No. 35,-1887.] notes on jatakas. 



199 



throne on which Buddha was seated under the Bo tree when he 

 arrived at complete enlightenment." 



If Mr. Beal were as familiar with the botany of the Sanchi sculp- 

 tures as I unfortunately have been forced to become, he would have 

 seen that this altar or throne exists not only in front of the Bo tree 

 properly so called, but of four or five other trees of totally distinct 

 species. Not to multiply instances unnecessarily, I would refer him to 

 the three figures of plate xxv. of " Tree and Serpent "Worship," or to 

 the woodcut on the following page (130) from the contemporary rail at 

 Buddha Gaya, all of which are as different as can be, and not acci- 

 dentally so, for they are easily recognisable, inter se, when repeated, 

 though their botanical names have not yet in all instances been deter- 

 mined. Unless, therefore, Sakya Muni sat — miraculously — under five 

 or six different trees of different species at the moment of enlighten- 

 ment, these can hardly represent seats, but must be altars, which 

 from their form and position they seem undoubtedly to be.* The 

 probability seems to be, that these trees may be the Bo trees of preceding 

 Buddhas, but this we shall not know for certain until we get home a 

 complete set of the Bharhut sculptures. In the meanwhile, I would 

 like to suggest that the term Bhagavat in this inscription does not. 

 mean " Buddha.'' That epithet was applied to him only after the 

 Christian era, when he became personally worshipped. As General 

 Cunningham says of the Bharhut sculptures, in a private letter to me, 

 echoing the words I had used regarding those of Sanchi, " it is Bud- 

 dhism without Buddha : no representation of him as Buddha appearing 

 anywhere." The word as here used seems to mean only the holy or 

 sacred thing or person — a deity or numen. 



As I am writing, perhaps I may be allowed to point out an interest- 

 ing feature in the Erapatra bas-relief which has not yet been 

 mentioned by anyone, in print at least. At some distance behind 

 Erapatra is a second Naga Raja, similarly distinguished by having a 

 five-headed snake on the back of his head, and behind him again their 

 two wives, each, as usual with Naga women, having only one-headed 

 snakes behind them. Between the two Rajas, and occupying the 

 central position in the bas-relief, appears the great five-headed Naga 

 himself. It is not clear what the second Raja and the women are 

 worshipping. They are looking to the front, though their hands are 

 joined in the attitude of prayer, and their adoration may be addressed 



* When Mr. Beal reads Mr. Childers' letter in your last issue, he will be 

 aware that he has mistaken a bas-relief representing four men playing at 

 draughts, or PuchM, for that representing the purchase of the Jetavana 

 Monastery. His transliteration of the inscription is, however, correct ; it 

 is consequently not to be wondered at that he was puzzled with its 

 application. 



