JOURNAL, R.A.s.

(cEYLoN)
the Sinloalese

(Vot" X)(VI.
I689

A REPORT

ON BUDDT{ISM lN SIAM A' c'

Trsnslated from

No.

{9--rga5; A REpoRr oN

BUDDHISM

rN

srAM,

a.c. 1689 ror

By

P. E. Plrnts

With l{otes bY Sir Josiah' CYosbtt

Itlorn:--(Jn roth Decembef t"'"uiro""."

The King himseii is of the Suriya vansa ;4 he is just to all men but the bitter foe of the idle, the tiiriftless, and the irreligious. His constant

fift)' nine years of age. The Siamese call their capital Fonsi Ayuthha,z bnt it is known in the Parangi tongue as Sian ; an officer st1'led Barkalon: holds the offrce of Adigar here, and there are a lirrge number of other oficials below him in dignity.

At the time of the arrival of this officer, the ruling Maha l?ajah lvas about

Si*tu ut King, ancl a subsequent embassy brought^thc news that State.under . ;1; ;;th J""",Tt SS 1e h.rl giaeA o' the Sword of tlie rebellionthe 'Vimala of l\laha Raja. ,Sinc-e

li*itr."

1687 trvo ambassadors arrived at colombo to Prince Mahastana had succeeded his father Raja

'

,.uo*6 of

lt. r-erv fact o{ his exisieitce was so carefullv col)cealed that the father had put i{";'Aid t-i tt..it"t* to state in his booh tliatto mention that i. a b1, poiso' ; it is only fair to Knox iil* to aeatfr *orgirrnt note io his <.rrvn copy n! his book, ite c_orrected his.error. imrnefnr-,,

Dahanr S'r5'a

Aoo?renttv tbe prince rvas brtught up with the Sa'gha axd ,ii".....io,-, topower lie.took actio' to impro'e its status. A;t i.t. ",if 'fne iltto.,rlng accLru'r is the narrative of an ett'oy sellt bylhe Dutch

o{ another. He is fond of the fine arts, and in liberality he is as the ; his word can alvzays be relied on. And seeing that the religion established by the Teacher Sarn-mo-nek-ho-dan had
r'vish-conferring tree
changed somewhat from the original practice, he had of his own knowledge corrected the errors, and he rules his kingdom iu accordance with the precepts of the Dasa Dharma. He rises from sleep very earlf in the morning and spends t-,vo pqyas in religious erercises; ihis is repcnrcd in the afternoon. \\'hen his morning devotions are concluded he is eneaged rvith his Ministers till the tenth Fe]'a in discussing state all*airs. Then the Roval physicians corne to inquire after the heaith of I-Iis Majesty and ot sucii other personages as mav be considered proper; trvo peyas are occupied bv them. After this he proceeds to the banquetting hall; it is his custom to take only one rneal in the day. In the afternoon he rests for two or three peyas; but what he does for tlie rest of the day is not known even to his Courtiers. At the tenth pey'a of the night he rneets seven or eight of his favourite ministers privately, then therr is rnusic and singing and the reading of books, after all which His Majestv retires. Day after day he devotes himself to the task of Government in this fashion. His queen, who is about twenty eight years o{ age, lives it'l a

solicitude is for the welfare of his Kingdom and the development of religion and he does not seek new wars. Nevertheless when once some of his nobles......the Government of three of his feudatory Kings he bestirred himself and taught them a stern lesson. And once again, heariflg that his Adigar the Barkalon was leading a life of idleness and pleasure, lro: punished him with gre'irt severity. His Majesty is endowed with the five points of physical beauty ; hio face is alwal's cheerful. He is a master of statecraft, acting on his o'u;n judgement rather than following the advice

c"*o"nvirr.'orabout1689athisrequest-toreport()lltl)estateof U;;fi;;ir,-i;r Slr"l. The trarlstation rvai macle mrny \-ears back {rom E.

1696, are brieflv deatt with by_Sir D. printed in Vol. xxxvof this Journal. P'E.P.1 e.'j^".iii.f.a eleventh year Now it came to pass ill the oue thousaud six hundred and of ,rr" Holy Saka Ki'g, that.our Divine Lord, the Ruler of the "r-tr-," ca\.e ltttefatlce t() a wish"that irrquir-1'should lre nlade. regarding M'orlrl."in i' its ,l'l"""rio *fr"l= rf,",."ligion uf t'e Rudhira was still nraintained at the c,-,ive5'ed to the-... .' "who was stationed up "rti*'''irr;r;';;;;. i#;il i-;il;b;; ",,dit," iccou't sribse_querrtl)-draq-rr was in rhe Holdespirtched the Rt-rnrlra Krumon, rvho i;;;";'; ionnu. l)i his;ffi;;r'garher from inquiry K;;il;; ;f ii." t" report all rhar_hc couldthe c-ou'trr',.arrd the fi,# o{ err4 nerso'at ,Use..'aii.,u regirding tle 'eligirnr translated i'to SirrSalese' ri.""".. of life oi rhe liing, is i"*;i,

;,.;;; obtai*ed frcm a document the' in the iibrary of,thelate "['.;";;tne ]iudaiil'al' of ('aile ; l\lr' Paulusz' Goveniment IR. tlle .A,rc5ivisi, has so far noi succeeded irr findi'g any I'eferellce ^to il the Companv's Recorcls' The Embassies to Arakan ;l;;;;;,
*.lii.-1,-ltrro,red,

in r6'ea'ind

in an

.Ji.i.

