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From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan By: Helena P. Blavatsky (1831-1891) |
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By Helena Petrovna Blavatsky Translated From The Russian
Translator's Preface
"You must remember," said Mme. Blavatsky, "that I never meant this for a
scientific work. My letters to the Russian Messenger, under the general
title: 'From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan,' were written in
leisure moments, more for amusement than with any serious design. "Broadly speaking, the facts and incidents are true; but I have freely
availed myself of an author's privilege to group, colour, and dramatize
them, whenever this seemed necessary to the full artistic effect;
though, as I say, much of the book is exactly true, l would rather claim
kindly judgment for it, as a romance of travel, than incur the critical
risks that haunt an avowedly serious work." To this caution of the author's, the translator must add another; these
letters, as Mme Blavatsky says, were written in leisure moments, during
1879 and 1880, for the pages of the Russki Vyestnik, then edited by M.
Katkoff. Mme. Blavatsky's manuscript was often incorrect; often obscure.
The Russian compositors, though they did their best to render faithfully
the Indian names and places, often produced, through their ignorance of
Oriental tongues, forms which are strange, and sometimes unrecognizable.
The proof sheets were never corrected by the author, who was then in
India; and, in consequence, it has been impossible to restore all the
local and personal names to their proper form. A similar difficulty has arisen with reference to quotations and
cited authorities, all of which have gone through a double process of
refraction: first into Russian, then into English. The translator, also
a Russian, and far from perfectly acquainted with English, cannot
claim to possess the erudition necessary to verify and restore the many
quotations to verbal accuracy; all that is hoped is that, by a careful
rendering, the correct sense has been preserved. The translator begs the indulgence of English readers for all
imperfections of style and language; in the words of the Sanskrit
proverb: "Who is to be blamed, if success be not reached after due
effort?" The translator's best thanks are due to Mr. John C. Staples, for
valuable help in the early chapters. London, July, 1892
Contents
In Bombay
On the Way to Karli
In the Karli Caves
Vanished Glories
A City of the Dead
Brahmanic Hospitalities
A Witch's Den
God's Warrior
The Banns of Marriage
The Caves of Bagh
An Isle of Mystery
Jubblepore
FROM THE CAVES AND JUNGLES OF HINDOSTAN
In Bombay Late in the evening of the sixteenth of February, 1879, after a rough
voyage which lasted thirty two days, joyful exclamations were heard
everywhere on deck. "Have you seen the lighthouse?" "There it is at
last, the Bombay lighthouse." Cards, books, music, everything was forgotten. Everyone rushed on deck.
The moon had not risen as yet, and, in spite of the starry tropical sky,
it was quite dark. The stars were so bright that, at first, it seemed
hardly possible to distinguish, far away amongst them, a small fiery
point lit by earthly hands. The stars winked at us like so many huge
eyes in the black sky, on one side of which shone the Southern Cross.
At last we distinguished the lighthouse on the distant horizon. It was
nothing but a tiny fiery point diving in the phosphorescent waves. The
tired travellers greeted it warmly. The rejoicing was general. What a glorious daybreak followed this dark night! The sea no longer
tossed our ship. Under the skilled guidance of the pilot, who had just
arrived, and whose bronze form was so sharply defined against the pale
sky, our steamer, breathing heavily with its broken machinery, slipped
over the quiet, transparent waters of the Indian Ocean straight to
the harbour. We were only four miles from Bombay, and, to us, who had
trembled with cold only a few weeks ago in the Bay of Biscay, which has
been so glorified by many poets and so heartily cursed by all sailors,
our surroundings simply seemed a magical dream... Continue reading book >>
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History |
Religion |
Travel |
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