with him; he declared that he suffered indignant treatment; "Sir," said he, showing the boy's shoulders, "it is thus we are insulted by thy slave, the son of a herdsman." 66 Astyages having heard and seen, and wishing to avenge the boy for Artembares's sake, sent for the herdsman and his son. When they were both before him, Astyages looked at the lad, and said to him, " what, then, being the son of such a father, hast thou had the audacity to treat with this indignity the son of this the first nobleman in my court ?" The youth replied as follows: "My lord, it was with justice that I behaved thus towards him : for the boys of the village, of whom he was one, in play, constituted me king over them; as I appeared to them the best adapted to the office. All the other "boys accordingly executed the orders I gave them; but this one refused to obey, and took no account of my commands, "wherefore he received punishment. If then I am on that account deserving of any chastisement, I am here before "thee ready to undergo it." While the boy was thus speaking Astyages recognized him; for the features of his face seemed to resemble his own, his answer was noble, and the time of the exposition of his daughter's child, appeared to agree with the boy's age: struck with these circumstances, he remained silent for some time. Having at last with some difficulty recovered himself, and wishing to dismiss Artembares, in order that taking the herdsman apart, he might examine him, he said: "Artembares, I will manage these matters so that neither thou nor thy son shall have any cause to complain." In this manner he dismissed Artembares; and the servants, by the orders of Astyages, conducted Cyrus into the inner part of the palace. When the herdsman alone was left, Astyages asked him, whence he had received the boy, and who it was that had delivered him to him. The peasant replied, that he was his own child, and that the woman who had bore him was still living with him. Astyages told him that he had not taken good counsel, but wished to bring himself into great straits; at the same time that he pronounced those words, he beckoned to the guards to lay hold on him. The herdsman being taken to the rock, accordingly discovered the truth. Beginning then from the beginning, he disclosed all, speaking the truth; he next had recourse to supplications, and besought the king to forgive him. When the herdsman had confessed the truth, Astyages no longer regarded him as of any great consequence, but violently irritated with Harpagus, he commanded the guards to call him. When Harpagus appeared in his presence, Astyages put to him this question: "In what manner didst thou, Harpagus, destroy the infant born of my daughter, and which I delivered to thee?" Harpagus, seeing the herdsman in the apartment, did not recur to falsehood, lest he should be refuted and convicted; he answered therefore : Sire, when I had received the infant, I deliberated, considering within myself how I might act according to thy desire, and, "without subjecting myself to blame from thee, be a murderer neither with regard to thy daughter nor thyself; I consequently "acted in the following manner : I sent for this herdsman, and delivered to him the infant, telling him that it was thy orders that it should be put to death and so far, in saying that, I was not guilty of falsehood; for such were thy commands. I "delivered the infant then to him, enjoining him to expose it on a desert mountain, and remain by it on the watch so long as "it kept alive; threatening him most severely if he did not execute fully those orders. Afterwards, when this man had executed my commands, and the infant was dead, I sent the most faithful of my eunuchs, and having seen by them that the child was no longer alive, I buried it. Thus, Sire, did matters happen in this business; and such was the fate of the child." Harpagus, accordingly confessed the truth. And Astyagus, concealing the anger which possessed him at what had taken place, begun by narrating again to Harpagus the whole affair, as he had himself heard it from the herdsman; and afterwards, when he had repeated the history to him, he ended by saying "that the youth was still alive, and that he "was pleased with what had happened." For," said he, (these being his own words) "I grieved much at what had been "done to the child; and I was not a little sensible to the reproaches of my daughter. Since, then, fortune has taken a "favorable turn, do thou send thy son to the young new comer, and attend me thyself at supper, for I intend to offer sacrifice "for the salvation of the boy, to those gods to whom that honor belongs." Harpagus, when he had heard this discourse, adored the king, and, greatly pleased that his fault had been successful to him, as well as that he was invited to the feast in celebration of the fortunate event, went to his home. As soon as he entered, he sent his only son, who was about thirteen years old, bidding him go to the palace of