example or any of their precepts. In this only the present system differs chiefly as containing more illustrations.

Their belief that there is nothing amiss in the spirit itself; that all that is wrong is its connection with flesh; that knowledge and devotion only are necessary to its liberation; and that these are to be obtained by the use of merely human means, militates strongly against the doctrine of the soul's depravity, the need of regeneration, and of the aid of the divine spirit to effect it. These essential doctrines of Christianity will be long resisted, and it will be after long and painful struggles, and not without the application of an energy that is more than human, that the Vedantist will be brought to confess his sinfulness and helplessness, and to implore the mercy of God. to pardon, and the influence of the Spirit to sanctify.

The doctrine that the soul of man, is not the work or creature of God, but an essential part of himself, stands in strong opposition to the Scripture doctrine of creation and of Christian humility. Here are the ipsissima verba of Vyása himself;"The soul is a portion of the supreme ruler, as a spark is of fire. The relation is not as that of master and servant, ruler and ruled, but as that of whole and part." If a man believes himself to be an essential part of God, where is the ground for humility? No; he rises up and determines to conquer the body or matter that separates him from his original source, and thus to mingle again and be lost in the ocean of Being. How opposed is this to confessing himself a creature of God, and a guilty sinner, deserving of everlasting punishment!

The doctrine of pantheism taught by the Vedant militates strongly against the Christian doctrine of repentance and reformation. If God is in every thing, or, more strictly, is every thing, moving all that is moving and fixing all that is fixed; if he impels us to all we do as the gáyatrí teaches;-then, where is the ground for repentance? As creatures we are bound to acquiesce in the divine will; but if not creatures, but parts of himself, how shall the parts find fault with the whole, and repent of what he does? And what motive is there for reformation in any case, when it is believed that every one, good and bad, acts only as God acts in him?

The doctrine of salvation by knowledge through works forms a strong barrier against the doctrine of salvation by grace through faith. The Vedant like every other false system teaches that man can save himself, that if he attains a knowledge of God, that will be his liberation-and that this knowledge he can acquire by the use of certain means. How sad to be told that knowledge is all in vain, that he must be saved by

another and not by himself, and that salvation is not of works lest any man should boast. In this, however, Vedantism is opposed to Christianity only in the same way as Muhammadanism, Popery and Puseyism are.

The severe austerities required by the Vedant system make its adherents look with contempt on the mild system of the gospel. To make the soul fit to receive emancipation, according to the genuine unadulterated doctrines of Vedantism, the body must be reduced, the world must be literally abandoned, and the soul must struggle its way upwards towards the deity. But the gospel teaches a man to use the world and not to abuse it, to live in it and yet prepare for heaven better than those who live in the woods. This to the Vedantist, ignorant as he is of the power of Divine grace, appears more impossible than if you were to tell him that he could constantly remain immersed in the water and yet live and breathe.

The evil effects of the system, if overcome by the reception of the gospel in some cases, will yet, being only partially eradicated, be long left as evils to the Christian Church. We must not think that all the work is done when Vedantism is abandoned in favour of Christianity; but must recollect that the notions so long imbibed will be practically overcome only by degrees. The idea that God is in all or is all, will still cling to the mind and lead it to form many an excuse for sin, for neglect of duty, and the want of vigorous exertion. There will always be danger of these men corrupting the gospel. Such are some of the special obstacles which Vedantism offers to Christianity as far as they have come under our observation.

VI. How to combat Vedantism and to convince its adherents of the truth of Christianity. A few brief hints on this copious theme is all that we can aim at supplying.

We cannot undertake to state what is the best method of combating Vedantism, but it appears to us that it may be fairly objected to, on the following, amongst other grounds.

On the ground of its time. This is nothing to us but much to the Hindús. It was the production of the Káli-yog. Now as the Jews said, can any good thing come out of Nazareth, so the Hindús say, can any good come out of the Káli-yog. If this argument answers no other purpose, it will at least be turning one of their sharpest weapons against themselves, and shew how vainly they argue against Christianity as the product of the iron age.

On the ground of its object. The immediate object of this system, according to one of its principal standards, the Bhagavat Gíta, was the encouragement of the most bloody war that was

known; a hundred times more bloody than the battle of Waterloo. Arjun the hero looked with horror on the scene, and begged the incarnate God to allow him to desist, but in order to urge him on in it, as the means of fulfilling the Divine Will, Krishna made to him a full discovery of this Vedant system.

