90 On the History of the Burma Race. [No. 2, 



royal family of Burma with the kings of India, now sent a nobleman 

 to demand in marriage a daughter of the king of Wethali. This 

 kingdom is represented still flourishing as a Buddhist country. The 

 king of Wethali gave his daughter, who was brought through Arakan 

 across the mountains. But on the way the nobleman was faithless to 

 his charge ; and on arrival at the capital city, he represented to the 

 king that the princess was only an adopted, and not a real, daughter of 

 the king of Wethali. A-nau-ra-hta, therefore, did not bring her into 

 the chief building of the palace, but placed her, first, in the western 

 house, and afterwards in the village of Pa-reim-ma, where she lived. 

 Nevertheless, she was pregnant by A-nau-ra-hta ; and when her time 

 was near, an earthquake shook the whole land. The astrologers were 

 consulted, and they replied that he who would hereafter succeed to the 

 throne, was then in the womb of a woman towards the north. The 

 king, fearing evil consequences, had all the pregnant women towards 

 the north sought out and put to death. But the Indian princess was 

 concealed by the care and devotion of a young Naga, or dragon youth, 

 and her life was thus saved. The astrologers afterwards said the child 

 had been born. The king then caused six thousand sucking children 

 to be killed. But the Naga youth preserved the son of the Wethali 

 princess. After this the astrologers said the child had reached the 

 age of a cowherd. The king, caused five thousand boys of that age to 

 be killed, but the son of the princess remained undiscovered. His 

 mother then put him into a monastery, and he became a Bahan. The 

 astrologers informed the king that his destined successor had become 

 a monk. The king, anxious to discover him, by the advice of the 

 astrologers, invited all the Bahans to a feast. The astrologers said 

 that he might be discovered by a shining circle, the mark of a true 

 prince, inside his mouth. The king, therefore, himself gave water to 

 drink to each Bahan from a vessel with a long spout. By this device 

 he saw the shining circle in the mouth of the young man, son of the 

 Indian princess. Convinced by this mark that he was of pure royal 

 race, the king caused him to leave the monastery he had entered, and 

 acknowledged him as his own son. He then received the name of 

 Kyau-tsit-tha, or Kyan-yit-tha. Many fanciful etymologies for this 

 name are given in the history. The first name, which is that most 

 generally given means " the child with the true mark." The second 



