The evening tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 189?-190?, 1897-02-16
TOWERS OF SILENCE.
AowTns FOLLOWERS or zoRoAsTER
BURY THEIR DEAD.


S~sd 20 he One Cause Of the Spread OF tho
Bubonic Plague In Bombay-The Dead
Are Placed In the Open and Eaten by
valturcs.
The bubonic plague, which now Is
ravaging India and has gone as far ON
the way to Europe as the island of Kam-
Aran. in the Red sea, is attributed by
medical men to number Of diverse
causes. In a consideration of possible
causes and certain propagators of the
pest the famous towers Of silence, which
might more exactly be named towers Of
death, should not fail to receive atten-
fion.
These towers, of which there are 115
scattered throughout India, serve devo-
tees of the Parsee cult in place Of bury
ing grounds. This body Of religionists,
one of the most curious and at the same
time one of the most civilized in India,
is given to the worship Of fire In all its
forms. At Bombay, where their colony
numbers AZ, 458 persons, and which, it
is to be noted, has suffered more than
any other Indian city from the pesti-
lence, the Parsees have built seven Of
these towers, one after the other, for the
inhumation, so to speak, Of their core
hgionists. These seven towers. or dak-
mas are grouped at the summit Of NAL
abar hill, which overlooks the sea at
some miles distance from Bombay.
Contrary to what one might suppose,
Malabar hill is delightful suburb, well
built up with beautiful cottages, the
dwellers in which seem to live in no
fear Of the hideous dakmas near by.
In point Of construction these towers
are enormous masses Of masonry, built
to last for centuries. The material is
black granite, heavily whitewashed.
Their height is altogether out Of pro-
portion TO their diameter. The highest
of them is 90 feet in diameter and 35
feet high. A stone parapet ID feet high
surrounds the platform ON which the
bodies are first laid. Thus all that passes
within is invisible from without, but
the tower is open to sun and rain.
In the center Of the platform is we'll,
10 feet in depth and 45 feet in diameter,
into which are cast the bones Of the de-
vout after the vultures have stripped
them. From the bottom of this bone
well, down through the masonry of the
platform. run four canals at right an
giles, each pair to the other Each Of
these ends in pit filed with charcoal,
the intention being thus to purify the
teachings from the bone well. The plat
form above is divided into 70 compart.
ments or open burial cases. disposed
along radiuses Of the tower circle. These
lie in three concentric circular rows,
separated by stone cutters, which lead
to the canals and wells below. 1t may
be observed that the number 3 is SYM
bolic Of the precepts of Zoroaster, and
the number 70 of the 70 chapters Of the
Yasne, one Of the sections Of the Zend-
Avesta. The outer circular row of stone
biers serves for the men Of the Parsee
faith. To the row next smaller are con-
signed the bodies of the women, while
the inner row is for the bodies Of the
children.
of the towers Of silence take many pre-
cautions to avoid spreading contagion
without After depositing the body on
its slab they bathe and change every
shred Of clothing before issuing from
the tower, and the Parsees stoutly deny
that their funeral customs arc in any
wise responsible for the spreading OF
contagion.
"Our prophet Zoroaster," they say,
"who lived more than 5000 years ago,
has taught us to consider the elements
ms the symbols Of divinity. Earth, wa
ter and fire ought never to be polluted
under any circumstances by contact with
putrefaction. Naked we came into the
world; naked we go ont 1t is needful
that the particles Of our bodies be de-
composed as rapidly as possible, that
our mother, the earth, may not be de-
fled. God sends the vultures, and surely
they accomplish their work more rapid
~ than do millions of insects in the
case of burial From the sanitary point
of view no system can be better than
ours. Monde nlustre.
NsNn. nc nEcr -hlA, ADAanO