THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 ¥
 
 ^.^^^^t^^^^^ 
 
 //^^ 
 
 S KETCHES 
 
 CHIEFLY RELATING TO THE 
 
 HISTORY, RELIGION, LEARNING, 
 AND MANNERS, 
 
 OF THE 
 
 HINDOOS. 
 
 WITH 
 
 A conclfe Account of the Present State of the 
 Native Powers of HindosTan. 
 
 THE SECOND EDITION, ENLARGED. 
 
 IN TWO VOLUMES. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 PRINTED FOR T. CADELL, IN THE STRAND. 
 MDCCXCII.
 
 I3S 
 
 'V.I 
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 I 
 
 T ivS not my intention in the following 
 fheets, to add to the number of authors 
 who have devoted their labours to the hii- 
 tory of the conquerors of Hindoflan ; but 
 to draw the attention of the Public, for a 
 moment, from the exploits of Mahomedans 
 \ and Europeans, and dired: it to the ori- 
 ginal inhabitants of that country. If this 
 attempt fhould lead to further inquiry upon 
 fo interefting a fubjedt, or be produdive of 
 any pleafure or information to the Reader, 
 I fliall think my pains well beftowed, as my 
 wifhes will be accomplifhed. 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
 N. B. In reading the names of perfons and 
 placeSy the vowels are underjiuod to be 
 protiounced as in Italian. 
 
 B 2 
 
 «V-, ^ 'M. -^- «..'■ ; W
 
 §::|=* ne Vignette hi the Title-page is a View 
 in the ftibterraneous Temple in the I/land 
 fjf Elephanta.
 
 ' ADVERTISEMENT 
 
 TO THIS 
 
 SECOND EDITION. 
 
 qINCE the Firft Edition of tliis Work was 
 publifhed, I have read in the Second 
 Volume of the Tranfadions of the Royal 
 Society at Edinburgh, Remarks on the 
 AJlronomy of the Brahmans^ by Mr. Play- 
 fair ; and in the Firft Volume of the Afiatic 
 Refearches, Remarks on the Gods of Greece ^ 
 Italy ^ and Ind'ia^ by Sir William foneso 
 I regret that I had not feen thefe works 
 in time to have made that ufe of them 
 in the Firft Edition, which I have taken 
 the liberty of doing in this. 
 
 From the materials furnifhed by Mon- 
 
 fieur le Gentil and Monfieur Bailly, Mr. 
 
 Playfair has even gone beyond thofe authors, 
 
 in eftablifliing, by fcientific proof, the ori- 
 
 2 ginality
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 ginality of the Hindoo aftrononiy, and 
 its fuperior antiquity to any other that is 
 known ; while Sir William Jones has made 
 great progrefs to fliew, that the mythology 
 of the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans, 
 derived its origin from the fertile ima- 
 ginations of the Hindoos. 
 
 The Edition I now offer to the Public 
 was already prepared for the prefs, and 
 given into the hands of a friend to read, 
 when I was informed, that an Hiftorical 
 Difquifition concerning India, by Dr. 
 Robertfon, would foon be publifhed. The 
 name of a man fo eminent in the literary 
 world, naturally made me anxious to fee 
 this work, and eafily induced me to fufpend 
 the publication of my own. It is needlefs 
 to fay how much I was flattered by the 
 notice Dr. Robertfon has taken of the 
 Sketches concerning Hindostan. 
 But, after due confideration, I thought it beft 
 to fuffer this Edition to go to the prefs exactly 
 
 fuch
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 iucli as it was previous to my perufal of the 
 Difquifition of the elegant Hiftorian, and to 
 referve to myfelf the liberty of making 
 fuch remarks upon it in the Notes, as might 
 appear neceflary. 
 
 An apology is certainly due from me 
 to the Purchafers of the Firft Edition, for 
 not having the new matter, that is intro- 
 duced into the Second, printed feparately, 
 for their accommodation : and I cannot 
 help expreffing my regret that this was 
 rendered impoflible, by the neceffity of 
 intermixing the greateft part of it with 
 what was already publifhed. 
 
 The mod confiderable Additions have 
 been made in the Firft Sketch, on the 
 Hiftory and Religion of Mankind ; in the 
 Seventh, on the Mythology ; and in the Ele- 
 venth, on the Aftronomy of theBrahmans. 
 The Thirteenth and Fourteenth Sketches are 
 entirely new. For the account of the Man- 
 ners
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 ners and Religion of Thibet, which ap- 
 pears in the Thirteenth Sketch, I am in- 
 debted to the kindnefs of Robert Bogle 
 Efquire, who, in the politeft manner, per- 
 mitted me to make what ufe I pleafed of 
 the interefting manufcripts of his brother, 
 the late Mr. James Bogle. I thought it, 
 however, my duty to reftrain my inclina- 
 tion to communicate the whole to the Pub- 
 lic, and have infei-ted only fuch extradts as 
 tended to elucidate the immediate objed 
 of my enquiry. 
 
 Q^ CRAUFURD. 
 
 London, 
 June 12, 1791.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 O F T H E 
 
 FIRST VOLUME. 
 
 SKETCH L 
 
 ^^Eneral RefleElions on the Hijlory and 
 Religion of Mankind. - Page I 
 
 SKETCH IL 
 
 Sources of Information concerning Hln-^ 
 dofan, • - 71 
 
 SKETCH III. 
 
 Sketch of the Hijiory of Hindojlan, ^t 
 
 Vol. L a
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 SKETCH IV. 
 
 Government, Public Buildings, Forts, 
 and Places of the Rejidence of Rajahs, 
 
 Page 1 02 
 
 SKETCH V. 
 
 Cafis, or Tribes^ - - 123 
 
 SKETCH VI. 
 
 Religion of the Hindoos, - 145 
 
 SKETCH VII. 
 
 Mythology of the Hindoos. - 172 
 
 SKETCH VIII. 
 Devotion and Worfiip of the Hindoos, 221 
 
 SKETCH IX. 
 
 Devotees, - - • 22>S
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 SKETCH X. 
 
 Leamifjg and Philofophy of the Brah- 
 ma?! s, - - Page 252 
 
 SKETCH XL 
 
 AJlronomy of the Brahma?is, - 284 
 
 SKETCH
 
 SKETCH I. 
 
 General ReJleEilons on the Hjjlory and 
 Religion of Mankind. 
 
 THERE IS perhaps no fubjed which 
 has given rife to more fpeculative 
 inquiry, than the formation of the earth, 
 and the origin of the human race : ftill the 
 moft ingenious fyftems are, in reality, but 
 philofophical romances ; they have never rifen 
 above probable conjedure, unfubftantiated 
 by proof. In few inftances we can trace 
 the period when even thofe nations were 
 formed, who, in their progrefs or their 
 Vol. I. B decline, 
 
 •
 
 2 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 decline, have filled an important place 
 in hiflory ; while the origin of the greateft 
 part of the inhabitants of the earth is en- 
 tirely hid in obfcurity. Inquiry has in vain 
 attempted to afcertain from whence the in- 
 numerable tribes and powerful nations came, 
 that were found eftablifhed in the weftern 
 hemifphere ; to find out who gave inhabi* 
 tants to the many detached iflands difco- 
 vered in ancient and modern times ; and 
 to account for the difference of features, of 
 complexion, and of hair, exifting between 
 the European, the Hindoo, the Gaffer, and 
 the American. 
 
 We are told that Manco Capac civilized 
 a tribe of wild Peruvians, which afterwards 
 became a numerous and happy nation j 
 that this nation was fubdued, its princes 
 and nobles deilroyed, its people maffacred, 
 with the ferocity of beads of prey, by men 
 who profeffed a religion, the chief charac- 
 
 teriftic
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 3 
 
 terlftlc of whofe doctrines is meeknefs and 
 humanity *. 
 
 Perhaps the origin of all nations, though 
 their fubfequent hiftory may be different, 
 is fimilar to that of the Peruvians. A num^ 
 ber of perfons, by accident or compact, 
 affociate and form a tribe ; others unite with 
 it, or are compelled to fubmit to its in- 
 creafmg power : but how the individuals 
 came into the country, is generally a pro- 
 blem which cannot be folved j and though 
 philofophy may attempt to explain, and in 
 the fruitfulnefs of imagination may find 
 connexions and refemblances, after the moft 
 laborious refearch, we muft flop, and reft 
 fatisfied with this truth, That the Supreme 
 Being, who created the univerfe, peopled 
 otir planet in a manner conformable to his 
 
 * The enormities which were then committed, can- 
 not be attributed to the character of the nation, but to 
 the reigning fanaticifm of the time, and the avarice of 
 particular leaders. 
 
 B 2 wifdora,
 
 4 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 wifdom, though hid from its fhort-fighted 
 inhabitants. 
 
 In endeavouring to trace the rife and 
 progrefs of religion and laws, of arts and 
 fciences, we are likewife frequently flopped 
 in our inquiries, or led into error, by the 
 gloom that in general hides their firft ori- 
 gin. We may fometimes imagine that we 
 have difcovered analogies, and may argue 
 in confequence of them, when perhaps no 
 other analogy exifts, than that which arifes, 
 from thofe innate faculties and principles 
 which nature has implanted in the mind 
 of man, and are common to every people 
 and climate. 
 
 There is no nation, I believe, however 
 barbarous it may be*, nor any individual, 
 whatever for the fake of falfe celebrity he 
 
 may 
 
 * TJicugh fome writers have mentioned nations fo 
 barbarous, as to have no idea of a Supreme Being, or 
 of a future exiftcnce, yet I am inclined to believe that 
 
 this
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 5 
 
 may pretend, who lias not a fenfe, infe- 
 parable from his exiftence, of a fupreme 
 ruling power ; and this internal evidence 
 of the dependence of the human race upon 
 a fuperior Being, is a natural and fufficient 
 bafis to fupport a fyftem of religious wor- 
 fhip. 
 
 this opinion has arifen from a want ox'' fufHcIent ac- 
 quaintance with the nations they fpcak of ; as I have 
 myfelf known many Inftances, in which an opinion, 
 haflily received, has, upon nearer connexion,been foun4 
 to be erroneous. An eminent Author, Dr. Robertfon, 
 has faid, that tribes have been difcovered in America 
 who have no idea of a Supreme Being, and no rites of 
 religious worfhip ; but he has afterwards alfo faid, that 
 " the idea of the Immortality of the foul can be traced 
 " from one extremity of America to the other, and 
 " that the mod uncivilized of its favagc tribes do not 
 " apprehend death to be the extinction of belne." 
 GarcilafTo de la Vega, who was born at Cuzco fliortly 
 after its conquefl, who was of the family of the Incas, 
 but brought up a Chrifllan, fays, that the Peruvians be- 
 lieved in the exiftence of a Supreme Being, and in a 
 flate of rewards and punifhments. The fame is af- 
 ferted by many authors with refpevfl: to the Mexicans. 
 
 B 3 The
 
 6 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 The necefTity of eftablifhed rules for the 
 government of every fociety or clafs of 
 people, is fo evident, that the rudeft tribes 
 muft have foon perceived, that they nei- 
 ther could enjoy internal peace and fafety 
 without them, nor be in a flate to defend 
 themfelves againft attacks from abroad : 
 and hence the origin of laws and govern- 
 ment. 
 
 When tribes or focieties are formed, and 
 their immediate w^ants fupplied, as men 
 live and communicate with each other, the 
 mode of providing for them is improved ; 
 lefs urgent and nicer wants fucceed; 
 thought is exerted ; the faculties of the mind 
 unfold, by being employed ; talents are 
 awakened, by being called for and encou- 
 raged ; and nations, from their real and 
 imaginary wants, and exertions to fupply 
 them, gradually go on to luxury and to 
 refinement. When the inventions that 
 took their rife from neceflity and conve- 
 
 nience.
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 7 
 
 n'lence, have been carried fo far, as to leave 
 genius at leii'ure to gratify itfelf with fub- 
 jedts of curiofity and amufement, it takes a 
 more exalted courfe ; the liberal arts fol- 
 low, and proceed on towards perfection ; 
 until fome of thofe revolutions to which 
 nations are fubjedl, arreft their progrefs, 
 and again bury them in oblivion. Such 
 was their fate in Egypt, in Greece, and in 
 Italy. 
 
 All the religions we are acquainted with, 
 lay claim to a divine origin : all that are 
 found eflablifhed in civilized nations, or- 
 dain the adoration of God, and, with little 
 other variation, than fuch as may depend 
 on climate or local circumftances, inculcate 
 fuch duties of morality, as tend to preferve 
 order in fociety, and procure happinefs to 
 the individual. It might be ejjpedted, that 
 an inftitution in its nature fo facred, and fo 
 evidently neceflary to the peace and welfare 
 of mankind,, would be lefs liable than any 
 B 4 other
 
 8 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 other to perverfion or abufe : but though 
 nothing can more ftrongly evince the do- 
 minion of cur paflions over our reafon, we 
 every where find that religion has, more or 
 lefs, been made fubfervient to their gratifi- 
 cation, and employed to impofe on the 
 credulous multitude. If we fee the Brahman 
 in Hindoftan ufmg the fuperftition he has 
 created, to procure to himfelf and his order 
 certain diftindlions and privileges, we have 
 feen the Chriftian prieft doing the fame : 
 and, however melancholy the reflection may 
 be, the decline of refpedt for that religion, 
 which in itfelf is fo purcj may principally be 
 afcribed to the pride and mifcondu6l of its 
 minifters. 
 
 The profeflbrs of the Chriftian, the Ma- 
 horaedan, and the Hindoo religion*, form 
 
 by 
 
 * There arc many reafons which lead us to fuppofe, 
 that the inhabitants of Pegu, Siam, Thibet, and even 
 
 China
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS, 9 
 
 by far the greateft portion of the Inhabitants 
 of the globe. In comparifon with the num- 
 ber of the followers of any of thefe, every 
 other religious denomination, as far as has 
 been hitherto afcertained, may be looked 
 upon as inconfiderable. Hiftory has re- 
 corded the origin, and marked the progrefs, 
 of the two former; but the rife of the latter, 
 and the changes it may have undergone, 
 are placed at a period fo remote, and we 
 are yet fo defective in materials, that it is 
 impoflible to follow its fteps with the fame 
 precifion, that may be expeded in treating 
 of the others. 
 
 The effeds of the dodrines of the Kho- 
 ran are too well known to require a parti- 
 
 Chlna and Japan, derived their religion from the fame 
 fource with the Hindoos. The analogy between the 
 worfliip of the people of Pegu and Siam, and that of 
 the Hindoos, is fo palpably evident, as not to leave any 
 4oubt of their common origin. See Sketch XIII, &c. 
 
 cular
 
 lo GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 cular dlfcufTion. They were delivered to 
 an unenlightened people, by a daring and 
 artful man, who profanely affedted to have 
 an intercourfe with the Deity, and to be 
 particularly feleded by him to convey his 
 will to mankind. He fupported this fabulous 
 revelation with pretended vifions and mira-^ 
 cles, which, though defpifed by us for their 
 groflhefs and abfurdity, operated with great 
 efFedt on the more ignorant Arabians. He 
 commanded belief, punifhed difobedience, 
 and every faithful Muffulman thought it a 
 pious duty to fubdue thofe by the fword, 
 who refufed to embrace his religion. The 
 leaders of the early Mahomedans, being 
 adlive and intrepid warriors, at the head of a 
 hardy race of men, whom they had infpired 
 with fanatic courage, like a torrent bore 
 down all who attempted to oppofe them, 
 and in an aftoniihingly fhort fpace of time 
 carried their dominion and their faith into 
 every quarter of the then known world. 
 
 Science,
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. ii 
 
 Science, as far as the Mahomedan religion 
 fpread, felt its baneful influence ; and flill 
 wherever we find the banner of the crefcent 
 raifed, we fee it followed by an enflaved, 
 ignorant, and bigotted race of men, whofe 
 hiflory, excepting where it is faintly en- 
 lightened by a few Arabian writers, creeps 
 through one continued gloom of cheriflied 
 barbarifm. 
 
 At a time when the Reman empire was 
 at the fummit of its power, when learning 
 and the arts were admired and encouraged, 
 and the worfhip of the gods in its utmofl 
 fplendor, the Chriftian religion was ufliered 
 into the world in a remote and inconfider- 
 able province, under the mildefl and moft 
 humble afpeft. 
 
 Thofe who were chofen to promulgate 
 it to mankind, were taken from the lowefl 
 clafTes of a people, who had fcarcely excited 
 the attention of their more polifhcd con- 
 querors, by any thing but their turbulence 
 
 and
 
 12 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 and obftinacy. The Apoftles, now fo juflly 
 held in high veneration by us, then un- 
 known and undiftinguiflied, except within 
 the humble fphere of their Chriftian con- 
 verts, were, with their opinions, little no- 
 ticed, and are but barely mentioned by the 
 writers of thofe times *. At lirft, they feem 
 
 * It appears, that the Chrifllans, till the reign of 
 Traiaii, had been fo little noticed, that no law had been 
 eflabliflicd for their trial or punifliment. When Pliny 
 ■was governor of Pontus, he applied to his friend and 
 mailer for inftru6lions how to proceed againfl them. 
 The letter is curious, and the anfwer contains fenti- 
 ments of juftice that do honour to the great man who 
 -wrote it. They are the 97tli and 98th in the colleclioa 
 of Phny's correfpondence. 
 
 Tacitus mentions the Chrillians as having been acr 
 cufed of fetting fire to Rome in the reign of Nero. He 
 fays, " Ergo aboiendo rumorl Nero fubdidit reos, et 
 «* quccfitiflimis poenis afFeeit, quos per flagitia invifos, 
 «* vulgusChriftianos appellabat."— And, after havingre- 
 counted the excruciating tortures by which many of that 
 religion were put to death, he proceeds,— "Ergo quan- 
 « puam adverfus fontcs, et novilhrna exempla meritos, 
 " miferatio oriebatur,tanquam non utilitatepublica, fed 
 " in fievitiam unius abfumerentur." See Tacit. Ami. 
 
 Lib. XV. 
 
 to
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 13 
 
 to have been iinprifoned and puniihed by 
 the magiftrates, as men who, according 
 to the then prevaiUng notions, were blaf- 
 phemers of the gods. Equally expofed to 
 the averfion of their countrymen and their 
 conquerors, no teachers of any new religion 
 ever began their miiTion with lefs apparent 
 probability of fuccefs. But, by their confi- 
 dence in him they worfhipped, and their 
 unremitting perfeverance, they gradually 
 gained admittance among all ranks of men, 
 from the cottage to the palace. Then, 
 enemies to pride and violence, with the 
 language of perfuafion, they taught duties 
 that were agreeable to the foundeft prin- 
 ciples of morality; they recommended 
 obedience, rather than oppofition, to the 
 edablifhed government ; and by thefe mild 
 means, their dodrines, in little more than 
 three hundred years after the death of 
 Chrift, had made fo great a progrefs, that 
 they were embraced by the Roman Em- 
 peror himfelf. The fyftem of heathen 
 
 mythology,
 
 14 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 mythology, adorned with all the elegance 
 in its rites that a refined and luxurious 
 people could invent, and which had fo 
 much contributed to the perfedion of the 
 arts, fell before the gentle but prevailing 
 force of Chriftianity ; and the eagle of 
 Jove, under which the victorious legions 
 had been led, through a feries of ages, to 
 unparalleled renown, was changed for the 
 Crofs, the fymbol of the faith which their 
 fovereign had adopted. 
 
 But befides the internal purity of the 
 new dodtrine, a variety of combined cir- 
 cumftances contributed to its rapid advance- 
 ment ; and I hope it will not be thought 
 out of place curforily to notice them. 
 
 Mr. Gibbon, in his Rijlory of the Decline 
 and Fall of the Roman Empire^ in follow- 
 ing the courfe of human reafoning, and 
 arguing from apparent caufes, has obferved, 
 that the writii:igs of Pagan fceptics had 
 
 prepared
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. i^ 
 
 prepared the way, and the dodrine of the 
 immortality of the foul principally con- 
 tributed, to the fuccefs of the Chriftian 
 religion. 
 
 An examination of the writings of the 
 ancients on the fubjedt of their theo- 
 logy, will fhew that polytheifm was almoft 
 univerfally confidered, by men of learnings 
 as a fable fabricated to amufe the fuperfli- 
 tious multitude, and calculated to maintain 
 the influence and authority of the prieft- 
 hood. We find that many of the moft 
 celebrated philofophers, both before, during, 
 and after the Auguftan age, made it the 
 fubjed: of their animadverfion : and as Mn 
 Gibbon very juftly remarks, the opinions 
 and examples of men eminent for their 
 rank and learning, muft have confiderably 
 influenced the opinions of the people. Few 
 men either take the pains, or are pofTefTed 
 of fuflicient knowledge, fairly to examine 
 the religion in which they were born ; they 
 
 3 in
 
 i6 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 in general follow it, and believe it prefer- 
 able to any other, from habit and education. 
 But when it was known, that thofe who 
 held the highefl: ranks in the ftate, and 
 who, in confequence thereof, even officiated 
 in the priefthood, in their hearts defpifed 
 thofe ceremonies which they performed with 
 apparent folemnity; and made devotion, 
 and the devout, the objedls of their wit and 
 ridicule ; others, from vanity, or deference 
 to their judgment, imitated their example; 
 rcfped for religion was gradually under- 
 mined ; and the preji^ice of education 
 being removed, the mind, left without any 
 fixed fyftem, lay open to receive new opi- 
 nions, and to embrace new dodrines. 
 
 In tracing the progrefs of a more rational 
 and pure idea of the Supreme Ruler of the 
 univerfe, than was entertained from the 
 earlieft times by the 7?2auj^ we fhall find, 
 that the East Ihed the firft light under 
 -whofe influence the variety of fyftems that 
 
 afterwards
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 17 
 
 afterwards prevailed, grew up. Pherecl- 
 des feems to have been the firfl who in- 
 troduced into Greece a regular notion of 
 a ftate of rewards and punifhments, in the 
 dodtrine of the metempfychofis, which, 
 many ages previous to his time, prevail- 
 ed, not only in Egypt, but among feveral 
 more Eaftern nations. 
 
 Pythagoras*, the difciple of PherecIdeSj 
 travelled into Egypt and Chaldea, and, on 
 his return from Babylon, extended and 
 improved the doctrines of his predeceflbr. 
 It is a doubt among ancient writers, whe- 
 
 * Diogenes Laertius,Porphyry,and Jamblichus, who 
 have written his life, fpeakonlyof his travels in Chaldea, 
 Egypt, Greece, and Italy ; but from the teflimony of 
 other authors it appears more than probable, that he 
 extended his travels to India, and that his philofophical 
 opinions, and efpecially his do£lrine of the tranfmigra- 
 tion of fouls, were derived from the inftrudlions of the 
 Brachmanes. See Eufebii Prep. Evang. cap. 10.4. 
 Alex. Polyhift. Apul. S. Clem, of Alexandria. 
 
 Vol. I. G ther
 
 i8 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 ther he left any works behind him, or not ; 
 but by what may be colledled from the 
 writings of his difciples, it appears that he 
 taught the exigence of a Supreme Being, 
 by whom the univerfe was created, and by 
 whofe providence it is preferved : that the 
 fouls of mankind are emanations of that 
 Being''^: that, on their feparation from the 
 body, they go to places deftined for their 
 reception ; the fouls of the virtuous, after 
 having been purified from every propen- 
 fity to the things of this world, being 
 re-admitted into the divine fource from 
 whence they flowed ; and the fouls of the 
 wicked fent back to animate other bodies 
 of men or beafts, according to the degree 
 and nature of their vices, until, in a courfe 
 perhaps of many tranfmigrations, they have 
 expiated their crimes. Abftinence from 
 animal food was a natural confequence of 
 thefe dodrines ; but the Pythagoreans re- 
 
 • See Hindoo Phllofophy, Sketch X. 
 
 frained
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 19 
 
 frained likewife from every fort of intoxicat- 
 ing liquor, and from eating beans, for which 
 they feem to have entertained a fuperftitious 
 refped:, though we are unacquainted with 
 the caufe. Befides theology, Pythagoras is 
 faid to have inftruded his fcholars in arithme- 
 tic, mathematics, natural hiftory, and mufic. 
 His fchool formed a kind of community, 
 into which he admitted the women and 
 children of his followers. He exacted from 
 his difciples a voluntary poverty ; or rather 
 that they fhould diveft themfelves of pro- 
 perty individually, and live upon one com- 
 mon ftock. He impofed fecrecy j and, in 
 order to teach them patience and perfeve- 
 rance, they were prohibited from fpeaking 
 for a greater or lefs fpace of time, as he 
 thought they ftood in need of trial and ex- 
 ertion*. They were divided into two 
 
 clafles. 
 
 * Some of the ancients, in fpeaking of the education 
 
 given to the children of the Brachjmanes, fay,' that wMle 
 
 C a th«
 
 20 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 clafTes. Thofe who had made a certain 
 progrefs, were admitted about his perfon, 
 and with them he ufed plain and natural 
 language ; but to the reft, who were fepa- 
 rated from him by a curtain, he fpoke in 
 metaphors and fymbols. His doctrines 
 made a conliderable progrefs in Greece and 
 Italy, and probably gave birth to many of 
 the more rational fyftems of philofophy 
 that fucceeded them. 
 
 Socrates, who was perhaps the wifeft 
 of all the ancient philofophers, confined his 
 dodrines chiefly to maxims of morality. 
 He endeavoured to bring men back from 
 the wild and fpeculative notions which 
 
 the mafters were teaching, the fcholars liftened with 
 filent attention ; that they were not only forbidden to 
 fpeak, but even to cough or fpit -, that all the fcholars eat 
 in common ; that their meals were preceded by bathings 
 andpurifications; and that before the firfl: meal they were 
 obliged to render an account how the morning had been 
 employed. VideStrabo, 15. Apul. Fioridor. i. 
 
 charac-
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 2i 
 
 charadlerifed the learning of his country- 
 men at that time, and to confine the ftudies 
 of his difciples to their own breafts, in which 
 benevolence and virtue could not fail of 
 producing happinefs. 
 
 His opinions, as handed down to us by 
 thofe who conftantly attended him, declare 
 his belief in the unity of God, and in the 
 immortality of the foul. He taught, that 
 though God has not revealed to us, in 
 what manner he exifts, his power, his 
 wifdom, and never-ceafmg providence, are 
 exhibited in all we fee : that the order and 
 harmony which reign throughout the uni- 
 verfe announce a Supreme Being, by which 
 every thing is conduced and preferved : 
 that the religion of every country ordains 
 his worfhip, let it be in ever fo varied a 
 manner ; and that it is the duty of all 
 to refpe^l their national religion, except 
 in fuch points as may be contrary to the 
 laws of nature, or may divert the attention 
 G 3 from
 
 22 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 from God to other objeds. He feems to 
 have beUeved that the foul exifted before 
 the body * ; and that death reUeves it from 
 thofe feeming contrarieties to which it is 
 fubje6t, by its union with our material 
 part. He taught, that the fouls of the vir- 
 tuous return to their former ftate of hap- 
 pinefs, while thofe of the wicked are doom- 
 ed to punifhments proportionate to their 
 crimes j that happinefs, both in this and 
 in a future ftate of exiftence, depends on 
 the practice of virtue, and that the bafis 
 of virtue is juftice. He comprifed his idea 
 of virtue in this maxim : " Adore God, 
 *' honor your parents, and do good to 
 " all men. Such is the law of nature and 
 ** reafon." In fociety, he thought that 
 every private confideration ought to yield 
 
 * This idea fcems evidently to have been borrowed 
 from Pythagoras, who fuppofed the fouls of men to 
 have pre-exifted in the divine foul, into which they at 
 laft return. 
 
 to
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 23 
 
 to what could promote the good and fafety 
 of the community to which we belong ; 
 and notwithftanding the mildnefs of his 
 difpofition, his love of tranquillity, and 
 general good-will to mankind, he entered 
 into the buftle of arms, and ferved during 
 three years in the Lacedsemonian war, 
 with diftinguifhed reputation. Although 
 he thought it not only weaknefs, but even 
 impiety, to be afraid of death, he con- 
 demned fuicide, as a proof of cowardice 
 rather than of courage, and as a defertion 
 of the poft afligned to us by Providence. He 
 ftrongly recommended perfeverance, fedate- 
 ncfs, and modefty ; and of the laft of 
 thefe virtues he was himfelf a diftin- 
 guiflied example, often declaring, that the 
 utmoft extent of his refearches had only 
 taught him, " that he knew nothing." He 
 oppofed the corruption of the magiftrates, 
 and the fuperftition and hypocrify of the 
 priefthood ; and at laft fell a vidim to their 
 machinations, for pradifmg virtues which 
 G 4 have
 
 24 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 have rendered his name facred to pof-f 
 terity." 
 
 Plato, a difclple of Socrates, travelled 
 into Egypt and Italy *, and upon his return 
 eftablifhed his fchool at the Academy. 
 Like Socrates, he believed in the unity of 
 the Supreme Being, without beginning or 
 end ; but aflerted, at the fame time, the 
 eternity of matter. He taught, that the 
 elements being mixed together in chaos, 
 were, by the will of God, feparated, and re- 
 duced into order, and that thus the world 
 was formed : that God infufed into matter 
 a portion of his divine fpirit f , which ani- 
 mates and moves it ; and that he committed 
 the care of this world, and the creation of 
 
 * It appears that Plato once intended to vifit India. 
 ■ — Ad Indos et Afagos intendijfet aniniuniy n'lft eum hella tuix 
 vetwjfent Aftatica, Apul. de dogm. Plat. 
 
 ■j- This is conformable to the opinions of the learned 
 Hindoos. See Sketch X. 
 
 mankind,
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 25 
 
 mankind, to beings who are conftantly 
 fubjed to his will. That mankind have two 
 fouls, of feparate and different natures, the 
 one corruptible, the other immortal : That 
 the latter is a portion of the divine fpirit, 
 refides in the brain, and is the fource of 
 reafon : that the former, the mortal foul, 
 is divided into two parts, one of which, 
 refiding in the heart, produces paflions and 
 defires ; the other, between the diaphragm 
 and navel, governs the animal fundions : 
 That the mortal foul ceafes to exift with the 
 life of the body, but that the divine foul, no 
 longer clogged by its union with matter, 
 continues its exiftence, either in a ftate of 
 happinefs or punlfhment : That the fouls 
 of the virtuous — of thofe' whofe adions are 
 guided by their reafon — return after death 
 into the fource from whence they flowed*, 
 while the fouls of thofe who fubmitted to 
 
 * In this he likewifc agrees with the doctrines of 
 the Hindoos. 
 
 the
 
 25 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 the government of the paflions, after being 
 for a certain time confined to a place deflin- 
 ed for their reception, are fent back to earth, 
 to animate other bodies. 
 
 The above idea of a future flate appears 
 to be the moft prevalent in the v^orks of 
 this philofopher, and to form what may be 
 called Xmfyjlem : But at the fame time it 
 muft be confefTed, that he broaches fo many 
 notions of a different or contrary nature, 
 that we are frequently left at large in re- 
 gard to his real fentiments. A paflion for 
 brilliant and novel doctrines, and too great a 
 defire to acquire fame, even at the expence 
 of truth, feem to have been the caufe of 
 this evident inconfiflency in fo great and 
 wife a man *. 
 
 Aristotle, 
 
 * The learned Monfieur Freret in fpeaking of Plato 
 obfcrves : 
 
 II dit fi fouvent, et a fi pcu de diftance, le pour et le 
 centre lorfqu'il parle de I'etat de Tame apres cette vie, 
 
 que
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 27 
 
 Aristotle, who ftudied at the Aca- 
 demy, has been perhaps unjuftly accufed 
 of ingratitude to Plato. He undoubtedly 
 ufed the privilege of every philofopher, in 
 advancing his own opinions, and differing 
 from thofe of others, but yet he always 
 admired the talents, and did juftice to the 
 merits of Plato. He even pronounced an 
 oration in his praife, and eredled an altar 
 to his memory. 
 
 que ceux qui regardent les fcntimens de cc philofophe 
 avec refpect, ne peuvent s'empecher d'etre cheques et 
 feandalifes. Tantot il eft de I'opinion de la metempfy- 
 cofe, tantot de celle des enfers, et tantot de toutes les 
 deux il en compofe une troifieme. Ailleurs il avoit im- 
 agine une maniere de faire revivre les hommes, qui n*a 
 iiul rapport avec aucun autre de fes fyftemes. Dans 
 un endroit il condamne les fcelerats a refter dans le Tar- 
 tare pendant toute I'eternite, dans un autre il les en tire 
 au bout cle mille ans, pour les faire pafler dans d'autres 
 corps. En un mot, tout eft traite chez lui d'une maniere 
 problematique, incertaine, peu decidee, et qui laifle a 
 fes le6teurs un jufte fujet de doubter, qu'il ait ete lui- 
 meme perfuade de la verite de ce qu'il avan^oit. 
 
 Aridotle
 
 28 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Arlftotle opened his fchool at the Ly- 
 ceum ; and, from his manner of teaching, 
 his difciples became known by the name 
 of Peripatetics. He has by fome been 
 charged with atheifm, but I am at a lofs 
 upon what grounds, as a firm belief in the 
 exiftence of a Supreme Being is clearly 
 aflerted by him, and not any where con- 
 tradicted *. 
 
 He taught, that the univerfe, and mo- 
 tion, are eternal, having for ever exifted, 
 and being without end j and that although 
 this world may have undergone, and be ftill 
 fubje6t to convulfions, yet motion, being 
 
 * Timec, Platon, et Ariftote, ont etabli formellement 
 I'unite d'un DIeu : et ce n'eft pas en paflant, c'efl dans 
 des ouvrages fuivis, et dans Fexpofition de leurs fyflemes 
 fondes fur ce dogmc. Ariftote n'a pas hefite a recon- 
 noitre Dieu comme premiere caufe du mouvement, et 
 Platon comme I'unique ordonnateurde I'univers. 
 
 Voyage du jeune An achat fis en Grece. 
 
 regular
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 29 
 
 regular in its operation, brings back the 
 elements into their proper relative fitua- 
 tions, and preferves the whole : that even 
 thefe convulfions have their fource in na- 
 ture ; that the idea of a Chaos ^ or the ex- 
 iftence of the elements without form or 
 order, is contrary to her laws, which we 
 every where fee eftablifhed, and which, 
 conftantly guiding the principle of motion, 
 muft from eternity have produced, and to 
 eternity preferve, the prefent harmony of 
 the univerfe : that in every thing we are 
 able to difcover a train of motive prin- 
 ciples, an uninterrupted chain of caufes 
 and effects ; and that as nothing can hap- 
 pen without a caufe, the word chance is an 
 unmeaning exprefTion, employed in fpeak- 
 ing of effe<fts, of whofe caufes we are ig- 
 norant*; that in following this chain we 
 are led up to the primitive caufe, the Su- 
 preme Being, the univerfal Soul, who, as 
 
 See Hindoo Philofophy, Sketch X. 
 
 the
 
 30 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 the will moves the body, moves the whole 
 fyftem of the univerfe : That God, there- 
 fore, is the author of nature's laws. — He 
 fuppofed the fouls of mankind to be por- 
 tions or emanations of the divine fpirit, 
 which at death quit the body, and, like a 
 drop of water falling into the ocean, are 
 abforbed in the divinity. Though he thus 
 admitted the immortality of human fouls, 
 yet, as he did not fuppofe them to exlft in- 
 dividually, he confequently denied a future 
 ftate of rewards and punifhments. " Of 
 *' all things," fays he, " the moft terrible 
 " is death, after which we have neither to 
 " hope for good, nor to dread eviL'* 
 
 His maxims of morality were of the 
 pureft kind. He taught, that the great end 
 of philofophy is to engage men to do that 
 by choice, which the legiflature would ob- 
 tain from them by fear : That we ihould 
 honour our parents, love our children, and 
 do good to all men : That focieties, or 
 5 ftates,
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 31 
 
 ftates, are an aggregation of individual fa- 
 milies, bound together by compads and 
 laws for their mutual interefts ; and that it 
 is the duty of every member of fociety, 
 * not only to be obedient to thofe laws, but 
 to negled no opportunity of contributing 
 to the general welfare of the fociety or flate 
 to which he belongs. 
 
 After the death of Ariftotle, the Peripa- 
 tetics feem to have been divided in their 
 opinions concerning the foul, fome con- 
 tinuing to aflert that it was a part of the 
 divine and eternal Spirit ; others contend- 
 ing, that, being united with the body, their 
 exiftence mutually depended upon one 
 another, and that both were mortal. 
 
 Zeno of Cyprus, the founder of the 
 Stoic fe<a, had firft ftudied under Crates the 
 Cynic, from whom he perhaps imbibed 
 thofe notions of aufterity which afterwards 
 charaderifed his do(^rines. 
 
 He
 
 32 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 He believed in the unity of the Supreme 
 Being, and that the names of the other 
 deities of his countrymen were only fym- 
 bols of his different attributes. 
 
 He taught, that throughout nature there 
 are two eternal qualities ; the one adive, 
 the other paflive : That the former is a pure 
 and fubtle asther, the divine fpirit ; and that 
 the latter is in itfelf entirely inert, until 
 united with the adive principle : That the 
 divine fpirit, ading upon matter, pro- 
 duced fire, air, water, and earth ; or fepa- 
 rated the elements from each other : That 
 it cannot however be faid, that God cre- 
 ated the world by a voluntary determina- 
 tion, but by the efFed; of eftablifhed princi- 
 ples, which have ever exifted and will for 
 ever continue : Yet as the divine fpirit is 
 the efficient principle, the world could 
 neither have been formed nor preferved 
 without him, all nature being moved and 
 conduded by him, while nothing can move 
 
 or
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 33 
 
 or afFe<^ God : That matter may be di- 
 vided, meafured, calculated, and formed 
 into innumerable fliapes ; but the divine 
 fpirit is indivifible, infinite, unchangeable, 
 and omniprefent. 
 
 He believed that the univerfe, compre- 
 hending matter and fpace, is without 
 bounds ; but that the world is confined to 
 certain limits, and fiifpended in infinite 
 fpace : That the feeds of all things exifted 
 in the primitive elements, and that by- 
 means of the efficient principle they were 
 brought forward and animated : That man- 
 kind come into the world without any 
 innate ideas, the mind being like a fmooth 
 furface, upon which the objects of nature 
 are gradually engraven by means of the 
 fenfes : That the foul of man being a por- 
 tion of the Umverfal Soul^ returns, after 
 death, to its firft fource, where it will re- 
 main until the deftrudion of the world, 
 a period at which the elements, being once 
 
 Vol. I. D more
 
 34 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 more confounded, will again be reftored to 
 their prefent ftate of order and harmony. 
 
 Zeno taught, that virtue alone is the 
 fource of happinefs, and that vice, not- 
 withftanding the temporary pleafures that 
 it may afford, is the certain caufe of pain, 
 anxiety, and wretchednefs : That as mea 
 have it in their power to be virtuous, hap- 
 pinefs may be acquired by all ; and that 
 thofe who by vice and intemperance be- 
 come miferable, have no right to complain 
 of their fufferings : That a virtuous man 
 adores the Supreme Being, reftrains his 
 pafiions, and enjoys the goods of this world, 
 as if nothing belonged particularly to him- 
 fdlf J he confiders all mankind with the 
 fame degree of affed:ion, and having no 
 flrong partialities to individuals, he com- 
 forts indifcriminately thofe who are afflidled, 
 receives fuch as want an afylum, and feeds 
 thofe who hunger; all this he does un- 
 difturbcd by ftrong emotion ; he beholds 
 
 the
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 35 
 
 the divine will in all things, and, amidft 
 the tumults of this world, preferves a mind 
 ferene and unruffled ! neither reproach nor 
 praife afFe<ft him, nor doth he indulge re- 
 lentment on account of injuries; in re- 
 tirement, and in the obfcurity of the night, 
 he examines the adlions of the day, avows 
 his faults, and endeavours to amend them; 
 and when he finds the hour of dilFolution 
 approaching, he is not afraid of death, but 
 either awaits, or voluntarily embraces it. 
 
 Thefe feem to have been the principal 
 outlines of the dodrines of Zeno ; although 
 many of the Stoics carried the idea of the 
 neceffity of mortification and abftinence to 
 a much greater length, than appears to have 
 been the intention of their founder, 
 
 Epicurus, whofe notions were fo oppofite 
 
 to thofe of the Stoic philolbphers, attempted 
 
 to account for the various operations in 
 
 nature, without having recourfe to a Su- 
 
 D 2 preme
 
 %6 GENERAL R:EFLECTI0NS. 
 
 preme Being. " There is no occafion," 
 fays he, " to afcribe to the gods what may 
 " be explained by philofophy." But in 
 this bold aflertion he betrays only pre- 
 fumption and vanity ; as in the place of 
 a rational fyftem, allowing the agency of 
 the divine will, he has fubftituted an hy- 
 pothefis too fanciful and imaginary to fup- 
 port any clear and decided opinion. 
 
 He obferves that, before we can form a 
 fit idea of a fubftance that is diftinguifhed 
 by any particular fliape, or that pofTefles 
 any particular qualities, we muft firft have 
 an idea of its primitive conftituent parts. 
 He therefore fuppofes, as the bafis upon 
 which his whole fyilem refts. That every 
 thing is compofed of atoms, difiering in 
 fliape, but each indivifible, and poffeffing 
 a natural tendency to unite, the exertion of 
 which is the primary caufe of motion in 
 the whole fyftem of nature, and of the firft 
 formation of all bodies. He fays, that 
 
 matter
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 37 
 
 matter enables us to conceive an idea of 
 certain portions of fpacc, as different events 
 do, of time ; but it is impoffible to imagine 
 fpace to be bounded by any limits, or time 
 to have had a beginning : That the uni- 
 verfe muft from eternity have been the 
 fame in its nature, its extent and quantity : 
 That the vs^orld — our fyftem — has its li- 
 mits, and is fufpended in infinite fpace, in 
 which myriads of other worlds may like- 
 wife exift : That when we confine our 
 ideas to the world we inhabit, we may form 
 diftind: notions of its duration, and fuppofe 
 it to have a beginning and an end ; but if 
 we extend them to the univerfe, and to 
 eternity, we find no refting-place, and they 
 mufl neceffarily be loft and confounded in 
 the contemplation : That nothing can be 
 properly faid to be annihilated, for though 
 things may be difTolved from their parti- 
 cular forms, and their component parts 
 feparated, their atoms remain what th^y 
 D 3 were
 
 38 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 were from eternity, their quantity being 
 liable neither to increafe nor diminiuion. 
 
 He fuppofes the foul of man to be like- 
 wife compofed of atoms indefcribably fmall, 
 igneous, and volatile : That the principal 
 feat of it is in the heart, and that in it ori- 
 ginate pleafure, pain, fear, and anger : That 
 it is moved to adtion by the objeds con- 
 veyed to it by the fenfes, its chief affec- 
 tions being pain and pleafure, whence 
 arife averfion and defire : That the foul be- 
 ing engendered with the body, grows up and 
 declines with it ; that their mutual facul- 
 ties depend upon their union ; and upon 
 their feparation, aQion being at an end, 
 thought and memory ceafe. 
 
 A total difbelief in a flate of future re- 
 wards and punifhments, was the natural 
 confequence of thcfe dogmas. Epicurus 
 thought the notions entertained in this re- 
 
 fpea
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 39 
 
 fpe^t by his countrymen, of Tartarus, of 
 Elyfian fields, and of a future judge of 
 human adlions, very unworthy of philo- 
 fophy, and unneceffary to our happinefs. 
 He taught, that the ftudy of nature, and of 
 her laws, will produce tranquillity and 
 peace, undifturbed by vain and imaginary 
 terrors : That we muft not however expert 
 to be perfedly happy ; zve arc 7ne?i^ and 
 not godsy and fhould be contented with 
 that degree of happinefs our imperfe(5l 
 being will admit of: that nature doth not 
 require to be correded, but to be guided : 
 that happinefs and pleafure are fynony- 
 mous ; and that the pradice of virtue af- 
 fords the higheft and mcft permanent 
 happinefs, which alone pofTeiTes this pe- 
 culiar property, that it may be conftantly 
 enjoyed : that the good of fociety, and 
 the love of mankind in general, ought to 
 diredt all our adions: that he who pra<Stifes 
 any one virtue to excefs, neglecting his 
 other duties, cannot be properly called 
 D 4 virtu-
 
 40 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 virtuous ; — ^our adions mufl: be In har- 
 mony ; the mufician does not content him- 
 felf with tuning one particular ftring, all 
 the tones muil be in concord : that we may 
 freely indulge thofe pleafures, that are not 
 likely to produce any ill; and that a tem- 
 porary ill mufl: be fuffered, in order to 
 cnlure a greater and more lafi:ing pleafure ; 
 but that it is the excefs of weaknefs to yield 
 to the temptation of any gratification, which 
 may leave a greater or more permanent 
 evil behind : That, to preferve to ourfelves 
 the power of enjoying fenfual pleafures, we 
 ought to be temperate in the ufe of them : 
 That among civilized nations, men, adlu- 
 ated by the public good, ought to be de- 
 cent in their conduQ ; and fcrupulouily 
 obferve fucli rules and cufloms as are efta- 
 bliflied to preferve order and harmony in 
 the community to which they belong. 
 
 The doctrines of Epicurus were fo po- 
 pular, that the Athenians ereded a fliatue ta 
 
 his
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 41 
 
 his memory ; they made a very rapid pro- 
 grefs, and were foon carried into Italy. 
 They were greatly admired by the Romans, 
 and fuited perhaps the feelings of a refined 
 and luxurious people better than thofe of 
 Zeno. Lucretius, Celfus, Pliny the elder, 
 Lucan, and many other diftinguifhed 
 Roman names, may be reckoned in the lift 
 of Epicureans ; and the friend of Cicero, 
 Pomponiiis Attlcus, was a difciple of the 
 Epicurean Zeno of Sidon. 
 
 Such are the chief features of thofe 
 doctrines in philofophy which from the 
 bofom of Athens fpread themfelves over 
 Greece and Italy, and at laft found their 
 way into the remoteft parts of the Roman 
 empire. Though feveral Greeks had writ- 
 ten in favour of atheifm, yet it feems to 
 have made but little progrefs : even moft 
 of the Epicureans fo far modified the origi- 
 nal tenets of the fed; as to acknowledge the 
 exiftence of a Supreme Being ; and upon 
 
 the
 
 42 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 the whole we may venture to conclude, 
 that, towards the time of the appearance of 
 Chrift, men of learning, in general, were 
 deijls^ and that only the people, and the 
 ignorant, retained any refpedt for the an- 
 cient theology. 
 
 But however unanimous they may have 
 been in their belief of the exiftence and 
 unity of one Supreme Being, they were 
 exceedingly divided in their fentiments con- 
 cerning the nature and immortality of the 
 foul *. Many of the moft eminent philo- 
 fophers treated the idea of a future ftate as 
 
 a fable, 
 
 * Plato dixit animam efTentiam fe moventem ; Xe- 
 nocrates numerum fe moventem •, Ariftoteles, intellec- 
 tum feu motum perpetuum ; Pythagoras et Philolaus, 
 harmoniam; Polfidonius, ideam; Afclepiades, quinque 
 fenfuum exercitium fibi confonum ; Hippocrates, 
 fpiritum tenucm per omne corpus ditTufum ; Heraclitus 
 Ponticus, lucem ; Heraclitus Phyficus, fcintillam flcl- 
 laris eflentix j Zenon, concrctum corpori fpiritum ; 
 Democritus, fpiritum infcrtum atomis \ Critolaus Pcri- 
 pateticusj conftare earn dc quinta cfientiaj Hlpparchus, 
 J ignem \
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 43 
 
 a fable, and thofe who profefled to believe 
 in it, difagreed fo widely among them- 
 felves, that no clear and decided opinion 
 can be colleded from their works. We 
 find it a common maxim, that thofe could 
 not fuffer, who did not exifl ; and, taking 
 confolation from an idea, from which nature 
 recoils, they compared death to a profound 
 ileep, undifturbed by dreams, when we are 
 unconfcious of exiftence. Innumerable in- 
 ftances might be quoted, of the prevalence 
 of thefe doubts among the philoibphers 
 that flourifhed fhortly before, and foon 
 after, the appearance of the chriftian doc- 
 trines. — A few, however, may fuffice. 
 