'ow "tiJ it ,.This Kingdonr is a pou'erful and imporlallt olre; {o tire North o{ anti Rakkandu: the sea {ornrs the i"';i;; .,,utlttl.. of }Illalca, Pegrr,

1fenam falls il#l"tlr ;^ ti"-.ti*t-it',t.. tih"..' The ri'er four irundred i'to thisi ga'uua's sea a{ter traverslng the country a distance of i"hich is'iramed Siam,'is situatecl on the river forty miles from ir-Ii.*it"r dista'ce from Siam to ;ii;',.,|';u;-iun rr" ii..iied b5' sampans. The month and fifteen days lt""ar-Jiiii*t1" io,ri'ey of one il;;k;l, io.ri }rundred with a favourabie wini. The cliitance"to Rakkanclu is trvo gart'tuas' ;;;;. or a trventv five rlays' journev; to Peg'' three.Sundredelv kind ;i'ii]tll.l oi.';;;;l .iak, cocoanut, *r*.",'ut. ficc. 5etel' i'r'cl er in the ;ii;it ;.'i;"nJ;" ri".iiapce; tlrere is 1eav5'rain for six nrorrlhs
veaf,.

ffigraph1,.j\la1ata,,Pegua,nctrAracan]ietotheWest bourhetJ by itre sta on the Souur'

or'Siu-,'*rli.h is onll'

at the time of the Report. I -. *uy remark that the practice of adopting {ami1y names, for trantmission from generation
ago.

" Ponsi A1'uthta ", lvhich is probably a corruption of the Siamese-" Krung Sri Ayrrddhya ", i.e., the " Excellent capital city of Avuthia." European nriteis of the rTttrand r8th centuries often referied to tie capital itself as " Siim ". 3. " Barkalon ", rvhich is employed constantly by European *.riters of the rTth and r8th centuries, is corruption oI tlie Siamese " ptrrd Xiang ,,. The,. phra Klang ,, used to be one of the great offcers of State; he rvas in charge of the Treasury aitd was also entrusted with the handling of foreign afiairs. 4, This statement may be misleading. As far as I am arvare no relics of the caste system remained.in Siam, even at the time when fire Report lvas rvritten. ln the period of Ayuthia, moreover, a number of dynastic chang6s occurred as the result of palace revolutio,ns, and there rvas no verv loirg unbroken"succession of kings belonging to one and the same family. " Suriwongs " (i e , "Suriya.ylmsa") is, horvever, the name to-day of a prominent ramily (not Royal) in Siam. " Suriwongs " may have been one of tihe Kirigs, names "
to generation,
rvas

z. The,cap..ital of Siam, ap to t767, *.as Ayuthia, u'hich rvas situated, as the Report says, on the River Menam, forty or more miles from the sea. The Report refeis to

only inauguiatecl in sidm about a quarter of

century

IO2

JOURNAL, R.A.S. (CEYLON)

1vor.

xxkvrl

separate Palace, and is waited upon b5/ the daughters of the.high rroblesSh-b herself decides cases against the inhabitants of the various villages and lands that are assigned to her, and sees no male person' When it pleases her she rides round the city'with the King in a golden howdah placed on an elephant's back. - The Kiirg's palice is a handsome one of great size ; and this is what the envov saw when hewas received in audience. On both sides ofthe road leading rip to the palace there were drawriL up elephants, horses,,and foot soldierl ;- while a1 intervals were stationed groups of officials. On passing the first gateway there were found drawn upin warlike array.on ilne sid: fiftv tuslied elephants with ornaments of gold, and on the other
sjcle eight hundred

l'
{l

N0.

gg*rga5) A REponr oN

BUDDHTSM

rN

srAM, a.c.

16g9 Io3

gate there were on each side fourivar elephants, and thirty ryel 9n horse6ack armed with lances ; at the third gate were seventy tusked elephants with {utl trappings, and two thousand soldiers under arms. At the fourth gate was a Mandape spread with mats ; on these was a crowd of people armed with swords adorned with gold and tambahke, making obeisance with their faces to the ground; they rvere the people who rorv the state barge in which the Kin5J travels. Facing these were two halls in which were squatted five hundred soldiers. Leaving these behind at the fifth hall were the of&cials kirown as the Mandarins of the third, {ourth, and fi{t}r classes making obeisance in similar fashion, but here the floor was spread with rnore costl5r mats. In front of these were tlie Mandarins o-f the second class on carpets. Beyond by the step were two elephants with trappings entirely of gold, and on the left six Persian horses with gold trappings set with pearls and precious stones. Here the envoy was directedto [alt vrhile the Nlinisters entered the Hall of Audience, and prostrated themselves on carpets twenty cubits in front of the ThroneThe Throne itself was four cubits in height ; in front of it was a door of such height as only to admit of the occupant seeing over it. All round

men of the Atapattu host. Similarlv at the

s_econd

were hangings embroidered with silver and gold; while on either side were held two magnificent umbrellas. Close by it rvere the Princes and chiefs of the first rank, each rnaking obeisance according to his degree.

thg Cambojian ra.ce, next the sons of the Kings of the three countries Laosi, Ava and Banka, and lastly those who had received princely rank at the hands of the King ;s all these were served with betel boxes of gold and silver, according to their rank. __ r,5. This is inaccurate. The Kings of Siam l'r'ere not' spmng from the Cambodian ra6e ", but u'ere of Thai stock. Princes of the Royal blood were divided into three classes :-(i) Children of a monarch by one o{ liis gueens ; (ii) children of a monarch by one o{ his consorts o{ lor.ver ranli than Queen ; and (iii) grandchildren
of a monaich. The offspring of class (iii) did not rank as princes. But members o{ class (iii) were sometiines}aised by thd King to ciass (ii).- This is still the rule' '[he highest rank to which a cornmoner could aspire rvas that- of "-Somdet Chao Phya .; I do not understancl the refere.ce to " the sons......o{ the three countries T-a6si, Ava ancl Banka ". The inJerencc is that these were tributary Statcs, but Ava (i.e., Burma) wa,s never tributarv to Siam ; on the contrary, it was the Burmese rvho destroyed A-vuthia in t767. By-" I-aosi " mav be meant rvhat is now the North -I'rabang and \/icutiane (both in French IndoandEastofsiam,ass'eU.sLrrang
China) all of rvhich territories are lnhabited"by peopie of Thai stock knolvn as " Lao" ' Srrzeraintv over tlrese terrjtories us"d to lorni ihe subiect of dispute betrveen llurma t cannot explain the allusiotr to'Banka' tuii.h it a small island ""J-Si"*'tnv'rifri"j.East trnclies. -As far as I linov"', it has not figured in Siamese in the Netherlands

