F RO M A DA M S P EA K

TO ELEP HA N T A

S KE TCHE S I N CE YLO N A N D I N DI I J
'
FR O M A D A M S P EA K

T O EL EP HA N T A
SKETCHES I N CE TL ON A N D I N DI A

BY

ED WA R D C A R EN TER P

N EW EDI TI O N , REVI S ED

L O N DO N : G EO RG E A LL EN U N WI N LT D .

I
R US K N HO US E 40 M US EU M S T R EET WC
. . 1
 P REFA C E
IF k
as ed tow it a bo k ab t h r e wn o n t y and p
o p l a m an
ou lS o c u r eo e

m g h t w ll g iv
i
peth t a k a he up l
y t t d th
e s am b t a
s o e ess e o o e s e a ou

di t ant l nd n w h i h h ha onl y p nt a f w m n th i a th ing whi h

s a i c e s s e e o s s c

th ave g t av l
era Q it h f ll y nd tak
e r e er u I ppe c th i m ay
eer u u er es. su ose s

b l o k d p n a an t h
e o e u ill t at i n of th g at fa t th at th l
o s o er us r o e re c e ess

o n kn w
e f o m att th
s o a i a it i to w it er talk ab t it B t
e e s er s r e or ou . u

th i it i m tim a d a tain m it f th i wn in t
ere s, s so e es s i , cer er o e r o rs

mp i n ; and I t
ress o s t that thi m ay ap p a in th p nt a
ru s s e r e rese c se .

C t ain l y th gh th
er , a m any th ing th at
ou ere m i d in a f t
re s are sse irs

g l an th a
c e, m th ng t hat t and o t l a
ere re so e th n than l at
i s s u c e rer e er

I hav t i d t k p a fa a p
.

I n th f ll wing p ag
e o o es bl t th e re o ee s r s ossi e o e

l t n f thing t all y n and h a d and n t t b b t ay d nt

re a io o s ac u see e r , o o e e r e i o

d o bt f l g n
u u li ti n It i
e era a y n th
sa o a s .of a l and l ik I nd a
s so e s i e c se e i ,

wh i h i a l a g a E op (w it h
c s s r e t R ia) and at l a t a m lti
s ur e ou uss e s s u

fa io
r usin it p op l l ang ag s e d es,t m and mann to u es, c ree s, c us o s, ers,

m ak th e i em i t ak of
ser ou s p p ing th at wh at i t
s e f n su os s ru e o o e

l al ity n
oc a il y app l i
ec ess r t th wh ol va t d m n es that I m t
o e e s e es e, us

p iall y wa n th
s ec ad not onl y ag ain t fall ing int
r e re er th i o s o s err r

h im l f b t ag ain t th p o ibil ity of m y h aving fall n int o it in

se , u s e ss e

p la ces .

A fa a a t al
s r p in s f l f n C yl on and I nd ia i
c u ex er e ce o n n d i e l e s co cer e

I hav p h ap b n f t n t
e er not onl y in b ing in t
s ee or u d d (th o gh
a e e ro uce r u

th k ind n
e f l al f i nd ) int
ess o i l
oc of t ad it i nal t a h ing wh i h
r e s o c rc es r o e c c

a re oft n l d again t th Eng l i h and in g tt ing t kn w

e c ose s e s , so e o o

so m th ing f th
e t i l gi l
o f S
e eso er c th I nd ia ; b t al in
re i ous ore o ou u so

obt ain ing om in t ting g l im p b hind th

s e eres n f th H ind ses e e sc e es o e u

c ere m onial I hav t o had th go d l k to nd f i nd and fam il ia

. e o e o uc r e s r

vii
viii PR EFAC E

t
ac quain ances am ong all c asses of na l t iv e soc ie ty d ow n a l m t to th
os e

t i n l vi w I hav
,

l ow es t; and I m us t say th t a the sec o a e e th bt in d

us o a e

of th e m ass p eop -
l e t
in h is p ar t f o th w e l d h a m ad
or s e m f l w ith
e ee

renew ed assu ranc e th e esse nt ial oneness of h u m an i y t v

e eryw h ere,

t t t
no w i h s and ing th e v al and p al d ff
er y m ark d l
n that
e oc su er C I i ere ces

u nd bt d l y
ou t e ex1 5 .

Th p ta le s f thec ial h ang

c e o n w t ak ing p l a
e socin I n d ia i on
c es o ce s e

th at i f ll of int t to any n wh o h a t di d and tak n p a t in

s u eres o e s s u e e r

th eS o ial i t i m ov m n t at h m ; and th in t
c s c e t f it i l ik l y t
e o e e eres o s e o

in a
cre se F o th o gh th m v m n t in I nd ia i n t th
. r u em a th at
o e e s o e sa e s

at h m o it fo m a
e, i o nt
r
p a t t th
s latt ; and b ing
cu r ous c u er r o e er e

ba k d byc e n mi hang
ec o w h i h w ill p babl y p
o c c it f es
y a to c ro ers s or e rs

co m i n t l ik l y to d i
e s o tv y e n e ou er soo .

F th or t th b k m t l y n th d ip t i n of n f
e res e oo us re o e esc r o sce es o

nat a d
u re f d ina y h m an l f w h
n o or n p t d vivid n
r u f d
i e, ose u ex ec e ess orc e

m to p t ay t h m th g h t b g in w ith I h d n in t n t i n f d ing
e or r e ou o e a o e o o o

so . Th ill t at i n a
e m any of th m t ak n f om th
us r o s re ll n t e e r e exc e e

p h ot og ap h f M
r s S w n of C ol om bo M
o essrs B o n of
co e , essrs ur

B m bay and M
o ,
F ith of R ig at essrs r e e .

E C . .

N ov . 1 89 2 .
 t
I N the m a ter of the sec ond dit ion of thi s book ;I ha
e
'
v e not m uch to

A p p endix h as been d, d eal ing

ad d e t
w i h the p resen t nanc ial c on

in t ting
eres .
 CO N T EN T S

CE YL ON

C H A P T ER I

C O L O M BO
PA G F S
llic S u ez C ana S aid G u f of S uez The Red S ea
l P ort l
'

l
C o o m bo t
I ts s ree s and p op u a ion tP ic u resque l t t
glim p ses T omm y A ins in a J inric shawThe T am i s
tk k l
and th e C ingh aleseCos u m e and C harac er t
angu ag e t L
and Lt
i era ure The B ri ish an d the Eurasians S ocia
t t l
arrang em e nt s and am e nit i
es S p icy ga es l The c oc o ~
nu t p a l m A t
ca amaran 3
-
22

C H A P TER I I

KAN D Y AN D P EA S AN T L I FE
P rim it i e vhabi s t of the C ingh alese Ajax v
arri es from
Eng land L A -
p easan t -
c abi
n near K andy Marriag e
t
cus om s De vil d-
anc ing ~Kalua and KirrahTheir rice
eld s and m ode of ife T he g rea B u ddhis l em p e at t t t l
K and yThe oo h re ic A nc ien M S S A ibrarian
t t l t L
tv
-
.

P ric st The a ip o p a m Th e B ri ish and th e na i es

t l t l t
The oys er N uwara E ia
t ll 23 - 3 6

C H A P T ER III
Ku R U N G A LA
C ingh alese VI C WS on P o i ic s lt
Kornega e - The E eph an ll l t
roc Thek enera and sc ap e in C ey on l l
Tan s an d l k
g
irrig a ion tTea growing m ore encourag ed han rice
-
t
x1
x ii CO N TEN T S
G
v
PA ES
Mod ern C omm erc ial p ol ic y P o er ty of th e p eop e l Th e
vill ag e t
ba h Dec oru m and p ass iv t y i in m anners T h e
baz aar and th e shop s M y friend th e op iu m se er T he -
ll
po li cem an Th e g ao l l and th e p risoners A T am i l of c ia

and hi s l if T h B ngal w Mo q it
m od e of e e u o s u os

V g t abl
e e i Th H ind p i t in th h o
e c u rr es hol d e u r es e u se

N at iv an t
e th i lati n t B iti h ma te Th
serv s, e r re o o r s s rs e

p a iah
r and o s, l m dw ll ur s u -
e ers 3 7 56

C H A P T ER IV
A DA M s P EA K A N D THE B LA C K R IVER
A sc en t of A d am s P eak A nig h t on th e summi t Th e u nc ad l
na tiv es l d A dvan tag f n bath A
end u re th e co e o su -
s

i ty f
soc e th n or ag m n t f n d it y Mo n l ig h t
e e c ou r w e e o u o Vie

f m th
ro mm it f th P ak H t y of th m o n tain
e su o e e is or e u

S n u Th
rise h d w n th m i t and th
e s a p h n m na
o o e s o er e o e

f t p int T h p avil i n n th
,

Ad am
s oo -
r mmit and th e o o e su , e

p i t C al iban d in
r es s g p j / D
nt by th o p il g m oo a z esce e ri

t a t Th g at wood F a na and F l a R atnap a

r c e re s u or ur

ity f j w l B oat v yag d wn th K al g ang a to

,

th e c o e e s o e o e u

voyag
-

Kal ta a D
u rn t of ap id K al a
esce nj y th r s u e o s e e

A t a p l an t
e -
at h m Wag er l av y on th tea p lanta
o e e- s er e -

ti n Th tea fa to y L tt f om Ajax abo t th

o s e -
c r e ers r

u e

cool ies 57
82

C H A P T ER V

BR I TI S H LAW C O U R TS -
AN D B U DDH ST T EM P LES I
Th e t
c ou r s a
g at nt of p prel a n t t A m an of
ce re o u r i eres e s

w ak ing p
re al v ng Th di t i t t A a of
erson re e e e s r c c ou l c se

b g l y T h B t i h id al f l f d
ur ar e n t app al t
ri th s e o i e o es o e o e

n t v A T am l t d n t f h il
a i es p p h y
T D amb ll a in
i s u e o oso o u

a b ll k a t A t i f E ian T h av t m p l
u oc -
c r c o er e o u ras s e c e- e es

of D m b ll a A b y p
a u t and hi k O th B d dh to -
ries s c oo er u is

t mp l
e es 83 9 4
-
x iv C O N T EN TS

C H A P T ER I X

CO N S C IO U S N ES S WIT HO U T T HOU G HT
GE!
What is the natu re of a C hanis

ex p erienc e ! A n swer g i en in v PA

t
m od ern hough erm s S ow e o u ion tt -
l vl t of a new form of

consc iou sness Man y a s ip an d p au se by th e wayA l

consc iousness w i h o u h o u g h M e an t
ing of
tt
N irwana t
t
P henomena of hyp no ism T h eory of the four h d im ension t
The rue qua i y of th e sou is S p ace, by wh ich it is
t lt l
p resen e t
eryw h ev
re F reed om , E ua i T he d emocra i
q y c lt t
basis of Eas ern p h i osop h y t l I 51 -
1 6!

C H A P T ER X

M ET HO DS OF A TT AI N M EN T

Physic al method s ad op t ed som e of th e y og z s l

S e f mesm er
'

by
v
-

t
ism, fas ing , se ere p enan ce
Th e S z dd /z z or m irac u ous
' '

l
p ow e tl
rs M en a m e h od s (1 ) th e C on cen ra i t
on, and (2) th e t t
Effacem en of T hough D if c u lties of (I ) and
t t
bu t
rea a tv l
u e for th e Wes ern p eo p es to d a
y C oncen ra ion t l t t
l t v pow Th y
g
and Effacem en t of Th ou gh t are c orre a i e ers

l ad to th d i ov y f th t
e

e e S l f M al m thod
sc er o e rue e or e s,

ge n tl n and o
e ess, cnit y
N nd iff n t i t i n Th nal
r, sere o ere a o e

d l iv an P babl
e er d iff
ce n b t w n Ea t n and
ro e ere ce e ee s er

W t n m thod f attainm n t Th gh th Will and

es er e s o e rou e

th o gh Lov
,

r u e 1 63 -
1 81

C H A P T ER X I

T R AD IT I O N S O F T HE A N C EN T I W I S DO M -
R EL G O N I I
Dif cu lty of g iving any c onc ise ac c oun t of I ndian t a h ing e c

P ersonal rapp rochement to the G uru, b t al i nat ion f o m

u e

d ia val th o i
r

th e lt
forma i ies of h is d o c rine M e e e r es t of
A s ronomy and G eo ogy P h i osop h y of th e S id dhantic
t l l
sys emThe ve e e men s, ve form s of sensa i
t l
on, etc t t .

The t w nty i t lw and th S l f wh i h tand apa t

e s x a as, e e c s s

f om th m allEvol ti n n d l nv l t i n Th
-
r

r e h ll
u o a o u o e ve S e s
whi h c n lo th
e c l ~D ath and B th C dit i of
se e sou e ir ru es

A t ol ogy P hy iol og y t D bl
s r , ig ni at ion of many
s ,
e c ou e s c
 C O N T EN T S xv

PA GE S

d oc t rin es R esemb l anc e of m od ern G u ru to a V ed ic S ag e

His t
c ri ic is ms O f th e l
Eng ish and of Eng ish ru e I m l l
t
p or anc e to th e West of th e I nd ian t rad i onsti 1 82
-
20 1

I N DI A

C H A P T ER X ll

T HE S OU T H I N DIAN T EMP LES

Co l ombo t i o in Th p la n of th C a nat i Thi ty

to T u c r e i s e r c r

g a
ret D av id ia n t r m p l T h t m l at T an
p e j C l
es al e e e ore o oss

m n l ithi b ll Th p ag d a a n p i
o o c u of w o k
e It o , e ece r

ca t n s s h ad ow o s S b id ia t m l and f
y p o d a
u ds r e es resc e rc a es

A
g im n
ret f l n g a
e m Th T an
o j p
'

zal a Th s e ore ce e

t m p l at Mad a T h Ch /t i th Ea t n g at and
e e ur e ou r g, e s er e,

th H all f a th
e and C l m n C
o wd in th
ou s t mp l o u s ro s e e e

p m
re c t g l m
c s, n d t ill n
oo f th an t i J s gg nau ess o e i er or u er t

c a in th
rs t t Th T mp l of Ch d am ba m a goal
e s ree s e e e i ra ,

of p il g im ag and a d n
r e f B h m in T h w i d hall f a
e o ra s e e r o

th nd
ousa l mn h a nt d by bat A anky B ah m n
co u s, u e s cr r i

G l d m ith at w k f
o s s th T m p l A t
or l nt p ilg im
or e e e ruc u e r 20 7
-
223

C H A P T ER X I I I

M A DR AS AN D C ALCU TTA

T he t
s ree s of t M ad rasC om p arison t
w i h C ey on mp osi ions l I t
v
.

of d ri ers, t
boa m en, h o tl e m anag ers, etc A s ragg ing , d u t l ll
v
.

ci yt A c en re, t h o we er, of H ind u p ol it ic al and l it erary l ife

V isit to Ad yar and th e T h eosop h ist h ead quart ers B lavat ky s

c u rio s tiv l if T h iv H g lly C al

S cenes of na e e e r er oo i

tta it y and p p l at i n F t ival f bath ing in th G ang

o o es o e es
P v t
cu c u

A Ci f
rc u s
y th p p l M t ing f th D ff in
o er O e eo e ee o e u er

F nd B it i h p h l ant h op y in I nd a A nat iv h l A r e sc oo
Th i l v
u r s i i

g rou
p f B ng a li o e f l ng ya n and f m
s e r o e o o r s, o u sic

l anna L ll and h i g ym na t f i nd Ch nd i C h n

a s s r e s u ur

f m th it Th I ndian m ic 224
p o
er on r s e s ar e us 24 7
x vi C O N T EN T S

C H A P T ER X I V

B EN A R ES
PA GES
T he p l G ang es Th e c rop s, and th e p easan ife
ains of th e t l
S en im en of th e g rea exp anse S acred ness of th e ri er
t t t v
k
F ar bac worsh ip of S i a B enares a c en re of H ind u ife v t l
v
-

T he s ree s and shop s T h e G o d en T em p e Th e ri er

t t l l
sid e, c h arac eri t
s ic scenes A S p ring fes i a A a t
wi h tv l t lk t
a yog i Th e bu rning g h au s P anna a wan s to ba h e t -
L ll t t
l
R e ig io u s ab u ions A se f m u i a ed fa ir l t 248 26 2 l -
tl t k -

C H A P T ER X V

I N DIA N A N D THE N ATIVE

T HE A N G LO -

A ll ah abad D if lty f all y know ing I nd ia Th cu g at gulfo re e re

f a d iff n Th H nd d n t nd
ere tand D ty
ce e i u oes o u ers

u

Th d t y l ving Eng l i h m an d
o r ce -

e u n t -
nd
o t and th s oes o u ers e

H ind R a d w i n in th U nit d S t at W am t
u c e- i s o s e e es e c e o

I nd ia a t ang Th g lf m ain and w ill m ain

s s r ers e u re s, re

C it i i m by an d at d nat iv A lig h affo d an in

r c s s e uc e e ur r s

tan f f i ndly f l ing b t w n th tw

ce o re t i n Th ee e ee e o sec o s e

onv ivial d nn
s

M A O C ll g
. A. . o p a tye Si Sy d
e c i er- r r e

A h m ed and th e M oham m ed an inu ence

H orse fair at
tiv
-

A lig urh C abulees, and a na e wrest ing bou l -

t 263 - 275

C H A P T ER X VI

D EL H I AN D AG RA

A pproac h to De h i T h e F or and the old P a aceT h e own

l t l t
onT h e
and p op u a il t J v
u m m a M osqu eT h e en iron s of

D l hi a w a t
e f in d it i T h K t ab Mina and th
,
s e o ru e c es e u r e

o ld f t of Lalkab A g a th F o t and th P al a
or ress Th r e r e ce e

J am n T ow L v ly m a bl and m o ai T h T aj at
,

ess i e er o e r e s c e

t w l ight A fa y n F lo k f g n p a ot Mo n
i ir sce e c s o ree rr s o

l gh t on th J mna Do w not p t o w m n F A
i e u e res ec ur o e

c ot i f p of
er e o o Th o
p p l at ion
r f A g aS n at
ess rs e u o r ce es

th ail w ay
e tat n
r A fav abl p im n of yo ng
s io s or e s ec e u

I ndia An in id n t n th t ain c e 76 i e r 2 -
29 2
 C O N T EN T S x vii
C H A P T ER X V I I

B O M BA Y GE
t iv
PA S

The na e B om bay t l W k h op al
a w on derfu l sp ec ac e or s s, s e

S t i
s, O
p m d n t h a
u t t m p le m qs, T h
p p e res, e es, o s u es e o u

l at ion M ah atta and P a

, r Th m d n it and th
s y rsees e o er c e

m an fa t ing q a t T h P a e no J t
u c ur u r er T l ang e rs e se us ice e ,

a Mah att a T h r B n ya C a t T ibho an Dae uth m s e r v s a o e

V i w f m th Mal aba H ill A B nya w dd ing N at iv

e ro e r u e e

th ate resTh S al vat i n A m y A e th ha b to o r cross e r or

El p h an ta Th g at av t m p l S l p t e d p an l th
re c e- e e cu ure e s, e

H ind T in ty T h h m an d ivin l if f S va I mp iv
e

u r i e u -
e eO i ress e

e ff t of th
ec whol An
e p i m d n Va i e -
t of o u e r ous sor s

ta y p d d by th and th d g ~Th p
s

ro uc e ese o er ru s e ro

nv
ec s

l t iat at h om M i and
e ar eat i n D am f a
us c co ers o re o

U n t d I nd ia B m bay at n gh t O
i e th w ay t A d n
o i u e o e
A al m and t a l it
c anA b a tif l p an am a
s r oc e 93 e u u or 2 -
31 8

THE O L D O R DE R
A N D THE N E W LVF L UEN CE S
'

C H A P T ER X V I I I

T HE O LD O R D ER : C A S TE AN D C O MM U N S M I
l v
R em ar ab e soc ia m o em en in nd ia C omp ex i y and c orrup
k l t I l t
ion of C as e sys em Th e B rah m ins Defence of c as e
t t t t
tv t
from na i e p oin of iew S p ecim ens of c as e reg u a ion v t l t
C ast ty anny S to y f a wid w ma iag P ha i ai m
e r r o o re rr e r s s

of p t
resabil it
y C a t in it oth
ec a p t a a T ad s e s er s ec s r e

G ild T m p ing omp t it i n I n tan

u e er f thi C m c e o s c es o s o

m ni m th
u s nd g
, at f at
e seco of o al l f V ll g re e ure s ci i e i a e,

C a t and Fam il y C omm ni m Th l a t t ill o i h ng

s e, u s e s s ur s i

An d t ec O ld
o es an t n b ing d t oy d by C m s c io s e es r e o

m iali m S a
erc dn
s f F am ily ti cre 3 ess o e 21 -
338

C H A P T ER X I X
T HE N EW I N FLU EN C ES :

WESTER N S C I EN C E A N D C O MM ER C IALIS M
G ieat sp read of West ern ed u cat i on Euc id l and P ol it ical
Ec onom y at Tuticorin S chool s and C oll eg es th roug hou t
x v ii i C O N T EN T S

PA GE S

I nd ia C ric lf Y ng I nd
k t
e and W go ll ou ia e are a

A gn t i os n w cs S m la
o

p ad f C mm il m
i i r s re o o erc a is

I nt f a ott n m ll at B m bay L g p t
erior O . c o -
i n o ar e ro s, c o

d it n
io f l ab N m
s O or t ad ng p t and l k hip
u erous r i os s c er s s

T h N at i nal I nd an C ong
e o I t id al and in n
i ress s e s ue ce

D l k d by th B it i h T h
is i e e ial g l f g ain O
r s f t e soc u a ur

in I nd ia Th b ak p f v ill g l if P bl m f p a p
u u re

e re -
u o a e e ro e o u er

i m S i H n y M a n I n ng it y f C m m
s ,
r e r i e ial i m W th co ru o o erc s i

th g ni
e e f I nd a P ob bl a
us o nd an y f th f m
i r f a e sce c o e or er o r

a t im e B t nl y fo a t m
u o r i e
3 3 9 3 57 -

A P P EN D IX 3 58 3 70
-
 LI S T O F I L L U S T RA T I ON S
PA GE
S EAS HO R E, N EA R C O LO M B O
C I N G HA LES E MA N . 1 2

A JA FFN A TA M L I
JIN R IC KS HAW
TA M IL G I RL
KA LUA
P LOUG HI N G IN T HE R I C E F I ELDS , -
WITH BU FFALO ES

BU DDH IST LI BR A R AN
I I P R ES T

KAN D Y , G EN ERA L VI EW f ullp age

N ATIVE HUT
N ATIVE STR EET ,
AN D S HO P S

VEDDAHS, I I
ABO R G N ES O F CE YLO N

RI CE-BOA TS ON THE KA LU G AN G A
G R OU P O F TAM IL I
CO O L ES , O R WA G E WO R KER S
-

TA M I L G IRL I
C O O L E P LU C K N G T EA I
BULLOC K HAC KER -
Y , C O LO M B O
C I N G HALES E COU N TR Y -
CART

JETAWAN AR AMA DA G O BA , AN U R A DHAPU R A f u llpag e

THU P ARA MA DA GO BA , AN U R ADHAPU R A
A I
RU N ED BAT HI N G -TAN K, A N U R A DHA P U RA io6

S MALL G UAR D IAN FIGUR E , I

B U DD H S T S CU LP TU R E I I I

A TA M IL MAN 1 1 7
C I N G HA LES E G RLI . 1 26

P O RTR A IT O F T HE G N AN I I 34
XX LI ST OF I LL US T RA TI ON S
PA G E

P O RTR A I T O F P AR A MA G U RU S WA M I

G R E AT PA G ODA AT TA NJ O R E 20 6

T EMP LE AT TA N J O R E, G ENE R A L VI EW . 20 9

PA NN A L A LL B . 23 9

WOM A N P LAYI NG S I TA R
T H E G H AU TS AT B EN AR ES 256

THE DEWA N KHA s O R A U D I EN C E HA LL

, T H E PA LAC E
,

AT DEL HI
T HE JU MM A M OS QU E DEL H I ,

P ER FOR AT ED M A R BLE S CR EEN I N TH E PA LAC E AT DEL HI

T H E T A! AT A G R A
,

S TR EET I N B OMBAY N ATI VE QUA R T ER

,

PA R SEE WO M AN
P A R SEE M E R C H A N TS 29 8

T HE G R EAT C
AVE AT ELE P H A NTA 30 5
PA NEL S C U LP TU R E S I VA A N D H I S CO NSO R T PA R VAT I,
,

ELE P H A N TA
IN T ER I O R S H R I NE AT ELE P H AN TA 3 I o

S I DE C AVE ELE P H A N TA
,
From A d am P eak Elephanta

s to

C H A P T ER I

CO L O MB O

I M AG I N E
blu e green ribbon O f w ater som e 60 y ard s
a -

wid e th en rough sand y dunes 1 0 or 20 feet high

, ,

and th e n b eyond the des ert burning y ellow in the

, ,

sun h ere and th er e partly cov ered with scrub but ,

for the most p art s eeming quit e b are ; som etim es

flat and stony som etim es to ss ed and broken som e
, ,

ti m es in great drift s and wreaths of s and j ust lik e ,

s nowdrifts d elic at ely ribbed by th e wind the whol e

,

stretching aw ay for miles scores of miles not a , ,

moving form visibl e till it is bounded on the horizon

,

by a ridge of hill s of the most ethereal pink und er

an int e ns e blu e S k y S uch is the Vi ew to the east
.

of us now as w e p ass through the S uez C an al

,

(1 9 th Octob er T o the west the l and looks

brown er and grayer ; som e reeds m ark a water
course and about 1 0 mil es off appears a frowning
,

d ark range of b are hill s about 20 0 0 feet hi h an

,

outlying spur of the hills (J eb el A ttakah th at

bound the Gulf of S uez .

I n such a l andsc ape one of the sign al st ations ,

with its n eat til ed cott age and ag staff and a few ,

d at e palms and p erh aps a tiny bit of garden is quit e ,

an attr action to the eye T h ese st ations are pl ac ed

.
4 FR O M A DA M s

P EA K TO P
EL E HA N TA

at int erv al s of about 6 mil es all along the c an al .

T h ey s erve to regul at e the tr afc which is now ,

enormous , and continuous night and day T he .

great ships n early ll the w at er way so th at one ,

has to be dr awn asid e and moor ed in order to

let anoth er p ass and though they are not allow ed
to go fast er th an 4 mil es an hour they cr eate a
consid erable wav e in th eir re ar which keeps w ash ,

ing down the b anks T ufts of a reedy grass h av e

.

b een pl ant ed in pl aces to hold the sand toge th e r ;

but the silt is very gr eat and huge st eam dredg es
,
-

are con st antly at work to r emov e it H ere and th ere .

on the b ank is a n ativ e bu t of dry r eeds thr ee

sid es and a at top ju s t a sh elt er from th e sun ;

or an A rab t ent with c am els t ethered by the leg

,

around it . A t Kantarah the c arav an tr ack from

J erus al em one of the gre at highway s of the O ld
world cro sses the can al ; there are a few wood
and mud hut s and it is curiou s to see the string o f
,

l ad en c amels and the A rabs in th eir u nbl each ed

cotton burnous es coming down just as th ey might
be coming down from the tim e O f F ath er A br ah am
an d cros s ing the p ath of thi s huge mod ern st eam

ship with its electric lights and myri ad mod ern

appli anc es the Kaiser W
,
'

z lkelm now going h alf w a

y
-
,

round the glob e .

T he d es ert does not s eem quit e d evoid of anim al

life ; at anyrate along the c an al sid e you m ay see
tracks i n the s and O f rabbit s and h are s occ asion al ,

wagtail lik e birds by the water a few crows hover

-
,

ing abov e or a sea gull not to m e ntion c amels a nd

-

N ear P ort S aid th ey

, ,

a donk ey or two or a go at , .

say the l agoons are som etim es whit e with oc ks of

p elicans and am ingoes but w e pass ed th ere in the

,
 COLO M BO 5

night I t was ne to see the electric light pl aced

.
,

in the bows throwing a cl ear beam and illumin ating

,

the banks for fully half amile ahead as we slowly -

,

steam e d along T he driv e n s and looked like snow

.

i n the bluish light T he crescent moon and V enus

.

w ere i n the sky and the red sign al lights behind us

of P ort S aid
,

T he c an al is 9 0 mil es long and a l arge p art of ,

it follows the bed of a v ery ancient can al w hich

is supposed to h ave conn ected the two se as I t .

app ear s th at there is a very slight movem e nt of

the wat er through it from south to north .

W e are now nearing S uez and the heat is so ,

gre at th at it reverberat es from the banks as from

a fu rn ac e ; of course the d e ck is under an awning .

T he r em ains O f a littl e vill age built of cl ay app ears ,

but the huts have brok en down split by the erce ,

sun rays and some light frame houses roofed and

-
,
-
,

w alled with shingles h av e t aken their place , .

G ul S T he town of S ue z is a tumble
f fo u ez .

down little place n arrow lanes and alleys ; two

,

s tor eyed stone houses mostly some with carv ed ,

wooden fronts and on the upper oors lattic e work

,
-
,

behind which I suppos e the women abide S ome .

nice looking faces in the streets but a good m any

-
,

ru f ans not so bad though as P ort S aid wh ere the ,

people simply exist to shark upon the ships In .

both pl aces an ins ane m edl ey of A rabs fellahs h alf , ,

c astes and Europeans touts guides donkey boys , , ,

-
,

etc and every shad e of dress and absurd hybrid

.
,

costum e from extrem e Ori e nt al to correct Engli sh ;

,

ludicrous scen es O f passengers going on shore ,

l adies clinging round the n e cks of swarthy boatm en ;

donkey boys shouting the n ames of their donkeys
-
6 FR O M A
AD M S

PE A K TO E L EP H AN T A

M r B radlau gh sir v ery ne donkey

, ,
M rs ,

L angtry B ishop of L ondon etC ; fearful alter

.
, ,

c ations about C l aimed balcskeesk ; p arti es beguil ed

into outlying qu arters of the town and b adly bl ack
m ail ed ; refus als O f bo atmen to t ak e you b ack to
the ship while the very gong of d ep arture is sound
ing ; and so forth S u ez howev er has a littl e
.
, ,

c aravan and co asting trade of its o wn b esid es ,

the railway which now runs th e nc e to C airo and ,

has antiqu e cl aims to a re sp ect ability which its

sister city at the oth er end of the c an al cannot
sh ar e .

N ow th at we are out in the gulf the sea is d eep ,

blu e and v ery be autiful the rocks and mount ains

, ,

along the shor e v ery wild and b are and in m any ,

parts of a strong red colour T hi s arm of the Red .

S ea is about 1 50 mile s long and I think not mor e ,

than 20 mil es W ide at any point ; i n som e pl ac es it

is much l ess We p ass j u tting c ap es and i sl and s
.

q u ite close on the w est O f u S gr eat rocky ravin e

cut m ass es absolutely b are of veget ation On the .

east app ar ently about I O mil es dist ant but v ery ,

cl ear stands an outlying range of S in ai J ebel

S irbal by n am e look s about 50 0 0 or 60 0 0 feet
high very wild and craggy m any o f the pe aks
, ,

clov en at the summit and gaping as if with the

he at ; farther b ack some high er points are visibl e ,

one of wh ich is prob ably J ebel M us a A most .

extraordin ary l and ; at som e pl ac es one c an disc ern

esp eci ally with the aid of a gl ass l arge tracts or
pl ai ns of loos e s and mil es in extent and perfectly
, ,

l ev el exc ept wh ere t h ey wash up in gr eat drifts

,

again st the b as es of the mount ai ns A cross thes e .

p l ain s t all d ark column s can be di stingui shed slowly

 C OLO MB O 7
trave lling the dre aded san d clouds borne
-
on eddi es
of the wind .

I n dian O cean, Oct . k

2 sil M uch cooler now .

I n the

Red S ea, with
thermom eter at 9 0 in the
cabi ns h eat w as of course the absorbing topic
, .

Ev erybody mopping ; punk ahs in full swing I .

believe the w ater there fre q uently reaches 90 F
and som etimes but h ere it is quite cool probably ,

not much ov er and th at alon e m ak es a gr eat

differenc e I t is a que er C lim at e in the R ed S ea :
.

th er e s eems to be always a h az e due to du st blown ,

from the shor es ; at the s am e tim e the air is very

d am p owing to the e normous evaporation C loth es
, ,

hung up get quite w et and there are h eavy dews, .

When the wi nd is aft the Oppres sion from the he at

is som etim es so gr eat th at ships hav e to be turn ed
b ack and ste am ed again st the breeze ; but even so
c asu alties and d eaths are not uncommon Owing .

to the h aze and the br eadth of the Red S ea which

,

is as much as 20 0 mil es i n p arts little is se en O f the ,

shor es A few rocky isl ands are pass ed and a

.
,

good m any awkward reefs which the pass eng ers

know nothing of T he S traits O f Bab el M and eb are - -

curious T he pass age b etw een the I sl and of P erim

.

and the A r abi an m ainl and is quite n arrow only a ,

mil e or two wide ; toss ed wild looking hills on the -

m ainland 3 0 0 0 or 40 0 0 feet high with F rench

, ,

fortications T he isl and itself low er and more

.

rounded with English fort and lighthouse ; but

,

looking very bl ack and bare though owing to the ,

moistur e there is som e kind of stunted he athery

stuff growing on it T h ere are a few English here
.
,

and a n ativ e town O f w aggon lik e t e nts cluster ed

-

round the fort ; some little shing and s ailing bo at s

'
8 FR O M A DA M s

PE A K L P HA N TA
To E E

a long the shor es T urning eastward s along the

.

south co ast of A rabi a th e s am e awful land m eets

the eye as i n the Gulf of S uez A continu al cloud .

of dust i es along it through which one disc erns ,

s andy pl ains and high p arched summits beyond

,
.

T her e must how ever be w at er i n som e part s of this

, ,

r egion as it is b ack from h ere in this angle O f

,

A r abi a th at M och a li es and the coffee is grown .

C0 1 0 7n o I fear th at the Red S ea combined with

.

mutu al boredom had a bad effect on the p ass engers
t emp ers for t errible diss ensions broke out ; and
,

aft er six d ays of the I ndi an O c ean during which ,

th e only diversions w er e flying sh out sid e and -

scand al mongering in side the ship it w as a relief to

-
,

l and on the p alm fringed co ast of C eylon T he -

.

sl end er cat am arans or more properly outrigged

cano es m ann ed by d usky forms which com e to ,

t ak e you ashor e are indeed so n arrow th at it is

,

impos sibl e to sit inside th em ! T h ey are m ad e of a

dug out tree trunk (see fronti spiec e) with p ar

-

-
,

allel bulwarks fasten ed on only TO inch es or a foot

ap art ; across th e bulw arks a short bo ard is pl aced ,

and on Mai you c an sit T w o arm s proj ecting on .

one sid e c arry a oat or light sh sh aped piec e of -

wood which rests on the water 8 feet or so from

,

the c anoe and prev ent s the vess el from c apsizing

, ,

which i t would otherwis e infallibly do I mp elled .

by o ars or by a sail the bo at bounds ov er the w ater

, ,

at a good sp eed and the mod e of trav elli ng is v e ry

pl easant T here is no n ece ssity howev er to em
.

b ark in thes e frail craft for respect abl e civilis ed ,

bo ats and ev en st eam l au nch es abound ; we are

, ,

indeed i n an import ant and bu sy port .

A gre at gr anite mol e built ve ye ars ag o has , ,

1 0 FR O M

A DA M S P EA K TO L P
E E HA N TA

g in is a R om an C atholic church and co n vent or

a a ,

the grot esque facad e of a H i ndu t emple and ev ery

where tre es and ow ering shrubs and as one ap ,

roaches the outskirts of the town the pl entiful

p ,

bro ad le aves of coco p alms and b an an as ov er

sh adowing the ro ads N or i n any description of
.

Colombo should the fre sh wat er l ake be forgotten-

which ramifying and winding in most intric at e

,

fashion through the town and in one pl ace coming

,

within a hundred y ards of the sea surprises one ,

continu ally with ench anting glimpses I don t know .

any mor e d elightful View of its kind al l the mor e

d elightful b ec ause so unexpect ed than th at which
gre ets the eye on entering the F ort R ailway S t ation
at Colombo You pass through the book ing of ce
.
-

an d nd yours elf on a pl atform w hich e xcept for the ,

lin e O f rails b etw een might be a t errace on the l ak e

it self ; a l arg e exp ans e of wat er with wooded shores
and i sl and s inter spersed with vill as
, cott age s an d ,

c abins lies before you whit e s ailed bo ats are goi ng

,
-

to and fro ; groups of d ark gures w aist d eep in ,

-

w ater are washing clothes ; children are pl aying

,

and swimming in the water ; and wh en as I saw i t ,

onc e the ev e ning sun is shining through the trans

,

p arent green fringe O f b anan a p alms which occupies

the imm edi ate foreground and the c alm l ak e b eyond
,

r eflects lik e a mirror the gorgeous hu es of S ky and

cloud the scene is one which for effects of color
,

c an h ardly be surp ass ed .

U p and down th ese str eets and ro ads and by ,

the side of thi s l ak e and along the s eashor e and

,

through the qu ays and docks goe s as m ay be , ,

im agined a most motley crowd T he C ing halese

, .

and the T amils are of cours e the most num erous ,

 C OLO M B O I I
but besides th es e th er e are M oh ammed ans usu ally
c all ed M oor m en her e and som e M al ays T he
-
.

English in Ceylon m ay be divided into thr ee

C l asses : the of ci al Engli sh the pl anters and the , ,

sm all trading English (including employ ees on

r ailway and other works ) T hen there are the .

A nglicised n ative gentry C inghalese or T amil , ,

some of whom occupy ofci al po sitions and who ,

l argely adopt Europe an dress and habits ; the

non A nglicised ditto who keep to their own ways
-
,

and costume and are not much se en in public ;

the D utch Eurasi ans m any of whom become doc

,

tors or solicitors (proctor s) ; and the P ortugu ese

,

who are frequently traders in a sm all way .

S pecim ens of all th ese in their differ ent degrees ,

of costum e and ab sence of costume m ay be s een ,

in Colombo as i nd eed in almost any pl ace in Ceylon

,

which can be digni ed with the n am e of a town .

H er e for inst ance is a gr eat big M oor m an with -

high fez of pl ait e d grass b aggy whit e p ants and ,

turned u p shoes ; a gured v est on his body and

-
,

red sh awl thrown ov er one shoulder

[H e is .

prob ably a well to do shopkeeper ; not an agree

- -

abl e fac e but I nd the M oh ammed ans h ave a good

,

r eput ation for upright d ealing and d elity to th eir

word !
H ere a ruddy brown C inghalese m an with ,

h airy C h est and nothing on but a red loin C loth

,
-
,

c arryi ng by a string an e arthenware pot prob ably ,

of p alm be er [A peas ant T he C inghalese are

-
. .

ge nerally of this colour where as the T amils tend ,

towards bl ack though sh ading O ff in the high er

,

c ast es to an oliv e
A nother C inghalese dressed all in white white, ,
I 2 FR O M A DA M s

PE AK To E L EP H AN T A
cotton j ack et and white cloth h angi ng to b elo w
the kne es with el egant s emicircul ar tortoise sh ell
,
-

C omb on h i s he ad ; a morbidly s ensitiv e fac e with

its indr awn nose and pouti ng lips [P ossibly a .

priv at e serv ant or sm all of ci al of one of the

,

court s or A r ac/z cnz The C omb is a gre at m ark

'

.
,

of the low country C ing halese T hey dra w the

-
.

h air b ackw ards over

the h ead and put the
comb on horizontally ,

like an i ncompl et e
crown with its tw o ,

en d s sticking up
above the for eh ead
v ery like horn s from a
front V i ew ! T he h air
is then fastened in
a knot b ehind or ,

som etim es l eft h ang

ing down the back .

T hi s is a som ewh at
feebl e fac e but as ,

a rule o ne m a
y say
th at the C ing halese
C ngh l
i M a ese are v ery
an I nt ellig e nt .

T h ey m ak e excell ent
c arpent ers and m ech anics A re generally s ensitiv e
.

and proud
! .

H er e com e two Englishm en in twee d suits and

t ennis sho es th eir umbr ell as h eld c arefully by the
-

middl e apparently of the pl anter community ,

young but rath er weedy looking with an u n

, ,

ste ady swimmy look about the eye s which I fear

,

is not uncommon among the pl anters ; I h av e

 C O LOM BO v
.
3

s een it alre ady well d e v elop ed in a m er e boy of

-

e ight ee n .

H er e a doz en or so of c/aettz es (a T amil com

m erc ial c ast e) with b ar e sh av en and h alf sh av en

,
-

h eads brown skins and whit e mu sli n s thrown

, ,

gracefully round th eir full and sleek limbs ; the

s acre d spot m ark ed
on their foreh eads ,

re d b e tel i n th ei r
mouths and av ari c e
,

i n the ir fac es .

T h er e a T am i l
cooli e or wage wor -

k e r n ea r l y n ak e d
,

e xc ept for a h and

k erchi ef ti ed round
his h ead with glo ssy
,

b lac k sk i n and
slight yet grac eful
gure .

H ere a pretty littl e

girl of nin e or so ,

with blu e b eads round

her n eck an d the
,

u su al whit e cotton
j ack et and coloured A j g T mi! a na a

petti co at or gil ai of
the C inghalese women w alking with a younger ,

broth er .

H er e three young Eur asi an girls in light

Europ ean co stum e and s tr aw h at s h air loose or

in p igt ails down their b ack s very pret ty [T h ey ,

.

are off for a w alk along the G alle F ace promen ad e

by the sea as the he at of the d ay is now pas t !
,
I 4 F R OM A DA M s

PE A K TO L P
E E HA N T A

H ere al so an English l ady young and c arefully ,

dressed but looking a littl e bor ed driving in her

, ,

pony trap to do som e shopping with a bl ack boy

-
,

st anding b ehind and holding a sunsh ade over her .

One of the features of Colombo are the jinrick

sh aws or light two wheel ed gigs drawn by m en
,
-
,

which abound in the str eet s T he se T amil fellows . ,

in the light est of C ostum es th eir b acks stre aming ,

under the v ert ical sun b are l egged and O ft e n b are

,
-

h ead ed will trot with you in a miraculous w ay

,

from o ne end of Colombo to the oth er and for ,

the sm all est fee T ommy A tki n s delights to sit

.

thus lordly b ehind the toiling nigger A t ev e n

tid e you m ay see him and his Eurasi an girl he

in one j inricksh aw and she i n anoth er driving
out to the G all e F ac e H ot el or som e such dist ant ,

r esor t along the shore of the m any sounding oc ean .

T he T amil s are mostly slight and grac eful in gur e

D own at the docks th ey
,

an d of an active build .

work by hundreds with nothing on beyond a n arrow

,

b and b e tw een the thighs lo ading and unlo ading ,

b arges and ships a study O f the hum an gure

-
.

S om e of them of cours e are thick and muscul ar ,

but mostly th ey exc el in a kind of uncon scious

grace and fl eetn ess of form as of the bronz e
M ercury of H ercul an eum of which they oft e n ,

remind m e T heir physiognomy corresponds with

.

th eir bodily activity ; the mo st ch aracteristic typ e

th at I h av e notic ed among them has lev el bro w s ,

and ey es d eep set

(and som etim es a little clo se
-

together) straight nose and w ell form ed chin

, ,
-
.

T hey are a mor e ent erprising pushing and in , ,

d u striou s p eopl e th an the C in ghalese eager and ,

thin skins oft en ver y d ark with a conc entr at ed

, , ,
 C OLO MB O I5

som etim es d emonish look b e tw een the eyes will

,

pow er evid ently pr es ent but oft en h andsom e .

A ltogeth er a singul ar mixture of enterprise with

d emoni ac qu aliti es ; for occultism is rife among
them from the j ugglery of the low er c astes to
,

the esot eric phil osophy and sp ecul ati v en ess of

the high er T he horse k eepers and s t abl e boys
.
- -

A Ji
nrick shaw

Tamz l coalz e, E u r asian g irl!

in C eylon lmost all T amils (of a low c aste )

are a ,

and are a C h arming r ace dusky active affection at e

, , ,

d emons fond of th eir hors es and with unlimited

, ,

cap acity of run ning even ov er n ewly m acad amis ed

,

ro ads T he tea coolies are also T amils and the

.
,

ro ad work ers and gen erally all wage l aborers ;

-
,
-

while the C ing halese who h av e been longer loc ated

,

in the isl and ke ep to th eir own little peas ant

,
 O F RO M P EA K P HA N TA

I A DA M S TO EL E

holdings and are not at all i nclined to com e unde r

the thumb of a m ast er pr e fe rring often ind eed to ,

suffer a chronic st arvation inst ead .

T he T a mil w omen are lik e th eir lords g en er ally , ,

of a slighter build th anthe C ing halese of the sam e

sex some ind eed are quit e dimi nutive A mong
,
.

both r aces som e v ery gr aceful and good looking -

girl s are to be seen up to the age of sixte e n or ,

so fairly bright e ven in m anner ; especi ally among

,

the C inghalese are th ey distingui sh ed for th e ir n e

ey es ; but at a l at er a e an d as wives th e y los e
g , ,

th eir good look s and t end to b ecom e rath er h eavy

and brutish .

T he contr ast b etw een the C inghalese and the

T amils i s su fci ently m ark ed throughout and ,

though th ey liv e on the isl and on amic abl e t erms

th ere is as a rul e no lov e lost betw een th em T he .

C ing halese c am e to C eylon app ar ently from the ,

m ainl and of I ndi a somewhere in the sixth c e ntury

,

B C . and aft er pu shing the aborigin es up into the

.
,

woods and mount ains (wh ere som e of th em m ay

yet be fo u nd ) occupied the whole i sl and
, I t w as .

not long howev er b efore the T amils follow ed also ,

from I ndi a ; and since th en and through a long ,

s eri es of conicts the l atter h av e m aint ain ed th e ir

,

position and now form the l arger p art of the

,

popul ation in the north of the isl and while the ,

C inghalese are most numerous in the south Gre at .

numbers of T amil pe as ants men wom en and , ,

children still com e ov er from the m ainl and every

y ear and go u p cou ntry to work in the tea gardens
,
- -

wh er e there is a great d em and for coolie l abour .

I n ch ar act er the C inghalese are mor e lik e the

I t ali ans easy going
, reason ably idl e sensitiv e
-
, , ,
1 8 F R O M ADA M S PE A K
TO P
EL E HA N T A

vid ent in th e ir families comm ending good hus ,

bandry .

T he C inghalese are ne arly all Buddhists while ,

the T amils are H indus B uddhism w as introduc ed

.

into C eylon about the fourth c entury B C and . .

,

has ourished h er e ev er since ; and Buddhist

rock t emple s are to be found all ov er the i sl and
-
.

The T amils h av e a quit e ext ensiv e lit erature O f

con sid erabl e antiquity mostly philosophic al or ,

p hilO S O p hic o po etic al ; and th eir l angu ag e is v e ry

-

rich in voc abul ary as well as in its gramm atic al

form s and inex ions though v ery t ers e with ,

scanty t erm s for expressions of court esy (like

th ank you or good ,

and a littl e

harsh in sound As and 7 s ying through the

,

teeth at a gre at rat e C inghalese is much m ore .

liquid and ple as ant i n sound and has m any mor e ,

A ryan word s in it I n fact it is suppos ed to be

.
,

an offs hoot of S anskrit wh ereas T amil seem s to ,

h av e no rel ation to S anskrit exc ept th at it has ,

borrow ed a good m any words T he curiou s thing .

is th at so littl e r el at ed as race s the T amil s should

, ,

h av e t ak en th eir philo sophy as th ey h av e don e

from the S an skrit V ed as and U p anish ad s and
, ,

re ally express ed the id eas if anything more com

a c tl a nd sy st em atic ally th an the S anskrit books
p y
do T hough poor in literature I believ e yet the
.
, ,

C inghalese h ave one of the best books of chronicles

which exist in any l anguage the M ahaw anso
giving a v ery r eli abl e history of the r ac e (of course
with orid adornm ent of stupendou s miracl es which ,

c an e asily be stripped off

) from th eir l anding i n
C eylon down to modern tim es T he Mahaw anso .

w as b egun by Mahanam o a pri e st w ho about , ,

 CO LO MBO 1 9

4 60 A D
. compil ed the early portion comprising
.

the p eriod from B C 543 to A D 3 0 1 aft er which

. . .
,

i t w as conti nu ed by succ essi ve authors right down

to British time s zle A D I 758 . . .

T h er e are two n ewspap ers in Colombo print ed

in the C ing halese l anguage one of which is c all ed ,

The B naa az st Wor la there is al so a p aper print ed

'' '

i n T amil ; and th ere are thr ee English n e wspapers .

In
pl ac es of ent ertainment Colombo (and the

s ame is true of the towns in I ndi a) is very w anting .

T h er e is no th eatre or conc ert h all I t c an be .

r eadily und erstood th at though the popul ation is

l arge it is so div erse th at a su fci ently
l arg e public c annot be found to support such pl ac es .

T he n ativ e r ac es h av e e ach th eir own festiv al s ,

which provid e for th em all th ey r equire in th at w ay .

T he British are only few 50 0 0 in all C eylon

including milit ary out of a popul ation of ov er thre ~
,

million s ; and e v en if the Eur asi an popul ation

who of cours e go i n for W est ern m ann ers anc
id eals w er e added th eir combin ed number s would
,

be only sc anty A n occ asion al circu s or men ageri e

.
,

or a visit from a stray th eatric al comp any on its

w ay to A ustrali a is all th at t ak es pl ace in th at lin e
, .

F or the rest there is a S alv ation A rmy with ,

thriving b arracks a T h eosophist S oci ety a branch

, ,

of the R oyal A si atic S oci ety and v arious oth er ,

littl e clubs repres enting di fferent sections S ociety .

is of co u rse v ery much broken up into s ection s .

Ev en the British few as th ey are are s adly

'

, ,

divid ed by cliqu es and j e alousi es ; the lin e b etween

the of ci al English and the second cl ass English

is t erribly sev ere (as i nd eed all over I ndi a) ; and

be tw ee n th es e ag ain and the Eurasi ans Even .
20 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
To E E L P H A N TA
wh ere C inghalese or T amil or Eurasi an famili es
of old st anding a ttain import ant o fci al positions ,

an insuper able stiffn ess still m arks the intercourse

Ah !

between them and the British s aid a .

pl anter to a young fri end of min e w ho had j u st

sh ak en h ands r ather cordi ally with a n ativ e gentl e

m an ,

Ah ! my boy you won t do th at when you ve
,

been h ere three ye ars ! T hus a perfect soci al
am algam ation and the sw eetn es s of br e thr e n dw ell
ing together in unity are things still rather far
di st ant in this otherwis e lov ely isle .

T alking about the b eauty of the i sl and I w as ,

v ery much struck even on my rst l anding wit h

, ,

T he air is h eavy with an

its spicy gal es

.

arom atic fr agr anc e which though it forc ed its el f ,

on my att ention for thr ee or four w eek s b efore I

got fairly accustom ed to it I h ave n ev er been abl e ,

to trace to any p articul ar pl ant or shr u b I t is .

p erh ap s not unlik e the odour of the C inn amon l eaf

wh en bruis e d but I don t thi nk it com es from th at
,

so u rc e. I am n ever tir ed of looking at the coco

nut p alms ; th ey grow literally by the million all
along thi s co ast to the north and south of Colombo .

T O the south the sea shor e ro ad is over sh ado w ed

-

by th em I h av e b een som e miles along the ro ad

.
,

an d the b elt of l and a hundr ed y ards or so wid e

, ,

b etween it and the sea is thick with th eir stems ,

right down to the wat er s edge ov er which th ey ,

le an lovingly for th ey are fond of the s alt spray

, !

On the other side of the ro ad too they grow and ,

und erneath th em are little V ill as and far m st eads and

tiny n ative c abins with poultry and donkey s and
,

humped cows and bl ack pigs and brown chil d ren ,

in lively confusion ; whil e g rou ps of pe as ant m en

 CO L O M BO 2 I
and wom e n in bright colored wraps travel slowly
-

along and the li ttl e bullock gigs dr awn by activ e

, ,

littl e Brahmin bulls with j ingling b ells trot past at ,

a p ac e which would do c redit to an Engli sh pony

a scene which th ey say continues much the s ame

the whol e w ay to G alle (80 miles ) T h es e p alms .

do not grow wild in Ceylon ; th ey are all pl anted

and c ar e d for whether in huge est at es or in the
, ,

rood of ground which surrounds a C inghalese c abin .

T he C inghalese h ave a pr etty s aying th at they

c annot grow afar from the sound of the hum an
voice T h ey h av e also a s aying to the effect th at
.

a m an only sees a swag / I t coco p alm once in a life -

time M any O f the other ki nds of palms grow

.

rem ark ably straight bu t this kind cert ainly do es

,

not I n a grove of th em you see hundreds of the

.

grey smooth st ems shooting upwards in e v ery

fant asti c curv e im agin abl e with an extraordin ary ,

s ense of life and pow er r eminding one of the w ay ,

i n which a volley of rockets go es up into the air .

T h en at the height of 50 or 6 0 feet they br eak

into th at splendid crown of gre en plumes which
sparkles glossy i n the sun and w av es and whispers ,

to the lightest bre eze .

A long this p alm fringed and mo stly low and

-

s andy shore the w aves break with not much

ch ange of level in their tides loudly ro aring in
the S W monsoon or with sullen sw ell wh en the
.
,

wind is i n the N E but seldom altogether c alm

. .
,

.

A g rat eful bree z e tempers the 9 0 of the thermo

m eter A clumsy hulled l ate en s ailed shing bo at
.
-
,
-

is anchored in the sh elter of a s andy spit ; two or

three n ative m en and boys are shi ng with rod and
lin e standing ankle d eep at the water s edge T he
,
-

.
22 FR O M A DA M S

P EA K TO L
E EPH A N TA

dashing blue waves look t empting for a b athe ,

but the shore is comparativ ely deserted ; not a soul

is to be seen in the water i nfest ed as it is by the
,

al l dre aded S h ark

-
O nly 3 0 0 or 40 0 y ards out
.
,

c an be discerned the gur e of a m an also shing

with a line apparently st anding up to his middle

in water but really sitting on a ki nd of primitive
,

raft or bo at consisting of three or four logs of

,

wood slightly sh aped with upturned ends and

, , ,

loosely tied togeth er the tru e c at am aran ( attn

m aram tied tree )
, T he w ater of course washes
.

up and around him but that is ple as ant on a hot

,

d ay H e is s afe from sh arks ; there is a slender

.

possibility of his c atchi ng something for dinner ;

and there he sits a r elic of pre A d amite times -

whil e the train from K alut ara rushes by with a

, ,

shri ek to Colombo .
 C H A P T ER II

K A N DY AN D P EA S A N T L I F E

ER N S T HA E KE L in C
his book about Ceylon s ays
that the C inghalese though a long civilis ed rac e
,
-
,

are as primitive as s av ages in their dress cabins , ,

etc ; and this rem ark strik es m e as very true

. .

A s soon as you g et off the railw ays and m ain ro ads

you nd them living in their littl e huts under th eir
coco palms in the most primitiv e fashion and
-
,

probably much as th ey did wh en they rst came

to C eylon 20 0 0 or 3 0 0 0 years ago
O n the 4th of this month (D ec ember ) my fri end
.
,

A j ax l anded at Colombo from Engl and

He .

is on his way to A ss am i n the tea pl anting line

,
-
,

and is st aying a week in the i sl and to br eak the

j ourn ey H e is a thorough S oci alist in feeling and
.
,

a j olly fellow always bright and good n atured and

,
-
,

with a gre at turn for music We c ame up here

to K andy and shortly after our arrival Went to
.

c all on a C inghalese pe as ant whose acq uaint ance

I had l at ely m ade~K alu a by n am e and found
him in his littl e cabin about a mile out of the town
, ,

among the hills where he liv es with his brother

Kirrah L e aving K andy by footp aths and along
,

side hedgerows overrun by a wild sunower and ,

by that extraordin ary creeper with a v erben a like ,

-

blossom the lantana which though s aid to have

, ,

been i ntroduced only abo u t ft y years ago now

23
24 FR O M A DA M S

P EA K TO L
E EPH AN TA

r u ns in m asses over the whol e isl and we c ame at ,

l ast to a lovely little gl en with rice l ands l aid out

,
-

in terraces at the bottom and t angles of scrub and

,

iu ngle up the si des among which were clumps of

,

coco nut and ban an a -

,

indic ating the pres

ence of h abit ations .

U nder one of these

groves i n a tiny little ,

mud and th atch cabin

w e found K alua ; in
,

fact he saw us com ,

ing and with a shout,

ran down to meet us .

We were soon se ated

i n t h e s h ad e an d
t alking such broken
English and T amil
as we could resp ec
tively c ommand . T he
brothers were very
friendly and brought ,

us coco nut milk and -

beer (m ade
by cutting the great
ower bud off the -

'

e a en palm and
g ,

Kama letting the sap from

the wounded stem
ow into a jar wher e it soon ferments ; it has
,

a musty avor , and I c annot say th at I c are

for it ) T hen their fath er h earing of our arriv al
.
, ,

came from h alf a mil e off to h ave a look at

- -

u s a regul ar j olly old sav age with bro ad fac e

,
 FR O M P EA K P
EL E HA N TA

26 A DA M S TO

b ec am e more or less his prop erty ; and the B eena

m arri age in which he c ame to liv e with her among
,

her own people but w as li able to expulsion at a ny

,

tim e ! T he l atter form is gen erally supposed to

be the mor e primitiv e and b elongs to the time ,

when heredity is traced through the wom an and ,

when also polygamous and polyandrous practice s

prev ail A nd this is conrm ed by a paragraph
of the K andi an law or custom which forb ade
.

, ,

int er m arri age b etwe en the children of two broth ers

-
,

or between the childr en of two sisters but allow ed ,

it b etween the childr en of a brother and a sister

the m eaning of course b eing th at two brothers
might h av e the s ame wife or two sisters the same ,

husb and but th at a broth er and sister h aving

,

n ec es sarily distinct wiv es and husb ands~would

produc e children who could not be mor e n early
rel at ed to each oth er th an cousins I t is also .

conrm ed by the fact th at a kind of cu stom ary

group m arri age still lingers among the C inghalese
-

e .
g if a m an is m arri ed his brothers not u n
.
,

commonly h av e access to the wife though owing

to its being discounten anced by Western h abits and
law this practic e is gr adu ally dying out
K alu a has s een r ath er more of the world than
, .

som e of his people an d has h ad opportunities of

,

m aking a littl e money now and then I t app ears .

that at the ag e of twelve or thirteen he took to

d evil d ancing probably his fath er set him to i t

-
.

He danc ed in the t emple and got money ; but no w

a d ays do es not like the pri ests or b eli eve in the
t empl es T his d evil d ancing app ears to be a relic
.
-

of aborigin al K andi an d emon wor ship : the evil -

spirits had to be appeased or in c ases of illn es s .

 K A N DY AN D P EA S A N T L I F E 27

or mi sfortune driven away by shrieks and frantic

gestures I t is a truly di abolic al perform ance T he
. .

d anc ers (there are gen erally two of them ) dress

th ems elves up i n fant asti c array and then execut e ,

the most extraordin ary seri es of le aps bounds , ,

d emivolts and somers aults in rhythmical clim ax es

, , ,

accomp anied by cl apping of h ands shrieks and , ,

tom tomming for about twenty minutes without

-
,

stopping by the end of which time the excitem ent

,

of the mselves and sp ectators is intense and the ,

p atient if there is one is pr etty sure to be either

killed or cured ! When the Buddhists came to the
isl and they i ncorporated th e se older perform ances
int o their institutions S om e two or three years ag o .
,

how e ver H agenbeck of circus celebrity being in

, , ,

C eylon engaged a troup e of Kandians of whom

K alua was one to give a n ative perform ance for
,

the benet of the Europe ans ; and since th at time

the old peas ant life has p all ed upon our friend and ,

it is evident that he lives i n dreams of civilis ation

and the West K alua is remarkably well m ad e
.
-
,

and active and powerful He is about twenty eight .

-

w ith the soft giraffe lik e eyes of the C inghalese and-

the gentle somewh at d ifd ent m anner which th e y

,

affe ct ; his bl ack h air is g ener ally coiled i n a knot

b ehind his he ad and with an orn ament al b elt sus, ,

taining his colored skirt and a sh awl thrown over ,

his shoulder he looks q uit e h andsome Kirrah is

,
.

thinner and we aker both m entally and phy sic ally , ,

with a clinging affection at en ess of ch aracter which

is touchi ng T hen th ere are two nephews P inh a
. ,

and P u njha whom I h av e seen once or twice

,

bright nice looking boys anxious to pick up phras es

,
-
,

and words of English and id eas about the wonderful ,

28 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
To L P
E E HA N TA

West ern world which is beginning to d awn on th eir

,

horizon though al as ! it will soon de stroy th eir

,

n ak ed b eauty and T o see P u njha go

straight up the st em of a coco nut tree fty feet -

high is a c aution ! H e just put s a noose of rop e

round his two fe et to en abl e him to grasp the stem
b ett er with h is sol es C l asps his h ands round the
,

trunk brings his kn ees up to his e ars and shoots up

, ,

like a frog swimming !

T he coco nut p alm i s everything to the C ing ha
-

l es e : they u se the kernel of the nut for food e ith er ,

as a curry along with th e ir ric e or as a avoring ,

to c ak es m ade of rice and sugar ; the shell s erv es

for drinking cups and primev al spoons ; the husky
bre of cours e m ak es string rop e and m atting ; the , ,

O il pr es s ed from the nut in cr eaking antiqu e mills ,

worked by oxen is quit e an article O f commerce

. ,

and is us ed for anoi nting their h air and bodi es as ,

well as for their littl e bras s l amps and other pur

pos es the woody st ems com e in for the framework
of c abin s and the gre at l eaves either form an exc el
,

l e nt th atch or wh en pl aited m ak e n atural scree ns

, ,

which i n th at clim at e oft en s erv e for the c abin

walls in pl ac e of anything more subst anti al Wh e n .

A j ax told Kirrah th at th er e were no coco p alms i n

Engl and the l atter s surpri se w as unfeign ed as he

excl aim ed H ow do you live then

, ,

T he oth er gre at st apl e of C inghalese life is ric e .

Kalu a s family ric e elds lay below us in l arger

-

patch es along the bottom of the glen and terr ac ed ,

i n n arrow strips a little w ay up the hill at the h ead

of it T he rice l ands are for irrigation s s ake

-
.
, ,

al ways l aid out i n level p atches each surround ed by .

a l ow mud b ank one or two feet high ; sometimes

, ,
 K A N DY AN D P EA S A N T I
L FE 29

wh ere th ere is w ater at h and th ey are t e rrac ed ,

q u lte a good w ay up the hillsides som et hing lik e the

V in ey ards in I t aly D uring and aft er the rains the
,

w at er is led onto the v ari ous l ev el s succ es sively ,

which are thus well ooded Whil e in ood th ey .

are ploughed with a rud e plough dr awn by hump ed

c attl e or by buffalo es and sown as the w at er sub

,

sid es T he cr op soon springs up a brilli ant green

.
,

about as high as b arley but with an ear more re ,

Pl ough i
ng l t
in the R ice Fie d s, wi h Bu ffa
-
l oes

s embling o ats and in sev en or eight w eek s is ready

,

to be h arve st ed Boiled ric e with som e curri ed

.
,

vegetable or coco nut just to give it a avor is

-
, ,

the st aple food all over Ceylon among the n ativ es

two m eals a day som etimes in poorer agricultural
,

districts only one a sc anty far e as th eir thin limbs ,

too oft en testify T hey u se no br ead but a few

.
,

c akes m ad e of rice ou r and ghee and the sugar of

-

the enag enz p alm

'

T he brothers c abin is primitive enough j ust a

30 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
To E L EP H AN T A
littl e th atch ed pl ace p erh aps tw elv e feet by eight
, ,

divid ed into two a l arg e wick er jar or b ask e t

containing store of rice one or two box es a fe w , ,

e arth enw are pots for cooking in re light ed on ,

the ground no ch air or t abl e and littl e sign of

, ,

civili sation exc ept a photograph or two st u ck on

the w all and a low c an e s eat ed couch for sl eeping -

on T he l att er howe ver is quit e a luxury as the

.
, , ,

C ing halese men as often as not sl eep on the earth

oon
We st ayed littl e whil e C h atting whil e e v ery
a ,

now and th e n the great hu sk e d coco nut s (of which -

you h av e to be c are ful ) fell with a h eavy thud from

the tr ees ; an d th en K alu a c am e on with u s to
K andy and w e w ent to see the gr eat B uddhi st
templ e th er e the D al ad a M alig aw a which cont ains
,

, ,

the pr eciou s tooth r elic of Buddh a -

.

