On his way he came to a forest haunted by an ogre named Sticky-hair; and at the entrance to the forest, men who met him tried to stop him, saying, "Young brahman, do not go through that forest: it is the haunt of the ogre Sticky-hair, and he kills. every one he meets." But bold as a lion, the self-reliant Future Buddha pressed on, till in the heart of the forest he came on the ogre.

The monster made himself appear in stature as tall as a palm-tree, with a head as big as an arbor, and huge eyes like bowls, with two tusks like turnips, and the beak of a hawk; his belly was blotched with purple; and the palms of his hands and the soles of his feet were blue-black! "Whither away?" cried the monster: "halt! you are my prey." "Ogre," answered the Future Buddha, "I knew what I was doing when I entered this forest. You will be ill advised to come near me. For with a poisoned arrow I will slay you where you stand." And with this defiance, he fitted to his bow an arrow dipped in deadliest poison and shot it at the ogre. But it only stuck on to the monster's shaggy coat. Then he shot another and another, till fifty were spent, all of which merely stuck on the ogre's shaggy coat. Hereon the ogre, shaking the arrows off so that they fell at his feet, came at the Future Buddha; and the latter, again shouting defiance, drew his sword and struck at the ogre. But like the arrows, his sword, which was thirty-three inches long, merely stuck fast in the shaggy hair. Next the Future Buddha hurled his spear, and that stuck fast also. Seeing this, he smote the ogre with his club; but like his other weapons, that too stuck fast. And thereupon the Future Buddha shouted, "Ogre, you never heard yet of me, Prince Five-Weapons. When I ventured into this forest, I put my trust not in my bow and other weapons, but in myself! Now will I strike you a blow which shall crush you into dust." So saying, the Future Buddha smote the ogre with his right hand; but the hand stuck fast upon the hair. Then, in turn, with his left hand and with his right and left feet, he struck at the monster, but hand and feet alike clave to the hide. Again shouting, "I will crush you into dust!" he butted the ogre with his head, and that too stuck fast.

Yet even when thus caught and snared in fivefold wise, the Future Buddha, as he hung upon the ogre, was still fearless, still undaunted. And the monster thought to himself, "This is a very lion among men, a hero without a peer, and no mere man.

Though he is caught in the clutches of an ogre like me, yet not so much as a tremor will he show. Never, since I first took to slaying travelers upon this road, have I seen a man to equal him. How comes it that he is not frightened?" Not daring to devour the Future Buddha offhand, he said, "How is it, young brahman, that you have no fear of death?"

"Why should I?" answered the Future Buddha. "Each life must surely have its destined death. Moreover, within my body is a sword of adamant, which you will never digest, if you eat me. It will chop your inwards into mincemeat, and my death will involve yours too. Therefore it is that I have no fear." (By this, it is said, the Future Buddha meant the Sword of Knowledge, which was within him.)

Hereon the ogre fell a-thinking. "This young brahman is speaking the truth and nothing but the truth," thought he. "Not a morsel so big as a pea could I digest of such a hero. I'll let him go." And so, in fear of his life, he let the Future Buddha go free, saying, "Young brahman, you are a lion among men: I will not eat you. Go forth from my hand, even as the moon from the jaws of Rahu, and return to gladden the hearts of your kinsfolk, your friends, and your country."

"As for myself, ogre," answered the Future Buddha, "I will go. As for you, it was your sins in bygone days that caused you to be reborn a ravening, murderous, flesh-eating ogre; and if you continue in sin in this existence, you will go on from darkness to darkness. But having seen me, you will be unable thenceforth to sin any more. Know that to destroy life is to insure rebirth either in hell or as a brute or as a ghost or among the fallen spirits. Or if the rebirth be into the world of men, then such sin cuts short the days of a man's life."

In this and other ways the Future Buddha showed the evil consequences of the five bad courses, and the blessing that comes of the five good courses; and so wrought in divers ways upon that ogre's fears that by his teaching he converted the monster, imbuing him with self-denial and establishing him in the Five Commandments. Then making the ogre the fairy of that forest, with a right to levy dues, and charging him to remain steadfast, the Future Buddha went his way, making known the change in the ogre's mood as he issued from the forest. And in the end he came, armed with the five weapons, to the city of Benares, and presented himself before his parents. In later days, when

king, he was a righteous ruler; and after a life spent in charity and other good works, he passed away to fare thereafter according to his deserts.

This lesson ended, the Master, as Buddha, recited this stanza:

When no attachment hampers heart or mind,
When righteousness is practiced peace to win,
He who so walks shall gain the victory,

And all the Fetters utterly destroy.

When he had thus led his teaching up to Arahatship as its crowning point, the Master went on to preach the Four Truths, at the close whereof that brother won Arahatship. Also the Master showed the connection and identified the Birth by saying, "Angulimala was the ogre of those days, and 'I myself Prince Five-Weapons."

