1691 "^J*^' WA ASIA lijiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii^ I PRECEDENTS I OF _ I Princess Tlioodamma Tsriri| = With Notes and A Vocabulary. = I Chk. J. BANDOW. I I Rs. 2. 5 ^iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii(iiiMii)iiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiii[iiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiir; LIBRARY ANNEX M' ".1 GR aogigrissi""'"" '■">™^ DATE DUE ni|p 1^ i^'WiT GAYLORD PRINTED IN U-S.A Cornell University Library The original of tliis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924023260536 THE PRECEDENTS OF TRANSLATED BY Chr. J. BANDOW, WITH NUMEROUS EXPLANATORY NOTES AND A VOCABULARY 0/ the Pali and difficult Burmese words in the text. RANGOON: c. EEi{N;srr>. 'AMERICAN Missio:{ pkess.' 1881. INDEX IXTRCDUCTION, . . . . . . . . P^qe 1 I. The distribution of the three Pups, . . „ 2 II. The Fox and the Otter, . . . . . . ,,3 III. King Maha Manda and the Farmer, . . „ 5 IV. The Rahan Kummara Kassabha and Thoo- hte Puuya, . . . . . . „ 9 V. The four Brahnaans, . . . . . . „ 14 VI. The Prince, Nobleman's son, the son of a commoner and the Thoo-hte's daughter, „ 18 VII. The Thoo-hte's son, the Thoo-hte's daughter and the Young-man Peta, . . . . „ 27 VIII. The Ship-owner and the Goat-herd . . „ 33 IX. The passionate young Lady, . . . . „ 34 X. The foolish Brahman and the Jackal, . . ?, 35 XL The three men, who associated with an im- proper person, . . , . . . „ 36 XII. The high minded Thoo-hte and the Barber, „ 38 XIII. The irritable Potter and the Washerman, „ 40 XIV. The Brahman and his wife and daughter, ,, 41 XV. The Thoo-hte's son, the Ichneumon, the Cat, and the Dog, . . . . . . „ 45 XVI. The Thoo-hte's daughter and her three Lovers, . . . . . . ... ,,63 XVII. The Thoo-hte's son and his three, wives. „ 55 PREFACE. * II > «i » It is a remarkable fact, that whilst all the im- portant writings of India and Ceylon have been translated into almost every language, very few Bur- mese works have been so translated, notwithstanding the now acknowledged fact that Buddhism is retain- ed in its purest from in Burmah or and that translations of Burmese MSS ought therefore to be considered as of vital importance. The reason is, I think, not far to look for. Burmese MSS abound in " Pali" words, for which there are in many instances no Burmese equi- valents. This in itself would not be a great drawback, but the "Pali," as written and pronounced by the Burmese, in accordance with the phonetic value of their letters, is so different from the Indo-Ceylon " Pali," that scholars who know either would not understand the other, unless acquainted also with the phonetic differences of some of the letters in both systems. The Indo-Ceylon scholar of the " Pali" has [the advantage over his Burman brother, inasmuch as he has several Pali-English dictionaries to look to for aid. A Burma-Pali-English dictionary has never been VI compiled, and as the Pali-Burmese dictionaries are not alphabetically arranged, the searching for a word is a tedious task. In order therefore to be able to avail himself of the aid of an Indo-Ceylon- Pali-English dictionary, the scholar in Burmah is obliged to reduce the Burmese to the Indo-Ceylon cystem. It seems almost incredible that the Burmese oQooGO" "Sakya-wade and the Indo-Ceylon " Chack- ravati" (Sovereign of the four islands) are the same words. That So "dziva" and "jiva " — Life; 8g; " weidzdza" and " vijja" knowledge, oDg " Thitsa" and " sachcha" — Truth, are identical. — ^but so they ar«. To be able to understand the Indo-Ceylon Pali, the Burmah scholar must know for example, that Burmese Pali so sh is chh. q dzh „ jh. o W. „ V. COD thth. „ ss. ,, 0030 or its symbol is not pronounced aw but o. ,, the vowel a in go is not always, and the final vowel sounds of consonants at the end of a word are never "that" ed or killed, and in words in which two letters are written one above the other, which is equivalent to "thatting or killing the upper one, the sound of this letter is not changed, but, as in Shan and Karen, retains its inherent power; oacoq (a letter of the alphabet) for instance, would not be Burmese Pali o s. is ch that that a dz j> J » CO th )j th „ „ OD th 39 s vu pronounced Ekkhara, but Akkhara ; o4j,o intoxica- tion, not Michchha, but Machchha etc:. — in Indo- Ceylon Pali. To make this work as useful as possible to stud- ents of the Burmese language, I have translated the original as literally as the preservation of the English idiom would allow of, and I have not only given a faithful rendering of the Pali words with the Pali proper in brackets, but also of many ancient Burmese words, which have now become obsolete ; besides which, I have added a small vocabulary of the Pali and most difficult Burmese words in the text, which will enable the student to follow the translation, in comparing it with the original, or to make a transla- tion for himself, without having to refer to other vocabularies or dictionaries, in which perhaps, he might not even find many of the words included in this vocabulary. I have also added numerous notes, explaining the meaning of the religious and other technical terms in the MS which will go far, to give the reader a better understanding of the text, than he would otherwise have. Chb. J. BANDAW. Frome May 1881. THE PRECEDENTS OF THE PRINCESS THOODAMMA TSARL (SUDAMMA CHlEL) INTRODUCTION. Glory to this Lord, (1) venerable, complete, perfect in knowledge. It is said, that the words of Kings, Nobles, and Judges, as well, as those of wise men, are like the striking thunder- bolt, like the sword, that cuts in two the plantain leaf, and like the storm that smites the tree. (1.) All Burmese MSS. are prefaced with the above formula, or a similar one. In some translations the word " God" is used but as Budhists do not believe in a " God," at least not in an eternal God, the creator, I have used the word "Lord" instead. The Pali word used is "cooo" "Bagawa; i. e. the one replete with the six glories, which are Sj[a3Q^oo — "Ithariya" (Issariya), Power ; oood "Thaya' (Saya), splendour of attendants ; og Dhamma wisdom, Eighteousness, c8^ "Thiri" (Siri), Fame, oooo " Kama," the accomplishment of all desires, and oq^ "Paratta," Diligence. [ 2 1 The Judges who keep in mind their happiness in this and the future world, (2) do not aim at the ruin of oiFenders, but after examining (the case) thoroughly, decide according to the gravity or the veniality of the offence. ^ < ■ » ««-»- I. THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE THREE PUPS BETWEEN TWO DOGS. In former times two wild dogs lived within the limits of a forest. After a long time, they increased in number by one male and two female pups. They disagreed about the apportionment of these, each talcing one female pup, so that the male pup only was left. The mother said ; " I have carried him about me in great discomfort, therefore I ought to have him." — The father said, " I, as your husband, am your lord and master, there- fore it is I who ought to have him." To settle their dispute, they went to the residence of the tiger, king (of the animals), the future Devadat. (3). On the'ir arrival the tiger said : " So you have come to me, have you ? " Then giving one of the female pups to the father and the other to the mother, he cut the remaining male pup down the middle and gave a half to each. (2). Metempsychosis, or transmigration of the soul from one body, or state of existence, into another, according to the merit or demerit of each individual, is one of the principal tenets of Buddhism. (3). Devadat- aloung" means : Devadat that is to be, i. e. in a future existence. He became Gaudama (Gotama) Buddba's great rival and enemy, and even went to the latter with the intention of killing him, for which sin the earth opened and swallowed him. While sinking, he repented and did homage to Buddha. [ 3 ] When the father and the mother saw the dead body of their young one, they cried most bitterly and said : " Oh king tiger, you have certainly made a division, but is it right that you should have done it in such a cruel manner ?" Then leaving the body of their young one lying before the tiger, they went awaj'. It is not right that kings, nobles and judges should decide as king tiger, Devadat-aloung did in the case of those two animals. Whoever does so, will fall into the four states of punishment (4.) II. THE FOX AND THE OTTER. In former times a fox and an otter being united in, bonds of friendship went together to the banks of a river in search of food, where the otter caught a gudgeon. (5). The otter said " I wish to eat the belly and the head" ! whilst the fox said, that he wished to eat them. To settle their dispute they said let us go to the re- sidence of our Phara-loung (6.) King Hare. King Hare (4). The four states of punishment are : Ist the hells, of which there are eight stages. 2nd the state of cS^^o^ " Teereit-hsan (Tirichchhana)" or animals. 3rd the state of gggo (Pritta) " Pyeittas," or beings, who with a mouth not larger than a needle hole and enormous stomachs, suffer the pangs of never satiated hunger. 4th the state of oaojqoooS " Athoorakais" (asurakaya), or beings that are dead during the day, but gain life at night, (ghosts). (5), The spelling cls@6s in the MS. is wrong, it should be clsnc^Sgn (6). cqopsocooSs Phaya (Bhura) loung," Buddha that is to be,"i. e. Gotama in whatever state before his perfection. [ 4 J said as follows : " Why are you two disputing P it is not good to terminate your friendship. Therefore, when, in future, the otter shall catch a fish, or the fox a stag or deer, always divide it as I do," and he divided the fish lengthwise from head to tail and gave them each a half, with which the fox and the otter were satisfied. In the same manner as our embryo Buddha, king hare decided, so should Kings, Nobles and Judges decide. A sleeping man should not be awakened. A waking man should not be made to rise. A sitting man should not be told to get up. Do not be envious of another's prosperity. The meaning of a sleeping man should not be awakened" is : " Having no selfish desires." The meaning of a waking man should not be made to rise" is : To have a desire for things, which it is lawful to desire and still not take them ;" such fools will not go to the country of the Nats. (7). (7). In the cosmological system of the Buddhists, the abodes of the Nats, beings superior to man, are placed above the region of the latter and consist of six stages, which are, 1st oo^otooqS Satumaharit (Chatumaharacha); 2nd cooocSoSo Tawadeintha (Tavatingsa); 3rd odooo Yama ; 4th cqoScoo Tuththita (Tussita); £th ^go^qc8 Nimmanarati and 6th oq^§ooocDDoc8 Paraneimmita waththa wadi (Paranimmita vassavati.) These Nats or Devas are called the good nats, in contradistinction to the wicked ones, who are said to inhabit the regions below the abode of man and every tree, hill, mountain, river, etc. [ 5 ] III. KING MAHA MANDA AND THE WATCHMAN OF THE CUCUMBER FARM. In the life time of our Lord "Waiththaphu (Vessabhu) (8). Maha MandA was king of the country named Parajinaka- Marching with his army one day, the camp was pitched near the farm of a cucumber cultivator. The king ordered his attendants to let it be known, by beat of gong, that nobody was to trespass on the cucumber farm. At an unseasonable time of the night the king himself went out to look round, when the watchman of the cucumber- farm called out to him, " Holloa, man ! don't touch the cucumbers !" and asking him what he had come there for, "Heh, man !" was the answer, " I am the king ! " The watchman who was also the owner of the ground, said " You the King ! If you were, would you come here without attendants ? " Then striking him with the butt of his spear in the small of the back, so that he died, left him covered with the creeping cucumber plants. One of the ministers, knowing for certain, that the king was absent, went to the cucumber farm in search of him, when the watchman called out: " Holloa, man ! do not enter the cucumber farm, just now I struck and killed a man ! (for doing so), do you want to die also ? " The minister said : " Alas, for our Lord ! " and, pushing the creeping plants aside, and seeing the body of the king, he reflected thus : If the army should come to know of this, it will break up ; and if other kings hear (8). One of the twenty eight Buddhas. He is said to have lived sixty thousand years, to have been sixty cubits in height, and to have been perfected and obtained the Buddha-ship under an oaSsgSsi Engyin tree, (shorea robusta.) His throne is said to have occupied a space of forty cubits. [ 6 ] that there is no king here, they will seize and destroy our country." He therefore said to the farmer : " Since you have killed our lord, the king, endue yourself with the dress our Lord wears, and be king in his stead ! " When the watchman heard the words of the minister, he said : " I am a poor man, why should I leave the farm on which the cucumbers grow (as numerous) as a litter of pups sucking their mother's breast, to become a king ? " The minister replied : " After you have killed our king, you refuse to act in his stead ?" Then bending him down by the nape of the neck, he struck him three blows with his elbow. On being thus struck, the watchman said, " Oh, my lord minister ! do not hurt me, I will comply with your request, I cannot oppose your order, I will act as king !" So, putting the kings dress on him, the minister impressed on him that nobody would dare to raise a hand against him. They