THE GENERALMEDICALHALL

FEROZEPORE CITY.

H NDU SUPER OR TY :

AN ATTEMP T

T O D ETERMI N E T H E P O S I TI O N O F T H E H I N D U RACE

I N T H E S CALE O F N AT I O N S .

HAR B ILAS SAR D A,B .A .

,

M EMB ER O F T H E R OY AL A S IAT IC S OC IETY O F GR EAT B R ITA IN AN D

I R ELAN D ; FELLOW O F T H E R OY AL S TAT IST ICAL S OC I ETY O F

L ON D ON ; AN D MEMBER O F T H E S TA T IST ICAL ASSOC IAT IONO F BOSTON , U N ITED S TATES

,AMER ICA.

P R E FA C E .

TH I S book has grown out of a pamphlet w r itten years

ago a nd pu t a s ide at the t im e . The O bject of the book i s ,by presenting a b i rd ’s eye V i ew of the ach ievements of

the anc ient H ind u s , to i nv ite the attent ion o f though tfu l

peopl e to the l ead i ng features of the c iv i l i zati on wh ic h

enabled the inhab itants of th is country to con tr ibute so

m uch to the mater ia l and. moralell-being o f mank ind .

And i f th i s attempt succeeds i n any way i n stim u lati ng

interest i n the study of the lead ing instituti ons of

H ind uism and a proper apprec iati on of the i r m er its I

S hal l be amply repa i d for my labou r .

I m u st take th i s opportun i ty of expressing my

grat itude to Mr . J . Ingl i s,Super intendent

,Scotti sh

Mi ss ion Ind ustr i es,A jmer

,for h i s va luable ass i stance in

see ing the book th rough the P ress .

H AR BILAS SARD A .

AJME R

N ovember 1906.

CONT E NT S .

I LLU ST R AT ION SI N T R OD U C T I ON Y .\V

CO N S T I T U T I O N .

T he lead ing plinciple of Ind ian Const i tut i on — Tu r n ing po int o fInd ian h is to ry—H i ndu decay beg inn ing w i th the K aliyug

L— ANT IQU ITY .

Wonde r f u l ant iq u ity o f the H indu c i v i l i za t i on . o f Cou n tB jornstjerna , D r . S t i les , H alhcd , Pl iny and A bu l Fa za l .— '

l'

he

H indu K ing D i onys i us r e i gned B .C .,o r yea rs

be fo r e the O ldest k ing on M anetho ’s tables— D yna st ies , no t

i nd i v id ua ls , a s un i ts o f ca l c u lat i on — R oc k temples a s p r oofs ofantiqu ity .

— T he Bact r ian document D a bistun .—H indu c i \ i ll/ .at i on

befo r e B .C .—T he S a nka /p —B ra 7una D in a n

'lR a t/ z .

Age o f the ea r th a cco rd ing to the H indus

I I .—GOVERNMENT .

T ests o f good gove r nment .— Popu l ou sness of a nc ient Ind ia —V iews

of G r ee k w r i te r s —H indus as nume r ous a s allthe othe r n a t i onsI

.ut togeth e r . —Ind ia r enowned fo r wealtli . —No th ieves i n anc ientInd ia —Fo rm of Gove r nment immate r i a l — S p i r i t dependent o n

the eth i ca l c h a r a cte r o f a people.—l\flis tal<en i dent ifica t i on o f

democ ra t i c i ns t i tu t i ons w i th f reedom —M r. Herbert S pence r ' sv iews — O ve r—Gove r nm ent. ~R epubl i can i nst i tu t i ons in a nc ien tInd ia —L aw,

a test of good gove r nmen t — O i ig in o f the G ree k ,R oman and E ngl ish laws — L aws O f M anu .

—H indu code w i l lbea r c ompa r ison w i th the systems o f j urisprmlence in na t i ons mosth igh ly c i v i l i zed —Fa l la c ies in M i ll

’

s r eason ing —l-I is p r ejud i ceH is H isto ry of Ind ia m ostm isch ievous a cco rd i ng to Ma x M u l le r .S i r Th omas S t r ange on H indu L awof Ev idence S i r \V. J ones on

Calluea'

s C ommenta r y on Mann

CO NT E NT S .

I II .

— SOCIAL S Y STEM. P AGE .

H indu soc i a l o rgan i za t i on based on sc ient ific p r inc i p les—Va n ta

sb rama .—D i ffe r en t f r om the caste system .

—B rahmans and

S udras not by b i r th b ut by a ct i ons a nd ch a r acte r .— Mah abh a r ataon the Va rnas fz rama .

—Megasthenes and Col . Tod on the systemS i r H . Cotton and M r . S idney Low on the p r esent C aste system 27

I V .

— CH ARACTER .

L ove O f t r u th— A rria n,S t r abo

, H ioven thsang and othe r Ch inesew r ite r s Ma rco Polo

,Id r i s i

,S ham sudd in and oth e r Mohamed a n

w r i te r s S i r J . Ma l c olm ,C ol . S leeman

,P r ofesso r Max M u l le r

on the t r uth fu lness of the H i ndus —A bsen ce of s lave ry .—H indu

v a l ou r .—T he most tole r ant nat i on .—Ch a r a cte r of Y udhishthra .

V iews o f N c ibuhr , M on ie r W i l l iams , E l ph instone , Me r ce r ,Sydenham ,

A bbe Dubo is,and S i r T . M un ro—N O r ace m o re to b e

trusted than the H indus — I f c i v i l i zat i on to b e an a r ti c le O f

t rade between E ngla nd and Ind ia ,E ngl and w i l l ga in by the

im p o r t ca r go — Comm e r c ia l h onou r stands h i ghe r in I nd i athan in any othe r c ountry —V iews of W a r ren H a st ings

,H ebe r

and VVilson —H indu ch i ld r en m o r e intel l i gent th an E u r opeanH indu c lean l iness —D iet of the H ind us Phys i ca l ag i l ity .

— T he

H indu as the w isest of na t i ons — H indu o r ig in of the game ofC hess.—VVisd om of S olomon in fe r i o r to that of the H indusCh i va l r ou s conduct o f H umayun .

—A Mohamed an saves the

R ahtore dynasty f r om ext inct i on

V.-CH I V ALRY .

Innate ch iva l ry of H indu cha r a cte r .— Ch i va l ry of Sadoo.-Ra ja

of D uttea .—T he R aklu

'

.—R awa l Chachick of J a i sa lme r .

Ch iva l ry of Rana R aj S ingh .-I l l-judged h uman ity of the

H indus— I ts un fo rtunate pol it i ca l r esu lts ,—Cases of S hahab udd in Gh o r i and A u r angzeb

CO NT E NT S .

I ‘Am c.

VI — P ATR IOT I SM.

L ove o f Count ry —Rana P r atap and T h a k u r D u rga D a s .—Th e i r

expl o its .-Thei r pa t r i ot ism .

—P r atap and Ham i l ca r . —D u rga D as

the Amola c .-Aurang z cb

°

s d read o f D nrga D as .— Ga r

R and al— T he h e i r o f Meh ti i. —Pa t r i ot ism of R a j S ingh ofJ a isa lme r .— S oortan S ingh of S i r oh i .—H is he r o i c conduct a tD el h i — C ol . Tod on Rajpu t ch iva l ry and he r o ism

V I I .-V ALOU R .

T he H indus we r e the b r avest nat i on the G ree k s eve r came in

c onta ct w ith ,—T he i r c ha r acte r sh ines b r igh test in adve r s i ty .

They k now not what it is to flee f r om the battle-field —lf esria nKusumal.— R ao S ooju of B undi .— T he m othe r o f the R ae .

M uk and a s fa ces a t i ge r ; the t i ge r r e ti res .—Mohaba t K han ’

s

exp lo i t .—Ra jput ch a r ges at Tonga a nd Pa tun ,

—S on ingd eob r ea k s the i r on b ow at Del h i —H ome r ’s h e r oes compa r ed to

K uru S .—L akh T alva r R a htordn .

—Itecourse to po ison by Mogha lk ings—Death s O f Jaswant S ingh , P i ithi S ingh and J a i S ingh .

T h e ca use of Akb ar’s death — T he mu r de r o f A j i t S ingh o fJ odh pu r . -S ingula r ity of Ra jput ch a racte r . —I ts tenac i ty and

st rength —He r c u les was a. H indu — Views o f P ro f. Hee ren ,

D iodorus , M egasthenes , Col . Tod and P ococke.— P roofs of the

i dent i ty of Ba l ram and He r c u les

V I II — P O S IT ION O F WOMEN .

Pos i t i on O f women a test o f c iv i l i za tion — Ch i va l r ous t r eatment

of women by the H indus —V iews of M ann and oth e r sages.

J a i S ingh and h is queen ,H arij i. —S ta tu s o f wi fe —H e r equa l

r i gh ts w ith her h usband a cco rd ing to the S zi stras .—\Voma n

,

a rdka ng z’

m‘

,or ha l f o f mam—Compa r ison in th i s r espect of the

H indu and the E u r o pean women — Idea ls of H indu “ omen .

Maitreye , Ga rgya ,Sav it r i , D amyanti, A vv aya r and K eka i i.

Pu r dah system un k nown in anc ient I nd ia —T he r i gh ts ofWomen to p i

'

operty ,—P eculia i' posi t ion of H indu women .

v i i i . C O NT E NTS .

P AGE .

Influence of H indu women on soc iety —Fema le l oya lty .“

D ewalde and her sons, Ala and U d i la .—Ta raba i o f B ed nore .

R an i D uTgava ti, anothe r Boadecea .— T he he r o i sm of K orumd ev i

and J awahir Bai. —T he match less v a l ou r o f the mothe r o f Fa ttahof K a ilwa du r ing Akb ar ’

s s ieg e of Ch ito r .— S anjogta .

-Be r n ie r ’stest imony to the cou r age of R a jpu t women — R et r eat o f J aswantS i ng h of J odhp u r a fte r his defea t a t Fateh abad ,

-T he R an ire fuses to see him and s h uts the ga te of the castle

I X .

—FOREIGN RELAT IONS .

T he conquest of the world by the H indu Empe r o r , Sudas .— O p in i ons

o f M r . Townsend and Gene ra l S i r I an H am i l ton — T he conquestso f P uru rawa and of K ing S aga ra .

-Pe r s ia ,A fgh an istan and

a k istan pa r ts o f the. Ind ian Emp i r e -G ree k embass ies toI nd ia .

—M egasthenes, D eimachus and Basilis .— Ant i och us the

G reat becomes an a l ly of S obhag S en .— Seleucu s gi ves h is

daugh te r in ma r r iage to Chand ergupta—T he Pe r s i an k i ng

,

N au she rwan,g i ves his da ugh te r to the Mah a r ana of C h i to r .

I nd ian embass ies to G reece—The A ssy r ian Q ueen ,Sem i ram i s

,

i nv ades Ind i a —H er d efeat —Gaj S ing , the founde r o f Ghazn ide fea ts S ha h S ecund er B oom i and Sh ah Mamra iz

X .-CAU SE O F IND IA’S FALL .

A lexande r ’s invas i on of Ind ia — H indu d isun i on ,the cau se of

A lex ande r ’s v i ctory — T he b r i l l iancy of the cou r t o f V icrama

d itya—T he t reache r ous conduct o f A lexande r . -P r ithv i R a j of

A jme r .—H is v i cto r ies ov e r S hab abud—d in Gh o r i . —D i sunion b etween P r i th v i R aj and J a i Ch and .

— T he k ings of K anau j a ndA nnhalwa ra Patun and H am i r j o in the enemy .

— P r i th v i R ajk i l ls Sh ahabad-d in w ith the h el p of Ch und .

—Babe r ’s invas i on .

H indus unde r R a na Sanga . in his camp .—R ayseen ,

the Tu a r leade r,goes ove r to Babe r . —Ind ia not conque r ed by a

f o re i gn i n vade r b ut betrayed by he r own sons .

INT E NT S .

H I N D U CO LO N I ZA T I O N .

P A C E .

Dest r uct i on and em ig r at i on the ch i e f fea tu r es of the peri od wh enthe M ah a bha ra ta too k pla ce —Wh ole ra ces a nd t r i bes em ig ra tedf rom I nd ia —I nd i a ’

s l oss “ as the u orld‘

s ga i ri .

—Em ig rat i on a

necessa ry featu re o f a th ic k l y-popu lated cou nt r y .— S ca r c i ty o f

h i sto r i ca l reco rds — Dest r u ct i on of H indu hhra rres —D r. D ow,

P r ofs . \V i lson , Heeren a nd Col . Tod on llind u wo r k s on h i s to ry .

T he date O f the Mah a bh a r a ta .—V iews of the H i ndu a st r onomers .

T rad itiorrs .— T he H indu theo ry o f em ig ra t ion -T h c Cent r a l

A s ian theo ry o f em i g ra ti on—H indu c i v i l i zat i on o r ig i nated and

devel oped in Ind i a .-I t sp read to E th iop i a

,Egyp t. Phoen i c ia ,

Pe rs i a . G r eece . R om e,to the abode of the v erb o reans. to ram

,

C h ina and J apan — Col . O l c ott, S i r W'

. Jones and M r .

I .

—EGY P T AN D ETH IOP IA .

Egypt c ol on i zed by H indus about yea r s ago—V i ews of

B r u gsch Bey , P r o fesso r Hee r en and M r.P ococke .— T he test im ony

of P h ilost ra tus,E u seb i us a nd J u l i u s A f r i ca nus , C uv ie r and

C 0 1. Tod to the H indu co l on i zat i on o f E th i op ia

I I .—P ERS IA .

T he anc ient Pe r s i an s we re col on ists f r om Ind ia — P r o f . Max

M u l ler’s op in i on .-Z ind d e r ived f r om the S ans k r i t.

— P rof .H ee r en and S i r W. J ones and P r of. H aug-M anu on the o r ig inof the Pe r s ians—Test imony of Vend z

‘

d a d

I I I —AS IA MINOR .

T he Ch a ldeans and the A ssy r ians we r e o r ig ina l ly H indus—V iewsof M r . P ococke and P r o f. Mau r i ce

X . C O NT E NT&

I V .

— GREECE .

P AGE .

T he H indu o r ig in of the an c ient G r ee k s —G r ee k soc ietyessent ia l ly H indu — O r ig i n of the nam es G ree k

,Pelasg i and

Maced on i.rns .—H ellados

,

— T heH ellas—A ch i lles sprrrng f r om a

R ajput stoc k

T he R omans we r e the descenda nts o f c ol on i sts f r om Ind ia — R ome

de r i ved f r om R ama —T he E trusea rrs ere settle r s f r om 167

V I .-TU RKI STAN AND NORTH ERN A S IA .

Tu r k istan peopled b y the H indu s —Tu r a n ian s we r e H i ndu s .

O ttorocu raa o f the Gree k w r i te r s we r e O otooru Goo rn , o rNo r the rn Coorus , sons of Goo rn .

-K h ata i nh ab ited by H indus.

Ba j r apu r in S i be r ia fou nded by H i ndu s — S uccess i on o f the son s ofS r i K r ishna to the th rorre .

— Chaghtaes were Y adu s.—O r i g in o f

the A fgh ans — S eestan — O r ig in O f the name A s i a .—S am oyedes

and T ehoudes of S i ber ia a nd Frnland were the Y adus of 168

VI I —GE R MANY .

Ge rman Mensch sam e as Sans k r itM anush . ablutiorrs

O r ig in o f the name Ge rmans— T he H unga r ians .—S cu l ptu r e of

Saxon cathed r a ls

V II I .—SCAND INA V IA .

S cand i nav ians descended f r om the wa r r i o r c l a ss of the H indus .

A srga rd o r fo r t ress of the A si—Colorriz ed about 500 B .C .—T he

Scand inav ian E d d a. de r ived f r om the Valera—D ays of the

wee k .—O r ig in o f the S candi nav ian myt hs

CO N'

I‘

E N I‘

S .

I X . “ u p“

The i r H indu O r i g in.— Em ig r ants f r om K hyberpur.

—P a ssa ron

1 1 r N

X .

— GREAT Blt I I A I N .

T he D r u i ds we r e B rrd dlristic B ralrrna rrs — r\lex a nd er a nd Nap ie rc onqu e r the d escenda nts o f th e i r fo r e fa th e r s —l)eriva tron o f[ I nf ra /1 —T he S tonehenge — T he Isle of S a ints o r ‘M ona ’

T he Cel ti c D r u id s

XI .

—E A STERN A S IA .

T ransgangetic Pen i nsu la a pa r t of Ind ia — I n fl uence o f Ch ina ove rit.— T he name B u rma h .

—C amboj a o r Cam bod ia —Th c Ch ineseasse r t the i r H i nd u o r i g in -They we re em i g rants f r om no r the rnand no r th—weste r n I nd ia .

—C u ltu r e a nd r el ig i on O f Ch i na .

H i ndu co l on i za t i on of the i s les o f the Ind ian a r ch i pe lagoJ ava .

—V iews of C ol Tod , Mr E l ph i nstone , S ir S tam fo r d R a ffles ,a nd M r . Sewe l l . -T est irn ony of Ch inese p i lg r im s — J a va peopledent i r e ly by the H i ndus—Bo r neo

,Ce lebes

,S umat r a and A ust r a l ia

X I I — AMER ICA .

H igh c iv i l i za ti on o f the anc ien t Am e r i cans —H ind u r ema ins st i l lfound th e r e — Test imony of M r . P ocock e , M r . Ha rdy , M r . Squa r ea nd D r . Z urfu .

—H indu myth ol ogy the pa rent of the Ame r i c anmyth ology .

—P r oofs o f the H irrd rr col on i za t i on of Ame r i ca“I

or'

ship of R ama ch and r a and S ita . conquest of Am e r i caand ma r r iage w ith the daughte r o f the K ing — R ou tes to A meriea

T he quest i on o f H i ndus v is it ing fo re i gn lands—T he Vedas enjo init— Test im ony of Sa st ras .

— Man u and the M ah abh a ra ta -T rave lsO f Vya sj i a nd S ukhd eoj i.

—T he exped it ions o f the Pa ndavas .

Empe r o r S aga rj r. -T he god o f the sea —Ma r r iages of H induk ings with fo re ign p r incesses—H indus in T urkistan ,

P ersia and

CO N TE NT S .

P AGE .

R uss ia — O ri g i n of the d i ff e rent na ti on s o f A s ia a nd E u r ope .

Test imony o f the Pu r'a na s and the M ah abh a r ata —T he seven

D wipa s .

-Tlre del uge —Mon . D elbos on H indu c i v i l i zat i on

L I T E R A T U R E .

L itera tu re a test of the g reatness of a rration .—\V. C . Ta y l o r on

S ans k r i t l i te ratu re .

—D jornstje rrra ,B r own

,Gene r a l C u nn i ngh am ,

P r of . H ee r en,S rr W. J ones , M a x M uller a nd “

Y

a r d — T heH indu had the widest r ange o f nrrnd o f wh ich rrrarr is capable 20 1

S A N S KR I T LA N GU AGE .

S ans k r i t language of wond e r fu l st r u ctu r'e .—C onrpa red w i th G r ee k

La t in and H eb r ew— M o re pe r fect a nd r efined than any— P r ofs.

W'

rlson , Max M u l le r and S elrlegeI. -l\lod er' rr ph i l ol ogy d atesf r om the study o f Sans k r i t .

— A l ph a bets of Weste rn A s iad erived j rom the D eon ag ri

-S a n sk r i t is the ba s is of allI nd oE u r opean la rrguages .

-Gr'

ee k and Z i nd der ived f r om the Sansk r it .

— Connec t i on of S ans k r it w i th the a nc ient languages ofE u r ope .

-H i gh an t iqu i ty O f the S ans k ri t l ite r atu r e

A R T O F WR I T I N G .

A l phabeti ca l wr i ting k nown in Ind i a f r om the ea rl iest t imes— I ts

use extended to eve ry pu r pose of comm on l i fe — V iews of Bjor'nstje r ua , Goldstucker, Roth and S hyam j r K rishnavarma — S ansk r it was the sp ok en ve rnacu la r O f the an c ient H indus

I .

'

-VE D I O L ITERATU RE .

Max M ul le r on Ved i c L ite r atu re—T he Veda s the g reatest wo rkin alll ite r atu re -V iews of Volta i r e , Gu igault and D elbos r ega r ding the Vedas .

—Vedas themost p r ec i o us g i ft for wh ich theWest

C O N T E N rs . x i i i.

P A G Eis indebted to the E ast .

—T he strrdy o f Ved i c L i te r atu re i nd ispensable to alt—T he Vedas the oldest boo k s in the wo r ld .

V edas the fou nta in of k nowledge .—Ved ie teach ing r ega rd i ng

the c ompos i ti on of a ir.— B ra 7rnruna s not a part of the Vedas .

S utr a s .—P ra ti sa fairy/ as S tudy of La nguage by the G r ee k s

and the H indus Plato, A ristotle

,Z errod otns a nd othe r s compa r ed

w i th the anc ien t H indus in th is r espect.

—Cons<_rrrantald ir is ro n

o f the Sans k ri t language un i q ue in the h isto ry of l i te r atu re .

Inte r i o r i ty of m ode rn E u r opean s in th is r esp ect .-I n ph i l ol ogy

the H i nd us ex ce l the A nc ients and the Modem s —Gr'

anrrna trc al

sc ience of the H irrd us .—G ram rrrar of Pa n in i stand s s rrprerrre

am ongst the g r amm a r s of the world —O ne of the m ost splend ida ch ievem ents of h uman i nv ent i on and i ndust ry —H indu a ch ievem ents st i l l unsu r passed . No othe r c ount ry can p r oduce a ny

g r amma t i ca l system at allcompa r ab le to Pa n in i

I I .—POETR Y .

T r easu r es of poet ry in I nd ia are i nexha u s t i b le — T he H i ndu swe re a poet i ca l peop le

I II .

—E P [C P OETRY .

R amayana and M a h abh a r a ta corrrpa red to I l iad a nd O d r’

ssev .

R amayana the noblest of ep i cs a nd fa r sup e r i o r to the workof N onnus .

—O ne of the m ost beau ti f u l compos i t i ons th at ha r e appea red at any peri od o r in a rrr cou nt ry — R ama a nd S i ta pe r

f ect ch a r a cte r s .—l\rI aha blra ra ta is the g ra ndest ol

'

the ep i csV iews of Ma ry S cott, J e r em iah C u r t in . S t . H i la i r e Ba rtholenry ,S i r E dw in A rn old . M r . T . M . (Je an and A . Ba r th — I nd r.rrr epimc ompa red w i th the G r ee k ep ic s —H i ndu a nd Gree k rnytholog iescompa red . I l iad and O dyssey a re founded on the ltamaya na.

and the Malrabh z'rra ta

C O NTE NT$

P AG E .

I V.

—D RAMA .

Ca u ses of the ex cel lence o f H indu d r ama — H indu theat re w i l l fi l las m any vol umes a s th at of any nat i on o f m ode r n E u r ope .

H indu com edy no way i n fe r i o r to the an c ient G reek — S upe r iority of H indu d rama ove r the G r ee k expla rned a nd illrrst ra ted .

T he h ighe r p u r pose of the d r am at i c a rt nev e r les t s igh t of inH indu d r amat i c l ite r atu re . Nowh e re is l ove '

ex p r essed w i thgr ea te r fo r ce o r path os th an in the p oet ry o f Ind ia .

”— K a l idas“one of the g reatest d ranratists the wo rl d ev e r p r odu ced .

”

H e has done h onou r to allc i v i l i zed ma n k i nd .

”-S a k u nta la an

a ston i sh ing l i te ra ry pe r formance — V iews o f S ch lege l,H umbold t

a nd Goethe — L anguage n owhe r e else so bea u t i f u l ly m u s i ca l o r som agn ificent ly g ra nd as th a t of the H indu d r am a — Vic ranra and

U rva si,— E xpla na ti ons of the sc ient ific myth -U ltra R am

Cha ritra .

t i ons ofE u repe . M ala ti.— M ud r a R a k s h a s a .

—M i ichh

May be com pa red advantageou sly wrth lrke com pos i

k at i c ompa r ed w i th the M e r c h ant of Ven i ce a nd the T wo N obleK irrsrnen .

— P rab od h Chand rod v a .—There is noth i nglrke rt rn the

l i te r a tu r e of oth e r count r ies

V .

— LYR IC POETR Y .

G i ta Gov ind .— V iews of Sch legel a n d S i r “7 J ones .

—I tsluxurian t

image ry and v ol u ptu ous softness — R i ta S ang ralr.

—I rnpc ss rrrle o ft r ansla ti on .

-Meglr Du ta “wi l l bea r advantageou s c ompa r ison w i th

best spec im ens of u n i fo rm v e r se in the poet ry of any language ,l i v ing o r dead

VI .

-E T H I CO -D IDACT IC POETRY .

H indu ach iev em ents in th is b r anc h of l ite r atu r e establ ish the i ri ntel lectua l supe r i o r ity — Con st i tu tes p r a ct i ca l eth i cs — I ts use and

cu l t iva t i on pecu l ia r to the H i ndu s — P anchtan tra is the sou r ce ofthe wh ole fabul ou s l ite r atu r e of the wor ld — “ H indus a re the

inst r ucto r s of the r est of m an k ind in the.

compos iti on of ta l es

CO NTENT

P a a r:

b y the tables of Cas s i n i a nd M e rer’

. v a ria t i ons o f tlum oon .

—~P roo fs of the g rea t a nt iqu i ty o f H i nd uM o re advan ced th an the G ree k or the A r a b a st r onom y — Vre\rs

o f S i r \V . H unte r,M r . E l ph i nstone, P r ofs . \Vebe r a nd

O ri g i na l ity of the H i ndu s — N u tshu tra s o r rrroo rr sta t i ons a nd

the Ch inese S r’air. -Tlre A r a bs we re the d isc i ples o f the H indu s .

Tlre n i ne S iddh antas.— Tlre d a te of the S u rya S idd h anta .

—Age ofP arasar l\'I uni. —A rya blra tta Ba ra nrihira a nd Blrashkeracharya .

R oundness of the ea r th — T he a nnua l and d iu r na l rnotrorrs ofthe ea r th — T he sta r s are sta t i ona ry .

— Tlre Pola r d ays and

n i ghts.—C ircunrference of the ea rtlr .

— \Vhat k eeps the ea rth inits p la ce — T he m oon is a d a r k bod v .

-T he atmosph e reE c l i pses — T id es -

.I a i S ingh I I .— Meth ods of the H indus .

A pecu l ia r th eo ry of p la neta ry m ot i on s —To find the l ong itudeof a p lace

IV. M ILITARY SC IENCE .

H indu t rad it i on s allwa rl i k e —Na va l p owe r o f the H i ndus—H indnsc i ence of war .

— D iv is i ons of the a rm v .— A r r ay of fo r ces o r

Vy uka s .— U se of e leph ants .

— Sold ie r ly qua l i t ies of the mode r nInd ians —The i r ch i va l r ous conduct—The i r b r ave ry —A rcher'y o fthe H indu s —Ind ian swordnren .

—Classifica tion of weapons .

H indu weapon s now ext inct —F i r ea rms o f the H indus and th e i rex tens i ve emp loyment—Gu ns and cannons in med iaer' alI nd ra .

c ra .

—Gurrpowd er-Gree k wrrters on the fi rea rms of the H in

d us .—K ing H aland the c lay eleplrarrt .

—V iews of C arer , M a r shman and S chol iast .

—F i r ea rm s used by K ing S aga r a .—Tlre

B rakma stra .

—Ram ayana m en t i ons fi r ea rm s —Tlre S lra trtgm'

and Agm’

a ster .—V iews of H alhed and M r . H . H . E l l i ot .

R oc k ets a H indu invent i on — O th e r m ach ines and corrtrir'

arrces

T heto th r ow p r oject i les now ext inct. —Tlre Greek fire .

A slrta r Vidy a of the H indu s

XX . C O NTENTS .

v rrnsrc“ G B

T he H indu s a re a m u s i ca l r a ce — H indu m u s ic fo rmed on bett e rp r in c ip les th an E u r op ean m u s ic —H indu sys tem of m u s i c the

oldest in the wo r ld .—S ub-d i v is i on of tones and n um be r o f sona l

m od ificat i ons too in tr i ca te to b e app r ec ia ted by E uropean sE u r opeans cannot im i ta te H indu m u s i c — H indu a i rs cann ot b eset to mus i c -C u lt i va ted on sc ien t ific prrneiples —E u ropean ig no

r an ce of H indu m us i c — T he R agas and R aguees .

— Tlre s ix p r i nc i

palR agas .— H irrd u n otat i on int roduced i n to E u r opean m us i c

in the eleven th cerrtury .— D erir'a t ion of G ree k m u s i c f r om

Ind ia .— Ta nsen and Na rk Gopa l

VL— OTHER SC IENCE S .

E ng inee r ing .-Mech an i cs .

— M i c r oscopes .

—Te lescopes —I’ ire—en

g ines —~Botany — Magnets —~I ) o c trine o f Vacu um in Na tu reV irn an V idya

— A comp lete s c ien ce. S a rpa V idya —E lect r i c i tyand M agnetrsrn .

— Plrrlosoplry of s leep .

—A u reole round the h ead so f H indu gods

A R T S .

I . AR CH ITECTU R E AND SCU LPTU R E .

H indu a r ch itectu re,wonde r f u l and bea ut i f u l —V iews o f Mahm ud

Ghaznav i .— U nequalled in elegan ce.

—Cave tem p les— S k i l l sh ownsu r pa sses desc r i pt i on — O r nam en t ing g r ottoes.

—T he S a r a cena r c h of H indu O r ig in — “ R ema ins of the H indu a r ch itec tu r a lart m i ght st i l l f u r n ish a r ch itects of E u r ope w ith new i deas ofbeauty and subl im ity .

”— E ng l ish deco r ative art indebted to

the H indus—R esto r at i on of taste in E ngland due to H indus .

A rt exha usted z tsclj m I rrd rcr

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xxu . CO NTENTS .

P A G Eand inns fo r t ravel le r s .

—Ind ian fa i r s at H a r dwa r , A l lah abada nd othe r p laces

II .

—WEALT H .

Ind ia was the r i chest count ry in the wo r ld —V iews of P r of .H ee ren and D r . Wise.

—S poils of Somnath , Mathur a and

K anau j .— Gold fi r st found in Ind ia —An In dian po rt the on lypea r l m a r k et in the wo r ld— T he m ost famous stones and pea r lsallof Indian o r ig in —T he P i tt and the Koh i-n oo r

R E LI G I O N .

Re l ig i on a test of c iv il i zat i on .—e at is the H indu r el ig i on?

Kn owledge of God .—l e S hrad d has .

— H indu r el ig i on the on lysc ient ific r el ig ion in the wo r ld . Ch r ist ian ity has n oth ing to offe rto th ose who are d issat isfied w ith H indu ism .

— B uddh ism is on lyre fo rmed H indu ism .

—M a jo r ity of man k ind st i l l fol l ow r el ig i on sthat emanated f r om Ind ia — O r ig in of the G r ee k Ch u r ch — Orig ino f C h r istian ity .

—B uddh ism and H indu ism .— P r opagat i on of B ud

dlrism .—Buddh ism in A r ab ia and in Egypt— T he Hermes

S c r i ptu r es — H indu o r ig in of the r el ig i on of the C ha ldean s,the

B aby l on ians and the inh ab itants of ‘Colch is.— T he Sama r itan swe r e B uddh ists —B uddh ism in B r ita in — T he r el ig i on of theS cand inav ians—Edda de r ived f r om the Veda — S candinav ianMythology.

—E gyptian and G ree k r el ig i ons de rived f r om Ind ia .

T he Mosaic cosmogony.—G ree k myth ology derived f r om H indu

mytlrology.—Ch r ist ian mytlrology.

—T he H indu is the pa rent ofthe lite r atu r e and theology of the wo r ld

ILLU STR AT IONS .

T H A K U R D trnGAn rs

,the R ahtore leade r

M A H A R A N A P R A T A I ’

MAnAnAJ A P nr'r rrv r R AJ , the la s t H indu Empe r o r o f D el h i

R u n:

to face the T i tle

N the h i story of the world Ind ia occup i e s the foremostplace . F rom the dawn o f h i story to the presen t d ay

Ind ia ha s been con nected i n one way or another w ith

a lmost every e vent o f world im por tance . By endow i ngInd ia w ith the best an d the cho icest of gifts it had i n

store,Natu re h erself orda in ed that th is magnificent

country , w i th a cl ima te va r i ed an d sal ubr iou s , a so i l

the m os t fert i l e i n the world,an ima l and plan t l i fe

the most abundan t,u sefu l and d ivers ified to be found

anywhere on the face o f the earth,shou ld play the

l eading pa rt i n the h i story of mank i nd .

Mr . M u rray says I t (Ind ia) has a lways appea r

ed to the imaginat ion of the IVestern World adorned

w ith w hateve r i s m ost splend i d an d gorgeou s gl itter ing,

a s it were,w ith gold and gem s

,and redolent o f f ra

grant and del i c iou s odou rs . Though th ere be i n th ese

magnificent concepti ons someth ing romant i c and i l lu

sory,sti l l Ind ia form s u nquesti onably one of the most

rema rkable reg ion s that ex i st on the surface o f the globe.

The var ied grandeu r of its scenery and the r i ch

prod uction s of its so i l are sca rce ly equa l le d i n any other

country .

” 1

1M u r r ay’

s H i s to ry of Indra ,p . l.

I NTR O DU CT I O N .

Ind ia i s an epitom e o f the w h ole world,

” 1and

possesses allthe l ead ing fea tu res o f oth er land s— the

most bew itch ing scenery , the mos t fert i l e so il, the most

d ense forests,the h igh est mounta i n s , som e of the b ig

gest r ivers and i ntensely cold sea son s,m av be found

a long w ith a r id,treeles s deserts

,sandy waterles s pla i n s

,

and the hottest dav s . To a s tudent of human ity or o f

Natu re,Ind ia even now i s most pi ctu resqu e

,and i s the

m ost i nteresting country i n the world . Coun t Bj orn st

j erua says : “ Bu t everyth i ng i s pecu l ia r,grand

,and

romanti c i n Ind ia—from the steel clad kn igh t of R a ja s

than to the devoted B rahman in the temples o f Bena res

from the fierce Mah ratta on h i s fleet an d a ctive s teed to

the Nabob m oving gen tly on h i s elephant ; from the

Ama zon who cha ses the tige r i n the j ungle to the

Bayadere who offers i n c ola /rte to her god s . Natu re,

too,in th i s glor iou s country i s ch equered w i th v a rietv

and clad i n glow i ng colou rs see the luxu r iance o f h e rtropica l vegetat ion and the h u rr icane of her monsoon

see the maj esty o f h er snow-covered H imalaya s and the

dryness of h er deserts see the imm en se pla in s of Hin~

dustan and the scenery of h er lo f ty mounta i n s b u t,

above all,see the immen se age of he r h i story and the

poetry of h er recol lecti on s .” 2

Profes sor Max M u l l er says : “ I f I were to look

over the whol e world to find out the country most r i ch ly

lCham bers’

s E noyclopzed ia , p .

Theogony of the H indus , p . 126 .

“ T he scene ry of the H ima layas ,say s E l ph instone .

“ is a s i ght wh i ch the sobe r est t ravel le r has neve r d esc r i bed wi thout kindlirrg into enthu s iasm ,

and wh i ch , i f once seen,leaves

a n imp ress i on that can neve r be equa l led or effaced .

” —E r'

storp ofI nd ia

,p . 181 .

I NT RO DUCT I O N . X X V”.

endowed w i th allthe w eal th,power . and beau ty th a t

na tu re can bestow— in som e pa rts a w ry pa ra d ise on.

ea r th— I shou ld po int to Ind ia . I f I w ere a sked

unde r what sky the h uman m i nd has most fu lly deve

l oped some o f its choicest g if ts , has most deeply ponder

ed ou the greatest probl em s o f l i fe,and has found sol u

t i on s of som e o f them wh i ch w ell d eserve the a ttenti on

even o f those who ha ve stud ied P la to and K an t,I

shou ld poi nt to Ind ia . And i f I were to ask mysel f

f rom what l itera tu re we h ere i n Europe—we who have

been n ur tu red a lmost exclu s i vely on the though ts of the

G reeks and the R omans,and o f one Sem iti c race the

Jewish—may d ra w tha t correcti ve wh ich i s most wan ted

in order to make our i nner l if e more perfect,more com

prehensive,more un ive rsa l

,i n fact more tru ly h uman

,

a l i fe . n ot for th i s l i fe only , b u t a tran sfigured and eter

nall i fe,

aga in I shoul d point to Ind ia .

” He adds :“Wha tever sph ere of the h uman m i nd you may sel ect for

you r spec ia l s tudy,whe the r it be language

,or rel ig ion

,

or my thology , or pl’

lIIO S O phy , whe ther it be laws o r

cu s tom s,pr im i ti ve a rt or pr im i ti ve sc i ence

,everywhere

you have to go to Ind ia,w hether you l i ke it or not

,

becau se some o f the most valuable and most i n struc ti ve

materia l s i n the h i story o f man are trea su red rrp in

Ind ia and i n I nd ia only.

P rofessor Heeren says “ Ind ia i s the sou rce from

wh ich not only the res t o f As ia b u t the whole Weste rn

Worl d d er ived the i r knowl edge and the i r re l igion .

”

A w r i ter i n the Calcutta R ev iew for Decem ber 18 6 1,

1M ax M u l le r ’s Ind ia : IVhat can it teach us 3 p . 15 .

2 H i sto r i ca l R esea r ches , V ol . I I , p. 4 5 .

xxv i i i . INT RO D UCT IO N .

sa i d Though now degraded and aba sed, yet we

cannot doub t that th ere was a t ime wh en the H indu race

wa s splend id i n a rts and a rm s,happy i n governm ent

,

w i se in l eg i slation and em i nent i n know l edge .

” 1

The anc i ent state of Ind ia , says M r . Thornton ,m u st have been one of extraord ina ry m agnificence ” ?

ColonelTod a sk s “ Wh ere can we l ook f or sages

l ike those whose system s o f ph i l osophy were th e proto

types of those of Greece to whose work s Plato,Tha les ,

and Pythagora s were d i sci ples ? wh ere sha l l w e find

a stronomers whose know l edge o f the planeta ry system

ye t exc ites wonder in Eu rope , a s w el l as the a rch i tec ts

and sculptors w hose work s cla im ou r adm i rat ion,and

the m u s i c ians ‘who cou l d make the m i nd osc i llate f rom

joy to sorrow,from tea rs to sm i l es

,w ith the change o f

m odes and va r ied i ntonat ion P’ ” 3

1 T he sam e R ev iew says That the H llld U S we r e in fo rme r t imesa comme r c ia l peop le we h a ve eve ry r ea son to bel ieve— the labou r s o fthe Ind ian l oom h ave been un i ve r sa l ly ce leb r ated , snlk has been fa b r icated immem o r ially by th e H indus. We a re a lso told by the G rec ianwrite r s th at the Ind ians we re the w isest of nat i ons , and in metaphys i ca lw isdom they we re ce r ta in ly em inent ; in ast r onomy and m athemat i csthey we r e equa l ly wel l v e r sed th is is the r ace who D ionys i us r eco r ds

F i r st assayed the deep ,And wa ited merehand iae to coa sts u n k n own ,

Those who d igested fi r st the stan y cho i r ,The i r m ot i ons m a r k ed

,and ca l l ed th em by th e i r names .

H indu s tan has f r om the ea r l iest ages been celeb r ated as one ofthe most h i gh ly-favou red count r ies on the globe, and a s abound ing inthe ch o i cest p r odu c t i ons both of Na tu re and A rt.

” -E ncyclop ced ia

B r ita nmm,p . 4 -16 .

2 Ch apters of the B r i tish H isto ry of Ind ia.

3 To d’ s I la ia s than ,pp 608

,60 9 .

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X ‘i x .IN TRO DUCT IO N .

foremost place . Th i s i s more th an wha t can be sa i d

o f any oth er na ti on . Y o u may fi nd a na tion grea t

i n a rm s or commerce ; ,

you m ay fi nd a people em in en t

in ph ilo s0 | ihy , in poetry , i n sc ience o r in a rts ; you m ay

find a race g re at pol i t i ca lly b u t no t equa l ly so mora l ly

an d i n tel lectua lly . Bu t you do no t find a race wh i ch

was or i s pre-em in em i n so m any depa r tments o f h uman

a cti v i ty a s the anci en t H indu sThe anci en t H indu s w e re a poe ti ca l peopl e , th ey

were essen tiallv “a m u s i ca l ra ce

,and they were “

a

comm erc ia l people .

” They were a n a t ion of ph iloso

phers“ i n sci ence th ey were a s acu te and d i l igent a s

eve r .” A rt seems to have exhau s te d i tsel f i n Ind ia .

”

“ The H indu i s the pa ren t of the l i tera tu re and the

theology o f the world .

” Hi s language i s the best an d

the most beau ti fu l i n the world . The na t i ona l cha ra cter

o f the ancien t H indu s a s rega rd s truth fu lness , ch iva l ry

and honou r wa s u nr iva l led ; th ei r colon i es fi ll ed the

world the i r kin ' f s“a re s t i l l wo rsh i ed a s the od s o f

a a PP g

the sea,

“thei r c i v i l i za tion s ti l l pervades i n every

corner o f the c iv il i zed world and i s a round a nd abou t u s

every d ay of o u r lives .”

I t may be u rged that in the p ictu re o f H ind u civ i

liz ation pa in ted i n the book,only rosea te h ues ha ve been

u sed,tha t wh i le l igh ts are pu rposely made prom i nen t the

shadows a re con spi cuou s by the i r absence,and tha t m ost

ha s been made o f the best poin ts of H ind u i sm . S uch

cr it i cs wil l do wel l to remember tha t the mountains arem ea su red by th e i r h ighest peaks and n ot by the low

h eigh ts to wh ich they h ere and there s ink that the fi rst

rank among the mounta i n s i s assigned to the H ima laya s

INTR O D UC T I O N .

by Mounts Everest,D hav algiri and I\

'

anchanj auga , and

g,a ndno t by thelower h eigh ts of M u ssoori e and D arj eelin

th a t the pa tch es o f l evel ground h ere an d th ere found

encl osed w i th i n th i s grgan tic range are j ustl y ignored .

I t may a l so he rema rked h ere that the obj ect of th i s

book be i ng to enab l e men to apprec iate t he excel l en c i es

o f H indu c i v i l i za ti on—by g i v i ng th em an i dea of thecha ra c te r an d ach i evem ents o f the anc ient Hindu s

,who

were the c rea tu res o f that c i v i l i za t ion,wh i ch has adm i t

tedly seen its bes t days—anv d i scu ss ion o f modern Ind ia

for its own sake i s w ithout the scope o f th i s book .

Wherever,therefore

,any fa ct rela ting to the society

,

rel igion,l i teratu re or cha ra cter o f the H indu s o f the

pres en t day , or thei r capac iti e s and capabi l iti e s i s men

tion ed it has re fe rence only to the elu c ida tion o f som e

fea tu re o f that c i v i l i zati on a s i l lu stra ted in the l i fe,work

o r cha racter o f the people o f ancien t Ind ia .

1

I t i s the i nherent truth of H indu i sm,th e v ita l i ty

and greatn ess o f the H indu c i v i l i zation that have eu

1 I t is no pa r t of the pla n of th is b oo k to run down a ny c reed o rna t i ona l ity. C onsequ ently , wh eneve r any oth e r rel ig i on o r r a ce is m en

tioned , it is on ly fo r the e l u c ida t i on of some po i nt of H indu ism , o r tos h ow the c ompa r at i ve ex cel lence o f som e fea tu r e of H indu c i v i l i za t i on .

Th u s , wheneve r the opp ress i ve natu re of the r u le o f some o f the M oh am edan Empe r o r s is ment i oned , o r the h a voc ca used by some of thei nvade r s f r om the No r th-\Veste rn f r ont ier o f lnd ia is desc r i bed , it is not

to em ph as i ze that fa ct itse l f , b ut to i l l ust r ate , ex pla in ,o r el uc idate some

fea tu r e of the ch a racte r o f the H indu s o r the i r l i te r atu re and soc iety .

I t m ay a lso he r ema r k ed that the ev i ls of the r u le o f the A fgh a ns,T u r k s

,and oth e r s we re d ue not to the rel ig i on they p r ofessed bu t to

the i r igno r ance and bac k wa r dness in c iv i l i zat i on . T he A r abs , “10 11811p r ofess ing the same r e l ig ion as the A fgh ans and the Moghals, k ept thelamp of k nowledge and sc ience lit in E u r ope and W

'

estern A s i adu r ing the m i dd le ages . T he wo r k of Al-Be r un i , A bdu l Faza l , Fa i z ia nd othe r s in Ind ia pu l ls to p ieces the theo ry th at whateve r ev i ls the r ewe re in Mohamedan r u le we re due to the r el i g ion of the rule r s.

xxx“ . I NTR O DUCT I O N .

abled the H indus yet to prese rve thei r ex i sten ce as such ,d esp ite allthe pol iti ca l ca ta clysm s , soc ia l uph eav a l s , and

racia l e rupti ons the world ha s seen si nce the Mahab ha

rata . These ca lam i ti e s overwhelm ed th e anci ent E gypt ian s and the Phoen i cians and destroyed the emp i res

of anc ient Greece,Pers ia and R om e .

Com pa red to the sun o f H ind u c i v i l i zat i on g iv ing

a constant and steady stream o f b eneficent l igh t, wh ich

penetra tes the fa r thest nooks and corners o f the world,

ca rry i ng com fort and con ten tm ent to m ank ind,th ese

c i v i l i zat ions we re l ike br i l l ian t m eteors th at appea r i n the

sk i es l igh ti ng the wh i l e,w ith the ir shor t~l ived lu s tre

,

the h eavens above and the ea rth below .

Then—let me d i ve i nto the depth s o f t ime,

A nd b r ing f r om out the ages that h a ve r ol led,

A few sma l l f r agments of those w r ecks subl ime ,\Wh i ch h um an eye may n ev e r m o re beh old

A nd let the gue r don of my labo u r b e ,My b

’loved count ry ! one k ind w ish fo r thee.

C O N S T I T U T I O N .

C l ime o f the un fo r gotten b r ave\Vhere land f r om p la in to m ounta in cave\Vas f r eedom’

s h ome o r glo ry’

s g raveS h r i ne of the m igh ty I C an it b eT h at th is is allr ema in s of thee ?

—B Y R O N : Giaour ,

N o one acqua i nted w i th the h i story o f the anci entInd ian s can reasonably deny the great meri ts o f thei r

an c i ent Consti tut i on,wh ich com bined happiness w i th

a ctiv ity,tranqu i l ity w ith progress— “

one l esson wh i ch

i n every w i nd i s blown”— and con servati on w ith advance

m ent.‘ Thei r a ston i sh ing subj ective capac iti es and th ei r

extraord inary powe rs o f observa ti on and genera l i za tion

l ed th em irres i stibly to trace Natu re i n allher m u l ti

f ariou s sol emn working s . They followed h er i n eve ry

th ing th ey d id,and hence the ha lo of rea l ity and con

servat i on wh ich su rrounds the i r work . I t i s th i s rea l i ty

and conservati on,the happy resu l ts of following Natti re

wh ich i s w i sdom w ithout reflecti on and above it

that have imparted tha t pol i sh to H ind u Laws and Inst i

tu tions which makes th em at once d u rable and bri l l iant

There was,anci ently , an adj ustm ent of forces wh ich

enabled each inst itut ion to descr ibe its pecu l ia r orbi t

and work in its own sphere , w ithout i nter fer ing w ith the

2 H INDU surnnroa trr .

oth ers ; b u t n ow ,a la s I ow ing to the l ong-con ti nued an d

u nabated pressu re of host i l e c i rcum stances , tha t ad j u stm ent i s be ing broken

,and the forces a re be ing let loose

so a s to b ring the d i fferen t i n st i tu tion s together . Thei r

foundat i on s,how ever

, are sti l l i ntact,ow ing to thei r

exceed ing fi rmness .

The tu rn ing poi nt i n the h i story of Anc ien t In d ia wa sthe Mahabha ra ta

,the G reat 1Wa r between the Pandava s

and theKau rava s . Th i smomen tou s even t deci ded the futureo f Anc ient Ind ia

,a s it closed the long chapter o f H in d u

growth and H indu grea tness . The sun of Ind ia ’s gloryw a s at its m eri d ian about the end of D wapar , an d , follow

ing the u n iver sa l law of Na tu re,w i th the beginn ing o f

the Ii aliyuga , it tu rned its cou rse towa rd s the hor i zon ,wh ere it set on the pla i ns o f T haneshwar am i dst the

romanti c spl endou r of S an j ug t-i’

s l ove and P ithora’

s

ch i val ry. As th e Mahabha ra ta m a rked the zen i th of

H in du greatn ess,S hahaln nl-d in ’s v i ctory a t T hau eshwa r

ma rked the s ink ing of the grea t l um ina ry b elow the

hor i zon . The n adi r wa s reached severa l cen tu r i e s late r ,wh en the a rm i es u n d er Ba ja i Itao .w ere routed on the

sam e sac red , fatefu l pla i n s b y the Du rran i h ost . T he

great war w h i ch,a s w i l l be seen herea fter i n fluenced so

powerfu l ly the d estiny o f nat ion s wa s,i n rea l ity

,the

beginn i ng o f the end o f Hind u greatness,and it wa s

at th i s per i od that the pol iti ca l an d soc ia l Con stitu

t ion of Ind ia began to y iel d to those. i nnovati on s wh ich ,by the i r very con tra st to the fundam enta l p rincip les o f

that Const ituti on,are so prom i nent now .

AN T IQL'

I T Y . 3

I .-ANT IQU ITY .

T ime is the r oot o f allc r ea ted be i ngs,

A nd uncw a te o f p lea s u re a nd o f pa i n .

T im e do th c r ea te ex i stence . T ime d estm vs,

T im e sh a tte r s all. a nd allaga in r enews .

Tun e wa tch es wh i le alls leep . U n vamp i ished T ime

-M .\H Ad ip m'm .

an tiqu i ty of the H ind u c iv i l i zat i on i s won derfu l,

its V ita l i ty m i ra cu lous . T he fabu lou s age of the G reeks

the t imes of the Egyptian Sou f i,an d the ston e age

o f the m odern E u ropean th inkers are b u t a s yesterday

i n the h i story of the Hindu c iv i l i zati on . The age of

th i s ea rth i s not to be counted by a f ew thou sand yea r s,

b u t by m i l l ion s and tr i l l ion s . And H indu c iv i l i za ti on i s

the ea rl i es t c iv i l i zation in th i s world . Na tion s ha ve

r i sen an d fa l len , emp i res foun ded an d de s troyed,races

have appea red and d isappea red,b ut the H ind u c iv i l i zat io n

that saw thei r r i s e and fall,th e i r foundati on and des

tra ction , the i r appea ran ce and d i sappearance , s ti l l rema i n s .

After fu l ly d iscussin <r the c la im s o f the a n c i en t

nat i ons of the world to h igh an ti q u i ty , Count b j orn stj erna

says : No nat ion 0 11 ea1 tli can x ie w i th the H ind u s

in respect o f the anti qu ity of the i r c iv i l i za tion and the

anti qu i ty of the i r rel ig ion .

” 1

D r . S ti l e s , P res ident of Ya l e College in Am e ri ca ,‘ forme d such an enth u sia s ti c expecta t i on from the

am a z ing anti qu i ty of the H ind u w ritim rs th a t he actual l y

1 T heegeny c f the H indu s , p . 3 0 .

4 H INDU S UP ER IO R IT Y.

w rote to S i r W. Jones to request h im to s earch among

the H indu s for the Adam i c books .

1

Mr . H alb ed excla im s w ith sacred reverence,a fter

treating o f the fou r gags o f the H indu s : “ To such

ant iqu ity the Mosaic creat i on i s b u t as yesterday ; and to

such ages the l i fe of Meth u selah i s no more than a span .

”

In conclud ing h i s rema rks on the anti qu i ty of

H indu a stronomy , Count Bjorn stj erna says :“ Bu t i f it

be true that the H indu s m ore than year s before

Ch r i st,a ccord ing to Ba i l ly ’s ca lcu lation

,had a tta i ned

so h igh a degree of a stronomicaland geometr icall ea rn ing ,how m any centu r i es ea rlier m u st the comm encemen t o f

the i r cu l tu re have been ,s i nce the h uman m ind ad vance s

on ly step by step i n the path of sc i ence 1” 2 And yet,a stronomy i s not the sc ience that i s cu ltivated very ea r ly

in the nati ona l l i teratu re of any cou ntry .

Pl iny states that f rom the d ay s o f Bacch u s to

Alex an der of Ma cedon,15 4 k i ngs re igned over Ind ia

,

w hose re igns extended over yea rs . H ow manyreigned b efore Bacch u s h i story i s s i len t.

Abu l-Fa za l,in h i s tran slati on of the R aj T a rangz

’

m’

,

quotes the nam es of the k ings who appea r in these an

mal s , and whose su cces s ive reign s are sa i d to ha ve

occup ied yea rs 11 m onths and 9 days . Prof .Heeren says : “ F rom D i onys iu s (an Ind ian k ing) toS and racottu s (Chandragupta ) the space of yea r si s sa i d to have elapsed . Mega sthenes says years

pas sed between S patem b as and S an d racottu s .

3

VVard’

s Myth ol ogy , Vol. I . ,p . 14 4 .

2'

17heogony of the H indu s , p . 3 7 .

3 H 1storicalResearches . Vol. I I , p . 218 .

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6 H I N DU srrna i omr r .

on ly compr i se s 10,and ends w i th the yea r A .C .

'

the th i rd d y nastv . tha t of S unga,conta in s a l so th e sam e

n um ber of k i ngs,and ter minates B.C . ; the fou rth ,

tha t of Can na,only con s i sted of fou r k i ngs , a nd la sted

t i l l the ye a r 908 AC . the fi fth . that of A ndrah,form s a

s e ri es of 2 ] k ings,and cont in ued down to the yea r 4 56 b e

fo re the Ch ri stian era an d 4 00 be fore tha t of Vic rama .

”

N ow,a ccord ing to the P u rana s

,the race o f the

Brahad rathas had ru led ov erMagad ha be fore P radyota s ,

(w ho reign ed A .C .

,accord ing to S i r W. Jon es ) ,

from S omapi to R ipu n j aya l for a thou sand yea rs . An d

before the fi rst B rahadra thas,b'

ahad eo,J a ra sand h and

B rih ad ra th a re sa i d to hav e re ign ed over

The fact that dyna st i es and not in d iv i dua l s were

un its of ca l culat ion,i s i n i tsel f a proof o f the great ant i

qu ity of the an c ient H ind u Emp ire .

Count Bjorn stj ern a , a f ter d i scu ss ing the an ti qu ity

o f Hi ndu astronomy says Bes ides the proofs adduced

o f the grea t an t1qu ity of the civ i l i za t ion of the H in du s ,

there are others perhaps st i l l stronger , nam ely , th e i r

gigant i c temples h ewn ou t o f lofty rocks , w ith the mos t

in cred ible labou r,a t Elephan ta

,at Elle ra and se v era l

oth er places wh i ch,w ith rega rd to the va stn ess of th e

m ay be com pared w ith the pyram i d s , an d3

u ndertak ing,

b o

111 an arch 1tectu ralrespect ev en su rpa ss th em .

’

Professo r H eerent says : “We do not perhaps a ssum e

too m uch w hen we v entu re to place the or igi n o f

Ayodhya from to B .C .

1M a x D un k e r 's H isto ry of A n t iqu i ty ,Vol . IV .

, 76 .

22M ax D un k e r ’s H i sto ry of A ntiqmtv Vol . I V. ,p , 77 .

3 Theogony of the H i ndus , p . 3 8 .

4 H 1st0 1 icalResea r c h es , V ol . I I .,p . 22 7 .

nxr un i rr .

C apta i n T royer sa v s I canno t re f u se c red en c e to

th i s fa ct,nam el y , tha t grea t S ta tes , h ighl y a dm need in

c iv i l i za ti on,ex i s ted a t l e as t th ree thou sa n d y ca rs b e i

'

o i e

o ur era . I t i s b evond th a t l im i t tha t ll0 0 k f o r llam a

the h e ro of the Ramayan a ]Accord ing to the Mahabha rata

,Av odhv a pro spe red

for 1 , 500 years , a f te1 wh i ch one of its k ings , o f the d vn : 1stvo f S a rgus , found ed Kanauj . The founda ti on o f the

c ity~o f Del h i (Ind rapra stha

‘

) i s a s old a s the fabu l ou sage (P ob er , Vol. I , a t wh i ch time it was a l readycel eb ra ted for its splen dou r (Vol. I . p

I lenell2 sta tes that Kana uj w a s founded more thana thou sand yea rs before Ch ri st. i nt apa rt from the s e

hapha z a rd shots of Eu ropean w r iters -who,a s Pro fessor

“r

ilson says : “ i n order to avoid being thou g h t credulou s

run in to the O ppos i te v i ce of inc red ulitv,

”an d w ou l d

n ev e r conced e any th ing for wh i ch there is not a

d em on stra b l e proof,especially a s the h i s to ry of anc i en t

Ind ia i s a h i s tory of ages so rem ote a s to hopelessly pu to u t o f joint the i r ea rly-conce i ved a nd l im i ted noti on s o f

ch ronology an d an ti qu i ty— th ere i s an importan t pi ece

o f ev id ence in fav ou r of the great an t i qu i ty of Indian

c i v i l i za t i on . Says Cou nt Bjorn stj erna“ The Ba c tr ian

docum en t,cal l ed D ab istan

i‘

(foun d in Ka shm i r and

brough t to Eu rope b v S ir \V. Jon es) gives an en ti re

1eg ister of k ing s , nam ely,o f the w hose

fi rstlink reigned i n Bact1 ia yea rs b efo1e Alex and e i s

exped it i on to India,and conse q uen tly severa l h und red

yea rs before the t im e g iven by the Alexandrine tex t

for -the appea rance of the fi rst ma n upon the ea rl/i .

lA s ia tic J ou r na l, 18 -1 1 .

‘2 H em on‘

s,p . 5 -1. (2nd ed i t i on) .

3'

1‘

heogony o f the H indu s , p . 13

8 H INDU semmomr r .

Tha t the se Bactr ian k ings w ere H i nd u s is now un i

v ersally adm i tted .

‘ D ab is ta n th u s proves that Indiaenjoyed splend id c iv i l i zati on E .U .

, or n ea rly

yea rs before the Vi ctorian age .

Th i s a lone i s su ffic ient to prove that the an c ientInd ians were i ncontes tably the ea rl i e st c iv i l i zed nat i on0 11 ear th . Another concl u s i ve proof of the i r unr iva l ledan tiqu ity w i l l be foun d in the fact that allthe great na

t ions o f the old,

world d er ived thei r c iv i l i z a tion fromInd ia

,tha t Ind ia planted colon i es i n allpa r ts o f the

world,and that these colon i es a fterwa rd s becam e known

as Egyp t,G reece

,Persia

,Ch ina

,Am er i ca

, etc . ; and tha t

Scand inav ia , Germany,and anci ent B r ita i n d er ived th e i r

c iv i l i za tion and the i r rel ig ion from the H ind u s . I n

short,a s w il l be seen h erea fter

,it wa s Ind ia w h i ch

c iv i l i z ati onsuppl ied the rest o f the world w ith lea rn ing,

and xeligion .

The m ost an c ient coinage i n the worl d i s that of

the H indu s (Arya s ) , and the m odern d i scover i es of theco ins of anc i en t India are con cl u s ive proofs o f the va stant i qu i ty of H in du c iv i l i zat i on ?

But in Ind ia everyth ing i s a stound ing to the E u ro

p ean . Notw iths tand ing the destruct i ve ra vages of bar~

ba rou s fan ati c i sm,enough materia l rem a in s from w h i ch we

can in fer, upon se ien titi e data , the age of the p resent ea rth .

Swam i D ayan anda Sa ra swat i has treated the subj ect

elaborately i n h i s “ Introdu cti on to the Veda s ,”

and

‘ S ee M i l l ’s H i sto ry of Ind ia , Vol I I . , pp . 2 3 7—2 3 8 .

9 T he co inage of the H i ndu s,whateve r m ay b e its v a l ue a nd

c h a r acte r,is ce r ta in ly of a ve ry r emote antiq u ity—E lplzz

’

nstone’s

I nd ia , p . 176 .

AN T IQU IT Y. 9

a l so d i scu ssed it w i th the R ev eren d M r. Scott of Ba rei l lya t Chandapu r (v i de Argo, D a rp a n for March 1880

,

p . 67

The S oulful/J , wh ich every educated H ind u i n Ind ia

know s w ell,and wh i ch i s rec i ted at e very ceremony

,

even a t a d i p i n the sacred Ganges,i s the key to unfold

the whole m v stery that en sh rouds the V i ew of the t im eat wh i ch the earth assum ed its pre sen t form .

a ft-w are a:ssh seen? feed s gem? §araaméai smfah

a f‘

s a'

ir s te er-Ta a fa q a a a t fi wimifi rn fia i fi gleam?

m a a ace twaf mmqa feaaa a ag a s aw nfi a s fajzfit an 11

To understand wha t follows,it m u st be rem embered

that th i s worl d i s a lternately created f rom and d i s solved

i nto its m ater ia l cau se (atti re)— the p a rmdn u or a tom s

a fter a f i xed per iod . The worl d exi s ts i n one form for

a fixed period,and then , f or that very per iod , it ex i sts

only i n its ma terialcau se . The former is callec “ B rahm a

D i n,

”an d the latter “ Brahma R atr i .”

As the Atharv a Veda says , the B rahma D in i s equal

to yea rs.

stat eggsante fi fl tf i fi‘mfl ‘ 1 69216?o 510 c

651510 1

,s o as n

Th is B rahm a D i n i s made up of Chaturyugis

(4 yugs) or D ibyayugs, as they a re a l so ca l l ed . Mann

(Ad hyaya I ) says

z fas mtammv—rj a s e a fcamar 1 afl a a a

=§é 611515141

U fa t a a 11 3 15 0 651° 1 ea 11

A Cha turyug i 0 1 D ibyayug mean s a pe1 iod of foui

yugs

,S atyug , T 1eta , D wapa1 and

Kaliyug , and cons i s ts

10 H I NDU S UP ER IO R I T Y .

o f D 1bya year —S atyug cons i s ting ofT reta o f D wapar of a nd Kaliyug o f

D ibya yea rs . Mann (Chapter 1 , Sl. 7 1 ) says

2115 181 uf z fie namst'

fira a ffi ne 1( as 3 13 91 me et 2611711

gmj fiqw 11 Wt 11 And aga i n,

a ssume : a s e tfm 611511111F; a a'

1 61621 mafi cfl’

c’i’em

wwtae aarfaa : 1 E m ili a 3 6 2 3119153 ta g 1 g ammaE da? s e e d er sis ter a 11 (a g o 631° 9

, who s o )

N ow,a D ibya yea r i s equa l to 3 60 ord ina ry yea rs ,

Th u s S atyug X 3 60 yea rs .

Treta X 3 60

D wapu r X 3 60

Kaliyug X 3 60

A Chaturyug i yea rs .

Thu s,the B rahm a D in yea rs , Th i s

i s the per iod for wh i ch the world w i l l rema i n i n itspresent form .

Aga in,the B rahma D in i s d iv ided i nto 14 Man

wan tras and a Manwan tra i nto 7 1 Chaturvug is . Man 11

saysA

A o

2161 $1171 3 13 31613 6 n s f 4 311251171 1 61z a 331t a m ay

a t fae’

ia'

fi 11a g o a n <1 113 110 3 6 . 11

The Su rya S iddhanta a l so sayse ca fa : 3 3111m az a i fa%1w a 1amm m

a fi g : g’

tafia eaa : 11 e e z ama nw m’

fié mmgéa 1 a a

gmm: mime) ems 112 3 93 ¥§H=11 m £ 6 14 3 1?

a ri as : 1$ 8 33 1 me me : Sinai Stilt aw 81181671 11'

efife o 951° 1,

who

rt , t s , g o 11

AN T I QL'

I T Y . 11

Accord i ng to the S a n/ca b) q uoted above,s i x Man

wan tra s 1 ha ve pa ssed,the seven th is pas s ing

,and the

rema i n ing seven ha ve s ti l l to come Ea ch Chaturyug i

a s shown before,

and 4,3 20

,000 X 7 1

==one Manwan tra . N ow,s ix Manwan tra s

have pa ssed,and th i s present Kaliyug

i s the Kaliyng of the 28 th Chaturyug i. O f th i s Cha tu r

y ugi,5,006 yea rs of the Kaliyug (the present Sambat

be ing 19 63 ic 1ama ) have pa s s ed and 5,006

years o f the h aliy ug ha v e yet to pas s . 111115,

o f the sev enth 1\lanwan tra,

2 7 Cha tu r

y ug is V 2 7) (th e per iod of the 28 thCha turyug i a l ready pa ssed

, tota l120 , 5 3 3 , 006 yea rs ha v e pa s sed . The per iod yet to pa s s

before the d ay o f F i na l D i s sol u t ion comes i s

(rema in i ng 7 Manwan tra s) 18 6,186

,9 9 4 to f the presen t

(s ix th ) Manwan tra . ) yea rs .

The E u ropean s,

accustomed as they a re,

to u se

the words of P ro fe ssor S i r M . \Villiam s,

“to a lim i ted

hori zon w i l l f i nd th i s va st anti q u i ty bew i lder ing .

B i l l ion s su rely a re incred ibl e,i f not i ncomprehen s ibl e

to p iou s ea rs a ccus tom ed to a sca l e,the h ighes t note o f

w hi ch r i ses no h igher than ye ars . B u t ma tters

a re improv ing , a nd even these p iou s sou l s w i l l in tim e

b reak the sh el l an d com e ou t in tci a world in wh i ch cen

ta r ie s w i llb e repla ced by m i l l enn i um s .

Mr . Ba l dw i n says : “ Doub tl ess the an tiqu ity o f the

h uman race i s m uch greate r than i s u suallv a ss umed by

1 T he S ix M a nwa u tra s a l read y pa s sed a re S wa yanmha v ,S wa roclu s ,

A u tam i,Ta inas , B a i rat , Chak s hus , Va ivaswat . T he seven Ma nwa n tra s

to come a re n amed S awa rn it. D ali sha s awa rnih , B rahma , S awa rmh,

D ha rm S awa rn ih , R ud rapucho, R ochyashcha and D hotakah.

12 H INDU . S U P ER I O R IT Y .

those Who se v i ew s of the pa st are st i l l regu lated by m ed ia:

1’

alsv stem s of ch ronology . Archaeology and li ngu i st i c

sc i ence,n ot to speak here of Geology

,m ake it certa i n

that the per iod be tw een the beginn ing o f the h umanra ce an d the b i rth o f Ch r ist wou l d be m ore accu ra tely

stated i f the centu r ie s coun ted i n the longest est imate

o f the rabbin ica l ch ronologies s hou ld be changed to m il

lennium s . A nd they present a l so anoth er fa ct,nam ely

,

that the ant iqu ity of. c iv i l i zat ion i s v ery great,and suggest

that 111 remote ages it may have ex i s ted , w i th importantdevelopments

,i n region s of the ea rth now descri bed a s

ba rba rou s Th e representati on o f som e specu la torsthat the cond it ion o f the human ra ce s i nce its fi r s tappea rance on ea rth has been a con d i ti on o f un i versa l andh opeless saV 1gery down to a compa ra t ively m odern da te

,

i s an a ssum pti on m erely,an unwa r ran ted a ssumpt ion

u sed i n support of an unproved and unp rovable theory

o f man s or ig i n .

” 1

lBaldwin'

s Ancient Amer i ca,p . 181.

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14 H INDU surnmomr r .

Ctesia s states that “th ey (H indu s) were as numerous a s

allthe 0 1716 7” n a tions p u t

Bu t the m ost im portant proof of the over-ab undan tpopu lat ion of An ci en t lu dia i s to be found in the suc

cessiv e w aves o f em i gra t ion from India to the d i fferen t

par ts of the world,found ing colon i es an d plan t ing

settlem en ts in w ha t a re n ow ca l l ed the O ld an d the

N ew Worlds .

As rega rds w ea l th,In d ia has a lways been fam ou s

for its imm en se ri ch es .

“ Golden Ind ia i s a h ackn eyed ph ra se ") Both in populati on an d i n wea l th

,

In d ia,a t one t ime was not on ly pre-em i nent b u t wa s

w i th ou t a r iv a l .What h igh er a u thor ity

,wh at more pos iti ve p roof

o f the good governm ent of Anc i ent Ind ia i s requ i red

than the fa ct that “ Ancien t India kn ew no th i eve s ,” 3

nor kn ew why to sh ut the doors o f its hou ses even a t

the t im e w hen ,a ccord ing to D r . Johnson

,the cap i ta l o f

the m ost c iv i l i z ed na tion of modern t im es i s the t rue

Sa tan -at-hom e .

”

P repa r e f o r death ,i f h e i e a t n i gh t you 1 oam

,

A nd s i gn you r w i l l befo r e you s leep f r om h ome.

’

The form o f Governmen t depends upon th e

cha racter of a people,the cond i ti ons of li fe obta i n ing

among them ,an d the pri nciples of th ei r socia l system .

lS trab o states tha t P olibhothxa wa s e i gh t m i les l ong and

3 ,

h ad a r am pa r t wh ic h had 570 towe1s and 64 gates . A s late ev en a s

the l6th centu ry , K anau j wa s r epo r ted to h a ve conta ined no less

th an sh ops of b etelsellers and s i xty thou sand sets of mu s i c ians.

”

S ee H i sto r i ca l R esea r ch es , V ol . I I . , p . 220 .

Q For fa 1th e r i nfo rmat i on on th is sub ject,see W

'

ea l th .

3 S ee S t rabo , L ib . X V. p . 4 88 (1587

eovnnxn rxr . 13

\Vi th changes in respect of th e se ma tters,the form o f

Governm en t a l so unde rgoes a change . B roadly s peak

ing , the best form of Governm en t i s tha t wh ich ena bl es

on ly m en of h igh cha ra c ter , n obl e m ind s,w id e s ym

path ies , m en of s terl ing qual i t ie s a nd ta l en ts to ri se to

the top , and prevents m en of sha l low m inds,m ea n

capac i t i es,na rrow sym p ath ies , and un sc rupu lou s cha ra c

ters from com ing i nto powe r,it b ei ng alwa v s u nders tood

tha t the prope r functi on s of Governm en t a re onlv (1)n a t iona l de fence

,and (11) protec t i on of one i nd iv idual

or of one class f rom another .

The form o f Gov ernm en t may v a ry,bu t the spi ri t

depends on the eth i ca l s ide of a peop le ’s cha ra cter . I t

i s wel l sa i dPol it i ca l r igh ts , howeve r b r oadly f r am ed

,

W' i l l not e levate a people i11d iv 1d ually dep raved .

I f h igh m ora l p r i nc ipl es gu id e the people i n the i r

da i ly conduct a s a na tion,the Governm ent of th a t

n a t i on i s tree f ro m th ose p tr ty str i fes,tha t i ncessa n t

w a r fa re raged by one ind iv i dua l aga i n s t a no th e r and b yo ne cla s s aga i n st another for power or for p rotecti on

,

w h i ch i s a l ead ing fea tu re of allEuropean and Am er icanGov ernm ents of the presen t d ay . I t i s th i s law tha td i scover s to u s the eterna l p r inci pl e

,tha t sp i r i tua l el e va

t ion not on ly h el p s ma ter ia l prosper ity b u t i s es sen tialto

the happ iness o f a people,an d tha t it i s an index to the

r ializ ation o f the a im and obj ect o f allgove rnmen t.

Mr. Herbert Spencer says : “ There ha s grown u p

qu i te natu ra ll y,and i ndeed a lmos t i nev i ta b ly among

c ivil i z ed peoples,

an i den tification o f freedom w i th

the pol itica l appl iance s establ i shed to ma i nta in free

d om . Th e two are confu sed together i n though t ;or

,to express the fact more correctlv they have

1G H I NDU S UP ER I O R ITY .

n ot ye t been sepa rated in though t. In most countr ies du r ing pa st tim es

,and in m any countr i es a t

the present tim e,exper i ence has a ssociated i n m en ’s

m i nds the u nchecked powe r of a ru le r w ith extrem e

coerc ion of the rul ed . Contra r iw i se,in coun tr i es w h ere

the people ha ve a cqu i red som e pow er,the restra i nts 0 11

the l i berti es of ind iv id ua l s h ave been relaxed ; and

w i th advan ce towa rds governm ent by the major i ty,

th ere ha s,on the average

,been a progress ing abol it ion

of laws an d remova l o f bu rdens W h ich u nd uly interferedw i th such l iberti es . Hence

,by contra st

,popu la rly

go verned nati ons hav e com e to be regarded as freen at ions ; and pos ses s ion o f pol i ti ca l power by alli s

supposed to be the same th ing a s f reedom . Bu t the

a ssumed identity of the two is a d elusion— delu s ion ,w h i ch , l ike m any other delus ions

,resu lts from con found

ing m eans w ith ends . F reedom i n its ab sol ute form

i s the absence of allexterna l check s to wha tever act ion sthe w i l l prompts and freedom in its soc ia l ly-restr icted

form i s the absen ce of au v other externa l ch eck s thanthose a r i s ing from the presence o f other m en who have

l ike cla im s to do w hat thei r w i l l s prompt. The m u tua l

cheek s hence resu l ting are the only checks wh ich free

d om,i n the true sen se of the word

,perm i ts . The

sphere w ith in w h ich each m ay act w ithout trespa ss ing

0 11 the l ike S pheres of others,cannot be in truded u pon

by any agency,pr iva te or publ i c

,w ithout an equiva l ent

loss of freedom and it m atters not wh ether the publ i c

agency i s a utocrat i c or democrati c : the i ntru s ion i s

es sen tia l ly the sam e .

” 1

1He r be r t Spence r ’s A utob i og r aphy , Vol I . ,p . 4 3 9 .

GO VE 11: 11am . 17

I t i s d ue to a thorough recogn i ti on o f th i s tru ththat the In d ian sages la i d so m u ch stres s on th e n ece s s i ty

o f forma ti on of H ind u cha rac ter on eth i ca l and a l tru i s ti c

p r inc iples,to secu re pol iti ca l a s w ell as soc ia l prosper i ty .

The h igher the eth ica l dev elopm ent of cha rac ter the

grea ter the freedom en joyed by a people . I t i s in th i s

sense true that the best-gorer ned p eople is ilze lea st

govem ed people. O ve r-gove rnment i s an ev i l,a pos i tive

ev i l,and a very frequent ev i l . O ver-governm en t defeats

its own ends . The rea l obj ect of governm ent i s f rustra t

ed its proper function s a re neglected .

Mr . Herbert Spencer says : “Among m ech an ic ian s

it i s a recogni zed tru th that the m u lti pl i cati on of l ev ers,

wheel s,cranks &c .

,i n an appara tu s

,in volves l oss of

power,and i ncrea ses the chances of going w rong . I s

it n ot so w ith Governmen t m ach inery , a s compa red

w i th the s imple r mach in ery m en f ram e in its absen ce

Moreover,m en ’s des i re s w hen l eft to ach i eve the i r

own sati sfacti on,follow the order o f decrea s ing in ten

sity and importance : the essen tia l ones be ing sa ti sfied

fi rst. B ut wh en,in s tead of aggrega tes of des i re s

spon taneou sly work ing for th e i r ends we get the j udgm ents of Governm ents , th ere i s no gua rantee that the

order o f rela t i ve impor tance w i llbe fol lowed , and th ere

i s ab undan t proof tha t it i s not fol lowed . Adapta ti on

to one function pre-supposes more or l ess un fi tnes s

for oth er functions ; and pre-occupation w i th man y

f uncti on s is u nfavou rable to the complete d i scha rge of

a nyone .B eyond the fun cti on of n ati ona l d e fence , the

es sentia l funct ion to be d i sch a rge d by a. Governm en t

is that of see ing that the c it i z en s in seek ing sati s faction

18 11 1111111 sc rnnloarrr .

for th ei r own desi res,i nd iv idua l ly or in grou ps , sh a ll

n ot i nju re one another ; and its fa i lu re to perform th is

funct i on is great in preport ion as its other funct ions

are numerou s . The da i ly scanda l s of ou r j ud i cia l sy stem ,

w h ich often b rings ru i n i n stead of restitut ion , and

f r i ghten s away m u ltitudes who n eed protecti on , resu lt

i n la rge m ea su re from the pre occu pat i on o f statesm en

and pol iti c ian s w i th non -essentia l th ings , w h i l e the all

essentia l th ing pa sses a lmos t un h eeded .

” 1

I n an ci ent Ind ia , ow ing to the h igh eth icalan d s pi r i

tua l de v el opm en t of the people,th ey w ere not over

governed

.They en joyed the grea test i nd iv id ua l f reedom

compat ibl e w i th nati ona l coh esi on and nationa l secu r ity .

I t i s ow i ng to th i s wan t of eth i ca l an d a ltru i sti c develop

m ent of cha rac te r of the Wes tern ers that freedom

in its true sen se,i s not yet en joyed in Eu rope an d

Am eri a .

Mr.Herbert Spence r says : “ Only a long w ith the

gradual m ou ld ing o f un en to the soc ia l s ta te has it b e

com e poss ib l e , w i thout soc ia l d i s rupti on f or those idea s

an d feelings w h i ch ca use res i sta n ce to u nl im i ted au tho

r ity , to a ssert th em selves a nd to restr ict the au thoritv .

A t pres en t the n eed for the a uthor i ty,and for the

sen t imen t wh ich cau ses subm i s s ion to it,con tin ues to

be grea t. Wh i l e the mo st advanced na tion s v ie w i th

one an oth er it i s m an i fest that thei r m embers are f a r

too agg ress iv e to perm i t m uch weaken ing o f restra in ing

agencies by wh i ch o rder i s ma inta in ed among them .

T he unlim ited r igh t of th e m a jor ity to ru l e i s probably

lA utob ioga aphy , V ol , I , p , 4 2 2 .

G O VE R NM E N T. 19

a s ad vanced a con cepti on of f reedom a s can sa fely be

en terta i ned at presen t,i f,indeed

,even that can sal

'

elv

be en terta i ned .

‘

Af ter the Mahabha ra ta , the H i nd u sta tesm en tr ied

to preser ve a s m uch o f the old Cons ti tu tion as they

cou l d,wh i le prov id ing for the a ss im i lation of n ew

elem ents con sequent on the sl igh tly-changed cond ition s

o f l i fe .B urke truly says that the true sta tesman i s h e

who preserves what i s acqu i red and l eaves room for

futu re improvement. Thu s,though the compa rat ive

n eglec t of the eth ica l and spi r itua l cu ltu re of the H indu s

a fter the beg inn ingof theKal iyuga a ffected thei r i nd iv i dua l

f reedom, yet the

groundwork of the Cons ti tu tion being

sound,it wa s ab le to adapt i tsel f to changing c i rcum

stances , and , as the n ecess i t ies of the s i tuat ion pla in ly

d emanded , m ore h eed wa s pa i d to the con ser va tive

pr inc i ples than the progress ive ones . Bu t the spi ri t

o f the Constitu tion wa s n ever a ffected ti l l its practi ca l

d i s solut ion w ith the ad ven t of the foreigners in India .

Arrain m en ti on s w ith adm i ration th at every

Ind ian i s free L i eu tenant-Colonel Ma rk Wi lk s,

3wh il e

d i scu s s ing the pol it i calsy stem i n its prov incia l work

i ng,says :

“ Each H in du townsh i p is , and i ndeed al

w ays was , a parti cular comm un ity or petty republ ic

by i tsel f .” The whole of Ind ia

,

” h e says aga i n ,

is noth ing more than one va st conger ies of such

republ ic s .”

1 A u tob i og raph y , V ol I , p 4 4 1 .

2 S ee Ind i ca , C h . X . S ee a l so D iodora s , l ib . ll, 521 1 (ed i t ion

S ee a l so E lph instone’

s Ind ia , p . 2 3 9 .

3 H isto r i ca l S k etches o f the S outh o i I nd ia , Vol . I , p . 119 .

20 H INDU S UP ER IO R IT Y .

These fa cts do n ot seem to support the th eory thatr epresentative governm ent does no t su it the gen i u s

o f the H indu s . E ven Mr . James M i l l i s forced to adm it

that “ i n exam in ing the sp i r it o f these anci en t Con stitu

t i on s and laws , we d iscover ev i dent traces o f a germ of

rep ub l i can i sm .

” 1

As regards th e execut ive system ,P rofes sor Max

D unker says : “ T he k ing placed offi cers over every

v i l lage (ca l led pa ti ) , an d aga i n over ten or twen tv

v i l lages (gramh ) , so that these pla ces w ith the i r acreage

formed together a d i str ict. F i ve or ten such d i str icts

form ed a can ton wh i ch conta i ned a h undred commun iti es,

and over th is , in tu rn,th e k ing placed a h igher

m agistra te ; ten of these can ton s form a region w h i ch

thu s compr i sed a thousand v i l lages , an d th i s wa s adm inis

tered by a Governor . The overseers o f d i s tr i cts w er e

to have sol d iers at the i r d isposa l to m a in ta i n order

(Pol ice ) T h i s i s o f i tsel f ev i dence of an adva nced stage

o f adm i n i strat i on .

” 2

The Pol ice o f Ind ia wa s excellent. Megasth enes

says,that in th e camp o f Sand rocottu s , wh ich he est i

m ates to have contain ed m en,th e sum s stol en

d a i ly d id n ot am oun t to more than R s .

As rega rds th e strength of the representa tive in stitu

tions , S i r Cha rles Metca l fe 4 says : “ The v i l lage com

1 That the peop le too k a c t i ve i nte rest in pol i t ies is exh i b i ted by

th e i r i nst i gat ing S amhas to fly f r om A lexande r and Musicanus to

b r ea k the pea ce m ade w ith A lexa nde r .

QH istory of An t i qu i ty , V ol . IV ,p . 2 15 .

E lphinstone’

s I ndia , p . 2 4 1 . The re was no o r gan i zed Pol i ceSe r v i ce in E ngland befo r e the r e i gn of Queen Vi cto r ia .

4 R epo r t o f the Se lect C omm ittee of the H ouse of Commons,183 2 , Vol. I I I , Appendi ces , p . 3 3 .

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2 2 H IN D U surnnronrrr .

Law i s a test o f good governm en t. The greatH ind u wor k 0 11 law i s a m a rvel o f s im pl i c i ty an d

w i sdom . Wi thou t be ing compl ex,it sati sfied allthe

d iverse wan ts o f the people . I ts prov i s ion s d id not

change ev er v w eek,

an d yet th ey su i ted the va r i ed

c i rcum stances o f H indu soc i ety . S i r W'

. Jones 1 say s

T he laws o f Man u very probab l y w ere con s i derab l y

older than those o f Solon or e ven of Lycu rgu s , a l though

the p romu lgat ion of them,before they w e re reduced to

w ritin f r m igh t hav e been coeva l w i th the firs t mona rch ie sD 7

estab l i shed 111 I ‘ gypt and Ind ia .

”

The Engl i sh der ived thei r law s from the R oman s,

w ho,i n thei r tu rn

,der ived th em from G reece . D u r ing the

D ecem v i ra te,G reece seem s to h ave been indebted to Ind ia

for its laws . S i r IV. Jones says 2 Although perhaps

Manu wa s n ever in Crete,3 y et

,som e of h i s i nsti tuti on s

m ay w el l ha ve been adopted in that i sland,w hen ce

Lycurgu s a century or two a fter m ay have im ported

th em in to Spa rta .

”

The B ible in I nd ia says t hat the Man u Sm r iti w a s

the foundat i on u non w h i ch the Egyptian,the Pers ian

,

the Grec ian and the R oman Codes o f law were bu i l t,and

that the i nfluen ce of Manu was st i l l every d ay felt in

E u rope .

P rofessor Wi l son says,the H indu had “

a code of

Law s adapted to a great va r i ety of relat ions w h i ch cou l d

not have ex i sted except i n an adv anced cond iti on o f soc ial

organ i zat i on .

”

1H ough ton ’

s I nst itu tes of H i ndu L aw,P r efa ce . p . x .

2 P i e face to H ough ton ’

s Inst i tu tes of H indu L aw,p . X11.

3 T he oneness o f M ina s and Manu is h igh ly p r obable .

4 M i l l ’s I nd ia,vu . 11, 1

. 282 .

Go vnuxn icx'

r. 2 3

T he s tyl e o f it (Ma n n ) ha s a

certa in a u stere m a j esty tha t sound s l i ke the langu ag e

Coleman 1 sa v (11

o f leg i sla ti on an d extorts a re spectfu l awe . T he sen t i

m ents o f independence on allbe i ngs b u t God,a nd the

ha rsh adm i n i strat i on s even to k ings a re trulv nobl e,an d

the m any panegyri cs 0 11 the Gaya tri p rov e the au thor

to have adored that d iv i ne and i ncompa rably-grea ter

ligh t w h ich i l lum i nes all,del igh ts all

,from wh i ch all

proceed,to w h ich allmu st retu rn

,and wh i ch can a lone

i r rad iate ou r intel l e ct.”

D r . R obert son sav s : lVith respect to the numbe r

and va r ie ty of poin ts the H indu code con s i ders it w i l l

bea r a compa r i son w i th the celebra ted D igest of Ju s ti

n ian,or w ith th e system s of ju r i sprudence i n n a tions mos t

highly civil/feed . The a r ti cle s o f wh i ch the H indu code i s

composed are a r ranged in natu ra l an d lum inou s orde r .They are numerou s an d com preh en si v e , and i nves tigated

w ith tha t m i nu te attenti on and d i sce rnm en t w h ich a re

natu ra l to a people d i stingu ished for acu tenes s and subtlety

o f un der stan d in g who ha ve been long a ccu stom ed to the

a ccuracy of j ud icia l proceed i ngs , and acqua i nted w i th

allthe re fi nemen ts o f l ega l p ra cti ce . The d eci s ion s con

cern i ng every po int a re founded upon the great and

immu tabl e pri nc i pl es of j u sti ce wh i ch the h uman m ind

a ck nowl edges and respects i n every age and in allpa rts o f

the ea rth . I 'Vhoev er exam ine s the whole work cannot

enter ta in a doubt o f its conta i n ing the j u ri sprudence

o f an enl igh tened and comm erc ia l people . Whoeve r

looks i nto any pa r ti cu la r t i tl e w i l l be su rpr i sed w i th a

m i nu teness of deta i l and n icety o f d istinction w h ich,in

1 Colem an'

s Mythol ogy of the H i ndus , p . 8.

2 4 H INDU S U P ER I O R ITY.

many i nstances,seem to go beyond the a ttention of

v p ea n legisla tion ; an d it i s rema rka ble tha t som e ofthe reg u lat i ons wh i ch i nd icate the greatest degree o f

re fi nement wer e es t ab l i s hed in pe i iod s of the m ostrem ote an ti qu ity .

” l

Mr . M il l says that “the d i vis ion an d a rrangem ent of

H indu law i s rude and show s the ba rba r i sm o f the

na ti on” ; upon w h ich Professor IVilson,w i th h i s u sua l

ca ndou r , re ma rks : By th i s te st,

the a ttem p t to

cla ss i fy wou l d place the H ind u s h ighe r i n c iv i l i za t i onthan the Engl i sh .

” 2

M r . H i l l ’s rev i ew o f H indu rel i gi on and law s i s a p iece

of stu pendou s per v ers i ty , ignoran ce an d stup id ity . Pro

fesse r Wi l son speaks of it in the fol low ing term s“ T he w h ole of th i s rev i ew o f the relig ion a s w el l a s

of th e law s of the H indu s i s fu l l of ser iou s defects

a r i s ing from in v eterate p rej ud ices an d im perfe ct kn ow

l edge .

”3 O f Mi l l ’s H i story of B r i ti sh India

,Prof . Max

M u l ler say s -“ Th e book w h i ch I con s ider m ost m is

ch iev ou s , n ay , wh ich I hol d re spon s ib l e for som e of thegreates t m i s fortun es that hav e h appened in Ind ia , i s lilills

’

H i story o f In d ia,e v en w i th the an t i dote aga in st its po i son

wh i ch i s su pplied b y Pro fesso r IVilson’

s n otes .

” 4 Pro fessor

Max M u l l er d eplores that “the cand ida tes for th e

C iv i l S erv i ce of Ind ia are r ecomm ended to read it an d a re

exam in ed in it .

” 5 I ’Vhat wonder,then

,that th ere i s often

m i sunderstand ing between the ru ler s an d the ru l ed i nInd ia 1

1 D isqu i s i t i on conce i ning Ind ia ,A ppend ix

,p . 2 17

2M i l ls ’ Ind ia,V ol . I }

,pp . 2 2 4 -2 5 .

3 M i l ls ’ I nd i a,Vo l . I I

,p . 4 3 6 (Note) .

4 Ind ia wh at can it teach u s,p . 4 2 .

5Max M u l le r ’s Ind ia : Wh at can it teach us ? p . 4 2 .

Govnnxnnxr . 2 5

T0 0

a 0“ h i l e d i scu ss ing M i ll’s v i ew s,Profes so r Wi l s on

ccagai n say s Accord ing to th i s theory (M i l l ’s th eory co n

ta ined i n h is explana tion o f the cau se s o f compl exW

o

proced u i e i n the Eng l i sh cou rts o f law ) the corru ptiono f the 1udge i s th e bes t secu rity for j u sti ce . I t wou l d

be dangerou s to red uce th i s to practi ce .

” 1

1M i l l ’s Ind ia , Vol . I I , p . 5 12 .—M i l l says th at because the H i ndu s

lend mone yr on p ledges , the re fo re th ey a re ba r ba r ou s . O n th is,P r o

f GS Q O F “I ilson says Lend ing on p ledges can sca r cel y b e r ega r ded a s

lW O U E O F 3 S tate O f ba r ba r i sm,o r the m u l t i tu de of p awn—h i oke i s in

L ondon wou ld w i tness ou r be ing ve ry low in the sca le o f c i v i l i za t i on .

”

M i l l dec l a res the M oh amm edan Code to b e supe i ior to the H i ndu Cod e .

I n c i v i l b ran ch , r ep l ies I Vilson,

“ the laws of C ont i act and I nh e r i tance ,it is not so ex a ct o r comp lete a s the la tte i I ts (l\

’loha in e

(la n) S p i r i t o f ba rba r ous r e ta l ia t i on is un k nown to the H i ndu C ode .

”

M i l l th i n k s tha t pe i jury is a v i r tue nero i d ing to the H indu Code . B a t

“7 113 0 11 clea ily p i ores tha t th is is a c rea t ion of M i l l ’s d isea sed imag ina t i on .

I t is f u r the r ob jected th at the un ce r ta in t ies of the H indu law m e

v e ry g rea t. P r of . IVilson (E s says , V ol . I I I , pag e 5 th ) I 'Cnimli S I I f

the u nce r ta int ies of the E ngl ish law a re les s pe i plex ing th an th ose o fthe H i nd u law

,we dou bt i f its d ela i s a re not som eth ing m o i e interm in

a ble . A l ong t ime e lapses befo r e a cau se com es fo r d ec i s i on a nd a bu n

d a nt O ppO i tun ity is tli e rc fo i e a ffo rded fo r the trallic o f und e i ha nd

n egoti a t i ons .i ntrigues a nd co ri uption . I t is n eed le s s to c i te in stances

to p r ove the consequence o r to m a k e anv ii id ix id ualappl i ca t i on pu b l i cevents h av e rend e i ed the fac t n oto r i ou s I t can sc a r ce l y be

B ut he r etu r ns to the cha r ge a nd says They s ay th at P a i id i ts d on’

t

ag r ee in the d i sch a r ge o f H i ndu law. B ut see in the case o f V i i a

perm a l i P illav versus Na t a in P lllflV ,

the O p in i on of the two E ng l i s h p idg e s .

T he C h ief J ust i ce o f Beng a l d ecla i es th a t a dec i s i on p i o uouneed a nd

sh’

IQ

5 t (J‘

l‘

e I; I b‘

lll

T he (‘

h ie f

a

th ose b y wh om it m ay b e fol l owed , a nd th a t the d oet i inc

c a tes is cont ra rv to law .

” P r ofes s o r W' i lson aga i n say s

t

i f heJ usti ce of Benga l says th at he wou ld connn e a t mi n im a l ac ts

t ough t th ey led to u sefu l r es ul ts .

”

26 H INDU S UP ER I O R IT Y .

An em i nent author i ty,the late Ch ief J u sti ce o f

Mad ra s,S i r Thoma s S tra nge

,says of th e Hindu L aw of

Ev i den ce : “ I t w i l l be read by every Engl i sh lawyer w ith

a m i xtu reof adm i rati on and del ight,a s it m ay be stud i ed

by him to a dv an tage .

’

A w r ite r in the As iati c Jou rna l (p . 14 ) says Al l

the requ i s ite shades o f ca re and d i l igen ce,the corre s

pond ing shades of negl igence and de fa u lt a re ca refully

observ ed i n the H ind u law of ba i lm en t,a n d nei ther in

the j u r i sp rudence nor in th e lega l trea ti ses of the m ost

c iv i l i sed S tates of Europe a re th ey to be foun d m ore

logi ca l l y expressed or m ore accu rately defin ed . I n the

sp i r i t of Pyrrhu s ’ ob servati on on the R oman legion s , on e

cannot ref ra i n f rom ex cla im i ng , I see n oth ing ba rba rou s

in the j u r i s prudence of the H i ndus .

”

O f the Comm en ta ry o f Callu ca on M anu,S i r

IV. Jon es says “ I t i s the shortes t v et the m os t l um inou s ;the l ea st ostentat iou s yet the m ost l ea rned the deepe st.

yet the most a greea ble commen ta ry erer composed on

a u thor a ncien t or modern,E urop ea n or A sta na ”

1 P i etaee to H ough ton ’

s Inst itutes of H indu L aw,p

. 18 .

socm r. S YS T EM . 2 7

I I I — SOCIAL SY STEM .

H a i l,soc ia l l i fe 3 i nto thy p leas i ng bound s

A ga i n I come to pay the comm on stockMy sha re o f sei v ic e , a nd , in glad i cturn

To ta s te thy com fo r ts , thy p i o tec ted Joys .

T noarsox : Agummnnou .

T H E H indu s perfec ted soc iety . The socia l organ iza ti ono f the peop le wa s ba sed on sc i ent ific p rin ci ples

,a n d

wa s w el l ca l cula ted to en su re progres s w i thout pa rty

str i fe . There wa s no a ccum u la tion of w ealth i n one

por tion of the comm un i ty , l eav i ng the other por ti onin dest itute poverty ; no soc ia l forces stimu la t i ng the

in crea se of the wea lth of the one and the poverty o f

the other,as i s the tendency o f the m odern c iv i l i za ti on .

T he keyn ote of the sy stem,how ev e r

,wa s n a tion al

serv ice. I t a fforded to every m em ber of the soc ia l

b ody,opportun iti e s and m ean s to develop fu l l y h i s

power s an d capac iti e s and to u se them for th e advance

m ent of the common w ea l . Everyon e wa s to se rve thenati on in the sph ere in wh i ch li e wa s best fitted to

ac t,wh i ch , being congen ia l to h i s ind i v i d ua l gen i u s , w as

condu c ive to the h ighest devel opm en t of h i s fa cu l ti e s

and pow er s .

T here wa s th u s a w ise an d sta tesmanl ike clas s i fi ca

t i on w h i ch procu red a gen era l d i stributi on of wea l th

expel l e d m i sery and wa n t from the lan d,p rom oted

m en ta l and m ora l progress,en su red n a tiona l e ffi c i en cy

,

and,above all

,m ade tran q u i l l i ty compa ti bl e w i th a d

vancem ent ; i n one word , d ropped manna allround

28 H INDU S UP ER IO R IT Y .

and made l i fe doubly sweet by secu r ing ex terna l peace

w ith n ationa l effici ency and socia l happ ines s— a cond i

t i on o f a ffa i rs nowhere el se so ful ly rea l i z ed .

Th i s cla ssification— th i s p r inc ipl e of socia l organ i za

t ion— wa s the V0 m as/tra iner. Mank ind w e i e d iv i ded

in to two cla sses , (I ) the A rya s and (2 ) the Da syu s,or

the c i v i l i zed an d the savage . The Ar va s w ere sub

d iv i ded into

1 . B rahmana s,who devoted th em selves to l earn i n g

an d a cqu i t ing w i sdom and fol low i ng the

l ibera l a rts and sc i ences .

K sha tr iya s,who devote d th em selve s to the th eory

an d pra ct i ce of war,an d to w hom th e

execu tive Governmen t of the people w a s

entru sted .

3 . Vaishya s, w ho devoted th em se lves to trade and

the profess ions .

4 . S udra s (m en of low capac i ti es) , who served an d

helped the other three cla sses .

Th i s c lass ificati on i s a neces sa ry one i n allciv i

liz ed coun tr ie s i n som e form or other . I t wa s the glory

o f anc ien t A ryav arta that th i s cla ss ificat i on ex i s ted

there i n i ts perfect form an d wa s ba sed on sc i en t ific

p r i n c iples— 0 11 th e pr i nci pl e of h ered ity (wh i ch ha s n ot

yet been fu l ly apprec iated by Eu ropean thinkersl the

con sei v ation of en ergy,economy of labou r

,faci l i ty

o f development, and specia l i zat i on of facult i es . L itera rym en

, sold i ers , d octors , la ,wyers cl ergym en

,traders

,and

servants are to be fou nd i n England,F rance

,Am erica

,

an d in every other c iv i l i z ed coun try of m odern t imes,

a s they were i n Anc ient Ind ia . The only d i fferen ce

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3 0 H INDU S UP ER IO R ITY .

“ There are no d i st i nc tion s o f ca ste . Th u s , a world

w h ich , a s created by Brahma,wa s at fi rst enti r ely B rah

in an i e has b ecome d iv ided i n to cla sses , i n con sequence

of m en ’s act ions

I n h i s paper on “ San sk r it a s a L iv ing Lan g

nage in India , read before the In terna tiona l Congress

o f O ri en tali sts at B erl i n,on the 14 th Septem ber

188 1 , Mr . S hv am j i Kr ishna v arma sa i d We read

in the A itareya B rahman a (i i . 3 . for exampl e,

that Kav asha Ailu sh a , who wa s a S ud ra and son of a

low w oman,w a s greatly respected for h i s l i tera ry

atta i nm ents , an d adm i tted in to the cla s s of R i sh i s .

Perhaps th e m ost rema rkab l e featu re of h i s l i fe i s tha th e

,S udra as h e was , d i stingu i sh ed h im se l f a s the R isli i

of som e of the hymn s of the R ig-Veda (R ig , X . 3 0

I t is d i stin ctly stated in the Chandogyopan ishad tha tJabala , who i s otherw i se ca l l ed Sa tya -Kama

,had no

gotra,or fam i l y n am e w hate v er (Clian-U pa , I V. 4 )

allthat we know about h i s pa rentage i s that h e wa s the

son of a w oman nam ed J abala, an d that h e is ca l led a fte r

h i s moth er . Though born of unknown parents,Jabala

is sa id to have been th e foun der of a school of the Ya j u r

Veda .Even in the Apa stamb a-Sfitra (i i . 5-10 ) and the

Manu sm riti (x . we fin d tha t a Sudra can becom e a

B rahman and a B rahman can becom e a Sudra,a ccord

ing to th ei r good or b ad deeds , Pan i ni m en ti on s the

nam e of a celeb ra ted gramm a r ian ca l le d Cakrav armana i n

th e s ixth chap ter of h i s A sh tad hyay i (p . v i . 1 . now

Cakrav armana was a K shatriya by b i rth,s in ce he ha s

the prescr ibed K shatriya term i nat ion at the end of h is

name,wh i ch i s a patronym i c of Cakrav ar inana .

”

S O C IA L sr s'

rlcn . 231

Who were Vis vam itr t a nd l'

alm ilci b u t Sud ra s .

E ven so l ate a s the tim e o f the G reek in v a s ion o f Ind ia,the

caste system ha d not becom e pe tr ified i n to its pre sen ts ta te . T he G re eks describe four ca s tes . Mag e s thc ne s

says tha t a H indu of any ca s te may becom e a Soph i s t(B rahman ) Arr iam cou nts seven cla s ses : Soph is ts

,

agr icu l tu r i s ts,he rd sm en

,h an d ic ra f ts an d ar tiz en s

,wa r

r i ors,i n spectors an d cou nc i l lors . (S ee S trabo

,L i b

XV . )Colon el. Tod says In th e ea rl y ages o f these Sola r

an d L una r dyna st i es,the pr i es tly o ffice w as no t h ere

d itary in fam ili es it wa s a pro fe ss ion,a nd the genea log ie s

exh i b i t frequ en t i n s tances o f b ra nche s of th e s e ra ce s

term i nating the i r m a rtia l ca ree r in the comm encem en t

o f a rel igi ou s sect or “

gotra”

and o f th eir d ecend an ts

rea ssum i ng th ei r wa rl i ke occupa ti on s .