A rchit ecturally nothing the t empl e is i nt er esting ,

for the antiqu e app earanc e of its gard ens shrin es , ,

pri ests cott ages library shp ond s etc ; s acred sh

, , , .

and turtl e s coming to be fed by the pious ; r u d e

frescoe s of the infern al torm e nts of the wicked not ,

unlik e our m edi aeval d esigns on simil ar subj ect s ;

the s acr ed shri n e it self with ivory and silv er door s
the dirty y ellow stol ed pri ests arriving wi th hug e
,
-

k ey s to op en it but rst washi ng their feet i n the

,

for ecour t ; the tom toms and horn s blowing ; owers

scatt er ed about ; and th en the int erior ch amb er of
the shrine wh ere b ehind strong b ars of iron r epos es
,

a gold e n and bell sh ap ed cov er crusted with j e w els

-
,

the out ermo st of six succ essiv e cov er s within the ,

l ast of which is the tooth its elf (r eported by Em erson

T e nnent to be about two inch es long and prob ably ,

the fang of a crocodile !) th en the little golden and

 KA N DY AN D P EA S AN T L I F E 3!

cryst al im ages of Buddh a in v arious little shrin es to

themselves ; and most int eresting of all the library
, ,

with i ts old MS books written on strips of t alipot

.

palm leaf beautifully done in C inghalese P ali S an , ,

Librarian at the Tample at Kandy , w it/z palm leaf M S

-
. book in lap!

skri
t, etc illumin at ed with elegant d esigns and
.
, ,

bound by silk cords in covers of fretted S ily er T he .

old librari an priest w as a ch arm ing spec im en of a

Buddhist priest gentle int ell igent and apparently
, ,

with a vein of religious feeling in his ch aract er and

spok e with interest about the v ar ious texts and
 FR O M P EA K P

32 A DA M S
TO ELE HA N TA

m anuscripts I t is a pity th at S O much c annot be

.

s aid of the Buddhist pri ests gen erally who are as a ,

rul e in C eylon at any rate an ignorant dirty , ,

b et el Ch e wing and uninviting looking lot

- -
.

A t the bot anic al gard ens at P er adeniy a three

or four mil es out of K andy~ w e saw a sp e cim e n
of the t alipot palm in full ow er T his be autiful .

p alm unlike the coco p alm grows perfectly er ect

-

and str aight ; it owers only onc e and then dies , .

H aeck el s ays th at it liv es from fty to eighty

y ears and that the blos som is som e tim es thirty or
,

forty feet long The specimen th at we saw in

.

blossom w as about forty v e fee t high in the -

stem ; and then from its h andsome crown of huge

leav es sprang a ower or rath er a br anched spik e
,

of num erous whit e owers which I estim at ed at ,

ft een feet high (but which I aft e rwards saw d e

scribed in the newspap er s as tw enty feet high ) .

B ak er s ays th at the ow er bud is oft e n as much

as four feet long and th at it op e ns with a sm art
,

report when this be autiful whit e plum e unfold s

, .

and lifts i ts elf in the sun T he n ative s use the

.

gre at le af of the t alipot which is circul ar and

som etimes eight or nin e feet in di amet er as an
umbrell a T h ey fold it together along its n atural
.

corrugation s and th en open it to ward off sun

,

or rain
K andy is very beautiful I t s tands nearly 20 0 0
.

feet high by the sid e of an artici al l ake which

the old kings of K andy m ad e and e mbosomed in
,

hills cov ered by lov ely woods full of tropic al pl ants

and ow ers and comm anding b eautiful vi ews from
th eir slop es and summits T h ere is a sm all n ativ e
.

town cont aining the usu al mixed popul ation of

34 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
TO E L EP H AN T A
C ing halese T amils and M oor
,
men ; ther e are one
,
-

or two English hot els a church library and reading , ,

room ; a few resident s houses and a sc att ered

popul ation of English tea pl anters on the hills for -

some mil es round who m ak e K andy their r endez

,

w as .

A j ax gets on well with the n ative youths and

.

boys h ere ; he has an easy friendly w ay with ,

them and th ey get hold of his h and and w alk

,

alongsid e O f cours e th ey are delight ed to nd

.

any M a n
x
ate who will treat them a little fri endly ;

but I fear the fe w Engli sh about are much shocked

at our con d uct When I rst came to Ceylon my
.

T amil fri end A ch affed m e about my w ay of c alling

.

him and the rest of the popul ation wheth e r T amil ,

or M oh ammed an or C ing halese all indiscrimin at ely ,

as if w e w er e so m any o sters I told

natives

, y .

this to Aj ax and of cour se there w as nothing for

,

it aft er th at but to c all th em all oysters !

We nd the few British whom w e h av e come
across in our tr avels v ery m uch set against the

oyst ers T here is som ething queer about the

.

Briti sh and their insul arity ; but I suppos e it i s

mor e th eir misfortune th an their fault C ert ainly .

they will allow th at the oysters are not without

m erit indeed if one k eeps them to it th ey will
,

oft en spe ak q uite warmly of the tendernes s and

affe ction ateness of serv ants w ho h ave nurs ed them
through long illnesses etc but the idea of as soci ,

ating with them on term s of equ ality and fri e ndship

is som ehow unspe ak abl e and not to be ent ert ained .

I t s eems almost de r zgnenr to say som ething dis

parag ing about the oyst er w hen th at topi c turns ,

Sho t fo M a/z atmay a r r .

 KA N D Y AN D P EA S A N T I
L FE 35

u
p
of showing one s own bre eding I
as a w ay

suppo se ; aft er th at has b ee n don e how ev er it is , ,

allow able to gr ant th at th er e are exc eptions and ,

even to point out som e kindly traits p earls as it ,

were which are occ asion ally found in the poor

,

biv alve I t strikes m e how ev er th at the Engli sh

.

are the chi ef los ers by this in su l ar h abit T hey .

look awfully bored and mis erabl e as a rul e in th es e

u
p country p arts which mu st almo st n e c ess arily be
-
,

the c as e where ther e are only v e or six r esidents

in a st ation or within acc essibl e dist anc es of each
,

other and conn ed entirely to e ach oth er s soci ety

, .

O ne d ay Aj ax and I w ent up to N uw ar a Elli a .

T he r ailw ay c arri ag e w as full of tea pl ant ers (in -

cluding o ne or two wives and si st er s) and th ere ,

w e re a few at the hot el I t w as curious to see .

som e English fac es of the cold mutton commerci al - -

typ e and in quit e orthodox Engli sh attire in thi s

, ,

out of the w ay region

- -
T he good p eopl e look ed
-
.

s adly bored and it s eem ed a poi nt of honor with

,

th em to ac t throughout as if the colored folk

didn t e xi st or wer e invi sibl e al so as if th ey w ere

d eaf to j udg e by the shouting

,
I n the ev ening .

howev er (at the hotel ) w e felt touch ed at the w ay

in which th ey ch eer ed up wh en Aj ax and I pl ayed
a few famili ar tun e s on the pi ano T h ey c am e .

round s aying it r eminded th em of hom e and em

, ,

treated u s to go on ; so w e pl ayed for about two

hours A j ax improvi sing as u su al in the most
,

charming w ay .

N uwar a Elli a is 60 0 0 feet above the sea a

little vill ag e with an hot el or two a favorite
resort from the sultry airs of Colombo and the
lowl ands H er e the B riti sher nd s res in the
.
36 FR O M ADA M S PE A K

To E L EP H AN TA
sitting rooms
-
thick mists outsid e and dons
,

his gre atco at quite at hom e But.

h aving only just com e from the l and of did

not appr eci at e th ese j oy s and thought the pl ace
.

a littl e bl eak and b ar e

.
 C H A P T ER III

KURU N EG ALA

ON my w ay co ach I fell in wit h

h er e on
, the ,

M onerasingha a C inghalese of som e educ ation

,

and ability a proctor or solicitor

,
H e is a cheer .

ful littl e m an an imm en se t alk er and v ery k ee n on

, ,

politics He w as v ery amusing about the English

.

say s th ey are v e ry agr eeabl e at rst but after

,

thr ee mo nth s st ay in the isl and a compl ete ch ange

com es ov er th em won t sp eak to us or look at

u s o

n t I can g ive it t/z ene back H is id ea se ems .

to be t hat r epr es ent ativ e institutions are want ed to

restore to the p eopl e th at interest i n public life
which has be en t ak en from them by the d estruction
of th eir commun al in stitution s under British rul e .

He see ms to be a gr eat h at er of c aste and thinks ,

the Engli sh h ave don e much g ood in th at m att er .

I am loy al e nough bec au se I know w e are much

,

b ett er off th an w e should be und er Russi a T he .

Engli sh are stupid and incap abl e of underst anding

us and don t go among u s to get und erstanding ;
,

but they me an w ell accordi ng to their light s
T his pl ac e (c all ed K orn egall e by the English )
.
,

is a littl e town of 20 0 0 or inh abitants fty ,

mil es from Colombo and el e ven mil es (by coach )

from P olg ahaw ella the ne arest railway station
, .

I t lie s ju st at the foot of the mount ain r egion

of C ey lon and t akes its n am e K urun egal a or
, ,

37
38 FR O M ADA MS

PE A K TO P
EL E HA N TA

Eleph ant rock from a hug e Gi bralt ar lik e rock

-

,
-
,

60 0 feet high at the b as e of which it n estl es

,

and who se round ed d ark gr ani t e structur e wrinkl ed ,

with w eather and l argely bar e of tr ees or any

herb ag e c ert ainly b ears a r em ark abl e r es embl anc e
, ,

both in form and color to a couch ant el eph ant ,

.

A sc ending its st eep sid es on which the su n strik es ,

with erc e h eat during the mid day one obtains ,

from the summit a ne vi ew westward ov er low

pl ain s eastw ard ov er mountain ranges rising high er
,

and higher tow ards the c entr e of the isl and T he .

prev ailing impr ession of the l andsc ap e h ere as ,

elsewh er e in C eylon is its uniform gr een T here

, .

is no change of summ er or wint er (T hough this .

is the cool est tim e of y ear the d aily t emp er atur e

range s from 85 to 9 0 in the sh ad e ) T he tr ees .

do not c ast th eir l eav es at any st ated time though ,

individu al trees will S le ep at int ervals resting so , .

I n ev ery dir ection the s am e color m eets the eye

tr acts O f gr een scrub gr een exp an ses of fo r est
, ,

gr een ric e eld s and the m ass ed gr een of b an an as

-
,

and coco p alms

-
A little monotonous this in the
.

g en eral l and sc ape though it is plentifully com

,

p e nsated on a n ear vi e w by the d et ail ed color

of in sect and ow er life O ne curious featur e is
.

that though the cou ntry is well popul ated h ardly ,

a trac e of h abit ation is to be s een from an

y high
point such as thi s Ev en K urun egal a which li es
.
,

at our feet is only di stingui sh abl e by its court

,

ho u s e and pri son and one or two oth er emblems

of civilis ation ; the n ativ e c abin s and ev en in ,

m any c as es the European hous es which are of

on e storey o n ly are entir ely hi d den by tre es .

T hos e clumps howev er of coco p alm s which you -

 KU RU N E G A LA 39

se e t ndi ng lik e o ases in the gen eral woods or

s a ,

br eaking the l ev el s of the ric e eld s with occ asion al

-
,

trac es of blu e smok e curling up through th em are ,

sure indic ation s of little n ativ e h aml ets C lustered

t
N a ive Hu t
A mong oanana an d coco-p alms
!

ben eath oft en far far from any ro ad and acce ssibl e ,

only by n atur al footp ath s worn by n ak ed feet .

F rom the top of the rock one g ets a good vi ew

of the t ank which suppli es irrigation w at er for the
town and n e ighborhood I t is about three qu arters
.
-

of a mile long and h alf a mil e bro ad and forms a

- -

pretty littl e l ake ov er which kites hov er and king

,
40 FR O M AD A M S PE A K

TO P
EL E HA N T A

sh ers skim and i n which the p eopl e d aily b ath e

,
.

T h e se t ank s and irrigation ch ann el are m att ers of s

the utmost import anc e to which I think Gov ern

,

m ent can h ardly giv e too much att ention T h eir .

importanc e w as well und erstood in past tim es as ,

i nd eed the rem ains and ruin s of imm ens e work s

of thi s kind over a thou sand y ear s old i n v ariou s
, ,

p arts of the isl and fully t estify A littl e is b eing .

don e towards their re n ewal and r estoration but ,

the t end ency to day is to n egl ect the i nt er ests of

-

the ric e growing p easant in favour of the tea

-

pl anting Engli shm an T ea which is an export

.
,

and a luxury and which enrich es the few is

, ,

thought to be so much mor e import ant th an an

articl e which is grown for hom e consumption and
for the n eeds of the m any I t is of course only
.

an i n st anc e of the gener al commerci al policy of al l

mod ern Governm ent s ; but one cannot the less for
th at think it a mistak e and an att empt to m ak e
,

the pyr amid of soci al pro sp erity st and upon its

ap ex. T h er e is som ething curious and ind eed is
i t not s elf contradictory P in the fact th at every
-

country of the civili sed world studies abov e all

things the incr eas e of its exp or ts is engage d not ,

in producing things prim arily for it own u se bu t ,

in trying to get oth er p eopl e to buy wh at it pro

d u c es l as if we all stood round and tri ed to
shu f e off ou r bad wares on the others i n the ,

hope th at they by som e acci d ent might r eturn us

good stuff in exch ang e S om ehow the syst em
.

do es not seem as if it would work ; it looks too

lik e the c as e of th at isl and wh er e the inh abit ants
al l e arn e d a prec ario u s living by t aking i n e ac h

oth er s w ashing Wh at o ne m ay ask i s r eally
.
, ,
42 F R O M A DA M s

PE A K To EL E P H A N TA
s u ch st at e of affairs must lie with the rulers ;
a
and n atur ally no m ere shu fing of comm erci al
cards or encouragem ent of an export trad e which
,

brings fortunes into the h ands of a few tea

pl ant ers and m erch ants c an be exp ected to m ak e,

things b ett er .

I t is sad to see the thin and famished mort al s who

com e in h er e from the country districts round to
beg M any of th em esp eci ally the younger on es
.
, ,

h av e th eir limb s b adly ulc erat ed O ne d ay going .

,

through the hospital the doctor a Eurasi an took

,

me through a ward full of such c ases He said th at .

th ey mostly soon got b etter with the b ett er hospit al

di et but he add ed wh en they g et b ack to th e ir
, ,

old conditions th ey are soon as bad as ever In .

fact the m ass of the popul ation in a pl ace like

,

Colombo looks far sl eek er and b etter off th an in

these country districts but th at only affords anoth er
instanc e of ho w the mod ern policy e ncourages the
shifty and crafty onh anger of comm erci al life at the
co st of the sturdy agriculturist and I need not say -n -

th at the c as e is the sam e at home as abro ad .

I t is quit e a pr etty sight to see the b athing in

the t anks I t t ak es pl ac e in the early morning and
.
,

ind eed during most of the d ay f Cl eanlin ess is a

religiou s obs erv anc e and e ngrained in the h abits
,

of the peopl e Of course there are exc eptions but

.
,

s ave among the low est c astes this is the rul e A n .

orthodox H indu is exp ect ed not only to wash him

self but his own cloth
, at l east once a d a
y,T he .

clim ate m ak es b athing a ple asur e and the peopl e ,

linger ov er it M en and boy s wom en and children

.
, ,

together or i n groups not far di st ant from e ach

other rev el and spl ash in the cool liquid ; their
,
 KU RU N EGA L A 43

color ed wraps are rin sed and spr ead to dry on the
b anks th eir brass pot s gl ance in the su n as th ey
,

dip the wat er with them and pour it ov er th eir own

he ads th eir long bl ack h air str eams down th eir
,

b acks T h en l eaving the wat er they pluck a twig

.
, ,

from a c ertain trc e and squ atting on th eir hams

, , ,

with the fr ay ed twig end rub th eir t eeth and t alk

over the scand al of the day T his tooth cle aning .
-

gossiping busine ss l asts till th ey are dry and oft en ,

a good d eal longer and is I fancy on e of the most

, , ,

enj oyabl e parts of the d ay to the mild d arki e I n .

un sophistic at ed pl ac es th ere is no distinction of

cl asses in thi s proc ess and rich and poor j oin in
,

the public b athing alik e in fact th er e is v ery littl e ,

differenc e in th eir dre ss and h abits anyhow as far ,

as r eg ards w ealth and pov erty but of cour se wh er e

W estern ide as are penetrating the w ell to do n ativ es
,
- -

adopt our h abits and conduct th eir b athing di s

creetl at hom e
y .

T he people n ev er (exc ept it be childr en ) go into

the w at er onite n ak ed and the wom en always
,

re t ain one of th eir wrap s wound round the body .

T hes e wraps are v ery long and the skill with ,

which they m an age to w ash rst one end and then

the other w inding and unwinding an d rem aining
, ,

decorously cov er ed all the tim e is quite admirable , .

I am s truck by the gravity and d ecorum of the

p eople gen erally in outer b eh avior or gesture
though their l angu ag e (among the lower c ast es ) is
by no m ean s always select ! But th ere is non e or ,

very littl e of th at b ant er b etween the sex es which

,

is common amo ng the Western popul ations and ,

ev e n among the boy s and youth s you see next to

no frolicking or b ear ghting I suppose it is p art
-
.
44 FR O M A DA M s

PE A K TO L
E EPH A N TA

of the passivity and want of anim al sp irit s which

c haracterise the H i ndu ; and of course the senti
ment of the rel ation b etw ee n the sexes is different
in some degree from wh at it is with us On sexu al .

m atters generally as far as I c an m ake out the

, ,

t endency even among the higher c astes is to be

, ,

Na i tv e S t t
ree , and Shops

outspoken and th ere is little of th at prudery which

,

among us is only aft er alla modern growth .

T he town here is a qu eer mixture of primitive

life with modern instit utio ns T here are two or .

three little streets of booths which constitute the

,

W alking down these where behind

b az aar
.

baskets of wares the int eriors of the dwelli ngs are

 KURU N EGALA 45

often visibl e and the proc ess es of life are n aively

,

e xpos ed to the e e on e m a
y judg e for on e s self

y
how littl e m an wants h er e b elo w H ere is a fruit .

and veg et abl e shop with huge bunches of pl ant ains

,

or b an an as a hundred in a bunch and selling at ve

, ,

or six a p enny ; of a morning you m ay see the

pe as ant coming in along the ro ad c arrying two such
bunches a good lo ad slung one at each end of
a long pol e or p in o ov er his should er a simil ar
g , ,

gur e to th at which is so frequent on the Egypti an

monument s of ye ars ag o ; pin eapple s from ,
'
I a
. up to 4a e ach for the v ery n est ; the bread

.

fruit and its que er rel ation the enormous j ack fr u it

,
-
,

weighing oft en as much as 1 2 to 1 4 lbs with its .

,

pulpy and not very p al at abl e interior us ed so much ,

by the p eopl e growing high up over their cabins

,

on the h and some j ack tr ee and threat ening you -

with i nst ant dissolution if it d escend upon your

h ead ; the egg pl ant mur u nga b eans pot ato es and
-
, , , ,

oth er veget ables ; and pl entiful re ady prep ared -

p ack ets of ar ec a nut and betel l eaf for C hewing .

T hen th er e is a shop wh er e they sell spic es pep '

pers chilis and allsuch condim ent s for curri es not

, , ,

to mention b ask ets of dri ed sh (also for currying ) ,

which stin k horribly and constit u te one of the chi ef

drawb acks of the b az aars ; and an earth enware

shop and I must not forget the opium shO Be
, p .

sides th ese th er e are only two others and th ey

repres e nt M anch est er and Birmingham respectiv ely
one wh er e th ey s ell shoddy and much S iz ed cotton -

goods and the oth er which di spl ays tin ware so ap

,
-
, ,

m atch es p ar af n l amp s dinner knives and all sorts

, , ,

of d amn able cutlery I h ave seen th es e kniv es and

.

sci ssors or such as the se (made only to deceive )

, ,
46 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
To L P
E E HA N T A

being m anufactured in the dens of S h ef eld by boys

and girl s sl aving in du st and dirt br eathing out ,

th eir liv es in foul air und er the gaslig ht s hounded ,

on by m ean t askm asters and by the fe ar of immin ent

st arv ation D ear childr en ! if you could only come
.

out h ere yours elv es in stead of s ending the abom in

,

abl e work of your h and s com e out h er e to e nj oy

thi s sun shine and the soci ety of th ese broth ers and
,

si st ers whos e skins are d ark by n ature rather th an

by art !
T he opium s ell er is a fri end of min e I oft en .

go and sit i n his shop o n his one ch air He .

t each es me T amil for he is a T amil and t ells me

long stori es slowly word by word He is a thin
, , .
,

softey ed int ellig ent m an ab out thirty has r ead a

, , ,

fair amount of Engli sh of a fri e ndly niant child

n ature not without a r eason able eye to the m ain
ch anc e lik e som e of his N orth ern cousin s T h e re
, .

are a few j ar s of opium i n its v ariou s form s for

smoking drinking and Chewing ; a p air of sc al es
, ,

to w eigh it with ; a brass coco nut oil l amp with two -

or three wick s h anging ov erh ead ; and a p artition

for the bed at the b ack and th at is all T he shop , .

front is of cours e entirely O p en to the thronged

str eet exc ept at night wh en it is closed with shutt er
, ,

bo ards .

A t the corner of the str eet st ands a policem an ,

of course els e w e shou ld not know w e w ere b eing

,

civili sed But 0 L ord wh at a polic em an ! H ow

.
, ,

a L ondon str eet ar ab would chuckl e al l ov er at the

sight of him ! I m agine the mild and som e wh at
timid n ative dress ed in a blu e wooll en s erge suit
(v ery hot for this clim at e) with a belt round his ,

wai st some kind of turban on his h ead a st aff in

, ,
 KU R U N EG A LA 47

his h a nd 50 0 1 5 on his feet ! A r eal

liv e oyster
an d

,

i n boot s ! mis erabl e he

I t is too ab surd H ow .

looks and as to runni ng aft er a crimin al the thing

is not to be thought of B u t no doubt the boots .

vindic at e the m aj esty of the Briti sh Governm ent .

W hile w e are gazing at this app arition a gang of ,

prisoners m arch es by twenty l ean cr eatur es with ,

slouch ed straw h ats on th eir h ead s strip ed cotton ,

j ackets and pants and bare arms and low er l egs

, ,

each c arrying a m attock for th ey are going to work

on the ro ads and the whol e gang follow ed and

gu arded (c ert ainly C eylon is a mo st idyllic l and ) by
a C in hal ese youth of about tw e nty one dre ssed in
g
-

whit e skirts down to his feet with a tortois e sh ell ,

-

comb on his h ead and holding a parasol to sh ad e

,

hims elf from the sun ! Why do not the twenty

m e n with m attocks turn and sl ay the boy with the
parasol and so d ep art in p eac e ! I ask ed thi s
,

qu estion m any tim es and alw ays g ot the sam e ,

the pri soners do

an swer B ec aus e th ey s aid

.
, ,

not p articul arly w ant to run away T h ey are v ery .

w ell off in prison b ett er off as a rule th an th ey

, ,

,

are outside I mprisonm ent by an ali en Gov ern

.

ment und er ali en l aw s and st and ard s is n aturally no

, ,

di sgrac e at anyrate to the m ass of the p eopl e and

, ,

so onc e in pri son th ey m ak e th ems elv es as h appy as

th ey Can
'

I vi sit ed the gaol one d ay and thought th ey ,

succeed ed v ery w ell i n th at resp ect T he au thori .

ties I am gl ad to say do all they can to m ake

, ,

them comfort abl e T h ey h av e each a l arge di sh

.

of ric e and curry with me at if th ey wi sh twice a

, ,

d ay and a me al of coffee and bre ad i n the m orning

,
.

b esides ; whi ch is c ertainly b ett er fare th an they

48 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
TO E L EP H AN T A
would get as pe asants T hey do th eir little apology
.

for work i n public pl ac es during the d ay with a

ch ance of a ch at w h fri ends and sl eep i n gangs
.

togeth er in the pri son sheds at night each with his ,

m at pillow and night suit ; so possibly on the

, ,

whole th ey are not ill content -

.

M y fri end A with whom I am st aying here

.
, ,

is a T amil and an o fci al of high st anding H e

,
.

b ec ame thoroughly A nglicised whil e studying i n

Engl and and like m any of the H indus w ho come
,

to L ondon or C ambridge or Oxford did for the ,

tim e quit e ou tw esternise u s in the tend ency to wards

m ateri ali sm and the belief in science comforts re , ,

pres entative institutions and progress gen erally ,

.

N ow how ev er he s eems to be und ergoing a r eaction

in favor of cast e and the r eligiou s traditions of his
own p eople and I am inclined to think th at oth er
,

we sterni sing H indus will experience the s ame re

act ion .

He lives in an ordin ary one storeyed stone house ,

or bungalow such as the English inh abit here

, .

T he se houses n aturally cov er a good d eal of ground .

T he roof which is m ad e of he avy tile s or th atch is

, ,

pitched high in the middle giving space for lofty ,

sitting rooms ; the sle eping

-
ch ambers ank thes e
at a lower slope and outside runs the v er and ah
, ,

almost round the hous e the roof t ermin ating ,

beyond it at six or s ev en feet from the ground .

T his arrangem ent m ak es the interiors v ery d ark

and cool as the windows open on the verand ah
, ,

and the sun c annot penetrat e to them ; but I am

not sur e th at I lik e the s ens ation of b eing con
n ed und er thi s imm ens e c arapac e of til es with ,

no possible outlook to the sk y in a sort of c av ,

 FROM P EA K P
ELE HA N T A

50 A DA M S TO

c an eas ily p erform and at night it is hot e nough to

,

S l eep without any cov eri ng on the bed but I enj oy

th e clim at e thoroughly and nev e r felt in b ett er
,

h ealth N o doubt th ese thi ngs oft en affect one

.

more aft e r a tim e th an at rst ; but th ere seems

almo st al w ays a pl eas ant br eez e h ere at thi s tim e
of y ear and I do not notic e th at l anguor which
,

gen erally accomp ani es sultry we ath er .

A has most lov ely v ege t able curri es ; pl e nty

.

of boil ed ric e with four or v e littl e dish es of

,

di ffere nt sort s of curri ed v egetable s T his with .

,

fruit forms our br eakfast at ten ; and dinn er at

,

s ix or s e v e n is much th e s ame with p erh ap s an ,

add ed soup or sid e di sh H is wife som etim es j oins

-
.

us at dinn er w hich I t ak e as an honor as ev en

. ,

with thos e H indu wom e n who are em ancip at ed

th ere is oft en a littl e r es erve about eating with
the for eign er S he has a v ery compo sed and
.

gentl e m ann er and sp eaks English pr ettily and

,

corr ectly though slowly and with a littl e he sit ation

,

approv es of a good d eal of the English fr e edom for

wom en but say s she c annot quit e r econcil e her self
,

to wom en w alking about the street s alon e and ,

oth er things she h ears th ey do in Engl and H ow .

e v er she would lik e to com e to En gl and

, h ers elf
and see .

T he childr en are v ery bright and ch arming .

Mah sw ari (thre e y ear s O ld ) is the s w eet est littl e

dot with big bl ack eye s and a very d ecid ed opinion
,

about thing s S he comes i nto the room and lifts

.

up one arm and turns up her fac e and proph esi es

som ething in sol emn ton es i n T amil which turns ,

out to be
F ath er is v ery n aughty to sit d own
,

to dinn er b efore mother co m es T h e n she t alks .

 KURU N EGALA 51

C ing halese to her nurse and English to m e which ,

is p retty good for a b eginner in life M ah ad ev a .

and jayanta the two boys

(s ev en and nine re
,

s ec ti
p v el
y) are in the bubbling ov er st ag e and
-
, ,

are altern at ely fast friend s an d ghting with e ach

other two or three times a d ay much lik e Engli sh ,

boys T hey are dress ed more after the English

.

fashion tho u gh th ey are privil eged to h ave bare

,

knees and feet at anyrate in the hous e ; and

Jayanta has a pony which he rides out ev ery day .

A . set s ap art a littl e room i n this hous e as a

C h ap el I t is quite b ar e with ju st a v e Wick ed

.
,
-

l amp on a sm all t abl e i n one corn er and ow ers , ,

fruit etc on the ground in front I w as present

, .
, .

the oth er day when the Brahmin pri est w as

performing a littl e s ervic e th ere He r ecit ed .

S an skrit formul as burn ed c amphor and gav e us , ,

c ow d u n
g ash es and s and alwood p ast e to put on
our forehe ads co nsecrat ed milk to drink and a, ,

ow er e ach The c ow d u ng ash es are a symbol

. .

F or as c o wdu ng wh en burnt b ecome s cl ean and , ,

even purifying i n qu ality so must the body it self ,

be consum ed and puri ed in the am e of S iv a s

pres enc e A s ays th ey use a ge sture id entifying

. .

the light (of S iv a) within the body with the light

of the am e and also with th at of the sun ; and
,

alw ays t ermin ate their wor ship by going out into
the op e n an d s aluting the sun T he Br ahmin .

pri est a m an about forty and the boy of ft een

, ,

who often accompani es him are pl eas ant fac ed ,

-

folk not app arently at all highly educ at ed we aring

, ,

but littl e i n the w ay of C lothes and not sp eci ally ,

distinguish abl e from other peopl e exc ept by the ,

sacred thread worn ov er the should er and a cert ain ,

52 FR O M A DA M s

PE A K TO E L EP H AN T A
a lertn ess of expr ession which is often notic eabl e
in the Brahmin though the trouble is th at it is
gen erally al ertne ss for gain .

T he priests g en erally h er e wh eth er Buddhist ,

or H i ndu (and Budd hi sm is of cours e the pr ev ailing

religion in C eylon ) occupy much the s am e r el ation
,

to the p eopl e which the priests occupy in the country

districts of F r anc e or I rel and th at is wh atev er ,

spiritu al power th ey cl aim th ey do not arrogat e to

,

th ems elv es any worldly supr em acy and are always ,

poor and oft en qui te unl ett ered I n fact I sup .

,

pos e it is only in the comm erci ally r eligious i e

P rotestant countri es th at the absurd anom aly exist s
. .

of a pri esthood which pr et end s to the service of the

J e su s who had not where to lay his h ead and ,

which at the s am e time op enly cl aims to b elong

to soci ety and the w ell to do cl asses and would

- -
,

resent any imp u t ation to the contrary T h ere are .

ind eed m any points of resembl anc e betw een the

religions h er e esp eci ally H indui sm and R om an
C atholici sm the el aborate ceremoni al s and s ervic es ,

with proc es sion s incens e lights ringing of b ell s

, , , ,,

etc ; the m any m endic ant orders the u se of b ead s

.
,

an d ros ari es and b egging bowls

, the mon ast erie s ,

with th eir abbots and so forth

, .

T her e is one adv ant age i n a hot d amp cli m ate

lik e this ; n am ely th at things books furniture
, , ,

C lothes , etc soon get d estroy ed and don e with ,

so th at there is littl e t empt ation to cumb er up your

house with posse ssions S om e English of cours e
.

try to furnish and ke ep their rooms as if th ey w er e

still li ving in B aysw at er but th ey are plenti fully ,
,

pl agued for th eir folly T he oor s h er e are of

.

som e c em e nt or concr et e m at eri al which prev ents ,

 KURU N EGAL A 53

the whi t e ants surging up through th em as th ey ,

infallibly would through bo ard s and which is nice

,

and cool to th e feet ; c arp et s cupbo ards

, an d al l ,

coll ections of unremoved things are discounten anced .

A bor zg ines

f
o Cey lon

A hest of drawers or a bookc ase stands out a foot

C

or two from the wall so th at the serv ants c an sw eep

,

behind it every day L ittle frogs liz ards scorpions

.
, , ,

and other fry ,which come hO pp ing and cre eping

54 FR OM A DA M S

PE A K TO E L EP H AN T A
in during or aft er h eavy rai n c an th e n be ge ntly
admoni sh ed to d ep art and spid ers do not nd it ,

easy to est abli sh a footing T he gre at est h arbor .

for v ermin is the big roof which is full of rats I n ,

.

pursui t of th es e com e the ratsn ak es fellows ve ,

or six feet long but not v enomous and wild c at s ;

, ,

and the noi ses at night from th em th e shu fing ,

of the sn ak es and the sque als of the poor little

,

rat s etc I confess are trying

, .
, .

We h av e three or four m al e servants about the

hou se and garden and th ere are two ay ans w ho , ,

look aft er the childre n and the wom en s ap artments .

I b eli e v e m any of th es e I ndi an and C ing halese

rac es lov e to be s erv ant s (und er a tol erably good
m ast er ) ; th eir feminin e sensitiv e n atures oft e n ,

l acking in e nt erpri se r ather se ek the sh elter of ,

d ep end enc e A nd c ert ai nly th ey m ak e in m any

.
,

i n st anc es and wh en w ell treat ed wond erfully good ,

serv ant s th eir tact and affection at en ess riv eting

,

the bond I know of a c ase in which an Engli sh

.

civili an m et with an accid ent wh en 20 0 m il es away

from his st ation and his b earer wh en he h eard
,

,

the n e ws i n d e fault of oth e r m eans of c om m u nic a

,

tion z ealem the whol e dist anc e and arriv ed in time

,
/
I
,

to see him b efor e he died A t the s am e tim e it .

is a mist ak e to suppo se th ey will do anything out

of a sens e of duty T he word duty do esn t occupy
.

an import ant pl ac e in the Ori ent al voc abul ary an

y ,

mor e th an it do es among the C eltic p eopl es of

Europ e . T hi s is a fruitful sourc e of m isu nd er
st anding b etw een the r ac es T he British er p ays .

his I ndi an serv ant r egul arly and i n r eturn expects ,

him to (lo leis du ly and to submit to kick s wh en ,

he doe sn t H e the B ritish er re g ards this as a

.
, ,
 KURU N EG A L A 55

fair contract But the n ativ e do es n t u nd erst and

.

it in the l east He would rath er r ec eiv e his pay

.

l ess regul arly and be tr eat ed as a m an and a

,

broth er H aeck el s account of the affection of
.

his R odiy a s erv ant lad for him and of the boy s
-

d espair wh e n H aeck el had to l eav e him is quit e ,

touching ; but it is corroborated by a thou sand

simil ar stories But if th er e is no att achm ent
.
,

wh at is the m eaning of duty ! T he n ativ e in

k eeping with his w eak er more d ep end ent n ature , ,

is cunning and l azy his vic es lie i n th at dir ection

rather th an i n the West ern direction of brut al
en ergy I f his att achm ent is not c all ed out he
.
,

c an m ake his m ast er miser abl e in his own w ay .

A nd he do es so ; henc e endl ess strife and re

crimin ation .

T he A rac hc hi h ere a kind of of ci al s erv a nt of ,

A s is a most gentl e cr eatur e with r em ark abl e
.
, ,

t act but almo st too sen sitiv e ; one is afraid of

,

wounding him by not acc epti ng all his num erous

att e ntions He glid es in and out of the room
.

as t hey al l do nois el essly with b ar e fee t ; and ,

one n e v er knows wh eth er o n e is alon e or not .

T he hor se k eep er and I are good fri end s though ,

our di alogu es are limit ed for want of voc abul ary !

He is a r egul ar dusky d emon with his look of ,

affection at e b ed e vilm ent and w ay of dissolving in

a grin when e v e r he sees o ne A s ays th at he

. .

think s the pari ahs or outc ast s and the hors e

,

ke ep ers are p ari ah s are som e of the mo st g enui ne

and good h eart ed among the peopl e ; and I
-
see

th at the author of L if e in an I ndian Villag e

s ay s som ething of the s am e kind A s a cl ass .

,

h ardworking hon est and truthful he call s th em ;

, , ,

A!
56 FR O M ADAM S PE A K

TO P
ELE HA N TA

and a ft er d escribi ng th eir d evotion to the int er est s

of the famili es to whom th ey are O ft en h eredit arily
att ach ed,
adds ,S uch are the illit erat e p ari ahs

,

a unique cl ass who se pur e liv es and nobl e tr aits of

,

ch aracter are in every w ay worthy of admiration .

I t is curious but I am con st antly being struck

,

by the res embl ance betw een the low est c astes h ere
and the slum dw ell er s in our gr eat citi es r esem
-

bl ance in physiognomy as w ell as in m any u nc on

,

scious tr aits of ch ar act er oft en very nobl e

, with the ,

brutish basis well m arked the unform ed mouth and

-

, ,

the som ewh at h eavy brows j u st as in M euni er s ne

statu e of the ironwork er but with

thicker li p s .
 F R OM P EA K P

58 A DA M S TO EL E HA N TA

l ast hour or tw o w e had to light torch es to see our

rout e El eph ant track s w ere pl entiful all round us
.

through the woods ev en clo se to the summit I t

,
.

is c ert ainly extraordin ary on wh at st eep pl ac es and

rock sid es th es e anim al s will s afely trav el ; but w e
w er e not fortun at e enough to see any of them .

T his is a long nigh t trying to sl eep I t is the .

wr etched est hut without a door and unc eiled to

, ,

the four wind s ! C aliban m ak es the re for m e as

I writ e He has nothing on but a cotton wrap and
.

a thin j er sey but do es not s eem to fe el the cold

,

much ; and the guid e is ev en more thinly cl ad and ,

is asl eep whil e I am shiv ering bundl ed in cloth

, ,

co at s T h ere is som ething curiou s about the w ay

.

in which the Engli sh in this country feel the cold

wh en i t is co ld more th an the n ativ es ; though
one might expect the contrary I h ave oft en .

noticed it I fancy we m ak e a gr eat mi st ake in

.

the se hot l ands in not exposing our skin s mor e to

the sun and air and so str ength ening and h ard e n
,

ing th em I n the gr eat h eat and wh en const an tly

.
,

cov ere d with garm ents the skin perspires t erribly , ,

and b e com es sodd en and enerv ated and mor e se n si ,

tiv e th an it ought to be h enc e great d ang er of

C hill s . I h av e t aken sev eral sun b ath s in the w ood s -

h e re at different tim es an d found advant age from ,

doing so .

[S inc e writing the abov e I h av e di scov er ed the ,

exist ence of a littl e soci ety i n I ndi a of English

folk who encourage nudity and the ab andonment ,

as far as po ssibl e of cloth es on three distinct ,

ground s phy sic al moral and aesth etic of H ealth

-

D ecency and B eauty I wish the soci ety ev ery suc

, , ,

c ess P as sing ov er the moral and aesthetic con

.

.
 A DA M S PE A K

AN D T HE B AC K
L R IV ER 59

s id eration s which are both of cours e of the utmost

import anc e in this conn e ction th ere is still the con
sid eration of phy sic al he alth and enj oym ent which ,

must app eal to ev erybody I n a pl ac e like I ndi a .

,

wher e the m ass of the p eopl e go with v ery littl e

C overing the sp ect acl e of th eir eas e and enj oym e nt
,

must doubl e the di scomforts of the unfortun at e Euro

pe an w ho thinks it nec ess ary to be dre ssed up to the
eye s on ev e ry occ asion wh en he app ears in p u blic .

I t is i nd eed surprising th at m en c an e ndur e as th ey ,

do to we ar cloth co ats and waistco at s and st arch ed

,

c oll ars and cuffs and all the p araph ern ali a of pro
,

riet
y i n a s e verity of h eat which r eally m ak es only
,

the v e ry lightest cov ering tol erabl e ; nor c an one

be surpri sed at the exh au stion of the system which
e nsu es from the c au se alr eady m ention ed
,
I n fact .
,

the dir e ct stimul ation and str engthening of the skin

by sun and air though most import ant in our hom e
,

C lim at e m a
y be ev en m or e indi sp en sabl e in a pl ac e
,

lik e I ndi a wh ere the rel axing inuenc es are so ter

,

ribl
y strong C ert ainly wh en one consid ers this
.
,

c aus e of Engli sh en erv ation i n I ndi a and the oth er ,

d u e to the gr eatly mist ak en diet of our p eopl e th er e ,

the fearful qu antiti es of esh consum ed and of ,

strong liquors both thing s which are injurious

e nough at hom e but which are ruinou s in a hot
,

country the wonder is not th at the English fail to

breed and coloni se i n I ndi a but th at th ey ev en l ast,

out th eir few ye ars of individu al s ervice there !

T h er e is a lov ely vi ew of cloudl and from the
summit now the moon has risen All the lower .

l ands and mount ains are wr apped in mist and you ,

look down upon a great white rolling sea silent , ,

remote from the world with only the moon and ,

60 FR O M A DA M s

PE A K TO E L EP H A N TA
st ars abov e and the sound of the B uddhist prie sts
,

ch anting away in a low ton e round the re in th eir

own littl e cabin or p ansela .

T his is a most r em ark abl e mount ain F or at l east .

20 0 0 ye ars an d prob ably for long enough b efor e

,

th at pri est s of som e kind or anoth er h av e k ept w atch

,

ov er the s acred footm ark on the summit for thou s

ands of y ears the sound of th eir ch anting has be en

h eard at night b etw een the driv e n whit e pl ain of

clouds b elow and the sil ent moon and st ars abov e
an d by d a
y pilgrims h av e toil ed up the st eep S id es
to str ew ow ers and to p erform som e kind of wor
,

ship to their gods on thi s high n atural alt ar T he

,
.

p eak i s 740 0 feet high and though not quit e the ,

highe st point on the isl and is by far the mo st con ,

s ic u ou s
p I t st ands lik e a gr eat outpost on the
.

south we st edg e of the mountain region of C eylon ,

and c an be s een from far out to sea a sug ar lo af -

with very precipitous sides Wh en the B uddhists .

rst c am e to C eylon about the 4th c entury B C

, . .
,

th ey cl ai m ed the footm ark as th at of Buddh a L at er .

on some Gno stic Christi an s ect s attribut ed it to

the prim al m an ; the M oh amm ed an s following thi s ,

id ea wh en th ey got po ss es sion of the mount ai n

gav e it the n am e of A d am s P eak ; the P ortugu es e
, ,

con secrat ed it to S Eu sebius ; and now the Bud

.

d hists are again in poss ession though I b eli eve the

M oh ammed ans are allow ed a kind of concurrent
right But wh at ev er has b een the nomin al d edi cation
.

of this ancient high pl ac e a continuous str eam of

,

p ilg rim s m ainly of cours e the country folk of the

isl and h as ow ed to it undisturb ed through the

centuri es and ev en now th ey say th at in the month
of M ay the mountain sid e is cov ered by hundr ed s
 A DA M s

PE A K A N D T HE B LAC K R IV ER 6i

and even tho u s ands of folk who c amp out during ,

the night and do , f oo/ale on the sum m it by d ay

K alua s ays th at his fath er the jolly old sav age
.

once asc end ed S am antaku ta and lik e the re st

, ,

of the C ing halese thinks a gr eat d eal of the re

,

lig iou s m erit of thi s p erform anc e .

R alnap m a f an 3 i a
, S u n ris e y est e rd ay on the
.

.
-

peak w as ne though sunri ses are not always a

,

success T he gre at v eil of clouds gr adu ally dis

.

solv ed and a long l evel ros e of d awn appe ar ed

,

in the eastern sky V enu s brilli ant abov e it the ,

S outh ern Cros s visibl e and one or two oth er cross es ,

which lie n ear it and the h alf moon ov erhe ad ; a

,

d ark pe ak ed and c ast ell at ed ramp art of lower moun

,

t ain s stretch ed around u s and far on the horizon ,

were m asses of cu m ulus cloud risi ng out of the low

l and mi sts and c atching the early light ; whil e the
,

low er l and s th em selv es r em ain ed p artly hidd en by

irr egul ar pool s and riv er s of whit e fog which look ed ,

lik e w at er in the rst twilight A gre at fan lik e .

-

crown of rays pr eceded the su n v ery spl endid of , ,

p early colors with gr eat b eams r eachi ng n early to

,

the z e nith We could not see the sea owing to

.
,

mi sts along the horizon nor w as any h abit ation ,

visible but only the great jungle cov er ed hills and

,
-

far pl ains shroud ed i n the gr een of coco nut -

groves .

I h e sh adow of the p eak it self c ast on the mists

'

at sunrise is a very conspicuous and oft en not ed

,
-

ph enom enon Owing to the sun s breadth the

.

e ffect is produc ed of an nm r a and penn m ora ;

and the m n br a look s v e ry d ark and point ed
mor e point ed ev en th an the p eak itself I w as .

s urpris e d to see how di s t ant it look e d a sh adow

62 FR O M A DA M s

PE A K To EL E HA N TA P
mount ain among the far crags I t gradu ally fell .

an d dis app ear ed as the su n ros e .

T h er e is anoth er ph enom en on which I h av e

som ewh ere s een d escrib ed as p eculi ar to A d am s
P eak ; though thi s must be a pio u s fraud or one ,

of thos e c ases of p eopl e only b eing abl e to see

famili ar things wh en th ey are i n unfamili ar sur
roundings sinc e it is a ph enom enon which c an be
,

witn ess ed any d ay at hom e I t is th at if wh en .

th er e is dew or rain upon the grass and the sun ,

is not too high in the he av ens you look at the ,

sh adow of your h ead on the grass you will see ,

it surround ed by a whit e light or glory It ,

.

aris es I im agine from the direct r e ection of the

, ,

sunlight on the inn er surfac es of the littl e globules

of w at er which lie i n or n ear the lin e j oining the

su n an d the h ead and is e nh anc ed no doubt by
,

the fact th at the light so r e e ct ed shows all the

cl earer from h aving to p ass through a column of
sh adow to the eye A nyhow wh atever the c aus e .
, ,

it is quit e a att ering app earanc e all the more so ,

b ec au se if you hav e a comp anion you do not see

the glory round his he ad but only round your

,

own ! I once n early turn ed the strong brai n of a

P o sitivi st by pointing out to him this aureole
round his h e ad and m ak ing as i f I co u ld see it
,

He of cours e being un abl e to see a simil ar light

, ,

round min e had no alt ern ativ e but to conclud e th at

,

he w as sp eci ally ov er sh adow ed by the H oly Ghost !

T he sr i
sacr ed foot is b etter th an I

p aaa

exp e ct ed : a n atur al d epr ession i n the rock an ,

inch or so d eep v e feet , of an oblong

C ap t ain Kno abov q o t d sp ak o f it a
x, abo t tw o f
e u t e e s s

l ng ; b t h d oe not ap p a to hav a t all y n it

, u ee

o u e s e r e c u see
 ADAM S PE A K
AN D T HE B LA CK R IV ER 63

sh ape and distantly r es embling a foot ; but th ey

,

h av e i m prov ed it in part s by mort aring bit s of

tile along the doubtful edges ! T h er e are no to es

m arked though i n copi e s of it th at I h av e seen
,

in som e Buddhist shrines the to es are c arefully

indic ated T he m ark is curiously situ at ed at the
.

very summit of the rock which is only a few

fe et squ are only l arge enough i n fact to giv e
, , ,

spac e for the foot and for a little pavilion Op en ,

to the winds which has be en er ect ed over it ; and

,

on the n atural pl atform j u st b elow which (so

st eep is the mountain ) is it self encircled by a wall
to prev ent accid ents are som e curious bits of
furnitur e : four old bronz e st and ard l amps of lotus ,

ow e r d esign one at e ach corn er of the pl atform

, ,

a b ell a littl e shrin e and the pri ests hut b efor e

, ,

mention ed L ooking i n to the l att er aft er d awn I

.
,

b eh eld nothing re sembling fu rnitur e but a p an in ,

the middl e with logs burning and three l ean gures ,

squ att ed round it th eir mort al po ssession s ti ed in,

h andkerchiefs and h anging from the roof .

T he pri est s w er e horribly on the gr eed for

money and m ad e it really unpl eas ant to st ay on
,

the top ; but I d el ay ed a littl e in ord er to watch

C alib an doing p oo/ale at the littl e shrin e I h av e
mentioned H e brought a hot ember from the
.

re sprinkled frankinc ens e on it burn ed c amphor

, ,

and s om e thing th at looked lik e saltp etre also ,

poured som e kind of scent ed wat er on the ember

c ausi ng fragrance V e ry anci ent gn arl ed rhodod en
,

dron trees twenty or thirty feet high rooti ng i n

, ,

cleft s and h ollow s were in ow er (c armin e red ) ,

al l round the top of the rock N o snow ev er falls .

h er e th ey say ; but th ere are sometime s ho ar

,
64 FR OM A DA MS
PEA K TO P
EL E HA N T A

fro sts which the n ativ es mist ake for snow

,
I .

don t suppos e the t emperatur e th at night w as b elow

50 F ahr but it felt cold v ery cold aft e r the

.
, , ,

h eat of the lowl and s .

T he sun ros e soon aft er six and at we ,

st art ed downw ard s on the gre at pilgrim track

,
-

toward s Ratn apura T he n al con e for about

.
,

1 50 0 fee t is c ert ainly a st eep bit of rock I h ave

,
.

s een it from sev eral point s of Vi e w but the summit ,

angl e w as alw ays und er S t ep s are cut n early

al l down this part and ch ain s h ang alongside in
,

al l pl aces of po ssibl e dif c u lty C h ains upon ch ains ,

things with links six inch es long all sh ap es and ,

curiously wro ught centuries and c enturi es old the

,

pious gifts of succ essiv e g eneration s of pilgrim s .

H ere and there are long inscription s in C inghalese ,

ch aract ers on the rock fac es ; and ev erywhere

,
-

innum erabl e S igns of l abor of succ essiv e trav ell ers

in h ewing and sh api ng the p ath all the w ay not
to m ention r esting sh eds and c abin s built in con
-

v eni ent spots low er down T h es e how ever are .

l argely fallen to d ec ay ; and ind eed the whole

pl ac e giv es one the impression th at the sr ip aaa

has com e somewh at into disrepute in thes e mod ern

time s and is only support ed by the poorer and
,

mor e ignor ant among the p eopl e .

Ratn apura is only 1 50 feet or so above the sea ;

and for tw enty four mil es the p ath to it from the
-

summit w ell m ark ed but singl e le ~goes down

-

ov er rocks and through v ast woods wit hout coming ,

to anything lik e a ro ad N early the whol e how .

,

e v er of this great d escent of 70 0 0 feet is don e

in the rst tw elve mil es to P al ab add al a a tiny
,

h amlet at the v ery foot of the mount ains and I -

 FR O M P EA K P

66 A DA M S TO ELE HA N TA

an d whic h in ord er to support its elf throws out

gre at l at eral wings or buttress es re aching to a ,

height of twelv e or twenty feet from the ground ,

and spre ading far out from the b as e of the trunk ,

e ach buttress p erh aps three or four inches thick ,

and perfectly sh ap ed with p l ane and p arallel sides

,

like a s awn pl ank so as to give the utmost strength

,

with l east expenditur e of m at eri al T his v ari ety .

has sm all ov at e ev ergr een le aves T hen there are .

two or three v arieti es of which the b anyan ( eas

,

[naioa) is one which are p arasitic i n their h abit

.
,

T he b any an b egins exist enc e by its seed b eing

dropp ed in the fork of anoth er tree not unfrequently
a p alm from which point its rootlet s m ak e their
w ay down the stem to the ground With rapid . .

growth it then encircl es the victim tree and ,

throwing out gre at l ateral branches s ends down

from thes e a rain of fresh rootl ets which after , ,

s winging in ai r for a few weeks re ach the ground ,

and soon become st u rdy pill ars I h ave thus s een .

a b any an encircling with its centr al trunk th e st em

of a p alm and cl asping it so close th at a knife
,

could not be push ed between the two whil e the ,

p alm which had grown in h eight si nce this accid ent

,

h app en ed to it w as still soar ing upwards and

, ,

feebly end eavoring to live T here is a very ne

b anyan tr ee at K alutara which sp ans the gr eat
.

high ro ad from Colombo to G all e all the traf c

-

p assing ben eath it and betw een its trunks .

S om e of the gs fasten p ar asitic ally on other

trees though without throwing out the pill ar like
,
-

roots which distinguish the b anyan ; and it is not

uncommon to see one of th es e with roots like a
c at aract of sn ak es winding round the tru nk o f an '
 A DA M S

P EA K A N D T H E BLA C K R I V ER 67

c ci a or even round som e non p arasitic g the

a a ,
-
,

tw o tr ee s app earing to be wrestling and writhi ng

togeth er i n a erc e embrac e while th ey throw out ,

their s ep arat e branch es to sun and air as though to ,

gain strength for the fray T he p arasite gen er ally .

howev e r ends by throttling its adv ers ary .

T h er e is also the bo tree or eas reli giosa whose

-
, ,

le af is of a thinner texture One of the commonest .

pl ant s in op e n spots all over Ceylon is the s ensitive

pl a nt I ts d elicat ely pinn at e l eav es form a bu shy
.

growth six inch es to a foot in depth over the

ground ; but a show er of r ain or nightfall or the , ,

trampling of anim als thro u gh it c aus es it to coll ap se

into a mere brown p atch almo st as if a re had
passed over I n a few minut es howev er after the
.
, ,

dist u rbanc e has ce as ed it r egains it luxurianc e .

T h ere are also some ac aci a tre es which droop th ei r

l eav es at nightfall and at the adv ent of rain
, .

T h e r e are two s orts of monk eys common in

th ese forests a sm all brown monk ey which m ay ,

be s een swinging its elf from tree to tre e not ,

unfrequ ently with a b ab e in its arms ; and the

l arger manoew a monk ey which skips and runs on

,

al-
l fours along the ground and of which it is s aid
V ery
,

th at its devotion to its m at e is life long -

.

common all over C eylon is a little grey brown -

squirrel with three yellow longitudin al stripes on

,

its b ack ; almost every tr ee s eems to be inh abited

by a pair which t ake refuge th ere at the appro ach
,

of a stranger and utt er a sh arp little whistle like

,

the note of an angry bird T hey are very tame .

,

how ev er and will oft en i n inh abited pl aces run

,

about the streets or ev en m ake th eir appearance

,

in the hous es in se arch of food .

68 FR O M AD A M S PE AK
To EL E P HA N T A
T he H indu s t ak e no pl easure in killing anim als
ev e n th e boys do not as a rule mol est wild , ,

creatur es and the cons equ enc e is th at birds and

the sm all er four foot ed b easts are comp ar ativ ely
-

bold N ot that the anim als are m ad e pets of but

.
,

th ey are simply l eft alone in ke eping with the

H indu gentl en ess and qui esc ence of disposition .

Ev en the d eadly cobra p artly no doubt from , ,

religiou s associ ations is allowed to go its w ay

unh arm ed ; and the p eople hav e generally a good
word for it saying it will not att ack anyon e u n
,

les s it be rst injured .

On the whol e the troubl e about reptil es in thi s

,

country seem s to m e to be much ex aggerated .

T h er e are some pl ac es in the for ests wh er e sm all

l eech es p articul arly in the w et s easons are a
gr eat p est Occ asion ally a sn ake is to be s een
.
,

but I h av e be en rath er di sappointed at their rarity ;

or a milliped e nine inches long T he l arg er .

scorpio n is a v e nomous looking cr eatur e with its-

,

blu e bl ack lobst er lik e body and cl aws and sl end er

- -
,

sting surmounted t ail v e inch es long in all ; but

-

it is not so venomous as gen erally suppos ed and ,

mo st of th ese creatures lik e the l arger anim als ,

the ch e t ah the elk the b ear the el eph ant etc

, , , , .

k eep out of the w ay of m an as w ell as th ey c an .

Of course n ative woodm en and O thers tramping

,

b are l egged through the t angl es occasion ally tre ad

-

on a sn ak e and get bitten ; but the t ale of de aths

through such c asualti es though i t m ay se em ,

num eric ally l arge t ak e n say throughout Ceylon

,

and I ndi a is i n proportion to the popul ation but

,

a slight m att er about I in p er annum .

T h ere are m any h andsome butt eri es here es ,

 ADA M S PE A K

A N D T HE B LAC K R IV ER 69

al
ec i ly of the sw allow t ail sort som e of enormous
p
-

s ize an d a number of qu eer ins e cts I saw a .

l arge green m anti s perh aps six inche s long a ,

most wick ed looking cr eature -

I confes s it re .

mind ed m e of a highly resp ect abl e B ritish property

own er I t sits up lik e a b eautiful gr een le af with
.
,

its two fore C l aws (th ems elves att en ed out and
-

gre en to look lik e lesser le aves ) h eld up as if it

,

w er e praying p erf ectly motionl ess except th at

al l the tim e it rolls its st alked ey es slowly around ,

till it se es a poor little insect appro ach wh en it ,

ste althily mov es a C l aw and pounc es , .

T he birds are not so numerou s as I exp e ct ed .

T h er e are some bright color ed kinds and a few -

p arrots but the woods seem quiet on the whol e

, .

T he b arb et a green bird not quite so big as a

,

pigeon go es on with its monotonous b ell like call

,
-

lik e a cuckoo th at has lo st its second not e on

an d on the whole d ay long ; the liz ards d uck
,

an d kiss full of om en s to the n ativ es who c all

, ,

them the crocodil e s little brothers and say

i f you kill a little liz ard the crocodil e will com e

'

; the gr asshoppers give three clicks

and kill you
and a whee z e ; the sm all gr ey squirrels chirrup ;
the frogs cro ak ; and the whol e air is full of
continuous though subdu ed sound
A t P al ab add al a the tiny little h aml et at the foot
.

of the m ount ains I w as d ead b eat with the long

,
-

olting downhill and if it had not been for th e

j
faithful K alu a who held my h and in the st eep er
,

p arts I should fairly h ave fallen once or twic e

,
.

H ere we stopped two hours at a little cabin Good .

people and fri endly a fath er and moth er and two

l ads the s am e anxious tender m other face th at ,
-
70 FR O M ADAM S PE A K

TO L P
E E HA N TA

is the s am e all ov er the world T h ey brought out .

a kind of couch for m e to lie on but would not ,

at r st b eli ev e th at I would eat Meir food H ow .

e v e r aft er a littl e persu asion

,
they m ad e some tea ,

(for the p eople are b eginning to u se tea q uite

freely ) and som e curry and rice quit e p al at able .

I beg an to eat of cour se with my ng ers n ative ,

fashion ; but as soon as I did so th ey saw th at ,

something w as wrong and r ais ed a cry of K ar anai /

,

(spoon ) ; and a boy w as se nt off despite my ,

prot ests to the c abin of a rich neighbor h alf a

,
-

mil e off and ultim at ely r eturn ed i n tri umph with

,

a r ath er b att er ed G erm an~ silv er t easpoon !

I felt doubtful about doing anoth er tw elv e miles
to Ratn apura ; however thought b est to try and ,

off we went B ut the re st had don e little good

.
,

an d I could not go mor e th an two miles an hour .

A t 4 P M after w alking about four miles w e c am e

. .
, ,

out into at l and a good p ath littl e vill ag es with ,

clumps of palm and ban an a lov ely op en m eadows , ,

and t am e buffaloes gr azing T h enc e along the sid e

of the K aluganga most lovely of riv ers through
.

, ,

thick ets of b amboo and t angl es of shrub s and p ast ,

more h aml ets and grazing grounds (though feeling

so done I thoroughly enj oyed every step of the
,

w ay) till at l ast at a littl e kind of S hop ( aaai

)

,

w e h alt ed about 6 P M , Got mor e tea and a few

.
,

ban an as which w as all I c ared to eat ; and then

,

w ent in and lay down on a tr estl e and m at for an

hour aft er which w e d ecided to stay the night
K alua stretch ed hims elf near me ; the m en of the
, .

pl ac e lay down on the oor the women somewhere

in sid e ; the pl ank shutt ers w ere built i n and lights ,

p u t out I slept fairly w ell and woke n ally at

.
,
 A DA M s

P EAK A N D T HE B LACK R IV ER 71

the sound of voice s and with d awn peeping in

through the holes in the roo f Had a lovely wash .

in a l ittle stre am and an e arly bre akfast of tea

, ,

ban an as and hot c akes m ad e of rice coco nut and

, ,
-
,

sugar and then walk ed four miles into this pl ac e

( R atn apur a
) where a
,t l ast we c ame to a ro ad and
signs of civilis ation .

T he rest house here is comfort able ; h ave had

-

another b ath and a good solid bre akfast and m ad e

, ,

arr angements for a bo at to st art with us this

evening down the river to K alut ara (60 miles ) .

S u nday f an 4tli A fter w alking round the town

, . .

yesterd ay and getting fruit and provisions for our

,

voyage we emb arke d about 6 R M and are now ,

o ating l azily down the K aluganga T he water is

,

rather low and the sp eed not good ; but the river
,

is very be autiful with b amboo s arec a p alms and

, ,
-
,

other trees le aning ov er in profusion

, .

Ratn apur a (the city of j ewels ) is only a sm all

to wn h ardly so big as K u run egal a j ust about
one long street of little booths and c abins a post ,

of ce court house and cutch erry and the usu al two

,
-
,

or three bungalows of the English agent and

o fci als st anding back in park like grounds in a -

kind of feud al reserve T he town derives its nam e .

from the tr ade in precious stones which has been

carried on here for long enough rubies s apphires , ,

and others being found over a gre at p art of the

mount ain district I n perhaps h alf the little S hops
.

of Ratn apura men and boys m ay be seen s q u atted

on the oor gri nding and polishing j ewels With .

one h and they use a bow to turn their wheels ,

and wit h the other they hold the stone in positio n .

T eh jewels are also set an d offered for s ale oft en

 FR O M P EA K P
EL E HA N TA

72 A DA M S TO

at wh at s eem very low prices B ut the purch as er .

must b eware ; for the blessings of mod ern com

merce are with u s ev en h ere and m any of th ese ,

preciou s stones are bits of st ained gl ass suppli ed

whol es al e from Birmingh am .

T his bo at which is of a type common on the

,

river con sists of two cano es or dug o u ts each
,
-

tw enty fe et long and set ve or six feet ap art from

,

each oth er with a ooring l aid across th em and

, ,

a littl e th atch ed c abin construct ed amidships T he .

c abin is for cooking and sl eeping a re and cook

ing pots at o ne end and m ats l aid at the other ,
.

A t the front end of the bo at sit the two rowers ,

and the st eersm an s t and s b ehi nd We hav e a .

skipp er and four crew

(an old m an Djayan is ; a ,

middle ag ed m an S ignap u ; and two l ads Du an is

-

) T he n am e of the skipper is P edri

, ,

and T horanis . .

A bout two mil es b elow R atn apur a we dr e w to the

shore and stopped belo w a temple ; and P edri and
the old man went up to offer mon ey for a favor
abl e V oy ag e ! T h ey w ash ed a fe w coppers in the
river wrapped th em in a bo tree le af which had
,
-
,

also be en w ashed sprinkled w ater on th eir fore

,

h eads and then w ent up T hey soon c ame b ack

, .
,

and th en w e st art ed .

H ardly any signs of habit ation along the riv er .

N ow and then rud e steps down to the shor e and ,

a d ark gur e pouring w ater on its own he ad T he .

river v arying a hundred yards more or less wide

, , , .

A t about seven it got too d ark and we h alted

ag ainst a s andb ank w aiting for the moo n to rise
, ,

and had dinn er ric e curri ed eggs and be ans and , , ,

a pine appl e v ery good T h en got out and sat

on the s and while the boys lighted a re V ery
.

, .
74 FR OM
A DA M s PE A K TO E L EP H AN T A
which I w ent to sl eep till six or so th en went ,

ashor e and had a b ath w at er quit e w arm T h en .

off again ; a few slight rap id s bu t nothing much ,

, .

We go aground ev ery now and th en ; but th es e

bo ats are so tough the c ano es themselv es b eing
hollow ed trees th at a bump ev en on a rock d ees
not s eem to m atter much T he l ads quite enj oy
.

the struggle getting ov e r a s andb ank and Du anis ,

jump s down from his p erch and plunges through

the wat er with evid ent ple asure The old m an .

Djayanis st eers a shrewd faced c alm thin fellow

-

almost like a N orth A m eric an I ndi an but no be ak , .

S ee a monkey or a kit e occ asion ally ; no crocodiles

in this part of the riv er above the rapids ; some
,

l arge and h andsome king shers and the fruit crow ,

-
,

whos e plum age is something lik e th at of a phe as ant

K alua enjoys the voy age I t suits his l azy
.

soci able temper ament and he ch ats aw ay to P edri

.

and the crew no end H is s av age strength and

A ll ov er A d am s P e ak
.

insou ciance are spl endid

.

he w alk ed b ar efoot with no mor e S ign of fati g u e

,

th an if it had b ee n a w alk round a garden would ,

lie down and sleep anywhere or not sleep eat or , ,

not eat endure cold or heat with app arent indiffer

,

ence ; yet though so complete a s av age physic ally ,

it is interesting to see wh at an attraction for him

civilis ation or the littl e he has seen of it exerts
, , .

