Freda Bedi Cont'd (#3)

[admin]

Delarche [de Larche ] [d l'Arche]
Excerpts from The Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai
translated from the Tamil by Order of the Government of Madras
Volumes 1-3 edited by Sir J. Frederick Price, KCSI., Late of the Indian Civil Service, Assisted by K. Rangachari, B.A., Superintendent of Records, Government Secretariat, Fort St. George
Volumes 4-12 edited by H. Dodwell, M.A., Curator, Madras Record Office
1904-1928

Select Committee, 30th May, 1762

P. 27

Letter from the Select Committee, Madras, dated 4th instant, saying that Colonel Caillaud is besieging Arni, after which the troops will go into quarters during the hot weather, that Admiral Cornish had sailed for Bombay, that a French ship, the Fidele, had visited Negapatam and had left the coast without effecting any captures, that they have embarked Captain Freake with part of his troop and 50 French prisoners for Bengal, but that the question of the cost of dieting of the former must be settled by the Court of Directors, that they disapprove of our custom of granting batta to officers whilst at sea, and have instead agreed to allow the Commanders of vessels conveying them Rs. 2 per day for the diet of each officer and 8 annas for each private, and recommend us to follow the same rule, regarding which they have also written to Bombay.

P. 29

Extract from a letter from Monsr. deLaurens at Negapatam to his uncle Monsr. de l'Arche (sic) [de Larche/Delarche] at Madras, dated 19th April, and intercepted by Mr. Turner, Chief at Cuddalore, describing the state of affairs in the French settlements.

-- An Abstract of the Early Records of the Foreign Department, Part 1, 1756-1762, by S. Charles Hill, B.A., B.Sc., Officer in Charge of the Records of the Government of India, 1901

Monday, [28th July 1738, or] 16th Adi of Kalayukti. — The St. Geran was got in readiness this evening, to proceed to Karikal. On board were M. Aubin, the captain of the vessel, M. de la Tour the commander of the troops, M. Roussel the Chief Major, Lieutenant Coquelin, and a party of 100 soldiers. M. Delarche and M. St. Gille — the latter being a half caste — also embarked to perform the duties of accountants at Karikal. A party of bricklayers, carpenters, and sawyers — sixty or seventy in number — was shipped in the evening, together with a supply of bricks, lime, and building tools of various kinds, such as spades and saws. The ship got under weigh, and the sails were set, but the breeze dying away, she was again brought to an anchor.

The news is that M. Delarche, [Son of a captain in the French service and of a Creole mother. Dupleix describes him as almost faultless save for his vanity, ‘vice ordinaire de l’enfant de l’Inde.’ (Google translate: ordinary vice of the child from India.) He knew Persian, and married an Armenian woman. Cultru, pp. 40, 50; Cj. ante ii 326.]...

Saturday, 11th September 1745, or 30th Avani of Krodhana. — At noon, the Nawab sent a message that he was coming. On this, everything was put in order in the town, all the gates of which, with the exception of the Vazhudavur, on the western side, were closed. Outside the gate, and to the south of it, but within the boundary of the ditch, a tent was pitched. M. Dupleix, the Deputy Governor, the Councillors, Kanakaraya Mudali, I, and other men of rank, started in procession from the Governor’s house. We were attended by Mahe Muhammadans * [It seems probable that these were Moplahs.] and Carnatic sepoys carrying muskets on their shoulders, and by police peons, who bore spears. Musicians with flags were mounted on the backs of elephants, camels, and horses, and they played on kettle and one-headed drums, and other instruments. The procession also included dancing-girls, with their drums and cymbals. In this order, the procession set out from the Governor’s residence at noon, and repaired to the tent erected outside the western gate. The Governor and his co-administrators entered this. The soldiers were marshalled in a line on the glacis, up to the ramparts; and everything was made ready for the arrival of the Nawab. MM. Desmarets and Le Maire, and Kanakaraya Mudali, were deputed to intimate to him that everything was prepared for his reception. Having fulfilled their mission, they returned. Information arrived at 2, that the Nawab had left his camp. Immediately afterwards, Sampati Rao and Mir Ghulam Husain arrived in a palanquin. Those who were in the tent issued forth, and having embraced the new-comers, led them in, and accommodated them with seats. Shortly after this, Karim ’Ali Khan, ’Abd-ul-jalil, and a few others arrived. They were received with the same attentions; that is, those who were in the tent came out, embraced them, brought them in, and conducted them to their seats. After this, Nawab Anwar-ud-din Khan arrived in a litter; Husain Sahib, Miyan Sahib, Fath Muhammad ... * [Blank in the original.] accompanying him in others. He was attended by musicians, who rode on elephants, and played on kettle, one-headed, and other kinds of drums. In his train came three elephants, twenty horsemen, a hundred foot, and twenty palanquins. During the time between that at which the cavalcade neared the angle of the ramparts, and that when it reached the tent where the Governor was waiting, a salute of fifty guns was fired. On its approach, the Governor, taking a few steps forward, passed through the inner door of the tent, and stationed himself beyond the outer one, to receive the Nawab. Whilst the latter was still seated in his litter, the Governor embraced him, and walked along by his side until they reached the tent. Into this the litter was conveyed, and when the Nawab alighted from it, the Governor embraced him once more. Then, all sat down, and conversed for nearly, half an Indian hour. After this, they rose together, and moved into the town. The following was the order in which they entered. The Nawab, the Governor, the Nawab’s grandson, M. Delarche — who understands Hindustani — and a Muhammadan; about four or five in all, were seated in a carriage drawn by three pairs of horses. Sampati Rao and Husain Sahib followed next, in a carriage and pair. The rest of the party got into their vehicles, or rode on their horses, and thus the entire cortege entered the town-gate. On this, the firing of a salute of fifty guns began. With great pomp, and with the roll of drums, the clang of cymbals and the sound of wind-instruments, the cavalcade moved along to the western gate, then turned due Route east, marched past Kanakaraya Mudali’s house, turned south, passed the Iswaran temple on the east, skirted the walls of the fort, entered the European street to the south of these, passed the church of the Capuchins, left the eastern side of the fort behind it, and finally drew up before the Governor’s house. During the progress of the procession, the western gate of the fort was kept closed; the eastern one alone remained open. When the Nawab arrived at the Governor’s residence, a salute was fired from the ramparts facing the sea. He then entered the tent which had been pitched for him to the south of the house. The soldiers were next paraded before him, and he watched their manoeuvres for more than an hour. He then expressed a desire to visit the fort, and was taken thither in a sedan-chair. He was accompanied by the Governor in a palanquin. When they entered the fort gate, they were received with military honours. The guards presented arms, and the drums rolled forth a welcome. They went on to the ramparts, saw the clock-tower and the fortifications, watched the firing of mortars, and returned to the Governor’s house, where a table was spread, groaning under the weight of silver plates, cups, and dishes. Refreshments, consisting of sweets and fruit, were partaken of. Whilst the Nawab was at table, his mace-bearers — five or six in number — secreted some of the silver plates and cups. The theft was discovered, the men were searched, and the stolen articles were taken from them. After the entertainment was concluded, presents were given to the Nawab. A list of these will be found at the end of this day’s narrative. After sunset, the walls of the fort, the ramparts, and the outside of the Governor’s house, were all brilliantly illuminated. There was also a display of fireworks. At 8 o’clock, the Nawab set out for his camp, when a salute of fifty guns was fired. This was repeated when he passed out of the gate of the fort. The Governor accompanied him beyond the town-gate, and having there bidden him farewell, returned to Pondichery. The Nawab went to his camp at Nainiya Pillai’s choultry. On his way back, he passed through the Madras gate. So long as he was within the town, only one of the gates was kept open, the rest being closed. The Nawab’s age is eighty or eighty-five years; Sampati Rao’s, fifty-five or sixty; Husain Sahib’s, forty-five or fifty; Karim ’Ali Khan’s, thirty-five or forty; Mir Ghulam Husain’s, forty; Bangaru Yachama Nayakkan’s, fifty-five or sixty; Tamalacheri Venkatapati Nayakkan’s, fifty-five or sixty; and the Kattu Raja’s son’s, eighteen or twenty.

The following is a list of the articles which were presented to Nawab Anwar-ud-din Khan: —

Item / Total Value Pagodas / Fanams

1 Golden fillet; 1 Sukkupachi ornament [The meaning of this word which, as it stands, is an exact transliteration of the Tamil, has not been discovered.] / 460 / 0
1 Roll, Spanish taffeta velvet of Soria, blue and gold; 3 Velvet cusions / 830 / 0 
l Box of otto of roses / 60 / 0  
1 Case, 24 boxes of pigments / 40 / 0
1 Box of candy, weight 285 lb, at 3-1/2 fanams a lb. / 38 / 0
4 Boxes of sugar, weighing 639 lb. / 59 / 0 
16 Flasks Hungary water, at 3 fanams each / 2 / 0 
12 Flasks Imperial water, [Littre (Dictionnaire de la Langue Francaise) defines “Eau imperiale" as a spirit distilled from different sorts of herbs and spices.] at 8 fanams each / 4 / 0 
12 Flasks balm cordial, at 8 fanams each / 4 / 0 
13 Flasks cordial-water, at 12 fanams each / 6 / 12  
10 Flasks rose-water, at 18 fanams each / 7 / 12  
28 Beads for ear pendants / 18 / 0
1 Clock / 35 / 0
1 Roll of velvet, 26-1/4 yards, at 5 pagodas a yard / 130 / 0
1 Roll of velvet, 23 yards, at 4 pagodas a yard / 92 / 0  
Gold net, 4 marks, at 15 pagodas each / 60 / 0
1 Bale brocade containing ten rolls, length 157 yards / 235 / 12
1 Double-barrelled gun / 20 / 0
Total value in pagodas / 2,104 / 0

-- The Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai, translated from the Tamil by Order of the Government of Madras, edited by Sir J. Frederick Price, KCSI., Late of the Indian Civil Service, Assisted by K. Rangachari, B.A., Superintendent of Records, Government Secretariat, Fort St. George, Volume 1, 1904

[admin]

xx

[admin]

xx

[admin]

Tessier [Teissier]
Excerpts from The Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai
translated from the Tamil by Order of the Government of Madras
Volumes 1-3 edited by Sir J. Frederick Price, KCSI., Late of the Indian Civil Service, Assisted by K. Rangachari, B.A., Superintendent of Records, Government Secretariat, Fort St. George
Volumes 4-12 edited by H. Dodwell, M.A., Curator, Madras Record Office
1904-1928

The Actors

The Accused

Nayiniyappa: Chief commercial broker to the Compagnie des Indes in Pondichéry, 1708–1716

Nayiniyappa’s Family and Associates

Guruvappa: Nayiniyappa’s eldest son
The Widow Guruvappa: Guruvappa’s wife, Nayiniyappa’s daughter-in-law
Tiruvangadan: A merchant of Madras, and Nayiniyappa’s business associate and brother-in-law
Ramanada: Nayiniyappa’s business associate.
Ananda Ranga Pillai: Nayiniyappa’s nephew, Tiruvangadan’s son, and chief commercial broker to the Compagnie des Indes, 1748–1761.

French Trader-Administrators

Guillaume André Hébert: Governor of Pondichéry 1708–1713; Général de la nation, 1715–1718
Hébert fils: The governor’s son and a junior employee of the Compagnie des Indes
Pierre André Prévost de La Prévostière: Governor of Pondichéry, 1718–1721
Nicolas de La Morandière: Pondichéry councillor, author of several appeals filed by the accused Indians

The Missionaries

Guy Tachard: First superior of the Jesuit mission in Pondichéry
Jean-Venant Bouchet: Second superior of the Jesuit mission in Pondichéry
Père Esprit de Tours: Capuchin missionary and parish priest to Europeans in Pondichéry
Jean-Jacques Tessier de Queralay: Representative of the Missions étrangères de Paris.

The Interpreters

Manuel Geganis: A French-speaking Tamil Christian, son of the Jesuits’ chief catechist (religious interpreter)
Père Turpin: A Tamil-speaking Jesuit missionary
Cordier: A French man born in India to a company employee

-- A Colonial Affair: Commerce, Conversion, and Scandal in French India, by Danna Agmon

If Sylvia Murr’s claim that ‘at the beginning of the eighteenth century, all discourse on India was tributary to the ‘Relations’ supplied by the missionaries, Catholic and Protestant’,1 [‘au debut du 18e siecle, tout discours sur l’lnde etait tributaire des ‘Relations’ foumies paries missionaires, catholiques ou protestants’ Murr 1986: 303.] is somewhat overstated, it nevertheless serves to emphasise the importance of such missionary ‘relations’ prior to the arrival in India of Anquetil-Duperron, who appears to have been the first European to visit India for purely scholarly purposes. Among Protestants, Murr mentions Ziegenbalg and also Lord and Roger, although the latter were not missionaries, nor writing at the beginning of the eighteenth century.

Among Catholics, the main contributors to Indological discourse of the eighteenth century were French, in particular the Jesuits associated with the Carnatic mission, but also the Capuchins Jean-Jacques Tessier de Queralay and Thomas de Poitiers. At the end of the century another French priest, the Abbe Jean-Antoine Dubois, a secular priest of the Missions Etrangeres, was responsible for publishing as his own work one of the most significant works of the earlier generation of French missionaries.2 [Despite being ‘a respected member of the Missions Etrangeres, a body traditionally hostile to the Jesuits’, Dubois’s relations with the Jesuits were good, and he supported the return of the Jesuits to Madurai after the restoration of the Society (Ballhatchet 1998: 3).]

These writers produced a number of significant works on Indian religions, among them the Relation des erreurs qui se trouvent dans la religion des gentils malabars de la Coste Coromandelle3 [A substantial part of the text of the Relation des erreurs qui se trouvent dans la religion des gentils malabars de la Coste Coromandelle was printed in Picart’s Ceremonies et coutumes religieuses de tous les peuples du monde under the title: ‘Dissertation historique sur les Dieux des Indiens orientaux.’ (Picart 1723: 83-100). This is immediately followed by a ‘Lettre de P. Bouchet sur la Religion des Indiens Orientaux’ (Bouchet’s second letter to Huet, XIII: 95-225). A critical edition of the Relation des erreurs from three manuscripts, one of which attributes the work to Nobili was published by Caland (Caland 1923). Dharampal, who has used a fourth manuscript, discusses the origin of the work and its attribution to Bouchet (Dharampal 1982a: 233-239).] of Jean Venant Bouchet, the Traite de la Religion des Malabars4 [Extensive extracts from Tessier de Queralay’s manuscript were published in Bumouf and Jacquet 1835. The full text was published in Dharampal 1982a.] of Tessier de Queralay, Le Paganisme des Indiens nommes Tamouls of Thomas de Poitiers, the Moeurs et Coutumes des Indiens5 [Sylvia Murr identified a manuscript compiled in 1776-1777 by a French artillery officer Nicholas-Jacques Desvaulx as a version of Coeurdoux’s lost work, and has shown that Dubois’s celebrated work, Hindu Manners, Customs and Ceremonies (1816; Mceurs, Institutions et Ceremonies des Peuples de l’lnde, 1825) is based on Coeurdoux (Murr 1987). In his Prefatory note to Beauchamp’s 1906 edition, Friedrich Max Muller noticed that the author of the work ‘really belongs to a period previous to the revival of Sanskrit studies in India, as inaugurated by Wilkins, Sir William Jones and Colebrooke’, although he did not doubt that the author was Dubois.] of Gaston-Laurent Coeurdoux, and the infamous Ezourvedam.6 [Among those to whom the Ezourvedam has been attributed are, in addition to Nobili, five French Jesuits of the eighteenth century: Bouchet (1655-1732), Pierre Martin (1665- 1716), Jean Calmette (1693-1740), Antoine Mosac (1704-C.1784), and Jean de Villette (dates uncertain). Rocher reviews the long debate over the authorship of the Ezourvedam concluding that ‘the author of the [Ezourvedam] may be one of these, but he may also be one of their many more or less well known confreres. In the present state of our knowledge we cannot go any further than that.’ (Rocher 1984: 60). If nothing else, this demonstrates the sheer number of Jesuits who had significant knowledge of Indian languages and religions. The Ezourvedam was published in 1778 as L’Ezour-Vedam, ou Ancien Commentaire du Vedam contenant I’esposition des opinions religieuses & philosophiques des Indiens, but doubts about its authenticity immediately surfaced. Pierre Sonnerat showed it to ‘a learned but fanatic Brahman’ who convinced him that ‘[ i]t is definitely not one of the four Vedams, notwithstanding its name. It is a book of controversy, written by a missionary’ (Voyage aux Indes Orientates (1782) I: 215, cited in Rocher 1984: 13).] However, only the first and the last of these were published in the eighteenth century. Of more immediate impact were the letters of the French Jesuits, published in the Lettres edifiantes et curieuses, the Memoires de l'Academie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres and elsewhere.7 [The letters were widely read, both in the Lettres edifiantes and in other publications, for example in Picart’s collection in which Bouchet’s long, undated letter concerning transmigration (XIII: 95-226) was reprinted (Picart 1723: 100-106). A brief account of the origin, editions and influence of the Lettres edifiantes is given by Retif 1951.] The Jesuit letters from India had been contributing to European knowledge of Indian religions since the sixteenth century.8 [Zachariae goes so far as to say that if Europeans at the end of the 16th and the beginning of the 17th century ‘were tolerably acquainted with ‘Hinduism’, with the religion and mythology of India ... that knowledge was attained through the letters which the Jesuit missionaries labouring in India sent to the members of their Order in Europe.’ (Zachariae 1921: 151). For earlier Jesuit ethnographic contributions see Rubies 2000.] It will be argued, however, that for a number of reasons it was the letters of the eighteenth century which were particularly important in the establishment of the concept of a pan-Indian religion, which subsequently came to be called Hinduism. Although this analysis is based primarily on the letters published in the Lettres edifiantes et curieuses, the other letters, both published and unpublished also played a role, and reference will be made to these and to the other mentioned works on Indian religions by French writers in this period. Among the Jesuits who served in the Madurai, Carnatic and Bengal missions and contributed to the Lettres edifiantes were Jean Venant Bouchet (1655-1732, in India from 1688), Pierre Martin (1665-1716, in India from 1694), Pierre de la Lane (1669- 1746, in India from 1704), Etienne le Gac (1671-1738, in India by 1709), Gaston-Laurent Coeurdoux (1691-1779, in India from 1732), Jean Calmette (1693-1740, in India from 1725 or 1726), Jean Francois Pons (1698-C.1753, in India from 1726).

