80 ORIGIN AND DECLINE OF THE 



III. The decline of the Christian religion in Indian 

 inust be attributed, in a great measure, to the pro- 

 gress, equally rapid and astonishing, of hlaviism, in 

 Sp^ia, Persia, Egypt and Arabia. The Christians in 

 these countries, being in a state of distraction, no 

 longer sent pastors to I?idia ; as we are informed in 

 a letter written in the seventh century, and still 

 extant, according to Mr. Turner. There we see 

 the Nestorian Patriarch J esuja^us of Abiabene, re- 

 proaching the Metropolita?i of Persia, with having 

 shut the doors of the episcopal imposition of hands, 

 before many people of India: that the sacerdotal 

 succession had been interrupted, from the maritime 

 borders of Persia, down to Colon, or Coilan, a space 

 of above 1200 Farsangs. This agrees with what is 

 related by Aluselman writers, who say, that in the 

 reign of the Caliph Abdulmalec, in the latter end 

 of the seventh century, the Christians of India sent 

 to Simon, the Syrian and Jacobite Patriarch of Alex- 

 andria, requesting that he would send them a bishop.* 



The bulk of the Christians of St. Thome, according 

 to Mr. Wreue, like the 'Aryyas, consisted of con- 

 verts from the higher classes ; and they were nearly 

 upon the same footing with the Brdhmcns, and Nairs 

 or nobles. They were originally much respected by 

 the Hindus, and native princes ; and they considered 

 themselves equal in rank with the Brahmens and 

 Nairs, and claimed the same exemptions and privi- 

 leges, which were granted to them. Many amongst 

 them, preserve till now the mjinners, and mode of 

 life of the Brdhmcns, as to personal cleanliness, and 

 abstaining from animal food : and the Roman missiona- 



f See D'Hbbbelot's Bibliotli. Orient, v. Heud. u. Sind p. 415. 



