382 A DISSERTATION ON SEMIRAMIS, 



mycologists called the Wanderings of Demateh, 

 and the Lamentations of Bacchus. 



The world being thus deprived of its vivifying 

 principle, generation and vegetation were at a stand ; 

 Gods and men were alarmed; but having discovered 

 the cause of it, they all went in search of the sacred 

 Linga ; and at last found it grown to an immense 

 size, and endowed with life and motion. 



Having worshipped the sacred pledge, they cut it, 

 with hatchets, into one-and-thirty pieces, which Poly- 

 pus-like, soon became perfect Lingas. The Devatas 

 left one-and-twenty of them on earth ; carried nine 

 into Heaven, and removed one into the inferior regi- 

 ons, for the benefit of the inhabitants of the three 

 worlds. One of these Lingas was erected on the 

 banks of the Cumud-vati, or Euphrates, under the 

 name of Ba'le'swara-Linga, or the Linga of Is- 

 war a the Infant , who seems to answer to the Jupi- 

 ter Puer of the western mythologists. To satisfy 

 De'vi, and restore all things to their former situa- 

 tion, Maha'-de'va' was born again in the charac- 

 ter of Bals'swa'ra, or Is war a the Infant. Ba- 

 lE'SWa'raj who fosters and preserves all, though 

 a child, was of uncommon strength; he had a beau* 

 tiful countenance; his manners were most engag- 

 ing; and his only wish was to please every body ; 

 in which he succeeded effectually ; but his subjects 

 waited with impatience till he came to the age of ma- 

 turity, that he might bless them with an heir to his 

 virtues. Bale'swa'ra, to plcafe them, threw off his 

 childlike appearance, and suddenly became a man, 

 under the titleofLi'LE'swARA, or Iswara, who gives 



pleasure 



