order that this event

all

may be
it

properly accomplished with

is

the

requisite

conditions,

necessary to

make
first

important examinations.

He

has to examine,

secondly continents, thirdly countries, and fourthly

Bodhisatwas, at the
the
first

fi^milies.

development of the world, before

their

arrangement of beings in

order,

do not enter
is

a mother's

womb.
and
it,

When, however,
old
age,

the world

entirely

made

manifest,

sickness,

and death have

appeared in
of a mother.

from that time the Bodhisatwas become born

this

For

reason Bhagavat makes an examination

of time.

He

examines the continents because a Bodhisatwa cannot

frontier;

be born on a

neither can he be born in eastern

Videha, nor in western Godani, nor in northern Kuru.

He

can only be born in the southern continent in JambudvTpa

(India).
*

Neither can

he be born in a frontier province

among

stupid men, of dull senses, and

dumb

dispositions

like sheep,

incapable of distinguishing good teaching from

bad.'

Therefore only in a central province can he be born.

Finally, the

Bodhisatwa applies himself

to the

examination

of families, because Bodhisatwas cannot be born in a family of low class, that of a chandala, a flute-player, a wheelwright,
or a servant.

They

are born in two castes only, that of the

is

Brahmans or

the Kshatriyas, according to whichever

held

in greatest respect at the

moment.

Nevertheless the throng of deities question

selves
'

among them-

in

what choicest of

flimilies

'

the Bodhisatwa will be

born.

They

pass in review the most illustrious races of the

time, and, unable to

come

to

any conclusion, they ask the

the sixty-

question of the Bodhisatwa himself.

The Bodhisatwa answers them by enumerating

four signs with which the family he has chosen
is

endowed;

72

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

;

'

[pt.

he names them one by one

family
is

they are so
;

many

virtues.
;

The
it is

noble, of perfect descent

is

it

is

not ambitious

of pure morals, and

its

wise

wealth

it is

constant in

makes a magnificent use of friendship, knows its duties, is not

;

it

led

away by

desire, passion, ignorance,

;

or fear ;

it

possesses

firm heroism

honours the Rishis, honours the gods, the

Chaltyas \ the
the family
is

Manes

does not keep up enmity

all
is

in a

word,

perfect in

things.
is

The woman
no
is

into
;

whose
for she
all

womb

the Bodhisatwa

to enter

less perfect

possesses thirty-two kinds of virtues, and

free

from

feminine defects.

The gods, whose curiosity was more excited than satisfied by these vague indications, wonder which can be this blessed
family,

and

this still

think of the Sakya race, the king

more blessed woman, and they can only Suddhodana and the queen
perfections.
It

Maya-Devi, who unite so many virtues and

is

at

Kapilavastu and of these two choicely-gifted beings

that the
ii

Bodhisatwa

will

be born
first

for

no oiher woman
mankind.'

capable of bearing
is

the

among

When

on the point of leaving the gods in Tushita to descend on earth, the Bodhisatwa addresses them once more from his throne, and recalls to them the precepts of the Law. He first points out the 'Visible Gates,' which
he

lumber io8, the principal ones being:

cretion,

faith,

purity,

disself

benevolence,

pity,

modesty,

knowledge

of

{dtmajnata), respect,

and the acquisition of magic formulae

then after a long and complete enumeration he adds, as he

takes leave of the gods, these solemn words, which they
listen to in respectful silence:
*

Carefully avoid immodesty.

All divine
fruit

and pure pleasures

of a virtuous deed.
failed

lorn of the heart and mind are the

Remember
*

therefore your actions.

As you have

to

The sacred monuments where the Buddha's relics and those of his principal votaries are placed.

CH.

ii]

LEGEND OF THE BUDDHA

virtues
in

73
for

amass

a former
all

life,

you are now bound

all

a place, far

from

comfort, where you will suffer

kinds

of misfortunes and
it

ills.

Desire

is

not durable nor constant

is

like

a dream, a mirage, an illusion, like lightning, like

foam.
its

Observe the practice of the Law; whosoever observes

will suOfer

holy practices

no

evil.

Love

tradition, morality,

and almsgiving; be perfect in patience and

in

purity.

Act
spirit.

s] irit

of mutual
the

benevolence,

with

a helpful

Rt

member

Buddha, the Law, and the Assemblies of the

faithful.

All that

you behold
authority

in
all
its

me, of supernatural power,

this
is

knowledge,
exercise

and

is

produced
also

by die
act widi

of

virtue,

which

cause,

and comes from

tradition, morality,

and modesty.
discretion.
It

You
is

must
virtue

the

same

perfect

not

by maxims, nor
can be

words,

nor clamour that the doclrine of

Acquire
it

attained.
strive

by your deeds

as you speak, so act

therefore

by unceasirg
nothing.

efTorts.

There
;

is

no reward

for all those

who have done good deeds

Beware of
;

Lut those

who do

them not

will obtain

pride, haughtiness,

and arrogance

be ever gentle, and keep the straight road,

Exercise

dil'genly pursuing the path that leads to Nirvana.

yourselves to find the

way of

salvation,

and

dispel with the

lamp of wisdom the darkness of ignorance.

yourselves from the meshes of sin, and
let

Disentangle

repentance accom-

But what need is there to say more ? The Law wisdom and purity. When I shall have attained supreme wisdom, when the Law that leads to immortality shall have rained down upon spirits made perfectly pure, then return to hear anew the Law which I will teach you.'

pany you.
full

is

of

Notwithstanding
distressed at the
their grief

this

exiiortation,

the

gods were sorely

in

Buddha's departure; but

order to assuage

he

left

them as a subsJtute the Bodhisatwa Maitreya,

whom

he consecrated by placing on his head with his

tiara

own
is

hands his

and diadem.

Maitreya

is

the

Buddha who

74
to

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

succeed him when the perversion of
all
tl:e

[pt.
will

world

have

wiped out

recollection of the teaching of Sakya-muni.

The Bodhisatwa then descends from

mother's

Tushila into his

womb, and to accomplish the prediction contained in the Brahmanas and the Mantras of the Rigveda, he assumes the form of a majestic elephant, armed with six tusks, covered
its

with a network of gold,

its

superb head of a red colour, and

signs

jaws wide open.

Eight premonitory

herald

"

its

arrival in
all

Suddhodana's dwelling.
fly

The
it,

palace cleanses

itself;

the birds of Ilimavanta

their

to

showing

their gladness
;

by

songs

the gardens are filled with flowers

;

the

are covered with lotus

festive tables,

viands of

all

kinds, spread

ponds upon the

renew themselves

after

being abundantly par-

taken of; musical instruments give out, without being touched,

the most melodious sounds
;

caskets of precious jewels

open

of their
palace
is

own accord

to display their treasures; lastly, the

illuminated by a supernatural splendour that out-

shines the sun

and moon.
it

Such

is

the prologue, as

were, of the

drama
in

that

is

unfolded

in the Lalita-vistdra;

the

scene
narrative

is

laid

heaven before
in

opening on

earth.

The
if

would not be lacking

style

a certain grandeur

the
;

manner and
but
it

corresponded to

the majesty of the idea

it

is

impossible not to feel that

is

a pure fantastical invention, and that the author of the

is

legend

only playing with his subject.

first

In the original text

conception almost

the details are so lengthy that the

entirely disappears, to give place to endless repetitions

and

to the

most tedious improbabilities.

All the lime the Bodhisatwa

was

in

IMaya-Devi's

womb
These

he remained in her right

side, sitting

cross-legged.

are the strange details which the sacred legend

to

deems necessary

mention; but they are nothing

in

comparison to those
above
the

that follow.

Some

of the sons of the deities are astonished

'

that the Bodhisatwa,

pure and unsoiled,

far

all

CH.

ii]

LEGEND OF THE BUDDHA

most sacred of
all

75

worlds, the

beings/ should dwell in the

womb

of an earthly mother, while the ordinary kings of the

Gandharvas,

Kumbhandas, Nagas and Yakshas,

inferior

gods, always avoid the defilement of a

human

body.

Sus-

pecting the thought of the sons of the gods, the

Buddha causes
he informs
;

Ananda
l.im of

his cousin to quesiion him,

liis

and

in reply

occupation while in his mother's

womb

this is

called 'the sacred exercise of the Bodhisatwa.'

relates with the

The Buddha

that

most prolix and confused details the visit Brahma, the sovereign master, comes to pay him. in Maya- Devi's womb. Brahma, after having bowed his head
Bhagavat's
feet, offers

at

him a drop of dew

that, contains all

the vital

and generating essence of

the- three

thousand great

thousands of worlds.

After Brahma, Sakra,the master of -the

gods, the four great kings of the inferior gods, four goddesses,

and a multitude of

divinities

come

to

worship and serve, the

Bodhisatwa, and receive from him instruction in the Law.

they

would not quote these absurdities were it not tliat show the turn of mind cf the Buddhists, and how they placed their Buddha far above all the gods of the Brah.man Pantheon. Brahma, Indra, and all those hitherto considered the greatest and most venerated are hardly worthy to serve the Bodhisatwa, and even before his biith, according to the Buddhists, the most respected objects of popular superstition
prostrated themselves before him.
the

We

The

LaUia-vtsiara.\^,uot
disciples,

work of the Buddha's own immediate

and

it is

probable that in the days of their Master, and soon after his
death, they did not hold such arrogant language.

However,

about three or four centuries

later

the

new

doctrine

had

made

sufficient

progress to permit the gods adored by the

vulgar being treated with such insolent contempt.

the author himself

Sometimes
far,

seems conscious
is

that he has

gone too

and the king Suddhodana, who

mentioned as a spectator
is

of the evolutions of the gods before his unborn on,

over-

76

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

certain scruples.

[t>T.

come by

However much he may

is

rejoice at

being the father of the future Buddha, he cannot conceal his

astonishment, and says to himself: 'This
of gods
Indra,

indeed the god

whom

the four guardians of the world,

whom

Brahma,

and

the united deities surround with such

deep respect

this will in truth

be the Buddha.

In the three worlds, not

a g d, nor a Naga, nor Indra, nor Brahma, not a being in

fact,

would permit such worship wiihout the others crushing

Hfe.

him on the head and depriving him of

because he
is

But

this

one,

purer thin the gods, can receive

this wo:sliip

wiihout incurring any danger.'

We
his

will

not relate the precursory signs that announced the

birth of the

Buddha, nor

the care that the

in

gods bestowed on

mother Maya-Devi

delivery took place,

Lumbini gardens, where her standing and leaning under the shade of
the

a plaksa, cHnging for support to a branch of ihe tree.

the k'ng of the gods,

Indra

stand before her to

it

and Brahma the lord of created beings, receive the child. They bathe and waih

widi

their

own hands

a
in

needless

precaution, as

he

has

lain unsoiled in his motlicr's

womb,

the legend says, and

that he

was already clothed

Directly he
is

a rich robe of Kasi (Benares)

silk\

born he stands on the ground and

have

seats himself on a large white lotus, which has spontaneously

sprung fiom the earth on the spot which

touched.

his

feet

Then
east,

without any assistance he takes seven steps

towards the
to

seven to the south, seven to the west, seven

the north,
in

and seven steps towards the lower regions,

each direction the mission he had come to

announcing

* These details are reproduced on all the Buddhis'ic monuments that See the bas eli;if in the museum represent the birth of the Liberator. at Calcutta that M. Ed. Foucaux gives at the end of J\gya tclier rol pa. Another and more decent legend, the Abinishkramma, sup. ose^ that Indra, to spare Maya-Devi the shame of being delivered in his presence, But in this di-gii^e the child assumed the form of an old woman. n fuses his attentions, and repels him, not permitting him to touch

him, although he recognizes him to be Indra.

cii. ii]

LEGEND OF THE BUDDHA

;
*

77

fulfil

on earlh
I will

shall

conquer the demon and the demon's

army.

pour forth rain from the clouds of the

Law

upon

the beings plunged into hell

will

and devoured by

hell fire,

and they

be

filled

with joy and gladness.'

is

But the Buddha, who

his cousin

supposed to

relate all this to his

disciples at Sravasli, interrupts his narration,

and turning

to

Ananda,

predicts that
'

many

will

not believe these

miraculous deeds.
ignorant,

In the time to come, certain Bhikshus,

proud,

incompetent,

haughty, of unbridled
faith, the

and
the

unstable mind, sceptics and devoid of

shame of
the

Sramanas,'

will refuse to believe in

the

power of

Buddha,

and
*

will

wonder

at

his

having

been born of a woman.

if

They

will

not understand, foolish men! that

he had come

in the condition of a

god instead of coming

into the world

of man, he would not have been able to turn the Wheel of

the

Law, and
will

all

beings would have been plunged into despair.

But those creatures who have denied the wisdom of the

Buddha
hell;

at their

death be cast into Avitchi, the great

believed in the

whereas those

who have

Buddha

will

become

the sons of the Talhagata,

;

and

will

be delivered from

the three evils

they will eat of the food of the

they will tear asunder the chains of the

left

kingdom demon; and will have

life.'

behind them the desert of a transmigatory

The legend then

the
child

recounts, with a multitude of details,

how

was brought from Lumbini

their wives,

to Kapilavastu at'ter

the death of his mother, the

and how he was, by

the consent of

Sakyas and
confided

who contended

for the care of

him,

to

his

aunt

Maha-Prajapaii.

The

legend

dwells at length on the prediction of the

black),

Brahman
the

Asita (the

who comes down

expressly from

Himavanla
on the

(Himalaya)

mountains, where he

dwells, to verify

body of the newborn

enumerates one

infant the thirty-two signs of a great

carefully

man, and the eighty secondary marks, which he most

after the other,

however extraordinary some

78
of them
the

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

may
is

[pt.

seem.
born,

The
mourns

great Rishi,

on ascertaining

that

Buddha

that his extreme age will prevent

his ever

hearing the teaching of the pure Law.

retires,

Then he

laden with presents from the king,

at his prediction
;

who

has been delighted

and he returns
air,

to his

hermitage as he had come, through the

magically upraised himself in
Naradatta. But
as
it

whence he had
his

company
after

with

nephew

it

would seem
suffice,

that Asita's prophecy, important

him a son of the gods, came also to verify the signs and marks, and once more assured Suddhodana that his son was in truth the Buddha. It will be remembered that the child was solemnly presented by his
was, did not

and

followed by twelve hundred thousand other gods,

father at the temple of the

gods

but the legend adds, that

all

no sooner had
the

the Bodhisatwa entered the temple than

inanimate

images of the gods, including Indra and

to him.

Brahma, rose up and did obeisance

pointing to their
gathas, which
that
is

Then
poetic

the gods,

own

images, sang the following stanzas, or

we

quote, as they

show a

inspiration

generally lacking in Buddhism, although at least half

the developed Sutras are in verse.

*

The

greatest of the mountains, the ^leru, king of the

bows not down to the Senev^. The ocean, the abode of Nagas' king, bows not down before the water contained
hills,

in

the footprints of a cow.

The

sun, the

moon
is

that gives

light,

bow

not

down

before the glowworm.

He who
himself

has
full

issued from a wise and virtuous family,

who

of

virtue,

The

deity

bows not down before the most powerful gods. or the man, whoever he may be, who persists in
the Senevd, the water in the footprints of a cow,

pride,

is like

and the glowworm. But like Meru, the ocean, the sun, and the moon, is Svayambhu, the self-existing, who fulfils the and whosoever reiiders him homage first need of the world
;

obtains heaven and Nirvana.'

CH.

ii]

LEGEND OF THE BUDDHA

will

79

The above
from
life.

show with

tolerable clearness the nature

of the legend, and

its

how

it

tries lo

transform and embellish

own
last

point of view

the actual facts of Siddhartha's

To
one

complete our information on the subject,

we

will

relate

episode that takes an important place, not only

in Laliki-vis/dra,

but which figures in nearly every Sutra

that

that

is

the

conflict

Siddhartha,

at

the

moment

of

becoming Buddha, sustained with the demon called ]\Iara, the Evil One, or Piipi} an, the god of love, of sin, and of death. Siddhartha was at Uruvela, in the retreat we have already
mentioned, where for six years he had given himself up to
the severest penance.

His mother Maya-Devi, alarmed

lest

at
left

her son's sufferings, and fearing

he should

die,

had

Tushita and came to implore him to put a stop to these

excessive mortifications.

He

comforted his mother, but did

not yield to her entreaties.

Mara

him, and in a gentle voice addressed

flattering

words

' :

Dear one,
fulfil

living that
life

thou canst

the

came to tempt him in the following thou must live it is only by Law. All that is done during
in hi^ turn
;

should be done without suffering.

fled,

Thou

art

emaciated

thy colour has

thou drawest near to death.

However
?

great the merit, what can be the result of such renunciation

The
mind
and

path of renunciation
is difficult

is

suffering, the victory over the

to attain.*
:

Siddhartha replied to him

evil, art

'

Papi) an, friend of

all folly

thou then come hither to ttmpt

me ?
I

Although
is

my

merits are but small, the

aim

have in view
being death,

not less
seek not
;

worthy.

The

inevitable
I

end of

life

to avoid death.

possess resolution, courage, and wisdom

and

see

no one on earth who can deter me.

Demon, soon

shall I

triumph over thee.

Thy

first

soldiers are desires, thy

second in rank are weariness and vexation, thy third are

hunger and
slumber thy

thirst,
fifth,

passions are thy fourth, indolence and

fears are thy sixth, doubts are thy seventh,

8o

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

;

[pt.

anger and hypocrisy thy eighth

false reputations, self-praise,

ambition,

flattery,

homage,

and the censure of

But

others, these

are thy dark

allies,

the soldiers of the fiery

demon.
wilt

Thy
?'

roldiers subjugate

gods as well as men.

then, Spirit of Evil,

I will destroy

them by wisdom; and

the sons of the
to

what

thou do

Mara, humbled and abashed, disappeared

for a time.

But

gods came in
that

their turn to subject the ascetic

still.

a temptation which was perhaps more dangerous

They suggested
of the skin
get
all

he should pretend to take no nourish-

ment, and that they hhould impart to him through the pores
the vigour he kicked,

and

that he intended to

by ordinary food.
:

However, the young Siddhartha

in

refused, saying

Assuredly, I might swear that I did not

eat

and the neighbouring peasants who dwell

my

vicinity

would say that the Sramana Gautama did not

sons of the gods, respecting

eat,

while the
invigorate

me

through the pores of

deceitfully.'
listen to

my weakness, would my skin but I should

;

be acting
sin,

most

The

Bodhisatwa, to avoid such a

would not
of Mara.

the words of the sons of the deities, and

thus again he evaded a temptation

more

in^id bus than that

However, before attaining Buddhaliood he was obliged

to

conquer the demon

he therefore provoked him to the

combat, while he was at Bodhimanda, by shooting forth

from between
Urna, which
is

his

eyebrows

from

the tuft of hair

called

one of the
that

thirty- two signs of

all

a great

man
of the

a ray of light

illuminated

the

dwellings

demons and made them tremble with fear. Papiyan, terrified by the sudden brilliancy and the thirty-two horrible dreams he had had, at once summoned his servants and all his armies. His empire was threatened, and he wished to begin the fight. However, he first consulted his sons, some of whom advised him to yield and thus avoid a severe defeat while the others urged him to engage in a strife in which

cU, n]

LEGEND Or THE BUDDHA

them
certain.

8i
parties,

victory appeared to

The two
;

one

black and the other white, spake in turn

and the thousand

his left-

sons of the demon,

some on

his right

and others on
brought to

hand
sense.

side,

gave their opinions in succession, and in a contrary

the
in

When

consullation

was

a close,

Pap'yan decided

favour of giving battle, and his army,

compo?ed of four divisions, advanced against the Bodhisatwa. The army was strong and courageous, but was hideous beyond description. The demons who composed it could
at
will

change

their

fiices,

and transform themselves

their

in

a hundred millions of ways;

hands and
;

feet

were

encircled by a hundred thousand serpents

they were armed

with swords,

bows and arrows,

like
fire

pikes, javelins, hatchets, clubs,

;

chains, stones, sticks, quoits, thunderbolis

their heads, eyes,

and faces blazed

their stomachs, feet,

;

and hands

were of a repulsive appearance

sinister brilliancy; they

their faces glittered with

teeth, terrible tusks,
;

had enormous
like those of

thick, big

tongues that hung out of their mouths

their eyes
full

were red and glowing

a black serpent

of

venom,
fi'.ls

&c., &c.

We abbreviate the

lengthy description, which

several pages of the Lalilavis/ara, in

which the Indian

imagination revels in the invention of the most monstrous

and uncouth

creations.
all

As may be supposed,

the

att.'.cks

of the

demon were

powerless against the Buddha.

projectiles of every description,

The

spears, pikes, javelins,

even mountains, which they

hurled

down on

him, were changed into flowers and hung in

garlands over his head.

useless,

Papiyan, seeing that violence was

had recourse to other means;

he

summoned

his

daughters, the beautiful Apsaras, and sent

them

to tempt the

Bodhisatwa by showing him thirty-two kinds of feminine

magic.
all

They sang and danced

charms and seductions
F
;

before him, they deployed

their

they addressed to him the

softest

and most insinuating language.

But

their

caresses

fc

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

their brothers*

[pt.

proved as useless as
of

assaults,

and

filled -with

shame, they found themselves compelled to sing the praises

him whom they could

neither vanquish nor seduce,

They

then returned to their father and informed him of this second

defeat,

more
;

disastrous even than the

first.

Papiyan-was
at

astounded
filled

but the sons of the Suddhava-sakayika gods

his vexation

the

measure of

by scoffing
bitterest
:

him with

the

most poignant

insults

and the
'

sarcasms.

The
;

demon, however, would not give in I am the lord of desire,' he said to the Bodhisatwa, I am lord of the whole world
*

the gods, the throng of Danavas,

all

men and

beasts over-

hast

come by me have fallen into my power. Like them, thou come into my kingdom rise and speak as they do.'
;

The Bodhisatwa
thou
art

replied

If thou art the lord of desire,

not the lord of

;

light.

Behold

me

am

truly the

lord of the law

I shall obtain

impotent as thou

art, it is in

thy sight that

supreme wisdom/
last assault, and called together But again he succumbed. His army is

Papiyan

tried another

again his armies.

scattered in disorder,
his sons

and he has the grief of seeing those of

who had

counselled

him

to yield

go and prostrate

themselves at the feet of the Bodhisatwa, and respectfully

worship him.
less,

Fallen from his splendour, pale and colourbeats his breast

the

demon

and

utters loud lamentations

then he stands aside with drooping head, and, tracing some

signs with an arrow
'

on the

earth,

he says in his despair

My

kingdom

is

at

an end.'

Afier this decisive victory, the Bodhisatwa attains^ supreme

wisdom, Buddhahood

he becomes the perfectly enlightened

Buddha, and goes to turn the Wheel of the

Law

at Benares.

Such

is

the mythological side of the Lalila-vistdray without

its

mentioning
life

other details, from which

we have taken

the

of the Buddha.

Probably

all

this
it

phantasmagoria was
addressed,^ but in

necessary for the people to

whom

was

CH.

ii]

LEGEND OF THE BUDDHA

it

^
it,

our eyes
credit

is

a mere extravagance, calculated to throw disreal historical facts

on the
it

which accompany

and

which

serves only to obscure.

We

will pass

on
the

to analyze the Loius

of the good Law.

The Lotus of
less interesting

good

Law

is

nothing but a fabulous

legend, devoid of any trace of historical facts, and infinitely

than the Laliia-visidra

later.

to

all

appearance

it

was written somewhat

Bhagavat was
Vulture's

at Rajagriha, on the mountain called the He Peak (Gridhrakuta, actually the Giddhar). was surrounded by twelve hundred monks, all of whom were Arahats, or holy men, and attentive hearers {JSIahd-

srdvakas) of Ananda, his cousin, besides two thousand other

six thousand nuns, headed by INIaha-PrajapatT, his and Yasodhara, one of his wives ; eighty thousand Bodhisatwas, sixteen virtuous men, Sakra, the Indra of the Brahma, Devas, with twenty thousand sons of the gods

monks,
aunt,

with twelve thousand sons of the gods, a crowd of other

deities,

and

finally

Ajatasatru,

king of Magadha, son of

VaidehT.

Bhagavat, after having expounded the

Sutra called the

Great Demonstration, remained

tation

silent,

plunged in the medi-

which

is

called the Place of Demonstration.

falls

shower

on him and on those who surround him, when suddenly a ray of light springs from the circle of hair that grows between his eyebrows, and illumines the
of divine flowers
eighteen thousand lands of the
as
fixr

Buddha

situated in the East,

as the great hell, Avitchi, and to the very limits of

existence.

All the spectators were struck by this miracle,

of

and
this

one

them,

the

Bodhisatwa I\Iahasatwa-]\Iaitreya,
next to him, the meaning of

inquired of ]\Ianju-sri,

Mho was
of

marvellous appearance.
in
fifty-six

Maitreya propounds his ques-

tion

stanzas
the

two verses each.

F 2

Manju-sri

answers him

in

same

style,

prose and verse, that this

84
*

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

light foretells

[pt.
is

beam of

that the

Blessed

One

about to
the

explain the developed Sutra, called the Lotus

of

good

Law'
This
is,

in fact,

an introduction somewhat
less
is

similar to that possible, of less

of the Lalita-vistara^ of
probability, as the scene

grandeur, and,

if

laid

on

this earth instead

of being

supposed to take place

in heaven.

Bhagavat awakes from

Saripulra,
first

his

meditation, and

replying to

who

has not interrogated him, explains to him,

in verse, that are
little

in prose

and afterwards

more

than a repetition, the

difficulties

which the teaching of the

five

Law
who
ing,

presents.

At the same moment

Tathagata

thousand monks,

are incapable of understanding the Law, quit the meet-

and

the

congratulates

himself

on

their

departure.

Then he
in

informs his disciple that he makes

use of a hundred thousand different manners of teaching

the

Law, although

reality

there

is

but

one way, one

vehicle for attaining salvation.

He

repeats to

him

in

one

hundred and forty-four stanzas what he has already said

in sufficiently

the

wordy prose means he employs for

and

to give

him an example of

the instruction of

human

beings,

he

sets forth a parable.

The aged
his

father of a family

coming home one day

their

finds

house

in flames.

His young children, shut up indoors,

danger.

are unaware

their father call to

and heedless of them the

;

In vain does
not see the

children,

who do
will

conflagration, refuse to believe him,

entreaties.

and

not listen to his

if

In order to persuade them he promises that

will give

they will

come out he

them magnificent

toys,

and

among others
will delight

three kinds of chariots, which he assures

them

and amuse them.

As soon

as the children have

come
the

out safe and sound, their father, instead of giving them

three different kinds of chariots, presents

them

all

three with

same kind of

chariot.

Nevertheless these chariots are

CH.

ii]

LEGEND OF THE BUDDHA

Has
their father

85
been

superb and handsomely decorated.

guilty of a falsehood?

Most

certainly not.

Well then, in
the puerile
life

the

same way

the Tathagata,

taking pity on
all

levity

of man, who, in the midst of

the miseries of

does nothing but seek for amusement and pleasure, adapts

himself to his
foibles.

He

offers

him, to enable him to

escape from the slavery of the three worlds, three different

vehicles

that of the Sravakas, that of the Pratylka

tlie

Buddhas,

and
in

that of

Bodhisatwas.
house, quits

Man, tempted
the

like the children

the

burning

three worlds,

and

the

Tathagata then gives him only one

vehicle, the great vehicle

of the Buddha, which leads to complete Nirvana.

To

this

parable four of the Buddha's principal disciples

Subhuti, Katyayana,

Kasyapa and Moggallana

reply

by

another, in order to excuse the miserable propensities which

prevent
they say,

men from
is

hearing and following the Law.

Man,
his

like the

son of a rich family who abandons

life,

parents to lead a disorderly

and who,

after

many
he

errors

and misfortunes,
recognize.

is

restored to his father,

whom

fails

to

The

son, after cheerfully submitting to a long

probation, at last returns to the right course and the possession of his inheritance,

compromised by

his

misconduct.

Bhagavat propounds again several other parables, one of

which
is

very remarkable.

There was a man blind from his birth, who used to say, There is neither colour nor form, whether beautiful or the
;

reverse

there

is

no beholder

to see

it

there

is

neither sun,

nor moon, nor

stars,

nor constellations/

In vain did those

out of his gross
assertions
until

around him
incredulity.

try to

reason this blind

man
his

He

continued

to repeat

skilful

physician restored

to

him
I

his sight.

The

blind

man

then passed to the other extreme, and

said within

himself: 'Assuredly I

who had

eyes,

was mad, and would not

who
credit

did not believe those

them.

Now

see

86

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

am
delivered from
I

[pt.

everything, I

my
do/

blindness,

and nobody
Rishis,

on earth can know more than

witnessing his present
feared
vanity.

But the wise

his

blindness,
strove
to

which was more to be

moderate
deplorable

than
*

the

first,

Thou
'

hast only just recovered thy sight,

man,*

they said,

and as yet thou knowest nothing.

?

Whence

therefore all this pride

art uninstructed.

Thou

hast

no wisdom, and thou

When
is

thou art seated in thy house thou

outside;

seest

not that which

thou knowest not the

at

thoughts of thy fellows;

thou dost not hear

a distance

of five yodjanas the sound of the coach and of the

drum

thou canst not convey thyself the

without the use of thy
feet.

distance

of one krosa

developed in thy mother's

berest nothing!

Thou hast been begotten and womb, and of that thou rememart

How

therefore
all?

thou learned?

How

canst thou say, I

all?

know

How

canst thou say, I see

Recognize,
light.*

man,

ness

The

blind

desired the Rishis to

that light is darkness, and darkman, ashamed of his presumption, instruct him in the mysteries of the

Law; and soon

his

his spiritual eyes

were opened, as those of

skilful physician,

body had been opened by the

follow
in

who was
several

no other than the Tathagata.

Then

the

Lo/us of the

good

Law

chapters devoted to the Buddha's prophecies.

These proforetells that

phecies commit
four

him

to nothing.

The Buddha
tells

of h:s listeners

Kasyapa
He

and three others

will

in

their turn

become Buddhas.
will

them the names under

which they

be reborn

in the universe they are to save.

He

even takes the trouble to describe to each of them, in

prose and in verse, the beauty of the world over which they
will reign,

and even

fixes the length

of their reign, in figures

which are fabulously enormous.

formerly abandoned

He

does the same for

a less illustrious hearer than these four, Piirna,

who had
the

an immense fortune

to

follow

CH.

ii]

LEGEND OF THE BUDDHA

desire, if

87

Buddha.
Bhagavat.
the

These splendid prophecies awake, as may be

not the
envy, of those

believed, the

who

hear

Twelve hundred of

his auditors are seized with

same thought:
!

*If only Bhagavat could predict to each

of us our future destiny, as he has done for these great

Sravakas

'

Bhagavat guesses

their thoughts, but

all

he merely

predicts that five hundred monks,

become Buddhas under the name of Samanta-Prabhasa, which will

Arahats, will

be

common
same

to

all.

Nevertheless Ananda, the Tathagata's

cousin, the

Rahula
desire
fate
;

his son,

and two thousand monks conceive

is
;

and Bhagavat
awaits

obliged to predict to each

one the

that

him

they will

all

be Buddhas

under different names and in different worlds.

These
tion"

are foolish

and

idle details, seeing that the

explana-

of the

Law

promised
still

in the

Lotus

is

not given; but the

following accounts are

more absurd.
fill

While Bhagavat 'unfolds these predictions, that

joy,
satisfaction, pleasure,

with

content and gladness'

all

those

who
slupa
it

are concerned,

and even those who hear them without

in the

deriving any advantage from them, suddenly a marvellous

^

rises

from the ground,

midst of the assembly

is

is

made of seven precious

and remains suspended
strewn
flags,

substances,

five

hundred
It rises in

yodjanas high and a circumference in proportion.

the
a'.r

in th^ sky, in full view of the

its

assembly which gazes with admiration upon

balconies

thousands of

with

flowers,

its

thousands of porticos,

bannerSj

garlands, bells, not to mention gold and silver,

crystals, emeralds, &c.

and
has

pearls,

diamonds,

voice pro-

ceeds from the stupa and praises the explanation Bhagavat

made of
It
is

the Law, or rather that he has promised to

the

make.

voice of an

ancient

Tathagata named

^ Stupas are buildings in the form of cones and cupolas, erected by the piety of believers to enshrine and cover relics. They are found throughout all India, particularly in the northern and central provinces.

C8

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

who comes
to

[pt.

Prabhutaratna,

pay homage

to the

Buddha,

and

to take his share of the teaching.

After he had called

together hundreds of thousands, millions, myriads of kotis of

Bodhisatwas to honour the

middle;

illustrious visitor,

the

Buddha,

with the forefinger of his right hand, divides the stupa in the

and

the

Talhagata Prabhutaratna

is

seen, sealed

cross-kgged, his limbs dried up, without, however, his body

being diminished in
meditation.

size.

He

seems

plunged
his

in

deep

He, however, rouses himself from

Buddha,

ecstasy

and
and

invites the

whom

he loads with praises, to come

the
the
stupa.
air,

seat himself

by

his

side in
in

The Buddha

consents,

and both remain

speaking to the

Assembly, which Las likewise risen into space, through the

supernatural power of Bhagavat.

Then

the predictions begin r.gain,

and

this

time they are

addressed to women.

The

aunt

cf the

Buddha, Maha-

PrajapaiT the Gautamide, will also, according to her wish,

become a Buddha; Yasodhaia, the mother of Rahula is to enjoy the same happiness and the thousands of nuns who It seems follow them will become interpreters of the Law. probable that, to accomplish this superhuman mission, the
;

women

will
it

change

their sex

for if the legend is silent in

it

this case,

expressly arnourxcs

in tl.at of the

daughter of

Sng.ira, king of the

Nagas, who, gifted with perfect wisdom

is,

from the age of

ight years,

as a reward for her piety,

transformed into a

man

so that she

may become a
foolish,

Bodhisatwa.

We

feel

somewhat unwilling

to

expose such absurdities,

which are as ungraceful as they are

spare our readers, were
it

and we would
to give

fain

not that

we wish

them an
But
found

exact idea of these records which, monstrous and senseless as

they are, have been venerated by so

before ending

many

nations.

we must make
It

last

quotation which, in the

to be

grossness of
in the

its folly,

surpasses,

we think, anything

Buddhist Sutras.

is

contained in the twentieth

CH.

ii]

LEGEND OF THE BUDDHA

Good Law, and
is

89

chapter of the Lotus of the

entitled Effects

of the supernatural power of the Tathagata. Hundreds of thousands of myriads of kotis of Bcdhl atwas,
vvho equal in

number

the

atoms contained

in

a thousand

worlds, have risen from clefts in the earth created by a ray

of light projected from the centre of Bhagavat's eyebrows.

With joined hands they worship the Buddha, who has called them together, and promise him, after his entrance into The perfect Nirvana, to expound the Law in his stead.
master thanks them.
blessed Prabhfiiaratna,

Then
still

the blessed

Sakya-muni and the

ihtir

seated on the throne of the stOpa,

smile to one another.

Their tongues protrude from

far as the

mouths, and reach as

world of Brahma.

At

the

same moment
gatas

several

hundreds of thousand myriads of

koiis of rays issue

from them.

The innumerable Taihathem they

;

who surround

these two personages imitate

put out their tongues in the same manner, and they continue
lo exhib't this supernatural

power during a hundred thousand

in
like ihe noise

years.

At

the

end of the hundred thousand years they draw

produced on

their tongues,

making a sound
absurdity

forci-

bly expelling the voice from the throat or in snapping the fingers.

In tiuih
that all

all this

is

revolting;
is

and

if it

were not
it

this

wretched nonsense
;

in a canonical bock,

would not be worth repealing

on,

fortunately,

however, our
shall find later
all

task is not always an ungrateful one, and

we

when we

treat of

Buddhist

eihics,

compensations for

this folly

and rubbish.
of the Lotus of the

The remainder

Good Lmw, docs not

twenty-first

deserve any particular analysis.

The

and follow-

ing chapters are almost exclusively devoted to the enumeration of the advantages the faithful will derive from reading
this Siitra
;

and among other things they are promised magic

will

formulas which

preserve them from

all

dangers.

At

last,

in the twenty-seventh chapter,

Bhagavat confides the charge

90
of the

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

Law
to the assembly

[pt.

which has

just listened to
>

its

explanation, and dismisses his gratified hearers.

Before taking leave of the legend of Sakya-muni,

necessary, in order to complete
it,

it

is

to give

an explanation
been

of the principal names by which, the Reformer has

ca41ed.

They

are

many, and

all

have a certain importance,

e'ther

from a dogmatic or a philosophical point of view.

divided into two classes
are already
:

They (may be
The'
the

religious
to us.

and

secular.

^plar names

known

We know

that

oi^Uie young prince received from his father at his birih V as Siddhartha, and the meaning of the two names Sakyamuni and Sramana Gautama will also be remembered.

The name
a

of Buddha, which as

it

has given

its

name

to

religion,' is the

most celebrated of
It

all,

means
It is

the Learned,

the Enlightened, or the Intelligent One.

derived from

BudMyio know.
but
at-

seems a modest

title

in

comparison with
it

the prodigious part played by

the

him
is

to

whom

was given

same time

it

shows what a high opinion Indian

thus held to be capable of

genius had of knowledge, which

saving

him an immortality that the gods As the word Buddha is not themselves could not attain lo. a proper name, it must never be used to designate Sakyamuni, without adding the article and saying the Buddha.
assuring to
:

man and

It

is.

merely a

title

added to or substituted
titles

for the

name under

which the prince of Kapilavastu was known

Tathagata, one of the highest

to the world.

given to the Buddha,

:

and which he appears

has
fulfilled

to liave given to himself, signifies

'he who^ walks in the footsteps of his predecessors, he

his

who
is

religious

career in the
this title

same way

as the

Buddhas before

him.'

By
all

Sakya-muni's mission

connected with that of

the sages

who preceded

him, and

whose example he followed. Sugata, or the happy one,

etymological point of view,

is

a similar epithet, from an

to that of

Tathagata; but the

CH.

ii]

LEGEND OF THE BUDDHA

and philosophical meaning
that,
is

91
It

historical

less important.
faith,

simply affirms

according to Buddhist

Sakya-muni
the

came

to save the world

and bring happiness

to all beings.
is

Bhagavat, the blessed one

or the fortunate one,

Buddha's most usual

a
title

name

in the Nepaule-re Sutras.

It

was

frequently applied in Brahmanical language to great

personages;

but

in

Buddhist

language

it

was

almost

exclusively confined to

the Buddha, or rather to the per-

sonage who was about to become the Buddha.

The name of Bodhisatwa is more com.plicated and contains more shades of meaning. Grammatically it means: *He who has the essence of the Bodhi,' or the supreme wisdom
of a Buddha.

Now

to acquire this

supreme wisdom,

it

is

necessary to have

triumphantly

endured the hardest and

longest trials in a multitude of successive existences.

The

being

is

then

ripe, as is said

by Buddhists,

for the state of

a perfect Buddha.
will
is

But the most energetic and determined

virtue
itself
is

not

sufficient,

ineffectual to enable
;

a being to attain to this high state of sanctity

he must also

gain ihe favour of one or several of the former Buddhas.

When

he has learned

how

to obtain

it,

he goes into one of

the heavens suspended above the earth to await the

moment
he has
not yet

of his appearance

on

earth.

However, even
after

after
is

come
by

to this

world, he remains Bodhisatwa, and

Buddha.

He

can only become Buddha

having shown

his austerities,

and the practice of

is

all

virtue,

by know-

ledge and study here below, that he

worthy of teaching

mankind and saving the world into which he has entered. Under these conditions only can the Bodhisatwa become
Buddha.

Another name
which
is

is

also

given sometimes to the

Buddha
that

less

exalted

than the preceding ones;

is

of
of

Arahat or Venerable, which

a superior rank.

also used
is

for

monks

When, however, it

applied to the Buddha,

92
it

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

is
'

[pt.

completed and enhanced by adding, 'The Venerable

One of the World/ or The Venerable One of the Age/ The Buddhists are not satisfied by making the Buddha an
ideal of virtue,

knowledge, holiness, and supernatural power

they have also

the

made him an

ideal of physical beauty,

and

same

vivid imagination that has

produced the extravagant

descriptions in the great Sutras has been called into play with
as

much

puerile diffuseness in portraying the Tathagala.

It

seems probable that just as the legend contains real and

historical facts, so the portrait of the

Buddha has

retained

some of
dhartha.

the particulars of the personal appearance of Sid-

Here
truth

again,

owever,

it

is

difficult

to discriminate

between
teiistics

and falsehood.

In the

thir'/y-two

charac-

of a great man, and the eighty secondary marks,

physical
impossibilities, or

there are
that verge

rather

exaggerations
these
details

on the

impossible.

Nevertheless

cannot be thrust aside, for they show the taste of the people
at that early date, and it forms part of their aesthetic and can furnish some information with regard to

ideas,

their

ethnography.

This exact nomenclature of thirty-two signs

the earliest days of

and eighty secondary marks dates from

Buddhism, as
moreover
the
it

it is

already to be found in the Lalita-vistdra\

is

considered of as

much consequence among

Buddhists.
It
is

Southern as

among

the

Northern

therefore an important, although external part of Buddhist

belief;

and

it

forms a sort of beacon

visible to the

meanest

intelligence to

be

verified before

any profession of
study one
of

faith.

Burnouf has

devoted to

this

the

most

voluminous appendixes of the Lotus of the Good Law. He has taken the trouble to study and compare seven different
Hsts contained in

Nepaulese and Sinhalese writings.

We
still

will

not enumerate one by one the thirty-two signs,

eighty secondary marks; but will be content

less

the

with quoting a few gf the most remarkable,

cii. ii]

LEGEND OF THE BUDDHA

first

93

The

sign

is

a protuberance of the cranium on the lop

is

of the head.

There
did
is

nothing to prevent our believing that

this

SiddhSrtha

possess

singular

conformation.

The
hair

second sign

to have hair curling towards the right side

light.

of a deep black, changing colour with the

The

turned to the right recalls doubtless the act of the young

prince cutting off his hair wiih his sword;
curls,

and

the short

which

have erroneously been

Buddhists when

taken for
still

those

of

a negro, confirm this tradition, which

the

survived

among

Sinhalese
in

Colonel Mackenzie visited

is

them
first

1797.

This second sign

probably as true as the

one.

less

The third, which is a large smooth forehead, is no likely. The fourth, on the contrary, seems a pure
:

invention

that

is,

the

famous

tuft

of hair, tJrna, growing

between the eyebrows, and which must be white as snow or

Then follow the two signs The Buddha must have lashes like
silver.

relating

to

the

eyes.

those of a heifer, and

forty,

eyes of a deep black.

His teeth must number

perfectly white.

and

must be even,
tion passes

close,

and

Then
like

the descrip-

on

to the voice,

which must be

Brahma's
which must

to the tongue, the jaw, the shoulders, the arms,

reach

down

to

the knees,

style

of beauty
fail

we do not
to give to

admire, but which the Indian

poems never

their heroes; then to the figure, the hairs,

each one of whicii

must be separate and turn

fingers,

to the right

sidef.om the root;

;

then to the most secret parts of the body

thence to the legs,

hands, and finally to the feet which,

among

other

things,

must have a high

set.

instep,

and be

perfectly straight

and

firmly

The

eighty secondary
details

marks are simply supplementary

added on
for

and unimportant
ceding ones.

to

the thirty-two pre-

There are three

the nails, three for the

five

fingers, five for the lines

of the hand, ten for the limbs,

for the gait, three for the canine teeth,

one

for the nose, six

94

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

fec.

for the eyes, five for the eyebrows, three for the cheeks, nine
for the hair, &c.,

Too much importance must

Some
a great
of them have given

not be attached to

all

these

minutiae, nevertheless they must not be enth-ely set aside.

rise

to

superstitions that hold

a great place in Buddhism.

man

is

the

mark of

Thus the thirty- first wheel on the soles of

sign of
the feet.

Hence

the Buddhists

of Ceylon, Nepaul, Burmah, Siam,

Laos, &c., have fancied they recognized in several places the

impress of the Buddha's

foot.

It is the

famous Prabhat or
in Ceylon,

SrTpada, the blessed foot, of which one of the most celebrated

traces
is

to be found

on Adam's Peak

where

Sinhalese superstition alleges that sixty-five auspicious signs

are to be found.

We

have given

all

the details of the real

life

of Sakyasides of

muni and

also of his legend, in order that the

two

the Buddhist spirit should be clearly understood.

side is a grandeur of

On

one

mind seldom met

falters;

with, a purity of
life

morals almost perfect, a boundless charity, a

that never for a

of heroism

moment

an amount of superstition that

and on the other hand shrinks at no extravagance,

sides the

and

that

can only be palliated by the enthusiastic admiration

for virtue

and knowledge; on both

allied

most noble
errors;

sentiments
salvation of

with

the

most

deplorable

the

mankind sought for with indefatigable ardour and praiseworthy sincerity; and disastrous failures the just punishment of unconscious pride and a blind infatuation Such are the two general that nothing could enlighten. We shall find them again in its aspects of Buddhism. ethics and in its metaphysics.

CHAPTER

III.

General character of Buddhist ethics (feriveJ from the canonical ivritin^s The Three Basketfils, ami the 'I hree Pearls ; the of the Councils,

four

noble truths ; the ten precepts ; the tivelve ol^servances specially applicable to monks on clothini^, food, and residence ; the six transcendent virtues and the secondary virtues; confession, faviily duties, preaching. Influence of Ltiddhist ethics on individtials and govern-

The Buddha s ideal. Piirna, Kundla, I dsaiadatid and Upagupta. The kings Bimbisdra, AJdtasatru, and Apka. Piyadass Edicts, spread all over India. Journeys of Chinese pilgrims in the fifth and seventh century of the Chi istian era. Fa Hian and
ments.

Hiouen-Thsang.

Although Sakya-muni was a

pretended to any other
title, it

philosopher,

and never
to expect
all

would be an error

of him a melhodical and regular system.

his
life,

He

preached

but addressing himself to the people, he probably did

that

not employ the rigid forms

science
his

demands, which
hearers,

would not have been understood by

numerous

and which the Brahmanic

spirit

has

itself

but imperfectly

made

uee

of.

Entrusted by his self-imposed mission with

the salvation of

mankind and of

all

creatures, or better

still

with that of beings and the entire universe, the ascetic had
to

assume a language accessible

to

all,

that

is

to say the

simplest

and most ordinary ^

the Buddha's ideas, although very clear
all

Thus
in his

and decided
form.

own mind, and

powerful in their sway over his

their

disciples,

were anything but precise in

The

Euinouf remarks that

literary inferiority

this necessary condition of

Buddhism explains

ils

form,

when compared with Brahmanism. Art, in every was almost unknown to Buddhism, and more particularly iu
;

literature

the style of the Sutras

is

intolerable

93

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

[pt.

Buddha himself wrote

'

nothing, and his principal adherents,

after his death, Settled in the

assembled in Council directly

about to become a dogma.
first

Sutras the words of the IMaster,

^

and the doctrine which was

other Councils after the

Two
to

one made a

definite

code of the canonical writings, a^

us,

they have been

received through

handed down
translations

and as

tiicy

were

by

all

the nations professing

Buddhism.
at least

I'his

work of

successive editions
era.

was

finished

two centuries before the Christian

We know

moreover

that the first Council which met at Rajagriha in Magadha, under the protection of Ajatasatru divided the

canonical books into three great classes, which remained

unchanged

in the subsequent editions. These were the Suu^s or discourses of the Buddha, the Vinaya or Discipline, and the AbMdhariiia or Metaphysics. Ananda was

appointed to compile the

Sutras,
all

Ui)ali

the Vinaya,

and

Kasyapa, who had regulated

the deliberations, reserved

for himself the metaphysical part. The Sutras, Viji^aya, and Abhidharma formed what is called ihe Tripitaka, or Three Baskets, in the same way t'.iat the Buddha, the Law, and the Assembly formed the Triralna or the Three Pearls, the Three Gems. The Siitra?, which are also called Buddhavachana or word of the Buddha, and Mulagranlha, the textbook, are with good reason considered by the Norlliern

Buddhists to be fundamental truths.

It

is

evident that the

remainder has been drawn from the Buddha's discourses.

The

first

theory that presents

all

itself,

and which,
is

in

due

order must indeed precede

the others,
It

that of the four

to
all

Noble Truths (aryani

and was adopted
in Ceylon,
in
'f
^

satyani).

was known

Buddhists,

in the south

and

east, as well as in the north,

it

Burma, Pegu, Siam and China, exactly as

was

Nepaul and Tibet,

The

following are the four truths:

First, the state

of suffering which assails

man under some

cn. in]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
unfortunately an undeniable
all

97
his birth.
it

form or another, whatever may be the condition of

This
is

fact,

although

does
it

not entail

the consequences that

Buddhism

ascribes to

but

it is

given as an impregnable basis, sad but true, on which

the whole building of the system reposes.

Secondly, the cause of suffering, which the

to the passions, tp sinful lusts.

Buddha

attributes

The
the

third

Noble Truth, a
two
first, is

fitting

consolation for the sad

will

reality of the

that

sorrow
all

cease by Nirvana,
efforts.

supreme goal and reward of

and
last

man's

Finally, the fourth

belief of

Truth, which forms the principal

to the

Buddhism, the path leading

the

cessation
that

of
to

sorrow,

method of
or

salvation,

the

way

leads

Nirvana

(??iarga, in Pali

magga).

The way
parts,

method of
It
is

Ei ghtfold Path .'

which are so

salvation is called 'Th e Noble summed up in eight principles or many conditions that man must fulfil in

order to ensure his eternal deliverance.

The
Tiie

following are the eight divisions of the method.

first,

according to Buddhist phraseology,

is

Right'

Views, that
tnent,

is faith

and orthodoxy
all

the second. Right Judgthe third,

which dispels
is

doubt and uncertainty;

I\ight_Words, that

perfect truthfulness, a horror of falsestrict

hood under whatever form, and a

fourth condition of
salvation,

avoidance of
is

it

the

Ri^it Aims, that

;

ever to

pursue a pure and honest line of conduct

Mode
and

()f^Livelihopd, seeking for

the fifth, a RJ^ht maintenance in an upright

sinless occupation, in other

words by a

religious pro-

fession; the sixth, a Ri ght Application of the

the Precepts of the

retains a clear

Law

the seventh, a Right

Mind to all Memory, which

;

and exact
last.

recollection of past actions

and

the eighth
tellect,

and

Right Meditation, which leads the in-

even here below, to a quietude bordering on that of

the Nirvana.

98

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

[pt.

These are the Four Noble Truths that Siddhartha had at-Bodhmmnda, under the Bodhi tree, after six years of meditation and penance ; these did he first teach to his disciples, when he turned the Wheel of the Law for the
attained to
'

'

first

time at Benares.

By
;

the comprehension of these things

his doctrine

did he

become Buddha

and when he preached

to the world,

he ever gave to these four Truths a preference

over

all

other parts of his

teaching In
his

his great struggle

against the Tirthlyas or BraiiTfians of Kosala, in the presence

of Prasenajit,

when he
crying,
will

defeated

adversaries,
for

and the
to

Brahmans
mountain,

fled,

'We

will

fly

refuge
trees,

the

we

seek

a shelter amongst

waters,

and hermitages/ Bhagavat addressed them

contemptuous woids of farewell
fear seek
:

in the following

'

Many men

pursued by
forests, in

a refuge in the mountains and in the

hermitages and under consecrated trees.

But these are

not the safest shelters, they are not the surest refuge.

But

he

who

seeks for a refuge in the Buddha, the Law, and

the Assembly,

when he beholds, with the eye of wisdom, the Four Noble Truths, which are the existence of Pain, the
and the Noble Eightfold Path
he has attained
this,

cause of Pain, the annihilation of Pain, and the way to the

annihilation of Pain,
to Nirvana,

that leads
safest

he of a surely knows the best sheUer, the

of

all

refuges.

When

he

is

freed from

all suffering.'

the Mongol and Tibet tradiiions, Four Truths took up the whole of the first Council, and their labour was confined to drawing up the Siitras that explained it. It is, in a manner, the source and epitome
If

we

are to believe

the theory of the

of the whole BuddbisLjdoctrine.

faithful,

It has, for the

use of the

been summed up in a stanza composed of two verses

that all Buddhists

a true article of faith.

is

know by heart, and which is for them The monks constantly repeat it, and it

written

on the pedestal of most of the images of the Buddha;

CH.
'

Ill]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
hath
the

99

Of

all

things proceeding from cause, the cause of their

procession

Tathagata

explained.

The

great

Sramana has
of
all

likewise declared the

cause of the extinciion

things \'

The

things or effects are suffering

;

and the present

finally,
is
'

life,

caused by past sins

the cause
is

is

the production of suffering;

the extinction of all elTects

Nirvana;

the teaching

of the Tathagata, or the great Sramana,

to Nirvana.

the path that leads

tain

Immediately following these Four Noble Truths are a cernumber nf innpl p^pr^ptc very simple no doubt, but
re-

which the Buddha did not neglect any more than other
formers have done.
to
kill,

The

first five

of these precepts are: not*T

'

not to

steal,

not to commit adultery, not to

lie,

not to

get drunk.
less

To

these
still

commandments
have
their

five others,

which are
:

binding but

importance, are added

;

to

abstain from food except at the appointed time

to abstain

from the sight of dancing, singing, music, and stage plays

to

abstain

from wearing garlands or using perfumes; to

abstain from sleeping

on a luxurious bed; and,

finally, .net

to accept gold or silver.

These are the ten aversions or repugnances {vdramanls)

every novice must
feel,

that

or rather

all

men who

believe in the

Buddha.

The

first five

Buddhist without exception.

larly applicable to

commandments are binding on every The others are more particumonks, who moreover have a special code,

^ Another stanza is sometimes added ; Csoma de Koibs found it in the Tibetan writings he consulted, and it is often quoted in the Sinhalese Sutias: 'To cease from all wrong-doing, to get virtue, to cleanse one's own heart, this is the religion of the liuddha.' Two other stanzas of a similar character are found in the Nepalese Sutras; they are attributed to Sakya-niuni, and were written under his portrait, sent

by Bimbisara to Rudrayana, king of Roruka * Begin, go out of the house, apply yourself to the Law of the Buddha annihilate the army of death as an elephant upsets a hut of reeds. He who shall walk without distraction under the discipline of this Law, escaping renewed births,
:

will put

an end to sorrow.'

G a

too
which we
that

THE ORIGIN OP BUDDHISM

shall

[pt.

mention

later.

It will

be easily understood
severity for

the

most common

rules

assume a
laity
;

them

which they cannot have for the

thus, the

monks must

not only abstain from committing adultery, but must remain

rigorously chaste.

Whole works, north and

a methodical
clapsificaiion

south, have

been
faults;

devoted to
but these

of sins

and

works, written somewhat later than the days of the Buddha,

are less an exact reproduction than a development of his
doctrine,

and we

will

not enter upon them, although their

study might prove interesting; at present

ied
It

we
the

^re-soldy^TTCti--

by the theories of Sakya-muni.

seems
certain, liOweveivthar'Tt

was

Buddha

himself

who drew up
handed down

for his

monks and nuns

the twelvejollpwing

observances, which the Sinhalese and Ciiinesc writings have

to us.

They

are extremely

strict,

but Siddhar-

tha had himself practised them for

many

years before im-

posing them on others, and when a young prince had given

such an heroic example none of his believers could hesitate to

follow
it.

Nor must we

lose sight of the fact that these rules

is

are addressed to the monks, that

men

of superior piety,
to

who had renounced

despise
its

the world,

and were therefore bound

'

interests

and

its

pleasures.

The
dust,'

first

observance signifies

wearing rags found in the

to

and

refers to

an injunction

wear garments made of

rags picked up in graveyards, on dunghills, or by the roadside.

The second commands them

with iheir

lo

have no more than three

of these wretched garments, which must be sewn logeiher

own hands

in imitation of their Master.

These

rags are to be covered by a yellow woollen robe, procured

by similar means.

So much for more simple.

the clothing.

The

food

is, if

possible,

still

cii. Ill]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
fourth,

loi
live

The
begging

and one of the

strictest rules, is to

by

in utter silence

from house

to

house

wooden almsand by

bowl was allowed

for this purpose.

is

Fifihly, the ascetic

allowed but one meal a d^y

is

^
{^

the sixth observance he

not allowed any food whatever,

It will

even sweetmeats,

after

noon.

be seen by a great

mmy
daily

of the Sutras that the Buddha, directly after he awoke,

ured to leave the vihara or monastery to go and beg for his

food,

and

his

single

meal was always made before

spent in teaching

neon,

the

remainder of the day being

about their residence were no
to live in a forest
tell
' ;

and meditation.

The
vance.
all

rules

less severe.

The

/ monks were
monks,

that is the seventh obser-

All the Sutras

left

us that the Budvlha, and in general

the forests in whjch they

had spent the night

in

order to beg in
is

some neighbouring
to take

city.

The
them

eighih ob-

servance

the

command
:

shcUer near a

tree,

and to

seek no other shelter

the ninth order oblige's

to

sit

on

the

ground, leaning against the trunk of the tree they had chosen
,

,-

as a shelter.
is

They must

sleep sitting

and not
is

reclining, this

the

tenth observance; the eleventh

not to change the

position of their

mat when once

laid
is

down.
twelfth, of a totally

To
.

these eleven observances

added a

difTerent kind,

which completes them, and clearly shows ihe

object of
night,

all.

The monks
on

are to

go from lime

to time at

and

at least

once a month, into the cemeteries, and

there meditate

the instability of

human

things.

From

these details

we

are better able to

comprehend
:

the

meaning of the names the Buddhists gave themselves

Bhikshu, a mendicant

that of

and Sram.ina, or
^

ascetic,

who subsists on the alms he receives who overcomes the senses. Tl e

open air were applicable sea^Qn they inhabited ih? yihlras

The

rules prescribing a residence in the

j

during the fine weather

or qijQnast^ifcc.

iq tlje rainy

102
^

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

did not disdain to be

[pt.

Buddha

known by
calls

either

of these

desigRations.

Sometimes

he

himself

'the

great

mendicant/ ]\Iaha Bhikshu, and

at o:her times the

Gauta-

mide asce\^, Sramana Gautama.

covetousness of the world

The

state

of mendicancy

showed- thae^the Buddhist had renounced the vanities and

;

his chaste celibacy,

which forb;.de
ensuring him,
of

him even the most innocent family

it

affections,

is

true,

a control over the most formidable

Certainly
this

human
useful

passions.

was not a way

to

make

members of society, but it is thus that saints are made. The rules devoted to clothing deserve particular attention, and in the Indian world they are perhaps more strikingly
any other rule of the Buddhist ascetics. The Brahmans allowed their sages to remain in a state of complete nudity, and rightly described them as beings robed in space {digambaras). The Greeks, who accompanied Alexander, and had seen them on the banks of the Indus, called them by analogy gymnosophistsand it was, so it
original than
'
' ;

seems, an admitted fashion for the highest caste to

in the cities, in a state of nakedness, a condition

live,

even

which the

most degraded savages

the

will

hardly

descend

to.

Though
for piety,

Brahman

ascetics doubtless took

immodesty

Indian society in general does not seem to have shown any

want of regard

for

decency, for not only the

women

of

a higher rank like

Sumagadha,
ll;e

the

daughter of Ana. ha

Pindika, were dirgusted, but

indignant, as
is

courtesans themselves were

shown by the one who mocked the Brahman Puiana Kasyapa when, in his anger at being conquered by
a pond.

Bhagavat, he tied a stone to his neck and drowned himself

in

The

religious

life

was an

ideal that the

Buddha alone

carried out to
attain to
it,

its

fullest

extent;

but

if

all

men

could not
life,

all at

least could,

whatever their position in

practise certain virtues that the

Reformer considered, accord-

CH.

Ill]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
six in

103

ing to the 'precepts of his teaching,' as most important.

These precepts were

purity,

number

almsgiving or charity,

patience,

courage,

contemplation,

and

wisdom.
|

These are the

enable
the

six transcendent virtues {^paramitCis) 'which;

man

to pass to the other ^ore,'"as the

for

etymology

of!

word used

them

indicates.

Man
it;

does not necessarily!

is is

attain

Nirvana by the observance of them, he

but he

but at the

entrance to the path which leads to

on the road
life

to

faith,

*he has

left

the

daik shores of the

of

scif-

ignorance.'

Henceforth he knows the goal he

it, it

is

to reach,

and

if

he misses

is

not through ignorance of the way.

Ajmsgjvi ng,

as

Buddhism

understands

it,

is

not

the

ordinary liberality which gives to others a part of the goods

we

possess.

It is

an unlimited charity
the

to all creatures with-

out exception,
sacrifices.

entailing

most painful and excessive

There is, for instance, a legend in which the Buddha gives up his body to feed a famished tigress that has no longer strength to suckle its young. In another,
a neophyte casts himself into the sea to allay a storm evoked

by the anger of the king of the Nagas, and which threatens

to

wreck

his

companion's boat.

into this world to. _aye

him must fol'ow

his

The Buddha only came, mankind all those who believe in example, and shrink from no ordeal that
;

may
t!ie

ensure the happiness of his fellow creatures.

or,

Charity

must expel egotism from the heart of man,

Buddhist

according to

mode

of expression,

*it

leads to the perfect

maturity of the egotistical being.'

Besides these six virtues, which

others of
ficial,

may seem essential, are minor importance, which are also deemed benestrict

and of which the Buddha urges a

is

observance.

Thus, not only

speech^

falsehood forbidden, but in an almost equal

degree slander, coarse language,_and even idle and frivolous

Not

to

commit these

faults
;

is

to acquire

habits
is

worthy of respect (arlya vohara)

to give

way

to

them

to

104
contract

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

habits

[pt.

which are contemptible.

to

monk, who

should be regarded as an example

will

men, hates slander; he

not repeat what he has heard so as to provoke enmity

strives

on the contrary, he

to

reconcile those

who have

quarrelled; he does not separate those

who

are united; he

takes pleasure in concord

things,

and as he
any

desires peace above all

it.

he holds the language calculated to promote

He

has also

an aversion

for

coarse

word.

'

gentle

language, pleasant to the ear, affectionate, appealing to the

heart, polite

and gracious

to others,'
all

is

that

which he employs.
he only

Finally, as he has

renounced

frivolous speech,

speaks to the purpose, in a sensible manner, according to

the

Law and

the

Order

his discourse is full

of meaning, and

always seemly.

Another
hearers,

virtue that the

Buddha

also impressed
is

on

his

and

that he himself practised unceasingly,

humility.

Sakya-muni did not

certainly fiithom

all

the evil consequences

was too deeply impressed by the radical meekness and misery of mankind to let him glorify himself for any virtues he might acquire, and therefore he
of pride, but he nevertheless
inculcated simplicity of heart

and renunciation of

all

vanity.

When
and zo

the king IVasenajit, instigated by the Tirthiyas, urged

the Buddha,

whom

he protected, to perform some miracles

Buddha, while consenting to comply wi h the king's wishes, said to him Great king, I do not teach the Law to my hearers by saying to them. Go, O mendicants, and perform in the sight of the Brahmans and the householders miracles by the aid of supernatural
silence his enemies, the
:

'

power
to

miracles greater
in

than other m.en can do; but

say

them
It is

teaching them the

Law

Live,

mendicants, by

hiding your good works and exposing your sins/

evident that
his

when

the

Buddha
all

instituted confession

among
on
this

monks, and even among

the faithful, he relied

at ih^

sentiment of humility.

Twice a month,

new

CH.

ml

BUDDHIST ETHICS
at the full

105

moon and

moon, the monks confessed their faults Buddha and the assembled Order. It was only by repentance and self-humiliation before ethers Mighty kings confessed that they could redeem themselves.
out loud before the
to the

Buddha

the crimes they

had committed, and

it

was

at

the cost of this painful confession that the culprits expiated

the most infamous crimes.

institution of the

Although

difficult to practise, this

Buddha continued

in force

long after him,

and

in the

Edicts of Piyadasi that pious

monarch enjoined
their
at
It

upon
these

his subjects a general

least

and_^bl]c confession of
years.

sins at

once
the

in every five

appears that
together

epochs

people were

assembled

and
last

reminded of the principles of the Law, and urged to make

a confession of their
three days.
It is

sins.

The ceremony

could only

rather an astonishing fact that the

Buddha, although
celibacy,

preaching absolute renunciation

and

ascetic

not

only respected fa niilx- duties, but placed them in the very

first

rank.

Personally,

he always

showed himself

full

of

respect

and tenderness
lier,

for his mother's

memory, although he
after his

had never known

as she

had died seven days

birth; but the legends represent

him

as constantly anxious

about her conversion, and he

is

said to have

gone

several

times to the heaven of the Trayastrimsats, where she dwelt,

to teach her the

Law

that

would save

her.

In one of the

simplest

and

most beautiful

legends,

Bhagavat thus addresses the monks

the garden of
'

who

listen

to

him

in
ti

Anatha Pindika

at Jctavana,

near Srava

O mendicants, dwelli in families in which the and mother are perfectly honoured, perfectly venerated, perfectly rerved. Wherefore is this ? It is because, according to the Law, a father and mother are for their ion, Brahma
Brahma,
father

himself.

'Jhe

TC'Icherj

nn^n^ipanlSj dwells in the fmiili<;5 ^^licr8

io6
the
father

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

[pt.

venerated, perfectly served.

and mother are perfectly honoured, perfectly Wherefore is this ? It is because,

himself.

according to the Law, a father and mother are for their son,
the
*

Teacher

The

fire

of

sacrifice,

mendicants,

dwells

in

those

families

where the father and mother are peifccily honoured, Wherefore

is

peifectly venerated, perfectly served.

is

ih's?

It

because, according to the Law, a father r.nd mother are for

their son, the fire of the sacrifice itself.

*

&c.

The domestic fire, O mendicants, dwells The Deva (Lidra, no doubt) dwells in
: *

in those familic?,

the families,' &c.

filial

In another legend Bhagavat explains the causes of

piety

They perform,

mendicants, a most

difficult

thing

for their child, the father

and mother who feed him, bring

their milk,

him up, nourish him with

varied Lights of the

and make him see the

to requite properly the

There

is

Jambud\ ipa.' but one way for the son

to establish
it;

kindness of his parents, and repay what they have done for

him

that

is,

them
to

in the perfection of fai.h, if

they do
morality,
if

not possess
if

give
;

them the

perfection

of

they are unprincipled

the perfection of liberality

they are avaricious, and

that

of knowledge
practi:es

if

they are

ignorant.

That

is

how a son who

;

the

Law

can do

good

to his father

and

m.other, besides all the tender care he

i-hould

bestow on them

and
that

this is

how he can discharge

life.

the debt he
It

owes

to those

who have

given him

might be thought
life,

Buddhism, which has such

a horror of
ties

has hardly the right to extol the duties and

life
;

created by

but this apparent contradiction does

explained

it

honour, and

may even be

away.

In order to

attain perfection

and reach Nirvana, the Buddha was oblged

to

pass

through the

human
the

state,

ingratitude he could not but cherish

and without culpable and venerate the beings

who had opened

to

him

way

to

Nirvana.

CH.

Ill]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
confine
ourselves
to
as,

107
as

We

shall

the

above theories

regards the ethics of Buddhism,

concise though they are,

they certainly comprise the most important and profound

part of
it.

These may be

attributed to the

Buddha, whereas
belong only to

the other parts, the school

more

subtle

and

less practical,

and the casuistry founded by the Buddhist system.

conclude by a few observations upon the means
to

We

will

employed by the Buddha

It

propagate his doctrine.

His

only method, which has also a moral side, was by preaching.

does not appear that the Reformer ever thought he could

employ any other means.

that proselylism

Upheld and protected by kings,

fails

he might have had recourse to force and persecution, means

seldom

to use.

But

all

the legends,

without exception, are unanimous on this point.

The Buddha
called to
;

f^und

his
all

only weapons in persuasion.

castes

He

him
he
to

men

of

and the mass of created beings

to

from the

h'ghest

gods down

the

most

degraded

creatures

exhorted them to embrace the

Law

which he declared

them

he charmed them by his discourses, astonished them

his supernatural

sometimes by

power, but he never sought

assist their

to constrain them.

Often did he

backwardness
;

by parables, of which some are most ingenious

he gave

them examples
hearers and

to imitate

he drew from the history of his

past existence a narration of his

own

faults, to instruct his

awaken

their
;

fears

by the punishments with

which they were followed

fessions
that
if

he even delighted in these con-

they were useful, and he related his faults in order

his

listeners

might be spared

their

consequences by

learning

how

to avoid them.

To

rely

on

the

power of

truth

and reason alone was

in-

deed a just and noble idea of human dignity, so often disregarded, and

we

shall see

how

individuals, as well as nations,

responded to the Buddha's appeal by virtues and refinements

little

to

be expected

at

such a remote period.

io8

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

it

[pt.

In order to judge of the influence exercised by the moral

teaching of Sakya-muni,
detail the state

would be necessary to know

in

of public and private morality in the society

to

which

it

was addressed, and the exact history of the nations

failh.

he tried to convert by preaching the new

tion
is,

Our informa-

however, too incomplete on

this

point to enable us to

gather suflicient knowledge.

give us a
the

But

in default of this, the Sutras

number of Reformer had on

it is

facts

which clearly show the influence

the

minds of men.
it is

Some
them

of ihe

traits

given are truly admirable, and

Buddlii^m, as
for
is,

but right to credit them to

called

Buddhism which

into existence;

one

fact stands

out strikingly from the legend.^ and that

society at the time of the

the corrupt state of Indian

Buddha's appearance.
criticism,

He

does not pretend to correct by

it

but he brings the remedy

to guide
it

needs and the ideal

the only

which

is

by making

virtue

means of

salvation.
to

We will

choose some examples from these legends

elicited

show what the Buddha

from the hearts he had

in return

enlightened.

Puma was
for her

the son of

an enfranchised slave whom,

most

diligent devotion in nursing him, her

master had

enfranchised by admitting her to his bed (at her most press-

ing request).

Purna was brought up

and
intelligence.

in the paternal

house

with his three elder brothers, and he soon distinguished himself

by

his activity

Not only
but,

did he

make

his fortune in lucrative

clever, he

commerce,

generous as well as

made

the fortunes of his family,

liim

who moreover had

went to sea on
speculations

not always trea'ed

mercantile

very well.

He

expeditions,
at

and

foitunate

scon

placed him

the
his

head of the Merchants' Corporation.

voyages he had for companions some

During one of

Buddhist merchants from Sravasti, and he was profoundly

impressed by their religious. demeanour.
^\ ni^ht
*

These merchants,

and

at (lawn,

read aloud the hymns, the prayers

CH.

Ill]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
to the other shore, the texts

109

which lead

which disclose the

Truth, the verses of the Slhaviras and those of the heimlls.'

Tiicse were the Sutras and words of the Buddha.

Puma, struck by these things, of which he had never till now heaid, on his return went straight to Sravasti, and having
himself presented to Bhagavat by Anatha Pindika, embraced
the faiUi that

had so touched

his heart.

He

then received

the investiture and tonsure from the Buddha,

*

who

remarked,
to

that the

most agreeable present he could have was a man

convert,'

and the Buddha himself instructed him

in the

Law.

lie taught

him

in a few

words that the whole

Law

consisted

in renunciation;

and Purna, henceforth dead

to the Buddhist faidi.

to the world,
tribe, in

chose as his abode the land of a neighbouring

to convert

order

them

This

tribe

was noted
less

for a cruelty

and

ferocity well calculated to deter to

any one

courageous.