 When Csefar pleaded for fome of thofe 
 that were engaged in the confpiracy of 
 
 ignem ; Anaximenes, aera j Empedocles et Critias, 
 fanguinem 5 Parmenides, ex terra et igne j Xeno- 
 phanes, ex terra et aqua j Epicurus, fpeciem ex igne 
 Be aerc & fpiritu mixtam. 
 
 Macrobius in Scm. Scip. lib. i. cap. 14. 
 
 Catiline,
 
 44 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Catiline, he faid, " that death was not, in 
 " fadt, any punifhment, as it put an end to 
 " thought and pain." 
 
 Even Cicero, after having fliewn tlie 
 errors and uncertainty of thofc who had 
 treated of a future flate, fays, in an cpiflle 
 to Torquatus, that " death puts an end to 
 ** thought and fentiment f in one to Te- 
 rentius, " that death is the end of every 
 " thing:" in another place, that " a firm and 
 *' elevated mind is free from care and un- 
 " eahnefs, and defpifes death, which only 
 " places us in the ftate in which we lay be- 
 " fore we were born;" and publicly before 
 the judges and people he ailerted, that, " by 
 ** death, we lofe all fenfe of pain*." 
 
 I£pi6tetus 
 
 * Nam nunc luidem, quid tandem illi mali mors 
 nttulit ? Nifi forte ineptiis ct fabulis ducimur, ut ex- 
 iftimemus ilium apud inferos impiorum fupplicia per- 
 ferre, ac plurcs illic ofFcndifie inimicos, quam hie 
 rcliquifle : a focrus, ab uxorum, a fvatris, a liberu:n 
 poenis, aclum efTe prxcip'tcm in Icclcratcrura fedcn\ 
 
 atquc
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 45 
 
 Epictetus was of opinion, that after death 
 we fhall return to the fource from whence 
 we came, and be united with our primitive 
 elements. 
 
 Strabo, in fpeaking of the Brachmanes, 
 fays, " Texere etiam fabulas quafdam, 
 " quemadmodum Plato, de immortalitate 
 " animcE, et de judiciis quGe apud inferos 
 " fiunt, et alia hujufmodi non pauca." 
 Strabo, lib, xv. 
 
 Seneca writes in a letter to Marcia: 
 " Cogita nullis defundcs malls afEci illam 
 " quse nobis inferos faciunt terribiles, 
 " fabulam effe, nullas imminere mortuis 
 " tenebras nee carcerem, nee flumina fla- 
 
 atque regionem, quse fi falfa funt, id quod omnes intcU 
 ligunt^ quid ei tandem aliud mors eripuit, prceter fen- 
 fum doloris. Cicero pro Cluent. 
 
 Yet Cicero fays, in another place, *' Nattirotn ipfam de- 
 immcrtalitate animorum agere, quod Ji onmiurii confenfus 
 naturtz vox ejl^ ^c." Cic. Tufc. qu. i. 
 
 " grantia
 
 46 GENERAL REFLECTIONS- 
 
 " grantia igne, nee oblivionis amnem, nee 
 " tribunalia et reos. Luferunt ifta poetce, 
 " et vanis nos agltavere terroribus. Mors 
 " omnium dolorum et folutio eft et fmis, 
 " ultra quam mala noftra non exeunt, quse 
 " nos in illam tranquillitatem, in qua ante- 
 " quam nafceremur jacuimus reponit. Si 
 " mortuorum aliquis miferetur cur et non 
 " natorum mifereatur." Seneca, de Con/oL 
 ad Alarciam, cap. 19. 
 
 The fame philofopher in one of his tra- 
 gedies, publicly exhibited before the people, 
 avows the fame opinion*. 
 
 * Verum eft? an timidos fabula declpit? 
 L^mbras corporibus vivere conditis ? 
 An toti morimur, nullaque pars manet noftri ? 
 S. Poft mortem nihil eft, ipfaque mors nihil : 
 Velocis fpatii meta noviffima. 
 Spcm ponant avidi, foliciti metum 
 Qu^aeris quo jaceas poft obitum loco ? 
 Ouo non nata jacent. «■ 
 Mors individua ell, noxia corpori 
 Nee p^rceas anima:. Troad. AB IL Chorus. 
 
 The
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 47 
 
 The fentiments of Pliny are very plainly 
 exprefled in the following paflage : " Om- 
 " nibus a fuprema die eadem, quse ante 
 " primum, nee magis a morte fenfus ullus, 
 " aut corporis, aut animae, quam ante 
 " natalem. Eadem enim vanitas in fu- 
 " turum etlam fe propagat, et in mortis 
 " quoque tempora ipfa fibi vitam mentitur, 
 " alias immortalitatem animas, alias tranf- 
 " figurationem, alias fenfum inferis dando, 
 " & manes colendo : — ceu vera ullo modo 
 " fpirandi ratio homini a ceteris animalibus 
 " diftet." Plin. Hiji. lib, 7. cap, 56. 
 
 Many other inftances might be adduced, 
 to prove that the belief of the mortality of 
 the foul was very prevalent ; and that the 
 notions of thofe who profefTed a contrary 
 opinion were often contradictory and con- 
 fufed, and always without rational proof. 
 Yet every one who reflected, muft have 
 been confcious of an intelligent principle 
 within him, anxious to explore this im- 
 portant
 
 43 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 portant but impenetrable fecret, and la 
 fome meafure intuitively convinced of a 
 fuperiority to its prefent ftate, and of an eX- 
 iftcnce in another. But though the con- 
 fcioufnefs of fuch a principle, and the va- 
 riety of reafons it could difcover to prove 
 its immortality, might lead him to believe 
 it; other arguments muft have offered doubt 
 —he faw the mortal frame conftantly ex- 
 pofed to danger, natural diffblution gra- 
 dually approaching, and even the faculties 
 of the mind partaking of the decay of the 
 l^ody — he faw the friend that he cherifli- 
 ed, or the obje£l that he loved, confumed 
 to allies, or expofed to more humiliating 
 corruption. — Did they exift who were 
 gone ? — Was he yet to fee them ? — Was 
 he to exift himfelf ? — Or was the fcene to 
 be eternally clofed, and all our affedions, 
 and thofc mental powers on which we 
 vainly pride ourfelves, to be diffolved In 
 nothing ? A variety of anxious thoughts 
 muft have prcft'ed upon tlic mind j and, In 
 
 the
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 49 
 
 the impatience of agonizing doubt, it was 
 perhaps difpofed to arraign the juftice of the 
 Supreme Being, for having given faculties 
 to inquire into that awful queflion, yet in- 
 fufficient to refolve it; 
 
 In the midft of this folicitude, Chrif- 
 tianity was announced, declaring the veil 
 which covered that myftery to be re- 
 moved, and, out of compafTion to the 
 human race, the certainty of a future ftate 
 to be revealed by God himfelf. The 
 pleafing profpe£t was held out to all clafles 
 of men indifferently ; no diftindion was 
 made between the emperor and the flave j 
 happinefs and mifery depended on the firm- 
 nefs of belief in the dodrines, and the 
 pradiceof theinjundlions, of Chrift, the mo- 
 rality of which, though confonant to, per- 
 haps furpaffed in purity, the precepts of 
 thofe wife and virtuous philofophers who 
 had already inftruded mankind. 
 
 Not lefs flattering than the profped of the 
 
 immortality of the foul, was that of the re- 
 
 E furrediou
 
 JO GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 lurredion of the body; and this dodrine 
 may Ukewife have confiderably aflifted the 
 Tapid advancement of Chnftlanity''^. It 
 ■was better adapted to the capacities of the 
 illiterate, than the abftrufe notions of the 
 heathen philofophers, and was acceptable 
 to the feelings of all. Such is our dread 
 of dilTolution, that even thofe who were not 
 decidedly convinced of the certainty, were 
 flattered with the idea, of a future ftate,. 
 where they were again to appear in the form, 
 they then enjoyed, and fee and converfe 
 with thofe they loved, in the fliape they had 
 already known them* 
 
 The greatefl: difficulty in the way of con- 
 verfion, feems to have been the myftery by 
 
 * Though die belief of the refurre£lion of the 
 body was profefleJ by all the Jews, except the Saddu- 
 cecs, it does not feem to have been entertained by 
 any of the Greeks and Romans. — Many of the Jews, 
 after their return from Chaldca, believed in the 
 Metcmpfychofis. 
 
 whicli
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 51 
 
 which God had conveyed his will to man, 
 which being above human comprehen- 
 fion, could not be explained, and was 
 therefore either to be rejected or believed; 
 but, in rejeding this myftery, men muft 
 alfo have rejeded the authority on which 
 their expe(f^ation of a future ftate was 
 founded. 
 
 The early Chriftians fupported their faith 
 with great purity of manners; which, with 
 the examples of the martyrs, muft have 
 greatly contributed to obtain belief, and 
 to fupply the place of argument. The 
 mind is naturally difpofed to compalTion- 
 ate thofe who fufFer ; their words and adions 
 have more than ordinary weight. The 
 martyrs fubmitted to all the torments v/hich 
 cruelty could invent, with patience and 
 refignation ; rejected every offer of re- 
 lief, when propofed to them on condition 
 of their denying their faith in Chrift: they 
 met death itfelf with indifference, and in 
 E ^ their
 
 52 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 their laO: moments fliewed the fulleft per- 
 fuafion, that they were only going to quit a 
 mortal and inconvenient frame, to enjoy 
 more perfed happinefs. 
 
 That the abovementloned caufes forward- 
 ed the fuccefs of Chrillianity, may be ob- 
 ferved from the little progrefs it has made 
 in Hindoftan. The Hindoos refpecl their 
 own religion, believe in a future ftate, and 
 perfecution is entirely contrary to their 
 dodrines. Notwithftanding the labours of 
 miffionaries, therefore, for upwards of two 
 centuries, and the eftablifhments of different 
 Chriftian nations, who fupport and proted 
 them, out of at leaft thirty millions of Hin- 
 doos, that are in the poffefTions of the 
 Englifh and of the Princes who are de- 
 pendant on them, there are not, perhaps, 
 above twelve thoufand Chriftians, and thofe 
 almoft entirely Chandalahs^ or outcafts *. 
 
 Tlie 
 
 * " T( ut InclicHj qui embrafle le Chriftianifme, eft 
 " abfolument banni de fa tribu, eft abandonne aux 
 
 *' hifultes
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 53 
 
 The early Chrifliaiis feem to have been 
 without any fettled hierarchy, and without 
 any eftablilhed forms of religious worlhip. 
 Difperfed in the different cities of the Ro- 
 man empire, they formed themfelves into 
 Societies, which were only connected with 
 each other by profefTing the fame belief, and 
 being expofed to equal danger. When the 
 members of thefe focieties occafionally met 
 together, any one fpoke who felt himfelf 
 fo difpofed ; and the firft appearance of dif- 
 tindlion or precedence we can find, was the 
 chufmg of prefbyters or elders, to whom 
 was entrufted the care of aflembling the 
 members at fit times ; of watching over 
 their manners; and of affifting their dif- 
 trefled brethren from the voluntary con- 
 tributions of the fociety. As the number 
 
 " infultes de toute fa nation : AufTi ne trouvent-on 
 " point que la religion Chretienne ait fait de grands 
 " progres en ce pais la, quoiqu'-en difent les miffion- 
 *' naires R.omains." 
 JLa CrozCf tome ii. Hv. 6. p. 2^6. Ed. de la Hay^ 1758. 
 
 E3 of
 
 54 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 of profelytes increafed, further and more 
 permanent regulations were thought necef- 
 fary ; and the next ftep to higher prefer- 
 ment that is recorded, was the election of 
 certain perfons among the prefbyters, to 
 prefide at the aflemblies, to colle6l the re- 
 fult of their deHberations, and who, in the 
 interim of their meetings, had the power 
 of receiving and applying alms, and ofcorr 
 refponding with the focieties eftablifhed in 
 other places. The name given to thefe was 
 Epifcopi^ a term we find equally applied to 
 perfons in different trufts, and which literally 
 fignified an infpedor or fuperintendant *, 
 In the procefs of time, the fundions 
 of religious worfhip were entirely commit- 
 ted to thofe infpedors and to their inferior 
 
 * The title of Pope (Papa) was originally given 
 jndifcriminately to all billiops and patriarchs, and it was 
 only towards the end of the nth century that Gregory 
 the Vllth obtained, at a council held at Rome, that 
 this appellation fliould be confined to that fee. In the 
 Creek churcli the ancient mode continues to this day. 
 
 affiftants j
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 55 
 
 afliftants; and hence arofe the diftindion of 
 the clergy^ from the laity ^ or great bulk of 
 the Chriftians. With the augmentation of 
 the number and quality of the Chriftians, 
 the fituation of the clergy became naturally 
 more important; frefli ceremonies were 
 gradually introduced, to render the worlliip 
 more fplendid. From the fuppofed examples 
 in the early ages of Chriftianity, and by 
 forced interpretations of the facred writings, 
 a variety of pious duties was invented, 
 of little real ufe perhaps to mankind, 
 but calculated to obtain and preferve 
 that dominion of the priefthood, by which 
 it fo long kept every other order of men in 
 a ftate of the moft abject fubjedtion. — It 
 was the flavery of the mind. — Philofophy 
 and the arts, which had already been con- 
 fiderably affed:ed by the influence of the 
 new religion, were loft under the inunda- 
 tions of barbarians that overwhelmed the 
 Roman empire. The fmall degree of un- 
 couth learning which yet remained, being 
 E 4 entirely
 
 56 GE!vERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 entirely in pofleflion of the priefts, con^f 
 fiderably contributed to contirm their 
 influence over the rude and uninftrudted 
 laity, and to maintain and extend fuper- 
 ftition, which, from the earlieft times, they 
 feem to have foftered with unwearied 
 pains. Their afcendency being eftablifhed 
 without oppofition or control, they not 
 only commanded in fpiritual matters, but 
 direded in worldly affairs with imperious 
 interference. Intoxicated with the fubmif- 
 fion that was every where fhewn to them, 
 they often committed fuch wanton and 
 extravagant a£ls of authority, that we 
 are frequently loft in amazement, between 
 the infolence of thofe who commanded, 
 and the folly of thofe who obeyed. 
 But in the plenitude of their power, 
 and in the enjoyment of the immenfe 
 wealth they had by various means ac- 
 quired, they negleded to obfcrve that ex- 
 terior decorum with which their condudt 
 had been formerly clothed, and furniflied 
 
 examples
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 57 
 
 examples of very licentious and diforderly 
 manners. Thefedid not efcape obfervation ; 
 the people in fome countries, notwithftand- 
 ing their infatuation, began to murmur; 
 while the higher ranks of men were already 
 difpofed torefiftance. The invention of print- 
 ing, about the middle of the fifteenth century, 
 brought forth fcience from its dark retreats 
 within the walls of monafteries, from whence 
 it had fhed but a faint and partial light 
 upon the univerfal barbarifin of the age. 
 Superftition declined, in proportion to the 
 progrefs made by letters; phsenomena, that 
 had been employed to awe the ignorant, 
 were found to proceed from natural caufes ; 
 and the minds of every clafs of men imbibed 
 fome part of th<it knowledge, which now 
 began to diffufe itfclf all over Europe. 
 
 Controverfy feems to have been the con- 
 ftant companion of religion: — it v/as almoft 
 coeval with our faith. But early in the 
 fixteenth century it broke out with uncom- 
 mon violence ; and the difputes of church- 
 men
 
 58 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 men were carried on with fo much acri- 
 mony and imprudence, that by means of 
 the prefs, the whole arcana of the policy 
 and abufes of the priefthood were laid 
 open to the inquiry and judgment of 
 the laity. 
 
 In order to crufh the new opinions, 
 which, in confequence of thefe difputes, be- 
 gan to appear and to fpread themfelves in 
 many parts of Europe, the Roman pontiff 
 had recourfe to violent and injudicious 
 meafures. Anathemas and excommunica- 
 tions were pronounced againft all who en- 
 couraged or profelTed them; and the princes 
 of Chriilendom v/ere called upon to exert 
 their power and authority to eradicate and 
 deftroy them. But, as is generally the cafe 
 when perfecution is employed to oppofe 
 reafon, it decided thofe who were waver- 
 ing, and made men more pofitive in 
 their rcfiftancc. The proteftant dodrines 
 fpread with uncommon rapidity, and ope- 
 rated, wherever they gained ground, not 
 
 only
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 59 
 
 only to effedt ecclefiaftical, but like wife 
 the nioft important political, changes. 
 During the ftruggle that preceded them, 
 Europe, for a long fpace of time, exlii-^ 
 bited the moft extraordinary and melan- 
 choly fcene that is to be found in the 
 hiftory of mankind : a ftate of religious 
 frenzy univerfally prevailed. The fire of per- 
 fecution was lighted up from one extremity 
 of Chriftendom to the other ; and men faw 
 their fellow-creatures and citizens com* 
 mitted to the flames, not only without re- 
 morfe, but with pleafure and exultation. 
 All the bonds of focial life were broken ; 
 and bigotry and fanaticifm were bufily 
 employed to fmother the feelings of nature, 
 and the fentiments of loyalty, of gratitude, 
 and of friendiliip. Sovereigns defcended 
 from the throne to be the bloody alTafTms of 
 their people *, or drove them to abandon 
 
 their 
 
 * Fifty thoufand inhabitants of the Low Countries 
 are fuppofed to have been put to death on account of 
 
 their
 
 6o GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 their own, and feek refuge in other, 
 countries. Confidence and fafety were no- 
 where to be found ; for neither rank nor 
 merit, obligations conferred, nor con- 
 nections of blood, afforded any fecurity. 
 The oflenfible caufe ofthefe enormities was 
 religion, while the real and true objects of 
 religion were forgotten. Men, apparently 
 deprived of their reafon, in the wild courfe 
 of their miftaken zeal, never Hopped to 
 recollect that they were ading in dif- 
 obedience to the laws of that God whom 
 they pretended to ferve, and in oppofition 
 to the dodrines they affedted to profefs, 
 which inculcate charity, benevolence, com- 
 pafhon, and indulgence for the errors and 
 infirmities ©f others. 
 
 their religious principles, during the reign of Charles 
 V. only. The number feems almofl; incredible, 
 but it is aHirnied by feveral cotemporary hiftorians. 
 Yet Charles was milder and lefs bigotted than his fon 
 and fucceflbr Philip. The maflacre in the night of 
 St. Bartholomew at Paris, and fimilar fccnes of horror 
 in ditrerent parts of Europe, fliew to what length a 
 blind zeal can carry an unenlightened people. 
 
 But
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 61 
 
 But the charm, that formerly rendered 
 the minds of men capable of receiving with 
 reverence any dogma that was prefcribed to 
 them, being broken, every one who was 
 fo inclined, commented upon and explain- 
 ed the facred writings according to his own 
 particular notions : and from among the 
 Reformers arofe a variety of fedts, as in- 
 tolerant towards each other, as the church of 
 Rome was towards thofe who had emanci- 
 pated themfelves from its authority. The 
 laity, v.^ho hitherto had been kept in pro- 
 found ignorance, efpecially on religious 
 matters, eagerly read the books of con- 
 troverfy, and felt their vanity confiderabiy 
 flattered, in being at liberty to difcufs and 
 give their opinions on fubjecfts which but 
 lately it would have been criminal for them 
 to have inquired into. They became ac- 
 cuftomed to ftudy and inveftigation. The 
 liberty that was given to the prefs in the 
 countries where the Proteftant religion pre- 
 vailed, and efpecially in thofe which en- 
 joyed
 
 62 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 joyed a free government, enabled men or 
 genius to examine things with freedom, 
 and to exprefs themfelves without reftraint. 
 Philofophy and the fciences, even in the 
 midft of civil and religious revolutions, were 
 making confiderable progrefs ; and thefe, 
 with the improvements in navigation, which 
 led to the difcovery of other countries and 
 other people, tended to expand the mind, 
 and make men more liberal in their notions. 
 The increafe of circulating wealth, produced 
 by the extenfion of commerce, and the gold 
 and filver that were poured into Europe 
 from America; the eafy communication 
 that was eftablifhed betw^een different 
 countries, and the facility of exchanging 
 their refpedive produdions, produced new 
 and varied wants and pleafures. The 
 ftudious, the induftrious, and the diflipated 
 part of mankind, found each fufficient oc- 
 cupation. The fweets of fecial life became 
 more numerous and refined ; public tran- 
 quilUty was neceflary to the enjoyment of 
 £ them 5
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 6-^ 
 
 them ; and men grew averfe to fierce civil 
 broils, and indifferent about religious con- 
 tefts. But as they unfortunately often pro- 
 ceed from one extreme to the other; as 
 formerly it was the falliion to feek fame by 
 ■wild and extravagant aOis of devotion, fa 
 of late years fome have imagined that 
 they evince a fuperiority of genius, by af- 
 fed.ing to have no religion. But without 
 entering into the arguments cither of fcep- 
 tics or divines, it will always afford com- 
 fort to the humble believer, to refleift, that 
 the moft profound metaphyficians, the bed 
 philofophers of this or any age, and thofe 
 who have made the greateft progrefs in the 
 fciences, were not only exemplary in their 
 moral charaders, but that their writings 
 tend, while they enlighten the mind, to 
 increafe our veneration for the Supreme 
 Being. The farther they proceeded in 
 their difcoveries, the more they adored the 
 Creator of the univerfe, and perceived the 
 
 infuf-
 
 64 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 infufficiency of human wifdom to find ouf 
 or explain his ways. 
 
 In feme more modern writers we find 
 the power of fancy, and the force of ridi- 
 cule, employed to deprive mankind of 
 their greateft confolation, and fociety of its 
 beft fupport ; — but to what other motive 
 can this endeavour be afcribed, than to a 
 licentious vanity courting a criminal dif- 
 tindtlon ? 
 
 Many of the early Chriftians, even fome 
 of the fathers of the church, previous to 
 their converfion to Chriflianity, had adopt- 
 ed the opinions of Plato, and other Greek 
 philofophers ; and hence, doubtlefs, it arofe, 
 that fome of the doctrines then profeffed 
 are evidently tinged with their notions. 
 
 The belief of three ftates after this life, 
 which is flill enjoined by the church of 
 
 Rome,
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 65 
 
 Rome, feems to have been taken from 
 Plato ; but this, as v/ell as other opinions, 
 might probably be traced to a more diftant 
 origin. 
 
 The dodrine of the Metempfychofis was 
 openly avowed by fome of the early feds *^ 
 who brought paflages from the holy fcrlp- 
 tures in fupport of their extraordinary 
 fidions. 
 
 They likewife believed in the eternity of 
 matter, not fuppofing that any thing could be 
 formed from nothing. Nam et quidam in- 
 firmiores hoc prius credere de materia 
 potius fub-jacenti volunt, ab illo univerii- 
 tatem dedudam, fecundum philofophos "f . 
 
 * See Letter from Father Bouchet to M. Huet. 
 Bifliop of Avranches. — Lettres edif. &: curieufes, 
 tome xii. p. 170. Edit, de Paris, i/oi. 
 
 •f- Tertul. de Rcfur. Carn. c. 91. 
 
 Vol. T, F Mofl
 
 66 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Moft of the Gnoftics imagined that 
 the Divinity (Demiurgus) who created 
 the world, was different from, but fub- 
 ordinate to, the Supreme Ruler of the 
 univerfe *. 
 
 Oiigen, and others, believed in the de- 
 ftrudion and fucceffion of worlds ; and 
 that thefe revolutions had ever exifted and 
 would continue throughout eternity f. 
 
 This opinion, as well as that of many 
 of the Greeks on this fubjed:, fcems to be 
 derived from the dodrine of tranfmigra- 
 tion ; the foul that is faid to pervade the 
 globe, bring fuppofed to be infufed into 
 that which may fucceed it. — The Origenifts 
 thought that the fouls of mankind had 
 exified before the body, and, like the 
 Hindoos, rejected the idea of eternal pu- 
 nifhment. 
 
 * Ap. Eu. Prxp. Ev. xi. iS. 
 f Orig. inPrcem. &:c. 
 
 Ladlantius,
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 67 
 
 Ladhantius, who was fele£ted to be the 
 preceptor of the fon of Conftantine, and for 
 his eloquence was diftlnguifhed by the ap- 
 pellation of the Chrijllan Cicero^ likewife be- 
 lieved in the pre-exiftence of the foul *. 
 
 The opinion of its being an emanation 
 of the Divinity, which is believed by the 
 Hindoos, and was profeiTed by the Greeks, 
 feems likewife to have been adopted by 
 the Chriftians. Macrobius obferves, Am- 
 martim originem manure de ccelo^ inter rcBe 
 philofophcmtes ifidubitatce conjiat ejfe Jide'i \ , 
 — Saint Juftin fays, the foul is incorruptible> 
 becaufe it emanates from God % : and his 
 difciplcjTatianus the AfTyrian, obferves, that 
 man having received a portion of the Di- 
 vinity is immortal as God is §. 
 
 * Ladlant. Dlv. Infl. vii. 5. 
 •j- Macr. in Som. Scip. i. 9. 
 X S. Juf. dc Reiur. 9. 
 5 'I'atlan, cent. Greo. N. 10. 
 
 F 2 Many
 
 <58 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Many believed that the Deity had con- 
 fided the care of the things of this world to 
 celeftial beings, deftined to that purpofe. 
 Saint Juftin Martyr fays, in his Second 
 Apology to the Senate of Rome, " God 
 " who created the univerfe, having arranged 
 " the elenjents, and the fun, the moon, and 
 ** the ftars ; having difpofed the feafons, and 
 ** their various productions ; having placed 
 " under man the things of the earth ; com- 
 " mitted the human race, and all that is un- 
 " der heaven, to angels, whom he has com- 
 '* manded conftantly to watch over them *." 
 
 Athenagoras, In an addrefs to the Em- 
 peror Marcus Aurelius, obferves, " The 
 " Chrifdans admit of a number of angels 
 " and fpirits that God the creator diftributed 
 " over the Rars, the heavens, the world, and 
 " all that it contains f." 
 
 * St. Juft. Apol. ii. n. 5. 
 ■\ Athtn. Legat. Chr. n. 10^ 
 
 Some
 
 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 6() 
 
 Some even imagined, that the fpace be- 
 tween the heavens and the earthy was inha- 
 bited by beings that were enemies to man- 
 kind, Hke the evil genii of Greece, and the 
 Deutas of Hindoftan *. 
 
 " All the heretics of the early ages,*' 
 fays Father Bouchet, " being infatuated 
 " with Platonifm, afcribed to angels, what 
 " that philofopher faid of inferior deities f.'* 
 
 Had we fufficlent data to go upon in 
 examining the hiftory of the Hindoo re- 
 ligion, we might probably follow the pure 
 worfhip of an almighty, juft, and mer- 
 ciful God, through all its ftages of cor- 
 ruption, to its prefent complicated ftate. 
 The following Sketches may perhaps enable 
 
 * S. Hier. 
 
 f Lettres edif. & cur. torn. xil. p. 191. Ed. de 
 Paris, I 78 I. 
 
 F 3 the
 
 70 GENERAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 the reader to form fome judgment upon 
 this fubjed: ; and whatever reafon we may 
 have to confider the religion we profefs 
 as a peculiar revelation of God, we ought 
 to look upon the fnicere believers of an- 
 other, with lefs feverity than men in ge- 
 neral have done. To hate or defpife any 
 people, becaufe they do not profefs the 
 fame faith with ourfelves ; to judge them 
 iUiberally, and arrogantly to condemn them, 
 is, perhaps, in fa(Sl:, to arraign the wildom 
 an4 goodnefs of the Almighty,
 
 L 71 1 
 
 SKETCH II. 
 
 Sources of Information concerning 
 Hindojlan, 
 
 T N tracing the progrels of the arts and 
 fciences, we have been accuftomed to 
 confider Egypt as the country v^hich gave 
 them birth ; but an opinion has lately been 
 entertained, that they were probably 
 brought thither from Hindoflan. An 
 analogy has been difcovered between the 
 religion of the Hindoos and Egyptians ; a 
 fimilarity is found in fome of their cuf- 
 toms ; and a certain acquaintance with the 
 fame fciences feems to have been common 
 to both. To wreft an honour from the 
 Egyptians which they have fo long and io 
 peaceably enjoyed, to furmount the pre- 
 judices that are in their favour, and to 
 F 4 over-
 
 72 SOURCES OF INFORMATION 
 
 overturn an opinion that has been confirm-s 
 ed by the fan£lion of (o many ages, feems 
 a work fo replete with difficulty, that I 
 think no one who fliall attempt it, fhould 
 flatter himfelf with hopes of complete fuc- 
 cef3. When opinions are once adopted, 
 men feldom go fairly in quefl: of truth ; 
 there is always a bias to thefe ; they 
 generally look for what may ftrengthen, 
 and receive unv/illingly what may combat 
 them, 
 
 In our early youth we imbibed, with claflic 
 learning, a degree of veneration for the 
 Egyptians, and hence a prediledlion in 
 their favour that will probably remain 
 with us during our lives. We thought we 
 beheld the arts and fciences coming from 
 Egypt, and fpreading themfelves in thofe 
 countries, to which we always look back 
 with a degree of enthufiafm ; it never en- 
 tered our imagination to go beyond that, 
 and to feck their origin in a more diflant 
 clime; but we gave up our admiration to the 
 4 people
 
 CONCERNING HINDOSTAN. 73 
 
 people to whom the Greeks themfelves 
 owed that inftrudion which rendered them 
 fuperior to other nations. 
 
 From Greek and Roman authors we 
 learn hut httle of the Hindoos ; and the 
 attention they excite in hiflory feems ra- 
 ther to arile from their having been con- 
 quered by fome great hero, or mentioned 
 by fome favourite writer, than from their 
 own confequence as a nation. We were 
 indifferent about a people of whom we 
 had fcarcely any knowledge. But the de- 
 fire of conqueft, and the thirft of gain, hav- 
 ing brought us to a more intimate ac- 
 quaintance with them, and the fpirit of 
 inquiry being roufed, we go bick with 
 avidity to thofe pallages which had left but 
 a flight impreffion, and are furprifed to fee 
 the fame manners and cuftoms, the fame 
 religion and laws, exifting, and now in ufe, 
 Vv'hich we find to have prevailed at the re- 
 pioteft period we can trace. 
 
 Though
 
 74 SOURCES OF INFORMATION 
 
 Though it be almoft three centuries 
 fince Europeans firft navigated to the Eaft 
 Indies, it is but a very few years fince 
 fuch inquiries were fet on foot, as could 
 lead us to any fatisfadory information 
 concerning a people who perhaps merit 
 the attention of the curious, more than 
 any other nation on the globe. But, 
 happily, the obfcurity in which they were 
 involved feems gradually to be diflipating ; 
 and we may now flatter ourfelves that we 
 are in the way to obtain a knowledge of 
 all that is to be learnt of their hiftory. 
 How far that may extend, is yet uncer- 
 tain ; but the lights which have already 
 been obtained, fufhciently fhew them to 
 have excelled as a civilized and polifhed 
 nation, before any other that we are ac-^ 
 quamted with. 
 
 We arc informed that Mr. Haftings, foon 
 after his appointment to the government 
 of Bengal, conceived the idea of procuring 
 a code of the laws and cuftoms of the Hin- 
 doos,
 
 CONCERNING HINDOSTAN. 75 
 
 doos, with an intention to conciliate their 
 affed-ions, by paying a proper regard to 
 their inftitutions and prejudices. For this 
 purpofe he invited from Benares, and other 
 parts of the country, Brahmans learned in 
 the Sanlkrit language ; the mofl: authen- 
 tic materials were colIed:ed, and tranflated 
 from the original text into the Periian 
 idiom. The Brahmans began the work in 
 May 1773, and finiflied it in February 
 1775* 
 
 A fociety was fome years afterwards 
 eilabllflied at Calcutta, in order to make 
 inquiries into the civil and natural hiftory, 
 antiquities, fciences, and literature of Afia, 
 which, we are told, has made confiderable 
 progrefs ; and that the prefident, Sir 
 William Jones, as well as fome of its other 
 members, are now fufficiently acquainted 
 with the Sanfkrit to be able to tranflate it 
 with facility. 
 
 * It was tranflated from the Pcrfum into Englifli by 
 Mr. Halhcd. 
 
 Of
 
 76 SOURCES OF INFORMATION 
 
 Of the local ftate of the country, the befl 
 account wc yet have, is to be found in a 
 Map and Memoir^ publiihed by Major 
 Rennel, who was feveral years furveyor- 
 general of Bengal and the other provinces 
 that are fubjeifl to that government. Be- 
 fide the furveys and inquiries made by 
 Major Rennel and other profeffional men, 
 our geographical knowledge has been 
 greatly improved, in confequence of the 
 embaffies fent from Calcutta to Thibet and 
 Poonah, and the marches of our armies in 
 the late war with the Mahrattas, acrofs the 
 peninfula from the Ganges to Guzerat. 
 Men of fcience having accompanied the 
 embaffy to Poonah, and ferved in thofe 
 armies, the precife fituation of particular 
 places, with their diredions and diftances 
 from each other, w^ere accurately afcer- 
 tained, 
 
 I am indebted for much curious, as well 
 as ufeful, information to Lieutenant Colonel 
 Policr, Mr. John Stuart, and Mr. George 
 
 Poller.
 
 CONCERNING HINDOSTAN. 77 
 
 Fofter. Lieutenant Colonel Poller refided 
 near thirty years in Hindoftan, part of 
 which he fpent at Delhy, and its neigh- 
 bourhood. Mr. Stuart * and Mr, 
 
 Fofter 
 
 * Mr. Stuart went from Mafulipatam to Hydrobad, 
 the capital of the Nizam's dominions, and from 
 thence to Seringapatam, the capital of Myfore, in 
 which country he remained fourteen months. He 
 came from thence to Madras. In his fecond journey, 
 he went from thence to Hydrobad, Aurengabad, Jyna- 
 gur, Delhy, through the Panjab, to within fixteen 
 miles of Lahore. He returned to Delhy, and came 
 by the way of Oude and Benares to Calcutta. After 
 remaining fome time in Bengal and Eahar, he went 
 by fea down the Perfian Gulf, and from Ghrey, at the 
 mouth of the Euphrates, crofled the defert in the wideil 
 diagonal part to Aleppo, and, embarking at Scanda-' 
 roon, came to England. In 1783, he went to Mol- 
 cow, with the intention of going through Tartary to 
 India, but finding it difficult to procure a paflport for 
 proceeding from Aftracan, he came by the way of 
 Vienna to Italy, and went from thence by fea to Con- 
 ftantinople. Going by Diarbukkeer (or Mefopotamia), 
 Moful, and Kirkout, to Bagdat, he went from thence 
 into Perfia. After (laying fome months at Ifpahan, 
 Sheeras, &c. he came to Bailbrah, and from thence 
 
 tliroagh
 
 78 SOURCES or INFORMATION. 
 
 Fofter * have vifited more of the interioi!' 
 parts of India than any other Englifhman 
 I have heard of; and thofe gentlemen, by 
 fpeaking fluently fome of the Oriental 
 languages, and by living in habits of in- 
 timacy with the natives, have been able 
 to learn things unknown to us, and to 
 explain others which feem to have been 
 mifapprehended f . 
 
 But the honour is due to the French, of 
 having firft brought out, from the receffes of 
 
 the 
 
 through Annadoli-i (or Natolia) to Conftantinople and 
 Vienna. He has fmce then vifited Swedifli Lapland, 
 above a degree farther north th m Torno, and is now 
 profecutlng his travels through other parts of Europe. 
 
 * Mr. Fofter went from Madras by land to Cal- 
 cutta, from thence to Benares, Agra, Delhy, &c. to 
 Kalhimire,where he continued feveral months, and going 
 by Cabul througli Perfia, came by the Cafpiun Sea to 
 P.ulHa, and from thence to England. 
 
 -]■ Thougli much mifcellaneous information con- 
 cerning the Hindoos may be found in dilFerent au- 
 thors of our own and other nations, who liave written 
 on Hindoftan, none tliat I am acquainted with, have 
 
 made
 
 CONCERNING HINDOSTAN. 79 
 
 the Hindoo temples, and communicated to 
 the world in a regular and fcientific manner, 
 the aftronomy of the Brahmans, of which, 
 till then, we had but vague and uncertain 
 notions. It was Le Voyage da?is Its Mers 
 de rinde^ by Monfieur le Gentil *, that 
 firft enabled us to form a right conception 
 of it, and to perceive thofe charaderiflic 
 marks which diftinguifh it from that of 
 
 made them the objefts of their immediate and impar- 
 tial inquiry. Indeed, until now, the fources of in- 
 formation have been uncertain and confined ; but, at 
 prel'ent, as we have got pofleflion of the key to know- 
 ledge, the Snnjkfit language^ and of the country 
 where its chief repofitory is fuppofed to be, we may 
 expe<Sl, from the zeal and abilities of Sir W. Jones, 
 and the other members of the fociety of Calcutta, to 
 have our curiofity gratified, upon better and more au- 
 thentic grounds. 
 
 * See Voyage dans les Mers de Vlnde^ fait par Ordre 
 du Roi, \ I'occafion du Paffage de Venus fur le 
 Difque du Soleil le 6 Juin 1761, et le 3 du meme 
 Mois 1769, par Monfieur le Gentil, de T Academic 
 des Sciences. 
 
 Other
 
 8o SOURCES OF INFORMATION, Sea 
 
 other nations. Since then, it has been more 
 fully illuftrated, in a moft ingenious and 
 learned treatife,' by Monfieur Bailly *. 
 
 Whether the Egyptians received it from 
 the Hindoos, may be a fubjed: of far- 
 ther inquiry ; but if, after a careful ex- 
 amination, we are obliged to allow the 
 Hindoos to be the inventors of a fcience 
 that requires fo much ingenuity and ob- 
 fervation, we fliall be incUned to fuppofe 
 that they were likev^^ife the authors of that 
 mythology which will be found to bear fo 
 great a refemblance to that of the Greeks 
 and Romans. 
 
 * See Trait) de PAJlronomie Indienne et Orientaky 
 par Monfieur Bailly, de 1' Academic Francoife des In- 
 fcrjptions et Belles Lettres, des Sciences, &c*
 
 [ Si -} 
 
 SKETCH III, 
 
 Shfc/j of the Hi/lory of Hindojlan, 
 
 'T^HE ancient Greeks feem in general to 
 have believed that the natives of India 
 were aborigines *, and that they never e: rher 
 emigrated thenifelves, or received any co- 
 lony from flrangers f . 
 
 The learned Hindoos fay, that 
 Hindoftan j:, extending from the river 
 
 Indus 
 
 * Diod. ii. t Strab. xv. 
 
 X Hindojla?!, fo called by foreigners ; but I am in- 
 formed that no fuch words as Hindoo or Hhidojlan are 
 to be found in Sanfkrit, which we may fuppofe to be 
 the original language of that country, or at lead the 
 oldeft now exifting there. In Sanlkrit it is called 
 
 Vol. I. G Bharata,
 
 82 HISTORY OF IIIND03TAN. 
 
 Indus * on the weft, to the Burumpooter j 
 on the eaft, and from the mountains of 
 
 Thibet 
 
 Bharata, and BhnraUvitJIj. — Bliarat appears, likev/ife, 
 to be the name of an ancient imperial family. — 
 Ilindoftan feems, evidently, to come from the Per- 
 fians. — ^tan^ in Perfian, fignllies coiintryy and Hindoo 
 may have been taken from a corruption of SInde, the 
 name of the river that feparated Bharata from the 
 Perfian dominions. (Rennel — Wilkins — Stuart, Sec.) 
 But to conform to the pra6lice now in ufe, I fliall con- 
 tinue to call the country HimhJIan, and its original 
 inirabitants Hindoos. . 
 
 * From the city of Attack, in lat. 30. 20. to Moul- 
 tan. This river is called Attuck, which in the San- 
 ikrit language is faid to fignity Forbidden, as it was the 
 boundary of Hindoftan on that fide, and unlawful for 
 tlie Hindoos to go beyond it without permiflion. Be- 
 low IMoultan it is called Soor, until it divides itfelf 
 into a number of flrcams near Tatta ; the principal 
 one is called Mehran ; but the river, when generally 
 fpoken of, is called in the Sanfkrit language Sindhoo, 
 and vulgarly- Sinde. By Europeans it has, from tlic 
 earliefl; times, been called Indus. (Pliny fays, " Indus 
 " ab incolis appellatys," &c. Lib. vi.) 
 
 f A river eafl of the Ganga, or Ganges, the proper 
 
 name of which is Bri^pha-pooter, or the fo!i of Brimha. 
 
 ... ^Thefr.
 
 HISTORY. OF HINDOSTAN. 83 
 
 Tlilbet on the, north, to the fea on the 
 fouth 'j acknowledged the dominion ot one 
 
 mighty 
 
 Thefe two rivers derive their foiirces from the moun- 
 tains of Thibet, from whence they proceed in oppofite 
 dire£lions, the Ganges to the wed, antt the Burum- 
 pooter to the eaft. The Ganges, after wandering 
 through different valleys, ruflies through an opening in 
 the mountains at Hurdvi'ar, and fiows, a fmoolh na- 
 vigable flream, in a courfe of about 1350 miles, 
 through the plains of Hindollan to the fea. In i'.s way 
 it receives eleven capital rivers, forne of them equal in 
 magnitude to the Rhine. From its arrival on the plains 
 at Hurdwar to the conflux with the Jumna, its bed is 
 in moft places about a mile and a quarter wide; ff&m 
 thence its courfe becomes more winding : about 600 
 miles from the fea, its bed in the brop.dcfi: part is three 
 miles over, in the narrov/eft half a mile, the llream 
 increafing and decrcafing according t&. the feafons. 
 In the fummer months it is fordable in forne places 
 above the conflux with the Junina, but the naviga- 
 tion for fmall veflbls is never entirely 'interrupted : 
 below the conflux, tlie depth is rrjuch more confuier- 
 able, as the additional itreams add more to that, than 
 to its breadth. At the diftance of 500 miles from the 
 fea, the channel is 30 feet deep when the river is at 
 the loweft ; but the fudden and great expajifion of the 
 G 2 • flream,
 
 84 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. 
 
 mighty fovereign : but that in this im- 
 menfe empire there were fcveral here- 
 ditary 
 
 ftream, depriving it of fufficient force to fwcep away 
 the Hind an4 mud that is thrown acrofs it by the 
 ftrong foutherly v/inds, the principal branch cannot 
 be entered by large vcfTels. About 220 miles from 
 the fea in a flrait divc£Uon, but 300 in following the 
 windings of the river, the branches called the rivers 
 Caflembazar and Jellinghy unite, and form the river 
 Hughly, on wliich is the port of Calcutta. The na- 
 vigation of fliips in this river is always dangerous, as 
 the fand-banks frequently fliift, and fome prcje£l fo 
 far into the fea, that the channels between them can- 
 jiot be cafdy traced. The medium rate of motion of 
 the Ganges is about three miles, and during tlie rains, 
 and while the waters flow into it from the inundated 
 lands, from five to fix miles an hour. In general, 
 there is on one fide of the river an almoft perpendicu- 
 lar bank, more or lefs elevated above the fl:ream accord- 
 ing to the (|uantity of water : near the b.ink the wa- 
 ter is naturally deepeft j on the oppofitc fide, as the 
 bed Hopes gradually, the water is fliallow, even at fome 
 diitance from the margin : bijt this is the natural 
 cfie£l of the windings of great rivers, the current be- 
 ing always ftrongefl at the external fide of the curve. 
 
 In
 
 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN, 85 
 
 ditary kings, wlio paid bim a certain 
 tribute, thougb in tlie internal govern- 
 ment 
 
 la places where the ftream is remarkably rapiil, and 
 the foil loofe, fuch tracts of land arc fometimes fwept 
 away as would aftonifli thofe wlio have not been ac- 
 cuftomed to fee tlie increafe and force of fome rivers, 
 during and immediately after the periodical rains in the 
 tropical regions. Tiie efTecls of the flream at thofe 
 curves fometimes produce a gradual change in th^ 
 courfe of rivers, and in proportion as they encroach 
 on one fide, they quit the other. Hence tliere are 
 inflances in Hindoflan, of tovv-ns, faid by ancient aur 
 tliors to be fituated on the banks of rivers, that are 
 now at a confiderable dillance from them. The Hin- 
 doos, in their fabulous account of the Ganges, fay^ 
 that it flows from the foot of Vilhnou, the preferving 
 deity, and in entering Hindollan, pailes through a rock, 
 refembling the head of their facred animal, the cov/. 
 The Britlfli nation, with its tributaries, enjoy thp 
 whole of its navigable^courfc. 
 
 The Burumpooter, taking aimoft an oppofite di.- 
 re£lion, runs through Thibet, where it is called 
 Sampoo, or Zianciu, wliich is faid to bear the fame 
 interpretation with the Ganga or Ganges, the river. 
 \l waflies the border of the territory of Lafla, and ap- 
 G 3 proaching
 
 B6 HISTORY OF IIINDOSTAN. 
 
 ment of their countries they were inde= 
 pendent *. 
 
 One of the ancient dynaflies of their 
 emperors is called, the Sourage-buns, or the 
 dynafty of the children of the fun ; the 
 
 proaching to within about 200 miles of Yunan, the 
 wefternmoft province of China, turns fuddenly back, 
 and running through Aflam, enters Bengal on the 
 N. E. During a courfc of 400 miles through Bengal, 
 it fo much refembles the Ganges, that a defcription of 
 one may fcrve for both, excepting that, for the lafl 
 60 miles before their junclion, it forms a ftream from 
 four to five miles wide. The waters of thofe great 
 rivers being joined, form a gulph of confiderable ex- 
 tent, intcrfpcrfed with iilands, fome of them feveral 
 leagues in circumference. Major Reknel. 
 
 * Diodorus Siculus fays, " India in quatuor latera 
 diilincla efi; quod ad orientem, quodve ad meridiem 
 vt rgit, magnum^mare circumdat. Quod arclos fpe(ftat, 
 I l-.vmodus mons ab ea Scytirui, quam habitant hi qui 
 nppcllantur Sacje, dividit ; quartum, quod efl ad oc- 
 cidcntcm fluvius Indus terminat, omnium fere, pofl 
 Kilum, maximus. ' Magnitudinem Indirc ab oriente ad 
 occafum, fcribunt fladiorum vig'nti oclo millium duo- 
 rum ct triginta. * Lil\ II. oip. x. 
 
 Other
 
 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. 87 
 
 Other the Chander-buns, or that of the 
 children of the moon *. 
 
 After thefe we hear of the houfe of 
 Bharat: and the wars between two of its 
 branches, the Kooroos and the Pandoos, 
 are the fubjed: of a celebrated epic poem, 
 called the Mahabharat y, faid to have been 
 written by Krifhna Dwypayen Veias, a 
 learned Brahman, above 4000 years ago. 
 A famous battle, fought on the plains of 
 Delhy, at the beginning of the Kaly-Youg, 
 or prefent age, 3102 years before Chrift, 
 gave, to Arjoon, one of the five fons of 
 Pandoo, and favourite of the god Viihnon, 
 the empire of Bharatviifli, or Hindoftan. 
 
 * The nanicr,, however, in Sanikrit, according to 
 Mr. Wiikins, are properly, Sccry-vangs^ and Chandra'- 
 vaiigs ; or, the race of the Su;iy and the race cf the 
 Moon. 
 
 t The Bhag-vat Geetn, wliich is an cpifotls of this 
 poem, has been tranflated from the Sanfkrit language 
 into Englifii by Mr. Charles Wiikins. It contains 
 dialogues between Arjoon and Kirfima, who is fup- 
 pofed to have been the god Vilhnou in Oiie of his in- 
 carnations. 
 
