The Early History of India, from 600 B.C. to the Muhammadan Conquest, including the Invasion of Alexander the Great c29.201

c29.201

Study of the local records drew the attention of Hiuen Tsang to the history of Dhruvabhata's uncle, Śīlāditya, who had been king of Mo-la-p'o sixty years before. This prince was famed as having been a man of eminent wisdom and great learning, a zealous Buddhist, and so careful to preserve animal life that he caused the drinking water for his horses and elephants to be strained, lest perchance any creature living in the water should be injured. By the side of his palace he had built a Buddhist temple, remarkable for its artistic design and rich ornament, in which the images of the Seven Buddhas were enshrined. It was his custom to hold a grand assembly every year, at which the canonical dues and gifts were presented to the monks with liberality. This pious practice had been continued for successive generations to the time of Hiuen Tsang's visit.