HINDOO TEMPLES--CARS--PROCESSION OF IDOLS.
My dear Children--I will proceed to give you a description of the Hindoo
temples. These are very numerous. One is to be found in almost every
village. They are to be found, also, in out-of-the-way places, distant
from villages, in woods, on the banks and in the middle of rivers; but,
above all, on mountains and steep rocks.
This latter practice, of building temples on mountains, is very ancient.
The Israelites were accustomed to choose a mountain when they offered up
their sacrifices to the Lord. Solomon, before the building of the
temple, chose Mount Gibeon on which to offer his burnt-offerings; and
when the ten tribes separated themselves, in the reign of Jeroboam, they
built their altars on the mountain of Samaria. This practice may have
come from the circumstance, that Noah offered to God a great sacrifice
of thanks on one of the highest mountains of Armenia. Probably Mount
Ararat continued long to be remembered, by him and his descendants, as
the scene of their deliverance.
Besides the temples of the idols, there are various objects of worship,
made of earth and stone. Some of the idols are carved. Some consist
merely of the rough stone. These are to be seen on the high-roads, at
the entrance into villages, and, above all, under lofty trees. Some of
these are covered; but generally they are exposed in the open air.
You will read in Genesis, 28th chap, and 18th verse, that Jacob, after
his dream, rose up early in the morning and took the stone that he had
put for his pillow, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the
top of it. Whether it has happened from this circumstance or not, that
the heathen universally pour oil over their idols, I cannot tell. All I
know is, that they do it. No idol can become an object of worship until
a Brahmin has said his muntrums, or prayers, for the purpose of bringing
down the god to live, as it is said be does, in the image, and until he
has drenched it with oil and liquid butter.
The idols, in the great temples, are clothed with rich garments, and
adorned with jewels, which are enriched with precious stones of immense
value. Sacrifices are constantly made to these idols, consisting of
boiled rice, flowers, fruits, etc., but, above all, of lamps, of which
many thousands are sometimes seen burning. They feed them with butter,
in preference to oil.
The priests of the temples offer up sacrifices twice every day, morning
and evening. They begin the ceremony by washing their idol. The water
which is used is brought from a river or tank. Every morning a
procession, with music, passes before our door, with this water.
Every priest who offers up sacrifices, must have several lighted lamps
with a bell, which he holds in his left hand. With his right hand he
makes an offering to the idol, adorns it with flowers, and rubs its
forehead and various parts of its body with sandal-wood and holy ashes.
While all this is going on, he is alone in the temple, the door of which
is closed. The unholy multitude remain without, silently waiting till
he has done. What he does, they cannot know, only hearing the sound of
the bell. When he has done, he comes out and distributes among the
people a part of the things which have been offered to the idol. These
are considered as holy. If they consist of rice and fruit, they are
immediately eaten; if of flowers, the men put them in their turbans, and
the girls entwine them in their hair.
Next to the priests, the most important persons about the temples are
the dancing girls. These are persons of the vilest character. They
perform their religious duties in the temple twice a day. They also
assist at the public ceremonies, and dance. At the same time they sing
the most abominable and filthy songs. Of these wicked creatures,
however, I must not tell you any thing further.
The next order of persons employed in the temples, are players on
musical instruments. Every temple of note has a band of these musicians
who, as well as the dancers, are obliged to attend the temple twice a
day. They are also obliged to assist at all the public festivals. Their
band generally consists of wind, instruments, resembling clarionets and
hautboys, to which they add cymbals and drums. They have a bass,
produced by blowing into a kind of tube, widened below, and which gives
an uninterrupted sound. Part of the musicians sing hymns in honor of
their gods.
The expenses of the temples are borne by the voluntary offerings of the
people, consisting of money, jewels, cattle, provisions, and other
articles. In order to induce them to make such offerings, the Brahmins
use all kinds of deception. Sometimes they will put their idols in
irons, chaining their hands and feet. They exhibit them in this sad
condition, declaring that they have been brought into it by creditors
from whom their gods had to borrow money, in times of trouble, to supply
their wants. They declare that their creditors refuse to set the gods at
liberty, until the money with the interest is paid. The people, seeing
the deplorable condition into which they have been brought, come forward
and pay off the debt; when the chains are taken off, and the god is set
at liberty.
