Sophie Charlotte Belnos

“ O, thou bulky and low of stature, thine head is like the elephant's! Thine ambrosial breath attracts the winged insects of the air to hover about thy balmy lips. Thy tusk is so formidable, that thou slayest with one stroke the enemies of them that worship thee. ”

“ Thou art swifter in thy movements than thought; and thou out-runnest the winds! Thou art wiser than wisdom itself; and thou ravishest all our senses! Thou art born of the winds; and thou art the king of the monkeys, and the favourite of Rama! ”

“ When a man goes into the sacred waters, he must sing her praise thus: 'O Juggutmata! whoever shall, day and night, fix his heart and his thoughts upon thee, is righteous and holy in all his works; and he who worships thee, in the hope of obtaining a place in heaven, will not be disappointed. ”

“ Those whom thou hast endowed with handsome features, and full, lovely eyes, their beauty is consecrated to thy service, that they might gaze upon thee with admiration and adoration. O Mata! he whose hearing is deaf to the rippling of thy waters, is worthless in thy sight. ”

“ He who wears it lives to a great age. Put away, then, all other works, O man! and invest thy body with the jeneo, for it bringeth light and strength."
(He then presents sandal, raw rice, areka-nuts, and the flowers thereof) . "Thou art fruit in thyself; and thou bringest forth good fruit in them that worship thee. Thou art born of the genius Brihasput." ”

“ I glorify thee, Benign, who rests upon a serpent, from whose navel the lotus springs; God of Gods! the supporter of the universe; beautiful as the azure of the sky; cloud-like in colour; elegant in form. ”

“ In the worship of this Deity the devotee requests grandeur and wealth. The horn of the deer is blown in this Pooja: offerings of fruit and sweetmeats are laid upon the Nundee; also the leaves of the bale-fruit tree, white flowers, a few blades of the dhoop-ghas (hay) . ”

“ POOJA OF VISHNOO—POURING WATER UPON THE SALIGRAM.
The Saligram is a small red stone, a kind of Ammonite, found in the River Gunduck; and is held sacred by the Hindoos, and worshipped as an Idol. According to the Poorans, it is dedicated to Vishnoo: it is kept in a small box of any white metal the worshipper may have the means of procuring: iron alone is excluded. ”

“ He who strikes a Priest, commits robbery, seduces the wife of his teacher, and he who is given to drunkenness; yea, even he who hath committed all these crimes, if, when brought dying to thy sacred waters, he shall drink thereof, he shall surely see heaven. ”

“ Sit thou upon thy throne, even as the earth, which the great serpent Shes-nág bears, is thy footstool.
3d verse. O Deva! behold, for thy ablution I have prepared the water warmed and perfumed with a thousand odoriferous flowers. ”

“ The image of the sun, engraved on a silver plate, is placed in a Sumput (a wide copper vessel) ; raw rice, coloured with red sandal, some sandal, and red flowers, dhoop ghas, betel-leaves, areca-nut, red silk, the junes, dyed red, and all the brass vessels, images, &c., as daily used at their religious ceremonies. The Devotee stands upon one leg, the right foot against the left thigh, the heel turned outwards, and holding in his hands a brass cuttora (cup) , containing a smaller one made of meal-dough, filled with ghee (melted butter) , with a lighted wick placed in the middle. ”

“ Reverence be to him." (The devotee here makes a rough image, of mud, of Mahadeo, and places it upon the singhasun; then throws over it some grains of raw rice, and white flowers of dhatoora, saying) —
4th verse. "O Soopan, approach! O Pinakadhur, be thou seated here!" (Then putting in the urgha some raw rice, flowers, and sandal, and holding it between his hands, he stands up before the idol) .
5th verse. "From three dreadful diseases thou art the deliverer; and thou bestowest happiness on mankind. Receive my offerings, and preserve me from these three afflictions. ”

“ He who shall chaunt thy praise when the day dawns shall obtain forgiveness for the sins of the past night. He who prays unto thee at mid-day, his sins, from his birth, shall be washed away; and he who worshippeth thee at the close of the day shall be purified from the sins of seven births. ”

“ It is all a matter of conscience with the inferior sects of Hindoos whether they perform the ceremonies prescribed by their religion strictly, or otherwise; these consisting generally of the working classes and men of business, who are forced to shorten their devotion from press of time, and various other causes. ”

“ Within a square space, of about 2 1/2 or 3 feet, he seats himself upon a small mat, cross-legged, as illustrated in this Plate, with the Pooran in his hand, which he continues to read during three hours, retaining the same posture immovably the whole time, whilst the fierce rays of the mid-day sun dart upon his bare head. Four fires, consisting of as many piles of dried cow-dung (commonly called Kund) , and placed in the four corners of the mat, are kept up in full blaze. These fires produce a very ardent flame, and, consequently, an almost insupportable heat. ”

“ This ceremony is performed in the following manner: 1st, he presses in the right nostril with the fourth finger of his left hand, repeating the name of each Deity; and counting them nine times over upon the joints of the fingers of his right hand with great rapidity, half closing his eyes the while, and drawing in his breath; then gently pressing in the left nostril with the thumb, as in fig. 2, he breathes out, repeating the same name as many times over. Then releasing the right nostril, and still pressing in the left with the thumb, as in fig. ”

“ He then takes up the Urgha (a long, shallow vessel of copper) , filled with water, over which he strews yellow and red sandal, raw rice, and a few flowers (the Hindoos are not particular in the choice of the flowers in these prayers) : then, rising from his seat, he holds the Urgha with both hands, passing one end of the Janeo (Brahminic thread) over the thumb and the Urgha, and repeating the following prayer to the sun:—
अथार्घ्यमंत्रः सूर्य्यस्य कथ्यते
एहि सूर्यसहस्रांशो तेजोराशे जगत्पते अनुकंपयमां भक्त्या गृहाणार्घ्यं दिवाकर
Translation. ”

“ The figures performed with the right hand, while the left one hangs listlessly over his right foot, must be cautiously concealed from all prying eyes by a red cloth bag, drawn over the hand, and hanging down on all sides. ”

“ The Poorans, Shastra, and Tuntra, enjoin three forms of worship.
1st verse. "Gunesh has twelve titles—Soomookh [1] , Ek-dunt [2] , Kupil [3] , Gujkurnika [4] , Lumbodur [5] , Baikrit [6] , Bipudnas [7] , Binayak [8] , Dhoomraketoo [9] , Balachundra [10] , Gujanun [11] , Gunadisha [12] .
2d verse. "Whosoever shall worship thee in these twelve titles, and whosoever shall attend and hearken to these names, shall surely be prosperous in this world. ”

“ The high caste of Brahmins, who officiate as High Priests in the Temples of the Devtas, follow strictly and minutely every article enjoined by their Shastres and Poorans. The marks worn by them are only six, as illustrated in the annexed Plate. ”