BuddhismasaReligion 10012633 PDF

PR O B S T H AI N S O R I E N T A L S ERI ES
V OL . 11 .
B U D DH I S M AS A R EL I G I O N
B U D D H IS M A S A R EL I
G I O N I T S H IS T O R ICA L D EV EL O P .
ME NT AN D IT S PR E S E N T C O N D IT I O N S .
BY H HA CK MAN N ,
. L I C T HE OL
. .
FRO M TH E G E R MAN , REV IS ED
AN D E N L AR G E D B Y T H E AU T H O R
P R O B S TH AJ N CO .
41 . G R EA T R U S S E L L S 12 , L O N DO N .
1910 .
B E RN HA RD DU HM ,
D oc to r a nd P r ofesso r of The o l ogy at the Un i ver s i ty
of B a s le ,
IN G RA T E FU L R E M E M B R A N CE
D E D I CAT E D B Y AN OLD PUPI L .

P R E F ACE
T H E RE seem s to be n o need of b o o k s o n B uddh i sm ,
yet t h o ugh the literature on th i s subj ect is in deed

,
immense a serious gap remains to be lled In vain

, .
one looks about for a book which represe n t s Bud

dh i s m as a present day religion comprisin g all the
-
,
co untries under its s way T he writers on B uddhism

.
either deal chie y with the Bu ddha him self a n d with

the o l d Indian B uddhism ( as O ldenberg an d Rhys
Davids ) o r they p u t before u s the B uddhism of one
,
single country Ceylon o r B urma or T ibet or Chin a

, , ,
( as S pence Hardy B ig a n de t Waddell E dkins and

, , , ,
others )
. E ven Monier William s well known book
-

-
,
though more complete than many others is far from ,
bein g an exhaustive rec ord Northern Buddhism he

.
only slightly touches upon B ut there should be a

.
work showing B u ddhism a s a w ho le begin nin g with ,
G autama B uddha himself tracin g th e lin e o f historical

,
development which his religio n took over all the lands

of its in uence and p a i n ting a vivid picture of its
'
present day condition s an d organi z atio n s everywhere

-
.
This is th e scope o f the volume now before u s T h e .
book is written fo r a gener al public avoidin g purposely ,

viii P RE FA CE
display of scholar s hip a s much as possible At the .
same time it should be under s tood that it is entirely

ba s ed not only on the mo s t recent scientic publica
,
tion s o f o ur be s t scholars but o n long personal investi

,
g a ti o n s made o n the spot .
The author h as studied B uddhism fo r more than

twenty years He has lived in Buddhist countries for
.
nearly ten years and has travelled a good deal in

,
these lands with the special obj ect o f a s certaining the

actual state o f the Buddhi s t religion He has been .
in per s onal contact with Chinese Japanese Korean , , ,
Tibetan Burme s e and S inghale s e Buddhism Livin g

, ,
.
in the mona s teries watchin g the mon k s and the lay

,
devotees inquiring about ritual s and institutions he

, ,
learnt thoroughly what Buddhism as a practical

l igi o n o f the present day really is .
Having returned from E a s tern Asia to E urope the ,
writer wa s asked by a publi s her to contribute a boo k

o n Buddhism t o a series o f popular treatises He .
gladly con s ented a s he thought it very necessary at a

, ,
tim e when Buddhism is discussed m o re and more in

E uropean countries to make the general public s o
,

q u a in t e d with this religion a s a w ho l e laying stress ,
especially o n the modern feature s o f its lif e The .
boo k i s meant to give a fair and impartial statement .
Of cour s e that does not mean to restrain from criticism .
F acts must be seen as they are And some o f the .
facts which o n e has to face in studyin g B uddhism

as a living religion are not pleasant Never the .
less animo s ity and one s idedness have been avoided

,
- .
Also there is no arguing from the dogmatical point o f

view which seems entirely useless But the historical
, .
P RE F A C E ix
and th e social ch aracte r o f B uddhism are th e poin t s

to which attention is drawn .
T he publicatio n bein g in G erm an friend s suggested

1
,
a tra n slation in to E nglish becau se the E nglish ,
speaki n g people are those most interested in the topic .
I had the privilege of nding a very congenial trans

l ator in a lady who herself is personally ac q uain ted
with the Far E ast h avin g travelled in Ch ina twice
,
for a considerable time .
Th e book has been revised and much enlarged for

t his translation there bein g n o restriction Of space
, ,
which h ampered the G erm an edition B ut vast as .
the subj ect is concentration seemed necessary Par

, .
t i c u l a rl y the system o f th e B uddha h im self ha s

,
been stated in the most concise way so as only to ,
give a cle ar understandin g o f the rul i ng ideas Wh o .
want s to go more deeply into detail s h as books

enough to help him on TO facilitate furth er studies
.
,
hin ts on th e best literature are given at the end O f t h e

volume .
H HA C K M AN N .
,
1 5 W I N D S O R R O AD , ,
D EN M A R K HI LL ,
L O ND O N, S E . .
Oc to b er ,
1 909 .
1 Publi s h ed in 1 905 . Tii b in g en , J . C B

. . M o h r ( Pa ul S ieb eck ) .
CON TE N TS
BO OK I
TH E B U DD HA AN D H I s D O C T R I NE
I .THE L I F E O F T HE B UDD HA
I I TH E D O C T R INE O F T HE B UDD H A
.
B O OK II
S K E T C H OF T H E H I ST O RY B U DD H I S M
I I N D IA
.
II THE SP R E A D O F B UDD HI SM
.
C E YL O N
F AR T HE R I N D I A
T IB E T
B OO K III
T HE MO D E R N B U DD H I S M
I . G ENE R AL R E MA R KS O N S O U T HE R N A N D N O R T HE RN
B UDD HI S M
B UDD HI SM O F C E Y L O N
( a ) E N T R ANCE I N TO T HE M O N AS TI C OR D E R
( 6 ) S A C RE D B U I L D I N GS
(0) S PE C I AL N OT E W O R T H Y SANC T U A R I E S
( d ) LI FE AN D C HA R AC T E R O F T HE MO N KS
( c) SE C T S AN D R E F O R MS
(f) I N F L U ENCE O N T HE L A IT Y
x1
xi i C ON T EN T S
C H AP TE R
III B UDD HI S M O F B U R MA
.
( a ) N O V I CE S AN D MO N E S
( b ) G R AD E S O F R A N K
( 0 ) SAC R E D B U IL D I N G S
( d ) D A GAB A S
( c) C HA RA C T E R O F T HE MON R H OOD
( f) L I FE O F T HE P E O P L E AN D B UDD H I S M
I V B UD D HI S M O F SIA M
.
V L AMAI S M
.
(C ) THE S A C R E D B U IL D I N G S
( b ) THE L A M AI S T IC G O D S
( 0) THE I N T E R I O R O F T HE TE M PLE S
( d) THE L AM AI S TI C MO N K H OO D
( e) THE SAC R E D W RI TI N GS
(f) THE SE C T S
( g ) THE H I E R AR CH Y
( II ) THE P E O PLE A ND R EL I G IO N
V I C HI N E S E B UDD HI S M
.
( a ) THE MO N A S T E R IE S
( 6 ) THE TE M PLE G O D S
( 0) THE MO N K S
(d ) THE C AN O N
( e ) O R GAN I ZA T I O N
(f ) F A M O U S MO N A S T E R I E S
.
(g ) SCH OO L S O F C HIN E S E B UDD HI S M

(71 ) THE C HA RAC T E R O F MO N A S T ICI S M
( i ) B UDD HI S M AN D T HE P E O PLE
V I I B U D D HI S M I N K O R EA
.
(a ) MO N A S T E R IE S A ND MO N K S
( 6 ) THE P E O PL E AN D B UDD H ISM
V III J APA N E S E B UDD H I S M
.
( C ) THE E ' T E R N AL S
( 6) THE D IVI N I T IE S
( c ) P R I N CIPAL SA N C T UA R I E S
( d ) THE MO N K S
( 6 ) THE SEC T S
(f) B UDD H I S M A ND T HE L I F E O F T HE P E O P L E
CO NCL U S I O N
LI S T O F LIT E RAT U R E
I ND E x
N OTE ON P R O N U N C I A T I O N
In I nd ia n words p rono un ce
s as French j ( in jeu jo uer ) , .
s as E ng l i s h s h .
c as E nglish c h .
722 n and t as E ngli sh m n and t

, , , .
Do uble consonant s are pronounced as two distin ct

soun ds .
T h e h after a consonant is audible .
T he vowels e and 0 are always long .
In Ti b e ta n words the Tibetan orthography is not

given but the words are spelt as they are pronounce d
, .
I n Chi nes e words the tr anscri ptio n o f S i r T homas

Wade (and Professor G iles in his Dictionary) is
followed .
Th e vowels a e i o u are t o be pro n oun ced as in

, , , ,
Italian o r G erman .
B OOK I
TH E B U D D H A A N D H I S D O C TR I N E
C H AP T E R I T H E L I F E O F T H E B U D DH A
.
TH E fo under O f Buddhism is called t he B udd ha It is

.
the title Of his rank and n o t his o wn personal n ame

, .
T he o ne whom his followers in reverence for him speak

, ,
O f as the B u ddha ( th e E nlightened O ne ) came O f the

stock Of a n ancient noble Indian family which bore
the name O f S akya From this family name was
.
derived the poetical designatio n o f S d kya mu ni ( th e

S aint O f the Sakya s ) by which he is widely know n
,
to day H is personal name was S i dd hdha ; but as

.
he renounced it at the very beginning Of his religious

career he is not called by it amongst his followers
, .
T h e B uddhist only recognizes the Prin ce S iddh arth a a s

the young man living at his father s Court before the

great religious transformation had taken place in him .
There is in deed another name belongin g to his family

, ,
from the earliest times by which the B uddh a was also

known throughout his later holy life vi z that O f
.
,
G a u ta ma T his was a surname o f his family derived

.
from o ne o f the famou s bard families OfV edic times .
The father Of G autama was an In dian nobleman ,

2 B UDD H IS M AS A RELIGION
no t exactly what we should under s tand to d ay as a

King His name was Su d dh o da na The capital Of
. .
his principality was called K a pi lava s tu Although up .
to the present time there i s no absolute certainty as

to which O f the ruined towns which di spute the honour
O f being the actual home O f the Buddha is the real
o n e there is n o d o u b t as t o the neighbourhood in
,
which it stood n o r as to the district over which the

,
S akya family held sway ; these points were fully

established by discoveries made in 1 8 96 97 The -
.
di s trict was on the borders O f the British and Nepalese

territory at both sides O f the eighty fourth degree O f
,
-
longitude and undoubtedly K a p ila va s tu itself stood in

,
Nepal G autama was n o t born in the capital His

. .
mother belonging to a side branch O f the S akya

,
family came from the mountains lying to the north

, ,
and when she felt the time approaching fo r the birth

Of her rstborn she desired to await her connement
,
in the paternal home so she left K a p il a va st u fo r her

native place De va d a h a O n the way however in the
, .
, ,
grove o f Lumbini she was surprised to nd that her ,
hour had come O n the spot where the child was .
born some hundreds o f years later King A so ka raised

, ,
a memo rial tablet with an inscription commemorating

the event and it was this tablet which was discovered
,
in December 1 8 96 ; so that both the event and the

,
spot where it too k place are beyond all doubt The .
name O f G autama s mother was M ay a ( also Often
called MRy adevi ) S h e paid fo r the birth o f her s o n

.
with her own l ife Her sister (Mah apr ajap a ti) who .
,
was also o n e Ofthe wives O f G autama s father under

,
too k the rearing O f the child .

T H E B U DD H A AND H I S D O C T R I NE 3
T hese event s took place in the middle Of th e sixth

century before Christ It is only from what we know Of
.
th e general condition Of In dia n culture at that pe riod

that we can form some conception of the way in which
G autam a grew up H e was s urrounded by the luxury
.
due to his gentle birth Crowds O f servants ; careful

.
physical training ; a S plendid home varied accordin g to ,
the three seasons O f the India n year ( summer winte r , ,
and th e rains ) th e enj oyment Ofthe beauties of nature

which India Offers ; gardens containin g a wealth O f
tropical vegetation ; from time to time a festival or a
h unting party such are the things which certain ly
-
belonged to his life H e was tra in ed in the use o f

.
arms and his military capacity was developed His

, .
mental faculties were also developed by careful in

struction an d certainly the V eda the famous colle e
, ,
tion o f Old India n sacred songs and texts played a ,
rO l e in his education though we can no longer as o er

,
ta in to what exte n t .
When the youth was grown up h e married T he .
n ame O f his wife is not certain we nd it mentioned

as Ya SOdh a ra but also as B ha d da ka c c a and as G opa
, .
S h e bore him a son R ahula Not long after this

, .
event G autama left his home his father his wife and, ,
child in order to withdraw into the solitude of th e

,
wilderness He did it in Oppositio n to the wishes Of

.
the family ; certainly it could have been n o easy matter

for him thus to h ave broken the ties with his former
life H e was driven to it by an overpowerin g inner
.
longi ng to give himself up to the consideration Of the

fundamentals of human existence F o r this purp ose .
he desired to be quite free from ex te rn al bonds .
1 2
4 B UDD H IS M AS A RE LIGION
S uch a mode of action was not altogether uncommon

in those days The religious in s tinct Of India had
.
already produced hermits ascetics and people o f

, ,
monastic habits G autama took the usual way to

.
solve the riddle o f existence which pressed upon him :

b e associated with famous anchorites and sought their
advice It wa s the accep ted Opinion o f the period that
.
a deeper insight into the meaning Of life could be

Obtained by the help Of severe asceticism which would ,
free the soul from physical bondage G autama allowed .
himself to be driven into this course but all such ,
attempt s failed to satisfy him F o r seven years he .
wrestled strenuously but in vain till at last he gave

, ,
up the struggle us a failure .
S oon afterwards a marked change came over him .
E merging from profound meditation which had for ,
many hours rendered him oblivious o f all outward

things as he sat under a peepul tree G autama hence -
,
forth had a new outlook o n the meaning o f life and

the highest task Of humanity He had received his .
revelation At that time he was about thirty six years

.
-
Of age . F rom no w his whole life is devoted to the dis

semination Of his new doctrine He has become the .
Awak ened the O ne who Knows the Buddha

, , .
F o r about forty ve years he worked amongst his

-
people as the Buddha wandering from place to place

,
and preaching With ever increasin g care he elabo

.
-
rated his system Of thought by means Of discussion

with foes and friends alike He won adherents
. .
S oon he was surrounded by an inner circle o f disciples

faithfully devoted to him and whom he taught and
,
trained He gained respect besides from a large number

.
THE B UDD H A AND HI S D O C T R IN E 5
of outsiders even if they did not accept his deeper

,
instruction and could not live up to his highest re q uire

,
ments Although opposition was not altogether lacking

.
,
the impression gathered is main ly that o f success and

o f the rapid spread o f his doctr i n e T he Buddh a also
.
convert ed his o wn family his father his former wife

, , ,
his son and other relatives T he exte n t o f coun try

, .
tr aversed by G autama in his itin erary work far ex

c ee d e d that o f the paternal domain He travelled
.
in the eastern parts o f North In dia where the Ol d ,
kingdoms o f Ma g a dh a and Ko Sa l a were situated in a ,
region the centre o f which is the city of Benares .
These tours o n whi ch h e was accompanie d by his

,
disciples were interrupted every year for s everal

,
months by th e rainy season T h e n they sought a .
shelter at a place where the gifts an d care o f adherents

made a longer stay possible .
Thus four and a half decades had passed T he .
B uddha had become an Ol d man while still engaged

i n his labours H e saw th e result of a remarkable
.
life work surrounding h im a great community ,
obedient to the r ul e of salvation fr amed by him , .
Death overto ok h im in o r about the year 47 7 R C .
H e h appened to be in a village close to the noted city

Va i sal f when a severe illnes s attacked h im ; but after
,
recoverin g a little h e still pursued his way Arrivin g

, .
in a small place called P ave h e was in vited to a meal

,
by a smith Chun da by n ame T his meal ( consistin g

, .
l
of boar s d e sh ) brought back his illness H e kn ew

.
1
S om e s c h ola rs di s a gree a bou t t h e m e ani ng o f th e t erm u s ed
fo r t h a t m e a l (s d kan a s s er t in g t h a t i t w as a k in d
o f m u s h roo m n a m ed aft er bo a r s b u t t h a t i s doub t ful .

that the end had come and held a farewell di s course

, ,
especially with his favourite disciple Ananda Under , .
some blossoming tree s by the river ban k near the -

,
city o f Ku Sina g ar a his last re s ting place was prepared

,
-
.
There he died His corp s e was cremated by his a dh er

.
ents with the greatest honour and the remains o f his ,
body were divided among Princes and noble families .
S o m e of these remains the family o f the Sakya s r e

c e i ve d who buried them under a great monument
, The .
place where the s e relics have been buried was fo u nd

and opened in 1 8 98 the Ol d remains being left entirely
,
untouched .
This is what may be asserted with co n dence o f

the life o f the B uddha G autama .
In the traditions handed down by his followers

there i s a large addition o f legendary embellishments
tacked o n to this k ernel of truth Already in the dis .
courses Of the ma s ter carefully treasured by the r s t

,
generation after his death together with many interest ,
ing details o f h i s life which are historic a fantastic ,
glorication crept in We must here set aside the

.
Buddha legends as we are only concerned with his

,
t o r i c a l in formation ; but fo r tho s e who desire to

know more o f the legendary Buddha the following ,
hints as to literature are annexed .
We possess four ancient records of the life of the

Buddha
.1 The Nidan ak a th athat is the in troduction to ,
the boo k o f the J ataka s a work relating to the former

,
lives o f the Buddha The Nidanaka th a written in P ali

.
, ,
h a s been translated into English under the editor s hip

o f E B Cowell
. .
( Th e J ata k a o r S tories o f the Bud
.
,
dha s Former B irths Cambridge S ix vols 1 895

. . .
T H E B UDD HA AND HI S D O C T R I NE 7
1 907 The Ni d an aka th a is contained in vo l

. S ee .
also B uddhi s t Birth S tories ; o r J ata k a Tales Tran s , .
l ated by T W Rhys Davids . London Trii b n e r

. . .
V ol i 1 88 0
. . .
2 P E F o u c a ux : Le Lalita V istar e trad d u S a n s

. . . .
crit Ann d Mus G uim e t tome 6 Paris 1 8 8 4

. . . .
, .
, .
3 T he Ma h ava s t u written in G ath a dialect

. E dited , .
an d translated by E S enart . .
4 The B u d dh a c a ri t a by ASva g h OS a
. S acred Book s .
of the E ast vo l xl ix Tr an slated by E B Cowell

, . . . .
,
F Max M u ller and J Ta kaku s u

. The same work
, . .
translated from the Chin ese by S Beal ( S acred . .
Books o f the E ast vo l xix O xford , . .

,
Besides these original biographies of th e B uddh a ,
there S houl d be mentioned some works based o n old

O riental tradition
R S pence H ardy : A Ma n ua l of B uddhism L ondon
. .
,
1 880 ( Contain s a L ife o f the Buddha o n pp 1 41

. .
W W Rockhill : The Life o f the B uddh a

. . from
T ibetan Works 1 8 8 4 . .
P B ig a n d e t : Th e Life or Legend o f Ga u da m a th e
.
,
B uddha o f the Burmese T hird edition London . .

,
1 8 80 .
C HAPTE R II T HE D O C T R I N E O F T H E.
B UDD HA
O f greater importance than the life of th e B uddh a

is the q uestion as to his teachin g .
There is one point which from th e rst should n ot

be overlooked The teaching of th e B uddh a has a.
certain arbitrary limitation : it will give u s no i nfo r

mation as to many metaphysical an d philosophical
8 B UDD H I SM AS A RE LIGION
problems surrounding u s fo r instance a s to the ,
origin o f the world the creating power the deeper

, ,
sense o f exi s tence the character o f good and evil and

, ,
such lik e things It always reverts to o ne c ardinal

'
- .
point o f practical importance s weeping aside all other

,
questions which man s thir s t fo r k nowledge may raise

.
The o n e cardin al point referred to is the d e li ver a nc e

fr o m s ner i ng .
F o r the very rst statement which is at the root o f

all the Buddha s thought is this life i s s uer ing .
What then does Gautama mean by this phrase ?

, ,
The idea s and sentiments which grew up in th e mind

o f the Buddha so as to form this fundamental con
vi c t i o n are partly due t o his individual temperament ,
and partly to the spirit o f the age in which he lived ,
to the inheritance h e owed to hi s nation .
Personally he certainly experienced l ife as burden

,
some I t must be borne in m ind that the Indian

.
genius is ripened by the Indian climate There is a .
benumbing o f existence under the tropical sun as well

as under perpetual sno w and ice F rom the intel .
lectual li fe o f India there soon ebbed the j oyous

activity of primitive time s a passive receptivity taking
,
its place and a dull drifting o n the stream o f events

, .
The exuberance o f Nature also had something para

lyz in g in it. There can be no permanent satisfaction
for man in the rest o f satiety our nature being rather
,
formed for a life o f endeavour and striving Melan .
c h o l y ta k es possession o f him a morbid scepticism , ,
an overwhe l ming sensibility fo r everything de s titute

and a ficted S uch a mental attitude the Buddha
.
must have had stamped upon him from the out s et by

THE B U D D HA AND H I S D O C T R I NE 9
his Indian parentage and surroundings and it may ,
have been unusually developed in him What h e .
saw as the curse o f h uman existence more than any

thing else is plainly set forth i n an Ol d legend which ,
gives the motive for his abandonment o f family and

h ome T he legend describes h o w on three di fferent
.
occasions he took a drive from his palace : the rs t tim e

h e met wi th an o l d man the second time with a sick
,
man the third time with a corpse By each o f these

, .
an indelible impre s s ion was mad e upon his mind A .
fourth excursio n showed him th e apparition of a

mendicant who h ad turned his back o n the world a n
indication o f his appointed path O ld age i llness .
, ,
and death are the terrible powers o f destructio n which

hover over life they are all in cl uded in the o n e word
t r a ns i to r i n ess .

This word leads up to the very heart o f G autama s
experience so far as it is connecte d with the world s
,

sufferin g T here is no real happiness because every

.
thing in life is transitory B ehind every blossomin g

.
forth is a fading ; behind every attainment a loss ; ,
behin d every life death This truth though ex

,
.
,
p e ri e nce d to a certa i n extent by everybody and in

every epoch in its ruthless irrevocability takes such ,
gigantic shape in this In dian m in d that it over

shadows all earthly gifts an d values H appiness is a .
mirage a deception , Whoever really Opens his eye s

.
must recogn iz e that all life 1 8 s u e ri ng

'
T his aspe ct o f things is sharply in tensi e d more ,
over by a doctrine which the B uddh a received from

,
the age in which he lived This is the doctrin e o f .
me te mp sy c ho s i s Nobody ca n ascertain at the present

.
day at what time this conception a hazy fantastic , ,
idea at the out s et but in course o f time strengthened

,
by the panthei s tic and pessimistic trend o f a ncient

Indian thought rst too k rise in the mind o f man
,
.
The idea h a s undoubtedly something very natural

and attractive for primitive philo s ophy In any case .
,
long before the Buddha s time it had become quite

familiar to the speculative mind It i s a gloomy .
thought well qual ied to deepen the melancholy

,
contemplation o f existence to a degree that is terrible

and unendurable To be forced to pa s s through life
.
again and again in a bodily form predestined to the ,
same imperfections the same transitoriness the same

, ,
death this i s indeed a wearisome and formidable

treadmill ' Already thin k er s before the B uddha had
felt the torturing sting o f this conception very d eeply .
The doctrine o f metemp s ychosis is therefore to be

rec k oned as an element o f the atmosphere in which
the Buddha grew up He has indeed modied it
.
, ,
somewhat but he was unable to free him s elf from

,
the main conception He never thought o f doubting

.
the fact o f reincarnation S uch uni v ersally accepted

.
beliefs surround the single individual who i s born into

their midst with an impression o f reality lik e that o f
heaven and earth But it cannot be doubted that the
.
belief in reincarnation most powerfully accentuated

G autama s view o f life as su ffering

.
If one has realized as an unalterable truth that life

mean s suffering the next question arising must be
,
a s t o the original cause o f su f fering ; fo r it is only

by coming to an understanding of thi s that anyone
can hope to succeed in removin g suffering What .
,
T H E B UD D H A AND H I S D O C T RIN E 11
then is the origin al fountain o f all su fferin g ? T h e

,
answer to this question form s t he s eco n d fu nda me nta l

t r u th of the B uddha s teaching an d run s thus : The

,
c a us e of s u er i ng i s t hi r s t ( c r a t i ng ) .
It is worth attention that at this poin t already th e

system of the Buddh a takes its turn to the personal
and subj ective side T he que s tion is not h o w it may
.
be explain ed tha t we nd ourselves in such a world ,
which in reality is nothin g else th an a hell a place ,
Of su f ferin g fo r all its i nh abitan ts ; nor as to wh o o r

wh at may h ave originated such a phenomenon We .
are not to look about for an external obj ective cause ,
to which this universal fate is due T he explanatio n

.
is given entirely fr om the inner the s ubj ective side , ,
o f the phenomenon ; it is merely psychological .
S ufferin g origin ates in a certain psychological dis

position o i the individual but this dispositio n as it
, ,
is might be r ul ed and mastere d by th e in dividual

,
who pos sesse s it S u fferin g originate s from the thirst

. .
Before stating further how th e thirst is the creative

, ,
'
p o wer of all su ffering in the world we must look at a

,
certain doctrin e o f the B uddh a in timately connected

with that question an d at th e same tim e a doctrin e
,
differing from the common mode Of thought eve n in

ancient India . Most philosophical system s of the
pre B uddhist period reco gni z ed a permanent soul as
-
the active centre o f the body which represe n te d the ,
in des t ructible u n it this unit bein g led by Death

,
from o ne h abitation to an other in the course of all it s

reincarnations In order to come to re st this soul o f
.
,
the individual m ust atta in union with the All S oul -

,
the World S oul with Brahma after which union th e

-
, ,
miserable wandering through ever n e w existences

would cease . The Buddha emphatically rej ected
this conception He denies both the individual soul
.
and the All S oul -

O f the latter there need be no
.
question for as we have remark ed above the Buddha

, , ,
does not deal with the explanation of the world s
problem as a whole but restricts himself t o the ,
teaching o f salvation which is the direct concern o f

,
man k ind S O much the more vital then becomes the

.
, ,
question as to the individual soul The Buddha .
denies its exi s tence and impresses upon h i s followers

,
that it i s o n e o f the most fatal errors to hold that a

soul is the bearer of life in any living being It is .
not a soul which migrates in reincarnation from o n e

body to another constituting a permanent entity
, .

T he new incarnation is only e e c te d b y the th irst
.
There i s no soul Man is merely a collection o f

.
bodily and mental occurrences The c o Operation of .

-
a group of forces creates an apparent unit which has ,
been tak en as being something existing in it s elf and ,
has been called a soul In reality that which exists .
is an ever changing appearance in certain forms o f

-

combination There is no permanent I to whom
.
,
the events o f my life are attached That sup .

p o s i t i t io u s I is only the totality o f a group o f
actions and inasmuch as these actions are per
, ,
p e t u a ll y new and different it is in like manner

,
perpetually new and di fferent O nly ina s much as .
o ne action always immediately succeeds another ,
there comes to be an appearance of unbroken c o n

t in u i ty
. But thi r s t is what holds together in a state
o f existence all living beings leading them fro m o n e ,
T HE B UDD H A AND HI S D O C T R I NE 13
life to another as soon as the bonds o f bein g are

loosened by death T he thirst means th at graspin g
.
clin ging e ffort th at desire for life by which all who

, ,
live are attached in some way or oth er to th eir

surroundin gs H ow it comes to pass that this
.
abstract idea o f craving is su fciently powerful to

brin g forth an actual new life the B uddha has tried
to explain b y a fo rmu l a much revered by all B uddhists ,
but o f very ob scure meanin g It is called the Causal

.
Nexus (P ra ti tya S am u tp ada ) and run s thu s

Ignorance produces the syntheses ;
The syntheses produce cogn ition ;
Co gn ition produces name and form
Name and form produce the sixfold sphere ,
( sen se surface s and un ders tand in g)

T he s i xfold sphere produces contact ;
Con tact produces feeling ;
Feeling produces cravin g
Craving produces graspin g
G rasping produces renewed existence ;
Renewed existence produces birth ;
B ir th produces Ol d age and death grief lamenta , ,
tion distress melancholy and despair

, , .
T hus a chain o f twelve links is formed the twelve ,
Ni dana s 1
T hough the ideas underlyi n g the co n
.
ne c ti o n o f these twelve links are m u ch disputed it is ,
1
S c h ola r s
differ i n t r an s l a t in g th e difcul t S an s crit t erm s
Th e a bove t r ans l a t ion follow s Mr s C A F R h y s D a vid s in h e r
. . . .
boo k A Buddh is t M anu al o f P s ych ologic al E t hi c s ( Lon don

,

,
p 3 48 Com p a re als o fo r dee per s tudy D e l a V al l e

. .
P ou s s in Deux No t e s sur l s P r a ti ty as am u tp ad a 1 908

, , .
14 B UDD H IS M AS A RELI GION
clear that some sort o f natural law is maintain ed ,
resulting in a new exi s tence and that in the series o f

,
causes craving and graspin g are tho se which i m

mediately produce this new existence .
However no t only does the thirst by force o f a

,
nat u ral law demand the fact o f metempsychosis but ,
it also regulates the form o f reincarnation Here the .
Buddha emphasizes the value o f the moral quality

o f o ur actions O n o u r moral attitude depends the
.
form of o u r next exi s tence G ood action produces

.
subsequently more favourable and happier conditions

o f life ; bad action results in the contrary It is the .
never failing accuracy o f natural law again which is

-
at wor k here S O all the di fferent shapes of earthly

.
existence are produced as the consequences o f earlier

good o r bad lives But no t the earth only is the
.
stage o f this endless drama it is the whole universe .
There are other both happier and unhappier existences

, ,
which might be popularly described as heaven s and

hells o r which are o f an intermediate supe r natural
,
character Already in the Dh a na nja m a di s course

.
,
of the Ma jjhi m a nikayo part o f the oldest canonical

,
writings we nd an enumeration o f the following

,
grade s o f possible reincarnation : ( 1 ) In hell ( 2) as ,
animals ( 3) as ghosts ( spectres ) (4) as man (5 ) in

, , ,
seven k inds of heavenly abodes In other parts o f .
the canonical boo k s the following six divisions are

given : ( 1 ) Hell (2) the sphere o f the ghosts ( 3 ) the
, ,
animals (4) the abode of the Asuras ( s piritual beings

,
o f a rank lower than the god s ) ( 5 ) the world o f men, ,
( 6 ) the realm o f the gods itself divided into successive

,
regions ( It is to be remarked that the Buddha did

.
T H E B U D D HA AND H I S D O CT R I NE 15
not in clude in his circle of rein carnation the vegetable

l ife o r the mineral kin gdom ) B ut wh atever may be
.
the mode o f existence to which a be ing is re born it is ,
in evitably to a state o f su ffering as all these state s ,
are transitory and uncertain Therefore it does n ot.
really h elp a man even if he should become a god .
T he questio n is rath er how to escape entir ely from

the fate o f rein carnation .

T his is the next great theme in the Buddha s
doctrin e an d the answer to this q uestio n co n stitutes
,
t he t hi r d fu n da men ta l tr ut h .
As we s aw before the eternal resh aping of bein gs

,
is due to a subj ective inward roo t th e cravin g ;

, ,
t herefore a subj ective po wer also can destroy this

root a n d prevent th e reincarnation Wher e t he t hi r s t .
,
th e cr a vi ng aft er l ife i s ul ti ma t ely o ver co me ther e n o

, ,
n ew exi s t ence c a n a r i s e All e ffort must be con

ce n t r a te d o n this obj ectto become comple tely free
.
from every entanglement o f life to such an extent that

a man will feel no inclination wish o r in terest attract
, ,
in g him towards any physical o r m ental obj ect All .
the threads must be o u t which attach the being to

thin gs existing and even to existence itself Through
, .
this utmost sunderin g of the individual fr om the

stream of life there arises a new condition which is ,
th e highest goal of Buddhism Ni rudna l

.
As to the meanin g o f this expression there has b ee n

a great deal of doubt but a thorough going inq uiry
,
-
h as made it quite clear : Nirv ana is n oth in g else

than a sta te o f complete pain lessness B ut sin ce in .
1
Co m p a re Buddh i s t E ssa y s by P aul D ahlk e Tr an s l a ted
,

.
fro m t h e G erm an by B i kkh u S il ac ar a Lo n do n 1 908 C h a p v

.
, . . .
16 B UDD HI S M AS A RELIGION
Buddhism pain is syn onymous with existence as ,
existence with pain Nirv ana may equally be described

,
as no n existence Here I ndeed our Western reason

-
.
, ,
ing must not ignore the following reservation The .
B uddha does n o t speak o f existence in the absolute

sense as o ur philosophy sometimes uses the word .
He xes his attention o n the existence which we know

experimentally namely the earthly exi s tence ; for
,
t h e s o called supernatural state s o f being to which

-
,
reincarnation may lead themselves embrace nothing

,
more than modications o f earthly exi s tence strictly ,
spea k ing F rom this it follows that Nirvana cannot

.
be ta k en to mean extin ction in the strictly philo

S ophical sense of the word Indeed this is so little
.
,
the case that a man wh o is still in outward appearance

living may have already reached Nirvananamely ,
when he has completely overcome thirst in himself ,
which is the root o f his union with existence His .
visible earthly shape then i s merely a kind o f Optical

, ,
delusion in the estimation o f the B uddhist Thus it .
may be equally argued that after death Nirvana leads

to a kind o f existence which is integrally different
from anyth ing that we know a s existence S uch an .
assumption would form no contradiction to the c o n

c e p t i o n of Nirv ana But as t o such a possibility the
.
Buddha has no t made any express statement either

for o r against since it is an irrelevant que s tion
, ,
merely distracting o u r attention from what is o f vital

importance viz the way o f salvation To be set
.
,
.
free from s u e r in g and thereby to cease from any

,
existence which is within the range o f o ur expe r ience

and conception that is all we need as human beings .
T H E B UDDHA AND HI S D O C T RINE 17
T o state the possibility of an existence which did n ot

in clude s u e rin g would by t h e way h ave collided
'
, ,
so sharply with the ever present e quation life is

-
ff
su erin g th at o n this account alone o n e ea s ily
un derstands why G autama avoided s uch a line o f
thought .
Man must therefore give up all thirst o r des ire In .
what way can he attain this difcul t goal ? T he

answer to this q uestion is the fourth fundamental
truth which the Buddha discovered an d obviously it ,
is the most important At this point the system

.
begin s to take a practical direction .
It must be note d at th e outset th at the practical

rules of B uddhism are not frame d on an ascetic basis .
Asceticism th e strenuou s suppression o f o u r bodily

,
and sen sual faculties h as no intrinsic value for th e

,
B uddha Although o ne ca n not b ut consider his

.
religion ascetic in the deeper sense o fth e word because ,
of its ultimate tendency to turn away from the world ,
nevertheless the Buddhist meth od o f attaining this

end is not an ascetic o n e The part in g from th e
.
stream of existence must come from within ; asceticism ,
o n the other hand would only be like choppin g o f

,
f
the branches and twigs from the tree of life without
uprootin g it As regards the physical and sensual
.
conditions o f living it is su fc ient if they are rendered

,
h elpful to the un dertakin g of the in ward struggle .
To this end o ne must seek an isolated and simple life ,
as it may be foun d in the monastic life The purpose .
of monkhood for the B uddhi s t is therefore merely to

, ,
provide congenial o utward condition s fo r the struggle

to escape from life ; it constructs a kin d of defensive
2
18 B UDD H I S M AS A RELIGION
coat of mail behind which the real task must be

,
accompli s hed .
The ta sk which lay before the B uddha s dis c iples
has been graphically set forth in the celebrated

picture o f the eightfold path It is described as .
right belief right resolve right speech right b e

, , ,
haviour right occupation right e ffort right co n templa

, , ,

tion right concentration
, A very old passage o f the
.
B uddhist canon ( Digha Nikaya S utta 22) explains -

,
these eight terms in an ampler way as follows :

What 0 priests is right belief ? The k nowledge
, ,
o f misery O prie s ts
, the k nowledge o f the origin o f
,
mi s ery the k nowledge o f the ce s s ation o f mi s ery

, ,
and the k nowledge o f the path lea d ing to the ce s s ation

o f misery thi s O prie s ts is called right belief
, , .
And what 0 priests is right resolve The resolve

, ,
to renounce sen s ual pleasures the re s olve to have ,
malice towards none and the re s olve to harm no living

,

creature this O p r iests i s called right re s olve
, , .
And what 0 priests is right speech

, ,
To abstain
from falsehood to abstain from bac k biting t o ab s tain
, ,
from har s h language and to abstain from frivolous ,
tal k this O priests is called right speech

, , .
And what 0 prie s ts is right behaviour ? To

, ,
abstain from de s troying of life to ab s tain from tak ing ,
that which is n o t given o ne and to abstain fr om ,
immorality this 0 priests is called right b e

, ,
haviour .
1
Th e t r a n s l a t io n o f t h e P ali t erm s i s h ere given fro m W a rre n .
I t i s very di f c ul t t o ren der t h e pregn a n t de n i t io n o f t h e

origi na l wi t h e q u al pregn an cy Th e t r an sl a tor s t h erefore di ffer
.
in s o m e o f t h e m .
T HE B UD D H A AND H I S D O C TR I N E 19
An d wh at 0 priests is right occ upation

, Wh en ,
ever 0 priests a noble disciple q uittin g a wrong

, , ,
Occupation get s his livelihood by a right occupation

,
this 0 priests is called righ t occupation

, ,
.
And wh at 0 priests is right e o r t ? Whenever

, , ,
O prie s ts a priest purposes makes an effort heroically

, , ,
endeavours applies his mind a n d exerts himself that

, , ,
evil and demeritoriou s q uali ties not yet arisen may

n ot arise ; and that evil an d demeritorious q uali
ties already arisen m ay be abandoned ; and th at
meritoriou s qualitie s not yet arisen may arise ; and
exerts h imself for the preservation retention , ,
growth increase development and perfection of

, , , ,
meritoriou s qualities already arisen this O priests , ,
is called righ t e o r t .

An d wh at 0 priests is righ t contemplation ?
, ,
Wh enever O priests a priest lives as respects the

, , ,
bo dy observant of the body strenuous conscious

, , , ,
contemplative and has rid himself of lust and

,
grief as respects sensations observant of sensations , ,
strenuou s as respects the min d observant of ,
the mind strenuou s , a s respects the elements

o f being ob servant o f the elements of bein g strenuous
, ,
this 0 priests is calle d right contemplatio n

, , .
And what 0 priests is right concentration ?

, ,
Whenever O priests a prie s t havi ng isolated himself

, , ,
from sensual pleasures havin g i s olated himself from ,
demeritoriou s traits an d still exercisin g reasonin g , ,
still exercising reection enters upon the rst trance ,
which is produced by isolation and characterized by

j oy and h appiness ; when through the subsidence of ,
reaso n in g and re ection and stil l retain in g j oy an d ,
22
20 B UDD HI SM AS A RE L I GION
happiness he enters upon the second trance which

, ,
is an interior tranquilization and intentness o f the

thoughts and is produced by concentration ; when
, ,
through the paling o f j oy in die r ent contemplative , , ,
conscious and in the experience o f bodily happiness

,
that state which eminent men de s cribe when they say ,
Indifferent contemplative and livin g happily h e

, ,
enter s upon the third trance ; when through the ,
abandonment of happine s s through the abandonment ,
of misery through the disappearance of all antecedent

,
gladness and grief he enters upon the fourth trance

, ,
which has neither misery nor happines s but is c o n

,
l i n f f
t emp a t o as rened by indi erence this O priests , ,
is called right concentration .

This 0 priests is called the noble truth o f the
, ,
1
path leading to the cessation o f misery .
The foregoing passage contains an outline o f the

practical way which the Buddhist has to go But it .
is only an outline There are many writings treating

.
this subj ect more fully and more in detail .
The practical directions o f the B uddha begin with

precepts which are meant fo r people in general fo r
, ,
the whole o f the lay world F or although the course .
Of the true disciple narrows later o n so that only t h e ,
mon k who has forsworn the world can tread it yet ,
the Buddhist do c trine doe s n o t altogether keep aloof

from the secular life It is considered o f high im.
portance to prepare the layman fo r the higher path ,
even if the result o f his strivi ng only leads him to a

happier reincarnation Perhaps this reincarnation .
1
' uot ed from Wa rren

Buddh i s m in Tr a n sl at ions p 3 7 3
, ,
.
e t s e q.
T HE B U DDHA AND H I S D O C T R I NE 21
puts him in circumstances more favourable to his

turning away from the world and reachin g the ultimate
goal as a monk The precepts given to lay people are
.
Often expres s ed in the form o f ve commandments .
T hey are as follows

1 . Not to take life .
2 . Not to steal .
3 . To refrain from unlawful sexual in tercour se .
4 . Not to tell lies .
5 . Not to drink intoxicatin g liquors .
These ve fundamental precepts form only th e

backbone o f a very penetrative system o f morality set
up fo r lay people It comprises all that was con .
s id e r e d lawful honourable and obligatory in th e

, ,
social relations o f life at the time o f the B uddha H e .
wh o wants to get at the detail s of these duties m ay

turn to writings such as the Mangala S utta the ,
Dh ammapada the S g l o w d a S utta

, i a a 1
They set.
forth the dutie s Of parent an d child o f teach er and ,
pupil of husband and wife o f friend an d friend o f

, , ,
master an d servant o f laymen toward s the religiou s,
in stitutions S ome of it would not be applicable to

.
o ur day and manners at other points there is some ,
thin g lackin g in what we should expect ; b ut most of it

is b e ne c e nt an d appeals to o ur j ud gm ent as well
, ,
springin g from a ne moral perception The quin .
t e s se n ce o f this moral code for l aymen is that their

conduct should be governed by a careful observance
o f the moral norm prevailin g in their days .
1
P a rt s o fth e s e b o o ks ar e qu o t e d in R h y s D a vid s Buddhi s m

c h a p v pp 1 24 1 49 wh ere t h e t r a nsl at ion o f th e wh ole s ubj ec t

. .
,
.
-
,
i s to b e foun d .
F rom this broade s t ba s is ethics (which is co m of
p u l s o ry for all ) the layman who wishe s to do some

,
thing special can however rise to a higher level by

, ,
adding to the above ve fundamental rules three

further ones which are these,
6 O nly to ta k e food at certain specied times

. .
7 No t to ta k e part in dancing music per

.
, ,
fo r m a nc e s .
8 . Not to adorn the body with owers no r use

perfumes and unguents .
At the same time he who accepts these rules must

,
tak e a stricter form o f the third precept given to lay

men i n
general namely to restrain from a ll sexual ,
intercourse By the acceptance Of these eight rules a

.
minor stage o f monk ish life is entered Lay people .
occasionally j oin the mona s tic O rder for a limited time ,
subj ecting them s elves to these eight rules and obtain ,
ing thereby a certain degree o f merit which will be ,
accredited to them in their reincarnation .
But it is only within the mona s tic circle p r Op e r that

the striving after the goal o f Nirv ana can be fully
carried out The theoretical pos s ibility of attaining
.
the goal a s a layman is no t really disputed fo r there ,
are a few individual instances o f such a thing happen

ing in early times But practically the pos s ibility is
.
held to be o u t o f question o n account o f its extreme

di f c ul ty o f attainment The mon k s life which the .

Buddha requires is founded o n the fullment o f ten

preceptsnamely the foregoing eight an d t wo oth ers
,
9. No t to sleep o n any high o r wide bed .
1 0 No t
. t o po s s e s s either gold o r silver .
TH E B UDD HA AND H I S D O C T RINE 23
Whe n one looks at these commandments o fB uddhist

monasticism as a whole they are seen to be p artly ,
prohibitions Of an ethical nature and partly such as ,
aim at a certain isolation and simplicity o f life at the ,
renouncing o f family ties o f property and pos sessions , ,
at the foregoing of outward beauty as a mean s of

enj oyment or of yieldin g to sensual desire T hey
, .
characteri z e as s uch the tendency of B uddhist

monastic life B ut these fundame n tal laws are sup
.
p e m e nt e d still by a number o f other in structio n s

l
re q uisit e for the orderin g o f a common life with its ,
several obligation s and relations T hus there are .

,
enactments as to dwellin gs dres s occupation food , , , ,
the beh avi our of o ne monk to another his behaviour ,
towards the laity etc T hese regulatio n s cannot of

, .
,
1
course be dealt with here in detail ; but o ne par
,
t i c u l a rly important point mu st be mentioned and ,
that is th at the monk is supposed to be supporte d by

mendicancy For this purpose h e goes forth every
.
mornin g to beg H e eat s what is given him : meat is

.
not forbidden A widespread error among E uro p ean s

.
is th at the Buddha forbade th e eatin g of meat ; but

he emph atically rej ected this limitation though i t is ,
manifest th at he proh i bited th e killi ng Of animals for

food . It was o n ly in its la ter development that
B uddhism m ade it a prin ciple ( in some co un trie s ) of
declining meat as food .
It must be Observed that t he who l e mona s ti c org a ni za

1
Th e wh ole o f th e precep t s t o be ob s erved by m o nk s m a y be
s t udied i n T W R h y s D a vids a n d H Old enb e rg s t r an s l a t ion s
. .

.

o f t h e V i n a y ap i t ak a : S a cred Boo k s o f th e E as t v ol s xiii , .
xvii xx
.
, .
ti o n i s o nly a mea ns t o a id t he B u d dhi s t i n hi s sp ec i a l
ta s k ;it is a sort Of shelter Without this shelter .
,
without the previou s purgin g o f the pa s sions which it

made possible and without the arresting o f external
,
hinde r in g inuences the labour o f the real ta s k would

,
be intensied so a s to render it impos s ible of achieve

ment It is another common error fo r those at a
.
distance to imagine that Buddhism a s cribes a special

merit t o the mona s tic way o f li fe in it s elf becau s e o f
ascetic principles O n the contrary even the rules o f
.
,
mon k hood in themselves posse s s no saving value .
S aving value is only to be obtained by spiritual

labour which should begin under the pro tection o f
,
the monastic life .
The main factor o f this spiritual labour is med ita ti o n .
This is the name o f a very great and important part

o f the Buddhist s actual wor k o f salvation The

.
disciple steps right into the tas k o f meditation when

he has su fciently prepared himself inwardl y by the
training o f his spirit through the accomplishment o f
the external precepts o f the monastic life He mu s t .
rst have wo n a thorough inward watchfulness self ,
control power over his faculties a discerning eye fo r

, ,
faults and errors F or the o n e who thus pos s esses

.
the right conduct the exercises o f meditation now

begin .
The character o f Buddhist meditation cannot better

be described than by again borrowing the words o f
o n e o f the best authorities in this department ,
H C Warren who in his wor k Buddhism in Trans

. .
,

lations ( p 28 0 et s eq ) says
. .
The Budd h a analy zes man and things inanimate ,

T HE B UDD HA AND H I S D O C T RINE 25
and n ds noth i ng th at is permanent but only the ,
concrete and perishable All Karma he says is per

.
, ,
formed under the in uence o f greed after some desired

obj ect with hatred of that which is not wanted an d
, ,
o f in fatuation or delusion o f mind that causes o n e to
believe that satisfaction will result when the obj ect is

attained .No w all the se obj ect s after which one
,
strives are n ecessarily more o r less concrete and

de nite and the concrete and de nite are not satisfy
,
in g to the re ective mind E very thinkin g man

.
endeavours to pass from the thin gs which are seen

an d temporal to someth in g which is unseen and
which he can picture to himself as eternal Now it is .
,
to be Observed that when we endeavour to pas s in

,
thought from the transitory and the phenomenal to

something more permanent and real we try to com ,
pass our obj ect by passing from the concrete to the

abstract We try to reduc e the multiplicity o f phe
.

n o m e n a to a few heads and the more general we can

,
make these heads th e nearer we seem to come to

,
in de nite o r everla s tin g verity B ut what we gain in

.
extension we lose in inten sion and the n earer does ,
o u r conceptio n approach to bein g a conception of
n othing at all T h e Buddh a evidently saw this ; b ut

.
as negation w as wh at he was striving for he con ,
s i d e r e d he had foun d the way to salvation and hence ,
we have his elaborate system Of meditation B ut I .
Ought to say th at meditation is here a very clumsy

word and does not properly cover all the ground
, .
The meditations o f the Buddhists were not simple

reection s o n ab s tract subj ects b ut trances o f self
,
hypnotism as well in wh ich they tried to bring n o t

, ,
merely the conceptions of the mind but also the ,
emotions a nd feelings of the heart to rare ed general ,

i z a ti o n s .
Thus far Professor Warren There are forty .
different subj ects of meditation enumerated These .
meditations if earnestly carried o u t lead to a

, ,
trance o r to several kinds o f trances The Buddhist .
knows four such trances To them are added four.
states the s o called formless states The trances and

,
-
.
states are described by the Buddha himself as follows

O f o ne who has entered the rst trance the voice has
ceased ; of o n e who has entered the second trance
reasoning and reection have ceased ; o f o n e who has
entered the third trance jo y has ceased ; o f o ne who
has entered the fourth trance the in spirations and
expirations have cea s ed ; o f o n e who h as entered the
realm o f innity o f space the perception o f form has
cea s ed ; o f o n e who has entered the realm o f the
innity o f con s ciousness the perception o f the realm
o f the innity o f space has ceased ; o f o n e who has
entered the realm o f nothingness the perception o f

the innity o f consciousness has ceased ; o f o n e who
has entered the realm o f neither perception n o r yet
non perception the perception of the realm o fnothing
-
,
ness has ceased o f one who has entered the cessation

o f perception and sensation perception and sensation ,
have ceased O f the priest wh o has lost all depravity

.
,
passion has ceased hatred has ceased infatuation has

, ,
ceased .
The four trances and the four formless states are

the eight at tainment s But i t is to be obse r ved that
.
there is a ninth attainment which is based o n wisdom

,
T HE B UDD HA AND H I S D O C T RINE 27
or intellectual discipl ine T his consists in m aster in g

.
the chief poin ts of the Buddh a s te achin g and apply

,
ing them to th e elements of bein g especially the ,
d o ctrine of the three characteristic s which in here in

all things vi z transitoriness misery and th e lack
, , ,
o f an ego T o this discipline belongs a S pecial trance

.
,
the trance o f c essation T herefore the whole subj ect

.
of m editation might be divided in to two categories o f ,
which the former might be called co n centration the ,
latter wisdom .
It is impossible here to give more th an these short

hints o n such a d ii c u l t though most important
, ,
subj ect All who wish to study it more thoroughly

.
,
wil l nd a gr e at help in ch apter iv Meditation .

an d N irv an a ) of H C Warren s book cited above
. . .
From the begi n nin g onwards metho d and organiz a

tion were the characteristics of the B uddha s teachin g ;
this must be obviou s to everyone who h as thought

fully studied the foregoing pages It will th erefore .
be no mat ter o f surprise that soo n after the master s
death his disciples associated the system of his

instructions and the organized body of his follower s
directly with his person : the B uddha the Doctrin e , ,
an d the Community ( B uddha Dharma S a ngha ) c o m

, , ,
posed th e three preciou s fundaments The Buddha s .

method o f Obtainin g salvation translate d in to a ,
number of speci c rules was th e priceless gift of an

,
organi z ation which the master h ad framed d urin g his

lifetime and left beh in d to b e the expone n t o f that
,
method and the rec ipient o f its contents .
At r st the B uddha h ad only foun ded mo n astic

communities for men At that time wo m an was .
hardly con s idered a responsible personality Her .
exi s tence appeared somewhat in the light o f the

remark made recently by Count Tol s toi : Women
are the greatest stumbling bloc k s in the existence o f -
a man Nevertheless the teaching o f the Buddha

.
,
in i t s earnest philosophical tenor if o ne pene ,
trates to the heart o f it results in a higher ,
estimate o f woman In the same way as the .
Buddha s ideas admitted o f no social class distin o

tions ( caste ) but sought man as such wherever he

, , ,
was to be found so for woman also must the way o f

,
salvation be open in asmuch as woman also is a ,
member o f the human race But the Buddha was .
fully conscious o f the pres s ing practical dangers o f

this view He agreed reluctantly to the founding o f
.
nunneries and made them from the begin ning strictly

,
subordinate to the mon k s 1

.
1 Th e t ex t on W om en t o th e Order ( Cull a
Adm i s s io n of
V a gga x ) i s give by W rre

, . n a n

Buddhi sm in Tr an sl a tions , ,

pp 441 447 Th e Buddh a w a s a s k ed t o a dm it wom e n by t he

.
-
.
repe at ed a pplic at ion o f hi s a un t Ma h apr a jap a ti ( vide sup r a , ,
p . Aft er h a vin g bee n den ied h e r wi s h t h ree t i m e s ,
Ma h ap r a jap a t i h a d h e r h a ir c u t o p u t o n yellow gar m en t s

, ,
a n d c a m e s orrow ful s a d a n d weepin g t o Anan d a w h o decided

, , , ,
t o ple a d h e r c a u s e T o h im t h e Buddh a a t l a s t yielded E ight

. .
rule s were l a id down by w hich nun s were m a de s tron gly

,
depen den t o n t h e m ale follower s B u t a ft er givin g hi s a s s ent .
t h e Buddh a expre s s ed h i s s orrow o n t h i s n e w cour s e He .
expec t ed th a t t h e a dm i s s ion o f wo m en would ruin hi s work I t .
i s a s m ildew fa lli n g upo n a ouri s h in g eld o f rice or a s ru s t ,
fa llin g upo n a our i s h i n g eld o f s ug a r c a n e I f wo m en h a d -

.
n o t e n t ered t h e co mm uni t y t h e good doc t rin e would a bide a

,
t h ou s a n d ye a r s ; n o w i t will a bide o nly ve h un dred ye a r s .

THE B U D D HA AND H I S D O C T R I NE 29
E ntrance into a comm unity o f monks o r nuns wa s ,
theoretically free to anyone No caste distinctio n

, .
was made as has been already mentioned B ut o f

, .
course th ere were practically some limitations A .
n umber of dangerous diseases were prohibitory of

admission B esides this people wh o were in any
.
,
way bound ( s uch as soldier s or debtors ) were refused

admissio n The consent of parent s was also u sually
.
required T he minimum age for entering the monk

.
hood was twenty B ut a provi s ional earlier retire

.
ment from the secular life was made possible It .
was a purely private act when a scholar sought a

monk as teacher to prepare him fo r admission to th e
monastic life The profession o f actual monkhood
.
was entered with a certai n solemnity For that .
purpose a community o f monks must be called

together and the re q uest for admission be laid before
,
them publicly ; an exhortation as to the monastic

mode of life must be delivered and the aspirant s ,
agreement to it obtained .
The candidat e who h ad been admitted wa s at

liberty to leave at any time subsequently shoul d he ,
change his min d T he separation would necessarily

.
be e e cte d by gros s violation of the most important
On e s h oul d co m p a re wit h t h i s s t a t em e nt t h e a tt it ude a ga inst

by th e followin g words o f t h e Buddh a H e
wo m e n c h ar a c t eri z ed
i s a s k ed by An a n d a H ow s h a ll we be h a ve t ow a rd a wom a n
,
H e a n s wer s Y ou m u s t a void s eei n g o n e

,
B u t i fn evert h ele s s
.

we s e e h er wh a t s h a ll we do ?
,
Y ou sh all n o t t al k t o h er

,
An a n d a B u t if we n evert h ele s s t a lk wi t h h e r w h a t t h e n
,
T h e n you m u s t be very w a t c hful over your s elf Anan da ,

.
( Olden berg Buddh a p

, , .
outward commands In the early times the fo ur

.
which follow were mar k ed o u t as such

1 . A mon k must have no sexual intercourse Of any
kind .
2 . He must be guilty o f no theft .
3 . He mu s t not wittingly de s troy life .
4 . He must not boast of supernatural powers

( magic ) .
If an in fringement o f these rules were proved the ,
o ne concerned was expelled ; undiscovered mis

demeanours of this sort inevitably excluded the monk
f r om the ran k o f true di s ciples ( that is all his work ,
was fruitles s ) even though he maintained correctly

,
the outward semblance Minor infr ingements o f the .
manifold regulations o f the mona s tic life were expiated

by all sort s o f penances The old revered colle ction .
o f precepts and o f the penances by which trans

,
e s i o n s may be purged is the famous P r at i m o k s h a

g r s ,
(or P atim o kkh a i n Pali) no t itself to be found in the

, ,
sacred writings ( as it was to be handed down orally

as a kin d o f secret ) but contained in the S utta
,
Vi b h a ng a S pecial days were appointed for the pur

.
pose o f self examination in the community by means

-
o f the P r at im o k s h a and of confe s sing pos s ible s hort

,
comings This too k place a t the new and the full

.
moon ( Later on they added t o the s e t wo other days

.
,
so that four sacred day s divided the month into four

parts similar to the Chri s tian S undays and wee k s ) .
The days o f confes s ion were called Up o sa th a and ,
they are Observed up to the present time These .
assemblies for confession are nearly the only di s tinct

TH E BU D DH A AND H I S D O C T R I N E 31
instance of united devout activity of the whole com

munity 1
B ut this even h as nothing in common
.
, ,
with the public worship o f oth er religion s H ere is .
only the feeling o f all being pl edged to the same

rule s of conduct and the recognition o f th e authority
,
o f the assembly by the individual .
T he whole B uddhist organi z ation res te d merely

o n verbal tradition G a u ta ma left n o thi ng i n wri t i ng
. .
All his teachin g was spread by word of mouth and ,
his followers impressed it o n their memories This .
is not so incredible as might appear to the modern

Western m ind In the culture o f the ancient Indian
.
the memory played a far more important r Ol e than in

o u r book blessed days
-
It accomplished far more
.
,
and was much more keenly valued than at present .
T he form in which the Buddha cast his teaching was

S pecially adapted for committing to memory For .
his m ore important doctrines h e constructe d certain

formulas which he continually repeated Many Of .
the ampli cations n aturally followed from wh at were

already familiar categories to most of his hearers .
A numerical se q uence was u sed again and again .
O ther material was readily stamped o n th e mind by

its connection with practical re q uirements which h a d
to be carried out day by day Y et again other things .
,
were easily remembered by bein g embodied in th e

pictorial form which the master used o r by strikin g ,
On e m ig h t in it i a t ion m o nk ,
1
a dd the a c t Of of a n ew an d
a fe s t iv a l
c all ed P a v ar a n a a t t h e e n d Of t h e r a in y s e a s o n wh en ,
t h e m o nk s be fore p a r t in g fo r t h eir j our n ey s a s k ed forgive n e s s

, ,
fro m o n e a n o t h er fo r eve n t u a l t r a n s gre s s io n s .

32 B UD DH IS M AS A RE LIGION
comparisons o r by the relation o f experiences draw n

,
from his o wn life or that o f some well k nown per -
so n a l i ty At the same time it was one o f the mo s t

.
important forms o f activity o f the organized c o m

munity o f di s ciple s that they s hould become living
bearers of the teaching S o fo r some time Buddhism .
could forego the help of writing .
In the long run it is true this became an i mp o s

-
, ,
sible condition o f a ffairs After some centuries

.
recourse was had to writing which eventually resulted ,
in a canon o f sacred scriptures Naturally i t s forma .

,
tion under these circumstances was a somewhat dark

process The date of origin o f the single book s of the
.
canon and h o w much may be considered the very

,
word of the Buddha are que s tions which will long

,
continue to be the subj ect of di fcult hi s torical

inve s tigation .
A preliminary word may here be added as to the

contents o f the Buddhist canonical writings The .
canon is not identical in all countries where Buddhism

prevails ; the fundamental features the most im ,
portant boo k s the main divisions are indeed to be

, ,
found everywhere S cholars generally agree that the

.
canon of the s o called S outhern Buddhism (prevailing

-
in Ceylon B urma S iam ) o n the whole presents the

, , , ,
mo s t original a s pect o f the sacred books This canon .
is written in the P ali language It is c alled the .
Tipi t a ka ( S an s k rit : Tripi t a k a) that is The Three ,
Ba s k et s fo r it con s i s ts o fthree main parts o fwritin gs .
1 The r s t part is called the Vi na y a p it aka

. It .
deals with the precept s and organization o f th e

monastic life and comprise s three boo k s
,
THE B UDD HA AND H I S D O C T R I NE 33
(a ) S u tt a vi b h a ng a , a full expositio n of the rul es of

the P ati mo kkh a mentioned above .
( b) T he Kh a n dh aka s smaller treatises divide d

, or ,
in to two books : the Ma h ava g ga ( great divisio n ) an d

the Culla va g ga ( small division ) T hese books discus s
.
some rule s not conta i ned in the P atimo kkh a o n ,
adm ission in to the O rder on the Upo s a t h a ceremony

, ,
o n duties in the rain y season on cloth in g dwelling

, , ,
and sim ilar poin ts .
( 0 ) P a r i v ar a ( appendix ) a short manual o f later

,
addition containin g material s on th e life of th e

,
community arranged more for purposes of education

, .
2 T he second part is called the S uttapi t aka

. Th e .
Buddha s doctrin e of salvation is set forth in th is

mostly in the form of dialogues or discourses o f the ,
master to his disciples fre q uently embodied in a

,
historical setting T his part comprise s the followin g

.
collections
( )
a D i gh a nikaya ( collectio n of longer discourses ) ,
consistin g of 3 4 long d ialogues ( suttas ) .
( b) Majjh im a nikaya ( collection of discourses of

medium length containin g 1 52 s uttas )
,
.
(c) Ag u ttar a n ikaya ( collection of di scourses

arranged after numbers ) containing more tha n
,
suttas in eleven divisions so th at the rst division

,
deals with things of which there exists only one kin d ,
the second o f such which e xist twofold the t hird of ,
such which exist in threes and so o n , .
(d ) S amyu tt an ikaya ( collection o f discourse s

arranged in groups ) containing , s uttas in fty
six groups all suttas referrin g to one subj ect o r o n e
,
person brought together in one group .

Besides these four collections there is a fth which ,
for ms an appendix (some even count it as belonging

to the next pit a k a) a collection of ' different materials
, ,
sayings o f the Buddha songs tales legends and the

, , , ,
lik e This appendix is called

.
( e) K h u dda ka nikaya (collection o f smaller works) ;

it consists o f fteen books some Of which belong to
,
the best k nown and most impressive works of the

-
Buddhist literature The books are these

.
i Khu dd aka path a ( short recitations )

. .
ii Dhammapada ( a kind o f hymn book)

.
-
.
iii Ud ana ( ec s tatic utterances )

. .
iv I tivu ttaka m ( 1 20 short stories with sayings

.
,
o f the Buddha ) .
v S u tta nip ata (hymns )

. .
vi Viman a va tth u (legends on future life in

.
vii P e ta va tth u
. heaven and hell ) .
viii Th e r a g ath a (songs o f 1 07 mon k s and 7 3 nuns

.
,
ix Th e r i gath a
. with biographical note s ) .
x J ata k a (legends o n 5 5 0 former existences o f

.
the Buddha ) .
xi Nid d esa ( commentary o n the S u tt ani p ata )

. .
xl 1 P a t is a m b hidam a gga (o n magic power s )

. .
xiii Apadana ( s tories o n saint s)

. .
xiv B u ddh a va m s a ( on 24 former Buddha s )

. .
xv Ca riyap it a ka ( on 3 4 former incarnations o f

.
the Buddha) .
3The third part o f the Tip it aka is called Ab h id

.
h a mm a p it a ka Thi s part is o f a p sychological nature

.
,
discussing the psychological prolegomena o f the

Buddhist ethical system It comprises seven boo k s
.
T HE B UDD H A AND H I S D O C TR I N E 35
i Dhammasam g ani ( compendium o f state s or

.
phenomena ) .
11 Vi b h a ng a (continuation o f the foregoing )

. .
iii K a th ava tth u ( refutation o f 25 2 heretical views)

. .
iv P ug g al a p a a tti ( discrimin ation o f men from

.
the ethical poin t ) .
v Dh atuka th a
.
vi Y amaka
.
( smaller treatises o n p sycho
logical subj ects ) .
vii Patth ana

.
S uch is th e co n te nt s of the P ali cano n of B ud dhist

scriptures It seems that th e whole of these scriptures
.
has been reduced to writing towards th e beginning o f

the rst century before Christ or somewhat later ,
1
.
B ut there were certainly earlier c ollection s o f a similar

kind even at the time of King A soka ( of whom we shall
,
S peak in the next ch apter ) about 25 0 R C .
V ery different from this P ali canon is the canon

o f the Northern B uddhists fo r i n s tance that o f the ,
T ibetans and the Chinese Both the Tibetan and th e

.
Chin ese B uddhist c anons embrace a great many later

works and commentaries whilst those in common ,
with the P ali canon Often differ very much in details .
1
S o it i s stat ed by t h e Dip a v am s a , th e h old c roni cle o f
C eylon writt e n i n
, th e f our ce
th n t ury A D . .Cf R h . y s D a vid s ,
Buddhi s t S utt a s S a cred Boo k s o f t h e E a st

, p xxii
. .
B OOK I I
S K ETCH OF TH E H I S TORY OF
B U DD H I S M
C HA P T ER I .
INDIA
D U R IN G the lifetime of the Buddha the spread of his
teaching extended not much beyond the kingdoms
o f Ma g a dh a and K o sa l a ( see p During the suc
.
c e e di n g centuri es its inuence slowly and gradually
widened but we are not able to follow the stages of

,
its course the next o f which was the conquest of the

,
whole peninsula F o r a long time this great country

.
was a su fcient tas k for it By its spread in India

.
Buddhism had by no means seriou s ly set itself in

opposition to the exi s ting religions there It rather .
appeared as a side branch o f the Brahmanistic sy s tem

-
o f thought . Despite some important di fferences ( such

as the teaching about the soul the place held by ,
caste ) Buddha s mode Of life and most o fhis doctrines

,

were n o t received as anything new o r unheard o f .
S up e r c i al ly therefore it may not have been difcult

, ,
for him to win possession o f this territory despite the ,
controversies and passages o f arms whic h would

inevitably tak e place at t h e coming o f Buddhism ,
owing to the rivalry o f the Brahmans .
86
H I S TO R I C A L D E VE L O P M E N T 37
A greater di fculty lay in the successful passin g

through in ward crises so far indeed as this was
, , ,
po ssible S ome vague accoun ts of such crises have

.
been handed down to u s From the very fact o f the

.
B uddha s long continued labour his withdrawal from

-
,
the earthly stage and the cessation o f his personal

,
direction and authority were a severe test It is true

, .
that when h e l ay a dyin g h e hande d over the leader

-
ship t o his most trusted disciple wh o in his turn ,
did the same at th e time o f his death so that for ,
many centuries there was a succession of s o called -
p a tr i a r c hs at the head of B uddhism who were leading ,
personalities B ut from the rst the se patr iarch s

.
were mainly of decorative value A hierarchal .
development was too much opposed to the spirit Of

an cient Indian B uddhism There was therefore no .
strong hand to keep an authoritative hold o n the

large numbers Of monks The doctrine o n which the
.
true basis o f th e society re sted was as we have ,
already seen a verbal tradition T hus it was but

,
.
,
n atural that its furth er growth produced various kin ds

o f development .
O rthodox B uddhism emphatically main tains that

immediately after the entrance o f the B uddha in to
Nirv ana an acc urate basis was de ned on which this

further d evelopment was to res t namely a council ,
was held directly after the B uddha s death to estab
lish the correct doctrine Naturally this was oral .