then returned to the (minister's) countrj-. The minister settled all in its old routine, and, on arrival, opened the white umbrella, (9.) and placed the farmer under the golden canopy. He also appointed his own son, a young^ man of sixteen years of age, to attend personally to the king's wants. The queen asked the minister for information -(as to all this), and, after telling her all that had occurred, she agreed to the arrangement. At this time, the minister's son who attended the king, thought ; " It is only because my father has raised him, that he has become king ; " and, (in consequence he) treated him disrespectfully, on account of which the king grew sad' (9). The white umbrella has always been, up to the present time, the emblem of royalty in Burmah. [ ^ ] saying to the youth ; " Formerly I was a poor man, and now, because your father has raised me to be a king, you treat me disrespectfully," struck him and pounded him with his elbow. (10). The minister's son informed his father of the king's treatment of him, whereupon the father's anger rising, he said : " Is it not because I wanted this poor man to become king, that he is king ?" and intending to make use of rude language to him, went up to the palace, when the Nat- thamee, (11) presiding over the white umbrella, accosted him and said : " Hoh you minister ! this king is a king of great glory, do not use language displeasing to him !" Upon this, the two figures dwelling in the folds of the door, (12) bent him down by the nape of the neck and beat him. The minister became excessively frightened and asham- ed, and continuing steady in the good course he had taken, said : " This King is indeed very mighty ; simply because I intended to'use unpleasant language towards him, this has happened to me," and raising his hands, made a most re- spectful obeisance to his Majesty. (13). (10). A favorite mode of punishment in Burmah. (11). The daughter of a Nat ; a devi, similar to the fairy of westerm nations. See note (7.) (12). All the figures in the royal palace are supposed to come to life by the power of the reigning monarch and thus to assist him, in conformity with their nature, whenever he is in want of their aid. But they are also believed to turn against him, when some one more worthy of, or better entitled to the throne should come within the palace, vide cgs^'^dl^ Shwebong needan. (13). The Buddhists believe implicitly, that, whatever position a man acquires, it is the result of [ 8 ] (TVe may learn from the foregoing) that to blame and speak disrespectfully, either behind their backs, or to their faces, of those who are replete with glory and power, is not proper. It is not proper for the ruler of a country to go about alone, it is because he did go alone, that this king met with his death. A servant of a ruler should not, because he is an atten- dant (on the ruler), go about alone. Even a fisherman or a hunter should not go about alone. Neither the servant of a king, nor the disciple of a priest, nor any one else, should reproach a guilty person. Why is this ? Even the powerful sun and moon cannot cause the hollow of a bamboo to emit light ; although the moon is powerful, iu the presence of the sun she disappears. Although the asterisms and constellations are excellent, yet they have to revolve round the Myeenmlio (14) mountain ; although dragons are also exccellent, they eat^raw flesh ; although the river Ganges is excellent also, it wrecks ships and boats ; although wives are all that is good, yet if the slaves in the house are bad, reputation is lost. Where are the beings that have not many sins ? either merit or demerit, called o5 kan, accumulated in former existences. The minister, having been brought to consider his own position as contrasted with the kings', saw at once, that the exalted rank attained by the latter, was simply the result of merit, and that he (the minister) had been nothing more than the means of obtaining the reward of such merit. Hence his instant submission. (14). "Myeenmho" from §8 high, and §£i a corruption of the Meru of the Hindu mythology. It is according to Buddhist and Hindu cosmology the centre of the present system of worlds. [ 9 1 IV. THE RAHAN (15) KUMMARA KATHABHA AND THE THOO-HTE (16) PUNYA. In the life time of our Lord Waththaphu (Vessabhu), tte Rahan Kummara Kassabha lived in a dense forest. He was a priest of great fame. On day he was invited by the Thoo-hte to receive of- ferings of food, when both the Thoo-htes wife and his dangh- ter listened to the recitation of the law. (17). (15). All the religious of the Buddhists who lead an ascetic life are called Rahans. They are generally but erroneously called priests ; properly only those who have entered the brotlxerhood for good, should be called Rahans, and the novices, called <^S Shin, who, although they wear the yellow robe, have not yet been admitted into the fraternity, should be excluded from this title. (16). A Thoo-hte o^»§s is a rich man, one of the third estate, but so is aThookywai oj^t^; I there- fore retain the Burmese name, as the title of the former implies soma superiority over the latter. Above these are the class of Nobles, who are however only such by the kings' grace, the ministers, chiefs, etc. and above those, the royal family, in which gen- erals, and commanders in chief are included. Below them are the various classes of merchants and the poor. (17). The Rahans or Phoongyees are not priests, but recluses who may preperly be called monks. They perform no priestly functions and 1 have there- fore purposely omitted to say, that Kummara Kas- sabha "preached." They simply recite some of the precepts of the Lord, which, although generally written in Pali, they seldom explain to their hearers. I 10 ] The Rahan Kummara Kassabha made the daughter an object of his thoughts and thereby committed the Sin of Nigandi. (18). After reciting the law, he returned to the monastery and being unable to sleep, fell ill. One daj', the Thoo-hte going to invite him as before, ,said to him " My lord Rahan, how is it that you are ill ? " " Oh layman !" answered the Rahan, "the disposition of us Puh-tuzan (Puh-tujan) (19) is such, that if they entertain . an unlawful thought of only the size of the head of a flea, they are liable to experience the troubles of common crea- tures, then in some way artifice is used, then the mind 4wells (upon the object of thought) and ^the«» of) Nigandi follows ; this sin causing pleasure also causes a connection with the object of ones thoughts, steadiness in a good cause (18). The Phoopgyees profess to be entirely free from the desire of worldly things : The lust for the possession of gold, silver, fields, wives and children, does not^^well in our minds, we have vowed to be Rahandas, they say. The breach of this law, even in thought, is ^oa^ Nigandi (contr : of ^n<^8§ Nigan- dadithi?) N.B. Rahandas, Pali oa^oo Ariya are beings who have entirely freed themselves from the three passions, which are the roots of all evil: desire, anger and ignorance, and lead a life of spiritual me- ditation. (19). Pali t^oqgop Put-hu-zanaw (Put-hujjano) i. e. beings who are only beginning to free themselves from the passions, and have not gained the perfection of an Ariya yet. They are divided into four classes according to the proficiency they have gained viz : £|ricSa3c:8aS Doggatiaheik Duggatiahita ; o:jo^a3c8o5 Phugattiaheik (Sugattiahita); §c8c6 Dwiheik(l)vihita) and cSi^oS Tiheik (Tihita). [ n ] is broken, the constitution is injured, and illness is tlie consequence. (20). When the Thoo-hte heard these words, and considered whfit object it might be, the Lord Rahan had such a desire for, he thought ; The Lord Rahan was invited (to mj house) and my daughter listened to the recitation of the Law, he saw her and it is she, whom he has a desire for, and if she (20). Here we have a glance at Buddhist meta- physics. There are six organs of the senses: the eyes ; the ears ; the nose ; the skin of the body ; and the heart in a physical sense, [jiSo^s Nhitlung in Burmese through which the heart in its moral sense, i. e. the mind, called 8o5 Seik in Burmese and «Gp manaw, (Mano) in Pali], receives its inpressions. Taking the eye as an example, there is first the door osooocn^ Ayatana, through which the exterior sen- tations are communicated to the heart, i. e. the act of seeing; 2nd the uao^ Ayong (Arom,) i. e. the object seen ; 3rd theSg^ Weenyeen (Vinyana), the sense of seeing the object ; 4th ocoo Phaththa (Phassa) i. e. the passive or active inpression it derives from the object and which it conveys to the heart. 5th eoo^o Vedana i. e. the sensation created by the impression ; 6th cDQo Theenya (Sanya), i. e. the conception of the nat- ure of the object ; 7th qdco^o Setana (Chetana) i. e. the result of ruch conception on the mind which is either 8th 8c8 Piti, i. e. causing Joy ; or 9th jjcg Dukkha i. e. causing misery. 10th 8oo^ Witekkan ( Vitak- kan) i. e. the dwelling or meditating of the mind on the object; 11th 8ooq Wisaya (Vichara) i. e. the con- sequence of such meditation; and 12th the o.aS Dhat (Dhdta) i. e. the constitution or physical mat- ter, which supports the senses. The above are sub- divided into 120 grades. [ 12 1 also loves him, I shall be put to great sliame. (21) He was greatly distressed and wished that he himself might fall ill. At that instant, the Nat-thami presiding over the Thoo- htes property, created the figure of his daughter ; and the Nat, presiding over the Lord Rahan's garden, created the figure of an Elephant, and in the presence of the Thoo-the and the Lord Rahan, the figure of the Elephant, with the intention of catching it, ran towards the figure of the Thoo- hte's daughter. She ran up to the monastery and the Elephant followed her ; the damsel arrived near the Lord Rshan, the Elephant also arrived there ; she then fled into a pitcher standing near, but the Elephant followed her into it. She came out by the spout, and stood near the Lord Rahan ; when the Elephant followed her, his body could come out, but the tail could not, it was caught in the spout. "When the great Rahan Kummara Kassabha saw this, he said : "Oh what a wonderful occurrence is this ! why does this afiair happen ? Oh what an event !" Eager to know the allegory, he considerd : I have seen the representation that has taken place before me ; is it not because I have coveted the beautiful damsel, that this has happened before my eyes P and to proceed in the good cause, I will now explain the simile :" On this earth there is no aninal larger than the Eleph- ant. Because she feared (the result of) the Elephant pur-' suing her, the damsnl ran up to the monastery where the Elephant followed her. Because she could not evade him she fled into the pitcher, but still the Elephant followed her 21. The observance of chastity is a precept which the Phoongyees strictly follow. The breach of it would never be forgiven, either by the brother- hood, or by the laity ; both parties and all his con- nections would be irrevocably disgraced, perhaps even "stoned" and certainly excommunicated. [ 13 ] into It. She came ruimiug out by the spoilt, and, when the F.leph-ant follov,'ed her, his body could eome out of the spout but his tail •could not, it was caught there ! " " As shown by this simile, the disposition of the men of The present time, although there is the comparison t)f " the iiead of a flea," (32), is, to habitually do something to the s!) jury of all creatures ! " '■Theref(>re the Elephant is like mj'self, and my unlaw- i''A desire is like the Klephants tail, caught hi the spout." (23). The Nat-lhami, who had created the figure of the Thoo- hte's daughter, and the Nat, who had created the Elephant, wishing that he should be mindful {of his duty) said : "Con- snider the eonsequeuces, in a future state, of your sin !" and the Lofd Kunim»ra. Kassabha hearing these words, obtained the state of Puihanda, the moment h-e meditated (24) on them. *22. Referred 'to in kis conversation with the llioo-hte- *2.'n The explanation of the simile is, I think, this: The recluse had fi-eed himself fr)m all passions to such an extent, that he had accumulated a maxi- mum of merit, comparable to the body of the Ele- phant, which made him very nearly ripe f as the sequel shows) for the state of Eahanda, but he was held back from obtaining that state, by that mini- mum of worldly passion he still retained and com- parable to the Elephant's tail, which made his mind dwell on an object of unlawful desire, when he should have remained perfectly indifferent ; thus, as soon as he had, by meditating on his sin, conquered that small portion of passion, he obtained the state of Rahanda. 24. "Meditation," by means of which the mind arrives at its highest possible condition, cooo8 Thama- dhi (Samddhi), i.e. "perfect tranquility," and thus [ 14 ] According to this example, the Thoo-hte Punya aud Ithe reverend Kummara Kassabha are like two suitors ; the Thoo-hte's daughter is like the thing they Covet. Like the Nat-thami presiding over the Thoo-hte's pro- perty, and the Nat presiding over the garden, are those wise Judges, who decide to the thorough satisfaction of both parties. To such Judges, it is said, the way to the abode of the Nats and to Nibpan (25) is clear. V. THE CASE OF THE FOUR BRAHMANS. In the lifetime of Thoomana (Sumana ) (26) Buddha, one Maha Brahmana, one Meizi (Mijchy) Brahmana one Khokdik (Khuddika) Brahmana aud one Sula Brahmana of the country of Thingathanago (Singassanagore), received each one hundred pieces of gold, (for goods sold). emancipates itself from the sorrows and evils of life is one of the principal rules of Buddhism. 