Memoir on the History of the Tooth-Relic of Ceylon: With a Preliminary Essay on the Life and System of Gautama Buddha

The book is organized into two major sections. The preliminary essay introduces the life and system of Gautama Buddha, covering his birth and youth, renunciation, ascetic discipline, enlightenment, teaching, Buddhist doctrine, monasticism, Buddhist sects, the relics of the Buddha, and comparisons between Śākyamuni and Francesco d’Assisi. The main memoir focuses on the Tooth Relic of Ceylon. It first surveys the authorities for the history of the relic, including the Dāṭhāvaṃsa, Dāṭhādhātuvaṃsa, Buddhist chronicles, and related historical materials. It then traces the history of the tooth in India, its arrival in Ceylon, its capture by the Portuguese, the claim of its destruction by the Archbishop, contemporary opinion on that episode, and the later account of the resuscitation or restoration of the relic. The final chapter provides a descriptive sketch of the Tooth Temple and sanctuary, including references to the palace, public exhibitions, and later observations concerning the daladā. Overall, the work presents the Tooth Relic as a sacred object, a political symbol, and a key institution in the Buddhist history of Sri Lanka.