for hé is grossly ignorant of the Hindoo 
faith. He tells us, “the dogma of 
Brama is not without dissentients : some 
worship Chiven, or the bad principle.” 
It would be impossible to exhibit more 
- gnorance in so few words. What is 
| meant by the dogma of Brama? If he 
| means that all the Hindoos do not ac» 
knowledge Brama to be the chief object 
of their worship: the truth is, that he 
is so acknowledged by none, for the 
compleat conquest of his sect is sha- 
. dowed out in the fable of his contest 
with Veeshnoo. So also M. Grandpré 
| is equally mistaken in identifying the 
evil principle with Chiven, or rather 
Seeva, for as the English have written 
best, and laboured most assiduously 
n this dark subject, their nomencla- 
e has the fairest claim. Seeva is god 
e destroyer; but destruction in a 
| system of perpetual renovation, only 
implies change, and has nothing in com- 
‘mon with evil. 
\ “In their chauderies,”’ says the author, 
|| the Hindooslie down to sleep without 
| order or distinction ; if an European be 
| present, they have the complaisance to 
| eave him a little corner to himself.” If 
is complaisance be explained, it means 
at they avoid him to escape pollution. 
We know no writer whose errors and 
ienorance deserve to be exposed with 
‘more severity than is justly due to M. 
icendpré Witness the insolence and 
| detraction of the following passage: 
> 
 *€Some modern authors, and particularl 
_the English, have made us acquainted with 
_ passages of their sacred books, their Veidam 
and their Ezourveidam ; and in the national 
ibrary at Paris is a translation of the Cor- 
vovedam. I respect the profound know- 
ize of these authors; I pretend not to call 
_ their honour in question ; but would rather 
“Balers, since they affirm it, that the trans- 
lations they give us are authentic, or at least 
| that they ink so themselves. I shall only 
remark, how much it is to be wished, that 
is sacred language of the Bramins were 
publicly known, that we may all be enabled 
to profit by the light which must result from 
in acquaintance with the annals of so anci- 
ent and so learned a people. Iam far from 
ishing to throw doubts upon such supposed 
books of theirs as have been made known to 
us: my opinion, besides, would have but 
little weight against authorities so great; vet 
it appears to me, that whoever has been 
personally acquainted with the Bramins, 
and has studied their character and pre- 
dices, must be strack with the unusual 
marks of confidence which the communi- 
vation of such passages implies, and the 
GRANDPRE’S VOYAGE TO BENGAL. 5h 
inferences to which such confidence would 
lead. Ifa person thus acquainted with them 
were disposed to make objections as to these 
puree: he might-say, ‘* The Bramins are 
y no means communicative; it is a point 
of their religion even, to conceal from all the 
world the ‘knowledge of their language and 
their bonks. We mast therefore suppose, 
that some of their chiefs, for they alone 
have the custody of the books and the law, 
have conquered the aversion they naturally 
entertained for ‘foreign casts; have lost all 
remorse at so flagrant a renunciation of their 
precepts: and have chosen to risk their be- 
ing excommunicated from their cast, which 
they value above life itself, rather than dis- 
oblige a stranger, who might have asked them 
for so important communications.” 
«« I am aware, that these writings are now 
matters of general notoriety; that the most 
celebrated authors are eager to propagate 
them: fragments of these sacred books are 
printed in almost every publication; travel- 
Jers have even professed to have acquired a 
erfect knowledge of the sanscrit language at 
engal. All this isso common, that [ought 
to believe it, and I do so, though these 
Bramins are greatly under the influence of 
their religion, which imposes a law upon 
them to conceal from us what we thus pre- 
tend to know; though a much lighter fault 
will subject them to the loss of their cast, a 
calamity which they will sacrifice every thing 
to avoid, or, when this has happened, to 
regain the privilege ; though even when lost 
irrecoyerably, the person so situated still re- 
mains invariably attached to it, and does not 
on that account the less completely despise 
all other casts ; consequently, never endea- 
yours to avenge himself by betraying his 
own: in short, though it were possible to 
believe, that, to get rid of the importunities 
of those who solicited them, they had en- 
- tered inte an agreement among themselves, 
to communicate tmerely indifferent circum- 
stances, with the hope of being left quiet 
as to other matters, or had even inyented 
what has been told us, for the express pur- 
i of putting an end to the inquiries of 
uropeans, by pretending to satisfy us, and 
thus conceal more effectually all knowledge 
of their real mysteries,—in spite of all this, 
can I do other than believe what has been 
told us by so many respectable authors? 
But let me be suffered once more to remark, 
that if the communications which the Bra- 
mins have made to us be true, they must 
have transgressed the laws of their religion ; 
that if they have so far betrayed their trust, 
they must have lost that inviolable attachment 
to it, which for so many ages has maintained 
in them the most profound secresy upon the 
subject; that if the spirit of exclusion to- 
wards strangers be destroyed in them, the 
line of demarcation by which they were se- 
parated from the rest of the world must be 
‘destroyed ; and, that if the secrets of¢their 
cast are unveiled, the respect which it has 
x2 
