The other day my friend Cernuschi gave a children’s ball in Paris. There was a large Buddha in the drawing-room. I happened to be present; and when I was asked whether I was not horrified at seeing such frivolities taking place before the statue of a god, I answered in the negative. “Ah,” they cried, “you are more tolerant than we are. Our priests would never permit us to dance before a crucifix.”
“That is quite different,” I answered. “Christ was a martyr, and it would certainly be wrong to indulge in frivolous gaieties before His image. Buddha, on the other hand, has only one desire, and that is, that each and all should be happy. Besides, this excellent god is on a holiday in Europe, and that is all the more reason why he should be glad to see people amusing themselves, since he is here for amusement.”
CHAPTER XI
RUSTIC PLEASURES
WALKS AND PILGRIMAGES
The districts in China most favoured by nature are, without doubt, Hang-Tcheou and Sou-Tcheou. The first possesses the lake of Sou-Hou, rich in beautiful surroundings. The river Tchinn-Houai flows through the second.
A very popular Chinese proverb says: