He Further Exposed The Fallacy Of The Excuse
Alleged For The Practice, To Wit, That Burning The Dead Was A Fulfilment
Of The Precepts Of Buddha, And Accused The Priests Of A Certain Monastery
Of Converting Into A Source Of Illicit Gain The Practice Of Cremation."
[As an illustration of the cremation of a Buddhist priest, I note the
following passage from an article published in the North-China Herald,
20th May, 1887, p. 556, on Kwei Hua Ch'eng, Mongolia:
"Several Lamas are
on visiting terms with me and they are very friendly. There are seven
large and eight small Lamaseries, in care of from ten to two hundred
Lamas. The principal Lamas at death are cremated. A short time ago, a
friendly Lama took me to see a cremation. The furnace was roughly made of
mud bricks, with four fire-holes at the base, with an opening in which to
place the body. The whole was about 6 feet high, and about 5 feet in
circumference. Greased fuel was arranged within and covered with glazed
foreign calico, on which were written some Tibetan characters. A tent was
erected and mats arranged for the Lamas. About 11:30 A.M. a scarlet
covered bier appeared in sight carried by thirty-two beggars. A box 2 feet
square and 2-1/2 feet high was taken out and placed near the furnace. The
Lamas arrived and attired themselves in gorgeous robes and sat
cross-legged. During the preparations to chant, some butter was being
melted in a corner of the tent.
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