HINDU SACRED BOOKS, FAIRY STORIES AND FIRESIDE TALES.
Not only in the writings of the later Stoicism, when already
through the despairing twilight a luminous haze had been
diffused, not only in the open plagiarisms of the Koran, spoiled
so often in the plagiarizing, but, even centuries before Christ,
in the Dialogues of Socrates, in the Republic of Plato, in the
Analects of Confucius, in the Laws of Manou, in the Sutras of
the Buddhists, in the Vedas of the Brahmins, in the Zend Avesta
of the Parsees, in the Pirke Avoth of the Rabbis, there are
unquestionably precepts which might be combined into a very pure
and noble code.--FREDERICK W. FARRAR.
The sacred books of the Hindus are written in the Sanskrit language.
They all fall under two grand divisions, S’ruti and S’mriti. S’ruti
means “that which is heard or revealed,” and S’mriti means “that which
is remembered and handed down by tradition.” In the first division
are included the Vedas, in the second the later Sanskrit literature.
There are four Vedas (pronounced by the Hindus, Vāds). The Rig-Veda,
containing 1,017 hymns of praise of the personified powers of nature.
The Atharva-Veda is composed of verses used as magical spells or
incantations for calling down or turning off evils. It had its origin
in a superstitious belief in the power of evil spirits. The Yajur
(or Yazur) Veda contains hymns and texts arranged for sacrificial
ceremonies. The Sama-Veda reproduces many of the hymns of the Rig-Veda
re-arranged for worship.
Each of these Vedas consists of three parts, the Mantras or original
hymns; then the Brahmanas or pure commentaries on these hymns, and to
these, philosophical treatises called Upanishads were attached.
[Illustration: HINDU FESTIVAL OF THE NEW MOON.]
All these are believed to have been given by the gods, having no human
author. As we should say they are believed to be divinely inspired.
Of the second sort of sacred books, the S’mriti, there are four
classes. The six Vedangas, first, the rules for sacrifices; second,
the book of the science of pronunciation; third, of metre; fourth, of
exposition of the Vedas; fifth, of grammar; sixth, of astronomy. Next
come the S’marta-sutras or books relating to domestic rites and to
conventional usages. Then follow the Dharma-shastras or “Law-books,”
the code of Manu and other inspired law-givers. Lastly, we have the
Itihasas or legendary poems, the Mahabarata, or cyclopædia of Hindu
traditions, legends, morals and philosophy, and the Ramayana. This last
contains the story of the wanderings of Rama, told in 24,000 stanzas.
THE VEDIC HYMNS.
The word Veda means “knowledge.” The hymns of the Rig-Veda were written
between 1,500 and 1,000 years before Christ, about the time of Moses.
They contain many tedious repetitions, but yet are highly interesting
as showing what the ancient Hindus, and more especially what the
forefathers of this part of the race, believed. Many of these hymns
were sung by our Aryan forefathers before they scattered to settle
in India or in the wilds of Western Europe. We have before given a
specimen of these early hymns. We give here another that seems to show
that in the beginning the ancient Hindus worshiped but one God.
“What god shall we adore with sacrifice?
Him let us praise, the golden child that rose
In the beginning, who was born the lord--
The one sole lord of all that is--who made
The earth, and formed the sky, who giveth life,
Who giveth strength, whose bidding gods revere,
Whose hiding-place is immortality.
Whose shadow, death; who by his might is king
Of all the breathing, sleeping, waking world.
Where’er let loose in space, the mighty waters
Have gone, depositing a fruitful seed,
And generating fire, there _he_ arose
Who is the breath and life of all the gods,
Whose mighty glance looks round the vast expanse
Of watery vapor--source of energy,
Cause of the sacrifice--the only God,
Above the gods.”
The next selection shows how the worship of one God passed into the
worship of many gods, and explains the origin of caste. The previous
selection was written long before this one:
“The embodied spirit has a thousand heads,
A thousand eyes, a thousand feet, around
On every side enveloping the earth,
Yet filling space no larger than a span.
He is himself this very universe;
He is whatever is, has been, and shall be;
He is the lord of immortality.
