CHAPTER VI.AUSHEEN, SEPTEMBER.
The Doorga pooja.
This is the grand worship of the Hindoos. Men of humble circumstances cannot bring the image of Doorga into their houses, because it requires a large amount of money to make the necessary preparations. The image itself is always the largest and most expensive; to speak nothing of other things which, though economically arranged, demand a large sum. Fifteen days or more before the worship, the whole country is in excitement. Men who, under various circumstances in life, spend their days as exiles in distant places, come home on this occasion to greet their dearest relations once more. The distribution of presents to, and reception of them from, the friends and neighbors is universally observed. Even the very poor, low-caste man, who can barely clothe his children in winter, and must go barefooted all the time, would buy new dresses, shoes, etc., for his little ones, in the Doorga pooja holidays. The rich, charitable Hindoos give Barshick—an annual gift of money and new clothes—to the Brahmuns, as well as to the domestics and poor people, that they may not appear naked and grieved before Doorga, their common mother. The amount of the sale of all sorts of articles is proverbial,—“The very dust of the Doorga pooja market is dear;” “There was such a crowd at the store that you could crack twentyheads by one stroke,”—such are the phrases they use to describe the market in September. The mechanics, the artists, the jewellers, the farmers, bring the results of their respective labor and skill to contribute to this occasion. But notwithstanding the joyous festivities, the presents and profusion, I am sorry to say the thing has a hideous feature. Those who spend their means in wicked and riotous living desire more than usual, on these days, to satisfy their own sensual appetites, and those of their wicked companions; and, failing to do it, resort to unfair means, and act as thieves, pirates, and murderers. The penitentiaries are crowded with these unfortunate people, who, hoping to spend the holidays merrily, live wretchedly under the strict regulation of the prison and the weight of their fetters! A sad contrast indeed! Before I describe the image, the preparation, and the worship, I will consider who the Doorga is, whom my country regards as the great goddess.
Doorga was the only child of Hymaloy and Manoka, who ruled the mountainous region of India in times of yore. There is a great deal of mysterious conjecture in regard to the name and nature of Hymaloy, the father of the great goddess; and I would bring them to the notice of my Christian readers. A story universally believed by the Hindoos, says: In ancient times the mountains were living, movable bodies, endowed with the use of senses, and could fly in the sky by means of wings, and this Hymaloy was their king. In course of time, these mountains grew very troublesome to their fellow-creatures, the men; and, jealous of each other’s power, they began to make inroads upon the cities situated on the side, vale, or top of their antagonists. They did not use any arms in their warfare; but, to accomplish their end, used to fly in the air, and aiming at a certain doomed place, fell upon it, and buried thereby houses,trees, men, women, and all! To put a stop to these outrages, Por-oosh Ramah,[19]a deified king, cut off the wings of all the turbulent mountains, which thenceforth lay as immovable masses of earth. As I write this, fancy carries me to the top of the Rollstone in Fitchburg, Mass., where I saw a heavy boulder, which they say is an entirely different species of rock from the Rollstone. I think (in fun though) that the statement of the Hindoo legend is true; this boulder, if not the son or grandson of the old hill, was perhaps the child of its neighbor, came there to make a call, and, amid the general slaughter by the god, who spared neither age nor sex, lost its wings, and consequently has lain on the bosom of the Rollstone ever since! The legend deserves another remark. It was a noble, heroic act in Por-oosh Ramah to cut off the wings of the injurious mountains which were then filling the world with horror and devastation. But it is a hard thing to stop the course of nature. The naturally cruel mountains, having lost their wings and unable to fly about and tyrannize over others, now and then open their monstrous jaws, and send forth fire, ashes, and melted lava to the neighboring places, and destroy everything therein. Thus the beautiful cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum were destroyed by the cruel Vesuvius.
Now to the point: I think the father of Doorga received his name from the mountain Hymaloy, or the mountain from him. It was, and now is, the fashion to name places, mountains, and rivers, after some distinguished persons, or the persons after the places. Thus, we have Alexandria from Alexander,Rome from Romulus, St. Louis, St. Lawrence, Mount Washington, and Scipio Africanus, etc.
Let the Hindoos believe whatever they will about the parents of Doorga, she herself was, beyond question, the delight of her subjects, and the pride of the age she lived in. Her popularity among the people, her wide renown of noble, generous character, as painted with the dazzling hues of Oriental imagination, had made such an impression on the minds of the people, that, in succeeding ages, the ignorant but grateful posterity deified and made her the “Great Mother” of the universe. Her worship rose from the following fact.
