36 CEYLON BRANCH— KOYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY. 



appear ? Formerly I thus thought, Would that another 

 being were in this place : upon my volition this being came 

 here. Those beings also, who afterwards obtained an ex- 

 istence there, thought, This illustrious Brahma is Maha 

 Brahma, the Supreme, the Invincible, the Omniscient, the 

 Ruler, the Lord, the Maker, the Creator of alL He is the 

 Chief, the Disposer of all things, the Controller of all, the 

 Universal Father. We were created by him, for we see 

 that he was first here, and that we have since then obtained 

 existence. Furthermore, Priests, he who was the first that 

 obtained existence there has a very long period of existence, 

 exceeds in beauty and is possessed of immense power, but 

 those who followed him are short lived, of inferior beauty, 

 and of little power. It then happens, Priests, that one of 

 these beings, ceasing to exist there is born in this world, 

 and afterwards retires from society and becomes a recluse. 

 Being thus a houseless priest, he subjects his passions, is 

 constant and persevering in the practice of virtue, and by 

 profound and correct meditation attains that mental tran- 

 quillity by which he recollects his immediately previous 

 state of existence, but none prior to that. He therefore 

 says, That illustrious Brahma is Maha Brahma, the Su- 

 preme, the Invincible, the Omniscient, the Ruler, the Lord, 

 the Maker, the Creator,. He is the chief, the Disposer of 

 all things, the Controller of all, the Universal Father. 

 That Brahma, by whom we were created is ever during, 

 immutable, the eternal, the unchangeable, continuing for 

 ever the same, But we, who have been created by this 

 illustrious Brahma, are not ever during ; we are mutable, 

 short lived, mortal and were born here. This Priests is the 

 first reason on account of which some Samanas and Bra- 

 mins hold the eternal existence of some things but not of 

 others, and teach concerning the soul and the world that 

 some things are eternal and that other things are not eternaL 

 Secondly, upon what principle or for what reason do some 

 Samanas and Bramins hold the eternal existence of some 

 things, but not of others, and teach concerning the soul 

 and the world that some things are eternal and other things 

 are not eternal. Priests, there are some Gods who are 



it, Be thou of the military tribe, Be thou a Bramin. Be thou a 

 merchant. Be thou a cultivator. Be thou a layman, Be thou a 

 priest, or recluse. Or lower than this, Be thou a camel, Be thou 

 an ox : thus I divide those stations to all creatures 12 ©S wasee 

 the controller of all events. 13. 8e33Sg» eo0;eoa3o pitabiita bhaw- 

 yanan the father of all living beings. 



