204 ALL ABOARD FOR SUNRISE LANDS.

“T saw the lanterns in the procession. They seem to use them
for almost everything.”

“Yes; that is one of the features in Japan a stranger is sure
to notice. The lanterns are sometimes very large. Those used in
the temples are ten or twelve feet long, and they will measure
three or four feet through. They may be only a foot long and four
or five inches wide; and such lanterns are carried about. They are
of various shapes; sometimes like fans or fishes, then circular, or
perhaps square or oblong.”

When they halted that noon, the boys asked the doctor to tell
them about the religions of Japan.

“There are three religions. The oldest is the Shinto. In the
Shinto temples you will find special honors paid to the departed heroes,
whom this religion deifies. It teaches that the mikado is a divinity.
It has been policy for the government to keep up this old faith, whose
special distinguishing feature is the worship of Japanese heroes.

“Buddhism is another religion observed in Japan, but it was some-
thing imported. Its founder lived in India in the sixth century before
Christ, and was the son of an Indian king. His name was Siddhartha,
but he was also called Gautama (a family name) and Sakyamuni (the
devotee of Sakya; another family name). His title of honor was
Buddha, meaning ‘the sage. There have been various Buddhas,
Gautama being the last; and he declared that another would in the
future appear.

“The Buddha receives divine honors, and is thor ught to be the
supreme ruler of the present period of the world. In his images,
he is generally represented as seated, his legs crossed, apparently
lost in contemplation. This state of mind is thought to be a great
virtue, and an excellent way of getting to the Buddhist heaven.
According to Buddhism, the soul at death passes into a new form