You see he was even worse than La-on-tzee.
Buddha pretended that he could make people happy; and his way of doing so
was very strange. He told them to think of nothing, and then they would
be happy. It is said that one man fixed his eyes for nine years upon a
wall without looking off, hoping to grow happy at last. You can guess
whether he did. There are many priests of Buddha, always busy in telling
lies to the people. They recommend them to repeat the name of Buddha
thousands and thousands of times, and some people are so foolish as to do
this; but no one ever found any comfort from this plan.
The priests of Buddha say that their souls, when they leave their bodies,
go into other bodies. This idea is enough to make a dying person very
miserable. One poor man, when he was dying, was in terror because he had
been told his soul would go into one of the emperor's horses. Whenever
he was dropping off to sleep, he started up in a fright, fancying that he
felt the blows of a cruel driver hurrying him along: for he knew how very
fast the emperor's horses were made to go. How different are the
feelings of a dying man who knows he is going to Jesus.
He can say with joy,--
"For me my elder brethren stay,
And angels beckon me away,
And Jesus bids me come."
The Buddhists are full of tricks by which to get presents out of the
people.
Once a year they cause a great feast to be made, and for whom? For the
poor? No.
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