AN EXAMPLE» OF THE EVILS OF RASHNESS

[This "example,” which points a warning against rash action, we give in three versions; partly for their intrinsic interest, and partly to show the surprising diversity in style and in details of treatment of what is essentially one motif. The first is from the Sanskrit of the Hitopadeça,' an offshoot of the Panchatantra. The second is from E. B. Eastwick's translation of the Persian Lights of Canopus. If this is a "simplified recast of Nasr Allah's version," what must that have been! The third is from G. L. Gomme's reprint (London, 1885) of the British Museum chap-book entitled 'The Seven Wise Masters of Rome,' printed in 1520 by Wynkyn de Worde. The sources and imitations of this tale are given by Edouard Lancereau in his French translation of the Panchatantra (Paris, 1871), page 384. The story is the same as that told of Llewellyn the Great and his faithful hound Gellert, and familiar to English readers through the well-known ballad of William R. Spencer. The hound, which is the European representative of the plucky little Indian ichneumon, has become a martyr and a patron saint of little children in the popular belief of the South of France, and is invoked by mothers under the name of St. Guinefort.]

I

FIRST VERSION

THE BRAHMAN AND HIS FAITHFUL ICHNEUMON

From the Hitopadeça›

N UJJAIN lived a brahman named Madhava, whose wife once left him in charge of their little child and went to bathe. Now an invitation came from the King for the brahman to perform a funeral oblation and partake of the funeral meal. At which news the poor fellow bethought himself: "If I go not

quickly, then some one else will receive the funeral meal. For 'tis said:

'Hast aught to give, or aught to take or do,

Give, take it, do it, quickly, ere the morrow rise;

Or else thy sloth full bitter shalt thou rue,

And ruthless Time shall suck the juice from thy emprise.'

But there is no one here to take care of the child. What then shall I do? Hold! I have here an ichneumon, which I have kept this long time and cared for as if he were my son: I will leave him to take care of the babe, and go." And so doing, he

went.

Meantime there came near the child a black cobra; which when the ichneumon saw, he killed it and tore it in pieces. Then, with blood-smeared snout and paws, he ran to meet the brahman as he was returning home, and fawned at his feet. But the brahman, seeing the ichneumon in that plight, came rashly to the conclusion that the beast had eaten his child; and forthwith killed the ichneumon. Then when he came nigh and looked, behold, his child was asleep and the cobra slain. Then he saw that the ichneumon had done him a service, and sorrowfully recognizing the rashness of his deed, he was filled with despair.

Translation of Charles R. Lanman.

SECOND VERSION

THE RESULTS OF PRECIPITATION

From the 'Anvár-i Suhailí' or 'Lights of Canopus,) a Persian rendering of Pilpay

COUPLET

HO dares to act without due thought and care,

WHO

Will sink at last in sorrow and despair.

And there are many anecdotes and innumerable stories apropos of this subject which are written and commemorated in the pages of nocturnal conversations and elegant annals, and among these is the story of the Holy Man who rashly stepped into the plain of precipitate action, and staining his hands with innocent blood, destroyed the unfortunate ichneumon; which displays the ill effects of this precipitation.

The King asked, "How was that?"

He said.

They have related that a Devotee after long celibacy desired to put in practice the injunction, "Matrimony is my commandment; therefore he who turns away from my commandment is none of mine." After extensive inquiry and infinite pains, the Devotee, through the aid of his lofty fortune and the help of his noble spirit, obtained a wife of a great family and an illustrious stock. The reflection of her countenance gave radiance to the morn, and the hue of her curling ringlets aided the perfumer of evening in intensifying his gloom. The azure sky had never beheld her equal, save in the mirror of the sun; and the swiftsighted limner of the imagination had ne'er looked on the like of her lovely semblance, save in the world of dreams.

VERSE

The glories of thy sunny cheek the world of beauty warmly kiss; Like the full moon, thou hast arisen amid the sky of loveliness; Thy countenance the brightest rose, thy form the fairest cypress is, That ever grew in beauty's bower, or 'mid the flowers of comeli

ness.

And together with this beauty of form, she was adorned with excellence of disposition, and the graces of her body were set off by those of her mind. The Devotee, in his daily prayers, returned thanks for such a blessing; and having thus commenced his intercourse with that partner whose face resembled the beauties of Eden, he desired to beget a son. And no wise person bases his desire for children on mere sensual appetite, nor yields his body to the task save in quest of a virtuous son, who, in procuring the blessings asked for by prayer, is equivalent to the perpetual offering of alms.

And a son of fair visage and lovely form was born, such that the tokens of beauty and accomplishments bespoke his perfection, and the signs of admirable gifts shone and gleamed on the forehead of his condition. The Devotee beheld the morn of hope begin to smile from the dawning-place of desire, and the nightingale of his pleasure commenced singing on the rose-shrub of joy.

COUPLET

A fair gem from the boundless sea of Grace, was brought to light; Upon the sky of Law divine a new star glittered bright.