worship, we shall find the most important under the name of Dandi. Dandîs are ascetics, conforming to the way of life prescribed for Sannyâsîs in the code of Manu. The ideal Dandî abandons home, takes up his staff and his begging-pot, and asks food in alms, but only once each day. He learns patiently to bear disease, strives to know God and to fix his attention uponGod alone. He is called a Dandî because he carries a small wand or dand. Dandîs are not exclusively devoted to Siva, but those who are practical rather than speculative "are most correctly included amongst the Saiva sects ;" and amongst these, the worship of Siva as Bhairava is the prevailing form. The Dandî should live alone, and near to, but not within, a city. Their custom is, however, to live in cities collected like other mendicants in maths. Although Sannyâsîs were the most holy of Brâhmans, Hindus of any caste are admitted amongst the Dandîs. One peculiarity attaching to these people is, that they bury the dead in coffins, or, when practicable, commit them to some sacred stream. The reason given for this is, that when the Sannyâsî or Dandî abandons family life he also abandons the use of fire; and it is observed, that the ascetic followers of Vishnu in the north of India (called Vairâgîs) do the same; and the class of Hindu weavers, called Yogîs, appear to have adopted the similar practice of burying instead of burning the dead.

The Dasnâmîs or Dasnâmî-Dandîs, are a division of the Dandîs, which is said to owe its origin to the learned Sankara-âchârya. This distinguished teacher was a native of Malabar, and his influence in southern India was remarkable. He established numerous maths or monasteries in his native country; but, as was the custom with the learned men of his age, he spent much of his time in travelling, engaging in successful controversy, defeating the sects of Vishnu, and extending the worship of Siva. Towards the close of his life he visited Kashmir, the Saraswatî river, and

Wilson's works, vol. i. p. 196.

2 Wilson's works, vol. i. p. 196, note.

DASNAMIS.

CHARVAKAS.

271

the Himalaya mountains. He is supposed to have lived in the eighth or ninth centuries. Many valuable works, chiefly commentaries, were written by Sankara, and by descendants, who appear to have belonged exclusively to the mendicant classes and to Sankara-âchârya; and apparently most of the leading intellects of India took the abstract Siva as the type of Supreme Deity, but to this they added Vedânta doctrine, and more or less of Yoga practice. Doctrine of this kind is also advocated by Rammohun Roy, in his works on the Vedanta and the Upanishads.

The beautiful temples in western India, described by Colonel Tod in the second volume of his "Rajasthan," are dedicated to Siva. In an exterior niche of one of these temples at Barolli he found the bas-relief of Siva, with eight arms, which we have given at page 261 of this chapter. In another compartment he discovered the mild-looking Siva, with three heads, as below,the third eye, typical of intellect. being very marked.1

1 For elucidation of the snakes around this figure, we must refer to Mr. Fergusson's recent work, on Tree and Serpent Worship.

the disciples of Vrihaspati. Something of their doctrine may be gathered from the drama called Prabodhachandrodaya, of which a notice will be found in our section on dramas.

But little more space can be allowed for sects; for the horrid Durga-pûjâ and other noisy festivities which amaze Europeans, are what may be called aberrations from recognised Hindu worship. These have never been countenanced by those whom we should consider as genuine Hindus; and well-educated native gentlemen of the present day would not reckon these abominations as included in Hindu national worship.'

"The Saurapâtas, those who worship Sûryapati, the sun-god," are very few in number, and "scarcely differ from the rest of the Hindus in their general observances." Their necklace should be of crystal; they eat one meal without salt on every Sunday; and moreover, they cannot eat until they have beheld the sun.

And again, the worshippers of Ganesa, the fat man with an elephant's trunk, can scarcely be considered a distinct sect. "All Hindus, in fact, worship this deity as the obviator of difficulties and impediments; and never commence any work, or set off on any journey, without first invoking his protection." But Ganesa is never, we understand, the exclusive object of veneration.2

Other gods or goddesses are local or occasional,—as a goddess of small-pox or cholera, or of any other evil which strikes dismay into human hearts; but such worship is usually confined to the more ignorant classes.

1 Wilson's works, vol. i.

p.

216.

I 2 Wilson, 1. 1., vol. i. p. 266.

Origin of Caste.-Divinity of Brahmans not taught in older works.-Industrious classes.-Villages self-governed.-Agriculture; trade; taxes; money.-Penal enactments.-Theoretical Súdras.-Women.-Kshattriyas; Brahmans; life from birth to death.

THE Code of Manu assumes that Brahmans were created to study and teach the Vedas, and perform sacrifice; Kshattriyas, to protect the people; Vaisyas, to be industrious; and Sûdras, to be servile. But in Sanskrit works, anterior to the YajurVeda, no such system is to be found.

Mr. Muir has collected many passages relating to the subjcet, and finds it "abundantly evident that the sacred books of the Hindus contain no uniform or consistent account of the origin of castes, but, on the contrary, present the greatest varieties of speculation;" "the freest scope," Mr. Muir says further, "is given by the individual writers to fanciful and arbitrary conjecture."1

....

The common story is, that the castes issued from the mouth, arms, thighs, and feet of Brahma. In its oldest form this representation was probably an allegory. In the Code of Manu, and in the later works called Purânas, the mystical import disappears, and "the figurative narration is hardened into a literal statement of fact." The conclusion at which Mr. Muir consequently arrives is, "that the separate origination of the four castes was far from being an article of belief universally received by Indian antiquity." Society was undoubtedly divided into a variety of ranks, classes, and professions, but was not in the time of the hymns believed to have been derived from four distinct sources.

"On the contrary, it appears from a considerable number of passages, that at least the superior ranks of the community were regarded as being of one stock,—the Aryan.'

There is, in fact, no plea in Hindu sacred books for divine origin of caste; but there is much evidence that, from very early periods, Brâhmans were assumed to be divine, as in the TaittirîyaBrahmana it is written

"The Brahman caste is sprung from the gods; the Sûdra from the Asuras." 3

The Sanskrit word for caste is varna, which means colour; and Professor Lassen suggested that this probably betokened that difference of complexion was the ground of distinction of

Muir, Orig. Sanskrit T., vol. i. (2nd ed.), 1868, pp. 159-160.

2 Muir, Orig. Sanskrit T., vol. i. (2nd ed)., p. 162.

3 Ibid, p. 21.