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* Bishop Bigandet, after examining all the Burmese authorities
accessible to him, frankly confesses that "the history of Buddha offers
an almost complete blank as to what regards his doings and preachings
during a period of nearly twenty-three years." (Vol. I. p. 260.)
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Professor Max Muller seems to greatly scoff at this prophecy. In his
chapter ("Hist. S. L.") upon Buddhism (the "false" religion), the
eminent scholar speaks as though he resented such an unprecedented
claim. "We are asked to believe"--he writes--"that the Ceylonese
historians placed the founder of the Vijyan dynasty of Ceylon in the
year 543 in accordance with their sacred chronology!" (i.e., Buddha's
prophecy), "while we (the philologists) are not told, however, through
what channel the Ceylonese could have received their information as to
the exact date of Buddha's death." Two points may be noticed in these
sarcastic phrases: (a) the implication of a false prophecy by our Lord;
and (b) a dishonest tampering with chronological records, reminding one
of those of Eusebius, the famous Bishop of Caesarea, who stands accused
in history of "perverting every Egyptian chronological table for the
sake of synchronisms.
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