Lieut. -Colonel Tod on tlie Religious Establishments ofMewar. 303 



sun) form the three idolatrous classes of India, not confined to its modern 

 restricted definition, but that of antiquity, when Indu-sChan, or Indu- 

 Scythia, extended from the Ganges to the Caspian. In support of the 

 position that the existing polytheism was unknown on the rise of Vishnuism, 

 we may state, that in none of the ancient genealogies do the names of such 

 deities appear as proper names in society, a practice now common ; and it 

 is even recorded that the rites of magic, the worship of the host of heaven, and 

 of idols, were introduced from Cashmer, between the periods of Crishna and 

 VicRAMA. The powers of nature were personified, and each quality, mental 

 and physical, had its emblem, which the Brahmans taught the ignorant to 

 adopt as realities, till the pantheon became so crowded that life would be 

 too short to acquire even the nomenclature of their " thirty-three millions 

 of gods."* No object was too high or too base ; from the glorious Orb to the 

 paring-knife {Ranvpi) of the shoemaker. In illustration of the increase of 

 polytheism, I shall, by and bye, describe the " seven forms" {sat'h-riipa) 

 under which Crishna is worshipped, whose statues are established in the 

 various capitals of Rajast'han, and are occasionally brought together at the 

 festival of Ancuta at Nat'hdwara. 



The international wars of the Suryas and tlie Yadu raceis are described 

 in the Ramayuna and Mahabharat, though lost between allegory and literal 

 interpretation. The Suryas, or Saivds, were depressed ; and the Indus, 

 who counted " fifty-six " grand tribes, under the particular appellations of 

 Talcshac (serpent), Aswa (horse), Sassa (hare), &c. &c., and collectively 

 Indu, had paramount sway. Crishna's schism produced a new type, that 

 of the eagle, and the wars of the schismatics were depicted under their 

 respective emblems, the eagle and serpent, of which latter most probably 

 were the Gurus, the political adversaries of the Fundus, who were the 



The Ptt'rcetaccE (Mountain-Tah) of Alexander were doubtless of this race, as was his ally Taxi- 

 LES, which appellation was titular, as he was called Oraphis till his father's death. 



Taxiles may be compounded of es, lord or chief, sUa, rock or mountain, and Tah, — " lord of 

 the mountain Tak," whose capital was in the range west of the Indus. We are indebted to the 

 Emperor Baber for the exact position of the capital of this celebrated race, which he passed in 

 his route of conquest. We have, however, an intermediate notice of it between Alexander and 

 Baber, in the early history oftheYadu Bhatti, who came in conflict with the Taks on their expul- 

 sion from Zabulist'han and settlement in the Punjab. 



• Tyntces crore devata. 



