On Yuan Chwang's Travels in India, 629–645 A.D. v2.c19.110

v2.c19.110

The story of the P'usa obtaining kuśa grass for a seat as he was approaching the Peepul Tree under which he was to become Buddha is well known. In some treatises Indra, changed into a grass-cutter for the occasion, supplies the grass,² and in some the P'usa obtains it from a deva, or a brahmin, or a peasant.³ The name of the grass-cutter is given as Santi or Svastika, and the grass is also called by the latter name. This word is rendered in Chinese by Chi-hsiang (吉祥) or Chi-li (吉利), the two terms having the same meaning of lucky or auspicious.⁴ For the "dark-coloured birds" of this passage the Chinese is ch'ing-chio (青雀) which Julien translates "des passereaux bleus". But in old Chinese literature this name denoted a water-bird, apparently of a dark green colour, which was painted on flags as a signal. In popular literature, however, ch'ing-chio is another name for the Sang-hu (桑扈) which is a finch. Now in the "Hsing-chi-ching" and other sūtras ch'ing-chio is evidently used to translate the śukaśārikā of the Lalitavistara.¹ Śukaśārikā is rendered "parrots and mainahs (or jays)", but the Indian teachers of the Chinese evidently regarded the term as a compound denoting a bird which partook of the characters of the parrot and the mainah, and to them the śukaśārikā were birds of one kind and like the finches of China. This was perhaps the sense in which the pilgrims use the term ch'ing-chio. Fa-hsien, in accordance with some scriptures, gives the number of the "Dark birds" as 500.² The Chinese for "in flocks" here is ch'ün-lu (群鹿) literally "flocks deer", and Julien translates "une troupe de cerfs", but the term means "changing groups". The birds as they flew made one set of flocks, and then broke off and formed themselves into other groups. It is evident that Yuan-chuang understood these birds to be disguised devas escorting the P'usa to the Bodhi Tree, and the context shews that he did not think of other creatures joining in the escort. So also some accounts of the incident mention only the convoy of birds, but others have in addition elephants, horses, oxen, and boys and girls with other objects.³ The deer is not an animal of good omen in India, and the sight of "une troupe de cerfs" would not have been cheering to the P'usa.