reborn into the
world of men.

In this way he would propitiate those whom he had injured, and at the
same time accumulate such an amount of merit for his benevolence, that
the gods would make it easy for him when his time of reckoning came,
and the accounts of his life were made up and balanced.

As this ceremony was to be one such as had never before been held at
any period of Chinese history, he was anxious that the man who should
be the leader and conductor of it should not be one of the men of
indifferent lives who are usually found in the Buddhist temples and
monasteries. He must be a man of sterling character, and of a life so
pure and holy that no stain could be found upon it to detract from the
saintly reputation he had acquired.

His Majesty accordingly sent out edicts to all the Viceroys in the
Empire, commanding them to issue proclamations throughout the length
and breadth of the country, telling the people of the great religious
service which he was going to hold in the capital for the unhappy
spirits in the Land of Shadows. In these edicts he ordered that search
should be made for a priest of unblemished character--one who had
proved his love for his fellow-men by great acts of sympathy for them.
This man was to be invited to present himself before the Emperor, to
take charge of the high and splendid service which had been designed by
the Sovereign himself.

The tidings of this noble conception of Li Shih-ming spread with
wonderful rapidity throughout his dominions, and even reached the
far-off Western Heaven, where the mysterious beings who inhabit that
happy land are ever on the alert to welcome any movement for the relief
of human suffering. The Goddess of Mercy considered the occasion of
such importance that she determined to take her share of responsibility
for this distinguished service, by providing suitable vestments in
which the leader of the great ceremony should be attired.

So it came to pass that while men's minds were excited about the
proposed celebration for the dead, two priests suddenly appeared in the
streets of the capital. No one had ever seen such old-fashioned and
weird-looking specimens of manhood before. They were mean and
insignificant in appearance, and the distinctive robes in which they
were dressed were so travel-stained and unclean that it was evident
they had not been washed for many a long day.

Men looked at them with astonishment as they passed along the road,