Unknown Life of Jesus Christ Old Edition 1894 Publication

Author(s): Nicholas Notovitch, Virchand R Gandhi, Kumarpal Desai
Publisher: World Jain Confederation

Page 21

XX
INTRODUCTION. und work them togetlicr with silk.
They will make any new things by pattern, howsocver dillicult it may seem to be; it is thcrclure no marvel if the natives there makc boots, clothes, linen, bands, cuffs of English fashion, which are all very different from their own fashions and habits, and yet make them all cxceedingly nicat."
I am not a supporter of the castc system as it cxists to-day in India, but I am convinced, with Dr. Leitncr, forıncrly the Registar of the Punjab University in India, that the preservation of caste in its original form is the preservation of ancient civilization and unparallcled culture of lulia, inclusive of its arts and inte vustries, which is perfectly compatible with every legitimate demand of modern requirements or aspirata tions. "The recognition of the principle of licrcdity in ibilities and desccts, so tarcily recognized by our 'n physiologists, has maintained Indian sociсty, Imiut wisdom, Indian bravery, and Indian arts, and can alone preserve Indian loyalty and cosure Indian progress on the lines of its own genius. It is only imitation of forcign models that can kill what thousands of ycars and llic various vicissitudes of conquest llave spareci." Sir George Birdwood thercíorc says to the European pulylic: "We therefore incur a great responsibility when we deliberately undertake to improve such a people in the practice of their own arts, and hitherto the results of our attempts to do so have been anything but cicouraging. The Kashmir tracic in shawis has becm ruined through the quickness with which thic wcavcrs have adopted the 'improved shawl patterns' which the Fireneligents of the Paris import kronises have set bclore them, inel presently we shall see what the effect of thic tencliing of our Schools of Art bas been on Indian pottcry, the noblest pottcry in the world until we began