view. It bears the figures of the sun, moon, a fire-vase and a savastika. A plate of silver with, or without, some such devices offered by pious worshippers and attached to the doors of the inner chamber of the sacred fire in a Parsee fire-temple is another form of reverence associated with the gateways or torans of a fire-temple by the Parsees. The ceremony of the Toran among the Rajputs on marriage occasions. We learn from Tod's Rajasthan, that the Rajputs had a regular ceremony of the toran on the occasions of marriage. The form of an equilateral triangle of the Rajput toran, as described by Tod, seems to be one, midway between a regular built archway and the present torans of flowers. I will describe here the Rajput toran and its connection with marriage from Tod's Rajasthan.1 After the first sack of Chitor, Hamir, the son 2 of Arsi, who was deprived of the fort, was in constant warfare with Maldeo, who was in possession of it. "Maldeo endeavoured "Maldeo endeavoured to conciliate his persecutor by offering him in marriage the hand of a Hindu princess. Contrary to the wishes of his advisers, Hamir directed that the cocoanut should be retained,3 cooly remarking on the dangers pointed out: 'My feet shall at least ascend the rocky steps trodden by my ancestors.' It was stipulated that only five hundred horse should form his suite, and thus accompanied he set out for Chitor, On his approach the five sons of Maldeo advanced to meet him, but on the portal of the city no toran was suspended. He, however, acceptod the unsatisfactory reply to his remark on its omission, and ascended for the first time the ramp of Chitor. 1 Tod's Annals of Rajasthan, abridged and edited by C. H. Payne, Chap. IV, Recovery of Chitor, p. 26. 2 I had the pleasure of visiting this great Hill fort of Rajputana near Oodeypore on the 25th of December 1916. 3 "A cocoanut is always sent with such a proposal. Its return signifies that the alliance is declined and is usually regarded as an insult by the sender." The toran is the symbol of marriage, and its absence would be regarded as an omen of the worst description. It consists of three wooden bars, fastened together in the form of an equi• lateral triangle, and surmounted by the image of a peacock. This emblem is suspended either from the gate of the city, or the portal of the bride. The bridegroom on horseback, lance in hand, proceeds to break the toran, which is defended by the damsels of the bride, who, from the parapet, assail him with missiles of various kinds, and especially with a red powder made from the flower of the palâsa, at the same time singing songs fitted to the occasion. At length the toran is broken amidst the shouts of the bridegroom's retainers, when the fair defenders retire." The breaking of the archway or toran in this ceremony seems to be a relic of the old method of "Marriage by Capture." A kind of ceremony of the Toran among the Military and among Mason. This ceremony of passing through a kind of toran on occasions of marriage is observed, at times, by military bodies on the occasions of marriage among high military officers. The lower officers or points of their swords a kind of archway marrying officer with his bride passes from soldiers form by the or toran and the under that toran. The Toran among the Freemasons. The toran or the architectural form of the toran, which, is a kind of gateway, being held to be a good or auspicious symbol, it has entered not only into the form of marriage ceremonies, but in other forms of welcome. For example, we see it among the Freemasons, whose traditions are, of course, connected somewhat with the ancient masons and their architecture. So, we find, that on grand Masonic occasions, when they welcome great officers of their craft, the lower officers form, by their swords, a kind of arch-a triumphal arch, through which the grand officer passes and takes his seat on a platform. From all that we have said above, it seems, that, like the The Toran like the Savastika a common form in the whole of Asia and even further. Savastika, which is a symbol connected with the worship of the sun or a kind of Mithraism prevalent in ancient Greece, Egypt, Assyria, Persia and India, the symbolism of the Torii or the torans of gateways was prevalent in the whole of Asia, and even in some parts of Europe. As to the various forms of, and devices in, the India torans or gateways, a student of anthropology may read with great advantage the detailed version of General Maisey in his 66 Sânchi and its remains." The reason why the stone or wooden torans took the form of flower torans at our Indian doors seems The architectur al Torans. Their migration as flower Torans. to be this: We find that the great gateways in the front of religious and other monuments were at times decorated with flower creepers. For example, we read in Kalidas's Megha-Dûta quoted above, of "boughs and clustering flowers," associated with the gateways. Again, we find, from what Fergusson says, as quoted above, of the toran or gateway erected in front of the temple at Jerusalem, that it had "the sacred golden vine" over it. It seems, that this idea of making the gateways or torans, proper places for flower and other creepers, has been the cause or origin of the custom of having flower torans on the doors of our Indian houses. As I have said in some of my papers on Tibetan customs, etc., there often prevails among many people what I have called "a shortening process," which prevails in prayers, ritual and religious customs. From the stone or wooden gateways at the entrances which were entwined with flowering creepers, to the flower torans is, as it were, a step in the line of this shortening process." SECRETARY OF HIS ATTENDANCE AT BY DR. J. J. MODI, B.A., Ph.D., C.I.E. (Submitted at the monthly meeting of Wednesday, the 31st January.) I beg to report that, as previously announced to the Society, the 10th Indian Science Congress, in the Anthropological section of which I was asked to preside, was held at Lucknow from the 8th to the 13th January at the premises of the Medical College under the Presidency of Sir M. Visvesvaraya, K.C.I.E., M.INST. C.E., D.Sc. The Congress was opened by H. E. the Governor of the United Provinces, Sir William Marris, K.C.S.1., K.C.I.E., at 5 P.M. on the 8th January. The Anthropological Section was opened by me with a Presidential address, the subject of which was "The Zest given to Life by the Study of Cultural Anthropology." In my address, I drew attention to the work of our Society during the 37 years of its existence. Besides the Presidential address, I had the pleasure of reading 4 papers on the following subjects. 1. The Social Life of a Christian of Medieval England and the Social Life of a Parsi of Modern India. 2. The Owl in Folklore. 3. Was there any institution in Ancient Iran, like that of caste in India? 4. Traces of Evolution Theory in old Persian Literature. I am glad to say that my appeal to the members of our Society, made generally at the monthly meetings and individually to some members, was kindly responded to by several members. The following is the list of members who had kindly given papers: 6. Rao Bahadur P. B. Joshi, The full-moon festival of the 7. Dr. O. Pertold, Ph.D. Tripuris or the three flying cities The Idea of God in Buddhism and I had also addressed letters to the undermentioned Societies: 1. The Buddhist Society of Bombay. 2. The Buddhist Society of Burma, 3. The Bombay Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, 4. The Royal Asiatic Society, Ceylon Branch. 5. The Mythic Society, Bangalorę. |