Chapter V: Part II (2)

THE KALILAG AND DAMNAG LITERATURE.

1. A lost Buddhist work in a language of Northern India, ascribed to Bidpai. See above, pp. lxx-lxxii.

2. Pēlvī version, 531-579 A.D. By _Barzūyē_, the Court physician of Khosru Nushírvan. See above, p. xxix.

3. KALILAG UND DAMNAG. Syrian version of No. 2. Published with German translation by _Gustav Bickell_, and Introduction by Professor _Benfey_, Leipzig, 1876. This and No. 15 preserve the best evidence of the contents of No. 2, and of its Buddhist original or originals.

4. KALILAH WĀ DIMNAH (Fables of Bidpai). Arabic version of No. 3, by _Abd-allah_, son of Almokaffa. Date about 750 A.D. Text of one recension edited by _Silvestre de Sacy_, Paris, 1816. Other recensions noticed at length in Ignazio Guidi’s ‘Studii sul testo Arabo del libro di Calila e Dimna’ (Rome, 1873).

5. KALILA AND DIMNA. English version of No. 4, by _Knatchbull_, Oxford, 1819.

6. DAS BUCH DES WEISEN. German version of No. 4, by _Wolff_, Stuttgart, 1839.

7. STEPHANITĒS KAI ICHVĒLATĒS. Greek version of No. 4, by _Simeon Seth_, about 1080 A.D. Edited by _Seb. Gottfried Starke_, Berlin, 1697 (reprinted in Athens, 1851), and by _Aurivillius_, Upsala, 1786.

8. Latin version of No. 7, by _Father Possin_, at the end of his edition of Pachymeres, Rome, 1866.

9. Persian translation of No. 4, by _Abdul Maali Nasr Allah_, 1118-1153. Exists, in MS. only, in Paris, Berlin, and Vienna.

10. ANVĀR I SUHAILI. Persian translation, through the last, of No. 4, by _Husain ben Ali el Vāiz U’l-Kāshifī_; end of the fifteenth century.

11. ANVĀR I SUHAILI, OR THE LIGHTS OF CANOPUS. English version of No. 10, by _Edward Eastwick_, Hertford, 1854.

11_a_. Another English version of No. 10, by _Arthur N. Wollaston_ (London, Allen).

12. LIVRE DES LUMIÈRES. French version of No. 10, by _David Sahid_, d’Ispahan, Paris, 1644, 8vo.

13. DEL GOVERNO DE’ REGNI. Italian version of No. 7, Ferrara, 1583; by _Giulio Nūti_. Edited by _Teza_, Bologna, 1872.

14. Hebrew version of No. 4, by _Joel_ (?), before 1250. Exists only in a single MS. in Paris, of which the first part is missing.

15. DIRECTORIUM HUMANÆ VITÆ. Latin version of No. 14, by _John of Capua_. Written 1263-1278. Printed about 1480, without date or name of place. Next to No. 3 it is the best evidence of the contents of the lost books Nos. 1 and 2.

16. German version of No. 15, also about 1480, but without date or name of place.

17. Version in Ulm dialect of No. 16. Ulm, 1483.

18. _Baldo’s_ ‘ALTER ÆSOPUS.’ A translation direct from Arabic into Latin (? thirteenth century.) Edited in _du Meril’s_ ‘Poesies inédites du moyen age,’ Paris, 1854.

19. CALILA É DYMNA. Spanish version of No. 4 (? through an unknown Latin version). About 1251. Published in ‘Biblioteca de Autores Españoles,’ Madrid, 1860, vol. 51.

20. CALILA ET DIMNA. Latin version of the last, by _Raimond de Beziers_, 1313.

21. CONDE LUCANOR. By _Don Juan Manuel_ (died 1347), grandson of St. Ferdinand of Spain. Spanish source not certain.

22. SINBAD THE SAILOR, or Book of the Seven Wise Masters. See _Comparetti_, ‘Ricerche intorno al Libro di Sindibad,’ Milano, 1869.

23. CONTES ET NOUVELLES. By _Bonaventure des Periers_, Lyons, 1587.

24. EXEMPLARIO CONTRA LOS ENGAÑOS. 1493. Spanish version of the Directorium.

25. DISCORSE DEGLI ANIMALI. Italian of last, by _Ange Firenzuola_, 1548.

26. LA FILOSOFIA MORALE. By _Doni_, 1552. Italian of last but one.

27. _North’s_ English version of last, 1570.

28. FABLES by _La Fontaine_.

First edition in vi. books, the subjects of which are mostly taken from classical authors and from Planudes’s Æsop, Paris, 1668.

Second edition in xi. books, the five later taken from Nos. 12 and 23, Paris, 1678.

Third edition in xii. books, Paris, 1694.

TABLE III.

THE BARLAAM AND JOSAPHAT SERIES.

1. _St. John of Damascus’s Greek Text._ Seventh century A.D. First edited by BOISSONADE, in his ‘Anecdota Græca,’ Paris, 1832, vol. iv. Reprinted in Migne’s ‘Patrologia Cursus Completus, Series Græca,’ tom. xcvi, pp. 836-1250, with the Latin translation by BILLY[105] in parallel columns. Boissonade’s text is reviewed, and its imperfections pointed out, by SCHUBART (who makes use of six Vienna MSS.) in the ‘Wiener Jahrbücher,’ vol. lxiii.

2. _Syriac version_ of No. 1 exists only in MS.

3. _Arabic version_ of No. 2 exists only in MS., one MS. being at least as old as the eleventh century.

4. _Latin version_ of No. 1, of unknown date and author, of which MSS. of the twelfth century are still extant. There is a black-letter edition (? Spiers, 1470) in the British Museum. It was adopted, with abbreviations in several places, by VINCENTIUS BELLOVICENSIS, in his ‘Speculum Historiale’ (lib. xv. cap. 1-63); by JACOBUS A VORAGINE, in his ‘Legenda Aurea’ (ed. _Grässe_, 1846); and was reprinted in full in the editions of the works of St. John of Damascus, published at Basel in the sixteenth century.[106] From this Latin version all the later mediæval works on this subject are either directly or indirectly derived.

4_a_. An abbreviated version in Latin of the fourteenth century in the British Museum. Arundel MS. 330, fol. 51-57. See Koch, No. 9, p. xiv.

German:--

5. _Barlaam und Josaphat._ A poem of the thirteenth century, published from a MS. in the Solms-Laubach Library by L. DIEFENBACH, under the title ‘Mittheilungen über eine noch ungedruckte m.h.d. bearbeitung des B. and J.’ Giessen, 1836.