Bhagavat strove
of Sronaparanta,

dissuade him from such

a dangerous enterprise.
'

The men

among whom

thou wishest to

reside,' says

Bhagavat,

'

are violent, cruel, angry, furious,

and
they

insolent.

When

these men,

Purna, shall address thee to

thy face in wicked, coarse, and insulting language,

shall

when

become enraged

against thee
?
'

and

rail

against thee, what

w ilt thou think of

insulting language,

that

If the

men

of Sronaparanta,'

leplied Purna, 'address

if

me

to

my

face in wicked, coarse,

and

become enraged against me and rail at me, this is what I shall think of that They are certainly good men, these Sronapai antakas they are gentle, mild men, they who neither strike me with the hand nor stone me.'
they
:
; *

But

if

the

men
thee,

of Sronaparanta do strike thee widi the

hand or stone
'

what

wilt

thou think of that?'

for not striking

I shall

ihink them
sticks.'

good and gentle

me

widi swords or
'

But

it'

they strike thee with swords and sticks, what wilt

?

thou think of that

no
*

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

I shall

[pt.

think them
life.'

good and gentle

life,

for not depriving

me

entirely of
'

But
?

if

they deprive thee of

what

wilt

thou think of

that
'

I shall think that the

gentle, they
full
*

who

deliver

men of me with
said the

Sronaparanta are good and

so
little

pain from

this

body

of ordure.'

Good, good, Purna

'

Buddha

thou canst, with

the perfection of patience with which thou art

endowed,

yes,

thou canst take up thy abode in the land of the Sronaparantakas.

Go,

O Puma

delivered thyself, deliver others

arrived
;

thyself at the other shore, cause others to arrive there

con-

soled thyself, console others

having come thyself to complete

Nirvana, cause others to arrive there/

Hereupon Purna took

and by
inhabitants, teaching

his

way

to the dreaded country,

his imperturbable resignation

he softened the cruel

the

them the precepts of the Law and

formulas of refuge.

The above example shows

apostle, braving death in his

the courageous failh of the

dangerous mission.

The

follow-

ing legends will

kind.

show a heroism
is

as difficult but of a different

A
the

son of King Asoka

sent

by

his father to Takshasita

(Taxile) to govern that part of his states,

name of
out.

the

beloved there,

and Kunala (that is young prince) had made himself generally when a royal order comes for both his eyes to
is

be put

This cruel order

sent by the

queen Rishyavengeance on

Rakshita, one of Asoka's wives,

seal of state, in order to

who makes
for

a false use of the

wreak

this terrible

the

young

prince,

and punish him

having disdained her

criminal advances.

The

inhabitants of Takshasita refuse to

carry out the order, which seems to

them

iniquitous.

In
*

vain

is

an appeal made

to the

Chandalas,

who

answer,

We

have not the courage to be his executioners/

-^

cii.

Ill]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
prince,

iii
seal,

The young

uho has
;

recognized his father's

at last a

submits to his sad

fate

and ^vhen

deformed leper

presents himself to do the cruel office, Kunala, mindful of the

lessons of his masters, the Sthaviras, says
*

Because they foresaw

this calamity, the sages

who knew

the

Truth did say to

is

me

in

former days

" Look, the whole

world

perishable,

Yes, those

no one can remain in a stable condition." magnanimous sages, exempt from passions, were

indeed virtuous friends desiring

who

taught

things

and

tremble at
perishable

my advantage and welfare, When I consider the fiaihy of all reflect on the advice of my masters, I no longer my sentence; for I know that my eyes are
me
this law.

things.

Let
as

preserved,

according

the

them therefore be put out or king commands. I have

all

received from

my

eyes the best they could give me, since,

things are perishable

thanks to them, I have seen that

here below.'

Then, turning
executioner
put
it
:

to

the

man who had

said,
'

offered himself as
first,

Come,' he

pluck out one eye

and

into

my

hand.*

Notwithstanding the lamentations and cries of the people,

the

man

accomplished the hideous

tasrk;
*

and the prince,

Wherefore dost

taking hold of the eye lying in his hand,

thou no longer see things,' said he, 'as thou didst but a

moment
pitiful

ago,

vile

globe cf flesh

How

self-abused

and

are the insensate beings

who

aitach themselves to thee

and

say, "

This

is

myself."

The second eye was plucked out like the first. At this moment Kunala, who had lost the eyes of the flesh, but in
'

whom
from

the

eyes
:

of knowledge
*

were

purified,'

uttered

the

following stanza

The

eyes of the flesh have been taken

me

but I have acquired the perfect and irreproachable

If I

eyes of wisdom.

am abandoned by
magnanimous king

the king, I have

become

the son of the

of the Law, and

112

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

If I
it

[pt.

have been called his child.

grandeur, which brings with

have

fallen

from supreme
grief, I

so

much

pain and

have

acquired the sovereignty of the Law, which destroys pain and

grief/

Kunala crowns
that

his resignation
;

and energy by an unpre-

cedented magnanimity

and when he shortly afterwards hears

he

is
*

the victim of Risiiya-Rakshita's intrigues, he ex!

claims,

Ah

may

the

queen Rishya-Rakshita long enjoy

for

happiness,

life,

and power,

having employed these means,

which have brought

of the legend
is

me

such great benefits.'

The remainder
guides his steps

no

less touching.
iiis

The
wife,

blind prince wanders

from place

to place with

young

who

while singing of his misfortunes and his consolations.

He
anger

thus arrives at the palace of his father,

who
is

in his just

wishes to put the wicked queen to death.

for

Kunala intercedes
responsible for his
for

her,

and declares

that he

alone

misfortune, which he had

no doubt deserved
false,

seme

sin

committed in a former

life.
it

Whether

this

legend be true or
It

is
it

nevertheless of
is

great value to us.

matters

little

whether

a true slory
It

or simply the invention of the author of the Sutra.

may

have been only a lesson instead of a history

but the senti-

ments are no

less

noble and great, and they are inspired by

the doctrine of the

Buddha.

In another legend

we

find a refined

and striking example

of chaste continence and of austere charity.

There was
vadcilta.

at Matliura

a celebrated courtesan called Vasa-

name
to her
*

of

Her maid went one day to a young merchant of the Upagupta to buy some perfumes. Vasavadatta said

on her return
seems,

It

my

dear, that this

young man

pleases you, as

you always buy from him.' The maid answered her

'

Daughter of

my

master,

Upa-

gupta, the son of the merchant,

who

is

gifted with beauty,

CH.

Ill]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
life

113
in the obser-

with talent and with gentleness, spends his

vance of the Law.'

On
for

hearing
ta,

tiicse

words, Vasavadatta conceived a passion

after she sent her

Upagu}
him
:

and a few days

is

maid
;

to say

to

I\Ty intention

to

go and

find thee

wish to

enjoy myself with thee.'

but the young
*

The maid

delivered her message,

man

told her thus to

answer her mistress

My

sister,
it

it

is

not yet time for thee to see

in

me/
Thus the was because he For this reason
single

Now

was nccesrary

order to obtain the favours of

Vasavadatta to give her

courtesan imagined that,

five
if

hundred Puranas.
it

he refused her,

could not give the

she sent her maid to

five

hundred Puranas.
to say
: *

him again
son of

I
I

do not ask a

Karchapana from
myself with him.*

the

my

master

only wish to enjoy

The maid

again delivered this message

and Upagupta answered her

is

in the

same way

'

My

sister, it

not time yet for thee to see me.*

However, shortly
to a very rich

after this

Vasavadatta assassinated one of

sell herself

her lovers, whose jealousy she feared, in order to

merchant who coveted

her.
at

The

crime having

been discovered, the king of Mathura

the executioner to
ears,

once gave orders to

go and cut off the courtesan's hands, feet, and nose, and to leave her thus mutilated in the
heard of the punishment that had been
said to himself,
attire,
*

cemetery.

Now Upagupta
inflicted

on Vasavadatta, and he body was covered with beautiful

ornaments of different
aspired to deliverance
sorts,

When

her

and she shone with

the best thing for those

who

and who wished to escape the law of

to

renewed

birth,

was not
lost

go and see

this

woman.
it

To-day,

when she has

her.'

her pride, her love, and her joy,

is

when she

has been mutilated by the edge of the knife,

time to see

Then

sheltered

by a parasol carried by a young mfin who

114

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

[pt.

tery with a

accompanied him as a servant, Upagupta went to the cememeasured step. Vasavadatta's maid had stayed
Upagupta's approach,

with her mistress out of gratitude for her past kindness, and
seeing

warned her

mistress,

who,

although racked by pain, by a lingering coquetry and desire

to please, bid her

maid pick up her

scattered limbs

and hide

them under a piece of linen. Then Vasavadatta, seeing Upagupta standing up before her, said to him
master, when my body was sweet like the when it was adorned with ornaments and rich clothes, when it had all that could attract the eye, I was so unhappy as not to see thee. To-day why dost thou come
*

Son of

my

lotus-flower,

to this place to contemplate

a bod}^ the sight of which the

eyes cannot bear, from which amusements, pleasure, joy, and

beauty have

fled,

Which inspires nothing but horror, and

is

stained with blood

and

dirt

V
:

Upagupta

replied to her

'

My

sister, I

did not

come
I

to

thee formerly, attracted

by the love of pleasure; but

am

now come
man's

to see the real nature of the miserable objects of

pleasures.*

Then he consoled Vasavadatta by

and
his discourses bringing

teaching her the

Law

calm

to the soul of the

'

unhappy
be soon

woman, she
reborn

died professing faith in the Buddha,

to

We
first

among the gods.' will now quote a few

among
his

legends treating of kings, begin-

ning with Bimbisara, the Buddha's constant protector, and the

prince

contemporaries

who was

converted.

Before transferring the seat of government to Rajagiilia,

; the city was densely popuand the houses crowded together, and, doubtless built of wood, had often been destroyed by fire. In order to

Bimbisara resided at Kusagara

lated,

prevent such disasters, the king published an edict, saying

that whoever,

through carelessness or neglect, should

let his

house catch

fire,

should be turned out into the cold forest

CH.
the

Ill]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
in

115

name given

that

country to the loatlisome place

where bodies were thrown

a
;

burial

ground.

However,
said

shortly after the palace caught

*

fire,

and the king then

violate

am

the master of all

men

if I

my own

decrees

have no longer the right to repress the errors of

my

subjects.'

The

king therefore

commanded

the prince-royal
forcsl^

to govern in his place,

in the cemetery.

and went to dwell in the cold

Such

is

the tradition as related by Iliouen-Thsang, which

existing in the seventh century of our era,

he found

slill

when
It

he visited the ruins of Rajagriha, where Bimbisara had raised

fortifications, the

remains of which lay scattered about.

would be
but
it

difficult to

alfirm the exact truth of this tradition,

tallies
;

with

all

the legends
it

tell

us of Bimbisara's

character

at all events,

shows

that

in the opinion of the

first

Buddhist peoples, kings were bound to be the

the laws they promulgated.
It will

to

obey

be remembered that the whole of a Sinhalese Sutra,

is

already quoted,

devoted to a conversation between King

Ajatasatru, son of Bimbisara,

and the Buddha, who

at that

time must have been seventy-two years old.

The king
verted.

Ajatasatru,

who

assassinated his father and per-

new faith, was not yet conThe Uposatha days had arrived that is the four days in the lunar month when the moon is full or new (every fortnight), when a general confession took place among the
secuted those
professed the
;

who

Buddhists.
terrace,

It

was a

beautiful night,

and the king on

his

surrounded by his ministers, enjoyed the cool of the

evening and admired the grandeur of the spectacle before

him.

wished

Moved by the sight, and remembering his crime, he at the moment when so many guilty men were con-

fessing their sins

to pay

his respects to

some Brahman,

in

order that the holy

Ilis ministers

man should calm

II

the

agony of

his remorse.

proposed several Brahmans, but one of them

2

ii6

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

He

[pt.
to

mentioned the name of Bhagavat, and .the king decided

at

go

once to him by torchlight.

ti

found him in a wood of

fifty

mango

ees,

surrounded by thirteen hundred and

interview,

monks

and requested an

which the Buddha granted.

The king did not at first tell him the real motive of his coming and before making the confession he intended asked him a question which was closely connected with it, although indirectly, and the answer to which he had vainly sought from all the Brahmans he had hitherto consulted Is it possible in this life to foretell to men, with absolute certainly, the general and foreseen result of their conduct?'
; : *

The king

set forth the

doubts which the answers of the

his

most learned men had

left in

mind

and he wished
in

to

have the Buddha's opinion.

The Buddha,

a long and

learned demonstration, which concluded his exposition of the

Four Noble Truths, unhesitatingly affirmed

have a foreseen and inevitable
result.

that

human

actions

The

king, enlight-

ened by

this revelation
filled

of the Law, understood the enormity

with remorse, said to the

of his crime, and,

*

Buddha

I will take refuge in

Bhagavat, in the Law, in the Order.

Consent,

Bhagavat, to receive
I

me

as one of thy faithful,

I

even

this

day that

have come before thee, that

have come
transgrers

to seek a shelter near thee.

crime has made

me
a

the
like

Law,

O my
my

Lord,

like

an ignorant man,

like

madman,
life.

a criminal.

To

obtain supreme power, I was capable of

depriving

father, that just

man,

that just king, of

Will Bhagavat deign to receive from

I

my

lips the confession

now make

of this crime, and impose on

?

me

for the future

the restraints of his Order

Bhagavat, in accordance with the Law, remitted his sin

that

he had expiated by confessing in public before a numerous

assembly.

Another king, more powerful than Ajatasatru, Asoka,

famous
firgt

for hig cruelty

and afterwards

for his ostentatious

en. in]
piety, gives in a

BUDDHIST ETHICS
legend an example of humility, less

117
difficult

than the above, but of which few kings would be capable.

He

has just been converted, and he

is

possessed of

all

the

fervour of a neophyte.
ascetics,
'

Each time he meets any

Buddlii^t

sons of Sakya,' whether in a crowd or alone, he

touches their feet with his head, and worships them.

his ministers, Yasa, allhough himself

One

of

a convert, wonders at
tell

such condescension, and has the courage to

that he

his master

ought not to prostrate himself before mendicants of

a low caste.

The

king accepts his rebuke without demur,

tells his

but a few days after he

counsellors that he wishes to

know the value of the heads of different animals, and commands them each to sell the head of an animal. Yasa is to sell a human head. The other heads are sold at different
prices
is
;

but nobody will purchase this one

and the minister

*

obliged to admit that, even gratuitously, he has not been

it.
'

able to get rid of

Wherefore,' inquires the king,

?

has

nobody chosen
*

to
is

buy the human head

Because

it

a contemptible thing and valueless,' replies

the minister.
'

Is

it

only this particular head that

is

contemptible, or are

human heads equally so ? All human heads are despicable,' said Yasa. What said Asoka, is mine also contemptible ? The minister, afraid to speak the truth, dared not reply but the king commanded him to speak according to his conall
*
*
1

'

science,
*

and having obtained the expected answer

*

Yes,' he adds,

it is

by a

feeling of pride

and

elation that

thou seekest to prevent

the mendicants.

And

if

my my

prostrating myself at the feet of

head, that wretched thing which

nobody

will

accept for nothing even, meets with an oppor-

tunity of being purified

and acquires some degree of

contrary to what
is

merit,

what

is

there in

that

right.?

Thou
seest

lookest at the caste of Sakya's mendicants,

and thou

ri3

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

When
can we inquire about caste
;

[pt.

not their hidden virtues.

is

a marriage or an invitation
but not
caste.

in question, then

\Yhen the
If vice

Law

is

at stake, for virtue takes

no heed of
it

overcomes a
is

man

of high birth,

is

said "
is

He

is

a sinner," and he of a
will

despised.

But the same

is

not said

man born

of poor parents, and if he

virtuous

men

honour him by bowing down before him.*

appealing more directly to his minister, the king

Then
said
*

Dost thou not know the words of the compassionate hero

:

of the Sakyas

"

Wise men know how

to

find

worth
his

in

things that have none."

When

I strive to

obey

comand

mandments,
dissuade me.

it is

no proof of

affection

on thy part
like the will

to try

When my body, abandoned

it

fragments

of a sugar-cane, will sleep on the earth,

be incapable

of

rising,

bowing, and joining hands as a sign of respect.

shall I

What
Suffer

virtuous action

then be able to accomplish

me
is

therefore

now

to

bow down

before the mendi-

cants, for

he

who

without inquiry says, " I

in the

am

the

most

noble,"

shrouded

darkness of error.

But he who
that
in

examines the body by the

of a slave.
all

light

of the sage of the ten forces,

he sees no difference between the body of a prince and

The

skin, flesh, bones,

and head are the same

men;

the ornaments

and

attire

alone lend a superiority

essential in this world
is

to

one body over anolher.

vile

But the

can be found in a

body, and this

what the wise men

stoical language,

deservedly honour and

Little

bow down

to.'

can be added to such noble and

but whether the king Asoka really uttered these words, or

falsely been credited with them, it is no less a remarkable fact that we find them recorded in writings

whether he has

dating two or three centuries before the Christian era.

We

will

now

leave the legends, which are always of doubtthe

ful authority,

and deal with

more

reliable historical facts.

CH.

Ill]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
man we
we have
have just quoted,
is

119

This king Asoka, whose elevated and sensible remarks on

the equality of
the

same who,
establis^.h

under the name of Piyadasi, promulgated the Edicts engraved

on

stones, that

already quoted in order to

the real data of

Buddhism.

These

inscriptions,

which have

only beeu mentioned for their chronological value, are even

more
dible

interesting

from the information they impart.

seem, they are really
official

Increof

as

it

may

lessons

morality given by Piyadasi to his subjects, which he caused

to

be engraved on stone in twenty different places in India,

west, east,

and north.

They

are Edicts of toleration, an(|

t(

such generous and advanced ideas can but be attributed

tl.e

influence of the Buddha's doctrines, Piyadasi having beei

his

most powerful proiector.

The

following

is

a proof.

Lei

the reader judge.

We
Giri.

will

begin by the Edict at Girnar, the eighth, which

is

repeated, with slight variations, at Dhauli

and

at

Kapur-di-

In

this

Edict the king announces to his people his

conversion to the faLh of the Buddha.

*

In the days gone by,' says Piyadasi,

'

the kings

knew

the

path of pleasure; in those days -they hunted and gave themselves

up

to

amusements of

that kind.

But Piyadasi, the

the perfect

kindly king, " the delight of the gods," having reached the
tenth

year since his

coronation, has attained

;

knowledge taught by the Buddha

is

and the path of the

suits

Law

henceforth the only one

tjiat

him.

It

consists in

visiting

and giving alms

people

to the

Brahmans and
in

the Sramanas,

in visiting the

Theras, in dislributing gold for their benefit, in

inspecting the

and the country,

enforcing the

execution of the Law, and inquiring into the Law.

These

are henceforth the onty pleasures that can find favour in the

eyes of Piyadasi, the king, the delight of the Devas, in this

period of time, so different from any which preceded

*

it

*.'

See Prinsep, Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal^

vols. vi.

and

I20
This
first

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

declaration,

[pt.

which marks a new

era,
is

a change of
followed by
his

system in the government of King Piyadasi,

another that completes
it,

and shows more thoroughly

It is

magnanimous

intentions.

revealed in the tenth Kdict,

repeated like the former at Girnar, Dliauli, and at Kapur-diGiri, in places distant several

hundreds of leagues from one

another.
*

King

Piyadasi, the "delight of the gods," believes that

neither glory nor

fame are of much value.

duties

The

only glory

he wishes for

is

to see his people practise obedience to the

all
tlie

Law, and accomplish Such

is

imposed by the Law.

Piyada';i,

the only glory

and only fame desired by

all

"the delight of the Devas"; for

that the king Piyadasi,

is

" the delight of the Devas," can display of heroism

done
that

by
all

liim in view of another world.

Who

does not

know
?

glory

is

unprofitable,

and often destructive of

virtue

The

salvation of an ordinary
is

man

as that of a

man

of high rank

difljcult
all,

thing, unless
that

by a sublime merit he has abanthe salvation of a

doned

and

makes

man

of high

rank even more

difficult.'

These solemn declarations preceded and followed

putra,

the

convocation of the third Council, which was held at Patali-

under

the

patronage

of

this

same

king,

in

the

seventeenth year of his reign.

We

have already given the

in the

message he addressed
'I'he

to the

monks

Great Assembly.

Edict referred

to, that

Curt, runs as follows:

'

of Babra, discovered by Captain

King Piyadasi of

INIagadha, greeting the Order, wishes

it

heahh and happiness.

'

You know, reverend

sirs,

how

great

is

my

respect and
All

reverence for the Buddha, the Law, and

vii

the Order.

Wilson, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain, xii. p. 199; Lassen, Indische Altetthuinskuiuie, vol. ii. p. 227; and Uuinouf, Lotus de la bonne Loi, p. 757.
;

vol.

cn. in]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
sirs,
^^

121

those things, reverend

hich were spoken by the Blessed

Buddha, were well spoken.

sirs,

By looking upon them,

reverend
this

as authority, the true

I

Law
:

will

long endure, and

sirs,

I think needful.

honour, reverend

as such, the follow-

ing Scriptures of the

or the discipline
;

Law

The
;

substance of the Vinaya,

;

the State of the Just

the Fears of the

Future

the

Poems
Buddha.

of the

Wise

the Questions of Upiiissa

the Exhortations to
the Blessed
sirs,

Rahula regarding Falsehood, spoken by

These Sciiptures of
I

the

Law, reverend
that the

ar.d

it is

the

fame

most aspire to, I hope

honourable monks and nuns

may

constantly learn and reflect

upon

and so ako
sirs,

the laity of either sex.

To

that end,

reverend

cause this to be written and have uttered

my

desire

and

my

declaration.'

From
people,

the time of his conversion to the

end cf

his life

Asoka never ceased addressing

and he was able
cess of his efforts.

useful exhortations to his

to congratulate himself

on

the suc-

The

following are portions of an Edict

dating from the twelfth year of his reign, which show that the
restricted

means then

at the king's disposal

had not proved

prac-

useless:
*

In past time, during

many

centuries,

mankind only

tised the

murder of human beings,

cruelty towards the brute

creation, disrespect towards parents,

and want of reverence

towards the Brahmans and Sramanas.

Now,

this day, be-

cause Piyadasi, " the delght of the Devas," practises the Law,
the

drum has sounded, and

the voice of the

for

Law
is

is

heard.

That which has not been seen

*

many

centuries

happily

seen to-day, in consequence of the order given by Piyadai:i,

the delight of the Devas," to practise the

Law. The cessation

acts

of the murder of
to

human

beings,
for

and of

of cruel y
to

the

brute

creation,

respect

parents,

obedience

fathers

and mothers, reverence towards the ancients

these
Law,

virtues, as well as other practices

recommended by

the

122
liave

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

developed tenfold.
this

[pt.

And

Piyadasi, " the delight of the

Devas," will increase

sons, grandsons,

observance of the Law; and the

and great grandsons of King Piyadasi, " the

delight of the Devas," will increase the observance of the

till

Law

the

Kalpa of destruction/
is

This

the fourth Edict inscribed

on the column
it,

at

Girnar
find the

and

in the eleventh,

which partly reproduces

we

confirmation and development of these precepts of morality.

During a reign that lasted thirty-seven years (263-226

b.c.)

Asoka perseveringly

carried

on the moral reforms he had

is

undertaken, and the following

twenty-sixth year of his reign.
Delhi,

the Edict issued in the

It is

engraved on a
is

pillar at

on the
at

side facing the north,

and

also written

on the

columns
'

Mathiah, Radhiah, and Allahabad.

:

Piyadasi,

the delight of the Devas,' speaks thus

'

In the twenty-sixth
Edict of the

year since
to

my coronation

have caused
in this

this

Law

be written.

Happiness

world and the next

love,
fear,

is difii-

cult to attain except

by an extreme

an extreme

attention,

an extreme obedience, an extreme

severance in the Law.
practice of the

and an extreme per-

Therefore do I
the love of the

Law and
All

command that the Law shall in the future

the head
this

increase, as they have hitherto increased, in the heart of each

of

my

subjects.

my people, whether
negligence.
It
is

men

of the

villages or those of inferior rank,

must obey
also
is

order and
that

execute

it

without

thus

the

great ministers themselves must act, for this

that

my command,

the government shall be carried on through the Law, the commandment by the Law, public prosperity by the Law, the protection of all by the Law.'

repetition,

These moral instructions could only bear fruit by constant and in one of his Edicts, the second of the two

separate ones at Dhauli, Piyadasi enjoins that they shall be

read to the people at least every four months by the assembly

of monks, and in the intervals by a solitary monk.
It

was

cii. Ill]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
made use of were
was
repeated, and
it is

123

a kind of public sermon in which the very expressions the

king had
that in

easy to believe

a short time the royal sermon, so often heard by

pretty well

the people,

known by

heart.

In the

first

of the two special Edicts at Dhauli the king also

commands
as

that a general confession of sins shall take place at least every

five years,

and he enjoins on the prince

this

royal,

who governed

Viceroy at Oudjdjayini, to have

without disturbing the

important act

fulfilled

common

people in their work.

In the Asoka avaddna, the legend of Asoka from which we

have already quoted a few passages,

misunderstood and so costing

it

is

affirmed that

King

Asoka, overcome with grief at one of his orders having been

his brother his Hfe, abolished

the penalty of death in his dominions, af:er having

made
is

most excessive and barbarous use of

it.

It is

not certain
his-

how

far this tradition, transmitted

;

by Nepalese

Sutras,

torically true

but the Asoka of the Edicts evinces great

com
lie

passion towards those criminals condemned to death.

allows them three days' respite between their sentences and

execution in order to give them time to prepare for death.

They can by
ment
them
It

repentance, by alms and fasting,

make

atone-

for their sins,

in the

and

mitigate the punishments

that await

next world.
that in order to carry out all these

seems

moral and

religious measures, so novel to Indian populations, Piyadabi

founded a special body of

also recorded in the Edicts

officials

whose duty

look and direct their application.

;

it was to overThese appointments were

the royal officials were considered

guardians of public

morality,

and were

called

the

king's

men {I'djakas).
Here are already many marvellous
hibit the

revelations
light,

which exits

Buddhist reformation in a new

;

in

action
is

on governments and nations

still

but the following disclosure

more

surprising.

This king, the ardent promoter of

124
faith,

^^^^ ORIGIN
the reh'gious

OF BUDDHISM
morals,
in
is

[rt.

teacher

of his subjects, so vigilant in

at

forming and preserving

their

the

same time
all

most

tolerant.

He

believes

the

Buddha
the

with

the

strength of a conviction that betrays

itself in

most decisive

acts, and yet he never molests beliefs that dilTer from his own; on the contrary he protects and defends ihcm against any attack. Not content with peacefully toLrating them in his

own

states,

he

insists that

each one of his subjects,

in h's

own
In

narrow sphere,

shall follow his

it

example and respect

his neigh-

bour's conscience, however

may

dilTer

from

his

own.

the seventh Edict at Girnar, reproduced, like

others, at

most of the

Dhauli and at Kapur-di-Giri, Piyadasi thus ex-

presses himself:
'

Piyadasi, " the

delight

of the

gods," desires that the

ascetics of all beliefs shall

will.

be permitted to dwell where they

All these ascetics equally seek to gain an empire over

self

and purity of conscience.

But the people hold divers

;

opinions and attach themselves to divers faiths

therefore sometimes obtain
all

the ascetics

they ask

for,

and sometimes
a self-control,
lasting

only obtain part of what they require.

But even he who

does not receive alms

purity of conscience,

liberally

must

retain

gratitude,

and a steady and

devotion/

The
is set

idea,

which

is

not very clearly expressed in this Edict,

that leaves

forth in a

manner

no doubt about the king's

intentions, in the twelfth Edict at Girnar

Piyadasi, " the delight of the Devas," honours every and honours both mendicants and householders he shows ihcm respect by almsgiving and divers marks of honour but the king, " the delight of the Devas," esteems
*

King

belief,

less

almsgiving and marks of respect than that which can

essentially increase a consideration for all these beliefs

their

and

good reputation;

Now

the increase of what

is

essential

for

all

beliefs is of different

kinds; but ^or each one the

cii.

Ill]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
point
is

125
his

capital

praise.

Each man must only honour

own
in

belief,

but he must not cast blame on that of others

thus will no one be injured.

There are even circumstances

well

which the belief of another should be honoured, and by

acting in this

as that of otheis.

manner our own belief is strengthened as Whoever acts differently lowers his
to his

per-

sonal belief and injures that of another.

The man, whoever

belief, exalts
it

he

may

be,

who by devotion

own

and

blames the belief of others, saying, " Let us display our

only wrongs the belief he professes.
standing and concord
listen deferentially to
is
is

faith,"

Thus good underMoreover,

let all

alone useful.

men
such

one another and follow the

Law

the desire of the king, " the delight of the Devas."

^lay
!

wisdom and prosper in virtue those who believe in a particular religion must repeat " The king, the delight of the Devas/ this to themselves does not esteem almsgiving nor marks of respect as much a.
of
all beliefs

men And

abound

in

that

which can essentially increase the good reputation and

belief."

development of every
ministers of the

To

this effect

high

officials,

Law, and ministers

secret things,

to supervise the

women,

and inspectors of
appointed
;

and other agents have been

development of religion

to the

end

that a speedy

may
to

ensue and diffuse the Law.'

fancy our readers will agree that these quotations suffice
the

We
ethics

show

immense and
this
fact,

beneficial influence
It

of Buddhist

on individuals and on peoples.

feemed necessary
in

to establish

which henceforth must rank

the

history of humanity.

Before quitting, however, this class of considerations, one

fact,

more undeniable than any of

This
is

the preceding,

mentioned.
viction that

the ardour of proselytism

must be and of con-

In the

fifth

Buddhism imparted to the most distant nations. and seventh century of the Christian era, Chinese
ii)

pilgrims journeyed,

the midst of terrible dangers, across

126
the

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

and pious

[pt.

countries that separate Northern China from Western

traditions

India, in order to seek the holy writings

at the cradle of

Buddhism, and to worship the many monu-

ments

built in

honour of the Buddha.

in

Fa-Hian leftTchhang'an (Si-'an-Fou),in the north of China, the year 399 a.d., crossed the whole of Tartary, passed

over the mountains of Tibet

the highest in the world

crossed the Indus several times, followed the banks of the

Ganges down
visited,

to its

mouth, embarked

for Ceylon,

which he

made

a short stay at Java, and returned to his native

fifteen years,

land, after

an absence of

having travelled a

dis-

tance of three thousand six hundred miles by land, and at

least six

thousand by sea

solely for the purpose

of taking

back more exact versions of the sacred writings than those

then existing in China. After

many
in

trials

and much suffering

with several

he returned

home

alone, having started

com-

panions, and

Fa-Hian speaks
all I

the following
:

modest and

dignified terms of his heroic self-devotion

*

In recapitulating
with emotion.
is

underwent,

my

heart involuntarily

fills

The sweat

that ran

from

me

in

my

dangers

not the cause of this emotion.

My

body was

preserved by the sentiments that animated me.

I

The end

had

in

view

made me

risk

to obtain at all costs the

my life in countries full of dangers, object of my hope\'

better informed than he was,

Hiouen-Thsang, who travelled two hundred and twenty

years after Fa-Hian,
is

much

although not more courageous.

He

collected a great

many
his

more
able

materials,

and

his narrative,

which we know by
his disciples,
is

MemoirSy and an analysis of two of

an invalu-

mine of information of

all

kinds on Indian

Buddhism of
his enterprise

the seventh century.

Nevertheless Hiouen-Thsang did not

throw more energy or tenacity of purpose into

than did Fa-Hian.
^

He

remained absent sixteen years,

p. 363.

takin^r

Rcmnsat, Foe Kotie Ki,

CH.

Ill]

BUDDHIST ETHICS
from Liang-Tcheou
in the north-west of

127

his departure in 629,

China

and returning

to Si-'an-Fou in 645.

Reaching India

by way of the country of Oigus, Jungaria, and Transoxan,

already in possession of the Turks, and by the Hindu-Kush,

he began his holy researches in Attok and Udyana.

visited

He
all

the

northern parts

of the

Panjab,
;

Kashmir, and

returning south-east, reached Mathura

the
the

he travelled over

kingdoms

situated

between the Ganges, the Gandaki, and

visited

Nepaul mountains;

Ayodhya, Prayaga, Kapilavastu,

sermons, Mngadha,
situated nor;h-

the birthplace of Sakya-muni, Kusi-nagara, where he died,

Benares, where

he preached his
life,

first

where he spent his

cast

and the kingdoms

and

east of the

Ganges.

Hence he returned
;

south,

went through the greater part of the southern peninsula

without going as far as Ceylon

and directing

his steps westto

wards he reached Guzerat, turned northward

visited

]\IuUan,

Magadha, the Panjab, and the mountains of HinduKush for the second time, and returned to the north-west of China, by the kingdoms of Kashgar, Yarkand, and Khokan,
bringing back wdth him
well as six
relics

and images of

the

Buddha, as
all

hundred and

fifty-seven

works treating of

the

dififerent parts

of Buddhist doctrine.

The work
journeys.

of these pilgrims did not end with their fatiguing

fresh duties lay before

Two

home
the

writing a
life

narrative of their enterprise,

them on their return and translating

books they had secured

fatigues.

at the price of so

many dangers
the last twenty

and

Thus Hiouen-Thsang devoted

to translating

years of his

into

Chinese
the
!

the principal

documents

he

had

collected

among
noble
!

most eminent

teachers of Buddhism.

What
and
faith

lives

What heroism

What
over,

disinterestedness

And
to

in their actions

what

gentleness, resignation, simplicity,

and uprightness.
a
doctrine

^lore-

what admirable testimony

which, at
inspire

a distance of twelve hundred years,

can

still

so

128

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

courage,
confidence, and
self-abnegation.

much

Yet the
;

principles

on which these

ethics are

based are

false

and

the errors they contain are at least equal to the viitues they

propagate.

We

will return later to the

journeyings of Hiouen-Thsang,

but will

now

pass on to the pietaphysical side of Budvlhism.

CHAPTER

IV.

M'laphysics of BudJ/iism, or Abhidharma. Transmigration, its uniiiniled compass from man to inert matter. Obscurity of the Buddhist doctrine on the origin of transmigration. Explanation of human destiny by tJie ( ounceting Chain of the twelve reciprocal Causes. Theory of Nirvana, or Eternal Salvation by annihilation.

The Dhydna.

Although Sakya-muni devoted

tical side

himself

more

to the prac-

of religion,

it

is

impossible to doubt that he had

also a theory.
reflective

He

had been a pupil of the Brahmans, and the

tendency of his

own

genius led him to seek for the

essential basis of his doctrines.

tively separate

He

did not,

it

is true,

posi-

metaphysics from

ethics, but the latter naturally

obliged him to seek for higher principles, and in his teaching

he joins to the precepts he gives on the discipline of

Iffe,

axioms which explain and

the very
first

justify these precepts.

Hence,

in

Council, his disciples made, under the

name of
one of

Abhidharma, a collection of
the

his metaphysical axioms,

Three Baskets {Tripilaka\

that contains

in

which the canonical books

particularly Buddhist metais

were divided.

The work
physics
is

more

called the

Pradjnd-PHramitd, that
of the nine

the Perfection

of

Wisdom \

It is the first

Dharmas or Nepalese

^ The Pradjna-Paramitd y/ns probably written three or four hundred years after Buddha. It was the text on which the Madhyamikas, a school founded by the famous Nagardjuna, built Iheir doctrines a hundred and fifty years before the Christian era. Burnouf gives a specimen of this compilation in eight thousand paragraphs, which he

has almost all translated, and which he had compared with a hundred thousand articles. This comparison had betrayed no difference of

130

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

in a

fpT.

canonical books.

There were three principal compilations

in twenty-five thousand,
;

one

hundred thousand, another

and the
others.

last in eight

thousand paragraphs

the

most developed

merely add words to the more concise explanation of the

In
fact, if these different

compilations contain fresh

new principle, and in become acquainted with the real metaphysics of Sakya-muni, we must have recourse to the simple Sulras, as they have much more affinity with his teaching.
deductions, they do not offer a single

order to

We
in
his

must expect
ethics,

to find in Sakya-muni's metaphysics, as

more

axioms than

demonstrations;

more
it is

dogmas than
necessary that

systematic and exact developments.

But

mind that we are treating of India, and not of Greece or modern Europe. The doctrines are no less important, but the form in which they are expressed is thoroughly unscientific, even when we

we should bear

in

endeavour to

classify

them.

The

first

theory of Buddhist metaphysics, borrowed indeed

is

from Brahmanism^,

that of transmigration.

Before his

present existence here on earth,

man has
if

already gone through

a multitude of varied existences;

he does not

make

the
.

most strenuous
through a
still

efforts,

he

will

probably be obliged to go
lives
;

larger

number of

and

his constant

and
fatal

anxious attention must be devoted to escaping from the

law to which his birth has subjected him.

series of pain

Life

is

but a long

and misery;
is,

salvation

consists in

avoiding

existence.

Such
it is

in the

whole of the Indian world, from

it is

whatever side

viewed and at whatever epoch

taken,

the universal belief professed

by Brahmans and Buddhists of

doctrine. According to Introd. a VHist. du Bouddh. Indien, p. 465. Tibetan tradition the Pradjitd-Pdramitd was expounded by Sakya-muni himself sixteen years after he became Buddha, that is when he was
fifty-one years of age.
^

Vol.

See in the Laws of xii. Slokas 39, &c.

Manu

the complete theory of transmigration.

CH. iv]

BUDDHIST METAPHYSICS

131

every sect, every shade, and every period.

accepts this general opinion, no
possible objection to
it
;

The Buddha
he shows on
he

one indeed raising any

originality

and the only

this point consists in the

new means of

deliverance he offers
itself
j

to his adherents.

But he accepts the principle

will

accepts without discussion.

Further on

we

examine the value of

it

this principle, or

rather the terrible consequences

has produced
will

among

the

people
its

who adopted
how

it.

At present we

simply point out

all-powerful

and absolutely undisputed domination.

this

We

have shown
the Vedas
purity
*,

monstrous doctrine was ignored in

in this silence a proof of the greater

and seen

of

Vedic

faith.

Transmigration

is

doctrine

invented by the Brahmans, and can be traced back to the

origin of the society

and

religion they founded.

Sakya-

muni, therefore, merely conformed to the current idea in

adopting
it.

How
man,
only
?

far did this idea

of transmigration extend
again a

after losing his present form, take

Can ? human form

descendthis

Can he

equally assume a superior form, or receive at

a lower grade that of

an animal

Can he even
life

lower than the animal, and according to his actions in

world become one of those forms in which

disappears,

and nothing but mere existence remains, in its most rudimentary and vague condition? It would indeed, as far as orthodox Brahmans are concerned, be difficult to answer
these questions,
all

that

is

known of
to
their

their literature

show-

ing no
gration
'^.

precise

limit set

conception of transmi-

As
*

regards the Buddhists, the answer

is

decisive

the idea

Journal des Savatrfs, Feb., 1854, p. 113 April, 1854, p. a 12. For transmigration according to the Kapila system, see B. St. Hilaire, Premier Memoire sur le Sdnkhya ; Mimoires de VAcadimil des Scihices Morales et Folitiqties, tome viii. p. 455.
;

133

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

;

'

[pt.

of transmigration extends to the uttermost limits

all,

it

embraces

from the Bodhisatwa who becomes a perfect Buddha,

from

man

to inert matter.

A
he

being can transmigrate into any form whatever without

exception,
will

and

according to his

good
that

or

bad

actions
texts

pass to the highest or the lowest

state.

The
idea

are so numerous

and so

positive

there

can be no

doubt on the subject, however extravagant

appear to us.
It will

this

may

be remembered

that,

according to the Lalita-vistara

legend, the Bodhisatwa entered his mother's right side in the

form of a young white elephant armed with

that

six tusks

and

when on
all

the point of

becoming a

perfectly enlightened

Buddha,

the innumerable births, the incalculable hundreds

^

of thousands of kotis

of incarnations he has already gone

this one,

through before attaining

through his mind'^.

which

is

to

be

his last, pass

In other legends the Buddha relates the

fortune he

transformations he has undergone, or those that have been

undergone by the personages whose good or

desires to explain.

ill

Hiouen-Thsang saw at Benares, many splendid stupas built on the spots where the Buddha had in divers existences assumed tl e form of an elephant, a bird,
a stag, &c.
"

The
fifty,

Sinhalese Jalakas, which

number

five

hundred and

contain as

Bodhisatwa.

many accounts of the different births of the The Sinhalese have even been very reasonable
number; for it is a general Buddha went through all the existences of the
air,

in limiting themselves to this

belief that the earth, sea,

and

as well as

all

the conditions of

human

life

transmigration and metempsychosis as understood by the Pythagoreans these latter confined it to the animal series. See^H. Ritter, History of Ancient Philosophy and Aristotle, Iraite de VAme, vol. i. ch. iii. of Barthelemy St. Hilaire's
^
; ;

A koti is equivalent to 10,000,000. A great difference exists between

translation.

CH. iv]

BUDDHIST METylPHYSICS
if

133

he had even been a tree and a plant *,

is

Chinese Buddhism

to

be credited.
is

In a legend, which
about the
life

interesting

by the
it

details

it

gives

of the

monks
tree,

in tlfc viharas, that of

is said,

Samgha-

Rakshita, transmigration takes place,

in the shape

of a wall, a column, a

a flower, a

fruit,

a rope, a broom,

a vase, a mortar, a pot, &c.

*

What

actions have led to these

metamorphoses

asks

Samgha-Rakshita.

Bhagavat
*

replies

The

beings thou hast seen under the form of a wall were

the hearers of

Kasyapa

(a former

Buddha)

they defiled the

the

walls of the

Assembly Hall by

spitting

upon them, and

consequence of

this action is that they are

turned into walls.

Those whom thou

been transformed

hast seen in the shape of columns have

for the

same reason.
leaves,

under the shape of

trees,

flowers,

Those thou hast seen and fruit, have

enjoyed
in

assumed
a
selfish

that

shape
the

because
flowers

they

formerly
fruits

manner

and

of the Order.

Another,

who
he

with equal selfishness used the rope belong;

ing to the Order, has been changed into a rope

another,

because

did

not

make

better

use

of

the
;

Order's

broom, has been metamorphosed into a broom

a novice,

who

cleaned the

bowls of the Order, was hard-hearted

strange mendicants wearied
;

enough

to refuse drink to

by

long travelling, he has been changed into a vase

thou sawest under the form of a mortar
formerly in coarse language
is

he

whom
who

a Sthavira,

demanded

of a novice an instru-

ment of

this kind, &c.*

Thus
*

the Buddhists have so monstrously exaggerated the

See R^mnsat, Foe Koue Kt, and a curious notice of Landresse on Upham gives a list of them in his Sacred and Historual Books of Ceylon, vol. iii. p. 269. Burnouf has tianslaled some of tiie niost important y/f/^X-aj.
the Sinhalese yifj/a^aj.

134

^-^^ ORIGIN

OF BUDDHISM
human
personality

[pt.

idea of transmigration that the

is lost

sight of and confounded with the lowest things

on

earth.

These transformations are regulated

a
previous state of existence;

solely

by conduct

in

man

is

rewarded or punished
this

according to his virtues or vices.

trials

How

long series of

had begun, why

effects,

man had been

it

compelled to submit to

them, and what was the origin of this succession of endless

causes and
was, as
appears, a fundamental question
in the Buddhist system itself; but, strangely enough, Sakya-

Buddhist

muni never seems to have raised this question, nor did any It is after him even enter upon the subject. unlikely that this was an omission it seems more probable that the Buddha considered it advisable to remain silent on
;

such an obscure problem.

tain,

Nevertheless, one thing

is

cerat

nowhere

in the Sutras

do we find even an attempt

an explanation, not a word

All that can be inferred

not

a theory, not a discussion.

is

from a few rare passages

that the

Buddha
souls

believed in the eternity of beings

that he

and

we

dare not say

saw no beginning

to the evils

he came

into the world to cure, namely, birlh, old age, disease,

and

death, although they might

come
the

to

an end in Nirvana.
of
its

The
this

universe
is

is

created by

deeds

inhabitants
as

the

effect,

and

'if

by

impossibility,'
*

Burnouf

says,

quoting from the Buddhist Sutras,

there were

none

guilty, there

would be neither

hell

nor any place of punish-

ment.'

The Buddha,
back to the

notwithstanding the boundless knowledge he

possesses, will not explain the things of this world

intricacies of their origin.

by going

He

takes things as he
;

finds them, without inquiring

from whatever aspect he looks

whence they come and as life, at it, seems to him but a great mass of evils,' he comprehends it thus. Twelve conditions, in turn effects and causes one of the
'

other, act as connecting links in the production of

life.

Man

CH. iv]

BUDDHIST METAPHYSICS
in order to

155
is

must be born
fore

grow old and

is

die.

Death

there-

an

eflect

of which birth
is itself

the cause.

]i\n\iXJ(iii)
existence.

an

eflect,

and could not

it

exist without
us, is very

This

idea, curious as

may

appear to

consistent with the Buddhist system, which believes in the

eternity of beings.
birlh,

Long

before their birth they exist

it

and

under whatever form

presents

itself

(moisture, ova,

matrix or metamorphosis, for Buddhists as well as Brahmans),

is

but the

efl'ect

of the preceding existence, for without exist-

ence {bhava) birlh

question at issue
is

would

be

impossible^
its

However, the

not existence in
all

vague, general ac-

ceptance, but existence with

the modifications wrought

by

previous

trials

the moral
to

state of the

being according to the

existence causes birth,
is

actions he has successively accumulated, virtuous or vicious,v>^

in the infinite duration of ages.

Thus

and conformably
a
difl"erent

what

man

has been, he

reborn into

state,
is

either higher or lower.

at tachmgjit

Existenc e

caused by

{tipdddna).

Without

an attachment, a chnging to things, a being would not

assume nor take a certain moral condition which compels him to a renewed birth. Attachment is a kind of falling off
which makes him come under the
gration.
fatal

law of transmi-

A ttachmen
effect,
is

t,

the

cause

of

existence,

is

itself

only an
Desire

-^

which has for cause desire {iris/md,

thirst).
is

an insatiable longing to seek for whatever

is

pleasant, to

avoid whatever
{vcdand), which

disagreeable.

It

is

caused by sensation

ledge of things, showing

endows man with the perception and knowhim their qualities, which morally
Sensation caused by desire
is

and physically
itself

affect him.

caused by contact {phassa).

ci-her externally or internally for

it.

Things must touch man him to feel them, and thus

sensation the
sole

has been said that Buddhists

;

source of knowledge

but as

made among the

senses they include

136
also

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

the

[pt.
is

inner
as

sense
it

or mains, iheir doctiine

appears.

not so

materialistic

at

first

Contact, the cause of

sensation,

is

in its turn the effect

of the six places or seats of

the sensitive qualities

and the senses.

These

seats {skan-

dhas) are 'sight^earingr^melTTfSste, and touch, to which must

be added the vianas or the heart, which includes

call

all

we should

moral sentiments.
eight of the twelve conditions that pro-

Here we have
duce
life

united

together by the

relation

of

causes

to

effects.

Four more remain

destiny.
six seats

to finish the

complete evolution,

which, according to Buddha, embraces and explains the entire

human The

of the senses and of perceptible objects have

{nCwiartipa) expressed in one

for cause the

name and form

word, as the word jaramarana expresses old age and death.

Without the name and form the objects would be

or internal.
material

indistinct

they would be non-existent to our senses, whether external

They come

into contact wiih us

first

by the
that

form they assume, and then by the name

\

designates them and recalls them to the mind, manas.

The

name and

the form which the Buddhists unite into a single

idea are that which renders objects perceptible, and thus they

are the cause of the senses.

But the name and the form are

not only effects

they have also a cause, namely, knowledge

or consciousness (vinnana), which distinguishes objects one

from another, and

represents

altiibules to

each one both the name that

them and the

qualities
is

which belong to each.

Consciousness or reason

the tenth cause.

The

tenden-

cies or potentialities (literally, confcctiuns,

Sankharas) are the

the imagination,
it

eleventh

they are the ideas

composed by
last

the illusions which constitute the fictitious universe

for itself.

creates

The

twelfth

and

cause

is

ignorance {avijja)

or delusion, which consists exclusively in looking

is

upon what
is

transitory as lasting, ip believing that

all

that

passingr

CH. iv]

BUDDHIST METAPHYSICS
is

137
world

and

fugitive
it

permanent

in

one word,

in giving to this

a reality

does not possess.

Such

is

the mutual connexion

of causes, and this theory, added to that of the Four Noble

Truths, forms the most ancient and most authentic basis of
the Buddha's doctrine.

We

see in the Lalita-vistara

to
it.

all

the importance Sakya-"

it

muni attached

When
last

he discovered

at

Bodhimanda,
because

he fancied he had at

discovered the secret of the world.

He

can save

human beings by
this, after

teaching

it,

and

it

is

he has understood

long meditations kept up by

terrible austerities, that

he believed himself to be, and that

he became, the perfectly enlightened Buddha.

causes and
salvation.

As long
the
is

as he

had not grasped the mysterious chain that links

effects,

this tissue

of

he was ignorant of the

Law and

way of
all

Once he had unravelled

the thread, he

in pos-

session of the truth which will

creatures.

enlighten and deliver

He knows

the road to Nirvana, which he can

henceforth reach and can

We

have

make now gone through

other beings attain.

the
series

of effects and
to his

causes, tracing

backwards the progress of the being

primitive

condition.

From

old

age and death we have,

be confused with nonexistence,
if
it

through twelve successive degrees, reached delusion, which,

from a certain point of view,

existence;
for error
itself

may
no

has

had

it

would cease to be a delusion.

working backwards
point,

However,
goal,

if

instead

of

we
our
causes

take

ignorance as our starting-

instead

of

end

and

we

then

reverse

the

connexion of

and eTects, which nevertheless

delusion, or nothingness,
effects;

remains closely bound together, and we begin at the point

where we
cepts

first

ended.

Thus from

proceed the concepts, which are

its

from the conof the senses;

come
;

consciousness, and

from consciousness name

six seats
;

and form
from the

from name and form, the

six seats of the senseg, contact

from contact, sensa*

138
tion
;

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

from sensation, desire
existence
;

[pt.

from

desire,

attachment
birth
;

from

attachment,
birlh, old

from

existence,

and from
is

age and death.

This inverse order

the

one

adopted in the Pradjud-Pdramita, and also followed sometimes by the Sinhalese.

It
is

not,

it

is

true, the

-method
at

recommended by
Bodhimanda, but
the general
precisely
spirit

the
it

example given by the Buddha

is

perhaps more in conformity wiih

of primitive
reality

Buddhism, which, without

is

denying the

of things, as

done

later in

the Pradjnd-Pdranu'id,

does not,

however, believe in the

permanence of any of
immutability
It
is

their elements,

and considers

that

found only in void or nothingness.

to hold the

would be unjust

the excess of scepticism which carried

Buddha responsible away most of

for
his

adherents, but to a certain degree he was responsible, for

he himself sowed the seed of

It
is

it

in his principal doctrines.

more than

likely that

he admitted axioms similar

the Sutras,

to those attributed to

him by some of

he may, for instance, have upheld the following:

'Every

and

that

phenomenon
All substance

is

void

is

void.

Personality
all

itself is

no phenomenon h*is substance in itself. Internally and externally all is void. without substance. Decay is inherent in
;

component
It is

things,

and, like a flash of lightning in the

sky, does not last long.*

very probable that, wishing to condense his system in

a single axiom, he
miserable
bility
;

may have
'

said,

'

It

is

transitory

it

is

it is

void

making

this
life,

knowledge of the instaand of nothingness, the

all

of things, of the evils of

higher knowledge which contained and replaced

others,

the threefold science {trividyd) which suthcea to enlighten

and save mankind.

doing the Buddha an

Finally,

we may even
all

believe, without

injustice, that

he made sensation the

with
natural

sole and absolute source of and the gross sensuality of

information for the mind

its

his disciples,

CH. iv]

BUDDHIST METAPHYSICS
may
it.

139

sceptical consequences,

be imputed to him without his

having precisely taught

We

now

reach the

last

and most important of the Buddhist

Nirvana
It
is is

theories, namely, Nirvana.

the supreme goal the

Buddha sought
ledge and virtue
then,
is
?

to attain.
it

the deliverance to which he

invited all creatures;

is

the reward he promised to

it is

knowWhat,

in

one word,
Is
it

eternal salvation.

Nirvana?
Is Is
it

an immortality more or
Is
it

less dis-

guised

nothingness ?
absolute
that

simply a change of existIt

is

ence

it

annihilation?

a strange and

remarkable
in a

fiict

Sakya-muni leaves the idea of Nirvana

as he has defined so

hazy obscurity, and that we cannot quote one Sutra in

it,

which he has tried to define

many
is

other and less important ideas.

to refute the false notions that

The utmost he

has done

were accepted by the Brahmans

if

(Tirthakaras)

but these negative explanations,

they do to

a certain degree
is,

show what Nirvana

is

not, never say

what

it

and
If

that

is

the important point.

little.

we turn to the etymology of the word, it teaches us but It is composed of nir, which expresses negation, and
which
signifies to
is

the root vd,

blow

out.

Nirvana

is

there-

fore extinction, that

to say the condition of a thing that

;

can no longer be blown out

hence the comparison so

is

fre-

quent in Buddhist writings of a lamp that cannot be

relit.

extinguished and
it

But

this

analysis,

exact as

is,

regards

only the surface of things, and the expression of the Nirvana

thus understood,
tells
if sufficient

to represent the
state,

image of death,

us nothing of the succeeding

according to Sakya-

muni's system.

When
who

the

cousin Anuruddha,

as well as

Buddha dies at Kusi-nagara, his Ananda accompanied him,

which has remained famous
fail

uttered the following stanza,

'

With a

spirit

that did not

that

he suffered the agony of

intelli-

death;

as a

lamp

goes out, even so was his

gence

set free.'

I40
Burnouf,
his opinion

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

who
is

[pt.

a great authority, has no hesitation

in

Nirvana means complete annihilation, not only of the material elements of existence, but also of the thinking

principle.

He

has repeatedly asserted this in his Introduction

a thistoire du Bouddhisme Indt'en and in the Lotus de la bonne

Lot, published eight years later.

Clough,

Tumour, Schmidt,
guide

Foucaux, Spence Hardy, Bigandet^ take the same view.

Colebrooke, although not having the
latest discoveries to

him, declares, however, that Nirvana, as understood by the

Buddhists,
If
is the same as an eternal sleep. we examine the few and imperfect definitions to be found in the Sutras, we arrive at the same conclusion. The word Nirvana is almost always followed by an epithet meaning Where nothing remains of the aggregates, where nothing
*

remains of existence, where absolutely nothing remains.'

We

must add

vavainasikas

that the Brahmans call the Buddhists Sarand Nastikas, meaning those who believe in

a complete destruction,
accusation, though

and

this

they regard as a serious

the Buddhists

themselves adopt those

names instead of rejecting them. Thus etymology, the most learned contemporary philologists, the texts themselves, and even the criticisms of the
opponents of Buddhism,
all

agree in demonstrating that

Nirvana was in
of
all

reality the definite

the elements that

make up

and absolute annihilation Without dwelling life.

is

further

on these considerations, there

that
is

another which

we

think conclusive, and which has not been sufficiently taken

into account
;

the theory of

which
there

may be
is

called the

Dhyana or contemplation, method and practice of Nirvana.

all

In a number of passages taken from

a distinction
great complete
'

kinds of Sutras

made between complete Nirvana

the

Nirvana and simple Nirvana.

Complete

into

Bishop Bigandet, author oi Life of Buddha, translated from B\irmes^ tngUsh, published at Rangoon jn 1858.

CH. IV]
Nirvaiia
is

BUDDHIST METAPHYSICS
that

141
has
;

which follows death, when

it

man

known
while
life,

how

to prepare for

by

faith, virtue,

and knowledge

simple Nirvana

may be

acquired even during this

by

adopting a certain line of conduct that Buddhism teaches,

and of which

the

the Lotus of the

and submit and

to

Buddha himself sets an example. Thus, in Good Law the Sthaviras approach Bhagavat him their doubts, they confess their weakness
the following words
*
:

their vanity in

Worn

out by age,

we say to ourselves, we have obtained Nirvana. We fancy we have reached Nirvana because we are overwhelmed by age and disease.' In other passages, even more clear, it is
said JMen who live in the knowledge of the Law, exempt from imperfection, have attained Nirvana. He who makes
;
*

use of the vehicle of the Sravakas has

attained

Nirvana.
;

The Sravakas imagine

the Djina says unto
is

that they have attained Nirvana

:

but

them

This

is

only a place of rest; this

not the true Nirvana.'

Nirvana
life,

is

therefore to a certain degree compatible with

belief,

according to Buddhist
before
death,

and
is

it

may be
yet

obtained
the
true

even

although

that

not

Nirvana.

The
taste

process to attain this incomplete Nirvana, the fore-

of the one that follows

and remains
it

eternal, is

by

Dhyana

or contemplation, and, to put

clearly,

by a

state of

mystic ecstasy.

The Dhyana

has four stages, which succeed

it

each other in regular order, and

plays a great part in the

life.

most important circumstances of the Buddha's

village

In the
tree,

of Agriculture, under the shade of a djambu

when his family, alarmed at his absence, seek for him in vain, the young Siddliartha is occupied in passing through the
five

meditations he already knows. At Bodhimanda, where Sakya-muni conquers the demon, he prepares himself to
;

become Buddha and save the world by four meditations Kusi-nagara, where the Buddha is dying, he passes for

at

the

143
first

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

eiffort

[pt,

time through the four different stages of Dhyana, and

before attaining the fourth stage.

expires in a fresh

We
in the

will

now

describe the four stages of Dhyana, as given

Nepalese and Sinhalese Sutras, which completely agree

on

this

fundamental theory.

It

is

almost needless to add

that the

monk who
in

gives himself

up

to

Dhyana or con-

templation lives
all

complete solitude, and, delivered from

troubles, thinks of nothing but eternal
all

earthly cares

and

salvation. Nirvana,

on which

his

thoughts are henceforth

concentrated.

The

first

stage of

Dhyana

is

a state of joy and gladness

born of seclusion, when the

last distinguish the

ascetic realizes that he

can

at

nature of things.

He

has then divested

is

himself of
reflection

all

desire except that of Nirvana; he

investigation, but
is

full

of

and

freed from

all

sensuality

and

all

sin;

and the contemplation of Nirvana, which he

is

longs for and

approaching, throws him into an ecstasy

stage.

which leads him to the second

longer pollute him

In

this

second stage

the purity of the ascetic remains the same, vice

;

and

sin

no

moreover, he has put reasoning and

his

argument

aside,

and

mind, which dwells no longer

on external

things, is fixed solely

on Nirvana,

feeling only

a deep satisfaction and tranquillity, without

investigation of
its

reflection

or

cause.

In the third stage the joy of this satisfaction has vanished,

the sage has
his

become

indiff'erent

even to the happiness that

mind

felt

in the former stage.

The

only pleasure he
fills

feels is

a vague sensation of physical comfort that

his

whole being.

He

has not, however,

lost the recollection of

the conditions through which he has just passed,

and he

stilli

retains a confused notion of self, notwithstanding the almost:

complete indifference to which he has attained.

Finally, in the fourth stage, the ascetic

the feeling of physical comfort, vague as

it

no longer possesseswas he has also

;

CM. IV]

BUDDHIST MDTAPMYStCS
;

143.

lost all recollection

he has even

lost the

sensation of his
joy,

indifference,

and henceforth, without sorrow and without

be
its
is

whatever

may

object, either externally or internally,

he

has reached impassibility, that

as
is

a condition as near Nirvana

this absolute impassithis

possible in this

life.

Moreover,

bility

does not prevent the ascetic acquiring at

;

same
igrant

moment omniscience and magic power

contradiction,

but this

is

fl

which does not, however, disturb the Buddhists

any more than

many

others.
all

Such are the four stages of Dhy5na, as gathered from

Buddhist authorities.

They
it is

will

not astonish any one

who

has studied m.ysticism, as

eliminations, the

well

known how, by

successive

mind reduces

itself to that transitory

vacancy

which

is

called ecstasy.

The

mystics of Alexandria, those

of the Middle Ages, and of the Renaissance, have known,

like the

Buddhists and the Brahman s, these workings of the

mind, struggling against self in order to temporarily destroy

all
its

mental power.

Plotinus, Gerson, Saint Teresa,

all

think that they thereby unite themselves to God, and become,

one with him.

The

Buddhists do not claim

in the

this,

as they

do not know of a God, and

system the idea of an
th ey seek
infinite

whole of Sakya-muni's
itself;

being never presents

but

and

practise ec stasy,

whirh for f^^"^

'

an

ir"flg^?

of t he annihilation

w hich

they take for eternal salvation.

We

have

now

seen that for~lhe Buddhists,

;

Dhyana

is

the

road and preliminary conquest of Nirvana

idea were not sufficiently clear.
four stages of

but, as though the

to the

Buddhism has added

Dhyana

four other stages, superior, or rather

corresponding; these are

devoid of form.'

'the four regions of the

world

The

ascetic

who

has courageously passed

through the

first

four stages

region of infinite space.

to the region of infinite

is rewarded by entering into the Thence he goes up another degree wisdom. Having reached this height

he attains a third region, where nothing exists.

However,

144

^^^ ORtGW OF BUDDHISM

it

[ft.

as in this void and this darkness

might be supposed that

an idea could subsist and represent to the ascetic the void in

wliich he
is

plunged, a

last

and supreme

effort

must be made,

and he then enters into the fourth region of the world devoid
of form, where there are neither ideas nor even an idea of
their absence.

The

doctrine of

Dh} ana may

therefore be
;

considered a decisive commentary on that of Nirvana

for as
is

by

this transitory ecstatic state

for,

a transitory annihilation

already sought

then an eternal and definite annihilation

may be

sought for in Nirvana.

it

Buddhism has no God,

has not even the vague and con-

fused notion of a Universal Spirit, in which, according to

orthodox Brahmanism and the Sankhya, the

absorbed.

human

soul

is

Neither does

it

admit nature properly so

called,
spirit

and

it

does not

make
it

that great distinction

is

between the

and the material world which

KapiLi
;

the system and glory of

lastly,
it

confuses

man
it

with his earthly surroundings,

It

even while
unite the

preaches virtue to him.

soul,

cannot, therefore,

human

which

never even mentions, either to

or to nature which
for
it

God whom it does not know, One course therefore remains

a
nihilate the soul,

ignores.
to anwill

Buddhism, that
be certain that
it

is
it

and

in order to

not

reappear under any form in this world, which

accursed as the abode of illusion and pain,
are destroyed.
then,
is

considers

all

the elements

This
if

is

repeated over and over again.

?

What,

Nirvana
doubt

not total annihilation

is

No

this

a most serious statement,

especially

when we reflect that Buddhism at the present day counts so many followers all over the surface of the globe, that it is the
belief of one-third of

humanity, and that such an explanation

of Nirvana implies that a third of our fellow-creatures worship

annihilation,

and place
it

in

it all

their

hopes of the
it

future.

Doubtless

is

a hideous

faith,

but

is

no calumny
faithless

to

impute

it

to

Buddhism, and history would be

to

cii. iv]

BUDDHIST METAPHYSICS
shrunk
fi

145

itself, if it

om

this

deplorable truth, which, moreover,

sheds such light on the destinies of the Asiatic world.

It

has therefore been shown, that Sakya-muni's ethics and

metaphysics are
theories:
INIutual

summed up The Four Noble

it

in a few simple but erroneous

Truths,

Transmigration,

the

Connecting Links of Causes, and Nirvana, explained

by Dhyana which precedes

have only

and prepares

man

for
;

it.

We
con-

now

to

judge the value of these theories

rendering

justice to the partial truth they contain,

and

pitilessly

demning
sublimity.

the monstrous errors hidden

under an apparent

CHAPTER

V.

Its merits: practical tendency, contempt Critical study of Buddhism. ofxuealth, charity, sentimettt of equality, meekness, austerity, resigIts faults : nation, horror of falsehood, respect for family ties. social impotence, egotism, no idea of duty, ignorance of justice and liberty, scepticism, incurable despair, error as regards life and

>

human

General condemnation of Buddhism. personality, atheism. Opinions of Bayle and Voltaire on the atheism of China.

it

There is may be as

so

much

to

be said

against Buddhism, that

that can be justly

well to begin
it,

by the good
as our praise

attributed to

for, limited

must be,

it

will at

least mitigate in

some degree the

severity of the

judgment

that

must

follow.

We will now, therefore, state the

The most
striking feature of
is its

good

points, without either

exaggerating or unjustly curtailing them.

Buddhism, that

is

as founded
sets

by the Buddha,
salvation of

practical tendency.
is

The Buddha
;

himself a great problem, which

no

less

than that of the

he seeks

its

solution

mankind and even of the whole universe and by the most direct and practical method.
considering himself a philosopher, he might

It is true that,

have indulged in speculative analysis, but the Brahmans had

made such an abuse

deemed
it

of this process

that

the

Reformer
to

better

to abstain

from

it.

For in seeking
is

penetrate into the origin of things,

it

necessary to avoid

sinking into needless obscurity, and speak only to a school

instead of addressing the masses.
Pliilosophy, even

when

it

does not aim at founding a religion, should never lose sight

of
its

first

duty, which

is

to

serve

humanity;

and th^

CRITICAL
philosopher
self alone,

STUDY OF BUDDHISM
to understand

147
him-

who

is satisfied

and
is

to save

by

the truth he has discovered,

little

worthy of

his

name.

If these truths

were

to

be solely for the advantage

;

of one individual, ihey would lose their value

and as

for the

mass of humanity, the practice of morality

tance than the principle on which
to philosophers that they
it is

is

of

more imporit is

grounded;

a credit

induce

men

to live according to

what

is right,

rather than to think according to the principles

of philosophy. All reforms must be preceded and strengthened

by the long study which science demands; but when the

Reformer

at last

appears upon the scene, his teaching should

be as clear and simple as possible.

He

speaks to the people

and not
enlighten
theories.

to the learned.

He

must lead minds rather than

them

promulgate precepts rather than expound

]\Ioreover, although his

aim was to convert and guide the

flatter their

masses, Sakya-muni does not endeavour to attract them by

gross allurements, he does not
joys

passions

and the

he promises them are neither earthly nor material.

legislators,

Contrary to most religious

he does not predict to

;

his followers either conquests,

power, or riches

he

calls

them

to eternal salvation or rather annihilation,

which he confounds
knowledge, and

with salvation,
austerity

by

the

narrow path of

virtue,

It is
;

a great deal to expect of man, but evidently

not too

much
the

and

it

is

well for us to hear such a noble

in

appeal to

human

heart,

times so

remote and in

countries which our civilization has been accustomed to dis* We do not mention magic power and supernatural gifts, which, according to Buddhist doctrine, science and virtue confer on those who have attained the highest degree of sanctity. The legends are full of these superstitions, which the Brahmans indulged in long before Buddhism adopted them. See Memoire stir le- Sdnkhya in the

Memoirs de VAcademie des Sciences Morales ct Folitiques, tome viii. The Buddha himself never made any such fallacious pp. 198, 3S9,
promises, but
despised.
left

such tricks of charlatanry to the adversaries he

143
dain.

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

We

[pt.

too willingly fancy that these noble aspirations

belong only to ourselves, and we are surprised at discovering

the

same

in others.

It

was not

in the

Vedas or the

religion

that emanated

from them that the Reformer found these lessons

of self-renunciation.
that

But the Brahmanic philosophy was not

kind of worship, which consists in

base

and

selfish

a mutual interchange between

man and

the

gods

of homage
show
that

and

assistance.

It

had soared into the higher regions of

suffices to
in

thought,

and the system of Kapila alone

Sakya-muni has made no innovation

deliverance.

preaching eternal

The whole

of Brahmanic India had the same

it,

solemn turn of thought, Sakya-muni shared

originate
it.

but did not

His

true glory,

which no one can dispute,

he seeks above

is

the boundless

charity that filled his soul.

his

The Buddha does

;

not think of

own
it is

personal salvation
in order to

all

to save others,

and

that he leaves the

show them the infallible road to Nirvana Abode of Joy, the Tushila, and that he
last

conies back to endure the risk and ordeal of a

tion.

incarna-

He

does not redeem mankind by offering himself as

;

a sublime victim

he only proposes to instruct them by his

teaching and example.

He

leads

them

in

the paih from

to the

which there

is

no

straying,
is

and he guides them

return.

haven
of

from which there

no

No

doubt the

spirit

Christianity has inspired

more

beautiful

and elevated
its

sentiit is

ments, but six or seven centuiics before

appearance

wonderful to find this a<!mifaulc ccixeption, associating

all

men

in a

common
love.

faith,

and uniting them

in the

same esteem

anJ the same

This
is

how

the

Buddha was
*

able to say, without presumpall

tion or error, that

his

law was a law of grace for

and

^ These are the Buddha's own words in answer to the jeers of the Biahmans, who mocked him whea he converted Svajjata, the son of a povcrt^'-jjtiickcn merchant. Svd^ata Avaddna in the Divya Avadana,

Cll.

v]

CRITICAL

STUDY OF BUDDHISM

149

how, allhoiigh he did not attack the odious and degrading

s^^ystem

of caste, he destroyed thit

society.

fundamental basis of
is

Brahmanic
ciple of

He
if

never saw,

it

true, the real prin-

human

equality, because he never rightly understood

moral equality; but

of man, he at least

he did not comprehend the

that
if all

real nature

knew

men

aVe equal in sufTcring,

they ought also to be equal in deliverance.

to teach

He

endeavours

them
all

to free themselves
all

from disease, old age, and

death;
evils,

and as

beings are exposed to these necessary

they

have a right to the teaching, which by en-

lightening

them is to free them. In the presence of the same amount of misery, he perceives no social distinction; the slave is for him as great as ia king's son. He is struck, not so much by the abuses and die evils of the society in which
he
lives,

as by those wliich are inseparable from humanity

it is

itself,

and

to the suppression of these that he devotes

liimsclf,

the others appearing to

him very

insignificant in

compaiison.

The Buddha

did not limit himself to curing

Indian society, his aim was to cure mankind.

This great elevation and large-mlndedness

be admired, for although

is

certainly to

man

is

not entirely as the

saw him, the victim of

suffering, yet

he

is

so

Buddha more or less,

and

it

was a generous enterprise

its

to have sought to deliver

him from
the

bondage.

The means employed by the Buddha to convert and purify human heart are not less noble, and they are characby an unfailing gentleness, both
in the

terized

Master and

the least of his disciples.

He

never seeks to compel, but

I'or

only to persuade men.

He

even makes allowance

their

weakness, varying in
pressing

a thousand ways the means

inflexible

Oi

im-

them

and when a too

and austere language

might repel them, he has recourse to the more persuasive

qnoted by Biirnouf in his Iniroditdlon h Chistobe du
Indieitt p. 198.

BouddhUnu

150

The

ORiGiJv

OP bvddHi^m

[pt.

teaching of parables.

