ART. VI.-1. An Account, Geographical, Statistical and Historical of Orissa Proper, or Cuttack. By A. Stirling, Esq

2. The History of Púri: with an Account of Jagannath; also a Succint Description of the Southern Division of Zillah Cuttack. By Brij Kishore Ghose, Head Clerk. Cuttack, 1848.

3. Indian Report of the Orissa Baptist Mission—for the year 1846.

4. India's Cries to British Humanity, &c. By J. Peggs, late Missionary at Cuttack, Orissa. London, 1830.

5. Sketches chiefly relating to the History, Religion, Learning and Manners of the Hindus, &c. By Q. Craufurd. London, 1792.

6. Heeren's Historical Researches. Translated from the German. Vol. III. Asiatic Nations. Indians. Oxford, 1833. 7. The Hindu Pantheon. By Edward Moor, F. R. S. London, 1810.

8. Madras Journal of Literature and Science. No. 32, January-June, 1847.

9. Elphinstone's History of India. London, 1841.

10. The Despatches, &c. of the Marquess Wellesley, K. G. 11. Regulations of Government.

12. Various Official Documents and Correspondence, (hitherto unpublished.)

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IN the "Advertisement" to the first Number of this Review, all the able and willing were invited to come forward and "declare what they know." It was the original design of the work to apply its pages to the purposes of a vast commission." We come forward, then, to do our best in adding to the records of that high trust, by descriptions of places, temples, and matters over which we have dwelt with some degree of attention. In addition to the full consideration of the chief subject of this paper, it is not our intention here to advance any new theories, or enter into lengthy arguments for the support or downfal of old ones, on the history, religion, and architecture of Orissa. From the grounds afforded by us we shall leave the reader to form an opinion of his own. It is our principal object to present, in a popular form, a great mass of information on subjects not generally known; but with which every resident

in India-particularly every public officer-should be acquainted. The rise of one religion and the decline of another are not matters of ordinary importance in the political management of a country. The archæology of Hindustan is now disclosing subjects of intense interest to many; and the Hindu mythology was not thought unworthy to form a considerable portion of the bounteous labours of one who was named by a contemporary sage" the most enlightened of the sons of men."*

Frequent have been the hopes expressed in this Journal for an improved condition of the Hindu mind, and many have been the expositions set forth in its pages of the foul contagion with which that mind is saturated,-aided by declarations of various means of cleansing it; but, hitherto, in the attempt to purify the Indian intellect, by exposing the errors of its ways and the darkness by which it is surrounded, India's greatest monster of iniquity has escaped being dragged to the front:-need we name the temple of JAGANNATH?†

The reasons for the omission on our part have been various; but that which preponderated was the all-sufficient one, that, until lately, we had little or no new material to work upon.

About the middle of the year 1846, the Bengal journalsamong whom we may mention the Friend of India, the Hurkaru, and the Englishman-discussed, at considerable length, and with great force and clearness, the question of British connexion with the temple of Jagannath. This discussion was brought about by the appearance of a "Blue-Book" from England, containing "correspondence and minutes relative to the superintendence of Native Religious Institutions."‡ We

• Sir William Jones was so styled by Dr. Samuel Johnson.

Since the commencement of our labours no subject has given us more varied or endless trouble than the representation of Oriental terms in Roman characters. While many follow Gilchrist's system, and many, Jones' system, with perhaps sundry arbitrary modifications, there are not a few who appear to follow no known system at all-their own ear being seemingly their only guide, and, in the course of the same paper, favouring us with three or four variations in the orthography of the same word. Having ourselves a decided predilection, on principle, for Sir William Jones' system, as beyond all question, on philological considerations, the most exact and as the system steadily pursued by the Asiatic Society of Bengal, and with slight variations by the most learned Orientalists, throughout the world-we have endeavoured, though by no means with uniform success, to introduce the system into most of the articles which have appeared in this work. The term "Jagannath" we have, in the course of our reading, seen written in at least a dozen different ways. Now there is no dubiety as to the word itself in the Sanskrit and its dialects. The only letters there are j, g, n, nath; each consonant having in it, the inherent short sound of a. According, therefore, to Sir William Jones' system, the word should be written Jagannath. It is compounded of two words, jagad, (in composition, jagan) world, and náth, lord; meaning "Lord of the world."

We have made no use whatever of the Blue-Book in the present article-although, doubtless, much that we have brought forward to suit our purpose is contained therein.

well recollect wading through that mass of papers and letters on a very intricate, yet, from local acquaintance, to us a highly interesting subject.

But we sought for something more than could be extracted from documents and official correspondence, in which there was little information concerning the town of Púrí and the temple, as they are and were.

To supply this deficiency of narrative, we certainly, among a few other writers, had Stirling, the great authority on Orissan matters. And we have had no hesitation in placing the historian's valuable "Account" at the head of this article, as nothing better than it can be consulted for information on the past state of Orissa; and it abounds with interesting details concerning the "mighty Pagoda or Pagod, the mirror of all wickedness and idolatry"-Jagannáth-as, in many respects, it is now and was in days gone by.

Through the enlightened liberality of Lord Dalhousie's government, the whole of the official documents and correspondence concerning Jagannath have been allowed us for the present occasion.

