On Yuan Chwang's Travels in India, 629–645 A.D. v1.c10.s3.38

v1.c10.s3.38

It will be observed that in this passage the words "la fortune des habitants" and "de Suvarṇas" are introduced by the learned translator to supplement the language and complete the meaning of his author. But these words do not seem to be warranted by the Sanskrit original, which apparently refers to inhabitants, and not to coins. This interpretation is supported by two out of the three Chinese translations, the third translation being apparently from a different text. The passage translated by Burnouf would thus mean something like the following—The king had 84 000 boxes made to hold Buddha's relics. These boxes he gave to Yakshas to distribute among all large, medium, and small towns having a koṭi of inhabitants. But the people of Takshaśila said—We are thirty-six koṭis in number and we want thirty-six boxes. The king seeing he could not give a box for every koṭi of inhabitants in his dominions said to the Takshaśilans—No, you must knock off thirty-five koṭis for the rule is to be that a box is to be given only to those places which have exactly a koṭi of inhabitants neither more nor less.¹