Untitled - Sabrizain.org

352 ANAM.
this place were three immense drums, mounted on
frames, and on a table a small brass idol, with an
elephant's proboscis, before which was a brazen censer
filled with matches, one end of each of which had
been burned. The priest then threw open a large
door in the partition, and led the way into the body
of the temple. There was no light besides what was
admitted through the door by which we had entered,
and that was barely sufficient to render ' darkness
visible:' our eyes were, however, enabled to penetrate
the gloom sufficiently to ascertain that its interior
proportions were commensurate with the idea that
we had formed from its exterior. Several groupes of
idols, of hideous, and some of colossal proportions,
were visible through the dim twilight that pervaded
the temple, and seemed to render them still more
hideous and unearthly. In fact, the recollections of
this exhibition are more like the traces of an indis-
tinct and feverish dream, than reality. It would be
as futile to attempt any description of the various
monstrosities in this pantheon of pagan divinities, as
it would be to repeat their several genealogies, his-
tories, exploits, &c., as delivered to us by the priest,
through the medium of Polonio. Their divinities,
however, were not treated with any great veneration
by these guardians of the temple.
4 This fellow,' the
old priest would say, taking hold of the hoof of an
ox on the bust of a man with an elephant's head,
' was famous for his gallantries ; and this one,
tweaking a tremendous nose on a human head, stuck
upon the body of what appeared to be intended for a
tiger, ' was celebrated for destroying wild beasts ;' and
his history of the capricious amours of some of their
deities, no longer excited any wonder at the production
of these anomalies.