The fiery eloquence that stirs the soul,
The poetry that can create a world
More lovely than our own, and body forth
Its glorious creation, and yet blend
This fine enthusiasm with an eye
Worldly and keen, which sees in others' faults,
Frailties, and follies, but the many means
Which work to its own ends: yet, out on pride!
Such men may live, fulfil their destiny,
Fill a whole land with temples and with tombs,
And yet not leave a record of their fame;
Forgotten utterly; and of their faith,
No memory, but fallen monuments,
Haunted by dim tradition.—
"All accounts of the Hindoos speak of a most dreadful persecution carried on by the Bramins, the sect of Bhud, many years ago, and the subsequent expulsion of the latter, whose doctrines extend over Ceylon, Thibet, Tonquin, Cochin China, throughout China, exists largely in Japan, and is without doubt the religion which has the most numerous followers in the world. Next to this, I suppose, the Christian can boast the greatest number of believers; then the Mahometans; and, lastly, the Braminical—being the four principal religions which divide the habitable world.
"As to the antiquity of the two religions, if we allow the figure of Bhud to be the personification of fire, as some of the statutes representing this deity have a small flame on the tops of their heads, and that one of the earliest religions amongst mankind sprung from natural respect towards the sun, and also grant that the Bramins come, according to their own admission, from the northward, the preference seems due to that of Bhud."
See Colonel Fitzclarence's (now Lord Munster's) Journey Overland from India; one of the most interesting and able works of the time.
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