All creatures are one-fourth of him, three-fourths
Are that which is immortal in the sky.
From him, called Purusha, was born Viraj,
And from Viraj was Purusha produced,
Whom gods and holy men made their oblation,
With Purusha as victim, they performed
A sacrifice. Why did they divide him?
How did they cut him up? What was his mouth?
What were his arms? and what his thighs and feet?
The Brahmin was his mouth, the kingly soldier
Was made his arms, the husbandman his thighs,
The servile Sudra issued from his feet.”
The common creed of the Hindus, as gathered from the Brahmanas and
Upanishads, is as follows:
1. The immortality of the soul. Meaning by this, however, not only that
it will always live in the future, but that it has always lived in the
past, hence we may say, the _eternity_ of the soul.
2. Nothing can come from nothing, and hence, all of the substance of
the universe is eternal.
[Illustration: IDOLS GUARDING THE HINDU TEMPLE AYENAR.]
3. The soul cannot exercise thought, or any activity apart from the
body.
4. Yet the union of body and soul is a source of misery to human beings.
5. Hence we have the belief in the _transmigration of the soul_.
That the soul passes from body to body through innumerable changes.
These bodies include the widest range and are those of animals or of
men.
THE LAW-BOOK OF MANU.
This was written about the fifth century before Christ. Its rules
consist of “immemorial or approved practices,” “practices of law and
government,” “penitential exercises,” and “consequences of acts.” The
whole is divided into twelve books, of which we give an epitome:
After an account of the creation of the world, in the first book, the
four stages of a Brahmin’s life are the only subjects treated of in
regular order in the second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth books, four
books being devoted to the duties of the religious student and married
householder, and the sixth book treating of the two last stages of
anchorite and religious mendicant.
The seventh and eighth books propound the rules of government,
principally, of course, for the guidance of the second great class of
Kshatriyas, from which the king was chosen. The ninth book contains
precepts on the subject of women, husband and wife; their offspring
and the law of inheritance and division of property, with additional
rules for kings, and a few precepts relative to the two remaining
castes. It also describes the employments to which the several castes
are restricted, and states the occupations permitted to Brahmins,
Kshatriyas, Vais’yas and S’udras, in times of exigency and distress.
The eleventh book gives rules of expiation, both for the sins of the
present life--especially sins against caste--and for the effects
of offenses committed in previous bodies, as shown in congenital
diseases, etc. The twelfth continues the subject of the recompenses or
consequences of acts, good or bad, as leading to reward in Heaven or
punishment in various hells, and to triple degrees of transmigration.
It closes with directions as to the best means of obtaining final
beatitude and absorption into the universal essence.
A few specimens of Manu’s moral precepts are here subjoined:
“Daily perform thine own appointed work
Unweariedly; and to obtain a friend--
A sure companion to the future world--
Collect a store of virtue like the ants,
Who garner up their treasures into heaps;
For neither father, mother, wife, nor son,
Nor kinsman, will remain beside thee then,
When thou art passing to that other home--
Thy virtue will thy only comrade be.
“Single is every living creature born,
Single he passes to another world,
Single he eats the fruits of evil deeds,
Single the fruit of good; and when he leaves
His body like a log or heap of clay
Upon the ground, his kinsmen walk away:
Virtue alone stays by him at the tomb,
And bears him through the dreary, trackless gloom.
“Depend not on another, rather lean
Upon thyself; trust to thine own exertions
Subjection to another’s will gives pain;
True happiness consists in self-reliance.
“Strive to complete the task thou hast commenced;
Wearied, renew thy efforts once again;
Again fatigued, once more the work begin;
So shalt thou earn success and fortune win.”
There are, in addition to the Code of Manu, at least nineteen other
codes of various degrees of authority.
DEGRADATION OF WOMEN ACCORDING TO MANU’s LAWS.
A certain Shaster commands: “If a man goes on a journey, his wife shall
not divert herself by play, nor shall see any public show, nor shall
laugh, nor shall dress herself in jewels or fine clothes, nor hear
music, nor shall sit at the window, nor shall behold anything choice
and rare, but shall fasten well the house door and remain private, and
shall not eat any dainty food, and shall not blacken her eyes with
powder, and shall not view her face in a mirror. She shall never amuse
herself in any such agreeable employment during the absence of her
husband.”
