lo{ . An account of the Maun Bhoivs. [Jan, 



was excommunicated from his order. As these mendicants 

 show little or no respect to the Brahmins, they seem to think 

 this is the reason of their imputing such an impure origin to 

 them. The Maun Bhows themselves assert, that their fra- 

 ternity has existed from time immemorial; that during* the 

 Krittah Yeoguh (or the first age of the world according to 

 the Hindoos) the four sons of Brahma named Sunuk, Sunuk 

 Adik, Sunuk Nundun, and Sunnuk Koomar, were the spiri- 

 tual guides of the Maun Bhows : and during the Tuetah 

 Yeoguh, Duttattry Swamy was their spiritual guide ; and in 

 the Dwarpah Yeoguh when the deity appeared on earth in 

 the person of their beloved Krishen., and declared himself 

 the friend and instructor of Arjoon and Oodhow, that both 

 of the latter were elected the spiritual guides of the Maun 

 Bhows; at the above period the Maun Bhows worshipped 

 Krishen as their true and only god to the exclusion of all 

 others. They state, that in the present age or Kaly Yeoguh 

 the two spiritual brothers Kuveesswurbas and Oopaadbas 

 were the chief Mhunths or the superiors of their order ; and 

 as the country at the time was in a very unsettled state, so 

 much so, that poor and pious pilgrims encountered the great- 

 est imaginable difficulties when strolling from one Mhutt to 

 another, owing to the roads being infested with robbers : 

 that the members of the fraternity came to the resolution of 

 adopting black clothes as their dress ; the colour being sacred 

 to Krishen, and appearing in such a humble and unassuming 

 habit, would ensure impunity from robbers, and prevent 

 oilier persons being uncivil to them. 



Notwithstanding the plausibility of this attempt, to esta- 

 blish the antiquity of the institution of their order, I am dis- 

 posed to think that it merits little credence ; for by all ac- 

 counts there is no allusion made to this sect m any of the 

 Hindoo works treating of the pure and mixed castes accord- 

 ing to the Unoolome and Pruteelome order, that were known 

 to have existed about twelve or fifteen hundred years ago. 

 Under these circumstances it is natural to conjecture, that 

 about a thousand years may have elapsed since they originat- 

 ed ; for there is a tradition of the famed Heemar Punt, who 

 it is said was some eight hundred years since, prime mi- 



