[124] If these poems are really ancient, I think we need not have any hesitation in concluding that the Zenana system was in force in India in early times, and was not introduced, as many Hindus declare, after the conquest of India by the Muhammadans. Possibly the _purdah_ was made more strict after the Muslims established themselves south of the Himalayas. [125] This Kali is the Kali-yuga personified as the spirit of evil (Dowson’s “Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology”). [126] I desire to draw special attention to this interesting passage, which, in its native simplicity, throws considerable light upon the ideas and sentiments which lie at the root of the practice of the worship of the unseen powers who are believed to govern the lives of men. [127] This shows clearly that widow re-marriage was allowed. [128] “The History of Indian Literature,” by Dr. Albrecht Weber, pp. 185-188. [129] “Tarikh-i-Badauni” of Abdul Kadir Badauni, Elliot’s “Muhammadan Historians of India,” vol. v., pp. 537-538. [130] “Mahabharata, Bhisma Parva,” section lix., p. 224. [131] “The favourite idea of classical antiquity was not the idea of progress, but the idea of a cycle of changes in which departure _from_ the original unity and return _to_ it, or, as we should say, differentiation and integration, are not united, but follow each other. This idea seems to be adopted even by Aristotle.”--+CAIRD’S+ “Evolution of Religion,” vol. i., p. 21. [132] What god can Sanjaya refer to? Surely it must be fate, inexorable destiny, of which he is thinking. [133] “Mahabharata, Udyoga Parva,” section clix. [134] “Mahabharata, Bhisma Parva,” section lix., p. 217, and section lxxxii., p. 295. [135] However, the reader who considers such historical inferences sufficiently interesting and important, may consult the articles entitled “Early History of Northern India,” by F. W. Hewitt, in the “Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society,” 1888-89-90. [136] Renan’s “Recollections of my Youth,” pp. 72-75. [137] “All creatures support life by living upon one another.”--“Mahabharata, Bhisma Parva,” p. 16. [138] Deut. xxv. 5 10, and Gen. xxxviii. [139] Manu, ix. 59, 60 and 64. [140] On the subject of Niyoga the reader may consult Sir Henry Maine’s “Dissertation on Early Law and Custom,” pp. 100 and 107, and “A Treatise on Hindu Law and Usage,” by John D. Mayne, chapter iv. [141] The abandonment of animal food and ardent spirits was probably due to Buddhistic influence, though Buddha himself, as is well known, ate pork. I have been assured by well-informed Indian gentlemen that within the last few years there has been a marked tendency amongst many sections of the people to take to a flesh diet and alcoholic stimulants--in fact to revert to the old Aryan habits in these respects.