Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1891-06-12
IN ANCIENT BENARES,
This Sacred City of India Has a His
tory of About Twenty
Hundred Years.
For the Hindus BenareS Has a Won
derful Fascination, and is
Greatly Beloved.
There are Resorts of Pilgrims Innu-
merable and Temples Fitted With
Grotesque Gods.

| SALS Sc>OAS has I6CEHUlS UTUuguG uFlp1 re-
ports. draw attention to one of the oldest
cities IN the world and, in the eyes of mil
hons of men. the most sacred Like most
disorders In India the basis of the present
| trouble Is religious, the moving cause be-
| ing the demolition of a temple to make
room for new waterworks. Benares. the
most ancient city in India, lies about four
| hundred miles in northwesterly direction
! from Calcutta, the most modern There
| the Ganges, most sacred of all streams in
! the estimation of 20, 900, 900 of men, makes
| gentle cuve, along the north side of which
! the sacred city stretches for more than
| three miles, with an average breadth of
! about one nile and a half Within that
! area there is population of 225, 900 most
! ly Hindus, who live life that not only in
| its outward condition, but in its thoughts
and beliefs and aims and hopes that form
! it. is as different from ours as the life of
any people of whom the writer. contrib
utor IN the New York Times, has any
! knOwled e.
Benares is, and for many years has been
! known by two Hames-Benares and kashi
| The former may be regarded as the civil
name, used in common by Hindus, No
hammedans, md Europeans. The latter
| is the sacred name, used almost exclusive
! as place of pilgrimage or in a religious
| connection. Both names occur repeatedly
| in Brahaminical literature that dates at
| least $50 years before our era. All writers
J on Buddhism or the Law" as it is term
| ed by It's adherents, agree that Saky Mum,
| the founder and the only real historical
| Buddha, on attaining to the state of Bud
| dhahood, travelled from the city of Gaya to
| Benares. There he spoke of the change
! that had come over him, and began to pro-
| claim the two leading principles of his re-
| ligiOn, namely, 'Dharma, " or righteous
ness, and "Nirvana," meaning literally
nothingness. Sakya Mum is believed by
| the best authorities to have entered on his
mission 5S8 B. c. As Benares was un-
doubtedly city of considerable popula-
| tiOn and influence when he fixed upon it as
the most suitable place from which to pro-
mulgate his doctrines, it may safely be
| believed that it was founded not later than
the seventh century before Christ
In many respectsi Benares is different
| from the other great cities of India. Re-
| ligion is its chief source of maintenance
and great wealth; without it it would sink
| into comparative insignifcance. To the
| European it seems one of the most unde-
| sirable places in India to live in, and, in
| deed, nearly all who for any time are sit
uated there dwell in suburb nearly a
mile and X further from the river than
| the city aHindus Benares has a
strong ia they reard it as the
| most b I'd worthy to be loved.
The city uilt OF sandstone, and
Is a vas of lofty narrow streets
and baZ, many of which the rays
of the su ate for only few mo-
ments of tsa Hyy. The houses are chiefly
two stories nigh, some of three or four,
and few even higher The outer walls
are adorned, on a large scale, with paint
Jugs of trees, gardens, birds. beasts, fishes,
snakes, hunting scenes, gods, goddesses,
| and all kinds of NEUROLOGICAL subjects.
| The paints used consist of some very
! bright coloring matter, which. nothwith-
| standing the constant exposure to the sun
and rains, preserves its freshness for
many years. A few of the paintings in
! dicate skill, but most of them ignore
| both perspective and proportion, and lend
q strange but striking appearance to the
| houses on which they are seen.
About rs PER cent. of the people are Hin
| dus who are divided primarily into four
| great castles or classes-called Brahmins,
or the priestly caste; the kshatris, or the
| military caste; the Aaisvas, or the trad
| ing caste; and Sudras, or servile, laboring
caste. These are popularly believed to
| have sprung respectively from the head,
| the arms, the chest, and the feet of Brah-
! ma, the supreme, all peryading spirit
| from whom all created things emanate
and to whom they return. About 10000
| of the Hiudus of Benares are BrahmIns.
In the intense heat of an Indian sum-
mer men have been known to PROSTATE
| their persons on the dusty road and to
| stretch out their arms to mark the point
! on the road to which their fingers reached.
| Covered from head to foot with dust of
the road they rise and repeat the process.
| For weeks and IN some cases for months,
| even, the pilgrims repeat this process as
| they measure with their own persons the
| whole of the way from their distant homes
| to Benares. Some of these strange
| journeys extend over hundreds of miles.
Benares is truly city of: idolatry
! Temples and shrines. in all some $500,
are seen in every street, ally and bazear.
| Some stand alone, others are placed In a
! line or grouped around one another. in
order or no order The idols are of various
materials-stone, earth, wood, marble.
| iron, brass, silver, gold-of all sizes and
| shapes, diminutive and colossal, human,
| bestial, grotesque, huge badly formed and
indecent. Many living creatures. such as
| bulls, peacocks, monkeys and lserpents are
seen in the temples and houses; they are
superstitiously revered, if not reverently
worshipped.
Although the temples tn Benares are
| numerous, they are, with scarcely an ex-
| ception. modern. Many of them are
| believed to be on the sites of ancient tenn
| pies that have long since passed away
/ zI,,Il - E I,-,
| than the Mohammedan invasion of
| Lord of the Universe. known
! also as Manadey. Is probably the largest,
| and certainly the most popular of all the
sacred city's temples. 1t occupies cne
| corner of a large square, the greater por-
ton of which IS an elevated platform. On
one side of it stands the principal moso1e
| of the city. 1t is built on the site and
| partly with the material of the ancient
| temple Of Bisheshnar which was destroy
| ed by the order of krungzeb. A Eigh aud
massive wall surrounds the temple, and in
the midst of the quadrangle Is a raised
! platform with roof, above which are
| images In sandstone, marble and brass Of
| variaus gods and goddesses, who form, as
| it were, the court Of Bisheshmer
| The India meta workers and those of
! their craft have their shops near the gate
of the temple. There idols can be bought
according to weight or Workmanship. and
not little wrangEng may be heard as the
seller praises and the buyer disparages the
image of the god that both Of them wor-
| ship. At all hour of the day, but espe-
| eiaily from a. n. TO II, crowds Of wor-
| shippers pass in and out of the temple
| Each one comes al the hour most conven-
lent for himself. as there is no appointed
time and worshiYs any or all Of the
gods as be may piease. Each worshiper
IN this temple must Of necessity pay
homage to Bishesamar, the presiding
deity.
Many women Of middle life or aged are
to be seen in the temple Unlike tie Uen.
| they are decently clothed. A sacred bull
| or two may be seen moving around IN the
| crowd. themselves worshiped as gods.
/ while. unconscious If the honors paid 10
( them, they eat the ferings made to other
| gods Nine bells are hung from the roof
| Of the temple 50 tEat each worshiper may
| call the attention # the god 10 himself
| The almost ineessazt ringing of these bells
Is bewildering-