The Princes are of three classes; those of the Royal blood sprung from

I myseli knorv of no other cases of princely rank

beiug conferred bY the monarch'

mony as obserrred at his arrival, was maintained- at the envoy's departure. Twenty days later ? present was seut b1' the King; this consisted of twelty cloths embroidered with goid, twent1," silk cloths, and various other articles. About the same lime the King celebrat"a p,lj"; the road leading. from the Palace to the place of offer"ing was decoraiied. on either side with wooden arches, covered. with paintings, and at intervals the ground was strewn with flowers. The processiSn'was heralded b\'_a, drummer on elephant-back beating a metai aru*, .-co*p."i"a ty two trumpeters on horseback; next came several of;frcials on horseback, ntdrng two abreast and followed by a company of soldiers; then came elephants ]]11:.rabove themon which rode s6verar umciirs .utryiirg-in"-Ln"ring., whrle were held flags and umbrellas, and a"vast concourse of people and the five kinds of"mrisic accompanied them.
could be seen. Such a <lescription is neu, to--". a."orrnts which r have rnvself 'corne across represent the Throne in the oirl da_vs as being closecl by curtains wiiih r':ere drau'n aside as soo'as-the KinEJ *'as seaied on it,ih.,"."t""ling him to the gaze o{ his courtiers. when the audieice ruas at an e'd, tlie fact *.as ,sigr'"lo"d by the

ereatly pleased. Ol_-!t: way back he within the palace walls that rare Jewel, -sa,y the white Elephant,z which carries the King rrimserf. Several chiejs are appointed _custodians,of thi: precious beast-; trvo large vessels of gold coratained its food ; the stall and tlie curtain were giltl The same cere-

jnform his. Adigar tle Rarkalorr, of au1 thing that lie himseli'and his suite might require after which he clismissed him to iris Tanayama, _

]rands above their heads and invoked blessings upon him. lhe King wore on his head a crown of three tiers braz.ing r,vith gems of all q-olorirs; rings set wirh large aud flashing diamonds w-ere on"his hand. Iljs- cqlt (kabava.l was of cloth enbroiderrcd with gold and was secured with diamond buttons. Immediately the King wis seated amidst the noise of music the envoy was usheredinto the A"udience Hall ; advancing {our steps into the Presence he made a most humble obeisance ; "ihis hE repeated as,he advanced halfwa5r up the Mandape; and when hc approached .tlre chair which had been placed for lrim he bowed low, and ;rfter obtaining permission sat'down. At each obeisance the Kirrc raised his hand and then inquired after his well-being with a pieasanT smile, his repiy being conveyed to the King througf t]re Interpreters. The 9lv9y tlerl arose and placing the gota atn- containing the letter on his head, drew near thelhrone ; as he raised the dish a lit"tle His Majesty ,stood up stooping a little forr,vard with his own royal hand took th! .and. letter and dqigng4 to-say.: " ] o* rejoiced that your i{i'g has sent this letter to me ". He their inquired after the healtl of the {ing, the state of-the country and its rnilitarv aflairs, ancl commancled thE'envov to

rhe K-ing-mounted the throne amidst a blast of trumpets, drums and the hve kinds of music u'hile all made their: obeisance. when he was seated not nruch more could be seen of him than the head.6 At tl're same moment all the officials great and small who were on their knees ciasoed their

t . !:-^_I-!: "r :' ooor u'as constructed in front of it, above nhich iitile more thanThe head of the liing
description

history.

i u!td;fls being shut oncc again. so as t{, con.eai tlre )iing from thi fublrc view. elephants rvere certainlv re5;arded rvith great veneration unt th" s,u*"." n f;_.wJ1ite ; they rvere given titles of nobilitv and speciJl custoclians rvere assigned to )no.t[.

ro4

JOURNAL, R.A.S. (CEYLON)

(Vor. XXXVL

T I
l

Xo. ,jb---tq+S)

REpoRr

oN

BUDDHTsM

rN

srAM,

a.c. 16g9

ro5

The envoy had two audiences with the King-once_when he presented the letter, and again when he went to obtain permission to depart' The envov and his suite were also conveyed on horseback and in llalanquins for an interview with the Barkalon ; they reachecl his Walauwa after passing through three streets paved with bricks, with lo{ty houses and irees planted 1o shade the road, on either sicle- The Wa.lauwa was of latter a prir''ilege confined to ereat iize and built in three stages -this ihe nobility. Thc Adigar himself came out to mcet the envoy and led him in with great kindness and seated him on a chair by his side. Som,e days later the envoy visited one of the larger Viharas of the city ;

while the- royal standard-bearer was entirely covered with eold. Four great noblemen r/ere prost-rate at the four .o-.rr".. ilrr."".]in atti_

