and insignificant thing, to be whirled in the endless eddies of transmigration, an object of contempt to all the wise.' Râhula being filled with shame, Buddha addressed him once more. 'Listen, and I will speak to you a parable. There was in old time the king of a certain country, who had a large and very powerful elephant, able to overpower by its own strength five hundred smaller elephants. This king, being about to go to war with some rebellious dependency, brought forth the iron armour belonging to the elephant, and directed the master of the animal to put it on him, to wit, two sharp-pointed swords on his tusks, two iron hooks (scythes) on his ears, a crooked spear on each foot, an iron club (or ball) attached to his tail, and to accompany him were appointed nine soldiers as escort. Then the elephant-master rejoiced to see the creature thus equipped, and trained him above all things to keep his trunk well coiled up, knowing that an arrow piercing that in the midst must be fatal. But lo! in the middle of the battle the elephant, uncoiling his trunk, sought to seize a sword with it. On which the master was affrighted, and, in consultation with the king and his ministers, it was agreed that he should no more be brought into the battlefield.' In continuation Buddha said: 'Râhula! if men committing the nine faults only guard their tongue as this elephant was trained to guard his trunk, all would be well. Let them guard against the arrow that strikes in the middle! let them keep their mouth, lest they die, and fall into the misery of future births in the three evil paths!' And then he added these stanzas: "I am like the fighting elephant without any fear of the middle arrow (the arrow wounding the middle part). By sincerity and truth I escape the unprincipled man (lawless man). Like the elephant, well subdued and quiet, permits the king to mount on his trunk (offers his trunk for the king to ascend), thus tamed is the reverend man; he also endures truthfully and in faith.' "Râhula, hearing these words, was filled with sorrow for M his careless disregard of his words, and gave himself up to renewed exertion, and so became a Rahat." Against Buddha's teaching two main objections have been urged: 1. That his Bodhi, viewed from a spiritual point of view, is mere selfishness. The individual isolates himself from his race for his own advantage. 2. The monkish system that he spread abroad has, in point of fact, produced many grave evils-idleness, immorality, depravity, &c.—and is, in fact, pure pessimism. One answer meets both objections, that is, as far as they are unjust. The problem before a reformer in Buddha's day was essentially practical. To enfranchise the world what possible apparatus was available? The oratory of the uninspired demagogue would not have been listened to by the masses, and would have been quickly silenced by the dominant caste. Books, printing-presses, even the letters of the alphabet were unavailable; and the victories of material force in Buddha's view meant merely the firmer riveting of chains. So Buddha, himself a king, in commencing his conflict, handed over an army of soldiers and an army of priests to his antagonists, determined that the victory should be a purely moral one. One weapon alone was within reach- the tree of the Rishi. Under that tree God spake. Such was the belief of the people, based on the teaching of the Vedic hymns, as recited at every sacrifice. With Buddha the Bodhi meant not selfishness, but the complete conquest of self; and the initiation of the Rishi under his tree, even if encouraged by Buddha, was merely a means to an end. Instead of being sloth, that end was boundless activity in contributing to the happiness of others. His blameless soldiers, having given up wife and wealth, were ordered to march from tree to tree, never resting for two nights under the same one. No halt was to be allowed but the grave as long as a king oppressed his subjects, a priest tortured animals, or as long as spiritual ignorance tortured priests and kings. Viewed from the historical side, the following originalities may be accredited to Buddhism : 1. Enforced vegetarianism for the whole nation. 2. Enforced national abstinence from wine. 3. Abolition of slavery. 4. The introduction of the principle of forgiveness of injuries in opposition to the national lex talionis. 5. Uncompromising antagonism to all national religious rites that were opposed to the gnosis or spiritual development of the individual. 6. Beggary, continence, and asceticism for the religious teachers. These are the six originalities of Buddha. CHAPTER XII. THE HIGHER JUDAISM. THE French missionary Huc, in his celebrated travels in Tibet, was much struck with the similarity that exists between Buddhist and Roman Catholic rites and customs. "The crozier, the mitre, the dalmatic, the cope or pluvial which the grand Llamas wear on a journey, or when they perform some ceremony outside the temple, the service (office) with a double choir, psalmody, exorcisms, the censer swinging on five chains, and contrived to open or close at will, benediction by the Llamas with the right hand extended over the heads of the faithful, the chaplet, sacerdotal celibacy, lenten retirements from the world, the worship of saints, fasts, processions, litanies, holy water —these are the points of contact between the Buddhists and ourselves." The good Abbé has by no means exhausted the list, and might have added confession, tonsure, relicworship, the use of flowers and lights and images before shrines and altars, the sign of the cross, the Trinity in Unity, the worship of the Queen of Heaven, the use of religious books in a tongue unknown to the bulk of the worshippers, the aureole or nimbus, the crown of glory of saints and buddhas, wings to angels, penance, flagellations, the flabellum or fan, popes, cardinals, bishops, abbots, presbyters, deacons, the various architectural details of the Christian temple, &c. Points of similarity between Christianity and Buddhism have been recently accentuated by many authors. Pro fessor Max Müller, in translating the Dhammapada, was struck with the similarity of tone between its teachings and that of the Gospels. Bishop Bigandet affirms that almost all the moral truths of the Gospels are to be found also in the Buddhist Scriptures.1 The Rev. E. Eitel, of the Hong-Kong Mission, finds the following points of contact between the biographies of Buddha and Christ:The pre-existence of Buddha in heaven, his birth of a virgin, salutation by angels, recognition by Asita (Simeon), presentation in the temple, baptism by fire and water, disputation with the doctors, temptation in the wilderness, life passed in preaching and working miracles, transfiguration on the mount, descent into hell, ascent into heaven.2 Mr. Rhys Davids shows us that the Buddhists possess "Beatitudes" where the "long-suffering and meek," those who are "not weary in well-doing," those who "follow a peaceful calling," those who "abstain from strong drink and cease from sin," those "who are self-restrained and pure," have each in turn a "blessing" pronounced upon them.3 Professor Estlin Carpenter cites the following sayings of Buddha: "Let good-will without measure, impartial, unmixed, without enmity, prevail throughout the world, above, beneath, around." 4 As he stood by a farmer at work upon the soil, he said, "I too plough and sow, and for my ploughing and sowing I reap immortal fruit. My field is religion; the weeds I pluck up are the passions of cleaving to existence; my plough is wisdom, my seed purity.5 'Almsgiving" he described as like "good seed sown on a good soil that yields an abundance of fruits. But alms given to those who were yet under the tyrannical yoke of passions are like a seed deposited in a bad soil; the passions of the receiver of alms choke as it were the growth of merits.” 6 1 Bigandet, p. 494. 2 Three Lectures on Buddhism, Lect. i. p. 5. 4 Khuddaka Patha, p. 16. 6 Bigandet, p. 211. |