he Birth
Therewas a descendant of the Ikshvâku family, an invincible Sâkya monarch,
pure in mind and of unspotted virtue, called therefore Pure-rice, or Suddho-
dana. Joyously reverenced by all men, as the new moon is welcomed by the
world, the king indeed was like the heaven-ruler Sakra, his queen like the
divine Saki. Strong and calm of purpose as the earth, pure in mind as the
water-lily, her name, figuratively assumed, Mâyâ, she was in truth incapable
of class-comparison. On her in likeness as the heavenly queen descended
the spirit and entered her womb. A mother, but free from grief or pain,
she was without any false or illusory mind. Disliking the clamorous ways
of the world, she remembered the excellent garden of Lumbini, a pleasant
spot, a quiet forest retreat, with its trickling fountains, and blooming flow-
ers and fruits. Quiet and peaceful, delighting in meditation, respectfully
she asked the king for liberty to roam therein; the king, understanding her
earnest desire, was seized with a seldom-felt anxiety to grant her request. He
commanded his kinsfolk, within and without the palace, to repair with her
to that garden shade; and now the queen Mâyâ knew that her time for child-
bearing was come. She rested calmly on a beautiful couch, surrounded bya hundred thousand female attendants; it was the eighth day of the fourth
moon, a season of serene and agreeable character.
Whilst she thus religiously observed the rules of a pure discipline, Bodhisattva
was born from her right side, come to deliver the world, constrained by great
pity, without causing his mother pain or anguish. As king Yu-liu was born
from the thigh, as King Pi-t'au was born from the hand, as King Man-to was
born from the top of the head, as King Kia-k'ha was born from the arm-pit,
so also was Bodhisattva on the day of his birth produced from the right side;
gradually emerging from the womb, he shed in every direction the rays of
his glory. As one born from recumbent space, and not through the gates of
life, through countless kalpas, practising virtue, self-conscious he came forth
to life, without confusion. Calm and collected, not falling headlong was he
born, gloriously manifested, perfectly adorned, sparkling with light he came
from the womb, as when the sun first rises from the East.
Men indeed regarded his exceeding great glory, yet their sight remained un-
injured: he allowed them to gaze, the brightness of his person concealed for
the time, as when we look upon the moon in the heavens. His body, never-
theless, was effulgent with light, and like the sun which eclipses the shining
of the lamp, so the true gold-like beauty of Bodhisattva shone forth, and was
diffused everywhere. Upright and firm and unconfused in mind, he delib-
erately took seven steps, the soles of his feet resting evenly upon the ground
as he went, his footmarks remained bright as seven stars.
Moving like the lion, king of beasts, and looking earnestly towards