-- Hinduism in the Jesuit Lettres edifiantes et curieuses, Chapter 7 from "Mapping Hinduism 'Hinduism' and the Study of Indian Religions, 1600-1776," by Will Sweetman, 2003

[admin]

xx

[admin]

xxx

[admin]

Part 1 of 3

Chapter 7: Hinduism in the Jesuit Lettres edifiantes et curieuses
From "Mapping Hinduism: 'Hinduism' and the Study of Indian Religions, 1600-1776
by Will Sweetman
2003

If Sylvia Murr’s claim that ‘at the beginning of the eighteenth century, all discourse on India was tributary to the ‘Relations’ supplied by the missionaries, Catholic and Protestant’,1 [‘au debut du 18e siecle, tout discours sur l’lnde etait tributaire des ‘Relations’ foumies paries missionaires, catholiques ou protestants’ [Google translate: at the beginning of the 18th century, all discourse on India depended on the "Relations" provided by missionaries, Catholics or Protestants] Murr 1986: 303.] is somewhat overstated, it nevertheless serves to emphasise the importance of such missionary ‘relations’ prior to the arrival in India of Anquetil-Duperron, who appears to have been the first European to visit India for purely scholarly purposes. Among Protestants, Murr mentions Ziegenbalg and also Lord and Roger, although the latter were not missionaries, nor writing at the beginning of the eighteenth century. Among Catholics, the main contributors to Indological discourse of the eighteenth century were French, in particular the Jesuits associated with the Carnatic mission, but also the Capuchins Jean-Jacques Tessier de Queralay and Thomas de Poitiers. At the end of the century another French priest, the Abbe Jean-Antoine Dubois, a secular priest of the Missions Etrangeres [Paris Foreign Missions Society], was responsible for publishing as his own work one of the most significant works of the earlier generation of French missionaries.2 [Despite being ‘a respected member of the Missions Etrangeres, a body traditionally hostile to the Jesuits’, Dubois’s relations with the Jesuits were good, and he supported the return of the Jesuits to Madurai after the restoration of the Society (Ballhatchet 1998: 3).]

The creation of the Paris Foreign Missions Society was initiated when the Jesuit Father Alexandre de Rhodes, back from Vietnam and asking for the dispatch of numerous missionaries to the Far East, obtained in 1650 an agreement by Pope Innocent X to send secular priests and bishops as missionaries. Alexandre de Rhodes received in Paris in 1653 a strong financial and organizational support from the Compagnie du Saint-Sacrement for the establishment of the Paris Foreign Missions Society....

The Company of the Blessed Sacrament (French: Compagnie du Saint-Sacrement), also sometimes referred to as the Company of the Most Blessed Sacrament, was a French Catholic secret society which included among its members many Catholic notables of the 17th century. It was responsible for much of the contribution of the Catholic Church in France to meeting the social needs of the day...

The associates met weekly and their organization was simultaneously a pious confraternity, a charitable society and a militant association for the defence of the Church. It was ruled by Baron de Renty from 1639 until his death in 1649.

The company was a secret one. Louis XIII covertly encouraged it but it never wished to have the letters patent that would have rendered it legal...The rule of secrecy obliged members "not to speak of the Company to those who do not belong to it and never to make known the names of the individuals composing it. New members were elected by the board and it was soon decided that no congréganiste, i.e. member of a lay congregation directed by ecclesiastics, could be eligible. Matters of an especially delicate nature were not discussed at the weekly meetings, these being frequently attended by a hundred members, but were reserved for the investigation of the board. The company printed nothing and the keeping of written minutes was conducted with the utmost caution. There were fifty important branches outside of Paris, about thirty being unknown even to the bishops...

The association worked to correct abuses among the clergy and in monasteries in order to ensure good behavior in the churches and to procure missions for rural parishes, and it urged the establishment of a Seminary of Foreign Missions for the evangelizing of non-Catholics.

-- Company of the Blessed Sacrament, by Wikipedia

The Society itself ("Assemblée des Missions") was formally established by the Compagnie du Saint-Sacrement in 1658. The object of the new society was and is still the evangelization of non-Christian countries, by founding churches and raising up a native clergy under the jurisdiction of the bishops. The creation of the Paris Foreign Missions Society coincided with the establishment of the French East India Company.

In order to dispatch the three missionaries to Asia, the Compagnie du Saint-Sacrement established a trading company (the "Compagnie de Chine", founded 1660).

The Compagnie de Chine was a French trading company established in 1660 by the Catholic society Compagnie du Saint-Sacrement, in order to dispatch missionaries to Asia (initially Bishops François Pallu, Pierre Lambert de la Motte and Ignace Cotolendi of the newly founded Paris Foreign Missions Society). The company was modelled on the Dutch East India Company...

In 1664, the China Company would be fused by Jean-Baptiste Colbert with the Compagnie d'Orient and Compagnie de Madagascar into the Compagnie des Indes Orientales [French East India Company].

-- Compagnie de Chine, by Wikipedia

[T]he establishment of a trading company and the perceived threat of French missionary efforts to Asia was met with huge opposition by the Jesuits, the Portuguese, the Dutch and even the Propaganda, leading to the issuing of an interdiction of the Compagnie du Saint-Sacrement by Cardinal Mazarin in 1660. In spite of these events, the King, the Assembly of the French Clergy, the Compagnie du Saint-Sacrement and private donors accepted to finance the effort, and the three bishops managed to depart, although they now had to travel on land.

The three bishops chosen for Asia left France (1660–62) to go to their respective missions, and crossed Persia and India on foot, since Portugal would have refused to take non-Padroado missionaries by ship, and the Dutch and the English refused to take Catholic missionaries. Mgr Lambert left Marseilles on 26 November 1660, and reached Mergui in Siam 18 months later, Mgr Pallu joined Mgr Lambert in the capital of Siam Ayutthaya after 24 months overland, and Mgr Cotolendi died upon arrival in India on 6 August 1662. Siam thus became the first country to receive the evangelization efforts of the Paris Foreign Missions Society, to be followed by new missions 40 years later in Cochinchina, Tonkin and parts of China.

The mission had the objective of adapting to local customs, establishing a native clergy, and keeping close contacts with Rome...

Between 1660 and 1700 about 100 missionaries were sent to Asia.

-- Paris Foreign Missions Society, by Wikipedia

These writers produced a number of significant works on Indian religions, among them the Relation des erreurs qui se trouvent dans la religion des gentils malabars de la Coste Coromandelle3 [Google translate: Relation of the errors which are in the religion of the gentile malabars of Coste Coromandelle] [A substantial part of the text of the Relation des erreurs qui se trouvent dans la religion des gentils malabars de la Coste Coromandelle was printed in Picart’s Ceremonies et coutumes religieuses de tous les peuples du monde [Google translate: Ceremonies and religious customs of all the peoples of the world] under the title: ‘Dissertation historique sur les Dieux des Indiens orientaux.’ [Google translate: Historical dissertation on the Gods of the East Indians.] (Picart 1723: 83-100). This is immediately followed by a ‘Lettre de P. Bouchet sur la Religion des Indiens Orientaux’ [Google translate: Letter from P. Bouchet on the Religion of the East Indians] (Bouchet’s second letter to Huet, XIII: 95-225). A critical edition of the Relation des erreurs from three manuscripts, one of which attributes the work to Nobili was published by Caland (Caland 1923). Dharampal, who has used a fourth manuscript, discusses the origin of the work and its attribution to Bouchet (Dharampal 1982a: 233-239).] of Jean Venant Bouchet, the Traite de la Religion des Malabars4 [Google translate: Treatise on the Religion of the Malabars] [Extensive extracts from Tessier de Queralay’s manuscript were published in Burnouf and Jacquet 1835. The full text was published in Dharampal 1982a.] of Tessier de Queralay, Le Paganisme des Indiens nommes Tamouls [Google translate: The paganism of the Indians named Tamils] of Thomas de Poitiers, the Moeurs et Coutumes des Indiens5 [Google translate: Mores and Customs of the Indians] [Sylvia Murr identified a manuscript compiled in 1776-1777 by a French artillery officer Nicholas-Jacques Desvaulx as a version of Coeurdoux’s lost work, and has shown that Dubois’s celebrated work, Hindu Manners, Customs and Ceremonies (1816; Moeurs, Institutions et Ceremonies des Peuples de l’lnde, [Google translate: Institutions and Ceremonies of the Peoples of India] 1825) is based on Coeurdoux (Murr 1987). In his Prefatory note to Beauchamp’s 1906 edition, Friedrich Max Muller noticed that the author of the work ‘really belongs to a period previous to the revival of Sanskrit studies in India, as inaugurated by Wilkins, Sir William Jones and Colebrooke’, although he did not doubt that the author was Dubois.] of Gaston-Laurent Coeurdoux, and the infamous Ezourvedam.6 [Among those to whom the Ezourvedam has been attributed are, in addition to Nobili, five French Jesuits of the eighteenth century: Bouchet (1655-1732), Pierre Martin (1665- 1716), Jean Calmette (1693-1740), Antoine Mosac (1704-C.1784), and Jean de Villette (dates uncertain). Rocher reviews the long debate over the authorship of the Ezourvedam concluding that ‘the author of the [Ezourvedam] may be one of these, but he may also be one of their many more or less well known confreres. In the present state of our knowledge we cannot go any further than that.’ (Rocher 1984: 60). If nothing else, this demonstrates the sheer number of Jesuits who had significant knowledge of Indian languages and religions. The Ezourvedam was published in 1778 as L’Ezour-Vedam, ou Ancien Commentaire du Vedam contenant I’esposition des opinions religieuses & philosophiques des Indiens, [Google translate: The Ezur-Vedam, or Old Commentary on the Vedam containing the statement of the religious & philosophical views of the Indians] but doubts about its authenticity immediately surfaced. Pierre Sonnerat showed it to ‘a learned but fanatic Brahman’ who convinced him that ‘[i]t is definitely not one of the four Vedams, notwithstanding its name. It is a book of controversy, written by a missionary’ (Voyage aux Indes Orientates [Google translate: Travel to the East Indies] (1782) I: 215, cited in Rocher 1984: 13).] However, only the first and the last of these were published in the eighteenth century. Of more immediate impact were the letters of the French Jesuits, published in the Lettres edifiantes et curieuses [Google translate: Edifying and curious letters], the Memoires de l'Academie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres [Google translate: Memoirs of the Academy of Inscriptions and Belles-Lettres] and elsewhere.7 [The letters were widely read, both in the Lettres edifiantes and in other publications, for example in Picart’s collection in which Bouchet’s long, undated letter concerning transmigration (XIII: 95-226) was reprinted (Picart 1723: 100-106). A brief account of the origin, editions and influence of the Lettres edifiantes is given by Retif 1951.] The Jesuit letters from India had been contributing to European knowledge of Indian religions since the sixteenth century.8 [Zachariae goes so far as to say that if Europeans at the end of the 16th and the beginning of the 17th century ‘were tolerably acquainted with ‘Hinduism’, with the religion and mythology of India... that knowledge was attained through the letters which the Jesuit missionaries labouring in India sent to the members of their Order in Europe.’ (Zachariae 1921: 151). For earlier Jesuit ethnographic contributions see Rubies 2000.] It will be argued, however, that for a number of reasons it was the letters of the eighteenth century which were particularly important in the establishment of the concept of a pan-Indian religion, which subsequently came to be called Hinduism. Although this analysis is based primarily on the letters published in the Lettres edifiantes et curieuses, the other letters, both published and unpublished also played a role, and reference will be made to these and to the other mentioned works on Indian religions by French writers in this period. Among the Jesuits who served in the Madurai, Carnatic and Bengal missions and contributed to the Lettres edifiantes were Jean Venant Bouchet (1655-1732, in India from 1688), Pierre Martin (1665-1716, in India from 1694), Pierre de la Lane (1669- 1746, in India from 1704), Etienne le Gac (1671-1738, in India by 1709), Gaston-Laurent Coeurdoux (1691-1779, in India from 1732), Jean Calmette (1693-1740, in India from 1725 or 1726), Jean Francois Pons (1698-C.1753, in India from 1726).

While Ziegenbalg, as we have seen, had a general concept of a religion stretching from Sri Lanka, up the Coromandel coast to Bengal and deep into the Mogul realm,9 [See above, p. 110.] his primary concern was with the religious beliefs and practices of the Tamils. By contrast, in their letters from around the time of Ziegenbalg’s death onward, the Jesuits consistently treat ‘the system of religion recognized among the Indians’ as a coherent religious entity.10 [‘le systeme de Religion requ parmi les Indiens’ [Google translate: the system of religion required among the Indians IX: 5. Note however, that while the existence of such a common religion is a shared assumption of the Jesuits, they differed concerning the nature and origin of this religion.] While they have no single term equivalent to ‘Hinduism’, they express the same idea in various ways. Bouchet notes that ‘one of the points of the Indian doctrine, is that the gods may be changed into men, and the men into gods’.11 [‘un des points de la doctrine Indienne, est que les Dieux peuvent estre changez en hommes, & les hommes en Dieux’ [Google translate: one of the points of Indian doctrine is that Gods can be changed into men, and men into Gods] XIII,147. Cf. the reference to ‘la religion des gentils malabars’ in the title of Bouchet’s Relation des erreurs (Caland 1923).] De la Lane, and Le Caron both offer summaries of ‘the religion of the Indians’12 [‘la Religion des Indiens’, [Google translate: the religion of the Indians] X: 14. ‘La Religion des Indiens est un compose monstreux de toute sorte de fables.’ [Google translate: The Religion of the Indians is a monstrous composition of all kinds of fables.] XVI: 122. De la Lane also refers to 'l'Idolatrie Indienne’ [Google translate: Indian Idolatry] X: 17.] And Calmette reports the successful outcome of his commission to obtain ‘the original books of the religion of the Indies’.13 [‘les Livres originaux de la Religion des Indes’ [Google translate: the original Books of the Religion of the Indies] XXIV: 437. A copy of the igveda sent by Calmette was received in Paris in 1731 (Dharampal 1982a: 247).] Le Gac, writing in 1718, twice refers to the threats faced by converts from Hinduism as a result of their renouncing ‘the religion of their fathers’.14 [‘la religion de leurs Peres’ [Google translate: the religion of their fathers] XVI: 183, 208. In this letter Le Gac discusses particularly the former followers of a ‘Gourou nomme Chivalingam’ (204) but his comments about the consequences of renouncing ‘the religion of their fathers’ refer to other converts from Hinduism as well.] Four years later, the same author recounts a conversation with a local prince, whose evident desire ‘to know and to embrace the truth’ was ‘mixed sometimes with the ideas of Gentilism’, for example his wish to continue to wear a lingam.15 [“‘Dieu vous a donne un fonds de droiture”, lui dit le Pere dans le meme entretien, “qui est une grande disposition pour connoitre & embrasser la verite: mais a cette connoissance vous melez quelquefois des idees de Gentilisme qui alterent beaucoup ces heureuses semences.’” [Google translate: “'God has given you a fund of righteousness”, said the Father to him in the same interview, “which is a great disposition to know & embrace the truth: but with this knowledge you sometimes mix ideas of Gentilism which greatly alter these happy people seeds.'” ] XVI: 293-294.] Although ‘Gentilism’ had been used in the previous century, for example by Ross,16 [Ross 1696: 63, quoted above p. 54.] it is used here, in contrast to ‘Christianisme',17 [XVI: 204, 247. Le Gac also refers to ‘la Religion Chretienne’ and ‘la loi Chretienne’ [Google translate: 'Christian Religion’ and ‘Christian law.'] e.g. XVI: 285, 251. In general, where the Jesuits use ‘la Religion’ [Google translate: 'religion'] or ‘la Foi’ [Google translate: 'the faith'] without qualification, they refer to Christianity.] to refer to the same entity as ‘the religion of their fathers’ and in the context of the Jesuits’ works is better understood as anticipating the ‘Gentooism’ and ‘Hindooism’ which were to appear later in the century,18 [In 1779 and 1787 respectively. See above, p. 56.] than referring back to the broader concept of ‘Gentilism’ of a writer such as Ross. The account in the Jesuit letters of the religion to which these different locutions refer shows clearly that they have a concept of Hinduism avant la lettre. [Google translate: before the letter.] In order to show that this idea emerged not simply from their preconceptions or apologetic needs, it is necessary to examine the nature of the Jesuits and their missions in India.

The Jesuit missions in India

The Jesuits had been present in India since shortly after the foundation of their Society in the mid-sixteenth century, at first in Goa and the Fisher Coast and then at the courts of Akbar in the north and Venkata II in the south. The seventeenth century saw the experiments in adaptation of Roberto Nobili in the Madurai mission and, toward the end of the century, the establishment of the Bengal and Carnatic missions, based in the French possessions of Chandemagore and Pondicherry respectively. Many of the letters in the Lettres edifiantes et curieuses are from Jesuits associated with the Carnatic mission, although crucially several also worked in the other missions, particularly Madurai and Bengal.

The history of the Carnatic mission of the Jesuits begins with the arrival in Pondicherry, in 1688, of a number of Jesuits who had been forced to leave Siam following a revolution.19 [For the Jesuits’ enterprise in Siam, see Tachard 1686 and 1689.]

For the Paris Foreign Missions Society the starting point was Siam, with the establishment of a base in its capital Ayutthaya, because Siam was highly tolerant of other religions and was indeed the only country in Southeast Asia where the Catholic Fathers could establish themselves safely. With the agreement of the Siamese king Narai, the Seminary of Saint Joseph was established, which could educate Asian candidate priests from all over the country of the Southeast Asian peninsula, as well as a cathedral...

