The voyages and adventures of Fernand Mendez Pinto, a Portugal, during his travels for the space of one and twenty years in the Kingdoms of Ethiopia, China, Tartaria, Cauchinchina, Calaminham, Siam, Pegu, Japan, and a great part of the East-Indiaes with a relation and description of most of the places thereof, their religion, laws, riches, customs, and government in time of peace and war : where he five times suffered shipwrack, was sixteen times sold, and thirteen times made a slave / written originally by himself in the Portugal tongue and dedicated to the Majesty of Philip King of Spain ; done into English by H.C. Gent.

CHAP. LXII. In what manner the Roolim was conducted to the Isle of Mounay, and put into possession of his dignity. (Book 62)

THe new Roolim was conducted from that place in a chair of gold exceeding rich, and set with Pretious Stones, which the principall Lords of the Kingdome carried upon their shoulders; the King in the mean time marched on foot before him, bearing a rich S••ymitar upright in his hand. In this equipage he accompanied him to his Palace, which was gorgeously furnished, and where he was lodged three dayes, during which time the preparations necessary for his entry was made in the Isle of Mounay. Now whilest he abode in the City of Martabano there were many sorts of inventions of great charge made by the Princes, Lord••, and Inhabitants; In two of those feasts the King himself was present in person, with a most sumptuous entertainment, which I shall not describe, because to say the truth I do not know how it did passe. The day be∣ing arrived, wherein the new Roolim, who is (as I have already declared) their Soveraign High Priest, was to make his entry into the Isle of Mounay, the whole Fleet of Seroos, Iangoas, Lauleas, and such other vessells of divers sorts which were upon the river, to the number of two thousand and better, were ranked in two files, some a league and half in length, being the space between the City & the Island; so that of all those vessels joyn∣ed together was formed a street, the fairest that possibly could be seen, for every vessell was covered with boughs full of several dainty fruits, together with all kind of flowers, Tangets, Standards, and banners of silk, each one striving in emulation of another to gain their pretended Jubilee, and a plenary indulgence and absolution of all the robbe∣ries they had formerly committed, without being subject to the restitution of any thing whatsoever. This they did also to be absolved from an infinite of other abuses of their abhominable lives, which I passe by in silence, as a matter unfit for devout ears, but con∣formable to their diabolicall Sects, and the damnable intentions of those which have instituted them, for their whole manner of living is nothing but dissolution and excesse in the lasciviousnesse of the flesh, as in like manner are all other infidells, and arch-here∣tiques. In the Roolims company there were not above thirty Lauleas; who were reple∣nished with a great number of the Nobility; as for him he was in a rich Seroo, seated in a Throne of silver, under a cloth of State of cloth of gold, and the King at his feet, as not being worthy to sit in a more eminent place; round about him were thirty children on their knees attired in Crimson Sattin, with silver Maces on their shoulders, and twelve standing on their feet cloathed with white Damask, having censors in their hands, from whence breathed forth most delicate perfumes. In the rest of the shipping followed two hundred of the most honorable Talagrepos, such as Archbishops and o∣ther Prelates may be amongst us, in the number of whom were also six or seven young Princes, all the Sons of Kings, comprehended. Now because these Vessells were so full of people as one could not row, they had fifteen Lauleas, or little Skiffes, wherein the Supreme religious men of those nine Sects did row, to bring them the sooner to land. In this equipage, and in this order the new Roolim parted from the City of Martabano two hours before day, and continued his course amidst these Vessell••, which made, as I have delivered, a kind of street, and forasmuch as it was not yet day, there were a great number of Lanterns of different fashions placed amongst the boughs. As soon as he be∣gan to set forth, a Canon was shot off three times, at which sign there was such a noyse of Bells, and great Ordnance, as also of divers sorts of very strange Instruments intermingled with the cries and acclamations of the people, as one would have thought that heaven and earth would have come together. When he was arrived at the Kay, where he was to land, he was received with a solemn Procession by certain religious men that live in solitary places, and are called Menigr••pos, which are like to the Capucins in France, whom these Gentiles infinitely respect, by reason of their manner of living, for according to the rule which they observe, they use more abstinence by far then all the rest; These same, being some six or seven thousand in number, were all bare foot, and cloathed with black Mat, to shew their contempt of the world: upon their heads they wore the sculls and bones of dead men, and great cords about their necks, having all their faces dawbed over with dirt, and a writing hanging upon them which contained

these words, Mire, mire, do not cast thine eye on thy basenesse, but on the recompenses which God hath promised to those that vilifie themselves to serve him. When as they were very neer to the Roolim, who received them very affably, they prostrated themselves with their faces down to the ground, and after they had continued so some time, the chiefest amongst them looking on the Roolim, May it please him▪ said he, from whose hand thou hast newly received so great a blessing, as to be the Head of all on the earth, to rend••r thee so good and so holy a man, that all thy works may be as pleasing unto him, as the inno∣cency of children which hold their peace when their mother gives them the dug. Whereunto all the rest answered with a great noyse of confused voices, Permit O Lord Almighty that it may be so. Passing on then, accompanied with this Procession, which the King for the greater honor governed himself, together with some of the principall person∣ages, whom he called unto him for that purpose, he went directly to the place where the dead Roolim lay buried, and being arrived at his Tomb, he fell down flat with his face upon it, then having shed a great many tears, he said with a sad and dolefull voice, as if he had spoken to the deceased, May it please him, who raigns in the beauty of the Stars, to make me deserve the honor to be thy Slave, to the end, that in the house of the Sun, where now thou recreatest thy self, I may serve as a broom to thy feet, for so shall I be made a Diamond of so high a price, as the world, and all the riches thereof together, shall not be able to equall the value of it: whereunto the Grepos answered, God grant it. Thereupon ta∣king a pair of Beads which had belonged to the deceased, and that was upon the Tomb, he put it about his neck as a relique of great worth, giving as an Almes, six Lamps of silver, two Censors, and six or seven pieces of violet coloured Damask. This done, he retired unto his Palace, accompanied still with the King, the Princes, and great Lords of the Kingdome, as also with the Priests that were there assistant, from whom he pre∣sently rid himself, and then from out of the window he threw down upon the Assem∣bly handfulls of Rice, as amongst the Papists they use to cast Holy Water, which all the people received upon their knees, with their hands lifted up. This Ceremony ended, which lasted very neer three hours, they gave three toles with a Bell, upon which Signal the Roolim retired for altogether, and so did the Vessells, and they that came in them, wherein all that day was wholly bestowed. About evening the King took his leave of the Roolim, and returned to the City, making directly the next morning towards Pe∣gu, which was some eighteen leagues from thence, where he arrived the day following two hours within night, without making any entry or shew, to testifie the extreme griefe he was in for the death of the late Roolim, whom it was said, he greatly af∣fected.