There wa s no he red ita ry ca ste . T he peopl e

en jo y ed the ad van tages o f h ered i ta ry gen i u s w i th ou t the

ser iou s d rawbacks of a r igid sy s tem of ca s te ba sed on

b i rth

T he o ne great obj ect wh i ch the prom oters o f the

h ered i ta ry system seem to have ha d in v i ew was to

secu re to ea ch cla ss a h igh de g ree o f effi c i ency in its ow n

sph ere.

” “ Hered i ta ry gen i u s ” i s now a subj ec t o f

s er iou s enqu i ry am ongst the en l igh ten ed m en o f Eu rope

an d Amer ica,and the evolu t ion theory a s appl ied to

soc i ol ogy,w h en fu l ly worked ou t

,w i l l fu l l y sh ow the

1 M anusm i iti,11. V6 say s A s l i be r a l i ty tn a tool is l

'

i u itless ,

so is a B r ahman use less i f he lead not the H oly Tex ts : o r aga i n ,h e

i s no bette r than an eleph ant m ade o f wood o r a n a nte l ope made of'

lcather.

”

3 9 H I NDU surnmonrrr .

m er i ts of the system . I n fac t the Ind ia o f the t im e of

Man n w il l appear to h a v e rea ch ed a stage o f c i v i l i zat i on

of wh i ch the bri l l ian t “ modern European c rvd iz ation”

only gi v es u s glim pses .

E ven the sy s tem i n its present form has not b een

a n u nm i ti ga ted ev i l . I t ha s been the grea t conservat ive

P r illCllfle of the con sti tu tion of H indu soc iety , though

tn' ig inally it wa s a con ser va t ive a s w el l a s a progre s s i ve

one . I t i s th i s pr in c ipl e o f the H ind u soc ia l con st i tuti on

w h i ch ha s enab led th e nat ion to su sta i n , w i thou t be i ng

sha taered to p ieces , the trem endou s shocks giv en by the

n um erou s pol i ti ca l convu l s ion s an d rel igiou s uph ea v a l s

th a t ha v e occu rred d u r ing the la st thousand yea rs . Th e

s y stem o f ca s te ,”sav s S i r Henry Cotton , f ar f rom be ing

the sou rce o f alltroub l es w h ich can be tra ced in H ind u

soci ety, has rendered mos t importan t serv ice in the pa s t,

and s ti l l con tinu es to s usta in order an d sol ida r ity .

”

As rega rd s its impor tan ce from a E u ropean poi nt

o f v iew ,Mr

.S idn ey Low in h i s recen t book , A Vis ion of

[ml/fa ,say s —“ T here i s no doub t tha t i t i s the m a i n

ca u s e o f the f undam en ta l s tab i l i ty a nd con ten tm en t by

w h i ch In di an soc iety h a s b een bra ce d for cen tu r ie s

aga inst the shock s of pol i tics an d the c ataclv sm s o f

Natu re . I t prov ides every m an w i th h i s pl ace , h i s

c a reer,h i s occupation ,

h is ci rcle o f. fr iends . I t m ake s

h im ,a t the ou tse t, a m ember of a corpora te bod y ; it

p rotec ts h im th rough l i fe from th e canker o f soc i al

je al ou sy a n d u n fu lfil led a spi r ati on s ; it en s u res h im

com pan i on sh i p and a sen se o f commun i ty w ith oth ers

in l ike ca se w i th h im se l f . T he c a ste org an i za ti on i s to

the H ind u h is c l ub,h i s trade-u n i on , h is ben efit soci ety ,

h is ph il an th ropi c soc iety.There are no work -hou se s

S oc nu x S Y S T EM. 3 3

in Ind ia,and none are a s yet needed . T he obl i ga ti on

to prov ide for k in s folk a nd f r i end s in d i s tres s i s un i

v ersally acknowl edged ; no r ca n it be q ues ti oned th at th i s

i s due to th e recogn i tion o f the s trength o f fam i ly ties

and of the bond s crea ted by a ssoc ia ti on s and common

pu rsu i ts wh ich i s fostered by the ca s te pri nc i pl e . An

Ind ia w i thou t cas te , a s th ings s tand a t presen t,it is not

q u i te ea sy to imagi ne .

"

3 4 H I NDU surentont'

rr .

IV.

-CH AR ACTER .

T o th ri c e who k now th ee not,no wo rd s can pa int.

A nd th ose who k now thee , k now allwo rd s a re fa i nt .

—H A N . M O R E : S en sib ility .

T un happy resu l ts of g ov er nment depen d ch ie fly upon .

the ch a racte r of the p eople . And Wh at na ti on , an c i en t

o r m odern,

can show su ch h igh cha racter a s th at

ol'

the anci en t H indu s ? Th ei r generosi ty , s impl i ci ty ,

h o ne sty,tru th fulness , cou rage , refinem en t. an d gent

lenes s

a re prov erb ia l . I n fact, the elem en ts so m ixed in th em

tha t na tu re m igh t sta nd up and say to allthe world" These were m en .

The fi rs t an d h ighest v i r tue i n m an i s truth fuln es s .

A S Cha ucer saysT t uth i s the h igh e st th ing th at man m ay k eep .

F rom the ea rl i es t t im es,th e Hi nd us ha ve a lways b een

pra i s ed b y m en of allcoun tr i es an d c reed s for the i r

tru th ful ne s s .

S tr abo sa v s They are so h on est as nei ther to

requ i re lo cks to the i r doors n or w r i tings to b ind th e i r

agreem en ts .

” l

A rria n (in the second century ) , th e pupi l o f

l‘ipic te tu s ,sa y s th at

“no Ind ian wa s eve r known to

te l l anTh i s

,m ak ing a d ue a l l ow an ce for

exa gge ra tio n ,is n o m ean pra i s e .

llio ven t'

b sang ,the m o s t fam ou s of the Ch ine s e

traw lle rs , sa v s : " T he lud ian s are d i s tingu i sh e d b v

lS t ra b o ,li ib p 4 8 3 (ed

I n lli ‘

n,l

’

ap x n,(1 S ee a l s o Mr t

‘

rindle in ‘lmlian A nti pnn y ,

Q

i s7 0 . p as .

c na ua c r sn. K5

the. s tra igli tforwa rd nes s a nd honesty o f th e i r c ha rac te rrega rd to r ic he s

, the y neve r take a ny th i ngu nj ustly ; w i th rega rd to JtlSllc c , they make M e n

exce s s i ve conce ss i on s s tt'

a ig‘

h tfo rwa rd ncss is

the lead ing fea tu re o f the i r

Kh ang-tha i , the (‘

h ine se a tnba sm do r to S iam,says

that S u a re la ti ve o f F auc hon ,k ing o f S iam

,

w ho came to Ind ia a bou t Ziil o n h is re tu rnreported to the k ing tha t “

the Ind ia ns a re s tra igh tforwa rd a nd honest .

“

“ I n the fou rth cen tu r y,F ria r .lo rdanus te l l s us

th a t the people o f Ind ia are true i n spe cclr and em inenti n j u s ti ce .” d

Fe i-tu,the ambassador of the Ch i nese Em peror

Y angti to Ind ia in (505 among o ther th ingspoin ts ou t a s pecul ia r to the H indu s tha t the v be l ie vei n solemn

Idr i s i,in h is Geog raphy (w r i tten in the 11th

c en tu ry ) , says : “ The. lnd ian s a re n atu ra l l y i ncl ined

to j u sti ce,and ne v er depa rt f rom it in the i r ac ti ons .

The i r good fa i th , hones ty a nd fidel i ty to the i r engag e

m en ts a re wel l known ,and they a re so famou s for these

q ua l i ti es that peopl e flock to the i r coun try from every

I n the th i rteen th cen tu ry,Sham s-nd-d in A bu

Abd u l la h quote s the fol low ing j udgmen t o f licd i-exr

Zeman

lVol. ll. p . 8 13 .

z hla x M u l le r ’s lnd ia : ca n it tea ch u s. p . 55 .

"Ma rco P ole . t'tl. ll. Y tllc

,Vol. ll. 3 .5 L

“Ma x M u l le r ’ s I nd ia : wha t c an i t i-P llt 'llus ’ p . 2 75 .

5 E l l io t ’

s H isto r y of lnd ia ,Vol. I , p . 8 8 .

3 6 H INDU se rmu omr r .

The Ind ians are innume a ble , l ike gra i n s of sand ,

free from dece it and v iolence . They fea r ne ither death

nor l i fe .

” l

Ma rco Polo (th i rteen th centu ry) says You mu st

know tha t these Bralnn in s are th e b est'

merchan ts'

,

in the world and the most truth fu l,for they would

n ot tel l a l ie for anyth ing on ea rth .

”

Kam a l-ud -d in Thd -erra z ak S amarkan d i (14 13

who w ent a s ambas sador of the K hakan to the prince

o f Ca l i cut and to the k ing of Vi dyanaga r (14 4 0

bear s testimony to“the perfect secu r ity wh ich mer

chants enjoy in that coun try .

” 3

Abu l Fa za l says : “ The H indu s a re adm i rers o f

tru th an d o f unbounded fi del ity i n allth ei r deal ings .”

S i r Joh n Ma l colm says : “ Th ei r truth is a s re

ma rkab l e a s the i r cou rage .

” 5

Colon el S leeman,who had better an d m ore n tun er

ou s oppor tu n iti es o f know in g the H ind u ch a ra c ter thanmost Eu ropean s

,a ssu re s u s “

that fa l sehood or ly ing

between m em bers o f the sam e v i l lage i s a lmost nu

t

k now n .

” He adds,

“ I ha ve had be fore m e h un dred s

o f ca ses in w h i ch a m an’s property

,l ib erty and l i fe ha s

depend ed upon h is te l l ing a l i e and he ha s re fu sed to tel l

it.” Cou ld m any an Engl i sh J udge

,

”a sk s P rofesso r

Ma x M u ll e r,

“say the

i s the pi vot on w h i ch the whol e s tory ofllamaya na , the book wh i ch ev en now exerc i s es the grea test

llnd ia c a n it te a c h ns? p

M a r c o l 'olo , ed . l l . Y u l e,Vol ll

, P 3 50 .

"Nola-e s d e~Ma nuseltts tom X I V,p

.

4 Tod ’

s lta j a s tlia n , Vol1,p (34 3 .

llts to ry o f I nd i a,VolI

,p

Mu l le r’

s lnd ia Wha t ca n it. teach us? p . 50 .

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3 8 11mm: s t'

r i-zm o ul'

rv .

A sia t i cs,sobe r and i nd u s tr iou s , good f armcrs and sk i l fu l

a rtiz an s,they sca rce l y e v er had recou rse to a law s u i t

,

1nd l i v ed peaceab ly under thei r na ti v e ch ie fs . ”

Tha t a cu te obse rve r,the h i s toria n Abu l Fa za l

,says :

T he llind us are rel igious , a ffable , cou rteou s to strangers ,chee r fu l

,enamou red o f know l edge

,lovers o f

‘

j u stice , ablein bu s i nes s

,gra te fu l

,adm i rers of tru th

,and of unboun d

ed fide l i ty in allth e i r (1 Colonel D ixon d i late s

u pon “the i r f i del i ty

,tru th fu lness

,honesty

,the i r deter

m i ned va lou r,thei r s imple loya l ty

,an d an ex trem e and

tlmost touch i ng d ev oti on w hen p u t upon thei r 7

The In d ian s,

" says N e ib uhr,

“are rea l ly the most

tole ran t na tion in the world . He a l so says tha t th ey a re

gen tl e,v i r tuou s

,labori ous

,and that

,perhaps of allm en

,

they a re the ones who seek to i nj u re the i r fel low-be ings

the l ea st .

T he h igh cha racter,the noble s elf-sacr i fi ce , the u n

bounded love o f a H ind u fo r th ose who are n ea r and

d ea r to h im a re wel l i l lu stra ted b y the refu sa l of Y udh is

th i ra to a ccept sa l v a t ion,w h i le h i s w i fe and brothers

w ere outs i de Heaven . The Mahabha ra ta says“ Lo

,sudden ly

,w i th a sound tha t ra n th ro ugh

h eaven a nd ea rth,Ind ra cam e r id ing on h i s c ha r i ot an d

c ri ed to the k ing,Ascend .

’ Then i ndeed d i d Y udh is

th i ra look back to h i s fa l l en brothers and spoke th u su n to Ind ra w i th a sorrow fu l h ea rt Let my brothe r s

,

w ho yonder lie fa l len,go w i th m e . N o t even into th y

h ea v en,O Ind ra

,wou l d I en te r

,i f they are no t to be

Tod '

s lla jnstlu tlt , Vol. 1 , p . filo} .

2 Colone l llixo n was Comm is s ione r o f A jmei Merwa ra abou t 12550 Ad ) .

e i ia ua c'

i’

icic. .

‘

tt t

th ere ; a nd vo n da ug i ter o f a k i ng , D I’

J tlptltll,the all- deser v i ng , let h e r too e n te r w i th u s l.

"

S i r Mo i i ier Wi l l iam s says “ N a tivc w neve rw il l i ngly de s troy l i fe . T he v cannot e n te r i n to tlll

t

.

g o

o

lui igli s hman s d es i i c f t) ! ven t ing h i s h igh sp i r i ts o n a

fi ne. day by k illin <r mime o f some k ii id l i v e a nd le t13 D

t Q o 0 0 0l i ve i s th e i r rule o f cond uc t tow ard s the i n fe r ior c rea tion .

"

n“ The v i l l age rs,

says M r . l‘ilph in s to ne,

“a re in

o ff en s ive,am ia b l e people , a ffec t i ona te to th e i r fam i ly

,

k ind to the i r neighbou rs a nd towa rds allb u t Gove rnmen t ,hones t an d s i ncere .

”

I n 18 1 3 when e v i dence wa s gi v en be fore th e

i ritis h I’a rlimn ent

,

".\I r. M e rcer sa i d : T he v (H i nd us )

a re m i l d in the i r d i spos i tion , pol ish ed in thei r g e ne ra l

m ann ers ; i n the i r d omestic rela t i on s , ki nd a nd a ffe ct ion

ate .

"

Capta i n Syd enham sa i d :“ The g enera l c ha ra cte r

of the H indus i s s ubm i ss ive,doc i le , sobe r , i no ffe n s ive ,

capab le o f g rea t a ttac hmen t a n d lo y a l ty , q u ick in a ppro

ll‘

enerally hones t a nd pe rformhc n s ion,i n tel l igent

,a cti v e ;

ing the du ti e s of cha r i ty , benevolenc e a nd f i l ia l a ffe ction

w i th as m uch s inceri ty a nd regu la ri ty a s a ny na ti on

w i th wh i ch I am a c q ua in ted .

Abbe Duboi s says T he H i nd u s a re no t in wa n t o f

improvem en t in the d ischa rge o f socia l du ti es amongs t

themselve s . They unde rs ta nd th i s poi n t a s We l l a s

v q ,

and p erha ps bet/er tha n. lmm pea n s .

S i r J oh n Ma l colm sa i d :" F rom the momen t you

en ter leha r, the H ind u i nhab i tan ts are a ra ce o f men ,

lMo d e rn Ind ia a nd the I nd i an s. p 3 3 .

f lillph i i i s tone’

s llis to ry of lnd ia , p . 1 9 9 .

Ilistorv of I nd ia , V o l . l. , p .

-lO H IN DU se r ica i oarrr .

genera lly speaking,not m ore d i stingu i sh ed by thei r lofty

s t atu re and robu s t fram e , than they a re fo r som e of thefi nes t. (p ialities of the m i nd— they a re brave , g enerou s

,

h uman e,an d the i r tru th i s a s rem arkabl e a s th e i r

cou rage . A t a subsequent exam inati on , h e sa id , w ith

resliect to the feel ing o f h onour : “ I ha v e known ia

numerabl e i nstan ce o f its b eing ca rr ied to a p itch th at

woul d be co nsidered in Eng land m ore fi t for the page of aroman ce than a h is tory . \Vi th rega rd to th eir fidel ity

,

I th ink , a s f a r a s my know l edge ex tend s,there is ,

general ly speak i ng , 720 ra ce of men. more to be trusted .

”

S i r Thom a s M un ro w hen asked i f h e though t the

c i v i l i za ti on o f the H indu s wou ld be p romoted by trad e

n i th E ngla i'

id being th rown open,repl i ed : “ I do n ot

actly un derstand w hat i s m ean t b y the ‘c iv i l i zat i on ’

o f the H indu s . I n the knowl edge of the theorv a nd

practi ce o f good governm ent, and in an ed uca ti on wh i ch,

by ban i sh ing prej ud ice and supersti ti on,opens the m i nd.

to rece ive in structi on of eve ry kind , they a re i n fer ior toEu ropeans . But i f a good system of agri cu lture

,un r i

x alled m an u factu r ing sk i ll , a capac i ty to produce w ha t

e ver can con tr ibu te to e i ther l uxu ry or conven i ence,

seliools ‘ establ i s hed i n e very v i l lage for teach i ngrea di ng

,w r i ting and a r i thm eti c

,the gen era l p rae

ti ce o f hospi tal i ty and cha r i ty amongs t each othe r“ I n Benga l the r e e x is ted na t i ve school s

,th oug h dou b tless

f o r the mos t pa r t ola poolqu a l i ty . A c eo i d ii ig to a G ove r nm en t Itepo i t

t il 13 117) th e r e w as a V i l l age s ch ool for eve ry lllllpe rs ons .

p .

S ir Thom as M u n r o e s t ima ted the ch i ld r e n educ ated a t pu bl i c s ch ool sin the Mad ra s I ' i'esiile iu-y a s II ' N S th a n o ne in tli i e c

/ / i iv h ny/ uj lu fliu p . 23 0 5 ,

-ll

ind , above all,

a trea tmen t o f the fema le s ex,fu l l o f

confidence , respec t and d e l i ca c y,a re amo ng the s ig ns

w h ich deno te a c iv i l i zed people,then the H ind u s a re no t.

i n ferior to the n atio n s of l‘ii i ro pe , and {f e it ‘ i/i : a tiu n is I »

become a n a r ticle of tro t/e the two co untries,

am ee nr inee/ i tha t th is coun try (E ngla nd ) willg a in bythe import ca rgo .

”

Professor Max M i iller ' sa y s D u r ing the lasttwen ty yea rs , however , I ha ve had some exce l len t oppo rtun ities of watch i ng a n umber of na tive sc hola rs und e r

c i rcums tances where it is not d i ffi cu l t to de tect a man’

s

true cha rac ter,I m ean in literarv work , and , more part i

cularly , i n l i tera ry con troversy . I h av e wa tched themca rry i ng on such con troversi es both among the i riselves

and w i th certa i n Eu ropean schola rs,and I feel bound to

say that, with ha rdly one a ccep t/on they ha re d isplayed

a f ar grea ter respect f or truth, a nd a fa r more ma nly a nd

generous sp ir it tha n we a re a ccus tomed to eren in E u rope

a nd Amer ica . They have shown s trength,b u t no rude

n ess ; nay , I know that noth ing has su rpri sed them a s

much a s the coars e i n vec ti ve to wh i ch cer ta i n Sansk r i tschola rs ha ve condes cended

,ru dene s s o f s peech be i ng

,

a ccord ing to the i r v i ew o f h uman na tu re . a sa fe s ign no t

only o f bad b reed ing b u to f w an t o f knowledge . Wh en the vw ere w rong they ha ve read ily adm i tted thei r in is takt

when they w ere r igh t they have never sneere d a t thei r

E uropean adversa r ies . The re has been,w i th few excep

f r no un tru th fu l{N 1

t ions,no qu i bbl ing

,no spec ia l plead iu

n es s on th ei r pa rt,and cer ta i nl y none o f tha t low c uu .

n ing of the sch ola r who w rites d o wn a nd publ i she s w ha t

lI nd ia can i t teach u s?

p . C

4 2 11111111'

sr r na mT r .

h e know s perfectly w el l to be fa l se,and snaps h i s

fingers a t those who st i l l va l ue truth and sel f-respect more

h ighly than v i ctory or applau se a t any pr i ce . Here,too

,

we m i g h t poss ibly ga in by the import ca rgo .

Let m e add th a t I have been repeatedly told by

Engl i sh m erchan ts that comm erc ia l h onou r stands h igher

in Ind ia than in any other coun try,and that a d i s

honou red b i l l i s ha rdly known there .

”

The fi rst Go v ernor-Genera l of Ind ia,W

'

a rren Ha st

i n g s,sa i d : “ The H i ndu s are gentl e

,benevolen t

,m ore

su s ceptib leof gra ti tude for k indn es s sh ow n to them,than

p 1o 1n pteclto vengeanee for w rongs in fl i cted , and a s exemptf rom the wo rst propen s iti e s of h uman pa ss i on a s any

peopl e upon the face of the ea rth . They a re fa i th fu l,

"

i ff ec tio11a te,

”etc . (Min u tes of ev i den ce be fore the Com

m ittee o f both Hou ses of Pa rl iam ent,Ma rch and

111111 1s 13 .)‘1’

B i s hop H elJer sa i d To sav that the H in dus a re

defi c ien t in any essen tia l fea tu re of a c i v i l i zed peopl e i s

an a sser t i on w h i ch I can sca rcely suppose to be made b y

1111'

w ho h a v e l i v ed w i th tl1em .

”1 Aga in ,

“th ey a re

d e c ided ly b v n a tu re a m i ld,plea s i ng

,in te l l igen t ra ce ,

so be r and pa rs imon i ou s , and , where an obj ect i s h eld o u t

to them,111o s t ind u < triou s an d persev ering

z. T hev

a re m e n o f h i g h a nd ga l lan t cou rag e , cou rteou s , in telli

g e n t , a n dm o s t eage r for knowledge and impro vem en t,w ith

‘

1 rem a rk able apti tude for the abs tra ct sci ences,geome tr y

,

a s tro nm nv ,e tc . a nd for im i ta ti ve a rts

, pa intin1 r a n d scu l p

tu re ° du ti fu l towa rd s thc i1 pa rt 11ts . : 1fle ( ti1111 ate to c h il lt r1 .,

m o re e a s ilv all-

et tcd by k ind nes s and a ttenti on to th eir

wa n ts a nd fee l i ng s tha n a lm o s t a ny m en I l1a 1 e 111c t 11 ith .

’ 7

l l, p .

i

ll'ltl, lv. .123 .

3 “dd, 11. lili

'J .

ena na cr nn. 3

A 1ra i 11,“ l have found in l ud in a ra c e o f gen tle a nd

tempera te hab i ts , w i th a na tu ra l ta len t a nd a cu tene s s

beyond the ord i na ry leve l o f mank ind .

"

O f the labo u re rs a n dworkmen in the'

al1-u tt am i nt in

Ind ia , Profes sor Wi l son sa vs : The re.

sk i l l and ready do c i l i ty ”S o fwu f 1om tl1e 1e b e i11g an y s 1 1 1 i

lity th e re was e x tlem e fr: inkne ss,a n ll s hou l d s a y tha t

w he re tlieie isco nfid i nce 11 itho nt fe a r. f 1a nkne s s 1s o ne o f

the mo s t 111111 0 1 s alfe atu re s i n the ind i z111 1-:h 11 :M e n In

m en o f lea rn ing I foun d s im i la r 1111 ri1s olind us t 1 1 , i 11l1 i l i

gen ce , cheerful nes s , f 1anknc s s . A ve ry c ommo n c ha ra c te ris tic o f H indu s espec ia l ly w as s im pl ic i t y . trulv c h i ld i s ha nd a tota l 1-111ac1pta in tance w i th bu s ine ss a nd m a nne rs o f

l i fe w here th i s featu re wa s lost 1 it wa s ch ie flv b v thos ew ho had been long fam i l ia r w i th Eu ropea n s . The re can

be no doubt tha t the na t i ve m i nd ou ts tr ips i n ea rlv v ea rs,

the i n tel l ect o f the I‘lu ro pcan s a nd,gene ra ll y s peaking .

boy s are m uch more q u i ck i n apprehen s i on a nd ea rne s t

in appl i ca ti on than those of ou r own schools . Me n o f

property and respectab i l i ty a ffor ded me. m any o ppo r

tun ities of w itnes s ing pol i shed manners,c l ea rness and

com prehens iveness o f unde rs tand ing , l ibera l i ty o f f e elin" ,

a nd i ndependence of pri ncipl e th a t wou ld ha ve s t amped

them gentlemen i n au v country in the world

H ind u ch i ld ren are more qu i ck and i n tell igen t than

Eu ropean .

“ T he capac i ty o f lads o f a nd 13 a re

often su rpr i s ing .

”

"I'he l onge r we possess a pro 1 incc , the 1mm 1 111111111111 a nd g rm c

does pe r ju ry become .— S i r G . Campbe l l , quoted by S . J ohnson , O rien

talRel ig i ons , I nd ia ,p . 288 .

2 M i l l ’s H isto rv of Ind ia , Vol . I. pp , 53 0-3 2

4 -1 n i xe t'

sr rnmom'

rr .

S i r Thomas Munro,Merce r an d others

,quoted above

,

says Profe s sor “f i l son,were “ m en

,equa l ly em i nen t

i n w i sdom as i n s tation,rema rkable for the ex ten t o f

the i r O pportun i tie s of observa ti on and the abi l i ty and

1lili1 1ence 11 ith 11 h ich th ey u sed th em,d i stingu i sh ed for

posses s i ng,by th ei r knowl edge of the language an d the

l i tera tu re o f the country,and by thei r habi ts of int imacy

w i th the na tives,the best

,the on ly m eans o f j udgin e o f

the na ti ve cha racter,and unequa l led for the soun dness

o f thei r j udgmen t and compreh ens iv eness of the i r v i ew s .

” 1

Professor Mon ier Wi l l iam s? says : “ I have found no

people in Europe more rel ig iou s,none more pati ently

perse v er ing in common d u ties .”

Mr. Elph in stone says 3 “ I f we com pa re th em

(Hind u s) w ith our own (Engl i sh people), the absenceo f d runkenness and of immodesty i n the i r oth er v i ces ,w il l l eave the super ior i ty i n pu r i ty of mann ers 0 11 the

s id e l east fla tteri ng to ou r sel f-esteem . He add s , No

set of people among the H ind u s are so deprave d a s th e

d regs of ou r own g rea t towns .” 4

1.\li l l ’s H isto ry o f Ind ia ,

V ol . I , p . 52 3 .

Mo de r n I nd ia a nd the I nd ians, pp . 88 and 198 .

lli s to ry of Ind i a ,p . 20 2 .

4 lilphinstone’

s H isto ry of I nd i a , pp . 3 7 5-8 1 . T he pe r centage ofc rinnnals 111 I nd i a is l owe r th an in England .

“ Ily a se r ies o f r epo r ts

l a id be fo r e the H ou se of Commons in 18 3 2 (M inu tes of E v id ence No . 4 .

page 10 3 ) it appea 1s th at in an ave r age of four yea rs the numbe r o f cap i ta ls ente ne e s e a rried i nto elf ec t annua l ly in E ngla nd and is as 1 fo r

2114 ] souls , a nd in the p r ov i nces unde r the lengalP res idency I fo rI f1 11 llfO

,in E ng la nd I fo r a nd in

I‘

11 1 fo r '

lb e a nnua l nun1b e 1 of sentences to dea th in

wa s in l‘a-nga l T he popu l a t i on o f E ngla nd islln,

1

In ipllluliull Uli

Be nga l ,

https://www.forgottenbooks.com/join

4 6 i i i x i i t'

s trr ici i io i i i'

ri’

.

the i r fa m i l i e s wh en th ey ha v e l e f t th e m i n a h el p l e ss

cond i t i on .

” 1

To th e d i e t and th e sob r i e ty of l iv i ng i s d ue theg r ea te r h ea l th i n e ss o f th e H ind u s . Th e r e a r e 3 i n san e s

in ev erv pe r son s i n pa r ts o f In d ia p eo p l ed b v

1 “

pe i t’

eetly a u then t ic insta nce m ig h t b e m ent io ned o f a n

E ng l is h g en t l ema n i n a h ig h s ta t i on in Benga l who was d i s m i ssed a nd

a fte rwa rd s i ed uc ed to g r ea t tempm a ry d i ffi c u l t i es in his own count ry : a

na t i v e o f i a i i k , to wh om he had been k i nd,supp l ied h im ,

wh en in th ose( i i eu in s tanees

,W ith u pwa rds o f R s o f wh i c h he wo u ld not

a e c e i-t i epa y ine i i t and for wh i ch he cou ld expec t no poss i b le i etu i n .

Th is g e i i e i ous f r iend wa s a M ah r atta B i aliman . a r ace o f allothe rs whoh a v e l e ast s vmpa thy w'

itli olh e i c a s tes,a nd who 1110 m ost ha r d ened a nd

co i i upted by powei Ilz xtorj/ of 1 7mm , I" 2 0 1 .

’M r . J . H . Bou i d illon,in h is i epo i

'

t on the Census o f 188 1 .

o b s e i w s th a t the liealtli iness o f m id d le-age among the H ind u s

is m o r e s t r i k ing ly shown , for ou t of each 10 0 livn ig pe r sons the numbe ro i those aged 4 0 yea i s a nd o v e r is among the

H i nd u s

C h i i stia i is

M uham i nad ans

A b org inals 15 ° 80

.\s reg a i d s the d iet o f the H i nd us,M r . Buc k l e te l l s u s

I n I nd ia the g i ea t h ea t o f the c l im ate b r i ng s i nto p l ay th a t. law

(o f na tu r e ) ali eady po in ted out,by \ irt.ue. o f wh ich the o rd ina ry

f o od is o f a n o vyg enou s r a th e r th an of a ca r bonac eous c h a r ac te r . Th is,

a c c o rd i ngr to ano th e r law,o b l iges the peop le to d e r i v e th e i r usua l d iet

not f rom the a n ima l b u t f i on i the v egetab le wo ild o f wh ic h sta i eh is

the m o s t im po r tan t, c onst i tuent . A t the sam e t im e,the h ig h tempe r

a tnre ,i nca pa c i ta t i ng me n fo r a r d uous l abou r

,m a k es n ecessa ry a food o f

wh ic h the re tni i i s w i l l he a bunda nt,a nd wh ic h w i l l conta i n m uc h nu t r i

n ie i i t in a c o inpa i a t i vely sm a l l space . lle r e,then

,we h a v e some clia i a c

terist ic s wh ic h ,i f the p r ec ed i ng v i ews a re co r r ec t , o ug h t to b e fo und in

the o r dina ry food o f the I nd i an na t ions . S o they allm e . F r om the

e a r l ies t pe r iod the n iost ge i ie i alfo od in lnd ia has been r ic e . wh ic h is theH un t nut r it i ve o f allce rea l ia , wh i c h Conta i ns an eno rmous p r opo r t ion

C H A R A CTER .

th e H i n d u s , as co m p a r ed to $10 i n sane s i n e v e ryin Eng l and a nd

M r . Wa r d s a y s

I n th e i r fo rm s o f add r ess an d beha v i ou r i n com

p a uy the H i nd u s m u s t b e r an ked a m ongs t the p ol i tes tna t io n s .

”

S p eak i ng o f th e i n hab i tan ts o f th e (la ngc tic

d u s tan , 1\lr. I ‘llph ins to rie sa v s f t. i s th e r e we a re m o s t

l i k e ly to ga i n a c l ea r con ce p t i on o f the i r h igh s p i r i t a nd

gene r ou s sel f-de v ot ion so s i ngu l ar l y c o m bi ne d w i th ge ntlene s s o f i irun i ers and so ftness o f h ea r t toge the r w i th

a n a l m os t i n fan t i ne s i m p l i c i t y .

”

‘5 E v en h ones t w r i te r s , who h a v e h ad no o p p o r t u n i

t i e s o f s t ud y i n g the H i n d u cha rac te r,som e t im es lias tilv

gene r a l i z e f r om s t r u v i n s tan ces o f u n t r u th fu l n ess a nd

d i s h ones ty th e y ha p pe n to come ac r o ss i n l i fe . I n

r e s p ec t o f su ch,P r o fesso r .\l: 1x M u l l e r sa v s : “We n ia v ,

to

fo l l ow a n lnd ian p r o v e r b , j udge o f a w ho le lield o f r i c e b ytas t i ng on e o r two g r a i n s o n ly , b u t i f we a p p ly th i s r u l eto h uman be i ngs w e a re s u r e. to fa l l i n to the sa m e ni is

tak e a s the Engl i s h c h a p la i n who had on ce on boa r d

a n En g l i s h v es se l ch r i s ten ed a l’rench ch i ld , a n d who

o f sta r ch . and wh i c h v ield s to the la bo u r e r a n a v e r a g e r e tu r n o f a t le a s t

s ixty fo l d. o/ C u' illm lion in li ng /m ill

, l'

olmm 134 .

N e ihuhr sa v s P c i haps the I nd ia n lawg i ve r s th o ug h t it wa s

for the sa k e o f h e a l th a bs o l ute ly nec e ssa r y to p r o h i b i t t in-e a t ing o f me a t.

bec ause the mu lt i tud e fo l lows mo r e e as i ly the pre ind ice o f r e l ig io n th a n

the ad v ic e of a ph ys i c ia n . I t is a l so v e ry l i k e ly tha t the law o f the fl rie nt al

ins i s ts so s t r ong ly on the pu r i fic a t io n o f the bod v fo r h yg ie n ic r e aso n s.

1 S ee the compa r a t i ve ta bu l a r s ta tem e nt o n pa g e 20 l of the

r epo r t 0 11 the Census of Benga l , Vol. I

4 8 H INDU s ermu o in'

rv .

r e m a i ned fu l l y con v i n ced fo r the r es t of h i s l i fe tha t all

F r e n ch bab i es had v e r y long noses .

”X

T he p hys i ca l s tru c t u r e o f the H i n du is tstillas ad

m i r abl e a s tha t of any o th e r peorile on th e g lobe .

M r . O r m e says The r e is n o t a ha nd so m e r r ace in

t he u n i v e r se than th e llan ians o f Gruj ra t.” 1 We r ead

i n C ha m be r ’s E ncyclopie d ia th a t “ the body o f t h e

H i n d u i s ad m i r ab l y p r o p o r t i on ed .

” 2

A s t r ong O p pon en t o f the H i n d u s ad m i r e s th e i r

ph y s i ca l ag i l i ty . M r . M i l l says “ T he body o f th e H i n d u

i s agi l e to an ex t r ao r d i na r y deg r ee . N ot on ly i n the se

s u r p r i s i ng con to r t i on s and fea ts wh i ch con s t i tu te th e a r t

o f th e t u m bl e r do th ey e x ce l a l m os t a l l th e nat i on s in

the wo r l d,b u t e v en i n r u n n i ng an d m a r ch i ng th ey eq ua l ,

i f n ot su r p ass,p eo p l e o f the m os t r ob u s t con s t i t u t i on s .

”

T h e H i n d u s we r e r enow ned fo r w i sdo m in ancien tt i ni e s .

W i sdom , mv fa th e r , is the n o b l est giftT he g od s bestow on man

,and bette r f ar

T han allh is t r easu r es .

"

S o rnocmcs A nti gone .

We a r e tol d by G r ec ian w r i te r s th a t th e I nd ian sw e r e th e w i s es t o f nat i on s .

"

l\lr. Colemanf’ says : “ Th e sages and p oe ts o f I nd i a

h a v e i nc u l ca ted m o ra l p r ece p ts and d i s p layed p oet i c

bea u t i es w h i ch no cou n t r y in th e wo r l d of either an c i en t

o r m ode r n da te n eed be a sha m ed to acknow l edge .

”

1 O n the ell'

e ui ii iaey o f the I nh ab i tants oi H i ndusta n ,pp . 4 0 1-65 .

2 Cha n ib e i’

s l‘li icyelopie d i z i , p . 5 3 9 .

3 M i l l s lnd ia ,V0 ] . l, 4 73 .

"S e e I n t rod uc t ion .

[ v 7 .

P H A R M‘

T E R . 4 0

Th e d idac t i c p o e t r y o f the H i nd u s fu r n i s h es suflic ie i i tp r o of o f the i r t r an s c ende n t w i s do m

,.

‘tlr. l'ilpli iu s to ne

'

sa y s tha t “the G r eek s h ad a g r ea t i m p r e s s io n o f the i r

(llind us ) w i sd o m .

”

M r . llurnon f says tha t th e lud ian s a r e a na t io n r i c h

i n s p i r i tua l g i fts,and endowed w i th pecu l ia r sagac itv a nd

p ene t r a t i on .

”

I t i s the w i sdo m o f the H i nd u s tha t, i n v en ted th e

bes t and th e g r ea tes t o f i ndoo r ga m es,the ga m e o f C hes s

,

w h i ch i s now u n i v e r sa l ly ack now l edge d to be o f H i nd uo r i g i n , th e S an sk r i t chole ra / um beco m i ng sha tiw‘

a i iga in

P e r s ia n .

S i r W. Jones says “ Th e H i n d u s a r e sa i d to h a v e

boa s ted o f th r ee i n v en t i on s,allo f w h i ch i ndeed a re

ad m i r abl e th e m e th od o f i n s t r uc t i ng by a pologues the

dec i m a l sca l e and th e ga m e o f Chess,on wh i ch they ha v e

so m e cu r i ou s t r ea t i se s .

”

P r o fesso r H ee r en “ say s : Ch ess-boa r d i s m en t i on ed

i n R a m aya na,w he r e an accou n t of i s g i v en .

”

C he ss i s th u s p r o v ed to ha v e been i n u se i n Ind ia longbe fo r e M oses an d H e r m es m ade th e i r a ppea ran ce i n thew o r ld . M r . J . M i l l

,h owe v e r

,w i th h i s cha rac te r i s t i c p r e

j ud i ce aga i n s t th e H i n d u s,obse r v es th at "

the r e is no

e v i de n ce tha t H i nd u s i n v en ted th e ga m e,exce p t the i r own

p r e ten t i ou s .” O n th i s , P r o fesso r Wi l son says :“ Th i s i s no t

t r ue ; we h a v e no t th e e v i d en ce o f th e i r p r e ten t i ou s . Th e

e v i den ce i s th a t of Mohamcda n w r i te r s the k i ng o f

1H i s to ry o f lnd ia ,p . 23 4 "

9.\s quoted by M i l l in h is H istory o f B r i t ish lnd ia , Vol. 11, p . 4 3 .

3 H i s to r ica l R esea rches , Vol. 11, p . 15 1.

50 I I I N D L’

surmu omr v .

I nd ia is sa i d,b y F i r dau s i i n th e S hahnama

‘— an d th e s to r y

is the r e fo r e o f th e ten th ce n t u r y a t lates t - t0 ha re sen t a

Chess-[w a rd a nd (Ma tcher to N a usfiem uf m . S i r \V. Jon es

r e fe r s to F i r d au s i a s h i s a u tho r ity , a nd th i s r e fe r e n ce m i gh t

h a v e sh own b y w ho m th e s to r y wa s told . V a r i ou s M oh a m

e da n w r i te r s a r e q uoted by Hyde,in h is H i s to r i a

S hah ilud ii,w ho allconc u r i n att r i bu t i ng the i n v en t i on to

3 7th e I nd i ans 1“ Th e w i sdo m of Solo m on i s p r o v e r b i al. B u t

the s to r y m os t f r equ en t ly quoted to sh ow h i s w isdo m,

i tsel f s ta m p s th a t w isdo m a s in fe r i o r to th a t o f th e

H i n d u s . Sa v s P r o fesso r M ax M u l l e r : N ow yo u

r em embe r th e Judg m e n t o f Sol o m on , w h i ch h a s a lways

been adm i r ed a s a p r oo f o f g r ea t l ega l w i sdo m a m on gth e Jew s I I m u s t con fe ss that

,no t h a v i ng a l egalm i n d

,

I n e v e r cou l d s u p p r e s s a ce r ta i n sh udde r w h en r ead i ng

th e dec i s io n o f Sol o m on : ‘D i v ide th e l i v i n g ch il d in

two,and gi v e h a l f to the one

,an d ha l f to the othe r . ’ ” 3

L e t m e now tel l yo u the sa m e s to r y a s i t is to ld byth e B uddh i s ts

,w hose s ac r ed Canon i s fu l l o f su c h

l egen ds and pa r abl e s . I n th e K an j u r,wh i ch i s th e

T i beta n t ran sla t i o n o f th e B uddh i s t T r i p i taka,we r ead

o f two wom en who cl a i m ed each to be th e m othe r o f th e

sam e ch i l d . T h e K i ng,a f te r l i s ten i ng to th e i r q ua r r e l s

to r a l ong t im e,g av e i t u p a s ho pe le ss to se tt l e who wa s

the r ea l m o the r . U po n t h i s,Visakha s te p p ed fo r wa r d

a nd sa i d : ‘Wh at i s th e use o f exam i n i n g an d c r oss

e xa m i n i ng th ese women . Le t th em take th e b o y a n d se t t l eit amo ng them se l v es .

’ ‘I

‘

here u po n ,b o th wo m en fe l l o n th e

‘ M i ll's ln lia , Vol. ll.. p . 1 L,foo tno te . “(lug s ii i.

ch i l d , and when the ti gh t beca m e v io l e n t,the ch i ld Wa s

h u r t an d began to c ry . T he n o ne o f th e m le t. h i m ge ,beca u se sh e cou l d no t hea r to hea r th e. c h i ld c ry .

Th a t

se tt l ed the q ues t i on . The Ki ng ga v e the ch i ld to the t r uem o th e r , and h ad the o th e r bea ten w i th a r od .

“ Th i s see m s to me,i f n o t the m o r e p r i m i t i v e

, ye t the

m o r e na tu r a l fo r m o f the s to rv,show i ng a de e pe r k no w

l edge o f h u m an nat u r e and m o r e w i sdom then e v en the

w i sdo m o f Sol o m on .

”

M r . Elph ins tem e s p eak s o f th e llind u cha racte r i n

m i s fo r t u ne in gl ow i ng te r m s .

“ When fate,

" he s a v s3

“ i s i n e v i tab l e , th e l owe s t llind u en cou n te r s it w i th acool n es s th at wou l d e x c i te ad m i ra t i on in

X T h e na t i on a l ch a r ac te r o f a p eop l e n ece s sa r i ly su ffe r sf r o m u n sy m p a th e t i c do m i n at i on o f a l e s s c i v i l i z ed p eop l e

.

S uccess fu l fa l seh oo d,says I ‘lentham

,i s th e bes t de fen c e o f

a s l a v e ; and i t i s n o wonde r tha t th e cha racte r o f the

H i n d u s de te r i o r ated u n de r the M osl e m r u l e . T he wo n

de r i s th e i r cha r acte r i s s t i l l so h igh . l’ro fes so r M ax M u l

lcr says I can on l y say that a f te r r ead i ng the accou n t s

o f th e te r r o r s and h o r r o r s o f Mohamed a u r u l e,m y

wonde r i s th at so m uch o f na t i v e v i r t ue an d t r u th fu ln es s sh ou l d ha v e su r v i v ed . H e a l so says

“ \V he n you r ead o f th e a t r oc i t i e s co m m i t ted by

1 I nd ia : c an it tea c h us ? p . 1 1 .

i"I ‘Ilphinstone'

s H is to ry o f I nd ia,pag e s 108-19 9 . O f the g r

ea t

g r a nd fa the r o f the p r es ent M a ha r a ja o f .lodlipur, (‘

olo nclT od s aw :

T he b iog r a phy o fMa n S ing h wou ld a ff o rd a retna rkalile pic tn re o f human

pa t ience,fo r t i tud e a nd cons ta ncy ne v e r su r pa s s ed in a ny age o r

count ry .

"—R a j a st/mn,Vol. I I , p . 7 11 .

3 Ma x M ulle r ’s I nd ia Wh at ca n it teach us 3 p . 72 .

5 H I NDU sc ramom r r .

th e Mohamedan conq ue r o r s o f Ind ia a f te r th at t i m e

(1000 A .D . ) to th e t i m e w hen Engl and s te p p e d in and ,w h a te v e r m ay be said by h e r en v i ou s c r i t i cs , m ade , a t all

e v e n t s,th e b r oad p r i n c i p l e s o f ou r co m m on h u m an i ty

r es p ected once m o r e in I nd ia,the wonde r

,to m y m i n d ,

is how any na t i on could h a v e s u r v i ved su ch an Inf erno,w i th ou t be i n g t u r n ed in to de v il s t he m selv es .

” 1

‘

Ma x M u l le r ’s I nd ta \Vha t can it teac h us7 p . 0 4 .

I t m u st not be supposed f r om the condemnato ry language used inmo re than one p lace in th is boo k w ith r ega r d to the t reatment of the

H i ndus and th e i r lite r atu r e by some of the M ussalman in v ade rs and

ru le rs of I nd ia,that the h i sto ry o f those r eigns is one cont i nuous re

co r d o i c r ue l ty a nd opp r ess ion ,un r edeemed by any h uman i ta r ian cousi

de r a t ions or sympathet ic t r eatment . A s S i r A r the r H e lps ob se r ves , noda r k c loud is w i thout its si l v e r l i ning . The r e a re instances on r eco r dwh ich show a ch iv a l rous a nd gene rous r ega r d d i sp la y ed by some of the.

M ohamed an K i ng s for the H i nd us . I t is r ela ted that w hen,du r ing

the r e ign o f Rana B ik rama j it , son o f Rana Sanga of C h i to r,who was

a t the t ime in H a ravat i,M ewa r was i nvaded by Bah adu r , K ing o f

Guj ra t,and Cln tor w a s i n veste d by the comb i ned a i m ies o f Gu j r a t and

M a lwa, Maha r a ni K arna va ti

,the moth e r o f the in fant son o f R an a

Sa nga ,who was in the f 0 1ti ess . appea led forliclp to H umayun , whom she

had adopted a s her R elish / ba nd bha i (b race let-bound b rothe r ) . H um ayun ,

l i k e a t r ue ca va l ie r th at he wa s,accep ted the ob l igat ion la id on h im b y

the. lilW\ o f eln v alry a nd honou r . to com e to her a id,and a ba ndon i ng

h is conquests in Benga l , h astened to a n swe r the ca l l o f her adopti

s i s te r,the (lowagc r M aha r a n i o f C h i to r . H e am p ly fu l fi l led the

p ledg e ,expe l led

‘

the foe f r om C h i to r,too k M a nd oo by assau lt a nd

,as

s ome rev e ng z fo r he r k ing'

s a id ing the K i ng o f G uj r a t,he sent fo r the

lta na li ik ramfl tt,whom

,fo l lowi ng th e i r own not ions o f i n vesti tu r e

,he

g i r t W i th a swo td in the c a ptu r ed c i ta de l o f h is foe .

”

N o t sho u ld it b e fo rgotten th a t it wa s a M ussa lma n who p rese r v edthe K ingd om o f M a rwa r a t the mos t c r i t ic a l pe r iod o f its h isto ry . N ot

s at is fi e d w i th the b lood o f .la swa nt a nd o f h is e ldest son, P u

'

th i S ing h ,the un re lent ing ty r ant (A u r a ngz eb) ca r ry i ng h is v engeance towa r ds the

https://www.forgottenbooks.com/join

4 H INDU surtcmomr v .

— CH IVALR Y .

L e t lau r el»,d rench

’

d in pure P a r na s s iantowa rd the mento r ) , d ea r to e v e ry muse

,

w ith a courage o f u nshalcen r oot

I n honou r 's fi e ld ad v anc i ng his fi rm foot ,P la nts it upon the l ine t h a t just i ce d rawsA nd w i l l p r e v a i l or per i s h in the cau se .

Con-p er .

T H E i n n ate ch i v a l r y o f H i n du ch a r ac te r is w e l l

k nown to those who h a v e s tud i ed th e i r h i s to r y,o r

l i v ed w i th th e m and s t ud i ed th e i r m an n e r s and ens

tom s . The i r t r eat m en t o f th e fe m a l e sex,th ei r n u

w i l l i ngness to i n j u r e o r take away l i fe u nnecessarilv

the i r m agnan i m ou s t r ea t m en t o f th e i r fall e n foes,th e i r

u nw i l l i ngn ess to take ad v an tage of the i r own su p e r i o r i ty

to the i r ad v e r sa r i e s,p r o v e th e ch i v a l r ou s cha r ac te r of th e

H i nd u r ace , Th e u nda u n ted h e r o i sm an d th e u n eq ua l l e d

v a l ou r o f th e anc i e n t H ind u s,th e i r m agn ifi cen t se l f-eonfi~

clence,th e i r r igh teou sn ess o f cond uc t

,an d

,abo v e a l l

,th e

sub l im e teach i ngs of th e i r S ha st r as,con ta i n i ng th e lo f t i e s t

s p i r i t ua l i d eals ye t con ce i v ed by h u m an i ty,m ade th e m

th e m os t ch i v a l r ou s and h u m an e p eo p l e on th e face o f

th e ea r th . So m uch is th e w a r r i o r ca s te o f th e H i n d u s

e v en now i d e n t i fied w i th ch i v a l r y th a t fi a ip uli an d

C/u'

ralry h a v e becom e con v e r t i b l e te rm s .

1 R a'j p u ta n a i s

em i n en t l y th e lan d o f ch i v a l r y,and th e Raj p u ts

,th e

descenden ts o f the anc i en t li sh atriya s , ha v e p r ese r v e d

som e o f the l a tte r ’s v i r tu es , p r om i n en t a m ong wh ich i s

ch i v a l r y . la m a,A r j una

,K a r n a

,K r i sh na

,llhirna , lla l i ,

lh'

ee Tod 's lta j a s than ,Vol. 11, p . (30 1.

c u rv a t av .

llaldeo llerc ules ) S aga ra , and o thc rs we r e i dea l cha rac te r s

bu t co m i ng down to m ode r n t i m es We ti nd tha t llanal’ra tap o f M ewa r , Du r ga h a s o f M a r wa r and l

’rithv i lta j

o f A j m e r we r e cha r acte r s fo r wh o se equa l s i n ch i v a l r yan d p at r i o t i s m we m ay s ea r ch i n v a i n th e an na l s o f

o the r na t i o n s,

‘iu ro pea n o r A s ia t i c .

T he an na l s o f no na t i on r eco r d i nstan c es to out

sh inc the r o m a n t i c ch i v a l r y d i s p layed by Sado o,h e i r o f

th e l o r d o f P ug al,t i l l l ately a tic f o f .la isalmer

,o r the

ch i v al r ou s cond uc t o f h i s b r i de,l\

'

urra nule v i,daugh te r

o f th e Mo b ilch i e f M a n i k ltao,who wa s a t once a

v i r g i n,a w i fe an d a w i dow .

” l

Col on e l Tod says : No r i s th e r e any th i ng l i n e r i n

th e a n n al s o f the ch i v a l r y o f the,Wes t than the d ign i fied

a nd th e he r o i c cond uc t of the lta j a of D uttea,

”

who me t

w i th a glo r i ou s death i n de fence o f the laws o f sanc tua r y

a nd h ono u r,wh en on th e dea th o f Ma d haj i S e ind h ia , the

fe m al e s o f h i s (S c ind h ia'

s ) fam i l y , i n a p p r eh en s i on o f

h i s suc cesso r,l) a ulat Itao

,sough t r e fuge and p r o tec t io n

w i th the taja .

T h e a u tho r of th e An na l s a n d A n t iq u i t i es o f Ra jas

than p ay s t h e h ighes t t r i bu te to th e v a l ou r and ch i v a l r y

o f th e Raj p u ts wh e n h e says : CtL’lll‘ d c l i on (K i ng of

England ) wou l d n ot ha v e r e m ai n ed so long i n the d u n

geon s o f A u s t r ia had h i s s ubj ect s bee n R a j ptus .

” J

P r o fesso r H . H . Wi l son say s : The H i n d u laws o f

wa r a r e v e r y ch i v a l r ou s and h u m an e , and p r oh i b i t the

s l ay i ng o f the u na r m ed,of wo m en

,o f the o ld and o f the

co nq ue r ed .

lS ee To d’s lta ja s tha n ,Vol. I f . p .

3' l ‘od ’

s la ja sthau ,Vol. I , p . 117 .

3 Tod ’s lta jas than . Vol. I . p . 16 1 ,

at} H INDU surna i oa rr v

Th e i n nate ch i v a l r y o f th e H i n d u cha r ac te r ha s

g i v en r i se to a p ecu l i ar c u s tom obse r v ed a m ong all

cla s s es o f p eop l e,i r r e spect i v e o f ca s te

,nat i ona l i ty o r age .

I t i s the R afi/11 by w h i ch H i nd u

lad i es co m mand l oya l,d i s i n te r es ted

,and whol e -sou l ed

se r v i ce o f m en,who m th ey de ign to ad ept a s th e i r

b r o the r s,though in m os t in s tances they n e v e r beh ol d

th em . The r e is a de l i cacy in th i s c u s to m,

” says Colon el

T od,

“w i th wh i ch the bon d u n i t i n g th e ca v a l i e r s o f

E u r o p e to the se r v i ce of th e fa i r in th e days o f ch i v a l r y

w i l l no t com p a r e .

” 1

T h e follow i ng i n c i den t w i l l S how th e ch a r ac te r

o f th e R aj p u ts a nd the n a t u r e o f th e i r wa r fa r e .

D u r i ng th e r e ign of Rana Ra i M a l o f C h i to r,h i s

y ounge r b r o th e r , S u r aj M a l , wh o m th e p r o p h e tes s o f

C ha r a n i D e v i a t N ah r a M ug r a h ad p r o m i sed a c r ow n,

m ade se v e rala tte m p ts to ga i n on e . W'

i th th e h el p o f

M u za ffa r,th e S u l ta n o f M alwa

,he took S ad r i a nd

B at u r o and a tte m p ted e v en C h i to r . R a i Mal m e t th e

a ttack o n the R i v e r Gumb eeree . T he second son o f th e

R ana,P i r th i Raj

,

“ th e Rol an do of h i s age , a s Colon el

Tod ca l l s h i m,sel ected h i s u n cl e

,S u r aj Mal

,w ho m h e

soon co v e r ed w i th wou nds . M any had fa llen on bo th

s i des b u t n e i th e r p a r ty w ould y i e l d : w h en wo r n o u t th ey

r e t i r ed f r om th e fiel d,b i v ouacked in s igh t of each o the r .

ltala s tha n,Vol. 1

,p . 5 8 1. h is one o f the few (cus tom s )

wh e n a n mte rcoii rse o f g alla ntrv o f the most de l ica te n a tu r e is e s ta b l i s hed be twe

en the fa i r se \' a n d the c ava l ie r s o f lla ia s tha n . T he R aj pu t

d am . be s tows w i th the ltakh i (b r ace le t) the t i t l e o f adopted b r o th e r ;and wh i le its acceptanc e s eem es to he r allthe plo teclion o f a

‘eavahe re

ee rve n te'

,seand ali tse l f ne v e r sugges ts any o th e r tie to lns de votion .

p .1112 .

c n tva u w 3 7

Colon e l Tod CO lltlllllC S ‘—“ lt w i l l show the m a n ne r sa n d feel i ngs so p ecu l ia r to the Raj p oo t

, to desc r i bethe m ee t i ng be twee n th e r i v a l u nc l e and ne p hewu n iq ue in th e de t ai l s o f s t r i fe p e r ha p s s i n ce the

o r ig i n o f a rm .1 I t i s tak en f r o m a m a n u sc r i pt o f

th e clllfllil Ch i e f who succeeded S u raj Mali n Sad r i.

P i r th i Ra j v i s i ted h i s u n cl e,who m h e fou nd i n a s m a l l

ten t r ecl i n i ng o n a p a l l e t,ha v i ng j u s t had ‘ the ha r be r '

(m ielto s ew up h i s wou nd s . H e r ose an d m e t h i s

n e p h ew w i th the c u s to m a r y r es p ect,

a s i f no th i ngu n u sua l had occu r r e d b u t the exe r t i o n cau sed s o m e o f

th e w ou nds to o p en a f r esh,wh e n the fol low i ng d ia l ogue

en s ued“ P I R T I I I R A J . Wel l

,u ncl e

, how a r e you rwo u n ds

“ SURAJ MAL . Qu i te h ea l ed , m y ch i ld,s i n ce I

h a v e th e p le asu r e o f see i ng you .

’

P taT nlR A J . B u t,u nc l e (b alsa ) , I h av e no t ye t

see n th e D ewanj i.2 I f i r s t ran to see yo u , an d I a m v e r y

h ung r y h a v e you any th i ng to ea t

“ D i n n e r wa s soon se r v ed,and th e ex t rao r d i na r y p a i r

Csa t down,an d a te o ff th e sa m e p la tte r nor d i d

P i r th i Raj h es i tate to eat the ‘

p rin’ p r e sen ted on h is

tak i ng lea v e .

“ P IRTH I R A .t. Y ou and I w i l l e n d ou r ba tt l e in

th e m o r n i ng,u n cl e .

’

“ SURAJ MA L . Ve r y we l l,ch i l d : co m e m rly !

They met,and the r ebe l s we r e de feated and fled to

S ad r i . P i r th i Raj,howe v e r

,ga v e th e m no r es t , p u r su ing

lT od'

s R a jasth an ,Vol. I

,296-9 7 .

2 T he Ra na is ca l led D i lfl j 'o

58 H I N D U sc ramomr r .

th e m f r o m place to p l ace . I n th e w i l d s of Batu rro

th ey fo rmed a s tockaded r e t r eat of th e (UN ) t r ee,wh i c h

abound s i n th e fo r es t ; a nd S uj ah an d h i s co m p an i on ,

S arungdeo , w e r e com m u n i ng on th e i r despe r ate p l i gh t

w h en th e i r cog i ta t i on s we r e ch eck ed by the r u sh an d

n e igh of ho r ses . S ca r ce l y h ad th e p r e ten de r ex cla i m ed ,‘ th i s m u s t be m y neph ew ! ’ w h en P i r th i Raj dash e d

h i s steed t h r ough th e ba r r i cade an d,r each i ng h i s u ncl e

,

dea l t h i m a blow w h ich wou l d h a v e l e v el l ed h i m bu t

f or th e su p p o r t o f Sa r a ngdeo,who

‘

u p b r aided h i m,

‘ a b u ff e t now was m o r e than a seo re o f w oun dsadd i ng,

in fo r m e r days to w h i ch S u r aj M a l added,

‘ on l y

w h en dea l t by m y n e p h ew ’s h an d .

7 S u r aj M a l

d e m a nded a p a r l ey ; an d ca l l i ng on the p r i n ce to s to p

th e comba t , h e con t i nu ed :‘ I f I am k i l l ed

,i t m a tte r s

no t— my ch i ld r e n a r e Raj p u t s , th ey w i l l r u n the coun t r y

to find su ppo r t b u t i f y ou a r e s la i n wh at w i l l becom e

o f Ch i to r ? M y face wi l l b e bl ackene d an d m y n am e

e v e r l as t i ngly r ep r obated .

’

“ T he swo r d was sh eathed,and a s th e un cl e and

n e ph ew e m b r aced,th e la tte r a sk ed th e fo rm e r

,

‘wha t

w e r e you abou t u n cl e,w h en .I ca m e ? ‘On ly ta l k i n g

no n sen se , ch i ld , a f te r d i n n e r .’ ‘llut w i th m e o v e r you r

h e ad,u n cl e

,a s a f e e

,how cou l d yo u be so n egl igen t ?

’

Wha t cou l d I d o Y o u had l e f t m e n o r esou r ce,an d

I m u s t h a v e so m e pla c e to r e s t m y hea d.’ 1

A n ep i sod e f r om the a n na l s o f J a isahner w i l l

i l l u s t r a te the ch i v a l r ou s n atu r e o f th e li aj put an d h i s

d es i r e to d i e ligh tin f r as beco m es a lla jput.

"I'

ud '

s lla j a slha n , Vol. l, p 2

3 9 3 .

e iu v a u zr 59

A fte r a l ong cou r se o f v i cto r i ou s wa r f ar e,i n w h i c h

h e s ubd ued v a r i ou s t rac ts o f cou n t r y,e ven to th e h ea r t

o f th e P un j ab , d i sea se se i zed o n liawa l Chac h ic k . In

th i s s ta te b e de te r m i n ed to d i e a s h e h ad l i v ed,w i th

a r m s in h is ha n d ; bu t h av i ng no foe n ea r w i th w homto co p e h e sen t an e m b assy to the Langa

pr i n ce o f

M u l ta n , to b eg a s a l as t fa v ou r the j am / 4 M”,o r

“gi ft o f

ba tt l e ,”

th a t h is so u l m igh t esca p e b y th e s teclo f h i sl’

oeman, and no t fa l l a saeritice to s low d i sease

. T he

p r i n ce , su spect i ng t r each e r y , hes i ta ted ; bu t the llha ttim essenge r p l edged h i s Wo r d that h i s m aste r onlv w i sh ed

a n honou r ab le dea th , a nd tha t he wou l d b ring onlv l i v e

h u nd r ed m en to th e co m ba t. T he c ha l l enge be i ng

acce p ted , th e li awa l ca l l ed h i s c lan s m en a r ou nd h i m ,and

on r ecoun t i ng w ha t h e had done,se v en h u nd r e d se l e c t

li aj poots , who h ad sha r ed i n a l l h i s v i c to r i es , v ol u n tee r

ed to tak e the l as t fie ld an d m ake oblat i on o f

the i r l i v es w i th the i r l eade r . 1

O u r each i ng D hooniapu r, h e h ea r d tha t the p r i n ce

o f M u l ta n was w i th i n two coss . l' l i s sou l wa s r ejo i ced .

H e p e r fo r m ed h i s ablntie ns , wo r s h i p p ed the god s,

estowed ch a r i ty , and w i thd r ew h i s though ts f r o m th e

wo rld . D AT he batt l e l as ted two hou r s

,a nd th e Y ad u p r i n ce

fe llw i th allh i s lcith and k i n , a f te r p e r fo r m i ng p r od ig i e so f v a l ou r . T wo thou san d K ha n s 2 fellbe nea th the i r

swo r d s an d th e Bh a tt i ga i n e d the abode o f Ind r a .

lT od’

s lta j a s tha n ,Vol. ll, pp . 2 58-9 .

2 These we r e H indus [So la n k i R a j puts ] as was the i r p r ince . T he

R awa l ( ‘

hachiek had m a r r ied S onaldev i, the g rand-da ug h te r of llyba t

K ha n,the C h ie f o f the S éta t r i be , o r the S n a tce s. S ee Ted 's Rujas tha n ,

Vol. I I , p . 2 3 3 .

-60 I I I N D U se r iamoa rrr .

T h e ch i v alr y o f th e C h i e f o f N i m a j (a f i e f o f

M a r wa r in Raj pu tan a) , in th e r e ign o f Ra ja M an n S ingh

exc i te s th e ad m i r atio n o f Col onelTod , to w h i ch h e

g i v es e x p r ess i on in th e fol lowing m e m o r ab le w o r d s

Th e b r a v e Ch i e f o f N i m aj h as sol d h is l i fe b u t dea rly .

[ 22 r a in (10 we ZO O /t) in the a nnals of E u rope f or such

(levelien a nd generou s d espa ir (Le ma r/red his end a nd

tha t of [11'

s b ra ve cla n .

O f Rana R aj S i n gh,th e g r eat o p p on en t o f

A u r angzeb,Colon elTod say s A s a sk i l fulgen e r a l

and ga l lan t sold ie r,in th e d efe n ce o f h i s cou n t r y

h e i s abo v e all p r a ise . A s a ch i v a l r o u s Raj p u t,

h i s b r a v ing a l l con seq ue nces wh en ca l l ed u p on to sa v e

the hono u r o f a nobl e fe m ale o f his r a ce , h e is w i th ou t

p a r a l l e l .” 2 Th e son o f Ran a P ertap , U m ra , th e f e e o f

J ehang i r,says Col onelT e d

,

“w as a ch a r ac te r o f w h o m

th e p r oudes t na t i on m i gh t be v a i n .

”

E v en of th e I nd ian s o f th e p r e sen t day,

4M r . E l p h in s ton e says “ Th ey of ten d is play b r a v e r y

u n s u r p asse d by th e m os t w a r l i k e n at i on s,an d w i ll

a lways th r ow away th e i r li v es fo r any con s i d e r at i on o f

r e l i g i on o r h ono u r .

lT od'

s R a jasth an,Vol. I , p . 19 7 , M e i eena i y ba nds

,to the

n umbe r o f w i th g uns , a ttac k ed Su r tan S i ng h in h is h a v e l i

[dwe l l ing] a t .lodhpu r , u nd e r the ord e rs o f R a ja Mann S i ngh . \V i th 180o f h is c l an he d e fend ed h ims e l f aga i nst g rea t g uns a nd sma l l a imsa s lo ng' a s the house was tenab l e

,and then salhc d fo r th , swo r d in h and ,

a n d wnh h is b r o the r and 8tlo f h is k in fe l l no b ly in the m i dst o f h is

a nd A n tiqu i ties o f R a jasthan ,Vol. I

,p , 3 89 .

3 Tod 's lta ja s than ,Vol. I

,p .

4 E lph instone'

s H isto ry o f I nd ia,p . 19 9 .

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62 H INDU s t'

r iculonrrr .

111istal<en n ot i on s of ch i v a l r y and h u m an i ty no t on ly

s pa r ed the whol e a r m y,b u t ga v e the m gu i des to cond u c t

thcm by the d e tile o f D i lwa r a , and esco r ted th e m to Ch i to r .N a y , we l ea r n f r om th e h i s to r ian O r m e

,tha t A u r angzeb

h i m se l f ow ed h i s l i fe to th e cl e m e ncy of th e Raj p u ts .

H e sa y s -“ The d i v i s i on w h i ch m o v ed w i th A u r angzeb

h im se l f wa s 11neX pec tedly sto p p ed by i n su p e r abl e de

fences and p r ec i p i ce s in f r on t w h i l e the Raj p u t s in on e

n igh t closed th e s t r e igh ts in h is r ea r,b y fe l l i ng th e o v e r

hangi ng t r ees and f r om th e i r s ta t i on s abo v e p r e v e n te d

dlen dea v o u r s of the t r oo p s , e i the r w i th i n o r w i th ou t ,f r o m r emo v i ng th e obs tacl e . U d eperri, t h e fa v ou r ite and

C i r cass i an w i fe o f A u r an gzeb , acco m p an i ed h im in th i s

a r d uou s war,an d w i th h e r r e t i n ue and esco r t wa s encl osed

i n an o the r p a r t o f th e m o un ta i n s ; h e r con d ucto r s , d r ead

i ng to e x pose h e r pe r son to d ange r o r p ub l i c V i ew,s u r

r e n de r ed . S h e was ca r r i ed to th e Rana,w ho r ece i v ed

h e r w i th h om age an d e v e r y a tten t i on . M eanwh i l e,th e

E m pe r o r h im sel f m i gh t h a v e p e r i s h ed by fam i n e . o f

w h i ch th e R an a let h i m see the r i sk,by a con fi n e m en t

of two days,wh en h e o r de r ed h i s Raj p u ts to w i thd r aw

f r om the i r stat i on s,and s u ffe r th e way to be cl ea r ed . A s

soon a s A u r angze b w as ou t o f dange r th e Rana sen t

back h i s w i fe,acco m pan i ed by a chose n e sco r t

,w ho on ly

req ues ted i n r e t u r n th at h e w ou l d r e f r a i n f r om des t r oy

ing th e sac r ed an ima l s o f th e i r r e l i g io n w h i ch m i gh t s t i ll

be l e f t i n the p l a i n s ; b u t A u r angzeb , who bel i e v ed i n n o

v i r t ue bu t sel f-i n te r est , im p u ted the gene r os i t y an d fo r

bea r a n ce o f the lta na. to the fea r o f fu tu r e v engea nce , a n d

con t i n ued the wa r. Soon a f te r,he was aga in we l l-n igh

en cl osed i n the m oun ta i n s . Th i s seco nd o f

d i ffi c u l t i e s be y ond h i s age a nd co n s t i tu t i o n,

a nd the

a r r i v a l o f h i s so n s , A z i m a nd A kb ar,d e te rm i ned him

no t to ex pose h i m se l f a ny lo n g e r in the Iii-bl,b u t to

l ea v e i ts o pe r at io n s to the i r co nd uc t,su pe r i n tend e d b y

h i s own i n s t r u c t i on s f r o m A i m e r , to wh i c h e ilv h e

r e t i r ed w i th th e ho u se ho l d s o f h i s the o ffic e r s o f

h i s cou r t,a n d h i s bodyg ua r d o f fo u r tho u s a nd m en

,

d i v i d ing th e a r m y be tween h i s two so n s,who ea c h

had b r o ugh t a co n s i de rab le 1111111hc 1' o f t r o o ps f r o m the i r

re s hc c tlv c G o v e r n m e n ts .

\Vel l 1na v Col one l T o d excl aim Ho t fo r r e p ea ted

m stau ccs of an i l l j udged h u m a n i ty,th e th r on e o f the

h t h a v e been co m p l e te ly o v e r tu r n ed .Moghals m 1g

Tw i ce owin e' to p o l i t i c al i nd i sc r e t i o n on the p a r t. o f

th e Ranas o f M ewa r,i n th e r e ign s o f Akb a r a nd

d ehang' i r,d i d th e H i n d u s l ose th e i r chan ce o f s uprema e v .

“f o r e i t no t fo r th e i l l -fa ted i n te r v i ew be tween H a na

P r a ta p an d M a n n S i ngh of J a i p u r on the l'

d a isaga r

lake , on th e l atte r’s r e tu r n h om e f r o m the c o in p ie s t o f

S hola p u r,A kba r wou l d ne v e r h a v e succeeded i n conso l i

da t i ng h i s p owe r a nd foun di ng th e M ogha l E m p i r ei n I nd ia

,w h i ch , a f te r a b r i l l i an t ca r ee r o f two

w a s fi na l l y shut te r ed to p i ece s b y the Muh i'a tta s .

"l'

o d'

s lta j a stha n ,Vol I , p . 3 5 3 ,

9 Ted '

s lta j as than . Vol. l. , p . 3 70

m T o h im Akb a r was i nde bted fo r ha l f Ins t rimnphs . fro m the

snow-c lad Caucasus to the sho r es o f [M

eve em b i aee those ext r emes o f h is compi e s ts , K a bu l and the l‘a i o umm isa no f A lexa nd e r , and A rraean (now we l l-k nown ) o n the lnd 1a n t in-a n ; (hp

fo rm e r r eun i te d ,the la tte r subjuga ted , to the em p i re b y 11 lia jpu t p r inc e

and a R aq t a rm y . p . 3 3 i . “ P r i nc e S e l im (a fte rwa r ds .lehang ir)

led the wa r aga inst R ana l’ ra tap gu i ded by the c o unc i l s o f a a M ann9 !

and the d is t ingu ished a po sta te so n o f S agnrj i, Mo ha bm Khan

Vol. I . 11 3 5 7 .

64 H I NDU S UP ER IO R IT Y .

A g a i n , w h en d u r i ng Jeh ang i r’s r e ign

,M ewa r

ee iv ed the i de a o f p u tt i ng up P r in ce K h u r r a m aga i n s t

the E m pe r o r J ehang i r , a nd , in th e C i v il “f ar to w r e s t

the su p r e m acy fo r th e H i n d u s , llheern’

s i nd i sc r ee t tau n t

to R a ja Gaj S i ngh o f M a rwa r a t th e c r it i cal m o m en t

a l i ena ted th e ltah tores , and th e des i gn was f r us t r ated .

-0 bl

VL—PATR I OT I S M .

B r ea thes the re the ma n,w i th sou l so dead ,

\Vho neve r to h imse l f ha th s a id ,

Th is is my own , m y na t i ve la nd 3—S C O T T [my of the La st llm ulrel.

L O VE o f o ue’

s own cou n t r y i s i n bo r n i n a l l e iv iliz ed

m en . d / z ilra .lf /t [ind —Mo therlaml— was the c o n s t an t

r e f ra i n o f th e Iliud u s ’ song . T he i n ten s i ty o f the fe e l

i ng m ay be gauged f r o m the fac t tha t wh e n d u r i ng h is

fa l l , p o l i t i c al fo r e s igh t beca m e a wa n ing substa n ce i n the

m en ta l ho r i zo n o f the H i n d u,h e r u l ed tha t no one shou ld

go o u t o f the sac r ed l i m i ts o f th i s holvla n d,th a t l i fe

h e r e and death h e r e a lo n e sh a l l be the neces sa r y con

d itions o f ga i n i ng H ea v en h e r ea f te r . I t i s o f cou r s eu n i v e r sa l ly k nown th a t the c r eed o f the lta j pu t o r the

w a r r i o r cas te o f I nd i a e v en now i s,tha t d v ing swo r d i n

ha nd i n th e ca u se o f the cou n t r y i s the s u r es t and the nea r es t

way to I n d r a’s abode . Colon e l Tod says : “ T he na m e of

‘coun try

’

ca rr ied w i th i t a m ag i ca l p owe r i n the m i n d o f

t h e R aj p u t. Th e n a m e o f h i s w i fe o r h i s m i s t r ess m u s t

n e v e r be m en t i on ed a t a l l,no r tha t o f h i s coun t r y b ut

w i th r es p ec t , o r h is swo r d i s i n s tan t ly u nshea thed .

” l

Pa t r ioti sm ! I n v a i n yo u r an sack the a n na l s o f

G r eece and Ro m e,of M ode r n o r M ed i a-v a l l‘iuro pc to

fi nd s u ch n ob le p a t r i o ts a s Ra n a P ra ta p and Thak u r

D u r ga Da s.Pa t r i o t i s m

,c h i v a l r y and honou r fou nd th e i r

idealembod i m en t i n these two h e r oe s . l’ra ta p fough t

s i ngle-h anded,w i th a han d fu l o f h i s Raj pu ts , aga i n s t the

1 Ted ’s llajas than ,V o lume ll, p .

66 m a S UP E R I O R I TY .

m ig h ty h os ts o f A kba r ,“ th e g r eates t m on a r ch tha t e v e r sat

on a n A s i at i c th r on e,

” aided by th e a r m s an d co un se l s o f

h is own count r ymen , th e K utchwahas,R ah tore s

,H a r as

,

D eora s of. A b u and o th e r s,w hose k i ngdo m s lay r oun d

M ewa r . H e fough t fo ’ a q ua r te r o f a cen tu r y and d i ed,

l ea v i ng a n a m e,u n r i v a l l ed i n the h i s to r y of p at r iot i s m

a nd chiv alrv . Colon elTod says P r a ta p s ucceed ed to

th e t i tle and r e nown o f an a nc i en t h ou se,bu t w i th o u t

a ca p i tal,w i tho u t r e sou r ces

,h i s k i n d r ed an d c l an s d i s

s p i r i ted by r e v e r ses ; y et possessed by th e n oble s p i r i t

of h i s r ace,h e m ed i ta ted th e r eco v e r y of Ch i to r

,the v in

d ica tion of th e hon ou r o f h i s h ou se an d th e r es to r at i ono f i ts p owe r . T h e w i ly M ogh al(Akba r ) a r r ayed

aga i n s t P r a tap,h i s k i nd r ed i n fa i th a s w e lla s b lood .

T h e p r i n ces o f M a r wa r,A m be r

,B i kan e an d e v e n Boon d i

,

l ate h i s fi r m a l ly,took p a r t w i th A kba r an d u p h eld des

potism . Nay,e v en h i s own b r o th e r

,Baga r j i

,dese r ted

h im . B u t th e m agn it ude o f th e p e r i l confi r m ed th e fo r

t itud e of P r ata p,who v owed i n th e wo r d s o f th e hard , to

m ak e h i s m oth e r'

s m i l k r es p l e n den t an d h e a m p l y

re'lecmed h i s pledge . S i n gl e-h an ded fo r a q ua r te r o f a

cen t u r y d i d h e w i th s tand th e co m bin ed e ffo r ts o f the

em p i r e,a t o ne t im e ca r r y i ng des t r uc t i on i n to th e p la i n s ,

a t a noth e r fly i ng f r o m r ock to r ock , feed i ng h i s fam i l y

f r om the f r u i ts o f h i s n at i v e h i l l s , a n d r ea r i ng t h e

n u r s l i ng h e r o,A m ra

,am i d s t sa v age bea s ts an d sca r ce

l ess sa v age m en,a fi t h e i r to h i s p r owe s s and r e v enge .

T h e ba r e i dea th a t ‘ th e son o f l’mpp a R awal sh o u l d

ho w the h e a d to m o r ta l man’

wa s i n su ppo r tabl e , a nd

h e spu r n ed e ve r y o v e r t u r e , w h i ch had s ub m i s s i on f o r i t s

I , “ is,o r the d eg r ad at i on o f u n i t i ng h i s fam i l y by m a r r i age

w i th th e Ta r ta r , th ough l o r d of co un t l e s s m u l t i t udes .

”

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GS H I NDU snrnmomr r .

joy fu l a s su ran ce th a t i n s p i r ed th e N u m id ian H a m i l ca r

for h i s end wa s cl ouded w i th t h e p r e sen t i m en t tha t h i s

son ,A m ra

,wou l d abandon h i s fa m e fo r i nglo r i o u s r e p ose .

A powe r fu l s vmna thy is excited by th e p i c tu r e w h i ch

is d r awn of th i s fina l s ce n e . T h e dy i ng h e r o . is repre

se n ted in a l owly dwe l l i ng h i s ch ie fs,th e fa ith f ulco m

p an ion s o f m any a glo r iou s day,awa it i ng r ou nd h is

pa l l e t th e d issol u t i on o f th e i r p r i n ce , w hen a g r oan o f

m en ta l angu i s h m ade S aloomb ra in qu i r e w ha t a fflic ted

h i s soul that it wo u l d no t de p a r t i n p eace H e

ralled :‘ it li nge r ed ,

’ h e sa id,

‘ fo r so m e con sola to r y

p l edge th a t his cou n t r y sh o u l d no t be abandon ed to

th e T oorks a nd w i th th e death p ang u pon h i m,h e

r e lated an i n c i den t wh i c h h ad gu ided h i s es t ima te o f h i s

son ’s d i s p os i t i on,and n ow to r t u r ed h im w i th the reflec

t i on,tha t fo r p e r sona l case h e wou l d forego the remem

bra n ce of his own a nd his cou ntry’

s wrong/s .

“ O n the ban k s o f th e P eshola,P r ata p a n d h i s ch i e fs

had con s t r uc ted a f ew h u t s (th e s i te of th e f u tu r e p a lace o f

U da i p u r ) to p ro tec t th em d u r i ng th e incl e m en cy o f ther ai n s in th e d ay o f the i r d i s t r e s s . P r ince A m r a

,fo r

ge tt i ng th e l ow l iness o f th e dwel l i ng,a p r oj ec t i ng ba m

boo o f the r oof ca ugh t th e fo l d s o f h i s t u r ba n a n d

d r agged it o ff a s h e r e t i r ed . A ha s ty e m o t i on,wh i ch

d i sclo sed a ya ried feel i ng,was obse r v ed w i th p a i n by

P r ata p,who th en ce ado p ted th e O p i n i on tha t h i s son wou l d

n e v e r w i th s t and the h a r d sh i p s n eces sa r y to be e nd u r ed

in s u ch a ca u s e : ‘ T hese sh ed s ’ sa i d th e dy i ng p r i n ce,

w i l l g i v e way to sum p tuo u s dwe l l i ngs , th u s gene r a t i ngthe lo v e o f e ase

,a n d l ux u r y w i th i ts con co m i t an ts w i l l

e n s ue,to whieh the i ndependen ce o f M ewa r

,wh i ch we

ha v e b led to m a i n ta i n,w i llbe sac r i fi ed ; a n d you , m y

ca

c h i e fs , w i l l fo l l ow th e p e r n i c i ou s exa m p l e .

’ Th ey p l edg ed

th e m se l v es , an d beca m e gua r an tees fo r the p r i n ce,

‘ h v

th e th r on e o f llapp a R aw al,

’ tha t they wou ld no t pe r m i tm a n s i o ns to be r a i sed t i l l .\l e \v a r had r eco v e r ed he r

i nd e p enden ce . Th e so ul o f l’r atap w as sa tislied , a n dw i th joy he ex pired .

"I

A s r eg a r d s l) urg a lla s an d th e lla h to rc s,th e oobit

h i s to r ia n o f lta j pu tana says Le t u s ta ke a re tro s pe c

t i v e gl ance o f the t r an sa c t i on s o f the lta h to re s f r o m

th e y ea r li lii , the p e r io d o f llaj a cla sw ttltt'

s dea th a t

Cabu l , to th e r es to ra t i o n o f A j i t,p r esen t i ng a co n t i

n uons con fl i c t o f 3 1) ye ar s ” d u r at i o n . in v a i n m ig h tw e sea r c h th e an na l s o f a ny o the r na t i on fo r suc h

i n flex i b l e d e v o t i o n a s m a r ked th e ftahto re cha r a c te r

th r ough th i s p e r i od o f s t r i fe,d u r i ng wh i ch

,to u se

th e i r own p h ra se,

‘ ha r d ly a Ch i e f ta i n d i ed on h i s

p a l l e t . ’ Let those who dee m th e H i nd u wa r r i o r vo id

o f p a t r i o t i s m r ead the r ude ch r on i c l e o f th i s th i r ty

yea r s" wa r ; l e t th e m com pa r e i t w i th tha t o f any o the r

co u n t r y,and d o j u s t i ce to the m agna n i m ou s llaj poo t.

T h i s n a r r a t i v e,th e s i m p l i c i ty o f wh i ch i s th e bes t

v o uch e r fo r i ts a u th e n t i c i ty,p r e se n ts an u n i n te r r u p ted

r eco r d o f p a t r i o t i s m an d d i s i n te r e s ted l oya l ty . I t was

a p e r i od w he n th e sac r i fice o f these p r i n c i p le s wa s

r ewa r ded by the ty r an t k i ng w i th th e h igh es t honou r s o f

th e S ta te ; no r a re we w i tho u t i n s ta nce s o f the tem pta t i o n

be i ng too s t r o ng to be w i th s tood : bu t th ey a re m re,

and se r v e on ly to ex h i b i t in m o r e p l eas i ng colou r s the

v i r t ues o f th e t r i be wh i ch s p u r n ed the a t te m p ts a t sed uc

t i on . W'

h at a s p l en d i d exam p l e i s the he r o i c D u r ga D a s

lT ed'

s R a jas than ,Vol. I , pp . 3 4 6 , 4 9 .

TO H I NDU s i rr icm o iur v .

o f a l l tha t cons titutes th e glo r y o f th e Raj p u t ! v a l o u r,

l oya l ty,i n teg r i ty , co m b i ned w i th p r uden ce i n a l l th e

d i ffi c u l t i e s w h i ch su r r o u nded h i m,a r e q ua l i t i e s wh i ch

en t i t l e h im to the ad m i r a t i on w h ich h i s m e m o r y con t i

n ues to en joy . T h e te m p ta t i o n s h e ld ou t to h im w e r e

a lmos t i r r e s i s t i b l e n o t m e r e l y th e go ld,wh i ch h e an d

thou sands o f h i s b r e th r en w ou l d a l i k e h a v e s p u r n ed,b u t

the s p l e n d i d o ffe r o f p owe r in th e p r o ffe r ed ‘m un sub o f

fi v e tho usan d,

’

w h i ch wo u l d a t once h a v e l i f ted h i m f r o m

h i s v assalcon d i t i o n to an eq ua l i ty w i th th e p r i n ces an d

ch i e f nob le s o f th e lan d . D u r ga h ad,i n deed

,b u t to

n a m e h i s r ewa r d b ut,as th e ba r d j u s t l y says

,h e wa s

linola c’ beyon d a l l p r i ce

,

‘ U noko’

u n i q u e . No t. e v en

r e v enge,so d ea r to th e Raj p u t

,t u r n ed h i m a s i de f r o m

th e d i c ta tes o f t r u e h onou r . T he fou l a ssass i n a t i on o f

h is b r o th e r,th e b r a v e Son ing

,e ff ec ted th r ough h i s

enem i e s,m ade n o altera tion in h i s h u m an i ty wh en e v e r th e

ch ance o f war p l aced his f e e i n h i s p owe r ; an d in th i s

h i s p o l i cy secon ded h i s v i r t ue . H i s ch i v a l r ou s cond u c t

i n th e ex t r icat i on o f p r i n ce Akbar f r o m i n e v itab l e de

s t r uc t i o n h ad h e fall en in to h i s fath e r ’s hand s,wa s on l y

su r p assed by h i s gene r ou s and del i cate beh a v i ou r towa t d s

th e p r i n ce ’s fa m ily w h i ch was l e f t in h i s ca r e , fo r m i ng

a m a r ked con t r as t to tha t of th e en e m i e s o f h i s fa i t h on

s im i la r occa s i on s . T h e v i r t u e o f th e g r an d-daugh te r o f

A u r angzeb,i n th e san c t ua r y o f D roonara

,was i n fa r

be tte r kee p i ng th an in th e t r eb ly-i f ail e d h a r e m of Ag r a .

O f h i s en e r ge t i c m i n d an d th e con t r olh e exe r ted o v e r

th ose o f h i s con fi d i ng b r e th r e n wh at a p r oof i s g i v en , in

h i s p r ese r v i n g the sec r e t o f th e abode o f h i s p r i n ce

th r oughou t the fi r s t s i x yea r s o f h i s i n fan cy B u t , to

https://www.forgottenbooks.com/join

1 2 111m m S UP E R I OR I TY .

H u m i l iated by a n igh t a t tac k on h i s forces by a

h a nd fu l o f men u nde r H amoo,th e Ch ie f o f B u n d i

,

w h en h i s a rmy w as p u t to fl i gh t,i n th e co u r s e o f a

co m p a ig n aga i n s t H a rao ti,th e Mah a r ana of Ch i to r

1 c -io r1ned h i s t r oo p s u nde r the w a l l s o f h i s cel eb r ated

fo r t r e s s,an d swo r e th a t h e wou l d n o t ea t u n tilh e wa s

m a s te r o f B un d i .

T h e r ash v ow w en t r ou n d b u t B u n d i wa s s i x ty

m i l e s d i s tan t,and de fe nd ed by b r a v e h ea r ts . H i s ch i e f s

e x p os t u l a ted w i th th e Ran a on the absolu te impo s s i

b ility o f 1ed ee1nin <r h i s \ow ; b u t th e wo r d s o f k ings a r e

sac r ed Boond i m u s t fa l l e r e th e K i ng o f th e Gchlotes

cou l d d i n e . I n th i s e x ige n ce a ch i l d i s h e x p ed i en t w as

p r o p osed to r e l ease h i m f r o m h u ng e r an d h i s oa th‘ to e r ec t a m ock 3oond i

,an d take i t by s to r m .

’ I n

s tan tly th e m im i c tow n a r ose u n de r th e wa l l s o f Ch i to r

an d,th a t th e dece p ti o n m i gh t be co m ple te

,th e local

n o m en cl atu r e wa s a t ten ded to , an d each q u a r te r had i ts

a p p r o p r ia te a p p e l l a tion . A b and o f H a r a s o f th e Pa th a r

w e r e in th e se r v i c e o f C h ito r,whose l eade r , K oo m bo

la irs i,wa s r e t u r n i n g w i th h i s kin f r o m h u n t ing th e

d ee r,wh en th e i a t ten t i o n w a s at t r ac ted by th is s t r ange

b u s tl e .T h e s to r y wa s soon told , th a t Boon d i . m u s t fall

e r e the Ran a cou l d d i n e . K oo m bo as se m bl ed h i s b r e th r en

o f th e l’a th a r,d ecl a r in g th a t e v e n the mock Boon d i

m u s t be d e fe nded . A l l fel t th e ind ign i ty to th e clan,

1nd ea ch bo s o m b u r n i ng w i th i n d i gnat i on , they p r e p ar ed

to p r o tec t th e m ud w al l s o f th e p seudo lloond i f r om in

s 11lt . lt wa s 1 ( p0 1 tcd to th ellan a th : i tl’oond 1wa s ln n s hed

lle ad v an ced to the s to 1 111,bu t wha t Wa s h is su r p r i s e WilO‘ll,

ins tea do f the b lan k ca r t r i dge h e h e ar d av olle v o f b alls wh iz

uno ne s t them l A m es senge r wa s de s p atch ed a nd was

r ece i v ed by lla irs i a t the ga te , who ex p la i ned the ca u se

o f th e u nex p ected s al u ta t i on,des i r i ng h i m to te l l th e

R ana th a t n ot e v en th e m o ck ca p i ta l o f a lla ra shou l d

be d i shonou r ed .

’ S p r ead i ng a shee t. a t the l i t t l e ga te

way , ]ia irsi an d th e Kaawun ts i n v i ted th e a ssau l t , and a t

th e th r e sho l d o f (,r

'

d r-ea -a uli (the lloomli o f c lay ) they

ga v e u p the i r l i v es fo r the honou r o f the ruc c .

" I

“Were can yo u f i nd a m o r e i n s p i r i ng and en no bl i ng

exa m p l e o f a p a t r io t i c H i n d u do i ng h i s d u ty tha n tha t

o f th e e l dest son o f. the Mehtri C h i e f d u r i n g the C i v i l

be tween Bakh t S i ngh and H am S i ngh i n M a rwa r ?

Colon e l Tod says The r e i s n oth i ng m o r e ch i v a l r ou s

in th e days o f Edwa r d and C r e ssy tha n the dea th o f the

h e i r o f Mehtri, who , w i th h i s fath e r an d b r o the r s sea l ed

h is fea l ty w i th h i s b lood on th i s fata l fie ld . H e had‘lo ng

engaged th e ha n d o f a d augh te r o f a ch i e f o f th e N iroo ka s,

and was occu p i ed w i th the ma r r iage r i te s w hen t i d i ngsr each ed h i m of th e a p p r oach o f th e r ebel s to Ma irta . The

kno t h ad j u s t bee n t i ed,th e i r han ds had been joi ned

b u t h e was a Ma irtea—he u n l ocked h i s h a nd f r o m thato f th e fai r N irook-i , to cou r t th e A psa ra i n the fie ld o f

ba tt l e . I n the b r i da l v es t m en ts , w i th the n u p t ia l co r on i-t

(Mor) en c i r c l i ng h i s fo r ehead , h e took h i s s ta t i on w i th

h i s clan in th e secon d day’s figh t

,and obta i n ed a b r i de

in I nd r a ’s abode .

’

T he ba r d s o f Ma roo dwel l w i thdel igh t on th e r o m an t i c glo r y o f the you th fu l he i r o fMeh tri, a s they r e p ea t i n the i r Do r i c v e r se ,

K an a moo t i b ulbulla(i nlla son i a ma l laA SlC 118 k u r ro llt ) ayaK unwa r Meli tri wa l la .

’

T h e p a r aph e r n a l ia h e r e en ume ra ted a r e v e ry fo re i gn to th e

lT od’

s Ra j asthan , Vol. I I , pp . 4 0 3 , til.

74 H INDU S UP E R I O R I TY .

ca v a l i e r o f th e “f es t : ‘lVith p ea r l s s h i n i ng i n h is ea r s ,a nd a golden Ch a p l e t r ou n d h i s neck

,a s p ace o f e igh ty

coss cam e th e h e i r o f Meh tri.’

The v i r g i n b r i de fo l l owed h e r lo r d f r o m Ja i p u r,b u t

i n s tead o f be i ng m e t w i th th e tabo r an d lu te,an d oth e r

s ign s o f fes t i v i ty,wa i l an d la m en tat i on awaited h e r w i th i n

th e land s o f Mehtri,whe r e t i d i ngs ca m e o f th e ca l a m i ty

w h i ch a t once d e p r i v e d th i s b r an ch of th e Ma irteas of all

its su p p o r te r s . H e r p a r t wa s soon take n sh e com

m and ed th e p y r e to be e r ec ted ; an d w i th th e t u r ba n

a nd toorah,w h i ch ado r n ed h e r l o r d o n th i s fatalday , s h e

fol lowed h i s shade to th e m an s i on s of th e su n .

” 1

Ow i ng to ce r ta i n r eason s,Ra i S i ngh

,th e h e i r -a p p a

r e n t o f J a isahn er,d u r i ng th e r e ign o f MulRaj (who

becam e k i n g in A . D . w a s p e r suad ed to pu t the

m in i s te r to dea th . T h i s wa s e ffec ted by th e p r i n ce ’s own

h and,i n h i s fath e r ’s p r e se n ce an d a s th e M eh ta

,in fa l l ing ,

c l ung to Mid R a j fo r p r o tec t i on , i t was p r e p osed to tak e o ff

H u i R aj a t th e sa m e t i m e . T he p r o p os i t i on,h owe v e r

,wa s

r ej ec ted w i th h o r r o r by th e p r i n ce , w hose v engean ce wa s

s at i sfied . T h e R awalwa s all owed to esca p e to th e fe m a l e

a pa r t m en t s b u t th e Ch i e f t ai n s,w el l k now i n g th ey cou l d

n o t ex pec t p a r don f r om th e Rawa l, in s i s ted on i n v es t i n g

lla i S i ngh and i f h e r e fu sed,on p lac i ng h i s b r o th e r on

o f ia i S ingh wa s p roc la im ed ; b u tthe (flu ff . T h e

n o en t r ea ty o r th r eat wo u l d i n duce h im to l i s ten to th e

p r oposa l o f occu py i ng th e th r one ; i n l i e u o f wh i ch h e

u se d a p a l l e t (khftt ) . T h r ee mon th s an d fi v e days ha dp as sed s i n ce the de pos a l a n u bon dage o f M ill Ra j

, wh e na fema l e r e sol v e d to em a nc i p ate h im ; th is fem al e wa s

the w i fe o f th ch i e f con s p i ra to r . a n d con fi den t ia l ad v i se r

lla j a s tli all, Vol. 1, pp

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76 H I NDU S U I‘

E R I O R I T Y .

Th i s R ajpu tn i, add s Colon elTod,

“w i th an ele

v a t i on of m i n d equa l to w h ate v e r is r eco r ded of G r eek

and Ro m an he r o i nes,de v o ted he r sel f an d a h u sband w ho m

sh e l o v ed , to th e one p r edo m i nan t sen t i m en t of the Ra jpu t

— swad harma (du ty ) .

T h e r e ply of the D eorah p r i n ce o f S i r o h i w h en ins t r uc ted to p e r fo r m that p r ofou nd obe i san ce f r o m w h i c h

none we r e exe m p t a t De l h i , w he r e h e h ad been ca r r i ed

by M ok u ndas,on e o f Ja swan t S i n gh ’s gen e r ais a f te r

h a v i n g bee n sec r etly cap t u r ed w h il s t as l ee p in h i s p alace ,and h i s subsequ en t cond u c t

,sh ow s th e h i gh s p i r it an d th e

i n de p en den ce o f ch a r ac te r o f a t r ue Raj p u t an d h is in

ten se l o v e fo r h i s cou n t r y . H e said that “ h i s l ife wa s

in th e k i ng ’s h ands,h i s h ono u r in h i s own ; h e had ne v e r

bowed th e h ead to m o r ta l m an,and n e v e r wou l d .

” A s

Ja swan t had p l edged h i m self fo r h i s h onou r ble t r ea t

m en t,the offi ce r s of th e ce r e m on i es endea v ou r ed by st r a

tagem to ob ta i n a con s t r a i n ed obe i sa nce,an d in s tead o f

in t r od u c i ng h i m a s u sual,th ey sh owe d him a w i ck e t ,

kn ee h i gh,an d v e r y low o v e r h ead

,by w h i ch to en te r

,

bu t p u tt i ng h i s fee t fo r e m os t,h is h ead was th e las t p a r t

to a p pea r . Th i s s tubbo r n ingen u i ty , h i s n oble bea r i n g,a nd h i s long-p r o t r ac ted r es i s tance

,added to J a swan t ’s

p l edge,won th e k i ng ’s fa v ou r an d h e not on ly p r offe r

e d h im p a r don,b u t wha te v e r la nds h e m i gh t des i r e .

“ Th ough the k i ng d i d not n am e th e r e t u r n , S oortan wa s

w el l awa r e o f th e te r m s,bu t h e bol d ly and q u i ck l y r e p l i ed

,

wha t can v ou r Maj estv be s tow eq ua l to A ch ilgurh

le t me r e tu r n to i t i s allI a sk .

’ Th e k i ng h ad th e m agna

n im itv to co m p l y w i th h is r eq u es t ; S oortan wa s a l l owed

to r e t i r e to th e ca s t l e o f: A bu,no r d i d h e o r any o f

th e D eoras e v e r r ank the m se l v es a m ongs t th e v assa ls o f

I‘A T R I H

'

N S M .

th e e m p i r e ; b u t they ha v e con t i n ued to the p r esen t hou r

a l i fe o f a l m os t sa v age i nde p enden ce .

”

Col on elTod sav s “ Th ese men of (I n: so il,a s they

e m p h at i ca l l y des i gnate th e m se l v es,c l i ng to it and the i r

a n c i en t and we l l-de f i n ed p r i v i l eges,w i th an iu i eo n ili ie r~

ab l e p e r t i nac i ty ; i n th e i r e ndea v ou r s to p r ese r v e the m ,w hol e gen e r a t i on s ha v e been swe p t away

,ye t ha s the i r

s t r eng th i n c r ea sed i n th e v e r y r at i o o f o p p r e ss i on . Whe r ea re now th e O p p r esso r s th e dynas t i e s o f G hazn i

,o f f iho r

,

th e Ghilj is , th e Lod is , the I’a tha i is

,the T ii ii oo rs

,and

th e den ioralis ing M ah r a tta ? T h e nat i v e Itaj po ot ha s

flou r ish ed a m i d s t th ese r e v ol u t i on s,and su r v i v ed the i r

fall an d b u t fo r th e v i ce s of th e i r i n te r n a l sway,ch i e f ly

con t r ac ted f r o m such assoc ia t i on , w ou l d have r i se n to0

p owe r u p on t he r u i n o f th e i r ty r an t s .“

H ow fa r w i l l th i s h igh ch a r ac te r o f the I’t a j pn ts be

in flu en ced by th e new con d i t i o n o f th i ngs r e m a i n s to be

seen . Co lon e l Tod say s “Whe n so m any na tions a rc ca l l

ed u p on,in a p e r i od o f g r ea t ca l a m i ty and dange r , to m ake

o v e r to a fo r e ig n e r , the i r Op p o s i te in e v e r y th i ng , the i rsu p e r i o r i n m os t

,the con t r o l o f the i r fo r ces i n t i m e o f

war,th e ad j ud i ca t i on o f th e i r d i s p u tes i n t i m e o f p eace ,

an d a sha r e i n th e f r u i t s o f the i r r eno v a t i ng p r ospe r i ty .

w h at m u s t he th e r esu l t , wh en ea c h Ra j p oo t m a v ha ng

u p h i s lan ce i n th e ha l l,con v e r t h i s swo r d to a p lough

sh a r e,and m ake a baske t of h i s b uck le r Wha t b u t th e

p r os t r at i o n o f e v e r y v i r tue ? To be g r ea t , to be i nde

p en den t,i ts m a r t ia l s p i r i t m u s t be ch e r i shed ha p p y i f

w i th in th e bound s o f m ode r a t i on .

" 3 I t i s to b e ho p ed

lT od’

s Raj as th an ,VolI I , pp .

2 To d’s R a jas th an ,Vol. I I , p . 160 .

3 T0 d 's R a jasthan , Vol. I , p . 127 .

78 H INDU surmu omr r

th at ed uca t i on,t r a v e l an d contaer. w i th enli gh ten ed

E u r o p ean s w i l l succeed in coun te r ac ting th e ban e fulinfl a c h ees d r eaded by th e ga l lan t Colon e l .

Th e llaj pu t, w ith allh i s t u rb u l en ce, possesses

i n an em i n en t deg r ee bo th loya l ty an d p at r i o t i s m .

” 1

Wh at ca n he a m o r e el oquen t tes t i m ony to the p a t

r iotic fe r v ou r an d the h e r o i c v alou r o f th e Raj p u t s,tha n

the fol l ow i ng ex t r act f r om th e A n n a l s an d A n t i q u i t ie s

o f Raja s th an by Colon elTod :

The r e i s n o t a p e tty S tate in Ra j p u tana tha t h a s

n o t h ad i ts own T hermopyla) an d sca r ce ly a c i ty th a t ha s

not p r od uced its L eon i das . Bu t th e m an t l e o f ages ha s

sh r ou ded f r o m v iew w h a t th e mag ic p e n o f th e h i s to r i an

m i gh t h a v e con sec r a ted to end l ess ad m i r ation : S onmath

m igh t h a v e r i v a l l ed Del p h os th e s p o i l s o f H i n d m i gh t

h a v e v i ed w i th th e w ealth of. th e Lyb ian K i ng ; and ,co m p a r ed w i th th e a r m y of th e Panda v a s

,

‘ th e a r m y o f

Zerx es wou l d h a v e dw i n d l ed i n to insignificanee.