119":^:.f^,,1:j""0_":, the Koyar_ bargc. lhe

the tiies of ttrts were gilt while within were sedent and standing images 0f Buddha, both large and small, beyond all cou*t. Among them was a" standing image of nuaana twenty cubits high, arid four and a half broad entirely" of gola. This was valued at twelve lakhs and five thousand masu.in : according to the currency of this country a masuran is worth two ridis. The Vihare had been built a{ter the image was made. There were several Vihares of different sizes in the city roofed with gold, silver, and zinc and gilt.B Similarly aLrout a hundred feet from the Palace 'uvas a verv lofty temple of great magnilicence, built upon terraces that ran compietely"round-. Theie, as viell as the roof were covered with sireets of zinc^gilt. On thc lovrest terrace were set u,p 1!9"e twenty' statues of coDDer and zinc, gilt, ancl life size. Round the Vihare itself were fortyfoni d"gobnr variousl.,' adorned, and with crystal finials, as well as thirty six of i smaltrer size, rvhile there were {our others at the four corners. Within were foLrr hundred gilt images of clay, among wtrich were piaced at intervals twelve c.{ a large size , in sooth, the number of these images appeared beyoncl linrit" On the z8th da.v of the month \\ral< the King according to his.custom
proceeded to a Vihare situated three gauwas up the river, to.worship there

retirjci to a neighboir.ir,g;;i";;-ri,hence capital in the evening. x was iold ttrat?n"e irnailitants cr au c-rasses possess twentv thousand boats ; the crowd that assembled at the spot was estimated'at six Iakhs.
he returned to the

so m*ch pgrnp to the Vihare, he

yp,"l ,hiT Twenty.barges wirh thrones and girt oi."r.riori"il *nil. behlnd them came sixteen others oI less magnificence The whole procession consistecl of one hundrecl and fifty nine boats, rvhile the accompanying crowd was calculat"a rl-t"*t"i,,.'lt"oor"rra. After the Krng had made the.ffcrings whiclr hari Lreen conve\..a *itl,

envoy from where he was stationed on thi river bank, made an obeisance thiee times in the directi"; ;f ih. Kine. wlrile the inlrabitants with hands clasped above their heads in"or."a'ut"rring,

"ifrr" submission. Three simir". b;;;- ;;cJ_paniea

The reiigious head of the countrv is called the Sankra rris subordinate priests who teach them religio'rvear'erlorv robes ancr ; 1".*il" tr-r. Siamese langL.ige as,Telaf-pon. There are flfteen thousand ^Vih"r", "* and fourteen thousand Dagbbas in the citl-.'r Since the timeivhen Samrno-nek-ho-dan. appeared in thi- carth and att;in;d- ii . o".i,'i"* "f Ieacner, rrow tor tno thousand two hundred and thirty one'.years, the $iis. yh,".reigired from tirne to time cstablishiJtt --n'".""on'*r.a and tollowed hrs doctrine for the attainrnent of happiness in rreaven; and the chief ?riest, his suborclinate priests, the Kdg *ra nfii" i"t luii",-,tr, observe the same to-day. T'he bisis of their religion."".J.;f ;h" p"rr, Ata, Dasa, and Kotiyali Sanavara, Sil ; absti'ende frorn the use oi intoxicating dnnk and the taking of life, from steaiinS, \,rne, ancl aduitery ;

the

obse_rvance

ind to

converse with the Sankra,s who is tlie chief of the Sanghayas knorvn as Thalapalm,ro lvhom he regards with very. great respict. And this was the manner of the royal procession' First ,of all iwenty three of the minor Mandarins put off simultaneorrsly from the two banks in boats called bal,ott that were painted red ; fifty others folloived them also from the two banks in t*o lines conveying fifty four Mandarins o{ the second class; each was rowed by from thirty to sixty oarsmen, according to its size. One of this number was entirely gilt, and the rest for half their length. Twenty larger boats came next ; ifi the middle of each was a very handsome stmcture of three stages, beautiful with paint and gilding, within which the gentlemen were seated ; sixteen of thesL boats ha"d eig[ty oarsmen each, their oar-blades being all -somewhat

respect for the sacretl images, and. the observance of no other doitrine save that of the Teacher.- These ruies are observed bt ih;;; *t o trained at the Vihares ; thev_are peopic oI gooa-familr,;" j;;;ino*n "r" i" their tongue as. Thyan.'" -ihey iuear robe'i o{ yelil;;;,1;rui"-"'"-Lorrtto [ne]" shave therr head a-nd eyebrows. I he da-v on which thev observc Sil is.kept as a fast and foui times in the;;nthirrlit"r."'ij"jjntire morning and noon alone. Thel.ma;.not lork ,t *"*J";;;fir;;;'1;;; ma.v ther handle-ihe pi..ior, l*: p-11_]- songs anrl music,'nor nor make use -"t"f.. rney must not grve wa5,'to r,r'rath of what tcnds to bodily

of Sil, the f'rsuit_of virtue, the-;uitiv;iio" oii"rrg.",

less in size' These were ttre cilt : the remainine four were 6".g"s of the Atapattu. A short distance behind came the gilt barge of fils Majesty himself ; on this was erected a throne in which-the King sat adorn'ed with various ornaments and wearing a white hat. A hundred and twenty men gay' with gold and silver worked at the oars,

ro. The siamese do not refer to Buddhist monks as 1' Thalapayn ,,, though tlre " Thatapoin ' appears frequentlv in tt , oi"e ,r;pi;,i,+;,"; onc The rrord is tleiiiea from.'the 'i talapat,ro.tp"t,o-tr"".'it -'rl"r-. u".'ilnoting " '; rr:r,i.i-' 'employed in Siam (as in cevlon) for.the pirposes'or "i "* mnung tao;i;;i;; use'of the monks and of provi<ring the'materiar to. i"iifi",,, ulor... A'nronr<,s fan is cailed by t hc Sia mese a " talapat. rr' The statement that there rvere in thc city of Ayuthia r5,ooo vihdras
ti ord ancl r4.ooo dagobas is surelv an exaggeration. .. ,, to pcople o-f good famitv b"..'i;,,3",T:t::r"l:t:1. trea.ring yellorv robc. and knor n as Thvan as havrng a: ;::ll "t1"'-"^":.:"l11t1:-t: uro\-s: though not, apparently, monks, they are saicl,.'lraving tleir hcad and eyel nevsr;het"is, to ira",e U"en Dound bv a certain discinline. I carnor crprain this ailusion. The iorJ ;: Tty".r,' Is unknown to me. nor'have I heartl u"i"i" oi .i"r. oi p...oi". in mort Tlllil::ig,. ii. lllT horrever. there are to be "i,,]t-- " bo1.s knonn 'and., n6n ,, or founa ,as rovlces " ; Ulese bovs don tlre . anrl ;-eltou robe *ie" shave their heads, ha-ve rt as tlteir chief clut' to aitenrl upon'trr.r i.ro. of the copyist, rvho u.rote tlszd instead p.E."p "ro"r."