6. Another poem, partly published from an imperfect MS. at Zürich, by FRANZ PFEIFFER, in Haupt’s ‘Zeitsch. f. d. Alterthum,’ i. 127-135.

7. _Barlaam und Josaphat._ By RUDOLF VON EMS. Written about 1230. Latest and best edition by FRANZ PFEIFFER, in ‘Dichtungen des deutschen Mittelalters,’ vol. iii., Leipzig, 1843. This popular treatment of the subject exists in numerous MSS.

7. _Die Hÿstorí Josaphat und Barlaam._ Date and author not named. Black-letter. Woodcuts. Title on last page. Fifty-six short chapters. Quaint and forcible old German. A small folio in the British Museum.

8. _Historia von dem Leben der zweien_ H. _Beichtiger Barlaam Eremiten, und Josaphat des König’s in Indien Sohn, etc._ Translated from the Latin by the Counts of HELFFENSTEIN and HOHENZOLLERN, München, 1684. In 40 long chapters, pp. 602, 12mo.

Dutch:--

9. _Het Leven en Bedryf van Barlaam den Heremit, en Josaphat Koning van Indien._ Noo in Nederduits vertaalt door F. v. H., Antwerp, 1593, 12mo.

A new edition of this version appeared in 1672. This is a long and tedious prose version of the holy legend.

French:--

8. Poem by GUI DE CAMBRAY (1200-1250). Edited by HERMANN ZOTENBERG and PAUL MEYER in the ‘Bibliothek des Literarischen Vereins,’ in Stuttgart, vol. lxxv., 1864. They mention, also (pp. 318-325):--

9. _La Vie de Seint Josaphaz._ Poem by CHARDRY. Edited by JOHN KOCH, Heilbronn, 1879, who confirms the editors of No. 8 as to the following old French versions, 10-15; and further adduces No. 11_a_.

10. A third poem by an unknown author.

11. A prose work by an unknown author--all three being of the 13th cent.

11_a_. Another in MS. Egerton, 745, British Museum.

12. A poem in French of the fifteenth century, based on the abstract in Latin of No. 4, by JACOB DE VORAGINE.

13. A Provençal tale in prose, containing only the story of Josafat and the tales told by Barlaam, without the moralizations.

14. A miracle play of about 1400.

15. Another miracle play of about 1460.

Italian:--

16. _Vita di san Giosafat convertito da Barlaam._ By GEO. ANTONIO REMONDINI. Published about 1600, at Venezia and Bassano, 16mo. There is a second edition of this, also without date; and a third, published in Modena in 1768, with illustrations.

17. _Storia de’ SS. Barlaam e Giosafatte._ By BOTTARI, Rome, 1734, 8vo., of which a second edition appeared in 1816.

18. _La santissima vita di Santo Josafat, figluolo del Re Avenero, Re dell’ India, da che ei nacque per infino ch’ei morì._ A prose romance, edited by TELESFORO BINI from a MS. belonging to the Commendatore Francesco de Rossi, in pp. 124-152 of a collection ‘Rime e Prose,’ Lucca, 1852, 8vo.

19. A prose _Vita da Santo Josafat_. In MS. Add. 10902 of the British Museum, which Paul Mayer (see No. 8) says begins exactly as No. 18, but ends differently. (See Koch, No. 9 above, p. xiii.)

20. A _Rappresentatione di Barlaam e Josafat_ is mentioned by Frederigo Palermo in his ‘I manuscritti Palatini de Firenze,’ 1860, vol. ii. p. 401.

Skandinavian:--

A full account of all the Skandinavian versions is given in _Barlaam’s ok Josaphat’s Saga_, by C. R. UNGER, Christiania, 1851, 8vo.

Spanish:--

_Honesta, etc., historia de la rara vida de los famosos y singulares sanctos Barlaam, etc._ By BALTASAT DE SANTA CRUZ. Published in the Spanish dialect used in the Philippine Islands at Manila, 1692. A literal translation of Billius (No. 1).

English:--

In HORSTMANN’S ‘Altenglische Legenden,’ Paderborn, 1875, an Old English version of the legend is published from the Bodleian MS. No. 779. There is another recension of the same poem in the Harleian MS. No. 4196. Both are of the fourteenth century; and of the second there is another copy in the Vernon MS. See further, Warton’s ‘History of English Poetry,’ i. 271-279, and ii. 30, 58, 308.

Horstmann has also published a Middle English version in the ‘Program of the Sagan Gymnasium,’ 1877.

_The History of the Five Wise Philosophers; or, the Wonderful Relation of the Life of Jehoshaphat the Hermit, Son of Avenerian, King of Barma in India, etc._ By N. H. (that is, NICHOLAS HERICK), Gent., London, 1711, pp. 128, 12mo. This is a prose romance, and an abridged translation of the Italian version of 1600 (No. 16), and contains only one fable (at p. 46) of the Nightingale and the Fowler.

The work referred to on p. xlvi, under the title _Gesta Romanorum_, a collection of tales with lengthy moralizations (probably sermons), was made in England about 1300. It soon passed to the Continent, and was repeatedly re-written in numerous MSS., with additions and alterations. Three printed editions appeared between 1472 and 1475; and one of these, containing 181 stories, is the source of the work now known under this title. Tale No. 168 quotes Barlaam. The best edition of the Latin version is by H. OESTERLEY, Berlin, 1872. The last English translation is HOOPER’S, Bohn’s Antiquarian Library, London, 1877. The Early English versions have been edited by SIR F. MADDEN; and again, in vol. xxxiii. of the Extra Series of the Early English Text Society, by S. J. H. HERRTAGE.

_The Seven Sages_ (edited by THOMAS WRIGHT for the Percy Society, 1845) also contains some Buddhist tales.

TABLE IV.

COMPARISON OF THE CARIYĀ PIṬAKA AND THE JĀTAKA MĀLĀ.

