Democratic messenger., 1894-12-22

| type of slave. would rather be horse
or cow or dog i'll India than be
woman. The create disaster that can
happen to - Hindoo is that he was born
at all
A City of Illusions.
Bcnares is imposing in the distance as
you look at il from the other side of
the GangeS. The 81 CHATS or flights Of
stone steps, reaching from the waters
edge to the buildings high up on the
banks, mark u place for the ascent and
descent of the sublimities The eye is
lost i'll the bewilderment of tombs,
shrincs. minarets. palaces and temples.
1t is the glorification of steps. the tri-
umph of stairways But looked at close
by the temples. though large and ex-
pensive, are anything but attractive.
The seeming gold III many cases turns
out to be brass. The precious stones in
the wall turn out to be paint. The mar
BILE is stucco. The slippery and disgust
ing steps lead you TO images of horrible
visage, and the flowers put upon the
altar have their fragrance submerged
by that which is the opposite Of aromat-
les
After you have seen the CHATS the
two great things i'll Benares that you
must see are the Golden and Monkey
temples. About the vast Golden temple
there is not rs much gold rs would
make an English sovereign. The air it
self is asphyxiated. Here we see men
making gods out of mud and then put
ting their hands together in worship Of
that which themselves have made. Sa-
cred cows walk up and down the tenn
pie. Here stood fakir with right
arm uplifted and for so long a time
that he could not take it down. and the
nails of the hand had grown until they
looked like scrpents winding in and
around the palm.
The god of the Golden temple is ST.
va, or the poison goA Devils wait upon
him. He is the god0f war, of famine,
Of pcstilencc He is the destroyer. He
has around his neck n string of skulls.
Before him bow men whose hair never
knew comb. They eat carrion and
hero set up racket. Pilgrims come
from hundreds of miles away, spending
their last piece of money and exhaust
ing their last item of strength in order
to reach this Golden temple, glad to die
in or near il and have the ashes of their
bodies thrown into the Ganges
The Monkey Temple.
| We took carriage and went still far
ther OIL to see the Monkey temple, so
called because in and around the build
| ing monkeys abound and are kept as sa-
cred All evolutionists should visit this
temple devoted to the family from which
their ancestors came. These monkeys
chatter and wink and climb and look
wise and look silly and have full pos
session Of the place. We were asked ut
the entrance of the Monkey temple TO
take off our shoes because of the sacred
ness of tho place. but small contribu-
| tion placed in the hands of an attend
ant resulted i'll u permission TO enter
with our shoes OH. AS the Golden tenn
ple is dedicated to silva, the poison god,
this Monkey temple is dedicated to ST.
vas wife. deitess that must be propi-
tiated, or she will disease and blast and
| utStEON. vi tniS sDltilC HsAs
been worshiped. She is the goddess Of
scold and slap and termagancy. She is
supposed to be supernatural Xantippe;
hence to her are brought flowers and
rice, and here and there the flowers are
spattered with tho blood of goats slain
in sacrifice.
AS we walk today through this Mon
key temple we must not hit or tease or
hurt one of them. Two Englishmen
years ago lost their lives by the NAL
treatment of monkey Passing along
one of these Indian streets, monkey
did not soon enough get out of the way,
and one of these Englishmen struck it
with his cane. Immediately the people
and the priests gathered around these
strangers, and the public wrath increas-
ed until the two Englishmcn We're
monkey No land in all the world SO
reveres the monkey as India. as no 9th
er land has temple called after it.
One of the rajahs of India spent 100.
900 rupees in the marriage of two mon
keys. \ nuptial procession was formed
in which moved camels. elephants, I'll
gers. cattle and palanquins Of richly
dressed people. Bands of music sounded
the wedding march. Dancing parties
kept the night sleepless. Itwas 12 days
before the monkey and monkeyess were
free from their round of gay attentions.
In no place but India could such q car
nival have occurred. But. after all,
while we cannot approve of the Monkey
temple, the monkey is sacred to hilari-
ty. l defy a,'v one to watch n monkey
one minute W .hout laughter. Why was
this creature made? For the world S
amusement The mission of some ami
mails is left doubtful, and we cannot see
the use of this or that quadruped or this
or that insect, hut the mission Of the ape
is certain-all around the world it en-
tertains Whether seated at the top of
this temple in India or cutting up its
antics on the top of hand organ. it
stirs the sense Of the ludicrous, tickles
the diaphragm into exclamation, top
Piles gravity into play and accomplishes
that for which it was created. The ca
gle, and the lion, and the gazelle, and
tho robin no more certainly have their
mission than has the monkey. But it
implies low form of Hindooism when
this embodied mimicry of the human
race is lifted into worship.
An Obiiging FaLir.
In one of the cities for the first time
in my life had an opportunity of talk
ing with fakir or Hindoo who has
renounced the world and lives ON aims.
He sat under a rough covering ON a
platform of brick. He was covered with
the ashes of the dead and was at the
time rubbing more of those ashes upon
his arms and legs. He understood and
spoke English. l said to him. How
long have You been seated here" He
replied, Fifteen years. Have those
idols which ! see power to help or de-
MIR Ira 7. Wetmore, n prominent rca