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303 on the truth if it were to continue, and that it would be better for him to go through the air and take the bowl, without keeping their adherents in any further suspense ; but the priest said to Mugalan, that Budha, in the midst of the associated priesthood, had appointed him to be the chief of the rishis, and that therefore it would be right for him to take upon himself this service. Mugalan then said, that since he overcame the ndgas and Sekra all were acquainted with his power; bat they did not know the power of the priest. Upon receiving this reply, Pinddlabhdradwdja rose into the air, and in the sight of all the people, who were at first afraid, went to the mansion near which the bowl was deposited. As he remained in the air, the owner and his family came out to worship him, and re- quested him to alight. Then filling the alms-bowl with sugar, oil, butter, and similar gifts, he gave it to the priest saying : — " Though it were to save my life, I will never deny that G6tama is Budha ; I will be faithful to this system alone." On the return of the priest to the wihdra, he was seen by the people at work in the fields, who had heard of his obtaining the bowl, and they requested him to shew them in what way he went through the air ; which he did, sometimes leaving the bowl, and then taking it with him, in many different ways. As the warrior relates to his king, on returning from the field of battle, the victories he had gained, so the priest rehearsed the wonders he had accomplished. When the circumstance was related to Budha, he said that it was not allowed to his disciples to receive an alms-bowl of wood, nor to perform a miracle to obtain any article whatever ; so that the priests, from that time, ceased to exhibit wonders. This gave an opportunity to the tirttakas to show themselves again, and to boast that they could perform greater wonders than G<5tama ; but when Bimsara heard of what was said, he went to Budha, and told him that by this means many persons were deceived. The sage only remarked, smiling at the same time, that the boasting of the tii-ttakas against Bndha was the same as if a pdnsupisdchaka hobgoblin were to compare himself to Sekra ; and declared that if the priests were forbidden by the precepts to perform wonders, he himself was not. The king asked if both he and his priests were not bound by the same precepts, when Budha said : — " The rays of Siirya-putra, the 304 A MANUAL OF BUDHISM. regent of the snn, are diffused to every part of the sakwala, bat do not warm the hair upon his own body ; the voice of the lion canses all creatures to tremble, but he himself is unmoved thereby. In like manner, the commands of the Budhas extend to one hundred thousand kelas of sakwalas, but he himself is free from their restraint. You, o king, give an order by beat of drum that no one shall eat the mangos of the royal garden ; now after that order, if any one were to eat one of those fruits, what would you do to him ?" The king : " I would impose a fine upon him.'* Bndha : " But if you were to eat one yourself ?" The king : " Then no fine would be exacted ; who could impose a fine upon me ?" Budha : ** In the same way, I give commands to others, but am myself free from their restraint. The wisdom of the Budhas is underived, they have no teacher; they are therefore without an equal, and are not under the control of another. They take food from a golden alms-bowl ; but this is forbidden to the priests. They live in the midst of a village, or inhabited place, but the priests must reside in the forest, and at the root of a tree." After these statements had been made by Budha, the king enquired at what time the wonders he had spoken of would be performed, and in what place ; when he was told that they would be seen afier a lapse of four months, at the foot of a tree called Rajagandamba, near the city of Sewet. Bimsara offered to render any assistance in his power towards their accomplish- ment ; but the ruler of the world said thp^t he himself would create the tree, and that Sekra would cause a pavilion to appear, twelve yojanas in size. This was proclaimed to the whole city. The tirttakas knew that it would be their ruin, but they said that as even criminals were allowed a respite between the sen- tence and its execution, they would enjoy themselves during the four months, and make the most of their circumstances. They boasted that Budha could not then perform any miracle ; in four months his wonder was to be seen ; and it was not to be done at Bajagaha, but in a distant place. In his journey towards Sewet, Budha went from village to village, in every place teaching the people, and many presents were brought to him. When informed of the intention of Budha, the principal supporters of the tirttakas set out to follow him ; the place that he was at in the daytime, they came to at night ; vn. LEGENDS OF gcStama budha. 305 and they went the next day to the place where he had spent the night. On the eighth day of ^sala the sage arrived at Sewet. The tirttakas also came to the city, that they might see the mronders ; and having received a lac of treasure from their adherents, they erected a splendid pavilion. The king of Kosol, with Anepidn and others, went to the wihara to pay his respects to Budha; and when he learnt that the ruler of the three worlds had come to perform certain wonders, he asked where they were to take place, and was told that it was to be near the gate of the city. The king requested permission to erect a pavilion for Budha, larger and more magnificent than that which had been made for the tirttakas ; but Budha said that it was not in his power to make one of the kind required. The king: "Who is able, if I am not?" Budha: "If it were possible for man to make it, you would have the power ; but it will be made by Sekra.*' The king sent nobles on elephants to every part of the city to proclaim by beat of the golden drum that on such a day, Budha would publicly perform a miracle, and that all people might come and see it. The d^was caused the sound of the drum to resound to every part of Jambudwipa, so that it was heard by all the inhabitants as plainly as if it were at their own door. The first proclamation was on the seventh day previous to the event, and it was repeated on each intervening day. Thus the in- formation was received by all; and whosoever wished to be present was enabled to come to the city, from any part of Jambudwipa, through the power of the wish, without any other effort. Even by the unbelievers, the same power was received. The tirttakas having heard that the miracle was to take place at the foot of a mango tree, were determined to prevent it ; and for this purpose they collected their adherents, and purchased all the mango trees in and near the city at a high price, in order that they might destroy them. But on the day appointed, Budha took his alms-bowl as usual, and came with his priests to the gate of the city. On the morning of the same day the king's gardener, Gandamba, in passing through the royal orchard, found a cluster of ripe mangos, and as they were not then in season, he thought it would be well to go and present them to the king. But on his way to the palace, he saw Budha near the gate of the city, and reflected thus : "If I present the mangos X 306 A MANUAL OF BUDHISM. to the king, be will perhaps give me a reward in gold ; but if I offer them to the divine teacher, he will give me a reward more permanent, and will save me from the perils of existence." Thus thinking, he reverently approached Badha, and presented the fmit. Ananda took off the onter skin, and having prepared a throne for Budha in the same place, requested him there to eat it. The d^was assembled aronnd, unseen by all but the gardener. Afler eating the fruit, the sage gave the stone to Ghmdamba, and directed him to set it in the ground near the same spot ; and in like manner, after washing his mouth, he told Ananda to throw the water upon the kernel that had just been set. In a moment the earth clove, a sprout appeared, and a tree arose, with five principal stems and many thousand smaller branches, over- shadowing the city. It was three hundred cubits in circum- ference, was laden with blossoms and the richest fruit, and because set by Grandamba, was called by his name.