The following incidents will show how the laws of Manu, in the case of
women, are carried out.
Miss Brittan, for many years a missionary, in India, says: “When I
teach in one house, I sit up-stairs in a little veranda, which is
walled all around. Into the veranda a strongly-barred window opens,
behind which sit the women who are being taught, passing their books
and work through the bars. I always think of our Saviour’s words when
visiting them--‘I was in prison, and ye came unto me.’ A woman, whose
eyes filled with tears when she saw a flower which was brought her
to copy in wool, said: ‘Ah, this reminds me of the time when I was a
child, for there were others like this in my father’s garden, and I
have not seen it for so long.’ Then, pointing a few yards before her
to a high wall covered with dirt and moss, she added: ‘That is the
only prospect I have had for years.’... Yesterday, I entered a house
which was exactly like those I had read of before I came to India.
The Baboo, or gentleman of the house, had a suite of rooms furnished
elegantly--rich carpets, sofas, chairs, beautiful paintings and
statuary, with a centretable covered with vases and curiosities. It
really was refreshing to see such beauty and elegance. But, alas! I was
shown to the women’s apartments, and the tears would come to my eyes,
notwithstanding my efforts to restrain them. Ah, how sad! The Baboo
spoke English to me, and was a gentleman. His wife sat on a dirty mat,
which was thrown on a damp stone floor, her hair uncombed, her one
article of clothing--a sarree--wretchedly dirty, and the appearance of
everything in the bare, miserable little room she lived in was that of
lowest heathenism. As I saw no chair, I sat down on the mat beside the
woman until a servant brought me one, which he said the Baboo had sent
me.”
A well-known missionary relates the following illustrative incident:
“One day, when I was walking in a retired village, my attention was
arrested by seeing two objects, at some distance before me, rolling in
the mud. As I approached the spot, I found two females almost exhausted
by fatigue. I learned that they had vowed to their goddess to roll in
this manner from one temple to another. They had spent nearly a week,
and had not accomplished one-half their journey. But no arguments,
no remonstrances on my part could induce them to relinquish their
undertaking. On leaving them, I indignantly expostulated with a learned
Brahmin, who stood near by, and pointed to the miserable objects I
had just left. ‘Oh,’ said he, ‘this is worship exactly suited to the
capacity of females. Let them alone; they are sincere. Of course, their
worship will be accepted.’”
[Illustration: HINDU WOMEN RESCUED FROM THEIR DEGRADATION.]
THE BURNING OF WIDOWS COMMANDED BY MANU.
Until a comparatively recent date, the fearful rite of Suttee has
been practiced openly in India by all highcaste people. The ancient
Vedas and the Institutes of Manu, which are second in authority, do
not enjoin this rite; but the Shasters and Puranas, which hold about
the same relation to the Vedas that the Jewish Talmud does to the Old
Testament Scriptures, recommend the flames of the funeral pile as the
widow’s sure road to eternal joy and peace. The following passages,
selected from many similar ones, translated by our missionaries from
the Puranas and Shasters, will be sufficient for our purpose:
“If a woman who had despised her lord, or done what was contrary to
his mind, should (even) from mercenary motives or fear, or from a
suspension of the reasoning power, die with her husband, she shall be
purged from all crimes.
“As the snake-catcher draws the serpent from its hole, so she (no
matter how great his sins), by burning, rescues her husband from hell,
and rejoices with him.
“The woman who expires on the funeral pile with her husband purifies
the family of her father, her mother and her husband. If the husband be
a Brahmincide, the greatest of all criminals, an ungrateful person, or
a murderer of his friends, the wife, by burning with him, purges away
his sins.
“There is no virtue greater than a virtuous woman burning herself with
her husband.
“As long as a woman, in her successive transmigrations, should decline
burning herself like a faithful wife on the same fire with her deceased
lord, so long shall she not be exempted from springing to life again in
the body of some female animal.
