Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume III.djvu/406

 -too BUDDHISM career and mission. Few of the innumerable Buddhas, who are said to have lived on earth many millions of Kalpas before Sakyamuni, are nominally recorded ; but 24 of his imme- diate predecessors are mentioned by himself, all of whom promised him that he should be- come a Buddha ; especially Dipankara Buddha and six others. Of the five saviours of the present Bhadra Kalpa, three appeared before Silkyamuni, namely : Krakuchchanda (krakach, saw; uda, end), Karakamuni (karaka, gold; muni, saint), and Kasyapa (kasya, spirituous liquor ; pa, to drink), while the fifth, Maittreya (mitra, friend, charity), is yet to come. Many legends concerning the predecessors of SSkya- 71111111 are applied to him ; and it is not absurd to suppose that he represented his doctrine as pre-Brahmanic. All these Buddhas of the dimmest antiquity are dogmatic, mythological, and fantastic personages. Our historical Bud- dha is also not altogether free from legendary qualities. For, says a legend, when in un- fathomable fore-ages Brahma saw a youth carrying his mother through a most terrible tempest, he instilled into his heart the wish to become a Buddha. This wish lasted during the revelation of 125,000 Buddhas, and his prospec- tive stage was matured while 387,000 Buddhas were turning the wheel of faith. As a Bodhi- sattva he offered flowers to Dipangkara, on a spot near the present Jelalabad. The Jatakas (jan, to be born) and Jdtakamalas (mala, wreath of flowers), or the migrations of Silkya, are a favorite subject of oriental monastic poe- try, as well as of the pictorial and plastic arts, and a source of many pious frauds. Dsanglun (the wise and the fool), a Thibetan collection of such legends, and kindred works, are of recent date. Silkyamuni, although passing through 550 transformations (as king, hermit, priest, cour- tier, Brahman, Indra, merchant, and as ani- mals of many kinds), in a Cingalese legend, pre- served his Bodhisattvic character in the greatest purity. His sufferings on behalf of the salva- tion of the world were extraordinary in their number as well as in their horrible nature. These Jatakas took place mostly at Benares and on the Indus, about the time of Ctn-ist's birth, and the centuries iinmediatcly succeed- ing. A spot is shown even now at Attock, where, as a prince, he offered his body to be devoured by a starving tigress and her young ; and a few miles thence anothe?-, where he used his own skin as a tablet, splinters of his bones as styles, and his blood as ink, to record a lost passage of the Dharma. In the legend of the royal prince Vesantara, his penultimate life as a Bodhisattva is ushered in by his Maha- jataka, or great birth. This legend is popular among all Buddhistic nations, from the Cal- mucks to Ceylon and Siam ; in it he makes the most extraordinary sacrifices of his person and of his wife and children. Vesantara went to the heaven of the joyful ; thence, in the shape of a white elephant, into the body of Maha Maya to be born as Sakyamuni. His royal father became his other fathe7 -, Suddho- dana. The law which he revealed is to last for 5,000 years, and disappear with the world before the advent of Maittreya, who7n he had already crowned in heaven, a7id who is to bring a period of peace and holiness upon earth. II. THE VINAYA (vi, before ni, to guide) is the discipline of the priests ; one of its parts, called Sila, has reference to the morality of laymen. The Sramanas (sense- tamers) are hound to observe 250 ordinances. Of these ten are essential, viz. : not to kill, not to steal, to he chaste, not to lie, not to get drunk, not to eat in the afternoon, not to sing or dance, &c., to abstain from ornamental dresses, not to use a large bed, not to receive precious metals; five concern the respect to be paid to Buddha, to the law, and to the priesthood. Good conduct, good health, and little learning suffice for ad7nission to monk- hood, even in very early youth. The novice is enjoined to eat only the leavings of laymen's meals, to wear a soiled garment of rags, to live near the roots of trees, to use the urine of cows as medicine, and not to boast of superhuman faculties. Ordination is performed with many ceremonies, OH great festival days. The vows do not bind for the whole of life. The clerical dress, which consists of an under jacket, a gown reaching to the knees and fastened by a girdle, and a cloak over the left shoulder, all yellow, must bo kept on even at night, and its loss en- tails that of the priestly character. Different climates, sects, and dignities have introduced some modifications ; thus, Lamaists wear crim- son or violet garments. New and costly ma- terials, cut in pieces, are sometimes sewed to- gether and sprinkled with dust, to comply with the letter of the law. Except apostles and very holy men, all others shave their heads and beards at the new and full moon. The nails and teeth are kept clean. The indispensable implements of a Bhikshu or mendicant are : a great, round, narrow-mouthed bowl, without a handle, for receiving alms; a sort of sieve or ewer to filter water; a staff or umbrella; a rosary of 108 beads ; a razor, and needles. Besides these, he has no property, and lives altogether on alms, which he collects without importuning the givers. Solitude and wander- ing about, begging without a fixed residence, were soon exchanged for residence in con- vents, with cells for single monks. Celibacy is strictly enjoined. The homes of luxury, of no- bles, of widows, and infidels, must be avoided by the begging monk. The receiving of alms or of presents is regarded as a favor to the giver, who is more benefited than the receiver. It is a sin to receive more than is needful for one meal, or to spill a part of the gift, or to separate liquid from solid victuals. Animal food is forbidden, and even vegetables while retaining the power of germinating. Although poverty is a law for single monks, the monas- teries can receive and possess great wealth, lands, sei-fs, &c., for the maintenance of tern-