44 1 The Difcovery, Settlement, and Commerce Book 1 
great Difficulty of a Work of this Kind, fmee, except the 
Voyages of Iambulus and Near chus, which we have already 
given the Reader, in their full Extent, there is nothing of 
this Kind preferved ; that is to fay, there is nothing pre- 
fer ved intire, and in the Manner in which Relations of this 
Sort are, and ought to be written ; but the Obfervations 
of Travellers are fcattered through a Multitude of Books, 
relating to Geography, Hiftory, Philofophy, Politicks, 
and other Kinds of Learning ; from ail which I have 
drawn them out, and ranged them in fuch an eafy and na- 
tural Order, as that I flatter myfelf the Reader will perufe 
them with the fame Eafe and Satisfaction, as if they were 
the Obfervations of a modern Traveller, and the Fruits of 
a Angle Voyage. 
By running through thele, he will be completely Mailer 
of all that can be known upon this Subject at this Day; and 
by comparing what thefe old Writers have delivered, con- 
cerning the Religion, Government, Laws, Manners and 
Culloms of the Indians , the Animals, Trees, Fruits, 
Plants, Stones, and other Curiofities of the Indies , with 
the fucceeding Voyages and Travels of fuch as have vifited 
the fame Countries, in later Times, he will be able to 
difcover not only where the Antients have erred, and to 
how great a Degree, but will be alfo able to diftinguiili 
the Caufes of thofe Errors ; and fometimes, perhaps, will 
find, that they are not altogether fo great as they havq 
been reprefented, but that fome of the Miftakes with 
which they are charged, have been, in Reality, owing to 
the Miftake of their Meaning, or to the over-lfrainin° it 
where, by taking it in a milder Senfe, it might have been 
brought very near the Truth. Add to this, that thefe Ac- 
counts are, to the full, as curious and entertaining, have 
as much Spirit and Variety, contribute at once to inform 
and to delight as much, as any modern Accounts what- 
ever : For tho* it may be true, that for want of the Lights 
which we poffefs, they are lefs exacl, yet, as far as their 
Lights went, they were moll certainly capable of oi v i no - 
as clear, as circumftantial, and as pleafing Accounts, as any 
that have come after them. 
SECTION XI. 
An Account of the Religion , Government , Laws , Cuftoms and Manners of the Indians, as 
they are recorded in the Worh of antient Authors. 
I. Of the Religion of the Indians, their Sacrifices , and other Rites , with fome Reafons tending to prove, 
that in thefe early Rimes they were not Polytheifs or Idolaters. 2. An Account of their antient Monar- 
chies the Power of their Princes , their Palaces , Magnificence of their Courts , &c. 3. The Divifion 
of the People into (even Clafjes ; a diflinff Account of each Clafs ; and a fort View of the good Confequenc.es 
flowing from this excellent Regulation. 4. Of their Drefs, and of the Changes introduced by their Com- 
merce with the Greeks, who had embraced the Manners and Cuftoms of the Perfians. y. Of the exalted 
Virtue , ft riff Honour , and uncorrupted Probity of this Nation ; and the Means they ufed to extinguif 
Ambition , Malice , Fraud , and other Vices. 6 . Their Frugality in Rating and Drinking , the Plain - 
nefs of their Houfes and Furniture ; with other Inftances of their extraordinary Temperance and Mode- 
ration. 7. Their natural Magnanimity , and noble Contempt of Death ; the Cufiom of Wives burning them - 
/'elves with the Bodies of their Husbands , and the Reafons aifgned for it. The Striffnefs and Severity 
of their Laws. 
i,¥T is natural, in fpeaking of the Inhabitants of any 
I Country, to begin firft with their Religion. In this 
JL refpect the Greek Writers report of the antient Indians 
many Things, which feem more agreeable to their own No- 
tions, than to the Conduct of the People of whom they fpeak. 