Astyages, and do whatsoever that prince should order. He himself being filled with joy, related to his wife what had happened. Astyages, when the lad arrived, killed him and cutting him into bits, roasted some of the flesh, and boiled the rest; and having it properly dressed, kept it in readiness. Afterwards when the hour of supper came, the other guests, as well as Harpagus approached ; before the rest and Astyages himself, tables were placed, spread abundantly with mutton; but to Harpagus the flesh of his own son was served up, the whole of it, excepting the head and the extremities of the hands and feet; those parts were kept aside, covered up in a basket. When Harpagus seemed to have eaten enough of the food, Astyages asked him whether he was at all pleased with the feast; and Harpagus declaring that he was extremely pleased, those who had it in charge, : brought the head of his son, covered up, together with the hands and feet and standing before him, bade him uncover and take what he chose of them. Harpagus obeyed; and uncovering the basket, beheld the remains of his son. He was not however, disturbed at the sight, but preserved his presence of mind. Astyages asked him, if he knew what animal he had eaten the flesh of; the other replied, he was aware of it, and that whatever a king might do, it was pleasing. After making this answer, he took up the remnants of the flesh, and went home, intending, I suppose, to bury all the parts of his son that he had collected. Such was the revenge Astyages took on Harpagus. But deliberating concerning Cyrus, he called the same Magi who had interpreted his dream in the manner before mentioned; when they arrived, Astyages asked them in what manner they had interpreted his dream. The Magi, as before, answered, saying, it was decreed by fate the child should rule, if he survived and did not die first. The king replied to them in the following words "The child exists and survives; and having been "brought up in the country, the boys of the village constituted him their king; and he has completely done all the same as those that are in reality sovereigns: for he had nominated guards, and ushers, and ministers, and all the other officers. Now what does it appear to you these things portend ?" The Magi answered: Since the child survives, and has reigned without any premeditated design, do thou thence take courage, and be of good cheer; as he will not now reign a second time for even some of the oracles have ended in a frivolous accomplishment, and dreams also in the end have tended to "slight events." Astyages replied: "I myself also, Magi, am of the same opinion, that the child having been named king, the dream is fulfilled, and I have now nothing to fear from him; nevertheless, weigh the matter well, and then give me such advice as may be safest for my own family as well as for yourselves." To this the Magi replied: "Sire, to us it is of great importance that thy government should be upheld; for if it devolves to this child, who is a Persian, it will then pass to another nation; and we, who are Medes, would become slaves, and be held in no account by the Persians, to whom we should be as foreigners; but while thou, who art our country man, remainest king, we ourselves rule in part, and receive "high honors at thy hands. So that, in every respect, it is our interest to watch for thy safety, and that of thy government, "and now, did we see any cause for fear, we would communicate it well to thee; but at present, thy dream having been ** fulfilled by a trifling event, we ourselves take courage, and exhort thee also to do the same; send this child away from before "thy eyes to the country of the Persians, and to his parents."-When Astyages heard this, he was filled with joy; and calling Cyrus, he said to him: "My child, I had condemned thee on account of the vision of a vain dream, but by thy own "fortune, thou survivest; depart now, therefore, with my good wishes, for Persia, and I will send an escort with thee; when "thou arrivest there, thou wilt find thy father and mother, who are very different from the herdsman, Mitradates, "and his wife." Astyages having thus spoken, dismissed Cyrus, who, on his return to the residence of Cambyses, was received by his parents; and when they learnt who the stranger was, they embraced him with transport, as one indeed whom they had considered dead from the time of his birth. They then inquired in what manner his life was saved. The youth spoke to them, saying, that he did not before know, but had much mistaken; that on the road he had been informed of all that had happened to him; for he had thought he was the son of a herdsman of Astyages, till on the road from Media he had learnt the whole circumstance from his escorters. He stated that he had been brought up by the wife of the herdsman ; this woman he was constantly praising, and Cyno was the whole subject of his discourse: his parents laid hold of this name, and in order that their son