that they are bathing in the quintessence of all the sacred rivers, and in the presence of all the gods. Every one gets up from the bath with his whole body besmeared with mud, but for all that, he goes home with the consolation that the holy occasion has been availed of and that the holy bathing in all the sacred rivers has been taken in one plunge. Such is faith, simple faith, more consoling than all philosophy. What Jerusalem is to the Christians, what Buddha-Gaya is to the Buddhists, what Mecca is to the Muhammadans, what Benares is to the Indian—so is the Mahamakham bath to all the Hindus on the Mahamakham day. As the water in this tank is supposed to have originated first from the earthen pot so carefully guarded by Brahma, this tank goes also by the name of Brahma-tirtham. Owing to the special sanctity attached to it on this occasion, the tank is also called the Mahamakha-saras. It is also called Kanyatirtham after the goddesses Kanyas on the tank. These kanyas or virgins are supposed to be the representations of nine holy waters:—Ganga, Yamuna, Narmada, Sarasvati, Godavari, Krishna, Kaveri, Tambraparni, and Kanyakumari.