In 1687 a French expedition to Siam took possession of Bangkok, Mergui, and Jonselang, and France came close to possessing an Indo-Chinese empire, though failed following the 1688 Siamese revolution, with a knock-on effect on the missions. Mgr Louis Laneau of the Society was involved in these events, and was imprisoned for two years with half of the members of the Seminar until he could resume his activities.

-- Paris Foreign Missions Society, by Wikipedia

When it became clear that they would not be able to return to Siam, it was decided to start a mission in the region to the north-west of Pondicherry, along the lines of the Madurai mission established in the extreme south by Roberto Nobili at the beginning of the century. Initially the mission consisted of three missionaries, Bouchet, Jean Baptiste de la Fontaine,20 [La Fontaine does not appear in Sommervogel. His death is reported in a letter dated 10 December 1718 from Le Gac, who writes: ‘The Carnatic mission ... rightly regards him as its founder.’ (‘La mission de Carnate ... le regarde avec justice comme son Fondateur.’ [Google translate: Carnate's mission ... regards him with justice as his Founder.] XVL232-3).] who had both worked in the Madurai mission, and Pierre Mauduit (1664-1711), under the authority of Guy Tachard (1651-1712) in Pondicherry. Neill notes that ‘[d]uring the course of the eighteenth century forty French Jesuits served in the Carnatic mission’, although ‘[f]or the greater part of the time there were not more than six missionaries in the whole of the vast field.’21 [Neill 1985: 90, 93.] Although some of these missionaries lived into the nineteenth century, the mission effectively came to an end with the dissolution of the Jesuit order in 1773. While their missionary labours yielded ‘no more than a somewhat exiguous reward’,22 [Neill 1985: 93.] their contributions to European understanding of Indian religions were rather more significant.

Despite the sustained anti-Jesuit polemic throughout his work, the English translator of the Jesuit letters, John Lockman, nevertheless argued that ‘no Men are better qualified to describe Nations and Countries than the Jesuits.’

Their Education, their extensive Learning; the Pains they take to acquire the Languages of the several Regions they visit; the Opportunities they have, by their Skill in the Arts and Sciences, as well as by their insinuating Address, to glide into Courts, where Access is often denied to all but themselves; Their Familiarity with the Inhabitants; their mixing with, and, often, very long Abode among them; these, I say, must necessarily give our Jesuits a much more perfect Insight into the Genius and Character of a Nation, than others who visit Coasts only, and that merely upon Account of Traffic, or from some other lucrative Motives. In case these Mercantile Travellers happen to go up a Country, and make some little Stay in it, the most they are able to do is, to get a few of the most obvious Customs; to describe Habits, Buildings, and what ever else comes under the Notice of the Eye: But as to the Genius of the Inhabitants, their Religion, their Government, and other important Articles, these they can learn only superficially; since they must depend wholly, for Information, upon the Natives, in case they understand their Language; or upon Foreigners who may have resided some Years among them. Upon the Whole therefore, ‘tis my Opinion, that the Jesuits, to speak in general, have the best Opportunity of furnishing us with valuable Accounts of many far distant Countries.23 [Lockman 1743,1: viii-ix.]

Like Nobili, the Jesuits of the eighteenth century spent extended periods in India. Martin reports that his fellow Jesuit, Emmanuel Lopez, had spent more than fifty years as a missionary in South India.24 [V: 14.] Lopez was unusual, but not exceptional; Coeurdoux was in India for forty-seven years, De la Lane for forty-two. Martin himself spent nearly twenty years in India,25 [Martin was sent to India in 1694. He returned to Rome to represent the Madurai mission, dying shortly afterwards in 1716. In addition to his letters an unpublished account of the mission, and especially of the persecutions it suffered, has survived. (Sommervogel 1890-1909, V: 624-625).] and several other missionaries were in India for periods of more than twenty years. In every case this is significantly longer than the Protestant chaplains, Lord and Roger, or the missionaries Ziegenbalg and Grundler, both of whom died prematurely.

The other factors identified by Lockman, the Jesuits’ education, success in learning languages, and willingness to live away from European coastal settlements, would all have contributed to their deeper understanding of Hinduism. Some of these were necessitated by a particular obstacle which the Jesuits found they had to overcome if they were to be successful in their mission. The problem was the view taken of Europeans, and therefore also of their religion, by the Indians. Bouchet comments that ‘It is not possible to explain how dreadful is the idea which the Gentiles, who dwell in these lands, have formed of the Europeans who live on the coast.’26 [ 26 ‘II n’est pas possible de faire comprendre l’affreuse idee que les Gentils, qui demeurent dans les terres, se sont formee des Europeans qui habitent la Coste.’ [Google translate: "It is not possible to convey the dreadful idea that the Gentiles, who dwell in the land, formed themselves from the Europeans who inhabit the Coste." ] XV, 239-40. Cf. Rubino’s account of the same problem a century earlier (Rubies 2001: 220).] The problem was not simply behaviour which, from the point of view of the Hindus, was immoral, but that they were mlecchas, and as such outside the caste system. The Jesuits realized that in the early years of their mission most of their converts had come from the lowest ranks of the caste system. If they were to have any access to the Brahmans it was necessary for them to avoid being identified as ‘Pranguis’.27 [Parangi, Feringhee, European. In his Relation des erreurs Bouchet states that ‘we do not have in our European languages a single term which represents all the contempt and the disgust which this word expresses.’ (‘nous n’avons pas dans nos langues d’Europe un seul terme qui represente tout le mepris et le degout que ce mot exprime.’ [Google translate: “We don't have a single term in our European languages ​​that represents all the contempt and disgust that word expresses.”] Cited in Dharampal 1982a: 243). Cf. Caland 1923: 84.]

Roberto struggled to understand why the Madurai mission was confined to outcaste Paravas and Portuguese. He felt himself fortunate therefore to have become associated with the Hindu schoolmaster whom Fernandez had placed in charge of the school. From the schoolmaster, Roberto was astounded to learn that the term used by the Indians to refer to the Portuguese and their converts, Parangis, was not, as the missionaries believed, a Tamil word meaning simply "Portuguese." Rather it signified polluted, uncultured, contemptuous foreigners and their proselytes. Parangis were despised, the Hindu schoolmaster said, because they ate meat, drank wine (usually to excess), bathed irregularly, wore leather shoes, and ignored the rules of social interaction...

When the Portuguese first came to India, the question was asked: To which caste do these foreigners belong? It seemed to the Hindus that the Portuguese were ignorant, uncouth, unscrupulous people who were unworthy to associate with anybody except the outcastes. How else could one explain their total disregard for basic religious and social principles? No Indian who valued his rank in society or who esteemed his religious faith would ever consider adopting the ways of these foreigners. This was the reason, according to the schoolmaster, why Hindus avoided contact with the Portuguese except for trading purposes. To be touched by or even gazed upon by a Parangi was even contaminating.

-- Roberto de Nobili: Case study in cross-cultural accommodation, by Howard Culbertson

The Jesuits therefore adopted the dress and manner of life of sannyasins and avoided polluting themselves by such actions as entering outcaste dwellings.28 [Martin notes that Lopez was ‘the last Jesuit who wore, in Madura, our European habit.’ (‘le dernier Jesuite, qui ait paru dans le Madure avec l’habit que nous portons en Europe.’ [Google translate: "The last Jesuit, who appeared in the Madure with the dress we wear in Europe."] V: 14).] Exposure as ‘Pranguis’ was a constant concern for the missionaries; Martin notes that it would ‘make us contemptible in their eyes, and raise in them an insurmountable aversion to the [Christian] religion’.29 [‘nous rendroit meprisables a leurs yeux, & leur inspireroit pour la Religion une horreur qu’on ne pourrait jamais vaincre’ [Google translate: "Would make us despicable in their eyes, & inspire them with a horror for Religion which we could never conquer."] IX: 126.] He writes that the Jesuits in Madurai ‘call themselves Brahmans, that is, divines, come out of the north to teach the law of the true God’30 [‘se qualifient Brames, c’est a dire, Docteurs, venus au Nord pour enseigner la Loi du vrai Dieu’ [Google translate: "Brames qualify, that is to say, Doctors, who came to the North to teach the Law of the true God."] I: 17.] and Mauduit confirms that this is how they were known.31 [VI: 9. The title ‘Les Brames du Nord’ [Google translate: The Brames of the North] is still in use in one of the last of the Lettres edifiantes, written sometime between 1760 and 1776 (XXXIV: 311). The Jesuits were also known as the ‘Saniassis Romains’ [Google translate: Roman Saniassis] (e. g. XVI: 207).] On their own account, in inland areas, they seem to have been successful in this ploy. Martin reports an occasion when he sought an audience with a local Prince to request protection against persecution.

If he had had the least suspicion that I was of the caste of the Pranghis, for it is thus that they call the Europeans, he would certainly not have admitted me to his presence, nor sent me food, as was his habit. One of his ministers, an intelligent man, drew in my presence a very ridiculous portrait of the Pranghis or Europeans whom he had seen on the Coromandel coast, and he concluded that my manners, and my way of life, so opposed to that of the Pranghis, was a convincing proof that I was not of such a contemptible caste.32 [‘S’il eut eu le moindre soupcon que j’estois de la Caste des Pranghis, c’est ainsi qu’ils appellent les Europeans, il ne m’auroit point certainement admis aupres de sa personne, ni envoye des plats qui sont a son usage. Un de ses Ministres homme d’esprit, fit en ma presence un portrait fort ridicule des Pranghis ou Europeans qu’il avoit vus a la Coste de Coromandel, & il concluoit que mes manieres, & ma facon de vivre si opposee a celle des Pranghis, estoient une preuve convainquainte que je n’estois pas d’une caste si meprisable.’ [Google translate: 'If he had had the slightest suspicion that I was of the Pranghis Caste, as they call the Europeans, he certainly would not have admitted me to his person, nor sent dishes that are its use. One of his Ministers, a man of wit, painted in my presence a very ridiculous portrait of the Pranghis or Europeans he had seen at the Coste de Coromandel, and he concluded that my ways, and my way of living so opposed to that of the Pranghis, was convincing proof that I was not of such a despicable caste.'] XIII: 88. Cf. IX: 233 where Martin reports ‘Swami, thus the people call the missionaries’. (‘Souamy c’est ainsi les Peuples appellent les Missionaires’. [Google translate: “Souamy is what the Peoples call Missionaries”.])]

Of course it was not always possible for the missionaries to convince Indians that they were not Europeans. Bouchet notes that ‘it is evident that we are white like the Paranguis’,33 [‘il est evident que nous sommes blancs comme les Paranguis’. [Google translate: "It is obvious that we are white like the Parangioses"] Caland 1923: 88.] and that the ‘Gentils’ argued that as ‘the faith and the religion that we profess are the same as that of the Paranguis and the Portuguese’, the Jesuits cannot deny that they are also ‘Paranguis’.34 [‘la foy et la religion que nous professons est la meme de celle des Paranguis et des Portugais, et que par consequent ne pouvons pas nier que nous ne soyons Paranguis comme eux’. [Google translate: "The faith and religion that we profess is the same as that of the Parangians and the Portuguese, and therefore cannot be denied that we are Parangians like them."] Caland 1923: 89.] Bouchet’s response was to argue that just as the Brahmans cannot be ‘reproached for being Parias, although they teach the same sects of Visnu and Rudra as the Parias follow’, so ‘[the Jesuits] are not Paranguis [although they] are of the same religion as the Europeans.’35 [‘reprocher aux Brahames ... qu’ils soient Parias, quoy qu’ils enseignent les memes sectes de Vichnou et de Rutren que les Parias suivent’, ‘nous ne somme pas Paranguis pour estre de la meme religion que les Europeens.’ Caland 1923: 89.] The result, according to Bouchet, was that 100,000 converted from ‘idolatry’ and became Christians. Many European missionaries in India both before and after experienced the same problem, although none of them went quite as far as the Jesuits in the search for a solution. Whatever the difference this policy made to the success of the mission, the attempt to dissociate themselves entirely from other Europeans in India meant that the Jesuits were integrated into Indian life to an extraordinary degree. Moreover both the practice and the defence of what became a controversial policy were important spurs to study and writing on Hinduism.

In addition to the length of time they spent in India, and their integration into Indian society, there are two further factors arising directly from the nature of the Society which influenced the Jesuits’ understanding of Indian religion. Unlike other religious orders the Society of Jesus was not based around traditional monastic communal life. To supply the lack of regular contact between members, Ignatius had instituted a practice of regular letter-writing, and it is within this broader tradition that the letters from India take their place.36 [Retif (1951: 39) notes that, at least since the time of Francis Xavier, the Franciscans had been sending letters from the east reporting their voyages, but that the Jesuits were the first to do so methodically as part of their apostolate, following the recommendations of Ignatius.] What this meant was that the Jesuits in India were able to gather information on religious practices from widely separated parts of India, and thus to recognize patterns of similarity across India. Moreover, the discipline of the Society required that a Jesuit be entirely at the disposal of his superiors, and missionaries could be, and often were, moved from one part of India to another, even if this meant discarding years spent learning a language that would be of little use elsewhere. Thus Tachard notes on being ordered to move to Bengal: ‘It was with regret that I left Pondicherry, I knew the Malabar language quite well ... It would be necessary in Bengal to begin to learn an entirely new language; this is not easy at the age of sixty.’37 [‘Ce fut avec regret que je quittai Pontichery; je spavois assez de lanque Malabare ... II falloit a Bengale commencer a apprendre une langue toute nouvelle; ce qui n’est pas aise a Page de soixante ans.’ XII: 367-8.] Ten years earlier, Martin, having learnt Bengali, had made the opposite journey and had had to apply himself to learning Tamil: ‘For it is an order which the Fathers of that Province have wisely established, not to allow anyone to enter the Madurai Mission, but those who have learnt the language of the country.’ 38 [‘Car c’est un ordre que les Peres de cette Province ont sagement etabli, de ne laisser entrer personne dans la Mission de Madure, qu’il a spache la langue du pays.’ V: 36-7. Special care was taken in the Madurai mission because of the need to avoid detection as Europeans.] As a result these Jesuits had personal knowledge, including acquisition of languages, of widely different parts of India; something that writers such as Lord and Roger never acquired, but which Ziegenbalg was perhaps able to replicate through the breadth of his reading. Not all Jesuits had personal knowledge of different parts of India, but through the exchange of letters and other contacts they were able to benefit from the knowledge of their fellow Jesuits. To demonstrate the importance of these factors in shaping the Jesuits’ view of Hinduism, we shall begin with the works of Bouchet, perhaps the best known of the members of the Carnatic mission.

Jean Venant Bouchet: ‘le systeme de Religion regu parmi les Indiens’

Bouchet was first sent to Siam, where he remained, according to his first letter to Huet, long enough to learn the language.39 [XIII, 217.] In 1688, he and other Jesuits were forced to leave Siam. Bouchet went to India, first spending twelve years in the Madurai mission at Aur, near Tiruchirappalli, where he was introduced to the principles of adaptation laid down by Nobili.40 [Neill 1985: 90.]

Roberto became convinced that Hindus would never listen to the gospel until a break was made with Parangi Christianity. He therefore determined to disassociate himself from people and customs which might identify him as a Parangi.

So, he sought the support of his older colleague. He shared his ideas with Father Gonçalo, attempting to persuade him of their soundness....what he heard from Roberto filled him with dismay.

Roberto told him he wanted to deny that he was a Parangi. He wanted to speak only Tamil and avoid touching or even associating with the Portuguese and outcaste Christians. He wanted to bathe daily, sit down cross-legged and to refer to himself as a sannyasi (a Sanskrit word meaning "one who has given up everything," but for a Brahman, being a sannyasi was the last stage of life). He wanted to eat no meat, and wear wooden clogs and a saffron robe instead of the traditional Jesuit black cassock.

Such a course of action, responded Father Gonçalo, would be a repudiation of three generations of missionary work in India and an irretrievable concession to social evils which Christianity should eradicate. Hundreds of missionaries had given their lives in India in an attempt to plant the Church and root out social evils. For Roberto and him now to withdraw from outcaste believers and accept the prohibitions of caste would be turning their backs on the Indians who had first accepted the gospel. Furthermore, the other changes Roberto was suggesting, such as refusing to eat meat or wear leather sandals, wearing Indian clothing and speaking only in Tamil, calling himself a sannyasi, would deny his priestly identity and seemingly sanction harmful superstitions and prejudices.

Roberto decided that he had no alternative but to appeal to his superior, Laerzio, who did confess that he was uneasy with the unconventionality of Roberto's ideas. Was it necessary, he asked, to go to such extremes? Laerzio affirmed that he longed for the conversion of Hindus as much as any missionary in India, but he could not himself grant permission for such radical departures from the traditional missionary strategy. Nonetheless, Laerzio indicated that he would consult with the Archbishop...

Roberto was not to be deterred. He simply ignored Father Gonçalo's protests. As long as he had the approval of Laerzio and of the Archbishop, Roberto felt he could continue....

He moved from the missionary compound into a hut in the Brahman quarter of the city and shaved his head except for a small tuft of hair. He spoke only Tamil, hired a Brahman cook and houseboy, and became a vegetarian. Like all Brahmans, Roberto limited himself to one meal a day. He abandoned the black cassock and leather sandals of the Jesuits for a saffron robe and wooden clogs. To cover the "nakedness" of his forehead, he put sandalwood paste on his brow to indicate that he was a guru or teacher. He referred to himself not as a priest but as a sannyasi. Eventually, he ate only with Brahmans, and for a brief period he also wore the Brahman thread of three strands of cotton cord draped from the shoulder to the waist as a sign of rank. He bathed daily and cleansed himself ceremonially before saying mass.

-- Roberto de Nobili: Case study in cross-cultural accommodation, by Howard Culbertson

Here Bouchet would have begun to live as a sannyasin. In a letter written some time after his move north to join the Carnatic mission he claimed to be accepted as a sannyasin by those among whom he lived.41 [XIII: 190.] After the arrival in 1703 of Charles Thomas Maillard de Tournon, the papal legate appointed to investigate the rites question, Bouchet was chosen by Tachard to explain the Jesuits’ practice in part because he had ‘applied himself with so much care and ardour to study and to understand the indigenous customs’.42 [Tachard, letter to the Pere General de la Compagnie, 18 February 1705, cited in Dharampal 1982a: 235.]