He chooses the most famiUar examples,

and by the

simplicity of his expressions suits his lessons to

the capacity of his hearers.

the weight of their sins

He

teaches them to lighten

to

by confession, and

atone for

them by repentance.

He
man

even goes further.

As

it

is

already a great evil to

is

have to expiate

sin, the essential

it
;

point

therefore to iccich

not to commit

for if

he never

falls,

he

will

not have

to retrieve himself

Hence,

in the doctrine of

Sakya-muni,

such wise and well-defined preccpls, such just and delicate

prohibition' of certain actions.

He

undertakes and advises

its

an incessant struggle against the body and

desires;

passions and

the body

is

in

his

eyes the sole

enemy of man,
must overcome

and although the Luddha does not use

f

this precise expression,

it

is

in truth the

aim of

his asceticism.

Man

the body, he

must extinguish the burning

lusts that

consume

him.

If the

Buddha strenuously

enforces absolute celibacy

on

chastity and decency on all Lrahmans constantly violated, but which a secret instinct reveals to all men. To these virtues, he adds others still more difficult and no less useful, namely: patience and resignation, including the
his

monks, he also enjoins

the faithful, virtues that the

necessary energy to suffer courageously inevitable evil

forti-

tude and even

ferings
;

indifference under
all

all

adversities

and

suf-

above

humility, that other

form of renunciation

of woddly goods and greatness, which was not only practised

by poor mendicants, 'sons of Sakya/ but also by the most

powerful kings.
is

From

humility to

forgiveness of injuries

and although the Buddha does not lay this down as a precept, his whoie doctrine tends to this mutual
but a step
;

forbearance, so indispensable to

all

human
;

societies.
first

The

very belief in transmigration helped him

the

sentiment

of a Buddhist under an insult or an outrage or violence,

is

not anger

he

is

not angry, because he does not believe

CM. v]

CRITICAL He

STUDY OF BUDDHISM
which in
this

151

in injustice.

simply thinks that in some former existence

sin

he has committed a

one deserves the punishhis

ment he

receives.

He

only blames himself for the misfortune

that befalls him,

and instead of accusing

enemy

or his

oppressor, he accuses himself.

Far from thinking of revenge,

he only sees a lesson in the adversity he endures, and his

sole idea is

how he can
necessary,

henceforth avoid the sin that has

if

rendered

it

and which

renewed, would also

it.

renew the punishment that has already followed

the
in

When
related
torture,

young prince Kunala, whose touching history is the legends, undergoes a painful and iniquitous

he forgives the cruel stepmother

forgives his deluded father,
sins,

who

persecutes him, he
his past

and he thinks only of

called

by which he must have deservedly

affliction.

down upon
fear

himself such an

This

resignation,

which may

easily

become

and
also

cowardice in the weak, no doubt leads to the domination

and despotism of the strong and wicked ; doubtless

encourages tyranny in those countries which have only
despotism.
But,
in
intelligent
I

it

known
all

hands,

what an element
the

of order and social peace

passions
relentless

What

a healing of

which
wars!

too often destroy concord, and lead to

Add

to this, the horror of falsehood, the respect .for tiulh,

the sanctity of the

bond
ties,

that unites intelligences

;

add the
also the

reprobation of slandering or even idle speech

respect for
sideration

add

family

pious veneration of parents, con-

and esteem
to

for

women, who
all

are considered equally

with

men

be worthy of
to found,

religious

honours

and we must
Buddhism
arose
it

feel astonished, that

with so

many

social virtues

was not able

even in Asia, a tolerable social state

failed in India itself

or government.

First

it

where
its

and

in all the countries

it

where

it

was

received,

influence,

excellent as

was

in

some

respects, never prevailed suffi-

152

THE ORIGIN OF WDDIItSM

political

[pt,

cienlly to reform the

morals of the people,

who

remained, in spite of it, under the most degrading and arbitrary

yoke.

The

feeble

germs

left

by the Buddhist doctrine,

which certain kings,

fruitless;

like Piyadasi,

and even now our

life

civilization
it

had developed, remained has no power to

give

them Buddhism

in the countries
still

has penetrated and where

is

in

vigour.

Our most benevolent and

liberal efforts

must remain

ineffectual against these deplorable

institutions,

which have been sanctioned not only by time, but

inveterate habits of the people, their indifference,

also

by the

and

their incurable superstition.

Certainly

Buddhism ought
it

not to be judged solely on this one proof, and

should not

be condemned only because the societies that have practised

it

are badly organized

but yet, the worth of religions can

the social institutions which
it

in

some degree be valued by

it

they have inspired or tolerated, and

is

one of the

glories

of Christianity, that

has produced free societies and govern-

ments, which under the admiring eyes of history, advance

each day to new progress and new perfection.

the kind
politics
is

Nothing of

to be seen in Buddhist societies,

legislation, the religion

and as regards
has instructed
to follow the
it

and

of the Buddha has reIt

mained very
and

inferior

even to Brahmanism.

sanctified certain individuals,

;

who chose
its

noble example of Sakya-muni

but as regards nations

adversaries,

has
it

remained even more powerless than

and

has hardly done anything either to organize them or to

govern them equitably.

Buddhism contains in its made it sterile and having now shown the good it contains, we will proceed to examine the evil, the share of which is much greater.
It is,

therefore, probable

that

core certain errors which have

In vain does Buddhism profess self-renunciation and

sacrifice, it is in

self-

reality

upon a

single idea,

narrow and self-interested. It rests which is neither the highest nor the

Cti.

v]

CRITICAL

STUDY
This
the

OT"

BUDDHISM

153

truest, that of eternal salvation,

understood in the sense of

is

annihilation or Nirvana.

the reward offered to the

his
life

highest eflbrls of
ineflfable

man

supreme end of
his virtues.

faith,
is

the

prize

promised to

His

framed

to this end,

according to the precepts and examples of the

in view of the

teacher.

But he never acts but

reward he

hopes

for.

He

extinguishes
it

all

other desires, but he retains

it.

this one,

and exalts

by

all

those he has sacrificed to

To

this egotistical

pre-occupation of reward, and the idea

all

of Nirvana, are attributable they are sufficient to

the faults of

Buddhism,

fur

falsify all morality.

Doubtless
life
;

it

is

good

for

man

to look forward to a fulure

and to meditate upon

eternity,

which can alone explain

;

him whence he comes and whither he returns face to face with this grand idea, he feels all his weakness and also all his worth it gives him the key of his destiny, if he knows
to
;

how

to interrogate

it

discreetly

of lowering or destroying

it,

and wisely. But he must beware by looking to nothing but

a reward, as the price of his good actions.

eternal salvation

The
more

thought of
;

becomes then no longer a

;

virtue

it

is

but

a mercantile transaction

and as nothing

is

fluctuating

than calculation and

self-interest,

man

could not but find his In a truer and more

upward path beset with

saintly religion,

obstacles.

he can rely on God's justice to reward or

;

punish him eternally

the

but in a religion that

faith

knows no God
remains his

irreparable error of Buddiiist

;

man
he
to

own judge
his

it

is

he,

who

of his

own

authority decides that

is

which merits or does not merit salvation;

judge in

own

case,

and

that

is

hardly the

way

be equitable
while
in
is

and

infallible.

He

fancies

he

practises

virtue,

reality

he only practises an unceasing egotism, which

hidden and strengthened by the harshest austerities and the

haughtiest exclusiveness.

^Tan only works out his

own

salvation

he cannot save

154

^^^ ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

is,

[pt. i

others; the most he can do

like the

Buddha, to show
in
it

others the road.

But each one must walk

Salvation
in
is

himself,

one

cannot do
individual,
is

it

for another.

therefore exclusively
isolation.

and places man

this idea,

complete

If a

man
his

absorbed in

he

will

become estranged from

if

fellow-creatures,

and neglect them,

indeed he does not

despise

and avoid ihcm.

Thus

the

monks, who are the

its

strength

of the new religion

and

most

faithful

and

enlightened

champions, remain virtually strangers in the

them.

society which maintains

They spend

their

useless

existences living

on alms gained by the work of

others,

and

wear rags that

their humility

docs not disdain, but which their

ascetic
is

hands have not woven.

The

taken out of the

to,

world where he dwells, by the world he aspires

and
this

admitting that this pretended sanctity has not become mere

indolence,

who

it

may be

asked reaps the benefit of

sanctity, if not the ascetic himself?

What would become

?

of

society, including the anchorites

it

liberally maintains, if every

one chose to imitate such pious examples

whole world,
sidered,
caste,

Renunciation

is

sublime no doubt, but as Sakya-muni aimed at saving the

all

mankind without exception must be con-

and not only a few privileged persons. and the unjust limits it prescribed, was
is

To
well,

abolish

but

if

another

created, wider only in appearance,

is

and

in realiiy

narrower than the former, where

the benefit?

By

the very

nature of things, the idea of salvation, unless kept within just

limits,

becomes

as dangerous as

it is

false

if it

pervades

all

the actions of

man
evil
it

it

destroys

their

merit;
it

and without

mentioning the

can do

to society,

corrupts the soul

of the individual,

who

thinks only of

self,

and who, notwithis

standing his vanity as an initiated and an adept,

profoundly

ignorant of what ought to be the true and sole motive of his

life

here below.
is,

There

indeed, no other motive to offer to conscience

CM. vi
CFpecially

CRITICAL

STUDY OF BUDDHISM

155

from a philosophical point of view

It is

than the love

It is

of goodness.
idea, but
it is

not only the most disinterested and noble

also the truest

and most

practical.

found
directs

naturally in the hearts of

their conduct.
If

men, and often unconsciously

to its origin
it

we go back
explains

leads us to
it

God, revealing
consequences,
world.

to us his true nature; if

it

we

follow

in its

and makes us comprehend

this

the

All other ideas proceed from this, the highest, which

all.

sheds light upon

Now,

idea which

is

the essential
it

part of our soul, our reason,

essential part of the Universe

and our

intelligence, as

is

the

and of God, does not

to

exist in

Buddhism.
existed.

Sakya-muni does not seem

In Greek philosophy, Socrates
glory

know

that

it

and Plato have

conception

won
and

imperishable
its
;

by giving

to

the

of

goodness
in

real place in the soul of

man,

in the world,

God

and the

fire

they kindled has continued to

light

burn and
has shown

throw more

and more

among

us.

In
flame

Buddhism, on the contrary, not a gleam of

itself;

this divine

not a single spark has flashed out; and the

calls
it,

sun of intelligences, as Plato

those of the Buddhist world.

has never enlightened

Hearts, souls, and minds have

remained plunged

in the deepest

gloom, and time, instead of

dispelling the darkness, has only

made

it

thicker.

The

idea

of recompense, substituted for the idea of right, has perverted

everything.
all

An
and

impenetrable

and

dark

veil

is

thrown over

things,

man

henceforth can understand

lives,

neither himself nor the nalure

amid which he
this
first

nor God,

who has made

both.

From

and greatest error

that

a mass of olhers have spread.

One
this

of the most certain and

fatal

consequences

is

idea of right

being misunderstood, Buddhism

the idea of duty.
It

at the

same time ignored

fact

seems a strange
is

that

in
at

a system where

the

word duly {dharnia)

it

repeated

every line of the numberless writings

pro-

156

THE ORIGIN OP BUDDHISM

see,
it

[pt.

duccd, the actual notion of duty has completely escaped

it.

We

is

true,

obedience to the law of the Buddha,

a blind submission to his teaching, and a sincere veneration for his virtues,

which each

tries

to imitate.

But an
;

order, a

word of

advice, does not morally constrain

all

it

can do

is

to exercise

an external compulsion, and as long as

conscience and reason do not speak, duty does not

itself felt.

make
is

Man
and

is

not bound because he obeys, nor

he

compelled because he bends under a yoke, be that yoke as

reasonable
beneficial
its

as

possible.

It is therefore to

the conscience

and

decrees that the legislator of morality

must address
like
all

himself,

more

especially

when he has
will

elected,

Sakya-muni, to do without God, the supreme source of

good and

all

duty.

Oiherwlse he
faithful

perhaps

make
will

fervent adepts,

and even very

subjects, but

he

not
at

make men.

He

neither

teaches

nor inspires

virtue

mo

docs he

inculcate

prudence.

When

the

young

Upagupta
courtesan,
is

resisted the
it

allurements of a beautiful, wealthy

that continence

was not by saying to himself

*

a duty and that he does well to struggle against culpable

;

desires

it

was because he thought,

that

it

is

better for

one
his

who

aspires after

freedom and wishes to avoid re-incarnation

not to go and see this woman.'

salvation
;

Thus he

calculates

a bstains,

and as he fears to risk it by giving way, he not from virtue, bu t from interest. He has thereduty, even while performing a praiseis

fore misunderstood

worthy action, and he

a gain that what

not morally virtuous, although he

has conquered in this

is

inward struggle.
should
is

Doubtless

it

is

right

be done, whatever the

motive; but the moral merit

condition that the agent
is

real

and complete only on

guided solely by the idea of duty,

as the idea of right.

which in

reality is the

same

Both of

these are totally wanting in the Buddha's doctrine.

Another consequence, no

less

disastrous,

is

scepticism.

cii.

v]
is

CRITICAL

STUDY OF BUDDHISM
it

1.57

This
lain

not, indeed, carried so far in the Sutras

is

which conPradjnaobject

Sakya-muni's sermons, as

later

on

in the

Paramiia, which ends by denying boih the

known

and

tlie

conscious subject, the reality of things and the reality

even of conscience.

However, without

falling into this excess,

Sakya-muni nevertheless proclaims the vanity and emptiness

of
all

things in the presence of Nirvana, which alone in his

is

eyes

immutable.
this

'AH

is

void'

is

one of

his

favourite

axioms, and on
to

he rests the renunciation he preaches

men.
live,

Assuredly

among
*

the

phenomena amidst which

fleeting;

we

many

are transitory

and

few of them are

permanent and bear

the Law,' as the
tions.

the character of stability, true sign of

said in his
'

young Siddharlha
if

first

medita-

All beings are not, however,

void externally, void

self-

internally,' as

he thought, and

he had carried out his

examination more attentively and accurately, he would have

found a firmer standing.

him, he can doubt
of the
will,
all

Man

can deny

all

that

surrounds

external phenomena, within himself.

and even a part

But do what he
it

phenomena he bears

he cannot doubt his

for sins

own

conscience

when

reproaches

him

he has committed, or approves his good deeds,

lie does not perhaps ask himself

than true alleges

whether

as a doctrine more subtle

precept which guides
tells

the

him

can become a universal law; but he assuredly

that he

himself

must act as he does, and

that

no reasonable being
hi.s

could act otherwise.

When man

thus recognizes duty in

it

own
the

heart, it is easy for him good which he perceives

to transfer
in himself

to the outside world

will

he

but see enlarged

in the world

around him, which goodness alone animates and

therefore

governs.

He

no longer believes

in

its

being a void,

and beings become

substantial in his eyes in proportion as

;

they participate in goodness

he doubts their
it,

reality

only in

proportion as they deviate from

and on
all

the firm basis

on which he has

placed

himself

the conceptions

of

158

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

strengthened and regulated.
it

[pt.
If

his intellect are

some of

these
fixed.

still

waver,

is

that they are scarcely

worthy of being

Scepticism

is

therefore banished from the soul by the idea

it

of goodness

not only does this idea enlighten man, but

also strengthens him.

His conscience speaks so

it

clearly to

him, especially

when

has to bear witness against him, that

to believe, like
;

he

is

no longer tempted

Sakya-muni, in the
will

sole testimony of his senses

and though he

not com-

pletely reject these,

he knows the exact degree of confidence

he must place in them.

is

When

the material universe alone

evil

considered,

it

can no doubt be denied that good or

exist,

but

when man
is

considers himself he cannot sincerely

reject the distinction of

good and

evil,

unless in his per-

versity

he

interested in so doing.

This seems to explain the most characteristic and painful

point of Buddhism, that
choly.
is,

its

deep and miserable melan-

When man
it

finds

goodness neiiher in himself nor in

the world,

is

natural that he should hate both,

and

seek-

refuge only in annihilation.

life

Hence

the despairing view of

all

which under every form pervades

surrounding
it

parts of this doc-

trine,

with gloom.

It is like

a seplilchre from
it

which Buddhism would

describes
as definitely
evil.'

fain deliver us

by Nirvana, which
is

destroying what

for

man

only

a great mass of

that nothing remains but to be freed

With such an opinion it would seem from a terrible burden,

left to

and

suicide should logically be the resource

man

in

his dire extremity.

Many

legends seem to show that adepts

is

of Buddhism have drawn this conclusion, which

logical

though absurd. But Sakya-muni, by an inconsistency which does him honour, insisted that man should employ his life in

redeeming himself from that

to live according to
all

life

by

virtue.

He

wished

man

the laws of reason, as he understood

life,

them, so as to attain cessation of

and conquer an eternal

CH. v]

CRITICAL

STUDY OF BUDDHISM

159

death by the purest and most saintly existence.

ideal

The high

he made of
it

virtue, sole

pledge of eternal salvation,

enlightened the philosopher.
it,

should,
Life
is

^vould seem, have

all

not then after

it

so poor a thing as he represents

since

allows

man

such an admirable use of his

it is,

faculties.

But

this light, bright as

does not
sees
in

suffice to dispel the

darkness, and Sakya-muni

pain.
all

existence nothing but

In his compassion for his fellow-creatures he devotes

the efforts of his genius to deliver

.

them from

the fatal law

of renewed birth.

According
suffering.

to the

Buddha,

life

is

a long tissue of grief an4

evils

We
it

must, no doubt, recognize the numerous

it
;

inherent to

which disfigure

indeed,

it

would be

folly to

deny them.

But

to say

nothing of the salutary lessons that

endures, and which are chiefly
will, is it

man can derive from the ills he caused by his own misguided
nothing but
joys that
evil in life
?

so true that there

is

Shall

we not

take into account the

life

affords us, the simple joys of ignorant child-

hood, the austere joys of meditation matured by experience,

and of conscience strengthened by wisdom, the pleasures of

the senses, as well as those of the intellect, the incessant

and

resplendent spectacle of nature, and that of the soul sacrificing

itself to

duty, the joys of family

ties,

and those of the heroic

itself

passion of patriotism, which India

Will
is

has not ignored?

if

anyone venture
ills

to

deny
is

these.?
it

And

tuch importance
its

given to the
.?

of Hfe
it

fair to

disdain

unquestionto consider

able benefits

Is

an equitable view of things

to

ihcm only under one of the two contrary aspects they present
life
?

It

would not indeed be any wiser

the

deny the
them.

ills

of
if

as energetically as
is

Buddha
it

asserts
is

But

optimism

not essentially true,

It
it

incomparably more
does not disit

so than despair.
courage, and
if

has at least the advantage of sustaining

slightly

warps the mind

it
;

hearten

it ;

it

elevates instead of degrading

sheds more

i6o
light

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

than
its

[pt.

opposite, for in

human
sum of

life

and

in the

world the

sum of good,
heaits,
is

in the eyes of impartial

judges and of manly

greater than the

is,

evil.

There
death

moreover, a certain pusillanimity in dwelling so

evils,

much upon outward

;

such as old age, disease, and

and

in forgetting the

much

greater and

ble evils

which attack the soul and are called

at

vices.

more formidaBuddhism
it

h IS been
refined

much
it

pains to classify, with the most studied and

all

casuistry

the

differences of the Klesa,

is

by

hundreds that
labour?

has distinguished them; and

it

why

all this

In truth
;

is

not vice that Buddhism detests and

it

would avoid
attain
;

it

is

Nirvana which

ever seeks and must

is

and

it

only fears and rejects vice, because vice

an

obstacle to salvation and deliverance.

The one

thing dreaded

above
shrink

all, is
;

pain from which an effete sensibility makes

;

man
old

decay which fades the bright carnation of youth

last,

age which destroys vigour, death at

passage from this
life

which

is

only a
still.

of pain to another

more

painful

The

thing to be avoided at any price, even at the cost of

virtue, is

not moral degradation consequent on vice, but the

bodily degradation which, far from saddening the sage, should

on
It

the contrary strengthen

him by the experience

it

affords.

would be unjust to pretend that Sakya-muni took no heed

evil,

whatever of moral

but in reality he

made

it

a secondary

consideration, ancjjphy sical evil

4iis

was the principal object of

dread.

And

here a strange contradiction

is

shown
ills

while the
life,

Buddha apprehends beyond measure seeks eternal deliverance from them in

means, or
existence,
at least the
is

the

of

and

annihilation, the only

most
it

efficacious

he finds to suppress

to

make
it,

here below a torment to those

it.

who

have to endure

while loathing
his

What a code Sakyaand beloved

disciples

muni imposes upon

most

faithful

What

observances he practises himself and prescribe? to his

Cii.

V]
!

CRITICAL

STUDY Ot BUDDHISM
live

161

monks
most

Rags and shrouds

for clothing, forests for shelter,

graveyards for meditation, to

by alms, to observe the

all

rigid abstinence, to abstain

from

pleasures even the

refrain

most innocent, to keep habitual

friendly intercourse
this doctrine,
!

silence,

and

from

al!

It is
is

a living death.

The

very austerity of

which

not limited to the cloister, but preachel

fliilh

to the world, proves the ardent sincerity of the

which

commends it. demn oneself

great an
evil,

It needs a truly energetic conviction to con-

to such a

life
it

of

sacrifice.

But

if life is

so
to

why make
it

worse;

why

voluntarily

add

inevitable suffering, mortifications

under which the body must

consistent

succumb?

Would

not

be more
life

with the

Buddha's doctrine to make

a continual source of enjoy-

ment, and pleasure the sole occupation of

man

should not
It
is

pain be alleviated instead of being increased

that

true

no one can reach the hearts of men by preaching pleasure to them this base doctrine, which can only attract
:

corrupt

minds,

does not appeal to the masses, however

ignorant and sensual they

may

be.

Sakya-muni was

right

not to preach a doctrine which his great soul could only

reject with scorn
;

but ascetism was not the practice which

his theories could logically prescribe.

Thus we
egotism,
scepticism, a

find

ignorance

of the

idea of
duty,

right,

blind

entire misapprehension of

almost absolute
is

fanatical hatred

of

life

which

thus

mis-

conceived,

a cowardly dread of
a world that
;

its is

suftcrings,

inconsol-

able despondency in

not understood.

long
to

list

this

of errors

but

more

yet

may be

attributed

Buddhism.
It is

sufficiently

proved that Buddhism has not grasped

it

man's true nature, and that while

the advantage of the soul.

prescribes an incessant
it

and implacable warfare against the body

from the
soul,

It distinguishes neither the

does not tend to body

nor the

spirit

from matter.

Reducing

all

i62
intelligence

THE ORIGIN OP BUDDMI3M

to

[pt.

external

sensation,

it

does

not

appear to

have suspected the existence in

man

of the two principles of

his

which he

is

composed, and which explain

at least

whole destiny.

The Sankhya system

tion,

had made

this essential distincits

and though

it

was mistaken as
it.

to

consequences

it

had conceded a large part to the

a part as
is

spirit,

although not as great

due to

In

this respect

Sakya-muni was
atheist
;

far

behind Kapila.

Like him he remained an

but he

substituted for the decided, though spurious, spiritualism of

Kapila a blind materialism, which he coupled with the most

mystical asceticism.

Not only does

ciples

the

Buddha confuse
is

the two opposing prin-

of which

man

formed, but he confuses

man
fly

himself

with

all

that surrounds him.

of,

He

first

confuses him with the

animals he makes use

which often rend or

from him

with the plants he nourishes liimself with, which sometimes

poison him
is

and, finally, with the inert matter in which there

at
it.

no trace of organism or Hfe, which man can fashion will, when he chooses to employ his skilful hands upon
Sakya-muni
that
is

carries the idea of transmigration to this extreme,

It is true that

to a flagrant absurdity.

we

possess doc-

trines that

degrade

man

refuse to recognize in

and which him anything but a superior kind of

to the level of a beast,

animal

but what

is this

error

serious

as

it

is

beside the
he passes

one
its

in

which Buddhism has

lost itself?

doctrines, has

nothing to distinguish

Man, according to him from ordinary

matter.

In the successive and

infinite existences

through

man

can become

all

things without any exception,

:

from the most exalted being down to the very lowest

the

from
to

most marvellous and complicated organization down

if lliis

a state of complete absence of organization.

If the texts

were not so precise and so numerous,

perfect
infers

belief

were not in

harmony with all the remainder of the system which it, and cannot be explained without it, we might really'

doubt that such a paradox could ever have deluded

intelligence.

human
the idea
fullest

Unfortunately

it is

impossible to doubt

this.

It is

of unity of substance pushed as far as possible, to the

and most absurd conclusions.

theists,

Spinosa and modern pan-

who

believe themselves to be terribly audacious

and

thoroughly consistent, are far less so than Sakya-muni.

He

works out

his ideas to their end,

whereas they see but a part

of instinct that

of theirs and stop half-way.

By a kind

makes

them

feel the

abyss before them they unwittingly draw back

and although they do not give

systems, in which
all

man

his rightful share in their

beings are effaced and confounded in an

obscure identity, they dare not avow the degrading blas-

phemies

in

which Buddhism delights.

it,

It is

true, that in

another respect they have done like

by refusing to recognize

any other

God

than

man

himself.

But
;

in

our day such

impious extravagances are

of man, and moreover
zation.
It is
still

less

easy

the platonic philosophy

and Descartes* method have taught us much about the soul

we

live in the

midst of Christian
all

civili-

possible to disregard
if

the teachings of

psychology, and to strive

not to refute, at least to elude

But, however

them by feigning

to ignore them.

much one

may

try to follow out such deplorable reasoning,

resist;

common
own
con-

sense will

the

philosopher

who
is

thus
;

goes astray
his

vaguely feels the error into which he

falling

science, protesting against him, deprives his system of part

of

its

strength,

and

his

wavering conviction hardly

less to influence

sufTices to

dominate him,

much

others.

But

in the

Indian world, where real science was unknown, and where

pyschology was completely ignored, even by the Brahmans

speculative as they were

possible,

all

aberrations,

all follies

became
spirit

and

it

only required an energetic and resolute

out.
far

them Stopping him

to

carry

The Buddha went ahead nothing

as
logic

as

would take him;

and as

X.a

i6i

fHE OkiciN QF BVbbHISM

was more a closed book
falling.

tpT.
to

ps}'chological observation

him
of

even than to his adversaries, he saw none of the errors,

or rather
follies,

into

which he was

The grandeur

his convictions is
It

only surpassed by his blindness*

easily understood

will

now be

necessarily atheistical.

When
is

the personality of

why Buddhism was man is so

completely ignored
idea of God.

it

absohuely impossible to have any

aspect

This

last

of Sakya-muni's doctrine
for
it is

demands a few more reflections, the most unfavourable of all.

without comparison

We

have already shown, as an

is

undeniable

fact,

that in

the whole Buddhist system there

not a vestige of the idea

it

of God.
idea of

It

does not precisely deny, nor did

;

contest the
that such

God

but
in

it

seems not to have known

an idea existed
pensable; in

the
it

human

soul,

nor that
it.

it

was

indis-

fact,

completely ignored

elevated

Brahmanism, at least from and more learned.

God,
it

this point of view,

was more
it

If

it

did not understand the

in the

unity of

nevertheless constantly sought for

universal intelligence of
it

Kosmos and through

;

this idea,

which
light.

never loses,

it

sometimes has a gleam of the true

very nearly being

In certain

hymns

of the Vcdas, and also of the Upanishads,

this great discovery is

made by
it,

the genius

of Brahmanism.
to judge

truth
it

one were by the language alone, it would seem as though the had been really found. In any case, if it is not found,
It

draws very near to

and

if

may be hoped

that with the light already acquired, the

truth will not long

remain hidden.

In Buddhism, on the contrary, even these gleams of li^ht

are extinguibhed,

and not a spark remains

All
is

to

show

that they

could be revived.
entity, finds

daik,

and man, reduced

to his

own

himself so weak and abandoned that he throws

himself with a sort of frenzy into death and annihilation, out

of which he

came and

into

which he longs to return.

cii.

v]

CRITICAL

STUDY OF BUDDHIZM
I

165

Sad and depressing spectacle

suppose that the notion of
to

We

were accustomed to

God

is

never completely wanting

human

intelligence.
*

This notion might be confused and

obscure/ we thought,

but cannot be totally absent/ and

it

we

imagined we should find

the lowest savages.

even amid the gross brutality of

is

Well, here

a great doctrine, the result

of the deepest and most sincere meditations

system of

philosophy which,

if

not profound,

is

at least very consistent

and extensive; a
to us

religion accepted

merable nations, in which

indispensable,
is

this essential idea,

and practised by innuwhich seems

;

utterly

wanting

where

man

is

so

absorbed in his

own
all

selfishness

and

his puerile terrors that

he can see absolutely nothing outside of himself.

in his

He

believes

misery with
to

the strength of a

and he looks

no

deliverer
is.

mind warped by fear, but himself, weak and miserable

would be a marvel, indeed,
haven by such a road, and
if
it

though he knows he

It

Buddhism were
suflices to

to reach the
its

remember

origin to

be no longer surprised

that

it

should have fallen into such depths.

personality has been misconceived
signs,

Human
exterior
in
its

by

it

in its
still

and manifest

and more outrageously

'.

its

essence

and inmost nature

Free
its

will,

which

is

pre-eminent characteristic, with

all

accompaniment
suppressed,

of faculties
destroyed.

and consequences,
whole of

is

forgo. ten,

Man

acls during the

fatality,
is

this life

under the weight,

not precisely of
existences.

but of an incalculable series of former

He

not punished or rewarded for the actions

life,

he commits during
lives,

but he pays the penally of his past

which he cannot reform, of which he has to endure the

* In a Pali Sutra especially devoted to an explanation of the theory of causes, MahiJ A'tWdfra Suifa, it is said, * It is the name of the individual that makes him know hjmself.' ^i^tus d(^ la bonne Lgi^ ^, Burnopf, p. ^^^9.

i66

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

[pt.

necessary consequences, and which he cannot remember,

although he can recognize their fatal results.

Transmigration

has placed him in his present

life,

and

if

he does not take

heed

it

will

again lay hold of him and throw him back ipto

the cycle he has already passed,

to escape.
It is true that
it

from which he has no power

seems to depend upon himself

this option, the

whether he
ear and be

will

hear the Buddha and be saved, or turn a deaf

lost.

But even
to

only point on
granted him
it is

which

man seems
is

have any

liberty, is barely

his liberty

not complete in this decisive choice;

is

clogged

by a past of which he
the liberating law that

not the master

and

his rejection of

is

preached to him

may

be the punish-

ment of faults committed in another existence,

by
this

now

followed

new

fault.
?

he ever free

Man is not Was he free

then free in this

in

life.

Was
things

the

origin of

all

to begin or not to begin this chain of successive existences.?

What was
law?
All

the

first

cause of his bondage to

this

terrible
- -

by its well-known but puerile theory of the Connective Chain of Converse Causes. Step by step it traces back from death,
these questions
to

Buddhism pretends

solve

to

which we are
it

all

doomed on

earth, to nothingness out of

which

believes all beings

or

rather the shadows

it

recogr

nizes in this

world to have
it

originated.

No

doubt birth
not born

engenders old age and death, and ingenuous as the axiom

must appear,

must be granted
is

that if

man was
it, is

he would not be exposed to death.

But

a mere play
it is

upon words

to say that
it.

life

the cause of death;

birth,

but

the occasion of

If there
;

was no
is

we

repeat, there

could be no death
that death
is

but

life

so liule the cause of death,

life.

in

its

turn recognized as the cause of

Cause becomes
in reality
it

effect,

and the

effect

becomes

its

own

cause;

is

a contradiction, and the true notion of cause

that of
liberty.

escapes Buddhism as well as

Buddhism

CH. v]

CRITICAL

STUDY OF BUDDHISM
its

l6^

seems here to acknowledge

chain which
it

own

impotence, and in the

follows

it

begins by nothingness or ignorance,

and ends by the same.

of
to
its

But
is

if

ignorance
its

is

the starting-point

researches,
its

and

if it

also

term,
to

we

are at liberty

doubt

pretended knowledge.

For

begin by nothing-

ness, to finish
that
it

by nothingness,

is

equivalent to acknowledging

knows nothing and

iis

bel'eves in nothing.

This

is

the

conclusion of the school daring in

nihilism

of the Pradjnd-Paramita, more

also

and

more

consistent than

the

founder of Buddhism himself.

this,

Sakya-muni dared not admit

idea of

or raiher he deceives himself in deceiving others.

To sum
of
liberty,

up

absence of

all

human

personality,

of cause

such
it

are the elements that

it

Buddhism

employs, and which

fancies

has deducted from an exact

and

attentive observation of reality.

with such materials

It is no wonder that Buddhism should not have attempted to

construct a regular system of theology.

When

humanity

is

so imperfectly understood,

it is

natural also that the world

and

should be equally misunderstood; for man has no other means of attaining to the idea of God than through himself and the surrounding world. Moreover, the most surprising thing of all is that Buddhism

God

should not have deified the Buddha.

idea of

Destitute of the true

God,

it

might have attempted to impose upon that

secret instinct in

man

which

reason never gets rid of

an
The

idol in the place of the deity.

Far from
conceives

this,

the

Buddha

remains man, and never seeks to overstep the limits of

humanity, outside of which he
nothing.

enthusiasm of his disciples did not exceed the reserve of

their

master

for in the innocent

worship they rendered him

they bore witness only to the s'.renglhening and consoling

power of

his

example; never did they appeal

to his

power
of the

oti their behalf.

The Buddha had

the

placed man, and himself

cruel

personally, far above

absurd and

gods

i68

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

his followers

[pt.

Brahmanic pantheon;
supreme

maintained him in this

further.

position, but they

went no

Neither the

pride of Sakya-muni, nor the fanaticism of his votaries, ever

conceived a sacrilege; and the Buddha, great as he thought

himself, sought not the halo of apotheosis, nor did tradition
in
its

piety

and veneration ever attempt

to

it.

Temples and
power
but

statues

were raised
life

him

thousands of writings have

his supernatural
;

related his

and celebrated
is

no one ever dreamed of making him a god.

This reserve
not, however, a

proof of the good sense

this delicate point

of the Buddhists.
is

Their moderation on

dictated

by motives which agree only too well with

According
to
their belief the

their

general ignorance.
far

Buddha,
other

from being God, had been preceded by other Buddhas as

saintly as himself,

and

will

have as successors

still

Buddhas no

less

perfect

and worthy of veneration.

He

saved the world by his doctrine, that world in which he

appeared, as others had saved or will
save the worlds of

which they have been or are destined to be the saviours.

The Tathagata
liearers destinies

himself

predicted

to

number of

his

no

less brilliant

than his

own

he assured
described
;

them they would be Buddhas

to

like

himself.

He
Every

them

the glorious worlds in

which they should reign

he

even fixed the duration of their reign.

therefore attain, like the

man can

Buddha

himself, to this high dignity

by

the practice of virtue

disciples

can attain

and holiness ; and the least of his and equal the adorable and ineffable
If

beauties of his master's nature.

Buddha were a god, then

there would be as

many gods
*

possible as there are

men
the

capable of understanding

the

Four Noble Truths or

Connective Chain of Converse Causes, and of following the

Noble Eight-fold Path that leads to Nirvana.' This is the first motive which prevented the Buddhists,
Tiotwi^hst(\nding; their

most constant

find rnpst sincere ^vq-

cii.

v]

CRITICAL

STUDY OF BUDDHISM
There
is
is

169

tion,

from making a god of ihe Buddha.

not

a second

one which, though as powerful,

their intelligence.

more

creditable to

During the whole course of the Buddha's life, after his great at Bodhimanda, he did not cease to perform miracles, and the most extraordinary and supernatural
triumph

powers are ascribed to him.

saries,

But the Brahmans,

his adver-

contended with him and vied with him

It

in

their

miracles.

longing to

was therefore not a privilege exclusively beSakya-muni. He was more powerful than those
theirs

he contended with, because his knowledge was greater than

theirs.

His powers surpassed

^Toreovcr,
it

because he surpassed

them
gives

in virtue.

is

well

man superhuman

powers.
all

known that knowledge We know that the Yogi,

the slages of initiation,
is

when he has passed through

infallibly attains

magic power, and

henceforth above

all

the ordinary conditions of nature.

The most
it
;

enlightened

Brahmans have always held

India has believed
belief,
it;

this belief;

has been prop^aall

gated by the wisest systems of philosophy

mankind

in

and Buddhism, had

it

repudiated this
its

would by

that alone have placed itself far beneath

antagonists.
ally

The Buddha's miracles do not therefore speciAll men can succeed in performing distinguish him.

similar ones.

On

that account he

is

no more of a god than

on any

other.

It is therefore

a mingled feeling of pride and senseless

superstition that led

Buddhism not

to deify the

Buddha,

to

say nothing of

its

absolute incapacity to conceive any idea of

an

infinite being.

From
city of

all

that precedes

it

will

be easy to understand the

general enierpiise of Buddhism.

Through a

radical incapait

higher aspirations, or by a perversity of reason,

believed that only

ancj saving

man
It

himself was capable of understanding

the greatest pf beings. wiiic|^

map.

mad? hym

lyo

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

world was no error
;

[pt.

in regard to this

but

it

made him

a being

subsisting

by

his

own power, having no

superior either for his

origin or his end, placed alone in this universe

filled

which
it is,

is

yet

with his personality, vague and scattered as

under
scif,
is

an endless variety of forms; exclusively occupied with

and without a thought

he knows not.

which he blended by his numerous metamorphoses nor of God, whom

either of nature
witli

We admit
it

that this idea has a certain appear-

ance of grandeur; but

is

lacks truth, for

man

thus conceived

but a monster, who, notwithstanding his pretensions, would

soon have a horror of himself, because he would be unable

to

understand himself.

However,

it

is

scarcely fair to attack

Buddhism with
races.

the

weapons of Plato or Descartes

it

that

is

to say, to use against

the enlightenment of

more favoured times and

in

We

will
it

employ only

its

own weapons
life

opposing

it ;

and since

sees in

man

only a suffering being,

part pain plays in his

and what

it

implies.

we must examine what By this road,

as

by every
is

other,

it

is

possible for

man
the

to

reach God.
it is

The way
sure,

more

laborious for our weakness, but

forth

no

less

and God shines

no

less in

ills

than in the

benefits of humanity.

We

have reproached Sakya muni wiih having given too

to physical pain, but he also gave a certain

much importance

part to moral sufferings.

He

wished to deliver

man

for ever

from disease, old age, and death, by freeing him from the law
of renewed birth, but he wished also to preserve
vice.

him from

He

does not therefore deny that

if

man

suffers bodily

he

may

not,

and

that

still

more keenly,

sulTer in

another part
;

of his being.

Klesa includes

boh

physical and moral evil

and when Ajatasatru conferses to the Buddha

crime,
it

his parricidal

is

his secret

He confides remorse that has urged him on. torment to the wi:e man who can comfort and
Thus Buddhism recognizes
suffering in
its

heal him.

most

CH. v]

CRITICAL

STUDY OF BUDDHISM

171

poignant and real form, even when

the most concealed.

on this great observation, which might have rievealed to him the whole nature of man, and which at the same time would have raised him far above
But he dwells too
little

mankind.

We

might inquire of Buddhism whether there

is

any other

being except

man who
it

can experience the pangs that con-

science sometimes inflicts

on him and which the Buddhist

its

system recognizes, as

undertakes to assuage them by

it

advice and by the solemn expiations

it

recommends.

Does
him,

believe that the creatures that surround

man

feel, like

the inward anguish

which the most powerful kings, assured

?

as they are of impunity, cannot escape

as the Buddhists claim, that

We may

concede,

man

before assuming his actual

form has passed by

all

the different stages of matter,

from the

most

inert to the

most highly organized ; but

it

in the present

disposition of things can

be denied that

man

alone endures

these torments

the
it

consequences of his

faults
feel

and of
like

his
?

crimes

Can

be believed that animals

man

Can

inorganic matter, which the Buddhists themselves place

it

lower than the beasts, can

feel

remorse
its

This

is

indeed

impossible, and notwithstanding

blindness

Buddhism has
This
is

not fallen into quite so deep an error.

the privilege of this pain,

!Man has therefore

as old age
exist.
is its

which

is

exclusively his.

an incontestable

fact,

and may be deplored

it

and

death are deplored, but

cannot be said not to

Whence does this suffering come to man, and what cause, when it agitates his whole being, embitters all his
and racks him with anguish
of power.?
in the

joy.",

midst of all the intoxications

Buddhism

itself

has answered the question.

Man
is

only experiences this terrible pain because he feels he

guilty in having transgressed the

Law.

If Ajatasatru

had not

known

that he could have acted otherwise than he did, he

felt

would not have

the remorse which brought

him humbled

172

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

feet

[pt.
all

and submissive to the

pride

of the Buddha, in spite of

his

and power.

But the Law he had violated and which

punishes him had not been

criminal

made

for

him

for this great

when he began
it

to repent

knew nothing of BudStill

dhism, and was not aware that murder was forbidden.

K ss was
the criminal himself

who made
the

the law against

himself that
destroy
out, if
it

chastised
it

him.

On
in his

contrary, he

would

it,

abolish

if it

were

power.

He

would wipe

and same time the wounds this recollection constantly caused him. But ih's law is superior to man it is not amenable to him and notwithstanding his perversity, which
rested with him, the very recollection of his sin,

heal at the

sometimes

defies

it,

he cannot silence in his

will

own

heart that
less

persistent voice

which

perhaps soon find echoes no

terrible in the heart

of his fellow-creatures.

We

know

well that

Buddhism would

reply to

all

this, if

not through Sakya-muni, at any rate through Nagardjuna,

author of the Pradjiid-Pdrainitd, that
if

man
it

experiences
is

moral sufferings of

this

nature

it

is

only because he
;

thus

made

that

it

is

his nature

{Svabhdva)

that

is

not neces-

sary to seek

any other explanation; that beings are what

they are by virtue of their

as animals, plants,
is

own
this.

nature

that
;

man
this

has

his,
it

and minerals have

In
it

theirs

and, in short,

useless

to

go beyond
is

reality

argument

explains nothing, precisely because

thing whatever;
it

refuses to explain any-

a universal

objection.

Facts ought

simply to be observed without ever stri\ing to

causes.

know
its

their

crime

is

Buddhism admits that the moral pain a fact, and through the medium of
it

that follows

greatest
this,

metaphysical school

declares that

it

is

content with

and has no mission

what
is its

origin.

whence this fact ari es, nor But Buddhism cannot make use of this
to inquire
is

easy argument, which

I^

forbidden to
to

it

by

its

own

teaching.

may, indeed, be

possible

the

scepticism

cf thos^

cii.

vj

CRITICAL

STUDY OF BUDDHISM
;

1^3

discipks

who have but

it.

half learned their master's lessons,

and who are

cannot accept

satisfied with the driest logic

but the master

He

did not pass with haughty indifference

it

before moral suffeiing, and far from considering

a conse*

quence of man's own nature, that

is

to say immutable, he

gave his most attentive care and his noblest hope to the
healing of those evils which he did not believe incurable.

He

therefore

recognized not only that

man

violates a law

superior to himself

when he commits a

fault,

but also that he

can, lo

a certain extent, repair the

evil

committed, and

re-establish

between himself and the law he has violated

his

the affinity that

crime had destroyed.

The Buddha

had only one step more to take: this was to ascribe this law which his virtue considered just to a being more

powerful

than

man,

to

being propitious to
to

order and

goodness,

who knows how

reveal

and

to

uphold them

by these secret and energetic means.

It
still

would seem even

further

that the

Buddha might have gone

had but to question
his

on

this

track.
soul,

He

heroic

and virtuous

and compare the profound and

conscience with the tempest-

unalterable peace of his

own

torn souls of the guilty.

in

This peace which the good enjoy

a fact no less certain than
Personally the

view of the law they

fulfil, is

the agitation of the wicked.

Buddha
evil,

offered

an admirable example.
if

He
moral

might therefore suppose that

law punishes

the

author of the

he also

rewards good, and that his forbearance at least equals his

severity.

1'hese simple reflections

tainly within the
lie

upon moral

suffering were cer-

scope of 8akya-muni"s intelligence, and had

they were of a nature to modify the whole
all

made them

course of his thoughts and to change

this

his system.

By

means, not to mention others w hich the sight of external

nature afforded him, he would have been able to understand

1)4

THE Origin of WddHiSM

the terror that

[pt.
cast

men and calm

into despair.
is

bhndcd them and

them

In the presence of the all-powerful Being,

who

and who can at the same time be merciful, his spirit would have been reassured. Far from considering life
just

a torture, he

would have recognized

it

as a

trial

which

it

depends on ourselves to render

]\Ian

less painful.

need not deplore his condition on cath, since he

it.

can improve and beautify

since he
It
is

He

is

not

lost in this world,

under the yoke of reasonable and beneficent laws.

has been given to him to submit and to understand them.

If

he cannot overthrow them, he can, by obeying them, take

;

a share in them

he can even, in a certain measure, unite

reveals

himself to him

who has made them, and who

them

equally by virtue and by crime.

It is not, therefore,

a ruler

or a tyrant that his heart appeals to

it

is

rather a father

and he can say

to himself that far

from being an orphan

it,

or a waif in this world, he

family, where, since

may

live in

like

one of a large

he has the second place, he occupies

which
not

a noble position.

But

this

side

of the question,

is

only the

greatest,

but also the truest, did

at the miserable side

not touch

8akya-muni.

He

looked only

of man, and abandoned

himself without measure to the painful sympathy this lamentable spectacle excited within him.

Because
less well,

man

died here

on earth

after

having lived more or

he condemned

him Lim

to eternal death.

The hope

of annihilation seemed to

sudicient

for

this

being, solely pre-occupied with the

anxiety of avoiding pain.

suft'ers,

The moment man

to
suffer
is

exists

he

and the only way not

not to

exist.

Nirvana
return

is the only safe refuge, and man is sure never to on earth from the moment that he no longer exists.
it

But

is

time to close these lengthy considerations on

Buddhism.

We

will

now summarize

these

criticisms

by

applying them to some fundamental theories.

en. vi

CRITICAL

STUDY OF BUDDHISM
is

175
all

Transmigration, which
doctrine,
is

the

starting-point

of

this

but an indefensible hypothesis, which the

doubtless did not invent,

Buddha but which he accepted, and from

fruitless,

which he drew the most deplorable conclusions.

His ethics are incomplete and

of the

inasmuch as they

repose on a thoroughly false idea of the nature of man, and

life

he leads here below.

is

Nirvana, or annihilation,

a monstrous conceplion, repugnature, revolting to reason,

nant to

all

the instincts of

human

and implying atheism.

Reduced
pity than

to these terms.
it

Buddhism ought
has reigned for

to inspire

more

contempt; yet

many

centuries,

and
sole

it still

reigns over a multitude of races, offering to their

credulity the melancholy doctrines

we have
is all

just reviewed as

nourishment of their

faith,

which

the

more ardent the

more absurd it is. By the idea of transmigration it plunges them into a fantastic world which prevents their understanding the real conditions of the one they live
his ethics,
in.

Moreover,
less

which were unable to save men, were even

fitted to constitute

any equitable or

in'clllgent societies.

His

doctrine of Nirvana degraded

man

lower than the brutes,

which have at

least this

advantage over him, that they do not

of.

deify annihilation,

which they do not dream

eiiher

In one word,

he has totally failed to recognize

personal
dignity.
it;

nature, duty, or

He

aimed

at

delivering
it,

humanity, but

only destroyed
into

he wished

to enlighten

and has

cast

it

the deepest gloom.

His intentions may have been

with
justly

noble,

but

his
;

general action,

some few
doubted
if

exceptions,
the nations

has been

fatal

and

it

may be

he has
the evil

lost will ever find,

or even accept, any remedy for

will

he has done them, and

continue to do for

many

a day.

At the close of the seventeenth and following centuries, when China began to be better known, a question was raised

i7

tiiE

orIgM

dP'

buddMIsM
It

tpt.

among some eminent

whether
exist,
it

thinkers.

had been wondered

were possible that a society of atheists could

and whether the accusation of atheism brought against

that vast empire

was reasonable or probable.

fact.

Bayle

made

the discussion
tive,

famous by pronouncing himself

in

in the affirma-

and Voltaire contested the

Public opinion was

divided,

and the question,

the absence

of

any well-

established facts, remained undecided.

At

the present day,

and

in

view of the complete and clear revelations

made

in

the Buddliist writings which have since then been discovered

and explained, no doubt can

exist.

Buddhist nations may,

without injustice, be considered nations of atheists.

This

does not imply that they profess atheism, and glory in their
incredulity, in the boastful

manner

of those

who

profess

it

among

ourselves;

but

it

simply means that these nations

have not attained, even in their highest meditations, to the idea

of God, and that the societies formed by them have, to the
great detriment of their organization, dignity, and happiness,
lived without this idea.

However, these
refined,

societies

do

exist,

very numerous although

powerless, very backward although very ancient, corrupt yet

and profoundly miserable, through the ignorance and

instead of amending.

vice

that time has increased

Bayle

was therefore

right in maintaining that such a social state

was possible; we now know

neither

that

it

really exists.
*

Perhaps,

however, we ought to add with Voltaire,

deny nor affirm

These nations God; they have never heard of Him.

is

I'o assert that they are atheists

the

same

as asserting that

they are Anti-Cartesians; they are neither for nor against

Descartes.

They

are, in fact, children,

;

and a

child

is

neither

an

atheist

nor a deist

he

is

nothing

\'

Voltaire's opinion
soling.
*

is

the

Sakya-muni

is

most correct and the most conno more an atheist than Kapila, only

Voltaire, Dictionnaire philosophiqtie, article on Aihiistne.

cii.

v]

CRITICAL

STUDY OF BUDDHISM
it

177

he had the weakness and misfortune to be ignorant of

God

if

he had fought against him, then

would have been

just to accuse
trine suited

him of atheism.

The

nations
it

whom

his doc-

were as blind as he was, and

has been proved

by the learned men of our day that they did not know
even by name.

God

Rdmusat
to

testifies that

the Chinese, Tartars,

believe, the

and IMongolians,
the

whom

might be added, we

Tibetans, do not possess a word in their language to express

idea

of God*.

In presence of such a curious and

reliis

deplorable phenomenon, confirmed moreover by their

gion,
it

may be doubted
the

if

the intelligence of these nations

as

made of
climates,

same order
life is

our

own

and
is

if

in

those

where

held in abhorrence and where nothing-

ness takes the place of God,

with us.
it

human

nature

the

same as

INIoreover, the faith of these peoples, senseless as

seems

to us^ has

been so exclusive that they have devoted

to
it ;

their

whole thoughts

they have no other books than

their sacred
tion,

books

they have not permitted their imaginait

disordered as

was, to be diverted to other subjects;

literature

and most of the Buddhist nations have no other

than that of the Sutras ^

we have dwelt at such length on the errors of Budit is, first, on account of its historical importance in but it the past, and even in the present state of humanity is also in order to caution certain minds as much as possible
If

dhism,

against the illusions

it

may

present.

Doubtless
should

it

is

little

to

be feared that

its

frightful asceticism

make

proselytes

amongst us
little

transmigration, annihilation, and atheism are

to attract
its

likely,

theless,

we imagine, Buddhism has

a grand

many

adherents.

Never-

attractive

side.

The Reformer
perfect one.

himself
'
*

is

figure,

we may even say a

^ - ^~A. Remnsat, Foe A'otie A7, p. 138. No doubt this is the reason why the Sutras are so numerous and so extravagant, as they had to satisfy all the wants of Buddhist believers.

178
In his
life

THE ORIGIN OF BUDDHISM

there
is

[pt.
virtues,

not a

fault,

not a

stain.

The
if

he

inspired were true

and often splendid, even

his principles

were

false.

hero himself, he inspired heroism in others.

His code of morality, erroneous as it is, redeems its errors by an austerity that nothing can discourage ; its vices are neither
low nor common.
even when
folly
is
it

Self-renunciation carried to such a degree,

is
still

is

misguided,

worthy of esteem, for the

It
it

of the ascetic

may

excite pity but never contempt.

not, therefore, surprising that

less

Buddhism, especially when

failed

was
its

known, should have

as well

called forth admiration.

Even
faith.

resemblance to Christianity has not

as those hostile
it

to deceive

believers

to

the

Christian

The

latter

chose to consider

the rival of the religion they

it

opposed, w hile the former saw in

they venerated.

a reflection of the doctrines

Now, however,

it

would seem

that

all

these

misapprehensions, equally untenable, ought to be dispelled.

Buddhism
and
and

is

perfectly original, in the sense that

it

has not

borrowed from strange nations or higher

theories that
is
it

civilizations precepts

has corrupted

it

is

exclusively Indian,
;

an integral outcome of ancient India

it

without Brah-

manism, which
systems
it

pretended to reform, or the philosophical

it

perhaps unwittingly propagated,

it

could not have

for.

been possible, nor could

have been accounted

learnt nothing

However,
it

if

Buddhism has
still

from

Christianity,

would be a

greater error to suppose that Christianity

has taken lessons from Buddhism.

is

The

study of

Buddhism

extremely interesting, and the works of Hodgson, Schmidt,

Stanislas Julien, Lassen, Foucaux,

Csoma, Tumour, Burnouf,

&c., deserve all

our gratitude.
the moral

the annals of humanity hitherto

They reveal to us a page of unknown or misunderstood

and
intellectual
little

they

nations,

make us fathom who after all

us.

life

of these

are our brothers,

this,

as they perhaps

resemble
nothing,

But besides
to follow
its

Buddhism can teach us

and

teaching would be disastrous to

CH. v]
us.

CRITICAL

STUDY OF BUDDHISM
its

179
is

Notwithstanding

specious
it

appearance,

it

but

a tissue of contradictions, and

is

no calumny
without

to say that,
soul,

looked

at

closely,

it

is

spiritualism

virtue

without duty, morality without liberty, charity without love,

What lesson can we draw from such teachings ? And how much we should How much lower have to forget to become its disciples we should have to descend in the scale of civilization
a world without nature and without God.
I

ir

PART

II

BUDDHISM IN INDIA IN THE SEVENTH CENTURY OF THE CHRISTIAN ERA.

CHAPTER

I.

The iviportauce of his travels in India; his Life of Hiouen Thsang. monastic education in China ; his vocation as a missionary ; his The Kins; of the Oigurs, the Ttirkish Khan. departure ; first trials. Hiouen-'l'hsangs aj rival in India; his superstitious piety ; exploration on the banks of the Ganges ; five years' sojourn in Magadha and the convent of Ndlanda ; travels throughout the peninsula ; leluni to Ndlanda; SJldditya; contest of the Master of the law against the Little Vehicle. His return to China after sixteen years'' absence; IIiouen-7'hsa7ig's retreat; translation of the sacred Buddhist books ; death of Iliouen-Thsang ; his character.

After having

studied the origin of Buddhism,

we

pass over

a space of twelve centuries, and from the year 543 b c, the date of the Buddha's death, we reach the 630th year of the
date at which a Chinese monk, named Hiouen-Thsang [the Master of the Lazv)2. barbaric name which henceforth becomes familiar and even venerated
Christian era, the
travelled through India.

Ilioucn-Thsang's travels are

known
is

by two works, which

Histoire de sa vie

that excellent sinologist Stanislas Julicn

:

has translated from the Chinese into French

ei

one

the

de ses voyages,
;

by two of
is

his disciples,

Hoei'-Li and

Yen-Thsong

the oiher

a collection of

Hiouen-

LIFE OF HIOUEN-THSANG

'

i8i
{Si:j'u-h')

Thsang's own Memoirs on the western countries

he travelled over
countries India
for sixteen consecutive years.

By

western
it

is

more

especially understood, as

is

in

fact situated to the west of China.

By
study

the

help of these two authentic documents,

as
it

we

will

Buddhism

existed in the Indian peninsula twelve

hundred years

after the

Nirvana of the Tathagata, and about

thoroughly to

four hundred years before the invasion of the Moslem.

However,
five

in

order

appreciate

Hiouenthe

Thsang we must consider

passed, or
that great

his position, not only

among

or six heads of missions

whom

he imitated and sur-

who

followed him, but in the general effect of

for so

movement which,

many

centuries, incited all

all

Buddhist China towards India.

Facts and records of

kinds attest uninterruptedly and wiih undeniable authenticity

that
this

movement, which
Hiouen-Thsang,
it

still

exists,

was of

national

importance.

in

the

seventh

century of

the Christian era, assisted

as

much

as lay in his power;

but he only followed

it

and took

his part, after or before

many
It

others.

appears certain that two hundred and seventeen years

Christ,

before

a Sramana

had

first

penetrated

into

the

Chinese Empire, and had brought thither the germ of the

new
and

religion.

This event, recorded

in the

Chinese Annals \
its

proves that Buddhism, as might be supposed, had

that the missionary spirit, of

apostles,

which the Buddha himself

to this religion

had given the example, was not wanting

than to any other.
that

more

Proselytism

is

a duty

when
in

it

is

believed

men

can be saved by a truth already

our possession

and

this is

one of the most noble

if

not the most justifiable

pretentions of Buddhism.

However, China was not destined to receive Buddhism nor

*

Rdmusat, Foe Koue Ki, p^ 41, and Landresae, preface to Foe Koue

Kij p. 38.

iS2
to see
it

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
propagated by the apostles

[pT.

il

who came from

India.

This nation, which seems to do everything in an inverted

order, far
to
it,

from waiting
for
it

for the rehgious faith to

in foreign lands.
It

be brought
as
it

went to seek

was

were

proselytism reversed.

The Chinese
went
to

pilgrims, for they cannot

be

called

missionaries,

India,

some
to

thousand

miles from their

own

country, to imbibe a'purer

It

dogma

or

to revive a failing faiih.

was necessary

do

this several

times,

and during

six centuries there

were constant pilgrim-

ages carried on, with more or less success.

This

is

certainly a unique fact in the history of religions,

in

and
the

it

would seem that no other example can be quoted

annals of humanity

known, Christianity
both

we take two of the and Mohammedanism, we find

;

for

if

best
that

have

been

propagated

in

the

opposite

manner.

Christianity,

which sprang from an obscure corner of Judea,

was spread by missions and preaching over the Greco-

Roman
apostles

world,
it

which

it

soon

subjugated.

Through
still

its

conquered by degrees the barbarians

in different

parts of Europe,

and
it

at-

the present day

its

it

is

through

its

missionaries that

seeks to carry

benefits to the utterto China.

most parts of the globe, and more especially

the nations were never converted, nor

But

was

their Christianity

strengthened by returning to the spot from whence Christianity

had issued; even the crusades, admirable as they were, and Europe did not
free the

did not attempt this object;

Holy Sepulchre fiom

about the faith
it

the Saracens in order to learn

more
it

professed.

As

for

Mohammedanism,

was
its

propagated
birth.
It

like the Christian faith, far

from the place of

spread rapidly and extensively, but the nations

converted by force and by the sword never came, to receive

its

tenets, to the place

where the prophet was born.

act of piety,

The
never

pilgrimage

to

Mecca was always an

a religious teaching.

CM.

i]

LIFE OP HlOVEN'tnsANG

183

The
the
selves

Chinese, therefore, retain this kind of privilege, and

in

manner
is

which they appropriated Buddhism to them-

not the least of their peculiarities.

The

first

Chinese pilgrim

who wrote down

his travels in

India was Chi-tao-'an.

fourth century, that
is

He

travelled at the beginning of the

about eighty years before Fa-Hian.

the Western

His book, entitled Description of

probably
lost,

Countries,

is

or at least
it

it

has not yet been discovered in

It
is

the convents, where

possibly remains concealed.

only

known by

the

very brief mention

of

it

made

in

encyclopedias or biographies published some centuries

later.

The

extent of the
its

work
is

is

unknown, but
is

Stanislas Julien

seems to think

loss

much

to be regretted. that of

The second
harrative,

journey recorded
us,

Fa-Hian.

His

which has reached

is

famous under th^ name

Koue Ki, or Recollections of the Kingdoms of the Buddha, It was a real revelation when, some fifty years ago, Abel Rdmusat, aided by Klaproth and Landresse, brought
of Foe
out a translation which gave the
first

idea of this narrative.

However
standing

limited this was,

it

it

threw a ray of light, and, thanks

it

to the details
its

contained,

was

at

omissions and

defects,

once seen, notwithwhat resources such

But he had only

documents afforded.
India, from the year
travelled over thirty

Fa-Hian had
399 kingdoms, and

travelled fifteen years in

to the year 414.

his intelligence did not

equal his courage.

cf
its

conciseness.

The

His short narrative is obscure by reason notes that Abel R^musat, Klaproth,
sufficient to render
it

and Landresse added were not

intelligible.

peifectly

taken this

was already a great work to have glorious initiative, and this first discovery promised
However,
it

many

others more fruitful and more complete. About a hundred years after Fa-Hian, two pilgrims, HoeVSeng and Sung-Yun, sent to India by order of an empress,

wrote a description of their journey, but with even fewer

184
details
this

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
than Fa-Hian.

[pt.

11

account into

0/

the

Ch. Fred. Neumann has translated German in his Recollections of the Pilgrimages Buddhist Monks HoeV-Seng and Sung-Yun seem
^.

more

especially to have travelled through the northern parts

of India, and they remained two whole years in the

country.

Udyana

After these two narratives

we come
This work
Countries.

to

Hiouen-Thsang's,
in

which

is

of

much

greater compass,

and
is

every

point

more or Memoirs on
infinitely

instructive.
the Western

entitled Si-yu-h\

It

consists of about
is

600 pages

in

quarto in the Chinese text, that

to say
It

it

is

ten or twelve times longer than that of Fa-Hian.

was

honoured by passing through several imperial

editions.

To

complete the Memoirs of Hiouen-Thsang must be

his
life

mentioned the History of

by

his

two

disciples,

who add

a quantity of curious facts to the dry

statistics

of the Me7i\oirs.
that of fifiy-six
it

Between Hiouen-Thsang's journey and

monks a hundred
that a learned

years elapse, or at least

called I-tsing

was

in

730
an
of

man
*

drew up, by

virtue

o3f

imperial decree,

The

History and itinerary of the

monks

the dynasty of the Thangs,

who

travelled to the west of

China

in search

of the Law.'

This work

is

rather less

extensive than that of Fa-Hian.

Finally, to

complete the series of Chinese pilgrimages

is

in

India, there

the Itinerary

the Western Countries.

0/ Khi-Nies journey through By the emperor's orders Khi-Nie had

left China in 964 at the head of three hundred Samaneans, and remained absent from his country twelve years. It

seems that there only

journey, not

exists

a few

memoranda of

this

long

more

that eight quarto pages,

which a learned

man

has included in one of his works.

is

Such

the substance of the narratives by the Chinese

translated
in

' Sung-Yun's short account will be found Fa-Hian, pp. 1 74-208. (Translator's note.)

Beallj

CH.

i]

Lif oP niOUEN-THSANG
and
in

1^5

pilgrims;

translating
Stanislas

llic

BiograpJ.y and ]\Ii?uoirs

of Hioiicn-Thsang,

Julien

has given

interesting portions of these narrations.

the most These two works

are far superior to

all

the others,

and

in

comparing Iliouen-

Thsang

to

his

predecessors and his Ucccs^o^s, his great

superiority over them, both in the extent

and

in the exactness

of his information,
gifted with

is

strikingly

shown.
this

Iliouen-Thsang was

a real aptitude for

kind of investigation, and

ourselves, he would certainly have been classed among the most learned and illustrious geographers and travellers.
It
is

had he

lived at a difTerent time,

and amongst

true that the days in

which he

lived

were pccullaily

favourable to studies of this kind.

mercial,

From

political

and com-

as

much

as fiom

religious

reasons,

the Chinese

emperors cf the seventh century,

either of the

SouV or the

Thang
the

dynasties, appear to have taken great interest in the

western countries, and more cspeci.dly in India.

missions of the Buddhist monks, there weie

Besides

a great

number of missions composed of generals and

magistrates,

who
it

all

brought back from their travels very useful docu-

ments.

The Chinese government, which

fail

in those

days had,
at

would seem, much more intercourse with India than

to utilize
all

present, did not

these documents and place

them within reach of the no

less

public.

Stanisl.is Julien

mentions

than

eiglit

large

works of

this

kind which were

pul)lished in the course of the seventh century.

With regard
their

to

pilgiims

and famous men of learning

the services they rendered

number was considerable, and

brilliant

were

enough

to excite public admiration

the most remote times

and

even

in

to induce the ancients to preserve

their history in special writings.

The

St.

Petersburg library

possesses eight Chinese miscellanies,

twenty or Iwo-and-twenly volumes in

some of which have quarto on the biogra-

phies of the most celebrated Buddhists.

The

first

of these

lG6

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
last is

[pt.

11

biographies was composed from the year 502 to the year 556;

and the

almost of

modern

times, having been compiled

in 1777.

The

others belong to the seventh, tenth, eleventh,

thirteenth, fifteenth,

and seventeenth centuries;

for

China,

although often invaded by foreign nations, has .known neither

the intellectual cataclysm, called in western history the invasion of the barbarians, nor the darkness of the

Middle Ages.

Even from
that
is

the beginning of the eighth century, in 713,

six

after

or seven hundred years of almost unin-

terrupted communication, the multitude of works

brought

back from India was

classed

sufiicisnlly

cumbersome

to necessitate

voluminous catalogues,

in wiiich the titles

of the books were

according to their

dites, followed

by the names
less

of the translators and editors, with more or

notices.

detailed

One
itself

cf

tlicse

catalogues, printed in

1306 under
forty

the

Yucns, comprised fourteen hundred and

works,

and was

but the epitome of four others, successively

ion, and 1037. It was the collective work of twenty-nine learned men versed in the languages,' who were associated together for this long work, and
published in 730, 788,
'

of a

Samanean

cspecial'y appointed to verify the accuracy

of the Indian words.

Besides these catalogues, the Chinese

had other collections that contained analyses of Buddhist wrilings, intended to take the place of this mass of unwieldy
books.
in Paris,

The

7\hin-i-iicn^

which

exists in the Public Library

and whence

Stanislas Julien

drew the most

kind
*.

in-

structive informaiion, is a compilation of this

eminent services Stanislas Jul en rendered to having established methodical and unquestionable rules for the restitution ot Sanskrit names mutilated by the Chinese transcripts. As there is no alphabet in the Chinese language, and several articulations are lacking, the foreign words of which it tried to represent the sound were often so altered as to be absolutely unrecognizable. To return to them their original form was a most difficult problem, which both Remusat and Burnouf had, for lack of information,
*

One

of the most

Ijiiddhistical learning is

failed to solve.

cii. i]

LIFE OF HtOUEN-TllSANG

1C7

With regard
it

to the translation itself of the sacred books,

was the object of

every
possible

the

most minute

care,

and surrounded
of translators,
appointed.
of

with

guarantee.

Colleges

authorized

by imperial decrees, were

translation
;

odicially

Th's work of

necessitated the

employment

whole convents

emperors themselves did not disdain to

write prefaces for these books, intended for the religious

and

moral instruction of
at the present

their subjects.

Out of

piety

and respect

for the traditions of their ancestors,

the dynasty reigning

in

moment
size,
all

in

China has had reprinted,

ancient

an

oblong

folio

the

Chinese,

Tibetan,

Manchou and Mongolian

collection
fills

translations,

and

this

immense

no

less

than thirteen hundred and ninety-two

volumes.

We

will

now

study Hiouen-Tlisang's share in this vast

enterprise.

When

he followed 'his vocation as missionary,

the Buddhist faith

for
It

had been publicly adopted

(the year 61 or

in his

country

about

five

hundred years

65 of our era)
di.-mal

had reaped great triumphs, and had sustained

eclipses.
it

Hiouen-Th^ang
its

strove, l.ke
;

many
but

others, to revive

during one of

periods cf decline

if

he was one of

its

most

useful
it

and enlightened

apostles,
little

he was not the

only one, and

would be showing
shares

appreciation of his

worth

if

a glory that he

with

many

of his

co-

religionists

were exclusively attributed to him.

lost sight

This point
is

must not be

of in studying his biography, which

;

calculated to excite the greatest curiosity

for

it

may be
midst

doubted whether in our western countries,

of the seventh century,
it

in

the

would be possible

to find a literary

and

religious

personage

more

interesting

than
his

Iliouenincred ble

Thsang, notwithstanding
superstition.

his prejudices

and

native

of Tchin-Lieou,

in

the district of Keou-Chi,

Hiouen-Thsang belonged

to an honourable family,

who had

i83

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
his

[pt.
father,

held important posts in

province.

His

Hoei*,

had
of

refused, out of discretion

and love of study, to follow the

duties in times

career of his ancestor,

civil

and had avoided public

disturbances.

Having

undertaken

himself the

education of his four sons, he soon noticed the precocious

intelligence

and earnestness of the youngest, Hioucn-Thsang,

to the

and he devoted himself

dispositions.

culture of these remarkable

The

child repaid
to the

him

for

his

care,
his

and

at

a tender age

was confided

management of
religious
life

second
"of

brother,

who had embraced a

diligence

in

one

the

monasteries of Lo-Yang, the eastern capital.

the

He
at the

displayed

same

and prodigious aptitude

roof,

convent

as under his paternal

and by an exception, which

his character

the elevation
his

and steadiness of

more even than

knowledge justified, he was admitted without examination

age of thirteen among the monks.

dt the

The

fact is that
itself,

even

at this early

period his vocation had revealed

to

and

*his sole desire

afar

was

become a monk
of the

in order to

propagate

the

glorious

Law

Buddha.'

The books he
Nie-pan (Nirvana)

studied most particularly,

and with which he was thoroughly

acquainted, were the sacred

book of

the

and the Che-la-ching-lun (MaMj'dna Samparigraha ^dslra,

the complete

summary

of the Great Vehicle).

his brother

For seven years the youthful novice went with

to all the
in the

most renowned schools to

underwent
in

finish his education,

and

midst of the sanguinary revolutions that were then

trials that

agitating the empire, he

for

prepared him
travels.

those

he had

to

undergo

his

future

He
less

remained a few years in the Chou

district,

which was

disturbed than the others, and he there diligently followed

the lectures of the best qualified masters.
vied with

The two
virtue,

brothers
in

one another

in learning

and

and

the

Kong-hoei'-sse

convent of the town of Tching-To'u

they

were both noticed for *the brilliancy of

their talents, the

cii. i]

LIFE OF HIOUEN-THSANG
morals,

189
hearts.'

purity of their

and the

nobility

of their

At the age of twenty Hiouen-Thsang finished his novitiate and received full monastic orders ; this took place in the fifth year of the Wou-te period, that is in 622. During the

summer

retreat

that

follo;i'ed,

he

studied

discipline,

the

Vinaya, and continued investigating the Sutras and Sastras.

He

still

had some doubts about

different points of doctrine

solve,

that neither

he nor his brother had been able to

and

in order to decide these,

he went from town to town during

six years, to consult the professors

who were

considered the

most learned.

