C’est d’epargner pour leurs maris,
Un bien dont ils n’ont plus que faire,
Quand ils ont pris leur necessaire.
La Fontaine dans ses Contes.
The sense of which is,
If anything prevents their being immediately wafted to Paradise, ’tis to reserve for their husbands a pleasure which they have no farther occasion for, when they have had their quantum of it.
We mention an instance which manifestly shews, that the Indians look upon the obscene devotions just alluded to, as highly meritorious. Over the gate of one of the cities of the little kingdom of Sirinpatau, says Dellon in the preface to his Voyages, printed in 1709, stands a stone statue representing Sita, wife to Ram, one of their gods, about as big as the life. On each side of her are three famous Faquirs, or Penitents, naked, on their knees, their eyes lifted up towards her, and holding with both hands what decency will not permit me to mention. They pretend by this posture, to pay such an homage, at they judge to be most grateful to this pretended goddess.[11]
Mr. R. C. Caldwell, writing in Johnson’s Universal Cyclopædia, says:—“Of old, pious Hindus who spiritualised their religion, even the grossest forms of it, linga-worship included, were not, lacking. For instance, the great Tamilian poet, Sivavakkiar, writes as follows (see the Indian Antiquary, Bombay, Apr., 1872, first paper on Tamil Popular Poetry):
“My thoughts are flowers and ashes,