” 2

lT od’

s lla ja s tliau , Vol. 1, p . 10 4 .2 Ted 's R a jasthan

,I ntroduct ion ,

p. 10 .

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80 H I N D U surnmom r v .

la s t stand aga i n s t th e comb i n e d a r m i es o f A u r angzeb

a n d M u r ad i n th e i r ad v ance to Agra ,’

and the I m p e r i al

fo r ces took to fl i gh t,th e B un d i ch i e f

,l i k e I’ oru s o f o ld ,

con t i n u ed figh t ing he r o i ca l ly t i l l h e wa s k i l l ed,say i ng

“ acc u r sed be h e w ho fl ie s I H e r e,t r ue to m y sa l t, m y

fee t a r e r oo ted to th i s f i e ld,n o r w illI qu i t it a l i v e b u t

w i th v i c to r y,

” and how B h a r a t S i ngh,h i s yo unges t son

m a i n ta i n ed th e con tes t n ob ly,Col on e l Tod says : “ T h u s

i n the two ba tt l es o f U jj a i n and D hol p u r,n o l e ss th an

12 p r i n ce s of th e bl ood,togethe r w i th th e h ead s of e v e r y

H a r a clan,m a i n tained th e i r fea l ty e v en to death . Wh ere

a r e we to look fo r such e x a m p l e s P ” 1

D u r ing a v i s i t of th e Boon d i ch i e f,R ao S oojn , to

Ch i to r,Ran a Ra tn a

,a t th e i n s t i gat i on o f an in t r i gu i n g

P oorb ia,de te r m i n ed to s lay th e R ae in an h u n t wh en th e

r e s p ec ti v e ch i e f s we r e att en ded on ly by a cou ple o f se r

v an t s . F i n d i ng a con v en i en t o p p o r tu n ity,th e Rana said

to his com p an ion,

now i s th e m o m e n t to sl ay th e b ear,

and i n s tan t ly an a r r ow f r o m th e b ow of th e P oorb ia

w a s s p ed a t th e R ae .

“ lav

ith an eagle’

s eye h e saw i t

co m i ng. an d t u r n ed it o ff w i th h i s b ow .

” Th i s m i gh t

h a v e been ch a n ce,b u t ano th e r f r o m th e fos te r -b r o th e r

o f th e H an a con v i n ced h i m th e r e wa s t r each e r y . Sca r ce l y

h ad h e w a r ded off th e secon d,wh en the Ran a da r ted at

h i m on ho r seback,an d c u t h i m dow n w i th h i s M a nda .

T h e R ae fe l l,bu t recov er imr took h i s shawland l i gh t l y

D ,

bou n d u p th e wo u nd , an d a s h i s fe e wa s m ak i ng o ff,h e

ca l l ed a l oud,

“ esca p e yo u m ay,b u t yo u h a v e su n k M ewa r .”

Th e I ’oorb ia,

-w b o fol l owed h i s p r i n ce , w h en h e saw th e

lT o d’

s I ta ja s tha n ,Vol. I I , p . lh

‘

l.

“ T he a nna ls o f no n a t ion on

e a r th c an fu r n i sh such a n exam p le a s a n en t i te fam i ly ,s ix r oya l b r o the r s ,

b tretchcd o n the fi e ld and allb u t one in dea th " -Vol. I I , p . 4 9 .

V A LOUR .

li no b i nd u p h i s woun d,sa i d

,th e wo r k i s bu t ha ildo ne ;

a nd l i ke a cowa r d,ltu tna once m o r e c ha r ged the wo u nded

li ao . A s h i s a rm wa s r ai s ed to fi n i sh the dee d o f sha m e,

l i k e a wou n ded t i ge r the lla r a m ade a dy i ng ello rt,

ca ugh t the a ssass i n b y th e r obe,and d ragged h i m f r o m

h i s s teed . Toge the r th ey ca m e to the g r oun d , the l tanau nde r n ‘

tltll. T he l tao kne l t u po n h i s b eas t,wh i l e

,w i th

p r e te r na tu r a l s t r e ng th , w i th o ne hand h e g r a s ped h i s

v i c ti m by the th r oa t,w i th the oth e r h e sea r ch ed fo r his

d agge r . Wha t a m o m en t fo r r e v en ge ! lle p l u nged

t h e wea p on i n to h i s assa ss i n ’s h ea r t,and saw h i m e x p i re

a t h i s fe e t. T he Rao wa s sat i sfied the r e w as no m o rel i fe l e f t h i m than s u ffi ced fo r r e v enge

,an d he d r o p p ed a

co r p se u p on th e dead body o f h i s foe m an .

T h e t i d i ngs flew to l’mond i,to th e m othe r o f th e

R ao th a t he r son was s la i n i n the A ilzam .

“ S l ai n

excla i m ed th i s nob le da m e,

bu t d i d he fa l l a l one 9

N e v e r cou l d a son w ho ha s d r un k a t th i s b r eas t depa r t

u naccom p an i ed ;” a nd as sh e s po ke ,

“ m a te r na l fee l i n g

cau s ed th e m i l k to i ssu e f r o m th e fou n t w i th such fo r ce

th a t i t r e n t the s lab o n w h i ch i t fe l l .” l

Colo ne l Tod th u s r e lates an i n c i de n t he w i tnessed i n

H ara va ti “ T he r e wa s one spec im en o f de v o t i on (to thep r i n ce o f K otah ) wh i ch we da r e no t p a ss o v e r , co m pa rable

w i th wha te v e r i s r eco r ded o f the fabled t r ai ts o f he r o i s m o f

G r eece o r to m e . T he R ege n t’s (Za l i m S i ngh ? o f N o ra h )

lT od'

s R a jasthan ,Vol. ll. , pp . MIN ,

119 .

2 C ol. T od says “ Za l im S i ngh was a c onsumma te po l i t ic ian .

who can sca rce ly find a pa r a l le l in the va r i ed page s o f’

his tu ry . H e

wa s the p rimum mob ile o f the leg io n he i nh ab i ted . a s ph e r e fa r too co u

fined for lIlS gen ius , wh ic h r equ i red a wi de r fie ld for its d is p lay . a nd

m ight ha ve cont rolled the dest in ies o f na t ions .

4

852 £11,a ser emomr v .

bat ta l i on s we r e ad v an c i ng i n col u m n s a l ong the prec ipi

tou s ban k o f a r i v u l e t,wh e n th e i r a tten t i o n wa s a r r e s ted

b v se v e r a l s ho ts fi r e d f r o m an iso la ted hilloek r i s i ng o u t

o f the p la i n ac r os s the s t r ea m . Wi th ou t any o r de r,b u t

a s b y a s i m u l tan eou s i m p u l se , t he w h ol e l i n e h a l ted to

gaze a t two a u dac i o u s i n d i v i d uals,who a p p ea r e d de te r

m i n e d to m ake th e i r m oun d a f o r t r e s s . A m i n u te o r

two p a ss ed in m u te su r p r i se,w h en th e w o r d wa s g i v e n

to m o v e on ; b u t sca r ce l y wa s it u tte r ed e r e se v e r al

w ou nded f r om th e h ead of th e col u m n we r e p ass i ng to

th e r ea r,a nd sh o ts began to be exch anged v e r y b r isk l y

,

a t lea s t twen ty i n r e t u r n fo r on e . B u t the l ong m a tch

lock s o f th e two h e r oes told e v e r y t i m e in o u r l en g th en

ed l i ne,w h i l e th ey see m ed to h a v e ‘ a ch a r m ed l i fe

,

’

a n d th e sho t f e lll i k e ha i l a r ou n d th e m i n n oc u ou s,o n e

con t i n u i ng to load beh in d th e m ou nd,w h i l e t h e o th e r

fi r ed w i th dead l y a im . A t l eng th two twelv e p ou nde r s

w e r e u n l imbe r ed ; and a s th e sho t w h i s t l ed r ou nd th e i r

ca r s,bo th r ose on th e v e r y p i n na cl e o f th e m ou n d

,a nd

m ade a p r o fo un d sala am fo r th i s co m p l i me n t to th ei r

v a l ou r ; w h ich done,th ey con t i n ued to l oad and fi r e ,

w h i l s t en t i r e p la toon s b lazed u pon th e m . A l th ough

m are m en had s u ff ere l,an i r r es i s t i b l e i m pu l se wa s fe l t to

sa v e these g idlan t m en o r de r s w e r e g i v e n to cea se fi r

ing , and th e fo r ce wa s d i r ec ted to m o ve on,u n les s any

two i n d i v i d ua l s ch ose to a t ta ck th e m m an fu l ly h and-to

han d. T he wo r d s we r e sca r ce ly u tte r ed whe n two you ng

\V he n a n l'lngh s h m th e i r pu r s u i t o f the l’md a ri l ead e r ,K a r im K h a n ,

i ns u l ted h is town o f R am a,he bu r s t fe i th lf tu'

en ty

y e a r s e o nld b e ta k en f rom h is l i te,D e l h i a nd D eccan s hou ld be o ne .

"

T o [i

s Vol. ll, pp , 5 17 , 18 .

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00

,g.

H INDU S U P I ‘IR I O R I T Y .

“ I t wa s w i th th e S esod ia Raj p u ts and the Sh ek hawa ts tha t M ohaba t Khan p e r fo r m ed th e m os t da r ing

e x p l o i t in M oghalh i s to r y,m ak i ng Jeh ang i r p r i sone r in

h i s own ca m p in th e zen i th o f h i s p owe r .” T h i s

M ohabat Khan wa s an a p os ta te son of S agarj t , h a l f

b r o th e r of R an a P r ata p .

“ H e wa s beyond do ub t,

says Tod , th e m os t da r i ng C h ief i n Jehangi r ’s reign .

” L

“ Th e ce l eb r ated h e r oic cha r ges of the R ahtore ho r se

a t th e bat t l es o f Tonga an d Pa t u n in 179 1 A .D . ,again s t

th e d i sc i p l i n ed a r m i es o f th e F r e n ch Gen e r alDe Boign e ,ca r r y ing e v e r y th i ng be fo r e th e m

,s how th e u n equall ed

da sh an d éla n of the R ahtore ca v a l r y wh e n in s p i r e d byp at r io t i s m .

The r e is n o end to th e r ecou n ting o f th e b r a v edeed s p e r fo r m ed by th e Raj p u t s . Na m e a f ew h e r oes l i k e ,P r ata p , D u r ga Da s , Jaswan t , H a m i r , R aj S i ngh , Mann

,

P rithi Raj , S i vaj i,and a v ol u m e i s sa i d . T h e r e s t

“f e r e long to te l l how many batt les fough t,H ow many k ings dest r oyed and k ingd oms won .

’

B u t as th e Raj p u ts we r e m en o f v a l ou r,so we r e

t h ey men of h e r culean b u i l d and s t r e ng th . I t w as a

Bha tt i Raj p u t— S on ingd eo , a m an of gigan t i c s t r eng thwho no t on ly ben t b u t b r oke th e i r on b ow se n t by th e

k ing o f Kho r asan to th e E m p e r o r of D elhi to s t r i ng,wh e n

no on e i n D el h i co u l d do“H ome r

’

s h e r oes,says Col . Tod

,

“we r e p ig m i e s

to th e K u r ti s , w hose b r ace l e t w e m ay do ub t i f A j axcou l d h a v e l i f ted .

” 3

lT od'

s R a ja s th a n,Voll

,p .

i-"li

n iti

s R a ja s than ,Vol. ll, p . 25 4 .

“Tod ’

s R ams thau , Vol, ll, p . 8 1 .

Colone l T od says : Le t us take the lla j pu t

c ha rac te r f r o m th e r oya l h i s to r ians the m se l v es,f r om

A kba r , J ehangi r , A u rangzeb . Th e m os t b r i l l ian t eo n

tp tes ts of these m on ar ch s we r e by the i r Ra j pnt a l l i es ;though the l i ttl e r ega r d the la tte r had fo r o p i n io n

a l i e na ted the sym p ath i e s o f a r ace,who

,wh en r igh t ly

m anaged,en cou n te r ed a t co m m a nd the A fghan a m i d s t

th e snows o f Ca uca su s,o r m ade the fu r thes t C he r s onese

t r i bu ta r y to the e m p i r e . A ssa m , whe r e th e llritis h a r m sw e r e r ecen t ly e ngaged

,a nd fo r the i ssue o f wh i ch su ch

a n x ie ty wa s m an i fes ted in the m e t r o p o l i s o f li rita in,wa a

conq ue r ed by a Raj p u t p r i n ce,w hose descendan t i s now

a n a l l y o f the B r i t i s h G o v e r n m en t ." 1

Th e Mogh als we r e i ndeb ted fo r ha l f the i r con

q ue s ts to th e La /r/i T ulera r I fulila r a n (h u nd r ed tho u sa n d

swo r ds o f th e R ahtores ) . l in t the im pe r ia l p r i n ces

k n ew no t how to a p p r ec ia te o r to m an age such me n

w ho,wh e n u n i ted unde r one who cou ld con t r o l th e m ,

we r e irresistible .

” J

Rel i g i ou s b igot r y and i m p e r ia l v a n i ty e v e n tua l ly

d i sgu s ted the R a j p u ts , who we r e the bu lwa r k o f th e

M ogh a l th r on e,w i th th e r esu l t th a t th e e m p i r e ca m e to

an en d soon e r th an wa s ex p ec ted . T he s p i r i t o f d e v o

t i on i n th i s b r av e race,by wh ose a i d th e M ogha l po we r

was m ade an d m a i n ta i n ed , was i r r e t r i e v ably a l i enated ,”

w h en D el h i was i n v aded by Nad i r S hah . E v e n i n the

ti m es of th e g r ea tMogli alE m p e r o r , A u ra ngzeb , the H i nd u

p r i n ces o f R aj p u tan a thoug h d i su n i ted and j ea lou s o f

lT od’

s R a jastha n ,Vol. l. p .

2 Tod ’

s lta j a s than ,Vol. ll, p . 60 7 .

d T ed'

s lta jas than , Vol. 1, p . “ 7 .

8 6 I I lN U U surmmonrrr .

each o th e r,we r e so m e of the m i n d i v i d ua l ly too s t r ong

to be o p e n ly defied by th e E m p e r o r . Jaswan t S i ngh o f

J odh p u r wa s p o i son ed at K ab u l,

1 an d h i s h e i r,P rith i

S i ngh,a t De ‘

n i,w h i ch f r eed th e h ea r t o f A u r ang f r o m a

te r r i bl e n i gh t m a r e . I t was on ly a f te r th ese m u r de r s

th a t th e ty r an t th ough t of i m p os i n g th e h ated la z ia . Th e

g r eat Ja i S i ng h o f Jai p u r wa s a l so p o i son ed a t h i s 111stigat

-ion by th e Raj a ’s son,Ixira t S i n gh . H a v i ng r ecou r se

to p o i son,w h e n u n abl e to o p e n l y m ee t a s t r ong o p p on en t

,

wa s a fa v ou r i te p r a c t i ce o f th e M oghalE m p e r o r s o f I n d ia .

‘lv en th e ti 1 nel1-bel a uded A kba r,

‘the arclr enemy o f th e

H i n d u s,

’

w as no t abo v e it . Col on elTod says A des i r e

to be r i d o f th e g r ea t R aj a M a u n o f A m be r,to w h o m h e

w as so m u ch i n deb ted,m ade th e e m p e r o r to ac t th e p a r t

of th e a ssass i n . H e p r e p a r ed a mat/um ,o r con fec t i on

,a

p a r t o f w h i ch con ta i n ed p o i son b u t,caugh t i n h is own

sna r e , h e p r e sen ted th e i n nox i o u s po r t i o n to th e ta j pu t

a nd a te tha t d r ugged w i th d ea th h i m self .

” T h e ca u se1ppears to h a v e been a de s i gn 0 11 th e p a r t of Raja Mann

to alte r th e s uccess ion,and tha t K h u s r o

,h is n e p h ew

,

sh ould succeed i n s tead of S e l i m .

T h e m u r d e r o f M ah a r aj a A j i t S i ngh of M a r i ' a r by

h i s 0 11 11 son,llakht S i n gh

,a t th e i n s t i gat i o n of the Say

yad s— th e k i ng m ake r s of I n d i a— wa s an oth e r in s tan ce o f

th e p ol icy of co v e r t gu i l e,

”w h i ch beca m e a s t r onge r

w ea p on than th e swo r d in th e h ands o f som e o f th e

Mohamed an r u l e r s o f I nd i a,who see m to h a v e 1e 1cceptcd

th e r ecom m en dat i on bes towed 0 11 th i s p ol i cy by b e l ialin th e a sse m b ly o f the Fa l l e n Angels ,

lT o d’

s lta j as tha n ,Vol. l , p . 357 9

,a nd Vol. H ,

2 Tod ’

s R a j a sth an , Vol. I , pp . 553 .

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88 m s nu sc r emonrrr .

the sac r ed bu lwa r k o f r e l ig i on,n e v e r co m p r om i s ed h e r

h onou r fo r h e r sa fe ty,a nd s t i lls u r v i v es h e r an c i e n t

l im i ts and s ince th e b r a v e S amars i ga v e u p h is li fe,th e

b l oo d o f h e r p r i n ces ha s f l owed in co p i o u s s t r ea m s fo r

th e m a i n tenance of th i s h on ou r,r eli g ion an d ind epen

d eu ce .

” I

A s th e an c i e n t H i n d u s we r e th e b r a v es t n at i on in th e

wo r l d,so d i d th ey g i v e to th e wo r l d i ts g r ea tes t he r o . H e r

c u l e s ha s been u ni v e r sa l ly acknow l edged to be th e g r eates t

wa r r io r,th e b r a v es t and th e m os t p owe r fulman th e wo r ld

h as e v e r p r od uced . A n d H e r c u l e s was,i n r ea l i ty

,a H i n d u

and not a Greek . H e r cu l e s was b u t Ba l r a m . T h i s m ay

sou nd p a r adox i calto those who h a v e no t s t ud i ed co m p a r a

t i v e m y tholo g y,b u t to t hose who ha v e don e so t h e r e i s

n o th i ng s t r ange i n th i s s ta te m en t . T he w o r d H e r c u l e s i s

de r i v ed f r o m th e S an sk irt wo r d H e r i-c ul-es

Ba l r a m e m i g r ate d to G r eece a fte r th e M ah abh a r ata,an d

i n con seq ue nce o f the dis p l ay o f h i s wonde r fulfea t s o f

s t r e ng th and v a l o u r th e r e,the p eo p l e o f G r eece began to

w o r sh i p h im a s a god .

P r o fesso r H ee r e n says : We can ha r d ly doub t th a t

lacchu s and H e r cu l es w e r e bo th o f th em H i nd u de i t i es,

s i nce th ey a r e n o t on ly r e p r e sen ted a s objec ts o f gene r a l

w o r sh i p,b u t the p a r t i cu l a r cou n t r i es and p l aces a r e a l so

s p ec ified wh e r e bo th the one an d the o th e r had te m p l e s

e r ected to th e i r se r v i ces (see A rr ian, p .

,174

,and S t r abo ,

V ol , 15 th p .

D iodoru s says th a t H e r cu l e s wa s bo r n a m ong s t th eI nd ian s . T he co m bats to w h i ch D iodorus a l l udes a r e

1 Tod ‘s ltaja s than,Vol. 1, p .

9

those i n the legendarv ha un t s o f the lle re nla s d a riu ' r

the i r twe l v e y e ar s ex i l e f r o m the sea t o f the i r fo rmfa th e r s ." l

Colon el T o d says Bo th K r i s h na and llald eo

(lialram ) o r A p ol lo and lle re nlc s a r e ex (lo r d s ) o f the

race (c al) o f lle ri (ile r i-t‘ ttl-c s ) . o f wh i ch the G r ee k-tm i gh t h a v e m ade the co m p o und H e r cu l es . M i g h t no t a

co lony a f te r the G r eat Wa r h ave ti i ig ra ted Wes twa rd ?

T he p e r i od o f the r e tu r n o f li era elid z e,the de s c enda n ts

o f A t r e u s (A t r i th e p r ogen i to r o f the lle rieula (v r'

t ijwt)

w ou l d an swe r : I t wa s a bo u t ha l f a cen tu r y a f t er theG r ea t Wa r.

’

A f te r desc r i b i ng the p o p u lat i on o f l icha r, Mr.

P oeocke says : “ H e r e th en the h i s to r ian i s p re s e n ted

w i th'

a p r i m it i v e p o p u l at i on i n llella s,n ot on l y f r o m the

H i m a laya s,b u t f r o m Pe la sa , Mag had a , o r ltaha r, w i th

co r r es p on d i ng c lan s to e n te r G r eece,and the che r i s hed

m e m o r y o f th e i r Ch i e fs,a s th e fou nda t i on o f one o f the

godsh i p s o f H e l la s . Though iald e va,the e ld e r b r othe r

o f.K r i shna

,who was su p p osed to ha v e p e r i sh ed i n c ro ss

i n g th e H i m a laya m ou n ta i n s , succeeded u l t i m a tel y in

r each i ng G r eece,whe r e h i s r enown beca m e g r ea t

,K r i s h na

w as doo m ed to p e r i sh i n a lan d fa r d i s tan t f r om tha t

Colon el Tod can not r es i s t the i n fe ren ce tha t the

H erculas o f I nd ia and the lleraclid ze o f G r eece we r e eo n

n eeted . Arrian no t i ce s th e s i m i la r i ty o f the H i nd u and

T heban H e r cu l e s,an d c i tes a s h i s a u thor i ty the a m ba s s a

do r of Se l e ucu s,Megasthenes , who sa v s H e u s e d the

lT o d'

s lta ja s than ,Vol. I , p . 3 0 . A rriaa

'

s s te rv of He rcule s is thesame as that g i v en in the P u ranas .

z lad ia in G r eece , p . 2 99 .

90 H I N D U surna toarrr .

sa m e hab i t w i th the T h eban , an d is p r ac t i ca l l y worsh ipped by th e S t‘u '

esen i,who h a v e two g r eat c i t i es be l ongi ng

to the m,nam e ly

,M ath u r a an d Clisob oros .

”

Th e po i n ts of r ese m b lan ce be tween th e H i n d u and

the T heban H e r cu l es a r e m os t strik in f rg ,and 1rres1s t1bly

l ead on e to th e con c l u s i on tha t h e r e a t l ea s t s im i la r i ty

is sy nonymo u s w ith iden t i ty .

(1) T h e H era clid aa c la i m ed th ei r o r i g i n f r o m A t r eu s,

.

the H erieulas f r o m A t r i .

(2 ) E uristhenes wa s th e fi r s t g r ea t k i ng o f th e H e r a

el i das Y ud h istira ha s su ff i c i en t a ffin i ty i n h i s n a m e to th e

fi r s t S p a r tan k ing n o t to s ta r t l e th e e ty m ol og i s t— th e d

an d r be i ng a lw ays p e r m u tab le i n San sk r i t .

(3 ) T h e G r eek s o r lon ian s a r e descen ded f r o m Y a v an

o r Ja v an , th e se v en th f r o m J aphet. T h e H ericules a r e a l soY av an s cla i m i ng f r om Ja v an o r Y av ona

,th e th i r teen th

in decen t f r om Y aya t, th e t h i r d son of the p r i m e v a l

p at r ia r c h .

(4 ) T h e an c i en t H eraclid ee of th e G r eek s a sse r ted

th at th ey w e r e a s ol d a s th e sun,ol de r th an th e m oon .

M ay no t th i s boa s t con cea l th e fact th at th e H ericulidm (o r

S u rv a v au sa ) o f G r eece had S et tl ed the r e a n te r io r to th e

colony of th e ln d u (L un a r ) r ace of H eric ula s ? Col . Tod

says : “ Am i d st the s nows of J au ca su s , H i n d u l egend s

ahandon th e H ericula s u n de r th e i r l eade r s,Y ud h istira. an d

llald eo : ye t,i f A l e xande r e s tab l i sh ed h is a l ta r s in Pan

ehalica a m ongs t th e son s o f l’oo r a a nd th e H c ricula S a

w h at p h y s i ca l im poss i b i l i ty ex i s ts that a col ony o f th e m

u nde r Y ud h is t ira an d Ba l d eo,e igh t ce n t u r i es a n te r i o r ,

sh ou l d h a v e p ene t r a ted to G r eece ? Com pa r at i v e l y fa rad v an c ed i n sc i e n ce an d a r m s

,th e con q ues t wou l d ha v e

be st] ea sy

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99 H I N D U swrnni om '

rv .

V I I I . TH E PO S IT ION OF WO M EN .

O h fa i rest o f c r ea t ion last and bes tO f allGod ’

s wo r k s I C r eatu r e in whom evcell’d

W hate ve r can to s igh t or though t b e fo rmedH o ly , d iv ine , good , amiable. or sweet.

M I LT O N P a ra d ise L ost.

MR . H E RB E RT S p en ce r,th e g r ea t apos tle o f in d i v i d ual

f r eedo m,says th at th e p osition o f wo m en supplies a

good tes t o f th e ci v i l izat i o n o f a p eo p l e .

Colon elTod a l so says : I t is u n i v e r sa l l y ad m i t te d

th a t the r e i s n o be tte r c r ite r i o n of th e r e fine m e n t of a

n a t i o n th a n th e con d i t i on of th e fai r se x th e r e i n .

” 1

Th e h igh p os i t i o n H i n d u wo m en h a v e alway s

occu p i ed in In d i a w ould,i f th is is t r ue

,a r gue a v e r y

ad v an ced s ta te of c i v i l i zation in th a t cou n t r y . E v e n

of th e m ode r n H in du soc i e ty,Col on elTod says

“ I f d e v ot i on to th e fai r se x be adm i t ted a s a crite

r ion of c i v i l i zat i on,th e R aj p uts m u s t r an k v e r y h igh .

H i s su sce p t i b i l i ty i s ex t r e m e,and fi r e s a t th e s l i gh tes t

offe n ce to fem a l e de l i cacy,w h i ch h e n e v e r fo r g i v es . A

sat i r i ca l improm tu , offen d i ng again s t fe m a l e d e l i cacy,

d i s so l v ed the coa l i t i on o f th e R ahtores an d Cu tchwaha s,

a n d l a i d e ach p r os t r ate be fo r e . the M ah r at ta s,w h om

w he n u n i ted th ey had c r u sh ed an d a je st , a p p a r en tl y

t r i v i al,com p r om i sed the r i gh t of promogen itu re to th e

th r on e o f Ch i to r,a n d p r o v ed m o r e d i sa s t r ou s i n i ts con se

7 2

quenc c s th a n the a rm s e i th e r o f M ogh u l s o r M ah r a tt as .

’

I'

l‘

cnli

s lia infl llttll, VH ll, 1) CO”.

Q'

I‘

od'

r linja slhan ,Vol. 1, -7G.

'

rtn~: ros tr um or WH ME N . 9 3

P r ofesso r H . H . tlson says A nd i t ma v be c o n

fid ently asse r te d tha t i n no na t io n o f nn tnpnty we rewo m en he ld i n so m u ch es tee m a s a m ongs t the H i nd u s .

”

I n A n c i en t I n d ia , howe v e r , they no t on ly p o sse s sed

equa l i ty o f O p p o r tu n i t i es w i th,m en

,bu t en joyed ce r t ai n

r igh ts and p r i v i leges no t c l a i m ed by the m a l e sex . The

ch i v a l r ou s t r ea t m en t of wo m en by H i nd u s i s we l l

k nown to a l l who know any th i ng o f H i n d u soc i e ty .

“ S t r i ke no t e v e n w i th a b losso m a w i fe gu i l ty of a

a sen t i m en t s oh u nd r ed fa u l ts,s ays a H i ndu sage

,

de l i ca te,says Col on e l Tod “ that Itignald -de-lio rn , tht

p r i n ce o f t r oubadou r s,n e v e r u ttered any m o r e r e f i n ed .

"2

Mann (C h a p te r V . 1 3 0 ) says : T he m ou th of a

wo m a n i s con s t an t ly p u r e,an d he r a n ks i t w i th the

r un n i ng wate r s an d the sun b ea m .

” 3 li e a l so s a v s

(Ch a p te r I I . wh e r e th e fe m a l e s a r e honou r ed,

th e r e th e de i t i e s a r e p l ea sed ; bu t whe r e d is honou reti ,t he r e a l l r e l ig i ou s r i tes beco m e u sel ess .

"

T h e H i nd us see m to ha vela id s p ec ia l s t r ess on honou r

i n t,

r th e w i fe and t r ea t i ng he r w i th H er-in crea sing delica cy ,

T he nea r es t a p p r oac h to th ese i d ea s a r e the v i ews o f M r .H e r be r t S p en ce r

,who i n a l e tte r da ted the 18 th M a r ch

18 4 5,to h i s f r i e nd Lott

,says A nd on th i s g r ou nd

I con ce i v e th at i n s tead o f the r e be i ng ,as i s co m m on ly

th e ca se,a g r ea te r fam i l ia r i ty a nd ca r e l es snes s w i th

r ega r d to a p pea r an ces be tween h u s ba n d and w i fe ,

1 M i l l 's H isto ry o f I nd ia ,Vol. I I . p . b l.

2 Tod 's Ra ja s than ,Vol. I , p . til1.

3 T he women a re r ecommended to p r ese rv e a c hee r fu l tempe r and

to r emain a lways “ ell—d r essed . I f the w i fe he no t e leg ant ly a tt iml

she w i llnot exh i la r a te her husband . A w i fe ga i ly ado r ned . the who le

h ouse is emb ellisb ct

9 4 u z xnu S UP E R I O R I TY .

th e r e ough t to he a g r eate r de l i cacy th an be twee n any

o th e r p a r t i e s .

” 1

A r athe r fo r c i b l e i l l u s t r at i on of th i s V i ew i s th e

r e p l y o f the H a rij i, q u ee n o f th e fa m ou s R aj a Ja i S i ngh

o f Ja i p u r . O n e d ay w he n th e R aj a wa s a l on e w i th th e

q ueen .

“h e began p l ay fu l ly,to con t r a st th e sw eep ing j upe

o f K ota h w i th th e m o r e scan ty r obe o f th e b el l e s o f h i s

ca p i ta l an d t ak i ng u p a p a i r o f s c i s so r s,sa i d h e wou ld

r ed uce i t to an eq ua l i ty w i th th e lat te r . O ffe n ded a t h i s

l e v i ty,sh e se i z ed h i s swo r d

,an d assu m ing a th r eaten ing

a tt i tude,sa i d

,th a t in th e h ou se to wh i c h s h e h ad t h e

h on ou r to be l ong,th ey w e r e n o t h ab itu a ted to j e s ts o f

th is n atu r e th a t m u t ualr e s p ec t wa s th e gua r d ian n o t

an d sh e a ssu r ed h i mon l y o f ha p p i n es s b u t of v i r t ue

tha t i f h e e v e r aga i n so i n sulted he r,h e wo u l d fi n d tha t

th e da ugh te r o f K o ta h cou l d u se a swo r d m o r e e ff ec t i v e ly

th an th e p r i n ce of A m be r th e scis so r s .

’

uw h oe v e r accos ts a wo m a nMan n comm an d s th a t

s ha lldo so by th e t i t l e o f s i s te r,a nd that w ay m u s t be

m ade fo r h e r e v en as fo r th e aged,fo r a p r i e s t

,a p r i n ce

,

o r a. b r i deg r oo m and,i n th e law o f h e

o r da i n s th at p r egn an t wo m en,b r i des

,a n d da m se l s sha l l

h a v e food be fo r e a l l th e other guests .

”

(Ed ucat i on , a r t .

T he l ega l s ta t u s o f a w i fe i n an c ien t I nd ia an d he r

equa l t r ea t m en t w i th h e r h u sban d is th u s defi ned by

Mann, th e g r ea t lawg i v e r o f th e H i n d u s1 . I f a w i fe d i e s

,h e r h u sban d m ay m a r r y a no the r

w i fe , (Mann,Cha p te r V

,v e r se

llle i bert S pen c e r ’s -\uto b io g ra phy ,Vol. I , p . 208 .

l'

od '

s lta j zi s tlia i i , Vol. I . p . (32 0 .

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9 6 H I N D U su ramomrv .

3 . A good w i fe i r r ad i ates th e h ou se a n d is a god

dess. o f wea l th (Ma nn,Ch ap te r IX , v e r se

A (f ood h u sban d m akes h i s w i fe en t i t l ed to h onou r

(Mann,Cha p te r X I

,v e r se

T h e h igh e th i ca l teach i ngs o f th e H ind u Sh as t r as

p r e p a r ed th e m en to a ss ign to wo m en a p ecu l i a r l y pri

v ileged p os i t i on , kee p i ng th e m sa fe f r o m the r ough and

deg rad i ng wo r k th at now of ten fa l l s to the i r l ot in th e

“res t,in con sequ en ce o f th e se v e r e s t r uggl e fo r ex i s ten ce

r agi ng th e r e . Wh il e p r o v i d i ng th e f r ees t p oss i bl e sco p e

fo r.th e exe r c i se o f th e i r p ecu l ia r g i f ts , w h i ch en ab l ed

th e m to ac h ie v e i n th e su p e r l at i v e deg r ee,the h igh and

n ob l e wo r k w h ich i t is th e p r i v i l ege o f wo m en to p e r fo rm

fo r th e we l l-be i ng an d ad v ance m en t of a p eo p l e , th e an c i en t

H i n d u con s t i tu t i on no t on ly acco r ded to th e m th e p os i t i on

w h i ch th e m o th e r s , th e sis te r s , th e w i v es , an d th e da ugh te r s

o f th e h i ghes t and th e lowes t. i n th e n ation a r e j u s t l ye n t i tled to

,b u t w h i c h enab l ed th e i r t r ue fem i n i n e

n at u r e an d cha r ac te r to r ecei v e full de v e l o p m en t,so a s to

fu l fi l the i r h igh des t i ny o f g i v i ng to th e wo r l d a r ace o f

m en ye t u n equa l l e d in i n tel l ec t,ch a r ac te r and en e r gy .

I n E u r o p e,as we l l a s in In d ia

,th e wo m an i s s ty l ed

th e h a l f o f th e man — in E u r o p e,as “ the be tte r ha l f

,

i n Ind ia,s i m p l y as A rd / mnn n i (l i t . h a l f-se l f ) . I n E u

r ope,h owe v e r

,it i s a m ean i ngl es s p h r a se

,r ath e r p o i n t

ing to th e d es i r ab i l i ty o f a ss i gn i n g wo m an a p os i t i on

w h i ch i s h e r s by n a t u r e than s i gn i fy i n g th e p os i t i o na c tua l l y occu p i e d by h e r— sh ow ing th e des i rabl e b u t ye tu na tta i n e d i d ea l i ty r athe r th an

,a s a m ongs t th e H i n d u s

,

m a c t ua l r ea l i ty . No do ub t th e r e a r e wo m en i n E u r o p e,

w ho a s w i v es,a r e t r eated by th e i r h u sband s w i th th e

sam e r e s p ec t a nd gen e r ou s con s id e r a t i on as H i n d ul ad i es com m a nd i n a l l t r u ly H i n d u fa m i l i es . T r ue

,in

T i l t: l'o sl'rto x o r {IT

ev erv g r ade o f Eu r o p ea n soc i e ty Wo m en a r e to be me t

w i th , w h ose p os i t i on , d o tne s tie a s we l l a s so c ia l , i s no t

on l y p e r fec tly ha p p y a nd sa tis fa e to rv ,b u t

,to a l l o u twa r d

a p p ea r a n ce,l ooks h ighe r than tha t en j o y ed b y the i r llind n

s i s te r s T r ue a l so,tha t Eu r o pe a n en joy i n

so m e r es p ec ts,an d i n ce r ta i n d i r ec t i o n s

,p r i v i l ege s ne i the r

e n joyed by any A s iat i c wo m en no r d e s i r ed by th e m .

T he y en joy a f r eedo m o f act i o n i n ce r t ai n m a t te r s Wh i chi s no t on ly one o f th e d i s t i ngu i sh i ng fea tu r es o f the E u

ropeau c i v i l i za t i on , bu t e m pha s i ze s the nega t io n o f a l lth a t i s m ean t by a r t/b a ngn i o r the Ila /f. ln E u r o p e

,

w o m a n ha s a d i s t i n c t i n d i v i dua l i ty o f h e r own,wh i ch

flou r i sh e s i n de p en den t l y o f m an,though by h i s s i d e a nd

con n ec ted w i th h i m . 30 th m en a n d w o m en the r e lo ud

se p a r a te , d i s t i n c t , i n de p enden t l i v es , a l be i t Na tu r e an d

n eces s i ty co m p e l the m to l i v e toge the r . No t so i n

I n d ia . Wo m an h a s no d i st i n c t i v e,i n d e pe nd e n t ind iv i

d ua l i ty in H i n d u soc i al po l i ty . F r o m h e r b i r th to h e r

d ea th she i s a p a r t o f m an,a nd can no t b e se p ar a ted f ro m

h i m . Wi th ma r r iage,s h e m e r ges h e r i nd i v i dua l i ty i n to

h e r h u sba nd ’s,a nd bo th toge the r fo rm a s i ng l e en t i ty in

soc i e ty . Th e on e w i th ou t the o the r i s on ly a p a r t and

no t a whol e .

I t m u s t no t,howe v e r

,be su p posed tha t the wo m a n

l ose s h e r se l f i n th e m a n,an d i s t he re fo re i n fe r i o r to h im .

T h e m an , too , a f te r h i s u n ion w i th wo m a n i s,l i k e h e r

,

on l y a p a r t o f th e soc ia l en t i ty . A l l im p o r tan t re l ig iou s,

soc ia l,an d do m es t i c co n ce r n s o f l i fe r ecog n i se th e e n t i ty

on ly wh e n i t i s com p l e te , i.e .

,fo r m ed o f a m an and a

wo m an .

I n E u r o pe , th e p owe r and p os i t i on en joyed by wo m a n

are not r e cogn i sed by th e au tho r i ty wh i ch sanc t i o ns all

98 m um; S UP ER I OR I TY .

soc ia l law,an d on w h i ch th e en t i r e fab r i c o f soc i e ty i s

ultimatelv ba sed . Wh at position and p r i v i l ege sh e

e n joy s sh e e v i d en t l y can no t cl a i m a s o f r i gh t— a r igh t

i n h e r e n t in an d i n se p arabl e f r o m wo m an hood . I n so m e

o f th e m os t i m p o r tan t conce r n s of li fe she is u tte r l y

i gno r ed . No t so a m ongs t th e H i nd u s . I n I nd i a sh e is

i n possess i on o f h e r r igh ts,w h ich no p owe r on ea r th

ca n take away f r o m h e r . Th e H ind u wo m an i s n o t in

deb ted,l i k e h e r E u r o p ean s is te r

,fo r h e r p osit i on to a

m an ’s l o v e o r a ff ec t i ona te r ega r d o r to th e ex igen c i es o f

soc ia l l i fe . I t i s h e r b i r th r igh t,ina l i en abl e

,and r ecog

n ised by a l l ; i t l i v e s w ith h e r and d i e s w i th h e r . M an

i s as m u ch subj ec t to it a s the w o m an i s to a m an ’s .

Take,fo r i n s tance

,the most i m p o r tan t con ce r n of l i fe

,th e

m a r r ia ge. I n E u r ope,th e fath e r g i v e s away th e

daugh te r in h i s absen ce,th e b r o th e r

,o r the u n cl e o r so m e

n ea r m a l e r e la t i on,a s th e ca se m ay be . H e by h i m se l f

p e r fo rm s th i s sac r ed and m os t.

i m p o r tan t fu nc t i on in l ife .

Wh e r e co m es i n th e better half of the fath e r , th e b r o th e r ,th e u nc le o r th e o th e r r e la t i on ? S h e h a s n o p lace i n

th e r i te,n o locus s ta nd /f

,n o i n d i s p e n sab l e

,ina l i en ab l e

p os i t i on in th e f un c t i on , Sh e i s n o t a necessa r y pa r ty .

S he m a v be ha p py in the e v en t an d jo i n th e fes t i v i t i es ,b u t sh e i s an u t te r o u ts i de r so fa r a s th e r i te i tse l f— th e

r i gh t o f gi v i n g away— i s con ce r n ed . B u t wh a t do we

f i n d i n Ind ia ? Xmo ngs t the H i nd u s,i n o r de r that the

ce r emony of g i v i ng away (ca l l e d may be co m

ple te , the o r th e w i fe o f th e fath e r , th e b r o th e r ,the u nc l e or th e o th e r m a l e r e la t i v e m u s t take p a r t in i t .

T he “ gi v i ng away i s no t com p l e te t i l l the h u sban d an d

the w i fe both d o i t . N a y , th e r e i s so m e th i ng m o r e to

m a r k th e u naltc rablc pos i t i on of the w i fe a s the

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100 H INDU surmu oa i rr .

T h e i r p r i n c i p a l i n te r es t i n p ubl i c a ffa i r s,howe v e r

,i s

d i r e c ted to secu r e fo r the m se l v e s r igh ts w h i ch th ey

rega r d a s esse n t i a l to a ssu r e th e i r p osit i on i n th e co l d ,

p i t i le s s s t r uggl e fo r e x i s ten ce , wh i c h res p ec ts n e i the r

age n o r se x . I n an cre n t ln d ia p eo ple n e v e r though t

o f u s u r p i ng f r o m wo m en th e i r r i gh ts an d p r i v i l eges .Th ey w e r e sa fe f r o m th e t u r m o ilo f l ife ; th ey we r e

sec u r e aga i n s t th e a ttack s wh i ch allh a v e to m ee t whoa re go v e r n ed by th e co m p l i ca ted m ac h i n e r y o f a c i v i l i za

t i on ba sed on th e wo r s h i p o f M am m on,w i th its h o r i zon

bo u n ded by th e des i r e s,as p i r a t i on s an d ca p ab i l i ties o f

the p hys i calm an .

S r i Madha va charya says th a t D ra upad i’

s p a r t inth e ad m i n i s t r a tion of th e e m p i r e wa s to in s t r uc t the

s ubj ec ts a s to th e d u t i e s an d r igh ts o f w o m en , su p e rin ten d the m an age m e n t o f th e Pa lace an d its t r easu r i es

,

to ass i s t in th e m anage m e n t o f th e finan ces o f th e

e m p i r e,and to su p e r v ise th e r e l igiou s in s t i tu t ion s o f t h e

n a t i on .

T h e cha r ac te r an d i d ea l s o f H i n d u wo m e n m ay be

in fe r r ed f r o m th e con d u c t o f Ma itreye , w i fe o f Y agya

v a l ka,w ho dec l i n ed to acce p t th e es ta te o ffe r ed to h e r

by he r h u sband,on h i s en te r i ng th e t h i rd A sh r am

S h e tol d h i m th a t sh e a l so wou l d l i k e

to h av e th at wh i ch h e wa s go i ng in sea r c h o f,and tha t

,

i f the es t ate ha d been wo r th h a v i ng,h e wo u l d n o t

h a v e g i v en it away .

A v vaya r, D amy an ti an d Sa v i t r i w e r e wo m en

w hose l i v es wou l d ha v e p u r i fied the n at i ona l l i f e o f an y

peop l e . T he l ea r n i ng o f G argya , the i n tel l ec t an d

cha r ac te r o f Ta ra,the f i d e l i ty o f A n asuya and th e

de v ot i on and l o v e of S i ta wou l d do honou r to any na t i on .

T in : ro sn'

to s o r wm uzs . lot

T he cou r age and v a l ou r d i s p layed by li eka v i i n the

bat t l e-f i e ld by th e s i de o f D a s ra tha a re no l ess r ema r k

ab l e th an th e h e r o i s m d i s p layed by S a tva b fuu ua ,o f

wh o m sa v s tha t,wh en she saw he r

h u sba n d t i r ed an d h i s e n e m y ex u l t i ng i n s t r e ng th,

s he

fough t w i th h i m and de p r i v ed h i m o f h is a r m s . The s e

fac ts sh ow tha t in a nc i en t t i m es th e wo m e n o f lnd i a

w e r e no t“

, u n u sed to wa r fa r e,an d tha t th ey a cco m p an i ed

t he i r h u sband s e v e r ywhe r e . T hey d i d no t l ea d s ec l udedl i v e s ; th ey we r e n o t k e p t i n the ze nana . Th e pa r da h

sy s te m,w h i ch m a r k s th e ad v en t i n to i nd ia of fo r e ign e r s

o f a m uc h l owe r c i v i l i za t i on,was u nknown i n a nc i en t

I nd i a ,

I t h as so m e t i m es been u r ged by m en nna cqua in ted

w ith th e soc iall i fe o f th e llind us tha t the fact tha t

da ugh te r s do n o t s ha r e i n th e p a te r na l p r ope r ty i n the

sa m e way a s the son s , a nd tha t the w i dow does no t sha r e

eq ua l ly w i th he r son s th e p r o p e r ty l e ft by the h u sba nd ,

a r gue a low s ta te o f c i v i l i z a t i on a m ongs t the m . In

th e fi r s t p l ace,th e law of i n h e r i ta n ce i n th i s r es pe c t

i s n o p r oo f o f th e h igh o r th e low r efin e m en t of a peo p l e

o r th e A r abs wo u l d be he l d to be m o r e r efined th an the

H i nd u s . . I n th e secon d p lace,i t i s no t a fac t tha t wo m e n

do no t i n h e r i t o r a re i n co m pe te n t to h old p r ope r ty .

P r o fe sso r \V i l son says : T he i r r igh t to p r ope r ty i s1 9 1f u l ly r ecogn i sed and fu l ly se cu r ed . H e a l so says in

the absen ce o f d i r ec t m a l e h e i r s , w i d ows s ucceed to a

l ife i n te r e s t i n r ea l , an d absol u te i n te r es t i n p e r sona l p r o

p e r ty. N ex t , da ugh te r s i n h e r i t absol u tely . Whe r e the r e

a r e so n s,m othe r s a nd da ugh te r s a r e en t i t l ed to sha re s ,

a nd w i v es h o l d p e cu l ia r p r o p e r ty f r om a v a r i e ty of

lM ill’

s H is to ry o f I nd ia , p . “ ti . foo tnote .

102 m s un surnmomr r .

sou r ces,bes i des those s p ec i fied by th e tex t

,o v e r wh i c h

a h u sban d ha s n o p ow e r d u r i n g th e i r li v es,an d wh i ch

descen ds to th e i r own h e i r s,w i th a p r e fe r en ce i n so m e

ca ses to fem a l es . I t i s fa r f r om co r r ec t,th e r e fo r e

,to

s ay tha t wom en a m ongs t th e H i n d u s a r e exc l uded f r omH

the r i gh ts of p r ope r ty .

Co m men t i ng on M r . Ja m es M i l l ’s o p i n i on that ac

co r d i ng to Mann (Cha p te r IV,4 3 ) wo m en a m ong th e.

Ilind u s a r e exc l uded f r o m sh a r i ng i n th e p ate r nalp r o

p e r ty,P r o fesso r \V i l son says : T he r e fe r en ce i s i nco r

r ec t , so i s th e law a s th e p assage in th e fi r s t v ol u m ead v e r ted to m i gh t ha v e shown h ad th e w r ite r r e m e m

be r ed i t . Fo r,a f te r s ta t ing in the te x t

,in the sa m e nu

q ua l i f i ed m an ne r,th at da ugh te r s a r e altoge th e r deba r r ed

f r om a sha r e,it is m en t i o n ed in a no te that those

who a r e u nm a r r i ed a r e to r ece i v e p o r t i on s ou t ofor the r eth e i r b r o th e r s ’ a l l o t m en ts . I t i s m e r e qu i bb l i n g ,

fore,to say th ey h a v e n o sh a r es . B u t th e m o r e i m p o r tan t

q ues t i on,a s a ffec t i ng th e p os i t i on o f wo m en i n soc i e ty ,

i s n o t m e r el y th e sh a r e s o f da ugh te r s,a l though th i s i s

a r t fu l ly p u t fo rwa r d a s i f i t w as dec i s i v e of th e r igh tso f th e who l e sex

,b u t. w h at r i gh ts wo m en h a v e i n r ega r d

to p r o p e r ty an d a s w e h a v e a l r eady sh own,th e l aw s do

n o t v e r y m ate r ia l ly d i ff e r in th i s r es p ect f r o m thosew h i ch a r e obse r v ed in the c i v il i z ed cou n t r i e s o f m ode r nE u rO pe .

” l

Fo r e i gne r s i m b i be u n fa v ou r able no t i on s r ega r d i ngth e p os i t i on o f H i n d u wom en f r o m th ei r igno ra nce o fth e wo r k i ng of H ind u soc i e ty and o f th e p r i n c i p l e so n wh i ch i t i s ba sed . T h e H i nd u law of i n h e r i tance inth i s r espect. i s so m ewha t d i ffe r en t f r o m th at obta i n i ng inl‘lu ro pe , bu t i n n o way beh i n d th e la tte r i n sa fegua r d i n gthe pos i t i o n o f wom en .

lM ill’

s H is to ry o f la d ia,Vol. I , p , 4 01.

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104 H I NDU sc rnmom '

r v .

l ies— a t some o f wh i ch f unc tions they pla y the lead ingpa rt. b u t th at e v en a f ter the i r m a rriages th ei r connection

w i th the fam i l ies in wh i ch they were born i s one o f a

pe renn ia l flow towa rd s them o f presen ts and gi f ts,to

w h i ch thev a re en ti tled by soc ia l law,irrespec ti ve o f the

rela tion s exi sting between them be ing cord ia l or s tra ined .

Th us,wh ile the i r r igh ts a re secured aga i n st con tin

Wenc ies,women a l togeth er get from the i r fathers and

brothers fa r more than i s genera l ly re ce i v ed by theman y where e l se in Europe or Asia . Moreo ver , the joi nt

H indu fam i ly sys tem i s h igh ly condu ci ve to the preser va

t ion o f the i r in fluence—in some respects predom inent— in

the fam i l ies in wh ich they were born .

E ven a t the present d ay , though the women are not

so p rom inent,the i r in fluence i s su preme . They tal k

s lander an d tel l m i sch ievou s f a l sehoods who say tha t the

H ind u women a re pr i soners in the semm a,tha t the i r

cond i tion i s a p it iable one,that they cla im the ph i lan

thropic e fforts o f men and women to a l lev ia te the i r ha rd

lo t,a nd that the v deser v e allthe sympa thy that su ff ering

h uman ity may rece ive . Colonel Tod says T he su per

fic ialobserv er,who appl ies h i s own standa rd to the cu s

toms o f allnat i on s,laments , w i th an a ff ected ph ilan~

thropy , the degraded cond i tion o f the H indu f emale , in

wh i ch sen timent he wou l d f ind her l ittle d isposed to

jo in . H e pa r ti cu larly lamen ts her want o f l i berty and

ca l l s her seclu s ion,impri sonment. From the knowledge

I po s sess o f the f reedom,the respect, the ha ppines s

wh ich ltaj pu t women enjoy,I am by no mean s incl ined

to d e plo re the i r s ta te a s one o f capti v i ty .

”And

,who

do e s no t know tha t amongst no people in Ind ia i s pa rt/alto bserved more s tr i ctly than by the Rajputs ?

T I I IC l’o S l'l‘

I O N o r women. 10 5

E ve ry Sanskr i t scho l ar kno ws in wha t re spec t and

Vene ra tio n lad ies l ike (ia rgya , l’ra upad i, S akuntnla ,Mando da ri

,a nd l

'

tnkma n i ' were h e hl . Who ca n l i s te n,

w i tho ut adm i r ation and s tro ng emo tio n,to the ce le b ra te d

f ore s t speech o f D r aupad i, a f te r the ba n ishment o f the

Pa nda va s .“ H ind u fema le devo tio n is a hackne ved ph ras e .

Colonel T od says “ N o r w i l l the a nna l s o f a ny na t io na ff o rd more nume rou s or mo re s ubl ime in s t anc e s o f

fema le devo t ion than tho se o f the lta j pnts . l i ve n in

med ite v alages,Ind ia prod uced women tha t wo u ld make

the da rkest page o f h i sto ry resplenden t. T he anna l s o f

no nati on on ea rth,

”says Colone l T od

,

“ re cord a mo re

ennobl ing or more magna n imo us i ns tance o f fema le

l oya l ty than exempl ified by D ewalde,mo the r o f the

Bina f u r brothers .” 3

As the inc iden t a l luded to abo v e th rows a tloo d o f

l igh t on the h igh character o f the R a j pn t wome n,a nd

f u l ly i l lustrates the command ing intluence they exe rc isein society

,a short account o f th i s i ns pi r ing epi sod e tha t

occu rred w hen H indu independence was a bo u t to be

ov erth rown,may wellbe inserted .

Wh ile the la st H ind u empero r o f lnd ia,the ch i va l

rou s P rithv iraj , wa s retu rn ing to Del h i f rom Same ta

some o f the wounded,who co vered h i s re trea t

,we n

a s s a i led and put to death by P a rni al, the (‘

hunda ilprinceo f Mahoba . I n order to a v enge th i s i nsu l t

,the empe ro r

l\Vithin the la st 100 yea rs , the name o f M a ha ran iH olka r wa s p rom i nen tly be fore the world . S he is k nown from the

H ima laya s to Cape Comorin , and her memory is a c tually wors h ilpedin some places.

fil'

od’

s R a jasthan , Vol. I , p . 013 .

3 Tod '

s R a jasthan , Vol. I , p . 01l.

106 H I NDU surmmoa rrr .

i nvaded the terr i tory o f the Chund a il,whose troops were

c u t to pieces at S irswah . T he Chunda ilby the ad v i ce o f

h is queen,Malund ev i

,deman ded a truce o f h i s ad ver

sary,o n the plea o f the absen ce o f h i s Ch ie f ta in s , Ala and

U d ila . T he env oy f ound the Chohan ready to c ross the

P ahou j . T he ch iv a l rou s P rithv iraj , unu sed to refu s ing

such requests,gran ted the t ru ce.

T he two brothers,Ala and U d i la

,the Sa rda rs o f

Mohab a,had been m ade to abandon the i r home becau se

Ala had ref u sed to part w i th one of h i s ma res wh i chP armalde s i red to posses s . They went away to Kanau j ,w here they were rece i ved w i th open a rm s by J a i Chanel

T he ba rd,Y agnuk , now repa i red to Kanau j to b eg

the two heroes on beha l f o f P armalto return to Ma

h oba,a s the i r fatherland demanded thei r serv i ces . H e

sa id,

“the Chohan i s en camped on the pla in s of Mah o

b a,Nu rs ing and Birs ing hav e f a l len

,S irswah i s

gi v en to the flames,and the K ingdom o f P armal la i d

wa ste by the Chohan . For on e month a tru ce ha s been

31

obta ined,wh i le to you I am sen t f or a id in h i s grie f s .

L i s ten , Oh sons o f B ina f ur,sad hav e been the days o f

\[alundev i s ince you le ft Mahoba ! O f t she l ook s tow a rd s li anauj ; and

,wh ile she rec al l s you to m ind

,

tea rs gu sh f rom her eye s and she excla im s,

‘the f ame o f

the Ch a nd ai l i s depa rting,b u t wh en gone , Oh , son s o f

.la s ra j , grea t w i l l b e you r sel f-accu s ing sorrow yet, th inko f Maho b a. ’

D es truction to Mahoba ? Ann i h i la ti on to the

(fhund a il,who

,w i thou t fau l t

,expel led u s o u r home in

w ho se serv i ce f el l ou r f ath er,by whom h is k i ngdom was

exten ded . Send the slanderous P urihara—let h im lead

your a rm ies aga ins t the heroes o f Del h i . O ur h ead s

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108 H INDU S UPE R I O R ITY.

D ewalde hea rd the message of the queen .

“ Let us

fly to Mahoba,

”she excla imed . Ala was s i lent

,w h ile

U d ila sa i d a loud ,“ May ev i l sp ir i ts se i ze upon Mahoba .

Can you forget the day w hen , in d istress,he drov e u s

f orth Return to Ma hoba—let it stand or fa l l,it i s the

same to m e Kanau j i s hence forth my h ome .

”

\Vould that the god s had made me ba rren,sa i d

D ewalde,

“that I had nev er borne son s who thu s aban

don the path s o f the Rajpu t,and ref u se to su ccou r

H er hea rt bu rsting w ith grief ,the ir prince in danger.

and her eyes ra i sed to h eav en,she cont inued :

“ \Vas

it for th i s,0 un iv ersa l lord

,thou mad

’

st me f eel amother ’s pangs for these destroyers o f B ina f ur ’s fame

U nworthy off sp ring ! the heart o f the true Ra jputdances w i th joy at the mere name o f s tr i f e— b u t ye , d e

generate,cannot b e the son s of Jasraj—some carl m u st

ha v e stolen to my embra ce,and f rom su ch ye mu st

Th i s wa s i rres i st i ble. T he you ng Ch ief s7 ?

b e sprung .

arose,the ir f aces w ithered in sadness . “

T hen we pe

r i sh in def en ce of Mahoba,and

,cov ered w ith wounds

,

perform deeds that w i l l leav e a deathles s nam e,when

o u r head s roll in the field s,when we em brace the v a l iant

in figh t,and

,tread ing in th e f oot-steps of the brav e , m ake

re splendent the blood o f both l ines,ev en in the presence

o f the heroes o f the Chohan,then w i l l ou r m other re

jo i ce.

”

T he ch ie f ta in s took leav e o f the K ing o f Kanau ja nd retu rned to Ma hoba . O n the i r retu rn a grand

Co uncila ssembled a t a f i na l del i bera tion ,a t wh i ch the

m o ther o f the liina fnrs and the queen Malnndev i werepre se nt. T he la tter th us open s the deba te U h

,mothe r

o f Ala,how may we succeed aga in st the lord of the

T H E rosrriox o r wmncx . 10 9

world lf de fea ted , los t is Ma ho ba if we pay tr ibu te ,we are loaded w i th shame . llewald e re comme nd s

hea ring ser ia tim the Opin io n s o f the c hie fmius,whe n

Ala th u s spe aks L i s ten,(lb mo ther

,to yo ur so n !

he a lone is o f pu re l ineage, who ,

pla c ing lo ya l ty o n h is

head , a bandon s allthough ts o f se l f,a nd lays do wn h is

l i fe for h is prince ; my tho ugh ts a re o nly fo r l’a rmal. I f

she1 l i ves ,

she w i l l show he rse l f a woma n or ema n a tion

of P a rra ti . T he wa rrio rs o f S ambhur sha l l be c u t in

p ieces . I w i l l so i l l us tra te the blo od o f my fa th e rs tha tmy fame sha l l la st fo r e v e r . My so n

,tIe nd al

,U h princ e !

I bequeath to you , and the fame o f D ewald e is in yo u r, 1keep ing . T he queen thu s repl ies T he wa rrio rs o f

the Chohan a re fierce as they a re n umero us ; pay tri

bu te,and save Ma hoba .

”T he so u l o f U d i la wa s i n flamed

,

and turn ing to the queen sa i d Why though t you no t

thu s w hen you slew the de fenceles s ? b u t then I wa s

u nheard . \Vhence now your w isdom th ri ce lbeseech

cd you to pa rdon . Nev e rtheless Mahoba i s sa fe wh i lel i fe rema in s in me

,and in you r ca u se

, U h l’a rmal we

sha l l espou se celes tia l br ides .

”

“ \Vel l hav e you spoken ,my son

,sa i d D ewalde

,

noth ing ne w rema ins b u t to make thy pa ren t'

s m i l k

resplendent by thy deed s . T he ca l l s o f the pe asa n td r i ven f rom h i s home mee ts the ea r

,a nd wh i le we de l i

berate,our v i l lages a re gi v en to the flames .

”Bu t l’a rmal

repl ied : “ Sa tu rn ru le s the clay,to -mor row we sha llmee t

the foe. With indigna tion , Ala turned to the k ing

H e who ca n loo/c tamety on wh ile the snwhe a scends f rom

his ru ined towns,his field s la id wa s te, ca n be no Kai/m t

he who su c cumbs to fea r when his country is in va ded ,1H indus do not call the ir wives now-a-d ay by the i r names .

110 H IN DU S U PE R IO R ITY .

h i s body w i l l b e plunged in to the hel l of b ells,h i s sou l

a wanderer in the world o f sp i r i ts for s ixty thou sand

years ; b ut the wa rrior who perf orm s h i s d uty w i l l b erece i ved in to the man s ion o f the sun

,and h i s deed s w i ll

la st for e ver .

T he heroes embraced the i r w i ves f or the la st time,

and w i th the dawn , performed the i r p iou s r i tes. Then

Ala,ca l l ing h i s son Bendel and U d ila

,his brother

,he

once more poured f orth h i s v ows to the u n iv ersa l mother,

that he wou l d i l lu s trate the name o f J a sraj , and ev in cethe pure blood der iv ed f rom D ewalde

,whenev er he m et

the foe .

’7 “ Nobly hav e you resolv e( sa i d U d ila,

“and

sha l l not my kz'

rba nl a l so dazzle the eyes o f Sam bhu r ’s

lord Sha l l he no t retire f rom be fore m e P” Fare

w ell,my ch i ld ren ,

” sa i d D ewald e,

“ b e true to your sa l t,

and shou ld you lose your heads for your pr ince , doubt

n ot you w i l l obta in the celestia l c rown .

" Hav ing ceased,

the w i v es o f both ex cla imed,

“what v i rtuou s w i fe sur

v iv es her l ord For,thu s says Gorij i,

“the woman who

surv iv es her hu sban d who fa l l s in the fiel d o f ba ttle w i l l

n ev er obta in bl i ss , b u t wander a d i scon ten ted ghost in

the region o f un ha l lowed spi r its .

T he fidel ity o f a nu rse i s wel l exempl ified by the

condu ct o f P unna,the dha i o f U da i S ingh

,son o f Rana

Sa nga,who wa s a Kheechee R ajpu tan i, w hen Bamb i r

,

a f ter k i l l ing the Rana,Bikram j it, en tered the ltaola

‘l to

k i l l the he ir-arma ren t, U da i S ingh , a l so . A\ '

a re that one

m u rder “as the precu rsor o f another

,the fa i th fu l n u rse

p ut her ch arge in to a f ru i t ba sket,and cov er ing it w i th

lea v es,she del i vered it to the ba r f

,en join ing h im to os

cape w i th it f rom the fo rt. Sca rcely had she t ime too o o

1A stmntar . Q ueen’

s quarters in the palace ,

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112 H INDU sr rnmomr v .

hand .

‘Redeem Thoda,

’ sa i d the star of Bednore,

‘and

m y hand is th ine .

’H e a ssented to the term s ; b u t

e v i nc ing a rude determ ina tion to be possessed o f the

pri ze c re he had ea rned it,he was sla in by the indignant

fa ther. P irthiraj , the bro ther o f the decea sed , was

then an exile in Ma rwa r ; he had ju s t s igna l i zed h i sv a lou r an d en sured h i s father’s f orgiv eness

,by the

redempt ion o f Godwar,and the cata strophe at Bednore

determ ined h im to accept the gage th rown down to

J a im ul. Fame and the ba rd had carr ied the renown of

I’ irth iraj far beyond the bounds o f Mewar ; the name

a lone wa s a ttrac tiv e to the f a i r,and when thereto he

w ho bore it added allthe ch i va l rou s ardou r o f h i s proto type , the Chohan ,

Tara Ba i,w ith the san cti on o f her

f a ther,con sented to b e h i s

,on the s imple a ssev eration

that ‘ he wou l d re store to them Thoda or he was no truelta j put

’

T he ann iv ersary of the m artyrdom o f the

son s of All i was the sea son chosen f or the explo it.

P irth ira j formed a select band o f fi v e hundred cav a l iers

and accompan ied by h i s br ide,the f a ir Tara , who ins i sted

on pa rtak ing o f h i s glory and h i s danger , he reached Thoda

tt the mom en t the M a in or bier conta in ing the ma rtyr

brothers wa s placed in the cen tre o f the chouk or

squa re . T he pr ince,Tara Ba i and the f a i th f u l

Senger Ch ief,the in sepa rable com pan i on o f P irth ira j ,

le f t the i r cav alcad e and jo i ned the proce ss i on a s it pa ssed

u nde r the bal cony o f the pa lace,in wh i ch the A fghan

w a s pu tting on h is d res s prepa ratory to descend ing . Ju st

a s he had a sked who were the strange horsemen tha t

had jo ined the th rong,the lance o f P irth ira j and an

a rrow f rom the how o f h is Ama zon ian bride stretched

h im on the floor. Be fore the crowd recovered f rom the

T H E l‘n S l’

l‘

ln N o r wa n es . ll‘

l

pan ic , the th ree had reached the g ate o f the town,whe re

the i r ex i t w as obs tructed by a n e lepha n t. Ta r a ia i

w i th her sc in i ita r d i v ided h is trunk,a nd the an ima l tlv

ing , they jo inted the i r ca valo ule,wh ic h wa s clo se a t

h and

T he A fghan s we re encountered,a nd co u ld no t s t and

the a ttack . Those who d i d no t lly we re c ut to piece sand the ga llant l’ rithiraj ind ucted the fa the r o f h is

br ide in to h is inher i tance . A bro the r o f the A fgha ns,

in his a ttempt to reco v er it,lo s t h i s l i fe . T he Na wah

,

M ulloo Khan , then hold ing A jmer,de term ined to Oppo se

the S esod ia prince in person,who

,reso lved upon be i ng

the a ssa i lan t , ad vanced to A jmer. encoun tered h i s foein the camp at day

-break,and a f ter grea t s la ugh ter

entered Gu rh lleetli,the c itad el

,w i th the f ugi ti ves .

ly these a c ts ’ says the Ch ron i cle,

”h i s fame increased inR aj wa rra one thousand l’ a j puts , an ima ted by the same

lov e o f glo ry and dev otion,ga the red round the na ka r ra s

o f l’ rith ira j . The i r swo rds shone in the hea v ens,and

were d r ‘ad cd on the earth b u t they a i ded the de fence

les s .

’ 1

T he strong a ff ection o f a H indu w i fe for her hus

band i s typified in the co nd u ct o f Chandand a s 's w i fe , so

beau t i fu l ly described in the pol i ti ca l d ‘

ama o f Jl/lttll‘lt

H akim/ ms .

T he R ajput mother cla im s f u l l sha re in the glory

of her son,who im b ibes a t the ma te rna l fo un t h is firs t

rud iments o f ch i v a l ry the importa nce o f th is pa ren ta l

in struction cannot be better i l lu s tra ted tha n in the e ve r

recurr ing s im i le,

“make thy mothers m i lk resplenden t

,

”

the f u l l force o f wh i ch we ha ve in the powerf u l though

lT od’

s R a j a sthan , Vol. I , pp . (3 7 3 , 7 4 .

”S ee I nf ra ,

“ H indu D rau a .

114 H I NDU S UPE RIO R ITY .

ov erstra ined express i on o f the Buud i Queen's joy on the

a nnouncemen t o f the heroic death o f her son .

N or ha s the Rajput mother fa i led to defend her

son ’s r i ghts w i th exe mplary v a lou r,and to teach her son

how l i fe shou ld b e sacr ificed at the a lta r of the coun try

and in de fen ce o f the coun try ’s independen ce . Look a t

the an imated p ictu re giv en by Ferish ta of D u rgavati, Queen

o f Gurrah,defend ing the r igh ts o f her in fan t son aga in st

Ak bar’

s amb it ion . L i ke another Boadecea,she headed

h er army and f ough t a despera te battle w ith A sa fkhan,

in wh ich she was def eated and wounded . Scorn ing fl igh t

or to s urv ive the less of independence, she,l ike the an

t i que Roman in su ch a pred i camen t,slew hersel f on the

fiel d o f

D u rga vati was on ly f ol low ing in the f ootsteps o f

the ea rl ier qu een s , the explo its o f some o f whom are

w e l l known in lta j pu tana . For in sta nce,a fter the d eath

o f P ana S amars i,on the field o f T haneshwar

,h i s he i r

,

Ku rna,be ing a m inor

,Kurna

’

s m other,Korum Dev i

,a

pr incess o f Pa tun,headed her R aj pu ts and gav e battle in

person to Ku tb ud d in Aibak,nea r Amber

,when the Vi ce

roy (Ku tb udd in ) wa s def ea ted and wounded .

” 2

I n the second Saka o f Ch itor,w hen Bahadur

,S ul

tan o f Gu j ra t,in vaded that fa r-famed f ortress

,the q ueen

m o thcr,J awah i r Ba i

,in order to set an ex ample o f

eo urageo us de vo tion to the ir coun try,appeared clad in

u mo u r and headed a sa l ly,in w h ich she was

D uring the f amou s a ssau l t on Ch i tor by Akba r,

when the command o f the f ortres s fel l on Fa ttah , who

l'

l‘

od'

s llams tha n,VolI

, p . (14 2 .

"l'

n tli

s lta ia s tha n ,Vol. 1, p .

J T od s lta j as tha n , Vol. I . p .3511 .

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1 16 H INDU se rmu on i r r .

and depa rted . Though accu stom ed to feats o f strengtha n d heroi sm f rom the n erv ou s a rm s o f the i r cou ntrywomen

,the ac t su rpr i sed them . They des cended to the

s tream a t hand an d prepared the repa s t, as is u sua l ,on the spot . T he f eas t wa s hel d , and comm ents werepa ss ing on the fa i r a rm wh ich had tran sfixed the boa r ,w hen a ba l l o f clay f rom a sl ing f ra ctu red a l imb o f the

pr in ce ’s steed . Looking in the d irection whence it cam e,

they observ ed the same d am sel,f rom her elev ated stan d ,

preserv ing her field s f rom a tria l depredators b u t see ingthe m i sch ie f she had occa s ioned she descended to ex pres sregret

,and then re tu rned to her pursu i t. As they were

proceed ing hom ewards a f ter the sports o f the d ay , th eyaga in en coun tered the dam se l w i th a v esse l o f m i lk on

her head,an d lead ing in e i ther hand a young bu ffa lo . I t

w a s proposed,in f rol i c

,to ov ertu rn her m i lk

,and one o f

the compan ion s o f the pr ince da shed ru de ly by her b u t

w ithou t be ing d i scon certed,she entangled one o f her

cha rges w i th the horse ’s l imbs,and brough t the r ider to

the ground . O n inqu iry the pr ince d i scov ered tha t shew as the daugh ter of a poor R ajpu t o f the Chund ano tr ibe .

H e retu rn ed the 11cm day to the same quarte r and sen tf or her f a ther

,who came an d took h i s seat “71th perf ect

independence close to th e pr ince,to the m err imen t o f h i s

com pan i on s,w h ich was checked b y U rs i

,a sk ing h is

d a ugh ter to w i f e . They were yet m ore su rpr i sed by thedemand be ing ref used . T he Ra jpu t

,on going hom e

,tol d

the mo re pru den t mother,who scolded him hearti ly , made

h im reca l l the ref u sa l an d seek the pr ince . They were

married , and llam ir was the son o f the Chund ano R aj

lT od'

s li apts tlia n ,Vol. I

, pp . 267 ,(38 . lt “ a s tlns ll ana llaln ir

Who a tta c k ed ,d e fea te d a nd ma d e p t isone r the K h i l j i k i ng , Ma hm ud

,

the M tc ee sso r o f Alla hu dd in li lnlp . T he k i ng s ell'

e ted a confinem ent

o f th re e mo n th s in N o r wa s b e l i be ra ted t i l l he ha d s urrend e red

Alin e ] . lla n tlnnnbhol‘ , N a g a nr a nd S o n S opn t‘

. be s id e s pay i ng fillylalili s o f rupees a nd o ne hund red e leph ants. S ee Vol. I , p . 272 .

T u t: ro s rrto x o r m o tes . I I ?

T he roma nti c h is to ry o f the Cho ha n l‘imlw ro ro f Del h i abo unds in ske tc hes o f f ema le c ha rac te r ; a nd inthe s to ry o f h i s ca rrying o ff S a nj o g ta ,

the princ e-w o f

Ka nau j , we ll: tVe a fa i th f u l pi c ture o f the sex . We s e e

her , f rom the mome n t wh e n,re j e c t ing the a s semb le d

pr inces , she th rew the ‘ga rla nd o f ma rriage ' ro und the

neck o f her he ro,the C ho ha n ,

a b ando n he rs e l f to a ilthe

i n fl uences o f pa s s ion,m ix in a (

‘

a tttb a t o f fi ve da v s '

co ntinuance ag ains t her fa the r’

s a rra v,w i tne s s h is o v e r

th row and the ca rnage o f bo th a rm ie s ,a nd s u b s e cp ie n tlv ,

by her sed uc ti v e cha rms,l u l l ing he r lo ve r in to a neg le c t

o f e v e ry prince ly d u ty . Y e t wh en the fo e s o f h is glo rv

and power in v ade Ind ia,we see the enc ha n tre ss a t o nc e

sta rt f rom her tra nce o f pleas u re,a nd exc ha nging tin

sof ter for the ste rne r pa s s ions , in a c c en ts no t le s s

strong beca u se m ingled w i th d eep a ffe c tio n . she c o n j u re s

h im,wh i le arm ing h im fo r the ba ttle

,to d ie f o r h is fame

,

decla r ing tha t she w i l l jo in h im in the ‘man s io ns o f

the sun .

’

“T hat Hindu can read w i tho u t emo tio n the reply o f

the brav e and beau t i f u l S a nj og ta ,then in the heydey o f

her honeymoon O n P rith v i'

s re la ting to her the d r mm .

he saw the prev iou s n igh t,she sa i d ' Vi ctory and

f ame to my l ord ! Oh S un o f the Chohan s , in g lo ry

or in plea sure,who has ta sted so deeply a s yo u

? T o d ie

i s the destiny no t only o f man b u t o f the god s,all

des i re to th row o ff the old ga rmen t b ut to d ie wel l is

to l ive for ever . Th ink no t o f se l f,b ut o f immo rtalitv

let you r sword d i v ide you r foe , and I w i l l be you r

(ml/ta nga (the other ha l f ) he rea f te r .

"

T he a rmy ha v ing a s sembled and allbe ing prepa red

to ma rch aga in st the Is lam i te , the fa ir S anjogta armed

1 18 H INDU s ernmomr r .

her lord for the en cou nter. I n v a in she sought the r ings

o f h i s cors let ; her eyes were fixed on the f ace of the

Choh an,a s those o f the f am i shed wretch who f ind s a p iece

o f gold . T he sound o f the drum reached the ear o f the

Chohan it w a s as a death-knel l on tha t of S an j og ta : an d

a s he le f t her to head Del h i ’s heroe s,she v owed that

h enceforth w ater on l y s hou l d su sta in her . I shallsee

h im aga in in the region of Surv a,b u t nev er more in

Y og in ipu r.

”

A m ore recent in stance o f the h igh sp i r i t , undaun ted

cou rage and a h igh sen se o f du ty and honou r d i splayed

by a qu een o f Marwar,ha s been recorded by a F ren chman

o f note . I n the C i v il“f ar for empi re amongst the son s o f

Shah Jahan,w hen A u rangzeb opened h i s ca reer by the

deposa l o f h i s father and the m urder of h i s brothers , the

ta j pu ts , f a ith fu l to the Em peror determ ined to oppose

h im . U nder the in trepid R ahtore,Jaswan t S ingh

,th i rty

t hou sand Ra jpu ts ch iefly of that clan,

adv an ced to

the Na rbada,and w ith a magnan im i ty amoun ting to

imprudence,they perm i tted the ju ncti on of Murad

w i th Au rangzeb .

Nex t. morn ing the action commenced,wh ich con t i

h ued th roughou t the day . T he Ra jputs behav ed w i th

the i r u sua l bra v ery,b u t were su rrounded on alls ides

,

and by sun set le f t ten thou sand dead on the field . T he

Maha ra ja re tre ated to h is own coun try,b ut his w i fe , a

da ugh ter o f the R ana o f U da i pu r,

“ d i sd ained (say s

Fe rishta) to rece ive her lord,and sh u t the ga tes o f the

ca stle .

T he French trav el ler , lic rn icr, who wa s present in

Ind ia a t the time,says : “ I cannot fo rbea r to rela te the

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m am : se ricmomr v .

FOREIGN RELAT IONS .

“ I n the th eatre o f the worldT he people a re a ctors all.

O ne doth the sovere ign mona rch playA nd him the rest obey .

”

W H EN su ch br i l l ian t n a ti ona l cha ra cter combines w i th

su ch happy soc ia l organ i zati on o f the people a s to ex cite

the adm i ra tion o f allw ho study it,one can ea s i ly

conce i v e w hat noble a ch ievemen ts o f peace and war

the anc ien t H ind u s mu st hav e accompl i shed . I t i s true,

“ peace hath her v i ctor ies no less renowned than wa r”

s ti l l a pecu l ia r ha lo o f glory atta ches to m i l i tary a ch iev e

m en ts . T he ach iev emen ts o f the H indu s in ph ilosophy ,poetry

,sc ien ces and arts prov e the ir peacef u l v i ctor ies .

B ut the ir m i l i ta ry ach iev em en ts were equa l ly great, a sw i l l appea r from the ir mastery o f the sc ience o f war .

The ir c i v i l i z ing m i ss ion s cov ered the globe, and

Hi nd u c i v i l i za t ion sti l l fl ows l ike an u nder-cu rren t in the

coun tless soc ia l in st itut i on s o f the world .

I n the A itcriya Bra hman,Emperor S ud a s i s sta ted

to hav e completel y conquered the whole world , w i th its

d i fferent coun tr ies .

Th a t the H indu s were qu i te capable o f aecom

plish ing th i s f ea t,i s clea r f rom the remarkable arti cle

tha t a ppea red in the Contemp ora ry R eview f rom the pen

o f Mr. Town send . lle says : I f the P rus s ian con scrip

t i on w ere appl ied in lnd ia,we shou ld

,w i thou t coun ting

reserves or land ’

weh r o r any f orce no t summoned

‘ b'

ee llang’

s A . I5 Vol.

FO R E IGN aam rmxs .

in time o f peace , ha ve two -a nd -a -ha l f m i l l io ns o f so ld ie rsactua l ly in ba rracks , w i th S titlamn rec ru i ts co m i ng upev e ry yea r—a fo rce w i th wh ic h no t o nly A s ia b u t the

world m igh t b e

Genera l S i r lan llam ilto n,in h is Scra p boo k on

the fi rs t pa rt o f the Ru sso-J apa ne se says “mythere i s ma ter ia l in the No rth o f ln d ia a nd in N epa ul

su ffi c ient and fit under good leade rs h i p,to sha ke the

a rtific ia l society o f Eu ro pe to its f o unda tio ns ,

"

T he terr it or ia l s treng th o f lnd ia in anc ien t and

ev en in med iaw alt imes,wa s grea te r tha n it; ha s e ve r

been d u ring the la st tho usand yea rs . l’uru rawa is

sa i d to hav e possessed 1 3 i s la nd s o f the o cea n . S ee Ma

habharata Ad ipar va , 3 14 3 T r isd a sa S mu t/ rim l'

u (M i/m

A s na n P ur in a /m ic,etc .

That the H ind us were a gre a t na val powe r in nu

c ient t imes i s clea r f rom the fa ct tha t o ne o f the a nc es to rs

o f Rama wa s S aga ra b empha tically ca l led the Seat-k ing ,who se s ixty thou sa nd son s were so ma ny ma rine rs .

( tPlin y , indeed , s ta tes tha t some co ns id er the fo u r

Satrapie s o f Gedeosia , A racho s ia,A ria a nd l’a ro pam is u s

to belong to Ind ia .

” Th i s wo u ld include,

says Mr . lil

ph instone ,“about two th i rds o f

Strabo mentions a la rg e pa rt o f Pe rs ia to ha ve beenabandoned to the H indu s by the Maced on ians .

"

Colonel Tod says : “T he a nna ls o f the Y ad a s o f

Ja i salmer sta te tha t long a n te rio r to Y ie rama , the v he ld

dom in ion f rom Gha zn i to S ama rkand,tha t the y e s ta b l i s h

ed them se lves in tho se regio ns a f te r th e Ma ha b ham ta .

I (‘

ontempora ry R e v iew fu r J une 18 88 .

“ Wil l E ng la n dre ta in lnd ia .

2 To d’ s R a jas than . Vol. 1, p . 60"

3 llistory o f Ind i a . p 2 3 2 .

4 S ee S trabo . L ib . XV ,p . 4 7 1.

222 11mm: S UPE RIO R ITY .

and were a ga in impe lled on the r i se o f I s la

the Indu s " H e adds : “ A mu l ti pl i c ity of

fa cts og'

aph icald i stinc ti ons f u l ly

a s sen ge n e ra l tru th o f these record s,

tha t the Y adu I w e had dom in ion in Centra l A s ia .

” 1 H e

a l so says : O ne t h i ng i s now proved that princes o f

the H indu f a i th ru l ed ov er allthese region s in the fi rst

ages o f lslam i sm,a 1d m ade f requent a ttemp ts for cen

tu ries a f ter to reconquer them . O f these,Batb er gi v es u s a

m os t str ik ing in s tan ce in h is descri pt i on o f Gazn i,or

,a s

he wr ites,Gha zn i , w hen he rela te s how when the R a i of

H ind bes ieged S ub akh tagin in Gha zn i,Sm

u bakhtagin

ordered flesh o f kine to b e th rown into the f ounta in,

w h i ch made the H indu s reti re .

”3 T he celebra ted Balab h i

w a s red uced by the s am e s tra tagem .

dappa , the an cesto r of the Rana s o f M ewar,aban

dou ed Cen tra l India a f ter establ i sh ing h i s l ine in Ch i tor ,m d ret i red to Khora san . Allth i s prov es that H in du i sm

prev a i led in those d i stan t region s,and that the in terco

grse

w as u n res tr i cted betw een Cen tra l A s ia and Ind ia .

” 3

“T he Bhatt i Chron i cle ca l l s the Langa s“ in one page

Pa than and in another Ra jput,w h i ch are perfec tly recon

c ileable,and by no mean s ind i ca tiv e that the Pathan or

A fghan o f tha t early period o r ev en in the time o f R a i

Seh ra w a s Mohamed an . T he t i tle o f l’t a i i s a su ffi cien tp roo f tha t they w ere ev en then H ind us .

” Colonel T o dadd s : Kha n i s by no mean s indi c ati ve o f the Mohameda n fa ith? “

{To d‘slla jas tlm n,Vol l l . p .

”ill" To d ’

s lla ja s tlm n,Vol l l

, py i

‘

wlt “M us l im“,Voll l

,

l'

lhe y n e i e S ola nlt i ltaq ts

5 1";t li tija s tlutlt , Vol. l l . [L

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12-1 H I NDU S U I ‘ICR I O R I T Y .

Ind ian l i teratu re , and espec ial ly in Kal idasa,we are

i n fo rme d tha t Indian p rinces were wa i ted u pon by

Y a v an is (Greek dam sel'

s) ; La ssen , I . A . K . i i,

a nd my Pref ace to lVIala v ika, p . XLVI I .

”l

T he Pers ian Emperor , N a t'

tsherawan the Ju st,gav e

h is daugh te r in m arr iage to the then Maha rana of Ch itor.

Cv c n the Ramayana says that in Ayodh ia , amba s

sad ors f rom d i ff eren t coun tr ies resid ed fi2 Accord ing to

J ust in,the mona rch o f U j ja in (Ma lwa ) hel d a cor res

pond ence w i th Augu stu s .“ Augu stu s rece ived at Samos

an emba ssy f rom Ind ia . T h e amba ssadors brough t

elephants , pearl s and prec iou s stones . There wa s a

second emba ssy f rom India sent to Emperor Claud iu s,

o f w h ich P l iny giv es an accoun t. H e rece iv ed f rom

the amba ssadors , who were f ou r in number,the in f orma

t ion abou t Ceylon w h ich he has embod ied in h i s Na tu ra l

H i story . T wo oth er emba ss i es f rom H indu prin ces to

Rome were sent be fore the th ird cen tu ry A .O .,one to

Tra jan (107 AC . ) and another to An ton iu s P ius .

These relation s con tinued a s late as the t ime of Ju st in ian

(5 3 0 A .O .)S trabo"men tions an amba ssador f rom K ing Pand ion

to A ugu stu s,who m et h im in Syr ia . I t appea rs f rom

l’eriplus and P tolemy tha t Pand ion was the he red i tary

ti tle o f the descendan ts of Pandya,who f ounded the

k ingdom in the fi f th cen tury BE .

“ A brahm in f ol lowed

th i s amba s sador to A then s,where b e bu rn t h im se l f

a l i v e .

lnd ia n L i te ra tu re , pp . 2 5 1 , footno teg filrs . Ma n n i ng

'

s A nc ie n t and Med ize valI nd ia , Vol. I I , p . 2 7 .

”S e e'l 'o d ’

s lta i as tli a n ,Vol. 3 13 .

la b . XV,p . 06 3 .

f5l‘ilpli inslone’

s H i s to ry o f lnd ia , p 218 .

FOR E IGN

I n one o f A so ka ’

s i nscri ptio ns,l i ve (irc c k pri nc e s

a ppez‘

u'

.

— (l) An tio clius o f S v ria , (2 ) l’tolcm v , l

’li ila

d clplio s o f Egyp t, (3 ) Au tigo no s (io tntto s o f Ma ced o n,

(4 ) Maga s o f A lexande r I I o f lipirus .

"

“ Grea t inte rco u rse,

"s ays a w ri te r

,

“ fo rmerly s ubs i s ted

between the H ind us a nd the n at io ns o f the Wes t.” l

Thu s,when e v en in tho se d ay s

,In di a wa s so gre at

a s to exa ct the homage o f allwho s aw her,though her

grand po l i ti ca l a nd soc ia l i ns ti tuti ons had lo s t the i r

p ri s tine pu r i ty and v igour,and those m igh ty fo rce s

w h i ch worked fo r her wel fa re and grea tness we re d i s

appearimr when e ven in her fa l l she wa s the i dol o f0 7

f ore ign na ti on s,how m igh ty mu st she ha v e been when

she wa s a t the he igh t o f her power , a t the zen i th o f her

glory ! H er con s ti tu ti on sti l l stand s l i ke some ta l lanc ien t oak in a f ore s t shorn o f f ol iage , b ut s ti l l de fy ing

the d i scordan t elemen ts tha t rage round it,sti l l loo k ing

down,w ith a m a jesty and d ign i ty allits own

,upon the

new-sprung , prospe rou s young trees grow ing round it inhappy ignorance of the s torm s and gusts in sto re .

I t i s cu r ious to lea rn tha t even in her d ecl ine,Ind ia

was su ffic ien tly strong to defy the grea t conque ro rs o f

the old world . I t was th rea tened by the prosperou s

emp i re o f A ssyria,then a t the merid ian o f her power

under the ce lebra ted queen Sem i ram is . S he u sed the

ent i re resou rces o f the empi re in prepa ra tion s to inv adeInd ia

,and col lected a con s idera bl a rmy .

“ A f te r th reeyears spent in these extraord ina ry prepa ra tions

,she sent

f orwa rd her a rm ies , wh i ch some w r iters desc ri be a s

amoun ting to sev era l m i l l ion s o f comba ta nts,b ut the

na rra t iv e o f Ctes ia s estima tes them a t th ree h und redlS ec A s iat i c R esearches , Vol. I I I , pp . 297-23 98 .

126 H I NDU surmnoa ir r .

thou sand foot,fi ve hund red thou sand horse

,wh i le two

thou s and boa ts and a great num ber o f mock elephan ts were

conv eyed on the back s o f camel s . int what was the

resu l t ? “ T he a rmy was u tterly rou ted and Sem i ram i s

brough t b ack sca rcely a th i rd o f her host some a uthorse ven ma in ta in that she herse l f per i shed m the ex pe

d ition .

” l

I I orrid sugg est ion th in k est thou then the god sTa k e ca re o f men who came to b u rn the i r a ltars

,

P ro fane the i r li tes,and tram ple on the ir laws

\V i l l they reward the b ad I t cannot b e .

— q O P H O CL E S A ntigone.

I n later t imes,the Y ad u k ing

,Gaj S ingh , who

f ounded Ga j ni (Gha zn i ) , s ingle-handed defeated the

comb ined arm ies o f Shah S ecunder R oom i and Shah

B’

Iamra iz .

” L

H isto ry o f lnd ia ,p . 3 0 .

”Tod’

s I ta jasthan ,Vol. I I , p . 2 22 .

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128 H I NDU S UPE R IOR ITY .

“7ere it not for th i s un fortunate d isun i on o f the

H indus themselves , the Great Alexander 1 wou ld probably

have sha red the fa te o f the Assy r ian Sem i ram i s .

L i ke the melod iou s song o f a dy ing swan,Ind ia

aga in shone forth f or a mom ent in allits glory u nde r

Vicramad itya . But th i s wa s the la st f a in t gl immer ing

o f the consumed fire covered w ith a shes , the la st symptom s

o f v ita l ity tha t break u pon a dying man .

“ There i s

good rea son to bel ieve,

” says S ir W. Jones , in h i s

P re fa ce to Sakunta la,

“tha t the cou rt at Av an ti was

eq ua l in bri llian cy in the re ign o f Vikramad itya to tha t

o f any mona rch in any age or country

T he emperors Bhoj an d Akbar a lone of the later

ru lers o f Ind ia m ade attempts to g iv e some bri l l iancy to

1A lexa nd er’

s treacherous and c ruel cond uct d u ri ng th is e xped it ion c an on ly b e just ified on the p r i nc i ple th at “

allis fa i r inT he Ilind u laws o f wa r d o not sanct ion an atta c k on anlo ve and wa r.

unprepa red foe,it be ing aga i nst the i r chivah ous i nst incts to d o so .

A lexand er, however , took the A swakas a t unawa res and d efeated th em .

Then aga in he tr ied by stra tagem to d efea t Cleophis (the mother o f thed ecea sed llindu k ing ,

who had a ssumed the cond uct o f alf a irs . (S ee

(Jm t 8 ,10 ; J ust in 12 . O n the d eath o f the H ind u Command e i

,

the lnd ia n a ux i l ia ries su rrend ered and encamped on a h i l l in f ront o f

the M ace do n ia n camp,peace h a v i ng been p rocla imed in the town . h i t

the s urrend e i ed I nd ia ns were k i l led the nex t d ay ,on the p retence tha t

th ey m ed i ta ted trea cb c i y , a nd the town o f the Masa k a ta k en by a s sau l t.\Vha te \'e r may ha ve been the c ase with the s up/ inset ], i nte nt ion o f the

I nd ia n m e i c ena ries ,"

a s k s Max U nnkc r,

“a nd the i n te l l i g e nce wh ic h

is s a id to ha ve rece i ved o f th is i nten t io n— the c itv h ad fu lfi l ledthe c o nd i t io n upo n i t a nd ha d g i ven up the m e i cena ries

,-a by

th e n “ as it a tta c k ed I I ! th i s une xpected and nnme i ited ma nner aga i ns tthe te rms o f the cal

‘

i itnla tio n ?oj J ul/gully ,

VolI V,p

. 3 0 1.

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1 3 0 H I ND U S UPE R I O R ITY .

H elen by Pa r i s . T he l ov e ly S anjogta , in defiance of her'

f a th er’s v a in-glori ou s w i shes , an d , in con tempt of the

p reten t i on s o f the a ssem bled nob ilitv o f Northern Ind ia,

determ ined to give her hand on ly to the flower o f the

f ar-famed Ra jput ch iv alry,

” Pr ithv i R aj o f A jmer,

th rew the ra rmala (marriage garland ) round the golden

e ffigy o f tha t hero , placed by Jai Chand at the porta l s o f

the pala ce,u ncon sc iou sly as an emblem o f the protect iv e

m igh t o f “the Pride of Rajasthan

,and a s a tr ibu te to

h i s glory as the defender o f h i s race aga in st f ore i gn

aggress ion . T he ch i va l rou s Chohan appeared at the

r igh t momen t,at the imm inen t r i sk o f los ing h i s l i f e , as

w el l a s of def eating the object o f the d a ring enterpri se,to an swer the cal l o f a noble f emale of a roya l h ou se

,

and to carry away,f rom am i d st the un i ted hero i sm o f

H ind ustan , the pr i ze w h ich had attracted allthe important prin ces of Ind ia to Kanau j— thu s f u l ly v ind icat ing

h i s character as the mos t intrepid and hero i c o f the

H ind u pr inces . Th is magn i fi cen t f eat cost Prithv itaj h i s th rone and the H indu nati on the i r indepen

dence . T he T ricala Chund tru ly sa i d tha t “ he p re

served h is pri ze : he ga ined immorta l renown , b u t helos t the s i new s o f Deh l i I n the desperate runn i ngf igh t o f five days

,Pr i th v i Ra j lost his h und red samm n ts

(heroe s) the leaders o f h i s a rm y , the ma ins tay o f h i s

thro ne . H im sel f u nable to ov e rcome P ri th v i R aj , and

burn ing w i th revenge fo r h is h um i l ia tion,Ja i Ch und now

began to i n trigue w i th the en emy o f the H indus,the

S u l tan o f Gho r .

“ T he bra v e d ese rv e the fa i r . T he bra ve Chohan

no t n nlv se cu red the f a i r o f Ka na uj,b u t d i sco vered a t

Nago re a tre as u re amoun t i ng to sm en m i l l ion s in gold .

Th i s a la rme d his enem ies s ti l l mo re . Co l onel T od says :T he princes o f li ana uj and l

’a tu n

,d read i ng the in flu

enee o f such s inews o f wa r,in v i ted Shahabudd in to a i d

the i r des ign o f h um i l ia ting the Cho han .

” lA hu l h an d

says : “ Shahabudd in f ormed an a l l iance w i th Ra ja J ai

Ch und , and hav ing ra ised a la rge a rm v , came to a ttackthe dom in ion s o f P ithow ra . T he Ita ja (l

’rithv i l i a j ) ,

v a in w i th the remembrance o f h i s f orme r v i cto r ie s,

col

lected together on ly a sma l l num bergf troops , and w i th

th ese he ma rched ou t to a ttack the Su l tan . But the

heroes o f H industan had allperi shed in the manne r

abov e descri bed bes ides,J a i Chu nd

,who had been his

a l ly , was now in league w i th h is enemy .

”

Ham i r a l so joined the tra i tors . Colonel Tod says

There were no les s than f ou r d i stingu i shed leade rs o f

th i s name (Ham i r) among the v a ssa l s o f the la s t Ra jpu tEmperor o f Dehl i , and one of them who tu rned tra i torto h i s sov ere ign and joined S hahb udd in wa s ac tua l ly a

Scyth ian and o f the Gh ika r race. T he Haol i R ao,

Ham i r,was lord of Kangra and the Ghikars o f l ’amer .

” 2

T he resu l t’

o f the encounte r i s wel l known . T he

treacherou s plan o f opera tion s dev i sed by J a i Chund and

adopted by the S ul tan aga inst P ri th v i R aj , resu lted in

the ov erth row of the H indu su premacy in Ind ia . Fri th

v i R aj fel l in to the ha nd s o f the enemy and was taken

to Gha zn i . But there he succeeded,w i th the a ss is ta nce

o f the ever-fa ith f u l Ch and,in a dm in i ste ring dea th to

the conqueror o f h i s country . T he f ol low ing co uple t

of Chund confirm s the popula r trad i ti on on the subjec t'

an: at?! vitae at? ! 3 1°

s we W WI I!m am a s 1 3?vi e w it

lT od

’

s R a j asthan ,Vol. I , p . 256 .

2 Ted '

s R a j as than, Vol. 1, p . b oo.

13 2 H I N'

B U sursmomr r .

Abu l Fa zal,in h i s Ayeen Airba r z

'

,al so says T he

f a ith f u l Ch und f ol lowed h i s pri nce to Ghazn i and con

trived to ga in the f av ou r of the Su l tan . Hav ing oh

tam ed an in te rv iew w i th the Rajah,and adm in i stered

com fort to h i s m ind,he tol d him tha t he wou ld take an

Opportun i ty of pra i s ing h i s sk il l w ith the bow,wh i ch

w ou l d ra i se the Su l tan ’s cu r ios ity to see h im perf orm h i s

f ea ts,when he m igh t m ake a proper u se of h i s a rrow.

I n con sequen ce o f Chund’

s representat i on,the Su ltan

w i shed to see the Raja exerc i se h i s b ow,w hen b e se i zed

the Opportun ity and sh ot the k ing dead u pon the spot.” 1

T he Sam e f ate met the n ext great leader of the

H indu s w hen Baber in v aded In d ia . H ad not the T uar

tra i to r who led the van of Sanga ’s a rmy gone ov er to

Baber,Rana Sanga ‘l’ wou l d hav e settled f or ev er the

questi on of H indu supremacy in India . Says Colonel

Tod lVith allBaber’s qua l it ies as a sold ier,supported

by the hardy clan s of the ‘ clou d moun ta in s of Karatagin ,

th e chan ces were m any that he and they term inated the i r

ca reer on the‘ yel low r iv u let

,of B iana . Ne ither sk i l l

nor brav ery sav ed h im (Baber) f rom th i s f ate,wh i ch he

appea rs to hav e Gxpected To an cien t jea lou s ieshe was indeb ted for not l os ing h i s l i fe in stead of ga in ing

a crown,and for be ing extr i cated from a cond i t i on so

desperate that ev en the f renzy of rel ig ion , wh i ch ma de

dea th m a r tyrdom in th i s h oly war,sca rcely av a i led to

expe l the despa i r wh i ch so in f ected h i s f ol lower s tha t

1 S e e also Tod ’

s R a j as th an, Vol. I , p . 19 4 .

9 “ S ang a organ i z ed his forces, with wh i ch he a lways k ept the fielda nd e re ca l led to contend w i th the descend ants o f T imoer

,he had

ga ined e igh te en p i tched battles aga inst the k ings of D elh i and Malwa .

T od'

d [dy ad /ra n ,Vol. I , p . 3 00 .

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H I N D U CO LO N I ZAT I O N

O F T H E WO R L D .

Allplaces , th a t the eve o f hea ven v is i tsA le to a w is e ma n po rts and ha ppy h a r t-a s v

Te a ch thv necess i ty to reaso n th us9

The re is no v i rt ue l i k e nec e ss i ty .

R icha rd I I .

T H E tu rn ing point in the h i story o f Ind ia,nay . in

the h i story o f the world,wa s the Ma habha ra ta— the

death-stroke to Ind ian pro speri ty and glory . 3e fo re th i s

ca tas trophe,H indu c i v i l i zation wa s in f ul l v igo u r . lt

d ecl ined gradua l ly a f ter the Mahabha ra ta ti l l it w a s a tta ck

ed firs t by the Arab sem i-ba rba r i sm,a nd then b v the E u ro

pean ci v i l i za ti on . S impl ic i ty w i th refineme n t,hone s ty

w i th happiness,a nd glory w i th power a nd pea c e , we re the

splend id resu lts o f the Hindu c i v i l i za t io n com plex i ty

w i th ou twa rd pol i sh , selfi sh ness and cu nn ing w i th pro

gress and prosper i ty ,succes s w i th immod e ra te v an i ty

,

weal th w i th m i se ry are the off sp rings o f the la tte r . T he

Mah abha ra ta wa s a wa r not on l y between ma n and man,

b u t between the two a spec ts o f the h ea rt,the two pha ses

o f the m ind .

There a re two rema rka ble fea tures o f tha t pe riod ,d i ffering in na ture b u t coin c id ing in the i r e ff ect on lnd ia .

T hese were d es truction and wa i f /ra tion . T he good and

the grea t m en o f lnd ia e i ther em igra ted o r we re k i l led

the eff ect upon Ind ia was the same— in im i c al to her

1 3 6 H INDU surmuomrr .

p rosper ity . Whole tr ibes were k i l led whole races emi

gra ted . I t i s true tha t,in addi tion to many c i v i l i z ing

ex ped i ti on s , there had been tr i ba l em igrati on s bef ore

tha t momentou s per i od . But these la ter em igrati on s

sucked ou t the l i fe-blood o f Ind ia . These em igra tion s ,a s a l so the settlements and colon ies o f ancien t Greece ,d i ff ered in an importan t respect f rom the modern

settlemen ts of the Eu ropean s . T he Grec ian settlements

a ttracted the best men o f Greece ; and the Ind ian

em igrat ion s hel ped powe r f u l ly to set in mot ion those

d i s integrating forces that ha v e u nde rm ined ou r nati ona l

superi or i ty,destroyed our ind ependence and ru ined ou r

soc iety and rel igi on .

