has no power to take away their lives or anywise punish them even for conspiring against his own life. They choose their own superiors; and their chief priest or archbishop is invested with the power of settling all religious disputes. The body of the Tirinanxes are elected by the king from among the nobles, and they are consequently men possessed of power and influence even independent of their sacred character. The honours and respect with which they are every where attended show the strong hold which they have on the minds of the people. All ranks bow down before them; when they sit down, they find their seats covered with a white cloth; and when they walk forth, the broad end of the talipot leaf is borne before them: all these are privileges of the highest kind, and shared with them only by the monarch. The Tirinanxes are also exempted from all taxes. They are placed under certain restrictions, and are totally debarred from wine or women. They have, however, an opportunity of escaping from these restraints; and are allowed to lay aside their order when it suits their inclination. "Their dress consists of a large loose piece of yellow cloth thrown over their left shoulder, and fastened round the waist by a girdle of the same. The right shoulder, the arms, the head, and the feet, are completely bare. In one hand they carry a painted cane, and in the other an umbrella of the broad end of the talipot leaf. "The temples of Buddou are superior to those of all the other deities; for they never dedicate temples to the Supreme Being, nor represent him by any image. In the temples of Buddou are figures of men habited like his priests, and placed in various postures: some of them are seen setting cross-legged on the ground with long bushy heads of hair like their women, while others recline at full length on the ground. At Ruanelli, in the interior, I saw a monstrous figure, upwards of twenty feet in length, placed in the cavern of an immense rock, which lay at the bottom of a hill: I shall describe it more particularly in my account of the embassy to Candy. "In the interior of Ceylon, the ruins of the pagodas and temples which fell in my way were all of hewn stone, and of much superior workmanship to those in the lower parts of the country. Several of them were in a perfect state of preservation; and, on a comparison with those erected in later times, they afford the strongest proof either that the Ceylonese had formerly attained a much higher state of civilisation, or that the island had anciently been inhabited by a different race from its present possessors. Most of these ancient monuments however have suffered severely from the ravages of the Portuguese, whose policy it was to destroy all monuments of art or former splendour among the unhappy natives. But the religious buildings of the Ceylonese were not only defaced and ruined by their barbarous invaders; even the materials which composed them, the hewn stones and massy pillars, were transported to the sea-coasts to erect fortifications, and rivet those chains which were imposed on their former worshippers. "The temples dedicated to the inferior gods are poor, mean, and contemptible; and usually con structed structed of clay and wood. In ge neral they are mere huts, one story high, without windows, and cover ed with cocoa-tree leaves. At the doors of these homely edifices, a pole or flag is commonly placed, and by it a priest is seen sitting during the whole course of the day. There is no figure too ridi culous to find a place within: be sides swammies of all constructions, there are representations of wild beasts, birds, pieces of consecrated armour, and some very indecent fi. gures of men and women. the priest and the temple are the constant remedies. Hence all the religious resorts are daily crowded with diseased votaries, who expect, by the prayers which they offer up, to appease the incensed gods. Nor do they ever neglect to enforce their prayers by a gift, which they devoutly deposit on the altar. The priest presents it up with all due ceremony to the god; and after its purpose is thus served, very prudently converts it to his own use. It is a rule with their priests never to quit the temple till replaced by some of their own order; and by this means the offerings of the devotees are punctually received, are making a tour of the country in search of casual contributions. "The priests of the inferior deities, though dressed in the same manner with the tirinanxes, are easily distinguishable by the small-while another party of the priests er degree of respect which is paid them. They are continually met in their wandering excursions over the island, and, like all those of the same class in India, are a set of lazy, impudent vagabonds, who, without any exertion or industry, are enabled to live well by the extortions which they practise on the people. Even those who supply their demands are conscious of their vices; but superstitious fears have taken too deep a hold on the minds of the votaries to permit them to withdraw themselves from the yoke. "The superstition of the Ceylonese serves instead of regular endowments for the support of their religious establishments. The Candians indeed allow certain portions of land and particular taxes to maintain their priests and religious houses, particularly those of Buddou. The inferior pries, however, are left to support their temples and themselves by their own dexterity, and in this task they