1854.] On the Ballads and Legends of the 2?unjah. 91 



in history, pundits explain it by the omission of kings, sometimes 

 for their supposed delinquency, at others from their reigns having 

 passed with little incident. 



Certain it is, that no traces of Boodhism met the Macedonians 

 in the Punjaub in the sixth century before Christ. And Megas- 

 themes who resided several years at the court of Sandracottos at 

 Palibothra in search of all that was curious in the religion and 

 customs of the Hindoos, seems to have been equally ignorant of the 

 existence of Boodhism in the third century before Christ. 



Antiochus the Great invaded India B. C. 103. Yet from that 

 invasion flowed no knowledge of Boodhism into Greece or Syria, 

 although according to Boodhist tradition the religion must have 

 been instituted nearly 400 years. The earliest record we have of 

 the existence of Boodhism in India appears to be that left by 

 Pahian, the Chinese traveller, who in A. D. 412 represents all the 

 Hindoo Princes, East of the deserts of India, as attached to the 

 law of Boodha. 



I have allowed myself to ramble from the immediate subject to 

 which this is a preface, because the main use of all traditions is to 

 throw light upon history ; and this is done not only by the sub- 

 stance of the traditions themselves, but much more by the facts 

 and suggestions we are led to, in endeavouring to elucidate them. 

 It was thus in their search for the grand arcanum, that our fathers 

 laid the foundation of the science of chemistry. 



Of the original poem fragments only remain, and no Bard pos- 

 sesses more than a few of these. The Stanzas are sung to the 

 accompaniment of the Citara, and the prose portions are rehearsed 

 without music. 



Specimens of the metre will be found at the end of the notes. 

 It seems probable, that they are fragments of a complete tradi- 

 tionary ballad. 



(To the continued.) 



V 2 



