and Âjîvikas. When Devânampiya Tissa ascended the throne (_circ._ 245
B.C.) he sent a complimentary mission bearing wonderful treasures to
Asoka with whom he was on friendly terms, although they had never met.
This implies that the kingdom of Magadha was known and respected in
Ceylon, and we hear that the mission included a Brahman. The answer
attributed to Asoka will surprise no one acquainted with the
inscriptions of that pious monarch. He said that he had taken
refuge in the law of Buddha and advised the King of Ceylon to find
salvation in the same way. He also sent magnificent presents
consisting chiefly of royal insignia and Tissa was crowned for the
second time, which probably means that he became not only the disciple
but the vassal of Asoka.

In any case the records declare that the Indian Emperor showed the
greatest solicitude for the spiritual welfare of Ceylon and, though
they are obviously embellished, there is no reason to doubt their
substantial accuracy.[18] The Sinhalese tradition agrees on the whole
with the data supplied by Indian inscriptions and Chinese pilgrims.
The names of missionaries mentioned in the Dîpa and Mahâvamsas recur
on urns found at Sanchi and on its gateways are pictures in relief
which appear to represent the transfer of a branch of the Bo-tree in
solemn procession to some destination which, though unnamed, may be
conjectured to be Ceylon.[19] The absence of Mahinda's name in Asoka's
inscriptions is certainly suspicious, but the Sinhalese chronicles
give the names of other missionaries correctly and a mere _argumentum
ex silentio_ cannot disprove their testimony on this important point.

The principal repositories of Sinhalese tradition are the Dîpavamsa, the
Mahâvamsa, and the historical preface of Buddhaghosa's Samanta-pâsâdikâ.
[20] All later works are founded on these three, so far as concerns