It is the custom of the Hindoo females to visit their parents once a year, at least. Doorga was married to Shiba, the Destroyer. At the invitation of her parents she forsook the pleasures of Hoylas,[20]and came to cheer up their lonely hearts by a kind visit in this month. She came only for three days, for her husband could not come with her, nor live in her absence. To commemorate that event, the Hindoos construct her image, and with great rejoicing worship it for three days.
Here I will describe the image, with all its peculiarities. I use the technical term of the Hindoos when I say “the image,” or “Prothima,” for it contains nine different idols, although they call it one.
I am sure the description of the goddess will be amusingly absurd to the Christian reader; but I will represent it just as it is, and finally show that, far from being the real representation of some deity, it is merely an ideal thing,—the contrivance of Fancy.
The goddess is like a young female of sixteen, with ten hands, three eyes, deep yellow complexion, and stands in a posture placing her right foot on the back of a lion and the left on the shoulder of a monster. The monster, “Mohisha Soor,” comes out of the neck of a buffalo, in whose body the lower half of his person is deposited. He has a sword in his hand with which he meant to strike the goddess. On her right are Shoreshotee and Gonesh,—the one the goddess of poetry and music, and the other the god of success. On her left are Kartic and Lock-hee, the god of the babes and the goddess of riches. These four are the children of Doorga. Besides these she holds a serpent by one of her left hands, which bites the monster,—the enemy of its mistress. Looking at the image carefully I perceive it is nothing more than the embodiment of all the necessary comforts, pleasures, hopes of life. We want relief from the overwhelming sins which beset us in every direction; the monster is the representation of them, whom the goddess is cutting asunder. We want wealth, learning, success, children, and behold there are the symbolical representations of all these in the names of the sons and daughters of Doorga. Thus the ancient Brahmuns have painted whatever they have touched with philosophic colors, and arrayed before the people hosts of deities, which are essentially the painted, clothed, personified attributes of One God. The system was well adapted to the capacity of that distant age,—the age of figures, allegories, and sentiment; but the present age demands a clear, simple, and intelligible faith.
The worship commences on Shop-tomee,—the seventh day of the full-moon,—and occupies three successive days. Early in the morning of the first day is the bathing of “nine leaves,” of which the banana is the chief. This isdone with much ceremony, in the presence of thousands; the bells ringing and trumpets sounding by hundreds. They place the “nobo-pothrica,” nine leaves, by the side of the image, dressing it like a female.
As the Hindoo mode of worship is almost always the same, and quite different from that of the Christian, I will here detail it in full, instead of describing it partially here and there. The image is placed in the middle of the hall, facing the main entry into the house. Two Brahmuns officiate at the same time; the one conducts the practical and the other the theoretical part of the ceremony; in other words the former does what the latter tells him to do. Thus the first, the head priest, sits before the image with a pile of flowers and perfumatory powders on his right, and a bell on the left; while the second takes his seat only a few steps from the first, with his sacred Scripture laying open before him, which he reads to direct his colleague how to proceed. The priest, first of all, is required to purify himself, the place he sits on, and the water he uses in the worship, by some ceremony. The doctrine of self-purification is good in its nature, and a Christian one too. Christ inculcated such on his disciples. But what a sad contrast stands between a Brahmun’s and a Christian’s mode of self-purification before worship! A Christian is taught to search the innermost parts of his heart, and bring out, if there be there, any impure, selfish, or passionate inclinations; and, leaving the sacrifice before the altar, go and make peace with his brother, or in some other way expel evil thoughts, and then pray. A beautiful process of self-purification indeed! But the Brahmun repeats some Sanscrith words, puts a flower on his own head, and turns his hands round his head, for the same purpose. This symbolism takes a prominent part in the Brahminic dispensation.
Lest the sprinkling of water and the shower of wet flowers might soil the dress of the idol, or wash away the painting, a copper tub is placed between the priest and the image, into which he casts flowers, pours water, etc. Some prayers are offered to the children, the friends, the servants, the messengers, even to the ornaments and household furniture of the goddess.
The offering of Noi-bitho comes in course. Hundreds of wooden or brazen trays are loaded with wet, raw rice,[21]fruits of nearly sixteen kinds, and other sweet things. These eatable things are set on the right hand side of the image, with the belief that it will cast its glance at them. The priests entreat the idols to accept the offering they bring, and drink the honey, milk, and water, etc., which they place before it. After these have been accepted by the goddess (as they believe), they are distributed to the Brahmun families.
