Book Title: Great Indian Religion
Author(s): G T Bettany
Publisher: Ward Lock Bowden and Co

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Page 193
________________ VIHARAS IN CEYLON. 181 state as we have sketched it. No doubt this has come to pass by a gradual process of adaptation to those instincts and desires of the masses of the people which have compelled recognition in all quarters of the globe and in almost all religions, together with the regard which grew around Gautama as a perfect man; and from the first, great importance seems to have been attached to his relics. Yet it was long before images of Images of him came into general use. In Ceylon these Buddha. are called "Pilamas," meaning counterpart or likeness A BURMESE FUNERAL PROCESSION. They had become numerous in the third, fourth, and fifth centuries A.D., some being over twenty feet high and resplendent with jewels. "The viharas in viharas in which the images are deposited," says Spence Ceylon. Hardy, "are generally, in Ceylon, permanent erections, the walls being plastered and the roof covered with tiles, even when the dwellings of the priests are mean and temporary. Near the entrance are frequently seen four figures in relief, representing the guardians and champions of the temple. Surrounding the sanctum there is usually

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