iS6 SACRED TREE. MEDICINE. 



object in the place. In the Mongohan language it is 

 called Za7ida7noto,^ but the same word applies to the 

 arborescent juniper and to other useful trees ; for 

 instance, the walnut-wood stocks of guns are ' zanda- 

 moto ; ' the leaves of the sacred tree are said to be 

 about the size of those of the common lime. The 

 Tibetan letters are of course inscribed by the lamas, 

 or perhaps exist only in the imagination of devout 

 believers. And the tree itself is most probably a 

 native of Kan-su, as it grows in the open air, and 

 can therefore bear the severity of the climate. We 

 attach no weight to the mere fact of its being con- 

 sidered by all Buddhists as sacred and unique ; what 

 strange beliefs and superstitions obtain credence 

 even in Europe ! ^ Kumbum is famed for its school 

 of medicine, in which young lamas destined to prac- 

 tise that art receive instruction. During the summer 

 the students repair to the neighbouring mountains to 

 collect herbs, which are the only remedies known in 

 the Tibetan pharmacopoeia. Of course a great deal 

 of hocus pocus is added, but it is not improbable that 

 by these means discoveries unknown to European 

 science are made in the healing art. I think that 

 anyone who had made medical botany his study 



'^ Chanda? Is this a corruption of the Sanskrit Chandana, sandal 

 wood ? Moto or 7>u)do is merely ' wood.' — Y. 



'^ Hue, it will be remembered, gives testimony as an eye-witness to 

 this marvellous tree, declaring that the Tibetan characters are found 

 not only on the leaves but on the bark, which detaches like that of a 

 plane-tree. * We made every search for indications of trickery, but 

 none could we find ! and the drops of perspiration burst from our fore- 

 heads 1 ' In fact, Hue and Gabet regarded it in good sooth as opus 

 .Satliaiicc. — Y. 



