382 European Speculations on Buddhism. [Aug. 



we had God for our protector, and that he would bring us through all 

 adversities, according to his holy and immutable decrees. 



The two young men, from whom I gleaned the above particulars, 

 came to Bombay in the suite of thevazir of Kokan ; their names were 

 Haji Shah Ku'Liand Haji Shah Kalender; they were very young 

 when they performed the pilgrimage, being now only about thirty and 

 twenty-six years of age respectively. They have received a very good 

 education, having a good acquaintance with the principal Persian 

 authors, and are well versed in Muhammedan science ; their father 

 was a Mulla or Doctor of Law, and received his education partly at 

 Kokan, and partly at Bokhara; he also travelled to Kabul to become 

 initiated in Sufeism by a famous nakshbaudy pir or seer of that place. 



III. — European Speculations on Buddhism. By B. H. Hodgson, Esq. 

 C. S. Resident at Nipal, &;c. 



In the late M. Abel Remusat's review of my sketch of Buddhism, 

 (Journal des Savans, Mai, 1831,) with the perusal of which I have 

 just been favoured by Mr. J. Prinsep, there occurs (p. 263) the fol- 

 lowing passage : " L'une des croyances les plus importantes, et celle 

 sur la quelle l'essai de M. Hodgson fournit le moins de lumieres, est 

 celle des avenemens ou incarnations (avatdra). Le nom de Tathdgata 

 (avenu*) qu'on donne a Sakia n'est point explique dans son memoire; 

 et quant aux incarnations, le religieux dont les reponses ont fourni la 

 substance de ce memoire, ne semble pas en reconnoitre d'autres que 

 celles des sept Bouddhas. II est pourtant certain qu'on en compte une 

 infinite d'autres; et les lamas du Tibet se considerent eux memes comme 

 autant de divinites incarnees pour le salut des hommes." 



I confess I am somewhat surprised by these observations, since what- 

 ever degree of useful information relative to Buddhism my essays in 

 the Calcutta and London Transactions may furnish, they profess not to 

 give any, (save ex vi necessitatis) concerning the ' veritable nonsens' 

 of the system. And in what light, I pray you, is sober sense to regard 

 " une infinite" of phantoms, challenging belief in their historical exis- 

 tence as the founders and propagators of a given code of laws ? The 

 Lallita Vistara gravely assigns 505, or according to another copy, 550, 

 avatars to Sakya alone. Was I seriously to incline to the task of 

 collecting and recording all that is attributed to these palpable nonenti- 

 ties ? or, was it merely desired that I should explain the rationale of the 

 doctrine of incarnation ? If the latter only be the desideratum, here is 

 a summary recapitulation of what I thought I had already sufficiently 

 explained. 



* A radical mistake ; see the sequel. 



