sacrament of Confession,
receiuing no rest day nor night, as seruing Gods, who can
not giue it them.
These are the words of
Sheldon (happily brought out of that dark∣nesse,
wherein, and whereof he was a Priest and Minister, to a clearer light) who out
of his owne knowledge addeth;
That it is not imaginable what inconsolable liues,
some, that are frequent in the vse of Confession (as necessary to saluation) do leade:
there is no stonie heart which would not pitty them, knowing their torments.
But lest any man thinke, that some Goquis hath hurled me out of the seate of my hi∣storie,
to fall and split my selfe vpon these Iesuiticall rockes, I will returne to our nar∣ration
of the Iaponites. Diuers of them before their Images in desperate distresse dis∣embowell
themselues in that bloudy manner before mentioned.
To tell
of their Idoll Casunga, of whom they begge riches, Tamondea, Besomon∣des,
Homocondis and Zoiolis: to which foure, their superstitious opinion committeth
so many heauens in custody, Canon and Xixi the sonnes of Xaca, Maristenes, Tirigis,
and others, would be too tedious to report. Organtinus
telleth that whiles on a time
the feast of this last was solemnizing, a showre of stones rained with such violence,
that the company to the number of twenty thousand, betooke them to their heeles.
But Amida is most worne in their lippes; beggers asking and blessing in his name;
chapmen in buying and selling sounding and singing it: the Bonzij promising salua∣tion
to all that inuoke it. Admirable are the Temples
for matter and workmanship
erected to him; one neare Meaco is a hundred and forty elles in length, with a huge
Image of Amida, hauing thirtie Images about it of souldiers, besides Ethiopians and
Deuills, yea windes and thunders figured, and a thousand Images of Canon (on each
side of the Temple fiue hundred) all in like, but monstrous shape, with thirty armes,
two onely holding proportion to his body, the breast adorned with seuen faces; all the
Images and other furniture so glittering with golde, that it dazeleth the beholders
eyes. One Temple is dedicated iust by to a Lizard, (which they make Author and
Patron of learning) without Altar or Image in it. Hee that readeth of the huge works
of Taicosama, holding sometime a hundred thousand workemen in labour at once,
may present to his imagination the incredible buildings which those tyrants, by so
many slauish hands, can raise.
They are very curious and ambitious in setting forth their funeralls; a matter of no
small consequence to the couetous Bonzij, who follow the corpse, if the party were
rich, sometime two hundred in a company singing the praises of that GOD which
the deceased had most worshipped, beating a basen instead of a Bell, till they come
to the fire, where so many rites are performed. I should doe you wrong
to relate
them, hauing beene redious in the rest. Onely after so much wickednesse of men, let
vs adde somewhat of the admirable workes of GOD in Iapon.
On the two and twenty day of Iuly in the yeare 1596. it rained ashes round about
Meaco, couering the ground as if it had beene snow. Soone after it rained both there
and in other places, as it had beene womens haire. And not long after followed an
Earthquake that hurled downe Temples and Pallaces, which with their ruines destroi∣ed
thousands: six hundred gilded images in the temple of Ianzusangue were cast down,
and broken in peeces, as many remaining whole. It brought vp the Sea a great way
vpon the maine land, which is carried backe with it into the Sea, not leauing menti∣on
that there had beene land. So was the Citie Ochinofama swallowed, Famaoqui,
Ecuro, Fingo, Cascicanaro, the neighbour-townes, attended her in this new voyage,
and became Sea. The shippes in the hauen found no more securitie, but were also de∣uoured.
The like happened in the yeare of our LORD 1586. to Nagafama, a place
frequented with merchants, which the Sea before had enriched, then with an Earth∣quake
deuoured, the earth in many places opening such wide mouthes, that a ealli∣uer-shot
could scarce reach from the one side to the other, bleching out of that yaw∣ning
passage such a ••••in••e, as none were able to pa••e ••y. •••••• one∣ly
shook with seare, but bellowed out such roaring cries vnder that blow of their Cre∣ators
hands, as did make the accident more dreadfull. Yet was all •••••• forgotten,