1858.] Buddhism and Odinism. 67 



the second century before Jesus Christ, a Buddhist priest arrived 

 from the banks of the Oxus to China, and converted a large number 

 of men. 



"About the end of the fourth century, the Chinese pilgrim 

 ITa-Hian proceeded towards the West, in company of some of his 

 countrymen to search, in the words of his historian, for the precepts 

 of the Law, that is to say, to learn the precepts of Buddha in the 

 countries where he had preached them for the first time. In the 

 course of his travels he arrived at the town of Khoten, and found 

 that the religion of Buddha was professed there with great zeal ; 

 there were a large number of spacious and magnificent convents, 

 some of which contained thousands of the clergy ; they possessed 

 precious images of Buddha, which they used to take about during 

 their numerous processions, in which even their kings took a part.* 

 After leaving Khoten he pursued his travels towards the West, and 

 traversed the countries which we have seen to have been inhabited 

 by the Azes, and met a number of his co-religionists. 



"Another Buddhist pilgrim of China, Hiouen Thsang byname, 

 undertook a peregrination in the seventh century with the same 

 object as Pa Hian, that is to say, to study the doctrine of Buddha 

 in the countries where he had preached it himself. He passed 

 through the whole of Higher Asia as far as Bamian, among the 

 mountains to the North of Kabulistan, and found that place to be 

 a thriving centre of Buddhism. 



" One may form some idea of the nourishing state of Buddhism in 

 these places when he is told that the kings of Lassa in Tibet, in the 

 seventh century, sent to the valley of Kabul for architects to erect 

 Buddhist temples. f We see now that Buddhism flourished in those 

 couutries before the period when Odin forsook his native laud to 

 establish himself among the ancestors of the Scandinavians, and the 

 topes attest that the profession of Buddhism was continued for 

 several centuries. 



"The true situation of Asgdrd will no doubt remain unknown 



* Foe Koue Kl and VHistoire de la Ville de Khoten, traduit du Chinois par 

 A. Remusat, Paris 1820. 



t Sanang Seetscn, G-eschichte der Osl Mongoien von I Schmidt, St. Peters- 

 burgh 1821) ; Absclian II. Tibelisahe GetchicMe, p. 41. 



