תמונות בעמוד
PDF
ePub

well-authenticated case of a similar character which it is possible to bring forward. Suppose again, that these cases multiply upon us to a very considerable extent:-the evidence which they then supply of the inspiration of the document in which they are recorded becomes unquestionable, and of such a character as is admirably adapted to carry conviction to the mind; and in summing up the amount of evidence which it is possible to deduce from this source, it must be borne in mind, that it ought not to be judged of by any particular or insulated prediction that has been accomplished, however striking or peculiar it may be; but it must be estimated by the sum total, that is, by the combination of the whole of the instances in which it can be clearly proved that certain accredited predictions of this nature, which were anciently recorded, have in subsequent ages been literally fulfilled.

On what an immovable basis then, according to the principle of this illustration, does the truth of the Bible rest, when in support of its divine authenticity several hundred prophecies, of a character similar to what I have described, can be advanced in support of its claims. The record of these prophecies, that is, of its fulfilled prophecies, stands forth, as a modern writer has well observed, with the prominence of an imperishable monument, attesting beyond a doubt its divine original; or in other words, it is like a stream of light darting its celestial rays upon the mental vision—a stream of light striking the eye of the mind, which cannot fail, unless that eye be morally diseased or wilfully closed, to produce a corresponding conviction, a conviction which under the teaching of the Holy Spirit, will undoubtedly bow the judgment, and the will, and all the powers of the soul, to its sovereign mandate, and compel them with reverence and humility to submit to its high and unimpeachable authority. Chinsurah, Nov. 23, 1833.

III." I love Christ more than this."

The following pleasing anecdote of a Karen candidate for Baptism will, we are persuaded, interest our female readers, and may with propriety fill up a vacancy in the present page. It is extracted from a late letter from the Rev. Mr. Judson, Baptist Missionary at Burmah, addressed to American females.

"A Karen woman offered herself for Baptism. After the usual examination, I inquired, whether she could give up her ornaments for Christ. It was an unexpected blow. I explained the spirit of the Gospel. I appealed to her own consciousness of vanity. I read her the Apostle's prohibition. (1 Tim. ii. 9.) She looked again and again at her handsome necklace, and then, with an air of modest decision, that would adorn, beyond all ornaments, any of my sisters whom I have the honour of addressing, she took it off, saying, 'I love Christ more than this.'”

[graphic]

IV.-Account of Dokyin Rayu, or "King of the South"-one of the modern Hindoo Deities.

When man once abandons the service of the true God, he becomes, as the Apostle says, "vain in his imagination, and his foolish heart is darkened." He adopts the most absurd notions regarding the nature of the Deity and the worship due to him, and although he may, in other respects, display his understanding to much advantage, yet with regard to these, he acts as if he were entirely devoid of that faculty.

What a striking corroboration of this truth do the Hindoos afford! To what length of unreasonableness have they not gone in their opinions on the subject of God and divine worship! Not content with a pantheon of thirty-three millions of gods as sanctioned by the shastras, they are from time to time adding to the number: witness Choitonyo, Dokyin Rayu, Kaloo Rayu, Ola Beebee, and others, of whom no mention whatever is made in their sacred books. Learned Hindoos will perhaps deny their acknowledging any of these more recently fabricated deities; yet they well know and must confess, that numbers of their countrymen pay to them divine adoration, and expect from them protection in this world, and salvation in the next.

My purpose on the present occasion is to give a brief account of Dokyin Rayu, whose likeness is at the head of this communication. This idol, which is prepared of clay by potters, and baked in their ovens together with pitchers and all kinds of earthen vessels, consists only of a head, wearing a covering shaped much like a mitre, and adorned with divers figures, according to the fancy of the maker. The face is painted white, and the eyes, mouth, and nose, red; black mustachios of considerable size are invariably placed under the latter; so that the whole figure presents a most ludicrous

appearance. The largest of these images is about three feet high, and the smallest, ten inches. The price, according to the size, varies from between one to eight annas.

In order to render the image an object of adoration, a ceremony called (or the giving of eyes) is indispensable. It is performed by a Brahmun, who dips the stalk of a betel leaf in the soot of a lamp, and applies it to the eyes, at the same time repeating an incantation adapted to the purpose. The principal worship of the idol takes place on the last day of the month of Pous, (about the middle of January.) The offerings consist of rice, sweetmeats, plantains, &c.; occasionally a kid or a duck is sacrificed. The Brahmun is entitled to all these articles, and receives besides, a small fee in money for his trouble. The expense of this pooja averages from four annas to four or five rupees. The worshippers belong generally to the poorer classes of natives: among them are found, more especially the agriculturists and fishermen, who inhabit the numerous villages south of Calcutta,―the molungees or makers of salt,—and such persons as are engaged in collecting wild honey, or cutting wood in the Sunderbunds. The benefits expected are, success in their different callings, and protection from tigers and other wild beasts which infest those parts:-Dokyin Rayu being supposed to have them under his controul, and to possess the power of preventing them from hurting his votaries.