Malabar rites is a conventional term for certain customs or practices of the natives of South India, which the Jesuit missionaries allowed their Indian neophytes to retain after conversion but which were afterwards prohibited by Rome...

The missions concerned are not those of the coast of southwestern India, to which the name Malabar coast properly belongs, but rather those of nearby inner South India, especially those of the former Hindu "kingdoms" of Madurai, Mysore and the Carnatic.

The question of Malabar Rites originated in the method followed by the Jesuit mission, since the beginning of the seventeenth century, in evangelizing those countries. The prominent feature of that method was an accommodation to the manners and customs of the people to be converted. Enemies of the Jesuits claim that, in Madura, Mysore and the Karnatic, the Jesuits either accepted for themselves or permitted to their neophytes such practices as they knew to be idolatrous or superstitious.

-- Malabar rites, by Wikipedia

In 1704, following the decision of the legate against the Jesuits, he was sent to Rome to protest the Jesuit case. In 1710 he returned to India and succeeded Tachard as superior of the Carnatic mission, remaining there until his death in 1732. Throughout his time in India, Bouchet was in regular contact with other Jesuits, both in person and by letter, and was himself the author of nine letters from India in the Lettres edifiantes et curieuses43 [1: 55-60; IX: 1-60 and 61-123; XI: 1-73; XIII: 95-225 and 226-228; XIV: 321- 410; XV: 1-82 and 209-332.] Two of the longest, both addressed to the former Bishop of Avranches, Pierre-Daniel Huet, are remarkable for the detailed accounts they contain of the Indian gods and of transmigration. It is likely that Bouchet is also the author of the Relation des erreurs qui se trouvent dans la religion des gentils malabars de la Coste Coromandelle, [Google translate: Relation of the errors which are in the religion of the gentile malabars of Coste Coromandelle] 44 [See above, p. 127.] written in defence of the Jesuit mission against the charges of Tessier de Queralay ...

[TESSIER DE QUÉRALAY, Jean-Jacques. Chantenay c. 1668 — Juthia 27.9.1736. French Missionary in India. Capuchin. From 1699 missionary (procureur of Société des Missions Etrangères) in Pondichéry. From 1717 Coadjutor to Vicar Apostolic of Siam (Thailand) and titulat Bishop of Rosalia, in 1723-36 Vicar Apostolic of Thailand.]

-- Persons of Indian Studies by Prof. Dr. Klaus Karttunen

and the Capuchins concerning the Malabar rites, and of other works which emerged from this controversy.45 [Sommervogel attributes three such works to Bouchet: the ‘Decision des Missionaires Jesuites du Royaume de Carnate’ [Google translate: Decision of the Jesuit Missionaries of the Kingdom of Carnate] (dated 3 November 1704 and signed by Bouchet, Mauduit, de la Lane and le Petit), the ‘Protestation des PP. Jesuites de Pondichery, Contre l’lntimation faite juridiquement par M. de Visdelou, Eveque et Vicaire apostolique du 15 janvier 1716’, [Google translate: Protest of Frs. Jesuites de Pondichery, Against the legal notice made by M. de Visdelou, Bishop and Vicar Apostolic of January 15, 1716 and the ‘Explicatio Decreti ab Illustrissimo Patriarcha Antiocheno pro Missionibus Indicis lati, quam ipsemet verbo tradidit; datee de Rome, 12 mars 1707.’ [Google translate: The development of the Patriarch of Antioch for the mission cause, the Decree by the most illustrious of the Index are broad, whom he is leaving he delivered to the word; datee of Rome, 12 March 1707.]

Patriarch of Antioch is a traditional title held by the bishop of Antioch. As the traditional "overseer" (ἐπίσκοπος, episkopos, from which the word bishop is derived) of the first gentile Christian community, the position has been of prime importance in Pauline Christianity from its earliest period...

Pauline Christianity or Pauline theology (also Paulism or Paulanity), otherwise referred to as Gentile Christianity, is the theology and form of Christianity which developed from the beliefs and doctrines espoused by the Hellenistic-Jewish Apostle Paul through his writings and those New Testament writings traditionally attributed to him. Paul's beliefs were rooted in the earliest Jewish Christianity, but deviated from this Jewish Christianity in their emphasis on inclusion of the Gentiles into God's New Covenant, and his rejection of circumcision as an unnecessary token of upholding the Law...

The church in Antioch was the first to be called "Christian," according to Acts. According to tradition, Saint Peter established the church and was the city's first bishop, before going to Rome to found the Church there. Ignatius of Antioch (died c. 107), counted as the third bishop of the city, was a prominent apostolic father. By the fourth century, the bishop of Antioch had become the most senior bishop in a region covering modern-day eastern Turkey, Lebanon, Israel and Palestine, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and Iran. His hierarchy served the largest number of Christians in the known world at that time. The synods of Antioch met at a basilica named for Julian the Martyr, whose relics it contained...

The Antiochene church was a centre of Christian learning, second only to Alexandria. In contrast to the Hellenistic-influenced Christology of Alexandria, Rome, and Constantinople, Antiochene theology was greatly influenced by Rabbinic Judaism and other modes of Semitic thought—emphasizing the single, transcendent divine substance (οὐσία), which in turn led to adoptionism in certain extremes, and to the clear distinction of two natures of Christ (δύο φύσεις: dyophysitism): one human, the other divine...

The Great Schism officially began in 1054, though problems had been encountered for centuries. Cardinal Humbert, legate of the recently deceased Pope Leo IX, entered the Hagia Sophia cathedral in Constantinople during the Divine Liturgy and presented Ecumenical Patriarch Michael I Cerularius with a bull of excommunication. The patriarch, in turn, excommunicated the deceased Leo IX and his legate, removing the bishop of Rome from the diptychs. Consequently, two major Christian bodies broke communion and ended ecclesiastical relations with each other. One faction, now identified as the Catholic Church, represented the Latin West under the leadership of the pope; the other faction, now identified as the Eastern Orthodox Church, represented the Greek East under the collegial authority of the patriarchs of Antioch, Jerusalem, Constantinople and Alexandria...

When the Western European Crusaders established the Principality of Antioch, they established a Latin Rite church in the city, whose head took the title of Patriarch. After the Crusaders were expelled by the Mamelukes in 1268, the pope continued to appoint a titular Latin patriarch of Antioch, whose actual seat was the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome.

-- Patriarch of Antioch, by Wikipedia

The first two treatises appear in a work published from the other side of the debate by the Capuchin Pierre Parisot (or Platel) under the pseudonym Pere Norbert, (Pere Norbert 1766,1:406-8 and II: 221-3).] Bouchet’s position in the rites debate presupposes a demarcation between Indian social customs, tolerable in the church and the lives of the missionaries, and Indian religious beliefs and practices. It does not necessarily require a unified conception of Indian religion, but it is evident from his letters and other works that Bouchet did have such a concept.

In his introduction to the ninth volume of the Lettres edifiantes Jean-Baptiste Du Halde (1674-1743),46 [Editor of eighteen volumes of the Lettres edifiantes after the death of Le Gobien and author of a major work on China, the Description ... de la Chine (1735). See Foss 1979.] describes the difficulties of gaining more than a superficial knowledge of the Indians’ religion: European writers have not been very familiar with the Indians on the coast, or if they have, these Indians have not been well-instructed in the principles of their religion; the Brahmans have not allowed their books to be read by others, in order, says Du Halde, that they can maintain the advantages they have over the other Indians.

Father Bouchet knew how to ease these difficulties which the Europeans have found in instructing themselves in the doctrine of the Indians: he has penetrated deep into the country, where he has remained for over twenty years: among more than twenty thousand idolaters, to whom he has had the good fortune to administer holy baptism, there are found a number of Brahmans, those of reputation in the country, and who are the most able: through them he has obtained their books, which their learned hold so great a mystery; and as he knows perfectly their language, he has read them with attention: beyond which, in the things which are in need of some explanation, he has had long and frequent debates with the converted Brahmans; in short he has lacked nothing which was necessary in order to know profoundly the ridiculous plan of religion which this people has formed.47 [‘Ces difficultez que trouvent les Europeans a s’instruire de la Doctrine des Indiens, le Pere Bouchet a scu se les applanir: il a penetre bien avant dans les terres, ou il a fait un sejour de plus de vingt annees: parmi plus de vingt mille Idolatres, a qui il a eu le bonheur d’administrer le saint Bapteme, il s’est trouve plusiers Brames, de ceux meme qui sont en reputation dans le Payis, & qui passent pour etre les plus habiles: il a eu par leur moyen ces Livres, dont leur Scavans sont un si grand mystere; & comme il scait parfaitement leur langue, il les a lu avec attention: outre cela, dans les choses qui avoient besoin de quelque explication, il a eu de longues & de frequentes conferences avec les Brames convertis; enfin il n’a rien omis de tout ce qui etoit necessaire pour connoitre a fond le plan ridicule de Religion que ce Peuple s’est forme.’ [Google translate: 'These difficulties that Europeans find in learning about the Indian Doctrine, Pere Bouchet was able to applaud: he entered the land long before, where he stayed for more than twenty years: among more than twenty thousand Idolaters, to whom he had the good fortune to administer holy Baptism, there are several Brames, even those who are in reputation in the Payis, and who pass to be the most skilful: he has had by their means these Books, of which their Scavans are such a great mystery; & as he knew their language perfectly, he read them carefully: besides that, in matters which needed some explanation, he had long & frequent conferences with the converted Brams; finally, he did not omit anything that was necessary to fully understand the ridiculous plan of Religion that this People has formed."] IX, xiii-xiv.]

Bouchet’s linguistic capacity owed much to the advantages of being part of the Jesuits’ corporate approach to India. He was first taught ‘la langue du payis’ [Google translate: the language of the country ] i.e. Tamil by Francois Laynes, procurator of the Madurai mission.48 [XV: 226.] Like Tachard, he complained of ‘the difficulties of beginning to learn, when already at an advanced age, the elements of a language which has no connection with those of which one is apprised in Europe’,49 [‘dans un age deja avance, les difficultez qui se trouvent a commencer les elemens d’une langue, qui n’a nul rapport avec cedes qu’on a apprises en Europe.’ [Google translate: "In an already advanced age, the difficulties of starting the elements of a language, which has nothing to do with those learned in Europe."] XV: 266.] especially as ‘at a certain age the nerves of the tongue are no longer supple enough to catch the pronunciation of certain letters.’50 [‘Les nerfs de la langue ne sont plus assez souples dans un certain age, pour attraper la prononciation de certaines lettres.’ [Google translate: "The nerves of the tongue are not flexible enough at a certain age to catch the pronunciation of certain letters."] XV: 267.] However, he notes that he had ‘the help of a grammar composed by one of our first missionaries.’51 [‘le secours d’une Grammaire composee par nos premiers Missionaires.’ [Google translate: "The help of a Grammar composed by our first Missionaries."] XV: 266. Possibly that of Henrique Henriques, begun in 1548 or 1549 (Henriques 1982).]

[admin]

Part 2 of 3

Bouchet claims to have read ‘several learned Indian works’,52 [‘j’ai lu plusieurs Ouvrages des Scavans Indiens’ [Google translate: "I have read several Books of Indian Scavans"] XIII: 97.] and he appears to have had access to some Puranas, and also the Ramayana.53 [‘They have eighteen very ancient books, which they call Pouranam. Although these books are full of fables, one more crude than another, according to them they contain nothing but incontestable truths.’ (‘Ils ont dix-huit Livres fort anciens, qu’ils appellent Pouranam. Quoique ces Livres soient remplies des fables plus grossieres les unes que les autres, ils ne contiennent pourtant selon eux que des veritez incontestables.’ [Google translate: “They have eighteen very old Books, which they call Puranam. Although these Books are filled with fables the more crude than the others, they nevertheless contain, according to them, only incontestable truths.''] XIII: 110). He repeats stories from the Brahmapurana (XIII: 195) and the Padmapurana (XIII: 143), and also from the Ramayana (‘Ramayenam. C’est selon eux un Livre infallible’. [Google translate: ‘Ramayenam. It is according to them an infallible Book."] XIII: 172).] He drew his account of ‘la justice s’administre aux Indes’ [Google translate: "Justice is administered in India"] from various sastras.54 [XIV: 327.] He also mentions the ‘Vedam, or Law of the Indians’ which ‘consists of four parts. But several of their learned men are of opinion, that there was anciently a fifth, which being lost by time, there was no possibility of recovering it.’ It seems, however, that he did not have access to the Vedas: ‘Unhappily the reverence which the Indians bear to their law is so great, that it becomes by this means an impenetrable mystery to us.’55 [‘Le malheur, est, Monseigneur, que le respect des Indiens pour leur Loy, va jusqu’a nous en faire un mystere impenetrable.’ [Google translate: "The unfortunate thing is, Monsignor, that the respect of the Indians for their Loy, goes so far as to make it an impenetrable mystery for us."] IX: 39. It was not until shortly before the death of Bouchet that Calmette first acquired, through converts, a copy of the Vedas, which he sent to the library of the French king (XXIV: 438).]

[T]he Vedas [Le Gac] dispatched to Europe… Although catalogued, on the basis of the Jesuits’ descriptions of the texts... remained unread throughout the eighteenth century… Paulinus saw them in late 1789, but … was not permitted enough time to examine them closely.

The Vedas themselves were so ignored that Father Paulinus of Saint-Barthélemy did not believe in their existence, and considered them mythical books. ['Voy. Hem. de l'Acad., t. L, p. 1 and following.]

-- Histoire de l'Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres (1865), by Louis Ferdinand Alfred Maury

In 1847 the Jesuit Julien Bach commented wryly: “No Indianist is tempted to make use of it, and it is from these books that we can say: Sacred they are, because no one touches them.”…

[T]he Vedas sent by Calmette languished unread in the Bibliotheque Imperiale. They were even excluded from the catalogue of Sanskrit manuscripts prepared by Alexander Hamilton and Louis-Mathieu Langlès in 1807.

-- The Absent Vedas, by Will Sweetman

In addition to his reading, a great deal of Bouchet’s information concerning Hinduism was derived from conversations with Brahmans, both before and, especially, after conversion.56 [Bouchet mentions some of these Brahman converts in his first letter to M. Cochet de Saint-Vallier [n. d.] (XI: 20-26). On his trip to Europe in 1704, he was accompanied by a Brahman catechist (XIV: 324).] Bouchet’s primary motive for learning about Hinduism was in order to be able to prevail in these debates:

We have observed that the reasons which Saint Thomas employed against the Gentiles make nothing more than a very light impression on the Indian mind. Thus, in order to disabuse them entirely of a system which is as impious as it is ridiculous, we have recourse to reasonings taken from their own doctrine, their customs, and their maxims: and it is from these reasonings that one makes them feel the contradictions into which they fall, which confound them, and constrain them to recognize the absurdity of their opinions.57 [‘Nous avons remarque que les raisons dont Saint Thomas se sert contre les Gentils, ne sont sur l’esprit des Indiens qu’une tres-legere impression. Ainsi pour les desabuser entierement d’un systeme egalement impie & ridicule, nous avons recours a des raisonnemens tirez de leur propre doctrine, de leurs usages, & de leurs maximes: & ce sont ces raisonnemens ou Ton leur fait sentir les contradictions dans lesquelles ils tombent, qui les confondent, & qui les contraignent de reconnoistre l’absurdite de leurs opinions.’ [Google translate: “We have noticed that the reasons Saint Thomas uses against the Gentiles is only a very slight impression on the minds of the Indians. So in order to disabuse them entirely of a system which is equally impious and ridiculous, we have recourse to arguments drawn from their own doctrine, their uses, and their maxims: and it is these arguments where they are made to feel the contradictions in which they fall, which confuse them, and which force them to recognize the absurdity of their opinions.'] XIII: 200. This was not simply a matter of Bouchet’s initiative; Martin reports being ordered by his superiors to study Hinduism on behalf of the order at ‘une fameuse Universite de Brames’ [Google translate: A famous University of Brames’] (I: 6).]

While Bouchet has harsh words to say about the religion he describes, nevertheless the Indians were not entirely without knowledge of the truth. In his first letter to Huet, Bouchet writes that:

It is certain, my Lord, that the ordinary Indians do not give in to the absurdities of atheism. They have accurate enough ideas of the divinity, albeit altered and corrupted by the worship of idols. They acknowledge an infinitely perfect God, who exists from all eternity, and who contains in himself the most excellent attributes. Thus far there is nothing more beautiful and more conformable to the notion the people of God have of the divinity. But it is here that idolatry has unhappily made additions. Most of the Indians affirm, that this great number of deities whom they worship today, are nothing but subaltern Gods, subject to the Supreme Being, who is Lord of both Gods and men.58 [‘II est certain, Monseigneur, que le commun des Indiens ne donne nullement dans les absurditez de l’Atheisme. Ils ont des idees assez justes de la Divinite, quoiqu’alterees & corrompues par le culte des Idoles. Ils reconnosoient un Dieu infinitement parfait, qui existe de toute eternite, quy renferme en soy les plus excellens attributs. Jusques-la rien de plus beau, & de plus conforme au sentiment de Peuple de Dieu sur la Divinite. Voici maintenant ce que l’ldolatrie y a malheureusement ajoute. La plupart des Indiens assurent que ce grand nombre de Divinitez qu’ils adorent aujourd’hui, ne sont que des Dieux subalternes & soumis au Souverain Estre, qui est egalement le Seigneur des Dieux & des hommes.’ [Google translate: ‘It is certain, Monsignor, that the common Indians do not give in to the absurdities of Atheism. They have fairly correct ideas of Divinity, though altered & corrupted by Idol worship. They recognized an infinitely perfect God, who exists from all eternity, who contains within himself the most excellent attributes. Until then, nothing more beautiful, and more in conformity with the feeling of the People of God on the Divinity. Now here is what the idolatry unfortunately adds to it. Most Indians assert that this large number of Divinites whom they worship today are only subordinate Gods & subject to the Sovereign Estre, who is also the Lord of Gods & men.'] IX: 6-7.]