But even

at that time

he was himself a con-

summate master, and

was often requested
works.

in the convents

where he sojourned he
the

to explain

some of

most important
at

Thus, in the convent of Thien-hoang-sse,

King-

Tcheou, he expounded three times during the autumn season

the tw^o books of the
XhQ

Mdhaydna Sampari^raha Sasira and

Such was the fame of
his teaching,

Abhidhanna

Sds/ra.

that the king,

Han-yang, accompanied by

his oflTicers

and

a muliitude of monks,

came

to

hear him, and

were the

admiring spectators of a

brilliant victory the

Master of the

Law

gained over those

discuss with him.

brilliant,

that this
less,

and the young man's knowledge surpassed theirs.

felt

and At Tch'-ang'na his success was no less oldest and most scholarly masters admitted
to interrogate

who had come

Neverthethings,

Iliouen-Thsang
far

that he

still

lacked

many

and

from being blinded by the praise that was lavished

travel in the countries of the west,

on him, he resolved to
in

order to consult wise

his

men

as to certain points of the

Law
first

on which
to

mind was

still

disturbed.

Moreover, he recalled
the

mind

the travels of

Fa-Hian and of Tchi-Yun,

and
'

scholars of their day,

the glory of seeking the

Law

which was to guide

In

men and

procure their

happiness'

seemed to him worthy of imitation.

concert

with

several

other

monks, he presented a

190

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
;

[pt.

ii

petition for leave to travel in India

but having been refused

start alone, notwith-

by an imperial decree, he decided to

standing the
difiiculties

and

perils

which awaited him.

He
his

was

still

hesitating

when

the recollection of a

dream of

molher's and one of his

own

settled his

mind, together with

the predictions of a skilful astrologer

who had drawn

his

horoscope, and whose prophecy

came

true.

Hiouen-Thsang

was

at this time twenty-six years of age.

He
of
all

at

once repaired to Liang-Tcheou, the general resort

of inhabitants of the west bank of the Yellow River and

the merchants of the neighbouring countries.
this city, after

He

was

preparing to leave

having delivered there, as

elsewhere, several well-attended lectures

on the Law, when

first

obstacle nearly overthrew

all his

plans.

The governor
from the

of the city
imperial country.
professors

had received the

to

strictest

orders

administration

prevent
the
his

anybody leaving the

assistance

But,

thanks to

secret

who

approved

purpose,
city,

of some Hiouen-Thsang

succeeded in
during
on, at the

escaping from the

remaining

hidden
further

day and

travelling all night.

A
if

little

Koua-Tcheou, he would have been arrested on the

the governor,

denunciation of spies sent in pursuit of him,

touched by the frankness of the pilgrim,

who

confessed

who
his

he was, and by his magnanimous courage, had not saved

him by destroying the

description.

official

document containing

Two

novices

who had

followed him so far took fright

at these first obstacles

without a
best

guide,

and abandoned him. Left alone and Hiouen-Thsang bethought him that the
one was
to

May
up

to procure

go and

prostrate himself at
^

the feet of the

olTer
'

Mi-les (IMaitreya Eodhisatwa)

statue

and

fervent prayers.

The

next day he rcpea'ed ihem

his successor

Maitreya was the future Euddlia, whom Sakya-muni consecrated a^ when he quitted the'Tushita.

cii. i]

LIFE OF HIOUEN-THSANG
faith,

191

with equal

the barbarian countries

when he suddenly saw near him a man from come in, who declared his wish to
receive
his

become a monk and

instructions,

and who

willingly consented to be his guide.

The

flight

was not
from the

easy.
city,
'

At
it

the extreme frontier, about

to pass unperto the western

fifteen miles

was necessary

ceived through a barrier,

frontier.' It

which was the key

was

situated near the widest part of

an exsignal

tremely rapid

river,

and beyond

this

barrier

five

towers, guarded by vigilant sentinels, had also to be avoided.

The
guide

barrier
;

was

cleverly evaded,

thanks to the youthful

but he declined to go any further, and

he

left

the Master of the

alone.

Law

to continue his perilous journey

The

twenty-four

long

miles

that

separated

the

barrier

and the towers was a desert of arid sand, where the road was only marked by heaps of bones and the marks of No sooner had Hiouen-Thsang entered it horses' feet.
than he was assailed by visions caused by the mirage;

he supposed them to be delusions, created by the demons

who wished
*

to oppose his undertaking; but he heard in

the air a voice that cried to

him

to sustain his courage:

Fear not

Fear not T
first

Reaching by night the

to
killed

tower, which he was obliged

risk of

approach in order to get water, he ran the

being

by the arrows of the

sentinels.

Fortunately the com-

mander of the guard-house, who was a zealous Buddhist, consented to let him pass, and moreover gave him letters
of recommendation to the chief of another station, to

whom
make
in the

he was nearly related.

The

traveller

was obliged

to

a long circuit to avoid the last station, where he would have

found obdurate and violent

men

but he lost his

way

second desert he had to cross.

To crown

his misfortunes,

the goat-skin that contained his supply of water

was empty.

In uiter despair he was about to retrace his steps and return

192
eastwards.

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
But no sooner had he gone three miles
direction than, seized
if I

[pt.

ii

in this

new
*

by remorse, he said to himself,

to return to China.

Originally I swore

did not reach Thien-tchou (India)

I I

would never take one step

Why

have

come here ?
and

I prefer to die going west than to return to

live.'

the east
fervently

He

therefore

resumed

his

way, and

praying to
steps

Kouan-in (Avalokitcsvara), he again

the

directed his

towards

north-west.

Four nighls

and
Lis

five

days he wandered in the desert without a diop

of fiesh water to refie h his parched throat.

He

kept up

drooping courage by reafling

in the

midst of his prayers

Siitra.

the Pradjnd-Pdramita

and Avalokitcsvaia's

However,

overcome by
to perish

thirst, fatigue,

and want of

sleep,

he was about

when a breeze

that rose in the night revived him,

as well as his horse, which

was almost equally exhausted.

on,

They therefore managed to struggle moments they reached the bank of

by
fresh pasture-land,
instinct

and in a few pond surrounded

infallible

towards which the animal's

had

led him.

Aficr two

more days of

painful journeying he at last

reached a convent in I-goit

(ilic

country of the Oigurs), where

he found some Chinese monks.

These

first details,

wliieh bear

an evident impress of
the

truth,

nctwillistanding

some exaggerations on
terrible obstacles

part

of

his

biographers, give us an

insight into the character of

Hiouen-

Thsang, as well as the

he had to overcome.

Besides the knowledge which had already

made him famous,

;

he possessed an imperturbable

faith,

boundless courage, and

an energy that nothing could dishearten

a perfect missionary.

he was, in

fact

Other
still

tiials

of a different nature, but no less formidable,

awaited him.

No

sooner had

lie

rested a few days at

I-gou than the powerful king cf Kao-Tch'ang, one of the

tributaries of Cliina, cent

messengers

to invite

him

to

come

cii. i]

LIFE OF HIOUEN-THSANG
kingdom.
This was a

193

to

his

command
than
it

the poor pilgrim

could not disobey.

ta'i

The

reception which the king Khio-win-

gave him was no

days

less cordial
later,

was magnificent,

but when, ten

to leave,

the Master of the

Law

wished

the

king declared his firm intention of keeping

his
life,

him
did

to the

end of

as teacher of his
to instruct

subjects

and

chief of the

monks appointed
protest,

them.

In vain

Hiouen-Thsang
his

alleging

the sacred purpose

of

journey,

the

king remained inflexible.

But the

INIasler

of the

Law

took on his side a no less extreme

that
'

resolution,

and knowing

the king, notwithstanding his

his

great power,

had no contiol over

deugn.

mind and

will/

he

refused to eat, determining to die of hunger sooner than

abandon

Three long days had already elapsed, ashamed and afraid of the consequences of his obduracy, respectfully offered him his apologies and set him at liberty. Feeling but litde reassured afier so much
his

when

the king,

cruelty,

Hiouen-Thsang made
before

the king swear he

would keep

his word, first

by taking to witness the sun, and then the

Buddha,

whose

statue

they

worshipped

together.

The

king swore, in the presence of Lis mother the princess

that

TcHang,

he would always
that

treat the

Master of the

Law

as

a brother,

on condition

on

his return

from India, he

would come back to the country o{ Kao-Tch'a7ig, and spend

three years there.
sixteen years after fulfilled his promise.

sented to

Hiouen-Thsang consented to this, and Moreover he conremain another month in the Kao TcKang country,
all

and he devoted

that

time to the

religious
its

instruction

of the court, which, with the king at

head,

came every

evening to listen to his pious lessons.

When
departed,

the

month had

expired,

the Master of the

Law

loaded with rich

a numerous escort

and accompanied by he was provided he had himself chosen

presents
;

with a quantity of provisions, besides twenty-four letters of

194

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
to pass through.

[pt.

ii

recommendation
he had

to the sovereigns of the different countries

In an elegantly expressed
full

letter,

which

his

biographers have carefully given at

length and
for

which was indeed worth preserving, he thanked the king

his great generosity.

The remainder
was somewhat
hardships.

of the journey, thanks to

all

these supplies,

less fatiguing,

although interspersed with

many

kingdom of Kutch, the first in which the pilgrim found Buddhism the established religion, the caravan had to crocs a high mountain, Ling-Chan
leaving the

On

{Musuraola) covered with perpetual snows, which took seven

days,

and where they and

horses.
fifty

lost

fourteen

men and
skirted
it,

a
the

quantity
lake
of

of oxen
Issikul

Afler
miles

having

and gone

beyond

Hiouen-Thsang

met, in the c'ty of Sou-che, the Turkish

Khan

{Tou-Kie),

who

him sumptuously in his tents of felt, and who, after a banquet, surrounded by his horde, listened to his pious instructions on the Ten Virtues and the Six Paramitas
received
{Po-lo-me), dismissed him, loaded with magnificent presents,

and gave him an

interpreter to conduct

him

to Kapisa, in India.

At Samarkand, Hiouen-Thsang tried to convert the king and the people, who were fire-worshippers, and by appointing
monks, he was able to hope
Buddhism, which had
(Balk, Fo-ko-lo), he
its

that

he had re-established

in

former days been brought there,

as the presence of two deserted convents attested.

first

At Baktra
There
In

found Buddhism flourishing, with

monuments,
less
all

relics,

and legends

of

all

sorts.

were no

than a hundred convents and three thousand

monks,

devoted to the study of the

Little Vehicle.

a convent called the

New Convent,

an imposing
city,

edifice, richly

decorated, situated north-west of the

they showed the

his front teeth.

Buddha*s water-jug, his broom, and one of

Qn

festivals, the

three relics were exhibited,

It

and the pcoph

said, in the city

and the monks worshipped them.

was

CH.

i]

LIFE OF HIOUEN-THSANG
had come

195

of Poli\ situated about thirty miles from Baktra (Balk) that

the Talhagata
to these places, his

and two stupas had

been raised as memorials of

found no
statues

presence and his benevolence.

In the kingdom of Bamian (Faji-yen-nd) Hiouen-Thsang

less

ardent

faith,

with convents, stupas, magnificent

of

the

Buddha, and monks

belonging to divers
After having

schools,

devoted to the study of the Law.

(Hindu Kush) and the kingdoms of Kapisa {Kia-pi-che) and Lampa {Lan-po) he entered the kingdom of Nagarahara, where he saw the first monuments of the great monarch Asoka {Wou-yeou) whose
twice crossed the Black Mountains

dominion seems

to have extended to these distant countries.

stupa three hundred feet high, erected at the gates of the

city,

was

attributed to him.
this

From

moment

the pilgrim found everywhere traces

of this potentate, whose empire appears to have comprised

the greater part of the peninsula.

We

have shown Hiouen-Thsang's courage and the knowacquired about the

ledge he had
subjects
;

most

difficult

religious
if

but his character would not be complete

we

did

not also mention some of his superstitions.

In the kingdom of Nagarahara, he visited a city wh'ch

bore the

unknown name

of City of the

Top

of Fo's Cranium.
this

The

following

account gives the reason of

singular

name.

On

the second story of a pavilion, in a small tower

relic

'formed of seven precious things,' a famous

Usnibha was enshrined.

called

This bone, enclosed

It

in a casket,

was m.ore than a

were

foot in circumference.

was of a yellowish-

white colour, and the minute holes where the hair had
still

distinctly visible.

extent of their sins and their

grown Those who wished to know the virtues used to pound perfumes,

and with the powder make a

well

wrapped up

in silk,

soft paste which they deposited, on the sacred bone. The box was

then closed, and according to the state of the paste

when

it

195

BUDDHISM IN INDIA

[rr.

ii

was taken out again, each of the ccnsulling parties knew what amount of happiness or misfortune they might expect. Hiouen-Thsang received for his share a moulded figure of
the Tree of Wisdom (Bodhidruma), while a young Sramana who accompanied him only obtained the figure of a lotus. The custodian of the sacred bone, seeing this miracle, was

delighted
said to
is

he snapped his fingers and, scalleiing flowers, he

: '

Master, what you have obtained Hiouen-Thsang exceedingly rare, and clearly shows that you already
a portion of the

possess

Pou-!i (Dodhi,
the pilgrim,

Buddha).'

They

also

showed

Wisdom who on

of the
his side

was most generous, other

others, the eyeball of the

relics

no

less saintly,

and among
brilliant,

Buddha, which was so

the

biographers say, that

it

was seen
the

to shine through the box.

They
It

also

showed him

Buddha's raiment {sanghdti) and

adventure Hiouentrick;

his staff.

might be supposed that

the

in this first

Thsang was
following

dupe of some cunning

but the

is still

more complicated and more

extraordinary.
city

He

heard that six miles distant from the

of Teng-

Kouang-tch'ing (Pradlparasmipura) there was a cave where

the Tathagata, having conquered the king of

Dragons who
have come so
that
if

inhabited

it,

had

left
*

his

shadow.

He

resolved to go and
'

render him

homage not wishing/ he

it

said,

to

near without worshipping him, and well aware

lived for a

he

thousand kalpas,
real

would be

difficult to find,

even

once, the

represented to
infested

shadow of the Buddha.' In vain was it him that the roads were dangerous and with robbers in vain was it urged that for the last
;

two or three years hardly any of those rare

could shake his purpose.

visitors

who were
nothing

so imprudent as to face this peril had returned;

After a great deal of difficulty he

found, on a farm belonging to a convent, an old

man who

consented to act as his guide,

No

sooner had he started.

Cti. i]

UfK of mOt/N-THSANG
five ruffians,

197

than he was attacked by

who rushed upon him

his religious

sword
habit

in

hand.

Iliouen-Thsang cahnly showed

and disarmed them by firm and kindly words.

grotto he

The

was bound

for

was situated near a

looking into

river

between two

mountains,

and the entrance was through

a kind of door in a stone wall.

On

it

Hiouen-

Thsang could

discern nothing, but following the instructions

of the old man, he found his

the spot where the
faith,

way

in the

darkness and reached

filled

shadow
bitterly

rested.

Then,

with deep

he

made

the hundred salutations prescribed;

but

still

he saw nothing.

He

reproached himself for his

his
grief,

sins,

wept with loud sobs and gave way to

reciting

devoutly

the

Chmg-man-King

(the Sri-mdlddevi

Sinhandda

Sidra) and the Gathas of the Buddhas, prostrating himself

at

each strophe.

He

had scarcely finished the

first

hundred

salutations, than

he saw on the eastern wall of the grotto

;

a slight glimmer which immediately vanished

as

it

was as wide and

a monk's jug.

He recommenced

his

salutations,

a second light as wide as a bowl appeared and disappeared

as rapidly.
Filled with enthusiasm,
till

he declared he would

not leave the grotto

he had seen the shadow of the

Venerable of the Century.

salutations, the cavern

At last, after two hundred more was suddenly flooded with light, and

shadow of the Tathagata, of dazzling whiteness, stood upon the wall, like when the clouds part, and suddenly reveal the marvellous image of the Golden Mountain.'
the

out

'

dazzling brilliancy lighted

up

the outline of his noble

countenan-e, and his raiment was of a yellow-red colour.

From
the

his

knees upwards, the beauty of his person shone in

full light.

To

the

left,

and
the

to the right,

and behind the

Buddha, could b^ seen

all

shadows of the Bodhisatwas

and venerable Sramanas who form his retinue. HiouenThsang, in an ecstasy of delight, gazed intently on the
sublime and peerless object of his admiration.

When

he had

198
sufficiently

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
contemplated
this miracle,

[pt.

ii

he commanded from

fire and burn shadow of the Buddha disappeared; and directly the fire went out, the image reappeared again. Five of the men saw it but one of them did not see anything whatever. Hiouen-Thsang

afar six

men who

waited outside, to bring

as the fire blazed, the

perfumes.

As soon

respectfully prostrated

himself,

proclaimed the praises of

the

Buddha, and
apparition

scattered

flowers

and
took

perfumes.
his

The
and

divine

having ceased,

he

leave

departed.

To

all

appearance, the pilgrim was once more deceived

trick
;

by some charlatan's
dupe, and the old
true explanation
:

perhaps, however, he was his

own

man who accompanied him

*

gave him the

Master,' he said,

'

without the sincerity

of your

faith,

and the energy of your prayers, you would not

have obtained such a miracle.'

is full

The

history of superstitions

of such hallucinations

and over-excited imaginations,

to receive

like that of
if

Hiouen-Thsang, are too ready

them,

circumstances permit.
at
all

The

countries the pilgrim travelled

to

through have

times

been given up

the wildest

dreams, and when he sees the traces of the Buddha's footsteps,

on a

large stone

on the north bank of

the Subhavastu that

he crosses, he does not hesitate to say ingenuously: *that

these traces appear long or short, according to the degree

of virtue possessed by those

who

look

at

them, and according

to the energy of their prayers.'

It will at

once be understood
is

that being so easily satisfied

still

with what he sees himself, he

related to

more so with what

Near

is

him
is

for

he

is

as credulous with regard to tradi-

tions as he

about his

own

supernatural visions.

to

the mountain Hi-lo, he visited the spot where Jou-lai (the

Tathagata),

filled

with gratitude towards the Yakshas, gave

them his own body as alms ; the place, not far from MoungKie-U (probably Manghelli or Manikiala), marked by a stupa,

CM.

i]

LIFE OP HIOUEN-THSANG
body with a
knife
;

199
the spot near

M-hcre Jou-lai pierced his

Takshasila where, as chief of a great kingdom, he

offering of a thousand

made an

Purushapura (actually

same way as near Peshawar) he saw the spot, marked by

heads
;

in the

one of Asoka's slupas, where during a thousand successive

existences Jou-lai gave his eyes as alms
;

and not

far distant

from the

river Sin-iou (the Indus) the spot

where Siddhartha,

while only prince royal, gave his body lo appease the hunger

of seven tiger-cUbs.

Henceforth Hiouen-Thsang

will

for

the remainder of his journey live in the midst of this world

of marvels and delusions

and he mentions hundreds of such

miracles \\\^ the most imperturbable composure.

After various journeyings in Udyana,

and the

valley of

upper Sindh and the Panjab, he entered by the north-west

kingdom of Kashmir [Kia-chi-mi-lo, Kasmira). In he found no less than a hundred convents, inhabited by five thousand monks. There also he saw four enormous stupas, that had been built in former days by the
into the
its

capital

king Wou-yeou (Asoka); each of these

stupas containing

Che
in

lis

(sanras), that

is

personal relics of the Tathagata.

As

the report of Hioucn-Thsang's fame had preceded him Kashmir, the king, to do him honour, sent one of his

uncles to meet him, as far as the Stone Gale, on the western

frontier of the country,

and himself went to receive him at some distance from the capital. This res-peclful greeting was but the prelude to more substantial favours. The king,
satisfied with

not

admitting at his table the foreign

{Mo-Jio-tchi-na,
all

monk
and
five

who came from Great China

Saslras he wished to have,

Maha

Tchlna),

gave him twenty scribes to copy for him

the Sutras

and he moreover appointed

persons as his personal attendants, instructing them to furnish him, at the expense of the treasury, with all he might require.

For centuries
in this

past, learning had been held in great honour kingdom, and the knowledge of the Law had been

200
carried so
far

wpdh/sm
that
in

in India
hundredth year
Nirvana)
five

[pt.
after

the four

the

Nie-pan

of Jou-lai

(the

Tatliagata's

the

king

Kanishka [Kia-ni-sse-kid) held a council of

hundred

learned monks, under the presidency of Vasubandhu, which

drew up three Commentaries on the Pitakas.

In the convent

where

llie

pilgrim resided, he followed the learned lessons

of a professor of the Law,

diflTicult

who

explained to him
;

all

the

points of the principal Sastras

and the

lectures, at

which the Chinese

intelligence,

from

all

monk displayed the most lively and acu:e became so interesting, that learned men came parts of the kingdom to hear them. The success
to a stranger

and favour sliown

of the

soon excited the jealousy

superiority

monks

of Kashmir,

but owing to the

of Hiouen-Thsang's intelligence, and his kindness of heart,

he was able to overcome

years in this

all

enmity, and he spent two whole

kingdom

in order to

make a thorough

study

of the sacred books.

Wherever he found teachers capable of improving

follow their instructions.
napali, he spent fourteen

his

knowledge he would slop to hear them and submissively

Thus

in

the

kingdom of Chi;

in months under Vinitaprabha that of Djalandhara he passed fouf months under Chandravarma in the kingdom of Srughna, he spent one winter and spring under Djayagupta and in Matipura, half the spring and the whole summer under Mitrasena, all renowned
;

professors,

thoroughly acquainted with the

Three Comtimes,
in

mentaries.

After having crossed the

Ganges

several

the

course of his various wanderings, he reached the kingdom

of Kanyakubja, governed

at that

time by a generous and

devout prince called Slladitya, with

whom

he was destined to

become more

intimately connected.

On
of

going down the Ganges from Ayodhya to the kingdom

pilgrim,

Hayamukha, the

who might have supposed

Cii. i]

LIFE OP niOUKN-msANG

20t

himself secure from any further danger, nearly perished in

a strange manner, and was saved only by a miracle.

boat that
surprised

The
was

conveyed him and eighty

other

persons

by a band of

pirates.

I'hcsc robbers worshipped

the goddess To-hia (Durga),

and every autumn they offered

'

up

in sacrifice to this divinity,

to obtain

good

fortune,' the

finest

and handsomest

man

they could lay hands on.

The
in the

Master of the
least

Law was

chosen as the victim, but not

the
rufTians:
*

dismayed he thus epokc to

grudge
to you.

If this

contemptible body were worthy of your

certainly not
distant
it

sacrifice, I
I

would

But as

have come from

lands to honour the image of the

Bodhi and

tiie

Vulture's

Peak,

to

procure

sacred
is

writings,

and

to

be

instructed in the

Law,

my vow

not yet accomplished

in taking

and

I fear,

most generous men, that

my

life

you
Jt

will call

down upon

yourselves the greatest calamities.'

could hardly be expected that robbers would be influenced

by such pious arguments, and the chief pirate having ordered

men to prepare the altar, which was to be made of eaith kneaded with water from the river, two of the robbers, drawing their swords, drnggcd off the poor monk to sacrifice
his

him on
prepare

tlic

spot.

Ilioucn-Thsang betrayed no
for

fear

or
to

emotion, but only asked

to

a few
the

moments'
necessary

respite,

enter

Nirvana

with

joy

and

tranquillity
*

of soul.

Then,' his biographers add, 'the Master of the

Law

thought

tenderly of Ts'e-chi (Mailreya)

and turned

all

his thoughts to

up ardent prayer that he might be reborn there, so that he could pay his respects
the palace of the Tushitas, offering

and

do

homage
of the

to

that

Bodliisatwa,

and

receive

the

Vu-kia-sse-fi-Iun (l^ogachard

Bhumi

Sdsira\ and hear the

explanation

Good

Law

{Saddharfud),

and

attain

enlightened Intelligence, and then be reborn on earth to

instruct

and convert these men,

to

make them

practise

202

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
and abandon
their
finally to

[pt.

acts of superior virtue,

infamous profession,

and
the

spread abroad the benefits of the Law, and

to all beings.

give peace

and happiness

Then

he worshipped

Buddhas of

the ten countries of the world,

and seating

himself in the attitude of meditation, energetically fixed his

thoughts on Tse-chi (Maitreya Bodhisatwa), without allowing

any other idea

to distract him.

Suddenly,

it

seemed

to his

enraptured mind that he was rising up to IMount Sumeru,

and

that

after

having passed through one, two, and three

heavens, he saw the Venerable Maitreya in the palace of the

Tushitas, seated

on a bright throne, At
this

surrounded
his

by a
altar,

multitude of Devas.

moment

body and soul

Cut
his

were bathed in joy, unconscious that he was near the

unmindful
of the pirates thirsting for his blood.
burst

companions

when suddenly a hurricane arose on all sides, breaking down trees, scatteiing clouds of sand, raising great waves upon
out
in

tears

and

lamentations,

the river

and sinking

all

the boats.'

The
retreat,

pirates, terror-struck

and deprived of

all

means of

exhorted one another to repentance,

and threw

down at the knees of Hiouen-Thsang, who told them that those who give themselves up to murder, pUage, and impious sacrifices, suffer eternally in the future world.
themselves
*

How
this

dare you,' he said to them,

'

for the

satisfaction

of

contemptible body, which vanishes in an instant, like

a flash of lightning or the

selves tortures

which

will last

morning dew, bring upon yourthroughout an infiniie number

of centuries

The
and

robbers, touched by his courage, threw their

weapons
goods,

inLo the river, restored to

each

traveller his

stolen

respectfully listened to the Five

When
^

he had reached the

Commandments.' banks of the Ganges and

the

The Five Commandments

to kill, not to steal, &c.

are those presciibcd

by the Tathagata:

Not

cii. i]

LIFE OP HIOUEN-THSANG

203

Jumna, the pilgrim remained

for several years in the places

made famous by
and he piously
residence

the presence
visited

and preaching of

the

Buddha,
former
the

Sravasti [Chi-lo-fa-siii) the

of the

king Prasenajit [Po-lo-sse-nd)

cily

and

famous Anatha Pindika; Kapilavastu, the

where the
lingered

Luddha was born, amongst

so

the ruins of which

;

still

many memories
for

of his childhood and youih

Kusinagara,
salas,

where the Buddha, resting mider the shade of four

entered
ever
into

Nirvana;
'

Benares

(VaranasT,

in

Chinese Po-lo-m-sse), where he had

the

for the first time turned his

five

Wheel of

the

Law'

in

fiwour of

disciples;

Vaisali {Fei-che-Ji), where he had studied under Arata Kalfima

before appearing in the world, &c.

In IMagadha {JMo-kie-id) Hioucn-Thsang had

places yet

still

to

vi.-it

more

sacred,

if it

were possible.

After having
Pataliputra,
thirty miles

spent seven days in visiting the

monuments of
he travelled
the Tree

and before going on

to Rajagriha,

further south to worship the

si ill

Bodhidruma,

of Wisdom^
Throne,

carefully tended, the

Vajrasanam,
it

the
is

Diamond

scat of the
earth,
It

Buddhas, contemporary

said of heaven

and

and a number of other monuments almost as venerable.

can be imagined with what ardour the devout pilgrim

pa'd his homage.

statue

On
it,

beholding the Tree of Wisdom and the

of the Tadiagata, which the

Bodhisatwa

?.Iaitrcya

had erected near

faiih,

he contemplated them with an ardent

to

and prostrating himself before them, he gave vent

he said w iih a sigh,

his grief in lamentations.

*

Alas,'

'

know
t'.:e

not what was the

lime the Budiiha

condition of

my

miserable existence at

attained perfect
spot, I

wisdom

and now

that 1 have reached ihis

can only meditate with shame on the immensity and

depth of

my

sins.'

At these words, a flood of

all

tears

bathed his

face,

and

those

who saw

the

Master of the

Law

in

this

afihcted

204
condition,
wise.

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
could

[pt.
tears

li

not

refrain

from

shedding

like-

These places
viharas,

were

full

of

monuments

of

nil

kinds:

sanghaiamas,

pillars,

and especially slupas, most

to

of them attributed to the great king Asoka, who, accorilinj^

to tradition,

had caused eighty-four tiiousand

be

built all

over India.
'J'hsang
vi:

Most of
ited

these

were in

ruins

when Iliouenthis dilapidation

them, as they had been already two hundred

;

years before in the days of Fa-Hian

nnd

made them

more venerable in the eyes of the courageous pilgrims who had come so far to worship them. Ilioucn-Thcang resided no less than five wliole years in
doubtless
still

IMiigadlia, not to sper.k of the

afier

second journey he took

all

there,

having travelled over

peninsuli.

the

southern and western

first

parts of the

But

this

sojourn,

which he

spent entirely in the great monastery of Nalanda, inhabited

at that time

by ten thousand monks,

must be given about
of the domestic
life

is
it.

so

full

of interest

that

some

details

It is interesting

to

know something

of one of these vast

communities which,

in the seventh century of

our era, were

fo numerous in India.
l.irgcst

The

sanghilrama of Nalanda, the

;

of

all,

affords this opportunity

and the descriptions

immense establishment, protected by kings and venerated by the faithful, will give us a very fair idea of the It was in this labours and customs of the Buddhist monks. sanctuary of knowledge and virtue that Hiouen-Thsang learnt the Sanskrit language, and acquired the higher knowof
this

ledge which was to

make

his fortune

among

princes,

and

his

fame among

his fellow-countrymen.

The immense convent

of the most holy parts of

of Nalanda was situated in one

Magadha, about thirty miles from the Bodhimanda, the renowned and sacred retreat, where after six years of continual austerities Sakya-muni had at last
attained
perfect

Buddhahood.

Tradition

relates

that

the

cii. i]

LIFE OF HIOUEN'THSANG
the convent

205

spot

on which

was eventually
him.

built,

was

originally

wood

of mango-trees,

which rich merchants converted

to

by the Tathagata had

there

offered

He

had resided

some

time,

and

in

memory

of his inexhaustible charity

towards orphans and the poor, the place had been called
Nalanda.^

The

piety of the kings of that country

had not

failed to strengthen

popular belief by embellishing Nalanda

with magnificent edifices.

convents, at
first

They had

successively built six

separated from each other;

all

but the

last

king had enclosed

these buildings

by a

single wall.
six

He
less

had divided the extensive space between the

into eight courts,

convents

and the monks' habitations were no

than four stories high.

Towers, pavilions, and domes ro^e

all

on

all sides,

and running streams and shady groves kept

cool and fresh.

In this splendid abode ten thousand

resided,

monks and

novices

maintained
cities.

at

the

expense of the king and the

to study, they

neighbouring

Devoted
gathered

were generally

followers of the doctrine of the Great Vehicle.

The
and

votaries
all

of eighteen

schools

together

there,

the

sciences were cultivated,

the Vedas,
there

from the vernacular writings and

INIoreover,

down

to

medicine and arithmetic.

lectures,

were halls assigned to

where a

hundred

different professors discoursed every

day

to the students,

who
and

had nothing

to

disturb

them from

their pious tasks,

tjiey

who, thanks to the generosity with which

could, without

were

treated,

appealing to extraneous assistance, obtain

(that
is

from the convent the Four necessary things

raiment, food, lodging and medicines).
gress in knowledge

to say,

In fact their pro-

was assured, and Nalanda was not only

it

the finest vihara in India, but

^

was the most learned and

He who

Nalanda, composeil of three words, Na alam da, means in Sanskrit is never zaeary of giving. The etymology of the word has

certainly greatly assisted the legend.

2o6
the

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
most famous
for the zeal of
It
its

[pt.

ii

pupils

and the

talents

of

its

masters.

reckoned about a thousand monks who

could explain twenty works on the Sutras

five

and Sastras

hundred who knew

thirty,

and only ten v/ho understood

but

the last class, already

of the Law, Hiouen-Thsang, was in deemed eminent. But the Superior of the convent, Sllabhadra, had read and fathomed all the and the high rank Sutras and Sastras without exception he occupied was due to his eminent virtue, his learning, and
;

M^\

The Master

his venerable age.

Such was the holy sanctuary

had been solemnly
invited.

to

which the Chinese pilgrim

Four monks, chosen from among

the most distinguished, had

come

to

him

the invitation.

He

had accepted

Bodhimanda to bring it, and when he went

to Nalanda,
faithful,

two hundred monks, followed by a crowd of the

to

came
;

meet him with

parasols, banners, perfumes,

and flowers

they walked round him singing his praises, and

then led hini to the convent.

There, they made him

sit

on

an armchair placed on the same platform as the president,

and

the sub-director

(Kannadand)
use of
all

striking a

gong

(ghantCi),

in a loud voice invited the

Master of the

Law

to stay in the

vihara,

and

to

make

the implements

and goods

belonging to the monks.

He was then presented to the Superior

dignified appearance, well

by twenty men of mature age and

versed in the knowledge of the Sulras and Sastras.

When

Hiouen-Thsang stood before Sllabhadra, he

as a
disciple.

did

him homage
and lean-

In conformance with the rules of respect,

his knees,

established

among them, he advanced on

his forehead.

ing on his elbows, beat

his feet together,

and struck the

this

ground with

Sllabhadra received

homage

with kindness, and had seats brought for the Master of the

Law and the monks who accompanied him

questioned and highly praised him, he

then after having

his

made

nephew, a

very capable speaker, relate the history of a long

illness froni

cii.

i]

LIFE OF HIOUEN-THSANG

207

\\liicli

he hnd suffered, and ^vhich had been miraculously

cured, three years before,

by a dream,

in

which three divine

to

personages had come and announced

arrival of
*

him

the future

Hiouen-Thsang.

Since

my

journey

is

in

acTcordance with your former

affected,
'

dream,' replied the pilgrim,

to instruct

much

be kind enough

and enlighten me, and complete

to

allowing

me

by pay you the respect of an obedient and

my happiness,

devoted

disciple.'

On

leaving the Superior, ITiouen-Thsang was established

with his retinue, consisting of ten persons, in one of the best

houses of the convent; every day, the necessary provisions

were sent to him by the king, and two monks, one a Sramana

and the other a Brahman, who served him, took him out
a chariot, or on an elephant, or in a palanquin.

i.i

When Hiouen-Thsang was

went out

settled at

Nalanda,

lie

only
:

to visit the sacred places of the

neighbourhood

Kusagarapura, the ancient capital of IMagadha; the Vulture's

Peak; the Bamboo grove

fust

at

Kalanta; the places where the

orthodox Council, under the presidency of Kasyapa, and

the dissident Council of the General

Order had been held

in the vicinity, &c.

Rajagrihapura

the slupas
tlie

and viharas

While he remained in

convent he diligently followed

SUabhadra's instructions, making him explain several times

the books he did not yet

know, re-examining those he had

still

formerly read, in order to dispel any doubts he might

relain
;

even perusing the books of the Brahmans, which were

for

indispensable
Sanskrit

grammar, among oihers

all

mary of

the

perfect knowledge of work of Panini, a sumprevious works on the same subject.

his

acquiring

the

The
the

IMaster of the

Law

thus spent the five years of his

residence at Nalanda, absorbed in these serious studies.

At

Qwd of that time he knew the language, and had so thoroughly sifted all the books of the Three Commentaries and

2o3
those of the

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
Crahmans
that he
his

[rx.

ii

no longer required the

instruc-

tions of Sllabhadra

and

monks.

He

therefore gratefully

took leave of his hosts, and continued the

pilgrimage.

course of his

At

this period,

he had scarcely accomplished

to get

half his mission, as he

had taken three years

from
lie

China
had

to IMagadha,
to travel

where he had resided

five years,

still

through the whole of the eastern side of

the peninsula, the centre, the western part,

to

and

to return again

IMagadha before retracing

his steps

homewards.

He subseof
his

quently devoted eight years to these long peregrinations.

We
On

will

only

men'aon the principal

incidents

journey.
leaving IMagadha, he travelled through the

kingdoms of

Hiranyaparvata, Champa, Kadjugira, Karnasuvarna, Samatata

and Tamralipti. Island of Ceylon

There

for the first time

he heard of the

(Seng-kia-lo, Sinhala),

where Buddhism was

itself.

said to be perhaps even

more

flourishing than in India

He intended going there by sea, although the passage was no less

than seven hundred yodjanas, when a southern monk advised him to avoid the dangers of such a long voyage by going down to the point of land at the extremity of the peninsula, whence, after a three days' voyage, he would reach the kingdom
of the Lion (Sinhala)
:

Iliouen-Thsang resolved

to follow Uiis

prudent advice.
for

He was not, however,

destined to visit Ceylon:

when he reached

the port of KanchTpura, at the souihern

extremity of India, and was on the point of embarking, he

heard that the island was a prey to

therefore merely collected
all

civil

war and famine.

He

the information he could obtain

on the ancient history of Sinhala, on the introduction of LuddhiLin, which it was sa:d had been imported there a
hundred years
after the

Nirvana of the Buddha by IMahindn,

biodier of king Asoka,^ and on the chief

*

monuments
was

of the
A^uka's

See Rhys Davids*

son.'

Buddhism,

p.

229,

'

JNIahinda

own

(^Translator's note.)

eti. i]

LIFE OF HIOUEN-ttlSANG
But he did not cross the
straits,

26c)

island, &c.

and

in

company

with seventy
continent.
that of

monks

of Sinhala he continued exploring the

Leaving the kingdom of Dravida he went on to Kongkanapura, where the cap Siddhartha had worn
royal

when prince

was piously preserved.

In Mahrualtha (the

country of the Mahrattas) he found the most martial and best

disciplined population of these countries.

The king was

of

the Kshatriya race

and when a general was defeated, he was

punished by having a woman's dress sent to him.

The

Buddha's law was held

in as

high honour in this kingdom

as in any of the others, and

Hiouen-Thsang saw a number of

king Asoka.

monuments that Going up to

politeness of
in
its

tradition attributed to the great

the north-west he reached the

itself for

kingdom of
and

Malwah, which vied with Magadha

the gentleness

inhabitants, the culture of IcLtcrs, the esteem

its

which virlue was held, and the harmony of

language.

Thence, passing through many extensive kingdoms, sometimes

following the coast
line,

sometimes plunging across country,

;

he reached the frontiers of Persia

but he did not penetrate

any

further, although

he might, from what he had heard, have

found there several Buddhist

turned eastwards, and after
to the

monuments.

He

therefore

many
this

a long march he got back

banks of the Indus that he had formerly crossed on

from China, but
the eastern

his arrival

time he was

much

nearer

its

source.

On

bank of

the river he passed through

Multan, where the idolatrous inhabitants worshipped the Sun-

god

and from the kingdom of Parvata he returned to Magadha, whence he had started on diis flitiguing journey. On his return to Nalanda he found fresh studies awaiting
;

him, but
of

this

time he met with

successes.

full

compensation

in the

shape
still

divers

brilliant

The aged

Sllabhadra

ruled over the convent,

and Hiouen-Thsang was henceforth

capable under his guidance of communicating to others the deep learning he had acquired. Silabhadra, who appreciated

210

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
him
several times to

[pt.
the

his worth, appointed

difficult

expound

most

books to the multitude of monks; and Hiouen-Thsang

acquitted himself of this duty to the general satisfaction of

the community.
skrit,

He

was, moreover, capable of writing San-

and he wrote

several books,

which excited the admiration

striving to reconcile

of the whole Order, and in which he refuted the errors of the

Sankhya and the Vaiseshika systems, while

the different doctrines which at that lime divided Buddhism.

These

studies pointed

him out
fulfilled

as a

fit

person for an impor-

tant mission,

which he

with great credit to himself.

Magadha was
dominions,
India.
it

at that time ruled

by King

Slladitya,

whose
of

appears, extended over a considerable part of

the convent

Full of piety and veneration for

built

Nalanda, he had

near

it

a magnificent vihara, which

excited the jealousy of the neighbouring states.

The

king,

returning from a military expedition,

w^

passing through the

kingdom of
to

Orissa,

when

the

monks

of the countries that

followed the doctrine of the Little Vehicle

came

to

complain

him of

the advantages he

had given

their adversaries (the

convent of Nalanda followed the doctrine of the Great Vehicle)

by bestowing such a
principles, they said,

benefit

their cause, they presented

upon them. In order to further him with a book in which their were explained, and they defied the

partisans of the Great Vehicle to refute a single word.

*I have heard,' replied the king,

latter

who belonged

to

the

school,

'

that a fox,

finding himself one day in the

midst of a troop of rats and mice, boasted that he was

stronger than a lion.
his heart failed

But no sooner did he see a

lion than

him, and he disappeared in the twinkhng of

an eye.

You

have not yet, venerable masters, seen the

;

eminent monks of the Great Vehicle

that

is

the reason
I greatly

why you
fear that
I

so obstinately assert your foolish tenets.

when you

perceive
of.'

them you

will

resemble the fox

have just spoken

Cii. i]

LIFH of HIOUEN-THSANG
you doubt our

211

If

superiority,* they replied to the king,

why

not assemble the adherents of the two doctrines, and

lies

bring them face to face to decide on which side

or error?'

truth

The king gave

his consent to this religious

combat, and

wrote at once, to Silabhadra to send

to

the

kingdom of
Silabhadra,

Orissa four of the most eloquent of his monks, in order

that they

might solemnly confute the

abilities,

heretics.

who knew Hiouen-Thsang's

fourth champion.

and did not share ihe

jealousy he had excited around him, appointed

him

as the

The

four

vindicators

of the Great Vehicle and of the

to start,

honour of Nalanda were getting ready

awaiiing a fresh order from the king,

and only

when an unexpected
had of
his

circumstance gave a

still

greater audiority to Hiouen-Thsang,

and dispelled
capabilities.

all

die doubts that certain persons

A
were

heretic of the

Lokayata sect came

questions with

to

Nalanda

to

argue

on the most
at that

difficult

which the professors

time occupied.

He

wrote a summary of his

this

system

in forty articles,

and hung up
'

document on
article,

the

convent gates.
*

If

any one,' he

said,

can refute a single

victory.*

he

may

cut off

my

head to proclaim his

it

This was,

appears, the ordinary and

for
this
sftrt

somewhat danger-

ous formula employed

of challenge.
this

Some
himself

days elapsed before any one answered

vocation,
that he

insolent pro-

and the Lokayata had already

at least

flattered

had

won

tacit

triumph,

when

the Master of

the

Law

sent

from the

interior

of the

convent *a

man

without

monk, with the order to take down this writing. Then Hiouen-Thsang tore it to pieces and trampled it under foot. When the Brahman heard whom he had to
sin,'

deal with, he declined to contend with the Master of the

2J:2

WdMISM
;

M tMblA
heretical

trt.

it

Law

but Hiouen-Thsang compelled him to Jlppear before

Sllabhadra and the chief monks, and in their presence he

refuted
the opinions of
all

the

schools^ i3huta!5,

Nirgranthas, Kapalikas, Sankhyikas, VaiseshikaSj &c.

with
:

such force and irohy that the

Brahman remained
At
last

speechless,

without power to utter a word.

'I
first
*

he arose and said

am

conquered; you are

free to avail yourself of

my

condition.'

We, the children of Sakya,* replied the IMasler of the Law, never injure men. To-day I will do nothing more than take you into my service as the obedient slave of
'

my

will.'

The Brahman,
fully

delighted at getting off so easily, respectall

followed him, and enthusiastically praised

he had

just heard.

and then

set

Hiouen-Thsang kept him some time with hiiii, him free, without uttering a word which could
had beem so painfully humiliated.
for the great contest at in person.
all

wound

the pride that

However,

was being prepared

for his

which Slladitya was to preside

Hiouen-Thsang
of Erroneous
to the

had prepared himself

point in a

part by contesting point by

work

called

'A

Treatise in Refutation

Doctrines' the

book which had been presented

Little Vehicle.

king

by the adherents of the

The

appointed place of meeting was Siladitya's

capital,

Kanyakubja, situated at the confluence of the Ganges and

the Kalini.
the king,
last

The Master of the Law accompanied thither who overwhelmed him with attentions. It was the
the year.

month of

Shortly

after,

eighteen

kings of

central Lidia

(all

tributaries of Slladitya) arrived, at the

same
and

time as three thousand monks, learned in both the Great and

Little Vehicles,

two thousand Brahmans and

heretics,

about a thousand

monks from
to

the convent

of Nalanda.
at

Two
the

enormous thatched buildings had been constructed

place

of

convocation

receive

the

statue

of

the

cii. i]

LIFE OF HIOUEN-IHSANG
this

213

Buddha and contain

multitude

of people.

On

the

appointed day the sacred ceremonies began at dawn.

Y'wsi

Mas carried round with great pomp a golden statue of the

Buddha, which had been expressly cast
for the occasion
;

it

was carried under a splendid canopy placed on a great elephant. S laditya, holding a white fly-fan and dressed as
king,

on the right; on the left walked a tributary Kumara, another of Hiouen-Thsang's admirers, dressed Two elephants, loaded with choice to represent Brahma. (lowers that were scattered at each step, followed the Buddha.
Indra, walked

The Master
the king
;

of the

Law and

oflicers

of the palace, riding

large elephants,

had been

invited to take their places behind

and

lastly the tributary kings, the ministers,

and

most celebrated monks advanced on both

singing praises

sides of the road,

they were borne on three hundred elephants.

At the door of
it.

The

procession had about two miles to go after leaving the

the enclosure every

king's travelling tent.

one alighted, and the statue was placed on a costly throne in

the palace designed for
Siladitya, together with

Hiouenthe

Thsang, fust
brought
in.

did
It

homage,

and then the assembly was

must have been composed, besides

eighteen kings, of a thousand of the most illustrious and

learned monks, of five hundred

fmally of two hundred of the ministers

slate.

Brahmans and heretics, and and chief officers of

The remainder
to

of the crowd,

who

could not enter,

were obliged
closure.
to to

place themselves silently outside the en-

Afier a magnificent repast, served indiscriminately

everybody, and after rich presents had been distributed

Iliouen-Thsang and the monks, the king requested the

Master of the

Law

to preside at the conference, to

make

a eulogy of the Great Vehicle, and to state the subject of

the discussion.

Hiouen-Thsang
Nal^nda
to

first

ordered a
his

monk

of the convent of
to the multitude,

mak^ knpwn

prolegomena

214

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
that

[pt.
at the

ii

and he had a copy written out

the spectators.

Mas hung

door of
all

the enclosure, in order that they might be

examined by

He

added

at the end, as the

Brahman he
in this,

vanquished had done

*lf any one finds a single erroneous

word

and

is

capable of refuting

it,

I will let

him

cut off

my

head to show

him

my

gratitude/
this

Akhough

solemn challenge excited them, not one of

Master of the Law. The next, and pomps and ceremonies of the previous

the adversaries dared to address the meeting to contest the

argunents of

the

following days the

day were repeated.

the theses he
silence

had

by

the

Hiouen-Thsang vindicated and developed down, which were again received in heretics. The fifth day, seeing that he had
laid

confuted the principles of the Little Vehicle, they conceived

a deadly hatred for him, and, unable to attack

him by

fair

means, they made a plot to assassinate him.

discovering
this,

Slladitya,

undertook
severe

his defence,

and threatened the

Thenceforth
the

malcontents
partisans

with

punishment.

of error slunk away and disappeared, and the

place.

contest

announced with so much pomp did not take

Eighteen days were spent in waiting, but no one dared to

utter a

woid of
to

discussion.
disperse,

The
the

evening of the day the

of the

Assembly was

IMasler

Law once
and
enthusiasm,
Little

more recommended
that a multitude

the doctrine of the Great Vehicle,

extolled the virtues of the

Buddha

with so

much

renounced the narrow views of the

Vehicle and embiaced the sublime principles of the Great

Vehicle.

Hiouen-Thsang had gained

olher

the victory; Slladitya and the

kings wished to reward him

silver.

by enormous
accepted
the

gifts

of

gold and
as

He

refused to receive them, and, modest

he was disinterested, he

only

triumph

4Wc^rde4 to the vjctor in conforpiarice with j^ncient custom.

cii. i]

LIFE OF HIOUEN-THSANG

215

IMountcd on an elephant richly caparisoned, and escorted

by the highest

dignitaries,

he rode through the mullilude,

while the king himself, holding up his vestment, proclaimed

with a loud voice
*
:

The Chinese Master

doctrine
all

of the

Law has

brilliantly established

the

of the

Great Vehicle, and has reduced to

In eighteen days no
with him.

nought

the errors of the sectaries.

one has been

found

great triumph shall be

who dare discuss known to all men.'

This

The
the

people in their joy bestowed on him the

title

of

God

of the Great Vehicle (Jllahaydna-Deva), and the partisans of

humiliated by his greatness, gave him name of the God of Deliverance {JMohshaDeva). In memory of this victory Slladitya had the golden slalue of the Buddha placed in the convent of Nalanda,
Little Vehicle,

out of respect the

with a great quantity of vestments and precious coins, which

he confided to the care of the monks.

favour, glory,

At

the zenith of

and learning, Hiouen-Thsang had now nothing

to leave India

fuithcr to
all

do than

and return

to China, with

the sacred spoils he

had

collected in his long researches.

He

therefore

took leave of the monks of Nalanda, and

the books

taking with

him

and

statues he

had gathered
Before his

together, he closed the

series of his lectures.

departure he was obliged, at the urgent request of Siladitya,

to
to

accompany him

to the

kingdom

of Prayaga {Po-lo-ye-Kia\

be present at the great distribution of alms which the

king

made

every five years, in the vast plains situated at

the confluence of the the biographers of

Ganges and Hiouen-Thsang

five

the
tell

Jumna.
us,

Here, as

were gathered
a description

together

no

less

than

hundred thousand persons, who

received the royal alms.

We

shall give later

of this solemn

festivity.

At

last Slladitya

allowed Hiouen-Thsang to set out on his

return journey to China.

One

of the kings of Northern

2i6

BUDDHISM IN INDIA

[pt.

ii

India undertook to
as far as the Indus.

have his books and statues conveyed

After having revisited Takshasila, the

pilgrim crossed the river, where, by a vexatious accident, he

lost

about

fifty

manuscripts and a quantity of curious seeds

he was taking back to pkmt in China.

ever, to

He

was

able,

how-

have the works he had

;

lost

recopied in the kingdom

of

Udyana

and the collection of sacred

the real object of his travels,

injured.

writings, which was was neither diminished nor

Hioucn-Thsang did not

return through Kashmir;

for the

he went by the kingdom of Kapisa, and crossed

the

second time the enow-clad mountains (Hindu Kush), braving

same dangers he had so happily escaped from

perils,

fifteen

years before.
all

This time he again extricated himself from

gradually
diminished,

but his caravan had

to

and

was now reduced

elephant, ten asses,

seven monks, twenty servants, one

and four horses.

in former days

At the

foot

of the

mountains he reached the kingdoms of Antarava (Anderab)

and Kustana, which

had formed part of the

his

kingdom of Tukhara.
steps to the east, he

Thence he continued
advanced
in

march
to

to

the north-west, crossed the Oxus, and then, directing his

a straight line

the

Chinese
Sighnak,

frontier,

passing through the kingdoms of Munkan,

of the

the

valley

Pamirs {Po-ini-lo) across the

that of

Tsong-hing mountains, the kingdom of Khasgar and

Tchakuka.
lation

In Kustana (actually Khotan) he found a popu-

whose honest and gentle behaviour strongly contrasted

with that of the neighbouring tribes.

for the

They were full

it

of respect

Law

of the Buddha, which,

brought there at an early

Vairochana.

was said, had been date from Kashmir by the arhan

the characters they

The

inhabitants of Kustana held learning in

;

high esteem, and delighted in music

used in writing were very similar to those of India, although

the language was a
industrious,
different

one;

they were also

most

and the

stuffs

they

made were exported

f^r ^ncj

cii. i]

LIFE OF HIOUEN-TIISANG
Hiouen-Thsang remained
several

217
in
this

wide.

months

country, awaiting an answer to a letter he had written to the

king of Kao-TcHang,
tried to detain

who

at the outset

of his travels had

him against

his will,

and who had only given

visit

way on

extracting from

him

the promise of a

on

his

return journey.

After having passed through the former kingdom of Tukhara {Tou-ho-Io) and made several circuits, he at last reached the Chinese frontier, and saw once more his native
land.

No sooner
fearing he
liis

had he arrived

at

Clia-Tchcou than he hastened

to forward a letter to the emperor,

who

resided at Lo-Yang,

might have excited

his

anger by proceeding on

journey without his permission.

But the emperor, who

dis-

had kept himself informed of Hiouen-Thsang's success,

of the kingdom of Liang and governor of
to receive

played great friendliness, and sent an order to Si-*an-fo, chief

tlie

western capital,

him with the honours due

remained.

to his piety

and

merit.

The
work

pilgrim's journey

was ended, but the missionary's

still

still

He

had

to bring to the

knowledge

of his countrymen the sacred books he had brought back

from India, and

this task,

to

all

appearance

much

easier,
in

was nevertheless extremely laborious.

and which had lasted seventeen
years,

IJiouen-Thsang,

a journey that he himself estimated at fifteen thousand miles,

had collected the

most abundant and valuable

materials.

He

had now

to

work them
and
life

up,

and he devoted the remainder of

his strength

to this labour.

the commander of Liang heard that HiouenThsang was approaching Tchang-'an, he despatched tlie general commanding the cavalry and the chief oflicial of
the district to greet him.
to

When

The two

functionaries were ordered

go forward

to

meet and conduct him from the great canal

to install }jip> in the

tp the capital^

and

mansion assigned

tp

2i8
ambassadors.
the

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
At the same time the
all

[pt.

ii

city magistrates invited

monks

of

the convents to prepare hangings, sedan&c.,

chairs,

flowers,

banners,

for

the

procession

of

the
to

morrow, when the sacred books and the statues were

be
oflicially

placed in the Convent of the Great Happiness

{Hong-fosse).

The

next day they

all

assembled

in groups,

marshalled in due order, and the convent treasury received

all that

the IMastcr of the

Law had

brought back from ths

western countries.

The
relics

following

is ils

curious enumeration
fifty particles

First,

one hundred and

of che-Ii (sarlras) or

proceeding from

Joti-la'is (die

Tathagata) body.

Secondly, a golden statue of the Buddha, whose shadow

had remained
giri

in the

Dragon's GroUo, on the Piagbuddha-

mountain, in the kingdom of IMagadha, with a pedestal

transparent substance three
feet

of a

three inches
is

high,

similar to the statue of the

Buddha
the

that

seen in the king-

dom

of Varanasi (Benares), which represents him turning

time the

for the first

Wheel of

Law

in the

Deer Park
three feet

(Miigadawa).
Thirdly, a sandal-wood statue of the
five

Buddha
life.

inches high, exactly like the one the king of Kos^mbi,

to

Udayana, had caused

similar to the

be modelled from

Fourlhly, a sandal-wood statue two feet nine inches high,

one

in the

kingdom of Kapilha, representing

descends from the

the Ta'hagata at the

moment when he

palace of the Dcvas.

Fifthly, a silver statue four feet high, similar to the

one

representing the

Buddha explaining The Lotus of

the

Good
five

Law, and

other sacred books, on the Vulture's Peak.

Sixthly, a

golden statue of the Buddha three

feet

inches in height, similar to his

shadow

that he

left

in the

kingdom of Nagarahara, and coming a venomous dragoon,

\\h;ch

represents

him over-

cii. i]

LIFE OF HIOUEN-THSANG
kingdom of

219

Seventhly, a carved statue in sandal-wood one foot three

inches high, similar to the one in the

Vaisali,

which represents the Buddha going round the

city to convert

mankind.
After the statues
precious.
first

came

the books,

deemed even more

They were

divided into ten classes, of which the

included the sacred books (Sutras) of the Great Vehicle,

and numbered 124; and the other classes, the sacred books and special treatises of several schools, both of the Little and Great Vehicle, of the Sarvastivadas, the Sammitiyas, the MahTsasakas,

the

Kasyapiyas,

the

Dharmaguptas,
less than

&c.

This

collection,

which consisted of no
carried
this

657 works divided

in

into

525 parts, was Having fulfilled

Lo-Yang.

first

by twenty-two horses. duty, Hiouen-Thsang went

all

haste to rejoin the

emperor

in the palace of the Phoenix

at

The

sovereign received him with

;

much

con-

sideration

and kindness

he questioned him

at length

about

the climate, produce,

in

and customs of the

to

different countries

India,

and the sacred monuments he had worshipped

urged him
all
v.

there.

He

rile

the history of his travels;

and, dcl'ghted at

the virtues he discovered in him, he offered

office

him an important

under government.

But Hiouen-

Thsang was wise enough to refuse this brilliant ofier. He only knew the Law of the Buddha, and understood nothing
about the doctrine of Confucius, 'which
administration.'
is

the soul of the

The emperor wanted

to take

him with

his

retinue on a military expedition to punish

east.

some

rebels in the

But the

monk

again refused, urging that his principles,

founded on the love of mankind, did not permit of his

being present at bailies and scenes of bloodshed, and the
sole favour

he craved was to be assisted

the six

in translating into

the

Fan language

hundred books which he had

brought back from the western countries, and of which not

gne word was yet known in the Chinese language.

The

220

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
thither to

[pt.

ii

emperor indicated the Convent of the Great Happiness

Tchang-'an, and Hiouen-Thsang hastened
his pious mission.

at

complete

Twelve monks were

Great and
the style,

allotted to him,

well

versed in

the

explanations of the holy books

and

the

treatises

of the

Little Vehicle, to revise the translations, correct

f.iir

and write out

in

copies under his dictation

these

monks had been

talented
the

carefully

chosen from amongst the mo^t

convents of the neighbourhood.
especially

principal

Nine others of high merit were and polibh

Iloci-li,
tl:c

employed

to revise

translated

texts,
first

and among

them was
learned
texts,

the author

of the

drawing up of Hiouen-

Thsang's biography.
in the study

Then two Samaneans, men

not to mention a

of the characters and revision of Indian

this learned society,

were added to

number
in
less

of subordinate copyists.

With

this

assistance

Hiouen-Thsang was

able

than three months to offer the emperor, with the abridged

narrative of his
travels

which he had been asked

deign to
take

for,

the

translation of five books.

In presenting these works, Hiouen'

Thsang begged
in wiiich his

the

emperor

to

up

his

august brush and write, in praise of the Buddha, a preface,

sublime thoughts would shine like the sun

silver

and moon, and the writing, precious as

would
last

and

jade,
for

as long as heaven and earth,

and become

future generations

an object of inexhaustible admiration.'

The emperor,
one characters.
whole of
it,

af:er

making some

objections, consented to

write this preface,

which contained seven hundred and eighty-

The

biographers carefully reproduce the

as well as the correspondence that took place

on the subject between the sovereign and Hiouen-Thsang.

Soon after the prince royal followed his father's example, and wrote, like him, an introduction to the newly-translated
^icicc| texts.

At the request of the superior of the

Conv<?rit

tit

i]

LIFE OP iWuPN-fllSAMO

^^i

of the Great Happiness, the emperor allowed the two prefaces to be engraved

on metal and stone

slabs,

which were

desposited ih the convent.

'I'he

favour

tnost important results.

HioUen-Thsan^ enjoyed soon brought forth Following his advice, the emperor
every

decreed
five

that

ih

convent of the

different

districts

monks should be

ordained, and

fifty in

the Convent of

the Great Happiness.

As

at that time there

were three
all

thousand seven hundred and sixteen convents scattered

over the empire, over eighteen thousand and six hundred

monks

or nuns were ordained.

It

seems

that before this

epoch, and under the last years of the Soui dynasty (581-6 1 8),

most of the convents and temples had been plundered, and

almost
to their
tion.
all

the

monks

ex'crminatcd.

This immense increase

in

numbers re-established them

fliilh

a flourishing condihimself that he had

Thus Hiouen-Thsang might

it

flatter

not only revived Buddhist

by

his travels, but that

he

had restored
fervent adept

toils ancient splendour.

Moreover, the reign-

ing sovereign, Thien-wou-ching-hoang-ti, was himself a very

;

he frequently argued on the sacred texts with

the Master of the

Law,

whom

he admitted into his intimacy,

and

whom

he more than once disturbed in his pious labours

in order to

have him near him.

This emperor died

in

650

but his son

who succeeded him was

Hiouen-Thsang gained
it

equally the friend of the

Master of the Law.

INIorcover,
this

extraordinary favour

by shunning
in

ns

much

as lay in his power.

Living secluded

Convent of the Great Benevolence that the prince royal had built, near the palace at Lo-Yang, to honour the memory of his mother, his sole occupation was translating Every mornthe sacred books without wasting a moment.'
the
'

ing he set himself a fresh task, and

if

any business had

night.
If

prevented his finishing this task in the daytime, he never

failed

to continue his

work during

the

he met

2.11

BUDDFltSM IN tNbIA
difllculty,

[pt.

it

with any

he would lay down

his

brush and book;

then, after

having worshipped the Buddha and continued

till

his reh'gious exercises

the third watch, he would snatch

a litUe

rest,

and

at the fifth

watch he would

rise,

read out

loud the Indian text, and note

down

in red ink the

passages

he had to translate at daybreak.

Every day

for four

hours

monks of his convent, or to those of the different provinces who thronged to him in order to consult him as to the meaning of some doubtful or difficult passage. The disciples who came to take his instructions about the interior management of the
he explained a fresh Sutra or Sastra to the
convent, with which he was entrusted,
hills adjoining his cell.
filled

the galleries

and

To

all

he replied

clearly, omitting

nothing.

He

expounded aloud and spoke with animation,

feel fiitigue,

without appearing to
his

such was the strength of

'

body and the vigour of

to
his counsels, all

his

mind.

Often did princes

and ministers come

had heard
giving

pay him

their respects.

When

they
;

opened

their hearts to the faith

left

and, abjuring their natural pride, they never

him without

The Master
at

him sincere proofs of admiration and respect.' of the Law was still to spend fourteen years this laborious work. In 659 he obtained the emperor
permission
disciples
to

Kao-Tsong's
translators

to to

wididraw with
the

his

assistant

and

palace

of Yu-hoa-Kong,
life.

where he hoped
undertook the

lead

more secluded

There he
less

difficult

and lengthy translation of the Pradjnd-

Pdramiia^ the Indian manuscript of which contained no

than

two hundred thousand slokas\

or
Perfection

The book

of the
the

Pradjna-Paramild,

of

Wisdom, which

Chinese called Pan-jo^ was the

Siilra at that

time held in

* do not possess this lonir transciiplion, but only three others: of 100,000, 25,000, and 8,000 slokas, the shorter ones beinjT abridgements of the longer. See Burnouf, Introduction a I'histoire du Bouddhisme Indien, p. 662, &c., and iht Journal des Savants, January, 1855, P* 44*

We

cii.

i]

LIFE OF
It

HIOUENTHSANG
in
all

1223

greatest repute.

had

former centuries been translated,

sides the Master

but

it

was

far

from complete, and from

of the
tion.

Law was strongly urged to undertake a new translaThe Sutra of the Pradjnd-Pdramita^ it was said, liad
in sixteen

been expounded four times by the Buddha himself

solemn

conferences

on
all

the

Vulture's

Peak,

in

Anaiha

Findika's garden, in the palace of the king of the Devas,

and
text

in the

Convent of the Bamboos

at Rajagriha.
disci])les

As

the

was very lengthy,

to abridge
it,

Hiouen-Thsang's

begged

him

and, following the example of preceding

translators,

he might have curtailed the tedious passages and

suppressed repetitions.
deterred

But he had a

terrible

dream

that

him from

this

sacrilegious project,

and he resolved
the Indian text,

to translate the whole

work conformably wiih

lips

as

it

was taken down from the very

he found

of the Tathagata.

He

had obtained three copies

in India, but

when he began
to re-esiablish

his translation
ticity.

many
and

passages of doubtful authen-

By

dint of care
all
its

zeal he
*

was able

the text in

genuineness.

When
if

he had fluhomcd
re-

a deep thought, thrown light on an obscure point, or

established a vitiated passage,
it

was as

a god had brought

him

the solution he sought for.

Then

his spirit

was gladdened
sees the sun

like that

of a

man plunged
his

in darkness,

who

break through the clouds and shine forth in

all its

splendour.
the
the

But ever mistrustful of

Bodhisatwas.

own wisdom, he

attributed

merits to the mysterious inspiration of the

Buddhas and

Nevertheless these varied and lengthy labours had exhausted

Iliouen-Thsang's strength, and he hurried on- as

should overtake him.
his disciples

much

as

possible the translation of the Pradjnd-Pdramikl, lest death

When

he had finished

it

he said to

'I came,

you know,

to the palace

of

Yu-hoa-Kong hy
;

reason of the book of the Pradjud-Pdramiid

now

that this

224

hVbbiiiSM tM iNbiA
is

tft.
to

work

finished,

I feel that

my

life

is

coming

an end.

yOu carry me to tny last abode, let it be done in a simple Jlnd humble manner. You \vill wrap my body in a rhat, and lay it down in the midst of a valley, in Avoid ihe vicinity of a palace or a peaceful and lonely spot. convent, for a body asimpure as mine must be placed far

When,

after

my

death,

from such

buildings.*

His disciples
hand.

tearfully

promised to obey him, and

tried to

encourage him by the hope that his death was not so near

at

But the Master of the

AfLer

Law was

not mistaken in his

tried

presentiments.

the

Pradjna he
his

to

translate

another compi\ation almost as voluminous, the Raianakuta

Sutra, which the

monks of

convent were most desirous of

effort to

knowing.

He made

a great

comply with

their

wishes; but he had scarcely translated" a few lines

when he
proving

was obliged to close the Indian book,

unequal to his courage.
disciples to offer

his strength

He

went

out,

therefore, with his

up

his last

homage

to the statues of the

Buddhas,

in the Lou-tcJii valley, in the vicinity

of the convent.
to

From

that day he ceased translating

and gave himself up

religious exercises.

short time after this, as he

a canal situated at the back of his house, he

his leg.
lise

was crossing the bridge of fell and grazed

In consequence of this accident he was unable to

Feeling his forces failing and the supreme

from his bed.

moment drawing near, he commanded one of his monks to write down the titles of the sacred books and treatises he had
translated,

numbering

all

together seven hundred and forty

thirty-five

works and thirteen hundred and

noted

volumes.

He

down Buddha and

also the ten millions (a koti) of paintings of the

the thousand images of Maitreya Bodhisatwa that

he had caused to be made.

Besides, he had had an

immense

number of untinted

statuettes cast,

written of various sacred books.

and a thousand copies He had provided food and

cii. i]

Life 6P itioVkN-tHsANO
to over twenty

^c^
an.l

jhown compassion
heretics.

thousand believers

He

had lighted a hundred thousand lamps and

ransomed several tens of thousands of beings.

When

the

monk had

finished writing

down

the

list
it

of his good works,

Iliouen-Thsang ordered him to read

to thofe presentj wlio
*

aloud; then he said

:

overwhelmed him with praises

death
is

The moment

of

my

approaching

I feel already

as though

my mind

were giving way and leaving me.

You
to the

must immediately
prayers.*

distribute

my

garments and riches

poor, have statues made, and desire the

monks

to recite

In order to comply widi his wishes, a feast was spread for

the poor

and alms were

distributed.

The same day

moulder should

the
cast

Master of the
a statue of

Law

directed that a

Wisdom

(Bodhi) for the palace of Kia-chcou-fien,

and

after that

he invited the whole of the convent, his fellow*

workers, and disciples,

the impure

to

come and

joyfully bid farewell to

body of Hiouen-Thsang, who, having accom-

plished his work, deserved to live

no

longer.

I wish,'

he

added,

'

that

any merit

I
tl

have acquired by
at I

my

good works may

revert to other

men,

may

be born with them in the

of tenderness and love.

heaven of the Tushitas, be admitted into the Mi-les (Maitreya)

family,

and serve
I shall

that

Buddha

full

When

return

on earth

to pass through other existences,

1 desire,

with each

new

birth, to fulfil with

boundless zeal

my
and
in
'

duties towards the

Buddha, and
his

at last attain superlative

perfectly enlightened

Wisdom {Aniittara samyak samhodhi)!

dying breath, two Gathas

Then he

repeated, with

honour of Maitreya, which he made the persons around him

repeat after him.

He
on

then raised his right hand to his chin,

and placed the

in this position

left

his breast, stretched out his logs, crossed

side.

them, and turned on his right

till

He

remained motionless
In the

the fifth

day of the second moon.

:

middle of the night, his disciples inquired of him

^26
*

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
Assembly
*

[pt.

ti

Master, have you at last obtained leave to be born in

?

the midst of Maitreya's

'

Yes,' he replied in a failing voice,

and a few moments

fifth

later his soul

had passed away.

This took place on the

such a

day of the second

moon

in the year 664.

at
loss,

The Emperor,

distressed

commanded

a general mourning, and resolved to give the IMasler of the

Law
last

a magnificent funeral.

But
his
it

his disciples, faiihful to his

wishes,

had brought back and had deposited

body on coarse mats

to await
in the
its

into

the capital,

burial, in the

Convent of the Great Benevolence,

coarse

centre of the hall

It

appropriated to the translation of the books.

was

in these

wrappings that the body of Hiouen-Thsang was

brought to the funereal ceremony, which was celebrated with

the greatest

pomp.

The

IVIaster

of the Law's grave was

of the

chosen, according to his wishes, in a plain north

Fan-tchouen valley, where a tower was built in his honour.

It

would be unjust
of

to

Hiouen-Thsang's memory

if,

before
feelings

taking leave

him,

we

did not record

all

the

of reverence and esteem which his

memory ought
this

to inspire.
is

However, much as we may

differ

from

poor pilgrim, he

not less worthy of our consideration and remembrance.

What
wins
faith.
all

first

strikes us in
is

Hiouen-Thsang's character, and

the ardour

our sympathy,

and

sincerity

of his

It

might doubtless have been more enlightened and

it

more

rational, but

could never have been more

living,

more
allied

thoughtful,

and more persevering.

sterling virtues.
is

Superstition obscures the

it

mind, but
to the

it

does not corrupt the heart, and

may

be

most

According to the sphere

he

in

which a

man

born, the education he receives, the habits

to,

and customs he conforms

indeed absurd,
pure.
beliefs,

may

have the most ignorant,

without his soul being any the less

idols,

He may

worship the most insensate

and accept

the most extravagant traditions, without losing any of his

CH.

i]

LIFE OF HIOUEN-THSANG

227

moral worth.

A hero
it is

may be

as credulous as the lowest of

men

in truth

impossible to be

more credulous than

the

good Chinese

pilgrim, but this can be overlooked;

and in

the seventh century of our era,

in Christian customs,
slill

we need not look

far to find

imbued with

the habits of barbarians,

equally foolish beliefs and tradiiions.

severe

We

must not be too

on

others,

when our own

history contains such re-

collections

and dark memories.

this single exception,
life

But with
what
is

we can

find nothing but

admirable in the
it is

of Hiouen-Thsang, from which

ever side

viewed.
it

The

singleness of purpose that directs

fifty
it.

is

never de-

parted from, and during

idea inspires and guides

consecutive years one invincible

At the age of
itself,
till

thirteen,

perhaps

even

earlier,

his

vocation revealed
is

and up to the
to

moment

of his death, that

to say,

he was sixty-eight
following,
desire,

years old, his whole exertions were devoted

strengthening, enlarging,

and

fulfilling

it.

His only

from childhood, had been to propagate

bequeathed by the Buddha;
a century his
life

afar the glorious

Law

and during more than half

in serving this

was spent
to this

Law, without

permitting any obstacle to dismay or discourage him.

