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nearly over the head of Siva, is a thing like a mitre, with a crozier 

 cut deep into it, and surmounted with a cross; but the limbs of 

 the cross not exactly at right angles. Two aged and emaciated 

 males are on the right (the spectator's right) of the mitre, holding 

 up their hands, betokening pity and pain; on the other side of 

 the mitre are two similar figures. In front of each pair is a pros- 

 trate distressed male child, their heads near the mitre; beyond the 

 last mentioned pair, on the spectator's left, are a male and female 

 in great anxiety and distress, holding scarfs in their hands. 



" Near this compartment, but advanced into the body of the 

 cave, so as not to be interposed, is a room, twenty-two feet square, 

 with a door in each face; and on each side the door a gigantic 

 male figure, in stature sixteen feet, highly ornamented; this room 

 contains a monstrous linga, plainly indicating for whose worship 

 this temple was intended. But neither this, nor any other part of 

 the caves of Elcphanta, is used as a temple, by modern Hindoos; 

 it has no establishment of brahmins, or endowments: but neigh- 

 bouring individuals make occasional offerings of prayers and ob- 

 lations. I have seen the lingas adorned with recent flowers; and 

 rice on the yoni at the foot of it. Brahmins generally disregard 

 imperfect images; the sad mutilations at Elephanta may well, 

 therefore, have caused their neglect of it. 



" It has been said in support of some hypothesis, that the 

 Vedas and Puranas, the sacred books of the Hindoo, make no 

 mention of this cavern temple. But who has sufficiently examined 

 those wonderful volumes to be enabled to say so? Several of our 

 Sanscrit scholars have given us many surprising things that they 

 do contain; but a knowledge of what they do not contain, or, 