might appear to the Persians to have been more providentially preserved, they spread about the report, that when exposed, a bitch had suckled Cyrus. And thence it was that this opinion prevailed. Cyrus being arrived at man's estate, and become the most valiant and beloved of his equals in age, Harpagus, who much wished to be revenged of Astyages, sought, by sending him gifts, to court his assistance: for, being but a private individual, he did not discern any possibility of taking, by himself, vengeance on Astyages; but when he saw Cyrus growing up, he endeavoured to make him his associate, comparing the sufferings of that young prince to his own. But, before this, the following measures had already been taken by him as Astyages treated the Medes with asperity, he had communicated with all the chief men of the nation, and persuaded them that it was to their interest to proclaim Cyrus, and put an end to the reign of Astyages. This plot being concerted, and Harpagus ready he accordingly next wished to communicate his project to Cyrus, who was living in Persia; and as he had no other manner of so doing, since the roads were guarded, he contrived the following method. He prepared dexterously a hare, and ripping open its belly, without at all discomposing the hair, he placed in it a letter, in which he had written what he thought proper. He then sewed up the belly of the hare, and giving to the most trusty of his servants some nets, as if he had been a hunter, he sent him to the land of the Persians, commanding him by word of mouth at the same time he gave the hare to Cyrus, to direct him to paunch it with his own hands, and to let no one be present, when he did so. These orders were accordingly executed; and Cyrus receiving the hare, ripped it up, and finding the letter which was contained in it, he took it and read. The letter said as follows: "Son of Cambyses, the gods watch over thee; "for otherwise never wouldst thou have had such good fortune. Do thou now take vengeance on Astyages thy murderer; "for, according to his intention, thou wouldst have perished, but through the gods and me thou survivest. I presume thou "hast long since learnt all, both what was done with regard to thyself and what I have suffered at the hands of Astyages, "because I did not put thee to death, but delivered thee to the herdsman. If thou choose now to listen to my counsel, thou "shalt rule over all the land that Astyages governs. Prevail on the Persians to rebel, and then march against the Medes; "and whether I myself am named by Astyages to lead the army against thee, or any other chief men among the Medes, "thou wilt be successful, for they will be the first to withdraw from him, and going to thy side, will do their endeavours to "destroy Astyages. Be certain, then, that here at least all is prepared; do as I tell thee, and do it quickly." When Cyrus had received this intelligence, he considered which would be the most prudent manner of prevailing on the Persians to detach themselves. After some deliberation, he devised the following, as the most expedient, and acted accordingly. He wrote down on a letter what he had determined, and convened an assembly of the Persians; then opening the letter, and reading it out, he declared that Astyages appointed him commander of the Persians. "Now, therefore," continued he," men of Persia, I propose to you to come hither, each with a bill.” Such was the proposal of Cyrus. There are several tribes of the Persians, certain of which Cyrus assembled, and persuaded to separate from the Medes; they were the following, on which all the rest of the Persians depend; to wit, the Pasargadoe, the Maraphii, the Maspii: of these the Pasargadoe are the principal, of which the Acharmenidoe, from whence spring the royal family of the Persedoe, are a branch; the following likewise are others of the Persian tribes: the Panthialaei, Derusiaei, Germani, all of which are husbandmen; the rest of the tribes, namely, the Dai, Mardi, Dropici, Sagartii, are nomades. When all were come, bearing the abovementioned instrument, there being a certain portion of the Persian territory extending from about eighteen to twenty stadia, overrun with brambles, Cyrus commanded them to clear that space in a day. When the Persians had completed the imposed task, he next directed them to meet on the morrow after they had washed. Meanwhile Cyrus having collected in one place all the goats, sheep, and beasts of his father, killed them, and prepared them, intending to feast the army of the Persians withal, and with wine, and most delicate dishes of meal. On the following day, when the Persians were arrived, he desired them to stretch themselves on the green sward, and feasted them. When they afterwards arose from their repast, Cyrus asked them which was most grateful to them, whether the present fare, or that which they had the day before. The men said, that there was a great difference between the two; since, on the preceding day, they had