Photo by John J. Banninga 



l^Hi: TKMPIvi: KlvEPHANTS 



On all great occasions in India, whether religious or social, the elephant, in his gay 

 trappings, plays an important part. Here we see the elephants of the great temple at Madura 

 ready to lead the procession at the marriage of the gods. 



Day by day the ceremonies lead up to 

 the marriage, which takes place on the 

 full moon day of the month Chitrai, 

 which this year fell on April 20. Visits 

 must be exchanged between the relatives 

 of the bride and groom. Presents must 

 be made and horoscopes examined and 

 found correct. But, finally, all is ready, 

 and with impressive ceremonies Siva is 

 brought from his inner shrine and placed 

 on a pedestal in the marriage hall. Then 

 Meenachi, for whom the great temple 

 in Madura is named, is also brought out 

 and placed beside him. Priests repre- 

 senting the two gods are kept busy an- 

 ointing them with oil and garlanding 

 them with flowers and in giving presents 

 to each other. 



The whole ceremony seems very im- 

 pressive when judged by the seriousness 

 of those who perform it, but to the 

 Western onlooker it seems to belong to 



the same age as the map of the universe 

 which is painted on one of the walls of 

 the room. In this the earth is repre- 

 sented in the center of the seven seas 

 that are supposed to surround it — seas 

 of water, air, butter, ghee, honey, etc. 



The morning after the marriage all 

 the people take part in the great proces- 

 sion around the town, when the gods 

 are placed in the huge temple cars and 

 taken around the principal streets. The 

 largest of the cars is the gift of the Rajah 

 of Ramnad, a local prince, who is said 

 to have spent some 60,000 rupees ($20,- 

 000) on this gift. The car stands not less 

 than 50 feet high when the bamboo and 

 tinsel top is included. The lower part, 

 which forms the platform on which the 

 images rest, must be at least 30 feet high, 

 and is built of deeply carved wood, the 

 figures representing the gods and heroes 

 in various attitudes. The wheels of the 



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