25. ^30? "Neikban," properly ^glf "Nibbana" in Pali, " jiiirvanna" in Sanscrit, is generally under- stood to be "total annihilation," or " destruction," b»t there is something defective in this definition. The etymology of the word is "to go out" ( as a fire or light) so that there is nothing "active," in the idea of the word, but something rather ''passive." It thus signifies "the end" (of existence) i. e. the deli- verance from any future birth. 26. One of the twenty eight Buddhas. He ii said to have lived ninety thousand years, and to have been ninety cubits high ; was perfected and obtained the Buddha ship under a oScroS or oocc5o "Kangaw" Mesua tree. There is very little on record about him. [ 15 ] On going home they had occasion to take a bath and said : " Let us put all our money (27) together." The three elder Brahaians accordingly did so, but the youngest intending to deceive, hid his money elsewhere, thinking that thus the money of the (other) three would have to be divided among them and him. He pretended therefore to place his money with theirs, and then they all bathed together. When the four came out of the water together, the money of the three (eldest) Brahmaus being where they had placed it, and that of the youngest not, the latter said : " Brother Brahmans, my money has disappeared (from, where it was,) why should yours be there P Will you (not) give me (some of yours ?") They replied ; " Nobody has come to this place, if your property has disappeared from where it was placed by us four, for what reason should we give you (a share)?" and disputing with each other, they went to the Judge of the town, to abide by his decision. The Judge said ; " It is not right that the money of one (of j^ou) should disappear out of that placed together by you four," and decided that they should divide equally. The three Brahmans repudiated their liability to a division, and went to the governor of the town, who sent them to the minister, who in turn sent them to the king of the country. The king said, that the decision of the Judge of the town was just, but the three Brahmans were dissatisfied and 27. The word used in the original is ggo Ussa (Uchchd,) which means "any property" or "goods," but as this word is not always appropriate, I have made use of more suitable words, throughout this work. [ 16 ] said so, wbereupoQ the king laade the nsinister respoT:sil>]p and said: "Heh, yoii minister 1 you decide tliia case within seven days, if you do not, I will eonfiscate jo\ve property 1" The inini&ter, in great fear, called together the foiu- Brahmans, and, although he made a searching; enquiry, ho eould not form an opinion and became gj'eiitly distvesseil. At this- time his beloved daughter, named Sanda Kummari, seeing her father's sad countenance, said to him ; "Oh, honored father I why are you. so dis.tvessed ? " " Oh my beloved daughter 1 " he replied, " I am held responsible to decide the case of these four Brahmans in seven days, if I do not, I am very much afraid, my proper- ty will be confiscated. " Do not be troubled, dear father " she said, " I will find out the thief, only build a large Mandat." (28) After the minister had done what his daughter wanted she placed the four Brahmans- at the corners inside the mandat and sitting down herself in the middle, asked them to tell her of the Eighteen Sciences, (29) such as the art of observation, the proverbs of common life, logic, philosophy. 28. A temporary shed raised on every festi^-e occasion, and got up in a irjoi-e or less costly manner, according to the circumstances of the builder. 29. Pali o3§oqoo Athayatha (Athdrasa), consist- ing of the following : 1st. osgosoagS Akya-Amyeen, literally ; hear- ing and seeing ; i. e. the art of observation or ac- quiring experience without tuition. 2nd. egoooS Dhammathat (Dhanima.sata), i. e. the Law. 3rd. oc(D^so3ooo5 Ganan-atat, i, e. arithmetic. 4th. o5 ogs ^s ©sGooSoecoo 33 oDoS literally the science of the adz, awl and. chisel, and such like, i. e. carpentrT- I 17 ] •magie, ihe law of poetry, a little from pharmacy, and tTie five treatises on diseases." " I wish to hear what you know of these ! " she said. "Oh, Lady ! " thej answered, -' we are unable to do this," and on being asked the reason, they r-^liedj " On our way ■(home), not one of us could tell which of us would act dishoneslJj', hut the (good) prac- tices of us Briihmans have been put to great shame; this is the reason why we are unable, but you, Lady Sanda Xummari,"^' they said, "being constantly near the great minister. Tou wiM have acq'aired mnich experience by listen- ing to the enquiries made from all quarters, please say 5th.. fcSnq]o« Thama (Sama) oo(^ Yazoo (yaju) and aj^ojt Eeshoo. 14th. cj^ooSoooSccooisocooS Hlai pat tat thaw atat, i. e. Legerdemain. 15th. oo^8cq|§ssocoo5 Hsau kyan atat, i. e. com- position, (of writings.) 16th. oSoDo^aocooS Than taman atat, i. e. Di- plomacy. 17th. Oj^o^EOOToS Mantan atat, i. e. making charms and philters. 18th. cog1oq)§8030ooS Thadda kyam atat, i. e. Grammar. (30). The Brahmans are even now considered by the Burmese as very learned in all sciences, chiefly in the Vedas and astronomy. The astrologers em- ployed at the Court of Ava are Brahmans. (31). coggc^cS in Burmo-Pali is Tekkatho, a corruption of the Pali proper of coggcSco Takkasila. [ 19 } Once she dropped her style, and, seeing the Prince be« low, requested him to hand it up to her. He said "If you tell me to hand it up to you, I will do 80, but I want you to make me a promise ; when we arrive at our native town, will you come and give me your virgin love ?" and he did not hand her the style, until she had promised that she would (so go to him), "When she had become skilled in the sciences, she re- turned home, and the Prince also returned. His father died, and he succeeded to the throne. The Thoo-hte's daughter having arrived at tbe age of sixteen years, was given in marriage by her parents to a suitable man. Then she entreated her husband thus ; " I have be- come your wife, please give me permission to go (outj for a while ! " Hs asked her, why she wished to go out. " Because" she said, "when learning the sciences at Taxila, I made a promise ; the Prince told me that when I returned to ray parents, I should first come to him, and I promised him that I would." Although one may have been given in marriage by parents, the sacredness of a promise is very great, both among the religious and the laymen, therefore her husband said that he would give her permission ; so after rubbing his feet with her hair, he being her lord and master, (32) she dressed and adorned herself. (32). In the Manoo Dammathat or Laws of Manoo Chapter V. Section XXI it says; If the wife makes religious offerings without her husband's knowledge, she has no right to do so, the merit she ought to obtain will not be much. If the husband makes religious offerings, without the knosd^dgfe' of [ 20 1 Going away sie met a thief wto caught told of her arm firmly and said : "Where are you going to ? what impro- priety for a woman to go about like this ! either yo«r life or your ornaments are mine ! what is your Intention?" " It is true thej are yours," she answered, "as to why I am going about, it is thus ; when I learned the sciences at Taxila, the Prince told me to go to him first on my return to my own country, and I engaged to do so, therefore if I break mj' promise, I shall fall into the fom states of punieli- ment and shall not arri^'e at the abode of the good ; ( fof this reason ) I have asked permission of the husband to whom my parents have given me in marriage (33) and have (Some away. his wife, or offerings of affection to other people, he has a right to do so, and the wife also obtains merit. The wife has no right to object to offerings of the husband^ ttut he may object to those of the wife ; this iis because the husband is the lord of the wife. I« Chapter "VTII Section III, it says: If the husband without the knowledge of bis wife small make a present to another of a portion of the property com- mon to both, and the receiver be not his lesser wife, let it be kept as it was given, the wife shall not say "it is our joint property, I did not know (of the gift); " she shall not take it back, why is this : because the husband is the lord of the wife. (33.) In Burmah there are three ways of be- coming man and wife, viz : 1st A man and woman given in marriage by their parents. 2nd A man and woman brought together bv the intervention of a go-between. 3rd A man and woman who come together by mutual consent, but it i.s requisite in all three case's [ 21 } The thief when lie heard these wonds, said ; " When vou. keep your promise to the prince, also keep this one. On your return home you must call at nw i>lace I " and re- leased her. After being freed by the thief, she went on and arrived lit a Banyan tree and the Nat presiding over the Banvau tree asked her where she was ffoing. She said : " Oh, Lord Nat- presiding over the Banvau Iree, I have arrived at your place for no other pui'ijose thasi this/' and she repeated what she had said before. He said " keep this promise just as you keep that to the prince : On your return call at my place !" and let her go. She arrived at the princo'^s palace and because she kept her faith in her engagement, the Nat watching over the palace, opened the door. When she arrived before the king, he asked her why she had come. " Oh, great king I she said," (I am) the voung lady who made you a promise, when learning the sciences at Taxila. I have removed from thence and have been given in marriage by my parents. Having asked per- mission from the master of the house, my husband,. I Jiave come into your Majesty's presence." The prince said : " This is very wonderful I verily,, vou have kept your promise !" and after praising her and saying that he would make her offerings of many valuables, he did so and let her go. She accepted all the valuable presents and going awav, encounteKed the Nat presiding over the Banyan tree, when that they should lire and eat together, and the firsfs of these is looked upon as the most respectable. Hence tlie young lady's allusion to the fact of having been thus married. [ 22 ] with the voice of the Karaweik, (34) she said : " Oh Lord B'at of the Banyan tree ! are you sleeping or are you awake ? I have redeemed my promise to the prince and have returned ; my life is yours, Oh, Lord Nat of the Banyan tree ! I have not broken my promise, and I have arrived at your dwelling ! The ISTat, when he heard the young lady's voice, said, ■" Young lady, a person has been freed from the hands of an enemy, and thus his life is safe, he, whose life has thus been saved returns again to the (aforesaid) enemy to die ; how is this possible ?" " Oh, Lord Nat of the Banyan tree !" she replied, " if I had broken my promise for fear of my life and had gone on without calling herej I should have fallen into the four states of punishment, and should never arrive at the abode of the blessed." The Nat made an offering of a pot of gold to the young l^dy for her integrity and, telling her, that ^t. would last her for the whole of her life, he let her go. . . .<.j..The' young iady leaving. the Banyan tree arrived at, the thief's, abod-ej '.who alrefidy was .sleeping. Although by going on, while he was asleep,' she would have been safe, she cielled out: "Oh- master thief!" and rousing him said : " Either tny life or the things I have with me are.yOurs, I have arrived On ' account of iny jjfo- mise, I will not oppose your desire!" 'The thief saidV 'f How wonderful ! Ybu- realty do k«ep faith, a thih" rare ill this world ; if I should sin against' such a person, I should have to suffer great miserj', go away quick !" and lethergid. y:(S;%i ? A fabulous bird said to possess a rery sweet voice. - i\ [ 23 ] " When she arrived at her husband's, she told him all thb,t had happened and having told him all about the thief, the Nat of the Banyan tree and the prince, her hus • band praised her for what she had done. Having finished, the young Lady Sanda Kummari asked the Brahmans, whom, in the tale she had just told thera, they thought most worthy of praise. The eldest Brahmin said ; " Oh, daughter of the great minister ; I praise the prince ! For what reason ? Because he rejected the young lady's first love which was proffered him, and this is in accordance with the ten kingly virtues ; (35) this is something to be wondered at, therefore I praise it. Another Brahman said : " Oh, daughter of the great minister ! I praise the Nat presiding over the Banyan tree ; for what reason ? Because this dr_vad not only restrained his desires, which is very difficult for even men to do, but he also gave a present of a pot of gold, and as this is very Wonderful, I praise him !" Another Brahman said : " Oh daughter of the great minister, I praise the husband ; he is like the water in (35) o88cq)8GpooDoco€psaDoSol8ii The ten kingly virtues or duties are : 1st 33ojc?osg£s " Ahloo-pe-gyin," To make reli- gious offerings ; 2nd Sco Thila (Sila) c:ooo5oj^g5sn To perform the religious duties ; 3rd g|(^s'jsoDisgSg» To give away in charity ; 4th ©goSooSgSs To be righteous, just ; 5th SoSjiSo^sis^gSs To be gentle (of gentle character); 6th oatjoSf^gSs literally to have little anger, i.e. to be good-tempered ; 7tli §s@gooq!