SOME ACCOUNT OF THE TRAI PHUM.

By the Revd. J. TAYLOR JONES.

ON previous occasions I have intimated an intention of giving you some account of the Budhist work, much venerated in Siam, called Trai Phum. It is not an original work, received among the immense collection of canonical Budhist books called Trai Bidok, (in Burman Bedegat), but a compilation made under the following circumstances, as we learn from the introduction to it.

In the Budhist era 2326, (A. D. 1784, 67 years ago), His Majesty, the grand-father of the present king of Siam, in the presence of his nobles and retinue proposed a series of questions to the Chief Hierarch, priests and learned men, some of which they were able to answer, and some they could not answer. Whereupon His Majesty gave directions to the chief priest and his associates and to the scribes of the kingdom, to make examination of the sacred Pali records and the commentaries that had been written upon them, and compile a work upon the topics brought forward, making the treatise conform to the authorities consulted. Hence a convention was held by Phyά Phot Chana thi bodi, Luang Siri wora wôhan, Luang Wichian barichá, Luang Methá thi bodi, Nai-Somanat, Nai-Sombún Nai-Ratana, Nai-Mahán, Nai-At, 9 persons who had studied under the most eminent teachers, (whose names are given), and they devoted themselves to the examination of the various sacred books, among which were the following, viz:

Sáráthipani dika

Winai, with its commentaries,
Chatmak' omanikai

Loka pant❜án

Chakrawala thipani
Panchatidiká

Panchak'ati

Lokaya thipakasán

Sára sangkaha sòthaka kú

Sombin tha mahá nithán ni bátr

Atha sálini

Sa mòha wi nòta ni

Loka sant'án banyati.

from which they extracted and disentangled the various topics and reduced them into this treatise, called Lokâ winichaiya katha, or Trai Phum, i. e. account of the 3 Worlds. This has been done to awaken a deeper interest in the minds of all who may listen and cherish a reverent regard for the Budhist faith.

So far the introduction; it bears on the face of it the profession of being a correct representation of Budhist views.

The king by whom it was authorized was a zealous Budhist;

the persons selected to accomplish the work were chosen because of their supposed familiarity with Budhist records and were specially directed to examine those Records in the Bali or Budhist sacred language; all of which circumstances cannot but be looked upon as prima facie evidence that the work will treat of Budhism as it is and is found to be in its own Records-and, therefore, reliable as a testimony in regard to the general sentiments of Budhists. Attention is called to these facts, because, to avoid the charges which are hence made against Budhism, the authority (not the authenticity) of this work is frequently denied by many of the shrewder Budhists in Siam.

The work itself is then commenced by a formula of worship in the Bali language-the expression of a desire that the authors may be preserved from all harm while prosecuting their work. There is noticeable in it a peculiarity which characterizes all Budhist services, viz, the want of invocation or prayer, inasmuch as Budhists recognize no Being to whom such might be addressed with any hope of effect. This formula expresses an act of deference to Budh, his Law, (dherma) and the priesthood or confraternity (Sangka.) This act of deference is three-fold.-1st with prostration of body, till the 5 members (head, 2 elbows and 2 knees) touch the ground-2nd with utterance of language-3rd with consent of the mind. All are meritorious, but the second more so than both the others combined. The merit that emanates from such services is uniformly and necessarily followed by good fortune. Hence religious merit and good luck are essentially

synonymous.

In the utterance of language, the praises of the favor of Budh is made a prominent part. Budh is not a name given by parents &c., but one of condition. Any person or animal whose efforts are continuously directed to the accumulation of religious merit will be successful in those efforts, and that success will be manifest by a gradual rising in condition and knowledge through successive transmigrations, till the knowledge become universal-Sappanyu Yán, then the aspirant becomes necessarily Budh i. e. knowledge, or concretety, the Knowing One. At the same time all impure affections are extinguished, and in this state all things are viewed with utter indifference-there is no love, no hatred, no joy, no grief, &c. Those who have reached this state, are in it now, or will attain it hereafter, are stated to be more numerous than the sands of the mighty ocean.

If any person will meditate upon and recount the favor of any such Budh, the merit of the act will preserve him from each of the 4 Great Hells for 100,000 Kalpas.

Here a Bali quotation is introduced-"Let some mighty man live a Kalpa-have a thousand heads-each head a hundred mouths

each mouth a hundred tongues-all employed through life in recounting and praising the favor of a Budh-still his work could never be completed."

To attain the state in which one may properly be called a Budh, one must cherish aspirations and make endeavors to lay up religious merit during 20 Asangkhaya and 100,000 Mahá Kalpa, then placing himself upon the sacred Banyan-tree, he there attains the state of a complete Budh. The meaning of Asangkhaya and Maha Kalpa are to be explained in the sequel. When the last Budh reached this state he proclaimed that he would leave his Institutes, amounting to 84,000 sections, for the instruction of his followers-and it would be as though they had 84,000 Budhs to teach them. These should exceed all the teaching as the footprints of the elephant exceed the footprints of all other animals. All things sublunary were subject to change, suffering, and incapable of appropriation. Utter extinction, Nipphan, was the chief good; by meditating upon and following Budh's teaching that chief good would be attained.

