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CEYLON BRANCH 



the pursuit of purity. Hearing these words of Budha, he be- 

 came angry, and throwing .off his upper-garments, said, then 

 I will walk thus without clothes, and stood in the midst of the 

 assembly with only one cloth on. Upon this Budha, to recal 

 him to himself said, truly priest, you formerly sought for a 

 sense of propriety and modesty for a period of twelve years 

 when you were a water-demon i how then now, being a priest 

 of this honorable religion, can you throw off your upper-gar- 

 ments, and remain without shame or modesty in the midst of 

 this eminent assembly ? Being by these words restored to a 

 sense of propriety, he resumed his garments, and having wor- 

 shipped Budha, sat down. The priests not being acquainted 

 with the event referred to, requested Budha to declare it, who 

 said : — 



Formerly Brahmadatta was King of Kasi, reigning in 

 Benares, and Bodisat was born of his principal queen and 

 named Mahinsasa. By the time he could run about, the king 

 had another son who was called Chanda, and by the time he 

 could walk, the queen died. Upon this, the king took another 

 female as his principal queen, to whom he became passionately 

 attached, and had a son by her, whom he named Suriya. The 

 king being much delighted when he saw the child, said to his 

 queen, I will grant you any one thing you may request. The 

 queen said that she would prefer her request on a suitable op- 

 portunity. When her son was grown up, she said to the king* 

 When my child was born, your Majesty gave me the privilege 

 of prefering any request I wished: I now claim the fulfilment 

 of the promise ; appoint my son your successor in the kingdom. 

 The King replied, my two sons are glorious and resplendent 

 as two pillars of fire : I cannot deprive them of their right, 

 and give the kingdom to your son. Although he thus refused 

 her, yet, as she continued to press him from day to day, he 