1. Akitte-cariyaŋ. Vyāghī-jātakaŋ.
2. Saŋkha-c°. Ṣivi-j° (8).
3. Danañjaya-c°. Kulmāsapiṇḍi-j°.
4. Mahā-sudassana-c°. Ṣreshthi-j° (21).
5. Mahā-govinda-c°. Avisajyaṣreshthi-j°.
6. Nimi-rāja-c°. Ṣaṣa-j° (10).
7. Canda-kumāra-c°. Agastya-j°.
8. Sivi-rāja-c° (2). Maitribala-j°.
9. Vessantara-c° (9). Viṣvantara-j° (9).
10. Sasa-paṇḍita-c° (6). Yajña-j°.
11. Sīlava-nāga-c° (J. 72). Sakra-j°.
12. Bhuridatta-c°. Brāhmaṇa-j°.
13. Campeyya-nāga-c°. Ummādayanti-j°.
14. Cūla-bodhi-c°. Suparāga-j°.
15. Māhiŋsa-rāja-c° (27). Matsya-j° (30).
16. Ruru-rāja-c°. Vartaka-potaka-j° (29).
17. Mātaŋga-c°. Kacchapa-j°.
18. Dhammādhamma-devaputta-c°. Kumbha-j°.
19. Jayadisa-c°. Putra-j°.
20. Saŋkhapāla-c°. Visa-j°.
21. Yudañjaya-c°. Ṣreshthi-j° (4).
22. Somanassa-c°. Buddhabodhi-j°.
23. Ayoghara-c° (33). Haŋsa-j°.
24. Bhisa-c°. Mahābodhi-j°.
25. Soma-paṇḍita-c° (32). Mahākapi-j° (27, 28).
26. Temiya-c°. Ṣarabha-j°.
27. Kapi-rāja-c° (25, 28). Ruru-j° (16).
28. Saccahvaya-paṇḍita-c°. Mahākapi-j° (25, 27).
29. Vaṭṭaka-potaka-c° (16). Kshānti-j°.
30. Maccha-rāja-c° (15). Brahma-j°.
31. Kaṇha-dipāyana-c°. Hasti-j°.
32. Sutasoma-c° (25, 32). Sutasoma-j° (25, 32).
33. Suvaṇṇa-sāma-c°. Ayogṛiha-j° (23).
34. Ekarāja-c°. Mahisha-j°.
35. Mahā-lomahaŋsa-c° (J. 94). Ṣatapatra-j°.

For the above lists see _Feer_, ‘Etude sur les Jatakas,’ p. 58; _Gogerly_, Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1853; and _Fausböll_, ‘Five Jātakas,’ p. 59; and also above, pp. liii, liv. It will be seen that there are seven tales with identical, and one or two more with similar titles, in the two collections. Editions of these two works are very much required. The Cambridge University Library possesses a MS. of the former, with the various readings of several other MSS. noted, for me, by Dewa Aranolis.

TABLE V.

ALPHABETICAL LIST OF JĀTAKA STORIES IN THE MAHĀVASTU.

Arranged from Cowell and Eggeling’s ‘Catalogue of Buddhist Sanskrit MSS. in the Possession of the Royal Asiatic Society (Hodgson Collection).’

Amarāye karmārakādhītāye jātakaŋ.
Arindama-j°
Asthisenasya-j°.
Bhadravargikānaŋ-j°.
Campaka-nāgarāja-j°.
Godhā-j°.
Hastinī-j°.
Kāka-j°.
Uruvilva-kāṣyapādi-kāṣyapānaŋ-j°.
Ājnāta-Kauṇḍinya-j°.
Kinnarī-j°.(1]
Kṛicchapa-j°.
Kuṣa-j°.
Mañjerī-j°.
Markaṭa-j°.
Mṛigarājño surūpasya-j°.
Nalinīye rājakumārīye-j°.
Puṇyavanta-j°.
Pūrṇasya Maitrāyaṇī-putrasya-j°.
Rakshito-nāma-ṛishi-j°.
Ṛishabasya-j°.
Ṣakuntaka-j°. (Two with this title)
Ṣarakshepanaŋ-j°.
Ṣaratāŋ-j°.
Sārthuvāhasya-j°.
Ṣirī-j°.
Ṣirī-prabhasya mṛiga-rājasya-j°.
Ṣyāma-j°.[107] (Car. Piṭ. 33.)
Ṣyāmaka-j°.
Triṇakunīyaŋ nāma-j°.
Upali gaṅga palānaŋ-j°.
Vānarādhipa-j°.
Vara-j°.
Vijītāvasya Vaideha-rājño-j°.
Yaṣoda-j°.
Yosodharāye hārapradāna-j°.
Yosodharāye vyaghrībhūtāya-j°.

TABLE VI.

PLACES AT WHICH THE TALES WERE TOLD.

M. Léon Feer has taken the trouble to count the number of times each of the following places is mentioned at the commencement of the Commentary.

Jetavana monastery 10 } 416
Sāvatthi 6 }

Veḷmana 49 }
Rājagaha 5 } 55
Laṭṭhivanuyyāna 1 }

Vesāli 4
Kosambi 5
Āḷavī 3
Kuṇḍāladaha 3
Kusa 2
Magadha 2
Dakkhiṇāgiri 1
Migadāya 1
Mithila 1
By the Ganges 1
----
494

To which we may add from pp. 124-128 below--

Kapilavatthu 4
----
498
----

TABLE VII.

THE BODISATS.

At his request the Rev. Spence Handy’s ‘paṇḍit’ made an analysis of the number of times in which the Bodisat appears in the Buddhist Birth Stories in each of the following characters:--

An ascetic 83
A king 85
A tree god 43
A teacher 26
A courtier 24
A brāhman 24
A king’s son 24
A nobleman 23
A learned man 22
Sakka 20
A monkey 18
A merchant 13
A man of property 12
A deer 11
A lion 10
A wild duck 8
A snipe 6
An elephant 6
A cock 5
A slave 5
An eagle 5
A horse 4
A bull 4
Brahma 4
A peacock 4
A serpent 4
A potter 3
An outcast 3
An iguana 3
A fish 2
An elephant driver 2
A rat 2
A jackal 2
A crow 2
A woodpecker 2
A thief 2
A pig 2
A dog 1
A curer of snake bites 1
A gambler 1
A mason 1
A smith 1
A devil dancer 1
A student 1
A silversmith 1
A carpenter 1
A water-fowl 1
A frog 1
A hare 1
A kite 1
A jungle cock 1
A fairy 1
----
530
----

TABLE VIII.

JĀTAKAS ILLUSTRATED IN BAS-RELIEF ON THE ANCIENT MONUMENTS.

Arranged from _General Cunningham’s_ ‘Stūpa of Bharhut.’

No. Plate Title inscribed on the stone. Title in the Jātaka Book.

1. xxv. Miga Jākata. Nigrodha-miga Jākata.[108]

2. xxv. Nāga[109] Jākata. Kakkaṭaka Jākata.

3. xxv. Yava-majhakiya Jātaka. ?[110]

4. xxv. Muga-pakhaya Jākata. Muga-pakkha Jākata.

5. xxvi. Laṭuwa Jākata. Laṭukikā Jākata.

6. xxvi. Cha-dantiya Jākata. Chad-danta Jākata.

7. xxvi. Isi-siŋgiya Jākata. Isa-siŋga Jākata.

8. xxvi.(?)Ya_mb_uma_ne_-ayavesi Jākata. Andha-bhūta Jākata.

9. xxvii. ?[111] Kuruŋga-miga Jākata.

