LITERATURE OF THE RURMAS. 215 



" inhabitants, and of the duration of their exiftence. 

 *' Thei4 are four ftates o? Ape or mifery. i. That of 

 " animals, whether they live in the water, or on the 

 " earth, or whether they fly in the air: for, according 

 " to the Burma writings, the ftate of all animals in- 

 *' ferior to man, is a ftate of mifery. 2. That of the 

 " wretched bcinf^s called Preitta. 3. The ftate of 

 " thofe called y4//zir^'^Ae. 4. The ftate oftheinhabi- 

 " tants of Niria^ which may properly be tranflated 

 " hell. Of thefe beings I fliall treat in order. 



'' The Burma fcriptures mention nothing concern- 

 " ing the wretchednefs or length of life of animals. 

 " Some doftors however aftert, that domeftic animals 

 " follow the fortunes of mankind: and that, when 

 " men live long, they do fo likewife. Thefe doftors 

 '* alfo fuppofe, that animals not domeftic have a fhort 

 " or a long life, in proportion to the merit of their 

 " aftions in a former exiftence. It is however, fay 

 " they, found by experience, that the elephant lives 

 " fixty years, the horfe thirty, the ox twenty, and the 

 " dog ten. By the fame doctors it is alledged, that 

 *' lice, and other fimilar infefts, live feven days; and 

 " they confirm this by a ftory related in their books. 

 " A certain prieft conceived a violent liking for a 

 ■" beautiful robe, which he preferved moft carefully 

 " from being worn. It fo happened, that when this 

 '' prieft died, he was immediately changed into a loufe, 

 *' which took up its refidence in the favourite robe. 

 "According to cuftom, the other priefts divided a- 

 " mongft them the effefts of the deceafed, and were 

 " about to cut up the robe, when the loufe, by his fre- 

 " quent going and coming, and by his extraordinary 

 " geftures, ftiowed, that the divifion of the robe 

 " would be by no means agreeable to his feelings. 

 •* The priefts being aftonifhed, confulted God on . 

 " the occalion, who commanded, that they fhould 

 " delay for feven days their intended divifion, leaft 

 " the loufe fiiould be enraged, and on that account 



r 4 " defcend 