 G 4 About;
 
 88 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. 
 
 About 1600 years before Chrlft, a war 
 with the Perfians * is recorded ; and about 
 900 years after that war f , another is men- 
 tioned, during which the Hindoo emperor 
 is faid to have been carried prifoner into 
 Perfia, and his fon, who fucceeded him, to 
 have become tributary to tlie kings of that 
 country. The tribute having been with- 
 held by the fecond Phoor, or Porus, is 
 afligned as the caufc of the invafion of 
 India by Alexander J. Some Hindoo 
 writers mention the victory obtained by 
 him over Phoor, and fay that he quitted 
 
 * No mention is made of this war by any ancient 
 European hiftoviun. 
 
 I The firft: Darius, according to Herodotus, invaded 
 India about 504 years before ChriO:, whicii is probably 
 the war here meant. Th.e error in the date, which is 
 about 196 years, may have arifcn in copying or tranfla- 
 tinc: from the Hindoo manufcrint. 
 
 :[; riiny fays ; " Colliguntar a hbero patrc ad 
 *■' Alexandrum magnum, rcgcs coruni ci.iv annis quin- 
 ♦< i]ue millia, ccccii ailjiciunt ct uKiifcs trcs." Lilf. Vf. 
 .-'•A. xvii. 
 
 Hindoflan
 
 HISTORY OF IIINDOSTAN. 89 
 
 Hhitloftan on account of a mutiny in his 
 army *. 
 
 After the return of Alexander, it ap- 
 pears that feveral revolutions happened 
 among the different branches of tlie reign- 
 ing family; and that many of the tri- 
 butary princes, taking advantage of thefe 
 convulfions, rendered themfelves Indepen- 
 dent. The country thereby lay open to 
 eafy conqueft; thofe princes were un- 
 
 * This correfponds with the accounts given of the 
 mutiny on the Banks of the Hyphafis, or modern 
 Beyah. Major Rennel fuppofcs, that Alexander 
 crefted his twelve altars at Firofepour, near the junc- 
 tion of the Beyah, or Hyphafis, with the Setlege, or 
 ancient Hefudrus. 
 
 It may be mentioned here by the way, that Greek 
 coins, medals, and engravings, are fometimes found in 
 India. I have feen two cameos of exquifite workman- 
 fhipj and faw a beautiful medal of Alexander, about 
 the fize of a half crown piece, which was given to the 
 Nabob of Arcot. It fhculd be remembered that Alex- 
 ander had his own coin (truck in his army by Greek 
 workmen that he carried with him for that purpofe. 
 
 Vol. I. G 5 v/iiling
 
 90 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAR 
 
 willing to appeal to a fovereign for pro- 
 tedion, whofe yoke they had fhaken off; 
 and invaders, inftead of meeting a united 
 people, and having to contend with the 
 force of the whole empire, feem only to 
 have beenfeparately cppofed by thofe whofe 
 territories they attacked. 
 
 The Greeks, who remained in poffefTion 
 of Tome of the northern provinces, were fuc- 
 cefsfully attacked by a Hindoo prince named 
 by them Sandrocottus *. Seleucus, then 
 mafterof the country betv/een the Indus and 
 Euphrates, made a treaty with him 303 years 
 before Chrift ; but whether he upon that occa- 
 fion retained, or ceded, the provinces con- 
 quered by Alexander, is extremely doubtful. 
 
 About 150 years after this treaty, it ap- 
 pears that fome of the fame provinces which 
 had been fubdued by the Greeks, were 
 conquered by the Eadrians, whofe empire 
 
 Plutarch. Juftin* lib. xv. cap. iii. 
 
 5 was
 
 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. 91 
 
 was formed about 2jo years before Chrili, 
 byTheodotus, when governor of Badtriana, 
 under Antiochus Theos. Theodotus 
 was forced to yield his conquefls in India 
 to Mithridates Arfaceskingof the Parthians, 
 who confiderably extended them; and the 
 Parthians were in their turn expelled by a 
 Tartar nation, called by Ptolemy and others 
 Indian Scythians^ who are faid to have 
 fpread themfelves on both fides of the Indus, 
 to the fea *'. 
 
 Thefe conquefts, however, may be faid 
 to have extended little farther than the bor- 
 dering provinces ; but the invafions of the 
 Mogul Tartars overturned the Piindoo em- 
 pire, and, befides the calamities tliat im- 
 mediately attend conqueft, fixed on fuc- 
 ceeding generations alafting train of miferies. 
 They brought along with them the fpirit of 
 a haughty fuperftition ; they exacted the 
 converfion of the vanquilhed ; and they 
 
 * Strabo. — juftin. — Excerpta Valefiana. 
 
 came
 
 92 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. 
 
 came to conquer, and to remain. The 
 fuccefs of the firfl: invaders invited many to 
 follow them ; but we may confider the ex- 
 pedition of Tam.erlane as that which com- 
 pleted the ruin of the Hindoo government. 
 Having, m the year 1398, fenthis fon Mirza 
 Pir Mahomed before him, he entered India 
 himfelf; relieved Mirza, who had taken, 
 but was afterwards fhut up in Moultan ; de- 
 feated the armies of the Mahomedan king 
 of Delhy, and made himfelf mafter of his 
 capital. Wherever he appeared he was 
 vidlorious ; neither Muflulman nor Hindoo 
 could refifl his fortune; nor could any one 
 who oppofed him, exped; his mercy. Mark- 
 ing the march of his army with blood, 
 from the banks of the Attuck to the eaftern 
 fide of tlie Ganges, and from thence back 
 by a difierent route, he returned to Samar- 
 cand. 
 
 The difappearancc of this angry meteor 
 was followed by a long icenc of warfare 
 among the Mahomedan invaders them- 
 
 felves \
 
 HISTORY OF KINDOSTAN. 93 
 
 felves ; and the firft of the deicendants cf 
 Tamerlane who msLj be faid to have firm- 
 ly cftablifhed himfelf on the throne of 
 Delhy, was Acbar. He fucceeded his father 
 Homaon in 1556, and died in 1605, after 
 a fuccefsful reign of about £fty years. He 
 confiderably extended the dominion of the 
 Mahomedans, and was the firfh of their 
 princes who regularly divided the empire 
 into Soubadarles^ or viceroy fhips, fome of 
 which were eaur.l in extent to the lartrefi: 
 European kingdoms. Ov::r each of thefe 
 he appointed a foubadar, or viceroy. The 
 foubadaries were again divided into pro- 
 vinces, governed by naibs, or nabobs, who, 
 though fubjecl to the foubaJar, had the 
 privilege of immediately correfponding with 
 the emperor's minifter; the deciiion of civil 
 caufes belonged to the Cadi ^ the revenues 
 and expences were fuperintended by a 
 perfon appointed from the court ; and the 
 government of the principal forts v/as 
 confided to ofEcers who were independent 
 of the viceroy. 
 
 During
 
 ^•4 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. 
 
 During his long reign, Acbar caufed in- 
 quiries to be made, to afcertain the popula- 
 tion, the natural produdions, the manu- 
 failures, &c. of the different provinces ; 
 the refult of which, with various regulations 
 arifing therefrom, were formed into a book 
 called the Ayin Acharce^ or inftitutes of 
 Acbar, which ftill exiPcs in the Perfian 
 language. He endeavoured to correal: 
 the ferocity of his countrymen ; was in- 
 dulgent to the religion and cuftoms of the 
 Hindoos ; and, wifhing to revive the learn- 
 ing of the Brahmans, which had been per- 
 fecuted as profane by the ignorant Mufftis, 
 he ordered the celebrated obfervatorv * at 
 Benares to be repaired, invited the Brah- 
 mans to return to their ftudies, and affurcd 
 them of his protedion. 
 
 * Doclor Robertfon fays^ this obfervatory was buiJt 
 by Acbar ; whereas I have always underftood that it was 
 only repaired by his orders; and hence, probably, it may 
 arife, that the anciei.t Hindoo archite£lure is mixed 
 with the pointed Saracen or Gothic arch, wlilch is now 
 to be perceived in tlic building. 
 
 I. ^. , ' The
 
 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. g- 
 
 The dominion of Acbar does not feem 
 to have extended fouth beyond the aifl de- 
 gree of latitude. From thence, fouthward, 
 a great part of the country was ftill fubjed: 
 to a very powerful Hindoo prince, to whom 
 many great Rajahs '^ paid tribute. The 
 laft of thefe Princes dying vtuthout ifTue, 
 moft of his territories fubmitted to ufurp- 
 ers ; and two Mahomedans, who had ferved 
 as generals in his army, found means to 
 eftablifli themfelves independent fovereigns 
 of Golcondah and Viziapour. 
 
 Aurengzebe, fon of Shaw Gehan, the 
 grandfon of Acbar, completed the conquefl 
 of many countries tbat his predecefTors had 
 in vain attempted to fubdue. While in 
 the Deckan, he ordered the city of Auren- 
 gabad to be built, to commemorate his 
 
 * Princes, or Nobles, very mrc'i refembling the 
 great Nobility of Europe uiider thefeuJ'd governments. 
 Rajah is derived from a Sanlkrit wor^^j fignifying 
 fplcndor. 
 
 vidorics.
 
 p^ HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. 
 
 vicftories*. His dominions, according to 
 Major Rennel, reached from the lothtothe 
 35th degree of north latitude, and were in 
 fome parts, of nearly an equal extent in 
 breadth. His revenue is calculated to have 
 been about thirty-live millions of pounds 
 llerling : — an aftonlfhing fum, efpecially in a 
 country where the produdions of the earth 
 that are neceflary for the fupport of man, 
 are fcarccly above a third of the price that 
 the neceflaries of life bear in England f. 
 
 Aurengzebe died in 1707, after a reign 
 of forty- nine years ; and though, to attain 
 the throne, he confined his father to his 
 feraglio, caufed his brothers to be put to 
 
 * His firft wife is buried there, to wliofc memory he 
 ereflcd a mofque, and a magnificent tomb. 
 
 + Befide the difFerence in the price of food, it muft 
 be confidered that the native of Hindoftan has no 
 farther occafion for fuel, than what may be neceflary to 
 prepare his temperate meal •, nor for clothing, to guard 
 liim againft jfaBrinclemencies that are unknown in thofe 
 mild regions. 
 
 death,
 
 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. 97 
 
 cleatli, and was guilty of many other enor- 
 mities; yet, being once eftabliflied on it, 
 and feeing no competitors, he paid fuchclofe 
 attention to the affairs of government and to 
 the impartial adminiftration of juftice, was 
 fo judicious in his political condud, and fo 
 fuccefsful in his wars, " that he deferves to 
 *' be ranked with the ableft princes who 
 ." ever reigned in any age or country." 
 
 It was the policy of the court of Delhy 
 frequently to change the viceroys. A hif- 
 torian relates, that one of them left the 
 city, fitting with his back towards the head 
 of the elephant; and on being afked the 
 reafon, replied, "That it was to look out for 
 ** his fucceffor." The vaft diftance of fome 
 of the provinces from the throne, fuggeiled 
 the propriety of this meafure, as well as of 
 the regulations we have mentioned. But, 
 with all the policy that human forefight 
 might devifc, fuch extenfive dominions 
 could only be governed and preferved, under 
 wife and vigorous rulers ; and fuch, vrhen 
 
 Vol. I, II we
 
 98 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. 
 
 we confider the ordinary courfe of nature, 
 and the ulual education of princes, could 
 not be expected in any long fucceffion. 
 Aurengzebe was a phenomenon that rarely 
 appears in the fphere of royalty : his mind 
 was formed during his long ftruggle for the 
 empire, while he was obliged to command 
 his pafTions, and ftudy the ways and cha- 
 racters of mankind. " His fceptre was too 
 '' ponderous to be wielded by the feeble 
 "hands of his fucceflbrs ;" and, in lefs 
 than fixty years from his death, his wonder- 
 ful empire was reduced almoft to nothing. 
 
 Nizam al Muluc, viceroy of the Deckan, 
 who, without open rebellion, had in reality 
 rendered himfelf independent, to avert the 
 florm with which he was threatened from 
 the miniRers of Mahomed Shaw, is fuppofed 
 to have fuggefted to Thainas Kouli Kawn, 
 who was then at Gindahar, his celebrated 
 invafion of Hindoftan. 
 
 Thamas^ after a fmgle battle, entered the 
 city of Delhy, ami the vanquilhed emperor 
 
 laid
 
 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. 99 
 
 laid his regalia at bis feet. Having col- 
 lecled immenfe wealth, and referved to 
 himfelf all the countries belonging to the 
 Mogul empire that were on the other fide 
 of the Indus, he relnftated Mahomed Shaw 
 on the throne with much folemnity, and 
 returned with his army into Perfia. It is 
 faid that, before his departure, he informed 
 the emperor, who the perfons were who 
 had betrayed him, and gave him much 
 wholefome advice. But the fabric was 
 now (haken to its foundation, the treafury 
 was empty, the troops were mutinous, 
 the prince was weak, the minifters were 
 unfaithful, and the viceroys of the diftant 
 provinces, though they affe£led fubmifhon, 
 no longer refped:ed commands which they 
 knew could not be enforced, and in the 
 end rendered their flations, that formerly 
 were of Hiort duration, hereditary in their 
 families, Al! that nov^ belongs to Shaw 
 Allum, the prefent nominal emperor, is 
 the city of Delhy, and a fmall diiirid: round 
 it, where, even deprived of figlit by the 
 H 2 barbaious
 
 100 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. 
 
 barbarous hand of a rebel, he remains 
 an empty {hadovv of royalty, an iuflance 
 of the inftability of human greatnefs, and 
 of the precarious ftate of defpotic govern- 
 ments. Under thefe, while the liberty and 
 life of the fubjedt are conftantly expofed to 
 danger, the crown totters on the head of 
 the monarch: he who is the moft abfolute, 
 is frequently the leaft fecure; and the annals 
 of Turkey, of Perfia, and of the Maho- 
 medan conquerors of Hindoftan, teem 
 whh tragic flories oi dethroned and mur- 
 dered princes. 
 
 Throughout Hindoftan there are many 
 rajahs to be found, whoftill enjoy the terri- 
 tories of their anceftors. Some, happily, 
 never were fubdued, and owe their inde- 
 pendence to the natural fituation of their 
 poflefTions, which renders invafion difficult. 
 Others were permitted, from policy or ne- 
 celFitv, to retain them, on condition of pay- 
 ing a Hipulated tribute. 
 
 The
 
 HISTORY OF HINDOSTAN. loi 
 
 The Hindoos are the only cultivators of 
 the land, and the only manufadurers. The 
 Mahomedans who came into India were 
 foldiers, or followers of a camp, and even 
 now are never to be found employed in the 
 labours of hufbandry or the loom. 
 
 H3
 
 [ 102 ] 
 
 SKETCH IV. 
 
 Government. Public Buildings. Forls^ and 
 Places of the Refiderice of Rnjahs, 
 
 npHE government throughout Kindoftan 
 feems to have been anciently, as it is 
 at prefent, feudal; and if we may judge 
 from the apparently happy Hate of thofe 
 countries v^here the deftrutlive hand of the 
 conqueror had not yet been felt, and from 
 the inviolable attachment which the Hin- 
 doos bear to their native princes, we mull 
 conclude, that, under them, they were go- 
 verned on principles of the moftjuftand 
 benevolent policy. In thofe countries the 
 lands were highly cultivated ; the towns 
 and their manuflidurcs flouriOied ; the 
 villages were compofcd of neat and com- 
 modious
 
 GOVERNMENT, Sec. 103 
 
 modious habitations, filled witli dieerful 
 inhabitants ; and wherever the eye turned, 
 it beheld marks of the protedion of the 
 government, and of the eafe and induftry 
 of the people. Such was Tanjore, and 
 fome other provinces, not many years ago. 
 
 Under the ancient Hindoo government, 
 there were feveral kings or great Rajiihs *, 
 who were tributary to the emperor ; and 
 other inferior Rajahs, or nobles, who paid 
 tribute to their refpedive fuperiors, and 
 who, when fummoned to the field, were 
 obliged to attend tliem, with a certain 
 number of men in arms, in proportion to 
 the value of their pofTeflions. Befides the 
 eflates of Rajahs, there were other here- 
 ditary lands belonging to perfons of lefs 
 note, and fome that were appropriated to 
 charitable and religious purpcfes. We like- 
 wife find, that in many parts of Hindoflan, 
 certain lands, or com.mons, were attached 
 
 ]Ma]r.i-Raja,h. 
 
 H 4 to
 
 IC4 GOVERNMENT, &c. 
 
 to the different villages, which were culti- 
 vated by the joint labours of their inha- 
 bitants. The care of thefe lands was com- 
 mitted to the elders of the village, and 
 their produce applied to maintain the poor, 
 to defray the expence of feflivals, and to 
 pay dancers and players, who might oc- 
 cadonally be employed for the amufement 
 of the villagers. 
 
 The Ryuts^ or peafants, were allowed a 
 certain portion of the harveft, by the lord 
 or proprietor of the land, with which they 
 maintained their families, provided and 
 kept their cattle, and were furnifhed with 
 feed for the fucceeding feafon. The por- 
 tion given to the pealant feems to have 
 varied, and to have been cliiefly determined 
 by the fertility or barrcnnefs of the foil, the 
 eafe or difficulty of cultivation, or the abun- 
 dance or failure of the harveft. 
 
 In countries that are plentifully fupplied 
 with water, the labour of the hufbandman 
 
 is
 
 GOVERNMENT, 8:c. 105 
 
 IS much diminlfhed, and his crops are 
 generally very abundant ; but on the coaft 
 of Coromandel, where the foil is for the 
 mod part fandy, and water fcarce, greater 
 exertion is required, which is often but 
 fcantily repaid. 
 
 In fuch countries as have not the ad- 
 vantage of being watered by confiderable 
 rivers ; or in fuch parts where the water 
 cannot be conveyed from them to the ad- 
 jacent fields J tanks were made, which, be- 
 ing filled daring the periodical rains, fur- 
 niihed water for the rice-fields, and for the 
 cattle in the dry feafon. Some of thefe 
 are of great extent, and were made by 
 inclofing deep and low fituations with a 
 ftrong mound of earth *. Others of lefs 
 magnitude, for the ufe of temples, towns, 
 or gardens, are of a quadrangular form. 
 
 * On the bank of the great tanks, are generally 
 {oimd a Choultry and a Temple. 
 
 lined
 
 io6 GOVERNMENT, &c. 
 
 lined with flone, defcending in regular 
 fteps from the margin to the bottom ^. 
 
 In the towns, as well as in moft of the 
 villages, are Choultries^ or public buildings 
 for the reception of travellers, which were 
 creeled and endowed by the munificence 
 of the prince, the generofity of fome rich 
 individual, or, not uncommonly, in confe- 
 quence of fome pious vow. A Brahman 
 refides near, who furnifhes the needy tra- 
 veller with food, and a mat to lie upon ; 
 and contiguous to them is a tank or well, 
 that thofe who halt, may have it in their 
 power to perform their ablutions before 
 they eat, or proceed on their journey. 
 
 * I have feen fome of tliefc meafuring between 3 
 and 400 feet on the fide, and regularly lined with 
 granite. The Hindoos, from fome fuperftitious no- 
 tion, never cunllrucl any thing of an cxacl fquare, 
 but ratlicr oblong •, though the difTcrence is frequently 
 fo fmall as Ijarccly to be perceptible to the eye. 
 
 6 The
 
 GOVERNMENT, Sec, 107 
 
 The Dewuls^ or temples, called by the 
 Europeans Pagodas^ are llill very nu- 
 merous, efpecially In the fouthern provinces, 
 and fome of them of fuch remote antiquity, 
 that no account is left, either in writing 
 or by tradition, when or by whom they 
 were ered:ed. But the northern provinces 
 being firfh conquered, the feat of the 
 Mahomedan government fixed, and its 
 greateft force exerted in thofe parts ; moll 
 of the temples were deftroyed, the Images 
 of Hone broken, and thofe of metal melted 
 to cover the floors of the mofques and 
 palaces, that the faithful MuiTuIman 
 fhould have the fatisfadion daily to tram- 
 ple on w^hat had been held facred by the 
 Hindoo. 
 
 The temples at Hurdwar, where the 
 Ganges enters Pliiuloftan ; at Matra, the 
 fuppofed birth-place of Kriflina ; at Oud- 
 gcin ; at Benares ; and at Jaggernaut en 
 tlic coait of Orixa ; a temple on the top of 
 a mountain at Trippety, about 40 miles 
 
 N. E.
 
 io8 GOVERNMENT, Sec. 
 
 N. E. of Arcot ; one on an Illand called 
 Seringham, which is formed by the rivers 
 Cavery and Coleroon, near Trichanapoly ; 
 and one on the ifland of Ramafferam, be- 
 tween Ceyloan and the continent, feem 
 from the moil diftant times to have been 
 conftantly held in the highefl: veneration. 
 There are alfo many others that are much 
 reforted to ; but of all thofe of which I 
 have any knowledge, I believe that in 
 Seringham * is the largeft. 
 
 At 
 
 * About a mile from the weilern extremity of the 
 illand of Seringham, and at a fmall diftance from the 
 bank of the Coleroon, ftands this celebrated pagoda. 
 It is compcfed of feven fquare inclofures, one within 
 the other, and (landing at 350 feet afunder. The walls 
 are of flone and mortar, and twenty-five feet high : 
 every inclofure has four large gateways, with a high 
 tower over them, one b-'ing in the centre of each fide, 
 and oppoHte to the four cardir.al points. The out- 
 ward gateway to the fouth is richly ornamented with 
 pillars, fomc of which are fingle pieces of granite 
 33 feet long, and 5 in diameter, and thofe that fornii 
 
 the
 
 GOVERNMENT, S<c. 109 
 
 At the pagoda of Jaggernaut, people 
 of all calls and ranks eat together, with- 
 out 
 
 the roof of the gateway, "which is flat, are ftill larger. 
 The pagoda is confecrated to Viflinou, and in the 
 inner inclofr.re are the akars and the image of that 
 deity. The Brahmans, who belong to the pagoda, are 
 very numerous, and with their families are faid to 
 amount to fome thoufands of fouls. 
 
 During the flruggles between tlie Englifh and French 
 nations for fuperiority in the Caraatic, and in fupport 
 of the Mahomedan viceroys, whefe caufe they refpec- 
 tivelyefpoufed, the repofeof the Brahmans was difturb- 
 ed, and tlieir temple profaned ; it was alternately taken 
 pofTeflion of by the French and Englifli armies. When 
 thcfe rude hitruders firft attempted to enter it, a Brah- 
 man who flood on tlie top of the outer gateway, after 
 having in vain fupplicated them to defift, rather than 
 be a witiiefs of fuch pollution, threw hlmfelf on tlie 
 pavement below, and daflied out his brains. 
 
 About half a mile eaft from tliis pagoda, Is another 
 called Jumbookirnna. When the French, who, with 
 their ally Chunda Salb, had been for fome time fiiut 
 up in thcfe two pagodas, furrendered them to Mr. 
 Laurence in June 1752, a thoufand Rajahpout fea- i 
 poys refufeJ to march out of Serlngham until aflured 
 that their conquerors would not pafs beyond the third 
 
 hiclofure.
 
 no GOVERNMENT, &c. 
 
 out diftlndion or pre-eminence. This 
 is peculiar to that place, being no where 
 elle allowed ; and the pcrmiffion, or rather 
 
 inclofure, declaring they would die to a man in defend- 
 ing the palTage to it : but Mr. Laurence, admiring 
 their courage, and refpecling their devotion, far from 
 giving them offence, ordered that none fhould go be- 
 yond the fccond. Orme, &c. 
 
 Tavernler gives the following defcription of a tem- 
 ple near Amldabad, which the Mahomcdans had con- 
 verted into a mofque : " II y avoit, en ce lieu la, une 
 ** pagode dont les Mahomcdans fe font mis en pof- 
 *' feiTion pour en falre une mofque. Avant que d'y 
 *' entrer, on pafle trois grandes cours, pavees de mar- 
 <« bre, et entourees ds galleries, et il n'eft pas permis 
 <' de mettre le pied t'lans la tricfieme fans otcr fcs 
 " foulitrs. Le dedans de la mofque eft ornee a la 
 " mofaique, la plus grande partie etant d'agates dc 
 ''diverfes coulcurSj qu'on tire dcs montagnes de 
 *' Cambaya, qui ne font qu'a deux journces de la. 
 *« On y voit pluficurs fcpultures des rois idolatrcs, 
 *' Icfquciles font commc autant de petltes chapelles 
 *' 2. la mofaique, avcc de pctites colonnes de marbre, 
 " qui fouticnnent une petite voute, dont Ic fcpulcre 
 « eft couvcrt." 
 
 Vcj.igc de Taveruiir, tome Hi. page 59, 
 cdlilon dc Pi.iris, 1 724. 
 
 order. 
 
 I
 
 GOVERNMENT, &c. m 
 
 order, for the pilgrims of different cafls 
 to do io, is faid to be in commemo- 
 ration of their hero and philofopher 
 Krifhna *, who always recommended com- 
 placency and affedion for each other. A 
 great quantity of viduals is every day 
 prepared, and, after being placed before 
 the altars, is partaken of by the pilgrims. 
 The Brahmans belonging to this pagoda 
 pretend, that it was built by order of the 
 emperor, at the beginning of the Kaly- 
 Youg f , in honour of Vifhnou, by whom 
 the houfe of Pandoo was peculiarly pro- 
 teded J. 
 
 There are ruins on the coaft of Coro- 
 mandel, near Sadras, called, by Europeans, 
 the fev 671 pagodas^ by the natives, Mavali- 
 
 * Krifhna is reprefented in the Mahabaraty and 
 other works, to be the god Vifhnou in one of his in- 
 carnations. Sec Sketch III. 
 
 f See Jftronomy of the Hindoos y Sketch XI. 
 
 1 See Sketch III, 
 
 puram.
 
 112 GOVERNMENT, &c. 
 
 puram. The remains of a palace and 
 temple, of great extent, may yet be traced. 
 Some of the infcriptions and hieroglyphics 
 with which the walls abound, are no longer 
 underftood ; and though tradition informs 
 us that this place was at a confiderable 
 diftance from the fhore. manv of the ruins 
 arc now covered with water, and when it 
 is calm may be feen under it *. 
 
 The immenfe temples, hewn out of the 
 foUd rock, and containing almoft innume- 
 rable pillars, flatues and figures in has re- 
 lief, that are to be feen on the iflands of 
 Salfette and Elephanta, and at Iloura, about 
 20 miles from Aurengabad f , announce a 
 
 * There are pieces of fculpture here in very perfect 
 prefervation, which, with many others that are fcatter- 
 cd over Hindcilan, prove the great fuperiority of the 
 ancient Hindoos in this art, to their later defcendants. 
 
 f For a particular defcription of thofc temples, fee 
 Thevenot an.d Anquctil, &c. : but befides thefe, others 
 of a fimilar kind arc to be met with in different parts of 
 Hindoitan. 
 
 work
 
 GOVERNMENT, Sec. 113 
 
 work of fuch aftoniOiing labour, that the 
 people are firmly perfuaded it could not 
 have been executed by men, but was per- 
 formed by genii, at the order of the godsi 
 
 iThe Hindoo poets frequently mention 
 Duarka as a place highly celebrated. It is 
 faid to have flood at the extremity of the 
 peninfula, and to have been fwallowed up 
 by the fea, a few days after the death of 
 Kirfhna. 
 
 At the hour of public worfhip, the people, 
 are admitted to a periilile, or veftibule, the 
 roof of which, in the large temples, is 
 fupported by feveral rows of pillars ; and 
 while the Brahmans pray before the images, 
 and perform their religious ceremonies, the 
 dancing women dance in the court, or 
 under the portico, finglng the praifes of 
 the god to the found of various mufical in- 
 ftruments. 
 
 The inauguration of a temple is at- 
 tended with great ceremony and propor- 
 VoL. I. I tional
 
 ti4 GOVERNMENT, &c. 
 
 tional expence. After it is completely 
 finiflied, the Brahraans are perhaps obliged 
 to wait feveral months, before they find^ 
 by their aftrology, a fit day for that 
 folemnity. The day is afterwards an- 
 nually celebrated, and is called the feajl 
 of the DewuL Every temple is dedicated 
 to fome particular deity, and each has its 
 annual feaft ; beginning with the day on 
 which the inauguration was performed : 
 it lafts ten days, and to temples j;^at are 
 held in particular veneration, pilgrims 
 refort on that occafion from almeft every 
 part of Hindoftan. Few come v/ithout 
 an offering, by which means alone the 
 revenue of fome of the temples is ren- 
 dered very confiderable ; but, in the coun- 
 tries that are under the Mahomedan 
 yoke, the Erahmans, as well as the 
 pilgrims, are ufually taxed by the govern- 
 ment. 
 
 Throughout Hindoftan we meet with 
 many places of defence, v/hich, from their 
 
 con-
 
 GOVERNMENT, kc. 115 
 
 cohftru£lion, as well as from tradition, ap- 
 pear alfo to be of great antiquity, and 
 feem defigned to refift the effe(5ts of time 
 as well as the attacks of an enemy. Thefe 
 alone are fufficient to fhew, that the hu- 
 mane laws of Brimha could not fecure the 
 mild Hindoos from bein^r difturbed hv 
 the fatal effeds of ambition ; and that the 
 paflions in every climate are fometimes too 
 powerful to be reftrained, even by the wifeft 
 and moft falutary regulations. The build- 
 ing of places of fecurity we find commanded 
 by the law itfelf ; for in the code of Hin- 
 doo laws, in a recapitulation of the quali- 
 ties and things neceffary for a ruler ^ it is 
 faid, *' He fhall ere6t a ftrong fort in the 
 " place where he chufes to refide, and fhall 
 " build a wall on all the four fides, with 
 " towers and battlements, and fhall enclofe 
 *' it with a ditch, &c.'* 
 
 We likewife find the following pafTage 
 in the Heetopades : 
 
 I ^ « What
 
 ii6 GOVERNMENT, &c. 
 
 " What fovereign, whofe country Is fur- 
 " nlflied with ftrong holds, is fubjedt to 
 " defeat ? The prince of a country without 
 " ftrong holds, is as a man who is an outcafl 
 " of his tribe. He fhould build a caftle 
 *' with a large ditch and lofty battle- 
 " mcnts, and furnifli it with machines for 
 *' raifing water, and its fituation fhould be 
 " in a wood, or upon a hill, and where there 
 " are fprings of frefli water, &c." 
 
 Some of thofe fortrefles are by fituation 
 fo flrong as to baffle all the efforts of 
 art in a regular attack, and are only to 
 be reduced by furprife or famine. Such 
 is the fort now called Dowlatabad near 
 Aurengabad, Golcondah near to Hydro- 
 bad, Gualior *, and many others. But 
 
 thefe 
 
 * Gaullor, belonging to tlic Rajah of Ghod, was 
 taken by furprife by the Englifli m 1780 from the 
 Mahrattas, who were then in poflefTion of it. 
 
 It {lands on a rock, about four Englifh miles In 
 length, of unequal breadth, and nearly flat at the 
 top. The fides are almoft perpendicular in every 
 
 parti
 
 GOVERNMENT, &c. 117 
 
 thefe fcem only to have been Intended 
 by the natives as places of retreat in cafe 
 
 of 
 
 part; for where the rock is not fo naturally, it has 
 been made fo by art. The height from the plain below 
 is unequal, but generally from 2co to 300 feet. The 
 rampart that goes round the top conforms to the edge of 
 the precipice. The only afcent is by ftone fteps, 
 which are defended at the bottom by a wall and 
 towers, and in the way up by feven ftrong ftoue gate- 
 ways, at certain diftances from each other. On the 
 top there are many noble buildings, refervoirs for 
 water, and even cultivated land. At the north-weft 
 foot of the mountain is a large and well built town. 
 
 Gualior was once in poflcflion of the Mahomedans, 
 but was recovered by the Hindoos. Tavernier fays, 
 *' Elle (la ville) efl batie le long d'une montagne qui 
 " vers Ic haut eft entouree de murailles avec des tours. 
 *' II y a dans cet enclos quelques etangs que forment 
 *' les piuyes, et ce que I'on y feme eft futhfant pour 
 *,< nourir la garnifon ; ce qui fait que cette place efl 
 *' cftimee une des meilleures deslndes. Sur la pente 
 " de la m.ontagne qui regarde le N. W. Shaw Jehan 
 << fit batir une maifon de plaifance, d'ou Ton voit toute 
 " la ville, et qui pent tenir lieu de fortreffe. Au has de 
 *' cette maifon on voit plufieurs idoles de bas relief 
 " taillees dans le roc, les quelles out toutes la figure de 
 •' demons, et il y en a une entre autrcs, d'une hauteur 
 " extraordinaire. Depuis que les rois JNIahomedans 
 " fe font rendus maitres dc cepais-la, cette fortre He efl 
 I 3 « k
 
 ii8 GOVE.RNMENT, &c. 
 
 of need, and for the fecurity of their fa- 
 milies and treafuresin times of danger; and 
 not for their ufual refidence, or the de- 
 fence of the country. 
 
 In open and plain countries, the forts 
 are conftruded with high walls, flanked by 
 round towers, and are inclofed by a wet or 
 dry ditch *. The Rajah and his family 
 generally dwell within the fort, nearly ad- 
 joining to which is the pettah, or town. 
 
 The 
 
 " le lieu ou ils envoyent les princes et grands figneurs 
 " quand ils vculent s'afTurer de leur perfonne." 
 
 Tav. •ome iii. page 52. 
 Gualior refcmbles other forts that I have feen, 
 being fituated on inacceflible mountains, except by 
 pafTages fecured and defended at different places. Ori 
 the fides of the mountain above the pafl^ige, quantities 
 of ftoncs are generally to be found piled up, and 
 ready to be tumbled down on the heads of the aflail- 
 ants. 
 
 * I have known inftances of their having aligators 
 bred in the ditches of their forts, which correfponds 
 with what Pliny mentions. In fpeaking of the difFef- 
 cnt nations of India he fays, Horata iirbs pulchray 
 
 fofts
 
 GOVERNMENT, &c. 119 
 
 The place of refidence of the Polygar 
 Rajahs, or thofe whofe pofTeffions are in 
 woody and hilly countries, is frequently- 
 found furrounded with an impervious 
 thicket, clofely planted with bamboos and 
 other thorns. A road leads from the open 
 country through the thicket to an area in 
 the centre of it, fometimes forming a plain 
 of feveral miles in circumference, on which 
 is the town. Should it be near to moun- 
 tains, a road fimilar to the other coin- 
 municates with them, the entrance to which 
 is commonly defended by a fort, or a deep 
 trench e^ bread- work. Thefe roads are 
 narrow; prolonged by frequent windings, 
 interfered by barriers ; and, when an at- 
 tack is apprehended, obftruiSted, by cutting 
 ditches and felling trees. By fuch fre- 
 quent interruptions, the progrefs of troops 
 towards the plain is neceflarily flow, during 
 
 foffis palujlrlhus tnnnha; per quas crocodili, kuntntii cof" 
 poris avidijfimij aditum, n'lft poiite, non daut> Plin. lib, 
 vi. cap. 20. 
 
 I 4 which
 
 170 GOVERNMENT, &c. 
 
 which they are hable to be conllantly 
 annoyed by thore who may be concealed 
 in the thickets *. Should thefe difFiculties 
 
 be 
 
 * The following is a defcription of the attack of 
 one of thofe places, as extra£led from a letter of 
 Colonel Fullarton to Lord Macartney and the Council 
 at Madras, contained in his Account of military Opera- 
 tions in the Southern Parts of India, in the Campaigns 
 of 1782, I 783, and 1784 : 
 
 ** On our arrival before the town of Shevigerry, 
 " he (the Polygar chief) retired to the thickets, near 
 *' four miles deep, in front of his Cowbyy which they 
 *' cover and defend. He manned the whole extent of 
 ^* a flrong embankment, that feparates the wood and 
 ** open country 5 v/as joined by other aflbciated Po- 
 ** lygars, and muflered eight or nine thoufand men in 
 "arms. Finding that they trifled with our propofals, 
 *< the line was ordered under ariris in the morning, 
 ** and orders were given for the attack. It com.- 
 *' menccd by the Europeans, and four battalions of 
 *' Scapoys, moving againft the embankment which 
 •* covers the wood. The Polygars, in full force, op- 
 <* pofed un, but our troops remained with their fire- 
 *< locks Ihouldered, though under a heavy fire, until 
 ♦* they approached the embankment, where they gave 
 
 " a general
 
 GOVERNMENT, &c. 121 
 
 be furmountccl, the laft refource of thofe 
 who are attacked, is to retire to the moun- 
 
 " a general Uifeharge and ruflied upon the enemy. 
 " By tlie vigour of this advance, we got poficfficn 
 *' of the fummit, and the Polygars took pod on the 
 *' verge of the adjoining vi-ood, difputing every flep 
 *< with great lofs on both fides. As we found the 
 *' Comhy could not be approached in front, we pro- 
 ** ceeded to cut a road through impenetrable thickets 
 *' for three miles, to the bafe of the hill that bounds 
 ** the Comhy on the weft. We continued to cut our 
 <* way under an unabating fire from 8000 Poiygars, 
 *' who conftantly preflcd upon our advanced party, 
 " ruftied upon the line of attack, piked the bullocks 
 *' that were dragging the guns, and killed many of 
 " our people. But thefe attempts were repulfed by 
 " perfeverance, and before funfet we had opened a 
 ** paflage entirely to the mountain, wliich is extremely 
 ** high, rocky, and in many places almoft perpen- 
 " dicular. Having refolvcd to attack from this un- 
 " expected quarter, the troops undertook the fer- 
 " vice, and attained the fummit. The Polygar parties 
 " polled to guard that eminence being routed, after 
 *' much firing we defcended on the other fide and 
 *' flanked the Comhy. The enemy feeing us mafters 
 " of the mountain, retreated under cover of the 
 " night by paths inaccefiible to regular troops, and we 
 ** took poneflioii of this extraordinary recefs." 
 
 tal-ns.
 
 122 GOVERNMENT, &c. 
 
 tains. Even the common roads through the 
 Pollams, or pofleflions of thefe Rajahs, have 
 generally thick woods on each fide of 
 them, and gateways or barriers acrofs, which, 
 befides ferving as a defence, are intended 
 for the purpofe of levying duties on 
 jnerchandife.
 
 C 123 3 
 
 SKETCH V. 
 
 Cajls^ or Tribes, 
 
 ^TpHE Hindoos are divided into four 
 cajls or tribes, the Brahman, the 
 Khatry, the Bhyfe *, and the Soodera. 
 Thefe caJIs are at prefent again feparated 
 into two parties, or feds, though we muft 
 fuppofe them to have been originally united. 
 The one is called the Yifhnou-Bukht, 
 and the other the Shiva-Bukht, or the 
 followers of Viflinou, and the followers 
 of Shiva. The former diftinguifh them- 
 felves by painting the forehead with a 
 
 * The name in Sanflcrlt is, Vifyas ; or, as it is pro- 
 nounced in fome parts, Bifyas. 
 
 horizontal
 
 124 CASTS. 
 
 horizontal line, and the latter with a per- 
 pendicular one ^. 
 
 Accord- 
 
 * Befide the four cajis above mentioned, there is 
 an adventitious tribe or race of people, called in the 
 Sanflcrit, Chandalasj and on the coail of Coroman- 
 del, Pariars ; who are employed in the meaneft offices, 
 and have no reftriftions with regard to diet. Their 
 number, compared with that of any other cajl, is in- 
 confiderable, and feem.s evidently to confift of thofe 
 perfons that have been expelled their caJls, which is 
 a punifliment inflicted for certain offences. Were a 
 Hindoo of any of the other caJls to touch a Chandala, 
 even by accident, he muft wafh himfelf and change 
 his raiment. He would refrain from the produ6tions 
 of the earth, if he knew that they had been cultivated 
 by a Chandala. A Chandala cannot enter a temple, 
 or be prefent at any religious ceremony. He has no 
 rank in fociety, and cannot ferve in any public em- 
 ployment. Hence the punifhment of expuHion, which 
 is fuppofed in its confequences to extend even to 
 another life, becomes more terrible than that of 
 death. 
 
 Strabo and Diodorus Siculus erroneoufly divide the 
 Hindoos into feven tribes. Into this miftake they 
 have been led by fuppofing the Viflmou-Bukht, and 
 
 Shiva-
 
 CASTS. ri- 
 
 Accordlng to the Hindoo account of the 
 creation, as contained in the facred books, 
 the Veds ■•'^, and explained in different 
 Saftras f, Brahma, or God, having com- 
 manded the world to be^ created Bawaney, 
 who, dancing and finging the praifes of 
 the Supreme, dropped from her womb 
 
 Shiva-Bukht, together with the Chandalas, to be tribes : 
 or, by taking for tribes^ fome of the profeflions into 
 which the Scoderas are divided. 
 
 * The Veds, or as pronounced in fome parts of 
 Hindoftan, Beds, and on the coaft of Coromnndel, 
 Vedanis, contain all the principles of their religion, 
 laws, and government, and are fuppofed to be of di- 
 vine origin. The Tallinghas, and Malabars or Ta- 
 mouls, generally change the B into V, and terminate 
 the Sanfkrit words with an M. 
 
 f Some of the Saftras are commentaries on the 
 Veds, and have been written by different ancient 
 Pundits. The Neetee Saftra is a fyftem of ethics. 
 The Dharma Saftra treats of religious duties, &c. 
 
 Pooran, which we often find mentioned, literally 
 fignifying ancient^ is a title given to a variety of works 
 which treat of their gods and heroes. 
 
 three
 
 126 CASTS. 
 
 three eggs * upon the ground, from whicH 
 were produced three beings, Brimha^ 
 Vifhnou, and Shivah. To the firft,- 
 
 * In the account given of the birth of thofe three 
 beings, we may find an analogy with the opinion^ 
 of fome Egyptians and Greeks. The Thebans, irt 
 comparing the world to an egg, faid that it had come 
 out of the mouth of the Supreme Being *. In the 
 verfes afcribed to Orpheus, it is faid that God 
 having produced a large egg, and broke it, from 
 thence came out the heavens and the earth f . Py- 
 thagoras made ufe of the fame allegory ; and we 
 are told, that the Orphiques, who pretend to have prc- 
 ferved the dodlrines of Pythagoras, abftained from 
 eating eggs, as the Brahmans do now. In the orgies 
 of Bacchus, the egg was confecrated, and held in 
 veneration as a fymbol of the world, and of him luho 
 contains every thing within himfelf. " Confulc initiatos 
 *' liberi patris in quibus hac veneratione ovum co- 
 *' litur, ut ex forma tireti ac pene fphserat atque un- 
 *< diqueverfum claufa et includente intra fe vitam, 
 *' mundi fimulachrum vocatur :{;." 
 
 * Eufeb. Prasp. Ev. i. lo & lib. iii. c. ii. 
 
 f Apud. Athenag. legat. pro Chrilt. N, l8. 
 I Macrob. Saturn, viii. cip. i6, 
 
 c Btahma
 
 CASTS. 127 
 
 Brahma gave 'the power of creating the 
 things of this world ; to the fecond, that 
 of cherifliing and preferving them ; and to 
 the third, that of reftraining and correcting 
 them. 
 
 Brimha created the Brahman from his 
 mouth : his rank was, therefore, the moft 
 eminent ; and his bufmefs, to perform the 
 rites of religion, and to inftrudt mankind 
 in their duty. 
 
 He next created the Khatry from his 
 arms ; and his duty was to defend the 
 people, to govern, and to command. 
 
 He then created the Bhyfe from his 
 thighs and belly ; and his bufmefs was to 
 provide, and to fupply by agriculture and 
 traffic. 
 
 The Soodera he created from his feet; 
 and to him devolved the duty to labour, 
 to ferve, and to obey. 
 
 He
 
 128 CASTS. 
 
 He then proceeded to create all other 
 animate and inanimate things ; and the Su-' 
 preme Being infufed into mankind the: 
 principles of piety, of juflice, of compaf- 
 fion, and of love ; of luft, of avarice, of 
 pride, and of anger ; with underftanding 
 and reafon, to prefide over and apply 
 them. 
 
 Brimha having reflected within himfelf, 
 and being infpired by the principle of 
 'wifdom^ wrote rules for the promotion of 
 virtue, and the reftraining of vice ; fixed the 
 duties of the Brahman, the Khatry, the 
 Bhyfe, and the Soodera ; and calling thefe 
 writings Vcdsy he delivered them to the 
 Brahman, with power to read and to ex- 
 plain them '*. 
 
 The 
 
 * " The natural duty of the Brahman is peace, 
 *' felf-reftralnt, patience, reditude, wifdom, and 
 " learning." 
 
 "Tlie
 
 CASTS. 129 
 
 The Bralimans Hied no blood, nor eat 
 any thing that has had life in it ■■ ; their diet 
 is rice and other vegetables, prepared with 
 a kind of butter called ghee f , and with 
 
 ** The natural duties of the Khatry are, bravery^ 
 " glory, not to flee from the field, redtitude, gene- 
 " rofitv, and prhicely condu£l." 
 
 " The natural duty of the Bhyfe is, to cultivate the 
 *' land, to tend the .cattle, to buy and fell." 
 
 " The natural duty of the Soodera Is, fcrvitude." 
 " A man being contented with his own particular 
 *' lot and fituation, obtaineth perfeftion." 
 
 " A man by following the duties which are ap- 
 " pointed by his birth, doeth no wrong." 
 
 ** A man's own calling ought not to be forlaken." 
 
 Bhngvat Geeta. 
 Only the Brahmans may reaJ the Veds ; the 
 Khatries m.ay hear them read ; but the other cafls 
 may only hear the Safcras, or Commentaries on tlie 
 Veds. 
 
 * Porphiry and Clement of Alexandria, fpcaking 
 of the ancient Brahmans, fay, they drank no wine, 
 nor eat any animal food. 
 
 t Ghee is butter melted and refined, which, thus 
 prepared, may be kept a confideruble time, even in 
 a hot climate. 
 
 Vol. I. K ginger
 
 1-30 
 
 CASTS. 
 
 ginger and other fpices ; but they confider 
 milk as the pureft food, as coming from 
 the cow, an animal for whofe fpecies they 
 have a facred veneration. 
 
 This veneration for the ox may have 
 been ordained, to preferve from (laughter 
 an animal that is of fo great utility to man- 
 kind, particularly in Hindoftan, which is 
 produdive but of few horfes, comparatively 
 with the extent of the country, and, the 
 number of its inhabitants. The veneration 
 in which the ox was held by the Egyptians, 
 may have been borrowed from the Hin- 
 doos, or may have arifcn from the fame 
 caufe, which may likewife have given birth 
 to the hull of Zoroajler, Cicero obferves, 
 that it was the utility of certain animals 
 that occafioned their being worfhipped by 
 the Egyptians and other nations*'. Plu- 
 tarch 
 
 * " Ipfi, qui irridentur Egyptii, nullam bclluam, nifi 
 " ob alio^uam utilitutem quam ex ca caperent confccrave- 
 
 " runt.
 
 CASTS. 131 
 
 tarch fays nearly the fame thing*. A fimilar 
 reeard feems to have been fhewn for the 
 ox by the Phenicians. Porphiry fays, that 
 a Pheniclan would fooner eat a piece of 
 human flefli than tafte that of an ox f] 
 In the early ages of Athens it appears, that 
 not only this animal, but all beafts of labour 
 were referved from llaughter, even from 
 being offered in facrifice, and v^'hich was 
 one of the laws renewed by Draco. — In 
 the code of Gentoo laws we find, befides 
 prefer ving the animal from being killed, 
 " that if any one fhall exadt labour from 
 " a bullock that is hungry or thlrfly, or 
 " oblige him to labour when fatigued or 
 " out of feafon, the magiftrate Ihall fine 
 " him." 
 
