Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1877-01-26
The Famous PerppiTIng statue OF
the Buddhfsts.

The Famous PerppiTIng statue of
the Buddhtsts.
BlackwOod's Magazine,l
Ny success was partly a Auke
and partly owing to management. l
had confded to the wild Kooshal
my great desire to see the Amiihara,
and promised him small reward
if we succeeded; on which his pro-
truding luminous eye literally
blazed with delight, and he prom
Used to give me every support,
though not, | think, so much be-
cause of the reward as for the fun
itself. When people visit the Jain
temples it is usual to send round
with them a few of the priests, OF
other custodians, and also some Of
the Arab guard, whose ruffianly ap.
pearance has been already noted.
The entrance to the concealed tenn,
pie, beneath which is the Amijhars
cave, is in the inner south side O.
the inclosure of the first temple
which the visitor enters great
temple dedicated to Neminatha
the twenty-second Tirthankara. NJ
one who did not know Of it before
hand would suspect the existence
of tho concealed temple; for th,
door is a part Of the latticed stone
work which forms that part Of tn,
inclosure, and there is nothing
except n small key-hole, which
might easily escape even close OBJ
seryation-to indicate that there i
any door at all.
Having been minutely instructed
as to the position of this secret en-
trance / only just privately noted
its whereabouts on first passing
through the courtyard Of the tenn
n g, mads no allusion whatever tt
f. and passed on to an examination
Of the temples. In each of these
fingered as long as possible, exam
ming everything, asking intermin.
able questions, and displaying 6
knowledge of all TIE twenty-foll
Tirthankaras and an interest IN
them, which surprised even myself
and made the Man of Pleasure, who
was not in the secret Of my PLAN
to regard me with astonisbment
and respect. The consequence Of
this was that the Arab guard drop.
ped off one by one in disgust before
/ was we'll done with the first tenn
plc-probably deeming it more in
teresting ard more lucrative to
bully pilgrims than to hang in at
tendance upon a Sahib who would
evidently do no harm.
AS we passed through the other
temples, the prieetly and other at.
tendants also began to get tired and
dropped off, Que by one, until short
W before / began to retrace my
steps, only the man carrying the
keys and two others were left. Nc
harm could be expected from d
visitor who never asked about the
concealed temple; who had made
no demur about taking off shoes;
who never offered to intrude into
any shrine an inch beyond the point
wiicpa he was asked to stop; and
who displayed such respectful In
terest in Parasbgaptaha, Abhinan.
danatha, and all the otheg saints.
The three attendants who re-
maiued mover suspected what / was
after, when, on oHr return to the
courtyard Of the great temple OF
Neminalha, ! expressed a wish tc
have another lock at the outside Of
that splendid ediece, apd in order
TO do SO backed toward ths gecret
door of the concealed temple; bui
no sooner was / there than | turned
suddenly upon them, threw of the
disguise Of the third Tirthankara
shambhayauatha. which | had hith
erto been using, and suddenly said
"And now we shall so TO soe the
Amijhara"
Had Adinatha himself risen from
the ground they could not have
been more thunderstruck, and they
Immediately raised a cry Of dis.
may. The man with the keys
which were only two or three bent
bars of steel, attempted to run of
but the glittering eye Of Koosha
,,,. ,,,,n,, hin, and l,afnra la l,of