8. The statement that several o{ the Vihdras at Ayuthia were " roo{ed rvith gold and silver " is obviously an exaggeration. q. Up to the present day the head of the Buddhist monastic lraternity in Siam is ioo*il as the'rsangknardia" ; he is appointed by the l{ing. and of late yaars it has -English -grancliloquentty. " The s6meu'hat b""o*" the practice- to style him in". Supreme Patriarch o{ the Kingdorn

o{ srbsj

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JOURNAL, n.A.s. (CEYLON)

rvor-.

X.{iVr.
"!'

No. r;1i--r945)

REpoRr

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srAM, a.cr.,

r689

ro1

ease or the satisfaction of the palate and they rhust render honour to the

Chief Priests.
Besides these rules the Thalappon have to observe one l.rundred and twenty others, the chief of which are as follorvs : to worship at the Vihare

twice a day, to 'ivear the yellow robe always, to keep aloof from women even to the point of not spea.king to them, to restrain their eyes from wandering about or looking at il distance, always to screen their glance with a fan, to avoid unkind thoughts, to eat the food that is offered, to support life by begging for alms round the city, to abstain from soliciting alms at houses_by wr-,rd o{ mouth, to sta.nd before each door not ionger than vrhile a bull fias its drink ()[water. tt-, teach tlreirpupils and inhabitarrtsreligion, 1$ attenuate ihe body for the space of twelve months, for fifteen successive nights in the rnonth of Navam to sleep in the optn air exposed to the clews,rr to confess their sins and entreat pardon, to have only one meal. a day during tire three months of Nikini, Binara and Wak, to recite Bana claily, to repeat meditationswiti.r therosarvof ro8beads, notto bowbefore theSamaneras, to be charitabletothe poor, notto yield towrathnorinflict punishment, not to cor.er the head, to use skins to sit on, to sleep in the Vihare and on no account outside, not to go out begging alone, not to, possess more than one set of robes, not to handle money ieceived in alrns but to give the sarne to the Samaneras and to pay the debts of the poor thererryith, to girre alms to beggars, to release the slaves, to be truth{ul to rrne's wori1, and not to entertair.r il thought that is false. And it is the custom of their country when their religion is being preached for the listeners to construct a very high throne which is decked with cloth. And when they are all met the doctriire that was taught by Sam-rno-nek-ho-dan is expounded to ttrem with much distinction. They use similes drawn from the affairs of this world and thus win over the

side of the preacher but on a lower level. When the preaching begins, ttre whole congregation Lrow with hands cla.sped above their heads and. cry out in blessing " Yea, the word of our Lord and his everv act are of a verity true and holy ". This worship takes place one day in the seven,. but besides this they observe in some Vihares Puja which lasts for three davs. It is the women who take most delight in these observances. On such occasions the preaching goes on witiiout a break from sunrise titl sunset, there being'a fresh preacher every six pevas. The congregation are bowed in reverence and listen with unwavering attention, never so much as spitting on the ffoor. In such manner is their- reiigion carried on up to the present time. The original language o{ their religion is Pali. 'lhe Teacher Sam-monek-ho-dan had witli the hope of attaining to Bmddhahood first passed through death 55o tir-nes, a.s a man, beast, fowl, fisir and snake, and at eirch birth tre had sacrificed liis life for his peopie. i.wo births before ]re was born to this great position in this wc,rld tre had once retired into the forest with his wife and two children irs a reciu^-"e ; ar-rcl there chanced
Xt is the custom o{ some (though not all) of them

of their listeners. Tlre congregation sits in adoration ai:ound, the rnen and women separate, and listen with great devotion. The rest of the priests are seated on either
hearts

r3. l3uddhist

monhs

in

Siam

rlav not partake of food after the h.o..rr of

noon.
open

air (or, rather, rinder srrall indivirlual tents) a{ter the ce::sittion of tire rains.

to spend a bricf period in the

,"^" 'ffering after pq.tlli"c of ilris"he feu iu of i"aG;tl;;r';;"a-ai"i. His ::l1iT"t; watted i('lil was to Nirvana, where there is eternii bliss. Relics of him t*,qoy, some are to be founcl ;n legu. sur,r.-1"'S";r,i, ,aa ::].:lt,:-i=,1-.,1r.," sorre rn srnhale ; these relics emit a great effulgence. But before his death, in the gra.ciousness o{ his ro'e he left the similitude of himself so that men rnigf,t not be f'rgetf'l of him: *iin *ni.r, UUII totus-oF h i, in l.:,1':, lllli,lr,. g, the his fonowersi;;6.i"i i*p;.i;il;fi "; i" i;"s"',''a"u-"f". yj"fi:;ii#F. ila,to,.tliese sat' that his hair is preservecl in the world ,i ifr" S;Jri there is a. Vihare built on an islancl in a river; but hou,ever ,.,1]] ,?.g" jllfn tng.watgr T?j'rise the island can never be submer5led , and whenever nloneri,that is offered'p to his'ame is cast into the rlvel it floatidown .r,tl,r'ollects,at tlris islinrl. but rna5. ri{)l gu lurtlrer .lL,wp. Ancl tlrev Irlrrcr i:rv that when sailo|s rre overtakcri'hr.a storni rt sca, thcv ufier e-qJd, wr'ich tliei lnil;'ii"'rn"'#",..ii"n.*"p*l _;i".-nl:]]},::,:,.'1q.9f the storm wiit ceise. "ilr*r" ;i,rr"i.;ri.,..';'tl*; :;ril.r?,r,r,"';iil'i; terlrly iniruurerable crowds assemrrre t' make otrTerings . i_rut thr.nueh fhe 11lyirurxerable "t.r;"gr; i,,"i ii,""gi trr. Siam iikewise claims to possess a {ortprint of .,-.._.rJ. , Buctrdtrra., it.is to be tsat, not fa.r from fu1,uthia, .;C i, it,. sccirr: annualv of a popular 're ,:iii?;;."":t."
of foocr