,
being delivered aloud by the two most highly e steemed

disciples and th e others recited it in unison This
, .
council is said to have taken place in a cave o f th e

Va ihar a Mou n tain in the n eighbo urhood o fR aj agriha
, .
F ive hun dred mon k s are said to have taken part in it ,
and it was presided over by Kas yapa o n whom the ,
dying master had conferred the o fce o f patriarch .
This is the statement o f orthodox Buddhist tradition .
We nd a detailed account o f this council in the

book o f the S acred Canon called Cu ll ava g ga chap xi ,
. .
,
and in the commentary o n the B r a h m ajal a s u tta by ,
B u ddh a g h o sa O n the other hand the main evidence

.
,
again st the fact of this council having ta k en place is

the absolute S ilence o n this point o f the Ma h ap a r in ib
b ana sutta o n e o f the most important documents
-
,
relating the death o f the Buddha and some s u b se

quent events F o r further study see Rhys Davids
.

Buddhist S uttas pp xi xiii and L de la V all e
, .
-
,
.

Pou s s in s

Les Conciles Bouddhiques I Les .

Deux P r emiers Conciles In any case the council
.
, ,
if it did tak e place did not succeed by its decisions

,
in putting a stop to the internal di s agreement and

dis s ension In two respects we can prove that dis
.
sension characterized the new teaching during the rst

centuries O n the o n e hand a lax party e s tablished
.
,
itself along with a strict o n e in the practice o f th e

monastic life O n the other hand a number of
.
,
differences Of Opinion crept in as to this o r that

philosophical point in the system .
Although the mode o f life which Buddha had pre

scribed for his dis c iples was n o t strictly speak ing an , ,
ascetic o ne yet h i s instruction contained denite acts

,
o f renunciation which in time were found to be very

,
irk some and unattain able This led to the formation

.
o f a group o f adherents governed by laxer principles .
They demanded a change in th e rules both as to ,

HI S TO RI C A L D EVE L O P M E N T 39
their n ature and the way in which they were to be

carried out Ten such softening re q uisition s were
.
made amo n gst which fo r instance were the follow

, , ,
ing T hat certain luxurie s ( fermented li q uors ) should

be allowed ; that meals might be t aken after midday ;
that confession a n d the rite Of admission S hould be
allowed to take place in private houses ; th at com
fo rta b le beds might be used ; an d that the monks
might own money T here was n aturally a stro n g
.
oppositio n to this relaxing of the Ol d monastic

austerity At a secon d council which took place at
.
Va i s h ali about a hundred years after the rst o ne ,
a stern decree was passed utterly rej ecting all th ose

concessions and reasserting the Ol d basis o f monastic
,
discipline B ut the opponents must h ave been already

.
i n the maj ority T hey assembled in an opposition

.
council which far outnumbered the other and decided

, ,
the matter accordi n g to their o wn wishes T he exist .
ence of dissent became thus plainly evident .
T he various opinion s which arose at this time with

regard to all sorts of doctrinal points and the strife ,
which they occasioned were obviously of small i m ,
portance T here were indeed eighteen d ier e nt sects

.
, ,
into which the faith h ad already split up in th e ,
second century o f its existe n ce These eighteen sects .
were subdivided into four main divisions called

Ma h asan gh ika S t h avi ra S a r vas tivada and S a m
, , ,
m i ti y a
. U n q ue stionably these were differences o f ,
min or importance con n ed to the preference t o be

,
given to this o r that interpretation o f debatable

points or to this o r that practical method without
, ,
( o n such grounds ) denyin g the fu n damental right o f

anyone t o the possession o f the Buddhist truth o f

salvat io n .
In the second century o f its existence Buddhi s m ,
saw great changes in the political conditions o f its

native land which were not devoid o f reex action
,
upon itself .
The j ourneys o f Alexander the G reat stirred India

on its western frontier It was perhaps due to the s e
.
, ,
disturbing inuences that a gr eat united North Indian

kingdom was formed in place o f the many individual
principalities which both in the Buddha s lifetime
,

and later had stood in rival and somewhat irritatin g

-
proximity to one another The founder o f this united

.
k ingdom was Chandragupta a gifted up s tart o f low

,
caste who became the hero o f Indian folklore for

,
many centuries owing to h i s he r oic career His .
k ingdom extended from the borders o f the present

A fghanistan as far as Bengal and from the Himalayas
,
to the plateau o f the Deccan Chandragupta attain ed

.
the summit Of his glory in the year 3 1 5 R C .
He had intimate dealing s r s t antagoni s tic then ,
friendlywith S eleucus Nic a to r the mighty succe s so r

,
of Alexander the G reat wh o became India s neighbour

,

o n the western border S eleucus Ni ca to r attempted

.
to renew Alexander s conquest o f India but was pre

,
vented from achieving this by Chandragupta O n .
the conclusion o f peace S eleucus consented to the

,
marriage o f o ne of his daughters with his former

enemy O n this occasion the G ree k Me g a s th e ne s
.
was sent to the Court o f Chandragupta at P ata lip u tr a ,
and his reports are o n e o f th e most importan t sources

o f o u r knowledge o f the conditio n o f India at that
HI S T O R I C A L DE VE L O P ME N T 41
time From the fragments of them however quoted

.
, ,
by other writers we learn as to matters of importance

very little about B uddhism Me g a s t h e n e s n ames
.

the B uddhists as S a r m a na i an d says th at they ,

are opposed to the B r ahm an ai B ut his de.
scription o f their m o de o f life is vague and he ,
seems to mix the B uddhists up with other India n

sects 1
.
Chandragupta himself was not a B uddhist ; h e was

o n far more friendly term s with the Brahmans and ,
it was the same with his son B in d u s ara His grand .
son who was second in succession to the throne

, ,
became however the most famous patron o f B ud

, ,
d hi sm This was the K in g A soka ( generally kn own

.
by the P ali form o f his name Asoka ) who reign ed , ,
about 27 0 23 3 -
It was after ascending th e throne
that he rst came into contact with B uddhism and ,
only gradually that he awoke to a n ardent z eal for

the new religion He always remained a mere lay
.
adherent but in the l ast twenty seven years Of his

,
-
reign h e became such an ideal and thorough pro

moter of B uddhism that no one sin ce has come up to
his level H e was origin ally called P r iya da r i n an d
.
,
may perhaps h ave adopted the name ASo ka ( free

, ,
fr om care ) when he attained that condition by th e

accepta nce of B uddhism .
A s oka left beh in d him a large n umber of in s crip

tion s o n pillars an d rock walls which have recently ,
been deciphered and which form the most reliable

,
material fo r th e study o f his character and fo r th e

Of
Me g a s th e ni s I n di c a ed S c h w a nbec k pp 1 36 1 40
.
, .
, .
-
.
B o nn se , 1 846 .
Buddhism Of that period Thus we possess a fairly .
well de ne d account of the development of Buddhism

-
during A so k a s reign
.
During this period o n e traces a vigorous expansion

Of the strong young religion King A s o k a in many .
of his edicts a frm s the succes s ful extension of

B uddhi s t teaching beyond the borders o f his kingdom .
This refers to the relations he had entered into with

several Western rulers such as Antiochus II o f S yria
,
.
( 26 0 247
-
Ptolemy Philadelphus of E gypt (28 5
Antigonus Conatas of Macedonia ( 27 8 and
others The s e relations which were o f an es s entially
.
,
political nature served at all events as a handle to

,
the ardent Buddhist King by means o f which to ,
introduce his religion but the attempt led to no ,
result worth mention The attempt however is

.
, ,
characteristic It shows how the Buddhist o f that

.
time pushed forward into the unknown tracts o f the

world The same s pirit ma k es it s elf felt in the cele
.
b r a t e d council which too k place dur i ng his reign the ,
third according to Buddhist rec k onin g It was held .
at P ata l ip u tr a in the year 2 52 Its main Obj ect

was to safeguard afresh both doctrine and life from
error and misuse Here it was also resolved to send
.
forth as missionaries a number o f the most illustrious

exponents o f the faith beyond the limit s o f A s o k a s
dominio ns The following countries indeed were
. , ,
selected : Ka s hmir and Gh a nd a r a the west o f the ,
Punj ab a di s trict in the Deccan ( the sources o f the

,
G odavari) Bactria the territory o f the Central

, ,
Himalayas the west coast o f F arther India Ceylon

, , ,
besides some less certainly recognizable places in the

H I S TO R I CAL D E VE L O P ME N T 43
same regions A strenuous exodu s from the home

.
land makes itself felt at this time extendin g e q ually ,
to the north east we st and south frontiers of India

, , ,
.
It will not appear extraordin ary that Buddhism two ,
h undred years after the death of its fou n der S hould ,
n ow for the rst time set foot beyond th e territory o f

In dia considerin g th e immense extent of that country
,
and the length of time n ecessarily required to o u t

grow it .
AS to the reli g ious conditio n o f B uddhism in I n dia

itself at this time we are well informed through the
person o f A o ka for in the inscriptions there is a
,
clear account o f what it meant t o him But o ne .
must n ever forget that ASo ka wa s a layman ; that

what concerned the in nermost circle o f followers
cannot be demonstrated by reference to him It is .
so much th e m ore in teresting however t o see how , ,
B uddhism works through a gifted and in uential

layman full of ch aracter All the King s inscription s
, .

prove that he draws from his religion a strengthenin g

o f moral e ff
ort a consciousness o f duty a devotion to
, ,
public welfare T hough B uddhism is certainly unable

.
to expres s its doctrin e o f with drawal from th e world

in the life o f its lay adherents yet in A soka it shows ,
the moral and social train in g which form a prepara

tion for this by means of the earnest accomplishment
of all existing moral requirements It is only by th e .
respect he S hows to monks the f ully e dg e d disciples

,
-
,
and by the fact th at m any of his moral act s include

the care and maintenance o f the monastic community
(the result probably o f his esteeming these acts to be
, ,
of the highest moral value ) that A o ka made it plain ,

that the highest way must lead beyond the sphere of

ordinary dutie s both fo r men and rulers .
A s o k a s moral apprehension is indeed somewhat

idealistic Thus he s ays : All men are my children

.
,
.
As I desire that my children may be parta k ers o f all

that is good and happy both in this world and the
next so I desire it also fo r man k ind
, or There is ,

n o greater tas k than to strive fo r the universal welfare .
What he urges o n himself and o n his dependents are

mo s tly duties o f real morality the performance Of ,
which would n o t be que s tioned from the s tandpoint o f

any other religion : obedience and honour to parents ,
o l d people and teachers ; a rightful loyalty to friends ;

,
benevolence ; e ffort for the public good (the planting

of trees digging o f wells the establishment o fS helters
, , ,
the distribution o f medi c inal herb s ) ; the kindly treat

ment o f servants and the poor ; forbearance to all
living things even to animal life ; truthfulness ;
,
patience ; j ustice ; curbing o f sensuality ; grateful

ness etc No o n e can fail to be struck by h i s peculiarly
,
.
keen moral attitude and impre s sive moral energy .
He brings his o wn moral life into close touch with

his religion which he prizes over and over again
, .
But he is no fanatic ; he sees clearly the dangers o f

superstitious or bigoted action and opposes it in a ,
reasonable way .
But one must be careful not to generalize from the

ca s e o f A s oka as to the bulk o f ordinary Buddhi s ts of
his day The moral strength o f purpose o f Buddhism
.
naturally exerted an inuence o n all laymen up to a

certain poin t There are traces even in A s o k a s
.

inscriptions showing on the other hand that in , ,

H I S TO R I CAL DE VE L O P ME N T 45
popular B uddhism there already existed much ex

t r a va g a n c e and practices which caused moral de
c l en si o n .
A s oka mention s in o ne of his in scription s th at he

has for the secon d time c aused a s tup a o f K a na ka mu n i
1
to be enlarged A s tp a means a m emorial building

.
,
which often became also a place where relics were

preserved T he above mentioned personage Kana
.
-
,
kamuni is looked upon as a bygone B uddha who h ad

, ,
appeared upon earth two generatio n s before B uddha

G au tama T his is an unhistorical dogm atic belief
. .
B ut two facts are plainly demonstrated by this passage

of ASo ka S inscription : rst th at already in his day

people had taken to building stp a s and with them , ,
n o doubt were connected all sorts of pious rites

, ,
pilgrimages o fferings together with a belief in the

, ,
e fcacy o f such things ; secondly that the myth o ,
logical speculation o f the B uddhism Of that epoch h ad

already developed a belief in a contin uou s series of
B uddhas each o f whom had appeared at a particular
,
time one after the other in regular succession till

, ,
its consummation h ad been reached i n the earthly

existence of B uddha G autama From this we may .
draw some more general conclusio n s .
S oon after th e rise o f B uddhism i n India it becam e

weighted by th at human dross which always sooner ,
o r later attaches itself to purely speculative religious

,
conceptions in so far as they are made serviceable to

,
1
S tup a , a S a n s kri t
word m e a n in g origin ally a t u ft o f
,

h a ir , th e n a do m e s h a ped m o nu m e n t
-

I n S in gh ale s e i t i s
.
c a lled dag a b a or d a g o b a from t h e P ali d hd tu g a b bha

, ,
S an s k ri t d hd tu g a/r b h a a c a sk e t fo r relic s
, , .
46 B U D DHI S M AS A RE LIGION
the common people This is especially the case in
.
the country o f India The natives o f India extremely

.
,
religious as well as extremely superstitious were sur ,
rounded with countless pious usages which could by ,
no means be set aside o r ignored Now Buddhi s m .

,
made no e ffort to counteract them This religion has .
from the very beginning always recognized a wider

and a narrower circle o f adherents Even the mon k s .
divided themselve s into groups characterized by vary ,
ing degrees o f earnestness and efforts If one looks .
farther aeld namely at the lay adherents Buddhism

, , ,
only aims at a certain ethical level and an outward

support o f the monkhood ; beyond this religious ,
idea s and habits are considered unimportant If they .
are foolish if they are useless it i s no part Of the

, ,
scheme of enlightened adherents o f Buddhism to

combat them If only those laymen by means o f
.
,
moral zeal and thorough support of the O rder do ,
their part such a condition o f exi s tence will be

,
granted to them in their next reincarnation (in accord

ance with the law o f retribution ) as to lead them into
the path of pure doctrine Then all super s titious p r a c
.
tices will naturally disappear It is o n such grounds .
as these that the Buddhism o f every period has shown

itself singularly tolerant Of foreign religious wor s hip
and conception s and it is this quality which gives it
,
that particular Proteus like gi ft o f as s imilation which

-
has characterized it in every country where we have

been able to study it in the light o f hi s tory This .
peculiarity has indeed been fatal t o it in the same

, , ,
degree as it has been the axle o n which its historical

movement turned .
HI S TO RI CAL DE VE L O P ME N T 47
T hat this was th e case in th e early times in In dia

we have already observed from th e account o f the
s t ap a in A soka s inscription T he e t apa must then

.
have been already some time in existence for it was ,
not erected by th e King but only twice enlarged

.
,
As this fac t is well authenticated the tradition gain s ,
a strong probability that there were many other s t ap a s

in existence and that A s oka s n am e was connected
,

with several o f them It is al so evident that at

.
,
the time when etapas were erected to the B uddh a

Ka na ka m u n i ( and besides him doubtless to other , ,
personages of the religiou s imagin ation ) other place s ,
must already have had memorial buildin gs namely ,
such places as those specially a ssociate d with the

hi s torical B uddh a G autam a s life and where relics Of

him were preserved .
Probably th e rst place s to be marked by stupas were

the four which are most revered down to the present
day : G autama s birthplace ( the grove o f L umbini )

the place where his great revelation took place ( the

B o tree) the place where he rst preached ( Benares )
-
, ,
and the spot where he entered the perfect Nirv ana

( K u Si n a g ar a ) B ut already in the days o f ASOk a they
.
h ad gone far beyond th e limits o f worshipping th ese

places only The need o f the bulk o f the people for
.
places o f prayer had foun d its satisfaction in th e

setting apart o f numberless sacre d S hrines ; and ,
furthermore this coincided with the requirements o f

,
the monks The worship o f relic s was attached t o

.
m any o f these places and this is always the immediate

,
cau s e o f all sorts of s uperstition S uch superstitiou s .
o ffs hoots were already so rife in A s oka s time that

48 B UDD HI S M AS A RE LIGION
he criticizes and tries to check them in some of his

edicts .
Conceptions of the Buddhas o f bygone periods ( to

which the name o f Ka na ka m u n i points ) show equally
an alienation from the modes Of thought of this religi on
in its origin G au tama had consciou s ly and resolutely
.
turned away from speculative thought except s uch as ,
was inseparably connected with the question of salva

tion but in the intellectual atmosphere o f India
vague phantasies unconsciou s ly sprang up which
developed into universal history in the grand style .
They played with mea s ureless expanse o f S pace and

time they created limitle s s worlds to each o f which ,
they assigned the i r tale of ctitious Buddhas The his .
t o ri ca l G autama S u dd h o da n a s son is foreshadowed

, ,
by them in the whole limitless past This sort of idea .
was already prevalent in A s o k a s day

.
It is with A s ok a that o ne might begin the his tory

of Buddhi s m outside India But we will ignore this
.
for the present in order to trace fur ther the develop

,
ment o f this religion in its native land .
The large empire o f A o ka fell to pieces soon after

his death F o r some c enturies Northern India was
.
the scene o f a similar drama t o that which too k plac e

before Ch a n dr a g u p ta s time a large number o f rival

neighbouring S tates varying in power During this .
time the G r es co Bactrian S tates were growing as a

-
,
b y product o f the former empire of Alexander o n the

-
,
we s tern borders of India This was an important

.
fact for India The G ree k armies pressed forward

.
eastward from Bactria and temporarily seized large

,
tracts o f terri tory in North West India Under such

-
.
H I S T O R I CAL D E VE L O P ME N T 49
circumstances G reek an d Indian culture becam e

,
in timately fused T he high water mark o f the

.
-
power and in uence of the Greeco Bactrian empires -
was reached by Kin g Menander ( the India n n ame is

Milin da ) about the middle of the second cent ury B C .
T he hindra n ce to the growth of this G reek co n

federacy of S tates and to the growt h o f the petty ,
S tates of Northern India was the ever in creasin g ,

-
in ux of Mongolian con q uerors from the n orth a n d

north west towards the close of the second ce n tury
-
.
In the north and north west o f the H imalayas there -
was at that time a restles s S hifting o f the aboriginal

tribes By this movement the s o calle d S akhas
.
-
( S cythians the Chinese S sii ) were drive n southwar d

,
into Northern India whence they exte n ded small ,
dependencies like outposts till they reached the

, ,
Vin dhya Moun tain s B ehin d th e S akhas advanced

.
the races of Yii eh chi also Mongols After some -

, .
encounters ( of which o u r present kn owledge forbids

us to give a detailed account) a mighty empire was ,
established i n the North West of India composed o f -

,
these iriva de r s which p ut an e n d to the G reek

,
supremacy in Bactria T his is the so called I n do .

-
S cythian o r K ush an E mpire .
T he most n oted r ul er o f the In do S cythia n E mpire -
was K ani ska His rei gn was durin g the r st o r seco n d

.
1
century of the Christian era T he exte n t o f his empire .
was very co n siderable it comprised main ly the bed o f

the In dus and o f the U pper G anges ( as far as Agra ) ,
1
Th ere h as been m uch cont rover s y a s t o th e d at e o f
Ka ms k a V in ce nt A S m i th give s h i s a cce ss io n as A D 7 8 o r
'
. .
. .
,
even as A D 1 20 . . .
and extended a lso o n the north as far as Yarkand and ,
o n the west as far a s Kabul Kani s ka lik e A s ok a was

.
, ,
an adherent o f Buddhism D uri ng hi s r eig n i t wa s tha t

.
a n e w typ e of t hi s r e lig i o n c a me i n to exi s t en ce which ,
wa s partially opposed to the older form and which ,
was the cause o f a great split among the followers of

the Buddha ; this division has controlled the whole
course o f Buddhist history We must now consider.
this change more closely .
It has been already pointed o u t that the margin

between Buddhism and the p h il o s o phi c o religious -
tendencies o f that period in In dia were from the

beginning indeterminate in character Also we have .
remar k ed already (p . that the Buddhist did

no t separate himself entirely from the prevalent
superstitious beliefs and customs common to the
masses o n the contrary he showed a strong inclina
,
tion to adapt himself to the popular belief and to ,
weave foreign ideas into his o wn creed This lack .
o f sharply dened outlines o f his spiritual territory
was particularly di s astrous in its results since Bud ,
d sh i m from the days o f A o k a onwards spread over

an ever increasing area o f India ; while on the other
-
hand foreign blood and foreign conceptions con

t inually poured into India together with the political
,
changes to which we have already referred The .
borderlands o f India towards th e Him alayas towards ,
T uran and towards Iran in which the disciples of

,
the Buddha were establi s hing themselves more and

more securely possessed their o wn individual well
, ,
shaped religious characteris tics a remark able cult an d

,
superstition which enforced respect At the same

, .
H I S TO RI CAL D E VE L O P ME N T 51
tim e all sorts o f G reek Persian an d other Asiatic

, ,
in uences p oured freely from th e west into India The .
Indo S cythian E mpire freely absorbed all this medley

-
.
In such a st ate o f a ffairs the origin al trend o f

tho ught of B uddhist teaching became saturated with
alie n material and essentially changed Conception s .
totally at variance with those o f it s founder ltere d

in to it T hese new ideas were not o n ly tolerated by
.
the ignorant multitude but they also took pos sessio n

,
of the narrower circle o f the monkhood ; they were

formed in to a doctrin al system by speculative minds ,
which was given out as bein g thoroughly B uddhist ,
wh ile others in deed recogni z e d this as a dangerou s

, ,
in novation and strenuously hel d themselves aloof

,
from it .
T he mo s t i mp o rta nt of thes e new i d ea s which had

been in corporated in to Buddhism were a s follows
( a ) T he co n cep ti o n ofa n E t e r n a l D ei ty B uddh a did .
not combat the belief in gods which he found existin g

among his associates T he divin e to him was b ut
.
o n e amon g many form s o f existence a happy kin d o f ,
existence o n e o f the rewards o f a virtuous l ife Th e

, .
gods however are also subj ect to change n o matter

, , ,
how long a time they may contin ue T hey are capable .
also accordin g to the law o f retributio nOf sink

in g to a lower state of existence or eve n to th e lowest, .
T he gods are far in ferior to the B uddh a ; they have no t

yet reache d th e goal Nirv anathey still remain in
the whirlpool o f rein carn ation O ne easily recogni z e s
.
that this is not a perfect conception o f godhead which ,
embraces the high est the entirely superhum an th e

, ,
eternal With such a co n ceptio n o f the gods the

.
,
4 2
B uddha co ul d afford to give f ull play to the super s tition

o f the multitude without his own ideas being thereby
,
affected But at the time o f which we are S p e aking

.
,
another conception o f the Divin e Being had ari s en ,
which is entirely Oppo s ed to the ori ginal Buddhist

system of thought By this is meant an Eternal Go d
.
,
superior to all things who is the ultimate and ,
supreme cause o f all life T he historic Buddha

.
G autama is reduced to being but a transitory mani

fe s ta ti o n o f this Eternal Bein g O ne can only ta k e
.
this t o be a reversion to the ancient Brahman theory

o f the world soul o r perhaps the inuence o f a foreign
-
,
(Persian o r even Chri s tian) belief

,
The most prom .
i nent attributes of this highest Deity are those o f

i nnit u de ( of absolute being especially as regards ,
the limitations o f time ) and o f light .
( ) The B
b o dhi s a t tva s s o called now begin to
assume an important rOle The name of Bodhi
.
sattva ( he whose es s ence s a ttva is becoming enlight

, ,
ment b o dhi ) signies those who through the various

, ,
stages o f development had by ever increasing merit

,
-
attained to the career o f a Buddha in their next

rein carnation F o r instance
. G autama when he, ,
came down from heaven (according to the legend )

to become esh in his mother M ay a was a Bodhi ,
sattva When a Bodhisattva undertak es the task o f

.
a Buddha then his goal is Nirvana : with that

, ,
naturally all earthly relation comes to an end

, .
F o r him who has reached Nirvana n o faithful sup ,
plication can Obtai n anythin g further But it is for .
the necessity o f having a personality to which man

kin d can address itself in times o f stress an d sorrow
H I S TO R I C A L DE VE L O P M E N T 53
that the followin g theory sprang Many o f tho se .
lofty beings who are in a position to tread the last

,
way o f life are pos sessed by a stron g craving to aid

,
their fell ow beings around them to lead them into

-
,
the true way o f k nowledge a n d this craving de ,
termine s them to willingly forego the B uddhaship

which they might attain in order to live for countles s
,
years in the state of a Bodhisattva engaged in tasks

of ministry to lower beings T he B odhisattva mean
.
while exists in o n e Of th e many heavens possesses ,
divine powers is lled with kindly intentions toward s

,
the su ffering world below him and is ready to help ,
those who appeal to him T his is the kind of Bodhi

.
s a t tva s which the B uddhism of our period created in
ever in creasin g numbers by which mean s it retai n ed

-
,
and remodelled fre q uently the popular deities of those

co u ntries i n to which it desired to gain admissio n .
( 0) B y thi s theo ry t he mo r a l a t ti tu d e of mo na s ti ci sm ,
a s w e ll a s i ts i d ea ls w as a l t er ed
, T he ideal o f the
.
ancient monkhood was the s o called A

-
r ha t namely ,
the Holy O ne vi z a man who through most perfect

, ,
obedience to the teaching o f th e B uddha h ad obtained ,
entrance to Nirv ana Now the attainment of the

.
B o dh i sa ttva h o o d take s the foremost place The com .
passionate helpful ch aracter o i the B odhisattva

,
contributes to the moral aspect of sympathy with all

beings o f a world encompassing love which becomes
,
-
,
much more prominent n ow tha n in the earlier

Buddhism o f which the mora l ity was directed rather
,
to the attain ment of personal holin ess .
(01) With regard to the laity the i nvo ca tio n of t he

,
B o dhis a t tva now naturally becomes the central point .

Besides the emphasis laid o n meritorious acts re ,
mark able s tress is placed ( fo r the laity ) o n fa i th .
Whoever ma k es a tru s tful appeal t o the Bodhisattva ,
and be l ieves in him with strong conviction may rely ,
upon Obtaining his compassion .
( e) This change into the usual religious belief in

gods countenanced by the ancient teaching of the
,
B uddha was still further strengthened by the fact

,

that a happy state o f existence a p a r a d is ewas
substituted for Nirvana S uch is the reward ( adorned .
with every imaginable j oy ) o f virtuous conduc t and ,
he who attains this blessed life is saved from the

uncertainties o f reincarnation H el l is placed in .
contrast to this Paradise A coarser delineation of .
reward and punishment in happy or unhappy sur

roundin gs replaces the Ol d philosophical conception
'
o f existence being a state of su f fering and o f the ,
nal release from it through the removal of all

empirical bein g .
(f) E ven the o l d fundamental rule of monastic life ,
which enj oined ten Obligations was n o w transforme d , ,
owing to the inuence Of the fact that in certain

particulars the mon k s life had been altered
The .
following ten obligations were now enj oined : Not to

kill not to steal to avoid all unchastity not to lie
, , , ,
not to slander not to in sult no t to chatter no t to

, , ,
covet not t o give way to anger to harbour no s cep ti

, ,
c i sm These ten commandments comprise three sins

.
o f the body four sins of the tongue and three sins of

, ,
the mind .
These are the most important changes which took

place during K a ni ka s reign in the Buddhist dogmatic

H I S T OR I CAL D E VE L O P M E N T 55
system It is also worthy o f n otice that this new

.
phase was ch aracteri z ed by a change of lan guage for

the vehicle of its ideas In the place o f P ali we nd
.
S anskrit F o r j ust at that time there was an arti cial

.
renaissance o f this ancient and sacred language in ,
conj unction wi th de nite e fforts to x the verbal

tradition o f th e sacred record s o fB uddhism by written
doc uments .
The King Kani s ka held again a council which ,
took place at J ala n dh a ra in K ashmir At this .
council the above mentioned new lines o f B uddhism

-
seem to h ave been established T hree great com

.
ment e ries to the sacred canon were sa n ctioned .
T hese commentaries were written in S anskrit an d we ,
may accept with con dence th e fact that they were

the expressio n of the new deve l Op me nt 1
T his is the .
reason why S outhern B uddhism refused to ackn ow

ledge this council .
T he cleavage caused by this new development

within B uddhism is m arked by the names of
Ma hayana and H i na yana T he names signify the .
big vehicle an d the little vehicle The picture of a .
vehicle was frequently used in B uddhi s m to symbolize

the doctrine wh ich bore th e disciple s acros s th e world
,
to the goal of Nirv ana T he widened and transformed

.
Buddhism as it then foun d its centre in Kashmir

, ,
called itself Mah ay ana an d it called the older form

,
H inay ana In In dia both schools of thought existed

.
side by side for a long sp ace o f time naturally not ,
1 Th e s e wri t in g s h a ve n o t y e t bee n pub l i sh ed ; b u t in la t er

t im e s ( fo r in s t an ce by t h e C h in e s e p ilgri m s ) t h ey a r e m e n t io n ed
,
a s e min e nt wor k s o f t h e M ah ay an a divi s io n .

without a certain amount o f friction this occasionally

rose to an acute stage o f denunciation and strife but ,
it was generally so slight as to allow monks o f both

persuasions to live together in the same monastery .
Later hi s torical development separated these two

schools so that the Older and more original Buddhi s m
the Hinayana became the ruling o ne in the
,
southern countries Ceylon and Farther India while

, ,
Mah ay ana Buddhism wo n for itself the northern

countries o f Tibet Mo ngolia China Korea and Japan
, , , ,
.
The whole s c Op e o f Mah ay ana Buddhi s m may be

seen realized during the reign o f Kani sk a in the
personality o f A va gh o s a who must be con s idered
,
the most eminent exponent o f this school There is .
an important wor k of his which has been preserved

for us in a Chinese tran s lation It has been translated .
by Te it a r o S uzuki ( Chicago and lately by ,
Dr Timothy Richard ( S hanghai entitled ,

1
Treatise o n the Awak ening o f Faith This work .
gives a systematic account of Buddhi s t principle s ,
according to the Mah ay ana tenets O ther renowned .
masters o f this school o f later date were Nag arjuna

, ,
( in the later half o f the second century Arya deva ,
and Va s u b h a ndhu .
Despite the great cleft which from this time forward

ran through Buddhism it is nevertheless in the rst
,
centuries o f the Christian era that it grew and

ourished in India At that time it seems to have
.
1
ASv a gh o sa a l s o wro t e a rem a rk a ble li fe o f th e Buddh a o f
s uc h a lege n d a ry c h a r a c t er a s t o S h ow h o w fa r m e n h a d a lre a dy
w an dered from the h i st oric al co n cep t ion of ounder

th e f of the
religion ( s e e p .
HI S T OR I C A L DEVE L O P M E N T 57
largely s uperseded Brahmanism in the popular

es timation From 3 00 R C to A D 1 00 the m any
. . . .
,
inscriptions as to gifts sacrice s and so o n which

, , ,
Ki n gs great and wealthy persons o r piou s donors

, , ,
presented do not m ake mentio n o f them in connection

,
with any Brah mans or B rahman temples o r Brahman

worship Al so in the second and third centurie s A D
. . .
there is but seldom any mention o f Brahmans It is .
evident that B uddhism wa s until the fourth century

AD
. . the main and th e ruling religion in India for
the bulk of th e population The most noteworthy .
description which we possess from the Chinese Fa

H sian when he traversed India a s a pilgrim (about
,
AD
. . S hows us Indian B uddhism in its S trength
and pomp .
There was a large number of monasteries throughout

the country he tells u s They were S pecially numerous
, .
in the neighbourhood o f those places connected either

by hi s torical o r legendary association with the person o f
the Buddh a G autama Thu s in the neighbourhood of
.
,
the J e tava n a Park which is well known in connection

,
with the B uddh a s life there were ninety eight

,
-
monasteries Many o fthem must have been very large

.
establishments as the number of mo nks amounted

,
to a thousand o r more E verywhere stap e s were

.
to be fou n d in close proximity to the monasteries ,
sometimes gigantic buildin gs in which the art lent ,
its brillia n t service to religion Monasteries and .
s t p a s were beset by a den se tissue of Superstition ,
which was by no mean s peculiar to the laity but ,
also S hared by the monks both o f the Hi nay ana

and the Mah ay ana schools Relics such as a tooth .
,
of the Buddha or his begging bowl o r his pilgrim

,
-
,
s ta
, o r a s k ull
bone o f his o r some such thing , ,
was said to be preserved in one place or another ,
and received great homage Th e common faith .
overlaid them with miraculous powers Thus o ne .

,
hundred men were unable to lift the Buddha s stick

.
F ive elephants could no t drag his begging bowl from -
its place The account also of the Buddha s life is

.

full o f supernatural features They showed places in .
the roc k s where impressions of his footprints were to

be seen F rom existences of the Buddha previous to
.
his last life there is also drawn a wealth o f legendary

,
material Not only are his portraits revered in the

.
monasteries but those also o f many other holy

,
persons such as the three supposititious Buddhas

, ,
who preceded his epoch and the one who was to ,
follow him besides the most noted o f his disciples

,
and others All sorts o f in gredients belonging to the

.
earlier Indian mythology are melted together with

Buddhism The d eva s are worshipped as sub
.
ordinate holy being s F rom the very ancient se rpent

.
worship they adopted the n ag a s ( s erpent S pirits)

and made them serviceable to Buddhi s m S uch a .
serpent fo r instance they would select to be the

, ,
patron saint o f a monastery and a special room in it ,
would be set apart for his worship .
The mon k s according to F a H s ian s record nd their

,

main occupation in recitin g sacred passages in medita ,
tion and in ascetic performances They are fre q uently

,
.
held in high e s timation fo r their reputed supernatural

powers o fall k inds Thus they can a ffect the weather
.
, ,
and are applied to fo r this purpose At festivals they .

H I S T ORI C A L DEVE L O P M E NT 59
form processions with great pomp Naturally it is .

,
the duty of the laity t o provide fo r the maintenance

o f the monks Illustrio us personages and Prince s
.
occasionally give large donations and in the cere

,
monies which t ake place at such times it is evident

with what reverence the monks are treated by the
laity T he ordinary person not only supplies foo d to
.
the in mates o f th e monastery b ut also material for

,
clothes and other small re q uisites In return for the

.
maintenance of th e monas tery the laity expect a bless

,
in g o n their houses an d families success t o their

,
un dertakings as well as the reward o f a happy future

, .
T he outward sign s o f the respect o f th e laity for th e

temple images is the bringin g o f owers and fruit ,
the burnin g of incense and the lighting of lamps and

,
lanterns This kind o f o ffering is us u ally to be bought

.
by visitors in the vicinity o f the temples .
If one considers all these features as they appear

in the description of his travels by Fa H sian ,
it is q uite evident that Indian B uddhism full of

vitality as it then was h ad entirely been transformed
into a popular r e li gi o n th r o u g h amalgamation with an
,
i n calculable mas s Of material which was essentially

alien to it T he supernatural and magical element
.
h ad become extremely prominent .
This way is followed up still farther T ogether .
with the sta tement of a divine world soul there was -

,
also th e conception of th e hu man s oul ( which G autam a

had so strenuou sly denied ) creeping in again at this
,
time as popular assumption for the magical practice s

o f Mah ay ana B uddhi s m . From here arose a new
phase of doctrinal development the s o called Y oga -
doctrine The word Yoga means an ec s tatic union o f
.
the individual s oul with the world soul By certain - .
methods in which self hypnotism played a large part

,
-
,
the soul o f the individual was to be brought into union

with the All S oul and would ther eby participate in
-
,
certain magic powers so that the individual would be

,
able at will to ma k e his body lighter o r heavier larger ,
o r smaller able to y through the air able to ta k e o n

, ,
any appearance and so o n until at la s t a condition o f

, ,
complete oneness with the highe s t would be attained .
This doctrine found i t s connecting link in the o l d

practice o f meditation which had been so es s ential
,
in the early B uddhism B ut in the Y oga doctrine the

.
main stre s s is attached to miraculous powers O ne .
aid to their attainment was the use o f certain my s tical

formul ae ( dh arani ) and short prayers (mantra) which ,
were recited in special attitudes and with special

attention paid to the position o f ngers and hands ,
to the accompaniment o f music O wing to the use .
o f mantras this whole development o f Bud dhism has

,
been called ma ntri s m .
Into what a shallow and boundless superstition

B uddhism had degenerated we can see from its
pre s ent condition in Tibet as Lamaism It is to this
, .
that India has specially bequeathed this doctrine and

type as we shall see later o n From the height o f a
, .
philosophical religion it had come down to the level Of

a blind supercial belief and coarse deceptions This .
fall reached its lowes t depth in some conceptions

emanating from the Yoga teaching which are known ,
under the name o f Ta ntr is m ( from ta n tr a verbally , ,

the boo k a revelation )
, .
HI S T OR I CAL D E VE L O P ME N T 61
In T antrism the faith o f th e B uddha adopte d a

strongly mark e d sexual character T hey set up pairs
.
of deities so that everywhere the male deity was

,
accompanied by its female counterpart Thes e .
female energies were fre q uently represen te d with

male deities in such a way that notwithsta n din g a
,
deeper meaning behind the conception of sex which

might be pretended practically it is certai n that a
,
strongly immoral attitude has been in troduced by this

symbolism .
The degeneracy of B uddhism which en sued from

this in uence we cannot trace step by step B ut th e .
light shed upon this period in th e middle Of th e

seventh centu ry by the descriptions of th e Chin ese
pilgri m Yii a n Chuang shows this dege n eracy in its
whole extent At the same tim e it emphasizes plainly
.
certain symptom s S howin g the lack of vitality o f

Buddhism in the territory of In dia B uddhism was .
completely choke d by the in crease o f superstitio n ,
chimeras and sensuality

,
.
In the portrayal by Y ua n Chuang o f In dian B ud

d hi s m in the seventh century we are confronted
,
with relic worship manifold legends in sipid storie s

, ,
o f miracles belief i n the power o f magic formul ae arts

, ,
of exorcism fragments of ancient I n dian nature

,
worship and all this is ofte n expressed in the crudest

,
ma n ner Alongside such traits are many Observatio n s

.
as to the decay Of religion references to the once

,
renowned B ud dhist monasteries an d s tp a s now in

rui n s an d to the paucity o f monks S ome o f the
,
.
legends related by h im are worthy o f mention O ne .
o f these legends spoke of a cert ain garm en t b e queathed

62 B UDD H I S M AS A RE LIG I ON
by an honoured monk to the community o fthe faithful

as a relic with the assurance that the garment would
,
last till Buddhism ceased to exist But in those .
days remar k ed Y uan Chuang there were already

, ,
unmistak able signs o f decay in the garment and the ,
faithful recognized therefore the truth o fthe prophetic

, ,
statement There was another record about a et apa

that the B uddha had foretold that when it should ,
have been seven times burnt down and seven times ,
rebuilt then Buddhi s t teaching had reached its end

, .
And Yu an Chuang maintained that in his time the

et apa had already been burnt down for the fourth
time Therefore the highest point o f Buddhi s m had

.
already been passed This sort o f legend shows

.
plainly th at the adherents o f the religion themselves

had the con s ciousness that they were living in a
period o f decadence .
Attacks from without also must have inj ured

Buddhism in this century A powerful tide o f
.
B r ahmani s m which had long been held in chec k by

,
Buddhi s m now rose everywhere to a high mar k The

, .
ho s tile attitude o fthe Brahmans against their rivals can

be as little doubted as the fact that the latter at t his
time could no more check it The tradition tell ing o fa
.
sharp persecution o fBuddhi s ts by the Brahmans in the

eighth century may therefore have historical accuracy
, , .
But it cannot be tak en that this persecution o r any

other external cause has done away with Buddhism
in India proper It was o f far greater importance
.
that it laboured under a helpless inward decay Its .
slow destruction continued from the eighth to the

eleventh century A D When Islam penetrated at la s t
. .
H I S T O R I CAL DE VE L O P M E N T 63
in to I n dia ( in the eleventh and twelfth centuries ) all ,
that still remain ed to be seen of the fallen religion

was swept away u tterly by the fanaticism o f the
iconoclastic Moslem S ince that time the religion o f
.
the B uddha G autam a no longer exists in its own native

land O nly the ruined places of the Ol d B uddhism
.
preserve to the countries o n the banks of the G anges

and of the Indus down to th e prese n t day the interest
, ,
of all those who are n earer co n cer n ed with this remark

able religion .
C HAP TER I I T H E S P RE A D O F B U DD H I SM
.
T he period o f th e further spread of B uddhism

begin s with the above mentioned council under A s oka
-
.
It was an advancing an d most eventful tide of c on quest

stretchin g over whole centurie s b y which the
yellow robed monks obta in ed the ascendan cy over
-
Central an d E astern Asia Ceylon followed by the

.
,
Indian Penin sula containin g B urma S iam Cambodia

, , ,
An nam besides the races in the Himalayas Central

, ,
Asia as far as T ien S han itself Tibet China and

-
,
Mongolia Korea and J apan these are the countrie s

,
which fell in to the lap of B uddhist missio n s during

the thousand years which ensued after the council of
A soka In most o f these coun tries the result of the
.
B uddhist missio n is due to the fact that G autama s
disciples came to primitive almost unciviliz ed peoples

, ,
to whom they brought together with this n ew religion

, ,
a stro n g tinge o f culture so that the acceptan ce o f

,
Buddhism implies also the begin nin g of historical

development Wh ere this was n ot the case as in
.
China where they encountered an already high

,
degree o f cultureth e conquest of Buddhism was

neither so rapid nor so complete .
In the following pages we shall trace the missionary

history of Buddhism in the most important countries ,
though naturally it is only possible to give the out

, ,
lines.
C E YL ON .
This island which in prehistoric times was peopled

,
by the primitive s toc k o f the Vedda (o f whom there

still exist a few remains as a rare proof o f primitive ,
man ) was tak en posses s ion o f in the sixth century

,
BC (namely about the lifetime o f G autama ) by hordes

,
of invaders who came from the mainland o f India and ,
whose leader made him s elf ruler of the island Thus .
Indian civilization touched the soil o f Ceylon A king .
dom was developed and towns grew up But the result .
o f this cannot have been very great since no build ,
ing o r de s ign has been found o f the period preceding

the advent o f Buddhism In A o ka s time the ruler .

o f Ceylon was Tissa who began to reign about ,
25 1 R e It is reported that there exi s ted a friendship

.
between these two S ince Tissa without ever havin g

, ,
seen the King of Ma g a dh a had conceived an ardent ,
admiration fo r him owing to a description o f his

,
person and deeds Directly after his accession to the

.
throne Tissa sent therefore an embassy to A s o k a and

, , , ,
an embassy was sent to him in return The latter .
is said to have come with the obj ect o f communicating

to Tissa A s o k a s Buddhist creed In any case it was

.
,
from A s oka s kingdom that Buddhism was introduced

H I S T ORI CAL DEVE L O PM E N T 5
into Ceylon O ne cannot doubt the as s ertio n of the

.
S ing halese chronicle the Ma h ava m s a to which we o we

, ,
all this information that the bringer of th e new doctrin e

,
was As oka s own son Mahendra wh o had himself

, ,
entered the monastic O rder If meagre account s o fB ud .
dhi s m had already reached the island in consequence

of the existin g in te rcourse with Northern India th ey ,
were comple tely thrown into th e sh ade by the brilliant

entrance o f th e new religion with Mahendra A .
prominent teacher a monk had carefully prepared

him in his o wn home fo r this important missionary
task Mahendra came to Ceylon with a large number
.
o f others a b o ut 25 0 E C T he S in gh alese chronicle

.
relates h o w he m et King T issa out hunting not

far from the capital of An uradhapura and at once ,
announced to him the sublime te achi n g whereupo n ,
he was led with honour to the city in order to give

further in struction to the King and to the Court T he .
place where Mahendra afterwards lived for m any

years is accordin g t o the traditio n which has bee n
,
handed down to th e present day a picturesque spot , ,
where h uge boulders s ur mount the top o f a peak near

M ihintale to the east of the city o f Anuradhapura
, ,
whose extensive r u in s h ave recen tl y been excavated .
S ome time after Mahendra came he was followed by

his sister S amgh ami tr a who herself belonged to the
,
O rder as a nun S h e came from her father s Court to

.

foun d a nunnery S h e brought as a present from

.
A s oka to T issa a branch of that celebra ted and much

revered tree under which the B uddha sat when h e
,
received the revelation o f his n ew doctrin e and which ,
was therefore called the B o tree The bran ch was -

.
5
planted in Ceylon and grew to be a tree which o u t
, ,
lived the original B o tree and which still blooms -

,
among the ruins o f Anuradhapura a symbol o f the ,
fact that Buddhism has been stronger and more lastin g

outside its native land than in North India itself .
Buddhism soon blossomed forth in Ceylon The .
Prince and his Court became adherents and the ,
common people was drawn after them A lively .
rel i gious culture and art developed themselves in con

n e c t io n with the monastic communities in the shape ,
o f Cloi s ters dagabas sacred images and religious o u t

, , ,
t King Tissa himself presented a large garden fo r

.
them to live in and provided land for buildings and

,
halls for meditation He also built o ne o f those huge

.
dagabas which still exis ts namely the Th up a r a m a

, , ,
Dagaba under which o n e o f G autama s collar

,

bones is said to have been preserved as a relic .
Anuradhapura the capital was fo r centuries the

, ,
brilliant centre o f Buddhist life The dagabas which .
in course o f time were erected there are considered

amongst the greatest monuments in the world and ,
down to the present time give astonishing proof o f the

achievements of art in the service of religion by their
many temples halls baths palaces and irrigation
, , , ,
wor k s At the beginning of the third century A D a

. . .
,
tooth o f the Buddha was brought as a relic from

In dia to Ceylon and a magnicent place was built fo r
,
its reception The holy tooth was removed later on to

.
P o l l u n a r u a which became the capital in the eighth

,
century A D and nally it was sent to Candy where

. .
,
a s purious o ne ( for the original tooth was destroyed )

is venerated to the present day .
H I S T O RI C A L D E VE L O P ME N T 7
In all import ant respe cts Buddhism remain ed un

changed in Ceylon from the early days and its ,
history is main ly that Of chang in g circ umstances ( of

which there were many ) for it was closely bound up
,
with the history of the S in gh alese rulers and their kin g

do m. Important in vasions o f conquest hunters from -
the mainland especially from the south east coast

,
-
,
had a fateful e ffect and wrought ever fresh disaster

,
on the splendour and power o f Ceylon A fall in the .
political power of its patron meant in variably a

correspondin g fall in th e position o f B uddhism ;
whereas a more powerful and prosperou s ruler added
ne w lustre to religion After a rapid declen sion a
.
,
great revival took place during the reign o f the

mighty ruler P a ra kr a ma B ah u (in th e twelfth
-
century ) B ut after the Portuguese had laid a heavy

.
hand o n the island in the S ixteenth centuryto be

displaced an d robbed of their plunder late r o n by th e
D utch from whose h and s Ceylon passed yet again
,
to the B ritish in 1 7 96 B uddhism lost more and

more of its ancient splendour It still remain ed an .
important fac tor in the in tellectual life of the islan d

within its nat ural limits .
FA RTHE R I N D IA .
This sectio n deals with Burma S iam and Cambodia , , .
Annam and Cochin Chin a are not included in it .
T hese last belon g rather to the Chin a sphere o f

inuence and their B ud dhi s m h a s taken the Ch in ese
,
shape As to the spread o f Buddhism in th e three

.
above mentioned coun tries no t much can b e de

-
,
5 2
t e r min e d
with certainty from the standpoint of o u r
present knowledge The many legendary and fabulous
.
stories which these people possess about their o wn

hi s tory are o f very little use to us with regard to early
times . The study o f buildings and inscriptions
provides u s with o u r principal material but there is ,
not yet much done in this direction .
As regards Burma we are confronte d wi th two

,
accounts o f the advent o f Buddhism In the rst .
place we are told that after the council o f A s o k a two

, ,
men were sent here as missionaries The accuracy .
of this account is n o t t o be doubted The country .
designated by the name o f S uva rn a b h mi ( gold -

land) certainly is Burma that is to say the strip o f ,
land o n its north we s t sea border Arak an and Pegu

- -
, .
O n the other hand Burmese tradition attributes the

,
introduction of B uddhism to the celebrate d Buddha

gb o s a This man was born in Northern India in the
.
fth century A D in the ancient country o f Ma ga dh a

. .
,
was converted from Brahmanism to being an ardent

adherent o f Buddhism and owes his great reputation
t o the excellent commentaries which he wrote a n d to ,
his translation into P ali o f the then existing S inghalese

commentaries He lived for a long time in Ceylon
. .
O ne o f the ruin ed temples o f An uradhapura is still

shown as the place where for many years he was , ,
occupied with the wor k o f translation There is .
ground for doubting the statement that this man

brought Buddhism to Burma The chronicles o f .
Ceylon to which we o we the information about

,
B u ddh a gh o s a and which must have been well

,
informed o n the subj ect give no account o f his ,

HI S T O R I C A L DEVE LO P M E N T 69
j ourneys to Farther India Indeed o n e of the mos t

.
,
important inscriptions in B urma which was erected ,
at the end o f the ftee n th cent ury A D at the instiga . .

,
tion of a Kin g o f Pegu who was among the most

,
devoted adherents o f Buddhism and which throws a ,
backward glance over the history o f B uddhism in

Burma m akes no mention whate ver o f B u ddh a gh o sa
, .
T he B urmese tradition which refers to him does S o

o n account o f h is translation s and writings h avi n g
become fundamental s in th e country probably als o ,
b ecause his in te llectual in uence may have i n

au g u r a t e d a new epoch in B urmese B uddhism .
The B uddhist missionaries sent o ut by the council

of A s oka must h ave been the rst to pla n t this religion
in the soil of Farther In dia T hey found there .
primitive un cultured peoples In dian culture went

,
.
with them and owed increasingly across to the

,
Burmese In the next centuries the B uddhism of

.
B urma developed i n a manner analogous to th at

which we have already observed in Northern In dia .
It was i n vaded by a strong admixture of rough

popular conceptions to which n ot only the lower
,
India n religious life but also the coarse ideas

,
of the ancient B urmese inhabitants contributed , .
T he Burmese traditions them selves st ate that their

Buddhism h ad a troubled course for many ce n
t uri es mixed with serpent worship m agic beings
, , ,
horrible a n d debauched customs T he H imalayan .

tribes also especially the Assamese have in this -
time exercised an in uence o n B urmese B uddhi s m .
T he sacred lan guage ( as in the whole Mah ay ana

school ) was then S anskrit and it has bee n Observed
, ,
as a survival o f that epoch that even to day there are

,
-
many name s in B urmese B uddhism which s till retain

the S anskrit form although later o n the sacred
,
language was changed to P ali Through a strong .
reaction this o ld phase of Burmese Buddhism was

overmastered This new foundation may have been
.
laid during the time succeeding B u ddh a gho s a and it ,
may be related to his intellectual inuence The .
purer southern type of doctrine n o w obtained the

predominance which it has maintained down to the
,
present day .
The older form of Burmese Buddhism must have

corresponded somewhat to that which we meet still
among s t the s o called S han tribes These are moun
- .
tain race s in the north and east of Burma adherents ,
o f Buddhism but o f a type strictly different from

,
Hinay ana .
S iam and Cambodia were associated with Northern

Indian culture from an early date T hey owe to it .
all the fundamentals o f their life Brahmanism and .
other religious forms came over with that culture and ,
especially the former was very strong at the beginning .
O f Buddhism on the other hand we hear only after

, ,
the middle o f the seventh century A D as gaining . .

,
ground in Cambodia It then slowly advanced in

.
ways which tradition has not preserved There are .
numerous Buddhist inscriptions in Cambodia dating ,
from the ninth century The stronger inux o f

.
Buddhism at that time appears to stand in intimate

connection with its decline in Northern India .
Whereas it was obliged to give way there to Brah

manism here it succeeded from the end o f the tenth
,
H IS T OR I CAL DE VE LO P M E N T 71
centu ry in sh owi n g itself the ten acious opponent of

Brahmanism an d eventually in the twelfth ce n tury
, , ,
its master After it had contin ued for a long perio d

.
t o grow in strength thanks to the powerful prote o

tion o f the Court i t nally reached th e throne itse l f .
B ut in Cambodia also there are evident traces

that this Older B uddhism has been Mah ay ana
B uddhism dis gured by m any external in uence s
( perhap s from Nepal and even Tibet usin g S anskrit
, ,
as it s language ) It was only in the fteenth century

.
that a great change took place T his resulted from .
contact with Ceylon an d the S outhern B uddhism with

, ,
its P ali literature its more original doctrin e and its

, ,
higher moral level displac ed completely th e older

,
relatio n s T he S iamese kin gdom ( which only came

.
into existence in the fourteenth century ) from that

time begi ns to be one Of the main stro n gholds of
H inay an a B uddhism .
T IB E T .
T ibetan history begins when B uddhism penetrated

in to that wild mountainous co un try In the seventh .
century A D a chief called S rong Tsan C ampo

. .
succeeded in reducing the rough tribes of that

in accessible land to a stricter discipl in e and it was ,
this chieftain who accepted Buddhism and introduced

it in to the country T his wa s o win g to his two wives
.
,
o ne o f whom spran g from the Chinese royal house
( this was a marriage arranged for political reasons as ,
the Tibetan chieftain was always makin g difculties

o n the Chin ese frontier ) while the other wa s Nepalese .
Both of th e wives therefore came from countries

, ,
where already Buddhism had long been establi s hed .
From the outset Indian inuence was predominant ,
as can be mo s t clearly proved by the fact that

Tibetan writing was founded o n S ans k rit In such .
utterly unprepared soil the spread o f the new religion

was far from rapid O nly the sixth follower o f S rong
.
T san C ampo ( about a hundred years after him ) could

e ffect a more general spread o f Buddhism in his
country He sent to India in order to Obtain mon k s
.
,
book s and advice Indian B uddhism was in the la s t

,
.
stage o f decay and it was exactly in this condition

,
that it made its entrance into Tibet A renowned .
adherent o f Tantri s m is said to have been the man ,
who at the head of a band o f companions entered

Tibet and undertoo k to disseminate his doctrines
under the patronage o f the King He was called .
Padma S a mb h ava (the lotos born) but is usually

- -
,
known among the Tibetans as G uru R imp o Che

( the glorious teacher ) Tradition states that he built
.
the rst monastery in the year A D 7 49 In the . . .
preceding period Buddhism had n o t thoroughly tak e n

root from n o w o n it caught rm hold .
The Indian teachers found a primitive form o f

religion previously existing in these regions which ,
was known under the name o f B on T he B o n belief

.
recogn ized nature spirits which were worshipped by

,
all sorts o f powerful and terrible o fferings ; and it

also paid reverence to the s pirits of the dead The .
religious functions were performed by priests and ,
there were the elements o f a magic cult the k now ,
ledge o i which was a secret con ned to the Bon

priests. S acr i c e s especially human sa c ric e s
H I S T O RI CAL D E VE L O P ME N T 73
were obligatory This religion which at r st opposed

.
,
the imported T antric B uddhism was sub s equently ,
completely mixed up with it T he Bon religion did .
not die o u t but remained as an undercurrent tin ged

, ,
with Buddhism .
T he Buddhist writings imported from India were

translated into T ibetan in the following century and ,
from this emerged the Tibetan canon Monasteries .
and monks received the ir privileges from the Kin gs .
T hey contin ually won a stronger hold over th e people .
In th e tenth century their progress received a S light

check from o n e o f the rulers but the persecutor was
1
murdered by a lama and his traces were soon
,
oblite rated In tercourse with India and th e smaller

.
B uddhist S tates o f the Himalaya s long remained a

standing feature of Lamaism We soon hear of th e .
formation o f di fferent sects which partially at all

, ,
events were founde d by the in uence o f noted

,
teachers wh o had w andered thither from India

, .
Thus in th e eleventh century o n e o f these a very

, ,
illustrious teacher called Ati s a wh o was personally ,
ac quain ted with the Buddhism o f In dia came to ,
T ibet and spread a new doctrine which extended still ,
fu rt her in man i fold rami cati ons An importan t

.
period in the spread of L amaism is that o f the

supremacy of the Mongol dynasty in Chin a ( from th e
middle o f the thirteenth to th e middle o f the
fourteenth ce n tury) . T h e wide con q uests o f the
1
Th e T ibe t a n m o nk s ar e c a lled
l a m a s Th e word (in

.
Tibe t a n i t i s S pel t b l a ma ) m e a n s s uperior

be tt er ( S an s kr it
,

u t ta r a ). Origin ally i t w a s o nl y a pplied t o t h e Abbo t o f a

m o n a s t ery T hi s i s why Tibe ta n Buddhi s m i s c alled L am a is m
. .
74 B UDD H I SM AS A RELIGION
Mongols had reached as far as Tibet The E mperor .
Kublai Khan the well known patron o f the traveller

-
Marco Polo showed himself particularly interested in

t h e religious condition o f his subj ects Lamaism .
appeared to him a very useful religionfrom the

political standpoint for his countries ; he therefore
encouraged it and under his rule it took possession o f
,
the wide spreading territory o f Mongolia which down

-
,
to the present day is completely dominated by it .
The Tibetan canon was translated at that time in to

Mongolian .
Already in the time o f Kublai Khan there was

plainly visible a tendency to hierarchical concentra
tion which in later times became the most mark ed
,
feature Of Lamaism F o r we hear that the Emperor

.
recognized the principal lama o f o ne of the sects then

existing the s o called S a s kya school as Primate o f
,
-
,
Buddhism throughout Tibet Afterwards indeedin .

,
the middle of the fourteenth century the Mongols

having been replaced by the Ming dynastythe latter
found it a wiser policy to dimini s h the power o f the
S a s ky a sect by raising the leaders o f the other sects
to a similar position .
The most important change experienced by Lamaism

was the reformation underta k en by the lama Tsong
Ka pa in the fteenth century This reformation was .
at rst restricted to that sect which had been mostly

inuenced by Ati a s ideas Tsong Kapa s new sect

.

was called G elugpa and became by far the most

,
powerful o f the various Lamaistic developments It .
is quite po s sible and even probable that Tsong Kapa s

, ,

new ideas were touched by the Christian S pirit of the

H IS T O R I CAL DE VE L O P MEN T 75
West F o r already Catholic missionaries had un

.
mistakably made an impression in E ast and Central

Asia and a kn owledge o f th e forms and doctrin e o f
,
Romish Chri stendom were do u btles s no longer u n

familia r to the well informed inhabitants of Tibet
-
,
owin g to the strenuousness of such men as John

o f Mon tecorvino and O doric T he e fforts o f T song
.
Kapa s new t each in g were spec ially d irected to a more

detailed ritual and a stricter organization E specially .
with regard to th e q uestion of organi z ation the par ty ,
of his adherents developed the most surprisin g results .
T he in uential position of leaderpossessed by T son g

Kapa himselfwas to be be q ueathed to his successor
through his own reincarnation T he fth o f these .
s uccessors attained the supreme goal in the middle o f

the seventeenth century by widenin g out his religious
,
leadership to a temporal supremacy : the regency o f

T ibe t was h anded over to him by Chin a with the title ,
1
of D alai L ama Meanwh ile he ruled under Chin ese
.
su z erainty From this time the conceptio n of r e

.
incarnation becam e somewhat di fferent It was .
established from this time onwards that one o f th e

most popular Bodhisattvas of L amaism the Bodhi ,
sattva Aval o kit e va r a ( also called P a dm a p a ni ) who ,
was a sort o f tu telary deity of the country was ,
i n carn ate in the Dal ai Lama o f th e day Avalo .
ki te Svara is the Indian name for the well known -
Chin ese a n d Japanese Buddhist deity K wa n Y in ,
1 D a la i , d a le , i s aM o n goli a n word w hi c h m e ans oce an .
T hu s th e t i tle i s o f
,
M o n golo Tibe t a n origin I t w as a Mo n
-
.
goli a n P ri n ce from t h e K ok o N or t erri t ory w h o pr a ct ic a ll y c o n

-
q uered T ibe t fo r t h e D al ai L am a in o n e o fh i s w ar li k e expedi t io ns .

