Page:The Indian Antiquary, Vol. 4-1875.djvu/146

Mat, TEXT INDIA ACCORDING TO MANU. 133 full moon is their day for actions, and that beginning from the new-moon is their night for slumber. A year is a day and a night of the gods, and again their division is this : their day is the northern, and their night the south- ern, course of the sun," One can hardly avoid the inference that the writer of this was aware of the relative motions of the sun, moon, and earth ; and also of the earth's revolution bear axis- The effort at a systematic scale of time- measures is very noteworthy, the more so as later in the book (p. 206, 131 el seq.), and also entirely out of place, appears a similar, though very much longer, scale of weights based on an imaginary atomic unit, namely, " the very 6mall mote which may be discerned in a sunbeam passing through a I attic is the least visible quantity" (p. 206, 182). The hereditary transmission of disease had been observed (p. 52, 7). And in Bhrigu's account of the creation tbere is an attempt at explaining the phenomena of sound, light, and so on. From intellect called into action by the will of Brah- ma emerges the subtile ether to which philo- sophers ascribe the quality of sound (p. 10, ! ■'■ I; from ether transmuted in form proceed the vehicle of all scents, and endued with the quality of touch. Then from air changed rises light, making objects visible, and having the quality of figure; and from light changed comes , with the quality of taste; and from water earth, with the quality of smell. Besides this is a curious speculation upon a peculiar branch of physiology, which is, however, nol bettor than pure guess-work (p. The government of the country, and the ge- neral political administration, was in the hands hereditary aristocracy, fa the Kshatriya class. Tb in absolute king of this class who reigned of tli • aud p. 160, «), and was represented m being formed (p. 185, '.'i'.; p the ruler of the universe out of particles dra the eight guardian i i I sur- passing all mortals in glory. "Evan though :i ■'Inld (p. 160, 8), be inu-f not be treated lightly, from the idea that be Is a mere mortal : no; he is a powerful divinity who appears in a human shape." His highest al I jus- tice {,,. 162; 28, and p. 191, 16), #H again in fact itself a deity. He governed by the aid of a council *) of seven or eight sworn ministers. But (p. 37 ; p. 1*66-, 58) it was right that he should be influenced by the opinions of discreet. Bruh- mans, and in particular he ought to take the most distinguished of them all as his confiden- tial adviser. Mann is very earnest and specific in warning a king against the common vices of those possessed of irresponsible power, and it is somewhat startling to find hunting character- ized as one of the four most pernicious vices in the set which love of pleasure oca . 165, 50). The stability of the r.>yal authority does not appear to have been great, notwithstanding the divinity of the king's person ; fur Manu enjoins extraordinary precautions for the pur- pose both of ensuring the security of the k nee (p. 167, • .), and of guarding him from possible violence or treachery on the part of his immediate attendants (p. 187, "217 bo J_o). The daily routine of the royal busi- ness is given in some detail by Manu, broken by a dissertation upon military and other mat- ters. It may be abstracted thus : — The king rose in the last watch of the night, and after making oblations, and paying due r the priests, he entered his audience-hall tl ly splendid" (p. 177, 145). There be showed himself bo the people for their gratification^ and then retired with his ministers to some pE place, in order to consult with them unob- served, and special care was taken thai 'ion Id be within hear: was con- sidered kt apt to betray secret counsel." Hav- ing thus consulted with his ministers upon all the public matters demanding his attention, ho nexttookhisescrci.se: and then after bathing he entered at noon hi.s private apartment the purpose of taking food. The meal ov. diverted himself with his women in the rec of his palace ; and having thus " idled a rea- sonabla time" he again addressed himself to public nfiairs. Probably, his apparel within the palace was somewhat scauty, for it- is said at this point that "he dressed himself com- pletely" and proceeded to review his troops. At > inset he performed some religious duties, which he received in a prival apartment informers and emissaries employed by him to gather intelligence secretly. And this bu.- being despatched, he went, li attended by women, to the inmost recess of his mansion for the of his evening moil. There, having a second