Chapter III

The islands saw it, and feared; the ends of the earth
were astonished; they drew near and came.

THE ROYAL PROPHET.

Chunder’s announcement of the approach of the emperor suspended the conference, in which the hermit was engaged with the three foreign dervishes. Zeinedeen, as well as his visitors, were fully apprised of the entry of the imperial army into the province, but they were not prepared to behold the sovereign, in the simple attire of a Himalayan hunter. The hermit received Jehangire with every token of respect, assuring him that, although unescorted, beneath his roof the son of Acbar--of a master whom he loved and honoured for his virtues, his matchless valour, his devotion to the welfare of all his people, to whatever religious sect they belonged, his munificent patronage of learned men, and his selection for the great offices of state of persons entitled to them by their integrity and talents--was secure from every danger, and welcome to all the hospitality, however humble, which that roof could afford.

Jehangire was affected by the warm-hearted reception which he experienced from the hermit. The three strangers were about to make their obeisances, when the emperor interposed, and saying in a familiar way that as he was at present nothing more than a pilgrim, they must treat him as such. Probably they were proceeding also to the temple of Mahadeo, and would permit him to accompany them.

Aquaviva confessed that he and his companions were indeed, as the emperor conjectured, pilgrims; but that their homage was due to other shrines, in which the presence of the divinity depended upon no time or season.

Auzeem remarked the courtly, yet simple and earnest manner in which the stranger uttered these words, and drawing Jehangire aside, informed him in a low voice that he believed these persons to be the missionaries from the country of the Franks, who had obtained a license from his majesty not long since to visit Hindostan. The emperor, expressing his satisfaction at having thus encountered them, questioned them on that point. They immediately produced the imperial rescript to which Auzeem alluded, and expressed their happiness on being so unexpectedly placed in the imperial presence.

Jehangire prided himself, and not altogether unjustly, upon his acquaintance with the theological points of difficulty, that formed the principal subjects of controversy among the diversified sects with which his empire abounded. He was, therefore, strongly disposed to enter at once upon the discussion of the doctrines which the strangers came to inculcate. But Aquaviva, feeling that the great object he had in view might be endangered, by embarking at the moment in an argument with the emperor, humbly sought permission to wait upon his majesty at some more favourable season, when his mind would be relieved from the pressure of the civil war.

The hermit took the same view; but the emperor, remarking that topics of this description were to him a favourite source of recreation, fixed that the missionaries should attend him in the camp the following day. He then gave them leave to withdraw; but as his curiosity to learn the species of faith which they professed was strongly excited, he requested, after their departure, that Zeinedeen would enlighten him on that subject. The hermit expressed his readiness to obey the emperor’s desire, though he felt scarcely competent to unfold so mighty a theme, as he had been enabled to catch only a faint glimmering of it from the communications of the strangers.

“But, sire,” he continued, “I have heard enough from those holy men--for such I believe them to be--to convince my mind that they come amongst us with tidings of no common character. When I look upwards and behold in the midst of night the numberless worlds by which this small planet is surrounded, I am astonished at the immeasurable affection which the Great Spirit must bear to the beings whom he has placed here, if it be true, as these messengers declare, that he has sent hither, not a seraph, nor an archangel, but a God, to open to us the path by which we are to ascend to his presence!”

“The books of the sibyls, and the traditions of all ages,” observed Jehangire, “abound in predictions upon this subject. Mahomet applied them to himself; but I must confess that I have never been able to satisfy my understanding as to the propriety of his claims.”

“The strangers,” pursued Zeinedeen, “have produced to me books of unquestionable antiquity, of which it is manifest that the Koran is little more than a paraphrase.”

“I had an opportunity of seeing in Persia,” remarked Auzeem, “the writings to which you allude. The plagiarisms of the prophet are palpable.”

“It is now about sixteen centuries ago, as these foreigners say, since three or four sages, skilled in the science of the heavens, while engaged in contemplating the myriads of lights that glow in those happy regions, beheld an orb of singular lustre suddenly descend from the utmost heights of space. It then moved in the direction of the Great Sea, and the sages, struck with admiration of its wonderful beauty, as well as with a profound impression that it was the herald of some supernatural event, followed it in its course, until it stopped over an obscure village near Jerusalem. On their way they inquired of some shepherds, who were keeping the night watches over their flocks, whether any great king was lately born in that country; but before the shepherds could give any answer to their questions, they were all encompassed by a canopy of fire, which could have been no other than the brightness of God. The air was filled with breathings of incomparable harmony, while in the canopy were seen hosts of angelic forms, whose voices proclaimed the birth of an infant, come to redeem mankind from the penalty which their early disobedience to the Supreme One would otherwise have entailed upon them. ‘Glory, therefore,’ sung the heavenly host, ‘be to God in the highest, and peace to men of good will!’”

“I would have given my empire,” exclaimed Jehangire, “to have heard those sounds.”

