Buddha’s Tooth! (Worshiped by Four Hundred Million)

Sham S. Misri 

Lord Buddha died 543 years before the Christ was born. His body was cremated in a sandalwood pyre in India. According to Buddhist tradition, after the Buddha's body was cremated, four teeth and three bones were removed from the ashes. These relics were not sent to the eight stupas built to keep the remains.  A belief grew that whoever possessed the Sacred Tooth Relic had a divine right to rule that land. Wars were fought to take possession of the relic.

One version of the story tells that a left canine tooth of the Buddha was given to the King of Kalinga, an ancient kingdom on the east coast of India. This tooth was enshrined in a temple in the capital. Hidden in the hair of a princess, the tooth was smuggled into Sri Lanka during the 4th century AD. The King of Ceylon was a devout Buddhist, and he received the tooth with boundless gratitude. He placed the tooth in a temple in his capital. He also declared that once a year the tooth would be paraded through the city so that the people might give it honour. The Sacred Tooth Relic came to be regarded as a symbolic representation of the living Buddha and it is on this basis that there grew up a series of offerings, rituals, and ceremonies.

A Chinese traveller witnessed this procession in about the year 413 CE. He described a man riding a beautifully decorated elephant through the streets, proclaiming when the procession....................
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For further reading and more exciting stories please see this book

Books by the Author(s)

Lal Ded Of Kashmir Saint Poetess: A Catalogue of Lal Vakhs

Kashmir Shaivism and Modern Science

Kashmir - A Concise History: Mahabharata Epoch 3067 BCE to Modi Era 2016 A.D

The Aryan Invasion Theory - A Subterfuge: A Scientific Look

Tibet: Earthly Paradise

Kali Maa: The Dawn of Woman and Beyond

Maa Ganga: Mythology, Mystery and Science

The Ten Departures of Kashmiri Pandits

Tales from Kashmir, Part-1

Tales from Kashmir, Part-2

Tales from Kashmir, Part-3

Tales from Kashmir, Part-4

Tales from Kashmir, Part-5

The Wandering Pandit

Wonderful Stories for Children, Book-1

A Peep Into America's Past

Silkworm Breeding Made Easy

Collected Poems of Pt. Krishen Joo Razdan, By J. N. Misri, Vol. 1, 2,3,4,5 and 6[Edited and Published]

Travels Through America And Canada

When I Met Her

The Ultimate Fishing Rod

Kashmir: The Book of Anecdotes

Tour to 5 Countries in Europe

Cleopatra-Harmachis-Part-1-Love-Lord

Cleopatra and Harmachis - Part-2: The Finding of Treasure

The Separable Soul

Sham S. Misri

Once there was a man who had gone for a walk. Seeing a stream flowing nearby and a shade tree he thought of taking some rest. Soon the man fell asleep. While the man was asleep, His soul went wandering about. By and by the soul felt thirsty and went into a pitcher of water to get a drink. The pitcher belonged to a farmer. As it was summer a farmer in his field was digging the land. He had kept a pitcher full of water nearby. The pitcher was kept on a sand bed to keep the water cool. Anybody could come and drink water from the pitcher.  

Now, while the soul was inside the pitcher someone put on the lid on the pitcher and imprisoned the soul.

Several hours passed and the man was still asleep. When the soul of the man did not return he was believed to be dead. People assembled near that place and his corpse was carried out for cremation. By chance the farmer in the field felt thirsty. He went to drink the water. As soon as he took the lid off the pitcher the soul got released. The soul at once returned to its proper owner's body. He revived amidst general rejoicings.

Why Shiva is Worshipped in His Phallic Form:

Sham S. Misri
According to another legend, once Brahma  and Vishnu two other deities of the holy Trinity, had an argument as to their supremacy. Brahma being the Creator declared himself to be more revered, while Vishnu, the Preserver, pronounced that he commanded more respect.

Just then a colossal 'lingam', known as Jyotirlinga, blanketed in flames, appeared before them. Both Brahma and Vishnu were awestruck by its rapidly increasing size. They forgot their quarrel and decided to determine its size. Vishnu assuming the form of a boar went to the netherworld and Brahma as a swan flew to the skies. But both of them failed to accomplish the self-assumed tasks. Then, Shiva appeared out of the 'lingam' and stated that he was the progenitor of them both and that henceforth he should be worshiped in his phallic form, the 'lingam', and not in his anthropomorphic form.

