leave all beings without guidance into your power. _Avaunt!
Get thou away from me!_'

"The Lord (then) rode onwards, intent on his purpose. The
skies rained flowers, and delicious odors pervaded the
air."[176:3]

Now, mark the similarity between these two legends.

Was Jesus about "beginning to preach" when he was tempted by the evil
spirit? So was Buddha about to go forth "to adopt a religious life,"
when he was tempted by the evil spirit.

Did Jesus fast, and was he "afterwards an hungered"? So did Buddha
"cease to eat," and was "attenuated beyond measure."

Did the evil spirit take Jesus and show him "all the kingdoms of the
world," which he promised to give him, provided he did not lead the life
he contemplated, but follow him?

So did the evil spirit say to Buddha: "Go not forth to adopt a religious
life, and in seven days thou shalt become an emperor of the world."

Did not Jesus resist these temptations, and say unto the evil one, "Get
thee behind me, Satan"?

So did Buddha resist the temptations, and said unto the evil one, "Get
thee away from me."

After the evil spirit left Jesus did not "angels come and minister unto
him"?

So with Buddha. After the evil one had left him "the skies rained
flowers, and delicious odors pervaded the air."

These parallels are too striking to be accidental.

_Zoroaster_, the founder of the religion of the Persians, was tempted by
the devil, who made him magnificent promises, in order to induce him to
become his servant and to be dependent on him, but the temptations were
in vain.[177:1] "His temptation by the devil, forms the subject of many
traditional reports and legends."[177:2]

_Quetzalcoatle_, the virgin-born Mexican Saviour, was also tempted by
the devil, and the forty days' fast was found among them.[177:3]

Fasting and self-denial were observances practiced by all nations of
antiquity. The _Hindoos_ have days set apart for fasting on many
different occasions throughout the year, one of which is when the
birth-day of their Lord and Saviour Crishna is celebrated. On this
occasion, the day is spent in fasting and worship. They abstain entirely
from food and drink for more than thirty hours, at the end of which
Crishna's image is worshiped, and the story of his miraculous birth is
read to his hungry worshipers.[177:4]

Among the ancient _Egyptians_, there were times when the priests
submitted to abstinence of the most severe descr