“Though he, her husband, have sunk to the region of torment, be
restrained in dreadful bonds, have reached the place of anguish, be
seized by the imp of Luma (the Hindu Pluto, the god of the infernal
regions), be exhausted of strength, and afflicted and tortured for his
crimes, still, as a serpent-catcher unerringly drags a serpent from his
hole, so does she draw her husband from hell, and ascends with him to
Heaven by the power of devotion.
“If the wife be within one day’s journey of the place where her husband
died, and she signify her wish to be burned with him, the burning of
the corpse shall be delayed till her arrival.
“If the husband be out of the country when he dies, let the virtuous
wife take his slippers, or anything which belongs to his dress, and
binding them, or it, on her breast, after purification, enter a
separate fire. A Brunhŭnŭ cannot burn herself on a separate pile; but
this is an eminent virtue in another woman.
“There are thirty-five million hairs on the human body. The woman who
ascends the pile will remain so many years with her husband in Heaven.
“Dying with her husband, she purifies three generations--her father and
mother’s side and her husband’s side. Such a wife, adoring her husband,
enters into celestial felicity with him--greatest and most admired;
lauded by the choirs of Heaven, with him she shall enjoy the delights
of Heaven while fourteen Indras reign.”
THE GOD VISHNU MADE MAN.
[Illustration: THE TEN INCARNATIONS OF VISHNU.]
According to the great poems, the Mahabarata and the Ramayana, Vishnu
passed through ten incarnations. These are frequently represented in
sculptures (see illustration). They are I. Mataya, the fish. According
to the story, Vishnu became a fish to save Manu (the Noah of the
Hindus) from the universal deluge. II. Kurma, the tortoise. Here Vishnu
became a tortoise at the bottom of the sea of milk, that his back might
serve as a pivot for the mountain Mandara, around which the gods and
demons twisted the great serpent Vasŭki. They then stood opposite to
each other, and using the snake as a rope, churned the ocean of milk
for the production of fourteen precious things. III. Varah, the boar.
Vishnu in this form delivered the world, after a struggle of a thousand
years, from the demon who had seized the earth and carried it to the
lowest depths of the sea. IV. Nara-sinha, the lion. He thus destroyed
another demon. V. Vamana, the dwarf. He deprived the demon Bali of
the dominion of three worlds. He received from Bali the promise of as
much land as he could step over in three paces, and then stepped over
heaven and earth. VI. Parasu-rama or Rama with the axe. VII. Rama, the
hero, destroying the demon Ravana. VIII. Krishna, the dark destroyer.
IX. Buddha, the enlightened one. This form was devised to win back the
Hindu Buddhists to Vishnu’s worship. X. Kalki who is yet to appear. He
will be revealed in the sky, seated upon a white-winged horse, with a
drawn sword like a blazing comet. He is to finally destroy the wicked
and to permanently establish righteousness and truth upon the earth.
A SANSKRIT STORY-BOOK.
Almost all the Hindus’ books are story-books, for they are filled with
accounts of the adventures of the gods and legends and myths. But there
is one book called the Hitopadesa, which has been called the “Father
of all Fables.” Its stories have been translated into Persian, Arabic,
Hebrew, Greek and later into German, French and English. This book is
very old and is exceedingly popular in India. We have selected four of
its stories, and the reader will probably wonder that such narratives
should ever gain a national popularity.
THE STORY OF THE TERRIBLE BELL.
“A thief had stolen a bell from the city of Brahmapoora, and was making
off with that plunder, and more, into the Sei-parrata hills, when he
was killed by a tiger. The bell lay in the jungle until some monkeys
picked it up, and amused themselves by constantly ringing it. The
towns-people found the bones of the man, and heard the noise of the
bell all about the hills; so they gave out that there was a terrible
devil there, whose ears rang like bells as he swung them about, and
whose delight was to devour men. Every one, accordingly, was leaving
the town, when a peasant woman named Karála, who, liked belief the
better for a little proof, came to the Rajah.
“‘Highness!’ she observed, ‘for a consideration I could settle this
Swing-ear.’
