THE NOVICIATE. 



297 



" The ten Faults. — Unbelief in books, disrespect of teachers, 



"making* one's self unpleasant, covetousness, speak- 



The ten Faults. ^ -^^^ ^.^^ much, ridiculing another's misfortune, using 



" abusive language, being angry with old men or with women, 



" borrowing what cannot be repaid, and stealing. 



" The three Improper Acts. — To speak of a 

 The three Improper Uguij^gct of which one is ignorant, to take an oath, 

 Acts « - ?9 



"to give poison to any one. 



After two or three years spent in this training, during which cor- 

 poral chastisement is freely inflicted, if the boy is 

 Test of results. ^j^^^^ found to be hopelessly stupid, he is dismissed ; 

 while should he prove to be fairly intelligent, he is admitted to the 

 regular noviciate. The object of this probationary stage is to weed 

 out unpromising individuals. 



The Noviciate. 



Tlie novice or " Gra-pa," pronounced "Ttl-pa," [literally " student" 

 or "learner," and seldom called f?gen-yen or dgQ- 

 Its general charac ^j-^g^^ f^gj^f^ Sramana)] is^ now for the first time 

 ^^^- brought under monastic rules. He is ceremoni- 



ously shaved, takes the vows, assumes the dress of a monk, and 



receives a religious name. . , . , ^ y J.^ 



The candidate for the noviciate is searclungly interrogated by the 



rfiU-chhos (or elder lamas) regarding his descent, 



Appraising of des- ^{is entrance donation and presents being propor- 



"^^^ tionate to the impurity of his descent. If he has 



a good strain of Tibetan blood, he is let off cheaply and vice versa; 



but it is the paternal descent which is most regarded : mixed blood ou 



the mothers side being tolerated to a considerable extent.^ 



When the boy's descent is satisfactorilv appraised, the dbXJ-chhos 

 of the Great Assembly liall are requested to place 

 Preliminary pre- ^^i^ ^Q^^y under the " sgris " or General Rules. And on 

 '^''*'' ^''- permission being accorded, the parent or guardian 



of the boy prepares a feast of food and beer for the monks. _ After 

 a few months another present of food and beer, accompanied by 

 a flesh gift of a pig or bullock, must be made, with tlie request for 

 a ^tor-5zings in the temple. A suitable date for this is fixed by 

 astrology. 



• The alleged reason for this being the pre-eminence of the father, from whom_ comes 

 the bone and structure of the child, while from the mother only came " the llesU. it is 

 notable that the Tibetans habitually say " apo-ame," i.e., father and mother, and not iiUe tue 

 Indians " ma-hap," i.e., mother and father. 