But there i s no ev i l tha t i s an u nm i xed e v i l : to

ev ery cl oud there i s a s i lv er l in ing . I n th e present ca se ,Ind ia ’s l oss wa s the worl d ’s ga in . Though India ’ s

greatnes s began to decl ine,the enti re Wes tern world

f rom Pers ia to B r i ta in rece iv ed in the colon i sts the seeds

o f the i r f utu re greatness . T he Mahabha rata wa s th u s

f raugh t w i th world-W i de con sequences .Says M r . P ococke :

“ But,perhaps

,in no s im i la r

i nstance h av e ev en ts occu rred f raugh t w i th consequen ces

o f such m agn i tude,a s those flow ing f rom the great rc

lig iou s wa r w h i ch,f or a long series o f years

,raged

th ro ughou t the length a nd bread th o f Ind ia . Th at

con tes t en ded by the expu l s ion o f va s t bod ie s o f m en,

many o f them sk i l led in the a rts o f early c i v i l i za t i on,

md s t i l l grea ter num bers wa rr iors by p ro fe ss ion .

D ri ven beyond the H ima layan moun ta in s in the north,

a nd to Ceylon,the i r la s t stronghold in the sou th

swep t acros s the v a l ley o f the Ind u s on the wes t,th i s

pe rsecuted people carr ied w ith them the germ s o f the

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13 8'

11a surna i om '

r v ;

mou rn th i s loss . E very b ran ch o f l i teratu re,ev erv

. I

science and art has su ff ered f rom the rav ages o f ignoran t

f ana ti c i sm . Some hav e d i sappeared comple tely ; others

h av e come down to u s in a more or less mu ti lated form .

T he present sca rc i ty o f h i stor i ca l works,h owev er, shou l d

no t b e rega rded as a proof o f the absence of the Art o f

H i story any more than the presen t pov erty o f the coun

try b e a ccepted a s a proof o f its ind igence in an cient tim es .

Fo r one th ing,the enm ity o f Au rangzeb toward s

allh i stor ica l wr itings i s wel l kn own . 3 ut it i s the Arab,

A fghan and Ta r tar sem i-barb a risrn that i s respon s ible

f or the destru ction o f l i terature,whethe r in Egypt o r in

Ind ia,in Persia or in Greece . T he destru cti on of the

Alexand r ian L i bra ry was on e a f those notor iou s f eats

by w h ich the progres s o f human ity was put back by a

thou sand years . But the l oss to human ity by the whole

sa le destru cti on o f the l i bra r ies of Ind ia i s beyon d cal

cu la tion . That em inent ant iquar ian and explorer,R a i

Bahad u r Sara t Chander Da ss , says I n the lof ty n inestoried temple at Buddha Gaya

,wh i ch wa s f ormerly ca l led

the Mahaga nd hola (Gandhalaya ) , the images o f the pa s tBuddha s were en sh r ined . T he n ine-stor ied temple ca l ledli atandad hi o f D ha ramganja (un iv ers i ty ) o f Na landa wa sthe repos i tory o f the sacred books o f the Mahayana and

Ilinaya n a Buddh i s t School s . T he temple of O d an tapu riVz /za ra

,wh ich i s sa i d to hav e been l o f tier than e i ther o f

the two (Buddha Ga va and Na la nda ) conta ined a'

a st

col lecti on o f Bu dd h i s t and Br ahm in i ca l work s , wh i ch ,a f ter the ma nner o f the grea t Alexand r ian L i bra ry

,wa s

burn t u nd e r the o rders o f Mohamed Ben S am,genera l

o f Ba khtva r Kh il j i , in 12 12 .

l'

l'

lw H i nd us ta n lto v icw fo r Ala i' t-

l(} p . 18 7 (Li

llIVcl’

S lllcs

in A nc ie n t lnd ia ) .

fl

H INDU c o t oxm r tox . 1 09

S ul tan Alla -nd-d in Kh i lj i burn t the famo u s l i bra ry

a t Anhalwa ra l ’a ta n . T he T U I ‘M'fi I 'i'

ru : S im /i i sa y s tha t

l‘i

iro z S h ah T ughlak bu rn t a la rge l i brary o f San s k ri t.

books at Kohana . Sayed Gh u lam llu se in ,in his we l l

k nown book , S a /r illulaN zrecn (Vol. I , p . H O ) , compiled

in the re ig n o f Au rangzeb , who ca l led h im se l f S erum /er

S ci/ i i,sa y s S u ltan S ika nd e r (A u rangzeb) w as the m o s t

b igo ted o f the S u l tans , a nd bu rn t the bo o ks o f the

H in du s whene v er and wherev e r he go t them .

”

In s tances o f s uch sa v agc rv cou ld b e m u l ti pl ied e as i l yThese a re allman i fes ta ti ons o f tha t men ta l abe rra tion to

wh i ch h uman i ty i s e v idently subject a t in terva l s,the

d isease be ing the sam e , the occas i on may b e the o u trage s

comm i tted b y the Goth s and Vanda l s o f ea rl ie r t imes or

the Arabs and the Ta rta rs o f the la tte r da y

Mr . D ow ,in the Pre face to h i s H i s tory o f Hind us tan

observes : \Ve m u st not,w i th l’e ris hta

,con s ider the

H ind us a s desti tu te o f genu ine domes ti c annal s,or tha t

those v olum inou s record s they pos sess a re me re legend s

f ramed by Brahman s .

” M r Wi l son,w i th his u sua l

f a i rnes s , rema rks tha t “ it i s incorrect to say tha t theH indu s nev e r comp iled h i s tory . T he l i tera ture o f the

south abound s w i th loca l h i s to r ies o f Hind u a u th ors .

Mr . S t i rl ing found v ar i ous ch ron i cles in O r i s sa,and

Colonel Tod ha s me t w i th equa lly a bundant ma ter ia l inR a j putana .

” l

Pro fesso r Heeren says lVilson’

s trans la tion o f

R aj T a ra nyin i , a h i s tory o f Ka shm i r,ha s clea rly (lemons

tra ted tha t regu lar h is tori ca l compos i tion was a n artno t nuknown in H ind u s ta n

,and a ff o rd s sa ti s fa c to ry ground s for

I M ill’

s Ind ia ,Volume ll, page 67 , footnote .

14 0 H I NDU sc r i zmomrr .

concl ud ing that these production s w ere on ce less ra re,and

that f urther exerti ons may br ing m ore rel ics to l ight.” 1

Professor \Vilson ’

s a sserti on that genealogies'land

ch ron i cles are f oun d in v arou s parts o f Ind ia recorded

w i th some perseverance , w i l l b e supported by allwho

know H ind u society .

T he cr it i cs who resol utely deny the exi stence of the

art in An cien t Ind ia on the plea that none of the pro

d uction s o f the art a re to b e f ou nd,w i l l do wel l to con

s ider the f a ct that ev en the Veda s wou ld hav e been l ost

had the Mohamedan ru le cont inued a centu ry o r solonger

w ithou t gi v ing bi rth to a D ayanand . When su ch hasbeen the lot of the i r m o st adored possess ion

,what better

handl ing cou ld the poor A rt of H istory hav e a sp i red toobta in ?

T he i llu str i ou s Colonel Tod says : I f we con

s ider the pol it ica l changes and conv u l s ion s wh ich hav ehappened in H in dustan s in ce Mahmud ’s inv a s ion

,and

the intoleran t bigotry of m any of h i s su ccessors,we sha l l

b e able to a ccount for the panelty o f its nati ona l works on

h i story , w i thou t be ing dr iv en to the improbable conclus ion , that the Hi nd u s were ignorant of an a rt wh ich wa scu l ti vated in oth er countr ies f rom almost the ea rl iestages . ls i t to b e im agined that a na ti on so h igh ly

1 H eeren’

s H i s tor i ca l R esearch es , Vol. H . p . 1 4 3 .

2 T he genea log ies a re st i l l k ept a nd a re to be found in a lmost every

pa rt o f H i nd us tan pau per. I n ltajpu ta na ,“ here th ey a re regula rly

k ept, you m ay se lec t a n y m an o f the Va ishya Varna . a nd ,

a fter a l ittleS ea rch , you c an gene ra l ly find out the names a nd abod es of eve ry

membe r o f h is a nc est i alfam ily for a bout twen ty genera t ion s ba c k .T here is a clan named “ J ag

-a s who have made th is the ir h ered i tary

p rofess ion .

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14 2 H INDU sr rcmomrr .

a t the time o f the establ i shment o f the S alivahau era ,

wa s I t says z— ZI IH I : m ail?q a u fnam a a

gms fa

a n“

I amzi g gmuama s i qm firai'

aaise t rz n

T he S ftlivahan era a t p resen t (1906 AD . ) i s 18 28

so that the Ka l iyuga era shou l d now b e

—500 7 .

T he au thor o f the hook,I qoliruid /m B iza ra n— a

h i story o f the re ign o f Vicramad itya , composed in the

Samba t era 2 1 (Vicrama era )—~sav s that that yea r

corresponded w ith the yea r 3 068 of the Kaliyugera . Th i s a l so makes the Kaliyug era now 3 068

9 1

T he I’

m /1a S a ngkita o f Vraham ihr (contemporary

o f Vicramad itya ) says that the con stellati on S ap ta r is /ziwa s in Maglici N a /clzsiia tra in the re ign o f Y ud hishtira

,

and tha t the date o f h i s re ign may b e obta ined by add

ing 2 52 6 to the S alivahan era . Accord ing to th i s,

Y udh ishtira re igned yea rs ago .

m a; m ug 13 7m: siesta w aif qfafisi fl

awed 1

a s ffi as fi t (ac ts) are : gramm e u s e it

aim-a stem a c

Ka lhan Bhatta,in h i s f amou s work , R aj Ta rinf/ im

'

,

says that Y ud hish tira was born w hen 05 3 yea rs o f theKa l iyuga era had pa ssed .

21a“

? 8 2113 G riffin} E a faatg (i s?) a 13 5 3

fi lial? asirmmuaq gi' liqisar:

U a a i fanfi m i n: { sites in n

Th i s,too

,show s tha t 4 3 5 4 yea rs hav e

passed s ince the commencemen t of the Kaliyug era .

m a ne C O LO N I ZA'

I‘

I U N . 14 3

T he a stronomers , l’a rzisa r and A rya llha tta re s pec t

ively hold tha t the Ma habha ra ta took place 0 0 0 ",i

i. yea rss )

a n d y ea rs a f te r the commencemen t o f the Kaliyng .

‘

lrad hg a rglun un i, o n the c o n tra ry,ho ld s tha t the

sapla r z'

s /i i we re in the a t the j uncti on

o f the D wa par a nd the Kalivug . H e says :

afifa amt a’

a’

lfi fe a rea f qaéaaq n an: l

g ai t: utifat r fl: E mmi mtfi ( HT ! it

Acco r di ng to h im,the re fo re

,Y ud h ishtira flour i shed

a t the beginn ing o f the Kaliyug .

A n insc r i p t i on in a Ja in temple o n a h i l l nea r Y a ho la,

Kalad aggi d i str i ct, Deccan ,sa y s tha t the tem ple

,bu i l t by

K ing P ulkc sh i ll, o f the Cha lukya fam i ly,wa s e rec te l

yea rs a f te r the Ma habhara ta,a nd when 5 5 6 yea rs

o f the d elta era had pa s sed,th us pro v ing tha t the G re at

took pla ce 3 7 3 5 3 175) y ea rs be fo re the Saka

era in o ther word s,3 17 3) (Saka e ra ) = 500 7

yea rs ago . T he ins cr i pti on runs a s fol lows

fiw fafl e ég u tt am'

é'

aifiz a : I

m ars: $ 3 3;n M afi qa air

g w e 10 11 )iterates zit

-! sit afit

’

éi Brae danci ng a (we) I

time m adam aw amfi: fi ‘j ifl q a

Fo l low ing ev iden tly the V iew he l d by llrad hga rgh

M un i,the a uthor o f the . 1

.

i/een-z says tha t Vie ra

m ad itya ascended the th rone in the 3,0 4 4 th yea r o f the

Y ud h ishtira era . Th i s a lso make s the Y ud h ish tir a era

beg in 3 0 —14 era ) 500 7 ye ars ago .

Thus,the a u tho r i ties a re allagreed tha t the Ka l i

y uga commenced yea rs ago : opi n i on , howeve r , i s

1 " I nd ia n E l‘a Q . p . 8 .

2 The I nd ia n A nt i quely , Vol. Vlll, p ,

1-11 H I NDU S UPE R I ORITY.

d iv i ded as to when the Grea t “far took place . T rad i tion

seem s to say that the Mahabhara ta took place a t the

conn nenccment ot'

the Kaliyug , w h ile the a stronomers

th ink tha t it took place abou t the m iddle o f the 7th cen

tu ry o f the Ka l iyuga era . Wh i chev er V iew i s correctthe former or the latter—we know

,on a compar i son of

these t imes w i th the dates o f Scriptural h i story,tha t the

Kaliyug era commen ced be fore the bi rth o f Noah,and

that th e G reat \’Var took pla ce e i ther before h i s t ime or

soon af ter it.

The m igra t ion s f rom Ind ia,a s sta ted bef ore

,took

place Eastward s a s wel l a s Westwa rds and Nor thwards .T he Ea stern m igra ti on s were to the T ran sgangetic pen insu la

,to Ch ina , to the i sland s of the Indian Arch i pelago

,

and to Ameri ca . T he Northern an d the North-western

to T urk i s tan , S iber ia , Scand inav ia , Germany and Br ita in,

as wella s to Pers ia,Greece

,Rome and Etru ria . T he

“Y

estern , to the ea stern pa rts o f A f r i ca and thence to

Egypt. We find that Egypt,Pers ia

,Assyria

,and

Greece allder iv ed the i r learn ing and c iv i l i zat ion f romInd ia an d tha t the Egyptian

,the Assyrian

,the Grecian

,

the German,the Scand inav ian and the Dru id ic My tho

logies w ere allder iv ed f rom the H indu My thology .

S i r Wa lter Raleigh strongly supports the Hind u

hypothes i s regard ing the loca l ity o f the nursery f or

rea ring mank ind,and tha t Ind ia wa s the first peopled

coun try .

1

T he Cen tra l As1a n th eory o f emiration i s u nable to

m eet the d i fficu l ty presen ted b y the f act tha t “the

1H is tory o f the “Wi l d, p . 0 0 . li e wou l d a t o nce h av e found theo r ig in o f A ra ra t b ad be k nown th a t the H i n dus ca l l the i r country ,A rva n u la .

’

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14 6 H INDU surmn om '

rv .

o f the H ind us,wh i ch gradua l ly ex tended i tself in the“Te s t

to E th ioyna , to Egy pt, to P h ie n ic ia in the Ea s t,to S iam ,

to Ch ina,and to Japan ; in the Sou th , to Ceylon , to Ja va

a nd to S uma tra in the North,to Pe rs ia to Galda n and to

Co l ch i s,whence it come to G reece and to Rome

,a nd a t

length to the rem ote abode o f the Hyperborean s .

Colonel O lcott sav e : “ T he modern school o f com

para tiv e P h i lology traces the m igrati on o f Aryan c iv i l i

z ation into E urope by a s tudy o f m odern languages incom par i son w i th the San skr i t. And we ha v e an eq ua l ly

,

if no t a sti l l more str i k ing m ean s o f show ing the o u t

flow o f Aryan though t toward s the lVest in the philoso

ph ies and rel igions o f Babylon ia,E gypt

,Greece

,Rome

and Northern Eu rope . O ne ha s on ly to pu t s ide hv s ide

the teach ings o f Py thagora s , Socra tes , Pla to , Ari stotle,

H ome r,Zeno

,H es i od

,Cicero

,S ccev ola

,Va rro and Vir

gi l w i th those o f Veda-Vya sa , Kapi la , Gau tama , Pa tan

ja l i,li anada

,J a im in i

,Narada , Pan in i , Mar i ch i

,and

m any others we m ight men ti on . to b e a s ton i shed a t th e i ri den t i ty o f concepti on s— an i den t ity tha t u pon any other

th eory than that o f a der i vat i on of the v ounger philoso

ph icals chool s o f the \Vest f rom the older ones o f the

E as t w ou ld be s imply m i ra cu l ou s . T he h uman m ind i s

certa i n ly capable o f ev ol v ing l ike idea s in d i ff eren t ages,j us t a s huma n itv prod uces f or i tsel f in ea ch genera t i onthe teachers

,ru lers

,wa rri ors and a rti san s it n eed s . Bu t

th at the v iew s o f the A rya n sages sho u l d b e so iden ti ca lw i th tho se o f the l ate r Greek and Roman ph i losophersa s to seem a s if the la t ter were to the f ormer l ike the re

flecti on o f a n obj ec t in a m i rror to the ob je c t i tsel f,

w i tho u t an a ctua l,phy s i ca l tra n sm i s s ion o f tea chers o r

books f rom the Ca s t to the We s t,i s someth ing opposed

m s un 14 ?

to connnou sense . And th i s aga i n co r ro bo ra te s o u r con

v ic tio ns th a t the old E g y ptia n s we re em ig ra n ts f rom

I nd i a : nea rly allthe famou s anc ien t ph ilo so ph e rs Inn !

been to Key/pt to lea rn her w isd om,f rom the J ew is h

Mo s es to the Greek Pla to .

” l

S i r Wi l l i am J ones sa y s O f the cu rsory o bserv a

t ion s on the llind u s,W h i ch it wou ld req u i re v o lume s to

expand and i l lu s tra te,th i s i s the resu l t

,tha t they had

an immemo r ia l a ffi n i ty w i th the old l’ers ia ns , E th io pia ns

and Egypt ian s,the P hu ‘

n ic ia ns,Greek s , and Tusca n s

the Scy th ians,o r Go th s

,a nd Cel ts

,the Ch inese , Ja pa nese ,

a nd Per u v ians .

”2

T he a u thor o f “ Ind ia in Greece say s “ Al though

the prov ince o f Pela sa or lehar sen t fo rth a bod y o f em i

g ran ts so powerf u l a s to giv e a genera l name to the

great O r ien ta l m ov ement wh ich he l ped to people the

m a i n land and i slands o f Greece , ye t the n umbers f rom

th is prov in ce a l one g i v e no adequa te idea o f the pop a lat i on tha t exchanged the sunny la nd o f Ind ia fo r the

m ore tempera te la ti tudes o f Pe rs ia,A s ia Mi no r

,and

H el l as . T he moun ta i ns o f Ghoorka Del h i,(lude

,Agra

,

L ahore,M u l tan

,Ka slnn ir

,the Ind u s

,a nd the pro

v i nce s O f ltaj pu tana , sen t /b r illlflcir m id i /7mm ] thousa nd s

to f eed lice f iring lit/e l/mlflowed Iowa n /s 11m fa rm’s of

E u rope a n d of As ia . Wi th these wa rl i ke pi lgrim s on

the i r journey to the fa r Wes t— ba nd s a s en terpri s ing a s

the ra ce o f Anglo-Saxons , the d es ce nda n ts , in f act, o f

some o f th ose ve ry Sa ca s o f No rthe rn lnd ia— l ike them ,

too,fi l l ing the sol i tudes

,or fa ci ng the peri l s o f the We s t

,

th ere m arched a f o rc e o f nat i v e wa rr io rs , su ffi cien tly

lS c e the'

l'

heo so plns t fo x M a rt h ls s l, p . I LH .

2 A s ia t i c ltesent c her , VolI , p 120 .

14 8 H I NDU surnmomrr .

power f ul to take possess ion o f the r i ches t o f the soi l

that lay bef ore them .

“ Though un success f u l in the grea t struggle tha tterm inated in the expu l s ion o f them sel ves and the i r rel i

g ions teachers,the i r pra cti sed hard i hood le f t th em

noth ing to f ea r from the desu l tory attack s o f any tr ibes

who m igh t b e bold enough to obstruct the i r ma rch .

” l

H e aga in says T he actua l exten t o f the Pela sgi c

race (w h i ch in f a ct became a synonym f or the genera l

populati on of Ind ia w hen tran splanted to Eu rope and

Asia ) , f a r exceeded the idea of N eib uhr. So v a st werethe i r settlemen ts

,and so fi rmly

-roo ted we re the v ery

names o f k ingdom s,the nomenclatu re o f tri bes

,that I

do no t scru ple to a ssert that the su ccess iv e maps o f Spa in ,

I ta ly,Greece

,As ia Minor

,Pers ia

,and Ind ia

,may b e read

l ike the cha rt o f an em igran t.” 2

1 Ind ia in G reece, pp . 29 and 3 0 .

2Z

lntlia in G reece , p . 3 2 .

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150 11mm: s c rmuom '

rr .

been qu i te a d i ff eren t place f rom the Ho l y land o f S i am .

liv the p ictor ia l h ieroglyph i c in scr ip tion fou nd (andin terp re ted ) on the walls o f the temple o f the Queen

H a slito p at D er-el-babri,w e see that th i s P unt can b e no

o ther than Ind ia . For many ages the Egy p tian s trad ed

w ith thei r old homes , an d the ref eren ce h ere m ade by

them to the names o f the Princes of P un t and its f au na

and flora,e speci a l ly the nomenclatu re o f v a riou s prec ious

wood s to b e f oun d b u t in Ind ia,leav e u s sca rcely room

f or the smal lest doubt that the old c i v i l i za tion o f Egypt1

i s the d i rect ou tcome o f that of the older Ind ia .

”

’

\I r. P oeocke sav s : “ A t the mou th s o f the Ind u s

dwel l a sea far ing people,a c tive

,ingen i ou s

,and enter

pr i s ing a s w hen , ages subsequent to th i s great mov e

m ent,th ey them se lv es , w ith the w a rl ike den i zen s o f the

P un jab,were d r i ven f rom the i r na tiv e land to seek

the f ar d i stan t cl imes o f Greece . T he comm ercia l people

dwel l ing a long the coast that stretches f rom the m ou th

o f the Indu s to the Coree , are embark ing on tha t em i

grat ie n w hose magn ificen t resu lts to c iv i l i za tion , and

whose gigan ti c m onum ents o f art,fillthe m in d w ith

m ingled emoti on s o f adm i ration and awe . The se people

coa st a l ong the shores o f Meh ran ,tra v erse the mou th

o f the Pers ian Gu l f,and ag a i n adhering to the sea -boa rd

o f O man,H ad ram au t

,and Y eman (the Eas tern Arabia ) ,

the v s ai l u p the Ited S ea ; and aga in a s cend ing the

m igh ty s tream that f e rtili se s a land o f wonders , f o u nd

the k i ngdoms o f Egyp t, Nubia,and Aby ss in ia . These

a re the same stock th a t,cen tu ries sub setp i cn tly to th i s/

co lo n i za tion ,spread the bl ess ings o f c i v i l i za ti on over

Ilella s a nd her islal1tls .

”

1 S ee the Theosoph ist for M a rc h 186 1 , -’ I ud 1a 111 0 10 0 0 9 , I‘. 4 33

H I N D U C O LO X IZA'

I’

I O N .

l’ oco c ke th us smnma risc s h is re sea rc he s

I wo u ld now briefly reca pi tu la te the lea di ng e v ide nc e-io f the co lo n i za tio n o f A f ri ca f rom No rth -we s te rn Ind iaa nd the H ima la y a pro v in c es . l

'

z

’

z sl,f rom the pro v i nces

.o r r i ve rs d e ri v i ng the i r name s f rom the grea t r i vers o f

I nd ia seco ndly , f rom the towns a nd pro v inces o f Ind iao r its no rthern f ro n tie rs ; {b ird /y , f rom the llnlingCh ie f s s tyled llama s (llam eses ) . eke ; fla i r /lily , s im i la

r i ty in the obj ec ts o f sepu l tu re ; a rch i tectu ra ls k ill and its gra nd and giga n ti c cha ra c ter ; a nd s ir /lily ,

the power o f tran sla ting wo rd s , imagined to b e Egyp tia n,

through the med i um o f a mod i fied Sansk ri t.

Mr . I’ococke then proceed s to s ubjoin “the opi n ions

o f men o f sound j udgmen t in connec ti on wi th the ln

d ian co lon i zat i on o f l -pt .

”

T he name Nile wa s gi ven to the grea t ri v er o f

Egypt b y the Ind ian s ettlers there . For a b ou t 10 m i les

below the Attoc‘k ,"

says a cr i ti c ,"

the Ind us h as a cla m

.deep and rap id cu rren t , b ut fo r abo v e a h und red m i les

f urthe r down to Ka labagh it becomes an enormo u s

torren t. T he wa te r here ha s a da rk lead co lo ur, a nd hence

the name Nilab o r line r i v er gi v en a s we l l to the Ind us

a s to a town on its bank s , abo ut 12 m i le s be low A ttock .

"

A s A boa s in (a class i ca l name for the Ind u s ) ga v e its

nam e to Ab u s in ia (Aby s s in ia ) in A f ri ca . so here we now

ob serv e the Nila b (the bl ue wa te r ) bestow ing a n appc

lati on on the f a r famed “Nile" o f Egypt . Th i s is one o f

tho se fa cts wh i ch prov e the co lon i za t ion o f Egypt toh a ve taken place f rom the coa s t o f Sc inde .

1 Ind ia in G reece , p . 20 1.

152 H IN D U surmnonrrr .

Apart f rom h i stori ca l ev idence there are ethnologi

calgrounds to support the fact that the anc ient Egyptians

w ere origina l ly an Ind ian people . Pro fessor H eeren i s

a ston i shed a t the “ phys i ca l s im i lar i ty in colou r and in

the con forma t ion o f the head ”of the an c ien t Egyptians

and the H indu s . As regard s the latter point , he adds

A s to the f orm of the head,I hav e now bef ore me the

skul l s o f a mummy and a nativ e of Bengalf rom the

col lection s of M . Blumenba ch ; an d i t i s imposs ible to

conce iv e a nyth ing more str ik ing than the‘ resemblan ce

between the two,bo th a s respects the genera l f orm and

the structure o f the firm portion s. Indeed the learned

possessor h im sel f con s i ders them to b e the most a l ike o f

a ny in h i s numerou s col lec tion s .” l

A f ter show ing the sti l l more stri k ing s im i lar i ty

between the manners and cu s tom s,in f act

,between the

w hole, soc ia l , rel ig iou s and pol i ti ca l in st itut ion s o f the

two peoples , P ro fessor Heeren says : “ I t i s per fectlyagreeable to H ind u m anners tha t colon ies f rom Ind ia

,

lan ian fam i l ie s sh ou ld h av e pa s sed ov er in to A f r i ca,and

carried w ith them the i r indu stry,and perhaps a l so the ir

rel ig ious worsh i p . H e adds “ I t i s h a rd ly poss ible toma inta in the oppos ite s i de o f the question

,v i: tha t the

H indu s were der i v ed f rom the Egyptian s,for it ha s been

a l ready a sce rta ined that the coun try b ordering on the

Gange s wa s the cradle o f Hindu c iv i l i za tion . N ow,the

E g y ptians cou ld no t hav e establ i shed themselv es in tha tn e i gh bo urhood , the i r probable se ttlem en t wou ld ra ther

h av e taken pla ce o n the Coa st o f M alaba r .

lllt 'ele lli s A s i a t i c N a t io ns,VolI I

, l" 3 0 3 .

lle e ren’

s H is tori ca l R es earches,Vol. I I , p . 3 f) .

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154 H I NDU sm ncmomr r .

and H indus tan were possessed or colon i sed by the sameex traord inary race .

” l

P h ilostra tu s in trodu ces the Brahman I archu s by stat

ing to h i s a ud i tor that the E th iopian s were orig ina l l y an

I n d ia n ra ce compelled to leav e Ind ia f or the impur i ty

contracted b y slay ing a certa in monarch to w hom they

owed a l legia nce .

”2

Eu seb iu s states tha t the. E th iopian s em igrating f romthe R i v er Ind us settled in the v i c in i ty o f Egypt .

"

I n P h ilostratu s , an Egyptian i s made to remark th at

he had hea rd f rom his f a ther that th e Ind ian s w ere the

w i sest o f men,and that the E th iopian s

,a colony o f the

Ind ian s,preserved the w i sdom and u sage o f their f ore

f athers and acknow ledged the i r an cien t origin . we f in d

the same a sserti on made a t a later per i od,in the th i rd

century , by J ulius'

A f ricanu s,f rom w hom it ha s been

preserved by Eu seb iu s and Syn cel lu s . 4

Cu v ier,qu oting S yn cellu s , ev en a ss ign s the re ign o f

Am enoph i s a s the epoch of the colon i z at i on of E th iopiafrom Ind ia .

—7

T he anc ien t Abyss in ian s (Ab ns in ian s), a s a l read y

remarked,w ere or iginal ly m igra tors to A f ri ca f rom the

bank s o f Ab u is in,a cla ss i ca l name for the Indu s . “

As w i l l a ppea r f rom the accounts o f the commercia l

po si ti on of Ind ia in the anc ien t worl d,commerce on an

ex tens i ve sca le ex i sted be tween an cient Ind ia and A bys

s in ia,and we f i nd H ind u s in la rge n umbers settled in the

lA s ia tic R ese a rche s . Vol. I , p . 4 2 0 .

53 V . A . I ll, 15. S ec lnd ia in G reece,p . 23 00 ,

3 Le mp,Ba r k e rs ’ e di tio n Melee .

”

p . 20 5 .

5 l’ . 19 o f h is lliscoul’s,

"llee ren’

s H is tor i ca l R esea rc hes,Vol. l l , p . 2110 .

7 ?4 S e e Ind ia in G re ece .

m xou CO LON I ZAT ION . 155

la tte r co untry,

whence a lso,says Colonel T od

,

“the

H ind u nam es o f towns a t the e s tua r ie s o f the Gambia and

Senega l r i vers,the T a inb a CU lKl‘la nd a no ther Gunda s .

H e con tinues A w r i ter in the Asia tic J ournal(Vol.I V

,p . 3 23 5 ) gi v es a cu r i ou s l i s t o f the name s o f pla ces

in the i n teri or o f A f ri ca,mentioned in Pa rk ’s Second

J ou rney , w h ich a re shown to b e allSa nsk ri t,

a nd

most o f them a ctua l ly cu rrent in Ind ia at the present3 1 ]

d ay .

‘ S ee Te d' s R a jasthan , Vol. ll, p . 3 09 , footnote .

156 H I N D U surnmomr r .

I I— PER S IA .

N ot va in ly d id the early Pers ian m a k e1113 a l ta r the h igh pla ces , and the pea k

O f ea rth— o’

erga z ing mounta ins,and thus ta k e

A fi t and unn alled tem p le , the re to see kT he sp i r i t , in who se honour sh r i nes a re wea k ,U p rea red of hum an hand s .

C icelrle H a rold .

MR . P O C O CKE says : “ I hav e glan ced at the In d ian

settlements in Egyp t, wh ich w i l l aga in b e n oti ced,an d

I w i l l n ew resume my observati on s f rom the l of ty f ron

t ier,wh i c h i s the tr ue bou ndary o f the Eu ropean and

Ind ian races . T he P ara soos,the people o f P arasoo R am

,

those warr iors o f the Ax e,ha ve penetrated in to and

gi v en a nam e to Pers ia they are the people o f Bha rata

and to the pr inci pa l stream that pou rs its waters i nto the

Persian Gu l f they hav e g iv en the name of E u-Bha ra t-es

(Euphra t-es ) , the Bharat Ch ief .” l

Pro fessor Max Mu l ler ’s test imony i s deci s iv e on the

poi n t. D i scu ss ing the word A rya,

’

he says But it

w a s more f a ith f u l ly preserv ed by the Zoroa str ian s,who

m i grated f rom Ind ia to the North -west a nd whose rel i

gion ha s been preserved to u s in the Z ind Av e s ta,

though in f ragmen ts on ly .

” 2 H e aga in says : “ T he

Zora s trians w e re a co l ony f rom Northern lnd ia .

Pro fessor Heeren says “ I n poin t o f fa c t the Z in d

i s d e r i ved f rom the S an skri t,and a pa s sage in Mann

llnd ia in G reece , p .Q S c ience o f La nguage , p . 2 12 .

3 S c ience of L anguage , p .

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158 H IND U S UPE R I O R ITY .

porti on s o f the Z in d-Av esta (see the Gathas ) , there

a re suffi c ien t traces to b e d i scov ered that the Zoroastr ian

re l ig ion arose ou t of a v ita l struggle aga in st a f orm

w h i ch the Brahm in i ca l rel igi on had a ssumed at a

certa in early per i od .

” 1 A f ter con tra sting the n am es

o f the Hindu Gods an d the Zoroa str ian de it ies , Prof essor

H ang say s :“ These f a cts th row som e l ight u pon the

age in w h ich that great re l igiou s struggle took place,

the con sequ ence o f wh i ch wa s the en tire sepa ra tion ofthe Ancien t I ra n ia n s f rom the B ra hma ns a nd the

f ounda tion o f the Zoroa strian rel ig ion . I t m u st hav e

occu rred at the t ime when Indra wa s the ch ief god

of the Brahman s .2

I t i s not an ea sy m atter to ascerta in the exact per iod

a t wh ich the H in du colon i zation of Pers ia took pla ce . I t

i s certa in,howev er

,tha t it took pla ce long before the

Mahabharata . Colonel Tod says U j am eda,by h i s w i f e

,

Nila,had fiv e son s

,Who spread the ir bran ches on both

s ides o f the Indu s . Regard ing th ree the Pu rana s are

s i len t, wh i ch im pl ies the i r m igration to di stant region s .I s it poss ible they m ight b e the or igin o f the Medes ?

These Medes are descendan ts o f Yaya t, third son of the

p a tria rch, Menu an d Ma rita l, f ounder o f the Medes,wa s

o f J aphet’

s l ine . A ja Mede,the patronym i c o f the

branch of Baj aswa , i s f rom Aja‘a goat.

’

T he Assyr ian

Mede in Scr iptu re i s typ ified by the goat.lH aug

’

s E ssay s on the Parsees,p . 287 .

Q H ang’

s E s say s on the P arsees,p . 288 .

O f g reat import an ce for show ing the or ig ina l ly—c lose relat ionsh i pbetw een the B rahm in i ca l and Pa rs i rel ig ions , is the f act th at severa l ofthe I nd ia n god s a re ac tua l ly ment ioned by name in the Z ind Avesta , somea s d em ons o thers as angel s .

-H rmg’

s E ssays, p . 272 .

3 T od s R a j asthan,Vol. I , p . 4 1.

H INDU co t om z a r i ox .

Apa rt f rom the pa ssag e in Mau u,

‘ descr ib ing the

origin o f the anc ient Pers ians,there i s another a rgumen t

to support i t. Zoroa ster,the Prophet o f the An cient

Pe rs ian s , was born a f ter the em i g ra n ts f rom Ind ia had

settled in Pers ia , long eno ug h to ha v e become a sepa ra tena ti on . Vya sa hel d a gra nd rel i giou s CliS C LlS SlO ll w i thZoroa ster a t Ba lkh in T u rk i stan

,and was therefore h i s

contempora ry . Zan thu s of Lyd ia (BC . 4 70 3,the carl i

est G reek w r iter , who men ti on s Zoroaster,says that he

l iv ed abou t s i x h undred years be fore the T rojan Wa r

(wh i ch took pl ace about 1800 A r i s totle a nd

Eudox u s place h i s era a s m u c h as s i x thou san d years

bef ore Plato,others fi v e thou san d yea r s bef ore the

T rojan War (see Pl iny H i stor ia Na tura l i s,XXX

,1

Berosos,the Babylon ian h i stor ian m akes h im a king o f

the Babylon ian s and the f o under o f a dyna s ty w h ich

reigned ov er Babylon between “

2200 and BC .

2000. I t i s,howev er , clea r that the H indu colon i za

t i on of Pers ia took place an ter i or to the Great War .

I n the fi rst chapter (Farga rd ) o f the partwh i ch bears

the name Vend idad o f the i r sacred book (wh i ch i s a l so

the i r most an cien t book), H urmu z d or God tel l s Zapctman

(Zoroa ster ) :“ I ha v e gi ven to m an an excel lent and

fertile coun try .Nobody i s able to gi ve such a one .

Th i s land lies to the ea st (o f Pers ia ) , where the sta rs

r i se every ev en ing .

” “ \Vhen Jam shed (the leader o f

the em igrat ing nat ion ) , came f rom the h z'

z/hlamlin the

ea s t to the pla in ,there w ere ne ither domesti c an imal s

nor w i ld,nor m en .

” “ T he coun try a l luded to abov e

f rom w h ich the Pers ian s are sa i d to h av e come can b e

1Manusmriti is adm i tted ly much older than the Mahabha i ata.

160 H INDU snrmaromrr .

n o other than the North-west part o f anc ien t India

A fghan i stan and Ka shm ir—be ing to the ea st of Pers ia,

a s wel l as h ighlan d com pa red to the Pers1an plain s .

” I

Mr. P ococke says : “ T he an c ient map of Pers ia,

Colch i s , and Arm en ia i s ab solu tely f u l l of the most

d i st inct and startl ing ev idences o f In d ian Col on i zation,

and , What i s m ore a ston i sh ing,pra ct i ca l ly ev in ces

,in the

m ost power f u l m anner,the truth o f sev era l m a in poin ts

in the two great Ind ian poem s , the Ramayana and the

Mahabhara ta . T he whole m ap i s pos itiv ely noth ing less

than a jou rnal of em igra t ion on the mos t

scale ”?

1Theogony of the H indus .

2 Ind ia in G reece , 4 7 .

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162 H IN DU su-P E nI oarr Y .

IV.— GRE E CE .

T he m oun ta in loo k s on M arathonA nd Marathon loo k s on the sea ;

fi nd m u s i ng th ere an hou r a lone,

I d ream ’

d that G reece m igh t s t i l l b e f ree .

B Y R O N J ua n :

T H E Hindu em i gra t ion s to Greece hav e a lready been

m en ti oned . T he su bject i s o f su ch f a scinating interes t

that em inen t scholars and arch aeologi sts ha v e dev otedthe ir t ime and lea rn ing to u nrav e l the mystery connected

w ith the or igin of the race,w hose splend i d ach iev em en ts

in peace an d war yet stan d u nr i v alled in Europe. Colon elT od and Colonel Wi lf ord la id the f ounda ti ons o f a

system of enqu iry in th i s bran ch o f h i stor i ca l research,

on w h i ch Mr . P ococke ha s ra i sed the marvel lou s stru ctu reof Ind ia i n Greece

,wh i ch stands firm and sol id

,d efying

the v i olence and f ury o f the w indy cr i ti c i sm of ignorant

c riti cs an d the ha i l and s leet of certa in w r iters on Ind ian

Arch aeology,blinded b y inv eterate prej ud ices . Mr .P ocoeke

qu otes chapter and v erse in proof o f h i s a ssert ion s,an d

prov e s beyond allshadow of doubt the H indu or ig in

o f the an c ient Greek s .

A f ter descr i bing the Grec ian so c iety du r ing the

Homer i c time s,Mr . P ocoeke says “ T he w hole o f th is

state o f society,c i v i l and m i l itary ,

mu st str i ke ev eryonea s be ing em inen tly A s iati c

,mu ch o f it specifical ly Ind ian .

Su ch it undou b ted ly i s . And I sha l l demon strate that

these e v iden ce s were b ut the a ttendan t tokens o f an Indian

colon i zati on w i th its corresponding rel igi on and language .

I s hal l ex h i b i t dyna st ies d i sappea r ing f rom Western ln

d ia to appea r aga in in Greece : clan s , whose martia l f ame

H I NDU CO LO N I ZAT IO N . 163

i ; sti l l recorded in the fa i th fu l ch ron i cles of North-weste rn Ind ia

,a s the ga l lant band s who fough t u pon the

pla ins o f T roy .

” 1

Bu t,if the ev i dences o f Saxon colon i zati on in th i s

i sland (Great Br i ta in )—I speak in dependen tly o f Anglo

Saxon h i story—a re s trong both f rom language and pol i ti ca l

i nstituti on s , the ev idences a re sti l l more deci s iv e in the

pa ra l lel ca se o f an Ind ian colon i za tion o f Greece—not

on ly her language,b ut her ph i los ophy

,her rel ig ion

,

her r i vers,her mou nta in s and her tr ibes ; her subtle

tu rn of in tel lect,her pol i ti ca l inst i tu tes

,and abov e allthe

m yster ies o f tha t noble land i rres i s ti bly prove her co

lon iz ation f rom Ind ia .

” 2 T he pr im i ti ve h i s tory o f

Greece ,”

adds the au thor,

i s the prim itiv e h i story of

India .

”

There are cr i ti cs who con cede the der i va t i on of

Greek f rom the San skr it , b ut step short of the n ecessary

in feren ce that the people who spoke the f orm er languagewere the descendants of those who spoke the la tter. O f

su ch , Mr . P ococke a sk s “ Is i t not a ston i sh ing thatreason shou ld so ha lt ha l f-way in its ded ucti on as to a l low

the derivation of the Greek f rom an Ind ian language,a nd

yet deny the persona l i ty o f those who spoke it ; or, inother word s

,deny the settlement o f an Ind ian ra ce in

Greece?”

T he word Greek i tsel f s ign ifies the Ind ian orig in

o f the anc ien t G reeks . T he roya l c i ty o f the Magedh

an ian s or K ings o f Magad ha was ca lled l-taja Gr i ha .

”

“ T he people or clans o f Gr i ha were,accord ing to the

regu lar patronym i c form of the ir language,styled

1 I nd ia in Gleece , p . 12 .

z lnd ia in G i ccce , p . 19 .

3 1nd ia in Gleece , p . 115 .

164 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

Graihka,whence the ord inary der iv at iv e Graihakos

(Gra i kos) Grae cus or Greek .

” 1 Th i s show s tha t the

Greeks were m igra tors f rom Maghada w h ich fact i s s ti l lf u rther s trength ened when we con s ider that the ir prede

cessors in the ir adopted coun try were a l so inhabi tan ts

o f Maghada . These people were P elasgil They were

so-ca l led becau se they em igrated f rom Pela sa,the an cien t

name for th e prov in ce of Behar,in A ryawarta . P ela sgo

i s a der iv at iv e f orm of Pela sa,w hen ce the Greek P ela sgo .

T he theorv i s f u rther strengthen ed when we find thatAsiu s

,one of the early poets of Greece

,m akes h ing

Th i s Ga ia i s n o otherthan the Gaya

,

”the capi ta l c ity of P elaska or Beha r .

f E ub tea was colon i zed by “ E u -b ab ooya s ,”the

P ila sgu s spr ing f rom Ga ia .

’

Bahooias or warr iors par exce l len ce . T he Makedon ians

(Macedon : Magada ) were the inhab itan ts of Maghada ,

the same prov in ce . T he peop le o f Beha r or Maghada ,

it appears m igrated in sev era l tr iba l groups to Greece ; an d

thei r m igration s are m arked by the d i ff eren t names they

gav e to the part or par ts of the i r a dopted coun try . Says

Mr . P ococ ke “ T he Bu d’

has hav e brought w i th them

in to Thessa ly the f ar-f am ed mythologica l b u t equa l ly

h i stor ica l n am e of li la s,

’

the f abu lou s res idence of

Cuv era,the (H indu) god of w ea lth

,an d the f av our ite

haun t o f S i v a , pla ced by th e Hin du s among the H ima

layan mou nta in s,and appl ied to on e of th e lof tiest

peaks ly ing on the north of the Manasa lake .

1 Ind i a in G reece,p . 2 95 .

9 Ind ia in G reece , p . 99 . T he H indu nam e for Heaven was c arr iedby the n i ig rators w ith th em to G reece and thence adopted by the R 0

m ans .K a i las became K ailon for the G ree k s and Cochim for the

R omans .

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166 H I NDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

b e i denti ca l w i th the Greek . H el-eu (the S un-k ing) i ssa id to ha ve lef t h i s k ingdom to A iplus

,h i s eldest son

,

wh i le he sen t for Doru s and Zu thu s to make conqu ests

in f ore ign lands . Haya i s the ti tle of a renowned tr ibeo f R a jput warr iors . T hev were ca l led A sii or Aswa

,

a nd the ir ch ief s,

‘ Aswa-pas ,’

and to use the words of

Conon,as qu oted by B ishop Th i rlwal l , the pa tr imony

of'

Aiolus (the H aiyula s) i s descr ibed a s bounded by the

r iv er Asopu s (Aswa-pas ) an d the E n ipeu s .

” Su ch,th en

,

was the Asopu s,the settlemen t o f the H aya tr i bes

,the

Aswa ch ief s,the sun worsh i ppers

,the ch i ldren of the

S un -k i ng or H elen,whose lan d wa s ca l led in Greek Hel la

dos,in San skr i t

,Hela-d es (H ela

,Hela ; ales

,land ) . O f

A ch i l les,sprung f rom a splend id Ra jpu t s tock

,I sha l l

br iefly speak when dev elop ing the pa ren t geography” 1D olopes .

1 I nd ia in Gleeee , pp . 18 4 3 0 .

H INDU c o I b N I ZAT mN . 16 7

0 h T i ber Fa th e r '

liberT o “ hum the R oman s p i ay .

A R o a ia u'

s l i fe,a Roma n

'

s a rms,

Ta k e the n in cha i e e th i s d a Io .l

Ma r a U L .\Y H or t/ tins .

MR . P ococm: says “ T he grea t heroes o f Ind ia are the

god s o f Greece . They are in fa c t— a s they h a ve beeno f ten ra t i on a l ly a ffi rmed , and a s pla u s i bly b u t not a s

rat iona l ly den ied— d e ified ch ie f s and heroe s ; an d th issame proces s o f de i fi ca tion

,both among Greeks and

Roma n s— (lie d escend a n ts of colon ists from I ndia,con

t inned,specia l l y amongs t the latter people down to and

th roughou t the most h istori ca l per i od s .” 1

T he Rom an s were th e descendan ts o f the Trojan s,

the inhab i tan ts o f that part of A s ia Minor in w h i chH ind u settlemen ts had long been establ i shed . Niebuh rsays : Home i s n ot a Latin n am e .

” Mr . P ococke saysit i s R ama .

”T he San skr i t long “

a” i s repla ced b y

o or“w o f the Greeks

,a s Posei don and

The ir neighbou rs , the Etru scan s,had a sy stem

o f rel ig ion in m an y respects s im i la r to tha t o f the

Hindu s . I t i s remar kable tha t the ir rel ig ion wa s a s

perfec t in ceremon ia l deta i l s a s the rel ig ion o f the

H indu s , 0 1 of the Egyptian s (wh i ch wa s a d it ec t

ou tcome o f H indu i sm . ) Bu t the early E trusca n s,toc ,

w ere a body o f colon i sts f rom India who pen etra ted in toIta ly som e t ime before or about the H ind u colon i zati ono f Greece . O f the Asia ti c tr ibe cal led “ A so r,

”

Count Bj orn stj erna says : " I t seem s to b e the same

tr i be wh i ch came by sea to Etrur ia .

” 3

1 Ind ia in G reece,p . I nd i a in G reece

,p . 166 ,

3 Tl1eogo11y of the H ind c s p . 10 5 .

168 H I NDU S UPE R I O R ITY.

\7 I .—T U ILKI S T AN AND NORTHERN A S IA .

A t length then to the w id e ea i th’

s ex treme bound s ,T o S cyth ia a re We come

,those path less wi lds

Where human footstep never mar k ed the g round .

-f E sC H Y L U S P rometheus.

T un Tu ran ian s extend ing ov er the whole of a kistan

and Cen tra l As ia were or ig ina l ly an In d ian people .

Colonel Tod say s “ Abdu l Ga z i makes Tamak,the son

o f Turc,the T urishka o f the Pu rana s . H i s descendan ts

gav e the ir nam e to T ocharistan or Turk i stan .

” 1 P ro

f esse r Max Mu l ler says : “ T u rv a s and h is descen dan t swho represent T uran ian s 2 are descr i bed in the later epi c

poem s o f In d ia a s cu r sed and d epr i ved o f the i r in h er it

an ce ,

”and h ence the i r m igrat i on .

Colone l T od says “ T he Ja i sa lmer anna l s a ssert

that the Y adu and the Ba l i ca bran che s o f the Indu race

ru led Kora ssan a f ter the Grea t War , the Indo-Scyth i c

races of Grec ian au thors .” Bes ides the Balieas and the

n umerous bran ches o f the In do-Medes,many of the son s

o f Cooru d i spersed ov er these region s amongst w hom

we m ay place O otooru Cooru (Northern Coorus) o f the

P u rana s,the O ttorocurze o f the Greek au thors . 3 0 th

the Indu and the Su rya ra ces were eterna l ly send ingthe ir superfluou s popu lati on to those d istan t region s .

A Moham edan h istor ian 4 says that the coun try o f

Kha tha was first inhabited by a body o f em igran ts f romInd ia .

1 To d’

s Ita j a stha n ,Vol

,I . p 10 25.

2 S c ience of Lang uage , p . 2 4 2 .

3 Tod ’

s I taja sthan ,Vol, I , p . 4 3 4 H isto 1y of C h i na , Vol. I I , p . 10.

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170 H INDU S U PE RIO R ITY.

v al ley were occu pied in the ea rl iest per iods by another

bran ch o f the Y ad u s .

” 1 Colonel Tod aga in says To

the Indu ra ce o f Aswa (the descendan ts of D eom ida and

Baj aswa), spread ov er the coun tries on both si des of the

Indu s,do we owe the d i stin ct i ve appellat i on of Asia .

That the Ba ctr ian s were an Ind ian people has a lreadybeen shown . An d that the Ind ian m igrat ion s exten ded

to S iber ia and the northern-most part of As ia i s ev i den t

f rom the f act that the descendan ts of the Aryan m igrator s

a re sti llf o u n d there .

“ T he Samoyede s and T choud es o f

S iber ia and Fin lan d are rea l ly S amayad us and Jou des o f

Ind ia . T he languages of the two f ormer races a re

sa i d to have a strong a ffin ity and are cla ssed as H indu

German i c by Klaproth , the author of ‘Asia P olyglotta .

Mr . R em u sat traces these tr ibe s to Centra l As ia,w here

the Y ad a s long hel d sway . S ama,Syam is a t itle of

a n3

K r i shna . They were Sama Y ad u s .

lT od’

s R a ja s th an ,Vol, I I , p . 2 3 0.

2 Tod ’s R a jasth an ,

Vol. I , p . 6 3 . E uropa d erived f rom S aru pa ,‘of the beaut i fu l face , ’ the i n i ti a l sy l lable s at and m havmg the same

a o o c

a

lr r

S ignific at ion in both l anguages , z ‘ z z ., good . R upa I S countenance .

—p . o h ) .

3 Tod ’

s R a jasth an ,Vol. I . p . T he race o f J oude is d esc ribed

b y B ab c r a s occupy ing the m ounta inous range, the very spot menti oned

in the a nna l s o f the Y ad us as th e i r place of h a l t on qln tting I nd i a

twel ve centuries botore Ch rist, and thence ca l led Y adu-k i-d ang ,or lnll

H INDU C O LO NI Z AT I O N . 17 1

VI L—GERMAN Y .

T he press’s mag i c letters.Th at bless ing ye b rough t forth ,Beh o ld I it l ies in lettersO n the so i l tha t gave it b i rth .

-CAM I ’B E L L : to the Germa n s .

T H AT the An c ient German s were m igrators f rom Ind iai s prov ed by the f ollow ing pa ssage f rom Mu i r : “ I t

ha s been remarked by v ar iou s au thors (as Kuhn

and Ze i tsch r i f t,I V. 94 If ) tha t in ana logy w ith

Man n or Man u s a s the f a ther o f mank ind or o f the

Arya s,German mythology recogn i ses Manu s as the

ancestor of Teu ton s .” T he Engl ish ‘man

’

and the

German‘mann appear a l so to b e ak in to the word manu

,

’

and the German‘men sch ’ presents a close resemblance to

‘manu sh’

o f San sk r i t .” l

T he firs t hab i t o f the Germans,says Ta c itu s

,on

r i s ing was ablu tion,wh ich Colonel T od th inks m u st

hav e been of Eastern orig in and not o f the cold cl ima te

of Germ any,

as a l so “the loose flowing robe

,the long

and bra i ded ha i r t ied in a knot at the top o f the head

so emblemat i c o f the Brahm ins .”

T he German s are the Brahman s or Sha rm a s o f

In d ia . Sha rma became Jarm a and Jarma becam e J erman .

For in San skr i t sh and j and a are conv er ti ble in to one

another,a s Arya

,Arjya and A rshya (sec Max Mu l ler ’ s

tig Veda . ) Csoma-D e-Cora s in the P reface to h i s

lM a nn ing'

s Anc ient and Med iaz valInd ia . Vol. I , p . 118 .

2 Tod ’

s R ajasth an,Vol. I , pp . (B and 80 .

172 H I NDU surnmonn r .

T ibetan D i ct ionary,says “ T he H ungar ian s w i llfind a

f und o f in formation f rom the s tu dy o f San skr it re spect

ing the i r or ig in ,m anners

,custom s and language .

”

T he Saxon s are no other th an the son s of the Sacas,

who l iv ed on the North-western f rontier o f Aryawarta

w hence they m igrated to Germ any . T he n am e Saxon

i s a compoun d of Saca (Saka s) and sanu (deseendan ts). They were so-called becau se they were deseendan ts o f the Saka s . The ir name f or Heav en i s the same

a s that o f the Ind ian s . A cr i ti c say s :“ I t is f rom the

H imalaya Moun ta in s of th e Saca s that the‘ S ac-soon s

those son s o f the Saca s (Sax on s or S acsons , f or the words

are at on ce San skr it Saxon an d Engl i sh ) der i v ed the i r

H imme l or H eav en .

Colon el T od says “ I hav e of ten been stru ck w i th

a chara cter i sti c ana logy in the scu lptu res of the m ost

an cien t S ax én ca thedra l s in England,and on the con

tinen t to Kan aya and the Gop i s . Both m ay b e intended

to represen t d iv ine harmony . D id the A s i a nd J im ofS ca nd ina via , the an cestors o f the Saxon s

,bring them

f rom Asia

1 Tod ’

s R a jasthan , Volume I , (People’

s E d i t ion) , p . 570.

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171 H INDU S UP E R IO R ITY .

T he pr inc iple on wh ich the sev en days o f th e week

a re named in Ind ia i s the sam e on wh ich it has been

done in Scand inav ia

(1) S unday i s ca l led by the H indu s Adama ram,

a f ter Add /ft, th e sun,a f ter wh ich a l so the Scand inav ian s

ca l l the d ay S unday .

(2 ) Monday i s cal led by the H indu s S oma wa ram,

f rom S oni a , the moon . Among the Scand ina v ian s it i s

ca l led Monday.

(3 ) T uesd ay i s ca l led Ma nyalu'

a ram in India a f ter

the H in d u hero,Mangla I t bears the name T isrlay

amongst th e Scand inav ian s , a f ter the i r hero , T h is .

(4 ) IVednesa’ay i s term ed B oudba wa ram by the

H indu s a f ter Boudlza ; by the Scand inav ian s , it i s deno

m inated a f ter Oden (Wodan ,Bodham

,Bu dha) , O nsclay.

(5 ) Thu rsday i s ca l led B ra b aspa tz'

wa ram by theH indu s

,a f ter B ra hsp a tz

’

,or B rahm a

,thei r prin c ipa l god ;

I t bears the nam e T borsday amongst the Scand inav ian s,

a f ter the i r pr in cipa l god , T hor .

(6) Fr iday i s ca l led by the H indu s S ucrawa ram

a f ter S uera , the goddess of beau ty ; it i s named by theScan d inav ian s a f ter F reja , the goddess of beau ty

,

(7 ) S a turday i s ca l led S a niu'

a ram by the H in du s

a f ter S a n z'

se/za r,the god who clean ses sp ir itual ly it i s

n amed L ord ay by the Scand ina v ian s f rom layer , bath ing .

“Te hav e here

,says Coun t Bjornstj erna , h im self

a Scan d inav ian gentleman,

“another proof that the

Myth s of the S can dinav ian s a re der iv ed f rom those o f

the Hin du s .”-

1

1 1‘

heogony of the H indus,p . 169 .

H INDU C O LO N IZAT ION .

T H E HY P E R BO R CANS .

Ila il, M oun ta i n o f d e l igh tPa la ce o f g lory , blessed by (ilo ry

'

s K i ng I\Vith p ros pe r i ng sh ad e embmw r me

,wh i le I s ing

T hy wond e rs , ye t u nreach’

d b y mo rta l flightS ky-p ie rc ing mounta i n lll thy bowers of lo veN o tea rs a re seen

, save where med i c ina l s ta l k sd rop s ba ls am i c o

'

er the s ilxe i ed wa l k s .

"

a x T O I N D R A S H ' IV. J ones’

tra nsla tion .

T II E Hyperborean s (who f ormerly occupied the Northern-most parts o f Europe and Asia ) were the Khyber ,p urian s , or the inhab i tan ts of K hyb erpnr and its d i str i ct.A n other Khyber settlemen t w i l l b e seen in Thes sa l yon the Ea stern branch of Phoen ix r i ver . I ts name

is tolerably wel l-preserv ed a s Khyphara and Khy phera .

1

Mr . P ococke says : “ Wh i le the sacred tr ibe of

Dodo,or the Dadan

,f i xed the ir oracle towa r d s the north

e rly l ine o f the H ellopes , in Thessa l y,the immed ia te

n e ighbours o f the Hyperborean s took up the i r abode tow ard s the south o f the holy m oun ta in of To-Maros

,or

Soo-Meroo . These were the P a shwaran,or the em igrants

f rom Peshawar , who a ppea r in the Greek gu i se of P a s

saron . We now read ily see the connection between the

settlemen ts o f the Dodan (Dodon ian Oracle ) , P as saron

(Peshawar people) , and the off er ings o f the Hyperborean s ,or the m en o f Khyb erpu r, who reta ined th i s appel lat ion wherev er they subsequ ently settlec .

3 7 2

1 Ind ia in G reece,p . 129 .

Q I nd ia in G reece , p . 12 4 .

176 H I NDU S UPE R I O R ITY .

GREAT B R ITA IN.

Whether th is port ion o f the world were rent

By the rud e O cean,f rom the Con t inent ,

O r th us c reated it was su re d es ign’

d

T o b e the sacred refuge of m an k i nd .

”

“TA L L E R : T o the P rotector .

T H E Dru id s in an c ient B r ita in were Buddh i sti c Bra h

man s ; they adopted the m etempsychos i s,the pre

ex i stence o f the soul,and its return to the rea lm s o f

u n i versa l spa ce . They had a d iv ine tr iad,con s i sting o f

a C rea tor,Preser ver

,and Destroyer

,a s w ith the

B uddh i sts . T he D ru i d s con stituted a S acredotalO rder

wh i ch reserv ed to i tself a ione the interpretat ion o f the

myster i es of rel igi on .

“ T he b an of the D ru id s was equal ly terr ible w ith

that of the Brahman s ev en the k ing aga in st w hom it

w as f u lm inated ‘ f el l,

’

to u se the express ion o f the

D ru i ds,

‘ l ike gra ss before the scythe .

Mr . P ococke says : “ I t wa s the Macedon ian hero who

i nv aded and v anqu i shed the lan d o f h is f orefa thers

u n w i tt ingly . I t was a Napier who,lead ing on the sma l l

b u t m igh ty a rmy o f Br i ta in,drov e in to headlong fl igh t

the hosts o f those warl ike clan s f rom u‘hose pa ren t sloeh:

himself a nd not a f ew of his troop s were the d irect d e

seenda n ts .

” 2

i\1r. P ococke a l so says : “ T he S cotch clan s,the i r

orig inal loca l i ties an d th e ir ch ief s in A fghan i stan and

Scotland,are subjects o f the deepest in terest. H ow

l i ttle d i d the Scotch offi cers who peri shed in the A fgh an

1'

1'

heogony o f the H i nd us,p . 10 4 .

-’ I nd ra in G reece , p 8 6 .

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1 78 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

these D ru id s . The ir la st refuge in B r i ta in from the op

press ion of the Rom an s wa s ‘the I sle o f Sa in ts ’ or ‘Mona ’

(m ore proper ly Meon i,

’ San sk r i t f or a holy sage ) .

D ru ids were the bard s of the ancren t Rajpu ts .

”

H ark !’

twas the v o i ce o f h arps th at poured a longT he hol low v a le the floa t ing t id e of song ;

I see the g l itteri ng tra i n ,in long a rray ,

G leam th rough the sh ad es , an d snowy splendou rs play ;I see them now u ith m easured steps and s low ,

’

M id a rch i ng groves the wh i te-robed sages go .

T he oa k en w reath w i th bra id ed f i l let d ressT he c rescent beam ing on the ho ly breas tT he s i l ver h a i r wh i ch waves above the lyre ,A ri d sh roud s the str ings , p roc la im the D ru id ’

s qu i re .

They h a lt and allis h ushed .

That th e H ind us l ived in B r i ta in in an c ien t t imes

is clear f rom the f act tha t a ch ief o f the tw iceb orn was

once brought f rom Saka-dwipa (Br i ta in ) to Ind ia by

V i s hn u ’s eagle .

1

For f u rther in formati on regard ing the Hind u colon iz a tion o f Great B r ita in see Godf rey H iggin s ’ “ Cel ti c

D ru i d s” , w here in it has been p rov ed that the Dru i d s werethe pr iests o f the H indu colon i st s who em igra ted f romInd ia an d settled in Br i ta in .

lC oleb i 'ook e’

s M isce l laneous E ssays , Vol. I I,p . 179 ,

Trans lat iono f .I atin i z

'

rla. T he lea rned P retet says :“ I here te rm i na te t h i s p a ra l le l

o f the C e l t i c id iom s w ith the S an s k r it. I d o not bel ieve th at a f ter th ism a r k ed ser ies of ana log ies , a ser ies wh i ch embraces the ent i re o rga n i z at io ri o f the i r tongues , th at th e i r rad i ca l a ff in i ty can b e contested

“ T he C e l t i c 1 11 i , e e s ta bl ish ed in E urope f rom the m ost anc ient t im es

m ust h a ve been the. fi rs t to a rr i ve th ere. T he d ec i s ive an alog ies wh ic hth ese la ng uage s st i l l p resent to the S an s k rit ca rry us bac k to the most

7 7a nc ient pe r iod to wh i ch we c a n a tta i n by Compa ra t i ve P h i lo logy ,

L ettre :'

r M . lI u rrrb oldt' . J ou rn a l A s ia ti que p . 4 5 5 .

H IND U CO LO N I ZAT IO N . 179

EASTERN AS IA .

But,O h “ hat penc i l o f a l i v i ng star

Could pa i n t th a t go rg eous c a r,

I n wh ich a s in an a rk sup reme ly bright,T he Lord o f bound less l igh tA scend ing calm o

’

er the E n ipyreun i sa i lsA nd w i th ten thousand beams his bea u ty v e i ls .

—H YM N T O S U R Y A T ra nsla ted by S . lV.

ea s tward wav e of H in du em igrati on cov eredthe whole of Ea stern Asia

,compr i s ing the T ran sgan

get i c Pen in su la , Ch ina , Japan ,the i sles o f the Ind ian

Arch ipelago,Au stra l ia , and broke u pon the shores o f

Amer i ca .

T he m anners and in sti tuti on s of the inhab i tan ts o f

the T ra ii sgangetie Pen in su la bea r so strong an aflin itv

to those o f the H indu s that one cannot res i st the i dea

o f the i r hav ing been a H ind u ra ce a t som e d i stan t

peri od . T he f undam en ta l pr in c i ples w h i ch underl ie

the ir pol ity,mann ers

,mora l ity and rel ig ion a re the same

a s those o f the H indu s . I n f act,it m ay b e taken for

gran ted tha t the T ransgangetic Pen in su la was b ut a part

an d pa rce l o f Ind ia so f a r a s soc iety,re l ig ion and pol i ty

were concern ed . There was no genera l change in Ind iab u t wa s a l so wrough t there . T he propaga ti on o f Bud

d h ism wa s not con fined to Ind ia ; the people o f the

T ran sgangetic Pen in sula took the i r sha re in it.

T il l recen tly the Pen in su la was swayed wholly by

Ind ian though t, b ut by and by a second power w a s f el t

to a ssert i tsel f . Ch ina accepted the rel ig ion o f the Great

B uddha. T hen cef orwa rd i t became a r iva l power w ith

180 H INDU sur E ni onrrY .

Ind ia in the eyes o f the in hab itan ts of the Pen insu la .

T he Arva s soon rev erted to the i r an c ient f a i th,or rather

to a m od ified f orm of the an c ient f a ith , b u t on the people

o f the Pen in su la the gra sp o f the ref ormed f a ith wa s too

firm to b e so ea s i ly shaken off,an d hence the s ilv e r card

of f r ien d s h ip that t ied the two together was snapped .

T he inhab itan ts of the T lansgangetic Pen in su la then cef orwa rd began to look up to the Celestial s rathe rthan to the H indu s f or en l ightenm en t and in structi on .

But as the i r pol i ti ca l and soc ia l in stitu ti on s had a H in du

ca st,a tota l overth row o f Hind u i sm in con sequence o f

th i s cleav age wa s im poss ible . The i r c iv i l i za t i on theref ore reta ined its Hindu ba s i s .

I t is a wel l-kn own f act that the Pa rdah system was

unknown in an c ient Ind ia and tha t it cam e in the tra ino f the Mohamedan inv aders . T he presen t po s i tion o f

the Bu rmese women in the socia l and domesti c l i f e of

Bu rmah,supports the theory that the Ce les tialinfluen ce

ov er the coun tr ies between the Brahmaputra and the

Pa c ific was too strong and deep to a l low the people

there to f ollow the Hindu s in the i r revolut ionary socia l

changes that were unhapp i ly f orced upon them by the

wa ve of a less c iv i l i zed b ut a m ore determ ined f ore ign

aggres sion .

“ T he B urman s,we are told by Symes , cal l the i r

Code general ly,D harma sath or Sa stra it i s one among

the many comm en ta r ies o n Mann . Mr. Syme speaks inglow ing term s o f the Code .

” 1

Mi . “Tillson says T he c iv i l i zation o f the Bu rmese

and the Tibetan s i s der iv ed f rom Ind ia .

”

lS ee S yni e'

s E mbassy to A va , p .

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182 H I NDU sur inn omr r .

T he rel ig ion and cu lture o f Ch ina a re u ndou b tedly

o f H indu or ig in . Coun t Bj ornstj erna sav s“What may

b e sa id w i th certa in ty i s that the rel ig ion of Ch ina came

f rom Ind ia .

That an cient Ind ia had con stan t in tercou rse w ith

Ch ina no on e can deny . Ch ina 1 and Ch inese produ c ts

are con stantly m ent i oned in the sacred a s w el l a s the

prof ane li teratu re of the t ime . Ch inese au thors , too ,a ccord ing to Elph instone

,note Ind ian amba ssadors

to the cou rt of Ch ina . Prof essor Heeren says that “the

name Ch ina i s of H i ndu or igin and cam e to u s f romIndia . S ee a l so Vincen t

,Vol. I I

, pp . 574 , T he

word S in z'

m occurs in the B i ble,Isa iah XliX . 12 .

T he wav e of Ind ian m igra tion be fore break ing on

the sh ores of. Am eri ca su bmerged the i slands (if the

Ind ian Arch ipelago . Colone l Tod says T he i sles o fthe Arch ipelago w ere colonized by the Su rya s (Su ry ‘

Van sa,Ksh triya s ) whose mythologica l and hero ic h i s

tory i s sculptu red in the i r edifices an d m a inta ined in

the ir w r itings .“

Mr . Elph in stone says : “ T he h i stor ies o f Ja v a giv e

a d i s tin ct a ccoun t o f a n umerou s body o f H in du s f rom

Ka l inga who landed on the i r i s land . c iv i l i zed the inhab i

lR am aya na m ent ions Ch inese s i l k s a nd othe i m anufac tu res .

2M . d e Gu igues say s th at Magadha wa s k nown to the Ch inese by thename filo-limo, a nd its c ap ita l wa s recogn ised by both its H i nd u n am es

,

A'

usumpm a,for wh ich the Ch inese wrote X 1a—so-mo-p on-Zu and P a talzp u ti u ,

out of wh ich they m ad e P uloIi-tse by translating p utra , wh ich m eans son

in S ansk i it, i nto th e i r own CO I‘

I‘

GS pO lld ing word ,Lea — J ournalof the R oyal

A s ia t i c S oc iety, Vol.V . [S uch tran sla t ion o f names has th i own a v ei l o fobscurity over m any a n am e of H ind u or ig i n . H indu geog raphy h asth us su ff ered a great loss] .

3 Tod ’

s R ajasthan , Vol. I I , p , 2 18, footnote.

H INDU COLO NI ZAT I O N . 18 3

tan ts and establ i shed an era s ti l l subs i sting,the fi rst yea r

of wh ich f ellin the se ven ty-f i f th ye ar be fore Ch r is t,” 1

“ The colon i zation o f the ea s tern coa st o f J a va

b y Brahma n s i s “a f act wel l establ i shed by S ir S ta in

f ord R a ffles .

” 2

La ter imm igrants f rom Ind ia were ev i dently ludd

h i s ts . Mr. Sewel l says : “ N a ti v e trad i ti on in Ja v arela te s tha t abou t the beginn ing o f the seven th cen tu ry

(00 3 A . D . a ccord in g; to Fergu s son ) a p r ince of Gu j ra tarr i v ed in the i sland w i th f ollowers and settled a t

Ma ta ra in . A l ittle later m ore i in i‘n igran ts a rr i v ed

to support him . H e and h is f o l lowers were Buddh i sts,

and f rom h i s t ime Buddh i sm wa s firm ly establ ished

a s the re l ig ion of Jav a .

”

“ T he Ch inese p i lgr im s who v i s i ted the i s land in the

fou rth century f ound it en ti rely peopled by the Hind us .

” 4

R especting the inhabitan ts of J a v a,Mr . Buckle (

I)

av s :

“ O f all the Asia tic i s landers th i s race i s the mos tattrac tiv e to the imaginati on . Th ey s ti l l adhere to the

0H indu f a ith and worsh i p .

"

D r. C u st says : “ I n the th i rd group we come on cem ore on traces o f the grea t A ryan c i v i l i za tion o f Ind ia ;f or many cen tu r ies ago som e adventu rou s Brahman s fromthe Telegu coa st (or f rom Cam bodia ) con vey ed to Ja va

the i r rel ig ion , the i r sacred books and thei r c iv i l i zati on,

and Jav a becam e the seat o f a great and powerf u l H ind u‘3 As regards Borneo , the la rges t i sland o f thedyna sty

lE lph inst-one’

s H is tory o f Ind ia . p . 168 .

2 H eeren’

s H is tO I iealR esea rches , VolI I,p . 3 0 3

,footnote .

3 A ntiqua i ia n N otes in J a va ,J ou rna l

, R . A . S . ,p . 4 02

4( S ee it A . 8 . J ourna l , Vol. IX . pp . 13 6,3 8 on the H istory o f J ava .

5 Beau t ies , S ubl im i t ies and lI a i monies of N ature,Vol. I .

“L ingu isti c and O i ie ntalE ssa i s .

184 H I NDU S UPE R IO R ITY.

Arch ipelago,another tra v el ler ] observ es that “ in the

v ery inmost recesses o f the m oun ta in s as w ella s ov e rthe f ace o f the coun try , the rema ins o f tem ples an d

pagoda s are to be seen S im i la r to those f ound on the

continen t o f Ind ia hea ring allthe tra its of H indu my

thology ; and that in the coun try o f \Vahoo,at lea st 4 00

m i les f rom the coa st,there are sev era l of very super io r

workman sh i p w i th allthe emblemati c figures so com

mon in H indu places o f worsh i p .

”

S ir S tam ford Ra ffle s wh i le descr i b ing the sma lli s lan d o f Ba l i

,s ituated towards the ea st o f Ja va say s

“ Here, together w i th the Brahm in i ca l re l igion

,13 st i ll

pre serv ed the an c ien t f orm of H ind u m un i c ipalpol ity .

” 2

T he Bugis o f the i slan d o f 0 61665 3 trace ba ck the i r

h i story to the S av ira Ged ing , w hom they represent to

hav e proceeded in imm ediate descent f rom the i r

heav enly m ed iator B a z’

ta ra Gu ru (w h i ch i s d i s tin ctly

a H indu name) , an d to hav e been the f irs t ch ief of any

celebr i ty in Celebes .

A s regard s Sumatra,M . Coleman says M r . Ander

son in h i s a ccount of h i s m i ss ion to the coa st of that i sland

(S um atra ) has , howeve r, stated that he d i scov ered at

Jam b i the rema in s of an an cien t H indu tem ple o f con

s id erable d imen s ion s , and near the spot v ar iou s mu t i la ted

figures,wh ich wou l d appea r to clearly ind icate the former

ex i sten ce o f the worsh ip o f the Vedan t ic ph i losophy .

”3

Au stra l ia was probably deserted soon a f ter its

settlemen t.ji nt that the wav e o f H indu c iv i l i z a t i on and

I S ( C U alton ’

s account o f the U iak s of Bo rneo in the J ourna l o f

the A s i at i c S oc ie ty, Vol, V I I . p . 153 .

Q D cscription o f J ava,Vol. I I

,p . 2 3 6 .

3 Colem a n’

s H ind u Myth ology , p . 3 01 ,

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186 H IND U S UPE R IO R I TY .

AMERICA .

Am eri ca h a l f brother of the wor ldW i th someth ing good a nd b ad of every .land

G reater than thee h ave lost the ir sea t,

G reater sca rce none ca n stand ,

—BA I L E Y Festus .

T H E f act th at a h igh ly-c iv il i zed race inhab ited Am er i ca

long bef ore the m ode rn c i v i l i zat i on o f Eu rope made itsappea ran ce there

,i s qu ite clear f rom the str i k ing rema in s

o f a nc ien t and h igh refinement ex i st ing in the coun try .

Ex ten s i ve rema in s o f c i ties w h ich mu st hav e been on ce in

a most flour i sh ing cond i tion,of s trong and wel l-bu i l t f ort

resses , a s wel l as th e ru in s o f v ery an c ient an d m agn ificen t

bu i ld ings,tanks

,roads and cana l s that meet the eye ov e r

a v ery w ide area o f the sou thern con tinen t of Am er i ca,

i r res i sti bly f orce u s to the conclu s ion tha t the coun trym u st ha ve been inhab ited a t one t im e by a v ery h igh ly

c i v i l i zed n ati on . Bu t when ce d id th i s h igh civ i l i zat ion

spr ing

T he researches of Eu ropean an t i qu a r ian s trace i t to

Ind ia . Mr . Coleman says : Baron Humboldt , the grea t

German trav el ler and sc ien ti st, descr ibes the ex i sten ce

o f H indu rema in s s ti l l f ound in Amer i ca .

” 1

Speak ing of the soc ia l u sages o f the inhab i tan ts o f

Peru,Mr . P ococke says T he Peruv ian s and the i r an

cestors,the Ind ian s , are in th i s point of v iew at on ce seen

to b e the same peO ple ,

” 2 T he arch i tecture o f an c ient

Amer i ca resembles the H indu style o f arch itectu re .

1H i nd u Mythology : p . 3 50 . Ind ia in G reece . p 171 .

H INDU CO LO N I ZAT IO N . 18 7

Mr . Ha rdy says : T he a nc ien t ed ifices o f Chicken in

Centra l Amer ica bea r a str i king resembl an ce to the topes o f

India .

” Mr. Squ i re a l so says T he Buddh i st temples

o f Southern Ind ia,and o f the i s land s o f the Indian

A rch ipelago,a s descr i bed to u s by the lea rned members

o f the Asiat i c Society and the n umerou s w r i ter s on the

rel ig ion and an tiqu i ties o f the H ind u s,correspond w i th

great exactn ess in allthe ir essen t ia l and in many o f the i r

m inor f ea tures w ith those o f Centra l Amer i ca ” 2 D r .

Zerf i'

i remarks : We fi nd the remarkable temple s,for

tresses , v iad ucts , acqued ucts o f the A ryan group .

A sti l l m ore s ign ifican t f a ct p rov es the H induor ig in of the c iv i l i za tion o f an c ient Am er i ca . T he

mythology of an c ient Am er i ca f urn i shes su ffic ien t grou nds

for the i n f eren ce tha t it wa s a ch i ld o f H indu mytholo og .y

T he f ol low ing f acts w i l l elu c idate the matter

(1) Amer i can s worsh ipped Moth er Earth as a

my thologi ca l de ity , as the H indu s sti l l (lo— (Ma r ti m a in

and pri/hv i m am are wel l-known and f am i l ia r ph ra ses

in H in du stan .

(2 ) Footprints of h eroes and de i t ies on rocks and

h il l s were worsh i pped by the Am er i can s a s devou tly

a s they a re done in Ind ia ev en at the p resen t d ay .

Mex i can s a re sa id to ha v e woo sr h iped the f ootp i ints o f

Q uetza l Coatle , as th e Ind ian s worsh i p the footpr ints o f

B ud dha i n Ceylon , and o f Krishna i n Gok111 new Mu tti a .

4

I li astei’n Monachisni .

2 S erpen t S ym bo l .3 A Manua l o f H i stori ca l I _)evclopn ient of A rt .

4 T he Marwa rees o f A jmer worsh i p the footpr ints o f A ia ipal, the

founder of A jmer, on a roc k nea r the c i ty .

188 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY.

(3 ) T he Sola r and Luna r ecl ipses were looked uponin an c ien t Am er i ca in the same ligh t a s in modernInd ia . T he H indu s beat drum s and make n oi se s b ybeat ing tin pots an d other th ings . T he Amer i can s

,too

,

ra i se a f r ightf u l h ow l and soun d mu s ica l in strum ents .T he Ca reoles (Amer ica ns) think tha t the demon M aleog/o ,the ha ter of light, swallows the moon a nd the sun in the

same way a s the H ind us thin /e tha t the d emons Baht?a nd

Ke'

tzi devour the sun a nd the moon .

(4 ) T he pr iests w ere represen ted in Amer i ca w i th

serpen ts round the ir heads,a s S iva

,Kali and other s a re

represen ted by the H indu s .

(5) T he M ex ican s worsh ipped the f igu re m ade o f

the trunk of a m an w ith the head o f an elephan t. T he

H indu s,as i s too wel l-kn ow n

,st i l l worsh i p th i s de ity

u nder the name o f Ga nesh. Ba ron Hum boldt thu s

remarks on the Mex ican de ity :“ I t presents some

remarkable and apparently not a cciden talresemblan ce

w i th the H in du Ga nesh .

”

(6) T he legen d o f the D eluge,

1as bel iev ed in by

the H in du s,wa s a l so prev a lent in Am er i ca .

(7 ) T he Am er i can s bel iev ed that the sun stood

sti l l at the w ord o f on e of the i r sa in ts . I n Ind ia,it i s

sa id tha t th e cr ies o f Arjuna at the death of K r i shnacau sed the sun to stand sti l l .

(8) T he torto i se myth is common to India and

Amer i ca . Mr. Tylor says T he str ik ing ana logy

b etween the tortoi se myth o f North Am er i ca and Indiai s by no mean s a matter o f n ew observa tion it wa s iii

1 Brahma caused the d e luge wh e n on ly one p ious m an named

S a i yav ra i a . and his f am i ly and some an imals were sa ved — A sia ti cR esea z ches , Vol. I .

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190 H I N nU S UPE R IO RITY.

Mahabha rata i s amply proved by h i s tor ica l records a s

wel l a s th e ficti tiou s l i te rature of the H ind u s .

S ri R am Chand ra and S ita are st i l l worsh ipped in

Amer i ca,and

,remarkably en ough , u n der the i r or ig ina l

n ame s . I n Amer i ca,an ann ua l f a i r takes place , w h i ch

closely correspon ds w i th the D a shera (R am Chand ra j ee

ka-Mela ) o f the H indu s .

1 S ir W. Jones says “ Rama

i s represen ted as a descendant f rom th e sun,a s the

h u sband o f S i ta,and the son of a p r in cess named

Cau selya . I t i s v ery remarkable that Peruv ian s , w hose

Iu ces boas ted. o f the same descent,styled the i r

grea test f es ti va l Ram a-S itv a w hence we may su ppose

that South Am er i ca was peopled by the same ra ce who

im ported into the f ar thest parts o f Asia the r i tes an d

the f abu lou s h i story of Ram a .

‘2

M y thology , arch itecture , ph i losoph y , trad i ti on s , man

n ers,and legen ds o f anc ien t Amer i ca alla rgu e the Hin du

or ig in of the Am er i can s . Th is i s suppor ted by w hat w e

fi nd in the P urana s,the Mahabharata and other h i stor i ca l

w r itings . I t i s ex pressly sta ted in the Mahabhara ta that

A rj una conquered Pa ta l ness,and marr ied Alopi , d augh ter

o f the king of. that coun try,named K uroo

,and tha t the

f ru it of th i s u n ion wa s Ara wa n,

3who a f terwards d i s tin

gu ished h im sel f a s a great wa rr i or .A word regard ing the route to Am eri ca u sed by the

H indus . They seem genera l ly to hav e taken the sea

rou te f rom Ceylon or f rom som e pla ce in the Bay o f

Benga l to Jav a,Ba l i

,or Borneo an d thence to Am eri ca

to Mexi co,Cen tra l Am er i ca or Peru . Bu t m o re

lli‘

e r tu l l pa rt i c ula rs see T he Theosoph ist for 18 86 .

2 As ia t i c R esearch es,Vol. I , p . 4 26 .

O Mahabharata,Bheeshni Parva , Adhyaya 01.

H INDU C O L O N I ZA'

I‘

I O N . 19 1

ad v en turou s spi ri ts appear sometime s to ha v e chosen the

la nd pas sage to Ameri c a th ro ugh Ch ina,Mongo l ia

,S ibi

ria , Beh r ing S tra i ts (wh i ch , a s geo logy ha s pro v ed , w a s

not in ex isten ce u nti l recen t times) , and North Amer i ca .

I t ha s been u rged th at the H ind us,be ing proh ibi t

ed f rom cross ing the sea or ev en the r i ver Attock,cou l d

not hav e gone to f ore ign cl imes in con s iderable n umbers,

e i ther a s traders or a s settlers . S uch cr i ti c i sm,howev er

,

only betrays ignorance o f H indu l itera tu re an d H ind u

h i story . Colonel Tod says I t i s r i d i cu lou s w i th all

the know ledge now in ou r posses s ion,to suppose that

the H ind u s alwav s con fin ed them selv es w i th in the i r

gigan t i c barr iers,the l im its of m odern Ind ia .

” 1

T he m ost an cien t as wella s the m ost au thor i tat i vew ork in Ind ian l itera ture

,the Ve da

,en jo in s mank i nd to

go to fore ign coun tr ies in steamers a nd ba l loon s . T he

Y fij ur Veda (Ad hyaya 6 , Mantra says

e gsfi fi rs t w ri fi ssa 6 1 33 1 Eas t H faaTI W fi rs t ll

“ Ch m en,who are fi t to do adm in i stra tiv e work

r igh teou sly,go to the sea s in b ig ,

f a st-gomg steamers,

and to the h igh heav en s i n ba l loon s bu i l t on seien tific

prin c iples .” Also .

asfi afs atW an—”was t er i w as new set sii

'

a‘

mare :

as 91 a si ai m i t t £ 813 : wanflai zmm 9133 3 first

secs IIw e va c as i ao as ii

1 Tod ’

s R a jasth an , Vol. I I , p . 2 18.

192 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY.

Mann says

e ase: g a s-{a awimz ua z a a : I

Gist s ta t fa r—Etta e fiaaai

'

H i awai t ii

( s ire smite: { sites 1 0 )

Let mank ind f rom the d i fferen t countr ies o f the

world acqu ire knowledge f rom learned m en born in th is

coun try (In d ia )\Vi th regard to the adj ud ica tion of d i spu tes regard

ing the am ount of fares,Mann says

E W I ‘T aa a i i flmafi s ffim l

E WJ f f‘

rt g a t atfss'

H T aa ifi mri S ita II

T he fina l dec i s ion a s to w hat is th e su itable f are

w i l l re st w ith traders,who are f u l ly acqua inted w i th

sea-rou tes a s wellas land -rou tes .

Mann aga in saysFad

-wafer s at

’

i ‘a'

H arman-rif t use I

af lfl i g ats'

a ra a vg-si f itter s a me It

(a g o Emma c visits s ee )There are numerou s instan ces on record of pol iti ca l

an d rel igio us leaders o f In d ia hav ing gone to E u repe

an d Am er ica on pol it i ca l and rel igiou s m i s s ion s .Mah rish i Vyasa w ith S ukh deoj i wen t to Amer i ca and

l iv ed there f or some t ime . S ukhdeoj i ev en tua l ly

returned to Ind ia v ia Eu rope (H eero Desa), Pers ia and

Tu rki stan . T he jou rney took h im th ree years and is

su cc in ctly de scri bed in the Mahabhara ta,San t i Pa rv a

,

(S ookh u tpatti, Adh .

Ju st bef ore the Great War,the Panda v a s s ta rted

on a conquer ing exped i tion to f ore ign coun tr ies . T hejou rney was tw i ce undertaken . O n the fi rst occa s ion .

they went to Bu rmah,S iam

,Ch ina

,T i bet

,Mongol ia,

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194 H INDU S UPE R I O R ITY.

T he obnomou s proh ib it ion to cross the A ttock i s

o f recent or ig in . T he H indu possess ion o f the Af ghan

and Pers ian terr itor ies w as a rel i c o f the i r an c ien tcon ques t. So late ev en a s the first f ew cen tu r ies of the

Chri stian era,the H indu s l iv ed in thou sands in Tu rk i s

tan,Pers ia and Ru ssia . For an account o f the Hindu

commercia l colony a t Astrakhan ,see the accoun t g iv en

by P ro f essor Pa l la s . Mr . Elph in ston e says : “ Ev en at

the presen t d ay , ind i v idu al s o f a H indu tr i be f rom

S h ika rpu r settle as merchan ts and bankers in th e town s3 7 1

o f Pers ia,Tu rk i stan and Ru ss ia . T he same m ay

b e sa i d of a la rge n um ber o f the n at iv es of Ja i salmer .

A f ew pa ssages f rom an cien t San skr it works of h i s

toricalim portan ce may b e qu oted to show that the

or i g ina l f ounders and f oref athers o f many of th e d i ff eren t

n ation s o f the world before they m igrated to the ir

respect iv e coun tr ies,w ere i nhab i tan ts o f Ind ia . As

quoted abov e,Mann (Chapter X ,

page 4 3 ) says

staging tame-incid ent : fi f

'

fi'

fi'

s um : i

s uaa‘ ma inli z sfiia H II

fig a i’éla‘

s stee r: afi ifi ii‘

a i : W T: vi si t: I

in t er: He ar-aim: fa t ten: st ar ism: l l

H a a ig gwfl ia i medal" a ia zfi afs=i' \Q

z

'

érsa‘

aifi g i fiarfi : H er"

CT Eli as : 818 ? II

T he f ol low in g tr i be s o f Kshatr iya s hav e gradua l ly

sunk into the state o f Vrishala s (outca stes) f rom the

ex tin ct ion o f sa cred r ites,and f rom hav ing no

‘

comm u

n icatiou w i th the B rahman s,v ie

,P aund raka s

,Odra s

,

D rav ida s,Kamhojo s , Y av ana s

,Sakas

,Parada s

,P ahlav a s

,

Ch ina s,Kira tas

,D arad a s and Kha sa s

,e tc .

1 E lphinston c’

s H istory of Ind ia , p . 13 5.

H INDU C O L O N lZA’

I‘

I O N .

S i r W. Jones,in h i s treatise on the Ch inese ‘ , n u

d erstan d s“ by Ch ii ia s , the Ch inese , who , a s the llrah ni ins

repo rt,are descended f rom the H ind u s . T he other

names,w h ich a re apparen tly those o f oth er n a ti on s

,

m ay b e th u s expla ined : T he Saca s were the a nc ien t

S acaa . T he P ahla v s w ere Medes speaking P a hla v i o r

the a nc ien t Pers ian . T he Camb oj a s were the inhab i tan ts

o f Kamboja or Cambod ia ;2 the Y avans,as i s wel l known ,

were the Greeks . T he D rav id s may be the D ru i d s o f Grca tB r ita in . T he Kirats were the inhab i tants o f Ba luch i stan

,D a radas o f D ardasthan in the Ch inese terr i tory . T he

Kha se s " were probably som e people of Ea s tern Europe .

T he Mahabharata (Anu sa sana Parva,Verses 2 10 3

and 2 104 ) w h i le g i v ing u s a f urther v iew o f the or ig in

o f the v a r iou s na ti on s of the world,says

stafii was ai i za’

iai iwiea : fi tters: s i c—{z i t i

a s sist H f t aa i ais imi sim‘

ctsia i cg II i so

s H

s itse te s ti fl es s fm fi fig’f tafl : l

fi tme nt H i fs ammn’

m: i tem 5116121! u i s a s It

as sist H ft aat s ta miaIH QHf-i ia: l

lS ir “7 . J ones’ Wor k s,Vol. I , p . 99 .

Q T h at K am b ojas m eant the inh ab i tan ts o f Cambod ia is supportedby two v erses f rom the Maha bh a rata

,where they are sa id to b e l iv ing

towa rd s the north-east

st ates? a rrai s z siaagmama fii z I

g rafi r i tag" 31 =a ae z a ufmma’w a: n

H s m iz a , em it? te

st—s? ii

T he son o f Ind ra conquered the D a rad a s w i th the K amboja s

and the D asyus who d wel t in the n e i th e ast reg ion .— Jlahahha ra ta

,

Boo k I I , 10 3 153 2 .

3 Th is people is mentioned in the R amayana also.

196 H IN DU S UPE R I O R ITY .

These tr i bes o f K shatr iya s,r iz .

,Saka s

,Y av anas

,

Kanib oj as , D rav idas,Ka l in da s

,P ulindas

,1 U sinaras

Kolisarpas , and Mah ishaka s,hav e become ou tca stes

(an d ex iled ) f rom see ing no Brahm an s .Th i s i s repea ted in Verses 2 158

,59

,w here the

f ol low ing add i ti ona l tr ibes are named : Mekalas,La ta s

,

Ko i'

i v asiras,S amd ika s

,D orvas

,Chau ras

,Sav a ra s

,Bar

ba ra s,K iratas .

H arm afas i mar they: sta ts : TE N T i

fi f teen m isfi t slit 915m: l l

fili I TE Hm a fi a S inai : E f fi e s nafu : i

em a nat imi H is imiammima: ii

I i i—sea t s mania aqa

‘; 551221121 as It

T he Kam b oj as , Saka s , Saha ra s , Kiratas , and Var

v ara s a re aga in m enti oned in the Mahab ha rata,Drona

Pa rva,Verse 4 74 7

afitfafiami 8 3 3 35 E mmi H fastiu’

fi I

starre d fa t ia i sit Hait ian ads H II

a s sass in sta irHm 1351‘m mime i

E asies t si ster: a cids-s taid 513 13? II

swat s ta t e d?we es;a 1 3°

fi dfiffis afimi ll

W inn—a zimuai W W R s II

1 T he And h ras , P und ra s , S a haras , P ulindas, M a t i has , are alsomen t ioned in the A itreya B ra hmana .

2 V i shnu Purana n ames over two h und red d i ff erent peop les k nownto the H ind us , includ i ng Ch inas , P ahlvas , Y a vanas

,Ba rba ras

,Bahlikas

,

(peop le of Bal k h) and Hans—S ee W'

ilson’

s Vishnu P it/ (ma, Vol. I I ,

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198 H IN DU S UPE R IO R ITY .

Sagara learnt f rom h i s m oth er allthat had bef a l len h i s

f ather,Bahu

,be ing v exed a t the loss of h i s paterna l

k ingdom,he v owed to exterm i nate the H a ihaya s and

other enem ies who ha d conqu ered it.

Accord ingly b e destroyed n early allthe H a ihayas .

“T hen the Saka s

,Y av anas

,Kamb oj as , Pa rada s an d P ah

la va s were abou t to u ndergo a s im i la r f ate,they had re

course to Va sh i sh tha,the k ing’s f am i ly pr iest

,who inter

posed ou th e i r beha l f in the se word s addres sed to Saga ra,

represen ting them as v irtua l ly dead Y ou hav e done

enough,my son

,in the way of pursu ing these men

,who

are a s good a s dead . I n order that you r v ow m i gh t b ef u lfilled

,I hav e compelled th em to aban don the du ties o f

the ir ca ste,a nd alla ssoc iat i on w i th the twiceb orn .

’ Agree

ing to h i s sp ir i tua l gu ide's proposa l

,Sagara compel led

these tr ibes to a lter the ir costume . H e made the Y av anas

shav e the ir heads,the Saka s shav e ha lf the ir heads

,the

Parada s wear long ha ir,an d the P ahlava s bea rd s . These

and other Kshatr iya s he depr iv ed of the stu dy of the

Veda s and the Va shatkara . I n con sequen ce of th e i r

abandonm ent o f their proper du ties and of the i r deser

t i on by the Brahman s,they became Mlechha s .

T he H ariv an sa Pu rana a l so say s Ya z 'ctna'

Kamboj a h P a ra da h P alzla va s ta t/1m Kolisa rp a h S ama

hislia /z D a rw s clzota h S a -[ f eralah lS a ree te K sha triya s

tam teslzam (liza rmo n ir alcr z'

ta h l Va s z’

sthama cka na d

ra j a n S aga rena rllalz a tma na . T he Saka s , Y av ana s,

Kamb oj a s , Parada s,P ahlav a s

,Kolisarpa s , Mah ishas

,

Darva s,Cholas an d Keralas had been allK shatr iyas ,

b u t depr iv ed of the ir soc ia l and rel igiou s pos i ti on by the

great S agara (H ind u king) in accordance with the adv i ce

H I NDU eonox i z ivri oa . 199

o f Va sh i sh tha . Some other tr ibes are a l so m en ti oned

in the next v erse to hav e rece i v ed s im i la r trea tmen t.

‘

P riya v rata , S wayamb h va’

s son,d i v ided the earth

in to seven dw ipa s

(1) Jambu D wipa (Asia ) .

(2 ) Plak sha (Sou th Amer i ca ) .

(3 ) P ushka ra (N o rth Amer i ca).

(4 ) Kraun ch (A f r i ca ) ,

(5 ) S’

aka (E urope) .

(6 ) S’

a lma l i (An tarc ta,Au stra l ia ) .

(7) K usa (O cean ia ) .

Col . “T

ilt'

ord,however

,th u s interprets th em

,wh i ch

1s obv iou sly w rong

Pla tsba incl udes Le sser Asia and Am er i ca .

K usa an swers to the countr ie s between the Pers ianGu l f

,the Ca sp ian S ea

,a nd the \Yes tern

bounda ry o f Ind ia .

E rm i ne/i d includes German y .

S ha ka, mean s the Br it i s h i sles .

P ush/cam i s I reland .

S /zalmali are countr ies by the Adr iati c a nd Ba l ti c

J ambu D wip a i s In d ia .

1l\[ r. Co lebroo k e (T ransa ct ions o f the R 0 } alA s ia t i c S oc iety ,Vol. I ,

p. 4 5 3 )

quotes an anc ient H ind u wr i ter, who sta tes that the Ba rba ri ctongues are c a l led the P a rasiea , the Y a vana

,the R omaka a nd the Ba r

bara :“ the fi rst th ree o f “ h ieh , ” sa vs he

,

” would b e the Pers ian,the.

G ree k and the L a t in . But wh ic h is the fourth a nd how L a t in became

k nown in Ind ia , it is d i ffi cu l t to sa y .

”A nd y et it is a we l l-authent i cated

f act that in the t ime of Vicramad itya there “as constant intei 'cou i se

b etwee n Ind ia and R ome,

2 00 H I NDU surnmomrv .

O ring to the destruction of the greater pa rt o f

San skr i t l i teratu re,it i s im poss ible now to interpret

correctly these geograph ica l f acts,not on ly becau se

these are on ly the f ragmenta ry rem a in s of the Science o fGeography inex tri cably m ixed up w ith P u ran i c

mytholo gy an d theolo g y,b u t to a great exten t beca u se

m any o f th ese an c ient dwipa s and countrie s h av e beenso m ater ia l ly a l tered in con sequence o f the Catac lysmcal led the Deluge

,as to hav e becom e im poss ible of

i den tifica ti on now . T he f a ther of the modern geologi ca l

sc ience , Currier , expresses the f o l low ing opin i on rega rd

ing th i s Deluge in h i s D escours S W 70 3 Revolutions

d e la S u rf a ce (ta Globe,p . 28 3 (5 th Ed i ti on )

“ I con s ide r w ith Me ssrs . Delu c and Dolom ieu thatif there i s anyth ing establ i shed in geology

,it i s the fa ct

that the su rf ace o f the ea rth ha s been the subject o f a

grea t and sudden rev olu tion,the da te o f wh i ch cannot go

m u ch f u rther back than fi ve or s ix thou san d yea rs tha t

th i s rev ol uti on ha s sunk (enf orce) or ca u sed to d i sappear

(f a it-d isp a ra itre) some of those land s w h ich were f or

m erly inhab ited by m en,togeth er w ith those spec ies o f

an im a l s wh i ch a re now the most common .

”

“T

e thu s find that the H indu c iv i l i zat i on overran

the en ti re un i v erse an d that its landma rks are stil l to

b e seen allov er the globe . N ay , it sti l l l iv es an d

b rea thes a round u s . Says Mon s ieu r D elbos “ T he

in fl uen ce of tha t c i v i l i zati on worked ou t thousa n ds

of yea rs ago in Ind ia i s around and about u s ev ery

d ay o f ou r lives . I t per vades every corner o f the

ci v i l i zed worl d . Go to Amer i ca and you find there , a s in

Eu rope,the in fluen ce o f that c iv i l i zation wh i ch came

ori g ina l ly f rom the bank s of the Ganges .”

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202 H I NDU surnmomr v .

w i thou t the semblan ce o f bomba st and exaggera t i oncla imed o f cou rse a place f or itsel f—it stood a lone

,an d

i t wa s able to s tan d a lon e .

To a cqu i re the m a stery of th i s language i s almos tthe labou r o f a l i fe ; its litera tu re seem s exha u stles s .

T he utmost stretch of im agina tion can scarcely compreh en d its boundless mythology . I ts ph i losophy has

touch ed u pon e very m etaphys i ca l d ifficu lty ; its legi s

lat ion i s as v a r ied a s the“

ca stes f or wh ich it w as

d es igned .

” 1

Coun t Bj ornstj erna says T he l iterature o f In d ia

m ake s u s a cqu a in ted w i th a great nati on o f pa st ages,

w h i ch gra sped ev ery bran ch of know ledge,and w h i ch

w i l l a lways occupy a d i s tingu i shed place in the h istory

o f the c iv i l i zation o f mankin d .

”

T he H ind u,

” says Mr . IV. D . Brown ,i s the

pa rent o f the l iteratu re an d the theology o f the world .

“

P rof essor Max M u l ler says Al though there i s ha rdly

any depa rtmen t o f learn ing wh ich ha s not rece i ved n ew

l ight and n ew l i fe f rom the an c ient l i tera tu re of In d ia,

ye t n owhere i s the l igh t tha t com es to u s f rom In dia so

im portan t, nov el and so r i ch a s in the study of rel ig ion

a nd my thology .

GeneralCunn ingham says Math emati ca l sc ience

was so perfect and a stronom i ca l observat ion s so complete

th at the path s o f the s un and the m oon were a ccu ra tely

mea sured . T he ph i losophy o f the learned f ew wa s per

h aps for the fi rs t tim e,f i rm ly a l l ied w i th the theology o f

1 .lou i nalo t t he ltoyalA s ia t i c S oc i ety , Vol. I I W . U .

Taylor’

s pa pe r on S a ns k rit L ite i a ture.

"l'

heogo ny o f the llind us , p 85 .

‘5Th c O a t/y T r ib un e (S a l t La k e C i ty) for Feln'

na i y 20 . 1884 .

4 M ax M u l ler’s lnd ia “f l int can it. tcaeh us 3 p . 14 0 .

L ITE RAT U R E . 520 3

the beli ev ing many,and lirahman ism la i d down a s a rti

cles o f f a i th the un ity o f God,the creat ion o f the world

,

the immorta l i ty o f the sou l,and the respon s i bi l i ty o f

m an . T he remo te dwel lers u pon the Gange s d i s ti nctlymade known tha t f u ture l i fe abou t w h ich Moses 1s s i len t

or obscure,and tha t u n i ty and Omn ipotence o f the

Crea tor wh i ch w ere u nkn own to the polythe i sm o f the

Greek and lt oman m u l ti tu de,and to the d ua l i sm o f

M i th ra i c legi sla tors,w h i le Vyasa perhaps su rpa ssed Pla to

in keep ing the people trem bl ingly a l iv e to the pun i s hmen t

w h ich awa i ted ev i l deeds .