“‘You could!’ exclaimed the Rajah.
“‘I think so!’ repeated the woman.
“‘Give her a consideration forthwith,’ said the Rajah.
“Karála, who had her own ideas about the matter, took the present and
set out. Being come to the hills, she made a circle, and did homage to
Ganesha, without whom nothing prospers. Then, taking some fruit she had
brought, such as monkeys love extremely, she scattered it up and down
in the wood, and withdrew to watch. Very soon the monkeys finding the
fruit, put down the bell, to do justice to it, and the woman picking it
up, bore it back to the town, where she became an object of uncommon
veneration.”
THE STORY OF THE LION AND THE OLD HARE.
“On the Mandara Mountain there lived a Lion named Fierce-of-heart,
and he was perpetually making massacre of all the wild animals. The
thing grew so bad that the beasts held a public meeting, and drew
up a respectful remonstrance to the Lion in these words: ‘Wherefore
should your Majesty make carnage of us all? If it may please you, we
ourselves will daily furnish a beast for your Majesty’s meal.’ The
Lion responded, ‘If that arrangement is more agreeable to you, be it
so;’ and from that time a beast was allotted to him daily, and daily
devoured. One day it came to the turn of an old hare to supply the
royal table, who reflected to himself as he walked along, ‘I can but
die, and I will go to my death leisurely.’
“Now Fierce-of-heart, the lion, was pinched with hunger, and seeing
the Hare so approaching he roared out, ‘How darest thou thus delay in
coming?’
“‘Sire,’ replied the Hare, ‘I am not to blame. I was detained on the
road by another lion, who exacted an oath from me to return when I
should have informed your Majesty.’
“‘Go,’ exclaimed King Fierce-of-heart in a rage; ‘show me, instantly,
where this insolent villain of a lion lives.’
“The Hare led the way accordingly till he came to a deep well, whereat
he stopped, and said: ‘Let my lord, the King, come hither, and behold
him.’ The Lion approached, and beheld his own reflection in the water
of the well; upon which, in his passion, he directly flung himself, and
so perished.”
THE STORY OF THE BRAHMIN AND THE PANS.
“There was a Brahmin in the city of Vana, whose name was Deva
Sarman. At the equinoctial feast of the Dussera, he obtained for his
duxina-gift a dish of flour, which he took into a potter’s shed, and
there lay down in the shade among the pots, staff in hand. As he
thus reclined he began to meditate. ‘I can sell this meal for ten
cowry-shells, and with them I can purchase some of these pots, and sell
them at an advance. With all that money I shall invest in betel-nuts
and body-cloths, and make a new profit by their sale; and so go on
trafficking till I get a lakh of rupees. What’s to prevent me? Then I
shall marry four wives, and one at least will be beautiful and young,
and she shall be my favorite. Of course, the others will be jealous;
but if they quarrel, and talk, and trouble me, I will belabor them
like this--and this--‘and therewith he flourished his staff, to such
a purpose as to smash his meal-dish and break several of the potter’s
jars. The potter, rushing out, took him by the throat, turned him off,
and ended his speculations.”
THE STORY OF THE RECLUSE AND THE MOUSE.
“In the forest of the Sage Gautama there dwelt a recluse named
Mighty-at-Prayer. Once, as he sat at his frugal meal, a young mouse
dropped beside him from the beak of a crow, and he took it up and fed
it tenderly with rice grains. Some time after the Saint observed a cat
pursuing his dependant to devour it, whereupon he changed the mouse
into a stout cat. The cat was a great deal harassed by dogs, upon which
the Saint again transformed it into a dog. The dog was always in danger
of the tigers, and his protector at last gave him the form of a tiger;
considering him all this while, and treating him withal, like nothing
but a mouse. The country-folks passing by would say, ‘That a tiger! not
he: it is a mouse the Saint has transformed.’ And the mouse being vexed
at this, reflected, ‘So long as the Master lives this shameful story
of my origin will survive.’ With this thought he was about to take the
Saint’s life, when he, who knew his purpose, turned the ungrateful
beast by a word to his original shape.”