ABSTRACT
AFTER crossing the Tai-hang-ling, the summit of which separates the provinces of Chihle and Shanse, we soon passed a Lamn monastery called Arshan-baIog,!" the temple of the fountain of the genii." It was originally an ordinary Buddhist temple in the hands of Chinese priests or hoehangs, and was founded in the reign of Wan-leih. When the Emperor ICanghe, of the Tartar dynasty, passed this ,vay on the road to W oo-tai to worship there the images adored by the Lamas, he observed that the idols in this temple were broken and neglected. He was angry at the priests and gave it in charge to Lamas, There are now twelve Lamas there, who all came from Eastern Mongolia, This incident and the handsome style of the buildings show how great was the attachment of that Emperor to the Buddhist religion. Yet at one period in his life he was, say the Jesuits, nearly converted to Christianity. He was probably. a luau open to impressions, easily wrought upon, but not capable of being induced to abandon the traditional etiquette of emperors by adopting the religion of the' scholars from the Western Ocean.
