S06 Pali Buddhistical Annals, [Sept. 



4 Nibbutdnu sd mdtd, nibbutdmt sS pitd 

 Nibbutdnu sd ndri yassdyan idisogati. 1 

 " ' Whosoever's destiny has been such as his, most assuredly his mother must be 

 blessed ; most assuredly his father must be blessed, and most assuredly his consort 

 also must be blessed.' 



" The Buddho elect listened to this hymn, and thus thought : ' the gratulation 

 she has uttered is worthy of being heard by me. It is requisite that I, who 

 am performing my pilgrimage in search of nibbdnan, should this very day, abandon- 

 ing my lay connections, and departing (hence) and entering into the priesthood, pro- 

 secute my pursuit of nibbdnan ; and adding ' let this be a gift to serve as a preceptor 

 (of piety) to her ; he detached from his neck a pearl necklace worth a lakh, and 

 sent it to Kisagotami. She, in excess of her exultation, exclaimed, ' prince Sid- 

 Dhatto, captivated by me, sends me a present.' 



" The Buddho elect, with the utmost pomp, ascended the superb and enchanting 

 palace, and laid himself down on his state bed. Thereupon women in the bloom of 

 youth, resembling the celestial beauties of the Tdwatinsa heavens, with visages re- 

 splendent as the silvery full moon, with lips in color like the bimbothala* fruit, with 

 beauteous teeth, white, pure, even, smooth and without interstice, with jet black 

 eyes, and jet clustering locks, graceful in their movements like the voluptuous swan, 

 with arched dark eyebrows, and breasts fully developed, globular, equal in size and 

 exquisitely placed, covered only with the mekhald (the medallion of the zone) which 

 was set with gems in newly burnished gold and silver, with **** plump, and circular 

 as a wheel, and with thighs round and smooth as an elephant trunk, excelling in dance 

 and song, taking with them musical instruments of melodious tones, and crowding 

 around the great mortal, with the intent of diverting him from bis purpose, by their 

 voluptuous fascination, began to sing and to dance. The Buddho elect, however, 

 being entirely exempt from the influence of carnal passions, took no delight in the 

 dance and song ; and in a short interval fell asleep. They seeing this (indifference), 

 and saying if the individual for whom we have commenced our song and dance is gone 

 to sleep, why should we fatigue ourselves?' and dropping each the instrument she 

 had taken, on the spot on which she was standing, they all laid themselves down- 

 The lamps of scented oil continued burning. 



" The Buddho elect, on awaking, still seated cross-legged on the bed on which he 

 had been sleeping, surveyed these sleeping females, who had laid aside their musi- 

 cal instruments, some with their cheeks wet with the saliva that had flowed from 

 them ; some gnashing their teeth ; some muttering ; some with round mouths (gap- 

 ing), some denuded by their covering being displaced ; some in ungraceful postures, 

 and some with dishevelled hair representing so many objects fit for a sepulchre. 



"The great mortal, on beholding this spectacle, became the more strongly con- 

 firmed in his abhorrence of sinful courses. Unto him, the splendid and charming 

 palace, which was like unto the mansion of the thousand-eyed deity (Indra), be- 

 came (as it were) a disgusting object, filled with loathsome corpses, like unto an 

 Amakasusdnanf (a catacomb) ; and the three realms (of the universe) appeared to him 

 as if they were a single habitation involved in flames. Then resolving ' most assur- 

 edly the crisis is at hand ; my mind is fully made up to enter into priesthood ; it 

 is proper that this very day my final separation should take place ; and rising from 

 his bed and approaching the door of his chamber he called out 'who is here?' 

 Chhanno (who was born on the same day with Buddho) was sleeping at the 

 door, making the threshold his pillow, and replied ' prince, it is I, Chhanno.* 

 * This very day am 1 resolved to effect my great final deliverance. Without utter- 



* A creeper, Tryonea grandis. 



f Literally "raw cemetery" in which bodies were left unburnt or uninterred. 



