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FREQUENT FESTIVALS. and the shrine containing the image, only large enough to admit the priest. One of the singular forms observed is the ringing of a bell to attract the notice of the god to his worshipper, who merely walks round, hands his gift to the priest, and bows to the image.
The priests of these temples are all Brahmans, who alone perform the proper worship, usually without any spectators. The sacred texts are merely mut- Temple tered, and being in Sanskrit, are unintelligible priests. to the masses; the texts, of course, differ according to the god or incarnation that is being worshipped. The essential character of this worship lies in the treatment of the image as if it were a living being, and the priest his servant; washing, dressing, feeding, decorating, putting to bed, etc., are all gone through most carefully. With all this the people have nothing to do but to bring the offerings, which become the priests' property. Of course, in the case of deities whose rites require animal sacrifices, there is a great business of slaughtering victims, and afterwards disposing of the meat not required by the priests; it finds a ready sale, being especially valuable owing to its sacred character.
The regular daily worship of the temples forms but a small part of the religious life of the Hindu. His attention is mainly given to the festivals which Frequent occur so frequently, though somewhat irregu- festivals. larly, as to occupy the place of the Christian Sunday. Most of the gods have special festival days, and others are only worshipped publicly on such days. Not only are special images of the gods made for the temples, but also for many private persons, whose houses become public temples for the day or days of the festival, and are visited by crowds of people. Usually, after the proper ceremonial has been gone through, various amusementsnautch dances, plays, musical entertainments—are provided. Sometimes two or more adjoining villages will join in these celebrations, each householder paying his share.
Images are provided for these festivals by regular tradesmen. They are largely based upon bamboos tied
