. Pictorial history of China and India; comprising a description of those countries and their inhabitants. ferent attributes of one power,Brama being worshipped as the Creator of all things, Vishnu as the Pre-server, and Siva as the Destroyer. The sun, moon, and stars, were alsoearly objects of adoration, as were likewise the elements, and some of therivers, among which latter the Ganges was held the most sacred, and con-tinues to be so to this day. The Bramins taught the doctrine of transmi-gration, which is still the prevailing faith of the Hindus, who believe thatbetween every state of exis
. Pictorial history of China and India; comprising a description of those countries and their inhabitants. ferent attributes of one power,Brama being worshipped as the Creator of all things, Vishnu as the Pre-server, and Siva as the Destroyer. The sun, moon, and stars, were alsoearly objects of adoration, as were likewise the elements, and some of therivers, among which latter the Ganges was held the most sacred, and con-tinues to be so to this day. The Bramins taught the doctrine of transmi-gration, which is still the prevailing faith of the Hindus, who believe thatbetween every state of existence upon the earth they shall pass many thou-sands of years, in either bliss or pain, among the ever-blooming bowers ofbeneficent deities, or the gloomy abodes of evil spirits. They believe thatVishnu has already appeared in the world under nine different forms, thelast of which was that of the sage Budha, worshipped by the Chinese, whocame upon the earth in the fifth century before the Christian era. Siva isrepresented as a god of Terror, dwelling amid eternal snows on the summit EARLY HISTORY. 361. Vishnu. Siva. Braiiiii. of the Himalaya mounlains, with his consort, the goddess Devi, to whommany temples in India are dedicated. The simple religion which, at first, taught the people to adore one divinepower as the universal Creator, and other gods merely as personificationsof his various attributes, in course of time degenerated into idolatry, by thepractice of setting up numerous heroes as objects of adoration, and fillingthe temples with their images. Among the most celebrated of these wereRama and Crishna, two great warriors, the former supposed to have beenthe first king of Oude, the latter the first king of Magadha ; and both arestill worshipped in most parts of India. Each is adored by his votaries asone of the several forms of Vishnu, and the two great epic poems of Ram-ayuna and Mahabharat, which, together with the sacred books, constitutethe chief authorities for the
Size: 1990px × 1256px
Photo credit: © The Reading Room / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookc, bookdecade1850, bookidpictorialhistoci00sear, bookyear1851