 All Brahmans are not prlefls, yet all 
 priefls are Brahmans. Thole who are not 
 
 ** runt, concludam belluas abarbaiis propter beneficium 
 " confecratas." Cic. de Nat. Deor. Lib. I. N. 37. 
 
 * Plut. de Ifid. et Ofir. 
 
 t Porph. de Abft. 11. 
 
 K 2 of
 
 132' CASTS. 
 
 of the order of the priefthood, whether 
 followers of Vifhnou or of Shiva, may 
 ferve, but not in menial offices ; we often 
 find them acting as fecretaries, and fuper- 
 intendants, to perfons of high rank, as 
 factors to bankers and merchants : and 
 there are inftances of Brahmans being firft 
 minifters, not only to Hindoo princes, but 
 even to Mahomedans, being preferred for 
 their knowledge, fobricty of manners, and 
 conflant application. Some even bear 
 arms, but none of thefc can be admitted 
 into the priefthood, and, in their appear- 
 ance, they are only diftinguifhed from the 
 other Hindoos by the mark on their fore- 
 head. They likewife, however, abftain 
 from animal food ; and they meet with 
 refped from the members of the other 
 cajis^ though not in fo great a degree as the 
 priefts. But thofe who are of the prieft- 
 hood, confine their attention to the per- 
 formance of religious ceremonies, to the 
 fervice of the temples, to ftudy, and to 
 
 the education of youth. 
 
 The
 
 CASTS. 
 
 133 
 
 The priefts never carry weapons of any- 
 kind, nor is it fuppofed to be fit for thcra 
 to employ them, even in their own de- 
 fence. They are patiently to'fubmit to 
 violence, and leave it to God and the laws 
 to avenge them. 
 
 But throughout thefe laws, which were 
 moft probably compofed by the Brahmans, 
 reigns an uncommon degree of partiality 
 to their cajl. They claim a pre-eminence 
 in rank, even to their princes, or rajahs,^ 
 "who are of the fecond, or Khatry cajl. 
 A rajah v;ill receive, and taile with refpetft, 
 the food prepared by a Brahman, but a 
 Brahman dare not eat of any thing that 
 may have been touched by one of another 
 cajt. In the adminiftration of juftice, the 
 punifhment of a Brahman for any crime 
 is milder, and in general of a lefs difgrace- 
 ful nature, than that of another man for the 
 fame offence ; and they have defcended to 
 the moft minute circumflances, in order 
 K 3 to
 
 v 
 
 134 CASTS. 
 
 to preferve that deference and refpecl 
 which they have eftablifhed as their 
 due. 
 
 It is faid, in their laws, " If a Brahman 
 " commit a crime deferring of a capital 
 " punifliment, the magiftrate fhall, to 
 " prevent his committing a fimilar crime 
 " in future, fentence him to perpetual imr 
 " prifonment. — There is no crime in the 
 " world fo great as that of murdering a 
 <-* Brahman ; and therefore no magiftrate 
 ♦' fliall ever defire the death of a Brahmanj 
 ^' or cut off one of his limbs. 
 
 " Whatever orders fuch Brahmans as 
 *' are Pundits fhall deliver to the Ryuts 
 " from the Saflra, the Ryuls fhall ac- 
 ^* knowledge and obey. 
 
 " If a Soodera give much, and frc- 
 ^* quent, moleflation to a Brahman, the. 
 " magiftrate fhall put him to death. 
 
 " If
 
 CASTS. ,35 
 
 " If a Brahman go to wait 011 a 
 " prince, the fervants and derbans fliall 
 " not obflrudt his entrance, but give him 
 " a ready admiflion. 
 
 " If a Brahman be paflenger in a boat, 
 " he fhall not pay any thing to the water- 
 " man ; and he fhall enter and leave the 
 " boat before any other of the pafTen- 
 *' gers," &c. 
 
 In fettling precedence, and making way 
 on the road, all are obliged to yield to the 
 Brahmans *, 
 
 The fundions of royalty devolve with- 
 out exception on the Khatry cqft ; and 
 
 * Diodorus Siculus, in fpeaking of tlie cafts 
 among the Hindoos, fays, " Primum eft philofopho- 
 " rum qui ceteris, numero pauciores, fupereminent 
 *' dignitate. Hi ab omni opere immune>, neque 
 " ferviunt cuiquam neque imperant." 
 
 £)/5(/. SiculiiS) Lib. II. cap. x. 
 
 K 4 the
 
 136 CAST S. 
 
 the pofieffions and authority, of their nz- 
 jabs arc hereditary, defcending in the line 
 of legitimate male primogeniture. But as 
 the rip;ht of blood defcends onlv to this 
 degree, in default thereof the prince may- 
 adopt any one of his kinfmen to be his 
 fuccefibr *, \vho, from the time of his 
 adoption, obtains tlie rights and the ap- 
 pellation of his fon. 
 
 The younger branches of the families of 
 rajahs generally ferve in a military capacity, 
 and have fometimes lands given them, which 
 they hold by a feudal tenure. 
 
 All commercial tranfacSlions are com- 
 rnitccd to the Bhyfe, or Bannian. 
 
 * Inllances of this kind frequently occur. Vizi- 
 aram-rauze, the prefent rajah of Vizianagaram, 
 was adopted in preference to his elder brother Sitta- 
 rair.-rauzc. 
 
 Tlie
 
 CASTS. 137 
 
 The Soodera cajl is by far more numerous 
 than all the other cafts together, and com- 
 prifcvS the artifan, and the labourer of every 
 kind. The mechanics and artifans are 
 again divided into as many clafles as there 
 are profefTions. Ninety- eight fubdivifions 
 of the different cafts have been reckoned by 
 the Danifh miffionaries, who have given an 
 account of their names, and different em- 
 ployments *. All follow the profeffions of 
 their fathers. None can quit the clafs he 
 belongs to, or be admitted, or marry, in- 
 to another : and hence probably that re- 
 femblance that fome have pretended to 
 obferve in each clafs, as if compofnig one 
 great family. 
 
 The cheerful refignation of the Soodera 
 to his inferior ftate in fociety, with the im- 
 pofTibility of rifing above it, befides the effedl 
 ofeducation, maybe afcribed to the influence 
 of his religion. He is taught by itto be- 
 
 * De la Croze, Hiil. du Cliiifl. dcs Indes. 
 
 lievQ
 
 ,38 CAS T S. 
 
 lieve that he is placed in the fphere he 
 now moves in, by way of trial, or for of- 
 fences committed in a former life, and that 
 by piety and refignation he will enjoy 
 greater happincfs in another, 
 
 Though the other cojls enjoy greater li- 
 berty with refped: to diet than the Brah- 
 mans, yet they fcrupuloully refrain from 
 what is forbidden them, and will not par- 
 take of what may have been provided by 
 any of an inferior r^, or different religion % 
 
 They 
 
 * Were a Hindoo to break thofe rules, he would be 
 expelled from his cafl. It having been found requifite 
 to fend fome regiments of Seapoys from one Englifli 
 fettlement to another by fea, thofe who were Hindoos 
 were permitted to provide and carry with them water 
 and provifions for their own particular ufe : but one of 
 the fliips happening to be longer in the paflage than 
 had been expelled, nothing remained to them, for 
 feveral days before their arrival at land, but a very 
 fmall quantity of dry rice to each daily, without water 
 to drefs it, and fCarcely more than fuflicient to wet 
 their mouths; yet they could not be prevailed on to 
 
 tafte
 
 CAST S. 139 
 
 They may eat filh and fielh, but not of all 
 kinds indifferently ; and to abftain from 
 them is confidered a virtue, as may be 
 obferved in the following pafflige of the 
 Heetopades "^ : 
 
 tafte the other water or provifions th:it were on boarJ, 
 though almoft expiring from thirft and want of nourifli- 
 ment. 
 
 * The Heetopades, Heetopadefa, or Apologues of 
 Vifhnou-Sarma, an ancient Brahman, was tranflated 
 from the Sanfkrit by Mr. Charles Wilkins, and pub- 
 liflied in 1787. Mr. V/ilkins fays, that the meaning 
 of the word is, i(fifi(l injlruction. Sir William Jones 
 acquaints us, in a difcourfe to the fociety of Calcutta, 
 *' That the fables of Viflmou-Sarma, improperly called 
 *' the fables of Pilpay, are the mofl beautiful and an- 
 <* cient colleftion of apologues in the world, and are 
 ** now extant under different names in various lan- 
 *' guages. That they appear to have been firft tranf- 
 «* lated from the Sanlkrit in the fixth century, by 
 " Buzerchumihr, chief phyfician, and afterwards vizir, 
 <' to the great Anufliirwan, king of Perfia." JMr. 
 Wilkins obferves, that the Perfian verfion of Abul 
 Mala Naffer Alia Muftofi, made in the 515th year of 
 the Hegira, was tranflated into French with the title 
 of Les confeils et les maxhms cle Pilpay, phllofc-phe Itidien^ 
 fur les divers etats de la vie ; and that this refcmbles the 
 fpriginal more than any other tranllation he has fcen. 
 
 " Thofe
 
 I40 CAS T S. 
 
 " Thofe who have forfaken the kllllnEr 
 
 o 
 
 " of all; thofe whofe houfes are a fanc- 
 *' tuary to all ; they are in the way to 
 " heaven." 
 
 No Hnidoo of any of the four cajls is 
 allowed, by his religion, to tafte any in- 
 toxicating liquor ; it is only drank by 
 ftrangers, dancers, players, and Chanda- 
 lahs, or outcafts ; and the wine or liquor 
 mentioned by Qiiintus Curtius we are at a 
 lofs to account for, unlefs it were the toddy^ 
 or juice of the cocoa, the palmyra^ and 
 date tree, which, before it be fermented, is 
 of a cooling purgative quality, and drank 
 on that account *. 
 
 That 
 
 * The three fpecles of the palm tree that I have 
 mentioned, are in great abundance over almoft the 
 whole peninfula and iflands of India. 
 
 The cocoa^ which is the firft in rank, is perhaps of 
 more univerfal ufe to man, than any other tree tlie 
 earth produces. It generally grows almofl pcrfcdlly 
 ftraight, is from tliirty to forty feet high, and about a 
 
 foot
 
 CASTS. 141 
 
 That the Hindoos retain their original 
 character and manners, nctwithftand- 
 
 ing 
 
 foot in diameter. It has no branches; but about a 
 dozen leaves fpring immediately from the trunk near 
 the top, which are about ten feet long, and, at the 
 bottom of the leaf, from two to three in breadth. 
 Thefe leaves ferve to cover the houfes of the common 
 clafles of the natives, to make mats for them to fit and 
 lie upon; with the finefl fibres of the leaf, very beau- 
 tiful mats are made, that are bought by the rich ; the 
 coarfe fibres are made into brooms; and the ftem of 
 the leaf, which is about as thick as a man's ankle, is 
 ufed for fuel. The vrood of the tree when frefli cut, 
 is fpungy ; but this, as well as that of the palmyra tree, 
 becomes hard by being kept, and attains a dark brov>ai 
 colour. — On the top of the tree, a large flioot is found, 
 which, when boiled, refembles brocalo, but is perhaps 
 of a more delicate taflc, and though much liked, is fel- 
 dom eat by the natives, as, on cutting it, the pith being 
 left expofed, the tree dies. Between this flioot and the 
 leaves fpring feveral buds, from which, on making an 
 incifion, dlilils a juice, differing little either in colour or 
 confiflencc from water. Men, whofe bufinefs it is, 
 climb to tlie tops of the trees in the evening, with 
 earthen pots tied round their wafte, which they fix to 
 receive this juice, and take away early in the morning 
 
 before
 
 142 CASTS. 
 
 ing the conqueft of their country by 
 ftrangers, is owing to the religious 
 
 obferv- 
 
 beforc the fun has had any influence on it. The liquor, 
 thus drawn, is generally called Tarj, and by the Englifli 
 Toddy It is in this flate cooling, and cf a fweet agree- 
 able tafte — after being kept a few hours, it begins to 
 ferment, acquires a fliarper tafle, and a flighter in- 
 toxicating quality. By boiling it, a coarfe kind of 
 fugar is made \ and by diflillation it yields a ftrong 
 fpirit, which being every where fold, and at a low price, 
 contributes not a little to ruin the health of our foldiers. 
 The name given to this fpirit by the Englifli is Par- 
 r'lar arrack, as it is drank by the Parriars or out- 
 cafts. — The trees from which the toddy is drawn, do 
 not bear any fruit -, but if the buds be left entire, they 
 produce clufters of the cocoa-7nit. This nut, in the hufk, 
 IS full as large as a man's head ; and, when once ripe, 
 falls with the leafl wind. — When frelh gathered it is 
 g\-een on the outfide-, the hufk and the fhell are tender* 
 The fliell when diverted of the hufk may be about the 
 fize of an oftrich's egg; it is lined with a white pulpy 
 fubftance, and contains about a pint, or a pint and a 
 half, of liquor like water, and though the tafle be 
 fweet and agreeable, it is different from that of the 
 toddy 
 
 8 In
 
 CASTS. 143 
 
 obfervance of their rules and cuftoms, 
 from which no hope of advantage, or 
 
 fear 
 
 In proportion as the fruit grows old, or is kept, the 
 fnell hardens, the liquor diminiflies, and is at hit 
 entirely abforbed by the white pulpy fubftance, which 
 gradually attains the hardnefs of the kernel of die 
 almond, and is almofl as eafily detached from the fhell. 
 The Indians ufe this nut in their cookery. — From it 
 great quantities of the pureft and befl lamp oil is prefTed; 
 and the fubftance, after it has been prefled, ferves to 
 feed poultry and hogs, and is found an excellent 
 nouriflnncnt for them. Cups, and a variety of fmall 
 utenfils, are made of the fliell. — The hufk is at leaft an 
 inch in thicknefs, and being compofed of ftrong fibres 
 that eafily feparate. It furnillies all the Indian cord- 
 age. 
 
 The palmyra^ or as it is called by the Poituguefe (from 
 Vi'hom the Englifh, as in many other Inftances, have 
 borrowed the name) the palmetro-brabo, is taller than 
 the cocoa, greater quantities of toddy are drawn from it ; 
 for though a fmall fruit which It yields be fometimcs 
 eat, and is thought wholefome, yet it Is but little fought 
 after. This tree, like the ccccuf has no branches, but 
 only a few large leaves quite at the top, which are alfo 
 employed to thatcli houfcs, and to make mats and 
 
 umbrellas^
 
 144 CASTS. 
 
 fear of punlfliment, can poflibly engage 
 them to depart. 
 
 umbrellas. The timber of tliis tree is much ufed in 
 building. 
 
 The date-ircc is not fo tall as the cocoa. The fruit 
 never arrives to maturity in India ; toddy is drawn 
 from it, but neither in fuch quantity, nor of fo good a 
 quality, as that which is procured from the two former 
 fpecies. Indeed, the Indian date-tree is but of little 
 value, comparatively with even the palmyra, though 
 that be inferior to the cocoa.
 
 SKETCH VI. 
 
 Religion cf the Hindoos, 
 
 "'ITZHATEVER opinion may be formed 
 of the Hindoo religion Itfelf, we 
 cannot deny Its profeflbrs the merit of hav- 
 ing adhered to it with a conftancy unequal- 
 led in the hlftory of any other. The num- 
 ber of thofe who have been Induced or 
 compelled to quit their dodlrines, notwith- 
 ftandlng the long period of their fubjedion, 
 ^nd the perfecutlons they have undergone, 
 Is too inconfiderable to bear any proportion 
 to the number of thofe who have adhered 
 to them. 
 
 It is a circumftance very fingular, and 
 
 merits particular attention, that, contrary 
 
 Vol. I. L to
 
 146 R E L I G r O N. 
 
 to the pradlce of every other religious 
 fociety, the Hindoos, far from difturbing 
 thofe who are of a different faith, by en- 
 deavours to convert them, cannot even 
 admit any profelytes j and that, notwith- 
 ftanding the exclufion of others, and 
 though tenacious of their own dodtrines, 
 they neither hate, nor defpife, nor pity, 
 fuch as are of a different belief, nor do they 
 think them lefs favoured by the Supreme 
 Being than themfelves. They fay, that if 
 the Author of the univerfe preferred one 
 religion to another, that only could prevail 
 which he approved ; becaufe to fuppofe 
 fuch preference, while we fee fo many 
 different religions, would be the height of 
 impiety, as it would be fuppofmg injuftice 
 towards thofe that he left ignorant of his 
 will ; and they therefore conclude, that 
 every religion is peculiarly adapted to the 
 country and people where it is pradlifed, 
 and that all, in their original purity, are 
 equally acceptable to God. 
 
 The
 
 RELIGION. 147 
 
 The Brahmans * who tranflated from 
 the Sanfki it language the laws and cnfiioms 
 of the Hindoos, fay, in the preliminary 
 difcourfe prefixed to their work ; 
 
 " From men of enlightened underfcand- 
 *' ings and found judgment, who, in their 
 " refearches after truth, have fwept away 
 " from their hearts malice and oppofition, 
 " it is not concealed that the diverfities of 
 " belief, which are caufes of enmity and 
 " envy to the ignorant, are in fafl a de- 
 " monftration of the power of the Supreme 
 " Being." 
 
 " The truly intelligent w^ell know, that 
 " the difference and variety of created 
 " things, and the contrarieties of conflitu- 
 " tions, are types of his wonderful attri- 
 " butes, whofe complete power formed all 
 " things in the animal, vegetable, and ma- 
 " terial world ; whofe benevolence felefled 
 " man to have dominion and authority over 
 
 * Sec Sketch II. 
 
 L 2 " the
 
 148 RELIGION. 
 
 *' the reft; who, having beftowed on hinl 
 " judgment and underftanding, gave hinl 
 " fupremacy over the corners of the v^orld ; 
 " who, having put into his hands the con- 
 " trol and difpofal of all things, appointed 
 " to each nation its own religion ; and who 
 " inftituted a variety of tribes, and a mul- 
 " tiplicity of different cuftoms, but views 
 " with pleafure in every place the mode of 
 " worfhip particularly appointed to it ; he 
 " is with the attendants upon the mofque, 
 " in counting the facred beads ; and he is 
 " in the temple with the Hindoos, at the 
 " adoration of the idols.'* 
 
 Hov^'ever the intention of thofe idols may 
 have been corrupted in a long courfe of 
 practice by the ignorant multitude, or art- 
 ful priefl:, they, a;s w-ell as their various 
 deities, fecm evidently to have been only 
 defigned to fhew the attributes of a Being 
 of whom we cannot form any precife or 
 fnnple idea, and who cannot be reprefented 
 under aiiy particular fhape ; neither have 
 
 they
 
 RELIGION. 149 
 
 ihey any Image of Brama *, or God, who 
 they ibmetimes call the Frinciple of Truths 
 x\iQ Spirit of JVifdom^ the Supreme Beifig^ the 
 Univcrfal Soul that penetrates every things 
 and epithets of the fame kind. They fay, 
 ** that the mind may form fome conception 
 " of his attributes, when brought feparately 
 " before it; but who can grafp the isL^hole 
 " within th.e limited circle of human 
 " ideas ? 
 
 Saint Francis Xavler fay?, that a Brah- 
 man on the coafl of Malabar confided to 
 him, that one of the myfteries or fecrets of 
 the Hindoo do(ftrinc.s confUled in believing 
 that there was only one God, creator of the 
 
 * See Sketch V. jNIr. d^ la Croze, however, 
 mentions to have feeu a Hindoo painting of a triattgley 
 enclofed'in a circle y which was faiJ to be intended as an 
 emblematical indication of the Supreme Being : but he 
 obferves, that this is not as a thing to worlhip, and 
 that no image is ever made of God. Ilifl:. du Chrifl, 
 des Indes. 
 
 L 3 heavens
 
 150 R E L I G I O N. 
 
 heavens and the earth, and that only that 
 Qod was worthy to be adored *. 
 
 Bernier, who w^as an attentive traveller, 
 a faithful narrator, and vvho, if we make 
 allowances for the prejudices of the age in 
 which he lived, may be confidered as a 
 judicious obferver, gives the following ac- 
 count of a converfation he had with fome 
 of the principal piindUs at Benares, upon 
 the fubjedl of the worfhip of idoU among 
 the Hindoos. 
 
 " Lorfque je defgendis le long du Gange, 
 ^' et que je palfai par Benares, j'allai trouver 
 " le chef des Pundets qui fait la fa demeure 
 ** ordinaire. C'eft un religieux tellement 
 ** renommc pour fon favoir, que Chah 
 ** Jehan f , tant pour fa fcience que pour 
 " complaire aux Raja?, lui fit pcrJion de 
 
 * Lib. I. Ep. 5. 
 
 f The father of Aui-engzebc : his name is generally 
 written by the Englilh, Shaw Jehan. 
 
 *' deux
 
 RELIGION. 151 
 
 '* deux mille roupies. C'etoit un gros 
 " homme, ties bien fait, et qu'on re- 
 " gardoit avec plaifir : pour tout vetement 
 *' il n'avoit qu'une efpece d'echarpe 
 *' blanche de foye, qui ctoit ILee a Tentour 
 *' de fa ceinture, et qui pendoit jufqu'a 
 ^' mi-jambe, avec un autre echarpe rouge, 
 " de foye, affez large, qu'il avoit fur fes 
 " epaules comme un petit manteau. Je 
 " I'avois vu plufieurs fois a Delhi dans 
 *' cette poflure, devant le Roi, dans TAf- 
 " femble'e de tous les Omrahs, et marcher 
 " par les rues tantot a pied tantot en Palcky *, 
 " Je Tavois auffi vu, et j'avois converfe 
 " plufieurs fois avec lui, parceque pen- 
 " dant un an il s'etoit toujours trouve a 
 ^' notre conference devant mon Agah, a 
 *' qui il faifoit la cour, afin qu'il lui fit 
 *' redonner fa penfion, qu' y\urengzebe, 
 " parvenu a I'Empire, lui avoit otee, pour 
 " paroitre grand Mufulman. Dans la 
 
 * Called by the Englifh Palankeefi^ though the man- 
 ner in which the French write and pronounce ir, ii 
 piiore correcl. — The natives call it Palkee. 
 
 L 4 *' vifite
 
 152 RELIGION. 
 
 " vifite que je lui rendis a Benares, il me 
 " fit cent careiTes, ct me donna mcme la 
 " collation dans la Bibliotheque de fon 
 " Univerfite avec les fix plus fjSneux Pun- 
 " dets de la ville. Quand je me vis en fi 
 *' bonne compagnie, je les priai tous, de 
 " me dire leur fentiment fur I'adoration de 
 ** leurs Idoles ; car je leur difois que je 
 " m'en allois des Indes extre'mement fcan- 
 " dalife de cc cote la, et leur rcprochois 
 " que c'etoit une chofe contre toute forte 
 *' de raifon et tout a fait indigne de gens 
 " favans et Philofophes comme eux :" 
 
 " Nous avons veritablement, me dirent 
 " lis, dans nos temples, quantite de fta- 
 *' tucs diverfes, comme celle de Brahma '^', 
 *''Maha.deu, Genich, et Gavani f, qui 
 " font dcs principaux et des plus parfaits 
 " Dcutas^ et meme de quantite d'autres 
 " de moindre perfeoion, auxquelles nous 
 
 * This, I prefume, is a m-flake ; Bernier probably- 
 meant Briwha. 
 
 f Probably, Bawany. 
 
 " rendons
 
 RELIGION. 153 
 
 " rendons beaucoup d'hoimeur, nous nous 
 " profternons devant elles, et leut prefcn- 
 " tons dcs fleurs, du ris, des huiles, de 
 " fenteurs, du lafran et autrcs chofes fem- 
 " blables avec beaucoup de ccremonie : 
 " ne'anmoins, nous ne croyons point que 
 " ces ftatues foient ou Brahma mcme, ou 
 " Eecheii '^ lui meme, et ainfi des autres, 
 " mais feulement leurs images et reprcfen- 
 " tations, et nous ne leur rendons ces hon- 
 " neurs qu'a caufe de ce qu'ellcs reprc- 
 " fentent ; elles font dans nos T) cur as f , 
 " afin qu' il y ait quelquc chofe devant les 
 ^' yeux qui arretc rer})rlt; et quand nous 
 " prions, ce n'eft pas la flatue que nous 
 " prions, mais celui qui eft reprclente par 
 ^* la ftatue : au rede nous reconnoiifons 
 *' que c'eft Dieu qui efl; le maitre abfolu et 
 " le feul Toiit-puiflant." 
 
 Mr. Ziegenbalg, one of the firft miffiona- 
 ries that was fent by the king of Denmark 
 
 * Yiflicn, or Viihnou. \ Dewuls, or teirjples. 
 
 to
 
 154 RELIGION. 
 
 to Tranquebar *', and who may be named 
 the proteftant apollle of India, having 
 afked, in writing, from different Brahmans, 
 the reafon of their not offering worfhip to 
 the Supreme Being, they uniformly re- 
 
 * Tranquebar was gr^intcd to the Danes, by the 
 Kajah of Tanjour, in 1621. — The king of Denmark 
 having applied to M. Fran eke, profeflbr of theology at 
 Halle, to recommend perfons fit to be fent as mifTion- 
 aries to India, felecled M. Ziegenbalg and M.Plutchau. 
 They failed from Copenhagen the 29th of November 
 
 1705, and arrived at Tranqi^ebar the 9th of July 
 
 1 706. M. Plutchau, after a few years refidence, return- 
 ed to Europe, and remained there. M. Ziegenbalg 
 vifited Europe in 1715*, came from Denmark to Eng- 
 land, embarked there the 4th of March 17 16, landed 
 at Madras the 9th of Auguft of the fame year, and 
 died at Tranquebar the 23d of February 17 19. He 
 tranflated into the Malabar, or Tamoul language, the 
 whole of the New Teitament, and at his death had 
 nearly completed a trarnlation of the Old. He wrote 
 a Malabar grammar, tliat was printed at Halle ; and a 
 di£liohary, that was printed at Tranquebar in 17 12, 
 which then contained 20,000 words, and was after- 
 wards augmented. Vid. Hill, du Chrifl. des Indes, 
 par le Croze. 
 
 8 plicdj
 
 RELIGION. 155 
 
 plied, that God v;as a Being without fhape, 
 incomprehenfible, of whom no precife idea 
 could be formed ; and that the adoration 
 before idols, being ordained by their re- 
 ligion, God would receive, and confider 
 that as adoration offered to himfelf. 
 
 Some learned men, or pundits, that he 
 calls Giianigueuls^ who have written on the 
 Narghenny ivor/hip^ or worfhip of the in- 
 vifible, have no other object of adoration 
 but that Being ; and their books treat only 
 of the love of God, and duties of morality. 
 He gives fome literal tranilations of paflages 
 from their writings. 
 
 " The Being of beings is the only God, 
 *' eternal, and every where prefent, who 
 " cowprifcs every th'wg ; there is no God 
 " but thee." 
 
 " O Sovereign of all beings, Lord of the 
 " Heavens and the Karth, before whom. 
 ** fhall I deplore my wretchednefs, if thou 
 *' abandon me * ?" 
 
 * From a book named Vara-baddu. 
 
 " God
 
 !5^ R E L r G I O K 
 
 " God is, as upon a fea without bounds ; 
 " thofe who wifh to approach him muft 
 *' appeafe the agitation of the waves — they 
 " muft be of a tranquil and fteady mind, 
 *' retired within themfelves, and their 
 *' thoughts being colleded, muft be fixed 
 '* on God only *.' 
 
 * " 
 
 In a letter written to M. Ziegenbalg, by 
 a Brahman, he fays, " God may be known 
 " by his laws, and wonderful works. By 
 " the reafon and underftanding he has 
 " given to man, and by the creation and 
 *' prefervation of all beings. It is indif- 
 *' penfably the duty of man, to believe in 
 *' God, and love him. — Our law enjoins 
 " this. — Thofe two principles ought to be 
 *' in his. fpeech, in his mind; they fhould 
 " guide all his adions, in which being well 
 " founded, he fhould invoke God, and en- 
 *' deavour in every thing to conform him-? 
 "felftohis will." 
 
 * From a book named Tchlva-Vackkium. 
 
 A Hin-
 
 RELIGION.. 1^7 
 
 A Hindoo having been converted to 
 Chriftianity by the Danifh miflionaries, his 
 father wrote to him, " You are yet unac- 
 *' quainted with the myfteries of our re- 
 " Hgion. — We do not worfliip many 
 " Gods in the cxtrkvagant manner you 
 " imagine. — In all the multitude of images, 
 " we adore one Divine efTence only. We 
 " have amongft us learned men, to whom 
 " you fhould apply, and who will remove 
 *• all your doubts '*." 
 
 M. de la Croze, in fpeaking from the 
 authority of M. Ziegenbalg, and another 
 miffionary, M. J. E. Grundler, fay?, " la 
 " one of their books, they (the Hindoos) 
 " exprefs themfelves in the following man- 
 " ner : The Supreme Being is invifible, in- 
 " comprehenfible, immoveable, without 
 " figure or Ihape. No one has ever feeii 
 " him ; time never comprifed him ; his 
 " eflence pervades every thing ; all was 
 " derived from him, &c." 
 
 * lilft. du Chrift. des Indes, tome ii. li^'. 6. 
 
 Father
 
 !53 RELIGION. 
 
 Father Bouchet, fuperior of the Jefuit 
 miffionaries, writes to the bifhop of 
 Avranches, from Madura, in the Carnatick, 
 
 " The Indians acknowledge one eternal 
 " God, infinitely perfed." 
 
 *' They fay, that the great number of di- 
 *' vinities which they worfhip, are only in- 
 " ferior deities, entirely fubje(fl to the will 
 " of the Supreme Being, who is equally 
 " Lord of gods and men *." 
 
 Sir William Jones obferves, " The 
 " learned Hindoos, as they are inftrudted 
 " by their own books, in truth acknow- 
 *' ledge only one Supreme Being, whom 
 " they call Brahm^ or the great one, in the 
 *' neuter gender. They beUeve his efTence 
 " to be infinitely removed from the com- 
 " prehenfion of any mind but his own, 
 " and they fuppofe him to manifeft his 
 
 * Lettres Edif. et Cur. i2mo. edit, de Paris, 1781. 
 tome ii. 
 
 " power
 
 RELIGION. T59 
 
 ** power by the operation of his divine 
 " fpirit*." 
 
 The vulgar, whofe underftandings are 
 only exercifed by the ufual occupations and 
 occurrences in their particular fpheres of 
 life ; and the feeble, or ignorant, among the 
 higher ranks of mankind, inftead of going 
 into fpeculative reflections, naturally fix 
 their attention on the external object that 
 is prefented to them, which, aided v/ith a 
 little art, gradually leads them into a fuper- 
 flitious veneration of things, to which an 
 inquiring and thinking mind eafily under- 
 ftands that none is due. Nor need we go 
 to Hindoftan for inftances of the truth of 
 this affertion. 
 
 If we, therefore, abllra6t our minds from 
 the abufes, and inquire into the fpirit, of 
 
 * Afiatic Refeardies, vol, i. 
 
 the
 
 t6o RELIGION. 
 
 the Hindoo religion, \vc fliall find, that it 
 inculcates the belief in one God only, with- 
 out beginning and without end ; nor can 
 any thing be more fublime than their idea 
 of the Supreme Being. I (hall quote fome 
 ftanzas from a hymn to Narrayna, or the 
 Spirit of God, taken, as Sir William Jones 
 informs us, from the writings of their an- 
 cient authors- 
 Spirit of Spirits, who, through ev'ry part 
 Of fpace expanded, and of endlefs time, 
 Bevond the reach of lab'ring thought fublime, 
 Badft uproar into beauteous order ftart ; 
 Before heav'n was, thou art. 
 
 Ere fphcres beneath us roll'd, or fpheres above. 
 Ere earth in firmamental cether hung. 
 Thou fat'll alone, till, through thy myflic love, 
 Things uncxifling to exiftence fprung. 
 And grateful dcfcant fung. 
 
 Omnifcient Spirit, whofe all-ruling pow'r 
 Bids from each fenfe bright emanations beam ; 
 Glows in the rainbow, fparkles in the ftream. 
 Smiles in the bud, and gliftens in the flow'r 
 That crowns each vernal bow'r ; 
 
 Sighs
 
 RELIGION. i6i 
 
 Sl^hs in the gale, and warbles in the throat 
 Of every bird that hails the bloomy fpring, 
 Or tells his love in many a liquid note, 
 Whilft envious artifts touch the rival firing. 
 Till rocks and forefts ring ; 
 
 Breathes in rich fragrance from the Sandal grove, 
 Or where the precious muflc-deer playful rove j 
 In dulcet juice, from clufl'ring fruit diflils, 
 And burns falubrious in the tafteful clove ; 
 
 Soft banks and verd'rous hills 
 
 Thy prefent influence fills j 
 In air, in floods, in caverns, woods, and plains. 
 Thy will infpirits all, thy fovcreign Maya reigns. 
 
 Blue cryftal vault, and elemental fires. 
 That in th' Kthereal fluid blaze and breathe ; 
 Thou, tofl[ing main, whofe fnaky branches wreathe 
 This penfile orb with intertwifling gyres ; 
 Mountains, whofe lofty fpires, 
 Prefumptuous, rear their fummits to the flcies. 
 And blend their em'rald hue with fapphire light ; 
 Smooth meads and lawns, that glow with varying dyes 
 Of dew-befpangled leaves and blofToms bright, 
 Henf e ! vanifli from my fight 
 Delufive pi£lures ! unfubftantial fliows ! 
 My foul abforb'd one only Being knows, 
 Of all perceptions one abundant fource, 
 Whence ev'ry object, ev'ry moment flows : 
 
 Vol. I. M Suns
 
 i6i R E L I G I O N. 
 
 Suns hence derive their force. 
 
 Hence planets learn their courfe ; 
 
 But funs and fading worlds I view no more ; 
 
 God only I perceive ; God only I adore. 
 
 Brimha, Viflinon, and Shiva, are un- 
 doubtedly only emblems of the power, 
 the goodnefs, and jufticc of the Supreme 
 Being, and are fometimes called the three 
 united in one *. 
 
 In the dialogues between Krifhna and 
 Arjoon, contained in the Bhagvat Geeta, 
 Kriflina fays : " I am the creator of all 
 " things, and all things proceed from me. 
 " Thofe who are endued with fpiritual 
 " wifdom know this, and worfhip me." 
 
 " I am the foul, which is in the bodies 
 " of all things. I am the beginning and 
 " the end. I am time ; I am all-grafping 
 
 * Some of the early Roman Catholic MilTionaries 
 thought they perceived in the allegory of Brimha, 
 VJlhnou, and Shivah,-'a belief in tbe Holy Trinity. 
 
 " death j
 
 RELIGION. 162 
 
 " death ; and I am the refurredlion. I 
 " am the feed of all things in nature, 
 " and there is not any thing animate of 
 " inanimate without me; 
 
 " I am the myftic figure ,Oom*y the \/' 
 *' Re£j(:y the Sa??i, and the Tayoor Veds, 
 " 1 am the witiiefs, the comforter, the 
 " afylum, the friend. I am generation, 
 " and difTolution : in me all things are re- 
 " pofited. 
 
 " The whole univerfe was fpread abroad 
 " by me. 
 
 " The foolifli arc unacquainted with my 
 " fupreme and divine nature. They are 
 
 * Ooin is faid to be a myftic word, or emblem, to 
 fignify the Deity, and to be compofed of Sanflcrit 
 roots, or letters ; the firft of which ftands for Creator ; 
 the fecoud, Preferver ; and the third Dcftroycr. It 
 is forbidden to be pronounced, except with extreme 
 reverence. An analogy has been found between this 
 monofylUible and the Egyptian On. Wii.Kixs. 
 
 M 2 "of
 
 i64 RELIGION. 
 
 " of vain hope, of vain endeavours, and 
 " void of reafon ; whilft thofe of true 
 *' wifdom ferve me in their hearts, undi- 
 " verted by other gods. 
 
 " Thofe who worfhip other gods, wor- 
 " fhip me. I am in the facrifice, in the 
 " fpices, in the invocation, in the fire, and 
 « in the vidim." 
 
 Arjoon fays in reply : " Thou art the 
 *' prime Creator — Eternal God ! Thou art 
 " the Supreme ! By thee the univerfe was 
 " fpread abroad ! Thou art Vayoo, the 
 *' god of the winds ; Agnee, the god of 
 " fire ; Varoon, the god of the oceans, 
 " &c. 
 
 " Reverence be unto thee ; again and 
 " again reverence, O thou, who art all in 
 " all ! Great is thy power, and great thy 
 " glory ! Thou art the father of all things ; 
 
 " where-
 
 RELIGION. 165 
 
 ** wherefore I bow down, and with my 
 
 " body proftrate on the ground, crave thy 
 
 *' mercy. Lord, w^orthy to be adored ! 
 
 " bear with me as a father with a fon ; a 
 
 " friend with a friend ; a lover with the 
 
 ** beloved." 
 
 In fpeaking of ferving the Deity, Krlfhna 
 fays; 
 
 " They who delighting in the welfare 
 
 *' of all nature, ferve me in my incor- 
 
 " ruptible, ineffable, and invifible form ; 
 
 " omnipotent, incomprehenfible, ftanding 
 
 " on high, fixed, and immoveable, with 
 
 " fubdued pafTions, and who are the fame 
 
 *' in all things, iliall come unto me. 
 
 " Thofe whofe minds are attached to 
 *' my invifible nature, have the greater 
 *' labour, becaufe an invifible path is dif- 
 " ficult to corporeal beings. Place thy 
 " heart on me, and penetrate me with thy 
 " underftanding, and thou flialt hereafter 
 *' enter unto me. But if thou fhouldft 
 M 3 "be
 
 i66 RELIGION. 
 
 " be unable at once fledfaftly to fix thy 
 " mind on me, endeavour to find me by 
 *' means of conftant pradice. 
 
 " He, my fervant, is dear to me, who 
 " is free from enmity ; merciful, and ex- 
 " empt from pride and felfilhnefs ; who 
 *' is the fame in pain and in pleafure ; 
 *' patient of wrongs ; contented ; and 
 *^ whofe mind is fixed on me alone. 
 
 " He is my beloved, of whom man- 
 " kind is not afraid, and who is not afraid 
 " of mankind ; who is unfolicitous about 
 " events ; to whom praife and blame are 
 " as one ; who is of little fpeech ; who is 
 " pleafed with whatever cometh to pafs ; 
 ** who has no particular home, and is of 
 *' a fteady mind." 
 
 In treating of good works, he fays : 
 
 " Both the defertion and practice of 
 " works, are the means of happinels. 
 
 " But
 
 RELIGION. \6^ 
 
 " But of the two, the practice is to be 
 ^' diftinguifhed above the defertion. 
 
 " The man, who, performing the duties 
 <' of life, and quitting all intereft in them, 
 ^' placeth them upon Brahm, the Supreme, 
 " is not tainted with fm, but remaineth like 
 " the leaf of the lotus unafFe<fted by the 
 <* waters* 
 
 " Let not the motive he in the event : 
 " be not one of thofe, whofe motive for 
 " adion is in the hope of reward. 
 
 " Let not thy life be fpent in inacftion : 
 " perform thy duty, and abandon all 
 " thoughts of the confequence. The 
 *' miferable and unhappy are fo about the 
 " event of things ; but men, who are en- 
 " dued with true wifdom, are unmindful 
 *•' of the event." 
 
 The Hindoos believe, that the foul, after 
 
 death, is tried, and, according to the con- 
 
 M 4 dua
 
 i6B RELIGION. 
 
 dud of the deceafed, is either rewarded or 
 punifhed. That the fouls, of fuch holy men 
 as have arrived to that degree of perfedion 
 as entirely to have fubdued their paflions 
 are immediately, and without trial, ad- 
 mitted to eternal happinefs. That the fouls 
 of the wicked, after being confined for 
 a time in Narc^ba *, and punifhed accord- 
 ing to their offences, are fent back upon the 
 ftage of life, to animate other bodies, of men 
 or beafts. That even thofe whofe lives have 
 been chequered with good and evil, mufl 
 likewife return : And that thefe probations, 
 chaflifements, and tranfmigrations, continue 
 to be repeated, until every vicious inclina- 
 tion be correded. They fhuddcr at the 
 idea of eternal punifliment, as incompatible 
 with their notions of the juftice and good- 
 nefs of the Almighty. 
 
 * Navekha is the name given to the infernal re- 
 gions, which are fuppofed to be divided into a variety 
 of places adapted to different degrees of punifliment. 
 
 It
 
 RELIGION, 169 
 
 It is pretended that a few holy men, by 
 fpecial divine grace, have a knowledge of, 
 or are ijble to look back on their former 
 ftates of exiftence. 
 
 It feems alfo to be a prevalent opinion 
 with them, that this world, befides being 
 a ftate of probation, Is likewife a ftate of 
 temporary reward and punifhment. Thcy 
 fay, " It cannot be denied that the benefits 
 *' which fome enjoy, are in recompence of 
 " their former virtues ; but fhould thefe, 
 " In a new life, forget God, and difobey his 
 " laws, their former condud will not avail 
 " them, they will be again tried and 
 " judged according to their adions»" 
 Nearly the fame fentiments were profefled 
 by many of the Greek philofophers. 
 
 Notwithftanding that the Hindoos are 
 feparated into the Vljlmu Bukht and 
 Shivah Bukht, and that a variety of feds 
 are to be found over the whole penin- 
 fula, the chief articles of their religion 
 
 are
 
 'i'jt R E L I G I O N. 
 
 are uniform. All believe in Brahma, or 
 the Supreme Being ; in the immortality o-f 
 the foul ; in a future ftate of rewards and 
 punifhments ; in the dodrine of the me- 
 tempfychofis ; and all acknowledge the 
 Veds as containing the principla-s of their 
 laws and religion. Nor ought we to 
 wonder at the fchifms that have arifen in 
 fuch a vaft fpace of time, but rather be 
 fui*prifed, that they have been fo mild ia 
 their confequences ; efpecially when wc 
 reflect on the numbers that arofe amongfl 
 ourfelves, and the dreadful efFeds they pro- 
 duced in a period fo much fhortep. 
 
 Their rules of morality are moft bene- 
 volent ; and hofpitality and charity are not 
 only ftrongly inculcated, but I believe no 
 where more univerfally pradifed than 
 amongft the Hindoos. 
 
 " Hofpitality is commanded to be exer- 
 " ciled even towards an enemy, when he 
 " comcih into thine houfc : the tree doth 
 
 " not
 
 RELIGION. 171 
 
 " not withdraw its fhade even from the 
 " wood-cutter. 
 
 " Good men extend then- charity unto 
 ^* the vileft animals. The moon doth not 
 *' withhold her light even from the cot- 
 " tage of the Chandala *■. 
 
 *' Is this one of us, or is he a ftranger ? 
 *' — Such is the reafoning of the ungene- 
 *' rous : but to thofe by whom liberality 
 " is pradlfed, the whole world is but as 
 ^' one family." 
 
 I fhall conclude this chapter with an- 
 other paflage from the Heetopades, the 
 valuable truth of which feems, happily, 
 to be underflood by them. — " There is 
 *' one friend, Religion^ who attendeth even 
 " in death, though all other things go to 
 " decay like the body." 
 
 * Outcaft.
 
 C 172 3 
 
 SKETCH VII. 
 
 Mythology of the Hindoos^ 
 
 ■^jOtwithftanding what has been fald 
 ill the foregoing Sketch, it miifl be 
 owned, that the muhitude beUeve in the 
 exiftence of inferior deities, wliich, like 
 the divinities of the Greeks and Romans, 
 are reprefented under different forms, and 
 with fymbols expreifive of their different 
 qualities and attributes : all thefe are how- 
 ever fuppofed to be inferiour to the triad, 
 Brimha^ Vijhnou^ and Shiva, 
 
 Bawaney *, as the mother of the gods, Is 
 held in high veneration, but the other 
 
 goddefles 
 
 * Bawaney, or BLavani, (tor I iuppofc the name 
 to mean the fame divinity, and to be only a difFerenc 
 
 mode
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 17^ 
 
 goddefles are always reprefented as the 
 fubordinate powers of their refpedtive lords* 
 
 Brimha is faid to meail, in Sanfkrit, 
 the wifdom of God. He is reprefented 
 with a crown upon his head, and with 
 four hands : in one he holds a fceptre ; 
 in another the Veds * ; in a third a ring^ 
 or circle, as an emblem of eternity ; and 
 the fourth is empty, being ready to aflifl 
 and protect his works. Near his image is 
 the ha?ife^ oxjlamingo^ on which he is fup- 
 pofed to perform his journies. 
 
 His goddefs Serafwaty is the patronefs 
 of imagination and invention, of harmony 
 and eloquence. She is ufually reprefented 
 with a mufical inllrument in her hand ; 
 
 mode of fpelling or pronouncing it,) iikewife appears 
 in a variety of otlier characters, as the confort of 
 Maha-Diva, &c. 
 
 * See Sketch V, 
 
 and
 
 174 MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 and is fuppofed to have invented the Deva- 
 nagry letters, and the Sanfkrit language, 
 in which the divine laws were conveyed to 
 mankind. 
 
 Sweet grace of Brimha's bed F 
 
 Thou, when thy glorious lord 
 Bade airy nothing breathe and blefs his pow'f, 
 
 Sat'ft with illuniin'd head. 
 
 And, in fublime accord. 
 Seven fprightly notes to hall th' aufpicious hour, 
 
 Led'ft from their fecret bow'r : 
 
 They drank the air ; they came 
 
 With many a fparkling glance. 
 
 And knit the mazy dance, 
 Like yon bright orbs, that gird the folar flame. 
 
 Now parted, now combined, 
 Clear as tliy fpeech, and various as thy mirtd. 
 
 Young paflions, at the found. 
 
 In fhadowy forms arofe. 
 O'er hearts, yet uncreated, fure to reign : 
 
 Joy, that o'erleaps all bounds, 
 
 Grief, that in filence grows, 
 Hope, tliat with honey blends the cup of pain, 
 
 Pale fear, and Itern dlfdain, 
 
 Grim wrath's avenging band. 
 
 Love, nurs'd in dimple fmooth. 
 
 That ev'ry pang can footh. 
 
 Thee,
 
 MYTHOLOGY; 47- 
 
 Thee, her great parents owns, 
 
 All ruling eloquence ; 
 Tliat, like full Ganga, pours her ftream divine, 
 
 Alarming ftates and thrones : 
 
 To fix the flying fenfe 
 Of words, thy daughters, by the varied line, 
 
 (Stupendous art !) was thine ; 
 
 Thine, with the pointed reed *, 
 
 To give primeval truth 
 
 Th' unfading bloom of youth, 
 
 And 
 
 * The pen employed by the Hindoos to write on 
 paper is a fmall reed. To write on leaves, which is 
 the ufual method, they employ a pointed iron inflru- 
 ment, with which, properly fpeaking, they engrave 3 
 the leaves are generally of the j^aim-tree ; they are cut 
 into long regular ftrlpes, about an inch broad ; being 
 of a thick fubftance, and fmooth hard furface, they 
 may be kept for almoft any fpace of time, and the 
 letters have the advantage of not being liable to be 
 effaced or grow fainter. Their books confift of a 
 number of thofe leaves, which by a hole pierced at one 
 end are tied loofely together. After the writing is 
 finiflied, they fometimes rub the leaves with a black 
 powder, which filling up the incifures, renders the 
 letters more confpicuous. Iji fome parts of India they 
 likewife write on leaves with ink. Engraving on them, 
 feems better adapted to the Indian characler;, than it 
 
 would
 
 f^6 MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 And paint on deathlefs leaves high virtue's meed : 
 
 Fair Science, heav'n-born child. 
 And playful Fancy on thy bofom fmil'di 
 
 Who bid the fretted vene 
 Start from his deep repofe, 
 
 And wakes to melody the quiv'ring frame? 
 
 What youth, with godlike mien. 
 
 O'er his bright (houlder throws 
 The verdant gourd that fwells with ftruggling flanie 
 
 Nared *, immortal name ! 
 
 He, like his potent fire. 
 
