The Portland gazette. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1818-1824, 1821-01-18

{, that matter IS inert; that all atiioEs, good oi
leyiI, are To be attributed 10 spirl or Cod
that connection with matter is state of pun
ishmenf; k<She great bcsiness OF III. is &
obtain treesSz from Ibis Union 70 matter TIA
tits is only 10 be procured through the cere
imones or ststerities called jogue; that By
these ceremonies, perfect abstraction, or the
complete annIhilaton, 10 The uaInd OF its con
nexion with matter, IS obtained, and that ihi.
abstraction being realized, at death the SOU
of the joyce mixes with the ats srvading
spirit, thai IS, returns 10 the soul 6fH@s wogiJ.
There are now il lndIs, no iogess like
those described in the Hindoo writings,
! though many assume appearances which shew
that they wish TO be considered iogees.
1t will be seen, that this syslein VI phloso
ply carries Us TO he Atheniaa inscription,
:" ,he,unknown God )" that it makes spirit, OF
God, the author Of sin.; that Il anrihlates ali
( tie social feelings consigns to Iaisny all ihy
relations and occupations Of life aad des-
troys all separate existence after death.
The popular superstition proposes no high
ar benefit To the most devout, than that they
shall, after innomerable traDsmigraton., be
come joyce.
In The Hiadoo writings, the work Of crea
ton IS attributed to Branha, the work Of PROV
ideHce to VIshnoo, aud the work If destruc
ton 10 Seen /; all created beings These de-
tiss, according 10 the Hndoo accounts, are
I continually opposing and thwarting each 9th
er ~ the I'm ,nIstratIon ot human affairs -
| What Rad
The objects of worship are the gods these
are sad TO amount to 33O,OO0,OQ0. Among
those very commonly rorshrpped are Tie
cow ; Hunooman, a monkey Aununta, th.
serpent, and XII haoO, an infamous l9cher
and Radhl, bis c1ncu5me. The car Of Ju-
guBaath is covered win paintings descrp
live Of actions the most indecent and nt4
nous and tae worship al the festivals is con
nec,ed with the open exhibition Of indeceu-
! cles, which can never be described 10 Cars
! tian people. -Gopal, learned Uranium, &C.
knowedged to Mr.. Marshman, Of Ssramp1rs
that he never went to the temple Oh the.e oc
casions, without hiding himssf behind one o
he pillars. This is the u9rstip of the Hia.
docs that which should fl hem fer the du
ties of time, and the blessedness of eternity
| fntAntIclde has been practIsed in india from
time Imnsmorial the raJpoo,, considera
bic tribe Of Hlndoos, put all their female chill.
dren TO death as soon as born not one sur.
wives! They marry in other tribes. Many
Htnd0O females, alter marriage. make vow
TO offer to the deity their first child, and thsse
children Of the vow are drowned ia the Blu
Tumpeoira, and other sacred rivers.
The Hindoo writings encourage persons aC
tlcted with an inerrable distemper, to drown
themselves IN some sacred river, or 10 throw
themselves under the wheels of the car of ia
gunnath, or to east themselves into fire pre-
pared by their relatives Multitude annual
Iy perish by these means as thsy are prom
Ised by the sha>ter, beaIbfUl body III he
net ts4nsmlgralion and they beiieve, that i
they die natural death, the sane disease
will cleave 10 them ia the following and per.
haps in successive births.
At an annual festival in honour OF The god
Seeb, mulutudes inlet on their bodies the
most shocking crueites some have large
books thrust through the fesh Of iheir backs,
by which they are drawn up into the air, and
swung round, for fifteen Or twenty minutes,
the Whole weight Of lie body suspended on
the flesh resting on these hooks Others have
a large slit cut through Tie centre Ot their
tongue others cast their naked bodies on open
knives fastened 10 wsosack, from height
OF ten feet from The ground others have cord.
drawn between The skin and the ribs IN each
side, while they dance III honour Uf tins del
/ ty; sud these devoiees close this festival by
dancing, with their fee: uncoverst, On burning
Goals.
Such j. the superslitous faith of the Hin
Y docs ID The supposed efficacy of the waters Of
I the sscred river. Ia India, that multitudes, in
state n perfect health, put an end 70 lie by
drowning thsm;elyes ia these rivers. A, l
Junction If I'VE sacrsd rivers Allakahad
crowds thu perish every year Capt Pad.
her saw sixteen females drown themselves ii
one morning, as ~ sat al his own window al
A!iahabad; ana while Dr. Robinson resided
| there, twelve Oien at once, with pans fastened
" then necks, plunged into The river, aud
sunk 70 rise 10 more. The Missionary resi-.
ding there often writes in the utmost distress
Az oehodlng the number Of victims who are
inundated ii this awful manner.
More than thousand persons are supposed
70 perish annually IL The .Pi5rimsges 70 the
temples and rivers in India
Al the dying, residing near eaotgh 10 the
Gauges and other sacred rivers are hurried in
ne agonles Of death, anI exposed, in the op-
"a ar, TO the scorchiug sun BY day, and 70 tie
de"s OF night, that they may, as they hope,
1e purified u their last moments by these wa
Iers. The deaths Of multiludes who might
survive are thus bastened. and irdlscrihahle