the rocks, into which the Bodhisattva entered, and sat cross-legged with his face to the west. (As he did so), he said to himself, 'If I am to attain to perfect wisdom (and become Buddha), let there be a supernatural attestation of it.' On the wall of the rock there appeared immediately the shadow of a Buddha, rather more than three feet in length, which is still bright at the present day. At this moment heaven and earth were greatly moved, and devas in the air spoke plainly, 'This is not the place where any Buddha of the past, or he that is to come, has attained, or will attain, to perfect Wisdom. Less than half a yojana from this to the south-west will bring you to the patra1 tree, where all past Buddhas have attained, and all to come must attain, to perfect Wisdom.' When they had spoken these words, they immediately led the way forwards to the place, singing as they did so. As they thus went away, the Bodhisattva arose and walked (after them). At a distance of thirty paces from the tree, a deva gave him the grass of lucky omen 2, which he received and went on. After (he had proceeded) fifteen paces, 500 green birds came flying towards him, went round him thrice, and disappeared. The Bodhisattva went forward to the patra tree, placed the kusa grass at the foot of it, and sat down with his face to the east. Then king Mâra sent three beautiful young ladies, who came from the north, to tempt him, while he himself came from the south to do the same. The Bodhisattva put his toes down on the ground, and the demon soldiers retired and dispersed, and the three young ladies were changed into old (grand-) mothers 3.

At the place mentioned above of the six years' painful austerities, and at all these other places, men subsequently reared topes and set up images, which all exist at the present day.

Where Buddha, after attaining to perfect wisdom, for seven days contemplated the tree, and experienced the joy of vimukti1; where, under

1 Called the tree of leaves,' and 'the tree of reflection;' a palm tree, the borassus flabellifera, described as a tree which never loses its leaves. It is often confounded with the pippala. E. H., p. 92.

2 The kusa grass, mentioned in a previous note.

See the account of this contest with Mâra in M. B., pp. 171-179, and 'Buddhist Birth Stories,' pp. 96-101.

• See note 2, p. 38.

the patra tree, he walked backwards and forwards from west to east for seven days; where the devas made a hall appear, composed of the seven precious substances, and presented offerings to him for seven days; where the blind dragon Muchilinda1 encircled him for seven days; where he sat under the nyagrodha tree, on a square rock, with his face to the east, and Brahma-deva 2 came and made his request to him; where the four deva kings brought to him their alms-bowls 3; where the 500 merchants presented to him the roasted flour and honey; and where he converted the brothers Kasyapa and their thousand disciples;—at all these places topes were reared.

At the place where Buddha attained to perfect Wisdom, there are three monasteries, in all of which there are monks residing. The families of their people around supply the societies of these monks with an abundant sufficiency of what they require, so that there is no lack or stint®. The disciplinary rules are strictly observed by them. The laws regulating their demeanour in sitting, rising, and entering when the others are assembled, are those which have been practised by all the saints since

Called also Mahâ, or the Great Muchilinda. Eitel says: 'A nâga king, the tutelary deity of a lake near which Śâkyamuni once sat for seven days absorbed in meditation, whilst the king guarded him.' The account (p. 35) in 'The Life of the Buddha' is :-'Buddha went to where lived the nâga king Muchilinda, and he, wishing to preserve him from the sun and rain, wrapped his body seven times round him, and spread out his hood over his head; and there he remained seven days in thought.' So also the Nidâna Kathâ, in Buddhist Birth Stories,' p. 109. 2 This was Brahmâ himself, though 'king' is omitted. What he requested of the Buddha was that he would begin the preaching of his Law. Nidâna Kathâ, p. 111.

3 See note 4, p. 35.

The other accounts mention only two; but in M. B., p. 182, and the Nidâna Kathâ, p. 110, these two have 500 well-laden waggons with them.

5 These must not be confounded with Mahâkaśyapa of note 5, p. 45. They were three brothers, Uruvilvâ, Gayâ, and Nadî-Kasyapa, up to this time holders of 'erroneous' views, having 500, 300, and 200 disciples respectively. They became distinguished followers of Śâkyamuni; and are--each of them-to become Buddha by-and-by. See the Nidâna Kathâ, pp. 114, 115.

This seems to be the meaning; but I do not wonder that some understand the sentence of the benevolence of the monkish population to the travellers.

n

Buddha was in the world down to the present day. The places of the four great topes have been fixed, and handed down without break, since Buddha attained to nirvâņa. Those four great topes are those at the places where Buddha was born; where he attained to Wisdom; where he (began to) move the wheel of his Law; and where he attained to pari-nirvâņa.

CHAPTER XXXII.

LEGEND OF KING AŚOKA IN A FORMER BIRTH, AND HIS

NARAKA.

WHEN king Aśoka, in a former birth1, was a little boy and playing on the road, he met Kaśyapa Buddha walking. (The stranger) begged food, and the boy pleasantly took a handful of earth and gave it to him. The Buddha took the earth, and returned it to the ground on which he was walking; but because of this (the boy) received the recompense of becoming a king of the iron wheel2, to rule over Jambudvipa. (Once) when he was making a judicial tour of inspection through Jambudvipa, he saw, between the iron circuit of the two hills, a naraka3 for the punishment of wicked men. Having thereupon asked his ministers what sort of a thing it was, they replied, 'It belongs to Yama, king of

1 Here is an instance of used, as was pointed out in note 3, page 30, for a former age; and not merely a former time. Perhaps 'a former birth' is the best translation. The Corean reading of Kasyapa Buddha is certainly preferable to the Chinese Śâkya Buddha.'

2 See note 3, P. 49.

3 I prefer to retain the Sanskrit term here, instead of translating the Chinese text by 'Earth's prison (),' or 'a prison in the earth;' the name which has been adopted generally by Christian missionaries in China for gehenna and hell.

Eitel (p. 173) says:-'Yama was originally the Aryan god of the dead, living in a heaven above the world, the regent of the south; but Brahmanism transferred his abode to hell. Both views have been retained by Buddhism.' The Yama of the text is the 'regent of the narakas, residing south of Jambudvîpa, outside the Chakravâlas (the double circuit of mountains above), in a palace built of brass and iron. He has a sister who controls all the female culprits, as