Religion, are left exposed to the action of
the element of air. The birds of prey, which always gather in large
swarms round such places, fall upon the bodies ravenously, and in a
few minutes devour the flesh and skin; the bones are gathered up and
thrown into the cave. When this becomes full, the place is
abandoned and another erected.
Many wealthy people have private burial-places, over which they have
fine wire gauze stretched, so that the deceased members of their
family may not be stripped of their flesh by birds of prey.
No one is allowed to enter the burial-ground except the priests, who
carry the bodies; even the door is rapidly closed, for only one
glance into it would be a sin. The priests, or rather bearers, are
considered so impure that they are excluded from all other society,
and form a separate caste. Whoever has the misfortune to brush
against one of these men, must instantly throw off his clothes and
bathe.
The Parsees are not less exclusive with respect to their temples; no
one of any other belief is allowed to enter them, or even to look
in. The temples which I saw here, of course only from the outside,
are very small, extremely plain, and destitute of the slightest
peculiarity of architecture; the round entrance-hall surrounds a
kind of fore-court, enclosed by a wall.
