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the law are not for them but for the priests. The system, however, is supported by the Government, and a high priest resides at the capital, by whom all the Punghis, or heads of establishments, are appointed. Although tolerant of the practice of other religions by those who profess them, secession from the national belief is rigidly prohibited, and a convert to any other form of faith incurs the penalty of death. The condition of Buddhism is said to be prosperous; from 2,000 to 3,000 lay worshippers make daily offerings at the great temple of the Shwe-dagon, near Rangoon: and new temples and Kyums are daily springing up, even in the districts under British authority. One great source of influence in Ava is the monopoly of education by the priesthood, and which, such as it is, is very general. Almost every Burman can write and read, for which he has to thank the Kyum or monastery of his village. Buddhism is also flourishing in Siam, where, as in Ava, it is connected with the political institutions of the state, and with the mass of the population: every male must enter the order of the priesthood at some period of his life, for however short a time; even the king must become a priest for two or three days, wearing the mendicant dress and soliciting alms of his courtiers. The high officers of the state sometimes take up their abode in a monastery, and conform to all the rules of the fraternity for two or three months together. The priests, or Talapoins as they are termed, from carrying a Tála or palm-leaf as a fan, are consequently numerous,
BUDDHA AND BUDDHISM.
