1890.] af Shof Tldfjdn in Howrah. 69 
Mr. Bogle in In’s letter to Mr. Hastings of tlie 5th December, -which 
perhaps he wrote from the above place, alludes to the Lama’s desire of 
founding a religions house on the banks of the Ganges, and adds what he 
had heard from the Lama. “ About seven or eight hundred years ago, 
“ the Tibetan Pontiffs had many monasteries in Bengal, and their priests 
“ used to travel to that country in order to study the religion and lan- 
“ guages of the Brahmans and to visit the holy places in Hindustan. The 
“ Musulmans, upon conquering Bengal, plundered and destroyed their 
“ temples, and drove them out of the country. Since then there has 
“ been little intercourse between the two kingdoms. The Lama is 
“ sensible that it will throw great lustre on his pontificate, and serve to 
“ extend his fame and character, if he can, after so long an interval, obtain 
“ a religious establishment in Bengal, and he is very solicitous about 
“ this point. He proposes, also, to send some of his Gylongs, during the 
“ cold season, to wait upon you at Calcutta, and afterwards to go on 
“ pilgrimage to Gaya and other places, and has written to Chedzum 
“ Tamba, 1 at Peking, who has great interest with the Emperor, inform- 
ing him that the English aro now masters of Bengal; that jou, their 
“ chief, have shown him great favour ; that tho English allow every one 
“ to follow his own religion unmolested ; and advising him to send some 
“ persons to wait upon you, and to visit the principal temples in Bengal. 
“ I own I encouraged all this, in the view of strengthening the inter- 
“ course and connection with Tibet, and thinking it would be of advan- 
“ tage to the Company to open any channel of communication with the 
“ Court of China ; and although I am not so sanguine as the Lama 
“ about the success of his endeavours, however sincere, to obtain leave 
“ for you to send a person to the Emperor, I do not altogether despair, 
“ by your favour, of one day or other getting a sight of Peking.” 3 
Again, in the course of the first visit which Mr. Bogle paid to the 
Tashi Lama, on his return to Tashi Lhunpo, the latter referred to his 
previous proposal in respect of forming a religious house on the Ganges, 
and on receiving the reiterated assurance of the former, as to its compli- 
ance, the Lama spoke of the Chankya Lama, 8 the high priest at 1 eking, 
and of his great influence at the Chinese Court, and of his intention to 
‘ Properly Jetsun Dampa, identified with the Taranfith Lama. He is the third 
Pontiff of the Gelugpa or yellow cap sect, and resides north of Tibet among the 
Khalka tribes of outer Mongolia near TJrga. 
! Markham, ibid., p. 134. . . . 
3 The Tashi Lama always spoke to Mr. Bogle of this high priest of China 
with o-reat respect, and described him as having great influence over the Chinese 
emperor. Through his mediation an attempt was made for resort of Chinese 
trading pilgrims to Hindustan. 
