point of death delays the fatal journey to the river, he will die like Raja Nuvů-Krishnů.'

Dead bodies are brought by their relations to be burnt near this river; and when they cannot bring the whole body, it is not uncommon for them to bring a single bone and cast it into the river, under the hope that it will help the soul of the deceased.

In the eastern parts of Bengal, married women, long disappointed in their hopes of children, make an offering to Gunga, and enter into a vow, that if the goddess will give them two children, they will present one to her and it is not uncommon for such women to cast the first child into the river as an offering; but it is said, that at present some relation or religious mendicant stands ready to preserve the life of the child. The mother cannot take it again, but this person adopts and provides for it. These offerings are made on the tenth of the moon in Jyoisht'hŭ, and on the 13th of Choitrů.

Some persons even drown themselves in the Ganges, not doubting but they shall immediately ascend to heaven.

* Many persons, whose relations die at a distance from the Ganges, at the time of burning the body preserve a bone, and at some future time bring this bone and commit it to Gŭnga, supposing that this will secure the salvation of the deceased. The work called Kriya-yogŭsară contains the following curious story:-A bramhăn, who had been guilty of the greatest crimes, was devoured by wild beasts; his bones only remained. A crow took up one of these bones, and was carrying it over Gŭnga, when another bird darting upon it, the crow let the bone fall. As soon as the bone touched Gunga, the bramhŭn sprang to life, and was ascending to heaven, when the messenger of Yumă, the judge of the dead, seiz ed him, as a great sinner. At this time Narayŭnu's messengers interfered, and pleaded, that the sins of this man, since one of his bones had touched

The shastrů encourages this. It is a sin for a bramhun, but an act of merit in a shōōdrů or a dŭndēē, if he be in worldly trouble, or afflicted with an incurable distemper. The Gunga-Vakya-Vulee says, 'Should any person have eaten with another who is degraded for seven successive births; or have committed the five sins, each of which is called muha-patŭků; should he have eaten the food which has been touched by a woman in her courses; or have constantly spoken falsely; or have stolen gold, jewels, &c.; should he have killed the wife of his friend; or have injured bramhuns, or friends, or his mother, &c.; or have committed the sins which doom a man to the hell called Mŭharourůvů; or have committed those sins for which the messengers of Yumŭ constantly beat a person; or have committed multitudes of sins in childhood, youth, and old age; -if this person bathe in Gunga at an auspicious period, all

Gunga, were all done away. The appeal was made to Vishnoo, who decided in the bramhun's favour. The bramhun immediately went to heaven.

y The Skйndů pooranů declares, that by dying in the Ganges, a person will obtain absorption into Brůmhů. The same work contains a promise from Shivů, that whoever dies in Gunga shall obtain a place in his heaven. —The Bhůvishyů pooranů affirms, that if a worm, or an insect, or a grasshopper, or any tree growing by the side of Gunga, die in the river, it will obtain absorption into Brůmhů.—The Brůmhů pooranŭ says, that whether a person renounce life in Gunga, praying for any particular benefit, or die by accident, or whether he possess his senses or flot, he will be happy. If he purposely renounce life, he will enjoy absorption, or the highest happiness; if he die by accident, he will still attain heaven.-Mŭnoo says, A mansion with bones for its rafters and beams; with nerves and tendons for cords; with muscles and blood for mortar; with skin for its outward covering; filled with no sweet perfume, but loaded with fæces and urine; a mansion infested by age and by sorrow, the seat of malady, harassed with pains, haunted with the quality of darkness, and incapable of standing long; such a mansion of the vital soul let its occupier always cheerfully quit.'

these sins will be removed: he will also be admitted into the heaven of Brumha, the Pŭrům-hŭngsee; be put in possession of the merits of the man who presents a lack of red cows to a bramhun learned in the four védus; and afterwards will ascend and dwell at the right hand of Vishnoo. After he has enjoyed all this happiness, and shall be re-born on the earth, he will be possessed of every good quality, enjoy all kinds of happiness, be very honourable, &c. He who shall doubt any part of this, will be doomed to the hell called Koombhée-paku, and afterwards be born an ass. If a person, in the presence of Gunga, on the anniversary of her arrival on the earth, and according to the rules prescribed in the shastrus, present to the bramhuns whole villages, he will obtain the fruits that arise from all other offerings, from all sacrifices, from visiting all the holy places, &c.; his body will be a million times more glorious than the sun; he will obtain a million of virgins, and multitudes of carriages, palanqueens, &c. covered with jewels; he will dwell for ages in heaven, enjoying its pleasures in company with his father; as many particles of dust as are contained in the land thus given away to the bramhŭns, for so many years will the giver dwell in happiness in Vishnoo's heaven.'

