PERSEES, the descendants of a colony of ancient Persians, who took refuge at Bombay, Surat, and in
the vicinity of those cities, when their own country was conquered 1100 years ago by the Mahometan Arabs. They are a gentle, quiet, and industrious people, loved by the Hindoos, and living in great harmony among themselves. The consequence is, that they multiply exceedingly, whilst their countrymen in the province of Keman are visibly diminishing under the yoke of the Mahometan Persians. Of the manners and customs of this amiable race, we have the following account in Heron's elegant translation of Niebuhr's Travels.
"The Persecs (says he) make common contributions for the aid of their poor, and suffer none of their number to ask alms from people of a different religion. They are equally ready to employ their money and credit to screen a brother of their fraternity from the abuses of justice. When a Persec behaves ill, he is expelled from their communion. They apply to trade, and exercise all sorts of professions.
"The Persecs have as little knowledge of circumcision as the Hindoos. Among them, a man marries only one wife, nor ever takes a second, unless when the first happens to be barren. They give their children in marriage at six years of age: but the young couple continue to live separate, in the house of their parents, till they attain the age of puberty. Their dress is the same as that of the Hindoos, except that they wear under each ear a tuft of hair, like the modern Persians. They are much addicted to astrology, altho' very little skilled in astronomy.
"They retain the singular custom of exposing their dead to be eaten by birds of prey, instead of interring or burning them. I saw (continues our author) on a hill at Bombay a round tower, covered with planks of wood, on which the Persecs lay out their dead bodies. When the flesh is devoured, they remove the bones into two chambers at the bottom of the tower.
"The Persecs, followers of the religion of Zerdust or Zoroaster, adore one God only, eternal and almighty. They pay, however, a certain worship to the sun, the moon, the stars, and to fire, as visible images of the invisible divinity. Their veneration for the element of fire induces them to keep a sacred fire constantly burning, which they feed with odoriferous wood, both in the temples and in the houses of private persons, who are in easy circumstances. In one of their temples at Bombay, I saw a fire which had burnt unextinguished for two centuries. They never blow out a light, lest their breath should soil the purity of the fire. See POLYTHEISM.
"The religion of the Persecs enjoins purifications as strictly as that of the Hindoos. The disciples of Zerdust are not, however, obliged to abstain from animal food. They have accustomed themselves to refrain from the flesh of the ox, because their ancestors promised the Indian prince who received them into his dominions never to kill horned cattle. This promise they continue to observe under the dominion of Christians and Mahometans. The horse is by them considered as the most impure of all animals, and regarded with extreme aversion.
"Their festivals, denominated Ghumbars, which return frequently, and last upon each occasion five days, are all commemorations of some part of the work of creation. They celebrate them not with splendour, or
Perſees, with any particular ceremonies, but only dress better
Perſepolis, during thoſe five days, perform ſome acts of devotion
in their houſes, and viſit their friends."
The Perſees were till lately but very little known :
the ancients ſpeak of them but ſeldom, and what they
ſay ſeems to be dictated by prejudice. On this account
Dr Hyde, who thought the ſubject both curious and
interesting, about the end of laſt century attempted a
deeper inveſtigation of a ſubject which till then had
been but very little attended to. He applied to the
works of Arabian and Perſian authors, from whom,
and from the relations of travellers, together with a va-
riety of letters from perſons in India, he compiled his
celebrated work on the religion of the Perſees. Other
accounts have been given by different men, as accident-
al information in their way. But the moſt diſtin-
guiſhed is by M. Anquetil du Perron, who undertook
a voyage to diſcover and tranſlate the works attributed
to Zoroaſter. Of this voyage he drew up an account
himſelf, and read it before the Royal Academy of
Sciences at Paris in May 1761. A tranſlation of it
was made and publiſhed in the Gentleman's Magazine
for 1762, to which we refer our readers. The account
begins at p. 373, and is concluded at p. 614. Re-
marks were afterwards made on Du Perron's account
by a Mr Yates. See the ſame Magazine for 1766,
p. 529.