” l

P rof essor Heeren sav s T he l i teratu re o f the

San skr it language in contestab ly bel ongs to a h igh ly-enl

tivated people , w hom w e m ay w i th great rea son cons ider

to hav e been the m ost in formed o f allthe E a st . I t is,at

th e same t ime,a sc ien tific and a poeti c l itera tu re ” 3 H e

a l so says “ H indu l i teratu re i s one of the r i chest in

p rose and poetry .

S i r W'

. Jones says tha t “ h uman l i fe wou l d not

b e su ffi c ien t to make onesel f acqua in ted w i th a n y

con sr’

dera ble pa r t o f H in du l i tera tu re .

”

P ro fessor Max M u l ler sav s : “ T he n um ber o f San s

kr it work s o f wh ich Mas . a re sti l l in ex i s ten ce amou n ts

to ten th ou sand . Th i s 1s more I b eliev e , than the w hole

cla ss i ca l l itera tu re of Greece and Ita ly pu t together.

’

T he Ind ian San skr i ti s t, Pand it S hyam j i Kr i shna

v arma,in h i s paper on the u se o f w r iting in An c ien t Ind ia

,

speaks of Sanskr i t l i teratu re a s a l itera tu re more ex

1 ( unn ingham s H istmy of the 1S i k h s

2 H ee i en s H istm icalR esea i chc s , Vol. I I . p . 20 1 .

3 A s ia t ic R esea rch es , Vol. I , p . 3 5 4 .

4 M.“ Muller’

s Ind ia Wha t can it teac h us p . 84 .

204 H IND U S U PE R IO R ITY .

ten s iv e than the an c ien t l i teratu res o f Greece and Rome

comb ined .

”

R ev . Mr. “Y

ard says No rea sonable person w i l l

deny to the H indu s of f ormer t im es the pra i se o f v ery

exten siv e lea rn ing . T he v a r iety of subjects u pon w h i ch

they wrote prov e that almos t every science wa s cu lt i vated

among them . T he m ann er a l so in w h i ch they trea tedthese su bjects prov e s that the H indu learned m en

y ielded the pa lm o f lea rn ing to sca rcely any other o f

the an c ien ts . T he more the ir ph ilosoph i ca l works and

lawbooks are stu d ied,

the more w i l l the enqu irer b econv in ced of the depth o f w i sdom posses sed by the

au thors .” 1 Mrs . Mann ing says “ T he H indu had the

wi dest range of m ind o f wh ich m an i s capable.

”

T he h igh in tel lectua l and emoti ona l power s of the

an cien t H in d u s we re in any ca se destined to produ ce a

li teratu re,remarkable f or its su bl im ity and exten t ; b u t

when these great gif ts had the m ost perfect,melod iou s

,

and the r i chest language in the worl d to work wi th,the

resu lt cou ld not b u t b e a l iteratu re not on ly the mostf er ti le and f a sc ina ting in the world b ut wonderf u l inrange and a ston i sh ing in depth .

SAN S K R IT LANGUAGE .

S i r IV. Jones,the most inte l lectua l of the Eu ropean

cr iti cs of San skr it l iteratu re , pronoun ced the San skr it

language to b e o f a won derf u l structure , more perf ect

IW'

a i d’

s A nt iqu i ty of H ind u ism ,Vol. I V , c on c lusion .

2 A nc icn t and Med iaevalInd ia , Vol. I I , p . 14 8.

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206 H I NDU surmu omr v .

ind icati ve of Greek dev elopm en t,the brev i ty and n i ce

a ccu ra cy o f Latin W h i l st hav in g a near a ffin i ty to the

Pers ian and German roots,it i s d i stingu i sh ed by expres

s i on as enthu s ia st i c an d f orci ble a s the i rs .

” 1

says “ T he San skr it com bines th ese v ar iou s qua l ities,

posses sed sepa rately by other tongues Grec ian cop iou s

n ess,deep-ton ed Rom an f orce

,the d i v ine afilatus chara c

H e aga in

terisin-

g the H ebrew tongue ” ? H e slso says : “Judgedby an organ i c standard o f the pr incipa l elemen ts of lang

nage,the San skrit excel s in gramma ti ca l structure

,and

i s,indeed

,the most pe fectly-developed o f allid iom s

,n ot

ex cepting Greek and La tin .

T he im portan ce o f th is “ language o f languages

i s clea rly recogn ised when we con s i der,w ith S ir W. W.

‘

H un ter,the f act tha t “

the modern ph i lology dates f rom

the stu dy of San skr it by the Eu ropean s .

” 4

S ir W. Jones ’ a sserti on that D eon agri i s the

orig ina l sou rce whence the a l phabets o f Western Asia

were der i ved ,”5 not onlv prove s the grea t an t iqu i ty o f the

San skri t l iteratu re b u t poin ts ou t the chann elthrough

wh i ch San sk ri t ph ilosophy and learn ing flowed toward s

the we st, an d , work ing in the -

new an d f resh m ater ia l s

a va i lable there,prod uced Homer

,Hes iod

,Pythagora s

,

Socrates,Plato

,Ari stotle

,Zeno

,Cicero

,S ca rvola

,Varoo

,

V i rgi l an d others to d iv ide the lau rel s o f l iterary

‘ S cheleg el’

s H is tory of L i tera ture,p . 1 17 .

i’lb id,p .

3 lb id, p . 100.

4 Imper ia l G a z etteer , “ Ind ia,p . 264 . T he foundat ion of the

sc ience of c ompa rat ive ph i lology was la id by the publ i ca t ion o f Bopp ’sCompa ra t i ve G i amn ia r i n 18 4 8 A .D .

5 As ia t i c R esea rches , Vol. I,p . 4 2 3 . P rofessor H eeren (H ist.

R esea rch es,Vol. I I

,pp

,201 and 90 2) says that S ans k r i t l i te ra ture is

not on ly very r i c h but also extremely anc ient .

520 7

reputati on w i th Vyasa , Kapila,G au tama

,P a tanj ali, N a

nad a,J a im un i

,Na rada

,Pa n i n i

,Ma rich i Za nd Va lm ik i .

T he s tu dv o f compar ati ve ph ilolog y,in so fa r a s it ha s

ad vanced , tends to show tha t Sa n sk r it i s the mother o f all

Indo-Itlu ropean languages. F rom the Sa n sk ri t were

der i v ed the or ig ina l roots and those essen tia l ly neces sa ry

w ord s wh ich f orm the ba s i s o f allthese languages . I n

other word s ,’

the part th a t i s common to allor mos t o f

the languages o f th i s group i s suppl ied to ea ch languageby the Sanskr it.

Mr . P ococke says : “ T he Greek language i s a der i

v a t i on f rom the San skr i t. ” 1 T he learn ed D r. P r i tch ard

say s “ T he a ffin ity between the Greek language , andthe old Pa rs i an d San sk r it I S certa in and es sent ia l . T he

u se o f cogna te i d iom s p rov es the na ti on s w ho u sed them

to have descended from one stock . That the rel igion o f

the Greek s em ana ted f rom an Ea stern sou rce no one w i l l

deny . We m u st therefore suppose the rel ig ion a s w e l l

as the language o f Greece to h av e been der i v ed in great

part i nn ued ia tely f rom the Ea st.

” 2 S ir IV. Jones says“ I wa s not a l i ttle surpr i sed to find tha t o u t o f ten

words in D u Perron ’s Z ind D i cti onary s ix or se v en were

pu re San skr it.”

P rof essor Heeren says “ I n point o f f ac t,the Z ind

is der iv ed f rom the Sa n sk r i t.”

As the D eonagri i s the sou rce f rom wh ich the a l pha

bets o f IVestern Asia are der i v ed,so a re the San skr it

n am es o f the figu res 1 to lo the sou rce f rom wh i ch mos tlanguages ha v e der iv ed the i r nam es o f the sa id figu res .

1 I nd ia in GleeCc ,p . 18 ,

3"D r . P 1 itcha rd’

s Phys i ca l H i story of Ma n,Vol. I , p . 502 .

3 S ir \V. J ones W'

o i ks,Vol. I

,pp .

4 I I ee1en’

5 H i s tor i ca l R esea 1ches . 0 1. I I , p . 220 .

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2 10 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY.

G E NE RAL V IE W or T H E P E R S O N S or T H E VE R B .

F inst P er son .

S econd P erson .

F e ras .

T hird P erson .

0 0 .

P erson

P erson P lural.

B istateP herete

H ista ieteD id oiete

P heroite

LIT E RATURE . 9 11

VI EW or“ h u man 1N T H E FU T U R E TmN sn.

S ingula r .

I h lal.

P lu ral.

D o-somen .

I ) o—sete .

D o—sonti

S U P I N E s AN D INFINIT IVE S .

S a n sk r i t. L a tin .

S t’

ha~tum,to stand S ta tum .

D a-tum,to g i ve D atum .

J na-tum ,to k now N o-tum .

P atum,to d r in k P o tum .

E -tum,to go I tum .

S tra-tum,to strew S tratum .

A uk—tum, to a no int U netum .

S van i-tum ,to sound S on—i-tum ,

S a rp-tum,to go S erptum .

Vam i-tum,to vom it Vom itum .

Posh—tum,to bru ise P is tum .

J ami—tum,to beget Gen-i—tum .

T he sca le o f cal cu la ti on i s common to alln a tion s,

and owes i ts or igin to the H indu s . D r . Ba llan tyne i s

in cl ined to support the theory that San skr i t i s the

m other o f allAryan (Indo-E u ropean ) languages .

Mr . Bopp 1 says tha t at one t ime San sk r i t wa s the

one language spoken allover the world .

1 E d inborough R ev iew, Vol. XXX I I I , p . 4 3 .

2 12 H INDU S UPE R IO R I TY .

Mon s . D ub ois i says tha t San skr i t i s the or igina lsource o f allthe Eu ropean languages o f the present day .

Miss Carpen ter 2 says that though the origina l h o

o f San skr i t i s A ryawarta , yet it has now been proved tohave been the language of m os t of the coun tr ies o f

modern Eu rope in an cien t t imes .

A German cr iti c says tha t “ San skr i t i s the m other

of Greek , Latin and Germ an languages,and tha t it has

no other relati on to them th1s 1s the reason why

Ma x Mu l ler ca l l s it the an c ient language of the Arya s .

”

T he great anti qu ity of Ind ian civ i l i zation i s un

questionably beyond compar i son ; and the an tiquar ian s

are unan imou s as to the in com pa rable an t iqu ity o f the

San skr it l iteratu re a l so . T he oldes t wr itings of the

oldest nat ion s except the H indu s are,a ccord ing to som e

O r ien ta l i sts,the records of v ar i ou s dev el opments of

B uddh i sm wh i ch took its r i se in Ind ia a f ter the decl ine

o f the Ved ic rel ig ion . Coun t Bj orn stj erna3 says : “ T he

so-ca l led Hermes Scr i ptu res (the names of allthe sa cred

w r itings o f the Egyptian s) conta in m etaphys icaltreati ses

in the f orm o f d ia logue between Hermes (Sp ir itua l w i sdom )and T odlz

,Bod h

,Buddh (earth ly w i sdom ) , wh ich

th roughou t exh ibit the doctr ines o f Buddh i sm . Aga in,

“th e early Egyptian w r it ing wh i ch in the tran slat ion i s

ca l led P ima nder’

s H ermes T r ismeg z'

stus,

and f orm s

a d ia logue between P iman der (the h ighest in te l l i gen ce )and T hod t, (Bodh , Buddha ) w h i ch dev elopes the

m etaphys i cs of the Buddh i s ts tou ch ing the tr in ity .

”

1 B ihlc in Ind ia .

2 J o u rna l o f the Ind ian A ssoc i a t io n .

3 Theogony of the H i ndus , p , 100 .

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2 14 H INDU S UPE R IOR ITY.

Con s idering the backwardnes s o f other nation s in

th e inv en ti on o f the art o f w r it ing,and find ing it im

poss ib le to giv e the second place to the n a ti on to whomthey owe allthe ir lea rn i ng and w i sdom

,the ad v ocates o f

the theory o f “ Greek Cu l tu re” hes itate to a ss ign h igh

an tiqu itv to the H indu art of wr iting .

Prof essor Max Mu l ler,for one a l low s no w r i tten

w ork before 3 50 B C . Th i s strange and absu rd sup

pos i ti on i s w hol ly inexpl icable. Apart f rom the interna l

a nd d irect ev iden ce,

one f ac t a lone is su ff i c ient to

re f ute the suppos i t ion . When geometry and a stronomy

flou ri shed so h igh ly and exten s i v el y in Ind ia more than

years bef ore Chr i st,a ccording to the ca l cu lat ion of

the celebrated a stronomer,Ba i l ly

,i s it a t allcon ce iv able

t hat w r i ting shou l d hav e been unkn own before 3 50 B C ?

Prof essor Max D unker says that a ccord ing toMax Mu l ler’s

theory the B ra hma n a s m u st hav e been reta ined in m e

mory t i l l 3 50 B C ,b ut it seem s to m e

,

”he says

,

“ qu ite imposs ible con s i der ing the ir f orm .

”H e adds :

I f the B ra /i nta na s wh i ch c i te the Veda s accu rately in

the ir present arrangemen t,and speak not on ly o f syl la

bles b u t of letters arose between 800 and 600 B C,it

appea rs to m e an in ev itable con clu s ion that the Veda s

m u st hav e been exi sted in w r i ting abou t 800 B C.

Mr . S hyam j i Krishnav arma,O r ien tal Lectu rer o f

Bal l iol Col lege,Oxf ord

,in the paper h e read bef ore th e

In terna ti ona l Congress of Or ien tal i sts at Leyden in 188 3,

wh i ch he attended as the delega te of the Gov ernmen t o fInd ia

,has dea lt w i th the subject in a ma s terly way , and

shown tha t the art o f w r iting ha s been in u se in Ind ia

lFor f u rth er part i cula rs see h is H istory of Ant i qu i ty , Vol. I V ,

pp .

L I'

I‘

E R AT U R E . 2 15

s ince the Ved i c times . H e says I feel no h es i ta tion

in say ing that there are word s and ph ra ses occurring in the

Sanh i ta s o f the Veda s , 1 in the B r a /mam a s an d in the S u tra

wo rks,wh ich leav e no doub t a s to the u se o f the wr i tten

cha racters in an c ien t Ind ia . I t may b e confidently as

sorted tha t the systemat i c treati ses in prose wh i ch

abounded at and long before the t ime o f Pan in i coul d

n ev er hav e been composed w ithou t the hel p o f w r i ting .

\Ve know for certa in that w i th the exception o f the

hym n s o f the Big Veda , m ost of the Va id ik w ork s a re

in prose,and it i s d i fficu l t to understan d how they cou l d

poss ibly hav e been composed w i th ou t hav ing recou rse to

some a rti f i c ia l m ean s .”

Katyayana says —aa uaa nui fi‘ th an : H fi m f afi i

When the w r iter and the w itnesses are dear .

”

I

Y agyav alka men t i on s w r i tten docum ents ; an d Na rada

and others a l so bear testimony to the i r ex i s tence . Ev en

1 T o the ob ject ion th at the word S ruti , as a synonym o f V ed a,

conveyed the id ea of what was learnt and taugh t by h ear i ng,thus p rov

ing the absen ce o f wr i tten boo k s, he nea tly rep l ies th at the word S mriti ,d e i ivcd from S mr i ,

”to remem ber (as S rut i com es f rom S ; a to hea r) ,

would equ a l ly convey the same idea and prove the same th ing ,thoug h

it is adm i tted by allth at the a rt of wr i t ing wa s k nown to the authorso f the S mr it is . A fter qu ot ing a pa rt o f a hymn in the 10th M and a laof the R ig Ved a , “

som e one see ing the speech d oes not see it,wh i le

another hea r ing d oes not hear it, ” and show ing th at one cou ld not see

the speech un less it assumed some tang i ble sh ape l i k e that of a boo k o rmanuscr i pt ; a lso ,

th at one cou ld not poss i bly count a m i l l ion w i thout a na cqua intance w i th wr i t ing ,

not to spea k o f h a v ing tech n i ca l names

for a m i l l ion,a hund red m i l l ion , nay , for a hund red th ousand m i l l ion

,

a s we find them g iven in the seventh C hap ter of the wh i te Y apu'

Ved a— for we find th at in G reece before m i t ing became k now11,the

h ighes t number of what cou ld be techn i cal ly ex p ressed was on ly

2 16 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

Max M u ller h im sel f i s compel led to adm it that wr i t ing

wa s known to the a u thors o f the Su tra s .”

T he suppos i ti on that w r iting wa s unknown in

Ind ia be fore 3 50 BC . i s on ly one o f the many in stan ces

ca l cu la ted to show the strange waywardnes s o f h uman

intel lect. I f anyone o f lesser au thor ity than Max Mu ller

had ad van ced su ch a suppos iti on he m igh en

p ronou nced a man iac . I t was lef t to'

ed

p ro fessor to con ce iv e the po s s i b i l ity o f a language o f

the s tructure o f San skr it be ing cu lt iv ated to the ex tent

of prod uc ing compos iti on s l i ke the Veda s,

the

B raham ana s an d the U pn ishad s , and of a people ach iev ing

wonderf ulprogress in mathemat i c s and a stronom y w ithou t

be ing able to w ri te A,B

, C or on e,two and th ree ll l‘

and in R om e on ly a thousa nd — he goes on to S how tha t the

word s K and a and Pata la ”wh i ch oc cur in Ved i c l i teratu re p rove the

ex istence of wr itten boo k s in anc ient t imes . A f ter point i ng out tha tthe A dlzéicam ,

or h ead ing ru le,in Pan in i ’s g ramma r wa s d enoted by

S va rita , wh i ch p roved conc lus i vely th at he em p loyed wr it ing and th atth e s ix th ch apter of A shtadhyayi says that peop le in Pan in i

’

s t ime usedto m ar k the figures e ight and fi ve on the ea rs of the i r cattle

,

he conc lud es : “ T he f ac t that Pan in i ma k es a l lus ion to co ins, for

instan ce f i ts ? and w i th wh ic h latter perhaps the word “rupee ”

is connected , and th at he actua l ly m ent ions the two word s f éfi f flr and

f alfal, both m ean ing wr it ing ,afford s pa l pab le proof of his a cqua intance

w ith the a rt of wr i t i ng , w ith out wh ich , as I have sa id,he cou ld never

h av e p rod uced his g rea t gramma r .

”

lA nc ient S ans k rit L itera ture, p . 52 3 . T he G ree k s pra ise the beautyof the wr it ing of the Ind ians . S ee S trabo , L i b . X V ,

p . 4 9 3 .

M egasthen es says th at “the H indus used letters f o r inscr i pt ions on

m i le—stones , i nd icat ing the rest ing pla ces and d istances .

’ Cu rt ius a lsoN

says th a t “ the Ind i ans wrote on sof t r ind of trees . N ea rchus m en

t ion s th at. the Ind ian s wrote letters on '

cotton th at had been wel l beatentogeth e r. Father Pantino says th at “ cotton paper was u sed in I nd iabelow the Ch ristian Cl

'

a . I ii / sea rches,Vol. I I , p . 10 7 .

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2 18 H INDU S U PE R IO R ITY .

Prof essor Max Mu l ler says : “ Y et su ch i s the mar

v el lon s con tinu ity between the pa st and the presen t

in Ind ia , that in sp ite of repeated soc ialconv u l s ion s,

rel ig iou s ref orm s and f ore ign inva s ion s,S ansk r it m ay

b e sa id to b e s t i l l the on ly language th at i s spoken ov er

the w hole ex tent of that v a st country .

”H e adds

“ Ev en at the present m omen t,

a f ter a cen tu ry of

English ru le and Engl i sh teach ing,I bel iev e that

San skr it i s more w i de ly u nders tood in In d ia than

Lat in was in Eu rope at the t ime of Dan te .

” 1

Who a f ter th is can say that San skr i t was or i s a

dead language

lnd ia “T hat can it teach us ? pp . 78 , 79.

T H E v nm c L ITE RATU RE .9 19

I . T H E VE D IC LITE RATU RE .

Ve ila f ter ve i l w i ll l i ft—but there must b e

Ve il upon ve il beh ind .

S c) mon .

1

P R O FE S S O R Max Mu l ler says : “ T he Ved i c l i tera tu reopen s to u s a chapter in w hat has been ca l led the ed u

ca t i on of the h um an race,to wh i ch we can find no

7 7para l lel anyw here el se .

T he Ved i c l iteratu re con s i sts of (1) T he Veda s,

(2 ) T he Brahmana s, (3 ) T he Sutra s .

T he Veda s are f ou r in number and are cal led theR ig Veda

,the Y a j u r Veda

,the A tharva Veda

,a nd the

S fun a Veda . T he B ig Veda and the Y a ju r Veda a re the

inos t important of the Veda s,as they re spectiv el y dea l

w i th the know ledge o f th ings physi ca l,men ta l and

sp i r itua l and the appl icati on of tha t know ledge .

T he Veda s are u n iv ersa lly adm itted to b e not on ly

by f ar the m ost importan t work in the San sk r i t languageb u t the greatest work in alllitera ture .

I t i s noth ing short o f a m i ra cle that wh i le impor

tan t works in a lmost alldepa rtmen ts o f human lea rn ing

that were cu l tiva ted in an c ient Ind ia hav e perished , themost important o f them all

,the Veda s

,the f oun ta in -head

o f all; know ledge and the pa rent of. alll i terature and

scien ce , hav e come down to us secu re a nd in tact. Wh ilemost of the important San sk r it works f rom Mann Sm r i ti

,

the most an c ient code o f law in the w orld,to the

1 L igh t of As ia , 12. 2 1. 2 Ind ia t at can it teach us p . 89

220 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

Ramayana and the Mahabhara ta hav e been tam pered w ith,

the Vedas,by the v ery in im itable gran deu r o f the i r

language,-and the u nequa l led su bl im ity o f the i r

con te nts hav e defied alla ttempts at in terpola ti on .

As,howev er

,the study of t he Veda s ha s long been

n egle cted , an d a thorough know ledge of the S u tra s an d

Vedanga s by w h i ch a lone the Ved ic man tra s m ay b e

interpreted is,

v ery ra re,the Vedas are ra rely well

u nderstood even by the learned amongst the H indu s .

IVhen the Y aju r Veda was presented to Vol ta ire,he

expressed h i s bel ief that i t was the m ost preciou s gif t for

whi ch the West had been e ver indebted to the Ea st. 1

Gu igault says T he R ig Veda i s th e m ost sub

l ime con cepti on of the great h ighways of h um an ity .

”

Mon s,Leon D elb os speak s en th u s ia sti cal ly of the

grandeur an d subl im i ty o f the Veda s .

“ Th ere i s no

monumen t of Greece or Rome,

”he a sserts

,more pre

c ion s than the R ig Ved a .

” 2

Prof essorMax Mu l ler says I n the h istory of the

world,the Veda fi l l s a gap wh i ch no l itera ry work in

a ny other language cou ld fill.” 3 H e a l so says : I m a in

ta in that to ev erybody who cares f or h im sel f , f or h i s

ancestors,f or h i s h i story

,f or h i s in tel lectua l d ev elop

men t,a study of Ved ic l iteratu re i s T he

H indu s h old the Veda s to b e'

the Rev elat ion,and its

study a ccord ingly i s ind i spen sable to ev ery man .

1 ‘Vilson ’

s E ssays , Vol. I I I,p . 3 0 4 .

9 Mons L eon D elbos ’ paper on the Ved a s read before the InternationalL i terary A ssoc iat ion a t Par i s

,on 1 4 th Ju ly 188 4 , the venerab le

V i ctor Hugo be i ng in the ch a ir.

\Vils on ’

s E ssays , Vol. I I I,p . 83 9 .

4 Max M uller’s Ind ia \Vhat can it teach us p . 121.

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2 22 H INDU S UPE R I O R ITY .

late lamented P . Gu ru Datta o f Lahore attempted to

in terpret a f ew man tra s o f. the R ig Veda on the strength

o f Swam i D ayanand S ara swati’

s commenta ry on the

Veda s . T h e resu l t wa s a s ton i sh ing

. In terpreting the

7 th man tra o f the secon d suk ta of R ig Veda,

fiqé; 3 3 gelaf i are ala f rmeza rg Fa t?gala? H TW T N

3 32° 9 51° Kl‘

Q O R lF fi'

fl'

Q II

P . Guru Da tta says : “ Th i s man tra descr i bes the

p rocess,or steps whereby the wel l-known of

l iqu i d s,water

,can b e f ormed by the comb inati on of two

othe r su bstan ces (gr z’

ta cli z'

m sa db a n ta ) . T he word

sa d/20 mm i s in th e dualnumber in d ica t ing that it i s

two elemen tary bod ies wh i ch combine to f orm water .

What those two elemen tary substan ces a ccord ing to

th i s man tra are,i s not a ma tter of lea st im portan ce to

determ ine . T he w ords u sed to ind icate those two

substan ces are m z

'

tm an d tra runa .

“ T he first l itera l mean ing of m ilw ‘ i s mea su rer . T he

nam e i s giv en to a su bstan ce that stand s,as it were

,a s a

m ea su re r or a s a standard substance . I t i s the m easu rer

o f den s ity,or of v a lue

,oth erw i se known a s quantiv a

len ce . T he other mean ing o f m z

'

z‘m is ‘

a s sociate .

’

N ow

in th i s man tra,mitm is descr ibed as an a s soc ia te o f

v a runa?

I t w i l l b e shown how va runa in d i ca tes

1 T he word mitra is formed by add ing the unad i su ffi x [era to the

root mi , a ccord ing to the sutra a fiqfa fq nfa ta: an: H G IN " g N

T he m ean ing is‘

FFIHTHI H T‘EI wf tfa fea : l or one that measures or

stand s as a stand ard of reference .

Vacu um. is formed by add ing unad i su ff i x una n to root vr z’

to

a ccep t giq qlftwg flq HQ l| Hence it means tha t wh i ch is a ccep ta b le to allor see k s all.

T H E VE nIo L I'

r Ia'

rr nn. 22 3

oxygen gas .

1 N ow i t i s wel l-known that hyd rogen is

not only the l igh test element known,nor i s it on ly

monova len t , but tha t it has a strong a ffin i ty f or oxygenhen ce it i s that it i s descr i bed a s an a ssociate o f r a ru na .

Many other analog ies in the properties o f m itra a nd

hyd rogen go on to suggest tha t what i s in Ved ic term sstyled as m ilw i s in f act i dent i cal w i th hyd rogen .

Illitm for in stance,occurs as synonymou s w i th u r/(um

in many parts of the Veda s,

an d ud a na i s wellcha racter i zed by its l igh tnes s or by its power to l i f t up .

T he '

second elemen t w ith wh ich we are concerned i st ia nm a . Ve re na i s the substan ce tha t i s acceptable to

all. I t i s the elemen t that every l iv ing be ing need s to

l iv e . I ts wel l-known proper ty i s i .e .,it ea ts

away or ru sts allthe ba se m eta l s , it bu rn s allthe bones,

etc .,and phys iologi ca l ly pu r ifies the blood by oxid i z ing

it,and thereby keep ing the f rame a l iv e . I t i s by these

p roperties th at ca r er'

na i s in genera l d i stingu i s hed b u t

it i s espec ia l ly cha ra cter i zed here a s r z

'

slza d alz . No one

can f a i l to perce i v e that the substan ce thu s d i stinctly

characte r i zed i s oxygen gas .

“ An other word u sed in the man tra i s pum

P uta i s pu re,f ree f rom impu r it ies . D aksb a mean s enerc '

v .

D u

P am d a /rs/zam i s a sub stan ce pu re possessed of k inet i c

energy . Who tha t i s acqua inted w i th the k ineti c th eory

o f ga ses cannot see in p u ta (la /cs/za the properties o f a

gas h igh ly hea ted

T he mean ing of the mantra taken as a whole i s th i s .

Let one who i s des i rou s to form water by the combina

lA gam ,we have in N ighantu . the Ved i c D i c t iona ry , Ch apter V ,

S ect ion 4, finer { fa qqatng q faaq H ence mz‘tz a means tha t

wh ich approaches or see k s assoc iat ion wi th oth ers .

22 4 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

t ion of two sub stan ces , take pu re hy drogen gas h igh ly

h eated and ox ygen ga s possessed of the properties

rislza da /z,an d let him comb ine them to f orm water .

”

T he B ra fima na s,too

,are sometim es hel d by the

i gnorant to b e pa rt o f the Veda s : b u t a s Prof essor‘

Weber says , str i ctly speaking , on ly the S angh itas are

Veda s . T he B ra / nua nces are e i ther comm en tar ies on

the Veda s or ph ilosoph ica l d i squ i s it ion s ba sed on them .

O f th e per i od w hen these B rakma na s were compos

ed,Prof essor VVeb er savs : lVe hav e h ere a copy o f

the per iod w hen Brahm an s w i th l iv ely emu la tion carry

on the ir enqu ir ies into the h ighest questi on s the human

m ind can propoun d w omen w ith en thu s ia sti c a rdour

pl unge in to myster ies of specu la t ion ,impress ing an d

a ston i sh ing m en by the dep th and lo f tiness o f th e ir

opin i on,and who sol v e the qu esti on s p roposed to them

o n sa cred subjects .

” 1

T he B ra izma na s,composed by some of the w i sest sages

o f the anc ien t world,though not en joy ing the au thor i ty

o f the Veda s a re o f the h ighest v a lue to the s tuden t o fthe Ved ic l i tera tu re .

T he S utra s a re d iv i ded in to

(1) S ikh sha (phoneti c d i rec tory) .

(2 ) Chhandas (metre) .

(3 ) Vyakarana (gramma r).

(4 ) N irukta (explan at i on o f word s ) .

(5 ) Jyotish (a stronomy) .

(G) Ka l pa (ceremon ia l ) .Th i s d iv i s ion w i l l show tha t the stu dy o f language

was cu l tivated by the H indu s f rom the earl iest t imes on

sc ien t ific p r in c iples .

1Weber’s Ind ian L iteratu i c , p . 2 .

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2 20 H INDU S U P E E i onI T v

j umbled up a s they were in the Greek adaptati on o f the

pr im i tiv e Sem i ti c arrangemen t o f years

R ev . Mr. lVa rd say s : “ In ph i lology th e H indu s

h av e,perhaps

,excel led both the an c ients (Greeks an d

Rom an s) an d the modern s .

” 2

Pro fessor Max Mu l ler says : “ T he i dea of'

redu c ing a

w hole langu age to a small number of roots , w h i ch in

Europe wa s not a ttem pted before the s ix teen th cen tu ry

by Henry Est ienn e,wa s perf ectly f am i l iar to the Brah

ni an s a t lea st 500 year s bef ore Ch r i st .

” 3

T he sc ien ce o f language,indeed

,. says S ir TV. IV.

H u nter,

“ ha d been reduced in In dia to f un damen ta l

pr inci ples a t a t im e w hen~the grammarian s of the lVes t

stil l treated it as a cc iden ta l resemblan ces .

” 4

Another bran ch of the s cien ce o f language , the

gramma ti ca l treatm en t o f it,w a s cu ltiv a ted to a degree

w h ich not on ly defies com par i son,b u t i s u n iqu e in the

ann a l s of l itera tu re . T he m ost em inen t In dian gram

m a r ian,Pan in i Mu n i

,s i ts on the ha l lowed th rone o f nu

r i v a l led l i terary repu tati on,hav ing a ch iev ed the most

perfect work of its k in d o f w h ich the human m in d i s capable . Professor Weber speaks in raptu rou s term s o f Pan i

n i’

s a ch ie v emen t. H e says “ I 'Ve pa ss at on ce into them agn ificen t ed ifice w h i ch bears the n ame o f Pan in i as itsarc h i tect

,and wh i ch ju s tly command s the won der and

adm i rat ion o f ev eryone who en ters,and wh i ch

,by the

v ery fact o f its su ff i c ing f or allthe phenom ena w h ich

la ngu ag e presen ts,bes p eaks at on ce the m arvel lou s

H istory o f llind u C lie iu is t i y , Vol. I , p , 2 5 .

o f the H i nd us .

3i\la .\ M u l le r’s L ec tu res on the S c ience o f L a nguage , p . 80 . For

Il. E s t ienne see S ir J oh n S to dd a rt G lo s so logy .

4 linp 4 1 ialG a z e ttee r , I nd i a . p . 2 14 .

T i i E VlClH t‘

. L i'

riciia'

ri i iuc. 7

i ngenu i ty o f its in ven to r and h i s pro found penetra tion o f

the en tire ma te ria l o f theS ir \V. H un te r says T he gramm a r o f Pa n i n i

stand s supreme among the gramm a rs o f the world,a l ike

f or its p i eeision o f sta tement and for its thorough an a

lys i s o f the roots o f the language and o f the form at i ve

pr inc iple s o f word s . By apply ing a n algeb ra i ca l term inology , it a tta in s a sharp succ inctnes s u n ri v a l l ed in

brev i ty,b u t a t times en igmati ca l . I t arra nge s in log ica l

ha rmony the whole phen om ena w h i ch the San skr i t language presen ts , and stand s f orth a s one o f the mus t splen

d id a chievemen ts of huma n invention a nd ind us try . S O

ela borate i s the structu re tha t doubts hav e a r i sen wheth e r

its inn umerable ru les o f f ormati on and phon eti c c han g e ,its polysyllab i c der iv ativ es

,its ten con j ugat i on s w i th i ts

m u l ti form ao ri s ts and long array o f ten se s cou l d e v er

ha ve been the spoken language o f a people .

” 2

Mann ing says : "T he celebra ted Pan in i bequeathed

to po ster i ty one o f the ol dest an d m ost renown ed books

e v er wr i tten in a ny“ T he sc ien tific com

pleteness of San sk r i t grammar appea red to S ir W. Jo nes

so una ccou n table that he wrote about it w i th ama zemen t

a nd adm i ra ti on .

ml

1\Veb er’

s Ind i an L i tera tu re,

2 10 .

“ T he se ru les (o f g i a ii in ia i )a re formed w ith the utmost conc isc i i cs s

,the consequence o f v e i y i ng en io us

m ethod s —Co leb roo k e on S ans k r i t and P rak i it languages , A s ta ire

I t’csetu chcs

,Vol. VI I .

Q ImperialGa z etteer o f Ind ia , A rt,

“ Ind ia,p . 2M .

3.\u c ient a nd M ed iae va l I nd ia ,

Vol. I , p . 3 8 4 .

! Anc ient a nd Med i aev a l I nd ia ,Vol. I

,p . 3 7 1 T he g i am n ia tieal

wo i ks o f the H i nd us a re so i'

en ia i ka ble th a t in the i r own d e pa rtm ent

th ey m e sa id to ex ceed in n ie i it i i ea ily all,if not all, g i a n imaliealpro

d uc tions of o the r n a t ions .

”—p .

228 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

I n Eu rope,gen era l ly speak ing gramma t i ca l scien ce

does not yet trea t o f those h igh pr in c iples wh i ch u n derl ie

the l i f e and growth of languag e . I t i s not f a i r to Pan in i

to compa re w ith h i s Vya t'

an'

a na,the gramm ars of modern

E urope,w here the gramm at i ca l sc ience has not yet

gra sped those pr in ciples of the f orma ti on and dev elop

m en t of a language , wh i ch it i s the un i qu e honou r of

San skr i t grammars to cla ss i fy an d ex pla in .

Mrs . Mann ing says : “ San skr it gramm a r i s ev i

d en tly f ar super ior to th e [f ind of grammar w h i ch f orthe most part has contented grammar ian s in Eu rope .

” 1

“ Vyakarana ,” says the sam e au thoress

,

“wa s not

merely gramma r in the lower a ccepta ti on of be ing an

explana tion o f declen s ion , con j ugat ion and othergrammati ca l f orm s , b u t wa s f rom its comm en cement a

sc ien t ific grammar or grammati cal sc ien ce in the highestsen se wh i ch can b e attr ibuted to th i s term .

”

Mr. Elph in stone says H i s work s (Pan in i’s ) and

those of h i s successors hav e establ i shed a system o f

g rammar , the m ost complete that ev er was employed ina rranging elements o f human speech ” 3

P rof essor Max Mu ller says The i r (H indu s )a ch iev ements in grammat i ca l ana lysi s a re sti l l un su r

pa ssed in the grammati cal l itera ture o f any nation .

”

Pan in i,Katyayana , and P atan j ali, a re the cano

n icaltr iad of grammar ian s o f Ind ia,

”and

,to quote

Mrs . Mann ing on ce m ore,

“ su ch (gramma t i ca l ) wo rksare or ig ina ted a s a re u nr iva lled in the l iterary h i story o f

other nat i on s .

” t

] Anc ient and Med iae v a l Ind ia,Vol. I

,p . 3 8 1 .

Q sec Gold stuck er’

s Pan i n i,p 196 . Vyak arana= undoing or ana lys i s .

Tililphinstone’

s H i story o f l nd ia,p . 1 4 6 .

4A nc i ent and N ed ize v alH i sto ry of Ind ia . VolI

,p . 3 8 1 .

“ H indug ramm a r ia ns h a v e b een eng ag ed in the sol ut ion o f interest ing p rob lems

f rom t imes immcmo i ial. ”— p . 88 1 .

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[O03

O H INDU S UPE R IORlT Y .

I I .

—POETRY .

B less i ng s b e w i th them and etern a l p ra i se,

T he poets who on ea rth h a v e mad e u s he i rsO f Truth and pure d e l igh t b y heaven ly l ays .

lVo/ d s 'wm tit .

CO UNT BJ O R N S T J E R N A says : “Poetry ru les ov er allin Ind ia '

it has lent its f orm s,its co lor ing , and its cha rm s even -to

the m os t abstra ct sc ien ces, yea , ev en to re l igion .

”

Professor Max D unker says “ T he trea su res of poetry

in In d ia are Among su ch a“ poetic al

people”as the H indu s -a s P ro fessor H eeren

3aptly term s

them— poetry flour i s hed in wonderf u l lux ur ian ce,and its

v a riou s bra n ches were cu lt iv ated w ith m arvel lou s su cces s .

Prof essor Heeren says “ T he v a r i ous bran ches o f poetry,

su ch a s the narra t i ve an d the d ramat i c,the lyr i c a s wel l a s

the d ida cti c an d the apologue , ha v e allflou r i s hed in Sa n s

kr i t l i tera tu re,and produ ced the most excel len t resu lts .

”

Mr . Elph in stone says Allw ho hav e read the

heroi c poem s in the or ig ina l are en thu s ia s ti c in the i r

pra ise,and the i r beau ties ha ve been most f el t by those

w hose own p roduc tion s enti tle the ir j u dgmen t to m os trespec t. N or i s th i s adm i rat i on confin ed to cr iti cs who

hav e pecu l iarly dev o ted them sel ves to Or ien ta l l i tera ture .

M i lman a nd Sch legel v ie w ith Wi l son and Jones in the i r

applau se and f rom one or o ther o f these w r i ters we learnthe s im pl ic ity an d orig ina l ity o f the com pos ition ; the su b~

l im ity,grace and pathos o f pa rti cu lar pa ssages ; the n atu ra l

d ign i ty o f a ctors the holy pu r i ty o f manners,and the

i nex h au sti ble f e rti l i ty o f im aginat ion in the au thors .

a eogon y o f the H ind us,p . 8 0 .

i l‘lis to ry ol' A nt iq u ity , p . 2 7 .

H i s t . I tes‘

c a i che s , Vol. 11, p . 1 86 .

“t llis t . R esea rches,Vol. 1—17 .

3 l§lphins tone’

s H i sto ry o f lnd ia,p . 155 .

I'Il‘ltl [

CQ

0

v

v

111. E P IC PO E T R Y .

\nd h ere the s i ng e r fo r his a rt,N o t. allin va i n m a y p le a d

,

T he s o ng tha t. ne i ves a na t io n '

s h ea l t,

I s in itsel f a d eed .

T 'nnyson .

PR O FE S S OR H ignnnu says : “ T he l i tera tu re o f the H ind usi s r i ch in ep ic poetry .

” 1 T he Ramaya na and the M ahabhara ta

,howev er

,are the pr incipa l epi cs

,the epi cs pa r

ex cellence o f Ind ia P ro fessor Mon ier Wi l l iam s th u s

speaks o f them Al though the H ind u s,l i ke the

Greek s,ha v e on ly two great ep ic poem s

,n am ely

,the

tamayana an d the Mah abharata, yet to com pa re these

w i th the I l iad or the Odyssey i s to compare the In du s andthe Gange s r i s ing in the snows o f the worl d ’s m ostco los sa l ranges

,swol len by n um erou s tr ibuta r ies spread

ing in to v a st sha l lows or bran ch ing in to deep d iv ergen tchannel s

,w i th the stream s o f Att i ca or the m oun ta inou s

torren ts o f T hessally . There i s , in fa ct , an immen s i ty

o f bu lk abou t th i s,a s abou t ev ery other departmen t

o f San sk r it l itera tu re , w h ich to a Eu ropean,a ccu stomed

to a m ore. l im ited hor i zon,i s absolu te ly bew i ldering .

”

O f these remarkable poem s , the R am a vana i s theolder

,w h ile the Mahabhara ta i s the larger o f the two .

Apa rt from the i r h igh poet i ca l m eri ts,in w h i ch they

de fy r iv a lry and d i sca rd compar i son,the i r enormou s

bu l k is a stand ing pu zz le to the E uropean cr i ti cs .

lH isto ricalR es earch es,Vol. 11, p . 1 4 7 .

-’la d lan E p i c Poetry , p . 1.

2 3 2 H I NDU surnmonrrv .

A compa r i son w ith th e othe r great epics o f the old

worl d w i l l g i v e an i dea of the i r enormou s s i ze .

Mahabharata has l ines .R amavan a ha s

Homer’s Il iad has

Vi rgi l ’s fE nead has

T he I l iad and Odyssey together con ta in l ines .Sch lege l ca l l s Ramayana “

the noblest o f ep ics .

R amayana,

” says Prof essor Mon ier Wi l l iam s,i s

u n doub ted ly one o f the greatest trea su res in San skr i tl i teratu re . S ir “7 . Jon es says : “ T h e Ramayana i s an

ep ic poem on the story of Ram a,wh i ch, in un it y o f a ction

,

m agn ificen ce o f imagery an d elegan ce o f s tyle f a r su r

pa sses th e learn ed and elaborate work of N onnu s .

”1

Af ter giv ing the a rgumen t of the Ram ayana,Prof .

H eeren,w ith h i s u su a l moderat i on

,says Such

,in f ew

words,i s the ch ief subjec t of Ramayan a

,w h i le the d e

v olopment and m ethod of handl ing th i s s imple a rgumen t

i s so remarkab ly r i ch an d cop iou s a s to su ff er l ittle f roma compa r i son in th i s respect w i th the most adm ired prod u c tion s of the epic m u se .

Prof essor S ir M . Mon ier Wi l l iam s says T here

i s not in the w hole range of the San skr it l iterature a

m ore charm ing poem than the Ram ayana . T he cla ss ica l

p ur i ty , clearnes s and s impl i c i ty of its style,the exqu i s ite

lA siatie R esea rch es, p . 2 55 ,A W i iter in the [V’

stnn nz ster I t’ez

'

z eto

for A p i il18 68 o ff els M ah a bh a rata su ch a remote ant i qu ity a s to leavebeh ind not only Ma nn b ut ev en the wr it ings o f A svalyana , etc . CountR io rnstjerna d a tes it a t 2000 B 0 . D r . M ittra po ints out th a t “

the

in the course of its th ousand s of v erses,nowh ere a l l ud es

to B ud d h ism and Budd h a,a nd m ust there fo re

,and on oth er g round s

not n o ] th nam ing here , d ate f rom before the b ii th of S a k ya .-T /ze I nd u

A lf/ ”778 , Vol. 1, p . 3 3 .

J H ec reu’

s H isto ri ca l R esearches . Vol. I I,p . llilo

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2 3 4 H I NDU S U PE R IO R ITY .

S i ta i s the noble st idea l o f a woman . H er nob le

and ca lm dev otion to her lord , her unboun ded lo ve , h er

ex a l ted con cept i on of the eterna l,n ay , d iv ine rela ti on

o f a w i fe to her h usband are i deal s u npara l leled f or lof t i

n ess and subl im i ty in any langua ge or l i tera tu re. Wh at

can b e more noble than her address to Rama w hen she

pleads f or perm i s s i on to accompany him in to ban i shment P

A w ife must s h are her husband ’

s fate . My d uty is to fol low th ee\Vhere

’

er thou goest . Apart from thee, I wou ld not dwel l in heaven itselfD eserted by her lord , a W i fe is l i k e a m iserable corp se.

C lose as thy shadow wou ld I c leave to thee in th i s l i fe and h ereaf ter.

Thou a rt my k ing , my gu i d e , my on ly refuge , my d iv in ity .

I t is my fix ed resolve to f ol low thee . I f thou must ivand er forth .

Th rough thorny tra c k less forests , I w i l l go before th ee tread ing d ownT he pr i c k ly bram bles to m a k e smooth thy path . Wa l k ing before theeS h a l l fee l no wear iness : the forest-thorns w i llseem l i k e s i l k en rob es

T he b ed of leaves a couch of d own . T o m e the she l ter of thy presenceI s better far t han stately pa laces and parad ise i tse lf .P loteeted by thy arm , god s , d emons

,m en sha l l h ave no power to h arm me

l’Vith thee I ’ l l l i ve contented ly on roots and fru its . S weet or not sweet,

I f g iven b y thy h and , they w i l l to m e b e l i k e the food of li f e .

R oam i ng with thee in d esert wastes , a thousand years w i llb e a d ay ;D wel l ing with thee , e

’

en hel l itself should b e to me a heav en of bl iss.

Ju l iet,says Prof . Dow den

,i s b u t a pa ss i onate

gi rl before th i s per f ect woman,

m ean ing , Bru tu s’

Portia , b u t wha t b ecomes of Portia herself bef ore th i s

heav en ly woman , th i s etherea l be ing, th i s celestia l S ita

As f or Rama,h i s cha ra cter s imply stan ds nu

r iv al led in alll i teratu re,anc ient or modern , Asiat i c or

E uropean .

P r in cipa l Gr i ffi th says : “ \Vel l may the Ramayana

ch a l lenge the l i teratu re o f ev ery age and country to

prod uce a poem tha t can boa st o f su ch perf ect characters

a s a llama and a S i ta .

”H e adds Nowhere e l se are

E PI C PO E TRY .

poetry and mora l i ty so cha rm ingly un i ted , each elevating

the o ther as in th i s real ly holy poem .

”

Miss Ma ry Scott says T he Ramay ana i s f u ll o f

poetry , and S i ta one o f the sweetest types o f wom an

hood tha t I hav e ever read .

” 1

As f or the Mahabharata,Pro fessor Heroen says : “ i t

w i l l scarcely b e poss ible to deny the Mahabha ra ta to b e

one o f the r i ch es t compos i ti on s in Epic poetry that was

ev er p roduced .

” 2

D r . F . A . Ha ssler o f Amer ica thu s waxes eloqu en tin pra i se o f the Mahabhara ta °

“ I n allmy exper ien ce

in l i f e,I hav e not f ound a work that has inte rested m e

a s m u ch a s that noble produc tion o f the w i se , and I do

not he s ita te to say , in sp ired m en o f an c ien t India . I n

f act I hav e stud ied it m ore than any other work f or a

long t ime pa st,and hav e m ade a t lea st n otes wh ich

I hav e arranged in a l phabeti ca l order for the purpose o f

study . T he Mahabharata has opened to me,a s it were

,a

new w orld,and I hav e been surpri sed beyon d m ea su re at

the w i sdom,truth

,knowledge

,and lov e of the r igh t

wh i ch I h av e f ound d i splayed in its pages . N ot on ly so ,b u t I hav e f ound many o f the truth s wh i ch m y own

h eart ha s taugh t me in rega rd to the S upreme Be ing

and H is creat i on s set f orth in beau ti f ul,clear language .

"

T he H amilton D a ily S pecta tor (May 3 1st,1888 )

thu s speak s o f the Mahabharata “ Th i s poem is rea l ly

a ser ies of re l ig iou s, mora l , m etaphys i ca l , ph i losoph i c a nd

pol it i ca l d i squ i s i ti on s strung upon a th read o f n arra t i v e .

Th i s n ot on ly giv es to the modern worl d a l i v ing pi ctu re

1 Letter to P . C . R oy ,d ated Lond on

,the 8th D ecember 188 3 .

H i stor i ca l R esea rch es,Vol. I I , p . 104 .

L etter to P . C . S ee R oy'

s M ah abha ra ta .

9 3 6 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .H

of Ind ian l i f e , mora l s , manners , pol iti cs , rel ig ion and

ph i losophy a s they ex i sted more than years ago ,

b u t they tran sm i t to u s some o f the mos t subl ime poetry

a nd som e o f the deepest and noblest thoughts that have

ev er been gi ven to the world .

”

Kr i shna,the greatest pol iti c ian of the world

,says

T he w ise g r ieve not for the d epa rted ,nor for those who yet su rv i v e .

N e’

e rwas the t im ewh en I was not, nor thou ,nor yond er Ch iefs , and n e

’

er

S h a l l b e the t ime when allo f u s sh a llb e not a s the unbod i ed sou lI n th is corporea l f rame m oves sw i ftly on th rough boyhood , youth 85 age ,S o w i l l it pass th rough oth er forms h erea f ter— b e n ot g rieved th erea t .

T he m an whom pa i n and p lea sure , heat a nd cold a ffect not he is fi tF o r immorta l i ty that wh i ch is not cann ot b e- and th at wh i ch isC a n never cea se to be . Know th i s — the be ing that sp read th is un i verseI s i nd estructi b le who can d estroy the Ind estruct i bleThese bod ies th a t en c lose the everla st ing sou l , in sc rutabl e ,Immorta l

,h ave an end— b u t he who th ink s the sou l can b e d estroyed ,

A nd he who d eems rt a d estroyer , are a l i k e m ista k en it

K i l l s not,a nd is not k i l led it is n ot born

,nor d oth it e ver d ie

I t has no past nor f uture— u np rod u ced . u nch ang ing ,infin i te he

Who k nows rt fi xed . u nborn ,im per ish able ,

i nd isso lub le ,

H ow can th at m an d estroy anoth er , or ext ingu ish a ugh t belowA s m en aba ndon old and th read ba re c lothes to pu t on others n ew

S o casts the embod i ed sou l its worn out f rame to enter other form s .

N o d a rt can p ierce it flame cannot consum e it, water wet it not,

N o r scorch i ng b reez es d ry it i nd estru ct i ble, incapable

O f h ea t or mo istu re or a r id ity— eterna l,all—pervad ing ,

S ted fast . imm ovable perpetua l, yet imperceptible ,

I neomp rehens ible, un fad rng , d eath less . un imag inab le .

M iss Ma ry Scot t says “ T he chara cters a re splend idly portrayed . I t i s a thorough ly m artia l poem

,and

one can en ter in to the battles between the P and u s and

Pro f essor Syl v ian Lev i o f Par i s says : “ T heKu ru s .

Mahabharata i s not on ly the la rgest,b ut a l so the gra nd

est o f allep i cs , a s it conta in s throughout a l i v ely teaching o f mo ra l s u nder a glor i ou s garmen t o f poetry

” 1

1 Letter to P . 0 . R oy , d ated the 17th Ma rc h 1888 .

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2 3 8 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY.

T he I'Va terto zrn p ost (Tuesday , June 22 ,

ca l l s Mahabha rata,

“one o f the mos t wonderf u l poem s

o f w h ich we hav e any record,

and says : T he poem i s

the Mahabhara ta,t he old est

,the m ost v olum inou s

,and

,

a ccord ing to IVheeler, the h i stor ian of Ind ia,the mos t

v a luable ep ic in any language . I t con s i sts o f some

000 l ines , i s f ou rteen t ime s longer than the Il iad

S i r Edw in Arnold,rn h i s “ Ind ian Idyl ls

,

” cla im s

f or parts o f it “an or ig in an ter ior to writ ing

,an ter ior

to Pu ran i c theology , anter ior to Homer,perhaps to

Moses .

” H e f u rther says What truer con cep ti on of

a w i f e th an th i s,w r itten more than th ree thou sand yea r s

ago S he i s a true w i f e who i s sk i l f u l in househ old

a ff a i rs she i s a t rue w i fe whose heart i s devoted to h erl ord she i s a true w i fe who knoweth none b ut her l ord .

T he w i fe is m an’s ha l f the w i f e i s the first o f f r iend s

the w i f e i s the root of sa lvat ion . They that hav e wiv es

ha ve the mean s of be ing cheerf u l they that hav e w iv es

can ach iev e good f ortu ne. Sweet-speeched w i ves are as

f riends on occa s ion s o f joy : they a re a s m others in

hours o f s i ckness and woe . A w i f e,theref ore , i s one

’s

m o st v a luable possess ion . No man ev en in anger

shou l d ever do anyth ing that i s d i sagreeable to h i s w i f e ,see ing that happ iness

,joy an d v i rtue

,everyth ing d e

pended on the w i fe ,”

and con clu des by saying we

m ay w el l accept th i s great poem a s on e of the pr i celess

possess i on s o f th e Ea st.”

Mr . T itu s Mu n son Coan,in the N ew Yor /e T imes

(4 th March , says T he H indu epi cs ha v e a

n earer s ign ifican ce f or u s than anyth ing in the Norse

m ythology . T he Ma habharata,one of the longes t o f

these poenrs , has w i der roman t i c element in it than

E PI C rorc'

rnv . 2 3 0

K ing Frith iof ’s S aya its acti on i s ca s t upon a grander

sca le , and its h eroes bel i ttle allothers in mythology .

T he H indu poem s,early though they a re

,conta in e th i cal

and h um an elements tha t a re u nknown to the Norsem an .

I t i s in th i s tha t th e i r endu r in gg ,

thei r growm g i n teres trema in s f or the m ind o f Europe and o f Am eri ca .

”

T he H amilton D a ily Sp ecta tor o f 3 1st May , 1888 ,

a f ter speak ing o f the R amayana and the Mahabha ra ta a s

immor ta l works,

” says that the grea t ep i c o f Ind ia,

Mahabhara ta,i s the longes t and in some re spects

,the

grea test o f allepic poem s .

”

Mon . A . Bar th says : Some porti on s o f the Maha

bha rata may wel l compare w ith the pure st and mos t

beau ti f u l p roduction s o f human gen i us .l T he Ramayana

i s th ree times as large a s Homer’s I l iad,a nd the Ma ha

bha ra ta f our t imes a s la rge a s the Ramayana . Hom er’ s

Il iad an d Odyssey ha v e th i r ty thou sand l ines,the Maha

bharata has two hundred and twen ty thou san d l ines,and

,

in add ition,a su pplement o f s ixteen thou san d th ree h un

dred and sev en ty-f ou r couplets . But it i s not in s i z e

a lone tha t th e sacred ep ics of Va lm iki and Vyasa excel .They en chan t by the wonderou s story they tell o f an c ien t

Aryan l i fe , fa ith and v a lou r . There i s also a l iv ely teach

ing of mora l s un der a g lor iou s ga rment of poetry .

”

“ Match les s Viv a c ity , u n su rpa ssably ten der and tou ch ing

episodes , and a perf ect store hou se of na t i ona l ant iqu ities ,” al iteratu re and eth i cs .

lR evue D e L’

U zstoz rc D es R eligion s . Pa rrs p . 3 8 .

2 T he JI ontz ealH erald, (Thu rsd ay , N ov . 12 th , T rub nc r

’

s

Ameri can,E uropean and O r ienta l L iterary R ecord

,new S eries , Vol.

V I I , N o . 3 . spea k s o f the Mah abha ra ta as“the wond erfu l epic ,

”

a nd

regrets“ how l ittle has up to the p resent been d one to unrave l the

myster ies it conta ins , or even to smooth a path lead ing to its goldentreasures I

2 4 0 H IN DU sc rmuonrrv .

S peak ing o f a certa in pa rt o f the Mahabhara ta,a cri ti c

sa y s We know o f no ep i sode,ev en in Homer i c poem s

,

w h ich can surpa ss its grandeur or ra i se a m ore solemn

d irge over the desolat i on o f the f a llen heart o f

T he characters o f the fiv e Panda v as,o f K r i shna

,

D uryodhana,Drona

,Bhishma and Karana

,are drawn w i th

a true poet i c f ee l ing and w ith nru ch a rti sti c del i cacy o f

touch . Y ud hishtra,Arju na

,Bh im a

,are portra its worthy

o f the h ighest poets,and can on ly b e d rawn by m en o f

ex traord ina ry imaginati on,and by soar ing in tel lects a s

Vyasa .

Perf ecti on i s a m er i t known on ly to the H indu s .A E uropean poet wou ld ha v e brough t the story to an

end”a f ter the term ina t i on o f the war in f av our o f the

Pandav a s,b ut “

the Sa n skr i t poe t has a f ar deeper in

s igh t in to m an’s n atu re

,

”and wou l d n ot end there

,to

the d issati sfa cti on o f th e reader,b ut wou ld w in d u p the

story an d end w i th the tran s la tion o f the Pa ndav a s to

II ea ven .

“ T he Ramaya na and the Mahabha rata,says VVil

son,

“abound w i th poetica l beau t ies of the first order

,

and particu larly in del inea ti on s o f pi cturesque m anners

and s ituati on s,and in the expres s i on of natura l a nd

am iable f eel ing .

” 2

There a re m any graph i ca l pa ssages,say s Prof essor

M . lVilliam s,

“ in the Ramayana an d Mahabharata,w h ich

1 T he [Vestrm n z s ter f er i em for O c tober 184 2 .

“ M a ny o f its (M a l ra~blrarata

’

s) eprsod es of them se l ves wou ld m a k e perfect poem s o f the fi rsto 1 r

g rad e ,and wou ld stand compa rrson wrth any L umpea n poem s . 1 here

is a touch ing ep i sod e , fu l l o f true poet i c fee l ing ,in A d ipa rva (510 1

ca l led Bakalrad ha , a s th ere a re a thous and o thers . Mon ie r e lra rnsE p i c P oetry of I n t/1a .

z hlill’

s Ind ia . Vol. I I , p . 52 , footnote .

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2 4 2 H INDU sc rnnronrrr .

epi cs are ev en more v aluable than the Greek and

Roman . I n the del ineation of women,the H indu poet

th row s a s ide allexaggerated colour ing,and draw s f rom

Natu re . Ka ikeyi, Mand odari,K au salya , and ev en Man

th ra,a re alld rawn to the v ery l i fe . S i ta

,D raupad i,

and Damayan t i engage ou r a ff ection s f ar m ore than

Helen or ev en than Penel ope . Indeed,H indu w iv es 1

a re genera l ly perf ect pattern s of conj uga l fidel ity : nor

can it b e doubted that in these del igh tf u l portra its of th e

pta tivra ta , or dev oted w i fe , we hav e tru e representat ion s

o f the pu r ity and s impl i c ity of H indu dom es t ic m ann ers

in early t imes

Noth ing , says the au thor f u rther on,can b e more

beau tif u l an d touch ing than the p ictu re o f dom esti c

an d socia l happ iness in the Ramayana and the Maha

bha ra ta . I t i s in deed in depi ct ing scenes o f dom esti c

a ff ect ion,and express ing those u n iv ersa l f eel ings an d

em otion s w h ich belong to human n atu re in allt im e and

in allpla ces,that San skr i t ep ic poetry i s u nr ivalled .

” 2

I n add i t i on to these two m ost celebra ted ep ics,there

a re a large n umber of ' sma l ler ep ics wh ich wou ld wells tan d compa r i son w ith s im i lar poem s o f any coun try .

1 Count Bjorrrstjc rna says Among oth er remar k able parti cula rsin th is poem is the pure l igh t in wh i ch it sets the noble c haracter and h ighn rind ed d evot ion o f the women o f Ind ia”— T /ieogor7y of t/re H i nd us

, p .82 .

2 Ind ian E p i c Poetry ,pp . 57 , 58 . Con tra st w i th the respectfu l

tone o f H ind u ch i ld ren towa rd s th e i r pa rents the ha rsh ma nner in wh i c hT clemaclrus genera l ly spea k s to his m other . Frlialrespect and a ff ect ionis qu i te a s noteworthy a feature in the H ind u chara cter now as in a n

c ie n t t imes . I h ave been a ssured by Ind ian o fficers th at it is common

fo r unnra rr ied sold iers to stru t th emse lves a lmost to stra v a tiorr po in t tha tthey m ay send money to th e ir aged pa rents I n th is

,the H ind us m ig h t

tea c h i ts (E ng l ishmen) a lesson .

”-b

'

u'

I’llon ier [Vi /llama

rcr rc r orc'

r‘

nv . 2 13

Mr. Co lebrooke speaks o f f itt f/ltltl’flllsa in the h ighes tterms

,and says

,

“ S isapal/n al/i i s another celebrated

epic poem .

”1 “

Kira t A rj unya is rema rkable,

”a ccord

ing to Colebrooke “ f or the v a r iety o f m ea su res a nd

the a llitera ti on,w h ile Malta [r

'

a'

oya s appears to the

E uropean reader v ery remarkable for v erba l ingenu ity .

”

“B iz a tti/ca oya , by Bhartari H a ri

,i s a poem o f con s iderable

repu tation .

” 3 [(a rn a r S amblza oa i s charm ing and

f a nc i f u l,

”and

,adds Mr . Gr i ffi th

,

“the a u thor m u s t h a v e

t ried allthe f erti l ity o f. resource,the a rti sti c sk i l l , and

the exqu i s i te ear o f the au thor o f [ .ala R oe /cit .

”

N aloa’aya , wh i ch i s a ttr i bu ted to Ka l ida sa ,rema rkable f o r show ing the extraord inary powers o f the

San skr it language,and it i s imposs ible not to wonder a t

7 7 5the ingenu i ty of the workman .

T he H a g/ira te P a nda va Vij aya , by Kav iraj a , i s

rather a cur ios ity than a poem . Mr . Colebrooke speak s

o f it a s an in s tan ce of. a complete poem ,every canto o f

w h ich exh ib i ts v ar iety of m etre .

“ Th i s,

” says Mrs .

Mann ing a l so,i s an ex traord ina ry poem .

”

O f N a ta D amaya n ti, Profe ssor H ereen says“ R e

m arkable a s th i s epi sode appea rs for inv ent iv e m er i t it i s

not a t allin fer i or in point of style,and some passages

would do cred it even to H omer himself .”6

T he imaginat ion o f the anc ient Hin du s wa s nu

r i va l led in f er ti l ity an d range in f a ct,l ike the w ho le

1 A nc ient a nd M eilrze valI nd ra , Vol11, p . 1 3 1 .

2 Mann ing’

s A nc ient a nd Med ite valI nd ra , Vol. I I , p . 1 3 5 .

3 I lrid , p . 13 7 . Ve rba l i ngenu i ty is its nrost rema r k a ble qualitv .

Co leb roo k e regard s“ K i rat A rjunya , K umar S amb hav a ,

Baz hu Vansa,

N alodaya , M eghd uta , w ith a no ther,as 0 ex ce l l en t com pos i t ions in

S ans k ri t.” .lliscella neoas E s says,p 8 -1.

4 P re face to G r i f f i th ’s tran s la t ion o f the “ B i rth o f the \Va r God .

5 Old Ind ian Poetry . GH ccren’

s H i s t. R es earches , Vol.ll, p . 107 .

2 4 4 H I NDU surnnroni rr

f a ce o f natu re , l ike th ose stupendou s moun ta in s , ma jes

tic r iv ers,and boundless expan se o f the coun try aroun d

them,the a ncient H ind u s ta ndard s o f strength an d

splendour are bew i lder ing to som e cr iti c s,who a re

“a ccustomed to a more l im ited hori zon .

” The i r (H ind u )crea ti on s are . therefore

,no t on ly u n r iva l led b u t un

approachable in beau ty,r i ch ness a nd gran deu r .

T o the European ev ery th ing i s grand,subl ime and

magn ificen t in Ind ia,whether you look at the o utward

express ion o f natu re,or a t the phys i ca l an d m en ta l

re sou rce s of the cou ntry . Look at the creat i on of God

or the crea tion of man, you are a bsolu tely struck w i th

ama zemen t and awe I T he snowy peaks o f her subl ime

H imav a t seem to raise the i r head s h igher than the

h ighest heav en , w h i le before the ir Indra and Brahma

the Eu ropean Apollo and Ju p iter s ink in to in sign ificance .

I f we compare ,” says Prof essor Heeren

,

“the mythe

logy of the H in dus w ith tha t o f the Greeks,i t w i l l hav e

noth ing to apprehend on the score o f in tr in s i c cop iou sness .

I n poin t of ae stheti c v a lue,it i s sometimes super ior , a t

others,in f er ior to the Greek : w h ile in luxur ian ce and

splendour it has the deci ded adv an tage . O lym pu s,w i th

allits f am i ly of gods and godde sses,mu st y iel d in

pomp and majesty to the palaces o f Vi shnu and Ind ra .

”1

“ T he H indu mythology,

”he says

,

“ l ike the subl ime

com po s i tion s o f Mi lton a nd Klopstock , ex ten ds its poeti c

fl igh t f ar in to the region s o f u n l im i ted space .

”H e add s

T he H ind u Epos ha s a greater resemblan ce to the

rel ig ious poetry o f the German s and the Engl i sh than

Greeks , w i th th i s d i ff erence,that the poet o f Ind ia ha s a

1 Ilc ercn‘

s‘ llisto r‘ic alR esea rches . Vol. I I , p 285 .

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2 4 6 H INDU surnnronrrr .

And if we con s ider the ex terna l c i rcum stan ces,the s ta te

o f c iv i l i za tion o f the two nat i on s,the i r l iteratu re

,wea lth

a n d con stitu tion,the learn ing a nd cha ra cter of the i r

crea tors,l ittle doubt rema in s a s to who were the rea l

creators and who the a dapters . M . H ippolyte Fa uche,

in the P reface to h i s F ren ch tran sla t ion o f the tamayan a ,

sav s that “ Ram ayana was composed bef ore the Homer i c

poem s,and that H om er took h i s i dea s f rom it.

”

Apa rt f rom the fa c t tha t the m a in story ha s been adopt

ed,an d that the u nderly ing plot o f the one (Ramayana )

and the pr inci pa l chara cters o f the other (Mahabharata )hav e been taken and f u sed together into a nationa l ep i c

by the Greeks , it i s clear that epi sodes an d sepa ra te ia

c id en ts f rom the In d ian eo ics ha ve been taken and v ers i

fied in the Greek tongue . Colonel Wi l ford a sserts tha t

the subject of the D ionysus o f Nonn a s wa s b or

rowed f rom the Mahabharata .

s ion o f the k ingdom o f Indra,Coun t Bj orn stj erna says

About Rav ana ’s in va

Th i s myth i s probably the f ounda ti on o f the an c ien t

Greek trad ition o f the a ttemp t o f the T i tan s to stormHeav en .

”

P rofessor Max Du nker says : “ When D i on Chry

sostom rema rks tha t the Homer i c poem s are sung by

the Ind ian s in the i r own language— the sorrow s o f

P riam,the la rn en ta tion s of Hecuba and A n d rorn aclre

,the

bra v e ry o f Ach i l les and H ector— La ssen i s u ndoubtedly

r igh t i n re fe rr ing th i s sta tement to the Maha bha ra ta andpu tting D hritraslrtra in the place o f Pr iam

,Gandhar i

a nd D ra upad i in the pla ces o f And romache a nd Hecuba,

Arj una and Kar na in the pla ces o f Ach i l les and Hector .

”3

lA s rutlc Vol. 1X , P~il’j T lreng o ny “ I “10 “ Ind us ? I"6 1 °

5 Ilis tory ol' An t i qu i ty , Vol. I V , p . 8 1.

DRA M A .2 4 7

DRAMA .

T o w a k e the so u l lrv tend e r stro k es o f a rt,

T o ra i se the g e n ius a n d to me nd the h e a rt,

T o m a k e m a n k i nd in co n s c io us v i rtue ho ld ,

L i ve o’

er ea ch scene , a nd he wha t they hehold .

PO P E P ro . to Ad d i son'

s Cum.

T H E d ramat i c wr i tings of the H ind us are equa l ly

remarkable . Externa l n atu re,a s m igh t b e expected in

a coun try w h ich i s the ep itome o f the world,

” 1 i s the

spec ia l f orte o f the H indu poets,and

,in no coun try

,

a nc ient or m odern,ha s Na tu re (in con trad i stin ct i on to

man ) been treated so poeti ca l ly or so exten s i vely in tro

d u ced in poetry . B ut,though outward na ture m u st

attra ct,by its magn i f i cence and its bea u ties

,the a tten ti on

o f a people gi f ted with such ma r v el lou s powers o f ob serv at i on and sen se f or beau ty , yet, the H in du s bei ng

a people g iven m ore than any other nat ion to ana ly z ing

though ts and f eel ings an d inv es t igat ing men ta l pheno .

m ena,hav e made explorati on s in the rea lm s of m ind

tha t exa c t the homage of mank ind and defy emu la t i on .

To th i s rea son,theref ore

,is d ue that the interna l na tu re

o f man,the human m ind w i th allits though ts

,f eel ings

,

v ol it ion s,allits des i res a nd a ff ection s

,its tenden c ies and

su sceptib i l i ties , its v i rtues and f a i l ings and thei r dev elop

men ts are alldrawn w i th a pen c i l a t on ce poet ic and na

tu ra l . Creat ion in perfect ha rmony w i th natu re i s a

f eatu re o f the H indu drama . T he cha racters are all

creat ion s, perf ect in them sel ves and in the ir f i del ity to

n ature . Extrav agan ce,con tra d i cti on and u n su i tab i l ity

lMurray’s H istorv of I nd i a , p . 1 ,

2 4 8 H INDU surmrromrv

in the dev elopmen t—e i ther of the plot or the characters

i s nev er perm i tted . T he drama s hold the m i rror to

Natu re an d,in th i s respect

,the Shakespea rean dram a s

a l one can b e compared to them wh i le,a s regard s the

language,San skr it m u st of cou rse a lways stand a lone

in beau ty and subl im i ty .

Wi th regard to the exten t to wh ich the d ram at i c

l iteratu re has been cu l tivated in Ind ia,S ir W. Jone s

says that the H indu thea tre would filla s ma ny volumes

a s tha t of a ny n a tion of modern E urope.

T he Mohamedan conquest of Ind ia resul ted in the

eff ectua l repress ion of H indu dram ati c w r i tings . In stead

o f rece iv ing f u rther development,the H indu d rama

rapidly decl ined,an d a con s iderable pa rt o f th i s f a sc inat

ing l iteratu re was f or ever lost.

Pro fessor Wi l son says I t m ay a l so b e observ ed

that the d rama tic p ieces wh ich hav e come down to u s

are those of the h ighes t order,defended by the i r intrin s ic

pu r ity f rom the corros ion of time .

”R upaka i s the H indu

term f or Play,

”and D a sa R up a /ra ,

” or descri pt ion o f

the ten kinds of theatr i ca l compos iti on s,i s one o f the

best trea ti ses on d rama ti c l iteratu re and s how s the

ex ten t to wh ich dramat i c l iteratu re Wa s cu ltiv ated bythe H ind u s .

A w ri ter says : “ We m igh t a l so con v en ien tlytran s fer to them (H indu d rama s ) the def in it ion s o f

the European s tage,and cla s s them un der the head o f

Tragedy , Comedy , Opera , Ba l let, Bu rl etta , Melodramaa nd Farce . Pro fessor Heeren sa v s “ There are spec im en s of H indu comedy sti l l extan t no way in f er ior tothe an c ien t Greek .

”

lH istoricalR esea rches,Vol. I I , p . 19 1 .

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2 50 H INDU sc rmrronrrr .

Follow ing nature m ore cl osely , the H indu d rama

u sua lly blender “ ser i ou snes s and sorrow w i th lev i ty an d

I n th i s respect, the H indu d rama m ay b e

cla ssed w ith m u ch o f the Span i sh and Engl i sh drama to

w h i ch , a s Sch legel observes,

“the term s tragedy an d

laugh ter .

com edy are w hol ly inappl i cable,in the sen se in wh i ch

they a re employed by the an cien ts .”

T he h igh er pu rpose o f the d ram ati c art was n ev er

lost s ight of by the H indu s . Th i s i s a d i stingu i s h ingf eatu re of the H indu d rama . Pro f es sor “I

ilson says :We m ay , howev er , observ e to the honou r of the H indu

d rama,that P a ra /clya , or she who i s the w if e of another

person ,i s n ever to b e made the object of a d ramat i c

in tri gue : a proh ibi t i on that wou l d hav e sadly cooled

the imaginat ion and cu rbed the w it of D ryden and

Congrev e .

”

S ir W. Jones says “ T he dramat i c spec ies of enter

tainment m u st hav e been ca rr ied to great perf ecti on

w hen Vicramad itya , who re igned in the f i rst century b e

f ore Ch r i st, gav e encou ragemen t to poets , ph i lologers ,

and mathema t i c ian s .” “ Bu t w ha t a cou rse o f prelim i

nary m enta l improv ement,

says P ro fe ssor Heeren ,“ mu st the n ati on hav e gon e th rough ere they cou ld

posses s a w ri ter l ike Kalidasalere they cou l d understand

and appreciate h i s gen iu s !”

Greater m asters of d rama,h owev er

,l i ved and

d ied in Ind ia before Ka l i dasa D a nclz’

wa s on e o f them .

U nh appily , howev er , to the e terna l m i s f ortune and regret

o f the c iv i l i zed world,h i s w ork s hav e met the same

f a te as producti on s o f the h igh est cla ss in many other

departmen ts o f H indu l i teratu re and sc ien ce hav e done .

Lov e or sr z

'

ru/d r , the emot ion wh ich a f ter h unger

i s the nrost powerf u l emotion in the world,i s a lead ing

pr in c iple in the d ramat i c l i te ra tu re o f the worl d,and

Mrs . Mann ing says : “ Nowhere i s love expre ssed w i th

grea ter force and pathos than in the poetry of Ind ia .

” 1

T he best known dramat i sts o f the Hind u s a re Ka l i

da sa and Bha vb huti. Ka l ida sa,

“one of the grea test

d ramat i s ts the worl d has e ve r p roduced ,” flour i shed in

the re ign o f Vicramad itya in the fi rst cen tu ry R . O .

,

Q

wh i le Bhav b hu ti l i ved many cen tu r ies later .

T he masterp iece o f Ka l i da sa i s the play o f Sakun ta la .

T he plot o f th i s “a ston i sh ing l i te rary perf ormance

,

”

as a grea t German cr iti c ca l l s it,i s taken f rom the

Mahabhara ta . P rof essor Heeren speaks in raptu rou s

terms of th i s “ f a r-famed d rama,

” 3 w h i ch i s in comparable

f or its beau ty , charm ,ten dern ess and fideli ty to n a tu re

,

and wh i ch , in f act. stand s a t the head of the d rama ti c

l i tera ture o f the worl d . H e says “ An d we mu st,in

truth , a l low Ka l ida sa to b e one of those poets who h a v e

lA neient and Mad iar valInd ia ,VolI I , p . 14 8 .

2 S ome c r it i cs a ff ect to ‘ th in k that the a uthor o f S a k unta la was

acontem pora ry of R a ja Bhoja and not V ic ramad itya , because a poet

named K a l id asa is a lso found to h ave flour ish ed in the cou rt of B h o ja ,

Pro fessor

‘Wi lson says : There h av ing been tWo K alid asas in Ind ia ,

and theex istence of a K a l id a sa a t the court o f B h o ja . is no a rgument

against Ama r

’

s be ing con tem pora ry w ith another ha rd o f the same nam e ,

o r the i r both h av ing f lou ri shed long a nter ior to the re ign o f the p r i nce .

”

Professor Wilson th en p roceed s to expl a in the cause of s u ch w i ldcri t i c ism ,

wh i ch he says is t“ ol'

old : (1 ) T he d i< putants run i nto the O ppO s itev i ce o f in c red u l i ty in o rd er to a vo id be i ng tho ught c rcd ulous . (Q) T h e i r

Opp

osi t ion to the ma ny c la ims o f H ind u i sm is no t f

ounded so

pinch rr

rg rea ter

lea rn ing or super ior ta lents a s in s trong preprd rc es u i fa v o ur o f

the i r own coun try and h igh conce i t of th e i r own ab i l i t ies .

”S ee M i l l ’s

H istory o f I nd ia ,Vol. I , p . 17 -1.

3 Ma nning

’

s Anc ient and Med iae val Ind ra , Vol. I I , p . 171.

2 52 H INDU S U PE R IO R ITY.

done honou r not merely to the i r nat i on b ut to all

c iv i l i zed mank ind .

” 1

Augu stus Schlegel , the f oremost German San sk r iti st

says of S alcuntala , that it presen ts“th rough its O r ienta l

br i l l ian cy of colou r ing , so str ik ing a resemblan ce to our

(Engl i sh ) romant i c d rama that i t m igh t b e su spected that

the lov e of Shakespea re has influenced the tran sla tor , were

it not that other O r ientali sts bore test imony to h i s

f idel ity .

” 2

Alexander Von Humboldt a l so n otes the m asterly

mode in wh ich Ka l ida sa descr i bes“the influen ce o f nature

u pon the m ind s of lov er s , h i s ten derness in the expres s ion

o f f eel ings , and abov e allthe r i chness of h i s creativ e

f an cy” 3 “ H er (Sakunta la’s ) lov e and sorrow

,

” says D r.S ir W. Hun ter

,

“ have f u rn ished a theme for the great

E urop ean poet of ou r age .

” Goethe s ings

Wou ld st thou the young yea rs b lossom and the f ru it of its d ec l ine.

A nd allby wh ich the sou l is charmed, enraptured , feasted ,

f ed .

VVould st then the E a rth and Heaven i tself in one sole name comb ine,

I name thee , O S a k unta la I and allat once is sa id .

As regards the d iction of the H in du drama P rofes

sor Wil son says “ I t i s impossble to con ce iv e language

so beau ti f u l ly m u s ica l or so magn ificen tly grand as that

o f the v erses o f Bhav b h uti and Kalid asa .

” qr No dramati c

lH istoricalR esea rches , Vol. I I,p . 194 .

2Mon ier W i l l iams’

S a k unta la , Prefa ce.

S ch legel(H istory of L iterature. p . 1 15 ) says“Wh at we ch iefly adm i re

in the i r poetry is th at tender fond ness of so l itud e and the an imated

v egetable k ingdom tha t so a ttract us in the d rama of S a k unta la, the

tra i ts of fema le g ra ce and fid el i ty and the ex qu i s ite lov e l iness o f ch i ld hood ,o f su ch prom inent in terest in the o lder ep i cs o f Ind ia . We a re alsostruc k w i th the tou ch ing pathos accom pany ing d eep mora l feel ing .

”

3.-\nc ient a nd M ed iaeva l Ind ia

, Vol. I I , p . 14 2 .

4 \Vilson ’

s Thea tre o f the H ind us,Vol. I

,p . 6 3 . A s an instance

o f the g reat d iv ers i ty of compos i t ion,1 m ay ment ion the fact that the

fi rst 3 5 stan z as o f S akurrtala ex h i b it ele\cn k inds of metre

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2 5 4 H I NDU S UPE R IO R ITY.

D r . Kuhn,w h ere in he a l ludes a l so to the i dea s o f

“7eber . lVlax M u l ler makes U rna s i= d awn . An o th e r

ex planation i s that P urura v as (or Vicrama ) person ifiesthe sun

,wh i l st U rva si i s the morn ing m i s t (see Cham

ber’s En cyclopaedia,S .V. P uru rav a s) . U rva si i s an ap sa ra ,

and we find in Goid stii cker’

s d ictiona ry that the apsa ra s“are person ification s o f the v apours w h i ch are a ttached

by the sun an d f ormed in to m i sts or clouds . Ap sa ra s i s

der i ved f rom ap water,an d sa ra s = whomov es .

1 P rofes

sorGold stucker hol ds , theref ore, that the legend represen ts

the absorpti on by the sun of th e v apou r float ing in

the a ir. When P ur ura va s becomes d i stin ctly v i s ible,

U r anai’

v an i shes , becau se w hen the sun sh ines f orth the

m i st i s absorbed . U rva sz'

af terward s becom es a swan in

the S a tpa tk , b ut Ka lida sa changes the nym ph into a

cl imb ing plan t. I n Greece,Daphne becom es a lau re l

,

becau se the coun trv abound s in lau rel s,wh ich are m an i

f est so soon a s the su n ha s absorbed the m i st.

Bhav bhu ti’

s popu lar i ty perhaps r iv a l led that of

Ka l ida sa . P rof essor Wi l son bears test imony to the

extraord ina ry beau ty and power o f h i s language,and

attr i bu tes h i s pecu l ia r ta len t f or descr i b ing nature in her

m agn ificen ce to h i s early f am i l iar i ty w i th the etern al

m oun ta in s an d f orests of Gon dwana . H i s best-kn own

plays a re the U ttra R am Cha r itra and Ma d/la va Mala ti.

As rega rds the f ormer,P rofessor Wi l son says I t ha s

more preten tion s to genu ine pathos than perhaps anyo ther spec imen o f Hindu thea tre . T he m u tua l sorrow s

o f Rama an d S ita in the i r sta te of separa tion a re

plea s ingly and tenderly expressed , and the meeting o f

1 S ee W' ilson ’

s Theatre of the H indus , Vol. I , p . 10 3 .

D R AMA .

the fa th er and son s may be compa red a dm ntar/euzmly1w i th s im i la r scenes w i th wh ich the fi cti on s o f L u ropc ,

bo th poeti ca l and d ram a ti c,

abou nd . Be s i des the

f e l i c i tou s exln'

ession o f so f ter f eel ings,th i s play ha s

some cu r iou s p i ctu res o f the bea n id ealof h ero i c bea r ing

and o f the duties o f a wa rr ior and a p rin ce. A Melee?"

eleva tion ca n sca rcely be selected f or eff/zen T he true

sp i r i t o f ch i va l ry perv ades the en coun ter o f the two

young p r in ces . Some br i l l ian t th oughts occu r,the ju st i ce

and beauty o f wh i ch are not su rpa s sed in any l i tera tu re .

” 1

A s rega rd s illa a’iz a va rlf ala fi,Prof : Wi l son says

I t offers noth ing to off end the m ost f a st i d iou s del i ca cy ,and may b e compa red in th i s respect adv an tageou sl y

w i th many o f the d rama s o f m odern Eu rope,wh i ch

t reat o f the pa s s ion tha t con sti tutes its subject . T he

m anner in wh i ch lov e i s here dep i cted i s worthy o f

observ ati on,as correcting a m i staken n oti on of the

in fluence wh i ch the pa ss ion exerc i ses ov er the m in ds o f

the nativ es of at leas t on e portion of As ia . Howev e r

in ten se the f eel ing— and it i s represen ted as su ffic ien tly

powerf u l to endanger ex i sten ce—it par takes in no respec t

o f the im petuos ity wh i ch it has plea sed the w r i ter s

of the West to attr i bute to the people of the Ea st.

T he barbarous nat ions whose inhuman loveI s w i ld d es i re, fi erce as the sun they feel .

T he hero ine of th i s d rama i s lov ed as a woman .

S he i s no goddess in the est imati on o f her ‘lover. T he

pa ss ion o f Ma lat i i s equa l ly in ten se w i th that o f Ju l iet.

T he f erv ou r of attachmen t wh ich un ites the d i ff eren t

1W i lson ’

s Theatre of the H indus , Vol. I , pp . 3 8 3 , 84 .

2 56 H INDU S U PE R I O R ITY .

personages of the drama so ind i ssolub ly in l i fe and death

i s credi table to the H indu n ationa l chara cter . U n less

in stan ces o f su ch d i s in terested un i on had ex i sted,the

a u thor cou ld sca rcely hav e con ce iv ed , mu ch less pi ctured,

i t .”

Al together,Ma cllza va Mala tz

'

is one"

of the m o st

charm ing,powerf u l and refined represen tat i on s o f the

emoti on o f l ov e to b e f oun d in the l i teratu re o f any nat ion .

T he pol iti ca l l i fe an d manners of the H indu s a re

wel l d ep icted by Visakhadatta in {h i s celebra ted play ,fllud ra R a /cksha sa . I t has the st i r and a cti on of c ity l i fe

,

the endless ingenu i ty of pol i ti caland cou rt in tr igue,and

the “ staunch fidel ity w h ich appears a s the u n i f orm

cha rac ter i sti c o f servan ts,

em i s sar ies a nd f r iend s,a

s ingu lar f eatu re in the Hindu character,

”wh i ch

,P ro

f esse rWi l son remarks,

“ it has no tWholly lost .

” Prof essorWi l son adds : “lt is a pol i ti ca l or h i storica l d rama

,and

u nf olds the pol itica l pol i cy o f Chanakya , the Mach iav elo f I nd ia in a most ingen iou s manner . T he plot o f the

drama s ingu larly con f orm s to one of the u n i ties,and

the occurrences are allsub serv ien t to one action— the

con c i l iation of R akh shasa . Th i s i s never lost s igh t o f f rom /

fi rst to la st w ithout be ing m ade undu ly prom inent.

I t may b e d i ffi cu lt in the wlwle ra nge of d rama tic litera

ture tofinala more successf ulillustra tion of tlze rule.

” l

T he Mrichchh/ca ti,or the Toy Cart

,by Maha raja S ud

raka,possesses con s iderable dramat i c mer it. T he interest

i s rarely su spended,and in every ca se the apparent in ter

ption i s w i th grea t ingenu ity made subserv ien t to the

common des ign . T he connection o f the two plots i s muchbe tter ma inta ined than in the plav we u sua l ly ref er to a s

1“lilson’

s Thea tre o f the H ind us , Vol. H , p . 2 51 .

“ T he authoris the Ma ss inger of the H ind us. —t lso'

n .

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2 58 H INDU surnmomrv .

LY R I C POETRY .

A nd fi l l th is song of J a i D eva w i th th eeA nd ma k e it wise to teach , strong to red eem

,

A nd sweet to l i v ing sou ls . Thou , mystery

T hou,L igh t of L i fe 1 Thou ,

D awn beyond the d ream

—H ymn to Vishnu.

T H E Lyri c poetry of the H indu s i s the finest of its kin d

in the worl d,f or the rea son that the language in wh ich

it i s wr itten i s the mos t melod iou s and mu s i ca l on earth .

As Prof essor Wi l son remark s , the poetry o f the H in du s

can n ev er b e properly apprec ia ted by those who are

ignoran t o f San sk r i t . T o judge of the m er its of H indu

poetry f rom tran sla ti on s is to judge it at its worst. Moreover

,ow ing to the pecu l ia r ities of l i f e and cha ra cter

o f the H indu s,European s can ha rd ly b e expected to f ul ly

apprec ia te and en joy the ir poetry a s they can n either

f ul ly u nderstand the ir cha ra cter,n or f u l ly enter in to the i r

f eel ings and sym path i se w ith them . T o the H indu s,

Bharata ’s conduct in f ollow ing Rama into the j ungleand en treat ing h im to retu rn to A y od hia i s a s natura l a sanyth ing in the worl d

,wh i le to Mr . T alb oys Wheeler ,

the h i stor ian o f In d ia,it appears

,

“ con trary to human

nature . As Mr . Wheeler rega rd s the v enerable D asrathaa s s hamm ing when he gi ve s v ent to sorrow a f ter

hav ing sen ten ced Rama to ex ile to keep a v ow,wha t

sh ou l d he ha v e thought of the H indu lad ies of the presen t d ay had he known tha t they wou ld d ie or su ff er anyth ing rather than open the i r l i p s even to those who a re

H

dearer to them than l i f e itsel f,when they th ink modesty

e c PO E TRY . 2 59

f orb ids the i r doing so,ev en when l i fe i tsel f is in danger ?

H i ndu idea s o f du ty,obed i en ce and modesty are m u ch

more complex than those o f other nati on s . S ti l l,when

H in du Lyr i c poetry ha s been p roperly judged,the

pra i se has been l i bera l,

and approbat i on emph at i cal ly

expres sed .

Gita Govind i s the fines t extan t spec imen of H in

d u lyr i c poetry,and it i s d i ffi cu lt to find in any language

ly r i cs that can v ie w ith it in melody and grace . Mr. Gri ffith

says “ T he exqu i s i te m elody o f the v erse can on ly b e

apprec iated by those who can en joy the or ig ina l .” 1

Schlegel says “ Tender del i ca cy of f eel ing and

elegaic lov e ca s t a ha l o ov e r Ind ian poetry , and the

w hole i s reca st in the mou l d o f harmon i ou s sof tness , and

is redolen t o f elega ic sweetness .” 2

Gita Govind has been ana lysed by La ssen in h i s Latin

tran sla ti on , beau ti f u l ly tran sla ted in German by R u ckert,and has been dwel t u pon w ith adm i rat ion by S i rW. Jones

in h i s essay on the Myst i ca l Poetry of the H indu s .

Pro fessor H eeren says : “ T he H indu lyr i c su rpassed

tha t o f the Greek s in adm i tti ng both the rhym e and

blank v erse .

” 3 H e f urther says : “ H ow mu ch of the

beau ty o f a lyri c mu st inev i tably b e los t in a prose tran s

lat i on i t wou ld b e superfluou s to rema rk and yet it i s

imposs ible to read the Gita Gor ind w i thou t being

cha rmed I t i s imposs ible,howev er

,not to noti ce

the extreme r i chness o f the poet’s f an cy,the strength

an d v iv ac ity of h i s sen t imen t part i cu larly observ able in

1An c ient and M ed ize vallnd ia , Vol. I I , p . 209 .

Q S chlegel’

s H istory of L i teratu re , p . 1 17 .

3 H istori ca l R esearches,Vol. I I , p . 187 .

H INDU S UPE R IO RITY .

h i s del i ca te ta ste f or the beau tie s in gen era l,and wh i ch

not ev en the ardou r o f pa s s ion was able to extingu i s h .

”

Gita Gov ind ex h i b its,

” say s Mr . El ph in stone,

in perfection the luxu r ian t imagery and the v ol uptuou s

sof tness of the H indu school .” 2

A nother H indu lyr i c i s the R itu S a ngrah , someth ing

l ike “ Thompson ’s Season s in the Engl i sh language .

Mrs . Mann ing says abou t i t : R itu Sangrah , a lyr i c

poem by Ka l ida sa,i s mu ch adm i red not on ly by the

nativ es of In d ia,b ut by a lmost allstuden ts of San skr it

l i teratu re .

Mr . Gr i ffith,in h i s tran slat i on of “ R i tu Sangrah

,

says S i r W. Jones speaks in raptu rou s term s of the

beaut i f u l and natu ra l sketches w i th wh i ch it abound sand

,af ter expre ss ing h i s own adm i rat i on

,adds

,

“ it i sm u ch to b e regretted that it i s imposs ible to tran slate

the w hole .

” 4

Lyri c poetry was exten s iv ely cu l tiva ted in In d ia .

S i r W. Hunter says “ T he Med iaeva l Brahman s d i s

played a ma rvel lou s act iv ity in theolog ica l a s wel l aslyr i c poetry .

”

Spec ia l cha rm mu st a tta ch to the ly r i c poetry o f

the H ind u s,for

,as Mrs . Mann ing remarks

,

“ Nowhereis love expressed w ith greater f orce or pa tho s than inthe poe try o f the H ind u s .” 5

1Anc ient and Med i ae va l lnd ia,pp 18 9 , 190 . .la id eva

,its au thor was

born ,as he h im se l f says , at Kend u l i , s i tuated e i ther in Ca l inga or in

Burdwan

9 H istory of Ind ia,p . 156 .

3 H istor i ca l R esea rches , Vol. I I . Professor Von Boh len translatedit into Germ an and Lat in in 184 0 A d ) .

LlVla nn ing’

s Anc ient and Bletlimv alInd ia , Vol. I I , p . 2 65 .

5 Mann ing’

s Anc ient and Med i aeval Ind ia , Vol. I I , p . 14 8.

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T hy power the breast f rom every error frees

A nd weed s out allits v i ces by d eg rees.

—G I F F O R D J u z 'enal.

T H E H in du ach iev emen ts in th i s bran ch of l iteratu reestabl i sh on ce f or allthe ir in tel lectua l su per i or ity . I t i s

th i s part of the ir l itera ture tha t ha s made its way to the

remotest corners of Eu rope and Amer i ca . I ts sway ov erthe m ind o f the c i v i l i zed world i s a lmost despoti c and

complete .

P rofessor Wi l son says : “ Fable con sti tu tes w i th

them (H indu s) practi ca l eth ics— the scien ce of N iti or

Pol i ty— the system of ru les n ecessa ry f or the goodgov ernmen t of soc iety in allmatters not of a rel igiou s

na tu re— the rec iproca l du ties of the m embers o f an

organ i zed body e ither in the ir priv ate or pu blic relat ion s .

H en ce it i s spec ial ly in tended f or the edu cati on of pr in ces,

and proposes to in stru ct them in those obl igati on s wh ich

are common to them an d the ir subjects , and those w h i ch

are appropr iate to the ir pr in cely o ff i ce ; not on ly in

rega rd to those ov er w hom they ru le,b ut in respec t to

other pr inces , under the con t ingen c ies o f pea ce and warn ,

Each f able i s des igned to i l lu stra te and exempl i f y some

reflection on world ly v i c i s s itu des or some precept f or

h uman condu ct ; and the i l lu strati on i s as f requen tly

drawn f rom the intercou rse of human be ings as f rom

any imaginary adven tu re of an imal ex i stence,and th i s

E T I I I C O -IH D AC'

I‘

I C PO E TRY . 2 6 3

m ixtu re i s in some degree a pecul ia r i ty o f the H indu” 1plan of fab hng or storytel l i ng .

I t i s now adm i tted by the lea rned everywhere that thef abu lou s l itera tu re o f the worl d

,w h i ch i s su ch an impor

tan t,and

,in some respects

,so neces sary a pa r t o f the

edu cati on o f young m en allov er the world,apart f rom it

be ing one o f the most amu s ing,interesting and instructiv e

d iv ers i on s f rom labou r and sev ere study,owes its or ig in

solely to the intel l igence and w i sdom of the an c ient H ind us .

P a nchta n tra i s f ar a nd away the best masterp iece

in the whole f abu lou s l iteratu re of the world nay , it i s

the sou rce f rom w h ich the entire l itera ture o f f ables,

Asiat i c or Eu ropean , has d i rectly or ind i rectly emana ted .

Mr . Elph in stone says I n the compos ition of ta les andf ables they (H ind us) app ea r to ha ve been the instructors

of the rest of ma nkind .

2 T he m ost an cien t known fables

(those o f B idpa i ) hav e been f oun d a lmost un changed

in the i r San skr it dress an d to them a lmost allthe

f abu lou s relati on s of o ther countr ies hav e been clea rly

traced by Mr . Coleb rooke , the Ba ron-d e-sacy and Prof essor

Wi l son .

D r . S i r IV. W. H un ter says T he fables of

an imal s , f am i l iar to the Western world from the t ime of

f E sop downward s , had the ir or ig ina l h ome in In d ia .

T he relati on between the f ox and the l ion in the Greek

v ers i on s has no rea l ity in n a tu re , b u t it w as based uponl\/Vilson ’

s E ssays on S ans k r it L i terature Vol. I I , p . 85 .

2 H istory of Ind ia ,p p . 156 , 15 7 . For a gu ide to f u rth er inqu i ry

as to the H ind u or ig in of E uropean f ab les,see T ran sa c t ions of the

R . A . S . , Vol. I,p . 156 . T he com pl i cated system of storytel l ing ,

talc w ith in ta le l i k e the A rab i an N igh ts , seems a lso to h a ve been of

the i r invent ion ,as are the sub jects of many we l l—k nown ta l es and roman

ces , O rienta l and E uropean .-E lp hi n stone

’

s H istory of lnd i a ,p . 157 .

2 64 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

the actua l rela ti on between the l ion an d h i s f oll ower ,

the ja cka l,in the San sk rit stor ies . P a nehta n tra was

tran sla ted in to the an c ien t Persian in the s i x th centu ry

A .D . ,and f rom that ren der ing allthe subsequen t v ers ion s

in Asia Minor an d Eu rope hav e been der iv ed . T he

most a ncient a n imalf a bles of I nd ia a re a t the p resent

d ay the nursery stor ies of E ngla nd a nd Amer ica . T he

gra ce fu l H i ndu imaginati on del igh ted a l so in f a i ry ta les,

and the San skr it compos i ti on s o f th i s cla ss are the

or ig ina l sou rce o f m any of the fa i ry stor ie s of Pers ia ,Arab ia and Chr i stendom .

” 1

P ro fessor Max Mu l ler says “ T he K ing of Pers iaK hu sro N au sherawan (53 1-579 A .D .) sen t h i s phys i cian ,Barzo i

,to In d ia in order to t ran slate the fables of the

P a nehta ntra f rom San skr it in to Pah lav i .” 2 H itopdesa

(hita = good and u37desaiz adV' ice) a s Mrs . Mann ing says

,

i s th e f orm in w h i ch the old San skr it f ables became

in trodu ced in to the l iteratu re of nearly every knownlanguage .

Fahelm a in ta in s the In d ian or ig in of the f able s

com mon to Ind ia and Greece,wh i ch prov es the an ti qu i ty

o f the H in du f ables . 3

Prof es sor Weber says : “ All ied to th e f ables a re

the fa iry tale s and rom an ces,in w h i ch the l ux ur ian t

lImpe rialG a z etteer, Ind ia , p . 2 3 8 .

Ind ia : What can it teac h us ? p . 9 3 .

“ T he P a nchta ntra wa s

transla ted into Pers ian in the s ix th century by ord er of N ausherawan

a nd thence into A ra b i c a nd T ur k i sh and lastly into French ,

”

Ileeren ’

s H istori calR esea rches,Vol. I I , p . 200

5 \Veb er’

s Ind ian L iterature, p . 2 11 .

“ T he fa ble rep orted by A rrian

o f He rc u les ha v ing sea rch ed the whole Ind ian ocea n and found the pea rlw i th wh i ch he u sed to ad o rn his d a ugh ter, is of H ind u or ig in .

”

lleeren’

s H is toi iculR esea r ches,Vol. I I

,p . 2 71

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266 H INDU S UPE R I O R I TY.

express h i stori ca l ev i den ce as to the tran sm i ssi on of th e

H indu fables to Arab ia a nd Pers ia,there i s ov erwhelm i ng

interna l ev i dence in the fables them selv es to support thea sserti on tha t the H ind u s hav e been the teachers o f therest of mankind in th i s importan t bran ch o f l i teratu re .

Take , f or instan ce , the ca se o f a pa rti cu la r fable . I n the

P anch tan tra there i s a story o f a f ema le bi rd who w i shed

to m ake her n est fu r ther in lan d , becau se on the day o f

f u l l moon the sea wou ld b e sweeping ov er the place w here

she then wa s. But th e ma le b i rd obj ects,bel i ev ing that he

w a s as strong a s the sea and that it cou l d not en croach

u pon h i s nest. (Ben f ey , Vol. I I , pp . 87 N ow th i s

story i s , a s Professor Wi l son remarks , one of the deci s iv eproo f s of the Ind ian or ig in of the f ables . T he name o f

the b ird in Arab ic i s T ita n' i,a w ord wh i ch cannot b e

resolved to any sa ti s fa ctory A rab i c root. I t i s on ly a

tran scr ipt o f the San sk ri t T ittibha,Benga l i T itib and

H indu T itihri.

Wi l son rema rk s tha t in the tran slat i on o f P an chtan

tra,Kalalawa D amna

,the name of the ox in San sk r it

w a s S a niiu'

alra,w hen ce the Arab i c S ha nz ebeh, and those

o f the jacka l s , Kara taka and D amnaka,when ce the Arab i c

Kalala and D amna .

”T he tale o f Ahmad an d Pa r i Banu

betrays pa l pably i ts In d ian or igin . P a r i B ha nu i s dec id

edly a H indu name . T he el dest o f the th ree pr in ces , Prince

H u sein ,in search o f some extraord inary ra r ity wh i ch may

en ti tle him to the hand o f the Pr in ces s N ura n N iha r,re

pa irs to the Ind ian c i ty,B i snagar (dec idedly an Ind ian

n ame) a m etropol i s of ex traord ina ryweal th and popu la t i on .

Mr . D eslongch am ps says“ T he book o f S indebad

i s o f I nd ian orig in , and ad d s that the under-men t ioned th ree

stories were in a spec ia l degree der ived f rom the origina l .

E T “ I co-D I D AC'

rle PO E TR Y 2 67

(1) T he Arab i c story o f a lu ng,h i s S on ,

h is

f a v ou r i tes and seven Va z iers . 2 ) T he Hebrew romanceo f the P a rables o f S endeb ar

,and (3 ) the G reek roman ce

o f S yn tipa s . From the H ebrew roman ce abov e d e

scr ibed , D eslongchamps deri v e s ,“the h i story o f the

seven sage s o f Rome,

”H istor ia sep tem sap icuta n R oma} ,

a v ery popu la r work in Eu rope for th ree centuries .Prof essor Wi l son says : “ I n a manu scri pt o f the

Pa rable of S en debar , w h i ch exi sted in the B r iti sh

Mu seum,i t i s repea tedly a sserted in anonymou s La tin

notes that the work was tran slated ou t of the India n

language in to Per s ian and A rab ic,and f rom one of them

i n to H ebrew . S endeb ar i s a l so descr ibed a s a ch ie f o f the

Ind ian Bra hman s,and Beib ar

,the K ing , a s a K ing o f

India .