F irst

and as an introduction

rough career, he went through

the arduous studies that disciplined his youth,

and led him,

in spite of civil wars, into the various provinces of the

Empire

then,

when

his harvest of
thirty

knowledge was gathered, and when

capable of putting into execution

at the

age of

he

felt

the resolve he
this

had

patiently trained himself for, he undertook

formidable journey, which kept

his

him

sixteen years far

to endless
perils

from
of
all

own country, and exposed him kinds, unknown barbarous countries,

cross

deserts where his

only guides were the bones of the travellers

striven to

where

for

who had vainly them before him, inaccessible mountains whole weeks he had to march through perpetual
p 2

428

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
;

[pt.

11

snow, over precipices, across impetuous rivers

the dangers of nature, dangers
still

then, besides

more

certain created

by

men, attacks of covetous and

pitfalls laid for

pitiless

robbers, a thousand

a stranger, amid races of whose language he was yet ignorant and, above all, the allurements of riches and power, so often exercised on the pilgrim, and always
;

victoriously repelled.

Nothing could make him

;

lose sight,

even for a day, of the object of his pursuit

beginning and end of his journey
offers of the kings of

and

at the

we

see

him

resisting the

Kao-Tch'ang and of Kanyakubja,

still

as he

had

resisted the pirates of thp

Ganges, the hospitable monks

of Nalanda, and later

the yet

more

seductive proposals

of the Chinese Emperor.

He

gathered information, travelled,

and translated
this

in order to
life,

propagate the

Law

of the

Buddha

was

his

whole

simple and grand, humble and pains-

taking, disinterested as well as energetic.

In no other

civilization,

at

no other

period, even

among

the nations enlightened by the purer light of Christianity, can

be met with.

more thorough example of zeal, courage, and self-abnegation It would be easy to find greater intellect, but difficult indeed to find a more magnanimous spirit.
a

One
soul,

trait is

particularly striking in the inner

life

of this
it,

such as his disciples and biographers describe

and

this is the total

absence of that veiled egotism, of which the

with good reason be accused.

Buddhist

faith

may

Hiouenpersonal
twice, that

Thsang

is

not occupied with the thought of his

own

salvation;

and he only dimly intimates once or

he counts on the eternal reward of his labours.

thinks of self; he thinks of the Buddha,

He

never

whom

he worships
all

wiih

all

the strength of his

mind and heart; above

he
strives to

he

thinks of other
his
life is

men,

whom

enlighten and save

a perpetual though apparently unconscious sacrifice

self-renunciation

and

in this absolute

he does not seem

aware that

his actions are as sublime as they are ingenuous.

CH.

i]

LIFE OF HI0UEN-7HSANG
own
conduct.

229

He

never reflects on his

all

To

disdain riches,
life,

honours, power, and

a very rare merit
salvation
;

ihe enjoyments of

is

already

but not to think even about the eternal

in,

which he firmly believed

it,

while doing
still

all

that

was
re-

needful to be worthy of
fined;

is

a merit

more

rare

and

and there are very few, even amongst the most pious, who
limit,

have carried self-denial to this extreme

where nothing

remains but the unalloyed idea of

right.
it is

Hioucn-Thsang
for himself

was one of these choice beings, and

to recognize
it.

only right and just

The

singular ideal he

made
is

may

provoke a smile, but the irreproachable conduct

inspired

this ideal

ought to be reverenced.

It

not only in his

external actions that he

ought to be admired, but also in

the motives that dictated those actions, and impart to them

their true value.

Studied from this point of view, Hiouen-Thsang's character

is

one of the most curious of problems.

We

are

too ready to believe that the virtues

we

possess under our

civilization,

temperate climates, and which, thanks to our

are the growth of three thousand years, are an exclusive right

that belongs only to us
;

we

too easily believe that other

times,

other races, and especially other religions have

no
and

share in them.
for

We
for

shall not

be suspected of any

partiality

Buddhism,

we have
it.

severely criticized the vices

it

errors that disgrace

But

must be admitted
feel

that in the

presence of such examples,

it,

we

more indulgent towards

its
if

and while detesting

individuals.

its

dogmas, we cannot deny that

influence has sometimes been excellent,

not on races, at least

on

In the seventh century of our era, about

twelve hundred years after the Buddha, amid a people for

whom we
as an

have

little

esteem,

we

find

one of these noble

personages, one of these beautiful lives that

may
it,

be held up
in

example

to humanity.

Without holding anything

commoii with

the strange belief that inspires

we mi^ht

230

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
men who
charity,
live

earnestly desire that the majority of

under

a better

faith,

should have this purity of heart, straightgentleness,

forwardness of intentions,
faith,

unalterable

boundless generosity, and elevation of sentiments which

trials.

never relax under the most perilous

We
now
of

have hitherto only studied the personality of Hiouenthe principal incidents of his
life.

Thsang and
to see all

We

have

he can

tell

us about the countries he travelled

through, the history of those remote limes, and the condition

Buddhism in India in the seventh century of the Christian Of course, his testimony, sincere as it is, must be received with the greatest caution; the good pilgrim was exceedingly credulous, and it is extremely probable that he more than once played the part of a dupe. However, we may be certain of one thing, he never seeks to deceive, and when he speaks of what he has himself seen, he must be attentively listened to, only we must, if reason demands it, somewhat modify the narrative. In general, however, we may trust and be grateful to him for the valuable information he hands dow^n to us. At the moment he visited India, before the Mussulman conquest, it was still exclusively Brahmanist and Buddhist. It is a very obscure period of its history, and Hiouen-Thsang is almost the only eyeera.

witness

We

will

who has given us any information about it. now see what he has to say on that subject.

CHAPTER

II.

Mejnoirs of Himen-Thsang. Sources from which the Siyii-ki is Descriptive method of (derived. History in India and China. Hiouen-Thsang. His general views on India; his itinerary in. A'agadha ; a page fi oni his Memoirs on the Convent of Ndlanda.

Testimony of Hioicen- Thsang as to the Buddha, the Nirvana, the Hiouen-Thsang at the Court of Councils, and the kings of his day. The great Sildditya, king of Kanyakiibja and part of Central India. Council of the Deliverance in the Field of Happiness. Distribution of royal alms. Surprising tolerance of the Hindus.

It

is

not for the purpose of verifying the exact geographical

position of the places

Hiouen-Thsang

describes,

that

we

purpose to follow him in his long and perilous pilgrimages.

This would be too special and

take,

lengiliy a task for us to under-

and we must leave

bhall

it
*.

to those better fitted

and more

familiar with such studies

We

now

limit ourselves to the

composition of the

Si-yu-U.

In the large catalogue in the library belonging to the

Emperor Kien-Long,
Hiouen-Thsang's
the

the authentic

and complete
follows:

title

of

work

reads

as

'Memoirs on

Western Countries (Si-yu-ki) published under the great

Thangs, translated from the Sanskrit, by Imperial decree, by

Hiouen-Thsang, Master of the

Ta-tsong-lchi.'

mentaries, and edited by Picn-ki, a

Law of monk

the

Three Com-

of the convent of

We

are to understand by translated from the

Sanskrit, not a translation in the ordinary acceptation of the

* See the excellent Mimoire of Vivien de Saint-Marfin, following Hiouen-Thsang's Memoirs, vol. ii. p. 254, &c., and Nouvellgs Affftq/ff

dfs Foyages, 5 Series, 18^3.

232

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
to

[pt.

word, but a co ordination of the Sanskrit works which Hiouen-

Thsang made use of

nature of the

The most important

compose his own book. point would be to know the real Sanskrit works that Hiouen-Thsang consulted,
the substance.

and of which he has transmitted

rather diflicult to form
is

But

it

is
it

any exact idea of these works, and

their existence.

worth much even to know of

it

The

Sanskiit
like

literature, as far as

is

known

to us,

shows us nothing

them, and judging from the frequent quotations that Hiouen-

Thsang makes from

and had under
for

the Sanskiit ]\Iemoirs he

made

use of

Lis eyes

word

for

he often translates them word

little

it

seems certain that these Memoirs bore

\\\t

resemblance to

JMahavansawnXavi

in Pali,

which

Tumour
to

has given us, nor to the Rajalarangim, which

we owe

7>oyer.

We

must therefore conclude,

that in the seventh

century after Chiist, at the time

travelled over India,
literature

when
to

the Chinese pilgrim

there were

be found in Sanskrit
less fai^hfully the
;

works which dcsciibcd more or

us.

history, statistics,

and geography of the country

This
is
it

none of

which have come down to

doubtless a very
is

unexpected and curious discovery, but

no
all

less a fact.

As Hiouen-Thsang found writings of this kintl from the northern kingdom of Kutch down
where he remained many year?,
them,
well
it

over India,

to

IMagadha,

in order

thoroughly to study

is

evident that these works were very numerous and

known.

The names Hiouen-Thsang

he
calls

gives

them

are

various;

sometimes
Historical

them Ancient
sometimes

Descriptions^
Collections

sometimes

dIenioirSj

oj

Annals and Royal Edicts ;

of India, &c.

at other times

Secular Histories, or

simply Indian Books on such or such a country, or Memoirs

Hiouen-Thsang did not confine himself

;

to

these indications, already very exact

he docs not even confine

himself to the quotations he gives from the Sanskrit books;

\i^

also tells us the source of these valuablp

books an4

their

cii.

ii]

HIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS
In a general description of India, which

233
fills

oflicial origin.

the best part of the second

book of
careful

the Si-yu-ki\

and ^vhich
all

may be
follows,

considered

an excellent introduction
is
'

to
in

that

Hiouen-Thsang
literature, that

to

tell

us,

a chapter

devoted to

special functionaries

were generally

appointed in India to take

down

in writing

any remarkable

speech

and

that others

had the mission of writing down an

place.'

account of any events that took

Then he adds
is

'The

collection of annals
evil are

and royal

edicts

called Nilafiia.

Good and
It is

both recorded, as well as calamities or

happy omens/
therefore certain that India possessed in the

days

of Hiouen-Thsang,

and even long before

works,
full

his time,

a large
in

number of

historical

of details, analogous

a certain measure to those which, since the famous days of

Greece, have continued to be drawn up by

civilized

all

the nations of

Europe.

It

must be admitted, while recognizing the

had a peculiar method rf
India has never had a

value of these annals, that judging even from Hiouen-Thsang's

quotations, the natives of India

understanding and writing history.

Herodotus, a Thucydides, a Polybius, a Titus-Livy, a Tacitus,

or a Machiavelli.
ever they
denied.
It

had, however,
;

its

original historians,

who-

may have been

It

and

this fact

can no longer ha
is

would

therefore

seem

that

it

a hasty assertion
;

to say that Indian genius

had no knowledge of history

and

that in
infinite,

its
it

constant preoccupation about the absolute and

had never thought of noting the lapse of lime, nor

India
it

of recording in any lasting manner the events that were

taking place.
felt this

need

like the rest

it

of humanity,

and

tried to satisfy

in the best

way
it

could

and Ilioucnalone,
is

Thsang's testimony, although

perfectly

stands

almost

undeniable on

this

subject.
relies

His proofs are loo

dilTerciU
instant.

constantly repeated, and

he

on loo many
for

authorities, fpr his credibility to be

doubted

an

234
After trying to

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
make allowance
for the parts
it

[pt.

ii

Hiouen-Thsang

borrowed from Sanskrit

order to
himself.

historians,

is

necessary to see, in

know
But

his personal historical value,

first

what he added of
for his

and foremost, great forbearance

;

superstition

must be exercised
quali:ies;

for

it
it

is is

often carried to the

allied, in his

verge of the ridiculous, although

to the

person,

most noble

and had he not possessed an

enthusiasm that blinded him and

foolish legends

made him

accept the most

and

believe the

most absurd miracles, he

his difificult

would never have undertaken and accomplished

and most useful journey.

The

following opinion of the editor of the catalogue of the

library

Emperor Kien-Long's
Si-yii-ki'l

ought

to

be our guide

The
all

he says,

'

constantly quotes supernatural facts and

;

miracles that do not deserve any serious attention

that relates to mountains, rivers,

but

and distances
book
it

to travel

may
and

be

strictly relied
*

on.

For

this

reason,' adds the

librarian

very sensibly,

we have

i)laced the

in our catalogue,

we

retain

it

there in the

hope

that

may

be of use to com-

plete

the comparative studies of learned

to be

men

'.'

We

have

no reason

more eighteenth century, and

severe than a Chinese writer of the

as Hioucn-Thsang's

countrymen

find

excuses for his credulity,

we can

also be lenient

on the

subject.

The
gives

strange stories of the Buddhist pilgrim

may
'^.

be put aside,

without affecting the very exact and varied information he

when he speaks

as

an ordinary

traveller

* Stanislas Julien, Mimoires sur les Co7itr4es Ocddenfales, by IliouenTlisang, preface, p. xxvii. ^ It must be admitted that the singular assertions of Hiouen-Thsang are justified by the unquestionable evidence of travellers of our day. Thus in mentioning the Buddha's statues, Hiouen-Thsang states them to be of such enormous dimensions, that they would indeed seem imaginary. In many cases he does not exaggerate, ior in a recent account given by Mr. Robert Fortune, this traveller mentions statues of the liuddha that are 165 feet long. The statues Mr. Fortune actually saw represented him lying down, like the one mentioned by the Buddhist pilgrim. However strange this kjnd pf statue may be, Hiovien-

CH.

ii]

HIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS

235

The

following was Hiouen-Thsang's usual method, and

the strict

that he followed,

and dry manner in which he carries it out, shows and to a certain degree copied, the works of
carefully divided according to the diflferent
it

his predecessors.

The

narrative

is

kingdoms ; moreover

only concerns India and the north-

western frontier countries.

each of the kingdoms he

Hiouen-Thsang begins by giving the length and breadih of visited and, whenever he is able,
;

he makes special mention of the dimensions and circumference

of the capitals.

The

pilgrim seems to have obtained the information

which he carefully transmits

not

so

much from

his

own

personal investigations, as from local tradiiions and Sanskrit

works, to which he had access.

After giving the general dimensions of the
the capital,

kingdom and

and mentioning the

soil
its

frontier countries, the author

its

proceeds to describe the

well

and

principal products, as
qualities.

as

the climate

and

characteristic

He
dif-

ncilhcr forgets the fruits that are

ferent

cultivated,

nor the

kinds

of minerals which the

land contains.

Tliis

more or less concise description of the country is followed' by an account of the inhabitants their habits are described,
;

their

garments are depicted,

use of, or the

their

customs are noted down,

style

and he never omits mentioning the

of writing they
in their

made

money

that

was current

comSee

Thsang's veracity on this point cannot be called in question.

Revue Briianm'que, June, 1857, p. 328. * Thus Hiouen-Thsang, in remarking that the inhabitants of the Soiili country in the kingdom of Baluka, in the north-west of India, have few
Historical Records, adds that they read from top to bottom of the page, and that the alphabet of these people is composed of thirty-two letters {Mimoires stir les Contr^es Occidentaks, p. 13). Further on (ibid. p. 24), it is said that the inhabitants of the kingdom of Kosanna have an alphabet of twenty-five letters, which are combined together to express everything a system that was quite new to a Chinaman and that their books, written across, are read from right to left, &c., &c. It is certain

236

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
Then from
to the

[pt.

11

mercial transactions.

the inhabitants, he passes

on on

governments; and even pronounces an opinion

the merit of the kings they obey,

who do
high

not always
they

possess

the

talents

requisite

for

the

position

occupy.

He

carefully notes

down

the countries that possess

and those
powerless. After
all

that

those in which the law

do not possess a code of laws; as well as is all-powerful, and those where it is

these preliminary details, which are never omitted,

First, the

he comes to the religious part of the narrative.

precise

number of convents are mentioned, as well as the number of monks who frequent and live in them. The sect to which these monks belong is carefully recorded for in;

stance, if they

belong to the school of the Great Vehicle or

the Little Vehicle.

Their customs and habits are even more

;

minutely described than those of the inhabitants

states the sources

and he

also

from which the monks have drawn the

sacred instructions and the discipline which direct them.

He

mentions with admiration their austere charity and their

meritorious exercises
;

if their

conduct

is

disorderly, he does

not hesitate to point out and blame their errors; and he even

goes so

far as to

note the kind of food they

live on, for this is

an important point in Buddhist discipline, which only recognizes

three kinds of food as pure,

and

strictly forbids all other.

After the convents and monks, he notices the works which

have formed the different sects

less

he recalls the more or

famous

titles

of these works, and sometimes analyzes in

a few words the doctrine they contain, approving or contesting

it.

With regard
his

to these literary observations,

less
;

Hiouen-

Thsang's Memoirs are naturally graphy edited by

abundant than the bio-

two disciples

but the two works complete

that these two alphabets of twenty-five and thirty-two letters, and this writing which is read from top to bottom or from Hght to Jeft, dp npt belong tQ Indi^,

eii.

ii]

WoUEN-TkSJNG'S MEMOlk^
and togelLer contain
[

237
iliis

cncli other,

Icnty of information of
rest.

nature,

no

less instructive

than the

But the part of

given most details,
is

his narrative in

which the

traveller

has

that

concerning the Buddha, the recollcc*

lions of his personal presence

more
more or

or less authentic

the
of

monuments

of

all

kinds raised in his honour or for his worship,

the relics treasured

up of his blessed body, the legends collected

or invented about
his followers, the
disciples,

him by

the

less intelligent piety

marvellous traditions about his principal

illustrious

about the most important events, the most

princes, the

most authorized learned men,

&c., &c.

This

is

the

weak

side of the excellent pilgrim's work.

In order to have

a thorough knowledge of Hiouen-Thsang's Memoirs^ and a specimen of his

style,

we

will deal

more particularly with

thirty-four

his

g(^neral description of India.

Hiouen-Thsang, after having described

in his
first

kingdoms

Memoirs, from the kingdom of Agni or Akni, to

that of Kapisa, reaches at last the

Laghman.
the

kingdom of Lampa, now With the kingdom of Lampa that is, beyond Black Mountains or the Hindu Kush India, properly

speaking, begins.

The

pilgrim has now, after

many accidents,
visit
:

entered the country he has

come such a

distance to

the

land of the Holy Faith.

of the

It

would seem as though the Master

view of his subject,

Law

pauses before beginning the detailed narrative of

his exploration, in order to take a general

which he approaches with the greatest respect.

Hence

in the

Memoirs
It

his interesting notice

on

India,

full

of curious details

^\hich certainly

make

it

the most valuable part of his work.

gives a very exact picture of India in the seventh century

it

as

presented

itself to

the observation of pious travellers,

its

and a very precise description of

general features.

Hiouen-Thsang
given to
its

first

studies the

name
is

of the country, and

discovers, after having discussed the various

and confused forms

name, that the true one

that given

by the natives

238
themselves

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
Inlu (Indu).

[pt.

ii

Twelve

hundred years
this

before

Hiouen-Thsang, the country was called by

Herodotus, the
it

name, and

first

under

this

denomination.

also signifies the

who mentions it, always refers to As the word Indu in Sanskrit moon, Hiouen-Thsang endeavours to find
historian

out by the local traditions what analogy could exist between

India and the

moon.
for

After an explanation, half philological and half historical,

which we must take

India, or as he calls

what

it

is

worth, Hiouen-Thsang

next turns his attention to the approximative dimensions of

it

the Five Indias.

He makes
//.

out the
as a
//

whole circumference to be ninety thousand

is

Now,

about a quarter of a mile, by

this

account the total

cir-

cumference ^vould

be about twenty-two thousand miles.

This estimate deserves attention, coming from a

man who for

who on
that

years had travelled over the greater part of India, and

th!s

point was in a position to obtain reliable information.

However,

from

recent

investigations,

it

is

certain
it

Hiouen-Thsang's
important to

figures are exaggerated.

But

would be

know what he

precisely

meant by

the Five Indias,

and what countries he included

India this side
are terms
still

the present day, the boundaries are

Even at somewhat uncertain, for of the Ganges and India beyond the Ganges in use. Moreover Hiouen-Thsang is well
in this vast circle.

acquainted with the

'

geographical
*

configuration

of India.

bounded by a great sea; on the north it is protected by snowy mountains (Himalayas). It is broad at the north and narrow in the south its shape is like that of a half- moon/ It woiild have been more correct
he says, India
is
;

On three sides,'

had he said

'

the shape of a triangle/

are,

All these indications,

vague as they necessarily under his eyes a somewhat

are nevertheless exact in the

like

main, and the Chinese traveller speaks

faithful
it

man

who, having

geographical map, wishes to

give a general idea of what

represents.

CH.

ii]

HtOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS
asserts positively that India was, in
It isdidicult to

239
his
if

Hiouen-Thsang
this

day, divided into seventy kingdoms.

know

number

is

really exact,

although the traveller visited and

describes the greater part of the Indian kingdoms.

^

It

seems, however, certain that in the seventh century of

our era India must have been divided into a number of small dominions, more or
less

independent of one another.

These
at

territorial divisions necessarily

varied a great deal according

to

ihe rapacity of the

petty sovereigns.
all

However,

the

death of the conqueror,

the local sovereignties reappeared

wiih the dissolution of the transient empire which had for

a brief space absorbed them.

to a political partition,

The

country then returned

which would seem to have been as

natural to

it

as

it

was

to Greece.

At the present time, and notwithstanding the uniformity

of a

common

submission to the English

rule, the

peninsula

is

hardly less divided.

Races, languages, religions, sects, and

;

customs are

siill

very varied
different

small states remain

still

very

numerous and very

one from another, even under the

to obey.
It

rower they are

difficult to

all

equally

bound
it

would not be
English
to preserve, the
of,

make

out, in the vast possessions of the

Crown, and

in the native states

has thought

fit

elements of the seventy states Hiouen-Thsang speaks

which

probably existed long before as well as long

In order to

after his time.

make what he has

said of the size of India

better understood, the author tries to give the

names of the
logical con-

principal measures used in the country,

and as a

sequence he goes on to the divisions of time, the names of

the seasons

and months, which he

carefully

compares with

the analogous divisions current in China.

After these general remarks, Hiouen-Thsang explains the

constructions of the cities and villages, the public buildings,

convents
interior

and

private

houses.

Then he mentions
seats,

the

arrangements of the houses, the beds,

orna-

:240

WDDHISM
He

tM INDIA

[pt.

11

mcnts, &c.

attaches great importance to the clothing

of the different classes in India; and after having mentioned

in a cursory

manner

the garments

worn by

the heretics or
all

Brahmans, he dwells with a certain complacency on

details of those
sists

the
in-

worn by

the Sramanas, or Buddhists.

natives,
is

He

on the extreme cleanliness of the

that

and

this trait

of their national character which strikes him,

in reality so

no observer could fail to notice it. At the present time the Hindus are in this respect just as particular as Hiouen-Thsang and Alexander's companions found them;
marked
and
said,

in the last

mutiny the motive or rather pretext of the

mutineers was a personal defilement imposed on them, they

by

discipline,

and which they refused

literature

to submit to.

These purely material

of the morals
pilgrim,

details are followed

by a description
Chinese

and

of India; and the

himself a learned man, gives to this part of his

all

narrative
fact
is

the

impoitance

it

deserves.

One remarkable
the

that,

notwithstanding his Buddhisiical fervour, he does

thorough justice to the intelligence

and labours of

Brahmans, and he begins by

first

mentioning them.

He

describes the admirable writing they

make use

of,

taught

their

them by the god Fan (Brahma) himself; the qualilies of harmonious language the principal books they sludy,
;

at the

head of which he mentions the Vedas; the length of

their studies,

which they carry on

Master of the

till

the age of thirty

the
the

honours and fame which surround the learned and

sages, &c.
If the

Law

mentions wiih such

heretics,

esteem the Brahmans,

still

whom

he considers as

he

is

less

sparing in his eulogies of his brethren, the Buddhists.

He

recalls the eighteen sects

which divide Buddhism and by

their continual

discussions keep

up

its

vitality; the

severe

discipline the

monks bind themselves down

proportional

to; the sacred

books of the Buddha, which are distributed

collections;

in twelve different

the

honours bestowed on tho^e

cii. ii]

IIIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS
is

241
profound,

v'hose knowledge of these books

more or

less

and above
during the

en those who eloquently defend the Law solemn discussions, as well as the shame attending
all

the learned

men who

are vanquished in the controversy;

that pitilessly falls

and

finally the

excommunication

on those
back

whom

neither remonstrance nor reproof have brought

to the right path.

Iliouen-Thsang devotes but a few

lines to the dilTcrcnce

it

of castes, and only describes the four principal ones, as

would take too long, he adds,

briefly

to notice all the others.

He
and

analyzes

the

marriage

laws

of

the

Indians,

particularly

mentions the horror they have of a second

marriage

for

women;
known

their

laws

expressly

forbidding a

woman
It
is

to have a

second husband.
that
this

well

law,

which

is

sanctioned by

relentless

custom, continues to the present day; and that English newspaper in India gave as an unfact,

recently an

precedented

inveterate prejudice, the

and as a great victory of civilization over case of a young Hindu woman

This immense
pri>-

who had
grcss
efforts,

just

married a second time.

was obtained by the English

and
it

authorities after ceaseless

may

well

be considered as great as the

abolition of suttccism.

Hiouen-Thsang then
class

turns

his

attention

to

the

royal

Lmilies, which belong for the most part to the Kshatriya

;

to the soldiers,

who

are divided into the four different

army infantry, cavalry, chariots, and elephants; and the weapons which to the generals commanding them After the they have made use of from time immemorial, &c. war department, the author passes on to the administration of justice he mentions the principal penalties, and describes
forces of the
;
;

with

many

details the judicial ordeals,

which were practised

with admiration at

in India

long before they were renewed by our Middle Ages.

pilgrim seems
filled

The poor Buddhist

242
this
all

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
simple and
infallible

[pt.

ii

manner *of

closing the

way

to

crime/
After

some

details

on

the nine

ways of showing

respect,

from simple politeness of speech to the prostration of the

whole body, Hiouen-Thsang
the different
treats of the funeral rites,

and

ways of paying respect to the dead. He does not forget the strange custom of suicide by immersion in the Ganges; and he considers that nine out of every ten
old

men end
life is

their

days in

this

manner, by which superstition

eternal

said to be assured.

his

Hiouen-Thsang devotes the last three chapters of some general but disconnected considerations on public administration, on agriculture, and on the precious
Finally,

book

to

metals of

all

kinds that India possesses in abundance.

From
In
is

the above analysis of his notice on India, the process of the

Chinese author, and

reality, his

its

merits, will be

clearly seen.

way
same

of understanding and presenting things

as ours
;

exactly the

and a

traveller of the present

day

who would

explore India in order to describe

all its different

aspects would not adopt a different line of conduct.

Many
spirit.

doubtless might lack the clear and sure method of Hiouen-

Thsang; and few would show so

It is true that the investigations

just

and upright a
all is

of the Chinese pilgrim do

is

not go very deep, but everything

in proper order.

noted, and

classed

This in

itself is

a great deal, and although

to
criticize,

modern
curious
this

science

may

find

much

the peculiar
is

talent of exposition possessed

by Chinese authors

a very

phenomenon in the seventh century of our era. At epoch no one in Europe would have been capable of
it

writing such books, and

this singular quality of

is

well to call attention again to

Chinese writers, which has hitherto

generally been ignored.

Leaving aside Hiouen-Thsang's

in the

itinerary

from

his arrival

north-west of India

till

his entry in

Magadha, WQ

CH.
will

ii]

HIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS
lit

243

pause

ih's latter country,

which may be called the

necessary to devote two
one-sixth of his work,

Judea of Buddhism.

The devout

pilgrim has thought

it

whole books of the Si-yu-ki, that

to the description of this

is,

Holy Land.

There

is

no need
for

to

complain of

this, for

the details he gives are so precis e

and any

comprehensive

that they

may

prove extremely useful

future exploration of the localities he has so well described.

The
on a

following are the principal points of Hiouen-Thsang's

itinerary

in^Magadha, and he can be followed step by step

special

map

that has

been drawn up by Mr. Vivien de

Saint-Martin.

On

leaving Nepaul

Thsang
south.

crossed the

and the kingdom of Vaislli, IliouenGanges at Patalipulra\ the Paliboihra

s'.cps to

of the Greeks, actually Patnn, and directed his

the

He

went across the Nairanjana, and

vis'.tcd ihe

ruins

of the convents of Tilasakya, Gunamati and Sll.ibhadra, &c.

He

then returned for the second time to the Nairanjana, and

it

crossing

in a south-westerly direction,
at the
It

reached the city of

almost exclusively

Gaya, inhabited,

moment
in the
it

of his

visit,

by Brahmans.
the

was

neighbourhood of Gaya and

two of
the

mountains

near

that

most venerated
:

monuments of

the Buddhist religion are to be found

the tree

under which the young Siddharlha attained,

of terrible austerities, the state of perfect

after six years

Buddha (Bodhi-

druma) and the Diamond Throne, the Platform of Wisdom

(V^ijrasanam, Bodhimanda) so called, from- the hillock on
' lliouen-Thsang heard, and quotes at length, a popular legend which explains the oris^in of the name Patalipntiapura. Palali in Sanskiit ii the name of a swtel-scented flowering tree {Bignonia suavcolcns, Wilson's Dictionary). Tiie legend relates that under a tree of this species, a ) oung I'rahman was married and lived for a long time. The tree was afterwards miraculously changed into a sumptuous building that the king inhabited with all his court. As the city had been built by the spirits in favour ot the son born to the Brahman under tliis tree, the place was I'ataliputra acquired fresh called 'The city of the son of the Patali? impoitance when the great Asoka made it his capital instead of Kajagriha,

24

BUDDHISM IN INDIA

[pt.

ii

which the Tathagata

called the

are

so

sat when he entered into the ecstasy Diamond Ecstasy (Vajrasamadhi). These places full of monuments that the pious traveller, after
in despair.

mentioning several of them, relinquishes the task

Wherever the Buddha had passed, stupas had been

to perpetuate his great

raised

and precious memory.

his road towards the north-east,

From Gay a he resumed

called

again crossing the Nairanjana, and reaching the mountain

Kukkutapada, or Gurupada.
side

He

then went round to

the

eastern

of the high

mountain, from which the

Buddha gazed
on
called

for the last time

on Magadha, before going

forest of Yashlivana, near

to Kusi-nagara to die.

lie crossed another mountain

Buddhavana, and the great

Kusagarapura, situated

which are two springs of mineral waters, and reached the

city of

in the midst of

high mountains

in

the very centre of

Magadha.

Continuing in a northcity of Rajagriha,

easterly direction he visited the

famous

by the
after the

first

Council held there under the great Kasyapa,

death of the Buddha.

further north he reached the celebrated
for five

About ten miles

years.

convent of Nalanda, where he eventually sojourned

Leaving

Nalanda, the pilgrim continued to travel

northwards in the direction of the

Magadha, he arrived

Garges, and quilting kingdom of Hiranyaparvata. Such is briefly Iliouen-Thsang's itinerary in Magadha, and it is certain that, aided by his Biography and McmoirSy
at the

any

intelligent traveller, attracted to these places

curiosity,

by a

legiti-

mate

would

find

all

the landmarks noted by the

Chinese pilgrim, and the ruins of most of the monuments he

mentions as havin": seen himself^

Most

interesting explorations

have already been made

;

in

Magadha

by

Buchanan (Hamilton) in 1810, India Company, and by Major Kittoe in 1847

Sir Francis

at the expense of the liast

but, for several reasons,

these expeditious failed to produce the desired result^.

CH. n]

HIOVEN-THSANC'B MilMOlRS
expected, the
in
details conlained

S45

As might be
minute

Memoirs do not give the

the Biograjhy concornirg the the most ficquenud 13uclc!hist

magnificent retreat of

Nahmda,
disciples

seminary of the peninsula;

talented

for the latter

was edited by
their
this

ihe

and loving

of the
JSIenioirs

iNlasicr

of the Law.
oflkial

In mentioning Nalanda, the

laconism
school
is
;

retain

however, the picture they give of

great

striking,
It is

and the following passage may be

the previous information.
several

de^

mc d

interesting.

one of the most remarkable pages of the

all

Memoirs, and confirms

'The monks, who were

he

thousands in

number,'

says Iliouen-Thsang, or the editor of the Si-yu-h\ whoever

may have
their

been,

'

were

all

men

of distinguished talents

and deep
by

learning.

Several hundreds of ihem were esteemed

for tlicir virtue,

contemporaries

and

their

fame had
'Jhe

spread to other countiics.

Their conduct was pure, and

they faithfully followed the precepts of their discipline.

rule of this

convent was extremely severe

moreover the

multitude of
discretion.

and took

monks conducted themselves with irreproachable The kingdoms of the Five Indias admired them them as models. Those who followed their teaching

and discussed profound questions with them thought the

days too short.

From morning

to

night they mutually

striving to

admonii hed one anolher,

oU

and young

improve

Those among them who were incapable of treating the abstract matters of the Three Commentaries were held of no account, and were covered with shame.
one anolher.

For

tlus reason, foreign

students desirous of acquiring fame

dispel
their

came

to

this

convent to

doubts,

and soon
in travelling

obtained the fame they sought.

Even

those

who

usurped

their

name

received high honours.

If a

man

of

anolher country wished to enter and take part in the conferences, the cuslodian

would

first

put him some

to

diflicult

questions.

The

majority

were

reduced

silence

and

246
went away
;

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
for
it

[pt.

was necessary to have a thorough know-

ledge of ancient and

admittance.

modern

writings in order to obtain

Consequently students

who

travelled in search

of information had to debate at length to show their capacity;

and seven or eight

generally eliminated.

in

every ten of the

candidates were

If the

remaining two or three seemed

to be well informed, they were interrogated in turn by the

whole Order, and

their learning was put to the severest test. Only those who possessed real talent and vast erudition, a powerful memory, great capacity, high virtue and superior

intelligence,

might associate

their glory with that of

their

predecessors, and follow in their footsteps.'

Here
learned
'

the

Memoirs mention

the

names of some of
:

the

most

monks

of Nalanda, and add

These men of eminent merit were known to all; by their and their knowledge comprised all the rules of the ancients. Each one of them
virtue they surpassed their predecessors,

had written about ten

universally
in

treatises
of,

and commentaries which were

in their

made use

and which

day were held

the

highest esteem.

Around

the

convents, a hundred

sacred edifices might be counted.

To

be

brief,

we

will

only

mention two or

three.'

We
we

will

not follow Hiouen-Thsang in this description,

which he makes much more lengthy than he had intended

will

not even follow him during the remainder of his

travels

throughout the peninsula.

In the

last three

books,

from the Tenth

journey

to the Twelfth, the traveller continues his

till

down mouth of the

till

the banks of the Ganges,

river;
at

he reaches the
the coast- line

he follows, more or
;

less,

he arrives

KanchTpura

he then crosses the peninsula

from east to west, and goes up again north-west to the Indus,

returning through
to the

Hindu Kush and

the northern

Chinese

frontiers, at the extremity of the

kingdoms kingdom of

Kustana.

This immense round from IVIagadha comprises

CH. lO

HIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS
than sixty kingdoms which are
fully

247

no

less

described in the

Memoirs,

The
style in

following passage shows the simple

and touching

which, after furnishing so

many

curious details, these

Memoirs are brought

*

to a conclusion.

We have made known,' they say, 'the mountains and rivers;

described the lands, and portrayed the gentle or barbaric

customs of the inhabitants, connecting them with the nature

of the climate and
soil.

The
and

behaviour of

man

is

not every-

where uniform
same.
It

his tastes

antipathies are not always the

has been a
facts,

difficult

matter to investigate thoroughly

is

many

of these

and

it

impossible to write exactly

about them from mere recollection.

As

the traveller went

through the

diflferent

countries he wrote

down
to

a summary

he cellected evidence furnished by his ears and eyes ; and he

faithfully

noted

the rule of the

*

down the people who wished Emperor of China.

come under

In the countries that witnessed his noble conduct everyhis perfect virtue.

one admired
chariot

Can he

therefore be

comsingle

pared to those

men who

start

on missions with a

Such

is

the ending of the Si'-yu-kt, or

and who post over a distance of a thousand ItV Memoirs on the Western by
this
last

Countries.
It is evident,

cannot have written in

eulogy of his

this

own

virtue

passage, that Hiouen-Thsang manner about himself. Such an does not come from his own pen, revealed in so

and

his modesty,

which

is

many

ways, would

never have permitted his indulging in such an ingenuous

panegyric.
It

has been seen that the Memoirs are richer than the
statistics, to history

Biography with regard to

But,
M'hat
is
still

and geography.
also

more

astonishing, they are

much

richer in all kinds of legends.

It is indeed such blind, or rather foolish, credulity, as that shown by the

difficult to

imagine

24S
Buddhists.

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
As a
is

[pt.

11

general rule, in popular legends the ex-

travagance of the matter

of form

redeemed by a

certain elegance

and

detail.

Sometimes a
that

delicate intention, vaguely

hinted, atones for

much

is trivial

and

foolish.

But

it is

a peculiar and deplorable fact that in most of the Buddhist

legends

it

seems impossible
for their

to discover

any meaning

they

appear to be mere aberrations of the mind, with nothing to

compensate

incomparable

folly.

It

would be easy

to quote a large

number of

these from Hiouen-Thsang's

Memoirs

indeed they can be counted by hundreds.

The following specimens are taken at haphazard, or rather from among the first-mentioned at the beginning of his book. The grave historian had reached the kingdom of Kutch, not far from the mountains now called Musur-Dabaghan, and
near the Lake Temurtu, or
Issikul.

He

has given, with

Chinese exactitude, the dimensions both of

its

this

kingdom and
all

capital.
soil
;

He

has described the climate and the produce

wheat, and minerals of
kinds.

of the

fertile in fruit,

He

has depicted the customs of the inhabitants,

who

are

neither lacking in gentleness nor virtue,

and who have even

custom

a certain taste for the fine

arts.

He

recalls a curious

which

exists to the present

day among these people

that

of flattening the heads of the new-born children by pressing

them under a board.

The

historian even goes further,

and

severely criticizes the king of that country,

who

is

deficient

prudence as well as capacity, and

ministers.
Finally,
in

is

ruled

by powerful

he praises the convents, which are about

in

one hundred

number, and
strict

which he

finds the

monks
in the

subjected to a most

discipline,

and absorbed
in

exercise of meritorious works.

It

wouLl seem that a narrative written

facts,

such a serious
to

manner, and treating of actual

Buddhist reveries.
the following legend

would hardly lead

Suddenly, however, history gives place to

:

CH.

ii]

hioV:N'Ti!sang's
the north of a

M^Mom^
on the eastern

249
frontiers

To

town

situated

of the kingdom, there was in former days a great lake of

dragons (Nagahrada) in front of a temple to the gods.

The

dragons metamorphosed themselves and united themselves

with mares.

These brought
the

forth foals

which partook of the

vicious,
violent,

nature of
difllcult to

dragon.

They were

and

tame;

but the offspring of these

foal-dragons

became gentle and docile. This is the reason why this kingdom produces such a large number of excellent horses.'
It is

easy lo perceive, even in this absurd legend, a trace

; and it would seem probably that the Kutch country, famed for its breed of horses, had been at some recent period ravaged by a horde of Tartars. But what an absurd interpretation Where is the charm of so
!

of some real fact

foolish a story?

What

is

its

hidden meaning?

Wiiat ex-

planation does

it

give of a very simple and intelligible fact,

?

which

it

pretends to supersede and embellish

After this historical and national legend,

we

will

quote

a religious one.

Hiouen-Thsang

finds a

stupa on the banks of a

river.

This stupa had been

built to

commemorate a meritorious
*

action of the Venerable of the Century.

Formerly, in the
*

days of the Buddha,' says Hiouen-Thsang,

five

hundred

fishermen having formed an association, devoted themselves

to netting the denizens of the river.

One

day, in the middle

of the stream, they caught a large fish that had eighteen

heads, each one of which had two eyes.

were about to

kill

it,

the Tathagata,
his

As the fishermen who was then in the

perceived them.

kingdom of
and open

Vaisali, with

divine sight

Filled with pity, he seized the opportunity to convert them,

their

hearts

to

the

true

belief.
:

He
it

therefore

addressed the great multitude and said

of Vriji there
path,
in
is

In the kingdom
into the right

a large fish;

I will lead

order to open the minds of the fishermen;

you

250
must learn
all

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
the circumstances/

[pt.

ii

Then

the Tathagata
air,

left

ihe multitude at Vaisali, raised himself into the

to Vriji to the fishermen,

and went
river

whom
kill

he had seen from a distance

of ninety miles.

When

he reached the banks of the

the fish, to

he

urged the fishermen not to

he
said, to

whom

he wished,
to
it

open the path of happiness by revealing

its

former existence.
giving
it

The Buddha
in

then interrogated the

fish,

the
it

power to reply
had committed

human

speech, and inquired

what crime
fallen so

in its

former existence to have

low and received such an ignoble body.

The

fish

confessed his crimes with deep repentance. a proud and insolent

He

had been and

to

Brahman and had not

But now he recognized

respected the
his sin,

law of the Buddhas.

reward him the Buddha caused him to be reborn in the

palace of the gods.
to

The

fish,

under

this divine

form,

came

thank the Tathagata, and, throwing himself

respectfully

at his feet,

moved

round him, offering him

*

celestial flowers

of a delicious perfume.

The Venerable
this

of the Century,*
*

continues Hiouen-Thsang, the faithful echo of tradition,

the

example as a warning to the fishermen, and explained the Good Law to them. Then,
Venerable of the Century, gave
their hearts

being opened, they showed him sincere respect

and deep repentance.

boats, returned to truth,

They

tore

up

their nets,
faith.

burnt their

and received the

After having

clothed themselves in coloured garments and heard the noble

doctrine, they

renounced the corruption of the world, and

obtained
It

all

the fruits of sanctity.'

stories,

would be easy to quote any number of similar

but we must add that

character

many

other legends of a very different

may

be found in Hiouen-Thsang's Memoirs, some

cf which are not only

more

rational,

but also convey an

exact idea of the facts they perpetuate.

In quoting Hiouen-Thsang as
necessary to

an historian
facts

it

will

be

make a

distinction

between the

he himself

Cii. ii]

HIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS
more or

25I

observed, and those he derives from

traditions.

less authentic

Of all

these, the

most important

relates to the date of the

Buddha's death, or the Nirvana.

What

date

does

the

Chinese pilgrim give, whether derived from the populations

amongst

whom

he dwelt, or from the monuments he

visited,

or from the teachers of the

Law who

instructed him,
fifteen

and
It

whose lessons he followed

is

for
all

more than

years?

well

known

that almost

Indian philologists agree in

the

placing the date of the Buddha's death at 543 years before Christian era. Thus the Nirvana took place about

twelve hundred years before Hiouen-Thsang's time, as he

But what travelled from the years 629 to 645 of our era. was Hiouen-Thsang's own opinion, or rather what traditions did he find still subsisting in the places where the Buddha
lived, and where he died ? Hiouen-Thsang touches on the subject of the Nirvana on two occasions. The first time, he was in the kingdom of Kusi-nagara he had crossed the Ajilavati river, at some distance from the capital, and on his way through a forest had come upon the four sala trees of equal height, under
:

had

which,

it

was

said, the

Tathagata had drawn

his last breath.

In a neighbouring vihara was a statue, representing Joii-lai

at the

moment he

entered Nirvana

he was represented

lying

down, wi.h

his

head turned to the north.

Near

this

ro?e a stupa two hundred feet high,

attributed to

and a stone column

in

King Asoka.
place.
in his

But Hiouen-Thsang sought

vain for any record of the year or

event had taken

month in which this The two monuments were

great
silent

on

this point,

and

pious solicitude he strives to supple-

ment

their silence.
till

Afier stating that the

Buddha remained
it,

on earth

the age of eighty,

and

that he quitted
fifteenth

ac-

cording to some statements,

on

the

day of the

second half of the month of Vaisakha (April-May), and,

252
accordingto

WDDHISM
others, in the

W INDIA
:

[pt.

second half of the month of

Karlika (October-November), he adds

*

From

the Nirvana to the present day

;

some people reckon

;

twelve hundred years

others fifteen hundred

while others

again affirm that more than nine hundred years have elapsed,
but that certainly one thousand years have not
accomplished.'
yet

been

Hiouen-Thsang does not deem

and
This
it

it

his

duty to

decide

between these different opinions; he merely quotes them,

would seem that he took the average estimation.
at least is the

one he appears
for

to adopt

on a

less

solemn

occasion,

when he mentions

the second time the date

of the Nirvana.

He was

then in one of the kingdoms of

?),

Southern India (T'o-na-kie-ise-kia, Dhanakacheka

a mountain, by one of

the western side of the capital he visited a convent built

the"

and on on

former kings of the country, in

honour of the Buddha.

a very long time.
it
*

This convent, although a magnifiafter the

cent edifice, was deserted, and had remained uninhabited for

For a thousand years

(if

Nirvana

had received a numerous throng of monks and laymen,

but for the last hundred years

report)

we

are to believe popular

the spirits of the mountains had

changed

in their

sentiments,
travellers,

and displayed ?o much

justly

violence

and anger,
near

that

alarmed,
is

no longer
reason
it

ventured

the

convent,
either

and

this

the

monks

or novices.'
it

Thus

at

no longer possesses the time Hiouen-Thsang

visited this country,

was commonly believed that the Nirvana had taken place eleven or twelve hundred years before. considered that Hiouen-Thsang It may therefore be
ascribes the

same dale

as

This
that

is

an important
remains on

fact,

and

we do if we
is all

to the

Buddha's death.

recall all the uncertainty

still

this capital

question, the information

the

collected

by Hiouen-Thsang

more

valuable, as

it

concords with our

own

version.

cii.

n]

HIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS
less important,
is

253

Other evidence, no

also
life

forlhcoming.

There
that

is

not a detail

in the

well-known

of the

Buddha
most

Hiouen-Thsang does not mention.

his childhood
life,

From

the

famous incidents of
decisive

and youth,
to
his

to the

most
pious

actions

of his

and

death, the

missionary has omitted nothing; for he found everywhere

traces

of these recollections in the stupas and viharas,

in the ruins of the cities,
trees of the forest.
at

on
and
at

the

columns and
the hill-tops,

on
his

the stones,
birth

on

and the

The
his

education

of the
his flight

Buddha
his

Kapilavaslu,

visions

Lumbini,
with

from the paternal palace,

austerities
at

intimacy
his
first

Bimbisara,
at

Bodhimanda,

sermon

Benares, his long sojourns in Magadha, Rajagriha,

on

the Vulture's Peak,

;

and

in the fertile

domain of Anaiha

Pindika

the contests he sustained, the dangers he incurred,

the conversions he made, the charily he exercised, the influence

he wielded, his endless journeyings

the circumstances of his death
his relics

in

neighbouring provinces,
funeral, the division of

and
all

among
visits to

eight kings

this striking

and simple

story

is

brought back again before the traveller by the monu-

ments he

pay liim

his

homage.

For the learned world, the primitive history of Buddhism

did not require this confirmation, but
it

may be

said even

now, without taking into account the discoveiies which the

future

probably reserves, that there does not exist in the

world another religion of which the origin has been better

attested

by undeniable evidence.
life

After the
the

of the

Buddha and

the date of the Nirv3na,

most impoitant

fact in the history

of Buddhism

is

tl;e

meeting of the three Councils, who successively

canonical writings, and determined the
official

settled the

orthodoxy of the

contents of the Three Commentaries, the Trift'iaka

(Three Baskets), which comprised the Sutras, or the Discourses;

the Vmq)-(z, or
tjje

Discipline; q,nd the 4^bhidharma^ or the

254
Metaphysics.

BUDDHISM IN INDIA

[pt.

ii

our knowledge,

These three Councils have been brought to first by the Sinhalese Mahdvansa, of ^vhich

Tumour
learned

has given both the text and a translation, and then

by the Tibetan Diilva, of which Csoma Korosi made a

analysis.
is

Nepalese tradition agrees with that of

Ceylon (which

much more

ancient) in placing the three

Councils under the same princes.

The

only serious

dilTer-

ences are about the reign of Asoka and the date of the third
Council, which the Sinhalese place one hundred and
fifty

years

earlier.

This point has not been cleared up, and the

of the

history

of the Assemblies

Law and
However

the
that

Buddhist

Councils has yet to

the

be written.

may
to

be,

following information has been

transmitted

us

by

Iliouen-Thsang.

He knew
after the

of three Councils

one that was held immediately

;

death of Sakya-muni

a second one under Asoka

and a

third

under Kanishka, king of Kashmir.

at
it

On
to

the

first

one he dwells

great

length.
far

According

tradiJon,

which he repeats,

was not

from Rajagriha, two miles

house situated
first

from the bamboo grove

Council assembled.

at Kalania, in a large

in the midst of another wood, that the Arahats of the

Kasyapa, who had chosen them

they
the
as

numbered nine hundred and ninety-nine- directed

over the learned assembly.

all

labours from which sprung the Tripitaka, and he presided

Hiouen-Thsang shows him

exercising a kind of supervision, admitting some, excluding

others as unworthy, and only receiving

the condition of his performing a long penance.

been in

retreat for fifiecn days,

Ananda himself on They had when Kasyapa made Ananda

assembly,

take the chair, inviting him to read the Su/ra-Pilaka, or

Commentary on
the profound

the Sutras.

The

who

respected

knowledge of Ananda, which had been recognized by the Tathagata himself, received the Sutras from Then his lips, and wrote them down under his dictation.

CH.

ii]

HIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS

255

Kasyapa ordered Upali lo read the Vinaya-Ptlaka, or Commentary on the Discipline after which he himself read the
;

Abhidharma-Pilaka, or Commentary on Metaphysics.

the

At

end of three months the work of the Council was

finished.
;

The writings of the three Commentaries were collected Kasyapa had them transcribed on palm-leaves, and sent them out all over India. As he had presided over the
monks,
his school

was

called the School of the President

{Sthavlra-Niko) 'a).

Those, however,

who had been

excluded from the Council

by Kasyapa's severity, assembled at a place near there. They numbered several thousands, laymen as well as monks, and, basing themselves on the principle of equality that had always been inculcated by the Tathagala among his disciples, they

deemed themselves
mentaries,
first

in a

fit

state to

make

their

own

Collection

of Sacred Writings.

This they composed of Five

first,

Com-

the three

then a collection of miscellanies,

and a
was

collection of

Magic Formulas.

This second school

called the School of the Great Council {]\fahd-Samghaits

Nikdja), and

partisans

became celebrated under

the

name

of Maliasamghikas.
is

Hiouen-Thsang

much

briefer about the second Council,

which he only mentions

in

a cursory manner.

It

would
it

seem from the somewhat confused

not at Pataliputra precisely, as
it

details given, that

was

is

generally believed, that

was

held, but near that city, in the convent of the

It is all

Cock

(Kukkutarama).

the

more

regrettable that

Hiouen-

Thsang should
that

i:ot

give

more

particulars about this assembly,

he seems to have taken from some Historical Memoirs on

the facts he does mention.

Asoka

This king, who probably

ruled over the whole peninsula, had divided the

into thi-ce parts

Jambudvlpa
to the

and had given them

to the

Buddha,

Law and

the Order.

He

had also divided

his riches in ihe

^ame manner between the Three Gems.

The

Historical

256

BUDDHISM IN INDIA

[pt.

ii

Memoirs Hiouen-Thsang consulted vouch for this. they also mention the Council convoked by Asoka?
]\Ioreover, his statement agrees with the

Did
I'his

would seem probable, but Iliouen-Thsang does not mention

it.

Nepalese tradition

in placing

Asoka's reign, and therefore the date of the second

Council, about one hundred years after the Nirvana

states that

He

is

and he Asoka was the grandnephew of King Bimbisara. a little more explicit about the third Council.
;

Agreeing again with Nepalese

of the Tathagata.

tradiiion, he dates the

assembly

as taking place in the four hundredth year after the Nirvana

According

to his verj^ion,

it

is

also the

who convoked it, at the request of the acharyya, Parsvika. The assembly was composed of all the learned personages who had studied the Three Commentaries, besides the Yiwa Luminous Treatises. They
king of Kashmir, Kanishka,

numbered five hundred, and were presided over by the famous Vasubandhu, the commentator of the Ahhidharmahosa, the
Treasure of Metaphysics.
of the
First,

they collated the writings

Three Commentaries, of which the canon had remained unaltered, and they proposed elucidating the real meaning of these works, which had apparently become obscure. They therefore composed a work in one hundred
thousand slokas called the Upadesa-Sdstra, to explain the

Commentary on
to explain the

the Sutras;

then they composed

one of

a hundred thousand slokas, called the Vinaya-vibasha Sasira^

composed a

third

Commentary on Discipline and finally they work of another hundred thousand slokas
;

called the Abhidharma-vihashd-Sastra^ to explain the

Com-

These three hundred thousand slokas contained nine hundred and sixty thousand words. The king Kanishka had these three works engraven on plates
mentary on Metaphysics.
of copper, and sealed

up

in a stone

box, over which he built

a stiipa
light,'

If their

deep meaning has been again brought to

'

adds

iHiouen-Thsang, or rather his biographer,

we

CH.

ii]

HIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS

257

owe it solely to the labours of this Council/ As HiouenThsang remained two whole years in Kashmir, engaged in
the most serious studies,

and as
in this

for centuries learning

had

been held

in high

honour

kingdom,' these traditions,

attention.

which are moreover so precise, deserve particular

As we have mentioned Asoka

all

it

may

be as well to quote
us about him.

the

information
it

Hiouen-Thsang

gives

Asoka,
but as

would seem, was not born

his

in the Buddhist faith,

soon as
as
is

mind was opened

all

to

the belief, he

resolved to build stupas

over India, to display, at the

fervour

same time
piety.
It

his

power, the

of

his

munificent
tradition,

difficult

to believe, notwithstanding

that

these

stupas

numbered
that

eighty-eight

thousand,
his

but
eyes

Hiouen-Thsang asserts monuments attributed to

Kush, down
the
to the

he saw with

own

this potentate

from the

capital of

Nagahara, at the foot of the Black Mountains of the Hindu

extremity of the peninsula

kingdom of Malakuta, at the southern and from east to west, from kingdom of Tamralipti to the borders of Sindh and
;

even the Persian

that Asoka,

frontiers.

It is

therefore extremely probable

who convoked
of

the second Council, reigned over

almost the whole

India,

and that

his

authority

was

recognized by the multitude of small States which before his

time and after him were divided into separate kingdoms.

This
in the

is

an

historical

fact that

has

a certain importance

annals of India, and which therefore admits of no

doubt.

In another respect, this would lead us to believe that

the Piyadasi of the religious

and moral Inscriptions is, as Turnour maintains, one and the same as the great king Asoka. These pious Edicts, which commended to the people

the observance of the

Law

of the Buddha, have been dis-

covered, repeated in identical terms,

in countries far distant

on columns and
this

rocks,

from each other, and

circumstance

258

BUDDHISM IN INDIA

[pt.

ii

alone would prove that the devout monarch who promulgated them ruled over almost all India. This is another point of resemblance between Hiouen-Thsang's Asoka, and the

Asoka of the
present

Inscriptions.

Chronology, according to our

difficulties

knowledge, opposes insurmountable

;

in

the identification of these two

but

it

is

very possible that

with fresh discoveries these difficulties will disappear.

It

has therefore been seen, that in the days of Hiouenthe whole of India
principalities,

Thsang
of small

was divided
distinct

into a multitude

each

and independent of
of

one another.

Nothing

in the traveller's narrative reveals the cause

partition,

this political

which

seems to have existed from

it

a remote period.

Sometimes

might be explained by

differences of race, or natural obstacles that

limits to provinces.

impose

definite

But, generally, there

is

no such reason,

and States are

isolated

from each other, although nothing

Doubtless
these small

exists in the nature of the soil, customs, language, beliefs,

or races to divide them.

all

local

administrations had their reason for existence, but history

does not give the reason, though

to have created

it

was powerful enough

preserved their
that

agglomerations,

if

not nationalities, which

time has not destroyed, and which have

autonomy, notwithstanding
agitated the peninsula.

all

the

convulsions

have

The most
less

powerful prince

with was Siladitya, the king of Kanyakubja.

whom Hiouen-Thsang met He had no

and on
him.
the contest between the

than eighteen tributary kings under his rule;

as, for instance,

solemn occasions,

Great and Little Vehicle, he

made them accompany

to

However,
the

in

spite

of

all

his

power, Siladitya, even with

help of his

vassals,
is,

had not been able

conquer

Maharattha, that

the

country of the Mahrattas, situated

in the centre of India.

Even

at

that

remote period,

this

CH.

ii]

HIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS
to defend
its liberty,

259

warlike race, which was the last to submit to the English

rule,

knew how
all

and protect

its

frontiers

from

invaders.

The

picture

Hiouen-Thsang gives of
qualities of this people.

them conveys a high idea of the

'

Siladitya led his victorious armies

'

from

east to west,' says

Hiouen-Thsang,
obeyed him.
to his laws.

and

the

most

distant nations tremblingly

But the men of

this

kingdom never submitted

at

Although he had placed himself

the

head

of

all

the troops of the five Indias,

and

called

under his
led into
their

standard the

bravest

generals

of the

States he

combat,
resistance

he had not yet

;

succeeded in overcoming
their unyielding character

this

will

show

and

indomitable valour.'

still

more remarkable
and
this
is

fact

was

that,

notwithstanding

their warlike

temperament, the Mahrattas were passionately

testimony the traveller readily
it ;

devoted to study;

gives them, although he

not lavish of
:

in fact, he only

bestows

upon three or four races those of Kashmir, Magadha and Malwah. The Great and Litde Vehicle were
it

both followed in

Maharattha, where several hundreds of

about
five

convents existed, containing

thousand monks.
heretical

The two

sects lived

there in

harmony, and the

Brahmans were almost as numerous as the Buddhists. This happy country was particularly favoured: its ferdle soil produced corn in immense quantities, the climate was mild and the heat moderate. The inhabitants were simple and gentle in their habits, lived in comfort, and were in general tall of stature and possessed of singular strength. Siladitya, king of Kanyakubja (Central India), had succeeded his elder brother, who had perished a victim to the
treachery of a neighbouring prince jealous of his military
talents.

He

devoted himself to the happiness of his people

like

his ancestors he

belonged to the caste of the Vaisyas; and

R 2

26o
doubtless
this

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
humble
origin

[pt.
.

ii

inspired

him with greater

forbade through-

sympathy towards the inferior classes.

He

out his dominions the slaying of a single living being, and Full of zeal for the allowed no meat to be consumed.

Buddhist

faith,

generations, he the saints

cently

which his family had professed for many had founded convents at all the places where had left traces of their passage and had magnifi;

endowed

the great vihara of Nalanda.

Siladitya's generosity

was as great

as his piety,

and once

a year he fed this multitude of

days.

monks during

three or seven

Besides

this,

every five years he assembled the Great

Order of the Deliverance [Moksha mahd panshad), and disHiouentributed in alms all the riches of the royal treasury.

Thsang does not

legends.

hesitate to

compare

his beneficence to that

of the famous Sudana (Sudatta), the Anatha Pindika of the

This distribution of alms, not only

to
all

to the

monks
is

but

also

the

poorer classes of the population,

a characteristic institution of Buddhism, and one that has

been retained.

The Buddha had

princes;
virtue,

not

made

this

an absolute law

for

recommending almsgiving as the chief he had strongly urged it upon them and this singular
but
in
;

custom partly replaced,

in those

remote days, the benefits

of the poor-laws in the present time.

As Hiouen-Thsang
it,

personally assisted at one of these solemn distributions, and

as, his

biographers have retained his account of

we

are

able to

know how

it

was

carried out,

and

it

is

certainly

one
at

of the

most curious spectacles afforded by Buddhism

that period.
It

will

be remembered that the Buddha had instituted

public confession as

an atonement

for

sin,

and

that

the

monks were

and salutary confessions twice a month; at the new moon and at the full moon. From the monks this pious custom had extended
obliged to
these
painful

make

CH.
to

ii]

HIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS
whole

261

the

body of

believers;

but,

as

such frequent

gatherings would have been prejudicial to the working-classes

and

the multitude

who had

to gain their daily subsistence, the

force of circumstances had

institution.

somewhat modified
all

the primitive

The
as
it

people were assembled every three years,

or at least every five years, in order that

might confess,
Piyadasi's

and

settle,

were,

all

their

past offences.

religious edicts leave

no doubt on this point, and HiouenThsang's testimony, relating what he himself witnessed, These assemblies were the thoroughly confirms them.
natural opportunity for royal liberalities
the real
first
;

but, litde

by

little,

meaning of

the institution died out, confession

neglected, then forgotten;

but the occasion for

was and the gathering became giving and receiving sumptuous alms.
relates.

This was what the Chinese pilgrim saw, and what he

He
India,

was

at that

time in the kingdom of Prayaga, in Central

principalities

one

of

the

that

acknowledged

the
the

suzerainty of Siladitya.

Near

the capital

two

rivers,

Ganges and

the

Jumna, united;

to the west of their con-

fluence rose a plateau, about four miles in circumference.

From
with
It

the days of antiquity, kings

feelings'

and high personages

this

'

gifted

humane

went to

place to bestow alms.

had therefore been

According to

called the Great Plain

tradition,
it

giving.

of the Almswas more meritorious to

in singular

give one coin at this place, than to give a hundred thousand

coins elsewhere.

At

all

times

it

had been held

esteem
of his

and the king Siladitya, in this a scrupulous imitator predecessors, had gone thither to perform the generous
;

and sacred ceremony. He first had a square space enclosed by a hedge of reeds, measuring a thousand feet on each side. In the middle several thatched halls were erected, containing an abundance
of precious things, ingots of gold and
silver, pearls,

red glass,

and rare gems of every kind.

Other houses contained also

262
a quantity of
&c.

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
silk

[pt.

ii

and cotton garments, gold and

silver coins,

Outside the

hedge an immense refectory was

built

and
been

as the distribution

was

to last a long time, a

hundred

houses, each capable of sheltering a thousand individuals, had

built in

a straight row, like

stalls in

a market.

Some
decree

time previous to the event, the king had

all

summoned by

the

Sramanas and

heretic

Brahmans, orphans and men

Since the beginning of his

without families, and the poor, in order that they might have
their share in the distributions.

reign he had already held five similar assemblies, this one

was the

sixth

and Siladitya

specially invited

Hiouen-Thsang
it

to this festival in order that he

might witness the happiness

promoted.

The king

arrived in great state, followed

by

his

eighteen tributary kings, amongst

whom

were

his son-in-law

Dhruvasena, king of Vallabhi in Southern India, and Kumara,

king of Eastern India.
tent in different places,

Each of
one

these kings had pitched his

to the north of the

Ganges, the

other to the west of the confluence, and the third to the

south of the Jumna, by the side of a flowering grove.

The

men who had come

sena's tents.

to receive the

alms numbered several

at the

hundred thousands, and were placed

Military forces

west of Dhruva-

accompanied the kings, and

if

took up the positions assigned to them, ready

maintain order.

necessary to

Moreover, everything was carried out in

a methodical manner.
Religion necessarily presided over these
beneficence.
installed in

acts

of great

The

first

day a statue of the Buddha was

one of the thatched temples erected on the Place

of the Almsgiving, and precious things

and

rich

garments
In the

were

distributed.

Exquisite viands were served, and flowers

to the

were scattered around

evening
all

sound of sweet music.

retired to their tents.

Thus

the whole ceremony

was placed under the protection of the Buddha, in whose name it was held. As at that epoch the people were as

CH.

ii]

HIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS
were pious, the second day they

263
installed

tolerant as they

Sun-god (Aditya) adored by the idolaters; but this time the distributions were only half of what they had been on the previous day. The third day the statue of the Supreme God (Isvara) was installed, and the same amount of alms were distributed as at the
installation

in another temple the statue of the

of

the

Sun-god.

All

the

different

religions

practised by these nations were treated

cedence

with

except
in

as to prelife

the

same

respect

and as

ordinary

they co-existed without contest or persecution, the kings did

not set them apart in their beneficence any

did in their protection.

more than they

and

On

the fourth day the general distributions began,

first

they were

made

to the

monks, the

fervent apostles of the

Buddha's

faith.

Then

the distribution

was extended

to the
it

Brahmans, and

as they were

much more numerous,

lasted twenty days.

After them
days,

came

the turn of the heretics, which took

up

ten

and

that of the

naked mendicants {nirgranihas) from

lastly

distant countries,

which lasted another ten days,

orphans, the
poor,

alms

were given
families,

to

the

and men without

than a month.

which distribution took up no

less

The seventy-five days assigned to the distribution had now come to an end. All the wealth stored up during five years in the royal treasury was exhausted. The king had nothing
left

him but

the
for

elephants,

horses,

indispensable
the

the

protection

of

and weapons of war kingdom and his

cause
all

punishment of those who might

disturbance.

Personally, he

had given away

in

alms

he wore, the best

part of his garments, his necklaces, earrings, bracelets, the

wreath round his diadem, the pearls that adorned his neck,

and the carbuncle

hair,

that glittered in the

middle of his

tuft

of in fact he had divested himself of everything he After having exhausted all his riches, he begged possessed.

264
his
sister

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
to

[pt.

ii

having clothed himself with

of the ten
his

him a common worn-out garment, and it, he worshipped the Buddhas regions, and in a transport of ecstasy he joined
give
:

hands, exclaiming

In collecting

all

these riches and

costly things, I constantly feared that I should not be able

to conceal

them

in a safe

and impenetrable

place.

Now

have been able to deposit them in the Field of I wish in all my Happiness^ I consider them safe for ever.
that
I

future existences thus to collect wealth in order to give alms

to

men, and obtain the ten divine

faculties in

all

their

plenitude.'

Some
bought

time after

this,

the

eighteen tributary
the people of their

kings collected large sums of

States

money from

and

back

the

magnificent

necklace,

the

carbuncle of his head-dress, the regal vestments, &c., that the

king Siladitya had given in alms, and brought them -back

to

him as an

offering.

But

in a

few days the king's raiment

in alms,

and the jewels of greater value were again bestowed

like the first time.

This

is

Hiouen-Thsang's account
;

and he did not merely

relates,

repeat what he had heard

it

he had seen what he

and
have

would be

difficult to refute his assertions.

He may

exaggerated

certain details,

and the

distributions

of alms
says, but

may

have been somewhat

less

abundant than he
;

the principal points of his narrative must be true

he most

formally attests the existence of a custom created by religion,

and maintained by the social condition of these enslaved and unhappy people not only in one part but over the whole The Law of the Buddha enjoined almsgiving, and of India. It would have political reasons no less urgently dictated it.
been dangerous
gifts

for the sovereigns not to

have returned in

a part of the riches they extorted by taxation from

their subjects,

and

it

would have inevitably roused

to despair

and rebellion the impoverished masses who

to their rulers

readily submitted

provided they were given a bare subsistence.

CH.

ii]

HIOUEN-THSANG'S MEMOIRS

265

Prudence therefore came

while deeming that

to the aid of piety, and the kings, by almsgiving they were securing a place

in the Tushita heaven, secured also for themselves a peaceful

and durable

authority.
still

more astonishing is the general tolerance Hiouen-Thsang only mentions one or two kings who had tried lo overthrow Buddhism in
is

What

of both princes and people.

their States.

If Sasangka, king of

Karnasuvarna

in

Eastern

India,

'

abolished

the

Law, and destroyed

the

Tree of
that

Wisdom,' the majority of the sovereigns display on the

contrary great forbearance, and
it

would not seem

any

of them had ever thought of coercing their subjects in the

matter of their religious

beliefs.

This

spirit

of toleration cannot be ascribed either to reason

or to indifference, for the Buddhist nations were too ignorant

of justice and devoid of intelligence

while on the other

their religious

hand

it

cannot be ascribed to indifference, as

is

fervour

shown by

the quantity of

monuments

they have

raised in

honour of

their faith.

Cities lay in ruins, iheir walls

crumbled to

pieces, while

the stiipas

and viharas

still

re-

mained standing; nothing, indeed, seemed

the downfall of this religion, for

to foreshadow

new

sacred edifices were

constantly being built.

They

fervently believed the ancient

dogmas
it

they sincerely respected tradition, however strange

;

might be

their hearts

were warm, and nevertheless they

remained tolerant towards other

beliefs.

and even antagonistical

fact

We
it ;

can

therefore

only state this

without

explaining

and the Indian mind

all

in general,
it

even more
re-

than the Buddhist, deserves

credit, for

must be

membered
history

that the

Brahmans were
is

as kindly towards their

adversaries as the latter were to them.

In

all

the ancient

of Brahmanism there

not a single record of

although a reformer,

a religious persecution.

The Buddha,

had

in this faithfully imitated

Brahmanism, and he never,

266
in the

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
whole course
of his long career,

dreamt of turning

the influence of the princes

religious

who

protected him against his

against
theirs;

He was satisfied with contending antagonists. them by doctrines which he considered superior to but he never tried to use compulsion, and the
of the

whole
In

spirit

new

faith

held violence in abhorrence.

this

Hiouen-Thsang's

time

happy

state

of

things
to

remained unaltered, and the struggle that was to lead

the expulsion of

the

Buddhism had not yet begun. What was condition of Buddhism in India in the middle of the
of the Christian era, and
tell

seventh century
precise

what does the

and devout pilgrim

all

us on this subject.?

He

will
;

doubtless not give us

the information

we should wish

but on the religious worship and the different sects he will

furnish us with

many

details that

will

greatly interest us,

excite

although

their

ingenuous puerility

may sometimes

a feehng of contempt.

CHAPTER

III.

Buddhist worship in India in the seventh century of the Christian era its simplicity, worship of statues, the important part they play in Buddhism. Moving or flying statues, miraculous cures ; relics of the Tathdgata and other saintly personages. Imprints ofthe Buddha s Absence of organization The Maitreya Bodhisatwa. footsteps. among the hidian Buddhist monks. Relation of Buddhism with Brahmanism in the seventh century. Buddhism divided into two sects: the little and the Great Vehicle. Relation of the two principal sects ; subordination of the Little Vehicle; its secondary sects. Course of Buddhist studies at the time of Hiouen- Thsang. His intercourse with illustrious learned men. Summary of Indian Buddhism.

At

the time of

Hiouen-Thsang's
for twelve

travels in India

Buddhism
that
for
it

had already existed

retained

hundred

years,

and during
;

long period the form of worship had not varied

its

had

simplicity,

although superstition had increased

of the

with the legends.

The images

Buddha and

his relics

were

still

worshipped, as well as the monuments which con-

had been erected on the spots sanctified by the presence of the Reformer. Flowers were scattered and perfumes burnt before the statues, offerings of silver and
tained them, or which

precious things were

visited,

made

to them, the stupas

were piously
for

and prayers,

either
;

mental or improvised

the

occasion, were recited

prostrations and clasping of hands as

still

tokens of respect were

made use

of;

occasions, public worship was accompanied

and on solemn by music. The

ceremonial, however, remained the same as at the outset,

simple and inexpensive.

sively to the hearts

and minds of

Buddhism addressed itself excluthe faithful, and disdained

268
external
its

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
pomp
;

[pt.

ii

and

sacrifices,

which by

all

the minutiae of

exercises held such

an important place

in the

Brahmanic

religion,

had completely disappeared

in the religion of the

Tathagata.

As

the

Buddha had never claimed

to

be a god,

it is

evident
to

that he never prescribed the

form of

v^^orship that

was

be

rendered to him,
institution of this

legend, however, attributes to him the

it

form of worship, which

relates in the

following manner.
'

Rudrayana, king of Roruka, had sent Bimbisara, king

Bimbisara, not knowing
consulted the Buddha,

of Rajagriha, a magnificent suit of armour endowed with

miraculous

virtues.
gift,
:

such a valuable

how to requite who at that time

"

was

at his court

"

Let the image of the Tathagata be drawn

on a
shows

piece of cloth," replied Bhagavat,

'

and send

it

as

a present to Rudrayana."
little

It will

be seen that

this advice

humility
life

on

the part of the Buddha,

and nothing
But

in Sakya-muni's

authorizes a belief of such conceit.

