ting the doctrine of reincarnation.
Both hell and _karma_ are taken for granted throughout the whole early
Buddhistic literature. Buddha discovered neither of them, any more
than he discovered a new system of morality, or a new system of
religious life; although more credit accrues to him in regard to the
last because his order was opposed to that then prevalent; yet even
here he had antique authority for his discipline.

To return to Gautama's[8] life. Legend tells how he fled away on his
horse Kanthaka, in search of solitude and the means of salvation, far
from his home to the abode of ascetics, for he thought: "Whence comes
peace? When the fire of desire is extinguished, when the fire of hate
is extinguished, when the fire of illusion is extinguished, when all
sins and all sorrows are extinguished, then comes peace." And the only
means to this end was the renunciation of desire, the discipline of
Yoga concentration, where the mind fixed on one point loses all else
from its horizon, and feels no drawing aside to worldly things.

What then has Gautama done from the point of view of the Brahman? He
has given up his home to become an ascetic. But this was permitted by
usage, for, although the strict western code allowed it only to the
priest, yet it was customary among the other twice-born castes at an
earlier day, and in this part of India it awakened no surprise that
one of the military caste should take up the life of a philosopher.
For the historian of Indic religions this fact is of great
significance, since such practice is the entering wedge which was to
split the castes. One step more and not only the military caste but
the lower, nay the lowest castes, might become ascetics. But, again,
all ascetics were looked upon, in that religious society, as equal to
the priests. In fact, where Gautama lived there was rather more
respect paid to the ascetic than to the priest as a member of the
caste. Gautama was most fortunate in his birth and birth-place. An
aristocrat, he became an ascetic in a land where the priests were
particularly disregarded. He had no public opinion to contend against
when later he declared that Brahman birth and Brahman wisdom had no
value. On the contrary, he spoke to glad hearers, who heard repeated
loudly now as a religious truth what often they had said to themselves
despitefully in private.

Gautama journeyed as a _muni_, or silent ascetic sage, till after
seven years he abandoned his teac