Note 102 — THE KING AND HIS FOUR MINISTERS.

Tope, or stupa, a sepulchral memorial monument; a mound-like building erected for the preservation of relics. They are found in Afghanistán, Tibet, Nepál, and Western Asia; also in various parts of Southern India. On the demise of Gautama [the founder of Buddhism], B.C. 543, his body was consumed, divided into eight portions, and distributed amongst applicants, who erected topes over them. The word tope is the same as st’hupo in Pali—a mound or tumulus; st’hupo, or tope, is therefore a name common to each kind of tumulus, whether it be the solid temple dedicated to the Supreme Being or the massive mound erected over the relics of Buddha, or those of one of his more eminent followers.—Balfour’s Cyclopædia of India.