10. xxvii. Haŋsa Jākata. Nacca Jākata.[112]

11. xxvii. Kinara Jākata. Canda-kinnara Jākata.[113]

12. xxvii. ?[111] Asadisa Jākata.

13. xxvii. ?[111] Jākata. Dasaratha Jākata.

14. xliii. Isi-migo Jākata. ?[114]

15. xlvi. Uda Jākata. ?[114]

16. xlvi. Secha Jākata. Dūbhiya-makkaṭa.

17. xlvii. Sujāto gahuto Jākata. Sujāta Jākata.

18. xlvii. {Biḍala Jākata.
{Kukuṭa Jākata. Kukkuṭa Jākata.

19. xlviii. Maghā-deviya Jākata. Makhā-deva Jākata.[115]

20. xlviii. Bhisa-haraniya Jākata. ?[114]

21. xviii. Vitura-panakaya Jākata.[116] Vidhūra Jākata.

22. xxviii. {Janako Rāja Jākata. Janaka Jākata.
{Sivala Devi Jākata.

There are numerous other scenes without titles, and not yet identified in the Jātaka Book, but which are almost certainly illustrative of Jātaka Stories; and several scenes with titles illustrative of passages in the Nidāna Kathā of the Jātaka Book. So, for instance, Pl. xvi. fig. 1 is the worship in heaven of the Buddha’s Head-dress, whose reception into heaven is described below, p. 86; and the heavenly mansion, the Palace of Glory, is inscribed _Vejayanto Pāsādo_, the origin of which name is explained below, p. 287. Plate xxviii. has a scene entitled ‘_Bhagavato Okkanti_’ (The Descent of the Blessed One),[117] in illustration of Māyā Devi’s Dream (below, pp. 62, 63); and Plate lvii. is a representation of the Presentation of the Jetavana Monastery (below, pp. 130-133). The identifications of Nos. 12 and 13 in the above list are very doubtful.

Besides the above, Mr. Fergusson, in his ‘Tree and Serpent Worship,’ has identified bas-reliefs on the Sanchi Tope in illustration of the Sama and Asadisa Jātakas (Pl. xxxvi p. 181) and of the Vessantara Jātaka (Pl. xxiv. p. 125); and there are other Jātaka scenes on the Sanchi Tope not yet identified.

Mr. Simpson also has been kind enough to show me drawings of bas-reliefs he discovered in Afghanistān, two of which I have been able to identify as illustrations of the Sumedha Jātaka (below, p. 11-13), and another as illustrative of the scene described below on pp. 125, 126.

THE NIDĀNAKATHĀ
OR
THE THREE EPOCHS.

[vv. 1-11.] The Apa_nn_aka and other Births, which in times gone by were recounted on various occasions by the great illustrious Sage, and in which during a long period our Teacher and Leader, desirous of the salvation of mankind, fulfilled the vast conditions of Buddhahood,[118] were all collected together and added to the canon of Scripture by those who made the recension of the Scriptures, and rehearsed by them under the name of THE JĀTAKA. Having bowed at the feet of the Great Sage, the lord of the world, by whom in innumerable existences[119] boundless benefits were conferred upon mankind, and having paid reverence to the Law, and ascribed honour to the Clergy, the receptacle of all honour; and having removed all dangers by the efficacy of that meritorious act of veneration and honour referring to the Three Gems, I proceed to recite a Commentary upon this Jātaka, illustrating as it does the infinite efficacy of the actions of great men--a commentary based upon the method of exposition current among the inmates of the Great Monastery. And I do so at the personal request of the elder Atthadassin, who lives apart from the world and ever dwells with his fraternity, and who desires the perpetuation of this chronicle of Buddha; and likewise of Buddhamitta the tranquil and wise, sprung from the race of Mahi_m_sāsaka, skilled in the canons of interpretation; and moreover of the monk Buddhadeva of clear intellect. May all good men lend me their favourable attention while I speak![120]

Inasmuch as this comment on the Jātaka, if it be expounded after setting forth the three Epochs, the distant, the middle, and proximate, will be clearly understood by those who hear it by being understood from the beginning, therefore I will expound it after setting forth the three Epochs. Accordingly from the very outset it will be well to determine the limits of these Epochs. Now the narrative of the Bodhisatta’s existence, from the time that at the feet of Dīpankara he formed a resolution to become a Buddha to his rebirth in the Tusita heaven after leaving the Vessantara existence, is called the Distant Epoch. From his leaving the Tusita heaven to his attainment of omniscience on the throne of Knowledge, the narrative is called the Intermediate Epoch. And the Proximate Epoch is to be found in the various places in which he sojourned (during his ministry on earth). The following is

THE DISTANT EPOCH.

Tradition tells us that four asankheyyas[121] and a hundred thousand cycles ago there was a city called Amaravatī. In this city there dwelt a brahmin named Sumedha, of good family on both sides, on the father’s and the mother’s side, of pure conception for seven generations back, by birth unreproached and respected, a man comely, well-favoured and amiable, and endowed with remarkable beauty. He followed his brahminical studies without engaging in any other pursuit. His parents died while he was still young. A minister of state, who acted as steward of his property, bringing forth the roll-book of his estate, threw open the stores filled with gold and silver, gems and pearls, and other valuables, and said, “So much, young man, belonged to your mother, so much to your father, so much to your grandparents and great-grandparents,” and pointing out to him the property inherited through seven generations, he bade him guard it carefully. The wise Sumedha thought to himself, “After amassing all this wealth my parents and ancestors when they went to another world took not a farthing with them, can it be right that I should make it an object to take my wealth with me when I go?” And informing the king of his intention, he caused proclamation to be made[122] in the city, gave largess to the people, and embraced the ascetic life of a hermit.

To make this matter clear the STORY OF SUMEDHA must here be related. This story, though given in full in the Buddhava_m_sa, from its being in a metrical form, is not very easy to understand. I will therefore relate it with sentences at intervals explaining the metrical construction.

Four asankheyyas and a hundred thousand cycles ago there was a city called Amaravatī or Amara, resounding with the ten city cries, concerning which it is said in Buddhava_m_sa,

12. Four asankheyyas and a hundred thousand cycles ago
A city there was called Amara, beautiful and pleasant,
Resounding with the ten cries, abounding in food and drink.[123]

Then follows a stanza of Buddhava_m_sa, enumerating some of these cries,

13. The trumpeting of elephants, the neighing of horses,
(the sound of) drums, trumpets, and chariots,
And viands and drinks were cried, with the invitation, “Eat and
drink.”

It goes on to say,

14. A city supplied with every requisite, engaged in every sort of
industry,
Possessing the seven precious things, thronged with dwellers of
many races;
The abode of devout men, like the prosperous city of the angels.

