regard to the nature and existence of the soul, it appears to us, notwithstanding the obscurity of the subject, and seeming contradictions that occur, that the Hindūs in general believe in the existence of two souls, the vital and the divine soul; the former of which animates the mortal frame, and may be supposed to perish with it; while the other is an emanation of the spirit of God,but not a portion of that spirit; it is compared to the heat and light sent forth from the sun, which neither lessens nor divides its own essence.*

The tenets and practices of the Sikhs will form the subject of a separate chapter.

See Laws of Menu, chapter 9th, on Transmigration and Final Beatitude, Jones, 8vo. edit. vol. viii. as well as other works; and various quotations of Gowtama, &c. in Craufurd's Sketches on the Hindus, vol. i. p.

262.

CHAPTER VII.

OF THE SIKHS.

THE Sikhs,* of much more modern origin than all the other sects we have mentioned, now occupy a considerable, and, from its situation, important territory in Hindustan.† The founder of their religion, named Nanac

* The Sikhs derive their appellation from the Sanscrit root Sikh, to learn.

+ Hindustan, in the general acceptation of the word by Europeans, is supposed to mean the whole countries lying between the Indus and the Ganges, from the Tartarian mountains, on the north, to the sea, where the land terminates in the point named Cape Comorin: but Hindustan proper, or the country originally so denominated by the Persians, meaning the country of the Hindus, extends no farther south, as has been observed, than the river Nerbudda, or to the parallel of about twenty-two degrees north latitude.-See Rennell.

Shah, was born in the year 1469 of our æra, at a village named Talvandi,* in the district of Bhatti, in the province of Lahore. His father, named Calu, was of the Cshatriya, or warrior cast. He left only two children, Nanac, and a daughter, called Nanaii, who married a Hindu named Jayaram. Nanac was also married at an early

He is said to have

age to a young maiden of his own tribe, by whom he had two sons, named Srichand and Lacshmi Das. been, from his infancy, of a religious turn; and many stories are told of the wonderful indications then given by him of extraordinary wisdom. About the age of twenty

five,

quitting Lahore, he visited most of the holy places in the eastern parts of Hin

dūstan;

in a second excursion he went to the south, passed over to Ceylon, reLahore, and in a third journey Persia and Arabia, visiting the

turned to

went into

*This

place, now grown into a considerable town, named Rayapūr, is situated on the banks of the Beyah, or Hyphasis of the Greeks,

temples of Mohammed, at Mecca and Medina. In these excursions he was accompanied by a celebrated musician, named Merdana, and a person of the name of Sandhu, who preserved an account of his adventures. In the course of his travels he had many disputes to maintain with learned doctors of the Brahminical and Mohammedan faith; but, being an enemy to discord, he defended his tenets with moderation, avoiding every opportunity of giving offence. He wished to persuade men to renounce what he considered as useless, or criminal fictions, and to confine their faith to the great principle of religion, a belief in the omnipotence and unity of God. Being at Vatala, he was called upon by some Yogis-Waras,* to exhibit some miracle as proof of his powers; he replied, "I have nothing to exhibit worthy of you to behold; a holy teacher has no defence but the purity of his doctrines; the world

* Hermits, who pass their lives in privations of every thing that can serve to gratify the senses.

may change, but the Creator is unchangeable." These words, says his biographer,* were no sooner pronounced than the YōgisWaras fell at the feet of the humble He seems to have spent about

Nanac. fifteen

years

in his different journeys, but on his return from his third excursion, he

up

his

his

declared his resolution of not quitting native country any more, and took residence at Kirtipur-Dehra, on the banks of the Ravi,+ in a convenient dwelling that

was

prepared for him by the Rajah of Kullanore, who had become one of his disciples. There he spent the rest of his days

in peace, from the

and, as he loved retirement, free

cares and bustle of this world:

his wife and children dwelt at Kullanore, coming occasionally to visit him. Having obtained extensive fame for wisdom and persons of all persuasions went to

piety,

converse

with him, or listen to his discourse; and the Sikhs say, that when they

Bhai Guru Das Vali.

The Hydraotes of the Greeks.