Buddha, he begged to enter the priesthood, as also did the great Mogalan and the great Kâsyapa.

Nuns mostly make offerings at the pagoda of Ananda, because it was he who begged the World-Honoured One to allow women to become nuns. Novices of both sexes chiefly make their offerings to Râhula (son of Buddha). Teachers of the Abhidharma make their offerings in honour thereof, and teachers of the Vinaya in honour of the Vinaya; there being one such function every year, and each denomination having its own particular day. The followers of the Greater Vehicle make offerings in honour of Abstract Wisdom, of Manjusri (the God of Wisdom), of Kuan Yin (at that date Avalôkitêswara), and others. When the priests have received their annual tithes, the elders, gentry, Brahmans and others, bring, each one, various articles of clothing and things of which Shamans stand in need, and distribute them among the priests, who also make presents to one another. Ever since the Nirvâna of Buddha these regulations of dignified ceremonial for the guidance of the holy brotherhood have been handed down without interruption.

From the ford over the Indus to southern India, down to the southern sea, a distance of forty to fifty thousand li, the country is all level; there are no big mountain streams, but only small rivers.

From this point eighteen yôjanas to the southeast, there is a country called Sankisa (Kapitha). It was there that Buddha came down from heaven after a stay of three months spent in expounding the Faith to his mother. Buddha had ascended by virtue of his divine power, not a single one of his disciples being allowed to know. Seven days before the time had expired, he put forth his spiritual power of locomotion; and Aniruddha (Buddha's cousin) with his divine eye descrying the World-Honoured One afar off, said to the venerable Mugalan, "Do you go and salute the World-Honoured One." So Mugalan went, and prostrated himself at the feet of Buddha, and offered his dutiful salutations. When these were over, Buddha said, "Mugalan, seven days hence I shall descend to the world." Mugalan then returned; and because at that time the great kings, officials and people of the eight kingdoms had not seen Buddha for a long period and thirsted for a sight of him, they collected like clouds in this country to await the arrival of the World-Honoured One.

A nun, named Blue Lotus, communed with her own heart, as follows: "To-day, kings, ministers, and people, are all to go out to meet Buddha. I am a woman; how can I manage to be the first to see him?" Buddha thereupon by the exercise of his spiritual power of locomotion changed her into a holy Chakravarti (turn the wheel of the Faith) king, and placed

her so that she might be the very first to salute him.

When Buddha was about to come down from heaven to earth, he produced by a miracle three flights of jewelled steps, and He himself came down the middle flight, which was made of the seven preciosities. Brahma also produced a flight of silver steps to the right, where he was in attendance with a white fly-brush in his hand. The God of Heaven, Indra, produced a flight of copper steps to the left, where he was in attendance with an umbrella of the seven preciosities in his hand. Countless hosts of dêvas followed Buddha down; and when He reached the earth, the three flights disappeared into the ground, except seven steps which remained. In later days, king Asôka, wishing to know where these last ended, caused men to dig down and find out. They got down as far as the Yellow Spring (the confines of the next world), still without reaching the base. The king then became a more devout believer than ever, and built a shrine over the steps, placing on the middle flight a full-length image of Buddha, sixteen feet in height. Behind the shrine he raised a stone column sixty feet in height; upon the top he placed a lion, and within the column, at the four sides, images of Buddha, brilliantly transparent and as unstained as strass. Some heretical teachers contended for this spot with the Shamans; and the latter were getting the

worst of the argument, when both sides agreed to the following solemn statement: "If right of residence in this place belongs to the Shamans, there should now happen some miraculous sign.' No sooner had this been proclaimed than the lion at the top of the column roared loudly in attestation; upon which the heretics were sore afraid, and yielding, retired.

Because Buddha had eaten divine food for three months, his body emitted a divine fragrance, unlike that of mortals, so he at once took a bath; and on the spot where he did so, a bath-house, which is still in existence, was subsequently built. Also, on the spot where the nun, Blue Lotus, was the first to salute him, a pagoda has recently been raised. At places where Buddha, when in the world, cut his hair and nails, pagodas have been erected; so, too, on all the spots where the three former Buddhas, as well as Shakyamuni himself, had sat down, or at places where they had walked in meditation, or where images of Buddha have been made, all the above being still in existence. At the spot where Indra, God of heaven, and Brahma, king of heaven, followed Buddha down to earth, a pagoda has also been raised.

Counting priests and nuns, there are here about one thousand, all of whom obtain their food from a common stock and belong, some to the Greater, and some to the Lesser Vehicle. Where they live, there is a white-eared dragon

which acts as religious protector to the priests by making the land fertile, causing rain to fall in due season, and warding off calamities, so that the priests may dwell in peace. Out of gratitude for such kindness, the priests have built a shrine in honour of the dragon and have spread a place for the dragon to lie down. Further, they have arranged eucharistic food-offerings for the dragon, and every day they select three members of the fraternity to take their meals in the dragon's shrine. At the end of each annual retreat, the dragon forthwith changes its form to that of a small snake with white edges to its ears; and as soon as the priests are aware of this, they fill a copper bowl with cream and place the dragon in it. They then take it round from the highest seat to the lowest, during which it appears as if bowing. When it has gone all round, it resumes its (invisible dragon) form. Every year it comes out once. This country is very productive, and the people are flourishing and happy beyond compare. When men of other nations come, care is taken of all of them and they are provided with what they require.

Fifty yôjanas to the north of the above monastery there is a monastery called Fire Domain, which is the name of an evil spirit. Buddha himself converted this evil spirit, and posterity built a shrine on the spot. When the shrine was being dedicated, a saint took water to wash his hands, and some drops fell upon the ground.