( Kwannon ) , the mo s t con s picuous gure in the

mythology o f Northern Buddhi s m .
Through the in s tallation o f the Dalai Lama the ,
G elugpa sect obtained an unconditional supremacy

over the whole o f Tibet ; it persecuted the other
sects fo r a time till it eventually established a mo d us
,
vi v end i with them The other sects also followed its

.
example and s e t up perpetually reincarnated Bodhi

,
s a ttva s at their head Though none o fthese mystically

.
conceived G rand Lamas could enter into rivalry with

the o n e re s iding at Lhassa in temporal power o n e at ,
least o f them the G rand Lama o f Ta s hi Lhumpo ,
near S higatze who s e usual title is Panchen Erdeni

,
( a Mongolo Tibetan
-
combination li k e that o f the
Dalai Lama) was his equal in holiness The Court
-
.
of Pe k in has always maintained a nominal supremacy

over the dominion o f the Dalai Lama and its rep r e ,
s e n ta t ive has a small military force at Lhassa ; h e
has a paramount inuence in determinin g the choice

o f the child in whom
after the death o f a Dalai
Lamathe pretended reincarnation o f Avalokite s vara
is to take place .
The rule o f Lamaism has extend ed in the course

o f centuries far beyond the limits o f Tibet It has .
already been pointed o ut that this form o f Buddhism

was accepted by the Mongols It became al s o strong .
, ,
in Manchuria Both in and round Pe k in from the

.

time o f the Mongol dynasty there sprang up many
lama monasteries and even to day there is a Tibetan
,
-
admixture in the otherwi s e di fferently con s tituted

Chinese Buddhism In the same way the Hima
.
layan S tates such a s Nepal B h o ta n S ikkh im

, , , ,
H I S T O R I CAL D E VE L O P ME N T 77
Kashm i r from who se decadent Mah ay ana B ud

dh i s m the faith once found entrance into T ibet
in the c ourse of time s uccumbe d completely to th e
in uence o f the daughter Church L amaism actually .
reached so far as into E uropean territory fo r its ,
adherents are still to be foun d amongst the Kalmucks

of the Volga an d the Do n But S ince the beginning
.
o f the nineteenth century these R u ssian B uddhist s
are n o longer under the control o f the Dalai L ama .
C H IN A .
T here is a Chine se record which tells of the e n trance

o f B uddhism into that country so early as th e year
21 7 B C T he rst messengers Of the new faith were

.
put in priso n by the E mperor S upernatural in ter .
ve n tio n set them at liberty It is probable that these

.
legends contain th e record of some weak in dividual ,
e fforts to c arry the teach in g of the Buddha into th e

Chin ese E mpire at that time S uch attempts cannot
.
have had any serious results T he commonly accepte d

.
date o f the real entrance Of B uddhism into Ch in a is

during the reign o f E mperor Ming Ti (A D 5 8 7 6 th e - . .
-
title Of reign was Y ung T his ruler is said to

have had a dream in which a high shinin g gold ,
image of a go d appear ed to him which entered his ,
p alace T he in terpreter o f the dream a brother o f

.

the E mperor attributed this apparition to the Buddh a
S akyamuni who was revered in Central Asia a n d
,
In dia and who demanded worship in Chin a also

, .
T here is no questio n that warlike expedition s into

Central Asia a s well as peaceful in tercourse h a d by
th at time familiariz ed m an y o f th e Chin ese with the
knowledge o f the Buddhist religion and also Buddhist ,
picture s may have reached the Court o f the E mperor

as spoils o f war Whether in the interpretation o f .
the dream a stronger religious current may have

found expression it is now impossible t o determine ,
o r whether there existed already at the Court a silent
band of adherents of G autama s religion At all

.
events the Emperor Ming Ti sent an embassy

,
through Central Asia to Khotan (the land o f the

Yii eh chi ) to procure the things requisite for the
-
practice o f the new religion The emissaries .
eighteen i n number left the imperial Court in the

year A D 6 5 and returned in 6 7 accompanied by two
. .
, ,
monks K as i s pa M atanga and Go b h ar a na ( the latter

,
arriving a little after the former ) as well as in posses ,
sion o f B uddha images and scriptures A temple was .
built for the new religion in which the two rep re ,
s en t at i ve s lived and gave t hem s elves to the wor k o f

,
translating the mo s t important Buddhist instructions

in to Chinese The imperial place o f residence at
.
that time was Loyang the present Honan Eu It , .
was here that Buddhi s m rst took root in Northern

China .
Buddhism did no t spread so rapidly in China as

elsewhere The most stri k ing fact to which to o
.
,
little notice has so far been given is that it was n o t ,
till the beginning o f the fourth century A D that the . .
Chinese were allowed to become monk s in the B ud

d h i s t religion 1
The authorized representative s
.
,
therefore o f the new religion were foreigners during

,
1 E ven la ter dat e th e num ber o f hi s s ubj ect s a llowed t o

at a
e nt er th e m onas t ic Order wa s fre q uently muc h limi t ed by t h e

E m peror .
H I S T O R I C A L D EVE L O P ME N T 79
the rst two and a half centuries A roll o f names .
of foreign ers h as been h anded down to us who came

from India from th e H im alayan S tate s a n d from
, ,
Central Asia to take charge o f Buddhism in Ch in a

,
.
For a lon g time their most important labo urs con

siste d in translations of the books of the B uddhist
canon i n which the rst messengers had already been
,
engaged . The se translations however made but , ,
slow progress K asi a p a M atanga only translated a

.
sin gle important work ; his companion Go b h a ra na

comple te d ve others which have sin ce been lost , .
But from that time forward we hear of no further

translations being made for a hundred years T ill .
about A D 300 the tra n slators were all foreign ers

. .
( with the exception of one Chin ese layman ) ; but

from the fourth century onward there were also
Chin e se monks among their number T his appears .
to be the epoch when B uddhism r st took a strong

hold of China They no longer waited for messengers
.
to be sent but sought to win knowledge and stimulus

,
for themselves from the origin al home of the religion .
Pilgrimages o f deeply inte rested Chinese monks began

to ow to India whence they returned laden with
,
books relics and pictures T he most renowned o f

, , .
these pilgrim s were Fa H sian Yii a n Chuan g an d , ,
I T sin g ; with them deserve s also to be mentioned

S un g Y un a layma n who was sent as a messenger
, ,
by a Prince o f the Wei S tate to study In dian Bud

d h is m . T hese j our neys took place in the fth S ixth , ,
1
and seventh centuries .
1 F a H s i e n s j ourn ey oo k pl a ce A D
399 41 3 Y u an Chu a n g s

t
-
. .
,
A D 6 29 6 45 ; I T s in g e A D 6 7 1 6 95 S un g Y ii n w a s s e n t i n

- -
.
. .
, . .
t h e ye a r A D 51 8. . .
At the same time that F a Hsian the rst o f the s e ,
pilgrims was thu s engaged the mo s t noted o f the

, ,
Indian translator s K um a r aji va was labourin g in

, ,
China ; with the help o f many Chine s e mon k s he

disseminated the k nowledge o f a large number Of
the canonical works and commentaries The great .
revival o f Buddhism in China during the fth

century was mark ed by embassies from India and
Ceylon to the E mperor congratulating him on the
,
success o f the new movement It is al s o noteworthy .
that at this time an E mperor himself entered the

Cloi s ter a s a mon k Perhaps the renown attained by the
.
Chinese Buddhi s m o f that period is best demonstrated

by the strik ing event that in the year A D 5 26 the . .
Patriarch o f Indian Buddhi s m Bodhidharma the , ,
twenty eighth in the list o f the Buddha s successors

-

left his native land and migrated to China which ,
thenceforward became the seat o f the patriarchate .
E ventually Bodhidharma took up his re s idence at

Loyang ( a Buddhi s t centre from the beginning) but ,
he r s t visited Nan k ing the Court o f the Emperor at

,
that time Wu Ti o f the Liang dynasty who ruled

,
-
, ,
over S outhern China and he made a great impres s ion

,
o n that Prince who had already accepted Buddhi s m

, .
The succ essOr s o f Bodhidharma in the patriarchate

lived in monas teries n o t far from the Y angtze in the ,
neighbourhood o f the present Ki ukiang These .
monas teries still preserve the Ol d tradition ( though

under very decadent conditions ) o f their former illus
trio ns inhabitants During the time o f Bodhidharma
.
and his successors Buddhism S pread in Central and

,
S o uthern China .
H I S T ORI C A L DEVE L O PM E N T 81
T he form o f B uddhis m which won its way o n

Chinese soil wa s the Mah ay ana school T his is
.
plainly show n by the ch oice of works in troduced

there by the translators .While the translations
Of the two rst monks sent to the E mperor Ming
T i were con ned to th e rules of monastic life the ,
B uddhist legends and S imilar u n controvers i al matter ,
the catalogue of later translatio n s shows a number

of charac teristically Mah ay ana writings Also the
.
records of the Chin ese pilgrim s to India are writte n

entirely from the Mah ay an a poin t of view In .
China the Mah ay ana school in the course of time

, ,
divided itself in to a numbe r o f sects ; n ally there

were te n main divisions T he impuls e for the forma
.
tion o f the se different schools was m ainly due to th e

authority o f an un usually in uential teacher A .
group of adherent s gathered round him with a new

understandin g of old truth s generally evin cin g a
,
special predilection fo r individual parts o f the cano n

an d the commentaries attache d to them which h ad ,
bee n written by their master .
T he attitude o f the Chinese E mperors towards

B uddhism varied considerably ; conse q uently its ex
ternal positio n varied in th e same degree O ne .
o f its most con spicuous promoters was the above

mentioned E mperor Wu Ti of the Lian g dynasty
-
, ,
wh o ruled from A D 5 02 5 50
. .
-
Three times he took
.
mona s tic vows (fo r a certain period ) and earnestly

studied the sacred writings It is also stated of other
.
rulers an d Princes that they entered monasteries for

a time o r permanen tly O n the other h and it was
.
,
very easy for Confucianists and they were not

sparing in good arguments to rouse the popular

Chinese instinct against the unnatural loosening
o f family and patriotic ties engendered by the
,
monastic way o f life They made use o f the

.
lofty persuasiveness of the wi s e and unrivalled

excellence o f their o wn ancient clas s ics as a power
ful weapon again s t the somewhat abstru s e doct r inal
teaching o f Buddhi s m By means o f such argu
.
ments even many rulers were inuenced Also .
numerous abu s es in the monasteries and among s t ,
the mon k s themselves gave rea s on for the protests

,
again s t them and fo r energetic action This is not .
the place however to enter into the details as to the

, ,
favour o r di s favour o f the rulers ; it is su fcient to

note that Chinese Buddhism passed through various
stages o f martyrdom In the beginning of the eighth
.
century an Ofcial persecution bro k e o u t against it in ,
which mon k s and nuns were said t o have been

compelled to return to the secular state and all ,
B uddhist worship was prohibited for a lon g time .
Another persecution took place in the middle of the

ninth century .Chinese records relate that
mona s teries were then de s troyed All the property o f
.
the monastic communitie s was conscated More than .
mon k s and nuns were compelled to return t o

secular life Then again in the rst half o f the tenth
.
century there was a period o f severe depression o f

religion Thirty thousand temples were then clo s ed
.
,
while a very small number which had obtained

,
S pecial privileges under previous rulers were allowed ,
to continue only under s trict S tate surveillance .
F rom this period o f trial Chinese Buddhism emerged

H I S TO R I CAL DE VE L O P ME N T 83
after a while with fresh vigour It had struck already .
too deep a root in the religious and superstitious

demands o f the great mass o f the people so that the ,
opposition o f the great and the rationalistic confuta

tions o f the literati were unable to extirpate it .
B uddhism confro nted an element in China which

responded to it much more readily than Confucianism
did and indeed ble n de d with it t o a very high de g ree
, , , .

T his was T aoism T his religion in digenou s to Chin a
.
which is u sually attributed t o L aot z e the elder ,
contemporary Of Confucius sprang in reality from an

,
earlier source and h ad in the course o f centuries

,
become the vehicl e in which an ancient nature and

spirit worship was embodied ; it was a chequered
superstition void of system a ki nd o f philosophy o f
,
n ature formulated in a rude fantastic way T h e

, ,
.
character of T aoism so far resembled B uddhism

that it also possessed supernatural features th at it ,
attributed great merit to th e hermit o r monastic life ,
and maintained the possibility o f avertin g distress an d

danger by mean s o f magic and that it described th e
,
futur e life af ter death in vivi d colourin g Buddhism .
and T aoism h ave approached very closely t o o ne

another by m eans of this common ba s is but T aoism ,
1
is perhap s rather the recipient than the donor .
Competition it is true fre quently set them at variance

, ,
1 Th e m on a s t ic m o nkh ood in w h ic h o n e li n e o f T a ois m h a s

bee n perpe t ua t ed down t o t h e pre s e nt d a y a ppe a r s fro m m a n y
,
o f t h e de t a il s o f i t s org a n i z a t io n t o h a ve bee n derived fro m

,
Buddhi s m t h ough T a oi sm m a y h a ve po s s e s s ed a s ce t ic h erm i t s

,
fro m t h e e a rlie s t t im e s
. On t h e o t h er h an d a n u m ber o f dei t ie s
,
pecul i ar t o T a ois m ar e foun d un der a n o th er gui s e i n Buddh i sm .
62
84 B UDD HI SM AS A RE LIGION
with one another so that they were not always in

,
friendly relationship B ut in the main their ways lay

.
parallel to o ne another although they did not combine

,
in the popular consciousness It is related o f the .
ruler o f the kingdom o f Ts i that he atte mpted by
forcible means to unite the two religions into o n e .
An d a persecution o f the sixth century fell upon both

Buddhism and Taoism alik e in the k ingdom of Chou, ,
where they both appeared e q ually obj ectionable to the

ruler Again there is a very popular book H S i yu chi
.
, ,
- -
,
a n arrative o f the j ourneys and experiences o f Yii an

Chuang (the above mentioned Buddhist traveller )
-
,
written by a Taoist and liberally inter s persed with

,
material drawn from the Taoist mythology though ,
the subj ect matter is derived from Buddhi s m

-
.
Buddhi s m must al s o to a certain extent have come

in contact with Chri s tiani t y in China F or the .
Nestorian form o f Chri s tianity had penetrated China

possibly as early a s the sixth century and in the seventh ,
and eighth centuries it made a great step forward a s ,
is proved by the celebrated inscription o n the tablet at

S i ngan fu
- -
. It was al s o referred to by Marco Polo as
still plainly in existence in the thirteenth century Nes .
torian Christianity was completely lost in Chin a later

o n and left no traces behind it
,
But in the seventh to .
the eight h e nt u ry when it certainly played a r Ole in

,
that country it may have mixed with Buddhi s m to a

,
certain degree as lik ely as there has been a colouring

,
o f B uddhi s m by Taoism The Dominican mi s s ion

.
also ( John o f Monte Corvino and his followers ) which ,
for a time had a powerful inuence o n the Court o f

the Mongolian Emperor in the fourteenth century may ,
H I S TO R I C A L D E VE LO P ME N T 85
have h ad its e ffect upon B uddhism which was always ,
impressionable Things were very die r e nt when th e

.
modern phase of Ch ristia n mi s sions commenced with

the comin g o f the Jesuits at the end of the sixteenth
century At that time Opposin g conditions were t o o
.
strongly developed in E urope and in China to admit

o f Christian art and thought commending themselve s
for accepta n ce to th e popular religion .
K O RE A .
Korea received B uddhism from Ch in a Its entrance .
took place during a pe riod of K orean history when

the pe ninsula was divided into three distinct king
doms The northern part about as far as to the
.
,
T atong River was included in the ki ngdom o fK o kura i

, .
In the south were the kin gdom s o f Pakchi (the west

coast) and S illa (the east coast ) In the northern .
kin gdom which always m ain tained th e close st ih

,
te r c o ur se with China B uddhism rst made its

,
entrance in A D 3 7 2 according to Korean annals A

. .
, .
B uddhist monk called S undo came to Korea with

images of the B uddha a n d a sacred book from the ,
small feudal S tate of T sin in Northern China (in the

south o f th e present province of S hensi ) AS he .
directed his course at once to the Court of the King of

K o kura i it m ay be supposed that he was sent by the
,
Chin ese Prin ce o f T sin A few years later two

.
monasteries were built in th e capital o f K o kura i .
T his example appears to have been followed ; fo r

shortly afterwards the ruler of the kingdom o f Pakchi
sent messengers to China to ask for exponents Of the
new religion indeed he sent directly to the E m ,
p e ro r
, who belonged t o the s o called E astern T s i n -
dynasty In A D 3 85 there came therefore the

. . .
, ,
Buddhi s t monk Ma r anan da with ten companions ,
and the customary requi s ites for worship in order to ,
pave the way for Buddhism in S outhern Korea The .
south east country o f S illa only accepted Buddhism

about fty years later direct from China In all ,
.
three k ingdoms the acceptance o f Buddhism was

associated with political intentions They wanted .
the support o f the powerful neighbouring kingdom .
From this very reason Korea adopted together with ,
the new religion much o f the higher Chinese cul

,
t ure fo r instance the use o f the Chinese written

,
character .
B uddhism had its golden age in this country at the

time when a new Korean E mpire was formed after the
destruction o f the t h ree older k ingdoms The soul o f .
the movement which led to this result was a Buddhist

monk who indeed failed to reap the reward o f his
,
labour as he was murdered by a rival The latter

, .
,
wh o succeeded in placing himself o n the throne of

the newly united k ingdom Of Korai ( with S ongdo as
its capital ) founded a dynasty which lasted about
,
ve hundred years ( 91 2 H e thoroughly sup

ported Buddhism ; monasteries and mon k s increased
rapidly in numbers and wo n a strong hold over the
,
whole nation There was a law at that time in

.
exi s tence urging that o n e o u t o f three sons in a

family should become a monk During this epoch .
o f its prosperity Korean Buddhism o n certain occa

,
sions even had some in uence o n China its mother ,

H I S T OR I C A L D E VE L O P M E N T 87
land Important documents belongin g to a noted

.
Chi n ese school which h ad bee n lost by the fate o f

,
war were restored by an embassy sent from Chin a

,
to Korea and this gave a new impetus to that school

, .
It is equally worthy o f notice that the two systems of

alphabetical writing invented fo r the Korean lang u age

1
both S how some connection with Buddhism The .
rst the so called Nido alphabet an adaptation of

,
-
,
Chinese characters employed for their phonetic value ,
was the work of a B uddhist monk an d great schol ar

called S ye l Ch on g livin g towards the close o f the

,
eighth century A D S ome six cent uries later th e

. .
present Korean script the U m m en alphabet wa s , ,
invente d under the auspice s o f th e Kin g S e Jon g

(A D . . T his alphabet was derived from the
T i b e t an ( which itself is an o ffsprin g o f the S anskrit ) ,
the kn owledge of which was d ue to Buddhism It is .
well kn own that the Korean U n men is very likely

the most S imple and most perfect alphabet in th e
world .
At the end o f th e fourteenth century the Korea n

roy a l house came to a n end owin g to a political
revolution sprin gin g up from the great change in
Chin a whereby the Mongol dynasty was overthrow n
,
and replaced by the Min g dy n asty : a n ew family

T here a r e m an y in con gruous s t a t e m ent s reg ardi n g th e
1
K ore a n s crip t i n t h e comm o n li t er a tur e o n K ore a Th e be s t .
inform a t ion o n t h e s ubj ec t s i s to be foun d in an a rt icle by J am e s

S co t t S t r a y No t e s o n K ore an H is t ory a n d Li te r a t ure i n the
J our n al o f t h e C h i n a Br a n c h o f t h e R oy a l As ia t ic S ocie t y ,
vol xxviii p 21 4 e t s e q Cf al s o H G ile s C h in e s e E n glis h

.
, . . . .
,
-
D ic t io na ry vol i p xi x e t s e q

, . .
, . .
( with Hanyang or S eoul as capital ) mounted the

throne o f Korea whose succe s sors rule there down t o
,
the pre s ent day if they can be said to rule under the
,
pre s ent strict Japanese suzerainty The revolution .
wa s also a social o n e ; other intellectual movements

came into existence Buddhism which so far had
.
,
been a support to the throne was abandoned by the ,
S tate while an at tempt was made to s ub s titute the

,
teaching o f Confucius as an intellectual bac k bone to

the people Buddhism therefore declined more and
.
more but it continued t o hold fast the main outlines

,
o f its shape even if in a very subordinate po s ition

and is up to this day one o f the few charac te ristics
o f the Korean intellectual life .
J AP AN .
Japan owes the entrance o f Buddhism to the

missionary ardour of Korea The south western o f.
-
the three above mentioned ancient Korean k ingdoms

-
,
Pa k chi ( called by the Japanese H i aku s ai o r Kudara)

was the starting point o f the mission According to
-
.
th e account given in the o l d Japanese hi s torical

wor k Nihongi in A D 5 52 a Korean King sent an
,
. .
embassy to the ruler of Japan to commend the new

religion to him and to convey t o him Obj ects fo r
,
worship and sacred boo k s It is true that an u nr e

.
liable Japanese authority speak s Of an earlier advent

of Buddhism in A D 5 22 ( another authority says
. .
AD
. . It could at the most have been but an
abortive attempt E ven after A D 55 2 Buddhism only
. . .
advanced slowly and with many struggles A party .

H I S T ORI CA L DEVE LO P ME N T
g athered about it , which the adherents of the native

re l igion o f S hintoism most strenuously opposed A .
f urther importation o f priests and sacred obj ects kept

it in close connection with th e land o f its origin T h e .
struggl e about it resulted in its favour sin ce A D 5 8 8 . . .
T he greatest help to the ri s ing B uddhism was Prince

S hoto k u Daishi ( he died who se memory is still
rmly cherish ed in history an d legend The Bud .
d h i s t monks and n uns who streamed into th e country

from Korea continued comi n g for a long time and ,
the in uence of Korean art is still plain ly visible at

such place s as H o rinj i o r in the museum at Nara
, ,
in th e most ancient B uddhist statues As K orean .
B uddhism had adop te d th e Ch in ese form o f the

Mah ay ana school so in like m anner it transmitted
,
this to Japan . T h at it was Mah ay ana B uddhism

which entered Japan is con rmed by som e details
in the o ld story of it s introduction such as the
,
nomenclat ure of certain divinities ( Amitabh a Kwa nyin , ,
Ta shih c hi) .
In th e rst h alf o f th e seventh century A D com . .
m u ni c a ti o n with China took place dir ectly instead o f

,
via Korea Zealous monk s made the di fcult j ourney

.
t o the Middle Kin gdom which at that time wa s in

,
c re a s i n g ly passin g over to Japan ; they sought o ut
celebrated teach ers o f the doctrin e a n d took back with

,
them new opinion s and new writin gs T h e pre

.
dominant schools o f Chinese Buddhism were trans

plan te d into Japan ese soil . B ut Japan itself al so
produced a number of new and in som e case s
,
remar k able school s

, .
The B uddhist canon o f Japan always remained

Chinese for the knowledge o f that language was at

,
the root o f all deeper learning in the k ingdom o f the

Risin g S u n .
The centre o f Buddhism was in the imperial Court ,
for a time situated at Nara and then fo r many genera

,
tions in Ky Oto But there were other places such as

.
,
the renowned Nikk o and the sacred mountain KOy a s an ,
which became noted centres o f worship .
In Japan Buddhism had to nd its way along s ide

with S hintoi s m which was the indigenous religion
,
o f the country S hintoism was a religion rich in

.
legends and full o f fantastic worship o f the powers

,
o f nature among s t which the sun held a conspicuous

,
po s ition The tradition which derived the imperial

.
dynasty from the sun goddess had been the means o f

-
establishing the worship Of the ruler which coupled , ,
with the ancient ancestor worship was further de ,
ve l o p e d into a k ind of hero worship It is to be .
observed that S hintoism posse s sed no dogmatic tenets

o r ethical system and had not even established any
,
formal religious Observances ; but its development had

stopped at the early stage where religion is only a ,
free play of the imagination T he imported Buddhism .

,
as already S hown naturally appeared t o S hintoism

,
as an Opposing force in the rst instance But the .
position o f this vague and primitive nature worship

was from the beginning a difcult o ne when c o m ,
pared with the doctrine o f the Indian thin k er ,
a comprehen s ive system teeming with ideas and ,
rein forced by literature art and ceremonial Bud

, ,
.
dh i s m indeed achieved its master stro k e when it

, ,
-
absorbed and completely in corporated its rival with

HI S T OR I C A L DE VE L O P M E N T 91
itself by means o f a clever adapta tion T h e S hinto

, .
divinities were raised to the position of earlier in

carnations o f B uddhist Bodhisattvas and the baldne ss ,
o f S hin to worship and temple decoration was gi lded
by B uddhist splendour Thu s originated th e s o

.
called R y o b u S hintoism namely th e mixed S hin to

-
,

ism ( al so called Ry o b u Buddhism ) which was in
-
reality only a variety o f B uddhism T he man who was .
th e prin cipal promoter o f this transformation was

Kobo Daishi ( as he is usually kn own with his
posthumous honorary title ) a remarkable le a der of
,
the eighth cent u ry and down to th e present day one

,
of the most popular of B uddhist Japanese sain ts -

.
The hi ghe st culture in Japan was for cent urie s

almost entirely roo te d in B uddhism H ere as well .
as in K orea Buddhism gave the popular l anguage it s

written form the H iragan a as well as the Katakana
,
system All grade s o f society were equally in uenced

.
by B uddhist ideas From the seventeenth century

.
,
however Chin ese Confucianism came into the fore

,
groun d especially among the upper classes and drove

, ,
B uddh ism back without disturbin g its hold on th e bulk

o f the populace A more dangerou s rival made its
.
appearance in the sh ape o f the Jesuit Mis sion w hi ch ,
began with ' avier in the middle o f the sixteenth

century Durin g the bril li ant successes of the rst
.
years B uddhism gave ground before Christian in

,
u en c e . B ut soon persecution set in which is partly ,
to be attributed to the h atred of the B uddhists and ,
wh at still rema ined o f the life of the Christian com

m u n i ti e s during the years of Oppression wa s con cealed ,
an d co ul d be o f n o real dan ger to B uddhism A very .

severe blow indeed was dealt to the latter by the great

revolution in Japanese hi s tory which too k place in
the years 1 8 6 7 and 1 8 6 8 when the new era o f
,
moderniz ation began The S tate support was then

.
mostly withdrawn from Buddhi s m and the o l d

,
connection o f it with S hintoism was bro k en up ; in

an almost fanatical way S hintoism was re s tored ,
and was placed in sharp antagonism to Buddhism as

being the true native religion It appears so far that
.
Buddhism thrown back o n its o wn resources retain s

, ,
sufcient hold over the Japanese nation to enter the

lists against Christianity with energy and ability in

the ght fo r supremacy while the reinstated i n
,

dependent S hintoism in utter powerle s s ness falls
, ,
rapidly and miserably to pieces under the stress o f

modern life .
Here we reach the end of o ur survey of the spread

o f Buddhism in the principal co u ntries where it took
root The account o f its present position and condi

.
tion in these various Buddhist countries will be the

subj ect of the next part.
B OOK I I I
TH E MOD ER N B U D DHI S M
C HA P TER I .
GE N E R AL RE M ARK S ON
S OU T HE RN AND N O R T H E RN B UDD H I SM
S IN C E the time o f E ug ene B urno u f it h as become 1
usual t o divide the whole domain o f th e B uddhist

religion in to the two c la sse s of S outhern an d Norther n
B uddhism T his is done not only from a geographical
.
poin t of view but it is based on a fundamental internal

,
difference as the southern countries are governed by

,
that aspect of the religion which is kn ow n a s Hinay ana

B uddhism wh ile th e northern countries represent th e
,
Mah ay ana B uddhism Ceylon and the countries of

.
Farther India Burma S iam and Cambodia belon g , ,
to S outhern B uddhism ; while T ibet together with ,
th e H imalayan S tates Mongolia China Korea and

, , , ,
Japan belong to Norther n B uddhism

, .
Although there is good reason for the division in to

S outher n and Norther n B uddhism o ne m ust guard ,
carefully again st mi s taken ideas creeping in to it .
1 Eu
g n e B u rn o u f( 1 801 t h e excelle n t F re n c h Orie n t a li st
,
h a s prep a red t h e g roun d fo r a t h oroughly s cie n t i c s t udy o f

Buddh i sm e s peci al ly by hi s book en t it led I n troduc t ion 5
,

.
l Hi s t o ir e du Boudd hi s m e in di e n
93
The expressions Hinayana and Mah ayana do no t

imply two absolute types of Buddhist doctrinethey
rather indicate a twofold tendency o f development :
o n the o n e hand adherence to the original modes
,
o f thought and the o l d habits o f life and action ; o n
the other hand the blending o f new ideas with the

,
o l d ones and the adaptation to the ways of foreign

,
nations But this di fference has wor k ed it s elf out in

.
various ways according to the countries where it has

,
operated Those two great groups are not to be

.
considered as absolute units ; they did not each

organize a complete system fo r themselves they do ,
not stand opposed as rivals to o n e another S outhern .
B uddhism indeed could perhaps be considered as

, ,
uniform In it the sacred canon is everywhere th e

same ; it is written in the same language P ali
.
though the letter s u s ed may be S inghalese or Burmese , ,
o r S iame s e The character and organization o f the

.
monastic communities the arrangements of the mona s ,
t e ri e s the attitude o f the laity towards the mon k s all

,
such things are very similar to o ne another in the

southern countries But at the other S ide if o n e glances
.
,
at the s o called Northern Buddhi s m the differences in

-
,
these countries are much more marked Here there .
are at least two di s tinct branches running side by S ide ,
o n e is the Lamai s m to which belong the peoples o f

,
Tibet the Himalaya s and Mongolia ; the other is the

, ,
Chine s e Buddhism which h a s often been given the

,
special name o fF oism ( from F 0 the Chine s e name o f ,
Buddha ) and which is the fundamental type al s o o f

,
Japane s e and Korean B uddhi s m .
F rom this state o f affairs it is evident that the ,
division into Northern and S outhern Buddhism can

M O DE R N B U DD H I SM 95
only be accepted with reservations I n deed recently .

,

one o f the best authorities Professor Rhys Davids ,
in his book
B uddhist India h as declared
that he entirely repudiates this classi cation On .
the other hand the B uddhists themselve s main tain

,
it.
1
F o r o u r p urpose we may acquiesce in the o l d
classi cation as there c an b e no danger of mi su nd e r
,
standin g when the reader keeps i n mind that neither

o f the two divi sions of Northern and S o uthern Bud
d sm
h i form s a determined unity a Church of its o wn .
The o ne certainty is that eve rywhere th e aspect o f

,
B uddhism in detail was determin ed by the country in

which it found itself while at the sam e time t h ere
,
exists a deeper diversity between S outh and North .
T he countries held by S outhern B uddhism are i n

general supposed to represent the religion in its
true and original conception This reputation is well .
founded when they are set in comparison a s a w ho le

,
with Northern B uddhism Many later ch anges of .
doctrin e o f the habits o f daily life and of ritual

, , ,
which have given such a new ch aracter to Northern

Buddhism are unknown in southern countries At
, .
t h e same time a certain admixture of foreign elem ents

is to be found in S outhern B uddhism also T hese .
are specially obviou s to the observer when livin g in

the simple monasteries o f the remote coun try places .
1 S e e thert icle by th e Burm e s e writ er Ta w S ein K O Th e

a
,
I n t roduc t io n o f Budd h i s m int o Burm a in t h e periodic a l c a lled

,
B u d d hi s m publi s h ed a t R an goo n by An an d a Me t t e y a vol i

, , . .
,
No 4 p 5 98 Co m p a re al s o Te it ar o S u z uk i in hi s Out lin e s o f
.
, . .
M a h ay an a Buddh is m ( Lo n don
w h o ( pp 3 4) pre fer s
,
t o divide Buddh is m in t o t h ree se c t ionsS ou th ern Nor th ern a n d

.
,
, ,
E a s t ern .
96 B UDD H I S M AS A RE LIGION
Features o f animi s tic and nature worship which

governed these people before the advent o f Buddhi s m
are still evident to day wor k ing not only in Bud
,
dhi s t lay devotees but also in many o f the mon k s

, .
A E uropean who in countries as Ceylon o r Burma

, ,

expects to nd pure Buddhism as taught by the ,
Buddha G autama will often be disappointed T he

, .
true adherents are few ; but there are some who may
be taken as genuin e disciples of the old teacher and ,
who give us some impression o f what the Buddha

h imself must have been .
The three coun tries o f S outhern Buddhism Ceylon ,
Burma and S iam may generally be characterized by

,
saying that in Ceylon are to be found the most learned

representatives of this religion that Burma is the ,
most thoroughly impregnated by the Buddhist atmo

sphere in popular life and that S iam ( and Cambodia)
,
is o f special interest as showing Buddhism a still

living S tate religion under a Buddhi s t King a c o n ,
dition which no longer exists in any other countries .
C HA P T ER II T H E B UDD H IS M O F C EYLON
.
A E NT RAN C E IN T O TH E M O N A ST I C O R D ER
. .
Whoever wishes to enter the mona s tic O rder as a

novice is handed over to the care of a mon k to be
educated at the age o f about eight years Naturally it .
,
is in most ca s es the parent s who have induced the child

at such a tender age to ente r o n the s piritual career .
The motive i s fo r most o f them the maintenance of

, ,
the child as the novice s generally come from poor

,
families The c hild enter s a mona s tery by mean s of

.
an entirely private a greement between the parents

B UDD H I S M O F C E YL O N 97
and a monk After some year s of elementary

.
learnin g at the age of eleve n o r twelve th e boy is

,
admitte d to the noviciate by a simple ceremony

( called p a bbajjci ) takin g place in the monastery at

,

which the parents and some friends assist T h e boy s .
hair is o u t H e asks the p ermission o f his parents

.
,
and b egs to be admitted as a novice ; then the robes of

monkish life are given to him by his tutor he repeats ,
some formulas the ten precepts ar e h anded over to

,
him and so he becomes a novice The robes o f th e

,
.
monks consist of three pieces T he rst is an un der .
garment extending from the waist to the knees over

that is worn a garment coverin g the whole body to ,
whi ch is added a wide garment for full equipment .
T h e mantle is often worn so as to leave the righ t

shoulder uncovered but some sects cover both ,
shoulders T he clothin g must be made of a woollen

.
,
no t a sil k material ac c ordin g to regulation not only

, , ,
o n the groun d of simplicity but also because a silke n ,
material in volves the killing of silkworms Never .
th e le s s sil ken robes are frequently worn

, T he colour .
o f the cloth ing is either orange o r yellow brown o f -
various sh ades T he early rule was that the monks

.
were to make it from rags and piece s of s tuff which

were worn o u t o r throw n away T h at r ul e is n o .
longer observed T here is a form al reco gn ition o f it

.
in the fact th at the material from which the clothi n g

is to be m ade is rst cut in to a num be r o f pieces and
then sewn together aga in The novice as well as the .
,
full monk is only permitted to po sses s o ne set o f

,
clothin g (c on s istin g of the three garments ) .
The n ovice as a rule lives with th e monk whom

, ,
7
he has chosen as his tutor It may happen that he

.
lives in a large mona s tery in which case he wil l

,
probably associate with a number o f other novices ;

but it may equally well happen that he lives alone
with o n e o f the monks who has the solitary charge of
,
a village temple His work is pursued daily ac c ording

.
to the ancient rules which in the main are very much

,
the same as those regulating the daily course o f the

monk only that he has in addition many services
,
to perform fo r the monk He must get up in the

.
morning before sunrise ; he must cleanse himself and

the temple must fetch water and lter it Then he
, .
must S pend some time in meditation With this .
exercise he combines worship o f the Buddha images

and the fetching o f owers to put before them After .
that he prepares to go through the village with the

begging bowl in his h and o r makes his way among
-
,
the adj acent huts in order to obtain the daily

sustenance for his tutor The novice it is true does
.
, ,
no t undertake as yet the begging fo r himself but ,
S hould be there only in company with hi s ma s ter ,
whose bowl he has to carry and to whom in other ,
ways also he must make himself useful Indeed it .

,
not infrequently happens that the monk sends o u t his

novi ce alone O n his return the novice devotes him
.
self to the service o f his teacher washes his feet , ,
brin gs him drinkin g water prepares his meal and , ,
also eats his own Then he wa s hes the utensils and

.
immerses himself again fo r a time in meditation .
He next begins to read in certain prescribed s acred

books o r to copy something o ut o f them An d in
,
.
this he both may an d should receive instruction from

B U D D H I SM O F C EY L O N 99
his teacher as to a ny poin ts that may n ot be clear to

him If it is the season o f the year when the monk
.
read s Bana ( a kin d of r ecitation before lay people

which is mentioned late r o n) then th e novice has to
,
prepare everythin g in readin ess for it and to assist ,
his teacher H e must in all things serve his master

.
with great reverence as also the other monks (if he is

,
stationed in one of the large monasteries ) as if he ,
were serving the B uddha himself Meditation .
specially as to whether he has ful lled all his duties

accuratelyclose s the day .
A certain number o f writings has been selected for

the novice to study an d to learn by heart T hese .
writin gs are partly in E lu an an cient S in ghalese

,
dialect partly in P ali the sacre d language o f S outhern

, ,
B uddhism S inghalese letters ( derived from the

.
Devan agari alph abet) have been u sed for th e P ali

writings Most of the writin g s selected fo r the u se of
.
novices contain practical instruction commands and , ,
prohibitions which are more explicit about the detail s

,
o fdaily life than the ten fun damental precepts O thers .
make it their obj ect to deepen the moral sense and ,
this is p articularly the case in the celebrated work

Dhammapada o n e of the best kn own parts of the
,
-
B uddhist canon D irections fo r the exercise of

.
m editation are also contained in the books for n ovices .
O ne o f the books for beginners leads to the art o f

exorcism ; it is called P ir u van a pota In it is a -
.
collection o f sayin gs from the sacred canon the ,
recital o f which when accompanied by certain exte rnal

ceremonials is warranted to be a safeguard again st
evi l in uences an d to brin g down a blessin g It is
, .
7 2
1 00 B UDD HI S M AS A RELIGION
worthy o f notice that such kind o f instruction is

included already in the novice s learn i ng
.
However earnest and prof und many of the precepts o
and observations in these Writings may so und how ,
ever emphatically the highest motives are inculcated ,
yet one would be much mistak en if o ne suppo s ed it to

correspond to the standpoint o f the average novice .
Most o f them ta k e an entirely external view o f thing s .
Certainly they read and learn by heart ; outward

decorum is Observed the obligations to the mon k s a r e
,
fullled ; but they do all this on purpose to get a

livel ihood and to become members of a monastery .
Those whose endeavour is more serious are e xc ep

tions to the rule .
By the time he has attai ne d his twentieth year the

novi ce can be admitted t o full monk hood in the
inner community This necessitates a public cere
.
mony which is called U p a s a mp a d a It is performed

, .
1
in accordance with the anc i ent ritual The novice .
rst dons his secular clothing again His monasti c .
habit together with various other accessories are

, ,
placed i n a special spot whence they are given bac k

,
to him afterwards As t h e day is k ept as a high

.
festival friends o f the candidate accompany him i n

,
j oyous procession to the monastery where the cere

mony is to tak e place All the mon k s assemble in a
.
large hall The rst part of the ceremony is a repeti

.
tion o f the p a bbajjd (cf p . After that the

.
candidate as s i s ted by his tu tor (up ajjhdya ) and his

,
instructor (ac ar iya ) applies fo r ordination

, He is .
1 Co m p a re t h e report o f an eye wi tn e s s in W rre Bud

-
a n s
dhi s m in T ra ns l a t io n s pp 3 95 401 ; al s o J ou rn a l of the R o y a l

, .
-
As i a ti c S o ci e ty 1 893 p 1 5 9 e t s e q
, , . .
B U DDHI SM OF C EYL O N 1 01
asked a number of question s as to the alm s bowl and -
robes whether th ey are his o wn ; whether he is free

,
from certain disease s ( lepro s y boils itch asthm a , , , ,
epilepsy) ; whether he is a human being a male a , ,
free m an free from debt exempt from military

, ,
service ; whether he h as o btain ed the pe rm ission o f

his pare n ts and is of the full a ge of twenty years
, .
Next he is asked his nam e and that of hi s tutor He .
must now step forwar d and thrice ask the whole

assemblage o f monks fo r admission to their O rder .
T he tutor sta tes that there is nothing to prevent it ,
and reque s ts th at if anyone h as a protest to make h e

, ,
will now s pe ak If no o n e makes any op position th e

.
,
n ovice is held to be ac ce pted The tutor brie y states

.
t o hi m the duties of his new life in a somewhat anti

q u a t e d form ula for some
, o f these ar e n o longer observed
( as ,f o r instance that , th e clothin g must be m a d e of
rags sewn together that in case s o fillnes s es only certain

,
nauseous medicament s might be u sed and that the ,
dwellin g is at the foot of a tree ) The property o f a .
monk S h all consist only o f eight speci ed art icles th at -
is in addition to his three garments a girdle an alm s

, , ,
bowl a ra z or a n eedle a l ter cloth ( through which

, , ,
-
1
to strain th e water before drinking ) T hese r e q u s ite s
.
the monk mu st be able to produce at his admission .
H e generally receives them as presents from his

n earest friends .
If a full grow n m a nover twenty yea rs of age

-
seeks admission to a mo na stic O rder h e has rst to ,
undergo a probation as n ovice which may be very ,
1 Th i s i s t h e old rule o f t h e P ali t ex t s Ab hi d h an a

( p p a di p ik a ,
b u t th ere i s a s ligh t v a ri a ti o n in m od ern pr a c t ice s o m e

B U D D H IS M AS A RE LIGION
short During this time he is in structed in the most

.
nece s sary Observances There is no set rule as to the

.
minimum o f instruction required but the president o f

the admission ceremonial can require proof that the
aspirant pos s es s es the most requi s ite k nowledge The .
ceremony o f full admission is the same as given above .
In the whole island o f Ceylon the fe s tival o f ful l

,
admission into the monastic O rder is only held as a

rule in Candy the ancient capital and there at only
, ,
t wo of the monasteries Ma l wa t t e and As g i r i which

, ,
have a prominent position Both monast eries con

.
tain a special room fo r this purposea n open right ,
angled pillared hall called p oya g e The president

, .
o f the ceremony is the Abbo t of the monastery where
it ta k es place the Mah a N aya k a ; the mon k s who

,
have the functions o f up ajjhciya and ci c dr iya must

have been full mon k s for at least ten years ; the

number o f mon k s taking part in the ceremony must
be not le s s than t en The proceeding is a public
.
o n e ; generally there are many laymen relatives and ,
frien ds o f the candidate fo r ordination ta k ing part ,
in it There is naturally always a large number o f

.
novices admitted at the same time It i s customary .
to have these ceremonies only four times a year and ,
they tak e place durin g four consecutive weeks in the

month of Wesak ( our May June ) beginning with the
-
,
day o f the full moon o fthat month the day assigned ,
as that o n which the B uddha attained Nirv ana .
E ntrance into mon khood is not bin ding fo r lifetime .
Indeed entire freedom is granted to every mon k to

,
return to secular life if he feels himself unable to

full the duties o f the monastic life o r loses his
B U DDH I SM O F C EY L O N 1 03
belief in it He is also at liberty to q uit it for a time

.
under ce rtain circ u m stances so as to rej oin later on , .
But in order to guar d again st th e wanton misuse of

,
such libe rty it is ordained that h e who leaves mu st

,
state in the presence o f the assembled monks o f t he

monastery his determination to do so an d give his ,
reaso n s for it .
B TH E S A C RE D B U IL D IN G S
. .
It is di fcult to know what to call with any degree ,
o f accuracy the place s where th e monks live

, Neither .
of the term s monastery o r temple is quite correct .

The word monastery c annot be used because it is ,
frequently the dwellin g o f a S in gl e individ ual T h e .
temple again is always a separate building apart

, , ,
from the dwellin g o f th e monk o r monks Th e .
monk s h ouse is calle d p a ns a la the temple hall i s

called vi hdr a ; there are al ways these two buildings

to be found where monks live .

P a ns a la origin ally means a b u t of leaves an d ,
points back to the primitive character of th e monastic

dwellings Even at the present time they are quite
.
meagre little houses built o f lath and plaster with a

, ,
roof of straw o r palm leaves At least such is the -

.
,
case with the numerous ordinary p a ns a las seen

dotted all over Ceylon in the shade o f palm s an d
ebony trees surrounded by bananas and blos soming
-
,
tropica l owers In their artless unpretentiousness

.
these humble brown and white b uildings are no blot- -
o n the beautiful h armony o f nature It is a di fferent .
matter in deed a s regards cert ain big mona s terie s in

, ,
s uch places as Colombo o r Candy ; there they have

1 04 B UDD H IS M AS A REL I GION
several storied houses built in E uropean style and

,
containing modern furniture

The temple hall vihara al ways stand s apart
.
frequently o n a hill top or other conspicuous place

-
.
In large monasteries there are indeed several , ,
v ihar a s . The vi hci r a is the place where the Buddha

images are put up The building is usually a more
.
solid structure than the dwellings of the monks and ,
has a tiled roof ; fre quently it is surrounded by a

mud wall on which are painted simple mythological
,
subj ects S imilarly sacred subj ects are used to

.
,
decorate the inner walls o f the sanctuary but the ,
painting has small arti s tic merit As regards colour .

,
dress pose the delin eation o f faces and the grouping

, , ,
of gures it is of the old Indian style There is no

,
.
trace o f a peculiar development of the art o f painting

under Buddhist inuence .
The statues of the Buddha are limited to a few

xed types There are mainly three kinds o f Buddha
statuesthe sitting the standing and the recumbent
.
.
, ,
In all three forms the B uddha wears the conventional

monastic habit the outer garment being the mantle
,
which is thrown back from the right S houlder leaving ,
it b ars The lobes o f the ear are S O long that they

.
rest on the shoulders The surface o f the head is

.
covered with a number o f short regular stumps , ,
which were originally meant to represent the ends

o f hair left when the Buddha in the night of his
,
ight from home cut o ff his hair by his sword but

, ,
which in the course of time have been so c o n ve n

ti o n a l i z ed as to become q uite unrecognizable On .
the crown o f the head there is usually a special

B UDD H I S M O F C E YL ON 1 05
erec tion which take s the form of a vefold ame .
T his cranial protuberance called the us nita was

, ,
o n e of the thirty two distingui s hing m arks which the

-
legend assign s to every B uddha 1

Another o f these .
marks is a small twist o f h air between the eyebro ws ,
called em s ( wool ) T he feature s are generally formal

.
an d s ti copied from a tradition al ty pe The seated

,
.
Buddha is cross legged the feet laid o n one another

-
, ,
the left under the right th e h and s likewise left , ,
under right lyin g in the lap above the feet T his is

,
.
the attitude o f meditation in which o ne pictures th e ,
Buddha under the B o tree at the time when h e -

,
received his revelation ( see p .
The standin g B uddh a is represented in a n upright

position the feet placed close together the right
, ,
hand raised with the palm turned toward s th e

spectator ; the left h and h angs down alongside the
body grasping the robe He is in the attitude o f
, .
the preacher .
The recum bent B uddh a is represented at th e

m oment wh en th e great teacher entered Nirvana
n amely wh en he di e d He lies fully outstretched
, .
o n his right side with the right hand under his

,
head and the left arm stretched out along the bo dy .
H ere and th ere one meets some slight deviation

2
from these three representations but as a rule this ,
1 Origin ally i t i s a repre s e nt a t io n o f t h e h a ir do n e up in t o a coil

on t h e t o p o f t h e h e ad , b u t , a s t h e Buddh a h a d hi s h ai r c u t o ff, i t
had to be expla in ed i n an o th er w ay .
1
Am on g t h e s e devi a t io n s m a y be n o t ed t h a t o f t h e Buddh a
gu a rded by a cobr a Th e po s ition i s th e S it t in g o n e ; th e s e a t
.
i s for m ed by t h e curled u p body o f t h e cobr a t h a t s n a k e wh ic h

-
,
1 06 B UDD H IS M AS A RE LIGION
is how they are depicted varying in size 0 course , , ,
from colossal gures ten times the height o f a man

, ,
to tiny ones that may be conveniently carried in the

pock et Huge gures of the Buddha are someti m
. es
carved o n the face o f roc k s The gures in the .
vihar a s are usually made o f burnt clay covered with ,
a veneer of special cement the s o called c hun a m ,

-
,
which is very durable and takes a good poli s h .
S tatues are also made in wood copper bron z e ivory , , , ,
and stone They are usually gilded and the more

.
,
important ones ornamented with real o r imitation

precious stones The eyes and other features are
.
generally painted in order to emphasize them .
Accompanying the gures o f Buddha are several o f

his chief disciples sometimes merely painted o n the
,
adj acent walls With the seated Buddha t wo favourite

.
followers Ma u dg a l y aya n a (MOg a ll ana ) and Saripu tra

,
( S arip u t ta ) are frequently represented and with the ,
dying Buddha A nanda is sometimes found .
The vihar a s contain be s ides these Buddha repr o

,
se n t a ti o n s n o t infrequently also all sorts o f Hindu

,
(Brahmanistic ) mythological gures E specially .
common are those o f Vi s hnu and Brahma The .
admission o f such deities is a concession to the

popular combin ation of Buddhism and Hinduism ,
is so comm on in Ceylon an d th e h e a d o f the rep t ile with i t s

, ,
bro a d erec t h ood w a ve s pro t ec t in gly over Ga u t a m a s h e a d

,

.
Legen d rela t e s t h at a s erpen t de m on pro t ect ed th e Buddh a wh en

h e w a s s e a t ed i n m edi t a t io n s urroun ded by m e n ac in g power s o f
,
ra in a nd th un der S im ila r legends a r e in vogue o f t h e gods

.
Br ahm a a n d S iv a R epre s ent a t ions o f v e or s eve n h e a ded

.
-
cobr a s m a y n o t infre quently a l s o be s ee n o n rock s a nd in

t e m ple s
.
B U DDHI SM O F C E YL O N 1 07
which the monks are not slow to j ustify T he H in du .
god s ( d eva s ) play a many sided mi le in Buddhis m as

-
the worshippers and servants of the Buddha Not .
in frequently the H in d u deities are to b e found in an

adj acent bui l din g calle d d evd le but which belongs
, ,
to the B uddhist sanctuary .
Besides p a ns a la and vi hdr a at every fairly large

,
monaste ry there is a special h all set apart for

preachin g . This h all is called ba nag e from b a na ,
the word namely the sacre d c anon Th e h all is

, .
generally devoid o f all ornament with a kind o f,
platform in the centre for the o f ciatin g monk .
The audience requir e no seats o r forms as they sit ,
o n mats o n the ground in S in ghalese fashion The .
preachin g fo r which these b all s are de s i g ned takes

place during the three month s o f the so call ed w as -
(va r s a ) hence it is also known as w as T he name

, .
originally meant th e rainy season at which time ,
the Buddha h ad commanded the monks to give up

their wanderings and to settle down quietly in one
place.
In Ceylon they observe the same month s which th e

Buddha had selected on account o f the clim ate i n

Northern In dia about the middle o f July to the
middle o f O ctober although i n Ceylon they are
climatically rather pleasant month s so that preaching
,
can be held un der a light wooden shed o r equally ,
well in the open air if there happe n to be no special

,
hall for it in th e s anctuary T he preachin g takes

.
place in th e evenin g and the S ight o f these gatherings

,
i s highly we i rd and picture s que The p e ople dressed

.
,
as far as possible in bright and festive garments ,

B UDD H IS M AS A RE LIGION
bring many lamps and lanterns with them as it is ,
reckoned a meritorious deed to add t o the illumination .
The spectacle is enlivened with owers ag s bright , ,
draperies sometimes with music and with rewor k s

, .
The preachin g mainly consis t s in the recitation o f

the s acred Pali texts with their S inghalese comment .
F avourite parts are the J ataka storie s o f the Buddha s
former existence s As often as the name o f the

.
Buddha is mentioned the whole people shouts

,

S adhu 1 (G ood At the time o f the full moon the
meeting often lasts from eve till morn .
In the court which surrounds p a ns a la vihdr a and , ,
b a nag e various kinds o f artistic wor k man s hip ( i n the

,
larger monasterie s ) are worthy o f notice and study .
There is a bell in its bell tower there is a pond con

-
taining lotos o we r s there is a small dagaba ; there

-
grows a B O tree such as the mon k s plant everywhere

-
, ,
a specimen o f the genus under which the Buddha

sat when he was illuminated F i cu s r elig i o s a Every .
mona s tery boa s ts such a tree while the venera ted ,
progenitor o f all these trees the B o tree dating back -
to the time o f Mahend r a which A s o k a sent to Ceylon

,
( see p 6
. 5 ) still survives as a t w o thou sa nd year o
-
l d - -
rarity in the remark able ruins o f Anuradhapura

( see p . In the courtyards o f many monasteries
may be foun d a pavilion in which is an interesting
specimen o f what is a frequent obj ect of worship in
Ceylon the footprint o f the Buddha ( s zi p dda o n ,
account o f which the pavilion is called sr ip ddu la ) .
1
Alre a dy t h e Chin e s e pilgri m I T s in g m ention s th i s excla m a
t io n a s u s u a l a t S i m il a r occ a s io n s ( s e e I T i g A R ecord o f t h e

s n,
Buddhi s t R eligion t r an sl a t ed by J Tak aku su p

,

.
, .
B UDDHI S M O F C EYL O N
This sin gular obj ect is connected with a mountain of

unique formation called Adam s Peak which has
,

be en an obj ect o f worship from very early times .
Th e religiou s fancy has discovered somethin g super

n atural in a peculiarly S haped hollow o n th e summit
-
,
which Buddhist legend a s serts to be th e impres s of

the B uddha s foot o n his third wonderful ight from

Northern In dia to Ceylon At the reque s t of a demon

.
,
h e made a foo tprint o n th e island as a seal by which

he claimed it a s his own property S imilarly Hin dus .
claimed that this impres s h a d be en made by the

god S iva ; the Mohammedan s said Ali or Adam the ,
Christians ( Portuguese ) S t Thomas o r the man of

.
,

E thiopia from th e Acts of the Apostles chap viii
, ,
. .
The actual place o n Adam s Peak which is still visited

annually by many pilgrims is a at hollow about ,
1 1 m etres long and metre broad Representations .

o f this footprint usually executed in wood an d
,
pain ted are set up in many monasteries The sole of

, .
the foot is usually divided in to 1 08 small elds each ,
o f which encloses a S pecial gure mostly those o f ,
animals . According to the popular in terpre tation ,
these gures are symbolic o f the pa st earthly careers

o f the B uddha G autama those various in carnation s
,
which he experienced in the course o f time and which ,
are n arra ted in the J ataka tales The 1 08 elds are .
u sually grouped round the wheel which is the ancient ,
symbol of B uddhist doctrine .
As the more celebrated temples receive votive

o fferin gs from many devotee s mainly image s o f the ,
Buddha there is often a spe cial building erected to

,
hou se these gift s .

B UDD HI SM AS A RE L I GION
0 S PE C I AL
. N O T E WO R T HY S AN C T U AR I E S .
The most noted sanctuary o f Ceylon is the temple

o f the Holy Tooth ( D a la d a wa M a li g a w a ) at Candy .
The building dates perhaps from the S ixteenth century

, ,
(the time when Candy was founded by King V ira

Vikkam a ) and pre s ents a charming picture lying o n
, ,
the edge o f the lake o f Candy in the midst o f o ne of

,
the pleasantest scenes o n earth with its uncommon ,
loo k ing architectural lines which far excel the usual

,
style o f the average monastery The temple owes .
both its name and fame to the Buddha relic which

has been guarded there for centuries and which up ,
to the present day (although the modern relic is not

genuine ) bring s devotees in crowds A tooth o f .
G autama which was pic k ed o u t o f the remains of his

,
funeral pile and preserved fo r a long time in India

, ,
came to Ceylon in the fourth century A D was taken . .
again to India later o n ; was wo n bac k by a noted

S inghale s e ruler o f the Middle Ages P a ra kr a m a ,
Bahu II . and l ater o n was handed over to the

monastery at Candy fo r safe guardian s hip But the .
Portuguese seized the holy tooth in order to prevent

its veneration by the S inghalese and at the in s tigation
, ,
of the then Archbishop o f G oa burnt it there in public

, .
The O riental gift o f imagination made good indeed

the loss through the audacious story that from the
remains o f the destroyed tooth o f their founder a new
o n e had been miraculously formed O ther more .
plausible apologi s ts relate that the Portuguese had

been deceived and had burnt a false tooth while the
, ,
genuine one had been saved But historical docu

.
B U D D H I S M O F C EYL O N
ments leave no room for doubt that th e fanatical deed

of the Archbishop was executed with all care and
absolute certain ty a n d also that the present guarded
,
specim en tooth is to j udge by its S hape o f anything

-
, ,
but human origin It measures nearly 2 inches i n

.
length and les s than 1 i n ch in diameter at the base

, ,
resembling the tooth o f a crocodile rather tha n that

of a ma n ( S ir E merson T ennent ) It is kept con .
c e a l e d in a casket which is shroude d from the light o f
day in a dark h all By dim uncertain lamplight the

.
,
doors o f the cas k et are opened fo r th e faithful to s ee

it and amidst the benumbing perfume o f countles s
,
owers ( which are brought h ere daily as o fferings )

the devotee kn eels before it and allows his uncritical
ga z e to fall upon what may rather be imagined tha n
actually seen .
T wo other very n oted monasteries at Candy are

Ma lw a tte and Asgi r i F o r a long time these two
.
places have claimed a sort o f supremacy over all the

sanctuaries of Ceylon so that almost every monk in
,
the island is reckoned as b elonging to one o r the

other T he di fference between them is not on theo
.
logical grou n d s but is rather a matter o f j urisdiction

, .
T he monastery o f Ma l wa tte has its adherents main ly

in the south and As gir i in the n orth In many
,
.
n eighbourhoods th e adh ere n ts o f both j urisdiction s are

t o be found together T he Abbots of both these chief
.
s anc turi es bear the title o f Ma h a n ay a ka ( H igh p riest ) -

.
T o them alone belongs the right to admit monks t o

the O rder as is mentio n ed above
,
.
In Co lo mbo where there are many temples worthy

,
o fmention the most n oteworthy is that of M a l ig a ka nd a

, ,
because there is an institute attached to it for the
study o f P ali and S an s k rit the Vi dyo da ya Co ll eg e
,

( Vi d y O d a y a P a r i ven a ) a widely k nown seat of learning .
Here the mon k s are given the opportunity o f obtainin g

a thorough knowledge o f the sacred canon and Bud ,
dh i s t s al s o from other countriesfrom S iam China , ,
and Japancome here fo r periods o f study At the .
head o f the school is t h e venerable H ikka du we S ri

S u m a nga l a a man of widespread reputation known
, ,
by the honorary title o f High Priest o f Adam s Peak
and o f G alle .

In all questions o f scholarship he is the
ultimate a u th o rity in Ceylon The number o f students
.
in the institute in 1 903 was over fty A c o n .
s id e r a b l e library is at their disposal containing works ,
in P ali and in S ansk rit ; there are n o t lacking also , ,
all the best work s o f E uropean authors .
When enumerating the renowned Buddhist places

in Ceylon the towns which now lie in ruins must not
,
be forgotten fo r S u fcient traces are left to indicate

,
what a conspicuous rOl e they played in the early

history o fS inghale s e Buddhism The most important .
o f these is Anur a d hap u r a For centurie s ( from the

.
third century B C to the eighth A D ) this was the

. . . .
ourishing centre of Buddhism and magni cently ,
adorned with buildings pagodas temples palaces and

, , , ,
monuments V aluable remain s of Ol d buildin gs have

.
been brought to light during the last twenty years by

careful restoration and give an excellent idea o f what
,
early Buddhism created in the way o f art and culture .
Next in importance to An uradhapura is Mi hin ta le ,
with its reminiscences o f Mahendra the founder o f ,
S inghalese Buddh ism ; after that comes P o l lu na rua ,

B UD D HI SM O F C E YL O N 113
the capital in later times ; D a mbul la where are some ,
o f the most S ingular and ancient cave temples ; and
S igi ri a remarkable mountain fortress

, .
D L IF E
. AN D C HA RA C T E R OF TH E MON KS .
T he usual daily routin e of the monks is very similar

to that which has already been described in the
account o f the novice s duties certain domestic work

,
reading and learning the sacred text meditatio n , ,
simple devotion before th e images and begging for ,
the necessary food F o r nine month s o f th e year the

.
monks must beg their food at the doors o f the houses ;

only during the three month s of Was which corre ,
sp o n d to the Indian rainy season they remain at the ,
temple and their need s are supplied by th e laity At .
the present day the monks can daily be observed

begging It usually takes place between nin e an d
.
eleven o clock in the mornin g

From th e l arger .
monasteries they go about in group s o f six and eight ;

the in habitants of the small sanctuaries go singly .
The monks stand with their begging bowl s round

earthenware o r iron pots holding about 3 q uarts,
in front of a house and wait without s aying a word

, , ,
for someone to come out and give them something .
As they are to a cert ain extent regular guests m any

, , ,
hou sehold s reckon for them in the preparation o f

meals ; and when they come and stand outside the ,
housewife or a servant immediately goes o u t and puts

rice and vegetables into their receptacle and bow s ,
down after doin g so with reverential salutation T he

,
.
monk return s no word of thanks h e stan d s in a com ,
p l e t e l y indifferent attitude and after receiving the

,
8
B UDD H ISM AS A RELIGION
gift he goes away silently a t lea s t such is the custom

,
o f some o f them ; others utter a S hort form ula o f
blessing when they depart The a c t o f alms begging

.
-
is loo k ed upon as an act of benevolence to t h e laity by ,
thu s giving them the opport unity o f Obtaining merit

as benefactors of the di s ciples o f the Buddha As .
S inghalese food is fairly uniform consi s ting of rice

and curry ( a S picey sauce ) together with sh and
,

vegetables the mass accumulated in one receptacle
is not so unpalatable as a E uropean might suppose .
However it is not always that the monk really live s

,
o n the food which he begged for In the large .
mona s teries o f Candy the mon k s have meals prepared

at home while the food collected by begging goes to
,
the poor and to animals The begging for food with

.
them has become a mere form .
That some larger monasteries are independent o f

the supply o f food obtained by begging i s not merely
due to the fact that they receive gifts from lay
vi s itors but also because such mona s teries po s s e s s
,
no in considerable amount o f property F or the rule .
which forbids a mon k to pos s es s property after he

has entered the O rder only applies to him as an
individual ; o n the other hand the mona s tic c o m
,
munity a s such may possess much property and is , ,
in fact sometimes a wealthy body This i s seen to

,
.
be the case in the more noted mona s teries by the ,
beautiful and co s tly ttings o f the building by the ,
magnicent votive Offe r ing s adorned with gold and

,
pre c ious stones No t a few monasteri es have land

.
let o u t o n rent by which they receive good prots

, ,
E ven in early times Prince s frequently gave th e

B U D D HI S M O F C E YL O N 115
mo n ks la n d for their main te n ance whe n the feedin g ,
of the monks direct from the royal table became a n

impos sibility owing to their number An d down to .
the present day most of the sanctuaries o wn landed

property T he monastic lands are still exempt from
.
the otherwise universal land tax It is reckoned th at

-
.
abo ut o n e thir d o f th e c ul tivated la n d o f Ceylon is

-
temple property .
Field labour is not o ne of the occupatio n s assign ed

to monks and scarcely more so is th e man ual labour
,
of transcribing the sacred writin gs They generally .
leave such work to paid laymen O n the other h and .

,
the monks are often e n gaged in school teaching and -

,
also i n certain medical service which imperceptibly ,
merges into exorcism and male di ctory practic es .
The in struction of children as undertaken by the

,
monks is naturally characterized by all the desultori

,
ness and irregularity common to the Asiatic nature .
T he chil dren learn to read and write their o wn

language S ingh alese ; here and th ere o n e may also
,
be introduced to the poetic old S inghalese language ,
E lu as well as to the sacred language P ali The

, , .
books which they read with th eir prie s tly teachers

mainly co nsist o f narratives legends and poem s in
, , ,
honour of the B uddha o r o fo n e of the H in du deitie s as ,
well as o f rules of conduct and proverbs T he metho d .
o f in s truction is the most primitive o n e in the world
recitation and repetition recitation in u n ison writing

, ,
on sand or o n the leaves o f trees ; such are the form s

o f teach in g in use until the scholar is su f ciently
advanced to read palm leaf manuscripts- .
. I n cases of illness a l ayma n often send s for a

,
8 2
B U DD HI SM As A RELIGION
mon k Many of them have the reputation of being

.
able to supply valuable remedies ; they must al s o

read ba na the sacred word which binds the layman
,
to faith in its miraculous healing properties .
Real preaching ( not only reading o f the sacred

text ) is done in some temples o n the s o called -
p oy a days the four quarters of the moon when lay

, ,
people assemble in the vihar a s to present their gift .
O n these days also the confession o f the mon k s

, ,
takes place For this purpose a number Of monks

.
from neighbouring temples come together and form

a chapter They g o through the ceremony o f con
.
fe s si o n exactly after the form o f the sacred boo k the,
P atim o kkh a which is recited by o n e of them

, .The
confession made by twos to o ne another is merely
formal .
It is not pos s ible to h ave a high estimate of the

intellectual and moral level o f the S inghalese mo nk
hood i n g ene ra l f O f course the man who tak es as
his criterion the members o f the Vi dyOda ya Institute
at Colombo o r otherwi s e selected individual mon k s
,
o f a learned and s trenuous character (as they may be
found in the mos t highly reputed monasteries ) o n ,
which alone to base his opinion may reach a very

,
incorrect conclusion such as one often reads in

,
E uropean wor k s ; but they do not represent the

ordinary facts .O n the occa s ion o f a more exact
settlement o f the temple landed property being made
( during the ninetie s ) the British
, G overnment a p
pointed a special representative fo r a term o f years
t o make him s e l f thoroughly acquainted with the
condition o f the monasteries In the course o f four
.
B U DD H I S M O F CE YL O N 1 17
years this o fcial visited about thirtee n hundred dif

fe re nt temples and monasteries and wo n such an ,
intimate knowledge o f the people and conditions as

seldom falls to the lot o f any in dividual H is verdict .
1
is o n the whole very unfavourable T he observation s
, , .

of other authorities as well a s th e present writer s per
,
sonal inquiries fully corroborate his statements T he

, .
average monk leads an idl e l ife and h as no intere st ,
even in the deeper question s o f B uddhism sin ce th e ,
readin g and reciting o f the sacred text soon b ecomes

purely mechanical and the exercise o f meditation is
,
n o t practised by most E ven the te n fund amental

.
rules o f the monkhood are often ign ored It is not .
uncommon to n d monks pos se ssin g m oney and ,
even followin g a money m akin g calling T heft and -

.
immorality are but t o o commo n T he well known .

-
authority on S in ghalese monkh ood S pence Hardy , ,
wrote the following words forty ve years ago i n -

,

E astern Monachism (p In no part of the
.
island that I h ave visited do the priests as a body , ,
appear to be respected by the people though there ,
are individual exceptions in which a priest is popular ,
either from his learning his skil l in medicine the , ,
sweetness of his voice o r his attention s to the duties

,
of his profession I feel un willin g to make any

.
positive statement as to their moral conduct as it ,
was generally described to me by interested persons .
But when I have heard them S poken against it ,
has been rather on account o f their rapacity th an

their licentiousness ; tho ugh I h ave sometimes an d ,
1
D r Bowle s D a ly s F ina l R eport o n t h e Buddh i s t Tem p o r
.

a li ti e s Ordin an ce G all o 1 894

, , .
1 18 B UDD H IS M AS A RELIGION
especially in certain districts heard them accused ,

o f a great crime The above mentioned o i ci al
.
-
adds to his testimony quite recently the words

-
, ,
There are about nine thousand monks ; among

them a fewvery few great scholars ; the maj ority
are illiterate and some to avoid labour seek a life
, , ,
o f in dolence sheltered by th e yellow robes of prie s t
hood ; many are depraved There are ho wever

.
, ,
some examples o f personal piety devotion and self , ,
denial which would be an ornament to any Church

,
.
S imilar is the statement of R S Copleston from his . .

,
very intimate acquaintance with the subj ect .
The body o f a dead mon k is cremated Very soon .
after his death a pile is erected o n a neighbouring

S po t ,
and the dead body is borne there in solemn
procession The body is unclo t hed and placed o n the
.
top o f the funeral pyre with the face turned down

,
wards Then a friend o r near relative sets re to the

.
pile with a torch The ashes o f the corpse afterwards

.
are collected and buried and the place is frequently

,
mar k ed by a simple monument .
The total number o f mon k s in Ceylon after the ,
census o f 1 8 91 was , after the census o f 1 901 ,
so a considerable decrease has taken place

within ten years .
E . SEC T S AND R E F O R MS .
There is little to be said about the division o f

S inghalese Buddhism into various sects G enerally .
one c ounts three die r e n t bodiesthe S iame s e the ,
Rangoon (o r R am a nya ) and the Amarapura mon k s

, .
The S iamese Society exists down from A D 1 7 50 when . .