past birth, he receivecl an

he, the Sarighaya are but si'{ul rlremselves ". \A-her.e[or-e lie rs beln{ tormented in heil up tilr now, and he mav nc.rt emerge thence fnr some Kalpas to come. Now the inhabitants of trris country hold the above-said words in higir Ir"1ve11t'. -4'd once whcn the Teachei: was jor'-lie1-ing with a large uu.rber teaching his docl rine to t r,"'*"iia,',h&';;;;'ffi; ,i t"rg" :,1.11:.9::.tf]:s irze rush- past; and while lre was discorrrsing on ,onre .c.r.rence of"a

"cnerishei -" hi.od to animals. His cousin f)ewa.dattaya, who"y"i, fi"r"" against him, was bor' with him ihrough trr" s""Liar'iirtr,. hos_tility ; r..nd tirough !9 was lacki.g in wisdom, the lels he formed a new religi.r .bv rvhich he succeedecr i' 'o'e attracting to hi;s;ia u- xi'g a.nd a large concourse of otber followers ; ancl as there weie fwo religions, Dewadattaya and_his foilowers sought to bring disgrace ana 'ow aeuttr r;' sam-mo-nekho-dan b't thev co'lcl detract rib,tr irr. .pr""apur of 'oi ]1i-s fame. And in .rder to mag'ifv his among the naiions of the 'ame rvurld he abode' undel q lro-tr.ee, anri lrrvinguow the;iclo,.1. he attri,iej 1,, Rrrddhalrood for whicrr leasorr tlre |e,,pie of that ."u,1tiu t.ta tn* lr,'{1sg iir great ho't,ur. -A,rrcr'ar tlre rimc'whcn lre ailaineJ-ii u"aann_ hoocl, behold, a throne spralrg yp frorl .the earth, while heavenl' beings f|.,m t-l1e world uf tire gods woirshippecl him a'd trtessca nim. - ,tlit ,nrrr" lrme rvla'a came to war against lrim with a great host, brrt he scattered " the*r asu'der bv the forJe of rris rvill. Tri"e past, ttre p.eieniaid the l.''t're are ait rerrealecr t" ni-; il he beheld and saw l)ervadattaya i' the pains of heil ; zr'd u'mind{'r of trre wickedness .f the man in his compassion he preache<tr to rrim t; p; iti, tr"rll" tn" three words P't-ham, 'rham-arn, Sam-ai', to relieve him i' his pain; h*t the unfortunate man reJuscd. t-o put riis trust ir the l"it,-;:oo,. ", 'merr .;Lid "

to cor'le a Brahmin who demanded from him his two children as alms; rhese he delivered to,him when he_proceedecl to beat th;; ;-;;.if,rny: JrJone the less ire restrained himsef frorn wr.ath. U. oti,, e;;e over fris rvife in charity to a beggar, and he delivered his o*'r rr3.a, n"sh and

condinin;lh;*."tliln"

*:*:':

"i;;i d"'ili

108

JOURNAL, R.A.S. (cEYLoN)

(\ror. XXXVI.

Nb. 9g--r945)
var-ious

REpoRr

oN

tsuDDrrrsM

rN

sr,At!r, .q..c.

r0g9

ro9

area on the top is small in extent, there never is wanting room for the assembly. The Teacher had frequently during his lifetime visited this spot; people sav there is much treasure buried there. In the town of Sok-Ho-Thai's there is an image of solid gold. I have heard that in seasons of drought this image is removed and placed in the fields, rvhen the rain will come down. And again in Canpan'6 there is a bay, on the shore of which a recluse used to live; and once when an offering had been made to him of a fried fish he ate a piece of it and threw the rest into the water, with a prayer that it might come to life again ; and eyen now it is asserted that the pious man's prayer was fulfilled. The Siamese call these recluses Pipasana. They are to be found in great
humbers.

xn these districts there is much rice cultivation

land.'8

_sugar-cane, a.recanut, tobacco, betel, abundanie. All creeds Lj"il;;;i'are tound "",f of tire various. cry9ds ll.:11::lllilu:.1Jlf...p""ete ".dttifi leparate qrrarters both_ w'ithirr a'd.rvith,;ut the capital. Tlre irrhabiia'ts"are bound 1o w,r'k for the king withoul pa]'merr for six nrou,ri. i,r-iii."t-u._"na r'\e.rr lol. tne \vtlole )ear, rl the-re were nccd; the rrobles arc undcl.a similar .brrgatron- lrut they a.re paid for their services. The inhabita'ts harue to pay.a-poll-tax as rvell as render se'vice; for sucii is the;;_;i;ri of the
aucl rice are found in great

ald

; tire jak, urangosteen, \jnds of- pla'tai's, pine-apple, meron, p^;p.iil".;-tir" rurg.i srnall mandarin, gra-pe,

to attend a contest of elephants, oxen, and tigers. The King

proceedecl there on the White Elephant

And once during his residence here, the envov was ordered by the King

the courtiers divided into two ranks and made obeisance, placing before them the betel boxes they hacl received in accordance with their rank ; the King acknowledged the salutation by raising his hand. The royal

himself

as he emerged from the Falace

are despatched.to Laos, cimboala, cochi' 'esseis other places with which tirey trade.'r