§ ggg To practice self-denial ; 8th coj^sogSs To be for- giving ; 9th ojososo^g'ssbgSs Not to be oppressive ; and 10th g^GOTo68»£sc^c^oqic88g£s Not to destroy or ruin (other) countries and kings. •[ 24 ] wliicli a pxiro ruby has been cleansed; when bis wife asked him for permission, he allowed her to go, that man's dispo- sition i« a most wonderful one, therefore I praise him !" The youngest Brahman said : " Oh, daughter of the great minister ! I praise the thief ; for what reason ? A thief supports himself by risking his life, and a person who thus supports himself, did not covet the dress and ornaments, but abstained fi-ora taking them ; nor did he covet the gold and silver, but abstained from taking them too ; that thief is praisworthy, I laud and praise him !" A young lady, an attendant of the minister's daughter, said : '• The mt-ster's daughter, the three (elder) Brahmans and myself respectively praise either the prince, the Nat of r,he Ban van tree, or the husband, but the youngest Brah- man praises the thief!" AVhen the minister's daughter heard this, she said to her attendant : " The admission of the youngest of the four Brahmans, that he thinks the thief who did not covet the things lie might have taken, but abstained from taking, is the most excellent, shews, that he is in possession of the i^niissing) property ; this being so, j-ou, my sister, personate !:ie and go to the younger Brahman and say to him : I t'omo for no other purpose but this, the words of the three Brahmans being those of fools, and you, the youngest, being a wise man, I have come to become your spouse ; {'i6) what is to be done, that you and I may live together"? I am afraid of my father; and you have lost the propertj- you had ; I am empty handed, if you and I go to another place, we have nothing to live iipon,'^ (36) An old Indian xjastom, in accordance with, vfhich princesses and maidens of the highest caste were allowed to select their own husbands. See '" Nala and Damajanti" and " Narada's prediction" in the Mahabharata. I 25 J Having arranged thus, she let her attendant go. When the Brahman saw her, he accosted her, and the attendant spoke to him as (she had been) instructed to do. When he heard what she said, he was very glad and replied : " Oh, young Lady ! do not be troubled, the pro- perty is not lost, it is in my possession, I only acted like this, to get a share ; there is sufficient to live on ; even if we go to another place, there is enough." The attendant informed her mistress of what the Brah- min had told her. The minister's daughter went to her father and told him, that the (missing) property was in possession of the youngest Brahman, adding : " If you give me a sum equal to the (lost) amount, I can recover the latter." So the min- ister gave his daughter what she wanted. She gave the money to the attendant and instructed her (what to do,) and then said : " Now my sister, go and stay with the Brahman, show him this money and say as you have been instructed." The attendant showed the Brahman the money and requested him to show her his, saying, in accordance with her instructions ; " I have only a little money with me, but putting yours and mine together, we shall be able to live upon it, even if we go to another place ," upon which the Brahman gave her his money. The attendant, when she had obtained possession of the money gave it to the minister's daughter, who .greatly re- joiced, said : " Now, ray sister, go to the other three Brah- raans and ask for (their money) in this manner : " You three Sirs, give me your money for awhile, I will put it in a certain place, and you go and petition the King, when all four of you will be satisfied." It being asked for in this manner, the three elder c I 26 1 Brahmans said : " very well !" and in accordance with the lady's request, gave (her) the three sums of money. The young lady then informed her father, that she was in possession of the money of all the four Brahmans, and the minister reported to the King that the (combined) mo- ney of the four Brahmans had been obtained. When the King asked by what manner of investiga- tion it had been obtained, the minister said ; " My daughter inquired (into the matter) and obtained it." The King called for the young lady and the four Brah - mans and questioned her, when she said : " This is a fearful case, much artifice has been resorted to ! The Brahmans are wise men ! we mortals are by nature the slaves of cu- pidity, anger and ignorance ; I will give an instance : "the ear seduces the eye, the eye seduces the mind, thus worldly de- sires are created, prudence is lost, and then without reflec- tion, a bad deed is apt to be done, the consequence of which is the suffering of misery in a future state." After these words the young lady said : " I have placed your four portions before the King, take what you own ;' ' and the Brahmans took their property. After three portions had been taken, the youngest Brahman took the remaining portion, when the King said : "Although it has been said, that some money has been lost how is it, that the youngest Brahman's money is there now ?" " Oh, Sire !" said the minister's daughter, " he had hidden his money, but now he himself has pointed it out, therefore the money of the four Brahmans has been recover- ed !" upon which the Fairy (Nat-thamee) presiding over the King's umbrella called out, " Well done." And the King, (considering) that the young lady was full of wisdom and able to examine into and solve aU sub- I 27 ] jects tinder discussion with ambassadors from all foreign countries, he made her his chief Queen. Therefore Judges should take example from this and decide (cases) with due consideration. VI. THE CASE OF THE THOO-HTE'S SON, THE THOO-HTE'S DAUGHTER AND THE YOUNG MAN PETA. In the lifetime of our Lord Thoomedha (37) (Sumedha) in the country of Ketumati, the son of a man possessing un- told wealth, and a Thoo-hte's daughter named Thawga (Soga) were given to each other in marriage by their res*' pective parents. On one occassion the Thoo-hte's son said : "Our parents have a great deal of property but we have none, therefore I will go on board ship and go with other men to the island of Sanda !" The Thoo-hte's daughter, his wife, said to her consort J " If you go away trading, I have no one to trust to ; only destitute people cross the ocean, and as your parents and mine possess untold wealth, do not go !" thus she entreated him in affectionate terms. When he heard this speech of his wife, the Thoo-hte'e son said : " It is excellent to have property obtained by diligence ; it is excellent to be diligent even if one should (37) One of the twenty-eight Buddhas. He is said to have attained the age of Ninety thousand years, and to have been Eighty cubits high. He went into solitude on the back of an Elephant, practised self denial for Eight months, and was perfected and obtained his Buddha-ship under a cooooS Tama or Tragecanth tree. [ 28 ] die in the sea ; a man who has no property is depraved ; he ought to he ashamed, their way of living also is mean, there- fore it has been said by wise men, that those who wishing to obtain property, risk their lives on the ocean, are worthy of praise, even though they may not obtain (property), so I shall go," and taking stock in trade he left. The young man Peta and. the Thoo-hte's daughter cohabited, and Peta said : "We live together now, but how can we do so, when your husband returns ?" (38). The Thoo-hte's daughter suggested to him, that if a corpse were brought from the burial ground and placed in the Pyathat (39) and then fire be set to the latter, the corpse would be consumed. " It will be said that the Thoo-hte's daughter was burned to death and we two will go to another plabe and live there," she said, and in accordance with her 6(uggestion (he) brought a corpse up to the house and after having set fire to it, they went to another place. The parents thinking that (their daughter) was really burnt, (to death) burned the corpse by cremation with much weeping and wailing. Peta and the Thoo-hte's daughter lived at another place. There was no food at that place : "we are very miserable here," said the Thoo-htes daughter, " going back to our place, my parents will see me and say, " Oh', how (38). According to para 16 of the 5th vol. of the Institutes of Menu a woman must v?ait three years for the return of her first husband before she has a right to take another husband, this young lady evi- dently did not wait so long. (39). The word used in the original gocoS Pyathat, means a graduated turret surmounting the roof of palaces, monasteries etc: in which, inBurmah, there are no rooms or chambers, fo for want of a better word I have retained the original one. t 29 i very like our danghter !" they will give us presents and thiis we shall get food" ; so they went and arrived at the tank in the parent's garden. Whilst they were resting there under the shade of a flowering tree, the Thoo-hte's young men came to draw water in place of the Thoohte's daughter, to sprinkle the flower-vases with, and seeing her they said, " If it was not for this young lady's having a consort, we should say that she is really our master's daughter," and taking the golden vases returned to the house. The young men told the Thoo-hte's wife what they had seen, and when she herself went and looked and saw her daughter, she wept bitterly and on asking, was told that they were travellers and would have to go on presently. The Thoo-hte's wife said ; "Oh, do not go, I will adopt you as my daughter ;" and took them to the house and placed them in the Pyathat, Then the first husband, the Thoo-hte's son, arrived and enquired after his wife. Hearing that she was burnt with the Pyathat, he weeping bitterly went into the Pyathat built by the mother, to look, and seeing his wife there said, " Why is it said, that my wife is dead, when she is there ?" and petitioned the Judge of the town ; but as his mother in law and many people said, that his wife had been burnt to death, in the Pj'athat, he lost (his case). Being dissatisfied he went to the Governor, but lost again. He then went to the king, who being artless in law mat- ters, the fairy presiding over the white umbrella, said : "Oh, great king ! this is not a case for an ignorant person ; is not your majesty's minister skilful in the decision of law- suits ?" When he heard this, he called the minister and said, [ 30 ] " Hai, you minister ! decide this case, or your property will be confiscated." The minister was very sad, and his daughter seeing this, asked him ; " Oh my father why are you downcast ?" The minister told her of the royal order, when she said : " Do not be distressed, Oh my father ! but let all three come to me, let a building be erected and let the three sit in three corners separate, and I will sit in the middle and inquire into (the case") Having thus arranged, she called the Thoo- htes son, and said: "Oh, excellent man of glorious re- putation ! After you, my brother, have risked your life in crossing the ocean and in search of wealth, every one says, that your wife was burnt, together with the steeple ; and although, my brother, your parents are very rich, you have crossed the Ocean and you have acquired much property ; for such an one to contend with another man about a woman, is not proper ! and because the young lady says, that she is his wife, and he, that she is his wife, both the Judge and the Governor have decided against you. If, my brother, she is really your wife, why should she deny it ? You, my brother, ought to concur with my opinion. What will you my brother, think ; and how am I to say it ?" " What are you going to say ?" asked the Thoo-hte's son in return. She said : " Oh, my brother, I am the minister's daughter, if we two are of one mind we should be happy for the whole of our lives," (40). (40). It must be borne in mind by the readers, that there ia nothing indelicate in the young lady's thus offering herself as the young merchant's wife, as it was a custom in ancient India for young ladies to select their own husbands, vide Note 35, moreover it was all pretention in this case, as the young lady wanted to find out the two young men's character. [ 31 j The Thoo-hte's son replied : " How can I forsake this my wife, who was betrothed to me by our parents before she cut her (second ?) teeth, even before she was able to put on her own clothes (for herself.) The man (of such a wife) ought not to do any thing unfeeling and harsh ; what would be the advantage of breaking faith ?" " It is something wonderful to hear the words of a man, who is so loyal" she said, and sent him away. Then she accosted the young man Peta and said : "You are an excellent man and of great reputation, and it is not proper that you two young men should quarrel about one woman ! I have no consort my wish is to live with you, we shall be much respected, besides I am the daughter of the great minister, shall we not enjoy much comfort ?" When Peta heard tbis, he thought to himself: This is a wise person ; it is in the nature of v.'omcu to have many expedients ; they know how to deceive and to conceal ; and my life is like water in the hollow of this young lady's hand, therefore, (he said) " I will comply with my Lady's words." " If my brother will do so," she replied, we must go and live at some other place, only then will I trust you. He agreed to this ; when she exclaimed, " for the present re- tire," and he left her. After this she called the Thoo-hte's daughter and ask- ed her : " Your husband, my sister, has but little^ while the Thoo-hte's son is very wealthy ; by living with him you