The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1920-02-15
NARAC SINCH'S
SOUL ESCAPES
Famous Seeker of Adventures in Far
Distant Lands.
BY MAueERr ST. GEORGES,

Bhuddist monasteries have many
Things in common. But bell they
always have This bell may be large
or it NAV be small. 1t may have a
beautiful tone or it may sound suffi-
GENTLY cracked to make one doubt
whether it is indeed a bell that is pro-
ducing that changing noise. But, how
ever it may look or sound, it is there,
and 108 times every morning and every
evening it is tolled by some unfGrtun-
ate monk.
The first monastery that | visited
was i'm a little out of the way hole
about hundred miles south of Khat-
mandu Capital of NepaD. 1t was
there that l first discovered the reason
for the continual ringing of these bells.
The belief attached TO them is that the
sound first annoys the king of demons,
then excites him to madness, and fin
ally renders him unconscious, causing
his imps to relax their vigilance thus
bringing few moments respite TO the
tortured souls in hell, sometimes even
providing one with an opportunity TO
escape.
How can the sound of a bell reach
hell and cause = = y Why it's idlotlc!
Which is what I told the old monk in
charge of the monastery, though per-
haps somewhat more automatically. He
Just bowed his aged head and an
swered smiIingly that if God willed il
so, an opportunity would occur for me
TO observe for myself the result of
this bell-ringing.
My companion and ! were planning
to STAY at the monastery for d few
days, preparatory to starting for
trip in the Himalayas, 1t was on the
fourth day that the Opportunity men
toned by the monk did actually occur.
The result of the incident was lu-
dicrously unimportant, but the occur
ence itself seemed more wonderful
than practically anything I had seen
before.
There died in the village Narag
Singh, a man who had served in a
British regiment, and who had on one
occasion saved the life of one of his
officers. At the time the latter told
his savior that if he ever desired any
thing he was 10 come TO him and he
would obtain it if it lay within his
power TO grant it. Narag Singh later
had returned to his native village and
married. He had u daughter, u beau
tiful girl, and, her mother dying early
the monks had taken her under their
protection. His last instructions to
her before his death had been to go
to his old officer, who would look after
her. She, however, in her emotion, had
failed to write down the address and
had now completely forgotten it. So
she came to her friends, the monks, to
see il they could not persuade her
fathers spirit TO repeat his instruc-
tions.
This, apparently, was the chance the
monk desired. He sent fer me and in
formed me that by means of the bells
he would obtain the information for
the girl, and in order to convince me,
he would make me the medium by
which this would be brought about. We
went into the beIfry and l was made
to sit directly under the bell. Then
our host informed us that as the BELL
was tolied the monks would be pray
ing in their cells for the release of
Narag Singh's soul. If their prayers
were granted. Narag Singh would
come and whisper the address, to me,
and l in my turn would repeat it to
the audience, my. companion, our host |
and three minor monks On the oh
jections raised by my friend that prob
ably our host knew the address him
self, and would merely hypnotic the
old man. bowling courteously, with
drew.
men the DeI began to toll At first
the sound annoyed me, then it excited
me almost to madness, and finally. as
IN a haze-a poorly clad native ap2
peared before me, whispered some
thing, then vanished into nothingness.
while something appeared to force me
TO repeat the words he had uttered. RI
had no sooner done So than silence
more unbearable still. followed the in
fernal toIling.
Then slowly awoke and looked
about me. My friend was looking al |
me in startled fashion. On the
hundred and eighth stroke / had men |
lohed name and address, Colon -
or - Victoria So, Calcutta.
On our return from the trim we
heard that the girl had gone to CAL |!
cutta, and that the address had Turned !,
out to be perfectly correct. |