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"Again, illustrious disciple, Death is like the golden- wino-ed bird (Garuda), which is able to carry oflP and feed upon every kind of fish-dragon, and even gold and silver and precious stone, except the diamond, which it cannot digest ; such, illustrious one, is the power of Death, able to devour every kind of living creature, except the Bodhisatwa, firmly fixed in the principles of the Mahayana mahaparinir- vana. " Again, Kasyapa, the case may be compared to a river's bank, along which different trees and shrubs are growing ; SCRIPTURES FROM THE CHINESE. 1 71 suddenly, the river rises, and by its rapid flow carries every- thing before it into the great Ocean — all except the supple willow, which, by its yielding character, is saved. Illustri- ous disciple, so all things are carried away into the great sea of Death, except the Bodhisatwa, etc. "Again, Kasyapa, the case may be compared to the power of Narayana, able completely to subdue and destroy the entire body of champions (Baladevas?), except the great wind (Rama?), because there is no possibility of crushing that. So, illustrious disciple. Death, the great Narayana, is able to destroy and take captive every form of living creature, except the Bodhisatwa, etc. ''Again, Kasyapa, the case is like that of a man who, being in a deadly feud with another, assumes the guise of friendship, yet ever follows and tracks the other, desiring to kill him; he, however, by care and watchfulness, takes every precaution against his foe, and so the wiles of his adversary do not succeed. Illustrious disciple, the great enemy Death thus plots against the life of men and all that breathes, but he cannot effect his object against the Bodhisatwa, etc. ''Again, Kasyapa, the case may be compared to the sudden fall of a tempestuous rain, which in a moment destroys trees, shrubs, flowers, yea, even gold, silver, and every precious substance, except the true Diamond, etc. " Again, it may be compared to the Garuda, which can devour all the Nagas, except those who have taken their refuge in Buddha, the Law, and the Church ; so, etc. " Again, it may be compared to the poisonous serpent of Mara (or, that poisonous serpent the Devil), against which there is only one charm, viz., the charm of the star A-kie- to; so the poison of Death, which is like that of the scorpion, can only be escaped by the Bodhisatwa, etc. " Again, Kasyapa, the case is like that of a man who, having enraged his prince, tries to assuage his auger by smooth words and large presents, and thus escape the con- sequences of the Princess wrath. But it is not so with King Death: no words or gifts can conciliate him; no place 172 A CATENA OF BUDDHIST is secure from his approach; he walks about night and day; his territory has no bounds ; there is no need of light or sun where he reigns ; he enters the house without passing through the door ; and where he comes there is no escape. "Illustrious, by these, and a thousand other comparisons, we may exhibit the sorrow called Death, as it is understood by the Bodhisatwa Mahasatwa/^ [And in a similar way the subject of the other sorrows is exemplified.] THE CHARACTER OF NIRVANA. 3. The question relating to the meaning of the Buddhist Nirvana, has always been a vexed one. The learned Cole- brooke explains it as indicating a profound calm {Essays, 258). This may be either the calm of unmixed happiness, or the calm of perfect apathy. The latter idea, as Cole- brooke remarks, can hardly differ from eternal sleep. The former, as including the idea of happiness, cannot be a state of apathy. Barnouf, on the other hand, defines Nirvana, as complete extinction, and illustrates the force of the word by its ideal meaning, " of a fire or lamp gone out^' (Introd., 589). This figure of a lamp gone out seems, however, to point more to the extinction of personal or individual Being, than to the extinction of all Being. Professor Max Milller, in his various writings, until recently, has insisted on the correctness of BurnouPs definition ; and the opinion of WassiHef is to the same eSect.^ Chinese works generally define Nirvana as the condition in which there is neither "birth nor death" (wou sang sso). There is another definition frequently met with, viz., silent-extinction (tsih mieh). But as I have stated already, these definitions (which belong to the earliest schools) are neither exact nor compre- hensive. It would bo considered little to the purpose if avc argued from the ideal meaning of the word " Heaven,-'^ viz., 1 lie defines Nirvana (§ 9o) as complete annihilation (vollstan(li!j,eu vernichtung). This deliuitiou, however, Lc confines to the earliest period. SCRIPTUEES PROM THE CHINESE. 173 something lifted or heaved up, to its generally accepted mean- ing; and yet, perhaps, we should find it difficult to define what we really understand by the word. Its force must be gathered from the general consent. And so we find that thex'e is a general agreement respecting the Nirvana of the Buddhists, in their own works, viz., that it signifies a condition of Rest and of Peace. Professor M. Miiller has lately expressed a similar opi- nion. "The popular view of Nirvana — as representing the en- trance of the soul into Rest; a subduing of all wishes and de- sires; indifference to joy and pain, to good and evil, etc. — was, in my opinion, the conception of Buddha and his disciples'' {Dhammapada, p. xlv). With reference to this subject, I proceed to quote from the work already named, and which represents the question in its full bearing.^ " Again, there was a Brahmatchari called Basita, who resumed the conversation thus: 'Gotama! Is that which you call Nirvana a permanent state of Being or not ? Yes, Brahmatchari. Basita replied, Gotama, then we may not say that Nirvana consists in the absence of sorrow ? Yes, Brahma- tchari, it may be so defined. Basita said, Gotama, there are four kinds of condition in the world which are spoken of as non-existent : the first, that which is not as yet in being, like the pitcher to be made out of the clay ; secondly, that which, having existed, has been destroyed, as a broken pitcher ; third, that which consists in the absence of some- thing different from itself, as we say the ox is not a horse ; and, lastly, that which is purely imaginary as the hair of the tortoise, or the horn of the hare. If, then, by having got rid of sorrow we have arrived at Nirvana, Nirvana is the same as " nothingness," and may be considered as non- existent ; but, if so, how can you define it as permanence, joy, personality, and purity. " Buddha said, Illusti-ious disciple. Nirvana is of this soi't, it is not like the pitcher not yet made out of the clay, nor is it hke the nothingness of the pitcher which has been broken ; nor is it like the horn of the hare, nor the hair of I Extract from the Parinirvana Sutra, Kiouen xxxix, p. 1. 1 74 A CATENA OF BUDDHIST tlie tortoise, something- purely imaginary. But it may be compared to the nothingness defined as the absence of something different from itself. Illustrious disciple, as you say, although the ox has no quality of the horse in it, you cannot say that the ox does not exist; and though the horse has no quality of the ox in it, you cannot say that the horse does not exist. Nirvana is just so. In the midst of sorrow there is no Nirvana, and in Nirvana there is no sorrow. So we may justly define Nirvana as that sort of non-existence which consists in the absence of something essentially different from itself. "Basita replied : Gotama,if this is the character of Nirvana, viz., that it consists in the absence of something different from itself, then (I will assume that it consists) — in the absence of permanence, joy, personality, and purity — how then, Gotama, can you say that it consists in the possession of these very qualities ? "Buddha said. Illustrious disciple, what you say as to the absence of something different from itself, as constituting non-existence, must be limited bv the consideration that there may be a result following this absence of the one in the other that may be just the opposite to non-existence ; for example, take the ailments to which men are subject — fever, flatulence, or cold : for the first, ghee is given as a remedy; for the second, oil ; for the third, honey.