Then comes the sacrifice. The Hindoos cherish the same notion of this offering as the ancient Hebrews did. In the Old Testament we read of the peace-offering, and the burnt-offering, and of the children of Adam bringing lambs, vegetables, etc., to the altar of the Almighty. The difference is, then, in the choice of the beast for the offering. The Hebrews used to kill oxen, which the Hindoos do not. The latter slaughter goats, sheep, and buffaloes, of the male sex, in presence of their idols; and, at the end, cut sugar-cane, pumpkin, etc., into pieces.
The place where the beasts are slaughtered is the middle of the yard, where a wooden block, with a jog on its top, isstuck in the ground. The blacksmith is the only caste to kill the victim for the others, although some Brahmuns do that part, to the displeasure of others.
The executioner, his scimitar, the block, the victims, animal or vegetable, are all washed and purified with sacred water. Nobody is allowed to lean against or touch a pillar, wall, or anything else. All stand straight, separate, and silent. One holds the hind-legs of the he-goat by his left hand and its fore-legs by his right, places its neck on the block, and then the blacksmith lifts up his fatal weapon, and the people shout aloud, “Victory to thee, O Mother!” The moment the last word, “Mother,” has been uttered, the head of the victim falls bleeding on the ground, the bells ring, trumpets sound, the people jump in joy, and clap their hands. There is no precise number of the animals for the offering; it may be more or less, according to the circumstance and the inclination of the worshipper.[22]If the man fails to kill the beast by one blow, it is regarded a mischievous omen. Hence, at the successful blow, the master of the house takes the executioner by the arm, puts flower garlands round his neck, and presents him with some money, clothes, etc.
In the afternoon is the “vogue,”—dinner. It is to be observed here that the Hindoos of all castes do not offer boiled food to the idol,—such as rice, vegetables, fish, meat (of the he-goat only). They make various distinctions between boiled and fried food; some is allowable, and others not; for instance, a Brahmun would eat cakes fried by a confectioner, but not rice boiled by him. The Brahmuns only present rice, vegetables, and other cooked food, to the idols, which are offered in the same way as the fruits, specifyingthem by the name. When they bring these to the hall, they sprinkle the river water along their path, on which the Brahmun with the dishes in his hands treads. When the goddess is supposed to cast her glance at, or to indicate an acceptance of the costly dishes, the screens are hung so that none of the lowest caste can see what is going on behind.
The invited guests, as well as other poor low-caste people, take their places in the order of their castes, and the Brahmuns serve them at the dinner. O, the pleasant task! although, personally, I had neither faith in nor delight at the worship of the idol, and stood aloof in the hour of sacrifice, burning of incense, and offering meat to the senseless deities, yet I used to come at this time and offer my services in distributing food to the people. But as a disciple of Him who blessed, loved, and ministered to the poor, neglected, and low, I was particularly mindful to serve and wait upon such as rarely received much care and attention from an orthodox Brahmun. Thus, during these three days the people dine at each other’s houses, and all at the house of the Brahmuns who are highest and first in order. In the evening, the hall, the parlor, the entry, and the outside of the house, are all illuminated with chandeliers, lanterns, etc.
The priest performs the “aurothee,” or moving of “four lamps” before the face of the idol. While he is thus engaged, ringing a bell by his left hand and moving the lamps by his right, some burn perfumatory incense and fan the idol, and others devote themselves to silent prayer; the band also plays in the yard. At the close, every soul present is on his knees or breast, prostrating before “wood or stone.” I was often found on the outside of the house, away from the idol, at this time.
The guests appear again, and are entertained. The invited guests, the men of wealth, offer a present of money tothe idol, when they come to the outer piazza of the hall. Beautiful it is to see men of different ages and circumstances visiting house after house, in crowds, in the excited, festive, superstitious Bengal. Would to God it was for some other occasion, and not for the worship of the idols.
