p4 ;:: ,.::;::: ^ssat on the ;. : i 



points. But when tliey: increased the .number, th6y appFied^ differently, 

 denominations which before were syeonyroous. Cskira or khir is also 

 the name of a favourite dish of the Hindus, made of rice, milk and sugar. 

 They suppose that the gods are equally fond of it, except that their's is 

 prepared with amrit, or ambrosiao Some suppose even that all chalks are 

 the remains of theirbanquets: which after a long time, as may be reason- 

 ably supposed, have lost their original flavour. The island of the moon 

 Is entirely composed of strata of such chalks, or rather of the coarser 

 parts of the ambrosia, which was produced by the churning of the 

 ocean : the purer parts flew to heaven, and of these is made the moon, 

 which is nothing but pure amrtl, or clarified ambergris, for this substance is 

 meant, as will be subsequently shown. Natural philbsophers in the west 

 entertained formerly the same notions; and to this day they .call the 

 purer parts of chalk, found in a liquid state,, lac luna, or moon's miikc 

 German miners call it guhr, and the Hindus-y khir.- Orpheus, in his 

 hymn to the moon, calls her elccShis or of amber; and Eustathius, in 

 his notes on Dionysius, gravely informs us, that there is a great affinity, 

 between the moon and ele61rum or amber. » ';",•-.; 



:The White Island is well known to the inhabitants of t^e TKilippin^ 

 Isles;, who believe that it is the receptacle of good men after death. \^^ J' 



Lastly,; the aborigines of Britain call it to this day Inis-Wen, or the' White" 

 Island'; the Inis-huna' or Inis-Uina of Caledonian bards; who, by it, under- ■ 

 stand England, or at least the southern, parts of it. Al-Fionn^ in Gait,' 

 znsweTS-literallj to' 'Sweta-saila, in Sanscrit, and to the Leucas-petra of 

 Homer,. or the white cliffs ; and* ^r/to'/z is called Al-vion by Ptolemy, 

 mid Albion by others. ~ Yet it is doubtful, whether BnY^m was thus called • 



C) The7 knot's YoL L RelaUon of the Philippine Islmrds^ p. 4:2: 



