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The Khig of Kosol marries the Natural Daughter of MaJM-nama, Not far from the palace of the king of Kosol there was an alms-hall, in which he gave food daily to 500 priests ; but the priests were not willing to receive it, or if they received it took it to other places to eat, as it was not given in a proper manner. The food presented by the common people might not be suffi- ciently boiled, or it might be black or dirty ; but they received it in preference to that which was given by the king. One day, when the king had partaken of some food that he particularly relished, he commanded that a portion of it should be sent to the alms-hall ; but when his servants arrived at the place, they found no one there. The king, on being informed of this circumstance, went to Budha, and after telling him that his priests were acting improperly, enquired what was the principal requisite of the dAna VII. LEGENDS OF G(5tAMA BUDHA. 293 alms^ving. Badha said to him, '' Wiswasa, faith, or sincerity, is the prmcipal requisite of almsgiving : the food that jon give is excellent in itself, but it is not given with sincerity ; the food that others give is less excellent, but it is given with sincerity. If any one give only a spoonful of rice-gruel with faith and sincerity, the alms will be pre-eminently excellent.** The king then enquired how he was to secure faith on the part of the priests;* and the sage told him that the priests had faith in those who had attained the paths, and in their relatives. After the return of the king to his palace, he thought that if he became a relative of Budha, all the priests would exercise faith in him; and as he was the principal king of Jambudwipa, he resolved that he would secare a Sdkya princess, whether the princes were willing to give one or not. Sudh6dana was dead, and Maha-nama had received the crown. To him the king of Kosol sent an embassage, the nobles of which were to demand a princess of the S4kya race. The S&kyas never intermarried with other families, as their race was of superior purity ; and this they wished to preserve inviolate. When the princes received the message, they thought thus : ''If we refuse one of our daughters, we shall excite the anger of this powerful king ; if we give one, the purity of our race is gone.*' Maha-nama had a daughter, Wdsabhakhattika, by the slave Maha-nunda. She was at this time about sixteen years of age. The king arrayed her in the most splendid manner, and present- ing her to the nobles said, ** This is our daughter ; take her to become the wife of the monarch of Kosol." The nobles were suspicious when the maiden was given thus readily, as they knew that the S4kyas were extremely proud of their birthright. In order that they might not deceive their king, by taking a maiden who was not of the Sdkya race, they demanded that Maha-nama should eat with her in their presence ; and if this was done, they thought that they might reasonably dismiss their doubts. The king at once commanded her to be brought, that he might eat with her before the eyes of the ambassadors. On her arrival, he said to her, in apparent sorrow, ** When shall I see you again ? You are going away from me to become the wife of the king of Kosol ?" and he wept as he spoke. He then put some rice in her hand, as a repast had been prepared, that she might eat it ; and * For the full merit of almfigiriog, faith is required in the receiver as well as the giver. 294 A MANUAL OF BUDHISM. before she had time to convey it to her month, he hastily ate a few grains himself. At that moment a noble who had before been instructed for that purpose, delivered a letter to the king, and said it had been brought from one of the border countries, and required an immediate answer. The king read it, and appeared to be greatly agitated ; bat he told the maiden to con- tinue her meal, and talked away to pass the time over until she had done. She then washed her hands, and the king did the same in token of having eaten, by which the nobles were deceived, and without any misgivings took her to Sewet.* The monarch made her his principal queen. In due time she had a son, and when he heard of the event he sent a noble to inform the queen-dowager, who on hearing the news said, "Wallabha! wallabha !" as expressive of her joy. On his return, he asked him what his mother had said, and he, mistaking her words, replied that she had said, ^' widddabha." The king gave this name to his son ; and &om this time he became more firm in the faith, and gave much treasure in alms. 33. The FloweT'Oirl becomes a Queen, There were in Kosol 500 different families who gained a liveli- hood by the sale of flowers. The daughter of the principal florist, who was as beautiful as a d6wi, one day put three cakes into her basket when she went to gather flowers, intending to eat them when she became hungry. On the morning of the same day, Budha looked to see unto whom he should render assistance, and perceived that the maiden of Kosol was worthy to receive it. As he was afterwards going with 500 priests to the city of Sewet to receive alms, he met the flower-girl and her companions on their way to the gardens. At the sight of the sage, she felt a desire to make him an offering, but had nothing she could offer besides the three cakes ; so not knowing whether they would be received or not, she approached him reverently, and when Budha held his alms-bowl towards her to receive her gift, she presented them, and admiring him, worshipped. The * When CambjBes required the danghter of Amasis, king of Egypt, in marriage, as Amasis knew that she would be, not the wife but the concubine of the Persian king, he sent Nitetis, daughter of the former king, who was extremely beautiful, as his own child. But the deception was disoorered, and it is said to have been the origin of the invasion of JSgypt by Cambyses. Herod, iii. 1. vn. LEGENDS OF gcJtama budha. 295 teacher of the three worlds smiled, and told her that at a future time his religion would receive from her great assistance. Ananda knew that he would not smile without a reason, and en- quired what it was ; when he was told that the girl would on that day, through the merit of her gift, become the queen of the king of Kosol. The maiden overheard what he said, but won- dered how it could be, as the king was not at that time in the city. On arriving at the garden, she thought of what she had heard, and began to sing as she plucked the flowers. The monarch now reigning at Kosol was Pase-Nadi, the son of Maha Kdsala, whose daughter had been given in marriage to Bimsara, king of Bajagaha. As her portion she received the city of Sewet, which was situated on the border of each king- dom ; but when her son, Aj^at, killed his £a.ther, Pas6-Nadi took back the city by force. A war ensued, as Aj^at was resolved to retain it; at one time the victory inclined to the side of Kosol, and at another to Rajagaha. At last Ajdsat, to decide the contest, took his sword and shield, and rushed into the midst of his opponent's army, where he slew great numbers, so that the king of Kosol was obliged to retreat. Upon a swift horse he fled, and approached the city at the time the maiden was singing over the flowers she gathered. At the sight of him she thought of the saying of Budha, and continued her song, without manifesting any appearance of fear. The king enquired who she was, and whether she were married. Not long after his arrival, he sent a retinue to conduct her to the palace, and pub- licly anointed her his principal queen. As it was by means of Budha she attained this exalted rank, she daily sent many offer- ings to the three gems. Because she was first seen in a flower- garden by the king, she was called Mallikd ; and on account of her marriage to the king of Kosol, Kosdla-mallildUd^wi. 34. The Priest whose BrecUh was like the perfmtie of the Lotus, In the time of Piyumatura Bodha, a man who heard bana was gpreatly pleased, and at its conclusion said SMhu, with much joy. By this act he was from that time preserved from being bom in hell ; and in the time of G6tama he had forty kdtis of treasure. When he spoke, a smell as of the lotus proceeded from his mouth, and filled the whole house ; and from this circumstance he was called Utphalagandha. Having one day heard Budha deliver a 296 A MANUAL OF BUDHISM.