Middletown transcript., 1871-03-25
ran srDgsenn o. nuDpsalsn.

Seven GESTURES bclors tho Christian cru,
I psiacc Of one Of the royal families Of In
dia, having exhausted, in his twenty ninth
year. all the pleasures Of the world, and
having in him QUE Of the deepest, most
comprehensive, and most creative human
iuteilccts, suddenly abandoned in disgust
bis palace. his family, his treasures. and
his ste:c; took the name Of Gotama.
which means, "he who kill the senses =
bccamc religious mcndicani; walked a.
bout in shroud taken fru,n the dead body
of female slave; taught. preached. aud
gathered about him body Of enthusiastic
disciples. bound together by the most
efficient Of all ecclesiastical organizations:
dictated or inspired works which, us now
published BY the Chinese government in
four languages. occupy eight hundred
volumes and died ut the age Of eighty,
the founder Of Buddhism religion. Com
pnrcl with this man. Malone, was an ig
norant and ferocious barbarian; aud the
proudcst names in Western philosophy
lose little Of their lustrc when placed
by the side Of this thinker, who grappled
with the greatest problems Of existence
with tho mightiest force Of conception aud
reasoning. As philosopher he an,icipa-
ted both the idcalsm of Berkeley and the
positivism of Comet us political thinker.
he anticipated tho noblcst truth Of our
" Declaration Of Independence, and twen
ty-fvc hundred years ago he taught. u
gainst the caste system Of India, the doc
trine Of the equality Of men; and, in that
region Of influence, higher than that in
which either philosophy or craftsmanship
works, he founded religion which is now
profcsscd By two-ffths Of the human race,
and which thus exceeds, in the number Of
its votarics, that OF any other religion in
the world. Buddhism has been corrupt
cd by fantastic mythology, but its es-
scntial principal. derived from its founders
disgust Of existence, is. that life is not
worth living. and that the extinction Of
life is the highest reward Of virtue. To
pass, in the next world, through various
penal or purifying transmigrations, until
you reach the bliss Of Nirwana, or mere
nothingness and noneutity. that is the Bud
dhist religion. We have said that it was
professed by two-ffths Of the human race,
bu, its fundamental principal. that life is not
worth living, is believed, If not professcd,
by large majority Of mankind. Not to
speak Of the hundreds Of wailiug books
which misanthropic genius has contribu-
ted to all modern literaturcs, not to re-
mind the reader that the Buddhist Byron
IL the most popular British poet of the
century, that person must have been singu-
larly blessed with cheerful companions who
has not met followers Of Goiama among
the nominal believers in Christ. The in
fcction Of the doctrine as an Interpretation
Of human experience is SO great. that
comparatively few have altogether escaped
its influence. In basing his religion on
this disease Of human nature, Gotama
showed profounder sagacity than that G.
yinccd by any other founder Of false re-
ligion; and in the East this disease pre-.
sented its most despairing phase, for there
WEAKNESS Of life was associated both with
the safety Of tho rich aud the wretchcd
ness Of the poor.
But whence comes this disgust Of life !
We answer. from the comparative absence
Of life. No man feels it who feels the a
bounding reality of spiritual existenc,
glowing within him for rightly sings thu
poet
swhatcvcr crazy sorrow saith,
No life that brcaihcs with human breath
Has ever truly longed for death.
"'Tis life, whereof our nerves are scaut,
q life, not death for which we pant;
More life, aud fuller, that VIC WANT
Atlantic Monthly.