Every real Christian must be deeply affected on viewing the deplorable effects of this superstition. Except that part · of the rig-védŭ which countenances the burning of women alive, no writers ever gave birth to a more extensive degree of misery than those who have made the Ganges a sacred river. Thousands, yea millions of people are annually drawn from their homes and peaceful labours, several times in the year, to visit different holy places of this river, at a great expense of time, and money spent in making offerings to the goddess; expensive journeys are undertaken by vast

multitudes to obtain the water of this river, (some come two or three months' journey for this purpose,) or to carry the sick, the dying, the dead, or the bones of the dead, to its banks. What the sick and dying suffer by being exposed to all kinds of weather in the open air on the banks of the river, and in being choked by the sacred water in their last moments, is beyond expression. In short, no eyes, but those of Omniscience, can see all the foul deeds done upon and by the sides of this river; and the day of judgment alone can bring all these deeds to light. The bramhun will then see, that instead of Gunga's having removed the sins of her worshippers, she has increased them a million-fold.

SECT. II.-Other deified Rivers.

THE Godavŭree, the Nurmŭda, the Kavérēē, the Atréyēē, the Kurŭtoya, the Bahooda, the Gomutēē, the Surŭyoo, the Gundŭkēē, the Varahēē, the Chŭrmŭn-wŭtee, the Shůtůdroo, the Vipasha, the Goutŭmēē, the Kurmŭnasha, the Shonů, the Oiravŭtēē, the Chundrůbhaga, the Vitŭsta, the Sindhoo, the Bhŭdra-vŭkasha, the Pănŭsa, the Dévika, the Tamrupůrnée, the Toongŭbhudra, the Krishna, the Vétrůvutēē, the Bhoirůvů, the Brůmhů-pootrů, the Voiturŭnēē, and many other rivers, are mentioned in the Hindoo shastrus as sacred.

At the full moon in Asharhů, many thousand Hindoos assemble at Průtapŭ-gŭrů, a place to the west of Lucknow,

• Many thousands perish by the dysentery, and others through want, in these journies.

and bathe in the Godavŭrēē, or in the remains of it, (for at this season of the year this river is nearly dried up.)

On the last day of Choitrů, a large assembly of Hindoos meet at Modŭphůrů-poorů, about sixteen miles from Patna, where the Gundakēē, the Suruyoo, and the Ganges meet. The assembly remains eight days, and a large fair is held on the spot, at which horses, camels, and other beasts, and also children, are bought and sold: the price of a boy is from ten to twelve roopees; that of a girl is less.

On the same day a large concourse of Hindoos, some say as many as 20,000, principally women, assemble at Uyodhya, to bathe in the Suruyoo.

On the 14th of the decrease of the moon in Phalgoonů, an equal number of people are said to meet on the banks of the Suruyoo at Bůhŭrăm-ghatů, near Lucknow but they do not bathe in the river, the water of which is very filthy, but in a sacred pool adjoining.

On the banks of the Yumoona, on the second of the moon in Kartiků, and on the eighth of the decrease of the moon in Bhadrů, vast crowds of Hindoos assemble in different places to bathe.

The Brůmhů-pootrů receives the same honours on the eighth of the increase of the moon in Choitrů. At a place

b There are several causes why particular places of these rivers are esteemed peculiarly sacred. Some of these causes are given in the shastrŭs, and others arise from tradition. One instance of the latter occurs respecting Voidyvňatēē, a place near Serampore, where Nimaee, a religious mendicant, performed his devotions, and where at present, at a conjunction of particular stars, multitudes assemble to bathe.