11. The vast epic poem, or collection of poems known as the Mahâbhârata, consists of over 100,000 Sanskrit verses. The main subject is the war between the five Pândavas, or sons of Pândû, and their cousins the Kauravas, sons of Dhritarâshtra. Many poems of various origins and dates are interwoven with the main work. The best known of the episodes is that of _Nala and Damayantî,_ which was well translated by Dean Milman, See Macdonell, _A History of Sanskrit Literature_ (Heinemann, 1900). 12. The five Pândava brothers were Yudhishthira, Bhîmia, Arjuna, Nakula, and Sahadeva, the children of Pândû, by his wives Kuntî, or Prithâ, and Madrî. 13. 'The Narbadâ has its special admirers, who exalt it oven above the Ganges, . . . The sanctity of the Ganges will, they say, cease in 1895, whereas that of the Narbadâ will continue for ever' (Monier Williams, _Religious Thought and Life in India,_ London, 1883, p. 348), See _post,_ Chapter 27. 14. Sleeman wrote 'Py-Khan', a corrupt spelling of pâkhân, the Sanskrit pâshâna or pâsâna, 'a stone'. The compound pâshâna-mûrti is commonly used in the sense of 'stone image'. The sibilant _sh_ or _s_ usually is pronounced as _kh_ in Northern India (Grierson, _J.R.A.S.,_ 1903, p. 363). 15. Sarasvatî, consort of Brahma; Dêvî (Pârvatî, Durgâ, &c.), consort of Siva; and Lakshmî, consort of Vishnu. All Hindoo deities have many names. 16. The author's explanation is partly erroneous. The temple, which is a very remarkable one, is dedicated to the sixty-four Joginîs. Only five temples in India are known to be dedicated to these demons. For details see Cunningham, _A.S.R.,_ vol. ix, pp. 61-74, pl. xii- xvi; vol. ii, p. 416; and vol. xxi, p. 57. The word _vâhana_ means 'vehicle'. Each deity has his peculiar vehicle. 17. The heaven of Siva, as distinguished from Vaikuntha, the heaven of Vishnu. It is supposed to be somewhere in the Himâlaya mountains. The wonderful excavated rock temple at Ellora is believed to be a model of Kailâs. 18. This 'notion' of the author's is not likely to find acceptance at the present day. CHAPTER 2 Hindoo System of Religion. The Hindoo system is this. A great divine spirit or essence, 'Brahma', pervades the whole universe; and the soul of every human being is a drop from this great ocean, to which, when it becomes perfectly purified, it is reunited. The reunion is the eternal beatitude to which all look forward with hope; and the soul of the Brahman is nearest to it. If he has been a good man, his soul becomes absorbed in the 'Brahma'; and, if a bad man, it goes to 'Narak', hell; and after the expiration of its period there of _limited imprisonment_, it returns to earth, and occupies the body of some other animal. It again advances by degrees to the body of the Brahman; and thence, when fitted for it, into the great 'Brahma'.[1]