 Creative fpreads around 
 
 The mighty world of found, 
 And calls from fpeaking wood ethereal fire } 
 
 While to th' accordant firings 
 Of boundlefs heav'ns, and heav'nly deeds, he fingis* 
 
 But look ! the jocund hours 
 
 A lovelier fcene difplay, 
 Young Hindol fportive in his golden fwing> 
 
 High canopied with flow'rs ; 
 
 While Ragnies ever gay 
 Tofs the light cordage, and in cadence fing 
 
 The fweet return of fpring. 
 
 would be to thofc in ufc with Europeans, as none of 
 the former with which I am acquainted, have almoft 
 any fine flrokes in them. 
 
 * Nared is the fuppofed fon of Brimha. 
 
 In
 
 M'Y T H O L O G Y. 177 
 
 In the argument to this poem, we are 
 told, that every name, allufion, or epithet, 
 is taken from approved treatifes. It is ad- 
 drefled to Serafwaty, as goddefs of har- 
 mony: the mufical modes are fuppofed to 
 be demi-gods or genii ; and an original 
 Ragd, or god of the mode, is fuppofed to 
 prefide over each of the fix feafons * ; each 
 Raga is attended by five Ragnies^ or nymphs 
 of harmony\ ', each has eight fons, ox genii ^ 
 of the fame divine art ; and to each Raga 
 and his family is appropriated a diftindl fea- 
 
 * It muft be here obferved, that there are fix fea- 
 fons in India : 
 
 Seefar, the dewy feafon. 
 
 Heemat, the cold feafon. 
 
 Vasant, mild feafon or fpring. 
 
 Greefshma, hot feafon. 
 
 Viirsa, the rainy feafon. 
 
 Sarat, breaking, or the breaking up, or end of the 
 rains. See Wilkins. 
 
 f Sir "William Jones, in the firft volume of the Afia- 
 tic Refearches, likewife explains the Ragnies and 
 Ragas to be pajjtom. 
 
 Vol, I. N fon.
 
 lyS MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 fon, in wliich alone his melody can be fung^ 
 or played, at prefcribed hours of the day 
 and night. The mode of D'lpaca^ or 
 Cupid the irrftamer^ is fuppofed to be loft; 
 and a tradition is current in Hindoftan, 
 that a mufician who attempted to reftore 
 it, was confumed by fire from heaven. 
 
 Ah ! where has Dipac veil'd 
 
 His flame-encircled head ? 
 Where flow his lays, too fweet for mortal ears ? 
 
 O lofs how long bewail'd ! 
 
 Is yellow Camod fled ? 
 
 But, earth-born artift, hold ! 
 
 If e'er thy foaring lyre 
 
 To Dipac's notes afpire. 
 Thy firings, thy bow'r, thy bread, with rapture bold. 
 
 Red light'ning fhall confume ; 
 Nor can thy fweeteft fong avert the doom. 
 
 The laft couplet of the poem alludes to 
 the celebrated place of pilgrimage, at the 
 confluence of the Ganga ZiudTiwrna, which 
 the Serafwaty, another facred river, is fup- 
 pofed to join under ground. 
 
 Thefe
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 179 
 
 Thefe arc thy wondrous arts, 
 
 Queen of the flowing fpeech, 
 Thence Seraf\^''aty nnm'd, and Vany bright ! 
 
 Oh ! joy of mortal hearts, 
 
 Thy myftic wifdom teach. 
 Expand thy leaves, and, with ethereal light, 
 
 Spangle the veil of night. 
 
 If Lepit pleafe thee more, 
 
 Or Brahmy, awful name ! 
 
 Dread Brahmy's aid we claim. 
 And thirft, Vacdevy, for thy balmy love. 
 
 Drawn from that rubied cave, 
 Where meek-ey'd pilgrims hail the triple wave. 
 
 " The utiarmed Minerva of the Romans 
 " apparently correfponds, as patronefs of 
 " feience and genius, with Serafvvaty, the 
 " wife of Brimha *, and the emblem of his 
 " principal creative power : both goddefles 
 " have given their names to celebrated 
 *' grammatical works ; but the Serefwata 
 " of Sarupacharya^ is far more concife, as 
 
 * Sir William Jones writes Brahma, but I have prc- 
 fumed to write it Brimha, from the opinion that Brah- 
 ma is the Supreme and Univerfal Being, and Brimha 
 but an emblem of one of his attributes. 
 
 Vol. I. N 2 " well
 
 iBo MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 " well as more ufeful and agreeable, than 
 " the Minerva of San^iius. The Mhierva 
 " of Italy invented the flute, and Seraf- 
 " waty prefides over melody : the prote£l- 
 " refs of Athens was even, on the fame ac- 
 " count, furnamed Mufice^'* 
 
 ** Many learned mythologifts, with GI- 
 " raldus at their head, confider the peaceful 
 " Minerva as the Ifis of Egypt, from whofe 
 " temple at Sais a wonderful infcription 
 " is quoted by Plutarch, which has a re- 
 " femblance to the four Sanfkrit verfes above 
 " exhibited, as the text of the Bhagvat. — 
 ** / am all that hath been, and is^ andjhall 
 *' he ; and my veil hath no mortal ever re^ 
 " moved. For my part, I have no doubt 
 " that the Ifwara and Ifi of the Hindoos, 
 " are the Ofiris and Ifis of the Egyptians, 
 " though a diftind: eflay, in the manner of 
 " Plutarch, would be requifite, in order to 
 " demonftrate their identity, &c.*" 
 
 * See Afiatic Refearches, vol. 1. p. 252, 253. 
 
 In
 
 MYTHOLOGY. i8i 
 
 III the temples of Viflinou *, this god is 
 vvorfhipped under the form of a human 
 figure, having a circle of heads, and four 
 hands, as emblems of an all-feeing and ail- 
 provident being. The figure of the^^roor^, 
 a bird f , on which he is fuppofed to ride, is 
 frequently to be found immediately in front 
 of his image. Sometimes he is to be (een 
 fitting on a ferpent with feveral heads. 
 They relate many different incarnations of 
 Vifhnou. One of his names, in his pre- 
 ferving quality, is Hary. 
 
 " Nearly oppofite to Sultan-gunge, a con- 
 " fiderable town in the province of Bahar, 
 " there ftands a rock of granite, forming 
 " a fmall ifland in the midft of the Ganges, 
 " known by Europeans by the name of 
 '* the rock of yehmigiitery^ which is highly 
 
 * See Sketc V. 
 
 f This facred bird is a large brown kite, with a white 
 head. The Brahmans, at feme of the temples of Vilh- 
 nou, accuftomed birds of that fpecies that may be in 
 the neighbourhood, to come at ftvited times to be fed, 
 and call them by Ilriking a brafs plate. 
 
 N 3 " worthy
 
 B2 MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 worthy the traveller's notice, for a vaft 
 number of images carved in relief up- 
 on every part of its furface. Amongft 
 thefe there is Hary, of a gigantic fize, 
 recumbent upon a coiled ferpent, whofe 
 heads, which are numerous, the artift 
 has contrived to fpread into a kind of 
 canopy over the fleeping god, and from 
 each of its mouths iffues a forked tongue, 
 feeming to threaten death to any whom 
 rafhnefs might prompt to diflurb him. 
 The whole figure lies almoft detached 
 from the block on which it is hewn ; is 
 finely imagined, and executed with great 
 fkill. The Hindoos are taught to believe, 
 that at the end of every kalpa^ or crea- 
 tion, all things are abforbed in the deity, 
 and that in the interval to another crea- 
 tion, he repofeth himfelf on the ferpent 
 Sefha^ duration, and who is alfo called 
 Atlanta^ or endlefs *." 
 
 * Note of Mr. Wilkins to his tranflation of the 
 Heetopades. 
 
 Lechemy
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 183 
 
 Lechemy is the confort of Vifhnou, and 
 is the goddefs of abundance and pro- 
 fperity. She is llkewife named Pedma, 
 Camala, and Sri, or ifi the Jirji cafe Sris, 
 She may be called Ceres of the Hindoos, 
 and, with a little help from imagination, 
 an affinity may be found in the names. Sir 
 "William Jones, in order to ftrengthen this 
 opinion, ingenioufly obferves, that *' it 
 " may be contended, that although Lechemy 
 " may be figuratively called the Ceres 
 *' of Hindoftan, yet any two or more 
 " idolatrous nations who fubfifted by agri- 
 " culture, might naturally conceive a deity 
 " to prefide over their labours, without 
 '■ having the leaft intercourfe with each 
 *' other ; but no reafon appears w^hy two 
 " nations fhould concur in fuppofing 
 " that deity to be a female : one, at leaft, of 
 " them would be more likely to imagine, 
 " that the earth was a goddefs, and that 
 " the God of abundance rendered her fer- 
 " tile. Befides, in very ancient temples 
 N 4 " near
 
 i34 MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 *' near to Gaya^ we fee images of Lechemy, 
 " with full breafts, and a cord twifted under 
 " her arm, like a horn of plenty^ and which 
 " look very much like the old Grecian and 
 " Roman figures of Ceres." 
 
 Shivah is reprefented under different hu- 
 man forms, and has a variety of names, 
 but is generally called Shivah and Maha- 
 Deva. 
 
 Facing the image is that of an ox in a 
 fuppliant pofture; it being fuppofed, that 
 this animal was feleded by him as his 
 favourite conveyance. 
 
 In his deftroying quality, he appears as a 
 fierce man, with a fnake twined round his 
 neck. 
 
 He is alfo called the god of good and evil 
 fortune ; and, as fuch, is reprefented with 
 
 a crefcent in front of his crown. " May 
 
 ♦*he,
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 165 
 
 " he, on whofe diadem is a crefcent, caufe 
 " profperity to the people of the earth *." 
 
 One of the names of his goddefs is Gow- 
 ry ; who is alfo called Kaly, from kaldy 
 time ; which, by the Hindoo poets, is always 
 perfonified, and made the agent of de- 
 flrudion. But Sir William Jones fays, 
 that her leading names and characters are, 
 Parvati^ Diirga^ and Bhavaiii. " As the 
 *' mou7itam-born goddefs^ or Parvati, fhe has 
 " many properties of the Olympian Juno ; 
 " her majeftic deportment, high fpirit, 
 " and general attributes are the fame ; and 
 " we find her, both on Mount Cailafa and 
 " at the banquets of the deities, uniformly 
 " the companion of her hufband.'* 
 
 " She is ufually attended by her fon, 
 " Carticeya, who rides on a peacock, and, 
 " in fome drawings, his own robe feems 
 *' to be fpangled with eyes ; to which 
 
 ♦ Heetopades. 
 
 "muft
 
 i86 MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 " muft be added, that in fome of her temples, 
 " a peacock, without a rider, ftands near 
 " her Image. Though Carticeya, with his 
 " fix faces and numerous eyes, bears fome 
 " rcfemblance to Argus, whom Juno em- 
 ** ployed as her principal wardour, yet as 
 *' he is a deity of the fecond clafs, and the 
 *' commander of celeflial armies, he feems 
 ** clearly to be, the Orus of Egypt, and the 
 "Mars of Italy." 
 
 *' The attributes of Durga, or difficult of 
 " accefs^ are alfo confpicuous, in the fefti- 
 " val which is called by her name, and in 
 " this charader fhe refembles Minerva; not 
 " the peaceful inventrefs of the fine and 
 *' ufeful arts, but Pallas, armed with a hel- 
 " met and fpear: both reprefent heroic 
 " virtue, or valour united with wifdom ; 
 '' both flew demons and giants with their 
 " own hands ; both proteded the wife and 
 " virtuous, who paid them due adoration.'* 
 
 " Indra is the God of the vifible heavens. 
 ** His confort is named, S:icki \ his celeftial 
 
 " city,
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 187 
 
 " city, Amaravati ; his palace, Vaijayanta; 
 " his garden, Nandana ; his chief elephant, 
 " Airavat ; his charioteer, Matali ; and 
 " his weapon, Vaira, or the Thunderbolt. 
 " Though the Eaft is peculiarly under his 
 '* care, his Olympus is Meree, or the norths 
 " pole^ allegorically reprefented as a moun- 
 " tain of gold and gems*." He is faid to 
 have a thoufand eyes, and is fometimes 
 called the roller of thu7ider. 
 
 Varoonais the god of the feas and waters, 
 and is generally reprefented as riding on a 
 crocodile. 
 
 Vayoo is the god of the winds, and rides 
 on an antelope, with a fabre in his right 
 hand. 
 
 * For an inquiry into the affinity between the difr 
 ferent Jupiters of the Greeks and Romans, and fonie 
 of the gods of the Hindoos, we refer the reader to the 
 firft volume of Afiatic Refearches, in the article, on the 
 Gods of Greece^ Italy^ and Ind'ta^ already mentioned. 
 
 Agny
 
 i88 MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 Agny is the god of fire, has four arms, 
 and rides on a ram. 
 
 The earth is perfonified by the goddefs 
 Vafoodha, or Vafoo-deva, who, in a verfe 
 of the Heetopades, is called Soerabhy, or 
 the cow of plenty. 
 
 Nature is reprefented as a beautiful 
 young woman, named Prakrity. 
 
 The Sun is generally called Sour, or Surya^ 
 " whence the fe£t who pay him particu- 
 " lar adoration, are called Souras, Their 
 *' poets and painters defcribe his car as 
 *' drawn by feven green horfes ^ ;'* though 
 Mr. Foflcr informs us, that in the temple 
 of Bis E'l/Jjiiar at Benaras, there is an an- 
 cient piece of fculpture well executed in 
 ftone, reprefenting this god fitting in a car 
 drawn by a horfe with tivelve heads. His 
 charioteer, and by whom he is preceded, is 
 
 * Sir William Jones — Afiatic Refearches, vol. i. 
 
 Arun,
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 189 
 
 Arun, ox the daison-^ and among his many- 
 titles, are twelve, " which denote his dif- 
 " tind powers in each of the twelve months : 
 " thofe powers are called Adityas % or 
 " fons of Aditi by Cafyapa, the Indian 
 " Uranus." 
 
 " Surya is fuppofed to have defcended fre- 
 " quently from his car in a human fhape, 
 *' and to have left a race on earth f, equally 
 " renowned in Indian ftories with the Hi- 
 " liadai of Greece. It is very fmgular, that 
 " his two fons called Afwinau, or ylfwini- 
 " cmnaraw, in the dual, fhould be confi- 
 " dered as tiv'm brothers^ and painted like 
 *' Caftor and Pollux ; but they have each 
 " the chara£ler of Efculapius among the 
 " gods, and are believed to have been born 
 " of a nymph, who, in the form of a inare^ 
 " was impregnated with fun-beams. I 
 " fufped the whole fable of Cafyapa, and 
 
 * Each of the Adityas has a particular name, 
 t Sketch III. 
 
 " his
 
 rpo MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 " his progeny, to be aftronomical ; and can- 
 " not but imagine that the Greek name, 
 " Caffiopeia, has a relation to it. — Another 
 " great family are called, the children of the 
 " Moonr 
 
 " The worlhip of the Solar or Veftal fire, 
 " may be afcribed, like that of Ofiris and 
 " Ifis, to the fecond fource of mythology, 
 " or an enthufiaftick admiration of Nature's 
 " wonderful powers ; and it Teems, as far as 
 " I can yet underftand the Vedas^ to be the 
 " principal worfhip recommended in them. 
 '* We have feen that Maha-Deva himfelf 
 " is perfonated by fire ; but fubordinate to 
 " to him is the god Agny, often called 
 " Pavaca, ox th.Q purifier ^vvho anfwers to the 
 " Vulcan of Egypt, where he was a deity of 
 " high rank; and his wife Suaha refembles 
 " the younger Vefta, orVefiiajas theEolians 
 " pronounced the Greek word for a 
 " hearth. — Bhavani^ orVeinis^ is theconfort 
 " of the fupreme dcJlriiElive and gefierativc 
 2 ** power ;
 
 MYTHOLOGY. igi 
 
 " power ; but the Greeks and Romans, 
 " whofe fyftem is lefs regular than that of 
 " the Indians, married her to their divine 
 " artift, whom they named Hephaiftos and 
 " Vulcan, and who feems to be the Indian 
 " Vifvacarma, the Jorger of arms for the 
 " gods^ and inventor of the Agny- Aftra '^■." 
 
 The Sun is often ftyled king of the Stars 
 and Planets. 
 
 The name of his goddefs is Sangia, who 
 is fuppofed to be the mother of the river 
 Jumna. 
 
 Chandara,"or the moon, is alfo repre- 
 fented fitting in a car, but drawn by ante- 
 lopes, and holding a rabbit in the right 
 hand. 
 
 Ganes is the god of wifdom, or, as he is 
 fometimes called, oi prudence and policy. He 
 is worfhipped before any enterprife. He is 
 
 * See Sketch XII. 
 
 repre-
 
 tgz MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 reprefented In a human form, but with an 
 elephant's head, as afymbol of fagaclty ; and- 
 is attended by a rat, which is confidered by 
 the Hindoos as an ingenious and pro- 
 vident animal. He has been called the 
 Janus of India. " Few books are begun 
 " without the words, falutation to Ganes ; 
 " and he is firft invoked by the Brahmans, 
 " who conduct the trial by ordeal, or per- 
 " form the ceremony of the Homa, or facri- 
 " fice to fire *." 
 
 Vreehafpaty is the god of fcience and 
 learning; and his attendants, the Veedyad- 
 haris, or literally, profefTors of fcience, are 
 beautiful young nymphs. 
 
 Veek-rama is the god of vidqry. It is 
 faid to have been the cuflom to facrlfice a 
 horfe to him, by letting him loofe in a 
 foreft, and not again employing him. 
 
 -— - __ 
 
 "* See Afiatic Refearches, vol. i. — And Voy. aux 
 Indss Orientales, &c. fait par ordre du Roi depuis 
 1774, jufqu'en 1782, par M. Sonnerat, &c. 
 
 Fame
 
 Mythology. 193 
 
 Fame has feveral names, and is repre- 
 fented as a ferpeiit with a variety of 
 tongues. 
 
 Darma Deva is the god of virtue, and 
 is fometimes reprefented by the figure of 
 a white bull. 
 
 Virfavana is the god of riches, and is 
 generally reprefented riding on a white 
 horfe. He is likewife called Vitefa, Cuvera, 
 and Paulaftya. " He is fuppofed to refide 
 ** in the palace of Alaca, or to be borne 
 *' t;hrough the Iky in a fplendid car, named 
 *' Pufhpaca *:" toprefide over the northern 
 regions, " and to be the chief of the Tak^ 
 ^^ Jhas and RakJJ:as^ two fpecies of good 
 •* and evil genii f .'* 
 
 Dhan-wantary is the god of medicine. 
 •— " When life hath taken its departure, 
 
 * Sir W. Jones; f Mr. Wilkins. 
 
 Vol. L O " though
 
 194 MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 " though Dan-wantary were thy phyfician, 
 " what could he do *?" 
 
 Yam Rajah, or Darham Rajah, feems to 
 hold the fame offices with the Hindoos, 
 that Pluto and Minos held with the Greeks. 
 He is judge of the dead, and ruler of the 
 infernal regions. He has a fceptre in his 
 hand, and rides on a buffalo. He was 
 begot by Sour, or the Sun, on a daughter 
 of Bifoo-karma, great archited: of the hea- 
 venly manfions, and patron of artificers. 
 
 Darham Rajah's affiftants are Chiter and 
 Gopt. The former has the care of report- 
 ing the good, the latter, the bad, adions 
 of mankind. And that thefe may be ex- 
 actly known, two genii attend jIs fpies on 
 every one of the human race; the fpy of 
 Chiter on the right, and that of Gopt on 
 the left. As foon as any one dies, the 
 
 Heetopades. 
 
 Jambouts,
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 195 
 
 Jamboiits, or meflengers of death, convey 
 his foul to Darham's tribunal, where his 
 a(Slions are proclaimed, and fentence im- 
 mediately pafled upon him. 
 
 Darham Rajah has no power over the 
 fouls of thefe holy men, whofe lives have 
 been fpent in piety and benevolence, un- 
 biaffed by the hope of reward, or the dread 
 of punifliment. Thefe are conveyed by 
 genii to the upper regions of happinefs, and 
 are afterwards admitted to Moiikt^ the fu- 
 preme blifs, or abforption in the univerfal 
 fpirit, " though not fuch as to deftroy con- 
 *' fcioufnefs in the divine eflence." 
 
 In the Hindoo mythology there are fe- 
 veral accounts of Krifhen and the nine 
 Gopia, very much refembling the Apollo 
 and the mufes of the Greeks. Kriflien Is 
 fuppofed to be the god Vifhnou in one of 
 his incarnations, and to have come amongft 
 mankind as the fon of D'lvact by Vafudeva, 
 O 3 He
 
 195 M Y T H O L O G Y. 
 
 He was foftered by the fhepherd Ananda, 
 and concealed from the tyrant Ganfa, who 
 fought to deftroy him, on account of a pre- 
 didion that he would die by the hand of a 
 fon of Vafudeva, He tended Ananda's 
 flocks on the plains of Matra, a country 
 famous for the beauty of its women, many 
 of whom are fuppofed to have partaken 
 his embraces. " When a boy, he flew the 
 " terrible ferpent Caliya, with many giants 
 " and monfl:ers : at a more advanced age, 
 " he killed his cruel enemy Canfa, and 
 ** having taken under his protection king 
 " Judifliter, and the other Pandoos, who 
 ** had been opprefl^ed by the Kooroos and 
 " their tyrannical chief, he kindled the war 
 •' defcribed in the great Epic Poem, intitled 
 " the Mahabarat, at the profperous con- 
 " clufion of which he returned to his 
 heavenly feat in Vaicontha, having left 
 the inftrudion comprifed in the Geeta 
 to his difconfolate friend Arjoon, whofe 
 " grandfon became fovereign of India.'* 
 
 Krifliea 
 
 tc 
 
 i(
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 197 
 
 Krifhen is likewife called Mohun, the 
 beloved; Msenoher, or the heart-catcher, 
 &c. : — He is reprefented as a beautiful 
 young man, fometimes as playing on a 
 mourly, or flute ; and to this day he is 
 the favourite divinity of all the Hindoo 
 women. 
 
 The god of love has many epithets, de- 
 fcriptive of his powers, but the ufual one 
 is Kama-diva, or, literally, the god of 
 defire. 
 
 In the argument of a hymn to this 
 deity, publifhed at Calcutta, Sir William 
 Jones informs us, " that, according to the 
 " Hindoo mythology, he was the fon of 
 " Maya, or the general attracting power; 
 " that he was married to Retty, or affec- 
 " tion; and that his bofom friend is Vaf- 
 " fant, or the fpring : that he is repre- 
 " fented as a beautiful youth, fometimes 
 ** converfmg with his mother, or confort, 
 O 3 "in
 
 ipS MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 *' in the midft of his gardens and tem- 
 '* pies • foraetimes riding by moon-light 
 " on a parrot, and attended by dancing 
 " girls, or nymphs, the foremoft of whom 
 " bears his colours, "which are a fifh on a 
 " red ground : that his favourite place of 
 *' refort is a large trad of country round 
 " Agra, and principally the plain of Ma- 
 " tra, where Kriflxen alfo and the nine 
 " Gopra ufually fpend the night with mu- 
 " fic and dance : that his bow is of fugar- 
 *' cane, or flowers ; the firing, of bees ; 
 " and that his five arrows are each pointed 
 " with an Indian blofTom, of a heating 
 " quality." Many of his names are men- 
 tioned in the hymn. 
 
 What potent god from Agra's orient bow'rs 
 Floats through the lucid air ; whilft living flow'rs. 
 With funny twine, the vocal arbours wreathe. 
 And gales enamour'd heav'nly fragrance breathe ? 
 Hail, power unknown ! for at thy beck 
 Vales and groves their bofoms deck. 
 And every laughing blofTom drefles, 
 With gems of dew, his mulky trcflcs. 
 
 I feel,
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 199 
 
 I feel, I feel, thy genial flame divine. 
 And hallow thee, and kifs thy fhrine. 
 
 Know'ft thou not me ! 
 
 Yes, fon of Maya, yes, I know 
 
 Thy bloomy Ihafts and cany bow. 
 Thy fcaly ftandard, thy myfterious arms. 
 And all thy pains, and all thy charms. 
 
 Almighty Cama ! or doth Smara bright, 
 Or proud Ananga, give thee more delight ? 
 
 Whate'er thy feat, whate'cr thy name. 
 
 Seas, earth, and air thy reign proclaim : 
 
 All to thee their tribute bring. 
 
 And hail thee univerfal king. 
 
 Thy confort mild, Affeclion, ever true, 
 Graces thy fide, her vefl of glowing hue, 
 And in her train twelve blooming maids advance. 
 Touch golden firings, and knit the mirthful dance. 
 
 Thy dreadful implements they bear. 
 
 And wave them in the fcented air. 
 
 Each with pearls her neck adorning. 
 
 Brighter than the tears of morning. 
 Thy crimfon enfign, which before them flies, 
 Decks with new ftars the fapphire fkies. 
 
 God of the flow'ry {hafts and flow'ry bow. 
 Delight of all above and all below ! 
 Thy lov'd companion, conftant from his birth 
 In heav'n clep'd ValTant, and gay Spring on earth, 
 O 4 Weaves
 
 200 MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 Weaves thy green robe, and flaunting bow*rs> 
 And from the clouds draws balmy (how'rs, 
 He with frefh arrows fills thy quiver, 
 (Sweet the gift, and fweet the giver,) 
 And bids the various-warbling throng 
 Burft the pent bloflbms with their fong. 
 
 He bends the lufcious cane, and twifts the firing, 
 With bees how fweet I but ah, how keen their fting ! 
 He with five flow'rets tips thy ruthlefs darts, 
 Which through five fenfes pierce enraptur'd hearts ; 
 
 Strong Campa, rich in od'rous gold. 
 
 Warm Amer, nurs'd in heav'nly mould, 
 
 DryNagkezer, in filver fmiling. 
 
 Hot Kiticum, our fenfe beguiling, 
 And lafl to kindle fierce the fcorching flame, 
 Lovefhaft, which gods bright Bela name. 
 Can men refifl thy pow'r, when Krilhen yields, 
 Kriflien, who ftill in Matra's holy fields 
 Tunes harps Immortal, and to flrains divine 
 Dances by moonlight with the Gopla nine ? 
 
 O thou for ages born, yet ever young, 
 For ages may thy Bramin's lay be fung ; 
 And when thy Lory fpreads his em'rald wings. 
 To waft thee higli above the tower of kings, 
 Whilft o'er thy throne the moon's pale light 
 Pours her foft radiance through the night. 
 And to each floating cloud difcovers 
 The h.iunts of hlefl or joylefs lovers, 
 
 Thy
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 201 
 
 Thy milder influence to thy bard impart. 
 To warm, but not confume, his heart." 
 
 When Tanjore was taken by the Eng- 
 lifh, a curious pldure was found, repre- 
 fenting Kamadiva riding on an elephant, 
 whofe body was compofed of the figures 
 of feven young women, entwined in fo 
 whimfical but ingenious a manner as to 
 exhibit the fhape of that enormous ani- 
 mal *. 
 
 The Eros of the Greeks is found riding 
 on, and guiding, a lion. The Hindoos 
 place Kama on an elephant, the ftrongeft 
 of the brute creation, and perhaps the mod 
 difficult to be tamed, but afterwards the 
 
 * Mr. Forfter. 
 
 Several pieces of fculpture of the fame figure, in 
 bas-relief, have been met with in other parts of 
 Hindoftan. 
 
 Sir William Jones mentions a piclure, of the fame 
 kind ; in which the elephant is compofed of nine 
 damfels, and the rider is ICriflien. 
 
 moil
 
 2oi MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 moft docile. Here is a degree of analogy 
 fufEcient to excite curiofity, though perhaps 
 not fufEcient to prove that one nation de- 
 rived the idea from the other. It may have 
 been original with both. They were both 
 poliflied nations ; the power of love is 
 every where felt ; and it may naturally 
 have occurred to people of lively and poe- 
 tical imaginations, to paint the influence 
 of that paffion, by reprefenting the infant 
 god governing the fierceft and flrongeft 
 animals. 
 
 Nared^ the fon of Brimha, is the Hermes, 
 or Mercury of the Hindoos. " He was a 
 " wife legiflator ; great in arts and arms ; 
 *' an eloquent meflenger of the gods, either 
 " to one another, or to favoured mortals; 
 " and a mufician of exquifite fkill." — " His 
 " adionsarea fubjedofa Poora?ia'' — "The 
 *' law tra£t, fuppofed to have been revealed 
 " by Narcd, is at this hour cited by the 
 "Pundits." He was the inventor of the 
 
 Vena,
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 203 
 
 Vena, or Indian lute ; for a particular de- 
 fcription of which we refer the reader to 
 the Afiatic Refearches, vol. i. p. 295. 
 
 The idol of Lingam, a deity fimilar to 
 the Phallus of the Egyptians, is always to be 
 found in the interior and moft facred part of 
 the temples of Shiva. — Sometimes it repre- 
 fents both the male and female parts of ge- 
 neration, and fometimes only the former. A 
 lampis kept conftantly burning beforeit : but 
 when the Brahmans perform their religious 
 ceremonies, and make their offerings, which 
 generally confift of flowers, y2"i;^« lamps are 
 lighted J which De la Crgze, fpeaking from 
 the information of the proteftant mifTiona- 
 ries, fays, exadly refemble the candelahres 
 of the Jews, that are to be feen in the 
 triumphal arch of Titus. 
 
 As the Hindoos depend on their children 
 for performing thofe ceremonies to their 
 manes, which they beheve tend to mitigate 
 
 punifh-
 
 204 MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 punilhment in a future ftate, they confider 
 the being deprived of them as a fevere mif- 
 fortune, and the fign of an offended God. 
 
 Married women wear a fmall gold Ling- 
 am, tied round the neck or arm *; worlhip 
 is paid to Lingam, to obtain fecundity ; 
 and among the fables that arc told to ac- 
 count for an adoration fo extraordinary, is 
 the following : 
 
 " Certain devotees, in a remote time, 
 had acquired great renown and refped ; 
 but the purity of the heart was wanting ; 
 nor did their motives and fecret thought* 
 correfpond with their profeffions and ex- 
 terior condud:. They affeded poverty. 
 
 * Sir "William Jones obferves, that, " however extra- 
 '* ordinary it may appear to Europeans, it never feems to 
 " have entered into the heads of the legiflators or people, 
 « that any thing natural could be offenfivcly obfcene ; 
 << a fmgularity which pervades all their writings and 
 « converfations, but is no proof of depravity in their 
 <* morals." Afiatic Refearches, vol. i. 
 
 but
 
 MYTHOLOGY. ^05 
 
 but were attached to the things of this 
 life ; and the princes and nobles were con- 
 flantly fending them offerings. They feem- 
 ed to fequefter themfelves from the world ; 
 they lived retired from the towns ; but 
 their dwellings were commodious, and 
 their women numerous and handfome. 
 But nothing can be hid from the gods, 
 and Shivah refolved to expofe them to 
 ihame. He defired Prakrity * to accom- 
 pany him ; and affumed the appearance of 
 a Pandaram of a graceful form. Prakrity 
 appeared as herfelf, a damfel of matchlefs 
 beauty. She went where the devotees 
 were affembled with their difciples, waiting 
 the rifmg fun to perform their f ablutions 
 and religious ceremonies. As fhe ad- 
 vanced, the refrefhing breeze moving 
 her flowing robe, fhowed the exquifite 
 fhape, which it fecmed intended to con- 
 
 * Nature. See page 188. 
 
 f The Hindoos never bathe, nor perform their abUi- 
 tlons, whilft the fun is -below the horizon. 
 
 ceat
 
 2o6 MYTHOLOGY* 
 
 ceal. With eyes caft down, though fome^ 
 times opening with a timid but a tender 
 look, ihe approached them, and with a 
 low enchanting voice defired to be admitted 
 to the facrifice. The devotees gazed on 
 her with aftonifhment. The fun appear- 
 ed, but the purifications were forgotten ; 
 the things for the Pooja * lay neglected ; 
 nor was any worfhip thought of but to 
 her. Quitting the gravity of their man- 
 ners, they gathered round her, as flies 
 round the lamp at night, attraded by its 
 fplendor, but confumed by its flame. 
 They aflced from whence fhe came ; whither 
 ihe was going? — " Be not oflfended with 
 *' us for our approaching thee ; forgive us 
 •' for our importunities. But thou art in- 
 *' capable of anger, thou who art made to 
 *' convey blifs ; to thee, who mayeft kill 
 " by indifierence, indignation and refent- 
 " ment are unknown. But whoever 
 
 Pooja, is properly worfhip. 
 
 " thou
 
 MYTHOLOGY. ioy 
 
 ** thou mayeft be, whatever motive or ac- 
 " cident may have brought thee amongfl: 
 *' us, admit us into the number of thy 
 " flaves ; let us at leaft have the comfort 
 " to behold thee." 
 
 " Here the words faultered on the lip ; 
 the foul feemed ready to take its flight ; 
 the vow was forgotten, and the policy of 
 years was deftroyed. 
 
 " Whilfl: the devotees were loft in their 
 paflions, and abfent from their homes, 
 Shivah entered their village with a muiical 
 inftrument in his hand, playing and fmg- 
 ing like one of thofe who folicit charity. 
 At the found of his voice, the women 
 quitted their occupations ; they ran to fee 
 from whom it came. He was beautiful 
 as Krifhen on the plains of Matra *. Some 
 
 * Krlflieii of Matra, or the Apollo of the Hin- 
 doos. See page 195. 
 
 dropped
 
 2o8 MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 dropped their jewels without turning to 
 look for them ; others let fall their gar- 
 ments without perceiving that they dif- 
 covered thofe abodes of pleafure, which 
 jealoufy as well as decency has ordered to 
 be concealed. All prefTed forward with 
 their offerings ; all wifhed to fpeak ; all 
 wifhed to be taken totice of; and bringing 
 flowers, and fcattering them before him, 
 faid; " Afkeft thou alms! thou, who art 
 " made to govern hearts ! Thou, whofe 
 ** countenance is frefh as the morning ! 
 " whofe voice is the voice of pleafure ; and 
 " thy breath like that of VafTant ^ in the 
 * opening rofe ! Stay with us, and we will 
 •' ferve thee ; nor will we trouble thy re- 
 " pofe, but only be jealous how to pleafc 
 « thee.'' 
 
 •* The Pandaram continued to play, and 
 fung the loves of Kama fj of Krifhen, and 
 
 * Vaflant, the fprlng. 
 
 f Kama, the god of love. See page 197. 
 
 3 '•«
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 209 
 
 the Gopia ; and fmiling the gentle fmiles 
 of fond defire, he led them to a neigh- 
 bouring grove, that v/as confecrated to 
 pleafure and retirement. Sour began to 
 gild the weftern mountains, nor were they 
 offended at the retiring day. 
 
 " But the defire of repofe fucceeds the 
 wafte of pleafure. Sleep clofed the eyes 
 and lulled the fenfes. In the morning the 
 Pandaram was gone. When they avvoke^ 
 they looked round with aftonifhment, and 
 again caft their eyes upon the ground. 
 Some dire<Sted their looks to thofe who had 
 been formerly remarked for their fcrupu- 
 Icus manners ; but their faces were covered 
 with their veils. After fitting a while in 
 filence, they arofe> and went back to their 
 houfes with flow and troubled fteps. The 
 devotees returned about the fame time from 
 their wanderings after Prakrity. The days 
 that followed were days of embarraffment 
 and fhame. If the women had failed in their 
 
 Vol. I. P modefly,
 
 2IO MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 modefty, the devotees had broken their 
 vows. They were vexed at their weak- 
 nefs; they were forry for what they had 
 done ; yet the tender figh fometimes broke 
 forth, and the eye often turned to where 
 the men firft faw the maid ; the women 
 the Pandaram. 
 
 ** But the people began to perceive, that 
 what the devotees now foretold, came not 
 to pafs. Then* difciples, in confequence, 
 neglected to attend them ; and the offer- 
 ings from the princes and nobles became 
 lefs frequent than before. They then per- 
 formed various penances ; they fought for 
 fecret places among the woods, unfre- 
 quented by man; and having at laft Ihut 
 their eyes from the things of this world, 
 and retired within themfelves in deep me- 
 ditation, they difcovered that Shivah was 
 the author of their misfortunes. Their 
 underftanding being imperfed ; inftead of 
 bowing the head with humlHty, they were 
 inflamed with anger; inftead of contri- 
 tion
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 211 
 
 tlon for their hypocrify, they fought for 
 vengeance. They performed new facri- 
 fices and incantations, which were only 
 allowed to have a certain effect in the end, 
 to {how the extreme folly of man in not 
 fubmitting to the will of heaven. Their 
 incantations produced a tyger, whofe mouth 
 was like a cavern, and his voice like thun- 
 der amongft the mountains. They fent 
 him againft Shivah, who, with Prakrity, 
 w^as amufmg himfelf in the vale. He 
 fmiled at their weaknefs j and killing the 
 tyger at one blow with his club, he covered 
 himfelf with his fkin. Seeing themfelves 
 fruftrated in this attempt, the devotees had 
 recourfe to another, and fent ferpents 
 againft him of the moft deadly kind. 
 But on approaching him they became 
 harmlefs, and he twilled them round his 
 neck. They fent their curfes and impre- 
 cations againft him, but they all recoiled 
 upon themfelves. Not yet diOieartened by 
 thefe difappointments, they collected all 
 their prayers, their penances, their chari- 
 P 2 ties.
 
 iiz MY T H O L O G Y. 
 
 ties, and other good works, the moft ac- 
 ceptable of all facrifices, and demanding in 
 return only vengeance againfl Shivah, they 
 fent a confuming fire to deftroy his viril 
 parts, Shivah incenfed at this attempt, 
 turned the fire with indignation againft the 
 human race ; and mankind would foon 
 have been deftroyed, had not Vifhnou, 
 alarmed at the danger, implored him to 
 fufpend his wrath. At his intreaties Shivah 
 relented. But it was ordained, that thofe 
 parts fliould be worfhipped, which the 
 fali'e devotees had impioufly attempted to 
 deftroy.'* 
 
 Thofe who dedicate themfelves to the fer- 
 vice of Lingam, fwear to obferve inviolable 
 chaftity. They do not, like the priefts of 
 Atys, deprive themfelves of the means of 
 breaking their vows ; but were it difco- 
 vered, that they had in any way departed 
 from them, the punifliment is death. 
 They go naked j but being confidered as 
 
 fandified
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 213 
 
 fan(Stified perfons, the women approach 
 them without fcruple, nor is it thought 
 that their modefty (hould be offended by- 
 it. Hufbands, whofe wives are barren, 
 folicit them to come to their houfes, or 
 fend their wives to worfhip Lingam at the 
 temples ; and it is fupnofed, that the cere- 
 monies on this occafion, if performed with 
 proper zeal, are generally produdive of 
 the defircd effedt. 
 
 The figure of Phallus was confecrated to 
 Ofiris, Dionyfus, and Bacchus, who pro- 
 bably were the fame. At the feflivals of 
 Ofnis, it was carried by the women of 
 Egypt, and the figure of Lingam is now 
 borne by thofe of Hindoftan, 
 
 The Hindoos, like the Greeks and Ro- 
 mans, have their demi-gods, who drink 
 a beverage called Amrut ; and their aerial 
 fpirits, that occupy the fpace in which the 
 globe revolves. Every mountain, wood, 
 
 Vol. I. P 3 and
 
 • 
 
 2T4 M Y T II O L O G Y. 
 
 and river, has its genii and guardian deity. 
 NuUus enim locus fine genio ejl^ qui per 
 angiiem plerumque ojienditur. (Serv. in 
 jEneid.) The Greeks afcribed the difeafes 
 to which frail mortality is expofed, to fome 
 angry god, or evil genius. — The Hindoos 
 do the fame. — Pythagoras pretended that 
 the evil genii caufed dreams and dif- 
 eafes, not only amongft men but animals. 
 (DiOG. Laer. in Pytha,) 
 
 With a copious mythology, the dodrine 
 of the metempfychofis, and fruitful ima- 
 ginations, it is not extraordinary that the 
 writings of the Hindoos fhould abound 
 with fables, and tales of metamorphofes, 
 which are read by them with great de- 
 light. The relations of the feats of their 
 demi-gods and heroes very much refemble 
 thofe of Bacchus, Hercules, and Thefeus : 
 and the wars of Ram with Ravana, tyrant 
 of the illand of Ceylon, form the fub- 
 j;6t of a beautiful epic poem, called the 
 
 Ramavan,
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 21^ 
 
 Ramayan, that was written by the famous 
 Hindoo poet Valmie, fome thoufands of 
 years ago. 
 
 They fuppofe, likewife, that a few fouls 
 are peculiarly gifted with the power of 
 quitting their bodies, of mounting into the 
 fkies, vifiting diftant countries, and again 
 returning and refuming them. They call 
 the myftery, or prayer, by which this 
 power is obtained, the Maitdiram ; and in 
 the life of Viramarken it is told, that a cer- 
 tain powerful prince, longing to enjoy this 
 fupernatural privilege, went daily, attended 
 only by a confidential page, to a temple 
 fituated in a retired and lonely place, 
 where he preferred fervent prayers to the 
 goddefs to v^hom the temple was dedicated, 
 to inftrucH: him in the Mcmdiram, Mortals 
 know not what they afk, and the goodnefs 
 of the gods is often fhewn in not com- 
 plying with their defires. The goddefs, 
 however, at lafl yielded to his folicitatious. 
 
 Vol. I. P 4 and
 
 ii6 M Y T H O L O G Y. 
 
 and the myftery was revealed. The Have 
 had been ordered to remain at a diftance, 
 but his curiofity being excited by the ex- 
 treme caution that was obferved, . he ap- 
 proached gently to the door of the fandu- 
 ary, and learned the fecret, while the high 
 prieft was inftruding his mafter how the 
 Mandiram was to be performed. He re- 
 tired foftly to his ftation. The prince 
 came out, with the appearance of uncom- 
 mon joy. He frequently afterwards retired 
 with the favourite page to the moft un- 
 frequented parts of a neighbouring fo- 
 reft, and after recommending to him to fit 
 and watch over his body, he went and re- 
 peated the Mandiram in private, when 
 his foul mounted into the fkies. He 
 was fo delighted with this new araufe- 
 ment, that he forgot his duty as a ruler ; 
 he w^as tired of affairs of ftate ; he loft 
 the reliih of his former pleafures ; evea 
 his beautiful princefs was negleded ; and, 
 like an early lover with his millrcfs, he 
 
 locked
 
 MYTHOLOGY. 217 
 
 looked Impatiently for the hour when he 
 might quit the grandeur of his court, for 
 the fake of foaring, for a moment, above 
 the fpherc of men. — PoHcy has recom- 
 mended to princes to be cautious in be- 
 flowing their confidence, and not to put 
 it in the power of any one to do them 
 an injury that may not eafily be repaired. 
 One day that the monarch was delighted 
 in his aerial journey, he forgot to come 
 back at the appointed time. The page 
 grew weary with attending, and wiflied to 
 return to the court. He often looked at 
 the body, and again into the air. He 
 thought of a variety of things to divert the 
 tedious hour. The fecret he had learnt at 
 the door of the fandluary, came into his 
 mind. He who fails in his duty once, 
 generally yields to frefh temptations. Cu- 
 riofity, that led him from his ftation before 
 the temple, now prompted him to repeat 
 the Mandiram. The conflidt was but 
 (hort. The my ftery was performed. The 
 
 foul
 
 2i8 MYTHOLOGY, 
 
 foul Inflantly quitted the body of tlic 
 flave. A more graceful form lay before 
 it. The change was preferred. The flave 
 now became the fovereign, and not chufing 
 to have one who had been his mafter for 
 an attendant, he cut off the head of his 
 former body, as being now but a habitation 
 for which he had no longer any ufe. The 
 foul of the prince returned too late. He 
 faw the lifelefs corpfe of his favourite. He 
 guefled what had come to pafs. And after 
 floating, for fome time, over the foreft, 
 and uttering thofe unhappy founds, that are 
 fometimes to be heard in the ftillnefs of 
 the night, he was commanded to enter into 
 the body of a parrot. He flew inftantly 
 to his palace, where, inftcad of command- 
 ing, he was caught ; and, for the beauty of 
 his plumage, prefented to the princefs, as not 
 unworthy of her regard. He was placed in 
 her apartment; he faw his unfaithful fervant 
 wearing his crown, and enjoying his bed in his 
 ftcad J he heard his late adions examined, 
 
 his
 
 MYTHOLOGY. Itq 
 
 his faults criticifed, his foibles turned into 
 ridicule; and when, in the bitternefs of 
 impotent revenge, he repeated all the words 
 of invedtive he had learnt, they only ferved 
 to amufe the flaves. No one knew the 
 fecret until many ages afterwards, when it 
 was related by a holy hermit *. 
 
 Perhaps in no literary refearch we are 
 more liable to be deceived, than in en- 
 deavouring to prove the near affinity of 
 one nation to another, by a fimilarity in 
 particular cuftoms and opinions. But not- 
 withftanding my diffidence of argument 
 merely grounded upon fuch a foundation, 
 from what has been even already faid. 
 
 * The fame ftory, which is likewife mentioned by 
 Father Bouchet, in his letter to M. Kuet, Bifhop of 
 Avranches (to be found in Lettres edif. ^ ciir. tome xii. 
 p. 170. Edit, de Paris, 178 i.) undoubtedly furnifhed 
 the hint to M. de Moncrif, for his la±c beautiful tale of 
 Les Ames Rivales. See Oeuvres de Moncrif, torn. ii. 
 p. 17, Edit. Paris, 1768. 
 
 there
 
 I2(i MYTHOLOGY. 
 
 there appears fo near a refemblance be- 
 tween the mythology of the Hindoos, and 
 that of the Egyptians and Greeks, as in- 
 clines me to believe, that they originate 
 from one common parent. Sir William 
 Jones fays, " I am perfuaded that, by 
 *' means of the Puranas, we fhall in time 
 " difcover all the learning of the Egyptians, 
 *' without decyphering their hierogly- 
 ** phics." And I cannot but congratu- 
 late the public, on an enterprife, from which 
 we may now reafonably expect much cu- 
 rious, and perhaps ufeful, information.
 
 ( 221 ) 
 
 SKETCH VIIL 
 
 Devotion and Worfi'ip of the Hifidoos, 
 
 ^Tp H E devotion of the Hindoos confifts 
 in going to the temples ; in occafion- 
 ally performing certain religious ceremonies 
 at home ; in prayers, in fadings, and other 
 penances ; in making offerings, both on 
 their own account, and for the fouls of 
 their dead relations ; in frequent ablutions, 
 and in charities and pious works. 
 
 According to the rules of their religion, 
 they ought to pray thrice a day — in the 
 morning ; at noon ; and in the evening — 
 ivith their faces turned towards the Eafi, 
 They fhould at the fame time perform their 
 ablutions, and when they have an oppor- 
 tunity, ihould prefer a running ftream to 
 
 ftanding
 
 222 DEVOTION AND WORSHIP. 
 
 ftanding water. But it is an indifpenfable 
 duty to wafli themfelves before meals. 
 
 The offerings made at the temples ge- 
 nerally confift of money, fruit, flowers, rice, 
 fpices, and incenfe. The offering on ac- 
 count of the dead is a cake, called Peenda ; 
 which ceremony is performed on the days 
 of the new and full moon. 
 
 It has been afferted by fome writers, 
 that the devotion of the Hindoos was 
 formerly fanguinary, and that even human 
 facrifices were offered, as the moft accept- 
 able to their gods. But the exiftence of 
 fuch a pradice appears to me extremely 
 queftionable. As far as I have inveftigated, 
 the Hindoos feem to have been formerly 
 what they are at prefent, mild and hu- 
 mane ; and I know not any trace of a 
 cuftom fo barbarous, unlefs we confider 
 in that light thofe voluntary facrifices which 
 fome enthufiafts make of themfelves. 
 