15. In the city of Amaravatī dwelt a brahmin named Sumedha,
Whose hoard was many tens of millions, blest with much wealth
and store;

16. Studious, knowing the Mantras, versed in the three Vedas,
Master of the science of divination and of the traditions and
observances of his caste.

Now one day the wise Sumedha, having retired to the splendid upper apartment of his house, seated himself cross-legged, and fell a thinking. “Oh! wise man,[124] grievous is rebirth in a new existence, and the dissolution of the body in each successive place where we are reborn. I am subject to birth, to decay, to disease, to death,--it is right, being such, that I should strive to attain the great deathless Nirvā_n_a, which is tranquil, and free from birth, and decay, and sickness, and grief and joy; surely there must be a road that leads to Nirvā_n_a and releases man from existence.” Accordingly it is said,

17. Seated in seclusion, I then thought as follows:
Grievous is rebirth and the breaking up of the body.

18. I am subject to birth, to decay, to disease,
Therefore will I seek Nirvāna, free from decay and death, and
secure.

19. Let me leave this perishable body, this pestilent congregation
of vapours,
And depart without desires and without wants.

20. There is, there must be a road, it cannot but be:
I will seek this road, that I may obtain release from existence.

Further he reasoned thus, “For as in this world there is pleasure as the correlative of pain, so where there is existence there must be its opposite the cessation of existence; and as where there is heat there is also cold which neutralizes it, so there must be a Nirvā_n_a[125] that extinguishes (the fires of) lust and the other passions; and as in opposition to a bad and evil condition there is a good and blameless one, so where there is evil Birth there must also be Nirvā_n_a, called the Birthless, because it puts an end to all rebirth.” Therefore it is said,

21. As where there is suffering there is also bliss,
So where there is existence we must look for non-existence.

22. And as where there is heat there is also cold,
So where there is the threefold fire of passion extinction must
be sought.

23. And as coexistent with evil there is also good,
Even so where there is birth[126] the cessation of birth should
be sought.

Again he reasoned thus, “Just as a man who has fallen into a heap of filth, if he beholds afar off a great pond covered with lotuses of five colours, ought to seek that pond, saying, ‘By what way shall I arrive there?’ but if he does not seek it the fault is not that of the pond; even so where there is the lake of the great deathless Nirvā_n_a for the washing of the defilement of sin, if it is not sought it is not the fault of the lake. And just as a man who is surrounded by robbers, if when there is a way of escape he does not fly it is not the fault of the way but of the man; even so when there is a blessed road loading to Nirvā_n_a for the man who is encompassed and held fast by sin, its not being sought is not the fault of the road but of the person. And as a man who is oppressed with sickness, there being a physician who can heal his disease, if he does not get cured by going to the physician that is no fault of the physician; even so if a man who is oppressed by the disease of sin seeks not a spiritual guide who is at hand and knows the road which puts an end to sin, the fault lies with him and not with the sin-destroying teacher.” Therefore it is said,

24. As a man fallen among filth, beholding a brimming lake,
If he seek not that lake, the fault is not in the lake;

25. So when there exists a lake of Nirvā_n_a that washes the stains
of sin,
If a man seek not that lake, the fault is not in the lake of
Nirvā_n_a.

26. As a man beset with foes, there being a way of escape,
If he flee not away, the fault is not with the road;

27. So when there is a way of bliss, if a man beset with sin
Seek not that road, the fault is not in the way of bliss.

28. And as one who is diseased, there being a physician at hand,
If he bid him not heal the disease, the fault is not in the
healer:

29. So if a man who is sick and oppressed with the disease of sin
Seek not the spiritual teacher, the fault is not in the teacher.

And again he argued, “As a man fond of gay clothing, throwing off a corpse bound to his shoulders, goes away rejoicing, so must I, throwing off this perishable body, and freed from all desires, enter the city of Nirvā_n_a. And as men and women depositing filth on a dungheap do not gather it in the fold or skirt of their garments, but loathing it, throw it away, feeling no desire for it; so shall I also cast off this perishable body without regret, and enter the deathless city of Nirvā_n_a. And as seamen abandon without regret an unseaworthy ship and escape, so will I also, leaving this body, which distils corruption from its nine festering apertures, enter without regret the city of Nirvā_n_a. And as a man carrying various sorts of jewels, and going on the same road with a band of robbers, out of fear of losing his jewels withdraws from them and gains a safe road; even so this impure body is like a jewel-plundering robber, if I set my affections thereon the precious spiritual jewel of the sublime path of holiness will be lost to me, therefore ought I to enter the city of Nirvā_n_a, forsaking this robber-like body.” Therefore it is said,

30. As a man might with loathing shake off a corpse bound upon his
shoulders,
And depart secure, independent, master of himself;

31. Even so let me depart, regretting nothing, wanting nothing,
Leaving this perishable body, this collection of many foul
vapours.

32. And as men and women deposit filth upon a dungheap,
And depart regretting nothing, wanting nothing,

33. So will I depart, leaving this body filled with foul vapours,
As one leaves a cesspool after depositing ordure there.

34. And as the owners forsake the rotten bark that is shattered and
leaking,
And depart without regret or longing,

35. So shall I go, leaving this body with its nine apertures ever
running,
As its owners desert the broken ship.

36. And as a man carrying wares, walking with robbers,
Seeing danger of losing his wares, parts company with the
robbers and gets him gone,

37. Even so is this body like a mighty robber,--
Leaving it I will depart through fear of losing good.

Having thus in nine similes pondered upon the advantages connected with retirement from the world, the wise Sumedha gave away at his own house, as aforesaid, an immense hoard of treasure to the indigent and wayfarers and sufferers, and kept open house. And renouncing all pleasures, both material and sensual, departing from the city of Amara, away from the world in Himavanta he made himself a hermitage near the mountain called Dhammaka, and built a hut and a perambulation hall free from the five defects which are hindrances (to meditation). And with a view to obtain the power residing in the supernatural faculties, which are characterized by the eight causal qualities described in the words beginning “With a mind thus tranquillised,”[127] he embraced in that hermitage the ascetic life of a _R_ishi, casting off the cloak with its nine disadvantages, and wearing the garment of bark with its twelve advantages. And when he had thus given up the world, forsaking this hut, crowded with eight drawbacks, he repaired to the foot of a tree with its ten advantages, and rejecting all sorts of grain lived constantly upon wild fruits. And strenuously exerting himself both in sitting and in standing and in walking, within a week he became the possessor of the eight Attainments, and of the five Supernatural Faculties; and so, in accordance with his prayer, he attained the might of supernatural knowledge. Therefore it is said,

38. Having pondered thus I gave many thousand millions of wealth
To rich and poor, and made my way to Himavanta.

39. Not far from Himavanta is the mountain called Dhammaka,
Here I made an excellent hermitage, and built with care a leafy
hut.

