English
" The noble arrived at the wihdra at the time that Budha was saying bana, and with his attendant he went to the outer circle to listen; but they all became rahats, and remained at the wihara, without delivering their message. As they did not return, the king again sent a similar embassage, and after that seven more, but the consequence was the same ; they all became rahats. The king thought that as none of them returned they had no affection for him, so he looked round for another messenger, one who would be more obedient to his commands ; and when he saw the noble Kalud£, who is also called IJdiyi, a man trustworthy, born on the same day as Budha, and who had been his playfellow from his infancy, he called him, and said : — ^' Nine times I have sent nine nobles, accompanied by 9000 attendants; but none of all these have returned; I wish to see my son before my death, as I cannot see him after ; go to him, and request him to come and see me." The noble said that he would send him an account of his son, if he would allow him to embrace the priesthood; and the king gave him permission to do anything he liked, if he only suc- ceeded in prevailing upon his son to visit him. This noble also, on bis arrival at Eajagaha, heard bana, and became a rahat Seven or eight days afterwards, the season of spring, wasanta, commenced ; the ground was covered with grass, and the trees of the forest with flowers, Kaluda thought that this would be a favourable time in which for him to intercede with Budha to visit his royal parent. He therefore went to him, and began to extol the beauties of ,the road between E;ajagaha and Ka- pilawastu. Budha asked him why he did this, and he replied, *' Your father looks out for your coming as the lily looks out for the rising of the sun ; and the queen as the night-blowing lily looks out for the rays of the moon." Q6tama saw that the time had now arrived at which the former Budhas went to the place of their birth ; and after giving, in sixty stanzas, an account of his lineage and of his native city, he informed Kaluda that ho would set out the next morning. When Budha commenced his journey, he was attended by 10,000 priests of Anga and Magadha, and by 10,000 priests of KapOawastu. Each day he proceeded sixteen miles, and as it was sixty VII. LEGENDS OF g6tAMA BUDHA. 205 Tojanas' distance between Rajagaha and ELapilawastn, he accomplished the whole in two months, which were the months of Durutu and Medin-dina (February — ^March— April). Ka- Inda, now become a rahat, went through the air to Kapilawastn to inform the king of the approach of his son. Sndh6dana was greatlj pleased when he saw the priest, and ordered that food of the choicest kind should be given to him. When ihe priest reoeiyed it, he put it in his bowl, and rose up as if to go ; and when the king wished to detain him, he said that he must return to Budha. The king enquired where Budha was, and he replied, " He is on his way to see you, with 20,000 priests." On receiving this intelligence the joy of Sudhddana became still greater, and he requested that the priest would eat the food he had received, as food of a still better kind would be given for Budha; and when Kaluda had finished his repast, the king washed his bowl with fragrant water, and again filled it. He also told the priest that during the rest of the journey he must come daily to the palace for a supply of food ; which he promised to do. Kaludd then, in the presence of all, rose up into the air and passing through it to Budha, presented the food : and the sage received it. This he did every day ; and it was in this way that Budha received the food he ate during the rest of his journey. The king prepared the garden called Nigrddha for the recep- tion of Budha. It was formed by one of the Sdkya princes of the same name. In the procession appointed by the king to receive Budha, on his approach to the city, there were first 500 boys and girls, about sixteen years of age, the children of nobles ; then 500 princes and princesses about twelve years of age ; and afterwards the king, with 160,000 attendants, carry- ing perfumes and flowers. On arriving at the garden, Budha sat npon a throne, surrounded by the 20,000 priests. Tlie Beniors among the Sdkya princes said, '*Sidh&rtta is younger than we are; he is our nephew; we are his uncles and grand- fathers." They therefore told the younger princes to worship him, whilst they sat down at a little distance. Budha knew their thoughts, and said, " My relatives are unwilling to worship me; but I will overcome their reluctance." Accordingly, he rose up from the throne, ascended into the air, and in their presence sent forth the siz-coloured rays, and caused a stream 206 A MANUAL OF BUDHI8M. of fire to proceed from bis shoulders, ears, nostrils, eyes, hands, and feet, from the 99 joints and the 99,000 pores of his body ; and this was followed by the issuing forth of a stream of water from the same places. At the time that the fire appeared, he exercised the t^jo-kasina-samdpatti ; when the water appeared, he exercised the ipo-kasina-samdpatti ; when the bine rays appeared, he exercised the mlakasina-sam^patti ; and in the same way with the rest of the colours. The water was carried to the whole of the 10,000 sakwalas, so that there was not in any place so much as a hand-breadth that was not sprinkled ; but it dame only to those who wished to receive it, whilst it avoided the rest. The stream of fire, which was equally extended, did not in any place bum so much as a cobweb. Then Budha caused an image like himself to appear in the air; the two Budhas sometimes walked and sometimes sat; they paid each other the politest attention, and asked each other questions ; their voice, size, and appearance were exactly the same. These things having been observed by Seriyut from Bajagaha, he came through the air with 500 disciples, to the same place. When the princes saw him at a distance, they said, " See ! another Budha is coming ; we shall now have three ;" and when they saw the disciples, they said that there was not merely another coming, but five hundred. After Seriyut had worshipped Budha, he related the Budha-wansa, in a thousand stanzas ; after which he requested Budha to relate the history of Maitri Budha, which he did, by delivering the discourse called An^gata-wansa. At its conclusion, Budha descended from the sky to the throne he had previously occupied. Sudhddana then said to him, " My lord, my Budha, my prince Sidhartta, though I am thy father, as thou wert bom of my house, yet will I not hereafter call thee my child ; I am not worthy to be thy slave ; I have already worshipped thee twice, and will now worship thee again; were I to offer thee my kingdom, thou wonldest account it but as ashes." The princes followed the example of the king, when he made obeisance to his son, like the bending of a forest of bamboos when agitated by the wind ; the doubts of all were removed, as the clouds are scattered by the breeze* Budha informed them that this was not the only time in which their opposition had been overcome, and related to them the Wessantara-jataka. At this time Budha had received 420,001 VII. LEGENDS OF g6tAMA BUDHA. 207 offerings from the dewas and brahmas, the S^kya princes, Sekra, and the rahats. The next day all the members of the royal family being beside themselves from joy, no one remembered that food was to be provided for Budha. In the morning he cleaned his teeth and washed his face, {iffcer which he went to a retired place, and per- formed the exercise of dhydna. At the time at which it was proper to set oat to receive alms, he took his bowl and set oat from the Nigrddha garden, snrroonded by the 20,000 priests. On looking to see how former Badhas had acted, he saw that they went from hoase to honse, withoat omitting any. On this joamey, wherever he pat his foot down, a lotas previoasly arose from the groand, so that every step he made was apon flowers ; bat as he passed on, the lotns instantly vanished. The high places in the road became depressed, and the low places were elevated, so that the whole path became as level as the top of a dram. A wind came and removed all obstractions, freeing the road from all imparities ; and a gentle rain fell to lay the dast.