Images of Dokyin Rayŭ are scarcely ever erected in temples, but are placed, often in great num bers, under trees, usually the Oshutto (Ficus religiosa), and the Monosha (Euphorbia), round about which may be seen, besides the actual objects of adoration, whole heaps of the remains of their predecessors in office, who have been broken to pieces by mischievous children at play, or run against by cattle or dogs. This sad fate of their tutelar deity, however, does not in the least shake the faith of the infatuated worshippers; for no sooner is an image thus destroyed, than they place another in its stead, and repose the same implicit confidence in it, as they did in the one whose existence was so unceremoniously brought to a close.

As no mention of Dokyin Rayu is made in the shastras, it is a matter of great difficulty to ascertain his real origin. I once requested a Brahmun, who was a priest of this god, to give me some information on the subject; but he candidly replied, that it was out of his power to do so; and that he reverenced Dokyin Rayu, simply because his ancestors had done the same, and every body said, that great benefit was sure to result from it. Another whom I questioned on the same point said, that Dokyin Rayu was an incarnation of the original head of Gonesh, which was consumed by the look of Shonee previous to its having been replaced by his

present elephant's head. A third, pretending to be wiser than the rest, assured me that Dokyin Rayu was one of the thirty-three millions of gods acknowledged in the shastras, though not mentioned by name: that, in days of yore, a certain man, anxious to obtain protection from wild beasts, made supplication to the deity, who revealed to him in a dream that his prayer should be answered on condition that he should make an image, whose shape and dimensions were pointed out, and worship it under the name of Dokyin Rayu;-the man, having acted up to this direction, obtained the object of his wishes, which others observing, hastened to follow his example; and that, ever since, Dokyin Rayu, (which means "King of the South,") has been held in great veneration in all the southern districts of Bengal.

I have not been able to learn any thing beyond this concerning the origin of this god.-Oh! what a contrast between the absurd, uncertain, conflicting notions of these poor idolaters and the faith of a Christian, who can say upon unquestionable evidence, "I know in whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day !” (2 Tim. i. 12.)

66

It is very gratifying however to remark, that the preaching of the Gospel has not been without effect, among the deluded votaries of Dokyin Rayй. There are about a thousand individuals that formerly owned him as their god, who have relinquished their vain hope, and have learned to know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent." These belong to different churches and congregations in connection with the London, the Baptist, and the Church Missionary Societies, and the Society for Promoting the Gospel in Foreign Parts. Some, who have already departed this life, it is humbly hoped, have been admitted into God's kingdom above, there to enjoy pleasures at His right hand for evermore; and of several of the survivors it may be confidently affirmed, "that they are adorning the doctrine of God our Saviour by a holy walk, and that they are living soberly, righteously, and godly in the present world, looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ." O! may the Gospel be crowned with yet greater success in that dark corner of the earth; and not there only, but

O may the great Redeemer's name,
Through every clime be known;
And heathen gods, like Dagon, fall,
And Jesus reign alone.

From sea to sea, from shore to shore,

May Jesus be adored;

And earth, with all her millions, shout,
"Hosanna to the Lord."

D

L.

V.-Theory of the Hebrew Verb. No. 1.

If there is one book, which above all others deserves the labour of intense study and impartial criticism, that book is the Bible. Coming as it professedly does from heaven; developing as it does a plan of redemption, in which God has abounded to us in all wisdom and prudence; and involving as it does the destinies of all the human race, it would be the most guilty neglect not to make every If critics have spent effort to comprehend all that it contains. years in deep thought, and elaborate investigation, to decipher obscure passages, and lay down rules for the right interpretation, of Homer, Horace, and Virgil; much more ought those who know the infinite superiority of the Word of God to all human productions to employ every means within their reach, to understand themselves, and to make others understand the records of eternal truth. The writer feels the difficulty of uniting the loftiness of truth with the lowliness of critical inquiry, and fears that in the estimation of some of his readers, the beginning and subsequent parts of these papers will subject him to the censure passed by Horace on the painter who should venture to draw a picture, the different parts of which have no affinity to each other. Yet it must be recollected as an apology, that there is often no possible way of reaching the lofty eminence of truth, except by the very rough and arduous way of philological research. In this way the writer, acting merely as a pioneer, wishes, if possible, so to clear the way, that the Biblical student may ascend the steep with comparative ease, and enjoy the bright prospects which it lays open to the view.

The remarks now offered on the theory of the Hebrew verb have originated from a conviction, in the mind of the writer, after studying the Hebrew language many years, that the rules universally received for the interpretation of the verbs are both inaccurate and deficient; and such as being followed have led into numerous errors. As far as the theory of the verb is concerned, such remarks can from the nature of things afford little pleasure to any beside the Hebrew scholar; but when the rules of the theory come to be applied to determine the sense of many passages of Scripture, then they will prove interesting to all true Christians.

In ascertaining the meaning of a passage in any language, much must depend upon an accurate knowledge of the moods and tenses of the verb. This is self-evident, and requires little explanation. If a person should tell us, that in the English language the indicative and potential moods were two tenses, past and future, and leave us with these two tenses, without further explanation, to express all our emotions, and describe all the actions of men, whether present, past, or future, we should think ourselves placed in a strange dilemma

« הקודםהמשך »