,
B UD DH I SM O F C E YL O N 119
some monks from S iam came over to Ceylon to

regenerate the B uddhism T his sect con ned the
.
entrance to m onkhood to one particular caste th e

V ellala . Against this restriction there arose the
Am arapura society at the beginn ing o f the nin eteenth
century admitting also three other castes but not the
, ,
lowest. The Rama nya society again founded in , ,
modern times is remarkable as bein g m ore genuin e

,
in point o f discipline They rej ect the admixture of

.
B uddhism with H induism as it is found in m any

temples live in a purer and stricter way possessin g
, ,
n o lands no costly robes o r other forbidden property

, ,
.
T here are also other small points of distin ction b e

tween the three sect s a difference in the way of read
ing ba na a different mode o fwearin g the yellow mantle
,
( either over the left shoulder only the right shoulder ,
bein g uncovered as the S iamese do or coverin g both

, ,
shoulders as the other two divisions do ) a different

, ,
mode of behaviour when receiving alm s ( the S iamese

utterin g a word o f blessing the other two departing ,
in S ilence ) T he R am a ny a sect is very small and

.
,
keep s aloof from the other two .
Besides these three divisions there is o ne reform ,
movement of quite modern date in the S inghalese

Buddhism which takes the name of B u ddh a s asa na
,
S am ag a m a Its chief seat is B urm a (Rangoon ) but

.
,
in Ceylon also it has a certain importance Its .
adherents mostly cultured people o f Ceylon strive

after a purer more inward B uddhism one more in
, ,
accordance in m any respects with E uropean taste

, ,
.
T hey have built a preachin g hall in which on -

,
S unday ( 1) evenin g there is usually a S inghalese

sermon o n Buddhist que s tions at which the audience

,
mostly attired in E uropean clothes sit o n benches

as in a Chri s tian church the mon k preaching from a
,
kind of platform They do not sing but a creed is

.
,
recited in unison at the close In the background o f

.
the hallsomewhat in the position o f a Christian

altar is a statue of the Buddha At o ne o f these
.
assemblies when I was present in 1 903 there was

a large attendance The preacher spo ke o n the
.
absolute validity and Obligation o f the rst Buddhist

commandment not to ki ll any living being This .
party o f Reformed B uddhism is not antagonistic to

the S inghalese Buddhism of the present day but h a s ,
the friendliest relations with its most prominent

adherents .
F INF LU E N C E
. ON TH E L AI TY .
There is not a sufcient reason fo r describin g the

population of Ceylon as entirely Buddhist though this ,
is frequently done in a supercial way For r s tly .

,
,
there are whole parts o f the island where Hinduism

prevails s o that few traces o f Buddhism can be found
, .
This is the case in the north S econdly even where

.
,
B uddhism is strong among the population this ,
religion has not been su fciently powerful to bring

the laity in to close union with their ideals o r to ,
indoctrin ate them with their conceptions What the .
laity accepted from Buddhism they have adapted to

their capacity and along s ide this vague Buddhism
,
t hey follow other lines o f religiou s lifemore o r less

openly which the tolerance o f a supe rstitious mind
enables them to hold in combination It i s the same .
B UDD H I SM O F C EYL O N 1 21
'
combin ati on o r j uxtapo sition o f die r ent religious

c onceptions which we n d amongst almost all Asiatic
races to a certain degr ee .
T hat by which the layma n is attached to B uddhism

consists mo stly in certain outward Observances H e .
vi s its temples brin gs little lamps for the worship of

,
the B ud dha and o fferin gs o f owers ( th e c ha mp ac

1
,
M i c heli a c ha mp a ca and j asmine are specially used

for this purpose and the temple halls are often lled
,
with their overwhelmin g perfume ) and he gives the ,

re q uisite gifts to the monks namely food an d ,
clothin g The ordin ary food is given to mendicant

.
monks at th e house door but man y people make ,
extraordinary contributions o f rice sugar honey , , ,
but ter sh o r meat which they carry to the

, , ,
san ctuaries T he spe cial season appo in te d for givin g

.
cloth in g to the mo n ks is the month after Was wh ich ,

is therefore called the clothin g m onth Many l ay .
men buy one o r more pieces o f stu ff to present them

t o the monks E ach monk m ay only accept o ne out t
.
,
consistin g o f the three garments mentioned above .
But what is left over Of th e gi ft belongs to th e temple

and the whole community A remarkable cus tom is .
that by which sometimes a n umber o f monks habits
are entirely made in the course o f a sin gle day

betwee n sunrise a n d sun set from the raw m aterial ,
cotton wool T his is done by means Of many hands

-
. .
1
Th e comm o n e st o f th e s e lit t le l am p s con s is t s m erely o f a
piece o f coco an u t S h ell lled wi th o il in whic h a wick is l a id
, .
T h ey ar e s e t in n ich e s o f t h e t em ple w a ll or in th e s an c tu a ry
i t s el f t o ill u m in a t e it a t n igh t e s pe ci all y fo r any fe s t ive
, ,
o cc a s w n .
A large number o i people e s pecially women meet in

, ,
a preaching hall o f o n e o f the temples and while some

-
,
bring in cotton wool which they have gathered from

-
,
the bushes others prepare it others again S pin it

, , ,
then it is woven cut out sewn and dyed the last

, , , ,
process being performed by the mon k s themselves .
A special performance o f the layman consists in

his submitting for a S hort space of time to certain
forms of abstinence approximatin g to the life o f the
,
monk hood This religious observance is known as

.
p o y a because it ta k es place o n the four quarter days

,
o f the moon which are so called

, Whoever desires to
.
observe p o ya mu s t notify his dete rmination to a monk

e arly in the morning o f the day specied when he goes ,

to the sanctuary and announces : I will observe the

commands . By the commands are meant those
eight which have been mentioned above as a k ind o f
preparatory stage of mon k hood (s ee p O n the day .
o f p o y a the layman refrain s from wor k and business ;
he listens to the sacred word recited by the mon k o r ,
reads it ; he pas s es the time in S ilent meditation ; he

also performs spec ial good deeds to parents relations , ,
o r the needy and takes Offerin gs to temples and

,
pagodas .
All these kinds of action are considered by the com

mon people as a means for obtaining religious merit
and fo r avertin g disaster Religion is here a s any
.
,
where else for the common people a way o f winning ,
the favour o f the unseen powers F o r this p urpose .
also the sacred canon the Word is used B a na is a

, , .
k ind of charm which brings a blessing by the mere

reading and hearin g even although utterly nu
,
B U D D HI SM O F C E YL O N 1 23
intelligible to the hearer and which averts illn esse s

,
and exorcises evil spirits There is a rem arkable

.
custom called p i ri t ( P ali p ct/pi tta ) which con sists ,
in laymen hirin g a number o f monks to read ba na

uninterrup tedly day and night usually for the space
o f seven days either in the preaching hall of a -
m onastery or in some other buildin g suitable for

the purpose the Obj ect bein g the obtaining o f a
,
b en e c e n t in uence
. T he monks relieve o ne another
in such a way that no smalle s t p ause occurs to break
the charm A Buddhist relic lies o n the platform
.
where the monk is recitin g and a sacred cord ,
encircles the whole buildin g begi n ning at th e place

,
o f recitation and leadin g back to it again so that by ,
its means the workin g o f the in cantation may be

subst antially held together Besides the two monk s
.
who read the ba na simul ta n eously there are u sually ,
others assembled in the building who murmur with ,
them and keep hold o f th e c ord which encircle s

the sacred area The festival ends with a procession
.
and a mythological performance which is often th e ,
cause o f lavish expenditure T hus th e word o f the

.

B uddha s doctrin e is perverted in to a magic formula .
No one can be surprised that under these circum

stances nothin g o f the deeper spirit of B ud dhist
teaching has penetrate d the laity B uddhism has been .
entirely unable for in stance to in uence the S in ghalese

, ,
by makin g kin d n es s to animals natural t o th em ,
although such in uence woul d seem to lie cl o se s t to

th e foundation s o f their religion O ne may read in .
S ir E merson Tennent s book (that profoun d and

acc urate student of Ceylon who fo r m an y years as a

,
B UDD H ISM AS A RE LIG I ON
high o i c ia l had every opportunity for observation and

information ) how they obtain tortoiseshell in the
1
most inhuman manner from the living turtle by

burning vol i p and how in the. .
, .
markets and s treets animals are cruelly treated with

o u t the slightest consideration o r for any valid
reason Ceylon vo l ii p , The very car eful
. .
, .
and moderate record o f Buddhist inuence on the

S inghalese people which R S Copleston ( Buddhism
, . .
Primitive and Present second edition pp 284 , , .
after long personal Observation gives may be read by , ,
those who are intere s ted in this que s ti on .
The simple S inghalese are not really a ffected by

Buddhism in their innermost life but far more by ,
their ancient nature and demon worship Buddhism .
has done nothing to di s place that but has rather ,
encouraged it F rom a very early period the people

.
o f Ceylon believed in the working o f all sorts o f
spirits ( s a nne) who are responsible fo r every mis

,
fortune every illness every threatening appear

, ,
ance A class o f exorcists the K a tta di a s are

.
, ,
employed t o molli fy the evil spirits People are .
specially driven to mak e use o f these exorcists in case

o f drought or scarcity o r severe illness
, An altar is
, .
erected to these formidable powers an o ffering is ,
brought (often a fowl ) and gifts of food and owers

,
are presented at special hourssunset midnight and , ,
sunri s e Between these hours the K a tta di as

.
1
S e e th e t w o volum e s o f Ceylon : a n Accoun t o f t h e I sl an d
P hy s ic a l H i s t oric l T opogr a ph ic a l four th edi tion Lon don
, a ,
, , ,
1 86 0 . T h i s i s s t ill t h e foun d a t io n fo r m ore recent work s even ,
i f o u t o f d a t e a s t o de t ails .
B U D D H I SM OF C E YL O N 1 25
ar rayed in disguises and wearin g frightful masks

perform dances till they work them selves up to a sta te
Of frenzy in which they believe themselves to be
,
possessed by the demon who thereupon speci es th e

,
c ause o f the disaster and th e means of deliverance .
T his demon worship is do wn to the present day the

only o n e that has religious we ight among th e people .
It has allied itself with the manifestatio n s of Hi nd uism

as well as with the idea s a n d gu res p ecul iar to
B uddhism B ut these two religion s h ave only served
.
to introduce new classes of demon s to it to in vent ,
n ew in cantations new magic formul ae i t is in reality

, , ,
the old dread belief in n ature spirits which govern s

the ordin ary man Whether the B uddh a or Brah
.
,
m a o r V i s nu or S iva the friendly o r the hostile

, , ,
imaginary beings of the B uddhist legends (ya ksa
and r dha s a ) they are all equally i n cl uded among

,
the crowd of ancient demons with whom o ne must deal ,
discreetly from day to day .
A striki ng example of the syn cretism prevail in g

amongst the S inghalese laity is to be seen at the
great annual festival called B erab era o r E sa l a ke l iya .
It is in commemoration o f the birth of the go d

V ishnu o r of his victory over the Asur as th e enemie s
, ,
o f the gods B ut notwithstanding this H in d u i stic

.
origin Buddhism take s part in the ceremonies very

,
freely and at the same time the devil dancers h ave

,
-
to play their r Ol e .
O n th e other h and it sh ould not be left unnoticed

,
th at B uddhi s m o f late h as trie d to empha s ize its

original pure ways even on the lay people of Ceylon .
This certainly has been done under E uropean in

1 26 B UDD H IS M AS A RE L IGION
u enc e and after E uropean methods Temples and .
dagabas are k ept in better repair boo k s and tracts are ,
di s tributed education is more cared fo r abu s es are

, ,
reformed and the people are taught how to b e

,
come real promoters and protectors o f the religion .
Whether this striving will have a deeper effect o n the

masses and whether it will work also where E uropean
,
civilization and the Engli s h language are not c o

agencies cannot be said so far
, .
C HA P T ER III .

T HE B UDD H IS M O F B UR MA
In Burma Buddhi s m has penetrated more deeply
,
than in Ceylon into the life o f the people and has ,
given it more o f its colour Perhap s it is here that

.
the religion o f G autama wo n its most real and attract

ive presentment and the visitor to this country can
n o t fail in loo k ing bac k o n the religious life o f the
,
Burmese to retain an impres s ion o f sunny brightness

, .
Whoever is inclined to let himself fall under the spell

o f Buddhism nds here a certain inducement to do
so that is to say if he penetrates into the count r y and

, ,
does n o t conne his view to the semi E uropeanized -
city o f Rangoon As a whole it appears harmle s s and

.
antique k indly and con s iderate and it i s only to a

, ,
k een ob s erver that its wea k nesses and limitations soon

become obvious .
A N OV IC E S
. AN D MO N K S .
As in Ceylon the inuence of Buddhism in Burma

,
begins with the educational activity exhibited by

the mon k s Every village every hamlet without
.
, ,
B UR ME S E B U D DHI S M 1 27
exception po ssesses a temple where at least one

, ,
mon k is in residence Here is the B urmese chil d s

.

school It is cu stomary for every child to receive a

.
certain amount o f instruction in the monk s abode

.
This tra ining is in deed as limited and o f the same ,
quality as that o f the young S inghalese It con s ists

,
.
in reading and writing Burmese and a little o f the

sacred language P ali ( here written in B urmese char
,
act o rs ) learnin g by heart sacred formul ae and prayers

, ,
the conduct o f religious ceremonies rst ac q uaint ,
ance with the fantastic world o f B uddhist legend and

mythology moral maxim s and something o f popular
, ,
poetry By means o f this teaching th e individual is

.
brought int o early and friendly relation s hip with th e

religion o f his country Th e mon k s are generally .
honourable and esteemed an d their instruction is a ,
plea s ure to the children It begin s when they are .
eight or nine years o ld T he scholars may be lodged .
in the monastery it s elf and are n o t requir ed to become

,
novices but remain simply pupils wearing secular

, ,
clothing and with no other duties th a n that of

,
in struction .
A few years later comes th e hour for decision of

the young human being when h e may f ully take ,
mona s tic vows and monastic re s ponsibilities In .
B urm a it is indeed th e ordinary custom for every

, ,
laym an even when h e h as no intention o f per

,
m a n e n tly renouncin g a worldly callin g to dedicate ,
a certain time during his youth to mona s tic life This .
pa s sin g through monastici s m signie s his entrance

in t o full manhood Th e boy then receive s a new
.
name to be dropped later o n when h e returns to the

,
B UDD H IS M AS A RELIGION
world T he age for the monastic period should b e
.
fteen according to the rules laid down but for

, ,
practical reasons the maj ority enter o n it earliera t

about twelve The entrance usually take s place at
.
the beginnin g o f Was namely about the middle o f ,
July The entrance ceremony is a great festival in

.
,
which relatives and friends o f both sexes take part .
A pretty proces s ion introd uces the proceedings when ,
the aspirant to the noviciate ta k es leave o f the

spectators as if renouncing the world After this he
, .
returns to the paternal residence A number o f .
mon k s besides other people tak in g part in it are all

, ,
assembled there The novice s hair is shaved o ff his

.

,
secular clothing is exchanged for the monastic habit ,
the youth begs thrice fo r admission into the holy

community the monk s uten s ils are handed to him
,

and then he walks in procession to the mona s te ry .
In his father s hou s e further ho s pitality is dispensed

to the gue s ts and it usually ends with what is so

,
much enj oyed in Burma a pantomimic dance call ed

w
p e .
The duration o f stay o f such novices in a monastery

varie s according to their earne s tness o f purpose .
There are cases in which it is such a purely per

fu nc to r y matt er that the youth merely remains one
day with the monks O thers remain at least a few .
wee k s o r a month The correct thing however is

.
, ,
to belong to the monastery for the Was season

namely three months and whoe ver is de s irous of
,
sati s fying the highe s t requirement s o f s trong religious

conviction s can only do so by spendin g three ra i ny
seasons with the mon k s ; this is explained as the
B UR M E S E B UD D H I SM 1 29
rst Was being for the purpose o f obtainin g merit

for his father the secon d for his mother and the
, ,
thi rd for himself .
T he common name for the novice in B urm a is s hi n .
H e follows th e mode of life o f the monks and must ,
not venture to tran sgress the ten f u ndamental

commandments o r h e will lay himself open to
,
punishment freque n tly to corporal pun ishment B ut

, .
the burden laid upo n him by monastic life is not

in r eality a heavy one owin g t o the simplicity o f
,
B urmese life especially whe n it is only for a short

,
space of tim e .
Whoever wish es to enter the monastic commun ity

perm anently h as to be admitte d by a second ceremony ,
when his noviciate is e n ded which correspon ds with ,
th at which take s place in Ceylon ( see p H ere .
also the lowest age prescribe d is twenty .
T he dress and oth er e q uipment o f monks is the

same as that o f S inghalese Buddhism The daily .
routine is also sim ilar T hey rise at daybreak wash

.
, ,
s ay the morning prayer accomplish the necessary ,
domestic labour eat a light m eal and betake them

, ,
selves to meditation o r the study of a s acred work .
At eight o r nine o clock the prescribed beggin g takes

place from which only the sick and very aged are
,
exempt AS in Ceylon the food obtain ed by beggin g

.
,
is not always eaten by the mo nks unless un der the ,
compulsion o f po verty ; it is preferably given to the

poo r o r to an i mals ; not in fre q uently th e monks
empty th eir well ll e d bowls in the street in th e
-
course of their beggi n g for th e bene t o f th e dogs o r

,
other recipien ts T hi s is n o t co n sidered as con

.
9
B UDD H I S M AS A RE LIGI O N
t e mptu o u s the giver since the feeding of animals
of ,
is also an act o f merit .
After they have accomplished the duty of begging

for an hour o r two they return to the monastery and
, ,
ta k e the meal which has meanwhile been prepared fo r

them Afterwards the time is spent in reading o r
.
religious conversation o r the reception o f visitors

, ,
o r in any other way they please T owards midday .
they have another light meal since after midday ,
they are n o t allowed to eat anything more The

afternoon is S pent in all sorts o f simple duties the
.
teaching o f pupils learning the sacred text medita

, ,
tion the superintendence o f copyists who prepare

, ,
manuscripts fo r the monastery A considerable part .
o f the time i s passed in gossip and chewing betel nut -

.
F or the younger ones especially the novices there

, ,
are several menial duties to be performed durin g

this time At sunset all who wear the yellow robe
.
,
even those wh o have been outside paying visits must ,
assemble within the monastery A certain supervision .
is maintained over what the disciples have learnt and ,
the day closes with a united act of worship o f the

B uddha images .
B G RA D E S OF R AN K
. .
T heoretically all the monks are alike in rank ,
except for the difference made by the time they have

spent in the mon k hood They reckon it by the Was .

seasons and say o f a monk :
,
He has so many

Was .Whoever has the largest number o f Was
is held in the most esteem ; otherwise there should
be no distinction Nevertheless they have practically
.
B U R M E S E B U DDH I SM 1 31
established distin ct grades o n a hierarchical system ,
eve n more completely than in Ceylon The full .
monk holds the title o f Ya ha n or is called P yi t S hi n

,
-
.
If he has had more than ten Was he receives th e hon

o ri c title o f H p o ngyi ( great renown ) a name which ,
foreigners often mistakenly bestow upon the mo n ks

in general From the H p o ngyi monks alone can the
.
Abbot o f a monastery be cho s en H e has the honorary .
title o f S a ya d a w ( royal teacher ) The monasteries o f .
a certain district form a union under the presidency

o f an older and specially venerated Abbot who is ,
called G a i ng d o u k A yet higher group is formed o f

-
.
the monks name d G a i ng o h above these is the rank

-
o f the G a i ng gyo h -
Finally the guidance o f th e
.
whole B urmese B uddhist Church is in th e hands o f

the so called Tha tha n a b a i ng H e formerly was chose n
- .
by the K in g o f Burma .
S ince the tim e whe n B urma lo st her Kin g a n d ,
the British supremacy was establish ed a certain con ,
fusion invaded this hierarchical system especially ,
S ince the death o f the last Th a t h a n a b a ing ( in 1 8 95 )
belonging to the royal tim es F o r a long period

.
he had no successor as the British r ul e did n ot

,
recognize as o n e o f its f unctions th e selection of

a religious head for B uddhism while the mo n ks ,
o f th e co un try could not agree in their choice .
At last however a n ew Th a th an a b a in g has bee n

, ,
appoin te d by the mo n ks and has received the o f cial

,
co n rmation of his appoin tment by the British

G overnment H e reside s at Mandalay the former
.
,
c apital O rigin ally h is supremacy was con ned to

.
U pper B urma but Lord C ur z o n the V iceroy o f In dia

2
,
9
B UDD H IS M AS A RE L I GION
at the time o f his appointmen t extended the area o f
his j urisdiction so as henceforth to include Lower
,
1
Burma .
C S AC R E D B U IL D I N GS
. .
The monasteries and temple buildings vary consider

ably both in extent and in value With few exceptions .
2
they are built o f wood and fo r this purpo s e they mak e
,
use Of the excellent and very durable tea k wood in ,
which Burma is so rich The buildings are raised o n .
pillars three o r four yards in height and are o ne ,
storied although the picture s que roofs are divided into

,
several stages o f diminishi n g s iz e as they ascend

, ,
which gives an impre s sion o f stories The principal .
buildin g o fa monastery kyo u ng is a hall divided into , ,
two parts sur rounded by a veranda O ne di vision

, .
serves the in mates as a general abode frequently they

even sleep there on the mats which serve as beds and , ,
which durin g the daytime lie rolled up along s ide

the walls .
The other division contains the Buddha images ,
altars bearing candles o r little lamps owers and other , ,
adornments be s ides the chests in which the sacred

,
writings are k ept manuscripts o n palm leaves o f vary

,
-
in g value This is the more important room o fthe two

.
i ts oor is raised higher than the surrounding veranda

1 Co m p a re t h e a r t icle in t h e periodic a l B u d d his
m vol ii , . .
,
No 1 p 1 07 c i s eq
.
,
. R eorg ani z a t io n o f t h e S an gh a in U pper
.
Burm a
.
9 Bo t h i n R an goo n an d in M an d al a y m a be s ee n buildi n g
y s of
s t o n e erec t ed i n a s o m ew h a t E urope a n s t yle b u t fa rt h er inl an d

,
t h ere ar e a l s o Ol d m o na s te rie s w h ich ar e occ a s ion a lly buil t o f

bri ck .
B URM E S E B U DD HI S M 1 33
and the room used for living in V isi tors are generally .
conduc ted there unless they are well kn own ac q uain t

,
-
a n c e s o f the monks .
The hyo ung s contain no other images than those

o f the Buddha G enerally a large o ne sta nd s in the
.
ce ntre , and countless others are ranged round the

walls on the oor ; sometime s small ones are o n
shelves o r brackets against the wall T hey are made .
o f wo od brass alabaster as well as silver o r gold

, , ,
.
I n their representation of the gure o fthe B uddha they ,
agree with the above mentioned three po ses o f -
the S in gh alese B uddhism the seated (meditation ) ,
the standing (prea c hin g ) the recumbent ( enterin g ,
Nirv ana see p , The seate d B uddha is u sually

.
represented in B urma with the hands in a different

po sition from what the S inghal ese image s S how The .
right hand han gs down over the right leg close beside
the kn ee the palm facin g the body while th e left hand
, ,
lies palm uppermost in the l ap 1

Usually in front of .
this Buddh a kneel his two disciple s Ma u dg a ly ay a na ,
and S h ar ip u tra th e o n e with his ear t urned towards

,
the master as if in th e act o f listening the oth er with

, ,
folded hands in th e attitude o f worship B esides the .
gure s of th e B uddha G autama o n e sees here and there ,
in the shrin es some o fthe n oted earlier B uddhas as for , ,
1
Th ere i s a S peci ed nu m ber o f po s i tion s o f t h e h an ds a n d
a r m s o f t h e s e a t ed Buddh a a bou t w h ic h m an y t h eorie s a r e h eld
, .
Th e po s i t io n i s c a lled m u d r d ( se al) a nd e a ch m u d r a h as i t s
,
peculi a r s ign i c an ce Th e o ne m e nt ion ed a bove i s t h e man t r a o f

.
witn e s s be c a us e t h e Buddh a i s t h ereby s aid t o h a ve c alled t h e

,
e a rth a s wi tn e s s wh e n h e s a t un der t h e B o tree ght in g wi th t h e

-
t e m p t er
.
B UDD H I S M AS A RE LIGION
instance G autama with his three predecessors o f this
,
world epoch : K aku s a ndh a K o n ag a m a n a and Kas s apa

, , .
Al s o the fou r th gure in the complete series o f the

twenty eight former Buddhas Di p a mkar a (the Light
-
,
bringer) is sometimes represented .
Besides the kyo ung in most o f the monasteries a

,
sort o f steeple meets the eye which rises in a series ,
of stories This is the thei n which is set apart for

.
,
special purposes in particular fo r meditation and for

,
the rite o f admission F requently there are legends

.
attached to the spot o n which t h e t hei n is erected ,
in order to S how the connection of the mona s tery

with some holy being o f ancient times o r with some
celebrated Kin g .
The whole of the monastic grounds are usually

surrounded by a wooden o r stone wall within which ,
the layman dares only to penetrate after removing his

sandals o r shoes as it is holy ground A certain cir
,
.
c u mf e r e nc e Out s ide the enclosure is also frequently
mar k ed o by the Abbot as sacred ground Above all

things no living creature must be k illed there and

, ,
passers b y are warned of this fact by notices It is

-
.
here that people lik e to place tan k s in which sh are

k ept o r tortoises and other water beasts which are fed
, ,
and tamed It is rec k oned an act o f merit fo r visitors

.
to the monastery to feed them and naturally they , , ,
soon become extremely tame In some cases laymen .
send animals (which they have rescued from being

k illed) to a monastery to be tak en care of by the
mon k s They are then suitably housed and fed in
.
close proximity to the monastery .
The appearance o f the more important monasteries

B U R ME S E B U D D H I SM
is extremely picturesque T he great skill o f th e

.
Burm ese in wooden architecture and wood carvin g -
attains its highest s ucces s in them T he different .
roofs balusters walls posts everything is carved

, , ,
and painted with m arvellous elaboration and dex

t e ri ty ; even where the style o f architecture is not
ch aracterized by originality or any remarkabl e
im agin ative power yet the wh ole e ffect is highly
,
pleas i ng and worthy of admiration in its ne

, ,
laborious and thoughtful decorative art The golden

, .
monastery of the ' ueen at Mandalay i s o n e o f the

most charmin g examples o f this kind o f B urmese
buil din g .
D D AGAB A S
. .
A special chapter is re q uisite for th e descriptio n o f

the B uddhists buildin gs in B urma calle d dagaba s

( B u rmese Z a y d e e from P ali c ha i tya ; o r p a ya )

,
1
No .
other country has such a wealth o f these religiou s

monuments When o n e goes down th e river Irra
.
waddy and glides through the beautiful scenery o n it s

,
banks from the forest clad mountai ns in th e n orth

,
-
,
with their rocky peaks down to the rice el ds sur ,

-
roun din g Rangoon the spire s o i the dagabas fre

, ,
q uently gil ded emerge o ne by one in ever new variety

,
from among the palms o r thi ck underwood T hey are .
the distin guishin g feature o f the country T he reason .
why th e dagabas are so n um erou s and why new ones ,
are always being erected alongside countless o ld ones ,
which are fallin g to pieces without anyone takin g the

1
On t h e origina l c h ar a c t er o f th is buildin g , s ee a bove p, . 45 .
tro u ble to restore t h em is the popular belief in the
,
supreme meritorious e i c a cy o f building a dagaba

n aturally everyone desirous of obtaining merit bu ilds
,
his o wn dagaba .
Many o f the dagabas are built in the neighbourhood

of monasteries but it is quite permissible to set them
,
up away from them In each dagaba a revered obj ect is

.
placed in a kind o f mausoleum originally these were

relics No w they are generally a co s tly statue of the
.
Buddha or a valuable specimen o f a sacred writing .
S ometimes besides there are costly votive o f ferin g s ,
models o f sacred place s formed in silver o r gold ,
precious stones vases and such li k e The c o n s e c ra

, ,
-
.
tion o f a dagaba is carried o u t with great pomp A .
remar k able feature o n such occa s ions and which is ,
al s o present at the reception o f important gifts i s the ,
libation of water o n the soil while a sacred formula is

,
recited Thereby the earth and its spirits are taken

.
as witnesses o f the tran s action .
The S hape o f the dagaba varies considerably in

detail but the fundamental architectural de s ign is
,
usually the same The basi s is a four sided pyramid

.
-
,
with a row of additions in the s hape o f steps From .
this rises the conical part probably meant to r ep r e

,
sent a lotos bud which tapers abruptly upwards with

, ,
parallel furrows running round it all the way up .
The top bears an ornament the so called umbrella ,

-
,
Burmese hti frequently adorned with a covering of

,
gold and precious stones At the entrance o r beside

.
the ight o f steps leading to it there may frequently

be seen at the more important dagabas grotesque
, ,
animals on either side carved in stone combinations

, ,
B URME S E B U DD H I SM 1 37
of dragons and lions sh owin g the in uence of Chinese

,
art As guardian s o f the dagabas y o u m ay n otice

.
cer tain demons (na ts o f which there is more to be,
said later o n ) T he walls are not infrequently

.
decorated with simple drawings scenes from the ,
legendary life o f the Buddha G autama o r ( fo r the ,
purpose of awakening the conscience ) the various

torments which th e wicked dead su ffer in innumerabl e
hells .
At the present day the most celebrate d of all

B urmese dagabas is the S h way Dagon dagaba at
Rangoon Under it there are said to be buried not
.
only eight veritable hairs o f the B uddha G autam a but ,
also a begging bowl a garment and a pilgrim sta ff o f

-
, , ,
each of the three earlier Buddhas o f this world epoch .
T he S hway Dagon boasts an extraordin ary wealth of

specimen s o f O riental art It is a n imposing c o ll e c .
tion of temples chapels monuments and S hrines

, , , ,
with the principal dagaba in the centre a never ,
ending exhibition of B uddhist art an d skill em ,
bowered in a wealth o f tropical vegetation daily ,
visited by thousands o f pilgrims monks suppliants , , ,
sight seers business people a fantastic picture o f th e

-
, ,
attractive force of the S outhern B uddhist religious life .
Japanese Chin ese and Korean pilgrims m ake their

, ,
way here and leave behind them in the sacred place

,
both o fferin gs an d buildings i n token of their venera

tion .
Besides th e S hway Dago n me n tion m ust be made ,
of two others which are considered e q ually important

by the Burmese at all event s the S hway Maw Daw -
at Pegu and the S hway S a n Daw at Prome At

, .
1 38 B UDD H I SM AS A REL I GION
Mandalay the so called Arakan dagaba is highly
-
e s teemed ; the Burmese call it Maha Myat Muni .
Th e ancient capital Pagan o n the Irrawaddy should, ,
also be mentioned in this connection ; it is deserted

and ruined since the close o f the thirteenth century ,
but its walls enclose the remains o f dagabas .
The dagabas are the usual places o f worship for

the laity Attached to them i s a hall containing some
.
B uddha images where laymen can pay their homage

,
.
At noted dagabas there are several such halls some

t imes there are four each o f which loo k s to a point
,
of the compass and they are full o f Buddhas large

,
and small the presents o f pious laymen F o r the

, .
protection of all the s e ever recurring gifts which are

-
brought by the faithful special houses are erected at

,
much visited sanctuaries if the dagaba cannot con

-
,
tain them all These houses which are under the

.
,
care o f an o l d man are al s o much frequented by zeal

,
o u s laymen who perform their devotion s in front o f

,
the images B ut they are far less venerated than the

.
dagabas .
A necessary requirement at the dagaba is a bell .
Large dagabas possess several o f them They are .
struck by worshippers when they have nished their

praise o f the Buddha bringing their merit to the
,
notice o f the invisible ones The biggest bell in all .
Burma is that o f the Mingon dagaba in Mandalay .
The representation o f the Buddha s footprint
which we have already mentioned as found in Ceylon ,
is also seen in man y o f the dagabas o f Burma .

B U R M E S E B U DD H I S M
E C HAR AC TER
. OF TH E M O N KH OO D .
Monasticism in B urma accordin g to common con ,
sent is taken seriously at all events as the mo n astic

, , ,
rules must be strictly observed S mall misdemean .
ours are expiated by penance appoin ted by th e eldest

monk ( the Abbot) the penanc e consisting in phy ,
s i ca l labou r for the m onastery or noct urnal vigil s , ,
o r a more auste re way o f living o r ascetic deeds or , ,
other su ch thin gs If o n the other h and i t is a

.
, ,
heinous o e n c e e s pecially if it is one o f the four

'
great sin sa great sexual crime theft o f a valuable ,
obj ec t murder or th e misuse o f supernatural power

, ,
then un less there are extenuating circumstances the

, ,
member is expelled publicly from the commun ity by

unfrocking and the taking away o f his beggin g bowl -
.
T he conse q uences o f this are serious for an expelled ,
monk is not only subj ect to universal con tempt but ,
even to the hatred o f th e populace He is outlawed . .
A monk is at liberty however to leave the monas , ,
t ery by his own will and here and there one is to be,
foun d who chooses to do so when he is severely

tempted so as to be able to gratify his cravings
, .
Al though the monks on the whole keep a pretty

careful watch on their outward beh aviour yet a ,
n umber of lax h abits h ave crept in which are not

severely condemned It h as been already pointed out
.
that ma ny monks do not eat the food which has bee n

begged but only beg for the sake of form F urther
, .
more silk cloth ing is in common use which is strictly

, , ,
speaking prohibited , The monks also fre q uently .
take part in plays especially in the very pop ular ,

1 40 B UDD HI S M AS A RE LIGION
p w e, the pantomimic dances Above all many of

.
,
them are extremely covetous and are eager fo r the

,
personal posses s ion of money and presents ; indeed ,
they them s elves carry o n bus iness transactions Law .
suits are by no means uncommon both with o ne ,
another and with the laity even in the English law

,
courts S uch shortcomings o f the monastic ideal are

.
open to the public gaze If one probe deeper and

.
examine the inward maturity and gra s p o f the most

vital requirements o f Buddha G autama one must ,
equally admit a decit in the maj ority o f case s The .
mon k s are satised with the accomplishment o f

what is the prescribed mode o f life with reading ,
and committing to memory sacred writings with the ,
outward appearance o f meditation Mon k s pos s essed

.
o f inward z eal and real k nowledge are always e xc e p
t i o na l ; they sprin g more f r om the S imple retire d ,
monasteries o f the interior especially o f Upper

,
Burma but they often attain a career (when they

,
have su fcient ability) by being selected as the

leaders fo r the large monasteries at Mandalay or
el s ewhere .
The fact that most o f the Burmese monks are lack

ing in real earnestness in their career has long since
given rise to the formation o f a reform party which ,
is called Chulla gandi -

The adherents o f this
.
party try to enforce a stricter observance o f the

monastic rules as fo r in stance that no luxurious
, , ,
gowns should be worn even going so far as to

,
prohibit the use o f umbrellas and sandals and to ,
require that they should live on the food obtained

by begging that no o ne should accept money o r gifts
,
B U R M E S E B UDDHI S M 1 41
to himself personally and th at h e shoul d take no

,
p art i n dance s o r popular festivals The Ch ul la .
gandi is in the minority a n d ha s the bulk o f the ,
monastic communities the Maha gandi ranged -
against it T he controversy has sometimes been

.
c arried o n with much heat not only in speech an d in ,
writin g but even in street brawls whe n the E nglish

, ,
authorities were obliged to in terfere .
Another more m odern reform party is th e society

o f B u d dh a s as a na S a m ag a m a which we mentione d ,
already in connection with Ceylon This society aim s .
at bringin g B uddhism in to close contact with E urope

an d its culture for the need s of which this religion i s
,
held t o b e all s u fc in g An attempt h as al so been m ade

-
.
simultaneously to take up new aim s an d graft them

on to B urmese B uddhism so as to give it a E uropean ,
cast . T hus school life h as been p ut on a different

,
-
foo tin g lectures are given to lay people j o u rnals are

, ,
published The soul o f the movement is a E urope a n

.
,
Mr Allan B Ma c Gr e g o r (his monastic nam e is

. .
An anda Maitreya o r Me tt ey a ) who has gone over to

, ,
B uddhism from Roman Catholicism T his movement .
date s from the year 1 902 It was reorganized in .
1 903 .O ne o f the original po in ts o f the constitutio n

had been to form a S angh a of the West carryin g ,
out missionary work i n E urope and America This .
plan was in 1 903 g ive n up as im ma c t ic a b l e B ut .
q uite recently in 1 907 it has been ta ken up again

, , ,
as a Buddhist S ociety o f G reat Britain and Irelan d

has been forme d in London Its scope is wider than .
a mere propaganda for Buddhism comprisin g the ,
promotion of a better kn owledge o f Buddh ism a n d

B UDD H I S M AS A RELIGION
the s tudy o f P ali and S anskrit literature But the .
publications i s sued so far S how a strong mi s sionary

tendency In Mandalay already in 1 900 a society fo r
.
promoting Buddhism was establi s hed Its obj ects .
were ( 1 ) To maintain the Buddhist mon k s in food ,
etc ; ( 2) to promote the learning Of Buddhi s t scrip

.
tures ; ( 3) to start an Anglo Vernacular Buddhist -
S chool ; (4) to publi s h a monthly Buddhist journal ;

( 5 ) to start a printing press ; ( 6 ) to loo k after the
-
Buddhist mona s te r ies dagaba s inscriptions etc ;

, , , .
( 7 ) to train Buddhi s t mon k s in different language s and ,
send them abroad as missionaries This programme .
expresses the needs which the modernized Buddhist s

in Burma feel at present .
F . TH E L IF E OF TH E P E O PL E AND B U DD HI S M .
In Burma the life o f the people is in every way

connected with Buddhism .
S o long as it exi s ted as an independent king

dom the inuence o f the mon k s extended even
,
to the throne and made it s el f widely felt there

, .
Direct access to the King by means o f petitions ,
and audiences was granted to the higher spiritual

,
functionaries They were allowed and they fr e

.

quently made use of the privilege to criticize the
action of the G overnment when they considered it
harmful to the people They e v en pos s essed a j uris
.
diction o f their o wn in contests with the lai ty Every .
monastery had a certain inviolability so that it could ,
a o r d shelter to a criminal when pursued by j u s tice

'
and in times o f danger it was resorted to by the

B UR M E S E B UD D H I SM
laity to guard special treasures T hus the monkhood

.
became an important political factor which in a ,
certain se n se served as a n intermediary between the

despotic mo n archy an d its subj ects .
S ince the B ritish annexation all this has ceased .
Naturally B uddhis m did not willingly resig n the

,
temporal power an d th e British rule has several

,
times had to deal with insurrection s ( the last of

these took place in 1 8 97 ) which have been in stigated

and led by the monks In such cases G autam a s
.
disciples h ave not refrained from violent deeds and

the S hedding o f blood Although the political impor
.
tance o f th e monks ha s now come to an end the ,
consideration in which they are held shows itself in

many ways . T he monks are treated with great
reverence If a layman enters a monastery to S how
.
them a mark o f respect by his visit o r i n order to ,
discuss this o r that matter with them he must bow ,
to th e ground thrice before the monks whether he is ,
a distinguished person o r a beggar This bowing is .
accompanied with a reverential speech addressed in ,
the special form used by the Burmese in accostin g

person s of high rank T he monk is addressed with
.
the title of Payah ( S ir) whereas h e addresses a laym an

,
as T agah ( supporter ) T he layma n co n siders it a

.
duty in c umbe n t o n him to look after the monastic

buildin gs and their preservation to provide the food
,
a n d cloth in g of the mo n ks a n d to attend to their

,
general welfare T hey are n ot parsimonious in this

.
respect. T he clergy usually receive their share o f

the nest fruit and choicest vegetables .
T he religiou s festivals are heartily shared in b y the

people as a whole The commonest o f these are the
.
four days o fthe lunar phases in each month which the ,
S inghalese also celebrate (see pp 3 0 and They

.
then beta k e themselves in the early morning (the very

z ealous ones even go the night before ) to a dagaba ,
pre s ent o ffering s to the monks listen to the recitation

,
o f the sacred writings and k eep the day as a holiday

, .
S ome underta k e the monastic rule o f life for the day

by spending it in reading o r reciting pious pas s ages ,
and in meditation ; they tak e no food after t h e m o m

ing meal and pay homage t o the Buddha images
, .
E specially during the Was season ( middle o f July to

mid O ctober) the laity engage in all kinds o f devotion
-
on the four days o f the month At that time also .
wealthy families frequently in vite the monks to their

houses so that they may instruct them in the law
, ,
the teaching o f G autama ; and in the presence o f a

large gathering of friends and acquaintances some
important writing is read aloud o r an exhortation to ,
good work s (mostly the support o f monasteries a nd

dagabas) is delivered .
During the Was season no noisy entertainments

must be given especially there must be no p we
, ,
those pantomimic dances so dear to the Burmese .
O n the contrary the time should be spent devoutly

,
and in meditation T he result o f this is that the

.
conclusion o f the Was has the appearance o f being

a specially j oyous festival full o f merriment and
,
frolic Those youths who have been spending a short

.
time at the monastery have generally come to the

end o f their course o f duties as mon k s and naturally ,
they return with redoubled pleasure to their ho mes

B UR ME S E B UDD H I S M 1 45
and to the tide o f secular life At this tim e also the .

, ,
monks are drawn perforce into the current o f worldly

pleasures They receive very h andsome offerin gs
.
and presents and allow noisy bu sy proceedings even

, ,
within the monastery rooms sometimes .
An other noteworthy religiou s fe stival is that o f the

dagabas E ach dagaba h as its o wn special day every
.
year . All the people of the neighbourhood meet

there for harmless amu sem ent on th e day and ,
celebrated dagabas draw visitors from lon g distances .
T here are some more fe s tivals commemorating events

from the B uddh a legend as th e ascent in to the ,
Tu Si t a heaven to preach the law to his mother o r ,
the attaining B uddhahood under the B o tree -

.
An essential part of all these festivals are the

o fferings to the monks T heir main tenance is the .
main element in Burmese piety If the pious Burman .
can a fford to do so he buil ds a temple o r dagaba at

,
his o wn expen se That is the highest goal of his

.
religious ambition If that is not possible h e can at

.
,
all events present images of the Buddha for the sanc

t ua ry have pictures made or pay for n ecessary repair s
, ,
he may give a bell o r present the monks with clothing ,
food all sorts o f implements and even articles o f

, ,
luxury O ne must do some thing for the B uddhist

.

community The layman s point of view is that
.
thereby merit is Obtained and a h appy reincarnation ,
at the close o f this life no less than the insurin g of

,
happiness and success in all sort s o f human un der

takin gs in this present world There are also good .
works performed by laymen apart from those done to

the monks such as the quenching o f the thirst o f
,
10
travellers by setting up ve s sels full o f water o r weak

tea o n the roads o r by building rest hou s es in whic h
,
-
the wear y can nd repose and s helter from the heat of

the sun or by saving animal s from being k illed and
, ,
tak ing them to a mona s tery to be cared for but the s e

thing s are o f far inferior merit to the maintenance and
care o f mona s teries Characteristic o f the spirit from
.
which these deed s o f piety sprin g is one o f the com

monest formul ae which the s cholar learns in his early
days and repeats countless times when he makes o ffer
,
in gs and at religious festivals :

Awg a th a Awg a t h a I worship with the body with
, , ,
the mouth and with the mind with these three ka ns

, , .
The rst the second the third ; once twice until

, , , ,
three times The Lord the precious o n e ; the Law

.
, ,
the precious o n e ; the Assembly the precious o ne ,
the s e three precious things I the wor s hipper most .

, ,
humbly with fervid zeal with clasped hand s pay

, , ,
reverence give o fferings and with pious gaz e bow me

, ,
down Thus by this worshipping I gain merit and

.
increase in earnestnes s and purity o f heart and am ,
freed from the Four S tates o f Puni s hment ; from the

Three E vil Things starvation plague and war fare ;
, , ,
from the Eight Chambers o f Hell and from the F ive

E nemies And at the end when the la s t existence
.
,
1
has come fo r me may I pass into Nirvan a , .
There are numbers of such formul ae longer o r ,
shorte r as the case may be ceaseles s ly repeated by the ,
visitors to the sanctuaries while they pro s trate their ,
bodies to the ground and raise their folded hands to

1
S h w a y Y o e

Th e Bur m a n : hi s Li fe a n d No tio n s
, p 1 85 ,
.
e t s eq (Lo n do n
.
,
B U R ME S E B UDD HI SM 1 47
th eir foreheads T hat also is a mean s for obtaining

.
m eri t O thers u se S hort formul ae which soun d like

.
s p ells written for them o n small pieces of paper o r

,
cloth (s o calle d prayer a g s ) which they br in g t o

- -
,
the sanctuary together with owers an d candles o r , ,
little o i l lamp s-
.
B ut it is a very remarkable fact that despite th e ,
stron g cur rent o f B uddhist motive underlyin g th e

whole of the B urmese p eople s life the r e al actin g
religious force is not B uddhist at all O n the contrary .

,
we nd here a factor datin g from pre B uddhi s t times -

,
and which B uddhism notwithstandin g the powerful

hold which it obtain ed over this pe oplehas been
entirely unable to supersede It is the worship of the .
so ca lled n a t
-
Who are the n a ts ? The name is also
.
applied to cert ai n g ures of the Buddhist mythology ,
namely the de va s who inh abit the lower heave n s

, , .
B ut that is merely an adaptation and transferenc e .
O rigin ally the n ame applied to supernatural bein gs ,
who had no connection with B uddhism but which ,
sprun g from ancient B urmese demon an d n ature

1
worship T here are evident sign s in th e c ult of the
.
present day t o S how that the na t on the o n e hand

was the personi cation o f cert ain forc es o f nature and ,
o n the other hand it repre sents the S pirit o f the dead .
T he former case is S h own in the connection o f m any

1
Com p a re o n t h e s ubjec t Th e T h ir t y s eve n N a t s a P h a s e
-
o f S piri t W or s hi p in Burm a by S ir R C T e m ple (Lon don

, . .
,
th e s am e
A N a t ive Accoun t o f t h e Thi rt y s eve n
,
-
N a t s I n d An t vol xxxv p 21 7 e t s e q
,

. .
, . .
, . Al s o a .
review o f th e before n a m ed work s by G rier s on J ou rna l of the

-
,
R oy a l Asi a t i c S oci e ty 1 907 p 238, , . .
1 02
1 48 B UDD H I S M AS A RE LIGION
na ts with specied localities o r with trees and fruits ;
the latter is seen in the semi historical all u s ions -
to many na ts in the fe s tival song s and all sorts

of legends There are innumerable na ts ; they are
.
cla s sied in thirty seven different representatives to

-
,
each o f which a special sacred hymn is dedicated .
There is a house na t a village na t and together with

, ,
them a number o f the same k ind of beings who in ,
habit unspecied places i n the desert the roads the , ,
rocks the springs o r the streams Most o f the na ts

, , .
are o f a dangerous nature here and there however , ,
may be found a na t to whom one may apply fo r help .
There are female as well as male n a ts Miscreants .
who have been put to death o r persons who have met ,
with a violent death add to the number o f na ts They

, .
are all under the rule o f a n a t King the Thagya Min , .
The worship o f these beings is the real religion o f

by far the maj ority o f the B urmese who adhere to ,
them with absolute unalterable inward conviction

, .
The testimony o f those who are thoroughly acquainted

with the life o f the Burmese fully corroborate s this
fact O nly o ne such testimony is here quot e d that
.
,
o f Bi s hop B i g a n d e t who is universally ac k nowledged

,
to be o n e of the be s t informed scholars o n this subj ect

-
.
He s ays 1
The Buddhism o f the people has but little
o r n o part in their daily life In common life from
.
,
the day o f birth to that o f wedding or even o f death , ,
all the customs and formul a made u s e o f by the

Burmese originate with demon worship and no t with ,
1
I n a co m m u nic a t io n t o J G S co t t t h e e di t or o f t h e
. . ,
G a z e t t eer o f U pper Bur m a a n d t h e S ha n S ta t e s (R a n goo n ,
q uo t ed i n p a
. r t
,
i vol ii p.1 0.
, . .
B U R M E S E B UDD HI SM 1 49
Buddhism If a mi s fortune befalls him h e attributes

.
,
it to th e n a t if he wishes to undertake an important

matter h e tries to enlist the favour o f the n a t E ve n
,
.
the monks fre q uently give in to th e in uence o f this

strong undercurrent of animistic religion which un der

lie s their Buddhist faith .
N a t worship occupies such an important place in

the life o f the ordin ary Burmese that no one can
overlook it who has many dealin gs with this people
,
.
E very house has its n a t He is not a guardian spirit.
in the sense o f specially concerning himself with th e

welfare o f the inhabitants B ut h e has his established .
position in the house and the inhabitants must see t o

,
it o n their part that h e is kept in good temper T he .
pillars o f the house are boun d round at the top with

stu ff made of th e cotton wool in which he loves to -
dwell A vessel o f holy water ( which is reconsecrated

.
monthly by formul a used with twigs and leaves o f

certain trees ) stands in the veranda and the dwell ,
ing is often sprinkled with the water to insure the ,
protection o f the n u t T h ey brin g him o fferings

.
,
food and fruit They hang u p cocoanuts and gay rags

, .
fo r him The n a t may be very dangerou s to the

.
stranger who comes h ee dlessly under the roof ; h e

m ay frighten him into madness o r brin g an illnes s
.
o n him E very vil lage al so h as its n a t to whom a

.
,
place o f worship is erected at th e entrance clo se to ,
the la s t h uts He has regular fe s tival s in his honour

.
,
also special ones when a calamity has taken place ,
such as when an epidemic o f cholera or smallpox has

broken o u t in th e place .
N a t festivals are characterized by wil d dance s and

1 50 B UDD H IS M AS A RE L I GION
the performance of remarkable songs T hese are .
undertaken by women dre s sed up t o represent the

individual na t Their performances frequently are
.
o f the nature o f ballads or represent scenes from the

,
life of the na t during his earthly experience Fire .
works c o c kgh t s and wild music are associated with

, , ,
these performances The n a ts are frequently r ep r e

.
sented in pictures as gaily dressed puppets with

swords and other weapons and sometimes o n horse ,
back They often gure o n paper charm s and people

.
,
have some o f them tattooed on themselves The .
superstitious practices connected with na t worship

are innumerable They are mostly performed by
.
those women who dance at the na t festivals and ,
whose power to bring down curses to exorcise ill ,
nesses to call up the S pirits o f the dead and to fore

, ,
tell the un k nown is blindly believed in

, .
S o far is Buddhism from having obtained the

mastery over this religion that even the monks are ,
dominated by it to an incredible extent This is .

,
naturally the case mainly with the inmates o f village

,
monasteries in the interior of the country especially ,
in Upper Burma whereas the superior type of monk

,
in Rangoon expresses his dislik e and contempt o f the

popular belief In the country however they bind
.
, ,
the pillars o f the monasteries with cotton wool for the -
temple n a t and the monks attend the na t festivals

, ,
e s pecially during epidemics in order to bring to bear ,
their more powerful inuence on the menacing spirit .
The mon k s stand by the sic k bed o r death bed at - -
the exorci s ing o f the n a t they are the most popular

,
tattooers and soothsayers they decide which are lucky ,
and unlucky days and they interpret dreams , .

S I A ME S E B UD D HI S M 1 51
A yet more complete intermixture of animistic and

nature worship with B uddhism may be observe d in
the S han S tates T his differs in m any of its external
.
features from the u sual B urmese B uddhism ; but it

does not occupy a su fciently important position fo r
us to deal with it here as we are only concerned with
,
th e mai n developme n t of Buddhism .
CHAP TE R IV .
-
T H E B UDD HI SM O F S IA M
S iamese B uddhism is so similar to that of Ceylo n

and B urma in all its main features that it would be
superuou s to describe it in detail It would be merely .
repetition O n one special po int however some closer

.
, ,
attention is requi s ite as it is peculiar to S iam

, .
1
T his co untry still possesses a Ki n g of its ow n .
Wherever a Buddhist Kin g h as reigned h e h as always

assumed a particul ar attitude He is not the head of .
the Church but h e is its chief patron From thi s

, .
arises a unique condition of a ffairs The Kin g h im self .
is bound to render homage to the monks so long as he ,

does not rise above the world that is to say , ,
enter the monkh ood O therwise he is merely a layma n

. .
B ut the favour o fKin gs h as a fundamental si gn i cance

for the welfare o fth e monks In reality they must rely
.
upon him and c an not a fford to forgo his favo u r Al so

,
.
,
in his capacity of ruler he has a certain auth oritative

1
C am bodia al s o in s o far a s i t is in depen dent o f S ia m ( th e
,
n ort h er n a n d in deed t h e m o s t im port a n t provi n ce s o f Ca m

, , , ,
bo di a a r e in corpor a t ed in S i a m ) n om in a lly po s s e s s e s a K in g o f
,
i t s o wn b u t h e i s e n t irely un der Fre n c h co nt rol

,
Th e t it ul ar .
Kin g o f C a m bo dia s ta n d s in ex a c t ly th e s a m e rela ti o n t o Bud

dhis m a s th e Ki n g o f S i am d o e s i n hi s coun try .
r
ight over them Both sides o fthe que s tion are cleverly
.
brought into harmony and can be readily studied in, ,
S iamese Buddhism .
There is a supreme o fcial at the head of S iamese

Buddhism which has developed o n the same hierarch
,
ical lines as it did in Burma ; he is called the S a n

k harat But he as well as all the leading mon k s who
.
, ,
,
superintend large districts must be nominated by ,
the King Besides this the King appoints o n e o f the

.
Princes o f his own house to have an over s ight o f the

conduct and habit s o f the mon k s This o fcial calls .
to account any mon k s guilty o fserious misdemeanours .
S uch mon k s are then unfrocked and degraded to the

position o f laymen and the puni s hment runs it s
,
course Thus any elements dangerou s to the S tate

.
authority are held in chec k and the clerical power is ,
under control O n the other hand however the King

.
, ,
S hows mar k ed deference ( in all external appearance )
to the Buddhist religion He daily maintain s a large .
number o f monks at his personal expense ; he builds

temples and monasteries ; he s hows his reverence by
bowing and raising o f the hand to the head although ,
he assumes the S pecial right o f rai s ing only one hand ,
whereas his subj ects are all obliged to raise both hands
folded together .
The most interestin g act by which the S iamese King

shows his reverence fo r the religion is the yearly vi s it
to the temples for the purpose o f presenting cl othing
to the mon k s .
In the middle o f O ctober when the Was season

comes to an end i t is customary in S iam fo r the laity
t o present monks habits F or this purpose the King

.
SI AME S E B UDD H I S M
in person ( occa s ionally b e is represented by o ne of

the Princes) visits a number o f the monasteries at
Bangkok which are specially under his patronage It
,
.
is a gorgeou s spectacle as b e generally goes in costly,
decorated barge s ( the travellin g in B angkok being

more by water than by land) Princes high Ofcial s .
, ,
and a large retin ue accompany the S overeign He sits

,
.
in his specially ornate barge under a canopy and the

royal umbrella the clothin g destined fo r presentation
lls the boat Wh en he h as landed at o n e of the
.
mona s teries th e K in g betakes himself in procession

, ,
accompanied with music to th e gateway of the prin ,
c ip a l temple hall There h e take s the cloth in g from

.
the h ands of the attendants who h ave carried them so ,
far ; h e enters the h all and l ays them o n a table .
T his table is already laden with gifts contributed in ,
th e name o f th e King The Kin g then lights the .
candles and incense and bows thrice in act o f worship

, ,
rst before the Buddh a images then before the sacred ,
books and lastly before th e assembled monks belong

, ,
ing to the monastery who have placed themselves in ,
th e background He next renew s to the Abbot the

.
ve vows which the B uddhist layma n has to observe

if he is in earnest about religion ( see p .
If it happen to be one o fthe sacred days o fth e month

( U p o sa th a S iamese : U b o s o t see p
, the Kin g takes , .
in addition the three vows belonging to the day : to eat

no delicacy after m idday to attend no entertainment ,
nor to use any scent and to sleep o n a low and simple

,
bed After taking these vows the Prince announces

.
,
to the monks his intention o f pre sentin g them

with the above mentioned gifts whereupon the Abbot
-
,
accepts them in the name o f the monk s with suitable ,
expres s ions o f gratitude When the King leaves the .
monastery the mon k s recite a ble s s ing and he again

, ,
bows to the Buddha the sacred book s and the com , ,
munity Besides the clothing presented there are

.
,
usually other gifts vases mats furniture and so , , ,
forth .
Thus until the present day the custom has been

maintained o f the Buddhist religion outwardly ruling
the highe s t authority in the S tate The inner power .
o f B uddhism in S iam has not been greater than in
Ceylon and Burma An unfathomable super s tition.

,
springin g from various sources has kept pace with ,
this religion Hinduism in particular has become

.
closely interwoven with it Chinese inuences have .
also made themselves felt in many ways The .
educational value of Buddhi s m for the people has

therefore been remar k ably limited even in those ,
countries where the purer Hi n ay ana is in vogue .
C HAP T ER V .

L AMA IS M
Lamaism that form o f Buddhism which has de
,
ve l o p e d in Tibet and which ta k es its n ame from the

,
title of the Tibetan monk not only predominates ,
in that country but also in the smaller Himalayan

,
S tates L ada k Nepal B h o t an S ikkh im as well as

, , , , ,
Mongolia and it has branched o u t into Northern and

,
Western China It is a di s tinct separate type o f

.
,
Buddhism quite different from that o f both the

,
southern countries and o f China Japan and Korea , ,

.
The reader will remember what has already been said

L AM A I SM 1 55
of the origin of T ibetan B uddhism ( p 7 1 et we .
have before us here that branch of the reli gion which

preserved m ost o f the Mah ay an a doctrin e as it existe d
in India It h as disappeared from the bank s of the
.
G anges and the In dus but before it ceased to exist

,
there it h ad taken new root in the wild mountain

tract s o f the H imalayas and the n ce again it h ad
,
S pread to the inaccessibl e plateau on the north .
T here th e Mah ay ana Buddhism of India owed into

the blood o f a people robust primitive untouched by
, , ,
other in uences wh o eagerly absorbed an d developed

,
in a remarkable manner that fatal gift .
An entirely new atmosph ere surrounds us i n

L amaism . S imilar to the contrast between th e
natural environment o f the Irrawaddy and the snow
c appe d H imalaya s is the contrast between th e
B uddhism which govern s th e north and that which
rule s in Ceylon and Farther India H er e the sun .
pours down on rice e l d s an d voluptuous forest o r

-
j u ngle thicket palms and orchids on naked or almost

, ,
naked l ithe brown human gures childishly gay and ,
j oyou s faces decked with owers Ther e ris e wide

, .
,
gloomy precipices sinki n g into deep abys ses ; desolate

,
pla te aus across which sweep ragin g storm s ; glaciers

,
look down fr om the heights the earth is rendered ,
hard and unfruitful by rock ; the faces o f men are

wild and forbidd in g men wh o have to c ontend with
th e element s broad coarse gures wrapped in S kin s
, , ,
an d thick garme n ts .
A . TH E S A C RE D B U IL D IN G S .
E ven in the sacred buildings the different character

is evident The mona s teries in Tibet rear them s elve s
.
har s hly and forbiddingly They are solid building s.
made o f brick or quarry stone ; the wall s are high and

-
massive with long rows o f right angled windows ; the

,
-
roof is usually at They have the loo k of fortresses

.
when they are erected (as the Tibetans lik e to have

them ) o n some picturesque eminence Many o f the .
lamaseries are huge places designed to accommodate

several thousan d mon k s Then the monastery swells
.
into a s mall town ; it con s ists o f a large number o f

solid buildings with streets and passages between
them a main buildin g in the centre and the whole
, ,
enclosed within a massive wall The monastic build .
ings are generally two storied A monastery usually

-
.
contains a temple which stands in the centre sur

, ,
rounded by a courtyard ; the living rooms o f the -
'
inmate s are in the square s ur r o u n di n g it A huge .
double door forms the main entrance There are .
frequently open halls outside standing somewhat ,
apart in which are placed prayer wheels ( cylinders )

,
-
fo r the use o f visitors There are also n o t infrequently

.
s tp a s adorning the neighbourhood o f the sacred

building s : the Tibetans call them c ho r ten the S an s k rit ,
c ha i ty a
. S ometime s two such stap e s are connected
with o n e another by a wall called mendo ng in niches ,
o f which incen s e stic k s may be lighted and other
small o e r in g s placed If a stranger penetrates

.
through the creak ing gate s into the courtyard he ,
must beware o f the dogs belonging to the monastery ,

L A M AI S M 1 57
a s th ey attack every in truder ferociously T he monk s .

r ooms are S i mple and bare larger and smaller cell s ,
s ide by S ide with a veranda in front runnin g round

, ,
the inner courtyard generally on the uppe r story , .
T he ground o o r which h as no outer win dows

-
, ,
u sually con s ists o f dark storerooms .
The building for worship which stands in the ,
centre o f the monastery cour tyard has a veranda in ,
front of it to which a short ight o f ste ps gives access

, .
Cu rtain s which are drawn apart from th e centre

frequently h an g over the entrance and m ake the light
dim within Already in the veranda we nd several
.
divinities and as without some kn owledge of the

,
lamai s tic gods further description would be rath er

unintelligible we shall g ive a brief accoun t o f them
,
before p roceedin g farther .
B TH E L AMA I S TI C G O D S
. .
While S outhern B uddhism o n ly admits im age s o f

the B uddha G autam a him self and some accompany
ing gures no greater contrast can be a fforded th an
,
th at o f L amaism which exhibits quite a bewilderin g

,
crowd o f deities S ometimes they ar e gures from

.
the ancient hi s to ric al B uddhism sometimes Hindu

gods which have crept in to the Buddhist mythology ;
then again a number o f conception s o f the spec ulative
, ,
fancy o f Mah ay ana B uddhi s m ; yet again other ,
deities previou s ly belongin g t o th e ancient demon

wor s hip o f the country and the Bon doctrine ( see
above p , . local deities individual guardian spirits , ,
and S O o n : the whole weaves itself in to a motley

1 58 B UDD H IS M AS A REL I G I ON
web which at rst sight appears a hopeless tangle .
F o r the sa k e o f clearness we will separate into different

cla s s es the principal deities .
F ir s t there are the B ud dha s ; these are not indeed

the Buddha namely G autama , , The conception of .
many other B uddhas who lived in long past ages a

, ,
series o f predecessors of th e Prince S i ddh ar ta is as , ,
we know o f early origin in B uddhi s m (s ee p

, .
The world stretches o ut through endless times exist ,
in g and pas s ing away Immense periods of time are.
classed together to form an epoch and to receive their

S pecial number o f Buddhas The la s t great world.
epoch saw twenty eight Buddha s including Gau ta ma

-
, .
But since the three most ancient ones were ( according

to legend ) not in actual connection with G autama ,
whereas all the others are said to have pointed o n to

him tho s e rst three are n o t u s ually included in the
,
series thus leaving only twenty four Buddhas as

,
-
G autama s predecessors Amongst the s e the best

.
known and mo s t highly esteemed is Di p a mka ra the ,
Light bringer Then again the S ix last forerunners

-
.
, ,
o f G autama s are often represented with him in a group

o f seven . Another special gr oup o f Buddhas older

than the collection o f seven comprises ve Buddhas -
,
namely the three last forerunners G autama himself

, , ,
and the expected succe s s or the Buddha Ma itr ya who , ,
should arise when the ve thousand years of G autama

1
should be accomplished Thi s group o f the ve
.
B uddhas plays an important r 6 1e The names as .
1 T h e s e ve Budd h a s a r e a l s o co m m o n
t o S ou th er n Bud
dhi s m ; fo r i n s t a n ce t h ey a r e t o be s een a s s t a tue s a t Anur a
,
d h a p u r a a t t h e R u a nw e li D a g a b a .
LAM AI SM 1 59
they follow in historical sequence are : Kr a ku ch an dr a ,
K a n a ka m u n i K ash i a p a G autama and Ma i tr y a ( or

, , , ,
in P ali K ak u s a n dh a K o n a g a m an a Kassapa G otam a

, , , , ,
Me t te yy a ) Through a special conception o fMah ay ana

.
Buddhism however these ve Buddh as have been

, ,
promoted to a higher sphere T hey were transitory .
appearances whose historical representative s ( such at

,
least are suppo s ed ) when they entered Nirv ana at the

close o ftheir earthly career ceased naturally to h ave a n
,
in dividual existence T hese earthly appearances h ow

.
,
ever are h eld to h ave S pr u ng from a supernatural

, ,
imperishable nature T hus each o f these B uddhas is

.
p resupposed to be part o fa heavenly B uddha S uch .
heavenly Buddhas therefore are ve who are fr e

, , ,

quently called th e heavenly conquerors ( Jina ) .
Among these ve celestial prototype s of the historical

B uddhas the mo st conspicuous gure is the one corre
,
s p o n din g to t h e historical G autama This is Amit abh a .

