Indian Antiquary Vol 04

Author(s): Jas Burgess
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 73

FEBRUARY, 1875.]
NOTICES OF BOOKS.
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with retrospects of the Vedic and Brahmanic ages rather than towards that Christianity which is by the light of the materials already brought freely offered, but which they are not prepared under review in the two former volumes. It then to accept." What could have led the author to brings every other available authority, excepting make so rash a statement in face of the latest that of the Musalman historians, to bear upon the population returns, which shuw that the Muhamgeneral subject." And after enumerating as the madans are increasing in slower ratio than chief authorities the Buddhist writings, the tra- even the Hindus, while the Christians have fully vels of Fahian and Hiwen Thsang, the Hindu doubled in ten years ? Drama, Rajput traditions, Marco Polo and other Again, commenting on the change from animal travellers, and Faria y Sousa's History, ho con. sacrifices to those of rice and butter, he remarks tinues that these have all been laid under contri. that the latter " was thus associated with the bution for every variety of information, and have materialistic religion of the non-Vodic population. been further illustrated by the experience derived This fact," he grey on to say, “throws a new light during fifteen years' official residence in India upon the legend of Cain and Abel... The fleshand Burma. In this manner," he adds, "the at. sacrifice was accepted; but the vegetable offering tempt has been made to throw every light upon was rejected. So far it would seem that the story the history, the religion, and the civilization of was intended to enforce sacerdotal ideas. But the people of India before the coming of the Eng. offerings of grain were especially associated with lish upon the scene."
a materialistic religion, as in the Greek worship of Such a work as here indicated would be hailed Demeter; and this form of idolatry was condemned hy every Oriental student with delight. But, un- in the strongest terms by the Hebrew prophets. fortunately, Mr. Wheeler seems to have no better Hence the offering of Cain was rejected." We conception of the magnitude of such a task than confess our utter inability to follow this logic: and he has of' "every available authority" on the sub- we think a more careful reading of his Bible might ject. Hence his three expensive volumes already help Mr. Wheeler to see that it was the characters publishell come very far short, not only of his pro- of the sacrificers that primarily had to do with mise, but of what has already been achieved by the acceptance of their offerings. But he is his predecessors. Mrs. Manning's two volumes on not particular about catching precise shades of Ancient and Medieval India are far more trust- meaning or expression; thus (p. 125) he says-. worthy and valuable to the popular reader than Mr. "In Buddhism there is the tree of wisdom, which Wheeler's three. He has not availed himself of every possibly may bear a resemblance to the tree of authority, nor even of the best of them; and of Hiwen knowledge of good and evil:"-in Genesis we read Thsang's works, he does not appear to have con- l of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil;"sulted directly the translation by Stanislas Julien, and he quite misconstrues the expressions in Hos. but only a translation from the French of the vi. 6; Micah, vi, 6, 7; Isaiah, i. 10-14, into unqualibrief résumé given by M. Barthélemy St. Hilaire. fied denunciations of sacrifices ! Of Megasthenes, he is acquainted only with the His ideas regarding the origin of the Brahmans fragments in Strabo and Arrian, which he quotes are neither very clear nor well supported. "The in the English translations of Falconer and Rooke. Vedic Aryans," he says," who colonized the Panjab The Satruitjaya Mahatmyam be refers to (p. 281) in a remote antiquity, were worshippers of the " for pious legends of Siladitya, and public dis. spirits or elements of the universe as gods and god. putation between Buddhists and Jains"-an idea desses, and invoked those deities in old Sanskrit of the contents of the book which the author verses known as Vedic Hymns. At some subsecould never have entertained had he consulted the quent period the Brahman appeared upon the work itself, or even looked into the well-known sceno." Then "the Vedic Aryans had neither tem. German analysis of it by Prof Weber. The Lalita ples, idols, nor rigid casto distinctions. But the Vistara and Ruija Tarangini he does not even Brab mans, on the contrary, appear to have enname; nor is any work cited-oriental or classical couraged the construction of temples, and to have -of which there is not an English translation ; set up images or idols." Again-"the Aryan relinot even that invaluable cyclopædia of Indian his- gion may possibly have been a development of the tory and antiquities--Lassen's Indische Alter- ancient worship of the genii loci,--the spirits of thumskunde.
the hills, forests, glens, and streams. To this In his remarks and generalizations Mr. Wheeler day many of the hill-tribes in Eastern India. . still is singularly unhappy:-"fow impartial observers," practise this simple worship." Are these hill. he thinks, "will deny the fact that to all ap- tribes Aryans ? Siva, be considers," was the most pearance the people of India are drifting slowly ancient and most mystic" deity in the Brahmatowards the religion of the prophet of Arabia, nical pantheon," whilo "in that remote age which