He is always asking me about Europe and ev i ,

dently dre aming about its we alth and s p lendor .

All the modern facilities and invention s are sort of

wond erful toys to this child of n at u re ; and though
I think he is att ach ed to me and is no doubt of ,

an affectio nat e d i sposition still i t is partly th at I

,

am mixed u p in h is mind with al l the se things I .

 A DA M s

PE A K A N D T HE B L A C K R IV ER 75

tri ed o ne day to nd ou t a from K his ide s of god

.

or d evil or supreme pow e r of any kind ; but in

,

v ain H is mind w and er ed to things more t angibl e

.
.

M any of the C inghalese howev er h ave rath er a , ,

turn for sp ecul ations of this kind ; and at one hot el

wh ere I was staying the ch amber serv ant ent er -

tained m e with quite a discourse on B uddh a and ,

end e d by ridiculing the Chri sti an ide a th at a m an

c an
g et rid of the r esults O f sin by merely pr aying
to God or b eli evi ng in jesus .

We h ave now p assed the narraea g ala (bad -

rock ) rapid which is about h alf w ay down the

,
-

river and is the only r apid which has looked

,

awkw ard the river n arrowing to ve or six y ards

,

between rocks and plunging over at a d e cid ed ,

slope We went through with a gre at bump bu t

.
,

no d am age ! The sun and smells on bo ard are

ge tting r ath er trying ; this dri ed sh smell u nfortu n -

a tely h aunt s one wh er ev e r ther e are n ativ e c abins .

B ut we sh all not be long now b efore re aching m y

l anding pl ace a littl e abov e K alut ara
-
, .

T her e are a good m any bo at s like ours on the

riv er some l aden with ric e going down oth ers
, ,

poling upward s sometim es whol e families on the

mov e Qu antiti es of ragged whit e lili es fringin g
.

the shore
z K alu a and I left our fri ends and their
.

an 6 l/
f . .

bo at in the afternoon and spent S unday night at

P s bungalow P is m an ager of a tea pl anta
,

. .

tion a bit of a R obinson Cruso e living all by ,

himself n ativ e serv ants of course with tw o dogs ,

a c at and a j ackd aw (and at one time a h ar e !)

,

sh aring his in eal s S ome of th es e pl anter fellows -

.

must nd the life a littl e dreary I fancy livin g ,

 FR O M P EA K P H A N TA

76 A DA M S TO EL E

i sol ated on th eir pl ant ation s at a con sid erable

di stanc e from Europ ean neighbours with very sm all ,

choice of soci ety at the b est and pr event ed no , ,

doubt by th e ir position from as soci ating too closely

,

with the only folk who are n ear th em th eir own

e mployees T he mor e kindly he arted among them
.
-

how ever do a good d eal for their workers i n the

w ay of physicking and nur sing th e m wh en ill or
dis abled advi sing them wh en in di f culti es etc ;
, , .

and in thes e c ases the n ativ es with their i nstinct ,

of d epend enc e soon l earn to l ean lik e chil d r e n on

,

their employ er and the l atter nds hims elf aft er a

, ,

few y ears the father (so to spe ak ) of a l arge family

, .

T h ere are 20 0 T amil cooli es p erm an ently employ ed

on thi s pl ant ation and a hundr ed or two b esid es, ,

mostly girls and women who com e in to work wh en ,

w ant ed from neighboring C inghalese V ill ages .

But the system lik e the commerci al syst em ,

wherev er it i s fo u nd to day is pretty bad and -

odious in it self and is no doubt in m any c ase s a

,

cov er for sh am eful abu ses T he T amil cooli es .

m en women and children com e over in gangs

, ,

from the m ainl and of I ndi a A n ag ent is s ent out .

to tout for th em and to conduct them by sea and ,

l and to their d estin ation On their arriv al on the .

tea est at e each one nds h ims elf so m any rup ees
-

in d ebt for th e expenses of transit ! A n average

wag e is 6a a day but to k eep th em up to the
.
,

m ark in productiv eness their work is set for

th em to complet e a certain t ask in a cert ain time ,

and if they do not come up to th eir t ask they get

only h alf p ay ; so th at if a m an is slow or l azy
-

, ,

or ill he m ay expect about 3 a per di em ! U nder

,

.

the se circum st anc es the debt as m ay be im ag ined , ,

78 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
TO E L EP H AN T A
pl ant er and perh aps did not r ealis e wh at he
,

w as s ayi ng ; but wh at a suggestion of d e sp air !

C ert ainly th ere m ay h av e been som e truth in the
r em ark ; for wh en all hop e of ev e r being out of
debt is gone the v ery n ext be st thing is to be in
,

debt as much as ev er you c an A t the end of .

the we ek the coolie does not see any wage ; his

rice etc has forest all ed all th at and more ; only
, .
, ,

his d ebt i s tick ed down a littl e d eep er I f he runs .

aw ay he is hunted down and gets thre e months ,

in gaol He is a sl ave and mu st rem ain so to

.
,

the e nd of his d ays T h at is not v e ry long

.
,

howev er ; for poor food and thin clothing and ,

th e mi sts and the cool airs of the mount ains soon

bring on lung di seases of which the slight bodied ,
-

T amil easily dies .

I d ar e say 3 a a d ay s eems a very sm all w age
.

to yo n said the pl ant er youth

,
,

but i t is r eally ,

surpri sing how little these fellows will live on .

I t is surprising ind eed wh en you see their
, ,

thin fram es th at th ey liv e at all
, .

A h but th ey are much wors e off at hom e ;
,

you S hould see them wh e n th ey com e from I ndi a

.

A nd so the conv ers ation end ed /

.

A nd this is how ou r tea wh ich we set so much ,

store by is produc e d i n Ceylon and els e wh ere

, .

T h ese pl ac es are sad looking pl ac es Comm er -

.

ci alism somehow has a w ay of d estroying all n atural

b eauty in thos e r egions wh e re it dwells H ere .

the mount ain sides are torn up the immense and ,

b eautiful fore sts rav aged from b as e to summit ,

and the sh aly esc arpm e nts th at r em ain pl anted in ,

geom etric al lin es with teaS hrubs You m ay w al k .

for miles through such Weary l ands extendin g ,

 A DA M S

P EA K A N D T HE B LA C K R I V ER 79

rapidly now all ov er the mountain region from the

b ase to ne ar the tops of the high est mount ains ,

the bl acken e d skeletons of h alf burnt tr ee s alone -

r e m aining to tell of the old forests of which before ,

long ther e will be but a m emory l eft .

I t is curious wh en one com es to think of it

, ,

th at such huge sp ac es of the earth are dev ast at ed ,

such v ast amounts of hum an toil exp end ed i n the ,

production of two things tea and wi ne which ,

to say the le ast are not n ec ess aries and which

, ,

certainly i n the qu antities commonly consum ed

are actu ally b an e ful I f th eir production S imply
.

c eased wh at a gain it might s eem ! Yet the

,

commerci al polici es of the v arious n ations stimul at e

these and al ways to the n egl ect of the nec ess ari es
,

of life T h ey stimul ate the stimulants We need

. .

not be hyp ercritic al but there must be som ething

,

p eculi ar in the t emper of the mod ern n ations th at

th ey m ake such trem endous sacrices in order to
ac t in this w ay .

O n e ach tea pl ant ation there are the lines

-

the cooli es live and the

( rows of huts ) in which ,

factory a l arge wood en building with rows of ,

windows a st eam engi ne and m achin ery for the

, ,

v ariou s proc esses c onc erned w ithering fermenting

, ,

rolling ring sorting p acking etc The tea bush es

, , , , .
-

a v ariety of the c amelli a) are not allowed to grow

(
more th an three or four feet high I n C eylon the .

plucking goes on almost all the ye ar round A s .

soon as the young shoots with ve or six le aves , ,

h av e had time to form since the l ast plucking a ,

gang of workers com es round mostly girl s and

women for this job e ach with a basket into which ,

they pluck the young l eaves and the little roll ed u p -

80 FR O M A DA M S
'
P EA K TO L P
E E HA N TA

leaf bud mo st precio u s of all When t aken to the

-
,
.

factory the l eaves are rst spre ad out to wither ,

th en rolled by m achinery (to look like buds ) then ,

dried or b aked by artici al he at A fter this they .

l l
Tami G irl Coo ie p l u ckin g Tea

are sorted through a hug e sieve and the nest

'
,

qu ality consisting of the sm all le af bud is called -

F low ery P eko e ; the next size including som e of

,

the young le af is c alled Broken P e koe ; and the

co ars er le av es come out as P ekoe S ouchong
,

,
82 FR O M ADA MS
PE A K TO EL E HA N TAP
h av e dwindled aw ay to one or two I n one cas e .
,

two little fellows of e ight and nin e l iving togeth er ,

on v e rup ees a month are the only represent ativ es ,

(of a form er family ) .

I w as sorry to le ave (the form er gard en ) very ; ,

I had got to know the coolies 3 0 0 of th em at any ,

rate who were under my ch arge and they had got ,

to know me M any of them wanted to com e with

.

m e her e but th at is not allowed

, S om e s a id they .

would cut their n ames th at is t ak e th eir n am es

, ,

off the gard en l abor r egist er and go wh erev er I

-
,

w ent bu t of cours e th ey could not do th at I don t

, .

know why they w ere so anxiou s to come be caus e ,

I know I work ed th em very h ard all the time I

w as th ere I think my pr ed ec essor used to ne
.

th em and thi ash them a good d eal often b ec aus e ,

he did not know wh at th ey s aid and could not ,

m ak e th em und erst and I like the cooli es v ery .

much and one gets quit e att ach ed to some of

,

th em ; th ey s eem instinctively polit e ; and if you

are ill th ey t end you j ust like a wom an n ever
,

le ave one in fact The high er and mor e resp ect

.

able cl ass of B aboos are j u st as ob j e ction able I ,

think .
 C H A P T ER V
I I
BR T SH L AW C O U RT S
-
AN D I
B U DDH S T T EM P L ES

Kn r nnejgala I
h ave come to the concl u sion th at
.

the courts and j udici al proc eedings out h er e are a

kind of ent ertainment provid ed for the oysters

at the expen se of the British Government and th at ,

the p eople r eally look upon th es e institutions v ery

much in th at light P oor things ! th eir ancient
.

co m m un al life and inter ests with all the loc al ,

qu estions and politic s which b elonged th ereto and ,

e v e n to a gr eat ext ent the religiou s festiv al s h av e ,

been improved aw ay ; th ey h av e but few mod ern

joys no vot es and el ections such as would d elight
our friend M onerasingha no circus es the atres , ,

music h alls Wh at is there l eft for th em but the

.

sen sations of the polic e courts ! T he di strict court

-

h ere is I nd the one gr eat centre of int erest in

, ,

the town Cro wds coll ect in the early morning

.
,

an d h ang about all day i n its vicinity e ith er ,

watching the c ases or discussing the judgm ents

d eliv ered till sun set wh en th ey dispers e hom eward
, ,

again . Cooling drinks are sold beggars ply their ,

trade the little bullock h ackeries trot up and

,
'

down and the pl ace is as busy as a fair T here

,
.

is no p articul ar stigm a in conviction by an alien

authority ; th ere is a h appy unc ert ainty in the
j udgments d elivered by the representativ es of a
rac e th at has di fculty in underst anding the popul ar
customs and l angu age ; and the worst th at c an
84 FR O M A DA M s

PE A K TO E L EP H AN T A
h app en n amely rel eg ation to prison life afford s a
,

not unple as ant prosp ect B esides these institutions .

,

c an be used to gr atify p e rson al spleen cases can be ,

and fr e quently are cook ed up in the most el abor ate

m ann e r D am ages can be cl aimed for a ctitious
,

as sault ; and when an injury has re ally b een done ,

the pl aintiff (and this I nd is a const antly recurring

Bu ll ock - Hack ery, Colombo

di fculty) will accuse not only the author of the

mi schi ef but T om D ick and H arry beside s who
, , , ,

h av e had nothing wh atev er to do with it but who ,

are the obj ects of person al spite i n the hope of

g et ,

ting th em too into troubl e T he C inghalese as I

, , .
,

h ave said before are a v ery sensitive peopl e A ny

, .

gri evance rankles in th eir bosom and in r evenge ,

th ey will not unfre q uently use the kni fe An .

Eurasi an friend a doctor s ays th at he q uit e thin k s

, ,
86 FR O M ADA M s

PE A K TO E L EP H AN T A
e videnc e) b een acquitt ed w ent off straight from the ,

court to an arrack shop and got drunk T h ey th en .

m ade it up b et we en th em th at th ey would rob the

m an thoroughly th at ev ening ev en if they had not ,

don e so b efore and giv e him a good hiding i nto the

,

b argai n and t aki ng to thems elv es som e oth er con

geni al spirits w ent off on th eir errand T h ey found .

the m an asl eep in the verand ah of his cabin and ,

tying him down gave him som e blows B ut as it .

c am e out in the evid enc e wi th r egard to the very

slight m ark s on the body b efore they could h ave

hurt him much the m an with gre at pre sen c e of

, ,

mind di ed and left th em ch arged with the crime

, ,

of murd er ! A n old wom an the m an s mother

with a b eautiful fac e but p alsi ed with age c am e , ,

forward to giv e evid enc e S he s aid she was ne arly .

1 00 y ears old tho u gh the evid enc e on this point

,

was not very cl ear A nyhow her he ad w as rem ark

.
,

ably cl ear and she gav e her t estimony well ;

,

id enti ed sev eral of the prisoners s aid they had ,

brok en into the cabin and c arried off valu able s and ,

th at one the l eader had motioned her into a corn er

, ,

of the c abin saying : S t and asid e old mother or

,

, ,

you ll g et hurt while anoth er had com e up to her
,

an d s aid : I think I had b ett er t ak e tho se b angl es

from you as th ey are no good to you now you

, ,

know . T here w ere n ine m en ch arged with the
offenc e and th ey were committed for tri al in a
,

high er court very decent looking sc aramouches on -

the whole j ust about aver age typ es of hum anity

, .

The English ofci al s th at I h ave seen her e and at

other pl aces strike m e as r em ark ably good h eart ed ,

painst aking m en ; but one feels the gulf betw een

them and the p eo p l e a g ulf th at can nev e r be
 BR T S H I I L A W C O U RT S AN D B U DDH S T I T EM L ESP 87

bridg ed P ractic ally all that a Governm ent lik e

.

ours doe s or can do is to m ak e possibl e the

, ,

est ablishment of our soci al institutions in the midst

of an alien people our r ailw ays education Bibl e , ,

m i ssions hospit als law court s w age sl av ery and

, ,
-
,
-
,

ro tgrinding and all the rest of it in the m idst of

p , ,

a people whos e whol e life springs from anoth er root ,

n amely religious fe eling T he two will nev er blend

, .
,

though the shock produced by the contact of two

such utterly different civilis ations m a
y re act on bot h ,

to the production of c ert ain import ant results A ny .

how for a well me aning ofci al it must be depressing

,
-

work for though he m ay con struct a v alu abl e t ank ,

or wh at not from the highes t motiv es according to

,

his own light i e for the m at eri al w elfare of the

. .

p eople and the realis ation of a v e per c ent prot .

to Governm ent still he nev er com es n ear touching

the he arts of the millions who would prob ably p ay ,

much more r esp ect to a half l u ny y og i th an to him -

and al l his p erc ent ages .

A s fri end S m anathan comes to re ad Engli sh

.
, ,

with me ev ery day and te ach es m e a little T amil in

,

r eturn H e is something of a d andy with his

.
,

green silk co at and h air pl aited down his b ack and ,

delicate hands and m ann ers a fellow over thirty ,

with a wife and children and yet not e arning any ,

livelihood but rem aining on at hom e with his pare nts

, ,

and d ependent on th em ! A nd wh at s eem s to us

mo st strange this is quit e an admitt ed and n atural
,

thi ng to do such i s the famili al communism which

still prev ails H e is very much of a student by
.

n ature and in his n ativ e town (in I ndi a) gives

,

lectures philosophic al and th eologic al free of

, ,

ch arge and which are q uite po pul ar H e is re ad

, ,
88 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E E L P H A N TA
ing S M ark with m e and r eads i t pretty w ell b eing
.
, ,

evidently famili ar even with the more philosophic al

w ord s though doubtfu l about the pronunci ation of
,

some H e is interest ed in the story of jesus and ,

thinks J esus w as no doubt a s age ie an adept

.

. .

o r at anyrate vers ed in the arcan e lore of the

East . But he is much amused at the Christi an
doctrine of the redemption which I suppos e he has ,

got hold of not from M ark but the mission aries

, , .

O n the 1 0 th of this month (january ) F M odd er .

and I went off on an e xc u r s ion from here to D ani

,

bulla (3 5 miles ) and th e nce to A nuradh apura (4 2

mil es ) D ambull a is celebrated for its B uddhi st
,

rock temples and A nuradh apura is the site of a v ery

,

anci ent city no w i n ruins amid the j ungle

D espite all sorts of reports about the length of
.
,

the j ourney and its d if c u lty the chief di f culty

being th at of getting any exact inform ation M .

m an aged to secure a bullock c art w it/t sp r ing s and ,

two pairs of b ullocks ; and we m ade a st art about

PM A m attress in the c art and a pillow or
.

two m ade all comfortable We sat and talked for .

a couple of hours then w alk ed and then w ent to

sl eep With an average speed of two miles an hour
, ,

w e r eached the rest house at Gok arell a at midnight -

,

ch anged bulls and imm edi ately went on A noth er

, .

six hours brought us to the house of a Government

m edic al practitioner a C inghalese where w e got
an early bre akfast and n ally we re ached D r ,

D evos house at D ambull a about mid day

, ,
-
.

T he little bulls went p atiently on during the

ni g ht the T amil driv e r chirruping jack and
,

to them (corr esponding to our carter s

P itt a

 F RO M P EA K P
EL E HA N T A

90 A DA M S TO

th eir mighty b u ttre sses stre tching white st ems up

i nto the yet gho stly light ; ant hill s conic al and -

spired all along the ro ad side ; t angl es of cre ep ers

,
-
,

and then as the sun ros e qu antiti es of butter i es

, ,
.

I know nothing of butt eri es but the kinds in thi s ,

country are very v arious and b eautiful T h ere is one .

which is very common about four inches across , ,

bl ack and white with body a bright red and under

, ,

wing S pott ed with the same colour very handsome

and one d ay when t aking a sun b ath in the woods
,
-
,

an immense sw allow t ail hov er e d round me

-
fully ,

ten inches across from tip to tip of wings

M odder is a che erful fellow of D utch desc ent
.

prob ably of about thirty y ears of ag e a proctor or

, ,

solicitor for n ative c as es well up in C i nghal

, ese and

T amil and full of antiqu ari an knowledg e yet c an

, ,

troll a comic song nic ely with a sweet voic e I nd .

he is a r egul ar d emocrat and h ates the whol e c ast e

,

sy stem in which he lives embedded thinks the

US . mu st be a glorious country

He s ay s he .

has often t alked to the T amil and C inghalese peopl e

about the folly of c aste A t rst they c an t und er

.

st and what he m eans are compl etely at a loss to

im agine anything di ffer ent but after a tim e the ide a ,

s eem s to t ake hold on t hem

F ound D evos at D ambull a a ne cl ear fac ed
.

'
-

m an of about thirty thr ee genu ine e asy going

-
, , ,

c arrying on a hospit al in this slightly popul at ed d is

tri et~j u st a l arge n ative Vill age no more b u t the ,

m ail s com e through this w ay and a few English ,

on their w ay to A nuradh apura and other pl aces , .

G angs of T amil cooli es al so from the m ainl and of

I ndi a p ass through D ambull a in going u p country
, ,

and h av e to be m
, ,

ed ic ally e x amin ed here for fear o f ,

 I I
BR T S H LAW C O UR T S A N D B U DDH S T I T EM P L ES '
-
91

chol era etc L iving with D evo s are two you nger
,

fe llow s P ercy C arron w ho is also an Eurasi an and

.

, , ,

a C in halese u th esters a sm all

g y o both for easy

,

going bachelors hou sehold and all very chummy

togeth er T hought they al so treat e d th e ir T amil

.

boy john well actu ally c alled him by his n ame ,

and did not shout at him T h ese fellows all t alk .

English among th ems elves in a close lipped r apid , , ,

rather ne at w ay T he other two ch affed the Cing

.

halese a good de al who w as of the usu al s ensitive

,

clinging type .

I n the afternoon w e w ent up the rock to see

the temples A gre at rock 50 0 or 60 0 feet high
simil ar to th at at K urun egal a
.
, ,

H alf w ay up .
-

stretches a bro ad ledge 1 0 0 y ard s long comm and , ,

ing a ne V iew over hill and d al e and b etw een this ,

l edge and an ov erh anging l ayer of rock abov e are

niched ve templ es all i n a row N o facade to .

speak of mere stucco walling but withi n you pass

, ,

into l arge caverns full of rud e st atues T he l argest .

of the temples is 1 50 feet long 40 deep and 2 3 high , ,

in front a gr eat d ark space with p erh aps fty

coloss al im ages of Buddh a sitting round in the gloom
with t heir sickly smil e of N irvan a and one hug e ,

gure 3 0 or 40 feet long lying down in illumi ned

, ,

sle ep ; all crudely done and painted bright yellows ,

and r eds yet r ath e r impres sive

,
T he sides too and .

roof of the c av ern are fre scoed in the s ame crud e

m ann er with stories from the life of Buddh a and ,

with gures of the H indu gods V ithal a fu sty .

V
,

smell a thous and ye ars old of pri ests none too cl ean
, , ,

of aring oil l amps of withered owers and st al e

-
,

incens e oppressed us horribly and it w as the

, ,

reatest r elief to get out ag ain into the O p en

g .
92 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
To E L EP H AN T A
D evos s ays the sc en e is v ery striking at the gre at
festiv als when multitudinou s pilgri ms assemble
,

and offer their lights and th e ir owers and their

money on bench es each b efore the gure they
, ,

affect . T om tom s b eat worshippers recite their

-
,

prayers lights twinkle and out side the l ight of the

, , , ,

full m oon pours down upon the rock M onkeys .

n ative to the rock are fed on this ledge in hundreds

by the priests .

Ceylon is of cours e m ainly B uddhist and allover

, , ,

the hilly p art of the i sl and rock temples of this sort -

,

though smaller are sc attered some mere shrines

,

with a single seated or r ecumbent i m age of Bud dh a .

T hey are commonly built among the woods under ,

some overh angin g brow of rock and the story ,

generally runs th at the c av ern had in e arlier times

been O ccupied by som e hermit s aint or y og i and -
, ,

th at the temple was built i n remembrance of him .

T here is a li ttle one of t his kind h alf w ay up the -

rock at K urun egal a and i t is tend ed by a boy priest

,

of about thirteen ye ars of ag e w ho b arehe ad and , ,

b arefoot but with his y ellow priest robe wound

,
-

gracefully about him attends in a dignied m an ,

ner to the service of the shrine H e is generally .

followed by a littl e att en dant (every one has an .

attend ant in the East ) a sm all boy of about nine

who turns ou t to be his enoki or cook ! T his sounds ,

luxurious but by rul e the Buddhi st priests should

,

live the most abst emious live s T h ey are supposed .

to h ave no money or poss essions of their own and ,

to be entirely celibate Each morning they go out .

with their beggi ng bowls on th eir arm to get their

d aily food T hey go to a hou se and st and ne ar the
.

door asking nothing T h en presently the wom an

, .
 FROM P EA K P H A N TA

94 A DA M S TO ELE

looking at the D ambull a t empl es which are

A ft er ,

s aid to h av e b een construct ed by the king W al a

gam bahu about 1 0 0 B C w e gain ed the summit of
. .
,

the rock wh enc e you h av e a vi ew over pl ains to

,

ward s the sea and of ranges of hill s inl and not

unlik e th at from the rock at K u run egal a ; and th e n
,

de sc end ed not without di fculty the pr ecipitous

, ,

sid e Ev ening fell and d arki es came out wi th

.
,

l amps to our aid .

The s am e night I pu shed on by m ail co ach to

A nuradh apura l eaving M odd er b ehi nd as he u n
fortun at el y had to return to K urun eg al a the n ext
, ,

day .
98 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
TO E L EP H AN T A
rain and d eci enci es of ch ann els is n early d ry O n ,
.

climbing the em ban k m ent the bed of the l ake

stretch es befor e o ne with hu nd red s of t am e buffaloes
,

an d oth er c attl e gr azing on its leve l m eadows a fe w

h alf n ak ed d arki es are shing in a littl e w at er which

-

rem ain s in one c orn er ; on eith er h and the l ak e

bottom is bound ed by woods and out of th ese woods , ,

and out of the woo d s behind o ne high abov e the ,

trees loom green and ov e rgrown m asses of m asonry ,

whil e b elow and amo ng th em l abyrinths of u nex

p lo red r u i ns are h idd en in thick d ark t angl e I t is .

as if L on d on had agai n b ecome a wild ern e ss abov e

which the A lb ert M emo ri al and S P au l s and the

,

.

T ow er still r ear ed co n fu sed h eaps of gr as sy ston e

and brickwork whil e sh eep and oxen brows ed
,

p eacefully in the bed of the T h ames now div erted ,

into anoth er ch ann el .

H ere for i nst anc e still st andi ng in a gr eat squ are

, , ,

o n a pi ec e of g round o v er an acr e in ext e nt are ,

sixt een hun d r ed rough h ewn columns solid granit e-

, ,

proj ecti ng about ten feet out of the ground and ,

arrange d i n p ar al l el rows at right angl es to each

oth er T h ey are suppos ed to form the found ation
.

storey of a building ni ne storey s high no doubt ,

built of wood bu t according to the anci ent chronicl es

,

of the M ahaw anso gorgeou sly d ecorat ed with its ,

resplend ent br ass cov ered roof and central h all of

-

g old en pill ars and ivory throne erected i n th e ,

second c entury B C occ u pi ed by the roy al folk and

the priest s and c all ed the Braz en P al ac e
.
.
,

, .

Clos e by is the glory o f Buddhism and of C eylon ,

the old est hist oric al tr ee in the worl d the cel ebr at ed ,

bo tr ee of A nuradh apur a pl ant ed 24 5 y ear s b efore

-

the Chri sti an era (from a slip it i s said of the tr ee , ,

 A N U R A D H A P U RA I
A R U N ED C T I Y O F T HE jU N G LE 99

und er which Buddh a sat when the gre at illumin ation

cam e to him ) and now more th an twenty one cen
,
-

tu ries old Extraordin ary as the age is yet the

.
,

chronicles of this tree s life h ave been so carefully
k ept (see Emerson T e nn ent s Cey lon where twenty

v e r e ferences from the Mahaw anso and oth er

c hronicles are given covering from D c 288 to A D
, . . .

1 7 th at there is at l east fair reason for supposing

that the story is correct The bo tree though be
.
,

longing to the g family has a le af strongly r es em ,

bling th at of an aspen T he m id rib of the l eaf is

.
-
,

however prolonged som e two inches into a n arrow

,

point which is sometim es curved into quite a hook

, .

T he tr emulous motion of the le af and the general

appe arance of the tre e also resemble the aspen ,

though the growth is som ewh at sturdier T hous ands .

of bo trees are pl anted all over I ndi a and Ceylon in

-

m emory of Buddh a (though the tree was prob ably

an obj e ct of vener ation b efore his time ) the ground
is sacred where they stand and a good Buddhi st ,

will on no account cut o ne down however incon ,

a

v enientl y it m ay be growing T his particul ar tree .

,

it mu st he confessed is som ewh at dis appointing

, It .

is sm all and though obviously old does not suggest

, ,

th e ide a of ex trem e antiquity I t springs from the .

top of a mound som e fteen feet high and the prob ,

ability I think is th at thi s mound has in the course

, ,

of centuries been thrown up round the origin al

trun k to support and protect it just as has hap

pened to M ilton s mulberry tree at C ambridge and -

to others and th u s has gradu ally hidden a great ,

part of the tree from vi e w A nd this id ea seem s .

to be supported by the fact th at six or se ven other

and le sser stems br anch out from neighbouring p arts
,
 F RO M P EA K P HA N TA

[0 0 A DA M S TO E LE

of the s ame mound the t err ac es and shrines which ,

occupy the mound helpi ng to conc eal the fact th at

th es e al so are or w ere at one tim e r eally all parts
, ,

of one tree A nyhow the whol e e nclo sure which is

.
,

about an acr e i n e xt e nt and is surrounded by an

anci e nt wall is thickly pl ant e d with bo tree s som e

,
-
,

of r eally ne dim en sion s so th at the piou s pilgrim ,

n eed h ave no dif culty in securing a le af without ,

committing the sacril ege of robbing the ven erable

pl ant .

H er e to this s acr ed enclosur e and to d ep o sit

, ,

ow ers and offerings within it com e at certai n fe sti ,

v al s thou sand s of B uddhist pilgrims T rudgi ng in .

on foot or driving by bullock cart they c amp out i n -

the p ark lik e ground s in the immedi at e n e ighbor

-

hood of the pres ent vill age and after payi ng their ,

resp ect s to the holy tree go to visit the dagob as

and oth er monum ent s which e n shrin e a bone or a
tooth or a h air from the brow of th e ir great t each er .

F or the r est of the y ear th es e pl ace s are left almost

u nvi s ited T h ere are no guid es to importun e the
.

rare touri st or trav ell er and o ne wanders alon e ,

through the w oods for a whol e d ay and s ees no

o ne ,exc ept it be a troop of monkeys with tails ,

erect pl aying le ap frog ov er the stumps of fall e n

,
-

columns as if in ridicule of the old pri ests or sit

, ,

ting lik e fakirs on the tops of tho se still st anding .

T he d agob as which are by far the most impor

,

t ant rem ains here are b ell sh aped structures mostly

,
-

of solid brick originally built to enshrine some r elic

, .

T h ey might ingeniously be mi st ak en for orn ament al

c andle extinguish ers m ad e on a v ast sc al e and h ave
-

mo stly i n th eir tim e b ee n co at ed with a whit e pl as

ter and d ecor at e d h er e a nd ther e with g old o r
:0 2 FROM A DA M s

PE A K TO E L EP H A N TA
fell T he enormous sauri an fang which purports
. ,

to be the sam e tooth is now preserv ed in great st ate

in the well known Buddhist templ e at K andy as I
,

-
,

h av e alre ady mentioned T he little gure of a

.

g at e ke eper or d/
z w orp al at the foot of the st eps i s
-

Thu param a Dzigoba, A nura dhapura

Wit/z R u m : of Dalad a I llalig awa m foreg rou nd

an excell ent specimen of early Buddhist sculpture ,

and is v ery gr ac eful and tender I t is giv en on a

.

l arger sc al e in a s ep arate illu stration (page 1 I I )

T he R u anw eli (or Gold dust ) D agob a which
.

-
,

re ars its unsh apely form clos e to the pr esent vill age ,

gi ves one a not ion of the massivene ss of these

 AN U R AD HA PU R A : A RU I N ED C IT Y O F T HE J U N G LE 1 0 3

a nci ent structur es and at the s ame tim e of the

,

rav age s which l apse of y ears has wrought upon

th em I n outlin e it resembl es a gigantic but ill
.

m ad e circul ar h ay st ack 1 50 feet high A llthe upp er

, .

p art of it is cov er ed with thick grass except wh er e ,

rec ent l aps es h av e expos ed the clo se yet rath er

soft brickwork of which the whol e is comp act ed .

T he more acces sibl e low er p art s and surrounding

t erraces h ave l at ely been cle aned of und ergrowth ;
and at the foo t among some w ell ex ecut ed c arvings
,
-
,

s tand four or ve ne st atues about eight feet

high one of K ing Du tu g em u nu w ho is s aid to
,

h av e b egun the bui ld ing about B C 1 6 1 the others . .

,

app ar e ntly of B u ddha and al l digni ed and nobl e in

,

conception if not an atomic ally p erfect in ex ecutio n

,
!

But the d agobas which b est show the gradu al

effacem en t of hum an h andiwork by N atur e are the

jetawanaram a and the A bhayag iria both of which ,

st and som e di st anc e out i n the woods and tow er ,

abov e the foli a e to the h eight s of 2 50 feet and 3 0 0

g
feet re spectiv ely T he form er of th es e (see pl at e
.

at b eginning of thi s ch apt er ) pr esent s a v ast con e

of brickwork som e 20 0 feet high surmounted by ,

a cylindric al column of the s am e ; and the conic al

portion is simply overgrown by d ense m ass es of '

trees which in serti ng their roots into the crevice s

,

of the brick s are continu ally dislodging portions of

this arti ci al mount ain C actu ses v ari eti es of g
.
, ,

and oth er tre es climb to the v ery b as e of the

colum n and h er e wh ere the bri ckwork is too steep
, ,

to be covered with foli age the omnipres ent wander oo

,

monkey m ay be seen disporting its elf on the very

summit .

T he A bhayag iria is of simil ar sh ap e but only ,

I O4 FR O M ADA MS
PE A K To E L EP H AN T A
cov e red at present wit h a shr u b lik e gro wt h -
.

Origin ally it w as the l argest dagob a i n C eylon ,

b eing 40 5 feet high or as high as S P aul s but

.

tim e has reduc ed it to som ewhere about 3 0 0 feet .

A r ath er pr ecipitous p ath l eads from the b as e to the

summit which has r ec ently b een restor ed i n som e
,

fashion and from th enc e a ne V iew may be

,

obt ained .

A s you ro am through the woods by j ungl e p aths ,

or along the two or three ro ad s which h av e b een

mad e in l at e ye ars to op en u p the ruins you come ,

upon innum erabl e sm aller rem ains M ost frequ ent .

am ong th ese are groups of columns still st anding ,

tw enty or thirty togeth er som etim es only rough ,

h ewn som etime s el egantly shap ed with c arv en

, ,

c apit als which either form ed the found ation storey s

,

of wooden buildings or b eing them selves covered ,

with roofs co nstitut ed portico es for the resting pl ac es -

of the gods in th eir proc essions or h abitations for ,

the u se of the prie st s T h er e are v ery few rem ains

.

of walled buildings stone or brick but plenti fu l

, ,

found ati on outlin es of what m ay h av e be en public

or sacred enclo sures of one kind or another som e
with h andsom e ights of steps and b alustrade s
l eading up to th em and for the low est step the
,

fr equ ent h alf moon stone carv ed with el egant d evic es

-

of the eleph ant the lion the hors e the Brah mi n

, , ,

bul l the goos e and the lotus o w er H e re among

, ,
-
.

the t angl e is a ight of h alf a dozen st eps springing - -

,

from nowhere and app arently l eading nowhither .

T h er e is a gigantic ston e troug h sixty two fe et long ,

-

by fo u r feet four inch es wid e ov er which the l earn ed ,

are in d oubt wh eth er i t w as used to cont ai n food

for the royal el eph ants or boil ed ric e for the priests !
I0 6 F RO M A DA M S
'
P EA K TO P HA N T A
ELE

which while closing i ts elf to the outward and tran

,

sitory world O pens on the e t ern al and ste adfast con

,

sc iou sness behind A d eep c alm ov erspreads the

.
.

fac e so deep th at it ins e n sibly affects the pas ser

by . He involunt arily stops and gaz es surr e nder ing ,

him self to its i nuence and to th at of the sil ent

,

t
A Ruined Ba hing Tank , Anuradhapura

forest H is thoughts subside like waves on water

.
,

wh en the wi nd ceases H e too for a mom ent .

touch es the well spring of being he swi m s i nto

-

id entity with the univ erse ; the trees icker in the

e v ening light the Buddh a j ust gives the slight est
,

and then

nod as much as to say T h at s it
, ,

he
is bu t stone again and the ro ad stretches b eyond
, .
 AN U R AD H A PU R A : I
A R U N ED C iT v O F T HE J U N G LE io7

Curious th at one m an should so affect the world

th at he should l eav e his bo tree s and his d agobas -

and his im ag es in thous and s over h alf a co nti nent ;

th at he should gather vast citi es round his n am e ,

and still when th ey h ave p erish ed and p ass ed aw ay

, ,

should rem ain the most glorious t hing conn ect ed

with them ; yet B uddh a could not h av e had this
ascend ancy had not other p eople in their thous ands
and hundr eds of thou sands experi enc ed in gre ater
or less d egr ee the s ame facts th at he exp eri enc ed .

We must forgive after all the dirty yellow rob ed

, , ,
-

p riests with their greedy cl aw s and stinking shrin es

, .

I t w as B uddh a s fault not theirs wh en he explor ed

, ,

poor hum an n ature so de eply as to inve st ev en its

low est m anifest ations with s anctity .

Wh ere this i m age now sit s p erh aps onc e it loo k ed

down upo n the busy t u rmoil of a great street T he .

glori es of the capit al of the C inghalese ki ngdom

unroll ed before and bene ath it H ear how the .

chro nicl er of the s ev enth c entury (quoted by Em er

escribe s with justi abl e prid e
so n T e nnent
) d * the

spl en d or of the city i n his day : T he t empl es and

palac es whos e gold en pinn acles glitter in the sky the ,

streets spann ed by arch es b earing ags the w ays ,

str e wn with s and an d on either side v ess els con

,

t aining owers and niches with st atu es hol d in g

,

l amp s . H er e are multitud es of men armed wi th

swords and bows and arrows Eleph ants hors es
c arts and myri ad s of peopl e pas s and repass~
.
, ,

j ugglers d anc ers and m usici ans of all nat ons

, ,
'
,

with ch ank sh ells and other instrum ents orn am e nted

with gold T he dist anc e from the p ri ncip al gat e
.

to the e ast gat e is four gow sf and the s ame from

6 mil es 1 .
1 0 8 F RO M AD A M S PE A K
TO EL E HA N TA
P
the north to the south gate T he princip al streets
are M oon S tr eet Gr eat K ing S tr eet Hing u ru w ak
.

, , ,

and Mahaw el li S tr eet the rst C ont aining

hous es m any of th em two stor eys in height T he
,
.

sm all er street s are i nnumerable T he p al ac e has .

l arg e ranges of buildings som e of them two and ,

three storeys high and its subterran ean ap art ,

m ents are of gre at extent .

F a H i an the Chin es e trav eller who vi sited Ceylon

, ,

about 4 1 3 A D also s ays T he city is the residenc e

,

of m any m agistrate s grand ees and foreign m er , ,

ch ants the m ansions b eautiful the public buildi ngs ,

richly adorned the stre et s and highways straight,

and l ev el and hou se s for pr e aching built at e very

,

N or w as the civilis ation of A nu rad

thoroughfare .

h apura m erely m ateri al i n its scope for T e nn ent t ell s ,

u s th at b esid e public g ard en s and b ath s h alls for ,

music and d ancing rest hou ses for travell ers alm ,
-

hou ses e tc they had hospit als in which an im als as

, .
,

w ell as m en w ere t end erly car ed for T he corn of .

a thous and eld s w as set ap art by o ne king for th eir

u se ; anoth er put asi d e ric e to feed the squirr el s

which frequented his gard ens and a third di spl ayed

his surgic al skill in tre ating the dise ases of el eph ants ,

horses and sn ak es
,
.

F ound ed by C inghalese inv ad ers of the isl and

som ewh ere in the fth or sixth centurie s B C the city
att ained its rst spl e ndor und er K ing Dew anip i
. .
,

a
tis sa who c ame to the t h ro ne i n B C 3 0 6
,
I t was . . .

i n his reign s ay s Burrow s th at the royal mission
, ,

ary Mahind o son of the I ndi an king Dharm asoka

, ,

land ed in C eylon and either introduced or regen er ,

ated Buddhism T he mon arch and all his court .

,

his consort and her women bec am e re ady converts ,

I I O F ROM A DA M S

P EA K TO L P
E E HAN TA

more ll ed with g ay crowds the slight h abit ations ,

of the popul ac e soon fell to piec es l eaving no trace ,

behind (exc ept a soil impregn ated for mil es and

mil es with the debr is of bricks ) ; the ston e pal ac es
and t e mpl es l apsed into dec ay A nd now Buddh a .

si ts in the silence of the forest fold e d i n the anci ent ,

calm just as he sat c enturi es and c e nturi es ago i n

,

the tumult and ro ar of the city night falls and the ,

eleph ant and the be ar ro am past him through the

brushwood the h erds of spott ed d e er are startl ed
,

for a mom ent by his lonely form i n the moon

light .

I f o ne asc ends the A bhayag iria d agob a from its ,

v ant ag e h eight of 3 0 0 feet he has a good bird s eye !

-

V i ew of the region B efore him to the w est and

.

north stretches as far as the eye c an See a lev el

pl ain almo st unbrok en by hills T his pl ai n is .

cov ered e xc ept for a few r es ervoirs and an occ a

,

si o nal but r ar e o asis of coco nut p alm by d ense -

,

woods O n all sid es they str etch like a uniform

.
,

grey green c arp et ov er the earth ; e v en the pre sent

-

vill age of A nuradh apur a h ardly m akes a break ,

so sm all is it and i nter spers ed with trees

, T hrough .

th es e woods run n arrow jungl e paths and among , ,

th e m sc attered at int erv al s for mil es and miles are

, ,

ruin s simil ar to tho se I h av e d escrib ed A nd this .

is all th at is left to d ay of the ancient city

-
.

I suppo se the t empt ation to m ak e mor al reec

tion s on such subj ects is v ery strong ! F or mys elf
I can only say th at I h av e w alked through th ese
and oth er such sc en es with a sens e of unfe igned
gratitud e th at th ey belong to a past which is d ead
and don e with T h at T ime sw eeps all th ese efforts
.

of mort ality (and our own as well ) in due co u rs e

 A N U R A DHA I U R A : A R U NI I
ED C T Y O F T HE jU N G LE III
i nto his du st bin is a m att er for which w e c an nev er
-

be sufciently th ankful T hink if all the monu

.
,

ments of hum an pride and foll y which h av e b ee n

ll
S ma G uardian F igure, or t orpal

A t en trance to Da lada . Wa ligaw a/

'

created were to endur e inde nitely if even ou r ,

own best and most us eful works were to rem ain ,

cumbering up the e arth with their very mult itude , ,

wh at a nui sanc e it wo ul d be ! T he gr eat kin g s

 FR O M P EA K P H A N TA

I I Z A DA M S TO ELE

c aus ed gloriou s pal aces and st at ues and temples to

be m ade thinking to outvi e all form er and p aralyse
,

al l future efforts of m ankind perp etu ating their ,

n ames to the end of the years But T ime wiser .

, ,

quickly removed all th es e things as soon as their

authors w ere d e c e ntly out of the w ay le aving us ,

ju st as much of them as is su fci ent to convey the

ideas which und erl ay them and no more A s a , .

vast d agob a cont aining bricks enough to build a

,

good sized town is erected to enshri n e a single

-

hair from the he ad of a gre at m an so the glorious ,

te mples and st atues and pictures and pal ac es of a

whole epoch all put togeth er do but enshrin e a
, ,

tiny atom of the etern al be auty L et them d eliver .

th at and go th eir w ay
, .

Wh at a good thing even th at our bodies die !

H ow thankful w e ought to be th at th ey are duly
int erred and do ne wit h in cours e of tim e F ancy .

if we were condemn ed always to go on i n the sam e

identic al form s e ach of us r epe ating the sam e
, ,

anci ent j ok es m aki ng the s am e wis e r em ark s

, ,

priding ourselve s on the same sup eriorities ov er our

fello w s enduring the sam e insults from them w ear
, ,

ing the s am e fusty garments ev er getti ng ragged er ,

and ragged er through the centuri es wh at a fat e !

N o ; let us know th er e is som e thing bett e r th an
th at T hes e swarms of idl e priests who ate rice
.

out of troughs at the public expense ; these endl ess

mu m bo jumbo books th at th ey wrot e these mighty
-

kings with their royal nery t heir h arlots and th eir

, , ,

ins ane battles ; th es e anim al hospit als ; these ruins

of gre at c ities lost in thicket s ; th es e A lexandri an
librarie s burnt to ash es ; th es e Greek st atues brok en
and buri ed in the earth al l th at is r eally d u r able
 C H A P T ER VI I

A I
N G HT F ES T
-
I VA L IN A I I I N DU P
T EM LE

T HE festival of T ayp u sam is one of the more im

portant among the m any r eligious festiv als of the
H indu s and is c el ebrat ed with great r ej oicings on
,

the night of the r st full moon in janu ary each

y ear I n the c ase of the gr eat t empl es of S outh ern
.

I ndi a som e of which are so v ast th at th eir e n

,

closur es are mor e th an a mil e in circumfer ence ,

e normou s cro wd s som etim es p eopl e or

more will congregat e tog ether to witn es s the
c eremoni als which are el abor ately gorg eous T h ere
, .

are a few H indu t emples of sm all er size in C e ylon ,

and i nto o n e of th es e I had the good fortun e to

be admitt ed on the occ asion of this ye ar s festival
,

and at the tim e wh en the proc eedi ngs w ere

about to comm enc e .

I t w as n in e o clock the fu ll moon w as shining ,

in the sky and alr eady the bl aring of t rump ets

,

and horn s could be h eard from within as I stood

at the g at e s eeking admitt anc e A t r st this w as .

po sitiv ely d eni ed ; bu t my companion who w as a ,

p erson of som e authority in the t emple soon ,

effected an e ntr ance and we pr esently stood within,

the pr ecincts I t m u st be und erstood th at thes e

.

t empl es g enerally con sist of a l arge oblong eu

clo sure mor e or l ess pl ant ed with palms and oth er
,

tre es within whi ch st and s the sanctu ary it sel f with

, ,

1 1 4
 A I
N G H T - F ES T I VA L IN A HI N DU P
T EM LE I I S

l esser shrines priests dwelli ngs and other buildings
, ,

gro u p ed round it I n the pres ent c ase the eu

.

clos u re w as about one hundred y ard s lo ng by sixty

or seventy wide with short gr ass und er foot
, In .

the centre stood the templ e prop er a buil d ing

without any pret ensions to architectur al form a ,

mere oblong bound ed by a wall ten or twelve feet

,

high unbrok en by any window s and rud ely p aint ed ,

i n vertic al strip es red and white A t the far end

, .
,

under tre es wer e some low pri ests cott age s ; and
,

farther on a t ank or reservoir not very l arge with , ,

a stone b alustrade round it Coming round to the .

front of the t emple which w as more orn am ent ed

, ,

an d wh ere the m ain doorway or entr anc e w as w e ,

fou nd th ere a consid erabl e crowd ass embl ed We

we re in fact just in time to witn es s the b eginning '

of the c eremony ; for almost imm edi ately a lot of

folk c ame rushing out through the doorw ay of the
t empl e in evid ent ex ci tem ent torch es w er e light ed ,

con sisting of long poles som e surmount ed with a ,

ami ng ring of rags dipp ed in coco nu t oil oth ers -

with a sm all iron crat e in which lumps of broken

coco nut burn e d m errily I n a few mom ents th ere
-
.

w as a brilli ant light ; the peopl e arr anged th em

selves in two lin es from the temple door ; sounds
of musi c from within got louder ; and a sm all pro
ce ssion appeared musici an s rst th en four n autch
, ,

girls and l astly a sm all pl atform supported on the

,

should ers of men on which w as the gr eat god S iv a

, .

A t rst I could not m ake out w hat this l ast

n am ed obj ect w as but presently disti nguished two
,

rude r epres ent ations of m al e and fem ale gur es ,

S iv a and hi s consort S akti app ar ently cut out of ,

one block s eat ed and about three feet high but so

, , ,
I I6 FR O M A DA M S

P EA K TO P
EL E HA N TA

hedon e with j ew els and silk s th at i t w as d i fcult to

be sur e of th eir anatomy ! Over th em w as held a
big orn am ent al umbrell a and b ehind followed the ,

pri est We join ed the proce ssion and soon arri ved
.
,

at the edg e of the r eservoir which I hav e alre ady

mention ed and on which w as o ating a strange
,

kind of ship I t w as a raft m ad e of bamboos

.

l ashed to empty b arrels and on it a most orid ,

and brilli ant c anopy cov er ed with cloth s of differ e nt

,

colors and surmount ed by little sc arl et p enn ants .

A ight of st eps down to the wat e r occupi ed the

whol e of one sid e of the t ank the oth er three sid es ,

w ere sur round ed by the ston e b alcony and on th ese ,

st eps and rou nd the b alcony the crowd imm edi at ely
di spo sed its elf while the proc ession w ent on bo ard
, .

When the god w as prop erly arranged und er his

canopy and the n autch girl s round about him and
, ,

wh en room had b een found for the cre w w ho with ,

long pol es w ere to prop el the ves sel and for as ,

m any mu sici an s as conv enient about a doz en soul s

in all a b ell rang and the pri est a brown bodi ed
, ,
-

young B rahmin with the sacred thre ad ov er his

should er s a nd a whit e cloth edg ed with red round

his loins m ad e an offering of am e of c amphor i n

,

a v e br anch ed l amp
-
A hush fell upon the crowd
.

who all h eld th eir h and s p alms togeth e r as in the , ,

attitud e of pr ay e r (but also symbol of the de sire to

be j oin ed tog eth er and to the god ) som e with
th eir arms high above their h ead ; a tray w as
pl ac ed on the raft of coco nuts a nd b an an as which
,
-

the pri est op eni ng d eposited before the im age ; the

b and bur st forth into ren ewed upro ar and the shi p ,

w ent gyrati ng ov er the w at er on her q u eer voy age .

Wh at a sc en e ! I had now time to look aro u n d

1 1 8 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E L EPH AN T A
F or th e rst time I gath e r e d som e cl e ar id e a of
what th e ancient fe stivals wer e lik e H e re w as a .

boy blowing two pip e s at th e sam e tim e e xactly ,

as in th e Gre e k has r e li e fs Th e r e was a man

-
.

droning a deep bourdon on a r ee d instrum e nt ,

with cheeks puffed into pouches with long sustain e d -

e ffort of blowing ; to hi m was attach e d a shrill

ag eolet play e r th e two togeth e r giving much
the e ffe ct of H ighland bagpipes Th e n there w e r e .

the tom toms whos e stretched skins produce quit e

-

musical and b e ll like though monotonous sounds ;

and lastly two old m e n jingling cymbals and at
th e sam e tim e blowing th e ir t e rribl e chank horns -

or conch e s Th e s e chanks ar e much us e d in

Buddhist and H i ndu templ e s Th e y ar e large.

whorl e d s e a sh e lls of the whelk shape such as

-
,

som e tim e s ornam e nt our mant e ls Th e ap e x of .

th e spiral is cut away and a mouthpi e ce c e m e nted

in its place through which the instrum e nt can be
,

blown like a horn I f th e n th e ngers b e used

.
, ,

to partly cov e r and vary the mo u th of th e sh e ll ,

and at the sam e tim e th e shell be vibrat e d to and

fro i n th e air what with its natural convolutions
and th e s e added complications the most e ar ,

rending and diabolically wavy be wild e ring and

hollow sounds can be produc e d such as might ,

sur e ly infe ct th e most callous worshiper with a

prop e r faith in th e s u p e rnatural .

The temp e r of th e crowd too h e lped on e to , ,

understand th e old r e ligious attitud e I t was .

thoro ughly z vlole~ ea7 ted I cannot t 1 ink of any

other word Th e re w as no pi e ty in our sens e of
.

th e w ord or v e ry littl e obs ervabl e

-
,They w e re .

j ust thoroughly e njoying the m selv e s a little excit e d ,

 A N IGHT F ESTI VA L
-
I N A HI ND U T EM P L E 1 1 9

no doubt by chanks and divin e possibiliti e s g e n e r

,

ally but not subdu e d by awe talking fr ee ly to e ach

,

oth e r in l ow ton e s or e v e n indulging occasionally

,

th e young e r o nes in a littl e b e ar g hting at th e

w -

sam e tim e proud of th e sp e ctacl e and th e pr e s e nc e

of th e di v ini ty h e art and soul in th e c e r e mony
, ,

and anxious to lend hands as torch b e ar e rs or image -

be ar e rs or in any way to its succ e ssful issu e

, ,
It .

is this temp e r which th e wis e m e n say is e ncourag e d

and purpos e ly cultivat e d by th e c e r e monial institu
tions of H induism Th e templ e servic e s ar e made
.

to cov e r as far as may b e th e whol e ground of life

, , ,

and to provid e th e pl e asur e s of th e th e atr e th e art ,

gall e ry th e music hall and th e conc e rt room in one -

P eopl e attracted by th e s e sp e ctacl e s which are v e ry

, , .

num e rous and very vari e d in character according ,

to th e diffe r e nt fe asts presently r e main to inquir e

i nto their m e aning S om e lik e th e music oth e rs
.
,

the bright colors M any m e n com e at rst m e r e ly

.

to witn e ss th e dancing of the nautch girls but aft e r ,

wards and ins e nsibly ar e drawn into sph e re s of

mor e spiritual inuence E v e n th e children nd
.

pl e nty to attract them and the temple b e comes ,

th e ir familiar r e sort from e arly life .

Th e th e ory is that all th e c e re m oni e s hav e inn e r

and mystic m eanings w hich m e anings in du e tim e
w

are d e clared to thos e who ar e t and that thus th e

templ e institutions and c e remoni e s constitute a great
ladd e r by which m e n can ris e at last to thos e inn e r
truths which li e b e yond all formulas and ar e contain e d
in no cre e d S uch is th e th e ory but lik e all theories
. ,

it r e quire s larg e deductio ns befor e acc e ptance .

That such th e ory was on e of the formative in u

e nces of th e H i ndu cer e monial and that the latter ,
1 20 FR OM A DA M S P EA K
TO L EP H A N T A
E

e mbodi e s h e r e and th e r e important e sot e ric truths

desc e nding from Vedic tim e s I hardly doubt ; but , ,

on the oth e r hand tim e custom and neglect dif

, , , ,

ferent str e ams of tradition bl e nding and blurri ng

each oth e r r e forms and a thousand inu e nc e s have
,

-
as in all such cas e s produced a total concrete
result which no on e theory can acco u nt for or c o
ordinate
S uch w e r e som e of my thoughts as I watch e d
.

th e crowd around m e Th e y too w e re not u n

.
, ,

i nter e st e d in watching m e Th e appearanc e of an

E nglishman und e r such circumstanc e s was perhaps
.

a littl e unusual and scor e s of black e y e s w e r e

,

turn e d inquiringly i n my dire ction ; but cover e d as

I was by th e authority of my companion no one
s e em e d to r e sent my presenc e A fe w I tho ught .
, ,

look e d shocked but th e most s ee med rath e r pl e as e d

, ,

as if proud that a sp e ctacl e so brilliant and impr e s

sive should b e witn e ss e d by a stranger b e sides
th e r e were two or three among th e crowd whom I
happ e n e d to hav e m e t befor e and spok e n with and ,

whose fri e ndly glanc e s mad e m e feel at hom e .

M e anwhil e th e gyrating raft had compl e ted two

,

or thr e e voyag e s round th e littl e piece of wat e r

E ach time it r e turn e d to the shore fre sh offerings
.

w e r e mad e to th e god th e bell was rung again

, ,

a moment of hush e d adoration follow e d and then ,

with fresh strains of mystic music a n e w start for

th e d ee p took plac e What the inn e r signication
.

of thes e voyag e s might b e I had not and hav e not

the faint e st id e a ; it is possibl e e v e n that no one
pres e nt knew A t th e same tim e I do not doubt
.
.

that the drama was originally institut e d in ord e r to

c ommemorat e som e act u al ev ent or to symbolise ,
1 22 F R O M ADAM S PE A K
'
TO E L EP H A N T A
god i n relief the p e rp e tual dance of creation ;
but unlike some of the larger temples in which ,

th e re is often most e laborat e and costly stonework ,

e v e rything here w as of the plainest and there was ,

hardly anything i n th e way of scu l pture to be seen .

Out of this forecourt op e ned a succession of chambers

into which one might not enter ; but the dwindling
lights placed i n each s e rved to show distanc e after
distance I n the extr e m e chamber farthest remov e d
.

from the door by which alon e daylight enters th e

,

r e st of the interior being illumined night and day

with articial lights is plac e d surrou nded by l amps , ,

th e most sacred obj e ct th e lingam This of cours e

, .
, ,

w as too far off to b e discerned and indeed it i s ,

e xc e pt on occasions k e pt covered but i t app e ars

,

that instead of being a rude image of the male

organ (such as is frequ e ntly seen i n the outer courts
of these temples ) the thing is a certain white ston e
, ,

blu e v e ined and of an e gg shape which is mys

- -

teriou sl shed if th e gods so will it from the

y u
p
d e pths of the river N e rbudda and only thence
I t stands i n the temple in th e hol l ow of another
.
,

oval shaped obj ect which r e presents the female

-

yom ; and the two tog e ther e mblemising S iva and

,

S akti stand for the sexual e nerg y which pervad e s

,

cr e at ion .

Thus the worship of sex is found to lie at th e

root of the present H i nduis m as it does at the root ,

of n e arly all the primitive r e ligions of the world .

Y e t it would be a mi stak e to conclude that such

worship i s a mere deic ation of material functions .

Wh e never it may have b ee n that the Vedic proph e ts

d e sc e nding from N orth e rn lands into I ndia rst dis
c ov e red within themselv e s that capacity of spiritual
 A N IGHT -
F ES T I VA L \ I N A HI ND U TE M P L E 1 23

e cstasy which has mad e th e m ev e n down till to day -

on e of th e gr e at e st religious forc e s i n the world ,

it is c e rtain that th e y found (as inde e d ma ny of the

m e di aeval Christian s ee rs at a lat e r tim e also found )
that this e cstasy had a c e rtain similarity to th e
s e xual rapture I n th e ir hands th e r e for e th e rud e
.
, ,

phallic worships which th e ir predec e ssors had with

,

true instinct c e lebrat e d came to have a new m e an ,

ing ; and sex its e lf the most important of e arthly

,

functions came to !d e riv e an ev e n greater importanc e

,

from its r e lation to the one supr e m e and h e av e nly

fact that of th e soul s union with God

I n th e middl e line of all H indu templ e s b e tw ee n

, .

the lingam and th e door ar e plac e d tw o oth e r v e ry

sacred obj e cts the couchant b u ll N andi and an
,

upright ornament e d pol e th e Kamp am or as it is , ,

som e tim e s call e d the ag staff I n this cas e th e bull

, .

was about four fee t i n l e ngth carv e d in on e block ,

of stone which from continual anointing by pious

,

worshippers had b e com e quite black and lustrous on

th e surfac e I n th e gre at t e mple at Tanjor e there
.

is a bull twenty feet long cut from a singl e block

of syenite and similar bull images ar e to be found
,
-

in gr e at numb e rs in th e s e templ e s and of all siz e s ,

down to a foot in l e ngth and in any acc e ssibl e ,

situation ar e sure to be black and shining with oil .

I n Tamil the word p aw signies both 095 71 6 th e

dom e sticat e d ox and th e sou l S iva is frequ e ntly
.

r e pr e sented as riding on a bull ; and th e animal

repr e s e nts th e hu man soul which has becom e subj e ct
and afliated to th e god A s to th e flagstaff it was .
,

very plain and app e ared to b e mer e ly a wood e n

,

pole ni n e i nches or so thick slightly ornamented ,

I n the w e ll known
,

and painted a dull red color .

-
[24 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

t e mpl e at M adu a th e kam pam is mak e of t e ak

r

plat e d with gold and is e ncircl e d with c e rtain rings

,

at int e rvals and at th e top thre e horizontal arms

,

proj e ct w ith littl e b e ll lik e tass e ls hanging from

,
-

th e m This curious obj e ct has it is said a physio

.
, ,

logical m e aning and r e pres e nts a nerv e which

,

pass e s up th e m e dian lin e of th e body from th e

ge nital organs to th e brai n th e great sym
path e tic ) I nd ee d th e whol e dispositions of th e
.
,

par ts in thes e t e mples is suppos e d (as of cours e also , ,

in th e Christian ch u rch e s ) to repr e s e nt the human

body and so also th e uni ve rs e of which the human
,

body is only the miniatur e I do not feel mys e l f .

in a position how e v e r to judg e how far th e se

, ,

corr e spond e nc e s ar e e xact T h e inn e r chambers .

in this particular t e mpl e w e re as far as I could se e , ,

plain and unornam e nt e d

O n coming out again into th e O p e n space in front
.

of th e porch my attention was dir e ct e d to some low

,

buildings which formed th e pri e sts quart e rs Two .

pri e sts w e r e attach e d to th e t mpl e and a s e parat e e

,

cottag e was intend e d for any trav e lling pri e st or lay

benefactor who might want accommodation within
th e pr e cincts
A nd now th e s e cond act of th e sacr e d drama was
.

comm e nci ng Th e god ha v ing perfor m e d a suf

.
,

cient numb e r of e xcursions on the tank was b e ing ,

carried back with c e remony to th e spac e in front of

th e porch wh e r e for som e time had be e n standing ,

on portabl e platforms made of poles thr e e strange ,

animal gure s of mor e than life siz e a bull a -

peacock and a black cr e at u r e som e what r e s e mblin g

,

a hog but I do not know what it was m e ant for

, .

On th e back of th e bull which was e videntl y i tself in

,
1 26 FR O M ADAM S PE A K '
TO E L EPH AN T A
I n this rampant way th e proc e ssion mov e d for a fe w
yards th e m e n wr e stling and sw e ating und e r the
,

w e ight of the god imag e s which according to ortho

-
,

d ox i d eas ar e always mad e of an alloy of th e v e

metals known to the ancie nts an alloy called
/ l k and are
p a n c z a o a
c e rtainly imm e nsely
h e avy and th e n it
cam e to a stop Th e .

b e are rs r e st e d their
poles on strong
crutch e s carried for
th e purpose an d ,

while they took

br e ath the turn of th e
nautch girls cam e .

M ost p e opl e ar e
sufci e ntly familiar
nowadays through ,

Ori e ntal exhibitions

and th e lik e with th e ,

dr e ss and b e aring of
th e s e Devadasis or ,

se rvants of G od .

C gh l G l
in a ese ir sweep the

templ e s ay s t h e ,

aut h or of L if e in an Villag e ornam e nt th e ,

oor with quaint gur e s drawn in ri ce our hold the ,

sacr e d light b e for e th e god fan him and danc e and , ,

by M gasthene as el b ated in t m ul t o s f stival the wo

e s

c e r u u u e s,

s anointing thei b od i s w ea ing c ow ns o f o we s and

r

sh ipp er r e ,
r r r ,

so nd ing b ell and c y m b al s F o m w hic h add s

sh

u s .
the r , e ,

G e k onjec t ed that S iva hlp wa d e iv d f om B acc h s

r e s c ur OI S s r e r u
o Diony o
r and a i d to th
s s. Ea t in th t ad it on a y
c rr e
p d ition
e s e r i r ex e

w hi h B a h
c m ad in om pany with H c ul es
cc us e c er .

 A N IGHT FESTIVAL I N
-
A HI N DU TE M P L E 1 27
Q

sing wh e n required I n th e villag e of K lam ba

.

-

kam he continu e s th e r e are two dancing girls
,

Kanakam bujam and M inakshi K is th e c onc u

, ,

. .

bine of a neighboring Mu d elliar and M of A pp ala , ,

charri the B rahmin B ut th e ir s e rvi ces can be

.

obtained by others I will describe the dr e ss of

on e of the four pres e nt on this occasion S he had

.

on a dark velvet ee n tunic with quit e short gold

edg e d sleeves the tunic almost conc e al e d from vi e w
,

by a v e ry handsome scarf or sari such as th e I ndian

wom e n wear This sari mad e of crimson silk pro
.
, ,

fu sely ornament e d with gold thread w as passed ov e r ,

on e shoulder and having been wound twic e or thrice

,

round the waist was made to hang down lik e a

petticoat to a li ttl e b e lo w the knee Below this .

appear e d silk l e ggings of an orange colour ; and

heavy silv e r ankl e ts crown e d the nak e d fee t H and .

som e gold bangles w e re on h e r arms (silv e r b e ing

u sually worn b e low th e waist and gold above
) je we ls ,

and b e ll shap e d pendants i n h e r nos e and e ars and

-
,

on h e r head ros e color e d ow e rs pinn e d with gold

-

brooch e s and profu s e ly i nwov e n with the plaited

black hair that hung down her back Th e others .

with variations in color had much th e same costume

To d e scrib e th e ir fac e s is di f cult I think I
.

s e ldom saw any so i nanimat e ly sad I t is part of .

th e teaching of I ndian wom e n that th e y should

nev e r give way to th e e xpression of fe e ling or to ,

any kind of e xcitem e nt of manner and t his i n th e ,

cas e of bett e r types l e ads to a r e markable d ignity

and composure of b e aring such as is comparativ e ly ,

rare i n th e W e st but i n mor e stolid and ignorant

,

sorts produc e s a most apath e tic and bovin e mi e n

I n th e case of th e se nautch wom e n c irc uin stances
.