,
(the boundless light ) a Buddhist gure o f th e greatest

,
popularity in the wh ole of Northern B uddhism .
When by mean s of these religio us speculations as t o

celestial B uddh as stability was given to their transitory
terre strial appearance so th at the worship o f the faith
,
ful could reach them o ne coul d easily go a step further

,
by placing above the ve B uddh as the o n e supreme

B uddha as the ultimate origin the A di Buddha I n
,
-
.
this way it became possible to combine the whole

religious world o f appearances into a unity .
From yet another quarter th e number of form s of

the Buddhas was augmented Certain beings held in .
high esteem by th e people and practically of great ,
importance were raised to the position of celestial

,
B UDD H IS M AS A RE LIG I ON
Buddhas as for instance a number o f medical

, , ,

deities who were called healing Buddhas O ther .
beings o f universally high repute whom they thought ,
entitled to the highest ran k were o n this account asso ,
cis ted with the above mentioned ve h e a ve n ly B uddh a s

-
,
in a little different representation Thus to the gure o f .
Amit abha (the Buddha of endless light) was added

another gure Ami t ay u s ( endless life )
, .
Next to this class o f the highest Buddhas comes that

o f the Bodhisattvas As to their universal signicance
.
see p 5 2 e t s eq The Bodhisattvas serve as a further

. .
expansion o f the above outlined dogmatic speculation-
thus to each o f the ve heavenly B uddhas together ,
with the i r ve corre s pondin g earthly ones are added ve ,

Bodhisattvas who are as spiritual sons o r reexes
,
of the heavenly Buddhas There is therefore a three .
fold series o i ve divine beings connected with o ne

another each heavenly Buddha having his super
,
natural reex (a Bodhisattva) and his earthly counter

part who has appeared in human form or which S hould
, ,
so appear in the case o f Maitreya .
Among the Bodhisat t vas the most celebrated is ,
Avalo k ita (Ava l o ki te Sva r a ) the Bodhi s attva who ,
belongs to the trio compri s ing the historical Buddha

G autama and the heavenly Buddha Amit abha Ava .
l o ki t a is the divinity who is regula r ly reincarnate in

the Dalai Lama o f Lhas s a He is also tutelary deity .
o f Tibet and as such bears the complimentary title of

,
P a dm a p an i ( the lotos handed ) He is repre s ented as

-
.
friendly and compas s ionate with the power to help ,
all man k ind Avalo k ita has passed under a feminine

.
guise ( as T ar a see p 1 6 1 ) into Chinese B uddhism and

, .
,
L A M AI S M
thence in to Korean and Japan ese ( as K wa nyin or

Kwannon ) .
Be s ides Avalokita the most promin ent T ibetan

,
Bodhisattvas are Manj u s ri th e personication of ,
wisdom ; S a ma n ta b h a dra the divinity o f religious ,
ec stasy ; and Va jra p ani origin ally the Hin du god,
Indra whose appearance as the wielder of the

,
th un derbolt is held to b e the highe st e xe m p l ic a tio n

o f might .
A feminine counterpart o f the Bodhisattvas is the

s o called
-
T ar a ( star ) There exist many T ar as
.
,
but they seem to be only different representations o f

that o n e which is a female transformation o f the
Bodhisattva Avaloki ta and looked upon as hi s consort
, .
T he most con spicuous fo rm s of th e T ar a are the green

and th e white T ar a It is said th at th e two wives of
.
Kin g S rong T san Ga m p o (cf p 7 1 ) were in carnation s . .
o f the T ar athe Nepalese Princes s as the green T ar a ,
the Chinese as th e white T ar a ( the colours di ffe r e n t ia t

ing the variety o f racial complexion ) An other well .
known T ar a is Marichi often represented with three

,
faces and eight hands O ne o f the face s is that o f a

.
sow T he same animal carrie s sometimes th e vehicle

.
which she is riding upon or the lotos th rone o f her

im age T he n um ber o f the best known incarnation s
.
-
o f th e T ar a is twenty o n e ; but she rein carnates agai n

-
and again The Mongols speak o f th e E mperor o f

.
Russia as an incarnation o f the white T ar a A simi lar

group o f female deities are the Dakki ni s T heir out t .

is generally o f a formidable kin d skulls weapons , ,
hand drums thunderbolts an d the like their charac ter

-
, ,

da ngerou s (Waddell calls them F ur ies They also
11
1 62 B UDD H IS M AS A RE L IGION
incarnate in beings of the present dayo ne of them ,
for in s tance in the Abbess of the S a m ding monastery

,
in the Ya md o k la k e .
A third class o f beings worshipped are the tutelary

deities They are loo k ed o n as being particularly
.
clever at overcoming the noxious inuence o f demons .
All Buddhas and Bodhisattvas have in themselves the

power o f exerci s ing the functions of tutelary deities .
As such they are depicted in a special outt appro

p r i a t e for the purpose But there are al s o a number
.
o f supernatural beings whose r i ,e is solely that o f

tutelary deities The s e are the demon Princes They
. .
are represented in the most dreadful and hideous way

in order to demonstrate their capacity fo r terrifying
o r driving away demons S kulls decapitated heads
.
,
and limbs cups containing human e s h and blood

, ,
serpents and vipers s k ins torn o ff j aws with huge

, ,
tu s k s in the act o f mauling a human being three o r ,
more eyes several heads ( some with animal some

, ,
with human faces ) four o r more arms holding weapons

,
o r implements o f plunder in their hands the s e are

some o f their cha r acteristics E ach of these demon
.
Princes has a consort frequently represented with

,
him ; she is equally frightful and full o f fury T he .
number o f tutelary deities is ama z ingly great All .
sorts of conceptions combine emanating from both ,
the North Indian type o f Mah ayana Buddhism as well

as from the ancient TibetanB o nreligion and ,
intermingle with o ne another F rom these tutelary .
deities there is in an ever descending scale an innu

-
m er a b l e horde o f uncanny beingsna ture spirits ,
such as s erpent gods a horse god all sorts o f gures

, ,
L AM AI S M
o ut of H in du mythology some o f a friendly and

,
helpful ch aracter but most o f them images o f terror

,
.
Mention m ust also here be made o f the Kin gs o f the

four cardin al points o f the compass T hey are held .
to be the guardians o f the entrances to heaven which ,
rise from Mount Meru The mountain is four S ided

.
-
on each S ide there dwells a guardian at the point

where the heavenly region begins T he o ne o n th e .
east Dh r i ta ra tr a Kin g o f the G andh arvas a sort

, ,
o f angel s is white in colour and hold s a stringed ,
in strument in his h and s as his symbol T he one o n .
the west Vir p ak a King o f th e Nagas th e serpent

, ,
gods is red and holds a c hor te n in his right and

,
a serpent in his left hand T he guardian Of the .
south is Vir adh a ka Kin g o f a class o f demon s called

,
K h u m b h an d a .H is colour is blue o r green h e holds

a sword T he one o n the north of yellow colour is
.
, ,
Va i Sr ava n a ( or K ubera ) Ki n g of the Ya k a s

, He .
is represented with a ag in his right h and and in ,
the left an ichneumon with a j ewel in its mouth .
These watchers guard the heavens B ut they also .
a fford protection to the faithful and are fre q uently ,
portrayed and much revered .
An other much feared an d courted of th ese les s er

divin ities is Y ama the j udge o f the dead H e sits in
, .
the centre o f the regions of h ell o f which there are ,
eight h o t and eigh t cold n ot to mentio n four purga

,
torie s an d countless mi n or adj oin in g hells T he .
K in g o f Hell him self is compelled to endure as great

s ufferin gs as an y of his victims H is consort is the .
terrible L h am o the tutelary deity of Lhassa Y et

, .
a n other o f these coun tless deities who must no t be

11 2
omitte d is the very popular god o f wealth J am b h ala , ,
and the house g o d o r the g o d o f the soil ; fo r eac h

,
house each monastery each temple has its particular

, , ,
local divinity .
Another very large class o f supernatural bein gs is

that o f the dangerous spirits Among them are .
earlier gods belonging to the Bon religion who in ,
course o f time have sunk to the position o f spectres ,
also avenging S pirits of those who have been murdered

or ill treated s tar S pirits and various other fanta s tic
-
, ,
creations These spirits are so far included in the

.
former clas s o f divinitie s as they can be made service

able to man k ind by means o f incantations .
Finally there are the saints who are worshipped .
To these belong in the rst place the most illu s trious

disciples o f the Buddha above all Ma u dg aly ayana
,
and Sari pu tr a (his two favourite p upils ) al s o ,
K as yapa and A nanda and Up ali F urthermore there

, .
,
is a group of s ixtee n specially important apostles the ,
s o called Arhats who are always repre s en ted together

-
,
1
as the sixteen strong holders o f the doctrine .
ASva gh o s a Na ga rjun a Ati s a Ts o n gka p a and other

, , , ,
personalities well k nown in the hi s tory o f Lamai s m ,
are worshipped in t his class Al s o Padma S a m b h ava

.
is found among the s e saints but he plays a mi le less

,
conspicuous than o ne should expect .
1
In Ch ina i t has beco m e eight een t he s o c al led Loh an
-
.
B u t i n K ore a an d J a p a n t h ere a r e s t ill o nl y six t ee n as t h ere

,
were i n e arlier Chi n e s e Buddh i sm .

LAMA I S M
C TH E I N S I D E
. OF TH E TE MPL E S .
No w let us return to the temple and consider it

more in detail Al ready o n th e walls of the veranda
.
and o n both sides of the entrance we h ave noticed

g ures o f the gods There are picture s either painted
.
o n the walls o r o n a scroll of paper mounted o n silk .
All these gods h ave the character o f t utelary deitie s .
T hey belong to the class o f demon K ings an d guard ,
the sanctuary from enemies Amon g them we n d .
the four above mentioned guardians of the mountain

-
o f the gods t wo o n each S ide o f the entrance

, There .
is also generally to be found o n the wal l o f th e veranda

a large and characteristic painting o f the so called

wheel of life It is a six spo ked wheel entwined with
.
-
a demo n gure which rears its hideous head at th e

,
top T he S i x divisions between the spokes represent

.
the six di fferent region s in which o ne may nd a new

existence : The heaven s the Titans ( a kin d o f semi ,
celestial beings ) the man world the animal world

, , ,
the region of ghosts the hells T he encompas s in g , .
circle of the wheel is divide d into twelve se ctions each ,
havin g a symbolic gure representin g the s o calle d ,

-
twelve Nid an a s the causal nexu s of reincarnatio n

,
( see p . S ometime s o n e sees all kin ds o f curious

things hangin g from the roof Of the veranda which ,
are there to insp ire reverence o r fear in th e minds of

visitors T here are stuffed wild beasts such as bears
.
, ,
b u a l o es apes etc
, , .
T he inside o f the temple is a s q uare or q uadril ateral

room o f which the ceilin g is usually supported by
,
wooden pillars o f a deep red colo ur T he walls are .

166 B UDD H IS M AS A REL I G I ON
ornamented with numberless paintings only in very ,
small temples they are simply white The wall .
paintings crude in colour represent mainly tutelary

, ,
deities and saint s S ome of the most gruesome demon

.
Princes are k ept veiled o r hidden in a S hrine At .
the back wall the principal images are standin g

behind o ne o r more altars There are usually several
.
statues in the centre but there is no required uni

,
formity in the matter o f arrangement O ften the .
centre gure is the B uddha G autam a with the Bodhi ,
sattva Avalokita o n his left hand and o n the right ,
hand Maitreya the future Buddha In other instances

, .
the historic Buddha is entirely absent be s ide Avalo

kita stand s the celestial Buddha Amit abha and the ,
place o f Maitreya is taken by the founder of the

particular sect to which the te mple belongs There .
are also other forms o f arrangement The difference .
o f representation bet ween a Buddha and a Bodhisattva
o r a saint is generally not di f cult to notice The .
Buddha is represented in a simple manner the head ,
with its singular tufts o f hair is uncovered and has

, ,
a lump on the top ; the body is covered with a mantle ,
leaving the chest and a large part o f the right arm

bare Almost always the Buddha is in a sitting
.
1
posture , with feet cros sed over o ne another The .
position o f the hands (mu d r ci ) varies very much A .
Bodhisattva is always quite differently portrayed He .
is sumptuously adorned after the manner of an Indian

Prince The head is covered with a crown the
. ,
1
Only th e B u ddh a o f t h e fu ture M ai trey a i s repre s ent ed in
, ,
t h e s i t t i n g po s i t io n t o w hich we E u rope a n s a r e a ccu s t o m ed wi th ,
t h e fee t h a ngin g down .

L AM AI SM 1 67
orn aments coming down over the ears ; h e wears

bracelets and h as ch ain s on his breast ; preciou s
,
stones either real or imitation ar e worn in profusion

, , .
T he hair is not shaved o ff but bound in a knot on the ,
top o f th e head S om e Bodhisattvas show several

.
heads o r arm s Avalokita especially is often r e p re

.
sented with eleven heads with four o r many more ,

thousand ) arms T he s ain ts o n th e other hand .
, ,
generally wear th e normal monk s habit and a monk s
cap .
Beside the central gure s at th e end o f th e hall ,
there are usually all sorts o f other gures on either

side T he images are generally m ade of wood or
.
plaster gilded less fre q uently of bronz e T he centre

, .
o f the hall is empty so that the monks c an ass emble ,
th ere for worship B ut in front of th e pri n cipal

.
images there is a large altar It generally con sist s .
o f two stages of different level s O n the lower o n e .
o fferings are placed water butter rice cakes , , , ,
owers little lamp s O n the higher stage are various

,
.
obj ects The mo s t important o f these are a small

.
model o f a c ho r ten a sacred manuscript and th e , ,
s o called do m
-
e a peculiar metal in strument with a ,
handle in the middle at each end of which is fastened ,
a bundle of four o r eight birds claws tied together at

,
th e poin ts T he d o me is the equivalent o f the ancient

.
th un derbolt o f the Hi n du god In dra It is frequently .
u sed in lama worship for the exorcism of demons .
T here is be sides on th e altar a bell a vessel full o f ,
holy water a metal mirror and a n umber of musical

, ,
instruments .
T he temple contain in g the images is calle d lha

kha ng (hall the gods ) ofV ery large mona s teries

.
have more than o n e l ha kha ng Near the hou s e o f .
the gods is usually a large hall where the monks ,
as s emble for the recitation o f the sacred writings .
This hall they call d a kha ng ( assembly hall ) The .
common name Of a mona s tery is g o mp a S ome .
very renown ed places b e ar the title li ng If a .
monastery is organized more fo r study and doctrinal

purposes such an i nstituti on is called cho id e The
, .
single colleges or schools of a c ho i d e are named

'
ta t s a ng .
D TH E L AMAI ST I C MO N K H OO D
. .
The inuential position held by the monks in Tibet ,
the manifold advantages connected with its status ,
the super s titious value set o n its efcacy not to ,
mention a certain compulsion exercised on the laity

by the clergy all these things combine to draw a
large number o f laymen into the monastic O rders .
Almost without exception those who intend to become

,
mon k s enter the monastery as children It is .
customary in many parts o f Tibet and the Church ,
keeps watch over the matter fo r every family under ,
ordinary circumstances to devote at least o ne s o n

to the mon k hood usually the rstborn
,
The child .
selected for this purpose spends the r s t few years in

the paternal home But he is handed over to the
.
monastery when he is about eight o r nine years old .
H e must be healthy and without deformity ; some

mona s teries even tak e only children o u t o f families o f
, ,
some ran k and posses s ion The child o n rst enterin g

.
the mona s tery i s merely a scholar He is entru s ted .

L A M AI S M
to the care of a monk who becomes his teacher

who instructs him in reading an d writing
Tibetan and with whom h e commits to memory
,
mp o r t a nt form ul a prayers short writings besides

, , ,
performing a number of minor duties and ceremonies

in the temple This rst course of instruction lasts
.
for three or four years During this time the child .
wears ordinary secular clothin g ; a tuft o f his hair is

cut o ff symbolically b u t th e head is not clean shaven
,
-
.
As such a scholar the boy has begun th e course of

a dap a the general appellation fo r all ecclesiastic
,
personages .
Wh en the teacher considers his pupil s u i c ie ntly

trained he is promoted to th e po sition of g eny en o r
, ,
novice For this promotion the b o y and his teacher

.
apply to the Abbot bringing some presents with them

,
.
T he Abbot thoroughly interrogates the boy as to his

ch aracter health freedom family and personal
, , , ,
determination to enter the monkhood The aspirant .
is al so examined o n what h e h as learnt If all is .
satisfactory his name is entered in the register o f the

,
mon astery The g enyen wears the monastic h abit

.
,
though he has as yet no sh are in worship a n d

mona s tic duties and his head is not completely
,
sh aven o n e tuft r e ma in in g in the centre of the crow n

, .
T he next promotion is the novice s admission as
g e ts,u l o r j unior monk T his is the entrance into th e

.
community though not as a full monk The functio n

, .
must be performed by a higher lama who is looked ,
upon as an incarnation of a deity and a ch apter h as ,
to be assembled The remainin g tuft of h air is cut

.
off from the head of the candidate ; h e receives his

170 B UDD H IS M AS A RE LIG I ON
monastic name and promises obedience to all rules

,
and precepts The ordination tak es place at a larger

.
mona s tery and generally a number o f novices unite in

,
it O f course they have to pay some reward to the

.
higher lama who presides at the ceremony The .
j unior mon k possesses the outt o f a regular monk .
He is also entitled now to take part in the general

service and recitation with the other mon k s .
If a g ets u l is strenuous and wants to reach higher

aims he has to pass o ne further stage which mak es
, ,
him a full mon k g elo ng F o r this purpose he must

, .
give himself to studies in o n e o f the most renown ed

lama s eries at Lhasa o r Ta s hi Lhumpo The course .
o f learning is not an easy task It in cludes much.
memorizing as well as getting familiar with usual

explanations and with the subj ects of disputations .
A great many technical terms must be known and the ,
mode o f chanting when reading the sacred books

must be practised When the g et s ul has shown him
.
self qualied to become a g elo ng by passing the

necessary examinations he applies for the ordin ation
,
to the head lama o f th e monastery where he is s tudy

ing The ordination is similar to the Up a s a mp a da
.
ordination Of th e S outhern Buddhists A g elc ng .
must be at least fully twenty ve years o f age -

.

The term lama which E uropeans use t o design ate
,
all Tibetan monks is in Tibet limited to ecclesiastics

,
o f very high standing heads o f a monastery o r mon k s

,
in a specially honourable position Lama means .
the superior o ne ( s e e p .
Women are allowed to embrace the monastic life as

well as man though their position is much inferior
,
.
L AMAI SM 17 1
T heir convents are styled a ni g o mp a or ts u np o .
T he general appearance of the nun resembles th at of

the monk ; the head is shaven an d no ornaments are ,
allowed In Central and E astern T ibet nunneries are

.
not uncommon and among the most n oteworthy

,
place s of pilgrimages is the S a m din g monastery of

nuns as well as monks In Western T ibet n un s are .
few .
T he regular course of train ing is not by all monks

followed up some being hampered by want o f mental
,
faculties others by want of means T here are many

,
.
monks wh o remain simple g enye ns through all their

life ; others stop at the S tage of g ets u l It h appen s .
that a monk disagreein g with his monaste ry fo r

personal reason s runs away from it and seeks a d ,
m ittan c e in some smaller place where the regulation s ,
are not so strict o r he becomes a monk o n his ow n

,
account wherever he nds an opening in conse q uence

,
o f the superstition of the people An instance o f such .

a run away lama is found in H uc and G abet s
-

T ravels ( vol i p T heir companion S amdad

. .
, .
,

Chie mb a was a novice wh o had escape d from his
, ,
lamasery i n order to avoid th e to o fre q ue n t and too

severe correction s of the m aster un der wh om he was

more immediately placed T his m an afterwards had .
no t returned to any mo n astery Cases of a similar .
kin d are not rare .
The clothin g of the mo n ks of T ibet in co n se q ue n c e ,
of the climate is much warmer than that in southern

,
lands T hey wear an under garment stockings foot

.
-
, ,
gear trousers but always over these ( when in full

, ,
dress ) the three prescribed garme n ts o f the earliest

172 B UDD H I SM AS A RE LIG I ON
times : the loin cloth held up by a girdle ; an upp er

-
,
garment with s leeves and over that the wide mantle

which covers the left s houlder but leaves the right ,
shoulder bare being pa s sed under the right arm

, .
The colour o f their clothing is either orange or red ,
according to the sect to which they belong O n .
festive occasions the superior authorities such as ,
Abbot s and Directors wear very beautiful highly

, ,
ornamented robes and many decorations The di ffer .
ence in outward appearance between a high church

dignitary at wor s hip and a plain village lama is ,
indeed n o t less than between some Catholic Arch

,
bi s hop celebrating Mass and a simple mendicant friar .
The lama s ne robe s are of sil k although it is

contrary to the early regulation ; only ordinar y

clothing is made o f woollen material .
The h eadgear is very varied and has S pecial ,
meaning ; the different sec ts are di s tingui s hed from

o n e another by its shape and colour The principal .
groups o f sects are called Red cap Y ellow cap Blac k -

,
-
,
cap The S hape s are of North Indian o r Chinese or

.
, ,
Mongolian origi n Many o fthem have lappets hangin g

.
from the bac k and sides so as to prote ct the bac k o f

,
the head and the ears O thers re s emble a Catholic

.
Bishop s mitre The fantastic S hape o f the cap often

.
heightens the artistic e ffe ct o f the monastic dress .
O ne o r more amulet boxe s a case for pen and ink

, ,
a small a s k fo r holy water a rosary c onsistin g o f

,
1 08 bead s and a prayer cylinder complete the equip

, ,
ment o f a Tibetan monk .
The da ily o c cup a ti o n o f the mon k is o f a wholly

different charac ter from that o f S outhern B uddhis m ,
L A M AI S M 17 3
because Lamaism has regular united dutie s of worship ,
whereas the duty o f the daily begging walk has been

give n up T he monk h as to rise early and begin the
.
d ay with prayer The rst assembly fo r worship in

.
the temple must t ake place before sunrise The .
summons to it is ringing o f bells an d blasts of shell

trumpets After everyone has performed his ablutions
.
,
they all meet at the entrance to the temple and enter ,
together taking their places o n the mats in the centre

, .
The worship opens by a united recitation o f prayers

and invocations after which the monks h ave their
,
morning tea handed round to them by the n ovices .
Next there are various long liturgies either recited by ,
one or by all T hese liturgies are priz e songs in honour

.
o f certain Buddhas Bod hisattvas o r saints and in vo

, , ,
cations o f powerful tutelary deities T hey in clude a .
very important cer e mony which is enacted daily i n

,
the large monasteries namely the presentation of the

, ,
ma nda la Offerin g G ift s ( consistin g o f a few grain s of

.
rice ) fo r the entire universe accordin g to the conceptio n

,
of th e B uddhist cosmogony are placed in special order

,
o n a board in the centre o f which there rises a sort o f
pagoda o f rice which is meant t o symbolize Mount

,
Meru the centre of the universe While for each

, .
in dividual part and division o f the world ( of which

there are altogether thirty eight ) the gifts are laid o n
-
the tray within a sacred circle a short formula o f ,
presentation is spoken T he early service lasts rather

.
a lon g time and is interrupte d by th e handin g of tea

, .
At the close the monks retire to their cells .
It is expec t ed that the monks sho ul d in voke th eir

in dividual guardia n S pirits i n their cells an d al so ,
S pecially celebrate the sunrise with appropriate

prayers .
At nine o clock the second service takes place this is

mainly devoted to the tutelary deities ( the demon

Prince s ) A third general service i s held at midday a
.
,
fourth about three o cloc k in the afternoon a fth in the
evening about six o r seven o cloc k But no t all the

,

.
mona s teries are su fciently austere to observe all

these time s o f worship ; many o f them are satised
with four o r even three services They are no t so
, ,
.
strict either as to require the attendance of every

, ,
monk at every service the older and more respected

mon k s can absent themselves and they often nd an ,
excuse fo r so doing .
During all the services tea is handed round by the

novices Larger meals ta k e place three times a day
.
the rst after early service the second at midday and , ,
the third in the evening after the last service Meat , .
is not forbidden to the ordinary monks but is eaten ,
whenever Opportunity o ffers e s pecially the esh of ,
1
the ya k the well k nown Tibetan o x
, Mutton also
- .
they l ik e but n o t goat s esh

, Bir d s and sh are
.
altogether prohibited in many sects O nly lamas who .
are ambitious of a reputation for special sanctity give

up the use o f meat entirely In Lamaism no account .
is taken o f abstinence from meals after midday .
Besides the usual acts of worship there are a ,
1 Wa ddell Lh a s a an d i t s M y st erie s thi rd edi t ion p 327

, ,

, .
W e p a s s ed t he vill a ge o f Ch eri con t ain in g a l a rge s l aught er ,
h ou s e w h ere do z e n s o f s h eep an d y ak oxen a re s l a ugh t ered da ily

,
-
fo r t h e co ns u m p t io n ch ie y o f th e m onks o f D ap un g .
S e e a l s o pp 334 3 7 4 .
, .
L AMAI SM
n umber of extra ones fo r S pecial festivals and fo r l ayme n ,
who fo r some cause or other desire a special servic e .
Al l these religious Observances are ge n erally compo sed

of prayers o r in vocations and of th e Offerin g o f gifts
, ,
s uch as rice water cakes owers incense l amps

, , , , , ,
or meat accompanied by the recitation o f blessin g

,
formul a and noisy music Many o f the service s .
ordered by laym en take place in the temples but ,
others also in their hou ses The S implest ceremony .
p erformed by the monk fo r the layman is readi ng

aloud the sacred writings in their houses T he sacre d .
word is considered so e fcacious that the mere recital

of texts averts dan ger and banishes demons Hence .
th e monks are of ten sum moned by layme n for this

pur po se an d n aturally it is done for money or mo n ey s
,

worth .
S uch are the religiou s occupation s of the mo n k ;

b ut there are secular ones al so Most of the .
monasteries even when they are no t very large

, ,
entail all sort s o f h ousework and duties connected ,
with the admin istration and organ iz ation o f the

establishment In important monasteries there are
.
regul ar posts which are assign ed yearly to individual

monks such as the post of treasurer steward master
, , ,
o f ceremonies entertain er o f guests custodia n o f the

, ,
water supply secretary a n d so o n

-
, ,Moreover th e .
,
monks engage in all sorts o f secul ar un derta ki n gs ,
which have no connection with the monaste ry Few .
things in deed ta ke place in T ibet in which a mo n k

, ,
ha s no t some part and very often it is n o creditable

,
one . T hey occupy them selves a great d eal with

business an d tr ade are sharp money lenders an d
,
-
,
know well h o w to make a prot for themselves in

anything .
All the larger monasteries are rich They possess .
much land ; part of it they let and part of it they ,
get laymen to cultivate fo r them Much wealth ows .
into the monastery also by freewill offerings by the ,
gifts o f vi s itors by the sale o f countless charm s ,

,
pictures and horoscopes made by the mon k s O nce

, , .
or twice a year a number o f the monk s go o n

pilgrimage and visit villages to beg alms for the
,
monastery especially corn butter meat and live

, , , ,
stoc k . This usually ta k es place at harvest time -

.
The revenue o f a lamasery is not personal property

o f the mon k s but is used fo r general purpose s keep
, ,
ing the place in good state supplying the temple ,
nece s s ities and providing other things fo r th e com

,
munity . The inmates have to support themselves

as to their personal wants by their o wn earnings .
In the more prominent monaste ries a strict super

vision is kept over the young mon k s and novices .
Transgressions Of monastic rules must be notied by

whoever mak es the discovery There is a special .
j udicial functionary for such cases to whom selected ,
monks are subordinate to act as administrators o f

punishment S evere misdemeanours such as murder
.
, ,
theft o r sacrilege are severely dealt with by corporal

, ,
punishment which may even cause death S lighter

, .
o ffences entail a small number o f stripes o r certain

acts o f penance But many agrant sin s go uh
.
punished because they are s o common

, In this .
connection mention must specially b e made o f the

sins of in te mpe ran ce and unchastity Ind ul gence in .
L A MA I S M
stron g drink is only punished whe n carried to the

greate st ex c e ss No o ne sees any h arm in drinking
.
the ordin ary Tibetan beer when done in moderation

,
.
But above all e l se it h as proved impossible in Lamaism

to enforce the law o f chastity It is only the reformed.
s ect o f the G elugpa which still enforces the oath on
its adherents None of the oth er communities r e

.
q uire ch astity in their assoc iates Whoever observes it .
does so at h is own pleasure and enj oys specia l credit

,
for it B ut many live h abitually with women without

.
,
any obj ection be ing raised as to a forbidden thing .
T he law o f chastity is violat ed more o r less in secret

even by many monks of th e strict G elugp a sect .
There are also hermits in Lam aism and they are ,
n ot rare Their appearance is not monki sh ; they

.
allow the h air an d hea r d to grow Their line o f life .
is sometimes ascetic in the highest degree They .
o ccupy themselves mostly in repeatin g the spell Of

their tutelary deity inn umerable times O ne m ay .
n d recluses who are shut u p in the dark of a cave

o r hole for m any years T hey live by charity and
.
by support o f a monastery to which they are attached

( cf P Landon
. . Lh asa
, third edition p 309
, ,
.

Waddell Lhasa and its Mysteries pp 237
, , .
T he corpses o f monks and hermits are burned w hi lst ,
dead bodies o f the common people usually are thrown

to be devoured by dogs vultures and other a nim als
, , .
E TH E S A C RE D WR I T I N G S
. .
Lamaism po s sesse s its canon in th e T ibeta n l a n

guage Many of the books are accurate tran s lation s
.
from the a n cient In dian texts almost all prepared from

,
12
S anskrit , the language of the Mah ay ana school ; some

others are o f Tibetan origin also some are translated ,
from Chinese The canon bears the name o f Kanj ur

.
(spelt B ka h gyur the translated teaching) But along

-
,
.
side i t there is also a very important collection o f

universally accepted commentaries of the sacred text
called Tanj ur (E stan gyur) The sacred canon is either - .
printed or copied The written copies are the most

.
valuable ; they are often embelli s hed with clever and

costly illuminations the capital letters are in gold o r
,
silver and in the margin there are bright and pretty

,
miniatures Their art of printing is primitive similar

.
,
to the Chinese The prints are drawn from wood

.
block s carved with the text

,
Whether they are .
printed o r written they still retain the form o f the

,
ancient Indian palm lea f manuscripts each leaf being -

,
about three times as broad as it is high with writ in g ,
on both sides and the leaves unattached the whole

, ,
set belonging to o ne section being enclosed between

t wo wooden covers The whole Kanj ur consi s ts of
.
1 08 such volumes The number 1 08 which we have

.
,
already come across in the ro s ary and in the divisions

o f the sole of Buddha s foot has in Buddhi s m a
,
special S ignicance S ome student s have thought it .
might be derived from a purely mathematical calcula

tion 1 x 2 x 2 x 3 x 8 x 3 It is subdivided
lik e the southern canon into three parts : Vinaya
( Du l va ) S atra (D6 ) and Ab i dh a r m a ( Ch o s no np a )
, , .
The canon o f the accompanying commentary con s ists

1
Al a b a s t er ,
Th e Wh eel of th e L a w , p . 290 . F or an oth er
c alcul a t ion ( 1 2 x 9) s e e J 0 . . Om a n, Th e M ys tic s As cet ic s
, , a nd
S a in t s o f I n di a (Lon do n ,
p . 40 .
LAMA I S M
of 225 volumes B esides the elucidatio n s of the

.
sacred text it co n tains al so many works on the art

,
o f exorcism as well as some treatises o f a more

,
philosophical rhetorical and grammatical nature

, ,
.
T he sacred writings are most highly pri z ed in

Lamaism ; they receive almo st divine honours T hey .
are carried with extraordin ary c are they have their ,
special room in th e temples an d have in cense candles , , ,
an d li ttle lamps o ffered to them It wo uld appear

, .
rude and godles s if anyo n e let a leaf of it drop o n the

oor a n d were to touch it with his foot
,
.
F TH E S E C TS
. .
L amaism has split up in to a n umber of divisio n s .
T hese were called in to existence by noted teachers ,
who from time to tim e attempted by reforms to check

the extravagant developments of this exuberant
religion None of the reforms att ained any general
.
supremacy and th e schism grew always greater

, .
T he rst of these attempted reforms was th at o f Ati s a

( see p . T his was called the Kad e mpa school ,
and received another reformer in the person of the

celebra te d T song Kapa from whose time it was kn own
,
as G elugpa This sect is by far the stronges t an d

.
most noted in Tibet B eside it may be mentioned

.
a few other divisions such as the K a r gyup a called

, ,
in to existence by a lama o f the eleventh century ,
an d the S a sky a p a which rose in the same century

, .
Numerou s subdivisions h ave sprung from these main

ones . T here are also monasteries which from the
e arliest times h ave held aloof from these reforms .
They are calle d Nin gm ap a

2
.
12
1 80 B UDD H I SM AS A RELIGION
The points in which these sects differ from o ne

another are sometimes matters o f dogma sometimes ,
o f practice sometimes again o f the acceptance o f a

, , ,
certa in set o f saint s who are held to be the chain o f

,
tradition o f the true doctrine and the worship o f ,
special tutelary deities .
.1 The G elugpa sect gives special reverence to its

founder Tsong Kapa whom they rank higher than the
,
founder o f Lamai s m Padma S a mb h a va and than the

, ,
rst ancient reformer Ati s a In the temples Tsong .
Kapa usually has the central place o f honour at th e

bac k between a B uddha and a Bodhisattva Tsong
,
.
Kapa who is held to have received the doctrine by

,
direct transmis s ion from Ati s a and thereby from ,
the principal teachers o f the Indian Mah ayana ,
strove to reinstate the original s tern rule s o f life by

means of discipline such as that their clothin g
,
should be made from rag s sewn together their food ,
be obtained by begging a strict retirement be observed

,
during the Was season earnestness in meditation , ,
and so o n O n the other hand he established a n

.
,
orn ate and strictly regulated ritual Perhaps this .
last fact is due to his having come in contact with

Roman Catholic Chri s tendom Tsong Kapa came .
originally from North West China ( he was born at

-
Kumbum a celebrated monastery o n the Chinese

,
frontier ) and lived from 1 35 6 to 1 41 8 in a period

, , ,
therefore when Roman Catholic mi s s ion s had already

,
penetrated Central Asia and China fo r some co n

s i d e r a b l e time The austerity o f life enj oined by the
.
founder was soon much modied in the sect but it ,
still preserves a stricter discipline in the matter o f

L A M AI SM 1 81
celibacy which is peculiar to this sect T h e stamp

, .
set o n ritual Observance s has won a permanent hold ,
and h a s also spread to oth er sects .
The G elugpa mon k s h old as their presidin g cele s

tial Buddha o r A di B uddh a the B uddh a Va jr a dh ar a
,
-
, ,
a metamorphosis of the go d In dra T he origin of .
their special doctrine and Observances is bound up wi th

the Bodhisattva Ma itr y a the comin g B uddha wh o , ,
is said to have specially inspired their teachers But .
they also con s ider themselve s closely allied to th e

Bodhi s attva Manj u s ri The G elugpa monks received
.
from their fo under a special form of headgear of an ,
orange colour Also h e ordered th e outer garment to

.
be yello w whereas at th at tim e a dark red colour was

,
universally wor n fo r cap s an d clothing T hu s yellow .
has continued to be the distin guish in g colour o f th e

G elugp a sect down to the present day .
2 The Ka r gyu p a lamas wor s hip the same A di

.
Buddha as th e foregoin g sect B ut they place them .
selves in a di fferent attitude toward s him in a smuch ,
as they attribute their doctrinal tradition as coming

direct from him and not throug h Maitr e ya o r any
,
other Bodhisattva Its founder was a lama called

.
Marp e but their most honoured saint is the pupil o f

,
this Marp e the well known po et and ascetic Milar

,
-
,
aspa He is specially renowned as the exorcist o f

.
demons O n th e wall o f every large mona s tery

.
belonging to this sect there is a portrait of him ,
dressed as an Indian monk in th e attitude o f adj ura ,
tion and surrounded by all sorts o f cheerful scenes

,
taken from the l egends about his life The K a r gyu p a s .
origin ally distinguished them selves by perform in g th e

1 82 B U DD HI SM AS A RE L IGION
work o f meditation outside the monastery in the ,
retireme n t o f some cave o r wilderness T hey had also .
their special methods o f meditation but in course of ,
time they renounced the hermit attitude .
3 The S a s kya p a sect worship s as its special patron

.
the Bodhisattva Manj u sri From him was handed .
down to their adherents in direct line beginning with ,
some Northern Indian sages their special tradition It ,

.
consists mainly in forms of incantation The S askya p a .
sect is stronger than any other in the matter o f

magic and thereby won a predomin ant inuence in
,
the earlier centuries which has waned very much

,
o f late The S a skyap a monks wear red hoods and

.
upper garments .
4 The Ni n gm a p a sect This is the original form of

. .
Lamaism which has not re cognized any subsequent

,
reform Naturally their greate s t saint is the founder

.
,
o f Lamaism Padma S a m b h ava and beside him

, ,
there are a number o f his disciples The Ni ngm a p a .
mon k s consider S am a nt a b h a dr a as the A di Buddha - .
The Ni ngm a p a have retained more o f the ancient

Tibetan B o n religion than any other sect Its a d .
h e r ent s wear red caps and red clothing S ome o f .
their special subdivi s ions who hold closely to the o l d

,
Bon tradition are recognizable by a black headdress

,
.
E ach o f these sects has a special kind o f attitude

for meditation which has a name o f i ts o wn ; each o f
,
them also has a special tantric formula by which it is

di s tinguishable AS regards the subordinate sects at
.
,
least two must be mentioned the Ka rma p a and the

Dugpa schools ( t wo divisions o f the K a r gy u p a sect) ,
which possess a certain importance o f their own .

L AMA I S M 1 83
T he lamas reckon altogether eighteen different sect s

in their religion ; but possibly this is a conventional
number adop te d in imitation o f the eighteen an cient
In dian sects ( see p .
G TH E H I ER AR C HY
. .
T he most n oticeable feature o f Lam aism and which ,
in past times h as called special attention to it is the ,
hierarchical ch aracter of the monkhood c u lmin atin g ,
in the pe rso n of the Dalai Lama of Lh asa T he .
most import an t historical dates o f the rise o f this

hierarchy have been already given ( p 7 4 et We
.
will at this poin t merely glance at the whole system

as it appe ars at the present tim e .
In the hierarchical system there are two pri mary

divisions T he min or in clude s the different ecclesias
.

tical degrees ; the high er contain s the dier e nt degree s
o f incarnation s o f celestial bein gs .
The grades o f eccles i astical position start with that

o f the j unior monk (g e ts ul ) then comes th e full
monk ( g elong ) then the Abbot ( kha np o ) who is super ,
in te ndent of a monastery Th e monks o f a l arge

.
monastery hold different degree s of rank from o ne

an other accordin g to more o r les s honourable posts
,
assigned to them T here are also certain grades due

.
to th e amount of learnin g S hown at their exa min a

tions and in public disputation Th e two highest
.
degrees o f this ki n d are G eshe and R a b ja m p a .
T hose wh o win such a diploma are entitled to the

highest Chur ch o i c es
B esides there are some
.
honorary titles be s towed o n able men by th e G rand

Lamas S uch i s the title o f Choj e o f Lot eava and

.
, ,
o f Pandita .
Those who are conspicuous among such graduates ,
o r who are specially di s tingui s hed Abbot s are pro ,
moted t o larger mona s teries and have the right o f

,
visitation o f subordinate monasteries .
B ut what is quite peculiar to the Lamaistic Church

is the theory of rank founded o n the prin ciple of
reincarn ation .
It is held that saintly persons who have died are

reincorporate in certain lamas The lowest grade o f
.
this k ind is represented by those who are said to be

the reincarnation o f an earlier lama te acher as saint .
Above this degree are the Julku (o r in Mongolian

K hu tu ktu ) who are supposed to be the reincarnation
,
o f o l d Indian Buddhist saints At the top there are

.
those Lamas in whom a Bodhisat tva is reincarnate

, .
Amongst these the most noted is the Dalai Lama

at Lhasa .
The method by which o n the death o f such an

,
incarnation his succes s or is determined is highly

,
interesting It is wor k ed o ut with peculiar elabora

.
tion in the case o f the Dalai Lama at Lhasa .
It is held that the celestial being wh o was incor

p o r a t e in the ecclesiastical dignitary i n the case of
the Dalai Lama it is the Bodhisattva Avalo k ita
becomes reincarnate at least forty nine days after -
his death Therefore inquiry is made throughout the

.
whole o f Tibet a s to the birth o f all children about

that date which too k place with remark able a c c o m
,
panyi ng signs S uch marvels are ea s ily to be heard

.
o f from o n e direction o r another Naturally c o rr o b

.
,
v
L A M AI S M
orate proofs are required Those supplied are often .
astronomical phenomena which are magnied by the,
eye o f superstition . O r there may be some phe

no m e n o n in a tank or stream an unexplained light ,
( S t E lmo s r e ) a special thun derclap o r a peculiar

.
, ,
mark o n the body o f a child Again it m ay be .

,
averred that S hortly after birth the child was found

seated with its legs crosse d in the B uddha s attitude
of meditation and when a rosary was placed in it s

,
hands the child appeared to be silently recitin g th e

appoin ted prayers The more remarkable the sign s
.
adduced about the child the bet ter T here are always
, .
a large number o f aspirants ; but at once a small

selection is made from them governed by certain ,
1
practical considerations T hese have next to undergo
.
a remarkable test A number of the possession s o f

.
the deceased Dalai L ama are placed o r laid before

them s uch as a picture of the Buddh a which h e
,
partic ularly prized a bell a han d drum and an

, ,
-
,
accurate imitation of each beside it T h e child must .
now seize th e origin al articles and thus S h ow that ,
h e has the indwellin g Bodhisattva by his recognitio n

o f the genuine thin gs . From the ch ildren who have
passed this te st successful ly one is further dis tinguished
by means of lots . Amid great pomp in th e chief
1 T h ey do n o t fo
, r in s t a n ce wi llin gly s elec t o n e fro m a very
,
di sting ui sh ed fa m ily fo r fe ar o f t h e rel a t ive s ob ta inin g t o o

,
in ue nt ia l a po s it ion by m e a ns o f th e c hild Th ey pre fer t o .
m ak e t h e s elec t io n fro m t h e fam ily o f a poor pe a sa n t w h o h a s ,
n o in ue n ce w h a t ever . Th e n eig h bourh ood a l s o h a s a s o m e, ,
wh a t de t erm in i n g inuen ce o n t he s elec t io n t h o s e dis t ric t s ,
a dj a ce n t t o t h e C hi ne s e border bein g cons idered t h e m o s t

eligible .
sanctuary o f Mount Potala at Lhasa o ne name is ,
drawn forth from a golden vase in which all the ,
names ( sealed up) had been placed and this is ,
accepted as the right one Besides the highest lama.
dignitaries several representatives o f the Chinese

,
E mperor and especially the G overnor o f Lhasa the

, ,
Amban must ta k e part in all these required meas

,
ures and performances ; and it is the Amban who

draws the lot from the urn Moreover the Chinese .
,
Emperor must be accurately informed beforehand o f

every detail and must give his consent Thus the
, .
subordination of the Dalai Lama to Pekin is demon

s tr a te d .
The child is conducted with his parents to the

appointed place and suitably brought up ; they have
a house and maintenance provided for them and ,
receive a high title The Dalai Lama only becomes

.
independent at the age o f eighteen ; until then he is

under the Regent a high lama who i s selected
,
from o n e of the four great mona s teries in Lhasa ,
Te ngya i Ling Kundai Ling Tsem ch o g Ling Tsa m o

, , ,
Ling .
After the Dalai Lama the most inuential incarna

tions o f Bodhisattvas are the G rand Lama of the
monastery o f Tashi Lhumpo near S higatze in , ,
Western Tibet the so called Pan chen E rdeni ; the

,
-
Mongolian G rand Lama at Urga who is a reincarna ,
tion o f the famous historiographer Tara n ath a ( canon

i z e d as J e t s u n Dampa ) the Chief Lama o f the S a skya
sect ; and the G rand Lama of Rhot e n It is worthy .
o f notice that among the celebrated reincarnations o f
Lamaism a woman is to be found This is the .

L A M AI S M
Abbes s of a large nunnery ( with which also a

monastery is connected ) at S a mdin g on the S hore of ,
the sacred Ya m d o k Lake to the south o f Lhasa S h e

,
.
is held to be the in carnatio n of a n Indian godde ss ,

V aj ra V ar ah i the diamond sow ( in T ibetan Dorj e
, ,
Ph a g mo ) .
T he number o f m o n asterie s in T ibet is over

the largest of which contain as many as monks .
The House o f the Lord ( Jowo Khang or Jo Khang )

at Lhasa far surpasses all others both in importance
and in sanctity It is the temple of the Dalai L ama
. .
T he entire sacred residence at Lhasa bears the name

of Potala It is an imposin g height overlooking the
.
gree n plains rising above th e city and entirely

,
covered with the lofty maj estic pile of T ibeta n ,
monastic buildings whose noble wall s built of blocks

, ,
of granite and painted white and red are broke n by ,
countless lon g rows of windows with broad zig z ag ,
staircases and at roofs a combination which to th e

, ,
E uropean eye h as a very pictures q u e and attractive

,
appearance Above the at roofs of the other buil d

.
ings tower the gilded Chin ese sh aped roofs o f the Jo-
Kh ang the temple o f the Dalai L am a This gre atest

, .
o f all the sanctuaries o f the Asiatic religious world lies
apart from other buildin gs on the sacred mount T o .
it belongs ( in the strictest sense of the word ) the nam e

o f Lh asa ( dwell in g place o f the gods )
-
In the Jo .
Khang is the celebrated highly gilt image of Buddha

G autama which was brought hither from Pe kin by
,
the Chinese Princess who became the consort o f

S ron g T sang Ga m p o in the seventh c e n t u ry A D It h ad . .
b ee n sent as a present to the Chinese E mperor in

bygone times from India For the rst time S ince

centuries i f in deed everthe gaze o f E uropeans
.
rested o n it when the British expedition o f 1 903 04 -
entered Lha s a The whole place which had always

.
,
hitherto been considered sacred and in accessible by

strangers is now well k nown
, .
Ta shi Lhumpo the temple o f Panchen E rdeni is

, ,
hardly le s s important than that o f Lha s a O thers o f .
the noted temples o f Central Tibet are G aldan ( in

which Tsong Kapa is said to be buried ) to the east o f ,
Lhasa ; Da ip u ng and S erra to th e west and north o f

,
the capital ; S a s ky a (the birthplace o f the sect of

that name) in the south west of S higatze famous fo r
,
-
,
its unique library .
H TH E P E O PL E
. AN D R E LI GI O N .
H ow is it with the people over whom the monkish

hierarchy has ca s t this network
There i s n o doubt as to the fact that Buddhi s m
raised the people of Tibet from a condition o f savagery
and barbarity to a somewhat higher level The .
hordes o f ignorant and uneducated people of ancient

Tibet received an intellectual cohesion both with o n e
another and with the outer world ( with India an d
China ) ; they attained a historical continuity ; they
also received a certain individual education o n the
technical and industrial side a s well as on the
spiritual . Indian civilization penetrated into the
country and d r ew the primitive mountain races into
,
i t s school taught them to build temple s and t o ma k e

,
all sorts o f implements reduced their language to

,
L A MA I SM 1 89
writin g ( adapted from S anskrit ) settled them into ,
towns and developed commerce E v en th eir moral

, .
consciousnes s was changed by contact with the m oral

ideals o f the B uddha Gautam a The many instance s .
of kindliness an d good beh aviour which the traveller

to day experiences at the h ands o f the simple T ibeta n
-
people as lon g as he beh aves reasonably and cause s

,
no unusual disturbance are perhaps due in part t o

,
the in uence o f B uddhism although we must be,
c autiou s in drawin g such inferences because we h ave ,
n o information as to the Tibetan ch aracter previou s

to the coming o f B u ddhism At all events the whole
.
,
moral condition of the country at th e present time is

coloured by Buddhism It h as in many respect s
.
given this people its poise and its backbone B ut .
h ow far has it proved able to con ti n ue to raise it

during the ten or eleven centuries of its suprem acy
O f the higher Buddhist conceptions o n e only h as ,
taken hold o f and soaked into th e Tibetan people that ,
o f future recompense The belief in the reincarnatio n

.
of the soul correspondin g with the moral value of the

,
previous existence is eve rywhere current and explain s

, ,
the sufferings and fatal events It S hould be noticed

.
that it is really a belief in th e transmigration of th e

s oul . The metaphysical subtleties peculiar to original
B uddhism (that there is no actual soul ) are as little
understood in popular Lamaism as in the popular
B uddhism o f any other country T he soul migrates . .
T he limit of its wanderin g is within the six division s

o f the world these are the heaven s ; the dwellings of
supernatural semi celestial beings ; human life ; th e
,
-
animal world ; the existence o f certain haun tin g

1 90 B UDD H IS M AS A RE L I G I O N
ghosts ;
and lastly the hell s each of these classes
contain in g numbers o f different lots The greatest .
importance attaches to the reincarnation o f the soul

in heavens o r hells The different heavens o f the
.
B uddhist system o f doctrine ( the six d va heavens ,
the sixteen Brahma heavens and the four highest ,
heavens Of void above which later fancy placed the

,
heaven o f the ve superior Buddhas and the heaven

of the Adi Buddha) are made o n e in the popular
-
imag ination and are usually represen te d simply

,
as th e P a r a dis e o f Ami tabha The hells are depicted .
with fearful horrors both by word and bru s h espe ,
c i a l ly the eight great hot hells and the eight great
cold h ells The desire to save the soul from hell and
.
,
to lead it into Paradi s e is the o ne great lever o f Lama

,

piety The other lever and a much more potent
.
one is the dread o f evi l sp i r i ts .
The terror of dangerous and dreadful spirits rules

to an a s toni shing extent It is undoubtedly c o n .
n e c te d with the awe inspirin g powers o f nature which

-
surround the T ibetans Those gloomy mountain.
ravines and desolate pea k s those waste mysterious ,
plateaus and morasses those snowy summits and ,
glaciers those s tony wa s tes those icy and terribly

, ,
severe tempe s ts land s lips avalanches thunder

, , ,
storms and earthquak es the la s t o f which are o f ,
frequent occur rence in E a s tern Tibets uch thing s are

,
a fruitful soil fo r a super s titiou s imagination An d .
Buddhism simply accepted and accentuated this ten

d e n cy . It came provided with a powerful equipment
o f deities charm s ,
and methods o f exorci s m of the
, ,
Mah ay ana doctrine from Northern India and this ,

L A M AI SM 1 91
e q uipment so completely coalesced with the existing

superstition s o f Tibet that it is difcult to know which
was the conqueror and which th e conquered .
Almost everything that an ordinary ma n asks o f

L amaism is a charm as a help against the dread
powers The commonest and most widespread charm
.
is that o f the word It is made to act in many ways

.
which can here only be touched upon .
The reading of parts from the sacred cano n is the

S implest method of making use of the charm of the
word For that purpose the monks ( the only people

.
wh o can read ) are bidden to private houses All .
portions o f the sacred writings are e q ually e fcacious ,
but not every portion is suitable fo r every occasion .
T he monk unders t ands this rule and acts accordin gly

, .
T he magic power is concentrated in certain sacred

formul a which are to be repeated again and again
,
.
O f th ese the best known is the celebrated O m ' mani

padme h am , literally tran slated O m ' the j ewel in
the lotos h am (the rst and last words are in te rjec
,
tions ) T his formula is the special word o f c o n s e cra

.
tion o f th e Bodhisattva Avalokita (P a dm a p ani) wh o ,
rules the Western Paradise T he repetition o f this

.
phrase not only secure s th e help o f this powerful

Bo dhisattva fo r all possible earthly re q uirements but ,
also assists the in dustrious suppliant to enter that

Paradise T he formula is therefore praised as con
.
tainin g all happiness knowledge and capacity It is

, ,
.
adorned with all sorts of mystic addition s and inter

p r e t a tio n s the six sylla b les represent the six division s
of the world and each h as it s special appo i nted
,
colour etc Besides this best known formula there

, .
-
are many other S imilar ones But o ne must be .
careful as to their right app l ication F o r not merely .
has each its particular di vinity but the ki nd o f rosary ,
to be used in prayer fo r instance is n o t the same

, ,
fo r o ne as for another S ome require in order that

.
,
the spell may be e fcacious that the be ads be made

,
o f human bones others that they be o f coral and

, ,
others something else .
The sacred formul a are no t o nly spoken ; they are

efcacious also when written Hence the extra .
ordinary numbers o i charm papers the s o called ,

-
ma ntr a s or d hdr a ni s o f Lamai s m The d hti r a ni .
proper consists of sets of Tibetan words connecte d

with S an s k rit syllables and is n o t meant t o be uttered
, ,
but only written In a wider sense the d har a ni is a

.
longer treatise o f mystical meaning The ma ntr a is .
shorter sometimes only a series o fincoherent syllables

, .
The ma ntr as and d hci r a ni s are totally inc o mpreh e n

sible to the common people but they are rmly ,
believed in as agencies of supernatural power S uch .
saying s are attached to walls or are carried on the

person In case o f illness the person swallows such
.
a charm either by it s elf o r mixed with some other

,
ingredients They have them reected in a sacred

.
m irror which is commonly to be found in a temple ;

,
then the mirror i s diligently wa shed and the patient ,
drink s the water which has been u s ed fo r the purpose ,
and which is s upposed to have absorbed the spirit

o f the formula The d har a ni s which are worn are
.
secreted in amulets together with a few thread s o r

,
rags o f the garment o f a holy man a few grains o f ,
rice from some big o ffering or other obj ects worthy o f

,
L A MAI SM 1 93
reverence S uch amulet boxes are to b e see n o n

.
ev ery Tibetan They hang from th e neck o r girdle

.
,
and are mo st carefully treas ured .
Another method to obtain th e pro te ction of th e

charms is to write them o n rags o f cloth and hang ,
them up as ags to utter in the win d T hese so .
called prayer a g s are extremely common in L amaism

-
,
from th e most abj ect o ne to the most costly o n e ,
pr in ted o n silk which contain s lon g and elaborate

,
exorcisms At th e entrance of every lamasery in

.
,
th e neighbourhoo d o f a c ho r ten in temples o n altars

, , ,
al so o n the roofs of dwellin g houses by th e roadside

-
everywhere in facto ne comes across these prayer

,
ag s
T he most sin gular way however of making u se of
, ,
the word as a charm is the p r a yer cyli nd er ( incorrectly -
called prayer wheel or prayer mill ) T he sacred

- -
.
formula ( or a number of them ) is prin ted on a lon g

strip o f paper rolled round th e cylin der which is ,
enclosed in a box an d by means o f a stick which is

, ,
the axle o n which it revolves it is fastened to a ,
handle or in a case E very turn of the cylinder set s

.
the word in motion and make s its wholesome in uence

,
operative T he T ibetans carry such prayer cylin de rs

.
-
i n their h ands and swing them mechanically whil e

,
they are talkin g o r doin g anyt hin g else ; they are

certain that by so doing they accumulate merit and ,
place themselves under the protection of the sacred

word Indeed they h ave gone so far as to enlist
.
,
the services o f nature for this purpose gettin g th e ,
cylinders set in motion by the wind or the owin g of

a brook It is even by means of s uch utterly im
.
13
personal and lifeless action that a blessing may be

wo n from the word for the benet of the owner o f
the instrument The cult of the word could hardly
.
go farther than this .
The sacred sy mbo ls are very closely allied to the

sacred word Lamaism owns a great many of them ;
.
some are thoroughly Buddhist Thus the sva s t i ka .

, ,
which has been called the Buddhist cross appears to ,
have been a very ancie n t symbol merely adopted by ,
Buddhism . This is its correct form ,

Hf the
adherents of the old Bon religion have reversed it ,
so as to make it their o wn ,
H
E . An other ancient
Buddhist symbol is the wheel in pre Buddhist ,

-
times the symbol o f authority o f a great monarch .
It was then applied to G autama the spiritual rule r o f ,
the world and in the rolling o f the wheel was typied

,
the S pread o f his teaching The wheel has freque ntly

.
s ix spo k es sometimes eight sometimes an immense

, ,
number The third common s ymbol

o f Buddhism is the lotos blo s som This beautiful
-
.
ower owing to its ne form to the purity o f its

, ,
blossoms and to its growth o u t o f the obscure depths

,
Of the water ( symbol o f the supernatural which does ,
not S pring from the nouri s hing soil o f the earth ) has ,
attracted attention and thu s become a much u s ed

,
-

illustration o f the pure doctrine Be s ides these .
popular symbols there is a number o f special ones ,
which cannot be enumerated here The tiger dragon .

, ,
ph oenix and bat are symbolical animals all drawn

, , ,
L A MAI SM 1 95
from a Chin ese source S uch symbols are ofte n

.
printed on the charm to render it the more e fcacious .
O ne sees them in the temples and o n the implement s ,
for o e rmg s where they are u sed not merely for their
,
decorative value but becau se the sacred symbols are

,
o f miraculous power a n d add their in uence to the
great task o f keepin g in control the demons .
Me n tio n m ust be m ade in this connection of th e

s in gul ar e fcacy which L amaism attributes to certain
positions o f the ngers and hands T he reciting of .
magical incantations has to be combine d with a

particul ar attitude in sittin g and position Of th e
ngers and hands The result att ached to the pose
.
o f the h ands is derived from the various ways of
mu d r ci in which th e Buddh a is represen ted ( s e e p .
Attitudes of the Buddha originally the sim ple artistic

,
expression of certain situations were reduced to a ,
system e ach havin g a special S ign icance

, From .
this followed the idea o f a certain supernatural power

peculiar to certain attitudes and therefrom was con
,
structed a regular doctrine as to the poses o f n gers

and b a nd s which must accompany the recital o f
,
bannin g o r blessin g formul a .
All these mean s o f supe rnatural power the sacred

word the symbols the attitudes S how their full
, ,
value in combination with the o fferings Lamaism .
h as an abundance o f o fferin gs from the S implest to ,
the mo st elaborate In reality everythin g is capable

.
,
of bein g made an o fferin g The simplest gifts are

.
owers and incense The regular daily o ffering o n

.
the t emple altars are water rice fruit cakes an d , , , ,
lamps or lights . Fruits an d cakes are frequently

1 3 2
1 96 B UDD HI SM AS A RE LIG I ON
articially imitated in wood so as not to re quire

,
daily renewal B ut apart from this the layman is

.
,
at liberty to bring as an o ffering for some special

,
purpose whatever s eems to him valuable o r cal

,
c u l a t e d to propitiate the divinity A certain o fferin g

.
whi c h every layman is bound to brin g at least once

yearly ( whilst the monks present it twice a month
fo r themselves ) is the o f fering fo r the whole circle o f
gods and demons Here are to be met plain in dica
.
tions o f the bloody sacrices o f past times ; thus fo r

certain deities there are so called S k ull cups set o u t
- -
,
whose contents are at the pre s ent day weak tea but ,
formerly they were doubtle s s human blood Meat is

, ,
.
al s o included in the s e Offerings Many o f the Offer .
in gs are destroyed ( burnt) ; others are eaten by the

lamas o f which a small piece is always left and
,

thrown outside the temple fo r the hungry ghosts ,
the inhabitants o f a S pecial quarter o f the universe .
V aluable goods brought as o fferings by laymen are

.
k ept as the property o f the lamasery The Offerings .
are presented in an elaborate ritual and with the ,
accompaniment o f loud music The special gifts by .
which laymen attempt t o Obtain some favour o r

dispensation are numberless The most dangerous
.
demons receive gifts only in the evening after sun s et ,
G reat Oe ri n g s are accompanied

'
o r during the night .
b y proces s ions religious dance s and performance s

, , .
In all the s e matter s Buddhi s m has united with the

ancient Tibetan idea s and cu s toms belongin g to the
Bon religion and openly aunts a thou s and features
,
which are thoroughly alien and antagoni s tic to its

origi nal character .
L A M AI SM 1 97
T he bulk o f the population is owing to the above ,
described practice s entirely in the hands of the

,

mon k s B ut there is one limitation to this It is

. .
n o t the monks only wh o are concerned in this ; there
also exists a large class of wizards T hey are laymen .

,
but keep up a friendly connection with the lam aseries ,

in what might b e termed business relations T hey .
are con sulted and urged to undertake magic an d ,
they Often exert a stron g in uence even over th e

monks They bear th e honourable title of defenders
.
o f the faith , and at their head is a mo s t venerable

person called the Nach un g who is consulted on all
,
obviously impor tant mat ters He resides at Lh asa

.
,
and is connected with th e large Da ip u ng monastery .
An oth er m agician of S imilar i n uence in Lhasa

is th e K a rma sh a r (cf Waddell
. Lhasa and it s ,

Mysteries pp 3 8 0
, . But side by side w ith these
wizards we see lamas active in th e same line A well .
kn own phrase is : Without a lam a in front there is

n o admission to the deity This phrase in deed ex
.
, ,
presses the universal feeling B uddhism is a religion

.
which in it s original form seem s less than any other

, ,
to require priestly in tervention and which puts every

,
m an o n his o wn re sponsibility ; yet it has become

here the most strikin g example of priestly domin atio n
a n d patronage : the people endur e a priestly tyranny
b eyond that endured in any other place on earth .
T he most re markable proof of this condition o f affair s

is the crowd o f pil grim s which ceaselessly streams
into Lh asa from all parts o f the wide lama territory ,
in order to w orship the head o f th e mona s tic system

in the person of the Dalai L ama T hose scenes w h ich .
,
1 98 B UDD HI SM AS A RE L I GION
may be watched daily under the golden roof of the

Jo Khang at Lha s a S how plainly the despotic rule
,
o f Buddhi s m in Tibet The divine child (fo r usually

.
it is a mere child as few o f the Dalai Lamas attain

,
manhood ) sit s o n a platform overshadowed by the

baldachino with a k ind o f sceptre in his hand from
, ,
which are suspended gay ribbons thousands o f ,
devotees i n front o f him wh o are slowly led pa s t his

,
throne with folded hands and during the brief pause , ,
they ma k e in front o f him pro s trate them s elves o n ,
the ground and strik e th e edge o f the platform with

,
their foreheads rapidly murmurin g prayers and the

, ,
wi s hes o f their hearts ; while the obj ect of their

homage touches the heads o f the pilgrims with the
ribbons o f his sceptre in to k en o f blessing and o f
,
acceptance o f their prayers A crowd of satellites .
surrounds this Bodhisattva in human form the most ,
illustrious o f whom are credited by the people with

supernatural powers such as being able to y through
,
the air and to descend into the hidden parts o f the

world to render themselves invisible and to live
, ,
without food Above this whole galaxy o f the human

.
mon khood the faithful beholds the celestial crowd ,
who are their unseen allies At the other side arise the .
dread ful horrible bloodthirsty dread powers full o f

, , , ,
terrible strength but held in chec k by the mon k hood

,
.
In the midst o f them the poor ignorant herd of human ,
being s crouches timidly and reverently watching ,
terror s tric k en the evil ones and imploring succour

-
,
from the wonder wor k ing helper s with prayers gifts

-
, , ,
and charms The Lamai s m o f Tibet has held the

.
people in this condition fo r centuries pa s t .

L AMAI S M 1 99
T he monks are the rulers T heir lamaseries are .
fortresses dominating the country and like fortresse s ,
they possess hidden within their walls arms and

, ,
ammunition which the lama well knows to u se when

,
oc casion arises The history o f the lamas is a very

.
warli k e one from the earliest times down to the

recent defence o f the citadel temple of G yantse aga in st
the British expedition But worse than their o u t .
wa r d ly warlike attitude and than all the blood shed in ,
war with the Chinese or th e British is the S ilent war ,
perpetually carried o n against the highes t interests o f

their o wn nation All the valuable products o f th e
.
country the lamas ab sorb for their o wn use from the ,
gold silver and j ewels down to the little bits o f

, , ,
butter brought by the very poor T hey have barred .
th e way to every form o f commerce They are .
doctors chemists painters tradesmen money lenders

, , , ,
-
,
and beggars who take no refusal beside s being priests , ,
prophets and wizards What they may not themselves

,
.
undertake such as the superintendence of th eir large

,
properties and all sorts of h andicrafts they compel ,
laymen to do for them and these become little else ,
than serfs to them In every respect they are o n

.
an elevated and more sheltered plane than others .
Whoever steals anything f rom a lama o r murders ,
o n e incurs a penalty
, ve o r tenfold greater than is
exacted in other ca s es Nevertheless the people not .
only endure this extraordinary and burdensome yoke ,
but it gains ever new ascendancy from the people

themselve s and has its roots in them in the obscure
, ,
depth of th e soul of the individual which no scienti c ,
in vestigation will ever fully explain .

