st literature, and inspecting every place hallowed by the
recollections of the past. He then passed through Bengal, and
proceeded to the south, with a view of visiting Ceylon, the chief seat
of Buddhism. Baffled in that wish, he crossed the peninsula from east
to west, ascended the Malabar coast, reached the Indus, and, after
numerous excursions to the chief places of North-Western India,
returned to Magadha, to spend there, with his old friends, some of the
happiest years of his life. The route of his journeyings is laid down
in a map drawn with exquisite skill by M. Vivien de Saint-Martin. At
last he was obliged to return to China, and, passing through the
Penjab, Kabulistan, and Bactria, he reached the Oxus, followed its
course nearly to its sources on the plateau of Pamir, and, after
staying some time in the three chief towns of Turkistan, Khasgar,
Yarkand, and Khoten, he found himself again, after sixteen years of
travels, dangers, and studies, in his own native country. His fame had
spread far and wide, and the poor pilgrim, who had once been hunted by
imperial spies and armed policemen, was now received with public
honours by the Emperor himself. His entry into the capital was like a
triumph. The streets were covered with carpets, flowers were
scattered, and banners flying. Soldiers were drawn up, the
magistrates went out to meet him, and all the monks of the
neighbourhood marched along in solemn procession. The trophies that
adorned this triumph, carried by a large number of horses, were of a
peculiar kind. First, 150 grains of the dust of Buddha; secondly, a
golden statue of the great Teacher; thirdly, a similar statue of
sandal-wood; fourthly, a statue of sandal-wood, representing Buddha as
descending from heaven; fifthly, a statue of silver; sixthly, a golden
statue of Buddha conquering the dragons; seventhly, a statue of
sandal-wood, representing Buddha as a preacher; lastly, a collection
of 657 works in 520 volumes. The Emperor received the traveller in the
Phoenix Palace, and, full of admiration for his talents and wisdom,
invited him to accept a high office in the Government. This
Hiouen-thsang declined. 'The soul of the administration,' he said, 'is
still the doctrine of Confucius;' and he would dedicate the rest of
his life to the Law of Buddha. The Emperor thereupon asked him to
write an account of his travels, and assigned him a monastery where he
might employ his leisure in translating the works he ha