,
1 28 FR O M ADAM S PE A K

TO E L EP H AN T A
are complicat e d by th e prostit u tion which s ee ms to
b e th e in e vitabl e accompaniment of their profe ssion .

O ne might inde e d think that it w as distinctly a

, ,

r t of th e ir profession as wom e n attach e d to the

p a
s e rvic e of templ e s whose c e ntral idea is that of s e x
but som e of my H indu fri e nds assure me that this
is not so : that th e y liv e wh e re th e y lik e that th e ir ,

d e ali ngs with th e oth e r sex are entirely th e ir own

affair and ar e not reg ulat e d or recognis e d i n any
,

way by th e t e mpl e authoriti e s and that i t is only so , ,

to sp e ak an accid e nt that th e s e girls ent e r into c onr

,

m erc ial r e lations with men g e n e rally it is admitted , ,

with the w e althier of thos e who attend the servic e s

an accid e nt of cours e quit e lik e ly to occur sinc e th e y
, , ,

ar e pr e sumably good looking and ar e e arly forc e d

-
,

into publicity and out of the usual routin e of dom e s

tic life A ll th e sam e though doubtless thes e things
.
,

ar e so now I think it may fairly be supposed that

,

th e s e xual s e rvices of these nautch girls w ere at on e

tim e a recognis e d part of th e ir duty to the t e mple
to which th e y w e r e attach e d S ee ing i nd ee d that .
, ,

so many of the religions of antiquity ar e known to

hav e r e cognised s e rvic e s of this kind seeing also ,

that H induism did at least incorporat e in its e lf

primitive sexual worships and s ee ing that th e re is ,

no r e ason to suppos e that such practic e s invol ved

any slur in primitiv e times on thos e concern e d in
th e m rather th e rev e rse I think w e have at any

rat e a strong p rz 7nr f acz cas e I t is curious too .

,

that e v e n to d ay notwithstanding th e obvious

, ,

drawbacks of th e ir life th e se girls are quit e r e cog

,

n ised and accept e d in H indu famili e s of high stand

ing and r e sp e ctability Wh e n marriag e s tak e plac e
.

th e y dre ss the bri d e put on h e r je w e ls and ge n e rally

, ,
1 30 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E L EPH AN T A
On coming round to th e porch what might be
call e d th e third act commenc e d Th e platform of
the bull and th e god S iva was not without
.

struggl e s lowe red to th e ground so as to fac e th e

porch th e oth e r two gods b e ing k e pt i n th e back
,

ground ; and th e n th e four girls going into th e ,

t e mpl e and bringing forth littl e oil lamps walk e d in -

,

singl e l e round th e image follow e d by the musicians

,

also in singl e l e Th e s e latt e r had all through th e

.

p e rformanc e kept up an almost continuous blowing ;

and th e ir v e in e d knott e d fac e s and dist e nd e d ch ee ks
,

bor e witn e ss to th e e ffort not to m e ntion th e state

,

of our own e ars ! I t must how e v e r in justic e be

, ,

said that th e dron e the ag eolet and th e trump e ts

, ,

wer e tun e d to th e sam e k e ynot e and their combin e d ,

musi c alon e would not hav e b ee n so bad ; but a

chank shell can no mor e b e tuned than a zebra can
-

b e tamed and wh e n tw o of th e se instrum e nts to

,

g e th e r blown by two wiry old m en obdurat e ly

,

swaying th e ir h e ads were add e d to th e tumult it

, ,

s ee m e d not impossibl e that on e might go giddy ,

and p e rhaps b e com e Meop nenslos at any mom e nt , .

Th e show was now evid e ntly culminating Th e .

e ntry of th e musicians into th e t e mpl e wh e re th e ir ,

r e v e rb e rations w e r e simply appalling was th e signal ,

for an inrush of th e populac e We pass e d i n with

the crowd and almost imm e diat e ly S iva lift e d from
.

, ,

the bull followed born e i n stat e und e r his parasol

, , .

H e was placed on a stand i n front of th e sid e shrin e

in th e for e court alr e ady m e ntion e d ; and a curtai n
being drawn b e for e him th e r e was a mom e ntary
,

hush and aw e The pri e st b e hind th e curtain (whom

.

from our standpoint we could s ee ) now made th e

nal offe rings of fruit o w e rs and sandalwood and
, , ,
 A N IGHT FESTI VAL
-
IN A HI N DU T E M P L E 1 31

lighted the ve branch e d camphor lamp for the last

-

time This burning of camphor is lik e other things

.
,

in th e s e rvice emblematic Th e v e lights rep re

s e nt th e v e senses A s camphor consumes its e l f
, .

and leav e s no r e sidu e b e hind so should th e ve

,

s e nses b e ing offe red to God consum e themselv e s

, ,

and disapp e ar When this is don e that happens in

.
,

the soul which was now gured in th e t e mple s e r

vice ; for as th e last of the camphor burn e d itself
away the veil was swiftly drawn aside and th e re
stood th e image of S iva reveal e d in a blaz e of light .

The s e rvic e was now ov e r The priest distribut e d

.

the offerings among the p e opl e ; th e torch e s were

put out and i n a few minutes I w as walki ng hom e
ward through th e stree ts and wond e ri ng if I w e re
r e ally in th e mod e rn world of th e ni ne t ee nth c e ntury .
The Gnani
 C H AP T E R VI I I

A VISIT TO A GNAN I
DU R I N G
my stay i n C e ylon I was fortunate e nough
to mak e th e acquaintanc e of on e of the e sot e ric
t e ach e rs of th e anci e nt r e ligious myst e ri e s Th e s e
G u rus or A d e pts ar e to b e found scatt e r e d all o ve r
.

th e mainla nd of I ndia but th e y l e ad a s e clud e d e xist

e nc e avoiding th e curr e nts of \N e st e rn civilisation
,

which ar e obnoxious to th e m and rar e ly com e into

contact with th e E nglish or app e ar on th e surfac e
of ord inary life They ar e divid e d into two gre at
schools th e H imalayan and S outh I ndian form e d
.

probably e v e n c e nturi e s back by th e gradual r e tir e

m e nt of th e A d e pts into th e mountains and for e sts
, ,

of th e ir r e sp e ctiv e districts b e for e th e spr e ad of

foreign rac e s and civilisations over the ge n e ral con
tin e nt Th e H imalayan school has carri e d on th e
mor e d e mocratic and progr e ssi ve Bu d dhistic tradi
.

tion whil e th e S outh I ndian has k e pt mor e to cast e

,

and to th e ancient Brahminical and lat e r H indu lin e s .

This s e paration has l e d to di ve rge nc e s i n phil

osophy and th e r e ar e e v e n (so strong is s e ctional
,

fee ling in all rang e s of human activity ) slight

j e alousi e s b e twe e n th e adhere nts of th e two schools ;
but th e diffe r e nc e s ar e probably aft e r all v e ry sup e r
c ial i n e ss e nc e th e ir t e aching and their work may ,

I think b e said to b e th e sam e

Th e teacher to whom I allude b e longs to th e
.
,

I 3S
t3 6 FR O M ADAM S P E A K
TO L PH AN T A
E E

S outh I ndian school and was only sojourning for a

tim e in C e ylon Wh e n I rst m ad e his acquai nt
,

anc e h e was staying in th e pr e cincts of a H indu

t e m pl e . P assing through th e gard e n and th e
arcad e lik e porch of th e t e mple w ith its rud e and
-

grot e squ e fr e sco e s of th e gods S iva astrid e th e

bull S akti his consort s e at e d behind him etc w e
, , , ,

found ours e lv e s in a sid e chamb e r wh e r e s e at e d on

-
, ,

a simpl e couch his b e d and day s e at in on e w as an

,
-
,

e ld e rly man (som e s e venty y e ars of ag e though h e ,

did not look n e arly as much as that ) dress e d only

i n a whit e m u slin wrapp e r wound loos e ly round his
lith e and e v e n activ e dark brown for m : his h e ad
and fac e sha v en a day or tw o past ve ry g e ntl e and ,

spiritual in e xpr e ssion lik e th e b e st typ e of R o m an

,

Catholic p ri e st a ve ry b e autiful full and nely , ,

form e d mouth straight nos e and w e ll form e d chin

,
-
,

dark e y e s undoubt e dly th e e y e s of a s ee r dark

, ,

rimm e d e y e lids and a pow e rfu l proph e tic and w ithal

, , ,

childlik e mann e r H e soon laps e d into e xposition

.
,

which h e continu e d for an hour or two with but few

int e rje ctions from his auditors
A t a lat e r tim e h e mo ve d i nto a littl e cottage wh e r e
.

for s eve ral w ee ks I saw him n e arly eve ry day E v e ry

,

.
,

day th e sam e g e n e rally sitting on his couch with ,

bar e arms and fee t th e latt e r oft e n coil e d under him

,

only r e quiri ng a qu e stion to launch off into a lon g

discours e u ent and e ven rapt with ready and
, ,

vivid illustration and long digr e ssions but always ,

r e turning to th e point Though unfortunat e ly my

kno w l e dge of Tamil w as so slight that I could not
.

follow his conv e rsation and had to tak e advantag e

of th e s e rvic e s of a fri e nd as int e rpr e t e r still it was ,

e asy to s ee what a r e markable vigor and com m and

1 38 FR O M A DA M s

P EAK TO E E L PH AN T A
books ; (2) th e help of a Guru ; and (3 ) th e v eri
cation o f th e tradition by on e s own e xp e ri e nc e

Without this last th e oth e rs ar e of cours e of no us e , ,

and th e chi e f aid of th e Guru is dir e ct e d to the

instruction of the pupil in th e m e tho d s by which h e
may attain to p e rsonal e xp e ri e nc e The sacr e d .

books gi ve th e philosophy and som e of the ex p eri

'

ences of th e g nnn z or illuminat e d p e rson but th e y

do not e xc e pt in scatt e r e d hints giv e instruction as

, ,

to how this illumination is to b e obtain e d Th e .

truth is it is a qu e stion of e volution ; and i t would

,

n e ith e r b e right that such i nstruction should b e gi ve n

to eve rybody nor ind ee d possibl e sinc e e ven in th e
, ,

case of thos e pr e par e d for it th e m e thods must

diffe r according to th e idiosyncrasy and charact e r
,

of th e pupil .

Th e r e ar e appar e ntly isolat e d cas e s i n which

individuals attain to G anam through th e ir own

spontan e ous d e v e lopm e nt and without instruction

from a Guru but th e s e ar e rar e A s a rul e eve ry
,

man who is r e c e i ve d into th e body of A d e pts re

, .
,

c eiv es his initiation through anoth e r A d e pt who

hims e lf r e c e iv e d it from a for e ru nner and th e whol e ,

constitut e s a kind of church or broth e rhood with

g e n e alogical branch e s so to sp e ak th e lin e of
A d e pts from w hich a man d e sc e nds b e ing impart e d
to him on his admission into the frat e rnity I n ee d .

not say that this res e mbl e s th e m e thods of th e anci e nt

myst e ri e s and initiations of classic tim e s and ind e ed , ,

th e I ndian teac hers claim that th e Gr ee k and

E gyptian and oth e r W e st e rn schools of arcan e
lor e w e r e m e rely branch e s mor e or l e ss d e g e nerate
, ,

of th e ir own .

The cours e of preparation for G anam is called

 A V ISIT T O A G N AN I I 39

y og am ,and th e person who is goi ng through this

stag e is call e d a y og i from th e root y ag to join ,

on e who is s ee king j unction with th e univ e rsal spirit .

Yogis ar e common all over I ndia and e xist among

S ome emaciat e
,

all classes and in various forms .

th e ms e lv e s and torture th e ir bo di e s oth e rs se e k only ,

control o ve r th e ir minds som e r e tire into th e jungl e s

,

and mountains oth e rs fr e qu e nt the cities and exhibit

,

th e ms e lv e s i n th e crowd e d fairs oth e rs again carry ,

on th e avocations of daily life with but little change

of outward habit S om e ar e humbugs l e d on by
.
,

v anity or gr e ed of gain (for to giv e to a holy man

is highly m e ritorious ) ; oth e rs are g e nuin e stud e nts
or philosoph e rs ; som e ar e profoundly imbu e d with
th e r e ligious s e ns e ; oth e rs by m e r e distast e for th e
world Th e maj ority probably tak e to a wand e ring
.

life of th e body som e b e com e wand e ring in mind ;

,

a gr e at many attain to phases of clairvoyanc e and

abnormal pow e r of som e kind or oth e r and a v e ry
fe w b e com e A d e pts of a high ord e r
,

A nyhow the matt e r cannot b e understood u nl e ss

.

it is re alis e d that this sort of r e ligious r e tire m e nt is

thoroughly acc e pt e d and acknowl e dge d all ov e r
I ndia and excit e s no surpris e or special r e mark
,

Only some v e or six y e ars ago a r e lativ e of th e * .

lat e R ajah of Tanjor e a man of som e forty or fty

y e ars of ag e and on e of th e c hief nati ve p e rsonage s
,

in that part of I ndia made up his mind to becom e

a d e vote e H e one day told his fri e nds h e was
.

going on a railway j ourn e y s e nt off his servants and

,

carriag e s from the palac e to the station saying h e ,

would follow gave th e m the slip and has nev e r be e n

, ,

heard of si nce ! H is fri e nds went to the man who

P anjal i Karana S ahib .
t4o F R O M A DAM S P E A K
T O E LE P H AN T A
was known to have b ee n acting as his Guru w ho ,

simply told th em You will n eve r nd him S up

posing th e G O M or the P rinc e of Wal e s w e r e

.
,

. . .

to r e tir e lik e this ~how odd it would s e em !

To ill u strate this subje ct I may tell th e story of
T illeinathan S wamy who was th e t e ac he r of th e ,

Guru whos e acquaint anc e I am r e ferring to in this

chapt e r T illeinathan was a w e althy shipown e r of
high family I n 1 850 he d e vot e d himself to re
.

lig iou s e x e rcis e s till 1 855 wh e n h e becam e em anc i

A ft e r his attainment h e fe lt sick of the
, ,

pated .

world and so h e wound u p his affairs divid e d all his

, ,

goods and mon e y among r e lations and d e p e ndants ,

and went off stark nak e d into th e woods H is .

moth e r and sist e rs we re grieved and re p e at e dl y pur ,

su e d him offe ring to surr e nd e r all to him if h e w ould

only r e tur n A t last h e simply r e fus e d to answe r
,

th e ir importuniti e s and th e y d e sist e d H e app e ar e d

, .

in Tanjor e aft e r that i n 57 59 64 and 72 but

has not b ee n seen sinc e H e is s u ppos e d to be .

living som e wh e r e in the W e st e rn Ghauts .

I n 58 or 59 at th e close of the I ndian M utiny

wh e n s e arch was b e ing mad e for N ana S ahib it

, ,

was report e d that th e N ana was hiding hims e lf

,

und e r th e garb (or no garb ) of an asc e tic and

,

ord e rs w e r e i ssu e d to d e tain and examin e all such

p e opl e T illeinathan was tak e n and brought b e for e
th e sub magistrat e at K umbak onam who told hi m
.

th e Gov e rnm e nt ord e rs and that h e must dr e ss him

s e lf prop e rly A t th e same tim e th e sub magistrate
,

-
.
,

having a fri e ndly fe eling for T and gu e ssing that he .

would refus e ob e dience had brought a w e althy m er ,

chant with him whom h e had persuad e d to stand bail

,

for T illeinathan i n such e m e rgency When however .

, ,
1 42 F R O M ADA M S PE A K
TO E L EPH AN T A
the L unacy A ct to Tilleinathan but th e insp e ctor s ,
'

hand shook so that h e could hardly s ee th e words

till T said Do not b e afraid I will explain it to
.
,

you H e th e n gav e a som e what d e tail e d account

of th e A ct p oint e d out to th e collector that it did

.

not apply to his own cas e and end e d by t e lling him ,

onc e mor e that he was a fool The coll e ctor then .

let him go !
A fterwards M orris having been blam e d for l e t
ting th e man g o and Beauchamp (judge ) who had
been rath e r impr e ssed al ready by T s personality
,

.
,

w e nt tog e th e r and with an e scort to th e hous e in

Tanj ore in which T illeinathan was then staying
with an undened intention apparently of arresting , ,

him T th e n ask e d them if th e y thought h e was

whi ch th e E nglishm e n
. .

und e r th e ir Gov e rnment

r e pli e d that they w e r e not ther e to argu e philosophy
but to e nforc e th e law T ask e d how they would . .

e nforc e it W e hav e cannons and m e n behind

A nd I said T can also

.

us said M orris
,

.

,

.
,

bring cannons and forces gr e ater than yours .

Th e y th e n left him again and he was no mor e ,

troubl e d .

This story is a little disappointin g in that no

miracl e s com e off but I t e ll it as it was told to me
by the Gur u and my fri e nd A having h e ard it
,

.
,

substantially th e same from other and i ndep e ndent

witn e ss e s at Tanj or e it may b e tak e n as giving a ,

fairly correct id e a of the kind of thing that occasion

ally happ e ns N O doubt the coll e ctor would look
.

upon T illeinathan as a lu ny and from other

stori e s I have h e ard of him (his utt e r obliviousn e ss

of ordinary conventionali ties and propri e ties t hat ,

h e would li e d ow n to sl ee p in the middl e of the

 A VI S I T TO A G N AN I 1 43

street to the great inconv e ni e nc e of trafc that he ,

would sometimes k e ep on r e p e ating a single vacant

phrase over and ov e r again for half a day
su c h an opinion might I sho u ld say fairl y be
,

, ,

j ustied Yet at th e sam e tim e there is no doubt

.
, ,

he was a very r e markable man and the deep ,

reverence with whi ch our fri e nd the Guru spoke of

him was obviously not accord e d merely to the
abnormal powers which h e s ee ms at times to have
manifested but to th e profundity and breadth of his
,

teaching and the personal grand e ur which prevailed

thro ugh all his ecc e ntriciti e s .

I t was a common and appar e ntly instinctive prae

tice with him to sp e ak of th e gr e at operations of
N ature the thund e r the wind the shining of the
sun etc in the rst p e rson I the identication
, , ,

.
, , ,

wit h ,or non diffe r e ntiation from the universe

-
,

(which is the most important of esoteric doctrines )

being in his cas e compl e t e S o also the democratic .

character of his t e aching surpassed even our

Western records H e would take a pariah dog
.

the most scorn e d of cr e atur e s and place it round

his neck (compare the pi ctures of C hrist with a lamb
in the same attitud e ) or even l e t it eat out of one
plate wi th hims e lf ! On e day in K umbak onam
,

, ,

when importuned for instruction by ve or six .

disciples he ros e up and saying F ollow me went

, , ,

through the streets to th e e dge of a brook which

divided the pariah village from the town a line
which no H ind u of caste will ever cross and
'

steppi ng over th e brook bade them enter the

d eled ground This ordeal however his followers , .

could not end ure and excep t one they all left
.

him ,
r44 FR O M A DA M s

PE A K TO E L EPH AN T A
Tilleinathan s pupil th e t e ach e r of whom I am

pr e s e ntly sp e aking is marri e d and has a wife and

, ,

childr e n M ost of th e se asc e tics think nothing
.

of abandoning th e ir famili e s wh e n the call com e s to

th e m and going to th e woods p e rhaps n e ver to b e
.
,

s ee n again H e how e ver has not don e this but

.
, , ,

lives on qui e tly at ho m e at T anjor e Thirty or .

forty y e ars ago h e was a ki nd of condential fri e nd

and advis e r to th e th e n r e igning princ e of Tanjor e ,

and w as w e ll up i n traditional stat e craft and -

politics ; and e v e n o nly two or thr ee y e ars ago took

quit e an active int e r e st i n th e N ational I ndian
Congress His own name was Ramaswamy but
.
,

h e acquir e d the name I lakkanam the Grammarian ,

,

on account of his prociency in Tamil grammar and

philosophy on which subje ct h e w as quit e an
,

aut hority e v e n b e for e his initiation

, .

Tamil is a v e ry r e markable and ind ee d comp l e x

language rivali ng th e S anskrit in the latter respect
, , ,

I t b e longs to th e Dra v idian group and has fe w

A ryan roots in it e xcept what have b ee n borrow e d
,

from S anskrit I t contains how e v e r an ex traord in

.
, ,

ary numb e r of philos oph ical t e rms of which some

are S anskrit in th e ir ori g in but many ar e entirely
,

its own ; and lik e th e p e opl e it forms a strange

, ,

blend of practical qualiti e s with the most inv e t e rat e

occultism Tamil says th e author O f an article in

th e l eosof /z zsl for N ov e mb e r 9 0

,
'

is on e of the

old e st language s of I ndia if not of th e world I ts

birth and infancy ar e e nv e lop e d i n mythology A s
, .

in the case of S anskrit w e cannot say wh e n Tamil

.

Th e O ld e st Tamil
,

b e came a literary language .

w orks e xtant b e long to a tim e about 20 0 0 y e ars ,

ag o of high and cultur e d ren e m e nt in Tamil po e tic

,
: 46 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E L EPH AN T A
most profound mystic truths Th e grammar too ,

as I suppos e was th e cas e in S anskrit is link e d to

.

th e occult philosophy of th e p e opl e .

To r e turn to th e Teach e r b e sid e s state craft and ,

-

grammar h e is w e ll v e rs e d in matt e rs of law and not ,

unfr e qu e n tly tackl e s a qu e stion of this kind for th e

h e lp of his f i e nds ; and has som e practical know
r

l e dge of m e d icin e as w e ll as of cook e ry which h e

, ,

consid e rs i m portant in its r e lation to h e alth (th e

divin e h e alth S n nanz ) I t will thus be s ee n that
,
.

h e is a m an of good practical ability and acquaint

anc e with th e world and not a m e r e dr e am e r as is
, ,

too oft e n assum e d by W e st e rn critics to b e th e cas e

with all those who s ee k th e hidd e n knowl e dg e of th e
E ast I n fact it is on e of th e r e m arkabl e points of
.
,

th e H indu philosophy t hat practical knowl e dge of

life is e xpr e ssly inculcat e d as a pr e li m inary stag e to
initiation A man must b e a hous e hold e r b e for e h e
.

b e com e s a yogi ; and familiarity with s e xual e x

p erienc e is som e tim e s e ncourag e d rat he r than
r e probat e d in ord e r that having e xp e ri e nc e d on e
,

may in time pass b e yond it I nd ee d it is not .

,

unfr e qu e ntly maintained that th e e a rly marriag e of

th e H indus is ad v antag e ous in this resp e ct sinc e ,

a coupl e marri e d at th e ag e of ft ee n or sixt ee n

hav e by th e tim e th e y ar e forty a grown u p family
, ,
-

launch e d in life and havi ng circl e d worldly e x

,

p erience are th e n fr ee to dedicat e th e ms e lv e s to

,

th e work of e mancipation
.

During his y og a p e riod which last e d abou t thr ee

y e ars his wife was ve ry good to him and assist e d

, ,

him all she could H e was e njoin e d by his own

.

teach e r to r e frain from sp ee ch and did so for about ,

a y e ar and a hal f passing most of his tim e i n x e d

,
 A ISIT
V T O A G N AN I 1 47

attitud e s of m e ditation and only clapping his hands

,

w he n h e want e d food e tc H ardly anything shows

, .

more strongly th e hold which thes e r e ligious id e as

hav e upon the p e opl e than th e common willingness
of the wom e n to help th e ir husbands in works of
this ki nd which b e sid e the sore inconveni e nce of
, ,

th e m oft e n d e priv e the family of its v e ry m e ans

,

of subsist e nc e and l e av e it d e p e nd e nt on th e h e lp O f
r e lations and others B ut so it is I t is dif cult
. .

for a W e st e rn e r e ven to b e gin to r e alise the con

d itio ns and inspirations of life in th e E ast .

R efraint from sp ee ch is not a n e cessary condition

of initiation but it is enjoined in som e cas e s
, .

(Th e r e might b e a good many cas e s among the

W e st e rn e rs where it would be v e ry d e sirable with
or without i nitiation !) M any practising said th e ,

Guru on e day have not spok e n for tw e lve years

,

so that wh e n fr ee d th e y had lost th e pow e r of

sp e ech babbl e d like babi e s and took som e tim e to
r e cov e r it But for two or thr ee y e ars you e xp e ri e nc e
D u ring my initiation h e add e d
.

no disability .

, ,

I oft e n wand e r e d about the woods all night and ,

many tim e s saw wild b e asts but th e y never harmed ,

m e as ind e ed th e y cannot harm th e i niti at e d

A t the pr e sent tim e h e lives (when at hom e ) a

, , .

s e clud e d life mostly absorb e d in tranc e conditions

,

his chi e f e xternal i nterest no doubt b e ing th e t e ach

, ,

ing of such p e ople as ar e l e d to him or h e is l e d to ,

instruct When how e v e r h e tak e s up any practical

. , ,

work he throws hims e lf into it with that pow e r and

conc e ntration which is peculiar to a M ast e r and ,

which i s the natural corollary of th e power of ab

strac tio n wh e n h e althily used

A mong th e ir own pe opl e th e s e Gurus often hav e

.
: 48 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E L EPH AN T A
small circl e s of discipl e s who r e c e iv e the instruction ,

of th e ir master and in return are ever r e ady to

S om e tim e s such littl e
,

att e nd upon his wants

parti e s sit up all night alternat e ly r e ading th e sacr e d
books and absorbing th e ms e l ve s in meditation I t .

appears that I lakkanam s moth e r b e cam e his pupil

and practis e d according to instruction maki ng good ,

progr e ss On e day how e ver sh e told her son that

.

sh e should di e that night

,

What ar e you ill ! * ,

N o she r e plied but I fe e l that I shall

.
,

h e said .
,

di e.

Then he ask e d h e r what she d e sir e d to b e
don e with h e r body Oh ti e a rop e to it and
.

,

throw it out into th e str e et was h e r r e ply meaning ,

!

that it did not matt e r a v e ry strong e xpression

consid e ring cast e r e gulations on th e subject N othing
,

mor e was said but that night at 3 A M as th e y and

, . .
,

som e fri e nds w e r e sitting up (cross ~l e gg e d on th e

oor as usual ) r e ading on e of the sacred books on e ,

of thos e pr e s e nt said But your moth e r do e s not,

mov e and sh e was dead

,

.

Wh e n in C e ylon our fri e nd was only stayi ng t e m

p orarily in a cottage with a s e rvant to look aft e r ,

him and though exce e dingly animat e d and vigorous

as I have describ e d wh e n once e mbark e d i n e xpo
,

sition capabl e of maintaining his discours e for

hours with u n agg ing conc e ntration y e t th e mom e nt
such external call upon his faculties was at an end ,

th e inter e st that it had excited s e em e d to be en

tirely wip e d from his mind and th e latt e r r e turned
to that stat e of int e rior meditation and absorption
in th e contemplation of th e world disclos e d to th e

in ne r s e ns e which had appar e ntly b e com e his nor

,

mal condition .

G o to th e fe t of th e godd ess M inak sh i

e .

I SO FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

S andos/z am S anaasnam

of happin e ss b e hind it .

Ot/ al ays j oy was his own e x

z am
jy


pp
e o , w
pr e ssion oft repeat e d
P e rhaps I hav e now said e nough to show what
.
,

of cours e was sufci e ntly evid e nt to m e that how

, ,

eve r it may be disguis e d und e r trivial or ev e n in

som e cas e s r e p e ll e nt co ve ri ngs ther e is som e r e ality
,

b e n e ath all these some body of real e xp e ri e nc e of ,

no littl e valu e and importanc e which has b ee n ,

attain e d in I ndia by a portion at any r ate of thos e

w ho ha ve claim e d it and which has b ee n hand e d
,

down now through a vast numb e r of c e nturi e s

among th e H indu peopl e s as th e ir most ch e rished
and pre cious poss e ssion .
 C H AP T E R IX

C O N SCI O US N ESS WITI I O U T TH O UGH T

-

T HE qu e stion is What is this e xp e ri e nc e ! or rath e r

,

si nc e an e xp e ri e nc e can r e ally only b e known to

th e p e rso n who e xp e ri e nces it w e may ask What

A nd in trying
,

is th e natur e of this e xp e ri e nc e !

to indicat e an ans w e r of som e kind to this que stion

I fee l consid e rabl e difdenc e just for th e v e ry ,

r e ason (for on e ) alr e ady m e ntion e d nam e ly that it ,

is so di f cult or impossibl e for on e p e rson to give a

true account O f an e xp e ri e nc e which has occurre d
to anoth e r I f I could gi ve th e e xact words of th e
.

t e ach e r without any bias d e riv e d e ith e r from mys e lf

,

or the interp reting friend th e cas e might b e dif

'

ferent ; but that I cannot pr e tend to do ; and if I

,

could th e O ld world sci e ntic forms i n which his

,
-

thoughts w e r e cast would probably only prov e a

stumbli ng block and a sourc e of confusion inst e ad ,

of a h e lp to the r e ad e r I nd ee d e v e n in th e cas e
,
.
,

of th e sacred books wh e r e w e hav e a good deal of

,

acc e ssibl e and authoritativ e information W e st e rn ,

critics though for th e most part agr ee ing t h at ther e

,

is some r e al e xperi e nc e und e rlying ar e sadly at ,

varianc e as to what that e xpe ri e nc e may b e

F or th e se r e asons I pr e fe r not to attempt or pre
.

t e nd to giv e th e exact t e aching u nbiassecl of th e , ,

I ndian Gurus or th e ir e xperi e nc e s ; but only to

indicate as far as I can in m y own words and in
,

, ,

1 51
I 52 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E L EPH A N T A
mod e rn thought forms what I tak e to b e th e direc
-
,

tion in w hich w e must look for this anci e nt and

w orld old kno w l e dg e w hich has had so stup e ndous
-

an i nu e nc e i n th e E ast and which ind ee d is still, , ,

th e main mark of its diffe r e nc e from th e W e st .

A nd rst l e t m e guard agai nst an e rror w hich is

lik e ly to aris e I t is ve ry e asy to assum e and ve ry
. ,

fr e qu e ntly assum e d in any cas e wh e r e a p e rson is

,

cr e dit e d with th e poss e ssion of an unusual faculty ,

that such p e rson is at onc e lift e d out O f our sph e r e

i nto a sup e rnatural r e gion and poss e ss e s e v e ry ,

faculty of that r e gion I f for instan c e h e or sh e is

.
, ,

o r is suppos e d to b e clairvoyant it is assum e d t hat ,

eve
n [l
/un
g is or ought to b e know n to th e m ; or
if th e p e rso n has shown what s ee ms a miraculous
pow e r at any tim e or i n any cas e it is ask e d by ,

w ay of discr e dit w hy h e or sh e did not sho w

a lik e pow e r at oth e r tim e s or in oth e r cas e s
A gai nst all such hasty gen e ralisations it is n e c e ssary
.

to guard ours e l ve s I f th e r e is a high e r form of

.

consciousn e ss attainabl e by man than that which h e

for th e most part can claim at pr e s e nt it is pro ,

babl e nay c e rtain that it is e volving and will e volv e

, ,

but slowly and with m any a slip and h e sitant paus e

by the w ay I n th e far past of man and th e animals
,

conscious ne ss of s e nsation and consciousn e ss of s e lf

hav e b ee n succ essiv e ly ev ol ve d e ach of th e s e
mighty growths wi th innum e rabl e branch e s and
branchl e ts continually spr e ading A t any point in .

this vast exp e ri e nc e a n e w growth a n e w form O f

, ,

consciousn e ss might w e ll ha ve s ee m e d m i raculous

, .

What could b e mor e mar ve lous than th e rst re

vealm en t of the s e ns e of sight w hat mor e inco n ,

ceiv abl e to thos e w ho had not e xp e rienced it and ,

I 54 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
TO E L EPH AN T A
of ev olution and are corr e spondingly dangerous
,

ther e by
A ll this or a gre at part O f it th e I ndian t e ach e rs
.

insist on Th e y say and I think this comm e nds

, ,

th e r e ality O f th e ir e xp e rienc e that th e re i s nothi ng

abnormal or miraculous about th e matt e r ; that th e
faculti e s acquired ar e on th e whol e th e r e sult of long
, ,

e volution and trai ning and that th e y have distinct ,

laws and an ord e r of th e ir own Th e y recognise .

th e e xist e n c e of p e rsons of a d e moniac faculty w ho ,

hav e acquir e d po w e rs of a c e rtain grad e without

corr e sponding moral e volution ; and th e y admit
th e rarity of th e high e st phas e s of consciousn e ss
and th e fe wn e ss of thos e at pr e s e nt tt e d for its
attainm e nt
With th e s e littl e provisos th e n e stablish e d I think
.

w e may go on to say that what th e G ani s e eks

and O btains is a n e w order of consciousn e ss to
which for w ant of a b e tt e r w e may giv e th e nam e
u niversa l or cosm ic consciousn e ss in c o ntrad istinc ,

tion to th e individual or sp e cial bodily consciousn e ss

with which w e ar e all familiar I am not aware that .

th e ex act e quival e nt of this e xpr e ssion univ e rsal

consciousn e ss is us e d i n th e H i ndu philosophy ;
bu t th e S al c/z il cin am la B re
-
an ne to which every yogi
aspire s indicat e s th e sam e id e a : sat th e r e ality th e , ,

all p e rvading ; enit the knowing p e rc e iving ; cin

, ,

anaa th e blissful all th e s e unit e d in on e manifesta

,

tion of Brahm .

Th e W e st s ee ks th e i ndividual consciousn e ss
th e enrich e d mind r e ady p e rc e ptions and memories
, ,

individual hop es and fe ars ambitions lo ve s con , , ,

qu e sts th e s e lf th e local self in all its phas e s and

, ,

forms and sor e ly doubts whether such a thing

 C O N SC I O US N ESS WITH O UT TH OU GHT 1 55

as an universal consciousn e ss e xists The E ast .

seeks the universal consciousn e ss and in those , ,

cases where its quest succe e ds i ndividual self and ,

life thin away to a mere lm and are only the ,

shadows cast by th e glory r e v e al e d beyond .

T he individual consciousn e ss takes the form of

T/coug /z l which is uid and mobil e like quicksilver
, ,

perpetu ally i n a stat e of chang e and unrest fraught ,

with pai n and e ffort ; th e oth e r consciousness is not

i n the form of Thought
. I t touches sees hears
.
, , ,

and is those things which it p e rceives without

motion without chang e without effort without
distinction of subj e ct and O b ject but with a vast
, , ,

and incredible Joy .

The individual consciousn e ss is specially r e lated

to the body The organs of th e body are in some
.

degree its organs But th e w nole body i s only as

.

one organ of the cosmic consciousness To attain .

this latter on e must ha ve the power of knowing

one s self separate from th e body of passing into

a state of ecstasy i n fact Without this the cosmic .

consciousness cannot be e xp e rienced .

I t is said : Ther e ar e four main experiences in

initiation I
) the m ee ting with a Guru ()
2 the con

sc i ou sness of G rac e or A r nl (which may perhaps be

,

in terpreted as the consciousn e ss of a change even

of a physiological change working within one
);
(3 ) the vision of S iva (God ) with which the know
l e d e of one s self as distinct from the body i s closely
,

g
I o 0 0

th nding of th un verse th n
c onnected ; (4 ) e e i W i i .

The wise i t is also said when their thoughts

, ,

c ease to move perceiv e within themselves the

A bsol ute consciousn e ss which is S ari/a sans/ii

, ,

Witness of all things .

1 56 FR O M ADA M S PE A K

TO E L EPH AN T A
Gr e at hav e b e en th e disput e s among th e l e arn e d
as to th e m e aning of th e word N irwana wh e th e r
it indicat e s a stat e of no consciousn e ss or a stat e-

of vastly e nhanc e d consciousn e ss P robably both .

vi e ws ha ve their justication : th e thing do e s not

admit of denition in th e t e rms of ordinary language .

Th e important thing to s ee and admi t is that und e r

co ve r of this and oth e r similar t e rms th e r e do e s
e xist a r e al and r e cognisabl e fact (that is a stat e of ,

consciousn e ss in som e s e ns e ) which has b e en e x ,

p erienc ed o ve r a nd o ve r again and which to thos e ,

who hav e exp e ri e nc e d it in e v e r so slight a d e gr e e

has app e are d worthy of life long pursuit and d e vo
tion I t is e asy O f cours e to r e pre s e nt th e thing as
.
, ,

a m e r e word a th e ory a speculation O f th e dreamy

, ,

H i ndu ; but p e opl e do not sacric e th e ir li ve s for

e mpty words nor do m e re philosophical abstractions
rul e th e destini e s of contin e nts N o th e word re
,

.
,

pre s e nts a r e ality som e thing v e ry basic and inev it

,

abl e in human nat u r e Th e qu e stion r e ally is not

.

to d e n e th e fact for w e cannot do that but to

get at and e xp e ri e nc e it .

I t is int e r e sting at this junctur e to nd that

mod e rn W e st e rn sci e nc e which has hitherto with
,

out much result b ee n occupying its e lf with me

c hani c al th e ori e s of the univers e is approaching ,

from its sid e this id e a of th e e xist e nc e of anoth e r

form of consciousn e ss Th e e xtraordinary ph e no
.

men a of hypnotism which no doubt ar e in som e , ,

d e gr ee r e lated to the subje ct w e ar e discussing and

which hav e b e en r e cognis e d for age s in th e E ast
,

ar e forcing W e st e rn sci e ntists to assum e the e xist

enc e of th e so called seconaary consciou sness i n the
-

body Th e ph e nom e na se e m r e ally inexplicable

.
1 58 FR O M ADAM S PE A K

TO E L EPH AN T A
dwell upon what h e is doing I t is som e times sug
.

gest e d that th e v e ry p e rfe ction of th e musical per

form ance S hows that it is mechanical or unconscious ,

but is this a fair infe renc e ! and would it not s ee m

to b e a m e r e contradiction in t e rm s to speak of an -

unconscious l e ctur e or an unconscious addition of

a row of gure s !
M any actions and proc e sses of th e body eg :
swallowing ar e attend e d by distinct p e rsonal con
,

sc i o usness ; many oth e r actions and proc e ss e s ar e

quit e unp e rc e i ve d by th e sam e ; and it might se e m
r e asonable to suppos e that th e s e latt e r at anyrate
w e r e pur e ly m e chanical and devoid of any m e ntal
substratum But th e lat e r d e v e lopm e nts of hyp no
.

tism in th e W e st ha ve shown what is w e ll known

to th e I ndian fakirs that und e r c e rtain conditions
consciousn e ss of th e int e rnal actions and proc e sses
of th e body can be obtained ; and not only so but ,

consciousn e ss O f ev e nts taki ng plac e at a distanc e

from th e body and without the ordinary m e ans of
commun icat ion .

Thus th e id e a of anoth e r consciousness i n some ,

r e spects of wid e r range than th e ordinary on e and ,

having m e thods of p e rc e ption O f its own has b e en ,

gradually inltrating its e lf into W e st e rn m inds .

Th e re is anoth e r idea which mod e rn scie nc e has

,

b ee n familiarising us with and which is bringing us

,

towards the sam e conc e ption that nam e ly of the , ,

fourth dimension Th e supposition that th e actual

.

world has four space dim e nsions i nst e ad of thr ee

-

mak e s m any things conc e ivable which ot he rwis e

would b e i ncr e dibl e I t mak e s it conc e i v abl e that
.

appar e ntly se parat e o bje cts e g distinct peopl e ar e

. .

re ally physically unit e d that things appar e ntly sun

 CO N S C I O US N ESS WITH OU T TH OU G HT 1 59

d e r e d by enormous di stances of space are r e ally

quit e close together ; that a p e rson or oth e r O bj e ct
might pass in and out of a closed room without
disturbance of walls doors or windows etc ; and
, , , .

i f this fourth dimension w e r e to become a factor of

our consciousness i t is obvious that we should hav e
m e ans of knowledge which to the ordinary s e ns e
would appear simply miraculous There is much .

appar e ntly to suggest that the consciousness attained

to by the I ndian g anis in their degree and by ,

hypnotic subjects in th e irs is O f this fourth dim en ,

-

si o nal order .

A S a solid i s related to its own surfaces so it , ,

woul d appear is the cosmic consciousness r e lat e d

,

to th e ordinary consciousn e ss The phases of th e .

pe rsonal consciousness ar e but different facets of

th e other consciousn e ss ; and experiences which
s ee m remote from each oth e r in the individual ar e
p e rhaps all equally n e ar in the universal S pac e .

its e lf as we know it may b e practically annihilat e d

, ,

i n the consciousness of a larger space of which it is

but the su p erc ies ; and a p e rson living in L ondon
may not unlikely nd that h e has a backdoor open
ing quite simply and unceremoniously out in
Bombay .

The true quality of th e soul said the Guru on e ,

day is t hat of space by which it is at r e st

e v e rywhere But this spac e (A k asa ) within the soul

, , ,

is far above the ordinary material space Th e .

whole of the latter including all the suns and stars

, ,

app e ars to you then as it w e re but an atom of th e

, ,

former and here h e h e ld up his ngers as though

crumbling a speck of dust b e tween them .

A t rest everywher e I ndifference E quality
,

,

.

1 60 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

This w as on e of th e m ost r e markabl e parts of the

Guru s t e aching Though (for family r e asons ) main

taining m any of th e O bs e rvanc e s of cast e hims e lf

.

and though holding and t e aching that for th e mass

of th e p e opl e cast e rul e s wer e quit e n e c e ssary h e ,

n e v e r c e ased to insist that wh e n th e tim e cam e for

a man (or woman ) to b e e mancipat e d all th e s e

rul e s must drop asid e as of no importanc e all dis

tinction of cast e s class e s all s e ns e of superiority or
, ,

s e lf goodn e ss of right and wrong e v e n and th e

-

most absolut e s e ns e O f E quality must pr ev ail to

wards eve ry on e and d e t e rmination in its e x pr e s
sion C e rtainly it w as r e markabl e (though I kn e w
,

that th e sacr e d books contain e d it ) to nd this

g e rminal principl e of W e st e rn d e mocracy so v i v idly
activ e and at work d ee p down b e n e ath th e innu m er
abl e lay e rs of Ori e ntal social life and custo m B ut .

so it is ; and nothing shows b e tt e r th e r e lation

b e t w ee n th e W e st and th e E ast than this fact
This s e ns e of Equality of F ree dom from r e gula
.

tions and c o n nem ents of l nclusiv e n e ss and of th e

L ife that re sts e verywh e re b e longs of cours e
, ,

, , ,

mor e to th e cos m ic or uni ve rsal part of m an than

to th e individual part To th e latt e r it i s always
a stumbling block and an O ffe nc e I t is e a sy to
.

-
.

S how that m e n ar e not e qual that th e y ca nnot b e ,

fr ee and to point th e absurdity of a life that is

indiffe r e nt and at r e st und e r all conditions N eve r
,

theless to th e larg e r consciousn e ss th e s e ar e basi c

,

facts which und e rli e th e com m on life of humanity

, ,

and fee d th e ve ry individual that d e ni e s th e m .

Thus r e p e ating th e proviso that in u sing such

t e rms as cosmic and Uni ve rsal consci ous ne ss w e do
not commit O urs e l ve s to th e th e ory that th e i nstant
 Param agu ru Swami
(Lined many years in thef orests o
f S I ndia and Ceylon)
.
 C H AP T E R X

M ET I I O D S OF ATT A I NM E N T

T HE subje ct of the methods us e d by the yogis for

th e attainm e nt of anoth e r order of c onsciousn e ss
has its physical its m e ntal and its moral sid e s
, ,

and doubtl e ss oth e r sid e s as w e ll .

B e gi nning with the physical side it is probabl e ,

that th e discounting or r e pr e ssion of th e physical

brain or of that part of it which is the s e at of th e
primary consciousn e ss is th e most important : on
th e theory that the repression of th e primary con
sc iou sn ess op e ns th e way for th e manife station of
any other consciousn e ss that may b e pres e nt .

Thus hypnotism lulls or fatigues the ordinary brain

into a complete torpor so allowing th e phenom e na
conn e ct e d with th e s e condary consciousn e ss to com e
out i nto th e greater prominence I t ne e d not be
.

supposed that hypnotism indu ces th e s e condary con

sc iou sness but only that it r e moves that oth e r con
,

sc iou sn ess which ordinarily conceals or hind e rs its

e xpr e ssi on S ome of the methods adopted by the

.

yogis are undoubtedly O f this hypnotic Character ,

such as the sitt ing or standing for long p e riods

absolutely xed in on e position ; staring at th e sun
or other obj e ct ; repeating a word or phras e ov e r
and over again for thousands of times e tc and the , .

clairvoyant and other r e sults produced seem in

many resp e cts v e ry similar to th e r e sults of W e st e rn
1 63
1 64 FRO M ADAM S PE A K
'
T O E L EPH AN T A
hypnotism Th e yogi how e ver by immens e per
.
, ,

sist e nc e in his practic e s and by using his own will,

to e ffe ct the change of consciousn e ss inst e ad of ,

surr e ndering hims e lf into the pow e r of anoth e r

p e rson s ee ms to b e abl e to transfer his I or
,

e o into the ne w r e gion

g and to r e m e mb e r on,
h i
s

r e turn to ordinary consciousn e ss what he has s ee n

th e r e ; W h e r e as th e hypnotic subj ect s ee ms to b e
divid e d into a doubl e eg o and as a rul e r e m e mb e rs ,

nothing i n th e primary stat e of what occurred to him

i n th e s e condary .

Others of th e yogis adopt prolong e d fasting ,

abstin e nc e from S l ee p s e lf tortur e and emaciation

,
-
, ,

with th e sam e obje ct nam e ly th e reduction of th e ,

body and appar e ntly with somewhat similar results

,

though i n th e se cas e s not only insight is supposed

to b e gain e d but add e d pow e rs ov e r natur e arisi ng
, ,

from th e int e ns e forc e s of control put forth and

e duc e d by th e s e e x e rcis e s Th e fact that th e
S iaani or mirac u lous pow e rs can be gain e d in this

way is so uni ve rsally acc e pt e d and tak e n for granted

in I ndia that (e v e n aft e r making all allowanc e s ) it
i s difcult not to be carri e d away on th e str e am of
beli e f A nd ind ee d when on e considers th e known
.
, ,

pow e rs of th e will cultivated as it is to but a fe e bl e

d e gr ee amongst most of u s there s ee ms to be an
inh e r e nt probability in th e cas e Th e A d e pts how .
,

e v e r as a rul e though e ntir e ly agr e ei ng that th e

attainm e nt of th e S iddhi powers i s p ossiole strongly
, ,

.
,

condemn th e qu e st of them by th e s e methods

saying with great j ustic e that th e m e r e fact O f a
quest of this kind is a br e ach of th e law of I nd iffer
e nc e and Trust and that the qu e st being i nstigat e d
,

by some d e sire ambition spiritual prid e love of , ,

1 66 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
To E L EP H A N TA
that the diviner consciousness may enter in and
occupy th e room so pr e par e d .

The effacement of proje cts and purposes which

comes to much th e sam e thi ng as th e control of
d e sire belongs mor e prop e rly to the m oral side of
the question and may be consid e r e d later on The .

subj ection of Thought which O bviously is very

,

closely connected with th e subj e ction of D esire

may however b e consid e red h e r e
, ,
.

The G iz ana y og is (so call e d to distinguish them

'
-

from the Karmay og is w ho rely more upon the ex ,

ternal and physical m e thods ) adopt two practices

( I ) that of intense conc e ntration of the thoughts on

a xed obj ect ; (2) that of th e e ffacement of thought

altogether .

(I ) The thoughts may be xed on a denite

obj ect for instance on on e s own breathing the
,

inow and outow of th e atmosphere through the

channels of the physical body The body must be .

kept perfectly still and motionl e ss for a long period

so that it may pass e ntir e ly out of consciousness
and the thoughts xed on th e r e gulated calm tide of
respiration to the compl e t e e xclusion of every other
,

subject Or th e nam e of an obj ect a ower for

.
,

i nstance may be r e p e at e d inc e ssantly the image

of the obj ect b e ing call e d up at the same time till
at last th e nam e and th e imag e of the obj ect blend
and become indistinguishable i n the mind .

S uch practic e s hav e th e ir literal and thei r spir

itu al sides I f carri e d out m e rely as formul a they
.
,

evidently partake of a mesm e ric (self mesmeric ) -

consciousness *
character and ultimat e ly induce mesmeric states of
,

I f carried out with a S trong sense of

.

The R ev H C all away in a p ap e on

. . Divination among
, r

 M ETH O DS OF A TT A I NM E N T I 67

their inner m e aning th e pres e nce of the vast cosmic

life in th e br e at h ing th e e nd e a v or to r e alis e Brahma ,

hi ms elf in th e ow e r or oth e r obje ct cont e mplat e d

th e y naturally induc e a d ee p e r sens e of th e universal
life and consciousness than that which b e longs to
the me smeric stat e A nyhow th e y t e ach a c e rtain .
,

pow e r and control ov e r th e thoughts ; and it is a

doctri ne much insisted on by th e Gurus that in life
g e ner ally th e habit of the undivided conc e ntration
of the mind on that which on e is doing is of th e
utmo st importance Th e wan d e ring of th e mind
its di vision and distraction its O p e nn e ss to attack by
.
,

briga nd cares and anxi e ti e s its incapacity to h e artily ,

e njoy its e lf in its work not only lam e and cripple ,

an d torment it in e v e ry way but ar e a mark of th e

want of that faith which b e li e ves in th e N ow as
,

th e divin e mom e nt and tak e s no thought for th e ,

M orrow To conc e ntrat e at all times wholly and

.

unres e rvedly in What you ar e doing at the mom e nt

is th e y say a distinct st e p in G h anam
, , .

(2) Th e n e xt step th e e ffac e m e nt of Thought is , ,

a much mor e di fc ult on e Only wh e n th e pow e r of .

conc e ntration has b e en gain e d can this b e attempt e d

with any prospect of succ e ss The body must be .

k e pt as b e for e p e rfe ctly motionl e ss and in a quiet

, , ,

plac e fre e from disturbanc e ; not in an attitud e of

,

eas e or slumber bu t sitting or standing e r e ct with

muscl e s t e ns e A ll will pow er is requir e d and the
,

great e st vigilance E v e ry thought must be de

.
,

of N atal (j ou rnal of Me A nthrop olog ical I nstitu te,

the N atives
vol . i p
. . sa s y b ecom
that the natives,

in d
or er to e

c l ai voy ant attemp t to effec t intense c oncent ation and ab stra

r ,
r e

tion of th m ind an ab st action even f om thei own tho g ht

r r r u s

A n d th is i d one by h e d men an d c hiefs al ik e thou g h of

e .

s r s

se with va y ing s ccess

,

co ur ,
r u .
1 68 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
To E L EP H AN T A
stroye d on th e instant of its app e aranc e But th e .

t
-

e n e my i s subtl e and failur e ov e r a long p e ri od

,

in e vitabl e Th e n wh e n success s ee ms to be co ming

.

and Thought is dwindling Oblivion the twin foe ap -

pears and must also be conqu e r e d F or if Th ought

, ,

m e r e ly gi ve s plac e to S l ee p w hat is th e re ga n e d !
.

A ft e r months but more probably y e ars of int rmit

,
,

,
i
,

t e nt practice th e pow e r of control grows cu rio s but
distinct physiological changes tak e plac e ; one day p
th e stud e nt nds that Tho u ght has gone h e Stands
for a mom e nt in Oblivion ; the n that v e il lift s and ,

ther e str e ams through his b e ing a vast and illu m in e d

conscio u sn e ss glorious that lls and ov e rows him
, , ,

surrounding him so that h e is lik e a pot in w at e r ,

which has th e liquid within it and without I n this .

consciousn e ss th e r e is divin e knowledge bu t no

thought I t is S ainaani th e univ e rsal I A m
.

,

.

What e v e r p e ople may think of the reality of this

S am adhi of th e g e nuin e n e ss or th e univ e rsality

of th e consciousn e ss obtain e d i n it e tc (and th e s e , .

ar e qu e stions which of course r e quir e e xamination )

, , ,

it is i ncont e stabl e that for centuri e s and c e nturi e s it

has b ee n an obje ct of th e most str e nuous e nd e a v or
to vast numbers e v e n of th e v e ry acutest and most
capabl e int e ll e cts of I ndia E arthly joys paled
.

b e fore this e cstasy ; the sacred lit e ratures ar e full of

its prais e That th e r e lurks her e som e denit e and
important fact of exp e ri e nce is I think obvious
.

, ,

though it is quit e probabl e that it is not y e t r e ally

und e rstood e ith e r by th e E ast that discov e r e d it
,

or th e West that has criticis e d it

L e aving how e ver for th e pres e nt th e consid e ra
.

, ,

tion of this ultimat e and transcend e nt r e sult of the

e ffac e m e nt of Thought and fr ee ly admitting that the
,
1 70 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH A N TA

our own inner thoughts and fe elings That a man .

S hould b e a prey to any thought that chanc e s to

tak e poss e ssion of his mind is commonly among us
assum e d as unavoidabl e I t may b e a matt e r of
.

r e gr e t that h e should b e kept awak e all night from

anxi e ty as to th e issu e of a lawsuit on th e morrow ,

but that h e should hav e th e pow e r of d e t e rmining

w h e th e r h e b e kept awak e or not s ee ms an extra
v agant d e mand Th e imag e of an imp e nding
.

calamity is no doubt odious but its ve ry odiousn e ss ,

(w e say ) mak e s it haunt th e mind all th e mor e p e rti

nac iou sl and it is us e l e ss to try to e xp e l it
y .

Y e t this is an absurd position for man th e h e ir ,

of all the ages to b e in : hag ridd e n by th e imsy

,
-

cre atur e s of his own brai n I f a p e bbl e in our boot

.

torm e nts us w e e xp e l it W e tak e off th e boot and

shak e it out A nd onc e th e matt e r is fairly und e r
.

stood it is just as e asy to e xp e l an intr u ding and

obnoxious thought from th e mind A bout this .

th e r e ought to b e no mistak e no two opinions

Th e thing is O bvious cl e ar and unmistakabl e I t
, .

, , .

should b e as e asy to e xp e l an obnoxious thought

from your mind as to shak e a ston e out of your
sho e and till a man can do that it is just nons e ns e
to talk about his asc e ndancy over N ature and all
,

the r e st of it H e is a m e r e S lave and a pr e y to

.

th e bat winged phantoms that it through th e

-

c orrid Ors of his own brain .

Y e t th e w e ary and car e worn fac e s that w e me e t

by thousands e v e n among th e afu e nt class e s of
,

civilisation testify only too cl e arly how s e ldo m this

,

mast e ry is obtain e d H ow rar e inde e d to meet a

.
, ,

m an ! Ho w common rath e r to discov e r a cr e ature

hounded on by tyrant thoughts (or cares or de
 M ET H OD S OF A T T A I NM E N T 1 71

S ir e s ) cow e ring wincing und e r th e lash or p e r

, ,

chance priding hims e lf to run merrily in ob e di e nc e

to a dri ve r that rattl e s the reins and p e rsuad e s him
that he is fr e e W hom we cannot convers e with in
car e l e ss tete atte b e caus e that ali e n pr e s e n ce is

- -

always th e r e on th e watch , .

I t i s on e of the most promin e nt doctrin e s of th e

G anis that th e power of e xp e lling thoughts or if ,

n ee d b e of killing th e m dead on th e spot m ust b e

attain e d N aturally the art r e quir e s practic e ; but
, ,

like oth e r arts w h e n onc e acquir e d th e r e is no more

mystery or difculty about it A nd it is worth
, ,

practice I t m ay ind ee d fairly b e said that life

only b e gins wh e n this art has b e en acquired F or
.
, ,

obviously wh e n instead of being rul e d by individual

,

thoughts the whol e ock of th e m in th e ir immens e

,

m ultitud e and vari e ty and capacity is ours to direct

and despatch and e mploy wher e w e list ( for H e

mak e th th e wi nds his m e ss e ng e rs and the aming

r e his life becomes a thing so vast and
grand compared with w hat it was b e for e that its
former condition may w e ll app e ar almost antenatal .

I f you can kill a thought dead for the time b e ing , ,

you can do anything e lse with i t that you pl e as e

A nd ther e for e it is that this power is S O valuabl e
.

A nd it not only fr e es a man from mental torm e nt

.

( which is nin e tenths at least of

-
th e torm e nt of life ) ,

but i t gives him a conc e ntrat e d pow e r of handling

m e ntal work absolutely unk n own to him b e fore .

Th e two things ar e correlativ e to e ach other A s .

alr e ady said t his is one of th e principl e s of G anam

,
.

While at work your tho u ght is to b e absolut e ly con

c entrated in it undistracted by anything what e ver
,

irr e levant to the matter i n hand pounding away

1 72 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
To E L EP HAN T A
lik e a great engin e with giant pow e r and p e rfect
,

e conomy no w e ar and t e ar of friction or dislocation ,

of parts owing to th e working of di fferent forc e s at

,

th e same time Th e n when th e work is nish e d if

.
, ,

th e r e is no mor e occasion for th e use of th e machin e ,

it must stop e qually absolut e ly stop e ntir e ly no

wor ry ing (as if a parc e l of boys wer e allow e d to
play th e ir devilments with a locomotiv e as soon as
it was in the sh e d ) and the man must r e tir e into
that r e gion of his consciousn e ss wher e his true s e lf
dw e lls .

I say the pow e r of th e thought machin e its e lf is -

e normously incr e as e d by this faculty of l e tting it

alon e on th e on e hand and of usi ng it singly and
with conc e ntration on th e other It b e com e s a true .

tool which a mast e r workman lays down when don e

,
-

with but which only a bungler carri e s about with

,

him all th e time to S how that h e is the possessor

of it .

Then on and b e yond th e work turn e d out by th e

tool its e lf is th e knowl e dg e that com e s to us apart
from its us e : wh e n th e nois e of th e workshop is
ov e r and mallet and plan e laid asid e th e faint
,

sounds coming through th e open window from th e

vall e y and th e far s e ashore : the dim fringe of
diviner knowl e dg e which begins to grow poor
, ,

thing as soon as th e e t e rnal click clack of thought

,
-

is over th e extraordi nary intuitions p e rc e ptions , ,

which tho u gh partaking in som e degree of th e

,

charact e r of thought spring from e ntirely d iffe r e nt

,

conditions and ar e the for e runn e rs of a changed

,

consc iousness .

A t rst th e y appear miraculous but it is not so , .

Th e y ar e not miraculous for they ar e always there , .

1 74 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
To E LEP H AN T A
thought images which such d e sires and fears evoke
-
,

it is impossible that it should see and understand

the greater facts beyond and its own relation to
them But with the subsiding of the former the
.

great Vision begins to dawn and a man never feels

less alon e than wh e n h e has c e as e d to think whether
he is alone or not .

I t is in this re spect that the subj ection of desire

is really important Ther e is no necessity to sup
.

pose t hat desir e in its e lf is an evil ; indeed it is

, , ,

quite conceivabl e that it may fall into place as a

useful and important el e m e nt of human nature
though certainly on e whos e i mportance will be found
to dwindl e and gradually disapp e ar as time goes on .

The trouble for us is i n our present state that , ,

desir e is liable to grow to such dimensions as to

overclo u d the world for us e mprison and S hut us
out from inestimabl e F re e dom b e neath its sway
, ,

'

U nder such circumstanc e s it e vid e ntly is a nuisance

and has to be domi nat e d N o doubt certai n sections
,

of the I ndi an and oth e r asc e ti c philosophies have

taught the absolute e xtinction of desire but we ,

may fairly regard th e s e as cas e s so common in

the history of all traditional t e aching of undue
prominence given to a sp e cial d e tail and of the ex al ,

ration of the letter of th e doctrin e above the spirit .

The moral elem e nt (at which w e have now arrived )

in the attainment of a high e r ord e r of consciousness
i s of course recognis e d by all the great I ndian
, ,

teachers as of the rst importance The sacred .

books the sermons of B uddha the discourses of

, ,

the present day Gurus all point i n the same dirc e

-
,

tion Gentleness forb e aranc e to wards all abstention

.
, ,

from giving pain e sp e cially to the animals the

, ,
 M ETH O D S OF A TT A I NM E N T 1 75

recognition of th e divine spirit in ev e ry creature

down to the lowest the most absolut e s e nse of
,

equality and the most absolute candor an undis ,

tu rbed s e r e n e mind fr ee from ang e r fe ar or any

, , ,

e xc e ssiv e and torm e nting desire th e s e are all

insisted on .

Thus though physical and m e ntal conditions ar e

h e ld and rightly to b e important th e moral con ,

d ition s ar e h e ld to b e at l e ast equally important

N e v e rthel e ss in orde r to guard against m isconc ep
.

tion which i n so compl e x a subje ct may e asily aris e

it i s n e c e ssary to stat e h e r e what I hav e hint e d
, ,

befor e that different sections and schools among

th e d e vot ee s plac e a v e ry diffe r e nt respective value
upon th e thre e s e ts of conditions som e making
'

mor e of th e physical others of th e m e ntal and

, ,

oth e rs again of the moral and that as may b e e asily ,

gu e ss e d th e r e sults attain e d by th e various schools

,

di ffe r consid e rably in cons e qu e nc e .

Th e high e r e sot e ric t e achers naturally lay th e

gr e atest str e ss on th e moral but any account of ,

th e ir m e thods would be d e fe ctiv e which pass e d ov e r

or blinked th e fact that th e y go bey ond th e moral
b e caus e this fact is i n som e s e ns e of th e ess e nc e of
th e Ori e ntal inn e r teaching M orality i t is w e ll .
,

understood involv e s th e conc e ption of ones e lf as

,

distinct from others as distinct from the world and

, ,

pr e supposes a c e rtain antagonism b e twe e n one s own

interests and thos e of on e s fellows On e sacri .

c es

on e s own int e r e sts to those of another or

go e s out of on e s w ay to h e lp him A ll su ch
,

id e as must be entir e ly l e ft b e hind if on e is to reach

th e central illumination Th e y sprin g from ig nor
.

anc e and are th e products of darkness

,
On no .
I 76 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E L EP H AN T A

word did th e Grammarian insist more strongly

than on th e word N on diffe r e ntiation You are not -

.

ev e n to diffe r e ntiat e yours e lf in thought from others

you ar e not to b e gin to r e gard yours e lf as s e parate
from th e m E v e n to talk about h e lping oth e rs is a
.

mistak e it is vitiat e d by the d e lusion that you and

th e y are twain S o clos e ly do e s th e subtl e H i ndu
.

mind go to the mark ! What would our bald com

m erc ial philanthropy our sl ee k aesth e tic altruism
our sci e ntic isop hily say to such t e aching ! A ll th e
, ,

littl e s e lf sati sfactions which arise from th e s e ns e of

-

duty p e rform e d all th e chees e pari ngs of e quity be

,
-

tw ee n ones e lf and oth e rs all th e tiny wond e rm e nts ,

w h e th e r you ar e b e tt e r or wors e than yo u r n e igh

bour ha ve to b e abandon e d and you hav e to le arn
,

to liv e in a world i n whi ch the chi e f fact is not that

you are distinct from O th e rs but that you ar e a part ,

of and i nt e gral with th e m This involv e s i nd ee d a .

, ,

return to th e communal ord e r of soci e ty and difcult ,

as this teaching is for us in this day to r e alis e y e t ,

th e r e is no doubt that it must li e at th e h e art of

th e D e mocracy of the future as it has lain ger , ,

minal all thes e c e nturies i n th e hidden womb of th e

E ast
,

N or from N at u re You are not to diffe re ntiat e

.

yours e lf from N atur e

.

W e hav e s ee n that th e
G u ru T illeinathan spok e of th e O p e rations of the
.

ext e rnal world as I ha ving dismi ss e d the s e ns e

,

of diffe r e nc e b e tw ee n hims e lf and th e m I t is only .

u nd e r thes e and such conditions as th e s e that the

, ,

littl e mortal creatur e gradually b e com e s awar e of

What h e is .

This non diffe r e ntiation is the nal deliv e rance

-
.