experienced every evil, while on the present they had experienced every thing that was good. Cyrus laying hold of this answer, disclosed the whole of his project, saying. "Men of Persia ! thus is it with you if you determine to obey me, these and very many sweets more are yours, without being exposed to any slavish toil: but, on the other hand, if you determine not to obey me, toils beyond number, and like to that of yesterday, are your share. Follow me, therefore, and be free for, with regard to myself, it seems as if I were by divine providence born to place those advantages within your grasp; with regard to 'yourselves, I hold you not inferior to the men of Media, either in war or in any other respect. Things being thus, rescue 'yourself as soon as possible from the bonds of Astyages." 66 : The Persians, therefore, who, even long since, had held it a disgrace to be kept under by the Medes, having now a leader, prepared joyfully to assert their freedom. When Astyages learnt what Cyrus was doing, he sent a messenger to summon him; but Cyrus commanded the messenger to report back in answer, that he should be with him, sooner than Astyages himself would wish. When Astyages heard this, he put all the Medes under arms; and, as if he had been reft of his senses, nominated Harpagus general over them, forgetting the injury he had done him. When the Medes, thus embodied, engaged with the Persians, some of them, all indeed to whom the project had not been communicated, fought; but of the rest, some passed over to the Persians, while the greater part acted designedly as cowards, and took to flight. The Median army being thus disgracefully routed, when Astyages was informed of it, he exclaimed, threatening: “No! Cyrus shall not exult, at least at so cheap a rate." Having said these words, he first impaled the interpreters of dreams among the Magi, who had persuaded him to send Cyrus away: he next put under arms all the Medes that were left in the city, both young and old; these he had out, and falling in with the Persians, was defeated. Astyages himself was taken prisoner, and lost all the Medes that he had led to the field. Astyages being now a prisoner, Harpagus presented himself before him, exulting over and jeering the captive, he said to him many very bitter things, but in particular, with regard to the repast at which the prince had feasted him on the flesh of his son, he asked him, "What he thought of his slavery, after having been a king?", The captive, casting a look upon him, asked in return whether he attributed to himself the action of Cyrus. Harpagus U replied, that, since it was he who had written to counsel it to Cyrus, the deed might justly be regarded as his own. 66 Astyages then proved to him by his words, that he was the most silly and iniquitous of men: the most silly, since, at least, if the present events had in truth been brought about by his means, he had given up to another the power which belonged to "himself of becoming a sovereign: the most iniquitous, inasmuch as, on account of that repast, he had reduced the Medes "to thraldom; for if it was indeed absolutely necessary that the supreme power should be transferred to some other person, " and he himself should not keep it, it would have been more just to have given that advantage to some one of the Medes, "rather than to any of the Persians: whereas the Medes, who were not guilty of the injury he complained of, were now "from masters made servants; while the Persians, who before were servants, were now made masters.” Thus, therefore, Astyages having reigned five and thirty years, was deprived of the sovereign power; and in consequence of his cruelty, the Medes submitted to the Persians, after ruling over that part of Asia, that is above the Halys for one hundred and twenty eight years, not including the time that the Scythians governed. It is true, that in the sequel they repented of having so acted, and revolted from Darius; but after their defection, they were once more subjugated, being defeated in a battle. The Persians, together with Cyrus, having then shaken off the yoke of the Medes under the reign of Astyages, possessed from that time the government of Asia. With respect to Astyages, Cyrus, without doing him any other harm, detained him near himself, till such time as he died. Cyrus, accordingly, having been thus born and educated, attained the throne; and as it has before been related by me, subsequently to those events, conquered Croesus, who first began injustice against him; and having subdued that prince, thus became master of the whole of Asia. JUSTINUS L. XV. C. 4. Previous to the actual commencement of the war between Ptolemy and his allies against Antigonus, there was added a new enemy to the latter in the person of Seleucus, who made a sudden descent from Asia proper; whose origin was as remarkable as his valour was illustrious. His mother Laodice who had been married to Antiochus, a distinguished Officer among the generals of