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The distance between Kapila and WisiU was 49 yojanas, and after the princesses had seen Praj4pati, and been admitted to pro- fession, they went to Sewet, where Budha was then residing. By Budha ihey were admitted to upasampadd, on which occasion he proclaimed the merits of Yasddhara-d^wi ; in two poyas after this she became a rahat; and afterwards continued to reside at Sewet, whence she went, sometimes, to hear bana irom Budha, and at other times to enquire after the health of Rdhula. The people of Jambudwipa brought her many presents ; in con- sequence of which she informed Budha that she could not remain at Sewet any longer, as more offerings were made to her now than when she was a queen. She, therefore, went to Wisdla ; but there it was the same, and she was obliged to go to Bajagaha. These gifts were received through the merit she had acquired in former births, when B6dhisat, with her full consent, gave away his possessions. On the evening of a certain day, as Yas6dhadUdewi was sitting alone, she thus thought : " Nanda, R&hula, Seriyut, Mugalan, Kh^ma, Uppalawamna, Sudhddana, Prajdpati, and Anya-kondanya, have entered nirwana. I was bom on the same day as Budha, and in regular order ought to enter the city of peace upon the same day ; but this would not be decorous to the great teacher. I am now seventy-eight years of age. In two years from this time Budha will attain nirwina. I ¥ri]l, therefore, request permission to obtain this privilege from Budha." At the moment this resolution was formed, the earth shook, which was perceived by the other princesses ; and as they knew the cause, they proceeded to the residence of Yas6dhadi- dewi, and accompanied her to the wihara of Budha. From the VII. LEGENDS OF g6tAMA BUDHA. 355 sage she asked forgiyeness for the faults she might at any time have committed, and then presented her request. Bndha said, *' Yon are the most virtuous of women ; but from the time jou became a rahat, yon have not performed any miracle, so that some persons have doubted whether you are a raliat or not. It is right that these doubts should be removed." The priests also had heard of what was about to take place, whence they inferred that the departure of Budha was not far distant. They therefore assembled around the sage, with a great number of the citizens. The princess thought that on account of the extreme beauty of her person it would not be proper to perform a miracle in the same way as others, lest evil thoughts should arise in the minds of such of the faithful as were not yet free from evil desire. She, therefore, related the history of her former births, then rose into the air and worshipped Bndha ; in this manner she rose and descended many times; and performed many other wonders, in the presence of men, dewas, and brahmas. The discourse that she delivered was upon the seven kinds of wives there are in the world of men. When all this was concluded, she retired to her own residence, and in the same night, whilst passing from dhyana to dhyana, saw the city of peace. 52. The Death of Budha. When Gtftama was about to receive nirwana, in the city of Kusin^ra,* he paid a visit previously to the city of Pdw4, at- tended by a vast concourse of priests.f At this place he reposed for a short time, in the mango garden of Chunda, the smith ; who, delighted with the honour thus conferred upon him, came without delay to offer worship ; after which he invited the * There is in Assam a district called Eoch Yihar, or Coss Beyhar, derired from Kusha Yihar, which is by some supposed to be the Kusindra, at which Budha expired. Bj others it is placed at Hurdwar, not far from Delhi. There is a Kusina laid down in Hamilton's Map of Nepaul, which may possibly be the same place. Csoma EOrosi calls it Eamrup, in Assam ; but Klaproth thinks that this situation is too much to the east, and that it ought to be placed nearer the Gimduck. When visited by FaHian the population was small. In a temple at this place Hiuan thsang saw a picture represent- ing Uie death of Budha. t In the Journal of the Asiatic Society, No. 84, Dec. 1838, there is an analysis of the Parinibbdna-suitan, by Turnour. It is the third suttan of the Malia¥raggo in the Dighanikdyo of the Suttapitako; and Tumour caUs it ** perhaps the most interesting section in the Pitakattayan." 2 A 2 356 A MANUAL OF BUDHISM. whole companj of the priests to partake of food at his dwelling and prepared an offering of pork* to present to Budha. This was perceived by the varioos d^was of the oniyerse, who exclaimed, '* From the time that the rice-mixture presented bj Saj4ta was eaten by the lord of the world, for the space of forty-five years, he has preached to us : now he wiU eat of the pork to be presented by Chunda, and enter nirwana : even in many millions of years the acquisition of the Budhaship is ac- complished with difficulty." Then collecting together whatso* ever is of the most grateful flavor in the four great oontinentSy they imparted its richness to the food about to be presented. The next day, Budha and his attendants were entertained by the smith, and in his presence the sage delivered a discourse on the benefit to be derived from the presentation of offerings, after which he said, '* Let us go to Kusinara." Like the radiant moon travelling amidst the hosts of the sky, surrounded by priests whom no arithmetic can compute, in number infinite, he commenced his journey towards Kusin^ra; but the pork that had been presented by Chunda, from some hidden cause, produced a diarrhoea (I6hita pakkhandika) in his body, and he endured the most intense sufEering.f By his divine power he subdued the pain, then retired a little way from the road, and rested near the foot of a tree, saying to his at- tendant, '^ Ananda, I am weary, I wish to rest ; let the outer robe be four times folded and spread out." Soon afterwards he said, *' Ananda, I am thirsty; I wish for water, that I may drink.'* This was given, after which lie proceeded on his journey and preached to the prince Pukkusa, giving him the benefit of the protective formulary. The prince presented him with a couple of robes, interwoven with gold^ that were wrapped about his person. When he arrived at the river Kukuttha he * Chunda was charged hy Bndba, who knew his intention, not to allow an J portion of the pork to be given to the priestB who accompanied him, and to bury what was left in the ground, as he knew that if anj of them partook of it, (fisease would be produced. t Bishop Smith, in his account of a visit to the temple of Honan, in China, says : — " We were conducted to the stall, or pen, in which the sacred pigs are domiciled. According to the popular theory, these pigs are maintain^ in a state of plenty, and are invested with a degree of sanctity, as a compen- sation to the species for the wrongs inflicted on them by the disciples of Budhism, in eating swine's flesh, contrary to the primitive laws of Jsudh." This custom may have arisen from some perversion of the legend contained in the text. vri. LEGENDS OF g6tama budha. , 357 bathed, causing rajs to emanate from his body and robe, that extended to both banks of the river ; and after this he went to a mango garden not far distant, and said, " I am faint, I wish to lie down; spread ont the robe." The robe was accordingly spread ont, and he lay down, like a lion in repose. Thns, he who had the power of mjrriads of the strongest elephants, was un- able to move without the utmost difficulty, from the time that his body was seized by the disorder. All this was endui*ed that he might shew to the young the vanity of their strength, and to those cleaving to existence the sorrow connected therewith ; and that he might make known to all, that none are exempted from old age, decay, and death. Those who hear of what he suffered must lament, as those who saw it wept ; nor can it even be reflected upon without the most profound grief. It was, therefore, to teach the misery of existence to the beings in the world that he said, '* Ananda,. I am faint, I am thirsty, I wish to drink, I wish to lie down." Though the whole distance that Budha had to travel was only about 12 miles, he was obliged to rest five-and-twenty times before he could accomplish the journey.