274 AN EARLY DUTCH ACCOUNT OF INDIA
eration that it was still more shameful that the soul
of a mother might pass into a young girl and be known
by her own son. Nevertheless, these heathen make no
difficulty either of the one or the other, but it is their
firm belief that the souls of men pass from one body
to another, whether of men, beasts, or herbs, and that
this befalleth each man according to his deeds. But
of those who migrate into the bodies of beasts, they
deem them the luckiest who enter into kine; since the
body of these beasts they hold to be the most lucky
gaol or prison, for that they believe that among all
sorts of beasts kine are the most acceptable to God,
and that Nandi, or Baswa (Sanskrit vrishdba, " bull "),
was an ox and the wahanam, that is, carrier, whereon
Eswara (Siva) was carried; wherefore these heathen
hold kine in high honour. They may not slaughter any
of them, but as great horror as the Mohammedans have
of pork, so great horror have they of eating beef. I
have seen more reverence done a dead ox belonging
to a pagoda than if he had been a man; for even as
it is the custom, wherever there is a dead man, for
bassoons to be blown, so was it done regarding this
ox; and moreover he was covered with a robe in stately
wise, and had incense burned over him.
They also believe that some persons become devils
because of their sins, and that they wander through
the air until the time of their punishment be passed.
They say that these suffer very great hunger, and that
they cannot get a single blade of grass from the earth
to fill their hungry bellies, and that they can enjoy
