HISTORY OF SIKHIM AND ITS RULERS. 



obtained his name S^ah-Thi-Tsanpo, the chair-borne king ; i.e., f^Nah = 

 back, Khri = chair, and pTsan-po = jjowerful one or king. 



There may be another interpretation of the word, as apphed to 

 himself by the prince, viz., " the dead one," alluding to his having 

 been rejected by his family, to whom he was now dead: the northern 

 tribes frequently using the phrase " one borne on men's shoulder" to 

 express euphemistically " one dead." 



There is also another tradition in Tibet that Sakya Singh's son, 

 Dachen Zing, had two sons, the younger of whom married, but had no 

 children; the elder became a priest. On his death-bed he pointed 

 out that his spirit would go out into two eggs : these his minister, Chu- 

 len Danwa Zangpo, hid in a sugarcane field. From these eggs sprang 

 two boys: the elder became a priest, while the younger married and 

 had three sons, of whom Sali-nim-mo went to Nepal, Palgyegel Zanpo 

 to Kham, and the third Na-lag-chen {i.e., he of the webbed fingers) 

 entered Tibet and became the progenitor of N'ah-Thi-Tsanpo above. 



The date of the birth of S'ah-Thi-Tsanpo is given as 416 B.C. 



The twenty-seventh king in direct descent was Lha-Tho-Tho-ri 

 isan-Tsan,* born about 441 A.D.,t in whose eightieth year there fell 

 from heaven on the top of the great palace of Yumbu Lagan a 

 precious chest, which was found to contain — 



(1) Two books written with jewel water on gold leaves. 



(2) A golden miniature shrine set with jewels and enclosing. 



(3) A crystal gem and cup. 



At that time there were no letters or alphabet in Tibet, but the Tibe- 

 tans, though not knowing these books were scriptures, treated them with 

 the greatest faith and reverence ; while the king sitting in council was 

 debating on the value and merit of the divine gift, a voice from heaven 

 was heard saying that the books were scriptures, and that in the fifth 

 generation the mystery of their contents would be revealed. The relics 

 were thenceforth placed on a throne set with rubies and other jewels, 

 lights were kept burning before them, and the people worshipped them 

 under the appellation TembosangwaJ to the best of their ability. 



The third in descent from Lha-Tho-Tho-ri w^as the blind king, 

 who recovered his sight while worshipping the sacred relics at his 

 coronation. As the first object he saw was an Ovis amnion sheep 

 on the hill Tag-ri, he received the sobriquet of Tag-ri-nyan-ssig, the 

 beholder (ssig) of a sheep (Nyan) on Tag-ri. 



* other accounts sav that Lha-Tho-Tho-ri gNyan-bTsan is the same as fTah-Thi-Tsanpo, 

 and that the name, whicli means " the god from the high mountams, has reference to the 

 prince's pointing up to the mountain whence he had come. 



t Cs. 252 A.D, Cs. = Csoma de Koros. 



J San-wa Nyanpo. 