 It
 
 DEVOTION AND WORSHIP. 223 
 
 It is however true, that in their facred 
 writings mention is made of the Afmavedha 
 Jug % or facrifice of the horfe j of the 
 facrifice of the white elephant ; of the 
 Gomedha Jug, or facrifice of the hull ; and 
 even of the Naramedha Jug, or human fa- 
 crifice. But it muft be obferved, that the 
 things reprefented as fit to be facrificed, 
 have fo many peculiarities, that we may 
 conclude they were never to be found. If 
 they have all the requifites that are de- 
 fcribed, it is faid they will immediately re- 
 generate from their aflies in the fight of the 
 perfons prefent at the facrifice; and that 
 their failing to do fo, denotes the dlfpleafure 
 of the Supreme Being with thofe who may 
 have caufed the facrifice to be performed. 
 Under that denunciation, and with fo many 
 difficulties, we may fuppofe that fuch facri- 
 (ices have feldom or never been made ; 
 and we are at a lofs to account for their 
 
 * J"g> is fiicrifice. 
 
 being
 
 224 DEVOTION AND WORSHIP. 
 
 being mentioned in their religir<tis writings, 
 unlefs it be to indicate, that nothing in this 
 life is too facred or valuable, to exempt it 
 from being devoted to the fervice of the 
 Almighty. 
 
 Yet, notwlthflanding what has been here 
 obfen^ed, impartiality, and the attention 
 that is due to whatever may be advanced 
 by one fo well informed in Afiatic hiitory 
 as Sir William Jones, require, that I fhould 
 quote what he has faid on this fubjedt, and 
 which had not been feen by me till after 
 the fnft edition of this work was pub- 
 lifhed. 
 
 " The laft of the Greek or Italian divini- 
 *' ties, for whom we find a parallel in the 
 " Pantheon of India, is the Stygian or 
 " Taurick Diana, otherwife named Hecate, 
 " and often confounded with Proferpine ; 
 " and there can be no doubt of her iden- 
 " tity with Kali, or the wife of Shiva, in 
 
 *' hid
 
 Devotion and worship. 225 
 
 *' his chara6ter of the Stygian Jove. To 
 " this black goddefs, with a collar of golden 
 •' fkulls, as we fee her exhibited in all her 
 *' principal temples, human facrifices were 
 ** anciently offered, as the Vedas enjoined ; 
 " but in the prefent age '^, they are abfo- 
 " lutely prohibited, as are alfo the facri- 
 " fices of bulls and horfes : kids are 
 *' flill offered to her ; and to palliate the 
 " cruelty of the flaughter, which gave 
 " fuch offence to Budha, the Brahmans 
 " inculcate a belief, that the poor victims 
 " rife in the heavc7i of Indi'a f , where they 
 " become the muficians of his band. In- 
 " ftead of the obfolete, and now illegal 
 " facrifices, of a man, a bull, and a horfe, 
 *' called Naramedha, Gomedha, and Af- 
 " wamedha, the powers of nature are 
 " thought to be propitiated by the lefs 
 
 * We prefume that Sir Wiiiiam Jones means the 
 Knly YoutT. 
 
 •f See uaQ-e i S6. 
 
 f 1 O 
 
 • Vol. L Q^ " bloody
 
 226 DEVOTION AND WORSHIP. 
 
 *' bloody ceremonies at the end of autumn, 
 " when the feflivals of KaU and Lechemi 
 " are folemnized nearly at the fame time-. 
 " Now if it be afked, how the goddefs of 
 " Death came to be united with the mild 
 " patronefs of Abundaiicc^ I muft propofe 
 *' another queftion, how came Proferpine 
 " to be rcprefented in the Kuropcan fyjiem 
 *' as the daughter of Ceres ? Perhaps both 
 *' queftions may be anfwered by the pro- 
 " pofition of natural philofophers, that 
 " the apparent deJlruB'ion of a fubftance is 
 " the producfion of it in a d'fferent form. 
 ** The wild mufic of Kali's priefts at one 
 " of her feftivals brought inftantly to my 
 " recolledlion, the Scythian meafures of 
 " Diana's adorers in the fplendid opera of 
 " Iphigenia in Tauris^ which Gluck ex- 
 *' hiblted at Paris, &c." 
 
 The facrifice of the kid to Kali, as above- 
 mentioned, is probably the fame with that 
 which Father Bouchet calls the Ekiam. 
 6 He
 
 DEVOTION AND WORSHIP. 2.27 
 
 He fays, " The Indians have a facilfice 
 
 " called the Ekiam^ where a flieep is killed ; 
 
 " the Brahmans, who are forbid to tafte 
 
 " meat at other times, are obliged, by the 
 
 " law, to partake of the animal that has 
 
 " been facrificed ;" and, in another place, 
 
 " they eat certain parts of the vidim, but 
 
 " abftain from others ; it is only on this 
 
 " occafion that they tafte animal food *.'* 
 
 I am informed that a buffalo is llkewife 
 offered to Bawaney, at the feaft of the 
 Dohra ; and thefe are the only inftances 
 of living (iicrifices that I am acquainted 
 with. 
 
 The worfliip of the Hindoos may be di- 
 vided into two forts, the Nargafiey Pooja^ 
 or worjQilp of the invifible ; and the Sar- 
 gat.ey Poojdy or the worfhip before idols. 
 
 * Lettrcs edif. &: cur. toni. xi. p. 25. Edit, ut fupr. 
 Id. torn. xii. p. 249. 
 
 0^2 But
 
 11% DEVOTION AND WORSHIF. 
 
 But the followers of the latter are by far the 
 moft numerous : . the former, comparatively 
 fpeaking, are but few^ and in the ftridl 
 fenfe of the expreffion may be termed 
 deifts. They have either retained the true 
 meaning of their religion from the begin- 
 ning, or have in later times abclifhed the 
 fables of the Brahmans, and reftored it to 
 its original purity. This feems to have 
 been a principal object with Veias In 
 his dialogues between Krifhna and Arjoon ; 
 arid it appears, that even in his time, above 
 four thoufand years ago, the adoration of 
 the true god was confounded and loft in an 
 artful and complicated mythology *. 
 
 At the hours of public worfliip the peo- 
 ple refort to the temples. They begin their 
 devotions by performing their ablutions at 
 the tank, which is either to be found in 
 
 Sec Sketch VII. on Mythology. 
 
 front
 
 DEVOTION AND WORSHIP. 229 
 
 front of the building, or in the great tem- 
 ples, in the centre of the firft court f. 
 Leaving their flippers, or fandals, on the 
 border of the tank, they are admitted to a 
 periflile or veflibule, oppofite to the build- 
 ing which contains the idols, where they 
 cbferve great reverence ; and whilft^ the 
 Brahmans perform the ceremonies of the 
 Jug, or the Pooja, the dancing women oc- 
 cafionally dance in the court, fmging the 
 praifes of the divinity to the founds of 
 various mufical inftruments. 
 
 The Pooja may likewife be performed at 
 home before the houfehold images. Thofe 
 who are to affifh at it begin by wafhing 
 
 f Some of the temples are of an oblong figure, and 
 confift of two or more courts, immediately following 
 each other. Some have only one inclofure, with the 
 chapel where the images are placed, in the center of 
 it •, and fome, though few, are like the one at Serin g- 
 h?.:--!, having different courts within each other. 
 
 0^3 them-
 
 23a DEVOTION AND WORSHIP. 
 
 themfelves. They likewiie wafh the room 
 or place deftined for the ceremony; and 
 then fpread it with a new mat, or with a 
 carpet that is only ufed for that purpofe. 
 On this they place the ihroiis of the image, 
 which is generally made of wood richly 
 carved and gilt, though foraetimes of gold 
 or filver. The things neceffiry for the 
 Pooja are laid upon the mat; confifting of 
 a bell of metal ; a conch flicU '■■ to blow 
 on ; a cenfer filled with benzoin fugar, and 
 other articles, which are kept conflantly 
 burninj'-, by being occafionally renewed. 
 Flowers feparately and in garlands are fcat- 
 tered upon the mat. The idol is put into 
 a metal bafon, and being waflied by pouring 
 water firflon the head, is wiped and placed 
 on its throne. Cups, and plates of gold, 
 fdver, or other metals, are fpread before it, 
 fome filled with rice, others with different 
 
 * The conch-fhell is held in a fort of veneration by 
 the Hindoos. 
 
 forts
 
 DEVOTION AND WORSHIP. 231 
 
 forts of fruits, with dry fweet-meats, and 
 with cow's milk. The worlhippers re- 
 peat certain prayers and Ajljlocks^ or verfes 
 in praife of the god whom the idol re- 
 prefents. 
 
 The Brahman, who performs the cere- 
 mony, occafionally rings the bell, and 
 blows the ihell. He gives the T^'iluk^ or 
 mark on the forehead, to the idol, by dip- 
 ping his right thumb in fome fubftance that 
 lias been mixed with water, and prepared 
 for that purpofe. If the mark be a per- 
 pendicular one, he begins at the top of 
 the nofe, and advances upwards. But 
 the colour, the fize, and fliape of the 
 T'lluk depend on the tribe and feft the 
 worfhippers may be of; fome tribes be- 
 ing marked with vermilion, others with 
 turmerick, and fome with the duft of the 
 whiteft fpecies of fiindal wood, &c. A 
 Brahman generally marks all the perfons 
 prefent in the fame manner. The fruit and 
 0^4 other
 
 ^32 DEVOTION AND WORSHIP. 
 
 other articles of food that were fpread be- 
 fore the idol, are divided amongfl; them ; 
 and the idol is then carefully wrapped up, 
 and with the throne and other things ufed 
 in the ceremony, kept in a fccure place 
 until another Pooja be performed. 
 
 A veneration for the elements, but efpe^ 
 cially fire and water, feemito have been 
 common to all the ancient Eaftcrn nations. 
 The Medes and Perfians confidered fire 
 and water as the only true images of the 
 divinity * ; and it is evident, that the 
 Hindoos, if they do not now worfliip fire, 
 hold it in religious reJpe(5t t. Every day 
 at fun-rife the priefts go to fome river, or 
 to the tanks of their temples, to perform 
 the Sandivaney, or worlhip to Brahma the 
 Supreme. After having wafhed themfelves, 
 taking water in the right hand, they throw 
 
 * Herod, i. Clem. Alex. Protrept. 
 + See page iu8. under the article Sour. 
 
 it
 
 DEVOTION AND WORSHIP. 233 
 
 It in the air before and behind them, in- 
 voking the Deity, and Tinging forth thankf- 
 giving and praife. They then throw fome 
 towards the Sun, exprefling their gratitude 
 for his having again appeared to difpel the 
 darknefs of the night. 
 
 Lucian fays, that the Indians offered 
 adoration to the Sun, in turning towards 
 the eaft ; and Philoftrates obferves, that 
 they addrefl'ed prayers to him in the morn- 
 ing, to favour the cultivation of the earth ; 
 and in the evening, not to abandon them, 
 but return again in the morning. 
 
 Father Bouchet fays, that " He v/ho 
 ^* performs the Ekiam fhould, every morn- 
 " ing and evening, put a piece of wood 
 " into the fire, that is employed for that 
 " facrifice, and take care to preyent it from 
 ** being extinguifhed.'* 
 
 Mr. Wllkins informs us, that the Brah- 
 mans are enjoined to light up a fire at certain 
 
 times,
 
 234 DEVOTION AND WORSHIP. 
 
 times, which mufl he produced by the 
 fridion of two pieces of wood of a par- 
 ticular kind ; that with a iire thus pro- 
 cured, their facrifices are burnt ; the nup- 
 tial altar flames ; and the funeral pile is 
 kindled. 
 
 In the Heetopades it is faid : " Fire is 
 " the fuperior of the Brahmans ; the Brah- 
 " man is the fuperior of the tribes ; the 
 " hufoand is the fuperior of w^omen ; but 
 *' the ftrangcr is the fuperior of all.'*
 
 C 235 ] 
 
 SKETCH IX. 
 
 Devotees, 
 
 TN every part of Hindoftan we meet with 
 numbers of devotees, diftinguiflied by 
 various names, but not reflricled to any 
 call. They become fuch from choice, and 
 every Hindoo, except the Chandalah, is at 
 liberty to adopt this mode of life. 
 
 Of all the numerous clafles of devotees, 
 none are fo much refpeded as the Saniaflies 
 and Yogeys, They quit their relations, 
 and every concern of this life, and wander 
 about the country v/ithout any fixed abode. 
 
 It is faid, in their facred writings, " That 
 " a Saniaffy, or he who fhall devote him- 
 ^' felf to a folitary religious life, (liall have 
 
 *' no
 
 236 DEVOTEES. 
 
 " no other clothing, but what m.iy be ne-" 
 " ceflary to cover his nakednefs ; nor any 
 " other worldly goods but a ftaff in his 
 " hand, and a pitcher to drink out of. 
 " That he fliall always meditate on the 
 " truths contained in the facred writings, 
 " but never argue on them. That his food 
 " fhall be confined to rice, and other 
 *' vegetables; and that he fhall eat but once 
 " a-day, and then fparingly. That he fhall 
 " look forward with defire to the fepara- 
 '* tion of the foui from the body ; be in- 
 '' different about heat, or cold, or hunger, 
 " or praife, or reproach, or any thing con- 
 " cerning this life ; and that unlefs he 
 " flridly follow thcfe rules, and fubdue 
 " his palTions, he will only be more 
 *■ criminal, by embracing a flate, the du- 
 *' ties of which he could not perform, ne^ 
 *^ gle6ling thofe he was born to obfervc." 
 
 With tlic precife diftinclion between the 
 Yogey and the Sanlafly, I am unacquainted. 
 The former in Sanfcrit, figniiies a devout 
 
 perfon ;
 
 DEVOTEES. 237 
 
 perfon ; the latter, one who has entirely 
 forfaken the things of this world. It is 
 faid in the dialogues between Krifhna and 
 Arjoon, 
 
 " Learn, fon of Pandoo, that what they 
 *' call Sa?iias^ or a forfaking of the world, 
 " is the fame with Tog^ or the practice of 
 " devotion. 
 
 " The man who Is happy in his heart, 
 " at reft in his mind, and enlightened 
 *' within, is a Togey, or one devoted to 
 " God, of a godly fpirit, and obtaineth 
 " the immaterial nature of Brahm the 
 " Supreme. 
 
 *^ The man who keepeth the outward 
 
 " accidents from entering the mind, and 
 
 " his eyes fixed in contemplation between 
 
 " his brows ; who maketh the breath pais 
 
 " equally through his noftrils, who hath fet 
 
 " his heart upon falvation, and who is 
 
 " free from luft, fear, or anger, is for ever 
 
 « bleffed in this life.'* 
 
 "He
 
 238 DEVOTEES. 
 
 " He cannot be a Togej^ who, in his ac- 
 " tions, hath not abandoned all views."^ 
 
 *' The Togey conftantly exercifeth the 
 *' fpirit in private. He is of a fubdued 
 " mind, free from hope. He planteth his 
 ** feat firmly on a fpot that is neither too 
 " high nor too low, and fitteth on the 
 " facred grafs that is called Koos, covered 
 " with a fivin, or cloth. — There he, whofe 
 " bufmefs is the reftraining of his paflions, 
 " fhould fit, in the exercife of devotion, 
 " for the purification of his foul, keeping 
 " his head, his neck, and his body fteady, 
 " without motion, his eyes fixed on the 
 " point of his nofe, looking at nothing elfe 
 " around. The Togey of a fubdued mind, 
 *' thus employed, in the exercife of devo- 
 " tion, is as a lamp flanding in a place 
 " without wind, which waveth not." 
 
 '* Supreme happincfs attendeth him 
 " whofe mind is thus at peace, whofe car- 
 " nal affedions and paflions arc fubdued, 
 " and who is in God, and free from fm." 
 
 " The
 
 D E V OT E E S. 239 
 
 " The man whole mind is endued with 
 " devotion, beholdeth the fupreme foul 
 " in all things, and all things in the fa- 
 
 it 
 
 preme 
 
 foul' 
 
 " The Togcy who believeth in unity, and 
 " worfiiippeth me prefent in all things, 
 " dwelleth in me." 
 
 " This divine difcipline which is called 
 ** Tog^ is hard to be attained by him who 
 " hath not his foul in fubjedion, but it may 
 " be acquired by him who taketh pains.'* 
 
 " The Togey is more exalted than the 
 " Tapafivees^ thofe zealots who harafs them- 
 ** felves in performing penances." 
 
 " He is both a Togey and a Saniajy who 
 " doeth that w^hich he hath to do, inde- 
 " pendent of the fruit thereof." 
 
 " Works are faid to be the means by 
 
 *' which a man may require devotion, fo 
 
 " reft is called the means for him who hath 
 
 " attained devotion," 
 
 " When
 
 240 DEVOTEES. y . y 
 
 " When the all-contemplative ^^nt^ u^/jr is 
 *' not engaged with objed:s of the fenfes, 
 " nor in works, then he is called one who 
 " hath attained devotion." 
 
 " The foul of the conquered placid fpirit, 
 " is the fame in heat and in cold, in pain 
 " and in pleafure, in honour and difgrace." 
 
 " The man whofe mind is replete with 
 ** divine wifdom and learning, who Hand- 
 ** eth on the pinnacle, and hath fubdiied his 
 " pafTions, is faid to be devout *." 
 
 It is not improbable that fome of the 
 paflages in the facred writings which were 
 enigmatical, being underftood literally by 
 the ignorant, have given rife to thofe ex- 
 travagant penances, with which fome of 
 the devotees torture tbemfelves. In one 
 of the above quotations they feem even to 
 
 * Bbngvat Gcda. The above quotations, as well 
 as others, are not taken in the exaft order in which 
 thev follow in the work, but arc felected from different 
 parts, as they fait the fubje6l treated of. 
 
 be
 
 DEVOTEES. 241 
 
 be condemned ; the Togej being faid to be 
 more exalted than the Tapa/ivee, &c. I 
 faw one of the latter, who having made a 
 vow to keep his arms conftantly extended 
 over his head, with his hands clafped to- 
 gether, they were become withered and Im- 
 moveable. Not long ago, one of them 
 finlflied meafuring the diftance between 
 Benares and Jaggernaut with his body, by 
 alternately ftrctching himfelf upon the 
 ground, and rifing ; which, if he performed 
 it as faithfully as he pretended, muft have 
 taken years to accompllfh. Some make 
 vovv'S to keep their arms crofled over their 
 breaft for the reft of their days ; others to 
 keep their hands for ever fhut, and their 
 nails are fcmetimes feen growing through 
 the back of the hand ; fome by their own 
 defire, are chained to a particular fpot, and 
 others never lie down, but fleep leaning 
 
 againft a tree ''^. 
 
 There 
 
 * Philofophos eorum quos Gymnofoph'tflas vacant^ ab 
 
 exortu ad occafum perjiare contuentes fokm immobllibus 
 
 Vol. i. R ^culis.
 
 242 DEVOTEES. 
 
 There are frequent Inftances of devotees 
 and penitents throwing themfelves under 
 the wheels of the chariots * of Shivah or 
 Viflinou, when the idol is drawn out to 
 celebrate the feaft of a temple, and being 
 thereby cruflied to death : and not long 
 fince we faw an account of the aged father 
 of a numerous offspring, who devoted him- 
 felf to the flames, to appeafe the wrath of 
 a divinity, who, as he imagined, had for 
 fome time paft afflided his family and neigh- 
 houYS with a mortal epidemical difeafe. 
 
 The Fandarmns, on the coaft of Coro- 
 
 mandel, are followers of Shivah; they rub 
 
 • _ 
 
 their faces and bodies with the aflies of 
 
 burnt cow-dung, and go about the towns 
 
 and villages fmging the praifes of their God. 
 
 octiHsy fcrve7it'ibns arems toto die allcrms pedlbus lujijiere. 
 Plin. lib. vii. cap. 2. — Gymmfophijls w^iS a name given 
 by the Greeks, on account of their going np.ked, of 
 probably from their not wearing an upper garment. 
 • * Thefe chariots are more properly great moveable 
 towers, wliich require many oxen and fome hundreds 
 of men to draw them. 
 
 ] o The
 
 DEVOTEES. 443 
 
 The Cary-patry pa7idarams are a fet of 
 feligious perfone, who make a vow never 
 to (peak ; they go to the doors of houfes, 
 and demand charity, by ftriking their hands 
 together. They take nothing but rice, 
 which is given them ready prepared for 
 eating; and, if it befufficient to fatisfy their 
 hunger, they pafs the reft of the day fit- 
 ting in the fhade, and fcarcely looking at 
 any objedl that may come before them. 
 
 The Tadinums go about begging, and 
 fmging the hiftory of the different incar- 
 nations of Vifhnou. They beat a kind of 
 tabor ; and have fmall brafs bells tied rbund 
 their ankles, which make a confiderable 
 noife as they walk along, 
 
 Thefe devotees are to be met with in 
 every part of Hindoftan ; but chiefly in the 
 neighbourhood of great temples, both from, 
 religious motives, and in order to receive 
 alms from the pilgrims who refort thither. 
 
 Contrary to the pracllce of the Hindoos 
 
 in general, many of them v\'ear their hair, 
 
 F. 2 and,
 
 244 DEVOTEES. 
 
 and, by frequently rubbing it with the oil of 
 the cocoa-nut, it grows to an extraordinary 
 degree of length and thicknefs. Some let 
 it hang loofe on their bodies, extending to 
 the ground ; others have it plaited in many 
 trefles, and wound round the head in the 
 form of a great turban. 
 
 Moft of the ancient authors who have 
 mentioned India and its inhabitants, feem 
 to have confounded the Devotees, Sedaries, 
 and Pundits^ or Philofophers, with the 
 Brachmanes, or regular priefthood. They 
 fpeak of Gymnofoph'ijls^ Germanes^ Framnes^ 
 Samauicns^ and Hilobiejjs^ who are faid to 
 be a clafs of the Samajuens^ that lived in 
 forefts, and ufed no clothing or nourifh- 
 ment but what the trees afforded them. 
 
 Strabo fays, that the Samaniens fet no 
 value on any knowledge but fuch as tend- 
 ed to correct vice, and that they fmiled at 
 thofe who applied themfelves to metaphy- 
 fic?, aftronomy, and aftrology. — Probably 
 
 Strabo
 
 DEVOTEES. 2^5 
 
 Strabo meant fuch of the Samaiiicns as 
 were folitaries, or hermits ; for we find 
 that the Samaniens in general were re- 
 marked for their learning, and their know- 
 ledge in the fciences. 
 
 Clement of Alexandria obferves, that 
 there were two clafTes of Indian philofo- 
 phers, the one called Brachmanes^ the other 
 Sarmanes; by which, I am inclined to think, 
 he means the Samaniens. He fays fome 
 of the Sa?'tnatjes were zdiW^d folitaries^ and 
 neither lived in towns nor had any particu- 
 lar dwelling ; that they obferved celibacy ; 
 and covered their nakednefs with the bark 
 of trees ; nourifhed themfelves with their 
 fruit ; and drank only water, and that out 
 of the palms of their hands. 
 
 Porphyry acquaints us, that the fubftance 
 of the dodrines of the Indians confifted in 
 the necefTity of adoring God with a pure 
 and pious mind ; that the Samaniens^ who 
 iecluded themfelves from the world, infilled 
 
 Vol, I. R 3 oa
 
 24<^ DEVOTEES. 
 
 on the neceflity of fubcliiing the pafiions, in 
 order to be fit to approach God ; and gave 
 that as the rea&n for the extraordinary pe- 
 nances they inflicted upon themfelves, there- 
 by to render the body entirely fiibmijjlve to 
 the fp'irit, 
 
 M. de la Croze fays, that the Samajtiens 
 are ftill fpoken of with refpe^t, fo far as re- 
 gards their learning ; but that their dodrines 
 are held in abhorrence by the Brahmans, 
 and that their fed no longer exifts. He 
 fpeaks of feveral of their literary perform- 
 ances. The title of one is Tolkabiam, from 
 its author, who is faid to have been a Hin- 
 doo Rajah ; we are told, it is very volumi- 
 nous, and among other things contains the 
 art and rules of Hindoo poetry. M. Ziegen- 
 balg obferves, that to underftand it tho- 
 roughly, required long and arduous appli- 
 cation.—Another work, called Diva-garam^ 
 which treats of language and the choice of 
 ijDords^ is put into the hands of boys who 
 
 are
 
 DEVOTEES. 247 
 
 are deftlned to purfue learning, and Is held 
 in the highefl: efteera by their literati, but 
 the ftyle is fo exalted as to be entirely above 
 the comprehenfion of the vulgar. . 
 
 Calanus *, who burnt himfelf in the pre- 
 fence of Alexander and his officers, has by 
 fome been called a Brahman ; — but it is 
 evident that he v^^as one of thofe devotees 
 
 * We are told that he was fo named by the Greeks, 
 from his faying Cale^ by way of falutation. They 
 likewife called him Sphines, which probably was no 
 more his true name than the other. He was regard- 
 ed by his countrymen as an apoftate. — He followed 
 Alexander; at Pafargadus, being attacked with a 
 dyfentery, he ordered a funeral pile to be prepared, 
 and having performed his ablutions, facrifices, and 
 prayers, laid himfelf compofedly down, and was burnt 
 to death. Plut. Fit. Alex. 
 
 Strabo mentions a perfon who had accompanied 
 ambafladors fent by a prince of India to Auguflus, 
 that burnt himfelf at Athens ; and fays, the Athenians 
 erecl-^^d a monument to his memory, with this in- 
 fcription, " To Zarmonachigas, Indian oi Bergnfes^ who 
 *' voluntarily embraced death, according to the cuftom 
 " of liis country." 
 
 R 4 who
 
 248 DEVOTEES. 
 
 who travel about the country. — He is faid 
 to have gone naked ; but the Brahmans 
 neither go naked, nor commit any ads of 
 extravagance. Their lives are uniform, 
 indolent but decent ; and chiefly occupied 
 with their rites and ceremonies, they apply 
 more or lefs to ftudy, according to their 
 genius and turn of mind. 
 
 But notwithftanding this inaccuracy of 
 ancient authors, in confounding the Brah- 
 mans, or regular priefthood, with the de- 
 votees and fedaries ; if we confider how 
 limited their intercourfe with India was, 
 compared to that enjoyed by modern Eu- 
 ropeans, and how little we ourfelves knew 
 of its inhabitants till within thefe few years 
 paft, we fhall lind cauie, inftead of being 
 iLocked with their errors, to be furprifed at 
 their inftrudion, and perhaps afhamed of 
 our own fupinenefs. Strabo obferves, that 
 thofe who had been in India, generally had 
 feen things but partially, and by the way ; 
 that they had taken their information by 
 
 hearfay,
 
 DEVOTEES. 249 
 
 Iiearfay, which, however, had not prevented 
 their giving accounts as if they had examin- 
 ed with accuracy *. 
 
 Some are of opinion, that the extravagant 
 notions of the illuminated and quietijls^ that 
 have figured among the Chriftians, and 
 that ftill exift in diiFerent parts of Europe, 
 came originally from the devotees of Hin- 
 doftan. D'FIerbelot fays, " The le^t of 
 *' the Illumines had its origin in the Eaft; 
 " it w^as brought by the Arabs into Spain, 
 ** under the name of Alumhrados^ and has 
 *' been renewed in our days by Dodor 
 " Molinos t." 
 
 But, befides the route given to this fe£t 
 by DTTerbelot, w^e find that fimilar opi- 
 nions with thofe of the Illumines^ were 
 profefled in the eleventh century, by Simeon, 
 fuperior of a monaftery of Saint Mamas in 
 Conftantinople, and were embraced by Pa- 
 
 * Strabo, 15. 
 
 t Bib. Orient, par D' Herbelot, p. 296. fol. 
 
 lamaF,
 
 250 DEVOTEES. 
 
 lamas, biHiop of Salonlca. They appeared ia 
 the Latin cl/irch in the fourteenth century, 
 and broke out and made great progrefs in 
 the feventeenth, being profeffed and taught 
 by Molinos, who is confidered as the chief 
 of the Sluidijls of the well. 
 
 Simeon and others pretended, that, by 
 abflrading themielves from the things of 
 this world, they might, while in a ftate of 
 fuch abftradion, and abforbed in the con- 
 templation of God, be received into grace, 
 and partake of the divine eflence.— That 
 they then compofed a fort of Trinity with- 
 in themfelves, of the body, the foul, and 
 the holy fpirit.— While in the pradice of 
 contemplation, it was recommended to the 
 difciples, to fit with their chin upon their 
 breafc, the eyes fixed on the navel ; and 
 they pretended that when they were in- 
 fpired with the Divine Spirit, they felt it 
 pafs through their noftrils, and were aiTcd- 
 ed with peculiarly delightful fenfations. — 
 But befide the abfurdity of thofe monflrous 
 
 dodrincs.
 
 DEVOTEES. 251 
 
 dodrines, which, it might he fuppofed, 
 would have been fufficient to. draw on them 
 the contempt of all reafonable men, it was 
 alleged, that the difciples of Molinos, 
 trufting for their falvation to exercifes 
 o{ abforption^ w^ere often engaged in fcenes 
 of the mcft licentious debauchery. They 
 were called ^netijls, from affecting an ex- 
 traordinary tranquillity of mind; and, how- 
 ever flrange it may appear, many of high 
 rank of both fexes, and perfons dif- 
 tinguifhed for their learning, were Quietifts. 
 Madame de la Motte Guyon, the friend of 
 the celebrated Fenelon, ^rchbilhop of Cam- 
 bray, openly profefled herfelf to be of 
 the number ; nor was he even ex- 
 empt from fufpicion of having adopted 
 fome of the opinions of Molinos, though 
 too virtuous and too wife to have credited 
 or pradtifed any of thofe extravagancies, of 
 which many of the Quietids are accufed. 
 
 Vol. L R 6
 
 C 252 ] 
 
 SKETCH X. 
 
 Learning and Philofophy of the Brahman^, 
 
 ALL the ancient facred and profane 
 writings of the Hindoos are written in 
 the Sanfkrit language, which is now only 
 known to the Pundits *, or men of learn- 
 ing; and is neither fpoken nor underftood 
 by the reft of the nation. Yet as Sanlkrit 
 words are ftill found in ufe over the whole 
 peninfula ; and as moft of the proper names 
 of perfons and ancient places are derived 
 from that language, it is not improbable, 
 
 * Pundit is a Sanfkrit word, and an honorary title, 
 fignifying do6tor or philofopher. 
 
 Mr. Wilkins informs us, that Sanfkrit is compofed 
 from Soriy a prepofition, fignifying completion, and 
 Jkritaj done or finifhed. 
 
 that
 
 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY. 253 
 
 that it was once unlverfal, however remote 
 that period may be. 
 
 If we compare the Brahmans of the pre- 
 fent day with the Brachmanes * of antiquity, 
 we fliall, in almoft every feature of their 
 character, perceive the ftrongeftrefemblance. 
 The difference that may exift between 
 them, may partly have infenfibly taken 
 place in the lapfe of time ; but muft chiefly 
 be afcribed to the revolutions that have 
 happened in their government. 
 
 The ancient Brahmans, living in an age 
 when the Hindoo empire flourifhed, cul- 
 tivated fcience with an encouragement 
 of which their opprefTed pofferity are de- 
 prived. Befide the fludy of the facred, 
 moral, and metaphyfical writings of their 
 nation, a principal part of their fcientific 
 purfuits feems to have been direded to 
 
 * The words are evidently the fame, and derive 
 their origin from Brahma, God. 
 
 aflronoray,
 
 254 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 aftronomy, natural philofophy, and fome 
 branches of mathematics. 
 
 Several ancient authors, in fpeaking of 
 the philofophers of India, fay, that they 
 occupied themfelves with things of a ferious 
 nature ; in the contemplation of God and 
 his works ; that they fpoke little, and fel- 
 dom without neceffity, yet never refufed to 
 anfwer thofe who came to them to be ia- 
 flruded*: that their difcourfe was con- 
 cife, fententious, often allegorical, and that 
 they fometimes ufed enigmas f . 
 
 Nearchus, who commanded Alexander's 
 fleet, faid, that they only refpected truth and 
 virtue if. 
 
 Strabo informs us, that they cultivated 
 natural philofophy and aftronomy. 
 
 They w^ere held in fo high repute for 
 their maxims of morality, and for their 
 
 * Strabo, 15. Porphyr. cic Abll;. 4. 
 f Diog. Lacr. Prosefn. 
 X Strabo, ibid. 
 
 know-
 
 OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 ':>> 
 
 knowledge in fclence and philofophy, 
 that, befides Pythagoras, many went from 
 Greece and other more eaftern countries, 
 purpofely to be inftruded by them. Such 
 were, Democrites the Abderian, Pyrrhon, 
 
 &c. * Bardefanes of Babylon, who 
 
 lived in the time of Alexander Severus, is 
 faid to have converfed with the Brach- 
 manes, whom he reprefented as chiefly occu- 
 pied in the adoration of God, and the 
 duties of morality f . 
 
 Great affinity appears between the man- 
 ners and pradices of the Brahmans and 
 thofe Gymnofophifts of Ethiopia, who fet- 
 tled near the fources of the Nile ; and, ac- 
 cording to Philoftrates, they were defcended 
 from the Brahmans. He fays, the Gymno- 
 fophifts of Ethiopia came from India, hav- 
 ing been driven from thence for the murder 
 of their king near the Ganges J. He makes 
 
 * Suidas. — Diog. Laert. 
 
 f S. Jerom. Porph. 
 
 X Phiioft. Vit. Apoll. c. 6. 
 
 Pytha-
 
 256 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 Pythagoras fay to Thefpefion, in reproach- 
 ing him for his improper complaifance to 
 the Egyptians, " Admirer as you are of the 
 *' philofophy which the Indians invented, 
 " why do you not attribute it to its real pa- 
 " rents, rather than to thofe who are only fo 
 " by adoption? Whyafcribe to the Egyptians 
 " a thing as abfurd, as to afTert that the 
 " waters of the Nile, mixed with milk, 
 *' (which they pretend happened formerly,) 
 " flowed back to their firft fource." — lar- 
 chas, likewife, fays to Apollonius, on 
 afldng his opinion concerning the foul : 
 " We think of it what Pythagoras taught 
 " you, and what we taught the Egyp- 
 " tians ^. 
 
 * Phllofl. de Vit. Apoll. c. 6. He probably meant 
 the people of the Thebaid, as the opinions of thofe of 
 lower Egypt, with refpetl to the Supreme Being, ap- 
 pear in general to have been very different from the 
 tenets of the Hindoos. Some faid, that the foul after 
 death dcfcended to a fubterrancoui place, where it for 
 ever remained ; others, that it afcended to tlie ftars, 
 whence it originally came. 
 
 12 Lucian
 
 OF THE BRAHMANS. 257 
 
 Lucian obferves, that the fcience of aflro- 
 tiomy came from Ethiopia — perhaps, there- 
 fore, from thefe Gymnofophifls who came 
 originaily from Indoftan — And in making 
 philofophy complain to Jupiter of fome 
 who had diflionoured her by their condudl, 
 he fuppofes the Indians to have been the 
 firft inftru£ted by her. She fays, " I went 
 " amongft the Indians, and made them 
 " come down from their elephants and con- 
 " verfe with me. — From them I went to 
 ** the Ethiopians, and then came to the 
 " Egyptians." — LuciAx^'T. 
 
 But though the Brahmans now may be 
 inferior to their anceftors, as philofophers 
 and men of fcience, their r^?/? is ftill the only 
 repofitory of the literature that yet remains: 
 to them alone is entrufted the educa- 
 tion of youth ; they are the fole interpre- 
 ters of the law, and the only expounders 
 of their religion. 
 
 Bernier, in his letter, dated 4th 0<Slober 
 1667, gives the following account of their 
 literary purfuits at that time. 
 
 Vol. I. S ♦' La
 
 258 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 " La vlUe de Benares, eft I'ecole generale, 
 " et comme TAthenes de toute la gentilite 
 " des Indes, ou les Brahmens et les Reli- 
 " gieux, qui font ceux qui s'appliquent a 
 " I'etude, fe rendent. lis n'ont point de 
 " Colleges ni de clafies ordonnees, comme 
 " chez nous ; cela me femble plus tenir de 
 " cette fa9on d'ecole des anciens, les maltres 
 " etant difperfes par la ville dans leur 
 " maifons, et principalement dans les Jar- 
 " dins des Fauxbourgs, ou les gros mar- 
 " chands les foufFrent. De ces maitres les 
 *' uns ont quatre difciples, les autres fix ou 
 " fept, et les plus rcnommv-'s, douze ou 
 " quinze tout au plus, qui paffent les dix et 
 " les douze annees avec eux. Toute cette 
 " etude eft fort froide, parceque la plupart 
 " des Indlens font d'une humeur lente et 
 ** parefleufe; la chaleur du pays et leur 
 *' manger y contribuant beaucoup. 
 
 " Leur premiere etude eft fur le Han- 
 " fcrit ■*, qui eft une langue tout a. fait 
 ** differente de I'lndienne ordinaire et qui 
 
 Or Sanfkiit. 
 
 « n eft
 
 OF THE BRAIIMANS. 259 
 
 *' n'eft fue que des Pundits. Elle s*appelle 
 *' Hanfcrit, qui veut dire langue pure, et 
 " parcequ'ils tiennent que ce fut dans cette 
 " langue que Dieu, par le moyen de Brah- 
 '* ma '% leur publia les quatre f Beths qu'ils 
 *' eftiment livres facres ; ils Tappellent lan- 
 " gue fainte et divine : ils pretendent 
 meme qu'elle eft auffi ancienne que Brah- 
 ma, dont ils ne comptent I'age que par 
 Lecques, ou centaines de mille ans ; mais 
 " je voudrois caution de cette etrange an- 
 " tiquitc. Quoiqu'il en foit, on ne fauroit 
 *' nier, ce me fembie, qu'elle ne foit tres an- 
 ** cienne, puifque Icurs livres de religion, 
 " qui I'eft fans doute beaucoup, ne font 
 " ccrits que dans cette langue, et que de 
 " plus, elle a fes autres de philofophie, la 
 " medicine en vers, quclques autres poefies 
 '* et quantite d'autres livres, dont j'ai vu 
 *' une grandc fale toute plelne dans Benares. 
 
 " Apres qu'ils ont apvls le Hanfcrit, ce 
 qui leur eft tres difficile, parcequ'ils n'ont 
 
 a 
 
 * He means Brlmlia. f Veds. 
 
 S 2 " point.
 
 26o LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 " point de grammalre qui vaille, ils fe met- 
 " tent pour Tordinaire a. lire le Purane, qui 
 " ell comme un interprete et abregc des 
 *' Beths, parceque ces Beths font fort gros, 
 " du moins fi ce font ceux qu'on me mon- 
 *' tra a Benares: ils font meine trcs rares ; 
 " jufques-la que mon Agah ne les a jamais 
 *' pu trouver a acheter, quelque diligence 
 *' qu'il ait pu faire; auffi les tiennent ils fort 
 *' fecrets, de crainte que les Mahometans 
 " ne mcttcnt la main deffus, et ne les faflent 
 " bruler, comme ils ont deja fait plufieurs 
 " fois. 
 
 " Entrc Icurs philofophes il y en a prin- 
 " cipalement fix fort faineux, qui font fix 
 " fedes dlfferentes. Les uns s'attachent a 
 " celle ci, et les autres a celle la, ce qui 
 " fait de la diiTerence, et caufe meme de la 
 "jaloufie entre les Pundets, ou do6leurs ; 
 " car ils f^avent qu'un tel eft de cette fe^te, 
 " ct un tel d'une autre, et chacun d'eux 
 " pretend que fa dodtrine eft bien meilleure 
 " que celles des autres, et qu*elle eft meme 
 " plus conforme aux Beths. 
 
 •' Tous
 
 OF THE BRiMIMANS. 261 
 
 « 
 
 Tons ces livrcs parlent des premiers 
 '* principes des chofes, mais fort differe- 
 " ment. Les uns tiennent que tout eft 
 *' compofe des petits corps, qui font indivi- 
 ** fibles, nori pas a caufe de leur folidite, 
 *' durete, et refiftance, mais a raifou de 
 " leur petitelTe, et difent ainfi plufieurs 
 ** chofes enfuite qui approchciit des opinions 
 ** de Democrite et d^ Epicure, 
 
 " Les autres difent, que tout eft com- 
 *' pofc de matiere et de forme, mais pas un 
 " d'eux ne s'explique nettement fur la ma- 
 " tiere, et bien moins encore fur la forme.'* 
 
 *' D'autres veulent que tout foit compofe 
 ** des quatre elemens et du ncant. 
 
 *' II y en a aufti qui veulent que la lu- 
 ** miere et les tenebres foient les premiers 
 *' principes. 
 
 *' II y en a encore qui admettent pour 
 ** principe la privation, ou plutot les pri- 
 ** vations, qu'ils diftinguent du neant. 
 
 S 3 « II
 
 262 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 *' II y en a en fin qui pretendent que 
 *' tout eft compofe d'accidens. 
 
 *' Touch ant ces princlpes en general, 
 *' lis font tous d'accord qu'ils font eter- 
 *' nels." 
 
 The Ilindoos, like fome of the ancients, 
 fuppofe that the foul is an emanation of 
 the fplrit of God breathed into mortals. 
 But their manner of exprefling this idea is 
 more fublime; for, inftead of calling it a 
 portion of the divine fplrit, they compare 
 it to the heat and light fent forth from the 
 fun, which neither leffens nor divides his 
 own eflence : to the fpeech that communi- 
 cates knowledge, without leflcning that 
 of him who inftrucls the ignorant : to 
 a torch at which other torches are lighted, 
 without its light being thereby diminifli- 
 ed, &c. 
 
 Some of the philofophers not only believe 
 that the fouls of mankind are emanations 
 
 of
 
 OF THE BRAHMANS. 263 
 
 ^i the divme Jp'irit ^ but that the Sun, the 
 Moon, with the other planets, and all the 
 bodies that are fcattered in the infinity of 
 fpace, are pervaded, and made to exift by 
 this fpirit. Thefe opinions are by no means 
 peculiar to the Hindoos, but feem to have 
 been entertained by the Chaldeans, the 
 Perfians, and many of the philofophers of 
 Greece and Italy ^'. 
 
 Others giving ftill greater fcope to the 
 imagination, profefs the dodtrine ailllufion. 
 They fay nothing really exifts in an 
 individual fenfe, becaufe the univerfe, and 
 every thing contained in it, is only one, // is 
 God^ all things being emanations from the 
 firll principle. Audit is neceflary to attend to 
 this doctrine, in order to comprehend many 
 paflages in their different authors which 
 refer to it. 
 
 * DIog. Laert. in Pyth. — Plato in Tim. — Idem in 
 Epin. — Cicero dc Nat. Deor. 
 
 S 4 Gowtama,
 
 264 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 Gowtama *, an ancient author of a me- 
 taphyfical work, called Nayaya-darfana^ 
 makes a diftindion between what he calls 
 the divine foul, and the vital foul. The 
 firfl:, he fays, is eternal, immaterial, and 
 indivlfible ; refembling in that refpedl the 
 great Spirit from whence it came : and he 
 thinks it would be monftrous to imagine, 
 that this effence or fpirit fliould be affected 
 by the paffions to wliich mankind is fub- 
 je£t. The fecond, he liiys, is a fubtle ele- 
 ment, which pervades all animated things ; 
 and he obferves, that it would be as ab- 
 fard to fuppofe that defire or pafTions of 
 any kind could exiil in organized matter 
 only, as to fuppofe they could exift in a 
 piece of mechanifm that was the work of 
 human ingenuity. Taking it then for 
 
 * This author is well known to the learned Brah- 
 mans. He is mentioned in the Hectopades as a pro- 
 phet ; and the late Colonel Dow tells us, that he de- 
 pofited a copy of one of the volumes of his work in 
 the Britifh Mufeum, 
 
 granted,
 
 OF THE BRAIIMANS. 26; 
 
 granted, that mankind partake in a certain 
 degree of the Ipirit of God, which is not 
 liable to human paflions ; and that or- 
 ganized matter, merely as fuch, cannot 
 poflefs any ; the vital foul, or pervading 
 element, is that which gives birth to our 
 defires. 
 
 In fpeakingof man, he mentions, befides 
 the five external fenfes of feeing, hearing, 
 tafting, fmelling, and feeling, one internal 
 fenfe ; by which we prefume he means in- 
 tellectual perception. 
 
 He fays, that the external fenfes con- 
 vey into the mind diftindl reprefentations 
 of things ; and thereby furnilh it with 
 materials for its internal operations \ but 
 that unlefs the mind adt in conjundlion 
 Vv-ith the fenfes, their operation is loft. — 
 Thus, for inftance, a perfon in deep con- 
 templation is frequently infenfible to found, 
 nor does he perceive an object that is im- 
 mediately before his eyes. — That ideas ac- 
 quired by means of the external fenfes, 
 
 produce
 
 -66 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 produce new ideas by the internal opera- 
 tion of the mind, and have alfo the power 
 of exciting fenfations of pain or pleafure. 
 
 Reafon, he fays, is the faculty that 
 enables us to conclude (from what falls 
 under our immediate obfervation) upon 
 things at the time not perceptible; as, 
 when we fee fmoke, w^e know that it pro- 
 ceeds from fire. — Reafon, he continues, 
 depends on our ideas, and is in propor- 
 tion to the nature and extent of them ; and 
 therefore, wherever our ideas are indiftindi, 
 our reafon mufl be imperfed. 
 
 By perception, he fays, we have an im- 
 mediate knowledge of things in a certain 
 degree, without the aid of reafon ; as of a 
 horfe, a tree, of hard or foft, fweet or 
 bitter, hot or cold. 
 
 He then goes into a dircufnon of infe- 
 rence; takes notice of true and falfe infe- 
 rences, and of things that can be demon- 
 
 ftratcd, and of thofe that cannot. 
 
 Memory,
 
 OF THE BRAHMANS. 267 
 
 Memory, which he feems to take in a 
 very comprehenfive fenfe, and alnioft to 
 confound with imagination, may, he fays, 
 be employed on things prefent as to time, 
 but abfent as to place ; on things paft, 
 and on things in expc£iation. He calls 
 memory, the repofitory of knowledge, 
 from which ideas already acquired, may 
 be occafionally revived and called into 
 action. 
 
 In fpeaking of letters, he fays, by that 
 heavenly invention a certain fignification 
 being given to figures and characters, the 
 fight of them ferves to revive ideas that 
 have been negled:ed, or were notinadion; 
 as well as to convey others we are unac- 
 quainted with. — By thefe, he fays, we 
 may increafe our knowledge by contem- 
 plative experience ; by thefe the anions 
 and difcoveries, and learning of men in 
 remote ages, have been tranfmitted to us; 
 by thefe the virtues or vices of thoie of 
 our own times will be tranfmitted to pof- 
 
 terity;
 
 a68 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 terlty ; and by thefe we may converfe with 
 thofe we love, however far they may be re- 
 moved from us. — He then invokes Seraf- 
 waty, the goddefs of fcience, by whom 
 they are fuppofed to have been invented. 
 
 Treating of duration, he fays, that as 
 we cannot have an idea of its beginning 
 or end, it cannot in its extent be brought 
 ■within our comprehenfion : — that the du- 
 ration, which is obvious to our conception, 
 by means of motion and fucceflion, is the 
 fpace between one event and another; as 
 the fpace from the firft appearance of the 
 fun in the morning till he difappears in 
 the evening ; and from his dlfappearing 
 till he appears again ; which definite fpace 
 is called time: — that men having invented 
 a mode of meafuring time, or parts of du- 
 ration, applied it to meafure the revolu- 
 tions of the planets, from whence pro- 
 ceeded the divifions of time, called years, 
 months, and days, without which inven- 
 tion our knowledge would be confufed, 
 and hiflory unintelligible. 
 
 He
 
 OF THE BRAHMANS. 2^9 
 
 He feems to hint at the folly of conjedtures 
 about the beginning or duration of the world. 
 But as this, we prefume, would not be or- 
 thodox with the Brahmans, his fentiments 
 on that fubjed are fo exprefled, as to leave 
 great latitude for explanation. 
 
