In the Kingdom of Mithila ruled a king called Vedeha, who was instructed in the ways of the law by four sages. At dawn one morning the king was awakened by a fantastic and frightening dream. His whole world had been illumined by fire which rose in four columns from the corners of the world. Suddenly in the center a fifth flame arose, which was at first only the size of a firefly. As King Vedeha watched, the fifth flame grew in height and glory until it encompassed all the other pillars of fire. At the same time multitudes of people passed through the flames without harm. Terrified, the king consulted his sages about the meaning of such a scene. The four wise men interpreted the dream to mean that a fifth sage would soon appear who would surpass them all. They themselves represented the four original columns of fire, and they saw in the dream their fame consumed by the growing splendor of the fifth and central flame. And, in fact, on that day a Bodhisatta, or future Buddha, was conceived in the womb of Lady Sumana, the wife of a wealthy merchant in the market town at the east gate of Mithila. At the same instant, a thousand other sons of the gods were conceived in the families of other rich men so that the Bodhisatta would be properly attended.