Travels of Fah-Hian and Sung-Yun, Buddhist pilgrims : from China to India (400 A.D. and 518 A.D.) / translated from Chinese by Samuel Beal.

  • Faxian
Date:
1869
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Travels of Fah-Hian and Sung-Yun, Buddhist pilgrims : from China to India (400 A.D. and 518 A.D.) / translated from Chinese by Samuel Beal. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    It is contained in a wooden tube case, from wliich no human power can remove it. Entering the defile and travelling westward for four days there is a Yihara erected for the purpose of paying religious reverence to Buddha’s robe (SangMti).1 When, there is a drought in that country the chief personages of the kingdom assemble together, and taking out the robe of Buddha, they worship it and pay to it religious devotions. The heavens then yield abundance of rain. To the south of JSTagrak, half a yojana, is a cave on the S.W. face of a large mountain. In this cave Buddha left his shadow.2 staff (about 19ft.), we must recollect the account given of Buddlia’s stature— u Buddha is sometimes said to be 12 cubits in height, and sometimes 18 cubits(M.B. 364). 1 The SangMti, or great garment of the Buddhist monk, is that worn over all, and composed of many pieces from nine up to twenty-five. Originally the dress of the monks was made from scraps of cloth picked up in grave-yards, or that which had been used for a signal flag, or that which had been discarded, or that which, had been polluted. These scraps were sewn together, hence the custom in more wealthy times of sewing pieces together in imitation of their former poverty. 2 Hiouen Thsang places the cave of the Shadow of Buddha twenty li to the S.W. of Hidda. This agrees nearly enough with that of the text. The account given by Hiouen Thsang of his visit to this cave is too curious to be omitted. Having set out alone from. Hidda and arrived at the town of Teng-kouang-tcliing (Pradiparasmi pour a (Jul.) [but is not Teng-konang equivalent to Dipankara F], he entered a SaSgharama and enquired his way. He found no one to accompany him, except a boy who said, u the farm of the convent is not at a great distance from here, I will ac- company you so far.” When they arrived at the farm they passed the night there, and having found an old man who knew the spot, the two set out together. Five brigands attacked them before long, but Hiouen Thsang by his courage and address converted them. They arrived at the cave which is situated to the east of a stream running between two mountains. The entrance was scooped out in a sort of rocky wall, and admitted one in a