66 HISTORY OF INIHA. [Book IV.
A.D. — city; and while almost on every other subject a general listlessness and apathy prevail, Hindooism, without one particle of rational evidence to support it, keeps Hmdooism. its head erect, and stands its ground even when confronted with Christianity. This tenaciousness of life is doubtless owing in part to the way in which it gratifies the wishes of our fallen nature ; but there is reason also to suspect that a nervous anxiety to avoid everything that might tend to awaken suspicion or alarm in the native mind has often operated as a direct encouragement to Hindooism, and placed it on a kind of vantage ground which it is not entitled to occupy. Aiiegeii toi- Hindooism is precluded by its very nature from attempting to gain converts of Hindoo- from other religions. Every individual who professes it must have been born a ^^' Hindoo, and belong to one or other of its numerous castes. The admission of a
foreigner is consequently irapcssible, and there can be no such thing as conver- sion in the ordinary sense of the term. Men not born Hindoos cannot possibly become so by any other kind of process. Occasionally some eccentric European has renounced his own civilization, and become a professed worshipper of Brahma, Vishnu, Siva, and others of the multifarious gods of the Hindoo pan- theon; but nothing could remove the taint of his birth, or make him anything better than an outcast. From not attending to this fact, or drawing the proper inference from it, some writers have launched out in the praises of Hindooism as a tolerant system, and contrasted it in this respect with the intolerance and persecution which figure so frequently and prominently in the history of the Christian church. A Hindoo, it is said, bears no enmity to a Mahometan or a Christian. Neither to the one nor the other does he apply the opprobrious epithets of heretic and infidel. On the contrary, he liberally expresses his belief that the supreme Being who gave him his religion gave them theirs, and that each, therefore, does right in worshipping according to his own. This talk is specious but hollow. The Hindoo, regarding his religion as his birthright, cannot think that any disparagement is cast upon it when those born vrithout its pale, and consequently incapable of belonging to it, worship differently. The true way to test his toleration is to attend to the feelings with which he regards those who, born Hindoos like himself, differ with him in regard to some of the essential points of their common faith. Here only there is risk of collision, and therefore here only is there full scope for the exercise of toleration. Brought to this test, it will be found that Hindoos are as illiberal, virulent, and blood- thirsty as tlie worst persecutors who have disgraced the Christian name.
Tliough the Hindoos do not, like the Roman Catholics, pretend to be under the guidance of a living infallible head, who, by deciding points of faith, secm-es a species of external unity, they possess standards which they believe to be , inspired, and to which, therefore, whenever questions arise, the ultimate appeal must be made. These are the writings of which some account has already been
given. They are included under the general name of Sastras or Shasters, and
