hammad," which is saturated with rationalistic
views. I cannot suppose he stands alone in his rationalism, but I have
no means of knowing to what extent his views are shared by others. The
whole party is the antipodes to the Wahabees, the extreme Puritans of
Islam, who aim at following strictly the instructions of the Quran and
the Traditions, and wage war to the knife against Christians and
idolaters. Between the Wahabees and the reformers there is a very
numerous party--it is supposed the great majority of Muhammadans--who
have little sympathy with the strictness of the former, but as little
with the looseness of the latter, who in their opinion are sacrificing
Islam to their ambitious and selfish views. Between the reformers and
those who cannot advance with them there has been sharp controversy, and
there is no prospect of its coming to an end.

[Illustration]

CHAPTER XXIX.

THE PEOPLE AMONG WHOM WE LABOUR (Continued).

HINDUS.

I have endeavoured in my account of Benares to describe the Hindu
idolatry there practised, and in my account of our missionary preaching
I have stated the arguments by which that idolatry is defended. The
Hindu system, it is well known, is at once pantheistic and polytheistic.
The universe, we are told, is God expanded. _Brahm_--he alone is the
Existent One; but there are several persons and objects in which he is
more manifest than in others, and as owing to _Maya_ (illusion) we
believe in our separate existence, it is fitting that to these objects
special honour should be paid. I have mentioned the hideous aspect of
the images worshipped at Benares, and their hideous aspect well accords
with the character attributed to the gods worshipped under these forms.

[Sidenote: THE INFLUENCE OF HINDUISM ON CHARACTER.]

We are all familiar with the maxim, Like priest, like people. May we
say, Like God, like worshipper? If so, we must regard the Hindus as in
the very mire of moral debasement. Just think of a whole people acting
like Shiva, Doorga, and Krishna! I think it cannot be doubted by any one
who looks at the nature of the human mind, and the power exercised over
it by its belief, that the worship of these and similar gods, along
with the prevalent pantheistic and fatalistic views, which strike at the
very root of moral distinctions, have done much to deprave the Hindu
mind. The people, indeed, often assert "to the powerful there is no
fault." The gods had the power and the o