;

the legend quietly ignores this

his

the Tathagata therefore casts

to
fill

shadow upon a

cloth,

and orders the painters

to inscribe

in the

outline with colours,

and
both

under the portrait the

his teaching,

Formulas of Refuge and the Precepts of

omitting to
the
trace,

not

in

its

direct

and inverse
inestimable

order,

Connective

Chain of Converse Causes of existence.

this
gift,

Rudrayana
worships
it

respectfully receives

and

with deep veneration, as Bimbisara had instructed

him to do in a previous letter announcing his present. Such is, according to the legend, the origin of the form of worship. Only, in course of time, and by the very force of
circumstances, statues were substituted for the less durable
pictures,

and they play an important part

in

Buddhism.

They are extremely numerous, and often of an enormous size. The statues generally represent the Tathagata in the attitude of meditation or rather of teaching the right arm is uplifted
:

CH.

Ill]

BUDDHIST WORSHIP IN INDIA

is

269

and the gesture of the hand

his disciples.

that of a

master speaking to
that are visible of

They bear

all

the

marks

the thirty-two signs pertaining to a great

tradition ascribed to the

man, and which

statues figured in

Buddha.

These

great

pomp on

all

occasions to which a solemn or religious

character was attached.

This did not, however, constitute idolatry ; but the merits

these
statues

possessed,

by preserving the image of the

were not the only
with; superstidon attributed to
to strike the imagination.

Buddha, and recalling

qualities they

his holy presence,

were endowed them many others better calculated

Nothing
or
fly
is

more common

in the legends than statues that

far distant places.

move

Near Purushapura in Gandhara (Peshawar) Hiouen-Thsang saw a stupa which, although in ruins, still measured 150 feet high, it had been built by King Kanishka. A hundred paces south-west of this stupa, was a white stone statue of the Buddha, eighteen At this feet in height, with its face turned to the north. spot,' says Hiouen-Thsang, a great number of miracles take
through space from
'
'

place

and the

statue

is

often seen to move, during the night,

round the great

stupa.'
if it

Thus
be seen
seen
it

the pilgrim speaks of this prodigy, as

in his day.

could

still

He
it

does not, indeed, boast of having probable that with a

it,

himself,

but

is

little

more
other

fanaticism he
believers.

would have witnessed

like so

many

The
statue

miraculous appearance of two statues of the Buddha

of

had formerly converted the kingdom

Kustana.
air, in

One

had come
his

to

Kashmir

through the

answer to

the prayers of a former king,

who had gone

head of

army.

The

statue

to meet it at the had followed the monarch for

some
it

time, but

when

had stopped.

it reached the city of Po-Ki'a-I {Vo^2J\ ?), In vain did the king unite his efforts to

those of his soldiers to

move

it

no human power was able

270
to dislodge
it.

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
statue.

[pt.

ii

the

They therefore erected The king had given his

to

a small chapel over

cap,

enriched with
;

precious

and Hiouen-Thsang gazed at the ex-voto with an admiration that was shared by all those who were admitted to see it. The it had story of the second statue was no less extraordinary
stones,
;

adorn the head of the Buddha

come

at the

prayer of another king, and had placed

it
;

itself in
it

a convent, on a throne prepared to receive

and

was

so the Chinese pilgrim was informed

that the
writings.

the very

same image

Buddha had
of
the

left

to his

disciples with the sacred

Some

Tathagata's

miraculous powers.

In the

sixty miles east of the capital

were endowed with Pi-mo (Bhima .?) about of Khotan, Hiouen-Thsang saw
statues
city of

a statue thirty
it

feet high, representing the

its

Buddha standing
its

was remarkable for the beauty of

stern attitude.
It

shape, and

serious

and

was supposed

to effect infallible cures

in favour of those
ill,

who invoked Bhagavat.

in the

When

man was

a leaf of gold was stuck on the statue at the spot corre-

sponding to the seat of pain

mediately cured.
this statue

man, and he was im-

Moreover, the vows and petitions made to

were nearly always crowned with success.

As
the

the statues of the principal Buddhist personages also

received the
visit

homage of

the faithful,

Hiouen-Thsang

relates

he devoutly paid to Avalokitesvara's statue in the

kingdom of Hiranyaparvata. It was placed in a vihara on the summit of a mountain, and was made of sandal-wood. at all times It was also the object of pious pilgrimages a numerous throng gathered around it to worship it, after severely fasting for a week or two. A balustrade kept the faithful at a proper distance, and as the statue could not be
;

touched, the flowers offered

it

were thrown from

it

afar.

If the

garlands that were respectfully thrown at

hands or arms of the statue

it

on the was considered a good omen.

settled

CH.

Ill]

BUDDHIST WORSHIP IN INDIA

therefore
then,
all

271
kinds of

flowers

'The Master of the Law bought and wove them into garlands,

when he got near

all

the statue, he worshipped the Bodhisatwa in

the sincerity

of his heart and celebrated his praise.

to his image, he

After which, turning

bowed low
:

before
'

it,

and addressed

to

it

the

three following petitions

I

After

having studied in India

wish to return to

my
all

native land,

and

live there in perfect

tranquillity, far

from

danger.
settle

As an omen

of success

ask

that

these

flowers

Secondly, as

on your venerable hands. a consequence of the virtue I cultivate and the

be born one day in the heaven
If this

may

wisdom

I aspire to, I desire to

of the Tushitas and serve Bodhisatwa Maitreya.

granted, I pray that these flowers
able arms.

be

may

settle

on your vener-

Thirdly, the holy doctrine teaches us that in the

multitude of

men

of this world, some are in no ways gifted

I,

with the nature of the Buddha;

Hiouen-Thsang, have
if

doubts about myself, and I do not

If therefore I possess within

know
can

am

one of these.
turn

me

the nature of the Buddha,

in

and

if,

by the
I

practise of virtue, I

my

become
settle

Buddha,

beg

that these garlands of flowers

may

on

your venerable neck/

Saying

this,

he threw the garlands

of flowers, and each one settled according to his wishes.

Then, having obtained

a transport of joy.
like

all

he desired, he gave way to

persons near him,

At

this sight, the

who

him had come

to worship the statue,

and the guardians

If at

of the vihara, clapped their hands and beat the ground with
their feet in

token of their admiration.

attain the state of a
this event,
is

a future

time,'

they said,
that

you

Buddha, we ardently hope

you

will

remember
of

and make us pass among

to say, to Nirvana
)

the

first (to

the other shore, that

relics

\'

The worship

fervent as that of the statues.

was as widespread and almost as It will be remembered that

et des

* See Stanislas Julien, Histoire de la vie Thsang, p. 172.

voyages de Hiotun-

272
after the

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
death of the Buddha, his
parts,

[pt.

ii

eight

them.

relics had been divided in amongst as many kings, who contended for As the body had been burnt, these relics could hardly

consist of anything but

easily transformed

ashes. But popular superstition and multiplied them. In the days of

che-H,

Hiouen-Thsang, the

as

he

calls

them

in

Chinese

{sarJras, body, in Sanskrit),

were very numerous, and he found

some

in almost every part of India.

take back a collection of

It is

easy to

He was able even to them to China, as well as statues. comprehend that sariras^ that is, fragments of
relics
;

the actual

body of Sakya-muni, were the most holy

eyeball of the
his

but

they were not the only ones.

besides the

In the kingdom of Nagarahara,

Buddha, and the bone of

staff

his

cranium {usnisha),
at Baktra, besides

garment and

were preserved;

one of

his teeth, his water-jug

at the other

and broom

were shown;
ra

at

Kongkanapura,

extremity of

the peninsula, the statue of Siddhartha, prince royal

raja),

and

his

cap were treasured up

left

doubtless

it

{Kumdwas the
it was up and

one he gave Chandaka, when he

this

the paternal palace

festival

cap was about two

feet high.
it
'

At each
of those
it

taken from the box where

placed on a high pedestal,
plate
it,'

was

carefully locked

Many
'

who contem-

adds Hiouen-TJisang, and worship

in perfect faith,

have seen
the

it surrounded by an extraordinary light.' It is same with those who, gazing at the imprints which the

Buddha's steps have

possess,

left

in

many

places, see these traces

either long or short according to the virtue they themselves

them.

and especially according to the fervour that animates At this rate miracles are easy, and the excited im-

aginations of believers can produce as

many
teeth

as they wish.

Amongst

the

personal

relics,

the

play the

most

important part.

Hiouen-Thsang saw a dozen of them in the different parts of India he travelled over, and he asserts that his protector. King Siladitya, was on the point of under-

ctt.

ml

BVt>t)Htst

Worship in india
the

273

taking a war against the king of

refused to give

Kashmir because he had

teeth.

him one of
shorter than

Buddha's
others,

This one,

although

much
it

many
we

was an inch and

*

a half long,

was of a yellowish white colour,

light,' if

and

at all

times emitted a bright

missionary,

are to believe the devout

it

who was

allowed to contemplate

in the

con-

vent where the pious king had deposited

it.

There was
Ceylon.
Singalese

another no less famous in

the

king's

palace in

We

shall

revert to this

later,

when

treating of

Buddhism.

The

footprints of the

Buddha

are almost innumerable

as the Tathagata, according to tradition, visited the greater part of the peninsula
;

and the credulity of the

faithful

as

well as the trickery of the

monks

greatly assisted in

making
stones,
in the

them

visible.

These marks were usually imprinted on

and

the

most famous were those on Adam's Peak

island

of Ceylon, where the

It

Buddha had

certainly

never
is,

gone.

was

called

Sripada,

or Prabhat,

that

th6

Blessed foot.

The king Asoka was

places where the

said to have raised stupas at

left

all

the

Buddha had
be
carsily

traces of his footsteps,

and

it

will therefore

understood how tradition had

eighiy-fcur thousand;

made
Law.

these stupas attain the

number of

they were also called the eighty-four thousand Edicts of the

At the
and even

side of the worship of the

Buddha, by a deviation

easy to understand, the worship of his principal disciples,

that

of personages famous by their virtue and

knowledge, had followed that of the Buddha himself.

Thus

at Maihura, in Central India, Hiouen-Thsang found stupas in which had been deposited the relics of Rahula, the son

of Sakya-muni and of Ananda, his cousin and faithful adherent,

those

of Upali,

who compiled the Sutras who compiled

of the
the

first

Council
at

and

Vinaya

the

same

274
Assembly, of
yamputra, the

WdD^Bm
Moggallana, of
first

in INDIA
Saripulra, of

[t.

11

Purnamaitra-

disciples of Tathagata,

and of Manjusri,
in

a no less celebrated ascetic, though he lived some centuries

later.

Every year, on

feast days, the

monks assembled

great number, and each one made offerings to the who was more particularly the object of his devotion.
votaries of the

saint

The

Abhidharma made offerings to Sariputra, and those who gave themselves up to meditation (the Dhyana ecstasy) made them to Moggallana. The partisans of the Sutras paid homage to PurnamaitrayanTputra and those who studied the Vinaya honoured Upali. The nuns, the Bhikslmnis, specially honoured Ananda. The faithful who had
;

not yet received

Lastly, those

all

the rules of discipline honoured Rahula.

all

who

studied the Great Vehicle honoured

the

Bodhisatwas without distinction.

As
in

for

Hiouen-Thsang, he appears
for

to

have

felt

a special
the boat

reverence

the

Maitreya Bodhisatwa.

When

which he

w^as

descending the Ganges was surprised by

])iratep,

and

his life threatened

him

to the altar

he addressed his

by the ruffians, who dragged on which they were about to sacrifice him, prayers to Maitreya and not to the Buddha
his thoughts

on him alone does he energetically concentrate

it

is

this

Bodhisatwa
spirit is

whom

he sees appear in the ecstasy

at this

into
it

which his
to

plunged

supreme moment, and

his career,
all

is

the all-powerful intervention of this saint, that he

attributes his deliverance.

at

At the end of
he
recalls

when,

the

point of death,

to

mind

the

good

deeds he has accomplished, and dictates a

his

list

of them to

sorrow-stricken

disciples,

he boasts that he has had

a thousand images of the IMaitreya

Bodhisatwa painted

and

his

most ardent wish,

life,
'

at

this

moment when he
full

is

quitting

is

to

be admitted into the family of Maitreya

in Tushita, in order to serve this

Buddha, so
recites

of tenderare

ness and affection.'

The Gathas he

when dying

CH.

Ill]

BUDDHIST WORSHIP IN INDIA

and
at the very instant

275

addcessed to Maitreya;
spirit is

when

his
last

vanishing, he

tells his

disciples

that

he has at

obtained his wish to be born in the midst of Maitreya's

Assembly/
to

Thus

the simple Bodhisatwa Maitreya seems

hold as high a place

as

the

Buddha himself

in

the

W'Orship of the learned missionary. All these details clearly

show

the condition of Buddhist

:

worship in the days of Hiouen-Thsang

it

was a
those

spiritual

homage rendered
best

in the

first

place to the holiness and virtue

all

of the Tathagata, and in the second to

followed
full

who had
worship
;

his

incomparable

example.
all
it

The

was
and

of meekness and devoid of

costly state

it

was

accessible to the very humblest, since

flowers,

only required prayers

these modest
the
offerings

offerings

and the fiiith that accomj)anied was deemed more precious than

themselves.

No

privileged class

was entrusted with the pious exercises

in holy orders, for this ex-

and ceremonies.
pression
is

The monks

applicable to them, did not form part of a regular

faithful,

or general corporation, they were respected by the

because they were thought to possess more knowledge and

virtue than the
official

common

herd

but they did not exercise any

power.

They appear

to have

been

subject, in the rich

convents and viharas they inhabited, to a uniform discipline

which dated from ancient times, but, numerous as they were,

they were neither organized nor united under one
direction.
its

common
its

Each

vihara or sangharama kept apart and had

own

administration, just as each province retained

own
of

government.
division,

Religion
there

had

not

overcome the
that

spirit

and

was no more
unstable

spiritual

than political unity.

The

separate

and

supremacies

sometimes

existed with regard to the land,

had never been attempted

faith rested

with respect to religion.

identity of the writings

The common
s
2

on the
;

which were univerrally venerated

it

276

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
its

[pt. if
tradition;

was maintained by
it

own power and by

but

did not

require

that vast hierarchy

which has proved

fact is

indispensable to other nations.

This singular

borne

out by Hiouen-Thsang's testimony, and the evidence from

a different point of view

foundations

contained

in the

Sutras.

Pious

were

flourishing

everywhere,

from

Kashmir

down

to the extreme point of the peninsula.

Created by

the munificence of kings and the piety of believers, they were

kept up by them and existed by their beneficence

they

were as opulent as they were numerous, but

it

would not

seem
all

that the

monks

ever thought of uniting under one rule

these scattered elements, in order to constiiute a

irresistible.

power

which would probably have proved

This usurpation took place

in

the neighbouring states^

notably in Thibet, where the supremacy of the Grand

Lama

had

established itself; but in India

to

it

was not even attempted,

details

and the idea never seems

have occurred to any one.

about the altitude

Hiouen-Thsang gives us very few of Brahmanism in the presence of

its

rival,

which seems

in

general to have enjoyed an easy triumph.

The Brahmans
discuss classed
little

with

whom

Siddhartha formerly dicussed

;

no longer, they are called heretics the Vedas are amongst secular books, and they are henceforth so

feared, that they are studied in the convents on the same footing as philosophy, grammar, logic and medicine. This was doubtless a painful position for the old Brahmanic

orthodoxy, but no
traced.

symptom of

revolt or persecution

can be

'

History does not precisely state

but, thanks to the evidence of the

when Buddhism
Chinese pilgrim,

began
it

may be

considered certain that towards the middle of the

still

seventh century Buddhism

in India.
It
its

enjoyed complete tranquillity

considered

itself

very superior to the ancient faith

in

eyes

Brahmanism was but

the gross worship of spirits

CH.

Ill]

BUDDHIST WORSHIP IN INDIA

The Brahmanic Pantheon was
and a
belief

277

and

Devas.

completely

discredited,
divinities

in

those

strange

and impotent

was regarded

as a kind of shame.

The Brahmans

did not

know how

to create

an

ideal accessible to the masses,

and

their

metaphysical

speculations,

which were perhaps

excellent for ascetics

to the vulgar herd,

and men of learning, were not addressed

and could not appeal to them. The Buddhism created was, on the contrar}', intensely human and if the virtue of the Tathagata was infinitely superior to that of other men, it nevertheless served as a pattern and guide for them. This is shown by the example of Hiouen-Thsang and many others; he takes the Buddiia as his model, and the recollection of his heroic and saintly
ideal that
;

life

assists

him

to

become,
point

in a certain measure, a hero

and

a saint.
disdain

From
and

this

of view Buddhism might well

less

Brahmanism, which was

it

moral and above

it

all less

practical;

is

evident

that

of manifesting a contempt, which

to accept.

its

no opportunity adversaries seem often

loses
filling

The

missionary saw Brahmans

the meanest

functions in the Buddhist temples.

Thus
been on

the religion of the

its

decline in India,

Buddha does not appear to have when the pious Hiouen-Thsang

which was fading
in

went

thither to seek the enlightenment

China.

He

found tradition

alive everywhere, religious estaball

lishments flourishing and spread

liberally

over the country, which

maintained them;

the most studious

and learned
their

teachers, a throng

of disciples

who
them
;

diligently follow in

lessons, in order to perpetuate

one word, a pros-

perous condition that seemed likely to continue for

centuries.

many
at

And what more

this

particularly proves

the
the

power which
energetic

epoch animated Buddhism, were which

it

con-

troversies in
its

was constantly engaged, both against

adversaries

and

in its

own

circle.

278

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
:

[pt.

ii

Buddhism was divided into two sects that of the Great and that of the Little Vehicle, both of which could be traced back to the earliest days. Two hundred and twenty years before Hiouen-Thsnng's journey, Fa-Hian had found them in the same situation. What differences separated them ? And in what did their discussions exactly consist ? This
Vehicle,
is

difficult

question to solve

and hitherto

it

has remained
possess quote

obscure, although the Buddhist documents

at

we

each instant the names of these two

In the
first

sects.

place, the Great

and

Little Vehicle

{Mahlyana
faiih they

and Hmayand) were exactly had

in the

alike in the

boundless

worship of the Buddha.

They had

only a different
studied
reality

manner of honouring the Tathagata according as they his merits and doctrines in different works; but in
same
fervour.

they both believed only in him, and both sects possess the

From

a Chinese catalogue quoted by Stanislas Julien,*

it

appears that the two Vehicles did not hold the same books
as canonical

and orthodox.

The Great

Vehicle

had

five

scries of sacred writings, while the Liiile Vehicle

had

nine.

The
is

result of a

comparison of these two

is

lists

of works

that the doctrine of the L'ttle Vehicle

its

than that of the Great Vehicle, as

much less elevated name implies. And

still

indeed Chinese authors generally admit, that the partisans

of the Little Vehicle cannot attain Nirvana, and are
subject to transmigration.

They do not

attain true

metadis-

physics, but are content with the code of morals

cipline, to

and

which they add the legends.

which adherents of the
Little

This

is

evidently an

inferiority

Vehicle strive in vain

to hide.

Moreover we see with what contempt Hiouen-Thsang

who belonged

to the

Great Vehicle

like

nearly

all

the

^ San-tchang'Ching, in some unpublished documents that Stanjslaj Juliep cppamunicated to ^b? author.

cii. Ill]

BUDDHIST WORSHIP IN INDIA

How

279

Chinese Buddhists, spoke of them.

often he extols

the sublime precepts of the Great Vehicle, comparing them

with scornful complacency to the narrow,

Little

mean

views of the

Vehicle,

which to him seem incapable of ensuring

eternal

salvation.
it,

He

purposely relates the

loses

legends

that

depreciate
facts that

and never

an opportunity of quoting any

it.

may be
that

prejudicial to
this

Notwithstanding
Vehicle,
sect

apparent

inferioiity
its

of the Little
rival

peninsula in

was as numerous as the days of Hiouen-Thsang.

in

in

the

It

existed in the
in

kingdoms of Bamian and Kapisa

of Kapilavastu, and even
at

the

north;

that

Benares;

in the
;

Hiranyaparvata and

Champa

in the east

in

kingdoms of the kingdom

at

of Malwah, which was considered the most enlightened after

Magadha;
in

in

that of Valiabhi
in

in

the south;
in

Va'sali

Central

India;

Gurjara (Guzerai)

the

west,

in

Sindh and in
Vehicle

many

other places.

It is true that the Gre..t

generally

predominated,

and had in

its

favour

number of its adherents as well as the purity of its doctrines. But this does not make it less tolerant and in many kingdoms the two sects co-exist without excluding one or the other, and even without any great contest. Thus in
;

Slladitya's
Little

dominions at Kanyakubja, the partisans of the

indeed the contest in which the Chinese pilgrim was

Vehicle exercise their form of worship in complete

liberty, as

triumphant would prove.

And

it

was the same

in the king-

doms of Pundravarddhana, Kongkanapura, Mahara^tha (the country of the Mahrattas), Atali, Ayodhya (Oudh), Maihura,
Udjdjayana (Udjein), &c.
Vehicle
is

In

all

these countries the Little

followed as

much

as the Great, and Hiouen-

Thsang does not quote a

fanaticism.

single act of violence inspired

by

The most
?^nplhpr wjth

learned and pious

monks mutually
Vi;t
thgij:

reiuted one

unwearying ?eal;

apirngsity did not

28o

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
sects

[pt.

ii

extend beyond their arguments, and when the dialectic tourna-

ment was ended, the two

standing, which lasted
till

resumed

their

good underself-love

the next contest,

where

was

alone at stake.

Nevertheless, as the two Vehicles have their

own

particular convents the sects

do not mix

in ordinary

life,

and do not

willingly avail themselves of each other's hospitality.

When Hiouen-Thsang
Vehicle,

reached the capital of the kingdom of

Kapisa, one of his companions,

who belonged
of the

to the Little

showed a

certain

repugnance

at staying in a

convent

of the Great Vehicle.

this susceptibility,

The Master
had
in

Law

yielded to

by going himself

to reside in a convent of

the Little Vehicle, which

former days been the residence

of the son of a Chinese emperor, retained there as a hostage.

The

fact

was

that the

two Vehicles had

diflferent rules

with

regard to the food of the monks.

The

Little

Vehicle only

permitted three kinds of food, which were called the three

pure foods
the

and

it

forbade

all

other.

The

prohibition mi^ht,
;

however, under certain circumstances be disregarded

and

monks

of the kingdom

of A-ki-ni (Agni),
their lives

who were
and
their

renowned

for the severity

and purity of

submission to the laws of discipline, added some ordinary

foods to the three pire foods.
Little

This excessive sobriety of the

it

Vehicle was considered an error, perhaps because

recalled the

dangerous

austerities prohibited

by the Buddha

and Hiouen-Thsang boasted

received

to

the king of Kutch,

who
is

him

in his

palace, that he ate indiscriminately of

every kind of food, leaving to the Gradual Doctrine, that

to say, the Little Vehicle, a practice

which seemed to him

both puerile and culpable.

esteemed,
it

As

the Little Vehicle

it

was

less

frequently happened that

was abandoned

for

Hiouen-Thsang gives several such examples. It was thus that the famous Vasubandhu of Gandhara, imitating his master Asamgha, had passed from
the superior

doctrine

the schools of the Little Vehicle to those of the Great Vehicle,

CH.

Ill]

BUDDHIST WORSHIP IN INDIA

authorities.

281

where he had become one of the greatest

convent in
gift

A w hole

Magadha had been converted by

fell

the miraculous

of a wild goose, which

from the skies

at the feet of the

bursar,

who on

that day

had found himself

in great diflficuliies

to provide for the

monks'

repast, as they could only eat the

three pure foods.

Sometimes the change was made

in the opposite direction

and as

it

was possible

to

be very learned although a partisan

of the Little Vehicle, the Great Vehicle was abandoned, on

somewhat obscure theories, which appealed less At the gates of the capital of the kingdom of Matipura, Hiouen-Thsang saw a stiipa consecrated to the memory of Gunaprabha,lhe author of numerous
account of
its

vividly to the imagination.

works, who, after having studied the Great Vehicle had

it

left

and joined
practice

the Little Veliicle.

rare.

It is

probable, however, that

such cases were

the

No

disgrace was, however, attached to

for

of the

Little Vehicle,

those

who

prided

themselves on possessing thorough knowledge, while giving

the preference to ihe Great Vehicle, studied indiscriminately

both of them.

Not far fiom the learned convent of Nalanda, HiouenThsang found on a mountain, called the Forest of Staffs, an ascetic renowned for his learning, whose teaching he diligently followed for two years. He was a Kshatriya who in his
youth had displayed a great taste for study, and who, re-

had become a Buddhist. He possessed knowledge of secular works, or books from outside as they were called ; of the four Vedas, of works on but astronomy, geography, medicine, magic, and arithmetic
nouncing
his caste,

a thorough

besides these he

knew

the Great

and

Little Vehicles,

although

he was a disciple of Silabhadra, the venerable superior of

the

Convent of Nalanda. Hiouen-Thsang himself,

in

letter

of thanks which he

wrote to the king of Kao-Tch'ang, after obtaining his release,

282
boasts that he

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
is

[pt.

ii

acquainted with the two Vehicles, and ex-

presses himself in the following

manner

Hiouen-Thsang,

thanks to his happy destiny, entered at an early date through

the Black Gate (into a convent), and followed the master's

teachings
illustrious

till

he was about twenty years of age.

All

the

sages and friends of a superior merit were con-

sulted

precepts

and interrogated by him. He studied thoroughly the of the Great and LitJe Vehicle.' Later, when

Ilioucn-Thsang,

who had

written a treatise expressly to refute

the errors of the Little Vehicle, returned to China, laden with

the sacred treasures he had

gone

to seek in India, he took

back with him the works of the

less precious,

Little Vehicle,

which, although

were almost as numerous as those of the Great

in his
if

Vehicle

and

long retreat he translated both of them

not with equal respect.

with equal care,

During

all

his

sojourn in India he had impartially studied the two Vehicles,

under the guidance of the most authorized masters.

It

would not seem, however,

that the ancient doctrines of

Brahmanic philosophy were quite

utter

extinct at the time

the Chinese pilgrim travelled through India.

when As he had an
it,

contempt

for

Brahmanism, he hardly notices

it,

neverit,

theless

he was acquainted with

it.

and,

when duty

required

he was able to refute

It

was thus

that, before the great

conflict with the partisans of the Little Vehicle at

Kanyakubjd,

he engaged in a regular discussion with a Brahman upon

different systems,

and among others on

that of the

Sankhya
to at

and

the Vaiseshika.

He

analyzed them in order to demon-

The arguments by which he thinks overcome them may not appear very conclusive, but they
strate their absurdity.

least

prove that he had studied these theories, and that they

sufficiently prevalent for
if it

were

Buddhism

to have to contend

against them, even

had no cause
possessed

to fear them.

The

ancient philosophy therefore

still

was not dead, and the Brahmans

little life

cultivate^

it,

?Jihoi]gh

\\

or influence,

CH.

Ill]

BUDDHIST WORSHIP IN INDIA

full

283

Buddhism, on the contrary, was

It

of activity and energy.

would be

difficult

without the ample details furnished by

Hiouen-Thsang, to have an idea of the important mental

movement and enormous labour of which

the object.

it

continued to be

The monks,

in all the viharas

and samgharamas,

zealously applied themselves to the writing of books,

when

they possessed sufficient talent and authority to speak in their

own name,

or else they applied themselves to the study of

the works sanctioned

by orthodoxy.

Throughout

all

India,

Hiouen-Thsang, learned as he was, found personages worthy

to discuss wiih

him on the most

even capable of enlightening him.

deeply venerated for their

Law, and These personages were intelligence by all who came near
delicate points of the

them, from the kings

down

to the people

who aspired to converse with them, who worshipped them as saints. Thry

number of books they had read; and the Law who could quote and comment on the largest number were considered the most illustrious and were the most revered. They mutually questioned each other on the meaning of obscure passages, and woe to him who could not answer; false science was unmasked, and vanity pitilessly punished by richly deserved humiliation. Not only did the monks in their studious retreats distinguish themselves by these pious labours, but whole populations kept up and honoured the culture of letters, as for instance in Magadha and Malwah.
gloried in the
professors of the

The

Buddhist mind, which had no other food than the

sacred writings, was exclusively given up to studying and

explaining them; and these serious occupations sufficed to

satisfy all the cravings

of the heart and imagination.

Some-

times indeed they might indulge in

some momentary

relaxation

by the study of logic, astronomy, medicine, arithmetic or magic but those profane pursuits were soon laid aside for the
;

?ple research nepdful, th^t of eternal solvation, w|iiph could

284

BUDDHISM IN INDIA
by meditating
the

[pt.

ii

only be acquired
its

Law
is

of the

Buddha and

boundless perfections.

In Hiouen-Thsang's time, that

years after the

about twelve hundred

death of the Buddha, the fervour of religious

study and discussions had not slackened.

The

neighbouring

countries, particularly those in the north, sought from India,

the revered birthplace of the Buddha, the instruction

it

could

alone impart, and

whxh

it

liberally

gave them.

Hioucnhe met,

Thsang mentions over

he travelled through.

forty

monks

of his day

whom

and whose teachings he followed or refuted

Another course of
also gives
translations
stud"es

in all the countries

about which Iliouen-Thsang

precise information, are the

some curious and most

India.

of the Buddhisms' writings

made

in China,

by

monks who came from

Christian era, a certain
lated the sacred books,
lain's

Under
called

the reign of Fou-

Kien, prince of Thsin from the year 358 to 383 of the

Sramana

Dharmanandi

trans-

and one of the Emperor's chamber-

From 397 to 415, another Indian held the brush. Buddhist ramed Kumarajlva was the translator; and under
the

Second Wei dynasty, from 471

Shortly
before

Bodhiruchi.

to 477, the translator was Iliouen-Thsang, in 627, an

Indian professor, Prabharatna, was entrusted with the translations,

which one of the Emperor's nunistcrs revised

in

order to ensure their lucidity and elegance.

Thus, during
to furnish

many
them.

centuries, did

China apply

to Buddhistic India for iis

interpreters of the

Law, and India was always able

Iliouen-Thsang not only gives these

but he also furnishes details

details as to individuals,

upon

the

works themselves.
very importhe original

Besides the Sutras, he mentions a quantity of Sastras,

Karikas and Tikas,

tant, as

all

secondary books, but

still

they develop, complete, and

fliith.

comment on

documents of the

If

we were not

afraid of

wearying

Cll.

Hi]

BUDDHIST
and devout

IVOnslIlP
fully

W INDIA

285

our readers, we cculd name

the learned

society

one hundred. Such was amid which Hiouen-Thsang;

lived during sixteen consecutive years, in order to acquire the

orthodox knowledge that he was desirous of carrying back to

his

own

less

enlightened country.

We may indeed smile at

who
took so

the

ingenuousness of the missionary,

collect absurd legends

much
but

trouble to
this

and extravagant

beliefs,

docs
oi:r

not diminish his merit.

We

must, however, admit that

astonishment surpasses our contempt, for we had no idva

that,

in

the

seventh

century of the

Christian

era,

India

possessed convents as numerous as those of our Middle Ages

schools and

monks

as learned

and
all

as laborious as our

own;
attest

vivid religious preoccupations,

and a complete
descriptions,
;

collection of

sacred writings; documents of

which

and keep up the dogmas of

so pious and at the
to

its faith

and princes and nations

sime time so

tolerant.

We

do not seek

compare the
to

fertile

chaos of our Western Continent

at

that period

with
us
;

Indian Buddhism such as Hiouen-Thsang

but

reveals

it

we may

well

doubt whether any

intelligent

and courageous

missionar}',

who might have come

from distant countries to our own, would have received so cordial a reception, and, more especially, if he would have been able to make such an abundant
the 657 works the Chinese pilgrim
harvest.

He would
on

have been strangely puzzled to find on the Christian religion

was able
see

to collect

the Buddhist faith; and

literary store in

when we

how

small was the

our most renowned schools, we

its

may

well

consider that the Buddhist world studied

the Christian world did
its

religion better than

it

own.

It is true that

had already
that
it

accumulated the labours of twelve hundred years, and

had the whole Brahmanic system behind

civilization

it;
it

but western

had had equal advantages, which

destinies

had neglected.
at that

Later,

its

were to be much higher; but

world was
in

moment

the Christian

a state of inferiority

285
which
its

WWmSM IN INDIA
pride
little

suspected; and which even

fio\v

it

is

reluctant

to admit.

However,

in face of precise

and unhas had

deniable documents like those of Hiouen-Thsang's travels,

our

civilization

must recognize. that

which deserve
all

if it

has no

rivals

it

at least equals,

its

consideration and even

sympathy, notwithstanding

their deficiencies

and mistakes.
the greatest
It

Buddhism
is

has, like our

problems that the

it

own civilization, stirred up human intelligence can evoke.

it

has not,
to
it

true,

found the solution, but

this

is

no small honour
effort,

have made the attempt, and

was,
it

noble

sterile

as

well calculated to disarm severity

and compensate

for

many

faults.

PART HI
BUDDHISM AT THE PRESENT TIME
IN CEVLON,

CHAPTER
Lord

I.

Torringtoit, Governor of Cey/on and the Buddhist priests in 184R. Sources of the history of Ceylon; Bwnovfs notes on the ancient names in that Island. The J\ dm ayana. Greek and Roman accounts of Taprohane. Fa-Hians journey to Ceylon; traditions collected hy Jliotien-lhsang ; Sinhalese annals. 'Jurnour's Mahavansa. Sir Alexander Johnston's undertaking in 1826. Deception practised by Sinhalese priests. Upham^ s publication. The sacred and historical Tali books of Ceylon. Conversion of Ceylon to Buddhism. Analysis the Mahavansa. Supposed journey of the Buddha to Ceylon. of The three Councils. Beta lions of JJharmasoka^ king of India with Devanam-Tiya-Tissa king of Ceylon; interchange of atubassadors. Mahinda, Buddhist apostle, and his sister go to ( eylon. Branch of the Bodhi tree. Some important events in the history of Ceylon. The Btuldha's tooth. Divers translations of the Canonical books and their Commentaries by Buddhaghosa in the fifth cetUury of the Christian era.

When

in

established a

1848 Lord Torrington, Governor of Ceylon, highway tax, the Buddhist priests protested, and
be exempted from the
lax.

demanded
six

to

By

this law, every

inhabitant, without exception,

was bound

either to

perform

days' labour

on

the highways, or in

default

to pay a

certain

sum of money. The Buddhist

at the set forth

priests presented to the

Governor a humble but

in

same time

dignified petition,
it

which they
this

how
;

submit to

general rule

was for them to and the motives they gave were

impossible

very forcible.

They

represented that during four months of the year their

2S3

BUDDHISM IN CDyLON
from \vhom they received
it
;

[pt.

ttt

subsistence depended entirely on the alms given by the population,

their daily food, without

that,

even

being permitted to ask for

during the other eight

less precarious, they

months, when their subsistence was no

were constantly travelling about

that they could neither

work

nor even take oIT their clothes for a

their
title

moment
;

without forfeiiing

and ceasing

to be priests

and therefore they could

rule,

not personally contribute to the construction of the roads.

Moreover, that as they fasted, according to

o'clock in the

eighteen hours

out of every twenty-four, and never ate except between six

morning and noon, they were incapable of

labour without falHng
ill
;

executing any manual

on the

other hand, they could not replace an impossible labour by

a pecuniary compensation, for according to their rules they

could possess neither

money nor property

in

any shape

whatever; and that they could no more exact

the faithful, than they could bread.

money from

They added

that, since the

establishment of Buddhism in

Ceylon, 316 years before the Christian era, they had never

been compelled either

to

work or

to

pay any tax

that the

convention of 181 5, by which the inhabitants of Ceylon had

freely surrendered to the

English crown, stipulated, amongst

other guarantees, the maintenance and independence of the

Buddhist religion
world and

and

finally, that

by compelling them
to

to

work, they would be violating their most sacred duties in

forfeit
all

this

hopes of a world

come.
its

In consealternatives,

quence, they petitioned that the tax, in both

should not be applied to them.

The Governor
deal of trouble.

listened to this just claim,

their request, but this

and acceded to was not done, however, without a good

lowed by others.
alleged that
it

The Buddhist priests' protestation was folThe Bishop of Colombo protested and
if

would give Pagan Buddhism an immense

their request

advantage over Christianity

was granted.

If

cii. i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
why should
Might
other
it

289
not
all

the Buddhist priests were exempted,

priests

other

be also exempted

Would
?

not Sinhalese fanaticism

take advantage of this preference

that
it

not be feared

would

raise a fresh obstacle to the progress of Christi-

anity

among

the natives?

On

the

hand, the

fiscal

administration protested like the clergy, and while ready to

recognize that the Buddhist priests could not be compelled

eiiher to

perform the labour themselves or to pay the tax in

suggested a rather ingenious expedient, and pro-

money,
posed

it

that they should

be obliged

to find substitutes.

Lord Torrington deserves great credit for having discerned what was just and right in such a conflict of different pretensions.
priests,

By

a special privilege he exempted the Buddhist

not, however,

by

virtue

of their priesthood, but as

mendicants.
true
:

The facts

stated by the petitioners were but too

their

vows, their traditional rules, their daily habits, their

style of hfe,

and

their beliefs

were

all

insurmountable obstacles

and the statesman recognized the force of a protest so well

justified,

and gave them

full satisfaction

The
*

tolerance of the English administration

was the more

This petition can be seen in the Blue Book published in 1849 'inder tlie headinj; of Papers Relative to the Affairs of Ceylon. This document, which consists of 300 pages in folio, relates all the facts about the insurrection which' occurred in 1848, and which, although unimportant, lasted several months. Lord Torrington's energetic measuies soon suppressed it the highway tax and other administrative measures had been the pretext, but in reality the Kandyans rose in 184S as they had risen in 1818, 1827, 1834, and 1843, and as they may possibly again rise in rebellion. They resented a foreign yoke, and were always striving for the restoration of an Indian monarchy. The Kandyans must not be confused with the remainder of the Sinhalese population; they are more restless and warlike. They are of a different race, being genetally descendants of the Tamils. Lord Torrington's adminisliation was attacked by one of his successors, Sir II. G. Ward, but the former easily refuted these undeserved criticisms, and his reply, dated January 17, 1S57, was published in the parliamentary reports, from the time of Lord Torrington's administration (May, iS47-November, 1850) dates the prosperity of Ceylon. Thanks to the impulsion he gave to all great works
;

of public utility, the island already possessed, in 1S51, i,Soo niiles of admirable roads, besides a large number of other financial ameliora'.ions.

290

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
it

[rr.

iii

praiseworthy that

was

perfectly

aware of the bad influence

exercised on the people by the Buddhist priests.

They had

aided and abetted

all

the insurrections

which had broken out

since 1815, as indeed they again did in that of 1848, which

was caused by
that

the false

France and l^.ngland were

in the port

rumour spread throughout the island at war, and that French troops
of Trincomalee.
the
principal

were about to land

after the

In the

trial

insurrection,

when

offenders

were

punished, a Buddhist priest was implicated, found guilty, and

condemned
insurgents,

to death

by court-martial, with eighteen other

in his priestly

and was executed

office.

vestments and

all

the insignia of his

This example, which had only

in

had one precedent, was considered necessary

future imitators.

order to deter
if

The

Sinhalese are extremely fanatical;

they fancy their relics run any danger,

more
its

especially the

Buddha's famous tooth, which endows

proprietor with

sovereign rights, they are at once roused and ready to take

up arms, if only they can find a leader ^ Throughout the whole country, and

particularly in

the

northern and central provinces, there are a large number of

temples, assiduously frequented and richly

endowed by

the

magnificence of the

faithful.

The most
in

important

to

which

convents are attached

north-west of

are

found in the

Dombera

district,

Kandy; and

1841 the pretender, Gongala-

godda Banda, had himself crowned in the Temple of Dombula, one of the most venerated and ancient temples, said to have
been
built

one century before

Christ.

These facts would in themselves prove Buddhism still possesses in Ceylon, and it

the
is

power

that

an interesting

^ See the Blue Book already quoted : Papers Relative, &c., &c., p. 171. In 1818 the removal of the Buddha's tooth, transferred from one city to In 1848 the English another, had been the signal for rebellion. Resident at Kandy deemed it advisable to lock up the precious relic, Later, when in order to prevent its falling into the hands of ihe rebels. all danger was over, he restoied jt to the priests for the worship of ttje

laithful.

cii. i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
its

291

study to see what

actual condition

is after

a rule of more

than two thousand years.

This work has been performed by

;

Turnour

in a masterly

manner

he has brought to our know-

ledge one of the most important documents of Pali-Sinhalese

literature,

us, is certainly

and the Mahdvansa^ in the form he has given it to one of the most valuable sources for researches

into the ancient history of Ceylon.

We

shall refer to
is

it

later,

but

we

will first rapidly

pass in review what

known of Bud-

diiism in Ceylon within historical times.

in

Eugene Burnouf had intended, at the out;^et of his studies Pali, to compose a special wo;k on this subject. The
the

Journal Asiatique of Paris gave an important fragment of his

woik on Burnoufs

ancient

names

in

the

isiland

of

Ceylon \

studies

would have
this

chiefly
its

been directed to the

ancient geography of the island in

relations to history; but

he was deterred from

tant discovery,

undertaking by Hodgson's importo

and he therefore preferred

keep

to

the

original Sanskrit

works of Nepaul rather than the Sinhalese

Moreover, he intended taking up
having thoroughly investigated
later, after

traditions

and documents.

southern Buddhism

northern Buddhism, and the appendixes of the Lotus de la

bonne Loi show
researches.

how

far

he had already carried his laborious

One

of the principal sources, and certainly the oldest, f the

is

history cf Ceylon

the

Rdmayana.

Rama undertook the conwho name for Ceylon) by

this

quest of the island in order to recover the beautiful Slta,

had

be(2n carried off to

Lanka

(the ancient

the traitor Ravana.

But the well-known confusedness of

it

strange

poem makes

difficult to extricate

any

reliable facts

from the mass of extravagant

fictions, in

which monkeys and

"^Journal Asiatique of Taris, Jnnuary, 1S51, p. i and following. Burnoufs men^.oranda had been read we are told by a notice of M. Mohl, member of the Institute and Secretary of the French Asi.itij Society at two sittings of the Academic des Inscriptions et Belles-lettres, in March, 1834.

292
genii take a
It
it

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
much more
Rdmayana

[pt. hi

important place than heroes and men.

aside, for

would, however, be a mistake to set the

is

almost the only evidence that can furnish us with some

account of the state of the island before the introduction of

Buddhism.

The Hindus,

as the

Rdmayana

itself

shows, had
it

the strangest ideas about this country, although

was 0

near the peninsula, and the obscurity of their legends betrays

little

acquaintance with

it

With the introduction of Buddhism into Ceylon, this ignorance began to give way. But the evidence that attests
this

important

fact is

of a

much

later date

than the

fact itself,

and the Buddha's

the

religion

had been established

can be so

for

six

hundred years or more when the

historians, if the author of

called,

Mahdvansa and
first

his successors

thought

of recording traditions which were about to disappear.

The Greeks
bane^
in the

knew Ceylon under

the

name of Tapro-

days of Onesicritus and Megasthenes, shortly

after Alexander's expedition.

religion the inhabitants of

But the Greeks never knew what Taprobane professed, and moreIn their opinion

over cared

little

for this kind of information.

Taprobane was only famous for its wealth, its pearls, and the cinnamon it produced. Later they knew more, without really knowing much, and the famous embassy of the King of Taprobane to the Emperor of China furnished a few niore
precise details, which

Pliny has

recorded.

However, the
cer-

Roman

naturalist simply snys, in

mentioning the religion of

there.
It
is

Taprobane, that Hercules was v.'orshippcd

tainly a very

unexpected similitude
pilgrim

if

under the features of

Hercules we are to recognize the Buddha.

The Chinese
*

Fa-Hian (395-416

a. d.)

is

the

Kilinayana, Canto I, chap. iv. slokas :;5, 77, 102, 103, and Cantos and VI. ^ Burnouf has shown the identity of the word Taprobane with the SniisUiiL Tainrapania, one of the names by which the Indians dtsij^naled the ibland of Ceylon, where the leaves of certain tiecs are copper colour.

CH.
first

i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
we have about
Ceylon.
It

293
cannot

personal witness

be averred that he was a very exact or very

intelligible

historian; but as he speaks of vhat he has seen, his narrative

deserves particular attention.

After sojourning two years

kingdom of Tamralipti, souih-west of the Ganges, lie embarked on board a merchant ship going lo Sinhala, or the kingdom of the Lion. The voyage laited fourteen days
in ihe

before

the

small
these,

islands

on
tells

the
us,

coast

of

Sinhala

were

reached;

Fa-Hian
Buddhist

numbered a hundred
in
full

He

found

the

religion

prosperity,

and

more fervour than in any country he had visited in India. Fa-Hian accepts without hesitation the statement that Fo the Buddha had been to Sinhala, and
practised

with

left

two imprints of

his saintly feet,

one

to the north of the

royal city,

and the other on a high mountain

is

(the

famous

Adam's Peak, which

7,000
feet high).

the highest in the island,

and over

Fa-Hian

also heard the Sinhalese traditions

about the branch of the Bodhi or Bo-tree miraculously

conveyed from India

the Buddha's tooth.

to Sinhala, as well as the legend* about

This inestimable
for

relic

was publicly

exhibited every year

the adoration of the inhabitants.

The solemn
noon.

procession took place at the time of the third

it

herald announced
tlie

throrghout the country several

days before, and

people thronged to the

ceremony.

During the procession, pictures representing the

different births or

five

hundred
exhis

manifestations of the

Buddha were
and

hibited, to revive the pious recollection of his merits

miracles.

To

perform the services of

this flourishing religion,

llie

kingdom of
the

the Lion, Sinhala, possessed a

numerous and

wealthy clergy.

Fa-Hian found five thousand monks at Convent of the Fearless Mountain (Abhayagiii). In another convent, called the Great Convent, there were
*

The

islands of the Straits of Manaar.

294

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
and
at the chapel

[pt. in

three thousand,

of the Bodhi there were

two thousand.
alone
fed
five

In the capital, which was very magnificent,

but of which Fa-Hian forgets to give the name, the king

to
six

thousand.

The Chinese
;

pilgrim

estimates

from what he saw that the whole island must

fifty

contain from

to

sixty

thousand monks

at least

this

was the approximate

gave him.
the law of
All these

figure that the people of the country

monks were individually as poor as Fo demanded every morning they went out
;

with
till

their

alms-bowl

in

their

hands, and

silently

waited
it.

charity or the commiseration of the laity had filled

If,

however, the individuals were so completely

the
;

destitute, the

temples were extremely wcalihy;

in

kings look pleasure

making them

sj)lendid donations

these had accumulated

for centuries past,

and the communities therefore ended by

possessing an enormous

amount of property \
times a

The
eighth,
listen

people were no less pious than the kings, and the

four castes assembled regularly three

fourteenth,

month

and eighteenth day of each moon

from which a

the
to

to the sacred preaching.

These sermons were de-

livered

from a

pulpit,

monk

appointed for

the

purpose addressed himself to the attentive multitude.

assisted at

Fa-Hian
and

several of these
others, he heard

salutary

instructions,

in one,

amongst

the whole narrative

of the admirable story of the Budtiha's vase.

pilgrim would have wished very
legend, but unfortunately
it

The devout

much

to retain this adorable

had never been written down.

However, as the clergy wTre very well informed, Pa-Hian was able to make an ample provision of works and books
written in the

Fan language

(or language of the

Brahmans,

Sanskrit, or Pali).
* The donations to the convents are still very considerable, and as they are generally free from all legal duties and all dues, they give rise to rather serious difficulties for the English administration.

Gii.

i]

CONVMSIOM OF CEYLON
by Fa-Hian,
is

2$S

All this information, given

of great value,

and shows Buddhism

fifdi

in all ils

splendour and power in the

cenlury of our era, and more deeply rooted in Ceylon

in India,

than

alihough

it

had been transmitted from

India.

Doubtless Fa-Hian, after sojourning there two years, might

if

the object of his journey

less

had been
related

less

special

and

his

mind

preoccupied have
was
it

much more about

the curious country he

visiting.

Although the Chinese

people had not very frequent intercourse with the kingdom of

the

Lion (Sse-tseu-Koiie\

is

certain that

commerce had
Fa-Hian
tells

attracted

them

thither long before Fa-Hian went there, indeed

this.

Pliny gives irrefutable proof of

All that
is

us independently of religious matters

that the capital of

the country was very fine, a fact that tallies with the account

given by the Chinese ambassadors, and that the

kingdom

enjoyed perpetual peace.

This probably means that peace

was not disturbed during the whole lime the Chinese pilgrim lived there; for this tranquillity hardly agrees with what
is

known of

the character

and

history of the

inhabitants

of the island, from Ravana, the fabulous ravisher of

spouse,

Rama's

down

to the insurrection of

our

own

time.

With Fa-

Ilian's narrative the uninterrupted scries of authentic docu-

ments begin, although

it must be added that these native documents are neither as exact nor intelligible as could be desired. The Mahdvaiisa was composed, at least its first

part,

spme years
for

after

Fa-Hian's journey.

Hiouen-Thsang, he had not the privilege of visiting Ceylon as he had intended. When he reached the kingdom
of Dravida in

As

southern India, and arrived at

its

capital,

KanchTpura, which was a seaport, he purposed crossing

over to the island of Sinhala, which was only three days'

by sea. But he was dissuaded from this voyage by two monks, who had precipitately left that country, and urged him not to go there. The king had just died, and
distant

296

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
terrible

[vt.

the whole island was a prey to

This

civil war as well as famine. news was confirmed by other fugitives, and Hiouen-Thsang prudently decided not to attempt such a

dangerous, and probably useless, journey.

as

But he gathered

much

information as he could about the country which he

its

regretted not having seen, as the learning of

in

monks was
intended

high renown, and the Master of the

Law had

to stud}', with their assistance, certain canonical

works that

he had not yet

sufficiently

fathomed.

He
called

learnt,
llie

however, that the kingdom of Sinhala, formerly

Island of Precious Things, the Pearl Isle [Rainaaboijt 7,000 // in circumference

dv'ipa\

was a vast country of

(1,740 miles) \
in

The

capital,

which was
It

circumference

(nine miles).

large, was forty // was densely populated,

but the land was exceedingly

fertile.

The

inhabitants were

of a dark complexion, generally short of stature, and violent

and fierce in their habits. The worship of the Buddha, which had been introduced there one hundred years after the There were no less Nirvana, was held in great honour.
than a thousand convents or sangharamas, and ten thousand

monks
piety,

in the island

these were

men

of great learning and

but instead of wearing the yellow robe of the Indian

in

Sramanas they were robed

especially that of the

black.

They belonged

for

the most part to the sect of the Great Vehicle, and

Sarvastivadas.

more

The

vihara

of the

Buddha's tooth was situated near the king's palace ^

Hiouen-Thsang then
'

relates

two legends on the oiigin

This estimation is about 450 miles above the mark. * This is in perfect conformity w ith the present belief of the Sinhalese. It has been seen above that the Buddha's tooth always played a great part in the popular disturbnnces, becaure it was supposed that whoever The mention Iliouen-Thsang possessed it had sovereign rights. makes of the violent and ferocious character of the inhabitants of Sinhala applies to that part of the population which have remained almost savages even to our day, and which lie concealed in the most central and thickly wooded parts of the country; they are called Ueddas, and, as the Chinese pilgrim stated, are wild and ferocious in their habits.

cii. i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
name
of Sinhala, the kingdom of the Lion.
is

2-7

of the

One

of these legends
with
the

absurd

for

it

says that a lion, uniting

daughter of a king, was the progenitor of the

of the island.

inhabitants

The son
on

of the

Lion, having

killed his father,

was

cast adrift

the seas as the puni.-hhis ship

ment of
it

his parricide,

and the wind drove

on

to the

coasts of the island of Precious Things.

His

sister,

who,

appears, was as culpable as her brother, was also sent to sea

vessel that

on a

was

cast

on the Persian

{Fo-la-sse) shores,

which since that time was called the kingdom of the Western
Daughters.
with demons,

The

sister

peopled Persia by uniting herself

and the brother peopled RatnadvTpa, thanks 10 the women brought there by merchants, from whom he
abducted them^

The second

legend

is

much
is

simpler: the
said to have
it

sen of an Indian merchant called Sinhala

taken possession of the island on landing and given

Iks

name.

Hiouen-Thsang was not able to go to Exact and observant as he was, he would have left much more valuable information than is contained in the meagre narrative of Fa-Hian. But these more or less reliable testimonies given by the
It is

regrettable that

Ceylon as he had intended.

Rainayana, the Greeks, or the Chinese pilgrims,

all

emanate

and must be thrown into the shade by ii.digenous evidence, which is far more authentic and volufrom strangers,
minous.

By

a rare and unique privilege in the Indian world,

the island of

Ceylon possesses exact and incontestable annals,

at least the fourth

which date back to

even,
it

century of our era, and

earlier period.

is

almost certain, to a

much

These
to

annals have been kept and recorded from century to century

down
'

to

our
first

own

time,

and arc preserved with such care as

;

legend is repealed under every form in all the Indian and Chinese books, and his been readily r.ccepted while the second, which In the Last the is much more probable, had passed unnoticed. imagination of the people requires su| e: natural stories.

The

298

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
with a kind of ofiicial
character.
all

[f^r.

ill

endow them
of writing

The

style

may appear

very strange, and shock

our western

habits of thought, for

it is

very different to any of our methods,

from the Greek down to our own historians; but these

annals, singular as they
the principal
flicts

may seem, have

nevertheless recorded

which make up the history of Ceylon.

Tumour
what these
S.nhalesc,

has given in the

annals were,

Mahdvansa an exact
in

idea of

whether written

Pali

or

in in
list

under the direct authority of the kings who

the island.

succession governed

The
still

following
in

.is

of the

principal
it

works which

exist

Ceylon,
will

and

which

is

to

be hoped European philology

early period.

be able to

publish at

First, the

some Mahdvansa^

written in Pali between the years

459 and 477 of our era, by Mahanama, the uncle of King ]\Iahanama states that he drew the principal DasenkellTya. elements of his work from the Sinhalese documents existing
in his time.

He composed
still

it

at

Anuradhapura,

at that

time

the capital of Ceylon, and of which a considerable

amount

of ruins can

be seen.

The Mahdvansa
;

comprises the

from the Buddha's Nirvana, 543 years B.C., down to the year 301 of our era the author, in order to
history of Ceylon

give clearness to his narrative, adds a

the

commentary called Mahdvansa Uka^ and Tumour was able to obtain

scarce

a copy of this very

commentary, taken from the

one kept by the

priests in the vihara of JMulgirigalla.

The Mahdvansa
that
is

properly so called, or rather the personal

at

work of Mahanama, stops

to say at the

the end of chapter xxxvii,

in 301.

end of Mahasena's reign

The
of

continuation of the Mahdvansa^

known under

the

name

* Pali, even in Mahanama's time, was only known by the priests. It therefore possible that Mahanama brought the history of his country down to the moment when he was writing his work; but, as his commentary stops at the year 301, Tumour believes that the author also stopped writing the Mahdvansa at that date.

is

CH.

i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
was

299

Suluvansa, giving an account from the year 30 1 to the year 1266,

composed

under the reign of Prakrama Bahu

by Dharmakini at Dambedeniya, and from 1266 to 1758

;

by Tibottuvena, under the reign of

from 1747 to 1781
in the city of
is

Kirli SiT,

Kandy.

who reigned The Mahavansa,

chapters,

including the Suhivansa,

composed of a hundred

and a

hltle

over nine thousand slokas of sixteen syllables, or

eighteen thousand verses.

The

other annals of Ceylon, less famous than the

;

Mahd-

vausa, are written in Sinhalese

these are the Pud,'ava//i,

composed by Mairupada, under the reign of Prakrama Bahu; the Nikdya-Samgraha, by Daivarakshila Djaya Bahu, under the reign of Bhuvaneka in 1347; the JRajarafndkan', composed towards the close of the fifiecnth century by Abhayaraja; and lastly the Rajavalli, written by several different
individuals at different periods,

are probably
these

and of which certain portions more ancient even than the Mahavansa. All
their at

annals begin
birth,

narrations

at

the

time

of

the

Buddha's

and even

an

earlier date.

Such
Ceylon.

is

the historical wealth possessed by the island of

The
the

discovery of such treasures in any part of the Indian

all

world was a most fortunate occurrence, and these were

more valuable
these

that they are exceedingly scarce in India.

The
to

attention of the English Resident

was
1826

therefore
Sir

drawn

curious documents, and

in

Alexander

Johnston, Chief Justice and President of the Royal Council

of Ceylon, took measures to have them published.

lived a

He
the

had

long time in the island, and by his functions as well

literary tastes,

as

his

had been
the

in relation with

most
In

learned

priests

and

most distinguished

natives.

a praiseworthy desire to give the colony a code of laws

better suited to
its

customs and relgious

beliefs

and

all its

past history, he resolved to have a translation

made

of the

300

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
on
English
administration

[pt. hi

principal works

the Buddhist faith, in order to enlighten

the

and

further

its

object.

The

Sinhalese population was no less interested in this judicious

enterprise than

was the English government

itself.

At

Sir

Alexander Johnston's request the Buddhist

priests

furnished authentic, or rather what they alleged were authentic,

copies of the Mahdvansa, Rajavalh\ and the Rajaratndkari.

*

These formed, according

to

what they told the Chief

Justice,

the

most complete summary

its

that existed of the origin of the

its

Buddhist religion,

doctrines,
political

introduction into Ceylon,

that

and

the

moral and

influence

these

doctrines

had exercised from the most remote epochs on the conduct

of the national government and the customs of
Sir
tiic

natives.'

Alexander Johnston therefore accepted these valuable

copies,

which the Buddhist

priests

guaranteed as
In

being

authentic and scrupulously exact.

certain,

order

to

be more

he ordered that they should be compared, by two

of the most learned priests, with the other copies that were

kept in the temples.

Having taken
to

all

these precautions,

he handed the books

the official translators,

and they

worked under

the supervision of a native functionary,

who

was supposed to be the best-informed man in both the Pa.i and the Sinhalese languages. This translation, made with so much care, was revised by the Rev. IM. Fox, a Wesleyan missionary, who had resided a long time in the island, and
was afterwards confided
Sir to

Mr. Edward

Upham for publication.

all

Alexander Johnston has himself given

these details

in a letter in

which he asked the

under
their

officers

of the East India

Company
was

to take

patronage an enterprise which

likely to

prove so useful,

and had been inspired by such

generous sentiments.
translation appeared

After seven
in

more years of

labour, the

1833

in

London, and King William

graciously accepted

its

dedication.

Unfortunately the Buddhist piiests had deceived Sir Alex-

cii. i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON

301

andcr Johnston, and. cither throngh ignorance or purposely, had

given him incomplete or falsified copies of iheir books.

As

Tumour remarked
translating the Pali

with good reason, either the priests were

incompetent for the task they had undertaken

Mahdvansa
1

into Sinhalese

of or they had
that
is,

completely

misunderstoo

what was demanded of them.

Instead of translating the Pali into Sinhalese so that the

official

translator

English, they had

might translate the Sinhalese version into made a work of their own, either by

lengthening out the original works with extracts from the commentaries, or by shortening them in the most unintelli-

gent manner.

When Upham's
fortunate

translation appeared in
it

Europe

the un-

omissions

revealed were

soon noticed;

and,
just

wivhout being aware of the peculiarities that

we have
to

menlioncd,

Burnouf immediately drew

attention

the

serious diderenccs that existed between the manuscripts he

possessed of the Ceylon books and the

new

version

made

under the auspices of Sir Alexander Johnston by the Sin-

Turnour divulged the mistake, not to that amongst all those who had cooperated at this work, from the priests who had recommended and rexised the copies down to the official translators and
halese priests.
Later,

say fraud, and

showed

the Rev.

]\I.

P^ox, not

one possessed

sufficient
all

knowle('ge to

accomplish
again,
far

it.

The work had

societies

therefore

to

be done over
that,

and the learned

were obliged to admit

from being acquainted with the sacred and

historical

books of Ceylon, they had only obtained a very imperfect

knowledge of the contents of the Sinhalese
chronicles.

Not-

withstanding the discredit this vexatious incident cast upon

these studies, they were not to be discouraged
;

and as the
in
their

documents

really
it

existed,

and

were
that,

accessible

original form,

was

to

be hoped

with a

little

more

circumspcclion and

cii'.icism,

other painstakhig and skihul

332

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON

[pt. hi

students would resume the undertaking and retrieve this

first

disappointment.

This

Tumour
the

did, with a talent

that

has classed him

among

most distinguished
first

ago he published the

and twenty years volume o{ i\\Q 3Iahdvatisa} Tumour,

Orientalists,

who began

his labours

long before Upham's publication, had

suspended them on hearing of the approaching translation

of the works he had been studying.

But

this

publication

was not calculated

tinued to
wiih his

to

damp

his ardour,

and while he con-

fill the public office assigned to him, he went on work which he had laid aside for a moment, but which he now resumed wi:h more zeal than before. Tumour

felt

himself under the obligation of rehabilitating Sinhalese

literature after the

undeserved and involuntary check

fully

it

had
it,

received.
for his

If

such was his object he has

attained
it is,

Mahavansa has shown, even incomplete

this information.

as

^vhat

an abundance of information the Sinhalese chronicles contain,

and the true nature of

original text, doubt
is
it

In presence of the

no longer
reveals
all

possible,
its

and the translation

its

which accompanies

importance as well as

thorough authenticity.

This

fortunate

experiment

shows,

therefore,

thit

the

Sinhalese annals are worthy of notice and of publication.

Although Buddhism was not a growth of Ceylon, as has been

thought and
is
still

sometimes asserted,
at

it

is

certain that

it

was transplanted there

sacred writings in Pali.

an early date, with an edition of the

This was unquestionably the greatest

event

in the history

of the

kingdom of the Lion, and, taking

the
it.

Mahavansa
It will

for our guide,

we

will

now

turn our attention to

be seen from the above the valuable information

that

is

to

be derived from

this

document, and also from

given
as
that

similar
^

ones.

The

date

generally

of

the

We

must remind our readers that Baitlielemy

1

St. HiUiire's

bcpkwas

published in

860.

cii. i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
is

303
;

Buddha's death

entirely of Sinhalese origin

but

all

the

Chinese, Tibetan, Burmese, &c. works agree in demonstrating

that the date

of the year 543 before the Christian era

till

is

almost a certitude, and

now no

serious objection has

it

been raised on

this

point.

Moreover,

must not be
to the

for-

gotten that this chronology, so essential

India,
will

history of
It

and even

all

Asia,
it

is

due to the Sinhalese annals.

in

be shown

how

is

set forth

the

Mahdvansa^ and

further study only confirms this.

The ]\lahavansa
to the

also relates

some of

the events subsequent

details;
settled

Buddha's death, entering into many important

it

amongst others

mentions the three Councils which

the Buddhist canonical writings.

at different periods,
faith, in

They were
is

all

three held

according to the necessities of the new

that part of India

which

watered by the Ganges.

The

Sinhalese can therefore have only

;

known them through

is

tradition

but the tradition they have retained

it

one

that

deserves thorough confidence, for

facts
it

followed immediately the

recorded.

Mahanama,
annalists

the author of the

Mahdvansa^

works upon indigenous materials, collected and prepared by

the
historians

and

who preceded

him.

These

go back by degrees to the period when Buddhism came from Magadha and reached Sinhala, and their statements, which we only know by Mahanama's work, were
annalists

almost contemporary narratives of the events they

After the Nirvana of the Tathagata

relate.

and the

history of the

Councils, the

Mahdvansa

continues, century by century and

it

year by year, to give an account of events, which

brings
interest

down

to the

end of the eighteenth century.

The

offered by this part of the

we do
It

not intend to consider

lost

Mahdvansa cannot be denied, but it at the present moment.

besides these

must not be
local

sight of that Ceylon,

instructive

chronicles,

holds

an important place in

Buddhism by the

particular collection of orthodox

works

it

304
received
at

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
the lime
it

[pt. hi

of ihe conversion of the island, and

till

which

has carefully treasured up

now.

It is well

known
in
in

that there are

two editions of the canonical books of Sakya-

muni's religion

one
in

in Sanskrit, discovered
;

the Nepalese monasteries

and

the other in Pali or

by Hodgson Magadhi,

the possession of the Sinhalese priests.

These two

collections,

ahhough written
Pali
is

somewhat

different

languages,

since

the

popular and Sanskrit the cultivated and even

sacred dialect, thoroughly agree as to the substance.

doctrine

The

and legends are

identical,

the

works are often

exactly alike, the language alone differs.

Which

therefore
.?

of these two collections must be considered the original

Which
tion

of

them

is

only a copy

This

is

indeed an important

question, that can only be solved

by a comparative examinato

of the two collections, and which,

be "thoroughly

cleared up, would

demand more labour

upon
is
it.

than philologists have

yet been able to bestow

solution in the future,
it

But whatever may be the

to Sinhalese

Buddhism
;

that
for

we
it

must turn

to get the

works of the Pali collection

this

is

only in Ceylon that the intelligence and piety of the faithful

have known

how

to

keep

pledge of their

faith unsullied,

and they only have cultivated the language

revealed.
It is

in

which

it

is

probable that the Pali

collection,

brought

frcm Magadha to Sinhala, was

Sinhala to

at a later period

taken from

Burmah and

the countries east of India.

At

the

present day, on the. contrary, Ceylon receives from

its

Burmah
was

religious inspirations

and

its

chief priests; but there

a time when, in an inverse

ratio, the island

propagated and

communicated the new

It
is

fliith

to the

neighbouring countries.

therefore clear that Ceylon played an

immense
in

part

in the history of
is
still

Indian Buddhism.

The

primitive language
is

understood there, and the island

possession

of the most reliable annals.

For ihesQ

t>vo

reasons the

]\Iahdvansa can be thoroughly trusted.

cii. i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
first

305

I'he author of the Mahavaiisa

points out in a few

words the object of

of repetitions
shall

his

work.

The

compositions of his
;

predecessors are either too concise or too diffuse

full
:

they are

'

he wishes to avoid these

faults,

by a work

which

be easy to comprehend and remember, and which

reader pleasure or pain, according to the nature
it

will give the

of the deeds
After
this

relates/

preamble, which only takes up two si kas,

enters into his subject.

Mahanama immediately
Following the

example of the twenty- four preceding Buddhas, and more especially that of Dipankara, Gautama Bi'ddha resolves to redeem the world and save it from evil.

He undergoes all the

perfect

requisite ordeals
'

and Our Conqueror,*

*

as the pious Sinhalese says,

attains the state of

tree at

supreme and

Buddha, under the Bodhi

INTagadha.
It

Uruvela,' in the
in the

kingdom of
of Vaisakha.

was

at the full

moon,

month

After remaining seven times seven days under

the Bodhi-tree, he

went

to Benares,

and there made

his first

converts.

He

then sent abroad his sixty disciples, bidding

his doctrines

them promulgate

throughout the world

and

nine months afier the Bodhi, he himself goes to Lanka, to

sanctify ii^by his admirable teaching.

The

island

was

at that

time a prey to the

evil genii,

the Yakshas.

The Yakshas
the

were gathered together

of a charming
river, in

in the centre of

Lanka, on the banks

the gardens of

Mahanaga, and

leaders were holding counsel,

when suddenly

the Buddha,

coming through space into the midst of the assembly, them with terror by the rain, tempest and darkness Then hearkening to the that accompanied his appearance.
struck
entreaties of the Yakshas he had recourse to gentler measures, and preached a sermon which touched their hearts, and thousands of beings received the words of salvation. Eight

years after this

doubtless
to

first

visit,

the

Buddha

returned to Lanka,

complete his mission of

mercy

he again

3o6

DUDDHISM IN CEYLON
this

[pt. hi

returned thilher a third time, and since

*

Lanka, now made holy, has been revered by

memorable epoch all good men,

the island, his

and has become a fit dwelling for mankind/ Wherever the Buddha had sojourned in

memory had been

consecrated by a quantity of monuments,

which had been successively raided and adorned by the pious

monarchs who ruled over

It will
if

the country.

be seen, by
is,

this first chapter

of the Mahdvausa, that

the author

according to his promise, more concise than

is

lis

predecessors, he

no
if

less

supersiilious.

Indeed, he

would not be a Buddhist

belief in
all

he had not an imperturbable

these

legends, which he never criticizes,

relates

and

which
back.

at the time

he

them date from a thousand years

ll:anks
for

He

even

deserves

having made such

traditions

a moderate use of them.

to the canonical

He

leaves

most of these
in,

and which may be perused by the faidiful; and he only admits them into his narration with the most praiseworthy reserve. IMahanama
books they are recorded

seems in
Ceylon

reality

only to mention the Tathagata's

visits

to

in order to

conform with popular opinion, and he

does not give them more importance than they deserve, for
later

he relates with

much more ample and

Buddha.

exact details the

real

conversion of the island to Buddhism, about two centuries

after the death of the

However, he
of the
'

is

not satisfied with the slight mention he

made
line

Cojiquerorl and in the second chapter he reverts to his

fami'y and genealogy.

from the

illustrious

He makcB him descend in direct Mahasammata, and mentions all

who had
to

the

kings, successors of this prince,

vatti,

reigned at Kaufa-

Rajagriha,

IMlthila,

down
At

the great race

of the

Sakyas of Kapilavastu.

the age of nineteen the

fulfil

young
;

Bodhisatwa

left

the world in order to

his mission

he

remained

six years in solitude, meditation,

and penance, and

the king

was

thirty-five

years of age

when he again met

cii. i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
whom
faith.

307
to

Bimbisnia, the friend of his childhood,

the

he converted

new

After forty-five years of preaching throughout

at

JambudvTpa, the Budtlha died

of two sala trees.
Ajatiisatru's reign,

Kusinaia, under the shade

year of the cruel
father liimbisara

This was

in the eighth

who had murdered

his

and usurped the throne.

The
fact
Its

MahCivaiisa does not reveal anything

fresh,

as all

these events were already well

that
it

known, but

it

is

an important
the Pali books,

should
is

so

clearly

and exactly confirm them.

Nepaul and of

testimony
to that of

added

to that of

and

Fa-Ilian and Hiouen-Thsang.

is

The concordance

of these proofs

as strong evidence as history can demand.

treats

However, when the Mahavansa

Councils
it is still

of the three- Buddhist

more

interesting;

for

nowhere do we

find

an account given so consecutively and with such

to
it

details, nor,

all

appearance, with such truth.

Mahanama

has deemed

necessary to devote a whole chapter to each of these Assem-

blii's

0/ /he Law, as he
gives
the

calls

them

(in Pali,

Dhavima
first

Satiglti).

He

following

account of the

Council.

Seven days had scarcely elapsed since the Buddha had

entered Nirvana,

when

the great

Kasyapa {Mahd Kassapas)

summoned

five

hundred monks,

whom
tlie

he had chosen from

amongst the most virtuous and learned.