are very successful. As all sorts of diseases are accounted immediate indications of the divine wrath, "The time of sickness is of course the season when the priests expect their principal harvest. Besides other offerings, it is usual for a Ceylonese when he is apprehensive of danger from his illness, tó devote a cock to the devil or evil spirit who he imagines torments him. The animal is then left at home to fatten till the Jaddese or priest finds it convenient to dedicate him at the covel or temple. When any particular festival or sacrifice is intended, it is usual to see the priest going from village to village to collect the dedicated cocks for the occasion; and he often procures several dozens at a time. "The days appointed for attendance on the places of religious worship, are the Wednesday and Saturday of every week: the sick, however, flock daily to them, There are several particular festi vals held in honour of their gods, and with a view to conciliate their favour. In the month of June or July, at the new moon called perahar, perahar, a solemn and general concourse takes place to the various religious resorts on the islands. Every one that regards the festival betakes himself to some pagoda or other; there is, however,. nothing compulsory in these acts of worship, and with the usual indiffe. rence of the Ceylonese to religious matters where their fears are not interested, many keep away from mere caprice. At Candy, this festival is celebrated with great pomp, and is attended by the king in person, accompanied with all the splendour of his court. It is on this occasion that he makes his princely offering to the deities, and joins his people in their acts of devotion. "In November, when the moon is at full, there is another festival which is celebrated in the nighttime. It is customary on this occasion for the people to make contributions of oil for lighting up their temples during the continu ance of the festival. "The festivals in honour of Buddou are not held in the temples where he is usually worshipped, but at a high hill and a consecrated tree. The mountain called Hammalleel, or Adam's Peak, is one of the highest in Ceylon, and lies at the distance of about fifty miles to the north-east of Columbo. It is from the summit of this mountain, as tradition reports, that Adam took his last view of Paradise before he quitted it never to return. The spot on which his foot stood at the moment is still supposed to be found in an im, pression on the summit of the mountain resembling the print of a man's foot, but more than double the ordinary size. After taking this farewell view, the father of mankind is said so have gone ever to the continent of India, which was at that time joined to the island; but no sooner had he passed Adam's bridge, than the sea closed behind him and cut off all hopes of return. This tradi tion, from whatever source it was originally derived, seems to be interwoven with their earliest notions of religion, and it is difficult to conceive that it could have been engrafted on them without forming an original part. I have frequently had the curiosity to inquire of black men of different casts con cerning this tradition of Adam. All of them with every appear ance of belief assured me that it was really true, and in support of it produced a variety of testimonies, old sayings, and prophecies, which have for ages been current among them. The origin of these tradi tions I do not pretend to trace, but their connexion with scriptural history is very evident; and they afford a new instance how universally the opinions with respect to the origin of man coincide with the history of that event as recorded in the Bible. "A large chain, said also to be the workmanship of Adam, is fixed in a rock near the summit of the mountain. It has the appearance of having been placed there at a very distant period; but who really placed it there, or for what purpose, it is impossible for any European to trace amidst the confused and unintelligible super stitions which the natives have mingled with their obscure traditions. "The ascent of the mountain is exceedingly steep and difficult, and in some parts near the summit the devotees are obliged to be assisted in climbing by ropes and chains fixed by hooks to the rocks. The night time is usually pitched upon to to ascend, in order to avoid such fatiguing exertions during the excessive heat of the day. On the summit are a number of large flat rocks plentifully supplied with water. It is on one of them that the print of Adam's foot is shown. "This mountain, which is looked upon as the original residence of Adam, is held in great veneration not only by the natives of Ceylon, but also by a variety of persons of different casts and persuasions throughout India. Most of these have particular places of worship on it to which they make pilgrimages at certain seasons of the year. The Roman catholic priests have also taken advantage of the current superstitions to forward the propagation of their own tenets; and a chapel which they have erected on the mountain is yearly frequented by vast numbers of black Christians of the Portuguese and Malabar race. "It is to Adam's Peak that the Ceylonese repair to worship at the great festival of Buddou. The Činglese of the coasts in particular resort to it in vast multitudes. A large proportion of the Candians likewise attend; but whether from a fear of mixing with foreigners or from ideas of superior sanctity, they