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CHINESE SUPERSTITIONS - University of Oregon

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— 449 —<br />

distress. Seng-k'ia f$ ^M sprinkled the ground with lustral water,<br />

which he drew from a phial (1), and forthwith rain fell in<br />

abundance. To thank him for such a favour, the emperor wrote a<br />

special inscription for his monastery at Linfn\ai, Lin-hwai-sze §&<br />

ijt ^> but the monk begged him change it into that <strong>of</strong> "Buddha<br />

the world-illuminating king", P'u-chao-wang-fuh ^ Bg J£ ${•,.<br />

The character Cliao jji3, forming part <strong>of</strong> the honorary<br />

Empress, could not be used (2), so it was exchanged<br />

titles <strong>of</strong> the<br />

for that <strong>of</strong><br />

Kwang ^, meaning "briliiant". The emperor wrote out with his<br />

own hand the corrected inscription, which now read P'u-kwang-<br />

wang-sze S -| J Jp 7 the "monastery <strong>of</strong> the world-enlightening<br />

king".<br />

In A.D. 710, the foreign monk had grown old, so seating<br />

himself cross-legged in Indian fashion, he expired within the walls<br />

<strong>of</strong> the "Luck-bearing monastery", Tsien-fuh-sze J|? fg ^p. This<br />

happened on the 12 th<br />

day <strong>of</strong> the third month (3). The emperor<br />

ordered his corpse to be embalmed, and exposed in the temple to<br />

the veneration <strong>of</strong> the public.<br />

No sooner, however, was the corpse placed in the shrine, than<br />

a strong wind arose, and shed on all sides a foul stench. The<br />

Court <strong>of</strong>ficials represented to the emperor, that in all likelihood, the<br />

monk wished after his death to be taken to his former monastery<br />

in Lin-hxvai-hsien §&, f|£ j||. Chung-tsung cfi 7^ accepted the<br />

suggestion, provided<br />

that such was the real desire <strong>of</strong> the monk.<br />

(1) When living at Lin-hwcti g,^, he was wont to travel about, bearing<br />

in his hand a willow-branch and a phial <strong>of</strong> water. With the branch, he<br />

sprinkled some <strong>of</strong> the water on the land and crops, and this was deemed to<br />

call down blessings upon them. The New China Review, July 1919. p. 292,<br />

and 296.<br />

(2) Characters that form 'part <strong>of</strong> the name <strong>of</strong> an emperor or empress<br />

are taboo, and hence may not be used by common folks.<br />

(3) All agree as to the date <strong>of</strong> his death A.D. 710. He was then aged<br />

83 years, 53 <strong>of</strong> which he spent in China. The New China Review, July 1919.<br />

p. 292, and 295.

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