He argues that ‘This idea which the Indians have of a Being infinitely superior to the other deities, shows at least that their ancestors worshipped but one God; and that polytheism was introduced among them, in no other way than among the rest of the idolatrous nations.’59 [‘Cette idee qu’ont les Indiens d’un Estre infiniment superieur aux autres Divinitez, marque au moins que leurs Anciens n’adoroient effectivement qu’un Dieu, & que le Polytheisme ne s’est introduit parmi eux, que de la maniere dont il s’est repandu dans tous les Payis Idolatres.’ [Google translate: 'This idea that the Indians have of an Estre infinitely superior to other Divinities, at least marks that their Elders actually worshiped only one God, and that Polytheism was introduced among them only in the way that it has spread to all the Idolatrous Countries.'] IX: 9-10.] The similarity between the names of Brahma and Abraham (and of their wives, Sarasvati and Sarah), parallels in the stories of Moses and Krsna, and a host of other apparent identities, were enough to convince Bouchet that ‘the Indians borrowed their religion from the books of Moses and the prophets [and] that all the fables with which their books are replete do not quite obscure the truth’.60 [‘les Indiens ont tire leur Religion des Livres de Moyse, & des Prophetes: que toutes les Fables sont leurs Livres sont remplis, n’y obscurcissent pas tellement la verite’. [Google translate: "The Indians drew their Religion from the Books of Moses, & from the Prophets: that all the Fables are their Books are filled, do not obscure the truth so much".] IX: 4.] The idea that the Jews could have taught the Hindus was no doubt given some credibility by the discovery, reported in the Lettres edifiantes et curieuses, of Jews in the heart of China.61 [See the letter of Gonzani to Suarez [Honan, 1704] (VII: 1-29) and the ‘Remarques sur la Lettre du Pere Gonzani’ [Google translate: ‘Remarks on the Letter from Father Gonzani’] (VII: 29-40). What made this discovery truly significant, for Le Gobien, was the possibility that ‘by the means of the books, which are in the hands of these Chinese Jews, one could easily determine the truth of what some of the learned have believed, that since the birth of Christianity the Jews, enemies of the Christians, have altered the sacred books ... in order to give them such a sense as best suits the prejudices of their sect.’ (‘par le secours des Livres, que sont entre les mains de ces Juifs Chinois, on pourra aisement connoitre, s’il est vray ce que quelques Scavans ont cru, que depuis la naissance du Christianisme les Juifs ennemis des Chrestiens ont altere les Livres saints ... pour en determiner le sens suivant les prejugez de leur secte.’ [Google translate: 'by the help of the Books, which are in the hands of these Chinese Jews, we can easily know, if it is true what some Scavans believed, that since the birth of Christianity the Jews who are enemies of Christians have altered the Holy Books ... to determine the meaning according to the prejudices of their sect.'] VII: Epitre).] However Bouchet was aware that such parallels were not an infallible proof,62 [The view that the Indians had received their religion from the Jews, perhaps via the Egyptians, was shared by many but not all the Jesuits. In an unpublished letter Coeurdoux gave a ‘critique de l’opinion repandue par un missionare (i.e. Bouchet) sur les parallelles entre l’Ancien Testament et la mythologie hindoue’. [Google translate: "Critique of the opinion spread by a missionare (i.e. Bouchet) on the parallels between the Old Testament and Hindu mythology".] (Coeurdoux, to P. Souciet, 8 October 1739, cited in Dharampal 1982a: 245-6). He gave a more circumspect view in a letter to Anquetil published in the Memoires de l’Academie des Inscriptions et Belle Lettres (XLIX: 668-688).] especially as ‘the author of nature has engraved ... [the knowledge of one God] in the minds of all people, and it does not alter among them except by the corruption of their heart.’63 [‘Je scais que sans un tel secours l’Auteur de la Nature a grave cette verite fondamentale dans l’esprit de tous les hommes, & qu’elle ne s’altere chez eux que par le dereglement & la corruption de leur coeur.’ [Google translate: "I know that without such help the Author of Nature has engraved this fundamental truth in the minds of all men, & that it is altered in them only by the deregulation & corruption of their hearts."] IX: 10.] Moreover, ‘beyond the religion of the Hebrew people, which they have taken, at least in part from their commerce with the Jews and the Egyptians, one finds amongst them clear traces of the Christian religion, preached to them by the apostle St. Thomas’.64 [‘outre la Religion du Peuple Hebreu, que leur a apprise, du moins in partie, leur commerce avec les Juifs et les Egyptiens, on decouvre encore parmi eux des traces bien marquees de la Religion Chretienne, qui leur a ete annoncee par l’Apotre S.Thomas.’ [Google translate: 'Besides the Religion of the Hebrew People, which they learned, at least in part, from their trade with the Jews and the Egyptians, we still find among them marked traces of the Christian Religion, which was announced to them by the Apostle. S. Thomas.'] IX: 4. Cf. IX: 277 ‘the Indian Nations, who, in all Probability, were antiently Christians, but fell back, many Ages since, into the Errors of Idolatry.’] Neill concludes his review of the evidence of Christian presence in India prior to the Portuguese landfall by stating that ‘It is almost certain that there were well-established churches in parts of South India not later than the beginning of the sixth century’ and that it is at least possible that the apostle Thomas came to India, if only because it cannot be proven that he did not.65 [Neill 1984: 49.] Although the idea that Judaism and Christianity had anything more than a marginal influence on Hinduism could only have been derived from the evidence presented in India by someone who was determined to find it,66 [The role of the Brahman converts, the Jesuits’ primary source of information on Indian religions, should not be overlooked.] nevertheless Bouchet’s speculations again strongly suggest a unified conception of ‘the system of religion recognized among the Indians’.

In addition to his letters on religion, Bouchet wrote on Indian law, which he summarized in seven ‘maximes generates qui servent de loix aux Indes’, [Google translate: "General maxims which serve as law in the Indies"] 67 [Bouchet to Cochet de Saint Vallier, Pondicherry, 1714 (XIV: 410).] and geography.68 [The discussion occurs in a letter to another Jesuit sent from Pondicherry, and dated 1 April 1719 (XV: 1-82).] Regarding the latter, Bouchet’s interests mean that most attention is given to the religious geography of India, and especially to important temples and pilgrimage sites.69 [In addition to sites of importance for Hindus Bouchet knew that Sri Lanka was important for the Siamese and the Chinese: ‘The Siamese say that the god Somonocodon [i.e. the Buddha] has one of his footprints on the island [Sri Lanka], The Chinese ... assert that one of their principal idols came from Ceylon.’ (‘Les Siamois disent que leur Dieu Somonocodon a un de ses pieds marque dans l’Isle. Les Chinois ... avouent qu’un de leurs principals Idoles est venue de Ceylan.’ [Google translate: ‘The Siamese say that their God Somonocodon has one of his feet marked in the Isle. The Chinese ... admit that one of their main Idols came from Ceylon."] XV: 41—42).]

Furthermore you must know that in the Island of Seilan there is an exceeding high mountain; it rises right up so steep and precipitous that no one could ascend it, were it not that they have taken and fixed to it several great and massive iron chains, so disposed that by help of these men are able to mount to the top. And I tell you they say that on this mountain is the sepulchre of Adam our first parent; at least that is what the Saracens say. But the Idolaters say that it is the sepulchre of SAGAMONI BORCAN, before whose time there were no idols. They hold him to have been the best of men, a great saint in fact, according to their fashion, and the first in whose name idols were made....

[Ma-Huan says (p. 212): "On landing (at Ceylon), there is to be seen on the shining rock at the base of the cliff, an impress of a foot two or more feet in length. The legend attached to it is, that it is the imprint of Shâkyamuni's foot, made when he landed at this place, coming from the Ts'ui-lan (Nicobar) Islands. There is a little water in the hollow of the imprint of this foot, which never evaporates. People dip their hands in it and wash their faces, and rub their eyes with it, saying: 'This is Buddha's water, which will make us pure and clean.'"—H.C.]...

NOTE 2.—The general correctness with which Marco has here related the legendary history of Sakya's devotion to an ascetic life, as the preliminary to his becoming the Buddha or Divinely Perfect Being, shows what a strong impression the tale had made upon him. He is, of course, wrong in placing the scene of the history in Ceylon, though probably it was so told him, as the vulgar in all Buddhist countries do seem to localise the legends in regions known to them.

-- The Travels of Marco Polo, by Marco Polo and Rustichello of Pisa

In this letter his conception of the pan-Indian spread of ‘the system of religion recognized among the Indians’70 [‘le systeme de Religion recu parmi les Indiens’ [Google translate: "The system of Religion received among the Indians"] IX: 5.] is apparent in his treatment of two holy sites, the city of Varanasi and the island of Ramesvaram. Pilgrimage sites had been noted by other Jesuits and may have contributed to their conception of a widely-shared religious tradition. For example Tachard noted the large numbers of ‘pilgrims who come to Jagganatha [i.e. Puri] from throughout India’.71 [‘des Pelerins qui viennent a Jagrenat de toute l’Inde’ [Google translate: "Pilgrims who come to Jagrenat from all over India"] XII: 433.] Although Bouchet also remarks that ‘Jagannatha is celebrated for its temple’ he finds ‘that this temple is little known in the southern parts of India’72 [‘Jagrenat est celebre pas son Pagode ... Ce qu’il y a de certain, c’est que ce Pagode est peu connu dans les parties Meridionales de l’Inde’ [Google translate: "Jagrenat is famous not its Pagoda ... What is certain is that this Pagoda is little known in the southern parts of India"] XV: 28.] where instead ‘the Indians praise extremely the town of Kasi which is towards the north, and Ramesvaram which is towards the south’.73 [‘les Indiens vantent extrement la Ville de Cachi qui est vers le Nord, & Ramanancor qui est vers le Sud’ [Google translate: "The Indians extensively praise the City of Cachi which is to the north, & Ramanancor which is to the south"] XV: 49-50.] Bouchet correctly believes Kasi to be the same town as ‘Banare’ [Benares, Varanasi]. He proves his point by referring to the reports of Europeans who have travelled there whose description ‘conforms to what the Indians report of the temple of Kasi’.74 [‘Europeans qui y ont voyage ... conforme a ce que les Indiens rapportent du Pagode de Cachi’ [Google translate: "Europeans who traveled there ... according to what the Indians report from Cachi Pagoda"] XV: 54-55.] Of the pilgrimage island of Ramesvaram,75 [‘Ramanancor, que les Indiens appellent Ratneissouram’ [Google translate: "Ramanancor, which the Indians call Ratneissouram"] XV: 55.] on the other hand, Bouchet can speak with more certainty, having once spent ten days there: ‘The temple appeared to me less beautiful and smaller than many others in these lands’ and Bouchet believes that it owes its fame to the purifying effect which the idolaters attribute to bathing in the sea, especially during eclipses.76 [‘Le Pagode m’a paru moins beau & plus petit que plusiers autres qui sont dans les terres: je croy qu’il n’est si fort estime qu’a cause du bain qu’on prendre dans le mer; car les Idolatres sont persuadez que ce bain efface entierement les pechez, sur tout si on le prend le temps des Eclypses du Soleil & de la Lune.’ [Google translate: "The Pagoda seemed to me less beautiful & smaller than many others that are in the land: I believe it is so highly esteemed only because of the bath we take in the sea; because the Idolaters are persuaded that this bath completely erases the sins, especially if one takes it the time of the Eclypses of the Sun & the Moon.] XV: 56. The Ramanatha temple complex on Ramesvaram was perhaps at the height of its fame during the first half of the eighteenth century, during which time it was greatly extended under the patronage of the rulers of Ramanathapuram (Michell 1995: 116-118).] Bouchet notes that the Indians regard these sites as ‘the two poles of their geography’.77 [‘les deux poles de leur Geographie’ [Google translate: "The two poles of their Geography"] XV: 49-50.] Thus although he had personal knowledge only of the south, by combining the information he had from his Indian interlocutors with that from other Jesuits he formed a concept of a religion embracing a much wider area.

Hindu diversity in the Jesuit Lettres

Although Bouchet treats the religion of the ‘Indians’ (or alternatively, the ‘Gentils’, both understood in opposition to the ‘Mores’ [Moors, Muslims]) he knew as essentially the same phenomenon as that reported in the letters of Jesuits from elsewhere in India, he was nevertheless aware of distinct groups within Hinduism. Thus he reports differences among the Indians in their beliefs concerning the soul, for example on the question of how the soul is related to the deity.78 [XIII: 150-151, cf. XIII: 175 (‘Les sentimens des Indiens sont partagez’ [Google translate: "The sentiments of the Indians are divided"]), 203—4 (‘ils soient partagez sur cela en deux opinions differentes’ [Google translate: "They are divided on this in two different opinions"]).] One of the reasons for the Jesuits’ interest in divisions among the Indians on religion was that they were able to use for their own purposes the arguments that different Indian groups used against each other. Thus Bouchet charges the vegetarian Brahmans: ‘You Brahmans are infinitely more guilty than any other caste that makes use of flesh: for, in killing a sheep, for instance, they commit but one single murder, instead of which you pluck up every day a large quantity of herbs, which you dress, and thereby become guilty of innumerable murders.’79 [‘Vous autres Brames, vous estes infiniment plus coupables que ceux des autres Castes que usent de viande: car en tuant un mouton, par exemple, ils ne sont qu’un meurtre au lieu que vous qui arrachez tous les jours une si grande quantite d’herbes que vous faites cuire, se sont autant de meurtres que vous faites.’ [Google translate: 'You Brames, you are infinitely more guilty than those of the other Castes who use meat: because by killing a sheep, for example, they are only a murder instead of you who pluck up so large a quantity of meat every day. 'herbs that you cook, got as many murders as you do.'] XIII: 216.] Roger reports this argument being put to Brahmans by meat-eating Sudras.80 [Roger 1915: 70.]

The Jesuits were also aware of the divisions between Vaisnavites and Saivites. De la Lane, for example, notes that ‘Visnu and Siva ... are regarded as the two principal divinities, and divide the Indians into two different sects.’81 [‘Vichnou & Chiven ... sont regardez comme les deux principales Divinites, & ... partagent [les] Indiens en deux sectes differentes.’ [Google translate: "Vishnu & Chiven ... are regarded as the two main Deities, & ... divide [the] Indians into two different sects."] X: 19. Cf. Le Gac ‘les differentes Sectes de ce Payis’ [Google translate: "The different sects of this country"] XVI: 248.] The former are referred to as 'Vichnouvistes' [Vaisnavites], and the latter usually as ‘Linganists [Lingayats]'.82 [ e.g. ‘les Brames, soit Vichnouvistes, soit Linganistes’ [Google translate: "The Brames, either Vishnouvists, or Linganists"] XVI: 240, ‘la secte infame des Liganistes [sic]’ [Google translate: ‘The infamous sect of Liganistes [sic]’] XIII: 138.] It was however Jean Francois Pons83 [Pons was born in 1698 and died before 1754. He was sent to India in 1726. His letter of 1740 (XXVI: 218-256) is his only contribution to the Lettres. Sommervogel attributes to him an unpublished Sanskrit Grammar, and a treatise on Sanskrit poetry sent to Europe in 1739. (Sommervogel 1890-1909 VI: 999).] who, in a remarkable letter of 1740, gave the most detailed account of diversity in the religious philosophy of the Indians:

As among the Greeks there were numerous schools of philosophy, the Ionic, the Academic, &c. there were in antiquity among the Brahmans, six principal philosophical schools, or sects, which were each distinguished from the others by some particular conception of blessedness and on the means of attaining to it, Nyaya, Vedanta, Samkhya, Mimamsa, Patanjali [i.e. Yoga], bhasya [‘commentary’, presumably Vaisesika is meant], are those they call simply the six sciences, which are nothing but six sects or schools. There are among them numerous others such as the agamasastram [i. e. Jains] & Bauddhamatam [i.e. Buddhism], &c. which are as much as heresies in matters of religion, very opposed to the dharmasastram of which I have spoken, which contains the universally approved polytheism.84 [‘Comme parmi les Grecs il y eut plusiers Ecoles de Philosophie, l’Ionique, l’Academique, &c. il y a eu dans l’Antiquite parmi les Brahmanes, six principales Ecoles, ou Sectes Philosophiques, dont chacune etoit distinguee des autres par quelque sentiment particulier sur la felicite & sur les moyens d’y parvenir, Nyayam, Vedantam, Sankiam, Mimamsa, Patanjalam, bhassyam, sont ce qu’ils appellent simplement les six Sciences, qui ne sont que six Sectes ou ecoles. Il y en a entre plusiers autres comme l’agamchastram & Bauddamatham, &c. qui sont autant d’heresies en matiere de Religion, tres-opposees au d’Harmachastram dont j’ai parle, qui contient le polytheisme universellement approuve.’ [Google translate: ‘As among the Greeks there were several Schools of Philosophy, the Ionic, the Academic, & c. there were in antiquity among the Brahmans, six principal Schools, or Philosophical Sects, each of which was distinguished from the others by some particular feeling on the felicity & on the means of achieving it, Nyayam, Vedantam, Sankiam, Mimamsa, Patanjalam, bhassyam, are what they simply call the six Sciences, which are only six Sects or schools. There are among many others like agamchastram & Bauddamatham, & c. which are so many heresies in matters of Religion, very opposed to the Harmachastram of which I spoke, which contains the universally approved polytheism.'] XXVI: 239. Pons identifies ‘Bouddha’ as ‘the Photo revered by the people of China’ and notes that ‘the Bauddhistes are the sects of the Bonzes and Lamas’ (240).]

