New-York tribune., 1908-02-22
An Enchanting Book on the Re
hgious Beliefs of Burma.


fiction. Mr H Fielding Hall has produced
of his exquisite studies of the religious philoso-
nhy OF the Burmese people For many years a
resident OF Burma. he approaches his subject
with the understanding born of sympathy
knowledge and appreciation. He writes with
enthusiasm, as one who loves the people he
knows 50 well-he has penetrated their mys-
feries he haSabsorbed their spirit. he has di-
zjned their heart This is not a dissection of
the literature Of Buddhism We are not inter
ested to know whether the author has deeply
pondered the pundits OF India or the sages of
China. He makes US feel that he has come
very close 10 alien people. people that We
do not know. whose ideals whose standards.
whose habits of thought are totally different
from ours And we feel that he has acquired
this knowledge not by the remoter processes of
inscriptions or perusing musty documents, but
BY intimate contact with human beings This
is what gives the book its character. 1t is
,staI with human interest Through certain
corgenialty OF soul the writer has dissipated
the reserve of singulary reticent people.
lie seems 10 have discovered their innerrnost
thoughts and put into words the ideas that
have hardly attained the dignity of utter
ance- He leads US TO see that poor. weak. un-
tuto-ed people. without science or even what
seems TO knowledge. without the qualities
that bring success upon the battlefelds of war
or Of commerce, without wealth or the wish for
II without much Of what we are pleased to call
civilization, have Yet laid hold of certain ele-
rnents Of the eternal truth that remain unknown
10 Us. and have acquired happiness and spirit
Of contentment that we can never reach. There
are more things in heaven and earth than are
dreamJ OF in philosophy.
i IS not easy to do the things this writer
has done His theme is of a land concerning
which most readers know little and care less.
He has not much 10 say of externals but he has
50 caught the color OF the East that with his
book in hand you find yourself at once in a
place you seem to know, with the sunshine and
the palm trees and the tinkly temple bells. Re
ligi0us philosophy is not q popular subject, but
BE lends il ali the witchery OF romance. And
when you pause 10 question how this magical
effect Is made you realize perhaps for the first
zine the plaintive wistfulness of the style, the
consummate choice Of words the delicacy of the
phrasIng, the musical cadence Of the sentences.
Few are the living writers whose pages are so
suitable for reading aloud. It is a good test and
hard one. The lmpid stream that is drawn
from this well Of English undehled flows with
the pUreness ard sparkle OF a crystal spring.
open his pages anywhere and you lay them
down refreshed and invigorated as by a breath
Of early summer. For his art is free from arti
fee and his language is lovely because his
thoughts are just.
The OrientaTs conception of the soul is very
different from ours, and we apt TO put
false Interpretation upon his Ideas because
We do not comprehend them We speak Of the
future state TO which he looks forward an
initiation. but II is the very opposite II is the
realization OF self in greater grander self than
ever We have dreamed of; it a fuller,
more glorious life than the world gives now.
Why does the East believe, why has the West
rot done so? asks our author Our churches have
dragooned the people. driven them TO prayers,
forced them into the faith, killed them for
teresy and Unbelief. Yet they have not believed
The history Of all churches is OF perpetual strug-
gle 70 enforce q creed The East is careless of
creeds because its people are conscious OF the
ruth that lies beneath. In the West there have
been waves Of faith that came and ebbed and
disappeared. But in the East all men have
their religion, all men believe truly and earnest
L. The East has held its faiths because they
were il accordance with the whole OF life. NO
man Is ashamed Of his religion. no man SCOTS
al il secretly. II IS nature with them The
student Of the East learned that all forms OF
life are under the care and the direction Of
Consciousness. a Righteousness. knowledge
are subject 10 it, are one with it. Says Mr..
Hall:
Nature grew very near to him. He listened TO
til voices of the dawn He watched it arise, the
il-ls-slraa-e miracle OF day; ne saw the coQriers
brow the king arise IN all his majesty
IL Iste1ed IN he Wo5dz. ana heard the braaeaes
Whisper secrets 10 elcn oIhel me pFttz5S IlAtlTI
T. Tie palm frOnds overhead and talked and
Al We the jungle fowl came out TO feed in open
Pisces The cocks, proudest and saHeSt o. brave
birds strutIed and stamped and called GeIlailee-
TIE meek brown mems ran TO and fTo. The par
tridE-s laughed ha-ha, ha-ha, the brown qualls
soariet argn# and across the throbbing skies the
wild geese passed in long PROFESSIONS -
he syi 4r ss.4Fl a
se15esr velvet- In the deep gloom the whole world
z5 they might he: the the dsrkhess hid them in
Itii % mystery ne neti nit - =, ,,1 '
Bi-5s II III omen cried. the owl, the nlght-Jar
AHd there were sounds l. that came he knew not
--!la- aza52 rhe dawn Dead Nature2 Dead souls
they Eh0 have not 1elt the fellowship OF al
Nar such were these he lived among. They knew
anl fe-r that all life was one. came from one one
source The reapers tod nm OF me grasses anu anu
"a aly food you must have knowledge Of the laws.
ku5te-s Toi5 fsn - the animals Tfe- have their
isgR frzir god who cares for them He tells
theu what 10 do and what they must not DO
tts- --tHe mid the corn have never any avse is
-he only living thing that has TlEhI or
ETonEE ETeTy living thing has right and wrong
This charming conception Of nature shows us
thai they understand it, not in detail, yet in
principle. They had a subtle sympathy with il
Evolution Was no surprise 20 them Buddha
vas nor q prophet. but q Darwin Of the soul
They were in harmony with him and knew his
meaning. But our Western science halts mid
WAY The body has evolved. we say So has
he soul answers the East And thar Is what
transrligTati0n means All truth IS good ana
70 one has monopoly Of it. Good and evil are
both from God. and there Is no devii-only an
other face Of God Buddhism il a religion or
conduct mainly. vhereas in the West Christi
sni-y kes been Of ideals mainly And the fear
q what IS 10 come, which is partly instructive
and partly cultivated in the West, is absent in