seem more inclined to hold their great festival under the shade of the bogaha tree, which stands at Annarodgburro, an ancient city, in the northern part of the king of Candy's dominions; and none but his own subjects are permitted to approach this sanctuary. The bogaha tree, says tradition, suddenly flew over from some distant country, and planted itself in the spot where it now stands. It was intended as a shelter for the god Buddou; and under its branches he was wont to repose while he sojourned on earth. Near this hallowed spot ninety kings are interred, who all merited admission to the regions of bliss by the temples and images they constructed for Buddou. They are now sent as good spirits to preside over the safety of his followers, and protect them from being brought into subjection to Europeans; a calamity against which they continually pray. Around the tree are a number of huts, erected for the use of the devotees who repair hither; and as every sort of uncleanness and dust must be removed from the sacred spot, people are retained for the purpose of continually sweeping the approaches before the worshippers, and to attend the priests during the performance of the ceremonies. "As the preference was given by Buddou to the shade of the bogaha tree above all others, it is uni versally held sacred among the Ceylonese. Wherever it is found throughout the island, persons are appointed to watch over it, and preserve it from dirt or injury. The bogaha tree is held in the same estimation among the followers of Buddou, as the banyan tree among the Brahmins. "Notwithstanding the many religious ceremonies and superstitions which prevail among the Ceylo nese, they are far from being such devotees and zealots as many of the sects on the continent. Indeed, they seem to be more actuated by apprehension than by any real sentiment of zeal; and they seldom think themselves called upon to take much concern in religious matters till they fall into sickness, or verge towards the close of life. The injustice of the Portuguese in forcing religious tenets upon them, must have shocked them the more as they have not the smallest idea of of intolerant zeal. So far are they from being displeased at Europeans, or people of other persuasions entering their temples and observing their ceremonies, that they are rather gratified by such marks of attention, and account the presence of visitors as an honour done themselves. On being questioned about their superstitions, they do not hesitate to confess the absurdity of their apprehensions, but still they look upon themselves as unable to escape from them; and dread even to attempt vindicating their freedom, from a fear that they may be instantly delivered over to the vengeance of those malignant spirits who infest their country. The Christian priests and missionaries, though often successful in propagating their doctrines, have never yet been able totally to eradicate superstitions which have been imbibed from the cradle. "I was very much surprised to observe the Ceylonese wear beads, and mutter prayers as they count them and go along the road, in the same manner as I have seen done in Roman catholic countries. I at first imagined that these were converts to that religion; but upon inquiry, I found that they were all staunch adherents to the worship of Buddou. Their high respect for the customs of the Europeans led them early to adopt this usage from the Portuguese; but the prayers which they mutter over their beads, have no reference whatever to those used by the Roman catholics, but are directed entirely to their own superstitions, and intended as preventives against the influence of the evil spirits which surround them. "The immortality of the soul and the resurrection of the body, are tenets firmly believed among all the Ceylonese. They believe that the souls of the just are immediately after death admitted into the rank of gods, and that their ancient prophets and good kings are long since employed in exercising the powers of this station: while, on the other hand, the souls of the wicked, particularly of unjust ty rants and impious priests, are supposed to have passed into wild beasts and reptiles. "The Ceylonese are rigid predestinarians, and believe that people are born to their particular destinies, whether good or bad, without any possibility of avoiding or altering them. Spells and charms are indeed supposed in some measure to lighten the effects of appointed calamities; and considerable reliance is placed on giving alms. On this account the Ceylonese are very liberal in the distribution of charity. They consider giving presents to their priests, and alms to their beggars, as essential acts of goodness. The Cinglese in our service in particular, who have the natural ferocity of their minds more completely subdued, often give remarkable proofs of their extended good nature in these respects. It is customary for them even to lay by a certain proportion of their food to distribute among the poor; and although distressed strangers are among the Indians accounted objects of very little compassion, yet a Cinglese will not shut his hand to the Malabar or Moor who asks him for relief. Their tenderness is at times extended even to the brute creation; and it is customary for them to bind themselves during the continuance of certain festivals or seasons of devotion, to refrain from killing any living creature, but subsist entirely on herbs and fruits. "I have |