1 The procession of the
2 widows to the funeral
3 pyre.
4 The slave-girls
5 marching to the scene,
6 The gloomy scene
7 described.
8 Affliction of R4i4
9 Dhian Singh,
10 494 HISTORY OF THE PANJAB.
11 slowly from the interior of the fortress towards the funeral pile, where origin-
12 ally existed a small, but beautiful, garden.
13 As the funeral procession advanced, thousands of rupees were thrown
14 among the crowd as alms, and scrambled for by the needy and poor. For the
15 first time during their lives, the Radnis of the great Mahardjd came out unveiled
16 from the harem and meekly followed the corpse barefooted. They were
17 dressed in pure white silk and wore no ornaments. They had distributed
18 all their jewels and valuables among the poor before leaving the zendnd,
19 One of the Ré&nis who could not distribute all she had with her, had the hes
20 mainder of her valuables carried by a man who walked by her side, and she
21 gave them away to the poor with both hands, as she went to the horrible altar.
22 In front of each Rauf, at a distance of two or three paces, walked a man with
23 his face turned towards her and moving backwards. He held a looking-glass
24 before the Ravi, in front of whom he walked, that she might see that her
25 features were unaltered, and that her resolution to sacrifice her life had no
26 effect on her appearance.
27 After the Ranis followed the seven slave-girls, also barefooted. Some of
28 these appeared to be only fourteen or fifteen years of age. All seemed
29 quite indifferent to the awful fate which awaited them, and which, indeed,
30 they had themselves sought. Dr. Honighberger, who was a personal witness
31 of this melancholy scene, observes, “ Perhaps our hearts throbbed more at
32 the view of the dismal train, than those of the poor victims themselves.”
33 The drums beat mournfully, the musicians sang melancholy dirges, and
34 the sound of their instruments spread gloom and sorrow throughout the
35 whole assembly. This, combined with the murmuring of a vast mourning
36 crowd, whose anxious faces bore testimony to the grief and affliction in-
37 wardly felt by them, and to their love for their departed master, whom they
38 adored, and who had loved them, gave the whole scene a most melancholy
39 aspect. The funeral pile was constructed of sandal wood and aloe, in the
40 form of a square six feet high. Upon it were strewed inflammable sub-
41 stances, such as cotton seeds, &. The bier having been brought close to
42 it, its valuable ornaments and costly covering. were given away to the
43 mob. The Brahmins and the Gurus then recited passages from their
44 holy books and offered prayers for the benefit of the departed soul of
45 the Maharaja. This occupied about half anhour. The ascent to the
46 funeral pile was by a ladder. The ministers and the sardars first as-
47 cended and helped in gently removing the royal body from the bier
48 and respectfully placing it in the middle of the pile, together with the board
49 on which it lay. The four Ranis, with death-despising intrepidity, then
50 ascended the fatal ladder, one by one, according to their rank, and occupied .
51 a place at the head of their royal husband, holding the head with their
52 hands. The slave-girls, with equal courage and contempt for death, then
53 ascended the ladder and placed themselves at the foot of their lord. The
54 satits, having thus seated themselves round the royal corpse, were covered
55 with reed mats, on which oil had been profusely poured. Rajé Dhidn Singh,
56 at this moment, approached the Ranis and begged them to offer prayers for
57 the prosperity of the new Mahardj4; but not a word was uttered by the
58 Ré&nis, who, with eyes closed and hands stretched towards the head of the
59 Mahardjd, which they were holding, maintained a solemn silence in expecta-
60 tion of the fatal moment which was now near at hand. A strong thick mat
61 of reeds was then brought and saturated with oil, with which all were covered.
62 The Minister, Raj4 Dhidn Singh, and the sardars then came down. The
63 Rajé seemed the most affected, and grief had so much overpowered him that
64 Sri Satgurtg dght SisghWrelifraryburden, and iaistédadBlibeangolgmeatlwoth the Ranis.