When these fireworks are finished,there enter many triumphal cars which belong to the captains,some of them sent by those captains who are waging war in foreign parts;and they enter thus.The first belongs to Salvatinica,and they come in one after the other.Some of the cars appear covered with many rich cloths,having on them many devices of dancing-girls and other human figures;there are other cars having tiers one on top of another,and others all of one kind;and so in their order they pass to where the king is.When the cars have gone out they are immediately followed by many horses covered with trappings and cloths of very fine stuff of the king's colours,and with many roses and flowers on their heads and necks,and with their bridles all gilded;and in front of these horses goes a horse with two state-umbrellas of the king,and with grander decorations than the others,and one of the lesser equerries leads it by the bridle.In front of this horse goes another caracoling and prancing,as do all horses here,being trained in that art.You must know that this horse that is conducted with all this state is a horse that the king keeps,on which they are sworn and received as kings,and on it must be sworn all those that shall come after them;and in case such a horse dies they put another in its place.If any king does not wish to be sworn on horseback,they swear him on an elephant,which they keep and treat with equal dignity.
These horses,then,going in the way I have stated,pass twice round the arena and place themselves in the middle of the arena in five or six lines,one before the other,and the king's horse in front of them,all facing the king;they stand in such a way that between them and the men there is an open space all round.As soon as they are arranged in this way and are all quiet there goes out from the inside of the palace a Brahman,the highest in rank of those about the king,and two others with him,and this chief Brahman carries in his hands a bowl with a cocoanut and some rice and flowers,while others carry a pot of water;and they pass round by the back of the horses,which all stand facing the king;and after performing his ceremonies there,he returns to the palace.
After this is over you will see issuing from inside twenty-five or thirty female doorkeepers,with canes in their hands and whips on their shoulders;and then close to these come many eunuchs,and after these eunuchs come many women playing many trumpets and drums and pipes (but not like ours)and viols,and many other kinds of music,and behind these women will come some twenty women-porters,with canes in their hands all covered with silver,and close to them come women clothed in the following manner.They have very rich and fine silk cloths;on the head they wear high caps which they call COLLAES,[448]and on these caps they wear flowers made of large pearls;collars on the neck with jewels of gold very richly set with many emeralds and diamonds and rubies and pearls;and besides this many strings of pearls,and others for shoulder-belts;on the lower part of the arms many bracelets,with half of the upper arm all bare,having armlets in the same way all of precious stones;on the waist many girdles of gold and of precious stones,which girdles hang in order one below the other,almost as far down as half the thigh;besides these belts they have other jewels,and many strings of pearls round the ankles,for they wear very rich anklets even of greater value than the rest.They carry in their hands vessels of gold each as large as a small cask of water;inside these are some loops made of pearls fastened with wax,and inside all this a lighted lamp.They come in regular order one before the other,in all perhaps sixty women fair and young,from sixteen to twenty years of age.Who is he that could tell of the costliness and the value of what each of these women carries on her person?So great is the weight of the bracelets and gold and jewels carried by them that many of them cannot support them,and women accompany them assisting them by supporting their arms.In this manner and in this array they proceed three times round the horses,and at the end retire into the palace.These women are maids of honour to the queens,and so are the others that go with them;on each day of these nine days of the feast one of the queens sends,each on her own day,her ladies with the others.The officials,in honour of the feast,have the days divided between them in accordance with their custom as already arranged by the king;and these women come every day most richly attired,taking pleasure in strewing themselves in such things,and in ****** a display each one of what she possesses.
When these women retire the horses also go,and then come the elephants,and after ****** their salaam they too retire.As soon as they are gone the king retires by a small door which is at the end of the building.Then the Brahmans go and take an idol,and carry it to the House of Victory,where is the room of cloth that I have spoken of;and the king at once comes from within,and goes to where the idol is,and offers his prayers and performs his ceremonies.Then they bring there more buffaloes and sheep,and kill them in the same way as before,and then come the professional women to dance.As soon as the slaughter of the buffaloes and sheep is over the king retires,and goes to his supper;for he fasts all these nine days,and (each day)they eat nothing until all is finished,and their hour for food is midnight.The bayaderes remain dancing before the idol a long time after all this is done.
In this way are celebrated these festivals of nine days;on the last day there are slaughtered two hundred and fifty buffaloes and four thousand five hundred sheep.
