Part 13 (1/2)

CHAPTER XIV THE FLOWER TEMPLE

It was half-past eight byour arrival at Milosis, having slept almost exactly twelve hours, and I must say that I did indeed feel better Ah, what a blessed thing is sleep! and what a difference twelve hours of it or so er It is like going to bed oneup another

I sat up upon my silken couch--never had I slept upon such a bed before--and the first thing that I saas Good's eyeglass fixed onelse of hilass, but I knew fro till I woke up to begin

'I say, Quaterh, 'did you observe her skin? It is as smooth as the back of an ivory hairbrush'

'Now look here, Good,' I remonstrated, when there ca drawn, adns that he was there to lead us to the bath We gladly consented, and were conducted to a delightfulcrystal water in the centre of it, into which we gaily plunged When we had bathed, we returned to our apartment and dressed, and then went into the central roo, to find ah I should be puzzled to describe the dishes After breakfast we lounged round and admired the tapestries and carpets and so the while as going to happen next Indeed, by this time our minds were in such a state of complete bewilder that ht arrive As for our sense of astonishment, it was pretty well obliterated Whilst ere still thus engaged, our friend the captain of the guard presented hinified that ere to follow his--for we guessed that the time had come e should have to settle the bill for those confounded hippopotah Priest However, there was no help for it, and personally I took great comfort in the pro that if ladies have a will they can generally find a way; so off we started as though we liked it A ht us to the great double gates of the palace that open on to the wide highhich runs uphill through the heart of Milosis to the Temple of the Sun a mile away, and thence down the slope on the farther side of the teates are very large and massive, and an extraordinarily beautiful work in metal Between them--for one set is placed at the entrance to an interior, and one at that of the exterior wall--is a fosse, forty-five feet in width This fosse is filled ater and spanned by a drawbridge, which when lifted uns As we ca open, and we passed over the drawbridge and presently stood gazing up one of the , roadways in the world It is a hundred feet from curb to curb, and on either side, not craether, as is our European fashi+on, but each standing in its own grounds, and built equidistant from and in sile-storied ranite These are the town houses of the nobles of the Court, and stretch away in unbroken lines for a lorious vision of the Temple of the Sun that crowns the hill and heads the roadway

As we stood gazing at this splendid sight, of which ateway four chariots, each drawn by thite horses These chariots are theeled, and ht of which is supported by leathern girths that form a portion of the harness The wheels are made with four spokes only, are tired with iron, and quite innocent of springs In the front of the chariot, and immediately over the pole, is a small seat for the driver, railed round to prevent hi jolted off Inside the machine itself are three low seats, one at each side, and one with the back to the horses, opposite to which is the door The whole vehicle is lightly and yet strongly h priht be expected

But if the chariots left so to be desired, the horses did not

They were sily built, and well ribbed up, with sreat look of speed and blood I have often wondered whence this breed, which presents many distinct characteristics, came, but like that of its owners, it history is obscure Like the people the horses have always been there The first and last of these chariots were occupied by guards, but the centre tere empty, except for the driver, and to these ere conducted Alphonse and I got into the first, and Sir Henry, Good, and Uaas into the one behind, and then suddenly off ent And we did go! A or driving, especially when the journey to be allop As soon as ere seated the driver called out, the horses sprang forward, and hirled away at a speed sufficient to take one's breath, and which, till I got accustomed to it, kept me in momentary fear of an upset As for the wretched Alphonse, he clung with a despairing face to the side of what he called this 'devil of a fiacre', thinking that every moment was his last Presently it occurred to hi, and I told hi to be sacrificed by burning You should have seen his face as he grasped the side of the vehicle and cried out in his terror

But the wild-looking charioteer only leant forward over his flying steeds and shouted; and the air, as it went singing past, bore away the sound of Alphonse's lamentations

And now before us, in all itsloveliness, shone out the Temple of the Sun--the peculiar pride of the Zu-Vendi, to whom it hat Solomon's, or rather Herod's, Teenerations had been given to the building of this wonderful place, which had been only finally co was spared that the country could produce, and the result was indeed worthy of the effort, not so er fanes in the world--as because of its perfect proportions, the richness and beauty of its(that stands by itself on a space of soround on the hilltop, around which are the dwelling-places of the priests) is built in the shape of a sunfloith a dome-covered central hall, from which radiate twelve petal-shaped courts, each dedicated to one of the twelveas the repositories of statues reared in memory of the illustrious dead The width of the circle beneath the doht of the doth of the rays is one hundred and fifty feet, and the height of their roofs three hundred feet, so that they run into the central doreat raised heart

Thus the exact measurement from the centre of the central altar to the extreme point of any one of the rounded rays would be three hundred feet (the width of the circle itself), or a total of six hundred feet from the rounded extremity of one ray or petal to the extre itself is of pure and polished white ranite of the frowning city, on whose brow it glistens indeed like an imperial diadem upon the forehead of a dusky queen The outer surface of the dome and of the twelve petal courts is covered entirely with thin sheets of beaten gold; and frolorious golden forured in the very act of soaring into space I reallybeauty of these golden roofs flashi+ng when the sun strikes--flashi+ng like a thousand fires aflame on a mountain of polished marble--so fiercely that the reflection can be clearly seen froe a hundred olden flower upborne upon the cool white marble walls, and I doubt if the world can show such another What eous is that a belt of a hundred and fifty feet around the enous species of sunflohich were at the tiolden bloom

