INDIA.

foregoing le

yání.

tween the Devatás, or Aryans,

or aborigines.

the opposition

The foregoing legends of Devayání are valuable HISTORY OF relics of the early age of Brahmanism, and throw a PART III. new light upon one of the most obscure portions of Review of the Hindú history. The most important element in the gends of Deva. story is perhaps the opposition which is exhibited Opposition bebetween the Devatás, or fair-complexioned Aryan and the Daityas, invaders, and the Daityas, or dark-complexioned aborigines of the country. In the Rig-Veda this Expression of opposition clearly appears as one between the in- in the Rig-Veda. vaders and the aboriginal inhabitants; and as the Vedic hymns are the expression of Aryan sentiments and ideas, the aborigines are naturally alluded to in terms of hatred and reproach as robbers and cattle-lifters. In the subsequent age to which the Subsequent conforegoing legends belong, the traditions of the old traditionary wars between the Aryans and the aborigines became mythical wars of converted into mythical legends of wars between mons. the Devatás, or gods, and the Daityas, or demons, which was carried on for the empire of the world. This circumstance has led to a strange confusion of Confusion in the ideas in many of the Brahmanical versions of the the terms Deold traditions. Sometimes the term Devatás refers to the Vedic pantheon, in which Indra appears as sovereign; sometimes, however, as in the present story, it seems to refer to the Aryan people, who were the worshippers of the Vedic deities. Then, again, the

longer with the Raja, and carried her complaint to her father Sukra, who thereupon pronounced a curse of old age upon Yayati. The curse is said to have taken effect, but Sukra offered to remove it by transferring it to any one of Yayati's sons, who would agree to accept the infliction. Yadu, his eldest son by Devayání, refused, and was cursed that his posterity should never enjoy dominion; and he ultimately became the ancestor of the Yadavas, or cowherds. Then all the other sons of the Raja refused, and were cursed in like manner, excepting the youngest son by Sarmishtha, who was named Puru, and who agreed to bear the burden of his father's old age for a period of a thousand years, and who ultimately became the ancestor of the Pandavas and the Kauravas.

version of the

wars of Devatás and Daityas into

gods and de

application of

vatás and Dait

yas.

HISTORY OF term Daityas was applied both to demons and to PART III. the aborigines, and having thus become current as

INDIA.

Friendship between the Bráh

of tribes who

a term of reproach, it was apparently applied in a still later age to the Buddhists. Thus the question occasionally arises as to whether the term Daityas applies to the aborigines who preceded the Aryans, or to the demons who fought against the gods, or to the Buddhists who fought against the worshippers of the Linga. In the present instance the term undoubtedly applies to the aborigines.

at war.

Another point for consideration is the curious man preceptors friendship which existed between the Bráhman were at enmity. priests of rival tribes, even when those tribes were Thus the son of the priest of the Devatás is entertained as a pupil in the house of the priest of the Daityas; a circumstance which naturally excited the jealousy of the Daityas, and led to that animosity of the Daityas towards the pupil, which, but for the interposition of Sukra, would have led to his destruction.

Mythical detail representing the

scendants of

vayání.

The legend of the marriage of Devayání and Yadavas as de- Yayáti seems to be cumbered with some mythical Yayati and De- detail for the purpose of ennobling the tribe of Yádavas, to which Krishna belonged, by representing them to have been descended from one of the ancient Rajas of Bhárata and the daughter of a Brahman. In the genealogical lists Yayáti appears as the great-grandfather of Raja Bhárata; a circumstance which may well be doubted, if the theory be accepted that the Bráhmans held but a subordinate rank in the Vedic age. The story of Sarmishthá is very suggestive, but scarcely calls for comment. may, however, be observed that the explanation of Sarmishthá, that a Rishi was the father of her chil

It

and

INDIA.

PART III.

Significant expression in the thá of the pri

story of Sarmish has vileges claimed

dren, refers to an extraordinary and revolting dog- HISTORY OF ma, which is especially connected with the worship of Krishna, that a woman acquires religious merit by intercourse with her religious preceptor; even in the present day this abominable idea not been wholly eradicated from India, and notably mans. finds expression amongst a sect in the Bombay Presidency which is known by the name of the Mahárajas.

by certain Bráh

CHAPTER IV.

HISTORY OF

INDIA. PART III.

Romantic cha

racter of the
story.

Scene laid in the
Dekhan.

Allusions to
temples.

CHANDRAHASA AND BIKYA.

THE story of Chandrahasa and Bikya appears more like a romance than a historical tradition, and seems to belong to a much later era than any of the foregoing legends. In the first place, it will be noticed that the scene is laid in the Dekhan, or south of India. The narrative contains allusions to temples which do not appear to have existed in the Vedic age; and indeed it may be remarked that no ruins of temples have hitherto been found in India of a date antecedent to the age of Buddhism. Again, the story turns upon a letter which was written by a Minister to his son, and which a young lady could not only read, but was able to alter with her own hand; circumstances which plainly indicate a modern origin; for in the earlier legends messages are always carried by word of mouth, and none of the ancient heroines appear to have been able to read Belief in the in- or write. The story is based upon a belief in asstars both upon trology, and involves the idea that the influence of

Education of young ladies in reading and writing.

fluence of the

the fortune

my.

the physiogno- the stars is perceptible not only in the fortunes of an individual, but in his physiognomy; a belief which was once as widely spread in Europe as it still is in India, and to this day the terms mercurial,

INDIA.

jovial, and saturnine are employed to express those HISTORY OF characteristics of temperament which were once PART III.' supposed to result from the influences of the planets Mercury, Jupiter, and Saturn.

The story, which needs no preliminary explana- The story. tion, may now be related as follows:

1. Chandrahasa, the fortunate boy.

drahasa.

Far away in the farthest extremity of the Dekhan, in the Birth of Chancountry where camphor is collected, there lived a Raja who was doomed to suffer the severest adversity. To this Raja a son was born when the full moon was in the most favourable of all the lunar mansions, and who was thus destined to enjoy the highest prosperity. Very soon after the birth of this son, a powerful enemy invaded the country, and the Raja was slain with most of his army, and his Rání perished on the funeral pile. The nurse then fled away with the Preserved alive infant to a city named Kutuwal, but told to no one the secret of the child's parentage. She put herself out to service, and supported herself and the child by the proceeds of her toil; but after three years she died, and the little boy was thus thrown destitute upon the world.

by his nurse.

the child.

The child now wandered about without a soul to care Destitution of for him. Sometimes the people of the city gave him a little provision out of charity, and at night he sheltered himself in a pagoda. When he was five or six years old he began to associate and play with other children of his own age; and sometimes the boys would take him to their own homes, and their mothers, hearing that he was without a parent or a friend, would take pity upon him, and give him victuals and clothes, and wash him and take a liking to him. One The Rishis preday he happened to go to the house of the Minister of the greatness to the Raja of Kutuwal, and a number of Rishis and astrologers Raja of Kutuwere present who were well skilled in the science of physiognomy; and when they saw the boy they said to one another:-"Who is he? for on his face are all the signs of royalty." No one, however, knew him, and when they

dict his future

Minister of the

wal.