'lhe country itself is pleasant and healthful, the chiefuccupatiol is tracie,. ,rrl r-early a co'side'c^ble rf ships iaclerr ivith p;;ii;,;;;;#;;;_ 'urnber disc is despatched ro Ctrina, Surar, rtre Soti rara, i;lr;;,;;;"ior",quin and they bring lxrck fresh cargoes from the vaiio'us i";d;.-"Smailer;

Hiti,, .o"lio.'tolr",r"r"r

with silver and gold on rvhich His Majesty was seated. The envoy too

Elephant was very handsomely caparisoned and carried a throne adorned

. l he courtry is tlrree irundrecr gauwas from Nortrr to South ; it contaiirs four feudatorv states, ua.:., Carirbodia, Gehel, patani,-fi"iar.";"
-l-lrc

went in the procession ; the King was preceded and followect bv over a hundfed elephants in war-harness and ridden by the courtiers, as lvell as the rest of the a-rmy, accompanied by music.
The river of Siarn is of considerabtre breadth and varies in depth from four to seven or eight fathoms, with pleasant banks : the rvater rises in flood four or five times in the year, for which reason the houses on the banks are buiit of bamboos on rafts, and the occupants go from door to door in boats. The city r,vall, an imposing structure of stone, runs along the river bank, enclosing an area of two gauwas by hatrf a gauwa with a
dense population.

Within is the large and handsome royal palace, the storied residences of the difierent classes of noblemen, the innumerable temples with their gift and silver roofs, the many dagobas, the stables for elephants and horses, the crorwded streets and shops,-all this cannot be described in words. Eleven countries appertain to this capital uiz., Siam, Matapin, Tanasrin, Yonsalat, Reda, Prayor, Pat, Parata, Ligor, Si, Awa;'z thsil petty kings attenrJ fnr service'at the Court of the Maha Raja. 15. " Sok-Ho-Thai " is Sukhodaya (pronounced " Sukhothai "), a town in central Siam u'hich was the capital of a Thai Kingdorn be{ore the rise of Ayuthia r6. I cannot identiiir " Canpa,n ", nor can I recognise the class of recluses referred to as " Pipasana ". i7. It is a {act that the old city of Ayuthia included speciai suburbs inhabited
a Jipanese-quarter,

:lrd iris head is lrrurg round thc necks of his accomprices crrcr.*ro.Ja*ii rtte siln t\\'() or three dal-s. Petty oherrder.s are nrade t,, wor.k irr'the city irr clrrirrs ; while tcrnpre break.rr'ur" ti.J;;; ()\c. a slow firc. lf a.priesr.has beerr fourrdsrake ard graciuailr-roasted grriltr: agaiDst religion, he is diirobecl bv the chief prielts "i?,;iil.il o"fl.n." ,iirOlr""j.J",ril"r'io tr,*"
I doubt rvheflrer irr actual practice the peasantry of siam rvere compeled to uork ior thc Iiing for as long as half o y*"ri---" 19' r carrnot identifv flre "^sol rat_a'', lcrrorarnancrer, p. E. p.) nor <1o r r*norv "'-" ttl.

in rwifing to the Adigar nimseti. ifter tire'court its irrquir-v. if rhe Kirrgibe'ot present, a is lrr .rLe officer-s oi'tlic Horrselrord. His ]iajesly therr rlrounts seiii t,, rrim 'rcssage rhe throue, ihe laid ttre rnarteri cle'nrii:-5.f"rf iriL,"i"" eittrer ::]'-q-i1r:I hndrng ,_{digar. .tras the of the cour! if he co'siders it correct, or varies it accor1.11n":. dillg to irls iudgnrent. The punishmcrrt iuflicted by Jrim for ,ninn. ,ffences rs rlogglng wrilr a cane; for g.a'er-offences the.irit;ng of rhe lread with a poiirted iron. In the case 6f capittrl offences the muiderei is-ileheaoeo
has closed

r'"'ai.aguu;;;illl l-purd). 'rhe court that has beeir appoiutecl by trre l{ine f'r trre acliri'istration daily irr a special Hatt. ii anl oire ,., .uli, i,'.-.o_.. ..lrl"_.i-i.q,Teets \vlrn a wrltten state[rent and rvaits at the door iilt tne tribunal " i.s assemb]ed whe* he goes forward a'cr.preserats it. The r{erca'iil" .".Lr""i trru tr-oreigners-are presented
five
f

s.a

,f

br-eadth flom llast_1o \\'est is snrail

-\lslsqca furm

its bou'dar1 for

the courrrr\.of pcgu arrd the

by nationals of various foreign countries; thus, there was a Portuguese quarter, a-quarter given over to the French Roman Catholic Missionaries and their flock'
land on rvhlch their respective " factories " lvere erected. The Report refers to eieven of such quarters, and of the names mentioned I can identify ftIatapin as
may conceivably be Kedah and Pat riray represent Patani, Ar,r.a, of course, is Ava' The other names I cannot identify.

Itlrat is rneanl preciscil. by Cochin tiita. ''

etc.

The English and Dutch East India Companies also cccupied

Siam). The'rast-named place used to be-knot'n to Enropean writers as Ligor.