 In fpeaking of the order of nature, as efta- 
 blifhed by the Supreme Being, he obferves, 
 that it univerfiilly reigns in all his works ;— 
 that he therein fhows us, that nothing can 
 be produced without a iirft caufe; — and 
 he afks, what is chance, or accident, but 
 a thing of momentary exiftence, yet al- 
 w^ays produced by a preceding caufe ? 
 
 In treating of providence and free-will, 
 he fuppofes, that the Supreme Being, hav- 
 ing eftablifhed the order of nature, leaves 
 her to proceed in her operations, and man 
 to adl under the impulfe of his defires, re- 
 strained and conduded by his reafon.— 
 The brutes, he fays, adl by that impulfe 
 only, and employ their natural force or ac- 
 tivity fimply in the ftate they W":re given 
 
 to
 
 ^70 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 to them. — But that man, by means of his 
 mental facuhles, governs the fierceft ani- 
 mals, employs the ftrongell and fwiftefl 
 for his ufe, difcovers the nature and qua- 
 lities of every thing the earth produces, 
 and invents mechanic powers far exceed- 
 ing natural force. — He then goes on to 
 fhow, that thefe qualities muft proceed 
 from fomc great and invifible principle, 
 which God has not imparted to the brute 
 creation, and whofe exiftence muft be fe- 
 parate from the vital foul, and independent 
 of organized matter. — He obferves, that 
 this can no more be doubted, than it can be 
 doubted that the elephant is ftronger than 
 the deer, or the deer fwifter than the tor- 
 toife; but to aflc why it ihould be fo, or 
 how it is, would perhaj;s be impious, and 
 as abfurd as to inquire why God created 
 many of the animals which inhabit the 
 earth, or of the fiO^ies that Uve in the 
 waters. — That we can never be fufficiently 
 grateful for the portion of that fpirit he has 
 given Wy comparatively limited as it may 
 
 be J
 
 OF THE BRAHMANS. 271 
 
 be ; that having left us unacquainted with 
 the extent of it, we Hill go on in our re- 
 fearches, in the hope of acquiring farther 
 knowledge, and of making frefh difco- 
 veries ; and that, by a proper ufe of it, we 
 may raifc our minds above the things of 
 this world, and render ourfelves fuperior 
 to its events. 
 
 Treating of a future ftate, he fays, that 
 fuch as during their abode on earth have 
 perfevered in the practice of piety and 
 virtue, have worfhipped God purely from 
 gratitude, love, and admiration, and have 
 done good, without being induced either 
 by the fear of punifhment, or the hope 
 of reward, will not ftand in need of being 
 purified in Naraka^ or of again coming 
 into this world to occupy other forms, but 
 will be immediately admitted to celeflial 
 happinefs. 
 
 This may fufficiently ferve as a fpecimen 
 
 of the reafoning of this ingenious Hindoo 
 
 philofopher. 
 
 6 But
 
 272 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 But befides Gowtama, many others be* 
 lieve that mankind have two fouls, the one 
 divine^ being an emanation from God ; 
 the other xhc fefifitive foul^ which envelopes 
 the former *, and is placed between it and 
 the matter of which the body is compofed. 
 
 Some, like Pythagoras, fuppofe that the 
 fouls of animals are endowed with reafon, 
 and that if they do not always ad like 
 reafonable creatures, it is owing to the 
 nature and organization of their bodies. 
 Porphiry, who alleged that not only 
 animals but plants had fouls, faid, that the 
 foul did not think or operate in all things 
 in the fame manner, but according to the 
 matter with which it was conneded. — In 
 plants it was the germe^ in animals intelk5f. 
 
 In the dialogue already quoted from the 
 Bhagvat-Geeta, between Krifhna and Ar- 
 joun, Kriihna fayp, 
 
 » Via. FJJl, dfs Dieux Grknt. 
 
 " Know
 
 OF THE BRAHMANS. 273 
 
 '' Know that every thing which is pro- 
 *' duced in nature^ refults from the union 
 ** of Kejhtra and Kejlotragna^ matter and 
 " fpirit. 
 
 " Learn that Prakrity^ nature, and 
 ** Pouroujlo, are without beginning. 
 
 " PouroujJ:^ is that fuperior being who is 
 *' called Mahefwar^ the great god, the moft 
 " high fpirit. 
 
 " Karma is that emanation, from which 
 " proceedeth the generation of natural 
 " beings. 
 
 " As the all-moving Akajh *, from the 
 " minutenefs of its parts, paffeth every 
 " where unafFeded, even fo the omnlpo- 
 ** tent fpirit remaineth in the body unaf- 
 " feded. And as the fun illumines the 
 " world, even fo doth the fpirit enlighten 
 " the body. They who with the eye of 
 
 * Akafh comes neareft to the ethr of Profeffbr 
 Euler, being more fubtle than air. 
 
 VoLi I. T ** wifdom
 
 274 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 " wifdom perceive the body and the fplrit 
 " to be diftind, and that there is a final 
 •' releafe from the animal nature, go to the 
 " fupreme. 
 
 " Thefe bodies, which envelope the fouls 
 " that inhabit them, are declared to be 
 " finite beings. The foul is not a thing of 
 " which a man may fay, it hath been, or 
 " is about to be, or is to be hereafter ; for it 
 " is a thing without birth, conftant and 
 *' eternal, and is not to be deftroyed. As 
 *' a man throweth away old garments and 
 *' putteth on new, even fo the foul. The 
 " weapon divideth it not, the fire burneth 
 " it not, the wind drieth it not; for it is 
 *' indivifible, inconfumable, incorruptible, 
 " and is not to be dried away. There- 
 " fore believing it to be thus, thou fhouldll 
 " not grieve. 
 
 " It is even a portion of myfelf, that in 
 
 " this world is the univerfal fpirit of all 
 
 " things. It draweth together the five 
 
 1 2 *' fenfes,
 
 OF THE BRAHMANS/ 275 
 
 " fenfes, and the m'md^ which is the fixth, 
 " and Efwar *, prefideth over them. The 
 " foolifh fee it not, but thofe who induf- 
 " trioufly apply their minds to meditation, 
 " may perceive this. 
 
 *' There are three Goun arifmg from 
 " Prakrity ; Satwa^ truth ; Rqja^ paffion ; 
 " and Tama^ darknefs. The Satwa Goun 
 " is clear, and entwineth the foul with 
 " fweet and pleafant confequences. The 
 " love of riches, intemperance, and inordi- 
 *' nate defires, are produced by the pre- 
 " valency of the Raja Goun; and fottilh- 
 " nefs, idlenefs, gloominefs, and diftrac- 
 " tion of thought are the tokens of the 
 " Tama Goun, If the mortal frame be 
 *' diffolved whilft the Satwa prevaileth, the 
 " foul proceedeth to the regions of thofe 
 *' beings who are acquainted with the 
 « Moft High. But if it be diffolved, whilft 
 
 * One of the names of the Supreme Being. 
 
 T 2 " the
 
 276 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 " the Raja prevaileth, the foul is born again 
 *' in one of thofe who are attached to the 
 ** fruits of their actions. And in Uke 
 " manner, if it be diflblved while the Tama 
 " is predominant, it is conveyed into fome 
 *' irrational being. 
 
 '* He "who conceiveth Poiiroitjh and 
 *' Prakrity^ together with the Goim^ to be 
 *' even as I have defcribed them, is not 
 " again fubjed to mortal birth. 
 
 " Thofe who conftantly watch over 
 
 " their inordinate defires, are no longer 
 
 *' confounded in their minds, and afcend 
 
 ** to that place which endureth for ever. 
 
 " Neither the fun, nor the moon, nor the 
 
 ** fire, enlighteneth that place which is the 
 
 *' fupreme manfion of my abode. 
 
 " He, my fervant, w^ho fcrving mc 
 *' alone with due attention, has overcome 
 •* the influence of the Raja and Ta77Ja Coun^
 
 OF THE BRAHMANS. 277 
 
 ^^ Is formed to be abforbed in Brahm the 
 ♦* Supreme, 
 
 " There are who know not what it is to 
 *' proceed in virtue, or recede from vice ; 
 " nor is veracity, or the practice of good, to 
 " be found in them. They fay, the world 
 *' is without beginning and without end, 
 *' and without an Efwar^ and that all 
 " things are conceived by the jundlion of 
 " the fexes. But thefe loft fouls having 
 " fixed on this vifion, are hypocrites, 
 " overwhelmed with madnefs and intoxi- 
 " cation. Becaufe of their folly, they adopt 
 *' falfe doctrines ; they abide by their in- 
 *' conceivable opinions, and determine In 
 " their minds, that the gratification of the 
 ** fenfual appetites is fupreme happinefs. 
 " Confounded with various thoughts and 
 ♦' defigns, and being firmly attached to 
 " their lufts, they fink at laft into the 
 " Narak of impurity. Wherefore I caft 
 ^' down thofe evil fpirits, who thus defpife 
 T 3 ** me;
 
 278 LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY 
 
 *' nie ; and being doomed to the wombs of 
 *' Afoors * from birth to birth, and not 
 ** finding me, they go into the infernal 
 *' regions." 
 
 There is a pafTage in the above quotation 
 from the Bhagvat Geeta, which feems evi- 
 dently to allude to Atheifts, " There are 
 " who know not what it is to proceed in 
 " virtue, or recede from vice," &c. — It is 
 faid that Atheifts are ftill to be found in 
 Hindoftan ; and it appears, by a variety of 
 teftimonies, that a fed now exifts, which 
 profefl'es doctrines nearly the fame as thofe 
 that were taught by Epicurus. 
 
 Father Martin, a jefuit miffionary, fays, 
 in a letter from Marava, " I forgot to re- 
 *' ply to your Reverence's queftion, whe- 
 *' ther there are any Atheifts among thefc 
 
 f Demons, or evil fpirits. 
 
 " people.
 
 i( 
 
 OF THE BRAHMANS. 279 
 
 " people. I can only inform you, that 
 " there is a fed called Nextagher^ that feems 
 " to acknowledge no divinity ; but it has 
 " but few partifans, and, generally fpeak- 
 ing, all the people of India adore a 
 " deity-." 
 
 De la Croze obferves, " Atheifls are to 
 " be met with in India, though the num- 
 " ber is indeed very fmall ; and thofe men 
 " of letters v>;ho denied that there were 
 '* any, were mifmformed. — M. Ziegenbalg 
 " mentions a book named Karane'i Varoubba 
 " Tarein Valamadel^ in which Atheifm is 
 " openly profeffed. According to the 
 " fentiments of the Malabars, this work 
 " IS the prodiiElion of a Pagan^ and the 
 " reading of it is ftridly prohibited f ." 
 
 * Lettres edif. & cur. tome xi. p. 252. Edit, ut 
 fupra. 
 
 f Hift. du Chrift. des Indes, torn. ii. p. 324. Edit, 
 ut fupra. 
 
 T 4 De
 
 28o LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY. 
 
 De la Croze fpeaks of another book 
 found among M. Ziegenbalg's Malabar 
 manufcr'ipts, called Tehiva-paikkiam^ or the 
 Felicity of Life ^ which he fays is written in 
 verfe, and contains moft excellent maxims 
 of morality. The author, who is known 
 by other poetical w^orks, profefTed no par- 
 ticular worfhip, but maintained that the 
 happinefs of mankind depended on the 
 praOice of virtue. He left many profe- 
 lytes, whofe defcendants, even at this day, 
 have a total indifference about religion ; 
 they regard the Chriftian and the Hindoo 
 exactly in the fame manner ; and M, 
 Ziegenbalg obferves, that he had many fruit- 
 lefs arguments with them, as they remained 
 firm in their opinions. 
 
 It has been afferted by fome writers, that 
 the Hindoos believe in predeftination ; and 
 there are feveral circumftances, as well as 
 paiTages in fojue of their authors, which 
 feem to give weight to that opinion. But, 
 
 upon
 
 OF THE BRAHMANS. 281 
 
 upon farther enquiry, it appears, that it is 
 contrary to the principles of their religion; 
 and wherever this belief has obtained, it 
 %ould be confidered as the private notion 
 of individuals, unwarranted by the efta- 
 blifhed dodrines. 
 
 The philofopher and Brahman, Vljlmoa" 
 Sarma^ fays in the Heetopadcs : " It has 
 *' been faid, that the determined fate of all 
 '* things inevitably happeneth ; and that 
 ** whatever is decreed muft come to pafs. 
 " But fuch are the idle fentiments of certain 
 " men. Whilft a man confideth in Pro- 
 *' vidence, he fhould not llacken his own 
 ** endeavours ; for without labour he can- 
 *' not obtain oil from the feed. 
 
 " They are weak men who declare fate 
 " to be the fole caufe. 
 
 " It is faid, that fate is nothing but the 
 confequence of deeds committed in a 
 " former ftate of exiftence ; wherefore it 
 
 " behoveth 
 
 it
 
 282 LEARNING ANjD PHILOSOPHY 
 
 *' behoveth a man diligently to exert the 
 " powers he is poflefled of. 
 
 " As the potter formeth the lump of clay 
 *' into whatever Ihape he liketh, even fo 
 may a man regulate his own actions. 
 
 (( 
 
 *' Good fortune Is the offspring of our 
 " endeavours, although there be nothing 
 *' fweeter than eafe. 
 
 *' The boy who hath been exercifed un- 
 *' der the care of his parents, may attain the 
 *' ftate of an accomplifhed man; but no 
 *' one is a Pundit in the Hate he came from 
 " his mother's womb." 
 
 Some of their philofophers infift, that 
 God created all things perfedly good ; that 
 man, being a free agent, may be guilty of 
 moral evil ; but that this in no way proceeds 
 from, or affeds, the fyftem of nature : that 
 }ie is to be reftrained from doing injury to 
 
 others,
 
 OF THE BRAHMANS. 283 
 
 others, by the rules eftabhfhed for the pre- 
 fervation of order in fociety ; and that the 
 pain and ills which invariably refult from 
 wicked adions, will alone be a never-fail- 
 ing punifhment ; as the happincfs which a 
 man receives from doing good, furpaffes 
 every other human blefling.
 
 C 284 2 
 
 SKETCH xr. 
 
 AJlronomy of the Brahmans *, 
 
 'T^HE Brahmans are in poflefllon of an- 
 cient aftronomical tables, from which 
 they annually compofe almanacks, and 
 foretell eclipfes, although they are now, 
 I believe, unacquainted with the principles 
 upon which their anceflors conflruded them. 
 Various predidions, founded upon their 
 
 * An inquiry into, and a regular account of, the 
 aftronomy of India, is a work to which I readily ac- 
 knowledge myfelf unequal : I therefore beg leave to 
 refer the reader to the works of M. le Gentil and 
 M. Bailly, and the remarks of Mr. Playfair, contained 
 in the fecond volume of the Tranfadlions of the Royal 
 Society of Edhiburgh. 
 
 aftrology.
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 285 
 
 aftrology, help to fill up thefe almanacks ; 
 fome days are marked as lucky, and others 
 as unlucky ; and they likewife pretend to 
 tell fortunes by means of horofcopes. 
 
 In their arithmetical calculations they are 
 
 remarkably exad. " Their operations 
 
 ** are very numerous, ingenious, and diffi- 
 " cult, but when once learnt, perfedlly 
 " fure. They apply to them from their 
 *' early infancy, and they are fo much ac- 
 ** cuftomed to calculate fums the moft com- 
 " plicated, that they will do almoft imme- 
 •* diately what Europeans w^ould be long 
 " in performing. They divide the units 
 *' into a great number of fradions. It is 
 " a ftudy that feems peculiar to them, and 
 *' which requires much time to learn. The 
 
 moft frequent dlvifion of the unit is into 
 " a hundred parts, which is only to be 
 " learnt confecutivelv, as the fractions are 
 '* different according to the things that 
 " are numbered. There are fradions for 
 
 " money. 
 
 cc
 
 2S5 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 " money, for weights, for meafures, in 
 " fhort for every thing that may be brought 
 " to arithmetical operations *." 
 
 The Hindoos reckon from the rlfmg to 
 the next rifmg fun, fixty tiajgey ; each 
 
 * La Croze. — He obferves, " the fame praclicc 
 *« undoubtedly exided among the Romans, which may 
 " explain fome paflages of ancient authors, as in 
 « Horace, Art. Poet. 325. 
 
 <' Romani pueri longis ratiotiihits ajfcm 
 '' Difcunt in partes centum dcducere. 
 *« It may likewife from hence be underflood what is 
 <* m.eant by two paflages in Petronius that have hi- 
 *« therto been obfcure. In the lirft, a father fays to 
 '* a teacher, 
 *« Tibi difcipiilus crefc'it Cicero meus, jam qtiatiior paries 
 
 dicit. 
 *< In the other, a man fays, boaflingly, 
 ** Partis centum dicoy ad as, ad pondus, ad nummum. 
 *' I did not venture to give any examples of the 
 *' calculations of the Indians, though I have many in 
 ** my pofl'cflion ; but I do not in the lead doubt that 
 '* the arithmetick of the Indians was that of the 
 ** Greeks and Romans.'* 
 
 ?iajigey
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMAKS. 287 
 
 ^^f^SO' ^^ divided into fixty veinary^ and 
 each veinary into fixty taipary : 2 -7 na^ 
 figey are equal to one of our hours ; 
 2 \ veinary to one of our minutes ; and 
 2 t taipary^ to one of our feconds : there- 
 fore a nafigey^ or as it may be called the 
 Hindoo honr^ is equal to 24 of our mi- 
 nutes ; and the veinary^ or Hindoo minute^ 
 to 24 of our feconds. The aftronomical 
 year of the Brahmans, which is faid to 
 confift of 
 
 N. V. T. 
 
 3^5j I5j 3Ij i5> anfwers accordingly to 
 H. M. Sec. 
 
 Z^S^ 6, 12, 30. 
 
 By Europeans the folar year is now 
 computed at three hundred and fixty- 
 five days five hours forty-eight minutes 
 and fifty-five feconds. It was reckoned 
 by Hipparchus, about 1940 years ago, 
 at three hundred and fixty-five days five 
 hours fifty-five minutes and twelve fe- 
 conds ; and when the aftronomical tables 
 
 of
 
 288 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 of the Brahmans were conftruded, at three 
 hundred and fixty-five days fix hours 
 twelve minutes and thirty feconds. Hence 
 it would appear, that there is a gradual de- 
 creafe in the length of the year ; and if 
 thefe calculations can be relied upon, we 
 muft conclude, that the earth approaches 
 the fun ; that its revolution is thereby 
 fliortened, and that the tables of the Brah- 
 mans, or the obfervations that fixed the 
 length of their year, muft have been made 
 near 7300 years ago. The duration given 
 to the year by Hipparchus, was confirmed 
 by Ptolemy, who fucceeded him ; and the 
 difference between our calculations and 
 thofe of Hipparchus and Ptolemy, in fome 
 fort eftablifhes the accuracy of thofe of the 
 Brahmans *". 
 
 * The Brahmans refer to a period 2400 years be- 
 fore die Kaly-youg, or 7292 years ago. See Traite 
 de I'Aftronomie Indienne et Orientale, par M. Bailly. 
 Tranf, of the R. S. at Edinburgh, vol. ii. &c. &c. 
 
 Monfieur
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 289 
 
 Monfieur le Gentil and Monfieur Eall- 
 ly * have endeavoured to adjuft the aftro- 
 nomlcal time of the Brahmans to that of the 
 Europeans. Monfieur le Gentil fays : 
 
 *' Cell ce que nous pouvcns appeller 
 " Tannee fyderale des Brames ; mais parce 
 *' que les etoiles avancent felon eux, de 
 *' 54 fecondes tons les ans d'occident en 
 " orient, on trouve (en fuppofant encore 
 " avec eux le mouvement journalier du 
 " foleil d'un degre) qu'il faut oter 21', 2,^" 
 " pour avoir ce que nous appellons Tannee 
 " tropique, ou equinoxiale de 2)^$^'* S 
 
 " 50", 54"'. 
 
 " Cette determination eft de deux f mi- 
 " nutes feulement plus grande que celle que 
 " les aftronomes admettent aujourdhui pour 
 
 * Tralte de rAftronomie Indienne et Orientalc, par 
 Monfieur Bailly, publiflied in 1787. 
 
 + I. 59- 
 
 Vol. L U
 
 igo ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 *' la longueur de I'annee ; mais elle eft plus 
 " petite de 4 t * ou environ, que celle de 
 " Hipparque adoptee par Ptolemee, qui 
 " fuppofoit Tannee beaucoup trop longue. 
 " Par confequent, les anciens Brames con- 
 " noiflbient la longueur de I'annee folaire 
 " beaucoup mieux que ne I'ont connue 
 " Hipparque et Ptolemee." 
 
 But, according to Monfieur le GentiPs 
 explanation, there would ftill remain a 
 difference between the time given to the 
 year by the Brahmans, and the modern 
 aftronomers, of i minute and 59 feconds ; 
 and fuch being the cafe, I cannot fee any 
 good reafon for admitting this explanation 
 and condemning Hipparchus; the more 
 cfpecially as his corrednefs with refpedt to 
 the lunar period, is generally allowed. 
 
 The Hindoos allot four Yamams, or 
 watches, to the day, and four to the night. 
 
 4 10. 
 
 Their
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 291 
 
 Their week confifts of feven days, to 
 each of which they have given the nane 
 of one of the planets, and arranged them 
 exactly in the fame order that has been 
 adopted by Europeans: 
 
 Sunday is Additavaram \ °of '^the^^ \ '^"'^ 
 
 Monday — Somavaram — Moon 
 
 Tuefday — Mangalavaram — Mars 
 
 Wednefday — Boutavaram — Mercury 
 
 Thurfday — Brahafpativaram — Jupiter 
 
 Friday — Soucravaram — Venus 
 
 Saturday — Sanyvaram — Saturn. 
 
 But their planets, like their gods, are 
 frequently called by different names ; or 
 are varioufly pronounced in the different 
 dialedls, and parts of the empire. 
 
 Their year begins on the nth day of 
 our month of April. They divide it into 
 two equal parts ; the one comprifing the 
 time the fun is to the fouth, the other to 
 the north of the equator ; and they cele- 
 U 2 brate
 
 292 ASTRONOIMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 brate his return to the north by an annual 
 e^ainodial feaft. 
 
 To adjuft the aftronomical with the civil 
 time, every fourth year is a leap year ; in 
 which the time e:!vceeding the ;^6^ days is 
 thrown into one of the 12 months. The 
 number of days in the months is unequal ; 
 and fome are of opinion, that in eftablifli- 
 ing the duration of each month, attention 
 has been paid to the time required by the 
 fun to pafs through the different figns of 
 the Zodiac *. 
 
 In 
 
 * Ces mois n'ont pas tous de la meme duree, le mois 
 de Juin eft le plus long de tous, et le mois de Decem- 
 bre le plus court. Cette difference fuppofe que les 
 aftronomes qui les premiers ont travaille a cette me- 
 thode Indienne ont connu I'apogee et le perigee du 
 foleil i c'eft a dire qu'ils ont remarque que le foleil re- 
 tardoit fon mouvement dans le mois de Juin, et qu'il 
 Tacceleroit pendant le mois de Decembre ; qu'il 
 
 employoit
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMAN^ 
 
 ). 293 
 
 In their tables 
 
 they are put do 
 
 iwn 
 
 in the 
 
 following 
 
 order : 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Days. 
 
 Nas. 
 
 Vei. Ta\. 
 
 Sitterey, begl 
 
 nning the 
 
 iithof Aprilj 
 
 ■ 30 
 
 ss 
 
 32 
 
 Vayafey - 
 
 beginning in May 
 
 31 
 
 24 
 
 12 
 
 Any 
 
 - 
 
 in June 
 
 31 
 
 35 
 
 38 
 
 Ady 
 
 - 
 
 in July 
 
 31 
 
 28 
 
 12 
 
 Avany 
 
 - 
 
 in Augufl; 
 
 31 
 
 2 
 
 10 
 
 Pivatafly 
 
 - 
 
 in Sept. 
 
 30 
 
 27 
 
 22 
 
 Arbafly - 
 
 - 
 
 inOcl. 
 
 29 
 
 54 
 
 7 
 
 Cartigey 
 
 - 
 
 in Nov. 
 
 29 
 
 30 
 
 24 
 
 Margaii 
 
 - 
 
 in Dec. 
 
 29 
 
 20 
 
 53 • 
 
 Tay 
 
 - 
 
 in Jan. 
 
 29 
 
 27 
 
 16 
 
 Mafey 
 
 - 
 
 in Feb. 
 
 29 
 
 48 
 
 24 
 
 Pangouney 
 
 
 in March 
 
 30 
 
 20 
 
 21 15 
 
 
 3^5 
 
 15 
 
 31 15 
 
 In the common time they are reckoned 
 as follows : 
 
 employoit par confequent plus de temps a parcourir le 
 figne des Gemeaux que celui du Sagittaire. La lon- 
 gueur des autres mois eft comme le temps que le foleil 
 met a parcourir les autres fignes du zodiaque. 
 
 Foy. clans les Afers de PItide. 
 
 U 3 Bayfatch,
 
 294 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 Bayfatch, beginning the nth of April, has 31 Days 
 
 Taith, - - - 31 
 
 Afadeh, - - r 32 
 
 Sanvon, - r - 31 
 
 Bhadon, - r - 31 
 
 Afan, - - - 31 
 
 Catuk, - - - 3Q 
 
 Aghou, - - - 30 
 
 Pous, - . - 29 
 
 Magh, - - - 29 
 
 Phagon, - -• - 30 
 
 Tehait, •>■ - - 30 
 
 Days 365 
 
 The lunar month is divided into two 
 parts ; that from the new to the full moon, 
 is called Sood, or increafmg ; and that from 
 the full to the change, Bok, or waning. The 
 former is likewife fometimes called Sookla" 
 pakjloay or the light fide ; and the other, 
 Kreejhia'pakjldc,^ or the dark fide. 
 
 * In the manner of writing the names of the months 
 for the aflronomical time, I have followed Monficur le 
 Gentil, and for the common time Colonel Polier. But 
 it mufl always be remembered, that names are differ- 
 ently pronounced in different parts of India. 
 
 5 They
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 295 
 
 They reckon the duration of the world 
 by four Yougs, but in the length afcribed 
 to them, they are extravagant ; and not- 
 withftandlng the endeavours of fome inge- 
 nious men of fcience, to adjuft their chrono- 
 logy to that of other nations, I do not 
 find, that it has yet been done in a manner 
 by any means fatisfadtory. 
 
 YEARS. 
 
 The firft, or the Sutty Youg, Is faid to 7 
 have lafted - - 3 ' ' 
 
 The Tirtah Youg, or fecond age - 2,400,000 
 
 The Dwapaar Youg, or third age - 1,600,000 
 
 And they pretend the Kaly You":, or ) 
 
 r Ml , A f 400,000 
 
 prelent age, will lalt - - i 
 
 Thefe ages correfpond, in their nature, to 
 the golden, filver, brazen, and iron ages of 
 the Greeks. 
 
 They reprefent the four ages under the 
 emblem of a cow. — She denotes virtue, and 
 originally flood on piety, truth, charity, and 
 humility : but three legs are gone, and fhe 
 is faid to fland now only on one leg. 
 
 U 4 They
 
 296 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 They tell us, that in the firft ages men 
 were greatly fuperior to the prefent race, 
 both in the length of their lives, and in the 
 powers of their bodies and mental facul- 
 ties ; but that, in confequence of vice, they 
 gradually declined, and at laft in this, the 
 earthen age, degenerated to what we now 
 fee them. 
 
 At the end of each age, they fuppofe that 
 this world is deftroyed, and that a new 
 creation fucceeds. 
 
 They fpeak of an author, named Mun^ 
 nou^ or Menu^ who, they fay, flourifhed in 
 the Sutty Youg, or firft age j of another, 
 Jage Bulk, who is fuppofed to have lived in 
 theTirtah, or fecond age ; and their writings 
 are faid to be ftill extant, and to contain 
 many of the Hindoo laws and cuftoms. 
 That thefe authors are of great antiquity, 
 we may allow ; but the wild date given to 
 their works by the Brahmans, inftead of 
 increafing our refpe^t for them, makes us 
 fmile at their credulity: Or, when we con- 
 
 fider
 
 ASTRONOIMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 297 
 
 fider their ufual ingenuity, it leads us to 
 imagine, that, like the ancient priefts of 
 Egypt, they have induftrioufly wrapped up 
 the origin of their fpiritual authority in 
 myftery, and thrown it back to a remcte 
 period, with a view to fhut out inveftiga- 
 tion, and render inquiry fruitlefs. We 
 Ihall therefore abandon thefe fabulous ac- 
 counts to fuch as may choofe to amufe 
 themfelves with conjedures, and proceed 
 to dates that feem to be fupported by 
 fcience and hiftory. 
 
 The beginning of the Kaly Youg, or 
 prefent age, is reckoned from two hours 
 twenty-feven minutes and thirty feconds of 
 the morning of the i6th of February, three 
 thoufand one hundred and two years before 
 the Chriftian xra ; but the time for which 
 moft of their aftronomical tables are con- 
 ftruded, is two days three hours thirty-two 
 minutes and thirty feconds after that, or the 
 1 8th February, about fix in the morning *. 
 
 * See Traite de rAftronomie Indienne et Orientalc, 
 par Monfieur Bailly, pu'JIfhed in 1787. 
 
 They
 
 298 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 They fay, that there was then a conjunc- 
 tion of the planets ; and their tables fhew 
 that conjundion. Monfieur Bailly ob- 
 ferves, that, by calculation, it appears, that 
 Jupiter and Mercury were then in the 
 fame degree of the ecliptic; that Mars was 
 diftant about eight degrees, and Saturn 
 feventeen ; and it refults from thence, that 
 at the time of the date given by the Brah- 
 mans to the commencement of the Kaly 
 Youg, they might have feen thofe four 
 planets fucceffively difengage themfelves 
 from the rays of the fun ; firft Saturn, then 
 Mars, then Jupiter, and then Mercury. 
 Thefe four planers, therefore, fhewed them- 
 felves in conjundtion, and though Venus 
 could not have appeared, yet as they only 
 fpeak in general terms, it was natural 
 enough to fay, there was then a conjunction 
 of the planets. The account given by the 
 Brahmans is confirmed by the teftimony of 
 our European tables, which prove it to be 
 the refult of a true obfervation : but Mon- 
 fieur
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 29^ 
 
 fieur Baillyis of opinion, that their aftrono- 
 mical time is dated from an eclipfe of the 
 moon, which appears then to have hap- 
 pened, and that the conjun(flion of the 
 planets is only mentioned by the way. The 
 caufe of the date given to their civil time he 
 does not explain, but f.ippofcs it to be fome 
 memorable occurrence that we are unac- 
 quainted with. We are by fome told, that 
 the circumftance which marked that epoch, 
 was the death of their hero Kriflma, who, 
 as we have already obferved, was fuppofed 
 to be the god Vifhnou in one of his incar- 
 nations. Others fay, it was the death of a 
 famous and beloved fovereign, Rajah Ju- 
 difhter. But whichever of the two it may 
 be, the Hindoos, confidering the event as a 
 great calamity, diftinguifhed it by begin- 
 ning a new age, and expreffed their feelings 
 by its name, the Kaly Youg, the ageofun- 
 happinefs or misfortune. 
 
 But befides the Kaly Youg, we are ac- 
 quainted with two other epochs, from which 
 the Hindoos, in fome parts of India, reckon 
 
 their
 
 300 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 their civil time. The one commences from 
 the year of the inauguration of a prince 
 named Eickermajit, which happened in the 
 year of the Kaly Youg 3044; and the other 
 from the death of a prince, third in fuc- 
 ceflion from him, called Salbaham, who 
 feems to be the Salivaganam of Monfieur le 
 Gentil. The reign of Eickermajit was dif- 
 tinguifhed by the ftridt adminiftration of 
 juftice, and the encouragement given by 
 him to men of learning. The poet and 
 philofopher Kaldofs was particularly pro- 
 tected by him. Ey that prince's defire he 
 is faid to have made a colledion of the dif- 
 ferent parts of the Ramayan *, which was 
 difperfed in detached pieces ; and he was 
 confidered as the chief of fourteen learned 
 Brahmans, whom Eickermajit invited to his 
 court from different parts of the empire,, 
 and diftinguifhed with the appellation of 
 the fourteen jewels of his crown. 
 
 * A celebrated Epic Poem, containing the wars of 
 Rama. 
 
 Monfieur
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 301 
 
 Monfieur Bailly informs us *, that Mon- 
 ficur de la Loubere, who was fent ambaf- 
 fador from Louis XIV. to Siam, brought 
 home from thence in 1687, tables and rules 
 for the calculation of eclipfes : and that he 
 likewife found in the place, where the charts 
 belonging to the navy are kept, two manu- 
 fcripts containing Hindoo aftronomical 
 tables, that were depofited there by the late 
 Monfieur de Lifle. 
 
 It appears that one fet of the tables depo- 
 fited by M, de Lifle, and here mentioned 
 by M. Bailly, had been given to him by 
 father Patouillet, correfpondent of the mif- 
 iionaries in India; and that the other fet 
 had been fent to Father Gaubil, by father 
 Duchamp, who procured them from the 
 Brahmans at Krilhnapouram '[. 
 
 * See Traite de rAftronomIe Indlenne et Orientale, 
 edition de Paris 1787. 
 
 f A town in the Carnatic. — It is written by M. 
 Bailly, and by Mr. Playfair, in following him, 
 Chrifnabonram. 
 
 The
 
 30 2 ASTRONOMY OF THE BR AHMANS. 
 
 The tables that were given by father Pa- 
 touillet, are thought to have come from the 
 neighbourhood of Narfapour *, as they 
 contain a rule for determining the length 
 of the day anfwering to lat. i6^, i6'. N. 
 
 Befides thefe, M. le Gentil brought to 
 Europe, in 1772, other tables and precepts 
 of aftrgnomy, that he got from the Brah- 
 mans at Tirvalore f . 
 
 Here then are four different fets of tables 
 and precepts of aftronomy J, procured by 
 different perfons, at different times, and 
 from different places, fome of which are 
 extremely diflant from the others; yet all, as 
 M. Bailly obferves, evidently came from 
 the fame original: all have the fame mo- 
 tion of the Sun, the fame duration of the 
 
 * A town belonging to the Englifti in the. Northern 
 Circars. 
 
 f A town in the Carnatic in lat. i o •, 44'. 
 
 % All thefe tables and precepts of aftronomy are 
 depofited with the Academy of Sciences at Paris. 
 
 year,
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 303 
 
 year, and all are adapted to the fame 
 meridian, or to meridians at no great 
 diftance, pafTing near to Benares, — As for 
 inftance, the tables brought from Siam by 
 M. de la Loubere, fuppofe a rcdudtion of 
 one horn- and thirteen minutes of time, or 
 eighteen degrees and fifteen minutes of 
 longitude, weft from the part of Siam to 
 which thofe tables had been adjufted, and 
 which evidently refers to the meridian of 
 Benares. 
 
 The tables and precepts above men- 
 tioned, contain chiefly, tables and rules for 
 calculating the places of the Sun and Moon, 
 and of the planets ; and rules for determin- 
 ing the phafes of eclipfes *. 
 
 Monfieur le Gentil mentions, that the 
 method defcribed in the tables which .he 
 
 * See Traite de rAftronomie Indienne et Orientale, 
 par M. Bailly. — And Voyage dans les Mers de I'lnde, 
 par M. le Gentil, Sec. tome i. 
 
 brought
 
 304 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 brought home, is called Faklam^ or the new, 
 to diftinguifh it from another eftablifhed 
 at Benares, called Siddantam^ or the an- 
 cient. — The Pere du Champ alfo fays, that 
 the Hindoos have a method called Sourla 
 Siddantam, which has ferved as a rule for 
 the conftrudion of all the tables now ex- 
 ifting, and is fuppofed to be the original 
 and primitive aftronomy of the Brahmans : 
 And he obferves, that when the Brahmans 
 at Krilhnapouram were at a lofs in their 
 aftronomical calculations, or committed 
 miftakes, they ufed to fay, this would not 
 have happened if we now underjiood the 
 Sourta Siddantam, 
 
 The epoch of the tables brought from 
 Tirvalore " coincides with the famous 
 " sera of the Kaly-Youg ; that is, with the 
 " beginning of the year 3102 before Chrift. 
 " When the Brahmans at Tirvalore would 
 ** calculate the place of the Sun for a given 
 ** time, they begin by reducing into days 
 
 "the
 
 ASTRONOIMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 305 
 
 *' the intervals between that time, and the 
 " commencement of the Kaly-Youg, mul- 
 " tiplying the years by 365'', 6 ^ 12', 
 " 30", and taking away 2% 3", 32', 30", 
 " the aftronomical epoch having begun that 
 " much later than the civil, &c.* " 
 
 " The Indian hour has been here reduced 
 " to the European." 
 
 Monfieur Bailly, in treating of thefe 
 tables, makes the following obfervations : 
 " Le mouvement Indien dans ce long inter- 
 ** valle, de 4383 ans, ne differt pas d'une 
 *' m.inute de celui de Caffini ; il eft egale- 
 " ment conform e a celui des tables de 
 " Mayer. Ainli deux peuples, les Indiens 
 " et les Europe'ens, places aux deux extre- 
 " mites du monde, et par des inftitutions 
 *' peut-etre auffi eloigne's dans le tern?, 
 
 * See Ti-anfa6lIons of the R, S. of Edin. vol. ii. 
 
 Vol. I. X " ont
 
 io6 AS IRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 " ont obteriLi prccilement les memes re- 
 " fult.its, quant au mouvement de la lune, 
 " et une conformite qui ne feroit pas con- 
 " cevable, fi elle n'etoit pas fondc'e fur 
 " robfervation, et fur une imitation reci- 
 " proque de la nature. Remarquons, que 
 " les quatres tables des Indiens font toutes 
 " les copies d'une meme aflronomie. On 
 *' ne pent nier que les tables de Siam, n'ex- 
 *' iilailent en 1687, dans le terns que Mon- 
 '' ficur de la Loubere les rapporta de Siam. 
 " A cette epoque les tables de CaiTini et de 
 " Mayer n'exiiloient pas ; les Indiens avoicnt 
 " deja le raouvement exa<^ que rcnferment 
 " CCS tables, et nous ne Tavions pas encore. 
 " II fliut done convenir que I'exaditude de 
 " cc mouvement Indien eft le fruit de Tcb- 
 *' fervation. II eft exad: dans cette duree 
 " de 438 "^ ans, parce qu'il a e'tc pris fur le 
 ** ciel mc?ne ; et ft Tobfervation en a dJ- 
 " termlne' la fin, elle en a marque egaje- 
 " ment le commencement. C*cft le plus 
 " long intervalle qui ait etc obfervJ et dont 
 
 *' le
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 307 
 
 *' le fouvenir (e foit conferve dans les fafles 
 " de raftronomie. 11 a fon origine dans 
 *' Tepoque de 3102 ans avant J. C. et il eft 
 " une preuve demonftrative de la realitc de 
 cette epoque • . 
 
 He fays, that the Hindoo tables give an 
 annual inequality to the moon, fuch as was 
 difcovered by Tycho Brahe, and which 
 was unknown to the Alexandrian fchool, 
 and to the Arabs who fucceeded it. 
 
 In the Siamefe tables, " the motions of 
 " the moon are deduced by certain interca- 
 " lations, from a period of nineteen years, 
 " in which fhe makes nearly 235 revolu- 
 " tions ; and it is curious to find at Siam, 
 
 ■"= See " Le Difcours preliminaire du Traite de 
 " I'Aftronomie Indienne et Orientale." Monfieur 
 Bailly, in a note to pages 36 and 37, fliews that they 
 could not have received any in{lru6lion from any aflro- 
 nomer who preceded Caflini, as all, except him, differ 
 from them very confiderably. 
 
 X 2 «* the
 
 3o8 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 " the knowledge of that cycle, of which 
 " the invention was thought to do fo much 
 ** honour to the Athenian aftronomerMeton, 
 " and which makes fo great a figm'e in our 
 " modern kalendars *.*' 
 
 " Cette regie fuppofe done une periode 
 " de 19 anne'es, femblable a celle de Meton 
 *' et du nombre d'or ; et Dom. Caffini 
 " ajoute, que la periode Indtenne eft plus 
 " exade que le cycle ancien du nombre. 
 « d'or t." 
 
 The Hindoos feera to have known the ufe 
 of the gnomon at a very remote period ; and 
 at Benares, and other places, many ancient 
 dia's, of a very curious conftrudion and nice 
 workmanfliip, are yet to be met with. 
 
 Their religion commands, that the four 
 fides of their temples fhould front the car- 
 
 * Tranf. of the R. S. of Edln. vol. ii. page 144. 
 f Aftron. Indicn. et Oriental, pages 4 and 5. 
 
 dinal
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 309 
 
 dinal points, and they are all fo conftruded. 
 Monfieur le Gentil obferves : 
 
 " Le gnomon fert aux Brames a trouver 
 " la ligne meridienne, a orlenter leur pa- 
 " godes, et a trouver combien la longueur 
 " d'un jour quelconque de Tannee pris hors 
 " des equinoxes, excede la duree du jour 
 *' de I'equinoxe, ou eft plus petit que ce 
 ** meme jour. 
 
 *' L'ufage du gnomon chez eux remonte 
 " a une tres grande antiquite, s'ils s'en 
 " font toujours fervis, pour orienter leurs 
 " pagodes, comme il y a lieu a le pre- 
 " fumer *." 
 
 " The rule by which the phenomena of 
 •" eclipfes are deduced from the places of 
 " the fun and moon, have the moft imme- 
 " diate reference to geometry; and of thefe 
 
 * Voyage dans les Llers de I'lnde, par M. Ic Gentil. 
 
 X 3 " rules,
 
 3 1 o ASTRONOINI Y OF THE BR AHMANS.- 
 
 " rules, as found among the Brahmans at 
 " Tirvalore, M. le Gentil has given a full 
 
 " account. We have alfo an account 
 
 *' by Father du Champ of the method of 
 *' calculation ufed at Krifhnapouram. 
 
 " It is a neccflary preparation, in both 
 *' of thefc, to find the time of the fun's 
 " continuance above the horizon at the 
 *' place and the day for which the calcu- 
 *' lation of an eclipfe is made ; and the 
 " rule by which the Brahmans refolve this 
 " problem is extremely fmiple and inge- 
 " nious* At the place for which they cal- 
 *' culate, they obfcrve the fhadow of a 
 " gnomon on the day of the equinox, at 
 " noon, when the fun, as they exprefs it, 
 " is in the middle of the world. The 
 " height of the gnomon is divided into 
 "720 equal parts, in which parts the 
 *' length of the fhadow is alfo meafured. 
 " One-third of this meafure is the number 
 *' of minutes by which the day, at the end 
 
 " of
 
 ASTRONO^.I Y OF THE BR AIIH.I AXS.. 3 1 1 
 
 "*' of the firft month after the equhiox, cx- 
 " ceeds twelve hcurs ; four-iiilhs of this 
 " excefs, is the increafe of the day dur- 
 *' ing the fecond month ; and one- third 
 " is the increafe of tlie day during the 
 " third montho 
 
 *' It is plain that tliis rule involves the 
 " fuppofition, that when the fun's decli- 
 " nation is given, the fame ratio every- 
 " where exifts between the arch which 
 " meafures the increafe of the day at any 
 " place, and the tangent of the latitude ; 
 *' for that tangent is the quotient which 
 " arifes from dividing the length of the 
 " ihadcvv^ by the height of the gnomon. 
 " Now, this is net ftridly true; for fuch a 
 " ratio only iubfifts between the chord of 
 " the arch, and the tangent above men- 
 " tioned. The rule is therefore but an ap- 
 " proximation of the truth, as it ueceflarily 
 '• fuppofes the arch in queftion to be fo 
 " fmall as to coincide nearly with its chord. 
 X 4 " This
 
 3 r 2 ASTRONOMY OF THE BR AHMANS. 
 
 " I' his fuppofitlon holds only for places in 
 " low latitudes ; and the rule which is founded 
 " on it^ though it may fafcly be applied in 
 " countries between the tropics^ in thofe that 
 " are more remote from the equator^ icould 
 *' lead into errors too co?ifderable to efcape 
 *^ obfervation, 
 
 " As fome of the former rules have ferved 
 " to fx the timCf fo does this^ in fome mea^ 
 *'^furc^ to afcertain the place ^ of its invention » 
 " // // the fimplification of a general rule^ 
 " adapted to the circumfances of the torrid 
 " v^one^ and fuggefed to the afironomcrs of 
 " Hindq/Ian by their peculiar ftuation^'^J*'' 
 
 The Zodiac, or Sodi-Maiidalam, is di- 
 vided into twelve parts or figns, each of 
 which has its particular name. 
 
 " The names and emblems by which 
 " thofe figns are exprefTcd, are nearly the 
 
 * See Tranf. of die R. S. of Edin. vol. il. p. 170- 
 
 *' fame
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 313 
 
 *'• fame as with us ; and as there is nothing 
 '* in the nature of things to have determined 
 *' this coincidence, it muft, Uke the arrange- 
 " ment of the days of the week, he the 
 " refuk of fome ancient and unknown 
 ** communication '^'■/' 
 
 Each fign contains thirty degrees; hut 
 the Hindoos alfo divide the twelve figns into 
 twenty-feven parts f , which they call con- 
 Jlellatiom^ or places of the moon reckoned hi 
 the t'welvc figns ; every fign is equal to 
 two conftellations and a quarter, each con- 
 ftellation confifts of thirteen degrees twenty 
 minutes, and has its particular name |. 
 
 " This 
 
 ^ SeeTranf. of the R. S. of Edln. vol. ii. p. 141. 
 
 f Vid. Voyages dans Ics Mcrs de ITnde, par M. Ic 
 Gentil.— Aflr. Ind. et Orientale, par M. Bailly ;— & la 
 Croze, vol. ii. liv. 6. 
 
 X " Ces 27 conftellations font en efTct marquees clans 
 ^' le ciel par des etoiles. j'emportai avcc moi le nom 
 ''' de diaque conftellation en particulier, ct le nor.ihre 
 
 " des
 
 3:4 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS, 
 
 *^ This divifion of the zodiac is extremely 
 *' natural in the infancy of allronomicai 
 " obfervation, becaufe the moon completes 
 " her circle among the fixed ftars nearly in 
 ** twenty-feven days, and fo makes an aQual 
 " divilion of that circle into twenty-feven 
 " equal parts. 
 
 *< des etoiles o^u'ii renferme; mais je ne peux pas allurer 
 *« les avoir bicn reconnues, parceque beaucoup de ces 
 *' conftellations fortent du cours de noti-e zodiaque. 
 
 ♦' Dans les regies de I'aftronomie Indlenne des 
 '* Siamois, que Dominique Caflini nous a donnees, tome 
 *« viii. des Anciens Memoires de I'Academie Royale 
 " des Sciences, p. 234, 235, & 239, il eft dit, que les 
 *' ftations de la lune font les vingtfcptiemes parties du 
 " zodiaque : les Siamois admettent done vingt fept 
 *< conftellations, comme les Indiens de la prefqu' ific 
 " en dega du Gange ; mais il ne paroit pas que les 
 *' Siamois faflent aucune attention aux etoiles, qui re- 
 " pondcnt a ces vingtfeptiemes parties du zodiaque. 
 *' On ne trouve ces vingt-fept conftellations du zc- 
 ** diaque chcz aucune autre nation Orientale ; elles 
 *' font done un ancien monument bien precieux pour 
 *' rhiftoire de I'aftronomie." Voyage dans les Mers 
 de rinde, par Monficur le Gentil, de I'Academie des 
 Sciences, p. 256, 257, &c. 
 