C HA PTER VI C H INE SE B UDD H IS M.
The po s ition o f Buddhism in China is usually con

s i d e r e d to be a peculiar o n e as it s hare s the supremacy ,
o f that country in the matter o f religion with Taoism
and Confucianism O ne often meets the remar k

.
,
therefore that it is a con s picuous anomaly fo r the

,
Chinese to be capable Of combining three religions in

his o wn person Yet if o n e considers the fact more
.
carefully it appears S impler and more natural than it

,
does at rst S ight There is no e s s ential difference in

.
China from other Buddhi s t countries we nd along

side o i Buddhi s m the old p r o Buddhi s t religion o f the -
countr y only this native religion a s sumed a different

,
attitude towards the foreign import from that o f other

countries namely o ne o f aloofness whereby it pre
, , ,
vented Buddhi s m from penetratin g (to any large

extent ) among s t the bul k of the population E ven .
before the advent o f Buddhi s m thi s indigenous religion

1
had split up into two current s a n inferior o n e which ,
became prevalent among s t the ma s ses S O called ,

-
Taoism ; and another held by the govern in g and

educated cla s s which may be mo s t tly called the
,
S tate religion 2
Both these currents however were
.
, ,
1
I n fa c t , t h erewere m ore than t h e s e t wo b u t t h e o th er s did ,
n o t be co m e s o pro m in e n t f Ma Tan t h e fa t h er o f t h e gre at

S sf .
,
hi s t ori a n S s ii Ma Ch ien m en t io n s si re m a in di vi s io ns o f t h e

,
a n cie n t s pecul a t ive li fe .
2
I t s h ould n o t be c a lled Co n fuci a n i s m a s t h e t e a c h i n g o f
,
Confuciu s i s a m or a l s y s t em an d h a s li t tle t o do wi th religion

,
.
T o Co n fuciu s th e b a ck bon e o f m or ali ty w a s th e Old his t ory o f

hi s coun try an d i t s gre a t ex am ple s .
C HI NE S E B U DD H I S M 201
closely allied to o n e another and cannot be called two

,
different religions When Buddhism came in to c o n

.
tact with th em it was unable to gain th e ascen dancy

,
which it had won in southern countries an d in T ibet .
H ere Buddhism had stronger organi z ation to e n

counter It therefore adopted a more modest manner
.
towards them It coul d not win th e people as a

.
whole but it s ucceeded in gettin g a foothold by means

,
o f monasteries and monks a corporate existence

,
.
T he laity borrowed from it variou s motives and con

c e p t i o n s at their discretion which could be combined
,
with their o wn indigenous religion ; but they are not

governed by genuine Buddhism how ever closely they ,
may be outwardly j oined to it .
A TH E M O N AS TE R IE S
. .
T he maj ority of Buddhist monasteries in China lie

outside th e cities in the Open country E ven th e
,
.
town monasterie s ( which for th e most part are

decadent and o f les s reputa tion ) are built whenever ,
it is possible apart from other habitations They

, .
like to h ave them surrounded by trees E ven where .
a monastery happens to be S itua ted in the midst of

elds in cultivate d plain s there are m any tree s
,
planted in its vicinity But the ideal position for a

.
monastery is o n a woo d ed height All th e most noted .
places o f Buddhist worship in Chin a are in such

positions and a usual term for the temple is therefore
, , ,
s ha n ( mountain ) a term sometime s even applie d

,
to a sanctuary when there is no hill o r he ight wh at

,
ever in its n eighbourhood T wo motives are c omb in ed

.
202 B UDD H I SM AS A RELIGION
in this predilection fo r wooded heights F o r o n e .
thin g it is a very ancient Buddhi s t order which

, ,
directs the mon k t o see k the seclusion o f uncultivated

regions and that in China is s ynonymous with wood
, , ,
and mountain Then also in China Buddhism u n

.
, ,
questionably possesses a great number o f such heights

which were before its time considered sacred by the
people By occupying them Buddhism turned the
.
existing veneration to its own advantage Even .
t o day the tradition is rmly e s tablished in many

-
such localities that Taoi s t authorities had dwelt

there before the advent of the B uddhists ; o r
legends exist about nature demons (dragons) which ,
were conquered after stubborn combats with the

monk s .
The fore s t in the neighbourhood o f the monastery

had also i t s practical value as the wood was always ,
required fo r household repairs and fo r n ew buildings

The position o f the mona s tery in the midst o f lofty
venerable trees which spread a green shade over the
,
sanctuary rarely fails to impress even the E uropean

, .
The charm o f the landscape is often enhanced by the

presence o f water to which the mon k s gladly turn
, .
Amongst the owers and herbs a clear broo k murmurs

under shrubs and trees o r a waterfall gushes from a
cliff; o r a spring spar k les in a dusky grotto around ,
which all sorts of legends group them s elves The .
ban k s and i s lands are equally favourite places o f

Buddhis t settlements .
Here a word may be said about the na mes o f the

Buddhi s t sanctuaries as di s tingui s hed from the
non Buddhi s t temples
-
The exact and accura te
.
C HI NE S E B U DD H I SM 203
expression fo r a Buddhist monastery is s s ii In .
order to make the word more recogni z able in speaking

( th e sound ss zt has many meanings ) it is lengthened ,
o u t into ho s ha ng s s a ( the mon k s monastery) or s s ii

y u en
( monastery court ) A T aoist monastery
. would
never be design ated a s ea ( they are mostly called
hu ng o r hu a n) nor would the temple o f a town o r
,
village if it belonged to the S tate religion S mal l

, .
Buddhist monasteries o r more fre q uently convents

, ,
bear the name o f a n S ingle h alls o f a monastery

.
are called t i en b ut that is also the name for small

,
temples attached to larger ones S ingle ch apel s by .
the roadside are called ho .
Although the Buddhist mo n asteries di ffer very much

in siz e and importance in essential s they are all
,
modelled o n o n e plan T he whole monastery precincts

.
are enclosed by a wall and within it the different

,
kinds o fbuildings are kept q uite distinct Th e dwelling .
rooms o f the monks and all apartment s pertain i ng to

them are clearly separated from th e h all s fo r worship .
The former buildings enclose the four sides a ,
q uadra n gle o f ordin ary two storied houses Within -

.
the courtyard are the temple buildin gs each separated ,
from the other In some well endowed monasteries

.
-
there are three such temple halls The rst is an .
entrance h all called th e Hall o f the Four G reat Kin gs

-
,
of Heaven . Here rule the divine watch ers and

guardians o fthe monastery Behind it is th e principal
.
h al l with the most important images o f the gods

, ,
usually called th e Precious H all o f the G reat Her e

the B uddh a (ta hs i u ng p a o ti en ) S till farther back .
is the so called Hall of the L aw (fa ta ng ) fre q uently

-
,
adj oining the Abbot s dwelling house and fo r that

-
,
reason also named fa ng cha ng which is the Abbot s ,

o wn title E ach o f the three halls is separated from

.
the other by a small courtyard and frequently yo u ,
ascend slightly from o n e t o the other so that the ,
h all o f the law with its basement stands at the

highest level But the central hall is the largest
. ,
and its roof proj ects as a rule above the other

, ,
buildings .
The monastery buildin gs which enclose these central

halls at right angles contain mainly the mon k s cells
besides several guest rooms store rooms k itchens

-
,
-
, ,
o n e common dining hall o n e reception room for large

-
,
-
festivals and also various unimportant shrin es for

,
worship O utside the actual monastery quadrangle

.
stands an isolated tower in which hangs the principal

,
bell o f the monastery .
In smaller monasteries this plan is usually so far

condensed that yo u enter through a gate which serves ,
a s s hrine fo r the tutelary gods into the right angled ,

-
cou r tyard o n the right and left sides o f which are the
,
building s which compose the mon k s rooms The

.
bac k building o f the courtyard is the temple hall in ,
which are the images of the gods frequently in two ,
stories
.
V ery large monasteries possess more than three

buildings fo r worship They S how two entrance halls
.
-
,
containing tutelar y gods and be s ides the above ,
mentioned places fo r wor s hip a S pecial building fo r

meditation the se called c h a n t a ng also various
-

single rooms fo r saints and some very popular gods ,
a hall fo r the ordination o f mon k s a library fo r the ,

C HI N E S E B UD D H I S M 205
s acred canon and a house with urns contain in g

,
the ash es o f cremated monks or Abbots There may .
be many other room s o f less importance In additio n .
there are several large size d kitchens as well as a large

-
,
din i ng room an d o n e or two smaller ones variou s store

-
,
rooms washhouses and l avatories T h ere is a special

, , .
h ouse fo r sick o r very ol d monks cowhouses in which

are the monastery herd s and also the beasts brought
,
t o be taken care of bui ldings for lay workers servants , ,
craftsmen who occasionally have their families living

,
with them all these buildings together with the many ,
cells o f the monks small gardens and courtyard s

,
before the individual cottages n o t in fre quently give to

,
a monastery th e appearance o f a village in itself In .
front of the entrance o f such important monasteries

m ay be seen a pond covered with lotos blos soms in -
,
wh i ch sh and tortoises are kept Large and richly .
decorated archways span th e r e a d before the monastery

i s reached and a number of pavilion s are passed
, ,
destined either for pilgrims t o rest in o r as penthouses ,
t o shelter tablets in scribed with a summary o f the

history o f the mon astery or an imperial decree co n
,
ferrin g some bene t o n it .
T h e buil ding material main ly used for them is w oo d ,
although the foundation s and such parts o f the build

in g as have to bear great weight are of stone as also ,
the encompas s in g walls S tone also serve s fo r step s

.
,
balustrades pavements o f courts and passage s ; but

,
the m ain part o f the bu i l din g is o f wood Pillars play .
an important part in constructi on Al l buildings are .
so constructed that th e in ner walls should form a

sheltered corridor from the rain this is done by mean s
206 B UDDH I S M AS A RE LI G I O N
of overhanging eaves and the overhanging part o f

,
the roof is therefore supported by pillars This is also .
the case with the roofs of temples The pillars are .
almost invariably made o f wood and some are o f ,
enormous height ; only the bases are frequently made

of stone .
The style of architecture is the ordinary Chinese

o ne . The curved roofs form the chief decoration ,
with the twofold and threefold group ing The in .
t e r i o r of the rooms shows no profusion of luxury or

art Wall painting is very rare The oor con s ists
.
-
.
of well trodden earth or wooden plan k s o r very

-
, ,
rarely stone pavement in which are embedded ,
characteristic Buddhist symbols such as the lotos ,
blossom .
O n the whole the monasteries are kept clean and

tidy ; naturally o ne is comparing them with an
,
Asiatic standard In the court s and small entrance

.
gardens there are frequently some nice trees and

owers planted which give a very pleasant im
,
pression .
B . TH E T E MPL E G o ns .
C hinese Buddhi s m has not such a number o f gods

as Lamaism Although the gures in t h e temples
.
are numerous enough to mi s lead E uropeans at rst

sight ( and it is n o t easy to obtain from the ordinary
mon k s accurate information about them individually) ,
still in time o n e learns t o di s criminate among the m

,
with a fair amount o f accuracy They may be .
divided into four cla s s es : ( 1 ) Buddhas ( 2) Bodhi ,
s a ttva s ( 8) saints and patriarchs ( 4) tutelary deities

, , .
CH INE S E B U DD H I S M 207
1
Amon gst the B uddhas the historic Buddh a ,
G autama or as the Chin ese more frequently call

, ,
him S ak yamuni ( S hih chia m a n i) is the rst to be

,
- - -
,
mentioned He is generally represented seated in

.
the attitude o f meditation while th e seat is formed o f ,
a lotos blossom The eyes are almost covered by th e

-
.
lids only sh owing through a narrow slit b ut this

, ,
must not be mi s taken for a representation of the

Mongolian type o f eye O n th e contrary all the .
,
higher divinities Buddhas and Bodhisattvas re , ,
semble the Indian races in feature The half closed .

-
eyes are part of the act o f meditation The head is .
u sually ornam ented with tufts of h air dyed blue ,
from the centre o f which comes a proj ection ( as in

S outhern B uddhism ) T here is another proj ection .
o n the forehead between the eyes (the W et o f

S outhern Buddhism ) which is often ornamented ,
with a j ewel The ears are large and the lobes h an g

.
,
down almost to the shoulder A simple garment .
enfolds the body leavin g t h e neck and chest exposed

, ,
but both shoulders arms and the rest of the body are , , ,
concealed The hands lie in the lap o n the upturned

.
soles o f the feet With a few slight differences th e

.
,
gure is a replica o f that portrayed in S outhern B ud

dhi s m .
The background of the B uddha ( as also o f other

gures ) i s frequently in the shape o f a nimbus The .
nimbus ori g inally a mass of light which emanated

, ,
from the light givin g god s and which was already

-
,
known in the Alexandrian epo ch o f the G recian

1
Th e Chi n e s e e qui v al e n t fo r Buddh a i s F 0 w h ich form erly ,
w a s pro n oun ced Bud t h e t r an s crip t io n o f t h e r s t s yll a ble o f

,
t h e na m e Buddh a .
208 BUDD H I S M AS A RE LI G I O N
E mpire was adopted alike by Buddhism and Ch ris
,
ti a ni ty It is also to be found in S outhern Buddhism

.
and in Lamaism There is a distinction between the

.
large and the small nimbus The large nimbus is .
usually represented in Chinese Buddhi s m by an

ornamental screen behind the whole gure o f the
,
god extending considerably above it and running up

,
to a point at the to p so that the shape o f the whole

,
has a resemblance to the leaf o f the holy B o tree -

,
which presumably must have been the model fo r it .
This nimbu s is generally made o f wood gilded , ,
painted and ornamented with carvi ng The small

,
.
nimbus is f requently found in combination with it ,
surrounding the head only It resembles the Roman .
Catholic halo circular as a rule but occasionally with

, ,
undulating ame li k e rays The Chinese name o f the

,
-
.
nimbus is hao kua ng ( hair rays ) .
The historic Buddha is al s o to be found in a stand

ing position He is besides represented as a little
.
child when he spok e at the time o f his birth with o n e

, ,
hand pointing heavenward and the other earthward

No w fo r the last time I am reincarnate
, Among , .
all the dwellers in heaven and earth to me is due the

greate s t honour He is also represented as the
.
ascetic G autama a middle aged man the face sur

,
-
,
rounded by a shaggy beard the hair un k empt the , ,
body wrapped in rag s o ne knee bent to the ground , .
This is a rare gure seen sometimes in We s tern and

,
Northern China O ne more frequently notices the

.
Buddha ente r ing Nirvana whom we mentioned in ,
S outhern Buddhi s m In China however he is called

. , ,
the S leeping Buddha ( S hui fo ) and is not only -

,
C HINE S E B U DD H I S M 209
wrapp ed up in coverings but also may be foun d lyin g

,
in a genuine Chinese bed in which the marble gure ,
( thi s is as the present writer saw it ) has a most extra

ordinary appearance Beside s the historic Buddha
.
,
one sees in Ch inese temples also some o f those other

Buddhas o fthe Mah ay ana cre e d which we have already ,
mentioned in connection with Lamaism From the .
large number of o ld time human Buddhas speculation

-
has selected ve who ( as in Lamaism ) were c o

,
ordinate d with their ve h eavenly B uddhas in ete rnal

correspondence and also with th eir ve Bodhisattvas
,
as mediatin g representatives o f these celestial Buddhas .
The best known of th e celestial B uddhas is Ami tabha ,
n ow called by the Chinese O mi to fo H e is so - - -

.
un iversally popular th at his name oc curs in number

less fo rm u l se of prayer and of greetin g He is .
honoured above all a s ruler o f the Western Paradise ,
which Ch in ese believers h ave an ardent hope of

en terin g Amit abha is often represented standing
.
with unusually long arm s han ging d own name d ,
Chieh yin fo th e B uddh a who receives and guides

- -
,
viz into th e Paradise

.
,
T wo other very common
.
celestial Buddh as are Va ir o c h a n a ( whom the Ch in ese

call Pi l u fo ) an d L o s h a n a (Lo shih fo )
- - - -
.
All the se im ages o f Buddhas are represented in a

s imilar way to those o f th e historic Buddh a except ,
that the two last always h ave their o wn mud/r d : Pi l u -
fo lays both his hands together in th e centre o f th e

che s t so that the index ngers poin t upwards ; Lo
,
shih fo raises the left hand midway and j oin s the

-
tips o f the thumb and middle nger while the right ,
h and re s t s in his lap .

21 0 BUDDHI S M AS A RE LI G I O N
Chinese Buddhism does no t include in this group
Maitr eya (Chinese Mi l e fo ) the Buddha o f the
,
- -
,
future a t all events not in the large images o f the

,
temple s He has received the special r o le o f tutelary

.
deity and is always represented in a quite peculiar

,
way a fat laughing gure cowering o n the ground so

, ,
that the left leg lies crosswise in front o f the body .
The right hand holds either a rosary or a lotos bud ; -
the left encircles the mouth o f a bag the so called ,

-
bag o f the ve luc k y gifts The head is entirely

.
shaven ; the lobes o f the ears reach the shoulders .
The wide mantle which is his only garment is thrown

, ,
bac k di s playing shoulders breast and belly

, , , .
In We s tern China o n e o f the old human Buddhas

may frequently be met with namely the Buddha -
,
Di p a mka r a .His name the S hining O ne is trans

, ,
lated into Chinese Jan t e ng fo -

This Buddha is
- .
generally covered with a number of little o i l lamps -

,
which burn in his honour they usually number 1 08

a num
,
ber o f special sacred signicance (s e e p .
Among the Chinese B o d hi s a ttva s the most impor

tant gure is K wa nyin Sh e is the Indo Tibetan
.
-
Avalokita translated into the Chinese and feminine

,
form In older times this Bodhi s attva was also

.
honoured in China as a male gure of which ,
traces may still be found here and there Later .

,
under what inuence is no t quite evident the form ,
changed into the female A legend makes her the .
daughter o f an o l d King o f the seventh centur y B c 1

. .
,
who by the heroic accompli s hment o f a nun s duties

,

1
Accordin g t o C hi n e s e rec k oni n g t h e Buddh a G a u ta ma lived
,
i n t h e t e nt h cen tury B C a n d s o s h e belo n g s alre a dy t o h i s epoch

. .
, .
C H INE S E B U DD H I S M 21 1
and by martyrdom had att ain ed the positio n o f a

,
Bodhisattva In her is concentrated all that a pious

fancy attributes to womanhood and which it see k s in ,
womanhood S h e is gentlenes s and helpfulness

.
pe rsoni ed especially watchin g those engaged i n

,
perilou s callings such as sailors ; the patroness o f

,
women in all their concerns especially invoked in ,
cases of chil dlessnes s and danger at birth ; and show

in g a variety o f form s and images u n like that o f any
other deity in Chin ese B uddhism .
Besides K wa ny in four other Bodhisattvas stand o u t

,
promin ently First there i s T a shih chi ( the In dian

.
- -
Ma h as t h am a o r Ma h as t h am a p r ap ta ) T ogether with .
K wa nyin he h a s his place in the western Paradise ,
ruled by Amit abha and therefore with her h e is ,
the regular comp anion of this Buddha Al l three .
( Amit a bha i n the middle K w a ny i n o n the left

,
the
place of honour in Chinese eti q uetteand T a shih -
chi o n the right) are often placed be side o n e another

as the three holy ones o f th e western region ( hs i

f g
an c a n s heng ) Two other . noted Bodhisattvas are
Wen shu and P u h sien (corresponding to the Indian
-

-
n ames Manj u sri and S am a nta b h a dra ) The former .
u sually rides o n a lion the latter o n an el ephant ; ,
they often appear as a triad with Kwa nyi n in th e

middle T he fourth well known Bo dhisattva is T i
.
-
t s ang H e is the ruler of H ades a n d as such he i s

.
,
much revered by the people Under h im are twelve .
Kin gs of hell the executioners o f all the hellish pain s

,
an d horrors from which however the good natured

, , ,
-
Bodhisattva if assiduously wor ship pe d can deliver

, ,
people
2
.
14
21 2 BUDD HI S M AS A RELI G I O N
The third class o f the higher beings are th e s a i n ts .
These are the ancient disciples o fthe Buddha G autama .
T heir Chinese name is L o han (the Indian Arhat o r -
Arhant) The most important ones are G autama s

.

two favourite di s ciples But in Chinese Buddhi s m it .
is n o t Ma u d g aly ay a na and Sa ri p u tr a who ta k e these

places ( as we nd it in S outhern Buddhism ) but ,
An anda and K as yapa These two are repre s ented o n.
each side o f the Buddha G autama An anda as a ,
younger man and K as yapa as an older o n e both in

, ,
an attitude o f reverence with folded hands Another .
group o f Buddha di s ciples are the s o called eighteen -
Lo han In the older monaste ries yo u sometimes

-
.
nd the original number o f sixteen They are .
1
legendary beings with a historic background Their .
signicance is as guardians o f G autama s doctrine

.
A larger circle was formed o f the 5 00 Lo han who -

,
are only to be seen in a few temples occupyin g a ,
whole room to themselves Among these 5 00 may be .
n oticed not only several Chinese Emperors who

favoured Buddhi sm lik e K ang h si and Ch ien lung
,

-

-
,
but in temples at Canton and Hangchow even the

illustrious E uropean traveller o fthe thirteenth century ,
Marco Polo is included amongst these guardians o f

,
2
the Buddhist faith .
1
On e e e Lo h an h a s an a ppe a r an ce qui te s imila r to th e
o f th s -
o ne de s cribed a bove a s M a itr ey a s H e i s a n in c a rna t ion o f t h is

.
Bodh i s a tt v a a nd h a s been a dded t o t h e old n um ber o f s ixt een

,
o nly in m ore m odern t im e s H e i s c alled P u t ai ho s h an g

.
- - -
(th e m onk with t he c a lico b a g ) in J a p an H o t a i

, .

I n Y ule s M a rco P olo third edi tion vol i p 7 6 o f th e
2
, , . .
, .
I ntroduc t io n th is s ta t em e nt i s denied (a t le as t fo r C a nt o n) o n
, ,
C H INE S E B U DD HI S M 21 3
Next to the L o han are the p a tri a r chs-

O f their .
whole number only o n e has gained universal reverence ,
vi z Bodhidharma who tran sferred the seat of the

.
, ,
patriarchate from India to China ( see p H e is .
always given q uite u n Chin e se with a large beard and -

, ,
with s uch peculiar features th at it seem s probable

that some authentic traditi on has been h an ded
down as to his portrait His n ame is transcribe d .
P o ti ta mo
- - H e is generally called Ta mo tsu sh ih
-
.
- -
,
as tsu shih is th e Chin ese name for the patriarch

-
.
H ere and there a Chin ese temple contains all th e six

patriarchs Ta mo together with his ve followers
,
-
.
T hree o f them receive special consideration in some

very decayed mo n asteries o n the Y angt z e north of ,
Kiukiang where these esteemed te achers lived

, .
Lastly th e tu t ela ry g o d s T here are the four great .
heavenly guardia n s whom w e already know from

L amaism ( see p 1 6 3) Wei to (transcription o f V eda )
.
-
,
a wa r l ike e r c e gure with a sword in its h ands which

, , ,
sometimes rests crosswise above th e arm s put together

in prayer al so Fan t ien wan g ( Brahma ) and Ti s hih-

-
( Indra ) ; be s ides these there are frequently a multi

tude o f twenty or twenty four devas All these tute -
.
lary deities are o f Indian origin Besides these are .
noticed some purely Chi n ese t utela ry gods th e s o called ,

-
c hic Ia n -
amon gst whom the most prominent is the
,
Chin ese war go d K wanti originally a brave general o f

-
, ,
the th ird century A D ; at th e clo se o f the sixte en th

. .
th e u th ori t y o f M r W ylie B u t t h e pre s e nt wri t er by pers o n al

a . .
,
ob s erv a t ion a n d in q uiry ha s proved t h a t i t is correc t i n Ha n g

,
c h ow as wel l a s in C an t on .
21 4 BUDD H I S M AS A RELI G I O N
c entury he was promoted to be a g o d and owing to , ,
his great popularity made his way from the S tate ,
religion into the B uddhi s t temples There are .
others al s o o f the s e c hi a l a n who are no t genuinely -
Buddhistic as for in s tance Confucius Wenchang and

, , , , ,

the so called k itchen g o d who indeed is not to be
- -
,
found in the temple rooms but is standing in almost ,
every monastery kitchen ; its origin is in Taoism

( T s ao ch ii n)
- 1
.
The image s o f the gods are usually made from

wood o r clay gilded o r painted ; specially costly ones
,
are bronze o r marble When the craftsmen have .
ni s hed their work the image is vi vie d by a special

,
solemn rite and i s raised to the actual godship As a

, .
rule there is a small hole in the bac k of the image ,
through which some animala snake a cat a frog or , , ,
a centipede is inserted into the hollows inside and ,
the o pening is closed The soul o f the creature gives

.
the impetus o f life to the dead image Afterwards .
the pupil o f the eye is painted in and thereby the ,
deity has tak en full posses s ion o f the image This .
act is called k a i kua ng the Opening of eyelight

, .
The arrangement o f the sacred images in the

temples is fairly uniform .
In the entrance hall on the right and left hand

-
,
side stand two o f the four great heavenly Kings

, ,
usually immense gures 1 0 o r 1 2 feet in height .
1 I n the pilgrim I T s ing e t r a vels m ention i s m a de a ls o o f

-

a n I n di a n k i t c h e n god w h o l a t er o n w a s wor sh ipped i n C h in a

-
, .
( S e e Tak aku s u s t r an sl a t ion o f I T s i n g p B u t t h i s god

-
.
,
( M a h ak al a ) s ee m s n o t t o be co nn ec t ed wi t h t h e m odern Budd h i st
dei ty .
C HINE S E BUDD H I S M 21 5
E ach has its o wn colour but they vary occasiona lly , .
G enerally th e guardian o fthe North ( Chinese T o wen ) ,

-
,
who holds a pearl and a snake is black ; that o f th e ,
West ( Kuang m u ) holding a sword is white ; the

-
, ,
guardian o f the S outh ( Ts n g chang ) holding in his -

,
hand an umbrella is red ; that of the E ast ( Ch ih,

kuo) holding a guitar is blue In the centr e o f th e

, ,
.
entrance hall stand two gures o n e looking outwards

-
, ,
Mi l e o ne lookin g inwards Wei to O ne sometimes

-
, ,
-
.
sees in this h all also an image o fKwanti the god o fwar , .
In the principal h all ( ta hs i u ng p a o ti en) a Buddh a

or group o f B uddhas occupie s the centre behin d the
principal altar T hese central gures are usually
.
very large and imposing When it is a sin gle gure .

,
it must be the historic B uddh a G autama before ,
whom in that case stand his disciples An anda and

, ,
K as yapa B ut fre q uently o n e n ds three B uddha

.
gures in the centre o f the h all When rst asked .
about them by the stranger th e monks call them F o , ,
Fa and S h n gthat is Buddha the doctri ne and th e

, , , ,
commu nity More accurately they are the B uddha s

.
Va i ro c h a n a ( Pi l n fo ) L o s h a n a ( Lo shih fo )
-
, and ,
S akyamuni ( S h i chia fo ) These three form the so .
called T rikaya or threefol d embodiment (of E itel

,
.

S anskrit Ch in ese Dictionary
- p 1 7 8 et , .
An other very usual trio is S ak yam uni Amit abha and , ,
Y0 shih fo ( V a i d ry a Buddha ) th e Buddha of heal ,
in g 1
V arious other combin ations o f groupin g may
.
1 Nowh ere doe s o ne nd 1 n th e te m ple s a t rio o f t h e Bud dha

o f t h e pre s e n t t h e p a s t a n d fu t ure Th e Buddh a o f t h e fu t ure

.
, , ,
M i l o n ever s t a n d s am o n g t h e l a rge gure s in th e centre o f t h e

-
,
pri n cip al h a ll .
still be found here and there S o the temples o n the .
i s land o f P u t o a sacred locality o f great renown

-

, ,
generally have the picture o f K wa nyin in the centre

o f the principal hall because the island is specially
,
dedicated to that goddess Al though K wa nyin is only .
a Bodhisattva even the highest Buddha must there

,
give place to her In front o f the great central

.
gures on the altar table stand s a row o f smaller

-
Bodhisattvas o f importance the three sacred ones o f ,
th e western Paradise a Mi l e and o t hers O n the

,
-
.
back side of the screen in front o f which the gods are

enthroned turned towards the inner door of the
,
principal hall there is usually a repre s entation of

,
K wa ny in . P u h s ien and Wen shu stand o n either

- -
side o f it Along the t wo side walls are the baroque

.
-
gures o f the eighteen Lo han seated o n a broad -
shelf against the wall sometimes increased in number

,
by twenty d eva s Again st the ba c k wall o n each

.
-
,
side o f the inner door there is u s ually a gure of ,
Bodhidharma o n the left and o n e o r more tutelary ,
deities (cil i a Ia n) o n the right

-
, .
The hall o f the law (fa ta ng ) contains n o great .
images It is set apart fo r the reading aloud and

.
explanation o f the sacred text to the monks It is .
true that there are smaller statues set o u t o n the

platform from which the teacher is wont to address
the monks fo r in stance Amit abha o r Yo shih fo o r ,
- -
others The b a ll for meditation also contains only

.
smaller images o f different Buddhas o r Bodhisattvas .
The arrangement o f the many chapels which in

important mona s teries are dedicated to the mo s t
di verse deities (especially to Kwa nyin and Ti tsang ) -
,
CHINE S E B U DD H I S M 21 7
or to some patriarchs and famous teachers cannot ,
here be dealt with in detail .
T he sanctuaries are provided with gaily e m b r o i d

ered altar clothes with long silk banners attached
-
, ,
below with brass ttings with wooden tablets gorge ,
o u s ly in scribed in gold O n th e altar are candlesticks. ,
in cense burners dishes for o fferings owers an d

-
, , ,
ar ti cial fruits ; yo u never mis s a few specimens o f th e

famous wooden sh a much used instrument on ,
-
which to beat when prayers o r text s are being recited .
Although it can now hardly be reco gnized this was ,
originally repre s entative o f a sh of which the hea d ,
and tail are bent to gether while the inside is hollowe d ,
1
out an d a broad opening is lef t in th e centre A blow .
on this peculiar instrument made with a kn ocker gives

an empty resonant sound which is repeated by the
, ,
reci ter with great swiftnes s and regularity Low .
round footstool s made o f straw are use d by th e

monk s fo r kneelin g during worship .
1 It wo ul d be wor th wh ile t o cle a r up th e origin o f th e u s e o f

t h e s h i n Buddhi s t cul t e s peci a lly a s th e s h i s a l s o an a n cie nt
,
C hri s tia n s ym bol Th e Ch in e s e m onk s gen er ally expl ain i t by

.
s a yi ng t h a t t h e s h i s a s ym bol o f w a t c hful n e s s a s the sh ,
n ever clo s e s i t s eye s n o r doe s i t re q uire re s t (of th e J a p a n e s e

,
.
di cour s e o n I nni t e V is ion t r ans l a t ed by J M J am e s in

s

,

. .
T r a n s o f th e As S o c o f J a p an vol vii p a rt iv p
. . .
,
A
. .
, .
, .
J a p an e s e ( a n d C h in e s e) lege n d rel a t e s t h a t a wic k ed m o nk a ft er

de a th w a s c h a n ged in t o a w a t er pl ant wh ich h a d t o grow un der
-
,
w a t er An Abbot di s covered fro m s o m e di s m a l gro a nin g in th e

.
,
w a t er th e fa c t a n d receiv e d th e in s truc t ion t h a t t h e unfort un a t e

, ,
m onk coul d be s a ved fro m hi s pun i s hm e nt if t h e wood o f t h a t

pla n t woul d be us ed t o m a k e a n in s t ru m e nt t o be be a t e n wh e n
th e h oly word w as recit ed S o t h e woode n sh w a s m a de
. .
21 8 BUDDHI S M AS A RELI G I O N
C TH E Mo Nxs
. .
The monastic communities are mainly recruited

from the ran k s o f children who are de s ignated fo r
this life by their parents in early youth and are ,
brought by them to the monastery O nly compara .
ti ve ly few monasteries have any important inux o f

grown men Not infrequently the children destined
.
fo r the mona s tic life by their parents are given in

exchange for a money i ndem ni c a tio n 1
O therwise
.
a child may be vowed at a time o f illnes s o r in fear

o f death The little ones are sent away to the monas
.
t e r i e s even at the age of o n e or two and are entirely

, ,
brought up there Each o ne receives his special

.
fo s ter father and teacher from the ran k s o f the mon k s

-
.
F rom about the seventh year they begin to be initiated

into what they will have to k now and to do later as
mon k s They learn to read extracts from important
.
writings and to repeat them by heart They tak e

, .
part in worship and mak e themselves acquain ted

,
with all the externals o f religion S o they grow up .
with a practical knowledge o f a mon k s wor k and

,
accept it from childhood up as their destined career .
The monastic h abit also is worn by them from the

, ,
beginning and their heads are completely shaved

, .
When they have reached the age o f twenty (so at

least runs the rule though it is not always strictly
,
adhered to ) they are formally admitted to the monastic

,
1 I n c a s e s whic h were per s o n all y kn own t o m e t we n t y ve -

,
M exic a n doll a r s were p a id fo r a ch ild o f wh ich t h e v a lue a t t h at

,
t i m e w a s a bou t for t y s h illi n g s A s i m il a r s t at em ent i s given

.
in M iln e s Li fe in C hin a p 1 32

. .
,
life T he n they undergo three ceremonie s each of

.
,
which has its peculiar signi c ance and ought indeed , , ,
to be separated from th e others by a longer space o f

time but which fo r p ractical reasons are despatch ed
,
in the course o f a few days Th e rst o f these cere .
monies is the formal reception in to the noviciate ;

the second is the full receptio n as monk ; to these is
added in China a third festivity at which are under ,
taken the duties an d command s o f the w ay which

leads to the rank o f Bodhisattva .
The two rst ceremonie s are simple and resemble ,
those mentioned in connection with S outhern Bud

dh i s m (pp 96 1 00 e t
.
,
The third is more exactin g
and more complicated th e initiation o fa future Bodhi
sattva T he monks undertake a number of dutie s
.
and obligations which spring from th e teachin g of

the Mah ayana school A remarkable ceremony ha s
.
therefore come into vogue which bears witness to the

,
ascetic end urance and force o f will o f the monks .
O ne of the old works on the duties o f monks says

A Bodhisattva m ust be capable o f giving up his
body his e sh h is hands and his feet to tigers
, , , , ,

wolves lion s and every kind of ravenous monsters
, ,
.
It is therefore the practice in Chin a that the mo nk , ,
at his last consecration should receive a number o f

wounds by branding as a sign of his capacity t o
,
endure hard s u e ri n g s and to sacri ce him self T his

.
branding on the clean sh aven head is the p r e do m i

-
n atin g sign of the B odhisattva consecration The .
branding is truly painful T hree nine twelve o r

.
, , ,
even eighteen places ( according to the z eal shown by

the can didate ) have small cylin drical shaped piece s -
220 BUDD H I S M AS A RELI G I O N
of charcoal stuck on them by an adhesive substance
made from fruits ; these are set alight and allowed to
glow till the gum melts and burns deeply into the
esh . While this ta k e s place the a s pirant with ,

uplifted hands must ceaselessly cry O mito (Ami
,
t abha ) which doubtless often becomes a cry o fanguish

, .
An assistant mon k holds the head o f the branded man ,
and presses his thumbs rmly into the temples which ,
le s sens the pain The scars of the branding remain

.
fo r ever .
The right to give ordination is only posses s ed by

certain noted mona s teries who have obtained it by
,
imperial decree But in neighbourhoods where there

.
are few candidates and several larger monasteries it

does not take place every year in the same monastery .
The mon k s get a diploma at their initiation o f which ,
there are three kind s vi a that of a novice o f a full

, ,
monk and o f a Bodhisattva The novices are styled

, .
s ha mi ( S anskrit sm ma n em )

the full monks s ha m n

,
1
( ra ma n a ) o r ho s ha ng
, Another honourable appel
. .
ation o f the monk is fa s hi h (teacher o f the law )

-
,
which in its Japanese pronunciation (b o s i ) gave -
origin to the well k nown term bonz e ( O ther scholars

-
.
derive it from the Burmese Hp o ngy i but with less ,
evidence ) The monk gives up his former lay name

.
,
and receives a religious o ne the fa mi ng or fa ha o ,

- -
,
also spok en of as tu hut ( ordination name) .
According to the monastic r ul es a monk s duties ,

are very arduous but how far t hey are actually per
,
formed is quite another question .
1
On t h e deriv a t io n o f ho s hamg of Ta k ak u s u s edi tio n o f

, .
I T s in g e Re cord o f t h e Buddhi s t R eligio n p 1 1 8

- . .
,
C H INE S E B U DD H I S M 221
T he most conspicuous daily task is participation

i n devotional exercises T here were originally s ix
.
appointed times o f devotion for the in habitants of

monasteries early at sunrise between eight an d ,
n ine between eleven and twelve at three in the

, ,
afternoon and at seven and at nine in the evenin g

,
.
T he se generally contract to three times daily o n e

early o n e midday and o ne at evenin g worship The
, ,
.
u s ual form consists in a list o f invocations praises , ,
and recitation of weighty chapters from the sacred

writings These are sometimes murm ured sometimes
.
,
ch anted like a psalm in a more di s tinct mel od y T he .
whole course of worship is accompanied by a c o n

t in u o u s playing of all sorts of in struments such a s ,

th e wooden sh bells small and large drums
, , ,
cymbals and tambo urines

, E ach monk has h is
.
appoin ted place in which to s tand o r kn eel T hey .
are arrange d in two divisions which in many parts ,
of the service face o n e another and at other tim es all

,
face towards the altar A monk wh o o i c i a te s before

.
the altar between the two division s conduct s th e

, ,
ceremony T here is fre quently a sacri ce conn e cted

.
with the worship ; the usual o n e only consi s ts in rice

and te a The conductor of the service divides th e
.
gift s with mystic wavin g of the n ge r s be twee n

the powers which are bein g worshipped A processio n .
usually marks the close o f the service .
Festivals naturally have their own ceremonials .
Chinese B uddhism kn ows the o l d U po sa th a days and ,
c a lls them fast days ( cha i

-
They are the eighth ,
the fourtee nth the twenty sec ond and the twenty
,
-
,
eighth days of the mo n th But as th e middl e an d

.
222 BUDDHI S M AS A RELI G I O N
the end o f the month are often mark ed by two fast
days (the fourt ee nth and fteenth as well as the ,
twenty eighth and twenty ninth o r the twenty ninth

- - -
and thirtieth ) the whole number is then six Be s ides

, .
these the B u ddhist calendar contains a large number

o ffestivals birthdays o fall the Buddhas Bodhisattvas
, , ,
and saints days to commemorate the death o f certain

,
persons connected with the history o f the individual

monastery special days for the honouring of the d eva s
, ,
festivals o f the sun and the moon festivals to pray for

,
good weather o r rain o r snow ; then the universal

Chinese festivals the birthday o f the E mperor and
E mpress the festivals o f the beginnin g o f summ er o f
, ,

the hungry ghosts o f the end o f summer o f the
, ,
beginning o f winter o f the end o f winter o f New Year

, , ,
etc All these occasions have their appropriate ritual

. .
Be s ides these every k ind o f wish o r petition o f the

,
laity is brought to the monks Harvest anxieties .

,
domestic j oys and sorrows illness and death all alik e

, ,
require prayers o r ceremonial dealings at the hands o f

the mon k s .
Whilst Chinese Buddhism by honouring and in

,
vo ki ng all k inds o f spiritual beings has entirely d e,
parted from the line o f its founder it o n the other ,
hand still preserves a certain continuity with the

o l d doctrine by the D u ty of M ed i t a ti o n There are .
schools and monasteries in which meditation is held

to be o f such importance that an appointed time is
allotted to it every day Those wh o meditate betak e
.
them s elves to the Hall o f Meditation and in a certain ,
prescribed attitude exercise thei r minds o n the problem

o f abstraction But almost everywhere where medita
.
,
tion is still practised it has ch anged into a lifeless and

,
formal thing This is especially evident where these

.
meditations are worked out in company as is customary ,
in some monas teries which bo ast of old tradition with

,
regard to this rite They differentiate between sedentary

.
or ambulatory meditation They are merely external .
exercises carried out in p r e s ci b e d order All sit down

, .
in a xed attitude fo r a few moments there is absolute

silence ; then a pious formula is uttered by all at the
same time ; after that a t a given signal all sprin g
up and walk round a table ( by ranks ) which stands in
the centre o f the hall covered with images o f the gods
, .
T he walk becomes more and more rapid til l it is a ,
r un ; a superin t endent stands by with a sort o f lash
and drives o n the dilatory ones suddenly a bell

sounds and each return s t o his place and sits q uietly
down In m any monasteries meditation has been
.
entirely discontin ued and replaced by the recitation of

,
piou s formul ae How m uch o r h ow little o f this is

.
practised by the individual monk is left entirely to his

own discretion .
Besides the religious obligatio n s however there are , ,
many other duties T he whole monastic community

.
a body o f thirty o r forty in dividuals even in a
moderate si z ed monasteryis strictly organ ized and

-
,
has its work absolutely well regulated a n d apportioned

in all matters of household eco n omy T he in s tr u c .
tions with regard to organization are laid dow n in

books which are to be found everywhere Th e e xecu .
tion of them depend s on the ki n d and siz e of the

monastery .
At the head is the Abbot e n title d Fan g s han g ( o r

,
-
Chu He is always an elderly monk but need ,
not necessarily be the olde s t either in age o r re s idence , .
The obedience o f all is due to the Abbot He hold s an .
independent position Under him the fully ordained .
mon k s range themselves in two divisions the s o called ,

-
east and west ran k s The rst o f these cla s ses the .
,
ea s tern deals mo s tly with the secular and household

,
matters the western with every k ind o f ritual and

,
o f clerical duty The s o called Tu chien pos s esses the

.
- -
highest po s ition in the ea s tern di v i s ion ; he is a sort

o fPrior and next to the Abbot he is the mo s t inuential
,
person He is the Abbot s representative and must

.

keep him s elf informed about every important que s tion ,
in order to report it to the Abbot After him come .
numberless other o fcials : a book keepe r a man t o -

,
loo k a fter the guest s a commissioner o f stores a , ,
superintendent o f e ld labour a superintendent of the -

,
water supply an overseer o f the kitchens a manager

-
, ,
o f the clothing department another fo r giving o u t the ,
tea a superintendent o f repairs etc At the head o f the

, , .
western divi s ion namely o f the religious sideis a ,
s o called Pre s ident ( S hou t s o ) ; then follow some mon k s

- -
who lead the as s embly at certa in points o fthe wor s hip

then again others appointed specially to read the
, ,
sacred boo k s others to explain the doctrine to laymen

, ,
one to act as secretary o ne who keeps the ancestor ,
tablets in order various o i c e r s connected with the

,
temple duties etc , .
1 Th e t er m Chu ch ih m e an s re s ide nt prie s t

-

Tak aku s u .
( in h i s t r an s l a t io n o f I T s in g p 1 1 7 ) t h ink s th a t t h e proper
-
, .
m e anin g origin a lly w a s pre s erver or:m ai nt ai n er o f t h e Three

J ewel s F an g c ha n g point s m ore t o th e Abbo t s pl ac e o f

.
-
re s ide nce .
C HINE S E BUDD H I S M 225
In most monaste ries there also live several laymen .
T heir dwellin gs ofte n lie outside the monaste ry wall

in an outer circle . They undertake every kind of
practical work fo r th e monks espec i ally agriculture
,
and forestry and handicrafts It is a free agree

.
ment by which they are bound to the monastery .
T h ey are generally not badly o ff a t all events in ,
comp arison with the usual condition o f Chin ese

peasant s .
T h e sustenance o f the monks is sim ple but no t a s ,
much o ne of privation as that o f m any a poor farmer .
They live o n a strictly vegetarian diet That rule is .
the most scrupulously observ ed of any although it is ,
unkn own to the origi n a l In dian B uddhism As most .
o f the monks h ave been accustomed from childhood
to the vegetarian diet o f the monasteries it h as ,
become second nature to them ; meat is repul sive to

many The meals are prepared in the monastery
. .
Chinese Buddhism does not observ e the custom o f

daily begging for food nor is there any reg ul ation
,
1
forbidding meals after midday . T hey u sually have
three meals a d ay : in the early morning after rst
worship a light breakfast ; at midday an d in the
evenin g are the principal meals . All the commo n
monks assemble for them in th e din in g room where -
,
they sit o n benches at long tables A monk super .
in tends from his place o n a platform A general

.
m urmured prayer begins and ends the meal S everal .
serving monks di s tribu te the food out o f large tub s to ,
each man his porti on a bowl of rice and a dish of

,
vegetables O f rice they are allowed a second helpin g

. .
1 Wi t h
o n e excep tio n to be n a m ed l a t er (p .
15
226 BUDDHI S M AS A RE LI G I O N
At meal times there is perfect silence ; speech is fo r

bidden All necessary communications are made by
.
signs The mon k s are summoned to meals by the

.
beating o f a large wooden sh which hangs from the

ceiling o f a corridor near the dining room The -
.
Abbot and the principal mon k s do not usually have

their meals with the ordinary mon k s but have a ,
better quality of food served to them in their own

cells .
The monks wear the ancie n t Buddhist dress with ,
such alteration as to suit climatic re q uirements .
They wear trousers stoc k ing s and shoes besides the

, , ,
three garments o f S outhern Buddhism The outer .
garment is o f an orange colour o r yellowish brown ; -
the two other articles are generally grey The Abbot .
and a few other leading monk s are distinguishable

during worship by wearing special garments Their .
upper garment is red with gold stripes The A b bot .
h a s a peculiar sceptre a s a sign o f his dignity which ,
is often adorned with precious stones .
The mon k s c ells are tted o u t according to the

varying means of individuals and they are often quite

,
co mfortable The prin cipal xture is the bed which

.
, ,
lik e the Chinese bed in universal use con s ists o f a,
solid bedstead with a wooden frame ( from which to

hang a mosquito net ) a straw mattress and woollen
-
, ,
coverings A table and a couple o f seats be s ides a

.
,
cupboard in which to k eep small things some strips ,
of paper bearing inscription s o r pictures o n the walls ,
perhaps a o wer that is the usual thing to be seen

in the way o f furnishing The mon k no longer
.
adheres to the o ld rules as t o couch and to absence of

posses sio n s H e receives without a scruple gold

.
,
silver o r any kind of presents

,
.

Above all there can be n o q uestion in th e case o f
,

average monks o f any intimate conception o f th e
B uddha s teachin gs T he monastic life is a purely

.
co n ventional thin g T he discrepa n cy is conse q uently

.
n ot u nn atural great strictness of accepted ritual an d

,
monas tic re gulatio n s bein g combin ed with great laxity

i n th e observa n ce of moral precepts A monk who .
failed to appear in correct d ress and attitude at public

worship o r made a disturbance d urin g meal time by
,
-
speakin g o r neglected some wonted ceremony woul d

, ,
wi thout doubt incur a penalty O n the other hand .

,
monks who spend whole nights gamblin g who lie , ,
who q uarrel who smoke opium are free from blame

, ,
and have n o compunction o f conscience The same .
monks that hold vegetarian doctrin e s most rigidly

m ay take pleasure in shootin g birds o r squirrel s with
E uropean rearm s without seeming to be aware o f ,
an y wrong do in g T he usual moral standard is not

-
.
o n ly lower th an that o f real B uddhist ethics but also ,
lower than that of the surrounding non mo n astic -
commun ity Nevertheless outward decorum is o b

.
,
served to a certain extent .
O n the other h and individual monks are in clin ed ,
to asceticism which is very surprisin g not only o n

, ,
account of the u sual l ukewarmness of Ch inese Bud

d h i s m but especially because o f the in trin sic character
,
o f B uddhism which is not outwardly ascetic

, There .
are monks who no t satis ed with the bran ding received

,
at their ordin ation have it renewed from ti me to tim e

, ,
either o n the head o r the n eck or the chest o r th e

, , ,
15 2
228 BUDD H I S M AS A RE LI G I O N
arms and that to an amazin g extent They go eve n
, .
farther and there are mon k s to be found who have

,
had o n e o r more ngers burnt o Yet more terrible

'
1
.
,
here and there a monk has actually given h i s livin g

body to be burned o n a funeral pile even in the most ,
recent times At such a drama there are many

.
spectators present and the authorities take no steps ,
to prevent it The self immolating victim is usually

.
-
seated cross legged in a wooden frame closely sur

-
,
rounded by inammable material which he him self ,
sets alight with a torch His ashes are treasured as .
2
those o f a saint Another form o f asceticism is that
.
o f voluntary incarceration A monk tak es a vo w that .
he will not leave a little room in which he shuts him ,
self up for a certain number o f years o r fo r hi s life

,
time Through a small opening generally the only

.
one fo r the admission of light and airsome food is

daily handed to him He speak s with no o n e His . .
hair i s never o u t n o r does he wash his face His on l y .
occupation is the muttering of prayers and sacred

formul ae If the door is no t entirely walled up it is
.
,
at all events pasted over with strip s o f paper con ,
taining certain inscriptions so that it cannot be ,
1
.J J M de G roo t i n h i s very le a rn ed an d in s t ruc t ive boo k
. .
, ,
Le Code du M a h ay ana e n Chin e ( Am st erd am expres s e s ,
doub t (p 227 ) a s t o t h e con t inu ance o f this pra c tice a n d refers

.
,
t o evide n ce t h a t i t w a s do n e in p a s t t im e s B u t I c an s pe a k .
wi th t h e a s sur a n ce o f per s o n a l kn owledge t h a t t h e cu s t o m i s

s t ill in vogue The Abbo t o f t h e gre a t m o n a st ery F a y u e s ti o n
.
,
t h e i sl a n d o f P u t o h a s lo s t t h e fourt h n ger o f bo th h an ds i n

,
this w a y .
2
A m odern in s t an ce i s recorded by M a cgow an Cir/threw ,
R eco r der xix No 1 1 pp 5 08 5 21

, .
, .
, .
-
.
opened without ob servation S ome strict ascetics

.
also sh ut themselve s up in small caves of mountains ,
devoid o f all daylight When the inhabitant of such

.
a prison dies his body ( which has become greatly

,
emaciated by the scant nourishment it h as received )

is embalmed and prepared in a special mann er then ,
painted and gilt and set up in the temple to be

,

worshipped under the nam e o f esh body ( jo u
shm) i
.
T he ordinary monk is cremated after death T h e .
corpse fo r that purpose is seated in an iron ch air in

the meditatio n attitude and faggots are heaped,
around it which are lighted The ashes are either

, .
placed in a grave under a m onument o r let down ,
in to a com mon pit in a peculiar bui lding

, F o r more .
distin guished individuals the large monasteries have

a special mausoleum in wh ich are niches for the
,
funeral urns to stand in It is remarkable th at the

.
universal custom o f Chinese ancestor worship has

made its way even into B uddhi s t monasteries despite ,
its fundamental opposition to the leadin g doctrine o f

B uddhism . F o r ancestral tablets are erected in a
special room of th e monastery to th e souls of the
cremated members of the community in exactly th e ,
same m anner as the usual monument s of the kin d .
O n the appoin ted days an o ffering is brought to th e

dead man an d an extract from the sacred writings is
,
read before the ancestral tablet O nce every year a .
festive rite accompanied by an o e rin g t akes place

,

,
before all the ancestral tablets i n the monastery In .
m any places it is customary also fo r laymen who were

closely connected with the monas tery a n d whose ,
relatives are willing to pay a sum o f money fo r it to ,
have an ancestral tablet erected there to their memory

after their death S uch tablets belonging to laymen
.
, ,
are housed in a room apart : to them also o fferings

are brought by the monks .
Besides the regular monks there are also many

,
Buddhi s t hermits living in China Their abodes are .
poor huts o r holes in the mountain s where they are ,
maintained by alms o r by help of a monastery near

by with which they are connected The people style .
them ma o p ng from the

-

,
mat shed buildings
where they live The hermits do not shave their
.
heads but wear their hair long hanging loose Their

, , .
appearance is sometimes very awkward .
D TH E CANON
. .
The sacred canon is used in the Chinese language .
It contains the three ancient divisions : S utra Pitaka

( Chinese Ching
, Vinaya Pitak a (L u and
Ab idh a rm a Pitak a ( Lun After these comes
a fourth s ection o f mixed works all sorts o f additions
, ,
translations in different versions and commentaries ,

.
E ach o f the three principal divisions subdivides again

into the Mah ay ana writings the Hinay ana writings
, ,
and the mixed treatises o f both collections From it .
y o u see clearly that the Mah ay ana school has not for
sak en the original root and origin o f the Hinay ana ,
but has merely far outgrown it The Chinese text .
is founded o n the original S anskrit and in many ,
particulars is only a transcript from it in to Chinese

sounds . A number o f the work s included in the
canon were indeed originally Chinese such fo r
, , , ,
CHINE S E B U DD H I S M 23 1
instance as the descriptio n o f the travels of the

,
famous In do Chinese pilgrims Fa Hsian a n d Yua n

-
,
Chuang The compilin g of the Chinese canon was a

.
very long process for additions were made to it a s

,
late as the four teenth century A D T ill n early the . .
end of the tenth cent u ry A D th e canonical writings . .

,
existed only in manuscripts T he E mperor T ai T su .

,
the rst ruler o f the northern S un g dynasty in the ,
year 97 2 caused th e whole of the extan t cano n to be

printed for the rst time ( from woodblocks ) .
S ince then many printed copies h ave appeared Al .
though noted monasteries posses s specially pri z ed

books even now in th e shape o f beaut i fully writte n
,
manuscripts not in fre q uently decorate d with min ia

,
t ures executed in gold an d silver a n d colours th e

, ,
canonical books in common use to day are in variably -
1
prin ted Type an d bin ding are o f the usual Chinese
.
kind A large canonical book consisting o f a number

.
of parts is bound between two wooden covers or paste

boards As Chinese books li e instead o f s t a nd in a
.
library the parts o f the canon lie in single compart

,
ments on which a label is attached bearin g the title

, ,
.
T he whole canon usually lls ten large bo okcases .
The doors are sometime s decorated with orn ate pain t

ings o f the tutelary deities In the noted monas terie s .
the library u sually is a present from an E mperor A .
special buildin g is set apart fo r it the s o called sa/n ,

-
ts a ng l ou (the buildin g of the three treasures

-
nam ely the three sections of th e c ano n) Within this

,
.
1
H ere ere you nd a m anu s crip t wri t t e n with h um an
an d th
blood a s i t i s dee m ed very m eri t oriou s t o writ e a s a cred book
,
u s in g o n e s o wn blood a s ink

.
building you see images and altars and the library ,
is as good a place fo r pious prayer as any other room .
Most o f the mona s teries pos s ess the requi s ite wood
bloc k s ( and them s elves d o the printing ) fo r the setting
up o f special popular treati s es from the canon o r ,
short practical writings o f importance (for in s tance ,
the appeal fo r gifts to be made to th e monastery ,
which the mon k s carry round from time to t ime

for the purpose o f collecting ) Pictures also Of the .
favourite deities both coloured and blac k and white

, ,
and woodcuts o f celebrated localities are produced ,
for sale by the monk s .
E O R GANI ZAT I ON
. .
A hierarchical system has no t been developed by

Chinese Buddhi s m There is no supreme authority over
.
all the mon k s in China n o r is there an o fcial head

1
,
over those Of each province The g rowth o f organiza

.
tion so far as it proceeded from the religion itsel f

, ,
ceased with the Abbot o f each individual monastery .
Hence many varieties o f inuence and power arising

from local o r individual causes but never cementing ,
into a permanent system The leading personalities

.
o f some large and celebrated monastery became
from the nature o f the caseo i greater importance

than the Abbot of some Obscure place Men who .
distin guished themselves by some ascetic act o r by ,
1
T hi s i s t h e m ore re m ark able bec au s e in T a oi sm thi s Of ce
doe exi t Th e h e a d i s t e H igh prie st o th e D ra gon a n d
s s
. h -
f
T iger M ou nt a in s Ch a ng t a o lin g ; h e live s in t h e we s t o f t h e

,
- -
provin ce o f Ki an g s i n o t fa r fr om t h e borders of th e provin ce

,
o f F u kie n in a pla ce c a lled S h a n g C h in g

, .
C H INE S E BUDD H I S M 23 3
their learning or magic power o r by some other ,
marked quality won a higher reputation th an others ;

,
but that was all E ve n the renowne d heads o f

.
schools and the s ix Chinese patriarch s have n o t

taken the rst step towards a hierarchical develop
ment .
B ut the Chin ese G overnment i n which degrees o f

rank play so important a r Ole has laid hold upon it
and introduced a kind Of higher organization It .
recognized the necessity o f keeping a certain control

over the monastic communities and for that purpose ,
it conferred upon certain Abbots the position Of

G overnment superin tendents with a correspondin g ,
rank . It follows the well known Chinese order o f-
administration which recogn izes in every provin ce

, ,
rst a number o f t ( prefectures ) next c ho u (depart ,
ments ) and lastly hs i en ( districts )

, T hree degrees .
of rank were create d fo r person s of varying impor

tance the lowe st title ( for the hs i en) being S ng hnz

-
, ,
next ( for the Cho u ) S ng c hng la s tly (for the fa )

-
,
S ng ka ng
-
The common designation for these
.
clerical Oi c i a l s is S ng lu s c d Their conc ern is

- - f
.
,
above all things to act as n egotiators between the

,
G overnment and the monasteries whenever the S tate

comes into contact with the monks and furthermore , , ,
to exercise control over the doings in the monasteries

in their j urisdiction T hey are responsible fo r wrong
.
doings o f the monks and for cases o f agrant and

,
public excesses As it has been a long standin g

.
-
practice to choose men o f high reputati on and es teem

fo r these posts they naturally enj oy a certain respect ;
,
this is specia lly the case with those S ng ka ng who -

live in prefectural to wns But it is n o t in any true .
sense a hierarchy Their authority only extends

.
t o cases o f discipline if the mon k s give occasion

,
for it ; as a matter o f fact it is only in the most ,
aggravated and notorious cases that any action is

ta k en For less offences the o fce has no practical
.
existence .
F . Fs mo u s MONAS T E R I E S .
The renown for popularity Of individual monasteries

has been achieved by other means than th ose o f
hierarchical supremacy Age legends the fame .
, ,
o f certain divinities beauty Of situation and other

, ,
such things have contributed to it F rom remote

,
.
times the sanctuaries in the neighbourhood of H a ng

,
c ho w ( in the province o f Che k iang which is perhaps ,
the most Buddhist provin ce in China) have been very

celebrated . This former capital Of the Chinese
Empire is proverbially famous o n account o f its
beautiful situation near the Hangchow Bay o n the ,
s o called
-
we s tern la k e In early days monks estab
.
li s h e d themselves there in the woods and o n the ,
hills and shores But the celebrated monasteries of

.
Hangchow su ffered very much during the long years

of the Taiping R ebellion and many o f the most noted ,
ones of earlier period are n o w partly o r wholly in ruins .
At the foot o f the wide picturesque L u s ha na hill ,

-
west Of La k e Poyang and south o f the noted town o f

,

Kiukiang o the Y angtze there were also formerly
n
famous monasteries of which the maj ority indeed were

, , ,
also destroyed by the Taiping s and the remainder ,
drag o ut a miserable existence The monasteries .

situated to the north of Kiukiang in the H u a ng me t ,

-
M oun ta i nswhere the Chinese patriarch s lived were

n ot so much exposed to the wrath Of the Taipin gs ;
nevertheless they are of no gr eater consideration than
,
the others at the present time But the monasteries .
o n the T i en t a i M o u n ta i ns i n the provin ce Of Che

-
,
kiang bein g amongst the most an cient in Central

,
Chin a have a wide renown even to day H ere is still

,
-
.
extant the memory of the founder o f the s o called -
T ien t ai school T z u kai a very celebrated and in u

-

,
-
,
e n ti a l representative of Chinese B uddhism o f wh ose ,
works no less than twenty two have bee n in cluded in -
the canon He lived in the sixth century A D H is

. . .
begging bowl an d mantle are st ill shown to visitors

-
at the monastery o f K ao mi n g ss u while another - -

,
mo n astery guards the ashes of his cremated body

under a beautiful u n i q ue pagoda in the principal hall .
Numberless legends associate his n ame with curious

rocks or waterfalls in the neigh bourhood T here are .
many celebrated and ourishing monasterie s still to

be foun d at the mouth o f the Y angtze in and near ,
th e tow n s o f Na n kin g Chinkiang an d Y angchow , , .
B ut all these a n d many other sacred B u d dhist

places in Chin a are overshadowed by four which are
the most noted places of pil grimage throughout the
Ch in ese E mpire T hey are called P u t o sh an Chiu
.
-

-
,
h u e sh an Wu t ai shan a n d O mi sha n
-
,
-
1 -
,
- -
.
1 T h e s e four fam ou s pl a ce s o f C hin e s e Buddh i sm mu st n o t be

m ixed up wi th t h e ve s a cred pe ak s ( can y o ) o f t h e C h in e s e
S t a t e religio n wh ic h a r e t h e T a i sh a n ( S h a nt u n g) t h e H u a
,
-
,
s h an
( S h e n s i ) t h e H an g s h a n ( S h a n s i ) an o t h er H an g sh a n
,
-
,
-
( H unan ) an d t h e S un g sh a n ( H on an)
,
-
.
Pu t -

is a sacred i sland in the Chusan archi
o - s ha n
pelago ea s t o f the well k nown port o f Ningpo The

,
-
.
island is covered with monasteries and chapels and i s ,
almost entirely inhabited by mon k s It is specially .
dedicated to the female Bodhisattva K wa nyi n whose ,
image is always in the centre o f the principal hall .
The small i s land round which roars the thunder o f

,
the waves o f the Pacic whose wooded heights are ,
crowned with trees whilst green meadows and cultured

,
elds cover the slopes is a most charming spot It is , .
ea sy to understand the reason Of the mon k s appropri

ating it and attracting yearly many thousands o f
pilgrims The goddess K wa ny in o f P u t o shan is
.
-

-
specially the patroness o f mariners and sh er fol k -

.
Chi u hua s ha n is a mountain crater two days

- -
,
j ourney east of the city o f Ngank ing on the middle ,
Y angtze Here the Bodhisattva Ti t s ang the over

.
-

,
lord o fhell has the r s t position In the very centre o f

, .
all the temples which crown the hill tops here stands -
a pagoda sacred to Ti ts ang ornamented with stone -

,
carving s representing this god The monastic c o m .
mu n iti e s Of Chiu hua shan su ffered greatly at the time

- -
o f the Taiping Rebellion and in consequence many of ,
the monasteries are new and unimportant But the .
enchanting panorama of mountains lends the place a

great charm .

The third of the great places of pilgrimage is

Wu t a i s ha n a ve pea k ed mountain in the province o f
-

-
,
-
S hansi n o t far from the town o f Tai chou

,
Here the -
.
highly venerated divinity is the Bodhisattva Wen shu -
( Manj u s ri ) This .place o f pilgrimage adj acent to ,
Mongolian territory may almost be said t o have ,

lamaistic features Mongo llamas share both the

.
te mples and the images o f th e gods with the Chine se

It o s ha ng
-
T ibetan sacred pictures prayer wheels an d
.
,
-
,
in scriptions are common and amongst the pilgrim s

, ,
may be reckoned m ore Mongol s than Chin ese T hey .
have al s o the lama mask dances .
In the far we s t o fCh ina in the provi nce o f S s u chuan , ,
is the most beautiful ( as to situation ) o f the four h oly

places M o unt Omi The temples o n this mountai n
, .
are dedicated to the Bodhisattva P u h sien ( S amanta

-
bhadra ) o f whom there is a wonderfully ne and

,
powerful bron z e gure in one Of the large s t monasteries

seated upon the sacred elephant Mount O mi is in .
itself a most remarkable formatio n for it rises almo st ,
with out interru ption from th e plain to a height o f some

feet The view towards the east over th e fruit
.
ful Chinese plain s an d towards the west to th e snow

,
mountain s o f T ibet is o f u n rivalled grandeur B ut

, .
most of the temples of O mi are poor and in decay ;

n evertheles s it is easy to see that formerly they were
,
not devoid of splendour .
G S c H OOL s OF C HI NE S E B U DDHI S M
. .
V arious schools o r sects h ave arisen in Ch in ese

B uddhism but at the prese n t time many of the differ
,
e n c e s h ave bee n practically obliterated and o n th e ,
other hand much h as been freely in terchanged betwee n

them so th at the mass of ordinary monks would be
,
equally unable to give inform ation to an inquirer as

1
to their own sect or as to the subj ect in general .
1
I t i s n o t e a s y in deed t o m ak e o n e s w a y am o n gs t th e

, ,
v a rious s ec t s a s eve n C hin e s e wri t er s an d i nform ants o ft e n t ak e

,
23 8 B UDD HI S M AS A R E LI G I O N
Nevertheless there exist many nely drawn distinc

,
-
tions and occasionally these stand o u t clearly

,
.
According to Chinese reck oning there are ten ,
prin cipal schools o f thought These main divisions .
are called tsu ng ; subdivisions are kn own as p a i

.
The ten t s ung are as follo ws

1 . Lu tsung . 6 . Hsien shou tsung .
2 .
( Ch ii sh tsun g ) . 7 . Tz ti an tsung

.
( Ch ang shih tsung ) Ch an tsung

3 . . 8 . .
4 .
( S a n lun tsung ) . 9 .
(Mi tsung ) .
5 . T ien t ai tsung

. 10 . Ching t u tsung
.
From these may be excluded those in parentheses 2 ,
3 4
,
and ,

9 as they no longer play any part in
Chinese Buddhism We shall meet them again in .
Japan where their o sh o o t s still exi s t to a certain

'
extent The six remaining schools fall naturally into

.
t wo essentially di f
ferent groups The rst group con .
sists in the adherents of Ch an tsung ( NO 8 in

.
the list) ; all the rest may be included in the second

group .
The difference between these two groups is a pro

found and radical one ; it is indicated in the name
Ch an tsung

Ch a n is the Chinese expression fo r
.

Buddhi s tic meditation ( S an s k rit dhyd na ) This .
school accomplished that change which made in
a very p a r tial a n d o ne s ided V iew Of th in gs D e Groo t s rem ar k s

-
.

o n t h e s ec t s a t t h e beginni n g o f t h e be fore m e n t io n ed boo k Le -

,
Code du M ah ay an a e n Ch in e I c a nn ot a ccep t a s eith er a ccur a t e ,

or co m plet e judg in g by th e in for m a tion an d a uth ori tie s I

,
po s e s s n ch a pt er vii o f Ch ine s e Buddhi s m by E dkins

s I .

.

, ,
t h e i nform a t io n i s a ccur a t e b u t n o t cle a rly s t a t ed , .

