Dialogues of the Buddha, Part II — trans. T. W. and C. A. F. Rhys Davids (1910)

' And going out from the chamber of the Great Complex, he beheld the Queen of Glory standing leaning up against the side of the door. And when he beheld her, he said to the Queen of Glory : —

' " Stop there, O Queen ! Enter not ! " '

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9. ' Then the Great King of Glory, Ananda, said to one of his attendants : —

' " Arise, good man ! take the golden couch out of the chamber of the Great Complex, and make it ready under that grove of palm trees which is all of gold."

' " Even so, lord ! " said the man, in assent, to the Great King of Glory. And he took the golden couch out of the chamber of the Great Complex, and made it ready under that grove of palm trees which was all of gold.

' Then, Ananda, the Great King of Glory laid himself down in the dignified way a lion does ; and lay with one leg resting on the other, calm and self-possessed.'

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10. ' Then, Ananda, there occurred to the Oueen of
Glory this thought : —

' " How calm are all the limbs of the Great King of Glory! How clear and bright is his appearance! O may it not be that the Great King of Glory is dead1 ! '

' And she said to the Great King of Glory : —

1 " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand

1 On the approach of death, explains the commentator, people are transfigured, shine forth. This idea may be the source of the legend of the Transfiguration translated above, p. 146, 'Book of the Great Decease/ IV, 37.

224 xvn- MAHA-SUDASSANA-SUTTANTA. D. ii. rqo.

cities, the chief of which is the royal city of Kusavati. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these ! quicken thy longing after life ! [l9l]

' " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand palaces, the chief of which is the Palace of Righteousness. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these, quicken thy longing after life.

' " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand chambers, the chief of which is the chamber of the Great Complex. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these, quicken thy longing after life.

' " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand divans, of gold, and silver, and ivory, and sandal wood, spread with long-haired rugs, and cloths embroidered with flowers, and magnificent antelope skins, covered with lofty canopies, and provided at both ends with purple cushions. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these, quicken thy longing after life.

' " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand state elephants, with trappings of gold, and gilded flags, and golden coverings of network, — of which the king of elephants, called ' the Changes of the Moon,' is chief. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these, quicken thy longing after life.

' " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand state horses, with trappings of gold, and gilded flags, and eolden coverings of network, — of which ' Thundercloud,' the king of horses, is the chief. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these, quicken thy longingafter life.

' " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand chariots, with coverings of the skins of lions, and of tigers, and of panthers, — of which the chariot called 'the Flag of Victory' is the chief. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these, quicken thy longing after life.

' " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand gems, of which the Wondrous Gem is the chief. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these, quicken thy loncnnsf after life.

p. 225

' " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand wives, of whom the Queen of Glory is the chief. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these, quicken thy longing after life.

( " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand yeomen, of whom the Wonderful Steward is the chief. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these, quicken thy longing after life.

* " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand nobles, of whom the Wonderful Adviser is the chief. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these, quicken thy longing after life.

' " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand cows, with jute trappings, and horns tipped with bronze. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these, quicken thy longing after life [192].

' " Thine, O King, are those four and eighty thousand myriads of garments, of delicate textures, of flax, and cotton, and silk, and wool. Arise, O King, re-awaken thy desire for these, quicken thy longing after life.