මහාවංශය (Great Chronicle of Ceylon)

of the marvellous.

"But we must not therefore pour away the child with the bath. Here, too, the task of Science is to lay bare the grain of truth; not only this, but she must seek the meaning and significance of the mythical crown of rays that has gathered round the nucleus. For the mythical is often the covering of deep thoughts." 1

We shall, of course, be obliged to begin by removing the mythical additions. But we need by no means take the residue as current coin. Here we are concerned to examine how far the tradition is established as trustworthy, by internal or external evidence, and how far shaken as being untrustworthy.

If we pause first at internal evidence then the Ceylonese Chronicles will assuredly at once win approval in that they at least wished to write the truth. Certainly the writers could not go beyond the ideas determined by their age and their social position, and beheld the events of a past time in the mirror of a one-sided tradition. But they certainly did not intend to deceive hearers or readers. This is clear from the remarkably objective standpoint from which they judge even the mortal foes of the Aryan race. That certainly deserves to be emphasized. It is true not only of dominating personalities (such as, to all appearance, Eḷāra was) but also of the two usurpers Sena and Guttika it is said, Dīp. 18. 47 and Mah. 21. 11: rajjaṃ dhammena kārayuṃ they ruled the kingdom righteously.

Besides, the obvious endeavour to make out a systematic chronology is such as to inspire confidence at the outset. Indeed, whole sections of the Dīp. consist entirely of synchronistic connexions of the ecclesiastical tradition with profane history and of the history of India with that of Ceylon.

§ 3. External support of the Chronicles.

The above certainly are, in the first place, only general considerations, the value of which I myself would by no means estimate too highly. Meanwhile it is more important that the Ceylonese tradition has after all found support to a considerable extent from external testimony.

1 WINDISCH, Buddha's Geburt, p. 4.