LITERATURE OF THE BURMAS. 26^ 



** Now all thefe falfe gods or deitti taught fuch 

 " things, not becaufe they believed them to be 

 " true : but in order to anfwer queftions which 

 " had been propofed to them, they faid whatever 

 " at the time came into their minds. 



" Q. When the true god Godama appeared, did not 

 " the falfe sods renounce their dotlrines ? 



o 



*' A. Some of them did : but others fiill continue 

 " obftinate : and with all thefe Godama fought in 

 " the kingdom Saulti near the tree Manche : what 



o 



" greater miracle can be performed*? 



" Q. In this conflict who gained the fuperiority ? 



" A. Godama did : on which account the ringleader 

 " of the falfe gods was fo afliamed, that tying a pot 

 *' about his neck, he threw himfelf into a river, 

 " and was drowned. 



'• Q. The mafter being dead, did his followers re- 

 '' nounce his doftrine ? 



" A. Some of them renounced his do8;rine : but 

 " others did not. It is eafy with your nails, or 

 " with Megnapf, to take a thorn out of your feet 

 " or hands : but it is very difficult to pluck forth 

 " from the minds of men the doftrines of faife gods. 

 Q. Cannot this be done by any means ? 



*' A. The warnings of juft men, like the Megnap^cdm 

 " only effeft it. 



" Q^. What are the warnings and do£lrines of thefe 

 " juft men ? 



*' A. In the firft place, whoever kills animals, or 

 " commits the other wicked aftions, which are con- 

 " trary to the five comm.andments, is liable to the 



" lot 



* This conflift of Godama with Devadat, and the other deitti, 

 pAu LINUS imagines to be the fame with the doctrine of the Ma^i con- 

 cerning Ormuzed and Arimanius [Mus. Borg. pag. 51): which 

 app>ears to me to be nearly as improbable, as the opinion of the Rahans 

 concerning the identity of Jesus Christ and Drvedat. Ir> the 

 Titans of the Grecians, the father alfo difcovers this dodnne of the Mavi. 

 However thefe fame Titans, with perhaps as much probabihty, are alleged 

 by Governor Pownel to have been a hord of favages from the north, 

 under the command of their Hetman Briarcas. 



+ The inftiument with which the Burmas pluck their beards. 



a 