Martaban, Tanasrin as Tenasserim and I-igor as Nakarva Sri Thammarat (in Southern

Reda

,, .- ro The Report asserts that Sianr used L;tubortia, Geher. patani and l{ivicla ". to contain fo'r feudatory States, ua'rely, c.-o.li" rrlJ'"1i."1,1 #.iirr'rJ';lr?'L;i.g -l"it". l':li,"Pl,t-1h('suzeraintl'ovcr it ur"a to roini rhe srrbje..t o{ tlisp'tc bet*cen i'i1j', "]l,l thc Imperor.s oI ^A,nnam. I cannot identify.,rjchcl .,. p,it"n;"r,n tf," u;e^d 1o bc ndu i".".i.r"t",r 1.1'oio_r,rr." ,:i"l;,1 ll.l]::y1a) ot Siam. "a_triburarl. Srare but i. .. "I trre I\ilrsdom Iiivjda,, mav mean Iiedah,r. also :r ilr.e _\Ialay irhlch userr t- acknorr.iedg" .i-;*;.;T""erainty until sucir snzerainty 'enrnsnla, \\':ts trer.n s{erred to Brita in uncler the Cn gi;-S;;;J;. i;.;iltoi'l oln. " "'" * "''"'

IIO

JOURNAL, R.A.S. (CEYLON)

(Vor-.

XXXVL

l{o" gg-ro45)
at the
close
*"a.s

A RErroRT oN BUDDHTSM rN srAM, n.c., 1689 rtr

Adigar ; after a few dal,s a pit is made in the middle of the city and {illed with live embers ; into this the offender is pressed down with pincers till
he is

Report

burnt to death. Accorcling to their belief, there are eight irells, into ttre hre of wlrich
poverty

sinners are destined to {all; emerging thence, t}rev are born again according to their merits-rvith the souls of rnen or of beasts, in hells, in disease, or

in

happiness even in this world, and are finaliy born in the world of the gocls.

while those who irave done deeds of merit akrne

enjrlS'

Thev further believe ttrat ar.t the end of this age, seven suns wiil shine ; therelpon all tirat this rvorld contains --mttn arr<l beast and tree--v'ill 'die, while a fire, called the Pali Bala Tran, w'ill.come from heaven, and everything will be as the burnt stubble of the freld. Ihen:r great wind will arise ancl roll the ashes au'try, while'a sweet odour will follow. Attracted b)t this, men and wonlen will rlescend lrom tire worid of Brahma to eat the clal' and be unable to return. In corirse of time passion will grow among them ancl children be born to them, who will not know good from evil, nor merit from demerit ; and when many, manv vears have
passed, there

will arise among them one born to be a Buddlia. I qm told that His Majestv has several councillors among the learned Sanghayas to instruct him as to what is right and wrong. People of all creeds living in the country are entrusted with office aud honoured with rank according to their abilities , among them was a large force of Yon soldiers;2r but ciuring tire reign of the present King it was {ound that they
were engagecl in murcler and were guilt-v of deceit, violence and oppression, wherefore he punistred them with much severitl' and expelled them from the country. When internal dissensiorrs break out among his people and they take up arms a.gainst each other, he does not destrov them but ire sencls for them and paci{ies them, and dismisses them with plesents of cattle to go and attend to their cultivation, but with a stern prohibition against arly-one ol them handling weapons again.

eenturv and a half).

plans attracted the favourable a.ttention of King Louis XIV, .who despatchecl an Embassy to Siam and lvho hopecl that the French Rornan Catholic rnissionarres, who had already appeared in the country rvould be able to convert fr.ing frar-ai to Christianity. (In this they were unsuccessful). A seconcl Embassl, from liranLc l>rought with it a number o{ sordiers, rv}ro rvere supposeil to zrssist ancl advise ilre Siamese King in the constr-uction of fortifications. 'l'he arrival of this force alanne<l serioudly the Siamese notables aro'ncl f(ing Narai, who regarded rvith suspicion fhe intentions of King Louis XIV and of constantine phaulkon. About this trme iiingNaraifellsickanddiecr. on hisdemise the Throne was seized by one of his courtiers named Phra Phet Racha, who caused phaulhon to be arrested and executed and 'ra'ho compelled the French troops to take ship :rncl leave the cou'try. (A{ter these events Siam remained virtually closed to \A/estern intercourse for about a

adoptecr the Roman cathoric daith, and he represented to French rvoulci form a usefui ofiset to the Dutch, rvrro rvere then l.sserting themselves too vigorousll- to please the Siamese monarch. phaulkon,s

country' Phaulkon had

In these efforts they rvere assisted by a Greek adventurer, one constantine phaurkon, who became a {avourite of King Narai and rose to be the most powerfur man in the

of the reign of the monarch who preceded the I(ing in rvhose time fire is a matter of history that, during the reign of King Nara.i (r657-*t688\, the French were endeavouring to establishtheir influence in Siam.

w'ritten' rt

King Narai that the

ez. The Report is dated 1689 ; ilris tallies with the seizure of the l.hrone in $re previous year by Phra Phet Racha, who must be the monarch to whom the Report alludes, although he assumecl another name a{ter he became King.
as knotl.n

upon the whole, the Report gives an accurate account to us {rom other sources.

<i{

ilre situation at Ayutiria

Nuueyrzber

t5th, tg45

f. Cnossv

treasures escapecl to Laos. The King immediately dernanded his surrender, a1d this beilg refused, he declared har against the countrv, and after a sharp campaign, came olT victorious'

Once a Yon who was settlecl in the country having acrluired gleat wealth

by misappropriating the roval

has and inguiries ; tiris report was tralslated ilto the Sinhatese on Mondav ttre seventh datr of the increasing moon of the mollth Nikini in the vear 166z

All this is tire report that tire afore-mentioned Rondra Kaurnon macle in tlre Hollander'S tongue as ttre resuit of his observation

of tlie Saka I{ing.""

zincl
engagecl in murder and rvere guilty of <leceit' vioience ancl oppression' r.hereupon 'he pr-Lnishecl them lvith gleat scveritv and e:lpel1ec1 them Jrom the countl.,- ". 'lhii mnst, I think, ber a clistortecl version o{ thc events r'hich occurrecl

zr. 'fhe lieport re{ers to a large {orce of " Yon sokliers " as }rzLv:ing been in Sianr. it goes ori to ,"1' : " But iluring the reign of the present King it rvas {ouncl

that they rverc