They report that they worfhipped the Sun and the heavenly 
Bodies a ; and we are farther told of a raoft glorious Temple 
of the Sun, the Walls of which were of red Marble, re- 
fembling Fire, and interfperfed with Streaks of Gold: The 
Image of the Sun on the Pavement fo intermixed with 
Pearls, and precious Stones, that the Reflexion of them 
appeared almoft as radiant as the heavenly Body it repre- 
fented. And after they were thoroughly acquainted with 
the Greeks , they are faid to have imitated their Cuftoms 
by fettirig up an Image of an Elephant, which they called 
Ajax ; two Statues of Gold to the Honour of Alexander , 
and two others of Porus in Brals b . Their Worfliip of 
the Sun is faid to have conflfted in a kind of circular 
Dance, by which they feemed to intimate, that by the 
Morion of that Luminary the Univerfe fubfifted c . It 
appeared from their Sacrifices, and other religious Rites, 
that they held the Egyptian ox Pythagorean Principle ot 
the Mmmpfychofis , or the Pafiage of the Soul from one 
Body to another ; and this Notion of theirs, that the fame 
Soul, which animated a Man, might be nowin a Plant or in 
a Beaft, reftrained many of them from any other Sacrifice 
than that of Libation d : Others are faid to have offered 
Animals, but without cutting their Throats, that they 
niight avoid fpilling the Blood, which they thought ren- 
dered the Victim imperfect ; and, therefore, the Prieft 
contented himfelf with ftrangling them. It was farther 
remarked, that in this Ceremony the holy Man did not 
wear a Wreath, or Crown, as the Priefts of all other 
Nations did e . 
In their grand Solemnities, they were wont to make 
very pompous Procefiions in Honour of their Divinities ; 
in which they, from a Principle of Conference, difplayed 
all their Wealth, as a Teftimony of their believing it de- 
rived to them from the Bounty of the Gods. On fuch 
Occafions, a great Number of Elephants marched at the 
Head of the Procefiion, covered with Ornaments of Gold 
and Silver ; then followed many Chariots, richly adorned 
with the fame Metals ; the labouring Oxen, yoked in 
Couples, fucceeded next ; after them the Soldiers, richly 
dreffed, carrying Pots, Kettles, Bafons, Cups, Tables, 
and other Utenfils for the Feaft, all of Plate richly adorned 
with Diamonds, Rubies, Beryls, Carbuncles and Pearls : 
They, fometimes, alfo led tame Leopards, Lions, and 
Tygers, in thefe Procefiions ; and, at other times, they 
carried Cages full of Birds, the Melody of whofe Songs, 
joined to the Tabor and Pipe, made up all the Mufic of 
the Feaft. 
When, by excefiive Rains falling in the Northern Part 
of the Indies , their Rivers fwelled beyond meafure, and 
the flat Country was too much and too long under Wa- 
ter, then the King or Sovereign, in every little Diftrict, 
made ufe of certain Ceremonies to appeafe the Wrath of 
the Gods, and to procure fair Weather. In thefe Cere- 
monies they are faid to have facrificed Bulls and Horfes 
that were Coal-black, becaufe fuch Cattle were rare, and of 
great Price ; and they likewife threw -a Golden Bulhel into 
the River ; which Ceremonies the Greeks likewife ufed to 
obtain the Favour of Jupiter , the Giver of Rainh As 
they were a very temperate and abftemious People, they 
never drank Wine but at thefe Feafts ; and even their 
Princes themfelves, as Apollonius reports, drank that Li- 
quor only when they offered to the Sun. There is, how- 
ever, great Reafon to doubt, whether much Credit is to 
b Philojl. in noit. Apollon, lib. ii. c. 1 1 . c Lucianus de Sal- 
f Arrian, in Indicis. Strabo, lib. xv. 
be 
a Photius ex Ctefia. PK Curt. lib. viii. <r. 9. Philojl. lib iii. c. 3. 
fatjpne. 
a Herodot. lib. iii. c. IOO. Philojl. ubi Jup. 
e Strabo , lib. xv. /. 7 10. 
