398 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. [August, 1910. 



As there was powerful prayer girded with might like a wave , 

 and an eminent power of spotless truth, there arose like a white 

 Fol. 3a. lotus Buramshingpa (Ikshvaku), the conqueror who continu- 



ally beats throughout the three worlds the great drum of the 

 queen of songs of praise. He is the root of the fulfilled blessings 

 of immeasurable value which accumulated through the good 

 works of the gods and [other] creatures [who had received] 

 his precious teaching. 



This arose and increased, and as the upwards striving ac- 

 complish er was dependent on a great king who ruled the area 

 of the wide earth, our teacher (Buddha) looked out for a clan, 

 a country, a time, a family, and a woman, these five, and allowed 

 himself to be born as Zas gtsang's (Suddhodana's) son. Let 

 me first relate a little of his family. 



The people of India lived in an undying state, with a life of 



immeasurable length, with abundant [gratification] of their 



nine desires, and they had power, alas ! over infinite accom- 



Fol. 36. plishments. At that time, there was a nectar which took away 



the consciousness of exertion, there was nutriment in the earth, 

 fertility in the ground, and abundance of rice which grew without 

 ploughing. 



Then the accomplishments which belonged to [the state] 

 of the gods were exchanged for other activities ; the rice which 

 grew without ploughing, disappeared entirely, [the harvest] 

 depended on the worker, and pains had to be taken over agri- 

 culture. There arose mutual quarrelling and fault-finding, and 

 king Mangpos bkurba ''(Mahasammata) who decided judgment 

 in a just way, and before whom all bowed in reverence, became 

 the famous one of old. 



Then [there reigned] successively : 'Od mdzes (Rocha) ; 

 dGeba (Kalyana) ; dGe mchog (Varakalyana) ; and gSo sbyong 

 'aphags (Utposhaddha). And now, to speak of the five classes 

 of kings : The [five] sons of gSo sbyong 'aphags, the wheel- turn- 

 ing kings, were according to a presage born in this way : On the 

 crown of [gSo sbyong 'aphags'] head there formed a swelling, 

 and when it broke, [out came] Ngalalasnu (Mandhatar) ; 

 Fol. 4a. then there arose a swelling on his right thigh, and out of it 



came mDzespa (Charu) ; there arose a swelling on his left thigh, 

 and out of it came Nye mdzes (Upacharu) ; there formed a swell- 

 ing on his right foot, and out of it came mDzes Man (Charumant) ; ] 

 and there arose a swelling on his left foot, and out of it came 

 Nye mdzes Idan (Upacharumant). These five are called the five 

 kings who turned the wheel [of religion]. 



The last four reigned in one of the four continents. They 

 are the kings who turned the gold, silver, copper, and iron 



1 The name mDzes Idan is used as an epithet of the Ladakhi king 

 Warn dbyangs rnam rgyal. See my article ' Ten ancient historical songs 

 from W. Tibet,' Ind. Ant., 1909. 