C HINE S E B UDD HI S M 23 9
wa r dne s sthe o ne q uality needful and thereby ,
meditation became naturally th e most important

fullment o f the Buddhist inj unction s Bodhi
dharma the rst Chinese patriarch was the founder
, ,
o f the Ch an school ( see p H e opposed study

.
o f the writings and outward ritual He laid stres s .
upon the inner bein g Of B uddh a ( his h eart his ,
n ature ) and urged the true discip les to become lik e

,
him in that respect In order to avoid the fruitles s

.
use o f books th e disciples were only to be in structed

,

by word of mouth The .in ward look was to

be practised T he characteristic of Bodhidharm a s
.
teaching was a vivid abstraction as is the pri n ciple ,
of the o l d B uddhist meditation The phil osophy .

based upo n this wa s the emptyin g Of conscious
ness th at is to say the complete subj ectivity Of
,
our human conceptions and impressions I n the .
pop ular legend he was calle d the

Wa ll g a z e r ,
because according to tradition he h ad sat in front o f

, ,
a wall fo r nine years wrapped i n meditation ; fo r

,
which reason h e is still frequently portrayed in that

position his back being turned to the obs erver
, .
E very outward m anifestation was in deed super uou s

as far as Bodhidharma s contemplative aim was con

cerned wheth er worship image o r recitation ; and it

, ,
may be that in tho se early tim es his school had really

discarded these things although n aturally such is no
, , ,
longer th e case Indeed in the Older writings o f the

.
,
school (fo r although the teaching was to be h anded

,
do wn verbally from generation to generation it was ,
o f necessity soon transmitt ed to books ) the generally ,
accepted difference between good and evil is held to

240 BUDD HI S M AS A RELI G I O N
be the imperfection o f a lower standpoint above which ,
the person who meditates raises himself Having .
been absolutely emptied o f content (for all apparent

living beings are subj ective illusion s) the di s ciple is
,
utterly indifferent to everything when once Buddha

,
has ta k en posses s ion o f his heart .
This school whose founder has strongly and

rightly guided back into the original channel of the
Buddha G autama became split up after a time into
ve subdivisions of which each assumed such i m
,
portance that it also received the title of school ( ts u ng ) .
They are al s o sometimes called the w u c hi n or ve ,
families (houses ) .These still existing divisions o f

the Ch an school are : ( 1 ) Lin chi tsung (2) Ts ao

,

tung tsung ( 3) Hui ( Wei) yang tsung (4) Fa yen

, ,
tsung ( 5) Yii n man tsung

, They derive their
.
names from the places where their founders lived .
None o f them has deviated far from the others in

doctrine ; but the Lin chi school had the greatest
practical result and in more recent times the other
,
four schools have quite retired into the background .
In contradistinction to this whole doctrine origina ,
tin g from the Ch an school we have the group of the

,
ve others aforementioned .E ach of them has its

distingui shing characteristic which it emphasizes
, ,
but they share in common opposition to the absolute

subj ectivism of the Ch an school by their teaching Of

obj ectivism and of the importance of externals .
The L u tsung is the school o f discipline Lu is the .
translation o f the Indian V inaya the rule Of discipline

,
which constitutes o n e part o f the Buddhist canon .
This school founded by Tao h sii an (died A D

,
. .
sets the grea te st value on the strict observance o f the

o l d monastic regulations E ve n to day one n otices
.
-
somethin g particularly severe in the external conduct

o f their life at the chief monastery Pao hua shan a ,
- -
,

day s j ourney to the east o f Nankin g On the Y an gt z e ,
.
H ere the monks are only allowed two meals a day

mornin g a n d midday ; the evenin g meal is forbidden
in accordance with the ancient Indian regulation .
T hey are only allowed tea to drink They are also .
stricte r in keepin g their devotional as semblies and in ,
learnin g and recitin g the sacred texts .
T he T ien t ai tsung founded by the before

,
menti one d t i kai ( died A D 5 97 - his monastic . .

n ame was t i i h e is also frequently calle d the sage

-
o f T ien t ai tried to combine th e method o f Bodhi

-
dharma puttin g meditation i n the rst placewith

the use of books in due proportion and with external
,
ceremonial From amongst all the writ in gs o f the

.
sacred c ano n the fo u nder s elected o ne in particular

, ,
which contain s the quin te ss ence of real B uddhism ,
th e Miao fa lien hu a chin g ( S anskrit S a d dh a rm a ,
1
p u ndar i ka sutra) He has written several com
.
m e nt a r i e s on it .
T he H sien shou ts ung so called aft er o ne o f their ,
most ill ustrious te achers ( not the fou n der wh o was T u ,
fa sh un died A D,
. chose as their principal te xt
.
book the Hua yen chin g which wa s said to h ave ,
been compose d by Na g arjun a the great exponent of ,
the Mah ayana It is a book full of legendary em

.
1 T r an s l a t ed by B u rn o u f Le Lo t us de l a bonn e Loi a n d
, ,
by K ern Th e Lo t us o f the T rue La w ( S a cred Boo k s o f

,

th e E a s t , vol .
b e lli sh me nt s and fantastic gl o ri ca t io n s o fthe Buddha ,
and in it he relates the Buddha s supernatural appear
an o es in various heavens as well as o n earth before , ,
numberless supernatural beings accompanied by all ,
sorts o f brilliant miracles This boo k and the .
above mentioned o ne (Miao fa lien hua ching) are

-
perhaps the most highly e s teemed by all Chinese

Buddhists By means o f a Very arbitrary symbolical
.
interpretation o f the text the whole Mah ay ana p h il o so ,
phy i s derived from it while the legend has found in

,
it ample nouri s hment for a lively play o f the imagin a

tion about the supernatural beings The school is .
,
after its favourite boo k also called Hua yen tsung ,

.
S till another name it bears is Fa hsing tsung ( school

o f the Dharma nature ) -
.
The Tz ii an t s ung in lik e manner has taken a

, ,
particular canonical book as the foundation o f its

teaching the s o called Wei shih lun a wor k which
,
- 1
,
originated from the Mah ay ana teacher Va s ub a ndh u ,
and was translated by the celebrated pilgrim Yii an

Chuang A remark able psychology attached itself to
.
this wor k Of a thoroughly Ma h ayanis h character :

,
things are unreal ; they proceed from man s mind
and indeed spring from different k inds o f perception

, , .
The illustrations o f this fundamental idea are often

extraordinary and in c omprehensible ; they ca nnot be
further dealt with here A special doctrin e of medita .
tio n was built upon this psychology Nevertheless .

,
they gave weight also to the value o f kindness and

pp re ly er t a vouri t e boo k E dkin s ( C hin e s e
1 A
a n t a ft hi s f ,

Buddhis m p 1 6 9) give s t he n am e o f t hi s s ch ool a s Wei shi
,

.
s i an g Ki a u .
friendlin ess towards all bein gs and esteemed as the

,
h ighest Of all outward religious sign s the exercise o f

love and sympathy Hence the name o f th e school
.
,
1
fo r Tz iI e n means kindne ss and compassion The

founder was Chieh h sien .
The Chi n g t u tsung ob ta in ed its special ch arac te r

i s tic by developin g and popularizin g the doctrine o f a

we stern Paradise ( th e pure land Ching t u hence its ,

n ame ) This idea (s e e p 1 90) appears to have arisen

. .
at the same time as the belief in the Bu ddha

Amit ab h a an d th e Bodhis attva K wa nyin an d the ,
explicit removal of the Paradise to the west thoroughly

con rms the opin ion of some investigators th at the ,
features o f Amit abha and K wa nyin ( origin ally Avalo

kita) h ave penetrated from the west perh aps from ,
Persia to Northern I n dia Tibet and Chin a , , The .
western Paradise is ruled by Amit abha T h e Bodhi .
s a t tva s K wa nyi n and T a shih chi rule beside him

- -
.
All three the

three h oly ones o f th e western
land are in voked an d worshipped by the faithful ,
in order that they may reach Paradise an d it is , ,
doubtless their connection with this popular doctrin e

,
about Paradise which has brought about the notoriety

o f the three holy ones , especially o f the two rst
n amed .
Th e special writin gs of th e Ch in g t u schoo l are two
works in praise o f Amit abha 0 mi to chin g and Wu

,
liang shou chin g T he school was founded by H ui

.
y ii a n or Y ii a n ku n g ( fourt h century It is also

Of ten styled the Lotos school ( Lien ts un g ) .
1
An o th er expla na t io n is tha t t h e n am e ha s b ee n derived fr om
a m o n a s t ery kn ow n as t h e Tz ii an ss u .
1 6 2
E ach o f the above school s has its special chain o f
traditions tracing their way backwards by the various
,
noted teachers to the founder and from him still

,
farther back to some celebrated personality among

those surrounding the Buddha o r to himself o r to
, ,
o n e o f the imaginary Buddhas and Bodhi s attvas .
Naturally this last slender thread in the line o f

,
tradition is only a means conceived fo r the purpose

o f givin g the highe s t possible authority to the doctrin e .
All sorts o f fancies attach themselves also to the

favourite writings o f each school S o it is held that
.
the famo us boo k Hua yen ching the authority o f ,
the H s ien shou school originated in six forms The

, .
two rst were never written down but only live in ,
the memory o f certain Bodhisattvas the two follow

ing a s soon a s they were written were transmitted
, ,
fo r safe guardian s hip to the Dragon Palace under the

sea The fth edition was written o u t by Na ga rjun a
. .
The sixth is the Chinese version o f the fth .
It has been already remarked that the individual

characteristics o f each sect have at the present day
ve ry much disappeared Nevertheless the maj ority
.
,
o f the monasteries still adhere to the names o f their
doctrin al authorities and are attached to their special

,
boo k s A close inspection shows that there are all

.
sorts o f di fferences in their inner work ing in the ,
method of their meditation in the passages which

,
they recite and in the detail s o f worship From the

, .
outside o n e notices but little of this The energy Of .
S piritual independence is almost everywhere extin ct .
There are n o t a few nunneries in China The .
southern part Of the empire conta in s more th an the

n orth ; in Canton alone there are over eighty B ut .
mo st o f the convents are small They are established .
and organi z ed in the s ame way as the monasteries ,
and are under their control Th e nuns have their .
heads completely shaven like the monks but always

, ,
wear a cap to cover the whole skull Their habit on .
1
th e whole resembles th e dress of the monks .
H TH E C HARACT E R
. OF M ONAS TI CI S M .
T he Chinese Buddhist monks receive but little

sym pathy from the bulk o f the population T heir .
whole manner of life is e ssentially opposed to Chinese

ideas and that fact is continuously kept before them
, .
It tends to loo sen the social bonds and is an u np r o ,
d u c tive life as well . S o th e monks are proverbially

spoken o f a s the drone s in the beehive o r as no t ,

bein g so u seful as the silkworm In addition to
.
this it comes abo ut that almost all the monks are

,
dra wn from the lowest ranks o f the popul ation It .
is very rarely the case that a wealthy man or a ,
member o f a high class family assumes th e yellow

-
,
robe ; and when it does occ u r the in dividual quickly,
attain s the rank o f an Abbot It may be taken for .
gran ted that th e maj ority of monks are peasant s and

people o f no importance T hey even fail to at tai n
.
that which is so highly priz ed by the Ch in ese

lite rary cult u re It is tr ue that m any monks receive
.
a literary trainin g durin g long years but this trainin g ,
follows entirely the B uddh ist lin e so that the monks ,
are unable to devote themselves t o the study o f th e

1
D e t a il s o n n un s a n d n u nn erie s a r e t o be fou n d i n W C . .
M iln e s Life in C hina pp 1 3 4 1 45 (Lon don

,

.
-
,
classics which alone entitles a man to respect in the
,
eyes o f the Chinese Here yawns the great gulf

.
,
xed from the very beginning which prevents this ,
foreign religion from getting hold o f the Chinese

national character All the spiritual receptivity and
.
strenuou s ness of the Chinese nation all its ideals all , ,
its opinions are rooted in its antiquity and in the

, ,
writings which are so intimately bound up with it .
T he study o f these writings is therefore the nerve

centre o f its life But the Buddhist mon k ta k es up
.
an altogether di fferent and opposite position He .
has his own literature an all absorbing o n e ; and it

,
-
is moreover o f Indian origin a nd not infre quently

, , ,
Indian in expres s ion Here also the uniqueness Of

.
, ,
Chinese written characters plays a momentous part

in the history o f Chinese Buddhism As the Chinese .
language possesses no alphabet only characters each , ,
conception has therefore to be written by a symbol o f

its o wn (in the same w a y as we use numerical gures )
consequently the characters are innumerable j u s t in ,
proportion as the conceptions are innumerable From .
this it follows that all people cannot equally well read

any book Different intellectual d epartments require
.
d ie r e nt characters to express their meaning apart ,
from all peculiarities o f style Thus a person who .

,
is tolerably well acquainted with Buddhist literature

may not unnaturally nd the classics a sealed book .
As regards all the facts above mentionedwhich -
rob the mon k o f the sympathy and esteem of the

people h e is personally free from blame But un .
,
fortun ately there is much besides contributing to

, ,
this state of a ffairs for which he is responsible

,
.
CHINE S E B U DD H I S M 247
Th e moral level of the monks is a very low

one T hey h ave no t su fcient strength Of ch aracter
.
to withstand the temptations closely attendin g

their t ryin g position T heir religiou s duties are
.
purely mechanical carried o u t within their own

,
restricted circle a n d their life instead o f bein g an

, ,
example of self con q uest becomes a life of utter

-
,
idleness No t only so but th e very fact that they

.
,
are encourage d to rely wh olly upon the assistance o f

the laity and to expect everyth in g to be provided for
,
them in the sh ape Of o fferings alms and gifts pro , , ,
duce s in them the most aggressive an d offensive

cupidity All their in tercourse with laymen is in
.
co n nectio n with business The money obtain ed is

.
sometimes h anded to the monastery sometimes to ,
the in dividual for th e o ld fundamental rule forbiddin g

,
monks to po ssess personal property h as been long ago

forgotten .Another of the inj urious results o f th e
monastic system is the inability o f keeping th e e n
forced celibacy Immorality of various kinds is b ut
.
too common Where the monks are under the rule of

.
a strict Abbot who cares for the reputation of h is

monastery these thin gs are kept in the dark E l se
,
.
where they are don e openly and frequently to such ,
an exte n t that public in dignation is arou sed T hus .

,
all the co n vent s in Foochow were suppressed by th e

authorities i n th e th irties of th e nin eteenth century
be cause they h ad become to o noto riously the haunt s
o f vice
. Al so i n S uchow i n 1 8 40 all nunneries were
broken up from the same reason .
T he use o f opium is in deed becomin g in creasingly

widespread Whoever is familiar with the outward
.
signs o fOpium smo k ing can recognize smok ers among
-
the mon k s frequently enough especially in the larger

,
town mona s teries And if y o u spend some time

.
living with t h e mon k s and are tru s ted within all

,
their precincts in o ne o r another Of their cells you

,
are reminded o f the dreadful end by the fatal sickly ,
exhalation which it is impossible to mistake In .
town monasteries the pleasures of the Opium habit

are frequently indulged in without any disguise .
Acquainta nces o f the monks visit them in order t o

enj oy smoking undisturbed in the quiet o f their
cells .
Another inj urious e ffect o f the monastic l ife is that

many o f the monks drift by its means into a sort o f
religious vagabondage and become quite lawless .
E very mon k who is fully ordained has the right to

leave the mona s tery originally selected in order to go
to another mona s tery which he wi s hes to e n ter o r ,
merely t o assume an itinerant life He is received .
i nto any mona s tery o n showing a pass from h i s Abbot ,
and receives accommodation and the usual food fo r a

few days This should be a help for those who go about
.
begging for their temple but is frequently misused by

,
those whom a spirit o f unrest has ta k en posses s ion Of ,
an d who after a time give themselves up entirely to

a life of vagabondage This type o f monk is well
.

kn own to the people who call them wild mo n ks
, .
I B U DD H I S M
. AN D TH E PE OP L E .
Although the followers o f Buddhism fo r the above ,
mentioned reasons are not much esteemed in China

, ,
yet their services are widely and eagerly sought It .

C H INE S E BUDD H I S M 249
is di fcult to imagine the life of an ordinary man

deprived o f Buddhist monks an d monasteries T he .
very outward aspect o f th e country bears unmi s takable

signs of B uddhism T he pagodas for in stance have .
, ,
S pread outside the narrow borders of Buddhist s a n c t u
aries in China Although many pagodas still belong

.
to monasteries thousands are built without any

,
such co n nection Here they have assumed a totally

.
different signi cance from their original o n e that o f

monuments to the memory o f a saint o r in honour of
th e Buddha They have been incorporated into the
.
s o called doctrine o fF n g shui

-
This doctrine literally -
.
,

tran s lated the Wind water Doctrin e is a theory -
,
about the connection o f human fate with the in uences

o f n ature It deals with very strange manifestation s
.
,
an d these h ave in time become associated with the

pagodas Pagodas h ave the power to change the
.
inuence otherwi s e posses s ed by mountain and valley ,
by stream and hollow on human circumstance ; they ,
c an i i their situation is rightly selected secure to

any place a favourable l o t T his is the reason why .
you so frequently see a town with a pagoda crowning

the s ummit o f a neighbourin g hill although the ,
pagoda is q ui te unconnected with B uddhism and is ,
only one of the sign s o f a Chin ese landscape and of

Chin ese imagin ation .

T he Chinese pagoda (the word pagoda has b ee n
derived in very differe n t ways from the Portuguese
, ,
p a g ri a or from the In dian dagaba in Portuguese pro

n un c ia t io n o r from Hindustani
, p o n thko d a ) is called

t a a n abbreviation of t a p o transcribing the S anskrit

-
, ,
s tup a P ali t hap a

, It has generally seven o r n in e
.
stories sometimes eleven and even thirteen the
,
number must be an o dd o ne Buildings with less than .
seven stories should not properly be called t a but

,
bear other names as K an gh s i s dictionary the great

,

Chinese authority states , .
O ther V isible to k ens o f Buddhist life are the shrines

and chapels by the roadside They are specially .
common in Western China Inside these little build .
ings (which are o f stone o r wood ) there is an image o f

the gods or an inscribed tablet The pious passer b y .
-
lights a couple o f incense stic k s before it In other

places especially in the neighbourhood Of water
.
o r before bridges are remark able quadrilateral o r
hexagonal pillars which not infrequently end above in

,
a roughly carved proj ecting head O n the pillars are

, .
inscribed the names o f gods pre faced by the Buddhist ,
( Indian ) n a mu ( adoration to S uch pil lars

are for the purpose o f counteracting the inuence o f
evil water S pirits who strive to draw people down into
-
,
their element .
These are some o f the Buddhist features o f the land

scape besides the monas teries themselves Countless .
are the evidences o f the inuence o f Buddhism o n the

life o f the individual man .
Without entering fully into Buddhist doctrine and

theories the Chinese concentrates his attention upon
,
the divin ities in the temples j ust as upon any other ,
gods as his ultimate helpers in the emergencies o f

,
life He deals with them according to the advice o f

.
the mon k s who may be supposed to kn ow what is t

,
ting Thus he brings o e r in g s in the shape o f rice

.
, ,
fruits cak es money which naturally all belong to

, , ,
the monastery H e brings candles fo r th e altar

.
,
incense to be burnt He kneels before the images an d

.
recites sacred formul ae He provides for a procession

.
Of the monks ( at a high price ) with the Abbot at ,

the head behin d whom h e himself walks while th e
monks recite prayers He presents an image of B ud
.
dha or shares in some greater gift s either a huge

, ,
bron z e hel l o r the restoration o f a temple which had

fallen into decay or the buildin g o f a new o n e He
,
.
invi te s the monks to his o wn house where they ,
perform prescribed ceremonies an d recitations These .
customary means taken by the Ch in ese to obtain the

help Of the B uddhist deities are forced o n him by
the practical needs o f life If there is illnes s in a
.
house o r a childless woman desires a son or a man

, ,
has some perilous business on h and o r has come into

con ict with th e authorities it then depends upon his
,
means which temple he must visit or what god is to

be invoked and at wh at cost If the prayer prove
,
.
s uccessf ul thanks are expresse d not seldom by hang

,
in g some votive offering in th e temple a heart or an ,
e y e o r a hand o r a foot made o f wood o r of cloth

,
O ne .
may see heaps o f such ex voto presents dependin g from

-
some altars o f famous sanctuaries T he way in which .
certain oracles are obtain ed from the divinity is most

strange O n almost eve ry temple altar lie two worn
.
,
semicircular pieces of wood shaped like a crescent , ,
with o n e surface convex the other at T he man who

, .
undertakes a doubtful and important enterprise goe s

to the temple with his Offering which h e presents to ,
the god burns incense and then swing s the two pieces
, ,
o f wood ( with their at sides together ) in the in cense ,

and throws them down o n the left hand side The -
.
way in which they fall show s him whether he will

succeed o r not The favourable omen i s when o n e of
.
the pieces fall s with the at and the other with the
,
convex s ide uppermost If they both fall with the at

, .
side undermost that is a bad outlook If both the

, .
convex sides are undermost the result is uncertain , .
An other meth od is by drawing lots Every temple .
pos s esses a wooden box containing a large number of

,
little wooden sticks This b o x is s hak en in front o f an

.
image with certain appropriate ceremonies till o ne o f

the stic k s falls o u t The number mar k ed o n the s tick
.
corre s ponds with a passage in a collection Of oracular

saying s which are usually o f so universal or ambiguous
,
a nature that they might equally apply to any kind of

result .
A common way o f obtainin g the favour o f the gods

o r of relievin g a burdened con s cience is by pilgrimage .
F requently there are celebrated places within easy

reach ; but long j ourneys are not shunned Every .
year thou s ands o f pilgrims from every part o f the

empire pour into the four great sacred places where the ,
four most renowned Bodhisattvas are worshipp ed At .
Mount O mi in the far west o f China may be met

, ,
pilgrims coming from Peking o r the east coa s t a , ,
j ourney o f several months Here and there you meet

.
special ascetics bent o n this p i l n a g e There are .
people who do penance o n the j ourney by prostratin g

t hemselves every tenth step and praying with their ,
forehead touching the ground Pilgrims often travel .
in parties who adopt a common name and a common

banner Their most importan t duty when they reach
.
their destination is to burn several sticks o f in cense

before each g o d kneelin g down and repeating certain
,
formul a . At celebrated shrin e s you see an inn um er

able crowd li k e a swarm Of ants engaged in this
business hastenin g from altar to altar and from roo m
,
t o room Much else is going on at th e same time

.
,
T he monks erect booth s where all sort s o f talismanic

,
pictures verses an d symbols may be o btained ; they

, , ,
are eagerly bought by the faithful S ick people rub .
th e diseased limb upon th e wonder work in g image -

.
Money pours in to the large chests which are se t ready ,
to receive o ffer in gs in every h all .
Another meritoriou s custom in culcated o n the

p eople by Buddhism is the tempo rary abstention
fr om ea tin g meat S ometimes the people who are
.
Observing this custom re side for th e appo in t e d tim e
as guests in the monas tery livin g for a few weeks o n

,
the same diet as the monks and takin g part in all ,
their religious Observance s T he high estimation o f an

.
entirely vegetarian diet has even brought a peculiar

sect in to existence called the , vegetarian sect ,
which cannot be reckoned among the ordinary schools

of Buddhi s m although this was doubtless its o ri gin
,
.
It is a lay commun ity They repudia te all image

.
worsh ip and have given up all the religious cere

,
monies Of Buddhism T hey only venerate heave n

.
and earth the ruler of the empire parents an d

, ,
te achers and this they do in the simplest mann er by

, ,
placing Oe rin g s of tea an d rice be fore the memorial

tablet s of th eir great ones in the h all s fo r devotion .
T hey po ssess books and deep r e achin g conceptions -

,
but it is all kept very secret chie y be ca use th e S tate

,
often persecutes this society But what is outwardly .
very noticeable is the strict fasting from meat ; this is

their most important religious duty Their origin is .
derived from the already frequently mentioned Bodhi

dharma Contemplation plays al s o an important rOl e
.

with them F o r fa s ting from meat which Buddhi s m
.
,
counsels the common people generally account by the

,
idea o f metempsychosis you do n o t k now whom you

are wrongin g when yo u k ill an an imal and consume
i t s esh for a friend o r relative may be doomed to
,
this exi s tence The po s itive side o f abstinence from

.
meat is the saving o f life namely the hou s ing o f ,
animals in a mona s tery where they are cared fo r till

they die a natural death : the co s t o f this is met by
laymen While such a practice has been assiduously
.
cultivated by many people yet Buddhism has never ,
been able to establish a k ind and considerate treat

ment o f animals by the people in general E xtreme .
cruelty to animals is quite common and is the result ,
o f lac k o f thought That the people have no sensi

.
b i l ity fo r the torture o f animals can be only too easily

understood in a country where the most terrible
tortures are daily inicted upon men by the authority
o f the magistrates without exciting any general feel
,
ing o f horror .
The laity in Chin a have only assimilated Buddhist

ideas in so far as they were ea sy to bring into line
with the existing Chinese religious ideas S uch are .
those o f recompense o f reward and punishment for

,
every deed and o f reincarnation always under the

, ,
form Of metempsychosis The ancient S tate religion

.
recognizes also the moral surveillance exercised

CHINE S E BUDD H I S M 255
by th e higher powers divin e rewards and divine ,
puni s hments They also believe in th e contin uance

.
of the soul after death in happy o r unhappy sur

rou n din gs and th eir most salient charact eristicthe
veneration o f ancestors is most closely attached to
,
it All this has take n o n a brigh ter and more vivid

.
colo u rin g through the in uence o f Mah ay ana B ud

d hi s m i n fact a thoroughly Chin ese complexion
,
.
T he other world exists in their imagination as heaven

or hells and between these two lie the six kin ds o f
,
reincarnatio n as high born people (mandarins ) poor

-
,
people q uadruped s birds shes an d insec ts

, ,
The
, ,
.
most vivid impression is made by the hell s The fate .
of the soul which goe s down there is portrayed in

an in credibly dram atic way both in words an d ,
pictures Buddhism has bee n compelled to assume

.
the r 6 1e of deliverer from th e torments o f hell H ow .
ever in compatible this may be with its fundamental

tenor it has become a u n iversal belief that the lot of
,
those who have died can be in uenced from this

world At the death o f a monk and after the death
.
of a monk therefore special extracts from the canon

, ,
are recited with a mu sical accompaniment (especially

,
extracts from the Amit abha S utra ) : this is done -
bec ause the sacred word has power to im prove the

position o f the soul Whe n also the customary
.
, ,
Offerings to the a n cestors ar e brought by the wealthy

laym an he gladly co n sults the Buddhist monks an d
, ,
by payin g ascert ain s what passages o f the sacred

writin gs sho ul d b e recite d t o brin g a blessin g to the
deceased .
It is Often m ain tained that the faithful adherence

25 6 BUDDHI S M AS A RE LI GI O N
to Buddhism as regards t h e lai t y is conned t o the
, ,
lower classes It may well be that the cultured

.
Chinese the ofcial contemptuously smiles and

, ,
s co s at the superstitions of Buddhism But this .
apparent contempt is not always genuine Even high .
placed o fcials especially o f mature age not in

, ,
frequently submit to Buddhism when the thought o f ,
death and the uncertainty o f their future fate begins

t o weigh upon them .
1
They generally arrange
matters so as to court observation as little as
possible . A private chapel near their hou s e or
place o f business is the scene o f their devotions and ,
the help they afford to mon k s and monasteries is

rendered with all privacy .
It is perhaps worthy o f notice that Buddhism has

given a certain tinge to Chinese literature The .
popular novelistic literature contains a number o f

stories about the legendary gures o f Buddhism .
The unbridled fancy o f these fabulous stories is so

attractive to the ordinary individual that some o f
the s e boo k s may be counted as the most read in
Chinese literature . Pictorial art as well shows
mar k ed traces o f B uddhist inuence Many famous .
painters have been mon k s and a great deal o f the

,
subj ect matter o f Chinese paintings is Buddhist

-
material .
Despite all the inuence brought to bear o n the

Chinese laity by Buddhism it must always be re
membered as was explained at the begin ning o f this
,
1
I t i s s a id eve n o f t h e l a t e E m pre s s D ow a ger t h a t sh e w a s
-
,
a ddic t ed t o t h e pie t i s m Of t h e Nor t h ern Buddh i ( We n

s m
C hi ng Th e C hine s e Cri s is from Within London 1 901 p
,

,
'
, , .
K O RE AN B U DD H I S M 25 7

chapter th at t h e laity can n ot rightly be considered
a B uddhist pe ople In the statistics of Chin ese
.
relig ions only the monks should be reckoned as

,
Buddhists The laity merely have to do with B ud

.
dh i s m as regards its externals and share very little ,
o f its genuin e ideas The Chin es e layman essentially

.
belongs to his indigenous religion which most clearly ,
asserts its supremacy over the Indian im po rt by the

in troduction o f the ancestral t ablet s in to Buddhist
mo n aste ries .
C HAP T E R VII B UDD H I S M IN K O RE A

. .
T he picture of B uddhism which confronts the student

in Korea is on the whole a very dull and faded o n e .
T he lethargy which for so long a time has mastered

Korean culture and intellectual life is also characte ristic
o f th e B uddhism of this country But its prin cipal .
feature s S h ow unmistakably its Ch inese origin Th e .
architecture o f the sacred b uildings th e dress and mode ,
of l ife of the monks the organi z ation still extant the

, ,
f
images of the gods the ritual o worship all these
,
things at the rst glance are seen to b e o f a Chinese

type H ere a n d there it is true a trait appears which
.
, ,
is n ot Chin e se and is either T ibeto Mongolian o r

,
-
Japanese in ori gin Korean Buddhism only appears

.
t o have had the most limited capacity for origin atin g

n ew features pec ul iar to itself
, .
A M ONAS T E RI E S
. AN D Mo NK s .
K orean mo n aste ries in clude partly dwellin gs partly ,
te mples Both are fre q uently combined in such a way

.
17
that the front part of a house is a temple while the ,
bac k is a dwelling But the larger mona s teries have

.
always at least two o r three buildings entirely con

secr e ted to the divinities Among them the most .
important is the o ne known to us in Chinese Buddhism

as the t a hs i wng p a o ti on the Precious Hall o f the
f
G reat Hero Besides this hall you also frequently nd

.
a special hall o f Ti tsang the god o f hell Both these

-
, .
much esteemed temples stand in the square courtyard

-
which is enclosed by the dwelling houses The more -

.
important establishments possess besides a wooden

tower fo r the big drum an entrance hall with images
,
-
o f the four great Deva Kin g s a small pagoda and a , ,
wooden portal through whi c h you enter the temple

,
precincts S ometimes there is also a hall roofed but

.
, ,
open at the four sides which serves to shelter the

,
votive o e rin g s brought to the monastery by visitors

'
T he inhabited buildings are simple wooden c o ns tr u c

tions generally mean and neglected O ne particular
, .
feat ure in this country is that the entire outside walls

o f the temple b alls are covered with pain tings o f gods ,
o r scenes from the life o f the Buddha o r of a Bodhi
sattva These paintings are executed in strong colours

.
red blue and greenand occupy the whole expanse

, ,
of boarding ; while the pillars and beams and sca ffold

ing under the roof are also painted with every k ind of
device producing a bright and pretty e ffect s o long
,
as the building is new and the colours fresh This .
tendency t o picturesque adornments o f the exterior

corresponds with a special feature o f the interior
namely with the custom in Korean monasteries of
,
having the walls hung with pictures both small and ,

K O RE AN B UDD H I S M 25 9
large o n religious subj ects S uch a th in g is unknow n

, .
in Chinese o r Japanese B uddh ism although o n e may ,
occasionally see a single picture hangin g in o ne o f

their temple s Korean Buddhism on the contrary is , ,
in the habit of covering all the i nn er walls completely

with pictures T he subj ect as well as th e executio n
.
of these pictures is stereotyped They represent the .
Buddh a G autam a in the midst of his disciples and

Bo dhisattvas also other higher beings as well as
, ,
scenes from th e Buddhist legends A contin ually .
recurring subj ect is a representatio n o f the course of

earthly life with all its characteristic troubles an d
,
features and then m an s exit from this life either to

,

heaven o r he l l In the hall of T i tsan g may u sually

.
-
b e found together with a representation o f the

,
B odhisattva h imself the pictures o f ten Of the nether

,
Princes his underlin gs acting as j udges

, These , .

pictures are highly colo u red green red blue like , , ,
f
thos e on the outside o the buildin g and frequently
they are executed n ot without skill especially in th e ,
drawing of the faces They are painted on stron g.
paper covered with ne gauze and m ounted o n silk

, , .
Man y of them are several square yards in siz e an d ,
cover walls of considerable dimension s These pictures .
give the interior o f the Korean B uddhist temples their

unique character In comparison with them the
.
,
s tatues o f the gods at the present time h ave become

very limited in number G enerally there is only o n e .
gure o r at most a few o n th e principal altar small

, , ,
in size made of wood o r clay an d gilded

, , .
T he pict ures which adorn the wall s of the sacre d

bu ildin gs in K orea remin d a nyone who is famil iar
1 7 2
26 0 BUDD HI S M AS A RE LI G I O N
with T ibetan te mples of the art shown there in the
decoration o f the interiors Judging by the evidences
.
o f Mongolian inuence which run through K orean
history it seems not improbable that Korea has

,
adopted that style Of temple decoration from Tibet .
The celestial being s usually worshipped in K orea

are the same as those in China S akyamuni ; the
seven o r the ve great Buddhas (see p 1 5 8 ) the .
B uddha Amit abha ; the Bodhisattvas K wanyin P u ,

h sien Wen shu Ti tsang Ta shih chi ; the four

,
-
,
-
,
- -
heavenly Kings ; the larger an d smaller groups of the

disciples o fG autama (the ve hundred and the sixteen ,
not in this ca s e eighteen L o han ) Also others not

,
-
.
originally Buddhist divinitiesare mixed up with the

crowd : most frequently the mountain god a e com -
,
p a n i e d by the tiger for his escutcheon as in China ; ,
also the k itchen go d It should be particularly noted

-
.
that in many monasteries there is a special chapel fo r

the worship o f the constellation o f stars known to us
as the G reat Bear and also that the sun and moon
,
still retain a dim religious signicance .
The sacred language is Chinese as is the language ,
of all culture in Korea The names inscriptions

.
, ,
notices t o be met with in a Korean monastery are in

, ,
Chinese characters T he sacred canon is also entirely

.
Chinese The Chinese writ ten characters (denoting

.
ideas ) are pronounced differently by the Koreans but ,
h ave the same meaning s o that a Korean and a ,
Chinese would understand o ne another in writing ,
when they would be unable to do so in speech .
Besides the Chine s e characters there is also an alpha ,
betio form o f writing common in Korea but it is no t ,

much esteemed ( see p In order to facilitate the

.
reading o f B uddhi s t books by students there are copies ,
o f th e most import ant ones with a double texto n e
in Chin ese ch aracters the other tran slated o r only

, ,
tran scribed in to Korean let te rin g

, .
T he monks wear practically th e same dress as those

in China But the lon g cloak with sleeves over which
.
,
th e mantle coverin g the left sh oulder han gs is usually ,
whi te in accordanc e with the K orean partiality for

,
this colour in dress T hey wear wider trousers T he

. .
head is o fcourse completely sh aved except as regard s

, , ,
th e be ard O n th e shaved crown there are n o marks o f

.
bran din g which Chinese mo n ks receive at ordin ation ,
but in K orea these m arks are most fre q uently to be

see n o n th e arm s a n d occasionally on the breast
,
.
T he monastic communities are small ; monasteries

co n tainin g thirty or more monks are rare Worship .
is much neglected O f th e daily service s only a slight

.
trace is to be found in the early morning and at ,
midday between eleven and twelve O clock G enerally

.
it is Only single monks wh o at the sound of th e bell ,
and the wooden sh light a couple o f little incense

,
sticks before the pict ure s o f the gods and recite a

long strin g of ceasele ssly repeated n ame s or some
sacred formula like Nam u o mit o b u l or O m m an i
,
padm e ham A larger general ceremony take s place

on special occasions ( as fo r in stance at the New , ,
Y ear ) and at the instigation of a layman wh o is

,
able to bear the expense T he organiz ation o f the .
monasteries has dwindled to a mere shadow T he .

Abbot s Ofce still retain s a certain prestige T here is .
n o t race o f any wider orga n i z ation T hough some .

mona s teries still enj oy a certain reputation they have ,
n o j urisdiction over others .
The mon k s (named p u chu ng or simply chung in ,
Korean ) keep up their numbers by admittin g children ,
wh o are either dedicated to this life by their parents ,
or are received by the monastery fo r a monetary

compensation It is but seldom that full grown men
.
-
enter them The rules and customs for admission

.
are similar to those in China The inmates o f .
mona s teries are almost exclusively dra wn from the

poorest clas s es The monasteries possess a little

.
landed property gardens and eld s which are cul

t i va t e d by means o f lay help F o r the re s t they are
.
dependent o n the charity o f the laity which does not ,
ow in liberally In consequence their way o f life

.
,
is very simple : a meat dish is categorically forbidden ,
as in Chinese Buddhism Personally the Korean

.
,
monks do no t ma k e a bad impression o n the visitor .
They r eceive him with friendliness even if he is a ,
E uropean ; they give information willingly as far as ,
they are able to do so ; they exhibit that gentle good ,
natured indolence which is characteristic o f the bulk

o f the Korean people .
The number as well as the standing o f the monas

t o ries has steadily declined fo r a long time past The .
monastic colonies in the s o called Diamond Mountains

-
( Kim gang san to the south west o f Cape Du r o ch )

- -
,
-
still enj oy a certain celebrity There are more than .
forty ve o f them Among s t them the most noted is

-
.
the monastery o f Chang a n s a Another well known

- -
.
-
name is that o f the monastery Of S a n wang s a a - -

,
day s j ourney to the west of Wen san ( G ensan ) which

,
has a community of more than fty monks S mall .
Buddhist monasteries lie thickly sown in the imme

diate neighbourhood o f S eoul the capital Whereas ,
.
not a sin gle Buddhist shrine is allowed within the

walls a law prohibits the entrance o f monks because
l
o f their share in a certain co n sp ir a c y there exist
no less th an forty B uddhist monasteries in the neigh
b o ur h o o d Most o f them however are very in signi
.
, ,
cant some only containin g six o r less monks A few

, .
of these monasterie s serve also another purpose being ,
designed as fortresses and pictures q ue summits are ,

crowned by them At a distance of several hour s
.
j ourn ey to th e south of S eo ul are to be seen the ruin s

of a large an d once famou s monastery fortr ess on
Mount Nam han s e A mighty wall still protects th e
- -
.
exten sive building o n the loftiest height with in which ,
at a former date were houses for the entertain ment

o f royalty togeth er with a number of shrin e s and
,
m onastic dwellin gs T o day a village occupies the

.
-
site In th e north of S eoul lie s a similar temple

.
fort ress (Puk h an s a ) S uch monastery fortresses as

- -
.
th ese were formerly o f great importance fo r the

S overeign The in habi tants formed a warlike ban d
.
,
among whom he coul d take refuge in th e tim e o f

d anger an d it was by the help o f these warrior monks
,
that many a con ict was won .
I w ill put down here th e n ame s o f some other well

kn own monasteries which a traveller may take interest
in to visit : Rye ng a n s a o n t he border o f the Ha n
- -
,
1 F orm erly t h e m o nk s were n o t even a llowed t o p a s s through

the st reet s of the c a pit a l Th is pr o h ibit ion h as been a bolis h ed
.
i ce
s n 1 8 95 .
River above Han Kang ; P y o k chol al s o o n the Han
,
-
,
River above YO ju about four day s j ourney from

,
-
,

S eoul ; Chun deung o n the i s land o f K ang hwa ;

-
,
-
H a i n s a in the town H y u p ch un A very large

- - -
.
,
mona s tery o f more modern character and tendency

is situated at the foot of the Chi ri Mountain O f -
.
n unneries there exist only few mostly near S eoul ,

.
B TH E PE OP LE
. AND B U DDH I S M .
S upercial travellers have been mi s led into thin k in g

that the K oreans were a people without any re ligion ,
and have so delineated them S uch an estimate is .
far from correct ; but it is true that Buddhi s m has

lost its hold o n the people here m ore than elsewhere .
Nevertheless it has not been entir ely uprooted ; no r

,
may o ne assert that because Of the decline and with

,
dr a wa l o f Buddhism the country is without religion

, .
O ne notices here again as in the case of other ,
Buddhist countries that Buddhism tolerates the

,
existence alongside o f it o f undercurrents o f another

sort o f religious life which have a gr eater ascendancy
,
over the people than the religion o f G autama At .
the present time when the power o f Buddhism has

,
nearly faded away these undercurrents have become

,
much more noticeable .
Buddhism is by no means uprooted in Korea .
Although the monasteries are in decay and the monks

are despised the laity are n o t lacki ng within the
,
temple precincts and they come to see k assi s tance at

,
the Buddhist shrines in every kind o f need They .
bring o fferings they ll the brass dishes on the altar

with rice cak e nuts apples an d pears ; they li ght
, , , ,
candles before the images an d burn incense ; they

hire the monks to recite sacred passages to the sounds
o f drums bells and cymbals ; they ing themselve s
, ,
meanwhile repeatedly b efore the altar in prayer with ,
their foreheads in the du st murmurin g softly the

,
words of supplication of prayer of sorrow S uch

, ,
.
scene s are of daily occurrence and anyone who spends

,
su fcient time in a larger temple will witnes s them .
E ven t o day the B uddhist teaching suits many people

-
by its accounts o f the recompense awarded either in

heaven o r hell ; and the great Ti t s ang th e Bodhi
- u
sattva o f the n ether world together with his te n

underlin gs and their three constable s whose duty it ,
is to drive the souls of the dead before the tribunal ,
are n ot played o ut O f those who are still in touch

.
with Buddhism certain ly th e lower classes p r ep o n

,
derate a n d there is n othin g to be found amongst the

,
people o f the deeper idea s o f this religion ; they make

a blunt external u se of those gods who are supposed
to be serviceable At the same time we mu st not
.
,
overlook the fact that from time to time and even ,
q uite recently B uddhism has been supported by th e

,
rulin g classes Not only did the E mperor sometimes

.
spe n d large sum s o f mo n ey o n the embellishment and

restoration o f a monastery as in a remarkable case in
,
t he sixties Of last century but al so you m ay read the

,
followin g notice in the K o r ea n R evi ew a good E nglish

,
monthly periodical under date o fJanuary 1 902 : T he

, ,
G overnment is build ing an enormous Buddhist mon as

t e ry about a mile out s ide the E ast G ate 'of S eoul' .
It is intende d th at this will be the he ad monastery in

K orea and w ill hold the same relation to Buddhism
,
26 6 B U DDHI S M AS A RELI G I O N
in Korea that the V atican does to Roman Catholicism
throughout the world (l ) It will contain betwee n
.
three and four hundred ka n o f buildings and the ,
plan is the same as that o f the great Ch un ch u k

-

monastery in Tibet The ceremonies connected with

.
the commencement of this wor k took place o n th e

4th instant Monks from all over the country to
.
,
the number Of eight hundred o r more congregated at ,
this spot together with Japane s e monks from the

,
Japanese quarter o f S eoul An immense crowd o f .

Koreans surrounded the place to view the scene
(p Later o n it is remar k ed (p
. At the .
new mona s tery there will be placed o ne director ,
o n e assistant director o n e secretary one assistant

, ,
secretary nine clerks two accountants four mes

, , ,
s e ng e r s
, fteen ktsu s (runners ) ve policemen and , ,
fty soldier mon k s .

It would no t be impossible for Korean Buddhi s m ,
precisely owin g to the last change in the history o f the

country to tak e a new lease o f life by means of the
, ,
help given to it by Japanese Buddhism F o r some .
time past the Japanese have made e fforts in this

direction Japanese Buddhist monasteries have been
.
founded in Korea ; Japanese mon k s have been sent

over to instruct and stimulate their Korean brethren
in the faith Likewise they have tran s ferred Korean
.
monk s to Japan fo r them to be brought up there .
The above mentioned R evi ew has the following remark s

-
in o ne o f its numbers ( 1 905 p It is reporte d

,
.
that the number o f Japanese Buddhists in Korea have

very greatly increased and a circular h a s been sent
,
throughout the country to the e ffect that this religion

K O RE AN B U DDHI S M 26 7
will be taught in all parts o f the interior and schools ,
will be establishe d to properly educate the young

men .O ne may say in advance that these e fforts will
be expended on a very hard eld of labour ; fo r although
it cannot be maintained that Buddhism is e n tirely
spent there yet it has certainly wasted away to a
,
great extent .
-
What h as come into prominence whilst B uddhism is
driven in to th e background is the Chinese type of an o es
tor worship and with it a n ancient form o f n ature and
,
demon worship which from early tim e s is ingrained

,
in the Mongolian race and was only slightly veiled ,
by B uddhism Demon worship is specially noticeable

.
amongst the bulk of the population T he stars .

,
mountain s rivers caves have their demon s besides

, , , ,
numberless rem arkable or peculiar places a n d obj ects .
Amongst animals snakes are particularly feared and,
worshipp ed as spirits T hey are often kept and fed .
near the houses as guardia n s o f the dwellings The .
tige r is frequently looked on a s th e m anifestation of a

spirit T he discovery of the in uence of an evil spirit
.
and its exorcism are im portant and practically daily ,
occurrences T he people who rely o n th eir skill in

.
dealin g with these m atters for their livelihood a n d to ,
whom everyone applies in such a case are always , ,
strange to say women th e s o called mu d a ng There

,
-
.
are indeed m en of a similar occupationth e so called

, ,
-
p a nsu T hese however are n othin g more th an sooth

.
, ,
sayers transplanted from China and K orea u sually

,
blind men whose mean s and methods are similar to

,
those employed in China T heir busine ss is princi .
pally to foretell the futur e or to discover hidde n

things it i s only incidentally that they are employed
for exorcising demons 1
. This is far more the pre
rogative o f the mu da ng Her assistance is called in
.
for all sorts o f illnes s ; fo r the appeasing of the spirit

of a dead person ; fo r the wi s hed fo r intercourse with -
the dead ; for the warding o ff o f epidemics ( smallpox ) ;

fo r the ceremonies to propitiate the S pirits o f water ,
of rivers and o f s h c r a ft fo r long j ourneys and other

,
important underta k ings The exorcism o f a mu d a ng

.
is called ku t S uch a ha t is performed in various

.
ways according to its obj ect and surro undings but

, ,
usually to the accompaniment o f an ecstatic dance led

by noisy music During this dance the woman herself
.
is supposed to be possessed by the spirit and through ,
her mouth the cause o f the evil is in dicated as well as ,
the means o f healing O fferings always play a large

.
part o n these occasions S ometimes ( as at a S e ance

.
with the dead ) she S its quietly sunk in thought and ,
experiences inward communion with the spirits The .
mu d a ng is accounted a friend o f the ghostly powers .
S h e does n o t compel them by force but ma k es use o f ,
the favour in which she stand s with them to obtain

the necessary information There are special little .
chapels in which the mu d a ng exercises her art if the

house o fthose concerned or o fthe witch herself does not
seem suitable These chapels called by di fferent appel
.
,
l a ti o ns are very common o n the roads o r o n the hill

,
t Op s . These exorcisms tak e place also o n those stone

heaps which every traveller in Korea must have had
frequent opportunity to observe and which are usually ,
1 If h
t ey pr a ct i s e a s exorci st s th ey p u t o n fe m a le clo thing fo r
,
s uc h purpo s e l
K O RE AN B U DD HI S M 26 9
augm e n te d by one stone from every passin g K orean .
T hey are crude memorials to an indwellin g spirit ,
close to a bush o r a tree on which hang rags and

,
little streamers as votive o fferin gs Although the .
mu da ng is despised and altho ugh sh e is s urrounded

,
by most sin ister reports yet her services are always

,
in re q uisition ; and there are m any men who marry a

muda ng simply o n accou n t of the in come for her
services which will e n able th em to live free from
,
c are
. It is very remarkable th at th e mud a ng has
entirely ousted the Buddhist m onk wh o form erly ,
used to be employed for the overcomin g o f super

natural agencies For in stance th e rites re q ui red at
.
,
the death o f a person in order to facilitate his passage

,
in to the other world were origin ally performed by

,
Buddhist monks ; n ow th e 771a only is employed .
T he more the hand o f B uddhism is palsied in Korea ,
the more strongly is the hold o f early superstitiou s

cu stom s and h abits shown which were glossed over
, ,
but never completely lost H ow these domin a te th e

.
people can be seen by a glance at the rich literature

o f popular anecdotes fairy tales legends a n d n ovels
,
-
, ,
they are all full to over owing o f refere n ce s to spirits .
C H AP T E R VIII J AP ANE S E B U DD H I S M
. .
Amongst the Buddhist countries of th e E ast Japa n ,
is unquestionably the most important From ear ly .
times it was the aim of this people to work o u t in de

pendently the leading conceptio n s o f G autama s
religio n More recently also there h as not bee n
.
, ,
lackin g the endeavour to combin e th e B uddhist

gospel with Western knowledge and to show its ,
permanent value in theological terms S uch e n .
d eavo u r s are underta k en by clever and even learned

laymen o r members of the aristocracy and high
,
ofcials as well as by prominent mon k s

, .
In the historical survey ( see p 92) it was pointed

.
o u t that at the time when a change was made in

,
Japan to a new era the G overnment ofcially

dropped Buddhism F rom that date ti ll 1 8 88 the
.
turn to Western culture and the inuence of Western

science was so strong that Buddhism was completely
driven to the wall It was genuinely supposed
.
fo r a time that Christianity would become the S tate

religion But in the years 1 88 8 and 1 8 8 9 this
.
tendency su ffered a powerful recoil A more critical .
and sober estimate was tak en o fE uropeanism Warn .
ing voices were raised to the e ffect that the special

features o f Japanese individuality should not be
blindly sacriced for the sak e o f foreign ways in ,
whose wak e would follow danger and di fculty .
After this revulsion o f feeling Buddhism advanced

with new energy and made noticeable efforts to
,
deepen its fundamental ideas and to infuse them

with new life .
The Buddhist current is in deed only one among

, ,
many passin g through modern Japan All sorts of .
attempts to establish a common religious basis cro s s

o n e another here since the o ld world of this remark
,
able people has fallen o u t of j oint and a new one is

beginnin g t o be fashioned Alongside o f Buddhism
.
t here are S hintoism the moral philosophy of Con

,
i ncius Christian dogma o f all shades besides a

, ,
JAPANE S E B U DD H I S M 27 1
multitude o f n ewly devised systems sometimes ,
tran s formation s o f Western philosophies som etime s ,
a blend o f all sorts o f di fferent elements drawn from

E uropean and Asiatic sources which some speculative ,
min d has worked o u t for itself and then thrown into

th e common chaos .
Though B uddhism plays a certain part amongst all

these heterogeneous elements which surroun d th e
soul of the people and emerges with its high est
,
conceptions nevertheless o ne must n ot argue from

,
such fact that this spiritual and inward character is

at all universal It is peculiar to certain groups only
.
of the higher circle As regards th e broad masses of

.
th e population and also the maj ority o f the monks

, ,
Buddhism is more or less a traditional an d external

cult and in this form it is superciliously ignore d by
,
t h e educated o r treated with a smile of contempt

,
.
A TH E E ' T E R NAL S
. .
In its outward manifestation s Jap anese Buddhism ,
is very similar to Chinese as is n at ural from it s ,
historical development The u sual arrangement o f the

.
buildin gs w ithin a temple enclosure evidently follows

the Chine se plan where th e gateway leads into a
,
right angled court whose centre is occupied by th e

-
,
b ui ldin gs fo r worship while in the background an d

,
at the sides are dwelling room s and places for enter-
tainin g guests small sanctuaries and the like Th is

, , .
original design indeed is frequently set aside T he

, , .
room s for worship ofte n stand alone ; Abbot and monks

live near T he most im portant places o f worship are
.
a main hall called ho nd o and a hall dedicated to th e

, ,
27 2 B U DDHI S M AS A RE LI G I O N
founder o f the sect to which the temple belongs or ,
to some other noted saint ; this hall is called s o s hi do .
Besides some special halls may be found in large

,
temples for the worship of a reno wned divinityfo r

instance of Amida ( Amit abha ) o r Kwannon ( the
,
Chine s e K wa nyin) The architecture o f the bui ld

.
ings shows fundamental traces of Chinese style but ,
with that slight alteration o f the Chin ese model

which the artistic Japanese instinct has s ta mped
upon mos t o f the departments of its culture The .
curved roofs often rising o ne above the other the

, ,
wooden walls the elaborately twisted wooden pillars

, ,
the verandas with wooden balustrades the lattice ,
windows paper coveredall thi s is a sight familiar

,
-
to the visitors o f Chinese temples But here every .
thing is generally ner in execution and kept i n

better repair ; also the colour lovin g Japanese
,
decorate the woodwork more tastefully in subdued

colours The more prominent buildings are erected
.
o n a wooden or stone platform leading up to which ,
is a ight o f steps The roof is generally tiled in th e

.
Chine s e manner or covered with S heet copper ; but

,
here and there o n e comes across roofs thatched with

ne shingles o r bark on the model o f the S hinto
temples and t hese were executed when S hintoism
,
and Buddhism became associated with o n e another .
In the same way yo u not infrequently see Buddhist

,
temples showing that peculiar upward curve o f the

overhanging part of the roof above the entran ce
gate with a corresponding curved little shel tering
,
roof above it again which originally belongs to S hinto

,
architecture .
JAPANE S E B U DD HI S M 27 3
T he h alls set apart for worship are so arranged

in te rn ally as a rule that th e p art contain in g th e
, ,
images o f the go ds is separa te d from the other part

by a partition B eh ind it are one or two altars a n d
.
,
o n
them mostly in richly decorated little shrin es
are the image s of the gods S ilke n embroiderie s .
,
bron z e lotos blossom s in cense bowl s candles lante rn s

-
, , , ,
and costly p aintings etc form the remain der o f th e , .

,
furn iture o f the shrin e The part of the temple .
re se rv ed for the laity generally divided into nave s ,
by rows o f pillars not in frequently sh ow s in the ,
more note d te mples a great wealth o f votive o fferin gs ,
pictures carvin gs lantern s etc which are attached

, , , .
,
t o the walls pil lars or ceilin g

, Th e g roun d is covere d
, .
with mats as is customary i n every private h ouse

, ,
a n d is therefore not to be trodde n o n with shoes or

sandals .
In m any temples there is also a special h all for

o
1
e rin g s ( called ema do ) as well a s a woode n tower

in which the great principal bell is hung Y ou

nd also frequently a tower for a large drum ( ko ra) f
.
A t ank is close at h and wherever this is po ssible in , ,
which loto s grows and po pulated with h ig hly fed ,

-
shes o r tor toises span ned by an elegan t bridge A

, .
sacred treen ot in deed the celebra t ed India n B o

, ,
tree but generally an aniseed ( I llic i u m r elig io s um) o r

,

a Ch in ese j uniper is planted in the c o urtyard A .
1 Th is n am e
bee n derived from S hi nt ois m I t m e an s
h as .
h or se h all an d re fers t o th e pre s e nt s o f h or se s m a de t o

,
S h in t o s h r in e s Cf W G As t o n
. . S hin t ois m p 22 1 e t s e q
.

.
, , . .
( Lo n do n ,
p agoda in Chinese style ve or seven stories in ,
height rises within the circumference o f the temple

,
precincts .
AS things o f a S pecially Japanese character one ,
cannot but notice in the neighbourhood of most

temples rotatory book shrines the S O called ri ne d
-
,
- f
.
They are little wooden houses which turn o n a

perpendicular axle With in them lie the sacred
.
Buddhi s t scriptures not always the complete canon

and it con s titutes an act o f merit to turn the
repository with its whole bul k o f sacred writings
, ,
round two o r three times In the eyes o f the people .

,
the turning o f the shrine if it is done with the earnest

,
wi s h to be able to read the scriptures is o f equal ,
value with having read the text and wins much ,
favo u r and blessin g The invention o f the turnin g

.
library is attributed to a Chinese Buddhist o f the

sixth century A D o n account of which he and his
. .
,
two sons are usually represented at the entrance o f

the shrine .

T he s o called prayer wheels so common in T ibet
- -
, ,
are also to be found in the Japanese temple s (g o s ho

g u r u ma ) but their use is con ned to the adherents of
,
certain sects ( T ondai and S hingon ) The Japanese .
instrument also may be distinguished from the Tibetan

by the fact that it contains n o written prayers but is ,
a S imple wheel set in motion with the pious wish

that a deity will procure a favourable rein carnation o f
the man who prays .

In the environs of the temple the visitor s eye will
o ften be arrested by the great number of stone o r
JAPANE S E B UDD H I S M 27 5
bron ze lanterns (t ar s) T hese are votive o e rin g s

'
erected in the S hape of a monument in the upper ,
p art of which with open lattice work sides burn

,
-
,
lights o n special occasions T hese lantern s often .
reach a height o f 6 to 9 feet and h ave a very ,
1
picturesque appearance .At celebrated temples you
may coun t them by the h undred An other charac .
t e r i s t ic adorn ment o f the temple environs is the to r i i .
T his is a portico o f wood o r stone Although the .
Jap anese attribu te it to a S h in to origin it is u n ,
doubtedly derived from the Chinese and Korean port a ls

which characteri z e their temple entrances and lastly ,
po ints back to the Indian t o r dna Th e t o r n in red .

,
lacquered wood o r grey mo ss covered stone rising -

,
from the midst o f the green trees is highly decorative ,
in effect ; a n d the simple beauty o f the Japanese

t o r i i compared with the Chinese o r Korean original
, ,
accentuates well the superior artistic capacity of th e

islanders .
The elegant taste o f the Japanese has found a

specially wide eld for its exercise in S haping all
the manifold implements of the B uddhist temple s .
E specially the wood carving p ainting and the bron z es

-
, , ,
are to be mentioned T he carver s art nds scope in

.

the altars th e partitions th e shri n es for the pictures

, ,
o r images of the gods th e wall decorations win dow

, ,
lattices and pillars O f ne old paintings every n oted

, .
,
temple possesses at least a few examples sometimes ,
o f great antiquity generally in the shape o f so called

,
-
1
Th e fam ou s o n e in fro n t o f t h e TOd a iji t em ple a t N a r a i s
th e ne s t an d t h e e a rlie s t s pecim e n o f t h e kin d
ka kemo nos ,unframed moun ted o n silk and fastened
, ,
to two stic k s D ecorative a rt is promin ent in the

.
paintings o f walls and ceilin gs with brilliant e e ct

.
,
Bronze casting and ironwork nd their place in

-
incense burners lanterns the metal lotos blossoms

-
, ,
-
which often adorn the altars also in gongs stork s used , ,
as candlesticks standing o n th e back o f a tortoise great ,
candelabra vases but above all in the huge bell s and

,
bronz e gures o f the gods Japan s three greatest .

bells are The o n e in connection with the great

Buddha (Daibutsu ) at KyOt o the height o f which is ,
about 1 4 feet the thickness 9 inches the diameter

, ,
about 9 feet the weight about 6 3 tons (2) That o f

,
.
the temple o f Chi o nin at Ky o to ; the height 1 0 8 feet ,
the thic k ness inches the diameter 9 feet weight

, ,
nearly 7 4 tons (3) That o f th e temple of TOd a iji

.
at Nara ; th e height 1 3 feet 6 inches the thickness ,
8 inches the diameter 9 feet

, Amongst the gigantic .
bronze gures the most celebrated is the s o called

,
-
Daibutsu o f Kamak ura a representation o f Amit abha

, ,
o f the height of upwards o f 49 feet and unique in ,
beauty Y et larger than this image but Of nothing

.
,
li k e the same arti s tic merit is the great B uddha o f ,
the temple o f TOda iji at Nara ( a representation of

the celestial Buddha Va i ro ch a na ) about 5 3 feet ,
high .
Mention may also be made o f the representatio n o f

the foo tprint o f the Buddha which is so common ,
in S outhern Buddhism and is also sometimes to be

,
found in Japanese temples ( ba s so ku seki ) Here it is .
n ot subdivided into 1 08 squares as in Ceylon b ut , ,
merely exhibits several symbolic gure s s uch as a ,

JAPANE S E B UDD H I S M 27 7
wh eel a sceptre the svas ti ka th e conch shell sh es

, , ,
-
, ,
and lotos blossoms Meditative contemplation of the

-
.
1
footprint is co n sidered meritorious .
B TH E D IVI NI T I E S
. .
Japanese B uddhism recogn i z e s as doe s the Mah a

y an a doctrin e e very wh e r e a very large number of w
celestial or at all events o f worshipful b eings In

, ,
.
their origin som e are thoroughly B uddhist some ,
Hind u ( Brahman ) so me S hin to and a few al s o , ,
Chin ese .
The Buddhi st speculations about higher B uddh as

( Japanese B utsu ) and a highest B uddha god which -
,
we noticed a l ready in conn ection wi th Lam aism ( of .
p . are the foundation o f the sys tem in Japan

al so . T h e historic gure o f a B uddh a is associated
with a supernatural celestial Buddha and with a sort
o f in te rmediate being a Bodhi sattv a This com .
bin ation o f a historic B uddh a a celestial B uddha , ,
and a Bodhisattva is ve times repeated a s there are

, ,
ve hi s toric B uddhas o f the present epoch e sp e c i

ally well known and revered T hu s we h ave ve .
triad s Th e edi c e cu l minate s in a supreme B uddha

.
,
wh o domin ate s the whole Now this plan unfolds .

,
itself with various peculiar features amongst the

different sects and even the names o f the in dividual
,
represen tations are not always th e same The .
1
K Flore n z in h i s G e s chich t e der J a p ani s ch e n Li t er a t ur
.
,
( Leip z ig m e nt ion s ( o n p 1 8) t w o poem s in h o n our o f t h e

, .
Buddha s foot print writt e n i n a peculi a r form c alled th e

,

,
Buddh a foot prin t s for m ( b a s s o ku s e kt ta t ) '
.
27 8 BUDD H I S M AS A RE LI G I O N
doctrine al s o o f the supreme Buddha often sinks
, ,
into the bac k ground .
Among s t the celestial Buddhas (Dh y ani Buddhas ) ,
the most prominent are Va ir o ch a n a and Amit abha .
E ach of them is conceived in certain sects as the

highest and most surpa s sing o f all Buddha s with such ,
attrib utes as the Chri s tian conception of Go d is wont

to embraceeternal almighty compa s s ionate the
, , ,
spring of all being Va i r o c h an a ( of p 209) is called

. . .
in Japanese Dainichi ; Amit abha is k nown by th e

abbreviated form of his name Amida ( also Mida) , .
The popular conception as many o f the repre s enta

tions o f them in the temples show confu s es the
hi s toric Buddha S ak yamuni ( usually called S hak a
in Japan ) with the celestial Buddhas and ran k s him ,
among their number which is n o t in harmony with

,
the system ; for S akyamuni was o n e o f the huma n

( ma n us ht )
'
Buddhas a temporary apparition and an ,
emanation from o n e o f the celestial Buddhas The .
correct numbering o f the ve celestial Buddhas is

Dainichi A shu k u ( Indian Ak o b ya ) H OS h O ( Indian
, ,
Ratna S a mb h a va ) Amida F ukujo ju (Indian Am o gh a

, ,
siddhi) but the last is frequently confounded with

S hak a. To each of these names may be added the
title Nyo r a i ( corresponding to the Indian Tath agata ,
o n e o f the designations o f the Buddha ) .
E qually worthy o f notice amongst the Buddhas is

the s o called healing Buddha Yakushi Nyo rai
-
, ,
included by many people amongst the ve Dh yani

B uddhas .
As Dainichi and Amida together with S ha k a are

, ,
the most popular Buddhas amongst Bodhisattvas ,

J AP ANE S E B U DDHI S M 27 9
( Japanese B o s a t s u) Kwannon is the rst S h e is the .
Chin ese K wa nyi n ( s e e p Both conception and .
representation of her correspond entirely with the

Chinese so that we need d o no more than refer to
,
what has already been stated o n th e subj ect O ther .
Bodhisattvas also fam i liar to u s from the Chinese

, ,
are Fugen ( Chin ese P u h sien ) and Monj u ( Chinese -
We n shu ) frequently standin g at the sides o f

-
,
K wannon or S haka ; also Da i s e i sh i o r S eishi ( Chin ese

T a sh ih chi ) who togeth er with Kwannon and Amida
- -
, , ,
shares the authority over the we s tern Paradise S u n .
an d moon are also conceived a s Bodhisattvas and , ,
under the name o f Nikk O B o s a t s u and G wa kk a

B o sa t s u are the customary comp anio n s of Y akushi
,
Nio ra i .
In Japan the place of T i tsang the Chinese Ki ng

,
-
,
of H ell is taken by Emma O This name is th e

,
-
.
corruption of the Indian Yama r aj a The Indian -

.
nether god Yama belongs in China to th e ten rulers

o f hell who are subordin ate to Ti t san g
, in Japan -
,
on the other h and Yama as E mma O is the supreme ,

-
ruler ; while the gure of Ti t san g corresponds to the -
well known and highly revered gure of Jis6 This

-
.
is ( l ike T i tsang) a m ild compassiona te deity who

-
,
S pecially comes to the assistance o f children in th e
un der world whe n they as folklore asserts are

,
-
terri ed by a certain witch ( S h Oz uka no b aba ) who

lies in wait for them o n the banks of the B uddhist
S tyx .
The Bodhisattva Ma i tr ya ( Japanese Mir o ku ) who ,
is said to come n ext in order to G autam a when his

time of appearan ce h as expired is in n earest co n ,
280 BUDD H I S M AS A RE LI GI O N
n e c t io n with Kwannon Fugen and Monj u G igantic
, , .
gures o f him have been carved in roc k s .
Amongst the disciples o f G autama the mo s t cele ,
b ra te d are A nanda and Kas yapa (Anan and Kash a) ,
and as in Chin a they are fre quently placed beside

, ,
S haka . E qually well kn own and much represented

- -
gures are the smaller and the greater circle o f the

Arhat ( Japanese Rak an ) The smaller group includes
.
sixteen as in Korea O f these the most popular is

, .
Bin z uru ( Indian P in do l a) who is usually removed ,
from the group into a place o f his o wn because ,
Buddha once was obliged to punish him for a sin ;

nevertheless he is specially honoured by the people
,
as a guar dian from disease and people rub the par ,
t i c u l a r part o f the body of the statue where the

suppliant is a ficted with full condence that the
,
disease will disappear The larger group o f 500.
Rakan has al s o sometimes its special hall in the

temple a s in China
, .
Another familiar gure in the temples is ( as in

China) that of the patriarch Bodhidharma ( see p 239) .
in Japan he is called Dar a ma .
The four heavenly Kings who stand at the entrance

o f Chinese temples are n o t unknown in Japan called ,
the S h ite nno ; their single names are B i sh amo n ,
Zo ch o KOmOku J iko ku
, , But they do not usually
.
stand in the entrance hall where instead are to b e

-
,
found the s o called Ni O the two Deva Kings namely

- -
, , ,
Indra ( Taishaku ) and Brahma (Bonten) who stand ,
menacingly o n the right hand and the left hand side

- -
.
T he gure o f the tutelary deity Weito (Veda see , ,
p. here meets us also but it is mixed up with ,

o ne o f the heavenly Kin gs and therefore often called

,
B i sh a m o n Under this n ame it has become even o ne

.

of the gods of happiness namely th e god of wealth , .
B u t Weito keeps its proper place alongside under

a n oth er guise as I da t e n ( the Japanese T e n corre
,
sp o n di ng with the Indian Deva ) .
F u do must not be overlooked as an origin ally

H in du deity wh o has been adopted in to Japanese
B uddhism and is m uch and zealously worshipped
,
.
He seem s to correspond to th e Indian god S iva .
H is appearance is erce and angry the face ofte n ,
coloured black ; in his righ t hand he holds a sword ,
and in his le ft a rope ; tongues o f ame form the

backgroun d The popular superstition place s him
.
amongst the celestial Buddhas identies him in deed , , ,
with Dainichi (Va i r o c h a na ) T he Hindu deitie s

.
G anesa H aritf K u m b h ira an d Marichi appear o n

, , , ,
B uddhist altars in the Japane s e form o f S h Ode n ( also

K wa n g i t e n ) K i s h i b o jin K o m p i r a and Ma ri s h it e n
, , ,
.
The r s t named is specially attractive with his

-
elephant head which denotes his sagacity

,
.
From S hin to i s m Japanese Buddhism has incor

,
p o r a t e d the god o f war Hachiman an ancient

, ,
E mperor (Oji n) raised to the rank of a god B ut .
with him m ay sometimes be seen also the Chinese

war god Kwanti a s Kwa n wu
-
,

.
A special class of celestial beings is th at o f the

Tennin and T engu o f Indian origin , T he former .
( th e In dian Ap sa r a) corresponds somewhat to our

angels womanly and youthful with bright owin g , , ,
outstre tched garments ; their gures often occur in

wall paintin gs The T engu o n the other hand are
-
.
, ,
a k ind of demon s ( the Indian G aruda) half man , ,
half bird with wing s claws and long sharp beak s

, , , .
They play a great r 6 1e in popular tales as beings o f

high supernatural powers ( fo r instance innite vision ) ,
and much interfering with human a ffairs O ther .
cla s ses o f demons are the S h OjO and the S ennin .
These come from Chinese conceptions .
It is in the nature o f things that the most celebrated

teachers of Japanese Buddhism should be honoured

as s aints They enj oy the title o f Dai s hi ( the great
.

sage , from the Chinese to s hi h) The most i m .
portant ones o f them will be mentioned in connection

with the sects which they have founded In this .
place it may s u fce to name S hotoku Dai shi that ,
Prince of the seventh century A D to whom is mainly

. .
due the introduction o f Buddhism into Japan ( see

p.
C P R I NCI PAL S AN CTU ARI E S

. .
The Japanese city where most of the renowned

temples are to be found and the religious life o f
,
Buddhism can be s t be studied is K yo to the ancient

, ,
capital o f the coun try ( from 7 93 to 1 86 8

The enumeration o f all its more eminent temples
would lead t o o far but the following must at all
,
events be mentioned : the S a nju sa ng en da the two ,
H o n g wa nji temples th e Ky o mi z u and the Ch i o nin

, , .
The r s t mentioned tak es its name from the

-
images o f Kwannon which it contains The Hong .
wanj i temples and that o f Ky o miz u are specially

worthy o f notice fo r their elegance o f design and the ,
latter for the beauty o f the situation The Chi o nin .

temple is rich in uni q ue works of art TO the north .
ea s t o i KyOto lies the mountain o f H ie i z a n celebrated ,
above all others in the history of Japanese B uddhism ,
said to h ave been studded with thousands o f temple s

and shrines in the Middle Ages The monks of this .
locality have often played a warlike part ; b u t to day -
there is little remaining of the brilliant past In .
Os a ka th e neighbour to wn o f K yOto may be men

, ,
t i o ne d th e famous Te na i t e mp l e , S outh o f Ky6 to

.
,
t wo hours by rail bring us to N a r a another o f th e ,
Buddhist places most worthy of a visit Here is to .
b e found the large temple of T6 d a iji with the greatest,
image o fth e B uddha in the whole country S outh west .