40. There I built me a cloister, free from five defects,
Possessed of the eight good qualities, and attained the strength
of the supernatural Faculties.

41. Then I threw off the cloak possessed of the nine faults,
And put on the raiment of bark possessed of the twelve advantages.

42. I left the hut, crowded with the eight drawbacks,
And went to the tree-foot possessed of ten advantages.[128]

43. Wholly did I reject the grain that is sown and planted,
And partook of the constant fruits of the earth, possessed of
many advantages.

44. Then I strenuously strove, in sitting, in standing, and in
walking,
And within seven days attained the might of the Faculties.[129]

Now while the hermit Sumedha, having thus attained the strength of supernatural knowledge, was living in the bliss of the (eight) Attainments, the Teacher Dīpankara appeared in the world. At the moment of his conception, of his birth, of his attainment of Buddhahood, of his preaching his first discourse, the whole universe of ten thousand worlds trembled, shook and quaked, and gave forth a mighty sound, and the thirty-two prognostics showed themselves. But the hermit Sumedha, living in the bliss of the Attainments, neither heard that sound nor beheld those signs. Therefore it is said,

45. Thus when I had attained the consummation, while I was subjected
to the Law,
The Conqueror named Dīpankara, chief of the universe, appeared.

46. At his conception, at his birth, at his Buddhahood, at his
preaching,
I saw not the four signs, plunged in the blissful trance of
meditation.

At that time Dīpankara Buddha, accompanied by a hundred thousand saints, wandering his way from place to place, reached the city of Ramma, and took up his residence in the great monastery of Sudassana. And the dwellers of the city of Ramma heard it said, “Dīpankara, lord of ascetics, having attained supreme Buddhaship, and set on foot the supremacy of the Law, wandering his way from place to place, has come to the town of Ramma, and dwells at the great monastery of Sudassana.” And taking with them ghee and butter and other medicinal requisites and clothes and raiment, and bearing perfumes and garlands and other offerings in their hands, their minds bent towards the Buddha, the Law, and the Clergy, inclining towards them, hanging upon them, they approached the Teacher and worshipped him, and presenting the perfumes and other offerings, sat down on one side. And having heard his preaching of the Law, and invited him for the next day, they rose from their seats and departed. And on the next day, having prepared almsgiving for the poor, and having decked out the town, they repaired the road by which the Buddha was to come, throwing earth in the places that were worn away by water and thereby levelling the surface, and scattering sand that looked like strips of silver. And they sprinkled fragrant roots and flowers, and raised aloft flags and banners of many-coloured cloths, and set up banana arches and rows of brimming jars. Then the hermit Sumedha, ascending from his hermitage, and proceeding through the air till he was above those men, and beholding the joyous multitude, exclaimed, “What can be the reason?” and alighting stood on one side and questioned the people, “Tell me, why are you adorning this road?” Therefore it is said,

47. In the region of the border districts, having invited the Buddha,
With joyful hearts they are clearing the road by which he should
come.

48. And I at that time leaving my hermitage,
Rustling my barken tunic, departed through the air.

49. And seeing an excited multitude joyous and delighted,
Descending from the air I straightway asked the men,

50. The people is excited, joyous and happy,
For whom is the road being cleared, the path, the way of his
coming?

And the men replied, “Lord Sumedha, dost thou not know? Dīpankara Buddha, having attained supreme Knowledge, and set on foot the reign of the glorious Law, travelling from place to place, has reached our town, and dwells at the great monastery Sudassana; we have invited the Blessed One, and are making ready for the blessed Buddha the road by which he is to come.” And the hermit Sumedha thought, “The very sound of the word Buddha is rarely met with in the world, much more the actual appearance of a Buddha; it behoves me to join those men in clearing the road.” He said therefore to the men, “If you are clearing this road for the Buddha, assign to me a piece of ground, I will clear the ground in company with you.” They consented, saying, “It is well;” and perceiving the hermit Sumedha to be possessed of supernatural power, they fixed upon a swampy piece of ground, and assigned it to him, saying, “Do thou prepare this spot.” Sumedha, his heart filled with joy of which the Buddha was the cause, thought within himself, “I am able to prepare this piece of ground by supernatural power, but if so prepared it will give me no satisfaction; this day it behoves me to perform menial duties;” and fetching earth he threw it upon the spot.

But ere the ground could be cleared by him,--with a train of a hundred thousand miracle-working saints endowed with the six supernatural faculties, while angels offered celestial wreaths and perfumes, while celestial hymns rang forth, and men paid their homage with earthly perfumes and with flowers and other offerings, Dīpankara endowed with the ten Forces, with all a Buddha’s transcendant majesty, like a lion rousing himself to seek his prey on the Vermilion plain, came down into the road all decked and made ready for him. Then the hermit Sumedha--as the Buddha with unblenching eyes approached along the road prepared for him, beholding that form endowed with the perfection of beauty, adorned with the thirty-two characteristics of a great man, and marked with the eighty minor beauties, attended by a halo of a fathom’s depth, and sending forth in streams the six-hued Buddha-rays, linked in pairs of different colours, and wreathed like the varied lightnings that flash in the gem-studded vault of heaven--exclaimed, “This day it behoves me to make sacrifice of my life for the Buddha: let not the Blessed one walk in the mire--nay, let him advance with his four hundred thousand saints trampling on my body as if walking upon a bridge of jewelled planks, this deed will long be for my good and my happiness.” So saying, he loosed his hair, and spreading in the inky mire his hermit’s skin mantle, roll of matted hair and garment of bark, he lay down in the mire like a bridge of jewelled planks. Therefore it is said,

51. Questioned by me they replied, An incomparable Buddha is born
into the world,
The Conqueror named Dīpankara, lord of the universe,
For him the road is cleared, the way, the path of his coming.

52. When I heard the name of Buddha joy sprang up forthwith within
me,
Repeating, a Buddha, a Buddha! I gave utterance to my joy.

53. Standing there I pondered, joyful and excited,
Here I will sow the seed, may the happy moment not pass away.

54. If you clear a path for the Buddha, assign to me a place,
I also will clear the road, the way, the path of his coming.

55. Then they gave me a piece of ground to clear the pathway;
Then repeating within me, a Buddha, a Buddha! I cleared the road.

56. But ere my portion was cleared, Dīpankara the great sage,
The Conqueror, entered the road with four hundred thousand saints
like himself,
Possessed of the six supernatural attributes, pure from all taint
of sin.

