The kings, with their officers and people,
were all very sad and distressed, supposing that the sandalwood image
had been burned; but lo! after four or five days, when the door of a
small vihara on the east was opened, there was immediately seen the
original image. They were all greatly rejoiced, and cooperated in
restoring the vihara. When they had succeeded in completing two stories,
they removed the image back to its former place.
When Fa-hien and Tao-ching first arrived at the Jetavana monastery, and
thought how the World-honored one had formerly resided there for
twenty-five years, painful reflections arose in their minds. Born in a
border-land, along with their like-minded friends, they had travelled
through so many kingdoms; some of those friends had returned to their
own land, and some had died, proving the impermanence and uncertainty of
life; and today they saw the place where Buddha had lived now unoccupied
by him. They were melancholy through their pain of heart, and the crowd
of monks came out, and asked them from what kingdom they were come. "We
are come," they replied, "from the land of Han." "Strange," said the
monks with a sigh, "that men of a border country should be able to come
here in search of our Law!" Then they said to one another, "During all
the time that we, preceptors and monks, have succeeded to one another,
we have never seen men of Han, followers of our system, arrive here.
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