fourth of the same day is the hour of Mars; and the first of the next day is that of the Sun, and so on. This seems to account for the planets giving names to the days of the week: and Gibelin, who denies in his Monde primitif, that the days of the week do so correspond with the order of the planets, mistook by transposing Mercury and Venus. Indian astrology uses the inverse order of the planets; and the succession of them as regents of Ghat is will bring the Moon to be the first of Monday, and the Sun to be the sixtieth of the same day. Consequently the first ghati of the next day is that of Mars, and so on through the week. It may be remarked, that the regents of Hórás during the day are the same in the astrology of the Hindus with the regents of hours according to the old astrologers of Europe. I shall here close this trivial subject, which has been introduced by me, only because the coincidence here noticed cannot well have been accidental.

but the context of the Puranas is against this supposition. In these sacred books, Méru is considered solely as a point to the North of India, from which four large rivers issue, and flow toward the four cardinal points of the world: and we frequently read of countries and places said to be to the North of Méru, others are declared to be West, East, South, and North-west from it. This surely can have no reference whatever to the North pole, where the denominations of North, East, and West vanish.

This Méru will appear in the sequel of this work, to be to the North of India, on the elevated plains of Tartary, and in the latitude of forty-five degrees. This point is considered in the Puránas, as the center of the world as known to the Hindus: there is its zenith or Méru, which is as applicable to a line passing through the centre, zenith, and nadir of a place, as to that passing through the poles. In whatever light we consider Méru, it is always the centre of the world, as delineated by the Paurán'ics. COSMAS, surnamed INDOPLEUSTES, from his travels into India, in the sixth century, says, that in his time the Brahmens asserted that, if a line was drawn from China to Greece, it would pass through the centre of the world, or through this Méru. The Pauránics and astronomers in India, had not then attempted to disfigure their cosmographical system: and did not, at that period, consider Méru as the North pole. Round this point they draw seven zones, and the context of the Puránas is as favourable to this supposition, as to the former, because these zones equally pass through the above islands. These zones have introduced much confusion, and entirely disfigured their geographical system. They are by no means countenanced in the body of the Puranas; being for the purpose; and at the time chosen for it, according to the rules of astrology. The jewels, and other presents intended for him, are placed there; a cow is tied on the northern side of the apartment; and a stool or cushion, and other furniture for the reception of the guest, are arranged in order. On his approach, the bride's father rises to welcome him, and recites the following prayer, while the bride

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groom stands before him.

"MAY she, [who supplies oblations for] religious "worship, who constantly follows her calf, and who " was the milch-cow, when YAMA was [the votary], : "abound with milk, and fulfil our wishes, year after "year."

THIS prayer is seemingly intended for the consecration of the cow, which is let loose in a subsequent stage of the ceremony, instead of slaying her, as appears to have been anciently the custom. The commentator, whose gloss has been followed in this version of the text, introduces it by the remark, that a guest, entitled to honourable reception, is a spiritual preceptor, a priest, an ascetick, a prince, a bridegroom, a friend, or in short any one, to welcome whose arrival a cow must be tied for the purpose of slaying her, whence a guest is denominated góghna, or cow-killer. The prayer seems to contain an allusion, which I cannot better explain, than by quoting a passage from CA'LIDÁSA's poem, entitled Raghuvansa, where VASISHT HA informs the king DILÍPA that the cow Surabhi, who was offended by his neglect, cannot be now appeased by courtesy shown to herself, because she remains in a place inaccessible to him: "PRACHETAS is performing a tedious sacrifice, to supply the oblations of which, Surabhí now abides in the infernal region, whose gates are guarded by huge serpents.

AFTER the prayer above mentioned has been meditated, the bridegroom sits down on a stool or -cushion, which is presented to him: he first recites a

branches springing from one head, and winding seven times round Méru, according to the Pauránics, or, eight times, according to the Baudd'hists: but according to SERVIUS, the Styr went nine times round the Earth. They reckoned, accordingly, nine seas and nine dwipas, or worlds. These nine worlds are noticed in the Edda-Samudr, and the nine oceans are mentioned by PLUTARCH, who informs us that a certain Timarchus visited the oracle of TROPHONIUS, where, in a vision, he saw the islands of the departed in the eighth part, or division of the ocean. These islands, according to the Hindus, and the followers of JINA, are constantly placed in the last sea but one: thus they are in the sixth, according to the Hindus: in the seventh, according to the Jainas: but the Western mythologists placed them in the eighth, because they reckoned nine seas. Nine was held a mystical and sacred number in the Northern parts of the old continent, from China to the extremities of the West. The Cimbri observed the ninth day, month, and year, sacrificing ninety-nine men, as many horses, &c. The number seven was held to be sacred by the Hebrews, and also by Musulmans to this day, who reckon seven climates, seven seas, seven heavens, and as many hells. According to Rabbis and Musulman authors, the body of ADAM was made of seven handfuls of mould taken from the seven stages of the Earth: and, indeed, the seven zones, or ranges of mountains, are arranged by the Hindus like so many steps, rising gradually one above another, in such manner that Méru looks like an immense pillar or obelisk with a case, either circular or square, and consisting of seven steps, but, according to others, of eight, or even nine. The length, or height, of this obelisk is to its breadth, as 84 to 16. The Hindus generally represent mount Méru of a conical figure, and kings were formerly fond of raising mounds of earth in that shape, which they venerated like the divine Méru, and the Gods were called down by spells to come and dally upon them. They are called Mérus'ringas, or the peaks of Méru. There are four of them either in, or near Benares: the more modern, and, of course, the most perfect, is at a place call-. ed Sár-náth. It was raised by the son of an Emperor of Gaur, in Bengal, with his brother, in the year of VICRAMADITYA, 1083, answering to the year of CHRIST, 1027, as mentioned in an inscription lately found there. This emperor had, it seems, annexed Benares to his dominions, for he is reckoned as one of the kings of Benares, under the name of BUDDHA-SENA. This conical hill is about sixty feet high, with a small but handsome octagonal temple on the summit. It is said, in the inscription, that this artificial hill was intended as a representation of the worldly Méru, the hill of God, and the tower of Babel, with its seven steps, or zones, was probably raised with a similar view, and for the same purpose.

I observed before, that the Hindus place Jambu within these seven inclosures, while the heterodox Bauddhists insist that it is without, and that these seven ranges of mountains, or dwipas, pass between. it and Méru. As these zones, ranges, and inclosures are impossible, and, of course, never existed, they are to be rejected: but the countries, and islands, after which they were denominated, and through which they are supposed to pass, probably existed with their surrounding seas. The Nubian geographer is the only author, I believe, who has connected the seven climates with as many seas, or rather bays, and gulfs, as he calls them.

IV. The first, or dwipa of Jambu, commonly called India, was formerly an island, as it appears