sapling taken from the tree under which the Buddha sat, brought to Sri Lanka by King Ashoka's daughter, the enlightened bhikkhunī Saṅghamittā. Worship of the tooth relic is ultimately derived from the closing passages of the Mahāparinibbāna Sutta, which tell of the distribution of the Buddha's physical remains after his cremation. Myth and ritual It is common for mythic events to be performed or re-experienced and ritual, and in fact some myths arise as explanations of ritual. We find this frequently in Buddhism, as the ordination procedure mimics the renunciation of the Buddha. Although the Vinaya texts describing ordination depict it as a simple, almost bureaucratic, procedure, some Buddhist cultures have rituals in which they dress the candidate up like a prince and parade him through the streets in a reenactment of the renunciation of the Buddha. These rituals can be quite elaborate, with some candidates riding a while horse, and other individuals playing different roles such as the tempter Mara. In Myanmar, a parallel life passage ritual also exists for women, called a shinbyu ceremony. Another Buddhist ritual which includes reenactments of the Buddha life myth is the ritual of the consecration of a Buddha image. Among other things, the statue's head is covered, symbolizing the Buddhas withdrawal from householder life and various symbolic offerings are placed before the statue. including a sweet milk rice mixture symbolizing the offering of Sujata. In Tantric Buddhism, rituals such as tantric initiations and the creation of mandalas can be seen as recreations of Tantric Buddhist mythic reality in a sacred time. Interpretations of Buddhist myth Emic interpretations There is no developed tradition of myth interpretation within Buddhist traditions. Writers acknowledged that the various lives of the Buddha were similar, differing in only inconsequential details. The more spectacular aspects of Buddhist myth were likely treated for their entertainment value. Vasubandhu, writing around the 4th century CE, took it for granted that his audience understood that the so-called “guardians of hell” were in fact just projections of the mind. It is, however, not uncommon to find strictly literal interpretations of myth. The reform movements in Buddhism that emerged around the end of the 19th century are known as Buddhist modernism. They are characterized by a rational approach to Buddhist ethics, philosophy, and meditation, and tend to reject or downplay mythic elements. As a result, many contemporary forms of Buddhism influenced by Buddhist modernism rarely