57. On every side men rise to receive him, many drums send forth
their music,
Men and angels overjoyed, shout forth their applause.

58. Angels look upon men, men upon angels,
And both with clasped hands upraised approach the great Being.

59. Angels with celestial music, men with earthly music,
Both sending forth their strains approach the great Being.

60. Angels floating in the air sprinkle down in all directions
Celestial Erythrina flowers, lotuses and coral flowers.

61. Men standing on the ground throw upwards in all directions
Champac and Salala flowers, Cadamba and fragrant Mesua, Punnaga,
and Ketaka.

62. Then I loosed my hair, and spreading in the mire
Bark robe and mantle of skin, lay prone upon my face.

63. Let the Buddha advance with his disciples, treading upon me;
Let him not tread in the mire, it will be for my blessing.

And as he lay in the mire, again beholding the Buddha-majesty of Dīpankara Buddha with his unblenching gaze, he thought as follows: “Were I willing, I could enter the city of Ramma as a novice in the priesthood, after having destroyed all human passions; but why should I disguise myself[130] to attain Nirvā_n_a after the destruction of human passion? Let me rather, like Dīpankara, having risen to the supreme knowledge of the Truth, enable mankind to enter the Ship of the Truth and so carry them across the Ocean of Existence, and when this is done afterwards attain Nirvā_n_a; this indeed it is right that I should do.” Then having enumerated the eight conditions (necessary to the attainment of Buddhahood), and having made the resolution to become Buddha, he laid himself down. Therefore it is said,

64. As I lay upon the ground this was the thought of my heart,
If I wished it I might this day destroy within me all human
passions.

65. But why should I in disguise arrive at the knowledge of the Truth?
I will attain omniscience and become a Buddha, and (save) men and
angels.

66. Why should I cross the ocean resolute but alone?
I will attain omniscience, and enable men and angels to cross.

67. By this resolution of mine, I a man of resolution
Will attain omniscience, and save men and angels,

68. Cutting off the stream of transmigration, annihilating the three
forms of existence,
Embarking in the ship of the Truth, I will carry across with me
men and angels.[131]

And the blessed Dīpankara having reached the spot stood close by the hermit Sumedha’s head. And opening his eyes possessed of the five kinds of grace as one opens a jewelled window, and beholding the hermit Sumedha lying in the mire, thought to himself, “This hermit who lies here has formed the resolution to be a Buddha; will his prayer be fulfilled or not?” And casting forward his prescient gaze into the future, and considering, he perceived that four asankheyyas and a hundred thousand cycles from that time he would become a Buddha named Gotama. And standing there in the midst of the assembly he delivered this prophecy, “Behold ye this austere hermit lying in the mire?” “Yes, Lord,” they answered. “This man lies here having made the resolution to become a Buddha, his prayer will be answered; at the end of four asankheyyas and a hundred thousand cycles hence he will become a Buddha named Gotama, and in that birth the city Kapilavatthu will be his residence, Queen Māyā will be his mother, King Suddhodana his father, his chief disciple will be the thera Upatissa, his second disciple the thera Kolita, the Buddha’s servitor will be Ānanda, his chief female disciple the nun Khemā, the second the nun Uppalava_nn_ā. When he attains to years of ripe knowledge, having retired from the world and made the great exertion, having received at the foot of a banyan-tree a meal of rice milk, and partaken of it by the banks of the Neranjarā, having ascended the throne of Knowledge, he will, at the foot of an Indian fig-tree, attain Supreme Buddhahood. Therefore it is said,

70. Dīpankara, knower of all worlds, receiver of offerings,
Standing by that which pillowed my head, spoke these words:

71. See ye this austere hermit with his matted hair,
Countless ages hence he will be a Buddha in this world.

72. Lo, the great Being departing from pleasant Kapila,
Having fought the great fight, performed all manner of austerities.

73. Having sat at the foot of the Ajapāla tree, and there received
rice pottage,
Shall approach the Neranjarā river.

74. Having received the rice pottage on the banks of the Neranjarā,
the Conqueror
Shall come by a fair road prepared for him to the foot of the
Bodhi-tree.

75. Then, unrivalled and glorious, reverentially saluting the throne
of Bodhi,
At the foot of an Indian fig-tree he shall attain Buddhahood.

76. The mother that bears him shall be called Māyā,
His father will be Suddhodana, he himself will be Gotama.

77. His chief disciples will be Upatissa and Kolita,
Void of human passion, freed from desire, calm-minded and tranquil.

78. The servitor Ānanda will attend upon the Conqueror,
Khemā and Uppalava_nn_ā will be his chief female disciples,

79. Void of human passion, freed from desire, calm-minded and tranquil.
The sacred tree of this Buddha is called Assattha.

The hermit Sumedha, exclaiming, “My prayer, it seems, will be accomplished,” was filled with happiness. The multitudes, hearing the words of Dīpankara Buddha, were joyous and delighted, exclaiming, “The hermit Sumedha, it seems, is an embryo Buddha, the tender shoot that will grow up into a Buddha.” For thus they thought, “As a man fording a river, if he is unable to cross to the ford opposite him, crosses to a ford lower down the stream, even so we, if under the dispensation of Dīpankara Buddha we fail to attain the Paths and their fruition, yet when thou shalt become Buddha we shall be enabled in thy presence to make the paths and their fruition our own,”--and so they recorded their prayer (for future sanctification). And Dīpankara, Buddha also having praised the Bodhisatta, and made an offering to him of eight handfuls of flowers, reverentially saluted him and departed. And the Arhats, also, four hundred thousand in number, having made offerings to the Bodhisatta of perfumes and garlands, reverentially saluted him and departed. And the angels and men having made the same offerings, and bowed down to him, went their way.

And the Bodhisatta, when all had retired, rising from his seat and exclaiming, “I will investigate the Perfections,” sat himself down cross-legged on a heap of flowers. And as the Bodhisatta sat thus, the angels in all the ten thousand worlds assembling shouted applause. “Venerable hermit Sumedha,” they said, “all the auguries which have manifested themselves when former Bodhisattas seated themselves cross-legged, saying, ‘We will investigate the Perfections,’--all these this day have appeared: assuredly thou shalt become Buddha. This we know, to whom these omens appear, he surely will become Buddha; do thou make a strenuous effort and exert thyself.” With these words they lauded the Bodhisatta with varied praises. Therefore it is said,

80. Hearing these words of the incomparable Sage,
Angels and men delighted, exclaimed, This is an embryo Buddha.

81. A great clamour arises, men and angels in ten thousand worlds
Clap their hands, and laugh, and make obeisance with clasped hands.

82. “Should we fail,” they say, “of this Buddha’s dispensation,
Yet in time to come we shall stand before him.