” —Ell i s ’ Metr icalR oma nces , Vol. I I I .

A dec i s iv e proof of S indebad be ing an Ind ian i s thed i rect ev iden ce on the subject

,o f the em inen t Arabi c

w r i ter,Ma sud i . I n h i s “ Golden Meadow s” (Miraj ul

Zeheb ) , in a chapter on the an c ient k ings of Ind ia,he

speaks o f an Ind ian ph i losopher named S indebad,who

was contempora ry w i th Kur ush,and was the au thor o f the

work ent itled,

T he S tory o f S ev en Va z iers,the tutor

,

the young m an an d the w i fe of the king .

” “ Th i s i s thework ,

”he add s

,wh i ch i s ca l led the book o f S end ebad .

”

By h i s in teresting ana lys i s o f the S yntipa s an d theP a ra bles of S 8 fl d €btltl,

l Prof essor Wi l son clearl y show sthat the stor ies a re one and allo f H indu or igin .

2 H e a l soshows tha t th e Sev en Sages of Rome i s a l so o f H in duorigin .

‘

Bes ides these f ables a nd sto ries,says Pro fes sor

Wi l son , v a r iou s na rra ti ves o f Ind ian or ig in f orced

the i r way ind iv id uallv and unconnectedly to E lll'O pe.

”3

S ans k r i t E ssay s , Vol. I I , pp . 99 , 100 .-’ I b id , p , 10 1.

S ans k r it E ssays , Vol. I I , p . 10 1 .

268 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

S i r John Ma l colm says : Those who rank the

h ighest among Ea stern nat i on s f or gen iu s hav e em ployed

the i r ta len ts in work s of fict i on,and hav e added to the

m ora l lesson s they des i red to con v ey so mu ch of graceand ornamen t that the i r v olumes hav e f ound cu rrency

” 1in ev ery nation o f the worl d .

I t i s thu s clea r that the H in du s hav e produced a

branch o f l iteratu re the k ind of wh ich,in any con s i der

able degree,has n ev er been produ ced by any other n ati on

in the world,Asiat i c or Eu ropean

,an c ien t or m odern .

Th i s wonderf u l phenomenon i s thu s expla ined by Pro

f essor Heeren .

“ T he poetry of n o other nation exh ib its

in su ch a str ik ing manner the d idacti c character as that

o f the H indu s ; f or, no other people were so thoroughly

imbued w ith the persua s ion that to give and rece iv e in

s truct ion was the sole and u ltima te object o f l if e.

”

1 H e fi xes the C ru sad es a s the t ime of the em ig rat ion to E uropeof som e o f the wel l-k nown wor k s of th i s k ind

,su ch a s T he

K a th a S a ritasagar , (2) T he VetalP anchv insati, (3 ) T he S ingha ,

sana D watrinsati, and (4 ) T he S ukas aptati . T he fi rst of these wor k s wascom posed for the am usement and instruct ion of S ri H a ri sh of K ashm i r

,

b y the ord er o f his grandmoth er,S uryavati, who became sa ti in 1093

A .D . But th at the stor ies o f wh i ch it is mad e up were o f great an t iqu ity is p roved f rom the f act of one of them occu rr ing in O dyssey . I n

the fi fth boo k of K ath a S aritasfrgar th ere is a story of a man who be

ing sh i pwrec k ed is caught in a wh i rl pool, and escapes b y j ump ing up and

c l imb in g the branch of a fig tree , apparent ly I nd ira )for its pend u lous roots . P rof essor “lilson h ere refers to

c s t y, Xll, pp . 10 1-10 1, wh ere U lysses escapes f rom a whirlpoolby“

ltlllrj’rlIIEK up and c l ing ing to the branches of a fig tree

— probably theI nd ian fig tree or buny a n ,

the p end ulous branches of wh ic h would b e

m ore w i th in rea ch th an th ose o f the S i c i l ia n fig ; and H omer,he th in k s

,

may h a ve borrowed the i nc id ent f rom some old E astern fict ion .

H i s tori cal R esearches , Vol. I I , p . 197 .

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2 70 H IN DU surnmonrr r .

they invested w ith spec ia l san cti ty , and a ccorded them a

pr i v i leged pos iti on in soc iety . I n time the exclu s ivesp ir i t o f these men u rged them to look upon lea rn ing as

the i r pecu l ia r p rerogat iv e , and induced them ,w ith the

object o f preserv ing the sacerdota l cha ra cter of the i r

cla ss , to gradua l ly pu t a bar to other cla sses a cqu i r ing a

knowledge o f the H indu Sha stra s .A glance at the conten ts of the Pu ranas

,howev e r ,

wou l d rev ea l their rea l chara cter and the common sen se

o f the H indu s can b e rel ied on to a ss ign these books

the ir true place in the l itera tu re of the na t ion .

T he world i s mov ing f a st , and f orces over wh i ch

the nat ion , wh ich l ong revelled in isola tion and excl u

s iv eness to its ser i ou s detr iment and u ndoing,has no

con trol are now work i ng so as to deman d the u tm os t

c ircum spection on the pa rt of its leader s and th inkers in

h u sband ing its resources , and prev ent ing its energies from

be ing fr ittered away in f ollow ing f a l se idea l s . I f the

f ate o f the an cient Egyptian s,the Pers ian s

,the Baby

lon ian s and the Greeks i s to b e av oided,it behov es all

well-w i shers of the nati on not on ly to hold the m irror

to its w retched cond i ti on f or the ed ification o f the

m a sses,bu t by mak ing proper u se

‘o f the u sef u l and

v a l uable lesson s con ta ined in pa r ts even o f th i s

heterogenou s— ha lf sacerdogtal, ha lf profane— l i teratu re ,d irect its cou rse towards the rea l i za t ion of a im s tru ly and

clearly la i d down in the su bl im e and pu re teach ing of

the Veda s an d the U pan i shads .Professor Heeren

1 says that the P u rana s a re not the

work o f a Vahn ik i or Vya sa , b u t, l ike the poem s o f

Tze tze s and other grammarian s , the f ru i t o f ex traord i

lllistoricalR esearches , Vol, I I , p . 177.

T H E PURANAS . 2 7 1

nary d i l igen ce comb ined w i th exten s i ve read ing . H e is,

ne vertheless , far f rom con s i der ing thema l together a s an

inv en tion of modern times,tha t 1s

,o f the Midd le Age s .

T he l i tera l mean ing o f the word P a rana i s “old

and the P u rana s p rof ess to teach w ha t i s old . They

are,says Mrs . Mann ing

,

“w r itten in v erse w ith a v iew

to public reci tati on at f es tiva l s,as v eh i cles f or con veying

such in s truction a s the people m i gh t b e presumed to

requ ire . Ph ilosoph i ca l ly , they blend S ankhv a ph ilosophy

w ith Vedan ta,an d practi ca l ly they were a code of r i tua l

” 1as we l l a s a summa ry of law.

T he Pu rana s hav e been com pi led at d i ff eren t per iod s

and by d i ff eren t m en . They seem to hav e adopted d if

f erent innov at i on s m ade in to them by Shanka racharya,

R aman u j a , Madhav acha rya , and Vallab haeharya .

“ T he

inv ar iable f orm of the Pu rana s i s that of a d ia logue,in

w h i ch some person re lates its con tents in reply to the

T he immed iate na rra tor i s cominqu i r ies of anothe r . ’

monly , though n ot con stantly , Lomaharshana or Soma

harshana,the d i sci ple of Vya sa , w ho i s supposed to com

m un icate what was imparted to him by h i s preceptor .

T he Pu rana s are d iv ided into th ree classes

1 . S a ttvz'

lca , or“ Pu re

,in clud ing V i shn u

,Na rada ,

Bhagwat, Ga ruda , Padm a and Varaha Pu rana s .

2 . T ama sa , or P u rana s of Da rkness ,” i nclud ing

Matsya,Ka rma

,L inga , Sh iva , Skanda and Agn i Pu rana s .

3 . R a ja sa or Pa ss ionate ,” in clud ing Brahman da ,

Vaiv arta,Markandya , Bhav ishya , Vamana and Brahma

P urana s .

T he f i rst s i x Pu rana s are Va i shnav a , the next s ix are

1Anc ient and Med izc valI nd ia , Vol. I , p . 2 4 4 .

2 72 H I NDU S UPE R I O R I TY .

Sha iva,and the last s i x adv ocate the Gossain and Val

lab hachari rel i g ion s .

There are e igh teen P urana s,and it is sa id tha t

there are 18 U p-Pu rana s . T he e ighteen P u rana s a re sa i d

to hav e sloka s or l ines . They a re

f abled to b e b u t an abridgment the w hole amoun ting

to a crore or 10 m i l l ion s o f stan zas,ev en a m i l l ion s .

And Prof essor Wi l son adds : “ I f allthe f ragmen tary

portion s cla im ing in v a r i ou s parts o f In d ia to belong to

the Pu rana s were adm i tted,the i r exten t wou ld mu ch

exceed the les ser,though it wou ld not rea ch the la rger

enumerat i on .

” 1

T o give an i dea o f the i r con ten ts , a br ief su rvey o f

two of the m ost importan t P u rana s i s subjo ined .

S hri Bhagwa t P a ra na,

tha t in w h ich am ple

deta i l s of duty are descr ibed and wh i ch open s w ith the

Gag/a tr i that in w h i ch the death o f the Asu ra Vr i ta i s

told,and in w h i ch the m orta l s and the immor ta l s o f the

S araswata Kal pa,w ith the ev ents o f that per i od are

related i s cal led the Bhagwat P urana , and con s i sts of

e igh teen thousand v erses .” It i s perhaps the m ost

important of allthe Pu rana s . I ts ph i losophy is Vedan ti c,and it Open s w ith a cosm ogony m ixed w i th myst i c i sm and

a l legory ; then f ol low an accou nt of the creati on and

of the Va rba Avatara,creati on of P raj apatees , S wayam

Bha v a , and then Kap ila Av a tara,the author o f Sankhya

Ph i losophy ; an a ccou n t of the Manwan tra s, d i fferent

legen ds of D h ruv a , Vena , P ritha and an accoun t of theu n i v erse f ollow . O ther legends f ol low

,in clu ding that

o f P rahlad a,o f the chu rn ing o f the ocean , and the fi sh

1 T here is a l ittle conf'

usron in the names of the 18 Puranasa c cord i ng to the d i fferent Puranas themsel ves .

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2 74 H I NDU S UPE R I O R ITY .

the P urana s i s qu ite inadequ ate to enable the reader to

f orm an i dea o f the i r importan ce,a s l i gh thou ses to a

great Pa st. T he Agn i P urana,for in stan ce

,conta in s

parti cu lars of. the m i l i ta ry organ i zat i on o f the H indu s ,w h ich in con sequen ce of the loss of the Dhanu r Veda are

o f especia l importan ce . T he Dev a Purana men t ion s thebrafima stra

,w h i ch prov es the u se of fi re-a rm s by the H in

d u s in those days . T he Padma P urana conta in s a treati seon the geography o f Ind ia in pa rt i cu la r and the U n iv erse

in genera l,wh i ch i s of v ery grea t importan ce . Matsya

P u rana ex pla in s the sou rce f rom w h i ch the Jewish,the

Ch ri s tian an d the Mohamedan story of the Deluge and

the i r cosmogony are der iv ed . Ga ruda P urana con ta in s a

treati se on prec iou s ston es,a strology and pa lm i stry ; a

system o f m ed ic ine i s con ta ined in the Agn i Pu rana,wh i le

theor ies of creat i on are to b e f ou nd in a lmost allof them .

Some Pu rana s throw importan t l igh t on the indu str ies

and a rts of anc ient Ind ia and may , if proper ly understood

and f ol lowed, yet hel p the Ind ian s to improv e the i r pos iti on

in the indu stria l world . I t mu st,howev er

,be adm itted that

som etimes,w i th a gra in o f u sef u l in formati on

,there w i l l

b e f oun d a lot o f u seless cha ff . O n the w hole,the

Pu rana s have a s mu ch cla im to b e regarded as the rel ig iou s

books of the H indu s a s the En cyclopaed ia B r itann i ca ha sto b e accepted as the rel igiou s books of Engl i shmen .

As to the antiqu ity of the i r conten ts there i s no doub t.Pro fessor H . H . Wi l son says “ An d the testimony thate stabl i shes the i r exi sten ce th ree cen tu r ies beforeChri stian ity

,ca rr ies it back to a mu ch more remote

an tiqu i ty— to an an tiqu i ty tha t i s probably not su rpa s sed

by any o f the preva i l ing f i c ti t i ou s in sti tut ion s or bel ief sof the an c ient world .

”

P H I LO S O P H Y .

H ow ch arm ing is d iv ine ph ilosophy,N ot h a rsh and c rab bed

,as d ul l foo ls suppose

B ut mus i ca l as Apollo’

s fl ute,

A nd a perpetual feast of nectar’d sweets

IVhere no crude surfe i t re igns .

-M 1LT O N : Camus.

P H ILO S OPH Y i s the real ru ler O f the globe it lays down

pr in c iples w h i ch gu i de the world . Ph ilosophy show s how

a tran scendent gen iu s exa cts homage con sci ou sly or

u n con sc iou sly f rom l ower in tellec ts . I t i s ph il osophy that

blow s the trumpet bla st,and it i s ph i losophy that blunts

the edge O f the sword . Ph i losoph y re ign s supreme,

und i spu ted and absol ute . I t conquers the conqueror and

su bdues the su bdue r .I f it i s true that a grea t na t i on a lone can p roduce

great ph i losophers or complete systems O f ph i lo sophy ,the anci en t In dian s may , w i thou t hes itati on ,

b e pronoun ced

to hav e been the greatest nation,an c ien t or modern .

Ph ilosophers,says Prof essor Max Mu l ler

,

“a r i se a f ter

the secur i ty Of a S tate has been establ i shed,a f ter wea l th

has been acqu ired and accumu la ted in certa in f am i l ies ,a f ter school s and un ivers i ties have been f oun ded an d ta ste

created for those l i tera ry pu rsu i t s wh i ch ev en in the most

ad v an ced sta te O f c iv i l i zati on mu s t necessa r i ly b e confined

to b u t a sma l l port ion o f an ever-to il ing commu n ity .

” 1

To what h igh p innac le Of c iv i l i za tion,then

,m u st the

an cien t In dian s hav e reached,for

,says Prof essor Max

1 Anc ient S ans k r it L iterature,pp . 564 , 65 .

2 76 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

Mu l ler f u rther on that “the H in du s were a na t ion o f

ph ilO S O phers ,

” 1

T he ph i losophy O f the H indu s i s an other proof O f

the ir su per ior ity in c iv il i za t ion and in te l lect to the

m odern s a s wel l a s the an c ients . Mann ing says T he

H indu s had the w i dest range Of m ind O f wh i ch m an

i s capable .

” 2

Sch legel speaks of the n oble , clear and sev erely gran d

a ccents O f In d ian thought and says Ev en the lof tiest

ph i losophy of the European s , the i dea l i sm of rea son , a s

i s set f orth by Greek ph ilosophers , appears in compar i son

w i th the abundant l ight a nd v igour of Or ienta l i dea l i sm

l ike a f eeble promethean spark in the f u l l flood O f heav en ly

glory O f the noonday sun—fa lter ing and f eeble and ev er

ready to b e extingu i shed .

” 3

P rof essor I’Veb er , speak ing O f H indu ph i losophy ,says “ I t i s in th i s fiel d an d that O f gramma r that the

In d ian m in d atta ined the h ighest p itch O f its marvel lou s

f erti l ity .

” 4 T he H indu s ,” says Max Mu l ler

,were a

people remarkably gi f ted f or ph i losoph ica l abstra ction .

” 5

Schlegel say s In d ia i s preem in en tly di stingu i shed f or

the many tra its O f o ri g inalgrandeu r O f thought an d O f

the wonderf u l remain s O f imm ed iate know ledge .

” i

L i ke allother th ings in Ind ia,the H indu ph i losophy ,

too,i s on a gigan ti c sca le . Ev ery shade O f op in ion , ev ery

m ode O f thought,ev ery school o f ph i losophy ha s f oun d its

ex press ion in the ph i losoph i ca l wr itings O f the H indu s and

rece iv ed its f u l l dev elopmen t. S i r W. Hun ter says T he

1Anc ient S ans k rit L i tera ture , p . 3 1.

2 Anc ien t and Med ia ‘ val

I nd ia ,VO I I

, p .114 .

J H istory of L i terature .

4 ‘Veb er’

s Ind ian L iteratu re,

p . 2 7 .

5 A nc ient S ans k r it L iterature,p , 566 .

“H istory o f L iteratu re ,153 0.

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2 78 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY.

noth ing el se b ut a tran s i ti on between d i ff eren t modes O fexi stence . All th i s we find aga in among the ph i losophers

O f the H in du s exh ib ited as clearly a s by ou r modernph i losophers m ore than th ree thou sand yea rs s in ce .

” 1

E ven w ith the l im i ted kn ow ledge O f H indu ph i lo

S ophy and sc ience tha t cou l d b e Obta ined a t the time,

S ir Wi l l iam Jon e s cou ld say :“ I can v en tu re to a ffi rm

w i thou t mean ing to plu ck a leaf f rom the never

f ad ing lau rel s o f our immorta l New ton,that the whole

O f h i s theology , and part O f h i s ph i losophy,may b e

f ou nd in the Veda s , and ev en in the work s O f the S ufi s .

T he most subtle Sp irit wh i ch b e su spected to pervadena tu ra l bod ies

,and ly ing con cea led in them

,to cau se

a ttract ion and repu l s i on; the em i s s ion,reflecti on and

ref raction O f l igh t,e lectr i c i ty

,califaction

,sen sa ti on an d

m u scu lar moti on,i s descr ibed by the H ind us as a fif th

elemen t,endu ed w i th those v ery powe rs .

Mrs . Besan t says “ Ind ian psychology i s f ar moreperf ect a sc ien ce than Eu ropean psychology .

” 2

lT heogony O f the H ind us,p p . 29 , 3 0 . A s an instance O f M r.

J ames M i l l ’s stu p id ity , if stup id ity is comp at i ble w ith learn ing ,one m ay

c i te his O p in ion th at the H indus were ex tremely barbarous,for they

cu lt ivated metaphys i cs so large ly . P ro f . W i lson ta k es ex cept ion to it,and

says :“ W i th regard to the wr i ter’s theory that the cu l t iva t ion of

m etaphys i cs is a proof rather O f ba rbar ism than O f c iv i l i z at ion , it mav b e

a s k ed i f Loc k e,D escartes , Le i bn itz , K ant

, S chell ing were barbarous .

”

M i l l ’s H is tory of lnd e'

a, Vol. I

,p . 7 4 , footnote. Mr. J ames M i l l is a

consp i cuous instance O f a man wh ose m ind becomes completely warpedby p rejud i ce. M i l l ’s m ind cou ld conce ive most absurd imposs i b i l i t i es.

“ Mr . M i l l , ” says W i lson , “seems inc l ined to th i n k that it was not

imposs i ble that the Pyram id s ha d d ropped f rom the c loud s or sp rungout o f the so i l . H ow th is perverted intel lect cou ld educate one o f the

greatest E ng l ish f lun k ers is a p roblem O f some psycholog i ca l interest.-’Lecture on N at iona l Un i vers i t ies in Ind ia (Calcutta) , J anuary , 1006 .

I ’I I I LO S O I’ I IY . 2 79

As Professor Max Mu l ler has Observed,the H indu s

ta lk ph i losophy in the streets ,”

and to th i s rea son i s

d ue the thorough ly prac ti ca l character O f the i r ph i l osophy .

I n th i s respect,say s Bj orn stj erna , the H in dus were

f ar in adv ance O f the ph i losophers o f Greece and Rome,

who con s i de red the immorta l ity O f the sou l as problema

tical.” I Socrates and Plato w ith allthe i r longings cou l d

on ly feel a ssu red that the sou l had more o f immorta l ity

than aught el se .

” 2 I n Ind ia,howe ver

,the doctr ine ha s

not been accepted in theory on ly,i t m ou l d s the conduct

O f the whol e nati on . Th i s i s true o f ph i losophy . And

it i s du e to its pract i ca l c ha racter that H indu ph i losophy

ha s extended its sway ov er so w i de an a rea O f the globe .

H indu ph i losophy ev en now hold s un d i spu ted sway ov er

the m inds of nearl y ha l f the inh ab itan ts O f the world,

w h i l st its pa rtia l in fluen ce i s no doub t u n iv ersa l .

I n an cient t imes people cam e to Ind ia f rom d istant

lands to acqu i re lea rn ing and ga in w i sdom,and H indu

ph ilosoph y th u s worked s i len tly f or centu ries . That theEgyptian s der iv ed the i r rel ig ion

,my thology and ph i lo

sophy ,from the H indu s has been clearl y establ i shed by

Coun t Bj orn stj erna and that the Greek ph ilosophy, too ,was indeb ted a lmost wholly to the H indu ph i losophy

f or its ca rd in a l doctr in es has a l so been shown by em inen tO r ien ta l i sts . T he resemblan ce be tween the H indu and

the Greek ph i losophy i s too close to b e a cc iden ta l .T he H indu s

,be ing f ar more a dv an ced

,mu st be the

tea chers,and the Greeks , the d i sc i ples . Mr . Colebrooke

,

the em inen t an tiqua rian,dec ides in f av ou r O f H indu

or ig ina l ity and says “ T he H indu s were,in th i s respect

,

the tea cher s and n ot the learners .” 3

1 T heogon )ro f the H ind us , p . 2 7 .

QP hazrlo,Tay lor

’

s tran sla t ion . I V . p . 3 2 4 .

3 Transact ion s of the R .A . S . ,Vol. I , p . 579 .

280 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY.

A Fren chman Ob serv es tha t “the traces O f H indu

ph i losoph y wh i ch appear at each step in the doctr ines

p rof essed by the i l lu stri ou s m en O f Greece abundan tly

prov e that it was f rom the Ea st cam e the i r sc ience,and that

m any O f them no doubt drank deeply at the pr inc i pa lf oun ta in . T he great Greek ph i losopher

,

‘ Pythagora s ,came to Ind ia to learn ph i losophy

,and h ere imb ibed the

doctr ine O f the tran sm igrat ion O f sou l p ropoun ded by the

H ind u sages . D r. E nfield says : “We find that it (Ind ia )wa s v i s ited f or the pu rpose O f a cqu ir ing know ledge by

Pythagora s,Anax archu s

,Pyrrh o

,and others who af ter

wards becam e em inen t ph ilosophers in Greece .

” 1

D i scu ss ing the qu esti on as to what con stitu tes human

na tu re accord ing to the H indu s,the Swed i sh Coun t says

“ Pythagora s and Pla to hold the same doctr ine,that O f

Pythagora s be ing probably der iv ed f rom India,w h i ther

h e trav el led to complete h i s ph i losoph ica l stud ies .

“Mr.

P ococke says : “ Certa in it i s that Pythagora s v i s ited

Ind ia, wh i ch I tru st I shal l make sel f

Sch legel says T he doctr ine O f the tran sm igra ti on

O f soul s was indigenou s to Ind ia an d was brought

in to Greece by Pythagora s .“

Mr , P rincep says T he fact,howev e r

,th at he

(Pythagora s) der i v ed h i s doctr ines f rom an Ind ian

sou rce i s v ery genera l ly adm itted , U nder the nam e O f

Mythra ic , the f a ith O f Buddha had a l so a w ide exten1 H i story O f Ph i losophy , by D r . E n field

,Vol. I

,p . 65 .

“ S ome

of the d octr i nes of the G ree k s concern ing nature are sa id to have beenp . 70 .

2 T hcogony o f the H ind us , p . 77 .

d eri ved f rom the Ind ians .

"

5 P o cocke’

s Ind ia in G reece,p . 3 5 3 .

4 H i story o f L i tera ture,p . 109 .

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282 H INDU S UP E R IO R ITY .

Mr . Dav ies says : S cythianu s was a con tempora ry

o f the Apostles,and wa s engaged as a m erchan t in the

Ind ian trade . I n the cou r se O f h i s traf fic he Of ten v i s i t

ed Ind ia and made h im self acqua inted w ith H indu ph i

lO s O phy . Accord ing to E piphan iu s and Cyri l , he w rote

a book in f ou r pa rts , w h i ch they a ff i rm to b e the sou rcef rom w h i ch the Man i chaean doctr ines were der iv ed?”

It i s thu s clea r that the H indu ph i losophy i s the

f ounta in head of the Greek ph i losophy w ith regard to

some O f its ca rd ina l po ints . True philoS O phy in f act

or iginated w ith the H indu s . Man first d i st ingu i shed the

Etern a l f rom the per i shable,and next b e perce iv ed w ith in

h im sel f the germ O f the Eternal . Th i s d i scov ery,

”

says P rof essor Max M u l ler,

“was an epoch in the h i story

O f the human m ind,and the name Of the d i scov erer ha s

not been f orgotten . I t was S and ilya who declared that

the sel f w ith in the hea rt wa s Brahma .

“

Exclud ing the exten s iv e a the i st i c and agnos t ic

sy stem s O f ph i los ophy p ropou n ded by Charvakya and

others , and those by the Ja in and B uddh i sti c ph iloso

phers , the pr inc ipa l H indu school s O f ph i losophy are

known as the D a rsa na s . Bu t mu ch O f the ph ilosoph i ca l

l i terature O f the H in du s i s lost. Prof essor Gold stucker ,too

,th inks that “ probably bes ides the U pan i shads , there

w ere ph i losoph i cal work s w h i ch were more or ig ina l than

those now preserved,and wh i ch serv ed a s the common

sou rce O f the work s wh i ch hav e come down to u s a s the

s i x D a r sa na s .

”

T he D arsana s are Nyaya and Veisheshika

Sank hya and Y oga and Pu rv a and U tta ra Miman sas .

lD a v ics’

Bhagwat G ita , p . 196 .

Anc ient S ans k r i t L i terature , p . 20 .

P I I I Losoruv . 28 3

NYAYA .

T he Nyaya system was f ounded b y Gau tama,who

say s tha t the way to sa lvati on i s the true know ledge O f

su bstan ce or be ing,wh ich he clas s ifies as under

(1 ) P ramana . (10 ) Bad .1

(2) P rameha . (11) J alp .2

(3 ) S anshaya . (12) Bitand a . 3

(4 ) P rayojana . (13 ) H a itwabhasya (para l le(5 ) D rishtant. logism .)

(6) S iddhant (pr inc iple) . (14 ) C h hal .(7 ) A vayav (port ion ) (15) Jat i .(8 ) Ta ra k log i c ) . (16) N igrahstan (when one

(9 ) N irnaya . is pushed to an utte rlyuntena ble pos i tion . )

T he au thor then d i scu sses (1) the natu re O f the

a rgumen t an d the proof,and the i r d i ffe ren t kind s

E T H unt ) , (2 ) the na tu re O f the sou l as apart f rom

sen ses , body and the m ind . T he relat i on O f the soul

w ith the body i s th rough the med ium O f the m ind or

m a n . T he sou l and the body cannot a ff ec t each othe r

d irectly b ut on ly th rough the med ium O f the m ind . H e

then proceeds to prove the tran sm igra ti on O f sou l s,the cm

n ipresence and omn i s c ien ce o f God,and decla res th at

H e i s sepa rate f rom the sou l s who are countle ss in n um

b er. T he au thor bel ieves the Veda s to b e the Rev elati on,

and ad v i ses allm ank in d to f ol low the i r teach ings . T he

mater ia l cau se of the un iv erse,he decla res

,i s P ramanu

1B a d a d iscuss ion w ith a s i ncere des i re to get at the truth .

2 J alp a d iscuss ion to refute the opponent .

3 t and a = when one obst inately cl ings to his own doctrine and

does not l isten to the other s ide .

284 H I NDU S U PE R IO R I TY.

(atom s) . T he P ramanu are eterna l . T he au th or then

proceeds to refute Athe i sm ,and ends by giv ing rea son s

f or a bel ief in God . An Engl i sh cr it i c says : “ T he

great prom inen ce giv en to the method by m ean s O f w h i chtruth m igh t b e a scerta ined ha s sometimes m i sled Eu ro

pean w r i ters in to the bel ief tha t it i s merely a sy stemO f log ic. Far f rom be ing res tr i cted to mere logic , the

Nyaya was intended to b e a complete system of ph i lo

soph i ca l inv est igat i on,and dea lt w ith som e qu estion s

such as the natu re O f the in tel lect,a rt i cu lated sound

,

genu s , v ar iety , and indiv idua l i ty- in a manner so ma sterlyas wel l to deserv e the n oti ce of Eu ropean philosophers .

”l

Mrs . Mann ing,a f ter giv ing a brief ou tl in e of the N a iya

yie syl logi st i c proof, says :“ Ev en the b a re ou tl ine here

giv en shows Gautama’s m en ta l powers and practica l

m ode O f dea l ing w ith the deepest quest i on s wh i ch aE ect

the human m ind .

”

Eu ropean logic employs ph ra seology founded upon

cla ss ifica ti on,wh i le the Nyaya system makes u se Of

terms upon wh ich a cla ss ificat ion wou ld b e f ounded .

T he one in fe rs tha t “ k ings are m orta l becaus e they

bel ong to the cla ss O f mortalbe ings .”

T he other a rr iv es

at the same con clus ion,becau se mo rta l ity i s inherent

in human i ty, and human ity is inherent in k ings . T he

proposition gi v en abov e wou ld,a s we hav e seen

,b e stated

by a Eu ropean logi c ian a s,

“ All men a re mo rta l by a

H indu as,

“Where there i s human ity there i s morta l ity .

"

lCham ber’

s E ncyclorieed ia , N yaya .

2 Anc ient and Med iae va l Ind ia,Vol. I , p . 17 3 . M rs . Mann ing says

H is c le arness O f .a i1n and h is d ist inct perception of r igh t means toward sits a tta inment cont inue to b e the invaluable gu ide of success ive

genera t ions .

”

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286 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

the f ounder of Veishesh ik, redu ces the con ten ts O f the

u n i v erse un der s i x categories on ly . They are

1 . D rabya (substan ce) .2 Guna (qua l ity) .

K arma (a ct ion or mot ion) .4 . S zimanya (genera l ity or c lass).5 . Vishesha (atom i c ind iv idua l ity or di fference) .6 . S amvaya (int imate re lat ion ) .7 . A b hav (non-ex istence) was added a f terward s.

Kanada ’s work is d iv i ded into ten books,Of wh i ch

the first book,a f ter reducing the s i xteen 113 127 O f the

Nyaya to s ix on ly, a s giv en abov e,d i scusses the natu re

O f Abhae or n on-exi sten ce . T he second book d i scu sse s

the natu re O f D ra bya . I n the th i rd are d iscu s sed A tma

and An ta hha ra n and the i r re la t i on to each other. T he

A tma and An tah/ea ra n correspond w ith the J eeva and

Ala n (W t) O f the Nyaya . T he f ou rth book d i scus se s the

natu re O f the human body an d the externa l n atu re a s

a ff ecting it,w h i le the Ved ic dha rma i s upheld in the sixth

book . T he seven th book di scu sses Ga na and S ambaya ,

the i r na tu res,k ind s and eff ects . T he e igh th book shows

the way to what the H indu s ca l l Gya na , or true knowledge

o f the myster ie s O f ex i s ten ce,non -ex i sten ce and other

metaphysi ca l top ics . T he intel lect and the Vz'

shesha are

d i scu ssed in th e n inth book . T he ten th b O O k con tain s a

deta i led d i scu ss ion on A tma and its guna s , etc .

T he poin ts Of d i fference between the Nyaya and the

Veishesh ik are on ly two . (1) T he Nyaya d i str i bu tes the

con ten ts O f the u n iv erse into s ixteen categories , wh i le the

Ve ishesh ik does so into sev en on ly . (2 T he Nyaya a ccepts

f ou r k inds O f P rama na or a rgumen ts . T he Veisheshik

accepts on ly two—P ra tyahhsha and Anaman—and rejects

the rema in ing two,Upman and S ha ba

’a .

P I I I Losor I I v . 2 8 7

I n the interest ing introdu cti on wh ich D r . Ro er

appends to the tran sla tion O f Bha shapa richhcd a he

compares Kanada ’s doctr ine o f a tom s to that o f D emoc ri

tu s,the Greek ph i losopher

,and pronoun ces the former to

b e v a stly super ior .

Veisheshik,says Mrs . Mann ing

,

1 “ lean s toward s

phys ica l sc ien ce rather than metaphys ica l . T he theory

O f sound propoun ded by the H indu s seem s to b e in accor

dan ce w i th the latest Eu ropean advan cement in sc ien ce .

A f ter d i s tingu i sh ing between the a rti cu late and the inarti

cu late sounds,Vish vana th

,the au thor O f Bhashaparichhe

da,says : “ Some say its (soun d ) produ ct i on takes place

l i ke a su ccess ion O f wav es a ccord ing to others , l i ke

the b ud O f Ka a’amba plan t (v erses 165 , T he

T a ra /c S angra h, an other work O f th i s school , says :“ I t

i s ether in wh i ch there res i des the qua l ity O f sound . I t

i s one,all-pervad ing and eterna l .” 2

T he au thor O f the H i story Of H indu Chem i stry

says : H i s theory O f the propaga t i on O f sound cannotf a ilto exc ite our wonder and adm i rat ion ev en at th i s

d i stan t da te . N O les s rema rkab le i s h i s statemen t tha t

light and hea t are on ly d i ff eren t f orm s O f the same

essen tia l subs tan ce. Bu t Kanada i s an t i c i pated in many

m a ter ia l po ints by Kapi la,the repu ted originator O f the

Sankhya ph ilosophy .

” 3

Accord ing to the Veisheshik,a s a l so a ccord ing to

Nyaya,there a re fiv e members O f the syl logi sm in stea d

O f th ree a s in the Engl i sh syl logi sm .

They are 1) Propos i t i on , (2)Rea son , (3 ) Example ,(4 ) Appl i cati on , (5) Conclu s ion .

1Anc ient and Med iaeva l I nd ia , Vol. I , p . 18 1.

Anc ient and Med iaeva l Ind ia , Vol. I , p. 189 ,

3 H i story of H indu C hem i stry, Vol. I , p . l.

288 H IN D U S UPE R IO R ITY .

For instance ,—(l) T he mounta in is fiery .

(2 ) Because it smo k es .

(3 ) Wh atever smo k es is fiery, as a cu l inary hearth .

(4 ) Th is does smo k e .

(5) Therefore it is fiery as a foresa id .

A cha rge of defic ien cy ,“ inaccu ra cy o f defin i t ion

,

ha s been brough t aga in st the fi ve-m embered syl log i sm .

D r . Ba l lan tyn e‘

thu s meets the a ccu sat i on “ T he fiv e

membered expre ss ion,so f ar as the a r rangement o f its

parts i s con cerned , i s a summa ry o f the N a z

'

yay z'

lc’s V iews

in rega rd to rhetori c,

‘an o ff shoo t f rom logi c ’

(see Whateley’

s Rhetor i c , p . an d one to w h i ch,

a f ter ‘the a scerta inmen t of the truth by inv estiga t ion

belongs the e stabl i shment o f it to the sa t i sfa cti on o f

another ” 1 T o th i s M rs . Mann ing add s the f ollow ing

I n f act,Gau tama appears to ha v e expre s sed ba re logic

in tv'

vo-m embered argumen t,an d to hav e added two othe r

members when he sough t to con v in ce rhetor i ca l ly . A f ter

the decla rat i on and the rea son,he in serts an example ’

confi rmatory and a l so sugge st ive,and an

‘app l i cati on

,

’

that i s,he show s in the fou r th member of h i s syl logi sm

that h i s exam ple possesses the requ ired cha racter and

then he w inds u p w i th the con clu s ion or Q . E . D .,

w h ich i s common to allsyllog i sm s .”

E v i den tly the di ff erence b etweeen theH indu and the

Greek syl logi sm (for the Eu ropean s hav e no sy llog ismo f the i r own )

2 i s d ue to the d i fference o f a im o f the

lBallantyne on the N yaya systenr— T /ce P a nd z

'

t,Vol. I , p . 3 9 .

2 “ There a re on ly two nat ions in the whole h istory of the world who ha vecon ce i ved i ndependently , and wi thout any suggestion from others , thetwo sc iences of Log i c and G ramm ar

,the H ind us and the G ree k s .

M a x Mu l ler’s A ncien t S a nskrit L itera ture, p . 158 . Cons id er ing th a tthe G ree k ph i losoph ers d er ived the i r ph i losophy f rom Ind ia , there may

b e a doubt regard ing the Greek or ig inali ty.

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2 90 H INDU S UPE R IO R I TY .

u s shun good or b ad resu l ts . We w i l l then b e happy .

T he secon d poin t i s th i s : Sankhya teaches tha t therecannot b e anyth ing w h i ch has not exi sted before . We

cannot make a body round un less roundnes s a l rea dyexi sts in it. I t may not b e seen

,b ut st i l l there it i s .

N yaya holds the oppos i te theory .

Sankhya doctr ine,

” says Mrs . Mann ing,i s a v ery

great eff ort at enrav elling the deep mysteries of our

ex i sten ce . O n the one s ide i t exh ibi ts the worth le ssn es s o f the per i shable un iv erse , in clud ing m an w ith all

h i s powers and qua l ities . O n the other s ide it pla ces

the im per i shable sou l . T he per i shable port i on of th i s

d iv i s ion i s f u lly and firm ly dea l t with,and has exc ited

the adm ira t ion and in teres t of su ch men as Wi l son ,Ba l lantyne and others. Bu t con cern ing the sou l or the

imper i shable port i on of h i s su bject,on e f eel s that the

author is reserv ed,or that he has more though ts than he

chooses to express .

” 1

T he word Sankhya (mm together and Jekya

rea son ing) ind ica tes tha t the system i s ba sed on syn

theti c rea son ing .

S i r W. Hun ter says “ T he v a r iou s theor ies of

creati on , a rrangemen t and development were each elabo

ra ted,and the V iews o f the modern physiologi sts at the

presen t day are a retu rn w ith new l ight to the evolution

theory of Kap z’

la,whose Sankhya sy stem i s the oldest of

the D arsanas .

” 2

I M ann ing s Anc ient and M ed ize valInd ia, Vol. I , p , 15 3 .

2 Ind ian G az etteer, I nd ia,

”2 14 .

I’

H lLO S O P I I Y . 29 1

Y O GA ,

Wi thou t a knowledge o f Yoga ,lone cannot reach

the rea l depth s o f human na tu re,and can nev er f a thom

the h i dden myster ie s and the rea l ities o f the heart , and

know the natu re o f the sou l and o f God . True metaphys i cs

i s imposs i ble w ithou t Yoga , and so i s men ta l ph i losophy .

P atanj ali d i v i des h i s work in to fou r chapters . T he fi rs t

chap te r , af ter d i scu s s ing the na tu re of the sou l and o f

Yoga , enumerates e ight mean s or stages in the proces s bywh i ch Yoga can b e accompl i shed . They are as under

1. Y ama (forbearance) . I

(1) N ot do ing in jury to l iv ing be ings.

(2 ) Verac ity ,(3 ) Avo id ance of theft.

(4 ) C hast ity .

(5) Non-acceptance of g i fts.

N iyama (R e l ig ious observanc e ) .

(1) E xterna l and interna l purity .

(2 ) C heerfu lness or contentment .(3 ) Auster ity .

(4 ) Ch an ting Ved i c hymns .

y O G A '

(6 ) D evoted rel iance on the Lord .

Asa na (Postu res) .There a re 100 d i ff erent postures o f the body .

4 . I ’ranayama (R egulat ion of the brea th ) .(I ) Inha lat ion .

(2) E x halat ion .

(3 ) S uspens ion (Khmnblmlca ) .

5 . P ratyahara (R estra int of the senses) .

6 . D harna (S teady ing of the m i nd ) ,

17 . D liyana (Contemplat ion ) .

L8 . S amad h i (Transportat ion of m ind or unconsc iousness) .

A f ter g iv ing the abov e-ment ioned sub -d iv i s ions

“ Al—Barun i trans lated S an k hya and Y oga into A rab i c in the re ignof K hal ifa Al-Mammam .

”—Max Muller’s S cience of L a nguage, 165 .

292 H INDU surnaronrrr .

the au thor describes the“

na tu re o f S ama dhz'

and i ts two

d iv i s i on s . T he second chapter descr i bes in deta i l s the ways

and m ean s to perf orm S ama dh z’

. T he th i rd chapter

descr ibes the powers dev el oped in a Y ogi,when he has

reached the la st stage of Yoga . S amad i n'

on d iff eren t

objects imparts d iff erent powers to the Y ogi . S ama dhi

on the Moon giv es one part i cu la r power , on the Jup i ter

another , and so on . T he f ou rth chapter treats of Mo/cksha .

P atan j ali decla res that w hen a man becomes an adept at

S amadln'

,he ga in s a know ledge of the pa s t and the futu re

,

a knowledge of the sounds o f an ima l s,of the thoughts of

others,of the t ime of h i s own death

,etc .

I t w ou l d b e d i fficu lt to con ce ive all th i s bu tf or the u n im peachable te stimony o f Eu ropean scholars

and officers . I n an in stance recorded by P ro .Wilson I

a Brahm in appea red to s i t in the air wholly un su pported

an d to rema in so s itting on one occa s ion for twelv e m inu

tes an d on another for f orty m inu tes .Colone l Olcott record s an a ccoun t of a yogi descr ibed

to him by D r . R a j en d ralalMittra I t i s not‘

kn own

w hen th i s yogi went in to S ama dlu'

,b u t h i s body wa s f oun d

abou t 4 5 yea r s ago qu ite l i feless . Allmanner o f tortures

were u sed to bring him ba ck to con sciou sness,bu t allto

no pu rpose . H e Wa s then touched by the hand of a

f ema le and he in s tan tly cam e back to h i s sen ses .” 2

D r. McGregor says in h i s H i story of the S ikh s

A nove l scen e occu rred at one of these ga rden hou ses

1 E ssays on the R e l ig ion of the H ind us , Vol. I , p . 209 . S ee the

descr i pt ion o f the gogis g iven by O n isicritus , a follower of Alexand er.

A lso the a ccount o f Calana s .

C ol. Olcott’

s lec ture on“ Theosophy , the sc ientific bas is of rel i

g ion , p . 18 .

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2 94 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

two out o f numberless s im i la r ca ses . I n Ind ia not on ly

these th ings b u t f eats o f a far more extraord ina ry natu re

are so common tha t they f a i l to ev oke su rpr i se at all.” 1

Fryer was qu ite a ston i shed to see yogz'

s who fixedthe i r eyes towa rd s the su n w ithou t los ing the i r s igh t .

T he Y oga ph i losophy i s pecul ia r to the H indus,and

no tra ce of it i s f ound in any other nati on,an c ient or

m odern . I t Was the f ru i t o f the h ighest intel lectua l and

sp ir itua l dev elopmen t. T he ex i sten ce of th i s system i s

another p roof o f the in tel lectua l su per ior ity o f the an

c ient H ind us ov er allother peoples .

MIMA N S A .

Miman sa i s the collective name of two o f the s i x

d iv i s ion s o f H ind u Ph i losophy . They are the P a r va

and the U tta ra rlf imansa . T he term s U tta ra and P a rva ,

m ean ing latter and f ormer,do not apply to the relati ve

ages o f the Miman sa s b u t to the sacred books w h i ch are

ind ica ted by them . Pu rv a Miman sa treats of the H indur i tua l and Ka rma /rand as prom u lgated in the B ra kma na s

,

w h il st the U ttara Mimamsa treats o f the natu re o f God

and of the sou l a s taugh t in the U pan i shads . And the

two Mimansa s are so-ca l led becau se the U pan i shad s were

composed la ter than the B rahma na s .

T he P u rv a Miman sa g iv es in f u l l deta i l the Ka rma

we hav e to perf orm . T he Y agga s , Agn ihotra s , gi f ts , etc .

are alltrea ted elaborate ly and m inu tely . T he au thor,

the v en erab le Ja im in i,a f ter d i scu ss ing the natu re of the

dha rma and a dha rma,says that dlia rma con s i sts in

1S ee also T he Court and Camp of R anj it S ingh .

”

P in t osor H v . 2 9 5

f oll ow ing the teach ings of the Vedas . Dharma i s

essen tia l ly necessa ry to ga in happiness .T he U tta ra Mimamsa i s the work of the celebra ted

Vya sa , and i s one o f the m ost important o f the s i x

D arsana s . T he school of ph i losophy of wh i ch the U ttara

Mimansa i s the be st expos iti on i s ca l led Vedan ta . T he

word Vedan ta m ean s “the end or the u lt imate a im of the

Veda s,

”and the Vedanta system d i scu sses th e natu re o f

the Brahma and the sou l . T he U tta ra Miman sa i s one o f

the grandest f eats of the grand H indu gen iu s . T he

B rahmsm‘ra of Vyasa begin s w ith a refu tati on o f

athe i sm and a v in d icat i on o f the i sm . I t then lays down

that the on ly way to salva tion or muld i i s a tmaggdna ,

or a tru e know ledge o f the sou l .

Prof essor Max M u ller says : “ M uch tha t was m os t

dea r,that had seemed f or a t im e the i r v ery self , had to

b e su rren dered bef ore they cou l d firid the sel f of selv es ,the old man

,the l ooker-ou

,a su bject in depen dent o f all

persona l ity,and exi sten ce indepen dent of alll i fe. When

that point had b een rea ched then the h ighest know ledge

began to d raw ,the sel f w i th in (the P ratyagatman ) was

d rawn towa rd s the h ighest sel f (the Pa ramatman ) , i t

found its true self in the h ighes t sel f , and the onenes s

of the su bject iv e w i th the objectiv e sel f was recogn i sed

a s under ly ing allrea l ity,a s the d im d ream of rel ig ion

a s the pu re l igh t of ph i losophy .

Th i s f undamen ta l i dea i s worked ou tw ith systema ti c

completeness in the Vedan ta ph i losophy,and no one

who can appreciate the les son s con ta ined in Berkeley ’s

Ph i losophy w i l l read the U pan i shads and the Brahma

Sutra s w ithou t f eel ing a r i cher and a w i ser man .

” 1

I I nd ia \Vhat can it teach us ? p . 2 5 3 .

296 H INDU S UPE R I O R ITY :

There i s d i ff eren ce of opin ion as rega rd s the Vedant ic

v iew o f the n a tu re o f the soul and o f God . R amanu ja

Swam i he ld that the rela ti on between God and sou l was

tha t o f a ma ster and servant—tha t they were sepa rate en ti

t ies , and that there were innumerable sou l s . T he grea t

S hankeracharya bel ieved tha t the Vedanta taugh t that

there was on ly one Brahma and alle l se was mdgrt

or i l lu s i on .

Swam i D ayanand Sa ra swati,however , has aga in

rev erted to the v iew orig ina l ly held of Vedanta,and sa id

tha t the Brahma Sutra s or the rea l Vedanta Sutra n ev er

taugh t the un ity of God and sou l . Popu la r bel ief,how

ever,i s swayed by the v iew s of Shanker Swam i

,and th e

system i s held to b e an all-absorbing Pan th e i sm . Any

way , it i s the most subl ime system of ph i losophy ev er

propounded by m an .

O f Sanka ra ’

s commen ta ry u pon the Vedan ta,S i rW.

Jon es says that “ it i s n ot poss ible to speak w ith too mu ch

applau se of so excel lent a work ; and I am confident ina ssert ing that, u n t i l an a ccura te tran slation of it sha l l appear in some European language , the genera l h i story o f

ph i losophy m u st rema in in com plete .

S ir W. Jones says o f Vedanta :“ T he f undamen ta l

tenet o f the Vedan ti c school con s i s ted not in deny ing the

exi sten ce o f matter,that i s

,of sol id ity

,impenetrab i l ity

,

and extended figu re (to deny w h ich wou ld b e lunacy) ,b ut in correcting the popula r n ot i on o f i t

,and in con

tend ing that it ha s no essen ce independent of menta l

percepti on , that ex i stence and percept ib i l ity are con

v ert i ble term s,that ex terna l appea ran ces and sen sati on s

are illusorv and would v an i sh in to noth ing if the d iv ine

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298 H IN D U surnnronrr r .

shou ld ha ve inv en ted an d ma stered th is d i fficu l t form so as

to hav e made i t the v eh i cle of express i on for ev e ry kind

o f lea rn ing .

” 1

T he s ix D arsana s are ra rely read and understood byE u ropean s

,ow ing partly to the extreme d iffi cu lty of the

la nguage and a pecu l ia r and d i fficu l t philos0 ph ic techn i que

d i fficu l t to acqu ire,and pa rtly to the want on the i r part

o f tha t men ta l equ i pmen t wh i ch i s the resu lt of the h ighestin tel lectua l tra in ing and great sp irituald ev elopmen t.

As i s we l l known,the Up an isha d s are the f oun ta in

head o f allH indu ph i losoph y . They are sa i d to b e 52

in nunrb er. T he U pan i shad s are d i squ i s i tion s on ph i lo

soph ica l subjects,and b reathe an a ir of subl im i ty and

sp i r itual i ty w h i ch i s nowhe re else to be f oun d . T he

prof oun d ph i losophy they teach,the deep w i sdom they

con ta in,the in fa l l i ble tru th s they establ i sh , and the tru e

pr inc iple s they set f orth a re the stan d ing ma rv els of

Indian in tel lect and m onumen ts o f human gen iu s .

I n h i s P hilosop hy of the Up an isha d s , recently

tran slated by R ev . A . S . Geden , M .A .,Prof . D eu ssen

an inest imablecla im s for its f undamenta l though t

v a lue for the whole race of mankind . I t is in “mar

v el lon s agreemen t w i th the ph i losophy f ounded by

Kan t,and adopted and perfected by h i s great su ccessor

,

Schopenha uer , d iff er ing f rom it, where i t does d i ff er

,

on ly to excel . For, w herea s the ph ilosophy of Scho

penhauer on ly“ represen ts Ch r i stian ity in its present

f orm,

”w e m u st hav e recou rse to the U pan i shad s “ if w e

'

I n th is method , says P rof M ax M u l ler,

the concatena t ion o f'

p ros and cons is o ften so compl i ca ted and the reason on both s ides d éfend ed by the same author w i th such ser iousness th at we somet imes

re i rram d ou b tfulto wh i ch s ide the author leans , t ill we arri ve at the end

o f the who le chap ter.”

Pmm sornr . 299

are w i l l ing to put the fin i sh ing touch to the Chr i stia n

con sc iou snes s , and to make it on alls i des con s i sten t an d

complete .

” “ Professo r D eu ssen ,it i s true isk ind enough

to Ch ri stian ity to bracket the N ew Testamen t and the

U pan i shads a s “the two noblest products o f the rel ig iou s

con sc iou sness of mank ind ,”b ut leav e s h i s readers in no

doub t as to wh i ch he con s iders the nobler o f the two .

”

T he great German ph i l osopher , Schopen hauer , says

Oh ! how thorough ly i s the m ind here wa shed clean

o f allea rly engra fted Jew i sh supers t ition s an d o f all

ph i losophy tha t cr inges be fore those super s t iti on s . I n

the whole world there i s no study,except that o f the

or igina l s,so benefic ia l and so elev ating as tha t o f the

U pan i shad s . I t ha s been the sola ce of my lif e, it willbe

the sola ce of my d ea t

Mr . Elph in s tone , in compa r ing the an c ien t Greek s

w ith the an c ien t H indu s,says The i r (Hind u s)

general lea rn ing wa s more con s i derable ; and in the

know ledge o f the be ing and na ture of God,thev were

a l ready in possess ion of a ligh t wh i ch was bu t f a intly

perce iv ed ev en by the loft ies t intel lects in the be st daysof Athen s .” 1

BH AGWAT G I TA.

Bhagwat Gi ta has for cen tur ies mou lded the though ts

and the condu ct o f a large secti on o f the H ind u na tion .

Bhagwat Gi ta is essen t ia l ly a work on theVedanta ph i lo

sophy,and appea rs to have been composed to correct a

m i scon cepti on of that n oble system . Ow ing to a m is

u nderstand ing o f the teach ings of th i s subl ime philoso

I E lphins tone’

s H istorv of Ind ia,p . 4 9 .

3 00 H I ND U suP E R I O R I T Y .

phy,men began to neglect their dut ies and respon sib i

lities,

srnce there was on ly one B rahma and alle l se wa s

i l lu s ion . Th i s a larmed allgood and though tf ul men,and

a s an anti dote th i s excel len t book , Bhaywa t Gila , was

w ritten . I t i s sk i lf u l ly in trodu ced as an ep i sode in the

Mahabhara ta,b u t it i s clea rly out of place -there . T he

battle-field i s ha rdly the fittest place to hold protracted

d i scu ss ion s on su ch subl ime metaphys icalquesti on s a s

the book con ta in s . Whatev er may b e the ra z’

son d’

etre o f

the book,it has not only f a sc inated the m ind s o f H indu s

b u t has cha rmed Eu rop ean s , who speak in raptu rou sterm s o f

,

th i s celebra ted poem .

Mrs . Manning says : “Bhagwat Gi ta i s one of the

most remarkable compos iti on s in the San skr i t language.

”

P ro fes sor Heeren says “ T he poem certa in lyabound s in subl ime pa s sages , w h i ch rem ind one o f the

O rph ic hymn to Ju piter quoted by S toboeu s.” l

Mr . Elph in stone 2 says : “Bhagwat Gi ta deserv es

h igh pra i se f or the sk i l l w i th wh i ch it i s adapted to the

genera l Epi c, and the tenderness,

and e legan ce of the

n a ra tiv e by means of wh i ch i t i s in troduced .

”

lllistoricalR esea rch es , Vol. I I , p . 198 .

2llisto r'v of Ind ia , p . 155 .

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3 02 H INDU supnaronrf

rr .

Prof essor “lilson says : “ T he An c ient H indus at

tain ed a s thorough a profic ien cy in med icine and su r

gery as any people whose a cqu i s it ion s are recorded .

Th i s m ight b e expected,becau se the i r pa tien t a tten t i on

an d natu ra l sh rewdnes s wou l d render them excel lentobserv ers , wh i l st the extent and f erti l ity o f the ir nat iv ecountry wou ld f u rn i s h them w i th m any va luable d rugs

and m ed icame‘

n ts . The i r d iagnos i s is sa i d,in cou se

quence , to define and distingu ish symptom s w ith great

accu racy,and the i r Mater ia Med ica i s most v olum inou s .

S i r Wi l l iam Hun ter has the f ol low ing on the scope

o f Ind ian med icine —“ Ind ian med ic ine dea lt w ith the

w hole a rea o f the sc ien ce . I t descr ibed the stru ctu re o f

the body , its organ s , l igamen ts , mu scles,

v essel s and

t i s sues . T he Mater ia Med ica of the H indu s embraces av a st col lection of d rugs bel onging to the m inera l

,v ege

tab le and an ima l k ingdom s,ma ny of which ha ve now been

’

a dop ted by E u rop ea n p hysicia ns. The i r pha rmacy con

ta ined ingen i ou s p rocesses of p repa ra ti on , w i th elaborated i rection s f or the adm in i strat i on an d cla ss ification of

med i cines . Mu ch attent i on was dev oted to hygiene,

regimen o f the body,and diet.” 2

Mr . Weber says T he number of med ica l work s

and au thors i s extraord ina r i ly la rge.

T he Ayu r Veda is the oldest sys tem of med i cine,

and i s said to hav e been rev ea led by the great H indu

lWilson ’

S Wor k s , Vol. I I I , p . 2 69 Mater ia Med i ca, says

Weber , “

genera l ly appears to hav e been hand led with g reat pred ilec~t ion .

” -I nd ian L itera ture, 270 .

2 Imper ia l Ind ian Ga z etteer,

“ Ind ia,

” p . 220.

3 Weber’s Ind ian L i terature,p

. 260.

M E D IC I N E . 3 0 3

physi c ian , D hanwan tari, 1 to h i s pu p i l S usru ta . Gha rakastates tha t “ orig inal ly the con ten ts of h i s own work s

were commun i cated by Atreya M un i to Agn iv esa , and

by h im to Gha raka,who condensed where it wa s too

prol ix and expanded where it wa s too brief . S usm ta

and Cha ra /ca are now the two most important and

wel l-known work s on H ind u med ic ine.

T he ch ief d istinction o f the modern Eu ropean

sc ien ce o f m ed i c ine i s su rgery . But ev en in surge ry,

a s w i l l be clea r f rom the f ol low ing quota t i on s, the

an c ien t H indu s atta ined a profic ien cy yet un su rpa ssed by

the ad van ced med ica l s c ience o f the presen t d ay .

Mr. Weber says “ I n su rgery,too

,the Ind ian s

seem to hav e atta ined a spec ia l p rofic ien cy,

and in th i s

departmen t,Eu ropean su rgeon s m i gh t , perhaps , eren a t

the p resen t d ay sti l l lea rn someth ing f rom them, a s indeed

they hav e a lready borrowed f rom them the opera tion o f

rh inopla sty .

” 2

“ T he i r surgery ; says Elph in s tone,i s as rema rk

ab le as the i r med icine .

” 3 Mrs . Mann ing says : “ T he

su rgica l in strumen ts o f the H ind us were su fficien tly

sha rp,indeed , as to be capable o f d iv i d ing a ha i r

D r . S i r W. W. H un ter says T he su rgery of

the an c ient In d ian phys i c ian s was bold and sk i l f u l .

1 T he name of th is great m an , D hanwantari, has become a bye-word

for an ad ept .

”H is name is always pronounced before ta k ing med i c ine

in R a jputana , in consequence of the popu lar bel ief that his p rescr i p t ionsare infa ll i b le.

2Weber’s Ind ian L iterature , p . 2 70 .

3 H istory of Ind ia , p . 14 5 .

4 A rrcient and Med ize valI nd ia , Vol. I I , p , 3 4 6.

3 04 H INDU surnmomrr .

They conducted ampu ta t i on s,a r rest ing the bleed ing by

pressu re,a cup

-shaped bandage and boi l ing oil practis

ed l ithotomy ; perf ormed opera t ion s in the abdomen

and u teru s cu red hern ia,

fistu la,p iles set broken

bones and d isloca tion s and were dexterou s in the ex

tra cti on of f ore ign substan ces f rom the body . A spec ia l

b ran ch o f su rgery was dev oted to rh inopla sty, or opera

t i on for improv ing def ormed ears and noses and f ormingnew ones

, a u sef uloperati on wi nch E urop ea n surgeons

ha ve now borrowed . T he an c ient In d ian su rgeon s a l so

men t i on a cu re f or neu ralgia,ana l ogou s to the m odern

cutting o f the fi fth nerve above the eyebrow . They

devoted great ca re to the mak ing of su rgica l in struments,

and to the tra in in g o f studen ts by mean s o f operat ion s

perf ormed on wax sp read on a boa rd or on the t i s su es

and cel l s of the v egetable k ingdom,

and u pon dead

an ima l s. They were expert in m i dw i fery,no t sh r ink ing

f rom the most cr i ti ca l operati on s,and in the d i sea ses o f

women and ch i l dren . The i r practi ce of physio embraced

the cla ss ifica t ion s , cau ses, symp tom s and treatment o f

d isea ses,d iagnos i s and prognos i s . Con s i derable advances

were a l so made in v eter ina ry sc ien ce , and m onograph s

ex i st on the d i sea ses o f horse s , elephants , etc .

”

T he au thor of the H is tory of H in du Chem i strysays : “ Accord ing to S usruta , the d i ssecti on o f dea d

bod ies is a sine qua non to the studen t of su rgery , and

th i s h igh a u thor i ty lays fparticular s tres s on know ledge

ga ined f rom exper imen t and observ ati on .

” 2

A word w i th rega rd to the Veter ina ry Scien ce ,

Mr. H .M . E ll iot says “ There i s in the Roya l l ibra ry

‘

lI nd ia n G a z etteer, “ Ind ia,p . 2 20 . S ee a lso VVcbcr’

s lud ianL itera ture , p . 2 70 .

fi fl istoi y o f H ind u Chem i s try , Vol. I , p . 105.

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3 06 H I NDU sc rnelom ’

rr .

T he tran slator make s no menti on in it o f the work

on the same subject, wh i ch had been p rev iou sly tran s

lated f rom the San sk r it into Arab ic at Baghdad,unde r

the name of K i tab-ul-Baitara t. l

P ro fessorWeber says “ I n the Ved ic per i od,an ima l

ana tomy wa s ev i den tly thorough ly understood, ,a s each

part had its own d i stin ct iv e n ame .

”H e a l so says :

T he chapter of Amarkosha on the human body an d

its d i sea ses certa in ly presu pposes an ad v an ced cu ltiv a

t i on of m ed ica l sc ien ce .

P rof essor Wi l son says “ There i s a v ery la rge

body of med ica l l itera tu re in San skr it,an d some of the

pr in cipa l works are named b v Arab ic wr i ters as hav ing

been kn own and tran slated at Baghdad in the n in th cen

tu ry . These works compr i se allthe bran ches of med ica l

s c ien ce,su rgery inclu ded

,and conta in numerou s in stan ces

o f a ccurate observ at ion and ju d ic iou s trea tm en t.

”

T he H in du s hav e , th rough th i s bran ch of know ledge ,a s th rough m an y others

,been the benefactors o f huma

mity ; for , Hin du m ed ic ine i s the f oundation upon w h i ch

the bu i ld ing of th e European m ed ica l sc ien ce has been

con structed . H is Excellen cy Lord Ampth i ll,the late

Gov ernor of Madra s,wh i le decla r ing open the Madra s

or ig ina l s lo k as,was trans lated in the re ign of S hah ja han

,

“whenthere were many lea rned men who k new S ans k r i t, ” by S ayy id A bdu l lahK h an B ah ad ur F i roz J ung , who had found it among some other S ansk r it boo k s , wh i ch dur ing h is exped i tion aga inst Mewa r

,in the re ign of

Jeh ang i r, had been p l und ered f rom Amar S ingh , R ana of Ch itor . I t

is d iv id ed into twe lve chapters, and is more than double the s i z e of the

other.

1 E l l iot’s H isto r ians of Ind ia , Pa rt I . pp . 263, 64 .

S-’VVeber’

s Ind ian L i terature,p . 267 .

M E D I C IN E .

K ing In st i tu te of Prev en ti ve Med ic ine,sa i d “ T he people

o f Ind ia shou l d b e gra tef u l to h im (Col. K ing) f or hav ing

poin ted ou t to them that they can lay cla im to hav e beena cqua inted w ith the ma in pr in c i ples o f cu ra t ive and

preven tiv e med ic ine at a t ime when Eu rope was sti l l

imme rsed in ignoran t sav agery . I am not su re w hether

it i s genera l ly known tha t the sc ience of m ed ic ine ori

g ina ted in In dia , bu t th i s i s the ca se , and the scien ce was

fi rst exported f rom Ind ia to A rabia and then ce to Eu rope .

Down to the close of the seven teen th centu ry , Eu ropean

phys i c ian s lea rn t the scien ce f rom the w ork s of Arab i c

doctors ; w h i le the Arab ic doctors many cen tu r ies bef orehad obta ined the i r know ledge f rom the work s o f greatInd ian phys i c ians su ch a s D hanwantri

,Gha raka and

S usruta . I t i s a strange ci rcum stan ce in the world ’s

progres s tha t the centre of en l ightenm en t and know ledge

shou ld hav e trav el led f rom Ea st toWest,leav ing b ut l ittle

permanent trace of i ts f ormer ex i sten ce in the Ea st.

”

Si r W. Hu n te r says : “ T he Hind u med ic ine i s an

in dependent developmen t. Arab m ed ic ine wa s f ounded on

the tran sla t i on s f rom the San skrit ’ treati ses made by

command of the K ha l i f of Baghdad (950-960

Eu ropean med ic ine down to the 17th centu ry wa s ba sed

u pon the Arab ic , and the name of the Ind ian phys ic ian ,

Gha raka , repeatedly occu rs in Latin tran slati on s o f

Av i cenna (Ab-u S ina ) , R ha zes (Ab u Ra s i), and Serap ion

(Ab u S i rebi ) .

Mrs . Mann ing says “ T he med ica l work s of Ind ia

had a l ready a tta ined worldw ide celebr ity w hen the

l oma d e K oros wa s the first to announce th at the Th i betanT a nj ur conta ins among others translations of t he Gha ra k a , the S usruta ,and the Vagabhata .

3 08 H INDU surranmntrr .

Kha l i f of Baghdad col lected the greatest works and

summoned the most lea rned sc ien tific m en o f the i r

era to giv e bri l l ian cy to Baghdad as a seat o f learn ing.

S he adds I t i s imposs i ble to exh ib it Ind ia ’s an cien t.

sc ience to European s u nacqua in ted w ith San skr it or not

hav ing access to the nativ e m ed ica l l i brar ies , in wh ich

we un derstand many m ed ica l work s are str i ctly w ithhel d

f rom E u r opean s .

” 1

I n suppor t o f the f act that Hindu med ica l works

were largely tran sla ted by the A rabs,and that these

tran slat ion s f ormed the nu cleu s o f the i r sc ien ce,and tha t

a f ter be ing tran slated in to Eu ropean languages they

f ormed the backbone of the Eu ropean scien ce o f med ic ine,

the f ollow ing facts may b e c ited

Barz ou hyeh , a contempora ry o f the celebrated

Sa ssan ian k ing,N oshirev an (A .D . 5 3 1 v i s ited

Ind ia to a cqu i re proficien cy in the Ind ian s cien ces ?

Accord ing to Professor Sa chau , the learned tran s

lator of Alb erun i, some o f the books that had been

tran slated u nder the fi rst Abba s ide Ca l i ph s w ere ex tant

in the l ibrary of Alb erun i,when he w rote h i s ‘ In d ia

,

’

the B rahma S iddhanta or S ind v h ind,

the Gharakain the ed iti on of Al i I b n Z a in and the Pancha tan tra

,or

Ka l i la Damna .

” 3

Alman su r or Alm an zar,who remov ed h i s sea t f rom

Dama scu s to Baghdad between 753 and 774 A . D . ,cau sed

tran slat ion s to b e made f rom the San skr i t o f m ed ica l

sc ientific works , among wh ich‘

we find parti cu la ri sed

1 An c ient and Med ize v alInd ia,Vol. I

, pp . 3 5 3,54 .

2 H i story of H ind u Chem istry ,Introduction

, 76 ,

3 Alberuni’

s Ind ia by Professor S achau.

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3 10 H I N DU sur nmom r r .

d escr ib ing the s ix po i sonou s leech es , amongst wh i ch a re“those ca l led kri shna or bla ck

,the ha iry leech , that

wh i ch i s v ar iegated l ike a ra in bow,etc .

” I

Emperor F i roz S hah,a f ter captu r ing Nagarkot

,

had the San skrit m ed ica l works tran slated in to Arab icby Aya z ud d in Kha l i d .

2

I n the reign of Harun-ul-Ra shed,the H in du me

d ic ine wa s not on ly v a l ued by the A rabs,b ut H in du

phys ic ian s w ere a ctua l ly in v ited to Bagdad,who wen t

and res ided in h i s cou rt. For th i s in forn'

i a tion we are

indebted to A bu O sa iba , w hose b iograph ies a re qu oted

by P rof . De i tz in h i s Analecta fif ed icafi VVusten f eld

R ev . W. Cu reton,

4 F Iii Mul ler .

Abu O sa iba states that Ivan/le a was a H indu,em in

en t in the art of m edicine and learned in San skr it l itera

tu re . H e made a jou rn ey f rom Ind ia to Iraq,cu red

the Kha l i f Ha run-ul-lla sheed of an i l lne ss , and tran slated

a work on poi son by Gha raka f rom San sk r i t in to P er

s ian . An other H indu doctor named Sa leh ha s a l so been

eu l ogi sed by Abu O sa iba . H e wa s,it i s sa i d , one o f

the most lea rned amongst the Hindu s , an d greatly sk i lled

in cu r ing d i sea ses a ccord ing to the Ind ian mode . H e l iv ed

in I ra q du r ing H arun’

s re ign . H e t rav el led to Egy p t

an d Pa lestin e , and wa s bu r ied when he d ied in Egypt .

Ga brielB a ctishna,a Syrian

,became one o f the tran s

lator s of work s on m ed ic ine f rom San skr it in to Arab ic .

5

lB oyle’

s An c ien t H ind u Med i c ine,p . 3 8 .

9Max M u l ler’s S c ience of Language , p . 167 .

3 Le i ps i c E d it ion of 18 3 3 , p 12 4 .

4 Journal of the R . A . S oc iety , V I , pp . 105-11 5 .

5 S ee D e i ta ’s Ana lecta Med i ca . D r . Furnell , D y. S urgeon

-Genera land S an i tary Comm i ss ioner , M ad ras , in his lecture d el iv ered on the

lst A pr i l 1882 . most v igorousl y supported the cla im s of H indu m ed ic ine as one of the most an c ient and the most ad vanced sc iences ever

m i nimum. 3 11

Professor Sanchan says : Wha t Ind ia ha s contribu ted reached Baghdad by two d i ff eren t road s . Pa rt ha s

come d i rectly in tran sla ti on s f rom the Sansk r i t, pa rt ha s

trav e lled th rough Iran ,ha v ing or ig ina l ly been transla t

ed f rom San sk rit (Pal i ? Prak ri t ?) in to Pers ian , and

f arther f rom Pers ian in to -Arab ic . I n th i s way , e .

the f a ble s o f Kalila a nd D imna ha v e been commun i ca ted

to the A rabs , and a book on m ed ic ine , probably the

f amou s Charaka —of F ihrist, p . 3 0 3 .

“ I n th i s comm un i cati on between Ind ia and Bagdad

w e m u st no t on ly d i stingu i s h between two d i ff eren t roads ,b u t a l so between two d i ff eren t per i od s .

“ A s S indh wa s under the a ctua l ru le o f the Kha l i f

Man su r (A . D . 75 3 there came emba s s ies f rom

that part o f Ind ia to Baghdad , and among them schola rs,

who brought a long w i th them two books,the B ra hma

s idha n ta o f Brahmagupta (S in dh ind ), and h i s Kha n

d a /rha dya ha (Arkand ) . Wi th the hel p o f these pand its,

Alfa z a ri,pe rhaps a l so Y akub I b n Ta r ik

,tran s la ted them .

Both works ha v e been largely u sed,and hav e exerc i sed

a great influen ce . I t was on th i s occa ssion that theA rabs first becam e a cqua in ted w ith a sc ient ific systemo f a stron omy . They lea rned f rom Brahmagupta ea rl ier

than f rom P tolemy .

cu l t iva ted in the wo rld . S pea k ing of the im portance of d r in k ing un

pol luted water, he sa id th at “as the anc ient H indus were super ior to

allothers in oth er respects,so a l so were th ey super ior to the others in

recogn is ing the importan ce and v alue of wa ter , as we l l as in ins ist ingu pon preserv ing the water f rom fi lth of any k ind wh a tever .

”H e

added th at in his add ress to the Convocat ion in 1879 he had sa idth at the H ind u phys i c ians were unr ivalled in allbranches of med i c ineat the t ime when the Br itons were sav ages and used to go about qu itena k ed . H e then descr i bed the instruct ions conta ined In the H indumed i cal wor k s wi th regard to the use of water , which he sa id were mostremar k able,

H I NDU S UPE R I U R I T Y .

Another in flux o f H indu lea rn ing took pla ce

u nder Ha run , A . O . 78 6-808 . T he m in i ster ia l f am i ly

Ba rmak , then a t the zen i th of the ir power,had come

w i th th e ru l ing dyn a sty f rom Ba lkh , wh ere an an cestor

o f the irs had been an o ffic ia l in the Budd h i sti c tem ple,

N au b ehar , i.e .

,na vamfha ra , the n ew tem ple (or mon a stery) .

T he nam e Ba rmak i s sa i d to b e o f In d ian descen t,m ean

ing p a ramalca , i .e .,th e super i or (abbot o f the v iha ra

O f course the Barmak f am i ly had been converted , b ut

the ir contemporar ies n ev er though t mu ch of the ir p ro

f ession o f I slam,nor rega rded it a s genu ine . In duced

probably by f am i ly trad it i on s , they sent scholars to In dia ,there to stu dy m ed i c ine an d pha rm a cology . Bes i des

,

th ey engaged H indu schola rs to come to Baghdad,made

th em the ch ief phys ic ian s o f the ir h osp ita l s and ordered

them to tran slate f rom San skr i t into A rab ic,books on

m ed i c ine , pharma cology,tox i cology , ph ilosophy , a stro

logy and other su bj ec ts . S t i l l in later centu r ies,Mu sl im

schola rs somet imes trav elled f or the same pu rpose s a s

the em i s sa r ie s o f the Ba rmak,e.g .

,Almuwa ff ak

,not long

bef ore Alb eru n i ’s t ime .

” l

Mrs . Mann ing says Greek phys ic ian s hav e done

mu ch to preserv e an d d iff u se the m ed i ca l sc ien ce o f

Ind ia . We find,f or in stan ce

,that the Greek phys i cian

A ctuarius celebra tes the H indu med ic ine ca l led trip kala .

H e m en t ion s the pecu l ia r p rodu cts o f Ind ia,o f w h i ch

it i s composed,by the i r San skr i t name flf yrobala ns .

E tiu s,who wa s a nat iv e o f Am ida in Mesopotam ia

,

and stud ied a t Alexandr ia in the fi f th cen tu ry,

not

1 S achau’

s T rans lat ion of Alberun i’s I nd ia .

2 Anc ient and Med iaeval Ind ia, Vol, I .,

p . 3 51.

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3 14 H INDU S UPE R I O R ITY.

T he au thor of the H i story o f H indu Chem i stry

says : “Wh i le R a sa ra z‘nalsa rna and R a sa rna va are Ta ntras pure and s imple in wh i ch a l chemy is in c i den ta l ly

dwe l t u pon , R a sa ra z‘

an a-samu chchaga (a m odern work

ba sed on old Hin d i medi ca l work s) , i s a systematic and

comprehen s iv e treati se on m ater ia m ed ica,pha rmacy and

m ed ic ine . I ts method ical an d sc ientific arrangemen t

o f the s ubject-m atter would do cred it to any modern

w ork,and a ltogether it shou l d b e pron oun ced a produ c

t i on u n i que o f its k ind in San skr it l iteratu re.

” 1

D r. R ay says We hav e on ly to ref er ou r readers to

the chapter on the prepa rat ion o f cau sti c a lka l i,in the

S usru ta,w i th the d i rect i on that the stronglye i s to b e pre

serv ed in an i ron v es sel,

’

as a proof of the h igh degree o f

perf ection in sc ientific pharmacy ach iev ed by the H in du s

a t an ear ly age. I t i s ab solu tely f ree f rom any

tra ce o f quackery or charlatan i sm,and i s a dec ided

improv ement u pon the proces s p res cr ibed by a Greek

w riter of the elev en th centu ry,as unearthed by M . Berthelot.

A s regards d i spen sa r ies and hosp ita l s,ev eryone know s

tha t Buddh i sti c Ind ia wa s studded w ith them .

” 2

I n the European h i stor ies of chem i stry,the cred i t

o f be ing the fi rst to pres s chem i ca l knowledge into these rv i ce of m ed i ci ne an d in trodu ce the u se of the in terna l

adm in i strati on o f m ercu r ia l p repa ration s,i s gi ven to

Naga rjnna Bodhisa tv a was wellp ra ct ised in the a rt of compound ingmed i c i nes ; by ta k i ng a preparat ion (p i l l or ca k e) , he nour ished the

yea rs o f l i fe for m any hund red s of years , so th at ne i ther the m ind nor

appea rance d ecayed . S atvaha-R a ja had parta k en of th is myster iousn i cd ic ine .

”—Bcal’

s Bud dh ist R ecord s of the Western World , Vol. I I ,p . 2

3 12 .

1H is tory o f H indu C h em istry , Vol. I , p. L .

H is to ry of H indu Chem i stry. Vol. I , Introduct ion . p . v iii.

M E D IC INE . 3 15

Pa racel su s (14 9 3 But,says the au thor o f the H is

tory o f H indu Chem i stry,

“we hav e , indeed , rea son to

su spect that Pa racel su s got h i s idea s f rom the Ea st.

”

Dr . R ay says : From the ev i den ces we hav e adducedalla long there can now b e scarcely any quest i on as rega rd s

the pr i or ity o f the H in dus in mak ing mercu r ia l rem ed ie s

a spec ia l i ty and th ey are en ti tled to cla im or igina l i ty in

respect o f the in terna l adm in i strati on of meta l s O“

enerally,

see ing tha t the Gha raka and the S u sruta,not to speak

o f the later Tan tra s , are eloqu en t ov er the i r v i rtue s .” 2

I n Eu rope,howev e r

,the m ed i c ina l v i rtue s o f

mercu ry do not appea r to hav e been at alla scerta ined

even in the days of Pl iny the e l der ; that w r i ter

term ed qu i ck s i lv er the ba ne and poi son o f allth ings,and

w hat wou ld w i th more propr ie ty b e ca l led dea th-s i l ver .

3

Mr . Elph in stone says : “ They knew how to pre

pa re su l phu r i c ac id,n i tr i c ac id and m uratic a cid ; the

oxide of coppe r , i ron , lead (of wh ich they had both the

red ox ide and l itha rge ) , tin and z in c ; the su lphu ret o f

iron,copper

,mercu ry

,an timony

,and a rsen i c the sul

phate o f copper,z ink an d i ron and ca rbona tes o f lead

and iron . The i r modes o f prepa r ing these substances

were somet imes pecu l ia r .“

“ The i r u se of th ese med ic ines seem s to hav e beenv ery bold . They were the f i rst nat ion who employed

m inera l s in terna l ly,and they not on ly gav e mercu ry in

1H istory of H indu C hem istry, Vol. I , p . 60 .

H istory of H indu C hem i stry , Vol. I,Introduct ion

,p

. (lx i i , )3 N atural H istory , l i b. 3 3 .

4 For further in format ion , see D r. R oyle (p . 4 4 and on) , who pa rt icularly refers to the processes for ma k ing calomel and corros ive subl ima te.

3 16 H I NDU surnmom rr .

tha t manner b u t arsen i c and a rsen iou s acid,wh i ch were

remed ies in in term ittents . They ha v e long u sed c innaba rf or f um iga ti on s

,by wh i ch they produ ced a speedy and

sa fe sa l i vati on . They hav e long pra ct i ced inocu lati on .

They cut for the ston e , cou ched for the catara c t

an d extracted the f oetu s f rom the w omb,and in thei r

early w orks enumerate n ot less than 12 7 sorts o f

su rgica l in struments .” 1

I n the cou rse of a lecture to the nati v e s of Benga lon nati ona l un i vers it ies in Ind ia

,del i vered at Ca l cu tta

,

in January 1906,Mrs . Besan t sa i d : “ I n phys ic s and

chem i stry you hav e ad van ced f ar m ore . I n m ed i c ine youare sti l l m ore a dv an ced . I n the West i t i s by n o m ean s

a sc ience b u t la rgelybues s w ork . I n d ia n med icm e both

of the H ind us a nd the M ohameda ns 7s superwr to the

medicine of the IVest.”

NI n order to g i ve an idea of the ad v an ced state o f

the H in du sc ience of med ic ine and hygiene,a s wel l a s

o f what we m ay yet expect f rom the contin ued re sea rche s

o f the lea rned in an c ien t Ind ian l iterature in the way o f

v a lu able add ition s to themodern European m ed i ca l s cien ce,

I cannot do better th an qu ote the w ords o f H i s Excel len cy

Lord Am pth i l l,Gov ern or o f Madra s

,at the Open ing of

the K ing In stitu te of Prev en ti ve Med ic ine,in Feb rua ry

1905“ T he Mohamedan conquest s brough t back to

In d ia much o f the med ica l knowledge wh i ch had been

l ost f or cen tu r ies , and we hav e proof s th at the Mugha l

ru lers were grea t san itarv re formers in the magn ificen tlE lphinstone

’

s H istory of I nd ia,p . 1 4 5 . T he author a lso says :

Th e i r a cqua i ntance w ith m ed i c ines seems to h ave been very exten

s iv .e WVe a re n ot su1p1 ised a t the ir k nowledge of s imples , in wh i chth ey gav e ea rly lessons to E urope and moz e 1eeently taugh t us the benefit

of smo k ing (Zha teu a in asthma and the use of cowitch aga inst Wolm\ .

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3 18 H INDU S UPE R I O R ITY.

H i s Excel len cy then added :“ I t i s a l so v ery

probable,so Colonel K ing a ssures me

,that the an c ien t

H in dus u sed an ima l v a cc inat i on secu red by tra11sm1ss10 n

o f the sma l l-pox v i ru s th rough the cow and he ba se s

th i s in terest ing theory on a quota t i on f rom a w r it ing

by D hanv antri , the greatest o f the an c ien t H in du

phys i cian s,w h i ch i s so str ik ing and so appropr iate to the

present occa s ion that I mu st take the liberty of read ing

it to you . I t i s a s f oll ows : Take the flu i d o f the pock on

the udder o f the cow or on the arm between the shou l der

and elbow o f a human su bject on the poin t o f a lancet ,and lance with it the a rm s between the shoulders and

e lbow s unti l the blood appea r s : then m i x ing the flu id

w ith the blood the f ev e r o f the sma l l poxw i l l be produ ced .

’

T his is va ccin a tion p ure a nd simple. I t wou ld seem

from it tha t J enner ’

s grea t d iscovery wa s a ctually

f orestalled by the a ncien t H indoos .

”

H is Exce l len cy f a rther sa id : “ I cannot ref ra in from

m ention ing yet another of Colonel King ’s interest ing

d i scover ies,w h i ch i s tha t the modern plague pol i cy of

ev a cuat ion and d i s in f ect ion i s not a w it d i ff eren t from

tha t en joined in an c ien t H indu Sha stra s .

3 19

11.—MATHEMATICS .

I n Mathema t i c s he wa s g reaterTh an Tycho Bra he , or E rra Pa ter.

B U T L E R H arlzhra s .

I N men ta l abs tract ion and con cen trat i on of though tthe H indu s are prov erb ia l ly happy . Apart f rom d irecttest imony on the poin t

,the l itera tu re o f the H indu s

f u rn i shes u nm i staka ble ev iden ce to prov e tha t the

an c ien t H indus possessed a s ton i s h ing powers o f memoryand concentrat i on o f thought. Hence allsu ch sc ience s

and b ran ches o f study a s demand con cen tra ti on o f

thought and a h ighly-dev el oped powe r of abstracti on of

the m ind were h igh ly cu lti va ted by the H indu s . T he

sc ien ce o f ma thema ti cs,the most abstract of allsc ien ce s ,

m u st hav e had an i r res i st i ble f a sc ination for the m ind s of

the Hindu s . Nor are there proof s wanting to support

th i s sta tement. T he most exten si ve cu lt iv ation w h i ch

a stronomy rece i ved at the hands o f the Hindu s is in itsel f

a proo f o f the i r h igh profic ien cy in mathemat i cs . T he h igh

an tiqu ity of H indu a stronomy i s an argumen t in support

o f a sti l l greater an t iqu ity o f the i r mathemat i c s . Tha t

the H in dus were se lected by natu re to exce l allother

nat ion s in mathemat i cs,i s prov ed by her rev ea l ing to

them the f oundat i on of allma themat i cs . I t has beenadm i tted by allcompeten t au thor it ies that the H indu s

w ere the inv en tors of the n umera l s . T he great German

cr i t i c,S ch legel

,say s tha t the H indu s inv en ted “

the

dec ima l cyphers,the hon ou r o f wh ich

,next to letters the

most impo rtant of human d i scover ies , has , w i th the com

H I NDU S U I’E R I O R I T Y .

Inon con sen t o f h i stor i ca l au thor i ties,been a scri bed to

t he H indu s .” 1

P rof . Macdonel l says I n sc ien ce,too

, the debto f Europe to Ind ia has been con s iderable . There i s

,in

the first place,the great f a ct tha t the Ind ian s inv ented

the n umer i ca l figures used allo ver the w orl d . T he

influence wh ich the dec ima l sy stem o f reckon ing d epen

den t on those figu res has had not on ly on mathemat i cs

b u t on the progress o f c iv il i za t i on in genera l,

can

hardly b e over-estima ted . D uring the e igh th and n inth

centu rie s the Ind ian s became the tea cher s in a r ithm etic and a lgebra of the Arabs

,and th rough them of th e

n at ion s o f the We st. Thu s,though we call the latter

scien ce by an Arabi c n ame , it i s a g if t we owe to India .

”

S i r M . Mon ierWi l l iam s says “ F rom them (H in du s)the A rabs rece iv ed no t on ly the i r fi rst con cepti on s o f

a lgebra i c ana lys i s,bu t al so those n umeri ca l symbol s

and dec ima l nota tion s now cu rrent ev erywhere in Eu rope,and w h i ch ha ve rende red u ntold serv i ce to the progress

o f ar ithmeti ca l sc ien ce .

” Says Mann ing T o wha t

ever cyclopaed ia,jou rna l or essay we refer

,we un i f orm

ly find our n umera l s traced to Ind ia and the Arab s

recogn i sed a s the med ium th rough wh ich they were

in trodu ced in to Europe .

” 4\S i r W. W. Hunter a l so

says : “ To them (the H indu s) we owe the inv ent ion

o f the numer i ca l symbol s on the dec ima l sca le,T he

Ind ian f igu res 1 to 9 be ing abbrev iated f orm s o f in it ialletters o f he numera l s them selv es

,and the zero

,or 0 ,

lS chlegel’

s H istory of L i tera ture , p . 12 3 .

-’H i story S ansi t L i terature , p .

O'

I nd ia n \'Visdon1, p . 12 4 .

“lA nc ient a nd MeliaevalInd ia , Vol. I , p . 3 76 .

nan n v u !m {1 2m 0

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3 22 H IND U SU P E H I onI T Y .

T he Engl i s h mathemat ician , Prof . Wa l lace , says

T he L ila va ti treats of ar ithmet i c , and conta in s

not on l y the common ru les of that scien ce,b ut the

appl ication of these to v a riou s quest i on s o f in terest,ba rter

,

m i xtu res , comb ination s , permu tat ion s,sum s o f pro

gression ,indeterm in ate problem s , and m en su rat i on of

su rface s an d sol id s . T he ru les are f oun d to b e exac t andn ea rly a s s imple as in the p resen t sta te of ana ly ti ca l

inv estigat ion . T he numer i ca l resu l ts are read i ly dedu ced ,and if they b e compared with the ea rl iest spec imen s of

Greek ca l culat i on,the advantages of the decima l notat i on

”lare placed in a str ik ing l ight. I t may , howev er , b emen t ioned that L ila va ti

,o f wh i ch Prof e ssor Wallace

speak s,i s a compa rativ e ly modern manua l of a rithmet i c

and to j udge of the mer its of H indu ar i thmet i cf rom th i s book i s to judge o f the m er its of Engl i shar i thm eti c f rom Chambers ’ manua l o f a rithmeti c .

I t may b e added that the enormou s exten t to wh i ch

n umer i ca l ca l cu lati on goes in In d ia,and the possess ion

by the H indu s of by f a r the la rges t table o f ca lcu la tion,

are in them sel ves p roof s of the super ior cu lt ivation of

the sc ien ce of a r ithmet i c b v the H indu s .

GE O M E TR Y.

T he anc ien t H indu s hav e a lways been celebra ted

for the rema rkable progres s they made in geometry .

P rof essor Wa l la ce says Howev er anc ient a book may

I E d inb urgh R ev iew, Vol. 29 , p . 14 7.

M ATH E M AT ICS 3 2 3

b e in wh ich a sy stem o f tr igonometry occu rs , we. may b e

a ssu red i t was not wr itten in the in fan cy of the scien ce .

Geometry mu s t h ave been known in Ind ia long before thew r it ing o f the Su rya S id dhanta

,

”lw h ich i s supposed by

the Eu ropean s to hav e been w r i tten be fore BC .

Profesor Wa l lace says Su rya S iddhan ta conta in s

a rat i ona l system of t rigonometry , w h i ch d i ff ers en tirely

f rom that fi rst known in Greece or Arabia . I n fact it

i s f ounded on a geom etr i ca l theorem ,w h i ch wa s not

known to the geometr i cian s of Eu rope before the t ime

o f Vieta,abou t two h und red yea rs ago. And it employs

the s ines o f arcs , a th ing u nknown to the Greeks,who

u sed the chord s of double a rcs . T h e inv ent ion of s ine s

has been attribu ted to the Arabs,b u t it i s poss ible that

they m ay ha ve rece iv ed th i s improv emen t in trigonome

try as wel l a s the numeri ca l cha racters f rom India .

”

Mr . Elph instone says “ I n the S urya S iddha n ta i s

con ta ined a sy stem of tr igonometry wh i ch not on ly

goes f ar beyond anyth ing known to the Greeks , b u t ia

v olv es theorem s wh ich were not d i scovered in Eu rope

t i l l two cen tu r ies ago .

” 4

Prof essor Wa l lace says I n express ing the rad iu s

of a c ircle in parts o f the c ircum f erence , the H in du s arequ i te s ingu lar. P tolemy an d the Greek ma themati c ian s inthe i r d iv i s i on of the rad iu s preserv ed no ref eren ce to theci rcum f eren ce. T he u se o f s ines , a s it was u nknown to

the Greek s,f orm s a d i ff eren ce between the i rs and the

In d ian tr igonometry . The i r ru le for the computat ion

lM ill’s Ind ia , Vol. I I , p . 150 .

2 S ee M i ll’s Ind ia,Vol. I I , p . 3 , footnote .

3 E d inburgh E ncyclopaed ia , Geometry,” p . 19 1.

4 H istory of Ind ia ,’ p . 129 .

3 24 H INDU S U PE R IO R ITY .

o f the l ines i s a con s i derable refinem ent in scien ce fi rst

pra cti ced by the mathemat i c ian,Br iggs .” 1

Count Bjornstj erna says : We find in Ayeen Alh a r i,a j ou rnalo f the Emperor Akb a r

,that the H indu s of

f ormer tim es a ssumed the d iam eter of a c i rcle to b e to

its per i phery as to rat io o f to

i s a v ery close approx ima t ion to the quadratu reof a c ircle

,and d i ffers v ery l ittle f rom that giv en by

Met i u s o f 1 1 3 to 3 55 . I n order to obta in the resu l tth u s foun d by the Brahman s

,ev en in the most e lemen

ta ry and s implest way , it is necessary to in scri be in a

c i rcle a polygon o f 768 s i des,an Operation

,wh i ch can

not b e perf o rmed a r i thmet i ca l ly w i thou t the know ledgeo f some pecu l ia r properties o f th i s cu rv ed l ine

,and at

lea st an ex tra ction o f the square root o f the n in th power,

each to ten p lace s o f dec imal s . T he Greeks and A rabs

hav e n ot gi v en anyth ing so approx imate .

” 2

I t i s thu s c learly seen that the Greeks and the

A rabs apart,even the Eu ropean s hav e b u t v ery recen tly

adv anced fa r enough to com e into l ine w ith the H indu s

in the ir knowledge of th is bran ch o f m athemati cs .

Prof essor Wa llace says : “ T he researches of the

learned hav e brought to l ight a stronom i ca l tables inIndia wh i ch m u st h av e been con structed by the

pr in c iples o f geometry,b u t the per iod at wh i ch they

ha v e been f ramed ha s by no m ean s been completely

a scerta ined . Some a re of op in ion tha t they ha ve

been f ramed f rom observat ion m ade a t a v ery remote

per iod , not les s than years bef ore the Ch ri s tian era

(th i s has been con clu s i v ely prov ed by Mon s . Ba i l ly ) °

lM Ill’s Ind ia,V

'

ol. I I,p . 150 .

2 T hcogony of the H ind u s . p . 3 7 .

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3 26 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY.

one un it to the rad iu s and c i rcum f eren ce . Thi s proporti on

wh i ch i s confirmed by the m ost apprm ed labours of Eu ro

pean s,was not known ou t o f Ind ia unti l modern t imes .”

ALGE BRA .

T H E H indus hav e been especia l ly su ccess f u l in the

cul ti v a t ion o f a lgebra . Pro f es sor Wa l la ce says I n

a lgebra the H indu s u nderstood wel l the a r ithm e ti c o f

su rd roots , and the genera l resolu t i on o f equati on s of

the second degree , wh i ch it i s not clea r that D iaphan tu s

knew,

that they atta ined a genera l solut i on of

indeterm inate problem s of the fi rst degree,Wt ll it i s

certa in D iaphantus had not a tta ined,an d a m ethod of

der iv ing a m u l titude o f an swers to p roblem s o f the

second degree , when one solu ti on wa s d i scov ered by

tr ial,w h i ch i s a s n ear an approach to a genera l solu tio n

as was m ade u n t i l the t ime o f La Grange .

” P ro fe ssor

Wa l lace concludes by adopting the op in ion o f Play fa i r

on th i s subject,

“that be fore an au thor cou ld th ink of

embody ing a treati se on a lgebra in the hea rt o f a system

of a stronomy,and turn ing the resea rche s of the one

scien ce to the pu rposes o f the other,borh mu st hav e been

in su ch a state of ad v an cement a s the lapse o f sev era l ages

and many repeated eff orts o f inv entors were requ ired to

produce .

” “ Th i s,

” says ProfessorWi l son,

“ i s unan swer

a b le ev i den ce in fav our o f the an tiqu ity,origin a l ity

,and

advance of the H indu mathemat i ca l sc ience .

” 2

lE lphinstone’

s H lstory of Ind ia,p . 1 3 0 .

QM ill’s Ind ia, Vol. I I , p . 15 1

, IV1lson’

s note ,

M ATH E M AT ICS . 3 2 7

Mr. Colebrooke says : “ They (the H indu s) unde r

s tood wel l the a r i thmeti c o f su rd roots ; they we reawa re o f the infin i te quo tient resu lting f rom the d iv i s i ono f fin ite quanti t ies by c ipher ; thev knew the gene ra l

resolu ti on o f equat ions o f the second degree,and had

touched upon th ose of h igher denom i nati on,resol v ing

them in the s im plest ca ses,and in those in wh i ch the

solu tion happen s to b e pract icable b v the method wh ich

serv es f or quad rat i c s ; th ey had a tta ined a genera l

soluti on o f indeterm ina te problem s o f the fi rst degreethey had arr ived at a m ethod f or der iv ing a mu l t i tu deo f solution s of an swers to problem s o f the second degreef rom a s ingle an swer f ound ten ta t iv ely .

” l “And th i s,

says Colebrooke in con cl u s ion wa s a s n ear an approa chto a gene ra l solut ion o f su ch problem s as wa s m ade

u n ti l the days of La Grange .

” 2

Equa l ly dec ided i s the ev iden ce,says Mann ing ,

that‘

th is excel len ce in a lgebra i c an a lys i s was atta ined

in In d ia independen t o f f ore ign a id .

”

Mr. Coleb rooke says No dou b t i s en terta ined of

the sou rce f rom w h ich it wa s rece i ved immed iately by

m odern European s . T he Arabs were med ia tely or im

med iately our in structors in th i s study .

”

Mrs. Mann ing says : “T he Arabs were not in genera l

inven tors bu t recip ients . Su bsequen t observat ion has

confi rm ed th i s V iew ; f or not oa d id a lgebra in an

advan ced sta te ex i st in Ind ia pr ior to the ea rl iest

d i sclosu re of it by the Arab ian s to modern Eu rope, b ut

lColeb rooke’s M i scel laneous E ssays , Vol. I I , p . 4 19 .

2 Coleb rooke’s M isce l laneous E ssays, Vol. I I , pp . 4 16-4 18 . For

the po ints in wh ic h H indu algebra is more ad vanced than the Gree k ,see Colebroo k e, p . 16.

3 28 H INDU su rmn i onrrr

the names by w h ich th e numera l s hav e become known

to u s are of San skr i t origin .

” l

Pro fessor Mon ier Wi l l iam s says : T o the H indu s

is d ue the inven tion of algebra a nd geometry a nd their

app /im tion to a stronomy .

” 2

Com par ing the H in du s and the Greeks,a s rega rds

the ir knowledge o f a lgebra . Mr . Elph in stone says“ There i s no question of the su per i or i ty of the H ind u s

ov er the i r r iv a l s in the perfection to wh ich they brought

the sc ience . N ot on ly i s Aryab ha tta su per i or to D ia

phan tu s (a s i s shown by h i s knowlege of the resolut i ono f equ ati on s in v ol v ing sev era l unknown quant i ties

,and in

‘

a genera l m ethod of resolv in g allindeterm ina te problem s

o f at lea st the fi rst degree) bu t he a nd his succes sors

p ress ha rd up on the d iscor er ies of a lgebraists who l i ved

a lmost in ou r own t im e . It i s w i th a f eel ing o f

respectf u l ad nn ration that Mr. Colebrooke a l lude s to

an c ient San skrit treati ses on a lgebra,

ar ithm eti c and

m en surati on .

” 4

I n the Edinbu rgh Rev iew (VolXX I , p . 3 72) i s a

str ik ing h i story of a problem (to find .r,so that ax

'

z b

sha l l be a squ a re number .) T he first step towa rd s a

soluti on i s made by D iaphan tu s , i t wa s ex tended b y

Fermat,and sen t a s a de fian ce to the Engl i sh a lgebra i sts

in the sev en teenth cen tu ry , b u t was on ly ca r ried to its

f u l l extent by the celebrated m a themat i c ian Eu ler,

lA nc ient a nd Med iaeva l Ind ia , Vol. I I , p . 3 7 5 .

“ M r . Colebroo k ehas f ul ly shown th at a lgebra had atta ined the h ighest perfect ion it ever

rea ched in Ind ia before it was ever k nown to the A rab ian s . W hatever theA rabs possessed in common w ith the H ind us

,there are good ground s to

be l ieve that they d er ived f rom the H indus .

”—E lphinstone’

s I nd ia, p .1 3 3 .

2 Ind i an W isdom ,p . 18 5 .

3 E lphinstene’

s Ind ia , p . 1 3 1.

4 M ann ing‘

s Anc ient a nd Med iae val Ind ia , Vol. I , p . 3 7 4

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3 3 0 H I NDU surmmonrrr .

(Colebrooke, quoted by Pro fessorWa l lace ; and E d inbu rghRev iew

,Vol. XX IX

,p .

Speak ing of the H indu treat i ses on a lgeb ra , ar ithm eti c

,and men su rat i on

,M r . Colebrooke says : “ I t is

n ot hoped that in the actua l advan ced cond ition o f

the ana lyt i ca l art they w i l l add to its resou rces and

th row new l ight on the mathemati ca l sc ien ce in any

o ther respect than a s con cern s its h i story,but had an

earl ier v ers ion of these treati ses been completed,had

they been tran sla ted and g iven to the publ ic w hen the

n ot i ce of mathemati c ian s wa s fi rst drawn to the a tta in

m en ts o f the H indu s in a stron omy and in sc iencesconnected w ith it, some add it i on s would hav e been then

m ade to the m ean s and resou rces of a lgebra,f or the

genera l solu ti on of problem s , by m eth ods wh i ch hav e

been re-inv en ted or ha ve been perf ec ted in the la st age .

” 1

I t i s th u s ev iden t f rom w hat Mr . Colebrooke sh ows

tha t the H indu l iteratu re ev en in its degene rate state ,and when so f ew works are extant, con ta in s mathemat i ca l

works that show an ad van ce in the sc ien ce in no way

beh in d th e latest Eu ropean ach iev emen ts .

As an in stan ce o f the rema rkable and exten s ive

p ract i ce and cu l t iv at i on o f mathemat ics in Ind ia , may

b e c ited the ca se of a problem f rom Lolita, Vista r . Mon s ."

Wazpcke,2 indeed , i s o f opin i on tha t the account in the

lColeb rooke’

s M i sce l laneous E ssays . Vol. I I , p . 4 19 .

I t may,however, b e sa id th at in some qua rters the genu ineness o f

the ind epend ent solu t ion of the problems ment ioned above , and the

d iscovery of method s s im i la r to those of the H ind us by mod ern E uropeanshave

been d oubted ,and such d oubts may wellbe ex cused , cons id er ing;

the extens i ve intercourse that ha s ex i sted between Ind ia and E urope

for a long t ime past.“2

.11m i S urla p ropaga ti on (lee chi/i788 lnrlz'

ens,P ariS

,186 3 , PP 75-9 1.