Philip, dreamed that she had been compressed in the embraces of Apollo, that she had become pregnant, had received from the God as the price of her favors, a ring set with a gem, upon which an anchor was engraven, and that she had been ordered to bestow the gift upon the son whom she should bring forth. What rendered this dream remarkable was that on the following day, there was found on the bed a ring with the aforesaid impression, and that there was the figure of an anchor upon the thigh of Seleucus from the very birth of the infant. Wherefore when Seleucus was proceeding with Alexander the great upon the Persian expedition, Laodice, having made him acquainted with his origin, presented the ring to him. And he, after Alexander's death, having become sovereign of the east, founded a city, and perpetuated therein the memory of his double procession,-for he not only called the city Antiochia after the name of his father Antiochus, but also dedicated to Apollo the plains which were in its vicinity. An evidence of his extraordinary nativity remained even to posterity, his sons and grand children having the figure of an anchor upon their thighs, as a natural mark of the source from which they sprung. After the subdivision of the Macedonian empire Seleucus engaged in many wars in the east. He first took Babylon, and then his force being augmented by victory, he conquered the Bactriani; subsequently he passed on into India, whose inhabitants, as if the yoke of slavery had been flung from their necks upon the death of Alexander, had put to death the præfects whom he had nominated. One Sandiacottus was the author of that freedom; but as soon as he had become victorious he converted the name of liberty into slavery; for seizing the throne, he oppressed by his individual sway the nation whose freedom from external domination he had achieved. He was descended of an humble stock, but it was by the all powerful influence of the Deity he had been propelled to supremacy. For having been ordered by Alexander to be put to death for his insolence to that monarch, he sought to secure his safety by a precepitate flight. When overtaken by weariness and sleep he had lain down to repose himself, a lion of immense size came up to him as he slept, and licked away with his tongue the sweat that was dripping from him, and then fawningly left him completely awake. Being by this omen first led to entertain the hope of reigning, he drew together a band of robbers, and courted the support of the Indians to a change of dynasty. At a later period, as he was projecting hostilities against the præfects of Alexander's, a wild elephant of prodigious bulk presented itself of its own accord before him, and with the most subdued docility received him upon its back, and he became the leader and a very distinguished combatant in the war. By such a tenure of rule it was that Sandracottus acquired India, at the time when Seleucus was laying the foundations of his future greatness; and the latter, having concluded a league with him, and settled his affairs in the east, came down and joined the war against Antigonus. A statement of the contents of the Páli Buddhistical scriptures, entitled the PITAKATTAYA; or THREE PITAKAS; specifying also the number of the Talipot leaves on which they are inscribed. Dhammasanganí- 72 leaves of 10 lines on each side, each leaf 2 feet 4 inches long. Kathawatthu 1. 2. Wibhangan 3. 4. Puggalań 130 leaves of 8 lines on each side, each leaf 2 feet 4 inches long. 28 leaves of 8 lines on each side, each leaf 2 feet 4 inches long. 31 leaves of 8 lines on each side, each leaf 2 feet 4 inches long. 131 leaves of 10 lines on each side, each leaf 2 feet 4 inches long. SUTTAPITAKO consists of the following sections. 292 leaves of 8 lines each side, each leaf 1 foot 10 inches long. Majjhimanikáyo- 432 leaves of 8 and 9 lines each side, each leaf 1 foot 11 inches long. 1. Díghanikáyo 2. 3. 4. 5. i. ii. iii. Udánań 4 leaves of 8 lines each side, 2 feet 4 inches long. (Burmese character). Dhammapadań- 15 leaves of 9 lines each side, each leaf 1 foot 8 inches long. Suttanipátań Wimánawatthu vii. Pétawatthu viii. Théragátá— 48 leaves of 9 lines each side, 3 feet. 31 leaves of 8 lines each side, each leaf 1 foot 9 inches long. 40 leaves of 9 lines each side, each leaf 2 feet. 158 leaves of 7 and 8 lines each side, each leaf 1 foot 9 inches long The commentary is intermixed with the text, and in that form it is a voluminous work of not ascertained yet. xii. Patisambhidań- 220 leaves of 8 lines on each side, each leaf 1 foot 11 inches long. xiii. Apadánáń xiv. Buddhawanso XV. Chariyapiṭako 196 leaves of 10 lines on each side, each leaf 2 feet long. 37 leaves of 8 lines on each side, 2 feet long. 10 leaves of 8 lines on each side, 3 feet long. NOTE. Some of the above books are not to be obtained in Kandy, and others only in an incomplete form. This statement is partly framed from the records of the Burmese fraternities in the maritime provinces. |