83. As men crossing a river, if they fail to reach the opposite ford,
Gaining the lower ford cross the great river,

84. Even so we all, if we lose this Buddha,
In time to come shall stand before him.”

85. The world-knowing Dīpankara, the receiver of offerings,
Having celebrated my meritorious act, went his way.[132]

86. All the disciples of the Buddha that were present saluted me
with reverence,
Men, Nāgas, and Gandhabbas bowed down to me and departed.

87. When the Lord of the world with his following had passed beyond
my sight,
Then glad, with gladsome heart, I rose up from my seat.

88. Joyful I am with a great joy, glad with a great gladness;
Flooded with rapture then I seated myself cross-legged.

89. And even as thus I sat I thought within myself,
I am subject to ecstatic meditation, I have mastered the
supernatural Faculties.

90. In a thousand worlds there are no sages that rival me,
Unrivalled in miraculous powers I have reached this bliss.

91. When thus they beheld me sitting,[133] the dwellers of ten
thousand worlds
Raised a mighty shout, Surely thou shalt be a Buddha!

92. The omens[134] beheld in former ages when Bodhisatta sat
cross-legged,
The same are beheld this day.

93. Cold is dispelled and heat ceases,
This day these things are seen,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

94. A thousand worlds are stilled and silent,
So are they seen to-day,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

95. The mighty winds blow not, the rivers cease to flow,
These things are seen to-day,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

96. All flowers blossom on land and sea,
This day they all have bloomed,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

97. All creepers and trees are laden with fruit,
This day they all bear fruit,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

98. Gems sparkle in earth and sky,
This day all gems do glitter,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

99. Music earthly and celestial sounds,
Both these to-day send forth their strains,--verily thou shalt
be Buddha.

100. Flowers of every hue rain down from the sky,
This day they are seen,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

101. The mighty ocean bends itself, ten thousand worlds are shaken,
This day they both send up their roar,--verily thou shalt be
Buddha.

102. In hell the fires of ten thousand worlds die out,
This day these fires are quenched,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

103. Unclouded is the sun and all the stars are seen,
These things are seen to-day,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

104. Though no water fell in rain, vegetation burst forth from the
earth,
This day vegetation springs from the earth,--verily thou shalt
be Buddha.

105. The constellations are all aglow, and the lunar mansions in the
vault of heaven,
Visākhā is in conjunction with the moon,--verily thou shalt be
Buddha.

106. Those creatures that dwell in holes and caves depart each from
his lair,
This day these lairs are forsaken,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

107. There is no discontent among mortals, but they are filled with
contentment,
This day all are content,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

108. Then diseases are dispelled and hunger ceases,
This day these things are seen,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

109. Then Desire wastes away, Hate and Folly perish,
This day all these are dispelled,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

110. No danger then comes near; this day this thing is seen,
By this sign we know it,--verily thou shalt become Buddha.

111. No dust flies abroad; this day this thing is seen,
By this sign we know it,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

112. All noisome odours flee away, celestial fragrance breathes around,
Such fragrance breathes this day,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

113. All the angels are manifested, the Formless only excepted,
This day they all are seen,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

114. All the hells become visible,
These all are seen this day,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

115. Then walls, and doors, and rocks are no impediment,
This day they have melted into air,[135]--verily thou shalt be
Buddha.

116. At that moment death and birth do not take place,
This day these things are seen,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

117. Do thou make a strenuous effort, hold not back, go forward,
This thing we know,--verily thou shalt be Buddha.

And the Bodhisatta, having heard the words of Dīpankara Buddha, and of the angels in ten thousand worlds, filled with immeasurable resolution, thought thus within himself, “The Buddhas are beings whose word cannot fail; there is no deviation from truth in their speech. For as the fall of a clod thrown into the air, as the death of a mortal, as the sunrise at dawn, as a lion’s roaring when he leaves his lair, as the delivery of a woman with child, as these things are sure and certain,--even so the word of the Buddhas is sure and cannot fail, verily I shall become a Buddha.” Therefore it is said,

118. Having heard the words of Buddha and of the angels of ten thousand
worlds,
Glad, joyous, delighted, I then thought thus within myself:

119. The Buddhas speak not doubtful words, the Conquerors speak not
vain words,
There is no falsehood in the Buddhas,--verily I shall become a
Buddha.

120. As a clod cast into the air doth surely fall to the ground,
So the word of the glorious Buddhas is sure and everlasting.

121. As the death of all mortals is sure and constant,
So the word of the glorious Buddhas is sure and everlasting.

122. As the rising of the sun is certain when night has faded,
So the word of the glorious Buddhas is sure and everlasting.

123. As the roaring of a lion who has left his den is certain,
So the word of the glorious Buddhas is sure and everlasting.

124. As the delivery of women with child is certain,
So the word of the glorious Buddhas is sure and everlasting.

And having thus made the resolution, “I shall surely become Buddha,” with a view to investigating the conditions that constitute a Buddha, exclaiming, “Where are the conditions that make the Buddha, are they found above or below, in the principal or the minor directions?” investigating successively the principles of all things, and beholding the first Perfection of Almsgiving, practised and followed by former Bodhisattas, he thus admonished his own soul: “Wise Sumedha, from this time forth thou must fulfil the perfection of Almsgiving; for as a water-jar overturned discharges the water so that none remains, and cannot recover it, even so if thou, indifferent to wealth and fame, and wife and child, and goods great and small, give away to all who come and ask everything that they require till nought remains, thou shalt seat thyself at the foot of the tree of Bodhi and become a Buddha.” With these words he strenuously resolved to attain the first perfection of Almsgiving. Therefore it is said,

125. Come, I will search the Buddha-making conditions, this way and
that,
Above and below, in all the ten directions, as far as the
principles of things extend.

126. Then, as I made my search, I beheld the first Gift-perfection,
The high road followed by former sages.

127. Do thou strenuously taking it upon thyself advance
To this first perfection of almsgiving, if thou wilt attain
Buddhaship.

128. As a brimming water-jar, overturned by any one,
Discharges entirely all the water, and retains none within,

129. Even so, when thou seest any that ask, great, small, and middling,
Do thou give away all in alms, as the water-jar overthrown.

But considering further, “There must be beside this other conditions that make a Buddha,” and beholding the second Perfection of Moral Practice, he thought thus, “O wise Sumedha, from this day forth mayest thou fulfil the perfection of Morality; for as the Yak ox, regardless of his life, guards his bushy tail, even so thou shalt become Buddha, if from this day forward regardless of thy life thou keepest the moral precepts.” And he strenuously resolved to attain the second perfection of Moral Practice. Therefore it is said,