Throne Sacrificed For Love

Sham S. Misri

This is the story of a Chinese Emperor who came to the throne in the year 1644 A.D. The king who was very much romantic threw away his empire “for the woman he loved.” He has sat on his throne for 300 years. The name of this king was Shu Chi. In the year 1644; this king was six years of age and occupied the throne of China. After ruling for seventeen years he fell in love with a Chinese concubine named Tung Kuei Fei. Because the girl was a non –Manchu as such the imperial etiquette forbade a marriage. The king decided to throw away the empire like a worn out sandal.

The king then withdrew to the monastery where he spent the rest of his life. He followed a life of serious and strict thought. The king remained there till his death. When the king died, his body was embalmed and sprinkled with gold dust. He was displayed in the imperial robes of yellows silk seated in a canopied throne and has remained in this position wonderfully life like for the last three centuries.

Lovelorn couples come here to gaze at the features of the lover who threw away the world’s most exalted position because he could not marry according to the dictates of his heart. 

Judgement of King Uchchala

Sham S. Misri

King Harsha Dev’s reign in Kashmir lasted from 1089 – 1101 A.D. (He is not the emperor Harsha who ruled in India from 606-647 A.D.) King Harsha Dev had two cousins, Uchchala and Sussala. The year 1099 A.D. witnessed plague, plunder, flood and famine. Uchchala and Sussala fled in 1100 A.D. to Rajapuri. Uchchala, a cousin of Harsha Dev became a rebel and defeated Harsha Dev. He then took the possession of the capital. Harsha’s queens burnt themselves in the palace, while he himself took refuge in a Matha.     

Uchchala (1101-1111 A, D.) was a very energetic man. There is an interesting story told by Kalhana about this ruler in Rajatarangini.

In Uchchala’s rule there was a man who had accumulated a large sum of money. He wanted to keep some money safe against the rainy day. After much thought, he decided to keep the money with a merchant, with whom he had acquaintance.  The merchant was happy at the proposal.

“You are a very wise man,” the merchant said to the man.

“One should always keep some money safe for some unexpected trouble. How much do you want to deposit with me?”

“I will deposit a lakh of dinars (currency coins) with you.” Said the man.

“A lakh. That is fine.” replied the merchant.

“I will take good care of it. You can take small amounts of money whenever you want.”

The man trusted the merchant and went his home and told his wife about this plan.”

“But can he be trusted,” asked his wife.

“Of course, he is trustworthy!” exclaimed the man.

“I have no doubts about him. He is well known in the city. Our money is safe with him.”

As days passed, the man would take small amounts of money from him to meet his petty expenses.

Nearly twenty five years passed in this manner. The man had a son who had grown by now.

One day as usual the man went to the merchant and asked for some money. The merchant refused to pay. The merchant’s face was red with anger.

“What money do you want now?” the merchant said.

He showed the man his account book.

“There is hardly any money left from the original amount. You have almost spent the whole money.”

The man was shocked to hear all about this. He did not utter a word. The merchant then showed him the account book.

“See here. Three hundred dinars for repairs of house. Six hundred for land purchase. Five hundred for   religious function. Etc.etc.” The list was unending.

The man had not taken so much of money from the merchant.

“And you must pay me the interest,” concluded the merchant.

So, there was a law suit between the merchant and the man which the court could not decide.

This case came to the notice of king Uccala. He demanded that the account books of the merchant be shown to him. The merchant had fraudulently recorded the entries in the account book. 

Uccala ordered the merchant that if any portion of the money was still with him and that he should produce before the king prior to his judgement.

The money was brought. Among the coins, he found coins of his own reign. But the deposit had been kept with the merchant when (Kalsha 1091-99 A.D.) was ruling; it was twenty years before Uccala’s reign had commenced.  So it was evident that the deposit had been used for other purposes by the merchant. The king then declared his judgement, stating that the man must pay to the merchant interest on what he had taken from him from time to time up to date, and, the merchant too must pay the man interest on the full one lakh of dinars from the time of its being deposited together with the amount of the deposit.