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After his arrival at Calcutta^ he was placed under obligations to Mr. H. H. Wilson, late Secretary to the Asiatic Society, (now Professor of Sanscrit at the University of Oxford,) for the trouble which Mr. Wilson took in making extracts of his papers on the Tibetan literature, and publishing them. Lastly, he gratefully acknowledges the favours which Mr. J. Prinsep, present Secretary to the Asiatic Society, continues to confer on him, in correcting and smoothing the English part of his works during their progress through the press.
Besides the British assistance thus afforded, he thankfully acknowledges the kind and generous treatment he met with, during his peregrination, from two French officers, Messieurs Allard and Ventura, now of high rank, in the service of the Mahá Rájá Renjit Sing, at Lahore; from Mr. Ignatz Pohle, a Merchant of Bohemia, at Aleppo; and, upon his kind recommendation, from his agent at Bagdad, Mr. Anton Swoboda, of Hungary; from Mr. Bellino of Vienna, Secretary to the late Mr. Rich, Resident at Bagdad (then in Curdistan). And lastly, from a good-hearted man, Jos. Scháfer, of Tyrol, a Smith by profession, at Alexandria, in Egypt. The foregoing is a public and grateful avowal of the favours and good services conferred on the author. Now of the work itself.
Though the study of the Tibetan language did not form part of the original plan of the author, but was only suggested after he had been by Providence led into Tibet, and had enjoyed an opportunity, by the liberal assistance of the late Mr. Moorcroft, to learn of what sort and origin the Tibetan literature was, he cheerfully engaged in the acquirement of more authentic information upon the same, hoping, that it might serve him as a vehicle to his immediate purpose; namely, his researches respecting the origin and language of the Hungarians. The result of his investigation has been that the literature of Tibet is entirely of Indian origin. The immense volumes, on different branches of science, &c. being exact or faithful translations from Sanscrit works, taken from Bengal, Magadha, Gangetic or Central India, Cáshmir, and Nepal, commencing in the seventh century after Christ. And that many of these works have been translated (mostly from Tibetan) into the Mongol, Mantchou, and the Chinese languages; so that, by this means, the Tibetan became, in Chinese Tartary, the language of the learned, as the Latin in Europe.
After thus being familiarised with the terminology, spirit, and general contents of the Buddhistic works in Tibetan translations, the author of this Dictionary estimates himself happy in having thus found an easy access to the whole Sanscrit literature, which of late has become so favorite a study of the whole learned Europe. To his own nation he feels a pride in announcing, that the study of the Sanscrit will be more satisfactory, than to any other people in Europe. The Hungarians will find a fund of information from its study, respecting their origin, manners, customs, and language; since the structure of the Sanscrit (as also of other Indian dialects) is most analogous to the