We had likewise the good fortune to hear of an intelligent Hindu, by name, Brij Kishore Ghose, who had, for a considerable time, been collecting and condensing materials for "A History of Púrí," &c. These materials are now before us in the shape of a work, or rather pamphlet-which, considering the limited means of the establishment, does the Orissan Mission Press considerable credit-and the appearance of which is an event of some importance in the annals of Indian literature. Here is the round, unvarnished truth told by a native-himself not a Christian-regarding a vast abyss of corruption, near which he has resided for four and twenty years;-and the work of this "tell-tale" Hindu will, we feel confident-if it meets with the circulation it deserves-do more good than the most powerful invectives against the immoralities and impurities attendant upon idolatry. The heresies of Jagannath, we now fully believe to be sincerely exposed to view by this extraordinary authority, who, regardless of the dissentient voice of his Hindu brethren, has lifted the veil,-drawn up the curtain and represented a drama of evil spirits, and calculated to a fraction the iniquity and misery pertaining to the worship of the delusive Lord of the World." Thankful, then, ought we to be to the author-for India's sake-that he has given us good reason to exclaim, in the emphatic language of the "Tempest""Hell is empty

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And all the devils are here!"

We shall have occasion to notice a considerable portion of this new work as we proceed with our article-which, as the reader doubtless expects, will savour rather more of narrative than criticism.

Orissa may be compared to a huge cauldron, which has been boiling for many hundreds of years,-into which ignorance, stupidity, and bigotry, have cast so many poisonous ingredients, that it is difficult to say when the contents will become purified and good.

Its early history is perhaps more wrapped in obscurity than that of any other province. Ignorance, oppression, and superstition, garnished with the deceitful trappings of romance, either by, or through the means of, self-interested potentates, have, for many ages, gilded the misery which has been endured by its poor deluded inhabitants. Filth and every abomination of the earth have been converted by the Heathen poets into sacred streams, and fragrant flowers, and fruits of exquisite flavour. Idolatry has sanctioned these descriptions as well suited to her purpose. And yonder!-leaning against the threshold of the small temple over which he presides-behold the bigoted Brahman, with a countenance seeming to glory, as it were, in his fallen state. If you ask him concerning any of the beautiful and wonderful remains of the former greatness of his country, he knows nothing about them, save what consists in a few words, like the reply to the question respecting ruins in the Antiquary-" they were made by the monks lang syne."

It is related by the Annalists of Orissa, that, "when the famous Sivai Jay Singh, the General of Akbar, marched with an army into the country in 1580, A. D., he was struck with amazement at the sight of its sacred river the Mahánuddi,-its vast crowds of Brahmans, its lofty temples of stone, and all the wonders of the ancient capital Bhuvaneswar,-and exclaimed, 'This country is not a fit subject for conquest, and schemes of human ambition. It belongs wholly to the Gods, and is one entire Tirth. He accordingly interfered little in its affairs, and soon returned to Hindustan." We imagine, from this burst of admiration, that the "General of Akbar" proceeded no further than Bhobanéser-as we shall term it, according to the modern pronunciation--which certainly is, even at the present day, a wondrous sight to see. Imagine a vast space of some two or three miles in extent, abounding with beautiful temples, some entire, some in ruins-the former, as it were, representing, the Brahmanical scientific genius and vivid imagination of former

* Tirth -a sacred place of pilgrimage.

ages, the latter emblematic of these gifts now fallen to decay. But more of this ancient "city" hereafter:-a powerful illustration of the freedom of Hindu intellect checked by a pitiful fanaticism, and the stern resolution of millions to pass a useless life.

Orissa is entirely indebted for celebrity to its temples, places of pilgrimage, and its Brahmanical institutions. But, among these, the Hindus look upon the name-Jagannath-the Lord of the World—as the inspiring soul of all;-and the town of Púrí, or Púrí Jagannath, owes its importance entirely to its connexion with the temple. This Mecca of Hindustan is resorted to by pilgrims from every quarter of India. It is, as is well known, the chief seat, in Eastern India, of Brahmanical power, and the principal stronghold of Hindu superstition. Connected with Puri Jagannath, there is much that is interesting and amusing in the fabulous records of the early sovereigns of Orissa.

The four ages of the Hindus are the Satya Yûg, the Treta Yûg, the Dwapar Yûg, and the Kali Yûg-or present age-these ages corresponding in their natures to the golden, siver, brazen, and iron ages of the Greeks. The history of Orissa begins with princes connected with the-" Mahá Bhárat”—or the great war, about the opening of the Kali Yûg or evil age, according to Hindu chronology, 3001 B. C. Krishna-who in his youth was a shepherd, and is likened in this capacity, as Gopala the herdsman, to the pastoral Apollo-in various Hindu works, is said to be the most remarkable incarnation of Vishnu. Jagannáth again is said to be one of the many names of Vishnu, in the manifestation of Krishna. About the commencement of the Orissan annals, the Brahmans, with their accustomed ingenuity, cause thirteen of their traditionary Rajahs to reign for 3,173 years.

Thirteen bona fide kings only may have reigned during the above enormous space of time; "but, says Stirling, "in relating the succession of reigns, no distinction is drawn between those personages who were local or dependant princes, and these whom it is intended to represent as the monarchs of a large part of India. "

As we may with justice suppose the feudal system to have been a popular one in Orissa's ancient times, it is not improbable that the minor feudal chiefs may have played their cards like so many Robespierres of the great French Revolution :-for ever on the alert to kill a king.

During the reign of the fifth of these few ancient monarchs of Orissa, considerably before the Christian era, the province extended from Húgly, in lower Bengal, to the Godavery at