Wh e n it e nt e rs in the whol e burd e n of absurd cares ,

1 78 FR O M ADAM S PE A K

TO E L EP H AN T A
rat e has b ee n bas e d upon the most absolut e ly
communal foundation But p e rhaps this fact of the
.

communal structur e of soci e ty in I ndia is just th e

r e ason why th e social s e ntim e nt do e s not seek
imp e tuously for e xpr e ssion ther e : whil e in E urope ,

wh e r e existing institutions ar e a perp e tual d e nial of

it its e xpr e ssion becom e s all th e mor e d e t e rmin e d
,

and n e c e ssary H ow e v e r that may be I think th e

.
,

fact may b e admitt e d of a differenc e b e tw ee n the

E ast and W e st i n this re spect Of cours e I am .
,

not sp e aking of thos e fe w who m ay attain to the

consciousn e ss of non diffe r e ntiation b e caus e in th e ir
-
,

cas e th e word lo ve must n e c e ssarily chang e its

m e aning ; nor am I sp e aking of th e specially indi
vidual and s e xual and amatory love in which th e r e
is no r e ason to suppos e th e H indus d e cient but I
,

am rath e r alluding to th e fact that in th e W e st w e

ar e in th e habit of looking on d e votion to oth e r
humans (wid e ning out i nto the social passion ) as the
most natural way of losing on e s s e lf limitations and

-

passing into a larg e r sph e r e of life and conscious

n e ss whil e i n th e E ast this m e thod is li ttl e thought
of or larg e ly n e gl e ct e d in favor of th e conc e ntra
,

ti on of on e s e lf i n th e divin e and m e rgence in th e

,

univ e rsal in that way

I think this contrast taking it qui t e roughly
.

may c e rtainly b e said to e xist Th e I ndian teachers

.
,

th e sacr e d books th e e xisting instruction c e ntr e

, ,

consciou sly or unconsciously round th e d eve lopm e nt

of Will power By will to surr e nd e r th e will ; by
-
.

det e rmination and conc e ntration to pre ss i nward

and upward to that portion of on e s b e ing which

belongs to the universal to conqu e r the body to

, ,

conqu e r the thoughts to conqu e r th e passions and

,
 M ETH O DS O F A TT A I NM E N T 1 79

e motions ; always will and w ill pow e r A nd h e re

,
-
.

agai n w e hav e a parado x b e caus e in th e ir qui e sc e nt

, ,

gentle and rath e r passiv e e xternal life so diffe r e nt

,

from th e push and dominating en e rgy of th e W e st e rn

nations ther e is littl e to mak e on e e xpect such
forc e But whil e mod e rn E urop e and A m e rica has
.

sp e nt its Will in th e mast e ry of th e e xt e rnal world ,

I ndia has res e r ve d h e rs for th e conqu e st of inn e r

and spiritual ki ngdoms I n th e ir hypnotic ph e n .

omena too th e yogis e xhibit the forc e of will and

, , ,

this differentiat e s their hypnotism from that of th e

W e st in which th e pati e nt is op e rat e d upon by
,

anoth e r p e rson I n the latt e r ther e is a dang e r of

.

loss of will power but i n th e form e r (auto hypnotism )

-

,
-

will pow e r is no doubt gain e d whil e at th e sam e

-

tim e hypnotic states ar e induced S uggestion which

,

.
,

is such a pow e rful age nt in hypnotism acts h e r e too , ,

and h e lps to knit the body togeth e r p e rvading it ,

with a h e aling inu e nc e and bri nging th e lower s e lf

,

und e r th e dire ct domination of th e high e r ; and in

this r e spect th e Guru to som e ext e nt stands i n the
plac e of th e op e rator whil e th e yogi is his subje ct
Thus i n the E ast th e Will constitut e s th e gr e at
.
,

path ; but in th e W e st th e path has b ee n mor e

sp e cially through L ove and probably will b e Th e
great teach e rs of th e West P lato je sus P aul
.

, ,

hav e indicated this m e thod rath e r than that of th e

asc e tic will though of cours e th e r e hav e not b ee n
, ,

wanting e xpon e nts of both sides The on e method .

m e ans th e grad u al dwindling of th e local and ext e r

nal s e lf through inner conc e ntration and aspiratio n ,

the other m e ans th e enlargement of th e said self

through affe ctional growth and nourish m e nt till at ,

last it can contain its e lf no longer Th e bursti ng of .

1 80 FR O M A DA M s

PE A K To E L EP H AN T A
th e sac tak e s place the life is pour e d out and ceas , ,

ing to b e local b e com e s universal Of this m e thod

,
.

Whitman forms a signal instanc e H e is e gotistic .

e nough in all conscienc e ; yet at last through his ,

immens e human sympathy and through the very ,

e nl arg e ment of his eg o thus taking place the bar ,

riers br e ak down and h e pass e s out and away .

O C hrist ! This is masterin m e ! g

I n at th e c o nqu ere dd
oo rs the c row y d . I am po ssesse d .

I em o b dy
all presenc es ou tl awe or su erin d ff g
y f
S ee m sel in p rison shap e l i e another m an, d k
f d
A n d eel the u ll u ninterm itte p ain d .

Eno ugh ! enou gh ! en ou gh !

S om ehow I have een stu nne b S tan ac ! d . db k
b y d
G ive m e a l ittl e tim e e on m y c u e hea sl u m ers, ream s, ff d d b d
g
ap in ; g
I d y f
isc over m sel on the ver e of a u su al m ista e g k
k
.

That I c ou l df g
or et th e m o c ers and insu l ts !

That I c ou l df g
o r et the tric l in tears, an d the k
l ows of l u eons g b b dg
and ham m ers
d k
T hat I c ou l l oo with a separate l oo on m y own c ru c i xion an d k
b
l oo crown indy
g .

B ut such e xpr e ssions as thes e in which the

passion of humanity wraps the sp e aker into anoth e r
sph e re of e xist e nc e are not charact e ristic of the
E ast and ar e not found in th e I ndian scriptur e s
, .

Wh e n its time com e s the W e st will probably adopt

this m e thod of the li b e ration of th e human soul
through lov e rath e r than th e sp e cially I ndian
m e thod of the Will ; though doubtl e ss both hav e
to b e and will be in th e future to a larg e ext e nt
, ,

concurr e ntly us e d Differ e nt races and peopl e s

.

inclin e according to th e i r idiosyncrasies to diffe r e nt

 CH AP T E R XI

T R AD I T I ONS OF T HE I
A N C EN T WI S D O M RE L IGI O N
-

I H AVE dwelt so far on th e nature O f certain ex

s which I hav e not however attempted to
p erience
( , ,

describe ) and on th e m e thods by which specially in ,

I ndia they are sought to b e obtained ; and I have

,

done so in general t e rms and with an e ndeavor to

,

assimilate the subj e ct to W e st e rn ideas and to bri ng

it into line with mod e rn sci e nc e and speculation I .

propose in this chapt e r to dw e ll more especially on

the formal side of our friend s teaching which will

bring out into relief th e sp e cial character of E astern

,

thought and its aierences from our present day

-

modes of thought .

I must however again warn the reader against

, ,

accepting anything I say e xc e pt with care and ,

reserve and especially not to broaden out into

,

sweeping generaliti e s any d e tailed statement I may

happen to make P e ople oft e n ask for some con
.

cise account of I ndian teaching and religion S up .

posing someone wer e to ask for a concise account

of the Christian t e aching and r e ligion which of us , ,

with all our familiarity with th e subj ect could give

an account which th e oth e rs would accept ! F rom
,

the question whether Jesus and P aul were initiates

in the E astern myst e ries as the mod e rn Gurus
claim that they were and as I thi nk ther e can be no
,

doubt that they w e re either by tradition or by

1 82
 TR AD ITI O N S O F T HE AN CIE N T WIS DO M R EL IGI O N
-
1 83

spontan e ous e volution ; through the question of the

si milarity and diffe r e nc e s of their teaching ; th e
various schools of e arly Christianity ; the E gyptian

inu e nc e s ; th e Gnostic s e cts and philosophy ; th e

formation and history of th e Church its organisa ,

tions cr e eds and doctrin e s ; m e di ae val Christianity

,

and its relation to A ristotle ; the mystic teach e rs

,

of th e thirte e nth and fourt ee nth c e nturi e s ; th e asc e tic

and monastic mov e ments th e b e li e f in alch e my and
witchcraft ; th e miracl e s of th e S aints ; th e P ro
t e stant mov e m e nt and doctrin e s e tc e tc ; down
, . .

to th e innumerabl e p e tty s e cts of to day and all -

th e ir co n icting v i e ws on th e A tonement and th e

sacram e nts and th e inspiration of th e B ibl e and all ,

th e r e st of it who would b e so bold as to an

nounc e th e gist and r esu m e of it all in a fe w bri e f
s e nt e nc e s ! Y e t th e gr e at I ndian evolution of
r e ligious thought whil e historically mor e anci e nt
is at l e ast e qually vast and complex and bewild e ring
in its innum e rabl e ramications I should fee l
.

e ntirely incomp e tent to deal with it as a whole

and h e re at anyrate am only touching upon th e
, ,

p e rsonality and utt e ranc e s of on e teach e r b e longing ,

to a partic u lar school th e S outh I ndian

This Guru was as I hav e said naturally on e of
.
,

, ,

thos e w ho insist e d larg e ly though not by any

m e ans e xclusively on th e moral and ultra moral -

sid e s of th e teaching ; and from this point of vi e w

his personality was particularly remarkabl e H is .

g e ntl e n e ss an d kindliness combin e d with e vid e nt

,

pow e r ; and inexibility and int e nsity underlying ;

his t e ns e e y e s as of the s e er and gracious lips and
, ,

expr e ssion and e as e and dignity of gure ; his

,

e ntire s e re nity and calm though with lots of

1 84 FRO M ADA M S PE A K '
TO E L EP H AN T A
vigor wh e n n ee d e d all th e s e w e r e impr e ssi ve .

But perhaps I w as most struck as th e cul mination

of charact e r and m anhood by his p e rfe ct simplicity
of man ne r N othing could b e mor e un e mbarrass e d
. ,

uns e lfconscious dir e ct to th e point in hand fr e e ,

from kinks of any kind S om e tim e s h e would S it

,

on his sofa couch in th e littl e cottag e not u nfre

-
,

qu e ntly as I hav e said wi th bar e fee t gath e r e d

, ,

b e n e ath him ; som e tim e s h e would sit on a chair

at the tabl e ; som e tim e s in th e animati on of dis
cours e his muslin wrap would fall from his should e r ,

unnoticed showing a still grac e ful gure thin bu t

, , ,

by no m e ans e maciat e d som e times h e would stand

for a mom e nt a tall and d igni e d form y e t always
,

w ith th e sam e e as e and grac e and abs e n c e of s e lf

consciousn e ss th at only th e animals and a fe w
among human b e ings S how I t was this that mad e .

him se e m v e ry n e ar to on e as if th e ordinary ,

barri e rs which di v id e p e opl e w e r e don e away with

and if this was non diffe rentiation working wi thin
-

its e xt e rnal e ffe ct w as v e ry admirabl e .

I dw e ll p e rhaps th e mor e on th e s e points of charac

t e r which mad e m e fe e l an e xtraordinary r app r oc/ie
,

m ent and unspok e n intimacy to this man b e caus e

I almost imm e diat e ly found on acq u ai ntanc e that on
,

th e plan e of ordinary thought and sci e ntic b e li e f

w e w e r e e v e r so far asund e r with only a small pro
,

sp e ct owing to di fculti e s of language e tc of eve r

coming to an und e rstanding I found though this
, , .
,

.
,

of cours e gav e a sp e cial int e r e st to his con ve rsa

,

tion that his vi e ws of astronomy physiology , ,

ch e mistry politics and the rest w e r e e ntirely u n

, , ,

modi e d by W e st e rn thought and sci e nce and that

they had com e down throu gh a long lin e of oral
1 86 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

pl e asur e ) and al w ays Ve das or U panishads (or

,

books corr e sponding ) brought by divin e teach e rs .

(A bout mod e rn th e ori e s of subm e rg e d continents

and low e r rac e s i n th e far past h e did not app e ar
to know anything or to ha ve troubl e d his h e ad nor ,

did h e put forth any vi e ws on this subje ct of th e

ki nd m e ntion e d by S inn e tt in his E soter ic B u d
an ism M any of his views how e ver wer e v e ry

.
, ,

similar to those giv e n in that book ) .

H is g e n e ral philosophy app e ar e d to b e that of the

S idd hantic syst e m into which I do not propos e to
,

go i n any d e tail as it may b e found in th e books ;

,

and all such syst e ms ar e hop e lessly dull and may ,

b e said to carry th e ir own death warrants writt e n -

on th e ir fac e s Th e I ndian syst e ms of philosophy

.

b e ar a strong r e s e mblanc e to th e Gnostic syst e ms

of e arly Christian tim e s which latt e r w e r e no
doubt d e ri ve d from th e E ast Th e y all d e p e nd
,

upon th e id e a of e manation which is undoubt e dly ,

an important id e a and corr e sponds to som e remark

,

abl e facts of consciousn e ss ; but th e sp e cial forms

in which the id e a is cast in the various systems ar e
not v e ry valuable .

Th e uni ve rs e i n th e S iddhantic syst e m is com

pos e d of ve e l e m e nts (I ) e th e r ; (2) air ; (3 ) r e ;
(4) wat e r ; and (5) earth ; and to g e t ov e r the
obvious difculti e s which aris e from such a c lassi
cation it is e xplain e d that th e se ar e not the g r oss
,

e th e r air r e water and earth that w e know but

, , , , ,

su o tle e l e m e nts of th e same nam e which ar e th e m ,

s e lv e s p e rfe ctly pure but by th e ir admixtur e produce

,

th e gross e l e m e nts Thus th e air w e know is not

.

a tru e e lem e nt but is form e d by a mixtur e of th e

,

subtl e air with small portions of th e subtl e e ther

, ,
 TR AD ITI O N S O F T HE A N C IE N T WIS D O M RE L IGI O N
-
1 87

subtl e r e subtl e wat e r and subtl e e arth and so on

, , , .

This e xplains how it is th e r e may b e various kinds of

ai r or of water or of earth Th e n th e ve subtl e e l e .

m e nts give ris e to th e v e forms of s e nsation in th e

ord e r nam e d (I ) S ound ; (2) Touc h ; (3 ) F orm
(4 ) Taste 5) S m e ll and to th e v e corr e sponding
organs of s e nse A lso there ar e v e int e ll e ctual
.
,

faculties evolv e d by admixtur e from the subtl e

e l e ments nam e ly (I ) th e inn e r consciousness which
, ,

has the quality O f e ther or spac e ; (2) the organ O f

p e rc e ption and Thought (m anas) which has th e ,

quality of aerial agitation and m otion ; (3 ) R e ason

which has th e quality of light and r e (4)
D esire (cnittam ) which has th e e motional rushing
,

character of wat e r ; 5) th e I making faculty (anan -

kcir a) which has th e hardness and r e sistance of th e

e arth A lso th e v e organs of action the voic e th e
,

.
,

hands the fee t th e anus and the p e nis in th e sam e

, , ,

ord e r ; and th e ve vital airs which ar e suppos e d to

p e rvad e th e diffe rent parts of th e body and to imp e l
th e ir action .

This is all very neat and compact U nfortu .

n atel
y it shar e s the articial charact e r which all
,

syst e ms of philosophy have and which makes it ,

quite impossible to acc e pt any of them I think .

our friend quit e r e cognis e d this for mor e than onc e ,

h e said and quot e d th e sacred books to the same

e ffe ct that E v e rything which can be thought is
,

I n this resp e ct th e I ndian philosophy

,

untrue .

altogether excels our West e rn systems (except th e

most mod e rn ) I t takes th e bottom out of its own
.

little buck e t i n th e most impartial way

N everth e l e ss whatever faults they may have and
.

, ,

howev e r easy it may b e to attack their thought

1 88 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
TO E L EP H AN T A
forms th e gre at I ndian syst e ms (and thos e of th e
,

W e st th e sam e ) ar e no doubt bas e d upon deep lying -

facts of consciousn e ss which it must b e ou r busi

n e s s some tim e to dis e ntangl e I b e liev e th e r e ar e
,

facts of consciousn e ss und e rlying such unlik e ly

things as th e e volution of th e v e s u btl e elem e nts ,

e v e n though th e f or m of the doctrin e may be

larg e ly fantastic T he primal el e m e nt accordi ng
.
,

to this doctrin e is th e e ther or space (A kasa) th e

, ,

two id e as of spac e and e th e r b e ing curiously id enti

ed and th e oth e r e l e m e nts air r e etc
,
are , , .
-

ev olved in succession from this one by a process

of thick e ning or cond e nsation N ow this conscious
.

n e ss of spac e not th e material space but th e spac e ,

w ithin th e soul is a form of th e suprem e con

sc iou sness in man th e satcnit ananaa B rahm -

F r ee dom E quality E xt e nsion Omnipre s e nc e and

,

, , ,

is accompani e d by a s e ns e which has b ee n oft e n

d e scrib e d as a combination of all the s e ns e s sight ,

h e aring touch e tc in on e so that th e y do not

e v e n app e ar differ e ntiat e d from e ach oth e r I n th e
.
, , ,

course of th e d e sc e nt of th e consciousn e ss from this

plan e to th e plan e of ordinary life (which may b e
tak e n to corr e spond to th e creation of th e actual
world ) th e transc e nd e nt spac e consciousness go e s -

through a sort of obscuration or condensation and ,

th e s e nses b e com e diffe r e ntiat e d i nto s e parate and

distinct faculties This or so m e thing lik e it is a
.

distinct e xp e ri e nce I t may w e ll b e that th e formal

.

doctrin e about th e ve el e m e nts is m e r e ly an

att e mpt ne c e ssarily v e ry d e fe ctiv e sinc e th e s e ,

things cannot be ad e quat e ly e xpressed in that way

to put the thing i nto a form of thought A nd .

so with oth e r doctrin e s : som e may contai n a real

1 90 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

A s inese tning s evolve ou t of tne sou l , so tl

ie
y m ust
involve ag ain into it an a in to B r anm
I
.
,

To go with the ve e l e m e nts etc the syst e m , .

,

e xpound e d by th e Guru suppos e s v e sh e lls en

closing th e soul Th e s e with th e soul its e lf and
.
, ,

B rahm the undiffe rentiated spirit lying W ithin th e

S oul form sev e n planes or s e ctions as in th e E so
,

teric Buddhism of S i nn e tt and th e Th e osophists

, ,

The divisions how e v e r ar e not quit e id e ntical in th e

two syst e ms which app e ar to b e r e sp e ctiv e ly N orth
, ,

I ndian and S outh I ndian I n th e N orth I nd ian w e

,

have (I ) the mat e rial body ; (2) th e vitality ; (3 ) th e

astral form (4 ) th e animal soul 5) th e human soul
(6 ) th e soul prop e r ; and (7) th e undiffe rentiat e d
spirit I n th e S outh I ndian w e hav e (I ) th e material
.

S h e ll ; (2 ) th e sh e ll of th e vital airs ; (3 ) th e s e n
sori alsh e ll (4 ) th e cog nitional sh e ll (5) th e S h e ll of
oblivion and bliss in sl ee p ; (6 ) th e soul and (7) th e
undiffe r e ntiat e d spirit Th e two e xtr e mes s ee m th e
.

sam e in th e two systems but th e i nt e rmediat e lay e rs

diffe r I n som e r e sp e cts th e latt e r syst e m is the
,

m or e e ffe ctiv e ; it has a strong e r practi cal b e aring

than th e oth e r and app e ars to b e sp e cia l ly d e sign e d
,

as a guid e to action in th e work of e mancipation

I n som e resp e cts th e oth e r syst e m has a wider
.

application N either of cours e have any particular

.
, ,

valu e e xc e pt as conv e ni e nt forms of thought for

th e ir sp e cial purpos e s and as very roughly e mbody
,

ing in th e ir diffe r e nt d e gr ee s vario u s exp e riences

which th e human consciousn e ss pass e s through in
th e cours e of its evolution I t is not till all th e .

v e Sh e lls have been succ e ssiv e ly p ee l e d off that

consciousn e ss e nt e rs th e soul and i t s ee s its e l f and ,

th e u n i ve rsal be ing as on e Th e rst thr e e ar e .

 TRAD ITI O N S O F THE AN CIE N T WIS D O M RE L IGI O N -
1 91

p ee led off at each bodily d e ath of th e m an but they ,

grow again out of what r e mains I t is not e nough .

to pass b e yond these but b e yond the oth e r tw o also

, .

Then wh e n that is don e th e stud e nt enters into th e

fulness of th e whol e univ e rs e and with that joy no
e arthly joy can for a mom e nt be compar e d .

De ath h e continued


, is usually gre at agony
,

,

as if th e life w e r e b e ing squ e ez e d out of e v e ry part

lik e th e j uic e out of a sugar cane only for thos e w ho -

ha ve already s e parat e d th e ir sou ls from th e ir bodi e s

is it not so F or th em it is m e r e ly a qu e stion of
.

laying down th e body at will when its kar m a is ,

w ork e d out or of retaining it if n ee d b e to pro

, , ,

I t is commonly said that Vasishta

long e d y e ars .
,

who rst gav e the sacr e d k nowl e dg e to mankind is ,

still living and pro v iding for th e e arth ; and Till e i

n athan S wamy is said to have s e en T iru v allu var ,

th e pariah pri e st w ho wrote th e Ka r r al ov e r 1 0 0 0

y e ars ago . I n ordinary cas e s th e last thoughts

that cling to th e body ( th e ruling passion strong in

death ) b e come the se e d of the n e xt ensuing body

I n this syst e m th e out e rmost lay e r of that portion

.

of th e human bei ng which survives d e ath is th e

shell of thought (and desir e ) A S th e body is modi .

ed i n ev e ry day li fe by th e action of th e thought

-

forms within and grows out of th em so th e n e w

, ,

body at some p e riod aft e r d e ath grows out of th e

thought forms that survive
-
Th e body is built up
.

by your thought and not by your thought i n this

,

life only but by th e thought of pr e vious liv e s
,
.

Of th e difcult qu e stion about h e re ditary lik e n e ss ,

suggesting that th e body is also du e to th e thought

of the par e nts he gav e no ve ry d e tail e d acco u nt
, ,

only that th e atomic soul is carri e d at som e p e riod

1 92 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

aft e r d e ath by univ e rsal laws or by its own af n i ,

ti e s i nto a womb suitabl e for its n e xt incarnation ,

wh e r e ndi ng kindr e d thought forms and e l e m e nts

,
-

it assimilat e s and gro w s from th e m with the result ,

of what is called family lik e n e ss .

S ome of his e xpositions of A strology were very

int e r e sting to m e particularly to nd this world old -

syst e m with all its que e r formaliti e s and d ee p und e r

lying g e n e ral truths still passively (though I think
not acti ve ly ) accepted and handed down by so abl e
an expon ent but I cannot record th e m at any l e ngth .

Th e v e op e rations O f th e di v in e spirit nam e ly (I )

Grac e ; (2) Obscuration ; (3 ) De struction ; (4 ) P r e s e r
,

vation and 5) Cr e ation corr e spond to th e ve el e

,

m e nts spac e air r e wat e r and e arth and ar e

, , , ,

e mbodi e d i n the nin e plan e ts thus (I ) R aku and

K etu (2) S atur n (3 ) th e S un and M ars (4) Ve nus
,

M e rcury and th e M oon (5) jupiter I t is thus that

,
.

th e birth of a human b e ing is inuenc e d by th e posi

tion of th e plan e ts i e the horoscope Th e mal e
. . .

s e m e n contains th e v e e l e m e nts and th e composi ,

tion of it is d e t e rmin e d by the attitud e of the nin e

plan e ts in the sky ! Ther e s ee ms h e re to b e a
glimm e ring e mbodim e nt of the d ee p lying truth that -

th e whole univ ers e conspir e s in th e s e xual act and ,

that the orgasm itself is a ash of th e univ e rsal .

consciousn e ss ; but th e thought forms of astrology -

ar e as indig e stibl e to a mind train e d in W e stern

sci e nc e as I suppose th e thought forms of th e latt e r
ar e to th e philosoph e r of the E ast !
Wh e n I e xpostulat e d with th e Guru about th e s e
to us cr uditi e s of A strology and about such th e ori e s
,

, ,

as that of th e at earth th e caus e of e clips e s etc

bri nging th e most O b v ious argum e nts to attack hi s
, , .
,
1 94 FR O M ADA M S PE A K

To E L EP H AN T A
against th e possibility of th e m it is wis e in cas e s ,

w h e r e d e nit e and unmistakabl e e vid e n c e is abs e n t ,

to withhold th e judgm e nt e ith e r w ay for o r against ,

th e ir occurr e nc e .

With r e gard to th e s e primitiv e old doctrin e s of

A stronomy A strology P hilology P hysiology e tc
, , , , .
,

hand e d down from far back tim e s and still e mbodi e d

-

in th e t e aching of th e Gurus though it is impossibl e

to acc e pt th e m on th e ordinary thought plan e I
,

-
,

think w e may y e t fairly conclude that th e r e i s an

e l e m e nt of cosmic consciousness in th e m or at any ,

rat e in many of th e m which has giv e n th e m th e ir

,

v itality and s e al of authority so to S p e ak I hav e

alr e ady e xplai ne d what I mean in on e or tw o cas e s
.

myths and l e g e nds (A ndrom e da

, .

ust as i n th e d
Ol
j
Cupid and P sych e Ci nd e r e lla and a gr e at many
,

m or e ) an e ffort w as mad e to embody indir e ctly in ,

ordinary thought forms things s ee n with th e i nn e r

-

e y e and which could not be e xpr e ss e d dir e ctly so

was th e sam e proc e ss carri e d out in th e O ld sci e nc e .

Though partly occupi e d with things of th e thought

plan e it was also partly occupi e d in gi v ing e xpres
,

sion to things which li e b e hind that plan e which

w e in our W e st e r n sci e nc e s have n e ith e r disc e rn e d
nor t roubl e d ours e lv e s about H e nc e though con .
,

fus e d and d e fe ctiv e and e asily impugnabl e it con ,

tains an e l e m e nt w hich is y e t of valu e Tak e th e

th e ory of th e at e arth for instanc e alr e ady m e n ,

tioned with M ount M e ru i n the north b e hind which

th e sun and moon r e tir e e ach day A t rst it se e ms
, ,

almost incr e dibl e that a subtl e brai n e d shr e wd ,

p e opl e should hav e e nt e rtained so crud e a th e ory at

all But it soon app e ars that whil e b e in g a rude
.

e xplanation of ext e rnal facts and on e which might ,

 TR AD ITI O N S O F THE AN CIE N T WIS D O M RE L IGI O N
-
1 95

commend its e lf to a supe rcial obs e rv e r it is also ,

and i n reality a d e scription of c e rtain internal ph e

no m ena s e en . Th e r e ar e a sun and moon within ,

and th e r e is a M ount M e ru (so it is sai d ) w ithin by ,

which they ar e obscur e d The univ e rs e within th e

.

soul and th e univers e without co rr e spond and ar e

th e similitudes of e ach oth e r and so (th e or e tically
,

at anyrate) th e language which d e scrib e s on e should

d e scrib e the other
I t is we ll known t hat much of th e m e di ae val
.

alch e my had this doubl e sign i cation th e t e rms

us e d i ndicat e d two class e s of facts S om e tim e s th e
.

inn e r m e aning pr e pond e rat e d som e tim e s th e outer ;

,

and it is not always e asy to t e ll in th e writings of

th e alch e mists which is sp e cially int e nd e d This
alchemical t e aching cam e into E urop e from th e E ast
.

as w e know y e t it was not withou t a fee li ng of

surpris e that I h e ard th e Guru on e day e x pounding
as one of th e anci e nt traditions of his own country a
doctrin e that I s ee m e d familiar with as comi ng from
P aracelsus or som e such author that of the trans
mutation of copp e r into gold by m e ans of solidi e d
m e rcury Th e r e is a m e t hod h e e xplain e d pr e
.
, ,

s e rv e d in mystic languag e i n som e of th e ancient

books by which m e rcury can b e r e nd e r e d solia
.

This solid m e rcury has e xtraordinary prop e rti e s : it

is proof against th e action of r e ; if you hold a
small pi e c e of it i n your mouth arrows and bull e ts
,

cannot harm you and th e m e re touch of it will turn

a l ump of copp e r i nto gold
N ow this doctri n e has b ee n r e cog nised by students
.

of th e m ed imval alch e my to ha ve an e sot e ric m e an

ing Quicksilver or mercury~as I think I hav e
.

already m e ntion e d 4 s an image or embodim e nt of

1 96 FR O M AD A M S PE A K
TO E L EP H AN T A
thought its e lf th e eve r gl ancing e ver shifting ; to
, ,

r e nd e r quicksil ve r solid is to x thought and so to ,

e nt e r i nto th e transc e nd e nt consciousn e ss H e who .

do e s t h at can be harm e d n e ith e r by arrows nor by

bullets ; a touch of that divin e r principle turns th e
m an w hose natur e is but bas e copp e r into pur e gold .

Th e Guru how eve r e xpounded this as if in a purely

, ,

lit e ral and e xt e rnal s e ns e ; and on my qu e stioning

him it b e cam e ev id e nt that h e b e li eve d in som e at ,

an yrate ,
of th e alch e mical transmutations in this
s e n s e though what e vid e nce he may hav e had for
such b e li e f did not app e ar
I r e m e mb e r v e ry w e ll th e e v e ning on which this
.

con ve rsatio n took plac e W e w e r e walking along.

an unfr e qu e nt e d bit of road or by lan e ; th e S ky -

was transpar e nt with th e colors of s u ns e t th e ,

wood e d hills a few m il e s off look e d blu e t hrou g h

th e limpid ai r H e strod e along a tall dark gure
.
,

w ith coal black eyes

-
on rais e d w ood e n sandals or

clogs his whit e w rapp e r loos e ly e ncircling him

with so e asy and swift a motion that it was quit e a
co n sid e ration to k ee p up with him discoursing all
th e W hil e on th e w o nd e rful alch e mical and medical
s e cre ts pr e s e r ve d from age s back i n th e slo as of th e
sacr e d books how in ord e r to safe guard this arcan e
knowl e dge an d to r e nd e r it inacc e s sibl e to th e
,

v ulga r m e thods had b ee n adopted of the trans

,

po sition of words l e tt e rs e tc which mad e th e t e xt

, , .
,

m e r e gibb e rish exc e pt to thos e w ho had th e k e y ;

how th e r e still e xist e d a g r e at mass of such writi ngs
inscrib e d on palm and oth e r l e a ve s and stor e d away ,

in th e t e mpl e s and monast e ri e s though much had

b ee n destroy e d and so forth altoge th e r a strang e
g u re som e thing un ca n ny and sup e rhu man about it .
1 98 FR O M ADAM S P EA K
To E L EP H AN T A
ind e p e nd e nt sourc e th e gro w th of m e r e commercial
ism i n Britain duri ng lat e y e ars and of the nation of ,
-

shopk ee p e rs th e ory of gov e r nm e nt .

Going on to sp e ak of go ve rnm e nt g e n e rally his ,

vi e ws would I fe ar hardly b e acc e pt e d by th e

, ,

schools th e y w e re more Carlylean in charact e r

S tat e s h e said must b e rule d by justice and
.

(A n anci e nt doctrin e this

, , ,

th e n th e y will succ ee d
A king
.
,

but curiously n e gl e ct e d all down history ) .

should stand and did stand in old tim e s as th e

r e pres e ntativ e of S i v a (God ) H e is nothing in
, ,

hims e lf no mor e than th e p e opl e his r e v e nu e is

d e ri ve d from th e m he is e l e ct e d by them and h e is
in tr u st to administer justic e e sp e cially c rI m I nal
justi c e I n th e courtyard of th e palac e of Chola
K i ng n e ar Tanjore th e r e hung at on e tim e a b e ll
.

, ,

which th e rajah plac e d th e r e i n ord e r that anyone

fee ling hims e lf aggri eve d might com e and ring it ,

and so claim r e dre ss or judgm e nt justic e or .

Equality h e continu e d is th e sp e cial attribut e of

, ,

God ; and h e w ho r e pr e s e nts G od i e th e ki ng , . .

,

must consid e r this b e for e all things Th e same .

with rich p e opl e th e y ar e bound to s e rv e and work

for th e poor from whom th e ir rich e s com e
, .

This last s e nt e nc e h e r e p e at e d so oft e n at diffe r e nt

tim e s an d in diffe r e nt forms that he might almost
,

hav e b ee n claim e d as a S ocialist c e rtainly was a

,

S ocialist i n th e heart of th e matter ; and at anyrate

this teaching shows how n e ar th e most anci e nt
traditions com e to th e n e w e st doctri n e s in th e s e
r e sp e cts and how far th e uncl e an comm e rcialism
,

out of which w e are just passing stands from

eith e r
A s to th e E nglish p e opl e h e se e m e d to think them
.

,
 O OF TI E A
T R AD I T I N S I NC IE N T WI S D O M -
REL IGI O N 1 99

hop e l e ssly plung e d into mat e rialism but said that if ,

th e y did turn to s e nsibl e pursuits (i e of divin e

. .

knowl e dg e ) th e ir p e rsev e ranc e and natural s e ns e of

j ustic e and truth would h e thought stand them in
good st e ad Th e difculties of th e gnosis in E ngland
, ,

w e r e how e v e r v e ry gr e at ; thos e who d o attain

, ,

som e d e gr ee of e mancipation th e r e do not know that

th e y hav e attained though having e xp e ri e nc e th e y

lack knowl e dg e You in th e W e st h e continued


.
, ,

say O G od O G od but you hav e no denite know

,

l e dg e or m e thods by which you can attain to s ee

God It is lik e a man w ho knows th e re is g ace
.

(butt e r ) to b e got out of a cow (pasu m e taph for , .

soul ) H e walks round and round th e cow and

.

cri e s 0 G nee 0 G nee M ilk p e rvad e s th e cow but

, , ,

h e cannot nd it Th e n when he has learned to

ha n dl e the t e at and has O btain e d th e milk h e still
.

, ,

cannot nd th e ghe e I t p e rvad e s th e milk and has

also to b e got by a d e nit e m e thod S o th e r e is a
.

d e nit e m e thod by which th e divin e consciousn e ss

can b e e duc e d from th e soul but it is only in I ndia ,

that complet e i nstruction e xists on this point by

which a man who is rip e may syst e matically and

without fail attai n th e obje ct of his search and by ,

which th e mass of th e p e opl e may asc e nd as by a

ladd e r from th e v e ry low e st stages to such
I ndia h e said was th e di v in e land and th e source
, , ,

from which th e di v in e knowl e dg e had always radiat e d

ov e r th e earth S anskrit and Tamil w e r e divin e
.

languages all oth e r languag e s b e ing of low e r cast e

and origin I n I ndia th e conditions w e re i n e very
.

way favorabl e to attainm e nt but i n oth e r lands not

S om e M ohamm e dans had at diffe rent tim e s
,

so .

adopt e d th e I ndian t e aching and become G anis ,

z oo F R O M A DAM S PE AK

TO E L EP H AN T A
but it had always b ee n in I ndia and not i n th e ir ,

own countri e s that th e y had don e so I nd ee d th e

,
.
,

M ohamm e d an r e ligion though so di ffe r e nt from th e

,

H indu had com e from I ndia and w as du e to a gr e at

, ,

R ishi who had quarr e ll e d wit h th e B rah m ins and

had e stablish e d forms and b e li e fs in a spiri t of oppo
si tion to th e m Wh e n I ask e d him what h e thought
.

of Christ h e said h e was probably an ad e pt i n

,

g anam but his h e ar e rs had b ee n th e rud e mass of

,

th e peopl e and h is t e aching had b e en suit e d to th e ir

wants .

Though th e s e v i e ws of his on th e inu e nc e of

I ndia and its wisdom r e ligion on th e world may -

app e ar and probably ar e in th e ir way e xagg e rat e d

, , ,

y e t th e y are partly justi e d by two facts which

app e ar to m e practically c e rtain : (I ) that in e v e ry
ag e of th e world and i n almost eve ry country th e r e
has b ee n a body of doctrin e han d e d down which , ,

with w hat eve r variations and obscuratio ns has clus ~ ,

tered round two or thr ee c e ntral id e as of which , ,

perhaps that of e mancipation from s e lf through

,

r e peat e d births is th e most important so that th e r e

has b ee n a kind of tacit und e rstanding and fr e e
masonry on this subj e ct b e tw ee n th e gr e at t e ach e rs
throughout history from th e E ast e rn sag e s down
through P y thagoras P lato P aul the Gnostic
,

, , ,

schools th e gr e at m e di ae val alch e mists th e G e rman

, ,

mystics and oth e rs to th e gr e at philosoph e rs and

,

po e ts of our own tim e and that thousands of indi

vi d u als on r e achi ng a c e rtain stag e of e voluti on hav e
corroborat e d and are constantly corroborating from
, ,

th e ir own e xperi e nc e th e main points of t his doctri ne

and (2 ) that th e r e m u st ha ve e xisted in I ndia or in ,

som e n e ighboring r e g ion from which I ndia dr e w

G reat P agoda in Templ e at Tanjore
{1 92 f eet hig h!
 C H AP T E R XI I

THE S O UTH I ND I AN TE M P L ES

L E AV I N G Colombo by st e am e r on e e v e ning in th e
lat e r part of january I landed on th e sandy at
, ,

shor e s of Tuticorin the n e xt day about noon Th e .

d e ck was crowd e d with 2 50 of th e poor e st class of

Tamils cooli e s mostly with wom e n and childr e n
, , ,

lying in d e c e nt confusion heap e d upon on e anoth e r ,

passiv e ly but sadly e nduring th e e vil motion of th e

ship and th e cold night air On e man nam e l e ss .
, ,

unknown and abj e ctly thin di e d in th e night and

was cast overboard I w as th e only E nglishman on
, , ,

board b e sid e th e captain and o fc e rs S aid th e

.

second O f c e r W e ll I would rath e r ha ve th e se

.

fe llows than a lot of E nglish e migrants Th e low

, ,

e st class of E nglish ar e the damn e d e st dirti e st

.

, ,

etc eteraest e tc e teras in th e world

.

Tuticori n is a small plac e with a larg e cotton mill ,

sev e ral R oman Catholic church e s and chap e ls r e lics

of P ortuguese tim e s and a semi Christianised semi
,

F rom ther e to
, ,

wag e slaving native population

-
.

M adras is about two days by rail through th e gr e at

plains of th e Carnatic which str e tch betw ee n th e
,

seashor e and the G hauts long str e tches of sand

and scrub scatt e r e d bush e s and small trees and th e
, ,

kittool palm paddy at i nt e rvals wh e re the land is

moist e r and consid e rabl e quantiti e s of cotton on th e
,

d ark e r soil near Tuticorin ; m u d and thatch villages

307
20 8 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
To E L EPH AN T A
und e r clumps of coco palm (not such ne tr e es as in
-

C e ylon ) ; and plac e s of v illag e worship a portico

or shrin e with a gr e at clay e l e phant or half circl e -

of rud e imag e s of horses facing it ; th e wom e n work

ng i n th e e lds or stacking the ric e straw in stacks
similar to our corn stacks ; th e m e n drawing wat e r
-

from th e ir w e lls to run along th e irrigation chan n e ls ,

or in som e cas e s actually carrying th e wat e r in pots

to pour ov e r their c rO p s !
Th e s e plains lik e th e plains of the Gang e s hav e
, ,

been the sc e n e of an advanc e d ci v ilisation from

e arly tim e s and hav e now for two thousand years
,

at anyrate b ee n occupi e d by th e Tamil populations

F e rgusson in his H istory of A rcnitectu re sp e aks of
.

tnir ty great Dravidian t e mpl e s to b e found in this

r e gion any o n e of which must have cost as much

to build as an E nglish cath e dral

,

I visit e d thr ee .
,

thos e of M adura Tanjor e and Chid ambaram which

. , ,

I will d e scrib e taking that at Tanjor e rst as hav

, ,

ing th e most d e nit e form and plan .

I have already (Chap V I I ) giv e n som e account of

. .

a smaller H indu t e mpl e Th e templ e s in this region

.

ar e on th e sam e g e n e ral plan Th e r e is no vast .

int e rior as in a W e st e rn cathedral but th e y d e p e nd ,

for th e ir e ffe ct rath e r upon the darkness and in

acc e ssibility of th e inn e r shrin e s and passag e s and ,

upon th e gorg e ous external ass e mblag e of tow e rs and

porticos and ta nks and arcad e s brought tog e th e r
within th e sam e e nclosur e A t M adura th e whol e .

circumfe r e nc e of th e t e mple is ov e r 1 0 0 0 yards

and at S ri R u ng am e ach side of th e e nclosur e is as
,

much as half a mil e long I n ev e ry cas e th e r e has

- -
.

no doubt b ee n an original shrin e of th e g od round ,

which b u ildings hav e accumulat e d th e e xt e rnal ,

21 0 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH A N T A

th e r e ; in fron t of you ris e s th e gr e at pyramidal

tow e r or pagoda 1 9 0 fee t high which surmounts
, ,

th e main shrine and b e tw ee n th e shrin e and your

,

s e lf is an op e n portico on ston e pillars b e n e ath which ,

r e pos e s a hug e couchant bull about six yards long ,

and four yards high said to b e cut from a solid ,

block of sy e nite brought 40 0 mil e s from th e quarries .

This bull is c e rtainly very primitive work and is ,

q u it e brown and saturat e d with constant libatio ns of

oil ; bu t wh e th e r it is 2 70 0 years old as th e p e opl e ,

her e say is anoth e r question The di fculty of

,
.

d e t e rmining dat e s in th e s e matt e rs is v e ry great ;

historical accuracy is unknown in this land ; and
archit e ctural styl e giv e s but an unc e rtain clue sinc e ,

it has probably chang e d but littl e Thus w e hav e .

th e absurdity that whil e nativ e s of e ducation and

int e llige nc e ar e ass e rti ng on the on e hand that some
of th e s e t e mpl e s ar e v e or e v e n ten thousand years
old th e Western archit e cts ass e rt e q u ally strongly
, , ,

that th e y can nd no work in th e m of e arli e r dat e

than 1 0 0 0 A D whil e much of it b e longs to th e six
P robably th e
. .
,

teen th and sevent ee nth centuries

archit e cts ar e in the main right I t is quit e prob
.

.
, ,

abl e how e v e r that th e inn e r S hrin e s in most of

, ,

th e s e cas e s are e xtrem e ly old much old e r than ,

1 0 0 0 A D ; but th e y ar e so buri e d ben e ath later

. .

work and acc e ss to th e m is so di fcult and i f acc e ss

, ,

w e r e obtain e d th e ir mor e primitiv e styl e would so

baf e chronology that th e qu e stion must y e t r e main
und e t e rmin e d .

Clos e to the bull is the kamp am or ag staff and ,

th e n b e yond a ight of st e ps l e ading up to th e

, ,

main sanctuary and th e tow e r or pagoda Th e .

sanctuary is all n e and si m pl e work of r e d sand

 T HE S O U T H I ND I AN TE M P L ES 21 1

stone in which horizontal lines pr e dominate A t its

, .

far end and und e r th e pagoda would b e no doubt

, , , ,

the inn e r shrine or holy of holi e s th e vim ana or

womb of the templ e a cubical chamb e r in which ,

th e ling am would b e plac e d I nto thes e myst e ri e s .

we did not p e netrat e but cont e nt e d ourselves with

looking at th e pagoda from th e outside It is a
,

v e ry dignied and r e pos e ful pi e ce of work suppos e d

by F e rgusson to b e long to th e e arly part of th e
,

fourte e nth century ; nin e ty six feet square at the -

bas e with vertical sid e s for about fty fe e t and

, ,

th e n gradually drawing in narrow e r through thirt ee n

stori e s to the summit (s e e P lat e at h e ad of this
chapter ) Th e red sandston e walls at the bas e ar e
nely and qui e tly pan e ll e d with statu e s of S iva
.

not grot e sque but dignied and even grac e ful in

,

th e nich e s H igh e r up in th e pyramidal part the

.

statu e s are fe wer and are mingl e d with couchant

,

bulls and ame lik e d e signs composed of m u ltitu d i

-

nous cobras and conch e s and discs (symbols of the

god who is lord of Time the r e volving disc and of
S pace repr e sent e d by the sounding conch ) in ti ers
, ,

of continually diminishing siz e to th e summit where ,

a small dome said to b e also a singl e massive

block of stone is surmount e d by a golden pinnacl e .

Th e natural r e d of the stone which forms the low e r

walls is articially deepened i n the pan e ls and t he ,

trac e s of blue and gr e en tints remaining tog e th e r ,

with silvery and brown incrustations of lich e n in th e

upper parts give a wond e rful richn e ss to th e whole
, .

I am afraid however that th e pyramidal str u ctur e

, ,

is not ston e but brick cov e red with plast e r The

, .

fr e quency of the bull e v e rywh e r e throughout this

and oth e r S ivait e templ e s r e minds one of th e p art
21 2 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

play ed by th e sam e animal in P e rsian and E gyptian

worship and of th e import of th e Z odiacal S ign
,

Taurus as a root e l e m e nt of th e solar religions -

.

Th e ge n e ral str u ctur e and disp osition of th e s e

buildings might I should think also recall the ,

jewish and E gyptian t e mples

,

A ll round th e bas e of th e gr e at sanctuary and in

.

oth e r parts of th e t e mpl e at Tanjor e ar e imm e ns e

i nscriptions in T e lugu says one of th e B rahmins , ,

bu t I cannot t e ll som e v e ry fres h and appar e ntly

modern oth e rs n e arly quit e obliterat e d
,
.

Th e absolut e incapacity shown by th e H indus for

r e ason e d ob se rvation in r e ligious matters was illus
trated by my guid e w ho did not i n oth e r r e sp e cts
appear to b e at all a stickl e r for his r e ligion Wh e n .

he rst call e d my att e ntio n to the pagoda h e said , ,

adding to his prais e of its beauty Y e s and it ,

,

n e v e r casts a shadow n e v e r any shadow Of ,

cou rs e I did not troubl e to argu e such a point and

, ,

as w e w e r e standing at the time on the sunlit sid e

of th e building th e r e c e rtainly was no shadow visibl e
P res e ntly how e v e r after say half an hour
,

tnere .
, , ,
- -
,

w e got round to the other sid e and wer e actu all

y ,

stan ding in tne snaaow which was then quit e e x

,

t e nsive it b e ing only about 9 A M and th e sun

,

compl e t e ly hidd e n from us by the pagoda ; I had

,

forgotten all about the m att e r wh e n th e guid e said

again and with e nthusiasm A nd it has no shadow
,

he add e d N o this is not

, .

Then s e eing my fac e

,

But said I N o he
, ,

the S hadow . it is

, ,

.

,

rep e at e d this is not th e shadow of th e pag oda for

,

,

that n e v e r casts any shadow and then h e turn e d

for corroboration to an old half nak e d B rahmin ,
-

standing by w ho of cours e r e p e ated th e formula

, , ,
21 4 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

F re nch (who in forti e d th e t e mpl e itself) and

1 777 ,

pr e s e nt tr e atm e nt by th e British Gov e rnment this ,

Tanjor e templ e is not so much fr e qu e nt e d as it

us e d to b e Th e lat e R ajah of Tanjor e prior to
.
,

1 85 7 s u pport e d th e place of cours e

, with handsom e
, ,

funds but th e British Gov e rnm e nt only undertakes

necessary repairs and allows a pension of four rupees
a month to th e e xisting t e mpl e s e rvants T he y .

ar e th e r e for e in a poor way .

Th e arcade at th e far end and down on e sid e of

th e court is fr e sco e d with th e u sual grot e squ e sub
jec ts ying e l e phants trampling on unbeli e v e rs
, ,

rajah s worshipping th e god wo m e n bathing e tc , , .

,

and is furnish e d th e whol e way with erect stone

ling am s th e r e must b e at l e ast a hundr e d of th e m .

T he se lingams ar e cylindrical ston e s a foot and

a half high or so and e ight or nin e inch e s thi ck
, ,

som e bigg e r som e small e r standing i n sort of oval

, ,

troughs which catch the oil which is constantly

,

pour e d ov e r th e lingams Wom e n desiring children

pay th e ir O ffe rings h e r e of ow e rs and oil and at
.

, ,

c e rtain fe stivals th e s e shrin e s ar e notwithstanding ,

their number greatly in r e qu e st, .

Th e palac e at Tanj or e is a v e ry commonplac e ,

round arch e d whit e wash e d building with s e v e ral

-
,

courts in part of which th e wom e n folk of the late -

rajah ar e still livi ng b e hind their bars and shutt e rs

th e whol e plac e a funny m e dl e y of Oriental and
W e st e rn inu e nc e s ; a court of justice O p e ning right
on to on e of th e quadrangles with gre at O il paintings ,
-

of form e r raj ahs ; a library ; a harness and dress

room with e l e phants saddl e s hors e s head gear
, ,

-

,

raj ahs h e adg e ar e tc ; a r e c e ption room also quite
, .
-
 THE S O UTH I N D I AN T E M P L ES 21 5

o pe n to a court with sofas arm chairs absurd prints -

a bust of N e lson and a clockwork S hip on a troubl e d

, , , ,

sea ; e l e phants wandering about in th e big co u rt ;

paint e d gur e s of E nglish O fcers on th e sid ep osts
of o n e of th e gat e s and so forth , .

R ound th e palace and at some littl e distanc e ,

from th e t e mpl e clust e rs th e town its e lf with its

, ,

narrow all e ys and mostly one stor e y e d cottage s and -

cabins in which the goldsmiths and work e rs in

,

copp e r and silver r e pouss war e carry on th e ir

el e gant trades .

Th e anci e nt city of M adura though with a p opu ,

lation of is e v e n mor e humbl e i n app e aranc e

than Tanj or e A t rst sight it looks lik e a m e r e
.

coll e ction of mud cabins though of cours e th e r e

ar e E nglish bungalows on th e outskirts and a
, ,

court hous e and a church and an A m e rican mission

,

room and school and the r e st Th e w e av e rs are a

, .

strong cast e h e r e ; th e y weav e silk (and cotton )

sar is
, though with failing trad e as against th e
incoming machin e products of capitalism and you
-

s ee th e ir crimson dyed piec e s str e tched on frames in

-

th e stre e ts .

Th e cnou ltr ie leading up to on e of th e t e mpl e

gat e s is a colonnad e 1 1 0 yards long a c e ntral walk ,

and two aisl e s with carv e n m onolithlc colum ns a

,

warrior sitting on a rearing hors e trampling shi e lds

of soldi e rs and slaying m e n or tigers or a hug e , ,

s e at e d king or god in daring crud e n e ss and gr e at

,

capitals supporting a ston e roof Choultri e s wer e .

us e d as public fee ding halls and r e sting places for - -

Brahmins as w e ll as for various ceremoni e s and

, ,

in old days wh e n th e Brahm ins w e r e all pow e rful

,
-
,
21 6 F RO M A DAM S PE A K

To E L EP H A N T A
such plac e s w e r e e v e rywh e r e at th e i r s e rvic e and ,

t he y had a high old tim e This c hou ltrie has how .

,

e v e r b ee n turn e d into a silk and cotton mark e t and

was gay wh e n I saw it with crowds of p e opl e and
, ,

goods pinn e d up to th e columns E m e rgi ng fr om

, , ,

it th e e ast e rn gat e of th e t e mpl e sta nds on th e

Opposit e sid e of th e road a hug e g opu ra pago da
,

for m ft ee n stor e ys or so high e ach ti e r crowd e d

S iva hid e ous with six arms and
, ,

w ith g u res
protrudi ng e y e s and t ee th S iva dancing S i v a con
ativ e S i v a and S akti on th e bull d e mon door
, ,

te m p l , ,

k ee p e rs e tc the whol e pick e d out i n th e usual

, .

crud e r e ds ye llows gr ee ns blu e s and branching

, , , ,

out at top into grot e squ e dragon form s a strange - w

pi e c e of work y e t having an impr e ssiv e total e ffe ct

, ,

as it ris e s 20 0 fee t i nto th e r e splend e nt sky ov e r the

littl e mud and thatch cottag e s its crud e d e tails har
m onised i n th e int e ns e blaz e and its myriad nooks ,

of shadow haunt e d by swallows dov e s and oth e r , ,

birds .

Th e r e are nin e such gopuras or gat e tow e rs in all -

i n this t e mpl e all on m uch th e sam e plan ra nging

, ,

from 40 to 20 0 fee t in h e igh t and appar e ntly us e d ,

to som e e xt e nt as d w e lling places by p ri e sts yogis -

, ,

and oth e rs Th e s e toge th e r w ith th e v arious halls

.
, ,

shrin e s tanks arcad e s e tc form a hug e e nclosur e

, , , .
,

2 80 yards lo ng by n e a rly 2 50 w id e .

On e ntering th e hug e doo rw ay of th e e ast e rn

gopura on e nds on e s e lf imm e diat e ly in a wild e r

n e ss of columns th e hall of a thousand columns

b e sid e s arcad e s cou rts and op en an d co ve red spac e s
, ,

a labyrinth full of p e ople (for this t e mple is much

fr e qu e nt e d ) m any of whom ar e se llin g war e s bu t ,

here mor e for t e mpl e us e ow e r for offe rings cak e s ,

s
,
21 8 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

into dark gall e ri e s full of hungry e y e d Brahmins ,

and passing th e shrin e of M inak sh i into which w e ,

cannot gain admittanc e com e i nto th e very sombre ,

and S triking corridor which runs round th e e ntire

inn e r shrin e Th e hug e monoliths h e r e ar e car ve n
.

with more sob e rness and grace and the great capi ,

tals b e ar cross beams which in th e ir turn support

-
,

proje cting architrav e s H ardly a soul do w e m ee t

.

as w e mak e th e circuit of the thr ee sides Th e last .

turn brings us to th e e ntranc e of th e inn e r sanctuary

its e lf ; and h e r e is th e gold plat e d am oam which I-

hav e alr e ady d esc ribed (C hap V I and clos e b e hind

it the bull N andi and th e gloom of the int e rior lit
.

only by a distant lamp or two To these inn e r parts .

come only t hos e who wish to m e ditate in qui e t ; and

-

in som e s e clud e d corn e r may one occasionally b e

s ee n s e at e d on th e oor with closed eyes and cross e d
,

l e gs losing or e nd e a v ori ng to lose hims e lf in

, ,

ti
sam aal

.

Outsid e th e t e mpl e in th e str ee ts of M adura w e

saw thr ee s e parat e jugge rnath cars us e d on occa ,

sions in proc e ssions Th e s e cars ar e common

.

e nough e ven in small H indu towns Th e y ar e .

unwi e ldy massi ve things oft e n built in s e v e ral

, ,

ti e rs and with solid wood e n wh ee ls on lumb e ring

,

wood e n axl e s which look as i f th e y w e r e put on

,

(and probably are ) i n such a way as to caus e th e

maximum of r e sistanc e to motion A t S treev elli .

p u thu r th e r e is a car thi rty fee t high with wh ee ls

e ight fee t in diam e t e r Th e p e opl e harn e ss th e m
.

s e lves to th e s e things literally in thousands ; th e

hard e r th e car is to m ov e th e gr e at e r naturally is , ,

th e dignity of th e god who rid e s upon it and the ,

e xcit e m e nt b e com e s int e ns e wh e n h e is at last fairly

 THE S O UTH I N D I AN TE M P L ES 21 9

got under w e igh . But I hav e not witn e ss e d one of

th e s e proc e ssions .

The t e mple of Chid ambaram is in som e r e sp e cts

more i nt e resting than thos e of Tanjor e and M adura
I t is i n fact mor e highly thought of as a goal of
.

, ,

pilgrimage and a plac e of festival than any other

S outh I ndian t e mple and may b e said to be th e ,

B enar e s of S outh I ndia Th e word Chid ambaram .

means reg ion of pu r e consciou sness and S iva is wor ,

shi ed h e r e und e r his most e xcell e nt nam e of

p
N adaraja lora of tne aance O thou who dancest
,

.

th e danc e of bliss in th e h e aven of pure conscious

n e ss
.

Th e re is a littl e railway station of Chid ambaram ,

but it is two or thr ee mil e s from th e t e mpl e and th e

town ; and though the town its e lf numb e rs som e
to inhabitants th e re is not a singl e
E nglishman r e sid e nt i n the plac e or withi n some
,

miles of it th e only whi t e faced inhabitant being a -

E urasian druggist who k ee ps a shop there Wh e n

,

I was there th e whol e t e mpl e was in cours e of re

pair and the B rahmins were such a nuisanc e that
,

I really did not get so good an idea of th e plac e as I

could have wished Th e s e g e ntry swarm h e r e and
.
,

descend upon one lik e birds of pr e y in qu e st of tips ,

indeed th e physiognomy of a great many of them

,

suggests th e kit e family sharp e yes rath e r close ,

tog e th e r and a thin aquilin e nose ; this with their

,

large foreheads looking all th e larg e r on account of

,

th e shaven h ead do e s not give a v e ry favorable

,

impr e ssion .

The ascend e ncy of the Brahmin caste is c e rtainly

a very remarkable historical fact I t is possible .
2 20 FR O M ADAM S PE A K

TO E L EP H AN T A
that at on e tim e th e y r e ally r e s e mbled th e guardia ns
of P lato s id e al r e public t e achers and rul e rs w ho

th e ms e lv e s poss e ss e d nothi ng and w e r e supported

by th e contributions of th e p e opl e ; but befor e so
many c e nturi e s had gone by th e y must hav e mad e
th e rst part of th e ir functions subsidiary to th e
last and now tho u gh a good many of th e m ply
,

trad e s and avocations of on e kind or anoth e r th e

maj ority ar e m e r e onhang ers of th e templ e s wh e re ,

th e y b e com e shar e rs of th e fun d s de v ot e d to th e

templ e s e rvices and bl ee d th e pock e ts of pious
,

d ev ot ee s Wh e n a H indu of any worldly sub

.

stanc e approach e s on e of th e s e plac e s h e is im m edi ,

at e ly s e t upon by ve or six loafe rs of this kind

e ach of whom claims that his is th e B rahmin family
which has always don e th e pri e stly s e rvic e s for th e
visitor s family (and ind ee d th e y do k ee p car e ful

, ,

not e of th e s e matt e rs ) and that ne th e refor e should

, , ,

conduct th e visitor to th e proper quart e r of th e

t e mpl e tak e his offe rin gs to the god and receiv e
, ,

his r e ward accordingly

This t e mple is I should think about the sam e
.

, ,

siz e as that at M adura but more open li k e th e Tan, ,

j or e t e mple Th e r e ar e four gopuras of about e qual

.

siz e 1 20 fee t high or so at th e four points of th e

compass On e nt e ring by the e ast e rn on e th e hall
.

of a thousand colum ns stands away in th e court to

th e right and gi ve s the id e a of a compl e t e t e mpl e
,

in its e lf The sid e s and back e nd ar e clos e d in

.
,

but the front forms a sort O f portico and columns ,

S imilar to thos e of the portico every on e a mono

lith e xt e nd through th e e ntir e int erior Th e re is .

a lane or aisle down the middl e and th e n on e ach ,

sid e th e y stand thick in rows p e rhaps ten fe et apart

, .
222 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EP HAN T A

with ow e r garlands and a lim e and expect e d to

mak e my mon e y O ffe ring in front of a littl e t e mpl e
,

of Vishnu I think whic h th e y s e asonably e xplain e d

,

, ,

to m e was to b e roofe d with gold ! On th e oth e r

hand to th e l e ft was a t e mple to S iva both these
forms b e ing worship e d h e r e I nto the shrine of
P arvati I did not p e n e trate but it looked anci e nt
.

and curious F e rgusson says that this shrin e be

,

lo ngs to th e fourt e enth or fteenth centuri e s and ,

th e inner sanctuaries to som e wh e re about 1 0 0 0 A D . .

,

whil e th e hall of th e thousand columns which shows

M ohamm e dan in u enc e is as lat e as the sevent e enth
c e ntury
A n e ld e rly stoutish man half nak e d but with
.

, ,

som e authority evid e ntly who proved aft e rwards

to b e th e h e ad of th e c hetties announced in a loud
voic e that I was to b e treat e d with r e spect and
shown as much as possibl e which only m e ant that
I was to giv e as larg e an offe ring as possibl e Then .

an e xcit e d looking fe llow came u p a medium sized

-
,
-

man of about forty and b e gan talking cockn e y

E nglish as u e ntly and idiomatically as if he had
,

b ee n born by th e Tham e s rattling off v e rs e s and

,

nurs e ry rhym e s with absurd familiarity The rest .

said he was a cranky Brahmin with an i nsa ne gift

for languag e kn e w S anskrit and ev e r so many
tongu e s
E scaping from th e s e I l e ft the t e mple and went
i nto th e vi llag e to s ee th e goldsmiths who ar e em
ploy e d (by th e c hetties) on work connected with its
r e storation F ound a larg e workshop wher e th e y
.
,

w e r e making brass roof pi nnacl e s salv e rs p e d e stals

-
, ,

for image s e tc and plating th e sam e with gold l e af

, .
,

or plat e s also stor e of solid gold things armlets -

 THE S O UT H I ND I AN TE M P L ES 223

and breastplat e s for the gods etc anoth e r touch , .

r e mindful of Gr e ek life Th e gold l e af w as b e ing

.

beaten out b e twe e n thin m e mbran e s many l e av e s

at once wi th a hamm e r A ll handwork of cours e
,

.
, , .

M y guid e who is th e station cl e rk and a B rah

min whil e his S tation master is a S udra (O this
,
-

steam engine told m e on th e way back that the

-

others at th e station oft e n advis e d him to give up

h is caste practic e s but he had pl e nty of tim e in th e
middle of th e day b e tw e en th e trains to go through
, ,

his abl u tions and oth e r c e r e monies and h e did not ,

s e e why h e should not do so

A s we walked along th e road w e met two pil
.

grims with orange color e d cloths coming along

-
.

O ne of them a hairy wild and obstinat e looking -

d man e vid e ntly spott e d th e hat e d E nglishman

, , ,

Ol ,

from afar and as h e pass e d put his tongue ge ntl y

,

bu t rm lv out at m e !
 C I I A P T ER X III
M AD R A S AND C AL CUTT A

I ND I A beggars d e scription the int e rminable race s ,

languag e s cr e eds colors mann e rs costumes

, , , ,
.

Th e str ee ts of M adras (Blacktown ) ar e a blaz e

of color pr e dominant whit e but r e d orange
, , ,

brilliant gree n and e v e n blue cloths and turbans

m ee t th e e y e i n e v e ry direction Blacktown re
minds on e of P ompeii as it may hav e be e n in its
.

tim e mostly on e stor e y e d buildings stucco e d brick

-

with littl e colonnades or l e an to thatch e s in front ,

cool dark ston e int e riors with littl e or no furnitur e

, ,

a bit of a court som e where insid e with a gl e am of

,

th e r e l e ntl e ss sun a fe w mango l e aves o ve r th e

d oor i n honour of the P ongal fe stival (now going
on ) and saffron smeared on door posts ; a woman
,
-

standing half lost in shadow m e n squatting idling

,

in a v e randah a brahmin cow with a bright brass

,

necklace lying down just in the stre e t (som e times

in the verandah its e lf) ; a H indu t e mple with its
queer cre e py imag e s fronting on the stre e t and a
, ,

jugge rnath car un d er a tall thatch waiti ng for its ,

festival ; or a whit e arab e squ e d and gimp arch e d -

mosqu e with tall minarets pinnacled with gold

spiring up i nto th e blue ; absurd little stalls with
m e n squatted amo ng their bask e ts and pil e d grains
and fruits ; and always this wond e rful crowd going
up and down b e tw e en .

224
 FR O M ADAM S PE A K E L EPH AN T A


226 To

was odious a lying I ndian manag e r lying and ,

cringing s e rvants and an i d iotic old man who act e d

,

as my boy and torment e d my life out of me

ddling around with my slipp e rs on pret e nc e of

doing som e thing or holding th e tow e l in r e adin e ss
for m e while I was washing my fac e On my
,

l e avi ng the manag e r as h e pr e s e nt e d his bill with

,

utmost dignity and grace ask e d for a tip ; so did

the h e ad wait e r and all the servants down to th e
-
,

bath man ; then th e r e wer e coolies to carry my

-

luggage from th e hot e l st e ps (wh e r e the s e rvants

of cours e l e ft it ) to th e cab and th e n wh e n I had
,

, , ,

start e d the propri e tor of th e cab ran after it stopp e d

, ,

it and d e mand e d a larger far e than I had agr ee d

,

to ! On on e occasion (in taking a boat ) I counted

e lev e n p e ople w ho put in a claim for oa snisn
S mall change cannot last for e v e r and even on e s
.

v ocabulary of oaths is liable to b e e xhausted in

time !
I t r e quire s a little tact to glide through all this '

without e xposing on e s e lf to th e enemy Good old .

john Bull pays through the nos e for b e ing ruler of

this country H e overwhelms th e peopl e by force
.
,

but th e y t u rn upon him as th e w e ak e r is prone to

do through craft ; and truly th e y hav e th e ir re
v e nge H alf b e li e ving in the id e a that as sanioand
.

ruler of th e country he must live in such and such

styl e hav e so many servants e tc or h e would los e
, , .
,

his pre stig e he acqui e sc e s in a system of impositions

,

h e is pester e d to d e ath and hates it all but h e must

submit A nd th e worst is on e is conscious all th e
, ,

time of being laughed at for on e s pains But

.