would never be in want during the whole of your life, why do make objections ?" " You my lady," she replied, " are a woman, and so Sim I ; we women are like the fruit of a tree ; that hus- band who is my lord, is like the tree ; the nature of fruits is this : a young shoot sprouts out and two leaves grow on it, one above the other, the stalk of the leaves forms a bud, [ 32 ] from the bud comes a flower and from the flower the fruit, the fruit ripens and when ripe, it falls ofi", when fallen it remains where it falls ; does the fallen fruit re-attach itself to the stalk? does the born babe re-enter its mother's womb ?" When the minister's daughter heard the words of the Thoo-hte's daughter, she thought to herself ; " Now I know the dubious position of this woman," and telling the three litigants to return to their respective dwellings, they left, when she caused a secretary to record every thing she had been told by and had heard from the three, and had it read to her father. He was very glad and calling the three parties before the King, they on being asked, acknowledged (the record) to be correct. The King decided ; " That the young man Peta, not being the husband, ought to die, but that he would pardon him ; that the merchant prince, the Thoo-hte's son, al- though possessing great riches, had not broken his troth, aud that he was the real husband ; that the Thoo-hte's daughter, on account of having disowned her husband, had cited the maxims ; " that a ripe fruit having fallen from ita «talk, does not re-attach itself to the same ; and that a born babe does not re-enter its mother's womb," wherefore she should be castigated and set free." Upon this, the fairy presiding over the white umbrella gave praise, and the King raised the minister's daughter to be his Q'.jeen. For this reason, wise Judges should decide cases of a deceitful and dubious character after examining and sifting them. [ 33 ] VIII. THE CASE OF THE SHIP-OWNER AND THE GOAT-HERD. Once upon a time a Ship-owner going on a trading voyage, arrived at the opposite shore of the ocean. On the beach was a man herding many goats, and the Ship-owner'.s she-goat went after a he-goat (among them.) He demanded his she-goat from the owner of the he-goat, and on the refusal of the latter, went to the Judge to make his claim. The decision was, that because the she-goat had gone after tbe he-goat, she should be forfeited, the he-goat had a right to her. After this decision, the Ship-owner being dissatisfied, sent to the Judge's daughter with presents, and after so sending many times, she went to the Ship-i^vner's place. She was kept there and not allowed to return. The Judge demanded his daughter but was refused. A dispute arising, the Ship-owner, going to the king, said : " Oh, great king, recently my she-goat followed a he-goat, and on referring to the Judge, he himself decided that the owner of the he-goat had a right to her ; Now this Judge's daughter has come to my place, so I have a right to her." In accordance with this former plea, the Ship-owner acquired a right to the Judge's daughter. Therefore if a woman go to a man, he is free from guilt. [ 34 ] IX. THE CASE OF THE PASSIONATE YOUNG LADY RATTEE EETHARI. In the life- time of our Lord Koukkathan a young lady- named Rattee Eethari lived in a small town. One day, being in a great rage with Ler husband, she went to an- other town. As the distance was great she became fatigued and rested under the shade of a Palm-tree, and thinking that her child would sleep, while she rested, she spread her shawl and put the child to sleep upon it. A crow came flying along and perched upon a palm- fruit, which fell on the child's head and killed it. Seeing the child dead, she wept, and taking the corpse in her arms, followed in the direction in which the crow was flying. As the crow had eaten every day the bundle of rice which a ploughman used to place on the ridge of the paddy field, the crow was caught in the trap which the plough- man had laid ; the latter came to take the crow and called out : "Ah, this crow is mine ! " "If that crow is your's," said the dead child's mother, "is it proper that he should kill my son ?" And a dispute aris- ing between them, they went to a Judge who was not very wise, and who decided, that the man ought to give compen- sation to the woman for the loss of her child. The ploughman being dissatisfied went to a reputedly wise Judge, who decided as follows : Because you quarrelled with your husband, you went to another village, and the distance being great, you rested under the shade of a palm-tree ; you put the child to sleep and whilst it slept, a palm-fruit fell on it and killed it. [ 35 ] Your quarreling with your husband is the cause of the child's death ; therefore get another son by the ploughman, and when you have got that son, give him to your husband. ^ II « II » X. THE CASE OF THE FOOLISH BRAHMAN AND THE WILD DOG. Formerly, in the life time of our Lord Thoomana there lived in the country of Girikama, a Brahman named Adi- manda. Every night a wild dog came into the town and ate the bones and sciaps that had been thrown away. Early in the morning, being afraid, he used to return to thejangal. Once, the Brahman Adimanda went among the bushes for the purpose of purification and seeing a wild dog, took up a stick. The dog being frightened said : " Oh mj Lord Brahman ; what would be the good of killing me ? Do not kill me and I will give you two thousand (viss of) gold." When the Brahman heard this, he, longing for wealth said : " I will not kill you, but give me what you have said that you would.'' "Oh, my Lord Brahman ! how can I get it here ? if you carry me to my place, then I can give it to you," re- plied the dog. "Halloa you dog !" said the Brahman, "you are a creature of the jangal, it is not becoming that I should carry you." " If my lord says so," replied the dog, " then by making a cradle of your putsoe, and carrying me in it over the shoulder, people who see it, will think it is your off' spring." [ 36 ] The Braliman coveting the money, said ; " I agree with what you say;" and carried the dog away in the manner the dog had suggested. On arriving at the dog's place, he said : " Oh, my lord Brahman," I owe you much gratitude for not killing me, please wait till sunset for me, to bring you the two-thousand (viss of) gold ;'' saying which he went into the jangal. The Brahman, poor fellow, waited the whole day, and a traveller seeing him, asked : "Oh Brahman, what are you waiting for P " and the Brahman related all that the dog had said. After listening, the traveller thought to himself, this Brahman is a great deal more stupid, than the dog, and said : "How can you believe the words of a dog, that cannot even find food for himself .^ go back home." Only then the Brahman returned. Therefore, the disposition of wise men is, not to trust those whom it is inconsistent to trust. One ought to con- sider. Whoever believes words that should not be believed will be like the Brahman, who was deceived by the dog. Xr. THE CASE OF THE THREE MEN WHO LOST THEIR LIVES BY ASSOCIATING WITH AN IMPROPER PERSON. Once upon a time, the son of a nobleman the son of a Thoo-hte and a prince, were learning the sciences at Taxila. One of them learned the attributes of bones ; one, those of matter, and the third those of the spirit. Having learned these, they returned to their own country, when, in the cover of a jangal, they found the bones of a tiger. They thought : by putting these bones together, we shall get the figure of the tiger, then by putting breath I 37 J iuto it, it will become a live tiger, that will go with us, and when he kills Rusa-deer, Barking-deer, wild Oxen and Elks, we shaJl eat them ; then also if we should meet with en- emies, the tiger will keep them off, and we shall be saf«. So the one who understood the atributes of bones, join- ed them together properly ; the one, who understood the atributes of matter, formed the figure of the tiger ; and the one who understood the atributes of the spirit, put breath (life) into it, and the tiger being thus brought to life, fol- lowed them. From the jangal they cames to the open plain and nil three went to sleep under a Banya-n tree. As there was no prey for the tiger in the open plain, he being very hungry devoured one out of the three and carried the bones away somewhere else. "When the other two awoke, they said ; " Hollo, tiger ! one of us hai disappeared and is avoiding us, so only you and we are left, if we get any venison, there will be only us three to share it." On arriving at another halting place he devoured an- other one. The remaining one said : " One more of us has dis- appeared, if we get elk and deer, you and I only shall eat them." On arriving at a thick forest, he devoured the last man. Thus all three young men came by their death. So one should be prudent and not associate with im- proper persons. I 38 1 XII. THE CASE OF THE HIGHMINDED THOO- HTEANDTHE BARBER. In the life time of our Lord Maidingya (41 ) a certain Thoo-hte went on a journey with his wife. One night meeting a Barber on the road, the Thoo-hte moved out of his way. When the Barber saw the Thoo-hte get out of his way, he said : " It Is I who should yield the road, why are you doing so ?" and gave the Thoo-hte a slap in the face. The ThOo-hte, being very mush ashamed and greatly concerned that others might hear of this, was very aad at heart. Other Thoo-hte's talked to each other about this, so that in due course the king heard about it, and calling the Thoor-hte, questioned him, but the latter kept silent. After asking two or three times, the king said ,^ " It is true what the people say." Calling the Barber and asking him, the latter admit- ed it tp be true and said, " It is because he moved out of the way, when it was I who should have done so, that I slapped his face." The Thoo-hte was unable to say a word, and from very shame sat with his back turned. The king gave the Barber over to the executioners and ordered them to cut his hands and feet off and to set him adrift on a raft, (42.) (41.; One of the twenty eight Buddhas, who, is aaid to have attained the age of ninety thousand years, and was perfected under a eoloSoS. Poukbing, Butea. (42.) This was a very common punishment in India. There are several dzats or dramas in Burmah L 39 ] "Wlien the Thoo-hte heard this sentence he gave the executioners a piece of gold and said to them ; neither cu* the Barber's hands and feet off, nor set (him) adrift on a raft." When the executioners heard his words, they reported them to the king. The king called the Thoo-hte and said to him : Why- have you said, do not execute (the Barber) ? "Oh grea' king" answered the Thoo-hte " Let the Barber put me to shame in this country only ! If he is fastened to a raft and set adrift, at whatever place the raft grounds, he will be asked, why he has been set adrift and he will say : "Because when I should have got out of the way, a Thoo-hte did so instead, so I slapped his face." Then he will be told that he is a very irascible man and not fit for their country and being set afloat again, it will be known every where. How can that be good ?" When the king heard these words, he gave the Thoo- hte a great many presents. The Thoo-hte (thought to himself) it is because the Barber slapped my face that I get all this property and gave the Barber (some of it); and onh^ then did the Thoo- hte wash his head (43.) For this reason wise man should not talk of what they see secretly. One should not act ostentatiously as to any thing, so that others get to hoar (of it). It is said, that although offenders may not be blamed, still they suffer in some way or other for their offences. in which the offenders are represented as suffering this purnishment. Vide Weezaya dzat, Padongma dzat, etc. (43.) By way of purification from the pollut- ing touch of the lovv-caste Barber. t 40 J XIII. THE CASE OF THE IRRITABLE POTTER AND THE WASHERMAN. In the life time of our Lord Thooinaida, a Potter, being bent on evil designs, because he saw with envy, the increas- ing prosperity of a neighbouring washerman, who, with a large establishment of dependants, cleansed clothes, com- mitted a great error. He addressed the King thus : '• Your Majesty has a royal Elephant, which is black ; to make him white, order my neighbour, the "Washerman, to wash him ; will you not then be Lord of the white Elephant ?" He did not thus address the King from a desire to bene- fit him, but because he thought, that if the washerman was ordered to wash the Elephant, and he could not make him white, he would be ruined, and because he wished him to be ruined, he thus petitioned the King. The King when he heard what the Potter said thought that it could really be done, and having little wisdom, he, without consideration called the washerman, and said : " Heh, you washerman ! you wash my Elephant white !" The washerman knowing the potter's design, addressed the King thus : " Oh, great King ! the business of a wash- erman is to wash clothes white by means of steam and soap, and beating them, and your Majesty's royal Elephant can only become white by being steamed and beaten in the same manner, therefore only by my putting the Elephant in a suitable perforated vessel and steaming him, can I wash him white." When the King heard these words, he said : " Pots and vessels are not a matter for washermen, they concern potters ;" and calling the potter said : " Heh, you potter ! [ 41 ] as he must be steamed with soap and water in a large steam- ing