-
o f Nara th e little place c alled H or i djt contain s the

oldest B uddhi s t temple in Japan ; it dates from th e

beginning of the seventh century A D T he content s . .
o f this temple are o f the highest importance as regards
the history of ancient Japanese art O n the south .
west border of the provin ce o f Y amato in wh ich are ,
N ara and H ar iuji rises o ne o f th e most noted hills

,
for pilgrimage in Japan K dya s a n which has bee n

, ,
held in high esteem since the beginning o f the ninth

century A D There are always thousands o f pilgrim s
. .
praying here and thousands o f th e dead lie in the

,
h uge cemetery under the shade of the cryptomerias ,
within the sacred earth o f th e mounta in T he n ame .
o fK obo Daishi ( s ee pp 91 and 291 ) is closely associate d

.
with th at o f K ayasan .
To ky o the moder n capital naturally also po ssesses

, ,
important temples T he most popular o n e is th at of

.
Kwannon in the As aku s a q uarter o f the town To

,
.
the south of TOky O lies the hamlet I keg a mt which

'
,
possesses a very noted temple ( H o mmo nj1 ) the burial ,
p l ace o f the saint Ni c hiren Two hours by rail to the .
ea s t o f T6 ky6 we nd at N a r i t a a ourishing and far

famed temple o f F u do K a ma ku r a a village to the .
,
south of Y o k ohama possesses an almost world wide

,
-
renown o n account o f its colossal statue o f Amida .
The te mples o f N i kko have a similar reputation they

are ve hours by rail to the north o f T6 ky6 These .
sanctuaries o fwhose beauty the Japanese proverb s ays

, ,

Call nothing beauti ful till yo u have seen Nikk o are ,
more o f S hinto than Buddhi s t origin although ,
Buddhism and its saints have gi ve n the pla c e its

celebrity In Central Japan the town o f N ag a no must
.
be mentioned with its much renowned shrine of

,
-
ZenkOji This temple belongs to the earliest Japanese

.
period for it is said to have been founded as early as

,
6 42 A D . They pretend to guard there a picture o f

.
the three divinities Amida Kwannon and Da i s ei sh i

, , , ,
which wa s presented t o the Mik ado by t he Ki ng of

Korea when Buddhi s m was r s t introduced into the
country But the picture is concealed within sev en
.
cases and is not to be seen by visitors

, .
D TH E M ONKS

. .

The name o f monk cannot be accurately applied to
the members o fall Buddhist O rders in Japan for o ne of ,
the most numerous sects allows its adherents to marry ,
as we shall see later on But in spea k ing o f these .

communities we retain the name o f monk for con
venience sake
.
The great maj ority o f the mon k s issue from the lower
ranks of society S ome are dedicated t o the monastic
.
JAPANE S E B U DD HI S M 28 5
life from ch ildhood and in that case they grow up in

,
the temple s under the priestly care and te achin g .
T he larger establishments generally h ave an in stitute

o f their o wn ( the semin ary of the priests ) for th e
educatio n of their monks T he S tate superv ision.
which ( through a department of th e H ome O f ce )

is exercised o n B uddhism does not concern itse l f
with religious q uestions and therefore n o t with the
,
methods of education but merely keeps an eye o n the

,
public doings o f the O rders T he scope of their .
culture is conse q uently very various dependin g o n ,

the die rin g sect s and personalities T he knowledge .
o f the average monk is con ned to practical necessities .
Many of them are not even sufciently verse d in the

Chinese charac ters to be able to read the sacre d
canon which is in Chin ese T here are however
, .
, ,
also very learned men amongst them .
In their organi z ation dress shaven heads and ve g e

, , ,
tarian diet they resemble the Chin ese monks but they
, ,
differ in a number o f minor poin ts which we may ,
a fford to ignore It must be Observed however that

.
, ,
the branding which the Chin ese monk en dures upo n

the head at the completion o f his ordination the
, ,
Japanese monk usually has upon his arm in stead .
T he religiou s duties o f th e mo n ks consist partly in

ritual Ob servances in th e temple partly in recitation ,
o f the sacred text partly in meditation

, T hey are in .
constant communication with th e people T heir h elp .
is especially sought in connection wi th funerals and

the offerings to ance s tors They also read th e sacre d
.
books o n certain occasions in private houses They .
m ay eve n feel an obligatio n to pr ea ch to the peop l e .

In some temples the rule is that a daily sermon should
be delivered in others every ten days in others twice
, ,
o r once a month 1
G enerally however this is limited
.
, ,
to a certain time o f the year which i s set apart for the

purpose At birth and at marriage the Buddhist monk
.
has no o i c ia l part to play .
The mon k s d o n o t hold a high place in the common

estimation Their ignorance and especially their
.
,
greed and immorality mak e them the butt o f much ,
remar k by cultured men In the summer o f 1 902 the .
newspapers were full o f accounts o f the deplorable

private li fe o f the principal o f the chief sect in Japan ,
and al s o o f great embezzlements which had been going

o n in the same community Anyone happenin g to be .
in Japan at the time would constantly hear remar k s

to the e ffect that such things were no t at all sur
prisin g but quite in k eeping with the common
,
expectation .
The mon k s rely for their means o f subsistence upon

the gifts and fees o f adherents S pecial temple prop .
e r ty ,which was formerly o f considerable value in ,
the new era no longer exists ; the G overnment has

conscated it in return for exemption from taxes .
E TH E S E CT S
. .
Japanese Buddhism has split up into a great num

ber o f different forms These divisions are o f great
.
antiquity None o f the principal schools is o f later

.
date than the thirteenth century o f o u r era ; only some

insignicant groups have been formed in more modern
times The cause o f the divisions is the same as that
.
1
Lloyd D evelop m ent s o f J a p an e s e Buddhi sm ( Tr an s

,

a c t ion s o f th e As i a tic S ocie t y o f J s p an p

v ol xii , . , .
JAPANE S E BUDD H I S M 28 7
which we h ave already notice d in China ; for by far

th e greater n umber o f th e Japanese sects are only
offshoots from the Chinese sectarian development s .
From th e large number o f sacred books o n e or ,
another was selecte d fo r special study A highly .
gifte d teacher would develop an origin al view o f

Buddhist doctrin e from his o wn in dividual standpoin t
out o f his favourite book T he philo sophical and .
psychological observation s which had focussed them

selves o n the Mah ay ana doctrin e ( for this was th e
only o ne to penetrate into Japan ) were modi ed and ,
this was very easily accomplished owing to the vague

ness and arbitrariness o f this kind of philosophy .
T hu s there arose a new school which in course of ,
time ac q uire d special features in many external ways ,
such as the colour of the clothin g the ritual ,
Observances the in tern al arrangements o f the temples

, ,
and in more intimate ways in connection with their

h abits o flife T o enlarge upon th e differences between
.
the sects is impossible in our limited survey o f B ud

dh i sm ; it is also of little moment The differences .
lead to abstruse distinctions and th e points of diver ,
gence are to o u r thinking frequently far from clear

, , .
B ut in some sects there is a religious origin ality which

marks t hem o u t and will be dealt with later o n
, .
T he enumeration o f th e sects varies somewhat .
S ometime s are included those from a n earlier period

w hich have ceased to exist Accordin g t o this historic
.
reckonin g there are the followin g twelve

1 . Kusha . 5 S a nr o n
. . 9 J o do
. .
2 . J o jit s u . 6 Kego n
. . 1 0 Zen
. .
3 . Ritsu . 7 Te n d a i
. . 1 1 S hin
. .
4 . H OS S O . 8 S hin go n
. . 1 2 Nichir en
. .
288 B U DD HI S M AS A RE LI G I O N
Numbers 1 2 3 and 5 are no longer in exi s tence
, , , , .
If these are excluded from the list usually two other ,
small sects are added which were omitted in the

foregoin g ; besides which under number 1 0 are men , ,
t i o n ed its three large o ffshoots so that the number 1 2 ,
is again complete as follows ,
1 H o s sO
. . 5 . Yaz a nembutsu . 9 Obaku
. .
2 Keg o n
. . 6 . J Odo . 1 0 S hin
. .
3 T o ndai
. 7 . B inzai . 1 1 Nichiren
. .
4 S hingon
. . 8 . S GtO . 12 J i
. .
Here those mentioned as 7 8 and 9 are only sub , , ,
divi s ions o i number 1 0 in the rst list called the Zen ,
sect ; 5 and 1 2 are two small schools which were

omitted in the former list .
S o much by way o f general survey .
It must further be noted that the maj ority of these

prin cipal divisions contain quite a number o f smaller
varieties so that the total of religious parties may
,
well be rec k oned as thirty .
Amongst the schools mentioned in the rst list eight ,
o f the most noted have been imported from China .
Their names belong originally to Chine s e sects but ,
they are differently pronounced in Japan Thus .

,
Kusha is the Chinese school of Chii sh J 0 j1 t s u is ,
Ch ang shih Ritsu is L u Hoss o is Tz u an S a nro n is

, ,

,
S a n lun K e g o n is Hwa yen ( Hsien shou )

, Te n da i .
corresponds with T ien t ai and S hingon with the

,
Chinese Mi (cf p . The Japanese tr adition

.
records with regard to each o f these sects the name

of the Chinese teacher from whom they have received
the special form o f doctrine The four la s t divisions

.
o f the list J do Zen S hin and Nichiren ar e held

a , , ,
JAPANE S E B U DD H I S M 9
by the Japanese to be of Jap anese origin T his is .
only literally true a s regard s the last two H owever .

,
J 6d o and Z en h ave additionally Jap an ese founders ,
though as far as doctrin e is concern ed these two

, ,
school s are only Japanese parallels o f the Chinese

sch oo ls o f the Pure L and ( Chin g t u) and o f
Con te mplation
T he most in ue n tial sects at the pre se n t day are
the Z en S hi n S hin go n J Od o and Nichire n
, , , ,
.
As regards the number o f temple s th e Zen is ,
foremost if all it s rami cations are in cluded T his

, .
sect who se Japanese founder is E i sa i (A D

, . lays .
th e gr eatest stress o n contemplation and medita tion

for the main tenance of the reli g iou s life and is in ,
dubitably most in h armony with the fundamental

teach in g of G autama T hey carried this at rst to
.
such a pitch of oppositio n to the use o f books th at

bo oks were entirely discredite d B ut later o n they
abandoned this position None the les s they held
.
,
fast to th e value o f those special spiritual exercise s

in which th e fou n der of B uddhism saw th e true
means of deliverance from earthly bondage ( see p .
In connection with such endeavour the Zen school ,
always l aid special stress o n the train in g o f th e will ,
fo r the reg ulation o f all pas s ion an d for the con q uest
of physical desires B ecau se such exercises prove d
.
u sef u l for th e development of knightly and warlike

valour many o f the nobles (s a mu r a i ) in early times
,
,
as well as mi litary o f cers until quite recently took ,
p art in these self denyi n g and hardenin g practices

-
.
Wh ile it is not possible to assert that the warlike

valour and self sa c ric e of the Japanese actually
-
19
Sprang from this root yet it may at least be said ,
that Buddhism through the teaching o f the Zen

,
school has greatly strengthened a natural tendency

,
of the race .
The S hi n sect (its o r igI na l name was J OdO shin sect ) -
is also very worthy o f notice As regards inuence .

,
it perhaps ran k s higher than the Zen It has from .
the very beginning carried to its legitimate conclusion

the Mah ayana ruling principle as to the meaning o f
the faith This faith is an in ward rm conviction o f
.
the good will and help o f the deity more especially

-
,
of Amida who almost entirely holds the position o f

,
a highe s t g o d in the Western sense F aith is the .
foundation of the whole religious life Compared with .
the power o f faith all other religious devices prayer

, ,
good wor k s asceticism a monastic life are of

, ,
secondary value As a result o f such a conception

.
,
Buddhism has become more transformed in this sect

than in any other Most remark able o f all monas
.
,
ti c i s m the celibate organization o f disciples has

, ,
ceased to exist It is true that the S hin sect has

.
prie s ts ; but they are allowed to marry and no ,
peculiar way o f life is prescribed They only differ .
from laymen in dress when they are actually perform

ing their functions in the temple Judging by these .
outward s igns it is plainly evident that the Buddhi s m

,
o f this sect has wholly renounced its aloofness from
the world and that it tends more directly to stren gthen

,
the general human life by a simple religious faith .
In accordance with thi s much is done for the educa ,
tion and ins truction of the people both by preaching ,
and popular literature The S hin priests show them .

selves in clin ed to the adoptio n o f Western methods ,
yet at the same tim e they stron gly emph asiz e the
permanent value and missionary power o f B uddhism .
T he founder o f the S hin sect was S hinr a n S h o nin ;

A D 1 224 was the date o f its foundation
. . T his school .
is often designated by other name s as for instance , , ,
the Monto o r H o ng wa nji sect .
Th e S hi ngo n sect founded A D 8 06 by K 6 b 6 Daishi

, . .
,
is the ma ntra school o f Japa n that is to say th e ,
S chool where the magic word th e magic spell and

, ,
the magic posture (especially th e mud r a see p , .
h ave obtained a predomin ant in uence A mystic

philosophy in which all conceivable ideas even
.
those of Confucianism are mixed up with B uddhism ,
lends a somewhat deeper (esoteric ) signi cance to th e

otherwise grossly superstitiou s system .
T he J ddo sect (derivin g from Honen S h o nin also ,
kn own as E nko Daishi and foun ded in A D 1 1 7 5)

, . .
promulgated main ly the doctrine o f the western

Paradise beh i nd which the goal of Nirv ana com
,
p l e t e l y disappears The ruler

. of the western Paradise
is Amida and beside him are e n throned K wanno n
,

and Da i se i sh i T hese three h oly ones o f the western
.

land receive the highest veneration Faith in Am ida .
,
but at the same time a constant reiteratio n of his

name procures entrance in to Paradise
, .
Lastly the N ic hi r en sect deserves a short d e

,
scription It is known by th e name of its founder

.
,
Nichiren wh o founded it in A D 1 25 3 This remark

, . . .
able man wished to rein state in his rightful position

the historic B uddh a G autama together with his real
,
teachin g which he foun d more especially in the loto s

,
1 9 2
292 B UDD HI S M AS A RE LI G I O N
of the good law ( S a ddh arm a p undarika see p , .
in contra distinction to the worship o f Amida and

-
other erroneous doctrines But the historic Buddha .
is everywhere taken mystically ; the historic advent

in itself is nothing The true Buddha is a greatness
.
permeating all being the great illumination which ,
we must nd in ourselves Prayer recitation o f the .

,
sacred writings (or even o f the sacred form u la Namu ,
mya h6 renge kyO which means Praised be the book

,
o f the lotos o f the good law and a number o f pious

deeds lead to the right communion with the Buddha
,
o f the true illumination The invocation of Amida .

o n the other hand Namu Amida Butsu o r short er , , ,
N e mb u t su the usual prayer formula o f most other

,
sects) therefore is a sin and the doctrine o f the

, , ,
e fcacy o f faith in Amida is a wic k ed heresy As .
the mentioned S a ddh a r ma p u nda rika s atra which is ,
called in Japanese Hokke KyO is most highly prized ,
in the Nichiren sect the sect is often called after it

,
the Hok k e sect .
The Nichiren sect owing to its origin ( which was

,
an opposition to the S hingon and J Odo sects ) a n d to

the character of its founder is of an aggressive and ,
fanatical type The other organizations are n o t much

.
Opposed to o n e another although a certain spirit o f ,
rivalry is not lacking amongst t hem When in the .
summer of 1 902 at Y6 r 6 a small place in Central

, ,
Japan a congress was held in which all the schools

,
o f Japanese Buddhism took part it was only the ,
Nichiren sect which declin ed to send representatives

and to come in touch with the others This fact .
shows their feeling .

F B U DDH I S M
. AN D TH E L I FE OF TH E P E OP L E .
T he commo n people do not concern themselves

a b o ut the philosophical and religious distinctions o f
B uddhist learnin g They are much more concerne d
.

about what is called hob en This word comprehend s .
all sort s o f outward performances deeds o f virtue , ,
o f piety o f asceticism
, T o this class o f action
.
belong prayers in temples the repetition of sacred ,
formul a donations which are cast into the huge

,
chests usually s tandin g before the altars the main ,
te nan ce of monks listenin g to sermons abstinence

, ,
from meat or complete fasting gifts legacies pilgrim , , ,
ages to noted places and the like Among the ascetic

, .
practices which laymen undertake fo r the sake of

merit are man y very peculiar ones In the temple .
of the great B uddh a at Nara o n e of th e gigantic ,
wooden pillars supporti ng the roof has been bored

through so as to make a hole o f little more th an a
,
foot in diameter It is held to be meritoriou s t o pas s

.
the whole b o dy through this hole i n the pillar an d ,
the wor n away edges sh ow ho w fre q uently this has

-
been done In one of the H o ng wa nji temple s of

.
KyOt o visitors are show n long thick ropes which

, ,
were used at the b uil din g of the temple T he rope s .
are composed o f huma n h air which the z ealou s ,
adherent s have parted with for the service o f th e

sanctuary Under the principal altar of the greatest
.
te mple in Nagano an un dergroun d passage exte n ds

all round the altars It is con sidered meritoriou s to
.
m ake a complete tour of this th ree time s i n utter

darkn ess Ma ny simi l ar th in gs might be m en tio n e d
. .
O f course it is only the uneducated who practise
,
them Their obj ect is to avert by it some impend ing

.
misfortun e o r to obtain a more favourable incarna

,
tion ; fo r the idea o f recompense in the new birth has

been deeply impressed o n the popular imagination .
Many proverbs and proverbial sayings testify to this

fact . Thus it is said of a crippled o r sick child
,

In g wa na ko namely It is an i nywa child
, ,
.
I ny wa ( correspondin g to the Indian ka r ma ) is the

reward which in a new span o f life reproduces the
, ,
effect o f the past O ther proverbs of similar meaning

.

are, The echo answers the voice ( that is to say ,
The lot of life corresponds with the merit ) o r The ,

ower goes bac k to its root ; or E ven a shadow o r ,

a water wave springs from the result of a former life
-
.
A number o f stories current amongst the people have

the idea o f retribution as their basis Another idea .
which has tak en hold o f the popular mind owin g to

B uddhi s m is the idea o f universal transitoriness o f ,
the uncertainty of the nothingne ss and illusion o f all

, ,
events About this also there are many proverbs

.
, , ,

such as Life is li k e a light in the wind ; The
,

world is only a halting place ; What in creases must -

decrease ; In the three forms of existence there is
nowhere rest Not to know is to be a Buddha not ,
to see is Paradise .
The educated and cultured Japanese so far as he ,
yet adheres to Buddhi s m constructs his own system ,
o f thought from the Buddhist dogma He loo k s down .
not only o n the ignorant people but also o n monas ,
t i c i sm and o n worship But the e ssence of the .
dogmatic system appears to him in harmony with a

tenable scie n ti c aspect o f the world especially with

,
modern scienti c research T his view train ed B ud

.
dhi s t s have promulgated in numerous pamphlets ,
periodicals and larger w orks The tendency may be

, .
associated with the nam e of Reformed Buddhism but ,
the in dividual exponents vary much from o n e another .
Buddhist reform works strenuously for the di ffusion

of its teach in gs of which naturally Christendom is th e
, , ,
main opponen t The In ternational Buddhist Y oun g

.
Men s Associatio n Of Japan ( founded in 1 902 at T6 ky6 )

and the Japanese Buddhist Missio n in America ( at

S a n Francisco) represent such a B uddhist Reform
,
Mission T hey carry o n their work by means of

.
periodicals personal in ue n ce tran slatio n s and

, , ,
schools .
CO NCLU S I O N
TH E actual course of history is always a powerful

corrective to o n e sided theoretical views In the
-
, .
course o f history both the strength and the weakness

o f the original startin g point become evident
-
We .
have reviewed the historic developme nt o f Buddhism

and th e present result o f its growth as seen in widely
differin g countries What does history tell us of its
.
value as a religion
Wherever Buddhism has become the ruling factor ,
there is a strikin g uniformity in some results o f both

social and religious life They are as follows
.
.1 T he ba s is o f the true doctrine o f G autama I S

everywhere too narrow to become a foundation o f
national religion The genuine Buddhist ideas in
.
their subtle ph ilosophical character d o not satisfy o r

gr ip the simple individual They have to be coarsened
.
and completed therefore in order to meet the common

, ,
needs o f humanityas fo r instance by substituting

, ,
Paradise for Nirvana and by a doctrine o f G od and

,
the soul But these changes are an absolute contra

.
diction to the most important points in the B uddha s
teachin g
.
2 E ven these altered and limi ted Buddhist tenets

.
296
C O N CL U S I O N 297
are o n ly partially accepted by th e people in general .
T he rea l task o f education which ought to be under

taken by religion to regulate the attitude and strivin g
,
of the soul of the people B uddhism has evidently ,
bee n unable to accomplish B ut few of its funda .
mental ideas such as th at of future recompense an d

retribution have really won th e general co n sent .
Beyond that in all Buddhist countries the life o f the

,
people is more o r l ess domin ated by pre Buddhist -
underlying conception s T hese are mixed with the

.
n omin ally dominant Buddhism and where the latter ,
dies out (as in Korea ) these undercurrents reassert

,
themselves with undimin ished vitality .
3 Monasticism in s o far as it is made th e centre

.
,
of the religious life is everywhere seen to be a bar to

,
the progress o f religion o f society an d o f culture

, , .
Despite a certain educational work which it h as

accomplished in many ways in the long run it ,
-
tyranniz es th e laity ab so rb s all moral energy ; for

,
the support of th e monastic community becomes the

h ighest duty withdraw s the most important factors
,
from intellectual growth and con nes th e latter to a

,
n arrow compass T he st agn atio n o f so ma n y Asiatic

.
peoples e specially as it appears whe n comin g in

,
touch with the Western civili z atio n is main ly due to ,
the monastic prin ciple of Buddhism .
4 T aken as a whole monasticism ca n n owhere

.
,
S how su c cess in main tain in g the character o f a true
discipleship o f the B uddh a G autama Al though there .
is a great difference between the mo nks of Tibet a n d

Chin a o n the o n e h and and those of Ceylon an d ,
B urma o n the other h an d even th ose o f th e last ,

named countries in their overwhelming maj ority lag
far behind what the Buddha G autama would have
required o f his disciples The monastic life speaking
.
,
generally has not been the means o f leading indi

,
vi d u a l s to follow the master s way but has become

an institution governed by interested motives teachin g ,

the use o f the mendicant s garb and the mendicant s

bowl in order to conceal idleness and dependence upo n

the charity o f others .
If such results stretching over a period of more

than years amongst peoples o f the most dif
,
fe r e nt k inds are everywhere recurrent it must be ,
agreed that the main cause lies in the religion itself ,
in its f undamental character There can be no doubt.
that this is the case All those stereotyped defects

.
m anifesting themselves in the history o f Buddhism

S pring from the nature o f its original character A .
religion which undertakes to solve the world s riddle
by a specic In dian hued primitive philosophy and

-
, ,
which in order to set man on his feet and to place

,
him in the right environment tears him from all the ,
natural relationships o f life so that he may loo k upon

,
the world from without and apart from its having any
recognized positive value fo r him such a religion
bears within itself the germs o f all those evils which
we have met with History has but more clearly
.

demonstrated what was already latent in the founder s
system While n o t failing to recogni z e that Bud
.
dh i s m has been o f some value fo r the civilization o f

the people s under its inuence nor denying that ,
great and true thought s have been promulgated by

it above all without minimizing the ever powerful
,
-
C O NCL U S I O N 299
a n d admirable personality o f the B uddha himself ,
yet we must admit that as a religio n Buddhism is

entirely in ade q uate a n d the defect is so closely allied
,
to its deepest principle that it appears very q uestion

able whether it could ever be remedied except at the
,
price o f givin g up its own fundamental ideas .

L I TER ATU R E
'Th is lis t o f cours e do es n t a im a t c m l te ness b ut is mea nt as a

AB p
, , o o e ,
h elp fo mo re deta il d s tudi

r d h i t bibli
e es . u s o p hy i s gi ve n
by A T Edmunds in t h e J ourna l o f t he Pali Text

. . oc i e t y ,
B UDDHA AND H I S D OCT RI NE

I . THE .
1 . H Oldenberg Buddh a : hi s Li fe hi s D oc trin e

.
, , hi s Order .
T r an s l at ed from th e G erm an by W H oey . . Lo n don ,
1 888 .
2 . T W . . Buddhi s m bei n g a S k e tch o ft h e Li fe

Rh ys D a vid s -
a nd T e a chin g s Of G a ut am a t h e Buddh a ,
.
T went y r s t t h ou s a n d 1 907
-
. .
3 . T W R hy s D a vids Buddhi s m : i t s Hi s t ory an d Lit era t ure

. . .
(Am eric an Lec t ure s o n th e Hi s t ory o f R eli gi o us ) New .
Y ork an d Lon don 1 904 S econ d edi tion .
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t h e S u t t a Nip at a T r ans la t ed ( S a cred Boo ks o f t h e . .
E a s t vol x ) ,
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15 K E N e um annD e r W ah rh eit s p fa d ( D h amm a p a da )

C D ur o i s e ll eDh amm a p ada At th ak a th a : A Co m m ent ary
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t o th e Dha mm a p a d a Tr an sl a t e d in t h e periodic a l .
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Lon do n 1 901 , .
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1 905
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U eb ers . .
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3 2 W W a s s il je w D e r Buddh is m u s : s ein e D ogm e n, G e s chi ch t e ,
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a Life o f Buddh a By
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LI T E RA TU RE 303
S t J uli e nH i s t oire
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depui s l

an 6 29 ju s qu

en 6 45 .
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46 . S Be a l S i Y u Ki
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Th W a t t er s On Yu a n Ch w a ng s T r a vel s in I n di a 6 29 645

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S Be a lT r a vels o f F a h Hi a n an d S un g Y u n Buddh i s t
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70 . R eorg a n i z a t io n o ft h e S an gh a in U pper Bur ma B u dd hi s m .

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S piri t W or s hip prevaili n g i n Burm a Lo n don 1 906 .

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N a t s ; being a Tr a nsl a t ion o f a R a re Bur m e se M anus cript .
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B U DD H I S M OF TH E S H AN S TATE S S I AM
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LI T E RA T U RE 3 05
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A Lecl ereL o Bouddhi s m e a u Ca m b o dg e

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84 E . . S c hl a gint w e i t Buddh is m in Ti be t . Leip z ig a nd
Lon don 1 86 3 ,
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85 . L A We ddell Th e Buddh i sm o f Tibet or L am a ism

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J o wrna l of the B eng a l Asi a ti c S o ci e ty 1 8 95 p 259 e t s eq , , . .
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1 03 E H P a rk er C hi na an d R eligio n
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1 06 C P ui ni E n ciclopedi a S i nico Gi a ppo ne s e

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int o I ta li an o f p a rt s o f th e Wa kan s a n s a i tu ye ) .
1 07 E I E i t elH a n dboo k o f C h in e s e Buddh i s m ; bein g a

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S a nsk ri t C h i n e s e D ic tio n a ry H ongk on g 1 888 S econ d

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Leide 1 897 , .
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o n Buddh is t boo k s ) S h an gh ai 1 901 New edit ion

1 1 0 C de H a rl e z L e s ' u a r ant e
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L I T E RA T URE 3 07
113 T Wa tt ersTh e E igh t een Loha n Of C h ine s e Buddhi s t

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B U DD H I S M I N KOR E A ' I . .
Th ere exi st s n o s pecial work o n K ore an Buddhi s m S om e .
v alu a ble m a t eri al m ay be foun d in differe nt a r ticle s o f t he

followin g periodic a l
1 1 7 The K or ea R evi ew a m o n thly m a g a z ine S eoul 1 901 1 906
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B U DD H I S M I N J A P AN
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Buddhi s t S ec t s T o k yo 1 88 6
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1 8 84 (T hi s s e co n d edi t i o n o f M urr a y s H an dbo o k

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c ont a ins m ore de t ails o n Buddh ism t h an th e o th er

e di t io ns )
G Mige onAu J apon : Pr om e na d es au x S anctuai r es d o

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,
L H e arnI n Gh o s tly J a p an Bo s t on 1 903
L H e a rnK wa i dan Bo s t on an d New Y ork 1 908
. . .
,
.
.
, .
An e s a ki Ma s a h a rR eli giou s H i s t ory o f J a p an : An Ou t

-
lin e With t w o Appendice s On th e T ext ua l Hi s t ory o f

.
t h e Buddh i s t S crip t ure s T ok yo 1 907 .
S Kurod a Out l in e s o f th e M ah ay ana

.
,
. T o kyo 1 893 .
, .
A LloydD evelop m en t s o f J a p an e s e Buddhi s m

. Tr a ns .
a c ti o n s of t h e As i a t i c S o ci e t
y of J ap a n vol xxii , . .
,
p art iii p 3 37 c i s e q
.
, . .
A Lloyd
. Th e P r a i s e s o f Am ida S even Buddh is t
S er m o n s t r a n s l a t ed , T o k yo 1 907 .
, .
J T roup Ou t h e T en e t s o f t h e S h in sh in or T rue S ec t
.
,
o f Buddh i s t s Tr a ns a c ti ons of th e As i a ti c S oci e ty of

.
J ap a n vol xiv p a rt i p 1 e t s e q . Y ok oh a m a 1 8 8 6
, , .
J T roup Th e G o b un sh o or Ofum i o f B o nn y o S h enin

.
.
,
.
, .
. .
, ,
Tr a ns a c ti o n s of t h e A s i a t i c S oci e ty of J ap a n vol xvii , . .

,
p art i p 1 01 et s e q Y ok oha m a 1 899

.
, . .
, .
T M J a m e s A Di scour s e o n I nn it e Vi s ion Tr a ns a c
. . .
ti o n s of the As i a ti c S oci e ty of J ap an vol vu p art iv , . .

, .
,
p 26 7 e t s eq Y ok oh am a 1 8 89
. .
, .
T S u z uk iThe Ze n S ect o f Buddhi sm J ou rn a l of t he

. .
P d ti Tex t S oci e ty 1 906 07 ,

-
.
H Ha a s
. D i e S e ct en d es J a p ani s ch en Buddhi s mu s .
H eidelberg 1 905
H H a a s D i e K o nt empl a tiven S ch ul e n d e s Buddh ism us
.
,
. .
T ok yo 1 905 , .
K ob a y a sh i Th e D octri ne s o f Nich iren with 8 S k etc h o f , .
h i s Life S h ang h ai 1 893

.
, .
I NDE'
'The n umbers refer t o t he pages Of names ment ioned oft en in t he

.
boo k only t h e most noticeable pla ces a re given '

, .
B
.
Ac ari ya , 1 00 B a na , 98 , 1 1 6 , 1 22 ci s eq .
A d a pea k 1 08 ci seq
m

s , . B ge
a na , 1 07
Ad i Buddha 1 5 9 ,
Be g d ily ,
a , 1 1 3 1 29 ,
Admi ss ion 29 ,
gr
Be ls , ur
ea t o f B ma , 1 38
Ag e fo r ent ering t h e m onk h ood ,
p o f J a a n , 27 6
29 Be re
na s , 5 , 47
Alexan der t h e G rea t , 40 B h a dd ak ac c a , 3

Am ara pura s ec t , 1 1 8 et seq .
B h o t a n , G an r dL
am a o f, 1 86
Amid a , 27 8 B i n d u sar a , 41
Am i t ab ha , 1 59, 1 90 Bi z ru
n u , 280
An, 203 B d id r
o h h a ma , 8 0, 21 3, 23 9, 280
Ana n 28 0 ,
Bod i v
h sa t t a , 5 2, 1 60 et s eq , 1 6 6 .
Ana nda 6 , 1 6 4, 21 2 et s eq .
An s t t a
,
ce or ble t s in t m e ples , 229 B on irel gion , 7 2 et s eq .

, 1 57 , 1 6 2,
g u
An t i o n s Go na ta s , 42 1 82
Ant ioc u
h s I I , 42 B o nz e 220
,
e
.
ur d pur
An a ha a , 6 5, 1 1 2 B o t re , 4 47 , 6 5 et seq
-
, , 1 08 , 27 3
r d gb
A a k a n a a a , 1 38 Br a h m a, 1 06 , 1 25
rc i c ure
A h te t , 1 35
Br i g
a nd n i i i ion
a t t he n t a t ,
21 9
r
A ha t , 5 3, 1 6 4, 21 2 Bro ze l er
n ant n s , 27 5
Aryad eva , 5 6 Budd ha , 1 , 4

ce ici
As t s m , 4, 1 7 , 227 et seq Budd ha Dha rma S a mgha
, , , 27
B ud d h ag h o sa 3 8 6 8 t s eq
.
e
As 111 , ,
.
As u u
k , 27 8 Buddh a legend 6 et s eq ,
.
ASo k a , 2, 41 45 , 6 4 -
B u d dh as asan a sa m aga m a , 1 1 9, 1 41
ur
As as , 1 25 Budd has o f a e rlier i e
t m s , 48
A va gh o s a , 7 , 5 6 , 1 6 4 Budd i h st S t o fG a t
ocie y re Bri i ta n
Ati Sa , 7 3 , 1 6 4 a nd I an rel d
1 41 ,
i
At t a nm n ts 26 e ,
Av a l o k i t eSv ara , 7 5 , 1 6 0 C
w i g
A a k en n o f fa t h ( t ea t s i r ie on ) C mb di 7 0
a o a,
56 Canon t h e Budd his t
, , 32-3 5 , 55
310 B U DDHI S M AS A RE LI G I O N
C usa l nexu s 1 3
a ,
Dhri t a r a t ra , 1 6 3
Ch i ji 221
a -
, Dh u k h a n , 1 6 8 g
Ch ndr gupta 40 t s q
a a , e e . Di p am k ara , 1 5 8, 21 0
Ch ng n s 26 2
a -
a - a, Di p a va m sa , 35
Ch ng ta o lin g 232

a - -
,
Dsi cipli ne 1 39, 1 7 6 , 233
,
C h nt ng 204

a

a ,
Do j e , 1 6 7
r
C h n t sung 238 240

a ,
- r
D es s o f t h e mo n ks , 97 , 1 7 2,
Ch rm s 1 91
a ,
26 1
C hi a l n 2 1 3 21 6
-
a , ,
D ugp a se ct ,
1 82
Ch i h yin t 209
e - -
o,
Ch i n lung 21 2

e -
,
E 0
Ch ih kuo 21 5
-
, w
Ea s t and e s t a n k , 224 r
Chinese religi ous currents , 200 ig r icl
E h t a t es o f o e t , 1 01 pr p r y
Ohi ng t s ng 2 30 -

a , ig
E h t e e n a n ent s e t s , 39 ci c
Ch ing t u t sung 243
,
ig
E h t fo ld p
a t h , 1 8 -20
Chiu h s han 236
-
ua- , E1 s a , 2 8 9i
Ch o i d e , 1 6 8 E l u 99
Ch oj e 1 8 4
,
,
Ema d b , 27 3
C re
ho t n 1 56 ,
Emma 6 , 27 9
c i
Chu h h 224
-

,
Enk o Da s h , 291 i i
C l g di
h u la an 1 40 -
, Es al ak eli a , 1 25
C u d
h n a, 5 r l
E te na c t , 51 iy
C br
o udd i
a in B h s t ar t 1 05 . x lu i
E c s o n f o m mo nk h r
, 30 ood
C uci i
o nf ppo i g Bud
an s m O s n
d hi s m , 8 2
F
C u cl
o n i s 3 7 -39, 42, 5 5
.
i
,
Cur zo n, o , 1 32
L rd Fa H s a n, 5 7 -59, 7 9
i g u g
Fa h s n t s n , 242
D Fa t h , o we o f, 5 4, 290
i p r
i g
.
Fa m n , 220
-
Da ibutsu a t Kyat o , 27 6 Fa n h a n , 204, 223

gc g
at Ka ma kura , 28 4

i w g
Fa n t en a n , 21 3
- -
at N ra a ,
27 6 i
Fa s h h , 220
-
i ic i
Da n h 27 8 , g
Fa t a n , 204, 21 6
Dai pu ng , 1 88 F e B h as , 1 58 et seq
iv udd .
Da i s ei s hi , 2 7 9 l r o ri g
F o we ffe n s, 1 21
Dakk i ni s , 1 6 1 F0 , 207
Da l a d a w a m a a a , 1 1 0 lig w F0 , fa , s h an , 21 5 g
l il
Da a a ma, 7 5, 1 84 et seq . Fo s m, 94
i
bu l
Da m l a , 1 1 3 Fo o t pri
nt s o f t h e B h a, udd
p
Da a , 1 6 9 1 08 ci s eq , 1 38, 27 6 .
c y Budd i
De a o f h sm i n I n dia 59 Eu on , 27 9
i
,
63 Fu jaju , 27 8
De m o n P n ri ces ( Ti beta n) 1 62
D e va d a h a , 2
,
G .
Deval e , 1 07 Ga ing d ouk 1 31 -

,
v
De as t h e t wenty o r twenty f ur -
o Ga ing 0 k 1 3 1
G i ng O 1 3 1
, , ,
21 3 a -
,
Dc vil a n e s 1 25
-
d cr Ga ld an 1 8 8
Ga n dharva s 1 6 3
, ,
Dh a n a fija ni , 1 4 ,
r i
Dh a a n , 6 0, 1 92 Gaut ama 1 ,
INDE '
J
Gelon g 1 7 0
.
Gelugpa s ect
,
, 7 4, 7 6 , 1 80 J a mb h al a , 1 6 4
Ge ny e n , 1 6 9 J a n -t ng to , 21 0
-
Ge rg a n 1 6 9 J p e
a a n s e a lp b
h a e t ,
91
G esh , 1 83
e
,
Bud i
d h s m i n K o e a 26 6 r .
G t sul 1 6 9
e
Budd ih s t M ss n , 295 i io
G i ft s to t h e
,
m onks , 1 21 et seq Budd i h st s t a n to r velli g

1 43 1 95
C i
h na , 8 9
.
Go b h a ra na , 7 8 c
a n o n , 8 9 et seq .
Go pm a, 1 68 ui
J e s ts , 8 5, 91
C o ps , 3 ec
J Od o s t 291 ,
a, 2 7 4 Jo h f M n t o eC r i
o v n o 8 4
B
Go s h a n o ,
G ra c o c tr i a n S t a t
-
es 48 , J o n sh an , 229
Guardi an K in gs o f h ea ven ,
1 63 Jowo g
K h a n , 1 8 7 , 1 98
203 21 3 , 21 5
Guru Rimp o K
,
Che , 7 2 .
K ad am pa s e t , 1 7 9 c
H .

u g
K a i k a n , 21 4
K ama kur a 28 4 ,
c
H a hi ma n , 2 8 1 K a n ak a m u n i , 45
Ha n h o , 2 34
gc w g
K a n -h s i , 21 2
el
H l , 5 4 1 90 K a n i k a , 49
H e r mi t e j ur
Kan , 1 7 8
H iak u sa i , 8 8 i g
K a O m n s su, 2 35
- -
H i e i za n , 2 8 3 Ka p i l a v a s t u , 2
i y
H n a an a 5 5 , K a r gyu pa s e t , 1 8 1 c
ir g
H a a n a 91 , K a rm a p a s e t , 1 8 2 c
b
H a en , 2 93 K a rm as h a r , 1 97
e
H o kk k y 6 , 292 K as b O, 2 80
o d
H n a 27 1 , K aSia p a , 3 8 , 1 6 4, 21 2
H eri uji , 8 9, 28 3 K aSi a pa Mat a n a , 7 8 et seq g .
H o s h a n 220 g , K a tak a na , 91
H ash a 27 8 , K a t t a di a s , 1 24
H p o ngyi , 1 3 1 Kh a np o , 1 8 3
ie
Hs n s h ts n 241 ou u g , Kh um b h a n d a s , 1 6 3
g
H s i fan s a n s h an , 2 1 1 g uu u
K h t kt , 1 84
H s i yu -c hi , 8 4
-
K h y o u ng , 1 32
H ti , 1 3 6 g g
K im - a n sa n , 26 2 -
H a n moi m nta ns 235

u g -
ou i , i g i
K n o f S am s nt n pre e i g clo i g
th n ,
H ua yen h n , 241 c i g 1 5 2 1 54
-
K i shi b ojin , 28 1
iu i g
K k an , m nas t o
s n a , 80 erie er
K O, 2 03
I d a te n, 28 1 i i
K 6b 6 Da sh , 91 , 28 3 , 291
eg i
I k a m , 28 3 K o k ur a i , 8 5 et seq .
g
I ma e s vi v i e d 21 4 ,
K o mp i r a , 2 8 1
d cy i pire
I n o S t h a n Em
- 49 ri
K o a , 86
r i l Bud i
I nt e na t o n a
,
dh s t Ass ocia re
Ko an a h a e t , 8 7 lp b
t io n 295 ,
r
Ko a, 27 3
I Ts i ng 7 9 ,
K o sa l a , 5 , 3 6
31 2 BUDD H I S M AS A RE LI G I O N
K ayas a n 90 283 , ,
Ma it reya 1 66 ,
Kua ng m u 21 5 , Mal i ga k a nd a , 1 1 1
Kube ra 1 6 3 , Ma l w a t t e , 1 1 1
Kubla i K h a n 7 4 ,
l
Ma n da a o ffe n , 1 7 3 ri g
K u d a ra 8 8 ,
j
Ma n u sr , 1 6 1 , 21 1 i
Kumbum 1 80 ,
r
Ma nt a , 6 0, 1 92
K u mi rajava , 8 0 Ma n t ri s m, 6 0
u
K s ha n Em e , 49 pir Ma o p n 230
K u i n a g a r a , 6 , 47 r
Ma an a n a , 8 6
K u t , 26 8 c
Mar o P 0 10 , 7 4, 8 4, 21 2
w
K a nno n , see Kwanyi n ic i
Ma r h 1 6 1 , 281 ,
w
K a nt , 21 3 i Ma ud galy ayana , 1 06 , 1 33, 1 6 4
K wa nwu . 28 1 y
Ma a, 2
K w a nyi n , 7 5 et seq , 21 0, 21 6 , 2 7 9 Ma ad evi , 2
KyOt o , 90, 282, 293 M ic l w r
a o k o f m nk s , 1 1 6 o
d i
Me i ta t o n, 24 2 7 , 222 et seq - .
L .
Me g as t h ene s , 40 et s eq .
Lm dr
Me na n e , 49
a a, 73 170 ,
d g
Me n o n , 1 5 6
La m a is m a nd o ma n Ca t ho licis m
R
5
,
i
p yc i
Me t em s h o s s , 9 ci seq
li c i g
M ao fa en h u a h n , 241 et seq
.
China
.
in , 76 i i l
M h n ta e , 6 5 , 1 1 2
Laym 20 et s eq
en , .
i
M l o to , 21 0, 21 5
-
Lh a K h a n , 1 6 7 g
-
Lh am o , 1 6 3
ii d
M l n a , 49
Libr ry ili y
M t a r m o nks , 1 43, 26 3, 28 3
, 23 2
a
Ming Ti 7 7 -
Li u g
e n t s n , 243
Mi ro k u 27 9
,
Li g Tib
n ( et ) , 1 6 8
Mag e l lana 1 06
,
Li r ur i
te a t e t n ge d by Buddhism , Mo na ste ries i n Lh as a 1 86
,
Mo nas t ic li fe 1 7 23 et s eq ,
.
L o h a n , 21 2
,
Mo ngo l ia n in ue nce i n Ti b et
-
73
-
i
Lo s h h to , 209 -
et s eq .
,
Lo to s o wer , 1 94
Mo nj u 27 9
Lo t ea v 1 8 4 a,
Mo o n 27 9
,
Lo y n g 7 8 8 0
a , ,
,
Mo ra li t y 1 4 21
Lumbini 2 47 , ,
Muda n g 26 7
, ,
L n t s ng 2 30
,
u a
Mudr a 1 3 3 1 95
-
,
, , 209
Ln s h an , 23 4
- ,

g
Lii t s a n , 230
-
u g
Lii t s n , 240 a . seq . N
N ac hu ng , 1 97
M Nga 28 4, 293
a no ,
Ma ga dh a 5 3 6 , , N ag arjuna , 56 , 1 6 4
Ma gic fo rmul a 1 91 Nga as, 1 6 3
N a m
,
Ma h a ga ndi 1 41
-
, h a n sa , 26 3 -
Ma ha mya t mun i 1 38
- -
, Nra a , 90, 283 , 293
Ma h a N aya ka 1 02 I l l , , N ri
a t a , 28 4
Ma h aprajapa t i 2 , w r ip
N a t o s h , 1 47 -1 5 0
Ma h as t h am a p rap ta 21 1 ,
N ri i
es t o an s m, 8 4
Ma h ayana o ri gi n o f 5 0 5 6 , ,
-
Nic ir c
h e n s e t , 2 91
Ma h e ndra , 6 5 et s eq . N i d anas , t h e t w e e , 1 3 lv
INDE ' 31 3
N id 8 7 o, Pra yer a gs 1 93
-
,
Nikko 90 284 , ,
wh ee l 1 5 6 1 93 27 4 , , ,
Nimbus 207 et seq ,

. Prayin g fo r t h e d e a d 25 5 ,
N i ng m pa s ect 1 82 a ,
Pre a chin g 1 08 1 1 6 286 , , ,
N i O, 28 0
- Precept s t h e te n 22 5 4
, , ,
Nirvan 1 5 t seq a , e . P r i ya d a r Si n , 41
Nun s 28 1 7 0 et seq
, ,
.
, 244 et seq . Pr p r y
o e t o f t e rn l es , 1 1 4, 1 7 6
N y o ra i , 27 8 Proverb s t n i g
B h sm , by udd i
294
O
P ole y P il delp u
t m h a h s , 42
Puc g
.
h u n , 26 2
Omi m n ta n 237 ou i , ie
P u -h s n, 21 1 , 21 6

0 mi t o h n , 243 c i g Pu k ha n -s e , 26 3
-
Omi to fo , 209
'
g
P u - t a i -h o - s h a n , 2 1 2
O a r cle
s , 25 1 e t s eq . P u t o , 21 6 , 23 5 et seq
-

.
Os a ka , 28 3 P i
y S h n , 1 31
t -
i
R .
P ab b ajj a, 96 Ra b ja mpa , 1 8 3
P a d ma p ani , 7 5, 1 60 ul
R ah a , 3
P a ma S a m b h a v a , 7 2 1 6 4
d -
, Raj a ih a , 37
gr
Pa o a (in h na ) , 249 et seq
gd C i .
Ra k a n , 280
Pa k h 8 5 et seq , 8 8
c i . R akSasa 1 25 ,
Pa n h n E n , 7 6 , 1 86 , 1 88
c e rde i y ec
Ram e n a s t , 1 1 8 et seq .
P ndit
a 1 84 a, eg L
R e nt ( a t h asa ) , 1 86
P a nsa l a , 1 03 ei c r i
R n a na t o n ( g a es o f) , 1 4 rd
P a ra di e
s , 5 4, 1 90, 243 Re pre i
se n t a t o n s o f t h e ha , Budd
P a r a k ra m a a h , 6 7 , 1 1 0 B u 1 04 1 06 , 1 3 3 , 1 6 6 , 2 07
-
P at a li pu t ra , 40, 42 v lv g ibr ry
Re o i n l a , 27
4
P ati mo kkh a , 3 0 B i nz 6 , 27 4
P ri rc
at a hs , 3 7 Ry o b u S h n t s m, 91 i oi
Pva a, 5
P av ar a na, 3 1 S
Pya a , 1 35
cr d u ber
Sa e n m ,
1 08 1 7 8 ,
P e r ah era , 1 25
Per ecu
s ti o n of h sm i n Budd i rib
S a kh a t e s 49 ,
C i h na , 82 S ak yamuni 1

,
Pil ge a s , 25 2 et s eq S a m a n tab h ad ra 1 6 1 , 2 1 1 ,
ery
.
P wi t h sa e cr d i crip io S a md i ng , m o nas t , 1 6 2, 1 8 7
'
rs ns t ns ,
250 S a mg h a mi t ra, 6 5
Pi -
l n-to , 209 e
S a nn , 1 24
Piri t , 1 23 S a ns k t ns t a o f P a , 55
ri i e d li
p S a n ts a n
g l o u , 2 31

P i ru v ana o t a , 99 -
-
P o ll u n aru a 6 6 , 1 1 2 ,
w g
S a n a n se , 26 2
- -
P o ta a (a tl L
ha sa ) , 1 8 6 et s eq . s ari p u t ra 1 06 , 1 33 , 1 6 4
,
P o t i t a m , 21 3
- - ~
o S as k ya , 1 8 8
Pyo a , 1 1 6 , 1 22, 1 44 S as ky a pa s t, 1 8 2 ec
P o ag e , 1 02 dw
S a a a , 1 31
y
P ra t i m ok s h a , 3 0 ch l w r d e by
S oo o k on m o nk s , 1 1 5 ,
Pra t i t y a s a mu t p ad a , 1 3 1 27
31 4 BUDDHI S M AS A RE LI G IO N
c
S e t s , t he o l d h t n, 39 eig ee v i
S as t k a , 1 94
i i
S e sh , 27 9 C
S y el h o n , 8 7

g
S e J o n , 87 g y b l
S m o s , 1 94
l i
S e f mm o l a t o n , 228 si seq
-
i .
T
s an gc h an- 233 g ,
.
S ng h ui 2 3 3
-
, Ta h s un i g
ao ti e n,
g
S an ka n 233 -
g . T a i Ts u ( m e ro r ) , 231

g
S an l n as f, 2 33
- -
i Ta m o ts u sh , 21 3
~ ~ ~
e
S nni n , 282 Ta nj , 1 7 8ur
S err 1 8 8
a, Ta nt sm, 6 0 et seq
ri .
S ev n B udd ha s
e , 1 58 Ta o sm , 8 3 et s eq
i .
S h a m an 220 , Ta a, 1 6 1
r
S ha mi , 220 i
Ta s h h c hi , 21 1 , 27 9
- -
S h an ( as t o m l o na m ) , 201 e Ta shi h m o ,
L u p 1 88
S h an tr es , 0 ib Ta t s a n ( T b e t ) 1 6 8

g i ,
S h a t ze , 7 6
ig T m o a mo nas t sm , 1 27
e p r ry ici e
S hin ( B mes e ) , 1 29 ur 3 6 2-
i g
S h n o n se t 2 91 c , Tengu 28 7
,
S hi nr a n S h o ni n, 291 Te nnin , 2 8 1
i
S h n se t , 290 c Th a t ha na b ai ng , 1 31
i i
S h nt o s m , 8 9 et s eq , 92 . T i
h e n , 1 34
S h i t e nn o , 280 T r
hi s t , 1 1
d
S ho en, 2 8 1 Th u pa ra m a a a a, 6 6 dgb
S h Ojo, 282 Tb
i e t a n a ha e t , 7 2 lp b
S h o rt 27 3 , c o
a n n, 7 3 et seq .
S h at o ku Da sh , 8 9 i i Ti e n , 203
u
S h o t s o , 224
-
Ti
e n t a i m o nt a ns , 23 5
-

u i
wy
S h a Da o n , 1 3 7 g Ti
e n t a i t s n , 241 u g
Ma w Daw , 1 3 7 Ti pi t a ka , 3 2
S a n Da w, 1 3 7 i
Ti -s h h , 21 3
i e c C yl
S a m se s e t i n e o n , 1 1 8 at seq .
Ti ss a , 6 4- 6 6
S idd r h a t ha , 1 Ti t sa n
-
g
21 1 ,
igiri 1 1 3 , TOd a iji , 27 5

S ll 85 ci s eq
i a, . T y
ak a, 2 83
S iv 1 06 1 25
a, , T lr c
o e an e , 46
S i x r e gi o ns o f ex is t ence , 1 6 5, 1 8 5 To oth sa , cr d
e , 6 6, 1 1 0
S le pin g B uddha 209
e , T rii
o ,
27 5
S o shi d o 27 2 , T r
e a, 27 5
l
S ou , 1 1 , 1 2 To -w e n , 2 1 5
S ri p ad a , 1 08 Tr di i verb l
a t on, a , 31
S o n Ts an Ga mpo , 7 1 , 1 8 7
r g Tr c ur
an es , t he f o , 26
8 8 11 , 203 Tr i ri
a ns t o n es s , 9
S t a tes , t he fo u f m ss , 26 r or le Tripi t ak a , 3 2
p
S ta s , 45 T c
sao h im , 2 1 4
S uddh od ana , 2 c g
Ts ng h a n , 21 5
u ri g
S ffe n , 8 Ts o ngka pa , 7 4, 1 6 4, 1 7 9
S u m ang a l a, 1 1 2 Tu c i- h en
, 224
S u n , 27 9 Tu-h ui , 220
u d
S n o , 85 Tu lk en , 1 8 4
u g
S n Y un 7 9 T w e nt e h t B y ig udd h as , 1 5 8
T y our ud
,
S u va rn a b h mi , 6 8 - w e nt f B dhas , 1 58
INDE ' 31 5
Tzu an t s n , 242 u g Was e o

s as n, 1 07 , 1 1 3, 1 21 ,
Tza ka i , 235 , 2 41
- 1 44
W ei t o , 21 3 , 21 5
-
U .
W en -s h u , 2 1 1 , 21 6
U n men, 87 W el
h e , 1 94
U Paijh a a , 1 00 y o fl i fe , 1 6 5
p
U ah 1 6 W o m n , 28 e
U pas a mp a d a, 1 00 e
W o od n s h , 21 7
U p osa t h a , 30, 1 22, 1 44, 1 5 3, 221 W u i an sh l g
h n ou c i g 243

,
U a , G an
rg r dL
am a a t , 1 86 W u t a i - s h a n , 23 6

r
U na, 1 05 Wu - , 80 et seq Ti .
U Sni Sa , 1 04
V .

V a i d r ya Buddh a ,
21 5 ' a vier , 91
V a i al i 5 , 3 9
,
V a i ra v a n a , 1 6 3
Vaj a am, 1 6 1
r Ya han
g
V ajr a ar ah i 1 87 ,
Ya k sa
1 31 ,
, 1 25 , 1 6 3
Va s a 1 07
r ,
Y a k u s h I N y o r aI , 2 7 8
V a su b h a n dhu 5 6
Veda , 3 m
Y a a , 1 62
Y a s o dhara , 3
V e s t a ri a n s t , 253 ec g c l
g
V i yed a ya o , C llege
112
Y o a s hoo , 60
c re ce
Y 6r6 , o n fe n a t , 292
V h a a 1 03 et seq
i r ,
.
-
i
Y o s h h to , 21 5, 27 8
-
V irad h a k a , 1 6 3 C u g
Y Ua n h a n , 6 1 et seq
- .
k ga , 1 6 3
A
jg? 1 25
e
Y u h -chi , 49
V t
o ive o eri g
ff n s , 1 09, 1 3 8
W .
Wa ll pa in t in gs
- 1 04, 1 06 , Zayd e e , 1 35
Ze n s ec t , 289
,
25 8 , 2 7 2
B I LLI N G AND S ON S L TD . P R I NTERS GU I LDFORD

P r o b s t h a in

s O r i e n t a l S e r ie s .
Vo l I . .
Th e I nd i a n Cr a ft s m a n . By A K . COOMARA
.
S W AMY , D Sc . Crown 8v o
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int er e s t ing ac cou nt of t he Cra ft Gild s i n India , a nd
t h eir va l u e a s t het i ca l l s ocially sp i ri t u a lly

y , ,
.
Vo l . II B u d d h i s m a s a Re l i g i o n : I t s Hist ori cal

.
D e velopment a nd i t s Pres ent Day Condit ion By -

.
H HACKMANN Lic Theol Cro wn 8vo pp 3 20

.
, . . .
, . .
GS . ne t .
Vol . III Th e M a s na v i
. By JALAL AL DI N RU MI . .
Boo k t he S e cond T ran slat e d fo r t he r s t t ime int o

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En glish Pros e wit h a Co mmenta ry by C E W I LS ON

,
. .
,
B A Prof essor o f P e r si an London Univ e rsity Coll e g e

.
, , .
TW O V ol s Price each 1 5 s net :

.
,
.
Other Vo lum es to fo l l o w .
B AYN ES , H .

ld e a ls of t h e Ea st . l 2mo . 3s . 6d .
Co ntent s : Th e Noble Ei ght fold Pa t h Th e Ta o o f La o Tze

G i ta Zo roas ter I sl am s Allah e tc e t c
.
Th e B h a ga vad . .

, .
, .
Th e I d e a o f G o d , a nd t he Mo r a l S e ns e in t he
Li g h t o f La n g u a g e . pp xiii ' 343 1 0s 6 d 8 vo .
,
. . . .
A P hilol o gica l I nquiry i nt o t h e Ris e o f S piri t ua l Co ncepts .

B U DDH IS T R E V I EW J . ou m al of t he B ud d h is t
S i
o c et y . V o l I no w . . re ad y . R o y a l 8 vo .
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7 s 6d
. .
CO RN A B Y , W . A .
A S t ri n g of Ch i n e s e P e a c h
S t o ne s : A C oll ect io n of T al es a nd Leg e nd s . 8 vo .
Ill u st r at ed . 1 4s .
ERV A D .
Th e G e ne a l o g y of t he N a o s a ri P a rs i
P ri e s t s . 4t o . 25 s .
G RI FF I TH S a n d R O G ER S In . P e rs i a

s G o ld e n
Da y s ( S t o r y o f K u sr u a nd S hiri n) . 8 vo . 2S 6 d . .
K LI EN E, C H AS Ang Io -Ch i ne s e Ca l e n d a r
.
, A O . .
17 5 1 -2 0 0 0 . 4t o pp v i ' 5 00 ha l f ca lf 42s
.
, .
,
-
. .
LLOY D, A .
Ad m i r a l To g o . A B iography . 2s 6 d . .
Th e P r a i s e s o f Am i d a Buddhi st S ermo ns . .
T r ansla t e d fr o m t he Japanese 3s . .
MAY ERS , Fr . W Tr e a t i e s
. b e t w e e n t h e Em p i r e
o f Ch i n a a n d t h e F o r e i g n P o w e rs . 8vo .
, pp . 354 .
1 906 . 1 5s .
N I ZAM I La i li a nd M e i mi n Tr anslate d
. . fr o m t he
P e r sian by J ATK INS ON and L C BYNG . . . . l 2mo .
,
clot h 5 s . .
P ERLMANN , S . M Th e J e w s
. i n Ch i na . ls .
P ROB S THAI N S B u d d h i st Ca t a l o g u e ,

1 90 8 . Is .
V I DYA B HU S ANA. S . Ch .
H is t o ry o f t h e Me d i ae v a l
S c h o o l o f Lo g i c (Buddhist a nd Jain) . 8 vo .
, pp . xxi
1 88 . 1 909 . 1 0s 6 d . .

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PR O B S T H AI N S O R I E N T A L S ERI ES

FRO M TH E G E R MAN , REV IS ED

D oc to r a nd P r ofesso r of The o l ogy at the Un i ver s i ty

D E D I CAT E D B Y AN OLD PUPI L .

T H E RE seem s to be n o need of b o o k s o n B uddh i sm ,

yet t h o ugh the literature on th i s subj ect is in deed

immense a serious gap remains to be lled In vain

one looks about for a book which represe n t s Bud

co untries under its s way T he writers on B uddhism

either deal chie y with the Bu ddha him self a n d with

single country Ceylon o r B urma or T ibet or Chin a

( as S pence Hardy B ig a n de t Waddell E dkins and

though more complete than many others is far from ,

bein g an exhaustive rec ord Northern Buddhism he

only slightly touches upon B ut there should be a

work showing B u ddhism a s a w ho le begin nin g with ,

G autama B uddha himself tracin g th e lin e o f historical

development which his religio n took over all the lands

present day condition s an d organi z atio n s everywhere

This is th e scope o f the volume now before u s T h e .

book is written fo r a gener al public avoidin g purposely ,

display of scholar s hip a s much as possible At the .

same time it should be under s tood that it is entirely

tion s o f o ur be s t scholars but o n long personal investi

g a ti o n s made o n the spot .

The author h as studied B uddhism fo r more than

nearly ten years and has travelled a good deal in

these lands with the special obj ect o f a s certaining the

in per s onal contact with Chinese Japanese Korean , , ,

Tibetan Burme s e and S inghale s e Buddhism Livin g

in the mona s teries watchin g the mon k s and the lay

devotees inquiring about ritual s and institutions he

learnt thoroughly what Buddhism as a practical

Having returned from E a s tern Asia to E urope the ,

writer wa s asked by a publi s her to contribute a boo k

gladly con s ented a s he thought it very necessary at a

tim e when Buddhism is discussed m o re and more in

q u a in t e d with this religion a s a w ho l e laying stress ,

especially o n the modern feature s o f its lif e The .

boo k i s meant to give a fair and impartial statement .

Of cour s e that does not mean to restrain from criticism .

F acts must be seen as they are And some o f the .

facts which o n e has to face in studyin g B uddhism

less animo s ity and one s idedness have been avoided

Also there is no arguing from the dogmatical point o f

and th e social ch aracte r o f B uddhism are th e poin t s

T he publicatio n bein g in G erm an friend s suggested

a tra n slation in to E nglish becau se the E nglish ,

speaki n g people are those most interested in the topic .

I had the privilege of nding a very congenial trans

for a considerable time .

Th e book has been revised and much enlarged for

which h ampered the G erm an edition B ut vast as .

the subj ect is concentration seemed necessary Par

t i c u l a rl y the system o f th e B uddha h im self ha s

been stated in the most concise way so as only to ,

give a cle ar understandin g o f the rul i ng ideas Wh o .

want s to go more deeply into detail s h as books

hin ts on th e best literature are given at the end O f t h e

1 Publi s h ed in 1 905 . Tii b in g en , J . C B

(g ) SCH OO L S O F C HIN E S E B UDD HI S M

722 n and t as E ngli sh m n and t

Do uble consonant s are pronounced as two distin ct