Rajagriha, in the
first

They met

at

month Asala, in At the request of the monks, Ajaiasatru, who had amended his ways and been converted, had had a large hall
quarter of the

moon.

built for
still

them

at the

exists in the

Vaihara

opening of the Sattapanni cave, which hill, and the Order at once began
a throne placed to the north, and
fi\cing the east,

their deliberations.

On

looking ^outh, the president sat to direct the proceedings.

pulpit,

placed in the centre of the hall

for the orators

was prepared
took

whom

the president interrogated.

The remainder
seats,

of the Arahals, without having any particular places

their

en benches
u
2

prepared

for

that

3o8

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
The
first

[pt. hi

purpose, according to their seniority.

discussion

was held on the second day of the second month of the Varsha (in Pali, vassa, rainy season). The best beloved and most eminent disciples of the Buddha were there. Ananda, his cousin, and inseparable companion for so many years, and Upali, one of his most illustrious adherents, first Upali was then interrogated by the high entered the pulpit.
priest

Kasyapa on the
is

discipline

or

the

Vinaya.

The

Sthaviras, that

the Elders {Theros in Pali), chanted together

Upali's replies,

and thus they

learnt
in

by heart the Vinaya.

After Upali, Ananda, directed

president, explained the

the

same way by the

Dharma

or the

Law.

again chanted the words of Ananda, and the

learned in the same

The assembly Dharma was

way

as the Vinaya.
lasted

These pious exercises

and
of
at the

no

less

than seven months;

end of that time,

these

actors of humanity lenef

separated, persuaded that

five

they had

ensured for a period

thousand years the power and splendour of the

faith.

Buddhist

The
was

first

Assembly of the Laiv (Pathama

Dhamma

Sangiti)
Pali),

called the
it

{Therlya in

because
'

Assembly of the Sthaviras had been exclusively composed

itself six

of Arahats, and that the

earth, rejoicing at having received

times,' says

such wonderful enlightenment swung

Mahanama,

over the deepest abysses of the Ocean.'

The

fourth chapter of the

second Council.

Mahavansa is devoted to the This one was held at Vaisali, in the tenth

year of Kalasoka's reign, a hundred years after the Nirvana.

heresy had sprung up at Waji (Odjein) and from there had

spread over a great part of the northern provinces.

The

conventual rules had become relaxed, and discipline had lost

much

of

its

severity.

The

heretics

had gained the king

Kalasoka over to
the day,

their side,

and were on the point of carrying

when
to

three

monks, Yasa, Sambhutta and Revata,

their
evil

united

contest

doctrines.

Through

the

CH.

i]

CONVERSION OE CEYLON
Kalasoka's
sister,

309
they

mediation of the priestess Anandi,

succeeded
to declare

in

changing the king's resolution, and he consented

faith

himself in favour of the true

at
this
Vais.-ili.

before
to

the

Assembly
played in
in

Revata,
the

who would seem

same
part that

have

new Council

Kasyapa did

the

first,

skilfully

confided the debates to eight

monks

whom

he had himself chosen; four from the province of

Pachina and four from the province of Patheya.

retired to the

They

Valukarama Vihara, where they prepared the decisions of the assembly which met at the neighbouring Vihara of Mahavana. On their propositions it consolidated
the unsettled rules of discipline,

and ten thousand

priests,

who had

lent

a willing ear to the heresy, were degraded.

Revata was the soul of this reforming assembly, which numbered seven hundred members, and its labours, which were conducted on the same plan as the former one, lasted
eight months.
several

Among

the eight principal personages, were

who had heard Ananda, and who had learned from him how the first Council had carried on its pious work. JMahanama's narrative is much less clear upon the third Council than upon the two others; and he falls into the
same
cj-ror

with which he reproached the former historians,

namely
details

diffuscness.

He

enters

into

lengthy and useless

about the reign of the famous Asoka,

all

who had become

sovereign ruler of

Jambudvlpa, two hundred and eighteen

years afier the death of the

Buddha
first

(b.c. 325).

The Mahdvansa
only one schism

gives the exact date.

century,

in the

that of the

There had been Maha-

Sanghikas, but in the succeeding century there were no less

than eighteen, which

faith,

Mabanama

carefully enumerates.

The

mutilated by these internal divisions and neglected by

the people, in the midst of their civil wars, rtin great risk

of perishing.

The

lower castes had even gone so

far as to

have usurped the yellow robe of the monks;

all

public

310

BUDDHISM IN CEYlON
last

[i^t.

in

worship had been abandoned for the

seven years ;

it

was

therefore urgent that something should

be done, to remedy
the throne

these serious evils.

The

powerful monarch,
all

who had reached

by

murdering

his brothers,

numbering about one hundred,

His ostentatious piety In honour

had been converted to Buddhism.

was displayed

in the

most splendid monuments.

of each of the Precepts of the Law, eighty-four thousand

edifices of all kinds

were erected under his reign, in the space

of three years
Rajas.

built ciiher

by

himself, or

by

his vassals, the

The alms he bestowed on

and
after

the

monks were

inexfaith,

haustible;

he had embraced the Buddha's

and repudiated thatof tb.e Brahmans, he

soka, that
is

called himself Dharma-

Asoka, the Protector of the Faith.

Touched

by the complaints of the orthodox Buddhists, he appointed

one of
his ministers to root out the

schism

but the incom-

petent minister failed to carry out his master's

commands.
still

His blind cruelty made many

continued.

victims, but the discord

At

last the

king himself was obliged to undertake

the suppression of the heresy.

He summoned

to Pataliputra
all

(Patna) an assembly of priests called by his orders from

parts of Jambudvipa,

and a

monk

called Tissa presided with

the same authority as Kasyapa and Yasa, aided by Revata, had exercised at the first and second Councils. Sixty thousand priests were degraded throughout India, and the ceremonies of the orthodox worship were everywhere reestablished.

This

third

Assembly of the Law, composed of

This important event

a thousand monks, lasted nine months.

took place in the seventeenth year of Dharmasoka's reign.^

* The MaJidvansa states that the three Councils lasted seven, eight, and nine months. The regularity of this increasing length of the Councils seems somewhat suspicious; it may be due to chance, or it

may be

factitious. The result is that the third Council was held in the year B.C. 308, The Northern traditions, more reliable on this point than the Singalese, place it at an earlier date, to 400 years after the Nirvana. This divergence has not yet been explained.

CH.

i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
says very
;

31

Mahanama
third Council

little,

it

will

be noticed, about the

but Dharmasoka's rule opened a

the island of Ceylon,

and

it

was due
visits

to the sovereign

new era for monarch

It

of India that

Lanka was

definitively converted.

woul

appear that the miraculous

sudiced, for

of the BudcMia had not

the

two centuries
;

after

Nirvana

his

teaching

seems forgotten
were
still

and

if

the traces

of his divine footsteps

h'.s

imprinted on the mountains of Sinhala,

doctrines

were obliterated from men's hearts.

However, before relating with

a decisive event, IMahanama thinks

all
it

proper details such

necessary to revert to

an

earlier period;

and he

relates the legend of the

union

of the lion and a princess of Magadha.

of the lion, was banished from India

Vijaya, grandson
his crimes,

on account of

and put

0:1

board a ship with his seven hundred accomplices;

he landed in Lanka, in the province of Tambapanni ( Tamraparna), the very day that the Tathagata entered into Nirvana,
after

having saved the world.

IMahanama, oblivious of the

fact that

he had previously asserted that the Buddha himself

still

had destroyed the Yakshas, represents them as being

fowerfuh in Lanka when Vijaya reaches the
Vijaya soon conquers them
;

all-

island.'

But

he subjugates the petty princes

who

rule over the country,

and

to strengthen his power, he

marries the daughter of a king of

thirty-eight years of a prosperous reign,

Madhura (Madras). After he dies at Tambathe spot

panni, a city he had founded

landed.

on

where he had

After an interregnum of one year, Pandurasadeva, Vijaya's

nephew,

whom

his

uncle

had summoned from Magadha,

where he resided

inherited the throne

and

settled at Upatissa,

' Here, Mahanama cxplnins the origin of the names Tambapanni (Taiuraparna, Taprobane) and Sinhala, given to Lanka. See liurnoufs notes on the ancient names of Ceylon. Journal Asiatiqtie de Paiis, January 1857, P^S^-^ 54 ^ '^ following.

3i2
thirty years.

wddhism
The whole
it

in Ceylon
Lanka obeyed
amongst

[pt.
his

island of

com-

mands, but he had divided

chieftains,

several subordinate

one of

whom was

Anuiadha, the founder of the

celebrated city that bears his name, which was for a long

time the capital

of Ceylon, and was

situated

north-west

of Kandy, the present native capital.

with

After Pandurasadeva,

long intervals of

civil

war and anarchy, four other

till

princes reigned in succession,

the great reign of

Plya-Tissa,

under

whom

the

Tathagata's

religion

Devanamwas

introduced and definitively established in Lanka.

Devanam-Piya-Tissa, the most

illustrious

of the kings

of Ceylon, was the second son of Mutaslva, his predecessor.

Renowned

for his piety

and wisdom, even before he became

307 to 267
his reign

king, he reigned peacefully forty years, from

before the Christian era, and from 236 to 276 of the Buddha's
era
;

and he devoted himself during the whole of

development of the Tathagata's law among
his coronation.

to the

his &ubjcc'.s.

The most
gems and
buried in

marvellous phenomena, reward of his rare virtue,

had marked

On that
surface.

propitious day, precious

soil

rich metals

sprang spontaneously from the

and were scattered on the

the

Pearls and treasures

forth

depths of the sea

came

and

l.iy

in

abundance on the shores of the

such a master.
branches, one of

island,

happy

at possessing

bamboo
and

tree threw out three miraculous

silver,

another laden with the most wonderful

the third covered with

and choice
modest
to offer

flowers,

paintings

of the rarest animals and birds.

The

king,

who was

too

to accept all these treasures for himself,

determined

them

to the great king

Dharmasoka, whose fame

his own The am-

had reached him.

gifts to

He

therefore confided these magnificent

four ambassadors, at

whose head he placed

his science.

nephew, and a Brahman known for

bassadors, accompanied
at

by a numerous

retinue,

embarked

Jambukola.

They

sailed seven days before reaching the

CH.

i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
The
less

313

Indian coast, and took seven more days to get to Pataliputra, the capital of the great Asoka.

Indian monarch

received the marvellous gifts with the greatest joy,

and not
ally's

choosing that his gratitude should be

generosity, he sent

than his

Devanam-Plya-Tissa a profusion of regal

ornaments

for his
five

new coronation^; and

to their king
'

after detaining the

ambassadors
the following
in

months, he sent them back to Lanka, with

:

message

have found refuge

I

the Buddha, the

Law, and the Order;

have piously

devoted myself to the religion of the son of the Sakyas.

Tliou,

master of men, recognize also in thy heart these

refuges,

incomparable
salvation/

and

ask

sincerely

of

them

thy

The

Sinhalese ambassadors, overwhelmed with

this

honours and charged with

at Tamralipli
(in Pali,

noble message, embarked

Tamalettiya), and after navigating

ten days, landed at Jambiikola,

whence they had

to
;

started six

months

previously.

They

transmitted

Devanam-Piyabut
it

Tifsa the pious exhortation of Dharmasoka

that this vexhortation

appears

was not
third

sufficiently powerful, for the

heart of the Sinhalese king remained

unmoved.
the

However,
the

after

the

Council,

great

Asoka,

Protector of the

faith,

determined to ensure the triumph of

tlie

Buddhic

faith

neighbouring countries.

by sending numerous emissaries to Proselytism had spread from

the

noi th of the peninsula, from

to

Kashmir and Gandhara, down

the Central Provinces, into the inaccessible country of IMahrattas

the

(Maharattha) and to the foreign countries

of \'onaloka and Aparantaka.

son Mahinda,

Dharmasoka sent his own who had been admitted into the Order twelve

* Althnrgh Mahanama's national pride strives to hide the truth, it seems proI>al.Ie that at this epoch the king: of Ceylon was a tributr.ry This is of the Indian monarch, who was master of all Jambudvlpa. still more probable, from the fact that Asoka recommends the Sinhalese this was evidently ambassadors to have their king crowned again a kind of investiture.
;

314

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON

[pt. in

years before, with his sister Sanghamitta, to carry the

word

of the Tatliagata to the fortunate island of Lanka.

Maha

Mahinda
with his

joyfully

obeyed
these

with four other monks,

his father's commands, and started whose names deserve to be recorded

own

were Itthiya, Utliya, Sambala, and

Bhaddasala.
panions,

When

he arrived in Lanka with his comat

Mahinda presented himself

once to the king

his powerful

Devanam-Piya-Tissa, as the son and envoy of

ally

Dharmasoka.

Devanam-Plya-Tissa then remembered

ambassadors had brought him, and

the pious advice his

lending a favourable ear to the discourse of the Buddhist

apostle he

was soon converted.

As he

set

an example of

profound veneration for the foreign monks, and personally

waited upon them in the presence of his whole court during
their

meagre

repast, the public

enihusiasm rapidly increased.

The
five

king's step-sister, the princess Anula,

was converted, with

residing, to hear

hundred women.
teaching,

The
each

population of the capital thronged

to the king's palace,

his

where Mahinda was

and
*

day thousands were

converted.

Mahinda spoke the language of the country, and as the Mahavansa says, thus he became the torch that lighted up
all

the island of Lanka.'

The number
were soon
the

of

monks
them,

rapidly

increased,

and viharas

built for

among
of

others the Maha-Vihara,

all.

most ancient and

largest

These magnificent

buildings,

where the monks

took up their abode during the

rainy season, did not suffice.

The

king, in his munificence,

added large donations, and

of the apostle,

in ofTering the

Mahamegha

to

Mahinda, he poured the consecrating water on the hands

who gave him

the plans for the construction

of thirty-two stupas.
traced with his

On

another occasion, the king himself

the furrow that

own hands
that

was

to enclose

a vast territory given to a convent.

He

himself drove the

two royal elephants

drew the golden plough through

Cii. i]

CONVERSION OP CEYLON
A
crowd of buildings rose on
all

313
sides

the consecrated soiP.

and stupas were erected wherever popular

it

superstition fancied

found traces of the Tathagata or of any former Buddhas.

The

stupas

however required
;

relics,

for

without these

they would not be sufficiently holy

so Devanani-P.'ya-Tissa,

having begged his pious

sent

ally to give

him some, Dharmasoka"

him one of the Buddha's collar-bones. was

received.
It

The

author of

the Mahavaiisa describes the public ceremonies with which

the holy relic

was deposited on

the top

of the Missaka
Chcliya,

hill,

which henceforth took the name of

occasion the king's youngest brother,
at the

and on

this

Matlabhaya, received holy orders,

thousand persons.

same time as

several

All these ceremonies, however magnificent they might be,

were, however, nothing in comparison to those which greeted

the

sacred

branch of

the

Bodhi

tree,

under \\hich the

with his

Tathagata had become the supreme and perfect Buddha.

The
hand

king Dharmasoka insisted on cutting

at

it

own
that
it

Bodhimanda
it

he himself placed

it

on the ship

was
far

to take

down

the Ganges,

and he accompanied

as

as the place of embarkation at Tamralipti.

it,

He
to

shed

copious tears on parting with

of his daughter
with eleven nuns
;

and confided

it

to the care
Sinliala

Sangliamitla,

who was going

for though IMahinda could ordain priests,

the law only permitted a

woman
the

to ordain priestesses or nuns.

IMahanama,

in

relating

miraculous voyage of the

style

bianeh of the Bodhidrumn, changes the usually simple

of his narrative and becomes almost
lyric.

'The
feliippcd,
'

vessel

on which
cleft

the

branch of the Bodhi was

rapidly

the

billows,

and

at the distance

of

of the Ji/ahavausa indicates with the greatest precision, acquainted with the country, all the different places through which the royal furrow passed. These details, as well as many others given by Mahanama, are very valuable with regard to the ancient geography of Ceylon. Burnouf intended making use of them.
as a

The ruthor man well

3i6

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
Flowers of
five different

[pt. hi

a yojana, the waves of the great Ocean smoothed

it.

down before
it,

colours blossomed around

filled

and the sweetest

while the

strains of

music

the air with melody.

deities,

Innumerable offerings were brought by innumerable

Nagas

in vain

had recourse

to their

magic power,
designs
this

to steal the divine tree/

Sanghamitta, the High Priestess, frustrated their

evil

by the power of her

incomparable
relic

sanctity,

and the ship bearing

at

soon arrived

Jambukola.
it

Everything
with
all

had been got ready on the shores to receive

veneration
it

the

deserved.

When

the

vessel

came
till

in sight,

the king dashed into the sea, and, advancing

the water

was up
tree

to his neck,

he began a joyful and pious chant in

honour of the Buddha.

He

then had the case in which the

different

was put

carried

by sixteen persons of sixteen

it

castes,
it.

who

deposited

in a magnificent hall

prepared for

He

invested the sacred branch with the sovereignty of

for three

Lanka, and himself,

sentinel at the

days and three nights, stood as

it

door of the
can

hall offering

rich presents.

Imagination

follow

the

triumphal
it

march of
had
first

the

branch from the Vihara of Pachina, where

been

handed over
where
it

to

the

priests,

to

Anuiadhapura the

capital,

only arrived on the fourteenth day; *at the hour

when
in

the shadows are longest.' At sunrise, it was carried by the northern gates of the city, through which it was borne in procession, and it was taken out by the southern gate to be conveyed to the beautiful garden of IMahamegha, where it was to be planted. Sixteen princes clad in the moot
brilliant

garments stood ready to receive

it

but the branch,

breaking loose from the hands of men, suddenly rose in the

air,

where

it

crowd, lighted up by a halo

remained before the astonished gaze of the It of six luminous rays.

at sunset,

came down again

and

and planted

itself in
it

the

soil,

for seven days a protecting cloud

shaded

and watered

CH.
it

i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
Fruit grew

317
instant,

with salutary rain.

on

it

in

an

and

the king

was able
tree,

to

propagate throughout the island the

miracles and

marvellous

the Bodhi, the promise of eternal salvation.

relates
all

IMahanama,
gives

these

many

others

besides, without the slightest hesitation or criticism,

them as occurring
is more real shown by the

in the

and he eighteenth year of DharmS-

Boka's reign.

What
which
is

is

the piety of Devanam-Plya-Tissa,

vast

and numerous monuments which

which were under
to the true faith.

he erected
his rule,

in all the parts of the island

like

and

him converted

Mahanama
it

mentions these edifices one

bable that
if

after the other;

and

is

pro-

researches were made, traces would

still

be

found, for this historian's indications are suflicienlly precise

to ensure a favourable result.

The

Sinhalese

monarch began

these constructions with his reign, and for forty years he

unceasingly continued them.

As

this

king died without children, one of his younger

brothers, called Uttiya, succeeded him.

The

great

Mahinda
to

Hved eight years under the new

consolidate the

reign,

and was able

undertaken.

work of conversion he had so auspiciously Living in retreat on the Hill of the relics
he was
the
spiritual

(Chefiya pahhatd),

governor of
directing

the

kingdom,

'ruling

over numerous

disciples,

the

Church he had founded,

delivering

fortifying the people

by his teaching,

which was similar to that of the Tathagata himself, and

Lanka from

the ignorance of

sin.'

At

his death,

he was given a splendid funeral; the king, overcome wiih

grief,

went himself

to fetch the body,

and bringing

it

back
it

in
in

the midst of the lamentations of the people, deposited

the Maha-Vihaia, consecrating there a chapel to his

memory

After seven which was henceforth called Ambanialaka. days of mourning and oflerings, the body was burned ; and
the
relics of the

High

Priest

were divided, some of them

3i8

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON

[pt. hi

being placed in a stupa raised on the very spot, and the

remainder being sent to the principal convents of Sinhala.

As
the

for the

brother

High Priestess SanghamitLa, she only survived her Mahinda one year, and at her death she received same honours as had been bestowed on him. Such is,
Putting aside the fables created by

according to the Mahdvatisa, the account of the conversion

of Ceylon to Buddhism.
superstition, there
is

nothing in this narrative that cannot be

relations

accepted.

Whatever may have been the

between

Buddhic India and Sinhala before the reign of DevanamPlya-Tissa,

it

is

evident that before that epoch

in the island.
It

Buddhism

was not established

Protector of the
the whole of India,

faith,

the

was the great Asoka, powerful monarch who ruled over

who

converted Ceylon to the

new

faith.

He
it

introduced

it

by the peaceful means of preaching, and

that the apostles

was from Magadha

from

whom Lanka
Buddha were
faith.

received the

Word had come.

;

Relics of the

sent to Sinhala

and the ambassadors who conveyed them

were at the same time propagators of the

logy, about the year

These

important events took place, according to the native chrono-

The

introduction of

300 b.c. Buddhism

into Sinhala, did not

how-

ever ensure peace, for during the reigns that followed that of
Uttiya, the country
tiie

was a constant prey

to the invasions of

Tamils "who came from the neighbouring coasts of India,

supremacy.

or to
for

time

among the different parties who contended One of the most celebrated kings of that was Dushta-Gamini, who reigned from the year 161 to
civil

wars

the year 137 before Christ.

He

drove out the Tamils, with

the help of five hundred priests

his

who were

incorporated in

army, and restored to the worship of the Buddha the

in the days

same magnificence as
and
Uttiya.

of Devanam-Plya-Tissa

He

built the INIaha-Stupa, the largest of all the

its

stupas in Ceylon, as

n.ime indicates.

It

was an enormous

cii.

i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
slill

319

brick building, the ruins of which can

be seen near
that took

Anuradhapura;

and

at the

solemn inauguration

place in the year

157

b.c, admirable

paintings were ex-

hibited to the public gaze

births of the

on which the Jatakas or successive Buddha were represented. The Maha-Siupa

under the reign of Saddha-Tissa, a
;

was only
renounce

finished

bro'.her

cf Dushta-Gamini

his

own

son, Sali, having preferred to

his rights to the throne,

sooner than give up a

his wife.

Chandali woman,

whom he

had made

Besides external and intestine wars, there were at times

religious dissensions.

The Maha-Vihara

of Anuradhapura,

which should have been the centre of orthodoxy, had seen

its

authority

weakened by many schisms; and the convent

its

of Abhayagiri became almost

equal.

monarch of
it

the

name

of Watta-Gamini protected the schismatics, and

was

to them he entrusted all the alms he distributed to his people. Under this prince's reign, in the year 89 b.c. the sacred texts

of the Pitakatlaya (Pali, the three Baskets), which

till

then
the
the
in-

had been
orthodox
first

orally preserved

by the
the

priests,

as well

as
for

commentary on
order
that

Atthahalhj, were

time put into writing.

This precaution appeared

false
stifle

dispensable, in

doctrines

should not, by

the perversity of the people,

theless, heresies

the true religion.

fiiih, just

Neveras the

continued to harass the

invasions of the Tamils devastated the country, and three

centuries elapsed before a king reigned
in Sinhala.
raja,

who

restored peace

This was the king Tissa, surnamed Voharaka-

because to him belongs the honour of abolishing torture,

in

which cruel practice had existed

memorial.
off

Ceylon from time imheavily

Full of generosity towards the priests, he paid

the

debts

due
even

by the
did

convents, which were

involved;

he

more, for he

actively supported

the

orthodoxy of the Maha-Vihara, against the Veiulliya

heresy professed in the convent of Abhayagiri.

320
Under

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
era,
it

[pt. hi

the reign of one of his successors, called Mahasena,

from 275 to 302 of the Christian

heresy that prevailed, and the

was,

on the contrary,

monks

of Abhaj agiri, gaining

the king to their cause, had the Maha-Vihara, the

their

home

of

adversaries,

destroyed.

The

cast

out priests took

refuge at INIalaya, in the province of Rohana, and remained

there in banishment for nine years.

The IMaha-Vihara was

gained a definitive
in

completely destroyed, and

to

its

most valuable contents taken

Abhayagiii, which seemed to have

victory.

However, one of the king's ministers rose up

favour of the exiles, and the principal agent of the persecution,

Sanghamitta, ha\ing
priests

been assassinated by a woman, the

recalled;,
their

of the l\Iaha-Vihara were

convent

was

rebuilt,

and alihough they were not certain of enjoying

were able to re-establish religious

lasting protection, they

worship according to their

notwithstanding the

own

rules.

Moreover, IMahasena,
religious

mobility of his

sentiments,

seems

to

have been an enlightened and benevolent king;

history has kept a record of his great

works of public

utility

sixteen fountains

and a great canal

called

Pabbata which he

had opened.

With
the

]\Iahasena*s reign, the year 302 of the Chiislian era,

Mahdvansa

ends.

already mentioned, under the

the

middle of the

The work was continued, as we have name of Suluvansa, down to The son of Mahasena, last century.
father's impiety,

Sirimeghavarma, strove to retrieve his

in the ninth year of his reign

and

(310 B.C.) the famous tooth of the Buddha {Ddi/iddliaiu\ hitherto kept at Dantapura, was

brought to Ceylon by a Brahman princess.

deposited in the temple of
the object of popular enthusiasm

The

relic

was

Dhammachakka, and soon became

and veneration.^

' The history of the Buddha's tooth is certainly one of the most cuiious among all the Buddhist suiierstitions. It has been the subject of a special work, the Ddthddhdtvansa, which still exists, and which, writteo

cii. i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
not necessary to

321

It

is

allude further to the history of

just mention, to

Ceylon, nevertheless
of the Buddhist

we must
the

the

honour

faith,

reign of Buddhadasa, from the

year 339 to 368 of the Christian era, Avho was also a great doctor, and who wrote in the Sanskrit language books that
are
still

referred to at

the present day.

This benevolent

king also founded a number of hospitals, and established

a doctor for each district of ten villages.

To
Pali

this

period

must be attributed the translation of the

Sinhalese.
Finally,
it

Sutras into

must be remembered that

in the year

420 the

Sinhalese Atthakatha was retranslated into Pali by the cele-

brated

Brahman Buddhaghosa.
by IMahinda

The

Atthakatha, or com-

mentary on the sacred books, had been translated from Pali

into Sinhalese
;

but in course of time the original

texts

Pali

had disappeared, and the unity of the orthodox

from
this

suffered

serious
it.

omission.
priests

appointed to repair
of

But the

Buddhaghosa was of the Maha-Vihara

took the wisest

Anuradhapura, to
gave him

whom

he

applied,

precautions to be assured against any deception on his part.

They
was

fust

to translate, as a test,

two Galhas, of which

they had the authentic text in Pali, and which

to translate

Buddhaghosa
and as

from Sinhalese into

Pali.

This translation
priests,

was examined three times by the college of

Buddhaghosa honourably sustained this minute scrutiny, the priests no longer hesitated to confide to him the Pitakattaya and the Atthakatha. He thereupon retired to the vihara of Ganihakara at Anuradhapura, and translated the whole of the Sinhalese Atthakatha into Pali, according to the gram*

matical

rules

of the

Magadha

language, the
is
still

root

of

all

languages.'

Buddhaghosa's version
tooth, after

in use at the

century after century, was continued

century.

The

many

down to the middle of the last peregrinations, wns deposited in the

it

Temple of Maligawa at Kandy, and in 1847 Tumour had keeping as ^-epi^s^ptative of the English government.

in hi

owa

322
present time.

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
As
for

[pt. hi
difficult

him, after having finished this

work to the great satisfaction of the priests, he returned to Magadha, whence he had come, and Hved there to a very
advanced age.
It

will

be seen that the Buddhist

priests

of the

fifih

century were more fortunate, or rather more prudent, than

Alexander Johnston was in our day. Such is the series of events related in the first volume of the Mahdvansa^ which has been given to us by Tumour. The end of the work would be, in other respects, no less
Sir

interesting;

but although twenty years have elapsed since

it

the

first

volume was published,

has not yet

made
is

its

appearance.

The
:

style

of

this

singular

history

what
not

might be expected

extremely simple, devoid of affectation,

and generally
surprising
in

sufficiently clear.

The
at

use

of verse

is

annals

that

aim

preserving

an edifying

recollection of the past.

The

verses

of the Mahdvansa
is

are

more

like

rhymed prose than what

generally con-

sidered poetry.

The

Pali language

is

as supple as Sanskrit,

and

in these flexible

idioms everything can be written in

verse,

from grammars and dictionaries down to philosophical

systems.

The

metre, with

its

precise

and

strict rules, is

but

a means of assisting the

preservation of the texts.

memory and

ensuring the authentic

As

to the talent of the historian, properly called,

it

may be

judged by the
annalist,

preceding

analysis.

and nothing more.

as

IMahanama was an History, exact, austere, and

it,

searching, such races

;

we understand

did not suit these

and the Mahdvansa^ important as it is although a masterpiece of Indian talent is no exception to the rule. Sometimes the author tries to rise above his subject and draw some nobler lessons from the facts he relates. But

the trivial and uniform reflexions

things and the imperturbable

on the instability of human power of the faith that recur

CH.

i]

CONVERSION OF CEYLON
historian.

323

at the

end of each chapter, do not endow MahSnJima with

the characteristics of a true

They merely show

most excellent

intentions

but

he does not succeed in

making

his history a teaching,

so.
It
is

whatever pains he

may have

taken to do

a recapitulation of absurd legends

which he never

criticizes,

and an injudicious compendium

of real events which are neither sufficiently understood nor

sufficiently explained.

The
imparts

extensive chronology contained in the

to
it

Mahavansa
is

its

special

value.

Chronology

valuaLb

everywhere, but infinitely more in India than elsewhere, as

it is

most scarce

in that country.

]\Iahanama's system was

very simple.
as

He

begins from the death of the Buddha, just

the birth of Christ.

we begin from

Nothing could be

clearer than this

mode

of reckoning
is

through subsequent writings,

and as the Mahavansa, continued and carried on till

;

the middle of the last century,

tions that are to be

it is
it,

easy, with all the indica-

found

in

to trace

back the course of

In
this

time,

and

to attain, for the history of Ceylon, a preciseness

that the

history of India has

never had.

manner

Tumour was
Nirvana

able

to

re-establish,

from the date of the

to the year

and

the

landing

of Vijaya at Tambapanni, the

whole chronology of the Sinhalese kings down

1798,

when

the last native

king, Sri

Vikrama Rajasingh,

was dethroned by the English and died in captivity. Turnour was able to write this most useful work by referring
entirely to reliable

documents, without admitting conjectures

all

he had only consulted the native annals, and had found

the necessary materials in abundance.

X 3

CHAPTER

II.

Actual condition of the Buddhist clergy in Ceylon, as described by the

The novitiate ; the J\ev Spence Hardy, IVesleyan missionary. Wealth of the ordination; letter from the Burmese high priest. Sinhalese clergy. Jndividnnl poverty of the priests ; their austerity. The Canonical sacred writings in Ceylon. Public reading of the Bana {the Word). Festival at Pant lira in 1839. '^^'^ Lpdsakas ; The Bhdvand or meditation ; the Pirit or reiemony of exorcism. supernatural powers conjerred by it. Meritorious acts {Sachakii iyas) and their miraculous influence. Nirvana according to Sinhalese priests; their ardent faith ; their spirit of tolerance ; care bestowed Medical knowledge of the clergy on the education of children. Division of subordination of the clergy to the ruling powers. Relations of Sinhalese Buddhism with Sinhalese clergy into sects. Progress of Catholicism and education under the Christianity. Statistics of Ceylon. English rule.

We

will

now

leave the past in order to study the actual

condition of

Buddhism in Ceylon, and we shall take our information more particularly from the writings of the Rev. Spence Hardy, aided by a few details gathered from Spence Hardy resided twenty years in Ceylon other sources.
as a
his

Wesleyan missionary (1825-1845). In the exercise of sacred ministry he was thrown into constant intercourse

with the natives,

whom

he strove to instruct and console.

Full of zeal for his calling, he fulfilled his duties with a fervour
that
is

testified

Buddhism.

As soon

by the two works he has published on as he reached Ceylon he began the

study of the language, in order to acquaint himself thoroughly

with a religion which

it

was

his ambilion to supplant

by

a better one, and he never ceased the pursuing of the studies

he had so energetically begun.

to

He wished more
w^o

particularly

be of use to the missionaries

sh.ould succeed him,

a^d

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

it

323

was with

this practical object in

view that he wrote his two

books, Eastern Monachisni and The

Maminl of I^uddh:sm.
if

The English
succeeded
in

missionaries must decide

Spcncc Hardy
these two works

carrying out his purpose, and

if

have really assisted them

in their struggle a:;r.inj-t the deplor-

able superstitions which they are striving to replace by ihe

But it would perhaps have been preferable had Spence Hardy confined his labours to the present conCiirisiian faith.

dition of

Buddhism

in Ceylon,

and not undertaken such a very

an extensive subject,
it

extensive work.

The

history of Eastern

Monachism

is

and we have not

properly.

at present sufficient materials to treat

Spence Hardy only saw the monks, or rather

priests, in

Buddhist
to

Ceylon.
it

Buddhism, however, has spread

extends from Kashmir to the

many

other countries;

eastern frontiers of China, and

from Ceylon

to the north

of Tibet.

What
state

variety

of countries,

races,

climates,

languages, and
the

beliefs!

And who

can pertinently say, in

present

of information,

what Buddhism
?

really

consists in for each of these people

It is

not granted to

every one

to

reside

twenty years in Ceylon, and Spence

Hardy might have

seized the opportunity of giving a

mono-

graphy, every detail of which would have

been valuable,
present conutility
;

becouse each one would have been unimpeachably exact.

study limited to Sinhalese Buddhism in

its

dition

would have been of the greatest value and

for

southern Buddhism has been concentrate. 1 in Ceylon, just

Buddhism was concentrated in Nepaul. more to be regretted that Spence Hardy did not adopt this method, inasmuch that he seems to have thought of it himself, and to have been aware of the great for he says in his value such a work would have possessed preface that in the present state of our knowledge on Buddhism,
as northern
It is
all

the

the authentic translations

drawn from contemporary

dialects

326

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
He

[pt.

ill

may be

very useful, as they reveal the sentiments and habits

of the priests of the present time.

adds that the writings

of the Sinhalese authors abound in Pali quotations, of which

language they possessed a thorough knowledge

their

and as

in

eyes

the

books they translated or paraphrased are

it

sacred writings,

may

be supposed that their works give an

exact idea of the original ones.

It

appears that in Ceylon the novitiate of the priests

strict

is

more

than in other Buddhist countries.

The

novices,

who

in Sinhalese are called in

Gamnnanses or

associates, are

compelled to reside
their instruction.

the convent in which they receive

is less

In other countries the rule

exacting,

and the novice may remain with

teacher.
is

his family, provided he goes

as often as possible to receive the lessons of his spiritual

In Ceylon, on the contrary, residence in the convent

for the novice is considered a priest,

an imperative condition,
is

and as such
novice
is

subject to the

same

rules.

Nevertheless the

free to
to,

choose the monastery or vihara he desires to

be attached

and Sinhalese books have been expressly

written to guide the

young

priest in his choice.

When he has decided, after long and minute self-examination,

he states his intentions to a
priest,

taking with him a robe,

which he must receive back from his hands, in order to begin his novitiate under this new garb. He then humbly asks
his superior to

pronounce over him the threefold Buddhist

is

formulas [tunsarand), that

the threefold Refuges

go for

refuge to the Buddha, I go for refuge to the Law, I go for refuge to the Order,' the novice repealing the sacred formula
after the priest;

he then

recites the Dasa-sil or

Ten

Precepts,

which may be called the Novice's Decalogue

'

I take the
;

steal

take the
to
lie
;

vow not vow

to destrO}' to abstain

life

take the
;

vow

not to

from impurity
virtue

I take the

vow not
drinks,

I take the

vow

to abstain
;

from intoxicating
I

which hinder progress and

take the

vow

ett. 11]

BUbt)HtSt CLERGY tN CEYLON

vow
to abstain
I take the

3^7
from

not to eat at forbidden times ; I take the

dancing, singing, music, and stage plays
to use garlands, scents,
;

vow not

unguents or ornaments ; I take the

vow not

to use a high or
silver.*

broad bed ; I take the vow not to

receive gold or

After pronouncing these vows, the novice enters the convent

and

daily

fulfils

his

humble and laborious

tasks.

A manual,

called the Di'na chariyawa, Daily Occupations of the Priest,

minutely establishes the rules, from which he must not deviate.

He must
wash
his

rise before daylight

and wash

(his first

duty

is

to

teeth);

then

sweep the yard of the vihara and

for the day,

round the Bo-tree; fetch the drinking water

filter filled,
it,

and place
is

it

ready for use.

These

first

duties ful-

he

to retire to

a solitary place and meditate for an

hour on the rules he has obeyed and those that are to follow.

When

the vihara bell rings to announce the

moment

of

the sacrifice, he must approach the stupa in which the relics

are enshrined, or the Bo-tree,

and

offer

whatever flowers he

has been able to procure, as though the Buddha were present

in person.

He

must especially meditate on the great

virtues

of the Tathagata, and beg the holy relics to absolve

him of

all the negligences and faults he may have committed. must remain some moments prostrate worshipping, with

He
his

and elbows touching the ground. He will consult his Lita or calendar, in order to know by the length of the shadows what hour it is, the age of the moon, and the
forehead, knees,

number of years elapsed

must again meditate

since the death of the Buddha.

He

on the beneficial results of obedience to the regulations, and the unappreciable adSoon after, taking the vantages of wearing the yellow robe.
for a short time

begging-bowl he must follow his superior

for food, taking care to

in his daily

round

remain

at a

proper distance from

village.

him, and hand him the bowl

when they approach a

On

reaching

it,

the novice

must cast down

his eyes with the

328
greatest

BUDDHISM
care

W C^yLoN
the
sight of
soldiers.
faithful,

[pt. in

so

as

to

avoid

women, men,
alms-bowl

elephants, horses, chariots

and

When the

has been

filled

by the charity of the

his superior,

the novice takes

also his

back the bowl from

who hands him

upper garment, and both return to the vihara.

The young man must

his feet,

then offer a seat to his master, wash

;

and place the food before him

he can only partake

of

it

himself after him, and must repeat certain sacramental

stanzas before

and

after
it

eating.

He

must then wash the

it

alms-bowl and place

away.

in the

sun to dry before putting

After the meal

is

over he washes his face, and putting

on

his robe, silently worships the

Buddha and

his superior.

He may

then retire to a solitary place and again search his

heart and give himself up to the exercise of the Meila-bhdvand,

or the Meditation

on Kindness and

Affection.

About an hour

afterwards he

is

to begin his studies from the sacred books,

or copy one of them, asking his superior's assistance for any

passages he does not understand.

He
who

then lights a

fire

and

a lamp, and prepares everything for the reading of the Bana,

or the

Canon
and

he

calls the priest

is

to recite

it,

washes

his feet,

sits

down

in the attitude prescribed for listening

to the sacred readings,

Pt'rtt or

which

finish

by a

recitation of the

exorcism used by

priests.

If after all these duties

he
is

still

has a few moments' leisure before sunset, the novice

again to sweep the sacred places as he did in the early

morning.

Such are the vows and regular occupations of the Sinhalese

novices.

The layman who

wishes for entrance to the Order must be at

least eight years old before obtaining the novitiate,

and

at least

twenty before receiving

full initiation

(ordination, tipasampada).
;

The

novitiate lasts

about ten years

;

the parents' consent

spirit

is

absolutely necessary

and

it

would not seem that the

of

proselytism leads the Ceylon priest to infringe this rule.

The

Ctt. ii]

BVDDI-IIST
itself

CLERGY IN CEYLON
in

329
by
dis-

vocation declares
priests,

the schools which are kept

and

at a

very early age the children

who

will

be

posed to take orders show th-eir inclination. Moreover, the vows are not irrevocable ; and abjuration, although rare, is
not impossible, nor
is it

considered a dishonour.

It is
its

simply

regarded as a confession of weakness, which in

is

sincerity

creditable.

The

holy

life

is

renounced because the

fulfilling its

monk

feels

himself incapable of loyally

in the majority of cases the

severe regulations.

But

novice steadfastly believes in

life,
it

the advantages of a religious

deserting
evils,

it.

He

is

taught that

delivers

and does not think of him from many

:

and ensures him the following

sure of having food
is

benefits

he

is

delivered

from the desire for riches and pleasure {vastukama^ klesakama)\

he
is
;

he learns to be

satisfied with

what-

ever he

given
;

he fears neither the oppression of the wicked

is

nor of kings

he

saved from

all

the anxiety entailed by

;

the possession of land, horses, cattle, &c.

he need not fear

robbers nor
in

officials
is

he need not even

rise at their

approach

one word, he

delivered

from every

sort of fear.

Doubtless these benefits are of a negative kind, but they

are sufficient, with the

hope of Nirvana,
at present less

to attract novices;
easily

and hitherto the Buddhist clergy of Ceylon has been

recruited, although
it is

numerous than in former

days,

when Hiouen-Thsang
si.K

states the

number of monks
is

to

have been

thousand.

Discipline, moreover,

vigilantly

maintained, and
well

we
is

will

quote a document that proves

how

the

Ceylon priests understand the importance of the

this

novitiate;

letter

from the Burmese high

priest

{Sanghanija) in answer to the appeal of the Sinhalese priests

for advice.
'

It is
is

dated in the year 1802. high priest writes,

for novices,

As

it

erroneously believed,' the

that certain regulations

were not made

and were
I will

only obligatory for priests

recall to

who have

received ordination,

you the following passage of the Commentary on

33^

WDDtiiSM IN CilYLON
is

tpT.

lit

the 3fahd-Vagga, in order to

there
for

such an opinion.
is

"

show you what little ground As long as a monk," says this

Commentary, "

ignorant of the details of the discipline he

should follow, as long as he does not

robes, or present the alms-bowl, or
to
s't

know how to put on his when to stand and when

down, or how to eat or drink according to the pre-

scribed rules, he must not be sent into the houses where food
is
is

indiscriminately given to the priests, nor to places where

distributed each

it

day

to

some chosen

priests.

He must not
shall instruct

either

be sent into the forest or to any public assembly.

priests,

But he must remain with some older

;

who

him like a child he must be carefully taught what is and what is not permitted each day he must be shown how to arrange his robe and wear it and he should have explained to him all the parts of the discipline that he must observe." This instruction {sandesa) given by the Burmese high priest proves that the discipline of the novices in Ceylon had
;

'

been relaxed

at the

beginning of
it

this century,

and

that the

need to re-establish

had been
is

felt.

When
is

the novice

sufficiently

instructed,

and he has

attained the proper age, he then receives the ordination which

to

make him a
work
called
;

priest for the

remainder of his

life.

The

rules

of ordination are very simple, and are contained in

little

Kammavacham, which has been

is

translated

into Sinhalese

the following are the chief points.

On the
asked
if

day
the

appointed a chapter {sanghd)

priests.

held of not less than four

is

The

candidate

is

introduced, and

special things pertaining to a

&c.,

monk
he
is

the alms-bowl, robes,

which have been placed before the assembly

his reply in the alTirmative

are

his.

On
he

shown
lie

the place where

is first

he must stand during his examination.

is

asked

if

free

from any of the disqualifying diseases

Secondly,
if

leprosy,
man, and

epilepsy,

fec.

he

is

human

being, a

a free

man a

slave not being able to take orders without

CH.

ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

;

331

the consent of his master

if

he has any debts;

if he is

exempt
the

from the king's service

if

if

he has the consent of

;

his parents
all

he

is

twenty years of age

in

one word,

if

he has

conditions requisite for piiesthood.

When
novice,
'I

these points have been settled, the president bids the

novice advance in front of the assembled monks, and the

coming forward, says three times

the

in

a respectful voice,

ask

chapter

for

ordination'
is

{upasampada).

The
might

president declares that the novice

free
all

from

all

that

hinder his admission, that he possesses

possess,

that a priest should

and

that he asks for upasa?jipadU.

'

Then he
it

repeats
this

three times,

Let those
silent,

who

are of opinion to grant

request remain

and he who opposes

silently

declare so at

once/

If the chapter

consents to the candidate's

admission, the president reminds the novice of

rules that
his
life,

some of
the

the

he

will

henceforth have to submit to

till

end of

such as the food he

is

may

receive, the clothes

he

may
ill-

wear, the medicines he

ness,

permitted to use in case of

his exclusion

and the crimes which would cause

from

the community.

After this consecration, the newly-elected

member
taking a

declares that he submits to this law, without however

From
It

this

vow of obedience or making any kind of promise. moment the novice becomes a priest, and the

Buddhist confraternity counts another member.

often happens that a novice, presenting himself before

the

chapter for

his examination,

puts off the robes and

resumes a layman's
solemnity the
calling.

clothes, in order to put

on with more

new

robe, which shows the people his sacred

is

Sometimes he

accompanied to the place of

ordination by his family, his friends, and by a crowd

carry banners in honour of the festivity.

who

Sometimes, indeed,

kings have mingled with the procession through the streets of Kandy,

when

the candidate

honour, either by his parentage or his virtues.

was deemed worthy of such At the present

332

BUDDHISM IN C^YlON

[pt. hi

day the ordinations are only made in the capital by the hands of the Maha-Nayaka or the Anu-Nayaka, that is
the

Director-General
this is

appears that
that this
is

or the Assistant Director. But it an innovation, and Spence Hardy rcmiiks a change simi'ar to that which formerly transferred

from the

clerical

community

to the bishops alone the right

of ordination.

Although the upasavipadd does not confer an

cliaracter,
is
it is

indelible

extremely rare in Ceylon that the yellow robe

abandoned

for a return to the world.

faith.
is

This

is

sure evidence
are,

of the ardour of the Sinhalese

There

however,

Buddhist countries
leave holy orders.

in

which

it

almost a sport to take or

is

In those countries there

hardly a single

person
for

who

has not, at least once in his

;

life,

been a monk

a longer or shorter period

trial,

it is

like

a pious retreat taken

on

but in which there

it is

is

no wish

to

remain permanently.

In Siam
for the

the custom every year, in the

month of Asarha,
in order to

king to cast aside his royal garments, shave his head,

and assume the yellow robe of the novice,

viharas.

do

penance, with his whole court, in one of the most celebrated

The most

devout monarchs carry their piety even

a step further, for they bring in their retinue slaves they are

supposed to have converted,

whom

they cause to be shaved

and ordained as

priests.

It

appears that in the kingdom of

Doubtless they fancy they

Ava

the

same

practices are allowed.

are performing an act of sincere piety, but at the

same time
the clerical

they lower the respect which ought to be

character
peo[)le
;

felt for

and

in

Burmah

it

is

a frequent thing for married

who

wish to be divorced to become priests for a few

months, in order afterwards to be able to marry again.

In Ceylon, ordination
to them.
is

a solemn

act,

and no one takes

orders unless he has the firm intention of remaining faithful

This

fact

is

an honour
that

to

Sinhalese piety, and

Spence Hardy ascertained

such was really the case.

CH.

ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

verify,

333
the

Another point which was easy to

wealth poverty

and on which
is

author was able to obtain thorough information,

the great

possessed by the
is

Sinhalese

clergy.

The vow

of

generally strictly observed, and, like in the

first

centuries of Buddhism, the

monks only

possess the eight

following articles

three robes of different shapes, a girdle for

the loins, an alms-bowl in clay or iron {paidra\ a razor

complete tonsure being obligatory

cloihes,

needle to

mend

their

and a water-strainer through which they have

to
is

strain all they drink (perahatikada).

No

individual

monk

permitted to possess anything beyond these indispensable

articles.

But the community

may be

wealthy without

dis-

obeying the law, and in Ceylon they are extremely

rich.

In an inscription engraved on a rock at Mihintale, near

Anuradhapura, which dates from the year 262 of our

it

era,

is

specified that the lands given to the vihara are to rema'n

the undivided property of the priests; that regular accounts

are to be kept

by

special officers of the revenues of the

temple,

and

that these accounts are to be

at

made up

at the

end of every month, and must

audit them, &c., &c.
It

the end of each year be

presented to a chapter of priests appointed to verify and

has always been held a principle in Ceylon, as well as in

India, that the

whole

territory

belongs to the monarch

but

in practice this principle

has had very numerous exceptions,

temples and even individuals
first

and from the

earliest times the

It is

have possessed land.

very probable that at

the

royal donations were the reward of signal services rendered

to the

person of the king or to the

state,

and

that in course

of time these" properties, which had

become

hereditary, were

given to the viharas to avoid taxation, and held on leases by

the former landlords.

When

the kings

made

these generous

donations to the temples, they were

careful to

impose on the

cultivators of the oil pertain obli^atigns to^^aj-ds 'Iw piests.

334

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
this,

[pt. hi

multitude of inscriptions attest

besides the one at

Mihintale.

The

lands thus granted ceased to be liable for

any
to

service to the king, and the services originally due him were transferred to the temple. The Sinhalese clergy had thus become extremely wealthy, and as the perstrict limits

sonal maintenance of the monks, reduced to the

above

mentioned, cost
all

very

little,

the

community was

benefited by

the favours

and

all

the savings.

'When

I passed,'

Spence Hardy

says, *in travelling through

the interior of Ceylon, before landscapes that

would

justify the

legend which makes out

this island to

be the earthly paradise,

fertile, I

and

I noticed lands that

were exceptionally

almost

always found on inquiry that they were the property of the

priests.'

Robert Knox,
extent of the

in

the

interesting

narrative

of his

long

captivity in Ceylon,

same remark.* The enormous sacerdotal lands and the wealth of the convents

made

the

had

also struck him.

The

farmers of the viharas were the

most prosperous in the island ; the priests demanded moderate rental?, and their estates were admirably cultivated by men

who made good

up
for the

profits.

The
and

revenues were used to keep

slupas, as well as to provide

the viharas, temples,

expenses of the worship and the pay of the numerous

attached to each community.
official

officials

In an

report

one of the commissioners appointed

following passage
:
'

made by Lieutenant-Colonel Colebrooke, in 1831, we find the The estates belonging to the temples

consist of the largest tracts of cultivated land in the provinces

of Kandy.

In several of the temples and colleges, registers

are kept of the land that belongs to

registers

them; but as these

have not been examined,

it

has not been possible

and shows the

Robert Knox's curious narrative has been republished several times, internal condition of Ceylon in the last half of the seventeenth century he was a prisoner there from 1659 to 16S0.
'
;

CH.

ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

what they contain.

335

to ascertain exactly

At

my

request the
trans-

registers of the principal temples of

lated,

Kandy have been

and

it

has been proved that the tenants and possessors

of what are called the temple estates are in

many

provinces

subject to different kinds of servitudes and contributions,

whenever they may be demanded by the

stipulations are

priests.

These
and the

minutely detailed in the

registers,

tenant farmer of each allotment has either a particular duty

to
fulfil,

or he

is

bound

to

pay a

particular tax, either for the

repairs of the temple, or the maintenance of the chiefs

priests
It

and the
a vast

and

their officials, or for the great festivals of the year.*

is

may

with good reason be thought that there

difference

between the wealth and prosperity of these temples

institution of the

and the primitive

Buddha, so simple and so

scrupulously attached to poverty.

Nevertheless, the Sinhalese priesthood has remained faithful
to
its

vows of poverty, and observed

never been relaxed.

all

the rules, precise even

to puerility, with a perseverance which for twenty centuries

has

The Buddhist

priest

absolutely

declines to be fed except by the alms he receives.

He

goes

from house

to

house in the neighbouring town or

village to

present his alms-bowl.

He may

not utter a word to express

a wish, or point out any food he

may by chance have

seen

and he must always keep

before

his eyes downcast, gazing fixedly

him

at the distance of

a yoke.'
all

The

canonical books prescribe wiih the greatest care

the details regarding mendicity, the Viiiyapti.

approaching a house, begging-bowl in hand,

presence.
If he is not seen, or if nothing
in silence without a gesture or

The monk on must not make

his

any sign or sound that might warn the inhabitants of

is

given him, he

must pass on
where
is

word of reproach,

otherwise he would

commit a grievous
but he
is

sin.

Some

houses,
prieit

his virtue or reputation

;

might be endangered, the

ordered to avoid

on no account to pass by any

336

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
its

[pt. hi

on the pretext of

poverty.

He

must not remain a long

a place where
is
full,

time before a house so as to become importunate, nor must

he present himself more

tlian three times in

nothing has been given him.

When

the

bowl

the

monk
given,

retires

home and eats whatever it may be.

all
;

in solitude the

food he has been

According to Spence Hardy, the

observe
severity

Sinhalese
lost
is

monks

still

these practices, which

have

none of

their

the only difference they

at the

make

that they avoid

begging

houses and in the

districts of the

poorer castes,

such as the washermen and the mat-makers.

It

cannot be denied that the founder of Bi.ddhism showed

great

wisdom

in

imposing upon his monks absolute silence

their

and perfect resignation during the collection of the alms,

which he made
only source cf supply, for he thereby
this singular institution.

ensured a long existence to

Other

founders pf mendicant orders have not had the same foresight,

or perhaps had less ascendency over their adepts, and

the result has been that Fociety soon

intolerable importunity cf the

monks.

INIoreover, the

became weary of the Buddha

made
to

alms-giving one of the principal virtues he

commended
in the

the faithful,

and none other holds such a place

it

Buddhist legends, by the self-denial

demands, and especially

by the incomparable
it.

results

it

produced on those who practised

Alms, when taken from personal gains, are particularly

it

meritorious, and

is

related that a devout king of

Ceylon

used to work in the

fields, like

common

labourer, in order

to give the portion of rice he received as salary to a venerable

priest.
It is

even added that he remained three consecutive

as to
offer

years

on a sugar-cane plantation so

to

the

priests all the sugar

he received as wages.

He

thus gave
it

alms by the sweat of his brow instead of simply drawing

from

his royal treasury.

It is also related that the

parents
ai^

of the'fa^ious king Dush^a-G^mini had rriad^

him take

CH.

ii]

BUDbHlsT CLERGY
from

W CEYLON
a

^37
repast
for

oath in his childhood, that he would never eat

M-ithout. first putting aside,

his

own

food,

a share

the priests.^

The king

faithfully

kept his word, but in a

this

moment

of absent-mindedness, having neglected

built
fault.

duly,
in

he performed penance, and

expiation of his involuntary
If

a stupa and a vihara,

by some unfortunate misadventure the

at
all,

priest received

no food
hunger
?

what was he

to

do?

Was

he bound to die of

This question has not been

laid

down

in

such

precise terms
that
it

by Buddhic
the

law, but everything goes to prove

this

would unhesitatingly enforce

extreme measure.

On

no pretext must
given him.

mendicant speak; on no pretext must he

live solely

break the rule which enjoins on him to

is

on what

If death
it

be the consequence of

this

submission

to the

Law,

matters not, and Buddhism generally fears

to

death too
in

litile

be stopped by such a consideration, which

such a case would only be regarded as a merit'.

strict

The
as

minutiae of the discipline as regards diet are as

on
in
is

any other

point,

and when so many precautions are taken

order that food

may

not become the occasion of

all

sin,

it

tantamount to a prohibition of

food that does not exactly

conform with the unchangeable presciiptions of the Law.

These

prescriptions are

no

less

numerous or imperative as
has three robes,
antdra-vdsaka and the
covers the whole of his

regards the monks' clothing.

The monk

formed of two undergarments

sanghciti

the

and one loose robe which

body, except the right shoulder, called the uttardsanga.

He

* The legends quote a good many exnmples calculated to stimulate the piety of the monks. One of the Kuddha's disciples refuses a remedy that will cure him, because the medicine had been prepared from directions he had given with another intention, and that he might have seemed to have asked for. Another monk, sooner than eat fruit fallen from a tree, which the proprietor had not given him, runs the risk of dying of hunger. During a famine, the Buddha's disciples are reduced to feeding on horses' oats, and the Talhagata docs not -allow them to use their supernatural powers to procure more suitable food.

338

BUDDHISM IN CEYlON
if

fpt.

lit

can never dispose of them, and

stance

in

any pressing circumto leave

a danger

for instance

he has been obliged

it

one of

his robes in the village,

must not be
out, the

left

there

more

than six days, unless by special permissioh.

has been lost or stolen, or

the
right
to

is worn demand another. If personage gives money to buy a

When a robe monk has not

or

the king

any high
a third

robe, the priest cannot

take the money, which must be handed

over

to

person for the purchase of the robe.

If the intermediate

agent

is

dishonest,
it
;

must not exact

all

and does not give the robe, the priest he can do is to warn the pious giver

who has advanced the money. The proper time for offering new robes is at the end of the rainy season, and the monk
cannot accept them earlier than ten days before the end of
the Varsha season).
If,

(the

retreat

in

the

viharas

during the rainy

by chance, a monk should have received a robe outside of the prescribed time, he must bring it back to the
chapter,

who

dispose of

it

in favour of another priest.

The

robes must be of

common

cotton cloth, for nothing can be

if

too simple for the mendicant ;

the garments are new, they

;

must be

soiled with

mud and

dust before being worn

the

more
yards.

strict

monks only wear

rags picked

up

in the grave-

In Ceylon, the month that follows the Varsha, or rainy

season,
is

called the robing

faithful

month {ChJvaramasa).

At

this

epoch the

offer

the priests pieces

of cotton cloth
;

called hatina.

granted to the

The chapter receive the gifts and a robe is monk who seems to have the most urgent

need of

it,

or rather to the priest who, during the Varsha, has

read and commented on the canonical books to his brethren.

The
done

chapter, assisted by a few laymen, sew the robe together,

it

and dye

a dull orange colour ; these preparations must be

in a day, or sixty hours, according to the

way

the

natives reckon time.

Ctt.

n]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

is

339
woven

On

certain occasions, the cotton material

itself

under the eyes of the chapter.

has been read
is filled

The

hall in

which the Bana

floor,

with

wbmen

seated
it

on the

who

bring cotton, just as they have taken

from the

tree

other

women draw it from its capsules, and prepare it for ihp spinners, who convert it into thread. The thread is given to weavers, who await out of doors with their hand-looms, and who hurriedly weave a cloth. The same evening, the
priests receive
it,

and sew
this
this

it

into a robe,

which they dye

the desired

colour;

is

always a dull orange colour.

still

However,

in spite

of

uniformity, there are

slight

differences, according to the taste of the

monks; and Spence

Hardy knew an
a Siamese king.

old priest
silk

who

wore, with a certain degree

of pride, a handsome

robe that had been sent him by

their

Moreover the monks never change

they are taken off only

robes for any ceremonial;

they leave the community;
a priest,

and

this

was the
rebel,

when reason why

his

who

in 18 18

was executed as a

underwent

sentence clothed in his sacerdotal garments.

He

could only

be depiived of ihem if he had demanded it, otherwise it would have been a dreadful outrage which foreigners had no
right to inflict

on him

they could

kill

him, but not degrade

him.

Although the law of the Buddha did not make

absolute rule for

it
*

an
in

monks

to live in solitude, or, as is said,

the forest,' yet there are

many

priests

who

build themselves

a shelter far from towns and

reside.

villages, in

which they habitually

at first intended

In Ceylon, the vihara, which was

to receive the

monks during

degrees

a regular temple,

became by and ceased to be a convent.

the rainy seasons,

Generally the huts of the Sinhalese priests are

partitions, filled in with

made of

light

mud, the

roofs being thatched with

straw or coconut leaves. There are rules describing the dimensions of these pitiable shelters, the length of which Y 2

340

BUDDHISM
may

W CEYLON
it

'

{^t. hi

must not exceed twelve em pans, and the width seven.

anchorite

The

only take possession of

if

when
than

the chapter
is

has ascertained
necessary.

the

hut

is

not larger

deemed
cause to

The
if

priest has,

however, been free to choose the

well,

spot

and

he has chosen

he

will

have

little

fear either insects, or serpents, or wild beasts.

strictly to

If

he wishes
forest,

observe the rule he will never leave the

except to beg his food from some neighbouring town, from

which

his hut

must be distant

at least

500 bows, or within

range of a stone thrown by a strong arm.

is

The
still

priest

who
strict

a less rigid observer of the Law, resides during the four

village;

months of the Varsha in a spend the four hot months as

Moreover

some

less

well as the

Varsha

in a town.

there are as minute directions, in the

Buddhic code

of discipline, about the residence of the monks, as there are

about mendicity and clothing.

Certain priests live only in

graveyards, or rather they spend their nights there, and only

go and beg their daily bread. it would seem, add to Spence Hardy saw in 1835, near Nigombo, their reputation a priest who professed never to have inhabited a house, and
leave
to

them before sunrise

In Ceylon, these austerities do not,

;

who

His singular appearance lived exclusively on fruit. and mysterious existence made him a terror to children, and sensible people looked upon him as a madman.

The

Sinhalese priests are never seen without an alms-bowl

;

or a fan in their hands

this latter

they hold before their eyes,

to avoid seeing anything that

might offend theirsight.

They

are generally followed by a servant, who, in the language of

the country,

is

called ahitiaya.

At the present day there are no priestesses in Ceylon, as there are in Burmah, Siam, in the kingdom of Arrakan, and even in China. The Buddha had most reluctantly consented to ordain nuns ; and this institution, of which in his prudence he had foreseen all the objections, had never prospered. In

CH.

ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

and
it

341

Ceylon, Sanghamitta's and Anula's example had not been

followed;
is

probable

that,
all

from the
idea of

earliest period,

the Sinhalese

women

gave up

becoming nuns.

Robert

Knox mentions
women went
veil.

a custom that existed in his day, and

:

which has since

year, the

fallen into disuse

at certain times of the

out to beg for the Buddha, and on

these occasions they carried in their hands his

image covered

by a white
articles
:

They were

given one of the three following

oil for

the Buddha's lamp, rice for a sacrifice to him,

it

or cloth to

make him a robe ; money,

piety,

seems, was also given.

class

This begging was an act of

of

and when the higher

women
this

did not go, they had themselves represented by

their maids,

whom

they sent in their place.

At the present
eye-witness,

day

custom, of which Robert

exists.

Knox was an

no longer

The Canonical

sacred books of Ceylon, like those of

all

the

Buddhist races, comprise three classes and forms, which are

called in liturgic style
Pali,
*

The Three

Baskets

'

{Ptiakaiayam

in

Tiin-Pilaka in Sinhalese).
list

Turnour has already given

Spence
interesting details

a complete

of the Canonical books of Ceylon.

this list,

Hardy confirms

and adds some

wo thy The
1

of notice.
Sinhalese

Three Baskets comprise, as

is,

usual,

the

Vinaya^ the Suiras, and the Abhidharma^ that

the books

on
the

discipline,

on the legends, and on metaphysics. We place Three Baskets in the same order as Spence Hardy, who
priests.
first

probably followed the indications of the Sinhalese

Generally the Sulras are placed in the
the

rank, secondly

Vinaya^ and then the Abhidharma ; but their order of

classification is
size of the

of

little

consequence, the number,

tides,

and

books remaining the same.

Vinaya
is

The
first

Sinhalese

composed of
;

five

works.

The
an

two are a kind of criminal code

civil

the next

two a relgious

gpfl

codp,

The

fifth

is

only a commentary and

342

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
facilitates their study.

[pt. hi

explanation of the other four, in the shape of a catechism,

which

The whole Vinaya

divided
into

is,

for the

convenience

of the

faithful,

169

lectures

(banavaras), each consisting of 250 stanzas, a stanza being

composed of 4 pddas of 8

syllables, or

32 syllables in

all.

There are thus 42,250 stanzas

in the

whole of the Vinaya,

without reckoning the Samantapasadikd, which has 27,000.

The
the

'Basket' of Su/raSj or discourses of the Buddha, forms

most considerable part of the Tun-Pitaka,

works ; of which the
Sutras,
if

The
last is

Sutta-

Pi'iaka also comprises five

into several others.

divided

The

we

are to rely

on the

Saddharmdiankare, contain no

less

than

200,000 stanzas

independently of the commentary, which has even more.

The

Abhidhar?na, or Metaphysics,
texts

is

composed of seven

works; and the

If

comprise 96,250 stanzas, while the commentaries contain only a third at the most.

we

are

to

believe

tradition,

Mahinda brought these

Buddhism.

works when he came, under the reign of the great Asoka

and by

his orders, to convert Sinhala to

These

works were accompanied by a commentary, the Atthakathd,

which was held
itself,

in

almost the same veneration as the text

original

and which was translated by Mahinda, from the

brought from Magadha, into Sinhalese.
Atthakathd sufficed for

Pali,

The

Sinhalese

^translation of the

many

centuries,

and

gradually replaced the authentic and primitive text, which

fell

into disuse

and was

lost.

Hence,

in the year

430 of the

Christian era, the famous

work of the

Brahman Buddhaghosa,
Pali version of the

who, as we have already mentioned, re-translated into Pali

Mahinda's Sinhalese translation.

Atthakathd

The
is

made by Buddhaghosa
and the
this

the only one that exists

at the present time,

priests

know no
for

other.

But

it

would seem that

commentary has

some time
it

lost

most of

its
it

authority with the priests, who, having carefully

compared

with the text, have discovered that

misrepre-

CH.

ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

it,

343

sented

by the addition of absurd

stories

and

in disgust

they have returned to the original Sii/ras, though these are

often not
It is

more reasonable than the Atthakathd.

all

needless to insist on the extreme importance of

these works, which to this day are understood

intelligent

among

the native priests.

by the most Spence Hardy states

them
in the

that he

saw a complete and correct

J.

collection of

possession of the Rev. D.

Gogerly, head of the Wesleyan

at

missions

in

Ceylon.

Gogerly was residing

Pondra

in

1835, ^nd had become acquainted wiih the most enlightened

priests in the

maritime provinces of the island

in the space

of a, few years, he had been able to collect

all

the sacred

works, which formed no less than seven or eight of our

ordinary 8vos.
collection,

Tumour, who possessed

with
the
aid

no

less valuable

had intended making a general analysis of the

Tripitaka,

Sinhalese

of the

priests,

whom

he enjoyed gathering round him;

this

but he had to renounce

lengthy undertaking, finding that he had not sufficient

leisure.

Spence Hardy, probably

for similar reasons,

had

equally to give up this work, although he admitted

its utility.

'As long as an exact analysis of the Pitahas has not been

made,* he writes, and that the most interesting parts have not
'

been translated

at full length,

we cannot

flatter

ourselves that

we

possess a complete and thoroughly authentic statement of

doctrines.

the Buddhist

This work would not e.xceed the

;

powers of any single individual

perfection,
it

but, to be carried out to

would demand a thorough knowledge of the languages, literature, and metaphysics unwearying persever;

ance, easy and constant intercourse with the most learned of

the native priests, besides a longer residence in the country

than can be generally

to these studies/

made by

those

who

devote themselves

These observations are rery

Qur regrets.

sensible, but they only

augment
requisite

Spencp Hardy possessed n^ost of the

344
conditions,

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
and
it

[pt. hi

is

a pity

that,

during his long residence in

Ceylon, he was not able to collect the materials for the work

he so well desciibes, and of which he

great.

felt

the need was so

list

He

did, however, undertake

drawing up a

of

all

the native works actually in use in the island.

He

counted

465 of

these, half of

them

in Pali,

80

in Sanskrit,

and 150
these re-

in Sinhalese or in Elu, the

ancient form of the Sinhalese

language.

As

the author took the trouble to

make

searches, he ought at least to have given us the nomenclature

of these 465 works

for the titles alone

would have taught us

a good deal about the present state of literature in Ceylon.

However

that

may

be,

such are the sacred books studied

by the Buddhist

priests of the island,

which they use

for the

instruction of the people.

At certain periods of the year

ed fying lectures mostly take place

the people are called together, to listen to the reading of the

Sufras or the Bana.

in the rainy season
;

'I'hese

at other times, the priests are generally

it

scattered about,

and

would be more
fai hful.

difficult for

them

to

address the throng of the

is

The

place where the lecture

held,

banamaduva,

is

usually a raised stand of several steps in

edifices are built in the

the shape of a stupi.

These temporary

enclosures of the viharas, but they

mny be
left to

constructed elsethe person

where, the choice of the place being

who

undertakes the expense of

this

meritorious action.

At the

officiates stands

summit of the stand is a platform, on which the priest who and the people listen to him, seated on mats
;

scattered about
bright cloths

on

the ground.

The
and

stand

is

covered with

so

that the stones

and woodwork are hidden

fresh

and decked out with

flowers, moss,

boughs of

trees.

As
is

these readings generally take place at night, the enclosure

lighted

up by lamps and

lanterns suspended to the wall, or

held in the hands or even fastened on to the heads of the most

pious of the believers.

^ir
;

Banners,

flags, sha\vls, flutter in the

t})e

l^'9m?n

p.re

df?sed in their be^t clpthes^ with their

CH.

ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

345

hair carefully

a knot,

drawn back from the forehead, and twisted into held up by silver pins and Utile metal combs tastefully

arranged.

dazzling whiteness.

The men are From

much

dressed

in

cotion

garments of

time to time, the loud beat of the

;

tamtam, or music, or even rounds of musketry are heard

is,

it

in fact, as

a festivity as a religious ceremony.

Some-

times trunks of trees covered with silver paper, with boughs

laden with

artificial

gems

or leaflets of the books to be read

are distributed

on

that holy occasion,

among
;

the crowd.

According

to popular belief, these trees ensured to those

all

who

touched them the fulfilment of

about to
is

their wishes

meanwhile

they are used to distribute the text of the prayer that the
priest
is

recite.

In the most conspicuous place a large

copper bowl

placed, in which the people deposit alms for

the maintenance of the worship.

At a reading of the Bana which was held

Spence Hardy saw a hundred
ofllciate

at

Pantura

in 1839,

priests gathered together to

at

it.

The
on a

pulpit

from which the reading was

in order that

delivered turned
listener

pivot, doubtless

each
his

might in turn hear the Bana without changing

In the night- time fireworks were
let off;

place.

and a kind

of representation, half dramatic, half mysiic, was performed,

in

which a personage acting the part of a messenger from the

heads

world of the gods appeared, splendidly robed, and escorted by

two personages dressed as kings, with crowns on

their

and swords
soldiers,

in their

hand.

Other allegorical personages went

Fifty native

about the enclosure, riding elephants or horses.

dressed in English uniforms, unceasingly fired off

their guns, while the priests

marshalled round the pulpit con-

tinued to chant the Pali verses.

The

state

swords of eight of

the principal chiefs of the island {Adikars) were

the pulpit.

hung round

^plei^i^ occasions things

The festival at Pantura was an extraordinary one, and on less were dpi^e more simply. The p'at-

346

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
is

[pt. hi

form of the stand

often occupied by several priests,

who

read in turn passages from the sacred books, from copies

written
in

big letters on

magnificent

palm-leaves.

The

officiating priest reads the text in

a kind of intoning voice,

something
Pali text
is

between chanting and reading.

Generally the

alone recited, and then the people do not under-

stand a word; sometimes, however, after the Pali text has

been

recited,

a priest gives an interpretation in Sinhalese, for

the benefit of the people. reading, the

name
'

of the

Each time that, in the course of Buddha is pronounced, the whole

'

crowd unanimously
equivalent to our

responds

Sdd/iu,'

Sanskrit

word

Amen, So be
and no

it.'

The

tone in which the

reading

is

done

is

very calm and very monotonous, the voice

never

being

raised

emphasis ever indulged

in.

However, some
the masses, as

priests

by the softness of

their tone of voice

or the lucidity of their explanations

is

the case with our

Every month there are four

regularly read
;

become favourites with own preachers. periods in which the Bana is

these are at the four changes of the

after
it,

moon

the

day of the new moon, the eighth day

of the moon, or the day of the
after the full
full

the fifteenth

day

moon.

