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The Brahman Seta becomes a Priest On a certain occasion, G-tftama went from the country of An- guttarapa, and entered the village of Apana, accompanied by 1250 rahats. The people of the village were made acquainted with his arrival, and having already heard much about his dis- courses and miracles, they deputed one of their number, K6ni, an ascetic, to visit him, and enquire into his character. The ascetic accordingly approached the sage in a reverent manner, and presented him with an offering of 500 vessels of diffearent kinds of drinks, brought on as many yokes. After he had heard one of the discourses of Budha, he requested the teacher to par- take of food at his dwelling on the following day ; but Budha replied, " The priests with me are many ; you have been accus- tomed to recount the praises of the brahmans." Keni confessed that it was true ; but on the next day he repeated the invitation, and received the same reply. A third time he requested the presence of GiStama and the priests at his dwelling ; and as on this occasion he received no reply, he construed the silence of Budha as an acquiescence in his request. The reason why Budha delayed the reception of the ascetic's offering was this ; he foresaw that in the meantime the brahman S^la, and 300 of his disciples, would become priests, by which his retinue would become greater, and the merit of the offering would be increased in proportion. On reaching home, Kent called together his friends and the chiefs of the village, and addressed them thus : — '* Good friends and faithful servants ; sons, daughters, and other relatives, hear my words ; the sage G6tama and the priests by whom he is accompanied, are invited to partake of food with me to-morrow; therefore let all things necessary be provided." vn. LEGENDS OF g<5tama budha. 283 The friends and attendants of K^ni began with all readiness to obe J this command ; some set np the ovens ; others clove the firewood, or cleaned the vessels, or ponred pure water into the vessels, then covered them with plantain leaves, and arranged them, as well as the vessels of rice, in proper order ; others again placed the seats ; and K6ni erected the place of refection, with suitable canopies. At that time there was in Apana a very learned brahman, Bela, who taoght the Yedas, <fec., to 300 disciples. Having taken out these disciples to walk, for the benefit of the exercise, thej came to the honse of K6ni, with whom he was intimate ; but found that all the people were busily engaged in various ways. Surprised at what he saw, he enquired if some maiden was about to be given or received in marriage, or if some great sacrifice was about to be made, or if king Bimsara was expected, with his attendants ? K6ni replied, " We are not about either to give or receive in marriage, nor do we expect the lord of Magadha and his attendants ; but I am about to present an offering of alms ; the illustrious GK5tama has come from Angut- tardpa, and on the morrow he and his prieRts will partake of the food we are now preparing." At the same time he recounted the praises of Budha. Then S^la enquired, "Did you say Budha?" K6ni replied, *'I said, Budha." Again S^la made the same enquiry, and received the same answer. Having heard this, S^la reflected, " The saying of this word is a matter of no small difficulty ; in a hundred thousand ages it is not heard." Further he reflected, that according to the Yedas, if any one be possessed of the thirty-two signs, he must be either a chakra- wartti or a Budha ; he can be no one else ; and at the same time he called these signs to his remembrance. He then enquired in what direction he would be likely to find Gdtama, as he wished to see him ; when he was informed by K6ni that he must go towards the south, where he would find the sage in a grove of hopal trees. On receiving this information, he went thither with his 300 disciples, having previously given them the follow- ing charge : — " Take care that you do not make a noise, or speak in too loud a tone ; do not make a disturbance with your feet ; Budha is not to be approached too nearly ; he is like the lion that needs no aid from any one, and does not wish to be dis* turbed. When I converse with Budha, you are not to interfere. 284 A MANUAL OF BUDHISM. bat to listen in silence." After saluting Gdtama, S61a remained at a little distance, noting the thiriy-two signs of the Bndha, with the exception of two, that were hidden from his obser- vation. As Badha knew that he wished to see the whole, he exhibited one of the two in a|i image of his person that appeared hj miracle ; and the other, which related to the length of his tongue, he exhibited in his own person. By this means the brahman and his disciples were convinced that he was the supreme Budha ; they accordingly embraced the priesthood, and received the pirikara requisites from the sky. Next day the whole of the rahats attendant upon Budha, as well as the new converts, went to the residence of K6ni, and partook of the food he had prepared. At the conclusion of the repast Budha said, " As the offering of the brahman cannot be presented without fire, unto him fire is the principal requisite ; as a knowledge of the science of recitation is requisite to him who repeats the Yedas ; as the king is the chief of men ; as all rivers are received by the sea ; as the sun and moon are requisite to the exercise of the science of the astronomer ; so to him who .would acquire merit by the giving of alms, Budha and his priests are the principal requisite." — Seilasutra-samie. 29. Budha is falsely accused of Incontinence by the female Unbeliever, Chinchi, There were certain tirttakas who were envious when they saw the numbers who received the instructions of G6tama. They, therefore, cried out to the people in the comers of the streets, '' What is it that you are doing ? Is Gotama the only Budha ? Are not wo also Budhas ? If those who make ofEer- ings to G6tama receive a reward, is the reward less of those who make offerings to us ? If he imparts nirwana, do not we enable you to receive the same ?*' They then consulted together to see if they could not destroy the influence of the sage by some stratagem. There was at that time in Sewet, a young female, called Chinchi, an ascetic. One day she went to the residence of the tirttxtkas and worshipped them, but they remained silent. At this she became fearful, thinking that she must have done something wrong ; and after worshipping them thrice, she asked what fault she had committed. The tirttakas informed VII. LEGENDS OF G<5tAMA. BUDHA. 285 her that they wished to hinder the success of G6tama, in which she would be able to assist them. She enquired in what way. They said that as the stream of the river is turned by the rising of the tide, so might she withdraw from 06tama the abundance he now received, and make it flow in their direction. As Chin- chi was well versed in all kinds of female devices, when she perceived that the people of Sewet were accustomed to resort to Budha in the evening, that they might hear bana, she proceeded from her residence just at this time, arrayed in a crimson robe, with flowers and perfumes. The people asked her where she was going at such an hour, but she said it was no business of theirs ; they had no right to be so inqaisitive. Having thus put evil thoughts into the minds of the faithful, she went to the dwelling of the tirttakas, which was near the J6i4wana wih&ra where G6tama resided, and there remained all night. In the morning, when the updsakas were coming at an early hour that they might worship Budha, she returned towards the city, as if she had been remaining during the night at the residence of G6tama. When they enquired where she had slept she would not inform them. This she continued to do for a mouth or six weeks ; but after this time, when they made the same enquiry, she said that she had spent the night in the apartment of Q6- tiuna. Then covering her person with her robe, she declared that she had become pregnant by the sage ; by which those who had not yet attained divine knowledge were led to doubt, and much demerit was produced. After eight months she remained in private, and had the appearance of being pregnant ; but it was produced in an artificial manner, by means of pieces of wood.