MAT H E MA T I C S . 3 3 1

Lolita Vis ta ra of the problem solved by Buddha on the

o cca s ion o f h i s ma rr iage exam ina ti on,rela t iv e to the

number of a tom s in the length o f a Yoj a na , i s the ba s i s

o f the Arena r iu s ”o f the celebrated sc ienti st Arch imedes .T he cred it o f the d i scov ery o f the pr inci ple o f d i ffe r

entialca lcu lu s i s genera l ly cla imed by the Eu ropean s .

B ut it i s remarkable that a s im i la r method exi sted in

India ages ago . Bha shkeracharya , one o f the

world ’s greatest mathemati c ian s , has ref erred to it.

Fol low ing,howev er , in the footsteps o f h i s H indu

predeces sors he does not expound the method fu l ly,b u t

on ly g i ves an outl ine o f it.

Mr . Spotti swoode says : “ I t mu st b e adm i tted

tha t the penetrat ion shown by Bhashkeracharya in h i s

ana lys i s i s in the h ighest degree remarkable that the

f ormu la w h i ch he establi shes,

and h i s method,bea r

more than a mere resemblance—they bea r a strong

ana logy- to the correspond ing proces s in modern

mathemat i ca l a stronomy ; and that the major i ty o f

sc ien tific person s w i l l lea rn w ith su rpr i se the exi stence

o f such a m ethod in the w r itings o f so d i stan t a

pe r iod and so remote a region .

” 1

Mr . Lethbr idge says : Bha shkeracharya i s sa id to

hav e d i scov ered a ma themat i ca l p rocess v ery nea rly

resemb l ing the d i ff erent ia l calculus of modern Eu ropean

mathemati c ian s .

1 J . R . A . S .,Vol. XVI I . z schoolH istory o f Ind ia , Append ix A ,

3 3 2 H INDU S U PE R IO R ITY .

I I I .— A STRONOMY .

Y e mu l ti ply ing masses of increasedA nd st i l l increas ing l ights wh at are ye whatI s th is blue w i ld erness of interm inableA ir where ye rollalong ,

as I h ave seen

T he leaves a long the l imp id stream of E den

I s your cou rse m easured for ye or do ye

S weep on in your unbounded rev e lryTh rough an a er ia l un i verse of end lessE xpans ion ,

at wh i c h my soula ches to th in kIntox i cated w ith etern ity .

"

B Y R O N Ca in .

A EURO PE AN cr iti c says “ For a man,the most subl ime

1study i s tha t o f a stronomy .

’

An d,i ndeed

,what can

b e m ore subl ime than the study of Nature in its broade st

a spects,o f the m ov emen ts and the f un ct ion s of those

wonderf u l and splend id bod ies w i th wh ich the bound les s

ex pan se of the w i de,w i de space i s th ickly studded

,where

f ancy i s puzzled and imagination itself staggered

HeavenI s a s the boo k o f God b ef O I e t hee set

\Vherein to read H is wond rou s word s ;

M I L T O N P a ra d ise L ost,

T he sc ience o f a stronomy flou r i shes on ly amongst a

c iv i l i zed people . Hen ce,con s iderable adv an cement in i t

i s i tsel f a proof o f the h igh c iv i l i zati on of a nat i on . H indu

a stronomy , or w hat rema in s of it, ha s rece iv ed the homage

o f Eu ropean scholars . D r . S i r Wi l l iam Hun ter says“ T he Astronomy o f the Hindus has f ormed the su bject

o f excess i ve adm i ration .

” Proofs of v erv extraord ina ry

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3 3 4 H INDU sur iciu onrrr .

yea rs before Ch ri st, and w h ich ev ince eren then a w ry

high degree o f a stronom i ca l s c ience .

”l

Count Bjorn stj erna prov es con clus i vely that H indu

a stronomy was v ery f ar advan ced ev en at the beginn ing

o f the Kaliyug , or the iron age of the H indu s (abou tyea rs ago) . H e says : “ Accord ing to the a stro

nom icalca l cu lati on s o f the H indus , the present per iod of

the worl d , Kaliyug , commenced yea rs before theb irth o f Ch ri st , on the 2oth of Februa ry

,at 2 hou rs 2 7

m inu tes an d 3 0 secon ds , the t ime be ing thu s ca l culated to

m in ute s and seconds . T hey say tha t a conjun cti on of

the planets then took pla ce , and the i r tables sh ow th i scon j un ction . Ba i l ly states that Jupi ter and Mercu ry

were then in the same degree o f the ecl ipt i c, Mars at a

d i stance of on ly e ight,and Satu rn o f sev en degrees ;

w hen ce it f ollows , tha t at the poin t of t ime giv en by the

B rahm in s as the commen cement of Kaliyug , the f ou r

planets abov e-ment ioned mu st hav e been su ccess iv ely

con cea led by the rays of the sun (fi rs t Satu rn , then Ma rs,

a f terwa rd s Jup iter and lastly Mercu ry) . They thu s

showed them selv es in con jun cti on ; and a l though Venu s

cou ld not then b e seen,it wa s natu ra l to say, tha t

a conj unction of the pla nets then took pla ce. T he

ca lcu la ti on of the Brahm in s i s so exactly confi rmed by

ou r own a stronom i ca l tables,that noth ing b u t an a ctual

observa tion cou ld hav e g iv en so corresponden t a resu l t.”

T he learned Count continues : “ H e (Ba i l ly) f u rther‘

in form s u s tha t Lau bere,who was sent by Lou is XIV a s

amba ssador to the K ing of S iam,brough t h ome

,in the

yea r 1687,a stronom i ca l ta bles of sola r ecl i pses , and tha t

other s im i la r tables were sen t to Eu rope by P atouillet

Theogony of the H ind us , p .

AsrnoN om ’

. 3 3 5

(a m i ss i ona ry in the Ca rnati c ) , and by Gent i l , wh ich latterwere obta ined f rom the Brahm in s in T irvalore

,and that

they allp er fectly agree in their calcula tions although

received f rom d ifferent p erson s , a t (lifieren t times , a nd

from pla ces in I nd ia remote f rom ea ch other . O n these

tables , Ba i l ly makes the f oll ow ing obser vat i on . T he

mot ion ca l cu lated by the Brahm ins du r ing the long

space of years (the per iod elapsed between these

ca lcu lati on s and Ba i l ly ’s ) , v a r ies not a s ingle minu te f romthe tables of Ca ss in i and Meyer and as the tables

b rough t to Eu rope by Laubere in 1687 , under Lou i s

X IV,are older than those of Ca ss in i and Meyer

,the

accordance between them m ust be the re su l t o f mu tual

and exa ct a stronom i ca l observati on s Th en aga in,

“ In d ian tables g iv e the same annua l v a riat i on o f the m oonas that d iscov ered by Tycho Brahe

,a v a riati on unknown

to the school of Alexand ria,and a l so to the A rabs

,who

f ol lowed the ca l cu la tion s o f th i s sch ool .”

“ These f a cts,

” says the eru d ite Count,

“ su f fi c ien tly

show the great an tiqu i ty and d i stingu i shed sta t i on o f

a stronom i ca l sc ien ce among the H indu s o f pa s t ages .”

T he Count then a sk s “ if it b e true that the H indu s m ore

than B .C .,accord ing to Ba i l ly ’s ca l cu lat i on

,had

a tta ined so h igh a degree o f a stronom i ca l and geometr i ca l

learn ing,how many centu r ies ea rlier mu st the com

,men cement o f the i r cu ltu re hav e been

,s in ce the human

m ind adv an ces on ly step by step on the path of

There are, however, many o ther a rgumen ts to estab

l i sh a f ar h igher an t iqu ity of the H indu a stronomy

than wha t i s a ss igned by Ben tley . T he equat ion o f the

sun ’s centre,a ccord ing to the I nd ian tables , is 2

°

1051 ;lT heogony of the H indus , p . 3 7 .

3 3 6 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY.

w hereas the same quan tity a ccord ing to the modernobservati on s i s on ly 1

0

55213

. I t i s one con sequen ce of

the m u tua l d i sturban ces o f planets that the eccen tr i c ity

o f the solar orb it on wh i ch the equati on ju st m enti oneddepends , was greater in f ormer age s than it i s at the

presen t time. From the quan t i ty wh ich the H indu s

a ss ign to th i s a stronom i cal element,M . Ba i lly ha s

drawn an argumen t in f av ou r o f the an tiqu ity c f the

Ind ian tables , w h i ch it m u st b e con f essed is of greatwe igh t when the d i ff eren ce o f the Ind ian and Europeandeterm inati on s i s con s i dered as a r i s ing f rom the

gradua l a ltera tion o f the planetary orb its .

2 . T he quan ti ties wh i ch the Ind ian tables a ss ign to

o ther a stronom i ca l e lemen ts,v ia

,the mean m oti on s of

Jup iter a nd Sa tu rn,hav e been f oun d to agree a lmos t

exactly not w ith what i s observed a t the present time,

b u t w i th wha t the theory o f gra v i ty shows wou l d hav e

been observed a t the beginn ing o f the Kaliyug . Laplace

d iscov ered it a f ter the publ i cat i on o f the Astron omie

[nd ien and in serted it in the J ournaldes S a c a n s .

3 . M . Ba i l ly has shown tha t the place o f the

aphel ion of Jupiter’

s orb it,determ ined by the Indian

tables f or the beginn ing o f the Kaliyug agrees w ith the

modern table s o f La lande when corrected by the

theoreti ca l equa t i on s of La Grange . T he same th ing i s

true of the qua ntity w h ich the H indu s a ssign to the

equa t i on o f Satu rn ’s centre .

4 . An other a rgumen t to v ind icate the grea t ant i

qu ity of H indu a stronomy i s der ived f rom the obl i qu ity

o f the ecleptic wh ich the Ind ian s sta te a t 2 40

. Both

observation and theory con cu r in show ing that the

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3 3 8 H INDU S U P E R IO R ITY .

relates to the d iu rna l rev olution of the earth on its axi s

wh ich the Brahman s d i scu ssed in the fi f th centu ry B .C .

” l

S i r W. Hun ter says “ T he San skr it term f or the

apex o f a plan et’s orbi t seem s to ha v e pa ssed into th e

Lat in tran sla ti on s o f the Arab i c a stronomers . T he San s

kr it a ccha became the a ux (gen . a ug is) o f the later tran s

la tors .” (R einau d , p . 3 2 5 and Weber,p .

Prof essorWeber says : “ T he f am e of H indu a strono

mers spread to the VVest, and the An du ba riu s (or probably ,A rd uba rius) , w hom the Ch ron i con P a schale pla ces in

primeva l t im es a s the earl iest Ind ian stronomer i s doub t

les s n one other than Aryabhatta , the r iv a l o f P u l i sa , and

who i s l ikew i se extolled by the Arabs u nder the name

of A rj ab ahar.

” 2

Professor Wi l son says “ T he sc ien ce of a stronomy

at presen t exh ib i ts m any proof s of accu ra te observa ti on

and dedu ction,h ig hly cred i table to the scien ce of the

H indu a stronomers . T he d iv i s ion of the ecleptic into

lunar man s i on s,the sola r z od iac

,the mean moti on s o f

th e p lanets , the process ion o f the equ inox,the ea rth ’s

sel f-support in space , the d iu rna l rev olu t i on of the ea rth

on its axi s,the rev olu ti on o f the m oon on her axi s

,her

d i stan ce f rom the ea rth,the d imen s ion s o f the orb its o f

the planet,the ca l cu lat i on s o f ecl i pses a re parts o f a

system wh i ch cou l d not hav e been f ound amongst an” 3

u nen l i gh tened people .

Bu t the origina l ity o f the Hindu s i s not les s

str ik i ng than the ir proficien cy. I t i s rema rkable thatthe Hindu m ethods are all origina l and pecu l ia r .Professor Wi l son says : ‘ T he or ig ina l ity of H indu1 H istory of Ind ia , p. 13 2 , footnote.

2 VVeher’

s lnd ian L i terature , p . 25 5 .

3 M ill’s H i story o f Ind ia , Vol. I I , p . 106.

A srnoN onr . 3 3 0

a stronom y i s a t once es tabl ished , b ut it i s a l so prov ed

b y in tr in s i c ev i den ce,and a l though there a re some re

m a rkable coin c i den ces between the H indu and othe r

sys tem s,the i r m e thod s are th e i r Mr . Elph in

stone says I n the more adva nced stages,where they

are more l ikely to ha ve borrowed , not on ly is the i r mode

of proceed ings pecu l iar to them selv es b u t it i s of ten

f ounded on pr inc iples,w i th w h i ch no other an c ient

people were a cqua in ted , and showed a knowledge o f

d i scov er ies not made even in Eu rope t i l l w ith in the

cou rse o f the la st two cen tu ries .

In the s i xth v olume of the Jou rna l o f the Amer i

can O rien ta l Soc iety , P rof es sor Wh itn ey publ i shed an

E ngl i sh tran slati on o f S urya S iddhant by the R ev . E .

B u rges s,w ith an e lab orate commen ta ry by h im sel f . Th i s

paper exc ited comm en ts f rom M . B i ot,the late v enerable

a s tronom er of Pa r i s , and f rom ProfessorWeber o f Berl in .

B iot be l iev ed tha t the H indu s der iv ed the i r system o f

N ahsha tra s , or m oon stat i on s,f rom the Ch inese

,bu t P ro

f essor Wh itney con tr i buted two other papers to the sa i dJou rna l

,in wh i ch he clea rly shows tha t the H in d u

N a /rsha tra does not m ean the same th i ng a s the Ch ine sesieu . S ieu m ean s a s ingle sta r

,w herea s N al'sha tra

exp res ses a yroup of sta rs , or ra th er a certa in portion o f

the starrv hea ven s . Again ,Prof es sor \Veber show s th a t

the Ch inese s ieu i s not traceable f u rther than two or

th ree centur ies bef ore Chr i st,wh i le N alrsho tra s a re

am ongst the heav en ly objects ment i oned in the Ved i chym n s .” 3 T he great an t iqu ity o f the sc ien ce

,howe ver

,

is the best proof of its origina l i ty .

1M i l l ’s H istory of Ind ia , Vol. I I,p . 10 7 .

2 E lphinstone’

s H istory of Ind ia , p . 1 3 2 .

3 W . Wh itney , “ V iews of Weber a nd B io t les pc cln ig the

R elat ions o f the H indu and C h inese A s terism s'

,p . 2 5 .

3 4 0 H I N D U S UPE R I O R ITY .

T he Arabs were the d i sc iples of the H ind u s in th i sbran ch o f know ledge a l so . Prof essor Weber says tha tHi ndu a stronomers a re extolled by the Arabs. H e adds :For

,du r ing the eigh th a nd n ineth centur ies the Arabs

w ere,in a stronomy , the d i sc iples o f H indu s , f rom whom

they borrowed the lunar m an s ion s in th e i r n ew order,

and w hose S iddhan ts they f requen tly worked up and

tran slated in pa rt u n der the su perv i s ion o f Ind ian a stro

nomers them selve s,w hom the Kha l i f s o f Baghdad

,etc .

,

inv ited to the i r cou rts .”1

D r . Rob ertson says “ I t i s h igh ly probable that theknowledge o f the twelv e sign s o f zod ia cs was der iv ed

f rom India .

” 2

S ir W. W. Hun ter says : “ T he Arabs became the i r

(Hindu s) d i sci ples in the e ighth centu ry,and tran sla ted

San skr it treati se s , S id dhants , un der the name S indhends .

” 3

Prof essorWi l son say s In d ian a stronom ers were greatly

en cou raged by the early K ha l i f s,pa rt i cu larly Ha run-ul

Ra sh id , and Almamun they were inv ited to Baghdad,

an d the i r works were tran slated in to A rab ic . T he

H indu s were , f u l ly as mu ch a s the Greeks,the teachers

o f the Arabian s .” 4

There are n ine S iddhan ta s : 5 (1) Brahma S iddhan ta,

(2 ) Su rya S iddhanta , (3 ) Soma S iddhan ta, (4 ) Vrihaspati

S iddhanta, (5 ) Gargya S iddhanta , (6) Narada Siddhanta ,

(7) P arasa r S iddhan ta , (8 ) P ulastya S iddhan ta , and (9 )Va shish ta S iddhanta . O f these, the work best known to

1Weber’s Ind ian L iterature,p . 2 55 .

2 D isqu is it ion concern ingInd ia , p , 280 .

3 Ind ian G a z etteer, Ind ia,p . 2 18 .

4 M ill’s H istory of Ind ia , Vol.I I

,p . 10 7 .

5 T he Panch S id d hantas , or the five pr inc i pa l astronom i cal wor k sin gene ra l u se a re (1) T he P aulisa S idd hanta , (2 ) T he R omaka S id

d hanta, (3 ) T he Va sh ish ta S id d hanta

, (4 ) T he S aura. S iddhanta ,B rahma S id d hanta , (5) T he P a ilawaha S idd hanta .

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3 4 2 H INDU surnnI on'

I T r .

Af ter P a ra sa r Mu n i came A ryab hatta , who w as a

great a s trologer too . T he date of h i s b irth i s not'

known,though it i s certa in that he wa s born l ong an ter i or

to Vic ramad itya . H e wa s the man who,a ccord ing to the

European s,

first brought to l igh t “ d iu rna l rev oluti on o f

the ea rth on its axi s,and to hav e kn own the true theorv

o f the cau ses of the lunar and sola r ecl i pses,and noti ce

the m ot i on of sol stitia l and equ inoctialpoints .” 1

H is pr inc i pa l work s are : (1) Aryabatika , (2) Da saGitika , (3 ) A rya sh ta Sata .

T he best k nown a stronomer who flou r i shed af ter

A ryabhatta’

s tim e i s Va rahm ihira,who becam e pre

-em i

n ent in a strology . Mrs . Mann ing says Va ra hm ih ira

m ay b e c ited a s a celebrated a stronom er to w hom a stro

logy wa s i rres i st ibly attra ctiv e and aga in,

“ H e i s called

an a stronom er,b u t it i s f or a strology tha t we find h im

m ost celebrated . H e atta ined excellen ce in ea ch bran ch o f

the Sanh ita , and be fore w r it ing h i s celebra ted treati secal led the Briha t-San h i ta he com posed a w ork on pure

a stronomy .

” 2 Virahm ihir l iv ed in the first centu ry before

Ch r i st,an d wa s on e o f the n in e gem s a t the cou rt o f

Vikram ad itya . T he n ine gem s . or na u ra ta n,were

w ar—rif t : a nemi a

—fa? Elsi I

s a w H g'

aa Knit a rti sa n: n

Varahm ihir’

s ch ief works are (1 ) Vrihaj Ja taka ,

(2) Brihat Sanh ita,3 ) A Summa ry o f the Or ig ina l

Pan ch S iddhanta s . Mrs . Mann ing says R i chn es s of

deta i l con st i tu te s the ch ie f attra ction of the book (Brihat

1 S ee Chamber ’

s E neyclopaed ia .

2 An c ien t and Med iaeval Ind ia, Vol. I , pp .

,

AsT R U N oMY . 3 4 3

Sanh ita ) , a meri t wh ich wa s appreci a ted b v the A rab

a strologer,Alb irun i a s it w i llb e by ourse lv es

f or a l though pro fessedly a strologi ca l,its v alue f or

geography , arch itectu re,scu l ptu re

,etc . i s u nequa l led

by any San skr it work a s yet publ i shed .1

T he la st H indu a stronomer o f em inen ce,howev e r ,

was Bhashkeracharya , who i s sa id by Eu ropean s to ha veflou r i shed so la te a s the twel f th cen tu ry . H e ex

poun ded the law o f grav i ty w i th pecu l iar f e l i c i ty,w h ile

h i s ma them a ti calworks place him in the f ore f ron t o f

the worl d ’s great m athemat i c ian s .T he roundness o f the earth and its d iu rna l ro ta ti on

howe ver,w ere known to the H indu s f rom the earl iest

t imes . Says a R i sh i in the Aiter iya B ra hma na By

th i s great inaugu rat i on s im i la r to Ind ra ’s,Tu ra

,son o f

Kav a sha,con secra ted Janam j aya , and thereby d id he

subdue the earth com pletely rou nd” ? I n A rya bha t

tiyam w e read

rerun tiara »?wa amfizfirts a : news—er:

w s fa fe anga a’

t ani s za ass

‘

i a fl : n

T he earth , s i tuated in the m id dle of the heav en s

and com posed o f fiv e elements,i s spher i ca l in its shape.

”

Bhashkaracharya , in Gola a’haya , says

mafi a : s na fu} : alarmmafia st air faa tm aiawt I

a z a aew aaeza flm a fiaaa a famara : m u

A hun d redth pa rt o f the C i rcum f eren ce of a c i rcle

appears to b e a stra ight l ine. O u r earth i s a big sphere ,

1 Anc ient and M ed iaevalI nd ia , Vol. I , p . 3 70 . S ee a lso D r. Ke rn’

s

B i b. I nd Introduct ion , p . 27 .

2 H aug’

s A iteriya B rahmana , Vol. I I , p . 2 4 2 .

3 4 4 H INDU S UPE R IO RITY .

and the portion v i s ible to man be ing exceed ingly sma l l,

the ea rth appears to b e flat.”

D r. H . Kern,in h i s paper on Some f ragments o f

A ryab hatta , tran slates a pa s sage as f ol low s T he

terrestr ia l globe,a compou n d of earth

,fire

,water

,air

,en

tirely roun d , and com pa s sed by a gi rdle,i . e.

,equator

,

stand s in the air, etc . , etc .

As regards the annua l motion of the ea rth,the

R ig Veda says

m fi aififii afi fa fi rsts 1m} ge rm 516 73 323 1t I

m mgr-sum HE N R I 231351

“

z inz fam fai rs ? n

T he d iu rna l m ot i on i s thu s descr ibed in the Y a ju r Veda

am t ad“: e fa t ami s‘

fl ata naf gt : 1 fuai a 513 ?n n

T he Aiteriya B ra hma na expla in s that the sun ne ither

sets nor r i ses , that w hen the earth , ow ing to the ro tation on

its axi s i s l igh ted u p , it i s ca l led day ,”and so on .

1

a“? H i d 1116 626?t mm” H ai f a 6 3 56m aw a rd

timi d-Er a s i aiafi nq figfi ( i fs-arrgt tn iq I a 2?1171 Hawa i i

fa z‘

afi fi fa a a 2?flifl fi fl farai fi fa

As rega rd s the star s be ing stat i onery,A ryabhatta

2 says

“ wa s Fenfi ai aemaamfa§ai fefi I

a z a le a s?w a s W fi fi'

fi fifli n

T he sta rry v au lt i s fixed . I t i s the ea rthw h ich ,mov ing

roun d its axi s,aga in and aga in cau ses the ris ing an d set

t ing of planets and stars .” H e starts the quest i on .

“Whydo the sta rs seem s to m ove and h im sel f repl ies A s

a person in a v essel,w h i le mov ing f o rwa rds , sees an im

m ovable object m ov ing backwa rd s,in the same manner

do the sta rs,however imm ovable

,seem to m ov e da i ly .

” 3

1 H aug’

s A iteriya Brahamana, Vol. I I , p . 2 4 2 .

2 Coleb rooke ’

s M isce l laneous E ssays , Vol. H ,p . 3 92 ,

3 J 0 u 1nalof the Vol. XX ,p . 3 72 .

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3 4 6 H INDU snrnmoarrr

That the moon and the sta rs are da rk b od ies is thu s

descr ibed

m amahfimfi fi a w amfaamif‘

a l

a s fi fi amm i w ifiw firfimfi II

T he ea rth,the planets an d the com ets allrece iv e

th e i r l ight f rom the sun tha t ha lf towards the sun

be ing a lways br ight,the colou r Va rying w ith th e pecu

liarity of the substan ce of each .

T he Atharv a Veda says f i fe! Fan} a fafiaa : l

T he m oon i s dependen t on the sun f or its l igh t .”

As regards the a tmosp here it i s stated

afififs sim ufi m firaaigtm tfiz fi gzmq I

T he a tm osphere su rrou nds the earth , and its heigh t

i s 12 yojana s (60 Engl i sh m iles) , and the cloud s, l ight

n ing etc . are phenomena connected w i th it.”

Mr . Colebrooke says Aryab hatta a ffi rm ed the

d iu rna l rev oluti on of the earth on its ax i s . H e posses

sed the tru e theory o f the cau ses of solar and luna r ecl ipses

and d i sregarded the im agina ry da rk planets of mythologists an d a strologers

,affirm ing the moon and pr ima ry

planets (and ev en the sta rs ) to be essen tia l ly dark and” Ion ly i l lum inated by the sun .

As rega rd s the solar an d luna r ecl ipses,it is sta ted

mz a a i fa v‘

gfdgafi mr“ When the earth in its rotat ion comes between

the sun and the moon,and the shadow o f the ea rth fa l l s

on the moon ,the phenomenon i s cal led lunar ecl ip se

,

and w hen the m oon comes between the sun and the

ea rth the sun seem s a s if it was be ing c ut off— th i s i s

sola r ecl i pse .

”

1Coleb rooke ’

s E ssays , A ppend ix G ,p . 4 67 .

AS TR O NO M Y .3 4 7

T he fo l low ing is taken from Varam ihir’

s observati on s

on the m oon . O ne ha l f of the moon , w hose orb i t l ie s

between the sun and the earth,i s a lways br igh t by the

sun ’s rays the other ha l f i s da rk by its own shadow s ,l i ke the two s ides o f a pot s tand ing in the sun sh ine .

” 1

Abou t ecl ipses , he says“ T he true explanat ion of

the phenomenon is th i s in an ecl i pse o f the m oon , he

enters into the ea r th ’s shadow in a sola r ecl i pse,the

same th ing happen s to the sun . Hen ce the commence

ment of a luna r eclipse d oes not ta ke pla ce f rom the west

side,nor tha t of the sola r eclipse f rom the ea sl.

” 2

Kal i Da sa says in h i s R aghu Va a sa :

aunt‘

s air: a faa’

t uafi arf tfqat ataxia : H a i fa : I

J ai Dev a s ings in the Gila Gov ind “ Hi s hea rt was

agi tated by her s igh t,as the waves of the deep are

a ff ected by the luna r orb .

” 3

Ind ia ha s f rom t ime immemor ia l been the land of

ph i losophers , poets , a stronomers and m athema ti c ian s,

and ev ery now and then it produ ces a great gen iu s .Less than two centu r ies ago , Rajputana produ ced an

a stronomer,no doubt the greatest o f h i s t ime . Th i s

a stronomer was no other than the f amou s Ja i S ingh of

Ja i pu r . S i r Wi l l iam H unter says : “ Raja J a i S ingh I I

con structed a set of observ atories at h i s capi ta l,Ja i pu r

,

M u ttra,Banares

,Del h i and U j ja in

,and wa s a ble to correct the

a stronomicalta bles of D e L a H ire publ i shed in 1702 A .D .

T he Ra ja lef t as a monum en t of h i s sk i l l,a l i s t o f sta rs

col lated by h im sel f,known a s the Z i j Mohamm ed Shah i

,

or Tables of Mohammed Shah . H is observatory at Benares

surv iv es to th i s day .

”

1B rihat S anghita , C hapter V ,v . 8 .

2 Brihat S anghita , C hapter V ,v . 8 .

3 Tod ’

s R a jasthan ,Vol. I , p . 5 4 3 .

3 4 8 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY.

T he celeb ra ted Eu ropean a stronomer,Mr . Playf a i r

says : “ T he Brahm in obta in s h i s re su lt w i th won derf u l” 1certa inty an d exped i ti on in a stronomy . Th i s speaks

v olum es in f av ou r o f the or igina l , ad v an ced and scien tific

m ethods o f the H ind u s an d the ir m a rvel lou s cu ltiv ation

o f the sc ien ce. Professor S ir M . Wi l l iam s says : “ I t i s

the i r sc ience of a stronomy by wh i ch they (H ind u s) heap

bil l ion s upon m illions,trillions u pon b il l i on s o f yea r s and

reckon ing up ages u pon ages,aeon s u pon aeon s w i th ev en

m ore a udaci ty than modern geolog i sts and a stronomers .

I t short,an a stronom i ca l H ind u v entu res on ar ithmeti ca l

conception s quite beyon d the m en ta l d im en s i on s of anyone who f ee l s h im sel f incompetent to attempt a ta sk of

m ea s u r ing infin ity .

” A strange con f ess ion o f in f er ior ity !'

\Vel l m ay Mrs . Mann ing ex cla ini “ T he H indu s had

the w idest range o f m in d o f w h i ch m an is capable .

” 2

I n a s tron omy,a s in oth er scien ces

,w hat scan ty

record s rema in not on ly show the a ston i sh ing profic ien cy

o f the H ind u s in the sc ience,b u t con ta in theor ies not.yet

understood by others . S ir M . Mon . Wi l l iam s says“ A v ery strange theory of the plan etary motion i s

expounded a t the comm encem en t of the S urya S z’

c‘ldhanta

Chapter I I,

”wh i ch i s unknown outs ide Ind ia .

3

lPlayf an’

on the a stronomy of the H i nd us . Tra nsa ct ions of the

R . A . S . o f G reat B r i ta i n and I rela nd ,Vol. I I

, pp . 1 3 8 , 1 3 9 .

“2.Xucient and Med ize valInd ia

,Vol. I , p . 1 14 .

3 Mon ier W i l l iam s’ Ind ian \Visdom ,

p . 189 . Mr . C . B . C lar k e,F . G . S says in h is Geog raph i ca l R ead er : T i l l of late yea rs we

d id not k now wlth ec treme ex a ctness the long itudes of d istant p laces.

”

T he a nc ient H ind u method of find ing the long itud e'

by fi rst find ing out.

the D eshan tra Gu t/aha,w i th the a id of obse rv a t ions made at the t ime of

theluna r ecl i p se , is not on ly sc ientific b ut in fal l i ble.

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3 50 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

so f ar as m ar itime a ffa i rs are con cerned,the i r nav y

,too

,

wa s equa l ly em inent and powerf u l . Manu m ention s

na v igat ion to ha v e ex i sted among the H in du s f rom t ime

imm emor ia l . S trabo m ent i on s a nav a l departmen t in

add ition to the others in the Ind ian a rmy .

D ha nur Veda,the standard work on H indu m i l ita ry

sc ien ce be ing lost , the d i sserta ti on s on the scien ce f ound

in the Mahabharata,the Agni Pu rana

,and other works

a re the on ly sou rces of in f ormati on on the su bject lef t to

u s . D r . S i r W. Hun ter says There was no wan t of a

theory of regu la r m ov emen ts and arrangem en ts f or themarch

,a rray

,en cam pments

,and supply o f troops . They

are allrepea tedly descr ibed in the Mahabharata .

”l

Mr . Ward says T he H indu d id not perm it

ev en the m i l i ta ry art to rem a in unexam in ed . I t i s v ery

certain ’

that the H in du k ings led the i r own“

arm ies to

the comba t,an d that they w ere prepared f or th i s impo r

tant em ploym en t by a m i l ita ry edu cati on nor i s it less

certa in that m any o f these m ona rch s w ere d i stingu i shed

f or the h ighest v a lou r and m i l ita ry sk i l l .” 2

T he anc ien t H in du tacti c s o f war were a s or ig ina l

a s v a luable . I t i s sa id that the Hin du s d iv i ded the i r a rmy

in the f ollow ing manner (1) U r a s or cen tre (breast) ,

(2 ) K a hsha s or the flanks, (3 ) P ahsha s or w ings

, (4 )P rallgra ha or the reserv es

, (5 ) Kotz'

or v anguards, (6)

or centre beh in d the brea st, (7 ) P r ishtha or

back— a th i rd l ine between the madhya and the reserv e .

3

Array of f orces in action i s genera l ly termed cyuha .

1 I nd ian Ga z etteer,

“ Ind ia,p . 22 3 .

2 S ee the Theosoph ist for M a rch 1881, p . 124 .

3 T he sage Brili aspati was a g reat teach er of m i l i tary sc ience,but

un fortunately none of his wor k s is now extant.

o ur

M ILITARY S C I E NC E . 0 0 1

Some rg/uha s are nam ed f rom the i r object . Thu s :

(1) illa dhg/ a bhed i one wh i ch breaks the cen tre , (2) An ta r

bhedl= tli at w h ich pen etrates between its div i s ion . More

comm on ly,howev er, they a re named f rom the i r resem

blan ce to v a r i ou s objects . For instance (1) illaha ra rg/ uha ,

or the a rmy drawn up l ike the Maka ra,a m i re mon ster

(2 ) S g/ena vya ha , or the a rmy in the f orm of a hawk or

eagle w ith w ings spread ou t. (3 ) S ahala vya ha , or the

a rmy in the shape o f a waggon . (4 ) Ar a dha Cha ndra,or

ha l f moon . (5 ) S a rva tobha d ra , or h ol low square . (6)Gonza trl/ea

,or echelon . (1) D a nda or sta ff

, (2 ) B hoj a

or column, (3 ) Ma ndala or hol low c i rcle

, (4 ) A sa nha ta

or deta ched a rrangements of the d i fferent pa rts of the

f orces,the e lephan ts

,cav a lry

,in f an try severa l ly by

them selv e s . Each of these vyaha s has su bd iv i s i on s there

are sev en teen v a rieties of the D a nda,fiv e of the B hoga

and severa l of both the M a nd ala and Asa nha ta .

1

I n the Mahabha rata (Vol. VI .,pp . 699 Y udh i

sh tera suggests to Arj una the adopt i on of the f orm of

S uch z‘

nmhha,or the needle point a r ray (s im i la r to the

phalanx of the Ma cedon ian s ) , wh i le Arjuna recommend s

the vaj ra or thun derbolt a rray f or the same rea son .

D u ryodhana,in con sequen ce

,suggests Abhedya , or the

impenetrable .

I n the i r land a rmy,the H in du s had

,bes ides the

in f an try and the cav a l ry,elep hants and cha r i ots al so.

T he elephan ts,

the l iv ing ba tter ing ram s ,”as Maeaulay

1 S ee Agn i Purana .

“ T he most important pa i t of H i nd u batt lesis now a cannonade . I n this they g rea tly excel , and have occas ioned heavylosses to us in allour battles w ith them . Th e ir mod e is t o charge the f rontand the flan k s a t once

,and the manner ii i wh i ch th ey perform th ismanoeuv re

has somet imes ca l led forth the adm i rat ion of E uropean antagon ists.”

E lphinstone’

s H istmy of I nd ia , p . 82 .

3 52 H INDU S U I’E R I O R I T Y .

ca ll s them,were a source o f great strength when properl y

m anaged and sk i l f u l ly su pported by oth er arm s . O f the

elephan ts g iv en by Chand ragupta to Seleu cu s,P rofessor

Max Dunker says These an im a l s a f ew years la ter

decided the day o f Ipsu s in Ph rygia aga in st A n togon u s ,

a v i ctory w h i ch secured to Seleu cu s the terr i tory o f

Syr ia,As ia Minor

,etc .

” Accord ing to Ctes ia s,Cyru s

wa s de fea ted an d k i lled by the enemy,on ly becau se of

t he strong support the la tter rece iv ed f rom the Ind ian

elephan ts .

1

As rega rd s the sold ierly qua l i ties o f the Indian s

ev en o f the present day , S i r Charles Nap ier,one of the

h ighest author it ies on the su bject,says Better sold ier s

or brav er men I n ev er saw,super i or in s obr iety

,equa l

in courage,and on ly in f er ior in m u scu lar strength to ou r

coun trym en . Th i s appears to m e,a s f ar a s I can j udge ,

the true character o f th e In d ian a rmy in th e three Pres i

d encies , and I hav e had m en of each under my comm an d .

”2

T he ch iv a lrou s condu ct of the Ind ian sepoys on the

occa s ion of the def en ce of Arcot by Cl iv e , an d w hen , to

w ards the close o f the war w ith T ippu in 1782,th e

1 “ T he p rofi c iency of the Ind ians in th is a rt (m anagement of ele

phan ts) early attra cted the atten t ion of A lexander ’

s su ccessors ; and

nat i ves o f Ind ia were so long ex c lus i vely em ployed in th i s serv i ce , thatthe term lnd ian was appl ied to every elephant-d river , to wh atevercoun try he m ight be long .

”— \Vilson ’

s T hea tre of the H in d us , Vol. I , p . 15 .

“ I n wa r, the K ing o f Ind ia wa s p reced ed by e leph ants and

o f the strongest and the b ravest fo l lowed l i im .

” -Ma x D un k er’sU ls to/ ‘

Q

t/ of A utula z ty .

S ixty yea rs a fter the d ea th of the E n l igh tened ,the Ind ians

a ss isted the Pers ian K ing ,the suc cessor o f D a r ius in the invas ion o f

G reece , when they trod the so i l o f H el las a nd w intered in Th essa ly .

T hey d e fea ted the G ree k s and saw the tem ple o f Ath ens in flames.M a x Th i nke rk [ In to / j; Vol. IV , 3 8 4 .

2 T he Ind ian R CVICW (Ca l cutta ) for N o i cmb cr, 18 8 5 , p . 181.

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H INDU snrnmomrr .

ment bef ore D raupad i’

s marr iage,and aga in on the death

bed o f Bh ishma,mu st exc ite un iversal adm i ration .

T he a rche ry o f the Hindu s had someth ing myste

r ion s abou t it. T he a r row s retu rned to,t he a rcher

,if

they m i s sed the i r a im . Th i s w a s con si dered absu rd un ti lthe d iscov ery of

,the “ bomerang

”in the han ds o f the

A u stra l ian s ]

\Varlike weapon s and splend id daggers were pre

sen ted a t the ‘

I n ternationalExh ibi tion s o f 1851 and 18 62,

and a cr it ic speak ing of them,says “ Beau ti f u l a s the

jewel led a rm s o f Ind ia are,it i s stillf or the in tr in s i c

mer it o f thei r steelthat they are most h igh ly pr i zed .

” 2

That the anc ien t Hindu s w ere celeb ra ted for the i r

sword-fight i s ev id en t f rom the Persian ph ra se ,“to

giv e an Ind ian an swer,

”mean ing a cu t w ith a n Ind ian

sword .

”T he Indian sword smen were celebra ted all

ov er the world . I n an Arabic poem o f grea t celebr i ty ,know n a s S a ba /t Moalago , there occurs the pa s sage T he

oppress i on o f n ear relat ion s is more seve re than the

wound cau sed by a H indu sword sm an .

”

Ctes ia s m ent ion s tha t the Indian sword s were the

best in the wor ld .

“1

T he f ollow ing fiv ef old cla ss ifica ti on o f H indu wea

pon s i s exha u st iv e (1 ) M i s s i le s th rown w i th an instru

m en t or engine ca l led ya n tramuhta (2 ) Those hu rled by

hand or ha stama hta (3 ) Wea pons w h ich may or may

lBe sid es bows , other m iss i les as the d iscus,shont i ron c lubs , and

j a vel ins,sword s , mases , ba ttle a xes

,spea rs

,sh ield s

,helmets

, a rmou r and

coats of ma i l,etc . a re a lso ment ioned . S ee VVilson

’

s E ssays, Vol. I I ,pp . 19l 9 2 .

2 Ma nn ing’

s Anc ient and Med iae va l Ind ia,Vol. I I

,p . 3 65 .

3 T he T af su'

112 13 1 says -d )u=-\Al d xfi

4 Ma x D unkei’

s H is tory of Ant i qu ity , Vol. IV,p . 4 3 6 .

M I LITARY S C IE NC E . 3 55

not be th rown,o rmukta nmkm

,a s ja v el in s , tr idents etc . ; (4 )

Wh ich a re not th rown,a s swords

,maces

,e tc . ; (5 ) Na tu ra l

weapons,a s fis ts

,etc . Bh ind ipala , Toma ra

,N aracha

,

P ra sa,B i sh ti

,P a ttisa

,Kripana . Kshepan i, Pa sa , etc . ,

are some o f the arm s o f the anc ient H indu s now extinct .

T he ch ief d i stincti on of the modern m i l i tary

science i s the exten s ive employmen t of fire-a rms , the i r

inv enti on be ing attr ibu ted to the Eu ropean s , and i t be ing

supposed that fire-a rm s were unkn own in anc ien t Ind ia .

Noth ing,however

,i s fa rther f rom the tru th . Though the

H indu ma sterpiece s on the sc ience o f wa r a re alllost,

yet there i s su ffic ien t ma ter ia l av a i lable in the grea t epi c s

and the P u rana s to prove tha t fire-a rm s were not on lyknown and u sed on allocca s ion s by the H indu s

,b u t that

th i s bran ch of the i r a rmou ry had rece i ved extraord ina ry

dev elopment. I n med iaev alInd ia,o f cou rse

,gun s and

ca nnon s were common ly us ed . I n the twel f th centu rywe find pieces o f ordnance be ing taken to battle-field s inthe a rm ies of P rithv iraj I n the 2 5th stanza o f P r it/w i

m in R a sa it i s sa i d that“ T he ca l iv ers and can non s m ade

a loud report w hen they w ere fi red o ff,and the noi se wh ich

i ssued f rom the ba l l wa s hea rd a t a d i stan ce o f ten cos .

awfman: as? a ms n

sires“

s in a ft a ft fears Il

slag: rim gait and?

i s $ 151 am liter swift n

{arm arr arms fi g

Wit a0 3i?! at {a $16 n

An Ind ian h i stor ian,Raja Kundan Lal l

,who l i v ed in

the cou rt o f the k ing o f Oudh,says that there wa s a bi g

gun named Zz'

chhma in the possess ion of H i s Majesty the

H I NDU S UPE R IO R ITY

K ing (of O udh ) wh ich had been orig ina l ly in the

a rti l lery of Mahara ja P rithv ira j o f A jmer. T he au thor

speaks o f a regu la r science of war,o f the posta l depart

men t,and o f publ i c or Roman roads . S ee Mun ia kha b

T a fsee-ul-A /ckba r , pp . 14 9,50 .

“ Ma ffei says that the Ind ian s far ex cel led the

Portuguese in the i r sk i l l in the u se of fire-a rm s .

” I

Another au thor quoted by Boh len speaks o f a

certa in Ind ian k ing be ing in the hab it o f plac ing sev era l

p ieces of bra ss ordnan ce in fron t o f h i s a rmy .2

Far ia-e Sou za speaks o f a Gu zerat v essel in A .D .

1500 fi r ing sev era l gun s at the Por tugues e,

and o f

the Indian s a t Ca l i cut u s ing fire v essel s in 1502,and o f

the Zam orin’

s fleet carry ing in the nex t yea r 3 80guns ” !

But let u s tu rn to an cien t In d ia . P rofe ssor Wi l sonsays : “ Am ongst ord inary w eapon s one i s named M ira ,the thunderbolt

,and the s pec ifica tion seem s to denote the

employment of some ex plos iv e project i le,wh ich cou l d not

h av e been in u se except by the agency o f some th ing

l ike gunpower in its properties .

“

As regard s “ gunpowde r,

the learned Profes sorsays : “ T he H indu s

,a s we find f rom the i r med ica l

1 H ist. Ind i ca . p 2 5 .2 0 11 3 Alta I nd e

'

en,VolI I

,p . 6 3 .

3 As ia Portuguesa ,T om I

,Pa rt I , C h apter 5 .

4 I b id,Chapter 7 .

5W i lson ’

s E ssays , Vol. I I ,'

p . 3 02 . T he Ind ia ns a re f rom t imeimmemoria l remar k able for the i r s k i l l in fi rewor k s. T he d i sp lay of fire

wor k s has been f rom old en d ays a featu re of the D aseh ra fest iva l . M r,

E l ph i nstone says“ I n the D a seh ra ceremony the comba t end s in the

d estru c tion of Lan k a am id st a bla z e o f fi rewor k s wh i c h wou ld ex c ite adm iration in any part of the world . A nd the process ion of the nat ivep r ince on th i s occa s ion p res ents one of the most an imat ing and gorgeousspec tac les ever seen .

” -E lphins tonc’

s H isto ry of I ndi a ,p. 178 .

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3 58‘

H INDU surnnlonrr r .

ed to take the pla ce. T he sages rema ined uncon cerned

sp e c ta tors u n tilthe a ssau lt was m ad e,when it was

repu l sed by fiery wh irlw inds and thunders w h ich,being

hu rled f rom above dea l t des tructi on on the in v aders .

” l

Commen ting on the stratagem a dopted by K ing

H alin the battle aga in st the k ing o f Ka shm i r, in m aking

a clay e lephan t wh i ch exploded , Mr . Ell iot says Here

we hav e not on ly the s imple a ct o f explos ion b u t some

th ing v ery m uch l ike a f u ze to enable the explos ion to

occu r a t a parti cu la r per iod .2

Viswam itra,w hen gi v ing d i ff eren t k inds o f wea

pon s to .Rama,speaks (in the Ramayana) of one a s

agneyn , anoth er as shihha r a .

W fiv ne fi faé f’

mst'

mn suns : l

Carey and Marshman render shift / mm a s a com

b u stible weapon .

” 3

I n the Mahabha ra ta we read o f “a fly ing ba l l

em i tt ing the sou nd o f a thundercloud wh i ch S chol ia st is

expres s in ref err ing to a rt i l lery .

” 4

T he H a r ina nsa thu s speaks of the fiery weapona ni mus 8 3 83 1 a amiananf rgm:

tame: efixafi’

sear armw tttsarq n

K ing Sagara hav ing rece ived fire-a rms f rom Bha r

gav a conquered the world,a f ter slay ing the T alj anghas

lP hilostrati V it : Apol lon,L i b I I . C . 3 3 .

2 E l l iot’s H istor ians of Ind ia , Vol. I , p . 3 65 .

3 Va r ious k ind s of weapons a re ment ioned , some o f wh i c h a re

ex traord ina ry . A s it is not k nown how they were made , what theywere l i k e , and how they were used

,people th in k they a re on ly poet ic

ph anta s ies. M r. E ll iot says S ome o f these weapons ment ioned a bovewere imag inary , a s for instance, the vaya va or a i ry.

"But who would

not hav e ca l led the gramaphone, the cinametograph and the wirelesstelegraphy imag inary only 50 years ago ?

4 Boh len , D as A lte Ind ien , I I , 66.

M I L ITARY S C I E N C E . 9

and the H a ihayas. M . Langloi s says that “these

fire-a rm s appea r to hav e belonged to the Bhargav as , the

fam i ly o f Bhrigu .

”lAga in,

s egue; aramt qifi'

as : s ear sauna : n

mum ama s s-(Tar serratem art I

s uiting tram-

g, rcfirfii g ags in

same arena es ta te : I

Au rv a hav ing perf ormed the u sua l ceremon ies on

the birth o f the grea t-m inded (prin ce ) , and hav ing

taugh t h im the Veda s , in structed h im in the u se of

a rm s ; the great -a rm ed (Au rva ) presen ted h im the

fiery w eapon,wh i ch even the immorta l s cou l d not stand .

”

B ra hma s tra i s repeatedly ment i oned in Sanskr i tworks . Pro fessor Wi l son

,in h i s San skr i t D i cti onary

,

ca l l s Brahma stra“a f abu lou s weapon ,

orig ina l ly f romB ra hma .

”For its u se see S ri Bhagwat descr i b ing the

figh t between the son o f D rona and Arjuna w ith the

.Bra hma stra . T he R ev . K . M. Ban nerj ea in h i s work,

T he En cyclopaed ia Bengalensis ,” sav s tha t the Brah

m a stra wa s p robably a piece o f m usketry not un l i ke the

m odern ma tch locks .” 2 Madame Blava tsky,in her [ sis

U nveiled , a l so sh ow s tha t“ fire-a rm s were u sed by the

H in du s in an c ien t t imes .” 3

I n the desc r iption of Ayodh ia i s ment i oned the f acto f ya nlra s

‘t be ing m oun ted on the wa l l s of the f ort,wh ich

show s that cannon s or mach ines o f some k ind or otherwere u sed in those days to f orti fy and protect c itadel s .

T he Ramayana,w h ile descri b ing the fortificati on s ,

lH arivansa, p . 68 .

2 E ncyclo . Benga l . , Vol. I I I , p . 2 1.

3 Is is Unve i led,C hap . X IV .

4 1’a ntra means

“ that th ing w i th wh ich someth ing is th rown .

’

3 60 H I NDU S U P E n I on I T r .

sa v s “ As a woman i s r i chly decora ted w i th ornamen ts,

so are the towers w i th b ig d estru ct i ve mach ines .” 1

Th i s show s that cannons or big in struments o f w ar

l ike cannon s,w h i ch d i scharged des tru c t iv e m i s s iles a t a

great d i stance,were in use a t tha t t im e .

I n descr i pti on s o f f or tresses and battles, S ha taghn is

are o f ten m en ti oned . S h / z tnqhn i l i tera lly mean s “tha t

wh i ch k il ls hun dreds a t on ce .

”I n San sk rit d ictionar ies

,

b hamghn i i s defined a s a mach ine w h i ch shoo ts ou t

p ieces of i ron and other th ings to k i lln umbers o f m en .

I ts oth er n ame i s B rischi Kali. qfi tamsfi?

S hamgn z'

s and s im i la r other ma ch ines are m en ti oned

in the f ol low ing sloka s o f the Ramayana

Ca nto 3 S lo k a s 12,1 3

,16 a nd 17 .

4 2 3 .

2 1 la st slo k a .

3 6 .

60

6 1

76

86

Ramayana says tha t the S ha taghn i wa s made o f i ron . I n

the S u nd er [(d nd it i s compa red in srz e w ith big broken

trees or the ir h uge o ff shoots,and in a ppearan ce sa i d to

resemble trunks o f trees .” They were not only

m oun ted on f orts b u t were carr ied to the ba ttle-field s,

and they m ade a no ise l ike thunder .” What el se cou ld

they,there fore , b e b ut cannon s

ies id es the Ramay ana,the Pu rana s make frequen t

m en ti on of S ha ta ghn z’

be ing placed on f orts and u sed in

t imes of emergency . S ee Matasya P u rana

lR am anaya , S und er Kand , Th ird Chapter 1 8th v erse .

f3 5 ce R a ja S ir R ad h Kant D ev’

s S hahdlra Ip a d rama .

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3 62 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

P urana Sha s ters a scr i be the in v ent i on o f these destructiv e

e ngines to Viswacarma,the Vu lcan of the H indu s .”

Mr . H . H . Ell iot, Foreign Secreta ry to the Govern

ment o f Ind ia af ter d i s cu ss ing the quest i on of

the u se of fi re-a rm s in anc ient Ind ia,says : “ O n the

w hole,then

,w e may con clude that fire-a rm s of some

k ind were u sed in ea rly stages of In d ian h i story,that the

m i s s i les were explos iv e,an d that the t ime and mode of

ign iti on was depen den t on plea su re ; tha t projecti les

w ere u sed w h ich were made to adhere to gates an d

bu i ld ings,and m ach ines sett ing fire to them f rom a

con s iderable d i stance ; that it i s probable that saltpetre,the pr in cipa l ingred ien t of gun powder

,and the cau se

o f its detonation,en tered into the com posi t i on

,becau se

the earth o f Gangeti c Ind ia i s r ich ly impregnated w ith

i t in a natu ra l state of prepa rat ion , and it may b e

ex tracted f rom it by l ix iv iati on and crystal l i zati on w ithou t

the a id of fi re ; and tha t su l phu r may hav e been m ixed

w i th it,a s it i s abun dant in the north-west of Ind ia .

” 1

“ Rockets,

” says P rof essor Wi l son,

“appear to b e

o f Ind ian inv en ti on,and had l ong b een u sed in nat iv e

a rm ies when Eu ropean s came first in con ta ct w ith them .

”

Col. T od says J ud Bhan (the name of a grand

son o f Bajra,the grandson of Kr i shna ) ,

‘the rocket o f

the Y adus,

’w ou l d imply a know ledge of gun

-powde r

a t a v ery remote period .

” 2

Rockets were unknown in Eu rope t i l l recen tly .

We a re in formed by the best au thorit ies that rockets

w ere fi rst u sed in wa rfa re at the s iege of Copenhagen in

Mr. Ell iot says I t i s strange that they

1 B i b l iog raph ica l Ind ex to the H i s tor ians o f M . I nd ia , Vol. I,p . 3 73 .

L ia’

s lla jasthan , VolI I . p . 220 .

3 Penny E ncyclopa d ia , V .

“ R oc k et.

M ILITARY S C I E NCE . 3 6 3

(rockets ) should now be regarded in Europe as the

most recen t inv ent i on o f a rti l lery .

” l

There were in anc ien t Ind ia ma ch ines wh i ch,bes i de s

th row ing ba l l s o f i ron an d other sol id m i ss i les,a l so th rew

peculia r k ind s o f destructi ve l iqu id s at great d i stan ces .

T he ingred ients o f these l iqu id s are unknown the i reff ects , howev er, are aston i sh ing .

C tes ia s ,2 El ian 3 and P h ilostratus 4 allspeak o f an

oilmanu fa ctu red by H indu s and u sed by them in war

fa re in destroying the wa l l s and battlem en ts o f town sthat no “ batter ing ram s or other polio retic m a ch ines canres i s t it, and tha t “ it i s inextingu i shable and in satiable

,

burn ing both a rm s and fighting m en .

”

Lassen says : “ That the H indu s had someth ing

l ike ‘ Greek fire’ i s also rendered probable by Ctes ia s ,

who describes the i r employ ing a pa rti cu la r k in d o f in

flammable oilf or the pu rpose of sett ing host i le town s

and f orts on fi re .

” 5

Eu sebe S alv erte , in h i s O ccult S ciences, says :“ T he

fire wh i ch bu rn s and crack les on the bosom o f the

wav es denotes that the Greek fi re was an cien tly known

in H indu stan unde r the name of ba rra zca .

” 6

But wha t establ i shes the supe rio r ity of the an cient

H indus ov er the modern Eu ropean s in the noble game

of war i s the Ashim‘ Vidya o f the f ormer . “ T he Ash

tur Vz'

dya , the most importan t and scient ific pa rt (of‘ B i b l iograph i calInd ex to the H istor ians of Mohamed an Ind ia ,

Vol. I , p . 3 57 .

Ctesie, I nd ica E r cezp ta , XXV I I (ed . Baer) , p . 3 56.

3 D e N atura An imal , L i b . V . , cap. 3 .

4 P hilostrati Vita Ap ollonu . L il) . I I I , cap . 1.

5 Lassen ’

s I nd . Alt. I I , p .

6 E ngl ish T ranslation. Vol. I I , p . 223 .

3 64 H IN DU S UPE R I O R I TY .

the art of war) i s not known to the sold iers”

of our age.

I t con s i sted in ann i h i lating the host i le a rmy by env olv

ing and suff oca ting it in d iff eren t layers and masses of

atmospher i c air, charged and impregnated w i th d iff eren tsu bstan ces . T he a rmy would find itsel f plunged in a

fiery,electr i c and watery element

,in totalth ick darkn ess

,

or su rrounded by a poi sonou s,smoky

,pes ti len tia l a t.

mosphere , f u ll somet imes of sav age and terror o striking

an im al form s (snakes and t igers , e tc .) and f r ightf u l noi se s.Th u s they u sed to destroy the i r enem ies . 1 T he pa rty

thu s a ssa i led coun tera cted the se eff ects by arts and mean s

known to them ,and in the i r tu rn a ssau lted the enemy by

mean s of some othe r secrets of the Ashtur Vidya . Col.

O l cott a l so says : “ Ashtu r Vidya,a scien ce of wh i ch

our modern prof essors ha re not even a n inkling , enabled

its profic ien t to com pletely destroy an in v ad ing a rmy,

by env eloping it in an a tmostphere of poi sonousgases

,fi l led w ith awe-str ik ing shadowy shapes and w ith

awf u l soun ds. Th i s fact i s prov ed by innumerablein stan ces in wh i ch it was practi ced . Ramayana men tion s

it . J alindhar had recou rse to it when he wa s attackedby h i s f ather

,Mahadeva (Sh iva ) , as related in the Ka r tih

Another remarkable and a ston i sh ing f eature of the

H indu sc ien ce of war wh ich wou l d prov e that the an cien tH indu s cu l ti v ated ev ery science to perf ecti on

,wa s that

the H indu s cou ld fight battles in the a ir. I t i s sa id tha t

the a nc ien t Hindu s “ cou ld nav igate the a ir,and not

on ly nav igate it bu t figh t battles in it,l i ke so many

war-eagles combat ing for the dom in ion o f the clouds .T o b e so per fect in aeronau t i cs , they m us t hav e known

lT /ceosop/u st, Ma rc h 18 8 1, p . 12 1.

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Mus i c exalts ea ch joy , allays each gr ieE xpels d i seases , softens every pa in.

S ubd ues the rage of po ison and the plague.A nd hence the w i se of anc ient d ays adoredO ne power of physio, melody and song .

A R M S T R O N G A . P . H .

MUS I C is the na tu ra l express ion o f a man’s feel ings . I t

c omes na tura lly to man,woman and ch i ld in allcond i

t i on s,at allt ime s and in allcoun tr ies . T he very f ac t

o f mu s i ca l u tte ran ce, says S i r Hubert Parry,implies a

genu ine expan s ion of the natu re of the human be ing,

and is in a v a rying degree a tru stworthy revelat ion o f

the pa rti cular l ik ings, ta ste s and sen s ib i l i t ies of the be ingthat giv es v en t to it.”

X T he Ch inese empha s i se i ts importance by ca l l ing i t“the sc ience o f sc ien ces .”

“ An em inently poeti ca l people , as the ancien tH indu s

were, could not b ut hav e been em inen tly mu s i ca l a l so .

An ne C . Wi l son , in what i s perhaps the latest attempt onthe part of a Eu ropean to understand H indu mu sic

,says

“ T he people of Ind ia are essent ia l ly a mu s i ca l raceTo such an exten t is mu s i c an accompan iment o f

exi stence in India,tha t ev ery h ou r of the d ay and sea son

o f the yea r has its own melody.

” 1

Mr . Coleman says “ O f the H indu system of mu s i c

the excel lent wr iter whom I hav e before men tioned

(S i r W. Jones) , has expressed h i s bel ief that it has beenf ormed on better pr inc iples than our own .

” 2

1A S hort A ccount of the H indu S ystem of Mus i c , by Anne C . Wilsonp

. 5 .

2 Coleman’

s H i nd u M t thology , P re fa ce , p . ix .

M US I C . 67

Colonel Tod says An account o f the s tate o f

mu s i ca l sc ience amongst the H indu s o f ea rly ages and a

compar i son between it and that o f Eu rope i s yet a

d es id era tum j n O r ienta l l itera tu re . F rom w ha t we a l ready

know of the sc ience,it appears to have atta ined a theoret i cal

preci s ion yet unkn own to Eu rope , and tha t at a per iod

w hen ev en Greece was l i ttle remov ed from ba rba r i sm .

T he antiqu ity o f th i s mos t del igh tf u l art i s the same a s

the an tiqu ity of the San sk r i t l i teratu re itsel f . Anne C .

Wi l son says “ I t mu st,therefore

,b e a secret sou rce

o f pr ide to them to know that the i r sy stem o f mu s i c,a s

a wri tten scien ce, i s the oldest in the world . I ts prin c ipa l

f eatu res we re giv en l ong ago in Ved i c w r i t ings

I ts pr inc iples were a ccepted by the Mohamedan port i on

o f the popu la t i on in the days of the i r pre-em inen ce, andare st i l l in u se in the i r orig ina l con structi on at the

presen t

Mu s i c has been a grea t f av ou r iteg w ith the H indu s

from the earl iest t imes . Even the Veda s S am Veda)trea t of th i s d iv ine art. T he enormou s exten t3 to

wh ich the Hindu s hav e cu ltivated th i s sc ien ce i s p rov ed

by the i r a tta inmen ts in it. Bu t,u nhapp i ly

,the ma ster

p iece ou th i s “ Scien ce and Art com b ined , the Ga ndha rva

Ved a,i s los t

,and referen ces to it in San sk r i t work s a lone

remain to po in t to the h igh pr in ciples on wh i ch the

H indu sc ien ce of m u s i c wa s ba sed .

1A S hort A ccount of the H i ndu S ystem of Mus i c by A . C .Wilson , p .9.

Q S hakespearc says T he m an that ha th no mus i c in h im s el fN or is not moved w i th concord o f sweet sound s

I s fit for treason , stratagems and spo ilsL et no su ch man be trusted .

”

T he H ind u system of mus i c is m inutely expla ined in a great

number of S ans k rit boo k s. -S ir \V. J ones.

3 68 H I ND U s urnnimu r r .

E v en a t the presen t day the Rdgs au d Brig/ms o f

the H i nd us a re inn umerable , and the ma jor i ty o f themd i ff er so m inutely f rom each other tha t ev en the “ cu lt i

\ a ted ear o f the m u s i ca l Eu ropean s ” cannot f u l ly

u n derstand and f ol low them .

S i r W. W. H un ter says : “ N ot conten t w ith the

tones and sem i tones , the Ind ian mu s i c ians employed a

more m inu te sub d iv isou,together w ith a number of sona l

m od ifica tion s w h i ch the We stern ear ne ither recogn i ses

n or en joys . Thu s,they d i v ide the octa v e in to 22 subtones

in stead o f 12 sem i tones o f the European sca le . T helud ian

m u s i cia n decl ine s a l together to b e j udged by the f ew s impleH indu a i rs wh i ch the Engl i sh ea r can appreciate .

” 1

Anne C . Wi l son says E very v i l lage playe r

knows abou t t ime,and mark s it by beating t ime on the

ground,w h i le the a ud ien ce clap the i r hands a long w i th

h im . H e ha s th e mo st s ubtle ea r f or t ime,and a more

del i ca te percept ion o f shades of d i ff erence than the

genera l ity of E nglish p eople ca n a cqu ire, an acuteness o f

m u s i ca l hea ring w h ich al so makes it poss ible f or h im to

recogn i se and reproduce quarter and ha lf tones,when

s inging or play ing ” 1

.l' Nor are European s able to im i ta te H indu m u s i c.

Mr . Arthu r Wh itten says But I hav e yet to observ e

that wh i le our sys tem of notat i on adm its o f no sound of

less than ha lf a tone, the H indus hav e qua rter tones , thu srender ing itmost d i ff i cu lt of im itat ion by Eu ropean s . T heexecu t ion of the i r mu s i c , I hold to b e impossible to allexceptthose who commen ce its practi ce f rom a v ery ea rly age.

” 3

llmperialG a z etteer, Ind ia,p . 22 4 .

2 Anne C . W i lson ’

s H ind u S ystem of Mus ic.3 T he Mus ic of the Anc ients, p . 22.

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3 70 H I NDU surnmonrrr .

genera l know noth ing of Ind ian m u s ic . They h ea r on l y

the a ccompan iments to publ i c process ions, in w h ich noi se

is the ch ief object to b e atta ined, or the s inging of the

Mohamedan s , which is P ers ia n not lndia n .

"l

There are s ix ma le rags, and a ssocia ted w i th them

are th i rty-six fema le raga ees , wh i ch pa rtake of the peen

l ia r measu re or qu a l i ty of the i r m a les b ut in a softer

and more fem in ine degree. F rom each o f these 3 6

ragnees hav e been born th ree r'

agnees reproduc ing

the specia l pecu l ia r i ty of their or igina l,and these

hav e in the i r tu rn produ ced off spr ings w i thou t

number,each bea r ing a d i st in ct ind iv i dua l i ty to the pri

ma ry raga , or, to u se the poeti c H ind u expre ss ion,

“they

a re as numerou s and a l i ke as the wav es of the sea .

That the H indu s cu ltiv ated m u s i c on sc ien t i f i c pr in c i ples

is prov ed by the f ac t tha t,as Mr. Wh itten says

,these

raga s were des i gned to mov e some pa ss ion or a ffect ion

of the m in d , and to each wa s a ss igned some pa rti cu la r sea

son of the year,t ime of the day and n ight or spec ia lloca l ity

or distr i ct,and fo r a perf ormer to s ing a raga out of its

of the R a jputs , th e H a tta ri ch an ts , the nursery rhymes , the wed d ingand crem a t ion songs of G u j ra t

,the Vernams

,P allam. K irta ns o f

M ad ras Who amongst us k now th e lyr ic poetry of Vidyapati, ofChand idas , J a id eva or the well-k nown fam ily of R am Bhagan D utt

,

somet imes ca l led the “nest of s ing ing b i rd s ?

” -p. 4 1 .

1M ill’s Ind ia , Vol. I I , p . 4 1 . P rofessor W i lson add s : “ T he

p ract i ce of a rt among them (H ind us) has d ecl ined in consequencep robably of its su pp ressio n by th e Mohamed ans.

”S ir “l. W. H unter

says H ind u music a f ter a per iod of excess ive elaborat ion san k underM ussa lmans .

-I mp erialGa z etteer , p . 2 2 3 .

“ However, it st il l preserves,in a l iv ing state , some of the ear l ier forms, wh ic h puz z le the stud ent of

Greek mus i c , s ide by s id e with the most compl i cated d evelopment.”

S ir \V. \V. Hunte r,p “

3 2 4 .

M U S I C . 3 71

appropr ia te season or d i str ict wou ld make h im ,in the

eyes o f allH indu s,an ignorant pretender and unwor thy

the cha racter of a m u s ic ian .

”

T he s ix pr inc ipa l ragas are the f ollow ing

(1) H inda ul. I t i s played to prod uce on the

m ind of the hearers allthe sweetness and f reshnes s of

spr ing sweet as the honey o f the b ee and f ragrant as

the perfume of a thou sand b lossom s .

(2 ) S ri R aga . T he qua l i ty o f th is my i s to

a ff ect the m ind w ith the ca lmn ess and s i lence of decl in

ing d ay , to t inge the though ts w ith a roseate hue,as

cloud s are gi lded by the setting sun bef ore the approacho f da rkness and n igh t.

(3 ) Me'

g Mallar . Th i s i s desc r i pt ive o f the eff ects

o f an approach ing thunder-sto rm and ra in . hav ing the

power of in fluen c ing c louds in times o f drough t.

(4 ) D eepuc/c. Th i s rag i s ex t inct . N o one cou ld

s ing it and l iv e ; i t has con sequen tly f a l len in to d i su se .

I ts eff ect is to l ig ht the lamps and to cau se the body o f

the s inger to produce flames by wh ich he d ies .

(5) Bha ira va . T he eff ect of th is m y i s to in

sp i re the m ind w ith a feel ing o f approa ch i ng dawn,the

ca rol ing of b i rd s , the sweetnes s of the perf ume and a ir,

the spa rkl ing freshness of dew-dropping morn .

(6) filial/cos . T he eff ects of th i s ra g are to produce

on the m ind a feel ing o f gen tle stimu lation .

There is much tha t i s common to both the H ind uand E u ropean sys tem s . Mr . Arthu r Wh itten says“ T he i r (H ind u s ) sca le undoubted ly resembles our

d iatonic mode,and cons i sts of sev en sounds

,wh i ch a re

ex tended to th ree octa ves,tha t be ing the compas s of the

3 72 H INDU surna romrr .

human v orce . The i r vo i ce s and mu s i c,l ike ou rs

,are d iv id

ed into three d istinct cla sses . T he ba ss,ca l led oa

’a rah

,

or l owest notes ; the tenor , ca l led ma du rrah , or m i dd len otes j the soprano , ca l led the ta rra h, or upper note

T he s im i lar i ty of the f ormation o f the an cien t H indu

sca le to ou r m odern system is n oteworthy . We name

the sounds of our sca les : D oh,R ay , Me

,Fah

,S ol

,La

,T e .

Tha t common in Ind ia i s : S a,R ay , Ga , Ma

,P a

,D ha N e .

l

T he rea son o f th is s im i lar i ty is ev i den t. S ir IV.

IV. H unter says : “ A regu la r system of n ota ti on was

worked out bef ore the age o f Pan ini,and seven notes

were de s ignated by the i r in itia l letters . Th is notat i on

pa ssed from the B rahman s through the Persian s to

Arab ia , and wa s thence in trod u ced in to Eu ropean m u s i c

by Gu i do d ’ Arezzo at the beginn ing o f the elev enth

cen tu ry .

” 2

Prof es sor I’Veber says Accord ing to Von Boh len

and Ben f ey ,th i s n o tation pa ssed f rom the Hindu s to

the Pe rs ian s,

3and f rom these aga in to the Arabs , a nd

wa s introduced into Eu ropean m u s i c by Gu ido d ’

Arezzo at the beginn ing of the eleven th cen tu ry .

” 4

B ut the pr inc iples of H indu m u s i c were imported

in to Europe mu ch earl ier than th i s .

1 T he Mus i c of the Anc ients,pp . 2 1

,2 2 .

2 Ind ian Ga z etteer, p . 22 3 . S ee Ben fey

’

s I nd ian E rsek,p . 2 9 9 ,

and Gruber’s E ncyclopaed ia ,Vol. XVI I I . “ S ome suppose th a t our

m odern word g amut comes f rom the Ind ian gama a mus i cal sca le.

Pra k ri t is game , wh i le its S ans k r it is g rama .

3 H indu mus i c ians used to go to fore ign countr ies to , grace the

cou rts o f fore ign k ings. K ing Behram of Pers ia had many H indum us i c i ans in h is court,

4\Veb er

’

s I nd ia n L iterature , p . 272 .

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3 7 4 H IN D U s c r c nrontr r .

recen t t imes , however , Na i k Gopa l and Tansen hav e

b een the most celeb rated on es . About Na ik Gopa l , Mr .

Wh i tten says O f the magica l e ff ect p roduced by the

s inging of GO palNa ik and of the romantic term inati on

to the ca reer of th i s sage, it i s sa id tha t he was command

ed by Akbar to s ing the raga d eep a c/c, a nd he,obl iged

to obey , repa ired to the r i ver J umna,in wh i c h he plu n g

c d up to h i s neck . As he wa rbled the w ild and mag i ca l

n otes,flames bu rs t f rom h i s body and consum ed him to

a shes .

” 1 H e a dd s : “ I t is recorded o f Tan sen that

he wa s a l so comman ded by the Emperor Akbar to s ingthe sri, or n igh t raga , a t m idday , and the powe r of the

mu s i c was such that it in stan tly became n i gh t,and the

da rknes s extended in a c i rcle roun d the pa lace as far as

h i s v o i ce cou ld b e hea rd .

” Ind ia,it seem s

,produ ced

O rpheuses even so late a s the 17th cen tury A . D .

1Music of the Anc ients , p . 2 1. D r. T ennet says : I f we a re to

judge merely f rom the number of instruments and the frequency w ithwh ic h they apply them,

the H indus m ight b e regarded as cons id erable

proficients in m us ic .

”

T he instrument singa , or horn , is sa id to have b een played byM ah adeo, who a lone possessed the k nowledge and power to ma k e it

speak . S ingu lar stor ies are related of the wonders performed by th isinstrument.

T he B eena is the princ i palstringed instrument of music amongst

the H indus at the present day.

Although not ocean born,the tunefulBeena

I s most assured ly a gem of H eaven

L i k e a d ear fr iend it cheers the lonely heartA nd lend s new lustre to the soc ial meet ingI t lulls the pa ins that absent lovers feel ,A nd add s f resh impulse to the g low of passion.

orna n sen-me ss . 3 75

OTHER SCIENCE S .

What cannot A rt a nd Ind ustry perfo rm .

When S c ience p lans the progress of the i r to il7

B E AT T I E hfi nstrel.

TH AT in add ition to the a stronom i ca l,the ma thema ti ca l ,

the med ica l and the m i l i ta ry sc iences , many other equa l ly

important sc ien ces flou r i shed in ancient Ind ia i s ev ident

f rom the rema in s of some of the most importan t a ch iev e

m ents of th e H indus . Mr . Elph in stone says : “ In scien ce

we find the H indu s as a cu te and d i l igent a s ev er .” 1

Med ica l sc ien ce in a flou r i s h ing cond iti on presup

poses the ex i sten ce in an ad vanced s tate o f severa l other

sc iences,su ch a s Botany , Chem istry , Electr i c ity , etc . T he

A shta r Vidya (see Mil i ta ry Sc ience) presupposes the ex is

tence of the sc iences of chem i stry,dynam i cs

,m eteoro

l ogy,geology, phys i cs , and other cognate sc iences in a

mu ch more adv anced state than what we find them in at

the presen t day wh i le the Vima n Vidya presupposes an

in timate a cqua in tan ce w i th a n equa l ly grea t number o f

su ch sc iences . T he huge bu i ld ings o f an c ien t Ind ia and

“those gigan t i c temples h ewn o u t of lof ty rock s w ith

the most in cred i ble labou r at Elephanta,E lora and a t

many o ther places ,”wh ich hav e not on ly exc i ted adm i ra

t i on b ut have been a stan d ing pu zz le to some people,cou ld

not hav e come in to ex i s ten ce i f the anc ien t H indu s had

not been maste rs of the sc ien ce of engineer ing. T he engi

neer ing sk i l l of the an c ien ts was tru ly marvel lou s. Wi thallits ad v an ced c iv i l i zat i on

,modern Eu rope has yet to

lE lph instonc’

s H i story of Ind i a , p . 1 3 3 .

3 76 H IND U surnmomr r .

produ ce engineers able to bu i ld the Pyram i ds,or to turn

huge rocks in to tem ples . Mon s . d e Lesseps was no doubt

an adm i rable represen tat iv e of tr iumphan t eng ineer ingsk il l

,and was an honou r to Fran ce

,b ut he on ly f ollowed

in the footsteps of his predecessors,who were equally

grea t,and who , too , had at one time connec ted the R ed

S ea w ith the Med iterranean . Mr . Swayne says“ A

F ren ch engineer repeats the f ea t o f the old nat iv e k ings

and the Greek P tolem ies in ma rry ing by a cana l the R ed

Sea to the Mediterran ean,

an a ch ievement wh i ch w i ll

make the name of Lesseps immorta l,if the canal

‘

can on ly

b e kept clear of sand .

” 1 T he sands st ill ma in ta in a

th reaten ing a spect.

A s regard s the Pyram i d s,the early f athers o f the

Chu rch (Ch r i stian teachers bef ore 500 A . b el iev ed

them to have fa llen f rom Hea ven ,w h ile o thers in Eu rope

bel iev ed them to ha ve sprung out o f ea rth or to hav e been

b u i lt by Satan and his dev i l s .

T he Mahabharata shows tha t the an c ien t H ind us

had ach iev ed wonder fu l a dvan cemen t in mech an i cs .

I n the descr i ption of the Mayasabha (Exh ibition ) ,wh i ch was presented by Maya sa r to the Pandavas ,m ention is made of m i croscopes

,te lescopes ,

c locks,etc .

An Amer i can c r i t i c says S u ch , indeed , wa s the

mechan i sm o f the Mayasabha , wh i ch a ccommodated

thou sand s of men ,that i t requ ired on ly ten men to tu rn

and take it in whatev er d ii'ection they l iked .

” There

was,he a l so says

,

“the steam or the fire-engine

cal led the aym'

ra th .

‘ S wayne’sHerodotus (Anc ient C lass ics) , p . 4 1;

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3 78 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

were so fa r r igh t that in v a cuo there can be n o sound . A i r

aga in i s sa i d to b e possessed of the f acu lty of tou ch,that it

i s them ed ium th rough w h ich the contactof bod ies i s eff ected-ether keeps them apa rt—a ir im pel s them togethe r.

F i re , or ratherli ght, has the property of figu re—Mr . Coleb rooke renders it o f colour . I n e ither ca se the theory i s

true for n e ither colou r n or f orm i s d i scern ible exceptthrough the m ed ium of l igh t . Water ha s the p roperty

o f ta ste,an a ffirmat i on perfectly true ; f or noth ing i s

sen s ible to the pa late u n ti l it i s d i ssolv ed by the natura l

flu id s .

” l Th i s show s tha t the H indu s were in no way

beh ind the scienti sts of the n ineteen th centu ry .

T he influence o f the moon in cau s ing t ides seem s to

hav e been known to the H indu s f rom the ea rl iest t imes .

R ay/rura nsa (V. 61) says

a ef ferent Harm-was I

a ttes ts? {IE EEI as: n

neg—a ims wa n na :

a s?a’

qi nfi ffi fifimefi ii

That the H indu s we re excel lent observ e rs an d b ecame great

Na tu ra l i sts becomes clea r f rom Pro fessorWi l son ’s n ote on

a v erse of the drama o f Jilr ickchha /ca tz’

. Charudatta says

T he eleph ants’ broad f ront , w hen th i c k congea ledT he ch iod—up d ew ,

they V i s it me no more.

”

IVilson says “ A t certa in per i od s a th ick d ew

exha les f rom the elephan t’ s tem ples , Th i s pecu l iar i ty,

though known to S trabo,

seem s to hav e e scaped

Na tura l i sts t i l l la tely , w hen it was n oti ced by Cuw er .

Facts rega rding d iamonds,pearl s

,sapph i res , e tc .

,

a re m ent i oned w i th ca re,w h i ch show that the an c ien t

i Mill’ s Ind ia,Vol. I I

,pp . 9 5

,9 6 .

‘2'

l'

he Thea tre of the H ind us,Vol. I , p 22

,footnote.

(m un: S U I ICN C ICS . 3 79

H indu s were thoroughly well-v ersed in the sc iences a n d

the a rts relat ing to fisherv and to m in ing,and the pro

cesse s o f separa ting and ex tracting v a r iou s subs tan ce s

f rom the ea rth .

That the anc ien t H indu s w ere ma sters o f the

sc ience s o f chem istrv , mechan i c s , m eteo rolog y i s pro ved

by . one o f the most wonderfu l o f human a ch iev em e n ts .

Th i s wa s the Vima n Vic/ya . T he b aloons o f the “(es tern

w orld give u s an i dea o f what r ima ns may ha v e been l ike .

F i f ty yea rs ago a v ima n was con s idered an imposs ib i l i ty .

But happ ily those days o f Western scept i c i sm are ov er,and a

'

uima n , f or its pract i ca l ad van tages , i s looked upon

as an i dea l o f sc ient ific ach ievemen t. A European cr i ti c

says Vima n .Vidya. was a complete sc ience amongst

the an c ient H indu s . They were its ma sters and u sed itf or allpra cti ca l pu rposes .”

Th i s in d i ca tes the i r m a stery o f allthe a rts andsc ien ces on wh i ch the Vima n Vid ya i s ba sed , includ inga know ledge o f the d i ff eren t strata and the cu rren ts o f

the atmospheri c a ir,the tempera tu re and den s ity o f

ea ch,and v a riou s other m inor parti cu la rs . Vimm z V’idg/a

~i s thu s ' clearly men ti oned in the Veda s . T he Y aj u rVeda (VI , 2 1) says

a ssess e ve rW ft fi fi fi rs t 2ama faart sfii (anewMann a l so says

fi fi a’

writ nfgu’

a as t aafiq I

H iuU fiTa 2112113 3 3 3 5 ‘mi

: 11

Th i s sc ien ce i s sa i d by some to ha v e been a pa rto f the more com prehens iv e s cien ce ca l led “

the VayuVid hya

”men ti oned in the S a t/m tB ra Inna / 2a , X I and X IV.

P rof . “reber says : S u rp a Via/ya (s erpen t science)

i s men t ioned in the S a t/m t B ra /ta ntrum Klll,a s a sepa ra te

s c ience and Visit (sc ience o f poi son s ) in the

3 80 H INDU S UPE RIO R ITY .

A svalayana S utra .

”1 “ S ivedasa

,in his Commen tary

o f Chakrapan i, quotes P atanj ali as an au thor i ty on

Lolmsa stra,or

‘the Sc ience of I ron ’ ” 2

T he Greeks deriv ed the i r know ledge of electr ic i tyf rom Ind ia . Tha les

,one o f the Greek sages

,lea rn ed

d u r ing h i s tou r in Ind ia tha t w hen amber was '

rub b ed w iths i lk it a cqu i red the property of a ttract ing l igh t bod ies.

N ot on ly were the sc iences o f e lectricity and

magnet i sm exten s iv ely cu ltiva ted by the an c ien t H indu s,

b u t they rece iv ed their h ighest dev e lopmen t in an c ien t

Ind ia . T he Vedanti s t says tha t l igh tn ing comes from

ra in . Th i s can b e ea s i ly demon strated by the wel l-known

exper imen ts of T ou ilet an d others allthese prove tha t

H indu sages perfectly understood allthe e lec tr i ca l mag

net i c phenom ena . T he most s ign ifican t proof of the

h igh d ev elopmen t of these sc ien ces is to b e f ound in

the fact that they were made to con tribu te so mu ch to

the every-day com fort and conv en ien ce3o f the whole com

lVVeber’

s Ind ian L iteratu re , p . 265 .

9 H istory of H ind u Chem istry , Vol. I , p . 55.

3 A s an instan ce of su ch pract i caladaptations of their sc ient ificd iscover ies , the fol low ing may b e u seful V is itors to S imla are fam iliarw ith the s ight o f young nat i ve ch ild ren placed in a pos i tion in wh i chth ey are ex posed to the constant tr i c k l ing of a stream of water. Th iscustom is genera l ly cons id ered a cruel one

,a lthough it h as not been

shown that it promotes a h igh rate of mortal ity. T he object is to putthe young ones to sleep

,and the means a re probably not more in jur ious

th a n many of the pa tent food s and med i c ines wh i ch a re the civiliz ed

subst i tutes . A t the same t ime it is startl ing to find that S ir JosephF ayrer, Pres ident of the Med i ca l S oc iety , is trying to introd uce the h illcustom in E ngland . H e says that the flowing of water on the vertex

o f the c ran i um never f a i ls to induce sleep and tha t parents who a re

tormented wi th fretful ch i ld ren have only to pop them under an impro

v i sed water-spout.

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3 82 H I NDU surnnloni rv .

T he learned w r iter f ound another sloka in the

Vi shnu P urana , wh i ch says“Oh k ing I t i s ben efic ia l to

lie down w i th the head placed ea stwa rd or sou thward .

T he man who a lways l ies down w ith h i s head placed in

contrary d i recti on s becom e s d i seased .

A f ter stating certa in f acts rega rd ing magnet i sm an d’

electr i c ity necessary to enable a man (unacqua inted w i th

the e lemen ts of these sc ien ces ) to understand h i s ex pla

nation,Babu S itanath Roy says Accord ing to w ha t

ha s been ju st now sa id,it i s not v ery d ifficu l t to

conce iv e that the body o f the ea rth on w h i ch we

l iv e i s be ing a lways magnet i sed by a cu rren t of therma l

e lectr i c ity produ ced by the sun . T he ea rth b e ing

a round body,w hen its ea stern par t i s heated by

the sun its western part rema in s cold . I n con sequen ce

a cu rren t of therma l electr i city generated by the su n

trav el s ov er the su rf ace o f the ea rth f rom ea st to w es t.

By th i s cu rren t o f thermalelectr icity the ea rth become s

m agneti sed,and its geographi ca l north pole being on

the r igh t-hand s i de o f the d irecti on o f the cu rren t,i s mad e

the magneti c north pole,and its geograph ical south pole

be ing on the lef t-hand s ide o f the same curren t,i s made

the magnet i c south pole . That the ea rth i s a grea t

magnet requ i res no proof m ore ev i dent than that by the

a ttracti v e and repu l s i ve powers o f i ts poles , the compas s

needle,in w hatev er pos ition it i s pla ced , i s inv a riably

tu rned so a s to point out the north and the south by its

two ends or poles . I n the equator ia l region o f the ea rth

the compa ss needle stand s hor i zon ta l ly , on a ccou nt o f the

equa l ity of a ttraction ex erted on its poles by those o f

th e earth -b ut in the pola r reg ion the n eed le stand sobl iquely

,that i s

,one en d i s dep ressed and the othe r

or nrcn sca nners . 3 8 3

end i s elev ated on a ccount o f the i nequal i ty of a ttracti onexerted on its poles by those o f the earth . Such a

pos i tion o f the n eed le in polar region s i s techn i cal ly

termed the d i p o f the needle .

“ I t has been f oun d by exper imen ts tha t the human

body i s a magneti sable object,though f ar in f er i or to i ron

or steel . Tha t it i s a m agnet i sable object i s a f a ct tha tcannot b e den ied , for in add i ti on to other cau ses there

i s a la rge,percentage o f i ron in the blood c i rcu la t ing

th roughou t allthe pa rts o f the body .

“ N ow,as ou r f eet are for the m ost pa rt of the day

kept in close con ta ct w ith the su r face of that huge

m agnet—the earth—the whole h um an body there fore

becomes magnet i sed . F u rther,a s our f eet are magnetis

ed by contact w ith the northern hem i sphere of the earth,

w here ex i st allthe properties of n orth pola r ity,sou th

polar i ty i s indu ced in our f eet,an d n orth pola ri ty

,as a

n ecessary consquence , i s indu ced in ou r head . I n inf an cy

the pa lm s of our han ds are u sed in wa lk ing as m u ch as

our f eet, and ev en la ter on the pa lm s genera l ly ten d more

towards the ea rth than towards the sky . Con sequ ent ly

sou th pola rity i s induced in them a s it i s in our f eet.

T he abov e a rrangemen t o f poles i n the human body i s

n atu ra l to it, and therefore conduc i ve to our hea lth and

h app iness . T he body en joys perf ect hea l th if the

magn et i c pola r ity natu ra l to i t b e preserved una ltered ,and i t becomes subject to d i sease if that polar ity b e in

the lea st degree a l tered or its in ten s i ty d im in i sh ed .

“ Al though the ea rth i s the ch ief sou rce whence the

m agnet i sm o f the human body i s der iv ed, yet it i s no

less d ue to the a cti on of oxygen . Oxygen ga s be ing

n atu rally a good magnet i c subs tan ce,and being largely

3 84 H INDU snrnmonrr r .

d i str ibu ted w i th in an d w ithout the human body,hel ps

the ear th a good dea l in magnet i s ing it.“ Though every human body i s placed under the

same cond i t ion s w ith rega rd to its magn et i sa ti on , yet theinten s ity and permanance of the magneti c pola r ity o f

one are not a lways equa l to those o f another. Thosetwo properties o f the human body are genera l ly in d i rectra ti o to the compactness o f i ts structu re and the amountof i ron parti cles en tering in to its compos it i on .

N ow it i s v ery ea sy to con ce iv e tha t if you lie down

w i th you r head placed southwa rd and f eet northward,

the south pole of the ea rth and you r head,—wh i ch i s the

n orth pole of you r body , and the north pole of the ea r th

and you r feet, wh ich are the two bran ches o f the south

pole of you r body ,— be ing in j uxta-pos i ti on ,w i l l attract

ea ch othe r,and thu s the pola r i ty of the b ody natu ra l to it

w i l l b e preserv ed wh i le for thesam e rea son,if you lie

w ith your head placed n orthwa rd and f eet sou thwa rd ,the s im i la r poles of you r body and the ea rth be ing in

j ux ta-pos ition wil l repel each other,and thereby the

natu ra l pola r ity of you r body w i l l b e destroyed or its

in ten s i ty d im in i shed . I n the f orm er pos iti on the

pola r i ty your b ody a cqu i res du ring the day by stand ing,wa lk ing and s i tt ing on the ground , is preserv ed in ta ct

at n i gh t du r ing sleep b ut in the latter pos i t i on , the

pola r i ty wh ich your body a cqu i res du r ing the day bystand ing

,wa l k ing and s itt ing on the ground i s a ltered

a t n igh t du r ing sleep .

N ow,as it has been f ound by exper imen t that the

p reserva t i on of na tura l magneti c pola r ity i s the cau se of

hea l th , and any a ltera ti on o f that pola r i ty i s the cau se of

d i sea se, no one wi l l perhaps deny the val id i ty of the sloka s

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3 8 6 H INDU surnmonl'rv .

There a re other time-honou red practi ces,wh i ch are

f ounded upon a kn owledge of the prin c iples of electric i ty and magnet i sm . For in s tan ce

,we find that (1) I ron

o r copp er rods a re in serted at the tops of alltemples

(2) Mind ulies (meta l l i c cel l s ) made of e i ther gold , s i lv ero r i ron ,

are wo rn on the d i sea sed pa rts o f the body ;(3 ) Seats m ade of e ither s i lk

, wool , kusa gra ss or ha i ry

sk in s of the deer and ti ge r are u sed at the t ime of saying

prayers . Those who are a cqua in ted with the prin c iple so f electr i c ity w i l l b e able to accoun t f or these practi ces .

They know tha t the f un cti on of the rod or the trz’

sfila

(tr i fu r cated i ron rod ) placed at the top o f the Hindu

tem ples is anal ogou s to a l igh tn ing con du ctor . T he m in

du l ies perform the same f un ction s as ele ctr i ca l bel ts and

other appl ian ces prescr i bed in the electricaltreatmen t

o f d iseases . T he golden temple of Vishweshwar at

Bena res i s rea l ly a thu nderproo f shel ter . Prof es sor Ma x

Mu l ler recommends the u se o f a copper env e lope to a

gunpower maga z ine to exclude the poss i b i l ity o f be ing

s truck by l ightn ing. T he woollen and the sk in a sa ns

(seats) protec t ou r l i ves du r ing a thun derstorm f rom

the a ct ion of a retu rn sh ock,and keeps our body in su lated

f rom the ea rth .

There i s ano ther pra c t i ce among the H indu s wh ich

i s expla ined by an Au str ian sc ienti st. I n repre sen ta

ti on,

a round the head o f each o f the H ind u god s

i s the au reole.

”Bu t why they shou l d b e so repre

sen ted was a mystery un ti l now . Ba ron Von Re i ch

e ubach,an Au str ian chem i st of em inence , thu s expla in s

it. H e says : “ T he . h uman system,in common w i th

e very an imate and inan ima te natu ra l object, and w ith

the whole starry heavens,i s pervaded wi th a subtle

o'

rnnn serm ons . ”8 7

au ra,or

,if you plea se

,imponde rable flu i d

,wh i ch re

sembles magne tisim and e lectr i c i ty in certa in re spects,

and yet i s ana l ogou s w i th n e i th e r . Th i s au ra,wh i le

rad ia ting in a fa int m ist f rom allparts o f our bod ie s,

i s pecu l iarly br igh t abou t the head,a nd he nce the

au reole.

“ I n f a ct,

” says Col . O l cott,

“we see tha t

Re i chenbach was an ti c i pated by the Aryan s (H indu s )in the know ledge o f the Od ic a ura . And yet

“we

m ight nev er have understood what the n imbu s abou tK ri sh na meant, b ut for th i s Vienna chem i st, so perf ect

is the swav of ignoran ce ov er th i s once gloriou s people .

” l

Another practi ce o f the H in du s wh i ch i s r id icu led b v

non-H indu s,an d the importan ce of wh ich i s on ly d im ly

perce iv ed by some of the Eu ropean sc ien ti sts , i s tha t

when they sit down to eat,every man i s i solated f rom

h i s neighbou rs at the f ea st ; he s its in the cen tre of a

squa re tra ced u pon the floor, grand si re,f a ther and

son,bro th er and uncle

,av o id ing tou ch ing each other

qu i te as sc rupu lou sly a s though they were of di ff eren tca stes . I f I shou l d han dle a Brahm in ’s bra s s p latter

,h i s

Ietali or other v essel for f ood and dr ink,ne ither b e nor

any of h i s ca ste wou l d tou ch it,m uch les s eat or d r ink

f rom it u n til it had been pa s sed th rough fire : if the

u ten s ilwere o f clay it mu st b e b roken . W’

hy allthese ?

T hat no a ff ront i s m eant bV av o idan ce o f con tact i s shown

in the ca ref u l i sola ti on of m embers of the same f am i ly

f rom ea ch other. T he explanat ion,I subm it

,i s

that ev ery Brahm in was supposed to b e an ind iv i dua l

ev olu t ion of psych i c f orce,apa rt f rom allcon s iderat ion

of fam i ly re lat ion sh i p : if one tou ched the other at h islCol. Olcott’s lecture delivered at the Town H all , C alcutta ,

on

5 th Apri l,1882 .

3 88 H INDU S UPE R I O R ITY .

pa rt i cu la r time when the v ita l f orce was a ct ively centred

u pon the p roces s o f digestion,the psych i c f orce was

liable to b e d rawn o ff , a s a leaden j ar cha rged w ith

electr i c ity i s d i scharged by tou ch ing it w ith you r hand .

T he Brahm in o f old was an in itiate,and h i s ev olved

psych ic power wa s employed in the agn ihotra and other

ceremon ies . T he ca se o f the touch ing o f the eating or

d r ink ing v essel,or the mat or cloth ing o f a Brahm in

by one of another ca ste of in f er ior psych i c dev elopmen t,

or the stepp ing of such a person upon the ground

w i th in a certa in prescr i bed d i stance f rom the sacr ific ia l

spot,bea r upon th i s questi on . I n th i s same plate o f

Ba ron Re i chenbach ’s,the figu re F repre sents the aura

stream ing f rom the po in ts of the human hand . E v ery

human be ing has su ch an au ra,and the au ra is pecu l ia r

to h im sel f or herse l f a s to qua l ity and v olume . N ow,

the au ra o f a Brahm in o f the an c ient t imes wa s pur ified

and in ten s ified by a pecu l ia r cou rse of rel igi ou s tra in ing

let us say psych i c tra in ing— and if it s hou l d b e m ixed

w ith the au ra of a les s pu re,les s spi r i tua l i zed person

,

its strength wou l d of necess ity b e lessened , its qua l i ty

adu lterated . Rei chenbach tel ls u s that the od i c emana

t i on is con du cti ble by meta l s,slower than electr i c i ty

,

b u t more rap id ly than heat,and tha t pottery and other

clay v essel s absorb and reta in it f or a g reat wh i le. H ea t

he f ound to enormou sly inc rea se quan t i tat iv ely the flow

of odyle'

th rough a meta l condu ctor. T he Brahm in,

then,in subm itting h i s odylicaly-ta in ted meta l l i c v esse l

to the fire , i s b u t exper imen ta l ly ca rry ing ou t the theory

of Von Re i chenbach .

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3 90 H INDU S U I ’E R I O R I T Y .

S trength and du rabi l ity , bea u ty and ma jesty a re

the cha ra cter i sti c s o f the H indu style o f a rch itectu re .

Mahm ud Ghaznav i wri ting to the Kha l i f f rom Ma thu rasa id tha t the bu i ld ings of In d ia were su rely not lessstrong than the Moham ed an f a ith . Such express ion s o fwonder f rom one o f the grea test fana ti c s that ev er l iv ed

i s s ign ificant ev i dence o f the h ighes t dev e lopm ent of the

art of a rch i tectu re 111 Ind ia .

Mr . T hornton say s : T he an c ien t Ind ian erectedbu i ld ings the sol id i ty of w h i ch ha s no t been overcome

by the revolut ion of thou sand s of yea rs .A fter s peak ing o f H indu scu l ptu re

,Prof es sor

Weber con tinues “ A f ar h igher degree o f development

was atta ined by a rch itectu re,of w h ich some m ost ad

m irable 'monuments sti l l rema in .

” 2 Wh ile descr i b ing thes tructu re o f a bu i ld ing

,Mr. Elph in stone says “ T he

posts and l intel s o f the doors,the panel s and other spa ces

are enclosed an d a lmos t cov ered by deep borders of mou ldings and a prof u s i on o f arabesques of plants

,flowers

,

f ru i ts,men

,an ima l s and imagina ry be ings in short

,of

every embel l i shmen t tha t the most f erti le f a ncy cou ld

dev i se . These a rabesques,the runn ing pa ttern s o f plan ts

and creepers in parti cula r,a re of ten o f an e legance sca rcely

equalled in a ny other p a r t of the world .

” 3

Mr . Fergusson descr i bes a remarkable temple a t

R ameshwaram ,of w h i ch the ou ter court mea sures the

length o f the r iv er f ace o f Pa rl iamen t Hou se a t West

m in ster by twi ce the i r depth .

lT hornton’

s C h a pters f rom the B r it ish H istory of Ind ia .

2 VVeber’

s Ind ian L iterature , p . 2 74 .

3 E lph instone’

s H istory of Ind ia,p . 160 . T he au thor als o say s

Perh aps the g reatest of allthe H ind u wor k s a re the tan k s . T h e

H indu wells are also very remar k able.”

Amrnrrrc '

runn A N ! ) sent r'

rc an. 3 9 1

O f the pagoda at R ameshwaram,Lord Va len tia says

T he whole bu i ld i ng presen ts a magn ificen t appea ran ce,

wh ich we m igh t in v a in seek adequa te language todescr i be .

” 1

A f ter gi v ing a descr ipti on o f the pagoda a t Chalamb ron , 2 7 m i les sou th o f Pond icherry

,Pro fessor Heeren

says O n the o ther s i de of the la rge tank i s the mostwonderf u l structu re o f all. Th i s i s a san ctua ry or chape lin the m i dd le of an enormou s ha l l

, 3 60 f t. long x 2 60 f t.

in bread th , and supported by u pwa rd s o f one thousandp i l la rs each th ir ty f eet h igh and d i sposed in regula r

orde r ." 2 D r . Rober tson th u s speaks of the H indua rch i tectu ra l e legan ce Some o f the ornamen ta l pa r tsare fin i shed w i th an elegan ce en titled to the adm i rati ono f the most ingen i ou s a rti sts .”

T he cav e temples are not on ly pecu l ia r to th i s coun

t ry b ut sh ow the h ighest arti sti c gen iu s o f the people .

Pro fessor H eeren 4 thu s speak s of the Elora templesAll that i s grea t

,splend id and ornamen ta l in arch itec

tu re abo ve ground i s here seen,a l so beneath the ea rth

s ta i rca se s,br idges

,chapel s colum ns and porti cos , obel i sk s ,

colossa l statues and rel ief s scu l ptured on a lmost allthe

lT ravels. Vol. I , pp . 3 4 0 ,3 4 1. A descr i pt ion of the temp le of

Mahak al a t U j ja in and o f the famous temple of Gob ind D eoji a t B r ind ab an wil l g i ve one a n id ea of the m agn ifi cence of H ind u temp les .

2 H eercn’

s H i stor i cal R esearc hes . Vol. I I , pp . 95 .

3 D r. R obertson ’

s Wor k s , Vol. X I I , “ D isqu is i t ion Concern ingInd ia .

” p . 16 .

4 S ee H i stor i ca l R esearch es , Vol. I I , pp . 60—70 .

“ M agn itude, savs

Pro fessor W ilson ,

“ is not the only element of beauty in the caverntemp les. T he columns are carved w i th g reat e legance and fi tness of

des ign . N ot i ce is ta k en of the numerous rema ins of temples in var ious

parts of Ind ia in wh ic h ex treme a rch itectural beauty is to b e found .

-M z°

ll’s H istory of lnd z'

a , Vol. I I , p . 15 .

3 92 H INDU suramonrr r .

wa l l s,representing H indu dei ties . An Engl ish cr iti c says

“ All th is wonderf u l stru cture,the v ar iety

,r i chness and

sk i lld i splayed in the ornamen ts surpa ss alldescr ipt ion .

” 1

Professor Heeren aga in says “ I t is not w i thou t an

in vo l untary sh udder that we pa ss the th reshold of thesespac iou s grottoes , and compare the we ight o f theseponderou s roo f s w ith the apparan t slen dernes s and

inadequacy o f its support,an a dm i rable and ingen iou s

e ff ect wh ich m u st hav e requ i red no ord ina ry sha re o f

ab il it ies in the arch itect to ca lcu late and determ ine l’” T helea rned P ro f essor concludes : “ S uch a re the seven Pagoda s

o r an cien t mon um en ts so-ca lled,a t Mavalipuram on the

Coromandel coa st,o f wh i ch extraord ina ry bu i ld ings

it w illb e ha rd ly too m u ch to a ssert that they wil l occupy

a m ost d i s tingu i shed place in the sca le o f human sk i l l

and ingen u ity”

Baron Da lberg was grea tly struck with the architec

tu re o f Dwa rka,w h ich he ca l l s “

the wonderf u l c i ty ”

and says : T he na tiv e s of that coun try (In d ia ) hav ecarr ied the art o f con struct ing and ornamen t ing ex

ca vated grottoes to a m uch h igher degree o f perf ect i on

than any other people .

“

Com par ing the H indu w ith the Greek and the

Egyptian arch itecture, Prof es sor Heeren says : “ I n

the r i chnes s o f decora t ion bes towed on the i r p i la sters ,and

,am ong other th ings

,in th e execu t i on of sta tues

resembl ing ca ryat i des they (the H indu s ) far su rpa ssborh those nat ions (the Greek s and Egypt ian s) .

Mrs . Mann ing says : “ T he cav es are rema rkablea l so f or the use of s tu cco and pa in t

,not merely on the

lA sia tic R esearch es , Vol. I I I,p . 4 05 .

2 H isto ri ca l R esearches , Vol. I I,p . 7 4 . S a k ya P adamrita is the

name o f the scu l ptor of the G rottoes of E llora .

3 H eeren’

s H i story of R esea rches,Vol. I I , p . 78 .

