cle of 252 years. The twelve first years merely bear the
names of twelve animals; then these same names are combined with those of
the five elements, repeated twice up to the 72nd year of the cycle. They
then add to these combinations the word _po_ (male), which carries them
up to the 132nd year; then the word _mo_ (female), which takes it up to
the 192nd year; finally, they alternate the words _po_ and _mo_ to the
end of the cycle.

This chronological system, too complicated for the use of the lower
classes, is confined to the Lamaseries, where it is studied and
understood by the more learned Lamas. The masses live on from day to
day, without an idea even of the existence of this method of combining
the cycles. Except the Regent, we found no one at Lha-Ssa who could tell
us in what year we were. They seemed generally to be wholly unaware of
the importance of denoting dates and years by particular names. One of
the highest functionaries of Lha-Ssa, a very celebrated Lama, told us
that the Chinese method of counting the years was very embarrassing, and
not at all comparable with the simplicity of the Thibetian method; he
thought it more natural to say plainly, this year, last year, twenty or a
hundred years ago, and so on. When we told him that this method would
only serve to make history an inextricable confusion, "Provided we know,"
said he, "what occurred in times gone by, that is the essential point.
What is the good of knowing the precise date of the occurrences? Of what
use is that?"

This contempt, or rather this indifference for chronology, is observable,
in fact, in most of the Lamanesque works; they are frequently without
order or date, and merely present to the reader a hotch-potch of
anecdotes piled one on another, without any precision, either about
persons or events. Fortunately the history of the Thibetians being
continually mixed up with that of the Chinese and the Tartars, one can
apply the literature of these latter peoples to the introduction of a
little order and precision into the Thibetian chronology.

During our stay at Lha-Ssa, we had occasion to remark that the Thibetians
are very bad chronologists, not only with respect to leading dates, but
even in the manner of reckoning each day the age of the moon. Their
almanac is in a state of truly melancholy confusion, and this confusion
entirely proceeds from the superstitious ideas of the Buddhists
respecting lucky and unlucky days; all the