These

days, chosen

moon, and the eighth day by Buddhism for the by Brahabout to

religious exercises, are precisely those prohibited

manic
shall

law.

Manu recommends,

very clearly, that the Vedas

the

not be read on the days

It

when

moon

is

change \

seems probable that the natural antagonism of the

their

two

religions influenced the Buddhists in their choice, in order

to distinguish themselves from

adversaries.

Perhaps

even

this

easy

way of reckoning tempted them, nothing being

and follow the changes of the moon.

easier than to observe

^

IV. sloka 114: 'The day of the new moon master the fourteenth lunar day kills the disciple; the eighth day and that of the full moon destroy the recollection of the sacred writings. It is therefore riegessary^ to abstain fro^^ alj readings dviriii|^

Laws of Manu, Book

;

kills the

.'

tt^Qse

dayi

CH.

ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

347

On

the eve of each of the four sacramental days, which arc

called poyas or changing, the devout

layman concentrates
will

his

thoughts

he must think of what he

do on

the

morrow,

and meditate on

his firm resolution to

remain

faithful to the

precepts given by the

Buddha

to the laity.

On

the

morning
priest,

of the poya day, he eats the frugal repast he has prepared on

the preceding evening,

and goes

at

an early hour to a

or even simply a devout

in the

man

{updsaka) like himself, well versed

knowledge of the Ba7ta.

this person,

and says

to him,

'

It is

He respectfully approaches my intention to keep the

Buddha,
&c.,'

precepts.'

Then he
I

recites the formula for the Threefold

Refuge,

go

for refuge to the

adding the

principal precepts of the

Law.

If the believer has

this act

no eminent

person to
it

whom

he can address

of faith he

may

recite

to

himself, without anybody's assistance.

priest, to

prepared himself, he goes to the

instruction of the

Having thus receive from him the

Bana.
any one

During the whole of the poya day

to

he must carefully avoid doing anything that can harm others,

nor must he

incite
all

commit any such

all

act.

It is better

even to avoid

business transactions, and

the calculations

that business entails.

tract

These mundane
that are worn.

interests

would

dis-

and

sully the

mind, which must be kept perfectly pure, as

If the devotee should

well as the clothes

happen
the

to

be sick unto death, and could not personally attend

the sacred books

Bana, he can request the priest to come to him to read ; the book is then brought in great pomp, the priest reads it with unction, and he continues reading
the sick person has given

till

up

his spirit or feels relieved.

All these practices are very praiseworthy,

and can only

be commended, as they encourage piety, disinterestedness,

benevolence, and virtue.
its

Superstition has, however, claimed

share,

and turned

to

its

own ends

the reading of the Batia.

Extracts have been

made

of certain passages in the sacred

writings which are specially read at the

ceremony

called the

348

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
who

[pt. hi

Pint, and these form a kind of manual of exorcisms.

Sinhalese,

The

are as credulous as the Indians, the Chinese,

Asiatic races, fancy that
all

and most of the

the

ills

that befall

humanity proceed from the maliciousness of the demons, the Yakshas. Means must therefore be found to combat their
hostility or

appease their wrath.

The

perusal of the Pirit can

destroy their power, and the

marvellous and beneficial

Buddha himself pointed out this secret to mankind. Spence Hardy

was present

in

1828

at

a reading of the Pirit, and, aided by

the recollection of a few other persons who, like him, witnessed

the ceremony, he gives the following description of

it:

*At sunset, numerous groups of believers arrived from

sides
;

all

the

women, who were

oil

the majority, brought with

them

coconuts and

as offerings.

When

it

grew dark

the coco-

nuts were placed in niches, expressly arranged in the walls of

the court of the vihara,

and by the aid of cotton wicks lamps

wall that surrounded the Bowas lighted up in the same way, and, as many of the people had also brought torches made of cotton and resin, the whole enclosure was in a moment bathed in light. The gaiety
tree

were soon provided.

The

and manners of
also looked

all

the groups

moving about showed

and
rest.

full
it

well

that, if the object of the

gathering was a religious one,

was

upon
is

as a time of festivity

Another

reason

why

these assemblies were so popular and so

that they

much

the fashion,

were the only occasions on which the

see

young people of both sexes could

straint
*

other, without being obliged to maintain the reserve

and be seen by each and con-

which were the

rule of everyday

life.

The service lasted seven days, and the first evening was in a way only preparatory. The building where the people met was the one in which the habitual reading of the Bana took
place.

relic

of the Buddha, enshrined in a casket, was

placed on a platform designed for that special purpose ; and

^hp presenpe of
thjs rplic

was supposed

to lend to tips cerS"

CH.

ii]

BUDDHtsT CLERGY
the
efTicacy
that
it

W CKYLON
if

349
the

mony

all

would have possessed

Buddha himself had performed it. The priests were assembled on another platform. At the close of the preliminary service
a consecrated rope, called Pin'/ nula, was fastened to the interior walls
to

of the

edifice,
;

reaching from the

priests in

priests' platform

that of the relic religious

and as the
each

chorus intoned
of the
cord,

the

chants, they

took hold

establishing in this

of the officiating
the building.

manner a communication between each priests, the relic, and the interior walls of
till

*From
of the

the

morning of the second day

filled

the evening

seventh, the platform

on which the reading took

by two others, one
his seat

place was unceasingly

with priests, both by day and night.

When

two

priests

had

to be replaced

remained seated reading, while the other gave

his substitute,

to

and the second

substitute

priest only

made

his

exchange
for the

w^hen the

first

had begun reading.

Thus

whole of the

six days, the reading of the Fin'/

was continued
less

without a moment's interruption.

twelve priests
tweniy-four,
in

There were never

officiating.

than

attendance, generally indeed

there

were

and two were always

two hours, each
In addition,

As

they were

relieved every

priest officiated
all

two hours

out of twenty-four.
part in the
sunrise, at

the priests

who

took

ceremony met together three times a day, at noon, and at sunset, to chant together the three
Pin'/,

principal

passages of the

called

mafigala,

ra/ana,

karamya, which were accompanied by some verses drawn from other sources.
seventh day,
*

Then

the

reading of the Piri/ was

till

resumed, and the same formulas were gone through

the

when a new
morning of
in

series

had

to

be started.

On

the

the seventh day, a large procession

was organized,
marshalled.
or

which the armed and unarmed men were

the DevadU/aya^

A special personage represented

The

Messenger of the Gods.

procession, headed by

3S0
priests,

WDDHI3M
and solemnly
was

IN CEYLON
them

t^t. in

went to certain places where the gods were supposed

invited

to reside,

to attend the service

before

it

finished, in order to share its benefits.

Until

the messenger and those the

priests

who

followed
the

him had

returned,

who had remained on

festival

platform stopped

reading and remained seated.

*At the

witnessed,' adds

Spence Hardy, 'the

messenger was introduced in great pomp, and to make

his apparition

appear more supernatural, sulphur was burnt

before him.
voice the

One

of the priests having proclaimed in a loud

the different gods

names of

and demons who were

invited to the ceremony, the

messenger replied that he was

and, repeating their names,

sent

by those very

divinities,

he declared that they would come to the service.

The
In

formula of the Threefold Refuge, which formed part of the

recitation,

was then chanted by

all

all

the persons present.

the midst of

these superstitious

and absurd
it

ideas,

much

excellent advice

was given

but, as

was

all

in a

language

that the people did

not understand, the

ceremony could
results.'

hardly be expected to produce any really useful

became of the crowd of during those seven days and nights. It is probable
are not told what

We

believers
that they

relieved each other like the priests did, although doubtless

with less regularity.

It

would moreover appear

that the Sinhalese priests,

by

limiting their public ministrations to reading the

to the

^ana, and
it,

somewhat

unintelligible explanations they give of

their authority.

take

little

heed of maintaining
arisen,

They have

become estranged from

laymen has
supplanted them.

the people,

and a

class of devout

which has by degrees replaced and

These benevolent and pious

substitutes

go from house

to

house to read the sacred writings in the

Sinhalese language,

homely

instructions.

and condescend to impart the most Spence Hardy found many of these

fck. ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLoN

working with great success
in

351

lay-priests

several districts,

especially in the

neighbourhood of Matura.

Besides the regular worship and authorized superstitions,

there were a quantity of individual superstitions, which had
their

own

particular rules

and code.

The

Buddhists had

inherited from the

Brahmans

the deplorable idea that science

and

virtue conferred supernatural

powers on men.

There

does not exist in India a single school of philosophy which

has not held out to
promises.
its adepts these absurd and Buddhism would have made a most
it

deceptive
excellent

reform had

been able
it

to eradicate these insensate ideas;

unfortunately, however,

adopted

all

the

Brahmanic

follies,

and only strengthened them by doing

too great for the
disciples,

so.

No

miracle seemed
his

Buddha
his

to perform,

and any one of

by following

example, was deemed capable

of attaining the

same power.
novel
it

Spence Hardy has drawn from several Sinhalese works

upon meditation, and the on those who practise it There are five different according to the prescribed rules. kinds of meditation, or Bhdvand. : first, the meditation on love, in which the monk thinks of all beings including
very curious and
supernatural
details

power

confers

his

enemies

and longs
on
is

for

happiness for each

the second
is

meditation

is

pity, in

which the mendicant

the third

to think

of
in

all

beings in distress;
to

meditation

is

on

joy,

which he

think of the

gladness and prosperity

of others, and to rejoice in their joy; the fourth meditation

is

on

impurity, in which the mendicant thinks of the vileness

;

of the body, and the horrors of disease and corruption

lastly,

and,

the

fifth

meditation

is

on

serenity, the source of

is

un-

alterable

tranquillity.

The

ascetic

minutely instructed
follow in order

in all the different processes his

mind must
strictly

that each meditation

object

it

has in

may be Amid view.

concentrated on the special

these

psychological

352
rules,

BUDDHISM IN CEYLOM
we
often find the highest

[^t. hi

and most elevated sentiments.

and
it is

The
for

forgiveness of injuries, aYid contempt for the body, are

in truth excellent

and

useful recommendations,

good

man

to meditate

on the

instability

of earthly

things,

so that he

may

not attach more importance to them than

is

they deserve.
with
this,

But the Buddhist Bhdvand

at

not
it

satisfied
is

and aims

a very different result;

only

so carefully practised in order to obtain supernatural powers.

We
in

will

not dwell further on

this paltry side

of devotion

and asceticism, but we recommend

which Spence Hardy
without, however, informing us

to

our readers the chapter

Kasina^

treats of the ten kinds of

if

these practices

which are

intended to throw the mind into a state of ecstasy

in force

are

still

among

the Sinhalese priests, or whether they have

letter, in

remained a dead
them.
All these

the obscure

works which describe

follies,

so

special prerogative of the

much admired by the vulgar, are the monks. The laity may also, however,
and
to obtain these a kindly

aspire to supernatural powers,

thought

is

often as efficient as prolonged meditation.

life,

meri-

torious action performed in this

or even in a former one,

it

endows
power.

the being

who

has performed

with miraculous

This special power receives the name of Sachakiriya

is

(meritorious action), and

acquired not only in virtue of the

deed

itself,

but also by the mere recollection of this deed.

The

following two examples are taken from the

Sajine
:

margga
ously

Visuddhi-

The mother
ill,

of a Sinhalese devotee having falling danger-

the doctor ordered her to eat

some

hare..

Her son
'

thereupon goes out and snares a hare; but as the animal

cries out, the

young man

reflects,

and says

to himself:

How
life ?

can a

life

be saved by the destruction of another

free.

And
he

he sets the poor animal

When on
and

his return

home

relates

what he has done,

his father

his family only

th, n]
jeer at
'

BVDbHISf CLERGY IN CEVLON

him ; but he goes up
infancy
to his mother,

353
to her

and says

From

down

to the present day, I have never to

life

my

knowledge destroyed
this meritorious

in

any creature.
ceased.
called

By

the

power of
cured.'

action

(Sachah'riya),

may you be
fell
ill

And the illness*immediately The mother of a priest

ulcer.

IMahamitta
his
*

of an

She begged him through

sister .to

tell

her

(.f

a remedy.
perties

The

priest
;

answered
I

ignore the healing pro-

of plants

but

possess
I

much

greater

power.

Since I have taken holy orders,

have never violated any

virtue of this Sachakiriya

of the precepts of the law

let

and by

my

mother be healed/

And

the ulcer instantly dried

up

and disappeared.
Spence Hardy quotes two other legends, showing the
magic
efTcct

of the Sachakiriya, taken from the

life

of the

Buddha

These two legends are recorded in the Cariyd-Pilaka, the last book of the Sutta-Pitaka but they do not present much interest. In one of these, the Buddha, who
himself.
;

at that time lived

under the form of a king, bestows

;

his eyes
lives

upon a poor b'ind Brahman

kiriya,

in the other,

he saves the

of the fishes in a dried up pond.

By

the virtue of a Sachainto the lake

he recovers his eyes, and rain

falls

where

the fish

were dying

for

lack

of water.

These

miracles,

performed by the Buddha, are not surprising; but that the

least

of the

faithful

should be able to produce them by

to

a single act of faith was a fact well calculated

the

excite
it

fervour of

all

Buddhists;

and

to credulous

minds

furnishes a very powerful though fallacious stimulant to

It
is

faith.

also the cause of the

in

most deplorable

superstitions,
in

which are as frequent

heresy.

orthodox Brahmanism, as

Buddhic
Nirvana,

On

the

most

essential point of

doctrine, the

Spence Hardy

fails

to give us the precise information

we

should have desired.

354

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON

[pt.

itt

In the innumerable passages

concerning Nirvana, the

;

doctrine of the Buddhists leaves us in impenetrable obscurity

it

is

never clearly defined, for the Buddhist authors only

is

tell

us what Nirvana
define
to
it

not, but never exactly

what

it

is.

They
it

by comparisons and
it

epithets, but are not

concerned

make

well
It is

understood nor indeed to understand

themselves.

impossible to pierce the veil in which they

it;

purposely envelop

and we can only obtain the vaguest

glimpses of light on the subject.

We

have therefore drawn the conclusion that Nirvana was

annihilation,

and we have not feared

it

to maintain this opinion,

however extraordinary
This
is

may

appear.
;

also

Spence Hardy's opinion

and

his

long inter-

course with the Sinhalese Buddhists,

to convert, lends great weight to his
his

whom

he endeavoured

judgment.
:

He

expresses

opinion in the following manner

is

'Nirvana
.
. .

the destruction of

all

the elements of existence

this

when

the principles of existence are annihilated;

is

annihilation

Nirvana.

The

Buddhist

who does

not

believe in the substantial existence of

in

human

personality, nor

the

existence of a supreme Being, does not look for

absorption, but only absolute annihilation.

perfectly
logical,
all

This system

is

for

materialism,

atheism,

and complete

cessation of

existence, are ideas which hold together,

;

and

likewise disappear together

if

the

first

two ideas are proved,

the third follows as a natural consequence.'

Spence Hardy ends his chapter on Nirvana, as follows: Thus Nirvana is neither a state of sensual enjoyment nor
;

a state of intellectual enjoyment

it

is

neither a slate of the

body, nor a state of consciousness.

It is neither

consciousness

nor absence of consciousness. Nirvana must therefore be annihilation, and the being who enters into it must cease
to exist.'

We believe, for our part, that this is the true interpretation

of

ta. Ill

BubbHist clergy in ckvLON

it is

355

Nirvana, and
studied

also that of the majority of those

who have

Buddhism \

All the texts hitherto

contradictions,

known, notwithlo point to the

standing a few

trifling

seem

same conclusion; whereas

the history of the

the objections, being mostly of

little

a general character, are for this reason of

value.

In

human mind,

nothing

is

more
;

surprising
if it is

and depressing than the

averred
fiict,

belief in annihilation

but

an

affirmed by the Buddhist writings themselves,

we

must perforce accept though we deplore it. This is why we should have wished that the Wesleyan
missionary had questioned the
capital point of doctrine,

Sinhalese

priests

on

this

and had sought

really

to obtain a clear
their

understanding of what
represents

it

was

in

mind.

He

himself as

'having spent

thousands of hours

during the twenty years he resided in Ceylon, palm-leaf in

hand and a converted Buddhist priest at his side, ready to assist him in any difficulties of the text they perused together.'

These were very favourable circumstances for the study of left in the minds of his neophytes by the Buddhic doctrine ; for it was more particularly the Christian
the impressions
belief in immortality

which he endeavoured to teach them.

Spence Hardy would surely have had more than one opportunity of discovering the real

newly converted Buddhists

meaning of Nirvana from these and though he does not explicitly

say that he had attempted this delicate investigation, yet

we

may

conclude that he had done

as to the

so, and meaning of Nirvana was drawn from

that his conviction

the

knowledge

he thus obtained.

If the Buddhist priests of Ceylon had

indeed held the views on immortality which are gratuitously

attributed to them, he

would evidently have been aware of

/

it,

thoroughly studied this question, never varied in his opinion. His authority on such a subject is all the greater from the fact that he was as deeply versed in philosophy at in
^

Amongst

others,.

Burnouf,

who had

philology,

two

studies

which rarely go together.

2 2

^5^
for
it

WbDHI^M
would have greatly
in general

IN C^VLOM

V^t.

Ill

facilitated his task as a missionary.

Moreover, his opinion of the Sinhalese priests amongst

whom
He

he lived was

a favourable one, for he renders

justice to their qualities, while pointing out their faults.

them faiilifully fulfilh'ng the irksome duties imposed upon them by the law of the Buddha which, though so and they ancient, had lost none of its authority over them
finds
;

have remained to

this

day very nearly what

their predecessors

were twenty centuries ago.

They go

the

same rounds
;

through the native villages with their alms-bowls

silently

they walk

along the roads with measured steps and downcast

feet, their

eyes,

head uncovered and naked

their

alms-bowl hung

round
use.

neck and hidden under

their

robe when not in

They

generally hold a fan, which they keep before

their faces to avoid the sight of

women,
;

lest

impure thoughts

should be awakened in their minds

this constraint

and the

austerities they practice are doubtless the

cause of the singular

appearance of these
less intelligent

priests

who, with few exceptions, seem

people
;

than the
is

common

for the expression

of their countenance

unhappy, though they often bear the

impress of the serenity and sweetness peculiar to the Buddhist

doctrine.

In his intercourse with them, Spence Hardy always found

them benevolent and

courtesy,

hospitable, and,
the

when
of
the

treated

with

they sought

society

of Europeans.

In his
the

frequent

excursions

into

the

interior

island,

Wesley an missionary had often occasion

hospitality, either for a shelter at night, or

to appeal to their

from the excessive

refused.

heat of the day;

and

it

was hardly ever

anchorite would often bring him the remains of his

The own

meal, and would choose what was best in his alms bowl
to offer to his

guest.

He

would even provide him with

at the

tobacco or some other delicacy to show his pleasure

visit

he was receiving;

but his pleasure was mingled with

CH.

ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

belonged to his
visitor

357

curiosrty, for all that

was examined
It is true

with interest, from his Bible

that

down

to his watch.

Spence Hardy spoke the native language, and

this

doubtlessly greatly facilitated his access to these holy men.

Moreover,
betrayed any
a different
tlieir

it

rivality

does not appear that the Buddhist priests ever or intolerance towards the apostle of

faith.

Spence Hardy

attributes this disposition to

indolence and indifference, as well as to their unmoveable

the truth of their

belief in

own

syj;tem.

These
add
Sinhalese

different

motives doubdess exist;

habit

but

we must
to
all

also

that

the

of tolerance

is

common
exist

priests.

Spence Hardy notices that by the

Buddhist viharas, there

side
in

of most of the

dcvalas,

which

Sanskrit

prayers are recited in honour of the Brahma^iic divinities.

As
it is

the

Sinhalese

priests

sanction the

close

proximity of
fear,

a worship they reprobate, and

may

have good reason to

quite natural that they should not display

any fanaticism

against the Christian faith.

INIissions in

In the early days of Wesleyan

Ceylon, the Buddhist priests asked ihemissionarics

their school

to lend

them

rooms
felt

for ihe reading

of the Bana\

and

it

was

difficult to

make them understand

any such

the motives of

their refusal.

They never

scruples,

and

it

is

probable that they would willingly have lent their vihara for
the celebration of Christian worship.
It

has been already remarked, to the credit of Buddhism,

it

that
spirit

has always retained a most sincere and unvarying

of tolerance.

The Buddha

never

used

any odier

weapons than persuasion and gentleness; he never had recourse to \iolence, and his adepts have remained faidiful Buddhism had at divers to his noble and rare example.
epochs and in divers countries undergone violent persecution;
but
it

never seems to have thought of retaliation.

Even

the

divisions

of the Great and Little Vehicles did not

?niail

persefWiiQf],

358

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
school
is

[pt. hi

attached to every hermitage, and a Buddhist

monk
vil.ara,

teaches the children reading and writing.

In return

the children assist

him

in his daily work, carry water to the

in
their

or

sweep the yard

is

leisure

hours.

The
fifty

discipline of the schools

extremely lenient, although the

tasks are dilficult, for the alphabet contains

letters

no

less

than

The masters devote much time and labour on their scholars, who on their side are dutifully submissive to their The instruction of children is therefore one of the teaching. chief occupations of the Sinhalese priests, who accomplish this duty with much self-abnegation, and, in rendering this
\
service to society, partially

compensate

for

what they cease to

useless lives.

contribute to

it

by

their celibate

and apparently

Moreover there are

with

priests

who

study and practice medicine

more or less success ; and their medical skill is all the more appreciated by the people that it is gratuitously bestowed. It merely consists in astrological observations and exorcisms. Their remedies are generally composed of a quantity of
ingredients, and, as they

sometimes happen to cure, they

enjoy, as doctors, great authority

and reputation.

In 1827

a priest who, at IMatura, was appointed Maha-nayaka, or

* Spence Hardy gives some curious details about the books used in the Sinhalese schools and the instruction given to the children. The Sinhalese alphabet is copied from the Devanagari alphabet the number of letters and their classification are similar, but their form is different. Although this alphabet has twice as many letters as ours, it is not as difficult to learn, as Spence Hardy seems to think. The regular and symmetrical disposition of the vowels and consonants is a great help, and it is easy to pass from single letters to letters united into syllables. The Sinhalese children soon learn to repeat their alphabet by writing the The whole course of instruction letters on the sand with their finger. in a Sinhalese school is comprised in fourteen works, written in the four languages Modern J^inhalese, Ancient Sinhale?e or Elu, Pa'i and Sanskrit. Spence Hardy gives the titles and a short analysis of each of these fourteen works. The last is Amara-Singh's Sanskrit Dictionary, the Ainara-Kosha, which has been reprinted several times. Spence Hardy remarks that the Sinhalese children are precocious and intelligent, but that their development is arrested at the age of puberty. This phenomenon is not peculiar to the Sinhalese race ; \\ exists in almost every Oriental country, p;trticu}a|"lj^ jn Kgypt,
; :

CH.

ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

owed
his

359
this

director-general of the district,

office entirely to his

nomination to

Other priests
in this respect

fame as a doctor '. spend their time in copying books, but their zeal
not very great ; their collections of books are

is

fery incomplete;

and when perchance they are more numerous

they generally consist of works that have been handed

down

from

earlier

times.

In

.the

present day,
priests
all

literary

neglected,

and the Sinhalese

are

the

work is more to be

blamed, that they have at hand

for their

the necessary materials

work ; as they have only

to gather

a few palm-leaves

to

make up the necessary volume *. As a corporation the priests are

;

held in

little

respect

by

the people

the state of mendicity to which they are con-

demned

is

doubtless the cause.

They

are in too dependent

this

a posiiion to obtain due consideration;

was evidently

a danger for the Buddhist institution, and was only averted

by the
the

solitude enforced

on the

priests during the greater part

of the year.
difficult

In Ceylon the priests seem to have observed

rule

of continence

with

an

austerity

which

rehabilitates them.

Spence Hardy had heard

;

their avidity

often criiicized, but never their licentiousness

and
is

this is all

the

more meritorious

that the native population

extremely
ties
*.

licentious, not respecting

even the most sacred family

It would seem that at a certain period and under certain more devout or weaker princes, the Sinhalese priests obtained

have already mentioned a king of Ceylon, BucUlhadasa (a. d. who was a great doctor, and whose works still exist. It is probable that the study of medicine in Ceylon owes its oiigin to Sanskrit works on this subject. ^ Doubtless this material facility has greatly contributed to prescnre these kind of intellectual documents in India, where they have been so much better preserved than in the days of antiquity or our middle age*. In these climates the paper taken from tlie trees was never lacking for those who wished to make use of it ' Spence Hardy nevertheless quotes a case of which he was witness, when an incontinent priest was pursued by the women and expelled from the village, for having tried to seduce a young giil who bad bfopght him crakes as an offpripg to the Buddha.
'

We

339-.^68)

f
360

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
privileges,

[pt. hi

many

and among
the

others, that of impunity.

The

yellow robe protected

criminal

culprits;

and more than one

he deserved.
century,

became a monk in order to escape the punishment Under Udaga III, towards the end of the tenth
a rebellion having broken out, the chief rebels
priestly

assumed the
seized

garb to elude the vengeance of the king

but notwithstanding their sacred robes, the king had them

and beheaded.

It is

true that the popular fanaticism

was aroused by
inflicted the

and the populace, rising again, same punishment on many of the king's courtiers.
this sacrilege,

Alarmed

at this

exorbitant

power, which the priests too

it,

often abused, the king resolved to restrict

and under

the

reign of Raja Singh, about two centuries and a half ago, the
privilege

of the personal inviolability of the priests was

abolished.
rulers have

We

have already mentioned that the English

to

been obliged

execute

several

priests

who,

during the

last forty years,

have been the instigators or leaders

of the kings was so wtII

in various rebellions.

In the

last century, the authority

established that they were able to regulate at their will the

monastical institutions.

The King

Kirtisri,

who

reigned from

1747 to
ferred

781, decreed that ordination could only be con-

on the agricultural class, the Govi caste, the most numerous and powerful in the island. This was an important
it

innovation, as

was

distinctly

opposed

to the primitive law

of the Buddha,

who

admitted no distinction of caste, and

all

through Nirvana called

Kiitisri,

men

equally to eternal salvation.

his decree,

by another provision of

commanded
the

that,

in future, ordination should only be conferred in

Kandy, the

residence of the kings

and he divided
rule of the

all

monks

into

two communities, under the

Malvata and Asgiri.

two great convents of

The heads

of these communities were

always to reside in Kandy, near the king, and were granted

^(^ual authority.

The

doctrine of the two communities waj

cii. ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

same
;

361

essentially the

the only difference between them was,

that the corporation of

Malvata possessed a larger number of

viharas,

and ruled over the southern part of the island;

All the priests of Ceylon belong to either one or the

while the corporation of Asgiri ruled over the temples of the

north.

other of these two corporatic-ns.

The

exact motives that innuenccd

it

King

Kirtisri are not

known, but
up

seems probable
at

that, in dividing the

monks

into

two bodies, he aimed

their unity.

diminishing their power by breaking

policy, but the

This was a clever stroke of

diflicultics.

reform met with great

holy orders, and

The

castes excluded from

more

particularly the lower castes,

were

extremely

dissatisfied.

One

of

them indeed,
death.

that

of the

Chaliyas, resolved to escape from the consequences of the

king's decree
still

in force

after his

The

Chaliyas

assert themselves to be the original inhabitants of the island,

and are as a
natives.

rule

more

intelligent

and

active th^n the other

From

the earliest period they

had special charge of

the cultivation
profits

and

sale of

cinnamon, and had realized large

from

this business,

which

tliey

have always carried on

to the satisfaction of the various

governments who employed

them.

The

Chaliyas were not only rich and powerful, but they

were also remarkable for their religious fervour.

the close of the last century they sent a
caste, called

Towards
of their
novices to
its

member

Ambagahapitya, wiih

five others, as

the countries in which the Buddhist faith had retained

greatest purity.

Ambagahapitya was
Ceylon.

to

be solemnly ordained
his caste

there, in order to

be able to ordain the people of

on

his return to

After a long journey he settled in

Burmah, the faith seeming purer ilicre than elsewhere. He was graciously received by the king and the priests, and remained there the necessary time to receive holy orders and
;

in 1802

Jie retur?ied tp

Ceylop with

five

Burmese

priests

^^

362
the novices

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
who had accompanied him and had,
It

[pt. hi
like

him, been

ordained.

was on

this

occasion that the Burmese high

priest wrote the letter or

monitory we have already quoted.

it

As soon
and a
third

as the mission reached Ceylon,

it

eagerly

made

use of the powers

had

received,

and ordained several

in
it

priests

community was soon formed At first those of Malvata and Apgiri.

exclusively

opposition to

was recruited

among

the Chaliyas, but

its

influence gradually

This spread, and monks from other castes were admitted. Buddhism. primitive spirit and letter of return to the was a

the

The new corporation was called the corporation of Amarapura, name of a Burmese city, in order to recall its origin and rival of the two others, who seem to have it became the united against the common enemy. A native writer, the
;

descendant of an old Portuguese family, gave, some ten years

ago, the following description of this rivalry.

Adam de Silva, indulge in ardent and mutually deny each other the right to Their reciprocal animosity equals that of the most Nirvana. it is so violent that they bigoted sects of any other religion
*

The

two- parties,' said

'

controversies,

absolutely refuse to

bow

to

one another when they happen

to

meet.
as

They mutually
is
it

gratify each other with such epithets

"impure monk"
by freeing
difficult

{duksilaya).

The

object of the
its

Amaraall
it.

pura corporation
[)urity

to bring back Buddhism to

primitive

from polytheism, caste prejudice, and

the corrupt practices

which

in

course of time have sullied

However

the task, the priests of

for

have succeeded,

Amarapura seem they made numerous proselytes

which

to

in

different provinces, especially in that of Saffragan,

may

now be The
reality

considered the centre of reform.'

differences of doctrines betVveen the
sect, as

Amarapura and

Siamese

the other corporations were called, are in

following^ are the principal

somewhat important; the

points of digsensioii,

CH.

ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

363

The Amarapura
stitions

sect openly preaches against the super-

brought from India, and never invoke the Hindu

the recitation of the Pirit.
It

Gods during
orders on
It

confers holy

all castes,

without distinction, as the

Buddha

did.

reprobates the

mundane occupations

of the Siamese priests,

prohibits,

who practise medicine and astrology, and

It refuses to

under pain
rule.

of excommunication, these deviat.ons from the primitive

recognize the authority of the royal decrees in

respect of religion, particularly with regard to the privileges

conferred by Kirtisri

on

the

Malvata and Asgiri

estnblibli-

ments.

Ordination,

it

declares, can be conferred anywhere,

value, provided
it is

and always possesses the same

according to the prescribed

conducted
sect does

rules.

The Amarapura
It

not admit the precepts of former Buddhas, unless they have

been sanctioned by Gautama Buddha.

food or any other

does not therefore

allow a blessing to be recited, or thanks to be uttered

gift is

when

received.

It

does not either permit

the use of two seats, or the presence of two priests at the

reading of the Ba^ia.

It

also forbids that this reading should

be done in a tremulous voice.

important
:

And what

is

much more
it

the reforming sect

expounds and preaches the

priests only read
It

Vinaya
to the

to tlie laity,

whereas the Siamese

that with closed

monks, and

doors.

only allows

confirmation

several

yeaxs

after

ordination,
it

whereas the
after.
]i

opposite sect unreservedly permit

immediately

celebrates the feast of lamps, without preaching or reading,

whereas the Siamese read the

Finally the

Bana

all

through the night.

in
their

Amarapuras

differ

from the Siamese

costume, or rather in the manner in which they wear their

robes
;

both shoulders are covered by a fold that reaches

from under one arm to the other.

their

They

refrain

from shaving

eyebrows as

is

the custom of the Siamese.

The Amara-

puras

study Pali literature with great assiduity in order to find

^rgupients against the errors ^n(J corruptions of their ad-

364
versaries.

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON

[pt. hi

these studies

And, as Spence Hardy remarks, it is certain that and discussions only increased and widened the

distance which already separated the two sects.

In 1835 a new sect arose against which the Amarapuras and the Siamese were for a time united. The subject of contention was the precise time of the year at which the

Varsha

retreat

should begin.

The
in

priest

who

raised
his

this

controversy was
versaries, but

more learned
serious

astronomy than
to

ad-

he had few partisans, and the motive of the

heresy was not

importance.
It

enough

for

it

assume much
where
had

died out in the course of a few years, and

never
arisen.

spread beyond the

Bentoste
it

district

it

The
still

priest

who promoted

was

called Attadassa,

and may

be

living.

All these facts tend to prove that the Buddhist faith has

remained deeply rooted

for heresies are

in the hearts of the natives of

life
is
ils
;

Ceylon,

proof of

indiiTerence alone

shows decay.

Buddhism, however,
Christianity has

in a diilerent position

now

that

made

way

in

Ceylon

more

especially

since the watchful

and powerful administration of the English

Government has introduced a higher order of civilization. It maybe said that, judging by all that has taken place in the
last
fifty
is

years, Christianity

is

likely to supplant

Buddhism.

This

a question no less interesting to study than those

;

have already treated

said about the past

and we

will try to

complete

all

we we have

and the present condition of Sinhalese

that

Budilhism by a few words as to the future ^

Spence Hardy says

priests at the present

there are only 2,500 Buddhist

If

day in Ceylon.

we compare

these

by Fa-Hian, but also with those mentioned by Hiouen-Thsang, we find that they are
figures not only with those given
' We have taken most of our information from the official documents published by Parliament The Report we have already mentioned on the insurrection in 1848 the Report in 1852; and Viscount 'fc)rringtop' (^Qrrespqndence, nth gf May, i8p^.
: ;

eti. til

^VDMlst cL^ncv
In the
inland

W CkYLoM
set

3^5

singularly diminished.
total

official
is

reports of 1856 the

population
'

inhabitants

down as 1,691,924 but the priests have not been numbered apart,
of the
rely

and we must therefore

on Spence Hardy's estimation.

is

The

influence of

Buddhism

gradually decreasing with

the increasing success of Christianity.

The

English Govern-

ment bestows agrant upon

the Scotch Presbyterian,
Tfiis
fifths,

three Protestant sects: the Anglican,

and Dutch Presbyterian Churches.

grant, of which
attains

the Anglican Church receives four-

was proposed

an annual sum of 13,000; but in 1850 it to reduce it, and to leave the maintenance of

the worship, to the fervour

and generosity of the

faithful.
is

The

Catholic Church has no grant; and this anomaly

explained, not by a rivalry of sects, but by the wealth of

ih:ii

Church which requires no

full liberty is

assistance,

and

to

which moreover

accorded

*.

by the

official estimates are contained in the Report made committee of the Executive Council of Ceylon published on the 1st of July, 1852, by order of the House of Commons folio, 268 pages. It was upon this report, drawn up by Lord Torrington, December 13, 1849, that the whole administration of the island
*

The

following

financial

The condition of the population in the different provinces may be found at pnge 55, appendix U. The Western province contained 499,678 inhabitants; the Southern 265,289; the Eastern Total 114,274, the Northern 255,415, and the Central 32.^,043. In 1832 the population did not exceed a million of souls; 1,458,359. but, as the administration improved, it rapidly increased. It must now numl)er at least 1,800,000 souls. The census of 1850 gave i,57i.743 inhabitants, and that of 1856, 1,691,924. ' In this respect the Executive Council of 1849 di;played the most liberal and judicious feeling. It expressed surprise at the establi hment of an Ant^lican Hishopric at Colombo, as there were in Ceylon so few members of the English Church and it recalled the fact that, in 1844, there had only been an Archdeacon under the jurisdiction of the Hislop of Madras. The Council did not explicitly propose to abolish the Bishopiic of Colombo but it pointed this out as a desirable rclorm. The Council maintained the small grant allotted to the Dutch Presbyterian Church out of respect for its past history, as that Church h.ad long been the only one available for the Christian population of the maritime provinces. Finally, the Council pointed out that the ofHcial neglect of the Catholic Church was a cause of jealousy and discord It is evident that the which it would be good policy to avoid.
was reorganized.
; ;

366

BUDDHISM IN CEYLON
faith

[pt.

lii

The Anglican
native

meets with

little

success

among

the

population

of Ceylon,
it

and

in

1852 an

intell'gent

observer* stated that

adherents.

did not

number more than 1,500

spread a great deal more,

The Wesleyan has

in

although not protected by the Colonial government; and

a return

made

1851

states

that

it

had, at that

lime,

4,792 proselytes.
All these Protestant sects, however, sink into insignificance

by the side of Catholicism, which daily increases

in

power.

The monopoly
who
are
first

of Catholicism belongs to the Portuguese,

introduced Christianity into the island at the be*.

At the present lime there at Colombo, under the authority of the Bishop of Cochin and Goa the other at Jafna, created in 1836 by pope Gregory XVI under the direct sway of the Roman See. The Mission for the protwo Cathohc vicarages;

ginning of the sixteenth century

one

pagation of the faith

is

composed of

fifty

priests,

mostly

Spaniards, Portuguese, and Italians.

priests resided at

In 1852, six French

Kandy, where a Church had been built and was maintained by the native converts. At the beginning of the eighteenth century Catholicism
had only 70,000 adherents. In ico years this number has more than doubled; in 1848 it counted 113,000, and in 1852 155,000 members. This marvellous increase is easify
explained.

immigration of Hindus lakes place, and

Every year, especially since 1840, a very large it is more especially

Hindu-Sinhalese population that Catholicism

among

this

succeeds.

These Hindus, Parsees, and Malabars, are more

all the

Council would have suppressed

to

subventions had

it

been

free

do

so.

^ The traveller to whom we allude, and to whom we are indebted for part of this information is Mr. Anthony Rey, Chancellor of the French Consulate in the Mauritius. ^ In 1836 the tomb of Don Juan Monteiio de Setuelo, Portuguese Bishop of the island, who died in 1530, was discovered at Colombo. Catholicism in Ceylon thus dates back to more than three centuries ago.

Cil. ii]

Wb'DHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

and laborious than the
natives.

367
gver

docile

They come

twice
in

a year

for

the

coffee harvest,
fifty

crossing the
tons;

Straits

donies,

small boats of about

and many of
40,000.

them remain and

of this
floating

settle in the island.

In 1852, the number

to

population

amounted
neophytes.

the increase of the inhabitants of Ceylon,

and
a

at the

Hence same
but

time that of the

strong
afiinity,

Catholic

By

secret

the

Hindus are more

inclined

to accept
worshij).
faithful to

Catholicism

than any other Christian

form of

The
and

Sinhalese, especially the

Kandyans, remain

Buddhism,

just as they remain, like their ancestors, labourers

warriors.

By
is

the side of the Christian propaganda of the churches

that of the schools,

which

is

perhaps more powerful and

penetrates

deeper.

In

1841 a central

committee of the

schools for the instruction of the Sinhalese population was

established,

and

it

unremittingly continues

its

functions.

With a

creditable spirit of tolerance the committee admitted

tlicir

Anglicans, Wesleyans and Catholics on the board, and

united efforts were directed, without distinction of sects, to

the enlightenment and instruction of
in
all

the children received

academy at Colombo, and the native normal school, down to the mixed schools in which English and Sinhalese are taught, and even to the ordinary In 1850 there were no less than Sinhalese schools. 128 schools of all kinds for boys and girls, most of them
the

schools; from the

under the supervision of Portuguese masters. The grant given them by government was about the same as that
accorded to the clergy.*
of the committee on the reforming of the schools The committee 1848. is dated 9th August, divided all the educational establishments into five classes: (1) the Academy of Colombo, and the normal school for the instruction of native masters; (2) the Central schools in Colombo and Kandy ; (3) the elementary schools, where instruction was exclusively given in English;
*

The Report

throughout the island

^uch

are

the

forces

of

Christian

propaganda against
itself,

which Sinhalese Buddhism has to defend

of the most beautiful colonies,

besides those

of civilization which do not cease to extend.

if

Ceylon

is

one

not one of the most powerful

ten years
its

of England, and for the

marvellously increased.
necessarily lose

last

prosperity has

The

native religion

must therefore

ground

in the face

of a religion which brings

wiih

it

such great advantages and welfare.*

are far

We
bound

from saying that

Sinhalese
;

Buddhism
is

is

to destruction or even to decay

but

it

certain that

Christianity, particularly

under the Catholic form, has already

Buddhist clergy does not seem

made

great progress.

The

to prepare itself for the struggle

by renewed zeal;
priests

at the at

most does the fanaticism of certain

times to rouse the

endeavour

population
It is

to

rebellion,

thereby only

betraying their weakness.

only by serious study and

a return to the purity of the primitive faith that the Buddhist

in which the tcachinj^ was carried on pnrtly in Sinhalese: (5) the schools that were exclusively indigenous, in which the native language only was used. In all these schools the scholars paid for their schooling; from twelve pounds at Colombo down to three shillings a year in the Sinhalese schools. In In 1849 the Government grant amounted to io,S68 sterling. 1856 the schools contained 23,348 cliildren. ^ In Lord Torrington's delence of his administration against the attacks of one of his successors, Sir H. G. Ward, he furnished on this point some impoitant and exact information. In his letter of 17th January, 1857, to the Right Hon. Mr. Labouchere, he stated tliat the imports, which in 1846 only reached the sum of ^^998,859 steiling, had successively increased, and in 1855 had attained ^1,457,770. Tlie exports had increased in a still greater proportion from ^^407, 809 to /Ti, 350,410 sterling. The revenues had risen from ^^416, 407 to ^(^476,273, while the expenditure had diminished from ^498,205 to In 1856 the revenues were ^.^04,175, and the ^405,609 sterling. expenditure ^457,137 sterling. The imports had risen to 2,714,565 and the cxpoits to 1,663,612 sterling. Labour was paid at the rate of 2 to 3 a month. Cattle was represented by 840,000 animals. In the island 771,170 acres were in cultivation, 345,932 in pasture land, and 5,037,303 acres were uncultivated. In all there were 560,025 agriculturists; 49,367 workmen in the factories, and

(4) the

mixed schools,
in

English and partly

70,886 employed in trade.

cii. ii]

BUDDHIST CLERGY IN CEYLON

would have some chance of saving
that their vitality
it

369
religion.

clergy

their

But we doubt
nor indeed
is

would be equal

to the eflbrt
it

to

be desired, for although

cannot be

denied that the law of the Buddha has rendered great services
to these races, yet
it

could not be regretted

if,

in the natural

course of things, and through a pacific and beneficent pro-

paganda,

it

should be replaced by Christianity.

is

That day

doubtless

still

far off, but as

it

may

even

now
and

be foreseen, philologists should lose no lime in collecting

and publishing the documents of

religion, thus following in the steps of

Sinhalese

history

George Turnour, who

has so admirably succeeded in revealing the ]\Iahdvansa.

A a

APPENDIX.
I.

FESTIVAL OF THE BUDDHA'S TOOTH IN 18^8. The following letter, published by the Presse, December 6, 1858,
gives

some

interesting information concerning the worship of the

in

Buddha's tooth

Ceylon

in

the present day.

Kandy,

Oct. 12, 1858.

The somewhat monotonous calm

been broicen by one of the great

of our delightful country has

festivities that

Ceylon
:

offers to

the public once or twice in the course of a century the solemn exhibition of the Buddha's tcoth. The vast and beautiful pagoda

of Mahiyangana, where this relic

veneration,
is

is

preserved with the greatest

one of the most famous sanctuaries of the Buddhist uorld, and is the resort of considerable numbers of devotees, who go there every year as a pilgriiraje, on the occasion of certain religious solemnities. The Buddha's tooth is seldom taken out cf the mysterious kind of tabernacle in which it is enshrined in nine conccntrical gold boxes, set with diamonds, rubies, and pearls and the bonzes consent to display the relic only on such occasions as the visit of some great personage, come from afar for the express purpose of a pilgrimage to Mahiyangana. This circumstance presented itself on the ninth of this month, Mhen two Burmese high priests brought special letters of recommendation to the English Governor, without whose authorization, the bonzes cannot open the tabernacle. We must not forget
that at the beginning of the occupation, the English

Government
lest,

had taken the precious tooth into

its

own

keeping,

on the

pretext of a public exhibition, the Sinhalese should gather together with a view to rebellion. Within the last few years it has been
restored to the

Temple

condition that
|.he

it

of Mahiyangana, but on the express should not be shown without the permission of

Governor of Kandy.
A a 3

372

APPENDIX
wliich determined the visit of the
is

pilgrims

two illustrious Buddhism in Ceylon has two sects of bonzes the Siamese and the Burmese sect of Atnarapura. The first one is the most numerous and the most
curious enough to be worth relating.
:

The motive

wealthy;

it

possesses the finest pagodas and the largest convents

in the island,

and magnificently entertains the Siamese

In
its

faithful

who come

there in pilgrimage.

turn

it

sends

its

novices to

Siam, to perfect themselves

in the

study of the Pali language, and

the mysterious transformations of the

Buddha

hence the
is
;

inter-

course between the bonzjs of the two countries

frequent.

The

second sect has, on the contrary, few adepts

but they

are renarkable for an austerity of behaviour and a fervour of

devotion, which inspire the deepest respect.

These latter seldom return to their fountain-head, having no m:ans of travelling. Nevertheless, two of them visited Burmih a few years ago, and during their stay in Ava, where the emperor received them with great honour, they learned, to their exti erne surprise, that a tooth of the Buddha, eight inches long, was preserved in that city, and was the object of the greatest veneration on the part of the Burmese Buddhists. The two pilgrims having conceived doubts as to the authenticity of this relic, declared them to their host and the emperor
;

thereupon commanded that all the bonzes of the capital and the neighbourhood should assemble in council to discuss this grave question, in the presence of the strangers who had raised it. The principal argument used by the Sinhalese before the council, was founded on the inordinate length of the Burmese tooth, which was more than double that of Ceylon, the latter being recognized as undeniably authentic by all true Buddhists. They declared that not one of the sacred books contained the smallest proof that the Buddha had predestined one of his teeth to be preserved in Burmali, and they ended their demonstration by quoting a passage from the sacred book Datha'vansa, in which it is positively asserted that Gautama T^uddha had left no other relic on earth but the one in Dalada, now in Kandy. In the presence of a fact so serious for the orthodoxy of the worship, the Burmese emperor decided that two of the most learned among the bonzes should go to Ceylon to examine the rival relic, and make a report on its authentic characteristics. ^t was to settle this vested question that the Burmese bonze!>

Appendix
liad

3^3

come to Ceylon, and as they were furnished with crcdenlials from their sovereign, the English Government could not refuse to allow them to examine the relic. Sir John Braybrooke appointed the 9th of October as the day for the exhibition. When the news spread throughout the island, the enraptured population rose en masse, and flocked to Kandy like a swarm of locusts, cooking their food in the fields and sleeping in the open air while the ceremony was pending. The English police had taken all the necessary precautions to guard against disorder, and although (he crowd was enormous, not a single untoward incident occurred. Externally, the Mahiyangana pagoda was decked out with flags, banners, streamers, garlands, and inscriptions, which on the dark green background of the banian trees produced a magnificent efl'ect of colour. Internally, the temple was hung with draperies of the seven colours of the rainbow, bordered with gold braid and fringe hundreds of lamps and chandeliers shed floods of light ovt r the scene, although it was midday and, lastly, on a platform,
; ;

raised in the centre of the building, rose an altar, resplendent with

gold and precious gems, and surmounted by a wide canopy, wliich

was adorned with waving plumes. At twelve o'clock the Governor, accompanied by the two Burmese pilgrims, his retinue, and a certain number of English ladies attracted by curiosity, entered the pagoda and seated himself on a platforwi near the altar. The preliminary ceremonies, however, took up no less than two hours, and excited a general
feeling of impatience.

At

last

the

shrill .^oimd

of a trumpet was heard, the door of the

sanctuary opened and a long procession of bonzes issued forth,

slowly followed by the high priest of Mahiyangana bearing the

tooth of the Buddha in a crystal casket, resting on a water-lily of

ma

sive gold.
this sight

At

loud acclamations of Sadhu! Sodhu! burst from the

enthusiastic throng,

who

fell

prostrate on the ground, while

filled

the tamtams, trumpets, and flutes

the immense

dome

of

the pagoda with a medley of indescribable sounds.

The relic was placed on the altar under the daTs, and the Burmese were then permitted to examine it at leisure. After them the crowd passed in the greatest order round the platform
till

nightfall, and,

thanks to the excellent measures taken by the

374

APPENDIX

police, the whole population was enabled to satisfy their .curiosity without a single accident taking place.

The piece of ivory which is supposed to have graced the Buddha's jaw is about the size of the little finger it is of a fine tawny yellow colour, slightly curved in the middle and thicker at one end. In the centre of the big end, which is supposed to be the crown of the tooth, is a small hole, about the size of
;

a pin's-head

at the opposite extremity,

which would answer to

to indicate that

the root of the tooth, an irregular

mark seems
off.

a fragment of the relic has been taken

On
it

looking at the transversal veining of the ivory,

it is

it is

easy to
;

see that

only a piece of a tooth, and not a complete one

in this

but

country to throw a doubt on the perfect authenticity of an object held in s.ch veneration, and even regarded as miraculous. It is doubtful whether the Burmese envoys were convinced by
their examination of the relic, or that
it is

would not be advisable

likely to

dethrone
the

the tooth worshipped in Ava.

paltry

But

if

we may judge from

sum they

offered

to the temple,

two hundred rupees,

we

However, their visit will doubtless and when the Government has ascertained by repeated experience that it can, without inconvenience or danger,
should hardly fancy so.
attract other visits,

allow a

more frequent

public exhibition of the divin3 tooth, the

prestige attached to this worship will gradually disappear, and

the Buddhists will at

last

be convinced de

'visu

of the foolishness

of their

belief.

Mahavansa, Chap. XXXVII, page 241

Tumour's

edition.

*In the ninth year of the reign of Sirimeghavanna (a. D. 310), a certain Brahman princess brought the Dathadhatu, or tooth relic of the Buddha, hither from Kalinga, under the circumstances
set

forth

in
it

the Dathadhatuwansa.
himself,

The monarch
in

receiving

charge of
verential

and rendering thereto,

the most re-

manner, the highest honours, deposited it in a casket of made of "phalika "stone, and lodged it in the edifice, called the Dhammachakko, built by Devanam-Piya-Tissa. In the first place, the raja, expending a lac, in the height of his felicity, celebrated a Dathadhatu festival, and then he ordained that a similar festival should be annually celebrated, transferring
great purity,
*

the relic in procession to the Abhayagiri wihara.'

APPENDIX
II.

325

THE THREE COUNCILS.

The
Maha'vansa^ Chap.
*

First Council.
Ill,

page

ii,

Tumour* s

edition.
five

sins,

The supreme incomparable, the vanquisher of the who was gilted with five means of perception,

deadly

having so-

journed for forty-five years (as Buddha), and fulfilled in the utmost perfection every object of his mission to this world, in the city
of Kusinara, in the sacred arbour formed by two " Sal " trees, on the fall-moon day of the

month of (ivesakha, this luminary of the world was extinguished. On that spot innumerable priests, princes, Brahmans, traders, and suddras, as well as devas,

assembled.

whom
*

the thera^

There were a'so seven hundred thousand priests, of Maha-Kasyapa was at that tim3 the chief.
priest,

This high

having performed the funeral obsequies over

the body and sacred relics of the divine Teacher, and being
desirous of perpetuating his doctrines for ever, on the seventh day after the Lord of the Universe, gifted with the ten powers, had demised recollecting the silly declaration of the priest Subadda, who had been ordained in his dotage, and moreover recollecting the footing of cqu.ility on which he had been pl.iccd by the divine Sage, by conferring on him his own sacred robe^, as well as the injunctions given by him for the propagation of
;

his doctrines; this all-accomplished disciple of the

Bu

idha, for
five

the purpose of holding a convocation on religion, convened

hundred

priests,

who had overcome

in

the dominion of the passions,

of great celebrity, versed in the nine departments of doctrinal

knowledge, and perfect

every religious attribute.

On

account

of a disqualification (however) attending the thera Ananda, there

was one deficient of that number. Subsequently the thera Ananda, also having been ^itreated by the other pries' s to take That convocapart in the convocation, was likewise included.
tion could not have taken place without him.
'

These Universe-compassionating

(disciples)

having passed half

Thera, elder. Theravatla, doctrines of the Elders, believed by orthodox Buddhists to be identical with the Three Pitakas as now existing in Ceylon ; see Rhys Davids.
*

376
a

APPENDIX

month

in

celebrating the funeral obsequies seven days, and

ifl

the festival of relics seven

to be done, thus resolved

days and knowing what was proper

:

" Keeping ivassa in the city of

;

Rajagriha, let us there hold the convocation on religion

it

can-

be present." * These disciples making their pilgrimage over JambudTpa as mendicants, administering consolation in their affliction (at the demise of the Buddha) to the vast population spread over the various portions thereof in the month of asala^ during the increase of the moon, being the appropriate bright season, these supports of the people in their faith reached Rajagriha, a city
(priests) to

not be permitted to other

perfect

in

every

sacerdotal

requisite.

These

theras,

with

Kasyapa for their

chief, steadfast in their design,

and perfect
by an applito
all

masters of the doctrines of the Supreme Buddha, having arrived

at the place aforesa'd to hold their tuassa, caused,

cation

to

King Ajatasatru,

repairs
first

to

te

made

the

sacred buildings during the

month

of nvnssa.

On

the

completion of
religion."

addressed the monarch

the repairs of the sacred edifices they thus " Now we will hold the convocation on
:

they

who inquired "What is requisite ?" The monarch inquiring "Where?" in the place named by them by the side of the Webhara mountain, at the entrance of the Saltapani cave he
(the king)
session
replied,

To him

"A

hall."

speedily caused to be built a splendid hall, like un'o that of the

devas.

Having

in

all

rcFpects perfected this hall, he had in-

valuable carpets spread there, corresponding with the

number cf

the priests.

In order that, being seated on the north side, the In the centre of that
fit

south might be faced, the inestimable, pre-eminent throne of the

high priest was placed there.
felicitous advent,
hall,

facing

the east, the exalted preaching pulpit,

for the deity himself of

was erected. 'The king thus reported to the theras "Our task is performed." Those theias then addressed Ananda, the delight (of an audience): " Ananda, to-morrow is the convocation on account of thy
:

being
there

still

under the dominion of human

inadmissible
;

passions, thy presence

is

exert thyself without intermission, and

attain the requisite qualifications."

The

thera,

who had been

attained the

thus enjoined, having exerted a supernatural effort and extricated

himself from the dominion of

S2inc\.\^c^i\onoi arakat.

human

passions,

APPENDIX
*

377
month of
qvcusa, those

On

the second day of the second

disciples
*

assembled

in

that splendid hall.

Reserving for the thera Ananda the seat appropriate to him

alone, the (other) sanctified priests took their places according to their seniority. While some among them were in the act of

inquiring ' Where is the thera Ananda? " in order that he might manifest to the (assembled) disciples that he had attained the sanctification of arabat, (at that instant) the s;iid thera made his

appearance

emerging

from the earth, and passing through the

in

touching the floor) and took his seat specially reserved for him.

air (without

the pulpit

'All these theras, accomplished supporters of the faith, aroltcd to the thera Upali (the elucidation of the) Finaya, and to the thera Ananda the whole of the other branches of Dhf.mma.

The The

high priest reserved to himself (the part) of interrogating on Vinoya; and the ascetic thera Uj uli that of dscoursing thereon.
one, seated in the high priest's pulpit, interrogated him on
the Other, seated in
Vinayay

the preaching pulpit, expatiated

thereon.

by

this

which the Vinaya was propounded master of that branch of religion, all these theras, by
the
in

From

manner

repeating (the discourse) in chants, became perfect masters in the knowledge of Vinaya.

on himself on Dhamma him (Ananda) who, from among those who had been his auditor?, was the selected guardian of the doctrines of the Supreme Ruler. In the same manner the thera Ananda, allotting to himself that (task), exalted in the preaching pulpit, expatiated without the slightest omission on Dhamma, From the manner in which that sage (Ananda), accomplished in the Wedeha, propounded the Dhamma^ all these priests,
*

The

said high priest (Maha-Kasyapa), imposing

(that task), interrogated

repeating his discourse in chants, became perfect

'

in

Dhamma.

by these benefactors of mankind for the benefit of the whole world, was brought to a close in seven months, and the religion of the deity of felicitous advent was rendered eflfective for enduring five thousand years by the high priest Maha-Kasyapa. At the close of this convocation, in the excess of its exultation, the self-balanced great earth quaked six times from the lowest abyss of the ocean. 'By various means in this world divers miracles have been performed. Because this convocation was held exclusively by
this convocation, held

Thus

37S
the theras,
(it is

APPENDIX

called) from generation to generation the thenya Having held this first convocation, and having conferred many benefits on the world, and lived the full measure of human existence (of that period), all these disciples (in due

ccnvocatlon.

course of nature) died.

In dispelling the darkness of the world

gifts,

these disciples became, by their supernatural

the luminaries

1 ke unto the desolation of a tempest, these great luminaries were extinguished. From this example, therefore, by a piously wise man, (the desire for) this life should be overcome.

who overcame

that darkness.

By

(the ravages of) death,

*The

third

chapter in the Mabavansa, entitled

The

First
afflict

Convocation on Religion, composed equally to delight and

righteous men.'

The Second
Mabavama,
'

Council.
edition.

Chap, ir, paje 15, Turnour^s

Udayibhaddaka, the perfidiously impious son of Ajatasatru, having put (his parent) to death, reigned sixteen years. Anuruddhaka, the son of Udayibhaddaka, having put him to death and the son of Aniiruddhaka, named IMunda, having put him to death these perfidious, unwise (princes i;i succession) ruled. In the reigns of these two (monarchs) eight years elapsed. The impious Nagadasaka, son of Munda, having put Ins father to death, reigned twenty-four years. The populace of the capital, infuriated (at such conduct), des'gnating this "a parricidal race," assembled
; ;

and formally deposed Nagadasaka; and desirous of gratifying the whole nation, they unanimously installed in the sovereignty the eminently wise minister bearing the (historically) distinguished appellation of Susunaga. He reigned eighteen years. His son
Kalasoka reigned twenty years. Thus in the tenth year of the King Kalasoka a century had elapsed from the death of the Buddha. 'At that time a numerous community of priests, resident in the city of Vaisali, natives of Wajji shameless ministers of religion pronounced the (following) ten indulgences to be allowable (to the priesthood) viz. " salt meats," " two inches," " also in villages,"
reign of
:

"milk whey," "beverage," " covers of seats," gold and other coined metals *. The thera Yasa,
"fiaternity," "proxy," "example,"
*

These are the opening words of the sentences descriptive of the ten
indulgences attempted to be introduced into the discipline of the

new

APPENDIX

379

having heard of this heresy, proceeded on a pilgrimage over the Wajji country. This Yasa, son of Kakandaka, the Brahman versed in the six branches of doctrinal knowledge, and powerful in his calling, repaired to that place (Vaisali), devoting himself at the Mahavansa Wihara to the suppression of this heresy. They
(the schismatic priests), having placed a golden dish filled with

\vater in the apartment

in

which the uposatha ceremony was

performed, said (to the attendant congregation of laymen), "Devotees, bestow on the priesthood at least a Kahaprman." The thera forbade (the proceeding), exclaiming " Bestow it not it is not allowable." They awarded to the thera Yasa (for this
interference) the sentence oi palesaraniyan. Having by entreaty procured (from them) a messenger, he proceeded with him to the capital, and propounded to the inhabitants of the city the tenets

of his

own faith. The (schismatic) priests, having learned these circumstances from the messenger, proceeded thither to award to the thera the penalty of ukkipetan^ and took up their station

surrounding his dwelling.

aloft,

The

thera (however) raising himself

proceeded through the

air to

the city of Kosambiya; from

thence, speedily dispatching messengers to the priests resident

Patheya and Avanti, and himself repairing to the AhSgan^^a mountain (mountain beyond the Ganges), reported all these
in

particulars to the thera

*

Sambhuta of Sana.
all

Sixty priests of Patheya and ei^jhty of Avanti,

sanctified

who had overcome the dominion of sin, descended at Ahoganga. The whole number of priests who hail assembled
characters

These and acknowledged that the thera Revata of Soreya, in profundity of knowledge and sanctity of character, was at that period the most illustrious,
there from various quarters

amounted

to ninety thousand.

sanctified personages having deliberated together,

they departed thither for the purpose of appearing before him. Tiie said thera having attended to their statement and, being
desirous (on account of his great age) of performing the journey

by easy stages, departed

of repairing to Vaisali.

at that instant

from thence for the purpose

account of the importance of that mission, departing each morning at dawn, on reaching the places adapted for their accommodation, they met together again (for At a place (where they had so consultation) in the evenings.
Buddhiitical priesthood, an explanation of which would lead to details inconvenient in this place.

On

336

APPKNbtX
Sambhuta,
at the close of a sermon, addressing himself to

assembled) the thera Ya?a, under the directions of the chief

priest

the celebrated thera Revata, inquired what the ten (unorthodox)

indulgences were.
(schism)."

Having examined those rules, the thera pronounced them inadmissible, and said, " Let us suppress this

'These sinners, with the view to seducing the renowned thera Revata to iheir party, collecting a vast quantity of priestly ofFerings, and quickly embarking in a vessel, arrived at the place where the principal priests were assembled, and at the hour
of refection set forth the chant of refection.

The

thera Salhfi,

who was

resident at that selected place, and had

overcome the

dominion of sin, reflecting whether the doctrine of the Patheya priests was orthodox, it appeared to him to be so. The MahjiBrahma (of the world, Sudhawasa), descending unto him (Saiha), addressed him thus " Adhere to that doctrine." He replied that his adherence to that faith would be steadfast. Those who had brought the priestly oflTerings presented themselves to the eminent thera Revata. The thera declined accepting the offerings, and dismissed the pupil of the sinful fraternity (who presented them). 'These shameful characters, departing thence for Vaisfili, and from thence repairing to the capital, Pupphapura, thus addressed
:

their sovereign Kalasoka: "

We,

the guardians of the dwelling of

our divine Instructor, reside there in the land of Wajji, in the Mahjivana Wihara. The priests resident in the provincial villages are hastening hither, saying Let us take possession of the Wihara! O Maharaja, prevent them." They having (thus) deceived the
'

king, returned to Vaisali.

* In the (aforesaid) selected place where the (orthodox) priests had halted unto the thera Revata, for the purpose of suppressing the schismatic indulgences, eleven hundred and ninety thousand priests congregated. He had decided (however) not to suppress the heresy at any place but that at which it had originated. Consequently the theras and all these priests repaired to Vaisali. The deluded monarch despatched his ministers thither. Misguided, however, by the interposition of the gods, they proceeded in a different direction. The sovereign having (thus) deputed these ministers (to the priesthood) in the night, by a dream he

saw that his soul was cast into the Lokakumbiya hell. The king was in the greatest consternation. To allay that (terror) his

APPENDIX

381

younger sister, the priestess Anandi, a sanctified character, who had overcome the dominion of sin, arrived, travelling through the air " The act thou hast committed is of the most weighty import make atonement lo the orthodox ministers of the faith
: ;

uniting thyself with their cause, uphold true religion.

this

By adopting
Having

course peace of mind

will

be restored unto thee."

thus addressed him she departed.

monarch departed to Vaisa!i. Wihara he assembled the priesthood, and having examined the controversy by listening to both parties, he decided in favour of the cause of true religion. The sovereign having made atonement to all the ministers of true religion, and having avowed his adits cause, he said, " Do ye according to your judgment, provide for the due maintenance of religion " aiKl having extended

At the very dawn of day the Having reached the Mahavana

herence to

his protection to

them he departed

for his capital (Pupphapura).

* Thereupon the priesthood assembled to inquire into these indulgences; there in that convocation (however) endless and

frivolous discussions arose. The thera Revata himself then advancing into the midst of the assembly, and causing to be proclaimed the Vbhahikaya rules, he made the requisite arrangements

for the purpose of suppressing this heresy.

By

the Vbbahikaya

rules he selected for the suppression of the sacerdotal heresy four

Pachlna and four of Patheya, These were the four Pachlna priests Sabbakami, Salha, Kujjasobhita, and Wasabhngamika. These were the four Patheya priests: Revata, Sambhfita of Sana, Yasa the son of Kiikandaka, and Sumana. For the purpose of examining into these (controverted) indulgences, these eight sanctified personages repaired to Walukarama Wihara,
priests of
:

a situation so secluded (that not even the note of a bird was

heard), and free from

the

.strife

of men.

The

high priest

Revata, the chief of the interrogating party, questioned the thera

due order on these indulgences one by one. The who had been thus interrogated by him (Revata), declared, "By the orthodox ordin mces, all these

S ibbakami

in

principal thera Sabbakami,

indulgences are inadnu'ssible."

'There

(at

the

this heresy, in the

Walukarama Wihara) having in due form rejected same manner in the midst of the convocation

at Mahavana Wihara, (to which they returned), they again went To the ten thousand through the interrogations and replies. sinful priests who had put forth the ten indulgences, these

382
principal

APPENDIX

orthodox priests awarded the penalty of degradation. Sabbakami was at that time high priest of the world, and had

already attained a standing of

120 years in the ordination of upasampada. Sabbakami, Salha, Revata, Kujjasobhita, Yasa the son of Kakandaka, and Sambhuta a native of Sana these six
thei as

were the disciples of the thera Ananda. Wasabhagamika and Sumana, these two iheras were the disciples of the thera Anurudha. These eight pious priests in aforetimes had seen the deity who was the successor of the former Buddhas. * The priests who had assembled were twelve hundred thous-^nd; of all these priests, the thera Revata was at that time a leader. 1 hereupon, for the purpose of securing the permanency of the true faith, this Revata thera, the leader of these priests, selected from those wlio were gifted with the qualifications for sanctification, and were the depositaries of the doctrines contained in the Three (Pitakas), seven hundred sanctified disciples (of the Buddha, for the purpose of holding the convocation on religion). All these theras, having Revata for their chief, protected by King Kalasoka, held the convocation on religion at the Walukarama Wihara. According to the form observed in interrogation and illustration on the former occasion, conducting this meeting precisely in the same manner, it was terminated in eight months. Thus these theras, who were indefatigable in their calling, and absolved from all human afflictions, having held the second convocation on religion, in due course attained Nibbuti (Nirvana).
*

Hence bearing

in

mind the subjection

to death of the disciples

of the

Saviour of the Universe,

who were endowed

with the

had attained the state of ultimate beatitude and had conferred blessings on the beings of the three bhaivaSf recollecting also the liability of the rest of mankind to an
sanctification of arahat\\\\o

interminable transmigration, let (the reader) steadfastly devote

himself (to a
*

life

of righteousness).

The

fourth chapter in the MahaTansa, entitled

The Second
righteous

Convocation on Religion, composed to delight and

m2n.'

afflict

The Third
Mahavansa, Chap.

Council.

F, page 41, ^iirnciir's editicn.

The Makavansa

first

relates at great length

some of the

prin-

cipal events of the reign of

Asoka, the grandson of Chandra^

APPENDIX
giipta (the Sandracottus of the

383
it

Greeks)

then
is

proceeds to relate

the conversion of this king, who, after he had embraced Buddhism,

took the surname of Dharmasoka, that

a

Asoka, Protector of the

Faith. Finally,it mentions the third Council, convened to put

;

down number of heresies and the Mahd'vansa continues as follows The king within seven days, having sent two yakkhos, caused all
:

the priests in Jambudlpa to be assembled.

On

the seventh day,

going to the splendid temple built by himself, he directed the

whole priesthood, without any omission, to assemble.

Seated

together with the thera within the curtain, and calling up to him

one by one the heretic priests, "Lord," inquired the Sovereign, " of what religion was the deity of felicitous advent ? " Each, according to his own faith, propounded the Sassata and other creeds (as the religion of the Buddha). The king caused all those heretic priests to be expelled from the priesthood. The whole of the priests thus degraded was sixty thous:ind. He then asked the orthodox priests, " Of what religion is the deity of happy advent?" They replied, "The religion of investigated (truth)." The sovereign then addressed the thera " Lord, is the Supreme
:

The thera having replied " Yes," and the king having heard that answer, overjoyed, "Lord," he exclaimed, "if by any act the priesthood can recover their own
Buddha himself of
that -vibhajja faith
?

"

purity,
*

by that act let the priesthood (now) perform the uposatta** Having thus addressed the thera, and conferring the royal protection on the priesthood, he re-entered the celebrated capital. The priesthood, restored to unanimity of communion,
then held the uposathn.
*

But the thera from many asankya of priests selected a thousand

priests of sanctified character

possessing

the six perfections of

religious

knowledge, and versed

in the Trlpitika

and perfect

in

the

four sacerdotal qualifications

vocation.

for

the purpose of holding a con-

By them the convocation on religion was held ; according as the theras INIaha-Kasyapa and Yasa had performed the convocations (in their time), in like manner the thera Tissa
(performed) this one. In that hall of convocation the thera Tissa preached a discourse ilkistiativc of the means of suppressing

doubts on points of faith. * Thus, under the auspices of King Aoka, this convocation on religion was brought to a close in nine months by these priests. In the seventh year of the reign of this king, this all-perfect

384

APPENDIX

minister of religion, aged seventy years, conducted in the utmost

perfection this grcit convocation on religion and the paim^-anan.

At the conclusion of the convocation, on account of the

lishment of religion, the great earth, as
if

re-estab-

shouting

its Saaku,(\y\?i\iQ(\.

*The instrument of this mission having left his supreme residence

in

the Brahma-loka world, and descended to this impure

;

human

world, for the advancement of religion

V incing the cause of rclig on,
*

who,
?

Ci.pable of ad-

would demur

The

fifth

chapter

in

the Maha'vansa, entitled

The Third Conafflict religious

vocation on Religion, composed alike to delight and

men.'
Ti.e Jtthakntha, a Sinhalese work
frt//j,and

much

older than the

Maha-

which is a very extensive commentary on the Pitakattaya, the Three Baskets of the Buddhiot writings in Ceylon, has also
preserved the history of the I'hree Councils, as far as regards
the parts relating to the Vin:iya, the Samantapa.-.adika.

The

Atikakatba returns to the subject a second time

its

in

another of

articles

called

Sumangala

D'tgha-nikaya, one of the five

Pitaka of Ceylon.

Vilasini, a commentary on the works which compose the SiitraGeorge Turnour has translated from the

Sumangala

Vilasini

all

that treats of the

first

Council {Journal

cfthe Bengal Jiiatlc Society, vol. vi, part ii, page 510 and following). do not reproduce the lengthy details of the Sumangala Vilasini,

We

because they would not add anything to what we already know. This account had moreover a special purpose, and was evidently written to prove the authenticity of the Sinhalese Pitakaitnya and the Jtthakatha, which it asserts was written at the time of the

This origin seems more likely that the Tnpltaka and the Aithakatha were brought by Mahinda, son of Dharmasoka, when he came to convert Sinhala to the Tathagata's faith. The Aiihakatha in its present form was translated from Sinhalese into Pali by Buddhaghosa from the year 410 to 432 of the Christian era.
first

Council, directly after the death of the Euddlia.

It

is

highly improbable.

THE END.

PQPEN, SMA|.p ANP P^TTY, LIRJITED, TRINT^RS, L9NDQ?l,

E.g.

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BINDING DEPT.JUN 18

1957

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