[admin]

Part 3 of 3

A distinction between ‘popular’ and ‘philosophical’ Hinduism is drawn by many European writers, both before and after the authors of the Lettres edifiantes. However, Pons was the first to establish the distinction on the basis of different textual sources:

That which, after the nobility of their caste, raises [the Brahmans] infinitely above the vulgar, is the knowledge of religion, mathematics, and philosophy. Although they are the ministers of the people, the Brahmans practise their religion separately ... The Vedam contains the theology of the Brahmans, and the ancient Puranam or poems, the popular theology.85 [‘Ce qui, apres la Noblesse de leur Caste, les eleve infiniment au-dessus du Vulgaire, c’est la science de la Religion, des Mathematiques, & la Philosophie. Les Brahmanes ont leur Religion a part, ils sont cependent les Ministres de celle du Peuple ... Les Vedam renferment la Theologie des Brahmanes; & les Anciens Pouranam ou Poemes la Theologie Populaire.’ [Google translate: ‘What, after the Nobility of their Caste, raises them infinitely above the Vulgar is the science of Religion, Mathematics, & Philosophy. The Brahmans have their own Religion, they are however the Ministers of that of the People ... The Vedams contain the Theology of the Brahmans; & the Ancient Puranam or Popular Theology Poems."] XXVI: 223.]

Pons even suggests that ‘popular’ and ‘Brahmanic’ Hinduism may be considered two different ‘theologies’ or ‘religions’:

The two theologies Brahmanic and popular, make up the sacred science, or science of virtue, dharmasastram, which contains the practice of the different religions, the sacred (or superstitious) and civil (or profane) rites, with the laws for the administration of justice.86 [‘Des deux Theologies Brahmanique & Populaire, on a compose la Science Sainte ou de la vertu, d’Harmachastram, qui contient le practique des differentes Religions, des Rits Sacres ou Superstitieux, Civils, ou Prophanes, avec les Loix pour Padministration de la Justice.’ [Google translate: 'From the two Brahmanic & Popular Theologies, we have composed the Holy Science or Virtue, Harmachastram, which contains the practice of the different Religions, Sacred or Superstitious, Civil, or Prophan Rits, with the Laws for the Administration of Justice.' ] XXIV: 234-235, emphasis added.]

Pons also knew that the Brahmans belonged to different schools of Vedic transmission, and notes that the ‘Roukou Vedam, or according to the Hindustan pronunciation, Recbed, and the Yajourvedam, are most followed in the peninsula between the two seas; the Samavedam & Lartharvana or Brahmavedam, in the North.’87 [‘Roukou Vedam, ou, selon la prononciation Indoustane, Recbed & le Yajourvedam, sont plus suivis dans le Peninsule entre les deux Mers. Le Samavedam & Lartharvana ou Brahmavedam dans le Nord.’ [Google translate: ‘Roukou Vedam, or, according to the Indoustane pronunciation, Recbed & the Yajourvedam, are more followed in the Peninsula between the two seas. The Samavedam & Lartharvana or Brahmavedam in the North."] XXVI: 223.] Pons had worked in both Bengal and Tanjore, and his observation of this distinction between the north and the south was therefore made on the basis of personal experience. Likewise Calmette realized that advaitins were more numerous in the north than in the south.88 [‘II y a une de leurs Sectes moins repandue ici que dans le Nord, qui reconnoit en Dieu le connoissance & de l’amour. On la nomme la Secte de ceux qui admettent des distinctions en Dieu, pas opposition a celles des Vedantoulou, qui rejette ces distinctions, en disant que cette connoissance & cet amour ne sont autre chose que Dieu meme, sans s’appercevoir qu’ils ont raison de part & d’autre, & que la verite se trouve dans l’union de ces deux sentimens.’ [Google translate: ‘There is one of their Sects less widespread here than in the North, which recognizes in God knowledge & love. It is called the Sect of those who admit distinctions in God, not opposed to those of the Vedantulu, who rejects these distinctions, saying that this knowledge & this love are nothing other than God himself, without realizing that they have reason on both sides, and that the truth is to be found in the union of these two feelings.'] XXIV: 442. Calmette seems to have been well acquainted with the Upanisads; he suggests, on the basis of ‘difference of language and style’, that the ‘last books of the Vedam ... are later than the first by more than five centuries.’ (‘[Les] demiers Livres du Vedam, qui par la difference de la Langue & du style, sont posterieurs aux premiers de plus de cinq siecles.’ [Google translate: ‘[The] latest Books of Vedam, which by difference in Language & Style, are posterior to the earliest of more than five centuries.’] XXIV: 439). Le Gac also noted that the ‘Aduidam’ (advaitins) were the more common of the ‘two different opinions which divide the learned Brahmans of India.’ (‘[II y a] deux differentes opinions qui partagent les scavans Brames de l’Inde. La premiere s’appelle Aduidam, & elle est la plus commune. On nomme la seconde Duidam.' [Google translate: ‘[There are] two different opinions shared by the Brames scavans of India. The first is called Aduidam, and it is the most common. The second is called Duidam.'] XIV: 310).] Martin writes that ‘there is a sect of people who, it appears, profess not to acknowledge any Deity; they are called Nastika but this sect has very few supporters.’89 [‘il y a une Secte de gens qui sont, ce semble, profession de ne reconnoitre aucune Divinite, & qu’on appelle Naxtagher, mais cette Secte a tres peu de Partisans.’ [Google translate: “There is a Sect of people who are, it seems, a profession of not recognizing any Godhead, & called Naxtagher, but this Sect has very few Followers.”] X: 96.]

“God” is often used as an epithet for consciousness (purusa)...

The Veda and Hinduism do not subscribe to or include the concept of an almighty that is separate from oneself i.e. there is no concept of God in the Christian or Islamic sense...

The term Nāstika does not denote an atheist since the Veda presents a godless system with no singular almighty being or multiple almighty beings. It is applied only to those who do not believe in the Vedas. The Sāṃkhyas and Mīmāṃsakas do not believe in God, but they believe in the Vedas and hence they are not Nāstikas. The Buddhists, Jains, and Cārvākas do not believe in the Vedas; hence they are Nāstikas...

Āstika

A list of six systems or ṣaḍdarśanas (also spelled Sad Darshan) consider Vedas as a reliable source of knowledge and an authoritative source. These are the Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Samkhya, Yoga, Mīmāṃsā and Vedanta schools of Hinduism, and they are classified as the āstika schools:

1. Nyāyá, the school of logic
2. Vaiśeṣika, the atomist school
3. Sāṃkhya, the enumeration school
4. Yoga, the school of Patañjali (which assumes the metaphysics of Sāṃkhya)
5. Mīmāṃsā, the tradition of Vedic exegesis
6. Vedanta or Uttara Mimāṃsā, the Upaniṣadic tradition.

Nāstika

The main schools of Indian philosophy that reject the Vedas were regarded as heterodox in the tradition:

1. Buddhism
2. Jainism
3. Cārvāka
4. Ājīvika
5. Ajñāna...

"Astika is the one who believes there exists another world. The opposite of him is the Nāstika."...

Astika, in some texts, is defined as those who believe in the existence of Atman ('Soul, Self, Spirit'), while Nastika being those who deny there is any "soul, self" in human beings and other living beings. All six schools of Hinduism classified as Astika philosophies hold the premise, "Atman exists". Buddhism, in contrast, holds the premise, "Atman does not exist." Asanga Tilakaratna translates Astika as 'positivism' and Nastika as 'negativism', with Astika illustrated by Brahmanic traditions who accepted "soul and God exists", while Nastika as those traditions, such as Buddhism, who denied "soul and God exists."..

Nagarjuna, according to Chandradhar Sharma, equates Nastikya to "nihilism"....

To Asanga, nastika are those who say "nothing whatsoever exists," and the worst kind of nastika are those who deny all designation and reality. Astika are those who accept merit in and practice a religious life...

The early European Indologists carried the baggage of Christian theological traditions and extrapolated their own concepts to Asia, thereby distorting the complexity of Indian traditions and thought.

-- Astika and nastika, by Wikipedia

It is both a consequence and a sign of the genuine advances that the Jesuits made in understanding Hinduism that they were acutely aware of how little was really understood.90 [Cf. De la Lane: ‘All the books which I have seen suppose the immortality of the soul; though I cannot guarantee that this is the opinion of the numerous sects, nor of many Brahmans. At bottom, their ideas on all these things are so unclear that is it not easy to determine what they think.’ (‘Tous les livres que j’ay vus supposent l’immortalite de l’ame; je ne voudrois pas pourtant garantir que ce soit l’opinion de plusiers sectes, non plus de plusiers Bramins. Mais au fonds ils ont des idees si peu nettes sur toutes ces choses qu’il n’est pas aise de bien demeler ce qu’ils pensent.’ [Google translate: “All the books I have seen assume the immortality of the soul; however, I would not want to guarantee that this is the opinion of several sects, nor of several Bramins. But deep down they have such blurry ideas about all of these things that it’s not easy to sort out what they’re thinking.”] X: 21-22).] Pons writes that

The only means of penetrating into Indian antiquity, above all in that which concerns history, is to have a strong taste for that science, to acquire a perfect knowledge of Sanskrit, to spend a king’s ransom; until these three qualities are found united in the same subject, with the health necessary in order to sustain study in India, nothing will be known, or almost nothing of the ancient history of this vast kingdom.91 [‘Le seul moyen de penetrer dans l’Antiquite Indienne, surtout en ce qui conceme l’Histoire, c’est d’avoir un grand gout pour cette science, d’acquerir une connoissance parfaite du Samskret, & de faire des depenses ausquelles il n’y a qu’un grand Prince qui puisse fournir; jusqu’a ce que ces trois choses se trouvent reunies dans un meme sujet, avec la sante necessaire pour soutenir l’etude dans l’Inde, on ne scaura rien, ou presque rien de l’Histoire ancienne de ce vaste Royaume.’ [Google translate: 'The only way to penetrate into Indian Antiquity, especially as far as history is concerned, is to have a great taste for this science, to acquire a perfect knowledge of Samskret, and to spend some expenses, there is only one great Prince who can provide; until these three things come together in a single subject, with the necessary health to sustain study in India, nothing, or almost nothing, of the ancient history of this vast Kingdom will be known.'] XXVI: 231-2.]

Pons’ understanding was far advanced for his time; he identified ‘Fo, revered by the people of China’ as the Buddha and connected the Buddhists ‘of the sect of the Bonzes and the Lamas’ with the Buddhists reviled as atheists in India.92 [‘Les Bauddistes ... sont accuses d’Atheisme ... Boudda est le Photo revere par le Peuple a la Chine, & les Bauddistes sont de la Secte des Bonzes & des Lamas’ [Google translate: "The Bauddists ... are accused of Atheism ... Budda is the Photo the People dream of in China, & the Bauddists are from the Bonzes & Lamas Sect"] XXVI: 240.] In addition to naming six darsanas, he gave detailed accounts of Nyaya, Vedanta, and Samkhya.93 [‘L’Ecole de Nyayam, raison jugement [ou] la Logique’, ‘L’Ecole de Vedantam, fin de la Loi’ and ‘L’Ecole de Sankiam, numerique fondee par Kapil’ [Google translate: "The School of Nyayam, reason judgment [or] Logic", "The School of Vedantam, end of the Law" and "The School of Sankiam, numeric founded by Kapil"] XXVI: 242f., 247f., 252f.] His work was not surpassed until Henry Thomas Colebrooke’s Essay on the Philosophy of the Hindus (1823-27) in the following century. Nevertheless Pons writes: ‘I am not quite au fait [Google translate: by the way] with the systems of the other schools: that which I note for you here, is itself not to be regarded as more than a draft, to which the most able hand will certainly have much to add, and perhaps much to retract. It satisfies me to have made known to you that India is a country where many new discoveries can be made.’94 [‘Je ne suis pas assez au fait des systemes des autres Ecoles: ce que je vous marque ici, ne doit meme etre regarde que comme une ebauche a laquelle une main plus habile auroit bien des traits a ajouter, & peut-etre plusieurs a retrancher. Il me suffit de vous faire connoitre que lIlnde est un pays, ou il se peut faire encore beaucoup de nouvelles decouvertes.’ [Google translate: 'I am not sufficiently acquainted with the systems of other Schools: what I am showing you here should only be regarded as a sketch to which a more skilful hand would have many features to add, and perhaps several to remove. It is enough for me to let you know that India is a country, where there may still be a lot of new discoveries."] XXVI: 256.] The confidence expressed by Pons was not misplaced; in 1767, three years after Louis XIV had ordered the disbanding of the Jesuits in French territory (including Pondicherry), one of the last remaining Jesuits in India, Gaston-Laurent Coeurdoux, anticipated William Jones’ discovery of the common source of Latin and Sanskrit.

Gaston-Laurent Coeurdoux: Moeurs et Coutumes des Indiens

Coeurdoux had arrived in India in 1732, and by 1739 was superior of the Madurai, Carnatic and Mysore missions. Coeurdoux’s interests were wide-ranging. In addition to his correspondence, a Telugu-French- Sanskrit dictionary, a report to the Academic des Sciences on his observation of a comet, and a short treatise on Indian seeds also survive.95 [Sommervogel 1890-1909, II: 1269.] Of the four letters from him in the Lettres edifiantes, two deal with Indian textiles and dyes, and another with paints.96 [XXVI: 172-217, XXVII: 413-444, XXVIII, 284-334.] In the fourth Coeurdoux discusses measures of distance used throughout India and Sri Lanka, giving the names of the primary measures in Gujarati, Hindi (‘la langue Indoustane’), Kannada, Konkani, Malayalam, Marathi, Tamil, Telegu and Sinhala, and their equivalents in French measures.97 [XXXIV: 323-353.] In this letter he also discusses the campaigns of the Marathas and the location of their capital city, which the cartographer Jean-Baptiste Bourguignon d’Anville had been unable to place with any certainty, owing to the variation in different units of measure in use in India. He also describes divisions of time, which he believes to be in use ‘from Cape Comorin, to the extremities of India, among all the nations with which it is peopled.’98 [‘Cette division du terns ... est en usage, a ce que je crois, depuis le Cap de Comorin, jusq’aux extremites de l’Inde chez toutes les nations dont elle est peuplee.’ XXXIV: 326.]

In a 1767 letter to the Abbe Barthelemy (1716-1795) of the Academie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres, Cceurdoux analysed the similarity between Sanskrit and Latin and argued that it could only be explained by supposing that they shared ‘une origine commune’. Coeurdoux’s letter was passed to Anquetil-Duperron, who does not seem to have realized the significance of the suggestion.99 [See Godfrey 1967.] As a result (and partly also because of the French revolution) his letter was not published in the Memoires of the Academie until 1808, by which time Jones had already published his now-famous ‘Third Anniversary Discourse’ to the Asiatic Society of Bengal.100 [Asiatick Researches I (1789).] Anquetil-Duperron did however, respond to Coeurdoux and the two exchanged letters until 1772. Murr suggests that the abrupt end to this correspondence was prompted by the intervention of Nicholas- Jacques Desvaulx, who alerted Coeurdoux to the ways in which the information sent to Anquetil-Duperron was being used against the church by Voltaire and the authors of the Encyclopedic.101 [Murr 1987, II: 53.] ‘L’antivoltairianisme latent’ of the Moeurs et Coutumes des Indiens further suggests to Murr that Coeurdoux and Desvaulx may have planned the work to counteract ‘the abusive use which Voltaire and the enemies of religion made of the “Brahmes”’, not least the information on them taken from the Lettres edifiantes.102 [‘l’usage abusif que Voltaire et les ennemis de la religion faisaient des “Brahmes”’ Murr 1987, II: 86.]

Coeurdoux’s grasp of India as a single land inhabited by several different nations, using several different languages, demonstrated by his letter on measures of distance, provided a sound basis for his Moeurs et Coutumes des Indiens (completed c. 1776-1777). Although the emphasis of this work is on south India, Coeurdoux’s conception of Indian religion is not limited to southern Hinduism.103 [Cf. Dubois, who writes: ‘With regard to caste usages ... my researches were confined to the provinces south of the Kistna River ... [and] I cannot say whether these usages are the same to the north of that river and in Hindustan proper ... Fundamentally, however, caste constitutions are the same everywhere. Furthermore, however many the shades of difference between the different castes, however diversified the customs that control them, only slight differences exist between the various forms of religious belief. Indeed the religion of the Hindus may be said to form a common centre for the numerous elements which constitute Hinduism in its widest sense.’ (Dubois 1906: 10-11).] In a chapter entitled ‘Conjectures on the true origin of the Brahmans, on the time of their establishment in India, and on the manner in which they were established’,104 [‘Conjectures sur la vraie origine des Brahmes, sur le terns de leur etablissement aux Indes et sur la maniere dont ils s’y sont etablis.’ Murr 1987,1: 18-21.] Coeurdoux argues the Brahmans had entered India from the north around 1300 BCE, bringing with them ‘a new religion’,105 [‘une nouvelle religion’ Murr 1987,1: 20.] and violently displacing the ‘Boudistes’, whose religion had been established earlier and had spread from Cape Comorin to Tibet, and throughout South-east Asia. On the basis of the similarity between Sanskrit and ‘the learned language under the name of the Pali language’ used in ‘Siam’ and ‘a very ancient list of the provinces of the empire of India’, Coeurdoux concludes that prior to the invasion of the Brahmans, the Indies within and beyond the Ganges had been dominated by a Buddhist empire, ‘the largest which there has been in the Indies’.106 [‘la langue Savante Sous le nom de la langue Bali ... une tres ancienne Liste des provinces de l’empire de l’lnde ... la plus vaste qu’il y ait eu aux Indes.’ Murr 1987,1: 20.] He reports that the ‘religion of Boud still exists in its entirety in Tibet, in the kingdom of Siam and in many other countries, even in some parts of India, and especially on the island of Ceylon. It has been almost exterminated by the Brahmans in India on this side of the Ganges.’107 [‘Cette religion de Boud subsiste encore en entier dans le Thibet, dans le royaume de Siam, et en beaucoup d’autres pays, meme en quelques cantons de l’Inde, et Surtout dans Tisle de Ceylan. Elle a ete presque exterminee par les Brahmes dans les Indes de deqa le Gange.’ Murr 1987,1: 20.] He notes, however, that it appears that the present Brahmans are not the same as those of this early time, who were solitary philosophers and not a separate caste, but an order into which one could be admitted. While Coeurdoux dates Buddhism too early, his date for the incursion of the Brahmans from the north is remarkably close to that accepted by many modern scholars.