Another way in which the Brahmins sometimes deceive the people, is as
follows. They say that the god is afflicted with some dreadful disease,
brought on by the distress which he has had, because the people do not
worship him as much as they should. In such cases, the idol is sometimes
placed at the door of the temple where they rub his forehead and temples
with various kinds of medicine. They also set before him all sorts of
medicines, pretending in this way to do all they can to cure him. But as
all their efforts prove to be vain, and the disease becomes worse, the
Brahmins send out persons to tell the sad news. The people, believing
the report, hasten to bring in their gifts and offerings. The god, on
beholding such proofs of their attachment to him, feels himself cured of
his disease, and immediately returns to his throne within the temple.
The Brahmins use another kind of deception, in order to procure
offerings for the temples. They declare that their gods are angry with
certain individuals who have offended them, and that they have sent some
evil spirit or devil to take possession of their bodies and torment
them. Accordingly, persons appear wandering about in different parts of
the country, showing, by their dreadful convulsions, their writhings
and twistings, every symptom of being possessed with the devil. The
people who see them are filled with dismay, fall down before them, and
offer gifts and sacrifices, for fear of being injured by them. Whatever
they ask is granted. The people give them to eat and drink abundantly;
and when they leave a place, accompany them with instruments of music,
till they arrive at some other place, where the same deception is
practised.
There are various other ways in which the Brahmins deceive the people;
but I have told you enough.
At every large temple, there is at least yearly one grand procession.
The idol is brought out from its inclosure, and placed in a great car or
chariot, prepared for this express purpose. This stands upon four wheels
of great strength, not made like ours, of spokes with a rim, but of
three or four pieces of thick, solid timber, rounded and fitted to each
other. The car is sometimes forty or fifty feet high, having upon it
carved images of a most abominable nature. I must not tell you any thing
about them. The car, when finished, presents somewhat the shape of a
pyramid.
[Illustration]
On the day of the procession, it is adorned with painted cloth, garlands
of flowers, green shrubbery, and precious stuffs. The idol is placed in
the centre, loaded with jewels, etc., to attract the attention of the
people. Having fastened ropes to this enormous car, eight or nine
hundred or a thousand people catch hold of the ropes and slowly drag it
along, accompanied with the awful roaring of their voices. At certain
periods they stop; when the immense crowds, collected from all parts of
the country, set up one universal shout, or rather yell. This, with the
sound of their instruments and numerous drums, produces much uproar and
confusion. Sometimes the weighty car comes to a stand, from the dampness
of the ground or from the narrowness of the streets, when the tumult and
noise are redoubled.
[Illustration]
Perhaps you know that on some occasions, when the cars are drawn, people
throw themselves under the wheels, and are crushed to death. This occurs
at the drawing of the car of Juggernaut, as you may learn if you will
read my Sermon to Children, on the Condition of the Heathen. Here is a
picture of Juggernaut, and on the last page you may see a picture of his
car, and two men crushed to death under the wheels. Not long since, five
persons were thus crushed to death. Many dreadful accidents also take
place at the drawing of these cars. A few years ago several persons in
this city had their limbs amputated, in consequence of injuries
received.
[Illustration]
When I was in America, I showed to many of the dear children an idol
called Pulliar, which was _formerly_ worshipped by Raamu, one of our
native helpers, when he was a heathen. I gave a particular description,
of the I manner in which he daily worshiped it, in the sermon above
mentioned Here is a picture, which will give you some idea of this god.
You will see that it is partly in the shape of a man, and partly in the
shape of a beast. You, my dear children, would put no confidence in such
vain idols; but this people do, as you may know from what I am now going
to tell you.
Some months ago, a woman was brought to me with a cancer in her breast.
It had made sad ravages. On the morning after her arrival I took it out.
Before she was brought to me, her brother went to the temple of the
goddess Meenaache, to ascertain what was her will respecting his
bringing her to me, or taking her to a native doctor. In order to
ascertain it, he had recourse to the following expedient. He prepared
several bundles of red and white flowers--the red to represent the red
or Tamil man, the white to represent the white man. These flowers were
carefully inclosed in leaves, so as to prevent their color being seen,
and then laid down on the ground, at the entrance of the temple. After
this, he called a little child to him, and then proceeded to entreat
Meenaache that, if it were her will that he should bring the sick woman
to me, she would direct the child to take up one of the parcels
containing the white flowers. It so happened that the child took up one
of these parcels. Of course, he brought her to me. Had it taken up a
parcel containing the red flowers, she would have been taken to a native
doctor. May we not hope that, not Meenaache, but Jehovah directed him
to bring her to me, that she might hear of a very different being from
her goddess, even of Jesus. Of him she has fully heard.