Late in the evening begin the music, singing, dancing, theatrical shows, etc., quite different from those of Christians, both in regard to time, process, and substance. The usual hours for these are from eleven in the evening until six or seven in the next morning. On other occasions, when there is no idol to worship particularly, the music and shows extend twelve hours, without intermission. During these hours the people sit still, sometimes go out, promenade, chew spices, smoke tobacco, etc. The yard of the house, accommodating several hundreds, is the place where the theatrical plays and other amusements are held. For the information of the reader, I should describe in this place the musical entertainments of the Hindoos. They are far inferior to those in this country, in regard to the gorgeousness of the scenery; but far superior in point of elegance, taste, and composition, either of the tune or the play itself. A visit to the Boston Theatre, and the splendid spectacle displayed therein of “Faust and Marguerite,” have made me think the Hindoos are superior in their intellectual displays, while the Americans excel in scenic representations. Dancing in India is regarded in a contrary light from what it is in this country. Hence, those who dance in the public theatre or private parlor are from the lowest castes, if they be men, or public prostitutes, if women. For the Orientals deem it a shame, an improper act, for women to sing or dance before men. The dancing of a young girl in the above theatre in Boston, and of others in thepolka, would well confirm the Oriental estimation of female dancing. The spectators donot gather promiscuously, and pay the admittance fee, as they do in this country. The music, dancing, or shows, whatever they might be, are open to all,—but it is in a rich man’s house, where the heads and backs of persons glitter with gold and jewels; the folks with cotton are not welcome. However, they have other places to go to, where every attention is shown to them. A Bengalee proverb says: “One door is closed against, while hundreds are open to us.” I said there is no promiscuous gathering; I mean the gathering of both sexes. The women sit apart behind the screens, from whence they see everything without being seen. But this is not the case with all. Sometimes a young woman, with vain heart and handsome casket—body—manages to thrust out to the public gaze her pretty hands, glittering with costly ornaments. Thus the first two days of the Doorga pooja pass by, and the third or last is before us, with its singular, absurd amusements. It iskatha matie, amusement with clay. After the usual sacrifices have been offered, they wet the yard, and men of every age fall upon each other, singing and dancing in abominable ways. Some songs are purposely composed in vulgar words and sentiments, to be sung before the goddess, their Mother! This mistaken band of men and boys, with instrumental and vocal music, visit every house in the neighborhood which has the image within it. As a token of respect, the master of the house, or his representative, cordially receives this foolish party, and joins their number. You must join them, otherwise they will run after you, put clay on your clothes, and make you come at any rate. As they pass by, it is difficult to recognize them by their faces. Their clothes and whole bodies are so covered with clay, that at the first sight you will take them for some strange creatures, or John for James and James for Charles! Christians, who have no faith in theforeign missions, think the Hindoos are well off. Come! O come and see this single abominable, adulterous amusement of these men, the sad, the mistaken specimens of humanity, and you will find a great gulf lies between you and them. Thank your God and be grateful to his mercy. Spread the light abroad that has been committed to your care, that millions of the Great Human Family may see their course through the precipitous way of life!
Now, on the fourth, or last day, the image is thrown into water, with absurd ceremonies and costly shows. Agreeably to the order of exercises performed when a woman leaves her father’s house for that of her husband, the women walk round the image, put some lunch in her hand, and entreat her to come again the next year. The men write their names on somebāleleaves, and deposit them at the feet of the goddess, hoping she will remember them by their individual names.
In the afternoon the bands play, the flags are waved, the guns fired, and the image is carried to the river Gunga. Some people throw the images into the water, while others take them on board of boats, and thereby give the goddess a good sail. While young, I used to cry for this treatment toward the “Mother,” and ask my father why it would not be better to send her home by carriage, than sink her into the water. When it becomes dark they return to their homes, the bands playing a melancholy tune.
The benediction is offered by the priest at the place where the idol was. A jar with water in it is placed on the same seat which the goddess occupied, people sit on every side, and the priest sprinkles the “peace water” on their heads. Lest the sacred water should fall on their feet, which are regarded profane by the Hindoos, they cover them with their clothes, while their heads are exposed to the shower from the priest.
After this is performed what seems to me the best part of the worship, i. e. the greeting of each other with salutations. Each person takes a quantity of sweet confectionery with him, and goes round from house to house receiving or giving salutations, according to his position. I will describe this more distinctly. The Brahmuns do not salute other castes; and the grown-up people receive homage from their juniors, but do not give them any. Thus, a young man prostrates himself before his older brother, and both before their parents, uncle, aunt, etc. They put a little confectionery to each other’s mouths, and embrace each other. On this occasion they use an intoxicating drug called “Vang;” with the exception of this, I like the proceedings of the evening. Thus close the Doorga-pooja holidays; doing some good, at least to the poor, for they are well cared for, entertained in feasts, and admitted to the fine shows in the splendid houses, where they are not allowed to enter on other occasions. Besides these, they get such a quantity of expensive eatable things as they never tasted before, and which they enjoy for a week or more.