Indian Antiquary Vol 16

Author(s): John Faithfull Fleet, Richard Carnac Temple
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 14

THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
[JANUARY, 1887.
and his followers upon the rice which she had wood, 16* red-sanders, 16 incense, perfumery, lor obtained from ships161 wrecked on the island. medicines, les chank-shells, 160 gold, 140 iron, 1+1 One of these voyages was made to exchange and various articles made of these metals, home-produced articles for foreign goods:169 and cotton-stuffs, 1" linen goods, 17 curtains, *** many of the products incidentally mentioned and other similar articles of commercial throughout these legends were well suited for value. that purpose; namely, rice and paddy,108 sandal
(To be continued.)
IX.
DISCURSIVE CONTRIBUTIONS TOWARDS THE STUDY OF ASIATIC
SYMBOLISM. BY H. G. M. MURRAY-AYNSLEY. (Continued from Vol. XV. p. 328.)
day. Relations being established with them The Wild Huntsman of Northern Europe it is easy to conceive that they were continued, and his possible Asiatic Origin.
and that Buddhist doctors of religion afterGeneral Cunningham, in the Preface, page wards visited Scandinavia, and it is also not vii., of his Bhilsa Topes, 1854, expressed an impossible that the most illustrious of these opinion that the Welsh word Buddwas and the missionaries were called, if not Buddha,' at Sazon name Woden, are “but slightly altered least by some epithet derived from the same forms of the word Buddha. The fourth day of Sansksitroot budh, 'to know, to understand,'-as the week, Wednesday or Woden's-day was for example bodhin, 'making known, teaching, named Dies Mercurii by the Romans, and is revealing, or bådhat, bodhant, the present parstill called Buddhwar by the Hindus. Maia ticiple of the verb;--and that from this appelwas the mother of the Greek Hermeias or lation the Scandinavians may have formed Hermes, and Máyá was the mother of the Odin and the Germans Woden. The hypothesis, Indian Buddha. The connection between Her- which thus seeks to identify Odin with Buddha mes, Buddwas, Woden, and Buddha is evident; or with some of the missionaries of the Buddhist although it may be difficult, and perhaps nearly | faith, is at least a plausible one, if we accept impossible to make it apparent to the general the conjecture that in Hindustận the name for reader."
Wednesday, or Woden's day, has in any way About 25 years ago, M. Holmhõe' endea- the meaning of Buddha's day. In Scandinavia voured to prove that the Scandinavian god it is Onsday, & contraction for Odin's day Odin, if not Buddha himself, was one of his | As one help towards giving Odin an Indian disciples. M. Holmhöe was of opinion that the origin, I would remark that his special symbol missions of the Buddhists did not stop in was the triskele or three-armed Sun-snake, Transoxiana and Upper Asia, but that they figured ante, Vol. XV. p. 66, on Plate I. fig. 12; pushed on still further through Persia to while the svastika, the emblem of fire and lightwards the Caucasus and from thence to the ning, was the symbol of Thor. homes of the ancestors of the present Scandi- It is true that in the Northern lands, Odin navians, when they were still in the countries is represented as a warrior, but the sword has East and North of the Russia of the present often accompanied religion. Odin may have 101 Turn. 49. 303 Rom. Hist. Bud, 832.
113 Tib. Gram. 164 : ante, XIII. 833 : Rock. 59. 183 Turn. 44, 49: ante, XIII. 46. Rom. Hist. Bud, 837. 17 A8. Res. XX. 85, 317 Turn. 48, 49, 50.
20. Uph. II. 21; III. 112, 118: Man. Bud. 209: Rom. 11. Turn. 49. Hist. Bud. 68: Sacr. Bks. XIX. 844 ; XX. 78: XXI. 50. (This is all based on a false etymology, Budha, not 116 &c. : Rock. 933: Lal, vist. 274, 284.
Buddha, is the Sanskrit for Mercury or Hermes. The 105 Man. Bud. 56: Rom. Hist. Bud. 68: Sacr. Bls. meaning of Budha is wise, prudent, and that of Buddha XXI. 322.
is perfectly enlightened. Budhwer, not Buddhwar, is 106 Turn. 44, 49 : ante, XIII. 46 : Dath. 98.
Wednesday or Meroury's day to the Hindus, and it means 167 Dath. 39, 76: Si-yu-ki, II. 240, 241.
Mercury's day and never Buddha's day to them. If there 10 Rock. 98.
be anything to oonnoot Wednesday and Budhwer etymo100 Turn. 44, 58: Si-yu-ki, II. 238.
logically, such derivation would connect Woden with 110 Turn. 3, 7, 44, 51 : Man. Bud. 209: Dath., 38, 77: Budha (Mercury), and not with Buddha. This and Rom. Hist. Bud. 275: ante, XIII. 37: Rock. 92.
other portions of Bhilad Topes would probably be exten. 171 Uph. II. 173, 176; Turn. 48: Man. Bud. 208: sively recast if another edition were to be brought out. Fa-Hian, 149: Rom. Hist. Bud: 833, 334, 885, 888: 8i- -ED.] yu-ki, II. 288, 240, 241, 248, 246, 248.
Buddhisme en Norvège.