pot, you must make a suitable one for my Elephant ! " When he heard the King's word, he called all his rela- tives together, heaped up a mass of clay and made a vessel suitable for the Elephant to be steamed in, and took it to the King. The King called the washerman and gave the vess«l to him. When the soap had been put in, the Elephant stepped into the vessel, which broke ; and when another stronger one was made (the water) would not boil, because it was too thick ; if it was too thin again, the Elephant on putting only his foot into it, broke it. So as he had to do it over again many times, the potter could not make a living and was ruined. So whoever plans the ruin of others, is said, not to plan the ruin of others, but his own. Although having little property one should not scheme against others. One should always avoid those, who resort to tricks. XIV. THE CASE OF THE BRAHMAN AND HIS WIFE AND DAUGHTER. In the lifetime of our Lord Ta-hnin-gaya (44) the Brahman Oodeissa (Udichcha) was the owner of ten million worth of property and had but one only and beloved daugh- ter, named Thamodda Seitta Kongmari (Samudda Sitta Kummari.) When she arrived at the age of fifteen, she had learned prudence and thought to herself: "my parents (44). One of the twenty-eight Buddhas who is said to have attained the age of eighty thousand years and was perfected under a oqgSoS Sayeebing, for which I cannot find the English equivalent name. [ 42 1 have only me ; they do not love me ; because they are very parsimoneous, they give me nothing, although they are rich. When they shall be summoned by the king of terrors, all this property will revert to the king, because I am a •woman and I shall be destitute." Thus musing one day, knowing that her parents were in the habit of placing an invaluable ruby in their bed, she concealed it when her parents had gone out to wash their heads. While he was changing his dress, the Brahman thought of the ruby and asked his wife, whether it was still in the bed ; she said that she had not seen it when she came away. Hearing this he ran back quickly. The daughter after having concealed the ruby, had put water ready for her parents to wash their feet in, and waited. The Brahman, on arriving, searched all round but not finding (the ruby), said to his daughter : "Darling daughter ! have you taken the ruby from out of our bed, after we had gone to wash our heads ?" She said : " I know nothing about it." When the Brahman heard this, he disputed with his daughter and going to the Judge of the town, to have the case examined, the Judge after examining the daughter and the parents, decided, that it was not (in the bed). The Brahman, being dissatisfied, went to the Governor, who decided as the Judge has done. The Brahman being still dissatisfied went to the king, who called the minister and said : " Within seven days you examine into and decide this case, if you do not do so with- in this time, you shall be ruined ;" upon which the minister grew very anxious, and his daughter, seeing this, said, " Oh, my noble father ! what are you concerned about ?" " My beloved daughter !" said the minister, " There [ 43 ] are three Brahmans, father, mother, and daughter, and be- cause they cannot find and come to a conclusion about a ruby, the king said, that I should be ruined, therefore I am troubled." When the daughter heard these words, she said : " Tell the king that I will decide the case within the seven days." Her father did so, and the king said : " Very well !" The minister's daughter told her father to call a clever secretary, which he did, and calling the Brahman and his wife she said : " Oh, you owners of ten millions of property ! how is this case ? " Oh, daughter of the great minister !" they said ; " from the day we were married, we have treasured up all this property to preserve our children from poverty." Calling the daughter and asking her, she said : " You are a woman and so am I, when our parents die we shall get no more property than the king gives us." Having ordered the secretary to write down the exact words, she called the Brahman and his wife and questioned them again. They said : " Whether the property we have accumu- lated is little or much, is it not for our children ?" When she heard these words, she ordered the secretary to write them dow:;. The import of these words was, that undoubtedly the daughter had the ruby. She told the Brahman and his wife to go and leave Thamodda Seitta Kongmari with her, and that she would have her conducted back after further examining her. Again summoning the Brahman's daughter and eat- ing and drinking with her, the minister's daughter thought to herself: "The girl has the ruby ; by what stratagem can I get possession of it ?" and approaching her father, told [ 44 ] him, that if he would giv-e her his invaluable ruby, she would be able to get the other ruby, so the minister gave her the ruby, and she nearing the Brahman's daughter, made free with her and they joked together. "Whilst thus making free and joking, she showed the Brahman's daughter the ruby, who, when she saw it said : " Is this your own or somebody's else ?" " It is my father's," she answered, " when my parents die, it will become the king's property, therefore I have concealed it," hearing which, the Brahman's daughter said : "I have one like it." When the minister's daughter heard these words, she said : " We are both women and of one mind, we also have the same manner of speaking and are both intelligent, we will put our rubies together and conceal them, and let no- body know anything about it." "It is very like your's my Lady ; and as I am afraid ray parents may find it, I will put it together with your's," and gave the rubj-^, taking which, the minister's daughter presented it to her father. The minister called the secretary and asked him where it had been got from, and the secretary narrated the young lady's management. The minister said : "Oh, how clever my daughter is;" and went together with the secretary, to present (the ruby) to the king. On being presented with the ruby, the king asked, whence it had been obtained, and the minister said : my daughter discovered it." On handing the ruby to the Brahman Oodeitsa, the latter exclaimed : " Oh, Lord, Oh Lord ! how did you ob- tain it ?" [ 45 ] " By my power," (45.) answered the king. TKe minister's daughter was raised to be queen. So wise Judges should decide after a searching investi- gation. •^ t 9 i^-» > ♦■ ■ XV. THE CASE OF THE THOO-HTE'S SON, THE ICHNEUMON, THE CAT, AND THE DOG. la the life time of our Lord Gaunagong (Gonaguna) (46.), the son of a Thoo-hte, and the son of a commoner, were learning the sciences at Tekkatho (Tax-ila) and when each of them was a proficient (as he desired to be), they asked their teacher, what was the good of learning." The teacher said : " At the begining of the world, there were four great Thoo-hte's in the country of Gahapedee- waitha. (Galapa-ti-vesa) These four Thoo-hte's loved each other very much and did not envy each other their wealth. Then one of the Thoo-htes died. There was only one son and his mother, the Thoo-hte's wife, called the son and said : " My beloved son, my husband, your father, is dead, and as you are his flesh and blood, you are entitled to the inheritance, but although you are so entitled, you are young yet, therefore go to my husbands relations, the three Thoo- htes, to acquire knowledge," and giving him three hundred pieces of silver, pointed ont to him (the three Thoo-htes). (45.) This is the meaning of the figurative words used by the king: oSstjoSSoo^g i.e. by putting the kings eye into (somebody,) equivalent to confer- ring the king's power on that person. (46.) One of the twenty eight Buddhas, who is said to have attained the age of thirty thousand years and the height of thirty cubits. He was perfected under a co^ooofsoSii Yay-tha-phan-bing, Ficus lanceolata. [ 46 ] The Thoo-hte's son taking dresses and ornaments, suit» able to his rank, went to the three Thoo-htes. At that instant a man with a dog met with the Thoo- hte's son, who said : "Hollo, man ! will you sell j'-our dog ?" " If you want to buy him" he replied, " give a hundred pieces of silver for him," so he gave him the price he asked and sent the dog to his mother's house, letting her know all the circumstances. The Thoo-hte's wife thought, that he had bought (the dog) with the permission of her husband's relations, and fed him well. One day, on going to a rural feast, (47.) a man came carrying a cat, and the Thoo-hte's son said : " Hollo, man ! will you sell your cat ?" " If you want to buy her," he replied, " give one hua- dred pieces of silver for her," so he gave him the price he asked, and sent the cat to his mother in the same manner, (as he had done the dog), and she, thinking, that her son had bought it under the directions of her husband's rela- tions, fed it well. Another day, when he went to take his food, a man came along, holding an Ichneumon, and the Thoo-hte's son seeing it, said : "Hollo, man! will you sell your Ichneu- mon ?" The man said : " I will." " Then state your price," said the Thoo-hte's son. " If vou want to buy it, give me a hundred pieces of silver for it." Giving him what he asked, he sent the Ichneumon to (47.) The word used cooScxsoSsu is ancient Bur- mese and lias become obsolete, all old Burmese ■works, abound with such ancient words. [ 47 j his mother also, and she, thinking that it was sent under the instructions of her husband's relations, fed it well. The Thoo-hte's wife fed the dog and the cat without fear, as they were domestic animals, but the ichneumon be- ing a wild animal, she whs afraid of, and did not (continue to) feed it, so the ichneumon grew lean. The religious teacher of the Thoo-hte's wife, coming to receive his food, (48.) she came down from the house to pour it out, and when he saw her, said : " You, lay-woman, are very thin !" and recited the eight temporal laws. (4-9.) "I, (your disciple) (50.) am thin from no other cause," said she, " than because, having let my son go to his father's relations, tbe three Thoo-hte's to acquire knowledge, after giving him three hundred pieces of silver, he sent me, one day a dog, for which he had given one hundred pieces, on an other day a cat, for which he had given one hundred pieces t id on (still) another day an ichneumon, for which he had also given a hundred pieces. Now the dog and and the eat being domestic animals, I am not afraid of, but the incheu- (48.) According to Buddhas teaching, and the monastic rules, the phoongyis or monks in Burmah, are obliged to beg their food, which is call sgSgsi. Htsone-khan. (49.) The GcoooooScoopsgSolsif "eight temporal laws" are, coScooSocoo§ cn^ co ols" o§ 02^ "^^s 00 dls« Wealth and Poverty; soGg335i§a3^oools«o§co^co^8co ols" Society and Solitude ; r^^gSscoolsn^sgiSsgSsco^gOT o\%« Reproach and Praise ; sgisoao gSs 00 olsn soS \ gSs co^sc»ol£» Happiness and Misery. (50.) Laymen never make use of the personal pronoun when speaking to a Phoongyee ; they alway* say : cn(y^G055.i Tabyeedaw, "Your disciple ;^" and the Phoongyees address them as cocoon Taga, being a contractiou of tbe ?aU word alwrooit Daraka, i. e : Layman." [ 48 J mon, Ibemg a wild animal, I get frightened at, when I see it therefore, I am lean and hollow-eyed. The priest told her to set it free in the jangal. As it is not proper to transgress the words of teachers and parents, and to disobey their orders, she set it free in the jangal, with some food well oiled. When the ichneumon arrived at the jangal, she con- sidered thus ; " The Thoo-hte's son having given a hundred pieces (for me), I came into his possession ; he fed me' well, and set me free, with my life also, I must repay my banefac- tor," and putting the Mani-Zawta (Manijota) (51) ruby, which she got in the jangal, in her mouth, took it to the Thoo-hte's son and said : " This is not an ordinary ruby, but one that will, give the wearer of it every thing he wishes for ; you will obtain whatever you long for ; wear it constantly and do not not let any one else wear it," after saying which, she returned to the jangal. The Thoo-hte's son longed for a palace, and in the same night, one rose up in front of his house. All the people, from the King downwards, came to see (the sight), and the King gave the Thoo-hte's son his daughter in marriage. Soon afterwards, the princess's Brahman teacher came to see if he could discover some particular signs on the Thoo-hte's son ; he looked, bat saw nothing except the (ruby) ring. "When the Thoo-hte's son had gone out, he entered the palace, and after making flattering speeches to the princess, asked her, whether her husband loved her. "How can you ask such a question, my Lord Brah- (51.) "Mani," or, as some write it: "Muni," ia (Pali) «*GeTn," and "jota" is (Pali) "precious." I 49 J man ? " replied stie, "he is only a Thoo-hte's son, whilst I am a princess." " If he love you so much, you have perhaps been al- lowed to wear his ring ? " insinuated the Brahman. "If I have not worn it," returned she, "pray who has ? " One day the princess asked the Thoo-hte's son to let her wear his ring, and he, loving her extremely, took it off and gave it to her, charging her, not to take it off to show it to any one, but to wear it constantly on her finger. One day, when the Thoo-hte's son was absent, the Brahman came again, and addressed her with his smooth phrases ; she said : " I am wearing the ring you spoke of the other day." "Are you," he asked, "where is it ? " "Here," she