Omaha daily bee., 1910-06-26

Copyright, 1910, by Frank q. Carpenter.)
S--u--s---N ENARES. 1SlO,--This is the hol-
D lest city on the face of the
globe. All who die within
- fifty miles of Benares.
ESEBtEM whether they be Hindoos or
G2REEAfW Mohammedans, Buddhists or
Christians. liars or thieveA. go straight
to heaven Even to visit Beares wipes
away Gin, and to battle irf the holy Gangss
which flows by IL will make you eternally
happy. 1t Is the greatest pilgrimage
city on earth. The tomb of Confucius in
China, the birthplace of Mohammed at
Mecca and the Church of the Holy Sepul-
cher at Jerusalem all put together have
not half the worshlppers. More than
100000 pilgrims annually kneel at these
shrines- In coming to them thousands
have Frustrated themselves again and
gain measuring their journey by their
own lengths, and every pilgrim thus goes
around a circuit of forty-five miles. This
pilgrimage takes six full days, and tho
route is marked with temples and shrines.
Everywhere 1 go / see Brahmin priests
oonsoling and fleeing the pilgrims. They
can be told by the caste marks on their
faces and half-naked bodies and by the
white strings around their necks. There
are more than $4,000 OF them In Benares
They arc found near the temples and
under great umbrellas down on the Gan
sss- They will cure your sins for a price;
they also take care OF idols to the num-
Der Of 100000 or moro
-
They worship Monkeys.
Benares is a city OF sacred beasts as
we'll sacred men. 1t swarms with
sacred COWS and great white bulls with
humpS on their backs. 1t has sacred
apes and a great temple in which the
monkeys live with a goddess. l visited
that temple this morning and watched
tha priests sacrifice a live goat to Durga,
the goddess OF suffering and death. The
temple 10 surrounded by a wall In front
of IL is a stone upon which is a forked
post with two prongs. The goats neck
was tied to the fork and cut off by a
half-naled HindOo with the blow of a
eleAver. As the axe struck, the blood
spurtGd. and the horrid goddess, II seemed
20 me. burst into a grin.
Durga IL supposed to love blood. She has
. necklace Of skulls under her blood
dripping mouth. She Is crowned with
snakes like tho Medusa. and her face was
covered with gore She is fond of sacri-
fices and thousands OF human beings have
been killed on her affairs. The British
have forbidden this now, but it is only a
little more than a generation ago, during
famine, that boy was found with his
neck out in temple to Durga not far from
here. and within twenty-five miles of CAL
cutta q human head decked with flowers
was placed on the altar Of this goddess.
Among tho queer features OF the temple
are the monkeys which throng its courts
and which live In the trees which hang
over 1t. Tho monkeys are sacred TO vishnu,
another great deity. They are kept and
revered as representations of the monkey
god Ram, and are considered gods and
goddesses who must not be touched. They
are fed by the priests and pilgrims and
are so tame that they will come TO your
feet. At the entrance to the temple were
peddlers selling popcorn, and 1 bought
some for these beasts. As carried Il into
the temple they jumped at me and grabbed
the corn from the plate. AS It fell upon
tho floor monkeys came down In droves
from the trees and chartered and grtnned
while they ohewed up the grain. 1 was
warned not to touch or strike them, as
they are vicious and sometimes bite strang-
ers. There were also many baby monkeys,
which trotted about singly ana with their
parents. and q dozen half starved dogs.
which rushed In and fought with the
monkeys for the popcorn.
Memorial Twenty-seveR Centuries.
From the monkey temple went to the
Golden temple This is in the heart of
Benares. II Is one of the most beautiful
buildings OF the city, and It has spires and
domes plated with gold. 1t is dedicated TO
SILVA, the husband OF Durga, another ter
Tible god. SILVA is supposed to sit en-
throned on one OF the Himalaya mountains
and to be waited on by minor gods and
innumerable spirits.
He is the god OF time and Of death and
destruction. He IL also the creator and one
OF his symbols is the bull. He Is the ruler
Of evil SPLITS and Ehouis. and at nightfall
he prowls where the dead lie He 10 the
god of the fanatics who so about naked
covered with ashes and who pose them
selves standing for months. days and years
in one place with their hands stretched w
10 heaven.
The Golden temple IL about the hottest
place In Benares. l was stopped at the
door by the priest and told that none but
Hindoos could enter. / could see through
the doorway. however. The court was filled
with people from ali over India They
were OF all classes. some clad In rich
dresses and others in rags. They were
from city and country. from all parts. from
the Himalayas in Nepai and from south
HindustRu