The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1908-08-26
IDOLS Of The AINDOOS
There Are Hundreds OF Millions
of Them In India.
THE FAME OF jUGGERNAUT.

This Idol Has Been Worshiped About
Two Thousand Years, and His Ma
tonsl Temple Is on the Sands OF
Puri-The Three Monster Cars.
III were asked to describe India the
Arst remark that would spring from
ny lips would be, 'It is land Of
idols" 1t would be impossible to COM
pute the number Of idols that there
must lie at the present time III India.
The Hindoos pretend 10 have 5S3,00o,.
900 gods, and these are represented by
innumerable idols, SO that we are quite
bewilGered with the thought Of taking
the census Of the Idols Of India. The
population Of the whole Indian empire
is now about 3oo,00O.0OO, and possibly
the country contains ten times as many
idols as people.
Benares is the great center Of the
idol making business, though in all
parts OF India the trade fourishes.
Potters the day through may be seen
in the sacred city mo!ding images Of
clay for temporary use. Sculptors also
may be found producing representa-
tiyes Of the gods u stone or marble
Carpenters. moreover, make great
wooden idols for the temples, and
workers in metal-goldsmiths, copper
smiths and brass workers-turn out
more or less highly finished specimens
IN their respective metals.
When speaking Of idols 1t should be
borne in mind that the in ages turned
out by the potter, sculptor, carver or
manufacturer are not considered sa-
cred or ft to be worshiped until GER
tain mystic words have been uttered
over them by q priest The ceremony
Of "the giving Of lfe," as it is called,
to the image IS very solemn atair,
and when 1t is done the idol is regard
ed as holy and must ever afterward be
approached and treated with the ut
most reverence.
Out Of the many millions Of so called
goIs Y India, all Of whom are counted
worthy Of worship, three are regarded
as specially sacred and form the Hin
Do triad OF trinity. They are re
spectiyely Brahna, Vishnu and silva.
OF those it Is stated the second per-
son Of the trinity only has been rep
resented on this earth by human In
carnations. Through one or all Of these
gods the Eindoos believe they may OBJ
tain salvation Brahma represents the
way OF salvation by Wisdom, Fishuu
by faith and silva by works 1t IS
smmaterial which method is adopted,
as they au lead to the same goal
Juggernaut IS perhaps the most IA
NOUS name among all the Hinooo idols,
inasmuch as his fame has gone forth
into every land. His temple is situat-
ed on the sandy shores Of Orissa, wash
ed by the wild waves Of the bay Of
Bengal. The worship Of Juggernaut
dates back nearly 1000 years, and
Orissa has been the holy land Of the
Eindoos from that tine till the present
day.
Sir William Hunter, who was one OF
the greatest authorities on things East
Indian, says in g wonderfully graphic
description Of the temple Of Jugger-
oaut: son the inhospitable sands Of
Puri, a place Of swamps and 1nund2-
tons, the Eindoo religion and Etndoo
superstitution have stood at bay lot
eighteen centuries against the world.
Here is the national temple whittier
the people flock to worship from every
province Of India. There IS the gate
Of heaven whittier thousands Of pl-
grims come to die, lulled to this last
sleep by the roar Of the eternal ocean.
We'll, ] saw on one occasion that
marvellous sight, the dragging Of Jug
gernauts car and the cars Of his
brother and sister. The three idols
are inseparable and ugly things they
are, being nothing but huge logs OF
wood coarsely fashioned into human
shape, but without arms or legs.
Juggerraut's car stands forty-one
feet high and has fourteen enormous
wheels. The other two cars are just
8 little smaller. The great cars have
to be dragged a certain distance-half
8 mile or more from the tenple-and
the god will not allow horses or ele-
phants to undertake the work, but
calls upon his faithful worshipers to
do 1t themselves. Immense ropes, or,
rather, cables, are attached to the cars,
and at the word Of command from the
priests thousands Of men and even
women and children rush forward and
seize the ropes and range themselves
tn order and the next moment are
stratning and pulling at the cumber-
some conreyances, which at length
move with q heavy, crealSing noise.
Never shall I forget the sight The
road was, filed with tens Of thousands
Of lockers on, all wild with excitement,
and the fanatics who held the ropes
were dragging the cars along with
frenzied zeal Every now and then
there would be stop that the men
might rest, supposed. but instead Of
resting they took to jumping IN the
air and to whirling themselves around
Ike dancing dervishes and shouting
at the top Of their breath: "Vtctorys
VictoIy to Juggernaut"'
Once on time infatuated worship
ers would throw themselves under the
wheels Of the mighty car that they
might be crushed to death, counting It
a privilege and Joy thus to perish.
Some might dpit today if the paternal
British gove8Illent did not provide
against such catastrophes by taking all
due precaution.-John J. Pool, B. D..
F. r. G. S.. IN Los Angeles Times