VIII.
Extracts from Tibetan Works Translated.
1. Tibetan Beau-ideal of a Wife. (Kahgyur, MDo Kha, p. 106–7.)
The required qualities in a maiden who may aspire to be united in marriage with Shakya are thus defined by himself:
“No ordinary woman is suitable to my taste and habits, none who is incorrect in her behaviour, who has bad qualities, or who does not speak the truth. But such one alone will be pleasing and fit for me, who, exhilarating my mind, is chaste, young, of good complexion, and of a pure family and descent.”
He indited a catalogue of these qualifications in verse, and said:— [[190]]
“If there shall be found any girl with the virtues I have described, since I like not an unrestrained woman, let her be given to me in marriage. She who is young, well-proportioned, and elegant, yet not boastful of her beauty; who is affectionate towards her brother, sister, and mother; who, always rejoicing in giving alms, knoweth the proper manner how to bestow them on the priests and Brahmans; if there be found any such damsel, father! let her be brought to me. One who, being without arrogance, pride, and passion, has left off artifice, envy, and deceit, and is of an upright nature; who even in her dreams hath not lusted after any other man; who resteth content with her own husband, and is always submissive and chaste; who is firm and not wavering, who is not proud or haughty, but full of humility like a female slave; who has no excessive fondness of the vanity of sound, smell, taste (music, perfumes, and exquisite viands), nor for wine; who is void of cupidity, who has not a covetous heart, but is content with her own possessions; who, being upright, goeth not astray, is not fluctuating; is modest in her dress, and does not indulge in laughing and boasting; who is diligent in her moral duties without being righteous overmuch. Who is very clean and pure in her body, her speech, and her mind; who is not drowsy nor dull, proud nor stupid, but of good judgment, doth everything with due reflection; who hath for her father- and mother-in-law equal reverence as for a spiritual teacher; who treateth her servants both male and female with constant mildness; who is as well versed as any courtesan in the rites and ceremonies described in the Shastras; who goeth last to sleep and riseth earliest from her couch; who maketh every endeavour with mildness, like a mother, without affectation. If there be any such maiden to be found, father! give her unto me as a wife.”
Afterwards the King Shuddhodana directs his Brahman minister to go into the great city of Kapilavastu, and to inquire there in every house after a girl possessed with these good qualities, showing at the same time Shakya’s letter, and uttering two verses of the following meaning:—“Bring hither that maiden who has the required qualities, whether she be of the royal tribe or of the Brahman caste, of the gentry or of the plebeian class. My son regardeth not tribe nor family [[191]]extraction; his delight is in good qualities, truth and virtue alone.”
The objections of the Buddhists to the seclusion of women may be gathered from the following imaginary conversation of Shakya’s wife (extracted from Kahgyur, Do, Kha, vol. i, p. 120, 121). Sa-tsho-ma (Gopa), the wife of Shakya, upon hearing of her being upbraided by the domestics for not concealing her face when in company with others, expresses herself in some verses against the veil, the meaning of which is as follows:—
“Sitting, standing, and walking, those that are venerable are pleasing when not concealed. A bright gem will give more lustre if put on the top of the standard.