Photo by John J. Banninga 



THE CEREMONIAL BATH 



Here we see Brahmin women, members of the highest caste among the Hindus, engaged 

 in the ceremonial bath at the Golden lyily Tank in the temple at Madura. Each temple has 

 its tank where the devotees can perform the bathing ritual that precedes almost every act of 

 the Hindu's religious life. 



car are eight feet in height and a foot 

 thick, and are made of solid wood. The 

 axle, also of wood, is a beam more than 

 a foot in diameter. 



The cars are pulled by means of long 

 ropes of cocoanut fiber more than three 

 inches thick and a couple himdred feet 

 long. Even when several hundred men 

 pull on these ropes it is impossible to 

 start the car, so large levers, a foot thick 

 and 20 feet long, are used to set it in mo- 

 tion. Then there is a great shout from 

 the people, and they drag it along, some- 

 times only for a few feet, and then again 

 for a couple hundred yards. There is no 

 steering gear, so wooden wedges are used 

 to put under the wheels. By slipping 

 down the greasy surface of these wedges 



the car is swung around corners on a 

 large circle. 



As the car passes along, men and 

 women bow down and worship the gods. 

 Some pass up their offerings to the priests 

 in the car, while all raise their hands, 

 palms touching, before their faces in 

 deepest reverence until the car has gone 

 beyond them. Many of the poor out- 

 caste people, who are not allowed in the 

 inner precincts of the temple, make use 

 of this occasion to see and worship the 

 gods. Judging from their faces, there 

 is no doubt about their believing that 

 they see the god himself, and that they 

 worship the image as such. 



But, by some mistake or other, Allagar, 

 the brother of Meenachi, who was to 



1327 



