CHAPTER XIII.
PAGODAS, THEIR ANTIQUITY AND USES.
Alone, unarmed, in a strange country, at night, and pursued by enemies,the boys stood for a time to consider their next steps. Fortunately, atthat moment the moon began to shine more brightly, and they saw at thedistance of some few hundred yards the giant form of a pagoda risingfrom the summit of a hill, with its quaint polygon form, varnished greentiles, and gilded bells hanging from every point.
"Truly the gods have directed our footsteps to a resting-place till themorning," said Chow.
This was indeed a fortunate discovery, for, knowing that most of thepagodas were untenanted, they might hide there; and with lightenedhearts they walked onward, till they came to a valley, or cemetery,filled with tombs, and through which they walked till they came to thebase of a hill, at the top of which was the entrance to the pagoda.Having reached one of the gates, they found it locked, a difficulty thatwas soon surmounted by Chow, who cast his lantern toward one of thewindows of the lower story, and, as he expected, found that, like themajority of these quaint structures, this one was in ruins; so, by meansof the shoulder of Nicholas, he climbed through a window, and speedilyopened the gate, when they found themselves in an apartment lined withblack varnished tiles, nearly all of which were carved with gildedidols.
"Thank Heaven, we are safe from the rats," said Nicholas.
"And may sleep, O my master," said the fatigued Chow, laying himself atfull length upon the floor, an example that was speedily followed byNicholas, who, like Chow, notwithstanding the danger that surroundedthem, fell into a sound sleep.
These singular, and frequently beautiful buildings, towering upward invarious heights upon the rising grounds, like an unequally grown forestof quaint spires, form the chief characteristic in Chinese scenery. Asif the builders believed luck to be found in odd numbers, they areeither of seven, nine, or thirteen stories, and moreover, all shapedfrom the model of the famous Tower of Nankin, which, after an existenceof nine hundred years, has so recently been wantonly destroyed by theiconoclastic insurgents, who are, at the present time, making everyeffort for the extermination of the Mantchou Tartars.
As for the origin of these structures, it is of so remote a date, that,even in four thousand years old China, there is as much difference ofopinion as about the origin of the round towers of Ireland. Some of thelearned writers assert that they were erected monumentally to great andgood people, others that they were intended as watch-towers in time ofwar.
A very probable theory is that they are of Indian origin, having beenintroduced by the priests of Buddha, for the purpose of saving the holyrelics, thumbs, fingers, toes, or any other portions of the body of thegod that might from time to time be found, or rather palmed upon thesuperstitious people by the bonzes. By way of illustrating this theory,I will relate to you some of the popular legends. The first is really awild-goose story.
The primitive Buddhists of India were not under such strict rules ofdiet as the sect afterward became; that is, not vegetarians, but atliberty to eat veal, venison, and goose flesh. Well, it happened that ona certain day, as a party of priests were seated in the open air, abrace of wild geese flew above them, which caused them to exclaim, "Ourwish is that these fowls would do a benevolent act," when one of thebirds immediately dropped down dead. Upon which remarkable event, thepriests cried, "This goose brings down a prohibition to abstain fromflesh; we must therefore consider its meritorious act." Whereupon theyerected a building over the poor goose, which they called pagoda, whichword, translated from the Indian word, tsang-po, into Chinese, isequivalent to wild goose.
Of this same pagoda, which still exists, another legend is given.
"Nearly six hundred years after the introduction of Buddhism into China,a priest of the sect was sent to India to collect and translate into theChinese language the sacred books of Budd. On his return with thevolumes, he brought also a model of a pagoda; in commemoration ofwhich, and also as a receptacle for the sacred books, the Emperorerected a pagoda." If this legend is true, and it certainly is moreprobable than any of the others, it is curious, as during the reign ofthis same Emperor, in the year 636, a Christian teacher first came fromIndia to China, and was not only encouraged by the Emperor, but wasauthorised by a royal decree to preach Christianity among the people.
Another legend states that in the year 256 a foreign priest of theBuddhist religion appeared at the capital, and performed many strangeand supernatural feats, which, reaching the ears of the Emperor, causedhim to send for the priest, of whom he inquired if Buddha couldcommunicate any divine emblems. The priest replied, that Buddha had leftsome traces of himself on earth, particularly bone relics, whichpossessed miraculous powers. The Emperor, scarcely believing the story,told the priest that if any such bone could be found, he would erect agreat pagoda. To this the story goes on to say, that the priest,twenty-one days after, brought one of the god's bones in a bottle, andpresented it to his majesty, and that when taken into the palace, itlighted up the whole building. Then comes the most astonishing portionof the legend. In his haste to inspect this wonderful bone, the Emperorturned it out of the bottle, into a large copper vessel, when the bone,probably a leg bone, of its own accord kicked the massive basin withsuch violence that it became shivered into a thousand pieces. This, youwould imagine, was in all conscience sufficiently prodigious to weakenhis majesty's nerves. The priest, however insisted upon exhibitinganother wonder, telling the emperor that so matchless were the qualitiesof this bone, that diamond or steel could not scratch it, fire could notscorch it, nor the heaviest hammer smash it; indeed, to injure thisprecious bone in any way would be to perform one of the labors ofHercules. This, however, was too much for the belief of the Emperor, andso he ordered his stoutest blacksmith to take his heaviest hammer andmake the attempt; the priest, however got the best of it, for no soonerdid the hammer touch the bone than it crumbled into atoms, when,probably, in delight at its success, this clever bone shone with sucheffulgence that it weakened the eyes of all beholders. After this themonarch wanted no more proof of the godship of Buddha, kept his promise,and built the first pagoda in China.
Most of these legends have a close connection with Buddhism and itspriests; it is, therefore, most probable that these pagodas have, fromtheir introduction into China in the middle of the first century of theChristian era, been used in connection with the bonzes. This opinion isentertained by the learned Chinese scholar, the Rev. Mr. Milne, whosays, "Among the Chinese themselves it is a common saying. In pagodasthey save and preserve the family of Buddha. Usually priests of thisorder are in charge of the pagoda, and sit at the doors of the mostfamous and frequented, to receive gratuities from visitors. Pagodas aresituated generally on Buddhists' lands, and there are in their vicinity,or around their base, temples or monasteries for Buddhist priests.Within those pagodas that are at all in a state of preservation,Buddhist idols, relics, pictures, and books are deposited. The historiesof these buildings throughout the empire, at least the earliest of them,are crammed with Buddhist tales and fictions." So interesting are theseextraordinary monuments of antiquity, as being the probable and supposeddepositories of Buddhist writings and Indian documents, which, shouldthey ever be brought to light will not only throw a light upon the earlyintercourse between China and Hindostan, but elucidate the mystery whichnow hangs over the history of the religion of ancient India, a matter ofimportance to every intelligent being, that at the risk of beingtedious, I could not forbear having a little gossip with my young readeron the subject. But now to return to our young heroes.
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