“Following the course indicated by the star, the sages and the shepherds entered a cave that had been commonly used as a stable, and there they found laid in a manger, wrapped in bands of coarse linen, a child newly born. They worshipped him, declaring all that they had heard, and made him offerings of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

“The Jewish authorities, fearful that the end of their power was come, sought the destruction of the infant; but he was taken into Egypt, where he was preserved from their hatred. Returning afterwards to Syria, he spent his early years in retirement amongst the mountains and by the sea of Tiberias, whose lonely shores he seems to have loved with a particular affection. The humble fishermen, who frequented its waters, were his chosen companions. To them he imparted his doctrines, and confided the propagation of the faith which he came to establish.”

“This is strange, seeing that his first worshippers were sages,” said Auzeem.

“Every thing about this visitor of our planet was wonderful. He appears, throughout the whole of his life here, to have been raised above all men, not by the display of any symbol of authority, but by his invariable meekness and humility. The single word LOVE, embraced the whole of his religion--love for the Highest God, of whom the angels sung--love for men to whom they announced the tidings of his perpetual peace.

“Many events above the course of nature bore witness to the origin and mission of this Teacher. Persons troubled with evil demons he rescued from their sufferings; by a word he raised the dead to life, stilled the tempest, gave language to the dumb, and hearing to the deaf, and blood to the withered hand, and vision to the faded eye. He walked upon the foaming waves of the sea. He passed, unseen, through multitudes. He fed thousands upon a small basket of fish and bread, and still abundant fragments remained after they were satisfied. While he was inculcating his doctrine, on one occasion, amidst his chosen ministers, upon the summit of a mountain, his face was suddenly illuminated, and his garments became whiter than the snow. Two of the patriarchs of the elder days descended from heaven, and conversed with him upon the approaching termination of his career upon earth. They were succeeded by a cloud, from which the Great Spirit spoke, declaring the Messiah to be his Son, and commanding obedience to his precepts.

“One would think, that after such evidence as these events furnished to the character of the Holy One, the generation of that day, at all events, would have unanimously accepted him as their master, and loved him as their mediator. On the contrary, they gave no belief to the awful signs of his office; they despised his admonitions, ridiculed him as an impostor, and finally sacrificed him to the jealousy of their priesthood. The sun shrouded itself while the mob of Jerusalem nailed him to a cross. The dead looked out from their sepulchres, disturbed by the woe which convulsed all nature. But for that act, the haughty city, whose palaces and temples glittered as the fairest then upon earth, soon after became a heap of ruins, which it still remains, and the descendants of that mob have been scattered through all nations, never to be re-united until they repent them of their crime.”

“I have often remarked those Hebrews,” said the emperor, “in the bazaars at Agra. Their countenances betray them as an outlawed race. They never look composed. There are traces of agitation on the quivering lip and the heated cheek, which have always made me look at them, I knew not why, with suspicion, as if they had been fugitive murderers.”

“He, the crucified, in three days arose from his tomb, and after repeating to his ministers all that he had previously taught them, ascended to the bright regions whence he came.”

“This is, in truth,” observed Auzeem, “a marvellous narrative. We have, in Hindostan, a variety of traditions which evidently relate to the Syrian prophet; and several of our poets even assure us, that there are nights so perfectly clear and calm, as to disclose the path of light by which he trod through the stars on his way to his heavenly abode.”

“But the greatest wonder of all, as it seems to me,” pursued the hermit, “is the rapid and secure progress which the new doctrine made through many nations. The ministers of the Messiah were all of them, without exception, poor and uneducated men. But a Spirit is said to have descended upon them, before they went forth to teach, which fired their hearts with indomitable fortitude, and endowed their tongues with every language. These inspired priests, without the aid of torch or sword, overthrew myriads of idols, and substituted in their shrines the cross. The sanguinary and superstitious rites to which men had been accustomed they abolished, and in their room they established an unbloody sacrifice, and a system of worship the most pure, the most spiritual and exalting, which the human mind could adopt, as a memorial of the redeeming God, and as a bond of sanctity between earth and heaven.”

“I am deeply interested in this subject which you have just disclosed to us,” said the emperor, “and should be much delighted if, when next the strangers celebrate the rites of their religion, I could be present to witness them. As to the shrine of Mahadeo, let it be demolished.”

“Methinks it is the hour,” rejoined Zeinedeen, rising and looking at the sun, “when they perform their mid-day worship. They have converted a large cavern in the neighbouring mountain into a temple, where they are already attended by many followers. Yes, I hear the echo of the hymn to the Virgin by which they usually preface their service.”

“Let us join them,” exclaimed the emperor, “without delay.”

As the hermit and his companions proceeded towards the mountain whence the sounds proceeded, they were struck by the peculiar solemnity and harmony of the tones which reached their ears. There was no effort at effect in the music. It was the simple modulation of a suppliant heart bending before the throne of the Most High, breathing of confidence in the affection of the Parent to whom it was addressed, and calculated to raise the soul to the contemplation of other worlds.

It swelled and died gradually upon the air as they went along, and at some turns in the path it floated apparently so near them, that they could almost distinguish the words. At the next step the melody died away, as if it were terminated, and again a few paces and the full choir, for all the worshippers joined in the anthem, resounded from the cavern, at the entrance to which Jehangire and his companions paused to listen.