The plaudits which Coeurdoux’s work (in the guise of Dubois’s Hindu Manners, Ceremonies and Customs) continued to gamer into the twentieth century, are testament to the success of the Jesuits’ collective endeavours with respect to Indian religions. For beyond Coeurdoux’s own achievement during his more than forty years in India, his work also depended upon his participation in the collection and exchange of information among the Jesuits in India over almost a century. Murr states that the Mceurs et Coutumes des Indiens ‘may be considered an extension (a summa) of the Lettres edifiantes, in the form of a systematic treatise where the different theses of the Jesuits are integrated in an “authentic” description of the Brahmans of south India’.108 [‘On peut considerer que Mceurs et Coutumes des Indiens constitue un prolongement (une somme) des L. E., sous la forme d’un traite systematique ou les differentes theses des Jesuites s’integrent dans une description “authentique” des brahmanes de l’lnde du sud,’ Murr 1983: 241.] She points to the importance in Coeurdoux’s work of the ‘oral tradition and the notes, treatises, memoirs and other manuscript documents by means of which the missionaries transmitted and exchanged their knowledge of the “terrain” in pursuit of effective missionary work ... It is just this tradition which constitutes, conjointly with the personal experience of [Coeurdoux], the true source of the information contained in the Mceurs et Coutumes des Indiens.'109 [ ‘la tradition orale et les cours, traites, memoires at autres documents manuscrits au moyen desquels les missionaires transmettaient ou echangeaient leurs connoissances du‘ “terrain” en vue d’une pratique missionaire efficace ... C’est done cette tradition que constitue, conjointement avec l’experience personnelle de [Coeurdoux], la veritable source des informations contenues dans Mceurs et Coutumes des Indiens.’ Murr 1987, II: 70.] It is to this tradition, above all, that we should attribute the confidence with which the Jesuits, unlike isolated individual authors such as Roger, speak of ‘the system of religion recognized among the Indians’.110 [Although Cceurdoux also drew on the work of authors such as Roger. See Murr’s discussion of Coeurdoux’s European sources (Murr 1987, II: 66ff).] The importance of such a collaborative approach was realized by Anquetil-Duperron. His methodological reflections are worth considering as illuminating the basis of the advances in European understanding of India made by two very different societies, the Society of Jesus and the Asiatic Society of Bengal.

Anquetil’s travelling academy

Abraham-Hyacinthe Anquetil-Duperron (1731-1805), who has some claim to be considered the ‘founder of modem Indology’,111 [The claim is usually pressed by French scholars, see Schwab 1984: 158, and Filliozat 1984: 136. Following Kieffer (1983) and others, Anquetil-Duperron will henceforth be referred to simply as Anquetil.] had embarked in 1755 ‘for the East Indies, with the resolution to bring back the Laws of Zoroaster and those of the Brahmans’.112 [‘pour les Indes Orientales, dans le resolution d’en rapporter les Loix de Zoroastre & celles des Brahmes’. Anquetil 1771: 11.] He returned to France in 1762, and fulfilled the first part of his goal with the publication of his Zend-Avesta, ouvrage de Zoroastre (1771). This work marks the beginning of the stream of translations which transformed the study of Indian religions. In it Anquetil commented that he had been prompted to produce it by his reflections on the inadequate methods used hitherto by those who had written on Indian religions:

The majority of travellers content themselves with asking the Brahmans (and it is the same way in every country, with regard to the ministers of religion) about the essence of their dogmas, what they believe on such and such a subject. Some go so far as to procure extracts of their theological books. The answers, the extracts may be accurate; they may equally be analogues to the circumstances, to the minds, to the views of those who interrogate.113 [‘Le pluspart des Voyageurs se contentent de demander aux Brahmes (& c’est la meme marche dans tous les pays, a l’egard des ministres de la Religion) le fond de leurs Dogmes, ce qu’ils croyent sur tel ou tel objet; quelques uns vont jusqu’a se procurer des Extraits de leurs livres Theologiques. Les responses, les extraits peuvent etre exacts; ils peuvent etre analogues aux circonstances, a Tesprit, aux vues de celui qui interroge.’ Anquetil 1771: 296.]

The language in which such conversations were often carried on, was hardly appropriate to the subject matter. Anquetil notes that ‘business is generally done with the natives of the country, and likewise with the other European nations, by means of the Portuguese jargon ... consisting of 150 or 200 words, almost without construction’.114 [‘les affaires se sont generalement traitees avec les Naturels du pays, & meme avec les autres nations Europeennes, par le moyen du Jargon Portugais'. ‘Le Portugais parle n’est proprement qu’un jargon, consistant en 150 ou 200 mots, presque sans construction.’ Anquetil 1786: xii-xiii.] Moreover, those who were interrogated were not the most reliable sources: ‘These interpreters, for the most part Christians, Parsis, or attenuated Brahmans, unlearned in Indian literature, with neither historical, political nor geographical knowledge, are obliged to respond on every subject; on the commerce of the country, which they have not studied; on the interests of princes, whom they have neither seen nor known’.115 [‘Et ces Interpretes, la pluspart Chretiens, Parses ou Brahmes mitiges, sans culture d’esprit, sans litterature Indienne, sans Connoissances historiques, politiques, ni geographiques, sont obliges de repondre sur tous les objets; sur le commerce du pays, qu’ils n’ont pas etudie; sur les interets des Princes, qu’ils n’ont ni vus ni practiques’. Anquetil 1786: xiii.] Quite apart from the Europeans imposing their own beliefs on what they were told, Anquetil warns that the Indians may also introduce such bias: ‘if the Indian whom you consult is a Christian, in order to flatter you he will dress the gods of his country in a Christian manner’.116 [‘si l’Indien que vous consultez est chretien, pour vous flatter il habillera les Dieux de sa nation a la Chretienne’. Anquetil 1771: xv. The truth of this remark may perhaps be judged with reference to Bouchet’s conclusions about the origin of Indian religion.]

In order to bring home to his readers the degree of distortion introduced into European accounts of Indian religions by these factors, Anquetil asks them to consider how imperfect a knowledge of the Christian religion a ‘Tartar’ would gain if, ‘travelling in the less instructed Christian kingdoms, he should content himself with entering churches, and questioning the sexton or porter of a Portuguese convent. And yet this is the limit of the researches of the majority of travellers in India. They are happy if they take nothing but the simple testimony of a Dobachi, of a Pion, who ... explains to them, in bad Portuguese, the mysteries which he hardly knows, and which his priests would not be able to render without difficulty in the language of the country.’117 [ ‘Un Tartare s’exposeroit a ne prendre qu’une connoissance imparfaite de la Religion Chretienne, si, passant meme dans les Royaumes Chretiens les plus instruits, il se contentoit d’entrer dans les Eglises, de questionner le Sacristain ou le Portier d’un Couvent. C’est pourtant a quoi se boment dans l’lnde les recherches de la plupart des Voyageurs. Heureux meme s’ils ne s’en tiennent pas au simple temoignage d’un Dobachi, d’un Pion, qui, pour ne pas rester court, leur explique, en mauvais Portugais, des Mysteres qu’il connoit a peine, & que ses Pretres ne pourroient rendre que difficilement dans la Langue du Pays.’ Anquetil 1771: 87-88.] As a result, writes Anquetil, ‘the comparison which I have made between that which travellers say of the religion and practices of the Parsis, with that which is contained in their sacred books, has completely convinced me that in the study of opinions, of dogmas and of religious cults, the reading of original books was a necessary preliminary’.118 [ ‘La comparaison que j’ai faite de ce que les Voyageurs disent de la Religion & des usages de Parses, avec ce que contiennent leurs Livres sacres, m’a plainement convaincu que dans 1’etude des opinions, des dogmes & les cultes Religieux, la lecture des Livres Originaux etoit un prealable necessaire’. Anquetil 1771: 86-87.] He concludes that ‘the only means of knowing the truth, is to learn the languages well, to translate for oneself the fundamental works, and then to confer, books in hand, with the learned of the country on the matters with which they deal.’119 [‘Le seul moyen de connoitre la verite, est de bien apprendre les langues, de traduire soi-meme les Ouvrages fondamentaux & de conferer ensuite avec les Savans du pays sur les matieres qui y sont traitees, les livres en main.’ Anquetil 1786: 296.]

Anquetil here describes the method by which his Zend-Avesta was produced. In regard to the other religions of India, however, Anquetil never realized his ideal; he never mastered Sanskrit, nor did he return to India with the translations he made from Persian to consult with the pandits. In 1787 he published four Upanishads translated into French from Dara Shikuh’s Sirr-i Akbar, a seventeenth-century Persian collection of fifty Upanisadic texts, the first time such texts had appeared in a European language. However, by the time his Latin translation of the whole of the Sirr-i Akbar was published (1801-1802), such indirect translations had been rendered obsolete. In 1799 a direct translation from Sanskrit of the Isa Upanisad had been published in an edition of the collected works of William Jones. Nevertheless Anquetil’s ideal is a reasonable description of the procedure of scholars such as Colebrooke who came after him and, to a lesser extent, of the more scholarly among the Jesuits who preceded him. More prophetic, however, was his realization of the ‘utility of literary societies’120 [Anquetil 1771: xi.] for the study of Indian religions.

Anquetil relates that while reflecting in Surat on the pains it had taken him to acquire and to translate the Zend-Avesta, he realized that progress in the human sciences required a corporate approach. To this end he proposed the establishment of ‘itinerant academies’.121 [‘Academies ambulantes’. Anquetil 1771: xi.] Anquetil argues that while ‘it is true that several missionaries have already given important works on Asia,’ and these have been supplemented by works of other learned writers in Europe, nevertheless for the former ‘the occupations attached to the state of a missionary’, and for the latter ‘the suspension of [French] Eastern trade’, and with it the possibility of ‘taking a look for oneself among them, of seeing things with one’s own eyes’ prevent either from acquiring ‘an entirely satisfactory notion of these countries. And this gap will never be filled by the accounts of travellers simply military, marine or merchant. There must be professional as well as travelling scholars.’122 [‘Il est vray que plusieurs Missionaires ont deja donne sur l’Asie des Ouvrages importans, essentiels meme en leur genre ont aussi etendu dans le meme plan, la sphere de nos connoissances: mais, d’un cote, les occupations attachees a l’etat de Missionaire, de l’autre, la privation du commerce des Orientaux, de l’avantage de prendre chez eux ce tour qui leur est propre, de voir les choses de ses yeux; ces inconveniens (du moins c’est mon opinion) empecheront toujours, si Ton ne tente pas une autre voie, d’avoir sur ces contrees des notion entierement satisfaisantes: & jamais ce vide ne sera rempli par les relations des Voyageurs simplements Militaires, Marins ou Marchand. Ce sont des Spavans de profession qu’il faut & des Spavans voyageurs.’ Anquetil 1771: x-xi.]

Anquetil envisaged a body of eighty scholars, dispersed in pairs around the world: ‘two at Constantinople, two at Bagdad, two at Ispahan, two at Delhi, two at Astrakan, four in the Grand Tartary, two in Thibet, two in Chinese Tartary, and two in Kamchatka; returning again to the South- West, two would be fixed at Peking, two at Canton, two at Malak or at Siam, two at Patna, two in Bengal in the Ganges basin, two at Pondicherry, two at Ceylon, two at Mahe, two at Pune, two at Surat, two at Bassora.’ Eight more were assigned to the Americas, ten to Africa and eight would remain in France ‘to prepare the things necessary for the Academicians’ elsewhere. Finally, a further eight (two each for the Americas and Africa, four for Asia) would visit those in their places of study to collect their works and to bring supplies. These, together with other scholars, would then constitute in Paris, ‘a particular body charged with receiving, placing in good order, and publishing the curious productions sent from the three largest parts of the world.’123 [Anquetil’s plan is outlined in his preface to the Zend-Avesta (Anquetil 1771: xixii).] The model for the members of this academy would be Anquetil himself.124 [‘J’ai en quelque sorte ebauche dans mes recherches l’execution du plan dont je viens de donner l’esquisse.’ Anquetil 1771: xv. Anquetil’s academy is reminiscent of Salomon’s House in Bacon’s New Atlantis (1627): ‘For the several employments and offices of our fellows, we have twelve that sail into foreign countries under the names of other nations (for our own we conceal), who bring us the books and abstracts, and patterns of experiments of all other parts. These we call merchants of light’ (Bacon 1906: 273).] Anquetil expected each to know ‘Hebrew, several modem European languages, ancient history, a little theology, metaphysics and astronomy.’ Having learnt the regional vernacular the scholar’s first priority would be to ‘apply himself to the sacred language, and read the books of the law and the theological works’, which ‘works are the key to all the others’. The scholars ought then to produce grammars and dictionaries, and then a bibliography indicating the relative age and importance of local texts. Only then, once these preliminaries are in place, shall they work ‘on the general history of the country.’

Anquetil believed that ‘the glory of having contributed to the progress of human knowledge, and the pleasure of having passed on an idea of the places, the peoples, the different objects which they will have been occupied with in the course of their voyages, will be just recompense for their labours’, in fact, it must also be the only recompense, for fear that people without of the necessary qualities, and driven by mere commercial interest, might take over.125 [‘La gloire d’avoir contribue au progres des conoissances humaines & le plaisir de repasser en idee les lieux, les peuples, les differens objets qui les auroient occupes dans le cours de leurs voyages, seroient la juste recompense de leurs travaux; ce doit meme etre la seule, de peur qu’avec le terns des vues d’interet, comme dans les Compagnies de Commerce, ne portassent des personnes depourvues des qualites necessaires, a briguer cette espece de Direction.’ Anquetil 1771: xii-xiii.] Anquetil also allows a place for national pride, presenting his plan for itinerant scholars as ‘a moment which France could have.’126 [‘un moment de celle que la France pourroit avoir’ Anquetil 1771: xi.] In truth, France’s moment had already been, in the work of the Jesuits which emerged as a by-product of their primary purpose in India.

Anquetil concludes his proposal for an academy of travelling scholars by exclaiming: ‘Vain hope, chimerical project! my Academy will never exist: and men, accustomed to their errors or scared of the work which would be demanded by similar researches, will feed on systems, on fantastic portraits, and will continue to study everything, to know everything, except man.’127 [‘Vaine esperance, projet chimerique! mon Academie n’existera jamais: & les homines, accoutumes a leurs erreurs ou effrayes du travail que demanderoient de pareilles recherches, se nourriront de systemes, de portraits de fantaisie, & continueront de tout etudier, de tout connoitre, excepte 1’homme.’ Anquetil 1771: xvi.] Anquetil’s academy may never have been realized, but the informal network of researchers who later formed the core membership of the Asiatic Society of Bengal (founded thirteen years after Anquetil wrote) was to accomplish much of what Anquetil expected of his academy, as least in respect of Asia. In an appendix added to his Recherches Historiques et Geographiques sur l’Inde (1786) after the first part had been printed, Anquetil welcomed the first results of their efforts. Discussing Wilkins’ translation of the Bhagavadgita (1785), he identified himself with ‘the political morality which M. Hastings professes in this excellent letter [prefixed to Wilkins’ work]’ adding that ‘it is for me a very sensible pleasure to see the leading man of the English nation in India, revise the principles which I tried to establish, in 1778, in the Legislation Orientale.'128 [‘la morale politique que professe M. Hastings dans cette excellent lettre: c’est pour moi un plaisir bien sensible de voir le premier homme de la Nation Angloise dans l’Inde, revenir aux Principes que j’ai tache d’etablir, en 1778, dans la Legislation Orientate.' (Anquetil 1786: 560). Later still, in L’Inde en rapport avec I’Europe he was to berate ‘L’audacieuse ALBION ... cruelle et perfide’ for its ‘Machiavelism’ in India (Anquetil 1798: subtitle).]

While there are many factors which set the Jesuits apart from their predecessors, it is above all to the corporate nature of their approach to Indian religions that we should attribute their conception of a unitary Indian religion. In Le Gac’s ‘Gentilisme’ we see the first direct anticipation of ‘Hinduism’. This concept is, however, not monolithic, and it emerges neither from geographical misconceptions nor theological preconceptions, but from a sustained corporate engagement with India and with Hindus. The concept emerges when it does as part of a growing European conceptual grasp of India, expressed for example in the first European maps of the Indian sub-continent, which appeared in the same decade as the last of Bouchet’s contributions to the Lettres edifiantes et curieuses. The historical and theoretical parallels in the development of these different conceptual tools (the concept of Hinduism and maps of India) will be traced further in the final chapter.

[admin]

Āstika and nāstika
by Wikipedia
Accessed: 8/10/21

Āstika and nāstika are concepts that have been used to classify Indian philosophies by modern scholars, as well as some Hindu, Buddhist and Jain texts.[1][2][4] The various definitions for āstika and nāstika philosophies have been disputed since ancient times, and there is no consensus.[5][6] In current Indian languages like Hindi and Bengali, āstika and its derivatives usually mean 'theist', and nāstika and its derivatives denote an 'atheist';[7] however, the two terms in Ancient- and Medieval-Era Sanskrit literature do not refer to 'theism' or 'atheism'.[5] The terms are used differently in Hindu philosophy.[8] For example, Sāṃkhya is both an atheist (as it does not explicitly affirm the existence of God in its classical formulation) and āstika (Vedic) philosophy, though “God” is often used as an epithet for consciousness (purusa) within its doctrine.[9] Similarly, though Buddhism is considered to be nāstika, the Gautama Buddha is considered an avatar of Vishnu in some Hindu traditions.[10]

Āstika (Sanskrit: आस्तिक; from Sanskrit: asti, 'there is, there exists') means one who believes in the existence of a Self/Soul or Brahman, etc. It has been defined in one of three ways:[5][11]

1. as those who accept the epistemic authority of the Vedas;
2. as those who accept the existence of ātman;
3. as those who accept the existence of Ishvara.