replied, displaying it. "Take it off and show it to me, my daughter," he beg- ged, and at last on her nurse saying : "Dear young lady ! the teacher begs for it so earnestly, please let him see it ! " she took it off and gave it to him. The instant, the Brahman received it, he assumed the appearance of a crow and flew away to the middle of the ocean, whither no one could follow him, and there dwelt in a palace. When the Thoo-hte's son returned, and heard that the Brahman had taken the ring, he said to the princess : "Al- though I particularly charged you, not to show the ring, you did so, and the result is, that it is now in the middle of the ocean, from whence it cannot be recovered." After speaking these words he remained brooding (over his loss). One day a party of Fairies came to bathe in a tank covered with water-lilies, not far from where the Thoo- hte's son dwelt, and having taken off their neck-laces, they [ 50 1 laid them down on the bank ; where the cat, brought up by the Thoo-hte's son, found them. The fairies came to the cat and begged her to return their necklaces saying that they were only fit for Nats and notfor mortals. The cat said : " If I do it, you must make a road for me to travel to the place where the Brahman is living in his palace in the middle of the ocean ; on this condition only will I return then." The fairies made the road and the cat crept stealthily along it until she arrived at the palace, where she found the Brahman asleep, with the ring on his finger, she then slipped the ring off and quietly brought it back and de-« livered it to her master, in return for his kindness, saying ; "You have paid a great price for me, and have fed and taken care of me ever since." As for the Brahman, he fell into the sea and was drowned, whilst the Thoo-hte's son, having recovered the ring, had every wish that he formed fulfilled. After a time, a Band of five hundred Robbers came to kill the Thoo-hte's son and take a .cay his ring, when the dog thought to himself ; " They have come to kill my master, who has purchased me for so high a price and has treated me so well," so he flew at the leader of the band and bit him to death, and threw his body down a well. Seeing this, the rest of the robbers fled in dismay. The next morning the dog said to his master " I had no sleep last night ; I had hard work too ; " and on being asked to explain, he related as follows : " Five hundred robbers came last night, to kill you and take away your ring so I killed their chief and threw him into the well and the rest fled. In return for the many favors you have confer- ed upon me, I have watched over your life and property." " Ah," replied the Thoo-hte's son, " Every one blamed I 51 ] me for giving a hundred pieces for you, who are but an animal, but I owe all my prosperity to three animals, each of which I purchased at that price." Thus saying he went into the jangal and brought back the ichneumon to live with the others. The ichneumon claimed precedence at their meals ; the dog said that he had the right of precedence ; and the cat said, that she was entitled to it. The ichneumon said : " I am the one who first gave the ring." The cat said to the Ichneumon : " After the gift which you had made, became the property of the Brahman, I took the neck- laces of the Fairies, and by means of the road, they made for me, recovered the ring ; have not I therefore given the wealth (to our master) ?" The dog said : " When the five hundred robbers came to kill the Thoo-hte's son and take your wealth, I killed their chief and cast him into the well, whereupon the rest of the band fled, and thus I am the preserver of our master's life as well as of his wealth ; I have saved him from de- struction, therefore I am entitled to precedence." At that time there was in the Kambauza (Kamboja) country, in the Kingdom of Maderit (Madaraja), a princess, the daughter of Kins; Dammarit named Thoodamma Tsari, (Sudammachari), who had a perfect knowledge of the ten laws (52), was deeply versed in the civil and criminal codes. (52.) The ten laws here referred to, are no doubt the olqSsooSJIs" the ten Primary virtues, viz: ol^» Dana — Alms-giving. cScon (Sila) Theela — per- formance of religious duties .^cgo" Neikkhama — Se- cluded ife; ogDo (Panya) Peenya — Wisdom, Prudence. 8^oD (Viriya) Weereeya— Diligence. 3<^ Khanti— Patience, cogo (Sachcha) Thitsa — Veracity. soSgos- [ 52 ] who lived in a separate palace, (53) and whose fame had spread to the eight quarters of the world, so that the illus- trious of every nation came to her for judgment. The ichneumon, the dog and the cat, disputing, agreed to go to, and abide by the decision of the princess. The ichneumon said : " The Thoo-hte's son gave as much as a hundred pieces (of silver) for me, fed and tended me well, and gave me my liberty. Bearing this in mind, and because he was my benefactor, I gave him the Mani- Zawta (Mani jota) ruby ring, by means of which he obtained a palace, which sprung up (out of the ground); Therefore' I am entitled to have precedence." Then the cat said : " The property given by the ich- neumon, was taken by the Brahman, I recovered it ; Thus the Thoo-hte's son enjoyed his fortune, therefore I am enti- tled to precedence. After this the Dog said : " The property given by the ichneumon, was lost after its receipt, and the cat recovered it, after which robbers came to steal it ; I bit and killed the chief, upon which the robbers ran away. I have saved the Thoo-hte's son's wealth as well as his life, therefore I am entitled to precedence." Adi-htana — Constancy, ©oggo" Mietta — Benevolence; and gooogo Oopekha — ^Impartiality. (53.) A princess who is greatly beloved by the King, and whom he does not want to marry ; or a princess vi^ho of her own accord wishes to remain single and who devotes herself to the observance of the religious duties and the ten virtues, has a separate palace built for her sole use, this palace j the roof cf which is crowned by one steeple only, instead of five, or seven, or nine as the King's and other members of the royal family, is called a oou6c^6(9ooD5n Tabing- taing-pyathat. [ 53 ] When they had ended, princess Thoodamma Tsarl thus pronounced her Judgment : " The dog in addition, to saving his master's treasures, prolonged his life also, therefore he is entitled to the first place in preference to you ; but, verily ! among animals there are none, that so well under- stood to repay a debt of gratitude." Thus ends the story of the Dog, the Cat, and the Ich- neumon, from which you may learn, that although man is superior to amimals, yet, kinduess to them will be rewarded. « n » ■■ » XVI. THE CASE OF THE THOO-HTE'S DAUGH- TER AND HER THREE LOVERS. At the time (of the preceding story) there lived in Kambauza (Kamboja) four rich men, and these four rich men loved each other very much. Three Thoo-htes had each one son, whilst the fourth had an only daughter, a perfect beauty, and to her all three young men sent a messenger. The first one (through his messenger) promised that he would, if she should die before she was fifteen, perform her funeral rites with every care. The second sent to say, that, if she should die before her fifteenth year, he would collect her remains. The third sent to say, that, if she should die before her fifteenth year he would watch at her tomb. To each of these offers the parents answered : " It is well ! " The maiden died before she had attained her fifteenth year, and the parents desired the young men to perform their respective promises. The first in accordance with his engagement performed the rites of cremation ; the second according to his promise, [ 54 ] collected and brouglit her bones (to the tomb) ; and the third kept watch, as he had engaged to do, over them in the cemetery. At this time a hermit — Jogee, who came from the Himalayan forests saw the watch-man and asked : "Young man what are you watching for ? '' "I am watching over the bones (of the dead) my Lord ! " replied he. "Would you wish (the dead) restored to life ? " "I would," replie,d the youth, upon which (she) be- came a beautiful maiden as before. (54.) Then the first of the three Tho:.>-hte's sons said : " I carried her corpse to the funeral pile and burnt it, ought «he not therefore to be mine ? " The second said:" I collected her bones, ought she not to be mine ?" The third said : "Whilst I was watching in the ceme- tery, she returned to life ; ought she not to be mine ? " " What is the good of us three disputing with each other ? Let us submit to the decision of the princess Thoodamma-tsari" they said. So they all three went to the princess and when they had related all the circumstances to her, she said : "I under- stand this matter ; one of you burnt the corpse of the maiden, and went his way ; the other collected her bones, and went his way ; but the third kept watch in the cemetery, although the family of a cemetery watchman is degraded to (54.) Hermits are supposed to obtain, through their spiritual life, supernatural powers. Some of the most gifted hermits are celebrated in the Indian national epos, the " Mahabharata," see the songs : "Narada's predictions," Sakuntala," etc. [ 55 ] the seventh generation, (55) and it was during his watch that the maiden returned to life; therefore: "as he kept her company in death, he is entitled to be her partner in life !" was the decision of the princess Thoodamma-tsari. ^ « I » » t ^ XVII. THE .CASE OF THE THOO-HTE'S SON AND HIS THREE WIVES. At the same time (of the preceding storj^) the son of a Thoo-hte of no particular note, who was married when he was ten years old, used constantly to say : " If I should ever die from the bite of a snake, do not bury my corpse by cremation, but fasten it upon a raft, and set it adrift." One day this man u-as bitten by a snake and he died, so in obedience to his oft repeated instructions, his wife and his relatives bound his body upon a raft and set it adrift. Drifting down the river it came to a large town, in which lived a snake charmer, whose three daughters had just then come down to wash their heads. Seeing the raft, the eldest of them cried out ; " It is a raft with the body of a man upon it. !" The second said : " Who knows, whether his death has not been caused by the bite of a snake ? " and swimming (56) to the raft, brought it to the shore, while the youngest ran to call her father. Their father came and by applying medicines and charms, restored (the young man) to life. (55.) Up to the present the grave-diggers or chandalas who are also watchmen of the grave-yards, are, contrary to the spirit of Buddhism, looked upon as a degraded caste, (56.) Most of the towns and villages in Burmah being situated on the banks of rivers, or creeks, there are very few Burraans, male or female who cannot swim. I 56 1 Then the eldest daughter said : "I saw him first, he ought to be my husband." The second said : "I swam and brought the raft to the shore, he ought to be mine." The youngest said : I called our father who applying medicines and charms, brought him to life again, therefore he ought to be my husband." Then the eldest said ; "It is not becoming in us three sisters, to be qu irreling about the possession of the same man ; let us be prudent and restrain ourselves, my sisters, and let this man go." "It is true what you say, sister" they said, and they tied a magic thread (57) round (the young man's) neck, whereupon he was transformed into a small parrot and flew away. The little parrot flew back to his own country, where he settled in the King's garden, living upon the fruit there. When the gardener delivered the fruit and the flowers to the King, the latter said : "Hallo, gardener ! formerly the fruit and flowers used to look well, but now they do not." "Ah, your Majesty ! " replied the gardener, "formerly (57.) The belief in witchcraft and in the magic virtue of certain mixtures, muntras and charms, is as unshaken now, as it was a thousand years ago, among both Burmans and Takings, and they have numerous appellations for them, such as : tgoBp^Su j Myet-nha-pwing, i. e. a medicine to excite love ; 33| ] ososu Anoo-hsai, the same ; o^soqn Man-yai and g^ of8« Khyee-man, 1. e. Water and U'hread into which the desired virtue is infused, by repeating a muntra over it; o^oSg^ Pareik-khyee and o^oSeci water and thread, used "as a preservative from evil etc, [ 57 ] there were no parrots, but now there is a small one, which I cannot drive away." "If that is the case," said the King " let all the bird- catchers set traps for him." So they set traps and caught him, but as they had pity on him, they did not kill him, but presented him to the King, who, on account of his beauty, gave him to his daughter. The princess, continually playing with the parrot, saw the thread, and taking it off, he instantly became a hand- some young man ; fastening the thread on him again, he was changed back into a parrot. Now from taking ofi' the thi'ead at night and fastening it on again in the day, after some time had elapsed, the princess' figure lost its symetry, which coming to the king's ear, he sent for the Chief Justice and had the matter investi- gated (58). Owing to the examining and searching that ensued, the little parrot got frightened and flew out of the window, when the thread caught in the window frame and broke ofl', so becoming a handsom.e young man again, he ran up into the house of a Thoo-hte's, who was eating his rice with his wife and daughter and questioned the young man, who re- lated what had happened to him. He was thereupon allow- ed to dip his hand into the dish and to eat with them. The servants of the Chief Justice, thinking that a thief had gone into the Thoo-hte's house, arrived in pursuit, when the Thoo-hte's wife said : "We are taking our meals with our daughter and son-in- law, but as you say there is a thief, try and catch him," and consented to a search being made, but the servants of the Chief-Justice not finding any one, went away. (58.) There is nothing immoral in the princess' behaviour; vide Note 27, para; 3. She had the [ 58 ] The Thoo-hte, seeing that the young man was very handsome, married him to his danghter. Now the princess in consequence of her separation from the young man fell ill and the king said to her : " Darling daughter, what is the reason of your illness ?" She revealed to him all, and that the separation from the young man was the cause of her illness ; whereupon he ordered that search should be made for him. Then preparing a great entertainment, he sent for the rich, the wealthy, the nobles and the judges to come and witness it. They all came accordingly, and the young man also came with the Thoo-hte's daughter. ' The princess on seeing him, cried, out ; " This is my husband !" At the same time, she who had been the young man's wife before his death, saw him also and exclaimed : " Oh, my husband ! We set him adrift, bound to a raft, when he died of a snake-bite, but if he has riot really died, I claim him as my husband." The princess said : " It was only from fear of my father, that he ran away." The Thoo-hte's daughter said : " When the servants of the Chief Justice would have killed this young man, think- ing him to be a thief, my parents by their prudence, saved him and gave him to me in marriage ; ought he not then to be mine f " Thus they disputed and the king said: "I will not makes use of compulsion, but go and submit to the decision of the princess Thoodamma tsari.