 " Thcfe
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 315 
 
 *' Thefe cotijldlatiofis are far from in- 
 ** eluding all the ftars in the Zodiac. M. 
 " le Gentil cbfcrves, that thofe ftars 
 " feem to have been feledled, which are 
 " bed adapted for marking out, by lines 
 " dravvn between them, the places of the 
 " moon in her progrefs through the hea- 
 
 *' vens . 
 
 The precefTion of the equinoxes is 
 reckoned in their tables at fifty-four fe- 
 conds in the year : the motion of the ftars 
 from weft to eaft is found to be at prefent 
 only about fifty feconds in the year : but 
 from this motion of fifty- four fecondf, 
 they have evidently formed many of their 
 calculations. They have a cycle or period 
 of fixty years, each of which has its parti- 
 cular name ; another of 3,600 years, and 
 one of 24,000. From the annual motion 
 given by them to the ftars, of 54 feconds 
 
 * SeeTninf. of the R. 8. of Edin. vol. ii, p. 140. 
 
 of
 
 3i6 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 of longitude in the year, 54 minutes of 
 longitude make fixty years, 54 degrees 
 3,600, and the entire revolution of 360 
 degrees makes their great period, or annus 
 magniis^ of 24,000 years, which is often 
 mentioned by them. 
 
 Their rules of aftronomy are written 
 in enigmas and in verfe ; in verfe, perhaps, 
 to facilitate the retention of them in the 
 memory ; and in enigmas, to render them 
 unintelligible to all but thofe who are re- 
 gularly inftruded, a privilege which is de- 
 nied both to the Bhyfe and the Soodra. 
 
 Monfieur le Gentil obferves, that the 
 Brahmans in general make their calculations 
 with a great degree of quicknefs. He gives 
 an account of a vifit he received foon after 
 his arrival at Pondicherry from a Hindoo, 
 named Nana Moodoo, who, though not 
 a Brahman, had found means, through 
 the fecret protedion of perfons in 
 power, to learn fome of the principles of 
 
 aftro-
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 317 
 
 aftronomy. Monfieur le Gentil, to try 
 the extent of his knowledge, gave him 
 fome examples of eclipfes to calculate, and 
 amongft others, one of a total eclipfe of 
 the moon, of the 23(1 December 1768. 
 Seating himfelf on the floor, he began his 
 work with a parcel of fmall fhells, named 
 Cowries, which he employed to reckon 
 with ; and looking occafionally at a book 
 of palm leaves, that contained his rules, 
 he gave the refult of his calculation, with 
 all the different phafes of the eclipfe, in 
 lefs than three quarters of an hour, 
 which, on confronting it with an Ephe- 
 meris, Monfieur le Gentil found fuffici- 
 ently exad, to excite his aftonifliment 
 at the time and manner in which the 
 calculation had been performed. Yet the 
 education of Nana Moodoo, by his own 
 account, mud have been very confined ; 
 and Monfieur le Gentil takes notice, that 
 he fecmed entirely unacquainted with the 
 
 meaning
 
 3iS ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 meaning of many terms, being unable to 
 explain tnem. 
 
 " Pour la facilite' de leurs operations 
 " aftronomiques, les Brames les ont mifes 
 " en vers ; chaque terme ell un terme com- 
 *' pofe, et a beibin d'explication pour etre 
 "■ compris : par ce moyen les Brames ne font 
 " entendus de perfonne, ou au moins ne le 
 *' font que de ties peu de monde. 
 
 " Le Brame, qui avolt enfeignc cet In- 
 " dien, s'etoit done referve' le fecret des 
 " termes, de facon que celuici faifoit 
 *' machinalement fes calculs fans les enten- 
 *' drc ; il trouvoit des refultats, et ne favolt 
 •' point ce qu'ils fignifioient. 
 
 " Par exemple ; dans les eclipfes de lune, 
 *' les Brames ont donne a Targument de 
 *' latitude, le nom de Patona Chandai'a^ 
 '* c'eft a dire, la lune ofFenfee par le 
 
 " dragon :
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 319 
 
 *' dragon : Or, le probleme confide a 
 " trouver ce Patona Chandara ; I'lndien en 
 ** queftion le trouvoit tres blen, mais il 
 " n'entendoit point le mot Patona Chan- 
 " dara, bien loin, qu'Il fut, que ce fut la 
 " diftance de la lune a fon noeud, et ainfi 
 " du refte *." 
 
 In 
 
 * The Patona Chandara accounts for the vulgar 
 idea among the Hindoos, that the eclipfes are occa- 
 fioned by a conteft between the fun, or the moon, and 
 the great ferpent. 
 
 Eclipfes are always obferved with fuperftitious cere- 
 monies. The following account is given by Bernier 
 of thofe he i\\v on occafiou of an ecllpfe of the 
 fun. 
 
 *^ Celle que je vis a Delhi me fembla aufii tres 
 *' remarquable pour les ridicules errcurs et fuperfti- 
 « tions des Indiens. Au temps qu'ellc devoit arriver 
 " je montai fur la terrafle de ma maifon, qui etoit 
 ♦< fituee fur le bord de Gemna. De lii je vis les deux 
 «< cotes de ce fleuve pres d'une lieue de long, couverts 
 " de gentils, ou idolatres, qui ctoicnt dans I'eau 
 ^« jufqu'a la ceinture, regardant attentivemcnt vers le 
 ** ciel, pour ic plonger et fe.laver dans le moment 
 
 " que
 
 320 AbiRONOMV OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 In adJitloii to vvliat has been already 
 faid, tending to flievv the I'uperior antiquity 
 
 of 
 
 »f que reclipfc commenceroit. Lcs petits garcons et 
 *' les petites filles etoient tout nuds, comme la main. 
 *' Les hommcs I'etoient aufTi, liormis qu'ils avoient 
 " unc cfpece d'ccharpe bridee a I'entour des cuiflcs 
 " pour lcs couvrir ; et les femmes mariees et les filles 
 " qui ne pafToient pas fix ou fi^pt ans etoient couvertes 
 " d'une fimple drap. Les perfonnes de condition, 
 " commc les rajahs, ou princes fouverains gentils, 
 " qui font ordinairement a la cour au fervice et a, la 
 " paye du roi, et les ferrafs, ou changeurs, banquiers, 
 *•■ jouaillers, et autres gros mavchands, avoient la plu- 
 <f part pafTe dc I'autre cote de I'cau avec toute leur fa- 
 *« mille, et y avoient drelTe leurs tentes, et plante dans 
 *' la riviere des Kanates, qui font une efpece de par- 
 ** avent pour faire leurs ceremonies, et fe laver a Icur 
 " aife avec leurs femmes, fans etre vus de perfonne. 
 " Ccs idolatres ne fe furent pas plutot appergus que. 
 '' le foleil commengoit de s'eclipfer, que j'entendls 
 " un grand cri qui s'eleva, et que tout d'un coup lis 
 *• fe plongerent tous dans I'eau, je ne fais combien de 
 *' fois de fuite, fe tenant par apres dcbout dans cette 
 " can, lcs ycux et les mains elevecs vers le folcll, 
 " murmotant tous ct priant comme on diroit en grande 
 lo <* devotion.
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE ERAHMANS. 321 
 
 of the aftronomy of the Brahmans, to any 
 other that Europeans are acquainted with, 
 I ihall take the Hberty to make a few more 
 
 *' devotion, prcnant de temps en temps dc I'cau avec 
 ** les mains, la jettant vers le foleil, s'inclinant hi 
 *' tete profondement, remnant et tournant Ics bras et 
 *' les mains, tantot d'une fa^on, et tantot d'nne autre, 
 *' et continuant ainfi leurs plongemens, Icurs prieres, 
 <* et leurs fmgcries jufqu'a la fin de I'eclipfe, quand 
 ** chacun fe retira en jettant des pieces d'argent bien 
 *« avant dans I'eau, et faifant I'aumone aux Brames, 
 *' qui n'avoient pas manque de le trouver a cette ce- 
 *' remonie. Je remarquai qu'au fortir de cette ri- 
 *' viere i!s prirent tous de vetemcns nouvcaux, qui les 
 " attendoient tout plier fur le fable, et que plufieurs 
 *' des plus devots laiflerent la leur anciens liabits pour 
 *' les Brames. Celt ainfi, que de ma terraffe je vis 
 *' celebrer cette grande fete de I'eclipfe, qui fdt 
 *' chommee de la meme fagon dans Tlndus, dans le 
 *' Gange, et dans tous les autres fieuves et talabs, ou 
 " refervoirs des Indes ; mais furtout dans celui dc 
 ** Tanaifer, ou il fe trouva plus de cent et cinquante 
 " mille perfonnes aflemblees de tous les cotes des 
 « Indes, parceque fon eau eft ce jour-b reputee plus 
 *' fainte, et plus meritoire qu'aucune autre." 
 
 Vol. T. y quo-
 
 322 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 quotations from the learned and ingenious 
 remarks of Mr. Playfair. 
 
 " The moon's mean place, for the be- 
 ginning of the Kaly-Yoiig, (that is, for 
 midnight between the 17th and i8th of 
 February, 3102 A. C. at Benares,) calcu- 
 lated from Mayer's tables, on the fuppo- 
 fition that her motion has always been at 
 the fame rate as at the beginning of the 
 prefent century, is 10' o'^5i' 16' — But, ac- 
 cording to the fame aftronomer, the moon 
 is fubje(5t to a fmall, but uniform accelera- 
 tion, fuch that her angular motion, in any 
 one age, is 9" greater than in the preced- 
 ing, which, in an interval of 4,801 years, 
 muft have amounted to 5°, 45', 44''. This 
 mull be added, to give the real mean place 
 of the moon at the agronomical epoch of the 
 Kaly-Youg, whicli is therefore 10', 6", 37'. 
 — Now, the fame, by the tables of Tirva- 
 lorc, is 10% 6°, o' ; the difference is lefs 
 than two-thirds of a degree, which, for {o 
 
 remote
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMAN3. 3-3 
 
 remote a period, and confidering the acce- 
 leration of the moon's motion, for which 
 no allowance could be made in an Indian 
 calculation, is a degree of accuracy that 
 nothing but adual obfervation could have 
 produced. 
 
 *' To confirm this conclufion, IM Bailly 
 computes the place of the moon for the 
 fame epoch, by all the tables to which the 
 Indian aftronomers can be fuppofed to have 
 ever had accefs. He begins with the tables 
 of Ptolemy ; and if, by help of them, we 
 go back from the xva. of Nabonaffar to the 
 epoch of the Kaly-Youg.) taking into ac- 
 count the comparative length of the 
 Egyptian and Indian years, together with 
 the difference of meridians between Alex- 
 andria and Tirvalore, we fhall find the 
 longitude of the fun, 10", -21', 15'^ greater^ 
 and that of the moon 11'', 52', y" greater, 
 than has juft been found from the Indian 
 tables. At the fame time that this fhews 
 y 2 how
 
 324 ASTRONOl^IY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 how difficult it Is to go back, even for 
 a lefs period than that of 3000 years, in 
 an aRronomical computation, it affords a 
 proof altogether demonflrative, that the 
 Indian ajironomy is not derived from that of 
 Ptoletny, 
 
 " The tables of Ulugh Beig are more 
 accurate than thofe of the Egyptian aflro- 
 nomer. They were conftrucSted in a coun- 
 try not far from India, and but a few years 
 earlier than 1491, the epoch of the tables 
 at Krifhnapouram. Their date is July the 
 4th, at noon, 1437, ^^ Samarcand ; and 
 yet they do not agree with the Indian 
 tables, even at the above-mentioned epoch 
 of 1 49 1. But for the year 3102 before 
 Chrift, their difference from them in the 
 place of the fun is 1% 30', and in that 
 of the moon 6° ; which, though much lefs 
 than the former differences, are fufficient 
 to fhow, that the tables of India are not 
 horrozved from thofe ofTartary, 
 
 « The
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHIMANS. 32; 
 
 " The Arabians employed in their tables 
 the mean motions of Ptolemy ; the Per- 
 fians did the fame, both in the more an- 
 cient tables of Chryfococca, and the later 
 ones of Naffireddin. It is therefore certain^ 
 that the ajlronomy of the Brahmans is neither 
 derived from that of the Greeks y the Ara- 
 bians^ the Perfans^ or the Tartars, This 
 appeared fo clear to Caffini, though he had 
 only examined the tables of Siam, and 
 knew nothing of many of the great points 
 which diftinguifh the Indian aftronomy 
 from that of all other nations, that he gives 
 it as his opinion, that thefe tables are 
 neither derived from the Perfian aftronomy 
 of Chryfococca, nor from the Greek aftro- 
 nomy of Ptolemy ; the places they give 
 at their epoch to the apogee of the fun, 
 and of the moon, and their equation for 
 the fun's centre, being very different from 
 both -." 
 
 * See Tranf. of the R. S. of Edln, vol. ii. p. 155, &c. 
 
 Y 3 "A for-
 
 326 ASTRONOISIY OF THE BRAHI^JANS. 
 
 " * A formula for computing this in-i 
 equality" (in the moon's motion) " has 
 been given by M. de la Place, which 
 though only an approximation, being de- 
 rived from theory, is more accurate than 
 that w^hich Mayer deduced entirely from 
 obfervation ; and if it be taken inllead of 
 Mayer's, which laft, on account of its fim-^ 
 plicity, I have employed in the preceding 
 calculation?, it wull give a quantity fome- 
 Vv'hat different, though not fuch as to affect 
 tlie general refult. It makes the accelera- 
 tion for 4383 years, dated from the be- 
 ginning of the Kaly-Youg, to be greater 
 by 17', 29' ^^'^^^ ^^^'^^ found from Mayer's 
 rule, and greater, confequently, by 16', 32'', 
 than was deduced from the tables of Krifhna- 
 pouram. It is plain, that this coincidence 
 is ftill near enough to leave the argument 
 that is founded on it in pofTe/Iion of all 
 its force, and to afford a ftrong coniirma- 
 
 * See Tram", of die R. S. of EiUn. vol. ii. p. 160. 
 
 tiou
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 327 
 
 tion of the accuracy of the theory and the 
 authenticity of the tables. 
 
 *' That obfervations made in India, 
 when all Europe was barbarous or unin- 
 habited, and inveftigations into the raoft 
 fubtle effeds of gravitation, made in Eu- 
 rope near live thoufand years aftervv'-ards, 
 fhould thus come in mutual fupport of one 
 another, is perhaps the moft ftriking ex- 
 ample of the progrefs and viciflitude of 
 fcience, which the hiftory of mankind has 
 yet exhibited. 
 
 " Thip, however, is not the only in- 
 ftance of the fame kind that will occur, if, 
 from examining the radical places and 
 mean motions in the Indian aftronomy, 
 we proceed to confider fome other of its 
 elements ; fuch as, the length of the year, 
 the inequality of the fun's motion, and the 
 obliquity of the ecliptic, and compare them 
 with the conclufions deduced from the 
 y 4 theory
 
 328 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 theory of gravity by M. de la Grange, 
 To that geometer, phyfical aftronomy is 
 indebted for one of the moft beautiful of 
 its difcoveries, viz. — That all the varia- 
 tions in our fyftem are periodical ; fo 
 that though every thing, almoft without 
 exception, be fubje£t to change, it will, 
 after a certain interval, return to the fame 
 ftate in which it is at prefent, and leave 
 no room for the introdudion of diforder, 
 or of any irregularity that might conftantly 
 increafe. Many of thefe periods, how- 
 ever, are of vaft duration. A great number 
 of ages, for inflance, muft elapfe, before 
 the year be again exactly of the fame 
 length, or the fun's equation of the fame 
 magnitude, as at prefent. An aftronomy, 
 therefore, which profefles to be fo ancient 
 as the Indian, ought to differ confiderably 
 from ours in many of its elements. If, 
 indeed, thefe differences arc irregular, they 
 are the effeils of chance, and muft be ac- 
 counted errors ; but if they obferve the 
 
 laws,
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 329 
 
 laws, which theory informs us that the va- 
 riations in our fyftem do atftually ohferve, 
 they muft be held as the moft undoubted 
 marks of authenticity ••'.'* 
 
 Mr. Playfair then goes on to examine 
 this queflion, as M. Bailly has done ; and 
 we are perfuaded, if the reader will impar^ 
 tially perufe the inveftigations of thefc 
 learned men, he will be fatisfied, that the 
 differences alluded to, are neither the ef- 
 feds of chance, nor to be accounted errors. 
 
 After examining the duration given to 
 the year by the Brahmans at the period of 
 the Kaly-Youg, Mr. Playfair proceeds : 
 
 " The equation of the fun's centre Is an 
 element in the Indian aftronomy, which 
 has a more unequivocal appearance of be- 
 longing to an earlier period than the Kaly- 
 
 * See Tranf. of the R. S. of Edin. vol. ii. p. 160, &c. 
 
 Toug-
 
 n;o ASTR-ONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 Toiig *. The malimuni of that equation 
 is Jixcd^ in theje tables ^ at 2°, 10', 32". It 
 is at prefcnt, according to M. de la Caille, 
 
 1°, SS' -l-> ^^^^^ ^^ ^5' ^^^^ ^^'^^^ ^"^"^^^ ^^'"'^ 
 Brahmans. Now, M. de la Grange has 
 
 ihewn, that the fun's equation, together 
 
 with the eccentricity of the earth's orbit, 
 
 on which it depends, is fubject to alternate 
 
 diminution and increafe, and accordingly 
 
 lias been diminiiliing for many ages. In 
 
 the year 3102 before our Gera, that equation 
 
 was 2°, 6', 28^4- ; lefs only by 4, than ia 
 
 the tables of the Brahmans. But if we 
 
 fuppofe the Indian aftronomy to be founded 
 
 on obfervations that preceded the Kaly- 
 
 Youg, the determination of this equation 
 
 * M. Ballly, in his remarks on the length of the 
 years, fuppofes fome of the obfervations of the Brah- 
 mans to have been made during a period often men- 
 tioned by them, of 2400 years before the Kaly-Youg, 
 or, 7,7.92 years ago. — He takes 'the medium of that 
 period 1200 years before the Kaly-Yong, or 6090 
 . years ago. 
 
 will
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE ERAIIMANS. 331 
 
 will be found to be ftill more cxa£t. — 
 Twelve hundred years before the com- 
 mencement of that period, or about 4300 
 before our 3era, it appears, by computing 
 from M. de la Grange's formula, that the 
 equation of the fun's centre was actually 
 2% 8', 16"; fo that if the Indian aftro- 
 nomy be as old as that period, its error 
 with refpedt to this equation is but 2'*. 
 
 " The obliquity cf the ecliptic is another 
 element in \Yhich the Indian aftronomy 
 and the jEuropean do not agree, but where 
 their difference is exactly fuch as the high 
 antiquity of the former is found to require. 
 The Erahmans make the obliquity of the 
 ecliptic 24°. — Now M. de la Grange's 
 formula for the variation of the obliquity, 
 gives 22', 32'', to be added to its obli- 
 quity in 1700, that is, to 23°, 28', 41", 
 in order to have that which took place in 
 
 * See Tranf. of the R. S. of Edin. p. 163. 
 
 the
 
 332 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 the year 3>io2 before our a^ra. This gives 
 us 23% 51', 13", which is 8', 47'' Ihort of 
 the determination of the Indian aftrono- 
 mers. — But if we fuppofe, as in the cafe 
 of the fun's equation, that the obfervacions 
 on which tliis determination is founded, 
 were made 1200 years before the Kaly- 
 Ycu gj we fhall fmd that the obUquity of 
 the ecliptic was 23% 57', 45", and that 
 the error of the tables did not much ex- 
 ceed 2'. 
 
 " Thus do the meafures which the Brah- 
 nians aflign to thefe three quantities, the 
 length of the tropical year, the equation 
 of the fun's centre, and the obliquity of 
 the ecliptic, all agree, in referring the epoch 
 of their determination to the year 3102 
 before our azra, or to a period Jlill more 
 ajiclcnt. This coincidence in three elements, 
 altogether independent of one another, 
 cannot be the effecl of chance. The dif- 
 ference, with refpedt to each of them, be- 
 8 tweca
 
 ASTRONOINIY OF THE BRAHMANS. 333 
 
 tween their aftronomy and ours, might 
 llngly perhaps be afcribed to inaccuracy ; 
 but that three errors, which chance had 
 introduced, fhould be all of fuch magni- 
 tude as to fuit exactly the fame hypothefis 
 concerning their origin, is hardly to be 
 conceived.— Yet there Is no otlier alter- 
 native, but to admit this very improbable 
 fuppofition, or to acknowledge, that the 
 Indian aftronomy is as ancient as one or 
 other of the periods abovementioned '". 
 
 " In feeking for the caufe of the fccular 
 equations, w^hich modern aftronomers have 
 found it neceffary to apply to the mean 
 motion of Jupiter and Saturn, M. de la 
 Place has difcovered, that there are Inequa* 
 lities belonging to both thefe planets, 
 
 * See Tranf. of the R. S. of Edin. p. 164. 
 
 In fuppofing the time neceflary for the progrefs 
 of knowledge in that fcience, we mull look to pe- 
 riods much beyond thofe, 
 
 arifing
 
 334 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 ariiinG: from their mutual adlion on one 
 another, which have long periods, one of 
 them no lefs than 8 77 years ; lb that the 
 mean motion muft appear different, if it be 
 determined from obfervations made in dif- 
 ferent parts of thofe periods. " Now I 
 " find," fays he, " by my theory, that at 
 " the Indian epoch of 3102 years before 
 •' Chrift, the apparent and annual mean 
 *' motion of Saturn was 12°, 13', 14", and 
 " the Indian tables make it 12°, 13', 13". 
 
 " In like manner, 1 find, that the annual 
 " and apparent mean motion of Jupiter at 
 " that epoch, was 30*, 20', 42", precifely as 
 " in the Indian aftronomy.'* 
 
 " Thus have we enumerated no lefs than 
 nine aftronomical elements *, to which the 
 
 tables 
 
 * " The inequality or the precefTion of the equinoxes; 
 the acceleration of the moon ; the length of the folar 
 
 year j
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAKMANS. 335 
 
 tables of India aflign fuch values as do by 
 no means belong to them in thefe later 
 ^gQS, but fuch as the theory of gravity 
 proves to have belonged to them three thou- 
 fand years before the Chriftian sra. At 
 that time, therefore, or /;/ fbe ages prc^ 
 ced'mg it^ the obfervations mufi; have been 
 • made from which thefe elements were de- 
 duced. For it is abundantly evident, that 
 the Brahmans of later times, however 
 willing they might be to adapt their tables 
 to fo remarkable an epoch as the Kaly- 
 Youg, could never think of doing {o^ by 
 fubftituting, inftead of quantities v^'hich 
 they had obferved, others which they had 
 no reafon to believe had ever exifted. The 
 elements in quefiion are precifely what 
 thefe aftronomers muO: have fuppofed in- 
 
 year; the equation of the fun's centre ; the obliquky 
 of the ecliptic ; the place of Jupiter's aphelion ; the 
 equation of Saturn's centre ; and the inequalities in the 
 mean motion of both thefe planets." 
 
 vari:il)le.
 
 335 ASTRONOIVIY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 variable, and of wliicb, had they fuppofed 
 them to change, they had no rules to go 
 by for afcertaining the yariations; fmce to 
 the difcovery of thefe rules is required, not 
 only all the perfection to v.'hich aftronomy 
 is at this day brought in Europe, . but all 
 that which the fciences of motion and of 
 extenlion have likewife attained. It is no 
 lefo clear that thefe coincidences are not 
 the work of accident ; for it will fcarcely 
 be fuppofed that chance has adjufted the 
 errors of the Indian aftronomy with fuch 
 fmgular felicity, that obfervers, who could 
 not difcover the true flate of the heavens, 
 at the age in which they lived, have fuc- 
 ceeded in defcribing one which took place 
 feveral thoufand years before they were 
 born *. 
 
 ' " The preceding calculations mufl; have 
 required .the affiftance of many fubfidiary 
 
 1 ' — ~ — , 
 
 * See Tranf. of the R. S. of Edin. vol. ii. p. 169. 
 
 tables,
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 337 
 
 tables, of which no trace has yet been found 
 in India. Befides many other geometrical 
 propofitions, Tome of them alfo involve 
 the ratio which the diameter of a circle was 
 fuppofed to bear to its circumference, but 
 which we would find it impofTiblc to dif- 
 cover from them exadly, on account of 
 the fmall quantities that may have been 
 nededed in their calculations. Fortu- 
 nately, we can arrive at this knowledge, 
 which is very material when the progrefs 
 of geometry is to be eftimated, from a 
 pafTage in the ^yin Akbaree"^^ where we 
 are told that the Hindoos fuppofe the di- 
 ameter of a circle to be to its circumference 
 as 1250 to 3927 ;" and where the author, 
 nvho believed it to be perfeBly exaB^ ex- 
 preffcs his aftonifliment, that, among fo 
 fimple a people, there fhould be found a 
 truth, which among the wifeft and moll 
 learned nations had been fought for in vain. 
 
 * See Sketch III. p. 94. 
 
 Vol. L Z *' The
 
 338 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 " The proportion of 1250 to 3927, 
 is indeed a near approach to the qua- 
 drature of the circle ; it differs Httle from 
 that of Metius, 113 to ^^^i ^^^ is the 
 fame with one equally well known, that of 
 I to 3.1416. When found in the fimpleft 
 and moft elementary way, it requires a po- 
 lygon of 768 fides to be infcribed in a 
 circle ; an operation which cannot be arith- 
 metically performed without the knowledge 
 of fome very curious properties of that 
 curve, and at leaft nine extractions of the 
 fquare root, each as far as ten places of de- 
 cimals. All this muft have been accom- 
 pliflied in India ; for, it is to be obferved, 
 that the above-mentioned proportion cannot 
 have been received from the mathemati- 
 cians of the weft. The Greeks left nothing 
 on this fubje£h more accurate than the theo- 
 rem of Archimedes ; and the Arabian ma- 
 thematicians feem not to have attempted 
 any nearer approximation. The geometry 
 of modern Europe can much lefs be re- 
 garded
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 339 
 
 garded as the fource of this knowledge. 
 Metlus and Victa were the firft who, ia 
 the quadrature of the circle, furpafled the 
 accuracy of Archimedes ; they flourifhed 
 at the very time when the Inftitutes of 
 Akbar were collected in India *." — But the 
 fciencc of the Brahmans was then buried 
 under the ruins of the Hindoo empire. 
 
 *' On the grounds which have now been 
 explained the following general conclu- 
 fions appear to be eftablifhed. 
 
 " I ft, The obfervations on which the 
 aftronomy of India is founded, were made 
 more than three thoufand years before the 
 Chriftian sera ; and, in particular, the places 
 of the fun and moon, at the beginning of 
 the Kaly-Youg, were determined by actual 
 obfervation. 
 
 * iSeeTranf. of the R. S. of Edin. vol. ii, p. 185. 
 
 Z 2 " This
 
 340 ASTRONOIMY OF THE BR AHISIANS. 
 
 " This follows from the exacl agreement 
 of the radical places in the tables of Tir- 
 valore, with thofe deduced for the fame 
 epoch from the tables of De la Caille and 
 Mayer, and efpecially in the cafe of the 
 moon when regard is had to her accelera- 
 tion. It follows, too, from the pofition of 
 the fixed flars in refpedt of the equinox, as 
 reprefented in the Indian zodiac ; from the 
 length of the folar year ; and laftly, from 
 the pofition and form of the orbits of Ju- 
 piter and Saturn, as w^ell as their mean 
 motions ; in all of which, the tables of the 
 Brahmans, compared with ours, give the 
 quantity of the change that has taken place, 
 juft equal to that which the adion of the 
 planets on one another may be fiiewn to 
 have produced, in the fpace of forty-eight 
 centuries, reckoned back from the beginning 
 of the prefent. 
 
 *' Two other of the elements of this 
 aftronomy, the equation of the fun's centre, 
 
 and
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 341 
 
 and the obliquity of the ecliptic, when 
 compared with thofe of the prefent time, 
 ieem to point to a period ftill more remote, 
 and to fix the origin of this aftronomy 
 1,000 or 1200 years earlier; that is, 4,300 
 years before the Chriftian sera -^ : and the 
 time neceflary to have brought the arts of 
 calculating and obferving to fuch perfedion 
 as they muft have attained at the beginning 
 
 * That they point to a period more remote than 
 the beginning of the Kaly-Youg, I imagine that the 
 impartial reader will not now deny; but I hope to 
 be excufed in faying, that I cannot fee any reafon 
 for dating the origin of die Indian aftronomv, at icoo 
 or 1200 years before that. Perhaps it fliould rather 
 be faid, that the Brahmans, 4,300 years before the 
 Chriftian sera, muft have been in poflefhon of fuch or 
 fuch parts of their aftronomy. It is poflible that ma- 
 terials may yet be found, to enable Mr. Playfair to 
 carry his refearches ftill farther back into antiquity ; 
 but probably never to afcertain the origin of a fcience, 
 which was not delivered ready written, like a book of 
 laws, but begun by looking at the heavens, and im- 
 proved, through the courfe, perhaps, of many ages, by 
 -obfervation and experience. 
 
 Z 3 of
 
 342 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS* 
 
 of the Kaly-Youg, comes in fupport of the 
 fame conclufion. 
 
 " Of fuch high antiquity, therefore, 
 muft we fiippofe the origin of this aftro- 
 nomy, unlefs we can beUeve, that all the 
 coincidences which have been enumerated 
 are but the efFeds of chance ; or, what in- 
 deed were ftill more wonderful, that, fome 
 years ago, there had arifen a Newton 
 among the Brahmans, to difcover that uni- 
 verfal principle, which conneds, not only 
 the moft diftant regions of fpace, but the 
 nioft remote periods of duration ; and a 
 De la Grange, te trace, through the im- 
 menfity of both, its moft fubtle and com- 
 plicated operations. 
 
 " 2dly, Though the aftronomy that is now 
 in the hands of the Brahmans is ^o ancient 
 in its origin, yet it contains many rules 
 and tables that are of later conflru^Tdon. 
 
 " The
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 343 
 
 ** The firft operation for computing the 
 moon's place from the tables of Tirvalore, 
 requires that 1,600,984 days fhould be fub- 
 traded from the time that has elapfed fmce 
 the beginning of the Kaly-Youg, which 
 brings down the date of the rule to the 
 year 1282 of our Gcra. At this time, too, 
 the place of the moon, and of her apogee, 
 are determined with fo much exadnefs, 
 that it muft have been done by obfervation, 
 either at the inftant referred to, or a few 
 days before or after it. At this time, there- 
 fore, it is certain, that aftronomical obferva- 
 tions were made in India, and that the Brah- 
 mans were not, as they are now, without 
 any knowledge of the principles on which 
 their rules were founded. When that 
 knowledge was loft, will not perhaps be 
 eafily afcertained * ; but there are, I think, 
 
 no 
 
 * It appears to have been loft, only fince the cohif 
 
 quell of their country by ftrangers j from the want of 
 
 Z 4 protcc\ioii
 
 344 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS* 
 
 no circumftances in the tables from which 
 we can certainly infer the exiflence of it at 
 a later period than what has juft been men- 
 tioned ; for though there are more modern 
 epochs to be found in them, they are fuch 
 as may have been derived from the moll 
 ancient of all, by help of the mean mo- 
 tions in the tables of Krifhna-pouram, 
 without any other fkill than is required 
 to an ordinary calculation. Of thefe epochs, 
 befide what have been occafionally men- 
 tioned in the courfe of our remarks, there 
 is one involved in the tables of Narfapour 
 as late as the year 1656, and another as 
 early as the year 78 of our sera, which 
 marks the death of Salivaganam, one of 
 their princes, in whofe reign a reform is 
 faid to have taken place in the methods 
 of their allronomy. There is no reference 
 
 ptotecllon and encouragement, and the efFe^ls of per- 
 fecution and violence. The date feems to prove this. 
 
 to
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 345 
 
 to any intermediate date from that time to 
 the beginning of the Kaly-Youg. 
 
 " The parts of this aftronomy, there- 
 fore, are not all of the fame antiquity ; 
 nor can we judge, merely from the epoch 
 to which the tables refer, of the age to 
 which they were originally adapted. We 
 have feen that the tables of Krifhnapouram, 
 though they profefs to be no older than 
 the year 1491 of our azra, are in reality 
 more ancient than the tables of Tirvalore, 
 which are dated from the Kaly-Youg, or 
 at leaft have undergone fewer alterations. 
 This we concluded from the flow motion 
 given to the moon in the former of thefe 
 tables, which agreed, with fuch wonderful 
 precifion, with the fecular equation ap- 
 plied to that planet by Mayer, and explained 
 by M. de la Place. 
 
 *' But It appears that neither the tables 
 cf Tirvalore or Kriflinapouram, nor any 
 
 with
 
 346 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS, 
 
 with which we are yet acquainted, are the 
 moft ancient to be found in India, The 
 Brahmans conftantly refer to an aftronomy 
 at Benares, which they emphatically flyle 
 the ancient^ and which, they fay, is not now 
 underftood by them, though they believe 
 it to be' much more accurate than that by 
 which they now calculate. That it is 
 more accurate, is improbable ; that it may 
 be more ancient, no one who has duly at- 
 tended to the foregoing fads and rea- 
 fonings, will think impofTible ; and every 
 one, I believe, will acknowledge, that no 
 greater fervice could be rendered to the 
 learned world, than to refcue this precious 
 fragment from obfcurity. If that is ever 
 to be expelled, it is when the zeal for 
 knowledge has formed a literary fociety 
 among our countrymen at Bengal '*, and 
 
 while 
 
 * I am forry to find, that, fo laudi^blc an example 
 h-as not yet been followed by our countrymen at 
 
 Madras j
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE LRAIIMANS. 347 
 
 while that fociety is direded by the learn- 
 ing and abilities of Sir William Jones. 
 
 Indeed, the further difcoveries that may 
 be made with refped: to this fcience, do 
 not intereft merely the aftronomer and ma- 
 thematician, but every one who delights 
 to mark the progrefs of mankind, or is 
 curious to look back on the ancient inha- 
 bitants of the globe. It is through the 
 medium of aftronomy alone, that a few 
 rays from thofe diftant objeds can be con- 
 veyed in fafety to the eye of a modern 
 obferver, fo as to afford him a light, which, 
 though it be fcanty, is pure and unbroken, 
 and free from the falfe colourings of vanity 
 and fuperftition. 
 
 Madras 5 for thougli Mr. Playfair has emphaticalljr, 
 and perhaps properly, called the fites of Benares, and 
 Palibothra, &c. the clnjftc ground of India, yet, as the 
 .Southern provinces have been lefs difturbcd by fo- 
 reigners, than the northern countries of Hindoftan, 
 were due enquiry to be made, I doubt not but many 
 curious materials would be found in them.
 
 348 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 " 3dly, The bafis of the four fyftems of 
 aftronomical tables we have examined, is 
 evidently the fame. 
 
 " Though thefe tables are fcattered over 
 an extenfive country, they feem to have 
 been all originally adapted to the fame me- 
 ridian, or to meridians at no great diftance, 
 which traverfe what we may call the 
 clafiical ground of India, marked by the 
 ruins of Canoge *, Palibothra, and Benares. 
 *They contain rules that have originated be- 
 tween the tropics ; whatever be their epoch, 
 they are all, by their mean motions, con- 
 nededwith that of the Kaly-Youg; and they 
 have befides one uniform character, which 
 it is perhaps not eafy to dcfcribe. Great 
 ingenuity has been exerted to fimplify their 
 rules, yet in no inftance, almoft, are they 
 reduced to the utmoft fimplicity : and when 
 it happens that the operations to which 
 
 * Canocc mid Palibothra arc the iamc. 
 
 b 
 
 they
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 349 
 
 they lead are extremely obvious, thefe are 
 often involved in an artificial obfcurity. 
 A Brahman frequently multiplies by a 
 greater number than is necelTliry, where he 
 feems to gain nothing but the trouble of 
 dividing by one that is greater in the fame 
 proportion ; and he calculates the x-ra of 
 SaUvaganam, v^rith the formality of as many 
 diftind: operations, as if he were going to 
 determine the moon's motion fmce the be- 
 ginning of the Kaly-Youg. The fame 
 fpirit of exclufion, the fame fear of com- 
 municating his knowledge, feems to dired 
 the calculus which pervades the religion of 
 the Brahman ; and in neither of them Is he 
 willing to receive or impart inftruiflion. 
 With all thefe circumftanccs of refemblance, 
 the methods of this aftronomy are as much 
 diverfified as we can fuppofe the fame 
 fyftem to be, by pafTmg through the hands 
 of a fucceffion of ingenious men, fertile in 
 refources, and acquainted with the variety 
 and extent of the fcience which they cul- 
 tivated.
 
 350 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 tivated. — A lyftem of knowledge which is 
 thus affimilated to the genius of the people, 
 that is diffufed fo widely among them, and 
 diverfified fo much, has a right to be re- 
 garded, either as a native, or a very an- 
 cient inhabitant of the country where it 
 is found. 
 
 " 4thly, The conftrudion of thefe tables 
 implies a great knowledge of geometry, 
 arithmetic, and even of the theoretical part 
 ofallronomy, &c. 
 
 *' But what, without doubt, Is to be ac- 
 counted the greatefl refinement, is the 
 hypothefis employed in calculating the 
 equations of the centre for the fun, moon, 
 and planets; that, viz. of a circular orbit 
 having a double eccentricity, or having its 
 centre in the middle between the earth and 
 the point about which the angular motion 
 is uniform. If to this we add the great 
 extent of geometrical knowledge requifite 
 tg combine this, and the other principles 
 
 of
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHjNTANS. 
 
 J.I 
 
 of their aftronomy together, and to de- 
 duce from them the juft condufions, the 
 poflcflion of a calculus equivalent to trigo- 
 nometry ; and laflly, their approximation. 
 to the quadrature of the circle ; we fliall be 
 aftoniflied at the magnitude of that body 
 of fcience, which mufl: have enlightened 
 the inhabitants of India in feme remote 
 age, and which, whatever it may have 
 communicated to the weftern nations, ap- 
 pears to have received nothing from them/*. 
 
 If, therefore, after what has been faid, 
 we are obliged to allow that the Hindoos 
 were fo far advanced in the fcience of 
 aftronomy, as to make the obfervations, 
 which they appear to have made, even at 
 the beginning of the Kaly-Youg, about four 
 thoufand eight hundred and ninety years 
 ago ; or, according to what has been 
 alledged by M. Bailly and Mr. Playfair, 
 2400, or 1200 years before that pe- 
 riod;
 
 352 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS* 
 
 riod ; we muft neceflarily fuppofe many 
 previous ages, in which they might gra- 
 dually proceed to that degree of know- 
 ledge and reiinemcnt, which they muft 
 have then enjoyed. The country feems 
 to have been as populous, the nation 
 as powerful, the people as much po- 
 iifhed, and arts and learning as far ad- 
 vanced at the beginning of the Kaly-Tong^ as 
 4000 years afterwards. But thefe reflec- 
 tions lead us fo far back into the abyfs 
 of time, that whilft we are lofl: in contem- 
 plating the paft duration of our fyflera, 
 Vv'e may be apt to forget the generally 
 received opinions with refpe£l to the cre- 
 ation of the world, and the hiftory of 
 mankind, 
 
 I fhall conclude this imperfed fketch of 
 the aflronomy of the Brahmans, with an 
 extract of a letter from Sir Robert Barker, 
 to the Prefident of the Royal Society of 
 London, read before the Society the 29th 
 II of
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 353 
 
 of May 1777, giving a defcription of the 
 obfervatory at Benares *. 
 
 'However much that ancient and cele- 
 brated feminary may have declined from its 
 former fplendour, he informs us, that there 
 are ftill many public foundations and tem- 
 ples, where fome thoufands of Brahmans 
 yet conftantly refide. 
 
 *' Having frequently heard that the Brah- 
 " mans had a knowledge of aftronomy, 
 " and being confirmed in this by their 
 " information of an approaching eclipfe^ 
 " both of the fun and moon, I made in- 
 " quiry, when at that place in the year 
 " 1772, amongft the principal Brahmans, to 
 " endeavour to get fome information rela- 
 " tive to the manner in which they were 
 " acquainted with approaching eclipfes ; 
 ** but they gave me but little fatisfadlion. 
 
 * See page 94. 
 
 Vol. T. a a "I was
 
 354 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS, 
 
 *' I was told, that thofe matters were con- 
 *' fined to a few, who were in pofleflion of 
 *' certain books and records, fome contain- 
 ^* ing the myfteries of their religion, arid 
 *' others aftronomical tables, written in the 
 ** Sanfkrit language, which fcarcely any 
 " but thofe few underftand ; that they 
 ^' would, however, take me to a place 
 ** which had been conftruded for the pur- 
 " pofe of making obfervations, and from 
 ** whence they fuppofed the learned Brah- 
 " mans made theirs. I was conduced to 
 ^* an ancient building of flone, the lower 
 " part of which, in its prefent ftate, ferved 
 " as a ft able for horfes, and a receptacle 
 " for lumber, but, by the number of courts 
 " and apartments, it appeared that It muft 
 " once have been an edifice for the ufe 
 " of fome public body, We entered this 
 ** building, and went up a ftair which led 
 *' to a large terrace on the top of a part of 
 " it near to the river Ganges, where, to 
 ^' my furprife and fatisf action, I faw a 
 
 " number
 
 C( 
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 355 
 
 " number of inftruments yet remaining in 
 the greateft prefervation, ftupendoufly 
 ** large, immovable from the Tpot, and con- 
 " ftruded of done, fome of them being 
 " upwards of twenty feet in height. The 
 ** execution in the conftrudlion of thefe 
 *** inftruments exhibited a mathematical ex- 
 ** adinefs in the fixing, bearing, and fitting, 
 " of the feveral parts. The fituation of 
 " the two large quadrants of the inftru- 
 '* ments marked A *, whofe radius is nine 
 ** feet two inches, by being at right angles 
 ** with a gnomon at 25 degrees elevation, 
 " are thrown into fuch an oblique fitua- 
 " tion, as to render them the moft difficult, 
 " not only to conftrud of fuch a magni- 
 ^* tude, but to fecure in their pofition, 
 ** and affords a ftrong proof of the ability 
 ** of the archited ; for by the ihadow of 
 *' the gnomon thrown on the quadrants, 
 *' they do not feem to have in the leaft al- 
 
 * See the Plate. 
 
 A a 2 '* tered
 
 356 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 " tered from their original pofition ; and 
 " fo true is the line of the gnomon, that, 
 •* by applying the eye to a fmall iron ring 
 ** of an inch diameter at one end, the fight 
 " is carried through three others of the 
 *' fame dimenfion to the extremity at the 
 " other end, thirty-eight feet ei^ht inches 
 " diftant from it, without any obftruc- 
 " tion. 
 
 " Lieutenant Colonel Archibald Camp- 
 ** bell, at that time chief engineer in the 
 *' Eaft India Company's fervice at Bengal, 
 *' a gentleman whofe abilities do honour to 
 " his profeflion, made a perfpedlive draw- 
 *' ing of the whole of the apparatus that 
 " could be brought within his eye at one 
 " view ; but I lament that he could not re- 
 " prefent fome very large quadrants, whofe 
 " radii were about twenty feet, they being 
 " on the fide from w^hence he took his 
 *' drawing. They are exadt quarters of 
 " circles of different radii, the largeft of 
 13 " which
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 357 
 
 " which I judged to be twenty feet, con- 
 *' ftriided very exadlly on the fides of 
 " ftone walls hulk perpendicular, and fitu- 
 " ated, I fuppofe, in the meridian of the 
 " place; a brafs pin i fixed at the centre, 
 *' or angle, of the quadrant, from whence, 
 *' a Brahman informed me, they ftretched a 
 *' wire to the circumference when an ob- 
 *' fervatlon was .4:0 be made ; from which 
 *' it occurred to me, the obferver muft 
 " have moved his eye up or down the cir- 
 *' cumference by means of a ladder, or 
 " fome fuch contrivance, to raife and lower 
 ** himfelf until he had difcovered the alti- 
 '' tude of the heavenly bodies in their paf- 
 ** fage over the meridian, fo expreffed on 
 " the arcs of thofe quadrants ; thefe arcs 
 " are very exactly divided into nine large 
 *' fedions, each of them is again divided 
 " into ten, making ninety lefler divifions, 
 " or degrees, and thefe into twenty, ex- 
 *' prefhng three minutes each, of about 
 *' two tenths of an inch afunder ; fo it is 
 A a 3 *' poffible
 
 358 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 " poflible they had fome method of again 
 ** dividing thefe into more minute parts at 
 " the time of obfervation. 
 
 ** My time would only permit me to 
 •' take down the particular dimenfions of 
 " the moft capital inftrument, or the 
 *' greater equinodial fun-dial, reprefented by 
 " figure A, (fee the Plate,) which appears to 
 " be an inftrument to exprefs folar time 
 " by the fhadow of a gnomon upon two 
 " quadrants, one fituated to the eaft, and 
 " the other to the weft of it ; and indeed 
 " the chief part of their inftruments at this 
 " place appear to be conftrudted for the 
 " fame purpofe, except the quadrants and 
 " an inftrument In braf?, that will be dc- 
 " fcribed hereafter. 
 
 " Figure B is another inftrument for de- 
 *' termining the exadl hour of the day, by 
 " the fhadow of a gnomon, which ftands 
 *' perpendicular to, and in the centre of, 
 
 " a flat
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 359 
 
 " a flat circular ftone, fupported in an 
 " oblique fituation by means of four up- 
 ** right ftones and a crofs-piece j fo that 
 '* the fhadow of the gnomon, which is a 
 " perpendicular iron rod, is thrown upon 
 *' the divifions of the circle defcribed on 
 ** the face of the flat circular ftone. 
 
 " Figure C is a brafs circle, about two 
 ** feet diameter, moving vertically upon 
 '* two pivots between two ftone pillars, 
 " having an index, or hand, turning round 
 ** horizontally on the centre of this circle, 
 *' which is divided into three hundred and 
 " fixty parts ; but there are no counter- 
 *' divifions on the index to fubdivide thofe 
 " on the circle. The inftrument appears 
 " to be made for taking the angle of a 
 " ftar at fetting or rifmg, or for taking the 
 *' azimuth or amplitude of the fun at fet- 
 *' ting or rifmg. 
 
 " The ufe of the inftrument, figure D, 
 " I was at a lofs to account for. It confifts 
 
 "of
 
 360 ASTRONOMT b¥ THE BRAHMANS. 
 
 " of two circular walls, the ouJ:er of which 
 " is about forty feet diameter and eight. 
 " high, the wall within about half that 
 *' height, and appears intended as a place 
 " to ftand on to obferve the divifions on 
 " the upper circle of the outer wall, rather 
 " than for any other purpofe ; and yet 
 " both circles are divided into three hun- 
 " dred and fixty degrees, each degree being 
 " fubdivided into twenty lefler divifions, 
 ** the fame as the quadrants. There is a 
 " door-way to pafs into the inner circle, 
 ** and a pillar in the centre of that, of the 
 " fame height v;ith the lo\ver circle, and 
 " having a hole in it which feems to be a 
 *' focket for an iron rod to be placed per- 
 *' pendicular. The divifions on thefe circles, 
 " as well as on all the other inftruments,, 
 ** will bear a nice examination with a pair 
 *' of compafles. 
 
 " Figure E is a fmall equinoclial fun- 
 
 " dial, conftruded on the fame principle as 
 
 " the larp-e one A." 
 
 "" Mr,
 
 ASTRONOMY OF THE BRAHMANS. 361 
 
 Mr. Call, member of the Royal Society, 
 and formerly chief engineer on the coaft of 
 Coromandel, in a letter to the Aftronomer 
 Royal, to be found in the Philofophical 
 Tranfadions of 1772, fays, that he dif- 
 covercd the figns of the zodiac on the ciel- 
 ing of a choukery at Verdapetah, In the 
 province of Madura, near Cape Comorin ; 
 that he found them on the deling of a tem- 
 ple that ftands in the middle of a tank, be- 
 fore the pagoda' of Teppicolum ; and that 
 he had often met with feveral parts of the 
 zodiac in detached pieces. 
 
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