Nāstika (Sanskrit: na, 'not' + āstika), by contrast, are those who deny all the respective definitions of āstika;[5] they do not believe in the existence of a Soul or Self.[12]

The six most studied Āstika schools of Indian philosophies, sometimes referred to as orthodox schools, are Nyāyá, Vaiśeṣika, Sāṃkhya, Yoga, Mīmāṃsā, and Vedānta. The four most studied Nāstika schools of Indian philosophies, sometimes referred to as heterodox schools, are Buddhism, Jainism, Cārvāka, and Ājīvika.[13][14] However, this orthodox-heterodox terminology is a construct of Western languages, and lacks scholarly roots in Sanskrit. Recent scholarly studies state that there have been various heresiological translations of Āstika and Nāstika in 20th century literature on Indian philosophies, but quite many are unsophisticated and flawed.[5]

Etymology

Āstika is a Sanskrit adjective and noun that derives from asti ('there is or exists'),[12] meaning 'knowing that which exists' or 'pious.'[15] The word Nāstika (na, not, + āstika) is its negative.

One of the traditional etymologies of the term āstika—based on Pāṇini's Aṣṭādhyāyī 4.4.60 ("astināstidiṣṭam matiḥ")—defines the concept as ‘he whose opinion is that Īśvara exists’ (asti īśvara iti matir yasya).[16] According to Sanskrit grammarian Hemachandra, āstika is a synonym for ‘he who believes’.[16] Other definitions include:

• 'opposite of nāstika' (nāstika bhinna);
• 'he whose idea is that Īśvara exists' (īśvara asti iti vādī); and
• 'he who considers the Vedas as authorities' (vedaprāmāṇyavādī).

As used in Hindu philosophy, the differentiation between āstika and nāstika does not refer to theism or atheism.[5] The terms often, but not always, relate to accepting Vedic literature as an authority, particularly on their teachings on Self (Soul). The Veda and Hinduism do not subscribe to or include the concept of an almighty that is separate from oneself i.e. there is no concept of God in the Christian or Islamic sense. N. N. Bhattacharya writes:

The followers of Tantra were often branded as Nāstika by the political proponents of the Vedic tradition. The term Nāstika does not denote an atheist since the Veda presents a godless system with no singular almighty being or multiple almighty beings. It is applied only to those who do not believe in the Vedas. The Sāṃkhyas and Mīmāṃsakas do not believe in God, but they believe in the Vedas and hence they are not Nāstikas. The Buddhists, Jains, and Cārvākas do not believe in the Vedas; hence they are Nāstikas.

— Bhattacharyya 1999, pp. 174

Āstika is also a name, such as that of a Vedic scholar born to the goddess Mānasā ('Mind') and the sage Jaratkaru.[17]

Classification of schools

The terms Āstika and Nāstika have been used to classify various Indian intellectual traditions.

Āstika

A list of six systems or ṣaḍdarśanas (also spelled Sad Darshan) consider Vedas as a reliable source of knowledge and an authoritative source.[18] These are the Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Samkhya, Yoga, Mīmāṃsā and Vedanta schools of Hinduism, and they are classified as the āstika schools:

1. Nyāyá, the school of logic
2. Vaiśeṣika, the atomist school
3. Sāṃkhya, the enumeration school
4. Yoga, the school of Patañjali (which assumes the metaphysics of Sāṃkhya)
5. Mīmāṃsā, the tradition of Vedic exegesis
6. Vedanta or Uttara Mimāṃsā, the Upaniṣadic tradition.

These are often coupled into three groups for both historical and conceptual reasons: Nyāyá-Vaiśeṣika, Sāṃkhya-Yoga, and Mimāṃsā-Vedanta.

Nāstika

The main schools of Indian philosophy that reject the Vedas were regarded as heterodox in the tradition:[3]

1. Buddhism
2. Jainism
3. Cārvāka
4. Ājīvika
5. Ajñāna

The use of the term nāstika to describe Buddhism and Jainism in India is explained by Gavin Flood as follows:

At an early period, during the formation of the Upaniṣads and the rise of Buddhism and Jainism, we must envisage a common heritage of meditation and mental discipline practiced by renouncers with varying affiliations to non-orthodox (Veda-rejecting) and orthodox (Veda-accepting) traditions.... These schools [such as Buddhism and Jainism] are understandably regarded as heterodox (nāstika) by orthodox (āstika) Brahmanism.

— Gavin Flood[19]

Tantric traditions in Hinduism have both āstika and nāstika lines; as Banerji writes in "Tantra in Bengal":

Tantras are ... also divided as āstika or Vedic and nāstika or non-Vedic. In accordance with the predominance of the deity the āstika works are again divided as Śākta, Śaiva, Saura, Gāṇapatya and Vaiṣṇava.

— Banerji[20]

Usage in religion

Hinduism

Manusmriti, in verse 2.11, defines Nāstika as those who do not accept "Vedic literature in entirety based on two roots of science of reasoning (Śruti and Smriti)".[5] The 9th century Indian scholar Medhatithi analyzed this definition and stated that Nāstika does not mean someone who says "Vedic literature are untrue", but rather one who says "Vedic literature are immoral". Medhatithi further noted verse 8.309 of Manusmriti, to provide another aspect of the definition of Nāstika as one who believes, "there is no other world, there is no purpose in giving charity, there is no purpose in rituals and the teachings in the Vedic literature."[5]

Manusmriti does not define, or imply a definition for Astika. It is also silent or contradictory on specific rituals such as animal sacrifices, asserting Ahimsa (non-violence, non-injury) is dharma in its verses such as verse 10.63 based on Upanishadic layer of Vedic literature, even though the older layer of Vedic literature mention such sacrifices unlike the later layer of Vedic literature.[21] Indian scholars, such as those from Samkhya, Yoga, Nyaya and Vedanta schools, accepted Astika to be those that include Śabda (शब्द; or Aptavacana, testimony of Vedic literature and reliable experts) as a reliable means of epistemology, but they accepted the later ancient layer of the Vedic literature to be superseding the earlier ancient layer.[5]

Without reference to Vedas

In contrast to Manusmriti, the 6th century CE Jain scholar and doxographer Haribhadra, provided a different perspective in his writings on Astika and Nāstika. Haribhadra did not consider "reverence for Vedas" as a marker for an Astika. He and other 1st millennium CE Jaina scholars defined Astika as one who "affirms there exists another world, transmigration exists, virtue (punya) exists, vice (paap) exists."[5][6]

The 7th century scholars Jayaditya and Vamana, in Kasikavrtti of Pāṇini tradition, were silent on the role of or authority of Vedic literature in defining Astika and Nāstika. They state, "Astika is the one who believes there exists another world. The opposite of him is the Nāstika."[5][22]

Similarly the widely studied 2nd-3rd century CE Buddhist philosopher Nagarjuna, in Chapter 1 verses 60-61 of Ratnāvalī, wrote Vaiśeṣika and Sāṃkhya schools of Hinduism were Nāstika, along with Jainism, his own school of Buddhism and Pudgalavadins (Vātsīputrīya) school of Buddhism.[23][24]

Based on belief in Atman

Astika, in some texts, is defined as those who believe in the existence of Atman ('Soul, Self, Spirit'), while Nastika being those who deny there is any "soul, self" in human beings and other living beings.[11][25] All six schools of Hinduism classified as Astika philosophies hold the premise, "Atman exists". Buddhism, in contrast, holds the premise, "Atman does not exist."[26][27] Asanga Tilakaratna translates Astika as 'positivism' and Nastika as 'negativism', with Astika illustrated by Brahmanic traditions who accepted "soul and God exists", while Nastika as those traditions, such as Buddhism, who denied "soul and God exists."[28]

Jainism

According to G. S. Ghurye, the Jain texts define na+astika as one "denying what exists" or any school of philosophy that denies the existence of the soul.[29] The Vedanta sub-traditions of Hinduism are "astika" because they accept the existence of soul, while Buddhist traditions denying this are referred to as "nastika".[29]

One of the earliest mentions of astika concept in Jain texts is by Manibhadra, who states that an astika is one who "accepts there exist another world (paraloka), transmigration of soul, virtue and vice that affect how a soul journeys through time".[30]

The 5th–6th century Jainism scholar Haribhadra, states Andrew Nicholson, does not mention anything about accepting or rejecting the Vedas or god as a criterion for being an astika or nastika. Instead, Haribhadra explains nastika in the manner of the more ancient Jain scholar Manibhadra, by stating a nastika to be one "who says there is no other worlds, there is no purpose in charity, there is no purpose in offerings".[30] An astika, to Haribhadra, is one who believes that there is a purpose and merit in an ethical life such as ahimsa (non-violence) and ritual actions.[30] This exposition of the word astika and nastika by Haribhadra is similar to one by the Sanskrit grammarian and Hindu scholar Pāṇini in section 4.4.60 of the Astadhyayi.[31]

The 12th century Jaina scholar Hemachandra similarly states, in his text Abithana Chintamani, that a nastika is any philosophy that presumes or argues there is "no virtue and vice."[32]

Buddhism

Nagarjuna, according to Chandradhar Sharma, equates Nastikya to "nihilism".[33]

The 4th century Buddhist scholar Asanga, in Bodhisattva Bhumi, refers to nastika Buddhists as sarvaiva nastika, describing them as who are complete deniers. To Asanga, nastika are those who say "nothing whatsoever exists," and the worst kind of nastika are those who deny all designation and reality.[34] Astika are those who accept merit in and practice a religious life.[34] According to Andrew Nicholson, later Buddhists understood Asanga to be targeting Madhyamaka Buddhism as nastika, while considering his own Yogacara Buddhist tradition to be astika.[34] Initial interpretations of the Buddhist texts with the term astika and nastika, such as those composed by Nagarjuna and Aśvaghoṣa, were interpreted as being directed at the Hindu traditions. However, states John Kelly, most later scholarship considers this as incorrect, and that the astika and nastika terms were directed towards the competing Buddhist traditions and the intended audience of the texts were Buddhist monks debating an array of ideas across various Buddhist traditions.[35]

The charges of being a nastika were serious threat to the social standing of a Buddhist, and could lead to expulsion from Buddhist monastic community. Thus, states Nicholson, the colonial era Indologist definition of astika and nastika schools of Indian philosophy, was based on a narrow study of literature such as a version of Manusmriti, while in truth these terms are more complex and contextually apply within the diverse schools of Indian philosophies.[34]

The most common meaning of astika and nastika, in Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism was the acceptance and adherence to ethical premises, and not textual validity or doctrinal premises, states Nicholson. It is likely that astika was translated as orthodox, and nastika as heterodox, because the early European Indologists carried the baggage of Christian theological traditions and extrapolated their own concepts to Asia, thereby distorting the complexity of Indian traditions and thought.[34]

See also

• Atman (Buddhism)
• Atheism in Hinduism
• Atman (Hinduism)
• Atman (Jainism)
• Śāstra pramāṇam in Hinduism

Notes

1. Perrett, Roy. 2000. Indian Philosophy. Routledge. ISBN 978-0815336112. p. 88.
2. Mittal, Sushil, and Gene Thursby. 2004. The Hindu World. Routledge. ISBN 978-0415772273. pp. 729–30.
3. Flood 1996, pp. 82.
4. Flood: "These schools [such as Buddhism and Jainism] are understandably regarded as heterodox (nāstika) by orthodox (āstika) Brahmanism."[3]
5. Nicholson, Andrew J. 2013. Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History. Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0231149877. ch. 9.
6. Doniger, Wendy. 2014. On Hinduism. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0199360079. p. 46.
7. For instance, the Atheist Society of India produces a monthly publications Nastika Yuga, which it translates as 'The Age of Atheism'. Archived 18 April 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
8. Chatterjee, Satischandra, and Dhirendramohan Datta. 1984. An Introduction to Indian Philosophy(8th reprint ed.). Calcutta: University of Calcutta. p. 5n1: "In modern Indian languages, 'āstika' and 'nāstika' generally mean 'theist' and 'atheist,' respectively. But in Sanskrit philosophical literature, 'āstika' means 'one who believes in the authority of the Vedas'. ('nāstika' means the opposite of these). The word is used here in the first sense. The six orthodox schools are 'āstika', and the Cārvāka is 'nāstika' in both the senses."
9. Francis Clooney (2008). "Restoring 'Hindu Theology' as a category in Indian intellectual discourse". In Gavin Flood (ed.). The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism. Blackwell Academic. pp. 451–455. ISBN 978-0-470-99868-7. "By Sāṃkhya reasoning, the material principle itself simply evolves into complex forms, and there is no need to hold that some spiritual power governs the material principle or its ultimate source."
10. Literature review of secondary references of Buddha as Dashavatara which regard Buddha to be part of standard list:
 Britannica
 A Dictionary of Asian Mythology By David Adams Leeming p. 19 "Avatar"
 Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide By Roshen Dalal p. 112 "Dashavatara" ""The standard and most accepted list found in Puranas and other texts is: ... Rama, Krishna, Buddha, Kalki."
 The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M p. 73 "Avatar"
 Hindu Gods and Goddesses By Sunita Pant Bansal p. 27 "Vishnu Dashavatara"
 Hindu Myths (Penguin Books) pp. 62-63
 The Book of Vishnu (see index)
 Seven secrets of Vishnu By Devdutt Pattanaik p. 203 "In the more popular list of ten avatars of Vishnu, the ninth avatar is shown as Buddha, not Balarama."
 A Dictionary of Hinduism p. 47 "Avatara"
 BBC
 Flood, Gavin D. (13 July 1996). An Introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge University Press. p. 116. ISBN 978-0-521-43878-0.
11. GS Ghurye, Indian Sociology Through Ghurye, a Dictionary, Ed: S. Devadas Pillai (2011), ISBN 978-8171548071, page 354
12. Monier-Williams 2006
13. Flood 1996, pp. 82, 224–49
14. For an overview of this method of classification, with detail on the grouping of schools, see: Radhakrishnan & Moore 1989
15. Apte 1965, pp. 240
16. Squarcini, Federico (2011). "Traditions against Tradition. Criticism, Dissent and the Struggle for the Semiotic Primacy of Veridiction". In Squarcini, Federico (ed.). Boundaries, Dynamics and Construction of Traditions in South Asia. Anthem Press. p. 446. doi:10.7135/UPO9781843313977.018.
17. George Williams (2003), Handbook of Hindu Mythology, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195332612, page 65
18. Flood 1996, pp. 231–2
19. Flood 1996, pp. 82
20. Banerji 1992, pp. 2
21. Sanskrit: Manusmriti with six scholar commentaries VN Mandlik, page 1310
English: Manusmriti 10.63 Berkeley Center for World Religion, Peace and World Affairs, Georgetown University
22. P. Haag and V. Vergiani (Eds., 2009), Studies in the Kāśikāvṛtti, Firenze: Società Editrice Fiorentina, ISBN 978-8860321145
23. Markus Dressler and Arvind Mandair (2011), Secularism and Religion-Making, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0199782949, page 59 note 39
24. Ernst Steinkellner (1991), Studies in the Buddhist Epistemological Tradition: Proceedings of the Second International Dharmakīrti Conference, Vienna, Volume 222, Austrian Academy of Sciences Press, ISBN 978-3700119159, pages 230-238
25. C Sharma (2013), A Critical Survey of Indian Philosophy, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120803657, page 66
26. Dae-Sook Suh (1994), Korean Studies: New Pacific Currents, University of Hawaii Press, ISBN 978-0824815981, page 171
27. John C. Plott et al (2000), Global History of Philosophy: The Axial Age, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120801585, page 63, Quote: "The Buddhist schools reject any Ātman concept. As we have already observed, this is the basic and ineradicable distinction between Hinduism and Buddhism".
28. Asanga Tilakaratna (2003, Editors: Anne Blackburn and Jeffrey Samuels), Approaching the Dhamma: Buddhist Texts and Practices in South and Southeast Asia, Pariyatti, ISBN 978-1928706199, pages 128-129;
God, states Tilakaratna, in Brahmanic traditions is Parama-atma (universal soul, Ishvara, Brahman)
29. S. Devadas Pillai (1997). Indian Sociology Through Ghurye, a Dictionary. Popular Prakashan. pp. 353–354. ISBN 978-81-7154-807-1.
30. Andrew J. Nicholson (2013). Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History. Columbia University Press. pp. 172–175. ISBN 978-0-231-14987-7.
31. Andrew J. Nicholson (2013). Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History. Columbia University Press. p. 173. ISBN 978-0-231-14987-7.
32. Ramkrishna Bhattacharya (2011). Studies on the Carvaka/Lokayata. Anthem Press. pp. 164–166. ISBN 978-0-85728-433-4.
33. Chandradhar Sharma (2000). A Critical Survey of Indian Philosophy. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 101. ISBN 978-81-208-0365-7.
34. Andrew J. Nicholson (2013). Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History. Columbia University Press. pp. 174–176. ISBN 978-0-231-14987-7.
35. John D Kelly (1996). Jan E. M. Houben (ed.). Ideology and Status of Sanskrit: Contributions to the History of the Sanskrit Language. BRILL Academic. pp. 88–89. ISBN 90-04-10613-8.

References

• Apte, V. S. (1965), A Practical Sanskrit Dictionary
• Banerji, S. C. (1992), Tantra in Bengal (Second Revised and Enlarged ed.), Delhi: Manohar, ISBN 81-85425-63-9
• Bhattacharyya, N. N. (1999), History of the Tantric Religion (Second Revised ed.), New Delhi: Manohar, ISBN 81-7304-025-7
• Flood, Gavin (1996), An Introduction to Hinduism, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, ISBN 81-7596-028-0
• Francis Clooney (2003). Flood, Gavin (ed.). Blackwell companion to Hinduism. Blackwell Publishing. ISBN 0-631-21535-2.
• Monier-Williams, Monier (2006), Monier-Williams Sanskrit Dictionary, Nataraj Books, ISBN 1-881338-58-4
• Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli; Moore, Charles A. (1989) [1957], A Source Book in Indian Philosophy (Princeton paperback 12th ed.), Princeton University Press, ISBN 0-691-01958-4
• Vivekananda, Swami (1900), Complete Works of, Volume 1, Lectures and Discourses, ISBN 978-8185301761