14' An account of the Maun Bhoivs, [Jan* 



The above extracts from the Geeta which constitutes the 

 Maun Bhow's sacred volume, will partly show what the ten- 

 ets of their belief ought to be. We. know that the Brahmins 

 profess their belief in a Supreme and Eternal God, but that 

 from motives of policy and for the purpose of engaging the 

 attention of the ignorant, it has been deemed necessary and 

 becoming to pay their adoration to the Omniscient through 

 the medium of image worship. The doctrines of the Maun 

 Bhow faith, seems to be a spiritual system of pure de£sm, 

 which teaches them to lead a simple, innocent and pure life, 

 renouncing all connection with worldly affairs, and occu- 

 pying their time as much as possible in meditating on the 

 -attributes of their deity in the hope that they may obtain 

 final beatitude by absorption into the essence of the Supreme 

 Being. 



It can scarcely be supposed that the Maun Bhows would 

 have many converts to their faith ; or that their creed would 

 be very popular with the people : the circumstances of their 

 being obliged to lead a wandering and most abstemious life, 

 to subsist on whatever the charitably disposed may bestow on 

 them ; to submit patiently to indignities that may be offered 

 to them ; and to be attired in the doleful habiliments of their 

 order, might altogether be considered very forbidding and 

 quite sufficient to deter many persons joining their fraternity 

 — who otherwise would have no objection to pass an indolent 

 life and live on the bounty _cf their frie nds. But the main 

 support oTTrTe sect arises from the superstitious character of 

 the Hindoo females and that of many of their husbands : for 

 it is not unusual for such females as have been disappointed 

 for several years in not having any offspring, to vow that in 

 the event of their longed for wish being realised, through 

 the favour of some god or the blessing of some holy per- 

 sonage, they will dedicate their first-born, whether it be 

 a male or female child to such a deity or devout character. 

 In the Mharatta country children are frequently consecrated 

 to the Maun Bhows in this way, likewise when the children 

 of a family .continue very unhealthy or die from some consti- 

 tutional disease, the parents will vow to dedicate one of 

 them to the Maun Bhows : or a child is handed over to them 