4 Geograph ica l E phemerid es, Vol. XXX I I , p , 12 ,

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3 94 H IN DU surmuonrr r .

origin,

and yet some would deny the ex i stence of archesin the a rch i tectu ra l s tyle of anc ient India .

1

S i r Wi l l iam Hunter says Although Mohamed ans

brought the i r new form s o f a rch itectu re,n ev ertheless

H indu art powerf u l ly a sserted i tsel f in the Imper ia lwork s of the Mugha l s

,and has lef t beh ind m emor ia ls

w h ich extort the adm i rat ion and a s ton i shmen t o f ou r age .

T he pa la ce a rch i tectu re of Gwa l ior,the mosques and

the mau soleum s , of Agra an d De l h i,w ith severa l of the

ol der temples o f Sou thern Ind ia,s tand un riv a l led for

grace o f ou tl ine and e laborate wea l th of ornamen t.”

i

Mr . Coleman says “ T he rema ins of the i r a rch i

tectu ralart m igh t f u rn i sh the a rch i tects of Eu rope w ith

new i dea s o f beau ty and subl im ity .

” 2

“ Engl i sh decora tiv e art,

”to quote S i r W. W.

H un ter on ce more ,“ in ou r day has borrow ed la rgely

f rom Ind ian f orm s and pattern s . T he exqu i s ite sc rol ls

of the rock temples a t Ka rl i and Ajanta ,the del i cate

m a rble tracery and flat-wood ca rv ing o f We stern Ind ia ,the harmon iou s blend ing of f orms and colou rs in

the f abr i cs o f Ka shm ir , ha ve contri bu ted to the restora tion

of ta ste in E ngla nd .

” 3

Mr.Coleman says “ T he an c ien t H indu scu l ptu re

can boa st o f an a lmost unr iv a l led ri chness and beau ti f u l

m inu teness o f flora l ornamen ts wh ich cla im and exc i te

o urta rmest

1 “ T he finest example o f the t ri umpha l a rches is a t Ba rnagar, northo f G uz erat , wh i c h is the r i ch est spec imen of H ind u a rt .

—E lp hinstone’

s

H istory o/‘

I nd ia ,p 16 3 .

2 H indu Mythology , Preface , p . ix .

3 Imperi alInd ian G a z etteer, A rt“ Ind ia , p . 2 25 .

“ Ind ian a rt

wor k , wh en fa ith ful to na tive d es igns , ha s obta ined the h ighest honours

a t. the var ious Internat ional E xh i b it ions of E urope. S uch is Ind ian art

even in these degen erate d ays4 H mdu Mythology, Preface , p . vn.

ARC H ITE CTURE se c t rr c an. 3 9 5

T he grand temple at Barolli (ltaj putana ) , says

the Engl i sh tran slator o f H ec ren’

s H i stor ica l Resea rches ,“ con ta in s un r i val led spec imen s o f scul pture , some pa rts

o f wh ich , espec ial ly the heads , in the language o f an eye

w itness,wou ld b e no d i sgrace to Ca nora h im sel f .”

Colonel T od , a f te r caref u lly exam in ing and ex plor

ing the temple, excla im s “ To descr i be its stupendou s

and d ivers ified a rch i tecture i s imposs ible ; it i s the oflice

of the pen a lone,b ut the labo u r wou ld be endles s .

A rt seems to ha ve exhausted itself, and we are perhaps

now for the fi rst t ime f u l ly impressed w ith the bea uty o f

H indu sculpture. T he column s,the ce i l ings

,the externa l

roof ing w here each stone presen ts a m in iature temple,one.

r i s ing ov er another un t i l the crown ,by the u rn-l i ke lrala e

,

d i stract our atten ti on . T he ca rv ing on the cap ita l o f

each column wou l d requ i re pages o f explanat ion,and

the w hole,in spite of its h igh ant iqu ity

,i s in wonderf u l

p reservation .

“ T he doorway,wh ich i s destroyed

,mu st have been

cu r iou s,and the rema in s tha t choke up the interior are

h igh ly in teresting. O ne o f these specimen s wa s entire

an d un r i va l led in ta ste and beau ty .

” 1

1 Ton s R a jasthan, Vol. I I , p . 70 4 . C ol. T od says :“ I n short

,

it would requ ire the labour of severa l art ists for six month s to do a ny

th ing l i k e just i ce to the wonders o f Barolli.”

3 96 H INDU sur icntomrr .

I L—WEAVING .

T he wh ole world w i thout art and d ressb e bu t one g rea t w ild erness .

—B U T L E R .

IND IANS,ev en o f the presen t day , are remarkable for

the i r del i ca cy of sen se,espec ia l ly the i r n i cety of tou ch .

N ot on ly i s the i r observ at ion v ery accurate and m inute,

wh i ch ha s giv en a pecu l iar charm to the ir poetry and

the i r fine arts,b u t the ir del i cate an d ta ct i le sen s ib i l i ty

,

w ith the i r genera l del i cacy of sen se,has enabled them to

ach iev e a pecu l ia r excel len ce in many o f the ind u stria l

arts and m anu f actu res . Mr . James M i l l says : “ T he

del i ca te f rame o f the H indu i s a ccom pan ied with an

a cu teness o f externa l sen se , parti cu larly of touch,w h i ch

i s a ltogether u n r iv a lled,and the flexi b i l i ty of h i s finger s

i s equa l ly remarkable .

” l

Mr. Orme say s : “ T he han d o f the Ind ian cook

w en ch sha ll b e more del i cate than that of an

Eu ropean beau ty . T he sk in and featu res of a porter s ha ll

b e sof ter than those o f a pro fes sed pet/ft ma z’

tres . T he

w omen w ind o ff the raw s i lk f rom the pod o f the worm .

A single pod o f the raw s i lk i s d iv i ded in to 20 d iff erent

degree s of finen ess,and so ex qu i s ite i s the f eel ing of

these women that w h i l st the th read i s runn ing th rough

the ir fingers so sw i f t ly that the i r eye can b e of no a ss i st

an ce,they w i l l b reak it o ff ex ac tlv a s the a ssortments

change at on ce f rom the first to the twen tieth,f rom

” 3the n ineteen th to the secon c .

lM ill’s Ind ia , Vol. I I , p . 17 .

z l’ eople and G ove rnme nt o f H industan ,pp . 4 0 9 and 4 13 .

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3 98 H I NDU surnmomr r .

Mr. Both in h i s work,

‘ “ Cotton Manu factu res of

Dacca,

” says that Au rangzeb on ce reprov ed h i s daugh ter

for show ing her sk in th rough her clothes . T he da ughter

j u stified hersel f by a sse rting that she had on sev en su its,

1 A f ter com pa r ing the finest f abri cs of In d ia

and of England , D r. Watson dec ides in fav ou r of the

Ind ian fabr i cs . H e find s the ya rn finer tha n a ny yet

p roduced in E urope, wh i le the tw i st ing giv en to it by'

the H ind u hands makes it more du rable than any

mach ine-made f abric .

“ Shawl s made in Kashmere,says Mrs . Ma n n ing

,

are sti llu nr iva l led .

”2 Ev en James Millsays : “ O f the’

exqu i s ite degree of perfect ion to wh ich the H indu s,

hav e ca rr ied the produ cti ons of the loom it wou ld b ei dle to offer any descript ion ; a s there are f ew objects

w ith wh ich the inhab itan ts o f Eu rope are better acqu a int

or j ama s .

ed , w hatev er may have been the a tta inment in th i s art

o f other na tion s o f an tiqu ity , (the Egyptian s , f or example ,w hose fine l inen was so em inen tly priz ed ) ,themanu fa ctu re

o f no modern nat ion can,in del i cacy and finenes s Vie

w ith the textu res o f H indu stan .

” 3

e . E l ph instone says : Go ld and s i lver brocad es were a lsof avou r ites , and were

,perha ps

,o rig inalmanu fa ctures in Ind ia .

”S ee

Colebroo k e , A s iati c R esea rches,Vol. V ,

p , 61 . R ud ra Yamla

T a ntra , in an enumera t ion o f H ind u ca stes,ment ions P und racas o r

P atta sutracaras , or f eed ers of s i l kworms and s i l k tu isters : th i s autho

r i ty , there fore , in con jun ct ion wi th the f requent a l lus ion to s i l k in most

a nc ient S ans k r i t boo k s , may b e cons idered a s d ec is ive of the quest ion ,p rov ided the ant i qu ity of the Tantra b e a l lowed , of wh i c h Mr . Colebroo k eseems to ha ve no doubt. S i l k is

,moreover, ment ioned th roughout the

A rch i pelago by its S an s k r it name, S utra , wh i c h proves its Ind ian or ig in .

2 “ T he p resenta t ion of K ashm ir shawls to S ita suppl ies an add itionalproof in favou r of the h igh a nt iqu i ty of these celebrated fabr i cs.

3 M il l ’s H istory of Ind ia , Vol. I I , p , 16.

wm v ts o . 3 9 9

Mrs . Mann ing says : “ Some centur ies before our era

they produced mu sl in s o f tha t exqu i s i te textu re w h i chev en our n ineteen th centu ry ma ch inery canno t s u rpa s s .” l

T he Encyclopaed ia Britann i ca says tha t the exqu i s itelyfine fabr i cs of cotton hav e a tta ined to su ch perfecti ontha t the modern a rt o f Eu rope

,w i th allthe a id o f its

wonderf u l mach inery , ha s never g/et r ivalled in bea uty

the product o f the Ind ian loom .

”2

A cr i ti c says “ Ca rpets a re made at Ma su l ipa tam

w ith u n r iva l led H ind u ta ste,

”to wh i ch Mrs . Mann ing

adds : “ Ca rpets ha ve a l so been made in la te r days in

Gov ernmen t pri son s,under B riti sh super in tendence the

resu lt prov es tha t we must not a ttemp t to tea ch a rt to

I nd ia .

” 3

D r . Forbes Watson,in h i s w ork on the Tex tile

Manu fac tu res o f Ind ia gives an in teres t ing a ccount o f a

ser ies o f exper imen ts made on both the Eu ropean

and the Indian mu sl in s,to determ ine the i r cla im s to

super ior i ty . T he resu lt was a ltogether in fav ou r of the

I nd ian fabr ics. H e con cludes : “ Howev er v iewed ,the ref ore

,our manu factu rers hav e someth ing st i l l to do .

With all our mach inery and wond rous appl ian ces

we hav e h itherto been unable to produce a f abr ic wh ich ,f or fineness or u t i l ity

, can equa l the wov en a ir o f

Da cca,the product of a r rangemen ts

,wh i ch appea r rude

and prim itive,b ut W h i ch in rea l ity are adm i rably

adapted f or the pu rpose .

”

lA ncient a nd Med iasvalInd ia , Vol. I , p . 3 59 .

2 E ncyc lopaed ia B r itann i ca , p .

3 Anc ient and Med iaeva l Ind ia , Vol. I I , p . 3 63 . Professor H eeren

says“ T he va r iety of cotton fabr i cs ment ioned even by the

author of Peri p lus as art i cles of comm erce is so g reat that we can

hardly suppose the number to ha ve increased a fterwards.

[ IL—OTHER ART S .

A rt is long and t ime is fleet ing .

-LO N G F E L L O \V.

Pro fessor ‘Veber says T he sk i l l o f the Ind ian sin the prod ucti on o f de l i ca te wov en fabr i cs

,in the m i x ing

o f colours,the work ing o f m eta l s and preciou s stones ,

the prepara ti on o f essen ces and in allmanner of techn i ca la rts

,has f rom ea rly t imes en joyed a world-W ide celebr i ty .

” 1

ProfessorWi l son says “They had a cqu ired remarkable profic ien cy ih m any of the ornamenta l and u sef u la rts o f l i fe.

“

As regard s dye ing,Mr . Elph in stone says : “ T he

br i l l iancy and perman en ce of m any of the dyes,hav e not

yet been equ a l led in Eu rope . H e adds T he brill ian cy

o f the ir dyes is remarked on a s wel l as the ir sk i l l in

m anu fa ctures and im i tati on s of f ore ign ob j ects .

“L

D r . T ennet and ev en Mr. James Mi l l adm i t tha t

the In d ian colour s are the most bri l l ian t on ea rth . T he

H indu s w ere the earl iest nat ion who d i scovered the art

o f extracting colou rs f rom plan ts . T he names by w h i ch

severa l plan ts are known in f ore ign countr ies bear

testimony to th i s f act. Ind igo is so ca l led a f ter I nd ia .

Pl iny u sed to w r ite z

'

na’zfco .

5

\Vcb er’

s Ind ia n L i teratu re , p . 2 75 .

f3 M ill’s H istory o f Ind ia , Vol. I I , p . 2 3 3 .

3 l-I istory o f Ind ia ,4 H istory of Ind ia , p . 2 4 3 . S ee S trabo , l i b . x v ,

p . 4 93 .

5 1-10 says C a st the r igh t i nd i co upon the l ive coa ls, it y ieldeth

a flame o f most excel lent purp le .

” -I\I ann ing'

s Ancient a nd M ed itet'

al

I nd ea, Vol. I I , p . 3 55 .

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4 0 2 H I NDU srrrnntomr v .

A s rega rd s i ron m anu factu res,Pro fessor lVilson

says “ Ca st ing i ron i s an a rt tha t i s practi sed in th i s

m anu fa ctu r ing coun try (England ) on ly w ith in a f ew

v ears . T he H indu s hav e the art o f smel ting i ron,of

we ld ing it,and of mak ing s teel

,and hav e had these arts

f rom t imes immemor ia l .”1

D r . R ay says : “ Com ing to com para t iv ely latert imes

,w e find that the Ind ian s were noted for thei r sk i ll

in the temper ing o f steel . T he blade s of Dama scu s w ere

held in h igh esteem,bu t it was f rom Ind ia that the

Pers ian s,and

,th rough them

,the Arabs lea rn t the

secret o f the opera ti on . T he w rought-i ron p i l lar c lo se

to the K u tub,n ear Del h i

,wh ich w e igh s ten ton s and i s

som e years old,th e huge i ron gi rders a t P ur i ,

the ornamen ta l gates of Somnath,

and the 2 4 -f eet

w rought-i ron gun a t Nu rva r,

a re m onuments o f a

b ye-gone art

,and bear silen t b u t eloqu en t testimony

to the m a rv el lou s m eta l lurgicalsk i l l atta in ed by the H in

Regard ing the Kutu b pi l lar,Fergu sson says

I t ha s not, howev er , been yet correctly a scerta ined w hat

d u s .

’

its age rea l ly is. There i s an in scr i ption u pon it,b ut

w i thou t a date . F rom the f orm o f its a l ph abet,P rinsep

a scri bed it to the th ird or f ourth cen tu ry . Mr . Fergu s

son cont inu es : “ Taking A .D . 4 00 a s a mean date

an d it certa in ly i s no t f ar f rom the tru th— it open s

our eye to an u n su spected state of a ff a irs,to find the

H indu s at that age capable o f f orging a b ar of i ron

larger than any th at hav e been f orged even in Europe

u p to a v ery late d a te,and not f requ ently ev en now .

As w e find them ,howev er

,a f ew centu r ies a f terwards

u s ing ba rs as l ong a s th i s la t in roofing the porch o f the

lM ill'

s H isto ry o f I nd ia , Vol. ll. p . 4 7 .

o'

rnmi .m '

rs . 4 0 3

temple at li ana ruc , we m u s t, now be l ie ve tha t they We n

m uch m ore f am i l ia r w i th the u se o f th i s meta l tha n theya f terwards became . I t is a lmos t equa l ly s ta rtl ing to

find tha t. a f ter a n e x po sure to w ind and ra in fo r fo urtee n

cen tu r ie s it i s un rus ted,a n d the ca pi ta l and in sc rip

t ion are a s clea r and a s sha rp now a s whe n pu t u p

f o urteen centur ies ago . There i s no m is take a bo u t the

p i l la r be ing o f pu re i ron . Genera l Cunn ingham had a b it

o f it ana lysed in Ind ia by D r . Mu rray,and another port ion

wa s ana ly sed in the School o f Mines here b v D r. P c rc v .

Both found it pure ma l leable i ron w ithou t any a l lo y .

” lMrs . Mann ing says : “ T he super ior qua l i ty o f H i nd u

steel has long been known,and i t i s worthy o f record

that the celebrated Dama scu s blades,hav e been tra ced

to the workshops of \Yestern Ind ia .

”S he add s “ S teel

manu fa ctu red in Cutch enjoys a t the present d av a repu

tation not in f eri or to that o f the stee l made a t Glasgow

and Shef fi eld .

” 2 Mrs . Mann ing a l so says : I t seem s

p robable that a nc ien t Ind ia po s ses sed i ron more than

su ffi c ien t f or her wan ts,a nd that the Plnen ic ians

f etched i ron w ith other merchand i se f rom Ind ia .

“

D r . Royle i s o f opin i on tha t the system o f rota t io n

o f crops ha s been der iv ed f rom Ind ia . T he H indu f a r

mer u nderstan ds extremely wel l how to ma in ta in the

pro du ct iv e power o f h i s land .

‘

Professor “T i l son says T he u se o f gla ss f o r w in

dows i s a proo f o f c i v i l i za tion that ne i ther (,

irc ck no r

Roman refinement presen ts .

”

1H is tory o f I nd ian and E a ste rn A rch itec ture , p . 50 5 ; cd . 18 3 9 .

Anc ient a nd Med ia walI nd ia , VolI I , p .

Anc ient and M ed ian'

alI nd ia . Vol. ll, p . 3 13 1. S ee "Connn c rec .

4 D r. R ox burg h fu l ly a pproves o f the H i nd u M elt‘m o f a gn c ultuw .

S ir T,Munro c a l ls i t a g o o d s y s tmn .

’

3 M i l l ' s 1mm. Vt ] 4 5 .

4 04 H INDU S UPE R I O R ITY.

D r . Forbes Watson says : “ T he s tudy of Ind ian

art m ight in n umberles s ways improv e the characte r

o f the everyday arti cles a rou n d u s (Engl i shmen ) .

Chamber ’s E ncyclopzed ia say s :“ In manu fa ctu re,

the H indoos atta in ed to a m arv el lou s perf ect ion at

a v ery ea rly per i od , and the Cou rts of Imper ia l Rome

gl ittered w i th gol d and s i lver b rocades o f Del h i . T he

m u sl in s of Dacca were f amou s ages ago th roughou t thec iv il i zed world . I n the In ternati ona l Exh ib it i on of 1852

,

splend id spec imen s o f gorgeou s m anu f a ctures an d the

patien t indu stry of the H in doos were d i splayed . T ex

t i le fabr i cs o f in im itable fin en ess,tapestry gl itter ing w i th

gem s,r i ch em bro i deries and brocades

,ca rpets won der

f ulf or the exqu i s ite harmony o f colou r,enamel of

the most bri l l iant hue,in la i d wa res tha t requ i re h igh

magn ify ing power to rev ea l the i r m in u teness,f u rn itu re

m ost elaborately ca rv ed,swords of cu r iou s f orms and

excellent temper are am ongst the objec ts that prov e the7 7 2

p eif ecz

‘

z

'

on of a rt in Ind ia .

1 D ur ing his V iceroylty ,Lord D u fl

'

erin once sa id T he West has

st i llmu ch to learn f rom the E ast in matters of d ress . O f the mu chd esp ised dlwti , Mrs . M ann ing says A ny d ress more perfectly conv eni

ent to wa l k , to sit, to lie in ,it would be imposs i ble to invent.

”

An c ien t a nd i’lf cd z

'

remllnd ia , Vol. H , p 3 58 .

2 (L'

han ihcr’

s E ncyclopa'd ia , p . 513 .

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4 06 H INDU sr rmnomr r .

Mrs . Mann ing says T he ind i rect ev idence a ff orded by the presen ce o f In d ian produ cts in other countr ies

co in c ides w i th the d irec t testimony of San skr it l itera

ture to esta bl i sh the f a ct tha t the an c ien t Hindu s were7 3 1

a commerc ia l people . S he con cludes Enough has

now been sa i d to show that the H indu s have ev er been

a commerc ia l peO ple .

” 2

Pro fes sor Heeren says “ T he H i ndu s in the i r most

an cient w orks o f poetry are represented a s a commercia l

peO ple .

” 3

I n San skr i t books we con stantly read o f m er chan ts,

traders , and men engrossed in commerc ia l pu rsu i ts .Manu Sm r i t i

,one of the oldest books in the world

,lays

down law s to gov ern allcommerc ia l d i spu tes hav ing

re feren ce to seaborn e traffi c as wel l as the in land and

ov erland commerce . Traders and merchants are f re

quen tly in trodu ced in the H indu drama . I n S a kuntala

w e learn of the im portan ce attached to commerce,where

it i s sta ted “that a merchan t nam ed D hanv riddh i

,who

had ex ten s iv e commerce had been lost at sea and had

lef t a f ortun e of many m i l l i on s .” I n N ala a nd D am

ya n ti, too , we m eet w ith s im i la r in c iden ts . S ir W. Jones

i s o f op in i on that the H in du s “ mu st hav e been na v igators

in th e age of Manu, becau se bottom ry is m en ti oned in

it.

” 4 I n the R amaya n a , the pra ctice o f bottom ry i s

d i st in ctly noticed 5 Mr . Elph in stone says T he H indu s

] Anc ien t and Med iae va l Ind i a,Vol. I I , p . 3 5 3 .

An c ient a nd Med iee valInd ia ,Vol. I I

,p . 3 54 .

3 H eeren’

s H istor i ca l R esearches , Vol. I I , p 2 66 .

4 A s ia t i c R esea rches , Vol. I I , p . 28 4 . Mann spea k s of mer

c h an ts who tra ffic beyond the sea and br ing presents to the k ing .

” —I nd z’ain Greece.

5 S ee R amayana , I I I , 2 3 7 .

eom ucnc tt.

nav iga ted the ocean a s early a s the age of Mann'

s code,

becau se we read in it o f m en wella cqua inted w i th sea

v oyages .” l

Accord ing to P ro fessor Ma x Dunker,sh i p-bu i ld ing

wa s known in an cient Ind ia abou t 2000 B C . I t i s

thu s clea r that the H ind u s na v i ga ted the ocean f rom the

ea rl ies t times,

and that they ca rr ied on trade on

an exten s iv e sca le w i th allthe important na tion s o f

the O ld IVO t'ld .

“'

ith P hten icia the Ind ian s en joyed trade f rom the

earl ie s t t imes . I n the tenth centu ry B .C .

,Solomon o f

I srae l and H i ram o f Tyre sent sh ips"

2to Ind ia

,whence

th ey ca rr ied away iv ory,sanda lwood

,apes

,pea cock s

,

gold,sil ver. prec iou s stones , etc .

,w h i ch they pu rcha sed

f rom the t r ibe o f O pkir .

3 N ow P tolemy says there wa s

a country ca l led Abh iria a t the m ou th of the R i v er Indu s .

Th i s s how s tha t some people ca l led Ab h ir m u st ha v e

been l iv ing there in those days . We find a tr i be ca l led

Ab h ir st i l l l i v ing in Ka thyawar, w h ich mu st,therefore

,

b e the Op ii z'

r tr ibe m en tioned abov e . Prof essor La ssen

th ink s Oph i r wa s a seaport on the sou th -west coa st o f

Ind ia . Mrs . Mann ing says it wa s s ituated on the

w estern coa st o f Ind ia .

As,howev er

,the au th ors of Sm i th

'

s D i ctiona ry

of the B ible th ink that Ophir w a s s i tua ted somewhere in

Af r i ca,let u s go a l ittle more close ly into the q uestion

o f th i s tr ibe . Let u s f i rst see if the a rti cles imported

1 E lphinstone’

s H i story o f Ind i a ,p . 100 . T he word used in the

or ig inalfor sea is not a ppl i cab le to i n land waters .

Q C alled the N avy of Ta rsh ish .

”S ee a lso the Book o f Ch ron i c les.

3 Max D unke i’

s H istory o f Ant i qu i ty , Vol. I V ,a nd Mann ing

'

s

An c ient and M ed iaeva l Ind ia . Vol. I I , p. 3 4 0 .

4 08 H I NDU snr naroa rrr .

by the Navy o f Ta rsh i sh were procu rable in India,and

i f they were , w hether they were procu rable in A f r i ca or

any other cou ntry a l so .

Among the th ings sen t b y the H indus to Solomon an d

H i ram were pea cock s . N ow,these b irds were n owhere

to b e f oun d in those days except Ind ia,

-w here they

ha v e ex is ted f rom the earl iest t imes . we f requently

m eet in old San skr i t poe try w ith senten ces l ike these :‘ Peacocks u n fold ing in gl i ttering glory allthe ir green

and gold ;’ ‘ peacocks dan c ing in w i ld glee at the approach

o f ra in ‘ peacocks a round pa laces gl itter ing on the gardenwa ll s .

’ An c ien t sculptu re,too

,show s the same del igh t in

pea cocks,a s may b e seen , f or in stan ce , in grace f u l b as-rel ie f s

on the ga tes o f S a nd “: or in the panel s o f an an cie n t pa la ce

in Centra l India,figured in Tod ’s R a ja sflza n (p .

A t the sam e t ime it i s qu i te certa in tha t the peaco ckwa s not genera l ly known in Greece

,H om e

,or Egypt

before the time of Alexander of Ma cedon ,w hose

f ol lowers were a s ton i shed to see su ch a beau t if u l b ird in

Ind ia . I t wa s a f ter Alexan der’s t ime that pea cocks cam e

to b e im ported d irect f rom In dia or th rough Pers ia in to

Greece . I t wa s the Rom an s,howev er

,who mos t del igh t

ed in the b ird , adm ired it, and spen t immen se sum s o f

m oney on it. I t was the he igh t o f luxu ry f or the h igh

Roman dames and the old Roman ep icu res to hav e

tongues o f pea cock s serv ed to them a t the i r tables .

There i s,h owev er

,con clu s iv e ev iden ce to prov e

tha t Solomon and Hi ram got the ir peacocks from India .

T h i s ev i dence i s the name wh i ch the b i rd rece iv ed in

the Holy Land .

“ T he word for peacock in Hebrew i s

un i versa l ly adm i tted to b e f ore ign and Gesen iu s, S i r

Emerson Tennent,and Professor Max Mu ller appear to

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4 10 H I NDU surnmonrr r .

e lephan t i tsel f was unknown to the Greeks un ti l the dayo f A ra bel la

,w here they saw Da r iu s a ided by Wa r

elephan ts w ith their d rivers f rom Ind ia . I t was heretha t the Greeks f or the fi r st t ime saw these an ima lsa rmed w ith tu sks

,wh ich were fam i l ia r to th em in trade .

They gav e the name o f eleplza s to the an ima l itsel f,

whose tusk s were known to them by tha t name . By

th i s name a l so,Ari stotle made the an ima l famou s in

Eu rope . We thu s see that f rom Ind ia were firstim ported iv ory and p ea cock s in to

~

Egypt,Greece

,

Pa les tin e an d Pe rs ia,a nd tha t the “ oph ir i s no other

than the a b ir tr ibe o f Ind ia.I t wou ld be in teresting to many to lea rn that “ it was in

I nd ia that the Greeks first becam e a cqua in ted w i th sugar .

” 1

S ugar bea rs a name der iv ed f rom the San skr i t. Wi th

the a rti cle the name trav elled into Arabia and Pe rsia,and

thence became establ i shed in the languages of E u rope.

2

Mr. Maunder says : I n the re ign o f Seleu c id ae. too,

there was an activ e trade between Ind ia and Syr ia .

’

Ind ian i ron. “ and colou red cloth s and r i c h appa rel s 5 wereimported into Baby lon an d Tyre in sh ip s f rom Ind i a .

T here were a l so commerc ia l rou te s to Phaen i c ia,th rough

Pers ia,w h ich w i l l b e men tioned later on . We ha v e a l ready

seen that India expor ted her m erchand i se to Egypt.Mr . Elph in stone says “ T he exten t of the Ind ian trade

under the first P tolem i es i s a well-kn own fa ct in h i story .

”

lA nc ient a nd M ed laevalInd ia ,Vol. I I

,p . 3 5 3 .

Q S ee La ssen . p . 3 18 .

Maund er’

s T rea s ury o f H istory. p . 7 75 .

4 Pltoen ic ia n s fetched iron w ith oth er merch and ise f rom Ind ia .

A nc ien t a nd WI N /[f eralI n r/m ,V ol. I I , p . 3 64 .

S S ee H eeren’s H i s torica l R esea rch es ,

Vol. I I . p .

"I ‘llpli in s to ne‘

s H is to i v o f Ind ia .Vol. I . p . 14 1 .

c om menc e . 4 11

I n the Book of Genes i s 1 we read that Joseph was sold

by h i s b reth ren to the “ Ishma e l i tes come. f rom Gi lead,

w i th the i r cam el s bear ing spi cery,ba lm and myrrh go ing

to carry it down to Egypt.

” H e re,D r . Vincen t observe s

,

we find “a cara van of came l s leaded w ith the sp i ces o f

Ind ia and ba lm and my rrh o f Had ramau t.” Some suppose

that myrrh u sed to b e imported in to Egypt by the Ab v ss i

h ian s , in whose coun try it la rgely grows . Bu t the mos t

conclu s iv e proo f o f its impor ta t i on f rom Ind ia i s the name

wh i ch it took in Egypt. D r . Royle 2 observes thatm vrrh i s ca l led balby the

’

E gyptian s , wh i le its San skr i tn ame i s bola

,bea r ing a resem blance wh i ch leave s no

dou bt a s to its Ind ian manu fa ctu re . S i lk,pearl s

,d iamonds

,

ca l i coes,a nd other comm od i ties o f Ind ia w ere a l so

imported in to Alexand r ia in Egypt,wh i ch rema ined

f or ages the ch ie f empori um o f the Ea stern commerce .

Th i s trade was ca r r ied on f rom M y os H ornios,the

ch ief port on the R ed S ea , where the Ind ian fleets

a rr iv ed . I t i s sa id that the a rti cles were ca r r ied from

here to Coptos , and thence to Alexand ria on the Nile .

3 I n

the m i ddle age s a l so trade on an exten s iv e scale was

ca rr ied on between Ind ia and E gypt, whence f rank i n

cense , an a rti cle of perfumery , i s sa i d to ha v e been im

ported f rom Egypt in to India 4 Per iplu s clea rly say s

that the re was mu ch d i rect in tercou rse between anc ient

Ind ia and Egypt . 5 Mr . Dav ies says : Bu t apa rt f rom

th i s occa s i ona l in tercou rse , a con stan t trade was ca rr ied on

lGenesis , C hapter xxvn ,p . 2 5 .

‘fiR oyle ’

s Anc ien t H ind u Med i c ine , “ Myr rh , p . 119.

3 E ncyclop zed ia B r i tann i ca ,Vol. X I , p .

4 Ib id,p . 4 4 6 .

5 S ee H eeren’

s H istor i c al R esearches , Vol. I I , p. 3 00 .

4 12 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY.

be tween Alexandria and Western Ind ia . There wa s alsoan ov erland route th rough Pa lmyra .

” l

There was a l so an a ctiv e trade between India and

Greece. T he ment i on of i vory by Homer and of

severa l other Ind ian a rt i cle s a ss ign the trade a v eryan c ient da te . I n add iti on to i vory

,In dia a lso suppl ied

indigo (a s men t ioned in Per i pl u s ) to G reece . T he wr i terin Chamber’s Encyclopaed ia (Vol. V,

p . 55 7) saysthat ind igo wa s imported into Greece and Rome f romInd ia , whence a l so the in hab itants of the f ormer coun tr ies

der ived the ir know ledge of its use. I n Ind ia it i s ca l ledn il

,when ce i s der i ved the am] o f the Portuguese and the

neelof the Arabs . Homer knew tin by its San sk r i t name .

Prof essor Max Dunker says tha t the Greeks used to wea r

s i lken ga rmen ts wh ich we re imported f rom Ind ia,and

wh ich were ca l led S in dones,

”or

“ Tyr ian robes .”

Rome appea rs to b e the westernmost city in Eu ropew ith w h ich an c ien t Ind ia had any cons iderable trade

T he ch ief a rt i cles exported f rom Ind ia,in add i t ion to

th ose a lready m en ti oned,a re

,accord ing to Per i plu s

,

2

cotton cloth , m u s l in,ch in tz o f v ariou s k inds

,c innamon

an d other sp i cery ; d iamond s , pearl s , onyx stone,eme

rald s,and many other in f er i or s tones C tes ia s 3 add s

steel,drugs

,aromat i cs

,ca l i coes 4 and lac . Spicery appear s

to hav e been exported f rom In d ia f rom the ea rl ies t

t imes . Prof essor Heeren says : “ Ind ia is the mother

country of sp ices , and f rom the,most anc ient t imes

she suppl ied the w hole Western world w ith that “

lh a v ie’

s Bhagwat G i ta ,p . 19 5 .

2 Per i p lus , p . 28 .

-‘lnd ica ,Ch apter iv .

4 l'lncyclop zed ia Blitanniea , Vol. X I , p . 4 59 .

5 C tes ia s . I nd ira ,Clmpter.

"

x x 1,

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4 14 H INDU S L’

l‘E R I O RlT Y .

Arabia,be ing the nea res t o f the cou ntries s itua ted in

the west o f Ind ia , wa s the f i rst to wh ic h the Ind iancommerc ia l en terpr i ses by sea were d i rec ted . T he long

con t in ued trade w i th Arabia da tes f rom a remote an t i

quity . Aga rthachid es ,l who l iv ed upwa rds o f 3 00 years

before the t ime o f Pe ri p lu s,no t i ced the a cti ve commer

c ialin tercourse kept up between Y emen and Pa tta la— a

seaport in western India,w h ich Mr . Pottinge r ind en tifies

w i th the modern Hydera bad in S indh . Patta la in Sa n scck r it mean s a “ commerc ia l town

,wh i ch c ircum stan ce

,

if it i s true , says P ro fessor Heeren ,“wou l d pro ve the

ex treme an tiqu ity o f the n a v iga ti on ca rr ied on by

th e In d us .

” 2 P rof esso r Max D unker says “ Trade

exi sted between the In d ian s and S ab aen s on the coa st o f

sou th A rab ia be fore the ten th cen tu ry BC .

” — the t ime

w hen,

a ccord i ng to the E u ropea n s , Man u l iv ed . I n

the days of Alexa nder,w hen th e Macedon ian genera l

,

N earchus , was en ter ing,

the Pers ian Gu l f,M u sca t was

poin ted ou t to h im a s the pr in ci pal ma r t f or Ind ian

produ c ts wh i ch were tran sm itted then ce to Assyr ia .

That th is trade wa s ch iefly in the hand s of the Ind ian s

up to the beginn ing o f the la st centu ry i s p ro ved by wha t

Mr . Cloupet, a not v ery an cien t w riter,says : “ T he com

m erce o f Arab ia Fel i x , he says “ i s enti rely in the han ds

o f the ban ian s o f Gu j rat,w ho f rom f a ther to son ha ve

e s ta blisned them sel v es in the cou ntry , and are protected

by the Government in con s ide ra ti on o f a certa in im portlev ied upon the i r e s timated p roperty .

” 4

'G eog r. M in . 1. p . (36 .

9 H i stor i cal R esea rches , Vol. I I . p . 2 9 9 .

‘

i D unk er’

s H istory o i A nt i qu i ty , Vol. IV , p .

4 From the a ccoun ts of Mr. C lonpet in Allgem . Geogr. E phem ,for

N o vember 1810 ,p . 2 3 5 .

c om ncnc rt . 4 15

E gyp t wa s not the o nly pa rt o f A f ri ca w i th wh ichthe H indu s traded in olden days . T he ea stern coa st o f

A f r i ca ca l led Zanz i bar and the prov inces s i tuated on theR ed S ea car r ied on an exten s i ve trade w i th anc ientInd ia . Myos Hormos

,a s ha s been sta ted bef ore

,was

the ch ie f empori um o f Ind ian commerce o n the lied

S ea . O f the trade w i th Zan z i ba r,Peri pl u s g i v e s u s

p retty f u l l in forma ti on . A f ter enumerating the com

m erc ialsta tio n s on the coa st as f ar a s the p rom on tory

o f R hapta , now ca l led Delgado,wh i ch was the m ost

sou therly point o f h i s geograph i ca l knowledge,

and

a f ter descr i b ing the i r m ercant i le relat i on s w i th Eg y pt,

he con tinues : “ Moreov er,ind i g enou s produ cts su ch a s

corn , r i ce, bu tter oilo f sea sam um,coa rse and fine co tton

good s,and can e-honey (suga r) are regu la rly exported

f rom the in ter ior of Ariaka (Conkan) , and f rom Ba rygaz an ](Ba ron cha ) to the opposi te coa st .

Th i s trade i s a l so noti ced by A rrian,who adds that

“th i s nav iga ti on was regularl y managed .

” Prof es sor

H eeren th inks tha t the trade w i th the gold countr ies

o f A f r i ca w i l l ser ve to expl a in the great abundan ce o f

th i s m eta l in Ind ia .

T he A f r i can trade,too

,wa s in the hands o f the

H indu s . Per iplu s ‘3 cal l s our atten ti on to the f act that

the ban ian s,o f Ind ia a s wel l as merchan ts of Greece and

Arabia,establ ished them sel ves at Socotra

,

3nea r the Gu l f

o f Aden,bes i de the Cape o f Gua rda f u i . Pro fe ssor

Heeren 4 says i t is a wel l-known f act tha t the ban ian s or

1 Per i plus. p . 8 .

9 Per i p l us. p . 17 .

3 I t was formerly ca l led the i s land of D ioscorid i .

4 H istori ca l R esealches ,VolI I .

4 16 H IND U sum monu‘

r .

H ind u merchan ts were in the hab it of trav ers ing the

ocean and settl ing in f ore ign coun tr ies . T he fact that

thou san ds o f H indu s f rom Gu ja ra t and its neighbour ingp rov inces are ev en n ow found settled in the ea stern

d i s tr i cts o f A f r ica , proves that in anc ient t imes Ind ians

in la rge num bers had settled in Af r i ca for purposes of

commerce .

T he Ea stern countr ies w ith wh ich an c ien t Ind ia

traded were ch ieflv Ch ina , T ran sgangetic Pen in su la and

Au stra l ia . Prof essor Heeren says tha t “the second

d irecti on wh i ch the trade of Ind ia took was towa rd s the

Ea st, tha t i s , to the U l tra-Gangeti c Pen in su la , com pr i s ing

Av aI Mallaca

,

2

etc . ,etc . T he tra ffic w ith these countr ies

would,o f cou rse , b e ca rr ied on by sea on ly

,though the

tran sm i ss ion o f goods a cros s the Bay of Benga l cou l d

not b e a ttended w ith m u ch d i ff i cu lty .

” 3

Th i s comm erce was activ e ly carr ied on in the days of

Per iplu s , as it actua lly men tion s a place s i tuated on the:

Coromandel coa st, f rom wh i ch the pa ssage wa s u sua l ly

made to Ch rysa , w h ich appel la ti on , accord ing to P tolemy ,4

denoted Ma la cca,b u t a ccord ing to the au thor of Periplus,

the whole of the T ransgang‘

etic Peni n su la .

5

Prof e ssor Heeren says “ T he H indus them selveswere in the hab it o f con structing the v essels in wh ichthey nav igated the coa st o f Coromandel , and a lso made

v oyages to the Ganges and the pen in su la' beyond it.

T hese v essels bore d i ff eren t names accord ing to the irI ts S ans k ri t name is A uga ,

wh i ch is not i ced in the R amayana .

2 Col. W i l ford interprets the S ans k r it Yamala by Mallaca . S ee

A s ia t i c R esea rches , Vol. VI I I , p . 3 02 .

3 H istor icalR esea rches , Vol, I I . , p . 296.

4 S ee Mannert, Vol. V ,p . 2 4 2 .

5 Per i p lus p . 3 4 .

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4 18 H I NDU S UP E R IO R ITY.

(w h i ch Pl i ny confirm s) , b ut tha t in h i s own time it wa s

ca l led Sa l i ce,and the n at i v e s Sa loe (w hen ce Selan and

Ceylon ) . I t wa s ca l led S a nka] D vip a by the H indu s .I n P tolemy ’s a ccou nts o f Ceylon we find its coa sts

we l l f urn i s hed w i th comm erc ia l ports .

1 T alacori,Mod utti

,

Amu rogram um,Moagramum (Mahagram ,

a great c ity)a re among the pr in c ipa l commerc ia l c itie s de scr i bed by

h im . P rof e ssor H eeren says “ I t (Ceylon ) wa s noted

f or comm erc ia l n av i ga t i on bef ore 500 B C .

” 2

F rom A rrian we know that the northern part o f

Ceylon wa s in a v ery h ighly-c i v i l i zed sta te,and tha t it wa s

a sea t o f ex ten s iv e commerce w i th the coun tr ies f rom the

f arthest Ch ina in the Ea st to I talv in the West.

Pl iny says Taproban e wa s f or a long t ime

con s i dered to b e a secon d worl d and wen t by the a ppe l

lati on of A n ti ch thones ,”w h ich proves its repu ta ti on a s

a seat o f commerce a nd c i v i l i zat ion .

Some idea of th e e x ten t of the an c ien t commerce

of Ceylon can b e gathered f rom the a ccoun ts wh i ch Cos

mos g iv es o f it,though a t a compa rati vely l a ter d a te .

A f ter descr i b ing the s i tua t i on o f the i sland an d the nam e

by wh ich the H ind u s ca l led it , he says “ F rom all

In d ia,Pe rs ia

,E th iopia

,be tween wh i ch coun tr ies it i s

s i tuated in the m idd le,an infin i te n um ber o f v es s el s

a rr i v e a t,a s vel l a s go f rom

,Ceylon . From the in ter ior

o f the con tinen t,a s f or in stan ce f rom Ch ina and other

commerc ia l coun tries,it rece i ves s ilk

,a loes

,cloves

,a nd

oth er produ cti on s,w h i ch it exports to Ma laba r

,where

the pepper grow s , and to Calliene’

(nea r Bombay) , when ce1 P to lemy ,

C h ap ter X I I .

2 H i s tori c a l R esea rches,Vol. I I , p . 4 3 7 .

3 I I iston calR esea rches , Vol. I I,p , 4 3 2

CO M M E RC E . 4 19

is brough t steel and clo th , for th i s la tter is a l so a grea t

comm erc ia l port. I t l ikew i se m ake s cons ignmen ts to

S indh on the borders o f Ind ia , w hen ce come m u sk la nd

ca sto reum and a l so to Pers ia,Y emen

,and A d u le . F rom

allthese cou n tr ies it rece iv es a rt i cles o f produ ce,wh i ch

aga in it tran sm i ts into the in ter ior,together w i th its ow n

p rod u cti on s . S eland iv (S in/mlD ir /Ili a ) i s con sequen tlya grea t empor ium

,and be ing s i tua ted in the m idd le o f

the Indian Ocean,it rece iv es m erchand i se f rom ,

a s wel l a s

sends it to’

,allparts o f the worl d .

” 1

P ro fessor Heeren add s F rom Pl iny,who quotes

the tes timon v o f an c ien t h i stor ian s,nam ely

,those o f

Alexander ’s age , who first d iscov ered Taprob ane to b ean i s land

,w e l earn tha t Ceyl on en joyed th i s comm erc ia l

repu ta ti on in the time o f the P tolem ies,and ev en in

tha t o f Alexan der . I f we extend th i s per i od b u t

a cen tury and a ha l f f u rth er back,w h i ch no on e su rely

w i l l con s ider u nrea s onable,we come a t on ce to the

in teresting h istor icalf act tha t du ring a space o f a

thou s and yea rs,tha t 18 f rom 500 B . C . to 500 A . D . ,

the i slan d of Ceylon,so con v en ien tly situa ted f or su ch

a pu rpose,con t inu ed to b e the g rea t empo r i um o f the

Hin du -ca rrying trade,f rom Ad u le on the co st o f A f r i ca

,

Y emen an d Ma laba r and the U l tra Gangeti c Pen in su la ,ev en to Ch ina .

”H e a l so says Ceylon wa s the com

mon m art o f Au stra l ian commerce .

That a con s iderable porti on o f an cien t In d ia i s

close ly connected w ith tha t o f Ceylon i s clea r. no t. o nl y

f rom the rem a in s o f H indu c iv i l i za ti on s ti l l e v ery wherev i s i ble in the i slan d

,b u t al so f rom the express tes timonv

lH istoricalR esea rches , Vol. ll, p 2 98 .

Q H istoricalR esea rches,Vol. I I

,p . 4 2 0 .

4 20 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

o f the wr i ters on the subject. T he i sland o f Ceylon has

b een celebra ted in the h i stor i ca l and fabu lou s w r i tings

o f Ind ia a s be ing v ery prosperou s—

and wea l thy . Golden

Lanka i s a tr ite ph ra se in Ind ia . T he i sland was

pol i ti cal ly , social ly , in rel ig ion,an d

,t i l l v ery recentl y ,

even phys ica lly—a f ter R am Chand ra ’s celebrated stone

b ridge— a part o f Ind ia . I t wa s inhab i ted by H in du s,

w ho,so f ar a s nat i ona l i ty , language , rel ig ion and c iv i l i

z ation a re concerned , belonged to the same stock a s the i r

b reth ren of Ind ia . I t en joyed , theref o re , an equa l ly

con s iderable refinemen t and c i v i l i zat ion . When the Br it i sh

fi rst wen t to Ceylon,

“they beheld w ith a ston i shmen t

the stupendou s rema in s o f anc ient c iv i l i zati on ,not mere

ly tem ples and other ed ifices , b ut wha t i s sti l l m ore ex tra

ord ina ry , tank s o f su ch amaz ing extent a s to deserv e

the name of lakes . ’ H er an c ien t prosper ity , her ma te r ia l

s trength,her mora l and soc ia l a ch iev emen ts hav e allbeen

testified to b v many Eu ropean w ri ters . A rrian,Cosmos

,

1

and a host o f other grea t w r iters,tra vel lers and anna l i s ts

o f the first cen tu r ies o f the Chr i stian era u nan imou s ly

decla re that Ceylon occupied the f oremost posi ti on

in the commerci a l tran sa c ti ons o f the ancien t world .

I t ha s a l ready been rema rked that the Alexandr ian

h i stor ian s were the first to d i scov er that Cevlon was an

i slan d . Professor Heeren says “ I t is , howev er , qu ite

ev i dent f rom the testimony o f Arrian tha t m u ch o f what

i s ad van ced respect ing the trade of Ceylon may , w i th equal

ju sti ce,b e appl ied to the oppos ite coast of Ma laba r.”

T he sea-coa st o f India wa s natu ra l ly wel l f urn i shed

w i th ha rbou rs and hav en s to cope w i th comm erce on

1A merchan t who travel led abou t 560 A D . in the re ign of Em

paror J ust in ian I I as fa r as Ad u le,at that t ime a celebrated port beé

li ng ing to the K ing o f A xnme,in E th iop ia ,

n ear A i k eeko .

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4 22 H I S nU b Ul’E RlO R I T Y .

the Indian s them sel v es . I t m ay , howev er , b e added , inthe wo rds o f an Engl i sh c r i ti c “ I t i s not improbabletha t s i lk wa s a lso in d igenou s in Ind ia ev en at a remote

epoch .

As rega rd s the trade w i th cen tra l and n orthern Asia,

we are told that “the In dian s make ex ped i t i on s f or

comm erc ia l purposes in to the golden desert ld este,

d eser t of Cob i , in armed com pan ies o f a thou san d o r two

thou san d m en . Bu t,a ccording to report

,they do not

re tu rn home f or th ree o r f our yea rs .

”T he T alc/m

S ulema n,o r the ston e tower m en ti oned by P tolemy and

C tes ia s,wa s the starting point for H in du m erchan ts who

w en t to Ch ina .

Pro fessor H eeren says By m ean s o f th i s bu i l d

ing it i s ea sy to determ ine the parti cu lar rou te a s wel l

a s the length o f t im e em ployed by the H in du m e rchan ts

in their journev to C h ina . I f we a ssume Cabu l,or ra ther

Bactr ia,a s the ir pla ce o f departu re , the exped it ion wou l d

take a north -ea sterly d i rect ion a s f a r as the f orty-firstdegree of north la ti tude . I t wou l d th en ha v e to

a scend the mounta i ns,and so a rr iv e a t the stone towe r

th rough the defi le o f Hoshan,or Ow sh . F rom then ce

the rou te led by Ca shgar , beyond the m ou n ta in s , to the

borders o f the grea t desert o f Cobi , w h i ch it trav ersed

probably th rough K hoten and Aksu (the Ca s1a an d

Au x a z ia o f P tolemy ) . From these an c ient town s theroad lay th rough Koshotei to S e-chow

,on the f ront iers o f

Ch ina,and then ce to Pek in

,a pla ce of grea t an ti q u ity

,

if w e are to u nderstan d it a s the m etropol i s of Ser i ca,

1A s iat i c R esea rches , Vol. I I,p . 286 . S ee a lso S ch legel , Berl in ,

C a lend e r, p . (E d i tion ”S ec a l so A rt of Weav ing .

‘ l i’ 3

w h i ch,indeed

,the accoun ts o f P tolemy wou ld ha rd l y

lea v e any room to dou bt. T he w ho le d i s tan ce amou n tsto u pwa rd s o f two thou sa nd fiv e h und red m i les .

” 1

As rega rd s Western As ia,Pro fessor H eeren says

th at “the P almyria ns , in add i ti on to the i r commerce by

land , exerc i sed a l so a sea -trade w i th Ind ia .

”

A f ter the decl ine of Rom e,

” says the En cyclopaedia

B r itann i ca,Ba ssora became the ch ief comm erc ia l ma rt

,

a nd to Ormu s merchan d i se f rom Ind ia was brough t .

” 3

Ind ia traded w ith E urope by sea a s wel l as by

land . T he w r i ter quoted abov e says T he prod u ce o f

In d ia was a l s o b rough t to Europe by other rou tes,

namely (1) by the way o f Pa lmyra,then a flour i sh ing

c i ty , and then ce to Rome and oth er”

Western ci t ies,

th rough the ports o f Syr ia ; (2 ) a cross the H im a laya

m oun ta in s to the O xu s , thence to the Ca sp ian S ea , andfina l ly to its u lt im ate markets o f Europe .

” 4

Fore ign trade of a nat i on p resu pposes dev el opmen t

o f its i nternaltrade . Spec ia l ly i s th i s tru e o f a la rge

coun try l ike Ind ia,w i th its v ar ied prod u cts

,v a st pop a

lat ion and h igh c i v i l i zation . Prof essor Lassen of Pa r i s

con s iders it remarkable that the H ind u s them se l v es d i s

covered the r i ch,luxu r i ous character o f Ind ia

’s products

m any o f them are produ ced in oth er coun tr ies,b ut re

m a ined u nnoti ced unt i l sough t f or by f oreigners,where

a s the most an cien t H indu s had a keen en joymen t in

a rti cles o f ta ste and luxu ry . Raja s and other r ich peopled elifl hted in sagac i ou s elephan ts

,sw i f t horses

,splend id

1H is tor i ca l R esea rches , Vol, l l , p . 2 90 .

2 H istor i ca l R esearches ,Vol. I I

,p . 4 09 (A ppend i x I X ) .

3 E n cvclO paed ia B ri tan n i ca , Vol. X I,p . 4 60 .

4 E ncycloii a>d ia B r i ta nn i ca , Vol. X I,p . 4 59 .

4 94 n i xm :

peacocks , golden decorat ion s,

exqu i s ite perfumes ,pungen t peppers , iv ory , pea rl s , gem s , e tc .

,and cou se

quen tly ca ra vans w ere in con tinued requ i s i t i on to ca rrydown these and innumera ble other ma tters between thenorth and the sou th

,and the wes t a nd the ea st of the i r

v a st and v ar ied country . The se ca ra v an s,it i s conjee

tu red , were m et at bord er stati on s and abou t ports b vw e stern ca rav an s or sh i ps bound to or f rom Tyre and

Egypt,or to or f rom the Pers ian Gu l f a nd R ed S ea .

” 1

P ro f e ssor Heeren remarks : “ T he in terna l tradeo f Ind ia cou ld not ha v e been incon s iderable

,a s it was in

a certa in d egree prescr i bed by na ture hersel f .“ Royalroads were con structed allov er the coun try f rom ea st towe s t and f rom nor th to sou th

,in add i ti on to the num

b erless r i vers,a long the banks o f wh ich con s iderable

commerce wa s ca rr ied on .

S trabo,Pl uta rc h

,and Apollodoras agree in the i r

sta temen ts that Ind ia had con si derable trade road s inalld irect i on s , w i th mile stones

,and w a s prov ided w ith

inn s for tra v el lers . (S ee S trabo , Chap . XV,pp . 4 74

and And these " road s,

” says H eeren,

we re

plan ted w i th trees and flowers .” 3

Acti v e internal comme rce w as ca rried on in northern Ind ia a long the cou rse o f the Ganges . H ere was

the roya l h ighway extend ing f rom Tax ila on the

Indu s th rough Lahore to P alibhotra (in Behar) , and

w h ich wa s stad ia in length .

‘1

R amayana,too

, men tion s another road lead ing f romAyodhya (Oudh ) by Ha s tinapu r on the Jamna

,th rough

Lahore,to the c ity o f Gin iberaia , in the Punjab .

Per i pl u s,too

,a f ter saying tha t “

the Ganges and

its tri bu tary stream s were the g rand commerc ia l rou teslS ee Anc ient and Med i aeva l Ind ia

,Vol. I I , p . 3 4 8 .

2 H i stor i ca l R esea rch es, Vol. I I,p . 2 67 .

3 H i stor i ca l R esea rch es . Vol. I I,p . 2 79 .

4 S ti aho. p 10 10 . Pl iny a l so s p ea k s of it in h is N atu ral H istoryVol. VI , p . 2 1 .

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H I NDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

Regard ing these H indu f a i rs , Mr . Elph in stone says

In d ian fa i rs hav e strong resemblan ce to those o f England .

B ut no a ssemblage in Englan d can giv e a n oti on o f the

l iv ely eff ect produced by the prod igiou s concourse o f

people in Wh ite d resses and br igh t-colou red sca rf s and

turban s , so unlike the black head-dres ses and du sky habits

o f the Nor t h .

”

Mrs . Mann ing says thas the H indu s t raded ev en in

the Ved ic period ,“and the act iv ity in trade thu s early

n oted has cont in ued to b e the character i sti c o f the

cou ntry .

”2

T he E ncyclopze dia Bri tann i ca says : “ I t (Ind ia )exported its m ost v a luable produ ce

,i ts d iamon ds

,its

a rom at i cs,its s i lks

,and its costly m anu factu res. T he

country,wh ich aboun ded in those expen siv e luxur ies

,

wa s natura l ly reputed to b e the seat of immen se r i che s,

and ev ery roman ti c ta le of its f el i c ity and glory. wa sread i ly bel iev ed . I n the Middle Ages

,an exten s iv e

commerce w ith Ind ia wa s sti llma in ta in ed through the

ports o f Egypt and the R ed S ea ; and its preciou s

p rodu ce,im ported into Eu rope by the m erchants of

Ven i ce,confirmed the popu la r op in i on of its h igh re

f inement and its v a st wea lth .

” 3

lE lphinstone’

s H istorv of Ind ia,p . 179 . H e a lso remar k s that

many such p laces a re a lso among st the celebra ted marts for the

t rans fer of me i chand isc .

”

2 Anc ieri t a nd M ed iaevalInd ia,Vol. I I . p . 3 4 7 .

3 E ncyclopred ia Br itann i ca , Vol. X I , p ,4 4 6 . Fore ign commerce

on su ch a g igant i c sca le as descr ibed above was one of the pr inc i pa lc auses of the immense r i c hes of anc ient» lnd ia ,

I I . WEALT H .

R i ch in lllc gem s of I nd ia '

s gaudy Zone

U m rrnnc t P lea s u res of llupr.

I F H I S TO RY prov es any th ing,it prov e s that in anc ien t

t imes,Ind ia was the r i chest coun try in the world . T he

fact that she has a lways been the cynosu re o f all

eye s,Asiat i c or Eu ropean

,tha t people of less f av ou red

cl im es hav e always ca st longing look s on her gl i tter ing

trea su res,and that the amb iti on of allconquerors has

been to posses s Ind ia , prove that she has been repu ted to

b e the r i chest country in the wo rl d .

H er sunny cl imate,un r iv a l led f ert i l i ty

,match les s

m inera l resou rce s and world-w i de-exports in ancient times

hel ped to accumu late in her bosom the wea l th wh i ch

made her the happy h un ting ground o f ad ven tu rers

and conquerors . Pro fesso r Heeren says : “ Ind ia ha sbeen celebrated ev en in the ea rl iest t imes f or its

r i ches .” 1 D r . IVise says tha t the wea l th,splendou r and

prosper ity o f Ind ia had made a strong impress ion on

the m ind o f Alexander the Grea t,and tha t w hen he

left Pers ia for India , he told h i s a rmy that they were

sta rting for that Golden Ind ia where there wa s end

less wea lth , and tha t wha t they had seen in Pe rs iawa s as noth ing compared to the r i ches o f Ind ia .

Chamber’s Encyclopaed ia says “ Ind ia has been celeb rated du r ing many ages for its weal th .

” T he

w r i ter of the a rti cle “ H indu s ta n in the Encyclopaed ia

lH ec ren’

s H istor i cal R esea rch es , Vol. I I , p . 2 68 .

2 Chamber' s E ncyclopzc d ia , Y ul. V , Alt.

“ I nd ia,

”

p . 523 6 .

4 28 H IN DU S UPE R IO R ITY.

Br i tann i ca rema rks that Ind ia wa s natu ra lly repu ted to

b e the sea t o f immen se r i ches .

” l Mi lton v o i ced the

popu la r bel ie f w hen he sang of the wealth o f Ind ia

H igh on a th rone of roya l state wh i ch farO utshon e the wea l th o f O i niu z and of I nd ,

O r wh e re the go rgeous E a st w ith r i chest handS howers on her k ings ba rba r i c , pear l and gold .

An i dea of the immen se weal th o f Ind ia cou l d b e

gathe red f rom the f act that w hen S ul tan Mahmud Gha z

nav i destroyed the f ar-f amed tem ple of Somnath he f ound

such immen se r i ches and a ston i sh ing d iamonds cooped

up in the s ingle“ Idol o f S iv a that it wa s f ound qu ite

imposs ible to ca l cu la te the v a lue o f .that booty .

2 A f ter

a stay at Mathu ra for 2 6 days,in wh ich he collected

la rge i dols of gol d and s i lv er in th ou sand s,many set in

w i th pr iceless jewel s,Mahm ud wen t to Kanau j

,wh ich so

a ston i shed the tyran t and h i s f ol lowers,though long

f am i l ia r w i th wea lthy c itie s l ike Mathu ra,that they

decla red that Kanau j was on ly riva l led in splendou r and

magn ificen ce by the h igh heav en s .

Gold,the emblem o f wea lth

,wa s first f ound in Ind ia .

Ind ia wa s the home o f d iamond s and other preci ou s stones

in anc ient t ime s . Per iplu s say s that “the Greeks u sed

to pu rcha se p ieces of gold f rom the Ind ian s .

” Nelkynda

or N eliceram,a port n ea r Ca l i cu t on the Ma laba r Coast ,

i s sa i d to hav e been the on ly ma rket for pea rl s in the

world in anc ient times .

Chamber ’s Cncyclopzed ia says that the m inera lso f Ind ia are r i ch and v a r ied . D iamonds

, emera ld s,

pl umbago,beryle

,topa zes

,are among i ts produ cts . Gold

lE ncyclopacd ia B ritann i ca , Vol. X I , p . 4 4 6

2 S ec L c thblldgc’

s H i s tory of India .

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4 3 0 H IN D U sormnonrr r .

May b e , a s Sophocle s singsI tha t

,

Go ld is the worst of i l lsThat ever plagued m an k ind th is wastes our c i t ies ,D r i ves forth the ir na t ives no a fore ign so i l

,

Ta ints the pure heart,and turns the v irtuous m ind

T o basest d eed s .

”

Y et gold has its v i rtues . I t wa s gold w h i ch not onl y !

enabled England to sav e her sel f and Europe in the la stcentury b u t dec ided the f ate of Napolean Bonapa rte .

lA ntigone , A ct I .2 T he representat ives of the A l l ied Powers , assembled at V ienna , ’

d eclared him an out law a f ter his return f rom E l ba , but decl ined to

oppose him for want of f und s . O n th is , E ngland granted them largesubs id ies .

Thus began the war that ended in the crown ing mercy of

Wa terloo .

R E L IGI O N .

T rue R el ig ionI s always m ild , prop it ious and humble ,Plays not the tyrant, p lants no fa ith in blood ,N or bea rs d es truct ion on her ch ar iot wheels ,B ut stop s to pol ish

,succour and red ress,

A nd bu ild s her grandeur on the publ i c good .

J . M I L L E R .

R E L IG IO N,the ba lm for a ffli cted m ind s

,i s,a s Bacon ob

serv es,

“the ch ief b ond of human soc iety I t i s the

most powerf ulfactor in the regulati on of h uman a ff a i rs .

As a man’s company giv es u s a key to the genera l

p r inciples wh i ch gu i de h i s condu ct,so does a nat i on ’s

rel ig ion giv e u s a clue to those genera l p r inc i ples

and natu ra l f orces wh ich are at work in it for good or

f or ev i l,and w h i ch w i l l lead it e ither towa rd s civ i l i

z ation and en l igh tenmen t or towa rd s degenera ti on and

da rkne ss . As the hab itua l acti on s and tr ifl ing acts o f

a man a re clearlv s tamped w ith the chara cter i s t i cs o f

h i s persona l ity,so is the rel ig i on o f a nat i on an index

to ma rk its pos it ion in the sca le of c iv i l i zat i on .

Rel ig ion,then

,i s one of the tests of c iv i l i zat i on .

And true rel igion,wh i ch i s on ly another name for Gyuna

or true knowledge, i s a necessa ry resu l t of pre-em inencein mora l s

,ph i losophy

,l itera tu re

,s c ien ce and genera l

cu l tu re .

T he presen t rel ig i on of the ma sses in Ind ia sh ou l dnot b e l i tera l ly taken to b e the rel igi on of the i r ances

I I I N I ) c surnni omrr .

tors , and the na tu re of the i r rel ig ion shou ld not be

judged f rom the rel ig iou s system of the modern H indu s .

T he once h igh ly-sp ir itua l rel igi on o f the Hind u s has , so

f ar a s the ma sses a re concerned , now become thoroughly

materia l i sed to mark the i r degrada t i on ,and th ings earth ly

are now in sta l led in the place wh i ch was on ce occup ied

by the eterna l p r inc iple o f allth ings .

T he Ved ic rel ig ion i s the knowledge , the recogn it ion

o f the eternalpr inc iples o f be ing , of God , of sp i r i t and

matter,and the i r relation to on e another a s rev ea led to

them in the Veda s .

U n bounded sympathy w i th human i ty and in f inite

l ove for allGod ’s c rea tu res , wh ich are the resu l ts of

the noble st influen ces o f true rel igion,f o und the i r

supreme express ion in Ind ia . N o nobler sac rifice can b e

imagined than that inv olv ed in the resolu ti on of the

Ind ian who sa id Never w i l l I seek nor rece iv e pr iv a te

ind iv i dualsa l va t ion —~nev er en ter in to fina l peace a lone

b u t f or ever and everywhere w i llI l ive and str i ve f or

the un iv ersa l redemp tion o f ev ery creatu re th roughou t

the world . U n tilallare del iv ered,nev er w i l l I leav e the

world o f sin,sorrow

,and struggle

,b u t w i l l rema in where

I am .

” 1

T he Hindu rel ig ion i s the knowledge and the com

prehen s ion o f those eterna l pr in c iple s wh i ch govern na

tu re and man,those immutable laws wh ich in one sphere

are ca l led sc ien ce,

”in another true ph i losophy .

”

I t con cern s i tsel f not w ith th ings true under certa in con

d ition s or at certa in t imes : its p recepts are ever true,

true in the pa st,true in the presen t

,true in the f u tu re.

Buddh ist Ca tena .

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4 3 4 H I NDU ser iauromrr .

to b e compassed by descr i pti on , and who i s beyon d the

l im i ts o f h uman conception is Brahma,the one u nknown

tru e Be ing,the Creator, the Preserv er and Destroyer o f

the un i v erse . U nde r su ch and innumerable other defi

n ition s i s the De ity a cknow ledged in the Veda s , or the

sacred wr i tings o f the H indu s .

” I

Col . Kennedy says Ev ery H ind u who i s in the

lea st acqua inted w ith the pr inc iples o f h i s rel i g ion m u s t

in rea l i ty acknowledge and worsh i p God in un ity .

Coun t Bj orn stj erna , a f ter g i v in g a quota ti on f rom

the Veda s,says : “ These tru ly subl ime i dea s can not

f a i l to conv in ce u s tha t the Veda s recogn i se only one

God,who is Alm igh ty

,Infin i te

,Eterna l

,Self-ex i sten t

,

the L ight and the Lord of the U n i v erse .

” 2

Ma ur i ce i s a ssu red “tha t the Bra hm in i s seeking

a f ter on e D iv ine u n seen obj ect,nay , tha t h i s a im in h i s

w hole li f e and d i sci pl ine i s to pu ri fy h im se l f f rom ou t

wa rd,sen s ible th ings , that he may approa ch neare r to

” 5th i s one sou rce o f I l lum inati on . Mr . Colebrooke saysthat “

the an c ien t H indu rel igi on,a s f ounded on the

H in du Scr i p tu res , recogn i sed b u t on e God .

” 4

I t i s v ery dou b tf u l,

” says Prof Mon ier Wi l l iam s,

whether i dola try ex i sted in the time o f Man u’s

” 5comp i lat ion of the Sm r i ti .O f the m uch -abu sed in stitution o f Sh raddha s

,Pro f .

Max Mu ller says T he worsh i p of the an cestors and

the o ff er ing of Sh raddha s hav e ma inta ined mu ch of the i r1M y thology of the H ind us .

2 Th eogony of the H indus , p . 5 3 .

3 R el ig ions of the World,p . 4 4 .

4 As iat i c R esea rch es , Vol. VI I I , p . 3 85. S ee also Pa terson ’

s

O r ig in o f H ind u re l ig ion in the A s iat i c R esearch es.5 Ind ia n VVis ‘lom

,p . 22 6 .

R E LIG ION . 4 3 5

old sa cred cha ra cter . T hey ha v e somet ime s been com

pa red to the comm un ion in the Ch ri stian Chu rch,and it

i s cer ta in ly true that many natives speak o f the i r f u nera land ancestra l ceremon ies w i th a hu shed v oice and w i th

rea l reverence . They a lone seem sti l l to impa rt to the i r

l i fe on earth a deeper s ign i f i can ce and a h igher prospect.

I cou ld go ev en a step f urther and expres s my bel ie f

tha t the absence o f su c h serv i ce s for the dead and o f

a ncestra l commem orati on s i s a rea l l os s in ou r own rel i

g ion . Almost eve ry rel igion recogn i ses th em a s token s

o f a l ov ing memory o ff e red to a f ather,to a mother

,or

ev en to a ch ild,and though in m an v coun tr ie s they ma y

h av e prov ed a source o f superstiti on,th ere run s through

them alla d eep wel l o f l i v ing h uman fa i th tha t ough tn ever to b e a l lowed to peri sh .

” 1

T he d i s tingu i sh ing f ea ture o f H indu i sm,h ow ev er

,

i s , tha t it i s a thoroughly sc ien ti fi c rel ig ion . Rel ig ion and

scien ce wen t han d-in-hand in an ci ent Ind ia . T he re l i

gi on s tenets o f other n ati on s hav e been prov ed,and a re

adm i tted by men o f cu l ture and though t to b e in con fl ic t

w ith the teach ings of modern sc ience . I n Ind ia,how

e v e r,theology i s f ou nded upon phi losophy and sc ience.

T he Vedi c rel ig ion i s,there fore , thorough ly sc ien tific .

Major Cunn ingham says : “ In the Ea st,howev er

,ph i lo

sophy ha s a lways been more closely a l l ied to theology

than 111 ci v i l i zed Greece or modern Eu rope.2

An em inent Frenchman says that the H indu

Revela tion i s “o f allRevela ti on s the on l y one whose idea s

are in com plete ha rm ony w ith mode rn sc ience .

lI nd ia : Wh at can it teach us ? p . 2 4 2

2 Cunn ingham s H iston '

o f the S i k h s p 2 5

4 3 6 H I NDU S U P E R I O R JT Y .

T ha t gi f ted lady,Mrs . Besan t

,sa id at Ca l cu tta

Ind ia i s the mother o f rel ig ion . I n her are comb ined

sc ien ce and re l igion in perf ect harmony and tha t i s the

H in du rel ig ion,and it i s Ind ia that sha l l b e aga in the

spir i tual mother o f the world .

” 1

T he Veda s do not certa in ly teach su ch un scient ific

ab su rd ities a s tha t out o f noth ing came someth ing,or

that the sun was crea ted a f ter the creati on o f the ea r th .

e s . Besant's lecture at the G rand Th eatre,Ca l cutta on 15th

Jan ua ry 1906 . I n the course of the lectu re,Mrs . Besant sa id “ I n

the n ineteenth century one of the postu lates o f sc ien ce was th at l i fe , thoughtand consc iou sness were allresu lts of certa in mo lecu la r arrangements of

ma tter. B ra in,the spea k er add ed ,

secreted thought as the liver secreted b i le . T he who le m ater ia l isti c sc ien ce tend ed to show th at l i fe wasthe resu l t of an a rrangement o f m a tter . W

' here the m ech an i ca l a rrangement of m atter fa i led ,

th e re thought f a i led . In tel l igence and consc iousn ess were s imp ly the resu lts of m a tter. That was the idea repeated inT ynd al

’

s f amous trea t i se— ‘we must see in matter a permanent potency

of ev ery form of l ife .

’

But H indu i sm proc la imed exa ctly the oppos i te .

I t taught th at l i fe was p rima ry a nd m atter second a ry. M atter was

s imply a tool, i nstrument,v eh ic le Th is was c lea rly ex pla ined in the

U pan ish ad s. in the p i oblem of a tma . I t was shown how the unem

b od ied a tma was in the body . T he body was the dwel l ing-hou se of the

embod ied a tma . I t is written th at the a tma d es ired to see and the eye

was there .

T he a tma d es i red to hear and the ear was t here . T he a tma ,

d es ired to th ink a nd the m ind was there . Consc iousness was p r imary,

a tma was pr im a ry, wh i le the senses,organ s, the body were second ary .

Th i s was the H ind u tea chmg . T he later d iscover ies . of sc ience a lsot a ug

ht th at cons c iousness is the c reator and the m a tter is the form .

”

T he spea k er then stated,by way of i llustrat ion ,

that “ m an h ad legs. aswas pla in to her aud ience , and they were ab le to wa l k ; and su ch wasthe ca se with oth er senses . Bu t m od ern sc ience taught exactly theoppos ite. I t d ec la red that creatures w i th legs d esi red to wal k and l egswere gradua l ly formed by s low d egrees af ter repeated efforts . T he

d esi1e was an a spect of consc iou sness and not an a rrangement of matter.

T he c reatu re s wanted to m or e,so the organs o f locomot ion were g rav

d ua l ly a nd d uly b a rl t T he f unc t ion of s igh t d id not come f rom the

M ”

a r e i t we » the res u l t o f percept1on in co ns c iousnes s .

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4 3 8 H INDU surnmonrrr .

T he Coun tess o f Jersey says in the N in eteenth

Century :“ Bu t to the h igher ca ste Hindu (pro v i ded

h e kn ew an y th ing a bou t Hi ndu i sm ) Ch r i stian i ty off ers

n o sol u t ion to h i s doubts and to h i s f ears . T he doctr ines

o f the U pan i shad s (the ph i loso ph i ca l specu lat i on s o f theVeda s ) sa tisf y the u tmost longin g s of the m ind . T he

a cu te logi c o f the an c ien t R i s h i s ha s ra i sed a b ulwork

o f arguments to support the h uge f abr i c o f H induthought . T he doctr in e o f Ka rm a off ers

.

the s im plest

a nd most rea sonable an swer to the obv i ou s inequa l it ie s

and str i k ing con tra sts in th i s V i s ible world,o f happiness

an d su ff er ing . T he f e rm ent and un re st o f the sou l in

the sea rch of knowledge i s soothed and la i d at rest w hen

the object o f con templa ti on is redu ced to a figure-head

and fina l l y a po int in S pace . Th i s con templat i on of

point in s pace resu lts in a sel f -absorbing del ight w h i ch

kn ow s no end,and w h ich pla ce s the sou l h igh abov e all

ca rnal wants and a spi rat i on s . Th i s i s the goa l o f H i ndu

ph i losophy . Chr istia n ity ha s nothing to of er to those” 1

who a re d issa tisfied w i th H indu i sm .

lT imes o f lnd ia (Wee k ly ed it ion ) for 2 5th May 18 5 9 . C hap la inD e l l a V a l le ; a uthor o f “ A Voyage to E ast Ind ia

,th us conc lud es

the chapter “ O n the Mora l i t ies of the H i ndu “ 0 ! wh at a sad

th ing it is for C h r ist ians to come sho rt of Ind ian s even in m ora l i t ies ,com e sh ort of those , ho them se lves be l ieve to com e short of hea ven I ”T he ch ap la in th us c loses h is i nterest ing wor k on the su b ject of convers ion ,

wh ic h is a s remote f rom ac comp l ishm ent a t th is d ay as it was a t

th a t d istant per iod : Wel l k nown it is th at the J esu i ts th ere,who

,

l i k e the Ph a r i sees ‘th a t wou ld compass sea and la nd to m a k e one

p roselyte’

(Matt . 2 3 ha ve sent i nto C h r istend om m any la rge re

ports o f the ir g reat convers ions of infid els in E ast Ind ia . But allthese boast ings are b ut reports the truth is , tha t th ey ha ve th ere sp i ltthe p rec ious water of ba pt i sm upon some few fa ces , wor k ing u pon the

necess ity o f some poor men ,who for want of means

,wh i ch they g i ve

them ,a re contented to wea r c rucifixes , but for wan t of k nowledge in

the d oc tr ine of Chr i st ia n ity a re on ly in name Chr ist ians. Voyage

to E a st I nd ia . pp . 4 02,1 17 , 4 18 and 4 80 .

mau m o x . 4 135)

No rel igi on in the worl d cla im s to b e in com ple teha rmony w i th the sp i r i t o f modern sc ien ce e x cept theVed ic re l ig ion . dudd hism

,be ing on ly a mod i fied fo rm

o f Hindu i sm , does not d i ff e r m a teria l ly f rom the Ved i crel ig ion in its scien t i fi c a spects .

I t ha s been shown tha t a lmos t ev ery part o f theworld wa s

,a t some remote per i od

,conq u ered and co lo

n ised by the anc ient H ind u s . S im i la rly,it w i l l b e

f ound that the d i ff e rent na t ion s o f the a nc ient worl d

der iv ed the i r rel ig ion f rom a nc ien t A rya v arta .

Even a t the p re sen t m omen t more tha n ha l f o f the

h uman ra ce a re the e x pres s fol lowers of the relig i on s

tha t emana ted f rom Ind ia . I f the popu la ti on o f the

world be taken in rou nd numbe rs a t l,000 , 000 .000 we

sha l l find f rom au thenti c record s,tha t m en

profes s H i ndu i sm and Buddh i sm (the rel ig ions tha torig ina ted in Ind ia ) , wh i le on ly m en f ol lowre l igion s w h i ch a re o f non -ln d ian orig i n . R ev . Mr.

W'

a rd says The i r (H ind us ) ph i losophy and re l ig ionst i llp rev a i l ov er the grea ter portion o f the g lobe , a nd

that it i s H ind u i sm wh ich regu la tes the form s o f wor

sh i p and modes o f th ink ing and f ee l ing and a c ting

th roughou t Japan,Ch ina

,Ta rta ry

,H indu s tan

,the

B urman Empi re,S iam

,Ceylon , etc .

” 1

I t i s eq ua l ly clea r tha t the rel ig ion s th a t d id not

or ig ina te in Ind ia have been strongly in fluen ced by

H indu rel ig iou s though t. Bjorns tj erna savs :“ Bud

d h ism ha s a l so ex tended its doc tr i nes among mos t of

the other rel ig i ou s system s .

”T he Mosa i c cosmogon y

,

stillbel ieved in by the J ew s and o thers , i s de r i ved f rom

the H ind u sys tem o f cosmogony .

‘Mythology o f the H ind us , Frelace , p . x vin .

4 4 0 H I NDU S UPE R I O R ITY .

T he or ig in o f the Greek Chu rch o f Ch r i stian ity i s

thu s ex pla ined by Mr . P rin cep“ T he Buddh ists of the

We st,a ccepting Chr i s tian i ty on its fi rs t announ cement

,a t

once in trod u ced the r i tes and Ob serv an ces wh i ch for centur ies had a lready ex i sted in Ind ia . From that coun try

Ch ri stian ity der iv ed its monarch i ca l in st i tu t ion s,its f orm s

o f r i tual an d chu rch serv i ce, its counc il s or conv ocation s

to settle sch i sm s on po in ts of f a i th , its worsh i p o f rel i cs

and w ork ing of m ira cle s through th em,and m uch o f the

d isci pl ine and o f the dress o f the clergy,ev en to the

sha v en heads o f th e monks and f r iars .

” l

Some o f the most im portan t o f the Ch r i st ian eth i ca l

teach ings may b e f ou nd word for word in the w rit ings

o f th e H indu ph i losoph ers , who flou ri s hed cen tu ries before

the b irth o f the Sa v i ou r . T he corner-stone o f Ch r i stian

eth ic s,

Do un to others a s thou wo u l dst thev should'

do

u nto th ee,

” i s noth ing m ore than the teach ing o f Y agy

v a l ka , who says : I t i s not ou r herm i tage,stillles s the

colour o f ou r sk in th a t produ ce s v i rtue , v i rtue mu st bepra ct i ced . Theref ore

,let no one do to others wha t he

wou l d not hav e done to h im sel f .” 2

Mon s . D elb os says that “the rel igiou s a sp i rat ion s

o f tha t (Hindu ) ci v i l i zat i on are f oun d grandly expressed

in the R ig Veda . That c iv i l i zation pervades in e very

corner of the civ i l i zed world,and i s a roun d and abou t u s

ev e ry d ay of ou r l iv es .” 3

I t i s an observa ti on o f H ume tha t one genera ti ondoes n ot go o ff the stage a t. once an d another su cceed

,a s

lP rincep’

s Mongo l ia and Ta rta ry .

2 S ee Max Mu l ler’s I nd i a : Wha t can it teach us ? p . 7 4 .

3 Mons . D elbos’ paper on the Ved as read before the Interna t iona lL itera ry A ssoc iat ion a t Pa r is on 14 th J u ly 1884 .

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4 4 2 H I NDU surmnomr r .

w ith tha t o f the un i ty,a lth ough f requen tly under other

names than those o f the T r imu rtee o f the Brahman s .

(3 ) I n a cknow ledging the doctr ine of the tran sm igrationo f the sou l . (4 ) Rega rd ing the sou l a s an emanati on o f

the D iv ine Be ing,w h ich

,a f ter hav ing a ccompl i shed its

tran sm igrati on,retu rn s to its h igh or igin .

1 B u ddh ismd i ffers f rom popu la r H in du i sm in the f ol low ing parti

c ulars I t does not acknow ledge the Veda s a s a

rev ela ti on f rom God,b u t on ly regard s them a s a h ighly

deserv ing human compos i ti on,con ta in ing great b u t not

rev ea led truth s . (2 ) I t does not recogn i se the d iv i s i ono f ca stes

,

'

a s H indu i sm does . (3 ) I t con s iders the in f er i orgods and dem i-gods o f the Brahm in rel ig ion merely a s

holy m en sen t b y the Alm igh ty for the benefi t of the

h uman ra ce .

“These Buddha s,therefore

,were

,l i ke Lu the r

Ca l v in and Hu ss,ref ormers o f re l i g ion .

”

(4 ) The i r idea

o f God i s d iff erent f rom the H indu i dea .

S i r E . Arnold says Buddh i sm has in it the e ter

n ity o f a un iv ersa l hope,the imm orta l ity of a b oun dles s

lov e,an indestru ctible elemen t of f a ith in fina l good and

the prou dest a ssert i on ev er made o f hum an f reedom .

” 2

As regards th e propagation of B uddh i st doctrin es ,it i s probable that at on e t im e they spread ov er the w hole

world . I n Bu rma,S iam ,

in most of the i slands of the

In d ian Arch i pelago and Cey lon , in Thibet,Mongol ia ,

Japan,Nepa l

,Bhu tan and the Lesser Th ibet it i s st i l l

the prev a i l ing rel igion ; b u t that a t one t im e i t spread to1 Th is shows the orig in o f B ud d h ism to have taken place a f ter the

M ah abh ara ta . when the Ved anta came to b e rece ived a s an A d va z’

ta

system . I ts reject ion of the caste system a lso po ints to the same per iod ,as it was a fter the M ah abh a rata th at the system began to be abused .

2 L igh t o f A sm,Pre fa ce

,p . x i i i .

mat iomn. 4 13

T u rk is tan Pers ia B e‘

v ) t a nd ltomc and even to Sc and i7 7

0 O 0 0 lna v ra and the Bri ti sh Isl and s

,i s mo st probable .

Count Bj ornstj erna says“ I t i s ca l led Gmlam/ r’s

(Gau tama’s) doctr ine in Assam ,

l’egu,A v a and Cevlo n

S ama na’

s doc trine in S iam Am id /la B ud dha’

s in J apan ,

J‘ i i’

s o r Falz i’s in China and Coch in~Ch ina , S ula/ a S im/It’

s

in Ea stern Benga l and Nepal , D harma R ay’

s in Boo tan

A d i B udd ha’

s in Grea t Th ibet i'llf i/uimun i

’

s in Le s ser

Th ibet,and S alem Ma u i

’

s inMongolia and Man ts-Chou ri“ T he Buddh i st Monks

,Bha rana and Matanga

,who

fi rst ca rr ied Buddh i sm to Ch ina,d ur ing the re ign o f the

H an Emperor Mingti in A .D . 65 were na t iv es o f Gan

dhara (P u njab ) , o f wh ich the cap ita l wa s T akshila .

“ Somea uthors conjecture the Gocti of the Ch inese to b e the

same a s the Greek S cyth i, who were no other thanthe pa ren t s tock o f the H ind u Sakya race .

”3

1 “ T ha t the true seat of B udd h ism ,s ays Bjo rnstjerna ,

in anc ientt imes was H ind ustan is a ttested by the tem p les of E l lora . E leph a n taa nd A junta ,

o f wh ich the g rea ter pa rt. were d ed i ca ted to B ud d h a , and

a l so by the most a u thent i c H ind u record s . I n a conve rsa t ion w i thBog le (the British en voy a t Th i bet) the D a la i L ama stated th a t B ra hma ,

V ishnu and S i v a were wo rsh i pped b y the i nh ab i tants of Th i bet , but thelesser god s of I nd ia were not oth erw ise rega rd ed by them than as ho l ymen (Buddh i sm ) ; th at the people o f Th i bet, f rom 700 to 8 00 yea rs

ba c k possessed ma ny temples in I nd ia , b ut th a t the Bra hm i ns had

d estroyed them ,and th a t Ind ia was the rea l na t i ve sea t o f th e i r god s

a nd d octr i nes ; he there fore begged the E ng l ish envoy to ob ta i n perm iss ion f rom the G overno r-G enera l th at they m igh t aga in erect temp les o n

the sh ores o f the G anges .

”— Tlieogony of the Iln zd us , p . 9 8 .

2 Theogony o f the H ind us , p . 8 0 , A . H . B i tehou i in,a R uss ia n

trans la tor of Ch inese re l ig ions hoo k s , s ays th a t. Budd h i sm un iversa l lyp reva i l s in the h igh land of Centra l As ia .

3 S ec S a ra t C h and er D as .-_lilt‘b in I nd ia ,

"

in the llilid i is ta n

Itm iew fo r Ma tch 100 0.

4 4 4 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

T he foot-pr in ts of Buddha were worsh ipped by h is

f ollowers and w ere ca l led P hra ba t. T hey w ere engrav ed

on rocks and h i ll s , w here people flocked f rom allparts o f

the coun try to worsh i p them . They hav e now been f ound

to b e ex i st ing in m ost coun tr ies . These f oot-pr in ts are

regarded by the Buddh i sts in the same l ight a s the ra in

b ow in the rel ig ion s f ounded on the Mosa i c records,

namely,a s an a ssu ran ce tha t the deluge sha l l not return .

S ix su ch P hrab a ts are f oun d in the Ea s t,

one of

them s ingu la rly en ough in Mecca,w h i th er the

B uddh i sts made p ilgr images long before the r i seo f I slam ism .

” l Th i s prov es the prev a len ce o f

B uddh i sm in Arab ia in an c ien t t imes .

Bjornstj erna con tinu es “ Bu t Buddh ism has

a l so pene tra ted to the banks o f the Nile,of w h i ch we

hav e m any proof s . T he se -ca l led Hermes S cr i ptu re s

(the name o f the sacred writings of the Egy ptia ns ) conta in a metaphys ica l trea t i se in the f orm of a d ia loguebetween H ermes and T hod h

,Bodh

,Bu ddh

,w h ich

th roughou t exhibits the doctr ines of Buddh i sm ; theyspeak of the p re

-ex istence of the sou l,of its tran sm igra

t i on s u pon ea rth (Metempsychos i s ) , o f its emana tion

f rom the D iv ine Be ing,a nd o f itsfinalreturn to its h igh

or iginal .”2 There i s another ea rly Egyptian wr iting

,

P imand er’

s Hermes Tr i smegi stu s,in a d ia logue f orm ,

1 Theogony o f the H ind us , pp . 9 2 , 9 3 . A f ter d iscours ing on S ocrates ,E piem as

,Z oroaster and Confuc ius

,S ch legelsays : But they were not

s o gene rallv revered as benefa ctors of the ir country wh i lst for numer ic ali n fl uence Gautama B ud d h a swayed the d est in ies of more m i l l ion s ofh uman be ings th an the four together.

”s tory of t era ture, p . 124 .

’T heogony of the H indus, p . 100.

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4 4 6 nnvnu surmu oru rr .

to the Ce lti c tr i be s in Spa in , and in the E a st to Germany

and the C imbr ian pen in su la .

T he spread of Buddh i sm to the abov e-menti oned

pa rts of the worl d wa s f or the most part an ter ior to

Ch r i st ian i ty s imu l tan eou s ly w ith the establ i shment o f

th i s c reed,B uddh i sm penetrated so f ar a s the Al ta i

m oun ta in s in Asia and the S cand inav ian pen in su la in

Europe. In to the la st-named pen in su la it was in trodu ced

by S igge-Fr id alj ison , su rnamed O d in (in the an c ien t

Scand inav ian d ia lect Whod in ; in i s the a rti cle wh ich

added to Whod,Bhodd

,Budd h

,make s “rhod in— Od in ) ,

ch ief of an Asiati c tribe ca l led Asar .

” 1

Buddh i sm be ing on ly a pa rti cu la r f orm of H indu

ism,not on ly i s H ind u i sm the groun dwork o f Buddh i sm

b u t the mythology and th e trad it ion s o f both a re n eces

sar i ly one and the same . H ence,w herev er B uddh i sm

ha s spread th rou gh the exert ion s of the Ind ian s orwhereverthe Buddh i st H indu s m igra ted

,there is f oun d between

the rel igion ,mythology

,and sc ien t i f i c and ph i losoph i cal

w r i tings o f Ind ia and of those coun tr ies,an affin i ty too

close to b e on l y a cc iden ta l . I n th e ca se of Scand inav ia ,howev er

,the resemblan ce i s so close that w i thout a s sum

ing the m igra tion o f the Hindu s in to the country,it

cannot otherw i se b e expla ined sat i sfa c tor i ly . Allthe

Indo-S ythian invaders o f India,says Colone l T od , held

the rel ig ion o f Bu ddha,and hence the con f orm ity of

manners and m ythology between the Scand inav ian s or

German tr ibes and the R aj pu ts .

1Tlreogony of the H in dus , p . 105 . T he author says : “ I t seems

to b e the same tr i be wh ic h came by sea to E l; a ria .

z li

odi

s R a ja s than ,Vol. I , G5.

memo rox . 4 -17

(1) A f ter gi v i ng a few question s wi th the i r a nswe rsf rom the Edda o f the Scand ina v ian s and a f ew s im i la r

ones f rom the Veda s,the Swed i sh Count

,Bj o rn s tj erna ,

concludes : “ Allthese questi on s a re so excee dingly

s im i la r to those wh ich the angel s make to Brahma a nd

the an swers s im i la r to those o f Brahma in the Veda s,tha t

we ca n sca rcely (I r/estion tire d er iva tion of tire E dd a fromthe Veda .

” l

(2 )“ A common symbol o f the Crea tor among the

H indu s (f rom whom it pa st i nto Egypt ) wa s the sca rabaeus or beetle. I n Scand ina v ia

,l i kew i se

,th i s in s ign ifican t

insect was secred,and bore the name o f the god Thor

(3 ) T he resemblan ce between the serp ent o f

Allidga rd , in the Edda and the serpen t of Vislm n in the

Veda i s a l so w orthy of remark,both being descr i bed a s

hav ing en c i rcled the world .

”

(4 )“ Bu t what i s most deserv i ng of ob serv a t i on

i s the accordan ce between the gates o f lVaZ/ra iland the

Ind ian age s o f the world,or yu gs . Accord ing to the

Edda,Wa lha l l has 54 0 gates i f th i s number b e mu l ti pl ied

by 800,the number o f E inheriers who can march 2 ou t ah

rea st f rom each gate,th e produ ct w i l l b e w h i ch

f orm s the v ery elemen tary number for the se -f requen tly

n amed ages of the world or g/ugs , adopted both in the

doctr ine o f Brahma and Buddha,o f w h i ch the one now

in cou rse w i l l extend to y ea rs , the th ree pre

‘ Theogony of the H i nd us , p p .

2 “ F ive h und red and forty doors , I bel iev e to b e in Wa l h al l .E ight hund red E inheriers can go ou t a breast wh en th ey are to figh taga inst the U lfven (the wol f ) . H ere is meant the fa tal encounter w i thF em '

e

'

s U lf t'

en at the end of the world,wh en O d in ,

a t the h ea d o f

armed E inheriers ta k es the field aga inst them .—(S ee the E dd a ) .

4 4 8 H INDU SUPE R IO R ITY.

ced ing ones correspond ing to th i s n umber mu lt ipl ied

by 2,3 and

Between the nomen clatu res of the Scand inav ian and

7

H indu mythologies there i s a remarkable resemblance .

Love i s in Swed ish,lca

'

l

rlelc : Benga l i,K a rlekeya ; w h i le

S werga i s the Swed i s h name of Sweden and 1s S i tuated

near the North Pole . S /ca na’

,the God o f war , re ign s

there (Scan dinav ia ) , and seven steps (zones ) lead

th i ther,of w h ich the most northern i s named Thule, the

an c ien t name of Sweden .

” 1

I t appea rs that the Hind u settlers m igrated to

Scand inav ia be fore the Mahabha rata,tak ing the ir ph i lo

sophy and re l ig ion w ith them,b ut were soon absorbed

by the nat iv es ow ing to the i r in f er i or ity in num bers .

Coun t Bjorn stj erna says : We hav e seen how Bu d

d h ism has spread first ov er the two pen in su la s of Ind ia

and a f terward s pro ceeded to E th iop ia,Egypt

,Ch ina

,

Corea,Th ibet it penetra ted to Cha ldea

,Phoen i c ia ,

Palestine,Colch i s

,Greece

,Rome

,Gau l

,and Br ita in .

” 2I t

i s thu s c lea r tha tBu ddh i sm,or ra ther Ref ormed H i ndu i sm ,

at one t im e spread ov er a lmost ev e ry country of the

an c ient worl d . We have a l ready seen (see Colon i zation )tha t Egypt a nd Greece were colon i zed by the H indu s in

an c ient t imes : those settlers mu st hav e taken w i th them

the i r rel igion f rom an c ien t Ind ia . D irect and conclu s iv e

proo fs,however

,are av a i lable to prov e that the rel ig ion of

the an c ient Egyptian s and an c ien t Greek s was de riv edf rom Ind ia . O n compa r ing , the rel igiou s sy stem s o f the

Egyptian s and the H in du s we are stru ck by the i r resem

blan ce to each other . “B oth proceed f rom monoth e i sti c

lT hcogony of the H indus , p . 109 .

2 Theogony of the H ind us , p . 10 1.

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4 50 H I NDU surnm om r r .

(2)“ I t i s testified by Niebuh r

,Va lentia

,Champol

l ian,and Wadd ington

,that the temples of U pper Egypt

a re o f greater an ti qu ity than those of Lower Egypt ;that the temples in Meroe are more an c ient than those

o f Elephan t ine and Thebes ; these more anc ien t than

the temples o f Ten tyra and Abyd os and these aga in

m ore an cien t than t hose o f Memph i s , Hel iopol i s an d

Sa i s ; that consquently the rel ig ion of Egypt, a ccord

ing to the tes timony o f those m on umen ts , proceeded

f rom the S outh, w h ich cannot b e f rom any other lan d

than f rom Eth iop ia and Meroe,to w h i ch coun try it

came f rom Ind ia,a s testified by the abov e-nam ed Greek

author ities .

(3 )“ T he ch ron i c les f ound in the temples o f Abydos

and Sa i s,and w h i ch hav e been t ran smitted to u s by

Josephu s , Ju l iu s A f r i canu s and Eu sebiu s alltest i fy that

the rel ig ious system of theEgyptian s proceeded f rom Ind ia .

(4 )“ We hav e H indu ch ronologies (bes i des those

of P u rana s con cern ing the Yage , w h i ch are noth ing b ut

a stronom i ca l a l legor ies ) w h i ch go st i llf u rther ba ck in

t ime than the tables of the Egypt ian k ings,accord ing

to Manetho .

(5)“ T here i s a trad iti on among the Abyss in ian s

w h i ch they say they hav e possessed f rom t ime imm e

m or ia l , an d wh i ch i s sti l l equa l ly receiv ed among the

J ew s and the Ch r i s tian s o f that country,tha t the fi rst

inhab itan ts (they say Ca sh, grandson of Noah,w ith h is

f am i ly) came ov er the cha in of mounta in s,w h i ch

separates the h i gh land s o f Abyss in ia f rom the R ed S ea

and the S tra its o f Babel Mandeb from a remote Sou thern

coun trv T he trad iti on fu rther says that they bu il t

the c i ty o f Ar um early in the days o f Ab raham,a n d

tha t f rom thence they spread them se l ves,follow ing the

liv er Nile downwa rd s u n t i l they becam e (a s J o seph u ssays) the Meroetes namely

,the inha bi ta n ts o f tha t pa rt

o f N ub ia,wh i ch be ing s i tua ted be tween the N zle a nd

its conflux the Al‘

ba ra,f orm s wha t i s common l y ca l led

the i sland o f Meroe”

,f rom w h i ch they spread f arther down

the r iv er to E g f

pt. Coun t Bj ornstj erna thu s concludes“ I t appears f rom the abov e-men tioned ground s th a t

the H ind u s hav e a grea ter c la im to the pr imogen i tu re

of re l ig ion,and con sequen tly to the pr imogen i tu re o f

c iv i l i zat ion than the people o f An c ien t Eg y pt .

” 1

That the rel ig ion o f an c ien t Greece wa s pa rtl y d er i v ed f rom E gvpt and pa rtly f rom Ind ia

,as sh own b y

Mr . P ococke , i s su ffi c ien tly wel l known . Indeed,the

cosmogonv o f the whole wo 1ld has been de ri ved f romInd ia . That the Greeks der ived the i rs . f rom the H in

du s may b e seen in the a ccoun ts w h i ch D ama sc ia s ha s

yiren of the doctrine of O rpheus . I t i s a s f ol low s : In

the begin ing wa s K ronos,who ou t o f cha os created ozlher

(day) and erebos (n igh t) there in he la i d an egg

(Hindu ) f rom wh i ch came P lum es,f u rn i shed w i th th ree

h ead s (the Brahm in T r imu rti ) . P ha nes crea ted the man

and the woman f rom whom the h um an ra ce i s deri v ed .

T he cosm ogony o f the Egy ptian s a l so adop ts the Hind u

egg wh i ch , d iv i ded in to two , f orm ed hea v en a nd ea rth

(vale D iodoru s and

T he Mosa i c s y stem o f cosmogou v wa s de r i ved f rom

Ind ia . Cou n t Bj orns t ierna sa v s I f we reflec t upo n

allthese tes timon ies 1 espec tinn

’ Moses,and cons ider the

lT heogony o f the H ind us , p p . 4 3 -4 11.

’ Theogony ol'

the H ind us, pp . 13 0 ,

4 52 H INDU snrnmonm‘

r .

place (Hel iopol i s ) where he stud ied , and if we a l so recol lect that the rel ig ion o f the Egypt ian s was der iv ed f romInd ia

,we thu s find a clue f rom when ce Moses mu st partly

hav e obta ined h i s cosmogony , an d a l so h i s rel ig ioussys tem ,

wh i ch,l ike the Veda s , wa s con stru cted upon

monothe i st i c pr in ci ples .” 1

T he presen t cosmogony prev a len t m the Ch r i s t ian

and Moham ed an cou n tr ies i s a l so of Ind ian or ig in . T he

Buddh i sti c cosmogony i s as f ol low s : I n the beginn ing

the earth was un inhab ited,at w h i ch time the in hab i tants

o f. Heav en or o f Bha rana (angel s ) u sed to V i s i t the earth .

These glor iou s beings con s i sting o f m en and women,

th rough the pu r ity o f the i r sp i r i t, had nev er yet cher i s h

ed any sensuald es ires , w hen Ad i B uddha (the su preme

God ) in f u sed in to them the des i re to ta ste the f ru it of a

tree resembl ing the a lmond,w h i ch exc ited the sen sua l

appetite in them,an d they a f terwa rd s d i sda ined to retu rn

to Bhu rana,and thu s became the pa rents o f the human

race .

” 2 That th i s i s the sou rce f rom w h i ch the B ible and

the Quran deriv ed the i r comm on system o f co smogony

there can scarcely b e any dou bt. I t i s thu s perf ectly

clear that ev ery system o f cosmogony,whethe r ancien t

o r modern,owes its or igin to the H indu s .

T he mythology of the Greek s , the Egyp t ian s and theA ssyrian s i s wh olly f ounded on the H indu mythology .

Professor Max M u l ler says : T he poetry of Hom er isfo unded 0 11 the mythology of the Veda s , and w ithoutthe Veda

,he says a l i ttle f u rther

,

“the sc ien ce of: my

thology w ou l d hav e 1ema ined a m ere guesswork and

1'

l'

hcogony of the H ind us , p . 14 4 .2 Theogony of the H ind us

,p . 1 3 1 .

Ch i p s from a G erm an “f o rk shop , Vol. I I I,p . 79 .

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4 54 H INDU S UPE R IO R ITY .

s tu den t o f com parat iv e mythology tha t the H indu

dei ties are the objects of wors hi p in some f orm or O th er

th roughou t the worl d .

Mr . W. D . Brown says “ By ca ref u l exam ina t i onthe unprejud iced m ind cannot b u t adm it that H indu i s

the parent of the l i teratu re and theology of the

world . T he researches a nd inv esti ga ti on s'

made in San s

k rit language,wh i ch wa s on ce spoken in that coun try

,

by schola rs l ike Max M u l ler , Jaccolliot, S i r Wi l l iamJones and others , hav e f oun d in the an c ien t records of

Ind ia the strongest proof s that thence were d rawn many

or nearly allthe f av ou r ite dogma s wh i ch la tter theologian s

hav e adop ted,and the s trongest p roof s show to the

thoughtf u l studen t that the anc ient H ind u s were ne i ther

the pra cti sers of i dola try nor the u n learned,un c i v i l i zed

,

b arb a i ic race they hav e u sua l ly been though t b u t a

people en joy ing a mea su re of in sp ira ti on that m igh t b eenv ied by m ore pretent iou s na t i on s . And I

.

hav enot th e lea st dou bt tha t th ese tran slati on s o f an c ien tH indu l i te ra tu re w i l l con f ound the so e called modernc iv i l i za ti on s , that they w i l l look u pon Ind ia a s

a centu ry flower on ce more com ing into f u l l bloom,

wa f ting f or th its del i c ious f ragran ce,and w i l l beg f or

a sl i p f rom its

1 "lhe D ally T / z b a ne, S a l t La k e C i ty , Un ited S ta tes,Amer i ca

,

S und ay Morn ing , 201h Fcb 1na 1 y 188 4 .