2 



u royalty over Dambadiwa, which is ten thousand yoduns 

 " in extent (that is 130,000 miles). But in consequence 

 " of the lie of which such a king as this king Chetiya was 

 " guilty, the scent of sandal wood departed from his body, 

 " the lotus seent which issued from his mouth gave place to 

 " a foul odour, and the deities which kept guard about him 

 " in the four quarters of the heavens deserted him. -He was 

 " deprived of the power of sitting cross-legged in the air, 

 " and so fell to the ground. Then by reason of the false- 

 " hood which he had uttered 5 the earth parted asunder, 

 " and his living body was enveloped, as in a red blanket, 

 " with flames of fire from the lowest of the infernal regions 

 i and he was born again in helL" 



In the same way the educated and refined Greeks 

 believed that some of the worst punishments in the infer- 

 nal regions were allotted to those persons who had broken 

 their oaths. The consequence of this crime was detailed 

 in the answer of the Delphic oracle to Glaucus, and 

 the story is given by Herodotus (vi, 86.) A man from 

 Miletus had entrusted some money for safe keeping to 

 Glaucus ; after a time he died, and his heirs claimed the 

 money by bringing the tokens, upon the production of 

 which it had been arranged between Glaucus and the 

 Milesian that the money was to be returned. Glaucus 

 however denied all knowledge or recollection of the alleged 

 transaction, and went to Delphi and asked the oracle 

 if he should restore the money, or keep it by swearing an 

 oath that he had never received it. The answer of the 

 oracle was this : " Glaucus, son of Epikydes, for the pre- 

 iS ' sent it is more profitable for you by swearing to succeed 

 in carrying off the booty. Swear, then, for at any rate 

 Ci death awaits even the man who swears truly. But there 