British vi sitors must not commit th e mistak e so

commonly made by p e ople in a fore ign c ou 1 1 try of -
 M AD R A S AN D C AL C UTT A 227

supposing that the classes created in I ndia by our

pr e s e nce and who i n some s e nse ar e th e r e e ction
,

of our own sins ar e or repr e sent the normal p op u

,

lation ev e n thou gh we naturally see more of them

than we do of th e latt e r .

Th e re ar e how e v e r in the great cities of I ndia

littl e hot e ls kept and frequent e d by E nglish folk
, ,

wh e r e on e is comparativ e ly safe from importunities

and if you ar e willing to b e altog e ther a second rat e
p e rson and go to th e s e plac e s trav e l s e co nd class
, ,

by train ride in bullock hackeri e s and und e rmine

,
-
,

th e e mpir e g e n e rally by doing oth e r such u nd ig ni
ed things you may trav e l with comparative peac e
,

of mind and security of pocket .

M adras generally is a most straggli ng dull and , ,

(at night ) ill light e d place -

Blacktown alr e ady .
,

describ e d and whi ch lies n e ar th e harbor is th e

, ,

chi e f c e ntre of native life ; but the city g e nerally ,

i ncluding oth e r nativ e c e ntr e s pl e xus e s of com

m erc ial life knots of E urop e an hotels and S hops
,

, ,

barracks hospitals suburban villas and bungalows

, , ,

str e tches away with gr e at int e rvals of dr e ary roads

,

between for miles and miles over a dead at on

W hose shore the surf b e ats monotonously A dyar
, ,

.
,

wh e re th e Th e osophists hav e th e ir h e adquarters

and which i s still only a suburb of M adras is s e ven
miles distant from the harbor The city how e v e r .
, ,

t hough shorn of i ts former importance as far as the

B ritish are conc e rned and slumb e ring on its m e m
,

o ries of a hundred years ago is a gr e at c e ntre of

nati v e activity literary and political ; th e N ational
,

I ndian Congr e ss r e ceiv e s som e of its stro ng e st

su p port from it ; many inuential nativ e s reside
228 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

here ; papers like the H in du both in E nglish and ,

vernacular are published h e r e and a great numb e r

of books printed in Tamil and other S outh I ndian
, ,

languages
A t A dyar I saw B ertram K e ightl e y and one or
.

two O thers and had some pl e asant chats wit h th e m

,
.

Col Olcott was absent ju st at th e tim e Th e Th e os

. .

o ph ist villa with roomy l e ctur e hall and library

,
-
,

stands pl e asantly among woods on the bank of a

riv e r and within half amil e of th e s e a P assing
-
.

from th e library through sandalwood doors into an

inn e r sanctum I was shown a vari e ty of curios con
nec ted with M adam e Blavatsky among which w e re ,

a portrait appar e ntly don e in a som e what dashing

,

styl e j ust the head of a man surround e d with ,

clouds and lam ents in blu e pigment on a piec e of

whit e silk which w as precipitat e d by M adame
,

Blavatsky in C 0 1 O lc ott s pr e senc e sh e simply

.

placing her two hands on th e white silk for a mom e nt

K e ightl e y told m e that Col Olcott t e st e d a small
.

portion of th e silk so color e d but found the pigm e nt ,

so fast i n th e br e that it could not by any m e ans

b e wash e d out Th e r e w e re also two O il portraits
.

heads w e ll fram e d and r e v e r e ntly guard e d b e hind

a curtain of the now c e l e brat e d K out H o u mi
,

,

M adame Blav atsk y s Guru and of another C ol , , .

O lc ott s Guru both ne looki ng m e n appar e ntly

-
,

betw e en forty and fty y e ars of age wi th S hortish

b e ards and (as far as I could see for th e daylight
,

was b e ginning to fail ) dark brown hair ; and both

with larg e e y e s and what might b e call e d a spiritual
glow in th eir fac e s M adam e Blavatsky knew Col
.
.

O lc ott s Guru as w e ll as her o wn and the history
of these two portraits (as told m e by K e ightl e y ) is
,
23 o FR O M A DA M S PE A K
TO E L EP H AN TA
his fellow countrym e n to d ay has learnt the lessons
-
,

taught him by the British Gov e rnment so well that

the one thing he liv e s for is to s e e electoral and
representative institutions e mb e dd e d into the life of
the I ndian peoples and the imag e s of Vish nu and
,

S iva supplanted in th e t e mpl e s by those of john

S tuart M ill and H e rbert S p e nc e r .

Whi l e I was there two eld e rly gentlemen of quite

the ol d school called innoc e nt e nough of H erbert
S p e ncer and of cloth coats and trousers with the ir
white m u slins round th e ir bodi e s and red shawls ,

over their S houlders and gr e y hair e d keen narrow

,
-
, ,

faces and bare shins and horny feet which they ,

tucked up onto their chairs as th e y sat ; but with

good composed unhurri e d mann e rs as all Easterns
, , ,

of the old school s ee m to hav e This habi t of the .

mild H indu of tucking his fee t under him is his

, ,

ever present refuge i n time of trouble or weariness ;

-

at the railway station or i n any public place you may

see him sitting on a s e at and b e neath him i n the , ,

place where his fe et ought to b e are his red slippers ,

but of visible link b e tw ee n th e m and his body there

is no sign as if h e had alr e ady severed connection
with the earth and was on th e w ay t oward heaven
A rrived 6th F eb about 4 P M
.

Calcu tta
steaming all day since dawn up the H oogh l y 1 3 0
. . .
.
,

miles from the light boat at its mouth to Calcutta

-

a dismal river with dismal at shores sandy and

, , ,

dry in places and only grown with scrub in others ,

apparently damp to judg e by th e clumps of bamboo

landscape ofte n lik e L in colnshir e trees of sim ilar
,

shape S tacks of rice straw looking just like our

,
-

stacks mud and thatch villages ; in other p l aces the

,

palmyra and coco nut palm and d oubtless i n parts

 M AD R A S AND C A LC UT T A 23 1

wild tangl e s and jungl e s haunt e d by tig e rs aborig

inal boats going up and down ; and th e H ooghly
narrowing at last from four or v e mil e s n e ar its
mouth to halfa mil e at th e H owrah bridg e of boats
-

N e aring Calcutta brick kilns and th e smoky tall

.

-
, ,

chimn e ys of civilisation app e ar along th e banks and ,

soon w e nd ours e lv e s among docks and wharfs ,

and a for e st of shipping alongside of a mod e rn ,

looking city (that part of it ) .

Calcutta is built on a d e ad at Th e r e is a con

d erable E urop e an quart e r of v e stor e y e d build
.

si -

ings ofces ware houses law co u rts hotels shops

, , ,
-
, , ,

r e sid e nc e s wid e str ee ts and op e n spac e s gard e ns

, , ,

e tc ; aft e r which th e city br e aks away into long

.

straggling lin e s of nativ e dw e llings small at

roofe d tenements and shops crowd e d bazaars and ,

tra m lin e s e mb e dding almost aboriginal quart e rs

-
,

narrow lan e s with m e r e mud and til e cabins laby

rin ths wher e a E urop e an is stared at

Th e whit e dom e of th e P ost O fc e lik e a small

.

S t P aul s dominat e s th e whol e riv e rsid e city with

,

its crowd e d shipping and animated quays t

symbol of mod e rn inu e nces R ound no templ e or
mosqu e or minst e r do e s the civilising E nglishman
.

group his city but round the G P O I t would

, . . .

almost s ee m h e re in Calcutta as if the mere rush of

, ,

comm e rcial inter e sts had smash e d up the nativ e

sanctions of rac e and religion The ord e rly rigor .

of cast e which i s evid e nt i n M adras is not se e n ;

, ,

dress is untidy and uncl e an the religious marks if ,

put on at all are put on car e l e ssly ; faces ar e low

in typ e lazy cun ning b e nt on mere lucre Th e
, , , .

B e ngali is how e ver by nature a versatile ex ile

, , ,

creature sadly wanting in backbone and probably

, ,
23 2 FR O M ADAM S PE A K

To E L EPH AN T A
has succumb e d e asily to th e n e w disorganising
forc e s Then th e m e r e mixtur e of populations h e r e
may hav e a good d e al to do with it A hug e tur
.

moil throngs th e bazaars not only B e ngalis but , ,

H industanis M ohamm e dans C h ines e and s ee dy ,

lookin g E urasians in whom one can disc e rn no

, ,

organising e l e m e nt or s ee d form of patriotism -

,

r e ligion or cultur e (with th e exc e ption p e rhaps of

th e Chinese ) It s ee ms to b e a cas e of a dirty
, , ,

W e st e rn comm e rcialism taking th e plac e of th e old

P harisaism of cast e and r e ligion and i t is hard to
say which may b e th e worst
S unday (th e 8th) was a gre at day for bathi ng in
.

th e riv e r I did not know that th e H ooghly w as

.

for such purpos e s consider e d to b e a part of th e

Gang e s but it app e ars that it is ; and owing to
,

an important and rare astronomical conj unction ,

announc e d i n th e almanacs bathing on that day was

sp e cially p u ri c atory I n th e morning the water
,

sid e was thronge d with peopl e and groups of ,

pilgri ms from a distanc e could be s ee n coming in

along th e roads Wh e r e v e r th e banks shel ve d down
.

to th e wat e r or th e quays and riv e r walls allow e d

,
-
,

huge crowds (h e re mostly dress e d in unbleach e d

cotton with littl e color ) could b e s e en pr e paring
to bathe or r e n e wing th e ms e lv e s aft e rwards b e g
,

gars at all the approach e s spr e ading their cloths

on th e ground to catch th e scanty handfuls of ric e
thrown to th e m ; eve rywh e r e small v e n d ors of
ow e rs for offe rings or of oil or sandalwood past e
, ,

for sm e ari ng th e body with aft e r th e bath or of ,

colored pigm e nts for painting s e ct marks on the -

for e h e ad strings of peasants follow e d by th e ir wiv e s

and childr e n old i nrm p e ople piloted by sons and
,
23 4 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E L EPH AN T A
wr e tch e dly poor Th e s e half starv e d p e asants from
.
-

th e surrounding country wand e ri ng about (th e ir

thin thin wiv e s and daught e rs trailing after th e m
, ,

holding on to th e m an s unbl e ached and scanty

cotton clot h ov e r th e m aiaan through th e A siatic

,

M us e um through the str ee ts by th e riv e rsid e

, ,

with gaping listl e ss fac e s ) ar e a sad and touchi ng

sight y e t it only corroborat e s what I ha ve s ee n in
,

other parts Wid e and d ee p e n e d pov e rty all ov e r

.

th e land such as th e world has n e v e r b e for e s ee n on

so vast a scal e says D igby ; not without testimony
,

to S how that th e p e opl e in th e nativ e states ar e i n

a b e tt e r condition than thos e under our organisation
E v e n if th e poverty is not incre asing (and this is a
.

matt e r on which i t is most di f cult to form a d e nit e

O pinion ) th e re s ee ms to b e no evid e nc e to show
,

that it is decr e asing Th e famines go on with at .

l e ast u ndiminish e d s e v e rity and the widespr e ad ,

agricultural paralysis is by no m e ans r e ally com

p ensated by a fallacious comm e rcial prosp e rity ,

which in th e larg e r c e ntr e s is enriching th e fe w at

th e e xp e ns e of the many *
A ft e r watching th e s e path e tic crowds on S unday
.

I w e nt th e n e xt day to a m ee ting of th e C ount e ss

,

of Du fferin s F und for th e M e dical E ducation of

I ndian Wom e n a w e ll m e ant mo ve m e nt which -

aft e r b e ing launch e d with all advantages and eclat

A ve ry
,

has only met with mod e rate succ e ss .

varied spectacle of dress and nationality R ajahs .

and nati ve chi e fs of all sorts of hu e s and costum e s ;

y e llow silk tunics gur e d with owers owi ng purple ,

rob e s dainty littl e turbans o ve r dark mustachio e d

fac e s S prays and fe ath e rs of diamonds ; E nglish
,

S ee A p pend i x .
 M AD R A S AN D C AL C U TT A 23 5

ladi e s i n th e pink of fashion military uniforms and

th e Vi c e roy and L ady L ansdown e in th e c e ntr e i n
, ,

quiet morning costume Th e E nglish sp e akers

.

b e laud e d th e native chi e fs pres e nt and th e nativ e

chiefs complim e nt e d th e E nglish ladi e s ; but aft e r
,

th e sp e ctacl e of the day befor e th e gen e ral con ,

gratulations fe ll rather at upon m e nor did they ,

app e ar to be j usti e d by the rather m e lancholy and

i n e f ci e nt appearanc e of th e b e vy of nativ e wom e n
stud e nts and n u rs e s pres e nt S ir Charl e s E lliott th e
L i eu t Governor mad e a ki ndly spe e ch which l e ft on
.
,

-
.
, ,

one th e unpl e asant impression that on e som e times

gets from those big brain e d doctrinair e p e rsons
-

whos e amiability is all th e mor e hard and narrow

mind e d because it is so w e ll intention e d L ord -

L ansdowne undern e ath an e xt e rior (physical and

.

mental ) of d e cad e nt aristocracy s ee ms to hav e just

a fe eble spark of the old E nglish high cast e ruling -

quality about him which may hav e b e en good in

,

its tim e but will b e of littl e use I fe ar to th e half

, , ,

starv e d peasants of to d ay
I fancy with all r e spect to th e g e nuine good
.

i nt e ntion shown in th e s e z e nana missions m e dical ,

education funds e tc th e r e must b e something

, .
,

rather comical to th e natives th e ms e lv e s in philan

throp ic e fforts of this kind mad e by a peopl e who
understand th e country so littl e as th e E nglish do ;
,

j ust as th e re is something rath e r comical to the

mass e s at hom e in the toy chariti e s and missions

of th e lady and g e ntl e man her e and suggestiv e of

an old parabl e about a mot e and a b e am I n a
,

l e cture giv e n by the M aharajah of B enares in july ,

1 888 he chaffe d th e s e philanthr op ists somewhat

actual ly regr e tted
,

recounting how one such lady

23 6 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
To E L EP H AN T A
that th e p e asant culti v ators could not provid e th e m
s e lv e s with boots ! whil e anoth e r had a long con
v e rsation with a R ani on th e ill e ffe cts of infant
marriag e and w as surpris e d to hear that th e R ani
,

had b ee n marri e d at th e ag e of seven and had sons ,

and grandsons all of whom w e r e happy and con

,

t e nt e d T he R ani then turn e d to th e lady and

.
,

obs e rving that h e r hair was turning gr e y inquir e d ,

w h e th e r no on e had e v e r offe r e d h e r proposals of

marriag e and sugg e st e d that th e E ng lisn laws
,

r e quir e d som e modication to insur e ladies against

r e maining so long in a stat e of si ngl e bl e ss e dn e ss

But th e most int e r e sti ng p e opl e to m e whom I

.

, ,

hav e m e t her e are a littl e coter ie of B e ngalis w ho

,

liv e quit e away in th e nativ e part of th e city .

Chundi Churn B is a schoolmast e r and k ee ps a .

,

small school of thirty or forty boys which li e s ,

back in a tangl e of narrow lan e s and all e ys but is ,

quit e a civilis e d littl e plac e with bench e s and d e sks

E
,

ust lik e an nglish school e xc e pt that like all th e

j
schools in this part of th e world it is quite op e n to
th e str ee t (with tr e llis e d S id e s in this cas e ) so that ,

pass e rs by can quit e e asily see and b e s ee n Chundi

-
.

Churn told m e that h e start e d th e school on pur e ly

nati ve lin e s but had poor succ e ss until h e i ntroduc e d
th e E nglish curriculum E nglish history scienc e
,

E uclid A lge bra etc wh e n h e soon got as many

, ,

boys as h e want e d A s in all th e I ndian schools

, ,

th e y work what app e ar to us frightfully long hours ,

7 to 9 A M th e n an hour for breakfast ; 1 0 A M to

.
.

2 P M . .and th e n an hour for di nn e r ; and again from

,

3 to 6 I fancy th e y must tak e it fairly e asy ; and

.

th e n it is c e rtain that the nativ e boys though they

hav e activ e littl e brains ar e much mor e qui e sc e nt
23 8 FR O M ADA M S PE A K

To E L EPH AN T A
dous rat e so much so that ther e will soon b e an e du
c ated pr o l e tariat
(what Grant D uff calls th e worst

of e vils ) i n the great citi e s of I ndia Two or thr e e

.

of the party are v e ry quick at mathematics which

s ee ms to be a subje ct in which th e B e ngalis e xc e l
and readily pick e d up th e k e y to one or two little
probl e ms which I pre sented to them Th e y all seem .

to b e much impress e d with the greatn e ss of Western

ci v ilisation for the pr e s e nt at anyrate though
th e y will suffe r a r e action probably b e fore v e ry long
F inding I kn e w som e thing of astronomy they p e lt e d
.

m e with qu e stions about the stars and i nsisted on ,

going out at night and trying to hunt up th e ecliptic

among th e const e llations ! Then after a tim e they , ,

would r e laps e i nto tal e t e lling and music The fe l

-
.

lows still show a truly Oriental lov e of long stori e s ,

and would list e n with rapt attention to on e of their

party r e lating som e anci e nt yarn about th e child of
a king who w as exposed in th e woods and ultimat e ly
cam e back after many convolutions of adventur e and
claimed his kingdom just as if th e y had not h e ard
it b e for e ; or about th e chaste Drau p atha (in th e
M ahabh arata) who when Du riyodhana d e siring ,

to ins u lt her befor e a large ass e mbly gav e ord e rs ,

that she should b e stripped of h e r cloth thought of

Vishnu and h e r cloth w e nt on l e ngth e ning and u n
,

winding ind e nitely th e ir stories l e ngth e ning and

unwinding like Drau patha s cloth in a way that

would hav e delighted th e h e art of William M orris

P anna L all Chundi Churn s brother is a bright
.

, ,

mann e r e d youth of about twenty of a modest affec, ,

tionate disposition and with a c e rtain grac e and

,

dig nity of b e aring H e doesn t car e about books
, ,

bu t has a good e ar and plays on e or two musical

,
 M AD R A S AN D C AL C U TTA 23 9

instrum e n ts i n an easy unstudied way ; liv e s in quit

,

prim itive styl e with his father down in on e of these

back l anes but has a tiny litt l e room of his own
, ,

where h e takes me to sit and chat with friends .

T here is no furniture bu t you squat cross

,
legged on

P ann a Lall B
.

the oor so t h ere is pl e nty of room for quite a

party Th e re may be a box or two I n a corner and
.
.
,

on the walls some shelves and a few pr int s I ndeed

it gives one a curious sensation to see crude co l ored
.

woodcuts ,
framed u nder glass and ex actly resem
,

bling th e pictures of the VirgI n or of C hrI S t common

240 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

i n Catholic countri e s and then on near e r approach

to nd that th e y r e pr e s e nt S iva or P arvati or among
,

th e B e ngalis Chaitanya or som e oth e r incarnation ,

of th e di v inity standing or s e at e d on a lotus ow e r

,

and with benign h e ad e ncircl e d by an aur e ol e .

Th e se pictur e s ar e print e d in Calcutta

P anna L all is quit e an athl e t e and interest e d in
.

anything in that line H e took m e one day to a .

littl e bit of ground where h e and som e fri e nds hav e

th e ir horizontal bars e tc ; th e y did som e good , .

tumbling and tight rope walking and with th e ir

-
,

golden brown skins and muscular bodi e s look e d w e ll

-

wh e n stripped Th e B e ngali B abu i s oft e n of a

.

lightish brown colour Th e p e opl e g e n e rally w e ar

-

mor e clothing than in S outh I ndia and at this tim e

.

of y e ar throw a brown wooll e n shawl o v er th e ir

should e rs tog a fashion ; th e ir h e ads ar e almost
always bar e but th e y hav e tak e n a gr e at fancy
,

lat e ly in Calcutta to w e aring narrow to e d pat e nt -

l e ath e r shoes which look sufciently absurd and

, ,

must b e fe arfully uncomfortabl e on th e i r w e ll d e ,

-

v el op ed broad fe e t Only it is a mark of distinction

and civilisation ! P anna L all every now and th e n
.

when walking entr e ats m e to stop and r e st und e r a

,

tr ee and th e n tak e s off his sho e s and waggl e s his

,

to e s about to sooth e and r e fr e sh th e m ! I am n e v e r

tir e d of admirin g the foot i n its nativ e stat e I t is .

so broad and fre e and full and muscular with a ,

good concav e curv e on th e i nn e r lin e and th e toes ,

standing w e ll apart from each other so diffe rent

from th e ill nourish e d unsightly thing w e are accus
-

I som e tim e s thi nk w e can n eve r attain

,

to m ed to .

to a broad fr ee and full life on o u r p res e nt und e r

,

stan d ings in the W e s t .

24 2 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E L EPH AN T A
with a long neck and small b e lly mad e of a pumpkin
,

sh e ll and four or v e wires (origi nally thr ee wir e s

, ,

from si thr ee and tar string ) Th e frets ar e mov

, , , .

abl e so that ke e ping th e sam e key note you can -

play in maj or minor or other mod e s I am b e gin

,

.
, ,

ning to und e rstand th e I ndian music bett e r now ,

after having h e ard a little in diffe ren t plac e s but ,

hav e not v e ry much syst e matic knowledg e ab out it .

I t app e ars that they divid e th e octave into twenty

two exactly e qual parts call e d sru ti e ach part hav
ing its own sp e cial nam e A n i nterval of four sru tis
,

may then b e said to constitut e a major tone three ,

sru tis a minor ton e and t wo a s e miton e though this

,

is not qu ite e xact and out of th e se thre e int e rvals ,

major ton e minor tone and s e miton e a s e v e n st e p

, ,
-

scal e is constitut e d very nearly similar to ours and ,

having th e semiton e s i n th e sam e places Th e key .

not e of this scale is call e d S a or A nsa and corr e ,

s ond s to our D o and though not exactly a k e y not e

p
-
,

i n th e mod e rn s e ns e of th e word it is th e most ,

acc e ntuat e d note and rul e s th e others By adopt .

ing any of th e oth e r six notes as k e y not e scal e s are

got very n e arly corr e spondi ng to th e s e v e n Gr e go
rian scal e s of th e old church music ; and on e very
commonly in us e if I am not mistak e n corr e sponds
to th e P hrygian mod e te that which w e produce
, ,

on th e piano by using E as tonic and playing all the

. .

white k e ys .

These seven scal e s constituted th e rst syst e m of

H indu music but th e y h ad a s e cond syst e m in
which th e not e s tho u gh pr e serving their nam es
, ,

could be any of th e m raised or dropped by a sr u ti

, ,

and a third syst e m in which on e or tw o not e s b e ing

omitted ve or six st e p scales wer e pro d uc e d
, .
 MAD RA S AN D C AL C U TT A 24 3

Out of th e hundr e ds (or thousands ) of possibl e

scal e s thus producibl e th e Ori e ntal mind unabl e to
, ,

nd th e scientic root of the whol e business made a ,

fantastic selection Th e r e were six sons of Brahma

.

and S araswati call e d R agas c e ge nii of the pas -

sions S ix principal scales w e re named aft e r these

.

g e n ii and call R ag s and th e n each of these had

,

ve femini ne sub scales or R ag inas attach e d to it ;

-

and so forth Then th e numb e rs v e six and s e ven

.
, ,

b e cam e typical of divisions of the y e ar days of the ,

w ee k the number of planets e tc and v e ry soon a

, , .
,

most fanciful syst e m was e laborat e d the r e mains

only of which hav e ling e r e d to the present day Th e .

old notation appears to hav e died out ; but a vast

number of time honored melodies or rath e r phras e s
-
, ,

in th e diffe r e nt mod e s and scal e s have been pr e ,

served by tradition and are now call e d r ag s and

r a inas though th e se nam e s w e r e formerly applicabl e
g ,

to th e scal e s only These r ag s and rag inas ar e n ot

.

what w e should call tun e s but ar e bri e f or e xt e nd e d

,

phrases which hav e b ee n classied as suitabl e for

,

various occasions e motions fe stivals tim e s of day

, , , ,

s e asons of th e y e ar and the like ; and th e s e th e

,

musi cian us e s and combi n e s within limits to his , ,

tast e and in th e hands of a skilful person th e y ar e

v e ry e ffectiv e but b e come abominably insipid and
,

co nv e nti onal if treated in a m e chanical way .

B esid e s th e regular notes belonging to any giv e n

scale th e H indus us e the quart e r tones or sr u tis
, , ,

a good deal in the littl e turns and twanks of which

they are so fond ; and sometimes by slurring th e y
pass through e v e ry int e rm e diate gradation of ton e .

Th e slur which is congenial to the mysti c vague

melody of th e E ast and so foreign to th e distinct
, ,

,
244 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A
'

articulation of W e st e rn music is oft e n used i n si ng

,

ing ; and on th e sitar a slight slurring rise of ton e

is produc e d by drawing th e string sid e ways along
th e fr e t a d e vic e which r e calls the clavichord of
which S e bastian B ach was so fond i n which instru ,

m e nt th e hamm e r which struck the string was also

th e bridge which dened its length so that an ih ,

cr e as e d pr e ssur e by the ng e r on th e k e y after th e ,

rst striking of th e not e rais e d th e bridge a little

, ,

tight e n e d th e string and so produc e d a plaintive

,

ris e of ton e
A ll this gives the idea of a com plicated syst e m
.

of music ; and it will b e s ee n that i n the rang e of

m e r e m e lody th e H indu music has really a gr e at e r
capacity of subtl e e xpr e ssion than ours But in .

harmony it is d e c ien t th e ground id e a of th e ir

harmony b e ing th e us e of a drone bass which bass ,

though it may change not unfrequ e ntly always

s ee ms to pr e s e rv e th e dron e character A nd of
,

.
,

cours e th e deci e ncy in harmony reacts on and

,

limits th e play of m e lody .

Th e g e neral charact e r of th e music lik e that of ,

much of the I ndian life r e minds one of our own

,

m e di aeval times Th e monkish plai n song and th e -

early minstr e l music of E urop e w e re probably very

.

similar to this There was th e sam e tendency to

.

work from a droning bass rath e r than from a k e y

,

not e in our sens e of the word the sam e tend e ncy ,

to subordi nat e the music to th e words causing ,

vagu e and not always balanced ights of intricat e

, ,

melody th e sam e love of ornam e ntal kinks and the

, ,

same want of absolute d e nition in the matter of

tI m e.

Th e instrum e nts mo st common ly us e d b e sid e s th e ,

246 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E L EP H AN T A
play e d too fast is v e ry graceful and clinging with
, ,

subtl e harmonics ; and I hav e h e ard som e most

bewitching phrasing on this instrum e nt a dialogu e ,

on e might say b e tw ee n it and th e voic e with

,

accompanim e nt of th e little Tabala Th e Tabala .

its e lf is very charming with its gurgling and bell ,

lik e sounds and S udd e n explosions and chatt e ring

accompanim e nts e x e cut e d by th e ngers and th e
,

butt e nd of the hand on two drums S imultan e ously .

Th e gr e at e ffect of the sitar whos e ton e on th e ,

whol e is thin is undoubt e dly th e sid e t e nsion of the

,

strings which giv e s much e xpr e ssion to it

A t its best th e I ndian music seems to m e to pro
.
,

duc e a powe rful impr e ssion though g e n e rally e ith e r

plaintiv e or fr e nzi e d On th e d ee p background of
.

th e dron e ar e wrought th e s e (Wagnerian ) phrases ,

which ar e p e rfe ctly u e nt and variabl e according to

th e subje ct conv e yed which ar e extraordinarily,

subtl e in e xpr e ssion and which g e n e rally rise in

,

int e nsity and compl e xity as th e pi e c e progress e s ,

till th e h e ar e rs ar e work e d into a stat e of cumulated

e xcitement When th e r e ar e s e v e ral instrum e nts
.

and voic e s thus guring tog e th e r over th e sam e

bass th e e ffe ct is ne Th e littl e tambours with
, .
,

th e ir gurgling not e s r e cord th e tim e in a kind of

,

unconscious way and k ee p th e musicians tog e th e r

, .

Th e big drums and the low e r strings of th e vina

giv e th e requir e d basses th e tau s and sitars and ,

voices y up and down in d e lightful intricacy ,

quart e r not e s to u ch e d h e r e and ther e cr e ate a

plaintive discord and ev e n th e slur judicio u sly
, ,

us e d adds a w e ird e ffect as of th e wind i n the

,

for e st .

Wh e n not at its v e ry b e st how e ver it is c e rtainly, ,

 MAD RAS AND C AL CUTT A 247

(to m e ) damnably rambling monotonous and w e ari , ,

som e no tw ithstandinchromatic e ffects of admitted

g

e l e ganc e and occ asional passag e s of gr e a t t e nd e r

n e ss . What th e music most s ee ms to want is
distinct form and contrast and the rud e r rockier ,

e l e m e nts nor is th e ir tim e syst e m sufci e ntly d e -

v eI O ed to allow chang e of acc e nt in s u cc e ssiv e bars

p ,

e tc Th e y all say how e v e r that th e art is not

.
, ,

cultivat e d to day and ind ee d is gr e atly d e cad e nt

-

and to som e e xt e nt actually l ost L ik e all branch e s

, , ,

of l e arning in I ndia and th e caste syst e m itself it

,
-

has b ee n subj e ct to int e nse pedantry and formalism ,

and has becom e n e arly sti e d amid th e otiose rul e s

which cumber it O n th e other hand it is int e r e st
.
,

ing to nd that th e H indus call our music not only

monotonous (as w e call th e irs and which m ay b e ,

accounted for by m e re unfamiliarity as a town

,

bred man thinks all she e p alik e ) but also coarse

and rud e by which I fancy th e y m e an that our
,

, ,

i nt e rv als ar e all v e ry obvious and commonplac e ,

and th e tim e syst e m rigid whil e probably our

-

s e qu e nc e s of harmony ar e lost upon th e m P anna

L all I nd picks up our tunes quit e e asily and
.

, , ,

s ee ms to like them fairly but always adds a lot of ,

littl e kinks and twanks of his own .

A ft e r all though th e vagu e ly oating subtle r e ci

,
-
, ,

tativ e style of th e I ndian music has its drawbacks

'

and mak e s one crav e for a little more denition and

articulat e n e ss it presses upon on e as possible that
,

ou r music might gain som e thing by the adopti on

and incorporation of som e of thes e more subtl e
E ast e rn el e ments if only at tim e s and as an en ,

hanc em ent of our rang e of expression by contrast

with our own generic style .
 CH AP T E R XIV

B E NA RES

T HE great plains of th e Ganges are v e ry impre s

siv e ; so vast with a str e tch roughly sp e aking of , ,

a thousand mil e s and breadth from 20 0 to 3 0 0

* ,

mil e s so populous y e t with such an ancient world

,

old v illage life ; and dominat e d always by th e s e

tr e m e ndous pow e rs of sun and sky A ll the way
from Calcutta to D elhi (and b e yond ) this imm e ns e
.

'

plain absolut e ly at spr e ads in ev e ry direction as

, , ,

far as eye can se e th e same dott e d park like with

, ,
-
,

tr ee s (mangos many of them ) which thick e ning ,

h e r e and th e r e i nto a clump of palmyra palms ,

indicat e the pr e senc e of a village Th e long .

str e tch e s of bar e land with hardly a blad e of grass ,

shimm e ring in th e noonday h e at ; oas e s of barl e y

and dhol (a shrub like l e ntil ) looking green at this
-

time of year but soon to b e reap e d and stow e d

,

a way ; patch e s of potato e s castor O il plant poppy ,

-

in whit e ow e r small g u ava tre e s indigo etc ;

, , , .

here and th e r e a muddy pool or irrigation channel ;

a h e rd of slow ungainly buffalo or the more e l e gant
, ,

hump e d co w s browsing miraculously on invisibl e

,

h e rbage ; a woman following th e m bar e foot and ,

bareh e ad sin g ing a sad ton e d refrain picking up

,
-
,

th e pr e cious dung (for fuel ) and storing i t in a

With an ave ag d ensity of p op l ation O f 5
r e pe sq a e u 0 0 r r

m il e o nea l y d o b le that of the U nited King d om !

u

, r r u

24 8
2 50 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

wat e r chann e l ; and so day long th e work con -

tm u e s
.

But out on th e gr e at plain you may go for

hundr e ds of mil e s and mark but littl e chang e or
variation F locks of gr ee n parrots or of pig e ons
,

.
, ,

y by or l e sser birds ; kites perp e tually whe e l and

,

oat ov e rh e ad occasionally you may see an antelop e

or two among th e wild e r scrub or a p e ahen and her ,

littl e family ; th e gr e at cloudl e ss blu e (though not

by any means al ways cloudl e ss ) arches o ve r to th e
compl e t e circl e of the horizon th e w hol e land ,

tr e mbl e s in th e h e at a light br ee z e shiv e rs and

whisp e rs i n th e foliag e th e sun burns down and , ,

sil e nc e (e xc e pt for th e occasional chatter of th e

parrots or th e plaintiv e song of the peasant ) r e igns
ov e r th e v ast d e m e sn e
I n many of th e s e village s th e fac e of a whit e man
.

is s e ldom or n e v e r s ee n E v e n such c e ntres as

A llahabad ar e m e r e specks in an oc e an the railway
.

is a sl e nd e r lin e of civilisation whos e inu e nc e

hardly e xt e nds b e yond th e sound of th e locomotiv e
whistl e ; ov e r th e north e rn borders of th e plain th e
gr e at snows of th e H im alayas dawn into sight and
fad e away again mornings and e v e nings and through ,

its midst wind th e slow broad bosom e d wat e rs of ,

-

th e sacr e d Gange s .

Ov e r all this r e gion wh e n night com e s oats a

, ,

s e ns e of unspeakabl e r e li e f Th e spirit compr e ss e d .

during the day in painful s e lf d e fe nc e agai nst the -

burning sun abov e and th e blinding glare below

e xpands in grat e ful joy A faint odor is wafted.

from th e r e vivi ng h e rbag e Th e at e arth which .

was a m e r e horizon lin e in th e midday light now

fad e s into nothingn e ss ; the imm e nse and mystic
 B E NA RES 25 I

sky hanging ov e r on e v e ry sid e lik e a v e il op e ns

, ,

back into myriad s and myriads of stars and it

r e quir e s but littl e imagination to think that this
plan e t is only an atom in the vast dom e of h e a ve n
To th e H indu L ife is that blinding su n that fe v e r
.

, ,

of d e sire and discomfort and night is th e bl e ss e d

,

escap e th e lib e ration of the spirit its grat e fu l

,

passage i nto N irwana and the u niv e rsal .

O ne und e rstands (or thinks one do e s ) how these

imm e ns e plains hav e contribut e d to th e sp e culati ve
character of the H indu mind M ountains and .

brok e n ground call o u t en e rgy and inv e ntion but ,

h e r e th e r e is no call upon on e to l e av e th e plac e

wh e re on e is or to chang e on e s habits of life for
, ,

th e adjoining hundr e ds of miles pres e nt nothing

n e w Custom undisturb e d consolidat e s its e lf ; so
.

ci ety cryst allises into caste Th e probl e m of e x

.

t e rnal life onc e solv e d pr e s e nts no more int e r e st ,

and mechanical inv e ntion slumbers th e mind r e tir e s

inward to m e ditat e and to conqu e r H e nc e two .

d e v e lopm e nts in th e b e st types that of the trans

c e nd en tal faculti e s but in th e worst m e r e out e r
,

sluggishness and lethargy Th e gr e at idea of I n

.

diffe renc e belongs to these at lands in its high e st

form one of the most pr e cious possessions of th e
human soul in i ts lowe st nothing b e tt e r than apathy
,
.

Th e peasant too in thes e plains has for s e v e ral

, ,

months nothing to do H e sows his crop wat e rs

.
,

it and r e aps it ; works hard and in a few months

, , .

may painfully gain a y e ar s subsist e nc e ; but h e can
do no mor e the hot weather com e s and th e gre e n ,

things ar e burnt up ; agri cultur e ceas e s and th e r e ,

remain s nothing but to worship the gods H ence .

fro m F ebruary to the end of M ay is the great time

252 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E L EPH AN T A
for r e ligious fe s tivals marriag e s and c e remo ni e s
, ,

and frolics of all kinds .

That th e Ganges should be sacr e d and ev e n an ,

obje ct of worship is e asily intelligible not only on

,

account of its fe rtilising bene cenc e to the land but ,

th e re is som e thing impr e ssive in its v e ry appear

anc e its absolut e tranquillity and oc e anic charact e r
as it ows from half a mil e to a mile wid e slowly
,
s -
, ,

almost imp e rc e ptibly onward through the vast hot

,

plain Th e wat e r is gr e enis h not too cl e ar charg e d

.
, ,

e v e n in th e lower portions of its cours e with th e

n e mud brought from the mountains ; the banks
ar e form e d by sandy ats or low cliffs cut in th e
alluvial soil . A s you stand by th e water s edge

you so m e tim e s in th e straight e r r e ach e s catch

that e ffe ct which b e longs to such ri v e rs in at
countri e s of owing broad and tranquil up to
and over the v e ry horizon an e ffe ct which is
much incr e ased by the shimm e r of h e at ov e r the
surfac e
I n th e M ahabh arata S i va is god of th e H im alaya
.

rang e or rath e r h e is th e H im alayas its i cy crags

his brow its for e sts his hair Ganga th e b e autiful
Ganga co u ld not d e sc e nd to e arth till S i v a con
.
, ,

s e nt e d to r e c e iv e h e r upon his h e ad S o imp e tuously

,

then did sh e rush down (in rain ) that the god gr e w

angry and lock e d up h e r oods amid his labyri nthin e
hair till at l ast h e l e t th e m e scap e and nd th e ir
way to th e plai ns Th e worship of S iva is v e ry
.

old w as th e r e p e rhaps wh e n th e anc e stors of th e

B rahmins rst found th e ir way i nto these plains
though w e do not h e ar of i t till about 3 0 0 B C
on e of thos e far back N atur e worships in which th e
. .

ph e no m e na of earth and sky ar e so strange ly and

25
4 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EP H AN T A

can pass with houses three or four storeys high

,

formi ng a clos e lane abov e you balconi e s and upp e r ,

oors proj e cting in pictur e squ e confusion not unlike ,

th e old I talian towns you fee l that th e vari colored

,
-

crowd through which you e lbow your way is ani

mated by its own distinct standards and id e als A .

manifold ancient i ndustry littl e disturb e d by modern

in v e ntion is going on in th e tiny shops on e ith e r
hand workshops and saleshop s i n one H e r e is .

a str ee t full of brass work e rs The e l e gant brass

-
.

pots which the whole population us e s for holding

or carrying water or oil for pouring w at e r over th e
,

h e ad in bathing for offe ring li bations in the templ e s

, ,

and so forth and wh ich form such a fe atur e of

I ndian folk life are h e r e b e ing m ad e from minia
-
,

tur e siz e s up to huge vess e ls holding sev e ral gal

lons Then th e r e ar e littl e brass image s sauc e rs to
.
,

carry ow e rs in and oth e r fancy ware of th e sam e

,

kind
A noth e r stree t is full of sandal and leath e r
.

work e rs ; another of s wee tm e at or sw ee t cak e con

fec tioners anoth e r is given to th e sal e of wooll e n
and cotton wraps which ar e mostly comm e rcial
products of the W e st ; stone and marbl e efg ies ,

and g e m s form anoth e r branch of industry ; and

,

cookshops innoc e nt fortunat e ly of the sm e ll of

, ,

m e at of course abound Th e r e are many ne .

fac e s both old and young but esp e cially old grave
, , ,

p e ac e ful penetrati ve fac e s and among the bett e r

,

typ e s of young m e n som e composed affe ctio nat e , ,

and e v e n spiritual fac e s withal pl e nty of m e r e

gr ee d and gr e asy worldlin e ss
N ich e d among thes e alleys are the num e rous
.

shrin e s and t e mpl e s alread y mentioned som e a

 B E NA RES 2 55

mer e image of Vishnu or S i v a with a li ngam in ,

front of it some little e nclosures with s e v e ral

S hri n e s the so called Golden Temp l e i tself only a
,

small affair with one or two roofs plated w ith gold

I n many of the templ e s brahmin cows wand e r
, .

l oos e quit e tame nosing against the worshipers

, , ,

who oft e n feed them ; and the s mell of litt e r and

cow du ng mingles with that of frankincense and
-

camphor Vulture eyed Brahmins are on th e alert

.
-

round th e more frequented sanctuaries and str e ams ,

of pilgrims and devotees go to and fro

The river side is certainly a wonderfu l sc e n e A
.

-
.

mere wild e rness of steps stairs terraces and jutting , , ,

platform s more or less in disorder and d e cay

stretching for a mile or mor e by th e water F lights
, ,

of a hundr e d steps going up to small templ e s or to ,

hands om e fronted but d e cay e d palaces or to the

-

M osqu e of A u ru ngz ebe whose two tall r e d sand ,

-

ston e minarets (notwithstanding the i ncongruity )

are the m ost conspicuous obj ects i n this sacred
metropolis of H induism ; th e steps cov e r e d with
motl e y groups going down to or coming up from
th e wat e r here an old man a wanderer p e rhaps , ,

from some distant region si tting perched by him ,

self his knees drawn up to his chin m e ditating ;

, ,

ther e another singing hymns groups under awnings

or gr e at xed s traw umbr e llas chatting or list e ning , ,

to stori e s and recitatio ns ; h e re a stri ng of pilgrims

with baskets containing their scanty bedding e tc , .
,

on their heads just e m e rging from on e of the

,

narrow all e ys there on a balcony attached to a big

building appear half a dozen young men stripped - -
, ,

and with I ndian clubs in th e ir hand s their yellow

and brown bodies shining in the early sun ; they
2 58 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

th e morni ng was quit e cold and eve ry now and ,

then sm e ar e d his body with th e wood ash e s giving -

it a whit e and oury app e arance F or th e rest his

,

furniture was e v e n l e ss than Thoreau s and con

sisted appar e ntly of only on e or two logs of re

wood kept in r e s e rve a pair of tongs and a dry
, ,

palm l e af ove rh e ad to ward off th e sun by day and

-

th e d e ws by night I look e d at him for some time

.
,

and he look e d at m e qui e tly in return so I w e nt

and sat down n e ar him joining th e circle of his ,

admirers of whom th e r e w e r e four or v e H e

, .

s ee med pleas e d at this littl e att e ntion and told m e ,

i n r e ply to my qu e stions that h e had liv e d lik e this

sinc e h e was a boy and that he was v e ry happy
which ind e ed h e app e ar e d to b e A s to e ating h e
,

.
, , ,

said he at e pl e nty wh e n it cam e to him (i e when

. .

given to him ) and wh e n it didn t h e could go with

out I S hould imagin e howev e r from his app e ar

,

.
, ,

a n c e that h e did pre tty w e ll in that matt e r though

I don t think th e e nd of his r e mark w as m e r e brag ;
'

for th e re was that look of insou ciance i n his fac e

which on e d e t e cts in th e faces of th e animals H is .

fri e nds sat round but without much commu nication

at an rate while I was th e re e xc e pt to offe r him
,

y
a whiff out of their pip e s e v e ry now and th e n or ,

drop a casual r e mark to which h e would r e spond

,

with a quit e natural and pl e asant lau gh O f any

conscious r e ligion or philosophy I don t think th e r e
.

w as a spark in him simply wildness and r e v e rsion ,

to a life without on e v e stig e of car e ; but I felt in

looking at him that rar e pleasur e which on e e x
p erienc es in looking at a fac e without anxi e ty and
without cunning
A little farth e r on w e cam e to on e of th e burning
.
 B E NA RES 2 59

ghauts a sufci e ntly di smal sight a blackened

hollow running down to the water s e dg e with room

for thr e e fun e r e al pyres i n it The e v e ning b e fore

.

we had se e n two of th e s e burning though nearly

burnt out and tnis morning the ash e s only re
mained and a third fresh stack was alr e ady pre
,

par e d A s we stood th e re a corps e w as brought

.

down w rapped in an unbl e ach e d cloth (probably

th e sam e it wore in life ) and slung b e n e ath a pole
which w as carried on th e should e rs of two m e n .

R ound about on the jutting v e rg e s of th e hollow

th e mal e r e lativ e s (as w e had s ee n th e m also th e
day befor e ) sat perched upon th e ir h ee ls with th e ir ,

cloths draw n over th e ir h e ads sp e ctators of th e

whol e O p e rations I could not h e lp wond e ring
.

w h at sort of thoughts w e re th e irs H e r e th e r e is .

no disguis e of d e ath and dissolution Th e body .

is plac e d upon the pyr e which gen e rally in th e

,

cas e of the poor p e opl e w ho com e h e r e is not

suf ciently larg e ; a scanty supply of gums and
fragrant oils is provid e d the near e st mal e r e lativ e
,

applies th e torch hims e lf and then th e r e r e mains

nothing but to sit for hours and watch th e dread
process and at th e conclusion if the burning is
, ,

complet e to coll e ct th e ash e s and scatt e r th e m on

,

th e wat e r and if not to throw th e charred r e mains

, ,

th e mselves into the sacr e d riv e r The e nduranc e .

of th e H indu is proverbial but to e ndur e such a

sight in th e cas e of a d e ar and near r e lativ e seems
ultra human E v e ry sens e is violated and sick e n e d
-
.

the burni ng ground m e n th e ms e lv e s ar e th e most

-

abhorr e d of outcasts{ and as th e y pass to and fro

on their avocation s th e crowd shri nks back from th e
d elem ent of thei r touch .
260 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

W e did not stay mor e than a fe w minut e s h e re ,

but pass e d on and imm e diat e ly found ourselv e s

again amongst an animat e d and gay cro w d of wor
shi ers
p . This was th e ghaut wh e r e P anna wished
to bathe a n e pyramidal ight of stairs jutting
into th e wat e r and l e ading up to the D u rga Temple
some way above us Whil e h e was making pr e
.

aratio ns purchasing ow e rs O il e tc I sat down

p
in th e most r e tir e d spot I could nd und e r an
.
, ,

awning wh e r e my pr e s e nc e was not lik e ly to attract

,

attention and becam e a quiet spectator of the

,

sc e n e
A fter all th e re is nothing lik e custom O ne
.

.
,

might thi nk that i n ord e r to induc e p e opl e to bath e

by thousands in muddy half stagnant water thick ,
-
,

with fu n e ral ash e s and drown e d ow e rs and h e r e ,

and th e r e d eled by a corps e or a portion of on e ,

th e r e must b e pr e s e nt an imm e ns e amount of re

lig iou s or oth e r fervor B ut nothing of the kind
E xc e pt i n a fe w v e ry fe w cas e s ther e was no more
. .

, ,

of this than th e r e is i n th e crowd going to or from

a popular L ondon church on S unday e v e ning .

M e r e bli nd habit was writt e n on most faces .

Th e r e w e r e the country bumpkins who gazed ,

about th e m a bit and th e naoitu es of th e plac e ;

,

th e r e w e re pl e nty with an e y e to busin e ss and ,

plenty as innoc e nt as childr e n ; but that it was

nec e ssary for some r e ason or oth e r to bath e in this
wat e r was a thing that it clearly did not e nter into
anyon e s h e ad to doubt I t simply had to b e don e

. .

The coldn e ss of th e morning air was forced on

my att e ntion by a group of women coming up ,

dripping and shiv e ring out of the river and taking

,

their stand clos e to m e Th e ir long cotton cloth s

.
26 2 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
To E L EPH AN T A
which was comparativ e ly larg e in proportion to the
ng e rs w e nt straight up betwe e n th e s e cond and third
,
.

The man s face was sm e ared all over with a yello w

pigm e nt (saffron ) and this togeth e r with his matt e d

,

hair gave hi m a wild and d e m onish appearanc e .

On e often r e ads of such things y e t som e how ,

without quit e realising th e m ; certainly the sight of

this d e lib e rat e and lifelong mutilation of the human
body gave m e a painful fee ling which w as by no
m e ans r e mov e d by th e expr e ssion of the fac e with ,

its stu lti ed sadn e ss and brutishn e ss not without

,

d e c e it H is e xtend e d right hand d e mand e d a coin

which I gladly gav e him and aft e r invoking som e
.
,

kind of blessing h e turn e d away through th e crowd

his poor dwindled hand and half clos e d ng e rs
visibl e for som e tim e ov e r th e h e ads of the p e ople
P oor fe llo w ! how littl e spiritual good his suffe rings had
.

don e him H is h e avy brow e d fac e haunt e d m e for

som e tim e F or th e r e st h e was w e ll liking e nough
.

-
.
,

and it must b e said that th e s e fellows for th e most part

mak e a fair living ou tof the pious charity of th e p e opl e ,

though I would not be und e rstood to say that all of

th e m adopt this mod e of life with that obje ct
Wh e n P anna cam e up out of th e water and had
.

dress e d hims e lf and I had satis e d th e curiosity of

,

on e or two bystand e rs who want e d to know wh e ther

I had com e with him all th e w ay on this pilgrimage
out of fri e ndship We went up to th e t em pl e abov e
,

wh e r e a littl e band was playing strang e and grisly

music and a few d e vot ee s w e r e chanting b e fore
an image of S iva and having made an offe ring
,

returned to our hot e l .

 C H AP T E R XV

TII E AN G L O I ND I AN AND THE NATI V E

-

A lla/caoad .
I r c e rtainly
is a v e ry dif cult thing to
s ee th e r e al I ndia th e r e al life of the p e opl e You
, .

arriv e at a railway station gi ve th e nam e of a hot e l

, ,

and ar e driv e n th e re Wh e n you wak e up in th e

.

morning you nd yourself in a region of straight

shady avenues villa r e sidenc e s hot e ls and church e s
E xc e pt that the
, , ,

lawn tennis and whisky p e gs

-
.

r e sid e nc e s ar e hous e s of on e storey inst e ad of thr ee

and that th e sun is rath e r glaring for F e bruary you
,

might j ust as well b e at Wandsworth or K e w I n

,

some alarm you ask for th e nativ e city and nd

that it is four mil e s O ff You cannot possibly walk
th e r e along the dusty roads and ther e is nothi ng for ,

i t but to drive I f there is anything of th e natur e

.

of a sight in th e city you are of course b e set by

dri v e rs ; in any cas e you ultimat e ly hav e to under

go the ignominy of b e ing jogge d through th e town
in a two hors e conv e yanc e stared at by the peopl e
-
, ,

followed by guid e s pest e re d for oaksnisli and are

, ,

glad to g e t back to th e sh e lter of your hot e l

I f you go and stay with your A nglo I ndian fri e nd
.

in his villa bungalow you ar e only a shad e worse

-

o ff inst e a d O f better H e is hospitality its e lf and

.
,

will introduce you cordially to all th e oth e r good

folk whom (and th e ir ways ) you hav e seen mor e
than once b e fore at Wandsworth and at K e w ; but
,

as to th e p e ople of the country why you are no , ,

263
264 F R O M ADAM S PE A K
To E L EP H AN T A
n e are r th e m physically and morally you ar e farther
,

off b e caus e you ar e in th e midst of a soci e ty wh e r e

,

i t is th e corr e ct thi ng to damn the oyst e r and all

that is conn e ct e d with him .

Th e more on e s ee s of th e world the more on e is

impr e ss e d I think by th e profundity and th e im
, ,

p assability of th e gulf of rac e diffe r e nc e T wo rac e s -

.

may touch may mingle may occupy for a tim e the

, ,

sam e land ; th e y may recognis e e ach oth e r s e xc e l
lenc ies may admir e and imitate each oth e r ; indi
,

v id u als may e v e n cross th e dividing lin e and be

absorbed on e ith e r sid e ; but ultimat e ly th e gulf re

ass e rts its elf th e deep set di ffe r e nc e mak e s its e lf fe lt
, ,

and for r e asons which n e ith e r party very clearly

u nd e rstands th e y cease to tolerat e e ach other Th e y .

s e parat e like oil and wat e r ; or br e ak into ame and

,

e rc e conict ; or th e on e p e rishes withering from

th e touch of the oth e r Th e r e are a fe w souls born
.
,

trav e l e rs and such lik e for whom rac e barri e rs do ,

-

not e xist and who ar e e v e rywh e r e at hom e but

th e y ar e rare F or the world at larg e th e gr e at
, ,

rac e divisions ar e v e ry d ee p v e ry insup e rabl e

-

, .

H e re is a vast probl e m Th e social probl e m which .

to day hangs over th e West e rn lan d s is a gr e at on e

-

but this looms b e hind it even vast e r A nyhow in , .

,

I ndia the barri e r i s plain enough to be s e en more

than physical mor e than int e ll e ctual mor e than
, ,

moral a d eep set i n e radicabl e incompati bility

Tak e that diffe r e nce in th e conc e ption of D uty
.

to which I hav e already allud e d The c e ntral core

,

of the orthodox E nglishman or at anyrate of th e

.

public school boy who ultimately b e com e s our most

-

accept e d typ e is perhaps to be found in that word

It is that which mak e s him th e dull narrow mind e d
, .

-
, ,
26 6 FR O M ADA M S PE AK

TO E L EPH AN T A
y e ars Th e re is l e ss b e li e f in justic e and honor
. ,

mor e in 5 p e r cent and e xp e di e ncyJ ess anxiety to

.

und e rstand the p e opl e and to gov e rn th e m w e ll ,

mor e to make a good incom e and to r e tire to

E ngland with an afuenc e at an e arly date .

Curious that w e hav e the sam e probl e m of race

diffe rence still utt e rly unsolv e d i n the U n it e d S tat e s .

A ft e r all the ardor of th e A bolitionists th e fury of ,

civil war th e emancipation of the slaves the grant

, ,

ing of th e ballot and political e quali ty and the pro ,

h ec ies of th e e nthusiasts of humanity still r e mains

p
th e fact that in the parts wh e r e n e groes exist in any
numb e rs the whit e man will not e v e n ride in th e
sam e car with his brother or drink at the bar wh e r e
,

he drinks S o long do e s it tak e to surpass and ov e r

.

com e these dividing lin e s We all know that they

.

ha ve to b e surpassed w e all know that th e ultimat e

and com m on humanity must disentangl e itself and
ris e sup e rior to th e m in the e nd Th e G h ani knows
.

it it is almost th e c e ntral fact of his religious philo

sophy and practice ; the Western d e mocrat knows it
it is also th e central fact of l tis creed B ut the .

way to its r e alisation is long and intricate and be

wild e ring .

W e must not therefor e be too r e ady to nd fault

with th e A nglo I ndian if he only (so to sp e ak )
-

touches the nativ e with the tongs H e may think .

,

doubtl e ss that h e acts so because the oyst e r is
,

a poor d e spicabl e cr e at u re quite untrustworthy in

, ,

capabl e etc all of which may be true e nough only

, .
,

w e must not forg e t that th e oyst e r has a correspond

i ng list of charges against th e A nglo but th e real
truth on both si d es is som e thing d ee p e r som e thing ,

de e p e r perhaps than can e asily b e expressed a

 T HE AN G L O I ND I AN
-
AN D T HE NATI V E 26 7

root e d dislik e and d iffe r e nc e b e tw ee n the two peo

pl e s P rovid e nc e for its own good r e asons s ee ms
.
, ,

to have put th e m tog e ther for a s e ason i n ord e r t hat

they may torm e nt e ach other and ther e is nothi ng,

more to b e sai d
A nd putting racediffe re nc e asid e it is obvious
.

, ,

that th e circumstances of our pre s e nc e in I ndia

mak e any fusion of the two parties very di f cult .

C e rtainly th e spectacle of our domination of this

vast r e gion is a very remarkabl e on e so m e thing
romantic and almost i ncredible the absorption and
,

s u bj e ction of so many trib e s and of such di v e rse

el e m e nts und e r on e political rul e and standard th e ,

m e re handful of foreign e rs holding th e country

at such a vast distance from home and from th e ir
bas e of op e rations the pati e nc e and pluck with
,

which th e probl e m has b ee n work e d out th e broad ,

and lib e ral spirit of administration with l e ss of rapin e

than p e rhaps ev e r known in such a cas e b e for e ,

and e v e n an allowanc e and t e nd e rness for nativ e

customs and institutions which are e sp e cially re
markable consid e ring th e insular habits of th e ruli ng
rac e all this mak e s one fee l how wonderful an
achi e v e m e nt th e thing has b e en But so far as .
,

i ntercours e b e tw e en th e tw o p e opl e s goes th e r e sult ,

has b ee n inevitabl e W e came to I ndia as for e ign e rs

.
,

we r e main th e re as a ruling cast e Th e r e is a gulf .

to b e gin with how can it b e bridged over !

A young man at th e ag e of tw e nty two or twent y -

thr e e com e s out to join th e o f cial ranks H e nds .

two soci e ties e xisting quit e sund e r e d from e ach

,

other H e cannot b e long to both H e may hav e

. .

th e most cosmopolitan id e as ; h e might ev e n p ref er

to associate with the subj e ct race but that would b e ,
268 F RO M A DA M S PE A K
'
To E L E P HA N TA

obviously impossibl e h e must join his own p e ople

whi ch m e ans th e us e of th e tongs wh e n a nativ e
g e ntl e man calls A S a m e r e lad eve n though of
.
,

strong character it is impossible for him to with

stand th e tr e m e ndous pr e ssur e which th e A nglos
,

will bring to b e ar on him Wh e n h e i s forty he

.
,

will ha ve accommodated his v i e ws to his position .

Thus th e gulf r e mains as wid e as e v e r .

Th e n th e p e ople th e mselves ar e th e subj e ct race ,

and tney hav e l e arn e d th e ir l e sson only too w e ll .

Walking through an I ndian city is as bad as walk

ing through a Devonshire parish wh e r e th e parson ,

and th e squir e have don e th e ir deadly work and th e ,

school childr e n curts e y to you and th e farm labor e r -

pulls his for e lock and calls you S ir if you only

I have walk e d alon e through a

,

ask th e w ay .

crowd e d city i n this part of I ndia for two or thr ee

hours without s ee ing a si ngl e w hit e fac e on e among
scor e s of thousands and th e peopl e of c iou sly
pushing e ach oth e r out of th e way to mak e room
for m e the native polic e and soldiers saluting and
,

should e ring arms as on e w e nt by and if on e chanc e d

,

to look too straight at a man h e co ve r e d his fac e

w ith his hands and bow e d low to the ground ! This
do e s not happ e n fortunat e ly in th e gr e at centres
lik e Bombay and Calcutta but i t do e s i n som e of
,

th e u p country citi e s and it is a strang e e xp e ri e nc e

-

impr e ssing on e no doubt with a s e ns e of th e pow e r

of th e little moth e r country t e n thousand mil e s away
-
,

which throws its pr e stige aro u nd on e but impr e ss

ing on e also with a sinist e r sens e of th e gulf betw e en
m an and man which that pr e stige has created It .

may b e imagin e d that a long cours e of this kind of

thing soon con v inces th e a ve rage A nglo I ndian that -
270 FR O M ADAM S PE A K T O E L EPH AN T A

t hat a change of gov e rnm e nt as to that of R ussia

or ev e n a r e turn to th e divided rul e of nativ e princes ,

would b e a decid e d cha ng e for th e worse Whil e .

,

however thus gladly and unask e d e xpressing their

,

loyalty my int e rlocutors have (I think in every cas e )

,

quali e d th e ir r e marks by expressing their dissatis

faction at th e personal tr e atm e nt they receive from
th e E nglish A s on e fri e nd mildly expr e ss e d it
The E nglish o fcial calls upon you and you of
.
,

, ,

course tak e car e to r e turn his call ; but h e takes

,

car e to conn e th e conv e rsation to th e w e ath e r and

S imilar topics and mak e s you fee l that it is a r e lief
,

wh e n th e visit is over and so th e re is not much ,

cordiality
N o doubt as rul e rs of the country and inh e riting
.

as I have said a tradition of aloofn e ss and sup e riority

,

ov e r the rul e d it is di fcult for our A nglo I ndian

,

-
,

folk to act otherwis e than th e y do S om e of th e m

I think fee l r e ally grieved at the e strange m e nt
.
,

, .

On e of th e o fcials her e said to m e in quit e a pathetic

ton e , Th e re is a gulf betw e en us and th e people

which it is v e ry di fcult to bridge Th e native .

g e ntl e man on th e other hand is very naturally

, , , ,

extr e m e ly s e nsitiv e about his dignity and not in ,

cl ined under such conditions to make advanc e s ;

or if not s e nsitive tends in so m e cas e s to be a toady
, ,

for his own ends ; i n e ith e r case furth e r e strang e

m e nt r e sults I f th e E nglish are to k ee p I ndia
.

togeth e r (supposing that really is a us e ful obj ect )

th e y must r u le no doubt and with a rm hand A t , .

th e sam e tim e th e rapidly growing public opinion -

.

b e neath the surfac e lz as to b e r e cognised and will

have to b e recognis e d e v e n mor e in the futur e I
,

mys e lf am i nclin e d to think that timidity has a g ood

 T HE AN G L O I N D I AN AN D THE NATI VE
-
27 1

d e al to do with th e policy of th e E nglish to day -

.

Conscious that th e y ar e not touching th e peopl e s

h e arts and cut O ff from th e m so as to b e unabl e

,

to fathom rightly what is going on in th e ir minds ,

they magnify the p e rils of th e ir own position and ,

entr e nching th e mselv e s i n further isolation and e x

cl u siv e ness by so doing cr e ate th e very dang e r that
,

they would avoid .

A lzgu r lc This place affords a striking e xample

.

of a rapp rocnem ent taking place betw ee n the rul e rs

and the ruled I t is the only place in I ndia which
I hav e visit e d where I have notic e d anything lik e
.

a cordial feeling e xisti ng between the two sections

and this is d u e to the pres e nce h e r e of the M oham
m e dan A nglo Ori e ntal Coll e ge run by E nglish m e n
g

-
,

whos e instincts and convictions li e a little outside

th e A nglo I ndian groov e A nd th e fact shows how .

much might b e don e by e v e n a fe w such m e n scat

tered over I ndia Our friends Th e odor e B e ck and
.
,

H arold Cox both Cambridge m e n and th e latt e r

a d e cided S ocialist in O pinion bei ng connect e d with
, ,

th e College at its rst start a few years ago natur ,

ally made a point of cultivating fri e ndly r e lations

not only wi th th e boys but with their parents
especially thos e who might hap pen to b e residing
in the place Being also nat urally on fri e ndly
.

t e rms with th e A nglo I ndians and o fcials of A li

, ,

gurh they (and the Coll e ge ) b e cam e a point of con

,

tact betw ee n the two sections O f the community

A t crick e t match e s priz e givings supper parti e s
.

- - -
, , ,

e tc the good people of both sid e s m e t and e stab

.
,

lished comparativ e ly cordial r e lations with e ach

oth e r which have given as I say a quite distinctive , ,

avour to th e socia l atmos ph ere her e

,

.
272 FR O M ADAM S PE AK T O E L EP HAN TA

L ast night (F eb 1 7th ) I came in for a dinn e r

.

party giv e n in th e Coll e g e r e c e ptio n room by on e

,
-

of th e M ohamm e dan talu gaars or landlords of th e

, ,

n e i g hborhood a little grey timid man wi th gold

, ,

braided cap and black coat somewhat resembling

th e conductor of a G e rman band Ve ry amusing . .

Gold caps on beak e d and b e arded fac e s and gor

ge o ns robes ; sp ee ch e s in H industan i by E nglish
,

m e n and in E nglish by M ohamm e dans ; a fe w

,

H indus present sitting apart so as not to e at at th e

,

tabl e with us ; h e alths e nthusiastically drunk in t e a ,

e tc ! and to crown it all wh e n th e h e alth of the

.
,

M ohamm e dans and H indus pr e s e nt was proposed

and th e E nglish including Of cials coll e ctor and
,

F or th e y are j olly good

, ,

all stood up and sang ,

fe llo ws th e astonishm e nt of the nativ e s hardly ,

knowing what i t all m eant and unaccustom e d to

th e se forms of jolli cation was quit e touching
B ut the in u e nc e of S ir S yed A hm e d h e re must
.
,

of cours e not be ov e rlook e d H e i s the originator

and found e r of th e M A O Coll e g e and on e of th e
.

. . .
,

l e ading M ohamm e dans of I ndia as well as a condant ,

of th e British and of th e Governm e nt a man of

consid e rabl e w e ight courage and knowledge of the
, ,

world if a little ultra M ohamm e dan in som e of his

-

v i e ws and in his cont e m pt of th e mi l d H i ndu H e

,

was a m e mb e r of L ord R ipon s Council and oppos e d

.

