On Yuan Chwang's Travels in India, 629–645 A.D. v2.c17.s2.6

v2.c17.s2.6

For the words in the above passage "tapping the [king's] elephant in the face, said" the original is *Ch'ien-k'ou-hsiang-yue* (前叩象曰), and Julien translates this— "se prosternant aux pieds de l'éléphant, lui parle ainsi". This rendering is manifestly wrong from every point of view. The phrase *k'ou-hsiang* here means to *tap* or *strike* the elephant as *k'ou-ma* is to *tap* a horse. But these phrases are used figuratively in the senses of *boldly, sternly, seriously*, and it is not necessary to suppose that any actual tapping or knocking takes place. In the present passage the word "king's", which I have added, is really not needed, and we are only to understand that the dragon-brahmin faced the king, and addressed to him an earnest remonstrance.