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On the ground of its statements. The Vedant system, in its original authorities, has its singular theories in physics as well as metaphysics. The former, however, being of a more palpable character, may be brought more summarily to some recognized test. Here, then, is the theory of the great Vyása himself, on a subject intimately connected with physiology: "When nourishment is received into the corporeal frame, it undergoes a threefold distribution, according to its fineness or coarseness: corn and other terrene food becomes flesh; but the coarser particles are rejected, and the finer nourishes the mind! Water is converted into blood; the coarser particles are rejected as urine; the former supports the breath! Oil or other combustible substance, deemed igneous, becomes marrow; the coarser part is deposited as bone, and the finer supplies the faculty of speech!" Again, the same author declares that " hundred and one arteries issue from the heart, one of which passes to the crown of the head." It is along this artery that the liberated soul, whose "proper abode is the heart," makes its escape. From the crown of the head it passes along a sunbeam, through various regions to the sun. Thence it proceeds to the moon, which, according to Vyása, is far beyond the sun! If it is to be rewarded with final absorption, it advances from the moon to "the region of lightning," which is far beyond the moon. Thence again to "the realm of Varuna, the region of water, for lightning and thunder are beneath the rain-cloud, and aqueous region"-and all of these far beyond the moon, which itself again is as far beyond the sun!" At length it arrives by the realm of Indra-at the abode of Prajapati or Brahm." But if the soul has not merit enough to earn final absorption, it must stop short, subject to transmigration, at one or other of the intermediate regions, generally that of the moon. There," clothed with an aqueous form, it experiences the recompense of its works; and thence it returns to occupy a new body with resulting influence of its former deeds. The returning soul quits its watery frame in the lunar orb, and passes successively and rapidly through ether, air, vapour, mist and cloud, into rain; and thus finds its way into a vegetating plant, and thence, through the medium of nourishment, into an animal embryo!" Once more, the system itself sets forth, that a man by attending to the rules of abstraction and penance, will

obtain final emancipation; then, some of its authorities assert, that, if the sun be on the south side of the equator when he dies, he will not. All the explanation we have been able to get from the Pandits of this, is, that it is impossible for such a man to die when the sun is on the south side of the equator!

On the ground of its duplicity. It theoretically pours the utmost contempt on idols-on works-and on the heaven they secure; and yet gives practical rules, for the worship of these idols, the performance of these works, and the securing of this heaven, to those who have no heart to seek after any thing better.

On the ground of want of evidence of its inspiration or Divine authority. Of such evidence there is not a single shred, or any thing that bears the remotest semblance of a shred, in existence.

On the ground of its changeableness. Its author appears first to have been an idolator; then a deist and absorptionist; and finally, as appears from the Bhagavat which contains the sentiments of his old age, he appears to have renounced the doctrine of absorption in the deity and to have formed the opinion that it was infinitely better, in the society of Yogis, to dwell near to God and enjoy his favour. As its author, so its adherents are continually changing and making alterations in their system, both by way of addition and subtraction, so as to reduce the whole to a mass of fluctuating, heterogeneous, and selfcontradictory materials.

On the ground of its peculiar dogmas. Of these the leading ones have already been noticed; and it is needless to repeat how repugnant they are to reason and conscience-how derogatory to the character of God-and how subversive of the best interests and hopes of man.

The following are some of the arguments which might be used to convince its adherents of the truth of Christianity :On the ground of mere reason, the External Evidences of Christianity may be urged on all really educated Vedantists, with resistless, or, at any rate, unanswerable effect.

Having pointed out their desolate view of the divine character, next show how beautiful God appears in the Scriptures, as a God of Love, and of compassion to the guilty. Perhaps there is no attribute of the Divine Being, more likely to touch the heart than that of his love.

Having shewn their want of a moral standard by which actions are to be tried, shew the excellency of the Decalogue, particularly as explained by our Lord. Ram Mohun Roy felt that in this at least Christianity was superior to Vedantism. If willing to take this, shew them that they must take the whole. After having shewn that man is a sinner, and that the Vedant

system furnishes no adequate atonement for sin, shew that the Christian system furnishes one as great as our sins, and as extensive as our wants;-an atonement by which God can consistently with his holiness, justice and righteous government, forgive the sins of the greatest offender, and grant him grace to walk in newness of life. How superior to imperfect works!

After pointing out in what way their system fills the mind with pride and arrogance, shew how the Christian system promotes the deepest humility, by leading us to consider ourselves not as gods, but as creatures-insignificant creatures, sinful, helpless and miserable creatures; and by presenting to us the bright example of him who, though he thought it not robbery to be equal with God, yet made himself of no reputation.

After having shewn how devoid their system is of motives, point out the powerful motives of the Gospel ;-a God to glorify, a soul to save, a Saviour to honor, a neighbour to profit, a hell to avoid, a heaven to obtain, and grace promised for the accomplishment of all these great objects.

After proving how destitute their system leaves the soul of comfort in trouble and in death, point out the great consolations of the Gospel. Here all things work for good, and fit for a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.

Having shown how absurd the notion is of being absorbed, and losing the consciousness of existence, even if it could be attained, point out the superior state of immortality and eternal life in the presence of that God in whose presence there is life, and at whose right hand there are pleasures for ever more.

Having directed them to their unsocial and cruel mode of seeking absorption, shew them that the yoke of Christ is easy, and His burden is light. The end is glorious and the way plain and easy. Not that the Gospel exempts from self-denial, mortification of the flesh, and deadness to the world; but teaches how to attend to these without literally abandoning the world, and, while attending to them, to look forward to the recompense of reward.

Such are some of the arguments by which a Vedantist may be encountered, and if they are urged with calmness and affection, there is reason to believe they will not be entirely without effect.

Why should subjects-subjects, fraught with such tremendous importance for weal or for woe-ever be taken up in the spirit of mere partizanship, or narrow-minded sectarianism? It is not surely of the nature of a game, which one may take up for sport, or exercise, or the display of dexterity. The arguments of particular men, on the one side or on the other, may be feeble and futile, and yet this may indicate nothing as to the