The main entrance to this wonderful place is between the two northernmost of the rays or petal courts, and is protected first by the usual bronze gates, and then by doors orical subjects and overlaid with gold When these are passed there is only the thickness of the wall, which is, however, twenty-five feet (for the Zu-Vendi build for all tiht wall also of white ap in the inner skin of the wall, and you stand in the circular hall under the great do to the central altar you look upon as beautiful a sight as the iination of man can conceive You are in the reat white marble dome (for the inner skin, like the outer, is of polishedlike that of St Paul's in London, only at a slighter angle, and froht beaolden altar

At the east and the west are other altars, and other beaht to the heart In every direction, 'white, mystic, wonderful', open out the ray-like courts, each pierced through by a single arrow of light that serves to illumine its lofty silence and dimly to reveal the monuments of the dead {Endnote 15}

Overcoht, the vast loveliness of which thrills the nerves like a glance froolden altar, in the h you cannot see it now, there burns a pale but steady flame croith curls of faint blue sold, in shape round like the sun, four feet in height, and thirty-six in circued to the foundations of the altar, are twelve petals of beaten gold All night and, except at one hour, all day also, these petals are closed over the altar itself exactly as the petals of a water-lily close over the yellon in storh the funnel in the doolden flower, the petals open and reveal the hidden ain when the ray has passed

Nor is this all Standing in semicircles at equal distances from each other on the north and south of the sacred place are ten golden angels, or feures, which are slightly larger than life-size, stand with bent heads in an attitude of adoration, their faces shadowed by their wings, and arebeauty

There is but one thing further which calls for description in this altar, which is, that to the east the flooring in front of it is not of pure white , but of solid brass, and this is also the case in front of the other two altars

The eastern and western altars, which are seainst the wall of the building, are olden petals They are, however, also of gold, the sacred fire burns on each, and a golden-winged figure stands on either side of theolden rays run up the wall behind the in the wall, wide on the outside, but narroithin, like a loophole turned inwards

Through the eastern loophole streaht across the circle, touching the folded petals of the great gold flower as they pass till they iht the last rays of the sinking sun rest for a while on the eastern altar before they die away into darkness It is the pro to the dawn

With the exception of those three altars and the winged figures about them, the whole space beneath the vast white dome is utterly empty and devoid of ornareatly to its splendour

Such is a brief description of this wonderful and lovely building, to the glories of which, to my mind so much enhanced by their complete simplicity, I only wish I had the power to do justice But I cannot, so it is useless talking enius to sos and tinsel ornamentation produced in these latter days by European ecclesiastical architects, I feel that even highly civilized artfrom the Zu-Vendito my lips as soon as lorious building, and its white and curving beauties, perfect and thrilling as those of a naked Goddess, grew upon ious here' It is vulgarly put, but perhaps it conveysmore clearly than any polished utterance

At the teuard of soldiers, who appeared to be under the orders of a priest; and by them ere conducted into one of the ray or 'petal' courts, as the priests call them, and there left for at least half-an-hour Here we conferred together, and realizing that we stood in great danger of our lives, determined, if any attempt should be aas announcing his fixed intention of coh Priest, by splitting his head with Inkosi-kaas From where we stood we could perceive that an i into the temple, evidently in expectation of so that we had to do with it And here I ht falls upon the central altar, and the trumpets sound, a burnt sacrifice is offered to the Sun, consisting generally of the carcase of a sheep or ox, or sometimes of fruit or corn This event comes off about midday; of course, not always exactly at that hour, but as Zu-Vendis is situated not far froh above the sea it is very teht on the altar were generally siht minutes past twelve

Just at twelve o'clock a priest appeared, and nified to us that ere expected to advance, which we did with the best grace that we could muster, all except Alphonse, whose irrepressible teeth instantly began to chatter In a few seconds ere out of the court and looking at a vast sea of hureat circle, all straining to catch a glie; the first strangers, e of the multitude, had ever set foot in Zu-Vendis since such time that the memory of man runneth not to the contrary

As we appeared there was a reat dorow on the thousands of faces, like a pink light on a stretch of pale cloud, and a very curious effect it was On we passed down a lane cut through the heart of the human mass, till presently we stood upon the brazen patch of flooring to the east of the central altar, and iolden-winged figures the space was roped off, and the multitudes stood outside the ropes Within were a circle of white-robed gold-cinctured priests holding long golden trumpets in their hands, and ih Priest, with his curious cap upon his head His was the only covered head in that vast assee We took our stand upon the brazen space, little knoas prepared for us beneath, but I noticed a curious hissing sound proceeding apparently from the floor for which I could not account Then can of the two Queens, Nyleptha and Sorais, but they were not there To the right of us, however, was a bare space that I guessed was reserved for them

We waited, and presently a far-off truh up in the dome Then ca lane, leading to the open space to our right,the two Queens walking side by side Behind thenized the great lord Nasta, and behind thelad to see Presently they had all arrived and taken their stand, the two Queens in the front, the nobles to the right and left, and the guards in a double semicircle behind them

Then caht lance, and I watched it narrowly Fro, on the outer edge of which we stood Then followed a slight and al movement of the head I did not understand it, and it was repeated Then I guessed that she lance and I was sure of it--there was danger in standing on the floor Sir Henry was placed on one side of ht before lish, to draly back inch by inch till half their feet were resting on thewhere the brass ceased Sir Henry whispered on to Good and Alphonse, and slowly, very very sloe shi+fted backwards; so slowly that nobody, except Nyleptha and Sorais, who saw everything seeain at Nyleptha, and saw that, by an almost ion's eyes were fixed upon the altar before him apparently in an ecstasy of contemplation, and mine were fixed upon the s up his long ar voice commenced a chant, of which for convenience'

sake I append a rough, a _very_ rough, translation here, though, of course, I did not then co It was an invocation to the Sun, and ran somewhat as follows:--