Considering these facts, the compilers of this work have brought forward and explained a portion of Budh's teaching, let no one venture to reject or censure it. This portion relates to the 3 worlds comprehended in a Chakrawala. A Chakrawala embraces-1st Mount Meru-2nd, 4 Continents-3rd, 2,000 islands-4th, the mount which surrounds the whole as a wall.

Such Chakrawala are subject to periodical destruction by fire, by water and by wind. In a series of 64 regular destructions, the order is as follows, viz. seven times by fire and once by water; this order is repeated seven times, and then follows seven more destructions by fire and one by wind.

Such Chakrawala, or systems, are regarded as innumerable; a celestial being is supposed desirous of ascertaining their limits; he starts with the velocity of an arrow projected by the mightiest archer and reaches system after system every step for a thousand years, ten thousand, a hundred thousand times 10 millions of years, but finds no limit. When the above destructions take place the effect is limited to a hundred thousand times 10 million of systems-and the restoration which follows is to the same extent. But, as in the burning of a great city, where the conflagration rages for many days, some habitations burn first, others at various intervals in succession, or simultaneously, so here, there may be intervals of a year, 10 years, 100 years, or 10,000 years between the burning of the first and the last Chakrawála.

The process of this destruction by fire is thus narrated; all rains and dews cease, as a consequence vegetation withers; this withering process continues 100, 1,000, 10,000 or 100,000 years;-then a second sun appears, day and night cannot be reckoned, for when one sun sets, another rises-there is no cessation of the sun's blazing beams, with no cloud or mist to moderate their glare.

After a long but indefinite period, all the rivers large and small, are dried up, except the 5 pre-eminent ones, Ganges, Yamuna, Irrawaddy &c. After another long interval of years, a third sun bursts forth and these 5 great rivers are evaporated. This 3rd sun neither rises nor sets, but remains permanently fixed in the sky with all its splendors. This continues for innumerable years till a fourth sun appears, when the seven great Lakes are dried up, and then the waters of the ocean, whose depth is 84,000 Yochana (in Siam, a yochana is reckoned as little less than 10 English miles) is evaporated till it can be fathomed by seven lengths of a palm tree, then one length of a tree &c. till it is only ancle deepand when a fifth sun appears the whole ocean dries, not an inch depth of water is left. On the appearance of a sixth sun, a dense smoke spreads over the whole 100,000 times 10,000,000 of Chakrawala like the smoke prevading a brick kiln, and the outburst of the 7th sun enwraps the whole in an ocean of flame."

The manner in which this is effected is more particularly described thus; the sea contains 7 classes of fish, 800, 900, and 1,000 Yochana (or 8,000, 9,000 and 10,000 miles in length.) When the waters of the ocean are exhausted, these fish die, their oil penetrates the whole dry mass of the world and facilitates the consuming process, till nothing is left on which the element of fire can operate, and vacuity and darkness reign through the immense ruin. From the time rain and dew ceased to fall till this ruin is complete is one Asangkai. Asangkai is also defined as a period of years represented by a unit to which are added 168 cyphers!! The destruction of worlds by water and wind are similar, with the necessary modifications on account of the different elements.

It will be perceived that all reference to any personal or divine agency in these transactions is carefully and wholly excluded. So in the reproduction of the systems destroyed, the account of which is as follows: There falls a rain which is to re-establish the systems destroyed. At first it is exceedingly fine like finest drops of dew. These drops increase to the size of a mustard seed, a coriander seed, a pea, a fathom, a palm tree, a yochana, 10 Yochana, 100 Yochana, 1,000, 10,000, 100,000 Yochana, until the space of the 100,000 times 10 millions of Chakrawala is filled;then the wind from beneath and around combines the water into masses, like the water in the leaves of a lotus plant. A substance is gradually formed in this water, as a sediment is found in a glass in which pure water has stood for a season. The cause of the destruction of the world was the demerit of living beings, and the cause of their restoration was the merit (religious) of living beings. [In Budhism religious merit and demerit, or guilt, are predicated of all that have life, celestial genii, men, elephants, down to gnats and worms.]

The first inhabitants of earth are beings descended from higher regions to which the destructive fires had not extended. They

were not distinguished into sexes, as male and female; luminous in themselves, they needed no sun or moon, and had the power of traversing the aerial regions unimpeded, and were happy for a long period, till one of the number became enamoured of the relish of earth, of which he partook and its flavor penetrated his whole system; and at his recommendation, all followed his example, became perverted, lost their luminous dress, and impure passions developed themselves. In these circumstances darkness supervened and they were filled with fear. But soon a sun 50 yochana in circumference arose and diffused his rays upon them, and their alarm ceased. When the sun disappeared, the moon, 45 yochana in circumference, arose as if aware of their desire and come to fulfil it. Then also appeared the stars; on the same day on which the sun and moon appeared, there appeared also the great central mount Meru, the mount of the Chakrawala

&c.

An account of these, and the celestial and infernal regions connected with them, must be deferred to a subsequent communication.