L ord R ipon with all his might i n the matt e r of the

,

proposed syst e m O f popular e l e ction to L ocal B oards

and M unicipal Councils Th e M ohamm e dan is poles
.

asund e r from th e mod e rn R adical and Carlyl e an in ,

his cont e mpt of voting machin e ry H is ng e rs still .

itch eve n i n th e s e d e g e n e rat e days to cut the

, ,

G ordian knot of politics with th e sword H e hates .

274 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
To E L EPH AN T A
parti e s against e ach oth e r H indu against Mo
ham m ed an and M ohamm e dan ag ainst H ind u
,
.

Wh e n a man of a u thority and w e ight could make

such a jingo sp ee ch as that of S ir S yed A hm e d at
L ucknow in I 887 who in th e e xtr e mity of his con
t e mpt for th e H indu said We do not liv e on sh ;
,

nor are w e afraid of using a knife and fork l e st we

sho u ld cut our ngers (cheers ) Our nation is of
th e blood of those who mad e not only A rabia but
.

A sia and E urope to tr e mbl e I t is our nation which

.

conqu e r e d with its sword the whol e of I ndia ,

although its peoples w e re all of on e r e ligion on e

r e alises how deep set is th e antagoni sm still existing
-
.

Tho u gh forming a minority fty or sixty million , (

d e sc e ndants of a pow e rful rac e shari ng such s e nti

m e nts cannot be ignored and it is ob v ious that th e
feud b e tw ee n th e two races must for a long period
y e t form on e of the gr e at dif culti e s and probl e ms
of I ndian politics
A fe w years ago th e H in d us ti e d a pig at night
.

tim e in th e midst of the jumma M osqu e at D e lhi ,

wh e r e i t was found in th e morning by th e infuri

ated M ahommedans Th e y in r e taliation cut up a
.

brahmin cow and thr e w it i nto a w e ll used by

H indus S tre e t ghts and assassinations follow e d
.

and many p e opl e w e r e kill e d and the affair might

hav e grown to a larg e scal e bu t for th e int e rfe renc e
of B ritish troops S uch littl e am e nities ar e not
.

infre quent at any rat e in certai n districts

, .

There is a big hors e fair going on here j ust now

-

A hundr e d booths or more arrange d in four littl e

.

str ee ts in form of a cross with decorations All

, .

round bar e sa ndy la n d with ho rs e s ti e d up fo r sal e

, .
 T HE AN G L O I ND I AN AND THE NATI V E
-
27 5

The C abu lees great tall m e n with long hair and

ski n coats fur inside and ramshackl e l e ggings and
, ,

sho e s rid e i n with th e ir strings of hors e s 3 0 0 or ,

0 0 miles from the fronti e r wh e r e th e y ar e oblig e d

4
to pile th e ir arms until they r e turn as th e y would ,

play th e de u ce in the country if they w e r e to bring

their guns with the m Th e y look tidy ru f ans and
.
,

no doubt would overrun th e country if not h e ld

back by th e E nglish or som e military pow e r .

O u tsid e th e fair is a wr e stling ar e na with e arth ,

banks thrown up round it on which a motley crowd

of spectators was s e at e d to day S aw s e v e ral bouts
,

of wr e stling The A lig u rh champion s chall e nge

.

was acc e pted by a big P u njau bee a fellow from ,

M eerut over sixty years of ag e but r e markably

, ,

pow e rful burly with small nos e batt e red e ars and
hug e frontal prominenc e s like som e A frican chi e f
, , ,

tain or W e st e rn priz e g hter good humored too

- -

and e ven j olly till accus e d of unfair play wh e n he ,

rage d among the mob and th e m ee tin g brok e up

,

in insan e nois e and blows of sticks a small whirl

wind of combatants e ddying away for som e distanc e
over th e plain I t was charact e ristic though that
.
,

when th e y had had enough of ghting the two ,

parties cam e back and app e al e d for fair play to

B e ck and m e the only two E nglishm e n pres e nt
though th e r e did not s ee m the l e ast r e ason w hy they
shoul d and w e w e r e quit e unabl e to afford th e m any
,

proper satisfaction .
 C HA P T E R X V I

D E L HI AND A GR A

T HE train rush e s ov e r an iron gi rd e r bridge

crossi ng th e jumna into D e lhi Th e r e ar e sandy
,

, .

ats and bits of gard e n by th e river S id e and th e n -

,

th e gr e at r e d sandston e walls of th e fort 3 0 or 40

-
,

fee t high surmount e d by r e mnants of th e old whit e

marbl e palac e of S hah je ha n looki ng out e astward
,

ov e r th e gr e at plain H e r e ar e th e P e arl M osq u e

,

a littl e pur e whit e shrin e th e S hah s pri v at e

.

audi e nc e hall the z e nana apartm e nts and th e royal

, ,

baths still standi ng Th e wom e n s apartm e nts ar e

,
.

c e rtainly lov e ly Whit e and polished marbl e floo r

.

and marbl e walls inlaid with most e l e gant oral

and arab esqu e d e signs i n mosaics of color e d ston e s ,

and i n gold ; with marbl e scr ee ns of rich lac e lik e -

op e n work betw ee n th e apartm e nts and th e Out e r

world ; and a S imilarly s c ree n e d balcony jutting
ov e r th e fort w all through which th e riv e r and th e
great plains b e yond ar e se e n shimm e ring in th e
h e at Th e privat e audi e nc e hall is of lik e w ork a
-

so rt of O p e n portico support e d on som e tw e nty

.

marbl e columns with m arbl e oor and rich mosaic

,

eve rywher e (se e illustration ) and th e baths th e

I nd ee d th e old P adishah with his fty
,

sam e .

qu e ens must ha ve had som e high O ld tim e s i n th e s e

baths on e for hims e lf on e for th e qu ee ns and on e
, ,

for his childr e n all op e ning conv e ni e ntly into e ach

,

oth e r .

276
27 8 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E L EPH AN T A
n e with th e ir dark S kins I suppose that i n th e .

P u njau b th e m e n ar e ner and tall e r still and look

down a littl e on the fo l k at D e lhi Co ws and brah
,

min bulls throng th e str ee ts and com e out of ,

courtyards in th e mid city S om e of th e s e bulls

-
.

are public prop e rty belong to no individual and

, ,

live on th e highways and mingl e with the h e rds of

cows \ Vh e n th e y want food th e y go into th e
.

mark e t and th e H indus fee d th e m w ith th e ir hands

, .

The jumma M osqu e is th e rst larg e mosqu e I

hav e s ee n i n I ndia but I am a little disappoint e d
,

with it Th e s e I ndian mosqu e s diffe r a littl e from

th e Turkish b e ing quit e O p e n to sun and sky Th e
.

id e a s e ems to b e rst a larg e op e n squar e 1 0 0 fee t

, ,

across or 1 0 0 yards or mor e paved with marbl e

, , ,

if possibl e with a tank i n th e middl e for wor

,

shi ers to wash th e ir fee t i n and an arcad e round

p ,

thr ee sides v e ry lik e ly op e n work of ston e with

,
-
,

n e gat e ways in e ach sid e and on th e fourth

sid e a sort of v e ry handsom e portico with its ,

oor raised abov e the g e neral court and surmounted ,

by thr e e dom e s R ight and l e ft of th e portico stand

.

th e two tall minar e ts To b e p e rfect th e whol e .

should b e of whit e polish e d marbl e inlaid with

arab e sques and scriptur e s from th e K oran One of .

th e main poi n ts is th e absolute purity of th e plac e .

Th e r e is nothing whatev e r und e r the portico no

lik e ne ss of b e ast or bird only thr ee recesses in which
on e might fairly e xp e ct to see an altar or an image ,

a ight of thr ee st e ps on which the r e ad e r stands to

r e ad th e K oran and that is all A tt e ndants con
, .

tinu al ly dust th e whol e courtyard with cloths to

k ee p it cl e an
F rom a distance th e effect of th e dom e s the min
.

,
 DELH I AN D A GR A 279

arets th e open work of the arcade the handsome

,
-
,

gateways and the littl e kiosks is ve ry attractive ;

,

but within one misses som e thing I t seems a if the .

s

portico ought to open back on a vast interior ; but

it do e sn t There is no mysterious gl oom anywhere

.

not a cranny for a hobgobli n even Th e r e is no

ni ce Virgin M ary in the niche s or nasty gargoy l e
.

The Jumma M osque, D lhi

e

on th e angles no meditativ e Buddha or t e rrifying

K ali with necklace of skulls no suggestion of com
,

anionship human or divin e no appeal tp s e ns e I t

p
.
,

do e sn t give one a chance of even havmg e make

believe god How di ffe r e nt from Hindu I S m W ith

its lingams and sexual symbol s deied i n th e p ro
.

found gloom of th e temple s i nnermost rec e ss !

What an extraordinary r eg ion is this to the sou th

 280 F R O M ADAM S PE A K
To E L EPH AN T A
and w e st of De lhi a hug e wast e sprinkled with the
ruins of six or s e v e n pr ev ious De lh is ! E mp e rors
in thos e days had a ch ee rful way wh e n they
thought they had found a s e curer or more c o nv eni
e nt sit e of calmly r e moving a whol e city from its
old location N ow you pass through an arid land
.
,

h e r e and ther e gr ee n with crops but running up ,

into stony ridg e s and mounds and dotted with ruins

as far as the e ye can se e S tumpy dom e s of d e
,

c a ed mosqu e s i n e v e ry dir e ction looming against

y
th e sky m e r e lumps of brickwork now turn ed into
, ,

barns and farmyards or with h e rds of goats sh e lt e r

,

ing from th e sun b e n e ath their arch e s th e land in

som e parts fairly covered with loos e stones r e mnants ,

of countl e ss buildings H e r e and th e re among

.
,

som e foliage you s ee a gr e at mosqu e tomb in b e tt e r

,

pr e s e rvation kept up by the Gov e rnm e nt that of

S afdar jung for instanc e who di e d 1 753 Vizi e r of
th e E mp e ror M uhammad S hah or of th e E mp e ror
, , ,

Hu m ayou n or the marbl e shrin e of th e poet K husro

,

A long th e roads go bullock carts of all kinds som e

, .

-
,

with curtains to th e m conc e aling wom e n folk ; and

,
-

cam e ls with loads of grass and donk e ys with huge ,

panni e rs of cow d u ng ; and by th e wayside ar e

-

ash tree s and p ee pul tre e s and w e lls worked by ,

brahmin cows drawing up water in hug e skins

E l e v e n mil e s south of D e lhi stands th e gre at
.

K utab M inar a hug e tower 240 fe e t high and 50

,

fe et diam e t e r at its base tap e ring through ve

stor e ys to its summit which unfortunat e ly has lost
,

its four column e d watch turr e t and has only now a

- -

wr e tch e d iron rail a kind of multiple column break

ing out into a sort of scroll work capital at each -

landing not v e r y b e autiful but impressi ve i n its ,

2 82 FR O M ADAM S PE A K
TO E L EP H AN T A
on an e minenc e composed of th e d e bris of former
habitations Th e walls 40 fee t high of this little
.
, ,

fortre ss whos e irr e gular sid e s ar e non e of th e m

,

probably much mor e than a quarter of a mile in

le ngth ar e v e ry rud e but bold ston e work and com
, ,

mand a dry ditch Within th e re ar e now only a .

hundr e d or so mud huts and a re d sandstone ,

-

mosqu e of rath e r good app e arance from th e t e rrace

of which you look ou t ov e r the jumna and see th e
minar e ts of th e pr e sent city only thr ee or four mil e s
off Owing howe v e r to th e dust flying in th e air
.
, ,

th e vi e ws w e r e by no m e ans v e ry clear .

A g ra Th e fort her e is quit e on th e sam e lin e s

as that at D e lhi but of e arli e r dat e built by A kbar
,

i n 566 or so and ev e n n e r in conception Th e r e

1 .

is ind ee d som e thing v e ry grand about this bold .

st e rn and practical M ohamm e dan structur e with its

, ,

lofty s e v e nty foot walls and solid gateway of re d

-

sandston e surmount e d by th e glitt e r of the marbl e

,

and gilt roofed domes and arcades and t e rrac e s

-

which form e d th e royal palac e within A ll th e s e .

buildings of th e royal palac e lik e th e Taj and oth e r ,

monum e n ts ar e now k e pt and r e pair e d by the Brit

,

ish Go ve rnm e nt and with t e nd e r care ; and are op e n

,

for visitors to walk through at their own sw ee t will

sub ect to th e trivial importuniti e s of a few guides
j .

On e may wander for a whol e day through the many

courts of the palac e at A gra and keep nding fr e sh
beauties and i nt e r e st A fter one guid e has been .

e xhaust e d and paid off th e oth e rs l e ave on e respect

fully alon e and one may sit down i n th e lov e ly ar
cade of the D e wan K has or in the canopi e d balcony
,

call e d th e je ssamin e Tow e r and e njoy the shade ,

and co oln e ss of th e marbl e or the sight of the ,

 D E L HI AN D A GR A 283

brilliant landscape betw e en the arches th e riv e r

banks and the busy folk washing thems e lv e s and
their li n e n o r study th e b e autifu l oral mosaics
upon walls and columns at one s leisure
,

.

I n marble and mosaic it is impossible to imagin e

Pertorated M arbl e S creen in Pal ace at D el hi

anyth ing more elegant than the M ohamm e dan work

of this perio d as illustrat e d by numbers of buildings
th e brilliant co l oring and richness of inlaid stone
in coral agate jade bloodstone turquoise lapis
, , ,

l azuli or what not ; th e grace of runn ing l e af and

, ,

~in pane l s
,

ow e r ; the marble reli e fs whole plants

the lily or the tulip or the Ol eander conventional
,
 F ROM A DA M S P EA K P HA N T A
'
2 84 TO EL E

i sed o ne of the most b eau tiful i n the D ew an K h as

b eing a d esign of the tom ato pl ant ; and th en the
inimit abl e o p en work scr ee n s (oft e n out of one gr eat
-

sl ab of ston e of intric at ely b al anc ed

) y et tr ans

aren tl simpl e d esigns som e i n the z e n an a ap art

p y
m ent s h er e almo st as el aborat e as l ac ework ; an d
the c ar e and nish with whi ch th ey h av e all b ee n
wrought and tt ed .It w as from thi s fort and
among th es e arc ad es an d balconi es th at 50 0 English
during the early days of the M utiny watch ed the
cloud s of am e and smok e goi ng up from th eir
burning hom es .

H ere at A gra I nd my self as u su al at l east an

ho u r s w alk from the n ativ e city m easuri ng by mil e

ston es but how far I am fro m an
,

y pos sibility of
conv erse wit h the p eopl e th ere con sid eri ng th at I
,

c annot sp eak th eir l anguag e th at they bow to the

ground if I only look at th em and th at my V i ew of
, ,

o lzge as a B riti sh e r should forbid my associ

ating fr eely with th em is mor e th an I c an c alcul ate

, .

T o go and see the T aj M ah al is easy e nough ; but

to explore wh at li es b ehind som e of th es e fac es th at
I see on the ro ad b eautiful as th ey are som ething ,

mor e wond erful th an ev en the T aj it self is ind eed

difcult A ll this is v ery trying to p eopl e of d emo
.

cratic t e nd enci es ; but p erh ap s it will be said th at

such p eopl e ought not to vi sit I ndi a at anyrate ,

under its pre se nt conditions .

O ne mu st I sup p o se co n sol e oneself w ith the T aj

, , .

I saw i t for a few bri ef minut es thi s ev ening und er

the m agic condition s of d ee p twili g ht I w as stand .

ing i n the middl e of the g ard e n whi ch op ens lik e

a lov ely p ark i n fro n t of the tomb Cypr esses and
.
 FR O M P EA K P

286 A DA M S TO EL E HA N T A

a ltogether pl easing to m e T he absolute symmetry .

of the four s id es which are id entic al ev en down to

,

the mo saic d e signs and th e abrupt right angl es of

,

the b ase give the thing a v ery artici al look B ut .

the inl aid work of color ed and pr eciou s ston es only

to be s een on a n ear vi ew is of course p erfect ,

, .

T he T aj st ands on a t err ac e which falls p erp en

dic u lar into the J umn a river (b ehind the building
in the abov e illustration ) A mil e and a h alf aw ay .

to the west li es the sombre lin e of the fort walls

crown ed with the m arbl e kio sk s and min arets of the
royal pal ace A mil e or two beyond th at agai n li es
.

the city of A gr a with one or two spir es of English

,

church es or colleges ; whil e to the east the lov ely

tomb looks out ov er a wild ravine l and b ar e and ,

sc arred which suggests a l and sc ape in the moon as

,

much as anything .

I n the d aytim e the orn am ent al gard en of which

I h ave spok en with its g ay ow ers and w at er
, ,

t anks and children at pl ay sets off the ch ast e

, ,

b eauty of the building ; whil e the r e ect ed light s

from the m arble pl atform with their cre amy tints , ,

and blu e in the sh ado w s give an added aeri al ,

ch arm T he thing c ert ainly stand s solid as t hough

.
,

it would l ast for centuri es and might h av e b een

built ye sterd ay for any sign of decay about it .

I nde ed I w as st artl ed as if my own thoughts had

b een echoed wh en I heard a voic e b ehind m e say
in good Engli sh T his is r ath er a different style
,

from your English j erry building is it not ! and

looki ng round saw a som ewh at j erry built n ative -

youth who se styl e show ed th at he c am e from o ne

,

of the great comm erci al c e ntres s aluting me i n ,

th ese mo c king ton es .

 DELH I AN D A G RA 287

T he sm all green p arrots (the s ame th at one

commonly s ees i n cages in Engl and ) which are
common all ov e r I ndi a and which h aunt the T aj ,

h ere and its garden billing and ch attering close by

,

one are q u ite a fe ature of the pl ace ; th eir flight

, ,

with the long t ail straight b ehind is something lik e ,

a cuckoo s or a h awk s O ccasion ally one m ay see
.

a vulture p erch ed upon some poi nt of v ant ag e look

ing down upon them with an envious eye I n

D elhi walking through a crowd ed street I saw a
.

, ,

kite swoop do w n and actually sn atch som ething

some e at abl e I think out of a child s h and a little

in front of me I t then so ared up into the air

.
,

le aving the little one terri ed and sobbing on a

doorst ep .

T his gr eat river (the J u mn a and the G anges the ,

s am e) and the pl ain through which it slowly wind s

h av e a gre at fascin ation for m e the long reach es
and s andy spurs the arid st eep b ank s and low cliffs
,

c atching j ust now the l ast red light of sunset h ere

and ther e a little dom ed building s t anding out on
a promontory with st eps down to the w at er or a
,

brown grass woven t e nt on the sand s b elow ; the

-

gre at vultures slowly fl apping hitherward through

the fading light a turtl e spl ashing into the w ater ;
the full moon mounting into the sky though yet ,

with subdued glory and alre ady the twinkl e of a

,

light i n a hous e here and there ; and on my right

this gre at mount ain of m arble catching the pl ay of
al l the he avenly r adi ances .

S he mu st h ave been very b eautiful th at q u een ,

wife ,
the crown of the pal ace to h av e inspire d

,

and b e come the soul of a sc e n e lik e this ; or very

lov e ly in s om e s e nse or oth e r for I b eli ev e she

 FR O M P EA K P

2 88 A DA M S TO EL E HA N T A

w as lr eady the moth er of eight children wh en she

a

di ed B ut ind eed it do es not m atter much abou t

.
, ,

e xt ern al or conv e ntion al b eauty ; wh er ev er th ere is

tru e lov e th ere is felt to be som ething so lovely th at

l symbols all earth s shows are v ain to give utt er

al , ,

ance to it C ert ainly if anything could st and for

.
,

the living be auty of a lov e d cr eatur e it might be ,

this d ome puls ating with all the blushes and r adi
,

anc es of the sky which m ak es a great er dom e

,

abov e h .

A cross the riv er j u st oppo sit e you dimly dis

, ,

ting u ish the outline of a v ast pl atform now m ainly

'

ploughed up and conv ert ed into eld s on which

the good S h ah intend ed to h av e built a simil ar or
twin tomb for his own body fortun at ely how ev er , ,

he di ed long b efor e this id ea could be c arri ed out ,

an d now he li es mor e appropri ately by the sid e of his

lov ed one i n the voc al gloom of th at lofty int erior .

You say w e M oh amm edans do not r esp ect our
wom en yet wh er e i n all Europ e can you point out
,

a monum ent to a wom an equ al to this s aid S y ed

M ahmoud triumph antly to me one d ay A nd th en .

one r em emb ers th at this preciou s monument (lik e

so m any oth ers th at the world is proud of
) w as
m ad e by the forced and fami n e l abor of
workm en working for sev e nt een y ear s and o ne '

thinks Wh at about them and t/z ez r w ives !

,
!

C all ed on a cot eri e of professors co nn ect ed with

the university coll ege at A gr a A C Bos e w ho is . .
,

professor of m ath em atics ; G argari s professor of

physic s ; N ilm ani D h ar law l ecture r ; and A C
,

, . .

B annerji judg e of sm all c au se court an intellige nt

I fou nd B ose readin g
,

and int ere stin g lot of fellow s .

 F R OM P EA K P
EL E HA N TA

29 0 A DA M S TO

G argaris is a big head ed logical mind ed slowi sh

- -

m an who inquired much aft er the P ositivists and

, ,

app arently think s much of th em b e ing indeed of

th at typ e him self N ilm ani D h ar s eemed v ery
.

enthu s i astic about the B rahmo S om aj which I , ,

c annot say I feel any int er est in He is of cours e

, .
, ,

a T h eist but most of the folk now adays who go

,

in for We stern l earning and ide as are A gnostic s ,

and adopt the scientic m ateri ali s m of H uxl ey and

T ynd all .

The men in the street s h er e and I noti c ed the

s am e at N agpore are v ery h andsom e m any of ,

th em with th eir l arge ey es and w ell form ed nos es

,
-

n eith er snub nor hook ed and short upp er lips , .

With great turb ans (som etimes a foot high ) on th eir

h ead s and ne moust ach es th ey look quite m arti al
, ,

but lik e merm aid s they end b adly for when you ,

look b elow you see two thinnest shins with little

tight cotton l eggings round them and b are feet , .

H ow they g et thes e l eggings on and off is a

qu estion which I h av e not yet b een able to solve
A nyhow I h av e come to the conclusion about the
.

H i ndus gener ally th at th eir l egs are too thin for

th em ever to do much in the world .

T he p eopl e sitting by the hundr ed at all the

railway st ations in this part of I ndi a waiting for ,

their tr ains are quite a sight T h ey congregate in

, .

l arge sheds or are as hardly to be c alled waiting

rooms reserv ed for this purpose ; and wheth er it
u -

be th at their notion of tim e is so d efectiv e or ,

wh ether it be for the s ake of society or of rest or

sh elt er th at th ey com e there cert ain it is th at at any
,

hour of day or night you m ay see these compacted

 DEL H I AN D A G RA 29 !

crowds of thin sh ank ed undemonstrative m en with

-

, ,

wiv es and children s eat ed squ atting on their h ams

, ,

t alking or m edit ating or resigning themselv es to

sle ep as if the arriv al of th eir train w as an event far
,

remot e and of the very l east import ance T h ey

, .

m u st how ever r eally enj oy this method of tr av el

, ,

ing for the third cl ass carri ages are generally

,
-

crowd ed with the poorer n atives T h ey squ at on .

the se ats in all attitudes and b erth like se ats being ,

-

le t down ov erhe ad th ey som etim es occupy these

,

too forming two storeys of cross legged mort als -

.

T he women and childr en h av e a c arri age to th em

s elves a ne exhibition generally of nose rings -

an d ear rings -
I t is the third cl ass th at pays ; rst
.

and s e cond are only sc antily u sed ; the rst by

English alone the s econd by mix ed English and
,

high er cl ass n atives T hough the dist anc es to be

.

co vered by the trav eling Englishm an are generally

l arge the conditions are not uncomfort abl e J ourn eys .

are m ad e l arg ely by night for coolne ss ; rst and

. ,

second cl ass are generally sm all s aloons with couch

like se ats ; and th ese couches with the berths ,

av ail able abov e g en er ally allow of one s h aving a
,

good str etch and a sound sl eep .

T raveling second cl ass one meets (though not

alw ays ) with some ple as ant n ativ es A s a sp eci .

men (and a favourabl e one ) of the Young I ndi a th at

is growing up under modern in fluences I m ay men
tion a railway goods clerk who was my comp anion
in the train between N agpore and Bombay ; a v ery
bright face with clear w ell b al anced expression and
, ,
-
,

good general ability s aid he worked ten hours a

,

d ay on the average Rs fteen a month but would

, . ,

be raised n ext year ; w as leaving N agpore district

29 2 F R OM A DA M S

PE A K TO P
EL E HA N TA

becaus e it w as so out of the w ay no p apers etc , .

I n Bomb ay you knew wh at w as goi ng on all

ov er the world Why he had only h eard of M r
.
,

B rad lau gh s d eath y esterd ay two months after

d at e T he English rul e w as very good U nd er

. .

th e M ahr att as you wer e li abl e an y d ay to h av e your

good s stol en but now ther e w as gen eral s ecuri ty
, ,

and p eac e b etw een the different p eopl es inst ead of

di ss ension as th er e would be if the English were to
,

go a r eal nice fellow and I felt quit e sorry wh en

,

he l eft the train .

L at er on the same evening in the sam e tr ain a , ,

little incid ent occurred which m ay be worth r ecordi ng

I and anoth er Englishm an were the sol e occupant s
.

of the comp artment ; it w as in fact n ear midnight ,

and we w er e str etch ed on our r espective couch es ,

wh en our slumb ers wer e di sturb ed by the entranc e

of a family of four or v e P arsee s among whom ,

w ere a l ady and a child and an old gentl eman of

som ewh at feebl e but r en ed app ear ance Of cours e .
,

though we w ere not disturb ed there w as a littl e ,

conv ers ation and discus sion whil e couch es wer e bei ng
arr anged and berths l et down etc till at l ast my , .

fellow countrym an losing his littl e store of pati e nc e

-

, ,

rolled ov er am ong his rugs with a growl : I wish

you would stop th at ch attering y ou P arsees To , .

which wh en th ey had s ettl ed th emselves a bit one

, ,

of th em looking over the edge of his berth replied

P lease to sle ep now M r G entleman
, , ,

.
, .
29 4 FR O M A DA M S

P EA K TO L
E EPH AN T A

with projecting storey s and b alconies and easem ents

the top tiers nothing but p ainted wood and gl ass
,

like the stern of a huge three decker The bas e -

.

ment storey is open and fronted with great carved

wooden columns H ere are a few pl ants standing
. ,

S t t in B
ree ombay, N a ive t Quarter
Little shop: on each side, a morgue on the lef t)

and a mong them his gold brown body thrown up

-

against the gloom b ehind st ands a young boy of

eight or nine ne arly n aked with silver wristlets and
, ,

s tring of blue be ads round his neck The next .

houses are low only two or three storeys and th eir

, ,

bas ements are let out i n tiny shops only a few

feet squ are each H ere squatted among cushions
.
, ,
 BO M BAY 29 5

smoking his long pipe sits an old money lend er,

-

with whit e cap and frock and gold rimmed spec -

t aeles N ear him are boys and assi stants totti ng u p

.
,

accounts or writing letters on their knees T he .

m an is worth thous ands of pounds but his pl ac e ,

of bu sin ess is not bigger th an a dining room t abl e -

an d th e r e are score s like him The next few .

shops are all silv ersmiths four or ve in each shop ,

couch es and cushions as before and c abin ets full of ,

trink ets .F arther on they are h am m ering br ass

an d copper a score of shops at l east cons ecutive .

N ow we come to an archw ay throu gh which b ehold ,

a l arg e r e servoir with peopl e b athi ng

, T here is a .

H indu temple here and they do not lik e us to

,

e nt er ; but und er the arch sits an old ascetic He .

has sat cro ss legged for so m any y ears th at he c an

t ak e no oth er position sometimes for extr a pen ance
he g ets th em to li ft him up and s eat him on a spik ed
bo ard but I fancy he is such a h arden ed old sinn er
th at he do es not feel ev en th at much ! He is a
well known ch aract er in the city
-
.

A littl e farth er on i n a b alcony is a group of

, ,

girls with h enn a bl ack ey es som ewhat daintily got

,
-
,

up and on the look out for visitors N ow a covey

-

of P ars ee women and childr en comes by brilli ant

.
,

in their l arge silk wraps (for even the poorer P ars ee

,

fem al es m ake a point of we aring these ) pale gre en -

or s almon color or blue d rawn over th eir heads

,

and d epending even to their feet th eir l arge d ark

e yes shining with re and intelligenc e not the ,

timid gl ance of the general run of I ndi an wom en

M any of the P arsee fair ones ind eed espec ially of
.

m
,

the well to do cl asses are exc eedingly h andsom e

- -
.

But the w om en generally in B omb ay form quit e a ,

29 6 FR O M A DA M S

P EA K TO L P
E E HA N TA

featur e ; for the M ahratt as who con stitut e the b u lk

,

of the popul ation do not shut up their wom en any

more th an the P arsees do and numb ers of th ese
, ,

mostly of course though not exclusively of the

, , ,

Parsee Woman

poorer cl asses m ay be seen mov ing quite freely

about th e s treet s : the M ahratt a sher women for -

inst ance dr ess ed not in the long d ep ending clo ak

of the P arsees but in the ordin ary I ndi an sar i
,

, ,

which th ey wind gracefully about the body l eaving ,

th eir legs bare from the knee s dow n Of the .

29 8 FR O M ADA M S PE A K

TO L
E EPH A N T A

of his eye to biz S omehow he strangely remind s

.

o ne of the neighborhood of the L ondon S tock

Exchange only it is a face of more general abil ity
,

than you often see in the Cit y .

P arsee Merchan t s

A nd (wh at also is more th an can be s aid for his

City conf rre) he is up early i n the morning for his
religious exercises A t sunrise you m ay see him on
.

the espl an ades m aid an s and oth er open pl ac es say

, , ,

i ng his prayers with his face turn ed towards the east .

He repe ats or re ads i n an undertone long passages ,

 BO M BAY 299

and th en bows three tim es towards the light ; then

sometimes turning round will seem to go through
a simil ar ceremony with his b ack to it T he pe en .

liarity of the physiognomy (not forgetting the no se

of course ) s eems to lie in the d epth of the eye .

T his together with the long b ackw ard lin e of the

eyelid gives a rem ark able look of intelligence and
earn estness to the n er faces

T he young er P ar see is also v ery much to the fore

.

-
a sm artish fellow not without som e Brumm agem
,

s elf c ondence pu shing in busi n ess and in h is

-

efforts to j oin in the soci al life of the English wh o

in r ev enge are li abl e to revile him as the A rry of

the East A nyhow th ey are a g o ah ead people

.
-
,

th es e C u rsetjees C o wasjees P estonjees and jejeeb

, , ,

hoys and run most of the cotton mills h ere ju stic e .

T el ang spok e to m e highly one d ay of th em as a

body their h elpful broth erly spirit and good c ap a
city and v ers atility H e s aid h owe ver th at th ey
.
, ,

we re not t aking the l ead in u szh ess quite so m uch

as formerly but turning r ath er more to p oitic al life
,
.

T el ang hims elf is of M ahratt a extraction a

sturdy w ell eshed m an of energy and gentl en ess
,
-
,

combined abl e sound and s ensibl e I should say

, , , ,

with good judgm ent and no humbug H e of .

,

course thinks the cre ation of a united I ndi a a long

,

and di fcult affair : but do es not s eem to desp air of

its possibility ; acknowl edges th at the M oh amm ed an
el e ment is mostly indiffer ent or unfriendly to the
ide a but the P arsees are favorabl e
,
.

I w as i n T elang s court one day and admired

,

much the way he conducted the business On the .

whole I thought the English b arristers present

showed up only feebl y ag ainst the native j u dge
30 0 F RO M A DA M S

PE AK TO L P
E E HA N T A

and pl eaders I c ert ainly am incli ned to think

.

the educ ated n ativ es quite equ al or if anything

superior to the Englishm an in m att ers of pur e intel
l ect (law m ath em atics
,
where they are want ,

ing t aking the m att er quit e in bulk and with m any ,

individual exc eptions is in that qu ality which is

expres sed by the word m or ale ; and it is th at d efect
which prev ents th em being abl e to m ak e the b est use
of th eir br ain power or to hold th eir own against ,

u s i n the long run S o i m port ant is th at qu ality

. .

T he A nglo S axons with d eci ent brain s h av e it in

-
, ,

a high d egr ee and are m aster s of the world

I call ed anoth er day on T ribhovan Das who is
.
,

h ead of the Buny as h ere a l arg e and inuenti al

m erch ant c ast e He occupie s the house which
.

b elonged to his fath er S ir M ungal Das who w as , ,

m emb er of the Bomb ay L egi sl ativ e Council and a

great m an in his tim e both in w ealth and inu enc e .

T he hou se is a l arg e one st anding in the n ativ e

city We w ent and sat in st at e in a big drawing
.

room and th en m ad e a tour of the oth er r ec eption

,

room s an d the library and sol emnly insp ect ed and ,

admir ed the work s of art o scill ating mod els of

ships in a storm pictures with music al box es con
,

ceal ed behind th em a huge autom atic mu sic al ,

organ w ax ow ers and fruit s in the library foun

,
-
,

tains in the gard en etc all quite in the styl e of , .

the rec eption rooms of we althy n ativ es tw enty y ears

-

or so ag o T ribhovan show ed m e over it all with

.

th at mingl ed air of childlik e prid e and intens e

boredom which I h av e notic ed befor e in Ori ent als
und er the s am e circum stanc es th en took m e out for
a d riv e in his sw agger b arouch e with whit e hor ses , ,

and m en in s ky ~ blu e liv ery alon g the M al ab ar drive

 FROM P EA K P

30 2 A DA M S TO EL E HA N TA

of lights and crowds of p eople conv er sing and

,

taking refreshm ents T w o hous es op e n ed on the

.

s am e garden and one of th es e w as occupied for the

,

occ asion by the bridegroom and his fri end s and the ,

oth er by the brid e T hi s is the orthodox arr ange

.

ment en abling the bridegroom to descend into the

,

garden and go through the c er emony of t aking (c ap

turing) his brid e and my host expl ained that houses
thus arranged are often kept and let solely for this
purpo se as few peopl e h ave hous es and garden s of
th eir own l arg e enough for the arr ay of g u ests asked ,

or suitably built for the c er emony I n the thick of .

the city the bridegroom will som etimes m an age to

hire or get the lo an of a hous e in the s ame stre et and
opposit e to th at in which his brid e dwells and then ,

the street is turned into a tempor ary garden with

orn am ental shrubs and branch es and l ant erns are ,

hung (for the ceremony is always in the ev ening)

and ch airs pl aced i n rows and a l arge p art of the
,

proc essions and festiviti es are as public as the

gos sips can d esir e Allthi s adds much to the ch arm
.

of life i n this most picturesque city .

T he n ative th eatr es h er e are a gre at institut ion

crowd ed mostly by m en and boys of the poor er sort
the perform anc e a curious rambling business be ,

ginning about 9 P M and l asting say till 2 or 3 in

. .

the morni ng ! M urd erous and sens ation al sc enes

c arri ed out by faded girls and we ak ambrosi al
youths and protract ed in long drawn ago nies of
,
-

operatic cat erwauling with acc om p ain ment of w on

,

d rous chrom atic runs on the tam and a bourdon

b ass on som e wind in strum ent Occ asion ally a few .

sent ences spoken form a gre at reli ef Wh at m ak es .

the perform ance so long is the slowness of the

 BO M BAY 30 3

a ction wor se ev en th an our old fashion ed op era if -

the youth i s m ad ly in lov e with the girl he go es on

t elling her so i n the s ame rag for a qu arter of an

hour T hen she pret ends to be indifferent and spurns

.
,

him i n anoth er rag for ft een mi nut es more !

A n oth er fe at ur e of Bomb ay now ad ay s and in ,

de ed of most of the town s of I ndi a including ev en ,

quit e sm all vill ages is the presence and work of the

I must say I am P hilistin e enough
,

S alv ation A rmy .

to admire th ese p eople gre atly H ere i n thi s city .

I nd C apt ain S mith and young J ackson (who

were on bo ard ship with me coming out ) working

away night and d ay i n the

c aus e and always
,

ch eerfully and with a smile on th eir face s l eading

a life of extrem e si m plicity penury almost h aving
, ,

no wages but only bare bo ard and lodging with

,

no ch anc e even to return hom e if they get sick of

the work unl ess it w er e by the G en er al s ord er

,
I .

should h av e to work my w ay b ack on board ship if

I want ed to go but I shall not want to go I shall
, ,

be h appy here s aid J ackson to m e T hes e two at

anyrate I
.
,

feel are anim at ed by a genuine spirit .

Wh atev er one m ay think of th eir judgment or

their philosophy I fe el th at they re ally c are for
,

the low est and mo st despis ed p eopl e and are gl ad

t o be friends and brothers with th em and aft er all
th at is better philo sophy th an is written in the
books . T hey adopt the dress of the p eople and
w ear t u rb ans and no sho es ; and most of th em
merge th e ir home identity and adopt a n ative n am e .

Of course it is e asy to say this is don e out of mere

,

r eligious conc eit and bravado but I am cert ain th at

in m any cas es i t springs from something much
deeper th an that .
 FR O M P EA K P HA N TA

30 4 A DA M S TO EL E

O ne day I j oined
party of ve of th em on their
a

w ay to the C ave s of El eph ant a C apt ain and

M rs S mith S ik andr a ( l ex and er
) and two

,
A ,

others M rs S mith is a nic e looki ng and real good

.
- .

woman of abo ut thirty y ears of ag e and S ik andra ,

is a boy of ability and feeling w ho has b een out

h er e about three ye ars T h ey w ere all as nice and
.

n atural as could be (weren t pious at all) and we

enjoyed ou r d ay much a thre e hours

s ail across
the bay in a l ateen s ailed bo at with tw o n ativ es
the h arbor a spl e ndid sight with its innumer abl e
shipping n ative sh bo ats P and O and other liners
,

-
, , . .
,

two or three ironcl ads fort s lighthous es etc and

, , ,

th en on b eyond all th at to the retired side of the

bay and the isl and s ; picnic on El eph ant a I sl and
und er the sh ad e of a great t am arind tre e visit to -

the c av e s etc and r eturn across the w at er at sun

, .

down
V ery [naz cm these isl ands the hot sm ell of the
.

'

ground cov ered with d ead gr ass and l eaves the faint ,

arom atic odor of sp ars e shrubs with now and then ,

a waft of d elicious fr agrance from the little whit e

j ess amine the thorns and cactus p alms and mighty , ,

t am arinds dropping their swe et acid fruit T h en -

.

the sultry h eat at midd ay the sea lying c alm and ,

blu e b elow in h aze thro u gh which the ridged and

,

rocky mount ain s of the m ainl and indistinctly loom ,

and the far white s ails of bo ats ; nearer a few ,

humped cows and a collection of primitive huts ,

looking from abov e mor e like he aps of de ad palm

, ,

le aves th an hum an h abit ations .

T he great c av e impr ess ed m e very much I h ave .

not s een any oth er of th ese I ndi an rock s anctu arie s -

,

but this one gave m e a greater sense of artistic power

30 6 FR O M ADA M S PE A K

TO P
EL E HA N TA

and s plendid purpo se than anything in the w ay of

religious architecture be it mo squ e or H in d u t empl e
th at I h av e seen in I ndi a I t is about h alf w ay
.
-

up the hillsid e from the water and consists of a ,

huge oblong h all 50 y ards square cut sheerly into

, ,

the fac e of the rock with l esser h alls op ening into

,

it on e ach side H uge pill ars of rock boldly but

.
,

symm etric ally c arv ed are left i n order to support

,

the enormous weight above ; and the inn er roof is

at exc ept for imit ations of a rchitrav es running
from pill ar to pill ar T he d aylight ent ering in
.
,

m ass from the front and p artly also by ingenious

,

arr angement fro m the sid e s is brok en by m any ,

great pill ars and subdues its elf at l ast into a lu m in

,

ous gloom in the interior where huge gures of

the gods 1 8 feet high
,
in strong relief or nearly
,

d etach ed st and out from the walls all round T h ese

,
.

gure s are nobly conc eiv ed and ex ecut ed and even ,

now in their mutil at ed condition produc e an extra

ordi n arily m aj estic effect m aking the sp ect ator fancy
,

th at he has com e into the pr es e nce of b eings vastly

sup erior to himself .

On the b ack wall imm e di ately opposit e the en

trance are three hug e pan els of sculpture the most
import ant obj ects i n the t empl e T he midmost of .

th es e consi sts of thre e coloss al he ads Brahm a

V ishnu and S iva united in one Brahm a of course
,

, , ,

full faced the others in prol e Each h ead with its

, .

surmounting ti ara is some tw el ve feet high and the ,

portions of the busts represented add another six

feet T he whole is cut deep into the rock so as
.

to be almost det ached ; and the expression of the

he ads which are slightly inclin ed forward s is full
of res erved power and dignity I t is B rahm the .
,
 B O M BA Y 30 7

unrealis able and innit e god the substratum of all

, ,

ju st d awning into multiple ex i st enc e allowing him

self to be seen in his rst conceivable form
I n this trinity V i shnu of cour se r epr es ents the
.

, ,

id ea of Evolution the proc ess by which the inner

spirit unfolds and generates the universe of sensible
forms as when a m an wakes from sl eep and l e ts
his thoughts go out into light and denition ; S iv a
r epresents the id ea of I nvolution by which thought ,

and the s ensibl e univ ers e are indr awn again into
quie sc enc e and Brahm a repres ents the st ate whi ch
is neith er Evolution nor I nvolution and yet is
both existenc e it self now rst brought into the
r egion of thought through rel ation to V ishnu and
,

S iv a .

Each gure with a h and upturn ed and re sting on

V i shnu the
,

the b as e of its n e ck holds an embl em

,

lotus ow er of gen eration Brahm a the gourd of

-
,

fruition and S iv a a cobra the good sn ak e who se
, ,

bite is certain dissolution S iv a also has the third

.

e e the e e of the interior vi sion of the univers e

y y ,

whi ch comes to the m an who adopts the m ethod of

I nvolution .T her e is good reason to suppos e from ,

m arks on the rock th at the rec ess in which this

,

m anifest ation of deity is c arv ed w as closed by a ,

v e il or screen only to be drawn asid e at times of

,

great solemnity A hollow behind the triple he ad

.

is pointed out in which it is supposed th at a con

,

c eal ed priest could simul at e the awful ton es of the

god .

O f the thr ee forms of the trinity S iv a is the most

popul ar i n H indu devotion and he forms the centre
,

gure of all the oth e r p anels h ere T he panel on .

the right of the principal one just d es cribed portrays

30 8 FRO M ADA M S P E AK

T O L P
E E HA N TA

the n ext devolution of godhe ad n amely into the ,

form of h u m anity ~and repre sents S iv a as a compl et e

full l ength hum an being conjoini ng the two s ex es in
one p erson T his id ea of the origin al j unction of
.

the s exes though it m ay be philosophic ally t enable

, ,

an d though i t is no doubt support ed by a v ariety of

P ane l of S iva and tP

his Consor vt
ar a l
i, E eph an t a

traditions see the B ibl e P l ato etc and by c ert ain

, , .

int erior exp eri enc e s which h ave be en notic ed md

which are probably the sources of is
in artistic enough when graphically portray ed ; and
the m ain gure of this p an el with its left side pro
,

jec ting into a huge br east and hip is only a mon ,

strosity. A s to the sexu al p arts th emselves they are ,

3 1 0 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
'
TO L
E EP HA N TA

primitive power which poi nt to its production as

belonging to a tim e (prob ably about the tenth
century A D ) of early vigor and m astery and of
. .

grand conception .

I should not forget to m ention th at i n a squ are

ch amber also hewn out of the rock but acc essibl e ,

Int erior l
S hrine, E ephan t a

by door in each of the four sides is a huge lingam

a ,

which w as probably also k ept conce al ed exc ept

on grea t occ asions ; and round the ext erior w alls of
the ch amber looking down the v arious a isles of the
,

t empl e are eight enormous guardi an gur es of ne

, ,

and compos ed workm anship ee illustr ation in

(S .

which a m an is st anding b en eath the torso of the

 BO M BAY 3 r1

ne arest gure ) A ltogeth er the spirit of the whol e

.

thing is to my mind innit ely n er th an th at of

the S outh I ndi an templ es which with their courts ,

and c at acomb lik e interiors sugg est no gre at ide as

-
,

but only a general sense of myst ery and of Brah

m inical ascend ancy .

M are/z 6th A little after sunset yesterd ay

S ik andr a took m e to see an O pium d en in the
n ativ e qu art er I t w as r ath er e arly
. as the ,

customers wer e only j ust settling in but the police ,

clos e the se pl aces at nine M uch wh at I exp ected

. .

A d ark dirty room with rais ed wide b ench round

, ,

the sides on which folk could lie with littl e smoky

, ,

l amps for them to burn th e ir opium F or thre e pice .

you get a littl e thimbl eful of laud anum and by con ,

tin u ally t aking a drop on the end of a steel prong

and fri z z li ng it in the am e you at l ast r ais e a viscid
,

lump h ardly as big as a pea which you put in a ,

pip e and th e n holding the mouth of the pipe in the

,

ame draw bre ath T w o or three whi ffs of thick

,
.

smoke are thus obt ain ed and th en more stuff has

to be prepared but the poison soon begins to work ,

and befor e long the smok e r li es motionless with his ,

ey es open and his pipe dropping out of his h and I .

spoke to a m an who w as j ust pr epari ng his dose ,

and who looked very thin and miser abl e asking

, ,

him if he did not nd i t d am age his health ; but he

s aid th at he could not get along without it if he
gave it up for a day or two he could not do his
work and felt nervous and ill
,
.

T he effect of thes e drugs O pium h aschisch (hemp , ,

or as well as of l aughing g as sulphuric ,

A s a cu iosit y of derivat ion it appea s t hat t hese two wo d s

r r r

f om the same oot S ansk rit gem,gan ka

'

[may and ganja a re r r

j : z
 FR O M A DA M S PE A K

TO L P
E E HA N TA

ether etc is no doubt to produc e a suspension of

,
.
,

the speci ally bodily and local faculti es for the time ,

and with it an inner illumin ation and consciou s n e ss ,

very beati c and simul ating the re al ec stasy
,

.

L aughing g as (nitrous oxide ) produc es a species of

illumin ation and intuition into the secr ets of the
univ ers e at tim es as in the c ase of S ir H umphry
D avy who rst used it on himself and who woke
,

up excl aiming N othing exists but thoughts ! the

,

univers e is composed of impr essions id eas pl easures , , ,

and p ain s T he feelings induc ed by opium and
.

h aschi sch h ave oft en been d escribed in som ewh at

simil ar t erms ; and it has to be r emembered th at
m any much abus ed practices indulgenc e i n v arious
-

drugs and strong drink s m esm eric tranc e st at es ,

-

frantic d ancing and singing as well as viol ent ,

asc e ticisms self tortures etc owe their hold upon

,
-
, .

hu m anity to the s ame fact n am ely th at they i nduc e ,

in however remote and imp erfect a d egree or by ,

howev er unh ealthy a method som e mom ent ary ,

reali sation of th at st at e of cosmi c consciousn ess of

which w e h av e spok en and of the h appin ess attend ,

ing it the int ensity of which h appin ess m ay

p erh aps be measured by the str ength of the se v ery
abu ses occurring in the s earch for it and m a
y ,

perh ap s be comp ared for its actu al forc e as a motive ,

of hum an conduct with the i ntensity of the sexu al ,

orgasm .

O ne vening two or thre e friends th at I had

e

m ad e among the n ative prolet ari at post of ce

-

an d railway cl erks insisted on giving m e a littl e

P rsian G eek and Lat in can nabis ; F n h /a nv ; G e man

e , r , re c rz re r

[f a f ; Dutc h I m mep
/2 Ca n vas al so is the sam e wo d
. r .
314 FROM ADA M S PE A K

TO P
EL E HA N T A

gl asses the brass pot from which wat er was pour ed

,

into them all ar tistic i n design and color though ,

the hou se w as of tinie st proportions only app arently

two or three room s of the s am e siz e as th at one
, .

A fter the music a littl e g ener al conv ers ation

ensued with coffe e and cigar ettes t alk of cours e
, , , ,

turning on the inevit able Congress q u estion and the

r el ations of Engl and and I ndi a a subj ect evidently
exciting the de ep est int er est in tho se present ; but

not much I think w as add ed to former conv ers a

, ,

tion s One of the company (a post of c e cl erk ) s ays

.
-

th at allthe educated and thoughtful p eopl e in I ndi a

are with the Congr ess to which I r eply th at it is
,

m uch the sam e with the S oci alist mov em ent in the
West He think s and th ey all seem to agre e
.

with him th at the condition of the agricultural

peopl e is d ecid edly wor se th an i t us ed to be ; but
when I ask for evidence th er e is not much forth
coming exc ept referenc es to D igby I gu ess the
, .

s t at em e nt is on the whol e tru e but the obvious ,

di fc u lty of corroborating th es e things is very gre at

the ab senc e of record s of the p ast the v astness of ,

I ndi a the v arious conditions i n different p arts etc

, , .

etc.
,m ak e it very di fcult to come to any gen eral
and s w eeping conclusion T he same fri end pointed
out (from D igby ) th at m ere st atistics of the inc reas
.

ing w ealth of I ndi a w ere quit e illusive as th ey ,

only indicated the incr eas e of prots to merch ants

and for eign e rs and had nothing to do with the
general prosperity ; and to this I quit e agreed
,

t elling him th at we had had plenty of st atistics of

the s am e kind in Engl and ; but t hat this w as only
wh at might be exp ect ed as the ruling cl ass es in ,

both countri es being i nfect ed with com m erci alism

 BO M BAY 31 5

would n aturally me asure politic al su ccess by trade

p rots and fr ame their l aw s too chie y in view of
,

a success of th at kind .

S everal of those pre sent m ai nt ained that it w as

q uite a mi st ake to say the M oh ammed ans are against
the Congress ; a cert ain section of them is but only ,

a s e ction and educ ation is every d ay tending to

,

destroy these di fferences and race j ealousi es I put -

.

the que stion seriously to th em whether th ey really

thought th at within 50 or 1 0 0 ye ars all th es e old
r ace differ enc es between M oh ammed an and H indu
-
, ,

H indu and Eu rasi an or b etw een all the sections of

,

H indus would be lost in a sense of n atio nal unity

, .

Education

T h eir r eply w as Yes undoubtedly ,

, .
,

they thought would aboli sh the ill fe eling th at

,
-

exist ed and indeed was doing so rapidly ; th ere

,

would soon be one common l angu age the Engli sh ; ,

and on e common obj ect n amely the r eali sation of ,

West ern institutions Wh ether right or not in their

.

specul ations it is interesting to nd that such i s the

,

id eal of hundreds of thous ands of the bulk p eople of -

I ndi a now ad ays Ev e rywh ere indeed one mee ts

.
-

with th es e views T he Britisher i n I ndi a m ay and

.

do es scoff at these id eal s and probably in a sense ,

he is right I t m ay be (indeed it seems to m e q uite

.

l ik ely to be ) impossibl e for a very long time yet to

re alise anything of the kind A t the s ame time .

who would not be touch ed by the upri si ng of a

whole p eople towards s uch a dre am of new and
united life ! A nd in d ee d the dream its elf like all
other dre am s is a long step perh aps the most ,

import ant step tow ards its own re alis ation

, .

T hus we ch atted aw ay till about midnight when ,

w ith mutu al complim ents and the usu al pr es e nts of ,

31 6 FR O M A DA MS

PE A K L
r o E EPH AN TA
'

owers to the parting gu est we separated T h e se , .

fellows evidently prize a little Engli sh society very

much ; for though they le arn our l angu age in the
schools and use it in the busin ess of every day life .
-
,

it rarely very rarely h app ens th at they actu ally get

, ,

into any friendly conversatio n with an Englishm an ;

v
S id e C a e, l
E eph an t a

and I
found th at I w as able to give them useful
inform ation as for inst anc e about methods of get
, ,

ting books out from Engl and and to ans wer a

v ariety of other q uestion s which were re ally touch
,

ing in the l atent suggestion they cont ained of the

utter absence of any such h elp under ordin ary cir
c u m stanc es I t struck m e ind eed how much a few
.
, .
31 8 FR O M ADA M S PE A K

TO EL E P H A N TA
a ctu ally given again in wavering b eauty in the
world b elow the horizon softly veiled so th at it
w as impossible to t ell where the two he av ens
(b etween which one s eem ed susp ended ) might meet .

A ll so t ender and c alm and m agnicent C anopu s .

and the S outhern Cross and the M ilky Way form

ing a great radi anc e in the south ; far ah ead to the
west Orion lying on his side and S irius and the , ,

r u ddy A ld ebaran s etting S t anding in the bows .

th ere was nothing b etw een one and this imm ens e
world nothing even to show th at the ship w as
,

moving exc ept the rush of wat er from the bows

,

which ind eed seemed an uncaused and u nac c ou nt

abl e phenom enon T he whole thing w as like a
.

m agic and be autiful po em T he pho sphor esc ent .

( )
st ars tiny j elly cr eature s o ating on the surfa c e kept

gliding swiftly over thos e other stars th at lay so de ep

b elo w som etim es the bl ack ocean me ado w s s eemed -

to be sown thick with th em like d aisies T he fo am .

round the bows lay like a luminou s n eckl ac e to the

ship and fell continu ally over in a c asc ade of brilli ant
,

points while now and then som e bigger j elly tossed

,

i n the surge thre w a gl are up ev e n in our fac es .

One might st and for hours thu s c atching the ,

wind of one s own speed so soft so mild so warm

, ,

the delic ate arom a of the sea the faint far su

g , ,

gestion of the transp ar ent air and water wafting , ,

encircling o ne round A nd ind eed all my j ourney

.

has be en like this so smooth so u nru fed as if , ,

one had not really b een moving I h ave several .

times thought and am inclin ed to think ev en now

, ,

th at perh aps one has not left home at all but th at ,

it has been a fair p anoram a th at has b een gliding

p ast one all these months .
 O R D ER

I N F L U EN C ES
3 22 F RO M ADA M S PE A K
TO L
E EPH A N TA

the genius of the I ndi an p eople and considering ,

how utterly dis simil ar th at ge nius is to the genius of

the West still it m ay fairly be hoped th at i t will
cle an away a gre at d eal of rubbish th at has acc um u
l ated round them and fr ee them to be of some use
,

again i n the future wh en the present movement

,

will probably h av e had its ing and passed away .

On all sides in I ndi a one m eets with little points

and det ails which r e mind on e of the F eud al system
in our own l and s and as this passed i n its due time
i nto the comm erci al syst e m so will it be in I ndi a
only there is a good deal to indicate th at the dise ase ,

or wh atever i t is will not be t aken so severely i n

,

I ndi a as i n the W est an d will run its co u rse and

,

p ass over i n a shorter time .

T he complexity i nto whi ch the c aste system has

gro wn since the d ay s wh en society w as divided into
four c astes only Brahmins Kshattriyas V aisyas , , ,

and S udr as is somethi ng most extr aordin ary Race .

,

occup ation and geographical position h ave all had

,

their in uence in the growth of this phenomenon .

When one he ars th at the B rahmins alone are

divided into 1 886 separate cl asses or tribes one ,

begins to realise wh at a complicated affair i t is .

T he Brahmins says
, H unter in his I ndian ,

E mp ire , so far from being a compact unit are

m ade up of several hundred c astes who cannot

interm arry nor eat food cooked by each other Of .

course locality has a good deal to do with this sub

,

division ; and it is s aid th at a Brahmin of the N orth

West is the most select and c an prep are food for all
,

cl asses of B rahmins (it being a rule of all high

c aste th at one must not touch food cooked by an
i nferior c aste ) ; but family and ge n ealogic al descent
 T HE O LD O R DER : CA S T E AN D C O MM U N S M I 3 23

a lso no doubt h ave a good d eal to do with it ; and

as to employment even among the Br ahmins though
, ,

m anual l abor is a d egrad ation i n th eir ey es plenti ,

ful individu als m ay be found w ho follow such trad es

as sheph erd s sherm en port ers pott ers
, ,
etc D r , , . .

W ilson of Bom bay wrot e two l arge volumes of

his proj ected gre at work on C ast e and then di ed ; ,

but had not ni sh ed his rst subj ect the Brah ,

mins !
I n the pres ent d ay the Br ahmins are I b elieve , ,

pretty equ ally di stribut ed all ov er I ndi a forming ,

th eir own c astes among the oth er r ac es and c ast es ,

but of cours e not int erm arrying with them doing

, , ,

as a rul e litt le or no m anu al work but clust ering i n ,

thous and s round t emples and holy pl ac es full of ,

greed and ev er on the look out for mon ey T hough-

.

ignor ant mo stly still th ey h av e good opportuniti es

,

in th eir coll eges for l earning and som e are very ,

le arn ed T h ey alo ne c an perform the templ e sc r

.

vic e s and pri estly acts gen erally ; and oft e ntim es
th ey do not disguis e th eir cont empt for the inferior
c astes withdrawing their skirts ph aris aic ally as th ey
,

p ass or comp elling an old and inrm p er son to

,

d esc e nd i nto the muddy ro ad whil e th ey occupy

the n arrow v ant age of the footway .

T hi s ph ari sai sm of c ast e m arks not only the

B rahmins but oth er s ections ; a thou sand v ex atious
,

rul es an d regul ations h edg e in the life of ev ery

twic e born man ; and the rst gl ance at the

-

streets of an I ndi an town m akes one conscio u s of

something ant agonistic to nnman ity in the bro ad ,

se nse by which it affords a common ground to the

me eting of any two individu als T h ere are d if .

cu l ties i n the w ay of m ere hum an conv er se N ot .

3 24 FR O M A DA M S
'

P EA K TO L P
E E HAN TA

only do p eopl e not eat togeth e r (exc ept they belong

to the sam e s ection ) ; but th ey don t Zone/i e ach
oth er v ery freely ; don t sh ak e h and s obviou sly ;

ev en th e terms of greeting are s c anty A sort of .

chill strik es one a noli m e tang ere sentiment which

- -
,

driv es one (as usu al ) to nd some of the most

grateful comp any among the outc ast Yet the .

people are disposed to be fri endly and in fact are ,

sensitiv e and cli nging by n ature ; but this i s the

form of soci ety i nto which they h ave grown .

T he defenc e of the syst em from the n ative re

lig iou s point of vi e w is th at C aste d en es a m an s

po sition and duti es at onc e limits him to a c ertain

,

are a of life with its t empt ations and possibiliti e s and

,

respon sibiliti es (c ast e for i nst ance puts a ch eck on

trav eling ; to go to sea is to bre ak all bound s) and ,

s av es him th er efore from unbridl ed lic e nce and the

in san e scrambl e of the W est ; restricts his outw ard
world and so d ev elop s the inward n arrows his life
and so c au ses it to re ach high er as tr ees thickly
pl anted spire upward to the sky C ast e it is s aid .
, ,

holds society in a d enite form without which v ague

,

turmoil would for ev er ensu e distracting m en to ,

worldly c ares and proj ects and r end ering th e m in

c apabl e of the highest life Wh en howev er this
.
, ,

l ast the truly highest is developed within an in

, ,

dividual th en for him the s anction of c ast e ce ases

, ,

and he acknowledg es it no mor e A s to the critici sm

.

so obvious from the W est ern point of view of

the unfairn ess th at a m an should be conn ed al lhis

life to th at cl ass or stratum in which he is born to ,

the I ndi an religion er this is nothing ; sinc e he be

liev es th at e ach m an is born i n thos e surrounding s
of life which b elon g to his st age of prog ress and ,
3 26 FRO M A DA M S

PE A K TO P
EL E HA N T A

th e English nd i t so h ard or next to impossi bl e to

g et s erv ants of good c ast e .

A n acqu aint anc e of min e in C eylon who belongs

to the V ell al a c ast e told me th at on one occ asion he
paid a visit to a fri end of his i n I ndi a who belong ed
to the s am e c ast e but a different s ection of it T h ey .

had a Br ahmin cook w ho pr ep ar ed the food for

,

bo th of th em but who being of a higher c ast e could

,

not eat af ter th em whil e Z/z ey could not eat tog eth er
b ec aus e th ey did not b elong to the s ame s e ction .

The Br ahmin cook th er efor e ate his dinn er rst ,

and th en s erv ed up the r em aind er sep ar at ely to the

two fri end s who sat at different tables with a curt ain
,

h anging b etw een th em !

I mys elf kn ew of a c ase in which an eld erly n ativ e
e ntl em an w as quite put to it an d had to engage an
g ,

e xtr a s erv ant bec aus e though he had a m an alr eady

, ,

who could cook and draw w at e r for him to drink ,

thi s m an w as not of the right cast e to ll his b ath !

C an one wond er wh en c ast e r egul ations h ave fall en
,

into such pettin ess th at the more adv an c ed spirits

,

h ail wi th accl aim any new mov ement which promises

d eliv eranc e from the bond age !
A noth er curious el em ent in the corruption of c aste
is the growth of the tyranny of resp ect ability
A mong c ert ai n s ection s m ainly I im agi ne the
.

, ,

m e rch ant and trading c ast es som e of the m emb ers

b e coming rich form th ems elv es into littl e cot eri es
which t ak e to th em selv es the governm ent of the
c aste and whil e not altogeth er d enying thei r com
,

m u nalfellow ship wit h do not also altog eth er conc eal

,

th eir cont empt for the poorer m emb ers and the
, ,

div erg enc e of th eir own i nt er est s and st and ards from
tho se of the m ass es Of cours e with this high ying
.
,
-
 T HE O LD O RDER : CA S T E A N D C O MM U N S M I 3 27

r esp ect ability go es very oft en (as with us ) a p harisa

ical obs erv anc e of religious ordin ance s and a good ,

deal of so ~call ed phil anthropy .

I h av e b efore m e a little book c all ed T he S tory

of a Widow R em arri age writt en by a m emb er of
,

the Buny a c ast e and print ed fo r priv ate circul ation

,
( )
at B omb ay i n 1 89 0 T he author of this book some
.

ye ars ag o m arri ed in d e ance of all the propri eti es

of high c aste H indui sm a l ady who w as already
-

a widow ; and he t ells the story of thi s s impl e ac t

and the cons equ ent c ast e p er secution which he had
-

to endur e in a styl e so genuin e and at onc e n aiv e

an d shrewd th at the book is r eally most int ere sting .

The poor girl whom he m arri ed had lost her hus

band som e y ears b efore he in fact w as a mere boy
and she a child at the time of his d eath N ow she .

w as an u nlucky wom an a widow one of tho se

,

d estin ed to spend all her life und er a ban to w ear ,

bl ack to ke ep aw ay from any festivity lest she

,

should m ar it by her pres ence What happiness .

in the world h av e I said she wh en the author at

,

th eir rst m eeting condol ed with her on her fate ;

nothing but de ath c an r eli eve m e of all my wo es

I h ave abj ured food for the l ast tw elv e months ; I
.

li v e only on a pic e worth of curd from day to day

I st arv e myself in order that any how my end m ay
.

,

com e as soon as po ssibl e I h av e oft en thought .
,

she continu ed of committing suici de by drowning

,

mys elf in the sea or i n the neighbori ng t ank of

Walkeshwar or by t aking opium But th ere are
,
.

m any con siderations which hold me b ack A ccord .

ing to our B rahmins the S h astras say th at thos e

who co m mi t suicid e are doom ed to die a simil ar
de ath sev en times ov er in th eir future existence .
3 28 FR O M A DA M

s PE A K TO P
EL E HA N TA

M or eov er I my self b eli e v e th at t aking one s own
,

life is as sinful as t aking the life of any other p erson .

T his giv es m e p aus e and I do not do wh at I would ,

do I h av e how ev er fors ak en all food in ord er

.
, , ,

th at the h appy d eliv eranc e m ay come to m e in a

short tim e I h ave nothing i n thi s life to live for
. .

I f I had a child of my own I would h av e had som e ,

c au se for hope .

M ov ed by the sufferings of the unh appy

Dhu nkore as w ell as by her youth and b eauty
, ,

M ad howd as fell genuin ely in love with her ; and

she i n r eturn with him ;
,
and ere long they d et er
,

min ed notwith st anding the re l entl ess p ersecution

of the more inu enti al m e mb ers of the c ast e which ,

th ey knew would follow to get m arri ed M ad .

ho w d as was in business and ther e w as the utmost ,

d anger th at he would be boycott ed and ruin ed T o .

Dhu nkore her chi ef trouble w as the thought of the

gri ef this st ep would occ asion to her mother (with
whom she liv ed ) S he might be i ntim at e with .

