續一切經音義 6.109

6.109

Birch bark (樺皮: the upper character has the fanqie *hú* + *mà* [huà]; the *Wen zi jilüe* says, "The name of a mountain tree suitable for making torches; it comes in red and white, coarse and fine varieties." In the Five Regions of India there was originally neither paper nor silk; they cut either patra leaves, tāla leaves, or fine white birch bark to write Sanskrit volumes (*pustaka*), just as ancient people in China used bamboo slips and the like. The character is categorized under "wood" with *huá* phonetic).