Note 24 — Chapter V · FROM TASHILHUNPO TO YAMDO SAMDING, AND THENCE TO LHASA.

These rites were the following: 1. Reading the Pradjna paramita in 8000 shlokas, together with its supplements—twelve monks could do this in two days. 2. Making the three portion (cha gsum) offerings, these consisting in painted wafers of tsamba and butter. One-third is offered to the ten guardians, Gya-ljin (Indra), the god of fire, the ruler of Hades, the god of wind, etc.; another portion is offered to the spirits, and the third to the demi-gods. 3. Gyal-gsol, or propitiating certain genii to the end that the patient’s mind may be at rest and he enjoy peaceful dreams. 4. Libations to the gods or Gser-skyems. This is held to be one of the most efficacious ways of propitiating the gods. 5. “To deceive death” (hchi-slu), by offering an image of the sick person, together with some of his clothes, and food to the Lord of death, and beseeching him to accept it instead of the person it represents. This means is resorted to after all others have failed. 6. “To deceive life” (srog-slu), by saving from death animals about to be killed. This is also known as “life-saving charity.” The saving of the lives of men, beasts, and particularly fishes, is calculated to insure life.24 When Tsing-ta proposed this to me, I at once agreed to save five hundred fish. The old doctor said he would go to the fishermen’s village, some three miles away, buy the fish, and set them free for me, if I would but lend him a pony. He came back in the evening, and reported that he had successfully accomplished this most important mission, by which much merit would come to me.