M adhow das und er the ros e th at would be v eni al ;

she might if th er e w er e an
y s eriou s con sequences

go a pilgrim age as so m any widow s do to some

, ,

qui et pl ac e wh ere a d eliv ery would not attract att e n

tion but to be publicly m arri ed th at could n ev er be
forgiven N ot o nly her w ealthy rel ation s bu t even
.
,

her moth er would never see her agai n S o inex cu s

, .

abl e would be the ac t so dir e its consequences , .

N everth el ess the p air d ecid ed to go through with

it With the utmost s ecr ecy they m ad e th eir pre
.

p aratio ns knowing w ell th at if any rumors got

,

abro ad the arr angem ent s would lik el y be i nterfered

with by merc e n ary v iol enc e ; the yo u ng wom an
mi g ht ev en be kidn ap p ed as had h appened in a
3 3o FR O M A DA M S

PE A K TO ELEPH A N T A

T he pair how ev er struggl ed on cont ending

, , ,

again s t m any dif culti e s and tri als an d support ed by ,

a few friends both among their own c ast e and the

,

resid ent English for some ye ars T hough crippled

, . ,

th eir worldly prospect s were not ruined Gradually .

Madhow das est ablished hims elf and his bu sin ess ,

dre w round him a sm all circl e of the more adv anc ed

spirits s ettl ed i n a roomy hou se at Girgaon and
, ,

sn apped his ng ers at his e nemies I ndeed his .

hous e b ecam e a c entre of propagand a on the subj ect

of widows wrongs and an asylum for oth er coupl es

situ ated as he and his w ife had b een ; m eeti ngs of ,

both English and n ative sp eak ers w er e h eld th ere ,

quite a numb er of m arri ages were c el ebrated th er e

and it app ear s th at the hous e to conrm its mission , ,

now goes by the n ame of Widow R e m arri age

H all !
But wh at I set out to note i n t elling thi s story w as
the curious w ay i n which w ealth as sert s itself ev en
in the cast e syst em of I ndi a to form a tyranny of so
c all ed respect ability and of orthodoxy dividing the
cast e i n som e c ases at anyrate into di stinct parti es
, ,

not unlike thos e which exist in our society at hom e .

The r eal opponent s of widow rem arri age

s ays ,

Mad how das in his book are not g en er ally the ,

s imple and poor m emb ers of a c ast e but its S hetthi

as ,
.

T h ey pose b efore the public as the mo st em

lighten ed m emb ers of their c aste I n their conv er
s ation with Europ ean or P ar si acqu aint ances they
.

d ecl ar e th ems elves to be ardent advoc ates of soci al

reform and th ey pretend to d eplore the folly the
, ,

stupidity and the ignoranc e of th eir c ast e fellows

,
-
.

But as a m atter of fact it is the se s ame S hetthias

, , ,

th es e leading citizen s th ese enlightened me mbers of

,
 T HE O LD O R DER : C A S TE AN D I
C O MM U N S M 331

soci ety w ho are re ally the bitterest and most u n

,

compromising en emi es of soci al progress .

C an the r eformer turn to the educ at ed cl ass es {0 '

h elp ! I am griev ed to say yet the truth must be ,

told th at th eir moral bre is c ap able of a great d eal

,

of strengthening ; and as to th eir activ e faculti es ,

they still lie p erfectly dorm ant T h ey h av e i nd eed .

the i ntellige nce to p erc eive soci al evils But th eir .

moral indign ation on the tyranny and b arb ari sm of

custom ev aporates in words A rac e of .

idl e b abbl ers these T hey will speak brav e words

.

from the politic al pl atform about th eir country s

wrongs and their c ou ntrym en s rights But talk to

.

them of som ething to be don e som e little sacric e ,

to be m ade they will shrink aw ay each one m ak

, ,

ing his own excus e for his back sliding T he .

world g en e rally b eli ev es th em and if th ey occasion

ally give a few thou sand rupees tow ards som e
c harity their r eputation for lib erality and large
,

mind edn ess is conrm ed still more and th e ir fam e ,

is trump eted forth by newsp ap ers as m en of m u ni

cenc e and enlight e nm ent .

It must not be thought howev e r b ec au se the , ,

c aste syst em is in m any way s corrupt and effet e th at

-
,

it is without its b etter and mor e enduring features

ev e n i n the pres ent day Within the c ast e th er e is
.

a c ert ai n commun al feeling which dr aws or t ends ,

to draw all the members together as forming a cor ,

orate body for common ends an d fellow ship and

p ,

giving ev ery memb er a cl aim on the re st in c ases of

distr ess or dis ability M oreover a gre at m any of
.
,

the c ast e s being found ed on heredit ary occup ation

, ,

form trade societi es h aving th eir own committees

,
332 FR OM A DA M S
'
PE A K TO E E L P HA N TA
of m an agem ent and rul es and r egul ati ons nes
, , ,

feasts and mutu al b en et arrangem ents almost

, ,

quit e simil ar to our old trad e guilds and modern -

union s T hu s th ere are the goldsmith s (a pow erful

.

c ast e which i n S outh I ndi a says H unt er for c en , ,

tu ries r esisted the rul e of the Br ahmins and cl aim ed ,

to be the religious t eachers and wore the s acr ed ,

thread ) the brass w ork ers the w eav ers the sh ers
,
-
, , ,

and scor e s of oth er s e ach divid ed into num erous

subs ections T he cast e guild i n these c ases regu
.
-

l at es w ages checks comp etition and puni sh es d elin

, ,

qu ents ; the d eci sions of the guild being enforc ed

by n es by c au sing the offend e r to e nt ert ain all
,

his fellow s at a feast and by ot her s anctions , T he .

g u ild its elf d eriv es its funds not only from ne s but ,

also from entr anc e fees p aid by tho se b eginni ng to

-

practi se the craft and from other sourc es I n any

, .

c ase wh eth er trad e guild or not the c ast e whil e i t

,
-
,

assur es its m emb ers against st arv ation e x ercis es

a continu al surv eill anc e ov e r th em as w e h av e s een ,

in the c ase of Mad how d as extending to ex c omm u ni

c ation and ev en expulsion Excommunic ation b eing .

of three kinds (I ) from eating with oth er m emb ers

of the c ast e (2) from mar r iag e with th em and (3 )
, ,

from u se of the loc al barb er washerm an and pri est , , .

Expulsion is r ar e and i t is s aid th at it seldom t ak es

pl ace unl ess the offen d er i s a r eal bad lot .

A s an i n st anc e of trad e u nionism in c aste H unter -

m ention s the c as e of the brickl ay ers at A hm ed ab ad

in 1 873 S om e of the brickl ayers we re working
.

overtim e and thu s were getting a few p enc e a d ay

,

extra whil e at the s am e tim e oth ers of th em were

,

u nemploy ed The guild th er efore h eld a m eeti ng

.
,

and d ecided to forbid the overtime the result

 FR O M A DA M S P EA K ELE HA N T AP

3 34 TO

st eps we re t aken after this I do not know as about ,

th at tim e I l e ft the pl ac e .

Wh en at B omb ay I had another inst anc e of how

the c ast e guild act s as a trade union and to ch eck -
,

comp etition among its m embers I w as wanting to .

buy some specim e ns of brasswork and walking , ,

down a street wh ere I knew th ere wer e a numb er

of brass work ers shops w as surpris ed to nd th em
-

al l clos ed I then propos ed to my comp anion who

.
,

w as a H indu th at w e should go to another str ee t

,

wh ere th ere were also brass work ers shops but he -

s aid it would be no good as he b eliev ed this w as a ,

h alf holid ay of the bras s workers c ast e
-
B ut I -
.
,

said if i t is a h alf holid ay th er e m ay yet be som e

-

, ,

who will k eep th ei r shops op en i n ord e r to g et the

cu stom . Oh no he r epli ed with a smil e at my

,

ignorance ; they would not do th at ; it would be

again st al l c aste rul es

.

T hus we see th at the c ast e syst em cont ains -

v alu abl e soci al el ements and anci e nt as it is m ay , , ,

ev e n te ach us a l esson or two i n regard to the

organis ation of trad es .

Wh e n we com e to the other gre at feature of

I ndi an soci al life Communism we nd it exi sting
, ,

und er thre e gr eat forms agricultural c ast e and , ,

family communism Of the rst of the se agri .

cultural co m munism I know p erson ally but littl e ,

h aving had no opportunity of r eally studying the

agr icultur al l ife T he cond it ions of vill age tenure
.

v ary l argely all over I ndi a but app arently in ev ery ,

p art ther e m ay be trac ed more or less distinctly the

custom of holding l ands in common as in the ,

primitiv e vill age life of G erm any and Engl and I n .

most I ndi an vill ages th ere are still exte nsive out
 T HE O LD O R DER : C AS T E AN D C O MM U N S M I 335

lying l and s which are look ed upon as the prop erty

of the community ; and of the inlying and more
s ettl ed l ands th eir culti vation inheritanc e etc are
, , , .
,

l argely rul ed by common custom and authority .

M aine howev er points out i n his Villag e Com

, ,

m u n ities th at the sen se of individu al prop erty ,

derived from cont act with the West is ev en now ,

rapidly obliterating thes e anci ent cu stoms of j oint

tenure .

Of the s econd the cast e communi sm I h ave

, ,

alr eady spoken I t no doubt is l ess strongly m ark ed

.

th an it w as ; but still exist s not c ert ainly as an ab ,

sol u t e community of goods but as a community of ,

fe eling and intere st and some degree of mutual

,

assi st ance among the m emb ers of the c ast e T he .

third is the family communism ; and this is still

pretty strongly m ark ed though the rst b eginnings
,

of its disint egration are now appearing .

I n sp eaking of the Family it mu st be understood

th at a much l arger unit is meant th an w e should
denot e by the term comp aratively dist ant r el ations
b eing included ; and th ere seem s to be a tacit
und e rst anding th at the members of thi s l arger
F amily or Cl an h av e a cl aim on each other so th at ,

anyon e i n ne ed c an fairly expect support and assist

a nc e from the others and without fe eling humili at ed
,

by rec eiving it T hi s has its good sid e in the

.

extended fam ily life and l arge h eartedn ess that it -

produces as w ell as in its t end ency to keep w ealth

,

distributed and to prevent people pl aying too much

for thei r own h ands ; but it has its drawb acks
,

chiey in the opportunity it affords to idle ne er

do w eels to sponge upon their friends

- .

I h ave menti on ed the case (p 87) of a young .

3 36 FROM A DA M S

P EA K TO L P
E E HA N TA

m an who c am e to read English with m e in C eylon ,

and who though m arri ed and h aving children

, ,

turned out to be living with and d epe nd ent on his

parents I must not spe ak of this as a c as e of a
.

ne er do w eel as the fello w w as genuin ely interested

-

in lit eratur e and was i n the h abit of giving lectures

,

on philosophy i n his n ativ e pl ace and if one began

c alling such peopl e n am es one might not know ,

wh ere to stop ; but to our Western notion s i t w as a

curious arrangem ent C ert ainly a B engali gen tle
m an whom I met one day com pl ained to m e very
.

bitt erly of the syst em He s aid th at he w as i n an

.

o fci al po sition and r eceiving a mod erate s al ary and ,

the cons equ enc e w as th at his r el ativ es all con sid ered
him a fair pr ey He not only had his own wife and
.

childre n and his fath er and moth er to support of

, ,

which he wo u ld not m ak e a gri ev ance ; but he had

two or three younge r broth ers who though of age , , ,

had not yet found anything to do and w er e c almly ,

living on at his cost ; and besides the se there wer e

two aunts of his who had both m arried one m an
, .

T he hu sb and of the aunts had di ed le aving one of

th em with children and now he the compl ain ant
, , ,

w as expect ed to provide for both aunts and children ,

b esides the r est of his family already m ention ed !

T o a m an once bitten with the id ea of g etting on

in the W est ern sens e of the word one c an i m agine ,

how galling it must be to h ave indenite stri ngs o f

rel ations clinging around on e s neck ; and one c an

gu e ss how forcibly the comp etitive ide a is already
b eginning to ac t towards the disruption of family
commun ism
I n C alcutt a and oth er pl ac e s I noticed con sider
.

able numbers of gro w n youth s loa ng about with

3 38 FR O M ADA M S PE A K

TO L P
E E HA N TA

u ential politici an s i n B omb ay w as suf ciently

,

st riking ; but it w as said with a t end ern ess th at

m ad e o ne fe el th at he would forego almost anything
rath er th an wou nd tho se of whom he spok e .

I n the soci al progr ess of the We st the sword,

descending divid es with often p ainful estrange

,

m ent brother from sist er and child from parent ;

, ,

so is it also in the East Only in the East the

.
,

clo sen ess of the parent al tie m ak es the estrange

m ent mor e odious and mor e painful and adds ,

proportion ately to the obst acl es which lie in the

path of progr ess .
 C H A P T ER XIX

T HE N EW I N F L U EN C ES : WES T ERN I
S C EN C E
A N D C O MM ERC A I LIS M

T HE rst obj ects th at I saw in I ndi a indeed I saw

them while still well out at sea were a lighthouse
and a factory chimney ! T his was at T uticori n a ,

little pl ace in the extreme south ; but aft erwards I

found th at these obj ects represented rem arkably
well the v ast spre ad of W estern inuences all over
the country in their two great m ai n forms sci ence
, ,

and commerci alism .

I had no ide a until I l anded how West ern ide as

, ,

and educ ation h ave of l at e ye ars overrun th e cities

and towns even down to the sm all towns of I ndi a ;
, ,

but I was destined to be speedily enlight en ed on

this subj ect H aving a few hours to spare at
.

T uticorin I was walking up and down by the sad

,

sea w av es when I notic e d a youth of about se ven

'

teen r eading a book Gl ancing over his shoulder .

to my surprise I saw it w as our old friend T od

,

hunt er s Euclid

T he youth looked lik e any other
.

son of the people undistinguished for we alth or rank

,

for in this country there is no gre at distinction in

dres s b etween rich and poor simply cl ad inhis cot
ton or muslin wrap with bare head and b are feet ;
,

and n atur ally I remonstrat ed with him on his con

duct. O yes he s aid in English ; I am r eading
,

Euclid I b elong to B ishop C aldwell s College

.

339
 F R OM P EA K P

3 40 A DA M S TO EL E HA N TA

Y es he s a id

B i shop C aldwell s Coll eg e
it ,

i s a l arg e coll ege h er e with 20 0 boy s from ages of

, ,

I 3 or 1 4 up to 2 3 or I nde ed ! A nd wh at do

you read R Oh w e r ead A lgebra and Euclid

, ,

he r eplied enthusi astic ally and Engli sh H istory

P olitic al Economy
,

and N atur al S cienc e and M ill s

and (but h er e his voic e fell a semitone ) we le arn

two ch apt ers of the B ibl e by h eart ev ery day By .

this tim e oth er boy s had come up and I soon found ,

myself the c entr e of a sm all crowd and conv ersing ,

to th em about Engl and and its w ell known schol ars ,

-

and politici ans and a v ari e ty of things about which

,

th ey ask ed eager qu estions Com e and see the .

coll eg e at l ast th ey s aid s eeing I w as int er est ed ;

,

and so we adj ourn ed a troop of about fty into

a courtyard cont aining v ariou s school buildings .

T her e did not seem to be any m ast ers about and ,

after showing me som e of the cl ass room s which -

,

wer e tted up much lik e Engli sh cl ass rooms th ey -

,

took m e to the dormitory T he dormitory w as a .

sp acious room or h all l arge enough I d ares ay to

, , ,

accommod at e mo st of the schol ars but to my sur

, ,

pri se it cont ain ed not a singl e bit of furniture not

a bed or a ch air or a t able far l ess a w ashst and ; ,

only round the w all and the oor w er e the boys

boxe s mostly sm all eno u gh and gras s m ats which ,

unrolled at night th ey u sed for sle eping on T his

, .

(combin ed with S M ill ) w as pl ai n living and

.

high thinking i nd eed S eeing my look of mingled

.

amus em e nt and surpris e th ey s aid with a chuckle , ,

Com e and see the dining h all and 1 0 ! another -

room of about the s am e size this time with not/ting

in it exc ept pl at es distribut ed at equ al dist anc es
,

about the oor ! T he m eal hour w as just appro ach

 FROM P EA K P

3 42 A DA M S TO EL E HA N T A

o ne m ay i n clud e our gam es and sports which are ,

rapidly coming into u se and suppl anting in p op u

lous c entres the n ativ e ex ercise s I t is a curiou s
,

.
,

and un exp ected s ight to see troops of d ark s kinn ed -

and b ar efooted l ad s and m en pl aying crick e t but

it is a sight one m ay m eet with in any of the towns

nowad ays in the cool er w eather A t B omb ay the .

m aidans are simply cro wd ed at tim es with crick et ers

P ars ee clubs H indu clubs Eur asi ans English I
, , ,

r eckon ed I could count a score of pitches o ne day

from the pl ace wh ere I w as sitting T he sam e at .

C alcutt a The s am e at N agp ore with golf going on

.
,

as w ell . Yet one c annot h elp noticing the sep ar a

tion of the different s ections of the popul ation ev e n ,

i n th eir gam es the English cricket ground the -

,

se cond cl ass
-
Engli sh ground the Eurasi an ,

ground the H indu and M oh amm ed an all distinct !

,

T he effect of this ru sh of W est ern id eas and

educ ation i s of cour se wh a t o ne might e xp e ct an d
, ,

wh at I h av e alr eady allud ed to onc e or twice

n am ely to di scredit the old r eligion and the old
,

c ast e practic es
-
A s my friend the schoolm ast er
.

said at C alcutt a N o one beli ev es i n all this now

by no one m eaning no one who b elongs to the new

mov em ent and has gon e through the Western curri
u m the young I ndi a
cu l

.

T he que stion m ay be ask ed th en Wh at do es the ,

young I ndi a b eli ev e i n ! I t has practic ally ab an

do med the religion of its fath ers l arg ely scoffs at it , ,

do es it acc ept Christi anity in any form i n its pl ace !

I b eli ev e w e m ay r eply N o Chri sti anity in its m is
.

sions and its S alv ation A rmi es though it m a

y mov e ,

a littl e among the m ass es do es not to any ext ent

,

touch the adv anced and ed u c at ed s ections N o ; .

 WES T ER N I
S C EN C E A N D C O MM ER C A L S M I I 3 43

the l att er r ead M ill S p e nc er and H uxley and they , , ,

h av e quite n aturally and in good faith adopted the

philosophy of their t eacher s the sci entic m at eri al
ism which had its full vogu e in Engl and some
tw enty y ears ag o but which is now perh aps som e ,

wh at on the wan e A s one of th es e enthusi asts .

said to me on e d a
y We are all A gnostics now ,

.

With th at extraordin ary quickn ess and r eceptivity

which is o ne of the great features of the H indu
mind though beginning the study so much l ater
,

i n the d ay they h av e absorb ed the te achings of

,

modern sci enc e and le apt to its conclusion s almost

as soon as w e h av e i n the W est T h at the move .

m ent will r em ain at this point s eems to me in the

high est degre e unlikely T h ere m ay be a r eaction .

b ack to the old st andpoint or wh at is mor e hop e , ,

fu l a forw ard effort to r eh abilit at e the profo u nd

,

teachings of th eir forefath er s into form s more suit ed

to the time s in which w e liv e and freed from the ,

old tradition .
*
m any absurditie s which h av e gathered round the

l
T he T heosop hic a S oc ie y, chie y u nder the d irec ion of t t
t
A nnie B esan and C ol O c o , has a read y (1 9 0 3 ) d one a grea . l tt l t
k
wor in his d irec ion t t
I t h as brou gh bac the anc ien each ings
. t k tt
of h eir S ages, wi h a c er ain ad mix u re of Wes ern h ough and
t t t t t t t
sc i
enc e, to sc ores and hu nd red s of housand s of Hind u s who t
l
were weary of re igiou s form a ism ; and has gi en hem a fresh l v t
t t t
in eres in heir own rad i ions t
A nd in Europ e and A m erica it t
vl
.

has a so been in a u ab e in fam i iarising the Wes ern mind wi h

l l l t t
those O rien a re igious c onc ep ions which it so grea y need s the
t l l t tl
t
c oncep ion s of karm a and reinc arna i on, and th e red eeming p ower t
of involu tio n I f it has erred in the end enc y to fa in o a c er ain
. t ll t t
t
c an an d j argon, an d to e abora e sys em s an d d oc rines m ore asl t t t
t ll t l
an in e ec u a exerc ise han as an exp ressio n of fac s rea y ex t t ll
t l
p erienc ed , his is on y af er all wha happ ens in c ase o f a m o s t t l t
v
e ery new re i l
g ious m o emen ; and wh en hese i e accre ions v t t l ttl t
3 44 F ROM A DA M S

PE A K TO E L E P H AN TA
T he cond great factor in mod e rn I ndi a is the
se

growth of Comm erci alism T hi s is v ery rem ark abl e .

,

and is lik ely to be mor e so N o t only at T uticorin .

,

but at a multitud e of pl ac es are factory chimney s

growing up A t N agpore I saw a cotton m ill
.
-

employing hundr ed s of h ands A t B omb ay th er e .

are b etw een thirty and forty l arge cotton mill s th er e -

,

is a m anufacturing qu art er and a sm all fore st of ,

chimn ey s b elching forth their lth into the O therwis e

cloudl ess blu e .

I visit e d o ne of the l argest of th es e mills (th at

of the U nit ed S pinning and W eaving C o ) with a
frie nd w ho at one tim e had work ed th er e I t w as
.

the count erp art of a L anc ashi r e cotton mill T h ere -

.

w as the sam e gr eat oblong building in thr ee or four

stor ey s the sam e spinning j enny and oth er m achin
,
-

er
y ( l of cours e brought out from Engl and and
al , , ,

including a spl endid high pr essure cond en sing -

e ngin e of 20 0 0 h the s am e wick ed ro ar and

.

s cr eam of wh eels and the sam e s ickening hurry a nd

,

scramble B ut how strange to see the poor thin

.

oy sters working und er the old famili ar condi

tions of dirt and unh ealth th eir d ark skin s looking
d ark er with gr eas e and dust their p assiv e fac es ,

mor e p assiv e th an ev er to see scores of H indu girls

with hug e ear rin gs and nos eri ngs thre ading th eir
-

w ay among the m achin ery looking so sm all com , ,

p ared with our wom en and so abstract ed and ,

dre amy th at it h ardly s eem ed safe A nd h ere a .

littl e n ak ed boy about 1 0 ye ars of age mi nding a ,

spinning j enny and t aking up the brok e n threads

-

fa ll it will be fou nd I t h ink t h at the T heo sop hic al

away again,

v
, ,

m o em ent has l eft a sol id c ont ribu t ion beh ind , to the gro wt h of
hu manity (N ote S econd E dition )
. .
3 46 FR O M ADA M S PE A K
TO P
EL E HA N T A

as far as the
p eopl e th em selv es are co nc ern ed ,

though the life in mills is wretch ed e nough still it ,

o ffers a spaciou s ch ange from the d u ll round of

p easant l abor and som ething like a s ecure w age
,

a pitt anc e ) to a m an who in his n ative

(if only
vill ag e would h ardly see the glint of coin from one
y ear s end to anoth er ; the bustl e and stir of the

town too is an attraction and so som e of the s am e

, ,

c aus es which h av e already i n England brought

about the d epl etion of the l a nd in favor of the con
gestion of the citi es are b eginning to work i n I ndi a
,
.

T h en beside s the m anu al employm ent which our

comm erci al in stitutions provid e th er e are innu m er
abl e tr ading post s and cl erkships conn ect ed wit h ,

m erch ants hous es b ank s railw ays po st of c es and

, , , ,

al l m anner of public works all of which practic ally ,

are ll ed by n atives ; and some of which with the ,

mod erat e s al ari es att ach ed are e agerly sought aft er, .

O n e h ardly r ealis es till one s ees it how compl etely ,

th es e great organi sations are c arri ed ou except for

p erh aps one or two Englishmen at the he ad by
n ativ e l abor ; but wh e n one do es see this one
r eali ses also how import ant a part of the whol e
popul ation thi s s ection which is thus mini st ering
to and ext ending the bounds of mod ern life is
b ecoming A nd this section again is suppl emented
.

by at l east an equ ally numerou s s ection which if ,

not already e mploy ed i n the same w ay is desirous ,

of b ecoming so A nd of course among both th es e

.
, ,

s ections W e st ern id eals and stand ard s ourish ;

comp etition is gr adually coming to be look ed on
as a n atur al l aw of soci ety ; and C ast e and the
old F amily syst em are mor e or l es s rapidly dis
1 n te rat1 n
g g .
 WES T ER N I
S C EN C E A N D C O MM ER C A L S M I I 3 47

S uch ch ang es as th ese are n atur ally import ant ,

and ind e ed in an old an d cons erv ativ e country like

I ndi a strike one as v ery rem ark abl e but th ey are
m ad e even more important by the politic al com
pl exion they h av e of l ate ye ars assum ed I n the .

N ation al I ndi an Congr ess w e see th at not only the

outer forms of life and thought , but the politic al and
soci al id eas which belong to the s am e st age of
historical dev elopm e nt h ave migrated from West
,

to East T he p eopl e or at l east tho se s ections of

.

it of which we are speaking are i nfect ed not only

wit h D arwin and H uxl ey but with a b eli ef i n the
,

b allot in p arli am ents and town council s and in

,
-
,

constitution alism and repr esentativ e gov ernm ent

gen erally The N I C brings togeth er from 1 0 0 0
. . . .

to 1 50 0 del egat es annu ally from all p arts of

I ndi a repr esenting a v ari ety of differ ent r aces and
,

section s and el e ct ed in m any of the l arger towns

,

with the u tmo st enthu si asm ; and this by its elf is

a striking fact a fact quite comp arable in its w ay

with the m eetings of the L abor C ong resses in l at e

y ears in the capit als of Europ e I ts conferenc es .

h ave been mostly d evoted to such politic al qu estion s

as th e applic ation of the el e ctiv e principl e to muni
su c h soci al
L

c i al an d
p imperi al council s an d to ,

qu estion s as th at of child m arri age ; and thes e -

subj ects and the speeches conc erning th em are

ag ain r evi e w ed and r eport ed by a gr eat number
of n ewspap ers print ed both in English and the
v ern acul ar tongues and h aving a l arg e circul ation
, .

Certain ly it is prob abl e th at the Congr esses will not

im l d to v ry triking r sult
di l i nd eed
m e ale
y ea any e s e s

it is h ard to see how th ey cou ld do so but the fact

of the existence of the N I C movem ent alone is a
. . .
348 FR O M A DA M S

PE A K TO P
ELE HA N TA

pr egn ant o ne and b ack ed as it i s by e conomical

,

ch ang es it is not l ik ely though it m ay ch ange its

,

form to ev aporat e i nto m ere nothingn ess .

I n fact d espit e th e efforts of c ert ain p arti es to

minimis e it ir seem s to me evid ent that w e are
fac e to fac e with an import ant soci al mov em ent in
I ndi a
. Wh at the ups hot of it m ay be no o ne
prob ably c an t ell it m ay s u b side again i n tim e or ,

it m ay gath er volum e and force towards some

d enit e i ssu e ; but i t c ertainly c annot be ignored
The P agetts M P m ay be pond erously s u p erci al
.

about i t but the K iplings m erry are at l east equ ally

, . .
,

far from the truth Of cours e in actu al num eric al

.

s tr e ngth as comp ar ed with th e whol e popul ation

the p arty m ay be sm all ; but th en as in oth e r such ,

mov em ent s sinc e i t is ju st the most acti v e and

,

en erg etic folk who join th em th eir import c annot

It is us el ess again
,

be m easur ed by m er e numb er s .

to say th at b ec aus e the mov em ent is not acknow

l edg ed by the p eas ants or by the religiou s folk or
, ,

bec aus e it is r egard ed with a j ealous eye by c ert ain

section s th at th er efor e it is of no account ; b ec aus e
,

s imil ar thing s are alw ay s sa id a nd alw ays h av e be en

said of ev ery n ew soci al effort in its inc eption

how ev er popul ar or inu enti al it m ay aft erward s

b ecom e .

The qu estion which is mo st int er esting at this

juncture to anyon e who r ecognis es that there re ally
is som ething like a ch ang e of attitud e t aking pl ac e
i n the I ndi an p eopl es is : H ow do the A nglo
,

I ndi ans r egard this ch ang e ! and my an sw er to thi s

though giv e n with dif d enc e sinc e it is a l arge
g en er ali sation and th er e m ay be c ert ainly are m any , ,

e xc eption s to it is : I b eli ev e th at t aken as a

3 50 FR O M A DA M S

PE A K TO EL E P H A N TA
and in m any re spects it is becoming nece ss ary to
r eali se th at som e of our difculties i n I ndi a are not
m erely such as b elong to the country itself but are ,

p art and parcel of the s am e problem which is begin

ning to v ex us at home the soci al probl em n am ely , .

T he s am e n arrown ess of soci al cr eed the entire ,

d ec ad enc e of the old st and ards of gentl e birth

without th eir r epl ac em ent by any new id eal worthy ,

to be so c all ed the s am e trumpery earm arks of

,

society conn ection etc

-
di stinguish the ruling cl ass es
, .
,

in one country as in the other ; and in both are the

sign al s of coming ch ange .

A t the s ame tim e it would be absurd to as sum e

th at the n ativ e of I ndi a is free from s erious defects
which m ake the problem to the A nglo I ndi an ever ,
-
,

so much more difcult of solution A nd of th ese .

probably the t end ency to ev asion dec e it and und er , ,

h and d ealing is the most serious T he H indu esp ec i .

ally with his subtle mind an d p ass iv e ch aract er is thus

unreli abl e it is dif cult to nd a m an who will stick
with absolute d elity to his word or of whom you can ,

be c ert ain t hat h is o sten sibl e obj ect is his r eal one
and n atur ally thi s sort of thing cr eates e str ang em ent .

T o my mind this soci al gulf existing betw een the

rul ers and the rul ed is the mo st pregn ant fact of
our presenc e i n I ndi a the one th at c alls most for
att ention and th at loom s bigg est with cons equ enc es
,

for the future M isund erst andings of all kinds ow

.

from it Wh en this want of int ercourse s ays

.

,

B eck in his E ssay s on I ndian Top ics b etwee n the

, ,

communiti es or a r eason able number of p eopl e of

each , is xed on my att e ntion I often fe e l with a ,

sinking of the heart th at the end of the Briti sh

I ndi an Empir e is not far di st ant

.
 WES T ER N I
SC EN C E A N D C O MM ER CI AL I S M 3 51

I h ave alre ady pointed out (p 2 7 1 ) how cl ear it .

is by the ex ampl e of A lig u rh th at fri endly int er

course is p ossible betwe e n the two section s though
w e h ave allow ed th at it is di fcult to bring about .

M r Beck corroborates this in his E ssay s by stron g

expres sion s H e s ays (p
. A n Englishm an
.

would prob ably be dubb ed a lun atic if he confessed

th at the only thing which m ad e life tolerable in his
I ndi an exile w as the cultur e the int er est and the , ,

affe ction he found in n ative society S uch an .

Englishm an will th er efor e at most hint at his con

dition ; and again A s one whose circumst anc es

h ave compelled him to see more O f the p eople of

I ndi a th an the av er ag e Englishm an I c an only say ,

th at the effort rep ay s its elf and th at incredibl e , ,

though i t m ay appe ar all degrees of fri endship are

,

possible b etween the A nglo I ndi an an d his Eastern -

fellow subj e ct
-
A nd further on aft er urging the
.
, ,

import anc e the v ast importance of cultiv ating thi s

, ,

int ercourse and so attempting to bridge the fatal

,

gulf he says
, T o know the p eople and to be so ,

trust ed by them th at th ey will O pe n out to us the

inmost r ec ess es of th eir h earts ; to see th em daily ;
to com e to love th em as thos e who h av e in th eir
n atur e but an average sh are of affection c annot h elp
loving th em wh e n th ey know th em well this is our
id eal for the I ndi an civili an S om e Englishm en ac t .

up to this ideal : in the early d ays of our rul e

s e veral did I f it b ecome the norm al thing the
.

I ndi an Empir e will be built upon a rock so th at

nothing c an sh ake it A git ation and sedition will
.

v anish as ugly sh adows Had it exist ed in 1 857 .

the c r ash would not h ave come .

T he writer of the above p ar agr aphs thinks

3 52 FR O M A DA M S

PE A K TO P
ELE HA N T A

nothing of the N I C mov em ent or rath er I

. . .
,

should sa thinks unfavor a bly of i t but of the

y ;
import ance of bridging the soci al g u lf he c annot
sa e nough and in this l atter point as far as I feel
y ,

compet ent to form an opinion at all I e ntirely agr ee ,

with him . But will it ever be bridged ! U n

fortun ately the few who sh are such s entim ents as
tho se I h av e quot ed are v ery few and far betw ee n
and of thos e the gre ater numb er must as I h ave
,

alr eady e xpl ain ed be ti ed and bound in the ch ains

,

of O f c iald om T he A nglo I ndi an world up to

-
.

the hour when the great tragedy of 57 burst upon

them w as busily amu sing itself as b est it c an in this

country with soci al nothings and how is it amu s
ing its elf now ! T he most d amning fact th at I
kno w against the averag e Engli sh attitud e toward s
the n ativ es is the fact th at o ne of the v ery few
,

pl ac es besid es A lig urh wh er e ther e is any cordi al

,

feeling b etwe en the two partie s is H yd erab ad a ,

pl ace in which on account of its b ein g under the

,

N iz am lne o eials are natives and th eir position

, ,

therefor e prev ent s th eir being trampl ed on !

I f the Congress mov em ent is de stin ed to b ecom e

a gre at politic al mov em ent it must it s eems to m e , , ,

e v e ntu at e in one of two w ays eith e r i n viol enc e

and civil w ar owing to d et ermin ed ho stility on the

,

p art of ou r Gov ernment and the continu al wid ening

of the breach b etw een the two peopl es ; or which
is more lik ely if our Gov e rnment gr ants mor e and
more r epr esent ative pow er to the p eople in the m

imm en se growth of politic al and con stitution al life

amon g th em a nd
, the gr adu al d r ow n ing ou t of
B ritish rul e th er eby T h er e is a third possibility
.
3 S4 F RO M A DA M S
l
'
P EA K TO EL E HA N TAP
conc eption has set in N or is i t lik ely th at I ndi a.

will prov e altog eth er an exc eption to the rul e F or .

th e ch ang e is going on not only as m igh t fairly be

expected in the gr eat citi es wh er e West ern in u ,

enc e is dir ectly felt but even in the agricultural

,

r egions where ev er sinc e the British occup ation it

, , ,

has b een slowly spre ading p artly through the in ,

direct action of British l aw s and l and settl em ents ,

and p artly through the gr adu al inltr ation in a ,

v ari ety of w ays of commerc ial and competitiv e

,

mod es of thought .

N ow no estim at e of I ndi an affairs and mov em ents

c an be s aid to be of v alue which does not t ake ,

account of the w eight on e might say th e d ead

weight of its agricultural life : the 80 or 9 0 p er
c e nt of the popu lation who liv e s eclud ed in sm all
.

vill ages i n the mo st primitiv e fashion wi th th eir

, ,

vill age godd es s and th eir H indu templ e h ardly

knowing wh at gov er nm ent th ey live un d er and are ,

app ar ently untouch ed from ag e to a e by in v en

g
tion and wh at w e c all progres s N or c an the con .

servati v e forc e so r epr es ent ed be w ell ex aggerat ed .

But if ev en thi s agricultur al m ass is beginning to

slid e w e h av e ind eed evidence th at gr eat forc e s are
,

at work I f the vill ag e communiti es are goi ng to

.

br eak up and the old bond s of rural soci ety to

,

di ssolve w e m ay be d estin e d to witnes s as H enry

, ,

M aine suggest s the recurr enc e of th at t e rribl e

,

probl em of p aup erism which b egan to pre ss on

Engli sh st at esm en as soon as the old English culti
v atin
g groups b eg an di stinctly to fall to pieces

.

I n I ndi a how ev er

he say s th e soluti on will

, , ,

be far more di f c u lt th an it has proved

S ee A ppend ix .
 WES T ER N I
SC EN C E A N D C O MM ERC A L S M I I 3 55

A ll this assum es the continu ed spr ead and growth

of the comm erci al id eal in I ndi a which is a l arge
q u estion , and wid e in its be arings C onsidering all .

the forces which tend nowad ays in that dir ection ,

an d the app ar e nt i n evitablen ess of the thing as a

ph ase of modern life at hom e its growth in I ndi a ,

for some ye ars to come seems h ardly doubtful .

But it is a curious ph enomenon A nything more .

ant agonistic to the ge nius of anci e nt I ndi a the

Wisdom l and th an this ch eap and n asty pu fng
- - -

ro t mo ng ering ent erpri sing en ergetic individu al

p
-
, , ,

istic
,

bu sin ess c an h ardly be im agin ed ; and the
,

qu eer broil witness ed to day in citi es like Bombay

-

a nd C alcutta only illustr ates the incongruity To .

H i ndus of the old school with their far back ,

-

spiritu al id eal a civilis ation lik e ours whose high est

conc eption of life and religion is the G en eral P ost
, ,

Ofc e is simply A nat/iema I will quote a portion

,
.

of a l ett er rec eived from an I ndi an fri end on the

s ubj e ct which giv es an id ea of this point of view
, .

R eferring to the poverty of the p eopl e

A llthis t errible destitution and suffering throu g h .

out oneseventh O f the world s popul ation has b een

brought about without any benet to the Engli sh

p eople themselv es I t has only b en et ed the
.

English capit alists and profession al cl ass es T he .

v aunt ed administrative c ap acity of the English is

a ction T hey m ake good policemen and k eep
.

ord er wh en the people acquiesce th at is all I f

, .

this acqui escenc e ce as es as it must whe n the , ,

p eople rightly or wrongly b eli eve their religion and

family life i n d anger from the gov ernment the ,

English must pack up and go and woe to the ,

English c apit ali st and profession al m an ! I feel

3 56 F RO M A DA M S

PE AK TO P
EL E HA N TA

more and more strongly ev ery day th at the Engli sh

with th eir comm erci al id eals and st and ards and
institution s h av e don e far more to ruin the country
than if it had been overrun periodic ally by hordes

of sav age T atars .

T h at Comm erci alism is bri nging and will bring

gre at evil s i n its train in I ndi a as els ewh ere the,

s apping of the mor e m anly and m arti al virtu es the ,

acc entu ation of gr eed and S ophistry the domin ance ,

of the mon ey lender I do not doubt ; though I do

not quite agree with the abov e d enunci ation I .

think if the English h av e infest ed and pl agued poor

I ndi a it is gr eatly the fault of the I ndi ans th em
,

s elv es w ho in their passiv en ess and l eth argy h av e

A nd I think t aking p erh aps
, ,

allow ed it to be so .

on my sid e a too optimisti c vi ew th at thi s growing

indu stri ali sm and m ech anical civilis ation m ay (for
a tim e) do much good i n the w ay of rousing up the ,

peopl e giving de nition so much n eed ed to their

, , ,

minds and work and in stilling among th em the

,

West ern id ea of progress which in som e ways ,

fall aciou s has still its v alue and use .

Only for a tim e howev er We in Engl and now

, .
,

alr eady witn essing the b eginning of the end of the

comm erci al reg im e are b ecoming accustom ed to the

,

id ea th at it is only a t emporary phas e and i n I ndi a

wh er e as I h ave said the whol e genius of the l and
, ,

and its traditions is so adv er se to such a system ,

and the weight of anci ent custom so enormous w e ,

c an h ardly e xp ect th at it will t ak e such hold as h e r e ,

or run through quite so protract ed a course of ye ars .

Comm erci ali sm will no doubt gre atly modify and

simplify the c ast e syst e m but to the c ast e sy st e m

in som e puri ed form I am inclin ed to think the

 A PP EN D I X
S I N C E the foreg oing w as w rit ten , in 1 89 2 a terribl e
v
,

su c c ession o f fam ines in I nd ia p robabl y the w o rst e er

k now n there, and fo l low ed , ap p arent l y, by a c ond it ion o f

c hro nic d est it u t ion and agric u l t u ral p aral ysis o er an v
v
im m e nse area is g i ing rise to the m ost g l oo m y fore
bod ing s in the heart v
o f e ery l o v er of th at
g rea c ou n try t
v
.

Ha l tu ral dep ression and the l oss of the p easan s t

e ag ricu

v v
,

w o rk ing st oc k g o ne so far t here th at ,

rec o ery , e en w i h t
g oo d seasons, is d u biou s ! A re the c ond i ion s t of ag ri

cu l tu ral l ife u nd er the B ritish rule the c onditions of l and

tenure t ax es rent s m ark ets m ort g ages etc su c h t h at
, , , , ,

a d o wnw ard d rift is in th e l ong ru n inev itabl e ! Will o ur

G o v ernm e nt and p eop le ev er m ak e a sinc ere and d eep
reac hing e ffort to rehabil it ate the p rosp erity o f the I nd ian
m asses even (as it m u st be) at so m e c onsid erabl e c ost
S u c h are so m e of the q uestions whic h
,

to t h em se l ves !
fo rc e them sel v es u p on u s .

A c ry for Em p ire h oll ow so u nd ing and sinister h as

,
-
,

go ne u p in B rit ain d uring the last few years Were that .

c ry w ho l e h eart ed and
genu ine bac k ed by a real bel ief in
-
,

o u r m ission to o t h er p eop l es and a real effort to fu l l su c h

,

m ission there wo u l d be l it tl e to be said against it B u t

, .

w hat d o w e see ! Whil e the sou nd and fu ry are g reat ,

the sig ni c at io n is p rac t ic al ly nothing Having ad d ed .

so m e c o u nt r
y to o u r I m p erial d em esne w e p rac t ic all y ,

c ease to tak e an
y int erest in it The p eop l e at ho m e as
.
,

a bod y w it h the ex c e t ion o f a few

p p rivat ely int erested
ind iv id u al s forge t allabo u t it T h e of c ial c l ass ad m in ist ers
,

, .

it as a m att er o f the m o st o t iose rou t ine I n differenc e and .

3 58
 A PPE ND I X 3 59

neg lec t l
ru e an d it is t hese w hic h m ake the c ry o f Em p ire
so u tterl y holl o w .

Who for inst anc e c ares for I ndia ! What bod y of

, ,

p eo p le at ho m e m ak es it its bu siness to c onsid er its

w e l fare o r ev en to p l ant there the h ig h id eal s o f B rit ish
c iv il isat io n of w hic h w e hear so m uc h
,

, Why is it that .
,

year aft er year and year after year w hen the I nd ian
, ,

bu d g et c o m es on the d est inies of these 250 m ill ions of

,

p eop l e are d ealt w ith an d d esp at c hed in the Ho u se o f

C o m m ons before e m p ty ben c hes ! Why is it t hat e v e n all
the su ffering s o f t hat im m ense p o p u l atio n d u ring the l ast
few years h av e fail ed to arou se any effec tiv e inte rest !
Le t u s c o n fess it w e d o not ad m in ister I n d ia we sim p l y
: ,

let her d rift .

T he p eop l e at h om e d o not and c annot att end to o t her

p eo p l e s bu sin ess (and th at is th e su f c ient and c onc l usiv e
, ,

ret ort to al l g reat sc he m es of d om ination) T hey hav e or .

,

o u g h t to h ave their ow n affairs to attend to I f ou r

,
.

eop l e h ad t ak en the t ro u bl e to k now w h at w as reall y

p
o in g o n in th e T ran sv aal in 1 899 there w o u l d h ave been
g
n o w ar t here B u t they d id n t N o w that the T ransvaal

. .

is u n d er B rit ish d o m ination t here is not one m an in a ,

thou sand who knows how it is being ad m inistered or who

c ares . A nd w hat shall w e say of I rel and to w hose p l aint ,

b e it j ust o r u nj ust ) the Ho u ses of P arl i am en t and the

(
p eo p l e o f Eng l and h av e so l ong refused to l ist en !
,

B u t if the c ry o f E m p ire is ho ll ow it is al so so m ething

I t is fu l l of ev il fo rebod i
ng ev en
,

w orse it is sinister .
,

for t ho se w h o u tt er it for it is p u t into their m onths for,

a fal se p u rp ose and fo r il l d esig ns

,
Wh en the p eop l e .

k now and c are no t hing abo u t a m atter how shall the ,

G overnm ent rep resent t he m rightl y in it ! A nd w hen

G o v ernm ent is an o t iose of c ial ro u tine how sh al l it not ,

fall a p rey to am bit iou s sc h em ers eit her w ith in o r outsid e

of its ranks ! I t is the p owerfu l m o netary and c om m erc i al
3 60 F RO M A DA M S P EA K
'
ro P
EL E HA N T A

interest w hic h, fo r its ow n p ri v a e t end s, p u ts the c ry o f

Em p i re in the p eop l e s m o nths T h at this w as so in the
v
.

c ase o f
J ohannesbu rg in 1 89 9 w as ob ious to anyo ne at

that ti me w ho l oo k ed into the m atter, and is now , of

c o u rse, k now n and ac know l ed ged by e erybody I t is the v .

sam e int erest w hic h is c o n t inu all y p ushing the n atio n

fo rw ard at im m ense ex p e nse of bl oo d and t reasu re in the

, ,

p rosec u t io n o f sm all w ars over the g l obe for the p u rp ose ,

of o p ening u
p foreig n m ark et s A nd it is the sam e
.

int erest alas ! w hic h ru l es ou r p o l icy t oward s I ndia and

p re v en t s u s from ev er t ak ing a fair and im p art ial l oo k at
, ,

the p ro bl em t here befo re u s o r m ak ing any real effort for

,

the resc u e o f its su ffering m il l ions There are too m any

p riv at e hand s in I nd ia s p oc k et
.

Here in the c ase O f I nd ia the m onet ary in uenc e h as

, ,

not been so d el iberat e and d esig ned as in m any m ore

m od ern c ases . B u t there it is as it h as sl ow l y g row n u p

,

in the c ou rse of hist ory and th e fac t l ies p at en t before u s

,

th at I nd ia is no w being sl o w l y bl ed to d eat h T he .

fo ll o w ing p assag es are rep rin t ed from an artic l e o f m ine

in the Hu m a ne R eview fo r O c t o ber 1 9 0 0 ent it l ed Em p ire ,

in I nd ia and El sew here

T he m ain ex p l anat io n o f the sad p l ig h t an d worse

p ro spec t s o f o ur g reat d e p end enc y l ies in the fac t t hat w e

are stead il y and s stem at ic al l
y y d rain ing aw ay her re
so u rces ; w e hav e o u r h an d s
p erp et u all y in her p o c k e t .

R efer to the c urrent n u m ber (1 899 ) o f the S tatistical A o

stract rel atin
g to B ritish I nd ia w h ic h brings the ac c o u nt s
,

d o wn to 1 89 7 9 8 ; t u rn to p p 1 1 2 1 1 3 and you w ill

- -

al m ost w o nd er that ou r G o v ern m ent h as th e h ard ihood to

.
,

p rint the g ures ! This tabl e g iv es the ann u al c harges

m ad e by ou r Ho m e G o v ernm e n t u p o n I nd ia c l aim s o f
v ariou s k ind s so m e of the m p resu m abl y for ex p enses
,

inc u rred on beh al f o f I nd ia T here is rst o f all (of

.

c o u rse the in terest on I ndian S t ate l o an s and the interest

) ,
3 62 FR O M A DA M S

PE A K TO EL E HA N TA P
of c ials in I nd ia at a year . The l
sa aries are

m o st l y on a h and so m e sc al e and p ossibl y o ne half o f

v
,

th em is sa ed and sent ho m e for use in Eng l and ; bu t

if w e p u t d ow n we sh a l l certainly not be in
d anger o f ex agg eration . Wit h reg ar d to the p ro t s on
com m erc ial un d ert aking s and wh a t p ort io n o f these is
year y m itted to Eng l and it is d if c u lt to arri e at any
l re v
v
,

c ert ain ty bu t fro m the g u res a ail abl e o ne m ay c on

,

el u d e t h at a sim il ar su m of
*
is n o t too h ig h
v
.

Thu s w e h a e som e to ad d to the

v
G o ernm ent c harg es g i ing an ap p rox im ate v
est im at e (p robabl y u nd er the m ark ) o f a year

fo r the t o t al d rain fro m I n d ia to Eng l and or in tens of

ru p ees, say Rx .

N ow , if for a m o m en t w e p u t all o the r c au ses asid e,

it is no t d if c u l t to see t hat a d rain o f this

k ind st ead il y
g o ing o n m u st brin g ru in be hind it Th in k w hat a .

d rain o f twe nt y six m il l io n s ann u all y on the w eal t h o f

-

Eng l and w ou l d m ean ! B u t o n p overty st ric ken I nd ia -

it is c ru sh ing I n o nly t w enty ve years it am o u n t s to

.
-

T he m ass o f the p easant s of I ndia are

so p oo r e v en in av erag e y ears t h at t hey h av e to g o on

and e v en then v ast nu m bers o f t hem

, ,

one m eal a d ay

bu t c ontent them se l v es w ith so me

,

c annot afford ri ce

v
,

c o arser g rain ! T he averag e inc om e o f the I ndian nati e

is p l aced by M r Dig by at l ess h an I d p er d iem T o see t
v
. .

t t
he ir p oo r, hin bo d ies is to w o nd er h ow they ha e
t
s reng th to w ork . B ro k en d own, w ith boi ls and blains
fro m insu f c ient food , m any of them t ram p l ong d is
t ances to the nearest hosp it al rec o ver u nd er the better ,

ons t here and are soon d isc harg ed o nl

c o ndit i y to ret urn,

Mr J . M Mac l M P
in his evidenc e on Eas ndian Finance before
. ean, . .
, tI
the House of C omm ons, 1 873 , p aced

the am ou n of th e annua earnings of l t l
l t
Eng ishm en c onnec ed Wi h ndia wh ic h are ransm i ed hom e, at not ess

t I t tt l
than
 A PPE ND I X 3 63

ag ain w hen the sa me c au ses bring on the sam e resu l ts

.

Dest itu t io n m ay be said to be the norm a l c ondi ion t of

the I nd ian p easan t of late years (see pp 4 2

. and 23 4,

Y et he h as to p ay (c al c u l ated in tens of ru p ees)
Rx in L and R eve nue to the I nd ian Ex c he u er q
v v
.

annu a l ly A nd the G o ern m ent is e er p ressing for

.

m o re A t its wit s end to nd c ash for its rail ways,

.

fort s, fro ntier ex p ed it ions, m il itary est abl ishm ents, and
ho m e c harges it neg lec ts m easu res an d ex p end it ure
,

w hic h m ig h t be reall y servic eabl e for the p rosp erity of

the p easant , and is o n l y o c c u p ied in c onsid ering how
to ex trac t m ore ou t o f him I t is sim p l y k ill ing the .

goose for the sak e o f its eggs

v
.

t
F or ins anc e, it m ay be notic ed that the L and R e enu e

has g one u
p from R x in 888 89 to R x
1 -

v
. .

in 1 89 7 9 8, or -
o er 3
2 m ill io ns in ten years
v
.

O er l arg e p ort ion of B eng al the l and tax is p er

a

m anently sett led ; bu t ou t sid e t h at reg io n reassessm ent s

are p eriod ic all y m ad e and g ene rall y at a hig her g u re
,

-
w it h the resu l t t hat w h il e the re t ail p ric es o f food
,

g rain s (see S tat A 5str tabl e 1 9 8) and the general

c o nd itio n o f the c u l t iv at o r h ave ste ad il y g one d ow n the
. .
,

l e v y has been increased by the am ou nt ind ic ated *The

,

reserv e st oc k o f the p easant is c onst ant l y fall ing

.

and ,

th is m ak es the d anger o f bad seasons so m u c h g reater

t han it w as A t the sam e tim e the l and is being
.

ex haust ed F all o w ing is disc o u rag ed by our syst em on

.
,

w h ic h land s w itho u t c rop s are t ax ed the sam e as l and s

with c rop s (w hil e in som e N ative S tates t hey are onl y
tax ed o ne eighth) ; and t hu s overcrop p ing resu l ts Manu re
-

I n a l itt l e t im e t hing s w ill hav e c o m e

.

is bu rn t for fu el .

to suc h a pass t hat even a d im inu t ion of t ax at ion w ill

t
S ee N o es by my a e bro her, C lt t . W . Carpen t er, in the Repor t
t
of the Decc an R io s Comm ission, 1 870 .
3 64 F RO M A DA M S

PE A K TO L
E EPH A N TA

be of littl e
S ays S ir J am es C aird in his R ep ort
u se .

on the C o nd it ion o f I nd ia (d at ed 3 I S t O c tober

A n ex haust ing ag ri c u l tu re and an inc reasi ng p O p u la
tion m ust c om e to a d ead l oc k N o red uc t ion of the .

assessm en t c an be m ore t han a p os p ot nement of the

inevitable t t
c a as rop h e .

Bu t no t hing sh ow s th e d esp era ion o f ou r effor s to t t

t i
ob a n money than the salt tax
m ore T o tax a .

necessary of l ife o f this k ind and at the rate o f so m e

ten o r t wenty ti m es its v al ue is an abso l u te ou t rag e ;

and indeed a t hing n o G o v ernm en t in its senses w ou l d

d o if it c ou ld p ossibl y in v ent any o ther way o f obtain

,

ing m oney B u t I su pp ose it is w e l l u nderstood that

.

the li m it s o f tax at ion h ave been reached in t his nu

fort u nat e c ou nt ry We obt ain a l itt l e over R x
hav e no intent ion of
. .

annu all y from sal t a nd as w e ,

d im in ishing ou r exp end itu re the tax is m aint ained in ,

fac e o f the d iscont e nt w hic h it engend ers l

Bu t when the rev enu e thu s g rou nd o u t o f the I nd i an

.

p eop l e h as been c oll ec ted t here are tw o g rave q uestions ,

whic h arise w it h reg ard to its e x p end it u re O ne is t hat .

w hic h has been touc hed on alread y th e d rain o f a l arge ,

p ort ion o f it ou t of th e c ou nt y T h e revenu e from a r

p eop le m ay not be v ery w ise l y sp en t by its G o v ern

.

m ent ; bu t if it is sp en t in the c o u n t ry it ret u rns to the

p eop l e in some form T he m o ney c irc u l ates bac k am ong
.

t hose it was t aken fro m Th is is one reason doubt l ess .

, ,

why the N at ive S t ates of I nd ia are m ore p rosp erous ,

and , on the whol e far l ess fam in e st ric k en than t hose

,
-

d irec t l y u nd er ou r ru l e Thou g h t ax at ion in these

p rovi nces is in m any c ases c onsid erably heavier than
, ,

I n thi y Ih l tt f m m ll p p i t
in S th I ndi
s

m t th G v nm nt t
ou
f F mi
ear o 9
yi g th t hi l d h
a, sa
D
n
a

p d
ne, 1
a d n gh th y
s an v
00 A

tly t p y t f hi
t s
. .
,

av e n ot
ave a
ro u ce
e er

e
ro

ou
as a
is
ro r e or
ear e en o
ee
vThi t i n w d d b
reser e.
e o er w hi h h h
e

t
axes,
q c e as c onse uen o a ou o s

1
'
s ax s y 5p
o re uce 2 er cen .
3 66 F ROM A DA M S
'
P EA K TO E L EP H AN T A
is sp en t in the c ou ntry , and no t d rained aw ay , is w i sely
sp en t! A nd to this I fear w e m ust answer No .

T here is no l au nc h ac c u sations of d el iberate

n ecessity to

m ism anag em en t o r neg l ec t ag ainst the p ersonnel o f the

ad m in istrat ion Ev e ryo ne m u st feel that o n the w ho l e
their int ent ion s h av e been sincere bu t their stand ard of
.

is t h at o f the c o u nt ry in w h ic h they hav e been

, ,

c o u rse ,

bo rn and bred
v
.

When we c on sid er how l itt l e of o u r as t revc nue at

am e is sp ent fo r the wel fare an d p ro sp erity of th e m ass

of the p eo p le ; t t
w he n w e d
c o n si er ha o f the
s terl ing ex p end itu re of the U n ited King dom for 1 89 9
(before the T ransvaal War) c l ose o n 70 m ill ions w ent
in nav al and m ilit ary serv ice and int erest on p u bl ic
,

d ebt s ; w hen w e c o nsid er that o u r ho m e p o l ic y (l ik e t h at

o f th e other Western nat io ns) is a m erel y comm ercial

o l i c y th at is to st im u l ate trad e esp ec iall y fore ig n

p , ,

trad e to p rotec t o u r trad e by ou r eet and to e m bark

, ,

in sm all w ars fo r the p u rp ose o f op ening u p m ark et s

and c o m p ell ing p aym ent o f int erest on B rit ish l oans

t hat it is a p o l icy d irec ted to bene t the t rad er the ,

m erc han t the B rit ish c ap it al ist and the l and l o rd and
, , ,

th at in favo ring these it neg l ec t s ag ric u l t u re and the

c ul t ivator of the so il and d oes not reall y c onsider the
artisan t hen I say it seem s u n l ik e l y t h at ou r
p ol ic y
w ill be any better in I nd ia A s a m at ter o f fac t it is
qu ite the sam e O u r statesm en (pard o n the term !) have
.
,

no g rand er id ea o f p o l ic y in t h is o u r v ast d ep end enc y

.

th an to op en u p th e c o u n t ry w ith rail w ays (w ork ing at

a l oss) in o rd er to enc o u rage trad e w ith En l
g and and
the inv est m ent o f B rit ish ind u st rial c ap it al ; to em bark
in front ier w ars and to inc u r a v ast c iv il and m il itary
ex p endit u re fo r the su p p o sed p u rp ose o f safe
g u ard ing
-

o u r interest s bu t reall y v ery l a g e l y for th e p u rp ose o f

,
r

n d ing p l ac es fo r the so ns o f the w e ll to d o m id d l e

'
- -
 A PP EN DI X 307

classes at q
ho m e ; and to s u eez e the p eop l e to the l ast
d ro p in o rd er to p ay these d u es and m aint ain th is syst e m .

I t is the p o l ic y o f in d el ity O u r st at esm en seem

.

to fo rge t t hat l t u ral p o p u l at ion of I nd ia nu mbers

the ag ric u
so m e and th at no p o l ic y w hich d oes not

rst c onsid er the int erests o f t h is vast m u l t it u d e is it se l f

worth c onsid ering They d o not see m to see that to
.

m ak e t his ocean o f peop le p ro sp ero u s and c o ntented

w o u l d as a m ere m atter o f p o l ic y be w o rt h all the
fo rts we h av e bu il t to d o m inat e and g u ard them ; th at
it w ou ld be the one w ay to reall y ret ain ou r ho l d o v er
th em ; and to ensu re the el astic ity of t h at re v enue for
w h ic h (if it m u st be so) w e so g reatl y han k er A nd t hey .

d o no t see (for a l as ! h ow sh o u l d they !) t hat to ado p t

t h is p o l ic y wou ld be not only to g l adden the hearts of
t hese m ill ions and k nit them to us in bond s of affec tion
and g ratit u d e bu t th at it w ou l d be to g l ad d e n the heart
,

o f the w h o l e w orl d w it n essing for o nc e the sp ec t ac l e of

a st rong n at io n hel p ing a weak o n e an d ev en c ast a

,

l it tle ray of l ight bac k on Eng land hersel f w he e beneath r

her fog s and am id h er sad and sq u al id c it ies she sit s

,

and c l u t c h es at her g o l d bag s -

.

I t is not rail w ays that are w anted for the p ro sp erity

o f I nd ia bu t irrig at io n
,
I rrig at io n is the p rim e need
.
,

the abso l u te nec essity o f su c h a l and

,
and w ith a thoro u g h

sy st em o f irrig at io n I nd ia m i g ht be one o f the ric hest

and m o st p rod u c t ive of c ou n t ries as ind eed it onc e w as .

R ail w ays m ay be usefu l bu t t hey do no t increase the

,

p rod u ctiveness of a c ou nt ry We in the West are l iabl e

.
, ,

to forg et that They are p art o f o u r sy stem o f d ivisio n

.

o f labour . T he hid es g row n in T ex as are sent 1 0 0 0

, ,

m il es to C hic ag o to be c ured and t anned then 50 0 m il es ,

farther to M assac hu sett s to be m ad e int o bo ot s and

, ,

then p erh ap s ret u rn to T ex as to be w o rn ; but in the

East where the peasant in his v ill age fu l l s all t rad es
,
3 68 F ROM A DA M S

P EA K TO L
E EPH A N T A

him self, thi s

p ond ero us c irc u m lo como tion (w hic h af ter
all is m ai nl y t
fo r the bene o f the rad er and the sh a t re
hold er) is no t need ed are u sefu l fo r the trad er
R ail w ay s
v
.

and the c o m m erc ial m an ; th ey are c on e nient for th e

d isp at ch o f tro op s ; t hey afford an ex c e ll ent invest m ent

(if p roperl y g u aranteed by the S tate) for sing le l adies ;
and , in I nd ia, they m ig h t e v en op e n up a m arket for
B rit ish good s (that g reat p u rp ose o f c i il isat ion) 2
f the v
p easant o f I ndia h ad a su rp l u s o f p rod u c t s to send in
t rn B u t as u nd er ou r ru l e and of late years the
re u .
, , ,

surp l u s is rap id l y d i m inishin g t hat obj ec t d oes n ot ap p ear ,

to be fu l ll ed A s a matter o f fac t (S tat A bsin p

. .
, .

the ex p ort o f ric e from I ndia to the U nited King d o m

has fallen from val u e R x in I 890 9 1 to R x
.
-
.

in I 89 7 9 8 ; of w heat in the sam e p eriod from

*
-

Rx . to R x an d o f ra
. w c o tt o n from
Rx . to R x or to abo u t one t ent h !
.
-

A nd even the t ot al ex p o rts o f t hese art ic l es to all p arts

o f the wo rl d h av e fal l en in m u c h the sam e rat ios P rac .

t ic all y by c rushing t ax at io n and neg l ec t of his interest s

, ,

we have d estroyed the sm a ll c u l tivat or s t rad ing p ower

.

I rrig at io n I say is a p rim e need of I nd ian p rosp erity
, , .

Bu t it d oes not follow fro m th at t hat in o rd er to c arry ,

ou t g reat i ig at io n w o rk s w e shou l d borro w l arg e su m s

rr ,

from Western c ap italist s and t hen tax the c u l tivat or u p

to the hil t in o rd er to p ay the interest o n these loans ,

for t his w o u l d onl y be to u n d o wit h one hand what w e

were d o ing w ith the ot her N o we shou ld have enc ourag ed
.
,

the vill age c o m m u nit ies t hem se l ves w it h w ise h el p and ,

direc t io n fro m the S t at e to c arry o u t t hese w orks

B ut here w e c o me to the root ev ilo f ou r p o l icy in I nd i a
, .

o ur treat m e nt of the l and q u est ion We hav e p rac t ic all y

d estroyed the v ill age c o m m u nity
.

I t no l o ng er ex ist s .
,

Whil th im p t f m f t d tt (f m M h t
e e or o anu ac ure t ) ha co on ro an c es er, e c. s
simil ly f ll n f m R
ar a e ro R x. to x.
3 7o F ROM ADA M S PE A K

TO P
EL E HA N T A

l tt t t
their genera a i u d e ow ard s the I ndians, and p erfec tly
read y to rea t t
the m in a g enerou s m anner w hen hey t
vi its ou r sho res, are in d ark est ig no rance as to the rea l
t
s ate o f affairs in the c ou n t ry it sel f

t r q u est ion w hich

.

What w ill be d one for I ndia is ano he

one h ard l y t v to c onsider
en u res If . t here is any truth in
the ind ic t m ent ou t l ined in the few p reced ing p ages
an ind ic t m ent ind eed whic h has been p resented by so
, ,

m any c rit ic s m u c h m ore c ap abl e t han m ysel f not hing

c an sav e I n dia fro m ru in and bank ru p tc y ex c ep t a c o m

p lete change of B rit ish p olicy tow ard s her ; a change

w hic h sh all term inat e onc e for all that terribl e d rain w hic h
, ,

is go ing o n and wh ic h shall be d irec ted before all e l se

, , ,

to the rehabil it at ion in p rosperity of the p easant and

c u l t iv ator O f suc h a ch ange of p o l icy it is scarc el y
.
,

n ec essary to say t h ere is no sign , T he p eop le of Eng l and .

d o no t c are the of c ial c lasses are c ontent j u st to g et

,

th ro ug h their d ail y w ork k eep ing to the barest rou t ine

I nd iv id u al ad v ant age and interest is all in fav or of
, .

k eep ing things as they are The ou tlook is dark and . ,

the ho urs hurry only t oward s d isaster .

EN D

P RI N T ED I N G R ATE B an m u
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