^' Accordingly they went choice of a husband and was only afraid the King might not approve of her choice ; the sequal shows, that the young man was looked upon as her husband. [ 59 J to her and the princess enquired of them the circumstances of the case. She who had been the young man's wife before his death, stated as follows ; " As my husband died of a snake bite, his body, in accordance with his wishes, was not burnt, but set adrift, fastened on a raft ; if he has not died 'after all, ought he not to be my husband ?" The princess said : " This young man having been trans- formed into a parrot, destroyed our fruit and flowers, where- fore the bird-catchers were called and ordered to entrap him ; they did so and got him, upon which he was brougt to me. After he had become my husband, my father caused enquiries to be made upon which the young man fled, oaght he not l;herefore to be my husband ?" The Thoo-hte's daughter said : " When the king's servants pursued the young man, thinking him to be a thief, he, fearing for his life, took refuge in our house, my father managed so as to save his life, and gave him to me in mar- riage ; ought he not therefore to be my husband P" Princess Thoodamma-tsari then gave Judgment as follows : " As the young man's first wife buried her hus- band on the water, he cannot now be her husband, even though he is alive again. With regard to the princess, If on the king's sending the Chief-Justice he had succeeded in arresting the young man, she could not have prevented his death, and as he would have been lost to her then, she can- not claim him as her husband now. The parents of his pre- sent wife prevented the death of him, who was (as good as) dead, therefore let her be his partner in life. VOCABULARY. [ «8 ] VOCABULARY 9DII oscqegi (Pali) ten millions. ssgoodSi a dead body, a corpse, 33oq)8i a habit, a deed. 030^81 a consequence, a good result, benefit. asgSoji whoso, whoever, that man. ssgossagSi from 931 substantive prefix, gosi to hear, gSi to see ; e. g, hearing and seeing. EojgSi a time, a turn. g(Si SS^sg^' iiiany times. 93o0o5si a consequence, a circumstance, business; cause. <^8i all the circumstances ; everything con- cerning. 33og§soSi to be well acquainted, familiar with ; to familiarize. 33jg5gs|]Ssi one another, among each other, mutually 33§i a nurse, an attendant on children. 33§Ss32cpi same as osoQoSsn K)gSi permission ; privilege ; opportunity; business. 33qi a flower bud. osgSsos^i from osi substantive prefix and (g^^ to dispute ; contradict ; deny e. g. a dispute. 0301 beginning with ; from — to. 33§sq to have authority over; Government; Go- vernment Officers. [ 64 ] o32q!33gc^' (from j^sgoSi to decide) a decision. oso»o£33ocpSi articles of use or ornament, indicative of rank. ose^aSy^t a relative, a friend. -03(181 a relative, a kinsman. 33^33^1 in equal parts. 33Q01 tlie stalk of a leaf ; the stem of a flower or fruit. cacocSi science ; skill. oscBSgi osdB^si a nurse ; a keeper. 33800 oSi (Pali,) meaning, import, explanation. 33^eSi osf^i 33^^' (Pali) immeasurable; invaluable. s3(jk,cpoSi (Pali) danger, evil, calamity. os^Si os^Si force, constraint. 030I0S1 (Pali) a state of punishment. 3301 !< the space near, (a thing or person.) oscolSsosqi from 33' the substantive prefix, and colSv unite ; «^i collect, gather ; e. g. a lump ; a heap. 33ocSi 33CC381 companion, associate. 03§Si an evil result, punishment, — opposed to sso^s" odSji to be free from punishment. §1 to be subject to, to deserve punishment. 33^81 a flower ; blossom. 33^33^1 a part ; a share. 330ooSi what, how, where ? ssgSi a state of being ; condition. 2000S1 a nobleman. 330Q8a3g^8i an enquiry. 33oooSi brother. 03§:< a tail. [ 65 ] oscgi au inheritance. . a> to inherit ; an heir. osgoSocwosi a suggestion ; a hint. 3»a^^' a party to a law-suit. ;»tj|eoi to divide and distribute equally. 33q6s3o|8 stock in trade, a capital to trade with. o3Q[S< a place ; a country. ccostgoSp. from oaqfii as above ; ocos four, and i^^cBp a quarter of the heavens ; a car- dinal point ; e. g, from the places of all four quarters, fig : every where. 33=l(g^i 33@o3c^i attendants ; people in waiting. osGpi business — affair. 33^5i shade, a hint. ssccpSaosoSi appearance. caDoSi to assume appearance. as^soaooSi from oa^si bone ; and osooSi that what re- mains of a thing, after its useful parts or portions have been made use of; e. g. refuse ; rubbish. sogoSi age. as^oSi shame. — c^i to be put to shame. 33g£i lord ; master ; an owner. oi from QQ^Si as above ; and o' female ; e. g. mistress, lady. 33cogooSi a snake catcher ; a snake trainer. O3c8goi cleverness. 030^^81 (Pali) precaution ; circumspection, consider- ation ; oaogl" [ 66 ] 33.CO01 gentle. ascDGqi reputation ; character, oacgSi form. ■ gi to assume (the) form; to personate. osecgsosq^i offspring. ofcgoSi ofgoSi ofgoSoo^si wonderful; a wonderful thing. ooooocpi (Pali), habit; custom; a deed, same as ssoqiSa 3300001 (Pali), authority ; an order. 330^1 an object of thought or sense. gi to dwell upon in mind ; to make an object of thought or desire. 33o:oiii 030O31 (Pali) to agree to, to stand security for. SS' to lie down. ccjSi to sleep, to be asleep. eS'SsooSi from e8Si a house ; and ©ooSi an honorfic affix in compliment to persons of high rank, the king and a deity, any thing belonging to them; e. g. a palace. ocQoSgsoi to remember ; bear in mind ; to think. d^scSSsoo^is^scB^soo^i a potter. goooi (Pali) a representation ; a comparison ; simili- tude. gjloSi (Pali) a means, devise, an artifice. ooo^i cot^^i same. goog' or gocjg'i an orchard ; a garden. OOll toSsi to be free from, separate from. cofoSs^s. a ridge of earth in rice fields. ro^oi the world. [ 67 ] ■§81 the beginning of the world. -ogi the earth. rocpsi a pitcher. ^'Ithe spout of a pitcher. TOO CO 1 (Pali) time. r^oS. an animal body ; one self, my self, yourself, him-and her-self. . oosi a substitude, an agent, one that acts for another. cQ' you, plural; coo5i the body; the members of the body. — oqSoco5i a female attendant. r^sogoSi to worship. oqjoScoeqi character, reputation. o^soosi to joke, banter. ocqj^eooi to be famous ; to acquire notoriety : be well known. ooqj5.ogSji ccq)ocg?8i a noose. 0^S' to feel complaisance ; to feel kind, well dis- posed towards. 0^3' to look attentively ; to inspect. @5(^o§i to be rough, violent in word or deed. Qot|i from @osi to hear, to inform, communicate intelligence, and |i to pervade, &c. e. g. to spread news^ &c. @^si from (3l' to be lean ; and ^si to be sad, sor- rowful. eggoi to be extensively known, notorious. c@s^Ssi from c@?' copper ; and ^Ssi a gong. oQooSi to fear, be afraid. [ 68 ] -§lf or .§1 same. ©@3S@i to be concerned, anxious, troubled about. @o5i to like, love. (^oSot^ocSi to disappear, die. cgfi a slave, a servant: — ■ Gco5i from above, and ootSi a honorific affix in compliment to persons of high rank, the king and a deity ; and things belong- to them ; e. g. a king's subject, or slave ; pron. I, masculine —used in addressing a superior. oi ard cg^GOD^oi feme. I, fiminine. goSc to be oppulent, wealthy. ©1^1 to fall off, as leaves or fruit. soSco^i to be hard to deal with, severe, rigorous. ?6g^si a spouse ; a correlate in marriage, whether husband or wife ; in composition with osesgi and 8oSi a friend. 3O081 to attend on, wait upon. 2 cm I (Pali) an instant, a moment. sSoSiSsi all, the whole. o9^ssc3o8i a father, (honorific). a^i a journey ; a voyage ; the distance between two places. — . oD^i and — cgosi a traveller. sol 03^1 a washerman. dl sac8i the joint of the small of the back. calSsi the head. [ 69 ] Qcgi?! to wash the head. jST. B. ocg]5 is pro- nounced : shaw. ^o5i during, whilst. §saji from §si to steal and cxji a person ; e. g. a thief oj^8u jj^si only, nothing, but. ^sgSsi to praise, applaud. ctgSi to slip ; err ; to make a mistake. ogqSoco?! from ©gqSsi the place for the feet, and GOT? honorific affix, also ogcooSqSsu (51 a cluster of bushes ; a jangal ; a thicket. oil oSli the Ganges. o^cpi (Pali) — 3^s a resting or halting place on a journey. (^1 the barking deer. Cll c< cll pron. I, and in certain constructions: my, me ; indicative of superiority in the speaker. c abbr : of clsi a fish. nqjSsi a gudgeon. C301 a term of reproach, like ^61 you, thou. ^o^otSsi to cry loud. (gSsi to contradict ; to refuse to ; to object to. goSsoScgosi bird catchers. Oil oogip (Pali) tho eye. SgooSi or SgD^i from ocg|p the eye and SgogS^i the soul ; e. g. sight. oSgoSi pure ; clear. [ 70 ] o^s8(Si wealth ; the enjoyment of any comfort, wealth, &c. ogscbi to use artifice (in a bad sense); to cheat. ooisi to enjoy. ol^si a secretary. 8oS( (Pali Sggi) the mind ; temper. GcoooSi to be put out of temper, to be irri- table ; ill tempered. sj|5i to restrain ones temper. cocnw^i a messenger ; an ambassador. ^so5si to try. oooSi to join by a union of parts. ^61 a wild ox. ^!^5i to be concerned, anxious, troubled about. son aooSi to offer respectfully ; to present as to a king or governor. soScsgi (better ao6og) a plea ; an argument. joSgS' to consider, reflect on. 3oo5i a large species of deer ; an elk. Eo^sojsi to collect, treasure up, accumulate. loggoi 3035000^1 a barber. :oo5.i to take up or out of the water, to extricate, to save. ^soDosi to impede ; obstruct ; prevent. icjcoS' a reward ; a present, caosdlsi a medicine, a drug. csooSaSsi to give in marriage (honorific). sgSsi cooked rice for priests. '— " — a to receive such rice. [ 71 ] ffogcl^sMosqSgi relatives. •f or cj^^i a state of mindt oaoooc a precious stone. ocj^^i a jogee or fakir. Qi night. g|!< the evening. g§3oS«t from ^01 a woman's younger sister, and osSoi a woman's elder sister; e. g. sisters. ^(^1 to be equal ; in equal parts. Q^oSoSi the banian tree. c^oSoqi any holy water; the water from an urn or vase in jwhich flowers are placed, as a religious offering. ^icoSi ^coSi to be sad in mind, or countenance. g^g' to show, point out. 0011 oDODoSi indeed, certainly. u& same, really, if indeed. cocoooi (from the Pali dlqoooyi; a lay woman. coclsi a fisherman. cooSoo5' SqS< to have a desire for, to covet. cKf^s. (from OT^^.') power. coSsj' to encamp. oD5g^> to feel strong passion for. oDo^t a scholar, a disciple (wrongly spelled ooggS in the M. S.) oDo^a<»§' pron. I, masculine, used in addresaing re- ligious teachers. [ 72 1 — — — «i (a female disciple ]) pronoun I, feminine. coo^i again ; once more. ooo^i oot^^i see goloSi ooo^' see eooDu^i ooqpsi law ; moral principle ; right ; equity ; justice- ^01 to hear preaching. cn^si cooScsooSi a present ; a bribe. cSS^gjO^i (Pali,) an animal. coDOKfSi a thick forest. ooDoSooi to long for. QcnoSto^s' to beg pardon ; to intreat. c^oScg^si to instigate. 0011 ooSi^iosi to be conspicuous, well known. cB^s@o:i c85s@08i to marry, unite in marriage; (polite.) oco^i (pronounce oo^s) (Pali) oeoo^i abbr. of otoo great and ooecpi a priest ; a buddhist monk or priest of reputed sanctity, coooopi ©cooo^oi (Pali) to laud, praise. og^8oi to shine ; to be distinguished, conspicuoua, to emit light. 911 olqcooi (Pali) a layman, abbr. to ooodqi oi (Pali) a lay woman, abbr. to ooc»o«i ' 8oi (Pali) an island. ^q53owo£i a canopy. <3o\oo> (Pali) anger, paeaion. OK ogMoSi (Pali) a code of law ; 3, Civil Code. [ 73 ] «lo5i (Pali olofi) an element ; the constituent part of anything. ^oSV to be intellectually deep, profound. ^olsi a dragon. ^^si a rule, a precedent ; manner, custom. to be few, not many. ^^codS< a royal palace. f spirit, as opposed to qSi matter. ^o^i (Pali) contraction of ^o|8§i?the doctrine of abjuration. jiScacSi to like, to be pleased with, to love. j' to pervade, to be diffused through or over all the parts. §g