"And I say in all honest hope," cried Ananda in ringing tones that caused the widow to glance at him in surprise. "I say that through the power of the Christian's Man-God, Jesus Christ, the Great All-Father in His mercy and love will receive Coomara to Himself, and preserve him from the fate you anticipate. I think upon his prospects almost with envy. There was a time when I could only shudder in terror at what was promised by our faith; but now I am satisfied that he is happy." "The Hindu faith does not deny a progression towards a better state after death," said Bopaul. "May be; but it limits improvement to merit; and the merit is made to depend not only upon the past deeds of the dead, but also upon the voluntary deeds of the living descendants of the dead. A neglect of the shraddah ceremonies by the grandchildren to the fourth generation condemns the soul to inferior rebirth. Those rites for the repose of the dead are monstrous in their assumption and ridiculous in their childish nature." "All rites seem ridiculous and meaningless if you judge them by their action alone," said Bopaul. "Yet you perform them slavishly," said Ananda turning on him. Bopaul laughed as though he shook off all responsibility for the reason of his actions. "I am what that Englishman called his friend, do you remember? 'a blatant ritualist.' I love ceremonies. They give me a comfortable sense of having done my duty to the gods and to men. I feel as if I had got out of debt and was starting afresh with a clean page." "Do you really believe in them?" asked Ananda searching the face of the other in a vain endeavour to penetrate the superficial lightness with which Bopaul touched these matters. "The purohit and the guru believe in them. My father pins his faith to them, and I am content to take their word for it." "And I am not! To my mind the three great props of Hinduism are crumbling away in spite of your blind faith--transmigration, the immaculate authority of the Brahmans and their Vedas; and the caste system." "Rank treason!" cried Bopaul roused at last into something approaching excitement. "It is as well that the guru doesn't hear you! Caste will never die; it will change its constitution and become more social than religious. The Vedas will have new exponents and the germs that lie hidden in them will be brought to light and understood. Transmigration will be modified with a new theory of progression in a life in other spheres under different conditions of corporality from the earthly life; and Hinduism reformed will be greater than ever."