All around us stretched darkness void and horrible, leading, for all that we could see, down through veils of curling mist into illimitable depths.  In front the rock was almost perpendicular.  The fascination of gazing down was wellnigh resistless, but Peter ahead continually cried ‘Hurry!’ and the voice of Paul behind repeated ‘Hurry!’ so that panting, gasping, and fit to faint, with fingers clinging to the chain until the skin was blistered, with every nerve throbbing and every muscle strained to its utmost tension, I clambered, clambered, until with one supreme effort I swung myself up to the brink, staggered rather than ran up the last few feet of rock, and as my guides bent and with outstretched palms raised the cry ‘Saadoo!  Saadoo!’ I fell exhausted before the very steps of Buddha’s shrine.

“When I recovered, I saw just above me the open shrine perched on a tiny terrace and surrounded by low walls of stone; a yard or two from me the tiny hut in which its guardians live; and all around the expanse of sky.  Dawn was stealing on; already its pale light was creeping up the east, and a bar or two of vivid fire proclaimed the coming of the sun.  The priests were astir to receive the early pilgrims, and as Paul led me to the edge of the parapet I could see far away below the torches of the new-comers dotted in thin lines of fire down the mountain-side.  Some pilgrims had arrived before us, and stood shivering in their thin white garments about the summit.

“Presently the distant sound of measured chanting came floating up on the tranquil air, sank and died away, and rose again more loudly.  Paler and paler grew the heavens, nearer and nearer swept the chanting; and now the first pilgrim swung himself up into our view, quenched his torch and bowed in homage.  Others following did the same, all adoring, until the terrace was crowded with worshippers gazing eager and breathless into the far east, where brighter and brighter the crimson bars of morning were widening.

“Then with a leap flashed up the sun, the dazzling centre of a flood of golden light.  Godlike and resplendent he rode up on wreaths of twirling-mist, and with one stroke sent the shadows quivering back to the very corners of heaven.  As the blazing orb topped the horizon, every head bent in worship, every hand arose in welcome, every voice broke out in trembling adoration, ‘Saadoo!  Saadoo!’ Even I, the only European there, could not forbear from bowing my head and lifting up my hands, so carried away was I with the aching fervour of this crowd.  There they stood and bent until the whole fiery ball was clear, then turning, paced to the sound of chanting up the rough steps and laid their offerings on the shrine.  Thrice at each new offering rang out a clattering gong, and the worshipper stepped reverently back to make way for another; while all the time the newly-risen sun blazed aslant on their robes of dazzling whiteness.